WWDC Puts Accessibility On The Radar For Developers

That’s Apple’s slogan for this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), and it resonates with me in a special way.

Event after event, Tim Cook makes a point to remind the audience that Apple’s ethos is to build best-of-breed products that change people’s lives. I believe Cook to be sincere for no other reason than the work the company does in supporting accessibility. In iOS and OS X. Apple has made good on their word to changing people’s lives by continually improving the tools that, quite literally, change the way a person with disabilities (such as myself) uses an iPhone and iPad.

But it isn’t only Apple who’s doing good. Third-party developers have a responsibility to incorporate accessibility into their apps as well, and that’s where WWDC comes in. Apple provides numerous resources to developers during the conference that help he or she ensure that their app(s) are as accessible as possible.

The accessibility presence at WWDC is deep and far-reaching; Apple does much to raise awareness of and advocate for the accessibility community. Apple this week granted me behind-the-scenes access to sessions, labs, and developer interviews at Moscone so as to tell WWDC’s accessibility story.

Sessions

Arguably the most important aspect of WWDC from a developer perspective are the sessions. This is where Apple engineers present information about APIs and demonstrate how developers can integrate them into their apps. As there are sessions dedicated to things like user interface design and privacy, so too are there ones for accessibility.

Sessions are helmed by a member of the respective platform’s Accessibility team. There are dedicated sessions for iOS, OS X, and new for 2015, Watch OS. In broad strokes, the accessibility sessions are about best practices for supporting accessibility. The presenter  focuses on an attribute of Accessibility like, say, VoiceOver, and demonstrate how to properly integrate it into an app, making it work with labels and images. Troubleshooting techniques and tips and tricks are also discussed.

The technical aspects of the sessions related to coding went largely over my head, but I did learn a few things that I didn’t know before. For instance, some UI mechanics of Apple Watch related to the digital crown and the Zoom feature, where a user can turn the crown to move line by line when reading text with Zoom turned on.

Framework Labs

As with the sessions, the Frameworks Labs are an integral part of a developer’s experience at WWDC. Here, developers can meet with Apple engineers to get help and ask questions about their app. Developers can demo their app to engineers, and get real-time feedback on what works and what doesn’t. Engineers are even able to look at and make suggestions for an app’s code so as to make it work as it should.

These Frameworks Labs extend to accessibility as well. Members of Apple’s Engineering and Accessibility QA teams are on hand to answer developers’ questions about supporting Accessibility. As well, there is opportunity for “accessibility audits,” where an engineer will sit down with a developer’s app and give feedback. It is during these times where an engineer will determine whether a feature such as VoiceOver is functionally properly, and give tips as needed.

Apple told me that press access to the labs was unprecedented, so I made sure to soak up every second of my time there. It was a bustling place, with people huddled at tables chattering about things like VoiceOver and Large Dynamic Type.

To me, the labs were one of the most exciting part of my visit. It seemed to me that the labs are where the action is at WWDC. Developers want to visit the labs because they’ve gone to sessions and want to implement accessibility (among other things) the right way.

The room was full of enthusiasm, which warmed my heart to see. As a person with disabilities, it’s thrilling for me to see others make concerted efforts to ensure that their apps are usable by all.

Interviews With Developers

I had an opportunity to speak with several developers, and my high-level take of our discussions is this: they care — deeply so.

What I mean by “care” is the developers I spoke to shared genuine feelings of empathy and a desire to change the world for the better for people like me. They want everyone with an iOS device and/or Apple Watch to enjoy their apps just as much as the fully-abled do.

Of the many developers I spoke with, there were three conversations that especially stood out.

First is the team behind the iOS automation app, Workflow. I’ve known about Workflow for a while and have it on my devices, but have mostly ignored it due to being intimidated by its power. Still, I jumped at the chance to sit down with Workflow’s three-person creative team: Ari Weinstein, Conrad Kramer, and Nick Frey.

In terms of accessibility, Workflow is noteworthy insofar that it’s the first app to win an Apple Design Award for accessibility. (Of note, Apple’s made the ADA ceremony available online. At the 35:00 mark is the Workflow demo, done by two Apple accessibility engineers who are blind.)

Weinstein and his team gave me a demo of their app, and explained to me that their focus, accessibility-wise, was on the visually impaired. Workflow uses VoiceOver to guide users in creating workflows by announcing selected actions and where they’re supposed to be placed in a sequence. It works very well.

