iPhone 5e now said to be the name of the next 4-inch Apple device

The next 4-inch smartphone made by Apple has been in the rumors for many months now, yet it still hasn't become official. That may change in the next few weeks, however, if we go by some recent speculation.

One thing that's been up for debate so far is what it's going to be called. The oldest rumors have referred to it as the iPhone 6c, then some people started calling it iPhone 7c, and today a Chinese analyst says it will actually be neither of those.



According to this person, Apple will name its new 4-inch device iPhone 5e, where "e" is supposed to roughly stand for "enhanced". This model will apparently be a slightly upgraded iPhone 5s, coming with support for Apple Pay, as well as VoLTE.

The main camera will reportedly be an 8 MP unit, while the SoC running things should be the A8, paired with 1GB of RAM. In China, the iPhone 5e is expected to cost CNY 3,288, which right now means $500 or €459.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

iPhone shipments estimated at 55M for March quarter, first YoY decline since 2007 launch

Investment firm Piper Jaffrey has adjusted its estimate for Apple's current quarter iPhone shipments. Down 12%, the projected figure for the quarter ending in March (Q2 2016 by US policy) is now 55 million units shipped, as opposed to the previous 62.5 million units.

The number, if it proves correct, will mark the first year-on-year decline in iPhone shipments since the launch of the original iPhone in 2007. To be fair, even the initial estimate was dangerously close to the 61.2M units shipped in the same period last year, itself a massive increase over the 43.7M from 2014. Piper Jaffrey's forecast for Q3 (ending in June), has gotten its due cut as well, from 48.5M to 45M units shipped.


The analysts' revision is a result of persisting rumors from Apple supply chain companies, stating that Cupertino has been reducing part orders. While previously insisting that a single supplier's reduced orders aren't indicative of overall shipments, the investment firm has been forced to reconsider, after cumulative reports from multiple suppliers.

The numbers result in revenue expectations around the $55.8 billion mark, come the Q2 report. For Q1 the company projects a revenue of about $77 billion, based on 75 million iPhones, 5.8 million Macs, 17.5 million iPads, and 6 millions Watches shipped.

Via

Apple working with Beats to bring wireless earbuds to the iPhone 7

It's fair to say that quite a few people were infuriated by rumors that Apple might be abandoning the 3.5mm headphone jack for the iPhone 7 in favor of Lightning-connected accessories. There's an ongoing petition to keep the connectivity option, signed by more than 215,000 people, and counting.

Now some new insider info reiterates the 3.5 jack's future demise, adding that Apple and its subsidiary Beats Electronics are working on developing wireless earbuds to launch alongside the iPhone 7. And we're talking wireless-wireless, with no cables at all, much like the Moto Hint, the Earin, and the Bragi Dash.




iPhone 6s retail package
What might very well be called the Airpods (Apple has the trademark registered) are reported to feature microphones too, for noise cancelling and summoning Siri. No ports will be found on them, instead they will ship with a carrying case with built-in battery - again, a similar design to already existing solutions.

iPhone #bendgate theater and Apple's respond to?

For the record, I have been counting the days until this stupid iPhone 6 Plus #bendgate nonsense would end ever since the first time I saw the video that kicked it all off from Unbox Therapy. When I saw the knuckles of Lewis Hilsenteger go white in his attempt to bend the iPhone 6 Plus, I was convinced that this was all going to be blown way out of proportion, and any chance to highlight a real problem with the iPhone 6 Plus would likely be lost. I'm sad to say that I may have already been proven right. 

There is obviously a structural flaw in the iPhone 6 Plus that Apple should be held accountable for, but there is a huge gap between confronting a company about a legitimate problem and what we've been seeing with #bendgate. Of course, I should have expected that exact reaction, because almost no one on Earth knows how to discuss Apple rationally and reasonably, and any issue with an Apple product, no matter how small, will become far bigger than it should, because irrationality breeds exaggeration (just check the comment section on any Apple-related article for evidence on that). 

Let's start right at the beginning, when the rumors first started going around about the iPhone 6 Plus bending. The first whispers came from iPhone users, obviously. But, were they finding out about the problem because of normal usage? At first, yes, but quickly afterwards, not so much. The first reports came from people who had put the iPhone their front pocket only to find it bend, which is unfortunate and a real issue. But, those reports were overtaken by jokes about skinny jeans, and complaints from those who put their new iPhones in their back pocket and then sat on them. Look, I don't care if you're wearing skinny jeans or Hammer pants, and I don't care if you have an iPhone, a Galaxy Note, or a NoPhone. If you put a smartphone in your back pocket and then sit on it, any damage that occurs is your fault and yours alone. That's just a mistake waiting to happen, especially when the phone in question is large enough to be affected by the shape of your ass. 

After those initial reports, the mess took an even more silly turn, and for this we have Mr. Hilsenteger to thank, because since then there have been almost no reports from actual consumers with legitimate problems. The vast majority of the "coverage" has been from people who are actively trying to bend the iPhone. The coverage has been flat out ridiculous and has turned into a mess of noise that is obscuring any possibility of getting Apple to answer the real complaints. And, that's a big problem, because there are legitimate concerns which need to be addressed. 

Jony Ive about companies that copy Apple's designs: it's not flattery, it's theft

Jonathan Ive, the man who designs Apple’s iPhones and iPads (among other things), isn’t particularly happy about the fact that other companies often copy his designs.

Present at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit today, Jony Ive was asked how he felt about Xiaomi’s products - some of which look a lot like Apple’s. He said he doesn’t see this (i.e. mimicking Apple’s designs in general) as flattery. “I see it as theft, and it's lazy," declared Ive. He continued by saying that “a beautiful product that doesn't work very well is ugly.”