Mobile infrastructure must catch up with user needs and demands. Ubiquitous mobile computing is all around us, not only when we use smartphones to connect with friends and family across states and countries, but also when we use ticketing systems on buses and trains, purchase food from mobile vendors, watch videos, and listen to music on our phones. As a result, mobile computing systems must rise to the demand. The number of smart phones will exceed the number of PCs in 2014.
Some time in the next six months, the number of smartphones on earth will pass the number of PCs. This shouldn’t really surprise anyone: the mobile business is much bigger than the computer industry. There are now perhaps 3.5-4 billion mobile phones, replaced every two years (versus 1.7-1.8 billion PCs replaced every 5 years).It means that mobile industry can sell more phones in a quarter than the PC industry sells in a year. After some years we will end up with somewhere over 3bn smartphones in use on earth, almost double the number of PCs. The smartphone revolution is changing how consumers use the Internet: Mobile browsing is set to overtake traditional desktop browsing in 2015.
It seems that 4G has really become the new high speed mobile standard widely wanted during 2013. 3G will become the low-cost option for those who think 4G option is too expensive, not everyone that has 4G capable device has 4G subscription. How the situation changes depends on how operators improve their 3G coverage, what will be the price difference from 3G to 4G and how well the service is marketed.
Mobile data increased very much last year. I expect the growth to continue pretty much as projected in Mobile Data Traffic To Grow 300% Globally By 2017 Led By Video, Web Use, Says Strategy Analytics and Cisco Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update, 2012–2017 articles.
When 4G becomes mainstream, planning for next 5G communications starts. I will expect to see more and more writing on 5G as the vision what it will be destined to be clears more. Europe’s newly-minted 5GPPP Association plans to launch as many as 20 research projects in 2014, open to all comers, with a total budget of about 250 million euros. The groundwork for 5G, an ambitious vision for a next-generation network of networks that’s still being defined, and the definition will go on many years to come. No one really knows today what 5G will be because there are still several views. Europe’s new 5GPPP group published a draft proposal for 5G. 5GPPP is not the only group expected to work on standards for next-generation cellular networks, but it could become one of the most influential.
The shifting from “dumb” phones to smart phones continue. In USA and Europe smart phone penetration is already so high levels that there will not be very huge gains on the market expected. Very many consumers already have their smart phone, and the market will be more and more on updating to new model after two years or so use. At the end of 2013 Corporate-Owned Smartphones Back in Vogue, and I expect that companies continue to shop smart phones well in 2014.
The existing biggest smart phone players will continue to rule the markets. Google’s Android will continue to rule the markets. Samsung made most money in 2013 on Android phones (in 2013 in West only Samsung makes money from selling Android), and I expect that to continue. In 2013 Apple slurped down enormous profits but lost some of its bleeding-edge-tech street credit, and I expect that to continue in 2014.
The biggest stories of the year 2013 outside the Samsung/Apple duopoly were the sale of Nokia’s mobile phone business to Microsoft and the woes of BlackBerry. BlackBerry had an agonising year and suffered one of the most spectacular consumer collapses in history, and I can’t see how it would get to it’s feet during 2014. Nokia made good gains for Windows Phones during 2013, and I expect that Microsoft will put marketing effort to gain even more market share. Windows Phone became the third mobile ecosystem, and will most probably keep that position in 2014.
New players try to enter smart phone markets and some existing players that once tried that try to re-enter. There are rumors that for example HP tries to re-enter mobile market, and is probable that some other computer makers try to sell smart phones with their brands. In the Android front there will be new companies trying to push marker (for example OPPO and many smaller Chinese makers you have never heard earlier). Nokia had a number of Android projects going on in 2013, and some former Nokia people have put up company Newkia to follow on that road. To make a difference in the market there will be also push on some smaller mobile platforms as alternative to the big three (Google, Apple, Microsoft). Jolla is pushing Sailfish OS phones that can run Android applications and also pushing possibility to install that OS to Android phone. Mozilla will push on with it’s own Firefox OS phone. Canonical will try to get their Ubuntu phone released. Samsung is starting to make Tizen powered smart phones and NTT DoCoMo could be the first carrier to offer a Tizen powered device. None of those will be huge mainstream hits within one year, but could maybe could have their own working niche markets. The other OS brands combined do not amount to 1% of all smartphones sold in 2013, so even if they could have huge growth they would still be very small players on the end of 2014.
As smartphone and tablet makers desperately search for points of differentiation they will try to push the limits of performance on several fronts to extremes. Extreme inter-connectivity is one of the more useful features that is appearing in new products. More context-aware automatic wireless linking is coming: Phones will wirelessly link and sync with screens and sensors in the user’s vicinity.
You can also expect extreme sensor support to offer differentiation. Biomedical sensors have lots of potential (Apple already has fingerprint sensors). Indoor navigation will evolve. Intelligent systems and assistive devices will advance smart healthcare.
Several smartphone makers have clear strategies to take photography to extremes. 40 megapixel camera is already on the market and several manufacturers are playing with re-focus after shooting options.
