Dish and DirecTV wish customers a Merry Christmas… by hiking prices

Pay TV service providers are among a few groups of companies that customers love to hate, and sometimes they go out of their way to remind us why. As families across the country come together to celebrate the holidays, satellite TV giants Dish Network and DirecTV are wishing them a Merry Christmas by hiking the cost of their service plans. In line with years past, both companies have confirmed that they will raise the prices of various television packages and increase service fees as well. The increases come at a time when "cord cutting," or canceling pay TV service in favor of online video streaming services, is becoming an increasingly common trend — to the point where cable companies are producing awful, awful anti-cord cutting campaigns as a last-ditch effort to win back lost subscribers and prevent current customers from leaving.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2013 at 02:45PM, December 25

Windows 8 isn’t saving the PC market as sales continue to tank

If you want to understand why Windows 8 has been a failure so far, the following quote from IDC analyst Jay Chou explains it all: "The chief concern for future PC demand is a lack of reasons to replace an older system." This is a big problem for Microsoft because the entire point of Windows 8 was to ignite demand within the PC market and make people want to replace their older systems with new touch-enabled PCs that would slow the growth of iOS and Android as rival mobile computing platforms. But as IDC's latest research shows, that simply isn't happening.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2013 at 02:45PM, December 03

This is the true value of Android

What typically gets lost in a lot of the horserace coverage comparing iOS and Android market share is the impact that both platforms have on the broader consumer electronics industry. Benedict Evans has a terrific post outlining how Android's impact goes well beyond smartphone and tablet shipment numbers that garner headlines and extends to letting a whole new crop of consumer electronics companies add a level of intelligence to their devices that had previously not been possible.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2013 at 02:45PM, November 21

Apple’s 12.9-inch iPad set for early release date in 2014 according to sources

Apple will release a 12.9-inch iPad with a Retina display at some point in early 2014 to take on bigger rival tablets, The Korea Times has learned from an unnamed supply chain source. Specifically, The Korea Times writes that "Apple’s local first-tier display supplier is now producing a 12.9-inch Retina display to be used in the new iPad, which will be coming out sometime early next year." This isn’t the first rumor detailing a bigger iPad, with previous reports from Chinese newspaper United Daily News and the Wall Street Journal also claiming that Apple is working on a 12- to 13-inch tablet. The device may be launched in March 2014, according to a recent story.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2013 at 02:45PM, November 19

Samsung phones have officially conquered the world

Mock Samsung all you want for its smartphones' cheap-feeling plastic builds but its devices were designed to sell by the tens of millions. Strategy Analytics reports that Samsung is now the No. 1 handset vendor for every single region for which it collects data, the first time ever that the company has straddled the globe as the world's top vendor. Samsung's general strategy has been to release one or two flagship models a year, such as 2013's Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3, before then churning out multiple variations of those models such as the Galaxy S4 Zoom, the Galaxy S4 mini and the Galaxy S4 Active. While this strategy has led critics to accuse the company of sending out "gadget spam," it's certainly proven effective at moving units to markets in every corner of the world.

Read More [...]

Posted in 2013 at 02:45PM, November 13