Mobile Patent Wars: when law kills innovation

There is so much talk about Patent Wars that all has been said and said again. 

You want to make some some audience? That's the topic to pick! You want to start a fight with you Android/Apple fanatic friends? Go for it! You want to get rich without inventing anything? Patent something embarrassingly stupid and then sue everyone! 

Headlines are everywhere: Apple is winning this injunction against Samsung to ban import of that phone from those countries, two weeks after Samsung is suing back and making Apple publish a sorry statement on their website. Meanwhile HTC, that already pays Microsoft patents to produce Android phones, settles a cross licensing with Cupertino whose economic part is somehow unclear, Google acquires Motorola to get more patents, Apple teams up with archenemy Microsoft against Google to get some others. In the last rumors Apple and Google could bid together to get 1000 patents from the ashes of Kodak.

The weekly WrapUp - 09 Dec 12

Here we are again with a new WrapUp.

• Facebook might be interested in Whatsapp. According to the latest rumors Zuck could buy himself a new messaging app with a very big user base to expand the company efforts in the mobile space. Starting to be concerned about the privacy of your Whatsapp messages? If the deal is real, you should!

The weekly WrapUp - 02 Dec 12

After a short hiatus (sorry, work keeps me very busy!) we are back for a new edition of WrapUp. Here's the most interesting news of the week:

• Rumors of a cheap iPhone are here... again! According to the analysts Apple could create a cheap model exclusive to the emerging market, where they failed to gain a big market share due to the premium price of the device. As you know Cupertino strategy and low prices don't match but we are talking of a 3 billion people market: it could be worth some thought.. 

The weekly WrapUp - 10 Nov 12

Today I'm starting this new feature in my blog. 

Although this week I didn't catch news that made me scream "I must give a piece of my mind about that!" and write a whole post about, I still consumed my fair share of reading so I'll give you a summary of what I think are the most "worth knowing" news of the week.

These posts will probably become a weekly appointment on my blog at least in the weeks where I don't have something major to discuss. 

[Updated] Should Apple really ditch chipzilla?

In the latest Bloomberg news Apple is said to be exploring the possibility to ditch Intel processors. This is not the first time such a rumor appears and it could happen.. eventually.

Let's start by considering the "why?" part of the equation. All could come down to the well known control freak nature of people in Cupertino but the decision would really be too big to be guided just by that. Some other things Apple is quite fond of are design and consistency and both may take advantage of a switch to ARM.

Apple event: the good and the why?

Let's start with a recap of today's announcements.

The MacBook Pro 13" is getting the retina treatment while the iMac and the Mac Mini are getting an update.The new iMac with thin bezel display looks amazing and the new MacBook was a must after the Retina 15" version.

The iPad Mini was announced with specs similar to what was in te rumors in the last days: no Retina display, 329$ starting price with 16GB and WiFi.

In my opinion both the lack of Retina and the price are quite disappointing. I should add that the thin bezel on the sides is, still in my opinion, a bad choice: that's exactly the place I usually hold the tablet! But I should try it to give a fair judgement. Anyway, as I concluded before, they will sell tons of iPad Mini despite all of that. Apple magic!

Now that we're done with the good and the so-and-so let's get to the real "why did you do that?" point: the fourth generation iPad..

Apple in 7" - Act II

Some more figures are floating around about the iPad Mini pricing.

As reported by 9to5mac the iPad Mini base model (16GB Wifi only) will likely sell for 329$ and the build cost is estimated at little less than 200$ by Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities. The same sources estimate the top model price at 659$ for a 250$ cost.

If you look at the cost breakdown table you will notice that the cost is estimated considering a 163ppi display. That's not Retina!

Apple in 7"

By now the existence of the iPad Mini is taken for granted and all sources point to the event next week for the public launch. You can find a quite comprehensive summary of the rumors in this The Verge article.

The iPad Mini, even if it's still a tablet, is new territory for Apple. And let's not forget that a 7 inch tablet was out of the question as long as Steve Jobs was the capitan of the ship.

I should declare now that I'm not an Apple fan but I recognize Steve's greatness. If I was Tim Cook I surely would take Steve's advice and stay out of that market.

Some exciting weeks to come

Seems like the big guys are getting ready for a holiday season announcement battle:

• Apple, October 23: iPad Mini and maybe something more. Rumors hint at a minor iPad refresh and maybe some Retina MacBook Pro 13"
• Microsoft, October 26: Windows 8 and Surface
• Google, October 29: Nexus G, refresh of the Nexus 7 plus a possible Nexus 10 and Android 4.2 announcement
• Microsoft, October 29: Windows Phone 8 and devices

 All together that's huge news that could really change some of the mobile market in the months to come. In the next series of posts We'll dive in these announcements and add some thoughts on what they may mean for us.