A developer version of one of the soon-to-be-released BlackBerry 10 smartphones. (Andrea Chang / Los Angeles Times / January 9, 2013)

 

The new BlackBerry 10, which launches today, has created a buzz among technology watchers and financial analysts, thanks to nifty features that may set it apart in an overcrowded smartphone market.

RIM stock has almost tripled over the past four months on hopes the devices can restore RIM to sustained prosperity.

Reviewers like the browser speed and the intuitive keyboard on RIM's new touchscreen. A feature called BlackBerry Balance, which keeps corporate and personal data separate, could help RIM rebuild its traditional base of big business customers.

It's a welcome start for RIM, the smartphone pioneer that has teetered on the brink of irrelevance. But success will come only if consumer and business customers embrace the new technology in the weeks and months after CEO Thorsten Heins takes the wraps off the phone at a glitzy New York launch.

RIM is gambling its survival on the much-delayed BlackBerry 10, hoping to claw its way back into an industry now dominated by Apple Inc.'s iPhone and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.'s Galaxy.

The timing may be just right. The new phone hits the market just as the iPhone's remarkable run is showing some signs of slowing.

"I really do believe that the consumer market as a whole is ready for something new," said Kevin Burden, head of mobility at Strategy Analytics, an industry consulting firm.

"I have to believe that there is some level of user fatigue that plays into the longevity of some of these platforms," he added, referring to Google Inc.'s Android and Apple's iOS, which are both more than five years old. "RIM is probably timing it right."

U.S. BATTLEGROUND

To be sure, RIM shares are about 90 percent below a 2008 peak near $150 a share and the company still has a tough fight ahead. It may take investors some time to determine whether RIM's big gamble on an untested technology has paid off.

RIM's market share collapsed in the three years ahead of the launch. Strategy Analytics data shows RIM's global share of the smartphone market was about 3.4 percent in the fourth quarter, down from around 20 percent just three years ago.

While RIM has done well in developing markets, it has hemorrhaged customers in the United States, a market that sets technology trends. RIM's fourth-quarter North American market share fell to 2 percent from more than 40 percent three years ago.

Acknowledging that it is crucial to win back U.S. customers, RIM will hold its main BlackBerry 10 launch in New York, although there are simultaneous events in six cities across the globe.

Underscoring the point, RIM is splurging on a costly Super Bowl ad to tout its new devices and attempt to brighten its faded image in the U.S. market.

BIG QUESTIONS

Over 150 carriers already have tested the new devices and RIM has said the launch will be the largest ever global rollout of a new platform.

The two big questions the market expects RIM to answer on Wednesday are when the phones - a full touch-screen device and one with a traditional physical keyboard - will hit store shelves, and how much they will cost.

The company is expected to unveil specifics on pricing and availability in different regions at the launch.

"The Street is expecting mid-February for a launch. Anything earlier than that is a positive, anything later will be viewed as negative," said RBC Dominion Securities analyst Paul Treiber.

That said, there are few mysteries to be cleared up on Wednesday. Leaked photos and specifications of the devices have been splashed across the tech world.

"We've had the beta devices for a few weeks and in terms of the devices, they are right up there with the competition," said Andy Ambrozic, head of IT Infrastructure at Ricoh Canada. "The Balance feature is crucial for corporations that are becoming increasingly concerned about data security."

Scotiabank analyst Gus Papageorgiou feels RIM has a good chance of a comeback. He says the new BB10 operating system outpaces Apple's iOS platform and Google's market-leading Android system in every category except app selection and content.

"There is, we believe, huge potential for the platform and devices to bring people back to BlackBerry or draw entirely new users into the platform," said Papageorgiou, who has a "sector outperform" rating on the stock.

BlackBerry 10 will not be able to compete on the number of apps, but RIM says its operating system will have the largest application library for any new platform at launch, with more than 70,000 apps available.

It has already gathered big-name music and video partners for its BlackBerry 10 storefront, including Walt Disney Studios and Sony Pictures, Universal Music and Warner Music Group.

Wireless carriers already report strong demand for the new devices. Rogers Communications Inc., Canada's top wireless carrier and the first globally to take pre-orders for the new devices, said orders are already in the thousands.

"Our customers are excited," said John Boynton, Rogers' head of marketing, adding that some users are holding off on upgrades in anticipation of the BB10 launch.

BlackBerry 10: All set

BlackBerry-maker RIM is promising a speedier device,                                                                                                          superb typing experience and the ability to keep work and                                                                                                     personal identities separate on the same phone.

TORONTO: The maker of the BlackBerrysmartphone is promising a speedier device, asuperb typing experience and the ability to keep work and personal identities separate on the same phone. It's the fruit of a crucial, long-overdue makeover for the Canadian company.

Thorsten Heins, chief executive of Research In Motion Ltd, will show off the first phone with the new BlackBerry 10 system in New York on Wednesday. A marketing campaign that includesa Super Bowl ad will accompany the long-anticipated debut. Repeated delays have left the once-pioneering BlackBerry an afterthought inthe shadow of Apple's trend-setting iPhone andGoogle's Android-driven devices.

Now, there's some optimism. Previews of the software have gotten favorable reviews on blogs. Financial analysts are starting to see some slight room for a comeback. RIM's stock has nearly tripled to $16.18 from a nine-year low in September, though it's still nearly 90 percent below its 2008 peak of $147.

Most analysts consider a BlackBerry 10 success to be crucial for the company's long-term viability.

"The old models are becoming obsolete quickly," BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis said. "There is still a big user base but it's going to rotate off. The question is: Where do they rotate to?"

