Apple Sets All-Time Revenue Record, Has More Cash Than U.S. Government

Fla -- You've probably heard of popular products like the iphone and the ipad, but did you know sales of those types of gadgets have been generating more cash than our federal government?

As of this week, the U.S. Treasury had an operating cash balance of $73.8 billion. The company Steve Jobs founded: $76.2 billion in cash and marketable securities.

Apple customer Brandon Crook said, "It's pretty mind blowing. I think wow, that's big!"

Jacksonville resident Michael Wooley is a big fan of Apple products and the company's philosophy. He said our government could learn something from Apple like, "wise spending, not getting their hands in things they don't need to, research and development more maybe."

At nearly $400 per share, confidence seems to be rising in Apple. It set an all-time record for revenue and earnings in the third quarter. But Americans say they are losing confidence in our government.

Crook added, "I think Apple in this generation has really stepped up to the plate and really recognized what needs to happen and how we're going to make it happen no matter what. And I think the government is still questioning how we're going to do that."

Read more at http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/212929/11/Apple-Has-More-Cash-Than-US-Government

Apple No.1 in Smartphones, but Samsung Galaxy S2 Plans to Dethrone iPhone 5

Apple No.1 in Smartphones, but Samsung Galaxy S2 Plans to Dethrone iPhone 5

With Apple recently claiming the number one spot as top smartphone vendor, Samsung will look to dethrone its rival after coming in as a close second.  The showdown between the iPhone 5 and Samsung's Galaxy S2 may happen later this fall as the two tech giants battle for smartphone supremacy. 

Samsung's Galaxy S2 has rocketed into the market with rapid sales and high end performance.  The impressive part is that the smartphone has already sold over 3 million devices without entry in the U.S. market.  With its upcoming launch in China and U.S. debut scheduled for September, the Galaxy S2 could put Apple's top rank at risk. 

To add more concern for Apple, Google's Android mobile OS has claimed a 39 percent share in the U.S. smartphone market compared with Apple's 28 percent according to Nielsen.  Combined with a red hot Samsung lineup of Galaxy devices, it will give the South Korean tech company a boost towards the number one spot.

Read more at http://sanfrancisco.ibtimes.com/articles/189518/20110729/apple-no-1-in-smartphones-but-samsung-galaxy-s2-plans-to-dethrone-iphone-5.htm

Apple: Top smart phone vendor with more cash than the U.S. government

The iPhone from Apple is the smartphone to have. That sort of goes without saying, but now that Apple has secured its place as the largest smartphone vendor in the world, it's official.

Apple overtook Nokia after a hugely successful second quarter. iPhone sales increased 142% from second quarter 2010, according to All Things D. As it now stands, Nokia has a 15.2% share of the smartphone market and Apple has an 18.5% share.

Those numbers translate into a whole lotta iPhones -- 20.3 million iPhones last quarter, to be exact.

As far as mobile phones in general, Apple's share of that market doubled and then some, making it the fourth largest mobile phone manufacturer. That's impressive, given that Apple only makes smartphones.

Oh, and we can't forget to talk about the fact that Apple is more liquid that the U.S. government. The Financial Post shared the cold, hard data and it's not surprising given the current state of affairs. Still, it's slightly amusing to think that President Obama could ask Apple for a loan.

According to the U.S. Treasury Department, the government's operating balance is 73.768 billion dollars. Compare that to Apple's cash reserve of 75.876 billion dollars. As the Financial Post points out, "[T]he numbers aren’t directly comparable; the government’s number represents how much financial headroom it has before bumping up against an arbitrary debt ceiling, while Apple’s cash reserve represents the pile of money the Cupertino, California-based company has available on its balance sheet."

Read more at http://www.sheknows.com/living/articles/837397/apple-top-smart-phone-vendor-with-more-cash-than-the-us-government

Apple, Android Battling for Smartphone Leadership in Mobile OS Race

The mobile phone market is changing. Depending on how you slice that market, the biggest winner in the last year was either Apple or Google. Apple is the largest maker of smartphone handsets, but Google’s Android smartphone OS is the top seller while Apple’s iOS is No. 2.

But for the top handset market share, it’s still Nokia, due mostly to its vast number of non-smartphone sales. However, Nokia’s smartphone sales are off while the company sells units with its aged Symbian operating system and waits for Microsoft Phone 7 equipped devices to appear in large numbers.

Apple enjoyed explosive growth in smartphone sales over last year, with an increase of 141.8 percent, according to an IDC report. Nokia, while still tops in overall phone market share suffered a drop in sales of more than 20 percent.

But there’s more to the smartphone market than who makes the handset. According to a Nielsen survey, Android-based phones now own 39 percent of the U.S. market compared to Apple’s 28 percent. The reason for the difference, of course, is there are multiple handset makers supporting the Android OS, while there’s only one Apple–supporting iOS.

Meanwhile, there are any number of rumors that could change the dynamic significantly, depending on what turns out to be true. For example, there’s a rumor that Apple could offer the iPhone to all U.S. carriers instead of just AT&T and Verizon Wireless. If that were to happen, perhaps there’s a chance that Apple could surge ahead of the Android devices by opening up availability. There’s certainly demand–one source at T-Mobile told me that there are about a million iPhone users on T-Mobile now–enough that T-Mobile stores are selling some iPhone accessories.

