MacRumors

The Verge reports that a Microsoft product manager today confirmed that the company is working on versions of Microsoft Office for both iOS and Android, targeting a March 2013 release. The comments were made to Czech site IHNED.cz [Google translation] at a press event in that country.

The Verge also notes that it has seen a press release from Microsoft's team in the Czech Republic confirming the launch plans.

"In addition to Windows, Office will be also available on other operating systems, Windows Phone, Windows RT, Mac OS, Android, iOS and Symbian," says Microsoft, while separately noting that there will also be a new version of Office Web Apps too. [...]

The press release also mentions that Office 2013 will be made available to businesses in December, with a consumer launch scheduled for the end of February 2013. "Office 365 services and other Office products for mobile (phones and tablets) will be released from March 2013," says Microsoft.

There has been considerable confusion over the possibility of Office for iOS, with The Daily having claimed in February that it had hands-on time with a working prototype of the software but Microsoft denying the report's details. In May, a pair of reports narrowed the release of Office for iPad (and possibly iPhone) to November of this year, with November 10 being floated as the actual date. It now appears, however, that the iOS launch may track more closely with the broader Office 2013 release.

Update 8:29 AM: IHNED.cz's Otakar Schon has followed up to let us know that there was a miscommunication with the Microsoft representatives and that the timeline for an Office release on iOS and Android is "after March".

Update 10:51 AM: Microsoft head of PR Frank X. Shaw released this statement on Twitter:

The information shared by our Czech Republic subsidiary is not accurate. We have nothing further to share.

Bloomberg takes a look at the situation surrounding scratching and scuffing of the iPhone 5's aluminum shell, an issue we noted just hours after the device's launch. According to today's report, Apple has indeed increased quality control standards to reduce the number of devices that are delivered with scratches right out of the box, but the move has slowed production on the new iPhone.

The scrapes, which sparked complaints with the iPhone's debut last month, are due to Apple's decision to use a type of aluminum that helps make the smartphone thinner and lighter. Senior Apple managers told executives at Foxconn near the end of September to tighten production standards, said the person, who asked not to be named because the matter was private.

Stricter benchmarks have hampered production of the iPhone 5's anodized aluminum housings, forcing Foxconn's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. to idle factories, the person said.

Specifically, the report claims that Foxconn had to halt assembly work at one of its plants on October 6 because of a lack rear shell parts.

Intentionally scratched black iPhone 5 showing silver color underneath

The increased tensions among workers reportedly led to thousands of Foxconn workers briefly going on strike over the issue late last week, although Foxconn denied that there was any such action.

According to a report in the Guardian, Apple is planning to revise the full-size iPad with LTE support for the United Kingdom, something that was missing when the device was released earlier this year.

Additionally, the paper says the iPad mini will only support Wi-Fi. However, that claim seems slightly more suspect. This part leak of what is purported to be the rear shell of the iPad Mini includes both the plastic covering for a cellular antenna at the top of the device, as well as a SIM card slot on the lower right. The leaked part could be fake, but it appears to be well-machined and is more polished and detailed than a typical fake.

Apple's expected "iPad mini" will only come in a Wi-Fi version – but there will also be a revised version of the iPad with 4G connectivity compatible with the UK's Everything Everywhere network, and sporting the new "Lightning" connector, industry sources have told the Guardian.

[…]

Multiple sources contacted by the Guardian have indicated that they think the announcement of the "iPad mini" is imminent, with retail sources saying that they anticipate new products in November.

The paper also links to photos posted by Australian writer Sonny Dickson that are purported to be photographs of the iPad mini, though the photos linked are mockups. The model number is from a current-generation Wi-Fi iPad, and it appears that the serial number is as well.

There have been rumors of a full-size iPad refresh, potentially updating the device with better battery life or a Lightning connector, but the rumors of added LTE support for international markets is new. It makes sense, however, given the support for international LTE networks in the iPhone 5.

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster today released a report outlining the results of his semi-annual survey of U.S. teenagers, revealing that iPhone and iPad usage continues to surge among the demographic. The survey of over 7,700 teenagers shows that 40% of respondents currently use an iPhone, up from 34% in the last survey conducted just six months ago.

We believe it is a positive sign for the power of the iPhone among younger users that Apple was able to expand its market share with teens despite no new product launches between our Spring and Fall 2012 surveys.