Weinstein explained to me that the impetus for supporting VoiceOver was the comments he and his team received from the accessibility community. He said that many users with vision impairments were curious about Workflow and wanted to try it, and asked that the app be made accessible to them. Moreover, Weinstein stated that supporting accessibility felt like the right thing to do.

What strikes me about Workflow is not only its capability but that capability is available to the visually impaired. Here’s an app that can automate many tasks, which not only is convenient but practical. For many visually impaired users, getting directions home, for example, can potentially be cumbersome because of the visual strain required to orient one’s self to the Maps interface — e.g., find the correct buttons to tap, etc. Workflow lets you do this with just one tap.

I met with AssistiveWare founder & CEO, David Niemeijer, who demoed two of his company’s apps to me, Keedogo and Proloquo2Go.

Keedogo is a iPad keyboard designed for elementary-aged children, and has many accessible traits. (I wrote about Keedogo in more detail for MacStories last year.) Proloquo2go, also for iPad, is an app designed for non-verbal children, particularly those with autism. It’s based on the PECS system, a teaching methodology designed specifically for children with autism in order to facilitate expressive language.

It was obvious from speaking with David that he is invested in the welfare of those who use his products. He, too, wants to make a difference in the lives of people of all abilities and needs. Something David said that has stuck with me is the fact that the tools he builds are only possible because Apple built the developer frameworks in the first place. Apple’s tools, he said, are so good that it makes his job making stuff like Proloquo2go that much easier.

During Monday’s keynote, Apple showed a video featuring various developers and their apps, while also discussing the impact apps have had on the world and the iOS ecosystem.

I had a chance to sit down with one of the developers in the film, Raphael Augusto Silva. Silva is the co-founder and lead developer at the Ludwig Project.

His app, an iPad piano, stands out because he and his team wish to bring music to the hearing impaired. The idea, Silva told me, is that the hearing impaired can sense music through vibration. Tapping the keys on the iPad’s screen will register a tactile sensation on the attached wrist strap; the more taps, the more you feel. The concept is that the hearing impaired will be able to experience beats through this form of haptic feedback.

While imperfect right now, the concept is wonderfully ambitious. As someone who grew up with deaf parents, I am keenly aware of the uniqueness of the deaf community and the issues they face. Thus, Silva’s app is something I was immediately drawn to, and it was terrific talking with him.

Closing Thoughts

The comment from Cook about not always doing things for “the bloody ROI” feels not at all like an empty bromide.

My experiences at Moscone this week serves as further confirmation that Apple isn’t about lip service in this regard. While accessibility is and always will be somewhat of a niche, it’s wonderful to see Apple go to such lengths to prioritize accessibility.

We (the accessibility community) are on Apple’s radar, and, in my view at least, it feels great to be acknowledged.

The Five Big Things to Watch For at Today's Apple Event

Software will be the star of Apple Inc.’s big event today.

The maker of iPhones and iPads will introduce software improvements for its computer and mobile devices at its annual developer conference for more than 5,000 engineers in San Francisco. The conference, called WWDC, starts Monday with a reveal of new updates, including the introduction of a revamped streaming music service, people familiar with the plans have said.

Apple depends upon third-party app developers to create software that help make its devices popular. The annual event allows Apple to encourage its partners along with directing them toward future developments. Apple application developers were paid $10 billion last year and $25 billion since the App Store was introduced, the company said in January.

“Apple needs to maintain its momentum and thought leadership coming out of WWDC,” Frank Gillett, an analyst at Forrester, wrote in an e-mail. Here's what to look for:

The Beats Go On

Apple’s new music app will be home to the subscription service, downloads and a revamped version of iTunes radio, people familiar with the effort have said. It will include some exclusive, behind the scenes video. Apple has hired executives to help shoot and produce video from recording sessions with willing musicians. The app will also feature artist pages — mostly seen as being promotional — that they can use to host videos, songs and other things for free. This is part of a program called Apple Connect. Apple will compensate the artists and labels for songs it gives away, as it has done with iTunes' "Free Song of the Week" feature.

Going Native

A software development kit will be previewed that will give engineers the ability to write programs on the new Apple Watch directly and access to the device’s sensors, Jeff Williams, Apple’s senior vice president of operations, said last month at the Re/code conference. That new ability could help speed up third-party apps on the Watch, one of the big gripes since the device went on sale in April.

Apple Pay

Apple’s mobile payment service, which began last year, may get some enhancements including a rewards program that is seen as a way to keep consumers using the service, the New York Times reported.

