If you’ve been experiencing restless sleep at night worrying about whether or not there will be enough Apple Watches to go around at launch early next year, get some shuteye: Our Thursday Morning Report has an update on those pesky yield issues that have been vexing suppliers. We’ll also take a look at a new Mac photo viewer application and spread some good news for LTE iPad fans in China!
Rumor: Suppliers Resolve Apple Watch Yield Issues
GforGames today reported that Apple Watch suppliers may finally have tackled display and processor issues that allegedly produced a far lower yield rate than Cupertino would have liked. Back in October, rumors ran rampant that supply chain problems could delay mass production and cause the highly anticipated smartwatch to be available in limited supply at launch.
According to supply chain sources speaking to United Daily News in Taiwan, these issues have now been resolved to Apple’s satisfaction, with mass production of the devices starting next month instead of the end of February as analysts forecast back in October. Partner Quanta has reportedly ramped up assembly line staff from 2,000 to 10,000, with plans to double that amount in the near future to churn out an estimated 24 million units of Apple Watch next year.
The same report also briefly mentions next year’s sequel to the iPhone 6, which is already being dubbed — wait for it — the iPhone 6s. While sketchy rumors had pegged the release for spring 2015 instead of the now traditional fall launch, sources now claim that won’t be the case after all, so your credit card should be safe until next September or October.
Apple Begins Selling Latest LTE-Equipped iPads in China
Apple today announced that iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 models with built-in cellular networking will be available in China this week, less than two months after first launching the tablet refresh in October. The launch is notable for supporting a dizzying array of cellular networks across China from a single model, including TD-LTE, FDD-LTE, TD-SCDMA, DC-HSDPA, HSPA+, and others. Starting at 4,488 (RMB) for the 16GB iPad Air 2 with WLAN + Cellular and 3,788 (RMB) for the 16GB iPad mini 3 with WLAN + Cellular, the LTE-equipped models are now available for purchase from the Apple Online Store, Apple retail stores, and select Apple Authorized Resellers across China.
Macphun Releases Snapselect Photo Viewer for Mac
The image experts at Macphun today released Snapselect, a Mac application designed to quickly browse and sort images from any folder, SD card, or external drive as well as directly hooking into iPhoto, Aperture, or Lightroom. Smart technology helps identify duplicates and similar images, with one-click export and sharing and full support for the latest OS X Yosemite as well as all popular image formats, including RAW. Snapselect is now available at a discounted price of $14.99 for a limited time (normally $24.99) directly from the Mac App Store. Check out the embedded YouTube video below to see Snapselect in action!
