Samsung Leaps Ahead of the Curve With New Galaxy Round

The fact that the Galaxy Round is curved doesn't mean that it's flexible or bendable -- at least not yet. "At present this is still a curved display on a rigid device," said Wayne Lam, senior analyst for mobile devices at IHS iSuppli. "To truly be bendable or flexible would require all the components inside to be bendable or flexible, and we're not really there yet."

Hard on the heels of LG's announcement earlier this week that it is planning flexible-display handsets of its own, Samsung Electronics on Wednesday announced the release of the Galaxy Round, which it says is the world's first smartphone featuring a curved screen.

New features enabled by the device's curved design include the "Roll Effect," which enables the user to check information such as the date, time, missed calls and battery easily when the home screen is off, and the "Gravity Effect" for creating visual interaction with the screen by tilting the device, Samsung said.

Both Samsung and LG also offer curved OLED, or organic light-emitting diode, technology in large-panel TVs, but now the South Korean companies are aiming to put the curve in users' hands.
The 5.7-inch Galaxy Round is now being rolled out in South Korea in "Luxury Brown," with more colors coming soon. Samsung has not given any indication so far on whether the device would be released in other markets, however.
Samsung did not respond to our request for further details.
'We're Not Really There Yet'
The fact that the Galaxy Round is curved doesn't mean that it's flexible or bendable -- at least not yet.
"At present this is still a curved display on a rigid device," said Wayne Lam, senior analyst for mobile devices at IHS iSuppli. "If you look at Samsung and LG, these are both display manufacturers, and overall this is more a way to feed development of flexible display technology, but it could be at least a decade before these devices are truly flexible.
"To truly be bendable or flexible would require all the components inside to be bendable or flexible, and we're not really there yet," Lam told TechNewsWorld.
Apart from its curved display, the Samsung Galaxy Round doesn't introduce any significant new hardware.
"There aren't any major component advancements beyond the curved screen, so this way it is really kind of model expansion of the Galaxy devices," said Chris Hazelton, research director for mobile and wireless at 451 Research. "They are using the Galaxy components where it makes sense. That is driven by cost. They aren't looking to develop too many components for this device."

A Showpiece Device

Instead, the Galaxy Round "is more of a showpiece for the company," Hazelton told TechNewsWorld. Samsung's display division "has created the ability to create the curved display, and it is using this product to show it off.
"They have the funding to deliver the technology even if it is just a marketing demonstration," Hazelton added. "It shows that they can provide curved displays for vendors."
Of course, the Galaxy Round will be available at retail, so it does go a step beyond the usual "proof of concept" stage. However, it isn't expected that this is a device for the masses.
"The market is pretty small, as people don't know what the benefits are," Ramon Llamas, research manager for the mobile phones team at IDC, told TechNewsWorld. "What we are seeing is that Samsung is flexing its R&D muscle."
Coming as it does so soon after LG's announcement, "this is really about the competition between the two companies," Llamas added.

'What Is a Smartphone'?

The curved display of this new handset is not without its benefits, however, even as questions remain as to who its target audience might be.
"One of the most interesting effects of providing a curve of the display is it shrinks the width," noted IHS iSuppli's Lam. "This is a 5.7-inch display, which can be larger to hold in the hand, so by bending the device it allows it to be held easier."
It can be a difficult form factor to get right, however.
"Not everything will be conforming to the curved screen," Lam explained. "So you have to think about what problem this is trying to solve. It isn't addressing anything anyone is asking for at this point, but this is really about trying to get it out there and stir up the conversation about the curve."
There's also the fact that when Samsung launched its first Galaxy Note, "it was a bit of head-scratcher at the time, as it sat between two categories," Hazelton suggested. "This new device could see the same fit. It points to the future of capabilities but it also speaks to the fact that it is hard to define what is a smartphone.
"These are not like laptops, where all the devices have the same form factor," added Hazelton. "There is a lot more variety among devices. Samsung deserves credit for taking this in a new direction." 

Qualcomm Executive Dismisses Apple's 64-Bit A7 Chip, Dislikes Google Glass

He said it brings nothing to the table at this point for consumers, but plans to release a 64-bit chip for Android/Windows Phones

A Qualcomm executive doesn't think Apple's new 64-bit A7 processor is a huge, necessary iPhone upgrade. In fact, he called it a "marketing gimmick."

Anand Chandrasekher -- senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Qualcomm -- said that Apple's 64-bit processor in the new iPhone 5S doesn't offer a big enough reason for consumers to upgrade.

"I know there's a lot of noise because Apple did [64-bit] on their A7," said Chandrasekher. "I think they are doing a marketing gimmick. There's zero benefit a consumer gets from that.

"Predominantly... you need it for memory addressability beyond 4GB. That's it. You don't really need it for performance, and the kinds of applications that 64-bit get used in mostly are large, server-class applications."

One key advantage of a 64-bit processor is more memory addressability, but the iPhone 5S has only 1GB of DRAM.

Chandrasekher said 64-bit chips aren't "relevant" in today's smartphones or tablets. Many have even said that the processor in Apple's new iPhone can't be credited entirely for performance boosts in benchmark tests.

Qualcomm provides its Snapdragon chips for Android and Windows Phone smartphones and tablets. It even plans to continue investing in chips made for Windows RT, which is a mobile version of Windows 8 that runs on ARM-based chips and has been criticized for failing to produce a full Windows 8 experience (it can't run legacy apps).

"We've been investing quite a bit into both Windows Phone and Windows RT. We're one of Microsoft's partners," said Chandrasekher. "We're optimistic in the way we invest in the marketplace, we're cautious of the outlook in terms of what the revenues might look like."

Qualcomm said it plans to offer a 64-bit processor in the future to keep up with chip designs and even cut manufacturing costs, but there's no set release date, and Qualcomm doesn't seem worried about it. In fact, the company is looking ahead to wearable technology and is focusing on the needs to power such devices -- but it's more interested in smart watches, not "out there" devices like Google Glass.

"Google Glass, I'm not a huge fan of that," said Chandrasekher. "That's a little harder to predict if that will be successful."

