Between the nude celebrity photo hacking scandal and an extended App Store outage Tuesday night, it’s not been a particularly great week for Apple thus far, especially heading into next week’s media event. Our Wednesday Morning Report should provide some welcome distraction, with rumors of the iPad Air 2 ramping up production and a peek at China Mobile’s iPhone 6 preorders ahead, we can’t think of a single reason not to click ahead…
Apple Suppliers Reportedly Ramp Up Production on iPad Air 2
Despite persistent rumors, we don’t really know exactly what Apple plans to introduce at a media event next Tuesday, September 9. While a new iPhone certainly seems to be a given (see next story for more), many analysts also predict a refreshed iPad Air is forthcoming — if not next week, then sometime before the holiday season appears likely.
DigiTimes reported Tuesday that just such a 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 appears to be already ramping up production, according to unnamed sources within Apple’s supply chain. Touch panel makers TPK and GIS have both reportedly been tapped for new orders from Apple, which could point to a launch in the very near future.
So how will iPad Air 2 differ from the current-generation model? Maybe not as much as you might hope: “Sources said the new model will remain unchanged in terms of size and resolution, but that it will be thinner, equipped with an enhanced processor, and contain improved fingerprint recognition features,” DigiTimes elaborated.
China Mobile Racks Up 33K Preorders for Unannounced iPhone 6
China Daily today reported that the world’s largest wireless carrier, China Mobile, has already lured in 33,000 preorder buyers for the next iPhone, which Apple is expected to announce only next week. The online reservation system is currently only available to Beijing residents, while vendors on e-commerce platform Taobao have also begun accepting preorders for the iPhone 6, requiring a down payment of 5,000 yuan (roughly $810) — but only a few brave souls have shelled out that kind of money since July.
Office for iPad Now Offers Monthly Billing via iTunes
Microsoft announced Tuesday that Office for iPad users can now pay for their subscription via in-app purchase on a monthly basis, starting at $6.99 per month for Office 365 Personal (for one tablet and one Mac or PC) or $9.99 per month for Office 365 Home (up to five tablets and five Macs or PCs). Monthly payment plans are auto-renewable, and the annual plans are also still available for those who prefer to save a few bucks.
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(Image courtesy of ChinaDaily.com)
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