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  • Discover More Easily The Best Apps In Android Market

    Google continues its string of good news for Android fans, revealing the new Android Market, in the second day of the Google I/O conference in Moscone Center, San Francisco.

    Google’s application store has always been criticized for its cumbersome and obscure system of presenting the applications, in contrast with Apple’s App Store, so the IT giant has decided to take action.

    Android Market has now five new functions that will help any user find games and applications more easily. First is Top Apps that comes in a more complex shape, with recommendations by country, a top of both free and paid applications, and also a top of applications with the highest revenues.

    The second novelty is the Editor’s Choice, which contains a collection of the best applications at the moment, carefully selected by the Android Market’s reps.

    Next is Top Developers that will reward the best designers of applications with a special icon, which will ensure quality, they also being present in a special list in the Android Market. Currently the list contains 150 companies.

    Another innovation will give the user a recommendation of any downloaded software by other users who have also viewed the same program analyzed at that time. For example, if you’re using ScoreMobile, an application that gives you the latest scores in sports, you will be advised of other similar applications that sports fans have downloaded.

    The last section introduced is Trending Apps and will contain the applications and the games that are recording an upward trend in terms of download, in other words, the most promising titles of the moment.

    The new features of the Android Market are currently available only for the online version, but Google promises that the mobile version will be upgraded pretty soon.

  • Google Ice Cream Sandwich, Android 3.1, Movies and Music, Announced At Google I/O

    Google moves on with their global domination plans, announcing a lot of operating systems and services from the Google Ice Cream Sandwich to the new Android 3.1, Google Music and the possibility of renting movies on Android Market, all in one single day at the Google I/O 2011 event held at Moscone Center, San Francisco.

    Although it is difficult to say that a story would be more important than another, the operating system called Google Ice Cream Sandwich is certainly a highly awaited announcement. A combination between the Android software for tablets, Honeycomb and for smartphones, Gingerbread, the new Sandwich will be a universal version that will run on smart gadgets, from the smallest cell phones to the most generous tablets. It will offer a series of revolutionary features and is scheduled for the end of 2011.

    Google has decided that it’s time to enter the game of emphasizing the multimedia content and has launched Google Music service, which allows a server to store up to 20,000 songs, from its own collection, which will be played then by streaming on notebook, smartphone or other device. Google Music Beta is already live.

    The video part could not be absent from the equation, Google being able to offer us a service that allows users to rent movies directly from Android Market, at very good prices.

    Another thing that deserves to be noted from the Google I/O conference, which is still ongoing, is the launch of Android 3.1, the new version of the most popular operating system, which brings, among others, the possibility to resize the widgets and to import photos from digital cameras via USB host.

    Stay tuned for more details and fresh news from the Google I/O conference.

  • Android To Become the Most Popular OS by the End of 2011

    Worldwide smartphone sales will reach 468 million units in 2011, a 57.7 percent increase from 2010, according to Gartner. By the end of 2011, Android will move to become the most popular operating system worldwide and will build on its strength to account for 49 percent of the smartphone market by 2012.

    According to the report, sales of open OS devices will account for 26 percent of all mobile handset device sales in 2011, and are expected to surpass the 1 billion mark by 2015, when they will account for 47 percent of the total mobile device market.

    “By 2015, 67 percent of all open OS devices will have an average selling price of $300 or below, proving that smartphones have been finally truly democratized,” said Roberta Cozza, principal analyst at Gartner.

    “As vendors delivering Android-based devices continue to fight for market share, price will decrease to further benefit consumers”, Cozza said. “Android’s position at the high end of the market will remain strong, but its greatest volume opportunity in the longer term will be in the mid- to low-cost smartphones, above all in emerging markets.”

    Gartner predicts that Apple’s iOS will remain the second biggest platform worldwide through 2014 despite its share deceasing slightly after 2011. This reflects Gartner’s underlying assumption that Apple will be interested in maintaining margins rather than pursuing market share by changing its pricing strategy. This will continue to limit adoption in emerging regions. iOS share will peak in 2011, with volume growth well above the market average. This is driven by increased channel reach in key mature markets like the U.S. and Western Europe.

