Pegatron
Latest
WSJ: Apple 'developing new iPhone,' plus another for Verizon (update: iPhone HD, front-facing camera?)
You heard right, folks -- according to the Wall Street Journal, Apple is currently "developing a new iPhone to debut this summer," and as if that weren't enough, it's also "working on another model for US mobile phone operator Verizon Wireless." As of this moment, details about the break are nowhere to be found, but it's not like either tidbit is shocking. This summer will mark the one-year anniversary of the iPhone 3GS, and if the Cupertino-based company keeps with its historical refresh pattern, we're just a few months out from seeing the latest and greatest iPhone. There's also been no shortage of iPhone-to-Verizon rumors over the years, with the latest of 'em happening during the run-up to the iPad's launch. Update: We're now learning that the "next iPhone is being manufactured by Taiwanese contract manufacturer Hon Hai Precision Industry," which just so happens to be the same outfit responsible for crafting all prior iPhones. That's according to "people briefed on the matter" and sourced by the WSJ. It's also stated that the world's first CDMA iPhone will be manufactured by Pegatron Technology, which we caught just last week dabbling in some of NVIDIA's Tegra 2-based wares. If all goes well, Pegatron could begin mass production of the CDMA iPhone (exact model not disclosed) this September, so it's hard to say if Sprint or Verizon would have access before the all-too-lucrative holiday season. As for quotes on the matter? Most everyone involved wouldn't say a word, but an AT&T spokesman did utter the following: "There has been lots of incorrect speculation on CDMA iPhones for a long time. We haven't seen one yet and only Apple knows when that might occur." On a week that couldn't possibly get any bigger for Apple, that's exactly what just happened. Everyone suspected that a fourth-generation iPhone was in the works, but having an outlet like the WSJ confirm it just makes the summer that much harder to wait for. There's also the possibility that 2010 will be the final year that AT&T retains its death-grip on the iPhone, but by the sound of this report, it still seems as if the nation's largest GSM carrier may nab exclusive rights on the latest iPhone. We also can't help but wonder about the future of a true 4G iPhone -- will Sprint manage to grab a WiMAX-enabled version? Will Verizon get its grubby paws on an LTE model? We figured only Jobs would know, but now... there might just be someone else out there willing to spill the beans. Update 2: Soon after the news broke, we were informed that the next-generation iPhone would be announced on June 22nd (a Tuesday, naturally) and would be dubbed the iPhone HD (a name that has been tossed around before). That certainly makes sense given that Apple almost certainly has to up the pixel count in order to rival the EVO 4G, HD2 and all of those other high-res handsets, but we're still reserving judgment until we see that fateful media invite hit our inbox. Update 3: John Gruber's just weighed in with some more tidbits, in his characteristically polite way. Gruber says the next model will have an A4-class SoC, a 960 x 640 display, a front-facing camera, and that iPhone OS 4.0 will enable third-party multitasking. A pretty safe set of predictions, in all, but Gruber's done pretty well in the past, so we'll just have to wait and see. [Thanks, Chris]
Pegatron showing off miniature Tegra 2-powered home theater PC
If all these tablet and smartbook shenanigans haven't won you over, but you still feel the call of Tegra 2, Pegatron might have your number. We spotted this details-scarce nettop-ish home theater PC lurking around the NVIDIA booth today, just looking to be loved. The thin plastic box is topped by what looks to be bamboo, with HDMI, Ethernet, microphone and speaker plugs around back. We're very much in the dark as to supposed capabilities or software, but Tegra 2 gives us a good hint: the chip can decode 1080p and Flash video, runs Android or Windows CE, and is the same thing under the hood of the Boxee Box. We imagine something like this going for $100 (though no price or release date has been mentioned) or so and acting as a great little home theater PC for the right sort of user if and when it hits the market. %Gallery-88960%
ASUS wants to be "another Apple"