Apple released the iPhone 5S last month alongside the "budget" iPhone 5C. 
Source: TechWorld

Microsoft Investors Want Bill Gates to Resign From Post Amidst Windows 8 Woes

After successfully kicking Ballmer out, the sharks want more blood

While Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) was riding on an epic sales streak in the Windows 7 era, shareholder infelicity was slowly amounting as weak stock prices failed to reflect Microsoft's strong earnings.  Disruptive investor David Einhorn first called upon CEO Steve Ballmer to resign in early 2011.  At the time the board defended the boisterous Mr. Ballmer.  But then came Windows 8 and the biggest percentage drop in PC sales in history.  Now Mr. Ballmer is out, and that could be just the start.

Now three of Microsoft's top 20 investors have set their eyes on a new target -- William Henry "Bill" Gates III.  Since stepping down as CEO in Jan. 2000, Bill Gates -- who cofounded Microsoft in 1975 -- has continued to serve as Chairman of Microsoft's board.

The investors reportedly want a more radical departure from Microsoft's current path and are afraid Bill Gates could stand in their way.  They're particularly upset about Bill Gates being allowed to lead the committee that's hunting for Microsoft's next CEO.  Thus they're reportedly internally calling for Mr. Gates to resign as chairman of the board.

_{Three top shareholders reportedly want Bill Gates to resign early from his chairman position at Microsoft. [Image Source: Getty Images]}

While the investors represent only 5 percent of the total share pool, the attack on Mr. Gates is a sign that shareholder outrage has reached a new level.  Todd Lowenstein, a portfolio manager at HighMark Capital Management, did not disclose whether his hedge fund was part of the campaign against Mr. Gates, but at the very least he sounded quite supportive of it.  In a comment to Reuters he stated, "This is long overdue.  Replacing the old guard with some fresh eyes can provide the oxygen needed to properly evaluate their corporate strategy."

Other investors aren't so supportive of the attack on Mr. Gates' position of leadership.  Kim Caughey Forrest, senior analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group -- another major shareholder -- comments, "I've thought that the company has been missing a technology visionary.  Bill (Gates) would fit the bill."

Fortune forecasts Microsoft to make $17B USD in profit this year, and calls it the world's 110th biggest company in terms of revenue -- up from 119th in 2012 on a profit of $22B USD.  But Microsoft's market capitalization (based on share prices) has fallen from first place in the world in 2000, to seventh place this year.  That's the same place as Microsoft occupied in 2008, but is down from the third place mark Microsoft managed to achieve in 2010 amid Windows 7's booming sales.

_{Mr. Gates' chosen CEO successor, Steve Ballmer, was recently driven out by the board.
[Image Source: Getty Images]}

Mr. Gates currently spends most of his time and effort on his $38B USD Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.  Mr. Gates plans to donate his entire fortune to charity by the time he dies and has inspired other billionaires -- including Facebook, Inc. (FB) CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg to do so as well.

The calls for Mr. Gates resignation come at a time whens his own ownership of Microsoft is waning.  Mr. Gates owned 49 percent of Microsoft shares when the company went public in 1986, but entered a plan to sell off his holdings on a pre-set basis, selling about 80 million shares a year.  Sales to date have reduced Mr. Gates' stake to 4.5 percent of current shares, or about $12.4B USD worth of stock.  The share sales plan will eliminate Mr. Gates' ownership entirely by 2018, at which point he would presumably step down as board chairman -- a spot reserved for a top investor.

Thus whether or not the angry shareholders get their wish, Mr. Gates will likely be leaving what is likely his final position at the company he cofounded within the next five years.

Source: Reuters

Windows 8.1 Available for Pre-Order

Windows Vista or XP users will need to purchase Windows 8 first

Not too long ago we mentioned that Windows 8.1 would be landing on October 18. All Windows 8 users will be able to download the update at no cost via the Windows Store on that day. However, if you haven't yet upgraded to Windows 8 you can now pre-order Windows 8.1.

Windows 8.1 brings with it several updates that users should appreciate, including a return of the Start button.

The update will also allow users to boot directly to the desktop, bypassing the “Tiles” interface. Microsoft reportedly made numerous other changes and upgrades to the operating system as well.

Users wanting to pre-order Windows 8.1 can do so now for $119.99. If you're running Windows XP or Windows Vista, you need to be aware that Microsoft says Windows 8.1 is not designed for installation on devices running either of those versions of the operating system.

People running Windows Vista or Windows XP have to purchase Windows 8 and get the upgrade Windows 8.1 at no cost. Windows 7 users can update directly to Windows 8.1.

Source: Microsoft

Nokia Looks to Ban HTC Androids From U.S.

Nokia looks to either score licensing fees, or force HTC onto Windows Phone

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) is showing off a mean one-two punch against the smartphone market's top platform Google Inc.'s (GOOG) Android.  After pressuring most Android OEMs into lucrative long-term licensing deals which erase much of the OEMs' margins, and now its close partner Nokia  Oyj. (HEL:NOK1V) and is using patent lawsuits to deliver the second blow.

I. Microsoft Circumvents Licensing Deal Via Subsidiary Nokia

The first victim of this strategy is HTC Corp. (TPE:2498).  HTC signed a deal with Microsoft in 2010, reportedly paying Microsoft around $10 USD per Android smartphone it sells.  The deal grants HTC licenses to various Microsoft operating system and hardware patents that HTC's Android device might otherwise infringe upon.

Generally HTC has tried to play peacemaker when it's been dragged into court.  In November of last year it signed a 10-year licensing pact with Apple, Inc. (AAPL).  Earlier last year Apple had scored an import ban via the U.S. International Trade Commission, the nation's trade court.  The ban caused serious damage to HTC earnings, by worsening the Android phonemakers sales slump.

_{HTC continues to be bullied by Microsoft and Nokia. [Image Source: Reuters]}

While HTC has continued to struggle financially, one might think that it was safe from fresh patent litigation -- at least litigation from Apple and Microsoft, two of the smartphone war's primary drivers.  But if you thought that you would be wrong, as Nokia has secured a ban on much of HTC's smartphone line via a preliminary ruling by the ITC.

