The magnetic sensor on the Nexus 7 could have been kept a secret from users on purpose. The reason could have been so that they could get the 7 inch tablet onto the market before Apple considered a patent infringement, reports TomsGuide. However the sensor was discovered by a developer on Wednesday, just one week before the tablet starts to ship.
Nexus 7 magnetic sensor very similar to that on iPad
So what’s the big deal about the sensor? Well it turns the screen on and off automatically by magnet. This would be a feature that would be used for Smart Covers for the Nexus 7. When the flap on the cover is closed it turns off the screen. The sensor is found on the left hand side, at the bottom, when the device is in the landscape orientation. It can also be activated by swiping a magnet across the back or front of the device.
Apple has used this on their Smart Covers for the notebooks and iPad 2 for quite a while and Microsoft recently said that they had something similar for the Surface tablet, which has just been announced running Windows 8. However Apple who happen to be patent mad, naturally have a patent for the Smart Cover magnetic system, suggests TomsGuide.
On a positive note Asus and Google may get away with it as the patent seems to cover the iPad mechanism specifically, with the focus being on ability for the cover to latch to the host device as opposed to turning the screen on and off. There is mention of useful functionality in the Smart Cover, however it is thought that this only in relation to the mechanism and design of Apple as opposed to every Smart Cover out on the market.
The magnetic sensor on the Nexus 7 is found next to the pogo-pins and these are for a dock device in the future. If it came to it this could be an argument that the sensor really has nothing at all to do with the Smart Cover as it is to be used for a dock.
At the moment Google have not mentioned the magnetic sensor in the product listing of the Nexus 7 and neither is it mentioned in the Covers description either. There is also no mention of it on the pre-sales pages which are for Staples, Office Depot and Sam’s Club.
Could Apple take Google along with Asus to court over the sensor? With the Nexus 7 being in competition with the iPad they just might. The future of the Nexus 7 would then all depend on how the lawyers for both sides, and ultimately the judge, decipher the wording of Apple’s patent.
[via]