A key question is whether Apple will disclose any numbers on usage, and whether the company has had any success in signing up more financial partners.

Seeing Double

The new mobile operating software may for the first time allow for two apps running on an iPad to be shown at the same time, according to 9to5Mac. This could be helpful later this year as Apple pushes for more sales to business customers with the introduction of a larger-screen iPad.

Operation

Both OS X and iOS may see improvements to enhance performance. IOS 9 may look similar to the current mobile operating system but include  such items as beefed up security and additions to Maps, including mass transit directions, according to 9to5Mac. Apple may also have a competitor for Google Now, essentially a predictive personal assistant, code named Proactive that works to better integrate data on a user’s device, the website reported.

Game development 

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The first 5 HomeKit accessories are finally here

Flipping the switch

Apple introduced HomeKit, a framework that puts iOS in your connected home accessories, at last year’s Worldwide Developers Conference. We’ve seen sneak peeks of HomeKit-compatible devices over the last six months, but buyers couldn’t get their hands on these products until Apple gave manufacturers the go-ahead.

On Tuesday, the first wave of HomeKit accessories finally went on sale. You can buy them today, though some are just available to preorder and won’t hit store shelves until July.

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Apple buys augmented reality company Metaio

According to a report on 9to5mac, Apple has bought augmented reality company Metaio. This seems to be related to Apple’s plans to work on augmented reality for their Maps. 9to5mac included what looks like an official document from the German government to confirm the sale.

With the augmented reality feature, users can point their phone’s camera towards a building and see relevant information about it pop up on their phone’s screen. In Metaio’s demo video below, they also show how augmented reality can be used to see what your home will look like with new furniture or virtually checking out product information:

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Apple Inc. Watch Sales Estimates Slashed By KGI Anlayst

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) planned the launch and the roll out patterns of the Apple Watch very smartly earlier this year. After online pre-ordering commenced on April 10, the Watch was sold out within a day, while the available orders for the Gold Edition in China were a clean sweep within hours. As the world awaits the premium branded smartwatch, 9to5Mac reports that KGI Securities has cut its estimates of the Watch’s success and sales for this year in a new research note.

KGI Securities is considered as a reliable source, especially in the case of analyzing and predicting the performance and plans of the Cupertino-based company; so analysts and investors alike took note when the investment and research firm has slashed its earlier estimates of the Watch’s shipment numbers. KGI predicts that Apple will sell between 5 million and 6 million units of the Watch in the third quarter of this year; the revised estimates reflect a 20% to 30% downward change.

KGI’s estimates differ significantly from the Street’s consensus estimate of the smartwatch’s shipments. The Street consensus is rather bullish on the Apple Watch’s performance for this year, and analysts expect the company to ship between 20 million and 30 million units. KGI Securities had similar expectations, but now, after reviewing data from the previous quarter, the firm slashed its earlier estimates by half to just under 15 million for the full-year 2015.

The key KGI analyst associated with this news is Ming Chi Kuo, who has a decent record when it comes to accurately predicting Apple’s plans for its gadgets and estimating the sales. So why is the somewhat unbiased, yet analytical advocate of the tech giant predicting a slow year for the Apple Watch? Mr. Kuo believes that the demand for the Watch has significantly quieted down after the initial overwhelming hype around the time of its debut. He believes that the demand for the Apple Watch – and thus the sales – have already peaked and are doomed to drop for the year.

One interesting thing in the note was the claim that 80% of the orders placed for the Apple Watch are for the bigger 42mm version, deduced from the different shipping times assigned to orders for different sizes. The note proposed the assumption that men prefer the bigger size while women opt for the 38mm version, claiming that the gadget is far more popular in men than women.

Mr. Kuo has sources and informers in Apple’s supply chain based in Taiwan, and he stated that as the Watch’s Taptic Engine is being worked on to be improved, the supplier for that has not increased the output for weeks now. According to KGI, the shipment dates were placed all the way back to June, immediately after the Watch’s debut.

Since then, there has been a significant drop in shipment times; the firm says that the high demand has flattened out, as units produced in the second quarter are meeting the demand initiated since the debut, while the continuous demand for the Watch is currently falling.

Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty, on the other hand, claims in her report that the demand for the Apple Watch is in fact rising. She believes that the tech giant is not striving to gain demand for the gadget, but is instead somewhat struggling to keep up with the massive demand for it. Ms. Huberty estimates that Apple could sell 50 million watches this year if it could speed up the production, but based on real world circumstances, she raised her estimates from 30 million to 36 million shipments of the Apple Watch to take place for the 12 months of 2015. In a bullish note issued by Ms. Huberty to clients on Wednesday, estimates for sales of both the Apple Watch and the iPhone were raised.

Game development 

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Coherent Navigation Purchased by Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is in a buying mood. The Cupertino, California based company completed another acquisition recently, and brought Coherent Navigation, a company specializing in Global Positioning System mapping, into the Apple Inc. fold.  At this time there is no information about what Apple paid for Coherent Navigation.

Coherent Navigation Inc is a provider of space based navigation systems and services. The Company offers satellite navigation hardware and software that delivers precise, secure, accurate positioning, timing, and communication solutions.  It should be a great addition to Apple as the company is still haunted by jokes about it’s own glitchy map product launched way back in 2012.

As always, all Time Cook and his team have had to say about the purchase was that “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time.” As with everything the company “does not generally discuss out purpose or plan.” It’s not all that difficult to guess the purpose behind the Coherent acquisition, however.

The purchase of Coherent Navigation brings to mind the Google Maps vandalism from earlier this year. A reworking of the map scratched a Google Android model urinating onto the Apple Logo into the  Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), (NASDAQ:GOOGL) version of the earth’s surface. Apple is still behind Google in the mapping department, and this purchase may help it catch up.

Apple buys Coherent Navigation

Coherent Navigation Chief Executive Paul Lego apparently joined the Apple Maps team in January, according to his profile on LinkedIn. Daisuke Wakabayashi from the Wall Street Journal spotted the alteration.

The company was founded in San Francisco in 2008, and its website has been entirely removed since April. One of the company’s last blog posts shared that some exciting changes were set to come from the company. Those changes, it seems, were never officially announced by Mr. Lego and his compatriots.

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Brent Ledvina, the founder of Coherent Navigation and its Vice President in charge of business development, lists on his LinkedIn profile that he’s been working at Apple since April 2015. It seems that Cupertino set the wheels in motion for this acquisition some time at the beginning of the year, but only completed the buy last month.

Mr. Ledvina’s profile says he is “working on location technologies” at Apple. Mr. Lego lists his job as “part of the Apple Maps team.” Coherent Navigation’s GPS system is apparently expert at pinpointing location down to just a few centimeters. That could be incredibly important for Apple as it looks for an edge in the maps race.

Making maps better at Apple

Apple released it’s own Map product in June of 2012 and it became a laughing stock for it’s numerous fails and glitches.

Apple quickly fixed the problems that arose with its mapping service right after launch, but that doesn’t mean that the company is going to stop improving its product. The firm is still far behind Google Maps in terms of popularity, and mapping is a powerful service on mobile devices.

Apple has also, in recent years, brought companies like BroadMap, Embark and HopStop in by acquisition in order to boost its mapping prowess. These buys are known as “acqui-hires,” acquisitions in which the talent being brought on board is just as, if not more, important than any other asset owned by a business.

According to a comScore report on the world of mapping, two thirds of iPhone owners prefer to use Google Maps over the native service offered by Apple. That’s a problem for Cupertino, demonstrating that, in the eyes of customers, the quality of the service is not up to scratch.

A new “Killer App” for Apple Maps, such as accuracy good enough to provide indoor navigation, could be just what’s required from the company.

Gene Munster at Piper Jaffray thinks that Apple may try to buy Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP). A hyper-accurate mapping system could go incredibly well alongside the iBeacon and the customer-business review network.

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Apple Inc. Skips Over Intel Corp’s Broadwell for the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) today announced updates to its 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro and its 27-inch iMacs. These latest iterations of the systems still feature Intel's (NASDAQ: INTC  ) Haswell processors, which were introduced in 2013 and refreshed in 2014.

This lack of an upgrade in the 27-inch iMac isn't much of a surprise given that the "true" successors to the higher-performance Haswell-based desktop processors won't come until later this year when Intel launches Skylake. The shocker for many, including myself, was that Apple seems to have skipped Intel's latest Broadwell for the refreshed 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro lineup, opting to stick with the Haswell processors.

What does this mean for Apple?

Apple brought enough at the system level to make this a reasonably compelling refresh for the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro. The company added a Force Touch trackpad, sped up the flash storage subsystem, updated the discrete graphics chip for the higher-end configuration (base remains with integrated graphics), and increased battery capacity.

