Google surprised many last week by launching a new $249 Chromebook, which is $200 lower than the prior model. One part of the cost savings is replacing the Intel processor with a new Samsung chip designed for phones and tablets. So how’s the performance? Read more »
Samsung has been the top supplier of LCDs to Apple in the first half of 2012. But according to a new report, Apple has been cutting its reliance on Samsung Display since then. Now Samsung wants to end the display relationship altogether. Read more »
Even with new devices announced, the Galaxy Note 2 continues to impress. This week, I spent more time learning about the useful S-Pen. Meanwhile, Google’s mobile revenues are app; could content for the Nexus 7 be helping? Acer’s new small slate cuts a few corners. Read more »
Google’s newest Chromebook, made by Samsung, only costs $249 and offers the same general performance of ChromeOS is a smaller, lighter package. How’d they do it? This model uses the same chip type that powers smartphones and tablets. Take a look at my hands-on thoughts. Read more »
The third quarter saw many parts of the traditional media business in flux. Other developments included the rollout of new device-based content ecosystems, red flags and red ink for traditional consumer electronics makers, and a resurgence of consumer purchases of movies. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
It’s not often I buy a mobile gadget and get a bonus, but that’s how I feel about the S-Pen in Samsung’s Galaxy Note 2. I never thought I’d use the digital pen, but I’m finding more uses for it every day; here are a few. Read more »
Samsung’s 5.5-inch Galaxy Note 2 smartphone arrives on the Sprint network Oct. 25 for $299 with contract. The phone supports unlimited data on Sprint’s LTE network and will ship with Android 4.1.1 plus Samsung’s own software that takes advantage of the included digital S-Pen. Read more »
This week on the audio podcast, Matt and Kevin share hands impressions of with Apple’s new iPod touch, Jelly Bean on the Galaxy S III and thoughts on prices for the iPad Mini and Windows RT tablets. Plus a recap of other mobile gadget news! Read more »
Keeping the next Nexus phone under wraps is proving to be difficult: This week a Russian site shared details, photos and even an early review of the Nexus 4. Meanwhile, new markets will see Samsung’s Galaxy S III Mini and everyone can download Opera Mobile. Read more »
Apple is paying for the familiar looking clock icon on its iPad, having come to licensing terms with the Swiss Federal Railways, which has used the clock since 1944 as a defining icon for its transportation business. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed Read more »
The iPhone 5 is a few weeks old but according to one mobile advertiser, it’s already getting more mobile web traffic from the iPhone 5 versus Samsung’s Galaxy S III, which launched in June. There’s still an Android win here if you look deep enough. Read more »
Apple is Samsung’s biggest chip buyer, but that didn’t stop Apple from hiring away a high-profile industry veteran from Samsung to come work for them. Such a move is bound to increase the growing tension between the two companies. Read more »
Those hoping Samsung’s Galaxy S III Mini was simply a smaller version of the company’s flagship phone may be disappointed: This is for the budget market. But that’s not a bad thing for Samsung, which can leverage branding and design cues from its GSIII. Read more »
It’s good news for Samsung: an appeals court decided on Thursday to lift the injunction placed on one of its flagship devices intended to showcase Android 4.0., the Galaxy Nexus. The court says Apple should not have been granted the ban in the first place. Read more »
HTC reported a 79 drop in profit in the third quarter as it continued to struggle in the face of competition from Apple and Samsung. The once high-flying smartphone maker has been plotting a comeback but the prospects look dim. Read more »
On this week’s audio podcast, Matt shares two weeks of using an iPhone 5 while Kevin tries to sway Matt to buy a Galaxy Note 2, a high performing 5.5-inch Android phone that runs all day (and more!) on a single charge. Read more »
My Samsung Galaxy Note 2 arrived and so did an update that adds the ability to run two apps on the screen at the same time. Atooma, a free beta app, is making all of my Androids smarter and Sony launched PlayStation Mobile this week. Read more »
The next Nexus phone may be based on the LG Optimus G, a 4-7-inch high-resolution handset with a quad-core processor and an ample 2 GB of memory. Leaked specs line up with recent chatter, indicating that this new Nexus could be announced next month. Read more »
The Galaxy Note 2 model for the Korean market has a nifty multi-window feature, but my international version of the 5.5-inch Android phone didn’t have it. Now it does thanks to a software update and this nifty functionality is quite useful on a larger display. Read more »
It’s hard to classify what Samsung’s Galaxy Note 2 is because it mostly requires two hands to use and has a 5.5-inch display. But it fits in a front pocket and makes voice calls. Here’s our first look at Samsung’s latest and greatest Android device. Read more »
