Nov 23
A patent application published yesterday reveals that Microsoft is sitting on plans for its own version of Google’s Project Glass. More »
Nov 22
A new patent application from Apple spotted by Patently Apple describes a modification to the OS X dock that combines elements of the iBooks shelves it uses in iOS devices with Launchpad to provide quicker access to more apps from a user’s desktop. The application, filed in May 2011, could be an indicator of how Apple is thinking about changes to OS X’s current app launching tools for upcoming iterations of its desktop OS.
The patent describes a multi-level dock that resembles the 3D bookshelf-type interface it uses for iBooks and Newsstand in its graphic renditions. The feature would be optionally configurable, and would feature quite a few more apps than it’s possible to include in the dock. The dock could be configured using a settings tool available when it’s fully extended, and there are sort tools described in the patent for arranging the elements it contains according to different criteria, or for searching for the app you’re looking for.
The app drawer concept actually has a lot of benefits over the Launchpad feature Apple introduced in OS X Lion. It sounds like it might be a little more useful in the concurrent computing model of the desktop environment where you’re running multiple apps at the same time in side-by-side windows. Still, it also seems to have some of the skeuomorphic design elements that departing Apple iOS chief Scott Forstall was known for, so I have to wonder if we’ll ever see it in shipping products, at least as described in this patent. Still, it does represent an alternative to the traditional Finder file system, which is something Apple seems to want to move away from.
If there’s anything really worth taking away here, though, it’s the usefulness of those auto-sorting and search features. Launchpad now has a dedicated search bar, but the other features — including easy sorting and labels that could classify files and apps in different rows on the 3D dock — would genuinely benefit usability, albeit at the expense of simplicity. Rumors are flying that we’ll see Apple’s OS X 10.9 sometime next year, however, so we shouldn’t have to wait too long to see if any of these concepts become reality.
Nov 22
Samsung Adds iPad Mini, 4th Generation iPad And 5th Generation iPod Touch To Patent Lawsuit
Posted in: Today's Chili
Last time we checked in with Apple’s ongoing court battle with Samsung in the upcoming Galaxy Nexus case, which will be tried by the same court that awarded Apple $1.05 billion in damages this past summer, Apple was adding the latest Samsung devices to the suit. Now Samsung has responded in kind, adding the iPad mini, 4th generation iPad and 5th generation iPod touch to the mix.
Samsung’s additions shouldn’t come as a surprise; when a judge ruled that Apple was indeed allowed to add Android 4.2 Jelly Bean as it pertains to the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, as well as the Galaxy Note 10.1 and Galaxy S III to the proceedings, he specifically warned that in granting that alteration, Apple should be prepared for return amendments from Samsung. Specifically, he said that the iPad mini and latest iPad were likely additions. The end of this week, November 23, is the deadline for any new additions to the lawsuit, so the timing on Samsung’s part is not surprising.
Samsung had also previously moved to have the iPhone 5 added to the filing, and that motion was successful. This time around, the basis for adding Apple’s latest devices is the same: Samsung claims they infringe two UMTS wireless patents in the cellular variants, as well as patents related to features both cellular and Wi-Fi versions of Apple’s newest tablets and media player. The patent which affects the iPod touch specifically deals with volume control mechanisms on a portable media playing device.
The deadline for amendments to filings in this case is tomorrow, so theoretically we could still Apple try to sneak in a return shot. But even if nothing else changes in the line-up of devices being tried, this trial isn’t set to be decided until 2014, so there’s still a while to wait before any outcome is forthcoming.
Nov 21
Following Samsung‘s recent victory in having the iPhone 5 added to the present lawsuit between it and Apple, the Korean company has now requested that the recently-launched iPad mini also be added. The Apple device allegedly infringes on two wireless technology patents and several other feature patents that are used for both varieties of the mini iPad. In addition, Samsung has also pursued whether it properly went after the iPod Touch, stating that it will do so if necessary.
Specifically, the company is seeking clarity to verify that it properly used Patent No. 7,672,470 against the iPod Touch. If it is found that the company did not, Samsung will press forward in doing so, adding a couple more blows to its legal battle against Apple. In this case, the patent involve PMP volume control.
Apple, meanwhile, added the Galaxy Note and US-version Galaxy S III to the lawsuit. The companies were granted their requests to add the products after Judge Grewal stated that he was concerned not doing so would prompt a new batch of lawsuits. The lawsuit concerns Apple’s iPad, iPod Touch, and iPhone, as well as nearly two dozen Samsung devices.
Samsung recently requested that the licensing agreement from a settlement between HTC and Apple be provided. The request was granted after Apple offered to provide a censored version, which Samsung argued against in court. The trial is set for 2014, with a no doubt bumpy road of legal matters between now and then.
[via Apple Insider]
Samsung requests to have iPad mini added to lawsuit is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Nov 17
Samsung Really Wants To Know the Juicy Details of Apple’s Patent Deal with HTC
Posted in: Today's Chili
Instead of going all thermonuclear against Android handset-maker HTC, Apple signed a patent decade-long licensing deal with them. Now Samsung, which is one significantly less friendly terms with Apple, wants to know exactly what that deal was, and is filing to have it revealed. More »
Nov 17
I hope you’re not a huge fan of skeumorphic virtual page turning. If you are, I hope you have an iOS device. Why? Because Apple just got a patent for that. Yup, Apple has a patent on turning fake pages. More »
Nov 16
This past weekend, Apple and HTC reached a settlement to end the legal squabble between the two companies. Now Samsung, who has been engaged in a series of lawsuits with Apple across the world, is poking around the deal. Earlier today, the Korean company submitted a formal request in court that, if granted, will require Apple to fork over a copy of the license agreement.
