We reported how the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus were getting phenomenal amounts of preorders in the USA, but the Apple wonder seems to have left its sparkle in America itself. India hasn’t taken to the iPhones too well as the opening weekend response has been tepid.
The devices managed to sell only 50,000 units out of a total of 165,000 (which is thrice the amount that was available last year).
The phones were launched in India on October 16th and it is highly likely that customers are either waiting for the price slash or it could also be because India is literally the most expensive place to buy the latest iPhones and that we would rather do without a hole in our pockets, that too during the festival season.
We can only watch what happens next and see how Apple manages to redeem itself. Till then, Samsung anyone?
It is a well known fact that we consider the iPhone as an amazing development made in technology, but it often becomes a slab of glass and metal once it’s drained out of battery.
And as irritating as it gets when we run out of battery, there are some easy ways of extending its battery for a while longer.
Here are some simple tricks and tips for iPhone users fed up with their phone’s battery:
Low Power Mode
The recent introduction of iOS 9 came with a special feature of a power saving mode. This update warns you with a message when your battery drops down to 20% and offers Low Power Mode. Activating Low Power Mode reduces animations throughout the system. It also decreases the time before the screen darkens and makes every effort to save your battery for a little longer. When power saving mode is activated, the battery indicator turns from either green or red, to yellow.
Also, Low Power Mode can be activated at other times: look for the option in the new Battery section of Settings once you’ve upgraded to iOS 9.
Toning down on visual effects in iOS 7 and iOS 8
The parallax effect introduced in iOS 7, which makes your icons and notifications appear to be floating, might be pretty and cool. But at the same time, it drains the battery of your phone like a vampire, by constantly using your phone’s graphics processor. So, when you’re` in a place where charging your phone would not be possible, you could save your battery by disabling this feature.
You can switch to static rather than dynamic wallpaper – the iOS 7-style wallpaper that moves around as you tilt your phone. This will cut down the power drain a little. When you set a new Wallpaper, tap where it says ‘Perspective Zoom: On’ to turn it off.
You can also go to Settings > General > Accessibility > and switch on Reduce Motion to temporarily turn off all the parallax effects.
Cool not Hot Phone
There is no other way to say this –heat is really bad for batteries. It would be wise not to leave your phone lying in direct sunlight. The ideal comfort zone claimed for its best performance is between 16° to 22° C (62° to 72° F). Exposing it to a temperature higher than 35° C (95° F) can permanently damage battery capacity, so battery won’t power your device for long on a given charge. Also, it is advised that the cases should be removed while charging, as certain cases tend to generate excess heat that can affect battery capacity.
Reduce Screen Brightness, Turn Off Vibration and AirDrop
A simple way of saving battery is by reducing the brightness level of your iPhone screen. The brighter the default setting for the screen, the more power it consumes.There are a number of ‘Beep’ and songs to choose from for message and call notifications. Leaving out the rattling of your phone when a call or a message comes can save a little of your battery.
Also, turning off bluetooth and AirDrop whenever it is not in use can help in retaining battery life. Next time you are done transferring photos and files to and from other phones, make sure your bluetooth and AirDrop is turned off immediately after.
Disable Siri Shortcut
Yes, even Siri can be a bit of a drain on battery life. You’ll find the ‘Raise to Speak’ option in Settings > General > Siri -if you aren’t using it, make sure to turn it off. That sensor is active whenever your phone is unlocked. If it detects you holding your phone next to your face, it will make Siri listen automatically.
Update manually, Avoid Background Refresh App
Although updating your phone automatically seems to be the easiest way of updating, it is best to update manually. As it is handled automatically within the device it eats up tremendous amount of battery.
Go to Settings> iTunes & App Store> In the Automatic Downloads section, find Updates> Move slider to off/white.
It is also advisable to not use background app Refresh. We know how convenient it is when your device automatically updates the most used apps for you -but for the love of battery- it is better if this is disabled.
Go to Settings> General> Handoff & Suggested Apps> Move the My Apps and App Store sliders to Off.
High-Impact Games
This comes as no surprise that games and apps with high-end graphics and quality tends to consume more battery. So when you are playing games with 3D image quality or apps like the GPS chip for maps, and location-based apps it consumes more battery than when you are reading a book on Kindle.
Follow these simple steps to prevent your iPhone from draining out of juice. Next time you land yourself in a dystopic world which lacks all forms of charging options, you’d know what to do.
