Evernote’s strategy has become clear and it is a three-pronged approach. The first prong, continually refine and develop the multiple platform clients that are currently available, including Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and more. Seriously, it seems as if there is an Evernote update on one of the platforms I use every two or three weeks. Second, Evernote is developing numerous partnerships with software developers who use Evernote’s API to bring tight integration between their applications and Evernote’s power. Finally, Evernote is developing numerous partnerships with hardware manufacturers including Fujitsu, Lexmark and, most recently, Samsung.
A recent software update to the Samsung Behold® II brought Evernote as a “core application” and today the company announced that Evernote will now begin shipping pre-loaded on select Samsung devices running Android. As CEO Phil Libin noted-
We’re incredibly excited to be working closely with Samsung on their line of Android phones. Android represents Evernote’s fastest growing mobile platform. This partnership helps Evernote reach a huge new audience with our promise of perfect memory for everyone.
I’m a huge fan of Evernote in its own right but I’m also a fan of the way in which they have been moving to develop their service/business. In a world in which web-based services seem to come and go on an almost daily basis Evernote has found the formula to take a great product and make it increasingly powerful and flexible. And apparently it is working. Back in December Evernote announced that they had crossed the million-user mark. At the beginning of February they had 2.3 million users. A month later… your guess is as good as mine.
The full press release follows…
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The Dell Streak is believed to have a five-inch screen, putting it somewhere between a smartphone and an e-book reader in size.
The formidable triumvirate of Amazon, Dell, and Google is apparently poised to give iTunes the first serious run for its money just as the iPad is about to take Apple’s downloadable media megastore where no computer has gone before.
Engadget has posted two slides that appear to come from a Dell presentation showing that the Google Android-powered Dell Streak tablet will include access to over 300,000 e-books in the Kindle store, everything in the Amazon MP3 download store (over 11 million “songs and extras”), and over 50,000 movies and television shows available for one-day rental or permanent purchase.
Taken together, this mirrors what iTunes offers for Apple devices, giving hardware manufacturers such as Dell a way to kick-start plans to take on the iPad.
Other Android devices already ship with the Amazon MP3 store, but an addition of the company’s Kindle e-books and sizable catalog of on-demand movies and television shows to Dell’s upcoming line of various-size tablets — and possibly Android devices in general — signals a more significant alliance between Google, Amazon and hardware manufacturers like Dell, as they team up to copy Apple’s successful mix of touchscreens and entertainment.
The documents also indicate that — like Kindle owners — users of this Dell mini-tablet will have wireless (3G) access to the Kindle store with “no monthly fees, service plans, or hunting for a Wi-Fi spot.” If that’s the case, Dell’s tablets would have a significant advantage over the iPad, which can only access the 3G network if you pay for the more expensive version of the hardware and sign up for a $15 or $30 per month data plan in addition to whatever wireless data plan you have for your phone.
Neither Dell nor Amazon has returned our requests for confirmation.
Even among the rumors flying around, nobody’s speculating about the price or ship date of the Dell Streak, Dell Mini 5, or whatever it ends up being called. Given the company’s track record when playing catch-up against Apple (see the iPod-like, inexpensive Dell DJ MP3 player) it will likely position this device as a less costly version of the iPad concept with the same range of books, music and video, thanks to Amazon and Google.
Tablet processor manufacturer ARM expects over 50 iPad competitors to be released this year. Even if Dell screws this up, or if people aren’t receptive to the Streak’s size (between that of an iPhone and an iPad, although Dell plans to release other sizes later), the integration of Amazon’s book and video platforms into other Android-powered tablets could prove a significant challenge to the multipurpose iPad and dedicated e-book readers.
Then, the question will be whether a consortium of companies (hardware manufacturers for device, Google for the OS and Amazon for the content) are capable of providing an experience as smooth as Apple tends to, because it controls all of those elements itself.
See Also:
Image: Flickr/nDevilTV
Via Apple 2.0, Oppenheimer analyst Yair Reiner asserts in a research note that Apple’s lawsuit with HTC over the iPhone interface was the culmination of “blunt talks” with other phone manufacturers.
According to Reiner, starting in January Apple began closed-door discussions with OEMs regarding the company’s “growing displeasure” with the theft of Apple’s intellectual property.
