Tag: imac

THX Sues Apple Over Speaker Patent

Apple Inc. has been accused by THX Ltd., a company founded by “Star Wars” producer George Lucas, of stealing speaker technology used in iPhones, iPads and iMac products.

According to the complaint, Apple knowingly infringed and continues to infringe upon THX’s U.S. Patent No. 7,433,483 for “Narrow profile speaker configurations and systems,” a property granted in 2008 describing methods to effectively enhance sound quality in compact speaker arrangements integrated into consumer electronics like computers and televisions.

As noted by Bloomberg, THX claims Apple’s violation caused monetary damages and irreparable harm, and seeks royalties or damages to make up for lost profit.

Given the products Apple allegedly uses the technology in, it is reasonable to assume that monetary damages could be a substantial sum.

THX originated as a way to make sure that the audio in Lucas’s Star Wars movies could be properly produced outside of the theater. The company did this by establishing standards, as well as a certification for sound systems, reports Bloomberg.

This year, San Rafael, California-based THX announced its first mobile application, THX tune-up, available in Apple’s iTunes App Store, according to a Jan. 29 statement from THX. The app allows consumers to use an Apple device with the iOS operating system to adjust the performance of televisions, projectors and speakers, according to the statement.

Neither company would comment outside of THX which simply said that this was a “pending legal matter”.

[Via Bloomberg]

March 16, 2013
MacBook Pro Retina 13-Inch Teardown : Redesigned battery, Samsung flash, Soldered RAM

The $1,699 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display has a reconfigured battery that is much easier to remove, an iFixit teardown reveals.

Now that Apple has taken the wraps off its latest MacBook Pro, a 13-inch notebook updated with the company’s high-definition Retina display, the teardown team over at iFixit has taken the screws to it—or out of it, as the case may be. During the analysis, the company noted the most striking change was the redesign of the device’s battery—which has been changed in a few ways.

The flash storage in the 13-inch MacBook Pro taken apart by iFixit is a Samsung MZ-DPC2560/0A2 unit rated at 3.3 volts and 2.39 amps with 256 gigabytes of storage.

The disassembly discovered that the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro has the same AirPort card as its 15-inch counterpart, while the heat sink has been slightly scaled down to fit into the smaller notebook. Apple has also once again used fans with asymmetrical blade spacing to reduce fan noise.

And like the 15-inch model, the RAM is surface-mount soldered to the logic board, meaning no upgrades are possible. Apple does not offer any more than 8 gigabytes of RAM on the new 13-inch MacBook Pro.

Another strange inclusion found in the notebook is a flash memory chip on the trackpad board. The same feature is also found in the 15-inch model, but iFixit doesn’t know why a trackpad would require flash memory.

“The 13in MacBook Retina is slightly more recyclable than the 15in Retina,” the Ifixit team said on its Macbook teardown page. “Once inside, it took us ‘only’ 15 minutes of prying to remove the battery, and we didn’t puncture the battery cells.”

Ifixit also found that the battery fitted inside is glued into the laptop’s top case, but is slightly less difficult to remove compared to the 15in model.

One of the biggest worries for the Ifixit crew is the display assembly, which it says is almost impossible to take apart. “If anything ever fails inside the display, you’ll need to replace the display as a whole,” it said.

As a device repair site, iFixit rates the repairability of the electronics it disassembles. They found that the 13-inch MacBook Pro is a slight improvement over the 15-inch model in terms of recyclability and repairability, specifically with relation to the removal of the device’s batteries. Still, the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display could only earn a repairability score of 2 out of 10.

October 26, 2012
New Apple iMac with Slimmer design and IVY Bridge Processors Launched

Apple has also refreshed the new iMac with the latest processors and a new super slim design that will be the envy of all. Just 5mm thick at the edges, constructed with “friction stir welding” as well as a gapless, less reflective display that’s laminated together with the glass.

The size of the iMac 2012 is the same with a 21.5-inch, 1080p model and a 27-inch, 2,560 x 1,400 model . Standard 720p-capable front cameras with dual mics as well as NVIDIA’s GeForce 600graphics, boasting up to 32GB of RAM and a lots of storage options upto 3TB of optical drives and a 768GB SSD or Apples new Fusion drive that mixes both 128GB of flash with 1TB or 3TB of conventional storage .

The 21.5-inch iMac ships in November, for a price of $1,299 for a 2.7GHz Core i5, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive.

The 27-inch iMac is priced at $1,799 and you’ll get a 2.9GHz Core i5 as well as the same memory and storage. It will ship in December, however, which gives us a lot of time to save up our monies.

October 23, 2012
Motorola files biggest complaint against Apple for iOS devices

Motorola’s biggest ever complaint against Apple involves 7 technologies that are now owned by Motorola, such as syncing messages between devices and bookmarking media playback on one device to resume on another. Although Apple has been using these technologies since 2005 in podcasts and Movies from iTunes, Motorola’s complaint only targets the newer iPad, iPhone 4s and other devices in the bottom line of Apple’s retail chain.