Since it has signed a licensing pact with HTC, Microsoft cannot directly sue it.  But in its recent complaint, Finnish phonemaker Nokia Oyj. is instead doing that work.

Nokia recent sold its devices unit to Microsoft, along with a 10-year patent licensing promise for $7.2B USD.  But Nokia Oyj. as a whole continues to exist in Finland and continues its anti-Android "license or be sued" patent campaign.

II. Nokia Started the Patent Wars, and it's Still Pushing Them

Nokia alleges that Qualcomm, Inc.'s (QCOM) radio circuitry inside the Snapdragon 600 (APQ8064) and other commonly used smartphone components violate dozens of patents (at one point the count was 50) owned by Nokia.  But rather than sue Qualcomm, et al., Nokia has decided to selectively target phonemakers that use the chips.

_{Nokia claims Qualcomm's Snapdragon 4 and other chips infringe on its IP.
[Image Source: Engadget]}

Nokia has long been at the forefront of the so-called "smartphone wars", an industry-wide patent suing frenzy that began in 2009.  Ironically Apple -- the other leading litigator -- was the first company to be sued back in 2009 when Nokia accused Apple of violating 10 of its patents.

Nokia also set the model that Apple and others would later follow by filing an ITC complaint requesting a ban on infringing products.  As virtually all smartphones are made in China, these import bans would effectively amount to sales bans.  The ITC approach is a particularly attractive one in the U.S. as elements of the 2006 Supreme Court ruling in eBay v. MercExchange [PDF] made it harder to secure more traditional federal court orders to ban products while pursuing infringement claims in the federal court system.

_{The ITC has become a popular route to product bans. [Image Source: Wikimedia Commons]}

Nokia's current complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California in May 2012 (Case 13-cv-01231-BEN-WMC) by the power law firm Neil Dymott Frank McFall & Trexler APLC [press release].  A separate ITC complaint was filed in parallel.  That complaint targeted a slew of devices that now comprise the older models in HTC's Android lineup including the HTC Amaze 4G, the Inspire 4G, Flyer, Jetstream, Radar 4G, Rezound and Sensation 4G.

_{The Sensation 4G}

The ITC complaint involved nine "non standards essential patents", of which two were singled out to aid in a final ruling. These were EP1133831/U.S. Patent No. 7,415,247 which covers a "Method and arrangement for transmitting and receiving RF signals through various radio interfaces of communication systems" (filed: 1999, granted: 2008) and EP0951138/U.S. Patent No. 6,373,260 which describes a "Method for attenuating spurious signals and receiver" (filed: 1999, granted: 2002).

III. License or be Sued -- Licensing? Nevermind, We'll Sue You Anyways

When Nokia's devices unit was acquired by Microsoft at the start of September -- some expected or hoped that Microsoft might drop the case out of respect for its licensing relationship with HTC.  While the deal did not give Microsoft ownership of Nokia’s intellectual property it did cement the pair's close "strategic relationship".

But Microsoft appears to have no voiced compunctions about its partner continuing to attack its licensees.

On Monday, Nokia was rewarded when Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Thomas Pender ruled that HTC infringed on the Nokia patents and ordered a ban of the HTC One in a preliminary ruling.  Due to the government shutdown that ruling is currently unavailable.

Nokia spokesperson Mark Durrant told Reuters in an emailed statement, "Nokia is pleased that the initial determination of the ITC confirmed that HTC has infringed two of our patents."

The company is expected to push the ITC to also ban HTC's flagship One smartphone and other newer models, which also use Qualcomm chips.  A final ruling is expected in January, after which HTC has 90 days to respond or face a ban.  If the panel of three ALJs upholds the ruling that HTC infringed, its products could be banned from import by April 2014.

_{The HTC One could be banned by April 2014.}

Ultimately, Nokia seem unlikely to actually want to have to follow through on a product ban.  Rather the decision to continue with the complaint will likely look to force HTC (and others) to separately license Nokia's patent portfolio.

A spokesperson for HTC told The Wall Street Journal that HTC will "keep its alternative plans ready to ensure no business disruption."

It's unclear whether that plan involves switching the chips used in the smartphones, switching to Windows Phone, or offering to pay Nokia via a new licensing agreement.

IV.  Microsoft is on Pace to Milk $750M USD from Android in 2013

Microsoft already makes more than any other party that's sued Android phonemakers to force licensing. It's scooping an estimated $10 USD in pure profit off every HTC smartphone sold; versus a mere $3 to $4 USD that Apple is rumored to receive.  If Nokia could force HTC (and others) to pay an additional $10-15 USD per Android device to license its patent portfolio, it could essentially make it so phonemakers make no profit off the Android smartphones they sell.

This clever scheme would either pad Nokia's profits, or force phonemakers onto the only other mature third-party smartphone platform -- its partner Microsoft's Window Phone. HTC already makes Windows Phones, so the latter is a plausible possibility.

_{The HTC Windows Phone 8X}

Microsoft was reported some time ago to make more profit off Android licensing that Windows Phone, and given the influx of new high-profile licensees like Samsung and China's ZTE Corp. (SHE:000063).

Today nearly four out of five smartphones sold are Android phones, and Microsoft is getting a cut of every one of those devices.  Microsoft has estimated it will make $675M USD in royalties off Android smartphones in 2013.

Nokia is today profitable, but its sales aren't great.  It sold 5.6 million smartphones last quarter.  But HTC has fared even worse; it was rumored to have sold only 1 million units of its flagship HTC One smartphone as it missed Q2 earnings targets in July.  If Nokia can force licensing it could potentially score hundreds of millions in new licensing fees, just like its partner Microsoft.

_{Royalties are where the money's at for Microsoft and Nokia.
[Image Source: Life's Cheap Thrills]}

This is not the first major patent loss of 2013 for HTC.  In May it was discovered via teardowns that Geneva, Switzerland-based STMicroelectrics N.V. (EPA:STM) had apparently stolen the noise-cancelling dual-membrane mic technology Nokia licensed it to use in Lumia components.  HTC subsequently apologized, dropping the once-key feature, and managed to successfully avoid an import ban in Europe. Sources: ITC, Reuters, WSJ

IOS 7 Users Complain of Motion Sickness

Navigating apps and graphic animations are making people feel nauseous

Apple's new operating system iOS 7 is making people sick. No, seriously -- they're actually getting physically sick.

