iPhone 5 to create a stronger demand than ever

Nothing succeeds like success. iPhone 5 is no exception to it as it’s expected to ride on the tremendous success of its predecessor, the iPhone 4. With the excitement for iPhone 5 reaching fever pitch, it’s expected to create a ruckus of sorts. A recent survey gives ample proof of the type of buzz the iPhone 5 has generated. It wouldn’t be inappropriate to say that the only direction this phone is heading towards is the one which defies gravity.

It isn’t just the tech community that seems to be waiting with baited breath for the long cherished release of Apple’s latest iPhone 5. According to a survey that involved more than 2,200 prospective mobile phone buyers, a larger percentage (share) is likely to spend on the iPhone 5 in comparison to the iPhone 4 prior to it was launched.

The survey which was conducted last month by RBC Capital and ChangeWave Research shows that 13% of the prospective buyers seeking a new phone consider it ‘very likely’ whereas 18% consider it ‘somewhat likely’ that they will end up purchasing an iPhone 5. In comparison, the numbers for the iPhone 4 were 12% and 13% respectively. The increment which may seem marginal to the untrained eye is unprecedented in surveys like this. In addition to the ever increasing number of consumers planning to buy an iPhone 5, the study indicated a staggering 66 per cent of current iPhone users had said that they were ‘very likely’ or ‘somewhat likely’ to upgrade to the iPhone 5. This news comes despite the indefinite status of the iPhone 5. Till date Apple has released no substantial data on its next big entry into the iPhone franchise.

The reason behind the continuously swelling demands for the iPhone 5 lies in the fact that Apple has consumed a whooping 15 months to launch it. That’s like an era in the life of a cell phone. Some reports suggest that the phone, which has already been hyped to mythical proportions, will be launched on Sprint network. It will be offering unlimited data plan, something which is no longer offered by the AT&T and Verizon. More than 50% of Sprint’s subscribers say they are ‘significantly likely’ or ‘somewhat more likely’ to buy the iPhone 5. However, Sprint may not be able to provide these consumers with the amount of bandwidth they will suck.

The bottom line remains that when it comes to the iPhones, people are as crazy about them as many of the Hollywood celebs or Football stars. So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone if the iPhone 5 continues to sell like hot cakes just like its predecessor, the iPhone 4.
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About the author: Kate is a blogger by profession. She loves writing on technology and lifestyle. Beside this she is fond of video games. These days he is busy in writing an article on Smartphones.

HERE ARE SOME COMPARISON POSTS:-
Apple iPhone 5 vs Google Nexus Prime (Rumours)
iPhone 4S vs iPhone 4
iPhone 4S versus the Android competition

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iPhone 4S vs iPhone 4

The iPhone 4S has arrived and with it the panic from well over a million iPhone 4 users out there who suddenly feel the sweat on their brow and sinking ache in the pits of their stomachs because they no longer own the number one Apple handset in town. There are, of course, only three ways of dealing with this and, since Pocket-lint isn’t, officially speaking, inclined to advise drinking lighter fluid until you forget, then your choices are either to get pre-ordering on 7 October or to discover that the iPhone 4S isn’t actually that much better the iPhone 4. So, which is it to be?

As ever, we’re happy to help out with your decision making by laying both handsets side by side in virtual comparison and picking through their respective details. Naturally, the results are best viewed next to the iPhone 4S review itself but, for the time being, here is the iPhone 4S vs iPhone 4.

Form Factor

Tie: iPhone 4S

115.2 x 58.6 x 9.3mm, 140g

Tie: iPhone 4

115.2 x 58.6 x 9.3mm, 137g

Well, waddya know? After all those imaginative mock-ups, the iPhone 4S has the very same case as the iPhone that’s been known and largely loved for the last 12 months plus. So, well, it’s a tie then. The form factor has been good up until now and it remains good, if a little unexciting, still. It’s still pretty thin at 9.3mm and certainly light enough at 137g or even when 3g heavier. We might have all rather got used to the way it appears but the iPhone 4S will still be a good looking handset.

Display

Tie: iPhone 4S

3.5-inch, 960x640px, LCD with IPS

Tie: iPhone 4

3.5-inch, 960x640px, LCD with IPS

The one area where most iPhone users were probably crying out for an improvement was in screen size but the bad/good news, depending upon your point of view, is that that the iPhone 4S screen is identical to that of the last incarnation. It’s still got that outstanding pixel density but sadly not the real estate to back it up. So, for the time being, it’s a case of holding it closer to your retinas if you want to get a better look at whatever that film is that you’re trying to watch is. Better luck next year.

Engine Room

1st: iPhone 4S

Apple A5

2nd: iPhone 4

Apple A4

As with the iPhone 3GS, that “S” stands for speed and so the iPhone 4S processor set up is the big selling point over the older model, and this is one category where you want to be paying close attention. As predicted, Captain Cook and his crew have taken the Apple A5 chip from the iPad 2 and stuffed it into the guts of the iPhone 4S.
The Apple A4 consists of a 1GHz ARM Cortex-A8 CPU with a single Hummingbird core and PowerVR SGX 535 graphics processor GPU. There’s also 512MB of RAM to back it up. The Apple A5 chip has a dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 processor clocked at 1GHz. On the graphics front, it’s an upgrade to a dual-core PowerVR SGX543MP2 GPU and there’s, again, 512MB of RAM in support. According to Apple, what this means in real terms is a chip that has a CPU twice as powerful as its predecessor and a GPU that can work seven times harder.

Imaging

1st: iPhone 4S

8MP rear, VGA front, 1080p video

2nd: iPhone 4

5MP rear, VGA front, 720p video

There weren’t going to be many places that Apple could make a realistic improvement on the iPhone 4 without making things very costly and more difficult to manufacture but replacing the camera was one of them. The slightly dated 5-megapixel unit has been replaced by a far healthier sounding 8-megapixel sensor and the ability to shoot a more headline and impressive 1080p is a big bonus too.

Naturally, megapixels aren’t everything, so Apple has improved the optics on the iPhone 4S by opening up the maximum aperture from f/2.8 to f/2.4. That, plus a change in image sensor technology, is quoted as allowing 73 per cent more light gathered than on the iPhone 4 camera. There’s also the bonus of face detection, stabilisation and noise reduction to a degree. In short, we're talking sharper shots and at lower light levels too.