In high-end models we may be moving into the overkill zone with extreme resolution that is higher than you can see on small screen: some makers have already demonstrated displays with twice the performance of 1080-progressive. Samsung is planned to release devices with 4k or UHD resolutions. As we have seen in many high tech gadget markets earlier it is a very short journey to copycat behavior.
It seems that amount of memory on high-end mobile devices is increasing this year. To be able to handle higher resolutions smart phones will also need more memory than earlier (for example Samsung lpddr 4 allows up to 4 GB or RAM on smart phone as now high-end devices now have typically 2GB). As the memory size starts to hit the limits of 32 bit processors (4GB), I will expect that there will be some push for chip makers to start to introduce more 64 bit processors for mobile devices. Apple already has 64-bit A7 microprocessor in iPhone 5s, all the other phone-makers want one too for their high-end models (which is a bit of panic to mobile chip makers).
You will be able to keep your mobile phone during some flights all the time and browser web on the plane more widely. At some planes you might also be able to make phone calls with your mobile phone during the flight. Calls on flights have been theoretically possible, and United States has recently looked at mobile phone calls allow the flights.
In year 2013 there were many releases on wearable technologies. Wearable is a trend with many big companies already in the space, and more are developing new products. It seems that on this field year 2013 was just putting on the initial flame, and I expect that the wearable market will start to heat up more during 2014. The advent of wearable technology brings new demands for components that can accommodate its small form factor, wireless requirements, and need for longer battery life.
The Internet of Things (IoT) will evolve into the Web of Things, increasing the coordination between things in the real world and their counterparts on the Web. The Internet is expanding into enterprise assets and consumer items such as cars and televisions. Gartner suggests that now through 2018, a variety of devices, user contexts, and interaction paradigms will make “everything everywhere” strategies unachievable.
Technology giants Google Inc. and Apple Inc. are about to expand their battle for digital supremacy to a new front: the automobile. The Android vs. iOS apps battle is coming to the automotive industry in 2014: car OEMs aren’t exactly known for their skills in developing apps and app developers don’t want to develop so many different versions of an app separately (for Ford, General Motors, BMW, and Toyota). I am waiting for Google’s response to Apple’s iOS in the Car. Next week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Google and German auto maker Audi AG plan to announce that they are working together to develop in-car entertainment and information systems that are based on Google’s Android software. The push toward smarter cars is heating up: Right now, we are just scratching the surface.
For app development HTML5 will be on rise. Gartner predicts that through 2014, improved JavaScript performance will begin to push HTML5 and the browser as a mainstream enterprise application development environment. It will also work on many mobile applications as well.
1,857 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
Make Your Own Smart Watch
http://hackaday.com/2014/02/17/make-your-own-smart-watch/
Wearables are all the rage lately
This smart watch uses very common and easy to obtain parts: Arduino Pro Mini, HC-06 Bluetooth module, Adafruit’s 0.96’’ OLED display, and a lithium battery. It is amazing how few parts can be used to make such a functional project.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Explained: Samsung’s implementation of the fingerprint sensor on the upcoming Galaxy S5
http://www.sammobile.com/2014/02/17/explained-samsungs-implementation-of-the-fingerprint-sensor-on-the-upcoming-galaxy-s5/
Today, we are finally confirming that Samsung’s upcoming flagship device, the Galaxy S5, will be equipped with a fingerprint sensor
Samsung has implemented the sensor into the Galaxy S5’s home button.
The sensor itself works in a swipe manner
Samsung has implemented the use of fingerprint scanning throughout the operating system. You can register a total of 8 fingerprints and assign each fingerprint a different task or use it as an app shortcut, but at least 1 fingerprint must be used to unlock the device
Tomi Engdahl says:
Smart phone stealing more common than wallet stealing
Detective Chief Inspector Jouni Niskanen from the Helsinki Police Department tells the magazine that last year at night in Helsinki restaurants made to pickpocket up to 60 per cent of the cases were taken only the mobile phone. Only 20 per cent of thefts were for wallets.
Thieves are particularly interested in stealing iPhones and Nokia smartphones.
- Smart phones will go more and more. The same trend is strengthened elsewhere in Europe.
Three out of four during the restaurant and night club pocket-picking victims are women. Victims are often young people, 20-30 years of age.
To avoid stealing men should be kept valuable property in in trouser front pockets.
Women should keep valuables inside the handbag in a closed inside pocket.
Police remind that the phone must not be left unattended, even if it is located in close proximity on the table.
Source: Iltalehti
http://www.iltalehti.fi/uutiset/2014021818049305_uu.shtml
http://www.iltalehti.fi/uutiset/2014021818050621_uu.shtml
Tomi Engdahl says:
Samsung’s updated smartwatch to shun Android
http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/02/18/samsung-gear-smartwatch-tizen-android/5583023/
The new version of Samsung’s Gear smartwatch will run on Tizen, not Google’s Android operating system, the latest attempt by the South Korean electronics giant to develop more of its own software and services, according to three people familiar with the situation.
