Hasta La Gadget!

A new Apple patent application published by the USPTO today describes a magnetic connector similar to the one used to attach Smart Covers to the current iPad, but designed to be far more flexible with a variety of possible accessory combinations. It’s a smart connector system that could recognize the attached peripheral and change functionality accordingly.

The types of peripherals described in the patent are many and varied, and include things like speaker docks, trackpads and keyboards, drawing tablets, radio wave antennas, cameras, game controllers and card readers. There’s also a provision which describes how two iPads might be linked together via an intermediary magnetic hinge dock that connects to the smart magnetic link in each.

It could work either with basic magnets, or with electromagnets that can be turned on or off using controls built into iOS, according to the filing, which would allow you to theoretically ‘lock’ accessories in place, including docks that simply stand the iPad up or hold it on a positionable mount for different viewing angles.

The system’s flexibility doesn’t end there, however – Apple also describes various in-car mounts for connecting an iPad to your vehicle’s dash or headrests, as well as to a treadmill or other gym equipment. Each could be a simple enough magnetic connection with no attendant change in functionality, but the patent also describes how they could complete a circuit, too, to deliver power, and communicate with the attached peripherals to transfer specific kinds of data back and forth.

Finally, there’s mention of wearable tech that could be used to trigger the magnetic sensor and prompt various behaviour from the iPad. This could take the form of a ring, for instance, which when worn by the user would do things like unlock the iPad when the hand it’s on is waved deliberately across the tablet’s screen. In the context of other Apple wearable rumors making the rounds, this could theoretically also work with magnetic connectors built into some kind of iWatch, possibly for identification and unlocking purposes as well as for simple proximity-based communication with certain apps.

The system described in this patent is elaborate and filled with potential, but it’s worth noting that peripherals connected via the Lightning port can do some of the things depicted in the application. Still, were Apple to actively invest in putting this into shipping iPads, it would no doubt open up a world of possibility for accessory makers. Connections that don’t require physical I/O, and that could automatically prompt different behavior from an iOS device and from specific apps would significantly enrich the already vibrant appcessory ecosystem.

Apple already has magnets within the iPad’s chassis, so space constraints for components aren’t necessarily a huge concern, and this could easily be a focus feature for an iPad generational revision, especially in lieu of form factor or display changes. Apple patents rarely make their way intact into shipping hardware, but in this case, I’m holding out hope we do see something similar make its way to consumer hands.

Time and again we’ve heard that Apple is going to announce the iPad 5 soon. Its plausible, the timing is just about right for a new iPad to hit the market, though no one knows right now exactly when the company intends on making the announcement. A recent analyst prediction suggests that new Smart Cover may also be announced with the iPad 5. This is plausible as well, given the fact that the iPad 5 is expected to come with major design changes, which would essentially make previous Smart Covers unusable with the new iPad.

It has consistently been rumored that Apple is going to make design changes in the iPad. The tablet’s design has remained the same since the iPad 2, which came out back in 2011. iPad 5 is expected to borrow design cues from the iPad mini, and the various purported casings we’ve seen up till now reiterate this possibility. Analyst Brian J. White of Cantor Fitzgerald believes that this change in design will provide Apple with an “excuse” to announce new Smart Cover as well. Not much is known about the new covers at this point in time, its too soon to say if Apple will opt for materials different from the ones it has already used for previous covers and if its going to add even more colors to the lineup. The iPad announcements are rumored to take place on October 22nd.

Apple Might Unveil New Smart Cover With iPad 5 original content from Ubergizmo.

If you know someone who has an implanted defibrillator, you might want to caution them because according to a finding by a 14-year old by the name of Gianna Chien, it seems that the magnets used in Apple’s Smart Cover […]

Like It , +1 , Tweet It , Pin It Original content from Ubergizmo.

Future iPads could ditch Apple’s Lightning dock connector in favor of an even more seamless way to power the device: inductive charging through its magnetic Smart Cover.

One of the coolest things about the newer iPad models is the Smart Cover that turns the tablet on and off when you open or close the cover. There also have been a number of iPad Bluetooth keyboards, but most of them add significant bulk to Apple’s slim tablet. Archos has just unveiled a keyboard for the iPad, which they claim is the world’s thinnest, and functions like the Smart Cover too.

The keyboard is, appropriately enough, called the Ultrathin Keyboard for iPad, and is a scant 5mm thick. The keyboard also weighs 240 g making it roughly half a pound. Archos says that the aluminum-backed white keyboard is the thinnest and lightest iPad keyboard available, noting that it’s almost as thin as the Smart Cover itself when attached to the iPad. With the keyboard fitted to the iPad, the tablet weighs 1.9 pounds and is 13.4 mm thick, working out to a bit over half an inch.

The keyboard has a stand that allows you to prop the tablet at various angles for typing comfort, and locks your tablet into place using the same magnetic method as the Smart Cover. The keyboard will also turn the iPad screen on and off when you open or close it. The QWERTY keyboard also has shortcut keys for iOS functions and connects to the tablet using Bluetooth.

Archos expects to ship the Ultrathin Bluetooth iPad keyboard this March for a retail price of $79(USD).