Category: Mobile

There is no doubt that LG (06657011) is nervous about the upcoming release of the Galaxy S 4. Samsung (005930) was able to create Apple-like buzz for its latest flagship smartphone and debuted a device last week with a number of new and unique features. One of those features, however, may infringe upon LG’s technology. According to the Yonhap News Agency, the two companies are said to be in a row over similar features in their flagship smartphones.

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You really can’t blame HTC (2498) for being frustrated right now. The company clearly put a lot of thought and effort into crafting its HTC One flagship smartphone, which not only features an eye-catching 4.7-inch full-HD display with a pixel density of 468 ppi, but also comes with a high-quality aluminum unibody design and a host of new features intended to improve its oft-criticized Sense Android skin. But despite all of this hard work, the company has once again been pushed aside by yet another plastic Samsung (005930) slab that will likely outsell the HTC One by tens of millions of units.

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Skype for Windows Phone 8 is still in preview, and as such, it’s not exactly the best it can be at this point in time. The team is working on it though, and has provided a new update today that should make your mobile video calling experience more enjoyable.

The Skype team announced today that Skype for Windows Phone 8 now supports HD video calling up to 720p. The video quality has even been improved for those on lower end devices with the app now supporting VGA video. You won’t have to worry about setting up video quality settings either as the app will automatically detect your connection speed and choose the appropriate quality.

Other enhancements to video chat include the addition of a landscape mode for calls, as well as the ability to switch between the front and back cameras during a call.

The People Hub on Windows Phone 8 is now integrated into Skype as well. In other words, users no longer have to start up the Skype app to start calling people. Users can now call their Skype contacts straight from the People Hub.

Skype on Windows Phone 8 will now also allow users to switch between accounts by simply tapping on the profile picture. This change was a result of user feedback and Skype says it welcomes such feedback going into the future as it works to add more features to Skype for Windows Phone 8.

Finally, the Skype team has applied a number of fixes to the app to correct a number of errors that users were experiencing:

You can grab the latest version of Skype for Windows Phone 8 here.

Apple (AAPL) on Tuesday released iOS 6.1.3 for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The update fixes a recent vulnerability that allowed unauthorized users to bypass a device’s lockscreen. The update also includes several improvements for Apple’s Maps application in Japan. iOS 6.1.3 is available immediately as an over-the-air (OTA) update, and it will be available for download shortly in iTunes.

The Google Shopper app for Android and iOS just got a new update with version 3.2, which adds some new search refinement options to make shopping easier.

“Need a new camera, but aren’t quite sure which one is right for you? Google Shopper 3.2 allows you to see the most popular cameras on Google Shopping via a specialized result page,” explains Google Shopper product manager John-Shriver Blake. “Overwhelmed by choice? Google Shopper 3.2 provides you with the ability to use category-specific refinements to narrow down your search. This means that if you’re looking for a point and shoot camera with a 10 Megapixel sensor, you can easily find the most popular cameras on Google Shopping which include that set of features.”

You can also refine searches by specific brands, stores, prices and other criteria. It will then show you the most popular items based on the criteria you select.

“Finally, once you’ve narrowed down your query to a few options, Google Shopper allows you to view detailed product information about each so that you can make an informed buying decision,” says Blake. “In addition to reading that information, viewing reviews from across the web or watching video reviews from YouTube, you may find it useful to view multiple high-resolution product images in the new lightbox viewer.”

The app is available in the Google Play Store, and in the App Store.

It doesn’t matter how many heartfelt ballads BlackBerry (BBRY) executives sing — the company still faces a long road ahead if it hopes to regain its status as a major power in the mobile industry. Gartner this week projected that BlackBerry won’t reach a 5% share of the global smartphone market until 2016 at the earliest, which only underscores how difficult it will be for the company to significantly expand while mobile giants Apple (AAPL) and Samsung (005930) dominate the competitive landscape. What’s more, Gartner doesn’t think reaching a 5% market share is even a guarantee, as it recommends that companies hold off on investing in BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 as a mobile device management platform “until the market makes a clear statement on BB10’s success (or lack thereof).” So while BlackBerry 10 has reportedly gotten off to a fairly encouraging start so far, there are still a lot of pitfalls that could trip the company up in the coming months.