Samsung will unveil the updated Gear watch, and a new HTML5 version of the Tizen operating system, at an event at the Mobile World Congress later this month in Barcelona, the people said.
“Samsung is trying to protect its own long-term interests, not fortifying Google’s Android camp while building their own camp around Tizen,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Opera Opens Pre-Registration For Its Data-Savings Android App
http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/18/opera-opens-pre-registration-for-its-data-savings-android-app/
Last December, Opera announced Max, a free app that would use Opera’s servers to compress all the non-encrypted data to your Android device. At the time, it opened up sign-ups for a small private alpha test, but starting today, it will take sign-ups for its soon-to-launch Max beta.
Depending on how you use your phone, this could save you quite a bit of bandwidth and — if you’re on a limited plan — a few dollars, too
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nokia teases ‘X’ as it prepares to launch its Android phone
By Tom Warren on February 18, 2014 10:39 am
http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/18/5422320/nokia-x-specifications-teaser-mobile-world-congress
Nokia is preparing to launch its Android phone, codenamed Normandy, and the company is teasing it heavily today. The low-cost handset is expected to be named Nokia X when the Finnish smartphone maker unveils it next week
Tomi Engdahl says:
The most powerful Android phone is a Chinese
According to EEMBC’s AndEBench-test of the most powerful Android smartphone is the Chinese Coolpad Technologies’ F1 model. This phone is based on the industry’s first 8-core processor, the MediaTek MT6592 running at 1664 MHz.
Coolpad will bring paljn power at low cost. China F1 phone sold for $ 146. The device operates TD-SCDMA network. Coolpad is also available to bring TD-SCMA and LTE networks operating in the updated model F1.
Source: Elektroniikkalehti
http://www.elektroniikkalehti.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=982:tehokkain-android-puhelin-on-kiinalainen&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
LTE-A mobile phone can begin to approval
The mobile world are getting ready to move beyond LTE to LTE-Advanced networks operating in the terminals modems.
Anritsu says that its LTE-A compatibility test is the first solution has reached an adequate levelfor the terminal approval. According to the Anritsu ME7873L system is the first to reach more than 80 percent of the coverage tests. Anritsu ME7873x of the platform is the most widely used RF compatibility testing platform.
Source: Elektroniikkalehti
http://www.elektroniikkalehti.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=969:lte-a-kannykoiden-hyvaksynta-voi-alkaa&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
Facebook to Acquire WhatsApp
http://newsroom.fb.com/News/805/Facebook-to-Acquire-WhatsApp
Facebook today announced that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire WhatsApp, a rapidly growing cross-platform mobile messaging company, for a total of approximately $16 billion
Follow the photos: The real reason Facebook just paid almost 10% of its market cap for WhatsApp
http://pando.com/2014/02/19/follow-the-photos-the-real-reason-facebook-just-paid-almost-10-of-its-market-cap-for-whatsapp/
So you thought $1 billion for Instagram was crazy.
And then you thought $3 billion for Snapchat was insane.
Today Facebook has announced that it is acquiring WhatsApp for a whopping $16 billion, plus $3 billion in restricted stock units. The shock is similar to when Google bought YouTube for a then-unimaginable $1.65 billion– just move a decimal point and almost a decade.
Today Facebook proved that even those of us who’ve accepted the “new math” of growth company valuations can still be scandalized.
Truth is, though, scandalous company valuations have long been Facebook’s stock in trade.
Facebook has always paid that inflation forward in everything it does. Call it Zuck-opoly money.
Four Numbers That Explain Why Facebook Acquired WhatsApp
http://sequoiacapital.tumblr.com/post/77211282835/four-numbers-that-explain-why-facebook-acquired
Whatsapp and $19bn
http://ben-evans.com/benedictevans/2014/2/19/whatsapp-and-19bn
Facebook just bought WhatsApp, paying $16bn in cash and stock and $3bn in RSUs. WhatsApp has 450m active users, of which 72% are active every day. It has just 32 engineers. And its users share 500m photos a day, which is almost certainly more than Facebook.
This is interesting in all sorts of ways – it illustrates most of the key trends in consumer tech today in one deal.
First, it shows the continued determination of Facebook to be the ‘next’ Facebook.
Second, the winner-takes-all dynamics of social on the desktop web do not appear to apply on mobile, and if there are winner-takes-all dynamics for mobile social it’s not yet clear what they are.
Google’s Unusual Offer to WhatsApp
https://www.theinformation.com/Google-s-Unusual-Offer-to-WhatsApp
More than six months ago, Google approached WhatsApp with an odd offer: It would pay the mobile messaging startup in exchange for the right to be notified if the messaging app entered into acquisition talks with other companies
WhatsApp Blog: Facebook
http://blog.whatsapp.com/index.php/2014/02/facebook/
Almost five years ago we started WhatsApp with a simple mission: building a cool product used globally by everybody. Nothing else mattered to us.
Today we are announcing a partnership with Facebook that will allow us to continue on that simple mission.