A US jury has passed its verdict and it’s definitely not going to please Apple. The tech giant has been ordered to pay Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) a sum of over $234 million as penalty for patent infringement. WARF is in-charge of all the patent licensing of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The jury had previously reached a decision that Apple had used a patented microchip technology in its iPads and iPhones to which Apple had appealed. After about three hours of deliberation, the amount was set at over a hundred million dollars less than what the University had demanded of Apple. We did a story on this lawsuit which you can read here.
Though Apple is at least free of one lawsuit, more legal trouble awaits the company courtesy of WARF again which is suing the company on the same lines for using patented technology in its latest iPhones -6s and 6s Plus. However, legal trouble is not a territory unknown to Apple which has been waging copyright, infringement and patent related battles with other tech giants as well, Samsung being one of them. Such penalties are not likely to be more than a puny amount for a company which reported its annual revenue for 2014 to be around $182 billion.
Intel is looking to get a piece of Apple’s booming sales by taking a version of its cellular modem into Apple’s next iPhone, likely to be called iPhone 7, stated reports by VentureBeat. The partnership is yet to be official, though. As of now the two companies have exchanged words and work is already underway. So, you can expect Apple or Intel to come out with an official statement soon.
Intel CEO Brian Krzanich
Apparently, Intel has an ‘army’ already working on the project. Around 1000 people are working to supply Apple’s next iPhone with Intel’s next-gen 7360 LTE modem. VentureBeats also reported that Apple will be sending some of its own crew to work with Intel. Meanwhile, Intel looks to take out Qualcomm from the top position of modem suppliers for Apple.
Currently, Qualcomm’s 9X45 LTE chip has been the modem for Apple’s handset. A few years ago, Infineon used to supply the iPhone with 3G modems before Intel bought the German semiconductor company. Apple then moved to Qualcomm and made it its modem supplier. Like with its A9 chip, Apple may dual-source the LTE modems from both Intel and Qualcomm if Intel comes through. However, nothing has been officially stated on this matter.
The current task ahead for Intel is to scale its 10-nanometer process so that it can work with Apple’s A9 chipset. This is one of the reasons that Apple has been attracted to Intel. Intel has both 14-nanometer and a new 10-nanometer process in the works. A 10-nanometer could yield faster and smaller processors. Apple is currently dual-sourcing its A9 chip from Samsung, which employs 14-nanometer process, and TSMC which uses 16-nanometer process.
The end goal for Apple is to have an SoC that is capable of holding both the processor and LTE modem on a single, small, fast and power efficient component and the fabrication of this can fall into Intel’s hands if all goes well. This is a “must-win for Intel” as it has been struggling to keep pace with Qualcomm, a source told VentureBeat.
By now you must be aware of the Indian pricing of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. Apple’s latest phones that launched in India today, 3 weeks after the US launch, are not only heavier than the previous iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, but are also heavy on your pockets.
The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus come at a starting price of Rs. 62,000 and Rs. 72,000, respectively for the 16 GB version. At these prices, the newest iPhones cost more in India than any other country.
If one translates the Indian pricing of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus to US currency, here’s what you get.
iPhone 6s
iPhone 6s Plus
16 GB
$955
$1,110
64 GB
$1,110
$1,265
128 GB
$1,265
$1,415
The same 16 GB iPhone 6s model costs $649 in the US, which means customers in India will be shelling out $306 more for the iPhone 6s 16 GB. Similarly, the base model of the iPhone 6s Plus costs $749 in the US whereas you’ll have to pay $351 more in India.
The extravagant prices in India is likely to bring down sales for the latest iPhones. But pre-bookings for the latest devices do not seem to show any such signs. Many retailers, both online and offline, have offered major offers for the latest iPhones. Airtel is offering free 4G data on purchase of the iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus, while Vodafone is offering freebies worth Rs. 8,885. These offers are only some of the many promotional campaigns being seen around India.
The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus may be the most expensive phones in India, but that didn’t stop fans from lining outside Apple reseller stores across the country to get their hands on the latest device. Apple CEO Tim Cook even expressed his thanks on Twitter. The excitement for the phones is still as high as ever. So, it could be that customers are willing to overlook the mighty price tag so that they can enjoy all the new features that come with the new phones.
