Taking a look back at another week of news from Cupertino, this week’s Apple Loop includes the release date of the iPhone 7, the potential name changes for the new iPhone handsets, Apple's falling iPhone sales, the benefits of OLED, Tim Cook's 'I'm not Steve Jobs' strategy, secrets of Apple's security on display, a new series of Carpool Karaoke, and the billionth iPhone.
Apple Loop is here to remind you of a few of the very many discussions that have happened around Apple over the last seven days (and you can read the weekly digest of Android news here on Forbes).
Get Your Wallets Ready!
With all the talk of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus (perhaps even an iPhone 7 Pro) there has been an unspoken desire to know one piece of information. When will the handsets be available? Evan Blass has indicated that the pre-order date has been set in a series of tweets:
Confirmed: Pre-orders start on the 9th. You can extrapolate the launch event date from there.... iPhone 2016 release: week of September 12th... Just to clarify, this refers to the retail release, not the launch event. To be even more specific, it should happen on Friday, Sept. 16th.
How confident should you be on these dates? Over to Forbes' Gordon Kelly:
So how much stock do we put in this? As mentioned, [...] Blass has a remarkable track record over the last few years and as such I’d suggest “a lot” – even if his dates do represent a slightly faster time to market for Apple than last year.
In other words, the same rough predictable pattern as every other iPhone launch. No wonder the competition can plan accordingly.
When The iPhone 7 Is Not The Next iPhone
One question that is gathering some interest is the name of the new family of Apple smartphones. Some people aren't so sure the historical naming pattern will be followed. Forbes' Gordon Kelly looks at the evidence that Apple is not ready to release the iPhone 7 just yet:
Everywhere you look iPhone 7 seems to be running into problems. It looks just like the iPhone 6S, it makes no major screen, battery or charging improvements from the iPhone 6 for a third successive generation and the camera protrudes even more. How could it possible qualify as an ‘iPhone 7’? Now we may finally know the answer…
German site Apfelpage reports 2016 will not see the launch of the iPhone 7 after all.
That doesn't mean we won't see a new handset from Apple in September, but it does mean the marketing focus is going to be somewhere else.
Sales Are Down, But Don't Panic
Following the drop in iPhone sales in Q1 2016, this week's second quarter report showed a drop in sales of the smartphone. With a year-on-year drop of over seven million devices. Although Q2 is historically a slow quarter for Apple, this period included the early sales of the iPhone SE:
Luckily for Apple, this drop was expected by analysts. Apple reported revenue of revenue of $42.36 billion, down 14.6% year-over-year, and an earnings per share of $1.42. Wall Street analysts expected revenue of $42.09 billion and earnings of $1.38 per share. Beating expectations, Apple’s stock is up 6% in after-hours trading.
It's worth noting that sales in the iPad range and in 'services' are up. Aaron Tilley has more details.
Steve Jobs (Ben Stanfield / Flickr creative commons) www.flickr.com/photos/acaben/541321286
Tim Cook Is Not Steve Jobs
When Steve Jobs launched the iPhone, it was seen as a single monolithic handset that would do everything better than the competition. That's no longer the case. If you ever wanted one big change that Tim Cook has made at Apple, it's shifting the iPhone from a single product to a wide-ranging portfolio:
The previous single tower of design that Jobs championed has been toppled. The iPhone will now come in multiple differentiated product lines Looking ahead to the new releases in September and you have the classic model in the iPhone 7 and the larger phablet model of the iPhone 7 Plus (with more memory, storage, and an improved camera). On top of that there are indications that a third product line will be started with the iPhone 7 Pro (which could feature the dual-lens camera system and the edge connector from the iPad Pro) and the iPhone SE.
Read the details of 'The Cook Doctrine' on Forbes.
iPhone's OLED Screen Benefits Everyone
Apple is expected to switch to using OLED displays in next year's iPhone model, and that should accelerate the uptake of OLED screens across the wider smartphone ecosystem. That creates opportunities for manufacturers of the updated handsets, those who supply the screens and those manufacturing the components required. That increased demand should lower the cost, allow for higher yields, and improve the user experience:
"While OLED is currently more difficult to manufacture, uses more complicated materials and chemical processes, and requires a keen focus on yield-rate management, it is an increasingly attractive technology for smartphone brands," Hsieh said. "OLED displays are not only thinner and lighter than LCD displays, but they also boast better color performance and enable flexible display form factors that can lead to more innovative design."
Patrick Seitz looks at the benefits for IBD.
Security In A Way That Only Apple Can Deliver
Attendees at the upcoming BlackHat USA security conference will have a chance to hear about the security inside Apple's mobile hardware. Head of Apple Security Engineering and Architecture Ivan Krstic will be talking about the secure enclave, TouchID, and JIT hardening. Jeff Benjamin reports:
“Unprecedented technical detail” indicates that this engagement will consist of much more than a rehashing of a publicly existing document. It seems, from the description at least, that Apple will be providing more detail on iOS security, outside of its own developers conference, than it has ever done in the past.
...The cryptographic design and its implementation is what technologies like HomeKit, Auto Unlock and iCloud Keychain rely on. Thus, this discussion will touch on security-related technologies that many iOS customers can identify with and use on a daily basis.
More on the appearance at 9to5Mac.
If A Corden Falls In An Apple Wood, Is It Still Carpool Karaoke?
Carpool Karaoke is coming to Apple Music. Along with CBS Television Studios and Fulwell33, the singalong-in-a-car show that brought James Corden viral success will no doubt be part of Apple's push into producing its own content. It's just going to have to do it without James Corden. Forbes' Ellen Killoran:
Curiously, Corden is not expected to host the series, and Carpool Karaoke will remain a regular segment on The Late Late Show. While Carpool Karaoke has landed high-profile celebrity guests including FLOTUS and Adele, Corben’s effusive comic persona and easy rapport with his passengers is undeniably a major draw for audiences, and Apple could be taking a risk in replacing the beloved late-night host.
And Finally...
Apple has sold its billionth smartphone (presumably that's a US billion and not a British billion). There's no detail on which model it was, where it was sold, or if there's a special bonus for the lucky punter, but it's out there. Apple's Tim Cook:
"iPhone has become one of the most important, world-changing and successful products in history. It's become more than a constant companion. iPhone is truly an essential part of our daily life and enables much of what we do throughout the day," said Cook. “Last week we passed another major milestone when we sold the billionth iPhone. We never set out to make the most, but we’ve always set out to make the best products that make a difference. Thank you to everyone at Apple for helping change the world every day.
Apple Loop brings you seven days worth of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any coverage in the future. Last week’s Apple Loop can be read here, or this week’s edition of Loop’s sister column, Android Circuit, is also available on Forbes.