WhatsApp will remain autonomous and operate independently. You can continue to enjoy the service for a nominal fee. You can continue to use WhatsApp no matter where in the world you are, or what smartphone you’re using.
Mark Zuckerberg
https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10101272463589561
I’m excited to announce that we’ve agreed to acquire WhatsApp and that their entire team will be joining us at Facebook.
Why Facebook Dropped $19B On WhatsApp: Reach Into Europe, Emerging Markets
http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/19/facebook-whatsapp/
With 450 million monthly users and a million more signing up each day, WhatsApp was just too far ahead in the international mobile messaging race for Facebook to catch up
Internationally, Facebook was late to the Messenger party.
WhatsApp launched in 2009 with the right focus on a lean, clean, and fast mobile messaging app. And while the international messaging market is incredibly fragmented, it was able to gain a major presence where Messenger didn’t as you can also see in the chart above.
Unlike PC-based social networking, there is no outstanding market leader in mobile messaging. Still, WhatsApp absolutely dominates in markets outside of the U.S. like Europe and India.
WhatsApp: The inside story
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2014-02/19/whatsapp-exclusive
Tomi Engdahl says:
Loop Wallet review: mobile payments are finally everywhere you want to be
Loop tricks any cash register into thinking your phone is your credit card
http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/19/5425494/loop-wallet-mobile-payments-review
NFC was supposed to be the future.
My next phone was going to include the technology, which would let me pay at any cash register by waving my phone instead of swiping my credit card.
Google’s contactless payments system was bound to take over the world. Until Google gave up on it.
But a new startup called Loop thinks it has the answer: a wireless payments technology that does what NFC promised to do, all without forcing carriers or retailers to change anything.
Loop comes in two flavors, for now: a $39 key fob and a $99 Mophie-esque ChargeCase. Both devices hold virtual versions of your credit and debit cards, and work at over 90 percent of the country’s credit card machines without retailers having to change anything, according to Loop.
It’s the NFC dream all over again
The Loop Fob is a bit chunky, and only holds one card at a time. (Coin solved this problem with an onboard screen and card-switching button, but it remains to be seen how well it actually works in practice.)
Loop’s biggest problem is that it’s a waste of time. It feels magical to use, but isn’t worth the additional 10 or 15 seconds it takes to explain to each and every cashier.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Worldwide spending on mobile game apps tripled in 2013 to $16B
http://venturebeat.com/2014/02/19/worldwide-spending-on-mobile-game-apps-tripled-in-2013-to-16b/
Digital games was easily the biggest content category for digital content spending in 2013, according to the annual worldwide data collected by market researchers AppAnnie and IHS.
Mobile game apps accounted for $16 billion in spending, up 2.9 times from a year before; and spending on digital gaming was $34 billion, not counting game apps.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nokia has launched Lumia phones referred to NFC accessory. And keyring set the phone to ring when they are placed too far apart. This handset is accidentally forgotten at home or a thief is caught red-handed.
Source: http://www.tietokone.fi/artikkeli/uutiset/lumian_nfc_avaimenpera_halyttaa_varkaasta
Tomi Engdahl says:
As Facebook coughs $19bn for WhatsApp, why did it pay $45 for your phone book?
And they’re not the biggest mugs. We are
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/02/20/facebook_whatsapp_19bn_buy_also_45_for_your_phonebook/
Putting a man on the Moon cost less than what Facebook paid for WhatsApp, a generic chat app. So why is Facebook paying $45 per user to gain functionality it already has?
The silly numbers look even sillier when you consider Facebook’s own Messenger only lags narrowly behind WhatsApp in terms of usage. Facebook Messenger maintains a lead in the USA, despite WhatsApp’s growth.
The most likely explanation is that it’s actually paying $42 for your phone book.
WhatsApp notoriously rifles through your address book, scoops up your phone numbers, and uploads them to its servers. This is something Facebook has wanted for some time since its own phone records are incomplete.
Tomi Engdahl says:
With ‘virgin’ developers, Microsoft could fork Android
A similar proprietary software scenario fueled Microsoft’s growth when it was a young company supplying PC operating systems.
http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/virgin-developers-microsoft-could-fork-android
Windows Phone is not an option for Microsoft’s mobile renaissance. It’s just too little and too late.
To catch up, Microsoft could invest in an Android fork that would impress consumers with responsive on-device performance, integration with Microsoft’s mobile ecosystem, and compatibility with the more than 1 million apps available through the Google Play and other app stores.
Every discussion about forking Android leads to discussions of “how open is Android?” and “will the proprietary Android components prevent a competitor from building a great smartphone based on the Android Open Source Project?”
In a nutshell, Google publishes Android source code under free and open source licenses. A “fork” is simply an independently compiled version of Android. Download the free Android source, recompile and distribute the forked version. That’s all it takes – the device manufacturer is in business.
But some would argue that Google’s control of the proprietary part of Android, the Google Mobile Services (GMS) platform, is a tactic to monopolize Android.
