Other companies also do this same thing.  Samsung for example does the same thing, however they don’t charge quite as much for their smartphones and this their yield on each is less.  This is clearly seen as we check out the chart below brought to us by Statista via: Mashable.

Obviously numbers don’t tell the whole story, but for the most part you can see how skewed the bar graph is.  The iPhone on average sells for around $675 each.  The blackberry is the next most pricy device at $324.  And then Windows and Android follow as some of the lowest priced smartphones.

The iPhone itself is built with a lot more quality “feel.”  I love the Android for everything it has done, but for some reason every time I use one, I feel like it is “cheap.”  This could be due the the extensive use of plastic and synthetic components, or it could be due to the fact that it isn’t worth as much.  Either way, Apple has an advantage because their users know they paid a lot.  They also are treated with services that tops Android or any other device carrier.  This all lends to the price and adage: “you get what you pay for.”  These seems to be the truth when it comes to the smartphone market and changing prices.  If only the iPhone had Android many of us would make the switch purely out of love for really quality.  Android has been known as a budget phone.  More people can afford Android and therefore more people end up buying them.  Cheaper isn’t better and you can see this by the consistent prices seen in even the old iPhone 3G smartphone created years ago!  You can also see that the old 3G phone still holds up to speed tests as seen here:  iPhone vs. iPhone.

(via: Mashable)

When Android was first starting to gain it’s popularity they lacked the number of apps to sustain a thriving mobile OS experience.  However the rise in usage has motivated developers to create apps on Android as well.  There are also more Android users currently downloading apps because of that fact that app developers might get more sales via Android.  The end result as seen bellow is a thriving Android app store and the data specifically for smartphones indicates a rise to over 700K apps apposed to only 600K in the iTunes store specifically designed for the iPhone.  Its important to note that Apple screens their app submissions much more then the Google Play and Android.  Some of Androids apps don’t actually work as well as many in the iTunes store because Apple scrutinizes each individual submission to make sure it stacks up their ideals.  However Android is growing and gaining traction as one of the largest app stores against their arch-rival, iTunes.

It’s also interesting to note that most smartphone users are from the age of 25 to 34.  The rest of the distribution is fairly even with the exception of 13-17 year old teenagers which only take up 6.3% if the handset by age pie.   This does seem interesting but the most likely culprit of this is the price to own a smartphone is not affordable for many teenagers that have school expenses and other interests.  This may be a little skewed due to the fact that the parents are the ones buying their teenagers the plan, and this the stats may be a little less.  However it does seem to indicate that teenagers are not the largest group of people using smartphones.  This is some interesting news for sure!

There is also some startling and highly informative data seen below.  A special thanks to Coupon Audit for helping us collect and design this informative infographic.

Feel free to use this infographic on your blog, website, or other places.  Please give credit to Coupon Audit (provides Finish Line coupon code) and Vault Feed when using the info graphic elsewhere.

So what do you think?  Leave your comments below:

As you can see this new design would feature the edge-to-edge glass display that would cary up most of front of the devices real-estate.  The Blackberry Q30 has not been launched yet by Blackberry, but we’re sure that they are taking notes and possibly hiring up the genius minds that sketch up these concepts.  This is one of the best looking blackberry phones I’ve seen.  I personally hope that the adopt this concept in some ways at least!  I think Blackberry could make their product along the lines of these concept sketch ups.  Obviously they could make some edits and additions to the design, but overall it wouldn’t look bad at all!

This first black design would feature a black back housing most likely.  The front seems to be a gradience of black to sliver, which is a cool concept.  I hope that Blackberry chooses a hybrid aluminum unibody design for the back.  I wouldn’t personally appreciate the carbon fiber look for the back as they did with the Z30.  Carbon fiber looks cool, but sometimes it can take on a “cheap” and “fake” feel.  This obviously isn’t what Blackberry wants, so if I were to advise, Id stick with a solid aluminum back with laser etched lettering.

The other two colors are also really nice featuring white.  I think that the more squared look appears a little better, but depending on the trends, it seems to be possible.  The Blackberry Q30 will be a great phone if they implement a similar design to this.  I truly hope they do!

I personally believe that Blackberry has a chance in the market.  They have a niche, and with all this talk of the Blackberry company failing, its easy to loose hope on the company.  However I believe that the “doomsday talk” around the internet blogsphere isn’t a fair representation of the reality of Blackberry and its company state.  You can read my post on why I believe Blackberry can succeed here: Blackberry Has a Niche Market.  I do believe that these concepts would make Blackberry look even better and I truly hope Blackberry is taking notes via the fellow blogger on CrackBerry Blackberry Forum, and via BlackberryEmpire.