The BlackBerry, pioneered in 1999, has been the dominant smartphone for on-the-go business people. Corporate information-technology managers like the phones because they're relatively secure and easy to manage. Many employees loved them because of physical keyboards that were easier to type on than the touch-screen iPhone. President Barack Obama couldn't bear to part with it when he took office. Oprah Winfrey declared it one of her "favorite things." People got so addicted that the device was nicknamed "the CrackBerry."

The BlackBerry began to cross over to consumers. But when the iPhone came out in 2007, it showed that phones can do much more than email and phone calls. They can play games, music and movies. Android came along to offer even more choices. Though IT managers still love BlackBerrys, employees were bringing their own devices to the workplace - a trend Heins acknowledged RIM was slow to adapt to.

Suddenly, the BlackBerry looked ancient.

Even as BlackBerry sales continued to grow in many parts of the world, many BlackBerry users in North America switched to iPhones and Android devices. BlackBerry's worldwide subscriber based peaked at 80 million in the quarter that ended Sept. 1, before dropping to 79 million in the most-recent quarter. In the U.S., according to research firm IDC, shipments of BlackBerry phones plummeted from 46 percent of the market in 2008 to 2 percent in 2012. Most phones in use today are either iPhones or Android devices.

RIM promised a new system to catch up, using technology it got through its 2010 purchase of QNX Software Systems. RIM initially said BlackBerry 10 would come by early 2012, but then the company changed that to late 2012. A few months later, that date was pushed further, to early 2013, missing the lucrative holiday season. The holdup helped wipe out more than $70 billion in shareholder wealth and 5,000 jobs.

Although executives have been providing a glimpse at some of BlackBerry 10's new features for months, Heins will finally showcase a complete system at Wednesday's event. Devices will go on sale soon after that. The exact date and prices are expected Wednesday.

RIM redesigned the system to embrace the multimedia, apps and touch-screen experience prevalent today.

"Historically there have been areas that have not been our strongest points," Rick Costanzo, RIM's executive vice president of global sales, said in an interview. "Not only have we caught up, but we may even be better than some of the competition now."

Costanzo said "no one else can touch" what RIM's new system offers.

The new operating system promises better multitasking than either the iPhone or Android. Simply swipe a finger across the phone's display screen to switch to another program.

All emails and notifications from such applications as Twitter and Facebook go to the BlackBerry Hub, a nerve center accessible with a finger swipe even if you have another application open. One can peek into it and open an email, or return to the previous application without opening the email.

"You are not going in and out of applications; you're flowing through applications with one simple gesture of your finger," Costanzo said. "You can leave applications running. You can effortlessly flow between them. So that's completely unique to us."

That said, multitasking will still be limited. If you're watching a video, it will still run while you check for email. But it will pause if you decide to open an email and resume when you are done.

The BlackBerry's touch-screen keyboard promises to learn a user's writing style and suggest words and phrases to complete, going beyond typo corrections offered by rivals. See the one you want, and flick it up to the message area. Costanzo said that "BlackBerry offers the best keyboard, period."

Gus Papageorgiou, a Scotiabank financial analyst who has tried it out, agreed with that assessment and said the keyboard even learns and adjusts to your thumb placements.

The first BlackBerry 10 phone will have only a touch screen. RIM has said it will release a version with a physical keyboard soon after that. That's an area RIM has excelled at, and it's one reason many BlackBerry users have remained loyal despite temptations to switch.

Another distinguishing feature will be the BlackBerry Balance, which allows two personas on the same device. Businesses can keep their data secure without forcing employees to get a second device for personal use. For instance, IT managers can prevent personal apps from running inside corporate firewalls, but those managers won't have access to personal data on the device.

With Balance, "you can just switch from work to personal mode," Papageorgiou said. "I think that is something that will attract a lot of people."

RIM is also claiming that the BlackBerry 10's browser will be speedy, even faster than browsers for laptop and desktop computers. According to Papageorgiou, early, independent tests between the BlackBerry 10 and the iPhone support that claim.

Regardless of BlackBerry 10's advances, though, the new system will face a key shortcoming: It won't have as many apps written by outside companies and individuals as the iPhone and Android. RIM has said it plans to launch BlackBerry 10 with more than 70,000 apps, including those developed for RIM's PlayBook tablet, first released in 2011. Even so, that's just a tenth of what the iPhone and Android offer. Papageorgiou said the initial group will include the most popular ones such as Twitter and Facebook. But RIM will have to persuade others to make a BlackBerry version, when they are already struggling to keep up with both the iPhone and Android.

Like many analysts, Papageorgiou recently upgraded RIM's stock, but cautioned that longtime BlackBerry users will have to get used to a whole new operating system.

He said RIM can be successful if about a third of current subscribers upgrade and if the company can get 4 million new users overseas, especially in countries where the BlackBerry has remained popular. IDC said smartphone shipments grew 44 percent in 2012. If those trends continue, it will be possible for the BlackBerry to grow even if iPhone and Android users don't switch.

"This doesn't have to be the best smartphone on the planet to be a success for RIM," he said. "I think the big question though is, if it fails, is it just too late? Are the other two ecosystems just so advanced that no one can catch up? That's a big risk."

BlackBerry 10: What To Expect

To say that Research In Motion hasn't had the easiest of times is an understatement, to say the least.

The Canadian mobile giant, once one of the top smartphone manufacturers in the world, has seen a dramatic drop in its global marketshare. 

Nevertheless, RIM is looking to pick itself up this week with its next-generation BlackBerry operating system, BlackBerry 10.

What can we expect from the company's new platform though? Here's what we know...

Live Tiles meet widgets

One of the biggest changes has to be to the multitasking system, with the platform taking its cues from Nokia's MeeGo in this regard.