Connectivity

1st: iPhone 4S

HSPA+, GPS, BT 4.0, Wi-Fi, ant. switching, AirPlay Mirroring

2nd: iPhone 4

3G, GPS, BT 2.1, Wi-Fi

There’s not a lot missing from the iPhone 4 connectivity arsenal but there are two noticeable gaps, one of which has been filled by the addition of a 4G radio inside the iPhone 4S. HSPA+ support isn’t much good if you live outside the US and a handful of other countries but it will offer up to 14.4Mbps download speeds in Utopian conditions.
With the iPhone 4 and its straight 3G, the best downlink you’ll be looking at is more like 7.2Mbps. As we say though, just because the iPhone 4S works with HSPA+, it doesn’t mean that you’ll be experiencing it where you are. What might be the real advantage is the improvements to the antenna such that it can switch between the radios more smoothly and, fingers crossed, not drop so many calls.
Finally, there's also the added bonus of AirPlay Mirroring with the iPhone 4S. While the iPhone 4 and AirPlay app will still allow you to stream videos and music from your phone to your HDTV and speakers via Apple TV, it doesn't allow you to show everything that's on your handset such as web pages, games, messages and all the rest. That's all possible with the iPhone 4S.

Battery Life

1st: iPhone 4S

up to 8 hours 3G talk time

2nd: iPhone 4

up to 7 hours 3G talk time

Running the same screen and a more efficient chip at very similar output means that all it takes is a bigger power pack to get more life between charges on the iPhone 4S battery than on the iPhone 4, and that’s exactly what Apple has gone and done. While the older model can bring you up to 7 hours 3G talk time, 14 hours 2G talk time, 6 hours internet use over 3G, 10 hours of video playback or 40 hours audio; anyone purchasing the latest edition can look forward to 8 hours talk 3G talk time time, 14 2G talk time, 6 hours internet use over 3G, 10 hours of video playback or 40 hours music.

So, when Apple says that it’s improved the battery, as far as the quoted specs go, what you appear to gain is a single hour of 3G talk time. And that’s it. Not a massive boost here.

Software

1st: iPhone 4S

iOS 5 + Siri

2nd: iPhone 4

iOS 5

The launch if the iPhone 5 has also seen the arrival of iOS 5 which we all knew was coming since Jobs dropped the details at WWDC 2011. Both phones will be able to run this latest version of the mobile OS with the difference that one will have it installed out of the box and the other you may or may not have to update yourself depending on if you already own your iPhone 4.

The major difference is the addition of Siri - a voice-controlled personal organiser of a sort which will translate your more human, sentence based commands into actions such as opening specific apps to search and do things for you. So, for example, it can set alarms, read and reply to your messages, find restaurants and the like.

Storage

1st: iPhone 4S

16/32GB/64GB

2nd: iPhone 4

8GB

Is it for the video, is it because there’s no removable storage or is it because storage is just cheap these days? We’ll never know, but the fact remains that the 64GB iPhone 4S offers double the space of the previous model and that’s a lot to play with. The nasty part is that the 16GB and 32GB version of the iPhone 4 line have been axed from this moment on, meaning that anyone who opts for the older model from new is limited to a rather small 8GB storage space only. Just count your luckies that there’s iCloud to give you a hand.

Price

1st: iPhone 4

$99

2nd: iPhone 4S

$199/299/399

The bonus of going for the more budget option is that you get the more budget price to go with it, although that’s of little comfort to anyone who already owns the iPhone 4. Annoyingly for those in search of a bargain, the price differential reflects the halving of the storage space each time and the actual difference between the iPhone 4 and 16GB iPhone 4S is actually much greater than that. Worth bearing in mind.

Conclusion

1st: iPhone 4S

2nd: iPhone 4

There’d be something seriously wrong if the iPhone 4S didn’t come out on top here but is it so much better that you need to upgrade? Well, if games aren’t your thing and if the idea of Siri doesn’t drive you wild with excitement, then the answer is probably no. Sure, it’s got a better camera and takes video at a higher resolution and it even has a marginally longer battery life too but none of this is any reason to try to buy your way out of a contract. It's also arguable as to whether 4G connectivity or AirPlay Mirroring - which only works with Apple TV anyway - is really going to add enough value for many people as well.
Much as with the iPhone 3GS, you can bet that it’s the 2012 iPhone launch that will see a bigger update to the hardware and the kind of thing that you will be wanting to sell your grandmother in order to get hold of.

If, however, you’re looking to buy for the first time, then don’t bother with the straight iPhone 4. Sure, you’ll find it a little cheaper out there but the difference in cash isn’t really worth it and any saving you make will be outbalanced by that sense that you’ve got an inferior phone with an inferior camera too.

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iPhone 4S versus the Android competition

The eyes of the world were on Cupertino today, as Apple unveiled their next generation iPhone 5 slightly improved iPhone 4S. While much of the focus of the keynote address was on new features in iOS 5, there are some definite hardware and software upgrades to the top-tier iPhone model to consider. To see how the iPhone 4S stacks up against the competition, we pitted the flagship phones from Samsung, Motorola, HTC and LG against it in a hardware showdown. Here’s how the Galaxy S II, DROID BIONIC, Sensation 4G and G2x compare:

As you can see, the iPhone still bests just about everything in screen resolution, but falls far behind in the screen’s physical size. That isn’t an important factor for some, but it’s a big deal for others. The iPhone 4S’ processor is well in line with the rest, but we don’t have numbers on certain specs like RAM and battery capacity, so a hard line comparison is difficult. The iPhone’s radio brings it up to speed with “4G” phones, but only on AT&T. While the iPhone’s most expensive model has a jaw-dropping 64GB of storage, Apple once again eschewed any sort of removable memory.
Of course, this chart only includes currently-selling phones. New competitiors like the Samsung Galaxy S II HD and Galaxy Note best the iPhone as far as the screen goes, and who knows what goodies are lying inside the DROID RAZR or Nexus Prime. We’ll have to wait a few weeks for details on the latest and greatest in the Android world – for new smartphone hardware from Apple, be sure to tune in in about 12 months or so.
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iPhone 4S, Siri and today’s Apple event – EVERYTHING you need to know in a handy list.

