MacRumors

An alleged bill of materials for Apple's upcoming iWatch has surfaced, with supply chain sources indicating that the product will launch in the third quarter of this year, reports Taiwan's Economic Daily News [Google Translation] (via Digitimes).

The report claims that the iWatch itself will be manufactured by Apple supplier Quanta Computer, with Richtek Technology and TPK supplying chips and sapphire touch panels, respectively. Meanwhile, the device's processor is said to be developed by Apple, with chip production being outsourced to Samsung. In total, Apple is said to be targeting production of 65 million iWatch units by the end of 2014.

Notably, two suppliers mentioned in the report have been linked to previous stories about iWatch production, albeit with contrasting details. In November, Quanta Computer was rumored to have landed a contract to mass produce the iWatch for a Q2 2014 release, while a report this past February claimed that Apple had chosen TPK to supply flexible AMOLED panels for iWatch.

While the exact features of the iWatch are currently unknown, past rumors have indicated that the device will feature biometric sensors to track a number of health-related statistics, including sleep activity, UV light exposure, and heart rate. A "Healthbook" companion app is also said to be in the works for iOS 8, which would integrate with the iPhone and iWatch to monitor and track other health statistics.

To this point, most reports have pointed to a release later in the year for the iWatch alongside the iPhone 6 and iOS 8. A Q3 2014 release as indicated by the Economic Daily News would mean that the device could be unveiled by Apple sooner, possibly at the company's annual Worldwide Developers Conference.

Apple's long-rumored "iWatch" smartwatch may include a UV light exposure sensor provided by Texas-based Silicon Labs, according to a new research note from Barclays analyst Blayne Curtis (via AppleInsider). The digital ultraviolet sensor, which was announced in February, is described by Silicon Labs as "ideal for activity-tracking wrist and arm bands, smart watches and smartphone handsets." In addition to tracking UV sun exposure, the sensor is also said to track heart/pulse rate and blood oximetry levels and provide proximity and gesture control.

These chips measure UV exposure to aid those with elevated risk of sunburn or just a general concern about excessive sun exposure, and we believe they may be of appealing to OEMs looking to differentiate in a crowded market. To that end, while these products have seen little public hype thus far, we believe SLAB has a win in Apple’s upcoming iWatch (late 2H14 or early 2015).

Past reports have indicated that Apple is preparing to include the ability to monitor a number of health-related metrics in the iWatch such as heart rate, sleep activity, movement, perspiration levels, and skin temperature. Apple is also said to be developing a "Healthbook" app for iOS 8 which would help the iWatch monitor and track health statistics like weight, heart rate, calories and step counts in conjunction with the iPhone.

Over the past year, Apple has also hired a number of health experts in fields related to heart rate monitoring and fitness tracking, including two executives from pulse-oximetry company Masimo and others from C8 MediSensors, a company that develops non-invasive blood monitoring sensors.

While details on the iWatch have been mostly limited, more information on the product is likely to be revealed as the product's release grows closer. It is unknown when Apple plans to release the iWatch itself, but a fall release date alongside iOS 8 and the next-generation iPhone is likely.

Adobe's professional photo editing software Lightroom has finally made its way to iOS devices with Adobe's new Lightroom mobile app for the iPad, allowing photographers who use the desktop version of Lightroom to edit and organize photos from anywhere. Lightroom mobile is not a standalone app, requiring both a subscription to Adobe's Creative Cloud and Lightroom 5 to function.

Integrating seamlessly with the full version of Lightroom 5 for PCs and Macs, Lightroom mobile allows users to log in to the app with an Adobe ID to access the library of content stored in a desktop version of Lightroom. The app downloads Smart Previews of files from the desktop app, allowing for very fast content transfers between the desktop and the mobile app.

The new Lightroom mobile app brings powerful Lightroom tools to the iPad, delivering photography essentials – such as non-destructive processing of files – and utilizing new Smart Preview technologies to free professional-class photo editing from the confines of the desktop. Lightroom mobile is built on a powerful synchronization architecture, designed specifically for photos, and provides the most efficient way to manage and edit images across desktops, mobile devices and the Web.

Smart Previews do require an ongoing Internet connection to sync back and forth between Adobe's servers to prevent iPad users from having to download huge files, but files can also be downloaded in full for offline editing if preferred.

