Metal Back(ache): Early Adopters Say Aluminum On iPhone 5

iphone 5 scratchedApple CEO Tim Cook highlighted the beautiful look and feels of the iPhone 5's sumptuous aluminum back. But with new users reporting that the metal scratches and dings easily, it looks like the metal-backed iPhone 5 is fated to be covered up by plastic iPhone 5 cases. While some have been frustrated with what the iPhone 5 did and did not deliver, many have taken some solace in the fact that Apple did follow through with the metal-backed rumor that has persisted over the past two years. With the iPhone 4 featuring a glass back with sleek metal trim on its sides, iPhone users have long imagined that the expanded use of metal on the back of the iPhone 5 would only enhance its good looks. And that’s exactly what Apple did: the back of the iPhone 5 is a unique combination of glass and metal and, while the early leaked images of the iPhone 5's back seemed awkward, users say that in person, it’s a really pretty smartphone. Apparently it is also really easy to scratch the new metal as well. There are a wide range of new reports outlining some of the shortcomings of the new iPhone, such as the lackluster launch of Apple maps, issues with wifi, and a few other software bits and bobs, most of which will be addressed in subsequent iOS 6 updates. But the scratchy metal problem — there’s no “fix” for that design flaw. According to TechCrunch: “A good amount of iPhone 5 early adopters took to the Internet over the weekend, reporting that their brand new iPhone 5 has scuffs and dings out of the box. Or, even if the phone was perfect out of the box, it did not stay that way for very long. It seems the black iPhone 5 shows scratches more easily than the white. Apple has yet to comment on the issue.” Right out of the box? Ugh. At first, I thought that “right out of the box” meant “days/hours after using it.” And that has been the case — new users are complaining that after just a weekend of pulling the iPhone 5 in and out of pockets and purses, it is showing signs of wear. But an article on Forbes makes the point that some iPhone 5s are arriving “pre-scratched:” To make matters worse, some claim that their handset was scratched straight out of the box, with the damage having occurred at the assembly plant before the iPhone 5 was put into the box. The damage was underneath the protective film that Apple applies to its devices and couldn’t have been caused in transit. “To make matters worse, some claim that their handset was scratched straight out of the box, with the damage having occurred at the assembly plant before the iPhone 5 was put into the box. The damage was underneath the protective film that Apple applies to its devices and couldn’t have been caused in transit. Scratches and scuffs appear to range from tiny ones of the edge of the handset, to massive Freddy Kruger style scratches on the back.” It remains to be seen what kind of effect if any this bit of bad press might have on the iPhone 5. iPhone users are well-documented as being quite fond of showing off their favorite mobile device; the iPhone’s form factor matters a great deal to iPhone users. And since one of the central selling points of the new iPhone is its overhauled form factor, if iPhone enthusiasts are faced with the prospect of having to cover their iPhone 5 in a third-party plastic case or risk early wear and tear on the aluminum back, they may opt to wait for a future iteration of iPhone that might include a tougher metal alloy, such as the long-rumored LiquidMetal. In the meantime, prospective customers might take and “wait and see” approach to see if Cupertino responds by adding a protective layer to the iPhone 5's metal backing in order to minimize scratches and dings.

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50 Million iPhone 5 Sales By December?

Following in the steps of its staggering pre-order and launch sales, the iPhone 5 is said to be poised to sell 50,000,000 units by the end of December. Yes, that’s the right number of zeros. 50 million. Blogs like the iPhone 5 News Blog still have a b it of work left to do in terms of reporting on the iPhone 5: discuss whether the iPhone 5 turns out to live up to its hype, and to track its sales and success. While there is still plenty of conjecture as to whether the iPhone 5 will live up to its hype, early reports confirm that it will indeed go on to be the most successfully marketed smartphone ever. There are a myriad of recent reports that show the iPhone 5 breaking all previous iPhone sales records. Take, for example, this report from CNET, which claims ”A new report from ComScore, which finds that the first three days of iPhone 5 preorders equaled the earlier Apple record set by the iPhone 4S over the course of a month.” Pretty astounding. But considering all of the pent-up excitement and anticipation surrounding the iPhone 5, it remains to be seen if this current excitement will continue to sustain itself over the months ahead, into 2013. What are the financial analysts saying? Well, they expect nothing less than 50 million iPhone 5 sales by the end of December. According to USAToday: “FBR Capital forecasts that more than 50 million iPhone 5s could move in the fourth quarter of 2012, and that 250 million could be sold over the phone’s lifespan.” Even more astounding. Given the fact that many tech enthusiasts and journalists have had little nice things to say about the iPhone 5, it’s hard to reconcile the new iPhone’s middling press with such astronomical sales volume. Perhaps, however, the answer is simple: that Apple has much more control over the buzz and excitement surrounding its products than the online tech community does, and that the average iPhone user has less-lofty expectations for new iPhone iterations than those who follow iPhone rumors avidly. In the areas that some feel the iPhone 5 has failed to deliver on, such as next-generation features and a more proportionally-expanded display, the new screen and form factor are proving to be major selling points for the iPhone 5 among mobile users. It remains to be seen if early hiccups like the lackluster launch of Apple Maps will stall iPhone 5 sales, but since the new hardware and look for the 5 appear to be what is propelling its incredible sales, it would take a seismic disaster to slow down sales and excitement anytime soon.

