Mobile Devices - Page 149

California lawmakers want to make mandatory smartphone kill-switch requirements for phones in case of theft, an epidemic on the rise through metropolitan cities throughout the United States. Senate Bill 962 would take effect for both smartphones and tablets, as both mobile electronics become more common place among casual consumers.

"This is an important day for wireless consumers everywhere," said George Gascon, San Francisco District Attorney, in a press statement. "This legislation will require the industry to stop debating the possibility of implementing existing technological theft solutions, and begin embracing the inevitability. The wireless industry must take action to end the victimization of its customers."

Gascon also added that SB 962 would help clamp down on the market for stolen devices in California.

Over the last few weeks rumors have been gathering that state that Apple will be releasing an iOS 7 update anywhere between early February to late April, but today it appears that the update will come in March. iOS 7.1 is the first significant update to Apple's flagship mobile operating system since its release last year, and while no surprises are expected, some much needed improvements will be made.

The update will feature tweaks to the user interface, an improved calender app, and overall performance will increase. Users can expect their device to feel faster after the update thanks to many bug fixes and memory optimizations as well. We are expecting Apple to release iOS 7 at an Apple TV event in March, but nothing has been confirmed and there may not even be a show to launch at, but Apple does have a history of March events, so only time will tell.

Sony will shutter its Reader e-bookstore, and will transition customers to the Kobo online library and store, with Reader and Xperia tablet and smartphone users needing to make the move.

The shuttered Sony store was made up of 4 million e-books, magazines, newspapers, mangas, and kids content available to customers.

"Kobo is the ideal solution for our customers and will deliver a robust and comprehensive user experience," said Ken Orii, Sony VP of Digital Reading, in a press statement. "Like Sony, they are committed to those most passionate about reading and share our vision to use open formats so people can easily read anytime and anywhere."

Should Apple make an Android-powered smartphone? Steve Wozniak seems to think so. In a recent interview with WIRED, Wozniak said that he feels that Apple would do well competing in the Android market space. He said, "There's nothing that would keep Apple out of the Android market as a secondary phone market, We could compete very well... People don't really choose their smartphones based on features," added Wosniak. "I think Apple is superior at being able to say no."

"People like the precious looks of styling and manufacturing that we do in our product compared to the other Android offerings. We could play in two arenas at the same time," Wozniak said. "The great products really come from secret development," he said. "You put small teams of great people on them and they aren't bothered by other people commenting on what they're doing while they're doing it. A whole new category of products doesn't happen very often. It might happen once a decade. Sometimes you have to wait for one of those to come about."

I have to agree with this statement, as the numbers do not lie. Apple has a cult following for its iPhone, and even people who do not like the current versions continue to buy the device because they feel that they have to if they wish to stay relevant in their social circles. If Apple were to release an iPhoneDroid, iAndroid or any device running Android, people would buy it with out question, not because of Android, but because of Apple's false sense of high-quality, and the idea that just because its Apple-made, it is a superior device.

Cyber criminals accelerated their focus on attacking mobile devices in 2013, with more than 11.6 million devices compromised as malware becomes increasingly sophisticated.

Google Android devices made up 60 percent of infected devices, with mobile malware sampling drastically increasing 20 times in 2013. Smartphone makers installing Android - and software developers - are slowly making changes to ensure they are able to offer more advanced security software alternatives.

"Not only is Android the largest smartphone market, unlike iPhone and BlackBerry, it allows apps to be loaded from third-party sites," said Kevin McNamee, Alcatel-Lucent Security architect, in a statement. "This provides cybercriminals with an unpoliced mechanism to distribute their malware which can easily evade detection by device-based anti-virus. Thus, in 2013 we saw an increased trend towards operators offering network based anti-virus security to subscribers as a service."

Rumors have been swirling about a red Nexus 5 for months now, and today those rumors came true. This afternoon, Google and LG announced that they have officially released a red version of the Nexus 5 through the Google Play Store. The Nexus 5 is of course the flagship phone for Android and is equipped with Android 4.4, a 5-inch 1080p IPS display, and a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor.

"The Nexus line has always been about doing things differently and consumers who share this philosophy have been our most loyal fans," said Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. "We're carrying this thinking over to the red Nexus 5, which we think will catch the eye of consumers who want to make an even bolder statement."