Lightroom mobile supports much of the same functionality as the desktop version of Lightroom, offering users access to metadata and a basic editing toolbar that contains desktop presets (except for custom presets) and adjustment tools for altering shadows, clarity, contrast, and more. There are also crop and rotate tools for manipulating photos, and a simple three finger tap on the screen displays the before and after when editing.

All of the adjustments made within Lightroom mobile are automatic and sync to Lightroom on the desktop, with history states saved as well, making all iterations of a final image visible at a glance.

Adobe's new app has been designed with mobile productivity in mind and it is not, at this time, designed to replace the desktop version of Lightroom for editing. Adobe envisions it as more of a quick-use tool, allowing users to sort through images and make quick edits on files to determine what might need further editing via the desktop.

Swiping through a huge number of images and using quick touch gestures to mark favorites can be done somewhat more quickly on a tablet, for example. Adobe's Lightroom mobile has intuitive gestures that include a two-finger tap as an app-wide gesture that controls a number of different functions, including toggling metadata, turning on the histogram, and more.

Images are grouped by folders specified in Lightroom and displayed in a grid gallery. Tapping an image allows it to be viewed full screen and a simple swipe up or down allows it to be flagged for editing or rejected. Lightroom mobile also has some powerful organizational capabilities, letting users sort images by different aspects like capture time, file name, modification time, and more.

Photos in Lightroom mobile can be saved to the camera roll or shared via social networking sites and images taken with the iPad can also be set to import directly into the app – and the desktop version of Lightroom via syncing. The app also contains built-in slideshow functionality, allowing users to use their Lightroom photos in presentations.

Adobe purposefully left some features out of Lightroom mobile so the simple touch experience wouldn't be overwhelmed with a glut of unnecessary functions. Custom created presets are not available, for example, nor are star labels. The company did make it clear, however, that it is open to adding additional features that its customers want in Lightroom mobile in the future.

With Lightroom mobile, photos will also be viewable and shareable on Lightroom.Adobe.com. While Lightroom mobile is limited to the iPad 2 or later at this time, Adobe does has plans for an iPhone version later this year.

Lightroom mobile for the iPad is available as a free download [Direct Link] but using it will require an Adobe Creative Cloud subscription. Access to the app is included with following plans: Creative Cloud Complete ($49.99/month), the Photoshop Photography Program ($9.99/month), which includes access to both Photoshop and Lightroom, Creative Cloud Student and Teacher Edition ($29.99/month) and Creative Cloud for teams ($69.99/month/user).

Because of overwhelming demand for its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple enacted a lottery to determine who would be able to attend the 2014 event, accepting entries from Thursday, April 5 to April 7 at 10:00 AM PT.

The ticket lottery has now ended and Apple has begun notifying lottery winners by email. According to the WWDC site, all applicants who submitted an entry were supposed to know if they had won (or lost) by 5 PM PT, but it appears the emails are taking a bit longer to be sent out.

Winners are able to purchase a ticket until April 14, 2014, and it appears those who did not win the lottery are not receiving emails at this time.

In 2012, Apple sold tickets on a first come first serve basis, with the available tickets selling out in just under two hours. A year later, in 2013, those tickets were gone in just two minutes, though Apple later invited additional developers to attend. Demand for WWDC prompted Apple to reinstate its Tech Talk sessions for developers throughout the fall of 2013, which will likely be repeated this year.

Lottery winners will be able to purchase an all-inclusive ticket for the Worldwide Developers Conference that includes access to Sessions, Labs, and special events for $1,599. 200 scholarship tickets are also available for students.

Apple's 2014 WWDC event is set to begin on June 2 and will likely open with a keynote where the company will unveil upcoming hardware and software products, giving us glimpses of iOS 8 and OS X 10.10, among other things.

Update 5:42 PM PT: Apple now appears to be sending rejection emails to users who were not selected to attend WWDC.

iOS 7 adoption continues to grow, with Apple seeing the operating system on 87 percent of devices connected to the App Store, according to Apple's App Store developer support page. The numbers come seven months after the operating system's original release and two months ahead of the expected preview of iOS 8 at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in two month's time.