Thanks to all our customers in India who queued at midnight for the new iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus! pic.twitter.com/MxSkRk2BmP
Next time you think of leaving your wired headphones plugged into your iOS or Android phone, think again. The wires of headphones act as antennae which can be used to hack into your phone with the right equipment. Welcome to the world of hacking where radiowaves are the newest tool.
A group of researchers at a French government security unit have figured out a way to send silent commands to phones. All that they needed was a laptop and an antennae -things that fit pretty much in a bag.
Like FM radio chips, the antenna on the headphones catch radiowaves to convey the command of the hacker to your handset. Depending on these commands, your phone can be used to make calls, send messages, open websites, subvert governments or spark a revolution. However, since this specific kind of hacking doesn’t disable the display of the phone, users are highly likely to realise if their phones start obeying ‘silent’ instructions.
This test was conducted from a distance of 6 feet, with above average gadgets. If they throw in slightly fancier gadgets, hacking would be possible from a distance of up to 16 feet. Looks like it’s time for Apple and Google to sit up and listen.
We often tend to treat Apple vs Samsung a little like Congress vs BJP or India vs Pakistan (you decide which is which), because we see the companies themselves, bickering about who is copying whom and why one is better than the other. Well, this time, it’s 10 points to Apple.
Apple and Samsung now have devices in identical colours
Apple has emerged a winner in the recent blame game battle as Samsung is coming out with a ‘Pink Gold’ colour variant of the Samsung Galaxy Note 5. We aren’t extremely surprised by this decision because the colour itself, we mean Apple’s ‘Rose Gold’ has been selling like hot cakes. So what’s wrong if Samsung takes a hint and comes up with its own (read borrowed) version of it? Nothing really.
In addition to the controversial Pink, Samsung is also coming up with ‘Silver Titanium.’ Both these colours will be available in South Korea by October 23rd and other countries will soon follow suit.
While some might think that it’s just a colour and not really something to be breaking our heads over, let us know your views in the comments below.
iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus are up for grabs in the country since last night. With the price bracket between Rs.62,000 and Rs. 92,000 the cost is a major discouragement for a lot of buyers. However, if you already own an iPhone 6 and want the features of its successors without burning that hole in your pocket, here are some quick jailbreak hacks for you.
The most talked about feature of the new iPhones is 3D Touch which allows the device to differentiate between three kinds of touch. Though the device necessarily has to be pressure sensitive for this to work, jailbreak tweaks allow the user to swipe up to be able to use 3D Touch on their iPhone 6. Jailbreak tweaks like Forcy, UniversalForce and Hapticle allow you to use the feature on your device.
Another highlight of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus is Live Photos. This feature does not require new hardware and therefore can work on the older iPhone models as well. The Live Photos enabler tweak, however, hasn’t been working for everyone. Some users have complained of over-heating while others have mentioned freezes. Many users have managed to successfully jailbreak, yet glitches continue.
If you really want the features of the new iPhone, simply buying the device is your best bet. You could try jailbreaking, but less for the features and more for the adrenaline rush of using something you’re not allowed to be using.
Each year Apple’s revisions of their iPhone have propelled sales of their handsets. The Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus were the company’s best selling handsets since the launch of the original iPhone.
In 2014, Apple sold a whopping 191 Million (approx) iPhones between the two main models, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus and one old model, the iPhone 5s. Making the iPhone the most selling phone in the world, when compared to Samsung’s total sales across hundreds of handset models, sold globally, coming to around 392 million.
Does the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus improve what Apple was already doing with the iPhone 6 and 6 plus? Is the “s” variant a worthy upgrade? Let’s find out as we review this year’s iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.
Build Quality and Design
There are no points here, the design of the iPhone is not a lot different from what we saw last year, in fact, it’s a bit thicker and slightly heavier. You will also get a brand new Rose Gold colour which has attracted the fancy of many a folks. That being said, last year’s iPhone was the best selling iPhone for Apple, it was a refreshing design change from the iPhone 5s and rounded look felt more in harmony, as opposed to the square design which Apple followed for the 4-5s.
This year’s iPhone has an improved outer shell which offers resistance against the “bendgate” issue of last year’s iPhone. The new reinforced and strong series 7000 Aluminium adds strength to the outer structure. The iPhone 6s and 6s plus also come with some form of water resistance according to tests conducted by third parties. Apple downplayed the fact that the new iPhone was water resistant, in fact they don’t mention it anywhere. They coated the logic board with water resistant materials and added a rubber gasket to all parts that could potentially allow water to seep through like ports, display edge and buttons.
