iPhone 5 a success, but is Apple losing its sheen?

NEW YORK: Apple, the world’s biggest and perhaps most admired company, seems to have lost some of its luster.
Despite the hugely successful launch of the iPhone 5 and iPad mini tablet, shares in the California tech giant have slid some 20 percent from all-time highs, and analysts are questioning whether Apple remains the leader in “innovation.”

A flubbed mobile maps programme and a major shakeup in key management have also tarnished the image of the firm that had seemed nearly invincible just months earlier.

A more competitive landscape for mobile phones and tablets, including the surge in devices using the Google Android operating system, have also changed the outlook for Apple.

Last month, Apple parted ways with Scott Forstall, the executive in charge of mobile software, following embarrassments over its glitch-ridden maps programme, as well as John Browett, who headed Apple’s real-world shops.

Some analysts say the company lacks the vision and commitment to excellence after the death last year of its admired chief Steve Jobs.

Apple stock hit a record high above $700 in September, but have since slumped more than 20 percent to $547.06 on Friday.

“Investors are confused and have lost faith in Apple management,” said Trip Chowdhry, analyst at Global Equities Research.

“Apple today is not as customer centric as it used to be, and the rate of innovation is declining when the rate of innovation of competitors has dramatically risen.”

Others argue that it is too soon to say Apple has peaked.

Charles Golvin at Forrester Research said that in a season filled with product launches from Amazon, Motorola, Nokia and others, Apple has been able “to exert a superior gravitational pull on its customers and partners than its competitors.”

And Forrester’s Sarah Rotman Epps said Apple “is entering the 2012 holiday season with its strongest product lineup ever, with wider retail distribution than it has ever had.

“Apple is already leading every game it plays. But these products will maintain Apple’s momentum,” she added.

Yet Apple has lost market share both in the tablet market, which it created with the iPad, and in smartphones.

Research firm IDC said Apple held a 50.4 percent of the tablet market in the third quarter from more than 65 percent in the second quarter, as rivals like Amazon and Google gained in the growing market.

IDC’s Tom Mainelli said many consumers interested in buying a tablet “sat out the third quarter” waiting for the new iPad mini.

“We expect Apple to have a very good quarter. However, we believe the mini’s relatively high $329 starting price leaves plenty of room for Android vendors to build upon the success they achieved in the third quarter,” Mainelli said.

In smartphones, it was a similar story with Android grabbing 75 percent of the market and the Samsung Galaxy S III getting the crown as the world’s top selling smartphone, based on surveys.

IDC said Apple’s smartphone market share slipped to 14.9 percent in the third quarter from 16.9 percent the prior period.

Even though the figures came as Apple launched the iPhone 5 — which combined with the iPhone 4S, outsold the Samsung flagship — the news was sobering for the Cupertino, California firm.

Many analysts remain bullish on Apple and say the recent stock slump is nothing to fret over.

“The sell-off in Apple’s stock in recent weeks has spooked investors but this correction is similar to the three others experienced over the past 13 months, all of which proved to be attractive buying opportunities,” said Brian White at Topeka Capital Markets.

Gregori Volokhine of the investment firm Meeschaert said one problem for investors is that Apple, because of its huge success in recent years, has become the largest holding for nearly every investment fund in the US and elsewhere.

That means any move is likely to be amplified as investors follow the trend.

“Having too much of one stock means portfolio managers will sell on declines to reduce exposure,” Volokhine said. “It’s a vicious circle.”

Microsoft offers Windows 8 for Rs 1,999 to cajole users of pirated OS

NEW DELHI: Offer a sophisticated operating system for the price of a pair of branded jeans. This seems to be Microsoft’s strategy to cajole millions of users running pirated copies of its flagship Windows operating system (OS) to turn a leaf and become legitimate, paying customers.

The Redmond, Washington-based software giant is offering a deep discount on Windows 8 for a few months, selling a copy priced at Rs 11,999 for Rs 1,999. From a computer that runs Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7 – pirated or otherwise – users can download a licensed copy of Windows 8 Pro, the version with all the bells and whistles, for an 83% discount. No questions asked.

The offer is valid till January 31, 2013. An upgrade DVD costs Rs 3,499 and if you bought a Windows 7 computer after June 2012, an upgrade is yours for Rs 699.

