MacRumors

The hype is continuing to build around Google's highly-anticipated Android-based phone, dubbed the "Nexus One". Engadget today reveals draft specs for the forthcoming device, as well as information that it is scheduled to launch on January 5th and will initially be available only by "invitation".

Our tipster doesn't have information on how those invites are going to be determined, other than the fact that it's Google doing the inviting -- if we had to guess, current registered developers are a strong possibility -- but the good news, we suppose, is that T-Mobile will apparently sell the phone directly at some to-be-determined point in the future.

The Nexus One reportedly offers a similar 3.7-inch, high-resolution OLED screen to that found in the Motorola Droid, as well as a 5-megapixel autofocus camera with flash and the Android 2.1 operating system. Onboard storage is pegged at 512 MB of flash and 512 MB of RAM, and the device supports microSD cards with a 4 GB card included.

Gizmodo was able to get a brief hands-on experience with the Nexus One, finding it "long and silky and natural" with a "damn good" screen, even better than that of the Droid. The Nexus One was also found to be snappier than the iPhone and Droid in loading Web pages. But rather than comparing the overall Nexus One to the iPhone 3GS, Gizmodo chooses to pit it against the Droid, noting that "it's still an Android phone".

If Google's planning on releasing this phone as their official Google phone, it'll certify them as the premium Android phone brand out there right now. Even though it doesn't have a hardware keyboard, it basically beats the hell out of the Droid in every single task that we threw at it.

DigiTimes reports that OmniVision Technologies has secured orders from Apple for 5-megapixel camera sensors destined for the next-generation iPhone. Sources report that the OmniVision is expected to supply Apple with 40-45 million sensors in 2010 for the new iPhone, reportedly set to launch in the second half of the year.

OmniVision Technologies is expected to see CMOS image sensor (CIS) orders for Apple's iPhone devices grow to 40-45 million units in 2010 from 20-21 million estimated this year, according to industry sources. The sources said OmniVision has secured 5-megapixel CIS orders for the next-generation iPhone model, which will hit shelves sometime during the second half of 2010.

DigiTimes noted in April that OmniVision had won a contract to supply Apple with 3.2-megapixel camera sensors for what turned out to be the iPhone 3GS. That report also claimed, however, that Apple had secured 5-megapixel camera sensors at the time for an unreleased product. No signs of those 5-megapixel sensors have surfaced, although speculation obviously centered around Apple's much-rumored tablet at the time.

Just days before Apple's September media event where it introduced new iPods, DigiTimes also claimed that OmniVision would be supplying 3.2-megapixel cameras for the iPod touch, iPod nano, and iPod classic. All three claims turned out to be incorrect, however, as Apple apparently scrapped plans for including a camera in the iPod touch after the thinness of the device caused difficulties with its inclusion, the iPod nano received only a 0.3-megapixel camera, and the iPod classic failed to receive a camera at all.

Financial Times echos much of what was reported on the Wall Street Journal about Apple hoping to launch a subscription television service in 2010. CBS and Disney are currently believed to be closest to agreeing to a distribution deal with Apple. The content is expected to be part of the "entertainment and news" services that Apple may offer on their tablet computer.

FT also makes some unsourced claims that the Apple Tablet may be launching imminently. According to the publication "Apple is preparing an announcement next month that many anticipate will be the official unveiling of its tablet." The magazine may be referencing an iLounge report from September who claimed the Apple Tablet would be announced "on or before January 19, 2010" for release in May or June. Wall Street analysts believe mass production of the tablet could begin as early as February.

Since they are not planning on participating in Macworld or CES, an Apple announcement would likely come in the form of a standalone media event -- if these plans are indeed true. According to the original iLounge article, Apple was planning on leveraging the hype between announcement and launch much like the original iPhone release.

Media research firm Nielsen today released its lists of top U.S. mobile phones, sites, and brands for the first ten months of 2009, and the iPhone 3G took the top spot among mobile phones with 4.0% of the market. The iPhone placed slightly ahead of Research in Motion's BlackBerry 8300 series at 3.7%, and well ahead of the remainder of the pack, which was led by Motorola's RAZR V3 series at 2.3%.

