Apple Patent Application Ups the Ante on Noise-Cancelling Headphones

Apple’s Patent Application on Bone Conduction for Voice Communications

According to US Patent and Trademark Office revealed on Thursday, Apple had applied for patent for technology on bone conduction for voice communications. Apple's patent application which was filed in February 2014, though not published till recently defines a method of improving voice quality in wireless headset using freed earbuds of a mobile device.

As defined by Apple Insider, it terms a system, where the voice input is accepted by one of the two earbuds and depending on the perceived quality, it is then passed on to a mobile device. Inertial sensor which tends to monitor the vibrations in a user’s bone structure as well as the range of other sensors helps in informing which signal to use.

Bone conduction tends to transmit sound via subtle vibrations instead of through speakers generally with an increase in clarity. The patent tends to follow the design model which Apple had attempted in bringing about to most of its devices and accessories – simplicity. It could also propose a natural progression with the company’s 2014 acquisition of headphones maker Beats, while enhancing the earbuds contributions.

Earbuds Accountable for Noise/Wind level

According to research manager of wearable and mobile phones for IDC, Ramon Llamas, has mentioned in an email that `this is something like Apple taking a hint from what the other vendors have done earlier and which has been Apple’s mode of operation in the past – to see who does it well and then attempt to do it better than the others.

We have seen this with smartphones and are now seeing it with watches and if the product reaches market, Apple will be doing the same to the Bluetooth headset industry’. Apple had noted in the patent application that its earbuds would be accountable for noise and wind level identified by internal earbud microphones.

Moreover, the earbuds could combine the information with accelerometer output battery level as well as earbud position data as per the application. Apple has mentioned in its patent application that `the invention usually relates to improving the voice sound quality in a wireless headset with untethered earbuds of electronic devices by determining which of the earbuds should transmit the acoustic signal and the inertial sensor output to the mobile device’.

Environmental Noise – User’s Speech Incomprehensible

Using the acoustic signal as well as the inertial sensor output received from one of the earbuds, user’s voice activity could be detected to perform noise reduction and generate a pitch estimate in improving the speech quality of the final output signal’.

As per the application, a shared complain with hands free devices is that speech caught by the microphone port or the handset comprises of environmental noise like the secondary speakers in the background or it could be other background sounds.

 Environmental noise tends to make the user’ speech incomprehensible and hence tends to degrade the quality of the voice communication, which is a problem that Apple intends to solve. Apple had declined from commenting on the patent application.

The present patent shows on-going work in bone conduction technology as Apple had filed a similar application for accelerometer assisted noise cancellation last September and the company is yet to bring in such a device to the market. Its most innovative earphone designs tend to rely on cables, excluding devices that are developed by Beats.

Apple will host next iPhone launch Sept. 9

The most awaited event for this year is finally here, Apple will be launching its next iPhone on September event in San Francisco. Exactly a year ago, Apple had launched the bigger iPhone 6 and now it is time to launch new devices with tradition. Invitation for this event started coming out on Thursday with simple tease: “Hey Siri, give us a hint.”

Apple hoping to boost its sales

It should be noted that two third of the Apple’s revenue comes from the sales of iPhone followed by its other devices and web based services. In order to keep the revenue steady it is necessary for the Apple to keep introducing new devices in order to generate desire among the consumers. Apple has been selling millions of mobile devices each but in the recent times it has seen slowing down of sales largely due the rise of Chinese Smartphones manufacturers and saturation in the world mobile market.

The other major device in Apple’s portfolio is the iPad, which is going through a bad phase in sales. The quarterly sales of Ipad are declining with each passing year and Apple had recorded six periods of low sales in a row, which is highly alarming.

Apple launch event will brings tweaked iPhone

Just a year back Apple had launched new bigger iPhone which boasted huge advancement in the hardware and design but this year focus will be bringing tweaks and functionality enhancement as seen earlier with ‘S’ cycle launches. The major example of ‘S’ cycle change or tweaks is the introduction of Siri, Apple’s voice assistant with the launch of iPhone4S few years back.

It is expected that Apple will be bringing its relatively new ForceTouch technology to its other devices. ForceTouch technology debuted last year with the iPhone 6 allowing it the ability to differentiate between the hard and light taps on the screen. Apart from this Apple will be bringing tweaks with a fast processor, better camera and more color options for the users.

