News tagged ‘Android’

(before Galaxy Tab 7.7 was pulled)

Yesterday Apple has achieved one more legal victory over Samsung by banning Samsung from selling its tablets in Germany. Last week pan-European CES-like IFA show featured new consumer products from almost every manufacturer except Apple.

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As it is known, iOS 5 will copy some Android features. Apart from notification system and  system-wide speech-to-text functionality, it was revealed that Apple will also implement Android-like activation of voice recognition Assistant feature.The Google’s promotional video above shows iPhone application for voice-powered search in Google.

As you can see in this video, with the app, you just have to move the iPhone up to your face, speak and in a few seconds Google will show you the page with search results. Apple plans to provide the same functionality to the iOS 5 users for its voice Assistant feature. According to code strings in the iOS 5 SDK, a user will need to put the iPhone to their ear, start speaking and the search results will be shown.

This activation method is much quicker than method in Voice Control. Currently users have to hold down the home button for several seconds to activate the service. Activation method in Assistant will not just rely on the iPhone’s proximity sensor detecting the distance from your ear, but will also rely on data from phone’s motion sensors for accuracy.

Google and Apple, two main parties on the smartphone market, are continuously fighting for consumers especially those who have not yet decided which OS they want to have in their next smartphone. According to Nielsen survey in July 2011, these ‘undecideds’ will be the customers which manufacturers will be hoping to win over. It is interesting that late adopters are least sure among likely smartphone upgraders about their next phone platform.

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Third-party Dolphin Browser app has become very popular among Android users and has been downloaded nearly 9 million times. As TechCrunch reports, Sequoia Capital invested over $10 million in this app, and some part of that sum will likely be directed to developing iOS version of the browser, which has just appeared in the App Store.

The iOS version has most of the features that made this app so popular among users of Android devices. They are convenient sidebar for quick access to bookmarks, built-in translations, customizable gestures, tabbed browsing, speed dial and more. It should be noted that Dolphin is based on Apple’s WebKit, as well as other third-party browser available on the App Store, default Safari app, and majority of browsers for smartphones.

This browser has some main competitors like Opera and several smaller competitors like SkyFire that are steadily gaining popularity among iOS users.

Android users will find out that add-ons are absent from the version for iOS devices, as iPhone’s technical limitation doesn’t allow using native application add-ons. These add-ons are mainly used to change the look and feel of the browser. However, according to TechCrunch, development of JavaScript-based add-ons for iPhone may be underway.

Dolphin Browser app is available for free from the App Store. (iTunes link)

Have you ever wanted to run your iOS applications on your Mac, Windows or Android device? Creator of iEmu, new Kickstarter project, want to raise funds to make this possible.

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Here is a nice video overview of popular Cydia apps.

My personal top 30 Cydia tweaks of 2011. The tweaks chosen are both new and old, popular and unpopular. 30 is a big number so, I hope that most of you are able to find a tweak that you will enjoy having on your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad. The tweaks are my personal picks and we all will have our opinion. I know that there are allot of other awesome Cydia tweaks that I was unable to mention but, feel free to tell us about them in a video response or comment.

Cydia tweaks include: Tab+, Multiconmover, Infiniboard, Infinidock, SBSettings, Alphacon, Android Delete, Graviboard, Grid Lock, Animate Battery, Winterboard, Flipover, List Launcher, Cy Delete, Folder Enhancer, Pull to Refresh Safari, RetinaPad, Barrel, Camera Wallpaper, icon renamer, double tap to open, Pagenames, iSwipe, Stayopened, iTypeappleicon, retina app, icons, page pusher, Bytafont, AndroidLock XT, Insomnia

If you have never done jailbreak, you might want to try

As New York Post reports (via BGR), Amazon is preparing to release the rumored Android-based tablets that will cost “hundreds less” than $499 current base model of iPad 2. It is likely that “hundreds less” implies $299.

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Research firm NPD has recently announced results of its Mobile Phone Track report for the second quarter of 2011. Android is still leading the U.S. smartphone with 52% of the market; Apple's iPhone has 29% while BlackBerry devices only 11% of the market. But the 14-month-old iPhone 4 is continuing to lead the market in sales, and the 8 GB 26-month-old iPhone 3GS takes the second place, perhaps, because its that price now dropped to $49.

Here are the top five best-selling phones during Q2, via NPD’s Mobile Phone Track service:

1. Apple iPhone 4
2. Apple iPhone 3GS
3. HTC EVO 4G
4. HTC Inspire 4G
5. Samsung INTENSITYII

Mozilla states that web apps will soon provide end users with a comparable to native apps experience and will represent better alternative for developers.

“We are aiming at providing all the necessary APIs to build a basic HTML5 phone experience within the next 3-6 months”

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DigiTimes reports citing a source that sales of iPad rivals turned out to be lower than it was expected, and the demand for them from retail companies continues to drop sharply, so manufacturers of non-Apple tablets will have to cut prices for their devices as early as late September. According to the source, this is the only way for them to sell numerous devices in warehouses and minimize their losses.

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Today co-founder and CEO of Google Larry Page officially said that their company has acquired one of the largest smartphone manufacturer – Motorola, specifically Motorola Mobility. The company was sold for $12.5 billion, which is 63% more than the closing price of the company on Friday, August 12. This deal has yet to be approved by several official authorities in USA and European Union, as well as Motorola Mobility’s shareholders. All transition processes is expected to finish in the end of 2011 or beginning of 2012.

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The Dell Streak 5 tablet that was once called "iPad killer" has fallen in action. Despite claims of CEO Michael Dell that Android tablets will outstrip the iPad, sales of the tablet were low in the Americas and it was discontinued at least in that region.

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Advertising firm Millennial Media just issued its 50th Mobile Intelligence Report regarding trends on the mobile phone market on the basis of ad impressions. The report suggests some interesting conclusions about the general trends in the industry.

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Facebook has just launched Messenger app that extends its Messages service. This app will allow sending Facebook messages to your Facebook contacts and text messages to your phone’s contacts. In addition to messages the app will allow you to send pictures as well.
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TechCrunch recently wrote that Qualcomm not long ago had launched Augmented Reality Software Development Kit (SDK) for Apple’s iOS. Original SDK was available only for Android, but Qualcomm had announced that version for iOS would be released in July. The SDK is designed to facilitate integration of virtual content and real content such as images taken with cameras on many handheld devices.

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