Intel says watch for Thunderbolt optical cables

Intel has reportedly confirmed an IDG News / PC World report saying that it will release its Thunderbolt optical cables later this year. Co-developed by Apple and first introduced in 2009, the Thunderbolt technology was originally posited as a speedier, fiber-optics based alternative to USB 3.0 for data transfer speeds up to 10 Gbps. Current Thunderbolt implementations are copper-based, but optical cables will provide more bandwidth and longer cable runs for a wider swath of applications, said a spokesman for Intel.

Check out the Thunderbolt Technology Community, which has compiled quite an extensive list of recent articles on the technology.

Links: Intel Says Thunderbolt Optical Cables Coming This Year (tomshardware.com)

Intel: Optical Cables for Thunderbolt Coming This Year (pcworld.com)

Motley Fool hints of 'blowout' quarter for Apple

Earnings figures are starting to come in for Apple's supply chain companies, and the numbers so far indicate that Apple is about to rebound heavily by posting a "blowout quarter," as reported by the financial industry investment mavens at The Motley Fool. Meanwhile, while you weren't looking, the world's largest technology company has been busy re-inventing both the textbook, AND what to do when your homework's all done.

Sources: Apple will release larger iPad in 2012 under heat from Kindle

To cope with increasing market competition including the 7-inch Kindle Fire from Amazon and the launch of large-size smartphones from handset vendors, Apple has been persuaded to develop and is likely to launch a 7.85-inch iPad prior to Q4 of 2012 -- in addition to the new iPad scheduled to be released at the end of the first quarter -- according to supply chain sources cited by the Taiwan technology and manufacturing news site DigiTimes.

Global shipments of tablet PCs are expected to reach 60 million units in 2011, of which 70% will be Apple's iPads, notes DigiTimes.

Link: Apple to launch 7.85-inch iPad in 2012, say sources (digitimes.com)

Google lawyer says patent disputes thwart mobile device innovation

Google's Android operating system has enabled companies such as HTC, Motorola and Samsung to come forth with devices that can compete with Apple's iPhone. And as noted at Digital Spy, Google's patent counsel Tim Porter warned in a recent San Francisco Chronicle interview that the subsequent rash of legal wrangles over patents serves only to threaten innovation across the mobile device industry, because "the concern is that the more people get distracted with litigation, the less they'll be inventing."

According to Porter, "You can look at the development of the software industry and see a point when [software wasn't being patented] and it was a period of intense innovation. You didn't see Microsoft's first software patent until 1988. By that time it had come out with Word, not to mention DOS. So there's just no question you can look back and see that innovation happens without patents. It's also true that since there weren't patents, there wasn't software patent litigation."

Apple share dive stuns Wall Street

Reuters is reporting that Apple has experienced some rare disappointment as its share value plummeted in the wake of lackluster quarterly results. Revenue and earnings for the world's most valuable technology corporation reportedly fell short of Wall Street's targets, as sales of its flagship iPhone also came in well short of expectations. The company's CFO explained that iPhone sales came in ahead of internal expectations but were hurt in September by customers waiting for a new version. The September quarterly report was Apple's first under new CEO Tim Cook, who takes over during a critical juncture for the company. As noted by Reuters, Apple is currently battling the fast-rising Google Inc. in the mobile arena, while fending off consumer electronics giants such as Samsung and Amazon.com.

Apple issues Micro USB to dock connector for iPad, iPhone

In Europe, Apple will soon be offering a Micro USB to Dock connector adapter for the iPhone and iPad. The heavy emergence of the Micro USB standard, specifying a small form factor USB connector, was officialized when the connector was approved by the Open Mobile Terminal Platform (OMTP) and three global industry bodies as the industry charging standard for mobile handsets, on the heels of its approval in Europe as the industry standard universal connector for all mobile handsets. These moves came in an effort to consolidate handset charging connectivity with an eye toward reducing the volume of electronics product in landfills globally, as each subsequent generation of handsets' "proprietary" dongles go into them as trash.

Apple's issuing the new adapter, however, has Macgasm's tech blogger Joshua Schnell scratching his head:

"Thankfully it’s cheap enough that it may encourage people to pick up the connector instead of purchasing numerous cables. However, I’m not exactly sure how the EU thinks creating connectors will help the problem, despite allowing companies to create adapters instead of changing their devices to meet the new standard. In addition to shipping all iOS devices with a dock connector cable, Apple will also begin shipping a Dock to USB conversion connector. Doesn’t that just double the stuff going into landfills? Apple met their requirements in the EU, but something tells me the EU folks calling these shots didn’t exactly realize that they could be making the problem worse. Instead of looking for a new cable, customers will begin looking for a new dock connector conversion adapter. What’s the difference?"

Apple to include magnetic connector in future iPads

Patently Apple is reporting that Apple has been granted a U.S. patent for the assembly of a unit supporting the MagSafe connector into an iOS device like an iPad. The patent reportedly states that "in one particular embodiment, the connector may be a power connector such as the MagSafe." The MagSafe power connector adheres to the unit by a magnet as opposed to being held in place purely by port insertion into the port; newer model MacBooks are equipped with the connector design for their power adapters. Parents of small children and the accident-prone value the MagSafe connectors, as a tug on the cord releases the connection, alleviating the dreaded "laptop hitting the floor" syndrome in the event of a tug on the power cord.

Apple iPad3 dock connector images leaked?

As reported at the tech blogs Tapscape and The APPera, the Taiwan website Apple.pro -- notoriously known for circulating leaked images of Apple devices ahead of formal release dates -- has done it again. This time, images reportedly leaked from Apple's internal inventory reveal a white dock connector with a 90-degree tail end for an iPad-like device -- speculated to be the iPad3, owing to the fervid amount of attention being paid to that device's anticipated release. No telling, however, whether the pictured connector might not actually be for the rumored iPad HD or even, it has been suggested, the quasi-mythical iPadPro tablets.

It's not the first time the rumor mill has swirled over these small, but not insignificant, parts of these no-doubt-soon-to-be-everywhere tablet devices. That it swirls at all may tell us something about how pervasive the footprint of this technology might very soon be.

Apple addresses Thunderbolt FAQs

As noted at Macworld, Apple has posted a FAQ document covering ten questions that users may have regarding the use of its Thunderbolt I/O cable, recently developed in collaboration with Intel. Notable information from the FAQ includes the fact Thunderbolt has “two separate 10Gbps links -- one for displays and one for PCI-E device traffic.” Also, to maintain maximum performance, Apple recommends that a Thunderbolt cable should be no longer than two meters.

View the full Thunderbolt FAQ at Apple.com