“As ears are pressed to the ground and eyes to the screen for any hint of the next iPhone, Apple recently re-upped its exclusive deal with Liquidmetal Technologies for an additional two years, according to an 8K form filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission,” Michelle Maltais reports for The Los Angeles Times.
“Liquidmetal is a shiny yet steely metal alloy that incorporates zirconium, titanium, nickel, copper and beryllium, making it strong enough to resist bending, scratching, denting and shattering, according to the scientists responsible,” Maltais reports. “Apparently, under the Master Transaction Agreement from August 2010, Liquidmetal was obligated to contribute ‘all intellectual property acquired or developed by the Company’ to a ‘special purpose subsidiary’ called Crucible Intellectual Property. That’s what Apple had exclusive rights to.”
Maltais reports, “In the filing, the agreement is amended to extend the exclusive license “on a perpetual basis to Apple for the field of use of consumer electronic products.” The deal, originally set to expire Feb. 5 of this year, extends their relationship through Feb. 5, 2014… As Caltech’s William Johnson told The Times in April, ‘the bigger it is, the harder it is to get the heat out’ and cool it quickly to keep crystals from forming. Something that’s no more than an inch thick is ideal for this material. Could it have a calling for iPhone 5?”
Read more in the full article here.
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People thought that the first time they made an exclusive deal.
I agree. There’s nothing here to suggest that they will ever use this for the iPhone or iPad and even they do, there’s nothing to suggest when (since the agreement be extended perpetually, it may be 10 years from now).
Nothing to see here people. Move along…
However it does suggest we won’t see a Galaxy w’Liquidmetal within 2 years on a perpetual basis, or a Surface. All it is reasonable to surmise from this agreement is that Apple doesn’t want to let another consumer electronics company come to market with liquid metal in their products and is willing to pay to enforce that desire.
Well, we already know that the Surface will be made of Vapor. (Take that however you’d like.)
Misleading article title is misleading.
Pure speculation based on nothing other than the fact that Apple has renewed an intellectual property agreement.
Show me any indication at all that Apple plans to build any part of anything out of Liquimetal, let alone base one on it.
So far, all we got was SIM extractor tools. They don’t even do that with it anymore.
More Liquidmetal wet dreams.
The best indication (that Apple will use Liquidmetal) comes from Microsoft’s photocopier: VaporMg. Same thing right? Well, close enough for MS!
If I were to venture a guess, and that is all anyone is doing, Apple will continue to explore this technology for making components of their devices, be it iPhones, iPads, Macs etc. This tech could be good when complex shapes are advantageous but tough to make through standard milling, cutting processes at very fine tolerances. I see no reason for Apple to make entire phones from this stuff from a cost or mass production needs standpoint.
Zirconium was used in the tweezers Frank Zappa immortalized. Beryllium was used in an episode of Batman. Liquid metal may be too runny for practical use. Perhaps my wooden glass product might serve them better.
As an attempt at humour, that fails miserably. Don’t give up the day job in favour of a career in stand-up.
Wood is a renewable resource. 😛
No, it does not.