It has often been the case that Europe has received their mobile tech updates and releases quicker than the US region, only for the US to get a slightly beefier version later on in a products life cycle that perhaps irons out some kinks on the way, well if our sources are to be believed it could be that the Kindle Fire gets a bit of a tart up and a 7 and 9 inch option when it finally hits UK shores later this year.

Though please understand that you can still bag yourself a Kindle Fire from many online UK retailers who have imports for sale.

Can costs be kept down at 9 inches?

With sales of the Amazon Kindle For globally expected to be somewhere in the region of 15 million units in 2012, up from an expected 12-13 million units, it is easy to see that Amazon are onto something but is it price dependent or have they found a device that hits the sweet spot in more ways than cost?

An analyst said:

‘We believe there is an upward bias, particularly from the new seven and nine-inch models, which we expect to launch in mid-2012.’

Exact dates are hard to come by but if I were to put my money on a date I would say that Amazon would have to think about getting in the mix with the iPad 3 release date which is expected to be somewhere around Mid-Late March.

So at what price point can Amazon keep the kindle fire attractive considering it is no iPad?….Unless they seriously give it some clout and make it more of a two horse tablet as some people expect Apple to consider doing.

Having recently been picked up for using the term PC to not mean tablets in reference to tablets replacing the humble desktop, news in from Toms Hardware indicates that a research firm going by the name of Canalys, has used the shipment of tablet PC’s (pads) in the same data collated as your old school desktop PC and variants such as laptops, using this controversial technique of data collection leads to Apple being the worlds largest PC company according to their statistics.

Now obviously this terminology is a grey area, with tablet PC’s already being a term in many peoples vocabulary, but perhaps not quite getting into the parlance of the statisticians, it is however fair to say that this figure marries up to Apple’s current valuation which rivals Exxon with one beating the other in terms of capital value every quarter currently.

The statistics:

Q4 of 2011 saw 120 million “client” PC’s shipped, these include:

[arrowlist]

• Desktops
• Tablets
• Netboks
• Notebooks

[/arrowlist]

This represents a 16% annual growth, but if you take tablets out of this equation you can see that the “traditional” PC shipments actually contracted by 0.4% showing just how disruptive the likes of Apples iPad and the Amazon Kindle Fire and Barnes and Noble Nook have become for companies such as HP.

On this note, both Acer, Dell and HP lost market share while Apple saw significant gains, with 5 millions Mac’s and 15 million iPads shipped in Q4 contributing to a 6% year on year extra market share, now up to 17% for Apple.

Canalys analyst Tim Coulling has stated that HP will see difficult times ahead as they focus on a business model that may not work for the company:

“Currently, HP is pursuing a Windows strategy for its pad portfolio, producing enterprise-focused products, such as the recently launched Slate 2, until the launch of Windows 8, however, questions remain over Microsoft’s entry into the consumer pad space. While early demonstrations of the Window 8 operating system seem promising, Microsoft must focus its efforts on creating an intuitive user experience that is far less resource intensive.”

Lenovo are seemingly also doing well with gains of 2 market points largely based on their decision to join the consumer and enterprise tablet market using Android as their O/S.

With tablets equating to a 22% share of the overall PC shipments in Q4 of 2011 it can be seen that if you are not doing well in this niche you may well see your core sales drop and see difficulty with bottom lines in the short/medium term.

Canalys’ Tim Coulling noted:

“The consumerization of IT continues to be a significant disruptive force in the PC industry, but many of the leading vendors have failed to capitalize on the trend to date, this year will be a pivotal year for those vendors that were slow to launch pads. It is not just the product that they need to get right, business models are equally important – driving revenues from content delivery can help vendors reach lower price points in a market that is incredibly price sensitive.”

Now maybe a good time to show an old video produced showing this trend in video form…enjoy:

Anyone familiar with non linear editing (NLE) for video on Apple Macs and PC’s will have probably heard of AVID, and in my opinion a f**** nightmare to use and totally defunct when you have equally capable (for most instances) options such as Adobe’s Premiere Pro which has grown over the years to be very capable and nice to use and Apple’s Final Cut Pro (FCP) which has stayed rather stale until very recently but still packs a punch and works pretty well.

Having said all this I will not judge this application based on the fact that I dislike AVID on PC’s with a passion and would advise any sane member of the human race to steer clear.

So let us begin:

AVID App review:

With the iPad showing its versatility and strength in the music production department which I covered last week with the Akai MPC Fly review, I am pleasantly surprised to see this new release of the video editing AVID application for the device.

And at £2.99/$4.99 it is cheap enough to trial for 30 days (with the full app costing a couple more pounds after this period £4.99/$7.99).

But, does the app need you to already own the daddy AVID on your desktop to make any use of it, or can you use this application like a cut down version much like iMovies is intended?

Well the answer is, it is up to you. But you do not need the fully blown Avid software for a desktop PC at all to use this iPad application.

With the application working with video, audio and photos, it does mean you can edit more than just some crappy video footage on your iPad and are able to bring in a bit more to spice things up.

Effects and transitions:

As you would expect from an application that has iMovie to compete with, it includes some basic effects and transitions to add a touch of your own style to the video editing process, even though you will see that less is more in this art form as you gain more skills and confidence…;)

But with Photobucket stating that they have seen Photo Sharing Trends with mobile uploads of content such as photo and video to their site on the increase, it is perhaps likely that we will see many more videos been shot with smartphones and tablets and edited on the same devices and released pretty much without ever leaving this framework of technology, WOW.

Exporting options:

With options to upload and export to Facebook and Youtube, this will seriously add another weapon in the armory of the mobile journalist or person who simply wants to have some fun, your movie will also be included in the devices camera roll for exporting and bringing back into a real AVID.

I think this application would be best served in making more people aware of AVID and then perhaps bringing out a decent version of the desktop option for PC and Mac’s that could compete with Adobe Premiere and Apple’s FCP in terms of usability and the ability to manage work-spaces on the desktop more effectively which is an area that AVID sorely missed out on in the past, and saw many potential converts (myself included) steer well clear once we had tested other options that worked easier and pretty much did everything we wanted and perhaps more.

Talking of the shift in user behavior in how we now create video, Avid VP Tanguy Leborgne stets:

“We’ve seen a shift in how creation is happening, and it’s really happening on almost any device, we think the tablet is more than just a consumer device; more and more people are creating on it.”

I still find it really strange that AVID Technology does not bring out a version of the Avid studio software for Mac users when most creatives I know use Macs to work on, such is the level of fear most people who need their PC to work effectively daily have for windows based operating systems, yet they bring out an Apple iPad application that works on the PC version of the software.

Odd…but all in all I rather like the look of this application and will be looking forward to giving it a trial soon.

*This app works on both iPad and iPad2’s.

The old saying “why fix it if it ain’t broken” applies to the iPad almost perfectly.

Here we have an icon of design that is so well executed it has not only spawned masses of imitators, with only the ASUS Transformer Prime coming anywhere near close to outshining the original tablet PC, but it also refuses to alter after years at the top.

So with this in mind, what do you really want of the new iPad 3?

Many will say;

“I want Apple to reinvent the wheel,”

And expect them to always bring them the new, slimmer, sexier iPad that we expect every few years.

Sorry to disappoint the design junkies:

I am afraid it looks like the next iPad will stay the same in design.

Now let us look at another saying that may make you happier.

“It is what is on the inside that counts.”

Yes your parent(s) or guardians should have told you this when you were younger, otherwise you probably turned into a narcissistic, drug addled little shit that has needed “help” ever since.

I am not one for religion in particular, but there are some decent elements at the base of most, and we shall be focusing on one of these humanistic levels for the next iPad.

Sure, the new version is likely to feature some nice features, but they will mainly be inside the device and we hope will more than make up for a lack of a new coat.

So what will be inside the new iPad 3?

You know Apple do not tell a thing prior to releases so let us do some fortune telling here.

Now according to iLounge’s Jeremy Horwitz, he has touched and smelt the iPad 3 at CES 2012 over in Las Vegas. But we all know that Apple are not showing at the event.

So are people using the new iPad 3 unwittingly, if so, this sounds like it could be a bit of a lacklustre update visually, so what is going on underneath?

Well if rumours are to be believed the new iPad will be 1mm thicker with an improved camera to the top left corner, rumours of a smaller display were neither agreed nor shown as proof, but there has been talk.

iPad 3 due March 2012 – iPad 4 due Q4 2012?

With all this in mind, we would like to point you to our other article on the iPad 3 release date, that predicted pretty much the equivalent of an iPhone 4S update to the iPhone 4 for the next model of iPad, with a much bigger release of the iPad 4 to be expected later this year or early in 2013.

I also think that a price cut may be on the cards, and the new iPad 3 may sell for $100 less than it costs now, simply in order to stay competitive in this marketplace that Apple so desperately want to dominate.

We covered the arrival of the $45 Aakash tablet computer a while ago and were pleasantly surprised at the ingenuity and desire of UK based Datawind to bring computing to the masses in rural India as well as in more populated areas.

Two weeks in and talk of new factories being needed:

Amazingly at only two weeks into selling the tablet online, Datawind have said that demand for the tablet is in the region of 100,000 per day, and they have a pre-order totalling some 400,000, to keep up with demand they are looking to create three new factories, and will also be looking to release a new model in mid January. This will be a slightly more powerful 700Mhz processor and will have a SIM card slot and the ability to access GPRS and 2G connections.

Aakash Ubislate 7:

The new tablet will be named the Aakash Ubislate 7 and cost around 3000 Rupee compared to the Aakash’s price tag of 2500 Rupee, and the new device is quite simply a natural progression in terms of specification on offer from the company who are there to help the Indian population move forward in the mobile technology sector that is so prevalent in many other countries.

And with India being only second to China in terms of population, each person may not have the largest amount of disposable income but the market is so huge that this reduced level of value per person still offers rich gains for those who can go in at a lower price and offer the same kind of services that more developed countries come to expect.

Suneet Singh Tuli, CEO of Datawind, says:

“We never expected such a high response from both corporate and individual buyers. We plan to supply 70,000-75,000 units per day once the factories are in place by April,”

Emergency on day one of selling online:

Indeed the demand for India’s cut price tablet is that huge that on the first day of selling the tablet online they were informed by India’s computer emergency response team that the site was probably under a cyber attack, such was the high traffic shitting the site due to the demand for the new tablet.

With the iPad costing around 30,000 rupees it is easy to see why many people in India can not afford this high end model, and Datawind have obviously found a decent price level that will satisfy a large proportion of the people in the rural and city areas.

Who owns this tablet and can you please tell us your thoughts if you do, we would love to hear about it from the source so to speak.

We have already discussed the iPad 3 release date in an earlier article. Now rumours seem to suggest it will arrive at a similar time as we predicted, or at least we will see a glimpse of it around the time we originally anticipated.

Digitimes, the perennial gossip mongers of the tech world have got their knitting needles out again, and they are talking of a return by Apple to a show now known as iWorld which was formerly MacWorld Expo.

At the show, which will be held next year on January 26th, Apple are rumored by supply chain partners to be demonstrating their new cut price iPad, and the new iPad 3, where these new models will join the rest of the iBrigade.

iPad 3 and iPoor 1?

The new models will see the cheaper version pitched against plucky contenders such as the Amazon Kindle Fire, and the other iPad 3 obviously holding the Apple flag high, as the kind of the tablet jungle.

Specification updates:

Processors are still rumoured to be supplied by Samsung, with Sharp delivering the new improved display that will still feature the same 9.7 inch screen.

There could be dual LED bars that will help brighten the iPads overall brightness levels. This rumour appears to have legs as Minebea are now part of this supply chain and they specialise in Backlight units (BLU’s)

Battery’s to be monsters:

Dynapack International Technology and Simplo Technology have secured orders for batteries of the iPad, with the rumour that one at least will have a very high capacity of 14,000 milliampere-hour (mAh) which will be used in the new iPad’s. Though we are not sure if one of these manufacturers will make a less powerful battery for the cut price model.

What do you think of the news? A tall story? Or, like us, can you imagine that this could have some weight?

Let us know your thoughts on the new iPad 3. And if you have heard anything remotely sounding like the truth, get in touch and let us know!

Have you ever wondered if the size of the device screen influenced how many people will click on an advert?

This infographic by inneractive nicely illustrates that the larger the screen the higher the CTR (click through rate).

Apple are under threat from cut price tablets from the likes of the Amazon Kindle Fire and the Barnes and Noble Nook, with the likelihood that this trend will only continue.

