The smartphone world may have a new camera king… and it’s not from Apple or Samsung

Although smartphone cameras in general have shown improvement by leaps and bounds over the past year, the iPhone 6 Plus and the Galaxy Note 4 in particular were singled out by reviewers as setting new standards for smartphone picture quality in 2014. However, PhoneArena points out that a new phone from Huawei is angling to beat them both in 2015 and it's posted some comparative pictures taken with the device to make its case.

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Posted in 2014 at 02:45AM, December 13

Former iTunes Engineer Claims Apple Aimed to Block '100% of Non-iTunes Clients'

As a part of the ongoing class action iPod lawsuit Apple is facing in court this week, former iTunes engineer Rod Schultz testified that he worked on a project designed to block third-party music from playing on the iPod, reports The Wall Street Journal .

A former iTunes engineer testified in a federal antitrust case against Apple Friday that he worked on a project "intended to block 100% of non-iTunes clients" and "keep out third-party players" that competed with Apple’s iPod.

Subpoenaed by the plaintiffs to prove that Apple's moves to block outside music from playing on the iPod drove up prices, Schultz told the court that his project was codenamed "Candy" and that he didn't really want to talk about his work on iTunes from 2006 to 2007.



Schultz went on to reiterate Apple's argument in the case, suggesting the security measures introduced in iTunes reflected the digital music landscape at the time. Record companies, Apple says, demanded DRM and forced Apple to keep the iPod secure.



Both Schultz and Apple also argued Apple's DRM efforts were designed to protect its systems and user experiences, which could have been compromised by being opened up to third-party music players and file formats. Schultz did, however, say that this also led to iPod's market dominance.



Schultz was the final witness in the case, and Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said she plans on sending the case to the jury for deliberations next week. The plaintiffs are requesting $350 million in damages, which could triple under antitrust laws.

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Posted in 2014 at 01:45AM, December 13

How an Apple cofounder made the epic investment blunder of a lifetime

Ron Wayne isn't nearly as famous as Steve Jobs or Steve Wozniak but he's nonetheless one of Apple's three cofounders who helped the company get off the ground in the 1970s. For his work, Wayne was given a 10% stake in the company... which he sold soon after for just $800.

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Posted in 2014 at 01:15AM, December 13

‘Younity’ is a Snapchat for everything

Younity is a new service from Entangled Media that brings Snapchat-like sharing features that apply to all the possible files users would have on their mobile devices and PCs, all without the company seeing or storing any of them. While in Snapchat shared images and pictures are actually stored on the company’s servers, and users at the receiving end can still find ways to copy the content that’s briefly shared with them, Younity will only manage the connection between two devices.



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Posted in 2013 at 11:15PM, December 13

Google's plan to rule the world

Like a lot of major American companies, Google has had some issues dealing with the Chinese government. In fact, Google hasn't invested any resources in the country for years and last year the government blocked all of Google's major services including Gmail, Google Maps and Google Drive. It goes without saying that this is a bit of a problem for a company as ambitious as Google since China's fast-growing economy represents a huge opportunity for every major tech firm. Thankfully for Google, it seems to have an ace up its sleeve in the form of Android.



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Posted in 2013 at 10:10PM, December 13

The Galaxy S4 has become the only Android phone that matters

While it's not surprising that the iPhone 5s has dominated smartphone sales at major American carriers since its release this fall, it is somewhat surprising to see that the iPhone 5c has maintained a tight grip on the No. 3 spot at all major American carriers for the past three months as well. What this means is that, other than Samsung's Galaxy S4, no other smartphone has been able to match sales of a device that many reports have indicated has been a disappointment.