Microsoft is silent on whether this is a security loophole or a deliberate strategy. Company officials declined comment. Raju PP, editor of tech blog Techpp.com, who installed Windows 8 on a non-activated Windows 7 installation by paying Rs 1,999, said: “I have strong reasons to believe that this was a deliberate move to push up initial sales. Microsoft is big and wise enough to do a basic check for legitimacy of Windows 7 installation. They could have done a background check of the installation or could have asked for the Windows 7 licence key. But they didn’t”.

For years, the hordes of users who used pirated copies of the flagship Windows OS represented a tricky knot for software giant Microsoft. They were potentially robbing the company of billions of dollars in revenue. And yet, cracking down would have made them turn to free, open-source platforms.

This would have diluted the immense network effect that benefits Microsoft and helps preserve its market dominance. So, Microsoft mostly cracked down on piracy among companies and enterprise users and left personal users alone.

That seems to be changing as the company unveiled Windows 8, a touchscreen-optimised OS that marks a radical departure in its user interface to usher in a tile-based system common to personal computers, tablets and mobile devices. With these upgrade offers, within four days of its launch, 4 million licences of Windows 8 have been bought and downloaded globally.

The deep discount is likely to find many takers among users in emerging economies who run pirated versions of the OS. “They are obviously trying to lure pirated users, which is a big market. Not many enterprises plan to move to Windows 8 as they are still in the process of moving from Windows XP to Windows 7. Microsoft is trying to tap into the big market of pirated Windows, which is much bigger than their enterprise market,” said Vishal Tripathi, principal research analyst, Gartner.

As per Netmarkershare.com, Windows currently has over 80% market share worldwide in desktop OS. The main reason for piracy is the high price of a legitimate Windows copy. A genuine Windows 7 OS costs at least 5,000 (Home Basic) even today, while a pirated copy of Windows 7 Ultimate, legally priced at 11,488, can be bought for a few hundred rupees in the grey market. There has been great consumer interest in Windows 8, which clocked 16 million downloads for preview.

Microsoft’s SmartGlass App: A futuristic app that helps devices talk to each other and access content

BANGALORE: Even as Ferraris zipped across the Buddh International Circuit last week for the 2012 Indian Grand Prix Championship, a set of young gamers in India were traversing the similar course on their Xbox machines. The driver/player behind the console’s hot wheel (Forza) can now be assisted by a navigator, informing the driver of key turns, route maps, the position of the car and speed. The only difference is that the navigator accesses vital information on his smartphone which is enabled by an app – the SmartGlass app – launched by Microsoft on Oct 26, along with the Windows 8 launch.

With this SmartGlass app, the navigator can access the screen displayed on the driver’s console box on his smartphone. It ensures interconnectivity between the devices – Xbox screens can be shared on TV screens, PCs or on mobile phones. Simultaneously, the navigator can also do some browsing (with the IE10 browser) and dig out information while the game is on.

This app has enabled different gadgets to connect to each other seamlessly and even access content simultaneously. Users can access emails, check information on the hero of the movie that they are watching or find the latest weather report on one of the gadgets and at the same time not disturb the main screen. This is a new level of device integration and the beginning of a technological trend that is likely to find its way in many futuristic gadgets.

Despite the onslaught by app developers, a tech major like Microsoft is able to maintain an edge by bringing out features and products which are difficult to replicate because of the huge implementation base, scale and costs involved in creating them.

Apps, especially mobile apps, have emerged as a serious threat to tech majors, with worldwide mobile app store downloads surpassing 45.6 billion in 2012 and free downloads accounting for 40.1 billion and paid-for downloads totalling 5 billion as of September 2012, according to a Gartner report.

Microsoft seems to have maintained an edge over rivals by developing more and more futuristic technologies. Interestingly, the SmartGlass app has made a quiet entry onto Windows 8-enabled devices through the XboX platform – the same gateway through which the Kinect technology made an entry a few years ago and opened a vista of people-friendly applications in the motion-sensor space.

“What Kinect did to the motion sensing technology, we expect SmartGlass to do in the device integration space,” says Anshu Mor, business group head, interactive entertainment business, Microsoft India. “The gaming console can double up as your PC enabling games, music, video and smart jobs,” he says.

Intel has been hinting atdeveloping chips to enable this form of interconnectivity between devices. During a meet at San Francisco, the company’s CTO had stated that they were creating wifi-enabled chips where wi-fi functionalities are loaded onto the processors itself. “Everything that computes connects,” Yorgos Palaskas, research leader at Radio Integration Lab, Intel, had told ET when asked to comment on the new wifi chip Intel is working on. Such chips would help devices connect to each other.

