Actually it's big claim to fame in this area is that it can be injection moulded, like thermoplastics. That means they could ditch the milling entirely. It costs a LOT more money than aluminum, but my guess is for small amounts of material the milling costs might be more than the material.
VERY interesting development.
Maury
It's likely it will show up in the smaller products first then as an alternative to milling tiny iPod cases out of blocks of aluminium perhaps.
Very cool that they have an exclusivity arrangement also although we were told they had the same with lots of products and processes in the past and that hasn't stopped the rest of the industry from shamelessly copying them.
Hopefully cheaper too. All the metal unibody designs have increased the prices of the laptops.
The weight should be able to drop in the Mac Pro too but we'll see.
More expensive most likely. This is real expensive stuff. In very small quantities the cost isn't much, but enough for a laptop case might not be cost effective. IPods, iPhones, and possibly even the tablet might be able to use this. The tablet has only one piece and it might be possible to use this to replace that as there are no heavy, or moving components inside. There are some complaints that it's just a bit too heavy for use as a bookreader, and while I haven't found that to be much of a problem, I admit that losing a few ounces would be helpful for that purpose.
But then, it's always possible that Apple has something entirely new in mind that this would be perfect for, and without which, the product would't be practical. If that's so, and it's certainly possible, then cornering the market for electronic use of this product would possibly give them a major advantage in that new product line that other companies wouldn't be able to match for years, if ever.
More expensive most likely. This is real expensive stuff. In very small quantities the cost isn't much, but enough for a laptop case might not be cost effective. IPods, iPhones, and possibly even the tablet might be able to use this. The tablet has only one piece and it might be possible to use this to replace that as there are no heavy, or moving components inside. There are some complaints that it's just a bit too heavy for use as a bookreader, and while I haven't found that to be much of a problem, I admit that losing a few ounces would be helpful for that purpose.
But then, it's always possible that Apple has something entirely new in mind that this would be perfect for, and without which, the product would't be practical. If that's so, and it's certainly possible, then cornering the market for electronic use of this product would possibly give them a major advantage in that new product line that other companies wouldn't be able to match for years, if ever.
I agree.
Some interesting properties of the material I have found in a few minutes of looking:
- It's "bouncy" and objects made of it will flex or bounce before they break or deform.
- It can be made "transparent like glass" and in some instances is referred to as "metallic glass."
If that's true, it could very well make the next iPhone practically indestructible if used for the front and back plates. If the iPhone/iPod antenna is the metallic band and the back and front were this stuff, you'd get great signal reception combined with much higher resistance to breaking.
It's likely it will show up in the smaller products first then as an alternative to milling tiny iPod cases out of blocks of aluminium perhaps.
Very cool that they have an exclusivity arrangement also although we were told they had the same with lots of products and processes in the past and that hasn't stopped the rest of the industry from shamelessly copying them.
If the agreement is exclusive "in perpetuity", then that's exactly what it means. Liquidmetal has patents and trade secrets filed and granted for this. No one else will be making its like any time soon.
It's different from companies copying the way something looks, though if it looks too much like another product, the company can sue over "dress", something Apple did over a dispute involving the design of the original iMac, which they won.
This is a tiny company, with a market cap of less than $25M. I wonder why Apple did not buy it outright for the whole nine yards, and not just a piece of the IP.
Heck, Mark Hurd could have bought it with just a portion of his severance payment.....
Mithral is pretty good, but cuendillar is much better. You can make your part out of anything first, and then turn it into cuendillar afterwards, so it's really easy and inexpensive to make things into it. You do need someone with the One Power to make the change though.
Uh, oh... you guys are displaying your true nerd selves...
Some interesting properties of the material I have found in a few minutes of looking:
- It's "bouncy" and objects made of it will flex or bounce before they break or deform.
- It can be made "transparent like glass" and in some instances is referred to as "metallic glass."
