Apple Hiring Former Texas Instruments Engineers in Israel

Apple is hiring "dozens" of laid off Texas Instruments engineers to beef up its chip-making R&D operations in Israel, according to a report by The Next Web.

According to sources close to the situation, Apple has been hiring "dozens" of engineers from Texas Instruments after the company begun cutting around 250 jobs from its Ra’anana development center as it looks to lay off around 1,700 employees (about 5 percent of its total workforce) globally.

Many of the engineers working at the development center were focused on the development of TI’s OMAP and radio (including WiFi and Bluetooth) chips, which are used a number of new smartphone and tablet devices.

It's possible that the engineers will work with the crew from Anobit that Apple purchased a year ago, perhaps at Apple's new research and development center in Haifa.

The Next Web notes that the new hires will likely be in the Technologies group that Senior Vice President Bob Mansfield is now in charge of after last month's executive reshuffling at the company.

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More Than Half of iPad mini Buyers Already Have iPads

This shouldn’t come as much of a shock to anyone, but according to an informal survey by Piper Jaffray, 58% of iPad mini buyers already had iPads at home, and 75% of them planned on keeping their iPads.

This survey is tiny (72 iPad buyers), but combined with anecdotal evidence, these data could be onto something:

The small survey of 72 buyers, conducted by Piper Jaffray, seeks to profile who is buying Apple’s devices and where those sales may be trending. The firm forecasts Apple will sell 1.5 million iPad minis in its 3 day launch weekend, compared to the nearly one million small tablets per month that Google is now selling.

Piper Jaffray’s Gene Munster reported in a note to clients that 72 percent of his small survey of iPad mini buyers cited its compact size as their primary reason for buying the device. He concluded that this “reinforces our thesis that iPad Mini may start slower than some other product launches, but gain momentum as consumers recognize the portability benefits of the smaller size.”

…

Munster’s small survey notes that initial buyers of the iPad mini represent many repeat customers. While 54 percent of iPad 3 buyers were new to iPad, only 42 percent of iPad mini were, with 11 percent reporting owning the original iPad, 23 percent claiming an iPad 2, and 25 percent saying they just bought iPad 3.

Of current owners, 75 percent said they plan to keep their existing iPad in addition to their new iPad mini. “We believe this suggests that customers purchasing iPad Minis may intend to do less video consumption and more Internet browsing/reading/app usage, which require less storage,” Munster wrote.

As I surmised before, I think Apple is making a holiday play here. They want to know how the iPad mini (and venerable iPad 2) will fit into people’s lives. I think the next month of reviews are critical for Apple to understand how to marketing to the various segments of people. I’m not sure right now how my iPad mini is going to fit into my life. My wife is getting my iPad 3 and I have to wonder if I might wind up carrying an iPad 4 and mini instead of the laptop mini combination. Honestly, I just don’t know how it will all fit together. Carrying two iPads seems a little odd to me. Sure I like to have two screens while I work, but that’s a lot of gear. I don’t know if I could write a lot on the smaller screen. But I do see myself reading on the mini while typing on the iPad 4. Crazy I know, but…who knows.

What’s your take? Who is the best target market for Apple? iPhone/iPod owners? People who don’t have a tablet yet at all? Where do you think an iPad mini would fit into your tech world?

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Apple Airs First iPad mini TV Ad “Piano”

Apple has started airing the iPad mini television ad with the launch of the device earlier today. Apple had unveiled the ad titled “Piano” at the iPad and Mac Special event on October 23rd

The television commercial starts off with someone playing the opening notes of “Heart and Soul” on the piano using the Garageband app on the full-sized iPad with two-fingers. The camera then reveals the new iPad mini with someone continuing to play along on the GarageBand app with one finger.

That’s it. The short and simple ad does a good job of showing customers how much smaller the iPad mini is compared to the full-sized iPad and also drives home the idea that everything you do on the full-sized iPad can also be done on the smaller iPad.

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iPad Mini Sells Out in Two Hours at Apple's Flagship Fifth Avenue Retail Store

While reports have indicated that launch-day lines for the iPad mini and fourth-generation iPad have been shorter than seen for many previous Apple product launches, some Apple retail stores are still seeing long lines. Fortune notes that despite the impact of Hurricane Sandy in the northeastern United States, Apple's flagship Fifth Avenue store in Manhattan saw over 800 people in line as the store opened at 10:00 AM, two hours later than originally planned.