Apple has traditionally seen speedy adoption of its new iOS releases because it makes it easy for customers to upgrade to the new operating system without too much trouble, and it's likely that iOS 8 will see similar adoption after its expected release this fall.

iOS 8 is expected to include upgrades to Apple's Maps app, including possible support for public transit directions and enhanced points of interest, a Healthbook app that assists users in aggregating personal health data like blood pressure, heart rate, and more -- perhaps in concert with a smart watch product -- as well as improvements to Siri and iTunes Radio, two of the more recent additions to Apple's mobile operating system.

In contrast to Apple, Google sees only 5.3% of its users running the latest version of its Android operating system, version 4.4 or KitKat, which came out in October 2013 -- a month after iOS 7 was released.

The increasing adoption rate of iOS 7 has also led to a drop in iOS 6 usage, with the older operating system now installed on just 11 percent of devices. 2 percent of devices are using older versions of iOS. In early December, iOS 7 usage was at 74 percent, jumping to 78 percent later in December, 80 percent in late January and 85 percent towards the end of March.

Apple's data, which comes directly from the App Store, represents concrete iOS 7 adoption information for developers.

Multiple insider details on Apple and its business practices are surfacing during the company's second patent trial with Samsung, including a series of tense emails between Apple's head of marketing Phil Schiller and Apple's longtime ad agency, TBWA\Media Arts Lab (via BusinessInsider).

Following the January 2013 release of an article from The Wall Street Journal entitled, "Has Apple Lost Its Cool to Samsung?" Schiller emailed Media Arts Lab and told them "We have a lot of work to do to turn this around…."

In the article, The Wall Street Journal lauds Samsung's aggressive marketing campaign for the Galaxy S3, which had the clever tagline "The next big thing is already here." Samsung has argued that the campaign was a tipping point for the company and that it infuriated Apple executives as the advertising was coming at a time when Apple's own advertising was in a slump.

Following Schiller's email about the WSJ article, the ad agency wrote back a lengthy email outlining a plan to put the iPhone back in the spotlight, unfortunately comparing Apple in 2013 to Apple in 1997, when the company was on the brink of going out of business.

The email went on to suggest that the agency be given more freedom to experiment with ideas and that Apple needs to consider specific questions, such as company behavior, sales approaches, and product roadmaps.

Schiller was "shocked" by the email he received from Media Arts Lab, both at the reference to 1997 and the idea that the team should be given free rein to create ideas that had not been pitched in Marketing and Communication (Marcom) meetings.

The advertising agency quickly penned an apology to Schiller and a few weeks later, another email exchange indicated Apple was happy with the advertisements the company was creating for the iPad, but still dissatisfied with iPhone advertising. Schiller noted that he watched Samsung's pre-Super Bowl ad, saying "I can't help but think 'these guys are feeling it'".

While it's clear there was some serious tension between Apple and its advertising agency in 2013, the two did not end up parting ways. Later in the year, Apple launched its "Music Every Day" and "Photos Every Day" ads, which turned out to be highly successful. Apple followed it up with a heartwarming iPhone 5s commercial, ending out the year on a high note and picking up advertising in 2014 with the current "Your Verse" campaign.

In the coming months, former Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts will assume her new position as the senior vice president in charge of Apple's retail and online sales efforts. Before she leaves the fashion world for technology, Ahrendts will be made an honorary Dame of the British Empire for her work at Burberry, reports The Daily Mail.

Because she is American, Ahrendts won't receive the honor from the Queen at Buckingham Palace, and she won't be allowed to use the title Dame, only the initials DBE (Dame of the British Empire) at the end of her name. She will be honored at a small ceremony to be held today at the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills in Westminister with the UK's business secretary Vince Cable as the Master of Ceremonies.

Mr Cable will pay tribute to the mother of three, from Indiana, describing her as a ‘landmark figure in business’ and a ‘powerful role model to the next generation of young British talent.’

He will say: ‘She has revitalised this iconic British brand with flair and cutting edge innovation, allied with sound commercial acumen.’

Ahrendts is not the only Apple executive to receive the honorable title from the British government. Apple's Jony Ive received his knighthood in 2011 and described the honor as "absolutely thrilling." Steve Jobs also was set to be awarded honorary knighthood, but his nomination was reportedly blocked for political reasons by Gordon Brown, who was Prime Minister at the time.

Internal documents included in the second patent trial between Samsung and Apple last week revealed how Apple viewed Android, calling for a "Holy War" against Google and expressing concern about competition from larger-screened, lower-priced Android phones. A new set of documents reported by Re/code and AppleInsider reverses this perspective, showing how Samsung was laser-focused on Apple with the objective of beating the Cupertino company as its "#1 priority" in 2012.