One group of developers who are familiar with GMS and all its related functions and APIs that app developers use to build apps could write a specification for recreating the GMS APIs, while the virgin developers would precisely reproduce the function and operation of the API.
It would be nearly impossible for Google to sue Microsoft for API copyright infringement because Google opposed such copyrights in its defense against Oracle’s patent and copyright lawsuit.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Debunking four mobile security myths
http://www.networkworld.com/news/tech/2013/092613-mobile-security-myths-274230.html
Even with the rapid adoption of mobile in the enterprise, there are a lot of misconceptions about user privacy, security and compliance. We debunk the most prevalent mobile security myths.
Bursting the top 14 mobile security myths
http://www.appstechnews.com/blog-hub/2013/oct/31/bursting-top-14-mobile-security-myths/
Enterprise mobile security used to be so easy: there were laptops and BlackBerries, both owned by the company and totally locked down. I’m sure there are plenty of security professionals who miss that world, but the era of the true smartphone has opened the Pandora’s Box of security and there’s no way back.
One of the biggest problems facing the enterprise today is that the smartphone, tablet and BYOD revolution has happened so fast that we’re still figuring out how to deal with it. As a result, there are many myths out there, and in this blog I will give you the truth behind fourteen of the most important, whether they are true or false.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Global Mobile-Phone Shipments Grew 5% in 2013
http://mwrf.com/mobile/global-mobile-phone-shipments-grew-5-2013
According to a recent report from Strategy Analytics, global mobile-phone shipments reached a record 1.7 billion units last year. Samsung (fueled by the company’s popular Galaxy phones) and LG led the pack. TCL-Alcatel broke into the top five for the first time, while Nokia and Apple struggled to maintain their numbers. Overall, shipments of mobile phones saw the best numbers in two years.
In the number-one spot, Samsung shipped 451.7 million mobile phones to gain 27% market share.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Google Was Willing to Beat Facebook’s $19B Offer for WhatsApp
https://www.theinformation.com/Google-Was-Willing-to-Beat-Facebook-s-19-Billion-Offer-for-WhatsApp
Tomi Engdahl says:
Opera’s Sponsored Web Pass gives you free mobile internet if you watch an ad
http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/21/opera-sponsored-web-pass-free-mobile-internet/
Mobile operators can now easily take advantage of this tool to not only sell duration-based passes (like unlimited browsing for a day or just Twitter for a week), but to also offer them for free. The catch? You just have to watch an ad before each session begins, which doesn’t sound too painful.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Here’s An Actual 3D Indoor Map Of A Room Captured With Google’s Project Tango Phone
http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/21/heres-an-actual-3d-indoor-map-of-a-room-captured-with-googles-project-tango-phone/
We broke the news yesterday that Google was producing a prototype 3D sensing smartphone called Project Tango.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nokia’s Here Maps app is coming to all Windows 8.1 devices
http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/21/5433328/nokia-here-maps-coming-to-all-windows-8-1-devices
If Bing Maps hasn’t been getting the job done on your Microsoft Surface, you’ll be glad to hear there’s another option on the way: Nokia’s Here Maps. The company says it will “soon” launch its mapping software for all Windows 8.1 devices. Until now, it’s been available exclusively on the Lumia 2520 tablet (and of course Windows Phone 8 smartphones).
Tomi Engdahl says:
Geeksphone Revolution Android/Firefox phone launches for $300
http://liliputing.com/2014/02/geeksphone-revolution-androidfirefox-phone-launches-300.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Samsung Gear 2 smartwatches coming in April with Tizen OS and better battery life
http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/22/samsung-gear-2/
The absence of Galaxy branding is no typo, by the way; the new Gear will run on the Tizen operating system, a platform which Samsung has been investing large amounts of money and resources into.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wearable Computers Put Interaction at Your Finger Tips, Literally
http://www.getsaga.com/blog/wearable-computers-put-interaction-at-your-finger-tips-literally/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Check latest news from Mobile World Congress 2014 at
http://www.epanorama.net/newepa/2014/02/24/24951/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Forget smartwatches: Cuff’s smart jewelry is wearable tech that women might actually wear
http://www.techhive.com/article/2097976/forget-smartwatches-cuff-s-smart-jewelry-is-wearable-tech-that-women-might-actually-wear.html
Wearable tech is plummeting down the gender gap. For every man who finds Google Glass too nerdy to wear in public, or the Galaxy Gear not quite his style, there’s exponentially more women who wouldn’t be caught dead in today’s smartglasses and smartwatches.
But Deepa Sood says she has answer. It’s called the CuffLinc, and it provides simple notifications and security alerts via—imagine this—affordable jewelry that many women might actually want to wear.
The system is focused entirely on quick, two-way communication between women and the important people in their lives. The CuffLinc, which can be inserted in any of the jewelry pieces for multiple accessory options, pairs with smartphones over Bluetooth and includes a vibrating motor for haptic notifications.
