Future Forecast: Apple and the Competition
There are plenty of things that we are already expecting from the new Apple iPhone that is reportedly going to be unveiled by Steve Jobs this coming June 7th, but the fact of the matter is, most of the expectations on the device’s market performance are based on how well the iPhone 3G/3Gs has performed for the past couple of years.
The Apple iPhone managed to stay on top of the market by offering the most apps, a new way to use a touch screen user interface and of course, being so incredibly stylish. In fact, they did this so well that they have been on top since the iPhone came out last 2008. But that was over two years ago and Apple is no longer the only big fish in the sea that know how to swim well.
Their competitors have also been getting better and better, in fact Google was a big surprise as it burst through the industry as a fledgling underdog into what is now the only mobile platform that seems capable of taking down the iPhone OS.
Even Microsoft has hit the reset button in hopes of catching up with the iPhone. While the Windows Mobile OS has maintained a steady hold of the business market, it still failed to win the hearts of the general market. Their new Windows Phone 7 mobile platform might just be the OS that will change all of that.
This is not to say that Apple’s next generation does not have what it takes to last for another couple of more years, but with the rate that mobile technology is improving, they will certainly be facing more and better competition than the previous iPhone ever did –at this rate, it is hard to predict that Apple can maintain its position for as long as it did before.
No More Tetris Clones for Android
Ever since the heyday of Tetris, it has been one of the favorite games to be copied by other game developers. Over a dozen spin offs and wannabe Tetris games have been released to the public. Even the Tetris developer himself created a similar game in the form of “Hatris”.
Because Tetris is so popular, it had not just one or two copycats up for download in the Android Market. It actually had a total of 35 spinoffs available until just recently when the Tetris Company LLC decided to ask Google to remove the apps.
The 35 apps were not exactly using Tetris game resources, they were not even making use of the Tetris name for their creations. Instead, the individual developers decided to use the same game play that the popular puzzle game has and slapped on their own game assets.
While it is unclear whether or not game play copyrights cover games that do not use original graphic or sound assets and do not make use of the actual game’s title, it is more peculiar as to why Tetris would turn their focus on the Android Market. There are so many platforms in which their game is being emulated that this move is quite surprising.
There are speculations that Google was targeted because they are an open source platform. They are deemed to be quite lax in the types of apps that make it to their Market. Perhaps the Tetris Company thought it was high time that they make a move to protect their game, targeting the easiest company to talk to first.
The real losers here are the individual developers. It is easy for Google and the Tetris Company to pull out their games without a second thought but for the small companies, this may be a big blow financially.
The Most Addictive Free Android Games
No matter the mobile platform, there will always be a demand for free apps. Developers rely on app sales in order to generate income and by making small, free apps, they are able to show off their skills and encourage users to buy full version or their other paid applications.
Anyway, here is our latest round up of the Google Android’s most interesting, and downright addictive apps and tools that you can spend hours fiddling around with.
First in the list is the Line Rider. The point of the game is to scribble paths across the screen that the ‘line rider’ will skate through. For those wondering, the line rider is actually the little green Android mascot riding a skateboard; it is really cute too. Players can be sadistic and send the little robot hurtling off to pits or create really impressive ramps that will get the Android ‘bot doing some pretty cool moves.
The Bubble Wrap Game brings the inanity of having to pop plastic bubbles but without that satisfying feeling of actually feeling the pop under your thumb –but there are limits to how good touch screen technology can be so we really do not mind. Instead of being a stress reliever, the Bubble Wrap Game is bound to keep players on their toes as they try to pop all the bubbles in sequence under a time limit. Scoring in your bubble popping might not sound like a good idea, but this game proves otherwise.
Last on our list for today is Peter Dolan’s “Zombie, Run!”. Now, there really is no other way to play this game unless you are on the go, the best tip comes straight from the developer himself; play this when you are going out on an errand. This GPS game will have you moving and running around your neighborhood avoiding the virtual zombies on your Android device; great for exercise too.
Highlights of the Week
The Google I/O event just passed us by and there have plenty of other major things happenings in the mobile phone industry. If you have not been in touch with the largest headlines, here is the quick recap of things.
First off, Apple is still undecided about the worldwide launch of the iPad. The touch screen tablet is still slated for a May 28 launch, though the official UK Apple online website now states that the device will be in shelves by June 7 –just in time for Apple’s big announcement. Many are expecting the folks at Cupertino to finally show off their new iPhone HD/4G handset. In other Apple news, they are now facing about four different patent infringement lawsuits; one each from Nokia, HTC, Elan Microelectronics and some company named Monkey (no, we are not kidding).
Google has finally come out with Android 2.2 Froyo as well as the announcement of their next Android version, 3.0 Gingerbread which is expected to appear later this year. The company is now focusing on development of HTML5 along with Adobe who has promised to deliver their own HTML5 development tools –something that would certainly make a lot of developers happy.
