After a patent dispute in Germany between Motorola and Apple, local users of iCloud and MobileMe have now had push email functions disabled. But don’t be surprised if the same problem wings its way across the Atlantic soon. Read more »
Cloud storage player Box is beefing up its Android clients with collaboration and batch upload support. It also seems to be favoring Android devices even over popular IPhones and iPads and is definitely backing them at the expense of Windows Phone. Read more »
Have the patent wars — that have dominated mobile in recent years — finally come to cleantech? And what does that mean for startups? Read more »
In yet more legal news on the Apple front, on Friday the company filed another lawsuit against Motorola. It’s asking a district court to prevent Motorola from suing Apple in European courts over technology in mobile devices Apple says it’s licensed to use via Qualcomm. Read more »
The iPhone may have passed over Android in total U.S. smartphone sales, but Google’s platform still has one key advantage: it’s attracting more mobile data newbies. According to the NPD Group, 57 percent of first-time smartphone buyers last quarter chose Android handsets. Read more »
Apple is looking to sharpen the teeth on a recent import ban it secured from the ITC against HTC smartphones, according to an appeal filing discovered Wednesday. The appeal seems to at least seek to broaden the scope of the ITC’s ruling. Read more »
Four years after Better Place CEO Shai Agassi announced the startup would build out its first electric vehicle charging network in Israel, this past weekend, Better Place delivered its first 10 cars in Israel to employees at businesses. Read more »
Android was everywhere at this month’s CES, but many products don’t hit retail shelves for months. Acer broke that tradition, releasing the A200 tablet this week. It should see Android 4.0 soon, just like the Xoom recently did. Plus my pick for app of the week. Read more »
Motorola officially announced on Wednesday that it’s now upgrading its Xoom Wi-Fi tablets to the Ice Cream Sandwich version of Android, effective immediately. Google Android version 4.0.3 will be an over-the-air software upgrade, starting today, in stages, for all Xoom tablet owners. Read more »
In October, Google debuted Android 4.0, also known as Ice Cream Sandwich, to unify tablets and smartphones. But does it really accomplish that? It’s too early to tell, but the current version has some inconsistencies noted by Jason Perlow, and I can’t disagree with him. Read more »
The big buzz out of CES on Thursday is that Intel has been “talking” to Apple, among other manufacturers, about using its new line of Medfield chips in upcoming mobile devices. But the discussions are clearly very preliminary, and Apple has good reason to remain aloof. Read more »
Just like every prior CES in the past few years, Intel is touting how its chips are ready for mobiles. The only difference in 2012 is that I’m starting to believe the company after seeing Intel’s Medfield chip power an Android tablet that runs all day. Read more »
During my CES show floor travels, I swung by Motorola’s booth and see the Droid Razr Max. Why? Because battery technology hasn’t changed much and Moto claims a 21-hour runtime for it’s latest Android smartphone. But it’s still only 8.99 millimeters in thickness! Read more »
SNL reports that Google is bidding on T-Mobile. If the rumor were somehow true, then Google is suffering from hubris. Selling software, services and handsets is fundamentally a different business than selling connectivity. Google buying T-Mobile would be a bigger disaster than AOL-Time Warner. Read more »
At CES, Motorola announced a new Droid for Verizon’s LTE network that appears to be a combination of all of its Android smartphones released to date. Meanwhile, LG got cinematic with LTE’s video stream capabilities, announcing a new HD phone, while Samsung unveiled its Tab 7.7. Read more »
The 2012 CES show hasn’t even officially kicked off and already the smart energy home has emerged as a key target for a variety of sectors, including telcos, big box retailers, startups, chip companies and now cable operators like Time Warner Cable. Read more »
In its fight with Android hardware-makers, Apple almost seems to see itself as a noble hero fighting a nefarious villain bent on stealing its identity and reputation. But just or not, is the fight one that makes sense to Apple from a practical and business standpoint? Read more »
As 2011 comes to a close, I’m thinking ahead to what mobile technology trends I expect to see in 2012. While I formulate those thoughts for a post later this week, now is a good time to see how I did with my 2011 predictions. Read more »
One day after the International Trade Commission approved a formal ban on certain HTC products that infringe on an Apple patent, an ITC administrative law judge has issued an initial determination that Motorola has infringed on four claims of a Microsoft patent with its Android products. Read more »
Though most U.S. operators use Carrier IQ’s handset monitoring software in some form, they’re not all using it to the same degrees. Sprint turns out to be Carrier IQ’s biggest fan, installing its software on half of all devices while AT&T uses it much more sparingly. Read more »
