The Android platform is under attack from a number of companies — not just Apple. Microsoft, for example, has forced several Android partners into licensing agreements due to patent infringements.
And between these settlements, and Apple's recent legal hot streak against Samsung, there's no denying that Google is guilty of illegally copying something from somewhere. But the question is, what?
Different stats and market research all point to the same conclusion: that the mobile market is being reduced to a two-horse race between iOS and Android (or Apple and Samsung, specifically) as once great incumbents such as RIM and Nokia get pushed aside, their market shares seriously declining.
In fact, it's fairly safe to say that on the fifth anniversary of iPhone, both RIM and Nokia are fighting for survival, quite possibly their lifecycle coming to an end. Meanwhile, only four companies are turning profit in the increasingly crowded smartphone space...
The New York Times published a fascinating piece yesterday evening about Microsoft's Surface tablet which contains a few interesting tidbits about Apple's iPad and just how far Cupertino had gone to gain an edge on its products...
Industry sources asserted that Microsoft's Surface tablet will initially be offered only in WiFi version, even though analysts opine that its lack of cellular connectivity won't be seen as a major limitation.
What could, however, likely be perceived as problematic is the Surface's asking prices, allegedly set at $599. This would put the WiFi-only Surface just thirty bucks shy of Apple's 16GB 4G iPad 3...
As expected, Microsoft has just taken the wraps off of Windows Phone 8 — the latest iteration of its mobile operating system — during a nightclub-themed media event in California.
Similar to Apple's WWDC keynote, Microsoft took this opportunity to go over a handful of new features in the software. And so far, it looks fairly solid. Should Apple be nervous?
The mobile landscape on Monday became a tad more interesting place with the announcement that Microsoft was going to enter the race with its own tablet product marketed under the Surface moniker.
We're now less than an hour away until another major Microsoft presser, this one concerning Windows Phone. With that in mind, iDB thought it'd be interesting to gauge our readers' opinion on the Surface vs. iPad dilemma...
When Microsoft out of the blue announced on Monday it was entering the tablet race with its own Surface-branded product, many industry watchers and, more importantly, Microsoft's hardware partners were taken aback and left scratching their head.
Just what the hell Redmond thinks it's doing, many OEMs now wonder. Aggressive pricing (think $199 or below) is seen as key to Surface's chance of success and OEMs can't exactly compete with Microsoft on level ground because their already thin margins are stretched even thinner as they pay license fees to Microsoft to use Windows on tablets.
But Microsoft may not be in it for the money or hardware sales, warns Acer founder Stan Shih who has commented that the Surface is just a ploy to drum up excitement and drive Windows 8 adoption...
Apparently Microsoft isn't ready to give up the spotlight this week. Just 24 hours after unveiling its new Surface tablet, the company has sent out media invitations for a Windows Phone-related event.
Microsoft is set to hold its developer summit in California over the next two days. But the invites, which read "A sneak peek of the future of Windows Phone," specifically mention tomorrow morning...
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer yesterday took the stage to unveil his company's iPad challenger named Surface at a Los Angeles presser.
Vice president Steven Sinofsky was on hand to show off the product and of course it wouldn't be a Microsoft event without a system crash.
If you're wondering about the features Microsoft's device brings to the table, here's the full keynote video...
We had a hunch that Microsoft's media event today would have something to do with a tablet, and it looks like we were right. The Windows-makers have just unveiled a new slate called the Microsoft Surface.
Described as a "tablet that's a great PC, and a PC that's a great tablet," the Surface looks to be much more than an iPad competitor. It has a 10.6-inch display, magnesium casing, and weighs in at just 1.5 pounds...
Microsoft summoned select members of the press for a media event tomorrow in Los Angeles.
The company is widely expected to respond to the iPad challenge by announcing its own tablet powered by the upcoming Windows 8 operating system.
We're wondering about your assessment of the situation: should Apple be worried or is it already too late for the Windows maker to make a substantial dent in the tablet space?
It's not a typo: I really meant Nokia, not RIM. Look, the writing's on the wall. In the first quarter of 2012, only Apple and Samsung reaped benefits of the 41 percent year-over-year growth in the smartphone biz.
Together, the two frenemies accounted for 55 percent of global smartphone shipments in Q1 and an astounding 90 percent of the profits.
Apple shipped 35 million iPhones in Q1 while Samsung recorded 43 million global shipments. None of this is surprising. What's stunning is how sharp Nokia's decline is. Of all companies, beleaguered RIM, whose Q1 shipments dipped 20 percent, may soon surpass Nokia...