Year: 2012

Analyst tells Apple investors not to worry about Nexus 7

Google grabbed some major headlines yesterday during its I/O keynote. The company unveiled a number of new products including the next version of Android, an orb-shaped media player, and an all-new tablet.

The tablet, in particular, has Apple shareholders asking questions. With its quad-core processor, and sub-$200 price tag, could it have a negative impact on Apple's iPad sales? This analyst doesn't think so...

Virgin Mobile opens its first 10 retail outlets tomorrow to showcase prepaid iPhone

We reported three weeks ago that Virgin Mobile will become yet another U.S. carrier to sell unlocked iPhones with month-to-month prepaid plans. It seems Virgin means business as a new report by Bloomberg Businesweek has it that the carrier will open its first ten retail stores in Chicago tomorrow, on the eve of its prepaid iPhone launch. These stores could lead to a national rollout and are said to be "aiming to profit from the iPhone’s expansion into the prepaid wireless market"...

Rovio teases Amazing Alex, a new puzzler launching in July

Angry Birds maker Rovio today formally announced its next big thing, a new puzzler for the iOS platform based on their IP acquisition of Casey's Contraptions, a charming and addictive puzzle game by Snappy Touch and Mystery Coconut.

Rovio hinted in early-May that it would re-write and re-brand Casey's Contraptions as Amazing Alex. The game will be launching in July on iOS and Android platforms, with Windows following soon after. Here's your trailer...

Apple reportedly facing a battery challenge with the next iPhone

A report from China claims Apple is facing a battery challenge in the development of the next iPhone. It's unclear whether this affects the planned October release, but apparently one of Apple's Taiwanese suppliers is having issues meeting requirements for the iPhone 5 battery.

Power-consuming 4G radios, a speedier processor and graphics and a taller display packing in more pixels will all require more juice so it remains to be seen if the next iPhone will be able to maintain decent battery life, especially given the iPhone 4S's disappointing battery performance...

T-Mobile confirms network upgrade won’t affect legacy data plans

Over the past few months, T-Mobile has been touting its plans to upgrade its wireless network to be more friendly with Apple's smartphone. Despite not being an official partner, the carrier sees a lot of business from unlocked iPhone users.

The upgrade, which allows iPhone users to enjoy 3G data speeds, has already started rolling out to a handful of areas. So that has some T-Mobile subscribers wondering, will they get to keep their old data plans on the new, faster network?

Bloomberg says iTunes will receive major makeover by year’s end

Late last year, we reported that Apple was preparing to give iTunes its first major overhaul in 10 years. The update would come in the form of iTunes 11, and feature a revamped UI and deeper iCloud integration.

Since then, the report has been independently confirmed by both TechCrunch and 9to5Mac, who are also hearing that such a change is on the way. And tonight, a major news outlet adds its weight to the story...

Sprint to launch LTE network on July 15th in five cities

Even though Sprint finally became an iPhone partner last fall, the carrier was snubbed this year when Apple unveiled its LTE iPad for Verizon and AT&T. The move made sense though, considering Sprint doesn't have an LTE network.

But the company is looking to change that in the near future. Earlier today, Sprint announced that it is finally prepared to flip the switch on its 4G LTE network, starting with five cities, on July 15th...

iOS beats Android in app retention by more than 50%

Now that Google and Apple have both unveiled their future plans for their respective mobile platforms, it's up to the consumers, and more importantly, the third-party app developers to make their decisions. Which OS do they make their priority?

Back in the good old days, this was an easy decision to make: go with the one that had the most users. More users typically meant more downloads (and $). But now that Android and iOS are almost even, developers have to look at other metrics...

Check out Google’s pricey, albeit cool-looking media streaming sphere, Nexus Q

I'm sorry for polluting your reading list with more Google news, but this thing warrants a quick mention. So we already told you about impressive Android stats, Google's own tablet called the Nexus 7, a new Android version (4.1, called Jelly Bean) that sports Siri-like features and a brand new native Google+ app for iPad and Android tablets. Google also surprised us with the coolest live tech demo ever: a parachute landing on the Moscone West building, seen through the eyes of the participants' Google Glasses.

By the way, Tweetbot developer has gotta win the coveted title of The Most Original Google I/O Review for his tweet. So, one thing that especially captured my imagination is this cool-looking accessory aimed at streaming media at your home. Classed as a yet another piece of hardware designed and engineered by Google, the Nexus Q sports unique industrial design calling for a round chassis which reminds me of a lot of a sci-fi-like alien probe. It's also got some noteworthy features, as seen in a video demonstration...

Google unveils Android 4.1, complete with Siri competitor and more

Apple kicked off this month with its WWDC keynote, unveiling the next version of its mobile operating system: iOS 6. Then Microsoft quickly followed with its Windows Phone 8 announcement. And now it's Google's turn.

Google's I/O keynote is already underway this morning, and the search giant just unveiled its next version of its mobile platform Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). The update features a Siri competitor, UI enhancements, and more...