In other words, users have a homescreen dedicated to multitasking, called BlackBerry Flow, allowing you to switch apps quickly. 

Unified messaging

Another area which seems to be inspired by MeeGo, the BlackBerry Hub is your one-stop shop for all your messages.

By simply flicking from left to right, you bring up the Hub, which is home to your emails, BlackBerry Messenger, social feeds and texts. 

We've yet to get serious hands-on time with this feature, so we can't comment on how intuitive it is, but it looks pretty encouraging.

A touch-focused design

In a stark departure from previous generations, the company is going all-in with touchscreen input, deeply integrating it into the operating system.

And this focus can be seen throughout the platform, such as large icons for easy tapping and numerous swipe gestures, reminiscent of the BlackBerry PlayBook.

In fact, BlackBerry 10 has a lot more in common with the PlayBook than simple gestures, with the new platform being based on the same QNX tech powering the tablet.

Of course, the company also drove home its intentions with the BlackBerry Alpha devices, being touch-only development handsets.

An innovative soft keyboard

A touch-orientated operating system means nothing if the input is dodgy, but RIM has crafted a pretty unique keyboard.

The virtual keyboard possesses some cool predictive text functionality as you type, with suggested words appearing above individual keyboard letters. For instance, typing "wh" results in "why" appearing above the letter "y" and "what" appearing above the letter "a".

Instead of tapping the suggestion to use it, you flick it upwards, a movement that we quickly got accustomed to in our brief hands-on demo last year.

Still, if the idea of using a virtual keyboard has you balking, supposedly leaked photos have confirmed that QWERTY-toting BlackBerry devices will be available. 

A multimedia push

We saw RIM's first traipse into the world of digital downloads with its BBM Music offering some time back, but bigger plans are afoot.

Yes, the company just confirmed that it will be bringing music and video services to market via the newly renamed BlackBerry World.

The list of video partners is extensive too, with BBC, Fox, ABC, CBS, Warner Bros., Disney, National Geographic, ITV and many more named. In another twist, RIM also revealed next-day availability of many TV series.

As for the music side of things, the company confirmed that its list of partners would include Sony, Universal, Warner, Rough Trade, Matador Records and more.

No word on when the video store would be launching locally, but South Africa is part of the initial rollout for the music service.

A strong app catalogue

Research In Motion has been on a tear lately when it comes to the all-important application store, holding numerous developer jams.

The firm hasn't been shy about rewarding developers either, awarding $100 for each Android app that gets ported to BlackBerry 10, up to a maximum of 20 apps.

And the programme has proven to be a huge success so far, with over 15 000 apps being ported to BlackBerry 10 so far, according to RIM execs. 

Cameras reimagined

Probably one of the most impressive BlackBerry 10 capabilities has to be the camera and its Timeshift feature.

In a nutshell, Timeshift takes a series of photos, allowing you to fast-forward and rewind to choose the best snap. But that's not all, as you can even change the subject's expression, leaving the rest of the photo intact. Take a look.

RIM touts enterprise apps for BlackBerry 10

RIM has released details of some of the enterprise apps that will be available when BlackBerry 10 is unveiled later this week.

Read this

BlackBerry 10 essentials: What you need to know

SAP, Cisco, Box, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, and BigHand are among the companies that will have their enterprise applications available to download from the launch.

"The developer community for enterprise and government has been incredible in the support of BlackBerry 10," said Derek Peper, vice president for Enterprise Partnerships at RIM, in a statement on Monday.

RIM said it has made it fast and efficient for organisations to develop and manage applications with BlackBerry 10.

RIM has issued developer toolkits that included the BlackBerry 10 Native SDK with Cascades that can be used to create native apps in C/C++ or the Qt Modelling Language, as well as the BlackBerry 10 WebWorks SDK for HTML5 developers, which allows developers to create native-like apps using common programming languages, such as HTML5, CSS and JavaScript.

RIM launched BlackBerry Partners for Enterprise in 2012 as the successor to the BlackBerry Alliance program, with the aim of increasing support to the enterprise software and services community.

"We are having a very good experience developing enterprise-grade finance apps on the BlackBerry 10 platform using the SAP Mobile Platform," said Pete Graham, director of finance solutions & mobility at SAP, in a statement. "With the SAP Mobile Platform the mobile app development community can build apps that can run on both the new BlackBerry 10 and the existing BlackBerry platforms and devices."

Persuading developers to make applications on BlackBerry 10 is seen by many as essential for its success. 

RIM Launches its BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10

TORONTO--Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM) is launching Wednesday an updated version of its business-software service, its latest effort to hold onto its core business customers ahead of next week's roll-out of a new operating system.
The product, called BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, allows companies to securely manage employees' smartphones and tablets, whether they use BlackBerrys or devices from competing smartphone makers like Apple Inc. or Samsung Corp.
RIM is launching its new, long-delayed operating system, called BlackBerry 10, next week, along with two new BlackBerry smartphones. The Waterloo, Ontario, company has seen its U.S. smartphone market share dwindle over the past four years as shoppers flocked to Apple's iPhone and devices running on Google Inc.'s Android operating system.
But RIM still has a good chunk of the market in highly regulated industries like government, the financial sector and the legal sector. With its new service, RIM is hoping to maintain that position and grab a slice of the so-called Bring Your Own Device trend, in which companies allow their employees to bring any kind of smartphone to work.
RIM is essentially offering companies a smartphone and tablet management system that would incorporate any type of smartphone. The system would help companies control things like security settings for phones that employees use, whether they are BlackBerrys or not.
RIM is also launching an application storefront specifically aimed at businesses, called BlackBerry World for Work.
"We continue to be the leading smartphone in enterprises, yet we recognize it is a heterogeneous world," said Peter Devenyi, RIM's Senior Vice President for Enterprise Software. "That's why it's so critical for BES 10 to support not only BlackBerry devices but other devices."
RIM says 1,600 companies in North America have signed up for a training program for the service, and that 130 corporate customers have been testing an early version of the service, which will cost a one-time fee of $99 per user. RIM is also offering two incentives for its business-focused service.
Existing customers can upgrade to the new service for free, and a company's IT staffer will get a free BlackBerry 10 device if the company signs up.