If that's true, it could very well make the next iPhone practically indestructible if used for the front and back plates. If the iPhone/iPod antenna is the metallic band and the back and front were this stuff, you'd get great signal reception combined with much higher resistance to breaking.
It's an interesting thought, but like other metals, it's conductive. I'm not sure what that would mean for a screen surface. Either it would be impossible, it would give some characteristic that can't now be achieved. But as it's one whole piece, I don't see how sensing lines could be used to tell where a touch originates from.
This is a tiny company, with a market cap of less than $25M. I wonder why Apple did not buy it outright for the whole nine yards, and not just a piece of the IP.
Heck, Mark Hurd could have bought it with just a portion of his severance payment.....
They probably don't want to make parts for others, and there are contracts that they would have to honor. It would also mean that they would be in the business of manufacturing the metal themselves, and they may not want to do that. We don't know exactly what this license means.
Hmm?.. Actually as long as you have external antennas, backplates don't need to be radio transparent. See, the iP4 antenna design is a good step in the right direction preparing the way for even more radical design solutions.
The extemal antenna was indeed a radical technology design of the iPhone 4 that many do not fully understand or appreciate. Design wise, there is no reason why the external antena needs to be limited to the metal strip in the iPhone 4 design. However, since the metal is a electrical conductor, Apple has to find ways to minimize "short circuits" which may require thin coatings or boundaries, just like those in silicon wafers or some similar technologies.
The Cost of it relates to whether it can be mass produced. And Apple may be the only one in the world where they can put up price of their products while still getting demand exceeding their supply.
Since Aluminum is getting more expensive day by day, Zr-alloy may be able to outweight its investment in the future.
I think the reason why Apple didn't buy it would be because Apple has no interest in dealing with NASA and may be Department of Defense.
[QUOTE=Maury Markowitz;1693018]Actually it's big claim to fame in this area is that it can be injection moulded, like thermoplastics. That means they could ditch the milling entirely. It costs a LOT more money than aluminum, but my guess is for small amounts of material the milling costs might be more than the material.
VERY interesting development. [QUOTE]
Many metal alloys can be moulded -- just like plastics and glass -- to form all sorts of configurations and forms. Many mass manufactured metal products and parts are manufactured by molding. The "drilling" manufacture, as presented to the layman, of the aluminum unibody for NoteBook Pros might be replaceable with much simpler molding and refinishing manufacture processes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post
This is a tiny company, with a market cap of less than $25M. I wonder why Apple did not buy it outright for the whole nine yards, and not just a piece of the IP.
May not always be the most prudent because industrial metal alloy technology can change rapidly to achieve all sorts of functionality or special uses. The said alloys may be supplanted easily by others in the near future that may even be cheaper or have other more interesting properties. Also as noted, the metal alloys in question are used in various industries. It will distract Apple to become the lincense vendor for the technology.
HTC & others are only interesting in offering things they can sell as features, even if they don't work properly for as little cost as possible. They're not interested in making the best product possible.
.
Samsung already has a LiquidMetal Phone. I hope that Apple cancels their product. Only the iPhone should be allowed.
Wow, that's pretty cool. That translates into thinner laptops, desktops, and iPads. Any thinner on the iPhones and iPod and they'll have to call them knives.
Actually, I do not understand the technological rationale for using glass for the back casing even for smaller devices, like a smartphones. I was surprised therefore when the iPhone 4 used glass for the backcasing. It is mostly aesthetic that is lost in the white iPhone 4. One possible technical rationale for "glass backcasing" would have been using the back as "solar battery" area; but that may be a different "glass" technology altogether. Apple has an approved patent for solar powered technology for mobile devices.
CGC
The rationale is not merely technological. In Apple products, form follows function like a hand in a glove. That is why Jony gave us the glass back.
Comments
Actually it's big claim to fame in this area is that it can be injection moulded, like thermoplastics. That means they could ditch the milling entirely. It costs a LOT more money than aluminum, but my guess is for small amounts of material the milling costs might be more than the material.