The red Nexus 5 will be available on Google Playâ„¢ starting this month in the United States, Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia, Hong Kong, India, Japan and Korea with wider availability across Europe by the end of the month. Customers will also be able to purchase a red Nexus 5 in retail stores in select markets. The red Nexus 5 retails for $349 for the 16GB version and $399 for the 32GB version on the Google Play Store.

Those who were excited to see HTC launch its successor to the HTC One at the 2014 Mobile World Congress are in for some disappointment today. A new report our from @evleaks, a very reliable source when it comes to smartphone information, has informed us that HTC will not be launching the M8 (aka HTC One 2) at MWC 2014.

On Twitter, @evleaks said "Starting to look like a late Match, NYC launch for HTC M8." which means that we should still see the HTC One's successor arrive next month, and in a grander fashion than would be possible at MWC 2014 which is held in Barcelona. Rumors speculate that the HTC M8 will feature a 5-inch 1080p screen, and will be powered by a quad-core 2.26GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800. 3GB of RAM could be possible as well, and HTC will most definitely drop the Beats Audio hype this time around.

Word has came in this morning about yet another incident where someone was severely burned due to a faulty battery in a mobile device. The smartphone in question this time is one of Apple's new iPhone 5C models, and the victim of the fire is a 14 year old girl from Kennebunk, Maine. The girl is said to have suffered second degree burns to her hands after the phone burst into flames in her pocket.

The girl fell to the ground and rolled around extinguishing the flames from her burning clothes, and students and staff at her school quickly helped her remove her pants to prevent further injury. She was then wrapped in a blanket while waiting for emergency teams to arrive. She was then taken to the hospital and treated for second degree burns before being released to go home. This is not the first incident of an iPhone, or many other smartphones with lithium-based batteries catching fire. We reported on the same thing happening to a Samsung Galaxy S4 last year.

An Android-based smartphone was the last thing anyone thought they would ever see from Nokia, especially with its handset division recently being purchased by Microsoft, but all indications point to a Nokia Android phone being in existence. Dubbed "Project Normandy," the smartphone's release seems imminent if the increasing rate of leaks is any indication.

This morning we spotted the Nokia RM-980, Project Normandy's model number, in Rightware's online benchmark results, and while the numbers leave much to be desired, the fact stands that and Android-based Nokia smartphone is in existence. In the results, the RM-980 falls below the now dated HTC Incredible S, and just above the HTC OneX which all but confirms the low-end specs that leaked recently from @evleaks.

The infamous leakster says that Project Normandy will feature a very low-end 4-inch touchscreen with a resolution of 480x800 and will be powered by a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor clocked in at 1GHz. Just 512MB of RAM will be packed in along side 4GB of storage and a 5-megapixel generic imaging sensor. The leak did mention a 1500mAh battery as well as Android 4.4 KitKat, so at least it has that going for it. The more info that comes in on Project Normandy, the more I begin to believe rumors that this is actually the next-generation of the Asha line of feature phones. With MWC 2014 not far away, I am sure we will have a definitive answer on Project Normandy soon.

For the time it took smartphone displays to shift from 720p to 1080p - around 18 months - Qualcomm has now stated that it shouldn't be long before 4K smartphones are the norm.

Qualcomm's Vice President of Marketing, Tim McDonough, spoke with TrustedReviews and said: "I think 4K is one of the primary things you are seeing from us. 4K is pretty cool because it means that not only can you do 4K video, but once you can push that number of pixels and the chip has the ability to do 4K video, anything that is multimedia related - think about gaming - that gets better too".

McDonough teased that it shouldn't be long before we have full 4K smartphones, not just SoCs that are capable of driving 4K. Qualcomm's Snapdragon 805 is capable of driving Ultra HD, as well as shooting 4K video and playing it back. He adds: "It has already sampled and we said the first half of 2014 [for devices to launch]".

Late last year, Pete Lau, former VP of Oppo announced the formation of a new company aimed at disrupting the current smartphone arena. He named the company OnePlus and set out to build the highest quality smartphone in the world. With just over a month in the books, OnePlus has just released a statement that says its first phone will make it to market by June of this year.