Apple TV can even make a debut

We had long being hearing about the Apple TV and last time it was expected to be revealed at the annual developer’s conference in June but it was pushed back for unknown reasons. Later on it was revealed that Apples had failed to broker any deals with the TV programmers to bring some content in time. This time Apple is expected to launch the Apple TV box along with an internet based television service for its users. Apple was first to pioneer the thought of binging a service of internet delivered TV but it kept pushing it back and now this service has grown considerably with increased accessibility.

Apple might reveal new bigger iPads

Apple had long kept the tradition of holding separate events for its tablets and smartphones. And usually iPhones are announced in September followed by iPad in October. This time they might surprise us by launching both the devices together and users will be able to see the upcoming 12.9 inches iPad Pro in September event.

iPhone 6S to Feature Animated Backgrounds Like the Apple Watch

Apple Watch’s Animated Wallpaper in iPhone 6s & iPhone 6 Plus

As per the latest news, Apple has plans in bringing the Apple Watch’s animated wallpapers in its upcoming iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. According to source, Apple Watch owners have the option of animated jellyfish, butterflies and flowers backgrounds, the new phone wallpapers is stated to feature koi fish, flowers and coloured powdery smoke.

Images of what seem to be yet-to-be-assembled iPhone 6s Plus box has been posted online on Chinese site – cnBeta, which is complete with image of a gold and black butterfly koi. The latest models tend to benefit from a new 12 MP camera with potential of shooting 4K video with the front camera capable of recording 1080p video at 60fps, 240fps in slow motion mode together with flash support.

The updated phones would also be having Force Touch technology that can detect how hard the user is pressing and enable various actions that need to be carried out. The technology, according to the reports will permit menu `shortcuts’ which enable users in discovering options on menus, quickly. The most widespread rumour is that the new generation iPhones would see the introduction of new rose gold model.

New Box – Touch Pad Remote/Extra Inbuilt Storage/Siri

Media invitations for press event for September 9, have been sent by Apple, where chief executive Tim Cook is expected to introduce a revamped Apple TV box set together with the new phones. The new box is said to feature a touch pad remote, with extra inbuilt storage together with Siri voice control for browsing as well as selecting programs and films to watch, in light of latest patent filing.

It is expected to run a TV optimised version of iOS 9 together with a refreshed interface and for the first time it would be opened up to the app group. Apple is predicted to unveil a software development kit – SDK which would enable developers in building apps. Presently only a few of the third party programs tend to feature on the Apple TV and introducing a SDK and App Store would probably expand this considerably.

Moreover, it would also be supporting HomeKit once Apple confirms that Apple TV would be acting as a central hub for connected home appliance which includes ecobee thermostats, lighting kits as well as smart sensors.

Animated Flower Wallpapers – Hand Sculpted Resin Model

Internal email leaked from Vodafone staff indicates that the new handsets would be going on sale on 25 September with pre-orders which would be accepted from September 18. Recently, Apple had brought the Watch’s animated flower wallpapers to life with hand sculpted resin model in all the 24 windows of Selfridges in London.

 These ranged from 200mm to 1.8 metres in height, wherein the flowers comprised of purple passion flowers, pink peoneys as well as white nigella. According to a report by 9To5Mac, there is a possibility that the new iPhone would be featuring animated wallpaper and if this turns out to be true, they would be of the same family as the `motion’ wallpaper that are found on the Apple Watch.

An image of the new iPhone 6s Plus box had been leaked recently featuring a picture of a golden koi fish as the phone’s background. Source 9To5Mac warns that the animated wallpaper feature may be dropped before the iPhone 6s is formally introduced though the site speculates that the existence of the fish on the packaging materials indicate that the feature has been confirmed.

Is your iPhone taking Blurry Photos? Apple Launches Scheme To Replace Faulty iSight Cameras For Free

Apple is all set to replace the faulty camera on the iPhone 6 Plus free of cost. After the successful launch of the iPhone 6 handsets in 2014, some of the users were left in lurch by finding faulty cameras, which gave just blurry images. This problem is found in only a small number of devices, which were shipped between November to January.

