When Apple (AAPL) first filed suit against HTC, I speculated that one reason Cupertino might have chosen the company as a target — beyond the sheer number of Android and Windows Mobile devices it manufactures — was that as a contract manufacturer it might lack the strong patent portfolio needed to defend itself. And now it seems that this is indeed the case. A Deutsche Bank analysis of yearly patent filings by Apple, HTC and Google, reveals that Apple is by far the leader and HTC the laggard. Over the past few years,
Apple has amassed some 3000 patents, HTC just 58. “HTC has had comparatively few patent filings leading up to the introduction of the original iPhone in June 2007,” Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore explained in a note to clients this past weekend. “Specifically, HTC filed zero patents with the US Patent office between 2004 and 2007 while Apple filed 507 and Google filed 67 over the same period.”
Now, Deutsche Bank’s analysis doesn’t categorize any of these patents, so it’s impossible to say which apply to Apple’s suit against HTC. But the pauciity of patents held by the latter certainly suggests it could find itself at a severe disadvantage in this battle.
Further Reading:
When Apple (AAPL) first filed suit against HTC, I speculated that one reason Cupertino might have chosen the company as a target — beyond the sheer number of Android and Windows Mobile devices it manufactures — was that as a contract manufacturer it might lack the strong patent portfolio needed to defend itself. And now it seems that this is indeed the case. A Deutsche Bank analysis of yearly patent filings by Apple, HTC and Google, reveals that Apple is by far the leader and HTC the laggard. Over the past few years,
Apple has amassed some 3000 patents, HTC just 58. “HTC has had comparatively few patent filings leading up to the introduction of the original iPhone in June 2007,” Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore explained in a note to clients this past weekend. “Specifically, HTC filed zero patents with the US Patent office between 2004 and 2007 while Apple filed 507 and Google filed 67 over the same period.”
Now, Deutsche Bank’s analysis doesn’t categorize any of these patents, so it’s impossible to say which apply to Apple’s suit against HTC. But the pauciity of patents held by the latter certainly suggests it could find itself at a severe disadvantage in this battle.
Further Reading:
Back in June, Jason took at look at the Poynt application for the Blackberry OS. He called it a “staple” on his Blackberry and one of the best applications available.
Well Poynt is back, this time with a release for the iPhone OS. The free application hit the iTunes App Store early last week, and I’ve had some time to play with the all-in-one location based search powerhouse.
Has Poynt become a staple on my iPhone like it did on Jason’s Blackberry?
Read on to find out.
Related posts:
The HTC Desire — the device has got a lot going for it. The Desire is virtually identical to the Nexus One, yet sexier since it has HTC’s Sense. What else could make the device dethrone the Nexus One as the top dog of the Android kingdom? Well, it may be gaining DivX support, as well as 720P video encoding in an upcoming update!
If we go back to the roadmap leaked way back in December, the Bravo clearly says ‘HD Ready’ on it, so it would be assumed that it would only be a matter of time before we got to see this feature enabled. Supposedly this was going to be a feature all along, but it didn’t make it in time for the launch of the device. What it does not say is that it may support DivX in the future, so it is a pleasant surprise to hear it will be coming to the device in the future.
DivX support will make it easy to throw some movies on your SD card, and have them play seamlessly, without restrictions. Their are applications in the market that support DivX, but they are very unstable, and not at all a joy to use. There are also people trying to get people to sign a petition to bring PSX, and N64 emulators to Android, as well as DivX support. While that sounds nice and all, who knows if that’ll ever happen. But I must admit, it would be nice to have VLC on my Nexus One.
So far, the only Android device to support DivX is the Samsung Spica. Although it is rumored to receive the Android 2.1 update at some point, it is no where near up to snuff to the likes of the Desire. Spica owners may be laughing now, but the Desire will crush it in all its 3.7″, AMOLED glory once they get the support for DivX. Also also coming up in the update is 720P video encoding, which will enable a user to record in HD, and I think everyone can be thankful for that.
So while the Spica may be the only kid on the block to support such features as DivX, those days are numbered. Also, when the Desire gets this supposed update, you can bet that eventually, either through HTC themselves, or the devs over at XDA, this ‘update’ will make it to the Nexus One someway, somehow.
[Via : MobileTechWorld ]
Related News from IntoMobile:
Gaming on a larger, higher resolution display already has some salivating over the iPad’s potential. Kotaku today shares the “first ever gloriously big, gloriously detailed” pics of game specifically headed for Apple’s newest creation, and they do indeed look good. I tend to keep my gaming life separate from everything else, so I rely on an Xbox 360 — I play a mean Hofner bass in Beatles: RockBand, for example. But I dabbled with a few iPhone games when I had the device. Now that I’m solely using a Google Nexus One, I haven’t even looked into any gaming — I had it in my head that all the good games were in Apple’s ecosystem and that Android couldn’t possibly have much to offer. After installing the free trial of HomeRun Battle 3D this past weekend, I realize that I’ve been walking past a mobile gaming opportunity.
