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Universal Remote Patent Adds More Evidence Of Upcoming Apple Television

Matt Watterworth — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 01:55:22 +0000

A patent covering the use of a touchscreen universal remote control has been published and the Apple filing suggests that the remote will govern the use of a number of specific products. The patent, uncovered by AppleInsider, specifically mentions the use of a “television, video tape player, video disk player, stereo, home controls, computer MP3 player, computer DVD player”.

While previous patent probes specifically discuss a television product, this one appears to revolve around the creation of a remote for such a device. The patent also makes specific mention of its ability to replace the “table full of remotes” as it puts the user in control of many other devices. 9to5Mac notes that the reference plays specifically into a quote from Steve Jobs from an appearance at All Things D when he was remarking on the current television model (Steve Jobs Talks Television).

The remote intends to incorporate all of your entertainment devices into a single UI and a single remote by creating an “automatic discovery mechanism” which would allow the remote to talk to your devices using Bluetooth or Wi-Fi technology. The device itself would house the actual graphical representation of its functionality, making the particular UI available to the remote upon connection.

When a user selects an appliance to control at the remote control, the remote control sends a message to the appliance requesting a menu description. In response, the appliance returns the menu description to the remote control. The remote control then displays the menu.

Interestingly, this patent makes no mention of voice control integration, which has been a mainstay of the rumour mill suggesting that Siri will likely be integrated into perhaps many future Apple devices.

Apple certainly won’t be the first company to release a universal remote with a digital interface but do you think they’ll be the first to get it right?

Universal Remote Patent Adds More Evidence Of Upcoming Apple Television is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Singapore Carrier M1 Now Sells a Camera-less iPhone 4S

Keith Little — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 19:44:36 +0000

According to the International Business Times, Singapore iPhone enthusiasts will soon be able to buy a cameraless iPhone from M1, the country’s biggest mobile phone provider.

The camera-less iPhone will cost an estimated $38 more than a standard iPhone 4 or 4S but the modification, performed by M1, will void Apple’s warranty.

Demand for an iPhone without the camera is significant in Singapore where all males serve a mandatory two years in the country’s Armed Forces. Since 2007, camera phones have been banned from military installations in Sinagpore following the release of photos of sensitive training operations.

M1 is the first mobile provider to offer the government-sanctioned modifications. Owners of the cameraless iPhones will receive an official certificate allowing them to carry their phones with them during their military service.

According to M1, the modification is not reversible at this time so owners wishing to use their camera once their service is finished are out of luck. Until, of course, a market for re-installing iPhone cameras springs up.

Canadian soldiers are lucky to use iPhones with cameras, aren’t they?

Singapore Carrier M1 Now Sells a Camera-less iPhone 4S is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Newly Published Apple TV Episodic Content Patent Credited To Steve Jobs

Matt Watterworth — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 00:44:08 +0000

Patently Apple reported yesterday that The US Patent office has granted Apple twenty-two patents and one of them is of particular interest.

The patent appears to be a navigation and management system for episodic content from iTunes and television. The patent goes into detail stating that the system could:

“Correspond to television shows that have either been recorded from a broadcast or purchased from a content provider.”

That’s a new one, as Apple TV does not currently hold the ability to record television and the original patent filing happened in the third quarter of 2006. The idea that the ability may soon reside within the set top box isn’t completely out of the question however, as a 2011 patent granted to Apple Inc. states that:

“Media systems could also be used to connect a media environment to a video content provider, such as a cable service provider.”

The 2006 patent credits inventors Rainer Brodersen, Rachel Goldeen, Jeffrey Ma, Mihnea Pacuraiu and, most notably, the late Steve Jobs.

Jobs’ immediate legacy has been widely reported as lying within the world of television and is best summed up in a now famous quote from authorized biographer Walter Isaacson in a Washington Post piece saying that when speaking with Jobs about Apple’s vision for the television set, the former Apple CEO remarked:

“No longer would users have to fiddle with complex remotes for DVD players and cable channels. It will have the simplest user interface you could imagine. I finally cracked it.”

It seems fairly clear that the next Apple revolution will be in television. Do you see an “iTV” being as groundbreaking a device as the iPad or iPhone?

