“There are lots of nifty smartphones out there, including the iPhone’s impressive archrival, Samsung’s Galaxy S III. But when it comes to melding hardware, software and services so tightly that the seams fade away, Apple still has no peer.” -Time Magazine
The video presented above may be a good example as to why Time Magazine says that, “Apple still has no peer”. Although Apple’s iPhone 5 and iOS have gathered their share of detractors over 2012 (mainly due to iOS glitches, lowering Android costs yet still high Apple prices), one magazine in particular has given Apple’s iPhone 5 the highest award possible.
Time Magazine gave the Apple iPhone 5 the top spot as “The Number 1 Gadget of 2012“. By comparison, Samsung’s Galaxy Note II came in a distant number 8. For Linux fans, it’s also worth a quick honorable mention that the Raspberry Pi Model B grabbed the 4th spot for Device of the Year.
The iPhone appears to be the ‘apple of the tech-world’s eye’ at the moment. In addition to winning the top spot in Time Magazine which is one of North America’s most consumer driven magazines, Apple also received some more good news on December 18, 2012. According to the Guardian, “Samsung has stopped seeking sales bans for Apple products such as the iPhone and iPad in lawsuits in five European countries”. It wasn’t exactly a kind favor by Samsung though. They had been warned by the EU Commission about abusing its ownership of patents. In particular, ones based around 3G networking.
The withdrawal of the Samsung patent infringement accusations did come after a bit of bad new for Apple. Just hours prior to Samsung’s withdrawal, Apple had a request turned down in North America when California by Judge Lucy Koh denied Apple’s request to ban 20 Samsung smartphones and tablets. None the less, Apple had already received a hefty $1 billion dollar judgment in damages against Samsung from a still somewhat controversial jury verdict in August.
Overall, the year is ending on a better note for Apple as the company receives accolades from various places and leaves the door wide open for an improved 2013 for one of the worlds top device and OS manufacturers.