It's using a modified Unreal Tournament level previously shown off at GDC. A virtual thumbstick on the left side of the screen controls your movement, while tracking your thumb in the lower right corner of the screen controls the camera. Just tap the screen to shoot. Mark said this is a tech test bed and theyre experimenting with several different control schemes including ones with tilt.

The Unreal Engine 3 is a modern 3D gaming engine which powers games such as Bioshock, Gears of War and Unreal Tournament 3.

Last week we saw the first evidence that iPhone 4.0 was in testing with reports that it was already being spotted in web site logs. We pointed out at the time that while interesting, such user agent logs could easily be faked. This week, we've received slightly more evidence that iPhone OS 4.0 is indeed undergoing testing.

One iPhone developer has since noted a single instance of iPhone OS 4.0 being used in their Pinch Media analytics.

TechCrunch reports that a U.S. federal court judge has dismissed a class action lawsuit brought against Apple for reported failure to disclose manufacturing defects present in the company's iMac models.

The lawsuit stated that unwanted vertical lines would appear on the devices after the warranty period had expired and that Apple "internally recognizes and concedes" the defect, but did nothing to warn consumers.

As noted by AppleInsider, the suit was brought by a customer who purchased an iMac G5 in October 2006 and noticed vertical lines appearing on his display in March 2008. The dismissal of the class action suit reportedly stems from the plantiff's attempt to include all iMac customers in the class covered by the suit, even those who had experienced no problems and thus suffered no injury.

"These type of class actions are not suitable for actions where recovery of money damages is the primary relief sought by the plaintiff," Fogel wrote. "The purpose of this lawsuit is money damages. These pleading deficiencies are present despite the fact that Hovsepian has been given two opportunities to amend his complaint. Accordingly, the class actions will be struck without prejudice."

The class action suit and its dismissal are unrelated to the firmware update issued by Apple yesterday to address certain graphics issues on the company's latest 27" iMac models.

In a lengthy BusinessWeek article, AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega again attempts to clarify the company's plans for dealing with high-usage iPhone data customers by emphasizing incentives for shifting traffic off of its network rather than implementing tiered pricing as had been suggested earlier this month. The comments mark the second time a major media outlet has gone public with de la Vega's efforts to clarify his earlier comments.

Industry analysts have been figuring that AT&T would inevitably move from its $30-a-month, unlimited data plan for iPhone users to a "tiered pricing" model that charges according to usage. De la Vega says that no such move is imminent. "There are things people say I said that I didn't say. We have not made any decision to implement tiered pricing," he says -- repeating the last part for emphasis.

De la Vega's comments to BusinessWeek were made in a December 16th interview, which appears to coincide with the interview cited in the earlier Wall Street Journal report, although the latest report provides additional perspective on the misinterpretation of de la Vega's original comments that sparked the controversy.

Within hours the Web was filled with articles that said Ma Bell was about to raise prices or slap consumers with restrictive monthly usage limits. "There were no follow-up questions, so I figured everyone understood what I was saying," de la Vegas said in a Dec. 16 interview. "I guess I should have been more clear."

As noted in the earlier report, AT&T is looking to such solutions as free Wi-Fi hotspots and 3G MicroCell network extenders to shift data traffic to the Internet. The strategy sees Wi-Fi as a "lifeline" for overloaded cellular networks, whereas it had previously been seen as a threat to cellular companies.

It's a lifeline that AT&T plans to use heavily. On Dec. 15, AT&T announced a deal with McDonalds (MCD) by which the fast-food giant will waive for two hours a $2.95 Wi-Fi charge for customers at 11,000 restaurants. "Now customers can go to McDonalds and stay online as long as they want," says de la Vega. The agreement follows earlier deals with such retailers as Starbucks (SBUX) and Barnes & Noble (BKS).

AT&T has taken heat for apparent cuts in infrastructure spending, even as the iPhone has continued to drive increasing demand. Network performance monitoring companies, as well as more informal testing, have shown, however, increased performance for AT&T's 3G network, putting it on par with or better than its competitors.

The Wall Street Journal reports that CBS and Walt Disney are considering participating in an upcoming plan by Apple to offer television subscription services over the Internet.

