MacRumors

Apple will announce its next quarterly earnings on Monday, January 27, and ahead of the announcement analysts are releasing their iPhone and iPad sales estimates for this holiday quarter. As we noted earlier this week, analysts predict record quarterly sales of 55 million iPhones, a 16% increase over the same quarter last year. A follow-up report today from Philip Elmer-Dewitt of Fortune suggests sales of the iPad will grow 10% year-over-year to also set a new record for Apple.

Elmer-Dewitt surveyed iPad sales estimates from 45 analysts, including 28 professionals and 17 amateurs. Estimates range from 21 million to 28 million units, with an average of 25 million units.

The average estimate among all the analysts is 25 million iPads, up 10% from the same quarter last year.

The indies, as usual, are a bit more bullish than the pros. As a group, they're looking for 16% growth, compared with the Street's 8%. Unless they've updated their numbers, four sell-side analysts -- Cowan's Timothy Arcuri, Credit Suisse's Kulbinder Garcha, Citi's Glen Yeung and CLSA's Avi Silver -- still expect Apple to report a drop in iPad sales.

Early metrics from the holiday season mirror these analyst expectations. By one count, the iPad lineup collectively accounted for 18% of Target's Black Friday sales, while the iPad mini was a top seller at Walmart. The App Store also experienced a spike in interest on Christmas day, with revenue increasing by 56 percent and the total number of downloads growing by 53 percent.

Apple will be reporting its quarterly earnings on January 27, 2014 after the close of trading, at approximately 4:30 PM Eastern / 1:30 PM Pacific. MacRumors will have full coverage of Apple's earnings release and the associated conference call taking place at 5:00 PM Eastern / 2:00 PM Pacific.

Last May, Apple filed a motion detailing five patents violated by the Samsung Galaxy S4 and Google's voice activated search assistant Google Now ahead of a second patent infringement lawsuit to take place on March 31, 2014. However, both Apple and Samsung agreed in September 2013 to drop one patent each from the trial, as Judge Lucy Koh ordered both companies to narrow the scope of their ongoing legal battle.

Now, FOSS Patents reports that Judge Koh yesterday invalidated a Samsung patent and ruled that Samsung infringed on an Apple patent, leaving the Korean company with only four patents to bring to the upcoming trial. In detail, Judge Koh nullified a Samsung multimedia synchronization patent and stated that Samsung's Android devices infringed on an Apple patent for a "method, system, and graphical user interface for providing word recommendations", also known as autocomplete.

As Florian Mueller of FOSS Patents suggests, the infringed autocomplete patent could also be problematic for Google and Android device manufacturers:

If Samsung infringes this autocomplete patent (which is what Judge Koh concluded), then other Android device makers also have a problem. Google, which may be (possibly in close cooperation with Samsung) involved with an anonymous reexamination request against the word recommendations patent, will clearly be unhappy about this finding by its own home court.

The ruling by Judge Koh is also likely to affect the mediation meeting between Apple CEO Tim Cook and Samsung Electronics CEO Oh-Hyun Kwon scheduled to take place on or before February 19. In addition to the second infringement lawsuit in March, both companies will also partake in a trial centered around Apple's new call for a U.S. ban on Samsung products set for January 30.

GT Advanced, Apple's manufacturing partner for its new sapphire glass plant in Mesa, Arizona, has sent a postcard to local residents advertising for open positions at its new facility. A MacRumors reader who lives in Mesa sent us the postcard he received. The new facility is reported to have some 700 employees between both Apple and GT.

The positions are separate from the job openings that Apple posted last week and they are likely for lower-level jobs than the more supervisory Apple roles. Jobs mentioned include Manufacturing Operators and Technicians, Process Engineering Manager, Metrology Manager and more.

Right now we're looking for people to join the team behind our new state-of-the-art sapphire material manufacturing facility in Mesa, Arizona. If you can bring excellent technical skills and a collaborative approach, we'll welcome you into a high-performing professional environment where talent and commitment are always well rewarded.

GT Advanced has a full listing of job openings at its Mesa facility on its website, though there is no indication when the factory will begin operation. It is unknown what Apple's plans for the sapphire glass will be, but it's possible the company could be examining the material for displays on the iPhone, iPad or perhaps its rumored smart watch product.

Apple uses small pieces of sapphire glass -- which provides superior durability and scratch resistance to other forms of glass -- to protect the cameras on the iPhone and on the home button for the new Touch ID-equipped iPhone 5s, however this would seem to be an expansion of Apple's sapphire glass efforts. A report from last year suggested that future smartphones may use sapphire, a crystalline form of aluminum oxide, instead of more traditional forms of glass.

Over the course of the last several years, Apple has begun to take an intense interest in biometrics as a way to improve the security and accessibility of its devices. Apple purchased sensor company AuthenTec in 2012 and quickly incorporated its fingerprint-sensing technology into the Touch ID fingerprint scanner that debuted in the iPhone 5s.

Touch ID marked Apple's first foray into biometrics, confirming user identity via fingerprint, but the company may have much bigger plans in mind for biometric sensors in future devices. Biometrics are said to play a key role in Apple's iWatch, and Apple may even expand beyond fingerprint technology, as the company has reportedly taken a new interest in iris scanning.

