Android, despite some mounting legal challenges in the marketplace, is flying higher than ever, according to Nielsen, which said Google’s operating system is on about four out of every 10 smartphones sold in the U.S. Apple, meanwhile, reigns as the top manufacturer. Read more »
HTC said it’s open to negotiating with Apple to settle a pitched patent fight between the two companies, but it’s unclear how willing Apple is to talk and how much HTC can extract from negotiations. My guess: Apple’s not in a cooperative mood. Read more »
We get terribly excited that the U.S. will have more smartphones than feature phones later this year, but for real excitement and mobile madness, China is on track to surpass a billion mobile connections by May of next year. That’s big news for Google and Apple. Read more »
It turns out Apple wasn’t just a participant in the consortium that won the auction for Nortel’s patent portfolio: It contributed more than half of the $4.5 billion purchase price. Read more »
The ITC has ruled that Android manufacturer HTC has infringed on two Apple patents, handing the iPhone maker an early victory that could have large implications on HTC’s business in the U.S. and potential impacts on the overall Android platform. HTC is appealing. Read more »
Apple is ratcheting up its patent war against HTC, filing a new complaint with the ITC seeking the ban of “personal electronic devices.” The filing comes after an initial complaint lodged against HTC last year and a similar case filed last week by Apple against Samsung. Read more »
Mobile phone manufacturer HTC has purchased VIA Semiconductor’s graphics business. The deal is indicative of the need for compelling graphics on mobiles as well as an admission that mobile device makers may get an edge if they can bring some silicon capabilities in house. 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 »
Sprint’s EVO 3D built by HTC arrives in stores next week, but we have an early look at that Android 2.3.3 smartphone. While it’s similar to the Sensation 4G, a few features standout: glasses-free 3-D video and still images and support for Sprint’s WiMAX network. 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 »
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 »
RIM, the company behind the iconic BlackBerry line of smartphones is rumored to be teaming up with YOU i Labs, an Ontario-based company that is known for having developed Sense-like user experience layer. What does that mean? An enhanced Blackberry UI for starters. Read more »
The HTC Sensation 4G for T-Mobile’s network is already hitting some Wal-Mart locations, and an AT&T version of the handset was recently certified by the FCC. Now that HTC has reversed its stance on locking the phone down, it will be hackable for future customizations. Read more »
Sprint stores will begin carrying a 3-D smartphone and a 7-inch tablet on June 24, both of which run Google Android and use the operator’s WiMAX network. The $199 HTC Evo 3D boasts two camera sensors to create 3-D images which can be seen without glasses. Read more »
Android handset makers HTC and Motorola are extending their user interface skins in new directions that are meant to help differentiate their hardware. But in some cases, the extensions could exacerbate Android’s fragmentation problem. The moves show how competitive it is for Android hardware makers. Read more »
After weeks of anticipation, the HTC Sensation arrives in T-Mobile stores on June 15 for $199 after rebate and with a contract. The dual-core handset boasts a large 960×540 display, 1080p video capture and the newest version of HTC Sense with a time-saving active lockscreen feature. Read more »
HTC has created a second promotional video for its upcoming handset, the Sensation 4G, and the phone appears aptly named. Although the smartphone has stellar specifications, there are hints of Apple’s marketing influence throughout: the focus is on what you can do with this powerful smartphone. Read more »
Apple’s App Store trademark is under siege, and four more companies joined the fight to have it declared invalid in the European Union Thursday. Microsoft, Nokia, Sony Ericsson and HTC all filed applications separately with the EU trademark agency yesterday in pursuit of that goal. Read more »
Apple moved into second place in worldwide smartphone shipments during the first quarter of 2011, according to market research firm IDC. Apple is led only by Nokia, and is followed by Research In Motion, Samsung and HTC, to round out the top five. Read more »
Android proves that iOS isn’t the only game in town; it’s the common thread among companies such as HTC, Motorola, LG, Samsung and Sony Ericsson. While Android adoption has helped all five companies, those who embraced Android fully and early on have reaped the biggest benefits. Read more »
Consumer electronics giant Sony (NYSE: SNE) has finally, formally confirmed what people have long been expecting the company to do for month… Read more at paidContent »
In about two months since the launch, Verizon has sold 2.2 million iPhones, giving Apple a big boost in the US. In addition to the iPhone, Verizon activated more than 500,000 4G devices including 260,000 HTC Thunderbolts. It has 104 million customers. Read more »
The HTC Sensation 4G, just announced for T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network, seems to have it all: a dual-core CPU; large, high-resolution display; and high-end camera for 1080p video recording. Topping it off are two key software features in an updated HTC Sense and HTC Watch. Read more »
Within the next five years, smartphones will account for more than one-third of all handsets sold worldwide, thanks largely to platforms like Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android. This research covers the global handset platforms market for the period between 2011 and 2015. We first examine the factors contributing to this worldwide growth, from a slowly recovering economy to the rise of technologies like 4G and LTE. Regional factors affect growth, too, and our research includes a forecast for the following areas: the Americas; Europe; the Middle East and Africa; and Asia-Pacific. Forecasts are on a global and regional basis for the most important platforms: Android, Apple iOS, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Mobile. Companies mentioned in this report include Apple, Google, Nokia, Research in Motion and Microsoft. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
