Why the next iPhone will not be called iPhone 5

There have been plenty of reports/ rumours/ leaks about Apple's upcoming iPhone, and almost all refer to the next version of the iPhone as 'iPhone 5'. While a few people have tried to explain this very reasoning before, most still don't seem to get the message. Let's reiterate why there's reason to believe the next iPhone will NOT be called 'iPhone 5'.

First, let's take a look at how iPhone naming has evolved over the years.

The first generation naming doesn't need any explanation. The second generation iPhone was called the iPhone 3G after the most important feature it added i.e. 3G network capabilities. The third generation iPhone was pretty much the same as the iPhone 3G, but faster, which translated into the S for Speed in iPhone 3GS.

The iPhone 4 is the only iPhone till date to come with just a number as a suffix. It is also the only iPhone till date to have the generation of the hardware as its suffix - the fourth iPhone model i.e iPhone 4. The next generation phone, iPhone 4S, featured the same industrial design in a faster package - except this time the S was not for Speed, but Siri, Apple's virtual assistant that was marketed as iPhone 4S's great new feature.

Which brings us to the iPhone 2012. It'll be the sixth iPhone till date, so why would it be called iPhone 5? It just doesn't make any sense. So iPhone 6? That would seem odd, but it is more likely than iPhone 5!

iPhone 2012 comes with a new industrial design, so you can rule out it being called any derivative of iPhone 4S, especially since Apple hasn't used the same number for more than two generations. So what else can it be called?

We think an iPad-like change in naming convention, where Apple drops the number from the name entirely is extremely likely. So say hello to 'The new iPhone', or simply 'iPhone', as later generations will be called. That's what Apple has done with the iPad, and we believe there's good reason for the iPhone to follow suit.

What about 2013, when the next iPad and iPhone debut? If they are also called 'iPad' or 'iPhone', how will Apple differentiate between the two models, especially since both old and new models are likely to be on sale side by side?

Let's see what Apple does for its other hardware, Macs. Since Apple typically stops selling the old 11-inch MacBook Air when the new one debuts, it doesn't face this problem. In channels where the old hardware continues to be sold, it's suffixed with the processor or, more pertinently, the year.

Here's Apple's list of models that support its Mountain Lion OS:

• iMac (Mid 2007 or newer)
• MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer)
• MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer)
• Xserve (Early 2009)
• MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)
• Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer)
• Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)

Notice something? What is Apple using to differentiate between products with the same name? Yes, year. So could Apple use years to differentiate between one iPhone and the other? Could be, but let's look at another example first.

What about other hardware like iPods and Apple TV? They follow an interesting nomenclature, where the generation of the hardware gets added as a suffix e.g. the iPod touch before the current is now called iPod touch 3rd generation.

Since iPhone and iPad are fundamentally closer to the iPod touch than Macs (duh!), it seems logical Apple will extend the same naming convention to these devices. In fact, at some places on Apple's website the current iPad is already being referred as 'iPad (3rd generation)' - see image.

So, to summarise:
1) The next iPhone will likely be called 'The new iPhone', or simply 'iPhone' and subsequent iPhone models will follow the same naming convention.
2) Apple will likely use the generation of the hardware to different between different iPhone and iPad models.

So next time you see someone use the term 'iPhone 5', be sure to point them to this article.

Samsung unveils new Series 5, 7 touchscreen PCs

Samsung has started this year's consumer electronics fair IFA in style, launching three new All-in-One (AiO) PCs that feature innovative touch-screen technology. The AiO PCs feature touch screens with resolutions of 1920 x 1800 and are designed to run Windows 8. The AiOs also responded to what Samsung call, "hand gesture recognition features," meaning that users can "swipe" the screen without touching it from a distance of up to 90cm away.

The Series 5 boasts a 21.5 inch screen while the Series 7 clocks in at 23 and 27 inches respectively. The larger Series 7, designed for use in the family room, boasts Intel Core i5, 6GB of 1,600MHz DDR3 memory, a 1TB hard-disk drive and an Intel HD Graphics 4000 processor.

All three versions include DVD +/-RW Super Multi Dual Layer optical drives, HD audio, 1.3-megapixel cameras for the hand-gesture-recognition features, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support, High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) and USB 2.0 and 3.0 slots, and wireless keyboards and mice.

The  new devices are slated to arrive in stores on October 26 -- the Series 5 starting at $749 and the Series 7 ranging from $1,099 to $1,699. 

From: AFP

Mark Zuckerberg loses more than $9 billion as Facebook shares plumb new lows

San Francisco/ New York: Facebook Inc shares sank 6.3 per cent to a record closing low after early investors got the greenlight to sell for the first time since the No. 1 social network went public, starting a string of insider lockup expirations that will pressure the stock for months.

