An Apple watch? The hints have been out there
Apple has strongly hinted that it will enter new product categories in 2014. And it's about time -- not in the sense that it's been too long, but in the sense that the timing follows a pattern of a major new product category every few years. Two of the most oft-speculated devices for the Apple queue are a television and a watch (known by its rumor-mill shorthand as the "iWatch").The company's recent video service moves beyond offering just Netflix and iTunes -- the addition of many streaming services on Apple TV such as Qello, Vevo, Crackle, Hulu Plus, ESPN, and PBS -- have led some to speculate that Apple is gearing up to launch a television; such a product would likely depend on Apple being able to put together a broadband video delivery service, the kind of which eluded Intel.An iWatch with the look of a fitness band...See full gallery1 - 4 / 7NextPrevBut one doesn't need to find evidence of a team of 100 people working in secret at Apple to develop a connected timepiece. One can find far more signs of the company gearing up to launch a watch and of the kinds of content we might expect to see on it by just looking at some other product decisions it has made.In 2011, you could get a Mickey Mouse watch skin for your iPod Nano.AppleiPod Nano. Apple first flirted with the idea of a watch with the sixth generation of an iPod Nano that included watch faces; more of these were added with the seventh generation device. These spurred a number of add-on watch bands that sprang up on Kickstarter. Some of these, like the LunaTik, were Kickstarter successes. Others like the Syre, which brought Bluetooth to the Nano, burned through all their funds and never shipped to backers. But in any case, the iPod Nano -- never having really been designed to be a watch -- didn't provide a great watch experience. Apple switched back to a larger, multitouch design that looked like a baby iPod Touch. Still, the idea of an Apple watch certainly aroused interest.iPhone. When the iPhone was announced, Apple noted that it was based on OS X. And to help prove the point of all the OS X features that it supported, it included widgets, the mini programs that were available at the touch of a keystroke. The idea had origins in some of the earliest days of the Mac OS, which featured "desk accessories" such as an alarm clock and calculators that were available from the Apple menu. However, the iPhone widgets were not really widgets in the OS X or Android sense; they were just other, simpler apps. An Apple watch could fill in the gap, allowing true widgets to be available without disrupting what's on the watch screen.Mac. Speaking of widgets, Dashcode was Apple's easy-to-use development language for creating OS X widgets. Or at least it was until Apple ceased its use last year. What might replace Dashcode? Perhaps a system for creating widgets that would run on OS X, be suitable for iPhone widgets, and operate on one's wrist.Bluetooth. Throughout its product line, Apple has embraced Bluetooth and abstained from near-field communications (NFC). It was the first of the major mobile ecosystem providers to use Bluetooth LE in its phone lineup (which admittedly was a lot easier for a company with so few phones). Bluetooth LE has been a key technology for companies contemplating devices like the Fitbit One and Pebble watch that need wireless connectivity but which have to operate for days or weeks at a time. Via the iBeacon technology that Apple has integrated into iOS 7, a watch could obtain information about many objects in its immediate location or even confirm transactions.We still won't know for sure what Apple's actual iWatch plans are until Tim Cook pulls one out of his pocket on a stage in front of an enthralled audience. But before Apple asks you to make room for such a product on your wrist, it has certainly made room for a smartwatch in its product line.
