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Friday Grab Bag: Apple Refutes Multiple Product Rumors

April 26, 2013 by

Market research firm Strategy Analytics is reporting that Apple had a 48% market share of the estimated 40.6 million tablets that were shipped in the first quarter of 2013, followed by tablets that ran the Android operating system which own a 43% market share. Tablets that ran Windows had a 7.5% market share.

Overall the market has seen tremendous growth, surging 117% compared to the 18.7 million tablets that were sold in the same period a year ago.

Will Windows 8 Refresh Refresh Microsoft?
Microsoft has taken a beating in recent weeks as analysts and OEMs have pointed a finger at the company’s Windows 8 release as being a disaster and hurt both PC and tablet sales by Windows licensees.

The refresh of the operating system, called ‘Blue’ is reported to have changes to the UI and some subcomponent fixes. How it does will be very important, analysts told IT World, but it also needs to address a host of other issues including app shortage, pricing and enterprise adoption rates.

Apple’s Cook fries rumors
Apple has long been one of the companies that is always surrounded by a host of rumors. Will there be a new, cheap iPhone, is a new tablet coming out this month? You know the drill.

Now the company’s CEO Tim Cook refuted a few during his comments during Apple’s Q2 earnings call. So do not expect a new iPhone or iPad release soon, don’t look for a cheap iPhone and don’t expect a large format iPhone any time soon. For a fuller explanation of his comments head over here.

Speaking of Apple the company’s most recent earnings report showed that profits declined for the first time in almost 10 years. While that is bad the company did have $9.5 billion in profits from a total revenue of $43.6 billion. Last year’s first quarter saw the company report $11.6 billion profit on $39.2 billion in revenue.

LG becoming a factor in the smartphone world
While most of the talk in the smartphone market centers around a rare few, you can now add LG to the list as a player making an impact. The company reported that it sold 10.3 million smartphones in the first quarter of this year. It could see strong additional sales in the near future as it plans to ship its flagship Optimus G Pro in the U.S. next month.

Will 2013 be the year of the Android malware app?
An interesting piece in Forbes talks about how the slow rise of malware on smartphones is starting to gain momentum and all of that momentum appears pointed at the Android market. One security company reported that the Google Play Store had 35 apps that were infected with by a malware called BadNews.

Filed Under: Amazon, Android, Apple, Apps, Google, iOS, iPad, iPhone, Microsoft, Smartphone, Surface, Tablets, Windows 8 Tagged With: , , , , ,

Telepathy One Seeks to Rival Google Glass

April 25, 2013 by

glass

We have been a bit remiss in talking about the recent news related to the Google Glass efforts such as they are powered by Android, expected to launch later this year for under the $1,500 price point and that Mark Andreessen’s company Andreessen Horowitz is teaming with Kleiner Perkins and Google Ventures to fund startups to develop apps for Google Glass in an effort called the Glass Collective.

That is all nice and good but expect a good deal more info coming out when the Google I/O conference rolls around in mid-May in San Francisco, and that seems like a more appropriate time to do a complete roundup on the platform.

For now we will satisfy ourselves with Telepathy One, a startup rival that was demonstrated earlier this week in New York City by a Japanese inventor named Takahito Iguchi, who demonstrated the streamline device and showed its first apps.

While it comes in a headset like the Google effort it is not glasses but rather an optically projected screen that appears in front of the user. The projector is positioned above the eye in a way that is no expected to interfere with a user’s line of sight. It also features ear buds for audio and currently has a camera and a cellular phone app also in the works and at least partly demonstrated this week.

Unlike Google Glass, the Telepathy One device is being pitched much more as an extension of social media that will enable users to share what they are viewing with friends and family if they have a similar device or have a Magna Camera app on a smartphone.

It will be interesting of a small player can actually challenge Google, or for that matter the other variations of connected glasses that have been emerging over the last year or so, but we can hope that we get a healthy marketplace with multiple choices.

Pricing and availability are not available but the creator said that he wants to sell it for significantly less that the reported $1,500 price tag that Google Glass will have and ship this year.