    Research In Motion’s share over the forecast period will decline, reflecting the stronger competitive environment in the consumer market, as well as increased competition in the business sector. Gartner has factored in RIM’s migration from BlackBerry OS to QNX which is expected in 2012. Analysts said this transition makes sense because RIM can create a consistent experience going from smartphones to tablets with a single developer community and — given that QNX as a platform brings more advanced features than the classic BlackBerry OS — it can enable more competitive smartphone products.

    Gartner predicts that Nokia will push Windows Phone well into the mid-tier of its portfolio by the end of 2012, driving the platform to be the third largest in the worldwide ranking by 2013. Gartner has revised its forecast of Windows Phone’s market share upward, solely by virtue of Microsoft’s alliance with Nokia. Although this is an honorable performance it is considerably less than what Symbian had achieve in the past underlying the upward battle that Nokia has to face.

    Gartner analysts said new device types will widen ecosystems. “The growth in sales of media tablets expected in 2011 and future years will widen the ecosystems that open OS communications devices have created. This will, by and large, function more as a driver than an inhibitor for sales of open OS devices,” said Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner.

    “Consumers who already own an open OS communications device will be drawn to media tablets and more often than not, to media tablets that share the same OS as their smartphone,” Milanesi said. “This allows consumers to be able to share the same experience across devices as well as apps, settings or game scores. At the same time, tablet users who don’t own a smartphone could be prompted to adopt one to be able to share the experience they have on their tablets.”

  • Google Nexus S 4G Coming to Sprint

    Sprint has announced the upcoming availability of Nexus S 4G from Google. Coming to Sprint this spring, this Android 2.3-powered device features 1 GHz Hummingbird processor, Super AMOLED 4” display, Google Voice integration, NFC support and Mobile Hotspot capability.

    Manufactured by Samsung, Nexus S 4G comes packed with a "pure Google experience" using Android 2.3, Gingerbread, the fastest version of Android available for smartphones. It is powered by a 1GHz Samsung application processor that produces rich 3D-like graphics, faster upload and download times and supports HD-like multimedia content along with a dedicated GPU. 

    It is designed with Samsung’s Super AMOLED touchscreen technology. The 4-inch Contour Display features a curved design "for a more comfortable look and feel in the user’s hand or along the side of the face." It also offers a screen that is bright with higher color contrast, meaning colors are vibrant and text is crisp at any size and produces less glare than on other smartphone displays when outdoors.

    Nexus S 4G also features a 5 megapixel rear-facing camera and camcorder and front-facing VGA camera.

    Additional key features include:

    • 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot capability, supporting up to six Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously
    • Android Market for access to more than 150,000 applications
    • Google mobile services such as Google Search, Gmail, Google Maps with Navigation, syncing with Google Calendar, Voice Actions and YouTube
    • Corporate email (Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync®), personal (POP & IMAP) email and instant messaging
    • Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, which allows the device to read information from everyday objects, like stickers and posters embedded with NFC chips
    • 16GB Internal Memory (ROM)/512MB (RAM)
    • Wi-Fi® – 802.11 b/g/n
    • Bluetooth® 2.1 + EDR
    • Integrated GPS
    • 1500 mAh Lithium-ion battery

    Sprint Nexus S 4G customers will be among the first to receive Android software upgrades and new Google mobile apps. In many cases, the device will get the updates and new apps as soon as they are available.

    "Nexus S 4G shows the strong commitment Sprint has to Android, and when combined with our 4G network capabilities, it gives customers the option of a pure Google experience," said Fared Adib, vice president – Product Development, Sprint. "As the first 4G smartphone with Android 2.3, Nexus S 4G delivers on the promise of the advanced data capabilities of 4G to deliver an incredible Web browsing experience, offers quick and easy access to future Android updates and access to the services built into Google Voice."

    Andy Rubin, vice president of Engineering at Google, stated: "We’re excited to partner with Sprint on Nexus S 4G, which brings innovative hardware by Samsung and innovations on the Android platform, to create a powerful smartphone experience,"

    Nexus S 4G will be available exclusively from Sprint this spring for $199.99 with a new two-year service agreement or eligible upgrade.

