Upcoming: New Products We’re Expecting from Apple this Spring

Apple’s main events are in June and September, but there has been a trend of the company making announcements in March. In addition to refreshes on some of its less prominent devices, the spring is sometimes a venue for wildcard releases: last year’s Product(RED) versions of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, or the release of its video-editing software Clips.

This year, in addition to the rumors of new Apple products, consumers are awaiting more news on devices that Apple has already discussed. So, then, here is a rundown of a few products that we could hear about in March.

The non-Pro iPad

Last year towards the end of March, Apple rolled out a new iPad, positioning it as a lower-cost device for those who didn’t need the power of an iPad Pro. Just a year later, Apple may not need to revise that model. Its A9 chip is still pretty respectable, and with 32GB and 128GB configurations, it avoids cutting too much into the iPad Pro’s market.

On the other hand, there’s been a little rumbling about the iPad mini. The current model, the iPad mini 4, came out in September 2015 and uses the same A8 chip that’s embedded in the HomePod and the Apple TV. If Apple’s serious about keeping the iPad mini around, it seems like this might be a good opportunity for the company to bump up its specs.

AirPower and wireless-charging AirPods

Pre-announcing products is still not the norm for Apple, but in recent years, it has taken to planting a flag about some forthcoming devices. At its September 2017 event, Apple took the time to mention that it would launch sometime in 2018 its own wireless charging pad, dubbed AirPower. A case for the AirPods that supports wireless charging is likely appearing around the same time.

These may not be the most exciting of products, and it’s possible we’ve learned most of what there is to know about them aside from the prices, but they are laying the groundwork for a future where wireless charging is not only more widespread, but also starts to become an expected standard.

iPhone SE update

The iPhone’s cheapest model—the iPhone SE—debuted in March 2016. Since then, it’s been an object of intense discussion: is this a device that Apple plans of revamping regularly? Or is it merely a one-off to keep a low cost?

Rumors of a new version of the iPhone SE have been around for a while, but they’ve gathered steam this year. Again, it seems unlikely that Apple would bring any of the high-end features of its newest iPhones—Face ID, wireless charging, Portrait mode—to the SE.

Wireless cell phone charging is no longer the future because it’s here. Just about every high-end phone can charge up on some inductive platform. Charging-at-a-distance, on the other hand, is the future: the technology converts wireless signals into electricity to charge phones, tablets and other small gadgets.

Energous is the latest charging-at-a-distance company to throw its hat in the ring, but it has a significant leg up over its competitors: It’s just become the first-ever technology of its kind to get FCC approval.

Energous released a statement that explained its accomplishment. The Federal Communications Commission can certify charging-at-a-distance technology, since it technically takes advantage of radio frequencies to transmit a signal.

“As the first FCC certification for power-at-a-distance wireless charging under Part 18 of the FCC’s rules, this development represents a new era of wireless charging, and opens up a tremendous opportunity for the electronics industry,” Energous announced.

Part 18 of the FCC rules deal with “Industrial, Scientific and Medical Equipment.” Before selling new technology in the United States that takes advantage of radio frequencies, companies must seek FCC approval and abide by rules concerning operating procedure, interference and restricted radio bands.

It’s not terribly interesting to the average consumer, but the bottom line is this: the company probably did not go through all the trouble of getting FCC approval if it doesn’t intend to bring the product to market within a reasonable interval. And the FCC probably wouldn’t grant approval if Energous’s wireless charging didn’t at least kind of work. Even so, FCC approval is not an endorsement of the product or its underlying technology.

As far as what Energous claims to do, it’s pretty much what it sounds like. The company says it has developed a field transmitter called WattUp, which beams a signal via radio frequency to any device with a WattUp receiver attached. WattUp is platform-agnostic, meaning you could theoretically buy a charger for any phone, regardless of who makes the device. The technology can theoretically charge devices quickly via wireless contact charging, or more slowly just by being in the general vicinity of the WattUp transmitter. Right now, Energous says its transmitter works at distances of up to 3 feet.

Energous aims to demonstrate its power-at-a-distance technology at CES 2018 next month. Even if the technology works as promised, there’s no indication of how much it might cost — or if smartphone producers will be willing to start incorporating it into their handsets. Still, if the FCC thinks there’s something to it, maybe this is a charging technology worth keeping an eye on in 2018.

Questale published a new in-depth industry research that focuses on the Phone Charging Station market, delivering a detailed analysis of the market and future prospects of the Phone Charging Station market. The critical and significant data in the study makes the research a very important tool for experts, analysts and managers to get ready-to-access analysis by the industry professionals. The research is attached with substantial information in the form of graphs and tables to understand important market trends, drivers and challenges. The study is segmented by end users, products type, and various important geographic areas.

Get access to the free sample report

The research also covers the current market size along with the growth rate over the years. In addition to this, the research includes historical data of 5 previous years pertaining to company profiles in the industry. The in-depth information by various segments of the market enables managers to monitor future profitability and make vital decisions for sustainable growth.