According to a new report from The Verge, some iPhone and iPad users who switched to iOS 7 are experiencing symptoms like headaches and nausea from the rapid motions when navigating the OS. More specifically, swiping through the apps and looking at certain graphic animations have caused problems.

IOS 7 users are taking to Apple forums to voice their experiences. For instance, in the Apple Support Communities forum, user Ensorceled posted "The zoom animations everywhere on the new iOS 7 are literally making me nauseous and giving me a headache. It's exactly how I used to get carsick if I tried to read in the car. How do I turn them off?  Do I have to revert to 6?"



In the same forum, a user in another thread asked how to turn off the iOS 7 navigation animations because it's making them dizzy. Some people have even complained about severe vertigo, according to Huffington Post.

Users, unfortunately, cannot go back to iOS 6. The only real "solution" is to go to Settings>General>Accessibility, then find "Reduce Motion" and turn it on.

However, this doesn't completely fix the problem. It takes care of the parallax effect, but doesn't get rid of the quick zooming.

We'll have to wait and see if Apple releases an additional fix for the issue, or at least controls that minimize the quick motions. 
 
Source: The Verge

Quick Note: Toshiba Sheds 3,000 Workers from Its TV Unit

Toshiba will also shut down two of its three manufacturing facilities

Toshiba has announced that it will cut 50% of the staff within its TV unit. The company also announced that it plans to stop producing TVs at two of its three overseas factories before the end of the current fiscal year. As a result, Toshiba will increase outsource production to 70% from the current 40% level.

Of the 3,000 employees Toshiba plans to eliminate, two-thirds are in China, Indonesia, and Poland. However, the company was not clear which of the trio of those factories would be shut down.

Toshiba's TV arm has been struggling for the past several years, and the poor performance has been blamed on weak global sales and the European economic slowdown. In July, Toshiba announced that it planned to begin cuts that would save $101 million within its television division.

Toshiba hopes that its cost-cutting measures will help its TV unit return to profitability during the second half of the current fiscal year.


Source: Reuters

Apple Named Most Valuable Brand with Value of $98.3 Billion

This is the first time Coca-Cola didn't snag No. 1 in 13 years

Apple bumped Coca-Cola out of its No. 1 spot as the world's most valuable brand -- a place Coca-Cola held for 13 years.

Interbrand released its top 100 list of "Best Global Brands 2013" this week, which ranks companies based on their financial performance, global presence, marketing, customer loyalty and the role each brand plays in a purchasing decision.

This year's list featured Apple as the No. 1 most valuable brand in the world, saying that Apple's brand value is $98.3 billion (a 28 percent increase from Interbrand's 2012 report). The Cupertino tech giant was No. 2 on Interbrand's list last year, and No. 8 in 2011.

“Every so often, a company changes our lives, not just with its products, but with its ethos," said Interbrand's 2013 report. "This is why, following Coca-Cola’s 13-year run at the top of Best Global Brands, Interbrand has a new No. 1 — Apple.”

 

 

Before 2013, Coca-Cola took first place for the last 13 years. But the value of the Coca-Cola brand only increased 2 percent this year to $79.2 billion (up from 2012).

Companies residing on Interbrand's top five include Apple (1), Google (2), Coca-Cola (3), IBM (4) and Microsoft (5).

According to Interbrand's global chief executive Jez Frampton, Coca-Cola is an "efficient, outstanding" marketer, but Apple's climb to No. 1 was inevitable. He went on to say that Apple and other tech brands have become “the poster child of the marketing community.”

Placing Apple at No. 1 could be very meaningful for the tech industry, showing how ubiquitous gadgets like laptops, smartphones and tablets have become over the years. The unveiling of tech products -- like the iPhone, for example -- have become closely-watched events that people speculate over months ahead of release. Consumers even wait outside of Apple stores days or even weeks ahead of a launch.

Other tech companies seen in Interbrand's list include Samsung at No. 8, Intel at No. 9, Hewlett-Packard at No. 15, Amazon at No. 19 and Facebook at No. 52. In fact, Facebook was named "Top Riser" on the list for jumping from No. 69 last year to No. 52 this year.


Source: Interbrand

Rockstar Details GTA Online as Update Launches for PS3, Xbox 360

Update should be available now

Rockstar offered up all the official details on Grand That Auto Online late last night ahead of the official launch today. Rockstar is again pointing out that access to GTA Online is free with your purchase of Grand That Auto V, and the update can be downloaded now for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Rockstar says that GTA Online takes place a few months prior to the events in the single player campaign on GTA V.

Once users download and install the update, they will be able to access GTA Online via the GTA V game menu. Players will be able to get into the GTA Online window using the bottom slot in the GTA V character wheel.

Rockstar says that to avoid annoying "greifing" GTA Online has been designed where players can send out house party invitations to specific friends allowing your friends to visit your in game house without fearing unauthorized users will steal your in game cars and other items.

Players are also able to exchange and swap property via the lobby of the game. One thing that bothered a number of users about GTA Online is that there will be purchasable items. However, Rockstar says that purchasing items should not give players who buy items a leg up on players that don't.

The online game is designed to be a long-term experience and Rockstar promises "massive amounts" of jobs will be available over time. A content creator tool will be released this fall and players will be able to arrange custom races and death match jobs using that tool.

Rockstar previously said that it was working hard to add more server capacity ahead of the launch of GTA Online due to the huge popularity of the game. Rockstar has a tall order on its hands handling demand, as the extreme popularity of the game resulted in sales of $1 billion in only three days.


Source: Rockstar

Android's Latest Gmail Update Comes Stuffed With Ad Spam

Features is not yet triggered, presumably may be turned on shortly

A teardown of the upcoming update to Gmail for Android -- Gmail 4.6 -- revealed numerous confirmations that ads lay lurking in the update from Google Inc. (GOOG), as well as showcasing some welcome improvements.