  • Google's Android Becomes the World's Leading Smartphone Platform

    Canalys today published its final Q4 2010 global country-level smartphone market data, which revealed that Google’s Android has become the leading platform. Shipments of Android-based smartphones reached 32.9 million, while devices running Nokia’s Symbian platform trailed slightly at 31.0 million worldwide.

    But Nokia did retain its position as the leading global smart phone vendor, with a share of 28%.

    The fourth quarter also saw the worldwide smartphone market continue to soar, with shipments of 101.2 million units representing year-on-year growth of 89%.

    According to the report, in Q4 2010, volumes of Google OS-based smartphones (Android, OMS and Tapas) were again boosted by strong performances from a number of vendors, notably LG, Samsung, Acer and HTC, whose volumes across these platforms grew 4,127%, 1,474%, 709% and 371% respectively year-on-year. HTC and Samsung together accounted for nearly 45% of Google OS-based handset shipments.

    "2010 has been a fantastic year for the smart phone market. After a difficult 2009, the speed with which the market has recovered has required real commitment and innovation from vendors and they have risen to the challenge," said Canalys VP and Principal Analyst Chris Jones.

    "But vendors cannot afford to be complacent. 2011 is set to be a highly competitive year with vendors looking to use new technology, such as dual-core processors, NFC and 3D displays, to differentiate their products and maintain value," he added.

    At a regional level, Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) remained the largest market, with shipments totalling 38.8 million and a year-on-year growth rate of 90%. Nokia continued to lead in EMEA and Asia Pacific, but in 2010 it was overtaken by RIM in Latin America, which shipped over a million more units than Nokia in Q4 2010. The vendor was particularly helped by the popularity of its mid-range smart phones, such as its Curve family of devices.

    The United States continued its reign as the largest country market in terms of shipments, at more than double the size of the Chinese smart phone market. RIM recaptured first place from Apple, as the latter experienced its usual US seasonal dip, and RIM benefited from the first full quarter of shipments for the BlackBerry Torch. HTC successfully maintained its third-place ranking in the US for the third consecutive quarter, driven by its speed to market with the latest Android updates and new Windows Phone 7 devices.

    "The US landscape will shift dramatically this coming year, as a result of the Verizon-Apple agreement,’ said Canalys Analyst Tim Shepherd. "Verizon will move its focus away from the Droid range, but the overall market impact will mean less carrier-exclusive deals, while increasing the AT&T opportunity for Android vendors, such as HTC, Motorola and Samsung."

    Android was by far the largest smart phone platform in the US market in Q4 2010, with shipments of 12.1 million units – nearly three times those of RIM’s BlackBerry devices. Windows Phone 7 devices appeared too late in the quarter to take full advantage of holiday season purchasing. As a result, Microsoft lost share in the United States, from 8% in Q4 2009 to 5% in Q4 2010.

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  • Android Overtakes iOS in Latest Mobile Mix Report

    According to Millennial Media’s Mobile Mix Index, for the first time Android surpassed iOS as the largest smartphone operating system on Millennial Media’s network last month, with an 8% month-over-month increase and 46% of the impression share. iOS represented 32% of the impression share.

    In 2011, Millennial Media anticipates that we’ll continue to see increased platform diversity with not only Android, but RIM and Windows Phone 7 applying pressure on iOS.

    “This prediction once again stresses the importance of advertising and developing across platforms,” said Mack McKelvey, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Millennial Media.

    Here are a few additional highlights from the December issue:
    • Samsung maintained the number two position in the Top 15 Manufacturers for the third consecutive month. The Samsung Code entered the Top 30 Mobile Devices for the first time in December and is the only Windows OS device in the Top 30 Mobile Device Ranking.

    • HTC claimed the number three position in the Top 15 Manufacturers – with a 9% growth month-over-month. There is a direct correlation with this increase and HTC having the highest number of devices (nine) in our Top 30 Mobile Device Ranking, including the debut of four new devices on our network: HTC Nexus One (Passion), HTC Evo, HTC Droid Incredible, and the HTC Desire.

