The big headlining feature of the iPhone 5S is believed to be the fingerprint sensor underneath the home button, which could necessitate a new, icon-less sapphire home button. But could problems with the new technology make for a muted iPhone 5S launch?
Could The iPhone 5S Come In Gold? [Rumor]
At first, the iPhone came in just one color, like a Model-T: black. By the time the iPhone 3G came out, though, the iPhone settled into a two-tone color scheme: classic black, and equally classic white.
But this seems like the year that Apple experiments with color. Not only is it widely accepted that Apple will release a colorful budget iPhone this year, probably called the iPhone 5C, but it looks like Apple might add one more color to the classic iPhone line-up: gold.
Utter Stupidity: The iPhone 5S Will Be Delayed Because Of 4.3-Inch Display [“Rumor”]
Here’s a dumb rumor. According to a new report out of the East, the iPhone 5S is being delayed because Apple, at the last minute, decided to phase out the current 4-inch display for a 4.3-inch one.
Panasonic Planning “Rangefinder” Style Micro Four Thirds Camera With Built-In Viewfinder
You gotta love the destruction of the point-and-shoot camera industry at the hands of the cellphone. After years of trying to woo us with more and more hard-drive-filling megapixels, camera makers are finally being forced to give us what we actually want. And it doesn’t hurt that these features are exactly those things that are difficult to put into phones: Big sensors and – now – viewfinders.
The latest convert looks like it’ll be Panasonic, with the newly-leaked GX7.
This Might Be The First Photo Of The iPhone 5S Display On An Assembly Line
G4Games has posted a photo from the Chinese blogging site Weibo which allegedly shows the iPhone 5S front display on an assembly line.
We’ve seen a few pictures of the iPhone 5S front display, but until now, no one has seen these parts actually on an assembly line.
While the pictures are surely a sign Apple is making progress on the manufacturing end of the iPhone 5S, that does not guarantee iPhone 5S launch is coming within the next few weeks. It takes months of lead time to make enough iPhones for a launch, so we have no reason to expect an earlier iPhone launch than the currently rumored timeframe of this Fall.
Source: G4Games
The ‘Budget’ iPhone Is Rounder, Slightly Thicker Than The iPhone 5 [Image]
With the iPhone 5S shaping up to be pretty much an identical device to last year’s iPhone 5 except a marginally faster processor and (fingers crossed!) some cool new fingerprint sensor technology, eyes are on the so-called “budget iPhone” as 2013’s new hotness.
Although the ‘budget iPhone’ will address the mid-market, it’s still an exciting device, rumored to be the first iPhone to come in an iPod-palette of colors. Otherwise, though, we don’t know a lot about what it looks like.
Far East case makers might, though. MGM Corporation, an Asian casemaker, has posted a first look at a case for the budget iPhone. It doesn’t show much, except that the budget iPhone is about 2mm thicker than the iPhone 5, and has rounded corners instead of the iPhone 5’s square shape.
Here’s some video, showing it from all sides.
Samsung Is Making The Retina iPad Mini’s Display [Rumor]
If Apple is going to update the iPad mini with a Retina Display a year after it’s debut, they need to get cracking on sourcing the 2,048 x 1,536 resolution, 7.9-inch displays that will drive them. Now a new rumor suggests that Apple has contracted good ol’ frenemy Samsung to make them for them.
Foxconn Is Already Making iWatches, And They Have OLED Displays [Rumor]
Apple doesn’t like OLED displays. Across the board, Apple uses LCD IPS displays in its devices, which have better color accuracy than OLED. Theoretically, though, OLED is better than LCD when it comes to power consumption, though… which is why a new report is floating the possibility that Apple might switch to OLED for the iWatch… and that Foxconn is already building test runs.
Apple Will Make A Phablet In 2014, And It Will Be The iPhone 6 [Analyst]
In Apple’s latest earnings call, CEO Tim Cook was suddenly equivocal about whether or not Apple would do an iPhone with a larger display.
“Our competitors have made some significant tradeoffs in many of these areas to ship a larger display,” Cook said on the earnings call. “We would not ship a larger display iPhone while these tradeoffs exist.”
What that hints is Apple doesn’t have a larger screen iPhone in its pipeline yet, but they’re working on one, without any of the tradeoffs of the competition. (What these tradeoffs actually are in Apple’s mind are anyone’s guess.)
A new analyst report suggests that this larger screen iPhone will be the iPhone 6, and it will land in summer of 2014. This year, we’ll just have to deal with an iPhone 5S in a bevy of peacock fan of different color options.
5th Gen iPad’s Front Panel Gets Pictured With Thinner Bezel
Rumor has it that Apple’s fifth-generation iPad — expected to launch later this year — will boast a new form factor much like the iPad mini’s, with thinner bezels down each side of its display. The first evidence we have to prove those claims has surfaced today in the form of a leaked front panel.
Apple Working On Physical Game Controller For iOS Devices [Updated]
iOS is the most popular gaming platform in existence, and Apple has managed to create an incredible ecosystem of titles with only iOS devices. The company sells no actual controllers or joypads; everything is touch-based.
So does it make sense for Apple to make a physical game controller that somehow connects to your iPhone and iPad? According to a new report, the answer is yes.
Apple Asked Swatch For Info On Creating Kinetic Batteries, Possibly For iWatch Project
Not everyone is convinced that Apple’s iWatch would be a success, and you can add Swatch’s CEO, Nick Hayek, to the pile of detractors.
Hayek says that he doesn’t think the iWatch will be a revolutionary device, because your wrist can’t handle a display big enough to interact with. But despite Hayek’s aversion to the iWatch, Apple’s reached out to him over the years for help on materials and watch batteries.
