SLIDESHOW: iPad 5 Event, Gmail Outage And More From The Second Week Of October
This was an interesting week for the tech industry.
There weren't too many big announcements, but there were enough tidbits (key Apple rumors, another Gmail outage) to keep things interesting.
Chromebooks took center stage as Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) and Acer unveiled new models.
The iPhone 5C wound up in the news again, but not for reasons that will make Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) happy.
Sony (NYSE: SNE) may not have appreciated its negative headlines either.
But at least Disney (NYSE: DIS) had something fun and inventive to talk about.
Disclosure: At the time of this writing, Louis Bedigian had no position in the equities mentioned in this slideshow.
Louis Bedigian is the Senior Tech Analyst and Features Writer of Benzinga. You can reach him at louis(at)benzingapro(dot)com. Follow him @LouisBedigianBZ
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Apple Rumored To Unveil iPad 5 On October 22
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) might introduce its next-generation tablet on the same day that Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) will release the Surface 2.
The October 22 event date has not been confirmed, but Apple is widely expected to introduce the new tablet sometime this month.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
Gmail Went Down Again
While this outage was not nearly as bad as the last one, Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) infuriated some users after Gmail went down again.
The outage seemed to be an isolated incident, but those who were affected found it difficult to check their email.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
iPhone 5C Less Popular Than Anticipated
Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) colorful iPhone 5C may not provide the market potential that analysts anticipated.
In addition to retailers like Best Buy (NYSE: BBY), which have already discounted the price of the lower-cost iPhone, there is now a rumor that claims Apple has cut its iPhone 5C orders in half.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
Samsung Unveiled Another Smartphone
Is Samsung (OTC: SSNLF) looking to set a new record for the most number of smartphones unveiled in one year by a single manufacturer?
It would seem so. If the existing lineup of Galaxy phones were not enough, Samsung has another one for consumers to buy: the Galaxy Round.
Named after its curved screen (which makes it slightly rounder than most other phones on the market), Samsung heavily promoted the device's tilt-to-view features.
With the Galaxy Round, users can tilt the device (while it's resting on a table) to see battery info, missed calls and other details.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
PlayStation 4 Was Student-Assembled
Foxconn got into a bit of trouble when it was revealed that Sony's (NYSE: SNE) highly-anticipated console was being assembled by college students.
While that little tidbit was hardly tabloid material, the fact that those students were being forced to work overtime proved to be very controversial.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
New Chromebooks Hit The Streets
Acer and Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) introduced new Chromebooks this week.
The first, Hewlett-Packard's Chromebook 11, contained a unique charging feature not found in any other laptop.
The second, Acer's C720 Chromebook, should provide an affordable solution for students.
Image Credit: Acer
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Amazon To Ship Two Million Old Tablets
Amazon's (NASDAQ: AMZN) slightly tweaked Kindle Fire HD could prove to be a huge seller this Christmas.
While the device will compete with the far more advanced Kindle Fire HDX (Amazon's newest line of tablets), the Kindle Fire HD now retails for $139.
As a result, Amazon is rumored to be shipping two million Kindle Fire HD units before December.
At that rate, the company must be expecting some massive sales.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
MacBook Sales May Continue To Suffer
Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) once-dominant MacBook Pro is beginning to suffer as consumers switch to tablets.
Apple has tried to weather the storm with a few price cuts, but the word on the street is that MacBook sales may decline by more than 10 percent in 2013.
Overall domestic Mac sales fell 12 percent during the month of June.
During the entire June quarter, global Mac sales declined by five percent.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
Yahoo Promoted Mail Upgrade With Apple's iPhone And MacBook Pro
Does Yahoo (NASDAQ: YHOO) love Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL)?
It would seem so -- why else would the Internet search, mail and media company choose to promote its mail upgrade exclusively with Apple products?
Yahoo Mail can be used by virtually anyone with any PC and any Android, Windows Phone or iOS device. But only the iPhone and MacBook Pro appear in Yahoo's promo video.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
Disney Generated Electricity With Paper
Who says the world's largest animation studio is out of ideas?
It turns out that some of Disney's (NYSE: DIS) best concepts have nothing to do with traditional or 3D animation.
The company announced that its engineers had come up with a very clever way to generate electricity: by rubbing paper against a sheet of Teflon.
The process is a little more complex than that, but needless to say, Disney's brilliant innovation could forever change the face of children's books.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
More Tech Highlights
See what else is going on in the world of technology.
- Intel-Backed Startup Builds Revolutionary Motion Controller Without Cameras Or Wires
- iPad Dominates Tablet Usage Among ShareBuilder Users
- PriveCo's Tom Nardone Says Don't Get Screwed By Bad Customers
- Apple Should Have 'Immediately' Apologized For iPhone Blunder
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