Posts Tagged ‘VentureBeat’
Windows Phone 7 ships 1.5M units in first six weeks
Shedding some light on the , Microsoft today announced it to carriers and retailers in the mobile-phone platform’s first six weeks on the market.
The number was revealed in a mock interview with Windows Phone 7 head of marketing Achim Berg. His language is worth paying attention to — Berg was careful to say the number was based on units shipped by manufacturers, meaning it doesn’t represent actual activations by consumers. Still, it’s more information than we’ve had previously, and it’s enough to tell us that WP7 hasn’t been a complete flop.
Windows Phone 7 launched in the US on November 8, and in Europe several weeks earlier on October 21. VentureBeat’s Dean Takahashi and concluded that the platform, while late to the party, is good enough to win over some iPhone users. In my own testing, I’ve found the platform to be surprisingly robust, and it’s clear that Microsoft is off to a stronger start than Android was two years ago.
We still don’t have first-day sales for WP7, but I’m sticking to my guns that — Microsoft is prepared to dump as much money into the platform as necessary to put it on the mobile map.
Berg also mentioned that WP7 just recently hit a milestone of 4,000 available apps, and that it currently has over 18,000 developers working on developing apps for the platform. That’s impressive growth, as it took Android around 5 months to reach that same number of apps, . It’s widely known that Microsoft pumped a significant amount of money into courting developers and that it has worked closely with many developers to ensure that their apps are as close to perfect as possible.
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Survey: 1 in 5 Americans will own tablets by 2014, and one-third will use them for business
Enterprise applications continue their charge into the mobile market and are set to take over about a third of all tablets in the next few years, according to a new survey conducted by Harris Interactive.
More than 1 in 5 Americans will own a tablet by 2014, and 37 percent of them will own them for business use, according to the survey. About half of all tablet owners plan to use the devices for social networking.
The survey was sponsored by Fuze Box, a company that has created a number of its own collaboration applications, .
What the survey doesn’t take into account is just what the tablet market will look like by 2014. Apple’s touchscreen iPad is the clear leader right now, . But Microsoft’s strategy to date has centered on rather than a true tablet with a lightweight operating system like Apple’s iPad or Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, which runs Google’s Android operating system.
Another interesting tidbit: more than a third of tablet owners expect to use it for web conferencing and online meetings. The iPad in its current form doesn’t have a front-facing camera for Apple’s video-calling app Facetime. But the next version of the iPad will likely have one, as .
Mobile phones have already begun their grand entrance into the enterprise space with applications like Salesforce’s Chatter and Yammer landing on the Apple App Store and the Android marketplace. Since most tablets run the same operating systems as their smartphone counterparts, it’s easy enough to port those same applications to tablet computers. So expect to see some of the best enterprise applications popping up on tablets — if they haven’t already.
Here’s the survey’s breakdown of what people will use their tablets for most:
- Browsing the Internet (78%)
- Email (75%)
- Reading e-books/newspapers (53%)
- Social networking (50%)
- Watching TV/movies (43%)
- Business/Professional purposes (37%)
- Gaming (33%)
And here’s the survey’s breakdown of what business users will be doing with their tablets:
- Business correspondence (58%)
- Online meetings/Web conferences (37%)
- Marketing (34%)
- Training (33%)
- Finance/accounting (32%)
- Sales (27%)
- Graphic design (27%)
- Inventory management (27%)
- Customer support (24%)
It shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that the devices are seeing some growth in the enterprise space. About half of the largest companies in the world on the Fortune 100 list have begun either . Though Apple is a leader in that market for now, there are a number of other tablets rising up to challenge it. That includes , whose BlackBerry smartphone is famous for its enterprise capabilities.
Our favorite stocking stuffers for phones and tablets
So you’re still looking for gifts. Well fret not — thanks to our increasingly close relationships with our mobile devices, accessories for phones and tablets also make great gifts. Here are a few cool stocking stuffer ideas that will appeal to anyone.
Phone and tablet cases
Our mobile devices these days often feature large slabs of glass. And while that’s great for enabling the proliferation of touchscreen technology, it also makes our phones and tablets ticking time bombs for scratches, cracks and shattering unless they’re protected somehow. So consider a case for the clumsier members of your friends and family. They’re available in most retail stores these days, and you can also find a wide selection in Apple stores and cellular carrier retail locations.
For the iPhone and iPad, I recommend cases from , a company that offers a wide variety of attractive designs that are strong enough to let your device survive a tumble. Your choices are more limited where it comes to Android phones, but generally you can find cases at the phone’s respective carrier retail spots. has a wide selection of Android cases and accessories, but it may be too late to order in time for Christmas.
GelaSkins: An easy way to customize mobile devices
Instead of a case, you can opt for a – an adhesive print that can spice up the design of phones, tablets, ereaders and more. The skins are designed specifically for individual devices, so they generally fit without issue. They’re also easily removable and don’t leave any residue on your device. The company has artwork available from over 100 artists, and each design looks completely original.
I’ve tested a couple of GelaSkins over the past few months, and I’ve found that they get more attention than just a plain iPhone case. While they won’t offer much protection for your devices, they sure do look cool.
Agloves: Touchscreen capable gloves for the cold
Winter and touchscreen devices just don’t mix. Normal winter gloves have a layer of insulation that prevent capacitive touchscreens from recognizing your inputs. Enter , a company that has developed winter gloves knitted with conductive material. They’re affordable at around $17.99, and while thin, I’ve found that they stand up to below-freezing temperatures fairly well.
Headphones: Because stock headphones usually stink
Modern smartphones do more than just phone calls, email and texts — they also serve as portable music players. It’s criminal that Apple still includes terrible earbuds with iPhones, and most other phone manufacturers are guilty of the same thing. So do your friends a favor, and get them a pair of headphones that don’t stink.
You don’t have to pay much for good sound — you can snag for a mere $13.89 on Amazon. If you’re willing to spend a bit more, are a tremendous value for around $40. You can find a wide variety of headphones in retail stores, but beware of brands that you’ve never heard of. Noise-cancellation headphones sound great, but are usually expensive, so seek out “noise isolating” sets instead.
Go digital: Gift apps, music, games and more
One of the great things about digital marketplaces is that it’s incredibly easy to gift things without ever having to worry about shipping or delivery charges. On iTunes, you can gift apps, games, music, TV episodes (but not whole seasons, sadly) and movies to people instantly. Android’s Market isn’t robust enough yet for that, unfortunately, but you can always gift music, TV, and movies via Amazon.
My recommendations for digital gifts: The ; , yet another great TV show canceled before its time; and (which is technically not giftable because it relies on in-app purchase, so you’ll have to gift $50 of iTunes credit so your friends can buy the issues on their own).
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Nvidia’s Tegra 2 could have a starring role in superphones and tablets debuting at CES
is reportedly for its Tegra 2 chip set for smartphones and tablets, with many of the devices expected to be announced at the .
If the rumors are true, it’s about time. Last year, .” Only it turned out to be the year of the iPad, which did Nvidia no good because Apple used its own A4 chip in that machine.
But analysts say that both LG and Samsung are placing considerable orders for Nvidia’s dual-core Tegra 2 chips and will display new models at CES, which starts on Jan. 4 in Las Vegas. The upcoming , code-named Honeycomb, also reportedly uses the Tegra 2. Nvidia has scheduled a press conference for noon on Jan. 5 at the show.
It’s about time for Nvidia to get some big payoff from the Tegra investments, which represent a major diversification opportunity to help Nvidia spread beyond PC graphics. Overall, Nvidia hasn’t had great luck with its customers for Tegra. Microsoft’s Kin phone and its Zune music player used the original Tegra chips, but they turned out to be duds. This isn’t all Nvidia’s fault, as Apple’s rivals have had an awful time coming up with designs that can challenge the dominance of the iPad.
Glen Yeung, an analyst at Citigroup, says that Samsung has placed a sizable order with Nvidia for Tegra 2 chips in the first half of 2011, for both cell phones and tablets. Analyst Ambrish Srivastava said the next Samsung Galaxy Tab will likely use Tegra 2 as well. Google has also reportedly made Tegra 2 into part of the reference platform — or standard design — for Android 3.0 devices.
Mike Rayfield, general manager of Nvidia’s mobile business, said in a recent blog post that variations on the super phone, or a smartphone on steroids, will be prominent at CES this year.
“I’d bet that CES 2011 will usher in the year that fully fledged superphones hit the market and really take off, building on the first stirrings of the concept that Google introduced with its phone,” Rayfield said. “The term superphone began to simmer earlier this year.”