iOS app makers targeted in patent spat
iOS app makers targeted in patent spat
In Computer LogicX's case, the U.S. patent is No.7,222,078, which Macrumors discovered is owned by holding firm Lodsys. That patent, titled "methods and systems for gathering information from units of a commodity across a network," was acquired by the firm in 2004, and deals with the set up and completion of a transaction.A snippet from the patent attempts to sum up what the invention is about:"Simply put, this invention helps vendors and customers by transforming their learning cycle: It compresses the time and steps between setting business objectives, creating effective products and services, and improving them continuously. It also alters their roles: Customers become partners in the improvement process along with vendors and distributors."Rob Gloess of Computer LogicX weighed in on the matter in an e-mail to Macrumors, saying the patent holder was taking aim specifically at an upgrade mechanism that involves in-app purchasing. Users hit a button in a free, "lite" version of a Computer LogicX app to download and pay for the premium version."Our app, Mix and Mash, has the common model of a limited, free, lite version and a full version that contains all the features," Gloess told the site. "We were told that the button that users click on to upgrade the app, or rather link to the full version on the app store, was in breach of U.S. patent No. 7222078. We couldn't believe it, the upgrade button!?!"Lodsys did not immediately respond to a request for comment as to whether it is cautioning other developers on the use of the technology. And it's not clear why, exactly, the firm chose to single out Computer LogicX (and perhaps Thomson). Thomson hasn't officially named the party who sent him the cease and desist letter, but he hinted it might be Lodsys. The developer says he's waiting to hear back from Apple on the matter before making the information public. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the situation.Apple introduced in-app purchasing in early 2009, and later that year enabled the feature to work inside of free applications. The feature was designed to add more flexibility to app upgrades, as well as simplify the process of publishing two versions: a free and a paid, into a single free version that could be easily upgraded with additional functionality. Developers can design the button or the user interface to enable the upgrade in any manner they see fit, though a pop-up notification that describes what you're purchasing, and an account-confirmation mechanism that allows you to actually make the purchase with your iTunes account, are a part of iOS itself, making it unclear why these infringement claims are not being aimed at Apple, which makes the OS and maintains the payment system. This is not the first patent-infringement pressure Lodsys has applied. Earlier this year, the firm took aim at a number of tech companies, including Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Lexmark International, Novell, and Canon U.S.A., over a patent pertaining to printer software.
In Computer LogicX's case, the U.S. patent is No.7,222,078, which Macrumors discovered is owned by holding firm Lodsys. That patent, titled "methods and systems for gathering information from units of a commodity across a network," was acquired by the firm in 2004, and deals with the set up and completion of a transaction.A snippet from the patent attempts to sum up what the invention is about:"Simply put, this invention helps vendors and customers by transforming their learning cycle: It compresses the time and steps between setting business objectives, creating effective products and services, and improving them continuously. It also alters their roles: Customers become partners in the improvement process along with vendors and distributors."Rob Gloess of Computer LogicX weighed in on the matter in an e-mail to Macrumors, saying the patent holder was taking aim specifically at an upgrade mechanism that involves in-app purchasing. Users hit a button in a free, "lite" version of a Computer LogicX app to download and pay for the premium version."Our app, Mix and Mash, has the common model of a limited, free, lite version and a full version that contains all the features," Gloess told the site. "We were told that the button that users click on to upgrade the app, or rather link to the full version on the app store, was in breach of U.S. patent No. 7222078. We couldn't believe it, the upgrade button!?!"Lodsys did not immediately respond to a request for comment as to whether it is cautioning other developers on the use of the technology. And it's not clear why, exactly, the firm chose to single out Computer LogicX (and perhaps Thomson). Thomson hasn't officially named the party who sent him the cease and desist letter, but he hinted it might be Lodsys. The developer says he's waiting to hear back from Apple on the matter before making the information public. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the situation.Apple introduced in-app purchasing in early 2009, and later that year enabled the feature to work inside of free applications. The feature was designed to add more flexibility to app upgrades, as well as simplify the process of publishing two versions: a free and a paid, into a single free version that could be easily upgraded with additional functionality. Developers can design the button or the user interface to enable the upgrade in any manner they see fit, though a pop-up notification that describes what you're purchasing, and an account-confirmation mechanism that allows you to actually make the purchase with your iTunes account, are a part of iOS itself, making it unclear why these infringement claims are not being aimed at Apple, which makes the OS and maintains the payment system. This is not the first patent-infringement pressure Lodsys has applied. Earlier this year, the firm took aim at a number of tech companies, including Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Lexmark International, Novell, and Canon U.S.A., over a patent pertaining to printer software.
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