Apple Vs Google

A deal between Apple and Microsoft may mean iPhone owners would automatically get Microsoft's Bing as the main search engine. That means that Google being now the default search engine on the iPhone will be replaced by Bing. Microsoft may also be lobbying to make Bing an alternative on Apple's Safari browser for Mac users. Currently, Mac users can choose either Google or Yahoo search through the Safari browser.

Being the default search engine on the iPhone carries financial benefits for Google, which collects revenue from ads placed alongside its search results and shares a portion of that with Apple. Most mobile advertising now is viewed on Apple's iPhone and iPod touch, according to mobile advertising company AdMob. To clinch the deal, Microsoft may be willing to share a higher portion of its revenue or pay a larger flat annual fee than Google does.

Clinching the coveted default spot on the iPhone would also help Bing gain market share in the quickly growing area of mobile search. Of people who use mobile search, 86% used Google in November, according to the Nielsen Co. Only 11% used Bing.

So, even bigger attack on Google would be Apple building its own search engine.

Garmin-Asus Announce Pedestrian-Friendly A10

Garmin-Asus has thrown another Google Android-based smartphone into the mix. But the makers of the A10 handheld are promoting it as more than just a smartphone, but rather a “pedestrian navigation” device.”

Publish Post

Here’s a list of specs of A10:

• 3.2-inch HVGA touchscreen display
• Built-in accelerometer (for tilting to portrait or landscape mode)
• 1,500mAh battery
• WebKit browser
• 5-megapixel AF camera
• Automatic geotagging
• Electronic compass
• Support for Microsoft Exchange
• City Xplore Maps
  

In addition to the above, the Garmin-Asus A10 has voice-guided turn-by-turn directions, cityXplorer maps for public transportation options, and more.

When your compny provides you with a cell phone

I am a victim too. All the beneficial companies, one of the benefits is to give to their employees mobile phones. In first sight seems great. But think deeper. Giving you the company a top-price mobile phone makes you slave and workaholic. Cheking your e-mails time after time, sending replies through your fascinate blackberry, catch in up in various chat conversations via mobile application is not what the civilized employee wants from a cell phone!

Kind Regards
Fotis S.

Android-powered Dell Smoke To Be Small, Inexpensive

Dell is reportedly working on a slender, lightweight and inexpensive smartphone running Google's Android OS. The Dell Smoke will have a design similar to the Palm Pixi, with a small keyboard fixed below its QVGA touchscreen.
The model is supposedly aimed at business users who exchange frequent emails and also want access to their documents when on the go.

The smartphone will be able to access both consumer and enterprise email systems, come with a highly-functional web browser, and include Adobe Flash Player 10. It will also include software to edit Microsoft Office documents and view PDFs.

Wireless and MoreThe Smoke will allegedly be a quad-band GSM phone with tri-band 3G (14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA). In addition, it will have Wi-Fi (b/g), Bluetooth 2.1, and a GPS receiver.
Other items on the leaked specifications list include a 5-megapixel auto-focus camera, 1170 mAh battery, microSD memory card slot, accelerometer, compass and a proximity sensor.

The price and quality thing

In now days, we must accept one common fact. That is, mobile phones can do a lot of thing than just calling your friend or sending sms. So, how much the diversification costs for the new mobile era? In my opinion, comparing the new gadget netbook and the other gadget smartphone, I could say it’s by far expensive a smartphone in our days.

But if so, why Apple want to compete kindle with iPad? Why an iPad costs as a laptop’s price?

Concluding, the price and quality thing is as simple as that! We pay the functions of a gadget including the brand name!

Regards
Fotis S.

Citroen DS3

Citroen mark had launched an application for iPhone and iPod Touch dedicated for the DS3 model and is available for free since March 1, 2010. This application allows everyone to configure their DS3 with his personality and to develop it using the integrated configurator. The Citroën DS3 can take on a multitude of forms, it has personalisation options that let the user to choose the colour of the roof, the bodywork, the wheels and the door mirrors, all this by using a personalized questionnaire. The adventure continues: the EGOconfigator store gives acces to news and it is updated weekley on issues of fashion and design.

http://masini.ro

Skype for Symbian beta release

Skype has finally announced that they are ready to release a limited beta of their upcoming Symbian phones client, Skype for Symbian. This beta release of Skype for Symbian supports more than ten different handsets, with the production release planned to be compatible with even more phones. Please remember that it is a beta release, which means that the quality is not up to their “usual high standards”.