Samsung’s (005930) Galaxy S 4 might not offer much in the way of an exciting new exterior design, but inside, it’s a completely different story. The retooled internals on the U.S. version of the Galaxy S 4 were put to the test by benchmark specialists Primate Labs and the results are impressive, to say the least. The Galaxy S 4 scored a 3,163 on the standard Geekbench 2 speed test, just shy of twice the iPhone 5’s score of 1,596. That score was also good enough to top the upcoming HTC One, the Nexus 4 and the previous-generation Galaxy S III. The chart below shows the Galaxy S 4’s results compared to other leading smartphones tested by Primate Labs.

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As HTC’s (2498) struggles continue, the company is seemingly getting to the point where anything goes. Executives at global smartphone companies often tiptoe around questions and choose their words carefully when discussing rivals, but it looks like HTC executives in the U.S. have been given the green light to let loose on the company’s biggest rival, Samsung (005930). HTC president Jason MacKenzie was quoted last week as saying aspects of Samsung’s Galaxy S 4 unveiling were embarrassing, and now HTC’s North American boss Mike Woodward has taken things a step further.

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Samsung is indeed working on a smart watch, the company’s Executive Vice President of Mobile told Bloomberg in an interview today. “We are preparing products for the future, and the watch is definitely one of them,,” Hee told the publication in no uncertain terms, adding that between itself and Apple, the “issue here is who will first commercialize it so consumers can use it meaningfully.”

Hee provided no further details about what a Samsung smart watch would look like, what features it would offer consumers or when it would go on sale, but he did say that the South Korean company has been working on a watch product for “so long,” and patents back up that assertion. Samsung has patents related to wrist watch tech spanning nearly a decade, as Unwired View notes, covering various types of wearable phone designs.

In fact, Samsung has even produced some of its creations, including the S9110, a smartphone in the shape of a watch it actually shipped in 2009. In fact, Samsung created the first-even watch phone back in 1999, when it created the SPH-WP10. That predated the smartphone, of course, but it did indeed ship.

Bloomberg also reiterated that Apple plans to introduce its own smart watch design as early as this year, citing an anonymous source in what is likely a reference to an earlier report that said the same. The report also included information about what Apple’s watch might do, which includes displaying caller information and map data, as well as being able to make calls and track health-related information.

Samsung has created smart watch tech in the past, but this might be another case where Apple takes the tech and leads the way in terms of building a device that actually works with a user’s existing workflow, popularizing the concept before Samsung and others move to follow its lead. At any rate it’s definitely an area of renewed interest for the Korean electronics manufacturer.

Samsung (005930) isn’t content to challenge Apple (AAPL) with the Galaxy S 4 — it apparently wants to challenge Sony (SNE) and Nintendo (NTDOY) in the portable gaming console realm as well. Forbes contributor John Gaudiosi writes that the vast improvements in smartphone technology over the last couple of years mean that “the gap between consoles and portable games is closing” and that Samsung plans to capitalize on this by releasing “a Game Arcade gamepad that looks very similar to an Xbox 360 controller with dual analog sticks and shoulder.” It’s certainly true that smartphones and tablets have been eating away at sales of portable gaming consoles, so Samsung’s move to position the Galaxy S 4 as a mini-console alternative seems shrewd. A video demonstrating the new Galaxy’s game controller follows below.

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T-Mobile announced on Monday that it will be issuing an update for Samsung’s (005930) Galaxy Note II smartphone in anticipation of the launch of its upcoming LTE network, which is scheduled to go live at the end of the month. The arrival of the company’s high-speed network will come at the same time it launches the 4G LTE-enabled BlackBerry Z10 smartphone, its second LTE smartphone. T-Mobile also confirmed that it plans to launch additional LTE devices in the coming months such as the Galaxy S 4 and an LTE version of the Galaxy S III.

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Microsoft (MSFT) has revealed support timelines for the current versions of its Windows Phone mobile operating system. The company will issue security updates to Windows Phone 7.8 and Windows Phone 8 for 18 months following each of the platforms’ launches. Windows Phone 8 support will therefore end on July 8th, 2014, while support for Windows 7.8 will run until September 9th, 2014. Microsoft notes that while it will issue fixes, “distribution of the updates may be controlled by the mobile operator or the phone manufacturer from which you purchased your phone.” It also revealed that updates will vary based upon “country, region, and hardware capabilities.”

A lot of headlines have focused on the new Galaxy S4 as a potential iPhone challenger in terms of hype and mindshare, but mobile ad firm Velti offers a different perspective in its February summary of global exchange data from its network. The company still sees iOS and iPhone dominating among mobile advertisers, despite the rising tide of Android devices.

