Recently HTML5‘s video features have gotten a lot of attention, but it’s three other HTML5 features that we’ve found most useful for mobile web development.

1. Prefetching using Local Storage: It’s no secret that mobile data networks are slow but by putting a bit of thought into what users will tap on next, and prefetching that data in the background you can build a spectacularly quicker user experience. It’s possible to do limited forms of prefetching using plain old JavaScript, but using the local Storage key/value storage built into HTML5, we’re able to store much more data and therefore prefetch more assertively.

If you’re using a recent version of Chrome or Safari or on an iPhone 3 or Android 2 phone and want a sense of what prefetching feels like, try clicking the left and right arrows here (you can ignore the warning you will see in Chrome and Safari).

2. Geolocation: Using the geo location features built into HTML5 (available on iPhone 3 and Android 2), we’re able to connect you with local information based on the GPS in your phone, so all you have to do is launch the app to see nearby recommendations. I wish it were a bit faster, but it sure beats entering an address or zip code — and it’s very easy to catch into as a developer.

3. App Caching: The last HTML5 feature that we greatly rely on is the application cache. If a cache obvious file is specified, the browser won’t re-download files unless the content of the manifest file has been updated. This may not sound like a big deal, but the latency of cellular networks can be long enough that requesting multiple files at startup can slow down your application by 10 or 20 seconds. Ideally, you’d put all your static JavaScript, CSS, and image files in the manifest file, so users never have to wait for them to be downloaded more than once.

As thrilled as we are about HTML5, things get even more interesting when you combine these technologies with Google APIs.

Dubai: 3G is a synonym with the “third generation” of mobile telephony, officially named International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000).

It comprises a couple of standards for mobile tele-communications fulfilling specifications by the International Telecommunication Union, which includes UMTS, and CDMA2000 as well as other wireless standards such as DECT and WiFi.

Services include wide-area wireless voice tele-phone, video calls and wireless data, all in a mobile environment.

Compared to 2G and 2.5G services, 3G allows simultaneous use of speech and data services and higher data rates (at least 200 kbit per second peak bit rate to fulfil IMT-2000 specification). Today’s 3G systems can offer practice of up to 14.0 Mbit per second on the downlink and 5.8 Mbit per second on the uplink.

There is a broad range of applications for 3G, which makes investment into a licence very attractive to telecom operators due to high yields on the service. Some of the applications are:

• Mobile TV: A TV channel can be watched on a 3G mobile phone or PDA (personal digital assitant)
• Video on demand: Movies are sent to the subscriber’s phone.
• Video conferencing: Subscribers can see as well as talk to each other.
• Tele-medicine: A medical provider monitors or provides advice to the potentially isolated subscriber.
• Location-based services: A provider sends localised weather or traffic conditions to the phone, or the phone allows the subscriber to find nearby businesses or friends.

Requirements

To use 3G services, a compatible device is necessary. A phone that has 3G functionality has nothing to do with the number of cameras or the memory it has. The device is connected to the 3G network through its SIM card or its 3G data card, which are both generally provided by the telecom network operator. Through that, customers get connected to the internet whenever they are within a 3G network.

If they are not in one, the device switches automatically to 2G or 2.5G services without interruption, but with slower data services.

The service must be subscribed to, and many providers charge flat rates for mobile data usage. However, customers have to be careful when using 3G data abroad when they leave their home network, as costs for data transfer can dramatically rise.

Mobile infrastructure providers are currently working on a new technology called 4G or IMT Advanced. 4G refers to all IP packet switched networks, mobile ultra-broadband at gigabit speed access and multi-carrier transmission.

A 4G system is expected to provide a comprehensive and secure all-IP based solution.

Resource:

http://gulfnews.com/business/telecoms/next-generation-of-mobile-telephony-1.610154

As signs mount that the Federal Trade Commission will block its $750 million acquisition of mobile ad company AdMob, Google is preparing for a legal challenge, a source close to the situation said.

“There is a high likelihood Google will litigate,” the source told The Post.

The FTC’s staff wants to challenge Google’s proposed deal the source said, and will soon present its findings to the five FTC commissioners, two of whom have been seated in the last several days.

“My guess is they will be conservative in their judgments,” and might be reluctant to overrule their staff, said Stroock & Stroock & Lavan antitrust lawyer Bruce Schneider, who is not working on this case.

The argument against Google buying AdMob is that it already dominates the online-search advertising market and should not be allowed to do the same in mobile advertising, which is part of the same overall market. Google argues that they are two separate markets.

Apple’s unveiling of a new mobile ad platform, the iAd, yesterday, may help Google’s case, because it shows there will be robust competition in mobile advertising.

If Google sues, a district judge would decide whether to issue a temporary injunction stopping the merger. Judges do occasionally rule against the FTC, like in 2007 when it let Whole Foods buy Wild Oats — though the FTC succeeded with an appeal and eventually reached a compromise with Whole Foods.

A Google spokesman declined to comment on whether it was preparing to litigate, saying only that “there is overwhelming evidence that mobile advertising will remain competitive after this deal closes.”