Filed Under: Android, Apps, Google Tagged With: , ,

NFL Network has Broad Digital Coverage for 2013 Draft

April 23, 2013 by

draft

As any fan knows the 2013 NFL Draft starts on Thursday and while there has been a great deal of coverage leading up to the event, it looks like that will pale in comparison to the massive coverage the league’s network plans.

Most fans I know switch between networks on draft day, checking to see what the experts at ESPN, the NFL Network and elsewhere have to say about each choice. Yet an issue can arise since the draft starts on a Thursday night and even with a prime time start there are many that have to work or have other engagements that might make it impossible to be in front of the television. There is online coverage as well as a mobile app for these types of problems.

For the online user, be it as a second screen or a user watching at work there is the NFL.com Live Presented by Courtyard. Coverage begins at 8:00 pm ET for the online effort and will be hosted by Matt Smith and will include former NFL players LaDainian Tomlinson, Kurt Warner and Akbar Gbajabiamila, as well as former NFL general manager Charley Casserly. The online show will occasionally join with the NFL Network’s broadcast of the event.

Coverage will continue over the weekend with Friday’s starting at 6:30 pm ET for rounds 2-3 and Saturday’s coverage of rounds 4-7 will start at noon ET. Much of Saturday’s proceedings will be simulcast.

For Verizon subscribers there is the option of using NFL Mobile from Verizon that will be streaming the NFL Network’s entire 2013 draft coverage. The network has also added a live draft tracker feature and video on-demand featuring draft and team analysis. NFL Mobile, however, costs $5 a month and you must have a Verizon phone and data plan.

For users of the NFL ’13 app, a free app for both iOS and Android owners, there is now a feature called Draft Xtra that can serve as a companion or second screen to both broadcast NFL Network coverage or the coverage that is available on NFL.Com. It will include both on-demand and live video as well as a range of interactive features.

Of course there has been a great deal of coverage both online and on the broadcast arm of the NFL and that will increase as the draft nears and will include predraft predictions and post draft analysis. Look here for a complete listing.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Apps, iOS, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, NFL, NFL Draft, NFL Mobile, NFL Network, Verizon Wireless Tagged With: , , , , ,

Friday Grab Bag: A Wave of Phablets in the Future?

April 19, 2013 by

Is Windows 8 driving Mac sales?
You have probably looked at a Surface tablet by now and pondered how the new operating system, Windows 8, actually works, since it is very different than previous incarnations of the OS. Now people are coming out and claiming that the remade operating system is driving customers to rival platforms.

ZDNet is reporting that two of Microsoft’s OEMs have reported that they believe that the new operating system is to blame for the decline in PC sales and that it has actually driven users to buy systems from rival Apple. Microsoft does have a major update to the OS in the works and it will be interesting to see if it is a major update or a turn back the clock move.

Analyst expect lower cost iPhone to sell like hot cakes.
C/Net is reporting that Gene Munster, an analyst with Piper Jaffray is predicting that a low cost iPhone, widely expected to be available later this year, will cause iPhone sales to explode going forward and into next year.

He predicts the low cost phone will be available in September in the $300 range, unsubsidized, and that while it would cannibalize sales of the higher end, more expensive phones the volume would be worth it. He projects that the company could sell as many as 75 million iPhones in 2014 and start to dominate in the mid-range section of the smartphone market.

Samsung to face increased competition in phablet space

Does BlackBerry have a phablet in the works?
BlackBerry is the latest to have a phablet, which is a smartphone with a large display, rumored to be in the works. The company has been on a more positive road this year with growing acceptance of its BlackBerry 10 and increased sales.

Now analysts expect the company to expand the handset lineup later this year with at least two possible additional models, according to Digital Trends. One of the rumored devices would be a hybrid that would have a 5-inch display while another would be a mid-range version of the existing model.

Nokia also about to toss hat into phablet space?
Nokia is another smartphone developer that is now being reported as preparing to enter the large form factor smartphone space according to Tech Radar via the Financial Times. While the report clams that the forthcoming device will be technically superior to the Samsung Galaxy Note it did not include any features to use for comparison.