Notably Android Police found strings, 8 classes, and even a full library with "Ad" in their names in the Gmail APK.  A big question left unanswered by the teardown is whether the feature will harass users with fake email ads, a feature added in a recent controversial update to the desktop browser client, or simply ad normal banner ads like those found in many free (ad-supported) Android games.

The Droid Guy is claiming the changelog for Gmail 4.6 hints that the new mobile ads will be in the form of email spam.

  
_{Gmail 4.6 [Image Source: Android Police]}
 

The update does bring some welcome changes in a heavy overhaul to the Gmail card, including a warning about unset messages, new icons for contacts you don't have a picture of (a stylish letter from their first initial), and darker UI icons.

 
_{left: Before the autopicture; right: After the update. [Image Source: Android Police]}

The reviewers were indifferent or perhaps slightly negative on the decision to do away with the "cancel" button in the email "send" dialogue, which now requires you to press the "back" button (beneath the screen) to cancel.

Most Android users should get the tile "upgrade" sometime later this week, bringing their freeloading mobile Gmail days to an end.


Sources: Android Police, The Droid Guy

Delta to Give Pilots Surface 2; Pilots Reportedly "Fought Hard" for iPads

Microsoft gets a big plug, but not without some vicious rumors as well

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL), the world's largest airline in terms of passenger traffic in 2012, gave Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) a big boost when it announced that it would be buying all of its pilots new Surface 2 tablets, which run Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8.1 RT operating system.

I. An Enterprise Win For Microsoft, Windows 8.1

A press release by Microsoft describes:

Device rollout to pilots flying the Boeing 757 and Boeing 767 fleets will start later this year and all Delta cockpits are projected to be paperless by the end of 2014. 

Delta's flight operations SVP, Capt. Steve Dickson, remarks:

Delta's electronic flight bag running on Surface 2 continues the technological strides Delta has been making to give our crews the best tools to keep them flying safely and efficiently.  This intuitive device puts key information at their fingertips right when they need it. By eliminating paper, we'll reduce clutter and minimize time spent looking for flight information allowing our pilots the opportunity for greater situational awareness in the air and on the ground.

The move comes in the wake of shift in how wireless devices on aircraft are perceived.  The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has found in recent studies that the weak wireless signals in narrow bands of wireless spectrum used by mobile devices were not capable of interfering with airplane electronics as previously suspected.  This has in turn allowed both pilots -- and potentially even passengers -- to use wireless devices like consumer tablets during takeoff and landing.

In the wake of those developments most major airlines have replaced or are eyeing replacing their "old school" pen and paper flight logs with tablets loaded with custom flight logging apps.  Traditionally an airline had carried up to 45 pounds of paper for flight logs, charts, and manuals.  This massive accumulation of paper not only burned fuel by adding to the flight weight, but also led to occasional errors and time-consuming searches by pilots.

The switch from its current 38-pound paper flight bags to the more modern Surface 2 flight bags is expected to save Delta 1.2 million gallons of fuel annually, while also cutting the airline's paper consumption by 7.5 million sheets.

II. Pilots are Reportedly Disgruntled, Employee Accusations Mount

American Airlines (owned by AMR Corp. (OTC:AAMRQ)), the world's fourth largest commercial airline, adopted Apple, Inc.'s (AAPL) iPads for flight-logging purposes and has been rolling out the tablets over its fleet, ever since December 2011.

The pickup of the Microsoft tablets by an even larger fleet is perhaps the biggest enterprise win for Surface yet.  Delta reportedly aims for "full deployment" by the end of 2014, which would likely mean one Surface 2 for every one of its 11,000 active pilots.


Delta is paying Microsoft around $5.5M USD for the tablets, which will retail for $449 USD on the consumer market when they launch on Oct. 22.  Reports indicate this expense should be more than worth it -- eliminating paper flight logs will save around $13M USD per year.

^{Surface 2}

Even better for Microsoft, Delta has also been giving its 19,000 flight attendants Windows Phone by Microsoft subsidiary Nokia, which used Microsoft Dynamics to track customer in-flight purchases.  The Nokia Lumia 820 began rolling out to flight attendants in August, according to Delta.

III. Pilots Lobbied for iPad (Reportedly), Complain That Delta is "in bed with Microsoft”

The first-generation Surface has proven a major market dud, even if it did receive generally neutral-to-favorable reviews and earn some respectful nods for its slick design cues.  After taking a $900M USD charge (loss) on unsold first-generation Surface tablets, Microsoft has been dumping them off on the market at bargain-bin prices, even giving them away for free as part of its "Bing for Schools" program that's ostensibly supposed to drive search engine traffic towards Microsoft's Bing.

While Surface sales -- as a whole -- have struggled, sales of Microsoft's Windows RT have been especially bad as consumers have forsook the ARM-powered Microsoft devices due to their lack of compatibility with legacy x86 Windows software.  The new deal could provide a boost to the struggling Windows 8.1 RT platform and vindicate Microsoft's decision to cling to poor-selling ARM devices.

But given this lukewarm consumer reception, it's perhaps not surprising to see some employees speaking out against the deal.  One disgruntled Delta pilot reportedly accused Delta's administration of being "in bed with [Microsoft]", according to Apple Insider.  He said, "We fought hard for iPad."

The Apple Insider piece in a roundabout way seems to allege that Microsoft agreed to route its corporate flights through Delta as a kickback to sweeten the deal, and heavily wooed Delta's information technology department staff.

 

_{Pilots reportedly wanted an Apple iPad.}

As for the specs of the Surface 2 versus its current-generation Apple competition (the fourth generation iPad), the Surface 2 looks good in most categories, except trailing slightly in screen resolution).

The Surface 2 features a lower resolution display than the current fourth generation iPad (1920x1080 vs. 2048x1536).  The devices have comparable physical storage capacity (up to 128 GB), although Microsoft's Windows recovery partition consumes several additional gigabytes cutting the usable storage space.  However, the Surface 2 features more memory (2 GB vs. 1 GB for the current iPad).  Both devices weigh approximately the same, while the Surface 2 is slightly thinner (8.9 mm vs. 9.4 mm for the iPad).  