Although this means users won't gain an increase in CPU performance relative to the 2014 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, I doubt Broadwell would have brought sufficient improvement over Haswell to get owners of 2013/2014 15-inch Retina MacBook Pros to upgrade anyway.

Finally, I suspect Apple is paying less for these "mature" Haswell processors than it would for a newer and more-expensive-to-make quad-core Broadwell chip. This might help Apple offset the system-level cost increases associated with incorporating a Force Touch trackpad and a larger battery into the device. 

What does this mean for quad-core Broadwell?

Sticking with Haswell isn't likely to hurt Apple, but it does have some interesting implications for the higher-end quad-core Broadwell processor that was expected to launch in the middle of this year.

The 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro is one of the highest-volume designs that use Intel's CPUs with integrated Iris Pro graphics. I suspect the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro and the $1,299 21.5-inch iMac combined make up the majority of Intel's Iris Pro-based processor shipments.

Without the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, the market for the Broadwell chip with Iris Pro becomes substantially smaller. This will be offset to some degree by Intel's plan to bring the quad-core Broadwell with Iris Pro graphics in socketed form to enthusiast desktop users.

That said, I suspect most enthusiasts will opt to either buy Haswell chips today or wait for unlocked Skylake chips, which should launch in just a couple months.

Intel needs to get the quad-core Skylake chips out soon

From a commercial standpoint, the quad-core Broadwell for mobile is more or less a lost cause. For whatever reason, it's not inside the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, and although Apple could refresh the 21.5-inch iMac to include this chip, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Apple wait for Skylake before refreshing the system.

Intel now must roll out the quad-core mobile Skylake chips as quickly as possible. The chipmaker also needs to make sure that it rolls out the entire Skylake family much faster than it did Broadwell.

With the Haswell generation, Intel was powering the 2013 MacBook Air in June, and by October Apple was launching the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro with Iris Pro graphics. That's just four months for Intel to get all of its Haswell PC chips rolled out and in major quantities.

If we assume a quad-core Broadwell launch in June, then Intel will have taken about nine months (the first Core M chips launched in September) to launch all of the client Broadwell chips.

Now, suppose Intel can get its Skylake family out in roughly the same time it took to issue all of the Haswell parts. If we assume the initial wave of Skylake parts comes in the third quarter (as PC vendor Asus outright said in a recent investor presentation), then Intel might have the Skylake parts with Iris Pro graphics available for systems launching in late 2015/early 2016. 

3 Companies Poised to Explode When Cable Dies

Hollywood is dying. And there are 3 stocks that are poised to explode when this faltering $2.2 trillion industry finally bites the dust. Just like newspaper publishers, telephone utilities, stockbrokers, record companies, bookstores, travel agencies, and big box retailers did when the Internet swept away their business models. And when Hollywood falters, you don't want to miss out on these three companies are positioned to benefit. Click here for their names. Hint: They're not Netflix, Google, and Apple.

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Apple Inc shares will surge to US$240, Carl Icahn says in call for bigger buyback

Apple Inc., which already announced it was boosting its capital-return program by US$70 billion, should increase its stock buyback, Carl Icahn wrote in a letter to the company.

The market continues to misunderstand the maker of iPhones and iPads and the company’s shares are worth US$240, 86 per cent above where they closed Friday, the billionaire activist investor said. That would give Apple a market value of US$1.4 trillion.

“With Apple’s shares trading for just US$128.77 per share versus our valuation of US$240 per share, now is the time for a much larger buyback,” Icahn wrote Monday in an open letter to Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook.

Apple’s shares rose 1.1 per cent to US$130.22 at 11:49 a.m. New York time.

Icahn’s renewed enthusiasm comes as the market debates whether Apple has enough innovation in store to keep driving sales growth. Since April 27, when the company reported that second-quarter profit rose 33 per cent, shares had dropped 2.9 per cent at the close of trading last week.

Extended Campaign

The letter is the latest argument by Icahn that the Cupertino, California-based company is undervalued. In October, he released a missive to Cook, pushing for Apple to accelerate its buyback. The investor said the company’s stock was undervalued and should trade at US$203 a share. That price would give Apple a market capitalization of more than US$1 trillion. It closed at a value of more than US$700 billion in February for the first time as investor optimism swelled for the company’s new iPhones, smartwatch and future products.

Icahn’s new enthusiasm is driven by his belief that Apple will dominate in two new categories, television and automotive.

