iPhone 6 - page 20

With the next-gen USB 3.1 standard now heading into production, the USB connectors of the future will be a lot more like Lightning. Featuring small, reversible connectors, the new USB Type-C cable will be particularly well suited to syncing and charging smartphones and tablets… again, just like Lightning.

But new images said to come from within Foxconn show that Apple isn’t done innovating with Lightning just yet, and that we won’t have to wait until USB Type-C to become ubiquitous to have fully-reversible USB Lightning cables. The shots are purportedly of a fully-reversible USB connector for Apple’s next Lightning cable. In other words, instead of having to plug the Lightning cable into your computer in one specific orientation, you could do it either way.

The official iPhone 6 unveiling is less than four weeks away, but according a Wall Street Journal report, Apple is still debating whether it should limit its new Sapphire crystal displays to only the high-end models.

Production of Sapphire screens at Apple’s factory in Mesa is nearly up and running, and will produce twice as much sapphire as the current global output, but the company is still struggling to get enough material for the fall launch of the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhone 6s this fall and might only add it to the most expensive models.

Apple is livid that a Thai government official spilled the beans on its pending launch of two new iPhone models and requested a meeting with officials at the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) to talk about a little thing called doubling down on secrecy.

Reports from Thailand indicate Apple’s top exec from South Asia met with NBTC secretary Takorn Tantasith to discuss his uncharacteristic disclosure of the two iPhone 6 models, but also told him Apple might not even name their next smartphone “iPhone 6.”

Adding to the pile of leaked iPhone 6 parts ahead of next month’s great unveiling, a new photo from China has given us our first look at a fully assembled iPhone 6 logic board and some of the new components Apple will add to the smartphone this year.

The idea that the forthcoming iPhone 6 (expected to be unveiled September 9) is the most anticipated refresh of Apple’s smartphone in ages was given further credibility by a recent survey by financial firm R.W. Baird.

Quizzing 1,000 residents surveyed in July, 6.8 percent of respondees said that they planned to buy the iPhone 6 without ever having laid eyes on it. This number is up from the 4.4 percent who answered that same way back in February.

The firm also notes that this intent to purchase is higher than the number of people who said they would buy the iPhone 5s after it had already been announced.

A new report coming of China suggests that the eagerly-anticipated iPhone 6 is currently in the PVT (Product Validation Test) stage of production. During this stage, the assembly line runs at full speed to produce a small number of finished units for quality assurance purposes. If any issues are highlighted at this stage, the production line can be adjusted to ensure that all faults are ironed out by the time mass production begins.

If there are no faults highlighted, Foxconn can begin work producing the “unprecedented” numbers of iPhone 6 units for Apple, ready for its expected September 9 unveiling.

Martin Hajek usually puts his considerable 3-D rendering skills to the task of creating conceptual models of Apple’s upcoming hardware. But after producing his highly-accurate rendering of the iPhone 6 last week, the Dutch artist has tried his hand at something a bit different: imagining a new kind of retail packaging for Apple’s next smartphone, as well as what the iPhone 6 will look like when it’s on display at your local Apple Store.

We’ve already seen two new iPhone part leaks out coming out of China this morning, but to complete today’s hat trick a new set of images show that Apple could be looking to make some serious improvements to the iPhone’s True Tone flash module.

Several new iPhone 6 parts have been leaked according to Nowhereelse.fr, among which is an alleged iPhone 6 flex cable that shows Apple has created a round True Tone flash module.

Aside from the larger phablet-sized display, one of the most visually obvious changes we’d heard about for the iPhone 6 was the possibility that the cutout Apple logo on its rear would enable LED-powered user notifications, or MacBook-style illumination.

Well, that may not be happening after all, according to newly leaked images from Taiwanese Apple blog AppleClub. The website has posted what appears to be a stack of Apple logos, ready to be fitted to the back panel of the next generation iPhone, featuring nothing in the way of LEDs or connectors.

The person who posted the image also confirms that the logo is not planned to emit light as previously speculated about.

Over the weekend, UK newspaper The Mirror published a series of photos which they claim is a working unit of Apple’s 4.7-inch iPhone 6, complete with retail box.

“There’s no 100% proof that the photos are authentic, but the details on show line up with the dozens of details already seeping onto the web about the next generation Apple handset,” the paper said.

Saying that the photos may not be 100% authentic is quite the overstatement. In fact, considering the fact that iOS 8’s biggest new app — Healthbook — is entirely missing from the screen, we’re going to say we’re about 100% sure that The Mirror got had.

More photos after the jump. What do you think?

Another day, another apparent leak of the forthcoming iPhone 6, expected to be unveiled by Apple on September 9.

The photos appeared on the Taiwanese website AppleClub, and look to show the exterior and interior of the 4.7-inch iPhone’s front panel.

Although they don’t offer us anything revelatory that we’ve not seen before in grainy leaked-photo detail, they do does further give us one of the clearest looks yet at some of the changes we’re expecting to see with the next generation Apple handset: namely a larger display and rounded edges.

Despite its role as a manufacturer for the eagerly-anticipated iPhone 6, Apple manufacturer Foxconn has announced July as being responsible for its lowest monthly earnings since March 2013.

Surprisingly this comes not long after Foxconn posted record earnings of $131.82 billion for 2013, while company chairman Terry Gou claimed that this year’s earnings would be even greater. Nonetheless the company’s consolidated revenues of just (!) $8.66 billion for the month of July represents a decrease of 17.91 percent on month, and 13.3 percent year-on-year.

