The iPad will dominate tablet sales until 2014, according to a new report from research firm Gartner. But Android models will take about 17% of the market this year, and there are a few reasons to consider one, according to our computer-savvy cousins at Consumer Reports. [More]
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Report: GameStop To Get Into The Tablet Business Next Year
By 9.13.11
Tablet computers can be many things to many different consumers: An easy way to surf the Web, a portable digital-video player, a color e-book reader, or maybe a lightweight, laptop stand-in. But would you buy a tablet just to play video games? And would you buy one from perennial Worst Company In America contestant GameStop? [More]
Verizon Tech Support: Make Your Smartphone Stupider So It'll Work
By 8.25.11
Last fall, David upgraded his Verizon Wireless phone to the Samsung Fascinate, That’s a decently powerful Android smartphone with a decent processor and the ability to run all sorts of online apps. You wouldn’t know that if you were David, though. Even his warranty replacement phone is appears to be having software problems that make it unusable unless he uses it just for phone calls and texts, disabling everything else. That’s what Verizon support has advised him to do. Because that’s what people buy Android smartphones for. [More]
Report: 30 To 40 Percent Of Some Android Device Purchases Are Returned
By 7.27.11
Android phone sales surpass those of iPhones, but to compare the popularity of the two classes of smartphones you have to take returns into account. According to a report, customers return Android devices at a far higher rate than they do their Apple rivals. [More]
Researcher: 8 Percent Of Android Apps Leak Private Info
By 7.21.11
Free apps sometimes come at a hidden cost, because malicious software can come in seemingly harmless forms, exposing personal data and sending spammy text messages from users’ accounts. An anti-malware service provider studied 10,000 Android apps found that 800 of the programs were spreading personal data around, and 11 were spamming phony text messages. [More]
Traditional Texting Slows As Instant Messaging Grows In Popularity
By 6.13.11
Texting? That is just so 2010. The cool thing these days is instant message texting with applications like BlackBerry Messenger, or Apple’s upcoming iMessage, which use the Internet to send texts instead of service carriers. [More]
Friskies Debuts Free iPad And Android Games For Your Cat
By 6.3.11
It’s a scientifically proven fact that cats love iPads, or at least love to smack things around that move. A few app developers have capitalized on this trend, making games specifically designed for cats. Some cats think that touchscreens are the greatest thing since feathers on a stick. Supposedly, touchscreens are tougher than claws, so the devices won’t be damaged. In a brilliant marketing move, Purina, maker of Friskies, ran with this idea and has created free Android Tablet and iPad games for felines.
[More]
Report Graft Via Smartphone App
By 6.1.11
Bribespot is a new website and Android app that wants to fight corruption by being the Foursquare of bribe reporting. When someone tries to shake you down, you’re supposed to “check in” and report the payola request. Bribespot maps the data and shows where hot zones of graft are popping up. If a place gets enough hits, the people in charge there could have an impetus to take action. It remains to be seen whether the free service gets enough traction to be useful, but it’s a cool idea for how social media and mobile technology can empower regular people to work together to fix government. [More]
Video Game Emulators Vanish From Android Market
By 5.30.11
A number of hot-selling paid apps that let gamers play modified versions of old-school video games were yanked from the Android Marketplace. The vanished apps, which were presumably pulled due to intellectual property violations, allowed gamers to turn their phones into sketchy conduits to relive the magic of the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis and other ancient consoles. [More]
HP Starts The Tablet Smack Talk, Claiming Theirs Will Beat iPad
By 5.25.11
We can just hear it now: “Your tablet is so stupid, it thought a quarterback was a refund!” Hewlett-Packard hasn’t released their TouchPad tablet computer yet, but already they’re smack-talking iPad and Android devices and claiming it’ll be the best one ever in the whole entire world. So there! [More]
Researchers Discover Security Hole In Android
By 5.18.11
Researchers in Germany recently discovered a small problem with Google’s Android smartphone operating system, one that affects around 97% of Android users and could make their personal info available to evil bastards. [More]
Install Netflix On Nearly Any Android Device
By 5.16.11
A Netflix app finally came out last week for Android, but due to the complications of the plethora of devices running Android, it only came out for a few of them. Netflix says they’ll slowly but surely roll out the app to other devices, but if you don’t feel like waiting you can do a little cellphone hackery and get it on your phone now. [More]
Netflix Releases App For Some Android Devices
By 5.13.11
(Some) Android users can now finally get in on the instant-streaming candy train with the long-awaited release of a Netflix app on their platform. For now the app is only available for a relatively thin number of phones, HTC’s Incredible, Nexus One, Samsung’s Nexus S, Evo 4G, and G2, but the company says they’re working diligently to roll it out to more phones. There’s just damn many of them. [More]
Android Market Starts Renting Movies On Devices
By 5.11.11
Those with Android tablets and smartphones can now look forward to renting movies, thanks to new functionality available on the Android Market that ties into Google-owned YouTube’s expanded rental service. [More]
Android On Crack Dance Sets Hearts Aflame
By 3.28.11
This show really puts our mall cellphone carts to shame. Instead of a bored guy with a pencil goatee sitting on a stool, they have a full-on breakdancing show. This one features a life-sized inflatable Android just going absolutely ape-nuts on the dancefloor at the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc cellphone stand near 101 Tower in Taiwan. As commenter Oranges w/ Cheese puts it, “Those inflatable suits are so weird because the movements are so sudden and odd. ” I don’t know how many cellphones it sells, but the branding effort endears the plucky green guy to your heart. He just tries so hard! And that positive association can pay dividends in brand goodwill down the line, just like his masters planned. Muaha – break it down! [More]
Microsoft Says Nook Infringed On Its Patents
By 3.22.11
Believing the Nook e-readers are ripping it off, Microsoft is suing Barnes & Noble and the manufacturers over the devices, which it says infringe on several patents. [More]
Android Surpasses BlackBerry As Most Popular Smartphone OS
By 3.9.11
BlackBerry’s reign as the king of peoples’ pockets has ended, usurped by Android. [More]
Google Deletes Evil Apps
By 3.7.11
After identifying several malicious apps on the Android Market that exploited security on the operating system, Google not only remotely deleted the apps but installed software that undid the damage to affected devices. [More]