The complaint may take 6 months to over a year to resolve. By then Apple’s new lineup of technologies should be out. But, the question on everyone’s mind remains whether Apple, with their billions of dollars of corp warfare funds, will let this go easy.

August 21, 2012
Intel Ready to Launch Ivy Bridge Processors on April 23rd

Intel may be ready to announce their next in line Ivy Bridge Processors on the 23rd of April 2012 according to Digitimes. With companies like ASUS, Acer, Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard ready to launch their new ultrabooks in early May the timing only seems perfect for the new launches.

Intel has also reportedly setup a budget of $300 million to assist partners in promotion of the new chipsets on ultrabooks. Rumors also point to the fact that Apple is planning to refresh its iMac family of computers with Intel’s 22nm-based Core i5 and Core i7 Ivy Bridge processors in June or July.

Apple is also set to launch newer Macbook Pro models with a thinner design and possibly without the dvd slot drive boasting the new platform of chipsets.

April 16, 2012
Thunderbolt ports to hit PC starting April 2012
Envious of your friends Apple Computer with a high speed Thunderbolt I/O (not like he can do much with it yet) ? Intel is finally going to be able to bring their Thunderbolt technology to PCs starting April 2012. The next-Gen data transmission system which is currently only enabled in some Apple computer will come to PCs in time for Intel’s 22nm Ivy Bridge processors (Due April 2012). The only competition that Thunderbolt has, in terms of data transfer, is USB 3.0 which offers 10 times the speed of traditional USB 2.0. Thunderbolt ports however, have a couple advantages over USB 3.0 :
- Thunderbolt ports offer double the speeds of USB 3.0
- One machine requires only one Thunderbolt port, as all peripherals have an in and an Out Thunderbolt, so that the devices can be chained ( term : Daisy-chained) in a series. Eliminating the need for hubs or multiple wires connected to a single PC ( Gamers should start falling in love with Thunderbolt about now)
Asus and Acer have already announced that their 2012 lineup will include Thunderbolt ports.
December 28, 2011
Apple Patent Hints at the end of Hard Keys – A new Future for Keyboards

Apple is known for its iPhones, iPod and Macs along with its many Patents and Lawsuits. A recently filed patent from Apple suggests that the company is looking at the possibility of eliminating keyboards all together in the future from its desktop and laptop products. The new keyboards will be a flat surface and will be compromised of various materials and mechanisms with metal, plastic and glass form factors.

The technology is based of multiple ideas that involve piezoelectric components, haptic feedback and acoustic pulse recognition, the combination would allow the keyboard or flat key surface to receive an input via your finger. The flat surface design will have either a plastic or metal construction with perforations to help recognize the keys, a glass overlay to identify them with a display and finally all of this will be led backlit. Looks like Apple is finally taking a stab at the age old keyboard.

[Patently Apple]

July 26, 2011
Apple Refreshes iMac with Quad Core Sandy Bridge Intel i Processors and Thunderbolt Ports (PR)

As was expected the new iMac refres has been in the mill for quite some time, and Apple has officially annouced and started shipment of its new iMac 2011 Lineup. The new revision will feature the same starting price of US $ 1,199/- for the 21.5 inch mac with 1920 by 1080 pixel iPS Display and 2.5GHz quad-core Intel Core i5. With specs going upto 3.4 Ghz Core- i7 on the iMac 27 inch.

The new revision brings single thunderbolt port to the 21.5 inch and a dual thunderbolt to 27 inch iMacs.

Press Release

Apple Announces New iMac With Next Generation Quad-Core Processors, Graphics & Thunderbolt I/O Technology

CUPERTINO, California-May 3, 2011-Apple® today updated its signature all-in-one iMac® with next generation quad-core processors, powerful new graphics, groundbreaking high-speed Thunderbolt I/O technology and a new FaceTime® HD camera. Starting at $1,199, the new iMac is up to 70 percent faster and new graphics deliver up to three times the performance of the previous generation.*

“Our customers love the iMac’s aluminum enclosure, gorgeous display and all-in-one design,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “With next generation quad-core processors, powerful new graphics, Thunderbolt technology and a FaceTime HD camera, we’ve made the world’s best desktop even better.”