RIM pushing for BlackBerry 10 win

 

Cape Town - Research In Motion is racing ahead to ensure a warm market reception to its latest BlackBerry offering.

RIM announced on Wednesday that its new enterprise management system, BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, is available for download.

The solution helps corporates manage a range of devices securely, including non-RIM mobile devices like Android and iOS powered smartphones and tablets.

"BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 offers mobile device management, mobile application management and secure mobile connectivity, and delivers a cost-efficient and reliable solution for business customers," RIM said.

The company is racing toward its much anticipated debuted of the new BlackBerry 10 smartphone and has quietly been preparing the infrastructure for the launch of the device on 30 January.

Security

RIM has held BlackBerry Jam to encourage developers to write apps for the new platform and has won security certifications for BlackBerry 10 ahead of launch.

"BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 empowers employees to be more productive and better equipped to serve customers while it provides business and IT leaders with the confidence that corporate data is protected and manageable in the same way they have long enjoyed with BlackBerry," said Peter Devenyi, senior vice president of Enterprise Software at RIM.

To further differentiate itself from strong competition from other mobile ecosystems, RIM also re-launched its store front as BlackBerry World.

It also announced BlackBerry World for Work which will allow corporate IT mangers to authorise specific applications for employees.

"We've been testing BlackBerry 10 and BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 in our environment and we're pleased with the manageability, security and reliability that the solution offers, along with expanded management capabilities to other devices within our network," said Peter E Lesser, director of global technology for Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.

The Canadian-based company announced in 2012 that it would focus on its core corporate strengths in a competitive market, but has a strong footprint in developing countries like SA and India.

It hopes to capitalise on this market and attract companies to its brand because of security concerns with competing platforms.

CES 2013 Recap: Where Is The Industry Headed In 2013?

CES is the holy Mecca to which thousands of electronics brands (3,250 in total), members of the public (150,000) and members of the press (3,500) the world over make their yearly pilgrimage—some to discover, some to dictate, what the trends will be for the months to come.

Every year the show simply overflows with products (over 20,000 were presented this year), services and content. CES 2013 may not particularly have stood out from the crowd compared to past years, but Vegas is nonetheless an inevitable stop for consumer electronics firms—especially Asian brands—hoping to heighten their visibility by showing off their tech savvy. The sector has been a war zone of late, with countless companies striving to make their 'in' on a market dominated by a select few.

The sales figures that were being touted around the Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, LVC and the Venetian were less than encouraging. It's simple: in 2013, smartphones and tablets will continue to make the big bucks, while the other sectors (TVs, cameras, computers...) get quietly nudged to the side. As we wait to see how this all pans out, let's take a breather and look at what the biggest trends were in Vegas this year.

UHD, OLED, Smart TVs, NFC: The TV of Tomorrow Needs an Identity Check

First it was HD, then it was smart TVs, then 3D... This year the buzzword is 'Ultra HD'. We're already seeing major TV makers adorn their LCD TVs with the Ultra High Definition (UHD, not to be confused with 4K!) label. Samsung, LG, Panasonic, Sony, Toshiba and Sharp have all begun flaunting giant screens with 3840 x 2160 resolution (four times more pixels than Full HD!). The standard will start rolling out in over-50-inch panels at astronomical prices—Sharp and Samsung have both hinted at a price range running from around £13,000 to £25,000 for 84-inch models.

Unfortunately, there are no guarantees that UHD will help this hurting sector grow or up its value. And then there's always the nagging problem of the lack of UHD content...

We'll have to wait and see what kind of image the UHD upscalers give. After all, let's admit it: the whole HD/Full HD craze smacks of marketing ploy—think Sony with the "Mastered in 4K" stickers it slaps on so many Blu-ray discs to confuse and delude consumers into believing that their Blu-rays have actually been made for UHD.

Another spectacle at CES was OLED TVs. With their ultra-thin screens, breathtaking images and remarkable contrast, OLED technology certainly has its selling points. But to get one, you have to be willing to fork up at least £6,500. Here, too, one of the most interesting technologies the market has is out of reach for the average household!

LG and Samsung took the 'wow' effect a step further with their curved OLED screens. The advantage of having a curved TV screen? To hear the peddlers explain it, the curve makes for a more immersive experience. But it also sounds a lot like the way they used to talk about 3D. While you still find TVs today that have 3D, brands have stopped talking about it. Is that surprising? Not really, given the public's manifestly lukewarm enthusiasm for glasses-free 3D TVs. As for Sony and Panasonic, they generated buzz with their UHD OLED TVs—after all, why go to CES if not to dazzle consumers and rival brands?

Smart TVs are still a thing. Brands are trying to simplify interfaces and improve their remote controls to support their TVs' online features. Samsung gave us a possible glimpse on the future with its TVs' visual, gestural and face recognition features, and Haier showed off the first-ever Android TV, the HTX.

A few TVs have even been equipped with NFC for contactless content sharing. LG, for example, claims that soon you'll be able to use NFC smartphones as remote controls and conveniently share content from your mobile to a big-screen TV; all you'll have to do is sync the TV and smartphone once. This raises the question: is this the end of the remote control?