Skype for Symbian supports:

• Free Skype-to-Skype calling
• Call phones with Skype credits or subscription
• Receive calls on your Online Number
• Instant Messaging
• Group conversations
• File sending and receiving

Supported phones and download links (Skype needs to be installed on the phones memory and not the memory card)

S60v3 FP1 phones

• Nokia E71
• Nokia E63
• Nokia E66
• Nokia N82
• Nokia E51
• Nokia N95
• Nokia N95 8GB
• Nokia N81
• Nokia N81 8GB
• Nokia E90

S60v3 FP2 phones

• Nokia N96
• Nokia N85
• Nokia 5320
• Nokia 6210 Navigator
• Nokia 6210 Classic
• Nokia N78
• Nokia N79

Apple Files Lawsuit Against HTC Over Alleged iPhone Patent Infringement

Apple today announced that it has filed suit against handset manufacturer HTC regarding alleged infringement of 20 iPhone-related patents. The patents cover such aspects as the user interface, architecture, and hardware.
Apple today filed a lawsuit against HTC for infringing on 20 Apple patents related to the iPhone's user interface, underlying architecture and hardware. The lawsuit was filed concurrently with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) and in U.S. District Court in Delaware."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," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours."HTC has become a prominent player in the rapidly-growing Android handset market, and is Google's manufacturing partner for the Nexus One released earlier this year.Apple is currently involved in a number of high-profile patent lawsuits primarily stemming from the iPhone, but also extending into other aspects of the company's business. Apple and Nokia have filed suits against each other citing infringement of each other's patents, while Kodak recently filed complaints against Apple and Research in Motion related to digital camera patents.

We 7 launches an iPhone application

We 7, a British service of stream music, launched an iPhone application which permits the users "Premium Plus" to listen their favorite music even if they are always on the move.
The company has received the approval from Apple to launch its application, which now is available, it is fully activated for subscribers from 1st of March for the "Premium Plus" users, which pay 9.99 pounds per month, other users will benefit of the application of We 7 for only 4,99 pounds per month, but without the service for mobile phones.
It seems, that We 7 will not stop at Apple's, the company is working on a similar application for Android.

www.stiride10.ro

On Line Casino Yes! but what if it is for a mobile???

We are considering opening a topic about the on line gambling through smartphones.

Please post a comment about that subject

Smartphone Community

Buy.com is an online retailer in California

Buy.com is an online retailer based in Aliso Viejo, California The online retailer began by selling computers and electronics in 1997 and has since expanded into many other categories. Initially Buy.com sold items below cost and intended to make up the losses "from the sale of advertising and ancillary services like warranties and equipment leases. Buy.com sold $111 million worth of goods and services in 1998, its first full year, beating Compaq's record for most first-year sales of any company.
In 2002, Buy.com decided to go beyond selling solely electronics, movies and music and began adding more soft goods to their catalog. It was this same time that Blum extended a welcome to Amazon.com customers. Appearing in the Wall Street Journal, Blum’s address promised Amazon customers that Buy.com would prove itself to be the better buying option. This statement came shortly after Buy.com announced a 10% below Amazon.com cost on all books sold on the site and a free shipping site-wide offer

Buy TV was created in 2006 and has since become a pioneer in the e-commerce industry. BuyTV started on Buy. com's website; as of 2010, it can also be found on Youtube, Google, and the national television station G4. Filmed entirely in HD, BuyTV takes consumers into the world of entertainment and electronics with weekly top ten video spots and on-location technology convention interviews. To highlight the hot new products on the market, the program also includes one-on-one interviews with manufacturers that provide viewers with in depth product overviews.
When Buy.com updated its website in 2006, it announced a marketplace that allows consumers to purchase from various sellers with only one account necessary to process their purchase. At launch Buy.com had 100 marketplace sellers; today the company maintains over 1,000 sellers. Extending its reach even further, Buy.com began selling product on eBay in April 2008 and has since become the second company in eBay history to receive over 1 million customer reviews. The company holds a satisfaction rating of 99.7%.
Buy. com's virtual model and extensive marketplace have helped the company become recognized as one of the most environmentally friendly ways to shop. The company added the Epeat™ scale component to the website in 2007, encouraging users to discover what impact their purchase has on the environment. In 2009, Carnegie Mellon University’s reputable Green Design Institute conducted research concluding Buy.com was the best way to purchase in order to eliminate carbon dioxide emissions and reduce energy consumption. By June 2009, Buy.com had partnered with Imation to offer remanufactured toner cartridges and Kingston Technologies to sell a ‘green’ line of SD cards and flash drives housed in less packaging than other manufacturers.
By the end of 2009, Buy.com had proved the recession wasn't hurting all businesses. The company had been profitable for 11 consecutive quarters and recorded two of its highest sales days in company history. Originally in 2008, Buy.com's Black Friday and Cyber Monday claimed top sales, nearly doubling the company's revenue, however Buy.com exceeded itself in Dec. 2009 when it announced it had surpassed its 2008 numbers. The company touted over 4.4 million visitors to the site in December, with a 138% increase in marketplace sales over the previous year.
Marketing strategy
Utilizing various social networks and partner relations, the contests have received over 250,000 site views and hundreds of completed entries. Using Twitter and Facebook to kick off contests, participants have also been directed to the homepages of sites such as eBay, Fandango, Lexmark, eBillme, View sonic, Toshiba, D-link, YouTube, and Wikipedia. The initial Tweet n Seek contest consisted of a dedicated email that helped get Buy. com's initiative further recognized. Buy.com was honored as one of the Retail Email Blog’s 2009 Design Hall of Fame inductee for "Best Use of Multichannel".
Buy.com: Business Model
Buy. com’s business model is simple: “Attract customers by selling everything at below cost, drive revenues with premiere advertisers by guaranteeing them a buying market, and keep costs down by outsourcing fulfillment.” Buy. com’s business model is based on making sales and profits. They sell products, take orders, charge credit cards, and ship goods, offering their target customers the benefit of ease of use and selection. They also increase their profits by offering ad opportunities in their website.
Buy.com has changed the economics of the consumer-electronics distribution business by selling products at and below cost. It extracts value differently, through a mix of advertising, manufacturer sponsorship, and upselling of value-added products. No offline retailers can sustain this model over time, because they lack Buy. com's volume of both visitors and products.