Resource:

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/google_stoked_to_fight_ftc_over_vmYimI695hdri5MjBbPm0L

Yet after spending a few days buying and using applications on the iPad, I’m skeptical that many people will be willing to shell out for more than a few $5 to $10 apps. There’s just too much content that the iPad can access for free on the Web, and plenty of great apps in Apple’s own App Store that are cheap or free.

It’s possible people might be more inclined to pay for an app or a download from Apple’s iTunes store to access compelling videos. You’re mainly out of luck if you want to use the iPad’s Safari Web browser to watch free online videos, because many Web sites, such as Hulu, do that with Flash technology, which the iPad and iPhone don’t support.

But after shelling out at least $499 for an iPad, how much more will you really want to spend to fill the tablet with apps? I’m guessing that people fatigued by constant entreaties to pay for content on multiple devices will be more inclined to stick with what’s cheap and free.

The iPad itself is an amazing device. It’s comfortable in my hands, easy to use and beautifully designed. Right out of the box, it reminded me of other Apple ”firsts” that gave me a new way of interacting with electronics — the first Apple computer my family had in the early ’90s, the first iPod I bought in 2004.

When I turned it on for the first time, it practically looked naked with just a handful of included applications for doing things such as playing videos, listening to music and surfing the Web. I wanted to fill it up with apps, and fast.

Already it’s clear that many application makers are going to ask for more money for their iPad apps than for the ones they’ve been selling for the iPhone. (IPhone apps will work on the iPad but might not be optimized for the larger screen.) Of the 10 most-downloaded paid iPad apps, five of them are $10 apiece. Seven of them cost more than $4.

In comparison, only one of the top 10 paid apps for the iPhone costs more than $4. (It is MLB.com At Bat 2010, which at $15 is the same price on the iPhone and the iPad.)

To be sure, some expensive apps are cool. There’s an iPad version of Brushes ($10), a popular painting program for the iPhone. The iPad’s large, bright screen makes a great canvas, and I was impressed by the command I had using just a finger or two as my paintbrushes. The $10 Scrabble app is fun and includes a ”Party Play” feature that lets you take word play to the height of geekiness (and Apple mania) by using up to four iPhones as tile racks if they have a free Scrabble app to enable that. Bento ($5, the same price as on the iPhone) is an organizer program that helps you manage everything from contacts to recipes to work projects.

Even so, the most enjoyment I’ve been getting out of the iPad has come from things that are cheap or free.

For $3, Smule’s Magic Piano app kept me entranced for an embarrassing amount of time. It features a spiral-shaped piano keyboard that was fun to play (or, in my case, attempt to play). You can play duets with distant iPad users, which led to several cacophonous sessions with strangers, or listen to what people are playing around the world.

One of the best free apps, from Netflix, lets you stream movies and TV shows to the iPad. You need to have a Netflix account to use the application and it’s not that easy to navigate, but once you find what you want to watch, it streams well as long as you have a good Wi-Fi connection.

I also liked Voice Memos for iPad, a free voice recorder app. It was extremely simple to use and nicely fills a little void because the iPad doesn’t come with its own voice memo utility as the iPhone has.

And importantly, there are still lots of times when old-fashioned Web surfing beckons. The tablet’s super-crisp screen, 9.7 inches diagonally, makes the Internet look better, and it was a pleasure to read free blogs and news Web sites.

Many media companies that gave away content on the Web and on phones such as the iPhone, including The Associated Press, have built iPad apps that they hope can be a new way to make money. For now, though, many of these news apps are free. Ones from USA Today and The New York Times display the news more simply and more like a traditional newspaper than those newspapers’ Web sites do. Sometimes the Web offers a richer experience, though: You can watch videos posted on the front page of the Times’ Web site, for example, but I didn’t see any videos in the iPad app.

The browser also is the venue you’d use for checking and updating Facebook on an iPad; there isn’t yet a Facebook app for it and the one built for the iPhone was cumbersome to use on the larger device.

Whether you’re after entertainment, information or productivity, there are plenty of good ways to use the iPad that don’t require spending lots of money — and you probably won’t feel like you’re missing out.

Resource:

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/04/07/business/AP-US-TEC-Digital-Life-Tech-Test-iPad-Apps.html

WAS Apple’s announcement the iPhone was now about to multitask just a giant smokescreen for the fact its apps will now carry ads?

Because it seems that in announcing the new operating system for Apple’s mobile platforms, boss Steve Jobs gave with one hand while taking away with the other.

All the excitement over multitasking served to overwhelm the fact that iPhone and iPad users’ beloved apps will now be plastered with ads.

One billion of them, in fact. Per day.

At exactly the same time US regulators threatened to block Google’s proposed acquisition of mobile advertising

firm AdMob – which Apple wanted to buy – Jobs released details of Apple’s compensatory acquisition of Quattro Wireless.

At last night’s launch, Jobs told the crowd Google was off the mark with its Android mobile OS, claiming users now spent “all their time in apps”, not searching mobile devices.