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Purported, New Earbuds For The iPhone 5 Emerge

Newly leaked photos of what are said to be the iPhone 5's earbuds show a new design. But is this just another fabricated ruse?
I’m not sure if earbuds are much more exciting to talk about than dock connectors. In my opinion, Apple’s current earbuds are pretty great compared to the other crappy earbuds you get with even some of the higher-end Android smartphones. That being said, earbuds are a means to an end — much like a dock connector — and changing the earbud design isn’t something that I’ve ever heard people calling for.
Even still, that’s what’s on the iPhone 5 rumor-disucussing agenda today.
According to MacRumors, the “Vietnamese site Tinhte.vn has posted a video of what it claims to be redesigned headphones for the new iPhone which is expected in September.” I don’t know what to make of the fact that the video has seen been made private — that’s either indication that Apple is extremely angry that these photos were released, or that these bogus photos are bringing way too much attention to the site in question. Take your pick. But the captured photo above gives us a good glimpse at them nonetheless.
iphone 5 earbud cable


This is a translated transcript of the now-defunct video:
In my hands are the new earphones for the iPhone 5 that is about to come out – Apple’s next generation of iPod [sic]. These will replace the current earphones that are on the market. These are manufactured at Phax Co factory in Vietnam. They have the appearance of a horse’s head, not like earbuds. When they are worn, they have a much smaller profile. They have the appearance of a fully integrated, single unit – there’s no part that looks like it would come apart – not like earbuds; the integrated design is characteristic of Apple products. Here I have the old earphones for comparison. The new ones are much smaller; when they are worn, they do not hurt the way earbuds do. You can see on the old ones the surface is a separate part that looks like it can be detached – not like the small surface of the new one. The old earphones were mostly made in China, with some in Vietnam. But the new ones are clearly made in Vietnam. (Reading from the wires): “Designed by Apple in California, assembled in Vietnam.”
MacRumors doesn’t really make any comments themselves on earbud design, but I would agree that the idea of “unibody” earbuds is very Apple. But there are some oddities to the design that call it somewhat into question for me.
First is the ize of the speakers built into the earbuds — they are remarkably small. There are examples of how very expensive, boutique speakers, from companies such as Bone, can produce big sound even when the speakers themselves are small. But in the case of earbuds, the size of the speaker and sound source would have a profound impact on the sound quality. A tiny speaker like the one used in this design would mean that the soundwaves would expand out into the eardrum from a considerably narrow starting point, meaning that the coverage of the wave would not necessarily be as expansive as traditional earbuds. A good example of the difference is between large, studio-style headphones that envelop the ear versus earbuds — the former has provocatively better sound.
Another strange design is the divot in the side of the earbud.
There would be no reason to have a second speaker on the side of the earbud, pushing up against the side of the ear canal, would there? The sound wave should shoot freely into the eardrum, not be muted by the side of the ear.
Finally, I’d take issue with the reviewer’s claim that this is a seamless earbud design. This photo appears to show a seam, making it a two-piece assembly like most other earbuds that I’ve ever seen:

iPhone 5 earbud side
The claim is that these earbuds are being produced in a Foxconn facility in Vietnam. Is that possible? Certainly, it isn’t hard to imagine that an accessory like earbuds could be easily smuggled out of the factory where they are being produced. But I think it’s also very possible that these are third-party earbuds that have been dressed up to look like Apple products.
It’ll be interesting to see if these earbuds really show up along with the iPhone 5.