You could end up with your iPhone in the toilet, and still be using it a week later (hopefully after you have fully sanitized it ).
Hardware
The “s” variants of every iPhone till date have been the ones with hardware improvements. The iPhone 3Gs, 4s, 5s and now the 6s all add improved hardware and capability while keeping design changes to a minimum.
The new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus add an improved Apple A9 chip along with an M9 co-processor. Enhanced cameras both on the rear with a 12 MP shooter which now does 4k video. On the front with a 5 MP snapper, which however is still restricted to 720p.
Specifications
iPhone 6s
iPhone 6s Plus
Display
4.7-inch Retina HD display with 3D Touch, LED-backlit widescreen
5.5-inch Retina HD display with 3D Touch, LED-backlit widescreen
Resolution
1334×750-pixel resolution at 326 ppi
1920×1080-pixel resolution at 401 ppi
Processor
Embedded M9 motion coprocessor
Embedded M9 motion coprocessor
Chipset
A9 chip with 64-bit architecture
A9 chip with 64-bit architecture
RAM
2GB
2GB
CPU
Dual-core 1.84GHz
Dual-core 1.84GHz
GPU
PowerVR GT7600
PowerVR GT7600
OS
iOS 9
iOS 9
Internal Storage
16GB/64GB/128GB
16GB/64GB/128GB
Exapandibility
N/A
N/A
Rear camera
12-megapixel iSight camera with 1.22µ pixels, ƒ/2.2 aperture
12-megapixel iSight camera with 1.22µ pixels, ƒ/2.2 aperture, Optical image stabilization
Rear Camera Video
4K video recording (3840 x 2160) at 30 fps
Optical image stabilization for video, 4K video recording (3840 x 2160) at 30 fps
Front Camera
5-megapixel photos, ƒ/2.2 aperture, Retina Flash
5-megapixel photos, ƒ/2.2 aperture, Retina Flash
Front Camera Video
720p HD video recording
720p HD video recording
Weight
143 grams
192 grams
Special Features
Fingerprint sensor, 3D touch, live photo
Fingerprint sensor, 3D touch, live photo
Connectivity
23 LTE and faster Wi-Fi
23 LTE and faster Wi-Fi
Variants
Silver, Gold, Space Gray, Rose Gold
Silver, Gold, Space Gray, Rose Gold
Price
Rs. 62,000, Rs. 72,000 and Rs. 82,000 for 16GB/64GB/128GB respectively unlocked
Rs. 72,000, Rs. 82,000 and Rs. 92,000 for 16GB/64GB/128GB respectively unlocked
Compared to the iPhone 6s’ 1330 x 720p display , the Apple iPhone 6s Plus gets a larger display with a 1920 x 1080p resolution. It also gets a bigger battery and Optical Image Stabilisation in the rear camera. Everything else on both the devices is identical in terms of specifications.
Apple sticking to the old displays is one big let down. iPhones need higher resolution displays and this update may finally come in the iPhone 7. This time around however Apple has added 3D touch, which is a variant of their force touch trackpads for the iPhones.
3D Touch
This is something that Apple showed off at the launch, but it still feels under played. The technology is pretty impressive, and even though many companies have done this prior to the iPhone 6s’ launch. Apple’s iteration is impressive, accurate and easy to use.
Unlike many devices in the past, the iPhone’s display in itself is not clickable. The display senses the force on the screen which is paired with where your finger is on the screen, this then results in the outcome you receive.
iPhone 6s
The usability of this is a little strange at first but then it gets easier and easier. The peek and pop UI of iOS 9 makes this feature infinitely fun.
Things like messages and mail become easy to read or dismiss and the animations are really impressive. When you click down on an app the background blurs out and enhances the look of your touch and the experience of using the 3D touch. iOS9 lets you set live images as wallpapers that you can preview simply by pressing down on the screen. Its quite cool, and you can relive your fun moments of the perfect picture right from your lock screen.
And with apps like WhatsApp and Instagram taking advantage of this feature, soon iOS will be a mega 3D touch playground. However, this might happen later than sooner, because most developers will take a long time to implement this feature.
A New 12 MP camera
Cameras
The new Apple iPhone 6s and 6s plus come with enhanced cameras, keeping Apple’s image processing standards intact. the new 12 MP camera at the back offers a larger resolution keeping the pixel size at 1.22µ pixels and the aperture at f2.2.
