Apple didn't let anything slip about the iPhone 5 at WWDC, so leave it to the Internet. These are the finest iPhone 5 renders so far, knocked up by Martin Hajek on Flickr.
Click through to see the full gallery.
Hajek punted out his renders of the black iPhone 5 last week, based on the backplate we spied recently. He's not the first to put together a render based on what we've been hearing rumour-wise, but these are the prettiest yet.
The iPhone as imagined by Hajek features the striped aluminium back, as well as the larger 16:9 screen that's expected to make an appearance on the next gen Jesus phone. The screen on the next iPhone is expected to be 4-inches tall but no wider than the existing 3.5-incher, and with an aspect ratio ideal for movies.
The next iPhone is expected to launch around October time, which is the same time as Windows 8. As well as the bigger screen, it'll come touting the next generation of its software, iOS 6. New additions include Apple's own mapping software (replacing Google Maps), as well as turn-by-turn navigation, meaning the phone doubles as a sat-nav.
A much-improved Siri will also be on board, thankfully capable of telling us about local businesses like pubs, restaurants and taxi services. Previously it could only do this in America.
The iPhone 5 may well have the same A5X chip as in the new iPad too, boosting performance and making it even more of a gaming heavyweight than the iPhone 4S. We could have 4G by the end of the year, so the iPhone 5 could well be 4G-equipped for super-fast surfing and downloads.
What do you think of these renders? And what are you hoping for from the next iPhone? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook page.
iPhone 5 Pictures New Retina MacBooks, And iOS 6 Release Date: This Week In Apple Rumors - Huffington Post
Why the iPhone does well in the US - and who's buying smartphones there - The Guardian
Here's a statistic: in the first quarter of 2012, of the 18m smartphones sold in the US through carriers, the majority went to existing smartphone owners. Less than half - about 8.6m - went to new smartphone owners: people upgrading from a featurephone or getting their first phone. (The former is more likely.)
Decided how? A combination of two sets of data. First is the analysis by Benedict Evans of Enders Analysis, who in his latest blogpost looks at the balance of smartphones sales in the US.
Evans's post is interesting in itself:
the iPhone is now roughy half of ALL smartphone sales in the USA, as reported by the operators themselves, who really ought to know. And yet globally, Android is outselling the iPhone 2:1. How to explain the discrepancy? In a word, price.
US smartphone share, 1Q 2012, by carrier. Source: Benedict Evans/Enders Analysis He explains that "Relative to most other developed markets, the US mobile market is structured around significantly higher usage, higher monthly bills and much less competition on handset subsidy".
He shows that the way US carriers set up their contracts means that an iPhone is barely more expensive than other smartphones there:
With a minimum entry price of $80/month and a handset price of $200, the minimum 24 month total cost of ownership [TCO] for an iPhone 4S in the USA is $2,120, whereas the minimum TCO for a 'free' smartphone is $1,920. For a US consumer, the potential saving from getting a cheaper smartphone instead of an iPhone is just 10% of the 24m TCO
Conversely the lowest TCO at which a consumer can get an iPhone in the UK is just $998. This is under half what they would have to pay in the USA: however, it is also possible to get a smartphone in the UK for a TCO of just $384 – 20% of the US equivalent.
Hence, an American can only save 10% over two years by getting a 'free' smartphone over an iPhone. In the UK, the iPhone is 160% more expensive than the cheapest smartphone offer.
Which would go a long way to explaining why the iPhone sells so much better in the US: it's not a very competitive market. "The iPhone 4S 16Gb is available in the UK at 10 different prices (including free), depending on what contract you take out," Evans notes. "In the USA, it costs $200 on any contract".
Now, to the other point, about the number of those smartphones going to existing owners. Evans's data says that in the first quarter of 2012, there were 18m smartphones sold through the five principal operators in the US - 9m iPhones, and 9m other smartphones.
In parallel, ComScore has a gigantic panel of mobile phone owners whom it polls every month, and it releases the data from those polls about a month behind.
Looking at the period from January to March, the installed base of smartphones (among a total of 234m users) grew from 97.9m users in the three months ending in December 2011 to its March figure, where it says 106m people owned a smartphone during the three months ending in March. That's a growth of 8.6m in the installed base - the number who have one.
That indicates that less than half (47%) went to new owners. Which suggests that the real challenge for the smartphone makers who are looking to grow - and those who are looking to get into the market - will be getting the 50% who are still using a featurephone to buy a smartphone - or even to use a smartphone in that way even if they get it. Perhaps what it really needs is for the US carriers to introduce a more competitive market. But there's no sign of that happening lately.
iPhone 5 to Resemble DSLR Camera as Apple Hints Changing Lenses in new Patent - Int'l Business Times
Like us on Facebook
According to the application, "as the quality of digital images that can be obtained with highly compact devices increases, there is increasing demand for sophisticated features."
iPhone's camera system is usually encased within the device for protection, the company said in its patent that it would be "desirable to provide a structure for a compact device that allows the end user to reconfigure the optical arrangement of the device while retaining the benefits of assembling the device using a pre-assembled digital imaging subsystem."
This means that if the patent application pushes through, the device will allow users to open the back panel without disrupting the digital imaging subsystem to change the lens or take black and white photos at low light levels.
A potential camera feature that could be included in the device is a close-up lens that reduces the minimum focal distance, allowing extreme macro photography. According to the patent application, Apple could also be working in including better shutter speeds, providing better control of image exposure.
Apple already earned a patent earlier this month for its distinctive laptop teardrop design and the company also unveiled a patent for possible changes to be made on QuickTime player. As usual, the Cupertino-based company did not comment about the new iPhone 5 rumor and the patent application.
To contact the editor, e-mail:
No comments:
Post a Comment