It’s been months in the making, and today we finally have confirmation from Apple, as well as a few squashed rumors. Apple has released the iPhone 4S today, as well as iOS 5 and the addition of Sprint in the company’s lineup of US carriers.
Funny enough, we got confirmation of the 4S name via Apple’s own Japanese store site, less than an hour before launch. Most of these rumors were nailed down prior to today’s event, but it’s good to finally get completely confirmation. That said, here’s a rundown of everything that happened today, plus links to our coverage for the specifics.

The Business of Apple

CEO Tim Cook opened, taking the stage with the obvious statement of “this is my first prouct launch since being named CEO”. The event is being held in what Apple calls the Town Hall. It is the place where the original iPod was launched, 10 years ago.

 “Today we’ll remind you of the uniqueness of this company as we announce innovations from our mobile OS, to applications, to services, to hardware, and more importantly the integration of all these into a powerful, simple, integrated experience.”

Cook goes on to talk about the “enormous momentum of Apple, specifically the retail stores. Cook then highlights the year to date for Apple:
Retail Stores

• Apple’s Shanghai store had 100,000 visitors on its first weekend. It took the LA store a month to reach that number
• More Macs were sold on the opening day of the Shanghai store than in any other store in the world
• Apple now has 357 stores around the world

Mac vs PC

• OS X Lion has been downloaded 6 million times. 80% more than Snow Leopard (It took Windows 7 20 weeks to do what Lion did in 2)
• The Mac outgrew the PC market six-fold, 23% vs 4%, with 60 million Mac users worldwide

The iPod

• Launched 10 years ago, 300 million in sales
• 45 million sold in the last year, ending in June
• Nearly 50% of all people buying iPods are buying their first one

The iPhone

• 125% year over year growth
• 93% of Fortune 500 companies are testing or deploying the device
• JD Power rated #1 six times in a row
• Holds only 5% share of the overall market in handsets

The iPad

• 95% customer satisfaction rates
• 92% of Fortune 500 are deploying or testing the iPad
• 80% of hospitals in the US are testing or deploying the device
• 3 out of 4 tablets sold in the US are iPads

iOS

• 500,000 apps in the app store
• 140,000 of the 500k are for iPad
• 61% of mobile browsing belongs to iOS
• 18 billion downloads from the App Store in 3 years, 1 billion per month
• $3 billion paid to developers

iOS 5

iOS 5 will land on October 12th, 2 days before the launch of the new iPhone and it will be a free update.
What’s new aside from what we already know?
Cards

Apple is introducing a new application that allows you to design cards on your iPhone, then have them mailed to anywhere:

“Apple is literally going to mail things, physically, for you. You create the card on your iPhone and we’ll do the rest.”

Friends and Family App
Free with iOS 5 and for Lion users. Locate your friends and family with your iPhone.
The rest of iOS 5, we  have detailed pretty deeply. In short you can expect big changes to the following:

• iMessage
• Reminders
• Newsstand
• Camera
• Safari

The iPod

Phil Schiller took the stage to talk about the iPod, stating that he wanted to give updates on 2 of the lines today.
The iPod Nano touch gets a refresh, with Nike+ built in, 16 new clock faces and  will be available for $129 and $149 in 8 and 16-gigabyte versions respectively.
The iPod touch, inarguably Apple’s #1 selling iPod, also gets an update. iOS 5 gives great updates, as does iCloud, both of which help you to do more and save space. The touch model iPod is now available in white, for $199, $299 and $399 for 8, 16 and 32-gig models.

The iPhone

And now for the announcement we’ve all been waiting to hear, Apple tells us about the iPhone 4S . It has the same design as the iPhone 4, but inside it is “all new”.

• Apple-designed A5 Processor
• Dual-core graphics, up to 7x faster than the iPhone 4
• 8 hours of talk time, 6 hours 3G browsing, 9 hours on WiFi
• Intelligent antenna switching to fix the “antennagate” problem
• HSDPA data, for up to 14 mbit download speeds
• CDMA and GSM in 1 device makes it a “world phone”
• 8 megapixel camera
• 1080p video recording
• Screen mirroring, akin to the iPad
• Siri intelligent voice assistance

The iPhone 4S will cost $199, $299 and $399 for 16, 32 and 64 gigabyte versions, respectively. The 8-gig iPhone 4 goes to $99 and the 3GS will be free, all on 2-year contracts. The date? As we called it, October 14th, with a pre-order on October 7th.

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Apple says no to Samsung settlement offer

Yesterday Samsung offered up a deal that it hoped would allow it to get back into the Australian tablet market. We don’t know exactly what the offer from Samsung was, but what we don’t know is that at least for now Apple is having none of the offer. Apple has reportedly declined the offer and the two firms are said to be “a considerable distance apart.”

Apple says that it didn’t turn the offer down flat, but wanted more information and details on the offer form Samsung. One Samsung lawyer, Stephen Burley, said that the offer from Samsung was “no more than a tactic to maximize the chances of launching what we would contend is an infringing product.” The judge presiding over the case said, “It’s going to take me a little time” to work through the arguments that each side have offered when Samsung tried to push to get the arguments heard in court tomorrow.
Samsung has argued that if the courts ban the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia until 2012 that the tablet would be commercially dead. Samsung has stated in the past that it would remove the zoom-bounce system from the tablet, which is one of the features at the heart of the case. Samsung could remove the feature and have a new version of the tablet on the market a week after a ruling.
[via SlashGear]

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iPhone 4S confirmed by Apple?

Apple’s secrecy of what it is about to launch has been going so well with the rumourmongers of the Internet really only left scrapping at bits and pieces like a pack of Hyenas in the Savannah.
That was until the company released the latest beta version of its iTunes software to developers.
According to reports coming in Apple has detailed the iPhone 4S in the latest version of iTunes.
“Inside the latest iTunes beta is a specific mention of the “iPhone 4S.” Along with the new iPhone name of “iPhone 4S” comes an image, and it is of a CDMA iPhone 4,” reports 9to5mac.com.