The level of hype surrounding the iPhone, especially the long anticipated iPhone 5 will also help build market share for both the device and for iOS. According to a PriceGrabber survey, 35 percent of consumers say they will buy an iPhone 5 when it comes out. If these numbers pan out (and that’s not a sure thing) then that could bump the iPhone into top place in the United States and perhaps globally in the smartphone market.

But what about the other guys? There have been a number of reports that BlackBerry maker RIM is on the ropes and could collapse any time. Reports have also said that Windows Phone 7 is going nowhere.

Read more at http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Mobile-and-Wireless/Apple-Android-Battling-for-Smartphone-Leadership-in-Mobile-OS-Race-365450/

iPhone 4 gets upgraded for NFC payments the hard way

Softbank customers in Japan can simply get an NFC sticker to add some contact-less payments to their iPhone 4, but most folks don't have it quite so easy just yet. There are some alternatives while you wait for Apple to hop on the NFC bandwagon, however, like this solution from Unplggd's Vivian Kim. It uses one of the smaller NFC-equipped credit cards now available from some banks, which is apparently just small enough to fit under the back cover of an iPhone 4 (a clear one, in this case, to show off your cleverness). And, yes, it apparently still works just fine under there -- even if you add a case on top of it.

Read more at http://www.engadget.com/2011/07/29/iphone-4-gets-upgraded-for-nfc-payments-the-hard-way/

New iPhone 5 Silicone Cases Leak, Shows Thinner Profile, Larger Dimensions

More iPhone 5 silicone cases have leaked today. With the next-gen iPhone rumored for a September launch, third-party accessories manufacturers are getting antsy, readying the accessories ahead of time based on insider information. These latest images emerged after some prototype renderings and photos of cases surfaced yesterday purported to be for the iPhone 5.

The previous images were revealed by 9to5 Mac via a large phone accessories retailer who has connections to Chinese factories. Since those have been published, other sources have offered up images of their own cases that also support rumors of a radical new design. These latest ones, however, include not only a silicone case but also a hard case, clearly revealing what may be the new curves of the iPhone 5.

Although there’s no knowing whether these cases are designed based on accurate dimensions or simply wishful thinking, the suppliers do insist that the information on the iPhone 5 design was received from their own proven industry sources. The same was true for the iPad 2, when surprisingly accurate cases emerged before the tablet itself was announced and unveiled.

The case designs suggest that the iPhone 5 will indeed have a thinner profile, but also a larger footprint. In fact, based on the dimensions of the hard case, the iPhone 5 could be nearly half an inch longer and a bit wider than the iPhone 4. This would certainly support rumors that the iPhone 5 will have a bigger screen 


Read more at http://www.slashgear.com/new-iphone-5-silicone-cases-leak-shows-thinner-profile-larger-dimensions-29168487/

Want to 'Snooze' Your Gmail? Here's How

Google published a few snippets of code on Friday that will help users "snooze" specific emails in Gmail, saving them for later.

Google's Gmail Snooze solution addresses a problem many users face: swamped by email, calendar meeting requests, phone calls, and other distractions, occasionally an email will arrive that a user wants to act upon, but lacks the time right at the moment.

Instead, he or she may want to "snooze" the email, or have it appear as a "new" email in a day or so. To do so, though, isn't easy. (In Outlook, one could drag the email into a custom "To do" folder, although this still wouldn't tag the email as unread.)

Users need to visit the Google Gmail blog post and copy the lines of code therein into a Google Docs document under "Scrip Editor". Yes, Google is asking you to create a script to enable this functionality - as of press time, there was no Gmail Labs option to click and enable.

"Writing" your own script, however, also allows you to customzie it any way you'd like. Here's how it works:

"To 'snooze' a thread, use Gmail's 'Move To' button to move the thread into the "Snooze for X days" label and archive it," Google software engineer Corey Goldfeder wrote. "Every night, threads will move up through one day of the queue, and at the appointed number of days they will reappear in your inbox, unarchived." 

Read more at http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2389451,00.asp

Google refines search experience for big-fingered tablet owners

. Having trouble selecting those tiny links with your big, ol' digits on that swanked-out slab? Don't you worry, Google's just made some slate-friendly improvements to its bread and butter search site, and it's available for iPad and Honeycomb 3.1+ users. On deck for this UI refresh: a much simplified search results page, larger-sized buttons and text, and a quick access button located below the search box that skips you off to "Images, Videos, Places, Shopping and more." There's also been some visual tweaks made to its image search results, with enlarged previews, faster thumbnail loading and continuous scrolling. If you're not seeing this overhauled layout just yet, sit tight -- the update's expected to roll out in the next few days

 

Read more at http://www.engadget.com/2011/07/29/google-refines-search-experience-for-big-fingered-tablet-owners/

Logitech Revue with Google TV has more returns than sales

So far, Logitech's bet on Google TV has been a bust.

The computer, video game and TV accessory maker has had more of its Revue set-top boxes running Google TV returned than sold and kept.

In response, Logitech is dropping the price of the Revue from $250 to $99 in a move "to accelerate adoption of Google TV platform in order to develop a large installed base for our products over time" the company said in a statement. When the Revue first launched last October, it sold for $299.

Logitech said that upcoming changes to Google TV should also make the platform and the Revue more attractive to consumers. Among the changes expected is an updated user interface and a new apps marketplace.


Evidently, hiring Kevin Bacon as a pitchman for the Revue didn't help sales either. Logitech has removed from its YouTube page ads that feature Bacon playing a fan of his who uses Google TV to connect to the Internet and find Bacon-related content online.