While little is known about Apple's investigation into iris scanning, it is a promising biometric technology that's already widely used for identification and authentication purposes.

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App developer Steven Troughton-Smith posted a number of images on Twitter of what appears to be Apple's upcoming iOS in the Car interface. The files may have been bundled into the recently released iOS 7.1 beta 4, but it is unclear how Troughton-Smith was able to obtain the images, which show a simple iOS 7-style Maps design. When asked for clarification on the origin of the images, Troughton-Smith declined to comment.

First introduced alongside iOS 7, the upcoming iOS in the Car feature is designed to provide enhanced iOS integration in automobiles, offering an iOS-style interface on the car's touchscreen dash that allows users to make phone calls, access Maps, control music, and more. As shown in the screenshots, the software includes a warning screen like most typical GPS software, and it also has a home screen and an area for bookmarks.

The images of iOS in the Car provided by Troughton-Smith are quite different from those that have been provided by Apple in marketing materials, but that could be due to an evolution of the software's development. In the image below, Troughton-Smith's screenshot is compared to Apple's early example of iOS in the Car.

On Apple's iOS 7 website, iOS in the Car is listed as "Coming soon" and the company has given few hints as to when it might make an appearance in cars. In mid–2013, Tim Cook said that iOS in the Car was an "important part of the [Apple] ecosystem" and a "key focus."

Many car makers have expressed interest in including iOS in the Car in their 2014 models, including Audi, BMW, Acura, Chevrolet, Honda, and more. While Honda has included new HondaLink connectivity in its newly released models and several car manufacturers have implemented support for last year’s Siri Eyes Free, cars with full support for iOS in the Car have yet to be released.

Specific iOS in the Car settings were found in the second iOS 7.1 beta, leading some to believe that iOS in the Car support could be a feature bundled into iOS 7.1. Currently on its fourth beta iteration, it is unknown when iOS 7.1 will be released to the public.

Last year, Apple executive Phil Schiller tweeted a link to a research report that noted significant growth in mobile malware, particularly on Android. The report found that Android accounted for 79 percent of mobile threats, with just 0.7 percent attacking iOS.

Today, Schiller followed up, tweeting a link to Cisco's 2014 Annual Security Report. The report, which came out late last week, notes that while overall vulnerabilities are highest since tracking began in 2000, 99 percent of all mobile malware targeted Android devices -- leaving iOS devices relatively unscathed thanks to Apple's controlling mobile ecosystem.

The report does note that many mobile users encounter phishing or other social engineering websites, something that Apple's security protocols won't necessarily protect users from.

Not all mobile malware is designed to target specific devices, however. Many encounters involve phishing, likejacking, or other social engineering ruses, or forcible redirects to websites other than expected. An analysis of user agents by Cisco TRAC/SIO reveals that Android users, at 71 percent, have the highest encounter rates with all forms of web-delivered malware, followed by Apple iPhone users with 14 percent of all web malware encounters.

Other than that specific mention of social engineering -- and that spam messages mention Apple Gift Cards -- the Cisco report does not mention Apple or the Mac or iOS at all. The tweet is likely part of a larger push by Apple to share more favorable third-party reports about the company and its products.

Apple slipped behind Samsung, Sony and Microsoft in a 2014 customer experience survey from Forrester Research (via The Wall Street Journal). This is the third annual survey, and the first time Apple has fallen behind these rival companies.

The survey measures customer experience, which involves difficult-to-define criteria based on how a customer feels about his or her interaction with a company. Forrester queried 7,500 consumers about their retail and customer support experiences and used the responses to assign each company a customer-experience index score.

Amazon scored highest among the 17 consumer-electronics manufacturers operating in North America. It was the only manufacturer to garner an “excellent” rating of 91 for Kindle customers.

Sony came in second with a rating of 83, while Microsoft and Samsung followed one point behind at 82. Apple scored an 81. All three brands rated below Apple in the 2013 survey.

Though it slipped behind the competition, Apple still improved its score in the 2014 survey and earned a "good" score according to the survey's criteria.

Apple has struggled somewhat with the continually increasing volume of customers visiting its retail stores for sales and support, particularly under the leadership of former retail chief John Browett. Browett was ousted as part of a management restructuring after spending just six months on the job, during which Apple's retail unit saw staff cutbacks and an emphasis on profits erode the customer experience and employee satisfaction. After nearly a year and a half without a retail chief, Apple will see Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts take the helm in the coming months to oversee both retail and online store operations.

Apple today was awarded U.S. Patent No. 8,633,916 (via AppleInsider), which describes a touchpad that utilizes force sensors and acuator feedback. The buttonless design uses an array of sensors and an actuator to mimic the function and tactile feedback of the current trackpad found in the company's MacBook product lines.

Currently, Apple's trackpad technology is based on an integrated button design. Surface touch sensors track the movement of fingers and a hinged button allows the trackpad to click when a user presses down on it. A switch located under the trackpad is actuated when a click pivots the trackpad downward on its rear hinge. The pivoting motion of this button makes it difficult to click near the rear edge of the trackpad and requires extra space within the chassis of the notebook.