Features of Apple iSight Camera

Apple had used a latest version of iSight rear facing camera with enhanced capabilities. iSight camera comes loaded with Apple designed highly efficient lens with a large aperture of f/2.2 which allows more light than the previous models. iSight has garnered praise for its auto image stabilization tool along with other features like autofocus and auto white balance.

iSight camera also comes with a one of kind Optical Image Stabilization features which exclusively take four shots and merges them together in a single image for much better clarity and fineness. This camera works on an A8 chip alongside M8 motion co processor for measuring the motion data and gyroscope. This design and specification allows iPhone 6 Plus users to take very still pictures without worrying about the shaking hands.

iSight Camera malfunction in Apple Iphone 6 Plus

The malfunctioning and faults in the iPhones 6 cameras were reported way back in November last by the disgruntled users. The affected iPhone 6 users stated that the automatic and manual focus was not working at all but front facing camera was free from any problem. As a result of this fault Iphone cameras were brings unstable and blurry images even when the users is perfectly still to take pictures.

Apple has finally given heed to this problem and it had stated on its official website that affected handsets will be revamped in upcoming days. The numbers of affected handsets are quite limited in serial number range and were sold between the time-span of September 2014 and January 2015.

Check whether your iPhone is eligible for camera replacement

Concerned users can check out their iPhone’s serial number by going to the setting, General and reading the About section. Just copy this serial number and paste in the online tool on the Apple’s website to see whether you are eligible for camera replacement or not. Apple had made it clear that it will entertain only such handsets, which are working order, and all the phones with faulty camera will be first examined before proving any revamp.

Apple had made it clear that its replacement of faulty components is complete free of any cost or charge. iPhone users are just required to visit their Apple Store and get their camera replaced within a short time. Apple had advised its users to make a back up of their data to iTunes before proceeding further with the replacement. Apple warranty coverage program provides three years of cover on the iSight cameras and it applies only to the iPhone 6 Plus.

5 Common Problems iPhone Users Have and How to Fix Them

iPhone is a highly popular Smartphone filled with awe aspiring features and utility but it does have its own shares of problems. Here are top five annoyances, which iPhone users have to deal with on everyday basis.

iPhones are marred with low storage capacity 

Most of the people face a low storage capacity trouble after accumulating a number of photos, documents and other stuff either by downloading or uploading in the iPhone. Deleting contacts or doing away with priceless photos and documents is not an option at all.

Use the Apple’s iCloud storage facility to save your digital files cramming up the iPhone or iPad devices. It is the best way of saving space as well as data in the online cloud storage and you will be able to clear up a considerable amount of space on iPhone.

Predictive text doesn’t aid in texting 

Texting on the iPhone is quite a task in itself. Predictive texting makes it tougher to text with complete freedom and happens to take a considerable time apart from causing occasional embarrassment. You can do away with the Predictive texting by shutting it off by going to the settings, then click on keyboard followed by setting the Predictive option to off. Now you can easily type faster without the need of going back, erasing and retyping the things you wished to say in message.

Below average battery 

Screen brightness is the major factor, which reduces the iPhone battery apart from surfing, chatting and other tasks. Dimming the screen brightness by little bit can extend the battery life to a whole new level. Apps running the background are also major battery reducer and it should be noted that pressing the home button doesn’t actually kills an app rather it remains working in the background. Shut down your devices then boot it up and quickly press the home button twice. Swiping left on the screen will now showcase all apps which are currently suspended on the device.

Delete photos smartly rather than archiving them 

If you open up your Photo gallery then you find a large number of unwanted photos like blurry ones, close shots or other useless pictures. Delete the unwanted pictures and clear your photo gallery in a smart manner. In case you happen to delete some good photos then iPhone OS comes to your rescue with the feature of recovering the deleted photos. Go to the Recently Deleted album and retrieve you accidently deleted photos but don’t forget to empty the album in order to save more space.

Reading on the iPhone device is tough 

iPhone by default uses a standard text size which might seem quite tiny to some of the people. It is not easier to read with a tiny text and same problem persists with the keyboard as well. This can be eliminated by going to the setting, general, accessibility and turning on Bold Text and Larger Text feature in the iPhone. Now you will be read easily through multitude of text and increase the utility and usability of the iPhone.