Friday’s iPhone 4S launch in China
Friday’s iPhone 4S launch in China
According to eyewitness reports, fights broke out at Sanlitun among rival gangs of 30 to 50 “yellow bull” scalpers — migrant workers bused in by resellers and promised 120 yuan ($19) and a food allowance to stand in line.Although China Unicom (CHU) will begin selling the device for heavily subsidized prices at midnight — eight hours earlier — most Chinese buyers seem to be congregating at Apple’s own stores, perhaps to get the unlocked versions that only Apple sells.
The Chinese blog M.I.C. Gadget reports that when an unidentified man with a bullhorn announced that the sale had been cancelled, the crowd chanted “Open the door!” and “Liars!” and began pelting the store with eggs.It could be long, cold night. Millions of Chinese farmers have had their lands ruthlessly exploited by government backed developers and these people are rioting because they can’t have their newest toys on time? There is something really wrong here.
According to Millward, temperatures are supposed to drop to 3°C (37°F) overnight in Shanghai and even lower in Beijing.Rockcraft, Yesterday 01:53 PM.Perhaps if folks stopped being so obsessed with being “connected” and got back to sitting down with each other and having real conversations, we might be able to have meaningful and enlightened exchanges again.Apple’s four other stores in Beijing and Shanghai did manage to open, but closed almost immediately.
To cut down on line-jumping — and to keep the scalpers in check — staffers at several stores have been handing out tickets to customers who’ve queued up early.”This is a debacle,” Shaun Rein, managing director of China Market Research Group told Bloomberg News. “There isn’t enough product in enough retail points.”As a private company, Apple is responsible for event security. It’s not the local police’s job to know in advance of Apple’s intentions.
If they didn’t plan ahead for the fans and scalpers, then they needed to shut it down as quickly as possible. “The demand for iPhone 4S has been incredible, and our stores in China have already sold out,” an Apple spokesperson told AllThingsD. For now, the phones are available only online and through Apple’s partner China Unicom (CHU). After waiting as much as 12 hours in temperatures that fell to -9°C, they were understandably angry when all they got for their trouble was their 10-yuan food allowance.
Posted by karanzy under business news, Electronics, gadgets, knowledge | Permalink | Comments OffAT&T launching 4G-branded network
AT&T launching 4G-branded network
That network runs on a different, “HSPA+” standard, which is actually a 3G standard, but has been shown to deliver speeds on par with — or faster than — LTE.I have been using ATT 4G ATRIX phone for already a 3 months. The speeds were slower than I phone 3g phone(on same network), (download around 1.5Mbps upload max 0.3Mbps) I was posting that fact on all the forums , we fill out Groubal against ATT misleading advertising, and what we got after ?
we got finally update so now we have 3G speeds. I was comparing ATT speed here in NYC with other carriers and please do not believe in what they say on the billboards that they the fastest network – actually it was almost always the slowest network .But the good thing is that after a 3 months I got upload speeds around 1.5 Mbps and I hope that they will improve it soon , all I can do is to wait for my 2 years contract to expire.
I’ve seen 30Mbps upload on Verizon 4G phone ,while my ATT ATRIX had 0.2Mbps.AT&T has always been behind the ball on everything. They don’t have good 3G coverage as it is, and now they want to launch 4G ? Yeah, right… Oh, and AT&T does not prorate, so if you port at any time during your billing cycle, you will NOT get any refund. Rip off, rip off, rip off. Glad I’m not with them anymore.Its Bs Everyone should sue and knock them off their high horses.
Or a man has a contract for 3 years and he had a stroke during heart surgery the phone companay was contacted in march to discontinue service and they continued to bill for another 3 monthes untill they were thresatened by an attorney then they cancled but did not reverse the charges, They are Rip Off Kings. And there answer will always be well the commuter says this or that. The computer will always say what ATT wants it to.
Regarding the proposed AT&T purchase of T-Mobile, I don’t believe for a second that T-Mobile’s aggressive low pricing will survive any longer than absolutely legally necessary.“It’s only a slight overstatement to say that if they weren’t going to block this one, the Justice Department might as well just throw the antitrust guidelines out the window,” said Herbert Hovenkamp, professor of law at the University of Iowa, who is considered by many to be the dean of American antitrust law.