The first thing I noticed about this game is how well the graphics look on the high-res Nexus One display. It certainly doesn’t hurt that this handset offers enough horsepower to make the game run smoothly. Although simple in style, I’d equate the look to be at least as good as that of a Nintendo DS title, if not better. Have a look at this video to get a feel for the gameplay and the visuals on a Motorola Droid — I balked at doing my own vid because I’m not that good just yet. 
This same title is available for iPhone and it was wise of the developer to offer cross-platfrom, multi-player support. An iPhone gamer can play locally against an Android slugger, for example. I haven’t done that just yet, but I did play seven rounds with someone in South Korea. Why so many? I lost the first six rounds — ’nuff said.
I have little doubt that games on the 1024 x 768 iPad screen will shine, and I’m sure to check them out when the device hits stores. But I incorrectly assumed that Android didn’t have anything to offer in the way of gaming entertainment. Back in January, this video of 50 different Android games didn’t impress me that much. Between my HomeRun Derby 3D experience and videos of other new games like ExZeus and others, I’m coming to appreciate what game shops can do with Android. No, one game doesn’t make it a winning platform by any means, but there’s far more potential here than I expected to find. I’m sure we have some mobile gamers out there, so I have to ask — what other games should I be looking at on my Nexus One? I’ll let you compile a list while I head virtually to South Korea for an eighth match.
Image courtesy of Com2uS
Related research on GigaOM Pro (sub req’d):
Could Games Redeem Windows Mobile & Palm’s webOS
What do you get when you mix a Unicorn and a Nexus One? I’ve got no idea – but if you put an iPhone and Furby together, you get a Xachi pet. Announced last week at the American International Toy Fair, a Xachi (pronounced “ZAH-chee”) Pet is an iPhone-controlled toy. It looks kind of like a Furby with a giant LED screen in place of its face. And, yes, you interface with your Xachi Pet through your iPhone/iPod.
It’s pretty a simple concept, but it’s the first time I’ve seen someone pull it off. The closest thing to an iPhone-enabled toy on the market is a helicopter with your iPhone as a remote control, and that’s not exactly cute and cuddly.
Read the rest at MobileCrunch >>
With HTC's upcoming crop of Androids, you'll be able to separate people into two distinct groups: those who spring for the brainier, better-specced Desire, and those who get bowled over by the beautiful, yet lesser-specced Legend.
The Desire (or Nexus One) is the final word in the Androidsphere—it's a mark of someone who knows what they're doing, who wants to show people they NEED that extra computing power. If you compare it to the Legend, you could be justified in saying Legend-salivators are more shallow, ignoring the might of a Snapdragon processor in lieu of a unibody aluminum shell and slim build.
You'd be wrong, however.
The internal upgrades are minor, when you consider it next to the HTC Hero, but like the Empire That Strikes Back, sometimes sequels are far better than the original. While we found the Hero "tragically flawed" in its slugginess, the Legend's slightly more powerful 600MHz processor behaved—well, like a legend. The 3.2-inch screen has the same amount of pixels as the Hero, but swaps the HVGA for a more superior AMOLED. The 5.0-megapixel camera is still the same quality, but has the much-welcomed addition of a flash. You get the picture—the Legend is building on the Hero's quality in incremental upgrades, but every change, however minor, radicalizes the experience of using the Legend.
It's running Android 2.1, which as any Hero owner knows should be released as an over-the-air update soon. One day. The jump from 1.6 to 2.1 is impressive—it's a lot faster, the multitouch is better, there's greater integration of social networking profiles with contacts, and HTML5 support, amongst other—admittedly small—changes.
Plain and simple—the Legend is the most well-built phone I've ever had in my hand. You just know when you feel the weight of it, the cool curved exterior of the unibody aluminum shell, and touch the ultra-responsive touchscreen. It's that sensation when you first tenderly held the original iPhone, which has been long-missing in the market.
The bottom and top of the back is actually made from rubberized plastic though, so there are no issues with wireless signals—unlike the first generation of the iPhone. Removing part of the case reveals a very thin battery and a touch-sensitive catch which keeps the SIM and microSD cards encased. It's a small point, but it's also the most polished example of a phone's innards that I've ever seen.
Just like BlackBerry, HTC is migrating its trackballs to optical trackpads. This is a relief, but in actual fact I barely had to use the trackpad—only when having to make an edit when typing out messages or emails. The screen is just so responsive, with nary a wrongly-actioned command made, that you can imagine HTC forgoing the trackpad altogether at a later date.
Only eight buttons reside on the Legend's body. The on/off button up top, the two volume controls on the top left, and then on the lower face, home, menu, back and search. They all worked well, though the home, menu, back and search keys did feel a bit cheap in comparison to the high-end feeling of the rest of the handset.