ASUS chairman Jonney Shih has successfully guided his company through the spinoff of their manufacturing arm Pegatron (whom Apple is already ready to do business with), and in the process stated that he wants the computer maker to become "another Apple," but one based on open-source platforms like Google's Chrome OS and Android platform and chips sourced from ARM. However, ASUS is also carefully leaving the option of Windows/Intel products on the table to "suit consumer demand" -- or in other words, "keep ASUS solvent." He also hinted at a "killer product" launch in June, which Electronista sees as a thinly-veiled hint of ASUS's forthcoming Eee Tablet, the company's answer to Apple's iPad. As for their ambitions to become an "open Apple," good luck to them. So far Chrome OS and Android have both seen adoption rates best described as "niche," and Linux has been a widely-espoused "open" alternative to Windows and OS X for over a decade (in which time, they've gained little traction in the marketplace). Chrome OS and the Android platform certainly have the potential to become successful, but it seems odd to pin ASUS's future success on the hopes of "open" platforms that have yet to catch on with the average consumer. I won't go so far as to say that ASUS's ambitions are doomed to fail before they've begun, but if they really want to become "another Apple," they have a hard road ahead of them. [Via Electronista]
ASUS planning a 'killer product' for June, Eee Pad noise grows louder
ASUS CEO Jonney Shih has been speaking on the subject of the now finalized Pegatron spin-off and delivered a couple of teasing tidbits of info about the company's future direction. Naturally, most interest will be piqued by the "killer product" he has said is coming in June, but Jonney also mentions his company's intent to be "another Apple" -- only with a focus on open source -- and he specifically points out ARM and Google as a preferred hardware / software combination, while obviously not ruling out Wintel offerings where the market demands it. Taken as a whole, his words mesh perfectly with what we've heard of the Eee Pad so far, namely that it'll be powered by NVIDIA's Tegra 2 (which utilizes ARM CPUs), probably run Android, and arrive in early June. We still don't know whether that sub-$500 price will hold, but it's good to put a bit of CEO-level meat on those rumor bones anyway.
Report: Apple signs new iPhone manufacturer, rumored to work on CDMA iPhone
Apple has reportedly signed up with a new manufacturer in China to help produce the next generation of the iPhone -- Pegatron will be joining Foxconn in putting together parts for Apple's next handheld unit, we hear courtesy of the always talkative "industry sources." The company has been rumored to be working with Apple before, when it was suggested that they'd be working on a smaller version of the iPhone designed to work on Verizon's CDMA network. Officially, Pegatron hasn't confirmed any agreement with Apple, but they have said that they plan to substantially increase their output in 2010. And this might just be part of a good 2010 for Pegatron -- the company is also working on parts for Microsoft's Natal controller, rumored to be releasing this coming holiday season. As for what they'll be making for Apple, we'll have to wait and see what gets announced. It's almost a certainty that we'll see a new iPhone model sometime this year, but as to what that model will do (and whether it'll be CDMA enabled or otherwise), it's all just rumors so far. [via Apple Insider]
Pegatron on board to make next iPhone, might do 720p video recording?
The silly little sensor in the latest-gen iPod nano might have you thinking that high-quality video recording isn't anywhere on Apple's radar, but if you look in the smartphone space, HD video is shaping up to be the next gotta-have-it feature among the world's most buzzworthy handsets -- and sure enough, we're getting some hints here that it'll be on board the next iPhone. Remember that mysterious "N89" device in the iPhone OS 3.2 SDK? We've been tipped off that a gander at the MediaValidator.plist file reveals a few telling stats: the maximum video width is up from 768 pixels to 1280, and the maximum number of pixels per frame is up to 921,600, which just happens to work out to 1280 x 720. The device's AVC profile has been bumped from 3.0 to 3.1, too, which adds in support for 720p -- so yeah, all the signs are there, and industry trends pretty much require that we expect it at this point. On a related note, DigiTimes notes that ASUS spin-off Pegatron has allegedly been picked up as an OEM for the N89 (or whatever the new iPhone's internal code happens to be) -- but it won't be alone. The indication seems to be that Foxconn will continue churning out phones for Cupertino, too, perhaps a sign that these guys are expecting the need for more capacity than the old OEM alone can deliver, or that there could be multiple generations in the retail channel (a la 3G / 3GS) at the same time. Given Apple's typical iPhone cycle, it could be a few months before we know for certain -- so go ahead and take your sweet time speculating on this round. [Thanks, Dan L.]
