Mobile

Foursquare Paves a New Path Down Memory Lane
June 14, 2013

Mobile technologies may tend to focus on life's present and future, but Foursquare this week launched a feature that gives users new insight into the past. Specifically, the location-based social networking service on Thursday introduced the Foursquare Time Machine, a tool that allows users to retrace the steps of their past check-ins through a digital visualization.

Is Verizon's Uncomfortable Silence Savvy PR?
June 14, 2013

Verizon is on the hot seat. It is at the center of the story about releasing customer information to the NSA. While Verizon does make information about every call available to the agency, the actual conversation is still private -- for now, at least. To date, Verizon has been quiet as the argument rages. Is quiet what you expect from the PR department of any company caught in such a storm?

New Drive Aims to Stamp Out Smartphone Crime
June 13, 2013

A coalition of United States officials, institutional investors and consumer advocates on Thursday launched the Save Our Smartphones Initiative nationwide. With smartphone-related crimes, some of which are shockingly brutal, on the rise in the U.S., law enforcement officials have cranked up the pressure on the cellphone industry to come up with technologies to deter theft.

2 Years Later, HP's Botched Palm Acquisition Still Stings
June 13, 2013

Former Palm CEO and webOS creator Jon Rubinstein is apparently still brooding over Palm's acquisition by HP. Two years later, he looks back at what HP did with webOS -- or rather what it didn't do -- and he is very disappointed, he said in a recent interview. When HP acquired Palm for $1.2 billion in 2010, it did indeed look as though webOS was destined for great things.

Comcast to Pepper Neighborhoods With WiFi Hotspots
June 11, 2013

Comcast is rolling out a neighborhood WiFi initiative designed to allow its Xfinity Internet subscribers to log in to nearby wireless hotspots outside of their home. Subscribers to the service will essentially be the hosts for two separate WiFi networks. One will be their private, secure home connection. The other signal, which Comcast would provide for free, would serve as a neighborhood signal.

Sprint Leans Toward Sweeter Softbank Offer
June 11, 2013

Softbank and Sprint late Monday announced changes to the merger agreement awaiting shareholders' approval. The new deal increases the amount of cash that would go to stockholders by reallocating funds that had been earmarked for direct investment in Sprint. SoftBank will acquire shares from current Sprint shareholders for $7.65, up from the $7.30 per share in the original bid.

Samsung Stock Plummets in Wake of Analyst Report
June 10, 2013

Samsung stockholders went scurrying for the exit on Friday when a research note from J.P. Morgan predicted that third-quarter shipments of the Galaxy S4 would be disappointing. The company lost about $12 billion in market value that day and edged further down on Monday. Other investment firms have also either downgraded the company's ratings or commented on its diminished prospects in recent days.

When Mobile CRM Goes Too Far, Part 3
June 10, 2013

Mobile everything is the current computing zeitgeist and if that means turning an app or function that is perfectly suited for desktop use into a mobilized one, well, as the thinking goes at so many companies now, just do it. However, mobilizing an app -- even a front-office CRM app -- should not be undertaken lightly. Costs, security issues and customer attitudes all must be considered.

FreedomPop Calls for Mobile Revolution
June 07, 2013

Homing in on consumers' frustration with the escalating costs of wireless services, FreedomPop this week announced a mobile plan that offers voice, text and data -- for free. The FreedomPop service utilizes mobile VoIP on Sprint's cellular network. The company will offer a number of Android phones for purchase, or subscribers can use their own compatible phones.

It's a Smart Smart Smart Smartphone World
June 07, 2013

More than half of the adults in the United States now own a smartphone, constituting a new milestone in the history of the device, according to the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project. Specifically, smartphone adoption has grown to 56 percent of American adults. That's the largest percentage since Pew began tracking smartphone adoption two years ago.

Government Prying Into Verizon Customer Records Exposed
June 06, 2013

The National Security Agency reportedly has been collecting the phone records of millions of Verizon users in the United States under a secret court order. Specifically, Verizon has been required to provide an ongoing account of all telephone calls on its systems, including those inside the U.S. and between the U.S. and other countries.

The Race for 3rd Place in the Smartphone Space
June 06, 2013

Google's Android on the operating system side, and Apple's iPhone vs. Samsung's Galaxy on the handset side. However little attention has been paid to No. 3. Which company is No. 3? I'll be you don't even know. Yet No. 3 could transform the industry over the next few years. It seems we've been following the big guys for so long, we forgot about all the other players.

Samsung Gives Galaxy Tab 3 Another Inch
June 04, 2013

Samsung on Monday announced two additions to its Galaxy Tab 3 line: 8-inch and 10.1-inch models. Both run Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. There's some talk that the 8-inch tablet might cannibalize Samsung's previously announced 7-inch device. However, Samsung's strategy is hypersegmentation -- that is, identifying and exploiting a need not addressed by existing devices.

Windows Phone, iOS Outpace Android
June 04, 2013

Google's Android operating system leads the smartphone market with a majority 51.7 percent share in the United States, but competitors are gaining ground, according to a report released Monday by Kantar Worldpanel ComTech. Apple's iOS and Microsoft's Windows Phone platforms are now actually surpassing Android in terms of growth rates.

No 'Big Yellow Duck' on Chinese Twitter
June 04, 2013

The anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 has prompted Chinese authorities to expand the list of words and phrases barred from Sina Weibo, the country's Twitter-like platform. This is par for the course in China, where in 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009 -- basically every year social media has been huge -- the Net police have exerted extra authority to squelch conversation about the event.

Twitter's Vine Climbs Over to Android
June 04, 2013

Twitter's Vine has sprouted on Android, allowing users to post 6-second videos with tweets. Vine became available for Apple's iOS months ago, but until now, Android users have been left out of the fun. Now they can get into the thick of it as well. "Android owners: Welcome to Vine," said Android engineer Sara Haider. "Starting today, you can begin to shoot, share and watch short looping videos."

Next Galaxy Tab May Roll In With Intel's Clover
June 03, 2013

Samsung's rumored selection of Intel's Clover Trail+ mobile system on a chip for at least one version of its upcoming Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 was given fresh strength by a Reuters report last week. The rumor had been floating around for weeks, fueled by the publication online of 3D graphics bench test results of a Samsung "Santos 103" tablet running Android 4.2.2.

Google Goes All-American With Moto X
May 31, 2013

Google company Motorola has announced a new smartphone that will be designed, engineered and assembled in the United States -- the Moto X. It will be manufactured in a factory in Fort Worth, Texas. "There are more than 130 million smartphones in use in the U.S., but not one of them is made here. That changes with Moto X," said Motorola spokesperson Danielle McNally.

Lenovo's Shot at the Smartphone Market
May 31, 2013

It appears Lenovo is getting ready to bring smartphones to the U.S. market. After acquiring the IBM Thinkpad line of computers, this company has gone from virtually unknown in the United States to one of the heavy hitters. Now Lenovo is entering the smartphone business. Will it be successful? It is already the second-largest smartphone maker in China.

Apple to Give Pegatron a Slice of Its China Pie
May 31, 2013

Foxconn, a supplier that has occasionally embarrassed Apple, will no longer be the exclusive maker of the iPhone and iPad. More work reportedly will be funneled to another Chinese electronics firm, Pegatron. The shift of product to Pegatron began in 2011, when some iPhone business was awarded the company. Last year, Apple chose Pegatron to fill its retail channel with iPad minis.