Live blog: Apple’s WWDC 2013 keynote
WWDC, as you may know, is Apple’s annual conference for iOS and Mac OS X developers. Om Malik and I are bringing you up-to-the-minute updates of what transpires at the keynote on Monday. Read more »
Sony Xperia Z tapped as a likely “Google Experience” phone. Whither Nexus?
Another manufacturer may be joining Samsung and HTC in offering “Google Experience” smartphones. Sony is expected to announce a version of the Xperia Z with pure Android as the Nexus line could be lower priced phones. Read more »
Will it really be called “iRadio”? and other questions about Apple’s new music service
photo: valdis torms/Shutterstock.com
Apple is said to be very close to completing all major deals necessary to launch a competitive streaming music service. But will it be too little, too late? Read more »
Leaked video peek at Nokia’s 41 megapixel EOS Windows Phone
Since debuting its 41 megapixel “PureView” technology, Nokia has reportedly been working to shrink it down for a Lumia device. Based on this video, the company doesn’t look far off from accomplishing that goal. Read more »
Amazon starts selling Kindle Paperwhite and Fire HD in China
Amazon launched the Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Fire HD in China on Friday and its digital bookstore has quickly jumped from 25,000 to 47,000 titles in the past six months. Read more »
Telefónica steps up its security game with Eleven Paths “hothouse”
The startup-within-a-telco comprises a Spanish team with a track record, who will try to develop speedy solutions to network and mobile vulnerability problems. Read more »
Debunking the iPhone throttling myth
The reports circulating the web that Apple is in cahoots with the carriers to restrict your iPhone’s speeds are just plain wrong. Read more »
Samsung Galaxy S 4 wireless charging pad, cover arrive in US with Qi standard
The promise of wireless charging for the Galaxy S 4 is now met. For $40 you can get a compatible back plate while $50 adds a wireless charging pad. Both are Qi compatible, which may be the best news of all. Read more »
New TI chips speed charge times and extend battery life for smartphones, tablets
New Texas Instruments chipsets won’t help your device run longer on a single charge, but they will allow for 30 percent faster recharging. And the Li-Ion battery in your mobile device will last longer over the device lifetime. Read more »
Apple said to be ready to jump into the iPhone trade-in business
Yet another sign that Apple’s reliance on older model iPhones to build up its customer base is only going to increase. Read more »
Poll: Android users, what version are you running?
Google’s data suggests that more users are finally on Android 4.0 or better but is that really the case? Tell us in this simple poll which Android version you run and if you still see fragmentation as a big Android challenge. Read more »
Apple blogger turns Apple app maker, launches Vesper note-taking app
Daring Fireball’s John Gruber teams up with an engineer and designer to build a new iPhone app called Vesper. It’s a note-taking and to-do list maker available now for $4.99. Read more »
The next era of computing is coming, and ARM’s Simon Segars is ready to profit from it
photo: Stacey Higginbotham
ARM’s future is tied to more devices with computing and connectivity trying to share data on a variety of networks. Call it the internet of things or just the obvious direction we’re heading as society. Read more »
Sponsored post: Apple devices become business communications tools with ShoreTel Dock
Apple iPads and iPhones can become unified communications end points for workers using ShoreTel Dock to transform the devices into business desk phones and enterprise collaboration tools, utilizing voice, IM presence and conferencing on a favored, personal device as they follow the BYOD trend. Read more »
Why AT&T might be interested in Hulu: A big mobile data payday
AT&T is seeking a guinea pig to test out its idea for a subsidized mobile internet, and Hulu fits the bill perfectly. If Hulu foots the bill for its own data traffic, consumers could stream video to their hearts’ content. Read more »
New smartSD cards could put digital wallet control back with e-commerce groups
The SD Association has a new way to consumers to rid themselves of plastic smart cards: use a smart SD card instead. The new memory card spec supports the NFC Secure Element and on-board applets for smartphones. Read more »
Samsung Galaxy S 4 update adds more user storage, app installs on SD cards
Buyers of the 16 GB Samsung Galaxy S 4 thought they’d have a wee bit more storage available but Samsung’s software took up nearly half of it. Now, the company has a software update to address the situation. Read more »
A guide to WWDC 2013: what we expect, what we want to see
There will be very little — if any — emphasis on shiny new hardware. There will be new products, but this is going to be a software and services show, anchored by glimpses of the next versions of OS X and iOS. Read more »
Tango built its video chat empire. Now it’s taking on the mobile gaming market
Tango has already built up a surprisingly large following of social gamers within its communications app. Now it plans to export its video, voice and messaging platform to other game makers. Read more »
Touting fastest 4G takeup in Europe so far, EE adds sharing and pre-pay options
It appears that LTE subscriber numbers at EE — a carrier that still has a monopoly on 4G in the UK — are increasing at an accelerating pace. But rivals are set to launch their 4G offerings soon. Read more »
While you’re waiting for your Fairphone, here are some tips for smartphone sustainability
