Apple’s iPhone 8 could cost upwards of $1,000 and that’s thanks in part to the heft price Samsung is charging for its OLED screen.
Samsung
iPhone 8's Price, The SciFi World of Twistron - TMO Daily Observations 2017-08-25
Bryan Chaffin and John Martellaro join guest-host Dave Hamilton to dig into whether the rumored price of Apple’s not-yet-announced iPhone 8 is too expensive. They also talk about the science fiction promise of a new material called Twistron. It’s super cool.
Apple's Titan Car Struggle, iPhone 8 vs. Samsung Galaxy 8 - TMO Daily Observations 2017-08-24
John Martellaro and Jeff Butts join guest-host Bryan Chaffin to talk about Apple’s perils an lessons in trying to make a car. They also discuss the perennial topic of whether this is the year when—finally—Apple can’t compete with whatever Samsung announced earlier in the year. (Spoiler: no, it’s not.)
Canadian Regulators Put an End to Locked Cellphones
The regulations, “will erase millions in annual revenue for carriers” because locking phones is a completely arbitrary practice designed to lock consumes to a carrier.
Samsung's Iris Scanning Joke, Crappy Business is Not OK, and PC Design - ACM 412
Unsurprisingly, Samsung’s crappy iris scanner on the Galaxy S8 has been defeated. Worse, defeating it is easy. Bryan and Jeff think it’s a joke and another example of Samsung’s delusions of relevance. They also discuss Bryan’s theory that PC makers can’t compete with Apple’s MacBook with me-too design, and say that surveillance capitalists being honest about spying on your doesn’t make their spying OK.
Samsung Galaxy S8 Iris Scanner Already Hacked
Samsung’s Galaxy S8 smartphone iris recognition biometric security feature is surprisingly easy to hack.
Samsung Lands 2 Year Deal for Curved OLED iPhone Displays
Smartphone makers planning on using OLED screens are about to be in a bind because Apple just signed a two year contract with Samsung for the panels. Samsung will reportedly supply Apple with at least 70 million bendable OLED panels this year, and Samsung will take up the rest for itself.
The ISP Coup, an Apple VPN, and Samsung's Bixby Gambit - ACM 404
ISPs performed a coup against consumers, and they did so in collusion with one of America’s major political parties. Bryan and Jeff are two tense geeks about it. Their solution would be for Apple to launch a VPN integrated into Apple’s products. And then there’s Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and that company’s delusions of software relevance. Oh, and Bixby, which could eventually succeed in making Samsung relevant.
Samsung Plans to Refurbish and Sell the Recalled Note 7
Now that Samsung has collected all those Note 7 explode-a-phones, what to do with them? How about put them back out on the market as refurbished. That’s exactly what Samsung is doing thanks to pressure in part from the environmental activist group Greenpeace.
Apple Rumors and Manufacturing, Tim Cook's Pipeline, and $AAPL - ACM 400
In this 400th episode of Apple Context Machine, John Kheit joins Bryan Chaffin to discuss rumors of iPhone 8 and Samsung Galaxy S8, Apple manufacturing, Tim Cook’s claim that Apple cares about pro users and creative pros in particular, the company’s supposed pipeline, and $AAPL’s record high valuation. Oh…and Nickleback.
Tip: Stop Surveillance By Smart TVs from Vizio, Samsung, and LG
In light of the recent case against Vizio, an article by Consumer Reports gives details on how to stop your smart TV from spying on you with automatic content recognition. This works with television models from Vizio, Samsung and LG. Here’s how to stop the surveillance and protect your privacy.
Apple Doesn't Love iBooks and Samsung Schadenfreude - ACM 397
Evidence suggests Apple stopped loving iBooks. Bryan and Jeff go over that evidence and discuss why Apple should rekindle that love and make iBooks great again. They also take a few minutes to experience some schadenfreude over Samsung’s battery factory fire, and argue that a loss of market share demonstrates Samsung’s lack of software relevance.