The addition of 4k Video means that the iPhones have finally caught up to rest of the world. It also means that buying a 16 GB iPhone has become more or less pointless. The 4k video is turned off by default and there is good reason, 1 Minute of 4k video will take approximately 375 MB whereas 1080p video will take as low as 130 MB.
The image quality is fantastic and lowlight images are impressive. You get exception control of exposure and focus prior to capture, so you can compose shots with ease.
The HDR images have been best on the iPhone so far and that remains the case with the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. The OIS on the larger version iPhone 6s Plus helps people with shaky hands to capture better images and video.
The Live images are also a fun feature only when you understand that you need to keep your hand stable for longer. Else you end up with Live video loops ending with shots of your feet, or even worse, shots of your nostrils when clicking selfies. This also consumes more storage and 16 GB owners should stay away from this feature. This can easily be disabled from the camera interface.
Previous iPhone users will be happy with better resolution cameras, especially the front camera, where an overhaul was long overdue. The selfies are improved and also support the live photos feature.
Live photos are nothing new, HTC did this with ZOE and many manufacturers and apps have had this feature. However, all of them worked on the principle of capturing video and then saving a still from that. The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, unlike the others in the past, captures a burst of high res pictures in a .MOV format along with the main image. Therefore not affecting the quality of the image, technically this is multitasking for the camera and is an innovative way to execute live images. You can also set the live images as a lock screen wallpaper and execute the 3D touch to preview them whenever. They are like your own personal Vines.
Performance
This is major improvement on the overall usage of the iPhone. The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are both faster and snappier when compared to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. iOS is already pretty fast and smooth. The operation on the iPhone 6s is a lot better.
iOS 9 was designed primarily on the new iPhones hence you get a phenomenal experience. The new peek and pop UI works really well. New animations and live photos as wallpapers is an appreciated add-on. The fact that there is more RAM on the new iPhones means that games work in a better environment, loading and caching works better too. Apps that utilise this additional RAM speed up as well. The camera has a more prompt response and images are clicked and processed quicker.
Networks and Battery
The network strength is much more improved. Tested on Airtel and Vodafone in Delhi and Mumbai. on LTE Speeds upto 50 Megabits are easily available, however that is more network provider dependent. Compared to iPhone 6 and Samsung Galaxy S6, network speeds are faster and network strength is better on the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. During the tests we also faced lesser network drops and overall sturdier network performance. Battery life is improved over the previous Gen iPhone 6 Plus and the network improvements could be a major contributor.
The new Apple A9 chipset is also better balanced to give you an improved battery performance. While “batterygate” has been said to be insignificant, the TSMC chipset is considered an advantage.
Overall with the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus get improved battery performance and seem to charge faster that the previous get iPhones. A 5-minute charge gets you from 5% to 30% and about an hour and 15 minutes gets you a full charge on an iPhone 6s Plus using an iPad 12W charger. Between 4-5 hours of talk time 3 hours of internet and 3 hours of music playback with the screen off, the iPhone 6s ends up with 20% battery at the end of the day and the iPhone 6s Plus with about 32%. If you are using the iPhone with the screen on, a lot of you will require a frequent charge.
Process
iPhone 6s
iPhone 6s Plus
Talk Time
5 hours
6.5 Hours
Gaming / Video
4.5 Hours Non Stop
5 Hours Non Stop
Internet
8 hours
9.5 Hours
Music
12 Hours Non Stop
16 Hours Non Stop
Conclusion
The iPhone is an ever growing phenomenon, the more people use the ecosystem the more it makes sense. And while the battle between Android and Apple iPhones is one that will never see the light at the end of the tunnel. The iPhone is clearly the most popular single handset in the world and the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus improve on that with the right kind of things. The hardware running the handset sees a major bump, and the cameras are a lot better and everyone will appreciate that. Live photos work well, and for the moment seem to not be a gimmick.
Soon third party apps will allow sharing of live images and it will become a phenomenon. 4k video is better too, so is network reception and battery life. But, that’s the thing a regular user is not concerned with the use case scenario of all the above features. Sure a better battery and better cameras are good things to have. And 3D touch is great to use and a really productive and time saving feature. However, how big of an improvement is it over the iPhone 6? Not a big improvement, but logically a significant one. Most iPhone 6 owners can and should skip this version for the iPhone 7 which will bring all this features and more with a more significant design change.
