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Apple forces manufacturers to stop making Zenbooks...

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rivan said:
So Apple's innovation was to make something thinner and lighter? So innovative.

There's been a steady progression that way since the very first portables. The basics of the layout of a laptop are all the same, and there are only so many permutations once you begin stripping away things to make things lighter and smaller. Both of those are pretty much the bare minimum in form to support the function - in two of 3 dimensions they're essentially defined by their screen size and the third dimension is largely defined by other tech - LED backlights mean a thinner display; huge leaps in battery production mean drastically smaller batteries than 10 years ago; etc.

Don't get me wrong - I think Apple occasionally has an absolute gem and really understands how to make a UI - I just don't see anything in that image that is more revolutionary than evolutionary.
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in a lot of these cases Apple spends their own cash to buy and calibrate the machines to get the right design that will sell.

if someone wants to copy their designs they should go out and buy all the machines, calibrate them and spend a lot of money in general to get things going
 
rivan said:
So I'm no patent attorney, so I might be really off base.

Did Apple actually get granted a patent on dome shaped, quarter sized laptop feet?

😵
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Hopefully, that type of patent only covers such sized and shaped feet that are placed in that same manner (in relation to position, size, and ratios of them in relation to the rest of the body).
But, if that's the only main thing they want to patent (or, perhaps, were simply allowed to patent; do we get to see rejected patents at all?), than I guess that's fine with me. It could be like the grille design of a car - you can't make it in the same size, shape, and ratio (with other features on the grille, such as logotypes and emblems - and their orientation/size/location) in relation to the overall body and whatnot. But there are ways to make it legal and yet very much push that boundary.

And hopefully someone can butt in and help make sure other similarly-styled laptops aren't forced out of manufacture by Apple's pressure on vendors.
 
SampSon said:
JackBurton sure is one defensive fanboi if there ever was one! You should know the whole line about what competition results in, no point in reiterating it.

Apple knows it won't win these suits in court. Though they do know they are expensive and time consuming for their competitors. Apple sure is an innovator though, they are leading the way in the fresh new industry of IP/Patent litigation.
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Apple should sue Rambus. The sheer mass of all those soulless slimebag lawyers in one room will collapse into a singularity causing them to fall into another universe. The world would then be a much better place.
 
dainthomas said:
Apple should sue Rambus. The sheer mass of all those soulless slimebag lawyers in one room will collapse into a singularity causing them to fall into another universe. The world would then be a much better place.
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That has some heavy ethical implications. Foisting our lawyers on another innocent universe is hard to justify. It could be supposed that the other universe is more evil than ours, and deserves the lawyers, but that's a coin toss. What if we're wrong?
 
BoberFett said:
Maybe because the technology wasn't quite there yet?

Apple took an old idea and packaged the technology that other companies developed. Intel and other chipmakers should probably get most of the credit for lowering TDP to the point that the thin laptop was viable. Apple may be excellent industrial designers, but that does not make them innovators or inventors.
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Apple was the driving force behind those technologies. ULV processors, Sandy Bridge, Ivy Bridge, Ultrabooks, all of those pieces falling into place was because of the MBA initiative from Apple. Of course ARM being competitive is another reason for Intel focusing on TDP lately.

Apple works closely with Intel a lot more than you think, hence the creation of Thunderbolt. Apple also acquired the first Sandy Bridge Mobile processors along with the the first to support SATA III without the bug issue. This has lead me to believe that Intel and Apple worked together to get Apple's MBP laptops out while everyone else had the SATA bug issue on their desktop mobos.
 
busydude said:
LOL, no. It is due to the gradual improvement in the fabrication technologies.
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fabrication technologies have been improving for a long time but from around 2000 until 2007 or so CPU's have been getting hotter and hotter every new release

the original reason apple went Intel was because PPC was too hot. look at the x-box for proof
 
alent1234 said:
fabrication technologies have been improving for a long time but from around 2000 until 2007 or so CPU's have been getting hotter and hotter every new release
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I'm not sure what you're getting at. Intel was flogging a dead horse with that architecture, and it was time for a change. The rewards for power consumed diminished to almost nothing.
 
Most of you are either clearly biased being anti-Apple or blind. Which is expected for most of AnandTech.
It's clear that when you're innovative and popular other's will copy you. In a cheaper and shitter fashion.

I'm glad Apple kicked this companies ass. I hope they do the same for HP's bullshit.





*Bracing for the shit storm*
 
Ns1 said:
My point is that there are other ways to design an ultraportable besides copying the MBA.
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Unless a copy is stealing proprietary information and reverse engineering chips on the motherboard... well imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Is boeing going to sue airbus because two jets look similar? Aerodynamics dictate to a large extent what the final product looks like. Zenbook makers are using components that allow them to shrink the footprint of their products. Do they have to put empty space underneath the case to make it a little fatter to suit Apple?
 
Last edited:
So you're saying their is no other way to make a portable laptop without copying the MBA?
You're got to be kidding. That's ridiculous. The Toyota Camry doesn't look anything like a Ford Fusion.
 
alfa147x said:
So you're saying their is no other way to make a portable laptop without copying the MBA?
You're got to be kidding. That's ridiculous. The Toyota Camry doesn't look anything like a Ford Fusion.
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I've seen you posted nothing substantial yet. Nothing to validate your cult devotion and AT callouts.

Funny you mention Ford and Toyota. Two companies independently working on hybrid systems years ago. When both of them that had vehicles that infringed each others work they sat down and fucking figured it out.
They cross licensed this shit.
Meanwhile, Apple cannot lead by innovation these days. It purely about pop culture now.
You're delusional outlook glosses over the fact that Jobs wanted to take everything with him.
He wants to sue everyone around him and shut then out of of business. Has nothing to do with competition. Apple does not want any competition. That is clear. You are deluded.
 
BoberFett said:
How many different ways are there to design a laptop? Once the technology exists to make it that thin how radically different can they be? It's a a computer built into a keyboard with an attached monitor.

I want to see Apple die a horrible death. The entire industry needs to collude towards Apple's demise.
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great so american engineers won't even have jobs anymore either. guy pay for some taiwanese or korean guy to design your stuff?

http://arstechnica.com/hardware/new...lion-plan-to-beat-apple-at-its-own-game.ars/2
as for why its so hard and why they've had so much trouble beating apple on build/form factor and price...that explains a bit. its not as easy as you think
 
foghorn67 said:
I've seen you posted nothing substantial yet. Nothing to validate your cult devotion and AT callouts.

Funny you mention Ford and Toyota. Two companies independently working on hybrid systems years ago. When both of them that had vehicles that infringed each others work they sat down and fucking figured it out.
They cross licensed this shit.
Meanwhile, Apple cannot lead by innovation these days. It purely about pop culture now.
You're delusional outlook glosses over the fact that Jobs wanted to take everything with him.
He wants to sue everyone around him and shut then out of of business. Has nothing to do with competition. Apple does not want any competition. That is clear. You are deluded.
Click to expand...


Yup and the stupidity continues... What would you like me to source? My opinion that most of these bullshit laptops do in fact look like the MBP? Is Apple doing wrong by trying to keep making money? As someone else said, it's clear what today's world has turned into. A select few make new and different products then other manufactures start to copy...

You're anti-Apple bias is what's delusional. I love how you've resorted to calling me names. Welcome to kindergarden. Your cubby is right over there...
🙄
 
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