Mobile posts

Anyone who questioned why Apple has been focusing so much on trumping Samsung in the courts around the world can now have a better understanding as Samsung propelled ahead of Apple last quarter in world-wide smartphone sales. Over 100 million smartphones were sold last quarter and 27.8 million of them were Samsung compared to 17.1 million iPhones. “Samsung has come out with products that appeal to all the different form factors and specifications out there,” said T.Z. Wong, a Beijing-based analyst at researcher IDC. “That is a strategy they have executed very well.”…

It may not have been their intention, but it’s definitely a clear indicator. By purchasing Ericsson’s half of the phone deal and announcing plans to move towards a smartphone-only model, Sony has unofficially declared the death of feature phones. It’s a trend that is likely to continue to hit other manufacturers. Sony’s president and CEO, Sir Howard Stringer, said it simply, “We’re phasing out feature phones.” Who’s next?…

In the world of public relations, you sometimes have to toot your own horn when others won’t. That seems to be the case with AT&T, a company that has been in need of more victories in light of poor customer relations and retention as well as a legal battle on their hands over the merger with T-Mobile. To that end, they announced today that they activated one million iPhone 4S’ shortly after launch, making it the most successful iPhone launch in the company’s history. With Verizon going through their second and Sprint having their first, it is actually very encouraging news for the telecommunications…

As the buzz surrounding the iPhone 4S fades a little (it’s been a week, after all), Samsung unveiled the most anticipated Android phone of the pre-holiday season with the Galaxy Nexus. Armed with the first installation of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest entry into Google’s Nexus program will go on sale in the US, Europe, and Asia next month. Nearly all of the specs are impressive: 1.2 gigahertz Dual Core Processor 4.65 inch Touchscreen Slender 8.49 millimeter depth 1280 x 720 Resolution NFC Technology for Mobile Payments 1 gigabyte of RAM Front-Facing Camera There is one feature that…

Smartphone season unofficially started last week with the release of the iPhone 4S. As Android phone makers try to capture their share of the lucrative Christmas market, the volleying for differentiators takes different angles to be as appealing as possible to consumers. For the Motorola Droid Razr, their gimmick is thickness (or lack thereof). This “impossibly thin”smartphone is equipped with a stainless-steel core, a Gorilla Glass screen and a nanotechnology Splash-guard. Motorola Mobility President Sanjay Jha said the 7.1mm-thick device is the world’s thinnest. Here are some of…

In lieu of a refund or cash considerations, Research In Motion (RIM) is offering an apps package normally valued at around $100 to compensate for the most major outage the company has ever had. The three-day+ outage likely presented major challenges for the business-heavy Blackberry users who often rely on the devices to stay connected while on the go. “You expect better of us, I expect better of us” RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis said in last week’s press conference. Now, we’ll see if users expected to be compensated more for the outage. Enterprise customers will also receive a free month of tech…

It has been speculated that home entertainment would meld with online and app-based engagement more and more over time. Today, Nielsen revealed that 40% of tablet and/or smartphone owners use them while watching television. As people continue to Tweet or post to Facebook when watching TV while others explore and research information about the shows they’re watching, a growing number of people are using television time as email time. For most activities like email and surfing unrelated information, the gender gap is slim. The notable exceptions are visits to social networks (which women…

Despite heavy support from both parties and an outcry of the people, California Governor Jerry Brown vetoed a bill passed by state legislature that would have banned searches of smartphones by police without a warrant. The ban would have prevented police officers from searching smartphones during an arrest. Many smartphones have persistent logins to personal communication services such as email and Facebook, keep track of locations the phone has been, and give access to personal contacts. This stays in line with a California Supreme Court decision that was upheld by the US Supreme Court…

Here’s a quote from the head of the Windows Phone unit at Microsoft: “So, I think that what our strategy is is to put things in place that allow us to leapfrog, and I think that’s how we’ve gone from worse browser to the best browser, and I think the same is true with hardware.” It’s not a statement that will fill investors or potential Windows Phone buyers with a ton of confidence. I think. There is a personality and a swagger that is attached to mobile phones. It happens on the user end and is often a result of the confidence exuded from the top. When Steve Jobs launched the first iPhone, there was…

There are two signs that point to a company entering into “desperation mode”: big cuts and big investments. Big, risky investments often signal prosperity at large companies, but they can also mean the exact opposite as companies try to buy their way out of bad situations and stagnant balance sheets. The latter seems to be the case with Sprint, a company that is committing a lot more money than they plan on bringing in over the next couple of years. First, there’s the iPhone. While the initial announcement that Sprint was getting the iPhone was met with glee, the decisions they’ve made since them…