ASUS / Pegatron Neo with Tegra 2 hands-on
ASUS may be in the process of spinning off the Pegatron brand, but for now it's still the same company behind this here slick white smartbook. Running the inevitable Android OS on a 10-inch display, but offering the never-boring Tegra 2 combo of 1080p playback and up to a "full day" of WiFi-enabled battery juice, the prototype machine was being shown off to give us a hint of what's to come. We're told the Neo is definitely coming later in the year, though the particulars of the price tag and distributor badge are not yet revealed. For our money, this was a spectacularly thin and light pseudo-laptop -- it's hard to overstate just how deprived of weight this thing is. Opening it up shows an appealing layout and keyboard, which were rather spoiled by a number of creaky and unstable parts. We found deep flex in the keyboard panel and around the hinges, but our optimistic souls are willing to put those things down to it being a demo unit. If this featherweight design makes it to market without sacrificing any of the good bits while getting rid of the bad ones, we'd recommend it in a hot and sweaty second. %Gallery-82366%
Asustek to spin off motherboard and GPU business under Pegatron brand
Asustek has informed the Taiwanese Stock Exchange that it will completely spin off its motherboard and graphics card subsidiary, Pegatron, in July 2010. The split is driven by the parent company's desire to continue its competition against the likes of HP and Dell under the ASUS brandname, while still collecting ODM and motherboard orders from those same companies for its manufacturing business. For its part, the newly self-governing Pegatron will be expected to advance the ASRock brand up from its current entry-level position and into the mainstream. We don't know how well that's going to go down, but at least the mobo market will be primed to embrace a new name after the heartbreak of losing old stalwarts like Abit and now ASUS. [Thanks, Mack S]
Michael Arrington says CrunchPad litigation is 'imminent,' provides more details -- but where's the contract?
The strange saga of the CrunchPad is getting even stranger: although Fusion Garage has a press conference scheduled for Monday, the company's apparently been hinting to some members of the press that the split with Michael Arrington was no surprise, and that TechCrunch didn't actually contribute anything of value to the CrunchPad. As you'd expect, that's got Arrington on the warpath. In a post titled "CrunchPad Litigation Imminent," he offers up an email from Fusion Garage CEO Chandra Rathakrishnan and two letters dispatched from his lawyers to both Fusion Garage and would-be CrunchPad ODM Pegatron that paint a much different picture: Chandra calls the split "out of the blue," Pegatron won't produce anything without TechCrunch's "explicit approval," and there was apparently even talk of merger between Fusion Garage and Arrington's CrunchPad, Inc. That certainly puts the timeline into dispute, but Mike's various CrunchPad intellectual property claims are far less solid, and unexpectedly weak -- even if you completely accept Arrington's side of the story, his CrunchPad dealings don't reflect his reputation as a bulldog Silicon Valley attorney. Let's break 'em down: Arrington claims he's the "outright owner of the CrunchPad trademark," but that's simply not true: the CrunchPad trademark was only applied for on November 17, the same day Arrington says Fusion Garage notified him of the split. Oops -- and even stranger because Arrington's said the CrunchPad was due to be launched on November 20. Why wasn't this sewn up months ago? Assuming there isn't some secret CrunchPad patent application we don't know about, the only major IP rights we can see TechCrunch asserting to the CrunchPad device have to do with the copyright to the code , and that's a total mess. Since Arrington apparently didn't draw up a contract giving him sole copyright to the CrunchPad's code, he and his lawyers are arguing that TechCrunch and Fusion Garage are "joint owners" to any rights, and that's just about the weakest position Arrington can be in. Joint copyright owners are legally considered to have equal rights to the entire product, and unless there's a written agreement (see how that keeps coming up?) saying they both have to sign off, each joint owner is allowed to non-exclusively sell the entire thing without the