Now at $99, the Revue matches Apple TV's price as well as the new Roku 2. The Roku 2 and Apple TV are about the size of a hockey puck, while the Revue is about the size of a standard cable box and uses a full-size wireless keyboard or smart phone app to find content.

But negative sales numbers for the Revue wasn't the only problem for Logitech, based in Switzerland.

The company posted a $45 million operating loss at the end of its first fiscal quarter and also announced this week that its president and chief executive, Gerald P. Quindlen, is stepping down, replaced by Chairman Guerrino De Luca on an acting basis as the company looks for a new long-term CEO. De Luca previously ran Logitech from 1998 to 2008 as president and CEO.

Read more at http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2011/07/more-of-logitechs-revue-google-tv-have-been-returned-than-sold.html

Google Buys IBM Patents, Bolsters Android Against Patent Suits

Google bought 1,030 patents from IBM earlier this month, its first major step to shoring up its Android OS against an onslaught of patent infringement suits in the tech industry.

The Mountain View, Calif.-based company bought the suite of patents on July 12 and 13. Most focus on web search, but many others are phone- and mobile-related and include chip and memory design, routers, servers, and other components.

Google has not yet commented on the purchase, keeping mum about the pricetag, but previously indicated a critical attitude against encouraging patent buying sprees in the industry. Kent Walker, Google senior vice president and general counsel, said Monday that the patent gold rush may be harming innovation in the industry, since patent holders can exert significant power when it comes to releasing and manufacturing new mobile technology and devices.

Despite Walker's words, however, the company has had little choice but to compete against its rivals for patents, and the IBM purchase is its first major step in shoring up its store of intellectual property. It previously lost patents to a consortium of its rivals, including Apple and Research In Motion, at the Nortel auction. Google is now going up against Apple, among others, for a new store of patents from InterDigital.

The IBM and future patent holdings may help protect the company as its Android OS withstands intensified legal attacks in courts. Its flagship mobile platform is at the center of several major patent infringement lawsuits, brought against it by Microsoft, Oracle, Apple and others.

Read more at   http://www.mobiledia.com/news/100593.html

Analysis: 'Socially Awkward' - How Metal Gear Solid 2 Predicted Facebook

A few days before I started my very first job in social games, I found myself kidnapped with a party of human cattle as slavers smuggled us across some border. I witnessed stark, inhuman acts of cruelty perpetuated against desperately innocent people, a father shot in front of his son, things I'd only seen in movies.

I feared for my life, and when I woke up I realized the project of our globalized human civilization: opt-in mind control. The violent potential of the human animal justifies a relentless technological quest to tame the beast with number games. We keep developing better methods of selling ourselves out to hallucinated fantasies -- and we like it. Why wouldn't we? The alternative is brutal anarchy.

A latter-day reincarnation of Aldous Huxley would write his revision of Brave New World on the tap pad of a second-hand Archos tablet bought on sale over eBay. He would write about the madness of people clicking on stars popping out of 2D cabbage bitmaps when they could be participating in the greatest information expansion in human history.

His characters would deal with the dilemma of collective humanity that CityVille presents, they would talk about 3G dongles and WiFi coverage instead of soma injections and group sex. This is a world that has a bit of newness about it -- I think we can all agree on that - but there isn't much bravery to be seen.

A defining moment in my adolescence was hearing the disembodied voice of Colonel Campbell explain how the world is run, in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. It was like getting an eyeball injection of conspiracy theory laced with a Cliff Notes of Hobbes, Nietzsche and Hegel. The twist was that Campbell's words were supplied by a fictional AI representing "The Patriots", an elite cabal of numbers made conscious, who attempt to cement a global control grid through comprehensive censorship.

"The S3 program" - hairs raise off the back of my neck - "doesn't stand for 'Solid Snake Simulation'" - eyebrows arching up - "it actually means" - pupils slightly dilated - "Selection for Societal Sanity."

Whoa! What does that mean?!

Read more at http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/36091/Analysis_Socially_Awkward__How_Metal_Gear_Solid_2_Predicted_Facebook.php 

iPhone Remedies Communication Woes at Texas Hospital

At Texas Children's Hospital (TCH), communication can be a matter of life and death. But with nurses spending more time at bedsides than behind workstations, the Houston-based healthcare facility was struggling "to drive effective communication between nurses, physicians and providers of care," says Myra Davis, vice president of information services at TCH. To cure its communication ailments, TCH turned to a wildly popular consumer device: the Apple iPhone. 

What They Did: TCH selected Voalté as its communications provider and set up a community charging station where nurses grab an iPhone at the start of each shift. Upon log-in, the device recognizes the employee's phone number and automatically configures their Voalté mailbox and individual preferences. Nurses use the device to issue status updates indicating whether they are available or busy and to send text messages to individuals or groups. An alarm-management system automatically prioritizes and delivers critical care alerts directly to the iPhone and provides automatic escalation if a user is offline. 

How They Did It: Ensuring both instant communication and mobility among employees required some careful forethought. Here's how TCH created a framework for the project's success:

1. Test the infrastructure. Although the iPhones are tied directly to the hospital's existing wireless infrastructure, which is composed of commercially available hardware, "the biggest challenge was making sure our network infrastructure could support [the devices]," Davis says. To minimize risk, TCH conducted a number of pre-deployment trials "to make sure we had access-point and bandwidth coverage in all of our areas." 

