Android

Comparing Carrier Numbers to NPD May Call BS on Android Market Share Claims

Editorials May 4, 2012

Comparing Carrier Numbers to NPD May Call BS on Android Market Share Claims

The NPD attempts to track market share for smartphones (amongst other things). And given that manufacturers don’t really want to tell anyone exactly how many devices were sold (heck, Samsung now just talks in percentages!), I think they do an admirable job. They are joined by other groups such as comScore and IDC, and each publishes quarterly estimates of how everyone is doing in the smartphone market. For a while now I have stated my issues with Tablet market share numbers. First off, Samsung used inflated numbers for their Galaxy Tab … then they stopped reporting numbers at all. Other…

AT&T's HTC One X Android Smartphone

Reviews May 1, 2012

AT&T’s HTC One X Android Smartphone

HTC has really upped their game with the new HTC One line of Android smartphones. Each of the three devices in the series looks great, is super fast and offers a range of features that makes them some of the best smartphones currently (or soon) available. Judie had a chance to see them they day they were announced at Mobile World Congress, and I spent some quality time with them the next morning. We were both impressed. A few weeks later I got my hands on the T-Mobile-branded HTC One S. I liked the look… and the feel… and found…

Eers PCS-150 Custom Fitted Earbuds Review

Reviews April 30, 2012

Eers PCS-150 Custom Fitted Earbuds Review

I am not much of an audiophile. When I grab headphones, it is usually to walk the dog or run on a treadmill, and for the last several years my headphone rotation has been between whichever pair of apple earbuds are lying around, and a pair of wraparound headphones I am pretty sure I paid $9.99 for…in 2008. So it has been quite the eye-opening experience testing the Eers PCS-150, a pair of high-end headphones with a special twist. What makes the Eers so special is that these are no ordinary earbuds. Instead, you use a special kit called the…

Your Tablet Needs to Clean Up Its Act, Qmadix Smudge Free Can Help

Reviews April 19, 2012

Your Tablet Needs to Clean Up Its Act, Qmadix Smudge Free Can Help

Your tablet is dirty. Dirty, smudged and a mess. That’s what happens when grubby fingers are constant tapping, poking and sliding around on it. Seriously, it’s a bit gross. That’s where the Qmadix Smudge-Free Dry-Foam Cleaning Kit comes in. The kit is formulated to safely clean your device from smudges, dirt, grime and makeup. Our dry foam formula utilizes smudge-resistant properties that help minimize the transfer of most smudges.Smudge-Free is safe for mobile devices, computer monitors, televisions (Plasma, LCD and LED), E-readers, tablets, keyboards, household electronics and more. Each kit includes a 3oz can of cleaning foam and two 10″…

HTC One S, a First Look

Reviews April 18, 2012

HTC One S, a First Look

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to go into Manhattan on a Monday morning and get an early look at HTC’s new line of phones, the HTC One. There are three phones in the series: the HTC ONE X, the HTC ONE V, and the HTC ONE S. The latter will soon be released on T-Mobile, and for the last 48 hours I’ve been able to run one through its paces. (Check out more info on the HTC ONE, here.) It’s far too early to be able to give a full review of the device, but it certainly…

Something Tells Me Microsoft and Nokia are Smiling as Lumia 900 Sells Out

News & Features April 15, 2012

Something Tells Me Microsoft and Nokia are Smiling as Lumia 900 Sells Out

When Apple ran into issues with the iPhone 4 and “Antennagate”, even Consumer Reports refusal to recommend the phone didn’t slow down the adoption rate of the device. It sold, and it sold well. Now it looks like Nokia and Microsoft may be having the same bit of luck. Sure there were some initial issues with the Lumia 900 and connectivity. Issues like… For some, it just would not connect*. However that doesn’t seem to have slowed the popularity of the phone. A quick look at AT&T Wireless’ smartphone offerings shows the device out of stock. I can only imagine…

iPhone 4S vs Galaxy Nexus: Which Will I Pick?

