pegatron

Apple now training employees on iOS 5, iCloud?

Apple has reportedly already begun training its retail store employees on both iOS 5 and iCloud, sources have told 9to5Mac.

Such training usually kicks in a couple of weeks before a new product actually launches, which could mean that the latest iOS release and new cloud-based service may debut before the rumored timeframe of mid or late October.

These dates may also indicate the timing of the iPhone 5, according to 9to5Mac, which says that Apple usually unveils a new iOS version "in the days surrounding" a new iPhone. Last year, Apple released iOS 4 on June 21, … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1503: FTC needs to put that probe somewhere else (Podcast)

Today on Buzz Out Loud, we preview tomorrow's "awesome" Facebook announcement -- and we hope it's not just Skype integration. Microsoft is getting in bed with Baidu in China, but Cisco is getting in a much dirtier bed with China's government, helping build a massive surveillance system that we're sure will just be used to hand out traffic tickets. Plus, is #antisec officially in a world of hurt? We'll see.

iPhone 5 order: 15 million for Sept. launch, report says

Apple has reportedly placed an order for 15 million iPhone 5 units, slated to start shipping in September, according to DigiTimes.

Citing sources from upstream component makers, DigiTimes said that Taiwan-based notebook maker Pegatron Technology received the new orders from Apple.

Pegatron was responsible for shipping Verizon's CDMA version of the iPhone 4, but it reportedly had to cut back on its production due to sluggish demand for the phone. The company had ramped up its facilities and plants to handle orders for 10 million CDMA iPhone 4 units, but it shipped less than 4 million, taking a bite … Read more

Report: Apple slashes CDMA iPhone 4 production in half

According to a report from industry tech newspaper DigiTimes, Apple is cutting its production of CDMA iPhone 4s for Verizon by half, from a projected 10 million to about 5 million.

The report comes behind news that Pegatron, the company chosen to help Apple build the CDMA components of the iPhone 4, reported a net quarterly loss of nearly $20 million.

This news is in contrast to reports that strong sales of Verizon iPhone 4s are boosting Apple's smartphone share. CNET's Josh Lowensohn cited Apple's quarterly earnings, which noted that "sales have been brisk."

Verizon … Read more

Verizon iPhone rumor revived

The rumor that refuses to die has new life: A report Thursday says an iPhone compatible with CDMA networks is being manufactured for this holiday season.

Taiwanese trade publication Digitimes is at it again, reporting that contract manufacturer Pegatron has the order from Apple for a CDMA version of the iPhone 4 and "is currently using its plants in Shanghai, China, to produce the products." The report says that the product would be ready by the fourth quarter of this year.

It echoes The Wall Street Journal's report from earlier this year that Pegatron has been contracted … Read more

Pegatron: A Netbook powered by the Palm Pre

Atom-powered Netbooks may be the flavor of the month, but all that will change if ARM gets its way. The chip company visited the Crave UK offices to show off an exciting concept Netbook that's powered by the same architecture used in the Palm Pre. Yes! We said "exciting" and "Netbook" in the same sentence!

The unnamed demo unit, built by the awesomely named Pegatron, which is owned by Asus, uses a Freescale iMX515 CPU--a product that in turn uses the same ARM Coretex-A8 chip used in the Pre. In mobile phone guise, the chip is clocked somewhere in the region of 600MHz, but stretches its legs to a full 1GHz in the Pegatron. That might not sound like much, but the 65nm Coretex-A8 is capable of running 720p high-definition movies and 3D gaming.

It doesn't appear to consume much power while it's going about its business, either. Its modest two-cell battery is said to last between 4.5 and 8 hours depending on use. We'll take these figures with a pinch of salt until we test one in the field, but here's hoping the estimates are at least close. … Read more

The Netbook is dead. Long live the notebook!

Much coverage of this year's Consumer Electronics Show is full of references to new Netbooks introduced at the show. But in fact, there were hardly any Netbooks at all, and those that did appear went almost unmentioned.

The truth is, the Netbook is dead, and good riddance. The concept of the Netbook was based on a tragic misunderstanding: the belief that tens, perhaps hundreds of millions of people worldwide wanted a portable computer that was small, power-efficient, and (here's the misunderstanding) not good for much beyond accessing the Internet.

That's where the "Net" in "… Read more

More rumors that XBox 360 will add Blu-ray drive

Following HD DVD's demise, there's been a lot speculation that Microsoft would add a Blu-ray option to the XBox 360. The latest rumor has a subsidiary of Asus, Pegatron Technology, making a premium Blu-ray-equipped version of the XBox 360 that will arrive in time for the holidays. This one follows on the heels of a report that Lite-On was going to be the one making the Blu-ray drives for Microsoft's game console.

If you speak Chinese, you can translate the Asus rumor from Economic Daily News, a publication that Gizmodo calls a "Taiwanese rag." While … Read more