Samsung - page 18

Italy investigates Apple and Samsung for slowing down phones

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iPhone
This is the first time Samsung has been called into question for slowing down its handsets.
Photo: Apple

Italy is the latest country to throw its hat into the ring when it comes to investigating Apple for its purposeful slowing down of older iPhone devices.

In doing so, it joins countries including BrazilSouth Korea, China and France, which have all questioned Apple about its iPhone-throttling software update. In a new twist, however, Italy is also investigating Apple rival Samsung.

Samsung faces even more challengers for iPhone OLED orders

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iphone x
LG, Japan Display, and Sharp all went to get their own OLED orders from Apple.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Samsung may currently be the only company to build OLED displays for the iPhone, but it faces a growing number of challengers going forward, a new report claims.

Not only is LG Display widely expected to become Apple’s second OLED producer in 2018, but other companies including Foxconn subsidiary Sharp and Japan Display are also keen to get a piece of the pie by becoming Apple’s third and fourth OLED suppliers.

Apple in 2017: A year of epic proportions

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Apple year in review 2017
Did any company have a better 2017 than Apple?
Image: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Cult of Mac's 2017 Apple year in review 2017 was a pretty damn good year for the world’s most profitable tech company.

Apple did much more than rake in more cash than any company this year. Cupertino also pushed out its most impressive product lineup ever, laid the groundwork for the future of augmented reality, moved into a new spaceship campus, battled other tech giants and got tossed into the political spotlight.

Apple dominated the tech scene in 2017 more than any other company. Here’s a recap of some of the year’s most memorable Apple moments.

Samsung and LG don’t throttle their phones like Apple does

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galaxy note 7
The battery might burst into flames, but at least you get a full-powered CPU.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Apple’s decision to throttle CPU speeds on iPhones with older batteries isn’t a feature its competition is eager to copy.

Both Samsung and LG have come out with statements today saying that none of their phones use similar power management tactics. Their claims echo other Android makers Motorola and HTC who made the same claim yesterday.

Samsung could provide 4x as many OLED iPhone displays in 2018

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iPhone 7
Apple started selling OLED iPhones this year with the iPhone X.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Samsung Display will continue churning out OLED displays for Apple in 2018, with a reported 180 – 200 million flexible OLED iPhone panels scheduled to ship next year, a new report claims.

That’s around 4x the estimated 50 million OLED panels that Samsung supplied Apple with in 2017, which suggests that Apple is planning on expanding its number of OLED handsets in the new year.

Samsung’s first Bixby speaker will take on HomePod in early 2018

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HomePod
Apple's smart speaker will arrived early next year.
Photo: Apple

Samsung wants to take on Apple’s HomePod with its own smart speaker, which could arrive as soon as the first half of 2018, a new report claims.

Like Apple, the Samsung smart speaker will reportedly focus on high-end audio quality, as well as functioning as a hub for controlling smart home devices. The smart speaker will reportedly be based around Bixby, the Samsung AI assistant introduced this year for the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ handsets.

iPhone still dominates global smartphone sales

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iPhone X laying down
Yeah! Apple is number one!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

It’s tempting to look at the smartphone wars in terms of Apple vs. Android, but that’s really not telling anywhere close to the true story. The real competition is between the companies who actually build the smartphones — and those stats show that Apple is very clearly crushing it!

In a recent report from researchers at Counterpoint, the individual handset model sales are broken down for the month of October 2017, just before the iPhone X arrived. Even before Apple’s most anticipated smartphone of the year was released, they highlight just how far ahead of its rivals Apple is.

Best wireless charging pads for iPhone X and iPhone 8

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Best wireless charging pads for iPhone X and iPhone 8
You've got a new iPhone. Now it's time to get ready for wireless charging.
Photo: Belkin

Update: Apple added faster 7.5-watt wireless charging in iOS 11.2, which is currently in beta. We’ve updated this guide and placed compatible fast-charging pads at the top of the list.

Apple’s new iPhone lineup finally supports wireless charging. Both the iPhone X and the iPhone 8/8 Plus use the Qi standard that’s been popular for years. That means you can choose from an endless list of compatible charging pads, mats and stands already on the market.

So, which one(s) should you buy? We’ve rounded up some of the best iPhone wireless chargers to make your buying decision a little bit easier.

iPad Pro might get Face ID by 2018

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Face ID attention awareness
Face ID will come to iPad soon.
Photo: Apple

Apple is planning to make some big design changes to the iPad lineup next year, based on a new report that claims the tablet will ditch the home button.

Hot on the heels of the iPhone X, Apple plans to bring some of its $1,000 smartphone’s key features to the iPad Pro, giving the device the most drastic new look it’s seen since its debut in 2010.

iPhone X boasts best smartphone display ever

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iPhone X
iPhone X wasn't the first, but it certainly boosted the trend.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The edge-to-edge screen on the iPhone X has blown away the professional display testers at DisplayMate, leading the company to call it the most innovative display they’ve ever tested.

Even though Apple doesn’t make the actual OLED display on the iPhone X, DisplayMate’s experts point to the Precision Display Calibration created by Apple that transforms the hardware into “a superbly accurate, high performance, and gorgeous display.”

Samsung mocks iPhone’s slow catch up

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phone
Apple is always one step behind. Apparently.
Photo: Samsung

The iPhone X may be racking up good reviews and big sales across the board, but whatever Apple achieves with smartphones, Samsung managed first.