other's approval. In our experience it's pretty rare for joint copyright ownership to be an ideal business arrangement, and we can't imagine how Arrington got to within three days of launching the CrunchPad without hammering out the details of who owned what. In fact, the most notable thing about the letter from Arrington's lawyers to Fusion Garage is that it doesn't contain any contractual language whatsoever -- it only references emails and conversations between the two companies. That's particularly odd because the letter to Pegatron says TechCrunch will be suing for breach of contract, so you'd think Arrington's attorneys would be laser-focused on his contractual rights if he could assert them. Then again, you'd think Arrington would have known better than to start this project without doing the appropriate paperwork first, so really anything's possible. Now, we could be totally wrong about all of this: we haven't heard anything directly from Fusion Garage, and there very well could be contracts we haven't seen. But for right now, we're absolutely mystified as to how Michael Arrington -- who, again, is an attorney -- found himself in this position, and we're still mildly convinced this is all some kind of stunt. We're sure there's more drama to come, stay tuned. %Gallery-79654% %Gallery-79709%
Pegatron's Ubuntu-equipped netbook spotted in the wild
It's been a hot, hot minute since we've seen anything noteworthy from the lads and ladies over at Pegatron, so it's not shocking that we're super tantalized by the prospect of yet another netbook flooding the oversaturated market in the near term. All unnecessary snideness aside, the sub-$200 price point that's being floated about definitely has us interested, though the Ubuntu operating system is likely to fend off any non-adventurous would-be buyers. The machine was spotted at ARM's Connected Community Technical Symposium 2009 over in Taiwan, and while the actual internals remain a mystery, snoopers were told that it'll boast instant-on capabilities and a low power draw. Huzzah?
Rumor: Taiwanese firms awarded PS3 Slim manufacturing contracts
Another possibly "frustrating" leak for Sony, word comes from our buddies at Joystiq Japan and Engadget Chinese that two Taiwanese manufacturing companies have been awarded contracts to build Sony's new streamlined PS3, affectionately known as the PS3 Slim. According to UDN.com, half of the orders have gone to Taiwanese group Foxconn, while the other half has gone to Pegatron. The units are expected to start shipping in early July "to cope with expected summer vacation demands."The news has a ring of truth to it, given that the two firms have manufactured the original PS3. The timing also makes sense, as Japan actually buys most of its game consoles during the summer vacation period (as opposed to the winter holidays in the west). Still, all of this info comes from anonymous sources, so take it with a very hearty helping of salt.Assuming the news is true, it would mesh well with the PS3 Slim rumors we've heard so far, most notably that Ars Technica expected the units to hit the market in August or September. Add this to the string of rumors and leaks -- even some purported images of the unit itself -- and the PS3 Slim looks like it could be hitting the ground sooner rather than later.
Sony placing PS3 slim manufacturing orders for delivery in July?
We haven't heard much about the PS3 slim since E3, but that doesn't mean it's been entirely quiet out there -- the hot rumor today is that Sony's signed manufacturing agreements with both Foxconn and Pegatron to build the revised model in time for July delivery. That much we believe, since it's been backed up by a couple different credible reports, but here's where it gets totally insane: there's a suggestion that the slim will be the last PS3 model of this generation, and that a next-gen console based on Sony's motion controller is due in spring 2010. We don't buy that at all, since the PS3 is just entering its prime and Sony was clear that the motion controller was for the existing console, so we think this rumor is getting garbled down the wire -- it's far more likely that the slim is being prepped for an August launch to coincide with those rumored price cuts, and that new PS3 bundles that include the motion controller are set to drop next year. That's just our take on the matter, though -- we'll see how things shake out.