That displeasure was first noted a year earlier at a conference call. Apple COO Tim Cook responded to a question about the Palm Pre by stating that “we will not stand for having our IP ripped off,” though Cook wasn’t necessarily talking about Palm, or just Palm, anyway. Earlier this month, Steve Jobs publicly accused HTC of theft in a press release associated with the iPhone lawsuit. Unfortunately, that lawsuit may not ultimately protect the iPhone the way Steve Jobs thinks.
However, in the short term tough talk and legal action has, according to “industry checks” by Reiner, resulted in hardware manufacturers reassessing their positions regarding Google’s Android operating system.
Rival software and hardware teams are going back to the drawing board to look for work-arounds. Lawyers are redoubling efforts to gauge potential defensive and offensive responses. And strategy teams are working to chart OS strategies that are better hedged.
Ignoring the negative impact on consumers from stifling innovation in the name of intellectual property rights, the real-world implications of driving hardware manufacturers away from Google is that they will be going towards Microsoft. With Windows Mobile as good as dead, and Windows Phone Series 7 not to be released until the end of the year, it could have been argued that Microsoft was close to being pushed out of the mobile market entirely. Don’t count on that now.
Microsoft has been quick to sniff out this burgeoning opportunity and has begun to aggressively promote the strength of its own IP portfolio, as well as its willingness to join battle with customers that come under IP attack.
It’s one thing to threaten a relatively small company like HTC, but quite another to go after Microsoft, as Apple found out once before. While temporarily disrupting Android through lawsuits isn’t going to make that problem go away, it might just help Microsoft get back in the mobile business.
Google Wants Your Lamp to Tell You How Much Power It's Using http://bit.ly/aMdEu8
Google PowerMeter is part of a series of efforts by various large and small companies, including Green Goose and Microsoft, to launch better and smarter home energy monitoring services. Today, Google took the next step in its efforts to make PowerMeter a ubiquitous service by launching an API for PowerMeter that allows device manufacturers to create PowerMeter-compatible devices. This, according to Google, will allow hardware manufacturers to integrate "in-home/plug level energy monitoring devices with Google PowerMeter." Thanks to this, you may soon be able to check how much power your lamp or TV is currently using by simply checking the PowerMeter gadget on iGoogle.
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It's important to note that this effort is separate from Google's work with utility companies to provide PowerMeter-compatible data to consumers. This new PowerMeter API is about providing a far more granular per-device or per-plug view of your power consumption. According to Google, the company decided to launch this API "in order to help build the ecosystem of innovative developers working towards making energy information more widely available to consumers."
According to Google's developer guide, consumers who purchase a PowerMeter-compatible device would activate the device by surfing to the device's built-in HTML server (every PowerMeter device must have one) and configure and activate it. After linking the device to a PowerMeter account - and Google is clearly taking privacy seriously here judging from the instructions - the device will then ping Google every 10 minutes via a secure HTTPS connection to upload its data.
Google has obviously been very interested in the energy business lately. Just last month, the company got regulatory approval to buy energy in bulk. Google is also using solar panels to power it's Mountain View, CA headquarters and has invested in a number of green energy projects and companies, including eSolar, a company that plans to develop numerous large solar energy projects around the world.
Discuss
Google Wants Your Lamp to Tell You How Much Power It's Using
- John DeisherGoogle Wants Your Lamp to Tell You How Much Power It's Using
- Sergio Cruz
Following on the heels of its legal battle with Nokia, today Apple announced that it has filed a lawsuit against HTC for “infringing on 20 Apple patents related to the iPhone’s user interface, underlying architecture and hardware.”
The move is likely an indirect Android assault, since HTC is one of the premier Android hardware manufacturers. It developed the first Android phone, the G1, as well as the latest flagship Android device, the Nexus One.
The announcement included a comment by Steve Jobs on the lawsuit:
We can sit by and watch competitors steal our patented inventions, or we can do something about it. We’ve decided to do something about it. We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours.
According to Gizmodo, HTC didn’t see this lawsuit coming:
We only learned of Apple’s actions based on your stories and Apple’s press release. We have not been served any papers yet so we are in no position to comment on the claims. We respect and value patent rights but we are committed to defending our own innovations. We have been innovating and patenting our own technology for 13 years.
Digital Daily also has the full court documents, which were filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) and in U.S. District Court in Delaware. We’ve embedded the documents at the bottom of this post. Some choice offending patents include:
The ‘331 Patent, entitled “Time-Based, Non-Constant Translation Of User Interface Objects Between States,” was duly and legally issued on April 22, 2008 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
The ‘949 Patent, entitled “Touch Screen Device, Method, And Graphical User Interface For Determining Commands By Applying Heuristics,” was duly and legally issued on January 20, 2009 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the ‘949 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit B.