Newly Published Apple TV Episodic Content Patent Credited To Steve Jobs is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

ARM CEO Dismisses Intel’s Smartphone and Tablet Foray

Matt Watterworth — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 01:38:22 +0000

With Intel’s recent announcement of the Medfield chip and the company’s desire to be a part of Apple’s iOS success, ARM CEO Warren East told Reuters in Las Vegas at CES:

“It’s inevitable Intel will get a few smartphone design wins. Are they ever going to be the leaders in power efficiency? No, of course not. But they have a lot more to offer.”

The British chip design company ARM licenses their designs to 275 processor manufacturers and East says that their Cortex A7 design holds the same performance of chips of a few years ago but accomplishes that on only 20% of the power consumption.

The brush off might be a result of ARM feeling protective of their recent inclusion in the upcoming Windows 8 line of tablets and smartphones. Microsoft had previously had a long-standing partnership with Intel.

It’s interesting to note that in the late 80′s when John Sculley was CEO, Apple actually had a part in founding ARM during the creation of the Newton Message Pad PDA which utilized the ARM 610 RISC processor.

Who would you like to see providing processors to the iPhone? Intel, ARM or leave things the way they are with Apple processors?

ARM CEO Dismisses Intel’s Smartphone and Tablet Foray is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Samsung Declares Pre-Emptive War on Apple iTV

Keith Little — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:59:22 +0000

Despite being absent from this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, Apple was hardly out of the limelight as electronics companies lined up to prove that their products were a serious threat to whatever Apple might have in the pipeline.

This year, huge-screened interactive televisions were front and centre and Apple’s rumoured iTV loomed over electronics maker Samsung’s new interactive TV offerings. But, as with Samsung’s mobile products, the company is coming out swinging and working hard to try and prove their products’ muster. Philip Newton, audio-visual director of Samsung Australia, told the Sydney Morning Herald that any breakthrough Apple might have in the iTV market will be “old news” compared to their company’s offerings.

Before his death, Jobs told biographer Walter Isaacson that Apple had “finally cracked” the key to making an easy-to-use interactive television. But as rumours and speculation about an Apple iTV run rampant giants like Sharp, Sony, and Samsung are hurriedly flooding the market with their smart TVs. These TVs, showcased at CES, work with multiple devices; share movies, music, and photos; and even store data in the cloud. Samsung’s latest televisions feature microphones and webcams for voice and gesture recognition, feature a robust app library, and a “Smart Profile” system that will recognize who is using the TV and react accordingly.

But as with music players and mobile phones Apple’s history of defining a product category is pretty well solidified. Will an Apple iTV change the entire market? Philip Newton seems confident that it won’t. “We’ve developed product right through to 2014,” says Newton, “so we have a fair idea of what’s coming and when it’s coming.”

Still, while Apple is remaining tight-lipped about whatever new products they have in development rumours persist and it’s clear that however confident manufacturers like Samsung might feel after showcasing their products this year, an entry by Apple into any market is certainly something to fear.

Samsung Declares Pre-Emptive War on Apple iTV is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Apple Acquires Part Manufacturer Anobit

Matt Watterworth — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 01:46:09 +0000

California-based Apple Inc. is no stranger to buying other companies and has most recently purchased Israeli company “Anobit” reports Steve Dowling, Apple spokesman yesterday.

Anobit makes a controller part contained within iPhones and iPads that helps to optimize device flash memory abilities. Bloomberg is reporting that Apple paid about $390 million to acquire it after two weeks of negotiations.

While Apple did make confirmation of the sale they declined to go into detail on their strategy for the use of the company. Dowling says:

”Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans,”

The arrangement does put Apple in control of a portion of the supply chain for an integral part in their extremely popular iOS devices. As the world’s largest consumer of flash memory, accounting for 23%, the purchase helps to secure the value of the memory it consumes.

It’s worth noting that this marks Apple’s first acquisition in Israel where organizations such as Microsoft, HP and Intel are already established.

Apple Acquires Part Manufacturer Anobit is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

250 Apple Employees Are Attending The Consumer Electronics Show

Matt Watterworth — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 01:43:11 +0000

Yesterday we learned that Apple does indeed have a presence at CES 2012 and today, we learn that that presence is quite a bit larger than previously thought.

A reporter with PaidContent picked Greg Joswiak out of the crowd of at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas yesterday and today Reuters is reporting that hundreds of registered attendees are sporting “Apple Inc” on their CES badges.