So what will Apple do to keep their premium iPad competitive when close equivalents can be obtained for more than half price?

A report in digitimes seem to suggest that they will fight back by offering a cut price, reduced size iPad, and the rumor is that it will be a 7.85 inch model.

With the size rumoured to be just that touch bigger then the Kindle Fire and Nook, Apple will possibly look to differentiate their own mini iPad from their competitors on desirability, design and that little bit extra screen real estate, and guys we all know how important that extra half inch is and so does a certain Mr Cruise.

Production of mini iPad to begin at the end of Q2 2012?

Apple are rumored to have been sourcing displays from LG, and panels from AU Optronics, with manufacturers looking likely to start the actual production of the new tablet at the end of the second quarter of 2012.

Would Steve Jobs turn in his grave?

We have already mentioned that Steve Jobs was famed for disliking the idea of a mini iPad tablet saying:

“10-inches is the minimum tablet size”

and,

“7-inch tablets are tweeners; too big to compete against a smartphone, and too small to compete with the iPad”.

So would the old Apple CEO be concerned that a part of the iPad’s appeal was going to potentially be missing? Perhaps, but Apple do need to keep their lead, and if that means tailoring a new iPad model to market demands, then this seems sensible.

With the release date of the iPad 3 expected to be sometime in early 2012, I thoroughly expect to see a new mini version of the iPad to follow suit some time in late 2012.

And with 60 million tablet PC’s being sold by the end of 2011, the market has certainly caught many by surprise in terms of the voracious appetite that people have for this new type of portable PC, so it is lucky for Apple that the 60 million figure is still currently made up of 70% iPad sales.

Will the iPod touch be reinvented?

I wonder if it would make more sense to reinvent the iPod touch to offer a bigger, more e-reader styled version, with the same functionality as what it already has but to include extras, with that additional screen size and a little more of an iPad feel.

Having said that, if I was to brand a new model and base it on a similar predecessor, I would opt to tell buyers that they were getting a small iPad rather than a larger iPod touch, wouldn’t you?

Yes the iPad is fantastic and in a class of its own in many ways, however it still feels a little lonely and lacking sometimes, so this is where Apple branded product accessories and third party suppliers come into play.

We take a good look at popular items sold on Amazon that also have high user feedback ratings to see exactly what people are buying, and also if there may be an item out there that you may not realise you needed!

This list is also a great start for inspiration related to gifts for the iPad 2 and iPad range.

So without further ado here we go:

Bear Motion Genuine Leather Case for iPad2 2nd Generation with built-in Stand:

This Bear motion product with Sleep mode, has been modified based on comments and user feedback, so as of version 2 the feedback seems to be nothing short of high praise (1000+ comments on Amazon saying how great it is).

The case is especially designed for the iPad 2, featuring “top grain” leather, which is the highest grade of leather from the hide, and when the cover is closed it will put your iPad to sleep, this is after you have turned sleep mode on as a function.

Customer feedback is seemingly paramount at Bear Motion, and they offer to resolve any issues you have with their products straight away, simply contact their customer support by email, for prompt service.

Features of the Bear Motion Genuine Leather Case in detail:

[arrowlist]

• New version – Supports Sleep Mode
• 100% real “Top Grain” Cowhide Leather
• Access all of the iPad 2’s features without taking off the case
• Easy to slip onto your iPad 2 for long lasting protection
• Interior and exterior has soft real leather and scratch protection
• Securely hold iPad in place with Unique Inner flap and Reinforcement Strip

[/arrowlist]

Yes, as a case and stand, and at the discount price that it can be obtained for now, you would be silly not to consider this product as your iPad 2 cover.

Kensington Apple iPad 2 KeyFolio Pro Performance Case with wireless Bluetooth keyboard:

So you are in the market for a keyboard and stand for your iPad 2?

This device is selling well on Amazon, and is essentially a high performance keyboard which is optimised for touch typing, and delivered via the built-in bluetooth technology offering fully wireless operation, so you are able to make that lovely looking iPad 2 into more of a laptop/desktop affair, and utilise the screen real estate of the iPad 2 much more than having a virtual keyboard take up that vital space.

This is a must have for anyone who does any more than a smattering of emailing on a daily basis, and I personally recommend it to anyone who wants to work a bit faster and also kill a few birds with one stone, as it works as a cover, stand and keyboard, what more could you want!

It is built well, and also offers access to the iPad cameras on the front and back, the tactile keys offer the same build quality that you come to expect from Apple products.

The keyboard that is built into the KeyFolio Pro includes some iPad 2 functional controls such as home button, volume, and brightness.

With a rotating stand offering landscape or portrait viewing, the flexibility that this product offers is fantastic.

[arrowlist]

• Bluetooth: V 2.0 standard
• Battery Life: 90 hours
• Standby Time: 45 days
• Battery Capacity: Minimum 430 mAh
• Battery Life Expectancy: 3 years
• Charging time: up to 4.5 hours

[/arrowlist]

With a 2 year warranty we think this keyboard and stand is well worth a look.

Apple Digital AV Adapter:

So you want bigger and better things for your iPad 2?

And why not, but it is not easy getting your HDTV to sing happily with your iPad 2 unless you have certain connections like this Adapter.

Simply put, this Apple digital adapter will mirror exactly what you have on screen on your iPad 2, meaning that you can control a photo slideshow, a video, or even watch a game being played with the benefit of that larger screened HDTV that is then connected via the device.

It also supports video out for iPad, iPhone 4 or iPod touch (4th gen) and is HDMI compatible.

Full specs:

[arrowlist]

• Product Type: A/V Cable Technical Information Cable Type:
• HDMI Fiber Optic Mode:
• 1 x 30-pin Male Proprietary Connector on Second End
• 1 x 19-pin HDMI (Type A) Male Digital Audio/Video Connector on Second End
• 1 x 30-pin Female Proprietary Conductor

[/arrowlist]

Yes, this device is a really nice accessory to have with your iPad and comes in handy for many things, now go use your imagination!

Trent iCruiser IMP1000 11000mAh External Battery Pack and Charger:

We all know that mobile devices eat battery life for breakfast, but there are ways around this and here is one great solution that we recommend in the form of an External Battery Pack and Charger iPad2 accessory.

Now in its 4th generation, the Trent iCruiser is now compatible with the iPad 2, and provides that extra bit of power that is often needed during a long day without access to a power supply. This device works as your power supply, offering a revolutionary high capacity of 11000mAh at 5V output voltage, this device will give you an extra 17 hours of iPad 2 movie time.

So is perfect on trips away, and as a great backup just in case.

The device will also pretty much power any of your devices from Nintendo’s to Droid’s, and PSP’s and Galaxy Smartphones, indeed this device is on my Xmas shopping list!

As this device is more than just an iPad 2 accessory here is a list of other features that may help you decide how useful this is:

Some features non iPad 2 related:

[arrowlist]

• Enjoy 50 hours movie time for iPhone 4S 4, 3G 3Gs iPhone and 4G ipod touch, 17 hours for ipad 2 Compatible with iPhone 4S 4 3Gs 3G, ipod touch 1G 2G 3G 4G 5G, blackberry (9630, 9700, 9550, 9800), HTC android EVO, incredible Nexus, Droid
• Ultra reliable Lithium-Ion battery with 11000mAh, 600% iPhone 4 Battery life incredible Nexus, Motorola Droid
• Compatible with ipad 2, iPhone 4S 4 3Gs 3G, ipod touch 1G 2G 3G 4G 5G, blackberry (9630, 9700, 9550, 9800), HTC android EVO, incredible Nexus, Droid
• Compatible with HTC Android EVO, Droid, Samsung Galaxy S, Nintendo DS, Sony PSP
• No iPhone/iPad adapter is included, but IMP1000 is compatible with original iPhone/ipad data cable. 6 months product warranty

[/arrowlist]

This really is an amazingly useful device and accessory and one that most smartphone and tablet owners could do with, shame, but this is the current state of play in the battery market.

Snugg iPad 2 Leather Case Cover and Flip Stand with Elastic Hand Strap and Premium Nubuck Fibre Interior:

Yes you may well have heard of the popular Snugg iPad range and now they have brought out the specially made iPad 2 flavour, this PU black leather case, offers you great protection and some extra functionality like an ability to stand the iPad to watch movies etc. Also included is an improved elastic strap for easy carrying

[arrowlist]

• Premium nubuck fibre interior + improved velcro flap to secure your iPad 2 tightly in place when in landscape position
• Camera hole cutout on the back and full access to all iPad 2 ports / connections
• Superior iPad 2 Case by Snugg
• Elastic strap makes it easier to hold and use the iPad 2 – Great for FaceTime
• Automatically wakes and puts the iPad 2 to sleep

[/arrowlist]

So there you go, a fantastic list resource of bits and pieces that can add value to your iPad or simply protect it a little.

Now get yourself over to Amazon and grab yourself a bargain!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/top-5-ipad-accessories-and-gifts/feed/ 4 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/samsung-galaxy-tab-11-6-release-date-including-retina-display-like-ipad-3/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/samsung-galaxy-tab-11-6-release-date-including-retina-display-like-ipad-3/#comments Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:32:59 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1089 Samsung Galaxy Tab 11.6 Release Date:

2012 looks like being a good year for tablets as they come of age and become seriously powerful and functional, yes, Samsung are also releasing their new flagship Samsung Tab 11.6 in early 2012.

Samsung are such copycats!

News that the iPad 3 release date may be launched earlier than anticipated, has come as quite a revelation, mainly due to the fact that there seemed to be an issue with the manufacturing process for the new ultra high resolution retina display, that will be included as standard on the new iPad 3 devices.

Samsung’s new tablet to boast same retina display as iPad 3:

So, not content with stealing Apple’s design patents (allegedly) in the iPhone and iPad in general, Samsung have also copied Apple with their own exploding phone that exploded recently just like the infamous exploding Apple iPhone.

And now in typical “I wanna be like you” flattery, the new Samsung Galaxy Tab 11.6 will also, it is rumoured, feature a 2560 x 1600 high resolution display and a 16:10 aspect ratio.



With BGR citing a “trusted” resource for the news the article also goes on to suggest that Samsung will be unveiling the new tablet at the Mobile World Congress this coming Spring, which makes a lot of sense, as this is when they have historically displayed their new Galaxy 10.1 and 8.9 tablet devices.

The new Samsung Galaxy tab 11.6 will also boast Ice Cream Sandwich as the O/S of choice and also house a Dual Core Exynos 5250 Processor, clocked at 2GHz, similar to the A6 CPU fond in Apples new iPad 3.

I wonder if the new marketing campaign for the Galaxy tablet 11.6 will beat the utter dross that Samsung initially released as promos videos for the Samsung S2 which they now hide from Youtube viewers by “unlisting” them?

So are you looking forward to this new Android based device now that the Android market has come of age?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/samsung-galaxy-tab-11-6-release-date-including-retina-display-like-ipad-3/feed/ 14 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/ipad-3-release-launch-date-february-2012/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/ipad-3-release-launch-date-february-2012/#comments Mon, 12 Dec 2011 14:21:10 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1080 The Apple iPad 3 could be arriving in early 2012:

We have already given our guesstimate on the arrival and release date of the new iPad 3 in an earlier post, but we always like to keep our Apple hungry readers with up to date information related to the products they love, so here is our latest update.



Yes the latest speculation doing the rounds right now seems to suggest that Apple are looking to deliver the iPad 3 in just a couple of months time.

Business Insider have spotted notes relating to the release in a research document created by Analyst Richard Gardner.

Gardner is quoted saying:

“there do not appear to be any significant technical hurdles remaining”

(in the production of the iPad 3).

This relates to the issues with the retina display that will feature in the new iPad.

February launch date for the iPad 3:

Citing “several sources”, it would appear that the iPad 3 release date will be in February 2012, and the tablet will have a resolution twice that of the iPad 2, the fact that there appears to be no problems in producing the new retina display, means that, if true, an earlier release date than expected is very possibly on the cards.

So will a February release still not be a bit early:

Apple usually work on a 12 months or so product life cycle, so February would appear a month or so early. However with the iPad 2 beginning to look a bit weak in the specification department, it could very possibly mean that the iPad 3 will make a slightly earlier entrance than expected.

Whatever the date, the new tablet looks set to stay the most popular tablet by manufacturer on the market.

I was in an Apple store this weekend, and let me tell you that the demand for these devices pre-Christmas was insane, with every type of person seemingly after the iPad 2, I think that 2012 will see the tablet really come of age, now they are in everyone’s parlance finally.