The proposed service by the maker of iPhones and iPod music players could, in at least some scenarios, offer access to some TV shows from a selection of major U.S. television networks for a monthly fee, according to people familiar with the discussions.

Apple is hoping to introduce the service in 2010.

The news comes as there is increasing evidence that Apple is looking to revamp its iTunes services. The recent acquisition of Lala Media has raised the possibility that Apple is seriously looking at subscription services as the future for iTunes. This approach is said to also fit in with Apple's tablet plans, which are being described as "a multimedia gadget" according to The Wall Street Journal's sources.

Apple is said to be seeing early resistance, however, from other content providers, potentially limiting the offerings of the service. Content providers seem to be apprehensive about cutting off existing revenue streams depending on the terms of the deal with Apple.

Apple today released 27-inch iMac Graphics Firmware Update 1.0, addressing recent complaints of screen flickering on the company's newest iMac models.

About 27-inch iMac Graphics Firmware Update 1.0
Updates the graphics firmware on ATI Radeon HD 4670 and 4850 graphics cards to address issues that may cause image corruption or display flickering.

Installation instructions for the firmware update, which weighs in at 683 KB and requires Mac OS X 10.6.2, are available in the associated support document for the release.

Apple's new 27-inch iMac models have been plagued with reports of issues since their launch beginning in late October. Early reports of Flash performance issues were fixed with the release of Mac OS X 10.6.2, but more recent reports have revealed machines being delivered in a non-functional state or with cracked screens.

The #1 CEO on the list, Steve Jobs, delivered a whopping 3,188% industry-adjusted return (34% compounded annually) after he rejoined Apple as CEO in 1997, when the company was in dire shape. From that time until the end of September 2009, Apples market value increased by $150 billion.

The study included 1,999 CEOs who assumed their positions no earlier than 1995 and measured shareholder return as the key metric, with corrections included for general country-specific and/or industry-wide performance gains. A number of prominent CEOs, such as Microsoft's Bill Gates and Oracle's Larry Ellison, were not included in the study because they took office prior to the 1995 cutoff.

Our ranking combines three measures: country-adjusted return, industry-adjusted return, and change in market capitalization during tenure. Of course, shareholder return is not the only measure of performance, and it omits contributions companies make to a wide group of stakeholders. But it is the fundamental scorecard for CEOs of public companies. And it's the same scorecard for everyone.

In analyzing the data to attempt to discern qualities common to the most successful leaders, the report found that while country and industry affiliations had little affect on performance, the most successful CEOs tended to be company insiders, hold MBAs, and have taken over struggling companies.

Jobs was followed in the rankings by Yun Jong-Yong of Samsung, Alexey Miller of Russian natural gas giant Gazprom, John Chambers of Cisco, and Mukesh Ambani of Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries.

In the first of a three-part series on Apple's App Store, the Financial Times reports that the phenomenal success of the iPhone application marketplace has topped even the initial expectations of those within Apple.

Already, the app eruption has superseded all the sober predictions of Apple executives and outside champions like Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, the venture capital firm that created the first investment fund aimed solely at backing iPhone app developers.

"We had no idea there would be 2bn downloads by October," says Kleiner Perkins partner Matt Murphy, manager of the then $100m fund. "Most people within Apple, if you had told them it would be a fifth of that by now, they would have been pretty happy."

Part one of the series primarily serves as an introduction to the App Store, detailing its evolution as an an outgrowth of iTunes, which had already helped remake the music industry and provided an entry point into the larger community of Windows users. Beyond that, the report points to Apple CEO Steve Jobs' ability to negotiate eye-popping iPhone subsidies from wireless carriers and the rights to distribute application content to iPhone users as setting the stage for the Apple's tremendous success in the industry.

He argued that the iPhone was a computer, not a phone, and that consumers expected to be able to do many things with computers.

History had shown that this kind of freedom was what drove the more profitable "ecosystems" of computers - where sales of hardware were dependent on a wide variety of useable software.

The conclusion of the report, however, hints at some of the pitfalls of the App Store set to be discussed in the second installment tomorrow, citing the "gold rush mentality" that has made it increasingly difficult for developers to create hit applications that stand out from the crowd.