Freescale netbook and Android-powered smartbook debut
We knew good and well that Freescale wouldn't let Qualcomm go and have all the fun with these newfangled smartbooks, and already we're seeing a few new devices powered by Freescale-branded semiconductors. In the video posted just after the break, the company's own Steve Sperle sat down to talk about a new Pegatron netbook (which handles 720p video playback with ease) as well as an Inventec "smartbook" which is just marginally larger than your average smartphone. In fact, we're rather impressed with the layout: a larger-than-average 4-inch display, a slideout QWERTY keyboard and Google's Android OS. Unfortunately, Mr. Sperle would only stick close to the "later this year" launch time frame that we'd already heard about, but so long as these smartbooks end up looking like overpowered smartphones, you can certainly consider our interest piqued.
NVIDIA unveils 12 Tegra devices, 25 days of music or 10 hours of 1080p video on single charge (updated)
You've read about it, maybe even dreamed about it in your fantasies of a Microsoft Pink smartphone drizzled with Zune media. Now we've got Tegra taking center stage at Computex with a dozen "mobile internet devices" powered by the Tegra processor, the "world's smallest and lowest power computer-on-a-chip" according to NVIDIA. Of notable importance, the latest Tegra press release contradicts the Mobinnova Elan release by claiming 1080p video playback is supported by Tegra, not just 720p. Something we saw for ourselves (and had confirmed by NVIDIA) during our hands-on with the Elan. Now, get this; NVIDIA is using the term MID unlike Intel uses MID even though the terminology is of Intel origin. Instead of referring to handheld devices for consumers, NVIDIA's MIDs are classed as Tegra-based netbooks and tablets. In other words, the 8.9-inch Elan is a MID. Ugh. Semantics aside, the platform is smokin' hot with promise offering the following benefits: 25 days of music or 10-hours of 1080p video playback on a single charge video games play at up to 46 frames per second GPU accelerated Adobe Flash animations (huzzah for Hulu!) always-on processors for instant access to the network 3G, WiFi, and WiMax solutions support Great on paper, but still not available for purchase. Rest assured, we'll be hands-on with more Tegra devices on the quick.Update: Tegra devices are expected to land before 2009 is through, priced around $200 or less with carrier subsidies.
ARM-based netbooks primed to invade Computex?
Steppin' out in the world, are we ARM? Shortly after hearing that OLPC was eying the brand for processors in the XO-2, Digitimes is now reporting that ARM-based platform makers including Qualcomm and Freescale are looking to unveil netbooks at this year's Computex trade show in Taipei. Granted, none of this has been confirmed just yet, but we're hearing that a model with Freescale's i.MX51 CPU (the ARM Cortex A8) and a version with Qualcomm's Snapdragon CPU (to be manufactured by Wistron) will be on hand. Not shockingly, in the same breath we're told that NVIDIA Tegra-based systems will appear "at a later time." So, is Computex the show where Intel finally takes a little heat in the netbook market? And no, VIA didn't (and doesn't) count.