Posted by karanzy under business news, gadgets, knowledge | Permalink | Comments OffAT&T/T-Mobile deal
AT&T/T-Mobile deal
AT&T would get the assets it was looking for in the first place, T-Mobile would only have to handle marketing and customer support, and Deutsche Telekom would get the huge cash infusion it wants.The deals over.Unless AT&T can get the right officials properly lobbied (aka bribed), this deal is as dead as the King of Pop.AT&T = Another Texas Takeover.. .They drop employees faster after mergers, then they drop calls. So T-Mobile employees keep the resumes handy and be ready to train those off shore resources.
AT&T also claimed that T-Mobile customers would be forever protected from price increases, because AT&T would agree to honor their current contracts for an unlimited time.The Commission also noted that AT&T should view the report as a kind of roadmap for what sort of deal could attain approval if AT&T seeks a different version of the merger in the future.Though AT&T is still pursuing the merger, the FCC’s harsh statements suggest that approval won’t be easy.
Anytime the number of top industry leaders is reduced from 4 to 3, 2 to 1, 3 to 2 what have you (in this case from 4 to 3), competition is reduced and prices go up. The only downward pricing pressure in this industry is the yet unsaturated market, and the industries failure to actually deliver the advertised and sold throughput.Worked for AT&T many many many years, back to the days of punched card inputs to IBM .. Just this year we trained off shore resources and we were shown the door. Randal and the boys will do anything to win.
The FCC’s report was the preliminary product of a detailed analysis the agency conducted while deciding whether or not to approve AT&T’s proposed $39 billion T-Mobile takeover. The FCC was moving toward opposing the deal, and in response AT&T withdrew its application. It will re-seek the FCC’s support if it clears other regulatory obstacles.The FCC called T-Mobile a “disruptive force” in the mobile marketplace that keeps competitors’ prices in check.
AT&T believes the FCC may have already made up its mind to oppose the merger before analyzing the facts, he suggested. Eliminating T-Mobile’s competitive price points would also give Verizon and Sprint incentive to raise prices, causing pain in the wallet for the majority of cell phone customers. AT&T set aside $4 billion last week to cover the break-up fee it will owe Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile’s parent company, should the deal not go through.
Posted by karanzy under business news, Electronics, gadgets | Permalink | Comments OffSmartphone tracking apple
Smartphone tracking apple
Many bloggers and smartphone customers fretted about the privacy issues raised by Carrier IQ, an information-mining app secretly installed on many phones. But at the same time, other tech observers were beginning to say that some of those concerns may have been over the top.”Santa’s Sleigh Needs More Room for iPhones.” That was the headline on a note to clients Thursday by Mark Moskowitz, who follows Apple (AAPL) for J.P. Morgan.
Moskowitz was upping his iPhone sales estimate for the current quarter from 25.3 million to (a still relatively conservative) 28 million.First, a recap: On Monday, researcher and developer Trevor Eckhart posted a 17-minute YouTube video apparently showing how the software — designed as a diagnostic tool to find and help fix mobile network problems — runs on his smartphone and logs every keystroke, every text and the full URL of every website he visits.
As a companion piece to the comScore report Monday that Americans have spent a record $18.7 billion online so far this holiday season — up 15% from last year — consider this chart from Compuware APM showing the relative contributions of the two leading platforms for what it calls “couch commerce”: Apple’s (AAPL) iPad and iPhone.News of the app’s existence on millions of phones had bounced around on tech blogs for a while.
But attention skyrocketed this week when Eckhart posted his video.Cusick predicts that thanks largely to the iPhone, new postpaid (i.e. subsidized) cellphone accounts among the four major U.S. carries will be up 54% from last quarter. And of that 54%, he expects Verizon to get the lion’s share. He estimates:Verizon (VZ), which got the iPhone in February, will add 1.2 million new accounts.By Thursday, it had turned into a rapidly developing story in which new information seemed to surface hourly.
Mobile carriers and smartphone makers rushed to dispute claims made by Eckhart and others who said they confirmed his findings, explain their use of the app or announce that they once used it but plan to get rid of it.”Verizon is benefiting against all carriers compared to the third quarter,” Cusick writes. “iPhone sales seem to be tracking well above carrier and vendor expectations and could negatively impact margins in 4Q.”Many mobile customers seemed to focus their concerns on the fact that the software runs without their knowledge and appears difficult, if not impossible, to uninstall.
Posted by karanzy under business news, Electronics, gadgets, knowledge | Permalink | Comments OffConsumer demand for PCs is slumping badly
Consumer demand for PCs is slumping badly
As more people do at least some of their holiday shopping online every year, retailers are looking to take advantage of digital deal-seekers — not just on the much-ballyhooed Cyber Monday, but on Black Friday and even Thanksgiving Day.ComScore, the online analytics firm, is predicting that online spending is going to increase yet again this holiday season.As the iPad eats away at personal computer sales, the PC appears to have found a potential savior in … Apple?