 

_{The Surface 2 packs a faster Tegra 4 processor from NVIDIA.}

Both tablets use chips that license ARM Holdings Plc's (LON:ARM) instruction set.  The Surface 2's NVIDIA Corp. (NVDA) system-on-a-chip appears to enjoy a healthy lead over the Apple chip in compute-heavy applications, and a narrower lead over its competitor in graphics-bound applications.  Apple's proprietary A6X 1.4 GHz dual-core chip was blown away (499 milliseconds to finish for Tegra 4 vs. 865 ms for the iPad) by the NVIDIA Tegra 4 in early Javascript Sunspider benchmarks, a compute-heavy application, while earning a narrower win in GLBenchmark 2.5, a graphics-heavy benchmark (57 frames-per-second, versus 51 fps for the iPad 4).


Sources: Microsoft, Delta, Apple Insider

Quick Note: Logitech iPhone Gaming Controller Leaked

Evleaks once again leaks an upcoming mobile product

Last month, Logitech teased its upcoming game controller for the iPhone that was developed under the Made for iPhone (MFI) initiative. Now, thanks to serial mobile devices leaker evleaks, we have a clear look at the controller:

Those looking for analog controls will be disappointed as the Logitech controller features a digital d-pad, four primary buttons, and a pair of triggers. Still, this suite of controls is still much better than tapping away at a screen in fighting and driving games.

The controller has cutouts for the iPhone's speaker and microphone, so you can still make/receive calls with the case on, albeit while looking like a total dork. There's also a cutout on the back for the camera and flash.

There has been no official indication of when Logitech plans to launch its iPhone gaming controller, but we'll place our bets on the keynote for the next generation iPad that is reportedly scheduled for two weeks from today.
Source: evleaks

Quick Note: LG's 4:3 Ratio Display Vu 3 Smartphone Gets Official

LG Vu 3 has a 5.2-inch 4:3 aspect ratio screen

LG has unveiled its latest big-screen smartphone called the Vu 3. This smartphone is notable because it uses a 5.2-inch 1280x960 resolution display with a 4:3 aspect ratio, while most smartphones today use a 16:9 aspect ratio. LG says that the 4:3 aspect ratio makes the device better suited to reading digital books and viewing websites.

The Vu3 sports a quad-core Snapdragon 800 and runs Android 4.2.2.  The device supports LTE-Advanced and has integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and features a 13MP rear camera.

LG also integrates its Knock On feature into the Vu 3 that allows users to wake the device from sleep with a double tap on the screen.

The phone is expected to launch in Korea starting on September 27 with availability with all three major Korean carriers. Pricing information is unannounced this time.

Source: fonearena

15 Awesome Web Services You Probably Didn’t Know About

Internet is bursting with amazing services. While Gmail, Facebook, Instagram don’t require any introduction, there are tons of other services which haven’t become so popular. No, cooking your dinner online hasn’t become reality just yet, but there are many other cool things that you could find useful in your everyday life. Here we have curated a list of some of our favorite ones.

Create LEGO figures of yourself

If you are Star Wars fan, then you probably already possess many LEGO characters. But, how about making a LEGO figure which resembles you!? Minifigs lets you morph your face to the LEGO characters. Additionally, you can also add any special message to the character if you want.

Turn your pictures into 3D sculpture

Have you ever wondered how your photos would look if instead of being 2 dimensioned they were in 3D? A web-service called Bumpy Photo does just that. It lets you add an extra dimension to your photos, by letting you customize the deepness of your pictures. Depending on the details of your picture, creating a 3D sculpture can cost you about $120.

Find when the next episode of your favorite show is airing

If you follow a lot of TV shows, it could become a tedious task to keep track of all your favorite shows. For example, when is the new episode of The Big Bang Theory airing? You missed one episode, and bam, your twitter and Facebook feed is filled with all the spoilers. To avoid such things from happening, you can visit this website called TV count down, which without any registration, or any charges tells you all information about your favorite shows.

Email your future self

Wouldn’t it be nice to send a message to your future self? Write down the things you want to accomplish in your life, or the things which are troubling you, and check back in a year or so to see how well you did. FutureMe is an incredible service that offers you this feature. And it doesn’t cost a dime. You can read more about it here.

Send fake emails

Whether you are trying to win an argument, or prank a friend, fake emails can come handy at times. Emkej Mailer is a popular email service that lets you send fake emails to others. The service is very simple to use and doesn’t require any registration.

Get Free Legal Documents

Hiring a lawyer, although is a better choice, but can cost you ample sum of money. If you’ve a limited budget, and you are not dealing with a very complicated case, Docracy, a fantastic web-service can save you lots of cash. You can easily get your legal document drafted, as well as sign your documents from within the service itself.

Download/View movies and TV series for free

You don’t actually have to rent or buy the DVDs of a classic movie. The Internet Archive hosts a large collection of movies that you can download from their website for free. Other than that, many publishers put the content of their shows on their YouTube channels. You won’t find everything that you are looking for, but you won’t leave empty handed either.

Learn almost anything for free

Many prestigious universities, including MIT, Harvard and Stanford, are putting the lectures and notes of the courses they offer on their website for free. MIT recently started a program named Free Creative Learning Class which offers plethora of courses varying from programming to psychology. My colleague Alex Serban wrote more about such services here. Although you shouldn’t bank your hopes to get any job using their certificates, but if you are up for some quality learning, you will absolutely love it.

Turn your quote into a masterpiece

ReciteThis is a simple web-service, which turns your quote into posters. Just visit the website, enter some text and click on Create button. Once you have done that, you will see your words put on a nice background. You can then download the image in high resolution if you want. The service is completely free to use and does not require any sign-up.

Discover new music

Some days you want to listen to good music, but none of the songs in your music library cut it. Mixest might help you in those days. It is a great site which starts playing random songs every time you visit it. You can be very assure that you haven’t heard that song before. It is a very intuitive way to discover new music.

Get the right size glasses

If you are planning to get your glasses from an online e-commerce website, then you might want to double check the frame size of the glass that you are purchasing. Problem with buying glasses from an online store is that you don’t get to know if the glasses will fit you properly or not. To do this, you can give Tesco Opticians a try. It is a web based service that will guide you on how to get the right size glasses for your eyes.