Of course it could just be a placeholder in the code, but that seems like a pretty strange thing to do given that the iTunes software is bound to get a further update before it is released into the wild for the general public.
There have been plenty of rumours circling that Apple would merely launch an upgrade to the iPhone 4 rather than opt for a completely new design.
Apple performed the same trick with the iPhone 3G when it updated it to the iPhone 3GS.
Thankfully with the company holding its “Let’s talk iPhone” event on Tuesday 4 October, we won’t have long to wait before we get an answer.

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Amazon “punches Apple hard” with $199 Kindle Fire

We’re still in a major huff about the lack of Amazon Kindle Fire action here in the UK, like a kid in a supermarket throwing a tantrum ‘cause he’s not allowed a chocolate bar. Stupid little brat. Yes, that’s us.
Anyway, Amazon investor and CEO of Betaworks, John Borthwick, is rather impressed with Amazon’s new goodies. Probably because he lives in New York and not London.

In a recent Tweet, John said: “Amazon punches Apple hard in advance of nxt week. There are two kinds of companies ...”
Of course, “nxt week” refers to Apple’s iPhone 5 unveiling, which will go down tomorrow at 6pm our time.
The latter part of John’s Tweet refers to Jeff Bezos’ letter to customers, currently taking pride of place on Amazon’s home page in the US. It reads: “There are two types of companies: those that work hard to charge customers more, and those that work hard to charge customers less. Both approaches can work. We are firmly in the second camp.”
Who’s in the first camp, Jeff? Who’s in the first camp?
Jeff’s letter concludes: “We are building premium products and offering them at non-premium prices.” You should really add: “for our customers in the US.” Not that we’re bitter, you understand.
Sob.

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Five reasons why I’m not getting an iPhone 5

With Apple’s grand unveiling just over 24 hours away, it seems only fitting that my last feature in an iPhone 5-less world should concern the Californians’ latest – and presumably greatest – smartphone. In some capacity.
Of course, we don’t know a bloody thing about it yet, so rather than retread speculative ground, I’ll explain why I’m not interested in picking up an iPhone 5. Insert: “Boo!” / “Yay!” / *nonchalant shrug* as appropriate.

Here, in no particular order, are five of the main reasons:
1. Won’t be able to get one anyway
I vividly remember the efforts one of my mates went to when the iPhone 4 first came out. After travelling dozens of miles and visiting several shops, he ultimately gave up and bought an HTC Desire instead.
I also remember the farce that followed the iPad 2’s “launch”, when it appeared online with an estimated shipping time of 4-5 weeks. Ridiculous.
We’re already hearing stories of possible production problems, and I’m not willing to waste any time trying to track down units or twiddling my thumbs for several weeks while Apple addresses its supply issues. It’s just a phone, man. Probably a pretty good one, but it is just a phone.
Of course, this is all speculation, but even if there were an abundance of iPhone 5s on shelves, I still probably wouldn’t bother. Probably. Read on.
2. Screen size
Having used an HTC Desire HD for the past few months, I really can’t imagine how I survived with the 3.5in display on my iPhone. I still use my iPod touch for iOS gaming and listening to music, and it seems reeeaaally tiny.
We’re expecting the iPhone 5 to have a 4in display, but – if anything – I’m looking to acquire more screen real estate, not sell up.
3. I love/hate Apple
I love Apple and cherish my many iDevices, but I absolutely despise the smug bastards and resent every second I spend using their junk. Cognitive dissonance, baby. I don’t think I’m alone here.
I have a MacBook, an iMac, an iPod touch, and I happily used an iPhone for years. Still, I can’t imagine going back to the iPhone, even disregarding the other points I’ve made here. Indeed, maybe it’s the overkill of Apple devices elsewhere in my flat that has me craving something different. Who knows how my brain works? Not me.
4. Samsung Google Nexus Prime
We’re really quite excited about the Samsung-developed Google Nexus Prime here at Mobot. Phil and I particularly so. Dave’s a bit of a dark horse though. I suspect he secretly wants a Nokia Sea Ray.
The latest Nexus Prime whispers suggest a 4.65in Super AMOLED display, dual-core 1.5GHz processor, 2,000mAh battery, and Ice Cream Sandwich. Sounds pretty freakin’ good to us.

 

5. Windows Phone Mango

Ok, this reason is slightly tongue-in-cheek, and partly aimed at the Mobo-regulars who really don’t seem to like Windows Phone 7 for some reason, but… I reckon I’m more likely to go with something Mango flavoured than I am to pick up an iPhone 5.
Maybe it’s because I’m an Xbox man, maybe it’s the suggestion that Windows Phone will take second place in the OS race (ahem), or maybe I’m just an idiot. Yes, probably the third one.

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Amazon Kindle Fire vs iPad 2

The Amazon Kindle Fire has arrived complete with its 16 million colour screen and all the backing of the enormous online retail platform that is Amazon itself. Big, but is bigger necessarily better?
There also happens to be a certain other massive player in the tablet market in the shape of the company who redefined it back in April 2010 with the arrival of the first iPad. So, now with the iPad 2 ruling the roost, how is Amazon going to compare with Apple in this space and, more importantly as far as your decision goes, how do their tablets match up? Here is the Amazon Kindle Fire vs iPad 2 to help you figure that one out.

Form Factor

Tie: iPad 2

241.2 x 185.7 x 8.8mm, 613g

Tie: Kindle Fire

190 x 120 x 11.4mm, 413g

It’s not really fair comparing a 7-inch tab to a 9.7-inch one on form factor stats alone - the larger one is quite obviously going to be bigger and heavier. All the same, we’re going to call it a tie this time around.

Yes, the Amazon Kindle Fire is made small enough and light enough to hold in one hand - and anyone who’s tried to do the same in bed with an iPad 2 will know that that’s not so easy - but what gets us a little concerned is that, despite its more pocketable (well, baggable) size, it’s, well, a little bit fat. The similarly sized Blackberry PlayBook comes across a touch chunky and that’s 9.7mm thick. So, the Kindle Fire, at 11.4mm, might not be as physically beautiful as the competition.

Engine Room

Tie: Kindle Fire

OMAP 4430

Tie: iPad 2

Apple A4

In some ways, it’s not hugely relevant to compare the power specs of these two tablets. Both are essentially designed as closed system devices and, as such, you can bet that they’re designed to run their respective content with much aplomb. All the same, we may as well split open these systems-on-a-chip that run the two to find out what’s inside.