Or at least that’s the narrative portrayed in a new Samsung ad which, shockingly, decides to focus less on what Samsung is doing doing right now than on taking shots at Apple.

Check it out below.

Everything we know about iPhone X’s Face ID

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Michael Cohen Face ID
Michael Cohen was forced by a court warrant to open his iPhone with Face ID.
Photo: Apple

When the iPhone X arrives November 3, it will bring a new age of security with it.

Apple is ditching fingerprints for facial scanning when it comes to unlocking your device, thanks to the iPhone X’s all-new Face ID feature. Not all Apple fans are excited about this. But if Face ID works as well as Apple says it does, it could be the most innovative iPhone addition in years.

Here’s what you need to know about Face ID.

Samsung CEO resigns, citing ‘unprecedented crisis’

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Galaxy Note 8
Samsung CEO quits, despite record earnings projections.
Photo: Samsung

Samsung is in meltdown mode after CEO Kwon Oh-hyun, who has worked at the company for 32 years, announced his resignation today, citing an “unprecedented crisis.”

Kwon Oh-hyun will officially step down as chief executive and vice chairman in March. The news comes not long after Samsung’s vice chairman was sentenced to five years in prison for corruption, the Galaxy Note 7 debacle, but also just as Samsung is projecting record quarterly profits.

Apple and LG team up for foldable iPhone

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Foldable smartphone
Apple is serious about creating a foldable iPhone. Above, is a drawing for a patent Apple was granted last year.
Photo: Apple

LG is reportedly in business with Apple to develop a foldable iPhone.

A South Korean news site, citing unnamed industry sources, said LG has two separate teams working on key components for a flexible handset that could debut by 2020.

iPhone X Plus concept shows that bigger really is better

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iPhone X Plus
2018 iPhones will look at lot like the iPhone X.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The iPhone X launch is less than a month away but we’re already lusting after what 2018 might bring. Even though the iPhone X has a larger screen than the iPhone 8 Plus, we wouldn’t be shocked to see the edge-to-edge display come to the Plus-sized model next year.

Now we know exactly what such a device could look like thanks to some new renders that show how beautiful all that screen real estate would be.

Check out what it’d look like compared to the iPhone X:

Samsung will be first to deliver big feature Apple couldn’t

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Galaxy Note 7 USB-C
Samsung's next Galaxy Note will have a fingerprint-scanning display.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Samsung will beat Apple to delivering a revolutionary new smartphone display, according to one reliable analyst.

The South Korean company’s next Galaxy Note will have a fingerprint-scanning screen, which Apple had to drop from iPhone X because it couldn’t be perfected in time for launch.

Samsung reportedly makes $110 for every iPhone X Apple sells

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So that's how you pronounce
If the iPhone X is a hit for Apple, Samsung will be very happy indeed.
Photo: Apple

Although devices like the Galaxy S8 and Note 8 are officially Samsung’s response to the Apple’s next-gen phone, the South Korean tech giant will nonetheless do quite well from the success of the iPhone X.

How well? According to a new report, Samsung will earn roughly $110 for every iPhone X that Apple manages to sell.

Modder converts 2008 MacBook Pro into Android gaming laptop

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MacBook Pro DeX
This MacBook Pro is now a Samsung DeX laptop.
Photo: Kris Henriksen

The 2008 MacBook Pro isn’t much of a gaming machine nowadays, but apparently, if you just slap some new innards into it, it makes a pretty decent Android setup.

A modder named Kris Henriksen decided to take his old MacBook Pro and convert it into the most beautiful laptop to ever run Samsung’s DeX software which allows Galaxy S8, S8 Plus, and Note 8 owners to plug their device into a monitor to run Android-based apps in a desktop environment.

Check the abominable creation in action:

FDA fast-tracks Apple health products

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Apple Watch Series 2 will still make you stare at their wrists waiting for it to wake, when you should be watching where you are running
The FDA is easing up on digital health tools like Apple Watch.
Photo: Graham Bower / Cult of Mac

The Food and Drug Administration is making it easier for Apple and other tech companies to get health-related products out to the public faster.

Apple will be part of a new pilot program aimed at rapidly advancing the development of digital health applications. If the program works as intended, it could mean we’ll see new Apple Watch applications and other Apple-made health accessories a lot sooner.

Apple loses spot as world’s second-largest smartphone maker

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Huawei
Chinese smartphone maker Huawei is on the rise.
Photo: AndroidCentral

The title of world’s second-largest smartphone brand no longer belongs to Apple.

New research data from analytics firm Counterpoint shows that Chinese smartphone company Huawei consistently surpassed Apple in smartphone sales during June and July to take over the No. 2 spot. Samsung remains at the top of the heap.

Analyst: Blame Samsung for iPhone 8’s high price tag

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iPhone 7
Switching to OLED won't be cheap.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple’s upcoming premium iPhone is likely to be its most expensive model ever — and Samsung is partly to blame, according to a reliable Apple analyst.

In his latest research note, KGI Securities analyst Ming Chi-Kuo explains to investors that Samsung currently holds a practical monopoly on the supply of OLED displays. The company is likely charging Apple a huge amount of money to make the switch from LCD modules to OLED. Apple fans probably won’t be happy with the final price tag.