Apple God As Spoken: iPad 3 Coming Out Party Next Week

Update:  note that in the invitation, the iPad depicted has no home button...interesting...


Okay, it's official.  Apple will unveil the next iPad update next week, March 7th, in San Francisco.

Really, need not say more.  Anything else will be speculation.  It was rumored a few weeks back that it would be on the 7th and this mornnig, CNBC tweeted as such.  But this invitation to the chosen ones confirmed it.

And yesterday, we also speculated that it is possible that Apple could charge a premium for Retina Display.  I still think it's possible Apple can charge more for it but at the same time, it could also be something Apple puts out just to throw everyone off.

Personally, as an average mobile warrior, I am hoping that Apple will keep things the way they are.  Meaning, $499 for the low-end iPad and up.  Maybe keep the iPad 2 around just to mess with the low-end of the tablet market and Android competitors.

Then the next question is how will we receive our iPads?  Pre-order and have it sent to us like last year or order and pick it up in the store?  I've got my credit card ready and set to go.  However, I'm kinda hoping that Apple will allow us to line up on a Saturday to make the pickup.  I've already organized a breakfast for some close friends that are going to be picking one up.  yes, it better be a Saturday, March 10th or 17th.

So, which would you prefer?  Have Apple ship it to you or be able to line up early to pick one up?

iPad Update With Retina Screen Could Cost More - Probably $100 More

One of the highlight features for the upcoming iPad, iPad 2S or 3, is the Retina Display that it'll certainly sport.  So, word on the Internet now is that it'll cost more than the current iPad 2 baseline.  Some are guessing that Apple will charge an additional $70.  Others think it'll be $80.  Me?  I think it'll be a nice round figure:  $100.

Now, I don't like to traffic in Apple rumors (though I enjoy reading them when they sound plausible, come from reputable sites, and does not come from DigiTimes), in this case, we can speculate about Retina Display pricing.  And I reckon the new high resolution displays are difficult to make, lower yields (meaning more waste), and is not something Apple's competitors are capable of matching at this moment.

So, a premium, $70 to $100 more, isn't out of the question.  Make no mistake.  I'm as disappointed as you if our speculation turns out to be true.  This is it leads me to believe that Apple will continue to offer the iPad 2 similar to the current configuration to take the lower price points, $350 to $400.

Still, something bugs me.  What'll happen to Apple's $500 price?  Will it be occupied by the iPad 2 or the newer iPad?  It would make sense for Apple to have a new iPad take the $500 and lower the prices of the iPad 2.

Obviously, no one, including myself, knows what Apple will do.  If this was the Macbook, I can see Apple offer new laptops with standard screens with an option to upgrade to higher resolutions as they do with the Macbook Pros. Can Apple offer the new iPads with the same iPad 2 screen, 1024x768, and for $100 more, upgrade to the Retina Display, doubling the resolutiont to 2048x1536?

It's possible.  And along with the the doubling of the resolution, Apple could sweeten the deal with a better CPU with beefier graphics processing power.

What I am suggesting does complicate things a lot.  Nevertheless, Apple is well into the post-PC era and the iPads represents the future of mobile computing.

Well, we'll know in a couple of weeks.

iPhone Losing Out To Competitors In Countries With Austerity Measures Or On Verge Of Bankrupcy – NO One Should Be Surprised

Apple is a premium brand.  However, it’s not the same thing as saying that Apple products cost more than competing devices or computers.  Rather, it’s about Apple’s unwillingness to compromise.  The “premiumness” is about Apple’s talented teams of designers, programmers, and engineers making the best products they can.  That is what makes Apple such a sought after brand and why people line up year after year to buy its products.

So, we learn now that Apple’s iPhone is not doing well in countries where carriers do no offer subsidies.  In fact, Android smartphones had take Apple to school when it comes to market-share.  So what?

There are going to be many analysts and tech pundits who will push for Apple to release a cheaper iPhone to address those market.  Screw that.  If Apple could not lower it self to make a PC at the $500 price point that was not a piece of junk, what makes anyone believe that Apple will make a $200 or even a $300 smartphone that not worthy of the name “iPhone”.

The other issue is that Apple wants a certain kind of customer.  Not necessarily affluent ones though that definitely helps the bottom-line.  What Steve Jobs, Tim Cook, and others want are the type of customer who recognizes a product that was developed with the meticulous care that Apple has put into.  And it’ll certainly cost money to buy it but it’ll be worth it.

Furthermore, there are other things at play.  One that quickly comes to mind is the economic factor.  Take a look at this chart.  The iPhone isn’t doing too hot in Greece and Portugal.  If you’re not too up and up on the latest financial market news, here it is:  Greece is on the verge of bankruptcy while Portugal has had their bonds rattled by downgrades and austerity measures are in full play.

Android devices in general are good enough for the vast majority of the market.  No, not everyone needs the iPhone or even high-end Android device like the Galaxy S II.  A $200-$300 unsubsidized device is good enough.  I know a few big mobile warriors doing just fine in a $300 Android device on Virgin Mobile but I also know that if not for the $25 prepaid plan they’ve got grandfathered in, they would have long jumped ship to an iPhone.

In conclusion, Apple is never going to make a $200 iPhone that is garbage because it’s not in their DNA.  I wouldn’t want Apple to either.  Apple could conceivably lower the price of the iPhone 3GS to $300 someday for economically troubled markets and even the 3GS is still head and shoulders above competing devices in that price range.

Source:  Cult of Android.