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Posted in 2013 at 08:35PM, December 13

Your entire world will soon be connected

Intelligent connected machines and services that surround us – effectively known as the “Internet of Things” (IoT) – will become a $309 billion business by 2020, new research from Gartner shows (via ZDNet ). To use Samsung’s famous tag line for promoting mobile devices, IoT will become “the next big thing” in the years to come, as more and more devices will get Internet connectivity, smart features and some sort of awareness. The firm says that IoT devices in use will grow from 900 million units today to 26 billion units by 2020, at a significantly higher rate than smartphones, tablets and PCs, which will reach about 7.3 billion combined units by the same year.



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Posted in 2013 at 07:25PM, December 13

The death of roaming charges

For those who travel internationally, there are few things more agonizing than the wait to see how badly your wireless carrier will hose you for calls, messages and data while you were abroad. Roaming charges can't die soon enough. T-Mobile's latest "Uncarrier" move looks to take some of the sting out of international roaming for its subscribers by offering free international low-speed data and unlimited messaging in more than 100 countries, but an Israeli startup is looking to tackle the issue from a different angle.



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Posted in 2013 at 06:45PM, December 13

Apple releases iOS 7.1 beta 2

Apple on Friday pushed out iOS 7.1 beta 2, the latest pre-release version of its popular mobile operating system. The new iOS 7.1 software is available only to developers and it follows the release of Apple's initial iOS 7.1 beta, which was first offered to developers on November 18th. The latest available public version of iOS is still iOS 7.0.4. iOS 7.1 beta 2 is available for download beginning immediately as an over the air (OTA) update and it will be released on Apple's developer portal shortly. The software is compatible with the iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPad 2, iPad (third and fourth generations), iPad Air, iPad mini and iPhone mini with Retina display.

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Posted in 2013 at 06:12PM, December 13

How we stopped communicating like animals: 15 ways phones have evolved

Telephones have changed dramatically since Alexander Graham Bell spoke the first words into a telephone on March 10, 1876. Overall, they've improved since then, but the road wasn't always smooth. Here’s a look back at the most important advances in telephone technology and some of the worst.



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Posted in 2013 at 05:35PM, December 13

Android fragmentation vs. iOS fragmentation

Fragmentation. Few words have such an immediate and severe impact on Android enthusiasts. Meanwhile, iOS fans are completely unfazed by the word. Fragmentation has been something of an issue for Android since shortly after the platform first debut. The fact of the matter is the issue is inherent to Android's distribution model. Google releases software to the world and then it's up to vendors and carriers to push it out to users. And since vendors tweak Android with their own enhancements and carriers have unique needs as well, releasing software updates takes time. Apple, meanwhile, releases its software updates directly to end users, cutting out the middleman and ensuring that every user out there with a compatible device has access to new software builds from day one. But is iOS impacted by fragmentation as well?



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Posted in 2013 at 05:10PM, December 13

FEATURE -- How IFTTT automated (and archived) my digital life

Right around this time three years ago, a five-letter service was born. Like most startups, it took some time to simmer… to cultivate enough respect to make its way around the wild, wild tubes that us folk refer to as the internet. In the time since, IFTTT has rapidly evolved, supporting all sorts of new services, popping out an iOS app, and creating something of a budding ecosystem with shared recipes. For those unfamiliar with IFTTT, fret not — it’s a pretty nerdy service. But here’s the thing: it exists to simplify the life of the layperson, too.



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Posted in 2013 at 04:35PM, December 13

Google already released a new version of the Nexus 5 with redesigned hardware

Slowly but surely, Google is fixing each and every minor problem with the otherwise stellar Nexus 5. According to a user on the XDA Developers forum, the Nexus 5 units that Google is currently shipping are notably revised from the initial rollout. Some of the issues that plagued the original units included noisy buttons, a protruding SIM tray and poor sound quality. Google and LG appear to have resolved a majority of these issues as customers have started to receive phones with larger microphone and speaker holes as well as sturdier buttons. Don't take our word for it though -- one Nexus 5 owner has stacked the two units on top of one another in order to exhibit the fixes. The photos can be seen below.