It’s an unlikely source, but it’s true. Ultrabooks, the ultra-thin notebook computers with no hard disk drive or slot for a DVD, are a category of PC that was essentially invented by Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) with its MacBook Air, which debuted in 2008.The company also plans to announce lifestyle guru Martha Stewart as a curator on the site – a move the six-month-old company hopes will boost interest in the biggest online shopping day of the year.
Now, PC makers are scrambling in their attempts to replicate Apple’s secret sauce. “We’ve made improvements to the site to make it run faster. We’ve added additional shipping options, gift wrapping, customer service staff and have all hands on deck from now through the holiday.”The rise of the Ultrabook is expected to happen quickly. This year, IHS predicts fewer than 1 million Ultrabook sales, making up just 2% of all notebook sales.
Market analysts expect them to succeed: Sales of Ultrabooks are forecast to boom over the next few years in the same way that netbooks took off in 2007 — until the iPad debuted. Ultrabook sales will reach 136.5 million in 2015, making up 43% of notebook sales, according to IHS iSuppli.”We’re expecting our biggest day ever – we have 10,000 new people joining OpenSky every day and we expect sales to be five times our largest day,” said OpenSky Founder John Caplan.
But next year, the thin notebooks will rise to 13% of all laptop sales, then 28% in 2013 and 38% by 2014.The company also plans to announce lifestyle guru Martha Stewart as a curator on the site – a move the six-month-old company hopes will boost interest in the biggest online shopping day of the year. The PC is in need of a white knight. Consumer demand for PCs is slumping badly, particularly in the United States, Canada and Europe. Industry consultancy Gartner has repeatedly slashed its PC shipment forecasts over the course of the year.
Posted by karanzy under business news, Electronics, gadgets, knowledge | Permalink | Comments OffHP profit plunges—–hit the bottom?
HP profit plunges—–hit the bottom?
I started the week with a column about IBM (IBM, Fortune 500), so it’s only fitting that I end the week with a piece about a company I like to call IBM Lite. Or “Little Blue,” if you will.Hewlett Packard had a miserable autumn. As winter approaches, new CEO Meg Whitman hopes the bulbs the company is now planting will help the tech giant sprout new, lasting growth in the coming months and years. But on the eve of a key earnings report, shares of HP have made a stunning comeback.
In its first earnings report since Whitman took over as CEO, HP on Monday slashed its business outlook and redefined its strategy once again.Hewlett-Packard (HPQ, Fortune 500), has tried (so far in vain) to replicate the magical mix of services, software and servers that has made Big Blue attractive to the likes of Warren Buffett.Shares are up an astonishing 32% since hitting a 52-week low in late September — the day after HP said it was hiring Whitman.
The hope: By giving investors a baseline for growth and clarity about its business plan, HP can reboot investors’ prospects for the company, put the past behind it and look to a brighter future.HP will announce its fiscal fourth-quarter results after the closing bell Monday. It will be the first earnings release since Meg Whitman took over as CEO following the firing of Leo Apotheker. Analysts are forecasting a drop in sales and profits from a year ago.
“It’s Meg Whitman’s job to reset and lower expectations going forward,” said Jeff Kagan, an independent technology analyst. “She wants expectations to be at their lowest possible; that way any good news will look terrific.”HP rose 4% alone on Friday after Sterne, Agee and Leach analyst Shaw Wu upgraded the stock. In his report, Wu wrote that shares have been oversold and that there is less of a cloud hanging over the company now that Whitman has reversed Apotheker’s decision to spin-off the firm’s PC business.
For the current quarter, the company said it expects to earn between 83 cents and 86 cents a share, excluding one-time charges. For the full year, HP believes it will earn at least $4 per share without one-time items. Along those lines, several analysts said they are actually hoping that Whitman lowers earnings and sales guidance for next year. People are clamoring for the company to “reset” expectations, since nobody believes that HP can meet current forecasts for next year.
Posted by karanzy under business news, Electronics, gadgets | Permalink | Comments OffOverheating of original iPod NAOS reflects the weakness of apple
Overheating of original iPod NAOS reflects the weakness of apple
Apple then issued an update to iOS 5 that fixed that bug in addition to a handful of others.Apple has made good on its promise to deliver an iOS 5 software update to address battery life bugs. But does it work?Definitely no.Have you ever had an iPod nano catch fire on you? Even if you haven’t, if you still have a first-generation iPod nano, the risk is there.Apple began notifying users late Friday about the replacement program.