I am however going to suggest that the date will not be as hoped for in this article, but will more than likely still be early 2012 in a Keynote presentation the date of which has not been set, but perhaps will be mid to late March.

Are you looking forward to the arrival of the new Apple tablet? And if you own one already, what features do you hope will be brought into life with the new model?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/ipad-3-release-launch-date-february-2012/feed/ 4 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/why-the-humble-e-reader-is-more-appealing-than-a-tablet-pc/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/why-the-humble-e-reader-is-more-appealing-than-a-tablet-pc/#comments Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:45:49 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1072 Tablets v’s E-readers:

Dilemmas dilemmas, which one to get?…A pretty dull e-reader with e-ink technology so you can read books, or a brand new tablet PC with full colour display and access to games, video and the internet?

So, you’re in the market for a cool gadget this Christmas, but still unsure what that will be.

You have the sweet Canon 60D for photography, you are happy with your current laptop for one more year, your smartphone needs updating, but that will be a bonus mid-way through the year at contract renewal, and your X-Box 360 is still providing you with lots of stimulation and pleasure, not in part due to the huge HD screen that it is connected to, yes Joe nearly has it all…



Obviously your missing an iPad or more Generic tablet?

Now many would argue that if you were this example of an average Joe, then your next logical gadget to buy should be a nice Android based Tablet from Samsung or a new iPad from Apple.

Joe is on a budget though:

Yes, like many in the US and the rest of the World our man Joe is skint.

And if the Samsung and Apple iPad were too costly, or he perhaps wanted something a bit smaller, then Joe should then go for the new Amazon Kindle Fire or Barnes and Noble Nook color E-Book, obviously these “near” tablet like devices are far better than those boring E-Ink E-Readers:

But does our man Joe really want a Tablet PC or colour E-reader for Xmas?

So, are these lovely looking, funky devices what this person really needs.

Let us do some common sense analysis:

Firstly, he works in an office with his own computer always there, his smartphone keeps him amused with various news apps during breaks and on the way to work, and gives him access to email, Youtube and other video sites, and at home and when he is out enjoying a coffee, his laptop is powerful enough and small enough to hold in his bag and do some emailing or surfing the net in general while out and about, and he is more than happy with his huge HD display and X-Box for gaming on a mid week night and weekend.

So what could Joe get if he still needs his gadget fix like so many guys and girls do at Christmas?

The answer could well be an E-reader, but not the color ones, and here is why:

We have covered some interesting comparisons of E-Readers in the past from the Nook V’s Kindle Fire Tablet and you know what I love about these is that you can have a huge sized book all contained in a lovely small device, that makes no noise, lasts ages on one charge, and can be read in any light (apart from dark), and what is more it is pretty cheap for a gadget. Though I predict that they will be almost giving these e-readers away in years to come, so you are then signed up to their individual marketplaces.

In this world of plenty the humble e-reader shines out as a bastion of peace and tranquillity:

So with this in mind, I am going to suggest to our friend Joe that he should take more time out to relax and stop stimulating his poor brain with vast amounts of data and unhealthy radiation and sit down with a new lightweight e-reader and enjoy one of life’s little, very inexpensive pleasures.

Albeit using a cool gadget that reinvented the book and termed it an “ebook” when it did not even know it had anything wrong with it.

Joe, if you ain’t got an e-reader in 2012, you are out of the loop my friend!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/why-the-humble-e-reader-is-more-appealing-than-a-tablet-pc/feed/ 2 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/hp-to-make-windows-tablets-and-new-webos-devices-in-the-future/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/hp-to-make-windows-tablets-and-new-webos-devices-in-the-future/#comments Sat, 10 Dec 2011 18:09:37 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1053 Will HP release new mobile Devices in 2012:

After the pretty huge news this Friday that HP will be giving their webOS operating system out to the open source community.

Memo from Meg Whitman CEO of HP to employees on Friday:

Today, we announced that HP will contribute our webOS software to the open source community and support its development going forward. We believe that this is the best way to ensure the benefits of webOS are accessible to the largest possible ecosystem.



It appears that HP will however be returning to mobile device manufacturing, and eventually these will also be based on webOS.

The proof comes from an interview with Meg Whitman on the Verge and seems to show that HP plan to create further webOS based mobile devices in the near and distant future.

Contained within the interview are some clear statements suggesting that HP will return to device manufacture at some point in the future, though the initial return to mobile device manufacturing looks set to be with a tablet running on Windows 8 O/S for now.

HP will build a Windows based tablet for 2012:

Yes HP are planning to build a windows base tablet for release in 2012.

Whitman is quoted saying:

“We’ll continue to invest in the existing tablet ecosystem” and in the near term “will bet heavily with Windows.”

HP will make webOS mobile devices in the future

Asked if they will create new webOS devices also, Meg Whitman HP CEO states:

“The answer to that is yes but what I can’t tell you is whether that will be in 2012 or not,”

Offering no clear dates or times it would however appear that there is a desire or capability to return to device manufacture, something which looked unclear only recently, but it looks likely to be later rather than sooner.

Whitman went on to say:

“…we will use webOS in new hardware, but it’s just going to take us a little longer to reorganize the team in a quite different direction than we’ve been taking it in the past.”

Hewlett Packard more interested in Tablets for now:

According to dialogue on Techcruch, a new HP webOS based tablet device could appear as soon as 2013.

It is looking like HP will be sticking with the more PC related side of the business that they are known for, as opposed to smartphones, which they perhaps do not have the best reputation for or presence in peoples minds and thoughts when thinking about HP in general.

It would appear that HP are starting to get some drive, focus and commitment back within their ranks after a really tough 2011. And it also seems that Meg Whitman is the right person for the job after all.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/hp-to-make-windows-tablets-and-new-webos-devices-in-the-future/feed/ 1 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/webos-offered-to-open-source-community/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/webos-offered-to-open-source-community/#comments Sat, 10 Dec 2011 11:55:41 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1050 Big news from HP as they Offer WebOS to the open source community:

Like a Phoenix from the flames, the fate of Hewlett Packard’s WebOS seems to have finally been sealed, and thanks to HP it will be an open source operating system rather than simply killing the O/S dead.

Many thought that HP would simply ditch the operating system, so this altruistic gesture comes as somewhat of a surprise, in a good way, to many tech observers and commentators.



In an interview on the Verge with Meg Whitman and Marc Andreessen they discuss the long term plans for WebOS though make no clear indication about job losses, but do mention that they intend to make the whole O/S open source, with Enyo included, which was free to developers anyway.

Do HP have a medium term 3/4 year plan for WebOS?

Meg Whitman is quoted here saying:

“Well first I want to set expectations about time frame. This is going to take some time. If you look back at the history of Mozilla or Red Hat — these things did not become giant platforms over night. This in my view is a 4 or 5 year timeframe, and I want to make sure we really communicate that.”

So we can see that it looks very likely that they will be putting some effort into this O/S, and with 600 people employed globally in HP’s WebOS division, these people will be hoping that they do not abandon it as was feared since the earlier notification that HP were ceasing production of their tablet and smartphones back in August.

WebOS’s future in the hands of developers and device manufacturers:

With HP now moving further into the software market, and ditching device manufacturing for now, the move to make the highly praised WebOS software open source will put the operating system in quite an interesting position, essentially sitting alongside Android, with hopes that it will be improved and added to over time.

WebOS was built for mobile:

Praising the WebOS software HP CEO Meg Whitman states:

“WebOS is the only platform designed from the ground up to be mobile, cloud-connected and scalable. By contributing this innovation, HP unleashes the creativity of the open source community to advance a new generation of applications and devices.”

And HP have have stated that they will personally work on the operating system and be an active partner in its development. They also claim that they will offer:

“good, transparent and inclusive governance to avoid fragmentation,”

Avoiding O/S fragmentation (which the Android O/S suffers from), is a desirable future for the well liked WebOS software.

The idea is that there will not be lots of different names and versions floating around every year, so the software stays capable and robust on all devices.

Indeed many software developers claim that WebOS is one hell of a platform so this could be a really interesting new beginning for the O/S.

We will keep you posted on further news on HP and WebOS as always.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/webos-offered-to-open-source-community/feed/ 6 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/kindle-fire-uk-release-date/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/kindle-fire-uk-release-date/#comments Fri, 09 Dec 2011 08:00:28 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1032 When is the Kindle Fire due in the UK?

Rumours abound as to when the new Amazon Kindle Fire tablet, which we reviewed a few weeks ago, will arrive here in the UK.

Latest updates:

So will the new Kindle Fire be hitting shelves in tie for Christmas?

Unfortunately, sources at Know Your Mobile seem to say not.

Though this is one more step above rumours that the Kindle Fire will never even make a UK entrance at all.

January release for Kindle Fire in UK:



With the source claiming that the device will get a UK release in January 2012, it will be a bit late for the Christmas rush, but analysts are predicting that despite the later arrival here in the UK market, the cut price Android tablet will end up accounting for 50% of the tablet market share in 2012.

If this is true, this will make Amazon’s entrance into this arena nothing short of epic.

So what about price?

Well this model is all about the price, and Amazon are rumoured to be subsidised the release over in the US and main a loss per device. This us so they can tie new tablet users into the Amazon eco-system an deliver entertainment via their cloud service at a cost, albeit a reasonable one, the money for a main is in the relationship after the sale not just the initial hit.

Apple to bring out cheaper iPad to compete?

So will Apple bring out a new iPad to compete with the reason cut price editions that are entering the market?

I thin it is fair to say that there is a good chance that a new slimmed down version may be possible, as Apple would not want to lose ground to Amazon, when there are up-sells and cross sells to be tied into after the initial sale.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/kindle-fire-uk-release-date/feed/ 2 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-declares-war-on-the-high-street/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-declares-war-on-the-high-street/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:09:57 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1029 Amazon Price Check App offers price comparisons on the go:

So this is not exactly a brand new application, but the current offer that marries up with this app is new, and one you may want to consider using, more on that later.



Back to the war on the high street:

The last thing any high street retail store or chain wants to hear right now, is that a huge online competitor going by the name of Amazon is going to aggressively highlight how retailers current roles as “agents” or “middlemen” of the high street, is not serving the public’s best interest when it comes to value for money!

Shock horror! You can get that thing cheaper online?

We all know this to be true in many cases, but the fact of the matter is that convenience and habit is what make us humans very funny indeed, and we are still more than happy to just get out and do “the shop”, but all this is about to change as we start to seriously alter our buying behaviour.

Two forces at work:

This behavioural change is born out of two major factors:

Technology:

Recent mobile technology has allowed us to utilise applications on the go, and it was only a matter of time before we were all checking online while shopping and putting back that toaster or TV when we can see that a bargain is to be had online.

Economic distress:

Times are damn tough for many right now, so finding a bargain is pretty much the way forward for many people, and if this means altering buying habits by adopting new technology then trust me, if you make it easy to do, and it works the people will follow.

Saving is the new spending:

Yes what you can save on one thing you can spend on another, and Amazon know this all too well.

They have not only just released their cut price tablet the Amazon Kindle Fire, which has aggressively entered the tablet market promising to bring price reductions across the board for the average consumer.

But now they have also brought out a price comparison application that is set to revolutionise the way we shop for good.

With Tesco in the UK saying they have not had a great run of recent, this form the store that was rumoured to process one pound for every ten pounds spent in the UK. The fact is that many retail outlets and chains are on the brink of collapse globally.

Death of the high street:

Are we seeing the slow inevitable death of the high street once and for all?

I fear most for the technology stores initially. You know, the ones you would not be seen dead in when you can get almost everything in them at a considerable discount online.

Then there is the big shed equivalents like Wal-Mart and in the UK Tesco and Asda, now these stores have branched out considerably over the last decade into being much more than your large grocery store, and offer electrical goods, and various other “big ticket” items, Wal-Mart even stocks the Amazon Kindle Fire in the US.

So have Amazon picked a fight with the wrong people? Probably not at this stage.

So back to the Amazon price check app:

As a high street retailer, you would also not want to hear that the online store that has its eyes firmly set on your current customers has just released a price check app. One that offers genuine convenience when comparing what you are buying to their own online prices.

What is more, Amazon, the veritable behemoth of E-commerce are going to give you the tool for free to ensure that you always find the cheapest price by using an application that checks prices in their store when you are out shopping on the high street.

How to use the app?

The app is hugely versatile and will allow you to take photos of the product you want to check, scan the barcode, say its name, or simply search for it, and will then deliver the price in seconds, pretty cool tool.

So in a flash, the application will tell you if you are onto a bargain or not.

Current offer from Amazon:

To show you that Amazon mean business with this app, they are currently offering users the chance to claim rewards for using the app.

On December the 10th if you use the application in-store Amazon will give you a 5% discount capped at $5 on up to 3 eligible products.

This offer is a great way to get new users started with using the technology and will surely mean more people get introduced, and intrigued and carry on using it after the deal is gone….job done as far as Amazon are concerned.

And why is that?

Amazon are masters of cutting out the middle man, and have done this since their inception. Their whole business model is based on this. They have no need for expensive rent other than their huge out of town warehouses which are less in number and also cheaper to run than most supermarkets. No need for huge staff costs beyond the warehouse guys. No need for massive utility bills beyond the huge sheds that they work from.

Amazon can and will compete on price all day long, and will be doing, you mark my words.

Is Amazon going to make life better for all?

Amazon are going to make things cheaper for you, but we have to ask at what actual cost?

Have you used this application or others?

And if so, what do you think of them? And are you worried that smaller retailers may be affected negatively or is it the likes of Wal-Mart and Asda, who will see their existing shoppers going Amazon’s way as a result of this type of technology?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-declares-war-on-the-high-street/feed/ 1 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/worlds-first-ice-cream-sandwich-tablet-for-under-99-dollars/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/worlds-first-ice-cream-sandwich-tablet-for-under-99-dollars/#respond Thu, 08 Dec 2011 12:35:03 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1019 First Android 4.0 Tablet Goes on sale in China:

At a price tag of around £60 or $99, the worlds first Ice Cream Sandwich powered tablet computer arrives in China.



Ainovo NOVO7:

The new tablet will have a 7 inch capacitive multi-touch display offering full 1080p video, with front and rear cameras, but they will only be a pretty poor 2 megapixels.

Battery life:

With an advertised rate of 7 hours for browsing the web, 6 hours for playing games and 25 hours for playing music, we shall wait and see if this holds true for the true battery life capabilities of the device.

Specification for the rest of the tablet:

The rest of the tablet is pretty standard, with 4GB of external storage, and a MIPS 1Ghz processor.

With Access to gameloft games and Google approved titles the device is pleasing many already.

Andy Rubin the Android chief says this about the tablet:

“I’m thrilled to see the entrance of MIPS-Based Android 4.0 tablets into the market, low cost, high performance tablets are a big win for mobile consumers and a strong illustration of how Android’s openness drives innovation and competition for the benefit of consumers around the world.”

This tablet will only be going on sale in China for now, but you never know if this cut price tablet will come a little closer west, time will tell.

It is actually nice to see that China also have a cut price tablet for sale after the $45 Aakash tablet went on sale in India offering the rural poor a chance to get online with a half decent tablet PC for a reasonable price all things considered.

Video of the tablet in use is shown below.

And for £60 you can not complain really, though it does not look great, its pretty neat at the price.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/worlds-first-ice-cream-sandwich-tablet-for-under-99-dollars/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/android-market-offers-premium-apps-for-10-cents-after-10-billion-downloads-achieved/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/android-market-offers-premium-apps-for-10-cents-after-10-billion-downloads-achieved/#respond Wed, 07 Dec 2011 13:53:08 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=1007 Android marketplace offers premium apps for 10 cents:

In a move seen to celebrate the milestone of 10 billion application downloads. The Android marketplace is offering 10 premium applications for only 10 cents (or 10 pence in the UK) each day for a period up to Christmas.

They will be offering this for the festive period and will change the apps on offer every day.



Today’s offerings include:

[arrowlist]

• SwiftKey X Keyboard
• Endomondo Sports Tracker
• Great Little War Game
• Fieldrunners HD
• SoundHound
• SketchBook Mobile
• Minecraft – Pocket Edition
• Asphalt 6
• Paper Camera
• Color & Draw for kids

[/arrowlist]

With app downloads expected to reach around 18 million in 2012 according to research firm Ovum, this will be an increase from around 7 billion in 2010, and the 2012 figure will be made up of some 8 or so billion Android applications.

Of course this could be seen as a cynical ploy to make sure that as many people as possible have registered their debit or credit card details with the big G, so they can entice you to spend a little more bit by bit. But I say when an offer is around and it looks good, sod it, and grab it now!

So what premium Android applications are you hoping will be offered in this promotional give away?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/android-market-offers-premium-apps-for-10-cents-after-10-billion-downloads-achieved/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/tesco-roll-out-free-wi-fi/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/tesco-roll-out-free-wi-fi/#respond Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:39:28 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=990 Tesco Extra stores see free wi-fi option:

You know that a technology has hit a head when its source of fuel is offered for free!

Yes, Tesco the cut price supermarket who claim to offer great value at the tills are offering visitors the option to tap into their own network for free.



Clubcard users get full access:

In a move to encourage more people to sign up to the clubcard scheme, current members will be able to access the store Wi-Fi at Tesco Extra’s for free and also access their account to see how current rewards are shaping up via the online points and e-voucher scheme.

If you are not a clubcard member you will be able to access the wi-fi network for fifteen minutes once every 24 hours, so all shoppers should be able to access reviews and compare prices while they shop assuming they have access to an internet enabled device.

Easy registration:

Simply walk into the participating stores which are currently only the “Metro” variety and check your wi-fi connection for “Tesco Wi-Fi”, once you choose this option, you simply open your browser using your smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc, and the Tesco landing page will load, this will then ask you to register by entering your clubcard details and postcode.

If you are not registered you will be given 15 minutes for free every 24 hours though clubcard members will only have to go through this process once as the network is run by o2’s Wifi platform, meaning that you will easily be able to hop onto another stores connection after you have registered your device once with the network.

Tesco are obviously very excited about this new offer with Mike McNamara, CIO at Tesco stating that:

“People are increasingly using a variety of digital services and we’re excited by our customers’ reaction to the new service.”

Trial showed 82% would use again:

The trial has shown that a massive amount of people who used in-store internet access would do so again, with 82% saying that they found the ease of use and usefulness of a decent internet connection a real winner while shopping.

Most people used smartphones to access the free internet in the trail with 71% using this method, the runner up was tablet pc’s at 11% with some people even bringing a laptop to help them shop at a supermarket with 9%.

Obviously having free wi-fi in stores such as coffee shops and pubs is nothing new, but Tesco have really been quite daring with this option as people will no doubt be using their devices to access price comparison sites to check what they are buying is value, especially the bigger ticket items that cost over £10-50 pounds.

The way we shop looks set to be changing dramatically month by month!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/tesco-roll-out-free-wi-fi/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/smartphones-expected-to-sell-well-this-christmas-though-kindle-could-be-surprise-winner/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/smartphones-expected-to-sell-well-this-christmas-though-kindle-could-be-surprise-winner/#respond Mon, 05 Dec 2011 15:37:19 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=963 What will sell more at Christmas? The iPad or iPhone or even the Kindle Fire?

As holiday season approaches and Santa starts getting all those emails to sort through, we take a look at an Experian Hitwise report for the UK which suggests that the iPhone will be the hot property for UK buyers this Xmas, and iPads will be the gadget of choice for our cousins over the pond.

Smartphones are hot property this Xmas:

Phones will be a third more popular online than iPads this Christmas. If search intent was reflected in sales, for every three iPads Apple sold this Christmas they would sell four iPhones.

Yes the smartphone is now trickling down into the realms of normality now as more and more people are upgrading to devices such as iPhones with tablet computers coming in as a close competitor but nowhere near as in demand as smartphones, unless you are in the US!

It seems that US buyers can not get enough of tablets and indeed this is the hot property for festive buyers this Christmas.

According to a Nielsen report the iPad is the most desired item in the 6 and over demographics (pretty much everyone) for the second year running.

iPhone not as popular for US buyers but still in the top 7 most desired items for the 13 and over age group.

Could the Kindle Fire become Xmas hit?



Many people (myself included) have predicted that the Amazon kindle fire could well become the leading gadget of the Xmas period in the US, and here is why.

When Amazon want to shift units they have such a high amount of traffic already for people who are at that “itching” stage and primed to buy, that all they need to do is drop there overall prices a touch to gain even more traffic from the comparison sites and then heavily promote the cut price Amazon kindle fire to ensure that the item becomes a real hot property, that, and a well executed mixed marketing campaign could make this tablet become the winner for gadget of the season 2011.

Google insights seem to suggest only a couple of Apple search terms are in the top ten though Amazon are currently claiming many of the spots and most of the top five.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/smartphones-expected-to-sell-well-this-christmas-though-kindle-could-be-surprise-winner/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/apps-and-games-to-be-rated-for-sexual-content-and-violence/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/apps-and-games-to-be-rated-for-sexual-content-and-violence/#comments Sat, 03 Dec 2011 12:44:51 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=927 Applications and Games to be given ratings:

In the US, CTIA-The Wireless Association, has agreed to provide a voluntary ratings system which will be launched for all releases of applications and games.



The move aims to help parents and will be backed by the following “storefronts”: Sprint, AT&T, Microsoft, U.S. Cellular, T-Mobile USA, and Verizon Wireless.

A recent report by Common Sense Media, a Californian based children’s advocacy group, has shown that 52% of children between the ages of 8 and under have access to smartphones and tablets.

Voluntary does not mean it will work:

While there may be some good intentions behind the move it appears that Google, who have perhaps the most abused marketplace in Android, and Apple will not be signing up to the system and want to keep things just as they are.

In an email to BusinessWeek, Christopher Katsaros, a Google spokesman, said :

“While we support other systems, we think it’s best for Android users and developers to stick with Android’s existing ratings.”

Apple are also not reported to have signed up just yet which currently means that the system is nigh on useless.

Process in more detail:

When a developer submits an application to a “storefront” they will have to complete a series of questions related to the apps content. Once done, an almost instantaneous result will emerge and the application will have duly been classified and rated.

This process will not need to be repeated again when submitting the app to other storefronts in the scheme.

CTIA said of the process:

“Each rated app is issued a certificate and a unique identifying code that may be subsequently submitted to other storefronts during their respective onboarding processes, avoiding the need for developers to repeat the rating process, this means consistent ratings across participating storefronts and a convenient, cost-free process for app developers.”

The announcement is an addition to CTIA’s 2010 Guidelines for Application Content Classification and Rating, CTIA said.

Do you think this will actually make a difference to app availability and consumption, or is it an exercise in looking like they care, while creating more bureaucratic jobs in the process?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/apps-and-games-to-be-rated-for-sexual-content-and-violence/feed/ 1 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/microsoft-office-application-for-ipad/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/microsoft-office-application-for-ipad/#comments Fri, 02 Dec 2011 10:04:50 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=910 Microsoft Office App on iPad:

It has been a long time coming, but according to the daily, Microsoft are working hard on delivering official tablet versions of the hugely popular Microsoft Office Suite.

With no actual sources cited this is all firmly in rumour mill territory but looks to be a likely punt if you were a betting person.

The actual date of release looks set to be mid 2012.



Apple and Microsoft Office buddies:

The relationship between Apple and Microsoft when it comes to the Office package has been one of mutual respect. The Apple version on OSX is very stable, capable and works perfectly well, and so this relationship of “quid pro quo” between the two companies has proved to be one area that the competing brands have enjoyed a happy friendship in.

Lack of Office on tablet PC’s an issue:

With reports of tablets slowly taking over laptops as the go to PC for pretty much everything, one distinct area currently lacking is the familiar Microsoft Office package for your every day writing/publishing needs.

Windows 8 version of Office will help differentiate their tablet:

There is an argument that Microsoft should wait until their own tablet is released, prior to an iOS office application going on sale.

It would make sense that they brought out their tablet variety of the Microsoft Office package with their new Windows 8 Tablets. This would give them a unique selling point and add to the differentiation needed for a newcomer to enter a relatively mature market. The common man/woman knows and loves Office, and seeing this available on a Windows 8 tablet first will surely help push units in that all important initial period.

Windows will struggle to gain traction with Windows 8 tablets:

Forrester research analysts are of the opinion that the rise of subsidised, cut-price versions of tablets from Amazon, WhSmith and Barnes and Noble will mean that Windows 8 tablets will face tough competition from cheap varieties and also well established tablet manufacturers such as Apple, Samsung and Blackberry.

Maybe time to start earning from competitors traction:

Let’s face it nothing is concrete in tech land. The shifting sands of fortune have seen two giants falter in the last few years (Nokia and Microsoft), so you can never really tell what is around the corner.

Microsoft have got it tough with the tablet market, but why?

Here is a non exhaustive list:

Latecomers, a new O/S to educate people on, a new application market with currently only a small amount of apps, competitors already on versions 2,3,4 of their own devices O/S and build, and cut price tablets that look nearly as good as the high end versions entering the market.

Yes 2012 will be interesting and tough for Microsoft so perhaps it would be best if they get that Office Application out ASAP and start making some cash from the huge Apple and Android market.

So should Microsoft wait until they release their own Windows 8 tablet and use this application to help leverage their own marketing efforts or should they simply get it released now and sold in as many markets as possible?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/microsoft-office-application-for-ipad/feed/ 1 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/should-apple-worry-apple-claim-tablet-competition-helps-them-stay-ahead/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/should-apple-worry-apple-claim-tablet-competition-helps-them-stay-ahead/#comments Wed, 30 Nov 2011 11:57:14 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=878 Does fragmentation aid Apples continuing dominance in the tablet market?

You might have thought that the arrival of new tablets by Amazon and a whole host of others before them, would make Apple scared?

Especially when they are competing so heavily on price. But Apple appear to be revelling in a marketplace that is now looking even more confusing to the average Joe.

Should they be worried?



I think to answer this I may have to put myself in the mind of a few different types of potential tablet buyers.

Apple lovers – Fanboys stay fanboys generally:

The iPad still has a superior marketplace and overall look/feel and usability factor which should ensure that most current Apple aficionados stick with the iPad for the foreseeable future.

Android lovers – The tricky, awkward but forgotten buyer:

Android users are often seen as the anti-apple brigade, and this type of device owner is often seen cutting off his face rather than accepting that Apple may have a superior product. They will usually site technical reasons to not go for an Apple product even though the equivalent Apple device may function better for most of their everyday needs.

Tech lovers – A mixed bag here:

Gadget lovers fall into a few camps: The die hard, the try hard and the try anything.

Apple rely heavily on the die hard and the try anything moulds.

The try hard’s are not really Apples kind of consumer, and here is why:

Apple’s love of control. Where the try hard’s love making things do what they are not perhaps designed to do…Apple want you to be happy straight away and stay that way until a new version arrives, try hard’s are not a good mix for apple, who are much better off using a “more” open O/S and device such as the Android based varieties, so they can tinker more freely.

Budget concious – The goldmine of the skint?

Now this large section of the Global populace is potentially where many riches lie. The problem is that unlike Apple who make shed loads of cash shifting very expensive units, and get away with a high price tag.

The likes of Amazon and others who have released cut priced versions of tablets mean that there is now very little money in the “cheap” tablet market for manufacturers without their own marketplace and entertainment eco-system like Amazon’s kindle fire offers.

Tech unaware – The late adopters:

Now I fear that Apple are going to lose a fair amount to this market, as these buyers rarely see what benefits are to be had in looking at areas such as amount of applications, functionality, design, and often only go on the basics such as cost, and overall look, expect to see these tablets in your local Walmart and Book store, and your Mum to come home one day from said stores proclaiming that she has picked up an iPad for less than $100….awww.

Verdict:

I am not convinced that Apple’s stable O/S, great marketplace and one size fits all approach is best, though it certainly works well currently, and I predict will see them comfortably stay main players in this market for a while.

But a new breed of buyers is entering the tablet market, yes your mum and dad…now how trend concious are the silver surfers of 2011/2012, or perhaps the question should be how tech concious are they?

My own opinion is that Apple will be doing very well indeed in the near to distant future in this market that they created, and essentially still dominate.

Others beware!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/should-apple-worry-apple-claim-tablet-competition-helps-them-stay-ahead/feed/ 2 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nook-vs-kindle-fire-tablet/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nook-vs-kindle-fire-tablet/#comments Mon, 28 Nov 2011 14:13:52 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=841 Thinking of buying the Barnes and Noble Nook or Amazon Kindle Fire?

Both the Barnes and Noble Nook, and Amazon Kindle Fire offer affordable prices for gaining easy access into tablet computing, but what are they offering in terms of specifications and features other than a great price?

We help you make you make up your mind with an easy to see comparison between the two Tablet computers.



[arrowlist]

Price:

• Nook tablet = $229-249
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = $199

Screen:

• Nook tablet = 7 inches
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = 7 inches

Internet:

• Nook tablet = Wi-Fi only
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = Wi-Fi only

Apps:

• Nook tablet = Roughly 1000 +
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = 10,000 and growing quickly

Operating System:

• Nook tablet = Based on Android but no access to Androids marketplace for apps
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = Based on Android but no access to Androids marketplace for apps

Storage:

• Nook tablet = 16 gigabytes of storage plus a memory-card slot
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = With unlimited access to the Amazon cloud service – Only 8 gigabytes of internal storage is offered and no memory-card slot

Dimensions/Weight:

• Nook tablet = 0.48 inch thick, 14.1 ounces
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = 0.45 inch thick, 14.6 ounces

Battery:

• Nook tablet = Up to 9 hours claimed
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = Up to 7.5 hours claimed

Entertainment:

• Nook tablet = Access to apps from Netflix and Hulu for video streaming
• Amazon Kindle Fire tablet = Access to apps from Netflix and Hulu for video streaming plus Amazon Premium cloud service for $79 a year offering free movies, e-books, music all form their cloud servers,

[/arrowlist]

Amazon Kindle v Barnes and Noble Nook:

So as you can see, apart from price there is not much at all between the two, there is however one more important factor that many should consider that is less obvious and will be prone to fluctuation and that is how many apps are available on their own marketplaces.

Here Amazon are leaps and bounds ahead from the fact that they have such a huge overall global presence already and a highly functional marketplace that is designed to make their Kindle Fire a real entertainment hub, offering videos, music and games with free access to their flagship cloud service as standard to stream the content and store items bought.

I actually struggle to see why anyone would want the Nook when they can get a better functioning and more connected tablet PC for less money.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nook-vs-kindle-fire-tablet/feed/ 11 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-ecommerce-huge-growth/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-ecommerce-huge-growth/#comments Sun, 27 Nov 2011 16:43:18 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=836 Ever used your mobile to make sure you are not getting ripped off?

If you have not done this yet, you are very possibly either going to be doing it soon, or getting ripped off!

Mobile commerce is big news.

A retail sea change is emerging that is seeing a shift in consumer behaviour like no other. Not only are we more likely to find out what retailers are charging online using our smartphones and tablets before we go shopping, we are also very likely to use our smartphones and other mobile devices while we are actually in store to check prices of competitor retailers?

Usablenet states mobile traffic up 60%:



The company who power so many mobile sites for the likes of JCPenney, Aeropostale, and REI, said that traffic across the board over Thanksgiving and Black Friday saw an increase by 60% or more with iOS devices being used by the majority of mobile surfers with around 42% of the share, beating Android devices and Windows and Nokia.

Black Friday also saw an increase in retail spending. With the help of mobile this has increased by 24.3% this year, mobile facilitated both the purchase of products and pick ups.

How mobile use also helps shoppers:

We have already covered how people are accessing reviews on their mobile devices to aid decision-making as they shop, and it is obvious that with geo-location services installed on many devices, that the mobile is perfect for obtaining directions to stores that are unfamiliar. But, another area that apps and mobile devices in general are helping consumers is in gaining access to wish lists that are either contained in-app or indeed quite simply in a memo or email sent to yourself.

Mobile promotions an untapped market for many retailers:

You have perhaps already had the familiar text message that when opened has suggested you go to a store for a daily deal, I can see this type of promotion taking real shape over the coming months. Though I also understand there are potential legal issues about opt in requirements in order to send this type of promotion via a text, currently many similar promos use bluetooth messaging while you are, for instance, in a stadium watching an event in order to promote drinks or offers etc to patrons. I imagine this concept will be pushed to its maximum in the future.

Will shops ban smartphone use in-store?

I can just see it now, a blanket ban on smartphone use in store on the grounds of increased risk of “terrorism” poking fin aside, I do wonder whether this issue will bring about some kind of ruling on where you can operate a smartphone on retail premises.

Have you used smartphones to aid your shopping experience or like me stopped going through with a purchase after reading a bad review about it?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-ecommerce-huge-growth/feed/ 9 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/cashless-society-the-future-of-money/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/cashless-society-the-future-of-money/#comments Fri, 25 Nov 2011 16:38:29 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=816 Paypal predict the future of money and it is a “cashless” society:

Ok so this has turned into a bit of a rant. I have some pretty strong thoughts on the global banking crisis and felt like this was a pretty good article title to air those views, be aware that in principle I have no real issue with mobile commerce at all as a conduit to pay for goods and services, and technological advancement.



It is the global credit system that I abhor and unfortunately a “cashless society” aided by mobile technology would potentially escalate and compound the problems that have plagued us since the death of the Gold standard in 1971 and the introduction of “Fiat money” that has been flitting on and off since 1867 to our present time which has caused people of the world so many problems.

Indeed the introduction of “Fiat money” in the past has pretty much related directly to paying for wars, which we all know ultimately make the countries and banks who take part very wealthy as a result, paid for by the god people in blood and sweat.

All while controlling a global populace, and global viewpoint, which usually relates to trade, currency, greed, control and currently crude oil.

History of Fiat Currency here:

New World Order conspiracy theorists will tell you that the agenda of the day currently is a “Cashless society”, why?

Because this ultimately means that you will be using a mobile device to pay your bills and the powers that be will have an ability to track your every move, and have access to data that should help them gain more overall power over you!…..scary..?

“Money – in the traditional sense no longer exists. It died two decades ago when Richard Nixon forever abolished the gold standard. Since then, money as we once knew it has been replaced by an unstable new global medium of exchange that is called ‘megabyte money’… megabyte money is a threat not only to our country’s long-term growth and prosperity, but to the individual as well.”

– Joel Kurtzman, The Death Of Money, 1993

The term “cashless” implies we will not have any money?

Ironically this is what conspiracy theorists will tell you as well!…I digress.

Taking the above people out of the equation, the idea is that you will never really need access to the printed material we know and perhaps love as cash, Dough, Moolah, Rhino, Spondulicks, Readies, Wonga etc etc.

There are many reasons that an agenda is in place to make sure that this happens, and also perhaps quite a few reasons for this huge sea change to be curbed.

So let us look at the “for’s” in more detail:

According to the Chief Executive of Visa Europe, we will all be living in a cashless society by 2012.

Obviously this prediction is going to be way off the mark but it shows that the vision is well and truly in place.

When VISA talk, people listen.

Cashless up to 2012:

The idea had already been described in 1887 by Edward Bellamy in the novel “Looking Backward” a utopian read where the writer used the word “credit card” over 11 times.

Do not begin to think that this is a new idea at all, we have been offering a variant on a cashless system in lots of different disguises since the introduction of credit cards and store cards in the 1920’s.

The US lead the way with a method of buying fuel for the growing number of US car owners – some fuel was purchased via a credit/store card variant around this time, and we all know what happened since.

Banks want to make people owe them cash:

Since the era mentioned above, you could argue that the agenda of many banks, petrol companies, retailers and manufacturers, and in many ways in collaboration, has been to enslave the people of the globe with debt born out of a well marketed, and hyped desire for consumer goods and it has cost us in many, many ways.

Ironically, and perhaps arguably, the most desirable good(s) of the day include the ubiquitous smartphone or similar mobile devices such as tablets, which looks likely to be the every conduit that allows the shift from cash to cashless to take place.

Never think that a bank especially one with links to investment arms (not many left without) wants to loan you cash because they have good intentions, many business who have been left to fail in the last 3 years will tell you that a bank will:

“lend you all the umbrellas you want on a sunny day but never when it rains.”

In fact the way that banks introduced people to the option of credit was done by “drops” or mass unsolicited mailings, and this went on for years to unemployed, wealthy, you name it…many got credit when they could not afford it, as has been the case in the prelude to the last “global crisis”…totally irresponsible lending done to make a small percentage of “untouchables” very very wealthy while the rest of us pick up the tab, with stress, job cuts and increased taxes.

This was for the first credit card scheme as we know today and was done so aggressively that it was banned in the US by the early 1970’s.

“These mass mailings were known as “drops” in banking terminology, and were outlawed in 1970 due to the financial chaos they caused, but not before 100 million credit cards had been dropped into the U.S. population. After 1970, only credit card applications could be sent unsolicited in mass mailings.”

Why do store cards and credit cards work for banks?

One of the reasons that store cards and credit cards work so well for banks as a profit making mechanism, is that psychologically a user never really feels like they have tapped into their bank account when making a transaction.