On the RAM front, both the Apple A5 and OMAP 4430 contain the same 512MB complement. The CPUs are also identical. Each is a dual-core ARM Cortex-9 set to run at a clock speed of anywhere between 1-1.2GHz. In fact, the only thing that separates them is the GPU. The iPad 2 has a PowerVR SGX543 and the Kindle Fire has a PowerVR SGX540. For the sake of a 67 MPolygons per second vs 60 MPolygons, we’re calling this one a tie to all intents and purposes. Those willing to nit pick may do so at the bottom.

Display

1st: Kindle Fire

7-inch, 1024x600, 169ppi, IPS

2nd: iPad 2

9.7-inch, 1024x768px, 132ppi, IPS

There are some tiny differences between the Amazon Kindle Fire screen and that of the iPad 2 but they more or less balance each other out. Both are multitouch, both are based on LCD technology and both have IPS which gives them as wide a viewing angle as possible, just in case you’re feeling generous enough to want to share your screen.

What you do get with the iPad 2 display is more of it but the advantage that the Amazon Kindle Fire has is that it maintains a similar resolution at slightly smaller size. So, you get a bit of a boost of pixel density for a snappier picture but at the expense of a little less screen real estate. The other advantage the Kindle Fire has is that the aspect ratio of the device is far closer to the film-friendly 16:9 rather than the more awkward 4:3 on the iPad 2. What might just tip the balance though is that the Kindle Fire screen has been chemically hardened to make it more durable. For whether or not this makes a physical difference, we'll have to wait and see.
At the end of the day though, this isn’t a category that should encourage you to choose one over the other.

Storage

1st: iPad 2

16/32/64GB + iCloud

2nd: Kindle Fire

8GB + USB + Amazon Cloud

Another close run category here. Neither of these devices has SD removable storage and if it were down to internal flash alone, then the iPad 2 would win with its choice of three storage sizes, all of which are bigger than the 8GB on offer in the Amazon Kindle Fire even if it does have a USB port to back it up.

The tricky part comes in because both devices also offer cloud storage. On the one hand you get iCloud with the iPad, and there’s a couple of issues here. The first is that, at the time of writing, iOS 5 and iCloud are not available on the iPad 2. However, we are expecting that to change very shortly. The next problem with iCloud is that, so far, although there’s been mention of TV shows and it doesn’t look like you’ll be able to sync them or films from the off while out and about.

So, the picture you get with the iPad 2 is that, over Wi-Fi, while at home, you're more or less covered but when out of range of your home library to sync with your options start to narrow a little. Once we're talking 3G coverage only, then there's a maximum file download size that kicks in which means no videos from iTunes at all and no big apps either.

The Amazon Kindle Fire, on the other hand, comes supported by the Amazon Cloud Storage system which promises to store as much of your Amazon bought content as you like, be it books, films, TV shows or whatever else digital that the retail giant sells. In fact, this is pretty much key to the entire model for them.
With that behind you, you can stream direct or download at the touch of a button, whatever you like. Now, that’s all very well at home, work or even at a hotel but the problem is that, because the Kindle Fire doesn’t support 3G, when you’re on the move, you’re at the mercy of whatever is sitting on that 8GB of internal memory alone. According to Amazon, that’s around 10 films.

We’re not saying that that isn’t enough but what it does mean is that using a Kindle Fire does require a modicum of thought and preparation that the Apple iPad 2 doesn’t, even if it's only with music and smaller files that you see the benefit.

Battery

1st: iPad 2

Up to 10 hours video

2nd: Kindle Fire

Up to 7.5 hours video

OK. Nice and simple this time. You’ll get more battery life out of the iPad 2 than the Amazon Kindle Fire. Naturally, the quoted specs are your classic “up to” figures which means that you’ll need to turn off the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, possibly dim the screen and generally not touch the thing at all once you start watching your movies, but they should be just about be achievable nonetheless. Either way, it’s the iPad 2 that will last longer.

Connectivity

1st: iPad 2

Wi-Fi, BT, 3G, HDMI

2nd: Kindle Fire

Wi-Fi and USB

This isn’t normally the strongest of categories for the iPad 2 but it still manages to get one over the Kindle Fire on connectivity. The fact that Amazon hasn’t included that same free 3G that comes on the rest of the Kindle range is a bit of a bummer. It might be something that Amazon sorts out later but given that we’re talking about transferring feature length video files rather than books, it might never happen.

All the same, paid or otherwise, not having a mobile internet connection of any kind is a bit of a loss. On the plus side, there is a USB slot that you don’t get on the iPad 2 but it’s not quite as useful as perhaps it was in the past. Its best function might be as a removable storage device.

The other downer is that there’s no video-out socket in the way that the HDMI adapter provides for the iPad. So, this isn’t something for taking round to your mate’s and plugging into the back of their TV. When it comes to your TV, however, an Amazon app on your set linked to your Amazon account might remove the need for video-out. On top of that, who knows what Amazon may or may not let you do over wireless by the time this hits the shelves although it seems unlikely that users will get access to the DLNA certified apps like Skifta and Twonky.

However you look at it, there’s quite a few ifs there and, ultimately, the iPad 2 is more flexible a device on this front for the moment.

OS Software

1st: iPad 2

iOS

2nd: Kindle Fire

Android Gingerbread-based

We’re all pretty familiar with iOS these days, whether its iOS 4 or iOS 5. What you get is a relatively closed system with a bunch of things that you can do but also a whole host of things that just aren’t possible the way that are on Android. The plus points, of course, are that it works very well and it’s very easy to use, even if it doesn’t offer a high level of flexibility.

The Kindle Fire might run Android 2.3 Gingerbread but it’s a highly customised and closed down version. The big killer is on the apps front, but more on that in a moment. From what we’ve seen so far, the experience, although very attractive, looks like it offers even less room for manoeuver than iOS with the main face of the Kindle Fire OS a series of carousels where you can purchase and sift through your Amazon books, music and videos.