Velti saw that 8 of 10 devices on its global ad exchange were iOS-based, including the iPhone 5, iPhone 4S and iPhone 4. Samsung managed to take two of the top 10 spots, but placed relatively low on the list with the Galaxy SII and Galaxy SIII at 7 and 10 respectively. The Galaxy SII is the only one to crack the top five in any region, coming in fifth overall in Europe, and while in general older phones ruled (there’s generally bound to more of them active out there), the iPhone managed to already crack the top 3 in Asia. That’s good news for Apple, which is focusing more attention on that region with recent launches.

Apple’s iPhone and iPod devices ruled overall with a 38.1 percent share of Velti ad impressions, with the various iPad models making up 17.2 percent. By comparison, all Galaxy devices together only managed less than 5 percent of ad traffic in February. iOS ads were also better performing in terms of effective cost per thousand (ePCM), garnering 20 percent more than their Android counterparts. That’s in spite of a higher click through rate on Android: ads on Google’s mobile platform earned around 50 percent more clicks than those on Apple’s.

Taking tablets on their own, there isn’t even remotely any competition for iOS. Android tablets as a whole account for only 0.7 percent, according to Velti, with the iPad making up 97.5 percent, with its share mostly shifting from standard iPads to iPad minis between January and February of 2013.

Overall, the picture on the advertiser side doesn’t look to be changing very much at all, despite Android growth in worldwide sales. iOS actually gained share between January and February according to Velti, though only a very small 0.3 percent, but the firm said that iOS has earned more than 60 percent of advertiser demand for the past six months running.

Samsung’s Galaxy S4 will be watched for a number of reasons, but it may be most interesting to see if it can help sway the needle with mobile advertisers. He who controls the spice controls the universe, after all, which in this case means that Apple’s domination of the mobile ad world definitely give it a leg up among developers and media content providers.

The iPhone is still the king of the smartphone world, but there’s a reason that Apple (AAPL) has started taking Samsung (005930) much more seriously over the past year. Barron’s points us to new sales estimates from Raymond James analyst Tavis McCourt showing that Samsung’s Galaxy series — which includes both traditional smartphones such as the Galaxy S 4 and larger “phablets” such as the Galaxy Note II — has been generating remarkable momentum for the past 12 months. Overall McCourt found that Galaxy sales surged from just 9 million in the first quarter of 2012 to 19 million in Q2 to 28 million in Q3 to a whopping 38 million in Q4. While these aren’t iPhone numbers, they’re certainly very impressive, especially considering that Galaxy sales actually topped iPhone sales in Q3 when consumers were waiting for Apple to release the iPhone 5.

Last fall, four BlackBerry (BBRY) executives shared their musical talents with the world for the first time in a music video thanking BlackBerry app developers for their patience while waiting for the release of BlackBerry 10. Now that BlackBerry 10 has finally been released, the executives have decided to get the band back together to celebrate what has by many accounts been a successful launch for their new platform. The new song, which is to the tune of Etta James’ classic number “At Last,” happily informs listeners that “all the promise has come true” with the BlackBerry 10 launch, which has also seen the release of “two new devices” that are “good to go” and “complete with legendary keyboards.” The song also promotes BlackBerry 10 as “a new beginning and new start” that “is gonna be a blast.” The full video for the new song is posted below.

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Samsung (005930) announced its latest flagship smartphone at a press conference in New York City last week. Some have argued that the Galaxy S 4 will rival Apple’s latest iPhone for smartphone dominance in 2013, while others have suggested that Samsung hasn’t done enough to retain its customers. The Galaxy S 4 features updated hardware and new features such as facial recognition and floating display technology, however its design has remained largely unchanged from the Galaxy S III. In fact, the design is so similar to earlier models that research firm Yankee Group’s vice president of research, Carl Howe, believes the smartphone should be regarded as “the Galaxy S IIIS.”

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Apple’s (AAPL) shares have been tanking over the past several months, but at least one analyst thinks that the company is poised for a major revival by the end of the year. Per Barron’s, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty said during a CNBC interview on Monday that Apple’s shares are approaching bottom and will likely rebound later this year with the launch of the iPhone 5S. Huberty, who recently met personally with Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer, said that “Apple will surprise this year” with “a killer feature that drives consumers increasingly to the platform” that will debut on the iPhone 5S. Huberty gave no hint about what this “killer feature” might entail but did add that it would increase “the value of those 500 million [Apple] accounts.”

