Many make the argument that fragmentation also means “choice” but when the choice is between a multitude of horrid phones/devices, is choice really a good thing and is it even a choice at all? Saturation doesn’t mean superiority and ultimately, it’s the end user that pays (long OS update times) for the rapid fragmentation the Android OS has undergone.
Source: AllThingsD
There is nothing I want more in the world than a diverse and healthy mobile hardware environment (competition spurs innovation) but it pains me to see so much buzz around Blackberry 10′s new camera app. If the camera app is the most interesting things to come out of Blackberry world this week, I see no future for RIMM, as this was their final chance to make a splash in the mobile space.
This morning, Bloomberg Businessweek posted a very interesting article concerning Steve Jobs “Thermonuclear War” with Android and how the continuing war has spread from Google, to many tech giants in the industry. Apple hasn’t targeted Google directly but has gone after the Android OS, by simply attacking OEMs like Motorola (Google), Samsung and HTC. Yet, what makes the countless lawsuits even more intertwined, is the business relationship Apple has with Samsung for component parts – $8 Billion a year worth. Regardless of the complication, Steve Jobs still wanted Android dead:
“Google, you f–king ripped off the iPhone, wholesale ripped us off. Grand theft.” Jobs swore he would “spend my last dying breath” and “every penny” in Apple’s coffers “to right this wrong. I’m going to destroy Android, because it’s a stolen product. I’m willing to go to thermonuclear war on this.”
The wait is over! For all those waiting for the consumer preview of Microsoft’s Windows 8 – your day has come. Just as they had said, Microsoft unveiled their next major OS version today and Win 8 is all about touch. Redmond’s next windows update is a marriage between Windows 7 and Windows Phone (Metro) styles – combining touch, windows and tile interfaces. While this is still a preview (beta) version, if you want to get your hands all over Windows 8, you can get it here.
Source: TheVerge
Ladies and Gents – mark your calendars because Microsoft has released a date for the “Consumer Preview” – February 29th! Microsoft will unveil the slimmed down version of Windows 8 at Mobile World Congress (MWC) and while it won’t be a complete release version, we will get a chance to see how the metro UI has been integrated within PC windows. This is a big play for Microsoft and while Windows 7 has been a great success for Redmond, Windows 8 is a completely different animal, as it combines windows phone and the traditional desktop OS. If Microsoft can pull off this hybrid marriage, we might be looking at the comeback of Redmond.
Source: TheVerge
“They are coming!” Could the smartphone market be going where the PC market went 10 years ago? Gartner’s latest prediction, as to the future of mobile OS saturation and dominance, hints at the democratization of smart-phones but also to the shifting of powers. The Chart above says it all but essentailly, Gartner predicts that Android will rule the future, in terms of OS marketshare, with Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 taking second and iOS coming in third – all this by 2014.
Gartner goes on to say that it believes Apple will fall into this third place position because it is unlikely to lower its margins per phone, allowing competitors to sell their phones at cheaper prices, thus gaining market share. This is what we saw in the pc market, where Apple hold a 15% market share in the US but its profits (due to high margins) out weigh its competitors.
Personally, I believe Apple will combate this trend by releasing a cheaper version of the iphone because unlike the pc market, Apple makes tons of cash from the whole itunes ecosystem. Hardware sales are their cash cow but their vast saturation of iOS devices, also allows them to rake in billions from music/movie/app sales.
Gartner may say they predict the future but the tech industry evolves faster than their current statistical analysis allows – essentially they are predicting the future with present data – good luck with that.
Source: AppleInsider.com
Would you look at that! We knew about the BlackBerry PlayBook for what seemed like years (more like months) but besides some specs and the fancy QNX based OS – we never really heard anything concret concerning price or release date……until today. Set your calendar boys and girls for April 19th – the entry level BlackBerry (16GB) will cost you, an “iPad 2 matching” $500 greenbacks, the 32GB goes for $600 and the 64GB model goes for $700 – pre-orders start today.
Where can you get your hands on one of these sexy tablet – where can’t you: Best Buy, Staples, Office Depot, RadioShack, AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon will carry the Tab - along with additional online retailers. Can’t wait and just need to hand over your cash now – Best Buy is taking pre-orders, just click here.
How will the PlayBook stack up against the Xoom and iPad 2? Let’s wait and see what the sales figures and consumer reviews have to say but one things is for sure – the 7inch form factor is not going to look so good when compared to its 10inch counterparts. Consumers have a deep seeded belief that size/price ratio should be high/low – RIMM is going to have to convince a lot of people.
