Tablets

M-Commerce Is on a Tear, Survey Says
February 14, 2013

Mobile commerce sites showed growth during the 2012 holiday shopping season as they gave consumers more on-the-go options for buying and researching products, according to the latest ForeSee Mobile Satisfaction Index. ForeSee, a customer experience analytics firm, saw the Index jump two points over Christmas 2011 to a score of 78 on a 100-point scale for its Holiday Retail Edition.

Nemo, Early Reviews Freeze Out Surface Pro Launch
February 09, 2013

Microsoft scrapped plans for Friday night's launch of its Surface Pro tablet at the Best Buy store in New York City because of an impending blizzard meteorologists have dubbed "Nemo." "Surface Pro launch activities in NYC have been canceled due to weather," said Microsoft spokesperson Dani Reese.

Count the iPad, and Apple Rules PCs
February 08, 2013

Apple lands the top spot among PC makers for the holiday quarter -- as long as the iPad is included in the figures, according to the latest report from Canalys. The market research firm, which includes tablets in its worldwide PC numbers, reported this week that overall PC shipments increased 12 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012, with 134 million units shipped during the holiday season.

Wikipad Tablet Gets Back in the Game
February 08, 2013

It could have been game over for Wikipad after a flaw in the initial production run of its gaming tablet forced a launch delay late last year. The company used the extra time, however, to rethink the Wikipad, and this week it said the revised version will debut this spring. The new version will be smaller.

Apple Opens Its Arms to Self-Publishing E-Book Authors
February 06, 2013

Apple has staked out some precious ground in the e-book battle with Tuesday's debut of Breakout Books, a new section in the iBookstore. This move is a no-brainer for Apple as it seeks to match what Amazon is doing with its Kindle platform, said Ben Bogardus, an assistant professor of journalism at Quinnipiac University.

Google Victorious in 6-Year Aussie Legal Battle
February 06, 2013

A court in Australia has ruled in favor of Google in its lengthy legal fight with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. The case, which lasted six years, concerned search results from 2006-07. The Commission claimed that sponsored links published by Google diverted users to rival companies.

Kindle Fire Users to Get Pennies From Heaven
February 06, 2013

Amazon announced Wednesday that it will be offering a virtual currency, called "Amazon Coins," for purchasing apps, games and in-app items on Kindle Fire. The new currency will become available in the U.S. this May. At launch, Amazon plans to give Kindle Fire users tens of millions of dollars' worth of free Amazon Coins to spend on apps in the Amazon Appstore.

Little Inferno Gleefully Ignites the Deep Dark Pyro Within
February 04, 2013

From what I've seen of humanity, there's a little pyro locked inside most of us. Maybe it's a universal longing to chase away the darkness with warmth and light, or maybe it's just a genetic quirk coded into our DNA from the days of the Ice Age when cooking up a wooly mammoth meant survival. Or maybe we just really like to see things burn.

Apple Makes Play for Even Higher-End Tablet Niche
January 30, 2013

Apple revealed a new version of its iPad Tuesday, a 128-GB version that comes with twice the storage capacity of its previous high-end tablet. The newest iPad is still under the fourth-generation iPad umbrella, and will have the same features as its predecessors, including a 9.7-inch Retina Display, an HD camera and an A6X chip.

Apple Offers iPad for Conspicuous Consumption
January 29, 2013

Apple announced a 128-GB version of the fourth-generation iPad with Retina Display on Tuesday. This latest version of Apple's popular tablet computer, which doubles the capacity of the previous top-end model, is now available with WiFi as well as WiFi-plus-4G service. While Apple has been pushing its products further into the cloud, the new iPad seems to be targeting more down-to-earth usage.

Microsoft Bides Its Time Despite Q2 Profit Slump
January 25, 2013

Microsoft reported an earnings slip in its second fiscal quarter on Thursday, despite strong sales from its Windows 8 operating system that gave overall revenue a boost. It brought in $21.46 billion in revenue, a 3 percent increase from the same period a year ago. However, its net income of $6.4 billion was down from the $6.6 billion posted in the year-ago quarter.

Dutch Court: Apple Can't Corner the Rounded-Corner Market
January 16, 2013

A Dutch court ruled this week that Samsung's Galaxy tablets do not infringe on certain Apple design patents relating to the iPad. Apple alleged that Samsung copied the rounded edges of its iPad to create the design on the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Tab 8.9 and Galaxy Tab 7.7. The Apple case hinged on the principle of Community Design, an intellectual property right in the European Union.

Sluggish Sales Hint at End of PC Era
January 14, 2013

PC sales sank in the fourth quarter of 2012 due to increased competition from smartphones and tablet devices, Gartner said in a report released Monday. Shipments totaled some 90.3 million units -- a 4.9 percent decline from the fourth quarter a year earlier, the firm found. In the U.S. market, PC shipments fell 2.1 percent from the year prior to 17.5 million units.

E-Reading Revolution Is Rewriting Publishing Rules
December 28, 2012

More bibliophiles are turning to e-books rather than their paper forebears for their reading consumption. The percentage of people who read e-books in the past year jumped from 16 percent to 23 percent, according to a study by the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project. As tablet and e-reader ownership rises, so does the amount of e-reading.

Next iPad Mini Likely to Have Retina Display
December 21, 2012

While Apple is keeping its cards close to the vest about what the next iPad mini will look like, few will be surprised if it has a Retina display. It's a very likely move for the next generation mini, according to Ross Rubin, principal analyst at Reticle Research. "The iPad mini really stands out as one of the few Apple products in its modern lines not to have a Retina display," he said.

All Things Appy: 5 Best Windows 8 Entertainment Apps
December 14, 2012

Windows 8, Microsoft's latest operating system, has its own app library. In many cases, these apps can replace now-aging bookmarks or favorites, and the software that we used to install from floppies, CDs or downloads. Windows 8 apps are often usable on both desktop or laptop PCs, as well as tablets.

Microsoft Kicks Surface Into High Gear
December 12, 2012

Microsoft is putting its Surface RT tablet on more shelves just in time for the holiday season. The recently released tablet will be available at more retail outlets, including Staples and Microsoft's seasonal stores, in a matter of days. The company had been planning to increase Surface retail availability starting in 2013 but said it was hastening that expansion.

Burst of Loyalty Could Sew Up US Market for Samsung
December 12, 2012

Apple may get more mindshare from consumers, but Samsung currently holds the lead when it comes to market share. The connected device market, which includes PCs, tablets and smartphones, grew 27.1 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2012. In that time Samsung maintained the top position with 21.8 percent market share based on shipments.

Next Issue Looks Gorgeous but Lacks Personality
December 07, 2012

Unlimited, on-demand content for a fixed monthly fee? Where have we heard that before? The answer is that we've heard it from Spotify for music and from Netflix for movies. Now, from a consortium of Condé Nast, Hearst, Meredith, News Corp., and Time Inc., we have Next Issue, a similar concept for delivering magazines in Android tablet app form.

Android, iPad Mini Fuel Tablet Market Fire
December 06, 2012

Tablet sales will be better this year than originally thought, and they are only going to increase until at least 2016, IDC forecast Wednesday. Increased Android device shipments and demand for Apple's iPad mini are making the market more robust, said IDC. IDC raised its 2013 worldwide sales projection to 122.3 units from its year-ago estimate of 117.1 million.