The pain is removed and felt later, and is never associated with the actual purchase of goods. This helps the retailer and banks make more and more money out of buyers who would perhaps have though otherwise if they had to hand over 1,500 £$€ – etc of the big ones for that TV or sofa that they had to go to the bank to take out….just imagine if that is how you paid for big items still, the cheque was another way of making this potential pain less..mmm…painful.

There is also the astronomical interest served on debt and with interest free options for months and years, many (and they know this) will not be able to pay later as easy as they anticipated or simply mismanage their finances when juggling a record amount of stress and outgoings per month….the result…assuming the person does not go bankrupt is a mass of extra money needed to pay of the initial loan.

And it is the poorer end of society that historically have not wanted to go “bankrupt”, a phenomenon which was tapped into by investment and lending banks when they realised that wealthy people had no moral objection to going bankrupt, and it was the poorer folk that dutifully paid their debts for fear of looking like a leper within their communities.

Back to the cashless society:

Sorry to go off on the global banking system, but I feel so vehemently opposed to centralisation of credit and the way that the globe has gone over the last 30 years that I feel it is my duty to attempt to inform as many people as possible to the evil that the largest of our banks bring to the world.

I do not propose to know everything about global finance, but I have a sensible and open mind and can see that the way banks currently control governments is a step too far and we need to bring banking back to a system that is there for the people as it was originally designed, and seen to be in the eyes of the everyday man.

An example of which is the only bank in the US that has no current debt problems and is operated solely to help its own people by distributing affordable, sensible loans paid for by taxes to aid students and farmers and industry in the area – The Bank Of North Dakota – uses methods of financing projects that “respectable” (remember those) bankers used to be seen doing for business.

The Bank Of North Dakota is not a bank that has any allegiances to the evil of the federal reserve, or the gambling, money grabbing investment banks that have right royally screwed the world over.

Unfortunately these same institutions have now got so many allegiances to most of our high street banks that we find it impossible to escape their greed and idiocy.

Alternative to credit: The barter system:

The people of Greece have already turned to a form of bartering as their nation gets pummelled by the EU and their own government, this is effectively a way of trading goods and services with something of perceived or similar value i.e: lessons in piano for help with gardening, a bag of potatoes for a loaf of bread etc.

Credit is only really available to either help you work more to pay taxes into the system (a car for instance) or to ensure that you go to work because you have that much debt to pay off for “desirable” items such as large TV’s and holidays to the Caribbean, the alternative “bankruptcy” which ironically all banks would be classed as without the serious hard work of the enslaved people of the Western world and wider to bail them out.

Credit is great in theory, but does it not make life a bit false and more troublesome? Surely it would be better if in the end we could simply pay for what we could afford and save for the rest….we really do not need 90+% of what we own and buy on credit surely.

Time to bite off the snake’s head that strangles us daily?

Something has gone very wrong with our society in the West pretty much since I was born in the late 1970’s and I sense that helping our beloved big banks out only goes to ensure that we are indebted more and more to their evil ways…we must make a stand surely?

Money: The Digital Tipping Point:

A report released by Paypal has predicted that consumers will no longer need any cash to shop, no wallet or cards either. Instead they will use their mobile device to pay for transactions, and they expect this to be commonplace by 2016.

M-Commerce is a hot topic:

OK, back to the original topic eventually!

We have covered exciting moves in the m-commerce space and have no issue whatsoever with the move, it makes total sense, my rant above relates to consumers and teh public being very careful with how they go about using a cashless system as dangers will be present for mismanagement and “unscrupulous” institutions such as various banks will try to cash on on this….pun intended.

Paypal’s mobile payments report

Carl Scheible, Managing Director of PayPal UK:

“We’ll see a huge change over the next few years in the way we shop and pay for things, by 2016, you’ll be able to leave your wallet at home and use your mobile as the 21st century digital wallet. Our vision of money is to enable you to pay for something from wherever you are, whatever device you’re on – a PC, mobile phone, tablet, games console and a whole lot more.”

“We’re not saying cash will disappear entirely, but we’ll increasingly use our phones and other devices rather than our wallets to pay in-store as well as online”, he says. “The lines between the online world and high street will soon disappear altogether. Children born today will become the UK’s first ‘cashless generation’. It will be completely natural for them to pay by mobile.”

So what Paypal are really saying with gusto is this:

Mobile uptake will be so huge in the next few years that the opportunity for NFC (near field communication) enabled devices to supplant some existing technology as a means of making payments will undoubtedly be on the increase. So will we have a cashless society by then?

Not a chance but by the end of 2020-2025…very possibly….well almost!

If we went totally cashless, the question must be:

How would drug dealers, prostitutes and gangsters get paid?

The rumour is it was the Mexican Drug cartel’s “illegal” cash deposits at Wachovia that helped fund the bank’s exit from the Global Crisis of 2008 when the banking world realised there was no actual money left in the system, only drug dealer had actual “cash”…thankfully!….or not!

For now enjoy: Paypal’s much more beautiful infographic:



:
Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/cashless-society-the-future-of-money/feed/ 3 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/apple-tv-vs-google-tv/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/apple-tv-vs-google-tv/#comments Fri, 25 Nov 2011 16:15:43 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=817 Mobile TV is in the news again:

Well we have already discussed Google TV yesterday and their new relationship with Samsung, so now it appears to be Apple in the limelight with regards to the next generation of TV.

Apple TV upgrade and iPhone 5 for 2012:

2012 could be a big year for Apple if this rumour is to come true, as it appears that Apple could be releasing the new iPhone 5 and also pushing their Apple TV project into new territory with the release of an actual TV unit.

Apple TV production:



If sources are to be believed, then the rumour that Apple will start to manufacture an Apple TV set as early as February 2012 with Japans’ Sharp as their manufacturers of choice. This would mean that 2012 is set to be the year of the internet TV.

Jobs wanted to reinvent three things:

Walter Isaacson, the man responsible for writing Steve Jobs’s biography has stated that Jobs had 3 products that he wanted to reinvent:

Television, textbooks and photography.

Arguably he achieved one of these in the iPad, and perhaps sowed the seed for a new breed of television, and in ways photography has changed with the adoption of smartphones and tablets prompted by the arrival of the iPhone and iPad, but perhaps changing photography will not be his legacy as in quite the same way as he would have perhaps hoped….but perhaps TV will, if Apple get this right.

Siri and iSeries controller:

With the race to work out what functionality this new breed of television will have, it can be expected that the Apple sets will probably use Siri as a means of controlling the device much like X-box users can do already.

A war will be on for gaining first mover advantage and the landscape looks likely to replicate the smartphone and tablet market with an Android based O/S (Google TV) going head to head with Apple TV running a version of iO/S so delivering content using their own operating systems.

Now I wonder of Amazon are looking to make any aggressive moves like they have done with their Kindle Fire on the tablet market!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/apple-tv-vs-google-tv/feed/ 1 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/google-integrates-application-search-option/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/google-integrates-application-search-option/#comments Thu, 24 Nov 2011 14:45:55 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=810 Google offers “Application” search choice:

With Google being such a beast, that hides behind one of the most minimal facades on the planet, it sometimes takes a while for people to realise significant changes have been implemented at the search giant.

New search option arrives without any Fanfair:

For instance the news that “Applications” is now a filter choice next to “Blogs” “News” “Images” “Videos” on the left hand side of your google search results comes as a surprise to me. I can however confirm that this feature is not currently working for google.co.uk search options but does work when I switch to .com and there is indeed an “Application” filter in the google result options on the left.



This feature does make a lot of sense as finding “apps” is often a nightmare, though this move does potentially hit GetJar and such like where it hurts.

I say potentially, as it could be a possibility that the sheer rank weight of a site like GetJar may end up giving favourable results for them, its all gravy in the end for Google really.

I have not fully tested how the algorithm might work, another reviewer seems to suggest that only applications themselves are offered with a screenshot to highlight this, but I see blended results of marketplaces and content such as reviews, and Apple are fairing high in the results which suggest it is hopefully not too biased in nature!

A very interesting addition though that should aid developers and users alike to find that perfect application for their individual needs in the swathes of apps out there!

What do you think? Do you have a certain place you find applications? Word of mouth or simply browsing using your chosen devices marketplace?…That is my main method currently though I may start using this more often now.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/google-integrates-application-search-option/feed/ 4 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/is-gorilla-glass-the-only-tough-ape-in-the-mobile-jungle/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/is-gorilla-glass-the-only-tough-ape-in-the-mobile-jungle/#comments Sun, 20 Nov 2011 15:38:47 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=762 Gorilla glass gets a run for its money:

With the Galaxy Nexus shipping without the famed Gorilla Glass as it’s main barrier to knocks and scratches and many consumers worried that there lovely new smartphone will end up scratched to the proverbial bu**ery as a result, this video may just put some minds to ease after quite a rigorous test showing that the Samsung alternative with its fortified glass is perfectly capable of competing with the Gorilla in the mobile jungle.



Scratch test:

So as you can see SamsungMobilerDom had a good go at delivering a hefty payload to the phone, but went on to show that if you have the balls to do it, keying this phone will not affect the screen in any obvious way, he quite clearly has a good go at scratching the surface but absolutely nothing happens, which goes to show that Gorilla Glass is not the only glass to offer this kind of protection.

Could this actually be better than Gorilla Glass

With the above test proving pretty convincingly that the phone can withstand scratches from hard materials such as metal keys, he then went on to show us that the device can also withstand a few knocks also, more specifically being thrown down a flight of carpeted stairs and by all means find the video as a response in the original videos comments though I am unsure how impressive this actually was.

We will be taking a good look at the Galaxy Nexus in a review coming next week so stay tuned.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/is-gorilla-glass-the-only-tough-ape-in-the-mobile-jungle/feed/ 2 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/samsung-redesign-galaxy-tab-for-german-market/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/samsung-redesign-galaxy-tab-for-german-market/#comments Sun, 20 Nov 2011 00:11:00 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=770 Legal issues force Samsung to redesign their Galaxy tab for the German market:

Samsung bowed down to a court ruling related to the sale of their popular tablet in Germany after a ruling many weeks ago declared that the tablet was rather too close to the Apple iPad, the result of which has meant that the South Korean firm have gone away and after withdrawing their tablet from this huge market, have now come back with a revised design that has an altered metal frame and a shift of speaker position to counteract copycat claims.

New Galaxy tab specifically for Germany:



The new design will be released to Germans on the 21st November just in time for Christmas and should allow Samsung a chance to gain a little more traction with their otherwise popular Galaxy tablet in the biggest European marketplace.

Samsung fight back:

The legal landscape between Apple and Samsung sees many cases being fought between the firms, it has all got really rather messy in the smartphone and tablet arena for the two tech giants.

Samsung have retaliated heavily with an attempt to ban the iPhone 4 from sale in France, Italy, Germany and Australia. A hearing in Paris due on the 18th of November will show if Samsung will have one up on Apple in time for the festive period after being shut out of Germany for so long with their Galaxy tab.

Apple involved with many lawsuits:

Samsung is not the only company involved in disputes with Apples legal team, though their are currently around 30 cases between the two firms globally.

Nokia, Microsoft, and HTC are also Involved in litigation with Samsung with Microsoft, Nokia and HTC challenging Apple over over the use of the term “app store”.

We expect a fair bit more of this type of tit for tat to occur as technology looks more and more similar month by month, any pressure put on manufacturers to delay release dates or recall already released models significantly affects a model’s chances of getting traction prior to a new release by a competitor, so this legal “game” is pretty much par for the course now in the fast moving mobile tech world.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/samsung-redesign-galaxy-tab-for-german-market/feed/ 1 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/audi-mobile-ad-spend-increase-as-tablet-traffic-booms/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/audi-mobile-ad-spend-increase-as-tablet-traffic-booms/#comments Mon, 14 Nov 2011 09:51:06 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=731 Audi claim around 18% of online traffic now comes from mobile devices:

With the dawn of the smartphone and the rise of the tablet it seems quiet apt that one of the most technologically astute automotive manufacturers should be benefiting from the rise on mobile device technology.

Hugh fletcher, who is Audi’s digital marketing manager, has said that smartphones are now bringing in a huge 7.5% of all online traffic and tablets have recently eclipsed this with a whopping 10.5%, so is this down to pure chance or are Audi looking to purpose content for the “smarter” audience?



Hugh then went on to point out in an interview with New Media Age that they are looking to see an increase in mobile ad spending around targeted campaigns based around automotive meetings and other relevant events.

“We are looking at things and it’s safe to say that next year will see a significant increase, which was a big year for mobile and us,” he added.”