Apple also appears well-positioned with teenagers going forward, with 62% of survey respondents stating that they plan to obtain an iPhone as their next phone.

On the topic of tablets, Munster found that 44% of teenagers now have a tablet device of some sort, with 72% of those using an iPad. Roughly 35% of survey respondents who do not yet have a tablet (20% of total respondents) are planning to obtain one in the next six months. Of those, 74% are planning to purchase an iPad.

Apple's rumored "iPad mini" also appears to be a strong potential draw for teenagers, with 43% of those planning to purchase a tablet reporting that they would be more likely to do so if Apple launched a smaller iPad priced at $299.

Munster notes that attracting young users is a key part of Apple's strategy, as moving them into the Apple ecosystem at a young age helps lock them in for the future. The iPod touch has long been seen as a gateway device to attract younger users into the Apple ecosystem, but with the iPhone and iPad gaining in usage among these young users as smartphone and tablet prevalence continue to grow in general, many are moving into Apple's higher-priced devices at younger and younger ages.

Late last month, Mac Otakara reported that Apple had ordered carbon fiber components for an unknown product from a Japanese company. The order was said to be too large to simply be a sample, but no other details on the part were revealed.

Mac Otakara now reports that the shipments are actually the result of a long-standing partnership between Apple and the carbon fiber company dating back at least three years.

I reported Apple ordered some - huge number of - sample of carbon fiber products for Japanese company, and now I tell that research devision of this company has been co-operated with Apple at least for 3 years.

Details on the exact part or the device for which it is intended are still unknown, but Apple is said to be looking to create a "completely different weaved fiber" from that used in other products.

Diagram of carbon fiber weave from October 2007 Apple patent application

Over the past several months, numerous cases and physical mockups for Apple's rumored "iPad mini" have leaked, offering what many have believed will be a good approximation of what the device will actually look like. But according to a brief report from Mac Otakara, those case manufacturers may now need to shift gears as one company has reported that it has halted production on its iPad mini cases due to an unspecified design change.

Large OEM mobile accessory maker has stopped their iPad mini case production, because the form of iPad mini seems to be changed.

Source told me the round shape seems changed, then case designed based on leaked iPad mini may be dropped.

Case designs have historically been quite accurate in predicting the overall design of Apple's products, with the major exception of 2011's tapered "iPhone 5" design that never came to pass as Apple ultimately released the iPhone 4S with essentially the same design as the iPhone 4.

It is unclear, however, exactly what may have changed with the iPad mini's design. Alleged part photos showing the rear shell and front panel have surfaced looking very much like the design generated by case manufacturers, but it is unknown whether those parts are actual production parts or perhaps older ones from prior to the design change. Even so, the design change may simply be a small tweak that may not be immediately obvious in low-resolution parts photos but significant enough to cause problems for case manufacturers trying to get a head start on the iPad mini launch.

CNET reports on comments from DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim, who says that Apple's plans for a 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro remain on track for production during this quarter, suggesting that a launch may come in the near future.

DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim has been telling CNET for a while now that a 13.3-inch Retina version of the MacBook Pro (MBP) is slated for production in the fourth quarter. And today Shim reiterated that he sees no change in those production plans.

What's not clear is when Apple would release the new MacBook. Shim speculates that it would happen after the iPad Mini announcement -- which is expected to be released in the coming weeks -- though he said he has no first-hand knowledge of this.

Shim reiterates that the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro will carry a resolution of 2560x1600, doubling the number of pixels in each dimension over the current model. As with the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, Apple will presumably offer the new 13-inch Retina model alongside the current non-Retina model at different price points.

Apple's 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro

Chinese firm iPhone5mod has introduced (via M.I.C. gadget) a new iPhone 5 Flash Lightning Dock, marking one of the first claimed efforts to implement Apple's Lightning connector standard on a mass production basis. The move comes as Apple has been maintaining tight control over the standard and has yet to authorize any third-party manufacturing facilities to produce Lightning-equipped products.

iPhone5mod is actually offering the dock in two parts: a lighted USB-to-Lightning cable and a white dock similar to Apple's previous-generation docks but which accepts a Lightning cable in the rear and offers a Lightning connector for interfacing with the device. Each part is offered individually for $19.90, or together for $39.90.

iPhone5mod did, however, inform us that they have also obtained cracked chips that bypass Apple's authentication functions and that the cracked chips are working just as well as the original chips, suggesting that we may soon see a significant increase in unauthorized third-party Lightning accessories.