But, to sum it up, the iPhone 6s and 6s plus are sturdier iPhones, with new water resistant capabilities, a stronger chassis, cameras that are superior, a new screen technology, seriously fast processing capabilities, better battery life and better network capabilities. You also have new features like live photos and peek and pop capabilities which are not only fun but functional and unique to the iPhone for the moment. You also have the [s] badge on the back of the iPhone to show off to your friend who owns an iPhone 6. Pricey sarcasm aside, the new iPhones are brand new phones and hopefully all apps will allow users to exploit the functionality of things like peek pop and 3D touch, at least before the iPhone 7 arrives. There is also the price factor, each variant of the iPhone in India is significantly pricier than last year’s iPhone.
However that has not stopped people from pre-ordering the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus before it goes on sale officially today.
With hours to go before the launch of the iPhone 6s, pre-orders are rising. It seems that the iPhone 6s Rose Gold model is the most popular iPhone right now with most pre-orders for that variant having already stopped on most e-commerce sites.
Initially, the Rose Gold variant was met with lukewarm reactions right after the Apple event. But the pre-orders tell a different story. Flipkart has already stopped pre-orders for the Rose Gold flavour. Other sites will soon follow since the Rose Gold variant is seeking a massive popularity around the world.
One reason behind the popularity might be that Apple fans have grown tired of the usual colours that come with every new iPhone and the Rose Gold is a pleasing sight. The Rose Gold colour is unique to iPhone 6s, so far. Other smartphone makers are aware of the craze behind this colour and are trying to come out with their own Rose Gold variants as well. One example is the upcoming HTC One A9 phone which will have a Rose Gold variant along with the traditional Space Grey and White.
This could signal other smartphone makers to experiment with different hues now. However Apple brought acceptance to the Gold colour a few years back and now it looks like Rose Gold will be the colour of choice in the next years.
Flipkart’s Big Billion Sale is offering some interesting offers on mobiles. But what has got everyone talking are the incredibly low prices available for iPhones. You could get a 16 GB iPhone 6 Gold for as low as Rs. 24,999, but only with exchange offer discounts.The iPhone 6, which was launched last year, currently costs Rs. 39,999 for the 16 GB Gold model. However, if you give a mid-range phone for the exchange, it cuts down the price by about Rs. 8,000. Depending on the type and brand of your phone, you can get a discount up to Rs. 15,000, bringing down the price to around Rs. 24,000.The iPhone 4s is marked at Rs. 12,999 and its price can be brought down to Rs. 7,999 post the exchange offer discount.
Any other outlet is likely to offer a value higher than Flipkart for an exchanged device, but online shopping also saves buyers a lot of hassle of hunting down the right stores for them. Either way, there’s an option available for potential customers now if they’re bent on getting themselves an Apple device. The new iPhones -6s and 6s Plus – go on sale in the country tomorrow on 16th October. Watch this space for all the latest Apple updates.
The tech giant has found itself at the centre of legal trouble with a US jury. It has been ruled out that Apple is using technology patented by the University of Wisconsin. The patent in question involves the chips used in iPhone, iPad Mini, and iPad Air.
Apple was sued last year in April by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) and now it may have to pay a fine of almost a billion USD. WARF claims that the A7, A8, and A8X processors used in the iPhone 5S, 6, and 6 Plus were developed from technology that had already been patented by the University in 1998.
If during the course of the legal proceedings, it is discovered that Apple used the technology in its devices while having knowledge of the patent, the fine amount may go up.Irrespective of whether or not Apple has to pay this ridiculously huge fine, there is some more trouble in store for the company. Last month, WARF sued Apple for the technology used in its newest iPhones and iPad Pro. WARF has had a track record of suing tech companies in the past, including a law suit with Intel in 2008 which lasted for almost a year.
Pacific Crest, an investment bank, revealed on Sunday that the latest Apple smartphone has so far sold less than the expected number analysts had in mind. The expected numbers are around 76 million while the shipments so far have been of around 67 million iPhones.