The first taste of this interconnectivity feature, which is likely to be seen in future gadgets, has been unveiled through the SmartGlass app. The full potential of this app will be unleashed when Indians get to access services like Xbox Music and Xbox Video. “There are 30 million music apps on Xbox Music. However, these are not available in India. They are only available in 22 markets globally,” says Amrish Goyal, director, Windows Business Group, Microsoft India.

Once this is available in India, the entire playlist of songs of one’s choice can be accessed on the mobile phone. With the smartglass app, users can scroll through the playlist on their smartphones.

President Pranab Mukherjee launches low cost Aakash-2 tablet

NEW DELHI: The advanced version of low cost tablet Aakash was launched here today by President Pranab Mukherjee.

Coming at a price tag of Rs 1,130 for students, the new version ‘Aakash 2’, which will be made available to students of engineering colleges and universities to begin with, is now powered by a processor running at 1 GHz, has a 512 MB, a 7 inch capacitative touch screen and a battery working for three hours of normal operations.

It has been developed under the aegis of IIT Bombay with the active support of C-DAC. Datawind is rolling out the device.

“The price is Rs 2,263 at which the government purchases the device from us. The government subsidises it by 50 per cent and it will be distributed to students at Rs 1,130,” said Datawind CEO Suneet Tuli.

He said the government is also trying to encourage the state governments to chip in by subsidising it further so that the device can eventually be available to students free of cost.

The first one lakh devices will be provided to students of engineering colleges and universities and subsequently these will be distributed to others.

About 22 crore students will get the device across the country in the next five to six years. By coming Monday alone, 20,000 devices are expected to reach out to the students.

The device, which can also run on Linux operating system, do Aadhar authentication and control a robot from a distant place, said HRD Ministry officials.

Institutional investors call Wipro demerger a fair deal

BANGALORE: Wipro’s demerger of its non-IT businesses has received a thumbs-up from institutional shareholders in the company, contrary to claims by a proxy advisory firm.

“Over the past week, we have been meeting investors in WiproBSE -1.11 % and all of them appreciated the de-merger and the way it is being done,” said Viju George, executive director at the equities-brokerage arm of JP Morgan, an institutional investor in Bangalore-based Wipro, India’s third largest IT services company. “I don’t understand where the bit about shareholder angst is coming from.” Another institutional investor, CLSA, said the demerger “favoured minority shareholders, probably a first in restructuring of any kind in corporate India.” Recently, Mumbai-based proxy-advisory Stakeholders Empowerment Services had suggested that the hived-off entity should ideally be listed for minority shareholders to fully benefit.

On November 1, Wipro carved out its non-IT businesses, which contribute 14% to its $7.3 billion revenues and 6% of its operating profits, into a private company called Wipro Enterprises. Besides giving the IT business a sharper focus, the demerger will help Azim Premji to pare his stake to 75% in compliance with Indian laws that require the public to own at least 25% in listed companies. “It doesn’t matter whether you’re an individual investor or an institutional holder, there is no reason to be concerned,” said Sandeep Muthangi, vice-president at IIFL Capital. In effect, CLSA advised its clients that the promoter is taking out 6% of profits but is offering additional value of about 12% to existing shareholders who chose to exchange shares in the unlisted company for Wipro shares.

Shareholders could receive one share of Rs 10 face value in Wipro Enterprises for every five Rs 2 shares of Wipro, or opt for one 7% redeemable preference share in Wipro Enterprises with face value of Rs 50 for every five Wipro shares. Redeemable share will fetch Rs 235 at maturity in one year. Alternatively, investors could exchange the equity shares of Wipro Enterprises for Wipro shares held by the promoter, at an exchange ratio of one Wipro share for every 1.65 Wipro Enterprises shares. “We are sure the shareholders will appreciate the rationale and fairness of the scheme as they get a better and deeper understanding of the scheme,” Wipro said in a statement. “We are encouraged by the positive response received so far from the investors, financial analysts and media.”

Some shareholders may want to hold the shares in the unlisted entity assuming it is primarily in the consumer business, which is a growth sector in the economy, but will have limited options of realising full value as that company is not listed. JP Morgan, however, said the new entity is a “hodge-podge” including other unrelated businesses besides consumer business, and thus may not make much of an investment case.

Google Nexus 4: Handsome, beautiful and best say reviews

Google has launched the new Galaxy 4 smartphone with two other devices the Nexus 7 and Nexus 10. The Nexus 4 will be available in India by the end of this month.