The suit states that the new iPhone infringes on the same patents as the already-accused older iPhones, iPads and iPod touch models included in previous court documents. In all, Samsung accuses the new smartphone of violating eight Samsung patents. Read more »
When HTC said it was changing strategies and cutting back on phone models, it never said anything about refreshing existing handsets. That’s precisely what it has in the HTC One X+: Same on the outside, but better performance and battery life with new internal hardware. Read more »
So I broke down and ordered a Galaxy Note 2 from overseas. Why spend the money when I have a Galaxy Nexus phone and Nexus 7 tablet? A video demo shows how Samsung is further bridging the mobile and traditional computing space and I bought in. Read more »
App developers are the cornerstones of the multibillion-dollar app market, but the overall community remains largely unknown. As app downloads increase, organizations that can bring tools, resources, and a collective voice to this group will be an important factor in the evolution of mobile-app development. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Samsung’s Galaxy Note II launched in Korea with sales over the next three months expected to be triple that of the original Galaxy Note. The 5.5-inch phone / tablet is following Apple’s iPhone 5 launch as Samsung tries to stay in the smartphone spotlight. Read more »
Samsung is working fast to close a hole in its Touch Wiz software for Android phones. The exploit uses HTML and phone diagnostic codes to automatically dial a number that can either wipe the data from or hard reset a Samsung phone. Read more »
Is it possible to build a better smartphone for consumers that costs less to produce? Apparently so, if you’re Apple. A preliminary teardown of the iPhone 5 shows that the most expensive iPhone this year is cheaper for Apple to make than the iPhone 4S. Read more »
At a security conference a scary demonstration showed that a single line of HTML code can remotely wipe out a Samsung Galaxy S III handset. Worse: It appears to work on many Samsung smartphones that run TouchWiz, which is most of Samsung’s line of handsets. Read more »
Samsung is wasting little time in getting Android 4.1 to its successful Galaxy S III smartphone. Although slated for an October release, the company has the software available in one country now and it listed the 15 other Galaxy devices that will get Jelly Bean. Read more »
Samsung is facing the possibility of being forced to pay Apple more than $1 billion in damages from its previous patent fight. So it’s not surprising that the company is looking for leverage wherever it can. The LTE-capable iPhone 5 presents one possibility. Read more »
Whether it’s the iPhone 5, the importance of LTE, or BYOD trends disrupting the enterprise, there are always technologies, trends, and companies changing the way we define mobile. Here are some noteworthy segments to watch in the coming months, from location-based shopping to apps to wireless networks. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
These are the companies, startups and giants alike, that are changing or could potentially change the mobile landscape in the most profound ways. Read more »
Samsung isn’t known for speedy Android software updates, but it’s apparently making an exception for its fastest selling phone, the Galaxy S III, which recently surpassed 20 million in sales. The company said it would start the Android 4.1, or Jelly Bean, software update in October. Read more »
Samsung’s Galaxy S III continues to sell at a torrid pace…. for an Android device. Surely the new iPhone will outsell this one handset, but the success of the Galaxy S III shows that the gap between Android and iOS is lessening over time. Read more »
Having just launched the Galaxy Note six weeks ago, could T-Mobile be readying the Galaxy Note II? Aside from the original phone out of stock on T-Mobile’s website, a leaked screenshot and product name indicate that T-Mo could go big with the new Galaxy Note II. Read more »
Samsung hit a billion dollar setback in the courts against Apple in August, but that same month it sold the top smartphone on 3 of the 4 big U.S. carrier networks. The Galaxy S III beat out the iPhone 4S, making for a good sales battle. Read more »
ZTE and Motorola indicated that they are making Intel-powered smartphones. Samsung announced the Microsoft Windows 8 powered ATIV-S phones, beating Nokia to the punch. These are first signs of PC-business behemoths trying hard to find relevance in a mobile-first world of Apple, Google and Qualcomm. Read more »
Samsung’s threatening to fight back against Apple after its recent courtroom defeat with another set of patents: those related to LTE devices. Samsung has one of the largest mobile infrastructure patent portfolios, and could try to use it to neutralize Apple’s design patent win. Read more »
Samsung is showing more love for Microsoft, debuting the world’s first Windows Phone 8 device, the Ativ S. The device, similar to the Galaxy S III, gives Windows Phone 8 a strong flagship phone as it goes up against Android and iOS. Read more »
