Report: Apple wearable on track for September debut

The big reveal for Apple's first wearable device may be just a couple weeks away, according to one reporter with a strong track record for Apple product timing.

The big reveal for Apple's first wearable device may be just a couple weeks away, according to one reporter with a strong track record for Apple product timing.

Quoting no one in particular--not even unnamed sources--John Paczkowski at Re/code reports that Apple will announce the wearable on September 9, reportedly the same day that it'll announce two new iPhones. Paczkowski previously claimed that Apple would reveal the device in October, but had warned that the company's plans could change. In this case, it appears Apple has moved the reveal date forward. 

Paczkowski has previously been accurate on the timing of Apple's iPad announcements in 2012 and 2013.

The report carefully avoids describing what kind of wearable Apple is planning, so it may be premature to call it an "iWatch." But Paczkowski says that Apple's HealthKitfitness platform and HomeKit home control framework will play big roles.

There's no word on when Apple might actually start selling the device, but the announcement timing makes sense. No doubt the company is happy to rain on the parade of Asus, LG, Motorola and Samsung, all of which are expected to announce new smartwatches next week.

If an Apple announcement truly is set for a couple weeks, press invites should go out soon--not that Apple would be anything other than coy about what it plans to reveal.

Apple loses bid for sales ban in Samsung patent case

A U.S. judge has denied Apple's request for a permanent sales ban in a patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung in California.

A U.S. judge has denied Apple's request for a permanent sales ban in a patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung in California.

Apple had asked the court to block Samsung from selling phones and tablets that include patented technologies that a jury found Samsung infringed earlier this year.

But in her order Wednesday, Judge Lucy Koh of the federal district court in San Jose, California, said Apple failed to show it suffered "irreparable harm" as a result of Samsung's actions.

"Apple has not established that it suffered significant harm in the form of either lost sales or reputational injury," Koh wrote. Moreover, she said, Apple hasn't shown that the harm it suffered was a direct result of the infringement.

It's another setback for Apple in a high-profile lawsuit that has failed to provide the returns it was looking for. In May, a jury at the San Jose court awarded it just $119.65 million in damages for Samsung's infringement, while Apple had been seeking $2.2 billion. Both companies have challenged parts of the verdict.

The patents at issue in the case include the so-called "slide to unlock" patent and the "auto correct" patent, which covers technology for fixing words as they're typed. The Samsung devices accused of infringement include its Galaxy Nexus smartphone.

Since the May verdict, Apple and Samsung have agreed to a settlement of their disputes outside the U.S., which included lawsuits in nine countries. Their battles in the U.S. continue.