The ‘849 Patent, entitled “Unlocking A Device By Performing Gestures On An Unlock Image,” was duly and legally issued on February 2, 2010 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the ‘849 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit C.
The ‘381 Patent, entitled “List Scrolling And Document Translation, Scaling, And Rotation On A Touch-Screen Display,” was duly and legally issued on December 23, 2008 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the ‘381 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit D.
Apple is aiming big with the lawsuit. Gizmodo writes that it is going for a “permanent injunction, which would bar HTC from importing or selling phones here that use these patents, along with triple damages with maximum interest (read: a lot of money).”
The court documents also detail the offending HTC phones — which includes pretty much every HTC Windows Mobile and Android phone on the market right now.
Based in Taiwan, HTC has made a name for itself over the past few years by delivering some truly innovative smartphone devices. Phones like its HD2 are the pinnacle of Microsoft’s aging Windows Mobile platform, and HTC was also instrumental in delivering key Android hardware since that platform’s launch. Clearly, Apple sees the company as a threat, but it remains to be seen how HTC specifically has infringed on its patents when you could also point to other companies — like Palm or Research in Motion — that offer similar features on their mobile devices.
Tags: iPhone
Windows Driver Kit (WDK) Version 7.1.0 is currently available for download from Microsoft. The collection of resources is designed for software developers and hardware manufacturers to tailor their products to Windows client and server operating systems. Essentially, Windows Driver Kit 7.1.0 streamlines the creation of both drivers and kernel sof... (read more)
Microsoft has been toying with the hearts of Windows Mobile 6.5 users as misinformation about upgrading the OS to Windows Phone 7 has spread on the web. Initially, Microsoft made it clear that most WinMo 6.5 devices or lower did not have the hardware necessary to support Windows Phone 7. Shortly after making this statement, the software company said on its Twitter account that the upgrade may be possible, but it would be up to the hardware manufacturers whether their respective devices will get the new operating system.
So where does this leave Windows Mobile 6.5 users?
According to Microsoft, Windows Phone 7 will require very tight hardware specs, and even HTC’s HD2 won’t meet these stringent requirements. Aside from a high-resolution touchscreen and super fast processor, the HD2 has too many navigation buttons. Yes, you read that correctly: too many navigation buttons. Microsoft is reversing its direction of getting an operating system onto any piece of hardware that will take it. Windows Phone 7 devices are going to have just three buttons and the design is going to be very strict, much like Apple’s approach to the iPhone.
We’re sure there is more to this than just buttons and hardware, but the message here is that Microsoft isn’t just starting fresh with its new mobile operating system, but with hardware, too. The company is slimming down and focusing on quality instead of quantity – something it probably should have done years ago, but better late than never, right?
If you’re a loyal Windows or Microsoft user and you’re desperately wanting a Windows Phone, be prepared to say good bye to your current WinMo handset.
via APC
We all know that going the multitouch route is somewhere many hardware manufacturers have already headed, and HP does not want to be left behind with the introduction of their first multitouch-enabled tablet which targets business users as well as notebook PCs which are tailored for both enterprise and small and midsize businesses (SMBs). Known as the HP EliteBook 2740p as pictured above, this ultra-thin, multitouch-enabled convertible tablet offers an interactive experience for businesses in health care, education, sales and more, while there is also another HP EliteBook 2540p ready to hit the market, making it the lightest EliteBook notebook from HP to date with a starting weight of 3.3 pounds. As for the HP ProBook standard series (s-series) notebook, there will be a quartet of models of the high-performing series debuting which comes in a new design and sophisticated colors for everyday computing.
We will concentrate most on the HP EliteBook 2740p as it boasts an offering of standard voltage Intel processors, merging the power and reliability of an HP business notebook PC with the flexibility of a tablet to make it suitable for folks who are always on-the-go. It has a starting weight of 3.8 pounds which will comprise of a 12.1″ diagonal LED display, while those with a little bit more cash can always opt for the outdoor-view display with less reflection and a higher contrast for easier viewing in natural light. Thanks to its touchscreen option, you can get more work done intuitively in a faster manner based on your choice of input methods. Expect to use the full array of known multitouch gestures, finger taps and swipes across the display as you navigate through applications and menus, while checking out your daily dose of gadget news here. You can choose from a wide range of battery solutions for lightweight configurations, while those who want more run time can always pick up the optional HP 2700 Ultra-Slim Battery that provides up to 11 hours when working in tandem with the standard battery.