But searching isn’t Android’s strong point – multitasking is, and it’s the reason Google’s tilt into mobile devices is gaining momentum, particularly with the release of the Motorola Droid, which sold 250,000 units in its first week on sale in the US.

So while multitasking isn’t exactly new to mobile devices, advertising is.

Well, good advertising is, according to Jobs, who said the current model “sucks”.

TheRegister reports Jobs spent a lot of time explaining how Apple would make ads better, telling developers that their apps would now carry iAds that “combine the interactivity of standard web ads with the emotion provided by television ads”.

The iAds would be embedded in applications, and therefore won’t close the app, popping up in a seperate window that can be closed with an “x” button and reveal the app behind it in the the state it was left.

Now that’s multitasking for you.

And while Jobs promised Apple had no plans to become a “worldwide ad agency”, he then went on to promise the crowd at the OS 4.0 launch that Apple could garner “one billion ad impressions per day by the end of the year”.

His maths? An average user spending 30 minutes a day inside apps, receiving an iAd every three minutes on 10o million devices equals one billion ads a day.

Sixty per cent of the cash raised would go to the advertisers, 40 per cent would remain with Apple.

And obviously, as with apps from its store, Apple will have to approve all ads before they host them.

Resource:

http://www.news.com.au/technology/multitasking-release-gives-iad-developers-grip-on-iphone-ipad-users

Google has rolled out a Google Maps for Mobile update for BlackBerry handsets. Though this is the first update of the year for BlackBerry users, the wait for Version 4.0 may have been worth it as it includes, among another features, a Search by Voice option.

“Simply press and hold the green ‘call’ button, speak your search and see your results quickly appear without typing a single letter,” Software Engineer Ole CaveLie explained in an April 7 post on the Google Mobile Blog.

Users can speak the name of a specific business—”La Pergola in Los Angeles”—or request a more general search, such as, “Italian restaurants.”

CaveLie also said, “Currently supported languages include multiple English accents and Mandarin Chinese.” (Surely the phrase “multiple English accents” is enough to warrant a download.)

Care to forego voice searching for some tried-and-true typing? A time-saving personalized search function—already enjoyed by Android handset users, CaveLie said—begins pulling up terms that a user has already searched for, using the first letters typed.

Still other new features enable BlackBerry owners to:

“Use Labs to try experimental features like the Scale Bar or Terrain layer (great for hiking enthusiasts!)

See nearby businesses at an address or location by selecting a point from the map.

Report a problem with the map data or a business listing.”

BlackBerry owners can now download Google Maps 4.0 for BlackBerry “by going to m.google.com/maps in your BlackBerry Internet Browser. The update for BlackBerry Enterprise Server administrators and users, including support for BlackBerry OS 5.0 phones, is available here.

RIM’s BlackBerry fan base continues to grow, and in 2009, RIM was second only to Nokia in worldwide smartphone market share, shipping 34.5 million handsets. On March 31, RIM announced revenue of $14.95 million for fiscal year 2010, up 35 percent from a year earlier.

However, according to AdMob, the fastest-growing smartphone operating system in the United States is Google’s Android.

Google’s Nexus One smartphone, as Google reminds visitors to its Google Maps for Mobile page, comes with Google Maps preinstalled.

Resource:

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Mobile-and-Wireless/Google-Maps-for-BlackBerry-40-Now-Available-Includes-Voice-Search-670557/

Apple has acknowledged on its Website that some early iPad adopters are experiencing issues with the device’s WiFi connectivity and offered a suggestion for resolving the issue.

The problem, Apple says, is that after being restarted or roused from sleep, an iPad may not automatically rejoin a known WiFi network.

“This can occur with some third-party WiFi routers that are dual-band capable when: using the same network name for each network; using different security settings for each network,” according to Apple’s support site.

To fix the issue, Apple suggests creating separate WiFi network names for each band — name 802.11 b/g Fred, for example, and 802.11n Tom. Also, Apple says to make sure that both networks are using the same type of network security.

“If the issue persists, reset your network settings using Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings,” Apple wrote on its support page, adding that users should make sure their WiFi router firmware is up to date.

Within hours of the iPad going on sale April 3, a discussion forum on the Apple support site began to fill with complaints of sporadic WiFi connectivity, with signal strength bars moving from high to low, though the device hadn’t moved. By April 8, nearly 400 comments had been added to the discussion.

Many early purchasers, acknowledging that they were “guinea pigs,” to have purchased a brand new device and form factor, compared settings, routers, whether all equipment was from Apple or not and how current their firmware and routers are.

“Put me down for the same issue here. Intermittent WiFi signals. Goes from full to one bar all over my house no matter where I am in relation to router,” forum visitor Dollardoctor posted on April 5. “Guess that’s what we get for being apples [sic] guinea pigs…. Yay us!”

Resource:

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Mobile-and-Wireless/Apple-Offers-iPad-Owners-a-WiFi-Quick-Fix-186835/

And Gap has brought an app out, too. Just kidding – they’re a big enough name in the clothing world. Although they didn’t call it the Gap App, funnily enough.

