The iPhone 4S broke pre-order sales records, while Samsung took a hit in its worldwide legal battle against Apple.
Apple Launches IPhone 4S
Apple announced it received more than one million pre-orders for the iPhone 4S on its first day of availability, breaking the iPhone 4's previous record at 600,000. AT&T received 200,000 orders for the device in its first 12 hours of availability, and orders from Sprint and Verizon rounded out the company's total.
Pre-orders for the iPhone 4S were so high that all three carriers sold out of pre-orders. Apple reportedly upped its iPhone 4S order from manufacturer Pegatron from 10 to 15 million units. Pegatron, originally responsible for 15 percent of Apple's iPhone 4S orders, didn't expect to ship devices until next year.
Apple also released the 4S in its retail stores to long lines of eager customers. The company's website said the 4S will ship in 1 to 2 weeks if ordered online. However, that number may slip even further if demand proves greater than supply.
IOS 5 and iCloud launched alongside the 4S. All iPhone and iPad owners who download iOS 5 are eligible to receive access to iCloud for free. The platform pushes photos, download new songs, or calendar events to 10 other devices, including iOS products, Macs and PC computers.
Meanwhile, Apple is also negotiating a deal with Hollywood studios to allow users to stream pre-purchased movies to iOS devices. A completed deal would round out Apple's iCloud media offerings, allowing customers to purchased, store and stream movies from the iTunes Store.
ICloud is expected to be a big hit for Apple, but the service did not launch smoothly, as many users reported problems trying to access iCloud e-mails. Apple's troubles are particularly embarrassing since it botched the launch of Mobile Me, its first cloud-based offering, three years ago.
Samsung Offers Discounted S2, Dealt Blow in Courtroom
Samsung opened a special retail store in Sydney, Australia just a few doors down from the Apple Store. The company offered the Galaxy S2 smartphone for $2 without a contract the first 10 customers per day, in an effort to steal the thunder of Apple's iPhone 4S launch. Samsung only ran the promotion in Australia, in a likely attempt to strike back at Apple after the iPhone maker publicly declined its offer to settle their patent dispute in the country.
Samsung may have garnered some attention for the move, but Apple got the last laugh in Australia. A federal court put a temporary ban on Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1, giving the company two weeks to appeal. The ban will remain in effect until a trial settles Apple's claim that the Galaxy 10.1 infringes on its touch screen patents.
The U.S. may also ban the Galaxy as U.S. Judge Lucy Koh said she decided the tablet infringes on the iPad.
Meanwhile, Samsung may have found a way around a ban in Europe. The tech company said upgraded versions of its products will solve a Dutch court's ruling that its Galaxy S, S2 and Ace smartphones violate Apple's patent for scrolling through photos.