Would you buy a Blackberry if it resembled the Q10 blackberry concepts above?

The FAA has many solid regulations to keep pilots and passengers safe, however the restriction on cell phone use in airline’s flights wasn’t based on any actual risk or evidence.  As of today, this regulation has been removed now allowing consumers to use their smartphones or iPhones.  You will now be able to enjoy Pandora radio, Candy Crush Saga, or other games and apps that require internet.  Recent airlines have offered in-air wi-fi use and this might take a hit to their internet revenue channel, however we are all happy to see that this needless regulation is gone!

The FAA has reported that this regulation is removed however it will take up to 2 months to complete the deregulation on all the airlines.  They will have to re-recored their pre-flight videos, but passengers will enjoy having the ability to use internet, check emails, and play internet necessary games!

Smartphone and cell phone users will have the delight in using their internet and other apps during take-off and landing, but some airlines won’t have service in the air.  Some airlines including Sprint and many others won’t have the convince of in-air service.  Their towers don’t extend above the clouds.

However with this new deregulation in airline smartphone use may cause airlines to increase their cell phone tower reach!  This might get interesting.

The iPhone 5S and 5C has been in consumers hands since September 20, but It was first launched on the 13th of September.  Since then, Apple has sold an exponential 9-million iPhones within the first week.  This is just a beginning for Apple’s iPhone sales and it continues to grow.

The Apple iPhone 5C has seen less success and sales indicated by Apple’s recent decrease in 5C production.  The iPhone 5S however is true to nature and has sold the best as Apple’s flagship device.  The Apple iPhone accounts for the greatest portion of Apple sales and revenue.

Below are the gender based iPhone color preferences revealed by new research!

As you can see, the iPhone 5S is most popularly purchased in the space grey color variation, and then most popular in gold.  It seems that the gold iPhone was not purchased as much.  This could be due to the fact that the Gold iPhone 5S was sold out, so people simply opted for the silver or the space grey variation.  You can also see that the yellow iPhone 5C is the least popular color.  The blue however seems to be the most popular iPhone 5C model.

Male gender iPhone buyers chose the color white over the other color options.  This seems understandable considering there are no other neutral colors available for the 5C.  You can also see that the pink colored iPhone was purchased more by the women gender.  This makes perfect sense considering the color pink often being associated with women as the preferred color.  This color gender research on the iPhone indicates that this association is evident through iPhone purchases.

The space grey iPhone 5S did in fact win the “most popular color” award in this research.  Male purchasers of the iPhone 5S did choose the space grey option over the other colors.  They also seemed to choose the gold and silver 5S colors equally as likely.  Female gender iPhone buyers chose the space grey version also!  They then chose silver as their secondary color preference, and least chose the gold color.  Many buyers wanted the gold color, however they were sold out of stores the minute they were launched!  I believe that gold color shortage caused loyal iPhone fans to simply purchase the next best option that was available.  This could be the reason for the results given in the graphic above.

In fact the gold colored iPhone 5S actually sold on eBay for over $10,000 in one instance.  The iPhone 5S in gold does however sell for the highest price on auction sites around the internet.  The average price as of today for the 16GB gold iPhone 5S off-contract seems to get around $750-$900 US.

Which is your favorite color?

The iPad Air Price, Specs, And All You Need To Know!

A new bezel, thinner design, lighter weight, a faster processor, and a higher “coolness” factor is just a few things that you should know about the new iPad Air!  Continue reading on the iPad Air’s significance.

It includes all the standard features for the Apple tablet iPad family however there are some significant changes that will most likely lead you to upgrade.  First of all its lighter then any tablet yet produced in its size class.  The shape and form has changed to feature a more squared back design.  It looks like a enlarged iPad mini.

The Exterior

The exterior has also changed in its thinness.  The thickness has now been shrunk by the shrink experts of Apple to a mere 1.75 millimeters.  The Apple iPad has never become this thin before and were all excited!  The bezel around the edge of this new iPad air is also 43% smaller then the previous models.

Not only is the new iPad Air thinner, but its also considerable lighter.  It’s actually 28% lighter then the previous iPad in this same screen size category.  it only weights 1 pound!  Hand fatigue from using the larger screen sized iPads won’t happen when you get this iPad Air, because Apples engineers have lightened it to the perfect touch.  The balance between weight and the “quality feel” have finally been realized in this new iPad Air.  This new iPad isn’t only a well balanced iPad when it comes to the exterior and aesthetics, but the inside components have been upgraded to reflect the superior quality on the exterior.