It was actually christened the “Gap 1969 Stream”, after the year the company was born.

The app, which is described as a new way to shop online, lets the user browse through fresh denim looks and styles, before allowing them to purchase.

It also contains a number of celebrity photos, designer videos and other bits and pieces.

The 62MB app is free, as well, although currently only available in the States, naturally enough given the iPad isn’t out here yet.

When Apple launches its tablet in the UK, you can expect Gap to follow over here.

Resource:

http://www.techwatch.co.uk/2010/04/08/gap-launches-fashionable-app-for-ipad/

The end result? According to Craig Hockenberry, a principal at the Iconfactory (makers of Twitterrific), the iPad is a little more than twice as fast as the iPhone 3GS for loading applications and 1.8-times as fast for its Safari JavaScript performance.

The real fun begins when you compare the iPad’s performance to that of the original iPhone—you know, back when the idea of “3G” network connectivity was just a dream in Steve Jobs’ head. On this, the iPad is anywhere from 12-times, to 428-times, to 8,750-times faster than the first-generation iPhone, depending on the benchmark.

I’ll list out these results in more detail below. However, you’re probably wondering how you can go about benchmarking one of your Apple devices for your own comparative analysis. Provided you can figure out how to get them to work (Hockenberry doesn’t leave instructions), you can grab the benchmarks he used for the aforementioned performance comparisons and run the tests yourself.

More novice / non-developer users might want to instead check out the online SunSpider JavaScript benchmark. These tests run right out of your Safari browser and should give you a good indication of your product’s JavaScript speeds compared to others. Since the test runs three times, you should have enough of a data set for the results to be statistically valid—and if you don’t, the benchmark itself will tell you!

You can also check out the Web-based V8 Benchmark Suite, which runs a similar series of JavaScript performance tests. However, just because a product excels on its JavaScript performance doesn’t mean that you’ll always see a direct translation over to its Web browsing. For that, try grabbing a stopwatch like Anandtech’s CEO Anand Lal Shimpi, who was able to time (after at least five loads per site) that the iPad’s Web site loading times were anywhere from 3 to 9 seconds faster than those of the iPhone 3GS.

As for other tests you can run on your iPad. Well, there are always the stress tests…

So, to recap, here’s how you can benchmark your iPad:

• Run Hockenberry’s tests… somehow
• Run Sunspider’s JavaScript benchmark
• Run the V8 Benchmark Suite
• Bust out the stopwatch and load pages/apps
• Get a bat
• Pleasantly wait for an App developer to run a custom OpenGL ES performance test

Resource:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2362242,00.asp

Out of the box, it’s immediately clear just how sleek and elegant the device is. No surprise there, of course. When it comes to design, Apple always bests the competition. Once turned on, the brilliant screen reveals the device’s various functions, highlighting the ways in which the iPad will help us re-think portable computing.

The iPad makes content consumption easy and fun. Sitting back in your chair in what I call the “lean back position,” the iPad is perfect for surfing the Web, checking e-mail, watching movies and TV shows, playing games, and reading books. Seventy percent of what we do on a computer already involves consuming content. The lean back is a more natural way to view most of the content we encounter in our digital lives.

The iPad delivers a great experience in each of these areas. This alone will make it hard for competitors to top the device. Add to that a plethora of apps created specifically for the iPad, and it becomes clear that the device is more than simple a giant iPd touch. It’s a new kind of portable computer that could cause a paradigm shift in mobile computing, making the tablet the preferred method for accessing and consuming digital content for many mainstream consumers.

The device is also versatile enough to deliver a solid experience in “lean forward mode.” When we sit at our desk and create content, we’re primarily hunched over our keyboard writing documents and working with spreadsheets. Apple was smart enough to create a new version of Pages, Keynote, and Numbers, specifically for the iPad. With the optional keyboard dock, the device can also be used to create content. Reading e-mail on the tablet is a delight. The screen makes it possible to read long messages on a single page. The virtual keyboard makes it easy to respond to e-mails, even for someone with fat fingers, such as myself. However, if you are working with large documents or spreadsheets or creating a graphics-based project, you’ll probably want to stick to the desktop or laptop.

Apps At launch, there were about 1,400 iPad-specific apps available. By the end of April, I bet that number will be well over 5,000. Even without seeing one in-person, developers understood the device’s potential, lining up to create new and innovative apps for the platform. I downloaded the ABC app, which gave me instant access to many of the network’s most popular shows through its dedicated player. The CNN site has already taken advantage of HTML5, makng it possible to view CNN videos on the iPad. The optimized versions of USA Today, Time Magazine, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal, meanwhile, make it clear that the publishing world is backing the iPad in a big way.

The complaints about the iPad’s lack of support for Flash are certainly legitimate, but Apple’s decision to make HTML5 the cornerstone architecture for delivering video on the device could cause the entire industry to shift in that direction. In fact, content delivery networks like BrightCove have created tools to convert Flash video into HTML5 for customers.

