Articles about Smartphone

Before anyone labels me as an Android fanboy, let me tell you this -- I like Windows Phone 8, I like it a lot. Even though my smartphone of choice is the Google Galaxy Nexus running either of the two Jelly Bean iterations, Microsoft's mobile operating system has always appealed to me, especially the latest iteration which is by far the best of the bunch. I’ve always wanted to review Windows Phone 8, but there was one big problem -- I couldn't get a review unit for an in-depth look at it. So I did what PR folks were not expecting -- I bought an HTC Windows Phone 8X.

So why the Windows Phone 8X? There are not many devices running the new OS at the moment, but in my part of the world the selection is even more limited -- HTC is the only manufacturer that currently sells a Windows Phone 8 smartphone. The price is also very attractive at EUR479 which is marginally less than what the Samsung Galaxy S III goes for, for instance. By contrast the Nokia Lumia 920, which is not yet available locally through official channels, costs more than EUR700 at major retailers, a price difference that I cannot justify at all. So, as you can imagine, the Windows Phone 8X is my one and only choice.

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Barack Obama is now officially in his second term as President of the United States, following the January 20 inaugural swearing in. We have another four years of Obama, but does he have another four years of BlackBerry? He is by far the most profile Crackberry, in 2009 fighting to keep his smartphone in the face of opposition. (You think Apple losing that iPhone 4 in a bar was bad? Imagine the president leaving his handset behind.) But Obama is President and Commander-in-Chief and got to keep his Canadian gem.

But it's a new administration, and Obama appoints new cabinet members. Which of them is more important, gets more attention than his smartphone? So the question: Should he stick with BlackBerry or switch platforms?

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Keeping up with recent CyanogenMod tradition, the team behind the popular green droid custom distribution unveiled the first monthly release based on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. The build is designed to offer users a stable experience, more suitable for daily use compared to the usual nightly builds.

CyanogenMod 10.1 M1 is currently available only for a limited number of devices, including the Google Nexus lineup (Nexus S, Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 7 including the 3G variant, Nexus 4 and Nexus 10), the US variants of the Samsung Galaxy S III, the Samsung Galaxy S (codename "galaxysmtd" and "galaxysbmtd"), the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (versions P3100 and P3110), the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (versions P5100 and P5110) as well as the Hardkernel ODROID U2 open development platform.

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Apple executives like to talk about the post-PC era as an opportunity. But they have a post-Steve Jobs crisis that needs resolution first -- and fast. This week's calendar fourth quarter earnings report is time to assess where the company is and where it might be a year from now, and whether investors should lift falling shares from the nosedive.

Post-Steve Jobs -- and I'm talking as much about the time before his death -- Apple has lost the quality that made great products. The company’s approach to computer/device design is consistent and pervasive: Humanization. Apple design seeks to humanize complex technological products. There has been much written about Apple design in context of products that look good. But there is something more fundamental: Designing tech that is easy to use by making it more an extension of the human being -- more part of you. It's this quality missing from recent new product iterations, which aren't any more human-like than their predecessors. Meanwhile, competitors like Samsung do better.

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My beloved iPhone 5 recently disappeared -- lost or stolen doesn't matter. Gone is gone. Verizon ticks me off; the warranty is supposed to get me a new one for $100 deductible. But no! VZW wants me to pay full subsidized price again! So, I do what anybody would; I fire Big Red!!!

I go for cost savings and switch to T-Mobile, figuring to buy the top-of-the-line geek Android toy and sell -- or better, trade -- it. I assume the Samsung Galaxy S III is top-geek merchandise but instead T-Mo pushes me towards the Galaxy Note II. What a deal online -- $200. I immediately list it on Craigslist, looking to trade for iPhone 5. To my surprise I get multiple offers. I mean, who as a sane person would want that deal?

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The Nexus 4 was anything but a secret long before Google officially raised the curtain on October 29, last year. Impressive specs, affordable price, the promise of timely upgrades, all were compelling arguments as to why I must buy one when sales start. However, Google didn't care about my enthusiasm and had other plans in mind, offering the smartphone only to a limited number of markets. Lucky me, I'm not invited to join the party. So what can I do?

Like any passionate, but patient, enthusiast my first thought was to buy one from the German Play Store, the closest one to my location and with the lowest prices as well, instead of moving to another country or shelling out more than $500 or $600 on eBay. So I asked a colleague of mine to help me out. I would pay for the Nexus 4 and he would send it my way after receiving the package. Easier said than done, obviously, as I shortly found out that Google only accepts credit cards issued in Germany. That was Plan A, by the way. OK, but now what?

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There's an excellent debate raging on the front pages of BetaNews for the past few weeks, and it's a topic that I feel quite entrenched in. Seeing as my computer repair business FireLogic deals with customers of all types on a daily basis, I thought I should drop my own two cents in on the subject. Joe Wilcox has argued the death knell for the PC is just about here, while a few others, like Wayne Williams (and myself), dispute the notion with quite the vigor.

I think this topic deserves some definite attention because there seems to be a perception out there that the rise in mobile devices such as tablets, smartphones and the like will completely eradicate the traditional PC. It's a touchy topic for my colleagues in the computer repair industry, and something that is frequently debated on the forums of a website dedicated to "our kind" over at Technibble.com.