    • Travel and Vacation app impressions doubled quarter-over-quarter. Apps in this category have evolved to bring online capabilities to the mobile platform (e.g., reservations, check-in, boarding passes, travel updates, etc.). The double digit quarterly growth shows that mobile consumers found value in staying connected through their mobile devices as they traveled this holiday season.

    • Music and Entertainment apps maintained the number three position quarter-over-quarter with 22% of the impression share. Television apps are the fastest growing sub-category with 259% growth in impression share quarter-over-quarter.

    • Touch Screen devices grew 10% month-over-month, with approximately 57% share of impressions in the December Device Input Mix. This growth can be attributed to the increased penetration of Smartphones with this input method.

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  • Amazon Opens Android Application Store to Developers

    US-based online retailer Amazon has opened its mobile application store to submissions from developers. The Amazon "Appstore" is due to launch in the US during 2011 and will be available for Android devices that run versions 1.6 of the operating system and above.

    Developers will be able to set a list price for their applications for which they will receive the industry standard 70 per cent share of revenues. Amazon, however, reserves the right to discount applications and will guarantee to give developers at least 20 per cent of the list price.

    Amazon will take a more hands-on role with its store than Google, with a stricter approval process than for the official Android Market; a move which will likely see Amazon’s store focus on high quality premium applications. Unlike the official Android Market, which comes preinstalled on all Google-approved devices, users will have to download the Amazon Appstore.

    According to iSuppli, Amazon’s control over pricing may see developers receive lower revenues per download than from other stores. However, the retailer’s ability to offer scale, its wealth of customer data and track record in online retailing will guarantee developers’ interest.

    "Developers’ major issues with Android Market include the poor opportunity for monetisation due to the plethora of free, low quality applications and consumers’ reluctance to use Google Checkout as a billing platform. The Amazon Appstore offers a solution to both these issues. Amazon has credit card/bank details from all its customers and offers a trusted billing platform. Its stricter approval process will ensure higher quality content and its wealth of customer data and expertise in providing customer recommendations will also improve app discoverability and monetisation," said iSuppli analysts Jack Kent.

    According to him, as a downloadable store, rather than one that arrives preinstalled on the device, Amazon’s store will struggle in the face of competition from the official Android Market and other embedded application stores run by operators and handset manufacturers. At launch, the store’s availability is limited to the US; a rapid international rollout will be vital for the store to attract wide developer interest.

    Amazon already has a considerable presence on mobile platforms; it offers its Kindle e-book app for Blackberry, Windows Phone 7, iOS and Android devices and has a number of mobile apps that enable users to make purchases from Amazon’s online store directly from the app. It will hope to leverage its existing Android mobile audience to boost the adoption of its own mobile application store.

  • Google Android Reaches #2 Spot among Smartphone Platforms

    comScore has released data from the comScore MobiLens service, reporting key trends in the U.S. mobile phone industry during the three month average period ending November 2010. After several months of strong growth, Google Android captured the #2 ranking among smartphone platforms with 26.0 percent of U.S. smartphone subscribers.

    The report ranked the leading mobile original equipment manufacturers and smartphone operating system platforms in the U.S. according to their share of current mobile subscribers ages 13 and older, and reviewed the most popular activities and content accessed via the subscriber’s primary mobile phone. The November report found Samsung to be the top handset manufacturer overall with 24.5 percent market share, while RIM led among smartphone platforms with 33.5 percent market share.

    OEM Market Share

    For the three month average period ending in November, 234 million Americans ages 13 and older used mobile devices. Device manufacturer Samsung ranked as the top OEM with 24.5 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers, up 0.9 percentage points from the three month period ending in August. LG ranked second with 20.9 percent share, followed by Motorola (17.0 percent), RIM (8.8 percent) and Nokia (7.2 percent).

    Smartphone Platform Market Share

    According to the report, 61.5 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones during the three months ending in November, up 10 percent from the preceding three-month period, as RIM led with 33.5 percent market share of smartphones. After several months of strong growth, Google Android captured the #2 ranking among smartphone platforms in November with 26.0 percent of U.S. smartphone subscribers. Apple accounted for 25.0 percent of smartphone subscribers (up 0.8 percentage points), followed by Microsoft with 9.0 percent and Palm with 3.9 percent.