Performance Enhanced

Apple has gifted this beautiful product, the iPad Air, with a A7 chip with 64-bit architecture and M7 motion coprocessor.  This is the same as the iPhone 5S.  With this extra speed upgrade comes increased functionality when your using graphic intensive games, apps, or other intensive activities.  It’s the best processor that Apple makes, and now its in the best iPad that Apple makes, the iPad Air.

The batteries performance has also been improved to last up to 10 hours.  This obviously depends on your type of usage, but it’s an impressive statement nonetheless.  We expect reviews to hit the web concerning the real-life battery life.  However in the past, the Apple iPad product lineup has never disappointed when it comes to increased and excellent battery life.  We all want better battery life, but we also want a thinner design.  Apple has again found a perfect balance!

Not only this but Apple has done even more.  They have given us a better camera!  This is what many iPad owners have been waiting for, and now its available all in the new iPad Air.

Rear Camera Specifications:

• 1080P HD Video recording
• Software enabled Video Stabilization
• Face Detection option
• Tap To Focus while recording
• 3X Video recording zoom
• 5MP Camera with F/2.4 Aperture
• Backside Illumination
• Poto & Video Geo-taging

Front Camera Specifications:

• 1.2MP Photo taking ability
• 720P HD Video Recording
• Photo & Video Geo-taging

Retina Display Specifications:

• 9.7-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit Multi-Touch display with IPS technology
• 2048-by-1536 resolution at 264 pixels per inch (ppi)
• Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating

The Price

The Apple iPads seem to follow the same price structure through Apple.  The price is tiered.  The 3G+WiFi models are obviously more expensive by around $100 extra dollars.  If you use 3G and want your iPad to act as an “anywhere-internet” device, you should go with the 3G.  However if you are around wi-fi and have a smartphone with internet enabled, theres a good chance that the WiFI model is just enough and adequate.  The prices of the models are seen below.

iPad Air WiFi Price:

• 16GB — $499
• 32GB — $599
• 64GB — $699
• 128GB — $799

iPad Air 3G+WiFi Price:

• 16GB — $629
• 32GB — $729
• 64GB — $829
• 128GB — $929

iPad Air Summary

Yes, the new iPad Air is expensive, but the overall specifications indicate that the price really isn’t that bad to todays standards.  Many other tablets made by other brands actually cost similar, but with the iPad, you get Apple quality.  You also get the 1 year warranty which is better then any warranty offered by any company.  I have experienced the warranty myself and they do everything to make you happy.  Not only that, but the iPad has quality that is seen in every aspect.  Quality is worth paying for I believe.  This iPad Air isn’t an exception at all.  What do you think?

(via: Apple)

New York Times recently posted a in-depth article on the original iPhone and its beginning launch.  They described in detail the difficulties that Apple faced in the beginning before the launch of the first original 1st generation iPhone.

The pre-launch of the first original iPhone was one of the most difficult times for all of the Apple team.  In fact when the iPhone was scheduled to be presented, they didn’t even have all the problems worked out.  Many of these problems involved signal strength, baseband errors with the iOS, and other functionality problems that  made it very hard.

In fact its crazy to hear this, but Steve Jobs introduced it during Macworld 2007.  At this time, the original iPhone was still in beta.  Many of the problems described above were still current in the iPhone.  In other words, they didn’t have all the bugs worked out at all!  These weren’t just bugs, these involved inconsistent service and much more!  But they still had to make the launch on the date agreed.  However you will find that they had to essentially lie to save their product’s face of perfection.

“The iPhone could play a section of a song or a video, but it couldn’t play an entire clip reliably without crashing. It worked fine if you sent an email and then surfed the web. If you did those things in reverse, however, it might not. Hours of trial and error had helped the iPhone team develop what engineers called “the golden path,” a specific set of tasks, performed in a specific way and order, that made the phone look as if it worked.

But even when Jobs stayed on the golden path, all manner of last-minute workarounds were required to make the iPhone functional. On announcement day, the software that ran Grignon’s radios still had bugs. So, too, did the software that managed the iPhone’s memory. And no one knew whether the extra electronics Jobs demanded the demo phones include would make these problems worse.”

The iPhone’s service bars would cut in and out.  They didn’t have a solution, but then they came up with something!  They decided to hard code the signal bars to show 5-bars at all times.  Of coarse they changed this later, but in the first preview of the original iPhone was shown with false signal bars.  These signal bars essentially lied to save face of the company during the pre launch and official launch.  The launch of the original iPhone was one of the most monumental launches of technology that every occurred in the history of technology.  It’s just sad that the service bars were hard-coded to show 5-bars at all times.  Its obviously a lie in its finest tense.