Read more at http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/072911-iphone-remedies-communication-woes-at.html?hpg1=bn

Monster Mash: Banksy iPhone app; Crystal Bridges Museum for free

Exit through the Apple store: A new iPhone application shows users where they can find street art created by Banksy. (Gizmodo)

 

Save money. Live better: The Crystal Bridges Museum of Art will offer free admission to all thanks to a $20-million grant from Wal-Mart. (Arkansas Business)

New role: Placido Domingo has been appointed chairman of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, an organization that fights music piracy. (NPR)

Keeping busy: Actor James Franco is to be a guest lecturer at New York's Museum of Modern Art PS1. (E! Online)

Homage: A musician has arranged Amy Winehouse's hit single "Rehab" for orchestra, in memory of the late singer. (CBS News)

Money trouble: The Ohr-O'Keefe Museum of Art in Mississippi is facing serious financial challenges. (New York Times)

New music: U2's Bono and The Edge join "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" star Reeve Carney for a music video of "Rise Above 1." (Los Angeles Times)

Gift: The National September 11 Memorial and Museum is donating 40 trees to the Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Pa. (USA Today)

Then and now: "Twilight: Los Angeles 1992" actress-playwright Anna Deavere Smith compares L.A. today with the L.A. after the 1992 riots. (Los Angeles Times)

History buffs: Two men have been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of stealing dozens of historical papers from museums in Maryland and New York. (CNN)

Read more at http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2011/07/monster-mash-8.html

iPhone 5 pictures: What drives the Apple sub-cult?

With just a few weeks to go before Apple [AAPL] introduces its next iPhones, the genius of Apple marketing has kicked-in with its usual pre-release publicity campaign, as dark and grainy images purporting to represent the company's new smartphones emerge, and sites everywhere ask, "Is this the iPhone 5?"...

Who uses who?

 

In a sense, the sites are all praying for a repeat of last year's Gizmodo iPhone 4 leak -- but this isn't what's going on. This is Apple's genius for marketing summed-up. The company knows how to use the Web.

Ask yourself: What other company can achieve this level of popular interest in its unreleased products? More especially, who else can achieve this kind of global attention for this kind of investment -- in this case, zero investment, beyond possibly transmitting a grainy image to a blogger.

The story begins with a claim from the Mac rumor-aggregators at 9to5Mac. This shows a grainy picture of a chap playing with a device that may, or may not, be an iPhone 5. This is (and you can hear the sound of self fulfilling prophecy here) thinner, with a larger screen and no home button.

Look at the timeline: the rumor starts here, and is now available here, here and even here, and everywhere else, it seems.

Read more at http://blogs.computerworld.com/18706/iphone_5_pictures_what_drives_the_apple_sub_cult

Windows Phones to Take on IPhone 5

A slate of new Windows phones, running Mango software, is set to launch in September, according to speculation, an attempt to build momentum that may go head-to-head against Apple’s iPhone 5.

Phone makers such as Acer, HTC, Huawei, LG, Samsung and ZTE are all expected to unveil their Windows Phone Mango phones at the same time, according to Digitimes. Nokia’s first Windows Phone device, likely the Sea Ray, may debut later at Nokia World in October.

Details of the phones are scant, although HTC’s models are expected to be powered by Qualcomm 1.5GHz single-core processors, with display sizes going up to 4.7 inches, sources noted. The only confirmed handset for this fall is Toshiba-Fujitsu’s IS12T, set for release exclusively in Japan.

The phones’ expected release dovetails with news that Microsoft has completed its Mango update of the Windows Phone software and shipped it to manufacturers for testing. The update adds stability as well as multitasking capabilities to the OS, and includes several new features aimed at business customers.

The onslaught of handsets running the latest, much-discussed version of Microsoft’s mobile OS may raise the visibility of the platform, which has stalled overall against competitors like Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android devices. Microsoft holds under 10 percent of the market, compared to Google’s 38 percent and Apple’s 26 percent, according to Nielsen, and many carriers’ product line-ups favor the market leaders.

If the rumors are correct, however, the new Windows Phone Mango handsets would flood the market at the same time as Apple’s iPhone 5, also set to launch in early fall. The highly anticipated next-generation iPhone will likely command significant sales numbers and market attention, which may siphon momentum from Microsoft’s efforts to regain its footing as a mobile competitor.

Windows Phone’s biggest boost may come when Microsoft’s strategic partnership with Nokia bears fruit. Nokia is set to reveal its first group of Mango devices at its Nokia World 2011 showcase in October, after the initial splash of competitors earlier in the fall. The partnership will find Microsoft’s OS on a greater number of phones globally, and may be a stronger start for a platform trying to muscle its way in a U.S. market dominated by iOS, Android and BlackBerry.

Read more at http://blogs.forbes.com/mobiledia/2011/07/29/windows-phones-to-take-on-iphone-5/

TaskRabbit comes to the iPhone. It is multitasker heaven

TaskRabbit CEO Leah Busque

TaskRabbit, the online marketplace that allows people to outsource errands and other jobs, has debuted its first mobile application for use on Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch devices. The TaskRabbit app will be available in the Apple App Store starting on Thursday.

I’ve been playing around with a preview version of the TaskRabbit app for the past couple days, and I have to say it’s pretty great. The whole point of using TaskRabbit is to save precious time, and the iOS app helps users achieve that end perfectly. Task creators have the benefit of posting errands as they become necessary, wherever that is. And people who are TaskRabbit “runners”– AKA task completers — can pick up jobs that become available around them while they’re on the go.

The user interface is feature-rich and slick, but still easy to navigate. The home page lays out different categories in a roulette wheel format that makes it quite fun to browse for available tasks and post errands. An especially handy feature is the ability to post voice recordings for a task description without having to type. All in all, using the app is a very pleasant experience.