HTC's used the same 5.0-megapixel camera as we saw on the Hero, but the addition of a flash is a new and exciting step for them—strange as that sounds. As you can see from the two photos below, the flash is very strong—too strong, I'd say. However, the quality is decent in lowlight conditions—noisy for sure, but I've seen worse.
Lowlight in a cinema before Alice In Wonderland 3D
In daytime I had a lot more luck. Testing it out on some cakes in my kitchen in the late afternoon sun retained the nice rays of sun across the cakes, with the yellow of the flowers showing up bright. But even at 5MP, the general image performance isn't enough to ditch your point and shoot just yet.
Testing indoors with daylight
Most manufacturers are skinning Android with their own proprietary interfaces...MOTOBLUR, Mediascape, S-Class, they're ok, but I'd almost rather use Android in its natural flavor than have to put up with some of their issues.
There just ain't no Android phone like a HTC Sense Android phone. It's simply the best skin an Android could ask for, even without the minor improvements seen in the Legend. By far the pick of the bunch is the new "Leap" view—or "Helicopter view" as it was known in-house when designed. It works much like Mac OS X's Exposé function, bringing all seven homescreens up as thumbnails. The feature is very useful, particularly if you just can't remember which screen your mail, or the weather widget, is listed on. The pinch command takes some getting used to, but once you've got the gesture down-pat, it's a godsend.
Leap—or helicopter—view
But with ever feature that will be used often comes one with no point at all. FriendStream is a nice enough widget, which collates all your friends' updates from Twitter, Facebook and Flickr into one feed, but for anyone who's a purist and likes to see every form of update on each social networking site, it will be removed quickly from the homescreen. I preferred using HTC's own brilliant Twitter widget, Peep, for the full Twitter options, and the Facebook app to see every form of action. The Flickr integration is handy, being able to see when my contacts upload photos, but not necessary if you get email notifications already.
Plus, FriendStream just felt slow sometimes—in fact, on a very speedy phone, it felt incongruous in comparison to everything else, often updating with tweets quite a few minutes later than the Twitter widget did. It's not a big problem, but for someone who relies on Twitter heavily as a source of entertainment, it became a source of frustration.
FriendStream
The Legend ran 36 hours before it died on me. Not too bad, considering I had an hour-long call plus about five shorter ones, sent and received around 20 text messages, and spent almost a whole day browsing the web, checking Twitter, and showing it off to my friends. After the horror of seeing my G1's battery deplete in half a day when I first bought it, the Legend's 1300mAh battery ran to my satisfaction.
True, other phones may be better specced, but with that premium build it's like comparing a Sony Vaio (not a bad laptop, sure) to a MacBook. Sometimes there's just no contest. While the extra horsepower and added touches of the Nexus One and Desire are nice, I found the Legend more than satisfactory.
It wasn't sluggish, certainly didn't have bugs or issues like the G1 and Hero, and while it'll inevitably slow down and have you cursing the fact you didn't spring for something with a Snapdragon chip, I'm going to award it possibly the highest accolade a reviewer can gift a device: I'm going to upgrade to one.
It's not the best Android phone. That badge still belongs to the Nexus One, or possibly the Desire, when we review it. But it's one of the best all-rounders, when you consider the hardware—and the feeling you're left with once it leaves your hand. I feel bereft without it.
Superb hardware quality
HTC Sense is better than ever
Addition of camera flash
Super-fast and responsive
FriendStream could be faster
Camera flash isn't perfect
The HTC Legend hasn't been announced for the US market yet, with the European launch sometime this month.
Early this morning I wrote about the hardware issues I’ve had with my iPhones. I already have a T-Mobile SIM card and I’ve been eying the Nexus One since they were announced a couple of months ago. Judie, Larry and Dan have each had a chance to use a Nexus One for an extended period of time and they have a lot of good things to say about the device. They also list five things that they don’t like about the device, including three things that would prevent me from buying one.
There’s no shortage of Nexus One reviews, but I really enjoyed reading the Gear Diary team’s review. I like the fact that they focused on issues that average users would like and dislike rather than getting overly geeky or talking about how opensource is the future of mobile. For example, “Customer Service was Awful” is pretty easy to understand.
The Nexus One is a device that I really want to like, but mixed reviews like this one are keeping me from pull the trigger. That and the $529 no-contract price tag.
Head over to Gear Diary for the full rundown.
We did little to disguise how impressed we were with the HTC Hero when we reviewed it all the way back in July 2009. At the time we suggested it was the device with which Android came of age; since then, of course, we’ve seen a huge growth both in the number of manufacturers and devices available, and in Android itself. Into that fray wades the HTC Legend, undoubtedly one of the stand-out devices from MWC 2010 in February and packing the latest versions not only of Android but of HTC’s Sense, which rather fittingly debuted with the Hero. Can HTC history repeat itself? Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut.