According to the records Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster has been keeping since 2008 (see below), that's more customers than turned out for the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4S.

And by 9:56 a.m. -- four minutes before the doors finally opened -- I counted 801 men, women and children. Only the iPhone 4 (1,300) and iPad 2 (1,190) drew bigger crowds.

Topeka Capital Markets analyst Brian White is also at the Fifth Avenue store and has been monitoring availability of the various models. According to White, all three models of the white Wi-Fi iPad mini sold out in a little over an hour, with the black models following suit after about two hours. No additional shipments are expected at the store today.

We are at Apple's flagship Fifth Avenue store in New York City and our checks now indicate that all of the White & Silver iPad mini models sold out at around 11:15 AM. We estimate that the 16GB and 64GB were sold out by 10:30 AM ET and the 32GB sold out at around 11:15 AM ET.

As of 11:40 AM ET, both the 16GB and 32GB Black & Slate iPad mini models were sold out at the Fifth Avenue NYC store; while we estimate the 64GB iPad mini sold out at around 12:10 PM ET.
A similar pattern was seen in online pre-orders, with the white models selling out in just 17 minutes and the black models taking a few days to run out of availability.

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iPad mini: Unboxing Photos, First Impressions And Some Interesting Details

We’ve got our hands on the new iPad mini, which goes on sale in 34 countries today.

So here’s our unboxing experience of the black iPad mini in photos along with the first impressions and some interesting details.

First Impressions:

• The iPad mini comes in a miniature version of the full-sized iPad box.
• The iPad mini feels noticeably lighter than the iPad 3/iPad 4, which is not a big surprise as it weighs less than half the weight of the full-sized iPad. It will be our go-to gadget when we want to read in bed.
• It’s also very thin, not as thin as the 5th generation iPod touch, but thinner than the iPhone 5.

• You can comfortably hold it in one hand in portrait mode thanks to the slightly rounded sides, which can be quite useful in certain situations. Apple did the right thing by reducing the width of the side bezels.
• The fit and finish of the iPad mini is incredible. The back casing comes with the same kind of anodized aluminum used in the 5th generation iPod touch (which we really liked) and MacBook line.
• Actually, the iPad mini feels more like a bigger iPod touch rather than a smaller iPad due to the thinner bezel and anodized aluminum coating.
• As some early iPad mini reviews have mentioned, the thin and light iPad mini with its anodized aluminum coating and slightly rounded sides makes it a pleasure to hold.
• We noticed that the anodized aluminum coating is quite prone to fingerprints.
• iPad mini’s stereo speakers sound pretty good.
• If you’re used to the Retina Display, you will notice that the screen is of lower resolution, especially while reading.
• The size of the text also seemed quite small while surfing, felt the need to double tap on webpages to zoom in to avoid straining our eyes.
• The keys on the virtual keyboard are quite small in portrait mode, while they are quite nice and big in the landscape mode so it was more comfortable typing in landscape mode.
• The screen size is perfect for apps like Tweetbot, Mail app, Reeder, which are some of our most used apps.
• Unlike the full-sized iPad, it doesn’t feel odd using the iPad mini to take photos.

• Some interesting details:
• iPad mini comes with 92% charge out of the box.
• While setting up the device, iOS refers to the iPad mini as the iPad and not with the “iPad mini” moniker.
• The headphone jack is at the top edge.
• The speaker grille is at the bottom rather than at the back.
• iPad mini comes pre-installed with iOS 6.0 and not iOS 6.0.1. So users will have to update it iOS 6.0.1, which was released yesterday.
• According to software requirements on the box, iPad mini requires iTunes 11 or above, so it looks like Apple delayed the launch of iTunes 11 at the last minute.
• The Camera app doesn’t come with the Panorama mode.
• According to the Geekbench 2 app, iPad mini is powered by a 999 Mhz dual-core ARMv7 processor with 512MB RAM.
• iPad mini got a Geekbench score of 749, which is slightly lower than iPad 2′s average Geekbench score of 780, 3rd generation iPad’s average Geekbench score of 790 and significantly lower than 4th generation iPad’s early Geekbench score of 1757.
• The Smart Cover seems to work much better with the iPad mini as it doesn’t tend to snap off like the bigger iPad, probably as it is much lighter.

Here are the unboxing photos:

If there is something you want to know about the iPad mini, then please feel free to drop us a line in the comments 

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iPad Mini Teardown Reveals Samsung Display Driver, A5 Chip, Stereo Speakers

iFixit is currently working on a teardown of the iPad mini, revealing the internal components of the device for the first time.