AT&T is adding both an older device and a new handset to its network: Windows Phone 7 fans can look forward to the HTC HD7S, which gains a Super LCD display over the old HD7, while the LG Thrill 4G brings glasses-free 3D visuals. Read more »
AT&T is buying T-Mobile USA for a whopping $39 billion in cash and stock. The questions are who wins and who loses in this deal. It is hard to find winners apart from AT&T and T-Mobile. Here a list of who loses this deal: Read more »
My recent use of HTC’s Attentive Phone, software that smartly leverages a phone’s internal sensors to silence the ringer or enable the speaker phone when flipping the phone over, has me wondering: Isn’t it time for all smartphones to become more intelligent? Read more »
Sprint’s first Windows Phone 7 device arrives in the form of the HTC Arrive on March 20. The device could appeal to CDMA customers who want in on Microsoft’s new platform while offering the convenience of a full hardware keyboard to complement the 3.6-inch touchscreen. Read more »
Of all the smartphone makers whose names are not Apple, HTC is the most impressive. An upstart company from Taiwan, it has done a great job of building iconic hardware using commodity platforms. It has developed branding and messaging that’s edgy, cool and fun. More importantly, […] Read more »
HTC’s move to buy video platform provider Saffron Digital for $48.6 million and invest $40 million in streaming gaming service Onlive show that manufacturers can’t be content to just deliver great handsets. Video and gaming content is increasingly necessary to stand out in a crowded market. Read more »
HTC has again grown sales and profits to record numbers, moving 24.6 million handsets in 2010. Clearly the company has transitioned successfully from its Windows Mobile roots over to Android, but can it transition sales by region? Europe and North America account for 83% of sales. Read more »
What if you could connect cell phones straight to TV set HDMI ports without adding an HDMI port to the phone itself? That’s the idea behind MHL, a new standard that uses Micro USB ports for HDMI video. One of the first adopters is HTC. Read more »
Once an isolated world dominated by network operators and their manufacturer partners, mobile is now a space where “outsiders” are some of the most powerful players. In 2010, companies like Google, Apple, MetroPCS, Huawei and Foursquare were among those who made the most impact in mobile ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
It looks like multiple Verizon LTE handsets will be shown off at CES from the likes of Motorola and HTC. But, faster networks mean more network usage, so while the phones sound interesting, I’m wondering what it cost to use Verizon’s speedy network on a phone. Read more »
Although LTE networks are appearing around the world, the U.S. will push LTE faster than most others, says HTC CEO Peter Chou. His company plans to bring LTE phones to the U.S. soon because of the perfect storm brewing with smartphones and fast wireless networks. Read more »
Mobile video accounts for a very small fraction of the overall U.S. mobile data market, despite on-the-go video and mobile TV receiving as much hype as any other area in the space. This report — the first in a two-part series on mobile video — examines what we can learn from the failures of mobile video to find a sizable audience so far, which challenges will continue to hinder the market in the coming years and the opportunities that will increasingly exist. The iPhone, Android devices and other multimedia-friendly handsets offer more screen real estate and higher resolution than previously possible, while the move toward 4G will help carriers deliver higher quality video more consistently. Even so, the challenges in this market are many, and mobile devices will likely always be inferior to set-top boxes, desktop computers and laptops when it comes to delivering a quality viewing experience. And because video consumes so much bandwidth on mobile networks, uptake will surely be impacted as carriers move away from all-you-can-eat data plans. The industry must, then, find other ways to monetize video in mobile, and without clogging already taxed cellular networks. Most importantly, it must develop viable business models for implementing video in ways that make sense for the consumer, the content owner and the network operator. Companies mentioned in this report include AT&T, Sprint, Apple, Google, Research in Motion, Qualcomm and Samsung. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
A website has launched that puts popular smartphones through a series of controlled stress tests to see how they fare. Gadgetstress.com takes smartphones and puts some serious hurt on them, then ranks them so consumers can tell how each phone stacks up against the competition. Read more »
The live-stream video market is entering an upturn in the typical hockey stick growth chart. Tens of millions of desktop viewers use browser-based players to find live-streaming content on an ever-increasing number of web sites and mobile devices. Raw viewership will grow fastest in the consumer segment, where sites like Justin.tv and Qik are focused. Those like Kyte, Livestream, Ustream and BitGravity, meanwhile, primarily offer platforms to commercial content providers seeking a mass audience. And as the market grows, both in terms of viewers and of the number and type of content providers, it will support both those with a diverse, one-stop-shop approach and those who specialize in particular content and audiences. Additional companies mentioned in this report include YouTube/Google, Sony, HTC, Vivu, Facebook and Apple. To see a full list of companies and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Mobile Tech Manor is my home office where all sorts of gadgetry is always arriving. In this column, I look back at the week in the Manor and recount the happenings and lessons learned. I love sharing my weeks with you, so welcome to the Manor. Read more »
Many companies are riding the wave of Android’s popularity; Sprint as much as any. The company’s popular Android smartphones have netted it a record number of subscribers. Barnes & Noble is riding the wave too, as its new NOOKColor is essentially an Android tablet. Read more »