HTC Legend unboxing:
Specifications-wise, the Legend marks some key changes over the Hero and some points where we wish HTC had been a little more forthright. The Legend has a 3.2-inch HVGA display, like the Hero, but this time around it’s an AMOLED panel rather than LCD. Similarly, there’s a 5-megapixel autofocus camera, but now it has an LED flash. Where the Hero used a 528MHz chipset, the Legend gets Qualcomm’s 600MHz MSM7227; a speed increase, yes, but short of the 1GHz Snapdragon on the Google Nexus One and HTC’s own Desire.
In fact, there’s a feeling that HTC are pushing the Legend into the mid-range market, rather than aiming for the flagship status the Hero once occupied. We can’t argue the strategy – however much we generally prefer faster processors – and nor can we argue what the Legend brings to its new tier. Most notable is the construction: gone is the Hero’s Teflon-coated plastic, with a new, unibody aluminum casing taking its place. HTC describes their latest design focus as “hidden power”, but with the Legend it’s anything but disguised: by carving the phone’s casing out of a solid block of metal, they’ve been able to do away with a separate outer shell and thus make the whole thing smaller than the smartphone it replaces.
The only plastic to be found is the camera surround – punctuated with holes for the speaker grill – and the battery compartment door, which doubles as the antenna. The row of buttons under the display are also plastic, and they’re the sole point on the Legend where the quality doesn’t feel 100-percent; instead they’re a little too clicky, a little too plasticky. Everywhere else is soft-touch and sturdy, and the Legend feels great in the hand.
Gone, too, is the Hero’s trackball, replaced by an optical joystick. It takes a little getting used to – stroking it from side to side to navigate homescreens or tabs – but once you’re familiar it actually feels more accurate than the trackball ever did. That’s partly because there’s less chance of sideways-slip when you press in to select. As before there are seven homescreen panes and a variety of HTC’s own widgets to fill them with; you can also save various “Scenes”, with layouts and wallpapers suited to different times of day or activity. Not all of HTC’s widgets are loaded by default – there’s a “Get more” shortcut at the top of the list, with things like a tip calculator and a “Daily Challenge” – and we’re hoping that means the company are planning to push out new examples periodically. Panning between panes is swift and lag-free, even if they’re loaded up with widgets, and of course there’s the new – and incredibly addictive – “helicopter view”, which shows Exposé-style thumbnails of all seven panes when you pinch-zoom on the homescreen.
HTC Legend video demo:
Since the Legend runs Android 2.1 and the newest build of HTC Sense, there are several software changes to be discovered. That includes the newer version of the Android Market, complete with screenshot previews, something Hero owners are still waiting for. Still, the biggest improvements are HTC’s own. Unlike the partial Exchange support in Android 2.1, the Legend can sync not only Mail and Contacts but Calendar entries as well. HTC’s own Mail app has had a makeover and now has useful tabs to show not only messages and conversations, but pull out messages from your preset VIPs, unread-only, those flagged, meeting invitations and those with attachments. Where Nexus One owners looking to use Exchange have often had to resort to third-party apps from the Android Market, that’s unlikely to be the case with the HTC Legend.
HTC’s Calendar app has also been tweaked, with a new Agenda view that pulls appointments and reminders into a single list, rather than demanding you navigate by month or date. You can also put an Agenda widget on the homescreen. The other big change, however, comes in how HTC now manage social networks; while the first-gen of Sense added Facebook, Twitter and Flickr updates to individual contacts, there was no way of seeing all recent updates from everybody. Only HTC Peep – their own Twitter client – had such a view.
Now, though, there’s Friend Stream, which pulls together all three services into one view (and a homescreen widget too). As with MOTOBLUR you can update your Facebook status and Twitter from one single point; like the various tabs for drilling-down through messages in the Mail app, Friend Stream has separate tabs for viewing status updates only, just photos or just links. Of course you can still view each contact’s updates separately, or just use Peep for Twitter, but we’re glad to now have the choice. Still, it’d be great to see HTC commit to adding more social networks to their roster, like Motorola have been doing; there are still plenty of people wanting MySpace and LinkedIn, for instance.
There’s also a new copy/paste system which links in neatly to Wikipedia, Google Dictionary and Google Translate. Tapping and holding on a word calls up a small magnifier window and highlights that word; letting go allows you either to drag extender bars to enlarge the selection, or tap to copy it, share it via whatever methods are installed (Mail, Messages and Peep as default, with the Legend automatically URL shortening if necessary), or pushing it over to the look-up services. There, three tabs offer dictionary definitions, various language translations and Wikipedia’s mobile site. Our only one frustration is that, once you’re in the look-up pane, you can’t then tap-and-hold to search for a word in those three tabs; it only offers you the ability to copy that text.