The internal document outlines the lessons Samsung learned in 2011 as it continued development on its Galaxy line of phones and faced a patent infringement lawsuit from Apple. Samsung considered the threat from Apple to be "extremely real and urgent" and communicated to employees that "everything must be [in the] context of beating Apple" in 2012.

Samsung listed the expected features of the upcoming iPhone 5 and predicted how Apple's iPhone would perform in the marketplace. The Korean company also detailed how it would boost its own Galaxy branding and work with both carriers and retailers to expand its retail presence to combat growing consumer interest in the iPhone.

Samsung also detailed a strategy of "continuous" branding campaigns where "Galaxy Nexus rolls into Galaxy Note into GSIII," playing upon Apple's consistent branding of iPhone across generations of its products.

"Drive consumer pull," Samsung's Galaxy branding document strategized, hoping that "customers walk into stores asking for Samsung." To get there, Samsung said it needed to "understand why customers buy Apple," and then "develop countermeasures by carrier/retail."

The documents reveal that Samsung shifted its product lineup to serve carriers with 80% of the company's product roadmap supporting carrier demands for joint projects, exclusive offers and low-cost handsets for entry-level consumers. Only 20% of its product lineup focused on high-end handsets like the Galaxy S3 and the Note II.

Samsung also spent billions on advertising to support its Galaxy phones with Apple-targeted ads that focused on iPhone line-waiters, Apple's Genius Bar and more. Samsung credits the company's 2012 "Next Big Thing" advertisements as "a tipping point" for the company's branding and claimed in its opening arguments last week that Apple was taken aback by the edgy marketing campaign.

The latest internal documents coming out of the Samsung/Apple trial show some candid insight into Apple's analysis of the future of the smartphone market.

The documents posted by Re/code include an Apple slide deck from April, 2013 for 2014 planning. The document includes graphs showing that Apple's growth rates are slowing quarter after quarter. The main reason for the decline amongst consumers? Consumers want less expensive and larger screen smartphones:

In a further breakdown, Apple acknowledges that "consumers want what we don't have" -- which shows that the majority of smartphone growth is in both >4" screen sizes and <$300 markets.
Apple has been heavily rumored to be introducing a larger iPhone 6 this fall. The size of the new iPhone has been thought to be 4.7" or 5.5" with the 4.7" model coming first. While rumors have been consistent, Apple's own insights from 2013 explain why such a move is likely to happen.

Google is gearing up to release a new Android TV set-top media box that utilizes a simple card interface with native apps and games, voice search, and a proactive recommendation system, according to new documents obtained by The Verge.

The documents note that while Android powers the box's experience, the interface offers a series of "cards" representing different channel options, including movies, shows, apps, and games. Users will be able to scroll through the interface with a four-way directional pad that contains Enter, Home, and Back buttons, with the set-top box reportedly featuring optional game controllers.

"Access to content should be simple and magical," reads one Google document, which adds that it should never take more than three clicks or gestures to go from the homescreen to enjoying a new piece of content. Even search appears to be secondary to intuitively understanding what you want and delivering it as soon as possible, though search will be still be one of Android TV's primary tools. In addition to universal search, pressing the Search button on the controller will let you search from within individual apps as well.

Moreover, Android TV is said to contain support for voice input, notifications, and search, with the set-top box also being able to recommend content based on a user's interests and resume content viewed elsewhere the moment Android TV is turned on. Google is reportedly asking select developers to create games and apps for its new set-top box with optimized interfaces for the TV, as apps for Vevo, Netflix, Hulu, Pandora are expected to ship with the device. The company will also work in its own apps including Play Movies, YouTube, and Hangouts.

"Android TV is Android, optimized for the living room consumption experience on a TV screen," writes the company, but the focus is on simplicity for now. Google is stripping away unneeded features like telephony, cameras, touchscreen support and near-field communication to keep developers focused, and handing them ready-made interfaces where they can hopefully just plug in shows, games, photos, music, and films.

Google is also expected to keep its popular Chromecast HDMI streaming accessory with the release of Google TV, with The Verge noting that developers will be required to build two different interfaces for the two different devices.