Get your Facebook report

The smart search engine, WolframAlpha offers to generate reports about your Facebook profile. Once you have given it access to look into your profile, the computational search engine will tell you some interesting stats about your Facebook activities. The number of posts you have made, number of images you have uploaded, number of likes your posts have received and similar things. You can use this service from this page.

Get all your questions answered

WolframAlpha is a powerful search engine which instead of returning web results to your queries, tries and analyzes what you are trying to search. This enables you to ask it questions in a human-friendly language, and it tells you the answer. So whether it is a scientific concept that you can’t find the explanation of, or any historical date you can’t seem to remember, odds are WolframAlpha knows it.

Identify celestial bodies

Ever wonder what is flying across the sky? It is very common to mistake a planet with some other celestial body. Thankfully, as you might have guessed, there is an app for that.

If you have an Android device, you can install SkEye, and pinpoint to that moving body and the app will instantly provide you all the information. iPhone and iPad users can try Night Sky 2 which does the same task.

Explore Mars

Speaking of celestial bodies, would you be interested in exploring our neighboring planet Mars?
You should try NASA’s Billion-Pixel View of Mars coverage which has been captured and sent by Curiosity Mars Rover. You can also try Google Mars.

Upgrade Some PlayStation 3 Games to PlayStation 4 Compatible for Cheap

The announcement of the new next-gen video gaming console PlayStation 4 thrilled many because of its awesome specifications and simplicity. This device is meant to be the successor of the beloved PlayStation 3 which was launched in the early 2005. In comparison with its predecessor, PS4 was developed to increase interactivity with various services and devices, among which we can mention Gaikai, PlayStation Vita and PlayStation App (a service which connects smartphones and tablets into a second screen).

The exciting PlayStation 4 does not require permanent connection to the Internet or regular network check-ins in order to function properly. Also, PS4 will be much appreciated for the fact that it does not limit the usage of second-hand games and it does not require any additional fee for playing them.

Whether the game is in a digital version or as a disc, the newest titles will not be cheap and buying a copy for your PS3 now alongside one for the PS4 at a later date can cause serious damage to your budget. Because of this, Sony is coming to help by offering a simpler way to play what you already bought for PS3, on the new PS4 for a cheaper price, by converting original PlayStation 3 games to the newest generation. The catch is that this trick works only for some games in the PlayStation Store and a small fee is applicable.
The new PlayStation 4 will be launched in North America on November 15^th and then in Europe and South & Central America, on the 29^th of November. In South Korea and Singapore, the device will be available in December, while the Japanese users have to wait the most, as the console will be available starting from February 2014.

An interesting buzz about the new console is that it will not be region-locked, so if you cannot wait until the PS4 will be available in your country, you can always buy it online from other countries where it will be already in stores. Unfortunately, we all have to wait a little bit until the new PS4 will be launched, but until then, you should not waste time and neglect the games that will be released for the PS3 and continue to purchase and enjoy them.

How to Upgrade PS3 games to PS4

There are two different ways of upgrading games from PS3 to PS4: using a disc-based and a digital version the title. Note that this offer is only available for the following titles (others will be shortly added when they enter the program):

• Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag
• Call of Duty: Ghosts
• Watch Dogs
• Battlefield 4

So, users who buy a PS3 Blu-ray disc of these games will receive a code that can be redeemed from PlayStation Store. When the PS4 game version is launched and bought, they have to insert the original PS3 disc into their new PS4 in order to be able to activate and play the game. That’s why it’s very important not to lose the original disc, because without it you cannot play the game anymore.
Every gamer who buys any of these games in their digital version will not have to redeem a code in order to be able to get the version for the PlayStation 4. It’s much simpler than you think, because after you purchase your PS4, you only need to access the PlayStation Store and look for the PS4 version of the desired game.
This great offer is available only for a limited period of time, so be quick about it, activate and buy the PS4 version for a stunning price of only $9.99. The deadlines for each game are: January 31st, 2014 (for Assassin’s Creed IV and Watch Dogs), March 28th (for Battlefield 4) and March 31st (for Call of Duty: Ghosts). So, in order to complete and certify that you can benefit from this program, follow the next step-by-step instructions.

For Disc-Based Games

If you are one of the users who still like to buy their games on a disc, apply the following guide to be sure that you don’t miss the chance to play one of these four amazing games on both PS3 and PS4 video gaming consoles:

1. Create an account or log into PlayStation Network using the account you already have from your PlayStation 3.
2. Browse the video gaming console’s home screen and select PlayStation Store.
3. Look after the “Redeem Codes” button, which can be found at the bottom of the screen.
4. Write in the code that was packed with the PS3 version of the game and press “Continue”.
5. When they ask for the Terms of Service, select “Confirm” and afterwards press “Continue”.
6. Now, the code redemption is finished and you have to proceed to the steps that imply your PS4 console.
7. On the new console, log into your SEN (Sony Entertainment Network) account. Note that it has to be the same account from which you redeemed the code.
8. From home screen, go to PlayStation Store and select it.
9. Search the game for which you applied and “Purchase” it in order to download the digital version of the same game, but for the next-gen console. The price of $9.99 will be deducted from your personal wallet.
10. Finally, when the download is completed, insert the PS3 disc whenever you want to play the game.

Digital Version Instructions

For the lucky guys who have bought the digital version of the game for their PS3, everything is much simpler and explained in the following instructions:

1. First of all, buy the digital version of the game for PS3 or pre-order it from PlayStation Store or Sony Entertainment Network Store.
2. Secondly, search for the same game on PlayStation Store from your PS4.
3. At this point you can buy the game or pre-order it in a digital version for the price of only $9.99.
4. Enjoy playing one of these exciting games on both PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 with minimal costs as soon as they are available.

Microsoft Has Plans For "Hundreds" More TV Shows After Halo

  (Source: Microsoft Studios)

TV shows are expected to be Xbox One exclusive, give console a boost

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) delivered a rather mild surprise when it announced that it had recruited Steven Spielberg to produce an upcoming exclusive TV show for the Xbox One based on the Halo series in which future humans battle alien invaders.