ARM's stash of netbook oddities and a Windows Mobile 6.5 MID
We're not sure what sort of shenanigans ARM gets up to, but it managed to amass itself quite the interesting collection of netbooks for its MWC booth. Information was scant, but they were showing that Freescale i.MX-based Pegatron netbook and nettop we saw at CES, an ultrawide 11.1-inch Snapdragon-based netbook from Wistron, a Snapdragon-based convertible tablet netbook from Inventec Alaska, and a totally odd "tech demo" of a Qualcomm-based Wistron MID semi-running a sketch version of Windows Mobile 6.5. Most all of the systems were in some level of prototype form, and seemed unbearably slow at running whatever prototype flavor of Linux they happened to have, while the MID didn't really seem to operate at all, at least to our touch. Still, it's clear that Snapdragon and Freescale i.MX are allowing for some pretty wild and thin form factors while still rocking decent battery life. %Gallery-45465%
ARM debuts Sparrow multicore netbook processor
We've had our eyes peeled for ARM Cortex-based netbook news, and now among the action this week at MWC '09 we're getting our first look at Sparrow, a Cortex A9 processor aimed squarely at netbook manufacturers. This is a multi-core update to the Cortex A8 (processor of choice for the Palm Pre and Pandora), and it's been speculated that this could be the processor for the next generation iPhone, with "at least triple the computing power of the ARM11 processors found in the [current] iPhone and T-Mobile G1." Toshiba, Pegatron and Wistron are all said to be showing demos of their ARM-powered netbooks at the conference this year, with a company spokesman saying that Ubuntu for ARM will go public in April, with Sparrow phones coming to market sometime in 2010. Additionally, companies like Adobe, On2, and Symbian are said to be "tuning their apps to run on the latest cores from ARM" as we speak.[Via Gadget Mix, Mac Rumors]
ASUS execs said to be infighting, potentially launching competing brand
ASUS has been riding the Eee wave pretty high lately, and although things seem going pretty well for the powerhouse company, there might be some storm clouds in the distance -- Tweaktown's got a long piece translated from the Taiwan-only Business Today which hints at some exec-level infighting going on at the top. It's pretty in-depth stuff, but the main takeaway seems to be that ASUS's spinoff of its OEM manufacturing business as Pegatron ruffled a few feathers, leading Pegatron chairman Tung Tsu Hsien to apparently start thinking about launching his own consumer brand called PEGA Design to take on ASUS -- especially interesting since we just saw some Pegatron-branded netbooks and nettops. We'll see if any of this comes to pass -- we'd be pretty into another huge company cranking out wild ideas like the Eee keyboard.
Pegatron and Freescale team for low-power, ultra-cheap netbooks and nettops
Pegatron has been pretty quiet ever since it split off from ASUS to do ODM stuff all by its lonesome -- which is sort of the idea, since Pegatron's mainly doing the behind-the-scenes manufacturing. We're glad, however, that the company peeked out of its shell to show off these new Freescale-based netbooks. The Linux-running laptops boast 8.9-inch screens, 8 hour battery life, 8GB of storage and projected retail prices around $199, while the nettop holds similar power in a pico-style form factor. Under the hood is Freescale's brand new ARM i.MX515 processor, which is a 1GHz chip that's described as basically being three times faster than the iPhone. The win here is that the chip draws very little power and generates very little heat, allowing Pegatron to squeeze impressive battery life out of a very thin form factor. Freescale is working with Ubuntu to prep an ARM-Linux distro, which will hit in May, and Adobe will have an ARM happy version of Flash 10 sometime this year. Supplementing the processor are chips for DSP, 2D, 3D and 720p acceleration, which switch on and off as needed -- we saw the computer in action playing 720p video smoothly while drawing a mere 0.5 watts and not even feeling warm to the touch. The limitation here is obviously straight-up processing power -- it's not very impressive, and certainly slower than Intel's Atom -- but for running an optimized Linux build and surfing the web or watching a vid, Pegatron and Freescale might've just found a new portability sweetspot. They're hoping to have an OEM pick these up around May or June sometime.%Gallery-41423%
Xbox 360 Blu-ray console shipping by September?
For all of Microsoft's denial, the Xbox 360 Blu-ray console rumors just will not die. In fact, they are getting more and more specific. The Chinese language Economic Daily News is reporting that Pegatron, an OEM subsidiary of ASUS, has won the order from Microsoft to assemble the Xbox 360 with Blu-ray Disc ROM drive -- shipments are expected to being in Q3 of this year. Now come on Microsoft, just come clean on the matter, we won't tell anyone.
