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Firefox Powered Phone Here- Tablet on the Way

July 2, 2013 by

fire

Developers now have another platform to write apps for in the mobile device market as Mozilla, the organization that is behind the free Firefox web browser has started rolling out smartphones that run a Firefox operating system.

Mozilla is claiming that by using Web technologies it has an original take on how smartphones will operate. On first glance it sounds like a lot of other OS that are available. It will include the ability to make calls, messaging, email, camera and has built-in social features with Facebook and Twitter.

One interesting new feature is an adaptive search app that finds a range of related components to a search topic- the example give being you search an artist and find not just songs but concert tickets, song and album purchase and more. The OS has the ability to enable users to create customized apps for single or long term use as well.

Users can look for global and localized apps at Firefox Marketplace that will include everything from business apps, games and news and media offerings.

The rollout will be regional in nature with devices soon to hit the market with the Alcatel One Touch Fire and the ZTE Open phones offered by Duetsche Telekom and Telefonica. Telefonica is expected to start selling the phones in Spain and then move to South America.

Executives for Telefonica said that the company expects to have a range of smartphones running Firefox OS by the end of the year with a range of price points as the company will seek to aggressively go after the Android and Apple iOS market.

According to Mozilla the platform will be supported by approximately 20 hardware and operator backers globally with carrier Telenor set to launch their first Firefox OS phones in Central and Eastern Europe this year.

So that is what we have today, and Brendan Eich, Mozilla’s CTO has said that tablets that will also be capable of running the operating system are on the way, and while declining to give a timetable for when customers can see the devices, he did say that it would be soon.

This will be interesting. When the Firefox browser came out many thought it was dead on arrival and yet it has wrested away a huge chunk of market share from the established power, Microsoft. Now it is attacking another market, one that does have more diversification that the web browser space did but still fairly insular. The failure or success will obviously be determined, at least in part, by developer support because users are not expecting a wide variety of apps for their phones and its hard to see any mobile OS survive without a wide variety of offerings.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Apps, Google, iOS, Microsoft, Smartphone, Tablets Tagged With: , , , , ,

Mobile Apps Lead the Way in Record Cricket Viewership

July 1, 2013 by

icct

Last week saw the end of the 15 day ICC Champions Trophy, one of the most prestigious prizes in Cricket and ESPN’s ESPNcricinfo broke multiple viewership records while broadcasting the tournament that featured the top teams from eight nations

The overall online and mobile numbers are great to start with, the tournament generating an average of 41 million page views a day, an increase of 245% compared to the 2009 tournament, while the last day of the event that featured the matchup between India and England drew 87.5 million page views across all devices.

Online access at ESPNcricinfo.com averaged 2.6 million daily visitors, a 98% increase. The visitors’ averaged a 65% increase in page views with 17.5 million average and that broke down to an average of 61.1 million minutes a day, up 65%.

The mobile section is where the huge growth came, no doubt in a good part driven by the massive growth of smartphone and tablet ownership since the last tournament and enabled ESPNcricinfo to have an app for the event.

The app had an average of 11.3 million page views and 6.4 million minutes, while the mobile Web’s average of 898,000 daily visitors represented a 631% increase. Those daily visitors then logged an average of 12.2 million page views, up 854%.

Not surprising was that India, the world’s second most populous nation led the way in terms of traffic generated with an average of 1.1 million daily visitors, up 220% and they generated 7.2 million page views, up 198% .Mobile traffic in the US was up 970%, up 1,390% in the U.K. and 1,472% in Australia.

Filed Under: Amazon, Apple, Apps, ESPN, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, Smartphone, Tablets Tagged With: , , , ,

NBA Fans Leap onto Digital Bandwagon with Soaring Viewership

June 26, 2013 by

nba

As we mentioned a few weeks ago the NBA has moved to provide access to its playoffs to a wide variety of platforms including iOS mobile devices, PCs and Kindles. The results are now in and it has resulted in record setting traffic.

The push was done by NBA Digital, a group that is jointly managed by the league and Turner Sports and resulted in the just concluded NBA Championship series having an all time cross platform consumption for the league across its properties that include NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA LEAGUE PASS, NBA LEAGUE PASS Broadband, NBA Mobile, NBADLEAGUE.com, and WNBA.com.
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The NBA Mobile had huge increases in page views and video streams with more than 138 million page views, up 91% vs. 2012. There were a total of 4.5 million video streams during the 2013 NBA Finals, which represented a 126% increase over last year. The mobile app that is published by the league, NBA Game Time, had a 110% download increase compared to last years’ finals numbers.

NBA TV’s NBA GameTime experienced all time viewership as well with an average of 128,000 total viewers for both shows, numbers that represent a 28% increase compared with last year.

Hopefully this is a trend for the future among all sports. MLB has embraced mobile access for years while the NFL seems stuck with an older, much less encompassing model. As users continue to cut off cable and broadcast television and rely on Amazon Prime, Netflix and others for much of their viewing options, new methods to gram fans will be needed in the future.

Filed Under: Amazon, Android, Apple, Apps, Basketball, iOS, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, NBA, NBA Game Time, Tablets, Turner Sports Tagged With: , , , ,

HP Goes Big with 21.5-inch Android Tablet

June 25, 2013 by

hps

Hewlett-Packard appears to be bucking the trend once again in the tablet space, although this time it looks as if it will have less to lose than its first disastrous foray into the market. The company has introduced the HP Slate 21 AIO (All-in-One) that features a 21-inch display.

While tablets are gaining ground as a notebook replacement, this more than full sized offering could serve as a desktop replacement, although if you plan to hold it in your lap you might want to start super-sizing your meals now.

