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I don't believe at all that Apple was still developing hardware features in July on the iPhone which will ship this fall, only a few months later. After buying

by PanMan 14y ago

I don't believe at all that Apple was still developing hardware features in July on the iPhone which will ship this fall, only a few months later. After buying some mapping companies, it took them over a year before they released their first product which included maps. Integrating new, never seen, hardware components in the iPhone sounds harder, not easier, than generating maps (something that is possible with fully open software). I'm sure Apple has plans with the company they bought, but I'm certain we won't see them before 2013.

freehunter 14y ago
Especially considering Authentec apparently still hadn't completed their product as of the end of July. Apple's not in the business of releasing last-minute, untested hardware just to meet a deadline. Apple's never been bleeding edge on their mobile hardware. History shows us they're satisfied with incremental improvements based on time-tested hardware. The only way I see this being true is if the timeline is incorrect in the article and Apple/Authentec were working on integrating it into the iPhone/iPad long before the deal was close to closing.
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
jfb 14y ago
Yes. There's no way this has anything to do with even next year's phone, I'd wager.
jdlshore 14y ago
Another possibility could be that Apple has developed some key feature that infringes an Authentec patent, and only realized it recently.
- roc 14y ago
  Or that they had developed some features based on an Authentec license that they only recently decided to make into differentiation points by buying Authentec and thus making it more difficult for competitors to keep/catch up.
- startupfounder 14y ago
  More likely that this is a defensive move then a last minute reaction. They want to own the patent, control it and box out their competitors from the authentication side of NFC.
- CountSessine 14y ago
  Yet another possibility is that they have a feature in the new iPhone that possibly infringes on a Google or Samsung patent, and they want to buy Authentec's patent portfolio as ammunition in cross-licensing negotiations.

by PanMan 14y ago

freehunter 14y ago

Especially considering Authentec apparently still hadn't completed their product as of the end of July. Apple's not in the business of releasing last-minute, untested hardware just to meet a deadline. Apple's never been bleeding edge on their mobile hardware. History shows us they're satisfied with incremental improvements based on time-tested hardware. The only way I see this being true is if the timeline is incorrect in the article and Apple/Authentec were working on integrating it into the iPhone/iPad long before the deal was close to closing.

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]

jfb 14y ago

Yes. There's no way this has anything to do with even next year's phone, I'd wager.

jdlshore 14y ago

Another possibility could be that Apple has developed some key feature that infringes an Authentec patent, and only realized it recently.

roc 14y ago
Or that they had developed some features based on an Authentec license that they only recently decided to make into differentiation points by buying Authentec and thus making it more difficult for competitors to keep/catch up.
startupfounder 14y ago
More likely that this is a defensive move then a last minute reaction. They want to own the patent, control it and box out their competitors from the authentication side of NFC.
CountSessine 14y ago
Yet another possibility is that they have a feature in the new iPhone that possibly infringes on a Google or Samsung patent, and they want to buy Authentec's patent portfolio as ammunition in cross-licensing negotiations.