He added, “The first attempts came with displays greater than four inches; a camera of five-plus megapixels for impressive photos and video; accelerometers, and even GPS. They started sporting true computer operating systems like Android or iOS, offering better video and gaming experiences. What you should expect at CES is for the superphone category to really reach full boil.”
For Rayfield, superphones will blend the features of a handheld with those of a PC and a gaming device. They will likely run Flash in a faster, hardware-accelerated mode. Other features are console-quality gaming and 1080p high-resolution high-definition video. Multitasking will be another common feature.
Tegra 2 has lots of rivals, including chips from companies such as Broadcom, Marvell, Qualcomm and Intel.
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Photo app Instagram is (probably) raising money from Benchmark
I’m hearing that , an iPhone photo application that’s attracting a lot of buzz, is raising a new funding round led by Benchmark Capital.
To be clear, my source is well-positioned to hear about the deal, but they aren’t directly involved, so you may want to classify this as a rumor. Last month, that Instagram was looking to raise money at a $20 million valuation, with Sequoia Capital positioned as the lead investor. I’ve emailed Instagram, Benchmark, and Sequoia for comment, and I’ll update if I hear back from any of them.
, add filters and location information, and post them across multiple social networks. You can follow other users’ photo streams and comment on photos or say that you like them. I haven’t seen any user or download numbers, but it seems like Instagram is becoming the default photo-sharing app among many of the people I know in the startup world.
Benchmark’s social portfolio already and . — Tumblr is so photo-heavy that the two companies could be seen as potential competitors, though Instagram lets its users post their photos to Tumblr.
Back when the Instagram team was from Andreessen Horowitz and Baseline Ventures. However, , and he said he would take a more passive role in Instagram.
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Photo app Instagram is (probably) raising money from Benchmark
I’m hearing that , an iPhone photo application that’s attracting a lot of buzz, is raising a new funding round led by Benchmark Capital.
To be clear, my source is well-positioned to hear about the deal, but they aren’t directly involved, so you may want to classify this as a rumor. Last month, that Instagram was looking to raise money at a $20 million valuation, with Sequoia Capital positioned as the lead investor. I’ve emailed Instagram, Benchmark, and Sequoia for comment, and I’ll update if I hear back from any of them.
, add filters and location information, and post them across multiple social networks. You can follow other users’ photo streams and comment on photos or say that you like them. I haven’t seen any user or download numbers, but it seems like Instagram is becoming the default photo-sharing app among many of the people I know in the startup world.
Benchmark’s social portfolio already and . — Tumblr is so photo-heavy that the two companies could be seen as potential competitors, though Instagram lets its users post their photos to Tumblr.
Back when the Instagram team was from Andreessen Horowitz and Baseline Ventures. However, , and he said he would take a more passive role in Instagram.
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AT&T snags more bandwidth for 4G: Buys Qualcomm’s FLO TV wireless spectrum for $1.9B
After wireless video service in October, Qualcomm announced today that it will be selling the service’s precious 700 megahertz wireless spectrum to AT&T for around $1.9 billion to bolster its 4G network.
The deal, which is still pending regulatory approval, is perhaps the best possible outcome for Qualcomm, which never managed to find success with FLO TV. The company learned the hard way that consumers would rather watch video on their phones rather than buy a new device that requires a monthly fee. It’s also a coup for AT&T, which needs to scrape up as much wireless spectrum as possible to strengthen its upcoming LTE 4G network.
Qualcomm’s block of spectrum covers more than 300 million people across the country, including major cities like New York, Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco. AT&T says that it intends to use the spectrum to increase the downstream speed and total capacity of its 4G network. The company will utilize carrier aggregation with the spectrum, a technology for LTE 4G networks that allows networks to use multiple frequencies to achieve high speeds, to combine its existing spectrum with Qualcomm’s.
Verizon , which serves around 110 million users. There aren’t any LTE phones available yet, but the company has a few 4G USB modems available. Verizon boasts that it has the largest contiguous swath of 700 MHz wireless spectrum in the continental US, meaning its network is already expansive without patching in multiple spectrum blocks. It’s not yet clear how AT&T’s LTE network will compete. AT&T is expected to launch its 4G LTE network some time in 2011.
AT&T says it will begin deploying the new spectrum once its handsets and networking equipment are ready. Both Qualcomm and AT&T expect the sale to close in the second half of 2011.
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