It is not known specifically when the device will launch, but it is clear that Google's Android TV will enter a growing market of set-top boxes -- just this past week, Amazon launched its own Fire TV media streaming box with voice search, game support, and more, to compete with other devices like the Apple TV and Roku.

The move comes as Apple is said to be preparing a new version of the Apple TV that will include game support and might possibly integrate with Comcast's network to enable a streaming TV service for users. Apple is expected to unveil its new Apple TV sometime in the near future, with some rumors suggesting a launch as early as April.

Steve Jobs outlined a potential future for the Apple TV in an email correspondence with top Apple executives in 2010, a year before his death, noting potential plans for the "Apple TV 2" that included TV subscriptions, apps, browser and a "magic wand" control device. The email was published today as a part of Apple's lawsuit trial with Samsung (via The Verge).

8. Apple TV 2 - David Moody, Jeff Robbin
- Strategy: stay in the living room game and make a great "must have" accessory for iOS devices
- sales so far, projections for this holiday season
- add content:
- NBC, CBS, Viacom, HBO, ...
- TV subscription?
- where do we go from here?
- apps, browser, magic wand?

While the potential Apple TV features aren't mentioned in concrete terms, they do provide insight into features Apple was internally discussing and considering in 2010. Additionally, the internal email also confirms that Apple has considered using its patented Nintendo Wiimote-like MagicWand to control Apple TV.

Jobs' email also goes over other subjects for Apple's 2010 Top 100, a secret meeting in which top Apple employees discuss strategy for the upcoming year, including plans for the "plus" iPhone 4 that was eventually named the iPhone 4s and a low cost iPhone model based on the iPod touch that would replace the iPhone 3GS.

Plans for the future of iOS are also mentioned, with Jobs noting that strategy should be to "catch up to Android where we are behind (notifications, tethering, speech...) and leapfrog them (Siri, ...)".

The subject of Apple's now defunct MobileMe service makes up another large part of the email, with Jobs acknowledging that Google was "way ahead of Apple in cloud services" and that both the search giant and Microsoft had better technology than Apple but had not "figured it out yet". The email also notes that Apple's plan was to improve MobileMe to the point where it tied all Apple's products together and made its ecosystem even more "sticky", so that it would be more difficult for customers to leave for a competitor.

Finally, the email makes mention of Apple's desire to further its lead over Google in music and great apps in the App Store as a part of Apple's "holy war" with Google, with mentions for both The Beatles and iTunes in the Cloud.

Apple senior software engineer Greg Christie took the stand today in Apple's second patent trial against Samsung, where he shared some details on the development of the "Slide to Unlock" function Samsung is accused of copying and gave additional details on the development of the original iPhone.

One of Apple's major arguments against Samsung is the fact that developing the iPhone was a serious risk for the company as it was new territory, a point that Christie reiterated in his testimony as he described the three year journey of the iPhone's development (via CNET).

The iPhone went through hundreds of different design tweaks as Apple worked to make the phone function in a way that anyone could understand. The company's focus on simplicity remains to this day, with Apple designing for "normal people," as described by Christie.

"One of the biggest challenges is that we need to sell products to people who don't do what we do for a living," Christie, one of the inventors of the slide-to-unlock iPhone feature, said. When designing products, Apple keeps in mind that it wants “normal people – people with better things to do with their lives than learn how a computer might work – to use the product as well as we can."

Christie helped develop some of the original iPhone's key features and he is known as the inventor of "Slide to Unlock," a function that prevents the iPhone from being activated accidentally while within a pocket. During his testimony, Christie also detailed the creation of the function (via Re/code), noting that Apple had originally aimed to have the device's screen on at all times.

A screen that was always on proved to be infeasible, with Christie citing an inability to meet power requirements. "We had to resort to a power button," he said, stating that the company was also concerned with "pocket dialing."

"We knew we had to have a locked mode, or a locked state, where it wouldn't let you do most things, except you could unlock it," Christie said.

That need resulted in the development of Apple's famous Slide to Unlock function, which Christie testified was an important feature on the phone because it is the first thing a customer sees on the iPhone, both in store and at home.

During this second patent trial, which covers newer devices, Apple was limited to levying just five patents against Samsung, making each one vital to the case. Apple is aiming to prove that each patent is highly valuable to the company and is seeking $2 billion in damages from Samsung.

Greg Christie gave additional details on the development of the original iPhone ahead of the patent trial, which can be found in his March interview with The Wall Street Journal.