There is some real innovation happening in the games space, as well. I downloaded the iPad version of Scrabble and found that it could be played with iPhones and iPod touches through the Bluetooth feature. You place the iPad down on the tablet between yourself and a group of friends. The iPad serves as the board, and everyone around the table uses their iPhones and iPod touches to create words, which magically show up on the iPad in the center.

In fact, all of the games I tested for the iPad were stellar. Racing games come alive, and first-person shooters seem almost like 3D. Casual games like solitaire and Bejeweled are more fun to play on the iPad’s larger screen. A game/learning tool called The Elements demonstrates how the iPad could impact education. In fact, we’re already hearing stories about colleges that are going to make the iPad a part of their curriculum next fall.

Books and Movies

When reading books, the difference between the iPad and the Kindle is huge. With the iPad, books include color images. Reading Winnie the Pooh to my granddaughters, I was able to share all of the full-color images they are used to seeing in the hardcover version of the book. I fully expect publishers to utilize the technology to create multimedia books in the near future.

Reading magazines like Time, Newsweek, The New Yorker is very much like reading their hard copy counterparts. All of the color art, charts, and photos are in tact, and after a while I forgot that I was reading an electronic copy. The experience is incredibly similar.

And if you have ever watched a movie on an iPhone or iPod touch, you know that the devices deliver very good video experiences. I pulled up the Michael Jackson movie, This is it, on the iPod touch and the iPad, watching them side-by-side. Guess which experience was better. I did this little experiment on a flight back to San Jose. People around me stopped to see what I was doing. When they saw the iPad, they all agreed that they would prefer to watch the movie on that device.

Changing the Game

There are some drawbacks, however. The screen is sharp and clear, but it still reflects images in bright light. More than once I could see myself reflected back completely in the screen like a mirror. And since the iPad uses fingers to navigate through programs and menus, it collects smudges fast. I had to carry a glasses cleaning cloth around with me.

Because of the iPad’s weight (1.5 pounds), it can get tiresome if you hold it in one position for a long time. When I was on the couch, I had to hold it on my lap or rest it on my leg. When watching a movie, I put it in the cradle. I did the same when I ate alone and wanted to read. The iPad is a great dining companion.

In the couple of day I had the device, I found it a powerful and natural way to consume digital content. It delivers a great Web browsing, book reading, game playing, and all-around media-consuming experience. The iPad is still a bit pricey for mainstream consumers, but I think it will still manage to pull in a lot of people. And having used it on a trip, I can attest that it would be a marvelous gadget for travels who spend a lot time on planes and in hotel rooms.

It may take some time for the iPad to find its true audience, but it will likely eventually become Apple’s fourth billion dollar business. The halo effect alone will be massive. Millions of people will enter Apple stores this year just to play with the iPad, giving the company a chance to sell them on other Apple products.

I look forward to spending a lot more time with the iPad in the future. I sense that it’s a product I’ll want to use a lot both on trips and at home. And when it’s not in use around the house, it will also function as our family’s digital picture frame. The potential for the iPad seems virtually limitless.

Resource:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2362277,00.asp

The new devices, based on a Microsoft development project code-named “Pink,” will be available later this month in the U.S. through a partnership with Verizon Wireless, the carrier owned by Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC., one of these people said.

Microsoft’s new phones are the latest sign the software maker is getting more deeply involved in the hardware side of the mobile-phone business in a bid to create products that provide smoother experiences for consumers.

Microsoft designed the software, online services and hardware for the Pink mobile phones, while Sharp Corp. of Japan is manufacturing the devices, people familiar with the project said.

The approach is modeled on one used to develop a device called the Sidekick that was sold by wireless provider T-Mobile and designed by Danger Inc., a start-up Microsoft acquired in 2008, and which later worked on the Pink devices.

Still, Microsoft has stopped short of getting as directly involved in mobile phones as Google Inc. did earlier this year in introducing a smartphone of its own design called Nexus One, which is manufactured by HTC Corp. and sold directly to consumers through Google’s Web site.

Instead, Microsoft, which is based in Redmond, Wash., decided to work more closely with wireless carriers to bring the Pink phones to consumers.

On Monday, Microsoft invited the media to an event April 12 in San Francisco with the slogan, “It’s time to share.” Though the company declined to disclose the event’s purpose, people familiar with the matter said it would be to introduce the new phones. Spokeswomen for Microsoft and Verizon Wireless declined to comment.

Microsoft needs a boost for its mobile business, which has suffered in recent years as its operating system for smartphones was eclipsed by technologies like Apple Inc.’s iPhone and devices that run Google’s Android operating system.

On Monday, research firm comScore Inc. reported that the share of U.S. smartphone subscribers running devices that use Microsoft’s software fell to 15.1% in February from 19.1% in November. Devices that run on Google Android, meanwhile, increased to 9% from 3.8% while the share of Apple’s iPhone slipped to 25.4% from 25.5%, comScore said.

