Mobile Internet use soars, but tablets suffer at the hands of larger smartphones
How do you view BetaNews and other websites? While desktop browsers are still the most popular way of accessing the web for most of the world, mobile internet use is rapidly gaining in popularity.
According to independent website analytics company StatCounter, the use of mobile devices to access the internet has increased by 67 percent worldwide over the past 12 months, from 17.1 percent to 28.5 percent (as you might expect, with its tech-savvy audience, BetaNews has a higher portion of mobile users, but more on that later).
How to prepare your iPhone and/or iPad for iOS 8
The latest version of Apple’s mobile operating system is set to be released officially today.
Before you install it, it’s worth taking a few steps to make sure your device is ready for the update (and of course if it’s jailbroken, and you want to keep it that way, you’ll want to avoid updating until a jailbreak is made available for the new OS). Here’s what you should do in advance.
How to do the smart thing and migrate from Android to iPhone 6
For the majority of Android users, the idea of moving from a handset running Google’s mobile operating system to the iPhone holds zero appeal. But I did it last year, and I couldn’t be happier. For me, iOS is by far the superior operating system (and I use iOS and Android daily), and the iPhone is a great handset.
If you’re thinking of making the move from Android to one of Apple’s new sized-up iPhones (and you won’t regret it), the process is pretty painless and Apple has created a new support page explaining how to move your photos, music, documents, and more.
Hack your health using fitness technology
I’m a big fan of fitness apps and wearable gadgets -- anything that can help make working out more interesting and fun is a big plus in my book, which is why I love apps like Zombies, Run! and Superhero Workout.
I’m not alone either -- one in four smartphone owners use a device to track health, diet or exercise, and fitness apps are among the fastest growing niches in the app market, rising by 49 percent in 2013.
Hate U2? Apple offers a tool to remove the free Songs of Innocence album from your iTunes library
At the end of its iPhone 6/6 Plus/Apple Watch launch last week, the tech giant kindly gave everyone a gift -- a free U2 album. Songs of Innocence is the first album from the Irish band in five years, and Apple made it instantly available to all 500 million plus iTunes registered users. Which was a nice thing to do, after all who doesn’t like a free gift?
It turns out quite a few people were less than pleased to discover U2's new album appearing in their music collections whether they wanted it or not. If you’re one of those people unhappy about the presence of the album, and despite hunting for an easy way of removing it, still haven’t found what you’re looking for, don’t worry -- Apple has released a new tool for the job.
The life of Steve Jobs, in an infographic
Walter Isaacson's Steve Jobs is a superb biography of the late, great co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Apple, but at 592 pages it’s a bit of a hefty tome.
If you’re interested in Jobs’ life, but don’t have the time, or inclination, to read the full book, there’s always the forthcoming film adapted by Aaron Sorkin to look forward to, or -- if you just want a super quick guide -- there’s this excellent infographic.
Take a look at Windows 9's new Notifications center
Last week, thanks to a series of leaked screenshots and videos from build 9834, courtesy of WinFuture.de, we got our first real look at the next version of Windows, including seeing the new Start menu and virtual desktops in action.
That’s not the only new feature being shown off however. In yet another new video we get to see the Notifications center which Microsoft is introducing.
Surface Pro 3 stock sellouts and record iPhone 6 pre-orders make for nice headlines but are meaningless
My colleague Brian Fagioli reported some news a couple of days ago that had me smiling. "Microsoft's Surface Pro 3 is a worldwide success -- strong sales cause limited supply" his headline declared. It’s the sort of headline Microsoft would have hoped for when it announced the news that some overseas retailers had run out of Surface Pro 3 stock.
"A worldwide success" is pushing it. What happened was demand outstripped supply, in some countries, and the supply was probably on the low (prudent, if you like) side to begin with. Microsoft announced no numbers, and posted a cleverly worded blog which makes it sound as if Surface Pro 3 is a huge hit. Unless you read what it actually says.
Are you a child of the '60s, '70s, '80s or '90s? Your computer use history has the answers
It’s always nice to take the occasional stroll down memory lane, reminiscing over past experiences and the things you used to like or grew up with.