One interesting development is the discovery of a Samsung display driver chip. It is unclear, however, whether this means that Samsung is also responsible for the display itself, as the codes found on the back of the display do not provide immediate evidence of its manufacturer. Display production had been reported to be split between AU Optronics and LG, with Samsung being left out on the iPad mini.



The teardown has also reached the logic board, revealing the A5 chip powering the device. The A5 chip found in iFixit's model carries date codes indicating that the package was put together in the 31st week of 2012, which would correspond to the end of July or the beginning of August.

iPad mini's stereo speakers

iFixit has also confirmed that the iPad mini contains stereo speakers, although the relatively small spacing between the two speakers means that the benefit of stereo sound will be marginal under most scenarios.

iFixit's teardown is still underway, and we will update this post with any additional observations of interest that may surface.

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Tim Cook: iPad Mini Priced “Aggressively”

During Apple's fourth quarter earnings call today, CEO Tim Cook explained the company's pricing philosophy for the iPad mini in some detail. The following is a portion of our rough transcript:

When we set out to build it, we didn't set out to build a small, cheap tablet. We set out to build a smaller iPad that offered the full iPad experience. The difference between us and the competition is profound. 35% larger screen than 7" tablets. 2 great cameras. Fastest communications with dual bank Wi-Fi. Fit and finish of our precision enclosure is breathtaking when held in your hands. That's what we've done, the iPad mini has higher costs and gross margin is significantly below our corporate average. Height of the cost curve, but we want to make a large number and we're going to work to try to get down the cost curve and get more efficient with manufacturing as we've done with our other products.



One of the things we try to do is to create a product that people will love for months and years and continue using. That's what iPad Mini is designed to do. You can see that more broadly on iPad by looking at the usage statistics. Over 90% of web traffic from tablets is from iPads. Apple will not make a product that somebody may feel good about for the moment, but then won't use when they get home. That's not the experience we want our customers to have. I would encourage you to use an iPad mini and I don't think you'd be using anything other than an iPad once you do that.

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Low Touchscreen Yields Reportedly Contributing to iPad Mini Pricing

Digitimes reports that one of the primary reasons that Apple was unable or unwilling to launch the iPad mini at a price below $329 is ongoing difficulties with touchscreen production as Apple transitions to new "GF2 Dito" technology.
The sources said the DITO film sensor is having mass production issues, which has been a big contributor to why the device is approximately 40-50% more expensive compared to other 7-inch tablets that have OGS or G/G structures.

The sources said that GF2 touch screen modules are only about roughly US$5 cheaper than G/G ones for the 9.7-inch iPad models.

Apple's transition to the new touch structure was mentioned by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo back in late August, with Kuo noting that hurdles experienced in that transition were one of the primary reasons that prevented Apple from launching iPad mini earlier than it did.

Today's report also notes that supply chain sources are continuing to see orders for the iPad 2 extending as far as the first quarter of next year, suggesting that Apple will indeed keep that model available for some time. One analyst had speculated last week that Apple might drop the iPad 2 in favor of the iPad mini in order to maintain a streamline product lineup, but at its media event this week the company was clear that the iPad 2 at $399 Wi-Fi/$529 cellular remains an integral part of its iPad portfolio even as the third-generation iPad has been discontinued.

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Apple's Schiller defends iPad mini's price tag

Apple marketing wizard Phil Schiller defended the $329 price of the new iPad mini tablet, saying consumers will be willing to pay for quality not found in less expensive devices from rivals like Google and Amazon.

With competition growing from tablets that are smaller and less expensive than Apple's wildly popular iPads, Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook and Schiller on Tuesday took the wraps off the new 7.9-inch tablet, which essentially has most of the functions and features of the full-size iPad but in a smaller package.

While the news of the launch was welcomed by Wall Street, many analysts were concerned that the steeper-than-expected price might turn away some cost conscious consumers.

Google's Nexus 7 and Amazon's Kindle Fire HD tablets are both priced starting at $199. While the iPad mini is significantly more expensive, it is also lighter, thinner and provides more screen space than rival offerings.

Asked by Reuters whether the iPad mini's price could make it too expensive for some cost-conscious shoppers who have been attracted to the Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire, Schiller said he believes consumers will see Apple's smaller tablet as a premium product worth paying for.

