Sometimes I despair, I really do. Just when you think that the madness has come to some sort of logical end, someone proves you wrong. Samsung did that rather emphatically when it announced a pair of Galaxy Mega handsets that take what the company did with the Note and Note II and then, well, make it bigger.
It's been six years in the making, but today finally sees an Apple iPhone released on one of North America's most liked, if not most used, carriers. T-Mobile, as of right now, carries the iPhone.
Apple is largely expected to release a Retina-displaying version of its iPad mini this year, along with an incrementally-improved iPhone dubbed the "iPhone 5S". According to a research note from Ming-chi Kuo of KGI Securities, both have hit delays, and with the iPhone 5S release date initially being touted for announcement in June in preparation for a July release, it now appears as though neither will be hitting the market anytime soon.
Like every software vendor, Apple likes to impress users of iOS with one or a number of so-called "killer" apps, and while some have gone down particularly well in recent years, others, like iOS 6's Apple Maps, have fared decidedly worse. With iOS 7 now in the works for release later this year, we're expecting some significant changes to the look and feel of the Cupertino's mobile OS in general, but aside from a lot of blogosphere-fuelled bluster, we've heard precious few details with regards to what exactly we should be expecting. Morgan Stanley's Katy Huberty has sought to shed some light on the matter by revealing that she expects the Tim Cook-led outfit to unveil a “killer app” in the form of a mobile wallet. More details can be found right after the jump.
The iPad mini is largely considered to be the better looking of the two iPad variants currently on the market, and with the fourth-gen iPad appearing almost identical to the iPad 2 (only heavier and thicker), it is strongly suspected Apple will beautify its flagship tablet with a touch of the anodized aluminum. Whilst it's still unknown whether this will in fact be the case, a leaked image of a purported 'iPad 5' bezel seems to indicate that, at least from the front, the next iPad could borrow a few design points from its scaled-down counterpart.
Smartphones and tablets, while often lambasted for their lack of durability in dealing with those everyday mishaps, certainly appear to be getting stronger as we saunter on through the generations. But perhaps some of today's revered gadgets are, in fact, a lot more robust than we'd give them credit for, and in the case of one Apple iPad that inadvertently found itself in a head-on collision with an automobile, the device actually seemed to come off better than the car itself. The owner of the iPad in question accidentally drove off while leaving the Apple slate atop the roof of their car, but as it flew off and towards the vehicle behind, the impact left the device embedded within the bumper.
Further to the earlier reports from an analyst that the next-gen iPhone could arrive with as many as three different sizes of display, Japanese blog Macotakara has also waded into the debate, suggesting the so-called "iPhone 5S" may retail in three colorways. Citing a trusted source, the report alludes to a third color joining the current black and white variants, although doesn't offer an insight as to what this color might be.
Spring is here, and the analysts are out in force with all kinds of predictions and estimations pertaining to Apple's upcoming major products. According to a series of previous reports, Apple's one-per-year iPhone release cycle could be finally breached in 2013, with many reckoning the Cupertino company to be readying two separate devices. This sentiment has been echoed today by Topeka Capital's Brian White, who believes the device will retail in "at least" two different screen sizes, in a move said to help counteract the vast range of choice offered by Android-powered handsets.
This far into a new year we're already well aware of the state of play with regards to a new iPad. This year though, we're much less well informed due to Apple's lack of an announcement event, showing off a new iPad and more importantly, telling us when it's due to be released.
Ever since an Apple patent lodged back in 2011 was rubber-stamped last month by the USPTO, the world of tech seems to have gotten itself carried away with the idea of a near-future iPhone featuring, among other things, a variant of the curved AMOLED display outlined in the filing. It didn't take long for a leak of a 'prototype' of an iPhone 5S / 6 to leak into the wild amid all the hullabaloo, and today, designers Nickolay Lamm and Matteo Gianni have come through with a rather striking render of how an iPhone with a curved display may eventually look.
