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Tim Cook Says Apple's Sapphire Facility Is for 'Secret Project'

pgiguere1 said:
Considering GT Advanced will be producing $500M-700M worth of sapphire in 2H2014 alone, Apple seems very optimistic that this "secret project" will take off fast.

An iPhone-sized sapphire screen cover is estimated to cost between $9 and $12. That would mean 50 millions of those products would be made in those 6 months alone. Since Apple obviously starts producing their hardware before they go for sale, those 50M units would probably take only ~3 months to sell even though they take 6 months to make.

For reference, it took the original iPhone 74 days to sell 1M units, and it took the iPad 28 days.

Whatever that project is, Apple expects it to sell a lot. As much as I would love it to be a product from an entirely new category, I have a hard time believing it looking at those numbers.
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Maybe a wildcard, but what about a sapphire TV?
 
MacRumors said:
He also said that investors should plan to hold Apple stock for the long term, saying to investors looking for a quick turnaround, "I encourage you not to invest in Apple."
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I just noticed this strange wording in the MR article. Cook was clearly referring to fast buck investors. Where does "a quick turnaround" come into that? The proper context from the WSJ helps:

At various points, the usually reserved Cook showed his teeth to shareholders. He said the company’s focus is long term. To investors interested in holding the stock for several weeks or a month, he said: “I encourage you not to invest in Apple.”
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can someone explain why there would be a reason to use sapphire glass in a television?
all i know is it's tough and that it's more expensive, so why would they waste money on it when a broken tv-screen happens just about never?
for some ooh-factor? that would be the dumbest thing ever.
 
CarlJ said:
No no, it's a product, right? Obviously Apple will be doing a line of high-end unbreakable glassware. You can drink to that.
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Jony did say he wants to design cups, so you might be on to something.
 
Mago said:
Where you can use a sapphire glass?

1 - Laser Lenses (unlikely at apple )

2 - High end cellphones (ala Vertu, remeber Vertu's former sapphire glass specialist was hired by apple).

3 - SmartWach: obvious, from Rolex Sapphire glass is mandatory to any descent high end watch.

4 - Projector Lens: iTV Projecting iPad ? mmm

I vote for the next iPhone 6 and the iWatch to include such sapphire glasses.

BTW, Cook is lame on creating expectative
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Keyboard keys.

Each key is a mini display, so you can have dynamic keys that can change languages, become tools (for avid/fcp/lightworks/photoshop) etc. on-the-fly while you're using a program.

There are so many options for things it could be, it is not really worth speculating.
 
why tim cook always talking something big but when it launch is not like he mention ,

he alway said '' we're make the best product
he alway said '' really cool stuff
he alway said '' it amazing
he alway said '' so proud


i watch all wwdc since iphone 3 ,,, i was laugh when cook talking ,,,,:cool:
 
wikiverse said:
Keyboard keys.

Each key is a mini display, so you can have dynamic keys that can change languages, become tools (for avid/fcp/lightworks/photoshop) etc. on-the-fly while you're using a program.

There are so many options for things it could be, it is not really worth speculating.
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Art Lebedev never mind that... LOL
 
It's obviously the iWatch. I have a watch right here on my wrist (analog) that uses sapphire glass. I would be shocked if the iWatch didn't use sapphire glass, considering what it's likely to cost. Watches get banged into things. Watch faces scratch if you don't use a hard material like sapphire. If you're going to pay hundreds of dollars for a watch, you expect it to have sapphire.

Apple may use sapphire for other products eventually, but if you know anything about sapphire production you do not get large pieces out of it suitable for a larger product in the high enough yields Apple would need. It's not for a phone screen. Apple sells way too many iPhones. It certainly isn't for a television set!
 
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GTAT (GT Advanced Technologies Inc) is the bargain of a century right now at ~$14. Won't be surprised to see it at >$100 in a few years when they'll be an integral piece of Apple's manufacturing machine.
 
d0nK said:
I agree about their hardware in a lot of respects, but Apple's software is steadily getting worse and worse. I'd much prefer to see improvements in their software design and usability, far and above anything else they are currently involved in.
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Yes, the "flat" iOS7 design, which has trickled down to Mac OSX Mavericks needs to be addressed. I mean, don't they have people over there at Apple testing these things out and asking questions like, "Is this flatter and lack of color/dull grey design enhancing or detracting from the user experience?". :rolleyes:
 
tripmusic said:
Yes, the "flat" iOS7 design, which has trickled down to Mac OSX Mavericks needs to be addressed. I mean, don't they have people over there at Apple testing these things out and asking questions like, "Is this flatter and lack of color/dull grey design enhancing or detracting from the user experience?". :rolleyes:
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They might have people like that but when those at the top want it a particular way (for whatever reason) then observations/questions like that don't really go anywhere (if they are even allowed to be spoken out loud, so to say).
 
Well, technically everything Apple hasn't released is a secret, so this info doesn't exactly narrow it down!
 
"Secret project?" Hmmm, that's interesting. I doubt he would use those words if the sapphire was being used to cover iPhones and iPads. Obviously, a watch would make the most sense, since it would be the most prone to being covered with scratches, but Cook knows that isn't a "secret project." Wonder what they have up their sleeves? Hopefully, an ACE.
 
Doomtomb said:
This.

I just have a feeling something this hyped up would result in a large surface area of Sapphire crystal being used; the new Apple 4K TV. Throw your game controller at it all you want.
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But, how would a TV benefit from the use of sapphire? I've owned 15 TV's in my life, and have never had a single scratch on one of them. Most people don't worry about their TV getting scratched. It just doesn't happen that often, even in a household with many children.

Also, I thought sapphire is just scratch-proof, not unbreakable.
 
It's obvious isn't it... it's the iCylinder! The most innovative cylinder of sapphire ever brought to market!...

OR

It's one of the layers for the screen in the next iPhone

OR

It's the cover material for the iWatch if we ever see it

OR

It's both :D
 
If I were a conspiracy nut trying to figure out what the secret was, then I'd look deeper.

For instance, the hundreds of sapphire furnaces are obviously a flimsy cover story for the huge amounts of electricity that are being connected to this building.

Therefore there must some sort of alien thingamabob in there that requires a strong force field to keep imprisoned. I mean, it is only a few hundred miles from Area 51. :p

So it's either aliens, or Apple's going to change the SIM removal tool material from LiquidMetal to sapphire.

---

Seriously, sapphire can be used to cover solar cells, too.
 
CarlJ said:
No no, it's a product, right? Obviously Apple will be doing a line of high-end unbreakable glassware. You can drink to that.

----------

Not just the screen, the entire frame and back, too (think, everything that's aluminum on the current models).
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So a very high-end looking iPhone 4?

I'm not so sure a 16:9 4.8" screen will give the phone the right shape though. It will be like a childs surfboard if they go ahead with that.
 
JonneyGee said:
Can't blame him for not giving details - he's right about getting constantly ripped off. Galaxy S5 has a fingerprint sensor as its primary feature... wonder where they got that idea? :mad:
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Yes, because Apple is the first company to ever put a fingerprint sensor on a device. I've had toshiba laptops for long time that have fingerprint sensors on them. Maybe we could say Apple copied them.
 
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