Digital spending shift:

With Audi originally believing that mobile offered a great channel for direct response advertising, the move to more campaign based advertising using HTML5 sees a pretty big shift to a more creative way of utilising mobile rather than simply pushing it into a traditional mould. Rich media campaigns seem to be the way forward at Audi.

Fletcher went on to say:

“There was a nervousness (within Audi) that mobile couldn’t deliver a premium experience but that’s changing. As mobile devices (both smartphones and tablets) becomes the default browsing device, we move (advertising budget) there,” he said.

We look forward to seeing what comes out of the Vorsprung Durch Technik ad campaigns in the coming months and years.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/audi-mobile-ad-spend-increase-as-tablet-traffic-booms/feed/ 5 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/rumour-intel-to-release-tablet-chip/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/rumour-intel-to-release-tablet-chip/#respond Sun, 13 Nov 2011 19:30:53 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=728 Intel to get back into smartphone and tablet chip manufacturing:

Where the hell have Intel been in the last 4 years as smartphones and tablets dominate conversation and peoples lives?

Well the answer would appear to be working out a way to compete with UK outfit ARM who have carved themselves a niche so successfully that Intel have been subdued in this particular device market.



So it seems that “reliable sources” from Digitimes have claimed that Intel are in fact developing chips that will be used in tablets with the intention to get back into such a huge and growing market as soon as possible.

The question remains if they are looking to get into the smartphone chip market as quickly?

A Digitimes source states:

“The launch of new tablet processors from Intel aims to take on ARM’s CPUs, especially in terms of thermal design power (TDP) and performance.”

How quickly will Intel release there tablet chips?

Intel are said to be releasing the following models:

[arrowlist]

• 14nm Airmont
• 22nm Silvermont
• 2nm Saltwell

And it is stated that this will be over the course of the next three years which is quite a long time to count on things not changing in the world of technology and chipsets, but we assume Intel now know what they are doing long term, even if they have missed out on nearly half a decade of tablet and smartphone chip sales!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/rumour-intel-to-release-tablet-chip/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-marketing-the-future/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-marketing-the-future/#comments Sun, 13 Nov 2011 14:08:26 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=661 Mobile Marketing – The Holy Grail Of Advertising?

Let us just start this piece by saying that we all know where mobile is going, and the answer is of course everywhere.

True to its meaning, “mobile” is becoming so ubiquitous that many companies who have not actively engaged in looking at mobile marketing options do so with a genuine reason to be concerned. One can assume that competitors of your own will be looking at options to capitalise on getting messages across on devices that are so commonly used that they are fast becoming a main drainer on internet data activity.

So, similar to how web marketing was seen around 15 years ago, we are all in agreement that this is the next logical medium for brands and companies and individuals to utilise, the question is what ways will this new medium prove to be a success and what avenues do we need to go down to prove them to be less desirable as a means of marketing to a mass audience.

Mobile marketing looks different?

But is mobile marketing the same as what we are used to or are other opportunities that come under the umbrella of marketing really where mobile is heading?

Unique challenges to mobile marketing:

Similar to the problems early internet marketeers faced with various browsers. The new frontier of mobile marketing is presented with similar issues, mainly O/S choices, Android, Apple, Blackberry etc, and device specific challenges such as smartphones or tablets.

With mobile being much more of a personalised device than the PC ever was or will be, we must now learn how much we can push our own brands onto individuals in order to provide gentle persuasion tactics or indeed give stuff away fro free to benefit from simple top of mind results.

The people – them love free(mium):

Currently, in my own opinion, traditional advertising campaigns should use the “freemium” model as they are the best way to gain traction for plain and simple communication and message sharing. It is currently what can be given away for free that will prove to be the best marketing success on mobile devices, we already see this in the mobile application market, where we can get either scaled down versions of games or applications or advertising backed apps with a choice of removing these if you buy the full price version.

Anna Bager, general manager of the Interactive Advertising Bureau’s Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence states that:

“Mobile is very intrusive. It’s hard to shut it off. Mobile is the remote control for our lives. It’s much closer to us than the PC ever was,”

With user numbers rising to unprecedented levels in such a short period of time, it is clear that tablets and smartphones will dominate our everyday use as time goes by, eclipsing the PC for most mundane tasks and everyday communication with the Internet.

Creative uses of apps that help marketing efforts:

The future of mobile marketing though looks like it will be the creative use of applications that mobile devices can utilise that will be the main reason that brands start to set aside more and more time and resources to mobile technology and its ability to communicate in such a unique and thoroughly modern way…..lets take a look at some good examples currently.

If we can take our minds out of traditional “eyeball” mentality and numbers, then mobile marketing starts to look a bit different, yes the same principles are there but the medium changes quite a bit, and done well, is much more powerful.



Macy’s use QR codes to drive traffic to designer videos:

Macy’s used a novel QR program using multiple channels bringing in-store signage that contained QR codes. Once scanned customers were treated to a short video featuring Tommy Hilfiger, Sean Combs, and other designers as a way of being a little novel, this app drove 45,000 video views within the first week or so of launch. Success?…read on to find out our own thoughts.



Verizon NFL Nations Football League App:

Verzion are offering US device owners the chance to watch live football and games using their National Football League app. This also includes a fantasy football tracker. A morning alert can also be set and fans of American football players who are on twitter can follow their favourite sports stars twitter feed within the app.

Steve Fox, associate director, media and sponsorships, Verizon Wireless.

“We want not only our customers to use the app, but want to drive some of our competitors’ customers to switch over to a Verizon smartphone,”

The basic service is totally free in keeping with the “Freemium” model that seems to work so well for apps, the free version of the application will offer audio of games but the premium version will give users access to live video of games at $9.99 a month.

IBM: Sales driven applications:

IBM do not mess about, pretty much one of the largest employers in the world, IBM rely on a huge sales force to go out and sell their hugely successful products and services to a variety of clients.

One of the challenges that IBM face is that they not only sell services and products but also highly complex solutions, which may include hardware, services, or software and will incorporate numerous consultations with clients and a lot of communicating of end goals, challenges and opportunities.

So what have they developed?

A new tablet application that aims to provide sales staff with access to information before and during sales calls, with over 100,000 products, services, and solutions and a sales team of over 70,000, the challenge IBM face is scaling the application, but like all complex beasts usability and finding the right information proves challenging once scaled to certain levels, and in IBM’s case this could prove seriously tough.

But the right angle is being taken from IBM, access to information is key to mobile marketing success, even if the person who is being sold to does not see what is behind this mobile marketing effort.

Multi channel approach:

A multi channel approach seems to be one of the best ways to leverage all the various methods of marketing, from TV to Social, to Print, to QR, to Mobile, having an integrated approach seems to appeal and to be working for most brands currently.

Mobile Marketing: Experimental phase just now:

In the case of the Macy’s campaign the campaign manager behind this stated that:

“Mobile is uncharted territory. No one knows what the model is, where the investment needs to go, how you scale it, from the client side or the agency side, we’re overwhelmed by the user revolution and we don’t yet have a model to scale and that makes us all anxious.”

With project managers hoping to achieve 7,000 views on the Macy’s QR video campaign with no historical context, and ending up with 45,000 in the first week, the results were only impressive as they had no benchmark whatsoever to base their guestimates on.

Such will be the case for mobile for the coming months and years as we all work out how best to utilise this diverse medium that offers so much promise to marketeers and advertisers.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-marketing-the-future/feed/ 12 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/hp-to-sell-webos-on-advice-from-bank-of-america/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/hp-to-sell-webos-on-advice-from-bank-of-america/#respond Tue, 08 Nov 2011 23:49:51 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=703 HP to sell WebOS:

On the advice of their bank; Bank of America Hewlett Packard are looking to offload there WebOS operating system to recoup some of the money they ploughed into the tablet and smartphone market.

A loss non-leader:



Unfortunately despite some good patents in the package they will almost certainly be set to lose out on a pretty hefty amount of money.

HP spent around $1.2 billion on the Palm O/S only last year, and is set to sell at a figure of around “hundred of millions”

Vultures include:

Various companies are tipped to be included as potential buyers of the operating system and include:

Oracle, IBM, RIM, Amazon and Intel.

Kindle Fire to get new O/S?

With Amazon releasing there first tablet on the Android O/S could it be possible that they wish to develop there own operating system to compete long term with Apple and Google now that they have there own app store and other services rolled out and tied to the Kindle Fire?

A spokesperson for HP states rather elusively:

“We are exploring ways to optimize the webOS software.”

With HP’s Todd Bradley, VP of personal systems stating that HP are looking to:

“determine how we’ll best utilise webOS and those great software assets that we have”.

Assuming this means get it on the open market and sell, we see no reason why it would not sell to one of the current technology vendors, the question would always be how much of a loss would be acceptable?

HP lost or found?

Will HP’s decision to move much more into software and enterprise hardware such as servers, storage and networking help them compete with IBM and Oracle and be there saving grace or have they shifted into a sector that is both highly competitive and also potentially less lucrative if you yet again don’t cut the mustard when playing with the big boys?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/hp-to-sell-webos-on-advice-from-bank-of-america/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nokia-to-produce-windows-8-tablets/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nokia-to-produce-windows-8-tablets/#comments Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:37:11 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=683 Nokia Produce Windows Tablets:

Big news in Nokia land in the last few days with the arrival of their new Nokia/Windows smartphones coming in the form of the Lumia Series.

So what next for the collaboration of tech giants of old?

Well if news in the FT (financial Times) is anything to go by, a recent illuminating interview with Stephen Elop the CEO of Nokia could mean that the Finnish company are also in line to manufacturer the new Windows 8 Tablet range…now this could be exciting.

With Apple’s iPad being the unstoppable force in this niche it will be very interesting to see if Nokia’s eye for design and build quality will marry well with the new Windows 8 O/S, which in my eyes looks like promising a mix of innovation and actually useful features.

How big, small and fast is not that important if things do not work well:

As Apple have proved time and time again, fancy is no good if it is not functional; speed and other boastful factors are not that important ultimately to users of mobile devices

Elop is quoted saying:



“We’re not commenting on specific plans for tablets, but one of the things that we are excited about in terms of support for the Windows Phone are the announcements that Microsoft made around Windows 8 for tablets and personal computers, When you see the user experience from the Nokia Lumia environment appearing on hundreds of millions of tablets and PCs in the future, you can see that there is a clear synergy between all those environments. So that presents an interesting opportunity for Nokia.”

Does this translate to Nokia manufacturing the new Windows tablet range?

I think both corporations would be stupid not to work together from day one on this project now that Nokia have decided to opt for a third party O/S on their devices…But will they want their own range as they are doing with Windows phone O/S? or just go head to head as a major force with Windows as the O/S and Nokia as the manufacturer with one flagship tablet?…This I suspect would be the best way forward, but not sure of the economics for both firms involved long term.

Nokia’s Journey:

In the interview Elop also muted that the new range will not be the make or break of the Nokia brand, but is the first step in a general shift and transformation for the company from old to new.

Nokia A Brand To Love?

Nokia have that certain quality that any brand would dearly love: A seemingly ethical business operation that produces high quality goods, and does not come across as brash and crass in any way. I ask any of you readers here if you have any serious negativity towards Nokia and my hunch is no responses will be given to the contrary other than to sort it out!

Yes Nokia, I sense people want you to succeed and bring back another decent competitor to the mobile device market, after HTC, Samsung And Apple plus the occasional others.

Time still of the essence:

One thing I am acutely aware of after switching from Apple to Android this year is that I do not want to do this often, mainly due to setting up contacts/settings and getting used to a new phones O/S…I sense that people will pick one of the big three operating systems and stick with this for a large part of the next few years purely for ease.

So getting in now may give them a chance to allow people to trial there new O/S and convert people who are not yet hooked to Android or iOS.

If there is a way of replicating everything from O/S to O/S in the future then this may benefit all concerned and level that playing field out for contract renewals, but I doubt Apple will play ball in letting competitors easily do this…they love to lock you into proprietary software and applications as we all know.

Android the target

With Android coming on leaps and bounds in terms of market penetration it is surely this multi platform beast that is the target for Nokia and Windows though I wonder if the more niche Apple iOS should be more the model to look towards?

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nokia-to-produce-windows-8-tablets/feed/ 2 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/web-traffic-dominated-by-ios-mobile-devices/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/web-traffic-dominated-by-ios-mobile-devices/#comments Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:33:31 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=644 Smartphones And Tablets Dominate Web Traffic

ComScore have released data showing smartphones and tablets are growing in popularity to such a large amount that they now take up a huge part of US web traffic, and this figure is growing.