To further enhance its capability, the HP 2740 Ultra-Slim Expansion Base is an optional purchase that allows users to dock their notebook to utilize peripherals without requiring to plug and unplug constantly. The 2740p is specially engineered to meet the tough MIL-STD 810G military-standard tests for vibration, dust, humidity, altitude, and high and low temperatures. Prices start from $1,599 upwards as it hits the US from April onwards.
By Joe Wilcox, Betanews
More software developers should follow the lead of Adobe and Skype, which have abandoned Windows Mobile -- what Microsoft now calls Windows Mobile Classic. The mobile operating system already was brain dead, even with, according to Gartner, 15 million unit sales in 2009. The heart pumped out licenses, but there was no brain activity to keep the platform going. Windows Mobile flatlined, and it's about time that some Microsoft developers admit it. Others should get over the denial and do the same. Microsoft doesn't have the courage to pull the plug. But smart developers can.
Skype's move was quite audacious -- pulling the Windows Mobile version of the telephony software from download. Those WinMo users with Skype can continue using it. Adobe is doing something different. It's shifting Flash 10.1 development to Windows Phone 7 Series, sidelining any Windows Mobile Classic version. Both developers acted wisely. Microsoft may have kept Windows Mobile on life support by the Classic renaming, but the operating system has no real future. There's little reason for hardware manufacturers to release new Windows Mobile Classic handsets or for anyone to buy them -- with Windows Phone 7 Series phones coming late in the second half of the year.
Adobe and Skype have set an example not just for other developers but for Microsoft and its customers. Microsoft has for too long made backward compatibility a top development priority, and the approach holds back platform development. Microsoft's willingness to prioritize backward compatibility makes it too easy for large enterprises to run older software versions seemingly forever.
That's why I'm proud of Google and other developers that are saying no to Internet Explorer 6. The browser is ancient by computing years. I calculate computing years as actual years divided 1.5 (Moore's Law) times 7 (dog years), which makes the browser more than 44 years old. By just dog years, IE6 would be a rickety nearly 70 years old. Antiquated software like IE6 has no place on computers anywhere, particularly considering how different the Internet is today than in 2001. Nine years ago, malware making was still more malicious than criminal. Now it's a bloodsport. IE6 isn't young enough or tough enough.
Enabling Bad Customer Behavior
Then there's Windows 2000. In this era of massive layoffs, someone's head should roll in organization running Windows 2000 anywhere. But, of course, Microsoft enabled the bad behavior by backward compatibility and nearly endless life support -- eh, lifecycle support. But Microsoft plans some massive life support plug pulling this year -- although not nearly enough of it, I assert. Windows Vista gold code support ends on April 13. Support for Windows 2000 and Windows XP Service Pack 2 end on July 13. I wish these operating systems well in the afterlife, if that were possible. They will linger still, as ghosts, and for that Microsoft bears some responsibility.
Microsoft's approach to fighting piracy includes preventing presumed pirated Windows copies from downloading important updates. Legitimate Windows XP or Vista customers can apply a service pack and let their aged operating systems live another day. But those expired, pirated versions will became the Windows undead. Malware writers can use the Windows undead to haunt the Internet with phishing email or, among other nefarious activities, to use Trojans to control living Windows. Call them the possessed.
Perhaps it's telling that the Honeynet Project uses unpatched Windows 2000 and XP systems to bait botnets: "This system is thus very vulnerable to attacks and normally it takes only a couple of minutes before it is successfully compromised." Microsoft's own data (see chart) shows that older Windows versions are more vulnerable to exploit than newer ones or those older ones with newer service packs. How strange, or perhaps revealing, that Microsoft's twice-yearly Security Intelligence Report ignoresthe topic of unpatched pirated Windows versions.
But older, unpatched operating systems are only part of the problem. There is client software, like the aforementioned IE6, or Office. Microsoft anti-piracy tactics can prevent these products from updating, too. Last year, SANS identified to two serious "cyber security risks," one related to client software. Even when updates are available to legitimate customers, they're too slow to apply them. According to SANS: "On average, major organizations take at least twice as long to patch client-side vulnerabilities as they take to patch operating system vulnerabilities. In other words the highest priority risk is getting less attention than the lower priority risk."
