iPad: What Developers Need To Know

Apple just finished their iPad event. Here’s what you’ll want to know as a developer:

Jobs says the device is for, “Browsing the web. Doing email. Enjoying and sharing pics. Watching videos. Enjoying music. Playing games. Reading ebooks.”

It’ll run unmodified iPhone apps out of the box in two modes: actual size, which takes up half the screen, and scaled up 2x for full screen. This implies the 9.7″ screen has a resolution of 960-by-640. Update: henning informs us that it’s 1024×768.

The device runs Apple’s own A4 chip at 1GHz. Other than a bare Wikipedia page there’s not much data on the chip. It’s an ARM chip, which is why it can run the unmodified iPhone binaries.

The device has 802.11N WiFi and Blue Tooth 2.1 + EDD. Unlocked 3G GSM is an option. There is no camera. Not clear on compass/location hardware — maps app suggests location capabilities, but can’t find anything. Update: Ken Pespisa points out that Apple’s published the specs since I wrote this: compass and location in the 3G model.

Apple will release the SDK later today. It’s not clear whether this’ll be pre-release and, therefore, covered under NDA or not. If it’s not, we’ll have how-to pieces starting shortly. Update: it’s available, and it’s pre-release. We’ll queue up our pieces for after the NDA drops.

What’s notable about the SDK? From the press event we can say:

There’s still no multi-tasking.

With the larger screen comes many new UI elements and layout options. These options aren’t lifted directly from OS-X, but are a blend of OS-X and iPhone OS: Apps can have panels/panes. Tables can have multiple columns. Tab interfaces have been expanded to include OS-X like top-of-screen tab-window/panel picker style (vs. bottom of window iPhone tab menus). Most notable:

Pop-over/drop-dow style menus are in frequent use; e.g., the bookmark and font-chooser floating menus.

The iPhone HIG and other Apple documentation make it clear that iPhone is considered a one column, one window platform. Does that imply the pop-over style menus won’t come to the iPhone?

Lots of implications here for building your app specifically for one device or the other; if the new goodies on the iPad become expected/familiar then bare iPhone apps will rub iPad users the wrong way; conversely, spending the time to make a true iPad app has to be weighed against the 70MM devices with iPhone display specs.

As an incentive for developers Apple will be pimping iPad optimized apps in the store.

Finally, Apple is selling the iWork apps in the App store at $9.99 each. Good move, setting a higher price expectation.

 

http://www.mobileorchard.com/

Acer Launching App Store for Windows, Android, Windows Mobile and Chrome

Have we reached app store saturation yet? Apparently not. PC manufacturer Acer has just announced plans to launch its own application store designed for all the operating systems is supports, including Microsoft Windows, Windows Mobile, Google's Android platform and Google Chrome. The new store will launch mid-year for the first three platforms listed, with apps for Chrome set to launch later on. Although no exact time frame was given, the Chrome apps are likely to appear by the third or fourth quarter of 2010 to coincide with the debut of Acer's line of Chrome OS netbooks, a group that will account for 10% of Acer's ultra-portable PCs.

The Acer App Store

Acer, currently the world's second-largest computer vendor, mentioned the application store among a series of initiatives designed to boost the company's profitability, according to a report on Bloomberg.com. From what it sounds like, Acer is glomming onto every major tech trend with plans that include everything from an e-reader to a Tablet PC. In fact, Acer chairman J.T. Want even admits this is the case: "We'd like to proactively purse any opportunity," he said.

One of those opportunities is the new Acer application store, an online venture that will offer hundreds of different applications, both free and paid. However, the company wouldn't share pricing details or name developers, noted the Bloomberg story.

Although application stores are typically associated with mobile phones, Acer wouldn't be the first vendor to launch an applications store designed for use on PCs. Earlier this month, chip maker Intel launched the AppUp site, an application store designed specifically for netbook computers. Interestingly enough, AppUp is meant to be a white-label offering that PC manufacturers can customize to their own needs. At the time of its launch at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Intel announced several partnerships with other PC makers to bring the AppUp store to consumers. Included among those launch partners was Acer. Gianpiero Morbello, Acer's worldwide marketing VP said that by accessing the AppUp catalog, their company would be able to distribute "innovative software downloads to Acer Atom processor-based netbook customers and move to easily support additional Acer customers on any device powered by an Intel processor."

So Is This Yet Another App Store?

However, despite the sparse details surrounding the upcoming Acer app store, it does sound like the manufacturer is planning their own venture of sorts. Intel's store only supports Windows netbooks and the Moblin Linux operating system - not mobile devices like Windows Mobile or Google Android and definitely not Google's new netbook OS, Google Chrome.

Intel confirms that the previously announced joint venture is still on, with their company providing behind-the-scenes support for infrastructure, testing, and validation of apps. And while Intel isn't privy to Acer's other plans, it does appear that this would be a separate store from whatever Acer is envisioning for the other platforms outside of Atom-based netbooks.

It's understandable that Acer wants to generate some hype surrounding their products by offering an app store to their customers, but at this point they may be simply confusing the issue. Many of the platforms Acer plans to support already offer their own application stores - even Google's Chrome OS, the Web-based operating system set to launch by year-end. And, of course, one could argue that the Internet itself has been the app store for Windows computers for many years now.

 

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/acer_launching_app_store.php

How to root a T-Mobile myTouch 3G or G1 in 6 minutes and flash Cyanogen rom with Donut crumbs

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8BZYEBsSws

Milestone multitouch browser for Droid 2.0.1(beta)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1X3c5SCM1g

Google Nexus One multitouch with default browser via Cyanogen - Swedroid.se

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8EBZhvobJc

How to Hack Your Android Phone (and Why You Should Bother)

Do you want to take control of your Android phone? By "rooting" your device, a process similar to jailbreaking an iPhone, you can install custom ROMs (images), which add stability and speed improvements to Google's mobile operating system, as well as install new features developed by the hacker community themselves. The procedure involves running commands that enable total access to the device. For non-developer types, hacks like these sound scary, but by following the instructions below, you can take control of your Android phone in only a matter of minutes. The end result is a truly open device which you can modify to your heart's content.

Why Hack Android?

So why would you want to hack your Android phone? For those with older handsets, rooting the device lets you install customized ROMs which can deliver major speed improvements and performance increases. For example, the popular CyanogenMod, created by one of Android's most notable hackers, optimizes performance for both the G1 and MyTouch 3G handsets.

Another good reason to root your phone? Multi-touch. One of the surprising omissions from Google's own Nexus One handset, for example, is the ability to use more than one finger at a time to operate the device. Although available on iPhone from the start, the Nexus One excludes this valuable feature from its mobile operating system. Why? No one knows for sure, but it might have something to do with some patents Apple owns. But that's no matter to the hacker community. Thanks again to cyanogen, Nexus One owners can enable the feature by copying some files over to their device. Other Android owners can perform similar procedures to enable multi-touch Web browsing. But before you can get started with any of these hacks, you first have to root the phone.

How to Root Your Android Phone

However, for novice hackers, "rooting" the phone sounds like it may be easier said than done. Although seemingly intimidating, by following a few simple steps anyone can do this with ease.

Before getting started, remember to back up your phone, including your contacts, SMS messages, files and photos.

1. The first step is to download and install Superboot, a boot image that, when flashed, will root the device the first time you boot up. You can grab a copy of the Superboot zip file from the Modaco forums here.
2. Once downloaded, extract the files it contains to a directory on your computer, just like any other zip file.
3. Now put your Android phone in bootloader mode. (Note, owners of a retail N1 should see instructions here).
   • To do so, turn off the phone, remove the battery, and plug in the USB cable. When the battery icon appears onscreen, pop the battery back in. Now tap the Power button while holding down the Camera key.
   • For those whose Android phones have a trackball, you have an even easier method of doing this: Turn off the phone, press and hold the trackball, then turn the phone back on.
4. Depending on your computer's OS, do one of the following:
   • Windows: Double click "install-superboot-windows.bat"
   • Mac: Open a terminal window to the directory containing the files, and type "chmod +x install-superboot-mac.sh" followed by "./install-superboot-mac.sh"
   • Linux: Open a terminal window to the directory containing the files, and type "chmod +x install-superboot-linux.sh" followed by "./install-superboot-linux.sh"
5. That's it, your device has been rooted!

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/how_to_hack_your_android_phone.php

Android Apps Are Priced Higher in Europe Than In The U.S. (Report)

App store analytics company Distimo has released its December report on mobile apps, this time zooming in on the physical location of publishers in Google Android Market, and how the prices of their apps compares to those of developers in other countries.

Distimo found that publishers in the Euro zone (Austria, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands and Spain) tend to price their applications higher than those in the United Kingdom, the U.S. and Japan.

The average price of an Android app published by a developer in Europe is $4.42, which is 49% higher than publishers located in the United States ($2.96). For comparison, publishers in Japan price apps $2.28 on average, while the UK comes out at an average price of $3.31.

In Android Market, application prices are denoted in the publisher’s home currency, which is how Distimo is able to look at the differences in pricing per region. Looking at the physical location of publishers of paid applications, Distimo found that 65% is in the United States, and 12% in the United Kingdom. This makes sense of course, because those are the countries Android Market arrived first.

The Euro zone accounts for 20% of publishers, and Japan for a mere 3%.

Distimo doesn’t only track Android Market, and in fact has just broadened its analytics services to include Windows Mobile Marketplace and Nokia Ovi Store next to Android Market, BlackBerry App World and the Apple App Store.

Unsurprisingly, Distimo found that applications for BlackBerry and Windows Mobile are generally priced higher. This is likely the result of the fact that more enterprise applications make their way to those devices, and its owner are more keen on spending money for tools that help them to do their jobs more efficiently.

According to Distimo’s report, the average price of applications for Android, iPhone / iPod Touch and in Nokia’s Ovi Store hovers around $3.50. Windows Marketplace for Mobile and BlackBerry App World are clearly more expensive, averaging $6.99 and $8.26, respectively.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/26/android-market-pricing/

Google Voice Does An End Run Around Apple And Shows Up In The iPhone’s Browser (Screenshots)

by Erick Schonfeld on January 26, 2010

Remember the dustup last summer over Apple’s rejection of the Google Voice app for the iPhone? Everyone was pointing fingers and even the FCC got involved. Michael was so upset that he quit the iPhone rather than give up his Google Voice. Well, now he can come back because Google Voice is finally on the iPhone via its browser, and Apple can’t really do anything about it..

Google Voice will become available today for both the iPhone and Palm Pre/Pixi via a new mobile Website which will go live later today at http://m.google.com/voice. The new Google Voice mobile site shows your inbox with transcribed calls, which you can play from the browser. You can also send SMS messages or dial from the browser. The application ends up making a local call through your cell phone to Google Voice, which then routes your call through its own lines. When someone gets the call, they see your Google Voice number instead of your AT&T number. And when you get a voicemail, a notification even pops up on your iPhone with the transcribed message (through SMS).

It is built on HTML5 with most of the functionality of the original iPhone app, except that it cannot access the local contact list in your iPhone’s address book. It lets you manage a separate Google Voice contact list which is kept in the cloud instead. Google Voice voice routes your calls through its servers and acts as a new hub through which you can manage calls and forward them to various phones. You can also manage your settings and various phone numbers. The HTML5 makes it very fast, allows for local caching of data, and supports the voice tags necessary to play the audio voicemails through the browser.

Mobile apps like Google Voice really show what can be done in the browser and point to an alternative way to build sophisticated apps for the iPhone without going through the gatekeepers in Cupertino. VoiceCentral, one of the third-party Google Voice apps that was also pulled from the App store, created a similar browser-based version of Google Voice for the iPhone. Both of these apps went the browser route because they didn’t have any other choice, but you can hardly tell them apart from regular apps. Once mobile phones allow access to deeper phone functions such as the local contact list from the browser, there will be even less reason to create a device specific app. The Web, after all, supports many different platforms. With a few tweaks to the UI, the mobile Google Voice site also works on Palm phones.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/26/google-voice-iphones-browser/

FunMail’s Picture Messaging App Launches On Android

 

FunMobility’s picture messaging app for the iPhone, called FunMail, has a seen a fair amount of traction, with 100,000 downloads since its launch in November. Today, the developers are rolling out a similar app for Android phones. You can access the app here.

Similar to the iPhone app, FunMail for Android allows users blasts their text into the application, which then breaks down whatever the user typed for context. FunMail’s learning technology “Media Brain” will return a handful of context-related graphics (pulled from Creative Commons sources and their own user-generated library), with your original text. The user picks the graphic they want, and off it goes via SMS, Facebook, or Twitter. In addition, FunMail leverage’s Google’s voice-recognition and transcription technology, enabling consumers to turn spoken messages into images that can be shared.

The service is free to the users but FunMail plans to monetize via partnerships (though its unclear what those partnerships will be). Considering the decent amount of downloads of the iPhone app, the Android app could be popular. And the app’s ability to leverage the phone’s transcription and voice-recognition technologies makes FunMail even more compelling. The iPhone app, which you can download here, has also received an upgrade, with new content and performance enhancements.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/26/funmails-picture-messaging-app-launches-on-android/

Loopt To Start Pushing Check-In Specials Hard Using A New App And Facebook

When Loopt released its iPhone app alongside the App Store launch in 2008, it seemed to have everything going for it. Founder Sam Altman was given time on stage at WWDC to show off the app. It was featured prominently in the App Store for a while. And it was really one of the first hot location-based services. But then it cooled off, partially because the app needed to be open to update your location. And since the iPhone didn’t allow for third-party applications to run in the background, it was severely hamstrung. Meanwhile, a series of check-in based location apps that didn’t need to be open all the time came along and stole the location buzz. More importantly, they brought to light new business opportunities for local venues with the idea of location-based deals. Loopt’s new goal is to make a strong push for that.

As you can see in the deck we’ve obtained below, Loopt is working on yet another new product that is all about location-based deals. This deck is apparently making the rounds with a bunch of agencies and advertisers, as Loopt hopes to get them on board when they launch they app in a few months. The new app is called LooptCard. Clearly, from the deck it will run on the iPhone, but it should also work across all the major mobile platforms, we’re told. And these advertisers are being told that Loopt already has several retailers and venues on board with deals for when they launch.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/

A New Era For Corporate Culture: iPhone Use Doubles in the Enterprise

iPhone use has doubled in the enterprise since last summer when Apple released the 3GS. The big bump in sales helped Apple post $3.38 billion in profits this past quarter. More than 70% of Fortune 100 companies are now testing the iPhone as their smartphone of choice. A big driver is iPhone's support for Microsoft Exchange.

The news highlights why Google is planning to launch its next Nexus One as an enterprise device: The corporate market has smartphone fever.

The news also points to the inherent weakness of the RIM Blackberry in comparison to the iPhone and the Nexus One. Touch devices such as the iPhone and the Nexus One are designed for applications and accessing the Web. The Blackberry is designed as a messaging device.

But the enterprise is going through a shift that affects not just what device is used but how the overall organization functions.

That shift is embodied in the deeper commitment to collaboration technologies in the enterprise. As mobile technologies become more robust, the affects across the organization will be seen in a number of ways.

Operations and other non-customer facing tasks will be done more often outside the walls of the corporate office. People will increasingly work at home. Mobile devices will be pretty much required by knowledge workers.

Telepresence will become more predominant. Corporations are investing in unified communications technologies to allow for better video conferencing over any type of device, including smartphones.

Technology providers will need technologies to work across any device. You see this trend beginning to evolve. RIM and IBM announced an integration at Lotusphere last week. Lotus Quickr and Lotus Connections will be loaded onto Blackberry devices. Big Blue is also developing applications for the Android OS to allow for encrypted email, using Lotus NotesTraveler, the IBM technology. Traveler is now available on the iPhone as well.

The Blackberry still has a significant lead over the iPhone, and the Nexus One is but a baby. But Apple and Google's intentions are pretty clear, and RIM is not blind to the shift, as exemplified with its IBM partnership.

 

http://www.readwriteweb.com/enterprise/2010/01/a-new-era-for-corporate-cultur.php

Google Nexus One review - part 2 of 2

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBBEcYLfnEA

http://www.mobileburn.com/review.jsp?Page=2&Id=8588

Google Nexus One review - part 1 of 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cielXDB0l88

http://www.mobileburn.com/review.jsp?Id=8588

Review of Google's Nexus One Android-powered touchscreen smartphone

Google Nexus One

Google Nexus One

Google Nexus One

The Google Nexus One is the first real "Google Phone." It is being sold directly by Google, it is branded a Google device (in spite of being built by HTC), and you won't find it listed on a carrier's site. The first version of the Nexus One was designed to work with T-Mobile's GSM and 3G networks, and can be purchased with T-Mobile service, but can also work at GSM EDGE speeds on AT&T. Versions built for Verizon's network in the U.S. and Vodafone's network elsewhere are set to become available in the Spring.

The phone features some cutting edge hardware, like a large AMOLED^(INFO) display and a 1GHz CPU, but will that and its new Android 2.1 operating system be enough to earn recognition as a "super smartphone" by consumers?

Physical Aspects

When it comes to the hardware design of the Google Nexus One, Google and partner HTC nearly knocked it out of the park. The device, which measures 120mm x 60mm x 11.5mm (4.7in x 2.4in x .5in) in size, is made up of nice textures and smooth, softly curved lines. The soft touch paint on its back cover only improves the feel of the 136.2g (4.8oz) device as it lays flat in your hand.

Controls on the Nexus One are pretty minimal. There is a lightable trackball that resides below a gorgeous, bright and colorful 3.7-inch, 800 x 480 pixel AMOLED touchscreen display. Both the trackball and the capacitive touchscreen^(INFO) perform very well. The touch sensitive controls for back, menu, home, and search that sit between them, however, are only sufficient and account for the only real misstep in the Nexus One's design. Hardware keys would have been greatly preferred, even if it might have detracted a bit from the Nexus One's aesthetic appeal.

There are no controls on the right edge of the phone, not even a camera shutter button, but the top of the left edge and left of the top edge are home to very low profile controls for volume and power, respectively. They look good, and work well enough. A 3.5mm headphone jack is located on the top of the phone as well, and a micro-USB power/data connector can be found on the bottom of the phone, along with contacts that appear to be intended for a cradle of some sort.

The 5 megapixel camera, with its LED flash, sit on the back cover of the Nexus One, which can be slid off easily enough to gain access to the SIM card and microSDHC^(INFO) memory card slots, both of which require the removal of the battery in order to be swapped out.

Overall, the Nexus One's hardware should appeal to people that like the touchscreen slab form factor. It is a fine example of the type. Those that seek more hardware-centric text input methods will have to hold out for the rumored "enterprise" focused device that Google has alluded to in the past.

Google Nexus One

Google Nexus One

Google Nexus One

Google Nexus One

Core Functions

Like much of the rest of Google's Nexus One, there are a number of high points that sit right next to low points. For example, the phone offers superb audio clarity on calls - possibly the best we've heard - but it also has a pretty poor performing speakerphone and questionable signal reception. On my desk is a Motorola CLIQ with 3 bars of 3G signal while the Nexus One offers only EDGE, though 5 bars of it (something the CLIQ could easily do if I turned off 3G). In general I have found that the Nexus One spends far more of its day without signal than the CLIQ does, and the CLIQ is not even the best performing T-Mobile 3G phone we have. This impacts the life of the battery, which is going to be charged daily as a forgone conclusion.

Turning off 3G data in the phone's settings will greatly improve battery life, especially in weak signal areas like my house since the phone's GSM reception is pretty good. Turning on WiFi on the Nexus One will certainly help make up for a lack of 3G data, but it, too, adds a drain to the phone's battery, though it seems to be decently optimized.

The Nexus One does a great job with contacts. The Android 2.1 OS allows for 3rd party developers to integrate directly into the main contacts system, and Google includes a nice Facebook app that demonstrates that well. Multiple Gmail accounts can be added to the device for contacts or email (but only one for the calendar), and the same is true for Microsoft Exchange accounts. New 3rd party apps are likely to be available in the future to add support for other sites like MySpace, Twitter, and LinkedIn, if they don't already exist.

Contacts on the phone are managed in two main lists, the full contact list (which can be configured to show contacts from all sources or only one), and the favorites list, which shows only starred contacts. Long pressing on a contact photo (or photo placeholder) will bring up a list of icons that represent the various ways that contact can be reached (call, SMS, Facebook, etc). All imaginable details can be stored in a contact, and there is first and last name searching as well as a slider control that can be used to index through long lists. Shortcuts to contacts can also be placed on a homescreen panel for even more convenient access.

In terms of functionality, the Google Nexus One does very well with messaging tasks. It has great support for IMAP, POP, and Exchange email systems in addition to Google's home grown Gmail. The Exchange support is pretty simple, lacking even out of office notices, but it works well for bringing your messages and contacts (though not calendar appointments). The setup process for email is simple, and everything works pretty much as one would hope for. Text and multimedia messaging work through a separate system and are shown in an IM-like threaded fashion. IM support on the Nexus One is limited to Google's own Gtalk system, though there are 3rd party apps that can provide access to other systems.

The Nexus One's 3G data is hampered by its poor reception, but even when the phone showed but one bar of 3G signal, I still managed to get 1000kbps or faster downloads on DSLReports's mspeed test, which is great. WiFi data speeds were much faster still, and the phone's speedy Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, running at 1GHz, is fully capable of gobbling up the data. Bluetooth is also supported on the phone, as is USB.

http://www.mobileburn.com/review.jsp?Page=2&Id=8588

Rumor Has It: iPhone OS 4.0 Details Leaked Early

I’m pretty sure that late January is traditionally that time of the year when the Apple rumor mill starts heating-up in anticipation of the impending iPhone OS update. A young tradition, to be sure, but a tradition nonetheless.

This year, however, the media frenzy around the mythical-but-completely-certainly-probably-real Tablet seems to be getting all the attention — rather like a new born baby stealing the limelight from its three year old sibling.

At least BoyGeniusReport — in the past a reasonably accurate source of information on upcoming iPhone OS updates — hasn’t forgotten the tradition and, even though no one is paying the least bit of attention, they resolutely committed to web-page what they think they now know about iPhone 4.0.

So what’s the latest? From BGR:

“There will be multi-touch gestures OS-wide. (Would make sense […] as the rumored OS for the iTablet is close if not the same as the iPhone)

I’m not sure I understand what this means if I’m honest with you. I mean, the few multi-touch gestures we get now in apps like Photos and Safari are sensible enough, (double-tap and pinch zooming are useful in those apps) but do we need multi-touch everywhere? How will the addition of OS-wide gestures make the OS more elegant, more intuitive and easier to use? Now, I’m not suggesting any sort of major calamity; I’m just experiencing something of an imagination-failure here.

“A few new ways” to run applications in the background — multitasking.”

So, the elusive Multitasking is coming to iPhone? I’m not convinced. Speaking from my many years of experience using Windows Mobile, it seems to me that Apple’s approach to memory management on the iPhone is pretty much perfect. Sure, it doesn’t multitask — but in almost three years of iPhone ownership, that has never presented an insurmountable problem for me. And the (ahem- late) introduction of Push Notification Services was a very welcome compromise.

I have since discovered, however, that I don’t need Facebook to notify me about every poke or thrown sheep, and I especially don’t want to be notified of every tweet from my Twitter stream. No thank you.

Perhaps the “few new ways” refers to a sandboxed memory “space” that runs in the background, sort of like an app for keeping-alive portions of other apps, even when they’re not currently front-and-center. Maybe. Whatever it is, you can be sure there won’t be a task manager.

“Many graphical and UI changes to make navigating through the OS easier and more efficient. We haven’t had this broken down, but we can only hope for improved notifications, a refreshed homescreen, etc.”

What do you think? A new, refreshed UI style, perhaps? Or an iPhone version of Exposé? The latter sounds horrid, but still, Soptlight can’t be the only solution to quickly navigating through 10 pages of apps.

“The update will supposedly be available for only the iPhone 3G and 3GS, but will “put them ahead in the smartphone market because it will make them more like full-fledged computers” more than any other phone to date. Everyone is “really excited.”

Makes sense. The 3G and 3GS have more memory than the venerable first generation iPhone. Consider how sluggish the latest build of the iPhone OS (3.1.2) can be on first generation iPhones. Apple is so concerned with guaranteeing a consistent, elegant user experience they kept cut & paste out of the OS for years before they felt the solution was good-enough to publish. So they’re hardly going to support their latest and greatest OS on the ageing first-generation iPhone because the experience will be terrible.

I would wager, too, that core location services have been greatly expanded and even more tightly integrated with the entire OS, making the original location-ignorant iPhone a bit of a silly platform for 4.0. (Don’t forget that patent for a location-aware home screen…)

“The last piece of information is the most vague, but apparently there will be some brand new syncing ability for the contacts and calendar applications.”

Since I’m one of the five or six people in this world who pays for a MobileMe subscription I never really think about contacts/calendar syncing. It just happens for me, quietly, no fuss. I’ve never synced any other way, so I have no experience of the perils and pitfalls of syncing via different methods. I’ll leave you to tell me what you think this means and why I should care.

And Then There’s That Tablet (Again)

Don’t forget that the established wisdom of the Rumor Mill has it that iPhone OS 4.0 and the Tablet’s operating system are pretty much built upon the same core code — hence the reason for Apple’s delay in seeding the 4.0 build to developers. (Since the code is so similar it’s pretty likely that tablet functionality will be easily discovered by a few minutes spent digging through iPhone OS 4.0’s bundled APIs. Apple has held-back on seeding the next major iPhone OS build for this very reason — they don’t want to give away clues as to what’s in store with the Tablet — that sort of information will leak fast.)

So while the world’s press salivates over the upcoming tablet and forgets completely about Apple’s other major products, spare a thought for iPhone OS 4.0. It’s likely to be the most important — and impressive — update in the iPhone’s history. And, unless you have your money ready to splash on the Tablet, iPhone OS 4.0 is the most likely next “new thing” you’re going to get from Cupertino.

 

http://theappleblog.com/2010/01/21/rumor-has-it-iphone-os-4-0-details-leaked-early/

Google Nexus One running Home++

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1xHVclXUMc

DecaWave ScenSor in Action

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEpNbdzWmWU

Using Your Mobile Phone as a Proximity Sensor

Earlier today we noted that the era of location-as-platform has arrived in 2010, care of mobile services such as Foursquare and Brightkite.

In the latest in our series exploring the integration of mobile phones with Internet of Things, we look at what kinds of things you can do using your phone as a proximity sensor. Right now most of the use cases are social - for example, your phone lets you see who else is in the same location as you. But what will emerge when we add data from sensors to the mix? It becomes much more than a social platform then, because it adds billions of 'things' to the equation.

RWW's Mobile Web Meets Internet of Things Series:

1. Mobile Apps For Barcode Scanning
2. iPhone as RFID Tag & Reader
3. Sensors & Mobile Phones
4. Mobile Phone as Proximity Sensor

As Marshall Kirkpatrick wrote earlier, "where you are" has became a platform to build added value on top of - just as "who you know" has on Facebook and "what you're doing" on Twitter. Marshall outlined some current use cases for location data - showing nearby restaurants and ratings, advertising, local news, events, Wikipedia data about local buildings.

All of that functionality can be achieved right now using geo-location data from your iPhone or Android device, data from local places (e.g. address data), metadata from businesses (e.g. pricing from local shops) and people data (e.g. user check-ins from Foursquare or Brightkite).

As impressive as that is, it's really just the beginning. Imagine the possibilities when you add data from sensors.

DecaWave's ScenSor uses wireless radio chips to enable "precision RTLS (Real Time Location Systems) applications."

In the concept video, distance measurements are used to determine proximity and do things such as enable/disable a laptop, find a lost teddy bear, enable access in a hospital room for a doctor, identify nearby patient info and then download the correct records to the doctor, and advise of approaching friends. Other concepts shown in the video include an in-store location application guide for shoppers, proximity of tagged clothing, and information transfer capability with patient data.

The functionality shown by DecWave is still emerging. Probably the most likely place we'll see sensor data make an impact in the short-term is on our roads. Using your mobile phone, you could get a real-time update of traffic conditions via sensors embedded in the road. This possibility excites even those who don't currently use the Mobile Internet. In a recent report on mobile internet usage, checking real time travel updates was listed by 33% of respondents as "the most interesting to those that don't currently use mobile internet."

Over the next few years, expect to see sensor-driven data add to the functionality and breadth of mobile phone location platforms. Let us know your thoughts.

 

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/using_your_mobile_phone_as_a_proximity_sensor.php

Manufacturer Share

http://metrics.admob.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/AdMob-Mobile-Metrics-Dec-09.pdf

Operating system share_Smartphone only by admob

http://metrics.admob.com/?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRovu6vfLqzsmxzEJ8n77ukuX7Hr08Yy0EZ5VunJEUWy0IMD

Apple responsible for 99.4% of mobile app sales in 2009 (Updated)

The latest report from market research firm Gartner suggests that mobile apps are big business, and that business should only grow in the next few years. According to Gartner's numbers and those reported by Apple, Apple completely owns this market, likely grabbing almost every one of the 4.2 billion dollars spent on mobile apps in 2009. Based on Gartner's estimates and our own analysis, Apple could hold on to at least two-thirds of the market if current sales trends hold for 2010.

Apple first opened the App Store in July 2008, along with the launch of the iPhone 3G and the release of iPhone OS 2.0. Sales were brisk, with 300 million apps sold by December. After the holidays, that number had jumped to 500 million. Earlier this month, Apple announced that sales had topped 3 billion; that means iPhone users downloaded 2.5 billion apps in 2009 alone. Gartner's figures show another 16 million apps that could come from other platform's recently opened app stores, giving Apple at least 99.4 percent of all mobile apps sold for the year.

"As smartphones grow in popularity and application stores become the focus for several players in the value chain, more consumers will experiment with application downloads," Stephanie Baghdassarian, research director at Gartner, said in a statement. "Games remain the number one application, and mobile shopping, social networking, utilities and productivity tools continue to grow and attract increasing amounts of money."

Gartner's predictions for 2010 are 4.5 billion apps sold, for a total of $6.8 billion in revenue. If Apple can merely maintain its current rate of about a quarter billion app sales per month, and revenue share tracks with market share, it stands to be responsible for 3 billion apps sales—67 percent—good for about $4.5 billion in revenue. Apple's cut would be $1.35 billion, with developers taking the remainder. However, as Apple gains more users from sales of new iPhone models and possibly from an expected tablet, Apple could get an even larger share of the mobile app market.

Predictions for 2013, just a few years away, are even bigger—21.6 billion apps sold for a total of $29.5 billion revenue. The firm predicts that by then, 25 percent of the revenue generated by mobile apps will be from free versions supported with advertising. "Growth in smartphone sales will not necessarily mean that consumers will spend more money, but it will widen the addressable market for an offering that will be advertising-funded," Baghdassarian said. That makes Apple's acquisition of a mobile advertising firm seem like an even smarter move, just for the extra revenue alone.

The App Store model has become de rigueur on all the smartphone platforms, with RIM, Microsoft, Palm, and Google each building a similar way for developers to make apps available, and for users to find them and pay for them. Gartner warns that developers will have to carefully consider which platform's app store is best to promote their app. Even with the hundreds of thousands of options that vie for users in the iPhone App Store, the numbers suggest that Apple remains most developers' best bet.

UPDATE: A number of people have expressed concern that Gartner's figure only count apps sold, and not free apps. Gartner's press release indicated otherwise, and we verified with Baghdassarian that the figures include all apps, free or otherwise, distributed from every app store. According to Apple, it moved 2.5 billion apps, free or otherwise. We contend that the 99.4 percent figure is accurate.

To help visualize this figure, some readers requested an additional chart:

http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/01/apple-responsible-for-994-of-mobile-app-sales-in-2009.ars

iPhone 4G Rumors Visualized [PHOTO]

Last week, some enterprising fans created a visual guide to the Apple Tablet rumors. Today, the French website Nowhere Else has done something similar for the next generation iPhone. The image highlights the various rumors surrounding the next version of the iPhone (the iPhone 4G if you will) into one annotated graphic.

An OLED display, 5-megapixel camera and a release date between May and July appear to be the most likely rumors (and we agree that those all sound like very distinct possibilities). Also ranking high are rumors of a front-facing camera, dual-core processor with more RAM and a touch-sensitive case.

As for the removable battery rumor, 60% likely or not, we don’t see that happening. Apple has moved its portable line to built-in batteries; it seems unlikely to us that they would add a removable battery to the iPhone.

You can check out a larger version of the image directly at Nowhere Else. What do you think of this roundup? What features would you like to see in the next iPhone? Let us know!

 

http://mashable.com/2010/01/18/iphone-4g-guide/

iPhone And Android Now Account For 81 Percent Of Smartphone Web Ads In the U.S.

nfeld on January 21, 2010

When it comes to the mobile Web, increasingly there are only two mobile platforms that matter: Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android. According to market share data put out today by AdMob (which is being acquired by Google), the iPhone and Android combined captured 81 percent of U.S. mobile ad impressions on smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2009, up from a combined 55 percent in the first quarter of 2009.  Most of that growth comes from Android, which nearly doubled its market share from the third quarter to 27 percent.  The iPhone OS made up the other 54 percent. (Worldwide, the iPhone had 51 percent share and Android had 16 percent, for a combined total of 67 percent).

Back in the first quarter of 2009, Android only had a 4 percent share of mobile ad impressions (which is also a decent proxy for overall mobile Web and app usage).  It took a lot of share from Blackberry, which went from 20 percent to 10 percent over the past year, and Windows Mobile, which went from 12 percent to 3 percent.  And Palm, which Android passed long ago, is barely a rounding error now, compared to its 7 percent share a year ago.  During all of this time, not only has the combined market share of Android and iPhone been growing, but so has overall mobile Web traffic. In North America alone, mobile Web traffic has doubled in the past year.

Increasingly this looks like a two-horse race between iPhone and Android, and all the other mobile phones don’t matter.  No wonder Google only cares about targeting mobile ads to those two platforms.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/21/iphone-android-admob-81-percent/

Myxer Report: Android Outpaces iPhone Users For Downloading Mobile Content

Mobile content delivery company Myxer is releasing a report this morning that indicate much of what we already know about Google’s Android platform: Android is gaining traction in the mobile space. According to data provided by Myxer’s 30 million users, visits to Myxer’s mobile site from users on the Android operating system grew 350% in 2009, compared to the iPhone, which grew 170%. In total, Myxer delivered seven times more downloads to Android devices than iPhone devices in Q4 2009.

Myxer, which delivered ringtones and other content to 1,500 different devices in 2009, also delves into the break down by type of Android device, with HTC’s Dream/G1 commanding 35% of the unique users completing downloads on Android handsets in December. HTC’s myTouch, Motorola CLIQ, and Motorola Droid each used by 18%, 11%, and 7% (respectively) of total unique Android users on Myxer.

Myxer reports that the Blackberry Curve is the most frequented phone to visit Myxer’s mobile site to download content, with Windows Mobile and Palm devices decreasing in visits during 2009. Hip-Hop/R&B content dominates as a music genre; accounting for 77% of Android downloads and 47% of iPhone downloads.

The company seems to be doing fairly well in the mobile content space. Myxer just delivered 10 million ringtones to iPhone users (and 1 billion ringtones in all) and offers over 2 million free ringtones, wallpapers and videos. Users can also make their own ringtones, videos and wallpaper from music and files a customer already owns. And according to the company, its mobile site sees six million monthly unique visitors downloading over 85 million content items from Myxer each month. The startup also recently launched MobileStage, a suite of mobile marketing services aimed towards the music industry. Competitors include mSpot, Playphone and SendMe.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/22/myxer-report-android-outpaces-iphone-users-for-downloading-mobile-content/

Google Extending Google Voice To Veterans. Why Not Throw In Some Android Phones Too?

Just about two years ago, we wrote about Google giving away free voicemail accounts to homeless people in San Francisco. While a very nice thing to do, it was also a bit of marketing genius by both Google and SF mayor Gavin Newsom. After all, they were getting great publicity for giving away something that was already free (GrandCentral — which is now known as Google Voice). We wondered if they wouldn’t pull the same stunt in the future. Well, it’s the future; and they are.

Again, this is actually a very nice thing they’re doing, but it’s also an ingenious way to promote what Google clearly considers to be one of its killer products: Google Voice. This time, they’re giving out Google Voice accounts to U.S. veterans in Washington D.C. as an extension of their Project CARE program. This Saturday, Google is joining a dozen or so other Washington D.C. organizations at an event at the D.C. Veterans Affairs Medical Center to hand out Project CARE cards that will give veterans a unique Google Voice phone number and voicemail account.

As Google notes:

In today’s connected world, many of us don’t think twice about picking up the phone to place or receive a call. However, for a homeless individual, a phone number can be an important lifeline, connecting you with prospective employers, health care providers, family and friends.

Of course, giving away these phone numbers (which again, are free) doesn’t really mean much without an actual phone line or mobile device to attach it to. And Google doesn’t really explain how they’re going to serve these veterans who don’t have any access to a phone. But they do say that they will be helping them to set up the accounts, so presumably they’ll ask them if there is some other phone number of someone they know that they can attach the new Google Voice number to.

The grander gesture would be for Google to give out a bunch of Android phones along with the Google Voice accounts. They don’t have to be the next high-priced Nexus Ones, but I’m sure Google has plenty of G1s laying around, which as yesterday’s latest and greatest Android toy, Android fans are setting aside to jump to the new phones. That would be a nice little extension of bringing back the “don’t be evil” slogan.