“Apple is poised to enter and in our view dominate two new categories (the television next year and the automobile by 2020) with a combined addressable market of US$2.2 trillion, a view investors don’t appear to factor into their valuation at all,” Icahn wrote.

To arrive at US$240 a share, Icahn forecast earnings at US$12 a share for fiscal 2016, a price-earnings multiple of 18, then added US$24.44 of net cash per share. Given the company’s entry into new markets, “we think a multiple of 18x is a very conservative premium to that of the overall market,” he wrote.

China Factor

Helped by new larger-screened iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, introduced in September, Apple has posted two record quarters and has forecast that revenue would rise again this period. The new phones especially have given the company a boost in China, where revenue rose more than 70 per cent in the recent quarter and where iPhone sales outpaced those in the U.S. for the first time.

Apple’s success has helped its cash pile grow even as it’s increased its capital-return program. Cash and marketable securities rose to US$193.5 billion at the end of March.

That led Apple to boost its capital-return program through March 2017. The company said it already returned more than US$112 billion to investors from August 2012 to March 2015. Because US$171 billion of Apple’s cash is located outside of the U.S., the company has been tapping debt markets to pay for the capital return program to avoid the U.S. tax bill that would come with repatriating the money.

Apple plans to review its capital return program around April next year, Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri told analysts last month.

Apple Watch

Beyond the iPhone, Apple last month began selling its first new gadget in five years, the Apple Watch, which starts at about US$350 and reaches US$17,000 for a gold version. The new product opened up new possibilities for the consumer-electronics maker in the area of high-end luxury.

Icahn, who first disclosed his stake in Apple in August 2013 and owns about 53 million shares, successfully pressured the company to increase its stock-buyback program in 2014. In February, Icahn issued another letter, saying Apple should be trading at US$216 a share.

Apple will face tough year-over-year comparisons in the next fiscal year, when there won’t be the same pent-up demand for Apple’s first large-screen iPhones, according to a report by Bloomberg Intelligence.

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Apple Inc.'s Sustainable Competitive Advantages

Shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) soared 255% over the past five years, more than doubling the Nasdaq's return. Most investors attribute that growth to the popularity of the iPhone and iPad.

However, investors shouldn't overlook Apple's sustainable competitive advantages -- the long-term strengths that give it a lasting edge over its rivals. Let's discuss two of those key strengths -- a protected ecosystem and brand appeal -- which should keep Apple ahead of its rivals for the foreseeable future.

A protected ecosystem

Only Apple devices run iOS. By comparison, multiple manufacturers produce devices that use Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) (NASDAQ: GOOGL  ) Android.

This means that if customers want to remain within Apple's ecosystem and keep their digital purchases, they must continue buying iOS devices. Last year, a survey by Simonlycontracts.co.uk found that 78% of iPhone owners "couldn't imagine" owning a different phone, while 59% confessed a "blind loyalty" to Apple. Therefore, as iPhone sales keep rising, more new users will be "locked" inside Apple's walled garden.

Android users, however, can easily switch between Samsung, HTC, and Sony smartphones since their Google accounts follow them across Android devices.

Meanwhile, the average price of Android devices fell due to two reasons. First, any company can develop and sell Android smartphones, since the OS is free and open-source. Second, chipmakers such as Qualcomm and Intel are helping those companies launch smartphones quickly with "turnkey" reference designs. As a result, premium Android device makers including Samsung, HTC, and Sony have lost market share to low-priced rivals.

The commoditization of the Android market resulted in hardware fragmentation. This makes it more challenging to develop Android apps, which must be tested on a wider variety of hardware than their iOS counterparts. It also makes it tough for Google to keep all its users on the same page with new features, considering that less than 10% of all Android devices run the latest version, Lollipop. By comparison, 82% of iOS devices have already been updated to iOS 8.

Attempts to duplicate Apple's walled ecosystem strategy have all fallen short of expectations. Samsung tried to establish a closed ecosystem with Tizen, but the OS has only been installed on wearable devices, smarthome appliances, and a single smartphone.

Brand appeal

Meanwhile, Apple is also one of the few electronics brands to be considered a luxury brand.

The Hurun Research Institute reported that Apple was the top luxury brand for gifting among China's richest men and women in 2014, beating brands including Louis Vuitton, Prada, Cartier, and Chanel. Samsung, the only other electronics manufacturer in the top 10, ranked 10th among men and ninth among women.