    Mobile Content Usage

    comScore finds that in November, 67.1 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers used text messaging on their mobile device, up 0.5 percentage points versus the prior three month period, while browsers were used by 35.3 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers (up 0.8 percentage points). Subscribers who used downloaded applications comprised 33.4 percent of the mobile audience, representing an increase of 1.1 percentage points. Accessing of social networking sites or blogs increased 1.0 percentage points, representing 23.5 percent of mobile subscribers. Playing games attracted 22.6 percent of the mobile audience while listening to music attracted 15.0 percent.

     

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  • Mobile Navigation Users Increased 57% in H1-2010 to 44 million

    According to a new research report from the analyst firm Berg Insight, the number of mobile subscribers using a turn-by-turn navigation service or application on their handset grew 57 percent from H1-2009 to H1-2010 and reached 44 million worldwide.

    The subscriber base is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 33.1 percent to reach 195 million users worldwide in 2015.

    Broad availability of GPS handsets and attractive pricing are key factors for widespread adoption of mobile navigation services. In the US, where GPS handset penetration is above 70 percent, navigation services for mobile phones has already reached about 8 percent of the total mobile subscriber base. A large share of these users gets navigation as part of a service bundle together with a voice and data plan from their mobile operator.

    As a response to the launch of free navigation applications for smartphones by Nokia and Google, more and more operators worldwide are now introducing bundled navigation services to offset the cost for end users. Navigation service providers and mobile operators are also trying to monetise services by introducing various feature and content up-sells that allow users to customise navigation applications to suit their personal needs.

    “Mobile operators and service providers are now accelerating their efforts to create differentiated navigation experiences with unique local content to compete against free services”, said André Malm, Senior Analyst, Berg Insight.

    He added that integration of navigation services with other applications to stimulate usage will become increasingly important for mobile operators that seek additional revenues from location-based advertising. Since relatively few subscribers need turn-by-turn guidance on a daily basis, complementary features such as social networking, restaurant and event guides improve stickiness.

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  • Gartner: Android to Become No. 2 Worldwide Mobile OS in 2010

    The worldwide mobile operating system market will be dominated by Symbian and Android, as the two OSs will account for 59.8 percent of mobile OS sales by 2014, according to Gartner.

    The research firm predicts that Symbian will remain at the top of Gartner’s worldwide OS ranking due to Nokia‘s volume and the push into more mass market price points. However, by the end of the forecast period, the No. 1 spot will be contested with Android, which will be at a very similar share level.

    According to Gartner, communication service providers’ marketing and vendor support for Android-based smartphones will drive the platform to become the second-largest platform, following Symbian, by year-end 2010. This is almost two years earlier than Gartner predicted a year ago.

    "The worldwide mobile OS market is dominated by four players: Symbian, Android, Research In Motion and iOS," said Roberta Cozza, principal research analyst at Gartner.

    "Launches of updated operating systems — such as Apple iOS 4, BlackBerry OS 6, Symbian 3 and Symbian 4, and Windows Phone 7 — will help maintain strong growth in smartphones in 2H10 and 2011 and spur innovation. However, we believe that market share in the OS space will consolidate around a few key OS providers that have the most support from CSPs and developers and strong brand awareness with consumer and enterprise customers," she said.

    Gartner expects manufacturers such as Samsung to launch many new budget Android devices in 2H10 that will drive Android into mass market segments. Other players, such as Sony Ericsson, LG and Motorola, will follow a similar strategy. This trend should help Android become the top OS in North America by the end of 2010.

    "CSPs and mobile device manufacturers alike will need to revisit their platform strategies and balance the need to pursue platforms with the highest current demand against the need to maintain differentiation with unique devices," Cozza said. "CSPs will likely reduce the number of platforms they offer, to reduce their support costs and clarify their propositions to market."

    Gartner predicts that by 2014, open-source platforms will continue to dominate more than 60 percent of the market for smartphones. Single-source platforms, such as Apple’s iOS and Research In Motion’s OS, will increase in unit terms, but their growth rate will be below market average and not enough to sustain share increase. Windows Phone will be relegated to sixth place behind MeeGo in Gartner’s worldwide OS ranking by 2014.

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