Tablets: Space Fillers, But Lower Priced

CES 2013 saw no earth-shattering announcements or technological breakthroughs when it comes to tablet hardware—the only exception being Panasonic's Ultra HD slate, which would be a great tool for a photographer or architect. The segmenting of the video game tablet market took a step forward with the Razer Edge, a tablet more bold than the Archos GamePad that may not stand out for its design, but that has a joypad on both sides of the screen. As for Archos, the French brand has obviously taken a liking to the iPad's 9.7-inch 2048 x 1536 IPS panel and announced two tablets to come out in March, the 97 Platinum HD (quad-core + 2 GB of RAM) and 97 Titanium HD (dual-core + 1 GB of RAM).

The tablet has become a permanent fixture in software and service developers' thinking process. And cloud gaming has appropriated the tablet as its own personal emissary; for proof, just consider how much Nvidia has used it to show off its cloud gaming platform, Grid. As for Samsung, it didn't have much new in this department, but it did demonstrate some dedicated apps for its Wi-Fi-enabled digital cameras (real-time photo transfers, LiveView, etc.).

All in all, brands seem to be playing a game of who can devalue the tablet the most, with the 7-inch slate as the most common avenue. This time it was Asus and Acer, who are currently sparring to become the first big-name manufacturer with an under-£125 tablet. At this pace, we have no doubt that Google will try to reign everyone in around the £100 mark, if not lower, by late 2013.

The Smartphones of 2013

Despite the insistent pre-CES rumours of innumerable smartphone announcements, very few were actually presented. But while some brands ostensibly decided to wait until the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona late next month to show off their wares, a few, such as ZTE, Huawei and Sony, used the occasion to flaunt new models. Some of the ones we liked were the Sony Xperia Z and the Alcatel One Touch Idol Ultra, for its thin screen, but we were much more sceptical about the outlandishly sized 6.1-inch(!) Huawei Ascend Mate phablet. But Huawei gets extra kudos for the long-lasting batteries it's given to its entire product line. Also of interest, the firm has joined the diminutive circle of brands (Nokia and HTC) that have bet their money on Windows Phone, and will be releasing a WP8 handset for under €200.



The smartphones that were announced gave us a glimpse of what the standard high-end do-it-all phones will look like this year. On the menu: big screens (5 inches and up). Also, the HD displays and 8-Megapixel camera sensors of last year are making way for the Ultra HD displays and 13-Megapixel sensors of this year (ZTE Grand S, Xperia S). Samsung finally presented Youm, its flexible, unbreakable screen, which some have predicted will make its first appearance in a Galaxy gadget as early as this year. Sharp—Apple’s go-to company for mobile device panels—presented its own flexible 3.4-inch screen. Who will be the first company to put out a smartphone with a screen that doesn’t shatter every time it slips from your hand?

Where operating systems are concerned, very soon the big names of 2012—Android and iOS, with Windows Phone and BlackBerry trailing far behind (BB10 is due on 30 January)—may have to share their spoils with a new batch of competitors in 2013. Canonical, the company that makes Linux Ubuntu, is taking on the smartphone market, as is the Mozilla Foundation, with Firefox OS (ZTE is expected to release a Firefox OS phone sometime this year). Backed by Intel and Samsung-the-heavyweight, Tizen OS will also be showing its face in a number of 2013 smartphones.

As Uses for Mobile Devices Multiply, So Do Processor Cores

Nvidia opened the proceedings with its partially leaked Tegra 4, a system-on-chip with a Cortex A15 quad-core processor and a 72-core iGPU. Needless to say, this SoC is a beast, but even more so, it has finally allowed the Silicon Valley firm to offer an SoC with a 4G radio module (i500). Nvidia already missed out on a number of mobile markets and 3G/4G versions of tablets in 2012 due to the absence of 4G radio modules on its Tegra 2 and Tegra 3.

This only played into the hands of Qualcomm, who unveiled their new litter of Snapdragon processors this year. Promising 40% better performance, the Snapdragon S600 will carry the torch for the S4 Pro (found in the HTC 8X and Google/LG Nexus 4). The S800, however, was designed to ratchet up the competition, a fact that Qualcomm doesn't shy away from. Nor should it: as a 2.3 GHz quad-core SoC with an updated Adreno 330 GPU and UHD-quality video support, the S800 is a powerhouse. Both new Snapdragons are compatible with 4G LTE Category 4 and offer download rates of up to 150 Mbps.

Another SoC presented at CES this year was the Samsung Exynos 5 Octa. Now a brand that matters, Samsung added to its roster an SoC with two sets of ARM Cortex A15/A17 quad-cores (eight cores in total) that run together or separately, with a GPU that Samsung says is twice as powerful as the Galaxy S3's. The Exynos 5 Octa will most likely be appearing on the upcoming Galaxy S and Galaxy Note.

The PC Continues to Morph

What do you say to PC manufacturers when touchscreen tablet sales suddenly start raking in massive chunks of their revenue? What is the answer? From touchscreens and detachable keyboards to fully convertible laptop/tablets, over the past year we have seen this object we call the PC go through some rapid transformations as brands scramble to make their products more desirable, more mobile. Will the hybrid formula succeed in winning over the public, a public that has spent more time lately comparing tablet prices than laptops? And yet, a number of companies have been releasing PCs that truly push the envelope. One example is the Asus Transformer AiO, a computer that looks just like a "regular" all-in-one PC running Windows 8 Pro, except that its 18.5-inch touchscreen can be detached and used as a tablet that runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

That said, we would be lying if we said that the past couple of months had been chock full of new technology. One spokesperson from Asus, a brand that makes a point of presenting a host of new ideas at every major trade show, even admitted to us that IFA and the final quarter of 2012 sucked dry most of the innovations begat from the October Windows 8 release. Now, in January, brands are focusing more on bolstering their already existing product lines and perfecting concepts they adopted months ago. The Lenovo IdeaCentre Horizon is case in point.

Have we already seen the best of what Windows 8 has to offer? Hybridisation can only go so far, and the coming months should see firms investing their efforts in refining strategies based on the public's reactions to this autumn and winter's slate of releases.

 

A Bright Future for Smart Devices and Health Gadgets

One growing sector on the North American market is health-related devices. At CES there were all sorts of gadgets with simplified interfaces and advanced online features. Among the masses were a smart fork that teaches you to eat healthier and lose weight; a scale with Wi-Fi; coaching bracelets with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and apps to help you watch your weight and figure; a nifty little gadget that tracks the health of houseplants; watches that tell you when you've received a text message; heart rate monitor watches... the list goes on.

But all this was only part of the multitude of products and prototypes that were displayed at CES 2013. Some others were: touchscreens that bring up physical buttons, a nanotechnology coating that renders any electronic device waterproof, refrigerators and ovens that communicate via Wi-Fi and NFC, and a Polaroid compact camera with an interchangeable lens.

The No Shows

Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple were conspicuously missing at CES this year. While for some that's the norm (i.e. Apple), for others the decision to not play ball is much more recent.

For instance, over the past fifteen years, Microsoft has always held the keynote speech at CES, but this year it left the job to Qualcomm, the leading smartphone processor firm from San Diego. On an amusing side note, Microsoft's CEO, Steve Ballmer, couldn't help but jump on stage at one point during Qualcomm's presentation. Old habits die hard.

All this is part of a growing trend in which leading American tech companies are preferring to create their own events, on their own turf, on their own terms. We'll see how that's evolved next year...

iPhone most popular in US, while Android popular worldwide in Q4 2012: Report

Agence France-Presse, January 23, 2013

Apple's iPhone remained the most popular smartphone among US buyers in the closing months of 2012 while Android handsets were on top worldwide, Kantar Worldpanel ComTech reported on Tuesday."At the end of 2012, the global (operating system) picture shows Android on top, but clearly the rate of growth it experienced over the past year is beginning to slow as easy wins from first-time smartphone buyers begin to reduce," said Kantar global consumer insight director Dominic Sunnebo.
Apple iPhones accounted for 51.2 percent of smartphone sales in the United States during the 12-week period ending December 23rd of last year, according to Kantar.
Smartphones powered by Google-backed Android software made up slightly more than 44 percent of sales while handsets based on Microsoft's Windows operating system were a distant third-place with 2.6 percent, the report indicated.
Android smartphones continued to be best sellers in major markets including Britain, China, Spain, Australia, and Germany while iPhones were favored in Japan as well as the United States, according to Kantor.
Windows smartphones appeared to be catching on in Europe, with its shares of sales in Britain and Italy climbing to 5.9 and 13.9 percent respectively, the reported indicated.
"Windows Phone is now starting to gain respectable shares in a number of key European countries," Sunnebo said.
"However, its performance in the Chinese and US markets remains underwhelming; these remain key challenges for Microsoft to overcome during 2013."




Mobiles at CES 2013

Android malware could reach the 1 million mark by year's end

Security firm Trend Micro's predictions for 2013 includes one potentially concerning consideration: the post-PC malware threat has truly arrived, and Android will take the brunt of the targeted nasties throughout this year.
According to the security giant and anti-malware maker, 2012 showed that malware writers, spammers, and hackers have begun to capitalize upon the mobile market, with a particularly keen eye for attacking the Android platform. Not only does Google-owned Android have the greatest market share and therefore makes it an easier target, it also has a more open platform to work with, compared to Windows Phone or the iOS-based platforms.
Also on the security agenda was the rise of OS X targeted malware -- as we have seen over the past year -- but also a rise in Java-based Windows attacks -- which toppled over into the new year with even the U.S. government warning users to disable or uninstall the Web plugin.
Social media attacks are also on the rise, showing a distinct trend from the traditional target vector of Windows-based PCs to a wide range of platforms, both online and offline.
And in a 'blowing one's own trumpet' moment, Trend Micro noted that its previous predictions for 2012 have "come true," the firm said.
A few key takeaways:

• Trend Micro detected 350,000 threats for Android, with a growth ratio of 14:3 for Android versus PC. In context, it took Android just three years to achieve the PC volume of malware threats within 14 years. By the end of this year, the volume of Android malware could reach as high as the 1 million mark;

Android threat growth. Credit: Trend Micro (PDF)

• The number of Android malware detections spiked in the third quarter from 41,000 to 156,000 samples, according to the firm's research. 38 percent was adware, 25 percent stole data, while 22 percent included a malicious downloader. Leading the threat type, however, was a premium service abuser at more than 40 percent;

• Java-based threats helped lead Apple's OS X platform into the crosshairs of malware writers, hackers, and botnet controllers after the first widespread attack against the Mac;
  
• Social media platforms became a greater target for cyber-criminals as the security firm warns users to avoid 'oversharing" on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and so on;
  
• Enterprises suffered from an "alarming rate" of data breaches and targeted attacks, the firm said. The widely reported Global Payments breach cost more than $94 million and is "still climbing," to give one example. Meanwhile, targeted attacks -- such as allegedly government-backed attacks and other "children of Stuxnet" -- are being used to attack high-value targets, notably with the discovery of Flame, Duqu and Gauss, which derived from the 'original' Stuxnet worm;
  
• Rather than using existing attacks, attackers used more professional software development practices, the company said, by using Blackhole Exploit Kit (BHEK), Automatic Transfer Systems (ATSs), and "improved" ransomware.