Just as Louis Vuitton can charge hefty premiums on leather handbags, Apple can sell fairly average hardware at premium prices. A comparison between the iPhone 6, Samsung's Galaxy S6, and HTC's One M9 reveals just how average Apple's flagship device is.

Despite its lower-end specs, the 16GB version of the iPhone 6 costs $649, the same price as a 32GB One M9 or a 32GB Galaxy S6. Therefore, Apple can sell its phones at beefier margins and higher sales volumes than its Android-powered rivals. Based on IHS teardown costs, the base model of the S6 costs $275.50 to produce, compared to a bill of materials of $228 for the iPhone 6.

Unless Apple's rivals can match its brand appeal in the high-end market, they can't match that strategy of selling devices with cheaper components inside. However, Apple has such a head start in the luxury market that Samsung, Sony, HTC, and others are unlikely to close the gap anytime soon.

The key takeaways

Despite those strengths, investors should recognize Apple's biggest weakness -- its heavy dependence on the iPhone, which accounted for nearly 70% of the company's top line last quarter. If competition or market saturation ever cause iPhone sales to slip before Apple can properly diversify its top line, the stock will take a big hit. But I believe Apple's well-protected ecosystem and lack of meaningful competition in the premium market should keep iPhone sales humming along nicely for at least a few more years.

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Apple Inc. Still Riding High On The iPhone In China

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) continues to see strong sales of the iPhone even several quarters after the release of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. In fact, sales of the smartphone show no sign of slowing down, particularly in China, the world’s biggest mobile market. It would see, the analysts who have voiced concerns about Apple’s reliance on the iPhone have little to complain about right now.

Apple could sell 51m units in June Q

In a report dated May 14, UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) analyst Steven Milunovich presented the latest data from the UBS Evidence Lab. He said their checks suggest Apple could sell as many as 51.1 million iPhones in the June quarter. That’s significantly ahead of the consensus estimate of approximately 45 million units, although the analyst said in the past, the Evidence Lab has been closer to predicting iPhone sales than Wall Street has been.

The analyst noted that his iPhone Monitor tracks sell-through, however, while Apple reports sell-in. As a result, he adjusts for changes in channel inventory and supply problems that could result in a difference between what Apple reports and the demand suggested by the Monitor.

Milunovich also upped his sell-in estimate from 43 million iPhones to 48 million iPhones to reflect the greater than expected demand he’s seeing. As a result of the increase in iPhone unit sales, he also increased his earnings per share estimate for the 2015 fiscal year from $9.04 to $9.17 per share.

Strong iPhone numbers in China

Apple has taken strides to capture China in the global race to get a stranglehold on the world’s biggest smartphone market. Milunovich said his model looks at historical shipment data in 20 countries and areas and correlating with Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) search values in an attempt to project demand in the near term.

He found 23% year over year growth in global search volume through May 2. Demand for the iPhone remains particularly strong in China, as he found a more than 100% increase in search volume there “using a bottom-up methodology.” He added that the model tends to place a bit too much weight on Greater China, as in the last quarter, his iPhone Monitor overestimated China’s contribution to search growth by approximately 9%. However, he also said that it has been “directionally correct.”

Why Apple will keep killing it in China for now

Analysts at CLSA also found continued strength in iPhone sales in China. In a pair of reports dated May 15, analysts Avi Silver and Chang Liu highlighted Apple’s growth verses the overall slowdown in smartphone growth in China. They highlighted several reasons to believe Apple has nowhere to go but up in China.

For example, they see the Apple brand continue to get stronger there and have found that Chinese consumers want to buy an iPhone because they see it as a status symbol. Further, China Mobile Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:CHL) (HKG:0941) and other major mobile carriers in China are quickly building out their 4G infrastructures, which is good for Apple as the iPhone enables consumers to fully utilize 4G service. The CLSA team added that the most important reason might be the rising middle-upper income class appears to be pushing the high end of the smartphone market to over 23% of the overall smartphone mix.

Apple could hit 100m iPhones in China

The CLSA analysts said it’s possible Apple could grow its China iPhone volume to 100 million units in just the next two years. That would make China be 50% higher than Apple’s North America units, and it would mean that Apple would have a staggering 55% share of the high end of the smartphone market in China. They emphasized, however, that this is their most bullish case for Apple. Here’s a closer look at their bull and base cases for Apple based on the China numbers

They note that Apple saw iPhone volumes in China skyrocket 73% year over year to 13.5 million units in a quarter that had difficult comparisons because the iPhone launched on China Mobile in January 2014. They also said Apple gained the most market share during the March quarter of this year, climbing 430 basis points compared to last year.

