The week ended badly for Samsung, but did it do the same for Android in general? Perhaps, since Apple’s patents protect navigation features used by all Android devices. My new Nexus 7 case and Nikon’s Coolpix S800s camera with Android uses patented features too – uh oh. Read more »
I was planning to buy Google’s official Nexus 7 case but it’s not in stock. That’s actually a good thing because this case from Blurex looks better, has more features — including magnetic smart wake and sleep — and costs $5 less than Google’s own product. Read more »
Don’t have the $2.5 billion budget that Nasa spent to design, build and launch the Mars Curiosity rover? For a fraction of the price you can virtually be in two places at once thanks to telepresence robots for every budget, including those using iPads or smartphones. Read more »
LG is taking a page out of Samsung’s playbook with the Optimus Vu: A 5-inch Android smartphone that doubles as a tablet. LG is launching the phone internationally next month but it could be a tough sell due to the wide form-factor and aspect ratio. Read more »
Though the legal drama hasn’t offered the most flattering view of either company, Apple, particularly, has taken a huge gamble with this trial. It’s hard to believe it would squander the ability to exact a legal judgment by opting for resolution outside of court. Read more »
Global positioning systems provide better location accuracy over solutions that use Wi-Fi networks, but just how much better is GPS? Yelp sifted through its check-in data to see and not only found out the accuracy variance, but also an interesting location tidbit on iPhones vs Androids. Read more »
After months with a sub-par user experience, the Google Play store is gaining needed improvements. Application updates comprised of just changed code now helps limit mobile broadband use while gift cards and wishlists are coming soon, per the latest version of Google Play. Read more »
Microsoft released Windows 8 to hardware makers but you can get your own free copy. Don’t get too excited: This is an evaluation copy that lasts for 90 days and can’t be upgraded. I’m going to take it for a spin on a Windows 7 slate. Read more »
Network operators selling tablets in the past faced a significant hurdle: the monthly cost of data. With the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0, Verizon is ready to take advantage of its new Share Everything plans that let you use the tablet on 4G for $10 per month. Read more »
Between mock-ups and alleged leaked parts, you’d think we’d know what a smaller iPad would look like. But some of these ideas are off base showing a super slim bezel on the slate. Effective usability of 7-inch tablets requires a place to rest your thumb. Read more »
Some will never switch their voice activities from a smartphone to a tablet: Who wants to hold a tablet to their head? Wired or wireless headsets help, but wearing them for hours isn’t comfortable. What about a radical new wireless handset that looks like a pen? Read more »
Market research firm IHS iSuppli shows that iPad shipments surged in Q2 2012, as Amazon’s Kindle Fire and Barnes & Noble’s Nook Tablets saw major drops. Kindle Fire’s share of the media tablet market fell to 4.2 percent, with B&N’s at 1.9 percent. Read more at paidContent »
Microsoft announced four initial hardware partners for the first Windows RT slates. Of the four, two have some solid tablet experience while another showed promise with early smartbook designs. The last one, however, is a dark horse, as it has limited success with consumer electronics devices. Read more »
Home cooks are using digital tools to help them cook: smartphones, video streaming, cooking apps and social media sites, according to an Allrecipes.com poll. But our increased dependence on the internet for cooking advice is also destroying our faith in the recipe itself. Read more »
If today’s smartphone and tablets may impress you, just wait until the next generation. A whole new mobile chip architecture is about to enter the game and Samsung’s Exynos 5 is the first to play. No products use it yet, but here’s what you can expect. Read more »
The Kindle Fire gains a free new mobile music app in Spotify, but it’s only mobile if you have a Wi-Fi connection; offline support requires a Spotify Premium subscription. However, the app supports high-quality music streaming and full access to Spotify’s millions of digital tracks. Read more »
We know that Apple started seeing some validation of the 7-inch tablet market some 18 months ago. Those reasons still apply, but there are even more to consider today. Here’s another look at a handful of observations on why Apple should enter this market. Read more »
A new survey explains that the no. 1 frustration on tablets and smartphones is the slow loading of web pages. That shouldn’t surprise, but the preferred activities for a smartphone and a tablet just might, suggesting that we’re not ready to dump the phone just yet. Read more »
After finding success with the pen-enabled Galaxy Note smartphone, Samsung is going bigger: It will launch the Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet this month with Android 4.0. Unique to this model is a multitasking mode that shows two apps at the same time on the screen. Read more »
How long has Apple been thinking about a smaller iPad? Since they read impressions about the Galaxy Tab 18 months ago. Matt shares experiences with Nexus 7 cases — and explains what pickleball is — while both hosts discuss the Chrome OS and T-Mobile’s new (old) Galaxy Note. Read more »