OnePlus has officially named its first foray into the smartphone world, the OnePlus One, and says that it will be "Built using only the best components and 2014 flagship specs, both inside and out." While I am sure that statement made HTC take notice, I am quite excited myself to see what this phone may include both hardware and software wise. As far as aesthetics, the OnePlus said the folowing about the phone: "Industrial design wise, we're confident our phone is more attractive than just about any other on the market."

While no official specs have been released, we expect the phone to feature a screen size greater than 5-inches with a resolution of 1080p or 1440p. Ram should be in the 2-4GB range while the processor is most likely Qualcomm's flagship chip. Storage would be set between 64GB and 128GB, with expansion via microSD card built-in. We do know that CyanogenMod will be serving up the Android-based operating system for the device, and believe it to be Android 4.3 or 4.4.

Owners of HTC's flagship, the One, will be happy to hear that the company has just announced that it has released its Android 4.4, KitKat, update to carrier level testing. This means that each service provider who carries the HTC One will now begin testing the update with their devices, and if everything passes, the updates should begin rolling out shortly.

There is no set time limit on carrier testing, and any one of them could reject the update if it does not play well with each network in question. HTC says that certification could come as early as next week, but even so, it could take weeks before the carriers stage an OTA update roll out. Unfortunately, European HTC One owners will have to wait longer for their 4.4 update as HTC had no comment on when it may roll out.

The once failing smartphone giant, BlackBerry, may have just been bailed out by US Taxpayers in a deal that will see The Pentagon purchasing more than 80,000 handsets from the Canadian manufacturer. The purchase comes as the US Department of Defense begins staging the roll out of a massive new wireless network which will primarily use BlackBerry handsets.

News of this injection of cash has been rumored for weeks and as a result, the company stock has more than doubled from its low of $5.75 per share just six weeks ago. This massive purchase from the US Government helps to further push the return to its enterprise roots that John Chen, the company's new CEO has been pushing for since taking the position late last year. No word has been released on how much the deal is worth, but you can imagine that it is in the $800 million to $1.5 billion range.

LG really is at the forefront of flexible technology, with the South Korean giant launching its flexible 'G Flex' smartphone in the US later this month. LG's G Flex will launch at Sprint on January 31, featuring a curved 6-inch Plastic OLED (POLED) screen.

We talked to LG Australia's Head of Public Relations, Phillip Anderson, where we asked what LG thought about the G Flex smartphone, and why people should buy it over the $350 Nexus 5 smartphone, that LG also makes. He said:

"LG constantly strives to provide consumers with the latest and greatest technology and the G Flex is fantastic example of smartphone innovation that is designed to meet the needs of the user. LG has spent an extensive period of time developing its curved technology and from CES 2014 we have seen that the future definitely has 'curves' in it. The 'curve' provides consumer benefits such as a reduced distance between your mouth and the microphone when the device is held against the ear to deliver improved voice and sound quality. The Curved 6" Plastic OLED (POLED) screen has to be seen to be believed - it makes watching video content on LG's G Flex a very enjoyable and immersive experience. The G Flex is a step in to the future and we anticipate the early-adopter as well as intrigued consumers will be eager to get their hands on it".

Sharp has just announced a new tablet that is destined for the business and professional world, the RW-16G1. Sharp's new slate features a 15.6-inch display, with a 3200x1800 resolution.

The new slate will feature a dual-core Intel Core i5-4200U processor - 1.6GHz/2.6GHz, 3MB of L2 cache, 15W TDP, and Intel HD 4400 graphics. We have 4GB of DDR3 RAM, a 128GB SSD, and that gorgeous 15.6-inch display which is based off an IGZO panel. We have Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 and NFC for wireless technologies, a 2-megapixel webcam, SD card reader, mini DisplayPort, HDMI, and three USB 3.0 ports.

Sharp's RW-16G1 also features a stylus, accelerometer, gyroscope, geomagnetic sensor, and more. As for its operating system, we have Windows 8.1 Pro, which makes this new, massive, high-res slate like a much better, more expensive Surface Pro 2.

Apple is rumored to be working on a 12.9-inch iPad, that would arrive as the iPad Pro. Apple is now reportedly accelerating the development of this larger iPad, because Samsung is already in the larger slate game with two 12.2-inch tablets.