The device is now available in India – the 8GB variant of the Nexus 4 is priced at Rs. 23,490 where as the 16GB variant is priced at Rs. 27,490. For those who have included this device in their wish-list, we bring you what the leading tech news are saying about this new device.

Cnet: “Google has completely re-written the rules on what to expect from an Android phone. The Nexus 4 offers not only astonishing power from its quad-core chip, but an excellent screen and exciting updates to the Android operating system. Most importantly, it comes with a price tag at least half that of its technical rivals.”

Engadget: “The idea that a Nexus quad-core smartphone is hitting the market with a starting price one dollar shy of $300 is simply stunning. Even more so is that it’s available without any contract or carrier locks, which means you can use it virtually anywhere in the world… Sure, the Nexus 4 is not without its hiccups, but none of its predecessors have been perfect, either. And given the boost in real-world performance, the better camera and various other new features, it’s even more tempting than all those previous devices whose shoes it’s trying to fill. In a case like this… you have our permission not to resist.”

Techradar: We can’t overestimate just how revolutionary this is and it leaves us open-mouthed at how Google is doing this. Either it’s selling the Nexus 4 at a loss – or the mark-up on handsets is now shown up as being ridiculously high. Whichever it is, it means the Nexus 4 has a distinct advantage over the competition.

Business Insider: “Everyone else will have to consider the unlocked version, which will only run on GSM networks like AT&T. But the lack of LTE support really puts a damper on an otherwise incredible device. If you think you can live without the fastest possible data speeds, then the Nexus 4 is a great deal at $299. Otherwise, you’re going to be really annoyed paying for a phone that can’t keep up with the competition.”

We believe, in India where 4G is limited to 4 cities only and is accompanied with huge costs, this device will be a good option.

The Verge: “The Nexus 4 is absolutely wonderful, but it’s also vexing. Frustrating. Annoying. It’s easily the best Android phone on the market right now, and has some of the most powerful software that’s ever been put on a mobile phone. It’s an upgrade from last year’s Galaxy Nexus in every way. It’s terrific — save for one small thing.” – No 4G LTE support

Think Digit: “The other disadvantage is that it comes with wither 8GB or 16GB internal storage with no expansion options. The competition offers up to 64GB, so storage may just become a bit of an issue. Google Drive cloud storage should help to some extent though.”

The Borneo Post: “The fact that they’ve then given you a smartphone which has a specs sheet to rival the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S3 for under £300 should only reinforce the fact that this is Google at its best, taking the best hardware and then offering it at a price that will have you head-scratching for days.”

BGR: “Google’s best phone ever – in fact, the best Android phone ever created – can be bought for only $299 with no two-year agreement. It’s just insane. It’s said that Google is subsidizing the cost of each handset sold by up to $350 each, but that’s not your problem, now is it? Aside from some very irritating shortcomings, the Nexus 4 is my favorite Android device in the world. It’s a great reference device to show other manufacturers how it’s done, and LG has done a beautiful job.” Says Jonathan S. Geller

Pocket-lint: “There is a lot to be excited about the Nexus 4. It’s equipped like a flagship Android handset, but priced like a mid-range phone. This is a huge point for anyone who wants to buy this smartphone outright, rather than taking a contract from someone like…” “The weakness for us comes in with the camera. It’s just not as much fun to use and feels slow compared to the best out there: we just want it to perform better.”

Trusted Reviews: “… the Google Nexus 4 screen is a reassurance to more clumsy users with the Corning Gorilla Glass 2 coating ensuring that the device is protected against the unavoidable collection of knocks, drops and bumps that accompany any handset’s lifespan. …. featuring a screen that is nothing short of stunning, a processor that will keep things running along quickly and smoothly, and an operating system that is a simplistic joy to use, the Google Nexus 4 is a highly recommended handset for those wanting to join the high-end handset revolution..”

Android Police: “The most premium-feeling Android phone in existence. It’s so rigid that it feels like one solid block of glass. It’s not slippery, either; the rubbery sides give a great grip. Other phones feel like Happy Meal toys in comparison.

The design is stunning. The front keeps the Galaxy Nexus’ pure-black good looks, without a single logo to screw up the minimal design. The back occasionally flashes an attractive, subtle hologram design when the light hits it just right, and everything has been rounded to nicely fit into your hand. Again, it completely outclasses other Android phones.”