Source: BlackBerry.com
The boys/girls over at 9To5 Mac are running a very interesting story concerning the iPhone 5 and it seems the rumor mill is starting to heat up, ahead of the upcoming release of Apple’s next gen handset. We have heard chatter about Apple moving away from the gorilla glass back panel for the iphone 5 and instead, using an aluminum backing – somewhat like the 1st gen iphone. The mockup picture above is a possible example at that metal rear piece. Moving back to the aluminum backing would solve the shatter issues some people were experiencing and strengthening the overall body of the phone but would reception suffer? I would think that with all the fuss over the iphone and antena reception issues, Apple would be sure to test the hell out of the phone, before bringing it to market.
Secondly, there is talk of a bigger screen, so a move away from the current 3.5in display and maybe closer to a 4 or 4.3 inch display. From the reports and rumors we’ve heard, the magic number seems to be 4inches – with the overall body style staying the same except for the display being edge to edge glass. I wouldn’t think Apple would change the resolution, as the current iPhone’s 960 x 640 display is the market leader is quality.
Thirdly, we expect Jobs & Co to drop that beautiful A5 chip, used in the iPad 2, inside the iPhone 5 – dual core (900Mhz) and 9x better graphics than the current generation iPhone. Of course, we will need a new OS as well and I’m guessing we’ll have chance to feast on iOS 5.0 during the June launch of the iPhone 5 – next stop, neural interface!
Source: 9To5Mac.com
Now that the honeymoon is over and the dust has settled around Nokisoft’s Mobile World Congress love affair, some interesting information is coming to light, especially from Bloomberg. I do have to warn you, the details are coming from: “two people with knowledge of the terms….” That aside, here are the details: Microsoft will pay Nokia $1 Billion greenbacks so that Nokia’s phone hardware have WM7 as their OS but then, Nokia will pay Microsoft a licensing fee for each handset “used”. So why the give and take? Well, essentially Microsoft wanted Android off Nokia hardware and the cash upfront deal was a sure-fire way of ensuring that Google got bounced and that, once the agreement is over, Microsoft recoups some of that cash pile back. I still believe that Nokia will get eaten up by Microsoft within the next 3 years – but here’s to this dysfunctional relationship…..I don’t want to see any police cars at the trailer park!
Source: BGR.com
You know them from such classic leaks as iPhone 4: “Big Trouble In Vietnam” and countless other gadget blockbusters but it looks like Tinhte.vn has got their hands on a Hp TouchPad prototype. While little is know about this specific device and since the above video is in Vietnamese, we don’t really know what stage this TouchPad is in: Market Ready or R&D Prototype? What we do know is that it has a SIM card slot, so GSM carriers are a go. Oh and we also know that the boys at Tinhte love manhandling their next gen products – easy guys.
Source: Engadget.com
Nielsen’s has released a new survey on, as the above title states, “Smart phone Share By Race.” This is just the Q4 of 2010 and the overall results aren’t super shocking. Overall, the stats point to a somewhat even avg. share across Whites, Hispanics and African Americans – in respect to each OS. Asian and Pacific Islanders had a much higher adoption of Apple’s iOS then the previously mentioned race/ethnic groups. Bottom line: People of all races love smart phones and they almost all feel the same way about specific mobile operating systems. Click Here to see all the results. NEXT!!
Source: Nielsens.com
What’s this? Oracle claims it has found not one, not two but 37 instances that its java code has been used (straight copy) in Google’s Android OS and guess what, they want their cut. This deabte has been heating up for a little over a year now and knowing Oracle, the lawsuit is going to be long, bloody and relentless until they get what they really want – a licensing deal for every Android device out there.
Now, let’s not jump the gun as there has been no suit, verdict nor outcome but this is not looking good for Android. Even if Google has to pay Oracle licensing fees, I seriously doubt it will pass on those fees to OEM’s or anyone wanting to use Android – more likely, it would swallow the fees so Android can continue its march to dominance. I forsee a cash printing machine for Oracle in the near future, with a logo of a tiny green robot on its side. NEXT!!
Source: AppleInsider
As they always do, the boys over at Engadget have dugg deep into their bag of sources and have unearthed this beauty! These are suppose to be actual shots of the mythical Hp Web OS tablet, yes the one we’ve been waiting for ever since Palm was…..well…..Palm. Anyway the info on the Hp Tabt gets better, as now it seems that there will be not one but two variants of the slate. One, code named Topaz, will ship this spring (March?) and the other (Opal) will have a fall release (September). Hope more info is released at Hp’s February event but let’s all welcome another Tab to the family or the Tabalanche that is 2011.
On a side note, the look of the tab is nice – very modern/minimal and the plastic shell should cut down on weight but Hp has to match the grace of Web OS with the hardware that will make it compete. Remember the Pre? Awesome OS, brutal physical design and hardware. Let’s hope Hp learned from Palm’s mistakes. I think they will:) NEXT!!
Source: Engadget