"The iPad is far and away the most successful product in its category. The most affordable product we've made so far was $399 and people were choosing that over those devices," Schiller said.

"And now you can get a device that's even more affordable at $329 in this great new form, and I think a lot of customers are going to be very excited about that," Schiller said.

Amazon made inroads into the realm of 7-inch tablets last year with the launch of its Kindle Fire and has said its latest Kindle Fire HD is the best-selling product on the company's website since the device went on sale more than a month ago.

The Internet retailer is believed to sell the product close to its cost, but the Fire HD is part of Amazon's strategy to attract mobile customers to its website.

Internet advertiser Google is similarly believed to sell its Nexus 7, manufactured by Asustek, near cost.

Apple is under pressure to defend its dominant position in tablets, a market it created with the launch of the first iPad in 2010. The intensity in the marketplace was evident in Tuesday's unveiling of the iPad mini as Schiller took the unusual step of doing a side-by-side comparison of the smaller iPad and Google's Nexus 7 tablet.

"Others have tried to make tablets smaller than the iPad and they've failed miserably," Schiller said during the event. "These are not great experiences."

The launch of the iPad mini, at the California Theater in San Jose, was mostly a Schiller show with the veteran Apple executive responsible for all of its marketing and advertising strategy introducing all of the new products, including a fourth generation 10-inch iPad, a 13-inch Macbook Pro with a so-called retina screen and a new iMac.

Apple's presentations typically feature a host of executives and even some external game company executives, but Schiller on Tuesday only shared the stage with Cook, who later mingled in a crowded room as journalists and analysts jostled in a crowded room to try out the new gadgets.

Analysts have worried that challenging the likes of Amazon in smaller and less expensive tablets could hurt Apple's prized profit margins. Apple's gross margin on the full-sized iPad is between 23 percent and 32 percent for US sales.

Despite concerns that the high price tag may curb demand, analysts were still bullish of the company, which will releases its fiscal fourth-quarter results on Thursday.

"In spite of concerns about the price … we would be buyers of the stock even in front of earnings this Thursday as we do believe that customers will pay a premium for an Apple tablet," said Shebly Seyrafi, an analyst at FBN Securities.

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'iPad Mini' Name Confirmed by Smart Cover Part Descriptions

9to5Mac reports that it has received confirmation of a new set of Smart Covers launching today for Apple's "iPad mini". The accessories are described as "iPad Mini Smart Covers", all but confirming that Apple will use the "mini" designation as part of the device's official name.

Japanese blog Macotakara claimed in late August that Apple would use the long-standing "iPad mini" informal title as the official name of the device, and it appears that this is indeed the case. Others have, however, been advocating for alternative names, such as noted Apple pundit John Gruber having expressed his preference for "iPad Air".

The new iPad Mini Smart Covers are said to be available in red, dark gray, light gray, pink, green, and blue.

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Apple's 'iPad Mini' Media Event Reportedly Scheduled for October 23

AllThingsD reports that Apple appears to be planning to hold a media event on Tuesday, October 23 to introduce the "iPad mini", Apple's smaller tablet device said to be carrying a display measuring 7.85 inches diagonally.

As AllThingsD reported in August, Apple will hold a special event this month at which it will showcase a new, smaller iPad. People familiar with Apple’s plans tell us that the company will unveil the so-called “iPad mini” on October 23 at an invitation-only event.

That’s a Tuesday, not a Wednesday, so this is a bit of a break with recent tradition. It also happens to be just three days prior to the street date for Microsoft’s new Surface tablet.

The location of the event is unconfirmed, but the report suggests that it is likely to be held at the company's Town Hall auditorium at its corporate headquarters in Cupertino, California.

AllThingsD has an excellent track record regarding Apple media event rumors, giving this claim a high probability of proving true. Given past history, Apple would be expected to send out invitations early next week if the event is to be held on October 23.

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'iPad Mini' Launch Supplies Reportedly Challenged by Component Yield Issues

In the lead-up to major Apple product launches, there are almost inevitably reports of production problems that result in the company having lower stocks on hand than it initially hoped for, sometimes leading to extended shortages as the company's supply chain works to catch up to demand. The iPhone 5 was no different, with yield issues on the new in-cell displays used in the device reportedly being the bottleneck that has limited availability.

With The Wall Street Journal now reporting that mass production of the "iPad mini" has begun, reports are once again suggesting that Apple's launch supplies may be on the low side due to issues with several components.