My only qualm about TaskRabbit’s iOS app is that it seems to require a Facebook sign-in, whereas the web application has given people the option of signing in with Facebook or by creating a TaskRabbit account with an email address. Many people aren’t comfortable with linking their social networking profiles to mobile apps, especially when those apps aren’t expressly for interacting with friends and family. Since people often use TaskRabbit to work with strangers, I think it could be best to allow people to easily sign into the service without giving it access to their established social graphs.

Read more at http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/28/idUS272423506820110728

Apple Overtakes Nokia as Biggest Smartphone Maker With 18.5% Market Share

Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Samsung Electronics Co. both surpassed Nokia Oyj (NOK1V) in smartphone shipments for the first time last quarter as the Finnish company sold fewer units from its aging Symbian product lines.

Apple accounted for 18.5 percent of global smartphone shipments in the second quarter, compared with 13.5 percent a year earlier, Strategy Analytics said today. Nokia dropped to third place, falling behind Samsung after its market share shrank to 15.2 percent from 38.1 percent, the analysts said.

Nokia remains the biggest handset producer overall, even though its market share has fallen to the lowest level since 1999, Strategy Analytics said. The stock is down 47 percent this year, reflecting Nokia’s difficulties in competing with the iPhone and handsets using Google Inc.’s software. Apple, which posted record profit last quarter, has jumped 21 percent.

“This shift in market share has been going on since the introduction of the iPhone, and Nokia has been unable to find an answer,” said Leon Cappaert at KBC Asset Management in Brussels, who helps manage 400 million euros ($570 million), including Apple shares. “Component availability seems to be easing and the second half will be very good for iPhones and iPads.”

‘Unexciting Portfolio’ 

Global handset shipments grew 13 percent to 361 million units last quarter, led by 76 percent growth in smartphones, which are more advanced handsets with computer-like capabilities for running applications and playing media, Strategy Analytics said. Sales of smartphones totaled 110 million units.

Nokia’s share of the global handset market, which includes smartphones and more basic models, fell to 24.5 percent last quarter from 34.7 percent a year earlier, the research firm said.

“Samsung is breathing down Nokia’s neck,” Neil Mawston, a London-based analyst at Strategy Analytics said. “An unexciting touch-phone portfolio, inventory correction, wavering demand for the Symbian platform and limited presence in the huge U.S. market continued to weigh on Nokia’s near-term performance.”

Nokia was little changed at 4.06 euros in Helsinki trading. Samsung, which today reported second-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates because of higher mobile-phone sales, has fallen 11 percent this year. 

Read more at http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-07-29/apple-no-1-smartphone-vendor-in-second-quarter-researcher-says.html

iPhone 5: Why Rivals Should Be Worried

Rumors and Apple go together like summer and baseball. They are virtually inseparable. One of the prevailing Apple rumors right now is that the iPhone 5 will launch sometime in September. If that rumor comes true, smartphone rivals better buckle up because it could be a bumpy ride.

A recent survey found that 35 percent of consumers plan to get an iPhone 5 when it becomes available--and that is sight unseen with no official confirmation of its form or features. That is too large a number to be easily dismissed as Apple fanboys just trading their old iPhone for a new one.

With somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 million mobile phone users in the United States, 35 percent represents more than 100 million customers anxious to grab an iPhone 5. With some estimates suggesting there are currently 50 million iPhone users out there, Apple could double its market share with the new model.

We already have the iPhone 4, and there are plenty of Android and Windows Phone 7 smartphones that are equivalent, and even superior in some ways. So, why is the iPhone 5 creating such a frenzy?

iPhone 3GS Holdouts. When the iPhone 4 launched, there was a bit of controversy over the antenna, and the proximity sensor, and more. As successful as it has been, the initial stumbling of the iPhone 4 turned a lot of people off. Many iPhone 3GS users have held on to their trusty smartphone, and have waited patiently for the iPhone 5 to come along.

Verizon Holdouts. When Verizon got the iPhone 4 earlier this year, it was a huge success. However, many Verizon customers chose not to jump on the iPhone 4 bandwagon because they didn't want to get locked into a two-year contract with the iPhone 5 right around the corner. Many Verizon customers have sat on the sidelines waiting for the iPhone 5.

Read more at

 http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/236920/iphone_5_why_rivals_should_be_worried.html

With the iPhone 5 on its way, AT&T moves throttle unlimited data

As anyone who is anyone knows, the iPhone 5 is almost certainly on its way. Want to know how AT&T is preparing for it? By throttling its customers data speeds.

Confirming previous rumors, AT&T says that it plans to throttle data speeds for its users starting October 1st. The move, AT&T says, will only affect the very top level of data hogs:

Starting October 1, smartphone customers with unlimited data plans may experience reduced speeds once their usage in a billing cycle reaches the level that puts them among the top 5 percent of heaviest data users.  These customers can still use unlimited data and their speeds will be restored with the start of the next billing cycle.  Before you are affected, we will provide multiple notices, including a grace period.

Sort of rains on the whole “unlimited data” plan thing, doesn’t it? With the move AT&T offers unlimited users an ultimatum: You can either have unlimited data at reduced speeds or reduced data at unimpeded speeds. Neither, to be honest, sounds all that great.