Highlights of the Phone Charging Station market report:

Key questions answered in this report

There are always new smartphone trends to look forward to, but in 2017, updates to phones from Apple, Samsung, LG, and Google are starting to look more intriguing than ever before.

  1. Virtual Reality

The point of speeding up mobile devices is to allow them to run applications like virtual reality, which demand heavy resources. It’ll be possible to plug handsets into Google’s DayDream View VR headset to watch movies, play games, or roam VR worlds.

  1. Dual Cameras

LG and Huawei led the way last year with its dual camera setups Apple followed later in the year. You will see the rest of the smartphones released have similar dual-cameras on their backs.

Not only are you going to see a lot of dual cameras from now on, you will also going to see expanded functionality, allowing these cameras to do more than single cameras could ever do.

As wireless headphones get better, losing the headphone port makes a certain amount of sense.

  1. Faster LTE

LTE speeds will get a serious boost with new modem technologies. Smartphones like the Galaxy S7 and Apple’s iPhone 7 can download data over LTE networks at a maximum speed of 600Mbps (bits per second), and upload data at 150Mbps. Download speeds could reach close to 1Gbps with Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon X16 modem, which should reach devices in the second half of 2016. Achieving that speed also depends on the network capabilities of a carrier.

  1. Foldable Devices

One of the new things to watch out for will be foldable devices. Flip phones in the past ruled the market until now with mobile touchscreens. But, foldable phones and curved screens are coming. Lenovo has already shown its own vision, and there will undoubtedly be some others who will try to follow this trend.

  1. Redesigns

The iPhone has looked identical for over two years, and Samsung has stuck to a similar design with its Galaxy S series, changing materials but not appearance. But it all looks to change. Apple is purported to have an all–glass iPhone 8 in the works, which will look completely different to existing models.

Similarly, Samsung is apparently priming a new Galaxy S8 that has an all screen front, dispensing with the standard home button for a fingerprint scanner that sits below the display.

Summary

comScore shows in 2016 that 198.5 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones. Consumers now spend the majority of their digital time on mobile devices, making mobile more valuable than ever. With the exciting new smartphone trends and mobile usage it means that more than ever organizations might consider adding mobile device charging stations.

Should cell phones be allowed in schools?

Cell phones have established themselves as an absolutely indispensable item for students in schools these days. Parents and staff certainly know that cell phones can have amazing benefits for children today. Nonetheless, allowing kids to have cell phones in schools has remained a controversial topic the past decade.

Here’s our take on why cell phone should in fact be allowed at schools:

Cell phones ensure a child’s safety

Believe it or not, cell phones keep children safe. How?

Easy and prompt communication

Cell phones have literally empowered parents to keep a watch on their children. One quick call or text message and you get to know the immediate whereabouts of children. Of course, there’s always the call home for a forgotten lunch, homework project, or change of after school plans.

Information and knowledge at your finger-tips

Teachers often complain about students playing and fidgeting with smartphone apps while in class. Additionally, some parents might label phone apps as addictive and “bad”. On the contrary, there are several apps that could be very beneficial for educational purposes.

Over 70% of schools have reversed cell phone bans and it doesn’t come as a surprise given that students use cell phones:

Alternative thought to conventional methods

Millennials usually get bored with the conventional methods of teaching and tend to be less attentive in class. As a result their academics suffer. Students with mobile phones find learning more exciting with great mobile apps.

A stepping stone towards professional Life

Right from ordering designer clothes, vegetables, groceries, gadgets, movie tickets to checking business mails, searching and applying for jobs, cell phones have literally defined a new dimension in how the various facets of professional world operates and functions.

So how do you prepare students for future challenges without introducing them to the cell phone use in school? It is crucial and important that school students get acquainted with the world of opportunities right at their finger-tips. This is the predominant reason why more and more schools across the geography are proactively working towards motivating students to carry mobile phones to school premises.

A practical problem: How to keep cell phones charged up?

Battery life is short lived. A charging solution for 1:1 technology schools, universities, colleges, and other campuses is a LockerPower charging kiosk. The LockerPower kiosk features individual lockers that can charge virtually all phones and tablets. Students and staff can stay fully charged and always connected.

Today we live in a society where people are dependent on their cell phones and other devices. Our cell phones are our alarm clock, our GPS, our news source, and keep us connected all day everyday.

It has become the main way we communicate, and with the development of newer software, cell phones can make other aspects of our lives just as easy.

But what happens when your phone dies? Do you have a portable charger available? If not, how many times are you charging your phone every day?

These are the questions our team wanted to answer.

Back in 2013, the Veloxity team gathered phone battery statistics across 4 U.S. cities. The study surveyed 200 people in Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, and Chicago. To build on that, Veloxity decided to add Miami and Washington D.C. to its 2015 report, while featuring several new questions.

The results from Veloxity’s 2015 market research is described in detail below:

Veloxity's Market Research Infographic

Veloxity’s Market Research Infographic – 2015 Cell Phone Battery Statistics

1) Of those surveyed at 6pm, individual phone battery life averaged just over 40 percent. As expected, the average individual battery life at 10pm decreased to 27.50. Both averages are consistent with the survey results from our 2013 study.

