Apple Loop: iPhone 6S To Launch September 9th, On Sale During September, Here Are The New Features
CONTRIBUTOR
I look at the impact of mobile technology and online media.
Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.
Taking a look back at another week of news from Cupertino, this week’s Apple Loop includes details on the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, Apple’s attempt to prevent a repeat of the #bendgate saga, launch details for the new iPhone handsets, details on Force Touch, thoughts on the iPad release date, a new patent to back up your photos, the Apple Music tweaks in iOS 8.4.1, Apple’s assault on the music industry, and the many voices of Siri.
Apple Loop is here to remind you of a few of the very many discussions that have happened around Apple over the last seven days (and you can read our weekly digest of Android news here on Forbes).
Apple iPhone 6 Plus (image: Ewan Spence)
iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus New Features
A number of leaks this week have cast new light on Apple’s upcoming handsets. While the ‘S’ handsets are generally refinements on the previous year’s phones, they tend to be much more popular in the market. With two new handsets on the way, Forbes’ Gordon Kelly looks over what we already know about the revamped flagship. and its brotherly phablet thanks to MacManiac:
1. A new access panel to the display (also photographed by Nowhereelse.fr) which is a prerequisite for Force Touch integration
2. Different flex connectors which Touch ID circuitry is now integrated into the LCD and digitizer connectors which hints at an upgraded fingerprint sensor
3. The protective plate on the back of the LCD is now glued in place, which may present a greater challenge for third party screen repairs
Recommended by Forbes
All of these offer an intriguing view of the new handsets, but Kelly also thinks he has found a fourth bigger new feature they missed.
Avoiding #Bendgate 2 With The ‘S’ Designs
I’ve also taken a look at the leaked chassis parts that were filmed this week. Given the PR backlash Apple suffered last year over the ‘bending’ of the handsets (specifically the iPhone 6 Plus) the strengthened design and newer material should give Apple a PR advantage and the ability to tell a story about improved resilience:
The main visual change is the increase in size of the sides of the iPhone 6S compared to the iPhone 6. This should ensure more strength to resist the flexing and bending of the case. Unbox Therapy also observes a difference in mass of a few grams with the older iPhone 6 shell slightly lighter than this new iPhone 6S shell.Couple this change with the rumored use of a stronger aluminium and a number of other changes, and it is clear that Apple is serious in addressing the bending issue. Not only is it taking a number of measures to negate the physical aspects of smartphone construction, but it is also lining up element that can be used to tell a stronger story in the media when the handset is launched.
When Is The Big Day? Wednesday The Ninth Of September
Just missing last week’s Apple Loop was the realisation that the launch date for the new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus was going to be Wednesday September 9th. While this has still to be confirmed by Apple, it’s now the date in everyone’s diary.
What can we expect on that Wednesday? Well, the new iPhones are expected, and we’ll see iOS 9 in action. But what of Apple TV? Apple Insider looks at Piper Jaffray’s report from Gene Munster:
As for the Apple TV hardware, it’s expected to be unveiled at a rumored Sept. 9 event, where the company will also showcase its next-generation “iPhone 6s” series. Munster said on Thursday that the Apple TV update is “overdue,” with the hardware not having been updated in a meaningful way since early 2012. It’s expected that the new Apple TV will feature a dedicated App Store, Siri voice controls, and a new Bluetooth touchpad remote.While a new Apple TV will help solidify Apple’s presence in the living room, Munster doesn’t believe it will greatly affect the company’s bottom line. Priced at a presumed $99, Munster estimates that every 25 million units sold would add just 1 percent to the company’s calendar year 2016 revenue.
As for the release date to the public, previous reports of pre-orders starting on September 18th and public availability on September 25th show no sign yet of being wrong.
Glass Paint Could Help Ships And Buildings Beat The Sun's Heat
CONTRIBUTOR
I cover chemistry, from its small molecules to its big questions.
Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.
Sorry, sunlight. A new paint in development is designed to bounce the sun’s rays off of metal surfaces, such as those on buildings or military ships. The coating, made with a chemical precursor to glass, isn’t available yet. But if forthcoming field tests turn out as expected, the paint will slow down the wear and tear to structures that results from constant exposure to heat.
When the sun beats down on ships, it accelerates rusting and other wear and tear. A new paint in development is designed to slow down the damage. (Credit: William Thomas Cain/Getty Images)
Jason J. Benkoski of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory described the material today in Boston, at a meeting of the American Chemical Society.
Paints exist for almost any application you can think of: a super-glossy finish, or preventing growth of barnacles, for instance. According to John Hopewell, director of international affairs at the American Coatings Association, so called “cool paints” are a hot topic. Hopewell isn’t involved with the new work, but points out that researchers “see potential to reduce the use of energy in buildings or keep car interiors cooler in the summer, to name a few examples.”
Benkoski has additional reasons for making a cool paint: “Corrosion, fatigue, and wear all accelerate as you raise the temperature,” he explains. In the sun, metal surfaces like aluminum (a common material in ships) can get much hotter than air temperature. His lab was after a cheap, environmentally-friendly paint to keep metal surfaces cool. Painting with many of the typical coatings for vehicles, buildings or boats can release compounds that are harmful to the environment. On top of that, these coatings, made from polymers such as epoxies, can degrade under ultraviolet light from the sun. That means re-painting or adding a top coat, says Sylvia Insogna, North America Marketing Director for Dow Coating Materials. Translation? More time and more money.
“We’re trying to switch to something more durable,” Benkoski says. His lab got inspired by paints known as water glass. “The starting materials are the cheapest things you can imagine– sand and potash,” potassium-bearing compounds often used as fertilizer, Benkoski says. Glass reflects sunlight. And water glass paints are long-lasting: Century-old building façades in Germany and Switzerland decorated with these mineral paints still retain their beauty.
Recommended by Forbes
The early Renaissance style façade of the Weisser Adler (White Eagle) House in Stein am Rhein, Switzerland, was redecorated with mineral paints in 1891. (Credit: Ikiwaner/Wikimedia Commons)
What’s good for concrete buildings isn’t great for metal surfaces, though. Glass is brittle, and traditional mineral paints require a clean, rough surface to adhere properly. If applied too thickly, it cracks. “We call it mud cracking. It looks like a dry lake bed,” Benkoski says.
His team set out to make a water-glass-like paint that behaved less like glass and more like bathtub caulking. Caulking, Benkoski explains, has the kind of flexibility that accomodates a metal surface that expands and contracts. By making chemical adjustments, Benkoski’s team made promising paints that, in laboratory tests, can be applied to any desired thickness and adhere smoothly to aluminum while keeping the sun’s hot rays at bay.
Developing a laboratory success into a commercial product takes time, Benkoski cautions. “You sometimes find real-world conditions are less predictable than you thought,” he explains. “You also have to think of everything that can go wrong and engineer the coating so that even if it’s not used perfectly, it’s effective,” he adds.
Benkoski currently plans to conduct field tests of the paint within one to two years.
For more details on the work, watch this video produced by the American Chemical Society.
Disclosure: I am a former employee of Chemical & Engineering News magazine, which is published by the American Chemical Society.