Read more at http://www.zdnet.com/blog/gadgetreviews/with-the-iphone-5-on-its-way-at-t-moves-throttle-unlimited-data/26663

Get Unlimited Music on Your iPhone

Q: I listen to most of my music on my iPhone. Out of all the subscription-based music services out there (Rhapsody, MOG, etc), which one has the best iOS app?

A:I'm a huge fan of unlimited, on-demand music services. They give you all the benefits of stealing music—minus the guilt and jail time! Whether you buy one album a year or you're the type who's clicking the iTunes download button every Wednesday, it really doesn't make any sense not to supplement your audio intake by signing up with at least one of these guys. Around $10 a month for access to millions of songs that you can either stream or download? I don't think there's a better deal in entertainment.

I'm like you: I do the majority of my music listening on my iPhone, so I spend more time with these things in app form than I do on a web browser. Since we're not always in Wi-Fi range (or have unlimited data plans), the true test of a music subscription app is how well it operates in offline situations, so you can use it as you would a plain ol' iPod. With the exception of Spotify, which is just a few weeks old, I've been living with these music apps for several weeks. Here's how they measure up.

—Kevin 

MOG

To get a track or album onto your device with the MOG app, search for it and click download. Simple. One problem: There's no option to easily sync songs and albums you want from the web-based version of MOG to the iPhone. From a laptop you first have to "Favorite" the album, then go to your "Favorites" folder on the app and then click download for every single item—it can get tedious if you're trying to amass dozens of albums. But that's a minor quibble with what's a smooth-running app with superb music-discovery features. One is called Moggles—snap a picture of a record you want to download and it tries to find it in its catalogue of more than 1.1 million albums. Cool to do with your friend's vinyl collection, but not so much in an independent record store unless you're trying to rub the digital demise in their faces. Also cool: MOG Radio. It's not unlike Pandora—you can create stations around specific artists—except MOG Radio lets you download the songs you really like. (The app gives you the option of choosing the quality of your downloads: 320 kpbs or 64 kbps.) I love browsing the new releases and editor's picks every morning before my subway ride. It's like going on a shopping spree at Tower Records—if Tower Records was still around. Oh, how I miss ye olde brick-and-mortar music store. $10 per month for a Primo subscription, mog.com

Spotify

Spotify is the new, much ballyhooed music-streaming service from the U.K. There's a free version, but there's also an ad-free premium service that lets you sync music to your iPhone. To do so, you need to either plug your device into your computer, or be on the same Wi-Fi network. Not terribly convenient if you're, say, on a Caribbean vacation and just want to download some vintage Horace Andy for the ride to the beach. My biggest hang-up: You can't browse things by artist or song—only by lists. How is that convenient or logical? Unless you're a diehard Spotify user, stick to the free version on your laptop. $10 per month for a Premium subscription, spotify.com

 Rhapsody

With more than 12 million songs, Rhapsody has one of the largest (if not the largest) collections of on-demand music. It also gives members early access to some of the more popular new releases. The app is pretty robust, like a mini version of the browser-based version. You can search by genre, scan new releases and charts and create Pandora-like radio stations. Downloading is similar to MOG: You search for and download songs and albums within the app, but if you want them to magically appear on your iPhone from your laptop, too bad. Albums you want end up in your "Library" folder from which you have to tap download for each one—a chore. What really keeps me from loving this app, though: It's sluggish, you can't download individual tracks and albums are organized alphabetically by title, not by artist. from $10 per month for Premier subscriptions, rhapsody.com
 



Read more at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904800304576472032050529442.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

 

How the iPhone 5 could save Sprint

With the iPhone 5 set to be released later this fall, there have been some rumors that Apple may be looking to release the phone on both the Sprint and T-mobile networks.

Piper Jaffray analyst Chris Larsen speculated as much earlier this month in a report. "While we remain uncertain regarding the next-generation iPhone's specs and features, we believe the most noteworthy change could be the device's ability to run on more networks, specifically Sprint and T-Mobile in the U.S.," Larsen stated.

The carrier that will most likely make the biggest gains through the iPhone 5 release will probably be Sprint, because they are currently the only mobile operator offering true unlimited data, the holy grail for avid iPhone users. Sprint has never been shy in voicing this fact in marketing material either. While competitors say they offer unlimited data, there are actually tricks in place to discourage the use of large amounts of data.

The discouraging tactic is called data throttling. The practice involves slowing down a mobile user's data speeds as they use more data. Currently, both Verizon and T-mobile employ this practice on unlimited data subscribers. AT&T announced today that they will begin throttling unlimited data subscribers starting on Oct. 1. That leaves Sprint as the last standing cellular service to still offer true unlimited data.

When the iPhone launched on both the AT&T and Verizon networks, both companies initially used unlimited data to attract customers, only to later pull back and offer a tier system of paying for data.

If the iPhone 5 is released on Sprint, the company will probably push the discrepancy over data between them and their competitors even harder than they already do to make up for lost subscribers.

Sprint announced yesterday that they had experienced a 101,000 contract customer decline in the last quarter, a number that was four times larger than what analysts had been expecting.

Read more at http://losangeles.ibtimes.com/articles/189451/20110729/iphone-5-sprint.htm

Elizabeth Davies: Spend time in the real world, too

I had 50 birthday wishes on Facebook this year. I’ve gotten more email invitations than snail mail ones. And most of my playdates are arranged via text these days.

Technology has a way of bringing us closer. Or does it?

I had a conversation recently with a 12-year-old who admitted (bragged?) that she once sent and received 2,000 texts in one week. In case you don’t feel like doing the math, here it is: That’s roughly one text every five minutes, around the clock, for seven days straight.