So what’s responsible for the drop?

This week: iThieves, beware—Find My iPhone is now a tool for vigilante justice; iPhone 6 release date is leaked; we reveal our favorite must-have apps for Mac and iOS; why the next iPhone could ship standard with 32GB; and we wrap’er up with all-new Get To Know Your Cultist: movie edition!

Snicker your way through each week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the chuckles begin.

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Show notes ahead.

The iPhone 6 seems to get nearer and nearer each week as Apple fanboys and other tech enthusiasts await an official reveal date with mounting anxiety, but the age of the iPhone 6 might finally be close at hand. A year’s worth of leaks, rumors, and theories regarding the iPhone 6 are finally about to be put to rest, thanks to sources who revealed this week exactly when we can expect Apple to reveal their next generation iPhone.

Watch today’s Cult of Mac news roundup for all the details on the rumored iPhone 6 keynote date, as well as iOS 8 beta 5 details, and even why one piece of technology has Kanye West filing lawsuits like his name’s Johnnie Cochran.

Of course, don’t forget to subscribe to Cult of Mac TV on YouTube and catch all our latest videos.

Sporting a larger screen size, case redesign and various under-the-hood improvements, the iPhone 6 is widely expected to be the biggest refresh of Apple’s smartphone in years. That anticipation is having a major knock-on effect with Apple’s component makers, too.

We reported last month that Apple has placed an unprecedented number of orders for the iPhone 6, and that seems to be backed up by recently announced July sales for Taiwan-based Apple casing supplier Catcher Technology.

Based on growth in the Apple-driven smartphone sector, the company had its second best month in history, with monthly earnings of $154.6 million. This marks a whopping 36.8 percent increase compared to the same month in 2013.

A new set of leaked iPhone 6 photos from luxury iPhone upgraders Feld & Volk reveal that Apple’s next handset may come with recessed volume buttons, a protruding camera lens, and an embeddable Apple logo that might be made of Liquidmetal.

The iPhone 6 is expected to be unveiled next month, but a plethora of leaks flooding out of Shenzhen have already given fanboys an idea what to expect, and these new photos add a few more pieces to the puzzle with details on how Apple will slim the profile of the device and make your shiny Apple logo scratch-resistant.

Take a look at the allegedly leaked parts below:

We think we know a lot about the iPhone 6. How big the display is (4.7-inches and 5.5-inches). How thin it will be (really thin).What kind of processor it will be packing (an A8). And when it will be unveiled (September 9th). But do we know everything?

VentureBeat doesn’t think so. The well-respected publication says that a well-informed source has confirmed to them that in addition to all of the above, the iPhone 6 will feature 802.11ac Wi-Fi, NFC capabilities, a non-sapphire screen, and a 2.0GHz A8 processor.

Conceptual designer Martin Hajek has no peer when it comes to turning the latest Apple rumors into blisteringly sexy 3-D renders, and with the iPhone 6 just around the corner, he’s already made a number of mockups imagining what it will look like according to the latest rumors.

But with the iPhone 6 now set to be unveiled on September 9th, Martin Hajek has re-examined all of his old renders and every rumor and part leak for the iPhone 6 so far, to come up with the most realistic and accurate iPhone 6 renders yet, right down to a gorgeous exploded view of what all the components look like inside.

If the real iPhone 6 looks even half this good, it’ll be one of the most beautiful consumer objects ever released. Check out some more renders after the jump, and prepare to be absolutely astounded.

Battery life is one of the perceived iPhone weaknesses that rival manufacturers have often used to beat Apple over the head with — with both Samsung and BlackBerry dismissing iPhone owners as “wall huggers” because of the so-called short battery life of their iOS devices.

That may be about to change, however, with ESM-China analyst Sung Chang Xu (the same person who suggested that the iPhone 6 would come with a range of new sensors) claiming that the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 will sport a battery with a 2,100 mAh capacity, instead of the meagre 1,810 mAh unit previously reported.

Months of leaks and hundreds of rumors are finally set to culminate with the official unveiling of the iPhone 6, and according to Re/code we’re only a month away from the big day.

While the world is eagerly awaiting Apple’s next generation iPhone 6, a new report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims that both the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch models Apple is expected to release may be pushed back due to production issues.

According to Kuo, Apple’s manufacturers are suffering delays related to the devices’ in-cell touch panel production, and also low-yield casing and chassis problems.

Ever since the iPhone 3GS was first released back in 2009, new iPhones have shipped in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB flavors, priced $199, $299, and $399, respectively.

But 16GB doesn’t get you very far these days, and although iOS 8 will help users out with cheaper iCloud storage, smartphones like the Amazon Fire are shipping with 32GB of storage these days, minimum.

Could Apple follow suit? According to industry experts, it’s very, very possible.

We all know that in China, clones of the latest iPhone go on sale long before Apple actually starts selling them. But what’s it actually like to own an iPhone 6 knockoff before the iPhone 6 is even available?

This week: now with over 300,000 followers, we welcome back professional Instagram’er Cory @WithHearts Staudacher to share his iPhone photo editing tips and reveal which camera apps he relies on daily. Also on the docket: why our cities deserve municipal internet; unlocking your iPhone gets legal (again); great changes on the horizon for Apple’s Podcasts app; and our musings on the freshly-updated 13 and 15-inch MacBook Pros.

Kick back and relax whilst we amuse you with each week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the chuckles begin.

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