But all of this would matter less if more businesses or consumers used newer software -- and if Microsoft enabled good behavior by shortening lifecycle and backward compatibility support.
Developers: The Undead Slayers
Developers have the power to change Microsoft's behavior. They demonstrated this with Windows Vista, which launched without broad application or hardware driver support. By holding back on Vista, developers contributed to early customer bad experiences using the software. Developers should use this power differently -- to get businesses and consumers off older Microsoft software versions. Adobe and Skype (with Windows Mobile Classic) and Google (with IE6) show the way for other developers. If Microsoft can't pull the plug. They should.
Microsoft is ready to be helped by developers. The company seems near acceptance that prolonged life support is bad business. The Windows XP-to-Windows 7 upgrade process is example. For once, Microsoft put the experience of the newer thing before compatibility with the older thing, by making XP customers do a clean install to Windows 7. Yes, the approach caused customer migration headaches, but Microsoft's priority was in the right place.
Developers also can help kill off the Windows undead, by removing applications -- particularly Web browsers -- for older operating systems. Sure, there are too many torrents to feed the Windows undead with older software, but developers can make a start by officially yanking their stuff.
Security is one consideration. Usability is another. If there's a Moore's Law for software, it's coming from the Internet. New connected Web services and applications pop up every week. Is the better (and safer) experience going to come from IE6 running on Windows 2000 or IE8 (Chrome, Firefox, Opera or Safari) running on Windows 7? The answer isn't rocket science. The scourge of older software creates barriers to innovation.
Look at how Apple handles iTunes or iPhone OS. The upgrades are forced during X time period. For iTunes, users are prodded to upgrade until at some future time they can no longer access the music store without a newer software version. For Mac OS X 10.6 (aka Snow Leopard), Apple encouraged Leopard users to upgrade by $29 pricing -- or $100 less than previous versions. Microsoft does some of this forced upgrading with connected apps like Windows Live Messenger. But, overall, the company's approach favors backward compatibility until the software atrophies on life support.
Pull the plug, developers! Because Microsoft won't do it soon enough otherwise.
Copyright Betanews, Inc. 2010
Popular instant messaging, voice chat, and video conferencing client Skype and Skype Lite are no longer available on Windows Mobile devices.
The company says, "We've chosen to withdraw Skype Lite and Skype for Windows Mobile because we want to offer our new customers an improved mobile experience -- much like the version that has proved so popular on the iPhone, and which is now available on Symbian phones. Our focus is on providing a rich user experience that allows you to enjoy free Skype-to-Skype and low cost calls as easily on the move as you do at your desktop. We felt that Skype Lite and Skype for Windows Mobile were not offering the best possible Skype experience."
Replying to a commenter on WMPoweruser who said Skype was canceled because hardware manufacturers all have different methods of utilizing the earphones and speakers, Skype's Peter Parkes said, "[The] comment above pretty much nails it. It's been very difficult for us to make the experience consistent across a wide range of Windows devices. However, we have a partnership in place with China Unicom to deliver a new beta version to their WM handsets -- where we can work with mobile operators, we'll be able to deliver a Skype experience on the current WM platform which lives up to expectations."
This news comes just over a week after Skype and Verizon Wireless jointly announced that unlimited Skype-to-Skype calls over 3G will be allowed on certain BlackBerry and Android devices.
Copyright Betanews, Inc. 2010
Evernote continues to roll integration with numerous apps and partnerships with assorted hardware manufacturers. The latest partnership comes in the form of Evernote’s SmartSolution now being available for three of Lexmark’s inkjet all-in-one printers, the Interact, Prestige and Platinum.
This new integration allows users to send hardcopy scans into Evernote straight from their Lexmark machine with a single touch of a button.
I’ve been using this solution with my Fujitsu ScanSnap lately, as I have been digitizing my assorted notebooks from numerous seminars and training I’ve attended over the years in preparation for the upcoming iPad.
Tags: Announcements & News
Following the steady inflow of USB 3.0-enabled devices, hardware manufacturers have increased their efforts to deliver newer and faster USB 3.0 adapters or motherboards with built-in support for the new standard. Aiming to increase the range of USB 3.0 storage devices and, thus, give an extra reason for the adoption of USB 3.0 ... (read more)
The New York Times is reporting that Walmart has agreed to buy Vudu, a streaming movie rental service. Despite its status as one of the biggest DVD and Blu-ray retailers in the country, Walmart has yet to make any moves into online video--until now. And Walmart has the ability to shake up the field more than any other retailer.
