Here’s what Google becoming a handset maker means for Apple

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated July 11, 2017

Earlier today, Google CEO Larry Page took to company blog to break the big news: having obtained necessary approvals from watchdogs on both side of the Atlantic, the search giant has finally closed its $12.5 billion acquisition of the ailing handset maker Motorola Mobility in a move meant to “supercharge the Android ecosystem”.

The transaction will close by May 23 and is rumored to see Google laying off up to one-third of Motorola staff.

Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha is stepping down (not unexpected) and will be replaced by Dennis Woodside whom Apple tried to poach last year. The new CEO already promised "fewer, bigger bets", meaning Motorola should streamline its portfolio to focus on a select few hero devices.

So, Googlerola is alive and the search giant is now officially a handset maker - one sitting on an enormous pile of patents. In fact, the search Goliath is now in a position to directly fight Apple's allegations against Android makers.

Taking it all in, we analyze what repercussions - if any - this development potentially poses for Apple and its ongoing legal spat against major Android backers such as HTC, Samsung and, yes, Motorola...

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Meta Watch smart watch now supports iOS devices and Bluetooth 4.0

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

Last month, a Kickstarter project by the name of "Pebble" took the iOS community by storm. The iPhone-compatible wristwatch broke practically every Kickstarter record in existence, nabbing $10 million in pledges from 70k backers.

Capitalizing on this newfound demand for iPhone-connected smart watches, Meta Watch has just released an update to its Android companion. The new version includes support for the iPhone 4S and the iPad 3, along with Bluetooth 4.0...

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Nuance launches ‘Siri for cars’

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 28, 2017

Nuance, which provides world-class voice recognition technology behind Apple's Siri personal assistant, today announced its entrance into the fast-growing connected cars market.

Their new automotive platform combines Nuance's Dragon software and natural language understanding technologies to allow drivers to dictate messages, search for content, control music playback, navigation and more.

Was this an iCar solution Steve Jobs was dreaming about in his final days?

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There’s a new jailbreak in town, but it’s not the one you’ve been waiting for

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated February 27, 2018

I highly debated whether or not to post this, but after some going back and forth, I decided that it was for the best to shed some light on this subject in an attempt to cut down on confusion.

Apparently there is a new jailbreak tool "available" (you'll see why I used quotes in a second) that allows you to perform an untethered jailbreak on iOS 5.1.1 for A4 devices.

The tool is called VulnDisco Mobile 1.7, and it is a commercial product that takes advantage of the existing RedSn0w 5.1.1 tethered jailbreak to install a custom bundle for an untethered jailbreak.

While I've yet to find any details on how much the jailbreak will cost in total, in all likelihood it will set you back much more than the cost of an iOS device itself. That's because this jailbreak is not a standalone product, but it's an add-on to a larger product created by a company named Immunity.

While the average user won't have the necessary resources to access this jailbreak at all, there are still some lingering concerns surrounding its release. Check inside for the full story...

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Leaked part suggests the next iPod touch also has a taller 4.1-inch display

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 22, 2012

Reaffirming the widely reported and credible rumor claiming the next iPhone will sport a taller four-inch display, a part leak has surfaced today indicating that the next iPod touch will also adopt a taller, 3.95-inch display.

As you can see, a claimed front panel from the next-generation iPod touch is taller compared to the current-generation iPod touch which has the same 3.5-inch Retina display like the iPhone 4/4S. This particular part measures in at 4.1 inches diagonally and has a hole for the physical home button right where you'd expect it...

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Hulu updates iPad video player with Retina support

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated December 3, 2017

Hulu has finally updated their iPhone and iPad video player with the much-needed support for the Retina Display of the new iPad.

They also redesigned the user interface and brought out an enhanced video playback engine that takes advantage of the iPad's bigger canvas.

The app also features improved AirPlay mirroring and HDMI support on the iPhone 4S and iPad 2 and above...

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Sprint axes 5GB/$30 mobile hotspot plan, replaces it with 2GB/6GB tiers

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

Sprint Nextel, the nation’s third-largest wireless operator, announced this morning that it’s doing away with its 5GB $30 a month mobile hotspot add-on for smartphones and tablets.

Instead, beginning May 18, customers can choose between 2GB or 6GB data plans priced at $20 or $50 a month, respectively. As always, the deal involves some fine print you should be aware of…

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TiVo confirms that iOS streaming solution is coming this summer

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 22, 2012

TiVo, Inc. today announced that this summer TiVo Premiere or Premiere Q DVR subscribers will be able to stream content to "alternative screens" such as the iPhone and iPad by way of TiVo Stream.

TiVo Stream is a new service that provides transcoding to enable content viewing on mobile devices and is "the first product to enable streaming or download of shows simultaneously to multiple portable devices without interrupting what's playing on the television"...

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No, lawyers didn’t design Galaxy S III, Samsung design boss says

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated June 13, 2016

When Samsung introduced its third-generation Galaxy S smartphone earlier this month, folks immediately took to Twitter, opining how the handset was "designed by lawyers" in a nod at Samsung's ongoing legal feud with Apple over alleged copying of the iPhone's hardware design and software features.

Instead, the phone that was "inspired by nature" and "designed for humans", as the tagline has it, fits in Samsung's five-year redesign plan and went through hundreds of iterations before they settled on a final design....

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Apple ranked as number one brand in the world

Cody Lee ∙ Updated July 11, 2017

TheNextWeb points to Millard Brown's 2012 Brandz Top 100 report — an annual study that calculates the brand value of the most popular companies in the world by combining their financial valuations with consumer loyalty and appeal.

As you've probably already guessed by now, Apple came in first place with a brand value of $183 billion. This was enough to finish ahead of IBM, Google, McDonalds and Microsoft, who finished in 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place respectively...

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