It's understandable that consumers will always have mixed emotions about any company from which they’re buying products, and for the large part, big companies like Apple, Google and Samsung are always going to do something that draws a negative reaction from some. With that said, one thing that Apple in particular can't be accused of is resting on their laurels and remaining stagnant in the marketplace. Although the Cupertino company has recently announced and launched their revamped EarPods headphones alongside the iPhone 5, a new patent suggests that they are still working on further advances in that area.
Whether product releases are out of season or at full-blown launch phase, seldom a week goes by where Apple doesn't see at least one new patent approved, and although it can often be difficult to keep track of them, a new one - United States Patent Application 20120250914 - is of particular interest.
A few weeks ago, Samsung sent a note to U.S. Courts stating that they believed that the iPhone 5 infringed upon multiple patents and that they expected to take Apple to the court over it after carefully analyzing the device. We discussed this in detail in an earlier post. Today, as expected, Samsung has filed a lawsuit against Apple.
You remember the ongoing battle between Samsung and Apple over what does and does not constitute patent infringement? You know, the one that ended with Apple being awarded $1 billion in damages and Samsung left to lick its wounds? Bet you thought that was the end of that, didn't you?
Another day, another patent victory for Apple as a German court has found them in favor against Motorola Mobility. It's been an extremely active few months for Apple in the legal department and although a San Jose-based courtroom was in favor of Apple against Samsung, that particular case is far from over as Apple seek to have a number of Samsung smartphones and tablets banned from sale in the United States.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with what is going on with Apple and Samsung as they continue to battle it out with each other over the alleged infringement of various patents. We've already had the major trial and verdict in San Jose, with Samsung being told they are liable to the tune of $1.05 billion for breaching a number of Apple patents, as well as a Japanese court ruling in Samsung's favor in a separate case regarding a utility patent that centers around transferring data between two devices. Court rulings and alleged infringements in different markets all over the world make this a difficult one to get your head around.
Although Apple is still floating on a fluffy cloud of victory after the weekend’s verdict in their San Jose trial against Samsung, they will understandably just be wishing that the legal system was simple and straightforward that forced Samsung to pay their dues and allow both companies to move in with minimal fuss. Unfortunately, the world doesn't work that way, and although the nine man jury found in favor of the fruit company in pretty much all of their claims, there are still additional court dates required to determine the next steps for both companies.
What is it that makes a smartphone smart? Is it the advanced, flexible operating system that grants users the ability to install apps to extend their device’s feature set? Is it a high megapixel camera? A touch display that can differentiate between accidental taps and real ones? An HD display? GPS? Wi-Fi? Support for 4G LTE? It’s features like these that – according to today’s standards, at least – make up a smartphone.
Were you wondering where the Apple vs. Samsung patent battle would turn next? Now you know, with the news that a hardware ban is firmly within the Cupertino firm's sights. Fresh on the heals of winning a tasty victory in the courts on Friday, Apple has today named the eight Samsung smartphones which it hopes those same courts will ban from sale in the United States.
It’s all over the (technology-focused) news! The jury in San Jose, California has passed the verdict for the Apple vs. Samsung case, with a ruling that goes completely in Apple’s favor: Samsung is guilty of multiple patent infringements in most of its smartphone lineup and is to pay over 1 billion dollars to Apple in damages; Apple is to pay absolutely nothing to Samsung because they are innocent (at least in thee eyes of the courts).