DigiTimes' sources are claiming that Apple's new iPad Pro would launch in Q3 2014 at the earliest. It would seem doubtful that Apple is feeling threatened by Samsung, as the Cupertino-based iPhone giant is usually relaxed with its releases. But, increased competition in the market could be forcing Apple to work on products it normally wouldn't (a larger 'Pro' aimed iPad) and competing with Samsung.

The same sources claim that Apple is working on two new iPads that will replace the current Retina iPad mini and iPad Air. These new models would most likely debut at the same time as the iPad Pro.

The Apple iPhone and Samsung Google Android-powered smartphones both grew their respective market shares in the United States during Q4 2013, according to The NPD Group. iPhone ownership increased from 35 percent up to 42 percent year-over-year, while the Android smartphones jumped from 22 percent up to 26 percent during the same time frame.

The top five music apps used on smartphones during the fourth quarter of 2013: Pandora, iHeart Radio, Spotify, TunIn Radio, and Slacker Radio. As more consumers use smartphones with unlimited data - and Wi-Fi-supported devices - there is a huge demand for streaming music and other connected services. Music streaming rose 11 percent up to 52 percent, and that number will likely increase even higher.

"Considering the increase in prominence of smartphone music apps, it's not surprising that hardware manufacturers such as Betas are leveraging partnerships with carriers, like AT&T to break into the streaming music market," said John Buffone, NPD Executive Director of Connected Intelligence, in a statement. "This allows AT&T to offer subscribers more of what they want in the way innovative music apps and provides Beats a partner capable of driving trial in a market where consumers already have an affinity for the music services they use."

This morning Samsung officially announced the existence of its rumored Galaxy Tab 3 Lite after the device's user manual leaked late last night. The Galaxy Tab 3 Lite is aimed at the low-end side of the market and hopes to attract more customers to the small tablet realm in hopes that they will upgrade to a high-end model in the future.

The Galaxy Tab 3 Lite features a 7-inch screen with a 1024x600 resolution screen, while a 1.2GHz dual-core processor handles computational duties. 1GB of RAM should barely keep things running smooth while 8GB of on-board storage is on hand to store all of your files. A micro SD slot allows for more storage while a 2MP rear camera handles imaging duties. Battery life will be questionable with only a 3600mAh battery being featured, but with the slimmed down specifications, this may turn out not to be an issue.

The Wi-Fi version is expected to retail for around $165 while a 3G compatible version will cost consumers about $100 more putting the price tag at $265. With prices like this, Samsung has to face some stiff competition in Google's Nexus 7, Amazon's Kindle Fire HDX, and even offerings from Acer and ASUS.

Less than 0.01 percent of consumer mobile apps will make money and be considered a hit by developers by the end of 2018, according to research firm Gartner. Almost 90 percent of paid apps are downloaded less than 500 times every day, earning less than $1,250 per day.

"The vast number of mobile apps may imply that mobile is a new revenue stream that will bring riches to many," said Ken Dulaney, Gartner VP and analyst, in a statement. "However, our analysis shows that most mobile applications are not generating profits and that many mobile apps are not designed to generate revenue, but rather are used to build brand recognition and product awareness or are just fun."

Mobile app use grew 115 percent year-over-year from 2012 to 2013, though 94.5 percent of all mobile apps downloaded by 2016 will be free apps, Gartner predicts.

Since November, the tech world has been buzzing about Nokia releasing an Android-powered smartphone alongside its Lumia line of Windows Phones. @evleaks even posted an image of the top-secret project code named "Normandy," but until today all we have seen is an image of a Lumia-like device with a black screen.

Today, Twitter user, Picturepan2, posted what he says is an engineering prototype of the Nokia Normandy Android-based smartphone. The user interface definitely looks like some form of Android, but the phone appears to only feature a back button and not the typical back and home button combo. Further more, the device is pictured with what appears to be dual SIM cards based on the dual signal meters in the notification bar.

Other reports out today suggest that project Normandy is just part of a refreshed Asha line and will be running a heavily modified version of Android. The Android implementation will be modified to incorporate features from both Windows Phone 8.1 as well as Android, in what could become the Asha line's official OS. Sources say that we can expect to see this mysterious phone debuted just before or during the 2014 Mobile World Congress.