Microsoft hints at 7-inch tablet
The rumor mill continues to heat up with reports that Microsoft is planning on a 7-inch tablet later this week. According to Business Insider outgoing Microsoft CFO Peter Klein said that the company has a small touch device that it will be releasing soon. Of course this could be another smartwatch as well, something that the company is also rumored to be working on.

Filed Under: Amazon, Android, Apple, Apps, BlackBerry, Galaxy Note, iOS, iPhone, Microsoft, Samsung, Surface, Windows 8 Tagged With: , , , , , ,

NBA Playoffs: Available in Live TV, Mobile and Online

April 18, 2013 by

nba

The NBA Playoffs are around the corner and an onslaught of information and games are out there waiting for you, and the NBA along with its digital partners has organized it so that users can watch live games, catch highlights online and get full information while mobile.

The push is being orchestrated by NBA Digital, and if the name does not mean that much to you, you are are still likely to know a number of the components that make up that entity which include NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA LEAGUE PASS, NBA LEAGUE PASS Broadband, NBA Mobile, NBADLEAGUE.com, and WNBA.com. It is jointly managed by the NBA and Turner Sports.

First up is NBA TV which will be broadcasting approximately 1,500 hours of game coverage and will offer the possibility of multi-screen coverage and as many as nine first round games as well as pre- and post-game programming. The network’s live game telecasts will tip off with the Miami Heat hosting the Milwaukee Bucks (first round, Game 2) on Tuesday, April 23, at 7:30 p.m. ET.

However it should be noted that not all of the games will be on NBA TV, and if you are looking for additional information about games you have watched and others that were played that you did not see then the NBA’s web site, NBA.Com, is the place to look as it will serve as a centralized point for all playoff information including both live video coverage and video highlights.

Among the many offerings at the site a key feature will is the ability to see live games and overtime on TNT Overtime, which also includes some unique camera angles for a different view of the game. For social media fans there is also a section called Social Spotlight where you can track and contribute tweets, photos and other media.

The mobile users have a great deal of access to all of the NBA.Com features as well as ones tailored for mobile platforms. The app, NBA Game Time, is available for both Android and Apple iOS users and provides a bracket view, series dashboards, live scoring, and game alerts, among other features. A version for iPad users, NBA Game Time Sponsored by State Farm also offers synchronized video, scores and updates delivered in real-time.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Apps, Basketball, iOS, iPad, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, NBA, NBA Game Time, NBC Sports, Smartphone, TNT, Turner Sports Tagged With: , , , , ,

Malware Growth a Threat to Mobile Users-Even Sports Fans

April 16, 2013 by

mobile-malware-growth-continuing-2013

Almost every sports fan that I know has a host of different sports-centric apps on their tablets and smartphones covering everything from leagues wide news to ones that simply focus on an individual team or even player, but there are dangers lying in wait for them.

Everybody is aware that computers can get viruses and malware, annoying applets that do everything from track web sites that are visited to trying to steal passwords, address book and financial information. Now that threat is increasingly coming to mobile devices as well.

A report from antivirus detection company McAfee shows that malware for mobile devices is experiencing a tremendous upsurge and that it is primarily focused on one specific operating system, the Android platform.

The report shows that the rise in malware attacks is experiencing tremendous growth, coming from a relatively low of 792 samples in 2011 to 36,699 in 2012. Of those attacks 97% were against Google’s Android operating system.

While as far as I know no known sports apps have been the focus of a Trojan or any other attack but it is worth noting that it will only be a matter of time. Often scammers will use a tragedy to get past normally skeptical people and have them download an infected app.

The report shows that there are growing numbers of methods to gain complete control of a smartphone, and with the growing use of smartphones as banking and financial tools this could represent a great deal of danger to the average user.

Android, due to the openness of the platform, makes an obvious target for the mobile malware developer. Relatively closed platforms such as Apple’s iOS are much more secure, at least at this point in time.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Apps, Google, Intel, iOS Tagged With: , , , , ,
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