But clearly, my mind does not function like that of a 12-year-old, because I exist in a world of efficiency. So I said, “Wouldn’t it have been faster to just call and say those things rather than type them all out?”

“Eh,” she answered. “I don’t like talking on the phone. I really don’t have that much to say.”

Never mind that something was said in the course of 2,000 texts. But that often is the crux of social media today: We do a lot of communicating, but I’m not sure we’re better communicators for it.

I’m as guilty as the next party. I nearly hyperventilated when my laptop was being serviced recently. I get annoyed at the friends who don’t text, because it means I — gasp! — have to actually talk to them for minor messages such as “I’m parking the car, meet you in a few minutes.”

And don’t get me wrong: I like that Facebook keeps me in the loop with friends I might otherwise not stay in touch with. What I don’t like is when it weakens relationships because we resort to instant messaging in lieu of a personal conversation. There’s something about chatting over a meal that brings about an intimacy that simply can’t happen on a public Internet forum. So sure, it’s nice to see the kid’s recent birthday pictures. And I’m glad to know the refrigerator is fixed. But if that’s the extent of our relationship, I don’t think we’re much better off for it.

In reality, social media is pulling us further apart. Ask an observant bartender and she’ll tell you: Not a night goes by without people sitting at the bar, texting other people who are right there in the same bar. Just last week, I watched three teens get out of a car. The driver was the only one not texting someone as they walked away from the car.

Married couples, too, fall into this trap. It used to be that couples spent their evenings together. Now they might be in the same room but are surfing the Web on their separate computers.

Earlier this year, a group of my friends went on vacation together and shared a large house. In the evening, each girl retired to her own room — where she promptly got online and began instant messaging with other people in the same house. So much for the days of slumber parties and giggling on someone else’s bed until 2 a.m.

Read more at  http://www.rrstar.com/specialsection/family/x1704354324/Elizabeth-Davies-Spend-time-in-the-real-world-too

Wanted Man Uses Facebook to Trick Cops Into Catching Him

Running from the police is so fun, right?! All the mystery, the cat and mouse games ... gah! What a rush. Victor Burgos, 29, of Brooklyn, New York was super into being chased by the cops but might have had a secret agenda. Wanted by the Utica police for domestic abuse and harassment of his ex-girlfriend, Burgos evidently believed that the cops were getting too complacent, so he decided to leave a few virtual breadcrumbs for them. Burgos posted to his Facebook wall: "Catch me if you can, I'm in Brooklyn."

 

Betcha can't guess where the cops ended up finding him!

US Marshalls and a task force of NYPD raided Burgos's Brooklyn apartment Monday night and found the criminal at his desk, with Facebook open on his computer. Slow.Clap. Does it get any better than that? Do you think he had time to upload to Facebook some photos of the raid? Maybe captions like, "Yikeroos! Here they come!" would've been appropriate for snapshots of the cops storming down his door.

If I were part of the police task force here, I'd be surprised that Burgos was where he said he would be, but then again maybe they're really used to dealing with super dumb criminals. I mean, he couldn't have hidden in Queens and said he was in BK? Wow.

But maybe he's got us all fooled. Perchance Burgos is smarter than all of us. Did this young gentleman perchance desire three square meals a day and a rent-free place to live for the next one to three years? Perchance jail was his get out of life free card.

Burgos also posted to his Facebook page a video of himself walking into a Brooklyn police station. Something tells me that Burgos, an aspiring rapper who sometimes goes by R. Mack Milly, was just asking to get caught. No one can be that dumb, right?!

He's been taken back to upstate New York to the scene of his crimes where he'll face a judge for sentencing. Maybe he's laughing all the way to Utica in the back of the paddy wagon. Sure, he could've just turned himself in, but what's the fun in that? Congrats. Burgos, you're in custody.

Read more at http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/123853/wanted_man_uses_facebook_to

Google+ Games Round the Corner to Hit Facebook’s Popularity?

Search engine giant Google is reportedly set to launch a social gaming network this month to counter the popularity of Facebook games.

Google is expected to take a less-than 30 percent cut of the revenues, which will rupture the previous industry standard that was created by both Facebook and Apple.

The new games on Google+ will come as a new outlet for gamers and developers and will also let developers respond to Facebook after it was earlier learned that Facebook’s relationship with Zynga, the gaming industry leader, was complicated.

“The Facebook Platform will be integrated into the Zynga Mobile Games and Zynga Properties and FB will be the sole and exclusive Social Platform,” reads one of the clauses in the company’s 600-plus-page update to its original IPO document filed earlier. 

Read more at http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/189097/20110729/google-google-plus-games-facebook-popularity-zynga-revenue-developers-angry-birds-chrome.htm

Skype update connects you deeper with Facebook

Skype has released the latest update to its online calling software for Windows, offering more options for Facebook users.

Officially out of beta since Wednesday, the latest Skype 5.5 for Windows lets you check which of your Facebook friends are online and available to chat, all without having to leave Skype. Simply clicking on the View menu in the Skype software and then choosing Facebook Friends shows you the list.

By clicking on and then closing the Skype Home screen, you can also update your Facebook status and scroll down to view your entire Facebook wall.

Beyond the Facebook integration, Skype says that its latest version offers improved controls for video and group calls for Windows, better call reliability, and various design changes in the interface.

For some reason, I was unable to directly update my current version of Skype (5.3) to 5.5. Clicking on the "Check for Updates" link in the Help menu told me I was already running the latest version. I had to manually download and install the 5.5 version to get the new update.