2) After surveying 1,200 people in 6 cities, the results showed that a phone’s battery life isn’t a purchasing decision for most consumers. But 32% of consumers consider the battery life of a phone when deciding on a phone, which is a much higher number than our team had predicted. Additionally, a majority of people surveyed have used a public phone charging kiosk. 

3) When asked “how many times you charge your phone per day?” the results remained relatively consistent to Veloxity’s 2013 study. In 2013, the results for the four cities were as follows:

NYC: 2.6

Boston: 2.2

Philadelphia: 2.2

Chicago: 1.8

The numbers fluctuated among these cities, but remained similar to past results.

NYC: 2.7

Boston: 1.9

Philadelphia: 2.1

Chicago: 1.9

4) In Veloxity’s 2013 report, 85% of people surveyed didn’t carry a backup charger. Our findings in 2015 showed a 13% decrease in that category. This can be attributed to more people carrying a charger with them (7%) and the rise in portable chargers (6%). 

5) Low battery anxiety can affect us all sometimes. It’s a real issue, especially in younger generations where people find it hard to live several hours without their phone. Our study shows that on average, 6.95 people out of 10 face low battery anxiety. From the 1,200 people that were surveyed, this means that over two thirds of them describe having this anxiety. 

We’re always looking to improve the market research that we do to provide businesses with important statistics and help consumers that are looking for this information. If you have any questions that you’d like us to add in the future, leave us a comment below.

Veloxity, an industry leader in secure, charging solutions, is releasing data collected from its phone charging stations across the country. Using the usage analytics that we’ve included in our charging stations, we were able to compile data on how users interact with our products. From professional events like trade shows and conferences to social events like galas and corporate outings, our data suggest that providing phone charging stations at events can have a significant impact on its success.

“As the world becomes more mobile and battery technology remains relatively stable, charging services are becoming a necessity to meet our ever increasing demand for power,” says Krassi Popov, CEO & Founder. “Along with delivering a universal and secure charging solution, Veloxity also actively collects data on industry trends.”

We approached the research in two segments: guest retention and guest engagement. Guest retention was measured by gauging the impact of our phone charging stations on the length of a guest’s stay. This measurement was conducted at multiple events across the country where Veloxity’s machines were featured. We found that the average guest stayed 17% longer at conventions and 14% longer at trade shows.

Getting the guests to stay is only half the story. We also measured for guest engagement, arguably a more crucial statistic in the events industry. In an era where social media and traditional communication go hand and hand, we recorded the average time a guest would talk with a trade show presenter and the number of social media hits about the event on Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin. Guest engagement rates increased at trade shows and conferences by 12% and 3% respectively.

For conferences, a charging station allows for more guests to have more battery life, leading to more social media interactions. In trade shows, guests who left their devices charging visited more exhibits and stayed for a longer time. Furthermore, exhibitors noted that guests seemed more attentive, less distracted, and more engaged. Supplying guests with a secure place to charge their expensive phones will draw a lot of attraction. As these trends continue, Veloxity seeks to make access to cell phone power as easy as WiFi access today.

 

Today, almost everyone has a cell phone and 77% of Americans use smartphones. As the years progress younger and younger children are starting to use cellphones and even smartphones.

Having a smartphone is no longer a luxury, it is the norm.

It is hard to pass up having a smartphone when you can talk to someone on the other side of the world in real-time through your device’s screen, store hundreds of gigabytes for easy access without using a hard drive, and trade stocks on your smartphone.

This is made possible by technological advancements in smartphone software and hardware. Still, with all these innovations, mobile phone batteries have not improved. As each newly modeled smartphone is produced the battery life lacks. This is not all because of technology it is because we are using our phones for much more than the battery can handle.

To see the extent to which this is true, we set out to investigate phone battery statistics in four major U.S cities; Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago. In each city we surveyed a total of 200 people on the street, in malls, or standing outside bars and nightclubs.

Average Phone Charges Per Day

Mobile users in NYC reported the highest frequency with an average of 2.6 charges per day. Those surveyed in Boston and Philly shared an average frequency of 2.2 charges per day, trailed by Chicago with 1.8 charges per day.

Battery Anxiety

A whopping 84 percent of respondents in New York City reported having experienced low battery anxiety compared to 71 percent, 70 percent and 64 percent in Boston, Chicago, and Philadelphia, respectively.

Average Battery Life by City

Of those surveyed at 6pm, individual phone battery life averaged 40.94 percent overall. In Philly the average was 44.06 and in New York was 38.93 (Boston and Chicago fell in-between). Not surprisingly, individual phone battery life at 10pm decreased, averaging to 25.37 percent overall with an average of 27.52 percent in Philly and 23.13 percent in New York.

Battery Backup Breakdown

In aggregate, 85 percent of respondents reported carrying no backup for their phone batteries. Only 11 percent of respondents reported carrying a spare charger and 4 percent an external battery.

Market research surveys were conducted by Veloxity One LLC; providing cell phone charging solutions for businesses across the country through universal charging stations | https://veloxity.us

Content Updated on November 11th, 2015.