The Canalys numbers are out, and with Android coming off an 886 percent jump reported at the end of the second quarter we were expecting something big. So, here it is: Android is up 1,309 percent worldwide from this time last year, taking over 43.6 percent of the US smartphone market in the third quarter. In terms of mobile operating systems that makes it the dominant player in America, but with Apple capturing 26.2 percent it now jumps into the lead when it comes to hardware, beating out RIM’s 24.2 percent. That’s a swap from last quarter, where BlackBerries beat iPhones 32 to 21.7 percent, and worldwide things are looking the same: Apple at 17 percent compared to RIM’s 15. However around the globe it’s Nokia and the Symbian Foundation still dominating the stage as the leading smart phone OS vendor, owning 33 percent of the market compared to 38 last quarter, while Microsoft sits at a lowly 3 percent. With WP7 ready to rock the world, and Ballmer ready to release the advertising hounds, that’s a figure we’ll be keeping a close eye on for the next few quarters.
Update: NPD has posted its third quarter smartphone market share and Mobile Phone Track reports; they basically back up Canalys’ report, though NPD gives both Apple and RIM slightly less market share. Interestingly, RIM’s BlackBerry Curve 8500 series is identified as the second-best selling phone in the US in the quarter, while the lowly LG Cosmos for Verizon takes third. Weird, huh?
It’s been just shy of a year since TerreStar’s Windows Mobile-based Genus was announced for AT&T, offering a unique combination of GSM / HSPA backed up with satellite capability for those times when you find yourself in the middle of nowhere; in fact, you may have assumed that it had already been released by now. After all, this isn’t the phone for 97 percent of the population — it runs Windows Mobile and still works in places where us soft city folk would never dream of going — so odds are good you never bothered to follow up on it. Fact is, though, it’s just now available for the first time today, so as long as you’ve got a line of sight to TerreStar’s bird and a willingness to tolerate WinMo 6.5.3, you’ll be able to make and receive calls throughout the US, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and in the surrounding waters — and it’s all on one telephone number. Of course, having a single number eliminates the cool factor of being able to say “if you can’t reach me, try my sat phone,” but let’s be honest: convenience wins here. Right now, the phone’s only available to business and government users… and with $799 upfront for the phone and satellite service running $25 a month plus per-minute, per-message, and per-megabyte charges of 65 cents, 40 cents, and 5 dollars, respectively, that’s probably for the best. Follow the break for AT&T’s full press release.
The first Sunday of the regular NFL season is almost here and some DirecTV Sunday Ticket subscribers (plus a few without the DirecTV part) are getting an extra treat. If you’ve dropped the additional $50 or so for the NFL Sunday Ticket To Go service, feel free to take advantage of the mobile apps that have been issued for Android, Blackberry (you’ll want to uninstall the 2009 app first), Windows Mobile, webOS, iPhone and iPad platforms in the last day or so. Check the gallery for screens from the new iPad version plus the updated iPhone and Android apps — isn’t football season the best time of the year?
Being able to combine the best of both worlds is something of a shanzhai strong suit. Unfortunately, we don’t see conjuring up a Droid with Windows Mobile 6.5 as the best of both worlds. As for the phone itself, it holds up pretty well, with a 533MHz Huawei Hass K3 processor, 256MB memory, 3 megapixel camera, 3.5-inch (800×480) display, dual SIM cards (GSM 900 / 1800) , and the usual GPS, WiFi, and FM receiver. But is it as mind-bending as an iPhone that runs Android? We’ll let you be the judge of that. Get a closer look after the break.
Despite whatever other tablets Verizon may have on the way, it showed off a new trick for FiOS TV at a press conference today by streaming live TV and video on-demand to the iPad. NewTeeVee grabbed the above picture of the app, which Chief Information Officer Shaygha Kheradpir says brings the same software from its set-top boxes to the iPad and other screens. That hasn’t stopped potential licensing issues with offering video on off-TV devices, but Reuters reports the company doesn’t expect to pay any additional fees to programmers, probably because the app will only work from subscriber’s homes. While live TV streaming is a big draw, it also showed off a video on-demand app called FlexView due later this year for Verizon’s new Android phones, the Blackberry Storm and Windows Mobile 6.5 (other platforms due later on, it will work on other mobile networks as well) that would let videos purchased/rented via the cable box or website be downloaded onto up to five different devices, while its Media Manager service will be refreshed with an update that lets users upload video to 70GB of cloud storage and then stream it to their PCs, TVs or mobiles. Reports indicate live TV streaming should be available early next year, we’ll see if FiOS beats Cablevision to the punch.
Update: ZatzNotFunny pointed out a video of the demo posted by Steve Donohue on YouTube, check it out after the break.
Shameless isn’t even the word for it. While some companies try to get away with calling themselves Nokla or BlockBerry, these Chinese KIRFers have no qualms about copying HTC’s EVO 4G in its entirety (externally, anyhow). Yes, that includes the Sprint insignia and the promise of 4G, both of which are, of course, amusingly untrue. Not only do you not get that supersonic WiMAX radio, you also miss out on Android, as this EVO rides the WinMo 6.5 gravy train. There’s also no 8 megapixel camera, no 720p video, and no mini-HDMI output. But you still get a 4.3-inch, 800 x 480 screen and one of the best copy-and-paste KIRF jobs we’ve seen to date. See the back of this skilled imitator after the break.
Still clinging on to your HTC HD2? Good on ya, cos this WinMo slate’s about to last you a wee bit longer — team HTC Linux has recently made a breakthrough with getting the touchscreen to talk to the HaRET Linux bootloader. In other words, us mere mortals can finally use Linux variants like Android and Ubuntu on the HD2 the way it’s meant to be, although we’re apparently still a few bugs away from a stable release. Until then, enjoy the techno-fueled video demo after the break.
How would we like to replace the UI on our Windows Mobile 6.5 phone with the Kin UI? Well, we never really thought about it, we suppose… and frankly, we’re not sure why anyone else did, either. Alas, KinLauncher is here, delivering a pretty authentic Kin-esque home screen but not much else — as soon as you touch anything, you’ll be dumped back into the cold comfort of WinMo (or Sense, as the case may be). It’s available for download, if you’re really into that sort of thing — but if you’d rather enjoy the carnage from a safe distance, there’s a video after the break.
We had to exercise our neglected patience muscle with this one, but at long last we’ve gotten ahold of a real live HD Mini and put it through its paces. Equipped with the same processor, screen size and resolution as HTC’s Legend, but running the HD2‘s Windows Mobile 6.5.3 under a WinMo-specific Sense skin, the Mini is in many ways an amalgamation of its two better known cousins. You’ll no doubt be aware that we weren’t too displeased by either of those handsets, so what you must be wondering now is whether or not splicing them into one eminently pocketable package delivers an equally compelling device. Read on to find out.
On the list of ways to not foster customer satisfaction, deleting purchased apps with no recourse for getting them back has to be very, very high on the list, doesn’t it? T-Mobile’s now trumpeting that sort-of-leaked official update for the HD2 that features “stability and performance improvements” on top of a new ROM-integrated T-Mobile MyAccount app, but if you purchased the full versions of the demo games that came bundled with your phone, beware: installing the upgrade will wipe you out, and the only advice T-Mobile has for you is to “re-purchase them at the standard cost.” Gee, thanks, guys!