The other interesting part of the platform is the Amazon Silk browser for the old surfing of the web over Wi-Fi. Silk is a tabbed browser set to be lightening quick because half the computational work is done off-device and up in the cloud in the Amazon servers. It’s a feature known as split browsing. While it all sounds very good, the downside is that Amazon then knows all of your browsing habits. Now, naturally, this is something that your ISP probably knows anyway but a shop (Amazon) knowing all about your other shopping habits is some seriously valuable information for them. It’s up to you how you feel about that. Fortunately, you can turn the split browsing off.
There's also Amazon's Whispersync technology to enjoy whereby your videos and books will pick up where you left them on other devices.

Apps

1st: iPad 2

iTunes App Store (500,000+ apps)

2nd: Kindle Fire

Amazon App Store (3,800+ apps)

If there’s one place where Amazon has got you buy the balls it’s on the app front. The Amazon App Store is all you’ll get access to on the Kindle Fire rather than the vast expanses of the Android Market. The Amazon version launched in March 2011 with 3,800 applications to choose from and you can bet that it won’t include any services that interfere in any way with the company’s selling of content and positioning of its tablet device. There’s still plenty of big name games but don’t expect many tools to wrestle control of the tablet back over to you.

On the other hand, the iPad 2 gives you access to the 0.5 million and more apps sitting on the best app store in the world. No contest.

Content Library

1st: Kindle Fire

Amazon

2nd: iPad 2

iTunes Store

This is where the Amazon Kindle Fire really comes into its own both for the user and for Amazon. The 7-inch tablet gives you access to the entire Amazon Instant Video collection of TV shows and films which amounts to a catalogue of over 100,000 possibilities. Each one can be bought and downloaded to the device or rented and streamed. What’s more, anyone signed up to the £50/year Amazon Prime service can get over 10,000 of these rented for free. The comparison on iTunes is around 6,000 videos with nothing decent for free

Music is where you might expect Apple to do better and, indeed, there’s around 14 millions songs on offer worldwide, but, again, Amazon offers more with 17 million on the MP3 Store which you can stream for your cloud space or download to the device. Beyond that, there’s books, comics, newspapers, magazines and audiobooks and it’s not even worth making comparisons here. This is Amazon’s bread and butter. If it’s access to buy content that you want, then read no further.

File support

1st: iPad 2

Most things

2nd: Kindle Fire

Not everything

Again, this all comes down to what apps you’ll be allowed to use but while there’s just about every kind of player and converter to deal with those files that the native side of iOS cannot reach, that might not be possible with the Kindle Fire. Currently, the supported file format list by Amazon is:

Kindle (AZW), TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible (Audible Enhanced (AA, AAX)), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, OGG, WAV, MP4, VP8.

So, with no AVI, no EPUB and no FLAC support, it might be frustrating when it comes to playing your own library of films, books and music on the Kindle Fire.

Imaging

1st: iPad 2

Rear camera (VGA stills, 720p video)

2nd: Kindle Fire

Nothing

Um.

Price & Availability

1st: Kindle Fire

$199 (£127)

2nd: iPad 2

Wi-Fi: £339/£479/£599, 3G: £499/£579/£659

The Amazon Kindle Fire is cheap. Really cheap. It’s less than half the cost of even the most basic of the iPad 2 range and it’s going to offer a good, entertaining tablet experience to more or less everyone, and that’s hard to ignore.

It’s available for pre-order now but there are currently no plans to take it outside of the US. Doubtless, those plans will turn up eventually but, with a lot of licensing and agreement paperwork to get through, don’t expect anything in the UK for at least a year.

Conclusion

1st: iPad 2

2nd: Kindle Fire

It’s a little churlish to talk about winners and losers in this comparison but, if you want a blanket “who would win in a fight” type result, then it’s the iPad 2. Ultimately though, the reason we at Pocket-lint write these match-ups is to help you out with your buying decision, and to say that the iPad 2 is the tablet for everyone over the Amazon Kindle Fire would not be correct.

There are some differences worth noting. Yes, the iPad will last you a bit longer, it’s a better looking piece of kit, it has 3G, a camera and it’s more flexible in terms of what you can do with it. The real story, and where you need to think long and hard, is about what you want to do with it.
If a tablet, for you, is about watching movies and TV, and reading an enormous wealth of publications and periodicals, then it’s definitely the Kindle Fire that’s the one for you. If playing games, communicating, working and generally using a tablet as a tool is just as important, then it’s the iPad 2 and that’s where you need to be at. At least until the iPad 3 comes out.

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Android adoption doubled iOS over past three months, Nielsen finds

Twice as many consumers in the U.S. purchased Android smartphones compared to Apple’s iPhone over the past three months, according to new data just released by The Nielsen Company. The market research firm found that of those consumers who purchased a new smartphone during the three-month period ending in August, 58% purchased an Android device while 28% purchased either the iPhone 4 or the iPhone 3GS. Only 9% purchased a new BlackBerry smartphone, though the time period covered by Nielsen’s survey ended prior to the release of RIM’s new BlackBerry 7 handsets. Read on for more.
In terms of smartphone platform market share as of the month of August, Nielsen shows that 43% of smartphone owners had an Android device, 28% had an iOS smartphone and 18% owned a BlackBerry. Looking forward to the fourth quarter, however, Nielsen sees a big swing coming for iOS as Apple readies its next-generation iPhone 5. “Every time Apple launches a new iPhone or makes it available on a new wireless carrier, there is an increase in their sales,” Don Kellogg, Director of Telecom Research & Insights at Nielsen, wrote on the Nielsen’s blog. Smartphone owners made up 43% of the U.S. cell phone market in August according to Nielsen. A second chart from Nielsen’s report follows below.
Read

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How Apple copied Android OS features and is getting away with it

Apple has been looking to attack Google and their Android OS for a long time but hasn’t actually found a way to do it directly. Instead, they went after Android licensees claiming that they infringed their beloved patents. The Cuppertino-based phone maker has sued the two biggest Android phone manufacturers, Samsung and HTC, in numerous occasions and locations. A hearing at the Hague District court in the Netherlands has just ended with Samsung finally pulling out the big guns, their 3G patents. We will soon have an article about the hearing.
The video above shows how Apple blatantly thinks that the world owes it to them even though they copied many of the features that Android OS has been offering to its users for a long time. Let us know what you think.
via Reddit

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Verizon takes Samsung's side in case against Apple