One such report comes from Topeka Capital Markets analyst Brian White, who is currently in Taiwan meeting with a number of contacts in the component supply chains for Apple and other companies. White's contacts believe that yield issues with several iPad mini components have been "frustrating", with supplies of the device likely to be constrained for the first month of availability heading into the holiday shopping season.
Similar to the iPhone 5, we sensed that suppliers have found the specs around Apple's (AAPL-$671.45: Buy) 7.85-inch "iPad Mini" to be a challenge and yields have been frustrating. In our view, this is the reason the "iPad Mini" is 4-6 weeks behind our original launch expectation that we discussed in June. Despite continued yield challenges, the supply chain feels the much anticipated iPad Mini is on track to reach acceptable volume levels for a launch over the next month. That said, we believe that supply constraints will initially hold back the full sales potential during the first month or so of the launch.

White believes that Apple may sell 5-7 million iPad minis through the end of the quarter, somewhat below more optimistic estimates from other analysts that have put the number closer to 10 million. As with the iPhone 5, product availability for the iPad mini may actually be the limiting factor for early sales, making it difficult to assess true consumer demand.



A goal of five million panels for iPad Mini was set for the third quarter but later had to drop to one million due to low yield rates, with LG Display and AUO comprising 60% and AUO 40%, the sources said.
The second report from Digitimes indicates that chassis makers are also struggling with yield issues.
Along with the latest market rumors indicating that Apple is likely to unveil the much speculated iPad mini on October 17, sources in Apple's supply chain in Taiwan are also indicating that shipments of the iPad mini tablets are not smooth at the moment due to low yield rates at chassis makers.


A pair of reports from Digitimes tell a similar story, with one article claiming that AU Optronics' production of the iPad mini display panels has been below expectations with just 400,000 panels shipped in the third quarter compared to a goal of two million for the manufacturer.
Apple is expected to ship 9-10 million units of the new tablet in the fourth quarter, but it remains to be seen whether AUO and LG Display - the other panel supplier for iPad Mini - can meet the target, the sources said.



Case makers Foxconn Electronics, Catcher Technology and Ri-Teng Computer Accessory are responsible for production of the iPad mini chassis, the sources indicated. Ri-Teng is an associate company of Pegatron.
The report claims that the iPad mini will be available in two body colors, native aluminum and black-anodized aluminum as seen with the iPhone 5, with the black version experiencing greater production issues due to the scratching vulnerability of the anodized chassis.

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iPhone 5 Battery Life May Be Impacted Greatly by Cellular Signal Strength

Deep in its lengthy review of the iPhone 5, iLounge has performed an analysis on the battery life of the iPhone 5. The site tested the device under a number of conditions, including both cellular and Wi-Fi web browsing, voice calls, FaceTime calls, video recording, and video and audio playback.


The phone performed fairly well but iLounge found battery life struggled when transferring cellular data or making voice calls, which they speculated was due to a weak signal:

if you’re using your iPhone 5 in places a with a very strong (4- to 5-bar) LTE or 3G signal, your cellular battery life may approach that number, but if not, the cellular antenna will struggle to maintain a signal, and fall well short. Because LTE and 3G/4G towers are in a state of build-out flux right now, our tests suggest that many LTE users won’t come close to Apple’s promised numbers.

iLounge has the detailed results on its battery testing in its iPhone 5 review, but unsurprisingly, mileage will vary greatly depending on a number of factors including health of the battery, signal strength, screen brightness, and other considerations.

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iPhone 5 (vs Samsung Galaxy S3) Drop Tests Show Very Durable Device and Screen

With the launch of the iPhone 5, several companies are performing tests and benchmarks on the new device. One common effort is to put any new iPhone in a series of drop tests to see how well it survives common falls. 

Android Authority (via iPhoneinCanada) posts a drop test comparison video between the Samsung Galaxy S3 and iPhone 5 and actually finds in favor of the iPhone 5. 


Well, as much as we hate to admit it, the iPhone 5 did amazingly well in our drop test, while the Samsung Galaxy S3 came out in pretty bad shape. It’s the cold hard truth that we can’t hide and we can’t ignore.  ....  The hard aluminum shell of the iPhone 5 withstood the impact pretty well, and the glass protecting the display remained intact. Meanwhile, the Galaxy S3 predictably lost its back cover and suffered damage to the casing and the front glass. Sad, sad, sad.
The iPhone 5 survived all the falls until they finally threw the device screen down. They describe the device as the "most durable iPhone" they've seen.