Six years after the introduction of the original nano, Apple has rolled out a replacement program in order to address potential battery overheating issues.Apple then issued an update to iOS 5 that fixed that bug in addition to a handful of others. According to the company: “This issue has been traced to a single battery supplier that produced batteries with a manufacturing defect. While the possibility of an incident is rare, the likelihood increases as the battery ages.”
Apple released the first update to iOS 5 on Thursday, fixing a critical security hole and promising better battery life for iPhone 4S users. However, it now looks like Apple may have not sufficiently tested it before release. The company recommends that users stop using their first-gen iPod nanos sold between September 2005 and December 2006 and apply for a free replacement through its website.
We also covered a MagSafe connector settlement, Instagram clients for the desktop, GarageBand for iPhone, Apple’s new self-checkout system at its retail stores, and more. Users have begun reporting that the update not only fails to address battery life problems, but may in fact introduce a number of new issues.It certainly sounds as if the first-generation iPod nano batteries are suffering the same fate, as they were manufactured and sold during the same time period as the laptop battery fiasco.
Complaints about the original nano began cropping up in Japan and South Korea not long after (starting in about 2008), with Apple eventually agreeing to replace any overheating devices in those countries.Apple has once again given a statement to All Things D about continuing battery life issues: “The recent iOS software update addressed many of the battery issues that some customers experienced on their iOS 5 devices. We continue to investigate a few remaining issues.”
Posted by karanzy under business news, Electronics, gadgets, hardware, knowledge | Permalink | Comments OffNowadays Apple is becoming ordinary
Nowadays Apple is becoming ordinary
Apple’s iPhone 4S announcement on Tuesday was surprisingly, well, normal.Gadget lovers have become accustomed to groundbreaking innovations unveiled at breakneck speed every time the Cupertino, Calif.-based company calls a news conference. Prior to Tuesday, the last five major Apple launch events featured an impressive list of high-profile introductions, including the iCloud, the iPad 2, the new iPod Touch, the iPhone 4, and the original iPad.
IOS5 copied a ton of Android Features and the so called “Curved Display” has already been out on several droid handsets.In the fall, Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) has traditionally updated its iPod lineup. Many analysts believe that the company will at the very least update its iPod Touch product this year, perhaps even selling a version with a 3G data connection.Despite the delays in launching a new version, demand for the iPhone 4 has remained insatiable.
Apple’s outlook is typically ultra-conservative — this is the first time in recent memory that Oppenheimer’s forecast exceeded Wall Street’s own projections. The iPad and Mac both set sales records during the quarter. IPad sales rose to 11.1 million, and Mac sales soared 4.89 million — the first time Apple has even sold more than 4 million Macs in a quarter. A recent Gartner survey of personal computer shipments showed that Apple’s third-place PC market share is growing, nibbling away at No. 2 Dell
“For Tim Cook’s first product announcement, it would have been great if it was a big deal,” said Jeff Kagan, an independent telecom and technology analyst based in Atlanta. “But it wasn’t a big deal. If this is the path Apple is on, it will revert back to an ordinary technology company very quickly.”Some analysts also pointed out that every Apple announcement has been somewhat of a let-down. Though the company typically finds a way to amaze its customers, the devices never quite meet the wildest of expectations.
However,of course, Apple is still Apple. One disappointing announcement does not change the fact that it’s the most valuable technology company on the stock market, and it’s on pace to become the biggest tech company in the world in terms of sales next year. The price of apple series can be still expensive compared with other products.
Posted by karanzy under business news, Electronics, gadgets, knowledge | Permalink | Comments OffGoogle Buys 1,023 IBM Patents For Android
Google Buys 1,023 IBM Patents For Android
Google Inc. (GOOG) has acquired 1023 patents of International Business Machines (IBM) as the Internet search and advertising company is strengthening its defense strategy against the prosecution smartphones.
Transfers recorded by the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office Web site showed yesterday the acquisition of patents from Google on August 17. Jim Prosser, a spokesman for Mountain View, California, the company confirmed today’s agreement, without giving further details or financial terms. Chris Andrews, a spokesman for Armonk, New York, IBM, declined comment.
After purchasing the Motorola Mobility $ 12.5 billion and more than 17,000 patents, the Internet giant Google has decided that this is not enough and took more than 1023 patents from International Business Machines (IBM) in a attempt to protect the Android system on any alleged violation of property rights.