Editorials April 11, 2012

iPhone 4S vs Galaxy Nexus: Which Will I Pick?

Those who have been following me on Gear Diary know that I was an early Android lover.  I had the very first Android phone, the G1.  While it was not without its foibles, I loved the phone even with it’s Jay Leno chin and chunkiness.  About 18 months ago, I replaced my beloved G1 with a Droid 2 and switched from T-Mobile to Verizon.  Early on, I was extremely satisfied with my Droid 2.  It was easily faster than my G1 ever was.  I was able to run applications my G1 would choke on and I never had an issue…

Teething Troubles for Tablet Adoption in the Workplace

Editorials April 5, 2012

Teething Troubles for Tablet Adoption in the Workplace

It’s always tempting to impute Unlikely virtues to the cute. – Ogden Nash The tech world is abuzz with them, many of us own our own and several of us use them at work. They have transformed the personal computing landscape and become a standard in their own right, sized  from the neighborhood of 10″ down to 7″. I am speaking, of course, of tablets. Whether the Apple iPad, the varying Android builds, HP Touchpad or even the BlackBerry PlayBook, tablets have become very popular mobile devices and increasingly showing up in the business world. Before you start gallivanting off…

Sprint HTC EVO 4G LTE Event

Events April 4, 2012

Sprint HTC EVO 4G LTE Event

I had the pleasure tonight of attending Sprint’s EVO 4G launch, their newest flagship phone. It runs Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) with a huge 4.7in screen and all the usual bells and whistles we have come to expect from a high-end Android phone (1.5ghz Qualcomm processor, 1GB of RAM, NFC, a 2000mAh battery!) But this phone is special. Not only does it have a 720p screen, it has Beats Audio and something called HD Voice, which I think has the potential to truly be a killer feature. What is it? And why did it blow me away beyond anything…

Does iOS Need a User Interface Overhaul?

Editorials April 3, 2012

Does iOS Need a User Interface Overhaul?

I posed a question to my fellow staff at Gear Diary, asking all iPhone users why Apple hasn’t really changed their UI since 2007. As a non iPhone user, my questions stemmed from a post that Carly had put up about her finding her original iPhone, when she posted a side by side of the home screens. Original iPhone (left) iPhone 4S (right) As an Android user, I enjoy changing up my home screen or theme on a weekly basis. That might seem a little excessive to some,  but with so many cool launcher options, icons, and tweaks, I feel like…

Not into the iPad? Here Are Some Smaller, Cheaper Alternatives

Editorials March 28, 2012

Not into the iPad? Here Are Some Smaller, Cheaper Alternatives

  After a week of record busting sales if you were uncertain before then you should be now. The iPad is indeed the ruler of the roost on all things tablet. Everyone at Gear Diary was thrilled by this model’s updates, and it’s clear that the new HD display, 4G/LTE, 5MP camera graphics upgrade was enough to put sales through the roof and beyond. Reports were 3 million units moved the first weekend and probably double that count since then. This honestly comes to no surprise as the consumer support behind Apple is evident by its sheer volume of sales…

Is it really the Post-PC Era, or Is the Plus-PC Era Simply Continuing?

Gear Bits March 12, 2012

Is it really the Post-PC Era, or Is the Plus-PC Era Simply Continuing?

Ten years ago I bought one of the first devices I ever had that could be classified as a post-pc device or as I like to call it, a plus pc device.  That was a Toshiba e740 Pocket PC.  This was the first device I had outside of a laptop that included wi-fi.  I remember taking the e740, a flexible USB keyboard, the keyboard adapter and a compact flash modem on a trip with me and chatting with my wife and other family members every night on a SLOW modem.  It wasn’t ideal, but it worked.  I also remember my…

Judie's Mobile World Congress 2012 WrapUp via Vonage Mobile

Events, Travel March 2, 2012

Judie’s Mobile World Congress 2012 WrapUp via Vonage Mobile

Judie is on her way back From Barcelona where she attended Mobile World Congress. We had a chance to use the Vonage Mobile app (read the Sponsored Post/Review here) to catch up a bit and talk about the hits and misses of MWC 2012. Here’s the call with some of the pictures she took while she was there along with her wrap up video. What we saw… What we brought…

Write Android Apps? Write a Samsung Galaxy Note S App and You Could Win $100K!