More than 270 million shares owned by early investors became available for trade on Thursday after a 3-month curb on sales ended. That's more than half the 421 million shares sold in its initial public offering on May 18.

The company founded by Mark Zuckerberg in his Harvard dorm room became the only U.S. company to debut with a market value of more than $100 billion.

But investors have since grown disillusioned with Facebook's inability to articulate a plan to reverse slowing revenue growth - due in large part to its limited mobile advertising efforts - sending the stock down almost 50 per cent from its $38 debut.

Many investors remain unnerved by the massive flood of shares still waiting to be released: More than 1.4 billion additional shares will be eligible for selling by year's end, nearly tripling the amount available for trade.

Analysts say Thursday's frenetic trading offers a taste of what may transpire in November, when many of the social network's employees get to cash in stock awards for the first time.

"An incredible amount, all the shares coming," said Steve Birenberg, president of Northlake Capital Management and portfolio manager for Entermedia Growth Partners, a hedge fund.

"It's important because it adds to the negative sentiment. You've got a big overhang of stock, you've got decelerating growth ..., everything out there now is sort of spun negatively."

With Thursday's sell-off, Facebook has lost almost $50 billion, or just under half, of its value since its IPO. The stock, which debuted at $38, fell as much as 7.1 per cent to a all-time low of $19.69 before ending the day at $19.87.

Facebook has been wildly volatile, moving more than 3 per cent in most sessions. It was the most active counter on the Nasdaq on Thursday with roughly 157 million shares changing hands - five times its 50-day daily average of just under 30 million shares.

Analysts said it wasn't clear whether the sell-off was actually driven by insiders or by other shareholders worried about potential insider selling.

Among the largest blocks of shares now available for trading are about 75 million owned by Russia's DST Global Limited and Mail.ru. Other potential sellers may have included venture capital firm Accel Partners and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel.

"I don't think you're going to see all the supply come to market on Day One. People will wait until they think there will be a little bit of a price lift," said Evercore Partners analyst Ken Sena. "You could say some of the concerns got priced in, and now it's a question how much demand is there to absorb the increased supply."

Facebook's IPO was to have been the culmination of years of breakneck growth that established it as the world's largest Internet social network with a billion users, challenging Google Inc for consumers' time and advertising dollars.

Its May coming-out party is often compared with Google's, which also debuted against a backdrop of intense investor enthusiasm. But the search company founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin fared better after its IPO, gaining more than 70 per cent in its first 60 days on the market.

MORE SHARES COMING

After staging one of the most highly anticipated IPOs in history, Facebook has felt the sting of investor disenchantment.

Concerns about the company's slowing revenue growth, and its ability to make money on mobile advertising, have pressured the stock.

With Facebook trading at just under $20, Mark Zuckerberg, 28, who enjoys majority voting power, has now watched more than $9 billion evaporate from his net worth. Mark Zuckerberg was ranked 35th on the latest Forbes' list of the world's richest billionaires published in September 2011.

"You've had a failed IPO, the stock has been cut in half, a sloppy quarter and a big lock-up expiring. Every one of those tends to erode faith," said Michael Binger, a portfolio manager at Gradient Investments, whose firm does not have a position in Facebook.

With Facebook still trading at 40 times its expected 2012 earnings - compared to 16 for Google and 14 for Apple Inc Binger said he did not see a buying opportunity until the company's revenue growth starts to re-accelerate.

Another 243 million shares will be released from lock-up between mid-October and mid-November. On November 14, more than 1.2 billion shares will be available for trading. Mr Zuckerberg will not be able to sell his shares until then.

"The biggest issue is not this lock-up; it's the November lock-up," said Pivotal Research Group analyst Brian Wieser.

If the company's perceived operating momentum doesn't improve by then, he said, "then there's real trouble ahead."

GOING SHORT

As the insider lockups started to expire, the number of Facebook shares shorted hit a new high of 92.6 million shares on Thursday, according to Sungard Financial Systems' Astec unit, which tracks short interest. That would represent roughly 13 per cent of the company's float of 692 million shares.

Short sellers borrow shares to sell them, betting that they can buy the securities later at a lower price and make a profit.

The cost of shorting Facebook shares has fallen sharply since their debut in May, because the stock is now easily available to borrow. As of Thursday, the cost of borrowing the Facebook shares was about 1.6 per cent per annum on an annualized basis, compared to 40-50 per cent when the stock made its debut in May.

