(Bloomberg) — Apple Inc. has asked suppliers to build at least 75 million 5G iPhones for later this year, roughly in line with last year’s launch, in a sign that demand for the company’s most important product is holding up in the midst of the global pandemic and recession.
The Cupertino, California-based technology giant anticipates shipments of these next-generation iPhones may reach as high as 80 million units in 2020, according to people familiar with the situation. Apple plans to launch four new models in October with fifth-generation wireless speeds, a different design and a wider choice of screen sizes, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing unannounced products.
Among a comprehensive product refresh in the fall, Apple is also preparing a new iPad Air with an edge-to-edge iPad Pro-like screen, two new Apple Watch versions and its first over-ear headphones outside the Beats brand. A smaller HomePod speaker is in the works, too. An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.
Apple and its manufacturing partners always ramp up production ahead of the rollout of new iPhones each fall. In the summer of 2019, suppliers were preparing to make components for as many as 75 million handsets. The target in 2018 was similar, so this year’s goal of 75 million to 80 million units is a bullish sign. Key assembly partner Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., also known as Foxconn, has put up several notices on WeChat over the past month recruiting workers for its main iPhone campus in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou.
While the Covid-19 outbreak has hammered the global economy and disrupted supply chains, Apple is seeing strong demand for iPhones, iPads and Mac computers from people working and studying remotely. Revenue from iPhones crushed Wall Street expectations in the most recent quarter. The device still generates almost half of Apple’s sales, and that often tops 60% in the holiday season. Apple shares have soared 76% this year, making it the first U.S. company to surpass $2 trillion in market value.
The four new phones will be split into two basic and two high-end models for the first time, and all will feature OLED displays with improved color and clarity. The two regular iPhones will come in a new 5.4-inch size and a 6.1-inch option, while the Pro devices will offer a choice of a 6.1-inch or an enlarged 6.7-inch display, which will be the largest Apple’s ever put in an iPhone.
All of the new smartphones will have updated designs with squared edges similar to the iPad Pro, and the high-end phones will continue to use stainless steel edges versus aluminum sides on the cheaper variants. The company is also planning a dark blue color option on the Pro models to replace the Midnight Green of 2019’s iPhone 11 Pro line.
Read more: Apple Plans iPad-Like Design for Next iPhone, Smaller HomePod
At least the larger of the Pro phones will have the same LIDAR camera as on the latest iPad Pro, which allows augmented-reality apps to have a greater understanding of their surrounding environment. Among the most significant improvements of the new handsets will be the new A14 processor, upgrading speed and power efficiency.
Some Apple employees testing the new devices think that the new 6.7-inch screen is one of this year’s most notable improvements, the people familiar with the situation said. A few testers have also found that some of the current 5G networks are not improving connection speeds much, the people added.
Apple plans to ship the lower-end phones sooner than the Pro devices, according to people familiar with the staggered release strategy. During a recent conference call, Apple said the new iPhones would ship a “few weeks” later than last year’s models, which started shipping Sept. 20. This year’s rollout is on course to be the latest since the release of the iPhone X in November 2017.
The design of this year’s iPhones and many features were finished before Covid-19 spread, but the pandemic did create issues for final testing and delayed the start of production by several weeks. While the new iPhones won’t ship until later, Apple’s iOS 14 software will arrive in September, the people said.
Read more: Apple Culture of Secrecy Tested by Employees Working Remotely
The new Apple Watch lineup will include a successor to the Apple Watch Series 5 and a replacement for the Series 3 that will compete with lower-cost fitness devices such as those from Fitbit Inc.
The smaller HomePod will help Apple renew its push into the smart home at a lower price, albeit with fewer speakers inside the device than the current $299 model. While the first HomePod was praised for its audio quality, consumers have panned its limited Siri functionality and price. Earlier this year, Apple merged some of the Apple TV and HomePod engineering teams as it looks to renew its focus on home devices.
Apple has also been developing a new Apple TV box with a faster processor for improved gaming and an upgraded remote control, however that device might not ship until next year, according to people familiar with its development. The company is working on a feature for the new remote similar to Find My iPhone that would make the TV accessory easier to find. The company’s other product in development is called AirTags, designed for locating physical items, which will be equipped with a leather carrying case, Bloomberg News has reported.