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Posted in 2013 at 04:00PM, December 13

Apple's iWatch reportedly launches in October 2014 - and it fixes one of the worst things about the Galaxy Gear

The iWatch rumor mill has grown suspiciously quiet over the past month, but the latest report might be the most exciting and substantial yet. According to C Technology , inside sources say that Apple's smartwatch will be revealed alongside the next iPhone in October 2014. The report also states that Apple is making solid progress with its wearable prototypes, which currently feature 100 mAh batteries and the ability to charge wirelessly from up to one meter away from the charging station. As C Technology points out, the battery seems oddly small in its current state, especially considering the 315 mAh battery in the Galaxy Gear. Of course, this is only a prototype, and the battery will likely see an increase in size in the final model. That said, despite the larger battery of the Galaxy Gear, plugging the Gear into its charging cradle is a nightmare, so the wireless charging capabilities of the iWatch will be a welcome change.

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Posted in 2013 at 03:35PM, December 13

Yet another huge market Apple’s iPhone is dominating

An email management company revealed that 3 out of every 4 mobile devices activated by the small and medium business it tracks were iPhones or iPads, AppleInsider reports . In its 2013 edition of its mobile trends report, Intermedia said that 190,000 iOS devices were activated from January to October, or 76% of the total of almost a quarter million activations it counted. Samsung came in second place with 12% of total activations, which amounted to nearly 30,000 mobile devices, while Motorola took third place with 13,800 mobile device activations. Both Microsoft and BlackBerry activations were unimpressive, getting a cumulative 2% share.



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Posted in 2013 at 02:50PM, December 13

Samsung’s latest move could crush Microsoft’s new handset business

As Nokia prepares to pass the torch to Microsoft and exit the handset business, the struggling smartphone maker is finally gaining some momentum. Lumia smartphone shipments grew 19% on-year in Nokia's most recent quarter, thanks largely to volume growth among Nokia's low-end smartphones geared toward emerging markets. But things are also getting interesting elsewhere for Nokia. The company's latest marketing push focused once again on high-quality cameras but this time around, it finally seems to be resonating with some consumers. The Lumia 1020, after all, is easily the best camera phone on the planet. Considering cameras are key to Nokia's (and soon Microsoft's) ability to differeniate in the crowded smartphone market, some potentially terrible news emerged for the companies on Friday: Samsung is about to set its sights on Lumia phones' bread and butter.



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Posted in 2013 at 01:10PM, December 13

Cable companies’ new strategy: Embrace cord cutting?

While cord cutting isn't yet a threat to cable companies' profits, many in the industry can see where the market is headed and seem to understand that consumers aren't as willing to pay for expensive bundles when they have cheaper alternatives in the form of Netflix and Hulu. According to Forbes' Dorothy Pomerantz, cable and telecom companies are considering adapting to this new world of online television by doing what had previously been unthinkable: Embracing cord cutting.



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Posted in 2013 at 04:30AM, December 13

Verizon tries to sweep NSA disclosure proposal under the rug

Last week, AT&T sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission saying that it will not disclose information about how it shares private data with the NSA. Reuters reports that Verizon is now taking a similar stance, but rather than challenging the proposal from its own shareholders by taking the necessary steps with the SEC, the wireless carrier plans to skip the vote all together if it can.



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Posted in 2013 at 02:00AM, December 13

Microsoft says Google still isn’t playing fair

Microsoft and other interested parties that have antitrust complaints against Google in Europe are not happy with the concessions the search giant is ready to make, adding a study that tracks eye movement to prove Google’s misconduct when it comes to promoting its services in search at the expense of competitors. Microsoft’s Initiative for Competitive Online Marketplace (ICOMP) commissioned a study from the German Sports University in Köln to track the eyes of users performing Google searches in the region. The study revealed that Google users are more likely to click on a search result leading to a Google service than to a service from a different company.



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Posted in 2013 at 12:45AM, December 13