On Thursday morning, 600,000 shares were shorted, "due in part to the relatively inexpensive rate at which short sellers must pay to sell short," said Tim Smith, executive vice president of Sungard's Astec unit.

"Even though Facebook's market cap has almost been cut in half since its IPO, many investors believe that shares are still overvalued," Mr Smith said.

Short interest has steadily climbed from 25 million shares on May 22, according to the data by Sungard.

"There are still at least 30 million Facebook shares that institutional investors are willing to lend to short sellers as of this morning, so the cost-to-short should not increase in the near-term, however, investors should continue to monitor the cost-to-short going forward," Mr Smith said.

Short interest figures calculated by the Nasdaq Stock Market, released on a lagging basis twice a month, shows 61.3 million shares were shorted as of the end of July. New figures on short interest will not be released until August 24.

"Ultimately, I think the stock is not going to get moving until the advertising growth accelerates again. And I'm not really interested in owning it prior to that point," Birenberg said.

© Thomson Reuters 2012

Cheap and cheerful, Chinese phones outsmart Apple

In China's booming smartphone market, which is set this year to overtake the United States as the world's largest, a host of little-known local firms are primed with cheap phones to squeeze market share from U.S. giant Apple Inc's iPhone.
In the latest local challenge to the iPhone, Xiaomi Technology on Thursday launches the successor to its popular MiOne smartphone, which is expected to have top-end specifications exceeding those of the iPhone 4S at around half the price.
While iPhone sales will increase in China, Apple's market share may stagnate or even dip as the market's changing demographics mean the iPhone flourishes in just a handful of wealthy Chinese cities, analysts said.
"The sweet spot of affordability in China is 800-1,500 yuan," said Michael Clendenin, managing director of Shanghai-based consultancy RedTech Advisors. "The 'Lao Bai Xing', or man in the street, is going to go for these mid-tier phones."
Industry researcher IDC estimates that in China last year, smartphones costing less than $200 made up 40 percent of shipments, while devices costing $700 and more accounted for 11 percent of the market.
Apple releases a single iPhone model a year at a price around $800 equivalent to about two months pay for an urban Chinese, who make up half of China's 1.3 billion population. Analysts say the real growth in China is in cheaper smartphones where a wide variety of models at different prices appeal to first-time buyers.
"Apple isn't going to rule China, simply because of the limited models they have and the price points they target," said TZ Wong, an analyst with IDC. "Based on these two factors, we do not think Apple will be the No. 1 smartphone player in China."
Apple ranked second in January-March smartphone shipments in China, with 17.3 percent market share, trailing Samsung Electronics' 19.2 percent, according to research firm, Gartner.
Smartphones from Xiaomi founded only two years ago but already worth more than Blackberry maker Research in Motion, according to private market valuations have proved so popular they sell out in minutes after going on sale online. The company, founded by CEO Lei Jun, said last month its first-half revenue was close to $1 billion as it sold more than 3 million phones.
Mirroring Apple's annual worldwide developers conference (WWDC), where devotees would pay to listen to Steve Jobs showcasing new products, the informally-clad Lei will charge MiOne fans 199 yuan to attend the Beijing launch, with the proceeds going to charity.
iOS to slip to third
Apple's market share by volume has been on a downtrend, and the share of the market commanded by its iOS mobile operating system is expected to slip to third place by 2016 from second earlier this year, according to Gartner analyst Sandy Shen below Google Inc's Android and Microsoft Corp's Windows.
Apple's iPhone sales in China, its second-largest market, stumbled in April-June on inventory adjustments with the launch of the iPhone 4S. That extra inventory meant resellers didn't need to buy as many iPhones during the quarter, and the expected launch later this year of the iPhone 5, with enhanced Chinese language capabilities, also likely held back orders.
"Apple's market share is pretty stable. It will be flat over the next five years. Although volume-wise it's increasing, that's because the total market is growing," Shen said.
Research firms IDC and Gartner predict China's smartphone shipments could hit 140 million this year, topping those in the United States.
High spec, low cost
Growth is driven largely by smartphones made by ZTE Corp, Lenovo Group and smaller private firms such as Xiaomi, Gionee and Meizu Technology.
Meizu phones, which sell in China and Hong Kong for 1,500 yuan, are feted by Western technology blogs for offering high-end smartphones at bargain basement prices.
Offering even cheaper models, Alibaba Group, Shanda Interactive and Baidu Inc have all this year launched smartphones for under 1,000 yuan. Baidu's phone, made with partners, retails at 899 yuan, while Alibaba's waterproof smartphone, made with Haier Electronics Group, costs 999 yuan.
"For those with an iPhone or Samsung it's just a replacement cycle. But for many people who haven't got their first smartphone, those are the people who will get cheap smartphones," Shen said.
Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012

Apple iPhone 4 'useless' for left-handers

CAPE TOWN: Apparently, the designers and technicians of Apple iPhone 4 have ignored the needs of left-handers.