Markets like Buy.com create economic value for:
– buyers
– sellers
– market intermediaries
– Society at large

Key features of Buy.com superstore:
– easy browsing, searching & ordering
– useful product information, reviews news & blogs
– Broad selection
– Low prices
– Secure payments systems
– Efficient order fulfillment


Buy.com: A potential existence of blog

In my opinion, blogging would offer some major advantages as the following:

 Enhance marketing advertising and product promotion
 Build reputation
 Increase their market reach and customer base
 Generate additional income

Limitations of blogging:

 Constant updating
 Potential Risk that an ill-judged comment could be seized upon by the media or disgruntled investors.
 No Advertising
 No Sponsored / paid posts

Tradekey.com-Marketplace for smartphones

Master in Information Networking, Fall 2004 Tradekey.com is one of the biggest Business-to-Business Marketplace who was established in 2006 with the scope of facilitating the global trade by bringing the sellers and the buyers from all around the world on the same trading platform. TradeKey.com is world's first B2B marketplace that earned ISO 9001 Quality Management System and ISO 27001 Information Security System certifications, these certifications ensuring at the maximum the customer satisfaction, security and safe online trading for users. They consider themselves as: “Your key to Global Trade.” They have thousands of members from over 220 countries and a very big variety of products from different industries, like: agriculture, automobile, business services, electronics and electrical, energy, environment, transportation, telecommunications and many others. Between their products they sell smart phones also. Smart phones are the subject of out blog for the project. The leading team of this company understood that nowadays businesses spend lot of money in internet commerce so they try to connect global buyers with global suppliers offering to all a great way of increasing the sales and decreasing the costs with the object of making trade internet successful. This market place focuses on new business developing by using targeted online and offline marketing for promoting the businesses taking place on this market. Tradekey.com affirms that they are the simple, faster and most cost efficient way to open your doors to global trading. If you are running a business and want to buy or sell something one can register at Tradekey.com and select from the options from there. When a company registers at Tradekey.com they are asked about what kind of products are selling or wanting to buy for the Tradekey.com to inform them about any information about products or services appears that are in that category that they choose. As a seller you are connected with: buyers, distributors, resellers and agents for your product in over 220 countries and you have the option to translate the product marketing in 13 languages. There are two options of premium membership of registering: • Silverkey membership, which means: do it yourself solution, and which provides all the tools needed for online trade, and the fee for a year subscription cost 360$. • Goldkey membership, which cost around 5000$ per year and your business will benefit of the experts of Tradekey.com, they will find for you buyers, distributors, resellers and agents. Of course one can register the business in many markets places like this one, but Tradekey.com offers the possibility of broadcasting the company and products or service information to all search engines and to over 1000 business directories and 200 specialized trade websites. As a buyer you have two options of register for free or became a Goldkey member. Tradekey.com gives you the option to compare the prices and the quality of a range of suppliers in just a few seconds. The buyer in the free membership can search, browse, post a buy-offer or can became a Goldkey member and leave the Tradekey.com to do all these things for his company. For both the sellers and the buyers Tradekey.com offers a virtual office from where one can run his business very easily. They put at the company disposition: virtual office with online fax services, own messages center (to receive and reply to queries) and an address book. By using this online fax services the companies can send fax saving the cost call charges, one page costing 7 cents. Tradekey.com as I said at the beginning of the paper works after the Business-to-Business model, wanted to become the largest trade online platform in the world. As a business model entity I think that here is the answer will be that it is all about partnership, because they offer the possibility for the companies to handle themselves the search and the transactions involved in their business or they can let Tradekey.com to do it for them. Taking in consideration all the things written above and analyzing them as a B2B business model, Tradekey.com can be considered an: • Search engine model, businesses introduce the object of their interest and Tradekey.com give them the best results fitted for them. • Supply chain improvers, they connect many businesses cutting some steps of the supply chain. • Third party market place, Tradekey.com is an intermediary market between businesses. • Public market, Tradekey.com allows both parties to make trades, businesses in the best way possible. Tradekey.com is an intermediator that considering the revenue models and the things written above we can say that it is a model of: • Transaction fee, of course as an intermediator they are charging for transations made. • Subscription fee, they are charging and yearly fee. • Advertising fee, they offer an advertising program from which they are charging fees. • Affiliate fee, Tradekey.com offers an affiliate program. For Tradekey.com the existence of a blog could bring the following benefits: • increase the advertising of this e-commerce marketplace. • help the reputation of the Tradekey.com. • on the blog people could make reviews about Tradekey.com telling their opinion about it making possible the interpersonal communications in a virtually infinite public space. The limitations of a blog for Tradekey.com could be considered: • no Advertising. • No Sponsored / paid posts.

Mobile Phone Xchange

Make money from unwanted mobile phones with Mobile Phone Xchange.

The agent scheme is an easy and effective way for a customer to make extra money and do his or her bit for the environment.
Who are they?
They are mediators between people who want to give their mobile phones for recycling reasons. They company earns by providing recycling industries with large amounts of handsets. Mobile Phone Xchange is one of the leading mobile phone trade-in companies in the UK, paying some of the highest rates for used handsets of ANY company.

What they do
The business model for the company is exchanging mobile phones for cash and also a way of recycling and reusing old or unwanted technology and making money. As one of the UK’s leading mobile phone trade–in Company they buy unwanted, used and old mobile phones for the very best cash prices. They’ll even buy damaged handsets for up to 70% of trade value. All phones they buy are recycled or reused, often in developing countries. In general lines they purchase old used handsets, and the customers are everyone that has an old used handset that he do not need any more. And they are selling afterwards the handsets in developing countries and for recycling.
Mobile numbers
It is estimated that there are 90 million handsets lying unused in peoples drawers in the UK alone and every month this grows by 2- 3 million as customers of all five networks upgrade to the latest handsets. What do these figures mean? They mean that there is a huge opportunity to make cash from buying these used and unwanted mobile phones.
Trade-in partners for Vodafone
We know the market like the back of our handsets and in recognition of our expertise Vodafone have chosen us to provide the trade-in service at over 400 stores and through their 500 call centre agents. In total Mobile Phone Xchange trade-in services are available in over 1000 stores across the UK.
An international presence
Internationally based with offices in Hong Kong, Mobile Phone Xchange has been specialising in used and recycled mobile phone handsets for over four years. Their directors share some 60 years of industry expertise between them and as a company they generate millions of pounds worth of business every year.

Microsoft introduced Windows Phone 7

In opening World Mobile Congress 2010 in Barcelona, Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer, along with Joe Belfiore, vice president of Windows Phone, presented details about the next mobile operating system, Windows Phone 7 Series. It is a new approach for users of mobile terminals, with a focus on personal experiences.

Joe Belfiore have a functional prototype mobile phone with full touch screen, large, with access to social networking services. Microsoft Windows Phone officials say they will bring a different type of phone, unique and individual, focused on user needs. The phone should be a useful tool, to gather all information in one place. Hardware and software must be compatible to work very well together.

Joe Belfiore presented the phone which has functional interface, smart navigation system, menu options and more. Appeared in November details about Bing Maps. The keyboard is virtual, but seems to work very well.