Toronto-based startup Whirlscape believes that taking a keyboard originally designed for a typewriter, turning it digital and calling it a day is the wrong way to go about making the best possible smartphone text entry experience. That’s why the young company from a team of University of Toronto faculty and researchers created Minuum, a new kind of virtual keyboard that it’s now looking to fund via Indiegogo.

Minuum does away with the traditional three rows of letters and space bar layout of a standard QWERTY keyboard, replacing that with a single line of letters and predictive typing algorithms that help reclaim a huge percentage of usable screen real estate, while supposedly retaining precision entry capabilities. It’s designed to keep the QWERTY order mostly in place to ease the transition from standard software keyboards, but also includes powerful auto-correction algorithms to make sure you can be pretty sloppy with text entry and still get a usable result. Think something like Fleksy, but with a very different approach.

Part of that difference is Minuum’s ability to extend its innovative typing model to hardware devices beyond just smartphones and tablets. The company is planning an Android app as well as an iOS SDK for developers who want to use it in their own apps, but there’s also plenty of opportunity for Minuum to type practically anywhere. In the demo video, we see the project creators showing it working via camera capture tech like that used in the Microsoft Kinect or Google Glass, with just a hastily scrawled keyboard written in pen on the tester’s arm. It could also work with hardware designed to detect fine motor movement like the forthcoming MYO armband.

“All of the different kinds of techniques people have been working on are really focused on touch screens, and everyone is starting to build swipe into their different kinds of keyboards,” Whirlscape co-founder and CEO Will Walmsley explained in an interview. “I think the future of small devices is not going to be limited to touchscreen things. Given that we have devices that are as smart as they are, thinking beyond the touchscreen just makes a lot of sense.”

First, however, Whirlscape will be focusing on making its prototype iOS and Android software ready to ship by the start of 2014 (public betas arriving later this year), with a hardware SDK to follow sometime after that. Whirlscape has some seed funding already from UTEST, the University of Toronto’s early stage accelerator program, and MaRS Innovation, but believes crowdfunding is the best course of action to generate buzz while gearing up for public launch. Walmsley explained that Indiegogo helps it build a direct relationship with users, as well as create a pool of early adopters from which to draw testers for the initial private beta.

Ultimately, Walmsley says that the goal is to work direct with OEMs to get Minuum in front of as many users as possible. If it can deliver on its promise of flexibility and cross-platform functionality, it should have no problem attracting suitors once it launches.

It’s official: The Samsung Galaxy S4 will support Qi wireless charging but only through an optional backplate. When the Samsung Galaxy S4 launched last week, Engadget spied several Qi wireless charging accessories. This of course lead to wide-eyed speculation since Samsung had forgotten to mention this little tidbit during their elaborate dog and pony show. Thankfully Qi just took to the wires to clear the air.

From the press release,

The new Samsung Galaxy S4 uses the Qi wireless charging standard in its optional back battery cover and wireless charging pad accessories, as demonstrated at Samsung Unpacked 2013. The accessories are fully compatible with all Qi chargers and Qi-compatible phones.

No further details were given including release date and price. Still, just that little bit resolves the confusion surrounding the device.

This partnership, Samsung and Qi, comes as a bit of surprise. Samsung has long stood with Qualcomm as founding members of the Alliance for Wireless Power. This system uses over-the-air charging called A4WP. Digitimes first reported this switch last week before the S4′s unveiling. And since the two wireless platforms use different wavelengths, they’re incompatible.

Qi is currently used by products produced by Blackberry, ConvenientPower, Delphi Automotive Systems, Energizer, Haier Group, Hitachi Maxell HTC, Huawei, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Panasonic, Philips Electronics, Samsung, Sony, TDK Corporation, Texas Instruments, Toshiba, and Verizon Wireless. And they’re all compatible. Even the Nexus 4 charging orb could be used to charge an S4 equipped with a Qi backplate.

Now that Samsung’s latest superphone supports Qi, expect to see a wide-range of comptible hardware. Fire up your 3D printers, makers. It’s time to make some accessories.

[Image via Engadget]

Samsung (005930) unveiled its Galaxy S 4 smartphone during an outlandish press conference at Radio City Music Hall last week. The company announced its flagship smartphone in New York City alongside a laundry list of new features, however it was the handset’s design that caught people’s attention. It was argued that the Galaxy S 4, which looks relatively similar to its predecessor, felt too cheap to be a high-end smartphone despite being equipped with top-notch hardware. While speaking at Engadget’s Expand conference this weekend, Samsung’s design chief Dennis Miloseski defended the design of the smartphone and pointed out that the company is focused on the experiences it can create.

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