Some people were unable to call or surf the internet on the Apple iPhone 4, which had hit shops in 2010, as holding the device in the left hand could in some cases cover the phone's antenna, thereby cutting off reception.

Agnes Maria Forsthofer, a member of an association for left-handed people in Germany, pointed out that 'there are essentially no devices fitted for left-handers.'

Even standard devices like a mouse or keyboard have some pitfalls for left-handed users.

According to News24, Barbara Sattler, who heads an information centre for left-handers in Germany, pointed out that the 'number pad for example is difficult to use with your left hand'.

"There are only a few keyboards where the number pad is on the left side," Sattler said.

Sattler suggested that left-handers should rather get a separate number pad with a USB connection, like those available for laptops.

IBM India gives double-digit salary hikes

BANGALORE: Over 100,000 employees at the Indian operations of technology services company IBM received better-than-expected salary hikes this year, in stark contrast to the single digit raises at Indian IT firms.

At least three IBM employees told that the raises were in the range of 10-25% depending on the employee's seniority level and the business unit they belong to.

Over the past three months, top Indian IT firms offered meagre wage hikes, mostly in the range of 5 to 10 %. Country's No 1 IT firm, Tata Consultancy Services, gave around 8 to 10 % to its employees based in India while HCL Technologies awarded around 8%.

"It's been a good year," a senior manager based in IBMs Bangalore office said, referring to company's overall performance during the year under review.

IBM India, with Rs15,413 crore in revenues according to Cybermedia Research, did better than last year when it gave out single digit pay raises. The US multi-national does not disclose its India headcount.

An employee who has been with IBM's Global Business Services unit for over 4 years said that most of his colleagues got raises in the range of 7 to 15%. GBS, which accounts for 20% of IBM's revenue globally, provides services such as management consulting, application management and system integration.

"Hikes in general have been good. Last year, those who were on the top recieved around 12 percent but this year even those who are lesser than the best got good raises," an employee said on conditions of anonymity.

During its fourth quarter earnings in April, No 2 IT firm Infosys had announced that it would not offer any salary increments this year as the management's visibility on near term growth was limited. Last month, Infosys lowered its dollar revenue growth forecast for the year to March to 5%, down from 8-10% it had projected three months before that. The company had said that it will give out 16,000 promotions this year, as against 18,000 last year.

Hyderabad-based Mahindra Satyam, which offered 8 to 12 percent salary hike last year, has also said that it would go for a tightening on salary hikes this year.

Industry body Nasscom has projected that growth for India's software services sector this year will slow down to between 10% and 14% in dollar terms while the domestic market would grow 13-16 % in rupee terms.

Lenovo Yoga Convertible Laptop-Tablet Coming with Windows 8 RT

  Email 1 Smaller Font Text Larger Text | Print

Lenovo officially announced its Windows 8 ThinkPad Tablet 2 this week, which will be aimed at professionals. But the company’s consumer side is also preparing its Windows 8 products, including its IdeaPad Yoga, which was shown off earlier this year at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
The computer has a unique design: It looks like a regular laptop until the screen folds backwards to morph it into a tablet.
The device is scheduled to hit the market around the time of the general availability of Windows 8, which is slated for Oct. 26, ABC News has learned. There will be two versions of the Yoga – one that has an Intel processor and one that has a lower-powered ARM Nvidia Tegra processor. The ARM version will have double the battery life of the Intel version, sources said.
Microsoft has three versions of Windows 8 – Windows RT for ARM processors, which are lower-powered, and Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro for x86 Intel and AMD processors.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier today that Lenovo is prepping to release a Windows RT tablet with a “keyboard that flips around.” ABC News’ sources confirmed that this tablet is, in fact, the Yoga.
While Windows RT tablets based on ARM won’t have access to all the legacy applications for Windows, Windows RT tablets, like the Yoga, will have access to all the apps in Microsoft’s Store, which will be launched alongside Windows 8 in October. A lot of Windows 8 computers and tablets are expected in October, including Microsoft’s own Surface tablet. Earlier this week Lenovo’s Dilip Bhatia told ABC News that Surface has brought excitement to the market.
When reached, a Lenovo spokesperson said the company will have a number of Windows 8 devices, but wouldn’t comment on unannounced products.

From abcnews