Our first computers, or game consoles, are usually something of an important milestone in our lives as we discover the possibilities they offer. I had my first computer at the very start of the 1980s, and even to this day I share a slight bond with other users of the same system, due to that shared experience.
Latest Windows 9 videos show live tiles and the virtual desktop feature
After having released some screenshots from Windows 9 build 9834, an early build of the forthcoming Technical Preview which is expected to debut later this month, WinFuture.de released a video showing off the new Start menu in action.
The site has now followed that up with two new videos. The first gives us another look at the new Start menu and live tiles, while the second shows us how the new virtual desktops will work.
Watch a video of Windows 9 in action -- See the new Start menu and more
Want a proper look at the next version of Windows? WinFuture.de, the website behind the recent batch of leaked screenshots, has recorded a video showing Windows 9 Technical Preview (build 9834) in action.
The video focuses on the Start menu, and we get to see how well it all works. The tiled section on the right is unobtrusive, resizable, and disappears when not required. Microsoft has done a superb job of making a Start menu that functions as you’d expect, but which is modern and beautifully presented. The video also shows Modern UI apps running on the desktop, and more.
Leaked Windows 9 Technical Preview screens show big changes ahead
Microsoft is, according to several reliable sources, planning to announce its next operating system on September 30, with a developer preview arriving on the day or shortly after, and the finished OS expected to appear in spring next year.
We already have a good idea of what the next operating system will look like, and the changes we can expect to see (you can get up to speed on Windows 9 here) but new screens from build 9834, which was created just a couple of days ago, have surfaced on the web that reveal the new Start menu, Modern UI apps running on the desktop, notifications center, virtual desktops and more. Plus something interesting regarding the Start screen.
Focus on Lymphoma guides patients through treatment and beyond
Lymphoma is a type of blood cancer with over 60 subtypes. It is the fifth most common type of cancer (after breast, lung, colon and prostate) and has an unprecedented prevalence among young adults and adolescents -- it’s the most common form of cancer in the under 30s. It’s also the cancer that killed my mother.
The disease is still largely ambiguous to many, however, and so ahead of World Lymphoma Awareness Day (15 Sept), the Lymphoma Research Foundation is pushing its first-of-a-kind mobile app, Focus on Lymphoma, which provides comprehensive information and tools to help patients and caregivers understand the disease and manage treatment.
Samsung pokes fun at the iPhone 6 with 'It doesn’t take a genius' adverts
Smartphone manufacturers like to attack Apple. Microsoft is currently running a series of ads in which Siri comes off very badly compared with Microsoft’s own voice assistant Cortana, and now Samsung has released a collection of commercials making fun of the recent iPhone 6 reveal.
In the series, titled "It doesn’t take a genius", two tech guys are less than impressed with Apple’s new iPhone 6 which is lacking and dated compared to the Galaxy Note 4. It’s a similar campaign in some ways to the "A fly on the wall in Cupertino" ads that Microsoft ran, and quickly pulled, a year ago. But while those ads were ill judged and unfunny, Samsung gets the humor just right.
What your choice of smartphone brand says about you (maybe)
Digital advertising intelligence firm Exponential Interactive analyzed the anonymous online behavior of 1.7 million Britons researching mobile phones in May 2014, and used this data to work out what the key interests of the different groups was.
For each of the brands -- Apple, Sony, Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, HTC, LG and BlackBerry -- it noted the top interests in categories such as Celebrity, Movies, Cars, Travel, Home, Shopping and Sport. And what did it find? Those interested in Apple phones are 16x more likely to be interested in Brad Pitt than the average person online, apparently, while Samsung devotees are 12x more likely to be into Rafael Nadal, and Motorola fans are 89x more in love with Emma Watson. And that's just for starters.
Wayne's Bio
Wayne Williams has been writing about computers, technology, and the web for over 30 years now. He’s written for most of the UK’s PC magazines, and launched, edited and published a fair few of them in his time also. If you like what you read, you can Buy Me a Coffee!
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