Vudu is a well-regarded streaming video service; they started out making set-top boxes but recently abandoned that market to focus on packaging their software into TVs and Blu-ray decks from partners like Vizio, Samsung, LG, Sharp, and Toshiba. Unlike Netflix, the current big dog in the streaming video scene, Vudu also incorporates other media services like Pandora and Flickr, and compatibility with social networking services like Facebook and Twitter (although it remains to be seen whether anybody, anywhere, actually wants to read Twitter on a television). Vudu was the first to stream 1080p video, and still boasts some of the highest-quality streaming video around, but lacks the name recognition, back catalog, and big-money push of Netflix. That last item is certainly no longer a problem, with Walmart at Vudu's back.
Peter Kafka over at All Things D puts the purchase price at "more than $100 million," a hefty sum for a company that's never actually made money. But the purchase makes a lot of sense: Vudu already has great relationships with hardware manufacturers, and a source claims that Vudu was courting Best Buy (Walmart's main brick-and-mortar electronics competitor), Comcast, and Amazon due to its excellent optimization technology. Walmart needs Vudu; the retailer lags behind competitors like Best Buy in sales of Internet-connected TVs, and needs to make a stand in this lucrative and forward-looking market category.
Walmart should be able to promote Vudu-enabled hardware better than Vudu themselves ever could--hardware manufacturers would be much more inclined to bundle in Vudu if they know their product will have the backing of the country's biggest retailer. Whether Walmart will get more involved in the software side of things remains to be seen, but Walmart is known for taking what could charitably be called a "family-friendly" course in terms of which TV and movies it stocks--and Vudu has, among other things, a porn channel, which Walmart will presumably nix as soon as possible.
Other video rental companies should be nervous about this acquisition. Netflix is the obvious target, and Vudu has a long way to go before it's a legitimate challenger to Netflix's throne--but that's not to say it can't happen. Microsoft is making a big push with Zune, but it's currently only available on PC, Xbox 360 and a few portables--not enough. Apple is a non-starter (nobody, even Apple fanatics, likes the Apple TV), and both Amazon and BlockBuster are fading fast.
Redbox is the most interesting competition here; its dirt-cheap kiosks are in thousands of Walmart stores, and now the little company that could has to contend with one of its biggest partners essentially backing a different horse. Redbox declined to comment on the story, but you've got to believe they're a little irked at Walmart promoting a competing service.
[Via New York Times]
Matt Gemmell:
It’s difficult to get our heads around the fact that these non-technologically-savvy users can suddenly constitute a core market for a device, yet that’s the case here. Nintendo saw it, and Apple sees it too. It’s an uncomfortable realisation since these people are so unfamiliar to people like you, as hardware manufacturers, and me as a software engineer. This discomfort leads to a kind of understandable blindness, and more importantly can make us leave money on the table. The relative sales and demand figures for Wii vs PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 over the last several Christmases are indicative of that.
Matt Gemmell on How to Compete With iPad
- Paul Reynolds
Well known WiMAX Chipset manufacturer Beceem announced this week that it is developing a dual 4G chip that offers both WiMAX and LTE connectivity at downlink speeds up to 150 Mbps. The new BCS500 multi-mode chip will seamlessly handoff a connection between WiMAX and LTE and supports the latest revision of both standards. The chip could be a boon to both hardware manufacturers and MVNOs who can now design hardware and sell connectivity solutions that utilize both 4G networks. A dual 4G device also enables drop dead easy global roaming as a customer on an LTE network in the U.S. can utilize a WiMAX network while visiting Russia. Just in time for the commercialization of LTE in the United States, the Beceem BCS500 is expected to be sampled to customers in Q4 2010 and available for mass production in Q2 2011.
Apple's corporate headquarters, PR megamachine and primary customer base are in the US. Their products, on the other hand, come directly from Chinese hardware manufacturers. Like Apple, they're good at keeping secrets. Unlike Apple, they're sometimes violent about it.
In writing an exposé on Apple's supply chain, Reuters' reporters fleshed out what we already know: There's an immense pressure on companies under contract with Apple not to leak any information about forthcoming products; said companies have shady labor histories; working for one of these companies frankly sounds terrifying.
We touched on these problems when Foxconn was accused of driving an employee to suicide over an iPhone prototype leak last year, but at the time, our picture of Foxconn was patched together from a pile of second and third-hand reports, conflicting local news stories, and PR spin. To date, there hasn't been a better illustration of the problem than this
Tipped by a worker outside the Longhua complex that a nearby Foxconn plant was manufacturing parts for Apple too, our correspondent hopped in a taxi for a visit to the facility in Guanlan, which makes products for a range of companies.