Fingerprint-Detecting iPhone 5S To Release In July, New $99 iPhone 5 Will Come In Multiple Colors & New Casing [Analyst]
Unlike some bozos we could mention, KGI Securities Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo gets it right more often than not. He got the iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, Retina MacBook Pro, MacBook Air and new iPod touch right.
Now he’s making another prediction: that Apple will unveil a new iPhone 5S with a better camera and color-shifting flash, as well as iOS 7, at WWDC in June for a July release. Also? A colorful iPhone 5 will become Apple’s new $99 iPhone.
What If Apple Ripped Samsung Off For The iPhone 6? [Gallery]
There are a lot of crazy rumors floating around out there about the iPhone 6. It might boast a huge screen, come in different colors, have a polycarbonate body, and maybe even a fingerprint sensor. If you believe even half of those rumors, then this might be Apple’s craziest iPhone yet.
Most of the rumors will probably be proven false, but what if Apple decided to go down a crazy path and actually rip off Samsung’s smartphones? Well, one concept artist decided to dream it up.
Apple Working On Polycarbonate 4.5-Inch iPhone For 2014 [Rumor]
Apple is working on a 4.5-inch iPhone with a polycarbonate body, according to a new report from Japanese publication Macotakara. The device has reportedly been “postponed” for a 2014 release.
Apple’s Suppliers Have Started Mass Producing iPad Mini 2 Retina Displays [Rumor]
The iPad mini would be perfect, if only it had a Retina display. Many have assumed that Apple will bump up the specs on the iPad mini display this year, but other than a rear shell, we haven’t seen any solid hardware leaks yet.
According to a new report though, Apple is definitely going to add a Retina display to the iPad mini this year. In fact, they’ve ordered the initial units, and mass production of the mini Retina displays has already begun in full force.
Do New Apple Engineers Really Have To Work On Fake Projects?
There’s a belief that Apple makes new engineers work on fake products until they can be trusted. According one of the company’s former employees, Adam Lashinsky, who published the book Inside Apple last January, the Cupertino company hires people into so-called “dummy positions” until it’s confident that they can be a part of upcoming products without leaking information.
But how accurate are those claims? We know Apple takes secrecy very seriously, but would it really waste time and money on giving people fake projects just to ensure they won’t squeal?
Almost certainly not.
How An Apple Rumor Can Swing A Failing TV Maker’s Stock Value
You probably haven’t heard of a German company called Loewe. The high-end TV maker hasn’t done so well at selling ultra-expensive HDTVs as of late, and its peripheral business isn’t doing so hot either.
It’s amazing to see how Apple can affect the stock value of another company. After a debunked report from last year claimed that Apple was planning to buy Loewe, yet another acquisition rumor has sent Loewe’s stock soaring to new heights. And just like the first time, the situation is all smoke and no fire.
Apple Will Hold An Apple TV-Related Event In March [Rumor]
Along with making ridiculous predictions like the impending arrival of an iTV, analysts have now taken to predicting when Apple will hold their next keynotes.
If you believe Peter Misek from Jefferies, then Apple is going to hold an Apple TV-related event in March, but there probably won’t be any new hardware on display, just software.
Apple Has Around 100 Product Designers Working On The iWatch [Report]
Rumors have started to pick up regarding Apple’s foray into wearable technology. Over the weekend, both The New York Times and Wall Street Journal reported that Apple is working on an ‘iWatch’ product.
Now a third report on the mysterious device has surfaced, and it speaks to the level of focus Apple is giving the top secret project.
Apple Set To Release iPhone 5S and 5-Inch iPhone 6 In 2013 [Rumor]
According to a source that posted on a Chinese microblogging site, the iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 have been spotted at Apple suppliers in China. Both models could release in 2013, said the source, named Old Yao on the site.
The source also notes that the iPhone 5S looks a lot like the iPhone 5, while the five-inch iPhone 6 is even lighter and thinner than that.
It’s good to take all rumors with a big grain of salt or two, of course, but this one is both exciting and plausible, even without any photos.
Source: Sina Tech
HBO Coming To The Apple TV Later This Year [Report]
Amid rumors that Apple is in negotiations with cable and content providers for a TV streaming service, a new report claims that HBO will come to the existing Apple TV set-top box later this year.
Apple and HBO are reportedly in negotiations to make the premium channel a dedicated app on the Apple TV, like Netflix and Hulu Plus. The experience would be like that of the HBO Go app that currently exists in the iOS App Store.
Apple’s Budget iPhone Will Be An iPhone 5 In Front, An iPod Classic In Back [Rumor]
Following up on their earlier reports about the cheaper iPhone, iLounge’s Jeremy Horowitz has followed up with details about what the rumored “budget” iPhone would look like: basically, just like an iPhone 5, but with a largely plastic casing and the rounded corners of an iPod classic.
Apple Prepping Two New 4-inch iPhones For 2013, But What About The Math? [Rumor]
Over the weekend, a rumor from overseas claimed that Apple will announce a 4.8-inch iPhone “Math” alongside a 4-inch iPhone 5S. But it didn’t stop there; the same sources also said that a third iPhone model with a 12-megapixel camera is set to debut “before Christmas” this year. Sounds farfetched, to say the least.
What seems like a good bet for Apple’s 2013 iPhone plans is the prospect of a less expensive model geared towards emerging markets like China. According to a new rumor today, Apple is readying two 4-inch iPhones for 2013 with in-cell display technology. But what about the iPhone Math?
WSJ: Apple To Introduce Cheaper iPhone Later This Year [Report]
This morning we told you about the Digitimes report that said Apple is planning to release a low-cost iPhone for emerging markets later this year. Now The Wall Street Journal is corroborating by saying “the device could come as soon as late 2013.”