VERY interesting development.
Maury
It's likely it will show up in the smaller products first then as an alternative to milling tiny iPod cases out of blocks of aluminium perhaps.
Very cool that they have an exclusivity arrangement also although we were told they had the same with lots of products and processes in the past and that hasn't stopped the rest of the industry from shamelessly copying them.
Hopefully cheaper too. All the metal unibody designs have increased the prices of the laptops.
The weight should be able to drop in the Mac Pro too but we'll see.
More expensive most likely. This is real expensive stuff. In very small quantities the cost isn't much, but enough for a laptop case might not be cost effective. IPods, iPhones, and possibly even the tablet might be able to use this. The tablet has only one piece and it might be possible to use this to replace that as there are no heavy, or moving components inside. There are some complaints that it's just a bit too heavy for use as a bookreader, and while I haven't found that to be much of a problem, I admit that losing a few ounces would be helpful for that purpose.
But then, it's always possible that Apple has something entirely new in mind that this would be perfect for, and without which, the product would't be practical. If that's so, and it's certainly possible, then cornering the market for electronic use of this product would possibly give them a major advantage in that new product line that other companies wouldn't be able to match for years, if ever.
More expensive most likely. This is real expensive stuff. In very small quantities the cost isn't much, but enough for a laptop case might not be cost effective. IPods, iPhones, and possibly even the tablet might be able to use this. The tablet has only one piece and it might be possible to use this to replace that as there are no heavy, or moving components inside. There are some complaints that it's just a bit too heavy for use as a bookreader, and while I haven't found that to be much of a problem, I admit that losing a few ounces would be helpful for that purpose.
But then, it's always possible that Apple has something entirely new in mind that this would be perfect for, and without which, the product would't be practical. If that's so, and it's certainly possible, then cornering the market for electronic use of this product would possibly give them a major advantage in that new product line that other companies wouldn't be able to match for years, if ever.
I agree.
Some interesting properties of the material I have found in a few minutes of looking:
- It's "bouncy" and objects made of it will flex or bounce before they break or deform.
- It can be made "transparent like glass" and in some instances is referred to as "metallic glass."
If that's true, it could very well make the next iPhone practically indestructible if used for the front and back plates. If the iPhone/iPod antenna is the metallic band and the back and front were this stuff, you'd get great signal reception combined with much higher resistance to breaking.
Great move for Apple that they have entered into an exclusive deal. That way those Android phones can never copy them.
Apple needs more "Apple-Only" stuff.
iOS is more than sufficiently Apple-only.
It's likely it will show up in the smaller products first then as an alternative to milling tiny iPod cases out of blocks of aluminium perhaps.
Very cool that they have an exclusivity arrangement also although we were told they had the same with lots of products and processes in the past and that hasn't stopped the rest of the industry from shamelessly copying them.
If the agreement is exclusive "in perpetuity", then that's exactly what it means. Liquidmetal has patents and trade secrets filed and granted for this. No one else will be making its like any time soon.
It's different from companies copying the way something looks, though if it looks too much like another product, the company can sue over "dress", something Apple did over a dispute involving the design of the original iMac, which they won.
Heck, Mark Hurd could have bought it with just a portion of his severance payment.....
If you combine Zr-alloy with Corning Gorilla Glass do you get ?Transparent aluminum?? (Anyone still remember Star Trek?)
A keyboard. How quaint.
Mithral is pretty good, but cuendillar is much better. You can make your part out of anything first, and then turn it into cuendillar afterwards, so it's really easy and inexpensive to make things into it. You do need someone with the One Power to make the change though.
Uh, oh... you guys are displaying your true nerd selves...
I agree.
Some interesting properties of the material I have found in a few minutes of looking:
- It's "bouncy" and objects made of it will flex or bounce before they break or deform.
- It can be made "transparent like glass" and in some instances is referred to as "metallic glass."