“What industry needs a facelift more than personal protection?” Sood asks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
China’s Huawei seeks U.S. foothold in smartphone race: executive
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/23/us-mobile-world-huawei-idUSBREA1M14E20140223
“Recently there has been quite some change in the U.S. in terms of the whole subsidy landscape, and so that provides a new opportunity for players like us to come with a slightly different distribution strategy than what we used to have.”
In the third quarter of last year, Huawei accounted for 3 percent of all phones sold in the United States, respectively, trailing Apple’s 36.2 percent and Samsung’s 32.5 percent, according to IDC.
Tomi Engdahl says:
At Last, a Google Glass for the Battlefield
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2014/02/battlefield-glass/
Walking around Silicon Valley with an augmented reality display on your face makes you a glasshole. On the battlefield, though, similar technology will soon turn U.S. soldiers into a lethal cross between the Terminator and Iron Man.
Q-Warrior, the newest version of helmet-mounted display technology from BAE Systems’ Q-Sight line
Q-Warrior is initially expected to be deployed with Special Forces and at the section commander level, but BAE says it expects the technology to eventually reach all soldiers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Android Remains The Outsized Giant At 70% Of Smartphone Sales, Phablets And iPhone 5c Make Waves: Kantar
http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/23/kantar-smartphone-sales-android/
When it comes to sales of smartphones, Android is the green giant that continues to tower over the competition. In the last three months that ended in January 2014, the Google-developed operating system accounted for around 70% of sales across 12 key markets
In comparison, its most credible rivals either fell further behind, or simply stood still: Apple took 22.1% of sales (down nearly two percentage points over last month); and Windows Phone was flat at 4.4%.
With Google’s mobile platform installed on 7 out of every 10 smartphones that consumers buy, Android seems almost impossible to beat. But with reports of even arch competitors like Nokia toying with Android devices, the question may no longer be which platform is dominant, but what the state of play is with OEMs building on top of that outsized leader.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nokia’s Android X Series Targets ‘Next Billion’
But Is the Price Right?
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1321138&
Under the tagline “connecting the next billion to the Internet,” Nokia unveiled its first Android-based mobile handsets, the Nokia X series, at the Mobile World Congress on Monday.
The Nokia X, Nokia X+, and Nokia XL devices are priced between $122 and $150. Nokia is pinning its hopes on the new series getting a real share of what it deems a growth market in the emerging economy.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Who Has the Best Android Phone in China?
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1321136&
A ton of smartphones are sold in China, not just by global brands like Samsung but also by indigenous handset vendors like Huawei, Xiaomi, and Oppo.
So, with all these choices, can you guess which company offers the best Android smartphone to Chinese consumers?
Tomi Engdahl says:
Are Disappearing Messages a Permanent Business?
http://slashdot.org/topic/cloud/disappearing-messages-permanent-business/
If a new crop of startups wants to profit, they’ll have to convince users that disappearing messages are secure.
Our lives online come with perils, whether from the NSA checking up on our digital communications, or the possibility of the wrong e-message going viral. Twitter, Facebook, Google, Instagram, and other social networks have collected all sorts of personal data about us, where we’ve been, what we’re saying, what we like, and our friends.
No wonder the idea of ephemeral messages—such as those sent via Snapchat and other services—is beginning to resonate, attracting lots of startups who want to service that very need.
Tomi Engdahl says:
How Mobile Apps Are Reinventing the Worst of the Software Industry
http://tech.slashdot.org/story/14/02/25/1937231/how-mobile-apps-are-reinventing-the-worst-of-the-software-industry
“Jeff Atwood, co-founder of Stack Overflow, says the mobile app ecosystem is getting out of hand.”
App-pocalypse Now
February 24, 2014
I’m getting pretty sick of being nagged to install your damn apps.
http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2014/02/app-pocalypse-now.html
Millions of pointless apps
Your platform now has a million apps? Amazing! Wonderful! What they don’t tell you is that 99% of them are awful junk that nobody would ever want.
Now there are, at minimum, four radically different mobile platforms that every serious app player has to support:
Android phone
iOS phone
iOS tablet
Android tablet
Tomi Engdahl says:
February 25, 2014, 07:05 pm
Cell phone freedom bill passes House
Legislation aimed at letting people use their cell phones with any mobile carrier they wish was narrowly approved by the House today, after several Democrats opposed the bill due to a last minute change in the text.
Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/votes/199257-cell-phone-freedom-bill-passes-house#ixzz2uPYZQMsJ
Tomi Engdahl says:
OpenX launches its mobile-first native ad exchange
http://venturebeat.com/2014/02/25/openx-launches-its-mobile-first-native-ad-exchange/
OpenX Technologies is launching a mobile-focused native ad exchange today that it says will help app and game developers and publishers make a lot more money.
Tomi Engdahl says:
LTE Built-In GM Cars: No Smartphones Required
GM Partners with AT&T; Qualcomm Goes for 20nm LTE-A Chips
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1321165&
Smartphones are no longer the only platform hotly pursued by cellular operators eager to boost their revenue. Now, it’s cars.
Many network service operators see automobiles as their next big growth opportunity.
