The store of the future has yet to be imagined if Venky Harinarayan, SVP Walmart Global eCommerce and Head, @WalmartLabs, is correct. His organization is experimenting with integrating social, search and shopping experiences for both retailers and consumers. Read more »
Samsung’s Galaxy Note straddles the line between smartphone and tablet, thanks to the 5.3-inch display. As voice calling has become a secondary feature for some smartphone owners, is the next growth market one filled with these devices that double as both smartphone and tablet? Read more »
Nokia is sharing a video on the design process for its Lumia 800, and after watching it, I’m struck by the similarities to prior Apple iPhone videos I’ve seen. Talk of integrated design between hardware and software is clever: It’s the same approach Apple uses. Read more »
T-Mobile USA reported a net gain of 126,000 subscribers in the most recent quarter, marginally increasing its total subscriber base to 33.7 million customers, while data revenue per customer grew as well. Without an iPhone, the carrier is focused on value plans and fast mobile broadband. Read more »
The HTC Titan arrives on Nov. 20 as AT&T’s largest phone yet, thanks to a 4.7-inch display. Priced at $199 with two-year contract, the Titan runs on Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7.5 platform and offers the same mobile broadband capabilities as Apple’s iPhone 4S on AT&T’s network. Read more »
Nvidia is the first chip-maker to deliver a quad-core mobile chip, the Tegra 3, for use in Android devices. I’ve argued in the past that throwing hardware at Android tablets won’t sell more of them, but the timing of this new chip just might be right. Read more »
Google’s Android platform already powers phones and tablets, and now it runs on a wrist too: WIMM Labs started shipping its WIMM One wearable computer to developers for $299 on Wednesday. The color display works smartphones but thanks to apps, can be a standalone device too. Read more »
Nokia phones are known for taking excellent photos. Then again, the new iPhone 4S has an improved camera too. Which is better? It’s too early to tell, but here are a few images taken with the default settings on an iPhone 4S and Nokia Lumia 800. Read more »
Verizon is tops with 63 percent of the world’s current LTE subscriber base, according to Informa Telecoms & Media. But the U.S. carrier isn’t resting on its laurels. It now offers a promotion that doubles the monthly amount of LTE data for smartphones at no extra charge. Read more »
Griffin and Dijit jointly announced Android software support for the Beacon remote on Tuesday, allowing any Android tablet or smartphone to become a universal remote control for home theater equipment via the Beacon Universal Remote Control System. The app is free, but the Beacon costs $69.99. Read more »
GigaOM recently had the chance to sit down with Nokia CEO Stephen Elop. Here’s what Elop had to say about the company’s phone strategy, the decision to partner with Microsoft instead of Google, how U.S. carrier negotiations are proceeding and what tablet plans Nokia may have. Read more »
T-Mobile’s Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus launches with improvements and functions over the prior model, such as a faster dual-core processor and HSPA+ support. One other new feature: a monthly payment plan that lowers the up-front cost by adding $10 to the next 20 monthly bills. Read more »
On this week’s mobile podcast, Matt and Kevin discuss HTC’s new Radar 4G and Resound handsets as well as Motorola’s Xoom 2 tablet. The Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet may be smarter tablet strategies. Matt decides to buy a new Jawbone Up for health monitoring. Read more »
The HTC Rezound comes with a large 720p display, LTE radio and Beats Audio, but the $299 price doesn’t include Android 4.0 until 2012. Amazon and Barnes & Noble have created a second tablet market that looks successful while Motorola’s Xoom 2 appears marginally improved. Read more »
While I like many aspects of the new Microsoft Windows Phone 7.5, or Mango, software, one key issue I have is lack of support for showing multiple calendars from a single Gmail account. Here’s a simple workaround to fix the problem for your Windows Phone device. Read more »
Details of Barnes & Noble’s Nook Tablet have already leaked, and it looks like a winning follow up to the Nook Color. It’s a shame computer makers don’t see the winning strategy: Build a solid, but inexpensive tablet that does a few key things well. Read more »
The latest health monitor hitting the market comes from Jawbone, a company that’s made its name by designing wireless headsets for phones. Called the Jawbone Up, the wrist-worn device launches on Nov. 6 for $99; it measures activity, sleep and nutrition through a complementary iPhone app. Read more »
Motorola introduced two new Xoom-branded slates for the U.K and Ireland markets. The Xoom 2 and Xoom 2 Media Edition both run on Google’s platform for tablets, but won’t ship with Android 4.0, also known as Ice Cream Sandwich. Didn’t Motorola learn from the first Xoom? Read more »
Nielsen’s third-quarter metrics show that 62 percent of the 25-to-34-year-old U.S. population has a smartphone. But the fastest-growing age group adopting smartphones last quarter is a surprise: It’s the 55-to-64-year-olds. That means mobile app developers have an opportunity right now. Read more »
Meshin, a Xerox-funded incubator project at PARC, updated its beta Android application that hopes to “bring order to communication chaos.” The free app unifies Gmail, phone calls, text messages and social network streams into a centralized application, helping to separate important information from noise. Read more »