Fairphone has received enough pre-orders to start developing its finalized ethical Android smartphone. But even now, there are steps you can take to make your smartphone purchase more ethical and sustainable. Read more »
Stripe tweaks its payment tech for the collaborative consumption economy
photo: Stripe
New peer-to-peer marketplaces like AirBnB and Lyft require that multiple people get paid from a single transaction. Stripe is simplifying that process by supporting complex payment models. Read more »
Cities with crime problems ask smartphone companies to solve crime problems
The district attorney of San Francisco and attorney general of New York would like to know why Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and Motorola haven’t yet made a phone with a “kill switch.” Read more »
With the big cities covered, AT&T starts filling in its LTE gaps
AT&T is done with its major-metro phase of its LTE rollout. From here on out it will be building its new network in increasingly smaller cities and towns to hit its 250 million-person year-end coverage goal. Read more »
Sorry Microsoft: AMD cheats on Windows, plans a fling with Chrome and Android
AMD is following Intel into Chrome OS devices and Android tablets, breaking away from its Windows exclusivity. With another Microsoft hardware partner playing the field, the trend is clear: The times are a-changing! Read more »
Reports: BlackBerry’s next phone is the A10, already in testing, out in November
If you thought the Z10 and Q10 comprised the entire 2013 BlackBerry phone lineup, you thought wrong. Multiple reports — including one hands on — say the A10 will be more of a flagship device when it arrives on Sprint in November. Read more »
GigaOM Chrome Show 8: Mysterious Chrome Mobile news and better iOS voice search
On this week’s audio podcast devoted to all things Chrome, we consider what Google might be announcing at a pair of upcoming Chrome Mobile events. We also tackle the most common Chrome OS question: “Is now a good time to buy a Chromebook?” Read more »
Nextel shutdown will leave 45,000 tons of network junk. How Sprint plans to recycle it
On June 30, the Nextel iDEN service goes offline, sticking Sprint with a heck of a lot of network scrap. Sprint, however, isn’t just throwing it all in a dumpster behind Walmart. It will recycle whatever it can’t use. Read more »
YouTube’s mobile ad revenue triples as mobile views reach 40% in the US
photo: Google
Two out of five YouTube video views are coming from mobile devices in the U.S., and the video service is increasingly cashing in on these mobile views. Read more at paidContent »
If you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em, says Kinvey, as it partners with Google
MBaaS player Kinvey says new integration will make it a snap for mobile developers to develop on Kinvey and deploy on Google App Engine, or vice versa. Read more »
The quantified pup: Whistle wants to create the world’s largest database on dog behavior
photo: Whistle
Startup Whistle has designed an activity tracker that clips on to your dog’s collar, but its core offering is a cloud-based analytics service designed to quantify your pet’s health. Read more »
Readmill partners with Guardian, Atavist and Livrada and adds a free book section to its app
Berlin-based e-reading startup Readmill has added a free books section to its iOS app, and also announced partnerships with The Atavist, The Guardian and Livrada. Read more at paidContent »
WiSee: A gesture interface that uses Wi-Fi as the controller
Don’t touch that dial! Or that remote. Researchers have worked out a way to use gestures to control your home devices using the Wi-Fi network and an embedded receiver in your router. Read more »
Sorry, you can’t hide in the dark from Google Glass any more
photo: Flickr / Thomas Hawk
Google Glass will now see you better, even if you’re lurking in the shadows. A software update adds HDR photo support to improve the camera in both low and bright light settings. Read more »
FreedomPop to start selling smartphones and launch yet another VoIP service
photo: Flickr / frankh
If FreedomPop can get this VoIP service off the ground it could become the first all-IP mobile operator, but the feisty MVNO has promised to launch voice in the past and failed to deliver. Read more »
Opera brings privacy mode to basic mobile browser
Just because it’s not a smartphone doesn’t mean it’s dumb. Norway’s Opera is bringing increasingly advanced functionality to its most low-end Mini browser, with version 4.5 boasting a privacy mode and download manager. Read more »
T-Mobile’s plan to supercharge LTE: A whole lot of antennas
Exclusive to GigaOM: Over the next 12 months, T-Mobile USA will bolt thousands of new LTE antennas to its cell towers, utilizing a technique called 4X2 MIMO. It’s not LTE-Advanced, but it will create a faster and more resilient network. Read more »
ITC sides with Samsung, issues sales ban on some older model iPhones, iPads
Tuesday’s ITC ruling has been labeled a “final” decision but it won’t go into effect right away. It will be sent to the White House and the president can still overrule it. Read more »
Keyboard die-hards rejoice: AT&T offers BlackBerry Q10 for $199 with contract
photo: BlackBerry
Keyboard fans waiting for the BlackBerry Q10 can start pre-ordering the smartphone on AT&T’s network starting tomorrow. Finally: A hardware keyboard on a modern smartphone. Read more »
Google Android says goodbye to fragmentation as Gingerbread gets stale
Is there still a fragmenation issue with Android? Not so much based on the lastest figures from Google. Thank phone upgrades in conjunction with the smart Android strategy shown off at Google I/O. Read more »