Within three days of its launch on 25th September, Apple had gone ahead to make an official statement of how the sales have been unprecedented in the history of iPhones with 13 millions devices sold by 28th September. In the light of these claims, Pacific Crest’s report comes as a surprise. The company claims that Apple has seen a drop in the demand of the phones since then, resulting in reduced orders being placed by Apple to its suppliers. Pacific Crest commented on it and said:
“In contrast to the launch of the iPhone 6 last year, we note: … less than 10% of the carrier stores we surveyed have been sold out of iPhones; last year, carriers didn’t have iPhone stock on hand until November…almost all carriers surveyed indicated that iPhone 6s sales were down y/y, compared to the iPhone 6.”
iPhone 6 had sold as much as 74.4 million devices, giving Apple the most profitable quarter any tech company had ever seen. Things don’t seem to be following the same pattern this year. Let’s see how the numbers stand for Apple by the end of this year.
Apple introduced the 3D Touch with their latest iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s plus. It is, without a doubt, one of the coolest technological improvements from the company in a long while. As you may know already, the 3D Touch makes navigating apps a whole lot easier with the ability to ‘Peek and Pop’, as Apple calls it.
Apps like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook have already begun rolling out updates that make use of the 3D Touch feature. Now WhatsApp joins the list as well. The messaging service rolled out its latest version yesterday and the description mentions how you’ll be able to make use of the 3D Touch feature with your latest iPhone.
While not many found the previous update (starring a message by tapping and holding the message) all that useful, the new update is sure to be a treat for iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus users out there who want to get as much out of the 3D Touch feature as they can. As the update mentions, the 3D Touch feature will now allow you to quickly Peek and Pop pictures, videos, links, contact cards, and locations that you send and receive in chats.
Another update is not 3D Touch related but worth a mention. The WhatsApp interface is now mirrored and optimized for right-to-left languages like Arabic.
Apple wowed us with their event back in September and kept the suspense alive as they remained tight lipped about the iMacs that were not released at the time. Well, the wait is over and they are here!
Apple launched its new Retina 4K display for the 21.5-inch iMac and a 5K display for the 27-inch iMac in California, today.
The much anticipated display makes photos and videos even more crystal clear than they were in the pervious iMacs. The exterior of the iMacs sport Thunderbolt 2 ports and more storage options that makes the desktop look promising.
In addition to this, Apple also announced a number of wireless accessories like the Magic keyboard 2, Magic Mouse 2 and (obviously) Magic Trackpad 2. These devices, we guess, are magical due to the fact that they have rechargeable batteries and require no aid of disposable batteries, whatsoever.
We saw the introduction of Force Touch technology to the iPhone 6s and Apple has taken that a step forward by introducing the technology to the Magic Trackpad of the desktop.
Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president, Worldwide marketing said:
“From the first iMac to today, the spirit of iMac has never wavered — deliver the ultimate desktop experience with the latest technologies, gorgeous displays and cutting-edge designs,”
Specs wise, it has a 4096 x 2304 resolution and 9.4 million pixels, which is reportedly 4.5 times more than the standard 21.5-inch iMac display. The 27-inch iMac features a Retina 5K display with a resolution of 14.7 million pixels. 5K and 4K displays feature a wider P3-based colour gamut that provides a 25 percent larger colour space.
The 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display now comes with sixth-generation Intel Core processors. The new 21.5-inch iMac with Retina 4K display, on the other hand, features a fifth-generation Intel Core processor and is enhanced by Intel Iris Pro Graphics. The Thunderbolt 2 ports come with 20Gbps data transfer speeds for external drives and high-performance peripherals. The RAM has also been improved across the board from 8GB of 1600MHz LPDDR3 to 8GB of 1867GHz LPDDR3, upgradeable to 16GB.
Pricing & Availability
Finally talking about the price, the 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display is available at select Apple Authorised Resellers. The 27-inch iMac comes in three models priced at INR 148,900, INR 164,900 and INR 188,900. Additional technical specifications are available online at www.apple.com/in/imac/.
The 21.5-inch iMac is available at select Apple Authorised Resellers. The desktop is also available in three models priced at INR 91,900 and INR 107,900 and with a Retina 4K display starting at INR 123,900. Additional technical specifications are available online at www.apple.com/in/imac/.
Lastly, the Keyboard is available at INR 8,300, while the Mouse 2 will be be priced at INR 6,600 and the Trackpad 2 for INR 11,200.
Admittedly, these prices are sky rocketing and seem really unaffordable but Apple promises a better experience, as is the case with all its products. So it’s up to you to empty your pockets, or not.
There are a number of ‘Beep’ and songs to choose from for message and call notifications. Leaving out the rattling of your phone when a call or a message comes can save a little of your battery.