In the newly awarded patent, which was filed in December 2009, Apple builds upon its current design by using a surface touch sensor and four corner force sensors to track finger movement and clicking input from the user. An actuator would be used to provide tactile feedback. Also similar to the current trackpad, a buttonless trackpad may have user-customizable settings that adjust the sensitivity levels for the click pressure or the tactile feedback.

In addition to processing touch sensor signals to determine the location of touch events, signals from the force sensors may be processed. A rectangular touch pad may have four corners. Force sensors may be mounted under each of the four corners. When a user presses on the surface of the touch pad, the force sensors may pick up four corresponding independent force signals.

Tactile feedback may be provided using an actuator. The actuator may be controlled by actuator drive signals. As a user of an electronic device interacts with the touch pad, the user may make gestures and perform other touch-related tasks. When the user desires to select an on-screen object or perform other tasks of the type traditionally associated with button actuation events, the user may press downwards against the surface of the track pad. When sufficient force is detected, appropriate action may be taken and drive signals may be applied to the actuator. The actuator may impart movement to the touch pad.

Whether Apple chooses to incorporate this new trackpad technology or not is unknown, but a move to do so would make sense considering that Apple's multi-touch trackpad debuted with the MacBook Air in 2008, and has made its way to every MacBook since then. But given the fact that it has been over four years since the patent's filing, Apple may simply have abandoned the proposed design for unknown reasons.

Apple has been awarded a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (via AppleInsider) detailing a "station tuning" function for a media player or mobile device that would curate a playlist filled with both audio and visual content based on a user's interests.

The patent, which was originally filed in 2008, details a system that would automatically pull from content streams such as radio broadcasts, television broadcasts, and onboard media to deliver a custom playlist, and would also factor in metadata and user patterns when selecting different types of content. The tuning function is similar to the Genius feature currently found in iTunes, but extends well beyond the selection of music and into a variety of content.

The media player may automatically tune to one of the sources based on user preferences or criteria to output the currently playing content. The media player may tune to a source or switch from one source to another source based a user's tastes for music, a give volume level, an aversion to talk radio, or other user preferences or criteria. The media player may also queue or schedule forthcoming content on a given source for playback to the user.

In terms of controlling the tuning function, the patent details a gesture controlled graphical user interface that resembles a radio tuner. The interface itself would allow for previews of stations, as well as the ability to search for specific content based on criteria and when to trigger the station tuning.

Factors such as the volume, color, hue, and saturation attributes of content may also be used to determine what to include next in a playlist, with the function also being able to determine and show relevant advertisements or whether to skip them altogether based on a user's listening patterns.

It is unknown when or even if Apple plans to integrate a station tuning function into an existing product, but such a feature would fit well into Apple's iTunes Radio. While Apple already includes a host of stations to choose from in iTunes Radio including a "Featured Stations" function, integrating station tuning with content beyond audio would be an appealing addition for the service.

Apple announced today that it has expanded availability of iBooks Textbooks and the iTunes U Course Manager to over 50 total countries, including new countries such as Brazil, Italy, Japan, Russia, Thailand, and Malaysia. Overall, Apple states that iBooks Textbooks are now available in 51 total countries, while the iTunes U Course Manager has expanded to include a total of 70 countries.

“The incredible content and tools available for iPad provide teachers with new ways to customize learning unlike ever before,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “We can’t wait to see how teachers in even more countries will create their new lesson plans with interactive textbooks, apps and rich digital content.”

Apple originally announced iBooks Textbooks at an education-focused media event in 2012, as a part of a push into the education market.

Earlier today, Apple released the fourth beta of iOS 7.1 to developers, which included both bug fixes and a few new changes to the operating system. While iOS 7.1 beta 3 introduced several visual changes, iOS 7.1 beta 4 focused more heavily on behind-the-scenes improvements. There were, however, a few tweaks to further streamline the look of iOS 7, which are detailed below.

Slide to Unlock/Power Off: Most notably, the Slide to Unlock bar at the bottom of the phone is now more prominent, with a brighter, slower animation. The same brighter animation can be seen in the Slide to Power off bar when turning off the phone.

Contacts in Dialer: The option to add a contact when entering a phone number has been altered slightly and is now executed by tapping the + sign next to the phone number. Previously, there was a line that said "Add to Contacts."

Messages Scrolling: When scrolling through the Messages app in beta 4, it seems there is slightly more "bounce." This is in line with previous changes to Control Center, which introduced a bounce animation.

Siri: In the U.K., there is a new Siri voice on the iPad.

To check out previous changes introduced in iOS 7.1, make sure to take a look at our previous tidbits post on iOS 7.1 beta 3, which detailed a number of visual changes to the operating system.

It is unclear when Apple plans to release iOS 7.1 to the general public, but a report from December suggested it could see a lengthy beta testing period with a March launch. It is likely that Apple will continue making subtle changes to look and feel of iOS 7 in coming betas, which could result in a refined and polished version of the operating system when it is finally made available to the public.