Verizon Wireless has asked the U.S. court presiding over Apple's case against Samsung to deny an injunction against Samsung's products in the U.S. The carrier states that an injunction would be against the public's interest, and that it would slow the adoption and expansion of Verizon's next-generation, 4G LTE network.
Verizon tells the court that an injunction against Samsung's products in the U.S. "would hinder Verizon Wireless in developing and deploying its next generation high-speed LTE [fourth-generation] network, the job growth dependant on that network, and will undercut key public policy goals, including expansion of American's [sic] access to broadband networks and faster communication with emergency personnel."
Apple's case against Samsung requests an injunction against a number of Samsung's smartphones and tablets, including the DROID Charge and Galaxy Tab 10.1, both of which are LTE devices available from Verizon Wireless. An injunction would block the sale and import of the devices in the U.S., much like what has occurred in Germany and Australia already.
Verizon's message to the court only cites one of the four patents that Apple takes issue with against Samsung. The carrier only points to US Patent No. 7,469,381, which covers "list scrolling and document translation, scaling, and rotation on a touch-screen display." The other three patents, which are related to hardware design, are not mentioned in Verizon's note to the court. "Verizon Wireless takes no position on whether a preliminary injunction should be granted if the Court finds a likelihood of success on the infringement of Apple's design patents," says the carrier with regards to the design patents, but it does note that "an injunction may cripple the free flow of goods to Verizon Wireless, businesses and consumers."
Verizon Wireless concludes its argument against the injunction by claiming that "the proposed injunction would disproportionally affect the very devices that are most critical to adoption and expansion of Verizon Wireless's next-generation network." Whether or not Verizon's complaint will be admitted to the case by the court remains to be seen, but it would need to happen before the hearing on the matter that has been scheduled for October 13. [via FOSS Patents]

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Apple board member Al Gore, speaking at conference, ‘confirms’ iPhone 5 in October

Former Vice President and Apple board member Al Gore has confirmed that a new iPhone will be released in October. He specifically stated that ‘the new iPhone would be out next month’ at the Discovery Invest Leadership Summit today.
Yes, it’s completely true that Apple has been saying that it will release iOS 5 and, presumably, new hardware to go along with it, this fall. But this is the first time that anyone with ties to the Apple organization, even if it is just a Board Member, has made any affirmative statements about the release of its next-gen iPhone.
There is always the possibility that Gore misspoke, of course, or was just making statements based on the rumors that are already out there, but it seems like a pretty big mistake to make at a public conference.
Just this morning a report from All Things D pegged the date of Apple’s next event as October 4th. This statement was later corroborated by Jim Dalrymple of The Loop. Both Dalrymple and All Things D are known to be excellent sources of Apple information so we’re pretty confident that this date is correct.
Still, it’s pretty unusual to have an Apple Board member say anything definite about Apple’s Plans for future products, as its company policy is that it does not speak about them, period. Although Gore isn’t an Apple employee, he has been an influential member of Apple’s board, spearheading efforts to make the company more environmentally friendly and energy efficient.
So, now that Gore says that we’re getting a new iPhone next month, do you believe it more? He is a politician after all and we all know how much they like to say things, regardless of how true they are.

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Case pics leaked: iPhone 5 has aluminium backs

 

The Buzz around iPhone 5 has been sky high for a long time now. The rumors regarding iPhone 6 are spreading around like wildfire, even before the fifth version is officially released. According to the recently released photos by Case Mate the iPhone 5 have aluminum back. This came as a pleasant surprise for the fans of iPhone series; who were till now used to the glass back. The released pictures also reveal that the latest iPhone is thinner, wider and has a teardrop shape. Let’s looks at some of the other theories and speculations floating in the market regarding IPhone 5.

 1. Design

The biggest achievement of Steve jobs as the chairman of Apple INC was not just the mind boggling devices he rolled out year after year. It was also the groundbreaking and never done before combination of art, science and technology that he brought to the world stage. With each of its smartphones, Apple has updated its design. It is almost a certainty that the iPhone5 will sport an aluminum back panel. The rest of the details about the design are still unknown, but you can surely expect a cracker from Apple.

2. Sales

The iPhone series is undoubtedly the biggest selling smartphone series till date. No other device has captured the public imagination the way iPhone has, with the only exception of BlackBerry. According to certain unconfirmed reports in various newspapers, Apple has contracted a manufacturing company to build 15 million units of iPhone5. Apple predictions have always been pretty close to market realities, so, if this rumor turns out to be true, the smartphones market will be practically eclipsed by Apple.

3. Marketing strategy

Marketing for iPhone 5 is already in high drive. Apple is not leaving any stone unturned this time. They are aware that brand name is not the only requirement to stir the sales. A good example of this is Google Nexus One. The smartphone had a lot of buzz going for it before its release in 2010. Although the phone performed well on performance front and was hailed by critics, the sales never matched expectations because of the lack of a singular marketing strategy on part of Google.

4. Operating system

iPhone 5 will work on Apple’s iOS 5.0. The announcement for the same was made on June 6 of this year. The new operating system is equipped with iCloud service and the Notification Center. The operating system also offers more than 200 amazing features.

5. App store

To this date, Apple has produced more than 500,000 applications. Out of which a staggering 37 percent are free and the rest are available at the average price of $3.64. As of July 2011, more than 200 million users have downloaded over 15 billion applications. As iPhone 5 is the latest offering by Apple, it is going to benefit a lot from these new improved features. It is important to note that App Store have become hubs of major market activity, which in turn creates massive market buzz whenever any Apple device is going to be released.

It won’t be an exaggeration to say that iPhones have truly captured the popular imagination. Apple had its first great push with the release of iPods. From then on the legacy has been taken forward by iPhones. With iPhone 5, Apple is looking to sell more than 15 million pieces in one go. The figure is a record in itself, but when it comes to Apple, sky is truly the limit. According to official sources, Apple is planning on releasing iPhone 5 in the last quarter of this year.

 

About the author: Kate is a blogger by profession. She loves writing on technology and gadgets. Beside this she loves cooking and travelling. She is very fond of mobile phones.

