Android may have had some major victories this past year over Apple’s iOS, but the war is far from over. In international markets like the U.K., the iPhone and iPad still account for the lion’s share of mobile connected app use and web traffic. Read more »
GetJar has beat out budding rival Amazon in snagging the Android exclusive on Cut the Rope, a previous iOS game with Angry Birds–like appeal. The game illustrates the growing competition between the 2 third-party Android app stores as they compete for developers and consumers. Read more »
Nearly half of the page views from Apple iPhones come through a Wi-Fi network as does 91.9 percent of iPad web browsing. Android device users use more mobile broadband, but why? Here are four reasons that explain this broadband phenomenon, which is unlikely to change soon. Read more »
Hulu Plus subscribers with Google Android phones can now watch their favorite movies and television shows on the go. The bad news: Only six handsets support the software for now. The good news: If your phone is supported, the Hulu Plus app offers a great experience. Read more »
MOVL is letting Google TV users play poker with each other by using their mobile devices as controllers for cards and bets. The company wants to eventually license its platform to other app makers, and maybe even invade the jumbotron at your next sports game. Read more »
LinkedIn is enjoying a banner year, but unlike Twitter and Facebook the social network doesn’t enjoy much mobile traffic. It has a chance to be a major player in the booming mobile industry, though, if it pursues a few ambitious goals. Read more »
HTML 5 and the mobile web are supposed to be the great unifier across platforms, but we might not need such a solution. For the first time ever, Flurry Analytics says people are using apps more than they’re using the mobile web on smartphones and tablets. Read more »
Mobile devices, led by the iPad and Android phones and tablets, have overtaken computers on Wi-Fi networks, according to a new report. It’s another sign that when it comes to getting connected, people are leaving the laptop closed and reaching for their pockets. Read more »
The market for enterprise tablets shows enormous promise as end users take their own devices to work and IT departments begin to deploy the new gadgets. But a small army of manufacturers is vying for a slice of the market, and competition will be fierce. Read more »
The Android smartphone onslaught may have hit its peak, at least in the U.S., according to an analyst who thinks that the expanded rollout of the iPhone to other carriers will check the rise of Google’s OS. Cheaper iPhones will also help eat into Android’s lead. Read more »
Tablets have gone mainstream, and now those devices — from the iPad to Research in Motion’s new PlayBook — are headed to the enterprise. This trend is largely driven by end users who prefer to bring their own devices to work, which is creating a fruitful marketplace for both hardware manufacturers and app developers. This report examines the current state of tablets in the enterprise, from use cases to market drivers, and analyzes which players will be worth watching in the coming months. Additional companies mentioned in this report include Apple, Google, Samsung and Nokia. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
It’s a wonder anyone still uses traditional cellular networking voice or text services at all, given all the alternatives that pop up. But each of these services faces a critical challenge, and in my opinion, they’re all just living on borrowed time. Read more »
How do you find new apps to download for your devices? A recent rash of app discovery tools available for iOS devices (including one out of left field from Yahoo) definitely identifies a problem, but I’m not sure it provides any real lasting solutions. Read more »
Samsung is about to knock off Nokia as the top smartphone seller thanks to its calculated Google Android strategy. HTC and LG hope to help their own cause with glasses-free 3-D smartphones. And Swype has a better keyboard for everyone’s Android handsets and tablets. Read more »
Join Matt and Kevin for the weekly live podcast on all things mobile. This week: thoughts on Apple licensing technology from Nokia, a follow up on WWDC and iOS 5 and first impressions of the HTC Evo 3D smartphone. Participate in the live chat room! Read more »
LG is continuing its bet on 3-D technology, today announcing availability of its Optimus 3D handset first in Europe and later in 60 other areas around the world. The dual-core handset uses a stereoscopic display, so no 3-D glasses are needed for stills or videos. Read more »
Many recent headlines have been devoted to Facebook’s focus on HTML5, and specifically on an internal HTML5-based project at the company dubbed “Project Spartan.” But Facebook’s investment in HTML5 is nothing new — and it’s certainly nothing that the company has been secretive about. Read more »
Research In Motion, already struggling to keep up with nimble competitors, signaled that its attempts to catch up are falling behind. The company reported first quarter fiscal 2012 earnings, coming in below expectations for handsets sold and revenue with lowered guidance for the year. Read more »
E-book lending is on the rise, thanks to the continued growth of the e-book market and programs from online retail giants like Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Two distinct business models have emerged to serve the ever-expanding number of users and address challenges that arise. Read more »
iOS 5 is coming in the fall, and there are plenty of big reasons to get excited about it. There are also many small ones that make it even more awesome. Here’s a list of five neat little tricks Apple has added to iOS 5. Read more »
Last year, Sony Ericsson dropped Symbian, boldly claiming it would take the top spot in the world for Android device sales. Now that a wireless payment infrastructure exists with Google Wallet, the company is ready to add NFC chips and software from NXP in future handsets. Read more »
Qualcomm’s FLO TV may have flopped, but that doesn’t mean that consumers will ignore mobile TV forever: PricewaterhouseCoopers predicts that mobile TV subscription revenue will double over the next four years. And that money could be an indicator for a much bigger trend. Read more »
Yahoo is entering the crowded mobile app discovery market with a web service and software for iOS and Android. The software looks nice, but even with an app recommendation engine, it isn’t offering much that others don’t already provide. Is Yahoo simply trying to stay relevant? Read more »
With patent lawsuits flying around the mobile business like never before, it’s easy to get lost in exciting headlines about billion dollar settlements. But the reality is that the industry is playing a game of mutually assured destruction that could strangle the world’s most exciting technologies. Read more »
Sen. Al Franken and Sen. Richard Blumenthal are introducing a new bill to protect the rights of mobile users when it comes to location information. If passed, the bill will require that mobile platform operators, carriers and developers ask permission before sharing info with third parties. Read more »
This week’s episode of Cord Cutters is all about taking your media on the go, and automatically syncing it with your Android phone. We take a closer look at the newly-released Miro 4 video player, which is optimized for this kind of mobile video syncing. Read more »
Lookout, a mobile security company, today added a new feature to its security software that protects web users from visiting malicious sites on their Google Android smartphones. As consumers turn to the mobile web and apps for services, the need for such protection may increase. Read more »
T-Mobile’s newest phone, the HTC Sensation, arrives in the carrier’s stores this week for $199 with contract. Even with a few minor flaws, the Android 2.3 smartphone offers a great experience, thanks to HTC Sense 3.0, a large high-resolution screen, improved cameras and a dual-core processor. Read more »
New benchmark tests confirm what we have long suspected: Flash video on mobile devices just doesn’t look as good as HTML5 video, especially when it comes to HD clips. Support for hardware acceleration could alleviate most of these issues, but not for every user. Read more »
More capable smartphones and tablets, combined with a growing number of online video services are heavily increasing mobile media consumption: Limelight’s data shows a 600-percent jump from the past year and that’s a bad sign for those hoping unlimited data plans will stick around. Read more »
Swype, a popular third-party Android keyboard, improves to version 3.0 with tap word prediction and a new resizing function specific to Honeycomb tablets. Since larger slates aren’t suited for one-handed use, the improved features show that Swype is willing to pivot, even after 50 million installs. Read more »
After nearly two years of accusations over patent infringement, Nokia and Apple have signed a peace accord. But rather than end the rash of patent lawsuits across the mobile industry, the deal could send the Finnish company on the warpath. Read more »
After watching other hardware makers launch Google Honeycomb tablets, Toshiba’s take is ready. The Thrive ships next month but can be pre-ordered starting today. At $429, you only get 8 GB of internal storage, but a full-sized USB port and memory card slot can expand memory. Read more »
Nokia is about to lose its crown as the smartphone king, but not to Apple. Instead, Samsung will take up the mantle of top smartphone seller according to analysts at Nomura. These five reasons explain how it’s Samsung’s smartphone Galaxy and we just live in it. Read more »
Android-like features are coming to iOS 5 this fall, helping to address some shortcomings of Apple’s platform. Consumers who would still prefer an Android device have two nice choices in the new HTC Evo 3D and Motorola Photon 4G, plus the Market gains a nice feature. Read more »
Research firm IDC reiterated that it expects Windows Phone 7 to soar to number two by 2015 with 20 percent of the market, trailing only Android. But with the market moving so fast and competition so fierce, predictions like this seem premature. Read more »
Apple filed a motion to intervene in the lawsuit against seven small app developers started by patent holder Lodsys on June 9 related to the use of in-app purchases. If granted, Apple would be added to the Lodsys suit as a defendant and counterclaim plaintiff. Read more »
Google continues to battle its platform fragmentation challenges by adding a software compatibility check on the web-based Android Market. Supporting both smartphones and tablets, this change is good for consumers and developers, even as more devices are brought up to current Android versions. Read more »
Team task management app Cohuman, which won the “People’s Choice” award in the Launch Pad competition at last year’s Net:Work event, now has a companion iPhone app that helps users to keep updated on project status, communication and tasks even when they’re out of the office. Read more »
Motorola and Sprint, both in the midst of fighting bigger competition, have banded together with the Photon 4G, a new Android flagship device that supports international service. The Photon 4G provides a big punch for Sprint and Motorola and strengthens the relationship between the two. Read more »