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Apple Begins Shipping iPhone 5 To Customers

Yesterday, we had heard scattered reports that the iPhone 5 pre-order status for some users had changed to "Prepared for Shipment" on Apple's website.

iClarified now reports that Apple has started shipping iPhone 5 to customers from China via UPS.

iClarified reports that while Apple has not yet sent email confirmations to inform users that their iPhone 5 has been shipped or updated the status of the order to "Shipped", it is possible to find out using a simple trick on UPS' website.

Simply fill out the track by reference form on UPS, and use your phone number associated with your Apple ID for the reference number. If that phone number does not work, keep trying any phone number that could be associated with your wireless account or the number you used to upgrade.

Don't panic if UPS could not find your tracking, Apple is still sending these out!


We're also hearing reports that some users are getting an email from Apple giving them the good news that their iPhone 5 will arrive sooner than expected. AppleInsider reports of one such case:

When the order was originally placed Friday morning, this person was quoted an arrival date of two weeks.

"We have some good news concerning your recent iPhone 5 purchase," the e-mail from the Apple Store reads. We expect it to be delivered to you on the first day of iPhone 5 availability — Friday, September 21. The delivery date we previously sent you was not accurate."



It is not clear if the iPhone 5s that are being shipped are the ones pre-ordered on Apple's website or one of its carrier partner's website.

Apple and its carrier partners started accepting iPhone 5 pre-orders on Friday. Apple sold out its stock for launch day delivery in just one hour and currently quotes shipping estimates of 2-3 weeks.

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Apple Announces 4-Inch iPod Touch, Multitouch iPod Nano

Today, Apple updated its iPod touch line to a 5th generation model which incorporates the same larger 4" screen as the just announced iPhone 5. At only 6.1mm thin and 88 grams, the iPod touch is the lightest iPod touch they've created. The new iPod touch also contains the A5 processor.

Apple is promising 40 hours of music playback, and 8 hours of video, slightly increased over the 4th generation Touch. The back camera is much improved to a 5-megapixel, backside illuminated, f/2.4, 5-element lens, with the same sapphire crystal lens cover as the iPhone 5. The front camera is also upgraded to a 720p camera. The new iPod touch also supports the new Panaroma feature and also includes Siri.


Finally, there's hidden feature on the back of the new iPod Touch, called the Loop. It's designed to hook to a wrist-strap for added security.

The new iPod touch comes in five colors and will be available in October at $299 (32GB) and $399 (64GB). The 4th Generation iPod Touch will remain at $199 (16GB). Preorders for the new iPod Touch begin September 14th.

Apple also announced a radically redesigned iPod nano. The new iPod nano has a 2.5" screen and multi-touch interface. The design shares a lot of cues from the iPhone with the inclusion of a front Home button. The iPod nano includes an FM tuner, widescreen video, pedometer, Bluetooth, and the new Lightning connector.

The new iPod nano comes in 7 colors and will be available in October for $149. Preorders for the new iPod Nano begin September 14th.

The iPod Shuffle was upgraded with new color choices, but the same $49 pricing and 2GB capacity.

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iPad, iPad Mini, and iPhone 5 Cases Compared to an iPhone 4S

MacRumors report Michael Rou has managed to get his hands on both a pre-production iPhone 5 case and a pre-production iPad mini case and posted comparison photos on Flickr. The cases were created by case manufacturers in anticipation of the upcoming models. Designs are based on leaked specs coming out of Foxconn factories.

The photo does a great job showing the relative sizes of the various devices. The largest case in the back shows the size of the current 3rd Generation iPad. That iPad houses a 9.7" diagonal display. The next smaller size case is for the rumored "iPad mini". The smaller iPad is believed to have a 7.85" screen with a smaller surrounding bezel while retaining the same aspect ratio and resolution (1024x768) of the iPad 2. Rou notes that the iPad mini headphone jack is positioned at the top of the case.

Finally, there is the rumored iPhone 5 case. The iPhone 5 is believed to have 4" diagonal screen. The iPhone 5 is expected to be taller but not wider than the current iPhone 4S which is also pictured above.

Apple is expected to launch the new iPhone on September 12th at a media event. The iPad mini is rumored to come at a later date, possibly in October.

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Next iPhone Will Reportedly Have "Global [4G] LTE Support"

According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the next iPhone -- to be announced next week -- will support 4G LTE networks around the world, though it won't be available on every carrier.