BGR.in reports that Apple is planning to launch the iPhone 5 in India on October 26, moving rapidly to make the device available in one of the world's largest markets but one in which Apple has not yet gained significant traction.

Multiple sources have confirmed to us that Apple is preparing to launch the iPhone 5 in India on the last Friday of this month, which happens to be October 26. As we had exclusively reported earlier, Apple will be distributing the iPhone 5 in India on its own rather than relying on its carrier partners.

We expect the iPhone 5 to have a wider availability unlike the past where it was not available readily everywhere.

This report is not the first time an October 26 launch in Asia has been mentioned, as The Malay Mail reported last month that the iPhone 5 would be coming to Malaysia on that date, pending stock availability.

“If orders remain within projections made by Apple by Sept 30, the Oct 26 launch date in Malaysia together with several other countries will remain,” noted an industry source.

“Should there be a shortfall in available supplies, the Malaysian launch date could get pushed to sometime in November.”

Despite tight supplies, Apple has moved rapidly to launch the iPhone 5 in markets around the world, launching in nine countries on September 21 and following that with debuts in 22 more countries just one week later. Apple has announced that it intends to make the iPhone 5 available in at least 100 countries by the end of the year.

Numerous MacRumors readers have reported that their orders for Apple's new fifth-generation iPod touch and seventh-generation iPod nano have shipped, with delivery due for late this week or early next week. The news is in line with last week's reports that orders were being prepared for shipment and claims of an official October 9 launch date.

Stores have also begun stocking the new devices, as evidenced by this photo from Japan posted to WeiPhone.com:

Mac Otakara has already gotten its hands on both the iPod touch and the iPod nano, posting unboxing and comparison photos. The site has also run some system status and benchmarking tools on the new iPod touch, unsurprisingly revealing that the A5-powered device has performance on par with the iPhone 4S.

iOS device overall Geekbench scores
System info on fifth-generation iPod touch

Nearly a year and a half ago, patent holding firm Lodsys threatened to file suit against App Store developers making use of Apple's In App Purchase mechanism, claiming that they were infringing upon patents held by Lodsys.

Apple stepped in to protect developers, ultimately filing a motion to intervene in the lawsuits being pursued by Lodsys against developers who were unwilling to license the patents in question. Earlier this year, Apple was granted limited permission to intervene in the case to the extent that it could seek to demonstrate that its existing license with Lodsys covers developers' usage of In App Purchase.

There has been relatively little news on the Lodsys situation over the past six months, but Lodsys today published a blog post providing a status update. According to Lodsys, the U.S. Patent and Trademark has upheld the validity of a key claim of one of the major patents in question, stymying efforts by Google to have the patent invalidated entirely.

As a part of the Inter-Parties Reexamination requested by Google, the USPTO recently issued an Office Action confirming Claim 24 of US Patent 7,222,078. This claim is particularly relevant regarding in-app purchases and free-to-paid application upgrades. In addition, we have every confidence that all claims will ultimately be confirmed through this lengthy process. In-app purchase features and free-to-paid upgrades will be a part of the litigation process that is now swiftly moving forward.

Lodsys goes on to note that Apple is continuing to press forward with its assertions that patent rights have been exhausted via Apple's license to the patents, thereby protecting developers from Lodsys' actions. Lodsys obviously contests that assertion, and a trial on the issue is scheduled for early 2013.

In a separate blog post, Lodsys notes that it has gained licensing momentum, now having reached agreements with 150 developers to license the In App Purchase patents, with over 80% of those licenses being obtained without involving litigation.

As of October 8, 2012, there are greater than 150 companies which obtained the rights to use the Lodsys Group patent portfolio, and more than 4 out of 5 of these companies have entered into licenses outside of the litigation process. These companies have realized significant savings by taking advantage of lower licensing rates.

Lodsys has taken on companies big and small with its effort, initially focusing primarily on smaller developers but later taking on heavyweights such as Rovio, EA, and Atari. Lodsys' plan has been to provide developers with notices of infringement, giving developers 21 days to obtain a license before filing suit.

It seems that most developers have elected to simply license the patents rather than incurring the expense and time commitment necessary to fight a lawsuit, but others have not backed down and with the assistance of Apple, Google, and other larger companies have been seeking to hold out against Lodsys.