Chinese competitors Xiaomi and Huawei Technology Co Ltd (SHE:002502) only gained 226 basis points and 223 basis points respectively. “Emerging brands” Oppo gained 415 basis points and Vivo gained 345 basis points of market share, they noted. They also said that branded smartphones in China increased 17% year over year, with 35% of that being attributed to growth in the iPhone.

Chinese purchase intentions good for Apple

CLSA also pointed to a recent study from China Reality Research which indicated that 54% of participants plan to increase spending on consumer electronics. Of those respondents, 68% of them said they would buy Apple products, compared to only 16% for Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:005930).

In the last 12 months, Apple sold about 36.5 million iPhones in China, and they are projecting about 48 million in the next 12 months, which would be a 31% growth rate.

The survey also indicated that 35% said they plan to buy an iPhone. The CLSA team noted that the survey covered 135 million Chinese retail investors. Thirty-five percent of that base would imply 47 million iPhones just to that demographic in China, which doesn’t include the other 1.2 billion Chinese. As a result, the CLSA analysts said there’s plenty of runway for growth for Apple in China.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook says anyone can change the world

THE iPhone has fulfilled Steve Jobs’ vision of a product that will help change the world, Apple CEO Tim Cook said overnight during his commencement speech at George Washington University.

“His vision for Apple was a company that turned powerful technology into tools that were easy to use, tools that would help people realise their dreams and change the world for the better,” Cook said of the late Steve Jobs.

“Our products do amazing things, and just as Steve envisioned, they empower people all over the world,” Cook added. “People who are blind and need information read to them because they can’t see the screen. People for whom technology is a lifeline because they are isolated by distance or disability.”

“People who witness injustice and want to expose it. And now they can, because they have a camera in their pocket all the time,” he said to a cheering crowd.

The CEO spoke for around 20 minutes, not only speaking about Steve Jobs’ visions, but some personal memories of his own, and challenged students to make a difference regardless of where they end up working.

“The sidelines are not where you want to live your life,” Cook said.

“The world needs you in the arena.”

He often referred to his hero, Martin Luther King Jr as an example of how just one person can make a huge difference to the world.

“History rarely yields to one person, but think and never forget what happens when it does. That can be you. That should be you. That must be you.”

Of course, being Tim Cook from Apple, he couldn’t help make a little joke at his rival’s expense.

“Please silence your cellphones,” he announced.

“For those of you with an iPhone, just place it in silent mode. If you don’t have an iPhone, please pass it to the centre aisle. Apple has a world-class recycling program.”

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Apple And A123 Settle Dispute Over Employee Headhunting

  Much water has flowed under the bridge and Apple and electric car battery maker A123 Systems have finally decided to settle their ongoing dispute pertaining to employee poaching.

For the unfamiliar, earlier in February 2015, A123 filed a lawsuit against Apple in a Massachusetts Federal court, accusing the company of poaching five of its employees (including the former head of the company's venture technology division) who were responsible for A123 Systems' important projects. The employees violated their contract of agreeing not to work with a rival within a year of quitting A123 Systems.

However, Apple denied the allegations that it poached A123 Systems' employees to help build its own battery unit. In March, Apple had requested the court to dismiss the lawsuit, saying that A123 System's claims were speculative.

However, the two companies have now settled the feud, according to court papers filed by A123 Systems on Monday, May 11.

The filing appeals to the Massachusetts District Court to discharge the case as the aggrieved parties have reached a settlement. The two companies have come to an agreement and are reportedly working on the details of the settlement.

"The parties have reached an agreement, signed a term sheet, and are in the process of drafting a final settlement agreement," revealed A123 Systems' legal counsel in a filing at a federal court in Boston.

However, the filing does not disclose the battery maker's terms of settlement with Apple, and its staff have not been disclosed. The documents, however, do reveal that Apple and A123 Systems started discussions for a settlement in March.

The lawsuit also gives a glimpse into Apple's clandestine efforts to develop a new product, which has been rumored for long — an electric car. Experts have been debating for a while that Apple is gearing up to venture into the automotive sector and has an electric car in development, which could rival offerings from the likes of Tesla. Dubbed "Project Titan," the company's electric car project is said to be in its early stages.

Reports suggest that Apple is eyeing a 2020 launch for its electric car.

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