Taiwanese manufacturer already Hight Tech Computer (HTC) has announced it will launch a series of mobile Windows 2010. Samsung did not publish details of forthcoming Windows mobile Phone 7 Series....

www.marketwatch.ro

Microsoft bets on the software in battle with Apple for smartphone industry

Six years ago, Microsoft controlled about 25% world market share of smart phones (PDA GSM), but entry into this market then rival Apple and other companies like Google or Research in Motion (Blackberry)the software giant plans were turned upside. Windows Mobile has lost ground despite constant improvements and now has a smaller share. However, the largest software maker wants to relaunch its position on smartphone terminals and announce at the World Mobile Congress in Barcelona, plans for Windows Mobile 7, Windows Phone the main target is to increase market share on mobile phones.
On February 15, Microsoft officials presented at the annual event of the mobile industry, 3GSM, the first details of its new operating system. President of entertainment and devices division, Robbie Bach, considered that the new operating system will raise the bar for the industry.
Because mobile phone started to replace the personal computer, Microsoft needs to be a powerful player on the smartphone. Smartphones will come from a niche in sales from 2008 to 400 million units in 2013, experts predicted. To take chances but the new Microsoft operating system must be different.
So far Windows Mobile advantage lies in its compatibility with Windows applications on your computer, Office, Exchange, and so on. But however users have learned to cope with market alternatives.
Some analysts argue that Microsoft needs to purchase a mobile segment, but the most interesting idea is to merge with entertainment solutions that are successful: Xbox and Zune. Mobile operating system to be inspired by the Xbox and the development of video games and the interface to the Zune HD, which now competes with that of the iPod Touch / iPhone.

www.marketwatch.ro

Pharos Announces New Rugged Windows Mobile 6.5 PDA

The Pharos 565 is a ruggedized Windows Mobile 6.5 PDA with a full QWERTY keyboard, QVGA color touch screen, built-in GPS receiver, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, IrDA and RAW IR/SIR. The device comes with a powerful Marvell PXA310 624 MHz CPU, 512 MB Flash ROM, and 256 MB DDR SDRAM. The ruggedized Pharos 565 PDA is compliant with the International Protection Rating (IP54) standard and can resist a drop in a range of 4 ~ 5 feet. It includes the complete Office Mobile suite of applications. The unit is perfect for anyone who needs a complete mobile organizer, multimedia entertainment, and GPS navigation in a convenient, compact, and easy-to-use package. The package includes the 565 PDA, a long-life Li-Ion Polymer battery, AC adapter, USB cable, and the software you need to get started.

Features

* Windows Mobile 6.5
* Compact, ruggedized PDA with a full QWERTY keyboard
* Fast 624 MHz CPU with 512 MB Flash ROM and 256 MB SDRAM
* Bright 3.5” TFT color display with touch screen
* Built-in GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth for fast positioning and communications
* Support traditional IrDA, RAW IR/SIR, serial RS-232, USB interfaces
* Built-in microphone and speaker
* Industrial IP54 grade ruggedized PDA
* 4-5 feet drop protection
* Tech support hotline: 1-888-PHAROS-8

www.pharosgps.com

Samsung Wave S8500

Samsung announced the new Wave phone (Model: S8500). This is the first mobile phone to be launched together with new open mobile platform, Nokia Bada.

Samsung Wave has a Super AMOLED display 3.3 ", a Social Hub that brings you closer to your online contacts, and intuitive TouchWiz interface 3.0 with a multitude of functions that can be customized. High-speed processor ensure effective operation of multi-tasking applications and processes while at the same time makes the new Wave in a permanent multimedia companion.

"Samsung fully Wave demonstrates our commitment to provide all smartphone users experience remarkable, complex and innovative," said JK Shin, President and Head of Samsung Electronics Mobile Communications Business. He continued: "Samsung Wave illustrate implementation of our vision on open mobile platform in reality. For the first time, scientists have the freedom to develop applications on multiple platforms for use in a broad range of mobile terminals. Using Wave's, our partners may have a multitude of opportunities offered by our technology platform and Bada. "

The Super AMOLED display is more brighter, clearer, with a lower reflectance due OnCell AMOLED technology, and offers a high resolution WVGA (800x480 pixels) and mDNIe technology (mobile Digital Natural Image engine). DNIe Technology is accredited and used for TVs Samsung LCD and LED. With an unconventional viewing angle and a super fast speed rector, the display shows images Wave Samsung superb both for photos and at the movies.

Social hub was established at the outset to integrate directly into the Samsung Wave all email services, IM and SNS. Due function 3.0 TouchWiz UI, the phone offers users the opportunity to converse easily via email and social networking, to monitor their contacts list and calendar to track events. The application is supported by Social Hub remarkable new technologies that help to send email, use the calendar to events and taking SNS updates in real time.

Thanks to the very bright screen, the latest 3.0 TouchWiz interface provides intuitive touch experience and includes new features such as motion IU Smart Unlock or widgets for customization.

Wave Samsung enjoys a 1GHz processor that provides users the most advanced graphics performance. Speed was demonstrated that the new phone touch screen interface is extremely efficient and intuitive, especially that feature 3D graphics and video performance is unbeatable.

Multi-codec support for DivX and Xvid and support for 5.1 surround sound dispersion device turns into a personal entertainment system and HD video decoding capabilities and video make a gadget great LG Wave capture, sharing and viewing videos.