2011 Was Year of the iPad 2, 2012 Will Be Year of the Tablet

Mobile World Congress has started and leaks are already happening.  And guess what, tablets are huge this year and it should not be a surprise to anyone if tablets get more attention than smartphones.  After all, this is the year when Google gives it another shot at the iPad while Microsoft makes a very risky bet, albeit a necessary one, by making Windows 8 its chief competitor to the iPad.

Take the quad-core tablets powered by Nvidia's Tegra 3 chip that will soon flood the market with many Android tablet makers using specs to help them muscle in to take some marketshare.  It's likely many Taiwanese companies will try to outspec competitors on similiarly pricted tablets.  What's interesting is the response from the top tier tablet makers.

More at Greenjava.

Sun, High Gas Prices, And Mobile

It's that time of the year again. Daylight savings is coming and and heat. At least in Calfornia, we have been having quite a warm winter and I don't see that changing much. To top that off, we are having quite a ride at the gas pumps. So, I've tooled up my bike, make sure everything is working as it should, and take it out today.

So, I'll be looking to start up my recording of how much money I'll be saving by biking insteading of driving around my SUV.

And where does mobile fit into all this?

Our smartphones are yesterday's note pad. I used to use a little note book to record my bike rides in school, both high school and in college. It was neat to see just how much money I've saved over time because of all this.

And since I've been looking for an app to do do just this, maybe I ought to write an app to do this for myself.

Wireless: Spectrum Crunch - No Easy Way To Alleviate It, Cost To Go Up

There is a spectrum crunch that is creating problems for users and the wireless companies.  What’s causing the spectrum crunch in the US?  According to CNN, the following are the main causes:

• Leading off is iPhone, iPad, & other mobile devices like Androids that are using more data than expected. Also the adoption rate of these mobile devices have increased.
• Inept government regulation – what used to work doesn’t anymore and the FCC has not moved fast enough
• Industry protectionism like the TV broadcast industry trying to wall off their spectrum.
• Hoarding – there are spectrums out there that are not being used.  Dish Network, we’re looking at you.

How much of this can be fixed quickly isn’t known.  We can use more Wi-Fi but all of this is giving carriers reasons to ration and cap wireless use – thus driving up costs for end users like us mobile warriors.

The problem isn’t really the users but a combination of carriers, industry players, and the government not working together to solve this.  As the article mentioned, there is not one quick solution.  What will get us through this is going to be a patchwork of new technology, policy reforms, and new innovative thinking.

And it’ll take a while.  A long, long while because there is just too much fear and too much entrenched interests.  And new comers are in no hurry to make things happen.

Translation:  costs could go up for the average mobile user.  Our only long-term hope is that the winners of any spectrum war or realignment will not have too much power to dictate how we use our wireless devices or have the ability to charge us whatever they want.

Source:  CNN Money.

Should Apple Make Available A Special iPad For School For Far Less? It Would Make A Lot of Sense and Doable (and Money For Apple)

First, let me say that what I’m predicting here is way in no way based on anything I’ve read or have been told.  This is just my own musing on how Apple can get iPads into the hands of million of students across the US or any other country that might be interested in giving their students the best opportunities that mobile computing can give today.  At the end of this post, I’ll reveal what I believe Apple can charge for it.

Each iTexbook for Apple is going to cost about $15 a textbook.  And from K-12, we are talking anywhere from 4 to 6 textbooks per pupil.  That’s comes out to about $60 to $90 per student per year.  And let’s suppose that each student will be assigned an iPad that is good for three to four years.  Maybe even five.

Now, let’s do the math.  At three years, that means the textbook revenue per student comes out to $180 to $270 per student.  Apple’s 30% is about $54 to $86.40 per student.  If you extend the iPad lease to 4 and 5 years, Apple’s cut becomes $72 to $115.20 and $90 to $144 respectively depending on the number of textbooks per student.

Apple can easily subsidized a price cut from the low-end $500 and really drive the price down a 9.7” iPad.  And with manufacturing cost going down year after year, there is more room for Apple it wants to go even lower.

At the end of it all, Apple can lease iPads on a 3-5 year basis and cut prices down to about $300 per iPad and make quite a bit of money still with revenue from textbooks helping to subsidize the cost.  Imagine a recurring upgrade of tens of millions (or hundreds of millions) of iPad every year for as long as iPads are needed to educate students.

Apple can will be able to count on its iPad to bankroll the company for decades to come.  Suppose Apple does adopt a plan similar to one that I am proposing, we already believe that Apple will keep the iPad 2 around even after it introduces the next iPad upgrade with a $100.  For schools, Apple can further achieve added cut from the textbook revenue and move the price even lower.

All the way down to $300.

Of course, it would have to be a packaged deal.  The school would have to be willing to lease the iPad and buy textbooks from the iBookstore in for Apple to drive the price this low.  Should the School choose only to go with the iPad, they can obviously settle for any educational discount or package that Apple offers.  And if the school or the student choose to, they can buy the iPad from the school or Apple for a low cost of say $100-$150 per iPad.  Everyone wins.

Making money from these student iPads aside, Apple will have achieve something that Steve Jobs dreamt of; revolutionize education.  And on top of that, legions of students, generation after generation of them, will grow up using Apple’s products.  iPads, Apple TV, and Apple’s mobile vision.

There simply is no company out there that could make this happen on such a scale in the tablet market except Apple.  And I believe Apple will make a $300 iPad available for schools and still manage to maintain a healthy profit margin.  After all, didn’t Apple jus tell Wall Street their margin was the best ever in the company’s history?