According to Bloomberg, citing the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Google got the patent on August 17. Jim’s prose, a company spokesman, confirmed the operation, without giving details of its terms.
Ads by Google returns to its arsenal of patents, in an attempt to counter the “hostile campaign organized” by other companies, like Apple and Microsoft against Android, the operating system for smart phones and tablets.
In July, Google has received another patent in 1030 IBM, along with more than 17,000 patents obtained through the acquisition of Motorola’s Mobility.
Android is free software and open source operating system (made by communities of programmers), which is based on several elements, not created by Google that developers outside the company can change.
Android is a free and open source is based on common features Google has created that allows outside developers to modify the code. This has left the company and phone manufacturers that use the system vulnerable to legal action for Android was built on the shoulders of inquiries from other technology companies.
Android phone makers HTC Corp. (2498), Samsung Electronics and Motorola have sued individually in Cupertino, Calif., Apple, Microsoft and Motorola, and mobility have exchanged accusations of patent infringement.
To contribute to the fight, HTC transferred last month to nine patents Google bought last year by companies such as Motorola Inc. and the former Openwave Systems Inc., Taoyuan, Taiwan-based HTC uses the last week of a new patent process and strengthen its patent battle with Apple. Shoppingmag.us can let you know more.
Posted by nikiecsem under business news, Electronics | Permalink | Comments OffOlivetti and Telecom tries with Android Italy, arrives OLIPAD 70
Olivetti and Telecom tries with Android Italy, arrives OLIPAD 70
On the occasion of the Salone del Mobile in Turin, Italy Telecom has introduced a new service dedicated to selling eBooks online. An interesting service that could land on different platforms and improve the provision of operator services from next October. At the presentation were shown some eReader including a new 7-inch Tablet Android: Olipad 70.
The device, manufactured by Olivetti, who for years worked with Telecom for the sale of its products, has a 7-inch touch screen, operating system, Google Eclair with a particular customization Telecom integrates the store eBooks.
There are currently no specifications were revealed as a ram, processor and memory. The marketing should be very close, but the doubt is that it fails to collect a great success given the many competitors and given that the price will be around € 400.
It’s still nice to see that Italian manufacturers are taking the first steps in Android.
Red Dead Redemption comes the launch trailer in HD
Waiting for the final release of his next title, Rockstar Games has made available at this time a video trailer for the launch of western / shooter freeroaming (GTA style) Red Dead Redemption.
The game is set in 1908 along the American frontier. In this period the wilderness, devoid of order and law, began to give way to the expansionist ambitions of the government and the advent of the industrial age. The hero is the outlaw John Marston, in search of redemption. Unfortunately for him will not be easy to leave behind the many skeletons in the closet: for the Bureau (FBI) will force him to help him capture all his former fellow gangsters threatening to kill his family.
Red Dead Redemption will be available in markets around the world from next May 21 for both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
Apple releases two new patents!
Apple has filed two new patents: one for Geolocation Applications and the other for temporary use our iPhone to make payments. The first patent concerns the possibility of having temporary applications on our iPhone. Basically the idea would be to suggest an application to be installed on the iPhone when we enter a particular area. For example, entering a show we get a pop-up asking if you want to install the map of the fair. Use that could evolve in the form of small applications that display advertising offerings of a shopping mall for example.
The applications will be automatically removed as temporary after leaving the area "sensitive."
The second patent is the idea, already shown through some external gadgets, to make payments using a native app with the iPhone by Apple. The idea is to NFC (Near Field Communication) which would determine the start of the transaction, you can also save the payment data, decide whether to pay or be paid. The application should be called Transaction.
While the first idea is very interesting even if invasive (regardless of whether or not clear), the other could be an important vehicle for the promotion and the help offered to a customer or a user who wants to learn more place (we even museums with the opportunity to get information of the room depending on us).
Sports Tracker, the new version for S60 3rd edition arrives on Ovi Store
After the launch for 5th Edition, Sports Tracker arrives in its new version for Symbian 3rd Edition (FP2). Recall that with this application on our phone becomes a real "training log" containing information about the town (complete with maps), the distance traveled, calories burned and time spent, and allows you to save routes and training on the Internet to share later with friends.
Do not miss the opportunity to connect with accessories to detect and calculate the heart rate!
Sports Tracker is a free download from Ovi Store!
Other Electronics News:
Posted by Susan under Electronics | Permalink | Comments Off