Android 4.0 is finally getting out on phones and tablets according to Google’s dashboard. Surprisingly, the next version, Jelly Bean, is gaining adoption quickly too. Google’s Wallet now supports more credit and debit cards while T-Mobile’s Galaxy Note blurs the lines between smartphone and tablet. Read more »
Jelly Bean is officially on few Android smartphones and tablets, but the developer community is already hard at work, porting the software to other devices. Case in point: the HP TouchPad tablet, which essentially has no other software future. It’s an early build, but shows promise. Read more »
Is it a sign that people are holding back on upgrading to the new iPad? Or a measure of the success the discounted iPad 2 is seeing here in the U.S.? Schools purchasing iPads were a key driver of Apple’s record-breaking iPad sales last quarter. Read more »
Apple put more distance between itself and tablet competitors last quarter, moving from a 62 percent share of the market in Q2 2011, to a 68 percent share this year. But an influx of smaller and cheaper iPad alternatives is coming by the end of the year. Read more »
Android 4.0 is making adoption gains thanks to software upgrades and new devices on sale with the Ice Cream Sandwich software. Nearly 1 percent of devices run Android 4.1 thanks to Google’s Nexus device program and strong demand for the company’s 7-inch slate. Read more »
With the Nexus 7 receiving good reviews, people are starting to enjoy the portability and immersive experience that small tablets offer over smartphones. Looking at the mobile trends, I can see how the tablet will replace the smartphone. And it may happen sooner than you think. Read more »
Amazon takes another step on Apple’s digital media turf: Amazon Instant Video is now available for iPad, bringing another media option for movie purchases, rentals and television shows to Apple’s tablet. For now, Amazon is keeping this away from Android tablets, save its own Kindle Fire. Read more »
The wait for a Nexus 7 dock may not be much longer. According to leaked images and details, a $49.99 landscape dock is planned to launch in late August, along with a premium Nexus 7 case. Sounds legit since the original images were removed “by request”. Read more »
Fanhattan’s guide to entertainment on your iPad just got a lot more useful: The app added content from new partners, including NBC and HBO, and a new WatchList feature. The idea: Add your favorite movies and shows once, and get notifications whereever and whenever they’re available. Read more »
Spotify’s conversion rate isn’t bad: Out of 15 million active users, more than 4 million are paying subscribers. That number may soon increase thanks to Android support for Spotify radio, which is ad-supported and offers unlimited playback of Spotify’s entire digital music catalog. Read more »
With the growth of sensors and microelectronics, the potential uses of wearable-computing technologies now reach to health and fitness, gaming, fashion, disabilities and augmented reality. Most importantly, the widespread adoption of wearables will drive the form function and market for mobiles in vital ways. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
While a hot accessory alone won’t sell a mobile device, it never hurts to generate buzz and interest. Microsoft is doing just that by announcing relatively inexpensive and eye-catching new keyboards and mice for Windows 8 computers and tablets. One keyboard case doubles as a tablet stand. Read more »
When enterprise employees finish up their work at home they’re increasingly turning to tablets rather than powering up their laptops or desktop PCs, according to new survey from Alfresco. The tablet isn’t replacing the PC of smartphone, but it’s definitely carving itself a business niche. Read more »
Barnes & Noble is skipping out on Google Maps for tablets and is partnering instead with Berlin-based mobile map company skobbler. skobbler’s ForeverMap 2 app is available in the Nook store today, and Nook will open up to location-based app developers later this year. Read more at paidContent »
There’s an unprecedented amount of digital video coverage for this year’s Olympic Games and yet analysts suggest that the TV will easily trump viewing on other screens again. The numbers look low because of our time- and place-shifting mentality: Share your viewing plans in our poll. Read more »
On Tuesday, Apple CEO Tim Cook declared that the adoption of the iPad by educational institutions was “unlike anything I’ve seen in technology.” It’s not just a cheaper iPad 2 that’s driving record K-12 iPad sales, but Apple’s total education apps package. Read more »
Research In Motion is reportedly prepping an LTE PlayBook tablet for at least one Canadian network but it’s unlikely to boost tablet sales. Instead, the company should be focused on getting its new OS on phones sooner or improving the tablet in other ways. Read more »
Building on the acquisition of Brooklyn-based digital education company Wired Generation, News Corp today unveiled its education technology business Amplified. Read more »
Amazon is expected to introduce up to 6 new tablets, including a 10-inch model. Why not? Few besides Amazon have the consumer data, shopping experience and content to make multiple screen sized tablets, proving that one size doesn’t fit all when it comes to mobile devices. Read more »