Google released a native Gmail client for iPhones, iPads and iPod touch devices, but quickly pulled the software from the iTunes App Store due to some app errors. As a long-time Android user, I like what I see in the client, but it needs work. Read more »
I’ve written about robots powered by smartphones and the web, so you’d think I’d be comfortable seeing a new robot video. I saw one today showing the PETMAN, and I’m actually torn between amazement and fright. Then again, he might make for a good personal assistant. Read more »
Research In Motion’s BBM Music service moved from beta to general availability on Tuesday, allowing BBM friends to share music tracks. This is clever, adding new value to the old BBM service as RIM continues to transition from BlackBerry to its new BBX operating system. Read more »
The market for smart watches and wearable displays is growing based on the number of companies trying to crack this space. The latest product to cross my desk is the inPulse smartwatch; here’s a video look at this $149 connected timepiece that pairs with a smartphone. Read more »
Pantech, a top-three handset maker in Korea, is adding gesture-based controls to its newest Vega LTE handsets. Using the front-facing camera and eyeSight’s unique software, smartphone owners can control their phones by waving their hand. Expect more invisibile interfaces like this in the future. Read more »
When visiting the U.K. and looking at the locals, odds are that every other one is using an Android device. BlackBerry is now the second most carried, followed by Apple’s iPhone; the old no. 2. How did this happen, and is it likely to continue? Read more »
Introduced in 2009, Novatel Wireless’s MiFi sales topped the 3 million mark on Monday. The big number is no surprise because of the MiFi’s simplicity and utility: press a button and share a mobile broadband connection over Wi-Fi. Smartphones and software could mute future sales, however. Read more »
Taiwan-based smartphone maker HTC again posted record sales, revenues and profits, but the company expressed a flat forecast for the rest of this year. HTC continues to build excellent handsets but is just another Android phone maker in a growing sea of other Android phone makers. Read more »
Smartphones are packing more sensors these days, and application developers continue to find new ways to gain additional value from the sensors. Popular exercise app RunKeeper is the latest. Its software for iPhone and Android handsets includes an auto-pause function and new heart rate zone targeting. Read more »
Matt and Kevin are back for their 250th weekly mobile tech podcast. This week, Matt shares firsthand impressions from the Nokia World event in London and the Lumia 710 and 800 Windows Phone handsets. Plus a listener question about Gmail features on Apple’s iOS platform. Read more »
I knew this day would eventually be here, but it still saddens me: Google’s Hugo Barra has said that the Nexus One smartphone won’t officially gain the Android 4.0 upgrade. Sadly, I think it’s time for me to move on after 22 months with my Nexus. Read more »
Nokia’s Windows Phone handsets were officially unveiled on Wednesday. The hardware is solid, as expected, but is missing at least one key feature. And there’s actually little to differentiate the Nokia phones from other Windows Phone handsets. Here’s my grading of the news for Nokia. Read more »
The majority of parents in a recent survey find that age 16 is about the right time for kids to have a smartphone. Standard cell phones are OK at a younger age; that makes sense as households dump landlines and kids are talking more to friends. Read more »
On Wednesday in London, Nokia kicks off its anual Nokia World event with a keynote by CEO, Stephen Elop. Both his speech and the Nokia smartphones he’ll introduce will define the company’s next few years and tell the world if the Microsoft partnership will pay off. Read more »
Amid the updated hardware specifications of Apple’s iPhone 4S, a beta application is poised to be the breakout star. Siri is helpful now, but imagine what it, or a similar solution, could do for interfacing with many connected devices in the coming “Internet of things” age. Read more »
Long-time GPS hardware maker, Garmin, released its first fitness app for $0.99 in the iTunes App Store and Android Market. Gone are the days when companies can focus on single-purpose hardware; thanks to smartphones, sensors and connectivity, software is where the real action is at. Read more »
Amazon’s Kindle has lit a fire under the e-book market, but don’t count out the smaller players. Bookeen, an e-book company since 1998, has a new high-speed E-Ink technology that supports scrolling menus and web pages. Is the e-book market ready for more innovation? Bring it! Read more »
Nokia Maps, arguably one of the company’s best software products, now supports offline maps in Google Android and Apple iOS browsers, thanks to HTML5. The “neighborhood maps” are fairly small in geographical size but can help save money for those on limited mobile broadband plans. Read more »
Join Matt and Kevin for this week’s mobile tech podcast featuring thoughts on Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus and Android 4.0: is now the time to upgrade to a new Android phone? Matt’s also preparing for next week’s Nokia World. Here’s what you should expect from it. Read more »
Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus was finally introduced, but two hardware components have enthusiasts disappointed. Along with the new phone is Android 4.0, or Ice Cream Sandwich, Google’s new platform to unify smartphones and tablets; the latter of which may not be selling as well as some think. Read more »