U.S. government invites hackers to work on 'Civic Hacking Day'

The U.S. government is hoping that hackers can help make the nation a better place.

The White House announced today that it will kick off a "National Day of Civic Hacking" on June 1 and 2 and is inviting those with tech know-how to use their coding skills to improve communities across the country.

"Civic Hacking Day is an opportunity for software developers, technologists, and entrepreneurs to unleash their can-do American spirit by collaboratively harnessing publicly-released data and code to create innovative solutions for problems that affect Americans," the White House wrote in a statement.

The National Day of Civic Hacking was put together by a coalition of organizations, companies, and government agencies that includes Random Hacks of Kindness, Code for America, NASA, Department of Labor, and the U.S. Census Bureau.

On Civic Hacking Day, different activities such as block parties, hackathons, and brigade meetups will commence across the country.

From Augusta, Ga., to Denver, Colo., the participating agencies will give hackers government data with coding challenges that are specifically targeted for helping local neighborhoods, cities, and states. While the government has specifically asked for the help of techies, anyone can participate.

According to the event organizers, here are some of the benefits of getting involved:

• Demonstrate a commitment to the principles of transparency, participation, and collaboration.
• Exercise a government's interest in using open data and technology, in partnership with others, to address your local community's felt needs.
• Liberate open data that can inform better problem solving in every community.
• Continue to collectively map a national innovation ecosystem and create new access points to that system.
• Engage citizens in cities with little technology infrastructure to contribute to changing their community through open source, open data, entrepreneurship and code development.
• Promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education by encouraging students to utilize open technology for solutions to real challenges.
• Encourage large scale partnership and mutual understanding.

"This is an opportunity for citizens in every town and city across the Nation to roll up their sleeves, get involved, and work together to improve our society by cultivating an ecosystem for innovation and change," the White House statement said.

Guide to Root Galaxy S3 I9300 UBEMA1 Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean Firmware

Galaxy S3 has achieved many a milestones for Samsung; it’s made record-breaking sales figures around the world and for the first time since the Android / iOS war started, has acquired the status of a rightful aspirant to the best smartphone throne vs the iPhone.
And now, our good friends in Brazil and Argentina region (alongside people all over the world, courtesy XDA) have started receiving the latest iteration of Android OS; I9300UBEMA1 Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean on their cellphones. And here is a simple guide on how you can root it.

Disclaimer:
In order to root your Android device, we will require to flash CF-Auto-Root in your Galaxy S3 I9300 running I9300UBEMA1 firmware using ODIN. This will root your device. However, in this process you may lose your personal data and settings.
Please do note that once your device is rooted, you warranty will be void; However, you can reclaim the warranty by re-applying official firmware update.

Download

1. CF-Auto-Root for root I9300UBEMA1 firmware [File: CF-Auto-Root-m0-m0xx-gti9300.zip] [Right Click - Save As]
2. Odin 3.07

Guide to Root Galaxy S3 I9300 UBEMA Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean Firmware

1. Extract CF-Auto-Root-m0-m0xx-gti9300.zip – you will then see .tar extension under extracted folder.
2. Extract Odin zip file and you will get Odin3 v3.07.exe
3. Power off your smartphone. Wait 5-6 seconds to confirm complete switch off.
4. Now, put the Galaxy S3 I9300 smartphone in Download Mode by pressing pressing and holding down the Volume Down and Home buttons while pressing the Power button. A Warning! screen will come up; press Volume Down key to continue to enter Download Mode.
5. Now run Odin3 v3.07.exe as an Administrator.
6. Now connect your Galaxy S3 I9300 with your PC using USB cable. A message will appear under Odin’s message box in the bottom left saying “Added!!”. If you don’t get it, then try another USB port. If that too doesn’t work, then reinstall the USB driver. If you successfully see the “Added!!” message in Odin, you are good to go. Also, check for COM port with a number in Yellow to make sure that you have successfully added your device.
7. Select these files in Odin at their tabs:
   • Click the PDA Tab, and select the CF-Auto-Root-m0-m0xx-gti9300.tar.md5 file.
   • In Odin window, make sure Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time checkboxes are selected.
8. Double check everything mentioned in the guide. Now, hit the START button to begin the flashing process.

Once flashing completed, the smartphone will reboot automatically and soon you will see a PASS message with green background in the left-most box at the very top of the Odin. You can then unplug the USB cable to disconnect your device from computer. Enjoy the root!

How a phone call made Aaron Swartz join the fight against SOPA

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On the one-year anniversary of the international SOPA blackout, BuzzFeed published an excerpt from Hacking Politics: How Geeks, Progressives, The Tea Party, Gamers, Anarchists and Suits Teamed Up To Defeat SOPA and Save the Internet, a book that catalogued the fight against the controversial piracy bill. The excerpt, an essay by Aaron Swartz, details how a simple phone call caused the Reddit co-founder to take notice of COICA, a proposal that later formed part of the ill-fated SOPA act. After being persuaded that the bill was an attack not only on piracy, but on freedom of speech, Swartz joined many others in (successfully) lobbying against the proposal. You can read Swartz's story over at BuzzFeed, or pickup the full collection of essays from OR Books at the price of your choosing.

The Blackberry L-Series – Specifications Leaked!