Optics have never been HTC’s strongest point, and the Legend’s camera isn’t a huge step up from that of the Hero. Daylight shots are actually pretty reasonable, with the autofocus quick to snap into order and pressing the optical joystick easier than trying to do the same with the Hero’s trackball. Less impressive, frankly, is the LED flash. HTC told us ahead of the Legend’s launch that they’re currently finding that LEDs can produce just as good results as Xenon flashes but, whether or not you believe that, like other LED-equipped phones we’ve tested it has a tendency either to wash out or under-illuminate the subject. There’s a definite sweet-spot, and it’s a narrow one; particularly frustrating are close-up shots and, as you can see from those in the gallery below, while the Legend was capable of producing a decent shot of a Nexus One while naturally lit, relying on the flash resulted in a seriously washed-out photo. To be fair this is something that affects most camera phones, so we can’t especially blame HTC.
Speaking of Flash, while we were led to believe that the Legend wouldn’t support Flash Lite – unlike the Hero – in actual fact the customized browser does indeed display Flash animations and games. There’s also multitouch support, for pinch-zoom (something not shared by Google Maps), and the usual tabbed browsing. Text-reflowing is impressively quick: a double-tap on a block of writing will automatically zoom in and instantly reflow the paragraph for single-screen reading. We’ve had no problems with flipping from portrait to landscape orientation, and complex websites have rendered with no errors as far as we can see. While the Legend’s display may not be as expansive as that of the Desire, the combination of reflowing, intuitive zooming and overall speed go a long way to overcoming that limitation.
In fact, speed is generally pretty impressive across the board. Our concerns at the relatively minor bump in chipset were founded on repeated complaints about the Hero suffering lag; that’s something HTC have obviously worked hard to code out of the Legend. There’s a little pause as you move between tabs in data-heavy apps like Mail – as the phone pulls out only those messages flagged, for instance, or with attachments – but otherwise it’s slick and smooth. Loaded up with push email, various social networking accounts and media, the Legend does an admirable job of keeping up, and that’s no small relief.
Call quality is good, though we miss the dual-microphone array found on the Google Nexus One. We had no trouble finding and sticking to an HSPA connection, either, with the Legend supporting up to 7.2Mbps downloads and 2Mbps uploads, network depending. Short-sighted, though, is HTC’s decision to limit HSPA/WCDMA support to the European/Asia Pacifit 900/2100MHz bands; while you’ll be able to use EDGE data in most places (the Legend is quadband GSM) you’ll have no luck, say, getting 3G in North America. We understand that’s probably to allow HTC to differentiate their global range, but it’s frustrating nonetheless. Of course, there’s also WiFi b/g (along with Bluetooth 2.1+EDR) for faster connections when you’re around a suitable hotspot.
Given our relatively limited time with the Legend, we haven’t had the opportunity to fully test out its power management. HTC quote up to 440 minutes WCMDA talktime or 490 minutes GSM talktime from the 1,300mAh battery, or up to 560hrs WCDMA standby or 440hrs GSM standby. From what time we’ve had, we’d expect this to be another case of a charge-nightly device, especially if you have push-email and social network updates turned on. One of HTC’s optional widgets is a 1×1 battery meter you can put on your desktop, which is a more telling way to gauge how much runtime you have left.
It’s saying a lot that, when we reviewed the Hero just eight months ago, we had to go pretty much back to basics to explain Android as a platform, but today there’s no such requirement. The standard music player is still uninspiring, and we’re hoping HTC turn their Sense amendments to that next, given Google themselves seem reluctant to do anything about it; still, we’ll take the FM radio they’ve added (which requires a wired headset in order to work) as a start. The jump from Android 1.5 on the Hero to Android 2.1 on the Legend is a sizeable one, though of course HTC are promising a reasonably imminent firmware update that should bring the Hero up to speed. That’s expected to include Android 2.1 Eclair together with many – but not all – of the new Sense functionality.
It’s a long-overdue release, and something Hero owners have been anticipating for some time; it’s also a moderate cause for concern for those considering the HTC Legend. As we’ve increasingly seen with manufacturer-modified Android devices – not just from HTC, but other companies as well – there’s a potential for delay involved when you start modifying the core OS. The Hero has been left languishing with Android 1.5 because of the effort its taken bringing Sense up to speed with newer versions of the platform, something initially tipped to be ready late last year.
HTC Legend durability test:
Now, as we’d say with any device, you should always choose a new gadget because it satisfies your needs now, today, out of the box, rather than because it may get some new feature however many months down the line. Still, one of the attractions of Android is undoubtedly its potential for upgrade and the relative speed at which Google are pushing out new iterations. HTC have again pledged to support the Legend with new firmware as and when possible, but it’s up to the would-be buyer to decide whether they’re willing to take the risk of possible delays.