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A Calgary woman who abused her sick, 77-year-old father was “overwhelmed” at the task of caring for him, a judge heard Wednesday at a sentencing hearing.
In January, Tara Picard, 52, pleaded guilty to charges of assault and failing to provide the necessaries of life after her father (whom CBC News is not naming) was found injured on a basement floor, where he’d been lying for two days.
On Wednesday, prosecutor Donna Spaner and defence lawyer Shaun Leochko asked the judge to allow Picard to serve her sentence in the community under conditions as part of a conditional sentence order.
Justice Indra Maharaj agreed to a two-year conditional sentence for Picard followed by a year of probation.
“There is no doubt she became overwhelmed,” said Spaner in her submissions. “There is no question Ms. Picard has remorse.”
Leochko told the judge that caring for her father “was really more than [Picard] could handle.”
Maharaj heard that Picard is Indigenous and was the victim of abuse growing up. She lives in a sober dorm-style facility and is working with a mental health and addictions navigator, according to Leochko.
As part of the sentence, Picard must complete 300 hours of community service.
Justice Maharaj commended Picard for “taking that on.”
“That shows me Ms. Picard sincerely does recognize what has happened here,” said the judge.
“What I interpret from that is Ms. Picard’s willingness to give back to her community.”
During Picard’s plea, court heard that in November 2021, Picard and her father fought over his drinking.
The victim suffers from a number of medical issues, including diabetes, heart disease, dementia and alcoholism.
At the time, home-care registered nurses were assigned to help provide supplementary care.
Nurses found the victim wearing a soiled adult diaper and suffering from two black eyes with blood on his head.
He told the nurses who discovered him that he’d been there for two days.
Picard admitted she knew her father had fallen and she had “administered a number of physical blows.”
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Leaving her elderly father on a basement floor for two days in a soiled adult diaper won’t mean jail for a Calgary woman.
Justice Indra Maharaj accepted a joint Crown and defence submission on Wednesday for a two-year-less-a-day conditional sentence order for Tara Picard to be followed by 12 months of probation.
Prosecutor Donna Spaner and defence counsel Shaun Leochko proposed a community-based term which will include eight months of 24-hour house arrest followed by a nightly curfew for the second eight months.
Maharaj also agreed with the lawyers to order Picard to commit 300 hours of community service over the length of the three-year sentence.
The Calgary Court of Justice noted that amount of community-service hours was “a lot” to commit to.
But Maharaj said it showed Picard, 52, was truly remorseful for her conduct towards her father, whom Postmedia is not identifying because of the embarrassing nature of the facts of the case.
“What that shows me is Ms. Picard does sincerely recognize what has happened here,” the judge said of her willingness to complete community service.
“What I interpret from that is Ms. Picard’s willingness to give back to the community.”
Picard pleaded guilty in January to charges of assault and failing to provide the necessaries of life to her 77-year-old father.
Court heard caregivers found the elderly Calgary man on the basement floor of his daughter’s southeast home wearing a soiled adult diaper.
At the time, Picard was responsible for her father’s day-to-day care after he was moved to her residence, Spaner, reading from a statement of agreed facts, told court at the time.
“He had a number of medical ailments, including non-insulin dependent diabetes, coronary artery disease, some early onset dementia-like symptoms and chronic alcoholism,” Spaner said.
“(He) had been living independently in a Calgary apartment building. Family members became concerned that he was not caring for himself safely.”
With the help of Alberta Health Services he was moved to a home where Picard resided.
A registered nurse assigned to his care attended the 38 Street S.E. home on Nov. 15, 2021, to drop off food bank supplies for him and was told he was sleeping downstairs.
When the nurse called about an hour and a half later and spoke to the man on the phone he said he was lying on the floor, had fallen and was unable to get up.
When she returned to the home with a co-worker she found the victim lying on his back on the floor.
“(He) said that he had been lying on the floor for two days,” Spaner said.
Leochko said Picard was overwhelmed by the situation she was thrust into.
“It really was more than she could handle,” he said.
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@juanhall: I gotta say, this was the most interesting bike in this post….love that Intense is experimenting with gearboxes…I can see it have a huge effect on DH bikes….thank god there’s still people pushing things. Now, they need to make an Enduro bike with the Pinion MGU!
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