While the Apple – Samsung patent war has been getting the most attention, Apple has been engaged in other legal issues as well, including a two year fight over patents with HTC. Ending the battle was a 10-year licensing agreement between the two companies that encompasses both current and future patents on both sides. The issue started when Apple filed a complaint against HTC, alleging that the company had violated ten of its patents.
Specifically, Samsung is interested in information pertaining to what patents were included as part of the licensing agreement. Two of the patents that were part of the dispute may be part of the current lawsuit between Samsung and Apple, including the ’381 and ’915 patents, according to CNET. The company is also curious about whether Apple tossed in some of its unique patents that it doesn’t offer to other companies.
Samsung’s legal representative Robert Becher offered this statement. “As you know, the issue of Apple’s willingness to license its patents was briefed in Samsung’s opposition to Apple’s motion for permanent injunction. This license has direct bearing on the question of irreparable harm and whether monetary remedies are adequate.”
[via CNET]
Samsung requests Apple and HTC settlement details is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Nov 16
If you’ve been a long-time iOS user and also read your fair share of ebooks, then you’ll know that Apple implemented a pretty cool page-turning animation when reading ebooks, meaning that sliding your finger across the screen to go to the next page resulted in the page actually turning, just like it would with a real book. And finally, USPTO has granted Apple the patent for that animation.
The patent’s illustration shows three different images of a virtual page being turned. One with the corner of a page being turned slightly, the next image with the page halfway turned, and the third showing the page almost entirely turned over. A swipe of the finger will activate the page turn, while a vertical finger swipe will flip the page just enough to reveal what’s on the next page.
The patent, which is for “Display screen or portion thereof with animated graphical user interface,” represents only one of 38 different patents that have been granted to Apple this week. The New York Times notes that this isn’t the first “seemingly obvious” patent that Apple has been awarded. The company was granted a patent for the musical note icon for iTunes, as well as the infamous glass staircase design Apple uses in their stores.
iBooks isn’t the only application that Apple uses its page-turning animation in. With iOS 6, Apple uses the animation in several of their own apps, including Maps and the Calendar app for iPad. Another notable patent that Apple won this week was for the iPad Smart Case, which acts much like a Smart Cover but gives the iPad a little added protection all around.
[via AppleInsider]
Apple granted patent for page-turn animation is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Nov 16
Court Adds iPhone 5, Galaxy Note 10.1 And Galaxy S III To Patent Lawsuit, Signals iPad Mini Could Be Added, Too
Posted in: Today's Chili
In an ongoing California court case between Apple and Samsung, a judge on Thursday granted the requests of both companies to add recently released hardware to the suit. The iPhone 5 is now included, as well as Samsung’s U.S. Galaxy S III, the Galaxy Note 10.1 and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean (specifically as it pertains to the Galaxy Nexus, and not beyond). The judge in the case also hinted that if Samsung requests it, Apple may see its latest tablets, including the iPad mini and fourth generation iPad, added to the patent lawsuit as well.
“Given the early stage of this litigation and the reasoning of this order, the court notes that Apple should think twice before opposing similar amendments reflecting other newly-released products — e.g. the iPad 4 and iPad mini — that Samsung may propose in the near future,” Judge Grewal wrote, according to IDG News Service. The deadline for amendments in the case is next week, November 23, which means that if Samsung would like to also target Apple’s latest products, it has until then to request to do so.
Apple recently requested to have the Galaxy Note 10.1 and Jelly Bean added to the lawsuit, after Samsung quickly added the iPhone 5 to its own list of products in violation of its held patents following its release. Clearly, the judge isn’t sure that this kind of arms race in this case necessarily benefits either party, but both Samsung and Apple want to illustrate that the transgressions they see coming from the other side are pervasive and consistent, not just isolated to individual products. That’ll be key if either one emerges a clear victor, in a case that still isn’t set to go to trial until 2014, since to have an impact on devices currently shipping at the time the ruling will have to be used as precedent for securing injunctions against future hardware.
Apple so far has scored only one truly decisive victory, with the ruling in August that held Samsung responsible to the tune of $1.05 billion as a result of patent infringement. Samsung is appealing that ruling. Apple last week announced a resolution to its ongoing patent disputes with Android OEM HTC, but there’s little reason to believe a similar outcome is imminent for Apple and Samsung, a point which a Samsung executive recently drove home with his own statement on the matter.
Nov 16
On November 6, we reported that Apple and Samsung, in their seemingly never-ending patent war, sought to have additional items added to the existing lawsuit between the two companies. Judge Grewal was reported to have expressed concern that not allowing the companies to add products would trigger a new series of lawsuits. Now, ten days later, he has ruled in favor of the requests.
For its part in this, Apple will be adding the Samsung Galaxy Note, the Jelly Bean operating system, and the U.S.-version Galaxy S III smartphone to the lawsuit. Samsung, in exchange, will be adding the iPhone 5 in its complaint against Apple. In this case, the addition of Android Jelly Bean is only in relation to the Galaxy Nexus device.
Both companies have been caught up in a long battle over patents, with each accusing the other of infringement. Both sides have experienced victories and losses in various courts. The present lawsuit is set for trial in 2014, and concerns 19 Samsung devices, as well as Apple’s iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. Recently, a jury ruled that Samsung had infringed on six out of seven of Apple’s patents.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul Grewal had this to say. “Apple should think twice before opposing similar amendments reflecting other newly released products, e.g. the iPad 4 and the iPad mini, that Samsung may propose in the future.” For those of you up for some legal reading, this is the lawsuit Apple v. Samsung Electronics Co. (005930) Ltd., 12-cv-00630, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Jose).
[via Bloomberg]
Apple and Samsung can add products to lawsuit, judge rules is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Who's in charge here?
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.