If that's true, it could very well make the next iPhone practically indestructible if used for the front and back plates. If the iPhone/iPod antenna is the metallic band and the back and front were this stuff, you'd get great signal reception combined with much higher resistance to breaking.
It's an interesting thought, but like other metals, it's conductive. I'm not sure what that would mean for a screen surface. Either it would be impossible, it would give some characteristic that can't now be achieved. But as it's one whole piece, I don't see how sensing lines could be used to tell where a touch originates from.
This is a tiny company, with a market cap of less than $25M. I wonder why Apple did not buy it outright for the whole nine yards, and not just a piece of the IP.
Heck, Mark Hurd could have bought it with just a portion of his severance payment.....
They probably don't want to make parts for others, and there are contracts that they would have to honor. It would also mean that they would be in the business of manufacturing the metal themselves, and they may not want to do that. We don't know exactly what this license means.
Hmm?.. Actually as long as you have external antennas, backplates don't need to be radio transparent. See, the iP4 antenna design is a good step in the right direction preparing the way for even more radical design solutions.
The extemal antenna was indeed a radical technology design of the iPhone 4 that many do not fully understand or appreciate. Design wise, there is no reason why the external antena needs to be limited to the metal strip in the iPhone 4 design. However, since the metal is a electrical conductor, Apple has to find ways to minimize "short circuits" which may require thin coatings or boundaries, just like those in silicon wafers or some similar technologies.
CGC
Uh, oh... you guys are displaying your true nerd selves...
I've been a nerd since the early sixties, long before it was applied to people like us.
I like to think that the looks and loner part of it doesn't apply.
Well, from Avatar... but anyway...
Since Aluminum is getting more expensive day by day, Zr-alloy may be able to outweight its investment in the future.
I think the reason why Apple didn't buy it would be because Apple has no interest in dealing with NASA and may be Department of Defense.
VERY interesting development. [QUOTE]
Many metal alloys can be moulded -- just like plastics and glass -- to form all sorts of configurations and forms. Many mass manufactured metal products and parts are manufactured by molding. The "drilling" manufacture, as presented to the layman, of the aluminum unibody for NoteBook Pros might be replaceable with much simpler molding and refinishing manufacture processes.
Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post
This is a tiny company, with a market cap of less than $25M. I wonder why Apple did not buy it outright for the whole nine yards, and not just a piece of the IP.
May not always be the most prudent because industrial metal alloy technology can change rapidly to achieve all sorts of functionality or special uses. The said alloys may be supplanted easily by others in the near future that may even be cheaper or have other more interesting properties. Also as noted, the metal alloys in question are used in various industries. It will distract Apple to become the lincense vendor for the technology.
CGC
HTC & others are only interesting in offering things they can sell as features, even if they don't work properly for as little cost as possible. They're not interested in making the best product possible.
.
Samsung already has a LiquidMetal Phone. I hope that Apple cancels their product. Only the iPhone should be allowed.
T
Actually, I do not understand the technological rationale for using glass for the back casing even for smaller devices, like a smartphones. I was surprised therefore when the iPhone 4 used glass for the backcasing. It is mostly aesthetic that is lost in the white iPhone 4. One possible technical rationale for "glass backcasing" would have been using the back as "solar battery" area; but that may be a different "glass" technology altogether. Apple has an approved patent for solar powered technology for mobile devices.
CGC
The rationale is not merely technological. In Apple products, form follows function like a hand in a glove. That is why Jony gave us the glass back.
I think the reason why Apple didn't buy it would be because Apple has no interest in dealing with NASA and may be Department of Defense.
That makes sense. However, I would worry about the long-term viability of such a small company.
For those willing to take some volatility, its stock can be bought today for $0.44 - it is up $0.16 today, a humongous 57%!
I might go check out a couple of hundred shares. (That'll cost $88.... heck, maybe I should splurge and go for a 1000...