Nonetheless, even if it remained as it is today, the HTC Legend is an impressive device. It no longer occupies the top-spot in HTC’s Android range – the imminent Desire will take that position – but it’s arguably more attractive and pocket-friendly than its sibling. HTC have made some clever, thoughtful enhancements with Sense – Friend Stream and the look-up functionality come particularly to mind – and in doing so they’ve improved on a core platform that already feels reasonably mature. Held up to the mid-range devices it’s being positioned against, the Legend feels a step up in build quality and design; enough, even, that we could well see it tempting some of the geeks who might automatically have plumped for the Desire or Nexus One. The Android landscape may have changed significantly in the months between now and the Hero’s launch, but with the Legend HTC have shown they still have what it takes to stand apart.
Relevant Entries on SlashGear
From the plethora of Android devices that have been lurking around the market lately, only a few seemed to appeal to fans of the operating system. Even though, Google's name should pretty much make sure that a device is sold in large quantities, I believe that the main attraction of Nexus One is the latest Android 2.1 OS. Since Google launched its first G1 smartphone... (read more)
Continue reading A lava lamp and a Nexus One tested under 3Gs of force (video)
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Just when you thought your smartphone is maxed out and can't do much more, along comes the ThinkFlood RedEye mini dongle which allows your iPod Touch or iPhone to become a television remote control. An interesting note about this product is it plugs into the headset jack meaning sound is obviously used to communicate with the dongle which converts the noise to light in order to turn your TV on, off, etc.
This leads us to believe it is a simple matter of additional software to allow this same device to be attached to any other phone in the future. All you need is an additional app which supports your particular phone.
I have mentioned in the past that the ultimate TV experience may be using an iPad to preview multiple channels which can be flicked towards a television. This new gadget is a small step in that direction.
Tags: app store, apple, dongle, ipad, itunes, redeye, remote control, television, thinkflood, zdnet
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Raging Thunder 2 is now available in the Android Market and App Store of the iPhone for download. Polarbit is now out with the second wave of its 3D games.
This game, Raging Thunder 2, is now available in the Android Market for €4.00 ($5.63) and you need to a high-end device like the Nexus One, Desire or Droid to run it.
Raging Thunder 2 features online, cross-platform multiplayer gaming and allows players to challenge strangers around the world to heart pumping racing action whether on an iPhone or Android phone.
Raging Thunder 2 is now available on the iTunes App Store for $4.99, you can download Raging Thunder 2 for iPhone and iPod Touch here: http://itunes.com/apps/ragingthunder2
Raging Thunder 2 is now available in the Android Market for €4.00.
Post from: Sizzled Core
An interesting firefight broke out over the weekend as Google engineer DeWitt Clinton defended Google data policies in Buzz and related “open” standards. Those who remember the politics of RSS and the games companies played around its buildout would recognize a number of the names and tactics of the current positioning. Closed comment threads, insinuations, calls to action — only the names of the bigcos are shifting, and not all that much either.
The latest wrinkle is to describe developer acceptance as the key measurement of open standards. As Clinton and fellow Google evangelists fan out across the realtime stream’s version of the Sunday talk shows, they’re having to argue the borginess of Facebook versus Google. C’mon guys, get serious. Google has the gorilla crown going away.
Think of the breadth and depth of Google’s strategy: own every product category and decorate each with their own metadata. Gmail, done. Apps, done enough. Chrome. OS, Android, Nexus. Now Buzz. What folks who argue against the Google tax don’t understand is that this isn’t going to happen if…. It’s done, banked, in the books, check cashed, burger eaten. Every time a Buzz gets distributed, the addition of key voices from this and previous eras solidifies the new metadata type as the social graph ripples spread.
It doesn’t matter how immature Buzz is compared to other systems; in fact, it just makes the resultant Buzzes on the subject all the more canonical. No matter how long it takes for these systems to converge, each object will have its own metadata stamp. From here on out, Buzz stamps are getting licked and posted in increasingly significant numbers. The big companies behind these moves have learned a lot from the pioneers of RSS and open source, as well as the bigco strategies of Microsoft, IBM, and Oracle/Sun.
But Google has taken all the previous strategies and combined them into one relentless juggernaut: create the data and let the process fall into place around it. It would be cynical to suggest that Google was somehow behind the open standards players who started the ball rolling, but clearly the two groups scratched each other’s backs along the way. Perhaps the key melting pot for this buildout was the Internet Identity Workshop, where key players from Google, Microsoft, and Facebook first got together openly.
Facebook seems to have the most to gain by adoption of the various open standards. It mutes the argument that the social media giant is a closed, proprietary system by pushing the discussion to its Adsense-like Facebook Connect. This in turn fueled the idea that Facebook’s huge developer community makes adopting the Facebook API’s a more logical choice than Google forcing their own set. DeWitt Clinton simply ignored the suggestion.