For the first time globally, Samsung Wave includes Bluetooth 3.0 and WiFi 802.11n as standard.

The platform allows users to download Sony bada, readily multidutine an application Nokia Apps, an application store accessible from the phone and online. Including a wide variety of games, the possibility of browsing, connecting to social networks, e-books, health and lifestyle applications, Nokia Apps offers, so users instant access to unlimited experiences.

Samsung has set its own ecosystem of applications they launched Samsung Mobile Innovator in 2008 and the Nokia Application Seller site, followed by Samsung Application Store, another key element of this offer. Already launched in the UK, France, Italy, Singapore, Germany, Brazil and China, it will be popularized in 2010 in over 50 countries worldwide.

Full touch phone will be available globally in April 2010.

Nokia X6, the newest Nokia's smartphone will be available market

X6 is the newest Nokia smartphone company dedicated music lovers and are heading into selected markets.
X6 is the first Nokia phone that comes with the Nokia mark of Nokia's Comes With Music integrated, which means unlimited access to millions of songs via the Nokia Music Store.
The technical specifications of the new Nokia X6 mention:
Touchscreen Display 3.2 ", with resolution of 360x640 pixels
HSDPA
Wi-Fi
GPS
HTML Browser
5MP camera
Internal memory of 32GB
Initial markets where Nokia X6 will be sold include: Europe, Asia and Africa. The selling price starts from 450 Euro, with small differences from one country to another.

The iPhone 4G is COMING!!!

Lots of speculation is going around on the new iPhone 4g! Verizon Wireless is currently testing a CDMA version of the iPhone 4G and Verizon confirms they are making network changes to bring the iphone onboard. The new iPhone 4g is going to be loaded with awesome new features like video chat, multi-tasking and extreme downloading. (List of possible features below). Just when you think there is nothing else to come up with, more and more and more technology comes out. And it is on the rise, and not just at Apple, Inc!

A few features of iPhone 4G:

A new, sleeker body design.

OLED screen.

Multi-Tasking. (use multiple functions at once without going in and out of apps)

iChat camera (on the front so you can have video chat!!!)

32G (basic) and 64G of memory. Your sure to never run out.


REMOVABLE BATTERY!

Video Camera Capabilities.

Messaging light.

True GPS built in.

A standard headphone jack!

LG KM900 Arena

The LG KM900 Arena released last year borrows many design elements and features of the famous Apple iPhone and Samsung Omnia, this representing an advantage.
Exposed for the first time at Mobile World Congress 2009 (Spain) in February 2nd, LG KM900 smartphone interface has a "revolutionary" 3D S-Class and it's camera is equipped with Dolby and DivX codec technology for image quality and maximum sound. LG KM900 Arena has a camera / video of 5.0 mega pixels with auto focus and 4x digital zoom, a touchscreen display with a 3 "(with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels and 256,000 colors) offering a clarity of about 4 times higher than QVGA screens.
LG KM900 is equipped with a Li-ion Battery 1000 mAh to withstand 300 hours of standby operation and 4 hours conversation, and 2G/3G. It weighs only 105 grams and has dimensions of 105.9 (H) x 55.3 (W) x 12 (D) mm.

The new Samsung Omnia Lite B7300

Characteristics:
* HSDPA 3.6 Mbps
* 65K WQVGA TFT Display (3.0”, 240 x 400)
* 3 Megapixel CMOS / Auto-Focus
* Audio Format Support (MP3, AAC, AAC+, WMA)
* FM Radio with RDS / Bluetooth Stereo Headset (A2DP)
* Video Format Support (DivX, Xvid, H.263, H.264, WMV9, MPEG4)
* A-GPS with Navigation
* Bluetooth® v 2.0 / USB 2.0 / Wi-Fi
* Internal Memory : 250MB
* External Memory : microSDHC™ (up to 32GB)
Video of Samsung Omnia Lite B7300.

Microsoft's new attack on the mobile space - Windows Phone 7 Series - is now official!

Microsoft's new attack on the mobile space - Windows Phone 7 Series - is now official!

Steve Ballmer has just been on stage at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, and i'll be updating this topic with all the details on the new OS and all the related announcements from around the web. I'll also be posting my own thoughts and Chris and I will be recording a special WP7S edition podcast this evening.

What is it?

'Windows Phone 7 Series' is the next iteration of Windows Mobile. You know how WM in the past has been successive iterations of an increasingly ageing platform with only limited change and innovation? Well, not any more. Windows Phone 7 is a ground up rebuild of the Operating System. You know how we've all moaned for years about the wasted opportunities in product synergy for things like XBox Live (promised years ago), Zune et al on mobile? Well, forget about that... WP7S is all about exploiting those synergies.