As he stood on the public road taking photos of the front gate and security checkpoint, a guard shouted. The reporter continued snapping photos before jumping into a waiting taxi. The guard blocked the vehicle and ordered the driver to stop, threatening to strip him of his taxi license.
The correspondent got out and insisted he was within his rights as he was on the main road. The guard grabbed his arm. A second guard ran over, and with a crowd of Foxconn workers watching, they tried dragging him into the factory.
The reporter asked to be let go. When that didn't happen, he jerked himself free and started walking off. The older guard kicked him in the leg, while the second threatened to hit him again if he moved. A few minutes later, a Foxconn security car came along but the reporter refused to board it. He called the police instead.
After the authorities arrived and mediated, the guards apologized and the matter was settled. The reporter left without filing a complaint, though the police gave him the option of doing so.
"You're free to do what you want," the policeman explained, "But this is Foxconn and they have a special status here. Please understand."
So, let's get this straight: If you, a reporter, take pictures of the outside of a Foxconn factory, you can dragged, kicked, threatened, and reminded of how ominously "special" Foxconn's relationship with Apple makes them. (PS: Omigod, have you heard about the new iPad!?)
For Apple, this could mean two things: That they long ago entered into business with a company that's predisposed to violent enforcement of security policy; or that their extreme demands for secrecy, and extreme value to Foxconn, have driven the company to become this way.
In neither situation can you call Apple the culprit. In both, though, they're at the very least silently complicit. [Reuters via Business Insider]
(Despite the gloss of Microsoft's presentation, I still have some questions. First and foremost, is Microsoft planning on a branded smartphone to go along with the devices from its hardware partners? Will devices in the Windows Phone 7 Series be able to multitask, unlike Apple's iPhone? What form will its revamped mobile-applications Marketplace take? And I'm guessing--but it's still unconfirmed--that the devices will support Silverlight for A/V, if only because Adobe and Microsoft officials both told me that Windows Phone 7 will not support Flash at the outset.)
Near the end of the presentation, Microsoft flashed the logos of its hardware partners in the endeavor, including Qualcomm (which will apparently work on optimizing hardware and software), Hewlett-Packard, HTC, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, and Dell. Microsoft has indicated that its various OEMs will produce devices that stick close to a single hardware template, emphasizing the touch-screen as well as three mechanical buttons (Start, Search, and Back). Most of those hardware partners have a good deal of experience in the mobile-device arena, but the sight of Dell's logo made me wonder if the computer-maker was planning to join them in releasing a Windows Phone 7 Series device.
A discussion with a Microsoft executive immediately following the conference yielded nothing on that front, except the claim that hardware manufacturers were still finalizing their plans. But I'm betting it'll look something like the Mini 3:
On Jan. 6, Reuters published a story about Dell offering its Mini 3 touch-screen smartphone in the U.S., with Google Android for an operating system and AT&T providing coverage. The device was predicted to hit the market sometime before June 2010, according to the report, but there was no word on a price-point. (It's already been released in China and Brazil.)
Dell clearly wants to be a player in mobile devices, which seems to be a smart move on the surface: as every pundit and their mother has noted over the past year, smartphones as mobile computing platforms have become the Next Big Thing, even as traditional PC sales remained anemic for much of 2009. In its official announcement, however, Dell declined to offer any sort of specs, which makes it difficult to compare against another touch-screen device like, say, the Nexus One (although they did offer that photograph of the prototype, above).
But if Dell also issues a device that runs Windows Phone 7, I'll bet it has a form-factor very similar to the Mini 3, albeit with those three mechanical buttons that'll likely be standard in all devices running the operating system. At the very least, we'll find out by the fourth quarter of 2010, when the first Windows Phone 7 devices are slated to hit the marketplace.
(And by the way, my theory that Microsoft would roll its newest mobile operating system into the wild by the end of 2010? Completely validated. All hail my predictive powers.)
After 2 days of meeting with tens of companies, probably over 100 by this point, I’ve finally found something that I’d personally call interesting. Funny thing is the company that made this device is from Finland, the country I’ve been living in for the past 2.5 years. I’ve never heard of them, but I’m certain the entire world will know about them by the end of this year.