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Samsung reportedly preparing for patent litigation against iPhone 5

The patent war between Apple and Samsung shows no signs of slowing down and the Korean company is now planning to launch a counterattack on Apple when the iPhone 5 makes its debut, according to a report by The Korea Times.
Citing senior officials within the company, the publication states that Samsung is determined to use its basic mobile telecom patents against Apple, which it is confident that the Cupertino company has no way of sidestepping in its developing the iPhone 5.
Samsung has taken some major blows in its legal battles against Apple, having seen its Galaxy Tab tablet banned in Germany earlier this month and been forced to delay the tablet’s launch in Australia. It was also compelled to modify its Galaxy S II phone after an injunction against it was granted to Apple in Europe.
The Korea Times reports that there are currently at least 23 pending lawsuits between Apple and Samsung in France, Germany, Japan, Korea and the USA, and it expects more to be filed in other countries in the coming months.
Samsung is currently one of Apple’s largest suppliers of component parts for its products, though the latter has been trying to distance itself from its rival in past months, but it seems that the Korean company is willing to go on the offensive to defend its products against Apple’s legal onslaughts.

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ITC to review Apple win in patent battle with HTC

The United States International Trade Commission will re-investigate claims that HTC is infringing on Apple’s patents. In July, a judge ruled HTC was guilty of infringing on two of Apple’s patents that covered “a system and method for performing an action on a structure in computer-generated data,” and “a real-time signal processing system for serially transmitted data.” HTC quickly said it would appeal the decision, noting it has a strong case against Apple. HTC fired back and sued the iPhone maker for patent infringement in August when it accused Apple of infringing on three of its patents. HTC said it was disappointed in “Apple’s constant attempts at litigation instead of competing fairly in the market,” and even said it was willing to bury the hatchet in the ongoing patent battles. Apple and HTC must send in written submissions and “proposed remedial orders” related to the case by October 6th. The U.S. ITC will complete its investigation by December 6th, Bloomberg said.
[Via Bloomberg]

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Samsung fires a lawsuit back at Apple in Australia

Samsung has filed a lawsuit in response to Apple's prior claims that Samsung devices violate Apple design patents in Australia. In the filing, Samsung claims that Apple is in violation of its technology patents.
If this sounds familiar to you, that is because it is virtually the same story as to what has transpired between the two companies in other parts of the world. Samsung's lawsuit claims that Apple has violated seven of its patents regarding wireless communication standards. It is also looking for a revocation of the patents granted to Apple that have been used against Samsung's line of Galaxy smartphones and tablets.

Apple's claims that Samsung has violated its design patents have prevented Samsung from selling the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia. Samsung has also been barred from selling Galaxy smartphones and tablets in Germany. Apple has not had to pull any of its products from shelves due to Samsung's lawsuits at this point in time. [via Business Week]

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Over a million combined iOS and Android apps have been released

Any way you look at it, there are tons of apps on the Android Market and the iTunes App Store. Granted many of them are different copies of the same app or junk that none of us want anyway. Still, there are a million apps now released for Android and iOS combined. That is a very big number and it comes from Appsfire. Appsfire is a new app tracking company.

Appsfire does note that while a million apps have been released for both platforms, only about 80% of that number of apps is still available for download by users. The apps are split at a surprisingly close percentage between Android and iOS. Android has 48% of that million number and iOS has 52%.
The other thing with the numbers here is that apparently apps that are on both platforms have been counted twice. Take all of that into account and what it means is that there is probably considerably less than a million apps on the market. When you look at the number of junk apps out there, I wonder how many of these are apps that people actually use.
[via Mobile Entertainment]

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Android apps continue to gain popularity, catching up to Apple

There are plenty of smartphone users that will stick with what they like and there are some that want the most apps available.  For the latter, it might start to get a bit difficult to choose since Android apps are closing the gap with Apple apps.  App downloads are powering towards 5 billion by the end of 2011.  In the Asia-Pacific region, Android apps are set to take over Apple apps for the first time.  With increasing smartphone usage in the region and more smartphone users getting familiar with Android OS, the numbers are set to shoot through the roof.  This year, the region can expect to see an increase of 189 percent on the number of app downloads.
Experts expect mobile app downloads to reach the 14 billion mark over the next 5 years.  In this region, the research showed that revenues could climb to as much as $870+ million compared to only $300+ million last year, with those numbers climbing each year as more smartphones become available to the area.  Downloads from all app stores around the world is increasing as the demand for smartphones rises in areas of the world that were not able to get access to the phones over recent years.

Apps that add features to phones and allow users to complete tasks on the go are the most popular type of app.  Apple saw about 15 billion app downloads and the iTunes App Store is showing about 425,000 apps at this time.  Even though Android only listed about 1.8 billion apps download this year, it is actually about higher than Apple’s 1.5 billion.  That is a major increase from last year when the region saw 244 million Android apps downloaded compared to Apple’s 424 million apps over the same time period.

Android is set to take over Apple in more ways than one, but for now it is just in the app marketplace.  As Android devices gain in popularity and lower prices to lure more customers, the downloaded app numbers will continue to increase over the years.  The Asia-Pacific market is large and some say that Android could hit the 6 billion download mark by 2016 and that would be double what experts say Apple apps will be by the same year.  The Apple iPhone is still the most popular smartphone and has the highest in paid app revenue, which is set to climb to $800 million by 2016.

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Samsung files patent complaint against Apple in France

South Korea's Samsung Electronics said Monday it had filed a complaint in France against its US rival Apple for infringement of three technology patents.
"The complaint focuses on three technology patents, and not on the design of the tablets," as was the case in a complaint filed in Germany that Apple won last week, a Samsung spokeswoman said.
The complaint was filed before a Paris district court in July and the first hearing is expected in December.
Last week a court in Duesseldorf banned Samsung from selling its latest Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet computer in Germany, ruling it had copied Apple's iconic iPad.
Samsung has said it plans to appeal the decision.
In the Netherlands, a court in The Hague banned three Samsung telephone models on August 24 following an Apple suit. Samsung launched a counter-claim, due to be heard by the same court on September 26.
The two firms are also locked in legal battles in Australia, the United States and Asia. Samsung has responded to Apple's accusations by filing suits of its own in Seoul, asking for a ban on sales of the US firm's products in South Korea.
The tussle began in April when Apple filed a suit accusing Samsung of copying its smartphones and tablet computers. Samsung responded with a claim in Seoul alleging five patent infringements by Apple.
Samsung has said its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet computer has been selling well in France since it hit the market in mid-August.

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