Archive | January, 2011
Amazon’s Raw Deal for Android Developers
Amazon’s move to build an app store for Android may have initially sounded like a good idea, but in the end it could end up screwing the developers that would make it all possible. How so? A little-publicized stipulation of its agreement with developers: the retailer sets the price.
Developers would still get to say what they’d like to sell their application for, an MSRP if you will. But Amazon does not guarantee that’s what its customers will pay. Instead, the retailer may choose to sell the app at a discount — just like Amazon does for other items on its site — or even give it away for free.
Twitter and Southwest Need to Check Their Security
15. January 2011
At every available opportunity, I partake in airborne WiFi services. Yeah, I know public wireless isn’t the most secure form of connectivity. But, at the same time, I haven’t been bothered to set up a personal tunnel. And I’ll do just about anything to pass the time on a cross country flight… as I did when returning from CES last week. Southwest’s wireless service runs a mere $5 during testing and linking up on my LAS>BWI flight (3140, 1/8) was a no brainer – especially as I hadn’t loaded up my iPhone with content and my Kindle was left at home.
Unfortunately, there’s something not quite right with their Internet connection in relation to Twitter. As you can see, I wasn’t the only one in my account:
The Verizon iPhone: Consensus At Last!
14. January 2011
Now that the Verizon iPhone is real, it’s nice to know that we’re all on the same page about its impact. At least I don’t see any conflict between the takes offered by Newsweek’s Dan Lyons and Dan Ruby of Chitika…do you?
Google Explains Its H.264 Move At Greater Length
14. January 2011
Just about all the discussion I’ve seen of Google’s decision to dump Chrome’s native support for video in the H.264 format has been negative–and Google didn’t help things by announcing the move in a terse, bland blog post. Now the company has taken a second pass at explaining its rationale. I don’t think it’ll leave most of the unhappy campers any more gruntled, but it’s good to see Google delve into the topic at greater length.
Google’s response does underline that the browser business has a basic problem: Everyone agrees that browsers should have the built-in ability to play video, but there’s no agreement whatsoever on the standards to permit this. (Internet Explorer and Safari use H.264; Firefox, Opera, and now Chrome use Google’s WebM and the older Ogg Theora.) Most normal human beings couldn’t care less about this and simply want video to play on all the devices they use, ideally with high-quality results and without killing their battery. As far as I can tell, the industry is making no progress whatsoever towards unification, and Google’s move–whatever the reason–simply confuses matters even more.
LG and Windows Phone 7: High Expectations, Low Sales
14. January 2011
Microsoft may have a problem on its hands if its partners feel free to publicly criticize its phone efforts like this. LG’s marketing and planning chief James Choi has gone on record with Pocket-lint saying that Windows Phone 7 sales have been disappointing for the company.
Choi claims that the company had high hopes for the new mobile OS at the beginning. While he stressed that LG had been working with Microsoft “since the beginning” and WP7 is “absolutely perfect” for some mobile users out there, he lamented that “the first push wasn’t what everyone expected.”
While Choi seems to walk the fine line between saying that the launch really failed to grab consumers’ attention and playing the role of the loyal partner, it just seems odd that this early out of the gate that Microsoft’s partners feel free enough to say something like this. It certainly does not help the Redmond company’s cause at all.
2010 Game Sales: It’s Now Microsoft’s Game to Lose
14. January 2011
The NPD Group’s North American video game sales figures usually present a chance for publishers to spin the facts and crow about their accomplishments. But in the industry’s second consecutive year of decline, Microsoft’s the only company with bragging rights.
Consumers spent $6.2 billion on the Xbox 360 last year, more than any other game console according to Microsoft. And in December, Microsoft sold 1.86 million Xbox 360s, making it the only game console to grow year-over-year last month.
Eight Things I Liked at CES
13. January 2011
I liked CES 2011. I found it useful and fun. I’m glad I went. None of those reactions were a given–I understand why some folks question the show’s very reasons for existing, and I’ve been known to accentuate the negative myself. This year, however, there was a critical mass of interesting stuff, in multiple categories.
From Tuesday afternoon of last week through Saturday, I spent so much time learning about new products that I didn’t cover all that many of them here while the show was going on. So here’s a catch-up post with a few of the ones that made this CES one of the best ones in my memory–despite the insane crowds, the aisles and aisles of lookalike phone covers, and the jingling case of slot-machine tinnitus that I still can’t quite shake.
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Netflix Quits Social Networking — Again
13. January 2011
Thanks to Netflix, I’m starting to think social networks based on individual content providers are a lost cause.
Netflix announced this week that it’s abandoning a Facebook program that let subscribers rate movies and TV shows and share those ratings with friends. Never heard of it? You’re not alone; user disinterest is the reason Netflix is shutting it down, regrouping and coming up with a better strategy.
This is the second social networking effort that Netflix has scrapped over the last year. Last September, the company discontinued the “Friends” feature on its own website, which allowed users to view each others’ queues and recommend videos. Again, unpopularity was to blame.
