It's fair to say, given the courtroom history and market face-offs between the two, that a certain amount of friction, animosity and contempt exists between Apple and Samsung. The two companies were at loggerheads last year in a court hearing which saw Apple reign supreme over its bitter rival, but with a new trial taking place this year in the same San Jose location, issues have by no means been resolved. As a very relevant subplot, Apple has never been shy of dragging Google into proceedings, and following on from the Cupertino's recent demands to see the Android source code as part of the hearing, Tim Cook's legal bureaucrats have now dragged both the newly-released Samsung Galaxy S4 and Google Now into the equation.
Patently Apple does a pretty stellar job of keeping abreast of all the goings concerning the fruit company's intellectual property dealings, and has today spotted a couple of rather interesting patent applications that shed light on a system which would allow your iPhone to act as a "Smart Key." In walking towards your car, a Bluetooth connection from your device would enable you to automatically unlock the vehicle, in turn allowing you to avoid the cumbersome rigmarole of rooting around your pocket or purse for the key.
Apple is a company which rarely takes the easy route and conforms to trends in the market just for the sake of keeping up an appearance. This individual approach to the design and development of new products and services has served them well in the past, but has also meant they have come under fire from investors and analysts who believe they may get left behind as they look for the next big innovation. One of the latest key features that is set to be introduced in the next wave of smartphones and tablets is wireless charging, and although Apple have spoken out about this in the past, it looks like they could be in the process of coming up with a solution of their own for future iPad tablets.
We're living in a digital world these days, and more and more of our music and video is being consumed via online methods. Apple's iTunes is one of the forerunners when it comes to offering music, movies and indeed TV shows to customers all over the globe. Even today though, there are some people who don't want to buy their content online and would rather pick up CDs, DVDs and Blu-rays instead.
Apple is renowned for meticulously, almost obsessively arranging each element of its vast product range, with every detail carefully placed in order to facilitate the sleekest of finishes. The iPhone 5 is a fine example of a well-designed smartphone, and with the introduction of a partial aluminum finish to the argument, many have lauded it as the most aesthetically-pleasing to date. But surely, a shell fully-enclosed in the light, robust material has to be seen as the ultimate dream, and a recent patent award to Apple concerning the antenna suggests such a dream could soon become reality.
Another day, another Apple patent story, but this time there's no sign of Samsung, Motorola or Google. Surely that cannot be? Yes, yes it can, actually. Wonders never cease!
Patent filings are usually a solid indicator of which avenue a company intends to take with future products, and since Apple is the world's most valuable company, it USPTO entries are scrutinized more so than any other. A filing published today by the Patent and Trademark Office offers details of a gesture-based computer peripheral which takes into consideration actions such as tapping and tilting in order to interact with an interface.
Apple Patents ‘Wireless Charging’, Can Charge A Device As Far As One Meter Away From Charging Source
Apple is looking to arrive - fashionably late as usual - to the wireless charging circles, and unsurprisingly, the company has patented a method of wireless charging which it believes works differently to / better than anybody else's. It was only a matter of time before the patent filings began rolling through on a technology which is already out there, and as we should now be used to, Apple has "invented" its very own way of going about things.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office find themselves extremely busy most of the year receiving, reviewing and awarding patents to various applicants, but it seems that they have been sitting on a number of Apple related submissions that have officially been awarded to the Cupertino based company today.
Turning digital pages? There's a patent for that! And guess what - Apple has it. While all tech companies must keep the patents rolling through in order to protect intellectual properties, it's fair to say the Cupertino company has a bit of a reputation for being a tad over-zealous when it comes to sending sketches over to the USPTO. The latest, a design patent, concerns the turning over of fake pages.