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iphone 5 with nfc chip

Another round of purported iPhone 5 photos have emerged, depicting the small component initially identified as NFC-related, but panned by others as false, due to the iPhone 5's metal back. More fakes, or more glimpses?
You want more salacious iPhone 5 photos? We’ve got ‘em! You’ll recall that just a few days ago we passed along some photos of purported iPhone 5 parts that were dubbed the “most comprehensive assembly” of the iPhone 5 that we’ve seen thus far. What was particularly interesting about these photos was the advent of a small chip to the right of the earpiece, which was assumed to be the long-rumored NFC chip. The next day, Jim Dalrymple and co. panned the photos as false, since the metal back of the iPhone 5 — which Dalrymple tacitly confirmed — couldn’t work with NFC. And the fact that the photos didn’t have any shot of the back seemed conspicuous at best.
Today, we have a new set up photos depicting the same little chip, and once again, no view of the back to see if it compared with the metal back of the early 9to5mac photos. Do these new photos answer any questions, or just raise more of them?
The photo at the top of the article comes from Nowhereelse.fr, and compares the top assembly of the purported iPhone 5 to that of the 4S. Notwithstanding the fact that this top assembly looks like the one we saw the other day, to me — a guy who admittedly doesn’t understand the guts of iPhone — it looks as if the added components around the supposed NFC chip, like the camera lens, is being blocked by that plate. Come to think of it, so too are the earpiece components. Why can’t we see what’s behind that?
And finally, why are the iPhone 5 and 4S photos so incongruous? With the iPhone 5, I see a lot of screws and components, making the 4S seem stripped down. To me, that’s fishy. Couldn’t the photographer dress up the 4S with comparable components of its own so that the assemblies are equally complete. Or is this an equal comparison? If so, Apple is doing things quite differently on the new phone, as it looks to be held together with a bunch of little screws.
Take a look at this side-by-side to see what I mean:
iphone 4s and 5 side by side
And as I mentioned in my last article about the whole NFC chip/metal back issue, it’s odd that we never see the back of the iPhone in these photos, either. Why not? The back of the iPhone 5 that 9to5mac showed us caused quite a discussion, what with its slightly color-mismatched metal section that connected with the top and bottom pieces. People debated whether they liked or disliked that look, but everyone agreed that it was metal we were looking at.
If we are to believe that these new photos are of the same iPhone 5 units, then show us the backside.

Somewhere out there, someone wants us to believe that this is the iPhone 5. In fact, there’s a whole lot of people in the tech media who want us to believe that the iPhone 5 has practically been in plain sight for months with all of these sightings. But with each passing set, there always appears to be something not quite right.

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iOS 6, iPhone 5 To Feature Most Wireless Mobile Computing Experience Yet

In a bid to eventually make the iPhone 5 and other iOS devices completely wire-free, iOS 6 is set to usher in even more wireless and wifi-free functionality.
Although it doesn’t always get talked about in one article, a lot has been rumored about the iPhone 5 with respect to its move towards wireless connectivity. Building on the adoption of OTA updates, we’ve also heard about possible wireless charging, an upgrade of the dock connector (which could have wireless consequences for the transfer of data), 4G LTE FaceTime, and more. If you were to put all of these concepts together, you could imagine an iPhone 5 with absolutely no ports. Heck, if Apple did away with the physical home button and made all of the navigation on-screen, one could even imagine a completely smooth, seamless design (as some have speculated on for a future iPhone release as well).
Today, we’re hearing a bit more concrete evidence that, much like the rumor that FaceTime will no longer be limited to wi-fi on the iPhone 5 (a massive advancement, as far as I’m concerned), AirPlay might get a similar makeover.
According to the Telegraph:
Sources familiar with the iPhone-maker’s plans said that Apple wants to improve the AirPlay wireless music streaming technology, which currently requires Airplay speakers and a WiFi network. The new version will require just speakers or a hifi and an iDevice; the iPhone, iPod or iPad would form its own network to allow a direct connection and music playback.
Ironically, this is the second bit of news that would appear to wow mobile users and make consumer electronics accessories producers weep, as the all-but-assured dock connector revamp was enough to send the accessories market spinning. Now, the appearance of “AirPlay Direct” as it is being dubbed, will turn the hifi market on its head as well. Of course, it remains to be seen how far along “AirPlay Direct” really is.
The article adds that: “Sources said that Apple has not signed off any specific products yet and that the ‘Airplay Direct’ is a working title rather than a definite name.” That’s a cryptic comment, and it sounds as if the functionality isn’t quite ready to get out the door yet — especially considering we’re all expecting the iPhone 5 to debut in September.
Still, there is no doubt that wireless connectivity is on Apple’s mind — it’s just a question of how much of this newfangled wireless stuff we’ll see in 2012. With all of the recent, conflicting rumors about NFC, and the already-confirmed passbook, there’s the possibility that the iPhone 5 will usher in some real lifestyle-changing wireless stuff. At the same time, all of these wireless innovation seem to have big, possibly negative unintended consequences. In the case of NFC, it’s the need to get a wide swath of the retail sector to onboard onto new NFC technologies. With changes like the dock connector and AirPlay Direct, whole sectors are affected. While it’s easy to think that Apple doesn’t ultimately care, these sectors certainly lobby Cupertino, andy their feedback helps steer Apple’s R&D department.
Is the world ready for the fully wireless, totally paper-or-plasticless mobile lifestyle, with the iPhone 5 at the center of it all?