Automakers, also seeing dollar signs in this scenario, are hyping their cars as “smartphones on wheels.”
Meanwhile, Qualcomm, the only semiconductor supplier of LTE chipsets for the automotive market, is ratcheting up its automotive LTE efforts by rolling out what the company calls “the world’s first commercial 20nm LTE-Advanced chip set for automotive.” Qualcomm’s LTE-Advanced chipset, designated Gobi 9×30
According to IHS Automotive, the current embedded modem market is still mostly 2.5G since the vast majority of telematics systems operate their services at a low data-rate.
However, the telematics industry today is migrating from 2.5G directly to LTE, mostly by skipping 3G, according to Egil Juliussen, principal analyst, infotainment and ADAS market, at IHS Automotive.
“As operators deploy the next generation of LTE Advanced networks, automakers are starting to plan out their vehicle platform upgrade and adoption for this new technology,” a Qualcomm spokeswoman told EE Times.
It remains uncertain how vehicles with built-in LTE modems will either collide or mesh with LTE-enabled smartphones on two fronts: applications and network subscription fees.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Exclusive: Google sets roadblocks to stop distracted driver legislation
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/25/us-google-glass-lobbying-idUSBREA1O0P920140225
Google is lobbying officials in at least three U.S. states to stop proposed restrictions on driving with headsets such as Google Glass, marking some of the first clashes over the nascent wearable technology.
Some eight U.S. states are considering regulation of Google Glass, a tiny computer screen mounted in the corner of an eyeglass frame. Law enforcement and other groups are concerned that drivers wearing the devices will pay more attention to their email than the road, causing serious accidents.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Motorola plans to launch a smartwatch later this year
http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/25/5446886/motorola-plans-to-launch-a-smartwatch-later-this-year
Motorola is planning to jump back into the wearables market later this year, according to senior vice president Rick Osterloh. The company will launch a smartwatch that Osterloh claims will address “consumer issues like style and battery life.” The news was revealed at a panel discussion at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Project Ara: Inside Google’s Bold Gambit to Make Smartphones Modular
The two-year quest to create the ultimate customizable phone, inside and out.
http://techland.time.com/2014/02/26/google-project-ara-modular-smartphone/
On January 29, Google announced that it had agreed to sell Motorola, its phone-manufacturing business, to Chinese electronics giant Lenovo. Thus concluded the company’s brief, unprofitable foray into smartphone hardware, which began when it revealed plans to acquire Motorola Mobility in August, 2011.
Except that it didn’t really end there. It turned out that Google was holding onto one organization within Motorola: the Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group.
Among the ATAP initiatives that have been announced, one in particular is quintessentially Google-y. It’s Project Ara, which aims to reinvent the smartphone by breaking it down into modules that can be assembled and customized in a limitless number of configurations.
Project Ara aims to prove the naysayers wrong, and to do so more quickly than you might think possible. The earliest explorations of the concept started in the fall of 2012, and work got underway in earnest on April 1, 2013. Eremenko says that ATAP is finishing up work on a functioning prototype, which will be ready within weeks, with a version ready for commercial release in the first quarter of 2015.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Fingerprint Scanner On The Samsung Galaxy S5 Will Be Accessible By Developers
http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/26/the-fingerprint-scanner-on-the-samsung-galaxy-s5-will-be-accessible-by-developers/
Samsung’s Galaxy S5 includes a fingerprint scanner embedded in the home button, and that hardware will be made available to third-party devs, the company announced today at a developer-focused event during MWC this year. That move is in stark contrast to Apple’s strategy with its own fingerprint sensor tech, which is specifically off-limits to third-party devs.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Modular Smartphone Project Ara from Google to Start Development Conferences
by Ian Cutress on February 26, 2014 6:49 PM EST
http://www.anandtech.com/show/7819/modular-smartphone-project-ara-from-google-to-start-development-conferences
Headed under the Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) division, the platform is meant to be a single hub onto which the user can place their own hardware. This means CPUs, cameras, sensors, screens, baseband, modems, connectivity, storage – the whole gamut. The issue with such a device compounds the effects of going from a managed ecosystem (Apple and several hardware combinations) to a free ecosystem (Android and every hardware combination).
Tomi Engdahl says:
Report: Games revenue grew fourfold on Google Play and doubled on iOS in 4Q 2013
http://thenextweb.com/insider/2014/02/27/report-games-revenue-grew-fourfold-on-google-play-and-doubled-on-ios-in-4q-2013/#!xHI6h
The report shows that gamers spent more than four times as much money on Google Play smartphone and tablet games in the fourth quarter of 2013 as they did a year earlier, while the revenue brought in by games on iOS App Store more than doubled over the same period. In terms of absolute value though, iOS game revenue continues to lead that on Google Play “by a wide margin,” the report notes.
“While consumers have traditionally spent more on games versus other types of apps, more than 75 percent of combined iOS & Google Play consumer app spending in 4Q 2013 came from games,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
EU to put pressure on game developers: minors consumer protection condition
EU consumer authorities and the EU Commission put pressure on the mobile game makers and distributors to fix the players of consumer protection. The debate has been invited to Apple, Google and European game developers association.