A new Dreamweaver has been shown at the Google I/O where Adobe showed off the software’s ability to handle different HTML5 and CSS for phone, tablet and desktop variations of a single website.
Speaking of Google, the company is now under investigation from Germany and Spain regarding the WiFi data that was collected by the Google Street Car. UK’s ICO has decided to respect and honor Google’s decision to delete the data.
In the world of social networking, Facebook has launched the new 0.facebook.com and m.facebook.com –two super mobile optimized versions of the website (0 for standard phones, m for touch screen devices). The social network has also partnered with 50 operators across 45 countries to make access to the mobile versions of the site free of charge. Sadly, the UK is not in that list.
Google’s Nexus One: First to Get Flash
We already know that Flash is coming to the Android, with Andy Rubin not being all too quiet about it, everyone can pretty much expect that Google’s very own Nexus One smart phone will be the first device to be able to play YouTube videos straight from the browser.
It is an impressive add-on, regardless of the news being new or already expected. Flash content brings many interactive web features, from apps, to custom user interfaces to incredibly unique games. Of course, Adobe has been all too happy to prove that the Android’s touch screen user interface also works well with the Flash format. According to recent video demonstrations, touch control map easily to Flash’s mouse event scripts.
The big Flash and Apple problem hit a major point when Steve Jobs made a very long letter addressing the Apple’s problems with the Flash format –stating six specific points that Jobs considered as the reasons why Flash should not be used. In that very same week, Google stepped in to provide Adobe with a platform that fully supports, the Flash community went all out to show that touch does work on Flash and most important of all, people showed their support in the use of Flash.
Sure, HTML5 will be the next big format for the future, but until such time, we are all pretty happy with Flash.
In any case, the Nexus One is an ideal jumping point for Flash. The phone is both fast and powerful, with plenty of RAM and a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU. It also helps that the device has been fully streamlined to deliver the smoothest and most immersive Android user experience available. The handset also comes with a 3.7 inch AMOLED capacitive touch screen for showing off those amazing Flash visuals and of course, the full range of Google’s web services for the Android OS.
WiFi Data: Can Google Afford Mistakes Like These?
We all know that Google accidentally logged information about unsecured WiFi data across many countries such as Germany and the UK. They have confirmed that the Street Car performed that operation and that it was a function that they had not actually authorized.
In any case, the data has since been destroyed and Eric Schmidt (Google CEO) is busy reassuring the world that Google “cares” about privacy –a statement that is reportedly, something that Mark Zuckerberg would never say. In order to ensure that the data was disposed of, Google hired a third party in order make sure that the process was properly executed and accomplished.
Still, one cannot that deny that as the company that it is today, Google is by far bigger than anything else we could have ever expected. Their Google Maps, Street View and other map services can be considered to be the largest and most comprehensive source of current geographical data the spans the entire planet. They also hold a large array of services ranging from Picasa to YouTube to Google Mail.
So when it has been learned that Google has been snooping around collecting WiFi network data, one must wonder why they even had they idea in the first place. It is certainly interested to be able to map out locations that offer free WiFi, but actually figuring out which houses in the UK have unprotected networks is like giving free candy to hackers.
No matter how many warnings and precautions are given, there will always be this one or two people in the block who have no idea how to add security to their router. Google may intend to, but this kind of carelessness is potentially harmful to people like those. More importantly, there is much more to Google than just the search engine and Street view. If they are so nonchalant about the accidentally logged WiFi data, who knows what else they might have been able store in their other services?
Google: Protecting Privacy
There was a lot of fuss in regards to the revelation that the Google Street car managed to capture more data than was originally thought. The car was supposed to travel roads in order to take pictures that would appear in the Street View web service. However, it has been revealed in Germany that the vehicle also managed to log all public WiFi networks that could be accessed by anyone passing by.
Originally, it was planned that Google would actually take a full roster of free WiFi networks, but the feature was supposedly removed. The folks at Silicon Valley attest that the function was written in by an engineer and that the information was taken accidentally. In order to preserve public trust in the company, Google has announced that it would be deleting the unnecessary data, and in order to properly delete the files, Google has hired the services of a third party company to delete the files.
iSEC member, Alex Stamos has sent the following letter to Alan Eustace, Senior VP of engineering and research of Google with regards the data.
“I have been working with members of Google's technical staff to organize and securely store the date in question. Before my arrival, Google staff had consolidated the wi-fi packet captures and onto four hard drives. This data was organized into folders corresponding to the nation of origin. Upon my acquisition of the drives from Google staff, I noted that the hard drives had been stored in a secure manner within a secure portion of the facility.”