I. Forza Motorsports: The TV Series?

This of course wasn't the first video game franchise to see a turn to video.  But past efforts have tended to be either well after the fact (like Tekken and Alone in the Dark), were horribly campy (like Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, and The Super Mario Brothers), or were just plain inexplicably mediocre despite big name actors/budgets (e.g. Prince of Persia and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider).

But over the last couple weeks, Microsoft has delivered a far bigger surprise revealing that it is looking to become perhaps the biggest maker of video game television and movies in the industry.  Comments Microsoft Studios CVP Phil Spencer at the Tokyo Game Show, "[The joint Microsoft/Spielberg team has] literally hundreds of ideas that they are incubating right now.  We will have some new announcement for TV shows coming pretty soon."

According to Reuters, Microsoft refers to these other projects as "Nancy projects" a title which pays homage to CBS Corp.'s (CBS) former Television Studios President Nancy Tellem whom Microsoft hired a year ago as head of entertainment and digital media.

_{Microsoft doesn't seem overly concerned that in most cases video games moves have... well, stunk. [Image Source: Buena Vista Pictures]}

But of all Microsoft “experiments”, its gaming business has been by far the most profitable, particularly as it has expanded its game publishing efforts via its Microsoft Studios Holdings.  And increasing the software/media efforts related to its gaming business helps to offset and make worthwhile the money losing console business.

And Microsoft's TV efforts could go a long ways to differentiating its Xbox console.  In addition to its Halo and unannounced other game-based TV series which ooze hardcore nerd/gamer appeal, Microsoft will also cater to the mainstream partner with the National Football League and other partners to offer exclusive clips via the Xbox One and its online backbone, Xbox Live.

II. Dwindling Console Sales, Controversy Take a Toll on Xbox Expectations

However; the effort is not without risk.  Microsoft upgraded its console to pull even with arch-rival Sony Corp. (TYO:6758) on an offline-hardware basis.  As a result, it will likely lose money on every unit sold.  Microsoft's big bet is cornered on three key assumptions -- that a lot of people will buy its Xbox One console, which launches in 13 markets on Nov. 22, that a lot of people will buy Microsoft Studios games (like Halo, Forza Motorsports, and Zoo Tycoon), and that a lot of people will sign up for its $60 USD a year Xbox Live Gold membership.

The consoles sales goal is by no means a done deal.  Piper Jaffray Comp. analyst Michael Olson predicts that the Sony PlayStation 4 (PS4) and Xbox One will each sell about 3 million units -- a far cry from the booming sales of some past consoles.  Mobile gaming has taken its toll on traditional console gaming.  Microsoft arguably has the more compelling console in terms of interface and exclusive titles, but has been mired in controversy.

Some of Microsoft's most controversial stands (e.g. offering developers digital rights management code libraries to ban used games and requiring the console to be "always on") were reversed -- an admirable show of listening to customers.  But these controversies still have somewhat damaged the console's overall image.  And given Microsoft Corp.'s (MSFT) data sharing arrangements with U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) some remain concerned that the console's 1080p Kinect 2 camera -- which is always on when the console is powered up and internet active -- will be a privacy risk.  Microsoft's console is also more expensive; the Xbox One retails for $499 USD, while the PS4 retails for $399 USD.

As for the game sales goal, video game sales for consoles now only account for 33 percent of sales -- according to the NPD Group -- due to mobile games, social network games, and other niches stealing away some of traditional gaming's business.  Still that number is slightly misleading, as it doesn't factor in the digital downloads market (part of the remaining 67 percent), of which the Xbox has a substantial stake.

_{It's unclear whether Xbox Live Silver customers will be locked out of Microsoft Studios's TV shows.  Microsoft cripples certain console hardware features for customers who don't buy a "Gold" level membership.}

But speaking of digital downloads, Microsoft's efforts to push customers into its Xbox Live Gold model by locking them out of features on their console (DVR, etc.) if they stick with the free Live Silver level members is alienating some potential buyers.  Microsoft's approach seems pretty counterintuitive in that it actually allows non-paying users to play online games (which costs Microsoft money in serving fees) for free, which Sony only allows paying customers to do.  But Sony does not lock non-paying PlayStation Network customers out of features on their console; features that essentially have already been paid for with the cost of the console.

With respect to its TV push, one critical thing not yet made clear by Microsoft is whether Live Silver subscribers will be locked out of the free Halo show and other television content on the console.  It's very possible that they may be, given Microsoft's announcement of the channel guide and DVR locking.

In short, there's a lot of unknowns as the Xbox One approaches, but Microsoft is certainly not shying from taking a unique and ambitious direction with its television ambitions. Source: Bloomberg

Rockstar Offers New Details on GTA Online

Rockstar is working to add more servers to increase capacity

To say Grand Theft Auto V has been successful would be an understatement. The game eclipsed $800 million in sales within 24 hours, and racked up $1 billion in the first three days of availability. Now Rockstar Games is looking to give gamers even more courtesy of Grand Theft Auto Online.

GTA Online is set to launch next month and Rockstar is offering up some new details on the game. Rockstar says that GTA Online is something new for the company and will be a fully realized and living world for players that will grow to take shape over time.

More importantly, the developers say that the players will determine the ultimate shape of GTA Online.

 

Rockstar developers will request feedback from users on the types of missions to roll out and future content updates. Rockstar says that it plans a constant stream of new content, tweaks, and updates in the weeks and months ahead for GTA Online.

Rockstar also announced that the first few weeks it expects to be heavily focused on tuning the experience as it goes from internal testing to a live world for players to play.

Rockstar wrote, "The first couple of weeks we expect to be heavily focused on tuning the experience as it goes from internal testing to the reality of being played by tons of people in the real world so that all the usual teething problems for an online game are overcome. We hope it will all run incredibly smoothly, but please bear with us if it doesn't, and help us fix any and all problems!"

Rockstar also notes that it is working to add more servers and increase scale but gamers should expect some challenges the first few days GTA Online is available.
Source: Rockstar Games