Forget everything you know about Windows Mobile / Windows Phone, everything is different. The tagline for the product is 'Designed for Life in Motion'. WP7S is designed around a simple layout based upon 'live tiles'. The Start screen (or home screen as we would historically have referred to it) shows a scrollable view of the tiles, which update in real time to show content - in stark contrast to other mobile OS' paradigms of 'static icons to launch an application'. For example, creating a live tile of a friend provides an up to date view of all relevant data about that person - status updates, pictures, messages etc.

With WP7S, Microsoft is very specifically mandating the hardware requirements for devices, including the hardware button configuration. Every WP7S phone will come with a dedicated hardware button for search (Bing), which itself will be optimised to provide intent-specific results, delivering the most relevant Web or local results, depending on the type of query. Every device has a big, touch, capacitive screen. Au-revoir WM Standard. Sort of...

Central to WP7S is the concept of hubs. Hubs draw in content from different sources into a single place to provide a unified view. Out of the box default hubs are...

Windows Phone 7 Series creates an unrivaled set of integrated experiences on a phone through Windows Phone hubs. Hubs bring together related content from the Web, applications and services into a single view to simplify common tasks. Windows Phone 7 Series includes six hubs built on specific themes reflecting activities that matter most to people:

• People. This hub delivers an engaging social experience by bringing together relevant content based on the person, including his or her live feeds from social networks and photos. It also provides a central place from which to post updates to Facebook and Windows Live in one step.
• Pictures. This hub makes it easy to share pictures and video to a social network in one step. Windows Phone 7 Series also brings together a user’s photos by integrating with the Web and PC, making the phone the ideal place to view a person’s entire picture and video collection.
• Games. This hub delivers the first and only official Xbox LIVE experience on a phone, including Xbox LIVE games, Spotlight feed and the ability to see a gamer’s avatar, Achievements and gamer profile. With more than 23 million active members around the world, Xbox LIVE unlocks a world of friends, games and entertainment on Xbox 360, and now also on Windows Phone 7 Series.
• Music + Video. This hub creates an incredible media experience that brings the best of Zune, including content from a user’s PC, online music services and even a built-in FM radio into one simple place that is all about music and video. Users can turn their media experience into a social one with Zune Social on a PC and share their media recommendations with like-minded music lovers. The playback experience is rich and easy to navigate, and immerses the listener in the content.
• Marketplace. This hub allows the user to easily discover and load the phone with certified applications and games.
• Office. This hub brings the familiar experience of the world’s leading productivity software to the Windows Phone. With access to Office, OneNote and SharePoint Workspace all in one place, users can easily read, edit and share documents. With the additional power of Outlook Mobile, users stay productive and up to date while on the go.

It all looked fast and smooth, if not overly full of eye-candy. Was it smoke and mirrors?

Probably not! Microsoft has simplified the UI (they call it 'less chrome'), making it look attractive without being overly busy or complex. As well as providing a clean look this means that, coupled with the powerful hardware mandated in the chassis design, the whole experience should be smooth and fast. Which is good.

Now, a chunk of the guts of WP7S clearly comes from Zune, and this comes with a significant benefit. No more ActiveSync. No more Windows Mobile Device Center. Your WP7S series device will be managed using the Zune software, which IMHO is quite excellent. This is GOOD NEWS!

Will my old apps etc. work?

We don't know yet, but I suspect not. Microsoft is expected to announce a WP7S SDK to developers at the Mix10 conference in March. Nobody knows what this consists of yet but I suspect it'll be a hugely upgraded release of the Compact Framework coupled with (PLEASE MS!) a version of Visual Studio tailored to WP7S development with a much lower cost of entry than what is available today. We'll know more in about a month, but Microsoft absolutely needs to woo developers, particularly if legacy apps do turn out to be incompatible.

When can we have it?

Microsoft has announce 'holiday season 2010' as the target date for Windows Phone, and it's a pretty safe bet that they'll hit that date. Come Christmas, you'll be unpacking a WP7 device in your stocking.

Which manufacturers are building the devices?

HTC have already announced their support for WP7 and in the press conference today Microsoft reeled off all the big names you'd expect as WP7 licencees. They include Dell(!), Garmin-Asus, HP, LG, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba and Qualcomm. Operator partners include AT&T, Deutsche Telekom AG, Orange, SFR, Sprint, Telecom Italia, Telefónica, Telstra, T-Mobile USA, Verizon Wireless and Vodafone.

If Microsoft are prescribing such a unique UI and also mandate specific hardware features, where is the differentiation for HTC et al?