Maybe Netflix is just really bad at social networking, but I’m more inclined to think that social networking and services like Netflix don’t mix.
Honeycomb Better Be Good
13. January 2011
For this week’s TIME.com column–the first, incidentally, to appear on Thursday, our new publication date–I took a look at the tablet-fest that was this year’s CES. There was so much news about entrants new and old that it was impossible to be comprehensive–I understand one commenter’s frustration that I didn’t mention the Notion Ink Adam–but I still think the big development was the profusion of would-be iPad rivals running Android. In a remarkably short amount of time, we’ve gone from one major Android tablet (Samsung’s Galaxy Tab) to so many that it’s tough to keep track of them all. If all these models show up and aren’t flops, Android is going to be the dominant tablet operating system, at least for a while.
As I say in the TIME column, I think that tablet software is more important than tablet hardware: Most of the devices at CES were remarkably similar in every way except for screen size. Android 3.0 Honeycomb, the first truly tablet-friendly version of the OS, is going to play an enormous role in defining all these new tablets. And we still don’t know that much about it.
Samsung Takes Flak for Leaving Androids Behind
13. January 2011
This rumor is about as shaky as they come, but Android Spin is accusing Samsung of deliberately withholding the Android 2.2 upgrade from T-Mobile’s Vibrant just to drum up sales of the Froyo-equipped Samsung Vibrant 4G. The report quotes an unnamed source, supposedly from within T-Mobile.
While I have my doubts about that report — at least, I don’t want to believe Samsung would stoop so low — AndroidDose points out one irrefutable fact: Samsung has not upgraded any of its Galaxy S phones to Android 2.2 in the United States (including T-Mobile’s Vibrant, Verizon’s Fascinate, AT&T’s Captivate, Sprint’s Epic 4G and U.S. Cellular’s Mesmerize). The company hasn’t even announced a timeline, six months after the first Galaxy S phones launched stateside on AT&T and T-Mobile.
iPad Orientation Lock Switch: It’s Back!
12. January 2011
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Remember the moral outrage over Apple’s decision to turn the iPad’s physical orientation lock switch into a volume control? It paid off.
If You Can’t Beat ‘em, Sell ‘em
12. January 2011
Hey, remember when Verizon Wireless ran ads like these?
Mass Effect 2 for PS3: Downloadable and On Disc at the Same Time
12. January 2011
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Another Playstation story to take eyes off the current hacking unpleasantness, perhaps?
Sony announced that Mass Effect 2 will be downloadable through its Playstation Network on January 18, the same day that it goes to brick-and-mortar retailers. I’m not aware of any previous big-budget PS3 games that launched as downloads day-and-date with their retail counterparts.
Mind you, Mass Effect 2 isn’t a brand new game — last year, it launched exclusively for the Xbox 360 and Windows — but it’s a darned good one, and a sign that publishers are getting cozier with the idea of full game downloads.
Reporters’ Roundtable: The Lowdown on CES
12. January 2011
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Last Friday afternoon, I had fun participating in Cnet’s Reporters’ Roundtable show before a live audience on the CES show floor–okay, we were actually right outside the show floor–with host Rafe Needleman and fellow guests Rob Enderle and Jim Louderback. I’m having trouble embedding it, so here’s a link to the video on Cnet.
Sony Tries to Scrub PS3 Jailbreaks From the Web
12. January 2011
After four years of solid security, Sony’s Playstation 3 hacking defenses have fallen, and all the company can do now is try to snuff the hackers themselves.
Sony has filed a restraining order (and filed a lawsuit — see update below) against three named hackers — including George Hotz of iPhone jailbreak fame — along with two pseudonyms and numerous John and Jane Does, all of whom were involved in the latest jailbreak for PS3 firmware 3.55. It’s not a proper lawsuit yet, but Sony’s trying to get all information related to the PS3 jailbreak removed from the Web.
How To: Prepare to Switch from AT&T to Verizon
11. January 2011
[Note: This post republished with permission from our pals at Macworld.]
Has the flame fizzled out of your relationship with AT&T? Was it originally love at first sight, but now you’ve caught yourself eyeing that new iPhone Verizon just announced? Don’t worry, our love affairs with gadgets and wireless carriers are often fleeting, and the only thing at risk of getting hurt is your wallet. If you’re looking to switch from AT&T for Verizon’s new iPhone 4, here’s how you can do it.
I’ll try to answer a few general questions before we get into details. First, you should be able to bring your current phone number to Verizon if you’re switching from AT&T. It’s the law. You might even be able to bring your home phone number, too.
Also, as with all wireless carriers, if you signed a contract to get your phone for cheaper than its full retail price, AT&T charges an early termination fee (ETF) if you want to break that contract early. But whether you’re going to cut the AT&T chord or you’re a free spirit with no obligations, let’s start preparing you for a Verizon iPhone.
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