Microsoft is betting bigger improvement in its position will come in the fall, when the first devices based on a new mobile-phone operating system, called Windows Phone 7, will become available.

With that software, Microsoft is working with a much broader set of handset makers than it is on the Pink devices, though it is still getting more involved in hardware design with those partners than it has in the past.

People familiar with the matter said the software on the new Pink phones resembles elements of the Windows Phone 7 software, but devices that run on the two technologies aren’t expected to be able to run the same applications.

Resource:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304017404575166180423089338.html

Powered by Android 2.1, it offers the ability to use multiple applications at once and one of the world’s thinnest QWERTY sliders (13.7mm or 1.37cm). The MILESTONE also boasts a hi-resolution, pinch and zoom display.

A suite of Google™ mobile applications including Google Search, Google Maps™, Gmail™ and YouTube™ are also integrated onto the device. Plus users have access to thousands of apps and widgets from Android Market™.

MILESTONE comes preloaded with lifetime free access to fully voice-guided street-level navigable maps of 401 cities6 in India. This offers voice-guided navigation and routing in the cities and across major national and state highways. With this the Indian consumer can drive to 400,000 towns and villages6 and explore over one million6 points of interest like budget/premium hotels, petrol pumps, eating joints, ATMs, hospitals as well as tourist and religious spots. All the consumer needs to do is to launch ‘India’ maps from the MOTONAV application to enjoy an unparalleled navigation experience. The GPS navigation service is free with no activation or data charges, independent of mobile networks and can be used even without inserting the SIM card, as the maps are fully loaded on the MILESTONE1 & 6.

“MILESTONE is a smart phone without compromise, delivering a wiser, richer web and messaging experience. This is possible through the combination of Motorola’s expertise in design and a truly differentiated Android experience,” said Faisal Siddiqui, Country Head, Mobile Devices, Motorola India. “The MILESTONE is targeted at the well informed, ‘socially’ connected individual. This consumer is an accomplished, driven and engaged professional looking for an outstanding web experience as well as a high tier messaging device. So, we invite you all to come and experience the MILESTONE!”

“As an Android 2.1 device, MILESTONE does what other smartphones don’t. It was designed to enhance consumer experiences – and its full screen web browsing experience, ability to juggle between multiple apps, and suite of Google applications deliver. We have been delighted with the anticipation and demand for MILESTONE across the world and are pleased to announce its arrival in India today.”

Key MILESTONE features include:

9.39cm (3.7 inch) widescreen display with 854 pixel width and more than 400,000 total pixels
High-speed, cortex A8 processor
Pinch and zoom, double tap zoom
5 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash, AutoFocus, and image stabilization.
Motorola Media Link and Motorola Phone Portal to manage and share media content across desktop, phone and the Web5
Stereo Bluetooth® / BT 2.1, USB 2.0 High Speed
3.5mm (0.35cm) headset jack
CrystalTalk™ Plus for superior talk quality
8GB memory card

Additional functionality and apps include:
Full suite of the Google applications: Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube, and Google Talk™
Unified Google, Microsoft Office and Facebook™ Contacts
Navigation: GPS, MOTONAV turn-by-turn navigation with India maps1 & 6
Email Support: IMAP, POP3, Gmail and Exchange
IM Support: Google Talk
Calendar: Exchange, syncs with Google Calendar?
Availability

MILESTONE will be available in India at select retails outlets in select cities at a MRP of Rs 32,990. To be one of the first in India to experience MILESTONE

Resource:

http://www.webnewswire.com/node/520897

Sprint last week announced the HTC Evo 4G. It’s the first phone to run on Sprint’s next-generation 4G high-speed mobile broadband network. Sprint offers 4G service in 27 markets with plans to roll it out to more markets (including the Bay Area) later this year. The phone is expected to be available this summer.

One thing interesting about this phone is that it has two cameras. Like most smartphones, there’s one on the back that the user controls from the front of the camera to take pictures or video of others. The back-facing camera on the Evo has an exceptionally high-resolution 8 megapixels and the ability to capture high definition video.

But the phone also has a 1.3-megapixel camera on its front, so it can easily take a picture or video of the phone’s user. Aside from being able to take vanity pictures of yourself, that feature — when combined with the phone’s high-speed network — allows live video conferencing. You could also use the camera in the back to broadcast whatever is around you.

I have a feeling that this phone is going to appeal to kids who love to interact with their friends via photos and video. Like other camera phones, it raises some privacy and safety issues. I hope Sprint provides kids and parents with some basic education on the safe use of this very cool technology.

The phone will ship with the same Android 2.1 operating system and 1 GHz Snapdragon processor as Google’s Nexus One. It, of course, will have the usual Android features, including GPS, Bluetooth and the ability to connect via Wi-Fi.

The phone will also enable users to create their own Wi-Fi hotspot. For example, commuters who carpool could share the signal to connect laptops or other devices for up to eight passengers. The phone will have an HDMI output for sending high-definition (720p) video and photos to a TV set.