Image via C|Net (April 2008)Aava, Finnish for open, is a company less than a year old based out of the city of Oulu, employees roughly 40 employees, some of them are former Flextronics engineers, that built a reference design that utilizes Intel’s Moorestown platform. You get a 45 nanometer Lincroft CPU, “no comment” on the clock speed, a Langwell southbridge, an ST-Ericsson modem that can handle up to 7.2 Mbps HSPA, WiFi, GPS, and all the sensors you could want. People like you and me, consumers, will not buy devices from Aava, hardware manufacturers will make devices utilizing the Aava platform, and they’ll be shipping by the end of this year. Whose already signed up to build devices using Aava’s technology? “No comment.”
50 cent EUR coin has a diameter of 24.25 mmCodename Virta, Finnish for stream, was the device that Aava was showing in conjunction with Intel. When I asked Intel whether or not it would be technically feasible to run Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) Windows, Pankaj Kedia, Director of Global Ecosystem Programs, said that they’re not going to talk about that right now. He said that this meeting was about the reference design Aava created.
The BIOS screen every PC user knows all too well; LG GW990I already know the answer to that question, It’s yes, but I was curious to hear what Intel had to say since they’re now no longer being burdened by relying on Microsoft to help them sell chips. Intel would like a chip inside everything, including smartphones, and I can realistically say that Aava, with Virta, has made a huge leap forward today bringing that vision to reality.
Virta officially supports Moblin 2.1 (technically MeeGo now), Android 2.1, and Qt, but it’s x86 so it can realistically run Windows 98 too if you’re into torturing yourself for pleasure. It has a 864 x 480 pixel screen resolution, odd I know, and I double checked that, but customers will be able to use whatever screen they want.
Nexus One on top, Virta on bottomWhen I asked about battery life, Pankaj would not give me a number, but said that it would be “competitive with what’s on the market today.” Intel has a lot to prove in that regard, and they know that.
Update: Oh and one more thing, the LG-GW990 was just casually sitting on the meeting room table. You can bet it’s probably built on Aava’s technology. Intel, nor Aava, would not confirm that fact, but why else would it be there? There’s also a photo of the Virta with the battery cover off right after the jump.
Related News from IntoMobile:
Sky TV last night outlined its vision for 3D, insisting collaboration between the television and games industries plus hardware manufacturers would drive uptake of the new standard, launching later this year.
Speaking at a Sky-sponsored event at BAFTA in central London, Sky Arts channel director John Cassy argued that, unlike the advent of HD there was "no format war" with 3D, with "everyone behind it this time – games makers, broadcasters, producers and manufacturers".
Responding to a question from GamesIndustry.biz on whether Sky would be targeting gamers as key early adopters of the new technology, Stuart Murphy, director of programming for Sky 1 HD, Sky 1, 2 and 3, hailed the firm's existing relationship with Microsoft – with Sky Player available to Xbox users – and suggested Sky would be keen on "working super-closely with the games industry", though the broadcaster had "yet to work out" its strategy.
HTC HD mini launched at MWC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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HTC HD mini launched at MWC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Continue reading Editorial: Engadget on Windows Phone 7 Series
Editorial: Engadget on Windows Phone 7 Series originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Editorial: Engadget on Windows Phone 7 Series originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsToday, a group of the most prominent wireless operators in the world announced its intent to form an "open app store," that is capable of vending applications to all mobile phone users.
Calling itself the "Wholesale Applications Community," the group is made up of 24 of the biggest mobile network operators including China Mobile, Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, NTT DoCoMo, Telefonica, SK Telecom, Sprint, AT&T, Verizon Wireless, and hardware manufacturers LG, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson.
The group says it aims to set up the simplest way for developers to publish to the widest range of users and devices, or "scale unparalleled by any application distribution ecosystem in existence today."
It's a goal others are trying to reach...the decades-old WORA (Write Once, Run Anywhere) ideal. Adobe, for example announced today that it is bringing its AIR runtime environment to Android, which lets users develop across multiple platforms.
But the WAC today said it will utilize mobile widget language JIL (Joint Innovation Lab) and application runtime OMTP BONDI to reach that goal, rather than devise new standards for developers to be able to write once and run anywhere.
JIL is currently in beta and BONDI is only up to version 1.1, but they both have SDKs available for download now.
Copyright Betanews, Inc. 2010
Continue reading Twenty-four telecom operators unite to form Wholesale Applications Community
Twenty-four telecom operators unite to form Wholesale Applications Community originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 05:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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