Consumer authorities are unhappy with the way the games are advertised as free. In practice, it is often difficult to properly play the game without making payments in internal shop.
Source: Iltasanomat
http://www.iltasanomat.fi/digi/art-1288659313031.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple Explains Exactly How Secure iMessage Really Is
http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/27/apple-explains-exactly-how-secure-imessage-really-is/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Europe: Apple. Google. Yes, you. Get in here. It’s about these in-app bills
Justice watchdog demands ‘concrete answers’ after parents stung by charges
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/02/27/apple_google_europe_in_app_payments/
The European Commission (EC) has asked Apple and Google to send over some execs for meetings this week on reforming in-app payment systems.
The EC wants to shake up the practice of in-game purchases by developers, which have in the past misled users, inflated bills, and circumvented parental controls on applications aimed at kids. Seeing as Apple and Google run the online App Store and Play Store, respectively, the European Union’s executive body wants a word.
“Europe’s app industry has enormous potential, both to generate jobs and growth … Misleading consumers is clearly the wrong business model and also goes against the spirit of EU rules on consumer protection,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
You Can Now Hack Your Car to Post to Facebook and Instagram
http://www.wired.com/design/2014/02/automatic-iftt-car-social-media-hub/
Automatic is a clever service that aims to help drivers save time and thousands of dollars in wasted gas by teaching better driving habits in real time. Automatic’s dongle plugs into a car OBD-II port, pairs with a companion app, and provides feedback to drivers in the form of 8-bit chirps that make even a simple grocery run feel a bit like a game of Spy Hunter. In a new partnership with IFTTT, almost any car manufactured since 1996 can be connected to one of 82 web services—Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, SMS, among others—and triggered when the ignition is started, a trip is completed, the car reaches a specific destination, or even when the check engine light comes on.
“Your car is the most expensive computer you’re ever going to buy, and its not even connected to the internet,” says Automatic Chief Product Officer Ljuba Miljkovic. “It could be so much more useful to you if it was connected.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
The chip manufacturers following in the wake of Apple’s 64-bit chips arrive phones
Mobile World Congress no manufacturer have published 64-bit smart phones. The new chip sets predict the incoming in the next few months. So far, Apple’s iPhone 5s is the only 64-bit mobile device.
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 615 (8 core) and 610 (4 core) models are similar to Apple’s 64-bit A7 chip. Devices using Snapdragon could be released in Q4 2014.
Intel says that its new Merrifiel chip sets (2 core 64 bit) are used in devices in the second quarter.
Low-cost smartphone chips on MediaTek announced its own 64-bit chipped, MT6752′s, to arrive.
Source: Tietoviikko
http://www.tietoviikko.fi/uutisia/siruvalmistajat+seuraavat+applen+vanavedessa+64bittiset+sirut+saapuvat+puhelimiin/a970795
Tomi Engdahl says:
Barcelona MWC fair supply raises seven phenomena that should be monitored.
1 Top phones development jammed
2 Good ideas are hidden
3 Cheap smartphones (less than 100 USD coming)
4 Smart watches become something that could be used
5 Time is not yet for virtual glasses
6 Security features are added, but privacy is reduced
7 Networks change the world – for real
Source: Tietoviikko
http://www.digitoday.fi/bisnes/2014/03/01/7-ilmiota-mwc-messuilta–nain-maailmamme-muuttuu/20142970/66?rss=6
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Tomi Engdahl says:
Ellen’s Oscars selfie now the most retweeted post ever — a huge win for Samsung
http://venturebeat.com/2014/03/02/ellens-oscar-selfie-now-the-most-retweeted-post-ever-a-huge-win-for-samsung/
During the Samsung-sponsored Academy Awards tonight, host Ellen Degeneres wrangled celebrities from the audience to tweet an awkward selfie with her Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (which made several appearances during the show).
Ellen Was On Stage At Oscars With Samsung, Backstage With iPhone
http://marketingland.com/ellen-oscars-samsung-iphone-75651
Samsung’s a big sponsor of the Oscars, to the degree that it even had this year’s host Ellen DeGeneres doing a record-breaking star-studded selfie with a Galaxy phone. But behind the scenes, there’s an iPhone being used.
Tomi Engdahl says:
How movies and TV give life to the mundane text message
TV and films show texts don’t have to be unemotional throwaways.
http://arstechnica.com/business/2014/02/the-pathos-of-the-text-message/
In the last decade, movies and television have sprouted a new plot weakness: if tension hinged in any way on a situation that could have been solved by a simple cell phone call or text message, the call was never placed and the text was never sent. To forget the pervasiveness of cell phones, and the ease with which we can tell each other things, is a crime.
But cell phones and digital messages have managed to worm their way into the storytelling in movies and TV despite a supposed natural ineptitude at stirring up drama. A text message is dispassionate, free of emotion and all too open to interpretation, according to some literature on the importance of, say, tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language.