But you don’t have to wait until summer to check out an HTC phone with the physical look and feel of the Evo 4G. The HTC HD2, which runs the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system, hit T-Mobile stores last week. It has the same 4.3 inch screen as the Evo and uses the same fast processor. It doesn’t have the front camera but it does have a 5-megapixel camera on the back, which is pretty much the standard for new high-end smartphones.

The HD2 is all about entertainment and comes pre-loaded with two movies: “Transformers” and “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.” These are not my favorite flicks but they do demonstrate the quality of the screen and the fact that viewing movies on a smartphone can be a reasonably OK experience, thanks in part to that 4.3-inch high-resolution screen, which T-Mobile says is the largest of any smartphone sold in the United States. A mobile version of the “Guitar Hero” game is also pre-loaded. And the phone comes with a GPS and turn-by-turn navigation from Telenav.

To its credit, HTC layered its “Sense” user interface over Windows Mobile 6.5, which makes it more user-friendly than most Windows mobile phones. Also, the faster processor makes up for the otherwise sluggish performance I’ve experienced on other Windows phones. However, Windows did raise its ugly head twice during my test of the phone.

When I tried to rent a movie from Blockbuster, I got a long error message that ended with, “make sure the clocks are synchronized or use the timeTolerenceInSeconds element in the microsoft.web.services3.”

Because I couldn’t watch a movie, I figured I’d read a book. But when I tried using Barnes & Nobel’s book reader, I got the message “Error opening the shortcut or locating the target filename.” Fortunately, I was able to use the phone to make calls.

Microsoft last month unveiled an entirely new mobile operating system, Windows Phone 7 Series, which was rewritten from the ground up. The new Windows mobile won’t run existing applications, so anyone who buys a Windows phone today is buying into a dying ecosphere.

Windows Phone 7 won’t be available until late this year. But even then, it won’t be possible to upgrade the HD2 to the new operating system.

If I were buying a smartphone today, I’d stick with Blackberry, iPhone or a phone running Google’s Android operating system.

Resource:

http://www.mercurynews.com/business-headlines/ci_14759703

LAS VEGAS—Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse announced a 4G-capable smartphone, the HTC Evo 4G, during a high-profile presentation at the CTIA Wireless 2010 conference on March 23. Boasting that it would take multimedia to “a whole new level,” Hesse demonstrated the device, which boasts a 4.3-inch capacitive touch-screen and the Google Android 2.1 operating system, for media and analysts.

The HTC Evo 4G will apparently make its debut during the summer. “It’s a fast device with a 1GHz Snapdragon processor,” Hesse told the audience. “It’s a terrific smartphone, even in 3G markets.” The device incorporates two cameras: an 8-megapixel module with auto-focus and an HD-capable camcorder, and a front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera.

Hesse then introduced Peter Chou, CEO of HTC, who explained that HTC and Sprint had been working on the project hand-in-hand with Google since May 2008 to deliver what he described as “the world’s first fully integrated 4G consumer handset.”

Chou continued: “I think the Evo 4G gives a clear indicator of how mobile broadband experience is starting to move beyond the fixed-line broadband experience by what it offers in terms of local and personal relevance.” The HTC Evo 4G plays into that as a “holistic video and multimedia experience. As you know, the mobile video experience hasn’t been really embraced yet due to network speed limitations.”

As with other smartphones making their debut at CTIA, including the Samsung Galaxy S, the HTC Evo 4G will include a substantial social-networking element, aggregating content from a variety of services such as Twitter, Facebook and Flickr into a continually updated “flow.” Unlike some smartphones being shown at the conference, including Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 Series devices, the HTC Evo 4G will apparently provide Adobe Flash support.

Sprint made a limited number of HTC Evo 4G devices available to analysts and members of the press following the executive presentations. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the smartphones feel and operate very much like the Nexus One and HTC Droid Eris.

Sprint 4G capability is currently available in 27 markets, with plans to expand into Houston, Boston, Washington, D.C., New York City and San Francisco by the end of 2010.

Sprint has been working to ease its subscriber loss over the past few quarters, an effort helped by its recent acquisition of Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile USA. On Feb. 10, the company reported that it had lost a net 148,000 subscribers during the fourth quarter of 2009, better than the 545,000 who apparently left the network during the third quarter.

At the same time, the company has also been working to narrow its financial losses, which totaled $980 million for the fourth quarter—an improvement, nonetheless, over the $1.6 billion that had been lost during the same quarter a year earlier.

With that sort of financial pressure bearing down, Sprint has been gambling that users will be drawn to the prospect of a 4G network, with plans to invest an addition $1 billion into Clearwire’s WiMax 4G technology. Intel, Comcast, Time Warner and Bright House Networks have plans to contribute another $500 million to that effort.

Resource:

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Mobile-and-Wireless/Sprint-Announces-HTC-Evo-4G-Emphasizing-Multimedia-735848/

If you happen to be an Orkut user with an Android phone, you might be glad to learn that Google has announced the release of an Orkut widget for phones that use the platform.

Along with the Orkut widget, Google Buzz too gets a new Android widget.