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When I need to make a payment or send money to someone, I use a bank app on my smartphone. It’s quick and easy, and I can check my balance beforehand to make sure I’ve got enough cash in my account. The app does require me to know the other person’s bank details though, and so isn’t particularly handy for making swift payments to just anyone.

Fortunately the Payments Council is working on a project that will make it possible for anyone living in the UK to send secure payments via text message. You won’t need to worry about account numbers or sort codes -- all you’ll need is the recipient’s mobile number.

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First in a series. Has Apple peaked? Yes and no. I think the company still struggles somewhat to find its path following the death of former CEO Steve Jobs. But there’s still plenty happening and room for growth in Cupertino. So let’s start a discussion about what’s really going on there. I thought this might be possible in a single column, but looking down I see that’s impossible, so expect a second forward-looking Apple column.

The catalyst for this particular column is word coming over the weekend from the Wall $treet Journal that Apple is cutting back component orders for the iPhone 5, signaling lower sales than expected. I’m not saying this story is wrong but I don’t completely buy it for a couple reasons.

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ChangeWave has new data out today showing an expected, but dramatic, decline in iPhone buying intentions over the next 90 days and unexpected jump for Samsung smartphones -- two models particularly: Galaxy S III and Note II. One-half of US consumers say they'll buy Apple's handset, but that's down from 71 percent three months earlier. Interest in the South Korean manufacturer's devices surged to 21 percent from 13 percent during the same time frame.

"Consumer buying intent for Samsung smartphones has been extraordinary to start the year", Paul Carton, ChangeWave's vice president of research, says. "Considering the Galaxy S III has been out for several months we'd normally expect a slowdown by now, but it’s still red hot. We’re also seeing strong interest in Samsung’s large-screen phone -- the Galaxy Note II. Super-sized smartphones are taking the industry by storm in 2013". Among those planning to buy a Samsung smartphone, 69 percent say Galaxy S3 and 23 percent Note II.

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Usually when users wish to transfer apps with data between Android devices, a fairly cumbersome process is involved. There's an easier way though. Koushik Dutta, the developer behind popular modding tools such as ClockworkMod and ROM Manager, unveiled Carbon, an app that can get the job done by itself after touching a few buttons.

But who actually needs it? While Carbon may present a limited appeal to most Android users, it actually makes sense for those running apps grabbed from third-party sources such as Interweb forums, a common occurrence for modders, beta apps that are unavailable to download from the Play store (a good example is the Dropbox preview build) or for users that simply wish to have the same app data across several devices. Think of game saves and you get the picture.

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What's the go-to app for testing internet data speeds on mobile devices? Undoubtedly Speedtest.net is one of the most obvious answers coming from Android and iOS users, but not from those rocking Windows Phone 8. For some time, Ookla, the company behind the app, has turned a blind eye to Microsoft's smartphone operating system but, starting Monday, Speedtest.net is finally available for those who prefer tiles to icon grids.

As you may expect, the app carries over much of the existing functionality from its Android and iOS siblings but, unlike them, Speedtest.net for Windows Phone 8 is dressed up in a much nicer looking package. The app displays ping (latency in miliseconds) as well as the internet connection download and upload speeds. Per the usual tradition, it continues to display the speedometer with the live indicator in the foreground.

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When Google unveiled the Nexus 4 in late-October, the resemblance to the LG Optimus G was quite obvious. Both smartphones are manufactured by LG and share mostly the same hardware specifications (bar the full-blown 4G LTE chip, different camera module, and extra internal storage found on LG's device). So why can't the Optimus G run software designed for the Google Nexus 4? Well, as of late, it can.

The advantages of "transforming" the LG Optimus G into a Google Nexus 4, in the software department that is, are quite clear. First and foremost, users can install various custom distributions such as AOKP Jelly Bean MR1 Build 1, CyanogenMod 10.1 or even light AOSP-based builds. Second, the LG Optimus G can actually be purchased from different carriers as well as online shops, whereas the Nexus 4 even today is out of stock at Google's Play Store -- which makes the former a suitable alternative to the latter's lack of market availability.

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So you bought a Samsung Galaxy S III (or maybe even received one for Christmas) but find the skinned TouchWiz experience too "crowded"? Fret not, you don't have to go down the custom ROM route and lose useful functionality along the way, as PalaTool makes it easy to cut down on gimmicky features, and even add some of the Android 4.2 flavor into the mix as well.

Before you get all excited by the prospect of chiseling Samsung's TouchWiz skin there are two important prerequisites to consider. First, PalaTool requires Android rooting rights, which straight off the bat involves extra work that may include voiding the warranty if something goes terribly wrong (in most cases that never happens). Secondly, the tool must be installed using a custom recovery such as ClockworkMod or Team Win Recovery Project. That out of the way, let's take a look at what PalaTool can really do.

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Verizon and AT&T are closely watching how consumers respond to T-Mobile's move to end smartphone subsidies. However, a look at their comments gives me the impression that they haven't had a detailed look at T-Mobile's value plans.

In recent comments, CEOs of both companies stated that they were ready to follow T-Mobile and offer non-subsidized plans if they prove popular with consumers. However, both CEOs caution that consumers don't "like paying upfront for the phone" and are used to getting "low-cost phones". Based on these comments, I'd have to believe they were misquoted in some way because I find it hard to believe that the CEOs of the two biggest carriers in the United States could be so misinformed.

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