It is stated by the research company that 6.8% of all web traffic in the US for August was from these kind of devices, with two-thirds of this being from mobile phones, and the rest being made up of iPad like devices and tablets. With the iPad taking up 97.2% of the “tablet” market.

iPad pushing more traffic than iPhones:

With Apples iOS taking up approximately 58.5% of all mobile web traffic for August in the U.S the breakdown per device comes in at the following amounts:

iPhone = 42.6%

iPad = 46.8%

Wealthy Young Males Love iPads:

It is no huge surprise that the demographic who has been the quickest to adopt iPads are young and relatively wealthy males, nearly a third were between the ages of 25 and 34, and nearly 50% of these people came from households with combined incomes of more than $100,000 per year.

iPad users love Social Networks and Shopping:

The share of web traffic for tablets when compared to smartphones and iPhones is quite an interesting statistic for content creators, e-commerce stores and online newspapers as it shows that the size of the screen seems to increase the amount of time people spend using the device.

So the statistics show that around 60% of people access social networks on their tablets with news accounting for another large amount of data with 25% accessing news services on a daily basis.

Customer Ratings Accessed While Shopping:

In the month of August users of tablet devices in the US used their device to look up information on prices of items they were buying from stores, with 54% of these also accessing customer ratings and reviews. With around 50% of these people then actually making a purchase as a result of the information obtained.

Why is increased traffic occurring?

Mobile data is increasing as a result of two things:

1 – Increased mobile devices that are Wi-Fi and 3G options, tablets, smartphones being the main culprits.

2 – Increased access and options for data from mobile networks.

Mobile data consumed by mobile devices has increased by 3% from the last three months, and 90% of tablet browsing was done on Wi-Fi.

Approximately 116 million U.S. residents use mobile media — this is up by nearly a fifth on the last years available data.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/web-traffic-dominated-by-ios-mobile-devices/feed/ 2 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nokia-n9-available-in-europe-not-uk-or-us/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nokia-n9-available-in-europe-not-uk-or-us/#respond Wed, 28 Sep 2011 18:38:41 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nokia-n9-available-in-europe-not-uk-or-us/ Nokia N9 Available In Europe Not UK Or US

Nokia have released their final phone that will run on their own operating system before they move all future devices to the much anticipated windows 7.5 O/S.

So what does the N9 look like?

The N9 is a bit of an oddity, running on the Hartmann user interface on top of the MeeGo platform.

Why no N9 release for the UK and US?

The likelihood is that the upcoming release of the full blown N9 running the sea ray operating system is the reason that Nokia have not bothered wasting shelve space in the more advanced UK and US markets.

So what will the future of the MeeGo platform look like?

It appears that they intend to merge this O/S with a Linux based platform called LiMo.

Technical specifications N9?

Well the Nokia N9 is a pretty tasty bit of kit, it is being touted as a “pure touch” phone by Nokia and is designed with a unibody 3.9 inch WVGA AMOLED gorilla glass display.

The phone will be powered by a 1Ghz Arm Cortex A8 processor, with a pretty impressive 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash, and a super wide lense.

NFC, A-GPS and a 16Gb or 64GB memory storage is also part of the package.



Ilari Nurmi, Vice President of Marketing at Nokia has said:

“Since we announced the Nokia N9 in June this year, the feedback that it has gotten from discerning and avid smartphone users across the world has been nothing short of fantastic, With the innovations in industrial design, user interface, and the Qt developer experience, the Nokia N9 sets the bar for how natural technology can feel, and represents the first in a number of products from Nokia that will be brought to life in similar fashion.”

Still want a Nokia N9 in the US and UK?

Well you can always simply import a phone. It looks like the cost of the N9 will be around 500 – 600 Euros for the 16GB and 64GB

Or is it wiser to wait for the new Nokia Sea Ray that will run on windows 7.5 and will be the start of new things for the two giants…my advice wait on a few months.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/nokia-n9-available-in-europe-not-uk-or-us/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/why-i-now-hate-my-samsung-galaxy-s2/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/why-i-now-hate-my-samsung-galaxy-s2/#comments Tue, 27 Sep 2011 16:06:00 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=626 Samsung Galaxy S2 Problems:

*Since this article went live a few months ago, and has now received over 15,000 page views, as of Jan 1st 2012, I thought it best to write an article on how to improve your smartphone battery life.

So what is wrong with my Samsung S2 that warrants a plain old rant…?

Well firstly, here is what is not wrong with the Samsung S2:

[arrowlist]

• It has a wonderful bright Super AMOLED screen that can light up arenas.
• It has dual 1.2 Ghz processors so is no slouch.
• Slim and very light.
• It integrates with Google maps to give you a pretty good sat nav (when it works well)
• It has enough RAM to make playing games responsive and fun.
• It offers SWYPE as an input method and makes pressing buttons totally redundant once you get the hang of it.

[/arrowlist]

Unfortunately though, like many things in this wonderful world. The Yin and Yang have to be at odds with each other to create the occasional beauty that you see with the Samsung S2.

So what is the Yin to the Above Yang?

Quite simply BATTERY LIFE!

As someone who works from a place with a power socket, or having access to my computers USB lead for most of the time, there are perhaps fewer times when I need to use my phone all day without any chance of a top up…cue yesterday.

[arrowlist]

Agenda:

• Meeting at 10.30am
• Meeting at 3.00pm

[/arrowlist]

[arrowlist]

Schedule:

• Leave house at 8.30 to catch train, occasionally read news on phone using 3G connection when possible (lots of tunnels make it tough)
• Walk to meeting point at 10.00 after train journey using GPS satellite for help, this lasts 15 minutes.
• Have meeting.
• Walk to train station to catch a new train…not using GPS as it got me well and truly lost, and it was easier to find my way back once I had done the initial walk.
• Wait around in one area of the City and have a bite to eat while using the restaurants Wi-Fi.
• Catch a train to next meeting in another City…not using phone, as at 2.00 pm I am worried about battery life…have been out of the house now for around 5.5 hours.
• Get to the next City and use Sat Nav once more for general directions, find it totally useless and realise my battery had lied and it had now jumped to nearly dead….great…I have no pen to write down numbers (my fault) and no way of easily contacting my meeting point if this phone dies on me…luckily I get there OK and the battery has a smidgens of life still in it.
• Just before the meeting I text my better half to let her know that I will not be asking her to pick me up as arranged loosely after the meeting, as I will not be able to be any more specific as to timing, not knowing how long this meeting will last, and seeing my phones battery finally dying.

[/arrowlist]

So at 3.15 pm my battery had gone and my phone was nigh on useless.

Duration of day….between 6 and 7 hours.



Amount of time using phone?…Really quite minimal apart from GPS which was also used sparingly after the first 15 minutes at my first meeting.

Conclusion: What happened to the Nokia’s that used to last 5 days with one half charge…yeh I know they never used data etc but seriously this is the one big issue facing mobile technology right now and one that needs to be solved.

Otherwise the term mobile is slightly ironic don’t you think?

Of course we can all carry spare batteries, but why should we, and if this is needed, why don’t manufacturers factor this in and be honest.

If tablets and smartphones are to be truly mobile they damn well need to have a battery life that can handle being used on a days work schedule without a charge. Actually, 2 days work would not be ridiculous to request.

I pay huge amounts for my phone each month, and really, the Samsung S2 battery is not even good enough for using during one days work, with full charge from the outset.

If you are away from a trusty power supply, never mind an actual full 24 hour day on the road….the battery life of the S2 can not even offer one third of that duration without dying a death….not good.

Think twice about buying the Samsung S2 if you need to have battery life for a full day….of course spares are an ugly option though!

Though this seems to work very well:

*Update – As this article has ended up being quite the flagship for Mobile Inquirer, I now feel a need to clarify that I think the Samsung S2 is a cracking phone (note initial praise) and the battery life issue is not actually a fault of the Samsung S2 per se, that said, I do feel that battery life needs to be addressed at manufacturing/design/R&D level and something needs to be done about the issue all mobile devices face in order to make them truly mobile and functional as intended.



*Ok before I go on, an update again – I think it would be useful to get a petition to help manufacturers see just how much of an issue battery life really is to people:

If you feel as strongly as most of the people who have commented on this post (which has been read over 10,000 times as of Mid December), carry on sending us your comments and add your email to the petition so we can pass this on to the device manufacturers ourselves.

If you choose to opt in to the newsletter sign up, you agree that we can add you to our popular mailing list to keep you updated with news surrounding this matter and in general, one email a day maximum.

Socially mobile!

And please join in the debate by going to our Facebook site here, giving us a like if you are feeling nice, and our twitter site here, and following is, and then get involved using the #MoreJuice hashtag when you are referring to this particular post or your general annoyance at how short your mobile phone battery lasts!

This is what you are saying to device manufacturers:

I am signing this petition as I am unhappy with the general battery life of my smartphone, I believe it to be unacceptable to last shorter than a full day on a full charge, and would prefer that my device was larger to accommodate a bigger battery if this was to improve performance of my “mobile” device.
Otherwise, please ensure that the performance of my phone matches the expected enjoyment and use that I should obtain from my mobile device, or provide me with a spare battery or similar option to improve my battery life at purchase.

[emailpetition id=”1″]

Small victory for Mobile Inquirer with help from you guys

I must now point you to a new article here, where Samsung Promise All Day Battery For Smartphones which relates to Samsung’s new stance on improving smartphone battery life, hopefully this article and your help has gone some way to forcing this shift in mindset that will help the average smartphone user get a full days use out of their phone as they expect!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/why-i-now-hate-my-samsung-galaxy-s2/feed/ 196 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/b2b-mobile-marketing-becoming-a-real-opportunity/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/b2b-mobile-marketing-becoming-a-real-opportunity/#respond Thu, 22 Sep 2011 18:23:37 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=611 Social Media In Mobile Marketing:

With users of smartphones and tablets growing in huge numbers, research company Marketo has released convincing data that shows that content marketing strategies need to pay more attention to mobile users.

With companies expected to spend a huge $56 billion on mobile web marketing by 2014, this ties in with a growing need to re-purpose content for a number of mediums in order to maximize a marketing campaigns effectiveness when so much access to content is now via so many differing mediums.



No longer is the issue of Internet explorer the only concern to web developers and designers, companies using social media management services need to make sure that all content that is produced is accessible by as many people as possible even when they are using a smartphone, tablet, PC, Mac, or indeed any other popular mobile internet capable device.

B2B marketing for mobile

Morgan Stanley have backed up the report by stating that access to the internet from mobile devices will surpass stationary access by 2015

Content marketing is paramount to a successful social media marketing strategy and this is why it is starting to become key to ensure that mobile users are engaged as well as traditional internet users with content that is “fit for purpose”.

With users accessing more and more data on their mobile devices a real opportunity is growing for marketeers to harness this always on connection to ensure that they are speaking to their old and potentially new clients in ways that were perhaps more difficult to do in the past.

B2B marketing for mobile is the future, but it is still unclear exactly how it will look!

One thing is for sure, Google are in a prime position to scrape up location based marketing and services but how this will all pan out is unclear at this stage.

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/b2b-mobile-marketing-becoming-a-real-opportunity/feed/ 0 https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-internet-to-soar-pc-internet-access-to-peak-and-decline/ https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-internet-to-soar-pc-internet-access-to-peak-and-decline/#respond Tue, 20 Sep 2011 21:46:18 +0000 http://www.mobileinquirer.com/?p=605 Mobile Internet To Soar With PC Access Peaking And Then Going Into Decline:

Here at Mobile Inquirer I have been telling our good readers that the demise of the PC is imminent.

This makes a lot of sense as the rise of tablets and smartphones brings functionality that rivals a PC in terms of speed and applications.

Karsten Weide, IDC research vice president, Media and Entertainment.

“Forget what we have taken for granted on how consumers use the Internet, soon, more users will access the Web using mobile devices than using PCs, and it’s going to make the Internet a very different place.”



Weide went on to predict that mobile internet users will grow year on year and by 2015 will have seen an increase of some 16.6%, with PC users accessing the internet beginning to stagnate and slowly decline

No data was provided to indicate just how much that decline would be and how severe it may look but if HP and IBM know something about computers and PC’s then their departure from the PC manufacturing heights may have some tell tale warnings in that back this market research up.

IDC did however go on to predict that there will be some 2.7 billion people who access the Internet by 2015, this is up from 2 billion at the end of 2010. This will mean that at the need of 2015 more than 40% of the worlds population will have access to the internet…staggering!

Anthony Munns]]> https://www.mobileinquirer.com/2011/mobile-internet-to-soar-pc-internet-access-to-peak-and-decline/feed/ 0