Hello, Irony: Samsung Note 7 Battery Factory Catches on Fire
It’s the kind of irony that takes serious script work to bring together in a TV show, but for Samsung it’s real life: The factory that makes the faulty batteries that led to the exploding Galaxy Note 7 caught on fire. Luckily no one was hurt, so it’s totally OK for us to poke fun at Samsung’s latest misfortune.
Samsung Delaying Galaxy S8 Launch Following Note 7 Fire Investigation
Word leaked last week that Samsung’s official Galaxy Note 7 fire investigation would point to the device’s battery as the cause of the problem, and that’s exactly what the company said on Monday. Samsung also it’s delaying the launch of the Galaxy S8 smartphone as a result of its Note 7 investigation.
Samsung's Note 7 Fire Report: Surprise, It's the Batteries
Samsung will officially announce the results of its investigation into the Galaxy Note 7 fires next week, and there won’t be any big surprises because they’re pointing the finger that the smartphone’s battery. The company is also going to say there were manufacturing issues, although it’s not clear yet what those were.
Verizon Now Intercepting Calls From Note 7 Users Refusing to Give Up Their Phone
Following Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 combust-a-phone mess and product recall, Verizon went from “We won’t do anything,” to “OK, let’s brick them,” and now is at the “Seriously people, give us the phone before you hurt yourself” stage. Verizon’s latest move is to reroute calls from Note 7 phones to customer service to convince users to exchange their phone for something less flammable.
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Brick Update Starts Rolling Out
The last few Samsung Galaxy Note 7 owners won’t be able to use their fire-phones much longer because carriers are starting to push out an update that bricks the devices. T-Mobile is already remotely updating Note 7 phones, AT&T and Sprint are planning to start in the next few days, and even Verizon has reversed course and is going to push out the update, too.
5.8-inch iPhones, Apple's Original Crew - TMO Daily Observations 2016-12-29
We’re seeing more reports about a new iPhone screen size for 2017, so Bryan Chaffin and Mac Geek Gab’s John F. Braun join Jeff Gamet weigh in on what may be coming next year. They also look back on Apple’s first ten employees, and note the update of death for Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 smartphone-of-fire.
Supreme Court Throws Out Apple's $400M Win in Samsung Patent Fight
Samsung’s legal persistence is paying off because the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Tuesday the electronics maker doesn’t have to pay Apple US$400 million for infringing on iPhone-related patents. More specifically, the court ruled Samsung owes Apple damages based on infringing components instead of the entire device.
Samsung's New Smartphone Innovation: Jet Black
Samsung has an idea for goosing Galaxy S7 smartphone sales: make a jet black model. The glossy black version is reportedly a move to compete with Apple’s latest iPhone color option, and an effort to boost sales following the Galaxy Note 7 explode-a-phone debacle.
Samsung Buying Harman to Take on Apple's CarPlay
Everyone wants a piece of your car’s dashboard, and Samsung is buying Harman to get its slice of driving experience. The US$8 billion deal will give Samsung a platform for linking our smartphones to our cars, along with a way for the company to compete with Apple’s CarPlay platform.
Samsung, LG OLED Race Hints at New Displays for 2017 iPhone
The fight is on to be the supplier for next year’s iPhone OLED displays. Samsung and LG are hoping to get a slice of that pie, and their fight all but confirms Apple is dropping LCD in favor of OLED for iPhone screens in 2017 or 2018.
Bryan Chaffin Will Discuss 'Apple vs. Samsung' in Live Webinar Thursday
Bryan Chaffin will be doing a live webinar/discussion called “Samsung vs. Apple” on Thursday, October 20th, from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM EDT. Moderated by patent attorney Gene Quinn, the discussion has a subheading of, “Is A Single Patent Infringement Worth all the Profit?” Robert S. Katz, an attorney with Banner & Witcoff, will also be participating.
Samsung's Note 7 Banned from all US Flights as Hazardous Material
Don’t worry about powering down your Samsung Galaxy Note 7 before getting on your flight because the Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration just banned the smartphone from all flights. As of Friday afternoon, the fire-prone Note 7 is classified as “forbidden hazardous material,” and come Saturday can’t be transported in your carry-on or checked luggage.