Apple Inc.'s next iPhone will work on the fastest wireless networks around the world—including in the U.S., Europe and Asia—though it is unlikely to be available on every carrier, people familiar with the matter said.

It isn't likely to work with all carriers' LTE networks in all countries, the people said, though it wasn't clear which would be left out.

The first Apple device to support the higher-speed 4G LTE networks was the third-generation iPad, which supported AT&T and Verizon's networks -- but notably didn't work internationally. This resulted in complaints in numerous countries including Australia and across Europe.

Based on a roadmap of Qualcomm's mobile chips, it was predicted a year ago that the iPhone would not gain LTE until this quarter. The chipset that promises LTE speeds with much improved power consumption is the Qualcomm MDM9615. Conveniently, that chip is set to arrive in time for late 2012 delivery -- just in time for the new iPhone.

Battery life has been a sticking point for Apple, with the company's engineers refusing to compromise on run-time to support higher data speeds. The new iPhone battery runs at 3.8 volts and 5.45 watt hours versus 3.7 volts and 5.3 watt hours in the iPhone 4S.

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IPHONE 5 ASSEMBLED!

Once again, hello from all of the folks here at iResQ! We have some really cool news to share with you this time. We just received the iPhone 5 screen assembly and installed it on our iPhone 5 back casing. What you see is a culmination of all of the parts we have put together on the iPhone 5 so far. From the outside, the iPhone looks pretty much fully assembled aside from the two glass/plastic covers that belong on the top and bottom of back casing. The inside, however, is missing the most substantial (and arguably most important) part, the logic board along with a few other components. Despite the missing parts on the inside, having it in hand feels great. Before we move on, it is worth noting that the screen assembly we received is black. The back casing we have in hand is for a white iPhone 5, so don't let that throw you off. Without further adieu:

The iPhone 5 next to an iPhone 4:

Here is is a comparison on how much taller the iPhone 5 looks next to the 4:

In this image, you can see the back glass of the iPhone 4 sticking behind the 5:

Finally, the two iPhones viewed from the side:

The most interesting thing we see here is the fact that the iPhone 4 and 4S are thicker than the iPhone 5 by the thickness of the back glass. So here is an easy way to imagine the thickness of the iPhone 5: remove the glass backplate from your iPhone 4/4S and there you go! That's the approximate thickness of the iPhone 5.

Having the mostly assembled unit in our hands feels nice. It fits in the pocket just fine and I can see myself getting used to the longer screen rather quickly. Check back soon and we'll show you some pictures of the screen assembly by itself. There are a few REALLY interesting tidbits about how we would go about fixing a broken iPhone 5 screen. In the mean time, it's not too late to fix your old, broken iPhone to maximize its trade-in value when you upgrade to the iPhone 5.

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Apple to Drop iPhone 3GS, Introduce 8 GB iPhone 4S Next Week?

The Telegraph reports that Apple is likely to drop the iPhone 3GS from its lineup once the company introduces the iPhone 5 next week, leaving room for the iPhone 4 to slide down to the free-on-contract price point currently occupied by the iPhone 3GS. The report also indicates that Apple may introduce an 8 GB version of the iPhone 4S to occupy a middle price point as the company did last year with the iPhone 4.
The new update will mean that the 8GB version of the iPhone 4 will be the entry-level iPhone, probably given away free on £20 per month contracts, as the 3GS is currently. Sources close to retailers also suggested that an 8GB version of the 4S could be introduced.

According to the report, Apple will be releasing the iPhone 5 with three different capacities, presumably the same 16 GB/32 GB/64 GB lineup seen with the current iPhone 4S.

It would certainly not be a surprise for Apple to discontinue the iPhone 3GS in order to keep its iPhone family at three separate devices with the cheapest being offered for free on contract. Shifting the iPhone 4 into the position currently held by the iPhone 3GS would also give more carriers the ability to offer a free iPhone, as the iPhone 4 is available in both GSM and CDMA versions while the iPhone 3GS is only available as a GSM device.


The iPhone 3GS would likely be most missed by contract-free customers, prevalent in high numbers in many emerging markets. Apple currently sells the unlocked, contract-free iPhone 3GS for $375 in the United States and at somewhat higher prices elsewhere such as 2888 yuan ($455) in China, and it could presumably drop that price even further if it elected to continue offering the device alongside the three other iPhone models.

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