However you don’t need to worry about holding the Slate 21 AIO, it comes with a stand. It is powered by a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 4 processor and unlike many other members of the AIO family it will be running on the Android operating system, version 4.2.2 to be exact.

While it may look like a desktop replacement due to its size, the company is touting its ability to be a home entertainment tool that can be shared among members of a household. However it does have a HP desktop productivity software including KingSoft office software.

The tablet is expected in September and hopefully the company will unveil additional features previous to the launch of the $399 devices. It did say that it will have 8GB of storage and a MicroSD card slot for additional storage expansion and it will feature three USB ports and a high definition web-cam.

Interestingly the price makes it the lowest Slate AIO offering from the company, however its others have Windows as the operating system and the Android OS is free, while Windows is not. It will be interesting to see how well the device does, many tablets are used while watching television and this might make a perfect second screen for sports fans.

Filed Under: Android, Apps, Google, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tablets, Windows 8 Tagged With: , , , ,

New Tablets from Lenovo and Vizio Hit Market

June 24, 2013 by

lenov

Last week Lenovo released Miix, its hybrid 10-inch tablet that can also serve as a laptop while Vizio has started shipping its 11.8-inch tablet that it first showed at the beginning of the year at the CES show in Las Vegas.
It seemed just a year ago that tablet releases were something that could be planned easily on a calendar, one company would announce a product release date and one of the few other major players would then announce products the day before.

The Lenovo Miix features a 10.1-inch display that has 1366 x 768 resolution, runs Microsoft Windows 8 operating system and is powered by a dual core Intel Atom processor. It will feature 64GB of storage on board with an additional expansion capability of 32GB via a microSD card.

The key feature for the device is what the company calls a “quick-flip” detachable folio case with an integrated AccuType keyboard that enables users to switch between PC mode and tablet mode as their needs require.

It also includes integrated Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi and/or optional3G-GPS connectivity and up to 10 hours of battery life. The tablet is expected to ship later this summer and will have an estimated entry price of $550.

The Vizio 11.6” Windows 8 Tablet PC has an 11.6-inch 1080p display, runs Windows 8 and is powered by an Advanced Micro Device Z-60 processor with 2GB of RAM. It also features 64GB of storage, a five hour battery life and has a price tag of $600.

Now tablets are announced at major shows such as World Mobile Congress, CES and E3 as well as just when they are ready to ship, a sign that the market is maturing, and that is good news for users and future buyers.

As an increasing number of tablets are released, and all across the pricing spectrum, it seems pretty obvious that not only will they become ubiquitous in peoples’ lives, but that many users will have multiple devices.

This represents a huge opportunity for developers as apps that are focused specifically for tablets will become increasingly important. I can foresee when I have a tablet dedicated for work and one by the television that I use for sports and other purposes that are more entertainment based.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Apps, Intel, Lenovo, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, Microsoft, Tablets, Windows 8 Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Friday Grab Bag: FIFA World Cup Tiff and will Loon Fly?

June 21, 2013 by

Microsoft is looking at educational institutions in an effort to jump start sales, or at least adoption, of its Surface RT tablets. According to BGR.com the company has started a policy of steep discounts to schools in an effort to push that platform’s acceptance.

How steep you ask? The tablet is available to schools and universities from now until August 31st starting at $199 for the 32GB model. Or you can go to the Microsoft store and buy the same model for $499. Such a deal.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 cheap in bundle deal
If you are in the market for both the LTE-capable version of the tablet and a smartphone then Samsung might have just what you need. It has teamed with AT&T to bundle its Galaxy Note 8 tablet for $199 when coupled with a new activation of select Samsung smartphones.

The tablet, normally $399, has Samsung technology designed to ensure its safe adoption in the business as well as the more traditional consumer friendly apps that are more commonly associated with tablets.

It is World Cup disqualifier time
At this time of year nations are putting their best foot forward in an attempt to qualify for next year’s World Cup, which will be held in Brazil. Along the qualifying route there are always a few feel good stories about nations that qualify — this is not one of them.

FIFA has just launched an investigation into player eligibility regarding athletes on both the Ethiopian and Tunisian teams, both of which had just advanced to the final round of the African World Cup according to the BBC. Sanctions will be forfeiting the match that the players participated in, if found guilty.

Google up in the air with Loon
Google is seeking to deliver Wi-Fi connectivity to the large portion of the world that is currently without by using a series of high altitude balloons that will have the ability to bounce Internet signals to each other and support users on the ground.

The company will be releasing 30 balloons in all, all over New Zealand’s South Island in an effort called Project Loon. Each balloon will rise to the stratosphere and be controlled to stay in the same spot. The initial effort will only provide Internet access with speeds that approximate 3G to roughly 60 people.

Sony Xperia Z finds a home
Sony released the Xperia Z a few months ago but if you rushed down to the local consumer electronics store to sign up for the smartphone and start enjoying all that it has to give you would have come home upset because it was not initially supported by any of the carriers. Well that has all changed.

According to Slashgear, you will now be able to get your hands on one courtesy of your friends at T-Mobile. However before you head on down, no delivery date has yet been announced.

FCC provides peek at next-gen Nexus 7
The FCC, via TechRadar, has published what looks like the features of the next generation Google Nexus 7 tablet, which appears to be manufactured by Asus, with a 1080p display.

Other features will include 2GB of memory, a switch from an Nvidia processor to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S4 Pro as well as a move to a 5 megapixel camera rather than the 1.5MP in the older edition. Also included will be NFC, LTE and wireless charging.

Filed Under: 4G LTE, Android, Apps, BBC, FIFA, FTC, Google, Microsoft, Samsung, Smartphone, Soccer, Sony, Surface, T-Mobile, Windows 8 Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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