tjwolf

Echoing the comment by @Soli about how that (no need for exact placement) was always the intent of the charging pad to begin with, so no surprise there.

But looking at the figures describing the two coils that this wireless charging case might have, I started wondering whether putting all this extra tech into what is already a pretty compact device might have an effect on the capacity of the charging case?  Assuming the current case's interior volume is mainly filled with battery, there obviously won't be as much volume with those coils in there.  I think I'd rather have more capacity than a wirelessly charged case.

Maybe I'm a curmudgeon, but I don't really see much point behind wireless charging mats at home.  Pictures always show an iPhone, an Apple Watch, and an AirPods case on such a mat.  But let's look at these: the AirPod case only needs charging, what, once a week?  And then it's just plugging in a bi-directional lightning plug, which isn't much hassle (unlike mUSB) to begin with.  Apple Watch?  While I charge my watch every night, the magnetic charger it comes with is just as easy to connect as a lightning cable.  Putting the watch on a mat would actually be *harder* - since it would require me completely unbuckle whatever watch band is being used.  I don't know about you, but neither my Milanese loops nor the Nike velcro-based bands are a joy to completely undo - better to just open them wide to slip out of.  Lastly, there's the iPhone: I use a stick-on pouch on the back of my naked phone.  Obviously that wouldn't work with wireless charging.  Anyone using cases of some thickness would probably face similar issues.  Meanwhile, a lightning plug connects you in 1/4sec.  And wired charging is always going to be faster than wireless.

So what problem does this charging mat solve?  Elimination some wires on your night table?

What an utterly stup1d and misleading title!  There's absolutely zero evidence that Apple will introduce its service at $15/month.  The analyst being quoted in the piece specifically said that he's not suggesting Apple will introduce a $15/mo service - he was just using that figure in  his thought experiment in order to calculate how much revenue Apple would get if this (and 250m users) were true.

ivanh said:

I bought a food scale with Bluetooth connection. It was made in China and the Modern Chef app was also developed by a mainland China company. Once installed, the app  goes beyond telling me the weigh of food. It immediately harvests all my personal and health data from the iPhone and send back to the server in China in seconds. All IoT apps can do the same.  The app should be pull of from the App Store immediately and installed users should be notified immediately and suggestions should be offered by Apple to those installed victims.

Asking for disclosure is only on paper for legal formality. Banning an app is “catch me if you can”, and 2 versions leap forward, the developer can reinsert the analytic codes again without being noticed. Once private data leaked, is leaked forever. 

iOS 13 should fix it, or not capable for Apple to do so?

Nonsense.  Access  to health and other user data is controlled by iOS, not the app - that app did not immediately harvest this data unless you gave it read permission via very clearly phrased dialog boxes.  It is more nonsense to declare that all IoT apps can do the same without user permission.

Maybe you'e confusing Android and iOS?

curtis hannah said:

They will release total active iPhone amount rather than quarterly sales count? That is actually a good thing, as analyst can estimate total deactivated iPhones(obviously much lower than newly activated), and then estimate the total iPhone sales for the quarter anyways.

Where have you been?  This change was announced back at the last earnings call - and led directly to the stock declining $20 :-(

How can analysts estimate deactivated devices beyond a WAG?

You ask whether existing Airpod owners will find enough new to cause them to spend $160 all over again.  I love my Airpods, but after 2+ years of frequent use, the batteries in the pods themselves deplete much more quickly then when they were new.  I am just waiting for the new ones to come out before I switch - and give the old ones to my daughter :-)