More than 250 employees are registered to attend the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, according to a person familiar with Apple’s plans.

With retail stores all over the world and one of the most visited websites on the internet it would seem that Apple feels it no longer needs to exhibit at trade shows in order to get its message out. The electronics giant has not commented on their presence at CES, but keeping an eye on third party manufactures who make accessories for Apple products as well as staying on top of other companies’ product launches may be the motivation.

250 Apple Employees Are Attending The Consumer Electronics Show is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Kodak Sues Apple Over Imaging Patents

Matt Watterworth — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 01:45:18 +0000

Reeling from an 88% drop in its stock value last year, Kodak is looking to its expansive patent library as a source of recovery cash to mount a comeback. Today, the 131-year-old imaging company sued Apple and HTC over imaging patents while, yesterday, Apple’s stock hit an all-time high.

FOSS Patents lays out the particular patents Kodak says Apple is violating:

U.S. Patent No. 7,210,161 on “automatically transmitting images from an electronic camera to a service provider using a network configuration file”
U.S. Patent No. 7,742,084 on a “network configuration file for automatically transmitting images from an electronic still camera”
U.S. Patent No. 7,453,605 on “capturing digital images to be transferred to an e-mail address”
U.S. Patent No. 7,936,391 on a “digital camera with communications interface for selectively transmitting images over a cellular phone network and a wireless LAN network to a destination”

The claim targets the Fourth Generation iPod touch, the iPhone 3G, 3GS, 4 as well as the iPhone 4S. And don’t forget the iPad 2! In Kodak’s statement, Laura Quatela, Kodak’s Chief Operating Officer, said:

“Our primary interest is not to disrupt the availability of any product but to obtain fair compensation for the unauthorized use of our technology.’

“We’ve had numerous discussions with both companies in an attempt to resolve this issue, and we have not been able to reach a satisfactory agreement.”

Do you feel that Kodak is entitled to a share of revenues from the successful iOS devices?

Kodak Sues Apple Over Imaging Patents is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Apple Executive Spotted Roaming the 2012 CES Show Floor

Matt Watterworth — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 01:44:55 +0000

It’s been three years since Apple has officially attended its last conference, Macworld 2009, but that doesn’t mean that its employees, and in this case one of its executives, don’t make low profile appearances in an effort to keep tabs on other leading technology companies.

Today, PaidContent spotted Greg Joswiak, head of iOS product marketing with Apple, while he was roaming the CES floor at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Apparently the executive was on the floor in an effort to explore the way “other companies present their products at events such as CES” offering details such as aesthetics and booth layout. Gee, that doesn’t sound rehearsed.

Apparently, Mr. Joswiak was not terribly impressed with what Sony had to offer but couldn’t be wrangled into a longer discussion. There’s no doubt that there’s knowledge to be gained by Apple at CES 2012 and certainly they’re keeping their finger on the pulse of the technology world.

Apple Inc., since 2009, has opted to launch all new products at their own events. This has given the company the freedom to launch and promote their products on their own timetables as well as putting them control of various aspects of the launch proceedings.

Apple Executive Spotted Roaming the 2012 CES Show Floor is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Will Future Apple Power Adapters Remember Your Password?

Matt Watterworth — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 02:19:29 +0000

Apple is known for combining simplicity with incredible innovation and in a recent patent filing, it seems that their latest attempt revolves around data security and password recovery for computers and smartphones.

In the filing, spotted by New Scientist, Apple reports that:

“If the password is not easily and conveniently recoverable, the consumer is likely to choose either not to use a password at all or to use a trivial password. Both choices increase the threat of data loss,”

They suggest that the power adapter that users are already taking with them in their laptop bags might make the best solution. This would mean that the cable would act as a kind of physical “key” replacing the need for secret questions in the event that a user forgets their password.

The idea, of course, hinges on the reality that most computer theft is of the “smash and grab” variety meaning that thieves are more likely to grab the machine itself and leave the adapter behind.

The obvious question becomes: wouldn’t the bad guys simply start grabbing the power cables as well? Heck, it’d be even easier than having to guess what their victim’s favourite ice cream shop is! For now, Apple seems to suggest that security could be further improved by storing the data on multiple devices or peripherals like a router or a mobile phone.

What do you think? Would this move make your devices more or less secure?

Will Future Apple Power Adapters Remember Your Password? is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource