StumbleUpon is about to take its web recommendation savvy and apply it to mobile apps for the first time. The service, which builds personal recommendations for users who want to find web content, is now launching an app discovery feature for Android apps. Read More »
The free FLYsmart app arrives on Android devices today, offering air travelers flight tracking, gate information and airport maps with support for indoor location. Software that helps navigate inside facilities isn’t new, but as FLYsmart demonstrates, location plus other contextual services will trump navigation-only mobile apps. Read More »
Shop Savvy today launched a new iPhone version of its barcode scanning and price comparison software in hopes of advancing its iPhone appeal (it’s big on Android), but it has a bigger mission: It hopes to change the mobile advertising model as well as upend … Read More »
Symbian, the open-sourced platform used in Nokia’s smartphones, gained a €22m investment from the ARTEMIS Joint Technology Initiative to create the SYMBEOSE consortium from 8 member nations. What’s the sudden public-private interest in Symbian? Fear of a future filled with embedded devices running Google Android. Read More »
Can a $30 Android smartphone compete with high-end devices costing five times more? Provided you can give up some performance and a few advanced features, it definitely can. The LG Optimus T represents a future filled with low-priced Android smartphones for current feature phone users. Read More »
Google’s Android operating system solidified its place at the top of the charts in the U.S. with 44 percent of the market, according to a pair of reports out today. Both Android and Apple are putting pressure on Research in Motion. Read More »
Navigon today introduced its MobileNavigator software, which brings GPS navigation to Google Android phones in the U.S. With such a similar feature set to Google’s free Navigation solution for Android, how can Navigon compete with a $40 app? By combining augmented reality with points of interest. Read More »
Sprint’s road to recovery is finally seeing some significant progress, thanks to a boost from Android and growth in the number of prepaid subscribers. The third-place carrier added 644,000 new subscribers in the third quarter ending Sept. 30, its best result since 2006. Read More »
How much time does the average Android smartphone user spend in third-party apps? Nearly 42 minutes daily, which is significantly higher than on competing platforms. So why does such facetime in apps matter? It’s all about the mobile advertising as Google’s competitors try to catch up. Read More »
Adobe announced today a new version of Adobe AIR 2.5 that will include expanded capabilities on Android, BlackBerry Tablet OS and iOS; Windows, Mac and Linux as well as support for TVs. Adobe is also launching a new store for AIR apps called InMarket. Read More »
As we head towards the end of the calendar year, it’s a great time to be a smartphone buyer thanks to improving hardware, software and mobile broadband networks. Here’s a brief refresher of our thoughts and highlights on some of the latest handsets currently available. Read More »
Until recently, GetJar was probably one of the biggest app stores that few people had ever used. That ended on Friday, however, when it offered an exclusive on Angry Birds for Android, touching off a frenzy of downloads that overwhelmed GetJar’s servers. Read More »
More Must Reads
Appbackr is introducing the wholesale model to iOS apps, giving developers a new way to move their apps. The Appbackr Marketplace, launching in beta this week, allows buyers to purchase a bulk number of apps from a developer at a lower price, then sell them. Read More »
Verizon Wireless will begin selling Samsung’s Galaxy S tablet for $600 next month. Many are bemoaning the no-contract price for this Android 2.2 slate, but it does offer features that Apple’s iPad doesn’t yet. There’s a market for 7-inch tablets, no matter what Steve Jobs says. Read More »
Lee Williams today stepped down from his executive director role at The Symbian Foundation, reportedly due to personal reasons. When interviewed on camera last year, Williams argued against Android’s “evil” approach and named handset makers who were unhappy with Google. Today, those companies are growing profits. Read More »
iOS remained the top operating system on Millennial Media’s ad network in September, but for the first time, Android revenue eclipsed iPhone-only revenue. The figures show that Apple is still in the driver seat with 46 percent of smartphone operating system impressions, though its dominance continues … Read More »
The Wholesale Applications Community, which will “increase the overall market for mobile applications” has announced new members and published a developer specification for apps that can work across many devices and carriers. But so far, it’s just a spec for widgets. Do we need a WAC? Read More »
Developers looking to make a buck on Android in-app purchases will be heartened to hear that Papaya Mobile is the first to deploy Zong’s in-app payment system for its social gaming platform. The deal opens a new era for Android developers waiting for in-app purchase solutions. Read More »
Two years after the original G1 handset, T-Mobile’s G2 improves in every way: from the newest version of Google Android to a high resolution touchscreen and an extremely usable slide-out QWERTY keyboard. At $199 and with support for T-Mobile’s fast 3G network, the G2 is excellent. Read More »
Angry Birds just passed 2 million downloads on Android, making it the fastest downloaded app on Android Market ever. The successful launch on Friday says a lot about the game and about the state of Android Market. Here are five things we learned: Read More »
Now that RIM, Nokia and Microsoft have new smartphones to challenge Apple and Google, a question of platform investment comes into play. At what point do consumers feel they’ve spent too much on mobile apps for one device to keep them from switching operating systems? Read More »
Google’s recent push into tablets and mobile, along with offering new search services such as Google Instant, are pushing up the company’s capex, which is slotted to grow almost 184 percent in 2010. Next year will be even higher. And all this spending is good. Read More »
Google’s Android operating system has been a breakout success, quickly gaining worldwide market share among smartphones. Our infographic shows how Android has grown, the success of its app market, the sudden increase in customer acceptance and loyalty, and where we think it will be in 2014. Read More »
Nearly three of every four handsets hitting the Android Market are now running modern versions of Google’s mobile operating system, just as rumors begin swirling around Gingerbread, the next Android version. Between Froyo’s uptake and core apps developed as add-ons, Google is quietly reducing Android fragmentation. Read More »
Sony’s Google TV remote is a good example of the challenge facing any manufacturer looking to integrate its TV platform with Google’s devices. The remote sports 90 buttons, and it often requires two hands for things that many people are used to doing one-handed. Read More »
New, private 3G networks in India combined with mobile adoption and Google’s march towards powering inexpensive smartphones in the Asia-Pacific region could bring half a billion more people to the mobile web in India by 2014. Is this the perfect storm for small, upstart handset makers? Read More »
Having spent time with Windows Phone 7 and hearing from executives, I think if Microsoft executes well — and that’s a big if considering this is a first release — Windows Phone 7 could bite into the growth of Android and regain significant ground in the … Read More »
There really is an app for everything now that LEGO has released software that turns an Android handset into a wireless remote control for robots. MINDroid uses a wireless Bluetooth connection and phone accelerometer to send commands to a robot with the flick of a wrist. Read More »
Microsoft is trying to carve out its own territory with Windows Phone 7, positioning it as a different phone that aims to be deeply personal for users. The new platform launches Nov. 8 in the U.S., but will it help Microsoft regain relevance in smartphones? Read More »
Amazon’s rumored Android Store could add confusion and more work to the lives of developers. But in talking to some developers, they see a lot of potential in the store and improved prospects for apps, which says a lot about the state of Android Market. Read More »
It’s been a good month for Adobe and its mobile efforts, first with Apple’s relaxing of its Flash developer tool ban and now the release today of AIR for Android, which opens the door for AIR applications on Android devices. Read More »
Motorola is the latest company to tackle one of the thornier issues for mobile devices: how do you print documents from your mobile gadget? Motorola is showing off a new application called MotoPrint that allows Android users to print documents from their phone on any PostScript … Read More »
IOS and Android devices are finding fast adoption by corporate customers, according to new figures from Good Technology, which found that iOS devices represented more than 50 percent of new activations from June to September, fueled by interest in the iPhone 4 and the iPad. Read More »
The latest release of the free Ubuntu Linux operating system scheduled for this Sunday includes an expansion of its personal cloud service to iPhone and Android devices as well as a new netbook edition made for smaller screens. Read More »
Android doesn’t offer a complete solution especially when it comes to video content. Sony is trying to correct the problem with the release of a new Crackle video app, but it only points up the need for a more comprehensive solution, something hopefully Google is working … Read More »
Users of Google Android phones may soon be able to use PayPal to purchase mobile applications, making it easier to add software to Android handsets. Would such a purchase mechanism be solely limited to Android software or might we see Google start hawking music and books? Read More »
Google Android is under fire from Apple, Microsoft, and Oracle, but only Oracle’s suit seems motivated by truly defensive motives. Apple and Microsoft want to throttle Android adoption to improve their odds while Oracle may want to keep Google from trashing its Java ME licensing … Read More »
Google this morning asked a court to dismiss Oracle’s patent suit alleging the Android operating system violates Oracle’s newly acquired patents and copyrights for Java. Google asserts it has not violated any of the alleged patents, which Oracle obtained after it bought Sun Microsystems. Read More »
Nielsen is adding its voice to the chorus of research firms confirming the ascension of Android. Nielsen said among recent acquirers of smartphones in the last six months through August, Android was the top platform with 32 percent of purchases, followed by the iPhone and RIM. Read More »
Skype has expanded availability of its Internet calling service to most Android phones, though U.S. users are limited to Wi-Fi calls. Skype said today that a new client for Android phones running 2.1 or higher is now available for download in Android Market or at skype.com. Read More »
T-Mobile is releasing new phones in waves: just as the new G2 is appearing in stores, the carrier announced an updated myTouch running Android 2.2. This new model uses a second-generation CPU and also offers video calling on either Wi-Fi or T-Mobile’s speedy mobile broadband network. Read More »
Google is finally getting its act together, expanding the number of countries that can buy and sell paid Android apps. Google in the process over the next two weeks of opening up 18 new countries where you can buy paid apps, bringing the total to 32. Read More »
AdelaVoice, a startup founded in January of this year, has just launched a compelling Android application called StartTalking that addresses the texting while driving issue. The software creates outgoing and reads incoming texts solely through voice commands, without needing to touch or look at your smartphone. Read More »
A few weeks ago, we conducted a survey of app developers in partnership with analytics company Distimo and across our own network of sites. We asked developers which platforms they’re developing apps for, what types they’re making and plans for the future. Here are the results. Read More »
After over a year in limbo, Apple has reportedly approved Google’s Voice application for the iTunes App Store, indicating that the iPhone may finally see the software. Sure you iPhone owners have lived without it forever, but Google Voice is a masterful method to manage communications. Read More »
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