For those who are still unaware, Orkut is a dominant social network in Brazil and India where even Facebook finds itself relegated to the second spot. Although Facebook has managed to usurp Orkut’s dominance in India to an extent of late, it has not managed to do so in Brazil. The Orkut app boasts of features such as Live Folders and photo upload options right from the phone. The Live folders option allows users to scroll through your buddy list even whilst you are “offline” and are not using a data connection. And yes, you also get scrap notifications – in real time. The Orkut app can be downloaded from the Android Market.

The Google Buzz widget helps you do what it is intended to do – post Google Buzz updates. You can post text, photos and stuff directly from the phone. The posts can be tagged as well. The Google Buzz widget for Android is compatible only with devices that have Android OS 1.6 installed. To add the widget, all you need to do is to go to Menu > Add > Widgets > Google Buzz and that should do the trick. Will this new Orkut widget manage to save Orkut from being usurped by Facebook as the largest social networking website in Brazil and India? Not likely. For that to happen, these applications have to arrive on more widespread platforms like Symbian and even Windows Mobile 6 for that matter.

Resource:

http://www.techtree.com/India/News/Android_Gets_Google_Buzz_Orkut_Widgets/551-110024-580.html

The online store that was announced late Tuesday marks another step in Google’s crusade to convert the world to “cloud computing,” the idea of running applications in Web browsers instead of installing them on individual hard drives. The information entered in the programs also is stored in data centers run by third parties such as Google.

More than 50 software makers have agreed to sell their Internet programs through Google, which will keep 20 percent of the sales. The prices are expected to range from $50 annually to several hundred dollars annually per user.

Intuit Inc., a maker of business accounting software, and Concur Technologies Inc., a maker of expense reimbursement software, are among the best-known vendors peddling their wares in Google’s store.

All the applications sold in Google’s store can be melded with Google’s own cloud-computing services, said Vic Gundotra, the company’s vice president of engineering.

Google views cloud computing as a way to deepen people’s dependence on its services and generate more revenue beyond the Internet search advertising that provides virtually all its income.

Cloud computing also provides Google with a weapon that could weaken one of its biggest rivals, Microsoft Corp.

Although it’s introducing more online alternatives, Microsoft still makes most of its money from individual computer licenses of its Windows operating system and software programs.

The applications store could also could provide fodder for the low-cost computers that will run on a Google operating system named after its Chrome Web browser. The first computers using Chrome OS won’t have a hard drive, meaning they will need Internet access and cloud-computing services to perform the tasks routinely done on Windows-powered machines.

Google began offering a free online suite of e-mail, word processing, spreadsheet and calendar applications in 2006. It has been selling a more sophisticated package of online services for $50 per user for the past three years.

Cloud computing can be a tough sell to corporate decision makers worried about security risks and business disruptions if a technology glitch or major meltdown blocks access to vital applications and data stored on external servers.

Google has invested billions of dollars during the past five years to keep its systems up and running. Nevertheless, Google’s applications users occasionally have been cut off from their e-mail accounts and other services.

About 25 million people working for more than 2 million businesses, government agencies and schools use Google’s online applications, according to the company.

Google won’t say how many users pay for the service, but the number is growing rapidly. The company’s revenue from software licensing and other non-advertising sources totaled $762 million last year, more than quadrupling from $181 million in 2007.

Resource:

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/03/time-for-developers-to-go-nuts-on-energy-efficiency-google-releases-apt-for-powermeter.php

LG, which is fighting an uphill battle against leaders Nokia, Blackberry maker RIM and Apple, plans to boost smartphone offerings with some 20 models this year, half the offerings based on the most popular Android.

The South Korean firm wants to claim a double-digit share of the global smartphone market by 2012. Currently the top three players control three quarters of the booming and lucrative smartphone market.

The model LG-KH5200, which will be sold by the country’s second-largest mobile carrier KT, will compete against Motorola’s Android-based smartphone MOTOROI launched earlier this year through top carrier SK Telecom.

Samsung Electronics, the world’s No.2 mobile phone maker, is also set to unveil Android phones this month.

LG’s smartphone with 3-inch full touch screen, 5 megapixel camera, and slider qwerty keyboard will cost around 650,000 won ($573).

LG hopes to defend sliding phone margins with premium smartphone offerings after it saw phone business profit margins falling close to zero in the December quarter as it had to spend heavily on marketing of its simpler models.

LG and its home rival Samsung together corner more than 30 percent of the global cellphone market, but they have struggled to muscle into the booming and lucrative smartphone market.

Samsung said last month it plans to treble smartphone shipments in 2010.

LG aims to sell 140 million mobile phones this year, versus 117 million sold last year to claim about 10 percent of the global market.

Shares in LG fell 0.5 percent to 103,500 won by 0020 GMT, versus a 0.2 percent drop in the broader market.

(Reporting by Miyoung Kim; Editing by Ken Wills)

($1=1133.6 Won)

Resource:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100310/tc_nm/us_lg_android_1