He also doesn’t touch the suggestion that Dave Winer’s RSS and RSS Cloud be supported. This is a mistake, by the way. Noise from Atom mainstays about how Atom is better architected and more robust aside, the best way to marginalize RSS is to implement it and move on. It will be interesting to watch whether Clinton will continue to stonewall, or pass the ball to someone with more clout and willingness to think strategically and act tactically.
It’s likely Buzz has already survived, riding shotgun with the Nexus One release as Google executes on several different fields simultaneously. The Android code is infuriatingly unstable, but the overriding message is one of rapid innovation and aggressive challenge to Apple’s one-thought invulnerable crown. Nothing suggests that Steve Jobs will slow down or be anything but invigorated by the competition, but Google’s strength in cloud computing will take some catching up for Apple.
In the context of the imminent iPad release, Buzz will have a big new stage to finance the next round of improvements. While FriendFeed fans await more rational filtering and UI tweaks, the biggest bang for Google’s buck will be to double down on the email integration. Scorned as a privacy invasion, the built-in integration of relevant Buzzes lets me keep the noise down by only commenting on threads I want to track. The Clinton debates serve as a handy promotional campaign while we wait for the iPad to make additional forays.
For its part, Facebook would do well to adopt a more open stance on Buzz. With plenty of bona fide standards cred on the line, Facebook has been pretty well locked down since Buzz shipped. Perhaps the strategy is to go the big media route with IPO talk, but the silence over the FriendFeed acquisition is disingenuous, particularly given the founders’ willingness to share and learn from customers and the addicted press. Buzz’s weaknesses highlight why the company bought FriendFeed, and not in a flattering way.
Salesforce remains the wildcard, with Chatter suggesting a subscription model for micromessaging that flies in the face of Marc Andreesen’s conversation with Eric Schonfeld. We’ll know soon, because Chatter has plenty of room to maneuver in the absence of a Microsoft strategy for realtime. The window won’t stay open forever, however. But Benioff has been underestimated for years, and never more so than with Chatter.
So prepare yourself for a few weeks of jawboning about the new reality, as Buzz continues to fire more and more objects into the stream, creating more and more metadata as those objects are consumed, ignored, threaded into Twitter and FriendFeed chats, and in general recalling the late great days when all this stuff was invented, bearhugged, and muzzled. Buzz suggests there’s life in the old strategies, even when the shoe has moved to the other foot.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
Some chatter over the last two days suggests that Google plays favorites. Google does play favorites, but it does its head patting in subtle ways; that is, if you see the Nexus One roll out as a low key initiative. Navigate to the SP Trading Desk and the story “Google’s Nexus One Upsets Carriers.” You may have to do some work to see the story. The ads load slowly and then there is a weird pop over thing, but the content is still there.
The Financial Post said:
The launch of Google Inc.’s new Web-enabled smartphone, dubbed Nexus One, means the end of the Internet search giant’s Android software as we know it.
The insight comes from an analyst, Peter Misek.
The story points out that some telecommunications carriers are not jumping with joy over Google’s intrusion into yet another parcel of telco land. Google, the analyst and the telcos, now realize that:
Google is trying to circumvent their ownership of networks, spectrum and customers…Android is currently available on more than a 20 phones.
Now how can Google disadvantage competitors. My goodness, I am no Elizabeth Barrett Browning but let me count some of the ways:
Back to the gossip and rumors. Does Google advantage itself? Do Google employees use MOMA?
Stephen E Arnold, March 8, 2010
No one paid me to write this. I will report non payment to that most objective of US government entities, the FCC.
Judie: When Dan, Larry and I attended Digital Experience, a product showcase at CES, there was one particular device which caught our immediate attention. Unlike all of the other gadgets and electronic items we saw on display and which were currently available for purchase, the HTC Google Nexus One was the one that we gathered around, drooled over, and all immediately made plans to order.
Dan and I purchased ours as soon as we got back to our rooms that evening to be delivered FedEx overnight to my hotel in Las Vegas by Friday afternoon. Our experience would later become blog post fodder, ultimately ending up in a month-long quest to get our original purchases refunded. Larry was patient and smart; he waited until he had returned home before placing his order. While Dan’s and my returns were in limbo, Dan just couldn’t stand it … he ordered his second Nexus One before the first had been refunded. I decided that I would wait until I got my money back before I tied up any more. While I was waiting for my refund, I was pleased to receive notice that I would be sent a sample unit on 30 day loan.
Now all three of us have had time with the device, and we are ready to share ten things we like about the Nexus One, and five things we don’t.