Update: A Google spokesperson has reached out with the following additional information about the program:

I wanted to just clarify that Project CARE phone numbers are different from regular Google Voice accounts in that they don’t actually need to be linked to a working phone.  When you setup the account, people can call your Project CARE number, just like a regular phone number, and you will be able to access those messages from any computer (e.g. at the library or a shelter).

That’s good, though I could see getting access to a computer still being a bit of a challenge for some. To be clear, Google also verified there is no VoIP element to this different version of Google Voice, so you can’t make outbound calls using this system — the Android phone would be good for that.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/22/google-voice-veterans/

Truphone first to provide VoIP app for Nexus One

Voice app provider Truphone is releasing an updated app for Android which is compatible with Google’s Nexus One handset. That makes it the first VoIP client for that phone. In fact it turns out the Nexus One is going to be very important to Truphone’s overall strategy.

The update for Android device (version 3.0.2) also makes Truphone compatible with the T-Mobile Pulse, taking it to five Android devices now. Truphone worked closely with Google on the app.

It’s the latest in a line of new moves by the UK-based company, which a year ago was not looking quite so happy. Revenues from VOIP calls are still a tough nut to crack and although Truphone has a great tech-focused team, until recently it lacked business and commercial savvy. The arrival of new – ex-Yahoo mobile- CEO Geraldine Wilson in late 2008 has stabilised the company and set it on firmer footing, although the jury is still out on whether VOIP apps really do end up getting anywhere in a market which likes “free”.

Crucial to Truphone’s strategy however is the gradual emergence – especially in the U.S. – of mobile phones not locked to a carrier. If you can swap out the SIM card you can capture a market. That’s why Google’s Nexus One could be the start of a hugely important era for VOIP startups like Truphone. And here’s further evidence why:

This week Truphone announced a strategic MVNO partnership with Vodafone UK. It will rebrand Vodafone UK’s network for the Truphone Local Anywhere customers of its SIM-based mobile service. It also launched a new iPhone app for global calling. Other regional MVNO deals are in the offing.

The service allows customers to make use of local rates in countries where Truphone has wholesale partnerships. They also have the option of having local mobile numbers for those countries all on a single SIM. For those countries where Truphone does not have operator agreements, Truphone Local Anywhere offers roaming rates that can be 40 percent cheaper than standard mobile operator charges and international call at up to 90 percent cheaper.

Truphone also has an app which works on the iPod Touch, effectively turning it into a phone.

UPDATE: As per some comments below, it is of course worth pointing out there are other VoIP apps for the Nexus One (e.g. SipAgent), but these are generally SIP clients which don’t have the full functionality of Truphone’s app not it’s SIM integration.

 

http://eu.techcrunch.com/2010/01/23/truphone-first-to-provide-voip-app-for-nexus-one/

Who Needs iTunes? doubleTwist Partners With T-Mobile, Now Bundled On Some Android Phones

Big news for doubleTwist, the iTunes alternative that allows you to manage media for hundreds of devices, including Android phones, the Palm Pre, and BlackBerry. Tomorrow, the company will announce that it has forged a partnership with T-Mobile, which is now promoting it as the supported way to sync media to its line of Android phones. As part of the deal, T-Mobile will begin displaying doubleTwist banners in their retail stores and on T-Mobile.com. And perhaps most important, doubleTwist will come pre-installed on some Android devices, including the new Fender/Eric Clapton myTouch 3G handset.

For those that haven’t used it before, doubleTwist is a media management program that’s both visually and functionally similar to iTunes in many respects, but with one big difference: it will work with nearly any device (iTunes only plays nice with iPods and iPhones). You can drag and drop songs to playlists, sync music, photos, and video to your devices, and share your media with friends using integrated Facebook and Flickr support. In effect, doubleTwist can serve as an “iTunes for Android”. The software is impressive in its own right, but the company has also gotten quite a bit of attention because it was co-founded by DVD Jon, who serves as CTO.

This is a smart move by T-Mobile. One of the most jarring experiences when moving to an Android phone is figuring out how to sync media to the device. First, you have to manually mount the SD drive from the phone’s screen. Once that’s done, you may find yourself half-expecting iTunes to cheerily pop up to help transfer your media, but nothing happens — it’s up to you to drag and drop media from your computer to the appropriate folder on the phone. There are plenty of applications out there meant to help you do this, but it’s a poor experience for users who are trying the platform out for the first time. doubleTwist makes this much easier for new Android owners (it even shows you how to mount the SD card). It may not be quite as robust as iTunes, but it’s going to be good enough for most people. If this proves to be successful for T-Mobile, it wouldn’t surprise me if doubleTwist was adopted by other carriers as well.

One downside to the T-Mobile version of doubleTwist is that it’s missing one of the app’s best features: integration with Amazon’s MP3 Store. The feature, which launched in October, allows users to purchase music from directly within doubleTwist, much as you would with iTunes. doubleTwist wouldn’t comment on why T-Mobile decided to omit the feature, but the company is planning to further expand the software, so hopefully it’s in the pipeline. In any case, you can still download the fully featured version at doubleTwist.com.

Money is changing hands in the deal. Co-founder Monique Farantzos declined to comment on any specifics, but says that doubleTwist licensed its software to T-Mobile and that it’s a “significant source of revenue”. We should also note that while it was previously known that doubleTwist would come preloaded on the Fender myTouch phone, the full extent of the partnership hadn’t been announced before now.

doubleTwist isn’t the only company looking to establish itself as a viable alternative to iTunes. Earlier this month Songbird, an open-source media player/browser hybrid landed a deal with Philips to come bundled with some of its MP3 player devices.

 

http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/24/doubletwist-android-itunes-tmobile/