News & Features February 29, 2012

Write Android Apps? Write a Samsung Galaxy Note S App and You Could Win $100K!

    Are you a savvy Android programmer? Would you like a chance to win some slick prizes? Samsung is offering a huge contest to encourage developers to write applications for its new Galaxy Note S phone using its Galaxy S Pen SDK. Samsung invites software developers to create S Pen-integrated apps for Galaxy Note using the S Pen SDK. Winners will receive $205,000 in cash and prizes as well as promotional exposure and recognition in Samsung digital social media. Prizes will be awarded for the best overall apps and for category honorable mention awards in games, media, sports, social,…

Intel Goes Mobile at MWC in Barcelona

Events, News & Features February 28, 2012

Intel Goes Mobile at MWC in Barcelona

While the focus has been on Intel’s partnership with various companies on the creation of the new Ultrabook category of laptops here at MWC they are talking about a very different kind of partnership. This time, they are talking about new partnerships that will grow their presence in the exploding worldwide smartphone market. Just one example of this is the Intel/Orange partnership that will see the release of an Intel phone in France and the UK this summer. ZTE will use processors in their smartphones and, India’s Lava will release the XOLO X900 in partnership with Intel as well. Let’s…

Pictures and Video from the Sony Press Conference on the Xperia Line of Smartphones

Events, News & Features February 27, 2012

Pictures and Video from the Sony Press Conference on the Xperia Line of Smartphones

Sony had three phones in their Xperia line to show off yesterday. We posted on them at the time and you can get details here. Today we’ve got loads more pictures AND a video from the Sony Press Conference. Let’s start with the Press Conferences video and then you can check out all the pictures in the gallery.   Check out the entire gallery of pictures from the Sony Press Conference.                              

HTC One Line of Smartphones Hands-On in NYC

News & Features February 27, 2012

HTC One Line of Smartphones Hands-On in NYC

Yesterday we brought word of HTC’s new line of Android smartphones, the HTC One. There are three phones in the line and each has its own unique screen size and feel. What is particularly unique however is the fact that the phones are NOT UNIQUE. No, the enhanced camera, sound and build-quality is the SAME across the line. As one of the HTC reps put it, “The great thing this time out is that you only need to make the choice with regard to the size and feel you want, the camera, sound etc is the same across the line…

T-Mobile to be Premier Launch Partner in the U.S. for the HTC One S

Events, News & Features February 26, 2012

T-Mobile to be Premier Launch Partner in the U.S. for the HTC One S

We have a bit more news on HTC’s new HTC One line coming out of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. It seems T-Mobile will be the premier launch partner in the U.S. for the HTC One S. The HTC One S will be T-Mobile’s next smartphone to take advantage of the company’s speedy 4G (HSPA+42) network. Measuring just 7.95 mm thick, the phone has a unibody aluminum design and will be T-Mobile’s first device to ship with Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Here’s a quick rundown on some of the features that make this device stand out.

The World's First Ice Cream Sandwich Dual-SIM Smartphone Announced at MWC

Events, News & Features, Travel February 26, 2012

The World’s First Ice Cream Sandwich Dual-SIM Smartphone Announced at MWC

UPDATED with Judie’s pictures from MWC ViewSonic not only announced some great new tablets at MWC but they are also announcing a host of new smartphones. Among them is the first Ice Cream Sandwich Dual-SIM Smartphone. Why dual-SIM? Dual-SIM phones are expected to see an 80% growth rate in the next two years and, according to market research group Strategy Analytics, 206 million dual-SIM handsets will be sold worldwide in 2014. That compares to compared with 41 million in 2010. As the ViewSonic Press Release notes, Dual-SIM phones are expected to grow as users prefer to carry one handset for…