“Then, with Jobs’ approval, they preprogrammed the phone’s display to always show five bars of signal strength regardless of its true strength. The chances of the radio’s crashing during the few minutes that Jobs would use it to make a call were small, but the chances of its crashing at some point during the 90-minute presentation were high. “If the radio crashed and restarted, as we suspected it might, we didn’t want people in the audience to see that,” Grignon says. “So we just hard-coded it to always show five bars.”

Although Apple launched its first iPhone and made one of the most successful tech launch to date, it does bring to question the honesty.  It obviously lied and manipulated the iPhone to make it work and act right at first.  It would have really been a flop had Apple’s engineers failed to fix the bug that plagued its first beta iPhone and iOS.  I wonder what would have happened if they had to make a recall and public apology?  There’s a chance that the original iPhone may have never been a launched product.  We’re all glad that Apple’s team pushed through to give us what many of us use today; the Apple iPhone.

The article presented by the New York Times, is lengthily, but a good read if you have any interest with Apple’s past history.  It goes through in detail of Apple’s first iPhone launch.  It was a crazy time indeed for Apple and their engineers.

If you want to visit memory lane and relive the original iPhone launch, you can watch the original iPhone launch on the HD Youtube video seen below:

(via: TUAW)

What do you think?  Did Apple make the right choice to lie in its product for the launch?  Do you think there would have been any other way to make a successful original iPhone launch?  Leave your comments below.

The next image below shows the iPhone amounts sold vs other dow members.

As you can see, the iPhone alone in sales stagers incredibly when it comes revenue.  Like we said earlier, the iPhone is just one revenue stream for the fruit company, Apple.  Just image how good Apple looks financially when you add up all the other products and services.  Its no wonder that people like to Sue Apple more then ANY other company in the world.

The iPhone 5S is in fact the fastest smartphone seen in the benchmark tests and this is just part of the reason that Apple is making the bank off their new device, the iPhone 5S!  It seems that everything they touch turns to gold, or they turn it to gold first as seen in the recent news.  Apple seems to be adding gold iPhone and iPad color variations into their mix of products.  New news that Apple will be producing a iPad Mini 2 in Gold with Touch ID.  It will be interesting to see if this new iPad Mini 2 Gold will sell like crazy, but we believe that it will – just as the gold iPhone 5S and 5C has this past weekend!

What do you think?  

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(Source: BusinessWeek)

We recently saw the rendered images showing the iPad Mini 2 in Gold with Touch ID, however we have never seen any real images or non-rendered images portraying the iPad Mini 2 in Gold with Touch ID.  This recent leak via DoNews featured these two images.  The first one shows the gold ring around the home button which indicates Touch ID functionality.  You can also see the cord in the pictures which indicates the same lightening connector configuration that Apple has switched to for charging.  The color also seen in the picture is Gold with a white digitizer.

This combination of Gold and White does work, however the color combination could handle some improvements.   The back of the iPad 2 mini can be seen below in Gold.

The iPad mini 2’s back will feature a all Gold read shell anodized in gold color.  This is not real gold of coarse, but if you want to feel rich, the gold may trick a few people at first.  The speaker grates as seen in the image above are similar to the original iPad mini.  The letters “iPad” are still present, but a little hard to see in this picture.  While Apple will most likely make a Gold iPad mini 2, we don’t know for sure if the iPad seen above is an actual pre-production unit from Apple.  It could be a color kit that someone installed onto their iPad mini and then edited some aspects to make it look like the “real deal.”  The source, DoNews was reported by RedmondPie  and seems fairly reputable for these images.

Apple will be hosting an event says many sources on the 15th of October.  RedmondPie first released the source indicating that the iPad Mini 2 may be released on the October 15.

Here at Vault Feed, were sure that the iPad Mini, if produced in Gold, would sell like hot cakes!  The iPhone 5S that was just recently launched is not unavailable in gold.  You will be waiting until some time in October for the firsts sights of another 5S in gold.  Actual sales on the gold iPhone 5S version have out-estimated most previous guesses on the 5S’s sales. This same “craze” for the “gold” will most likely continue with the iPad mini 2 releases with gold as an option.  This seems especially possible after the release of Apples Profit numbers this past weekend:  Apple Sold 9 Million iPhones In One Weekend!

Another reason you will want the iPad mini 2, is it will feature a Retina display, more memory, and a faster processor!  Stay tuned into the Vault Feed tech blog for more news on the iPad Mini 2 and it’s developments!

Others Also Read:

• Touch ID Works With Knuckle Too!
• Apple To Make Larger 12.9″ iPad In Future: Images Show
• More iPad Mini Gold With Touch ID Renderes
• New Leak Shows Apple iPad 5

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