Facebook Home was released this weekend for a select few Android devices, and reviews have been decidedly negative. The app is designed to replace the default home screen on Android devices with a Facebook home screen. This is meant to make using Facebook not only easier, but smoother and more immersive. Cover Feed turns the lock screen into a new feed that gives you updates on what your friends are doing without you having to unlock the phone. Also, one of Home’s coolest features is the Chat Heads. Conversations with people through SMS or Facebook Messenger are marked by floating bubbles with…

Forget Apple versus Samsung or even iOS versus Android. The real mobile war is (and always has been) over capturing the attention of the users. We simply didn’t know it until Facebook released Home. Android phones can be turned into Facebook devices with Home. It’s that simple. Rather than being an Android device that has apps, Home makes Facebook the driving force of the device, moving the apps and other features of the phone under the Facebook shell. You’ll be able to get notifications and interact with your Facebook friends from any other app at any point other than during phone calls themselves….

There was never a doubt that iOS and Android are much bigger than Windows when it comes to mobile OS adoption, but a report by MetroStore Scanner that the Windows Store has only recently broken the 50,000 app barrier is both a little embarrassing to the company and at least a little alarming to developers who are looking for long-term homes for their apps. By comparison, iOS is tracking to hit 800,000 in April and Android is tracking to hit 900,000. The fear of developers is manifesting in a slowdown of new apps. In November, 2012, the average daily count of new apps submitted to Windows Store was a brisk…

This is one of the silliest questions that constantly gets asked on tech blogs and is often answered by infographics. The truth is this: nobody really cares.  It’s a personal choice. Some are extremely loyal to the brand or operating system that they prefer. Most are open to whatever makes the most sense to them. Still, the question will be asked and blogs will attempt to answer it. Which major mobile operating system is winning the war, iOS or Android? Here’s another shot at answering the question, looking at some of the important numbers including activations, fragmentation, and owner satisfaction….

In the art of war and business, knowing your enemy is arguably the most important key to success. The only real attribute that might hold the same level of importance is knowing your own strengths and weaknesses. BlackBerry showed today that they don’t know either very well. There has been some positive buzz lately surrounding BlackBerry 10, something that the company formerly known as Research in Motion hasn’t seen in years. They have a product that might actually be hot and the last thing they can afford to do is to squander the momentum. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what BlackBerry and CEO Thorsten…

Most people do not own or regularly carry personal protection weapons such as mace or stun guns. Those who do carry them regularly will often still find that they don’t take them everywhere. In western society, one thing that nearly everyone takes around with them everywhere they go is a cell phone. This fact might be the reason that Yellow Jacket has a safety solution for everyone. They first started getting serious about developing their cell phone case stun gun July, 2012, when they hit their IndieGoGo goal of $100,000 with three hours left in the campaign. From there, it was just a matter of developing…

Apple has been the butt end of many jokes since it launched its failure of an app: Apple Maps. Since then, they’ve tried to fix it but many people simply won’t be fooled a second time. Thankfully, there is no shortage of map apps out there that can run on an iPhone or iPad. This video by Hack College gives us their version of the top 5 alternatives. …

Facebook may or may not have abandoned its long-rumored dream of having its own branded handsets, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t want to be on every smartphone. In what may be a relief to many who dreaded the thought of a Facebook phone, the social networking giant is working with Chinese chipmaker Spreadtrum to embed its software directly into the guts of inexpensive smartphones. This is a much smarter move. Rather than get into the costly, risky world of hardware, they will be able to more easily achieve their goals of world domination mass adoption by going after the target market that eludes…

Move over Apple!  Android shifted into gear in 2012, providing 93.8 million phones with their operating system.  From the first to the fourth quarter, Android phone sales shifted from 59% of the market to 70%.  So what happened between then and now to spur such a big shift? In February of 2012, Chrome browser for Android was released followed by Google Play in March.  Then in April, Kindle Fire took over more than half of the Android tablet market and in July Android 4.1 was released. By October, Google became more valuable than Microsoft for the first time, as Google Play reached a daily revenue…

It’s a mobile world. Of that, there is little doubt. There is no longer a question about whether the smartphone and mobile industry in general can take over the mind (and hand) share of the data and communications industry. The only question that needs to be answered is who will be able to cash in and who’s going to cash out soon. Android and Apple are in wonderful positions. Microsoft Windows Phones and the newest re-entry into the segment, BlackBerry, are on the bubble. They are alive today, but for how long? Perhaps there’s only room for one of them. Perhaps neither will survive. This small graphic…