“I created two new encrypted volumes on separate hard drives, and copied over all of the data with the exception of data that was identified as being captured within the Republic of Ireland. I then witnessed the physical destruction of the original four hard drives.”
“I can attest that all of the data on these drives identified and as captured within the Republic of Ireland was destroyed in accordance with best practices for irreversible data destruction.”
Is Google Buzz Ready to Take On the World?
Social networking online has been done so many times, but it was not until recently that Facebook and later, Twitter came into the picture and reinvented everything. So the question now is “can Google compete in this field?”
Google has been working on the Buzz service for quite some time now. While there is no way to just sign up for an account (you need to have a Gmail account and hope that you get the feature soon), people are already reacting to it. Initial reactions reaction range from the curious “I haven’t gotten it yet, wonder what it does” to xenophobic “when are we gonna have an I Hate Google Buzz group on Facebook?”
Facebook and Twitter are currently the largest and most influential social networking sites ever. They have perfected the concept of micro blogging and have made the concept of social networking easy and fun. They are also the main reasons why people use mobile phones to go online.
Thanks to the nature of the two sites, people have learned to enjoy the concept of being connected and more and more people find themselves being brought into the community. Sharing of links, videos and images have also become a very simple activity that can be enjoyed by all contacts.
Google’s Buzz will be concentrating on providing these very same features that have become the strong points of social networking sites. Google will also be able to integrate Buzz in other Google sites such as YouTube and Picasa increasing the capabilities of the network.
It has also been reported that there will be a mobile version of Buzz that will not only provide the features of the standard Buzz but will also make use of the GPS feature to search for relevant updates and information in your current location.
Get more details about the Google Buzz from the Telegraph UK.
One Big Step Forward For Android Nation!
Google recently unveiled the Google Nexus One. This phone utilizes the Android mobile platform and has already generated a ton of excitement. Discussions surrounding the phone have been at a feverish pitch for months. Scheduled to first debut in the United States, it will then be released in Europe. A re-introduction of the phone later this year in the United States will occur. The next time around, however, Verizon will also carry the phone. Initially, T-Mobile will be the carrier. In Europe, Vodofone will sell the handset.
Many people are applauding Nexus One, lauding it as the next generation Android even before it has reached the market. There is a ton of excitement even within the industry. However, it is not yet known how things will play out.
Google created the Nexus One to directly compete with the popular iPhone. Everyone will have to wait and see if it will be able to do or even perhaps surpass it. Both phones look very similar and have many of the same features. The Nexus One does however, have a more powerful camera at 5 megapixels. The Apple iPhone only has a 3 megapixel camera. Besides that, the Nexus One comes with voice recognition, 512 MB of memory, a 3.7 inch touch screen, GPS and 1 GHz Snapdragon processor which makes it extremely fast.
The phone will be sold for $529 (£331) when bought directly from Google. Individuals are eligible for a discount if they are willing to sign a two-year contract with T-Mobile. In this case, the phone goes down to $179 (£112). This is a huge discount and is quite enticing. The catch of course is having to be tied to a particular company for so long.
The unveiling of the Nexus One made for an exciting day for those individuals who had been following its progress, though Google would not release much. There had been a lot of discussion and speculation about the phone and now that it is finally here, discussions will be ongoing but this time around people will actually know what they are taking about.
The Google Nexus One: Are You Interested
The Google Nexus One will be the search engine superstar’s latest addition to the Android mobile phone lineup. There is some talk, whispers actually, that it will offer the company a uniformed platform for all of their Android smartphones. This news has been welcomed with excitement and anticipation by Android phone application designers who have grown tired with the fragmented market. Many have opted instead to spend their time creating applications for the iPhone because of its uniformity.
The Nexus One is believed to officially introduce their phone to world at the Consumers Electronics Show, an exciting event for all techies, both amateur and professional, as well as those in the industry. Every since it became rumored that Google would unveil the Nexus One soon, there has been a lot of discussion about the handset and it has been a popular topic on internet forums and mobile phone related websites.
The Nexus One will be quite pricey at $530 unlocked. T-Mobile will be offering users a huge deal at only $180 but that will likely require that they sign a contract. There has not been a lot of information given about the phone’s specifics. However, there are some rumors about the features the phone will include. Below, we will provide you with the details we have been given. Until we have access to the official lists of specs, we will have to wait around with abated breath just like everyone else.
In summary, Google will soon be making the Nexus One available for purchase. They will initially introduce it at the Consumer Electronics Fair. The handset is rumored to have pretty robust specs which include a 5 or 6 megapixel camera, Snapdragon processor and a large screen Wi-Fi. There is also some speculation concerning price. Rumor has it that it will be priced at more then $500. Of course, this is all conjecture as Google has not yet released the official lists of specs and product details. An accurate description of the phone should be coming shortly.