Related posts:
We know AT&T is planning to bring Palm’s WebOS into its fold sometime in the first half of 2010 in the form of two devices, as announced earlier this year. What we don’t know is which devices will grace the second-largest wireless carrier in the US with its presence. The Pre Plus and Pixi Plus already are in the plans for AT&T, but what if there’s a third, unannounced Palm with WebOS that will be featured exclusively on the same network?
That’s the big rumor of the weekend, according to PreCentral. A couple of users have come across info about a device code-named Palm Elan, which sounds as though it will be a full touchscreen with soft keyboard; in other words, the same slate style as the iPhone and Nexus One. Recently several accessory manufacturers had made mention of an Elan on their website (though that information has been taken down since). Also, the sources claim AT&T will begin testing of the Elan within the next two weeks and will initially be released in Europe.
On top of this news, a forum member at PreCentral is an AT&T employee who says that he has finished testing for the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus, and that it should be basking in the flourescent lights of the AT&T stores by May 10. This would fulfill the promise of two WebOS devices by June, made by CEO Ralph de la Vega in January.
So to recap, AT&T could likely release the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus by May, and the Elan at some unspecified time (most likely in second half 2010). Again this is all hearsay and not confirmed in any way. But if it really is true, the Palm Elan would be the slate Palm device that so many Palm fans have been waiting for. Palm fanboys, sound off: are you interested? Intrigued? Curious?
via PreCentral via EngadgetMobile
Nexus One is currently the most powerful Android phone available in the market right now. There other cools ones coming too, like the HTC Desire, but for now, Nexus One is the one to go for if you want to experience Android OS.
Even with so many features, the Nexus One is powered with a 1400 mAh battery which hardly gives around 6-7 hours for full-time users. Battery timing was improved a lot in the last software update, but still 1400mAh is not enough.
Google introduced additional batteries last week for the Nexus One, but they are of same size – An official 1600 mAh battery would have been great! For those who don’t want additional batteries, can go with this Nexus One Emergency Charger.
Features
This charges would allow you to charge your phone anytime and anywhere you want. All you need to do is carry around this charger and a 1.5 AA battery as it uses that to power your phone.
Nexus One Emergency Charger is available at a sale price for $5.99 – Order Now!
[Via Mascobz]
Post from: Sizzled Core
Now I know how the Bachelor and Bachelorette feel because I’m in love with two… smartphones. I’ve been using an iPhone on and off (on since last July when I purchased the 3GS) since it was originally released and our relationship has been sort of love hate. Love because of the apps. Hate because it does not have dedicated call send and end buttons. I haven’t been exclusive to the iPhone though. I am guilty of flirting with other phones, but they meant nothing to me and I continue to come back to the iPhone after a brief tryst. The G1 hit my radar over a year ago and although I found it interesting, it didn’t go much farther than that. But things have drastically changed in the past year. As Apple continues to alienate users, Android has been gaining momentum. I thought it was high time I gave Android another try to see if it could win my heart from the iPhone. I purchased the Nexus One and now I find that I’m torn between two phones. … [visit site to read more]
Filed in categories: Android related, Reviews
Nexus One Android Smartphone Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on March 7, 2010 at 12:45 pm.
Never underestimate the the investigative search prowess of PreCentral members. Shadow360 tips us to let us know that he's done some digging based off some information dropped by TopTongueBarry and the results bring us a sliver of hope that the full-touchscreen, slate-style, high-end halo webOS device we've been hoping for could indeed be a reality in the coming months.
It beings with TopTongueBarry, a self-professed AT&T IT employee who posted saying that not only has testing finished for the Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus, but that testing will soon begin for a mystery device codenamed 'Elan.' That matches up well with previous forum sluethery, wherein TonyCipriani noted that May 10th looks like as good a date as any for AT&T to release the Pre and Pixi.
But back to that Elan. It's new to us and it was new to Shadow-360, who took to the Google and posted his results: Several accessory manufacturers had once listed devices as compatible with the Elan but since took that information down. TopTongueBarry also provided some hints: AT&T testing for the Elan should begin within about two weeks, scuttlebut within AT&T says that the device should have a 'soft keyboard,' be released in Europe initially, but may be made available unlocked in the US. All that points to a iPhone / Nexus One slate format, as does the fact that some of the accessories Shadow-360 tracked down were also compatible with the iPhone.
So where do we stand with all this hunting around? Either it's smoke and mirrors and Elan is simply another code name for the O8F-CASC / US GSM Palm Pre Plus or it's what Shadow-360 and TopTongueBarry suspect: something all-new and the most exciting thing going for webOS rumors given that Sprint's mysterious C40 still hasn't shown its face
Bonus rumor-mongering: Why call it 'Elan?' Well, another 'Elan' in the tech space is a Taiwanese company that sued Apple for multitouch patents. If this even comes close to panning out, that'd be schadenfreude-riffic.
Speaking of Jason Snell, he’s got a thoughtful look at the Nexus One and Android, particularly in comparison to the iPhone.