Rumors about leaking of reports on new Blackberry L series Smart phone have been doing rounds for quite some time now. Yet again, such reports have made their appearance through an official RIM (Research in Motion) document which got leaked sometime back. The new L series is rumored to be launched under the names of Blackberry Z10 and the Blackberry X10 and is anticipated to be launched on coming Jan 30.
The document unravels the mystery about the specifications of this long awaited phone. Some of the biggest attractions of this phone include the following:
• Display : This next generation touch screen device boasts of a 4.2 inch display which has an HD resolution of 1280×768
• Memory: It brings to its customers an ample storage capacity of a 2GB RAM as well as a 16GB of internal storage space.
• Battery: The battery is stated to be of an 1800mAh.
• Camera: The phone sports 2 cameras in totality. One in the front and one at the back. The front camera is a 2MP which supports video calling and offers a 2x digital zoom as well as a 720p video recording. The one at the back is a mammoth 8MP snapper, equipped with a single LED Flash, an auto focus, 5x digital zoom, and a 1080 p video recording, a heaven for its posers!
• Connectivity: Sticking to its promise of offering the best in terms of connectivity to its users, the Blackberry Z 10 is also packed with an array of options to its users consisting of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, 4G, and NFC.
However, there is no mention of the processor that will run the new series but it is expected to have a 1.5 GHz dual core A9 chip to its name.
Also, a video surfaced recently, supporting the above mentioned specifications and also showed the sneak peek of the beauty.

It is reported that the phone will make four different appearances around the world to meet the needs of various network frequencies. This means that they will all look visually the same, but their internal hardware would vary across the areas, allowing for different network accesses. They will be available with names as The Blackberry Laguna, the Blackberry London, the Blackberry Liverpool, and the Blackberry Lisbon. It is also assumed to have minor differences in regard to SIM slot placement as well as SD card placement.
Amongst the four, the Blackberry London will be the only variant which would not be a 4G and yet would support for 21Mbps HSPA+. The other 3 would be all equipped with the LTE technology.
The new Blackberry series, according to the specifications leaked, would make Samsung Galaxy S3 and iPhone 5 and similar high end phones as its main competitors in the market.
However, the above mentioned specifications are subject to change/ alterations before the final release. As for now we can just wait and watch out for January 30, 2013, at the official unveiling of the Blackberry Z10.

BlackBerry X10 and Z10 for BB 10; rumored specs, release date

Weeks before their launch, BlackBerry X10 and Z10 for BB 10 are ruling the blogosphere. Their rumored specs, release date and features are increasingly being talked about by not just BB fans but also analysts and even Android and iOS fans

Images and specs of the first line of BlackBerry 10 OS handsets have leaked to web. With the RIM’s next version mobile OS is up for release on Jan. 30, tech analysts are talking about the leaked RIM phones. They are BlackBerry X10 and BlackBerry Z10; respectively a QWERTY keypad-featured and touchscreen-only handsets. The X10 is part of the company’s N Series of hardware and the Z10 is that of L-Series, reports say. More phones may join the line after BlackBerry 10 OS’ official release this month.

Little information is available about the forthcoming BlackBerry handsets. As per the leaked photos and specs, the devices are expected to be two high-end phones with rich specs and features. Here we make a look into all available details about the BlackBerry phones with BlackBerry 10 OS.

BlackBerry X10
A CrackBerry forum member namely “antheauxny” has shared a pair of images of the X10. The user said that he found the images while searching the social image sharing site Instagram for #BlackBerry hashtag. Well, the pics show the phones as a QWERTY keypad-featured one. In spite of having a QWERTY keypad, the device misses out some traditional BlackBerry keys that may appear on the on the touchscreen in BlackBerry 10 OS.

The device is said to have an aspect ratio of 1:1 with a squarish display of 720p HD. As per GottaBeMobile’s Chuong Nguyen, aspect ratio of the X10 is similar to Palm’s Treo phone. “The display aspect ratio of the BlackBerry X10 is more akin to Palm’s Treo of yore and this is the first time that we’re seeing a square resolution screen introduced on a BlackBerry,” he writes.

Meanwhile, BGR has compared the device with RIM’s own BlackBerry Bold 9990. It “closely resembles RIM’s previous-generation BlackBerry Bold 9900 from the front, sporting a slim flat design with a touchscreen situated above the famous four-row BlackBerry keyboard,” writes Zach Epstein of BGR. The phone is expected to appear on display at the company’s Jan. 30 press event to announce BlackBerry 10 OS.

BlackBerry Z10 L-Series
Leaked video of this phone simply reveals that it is a touchscreen-only device. The Z10 looks as having a 4.3-inch display. It will be powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core ARM Cortex A9 CPU, 2GB RAM and 16GB of internal memory, reports say. Anyway, as it has been exposed in a video clip, more details about the device are available than the X10.

“The video featuring the BB Z10 is a little more revealing, though, giving an in-depth seven-minute look at the phone’s hardware, as well as the BlackBerry 10 OS itself,” says TechRadar. The phone is to have a weight of 125 grams and a better look and form. The software with the phone seems to be working nice as well, says Engadget.

“The Z10 weighs about 125 grams (4.4 ounces). Of course, the hands-on also demos the BB10 operating system, and it looks to run quite smoothly as the user carries out such gestures as swiping to reveal the BlackBerry Hub,” says Engadget.

Conclusion
RIM has been hyping its new version of mobile OS for a long time. The firm expects that it can do well in global smartphone markets with the BB 10. As per RIM sources, the company dreamed a lot with the software. With a new look and interface (Flow) and a horde of other quality features, the software may be able to make some movements in markets. But, we have to wait and see. Things in the mobile market are not much good for a company like RIM to come back to the scene.

Google’s Android and Apple iOS have been doing superbly well across the world. More and more mobile OS is to come to market in near future. On heels with Microsoft, firms like Mozilla, Ubuntu maker Canonical and Samsung are working with their versions of mobile OS. Mozilla’s Firefox OS, Ubuntu software for phone and Samsung Tizen are largely expected for release this year. And, so RIM has to face more rivals in market this time around.