The new iMac features quad-core Intel Core i5 processors with an option for customers to choose Core i7 processors up to 3.4 GHz. These next generation processors feature an integrated memory controller for an amazingly responsive experience and a powerful new media engine for high-performance video encoding and decoding. With new AMD Radeon HD graphics processors, the new iMac has the most powerful graphics ever in an all-in-one desktop.

iMac is the first desktop computer on the market to include groundbreaking Thunderbolt I/O technology. The 21.5-inch iMac has a single Thunderbolt port while the 27-inch model features two ports for even greater expansion. Developed by Intel with collaboration from Apple, Thunderbolt enables expandability never before possible on an all-in-one computer. Featuring two bi-directional channels with transfer speeds up to an amazing 10Gbps each, Thunderbolt delivers PCI Express directly to external high performance peripherals such as RAID arrays, and can support FireWire® and USB consumer devices, and Gigabit Ethernet networks via adapters. Thunderbolt also supports DisplayPort for high resolution displays and works with existing adapters for HDMI, DVI and VGA displays. Freely available for implementation on systems, cables and devices, Thunderbolt technology is expected to be widely adopted as a new standard for high performance I/O.

iMac includes a built-in FaceTime HD camera and Apple’s innovative FaceTime software for crisp, widescreen video calling the whole family can enjoy. The new camera supports high definition video calls between all FaceTime HD-enabled Macs and standard resolution calls with iPad® 2, iPhone® 4, the current generation iPod touch® and other Intel-based Macs. The iMac continues to feature its signature aluminum and glass design, gorgeous IPS LED-backlit high resolution display, SD card slot and comes with Apple’s innovative Magic Mouse or Magic Trackpad.

Continuing Apple’s commitment to the environment, Apple’s desktop line is a leader in green design. The iMac meets stringent Energy Star 5.2 requirements and achieves EPEAT Gold rating.** iMac features LED-backlit displays that are mercury-free and made with arsenic-free glass. iMac uses PVC-free components and cables, contains no brominated flame retardants, uses highly recyclable materials and features material-efficient system and packaging designs.

Every Mac comes with Mac OS® X Snow Leopard®, the world’s most advanced operating system, and iLife®, Apple’s innovative suite of applications for creating and sharing great photos, movies and music. Snow Leopard builds on more than a decade of innovation and includes the Mac App Store? for finding great new apps for your Mac. iLife ’11 features iPhoto® with stunning full screen views for browsing, editing and sharing photos; iMovie® with powerful easy-to-use tools to transform home videos into fun theatrical trailers; and GarageBand® with new ways to improve your playing and create great sounding songs.

Pricing & Availability
The new iMac is available through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. The 21.5-inch iMac is available in two configurations: one with a 2.5 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5, AMD Radeon HD 6750M and 500GB hard drive for a suggested retail price of $1,199 (US); and one with a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5, AMD Radeon HD 6770M and 1TB hard drive for a suggested retail price of $1,499 (US). The new 27-inch iMac is available in two models: one with a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5, AMD Radeon HD 6770M and 1TB hard drive for a suggested retail price of $1,699 (US); and one with a 3.1 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5, AMD Radeon HD 6970M and 1TB hard drive for a suggested retail price of $1,999 (US).

Configure-to-order options include faster Intel Core i7 processors up to 3.4 GHz, additional hard drive capacity up to 2TB, a 256GB solid state drive, additional DDR3 memory and AppleCare® Protection Plan. Additional technical specifications and configure-to-order options and accessories are available online at www.apple.com/imac.

*Testing conducted by Apple in April 2011 using preproduction iMac configurations. For more information visit www.apple.com/imac/features.html.

**Claim based on energy efficiency categories and products listed within the EPA ENERGY STAR 5.2 energy database as of April 2011. EPEAT is an independent organization that helps customers compare the environmental performance of notebooks and desktops. Products meeting all of the 23 required criteria and at least 75 percent of the optional criteria are recognized as EPEAT Gold products. The EPEAT program was conceived by the US EPA and is based on IEEE 1680 standard for Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products. For more information visit www.epeat.net.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced iPad 2 which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.

May 4, 2011
iMac Ready for A Refresh – Supplies low worldwide
9to5 Mac is reporting that the all the available variants of the iMac Lineup and running short on supplies and deliveries in the US and several other parts of the world. If Apple’s yearly refresh plan is put into place (11 months in case of computers and laptops), Apple last year refreshed the iMac on 27th july 2010. So, following the trend Apple should have the updated versions releasing end May – or early June 2011.

The best possible upgrades would be
- Sandy Bridge processors
- Thunderbolt I/O Port/s
- Possible Resolution and screen size bump
April 22, 2011
Apple iMac headed for refresh, what do you want?

Sadly, if you’re waiting for the updated iMacs, there has still been no news on a 2011 Apple iMac refresh as yet. The last iMac refresh was in July 2010 and current prices start from $1,199 and we know that if you are thinking of purchasing an iMac but don’t want to make the move if an upgrade will be out shortly.

Apple for its Computers unlike the iPhone/iPod/iPad follows a 10 month refresh cycle. In that scenario the new upgrade could be out anywhere from April to May 2011. Current iMacs have screen sizes of 21.5-inches and 27-inches, there are certainly rumors of new screen sizes. Of course we would expect the new ThunderBolt (Light Peak) technology. Possibly a 30-inch option, improved graphics cards, 8GB base memory, and SSD options.

What do you expect from a iMac Refresh this year?

March 14, 2011