This is a good question, and a very interesting one. The simple answer is - we don't know yet. I imagine that device manufacturers will be able to have slightly different hardware design (albeit broadly conforming to a chassis spec), customised colour of the UI, their own tiles and their own hubs. What I don't expect to see is wholescale skinning of the UI as we've seen with Sense / TouchFlo 3D. A WP7S phone will be unmistakable from the moment you pick it up.

The new Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini & X10 mini pro

In 2009 Sony Ericsson announced the release on the market of it's first Android OS-based smartphone, Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, last week they announced the release of two new smaller versions of the smartphone: Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini and X10 mini pro. Making a comparison between the old and the new model, the difference is very big, but the old Xperia offers better an touchscreen experience.
The software of Xperia is quite fast and events on the screen run very smoothly. The new Xperia because of the small screens have the interface modified and the shortcuts have been customized and placed in the corners of the screen.
Behind this user interface modification lays the recognizable interface of Google Android OS which allows it functions to run smoothly on such small screens.
The new Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini has a very small screen, making it very difficult for the usage of large-fingered users, so Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini pro is equipped with a mini hardware keyboard. The Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini pro is significantly bulky and heavier, making it kind of difficult to carry it in the pocket.
Features :

• both devices run the Android OS on a 600 MHz processor, GSM phones with 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS Receiver, microSD memory card slot, 5 megapixeli camera flash and FM radio.
• Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini will be 3,3 in hes tall, 2,0 inches wide, 0,6 inches thick and 88 gr weight.
  
• Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini pro will be 3,5 in hes tall, 2,0 inches wide, 0,7 inches thick and 120 gr weight.

The Xperia X10 mini and Xperia X10 mini pro will be released in North America and around the world in the first half of this year.

What is a smartphone?

Apple's iPhone Causes Worldwide Memory Chip Shortage

Among the list of things for which Apple's ever popular iPhone is responsible, you can now add "causing a worldwide shortage of memory chips."
That's the word from market research firm iSuppli today in a report saying that supplies of so-called NAND-type flash memory, which is used to store music, video and apps on the iPhone, will reach a point of critical shortage during 2010, as Apple is expected to boost the iPhone's capacity to 64 gigabytes, prompting rivals like Nokia, Google, and HTC to boost the memory on their own phones to keep up.
As it happens, as iSuppli analyst Michael Yang tells me, the iPhone consumes more NAND flash memory than any other product, about 30% of the world's supply, he says. He expects Apple to ship 33 million iPhones during calendar 2010 -- and calls that a "conservative forecast" -- with an average memory density of 35 gigabytes per unit. Meanwhile, Apple will also be launching the iPad this summer as well, further adding to its flash demands. I also have to wonder if we'll see a 128 GB iPod touch this year.
The shortage will be good news for flash memory suppliers like Samsung, Toshiba, Micron Technology, Hynix and Intel, who will be forced to run their factories full-out to keep up with demand. "They won't be able to make the chips fast enough," Yang says. That should end in October, when the demand for chips that go into products sold during the Christmas season comes to and end, and chipmakers start to slow down production once again, trying to avoid having unsold chips left over in inventory. "No one wants to be the last one to stop building chips," Yang says.
What's good news for the flash manufacturers will be very bad news for consumer electronics companies not named Apple. With flash chips in short supply, they'll have some difficult choices. Typically they like to boost the capacity in their products every year, say from 32 GB to 64 GB for close to the same retail price as before. That will happen in fewer cases, Yang says, and those who do release upgraded products will face the prospect of having to wait for all the chips they need.
Overall, iSuppli expects that the number of mobile handsets that contain NAND flash chips to grow to 732 million units in 2010, representing a growth rate of nearly 14%. Other products that will drive demand, and thus contribute to the shortage include electronic book readers like Amazon's Kindle, as well as USB keychain drives, memory cards of every type and camcorders including Cisco's Flip cameras will also do their part contributing to the shortage.
Apple won't have any supply problems because of its history of using its substantial cash reserves to lock supplies of key components like flash years in advance. That's at least one important use for that $40 billion-and-growing pile of cash in Apple's vaults.
One other side effect of this flash shortage will apply to netbooks and PCs. The capacity of the flash memory hard drives, also known as SSD or solid state drives, will be growing at a slower pace this year, Yang says. "The demand for flash used in SSD drives will increase, but you won't see the hockey-stick growth line that so many people expected," he says.
Yang expects that global demand for NAND flash will push revenues to $18.1 billion in 2010, a surge of 34% from 2009, and will hit $25 billion in 2013. There is however one interesting surprise. With a supply shortage you would expect that the prices on flash would soar. In fact Yang says they're going to decline by 26% during the year. That he says is a good year for flash prices. A bad year is one where prices decline by 50% or more.