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iPhone 5 In September, iPad Mini In October

iphone 5 and ipad miniA new report appears to reconcile the release schedule for the long-rumored iPhone 5 and iPad Mini, with the former arriving in September and the latter in October.
Over the past few weeks of mass production rumors concerning the iPhone 5, it has been difficult to reconcile the rumors that the iPad Mini would be co-released along with the iPhone 5 in September. In addition to the fact that Apple rarely presents two new, differing hardware products on the same announcement stage, we’ve heard much less about iPad Mini parts than we have iPhone 5 parts. But a new report from AllThingsD appears to offer a more plausible release schedule for both the iPhone 5 and iPad Mini.
The report states:
Apple’s next generation iPhone and its so-called “iPad mini” will debut at two separate events this fall, rather than a single one as has been widely speculated, according to several sources.
First comes the latest iteration of the tech giant’s hugely popular smartphone, which will be unveiled at an as yet unannounced event on September 12.
Only after the next-generation iPhone is out the door and on sale will Apple announce the smaller iPad it’s been working on. That device, which is expected to have a display of less than eight inches, will be uncrated at a second special event, which sources said is currently scheduled for October.
While we have little to go on concerning the credibility of AllThingsD’s sources, the release blueprint makes a lot more sense in that it breaks up this co-release rumor. (Can we finally put to rest the notion that Apple will ever co-release products in this way? C’mon!) The crux of this new report is that Apple will position the lesser-priced iPad Mini as an ideal Christmas item — particularly amidst a slumping world economy that could be further shocked in the fall by deteriorating market conditions in both the U.S. and Europe.
An important factor to consider with respect to the release of the iPad Mini and iPhone 5 is the eventual release of iOS 6 alpha. Australian Macworld points out that “If history is any guide, iOS 6 will be available at the same time that Apple refreshes the iPhone, likely in September or October.” Clearly, iOS 6 is the pivot point for when the iPhone 5 will be released, since Apple traditionally links the new iOS with the iPhone. This is bound to be continued this year, since iOS 6 is projected to feature improvements to Siri, the introduction of Passbook, and perhaps even iWallet — all software products that will feature and utilize iPhone hardware.
Conversely, Apple has demonstrated in the past that they are more apt to let iPad iterations use current iOS versions and have not tethered the release of new iPad models on new iOSs. With this thinking in mind, one can indeed imagine that iOS 6 will launch at the end of September, along with the iPhone 5, and the iPad Mini will follow in October.
For as much as these release date rumors are beginning to congeal, there are still some outstanding possibilities. One is that we’ve still yet to see any official Apple event scheduled for September 12th. But considering that there are a couple of weeks until that date, it’s possible that Apple is trying to withhold any official announcement until the last minute in order to further fuel speculation. Another consideration is that the September 12th announcement, should it occur, could be a new iPod event, and that the purported sightings of the iPhone 5 are actually sightings of an iPod. But the backs of the iPhone 5 units we’ve seen have all had the “iPhone” moniker on them, so if these are actually iPods, it would mean that there was a concerted, deliberate effort to pose them as iPhone 5 fakes.
And the final wrinkle in this puzzle is iOS 6. Apple has told us only that it will be released “this fall.” Fall begins on September 22nd in the northern hemisphere this year. Is that date and the reported release date of the iPhone 5 on September 21st seem conspicuous to you?

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