But once it was installed, I was able to use Skype 5.5 to view my online Facebook friends, access my wall, and post status updates just as easily as I could in Facebook.

Read more at  http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-20085438-93/skype-update-connects-you-deeper-with-facebook/#ixzz1TXjUnZ7y

Congress gathering debt-crisis feedback via Facebook

(CNN) -- As members of Congress navigate the shifting political sands of the debt-ceiling crisis, many of them are turning to a digital platform more associated with sharing personal updates and funny videos about cats: Facebook.

In recent days, lawmakers have swarmed the popular social network to post videos outlining their positions, conduct opinion polls, reach new constituents and ask for feedback.

"Over the past week, our team has seen a marked increase in the number of members of Congress speaking directly to constituents through their official Facebook pages," said Andrew Noyes, manager of public policy communications for Facebook.

The number of posts including video or radio snippets also has increased over the past week as lawmakers seek to engage their followers in new ways, Noyes added. As more members speak in front of C-SPAN's cameras, he said, "we fully expect to see the pace of these postings pick up."

All of House Speaker John Boehner's Facebook posts in the past two weeks have articulated his positions on the debt crisis. It's not clear whether they're nudging the needle of public opinion, but they are sparking dialogue: A message by Boehner on Monday drew more than 15,000 comments.

Meanwhile, congressional Democrats have used Facebook to rally opposition to Boehner's debt-ceiling bill. Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, posted a C-SPAN clip of his comments from the House floor, while Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colorado, asked Facebook users to sign his online petition urging Congress to adopt a "sensible" bipartisan solution.

Observers say politicians have embraced social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter because they allow them to communicate directly with constituents without having their messages altered.

"You can convey emotion in a Facebook update or a YouTube video. It offers an authenticity," said Brad Fitch, president of the Congressional Management Foundation, a nonpartisan group dedicated to improving citizen engagement with Congress. 

Read more at http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/social.media/07/29/congress.debt.facebook/

Facebook moves 30-petabyte Hadoop cluster to new data center

Computerworld - As the world's largest social network, Facebook accumulates more data in a single day than many good size companies generate in a year.

Facebook stores much of the data on its massive Hadoop cluster, which has grown exponentially in recent years.

Today the cluster holds a staggering 30 petabytes of data or, as Facebook puts it, about 3,000 times more information than is stored by the Library of Congress. The Facebook data store has grown by more than a third in the past year, the company notes.

To accommodate the surging data volumes, the company earlier this year launched an effort to move the ever-growing Hadoop cluster to a new and bigger Facebook data center in Prineville, Ore. The biggest data migration effort ever at Facebook was completed last month, the company said.

Paul Yang, an engineer with Facebook's data infrastructure team, outlined details of the project this week on the company's blog site. Yang said the migration to the new Facebook data center was necessary because the company had run out of available power and space leaving it unable to add nodes to the Hadoop cluster.

Yang was not immediately available to speak with Computerworld about the effort.

Facebook's experience with Hadoop is likely to be of interest to a growing number of companies that are tapping the Apache open source software to capture and analyze huge volumes of structured and unstructured data.

Much of the Hadoop's appeal lies in its ability to break up very large data sets into smaller data blocks that are then distributed across a cluster of commodity hardware systems for faster processing.

A Ventana Research report released this week showed that a growing number of enterprises have started using Hadoop to collect and analyze huge volumes of unstructured and machine-generated information, such as log and event data, search engine results, and text and multimedia content from social media sites.

Facebook said it uses Hadoop technology to capture and store billions of pieces of content generated by its members daily. The data is analyzed using the open source Apache Hive data warehousing tool set.

Other data-heavy companies using Hadoop in a similar manner include eBay, Amazon and Yahoo. Yahoo is a major contributor of Hadoop code.

Read more at http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9218752/Facebook_moves_30_petabyte_Hadoop_cluster_to_new_data_center?taxonomyId=18

How Social Media is Playing a Pivitol Role in the Debt Ceiling Debate

It used to be Americans would have to either write a letter or set up an appointment over the phone to speak with their Congressman or Senator.

Today, you can reach them with a click of your mouse thanks to social media. From Twitter, iTunes, YouTube and Facebook, Congressional members are burning up the virtual information highway with charts, speeches and comments to let their constituents know where they stand on various issues.

On the flip side, Americans can also challenge or praise their Congressional members in real time. In a world where information is disseminated to the millions with a stroke of a key, it's crucial for those who hold elected offices to get their message right the first time or face negative consequences. And with the crisis of confidence in Congress' ability in raising the debt ceiling and passing real spending cuts, members are out in digital force.

When it comes to the debt ceiling and deficit, Senators from both sides of the aisle are releasing video upon video to break down the problem and show the flow of money in hopes of taking a complicated spending issue and making it easier to understand. Senator Mark Begich (D-Alaska) says using new media is not an option, but a necessity.

"Tools like Facebook, Twitter, or my teletown halls allow Alaskans to share their thoughts on the budget deficit or ask for my help with a federal agency in an instant. It doesn’t matter if someone lives in an urban center like Anchorage or an Arctic community like Barrow, my live chats, Facebook messages and Twitter posts help me hear Alaskans’ concerns or provide an update about Congress around the clock," Begich said. 

Read more at http://www.cnbc.com/id/43942801

Researchers praise Facebook for paying bug bounties

Computerworld - Facebook's move today to follow Google, Mozilla and Hewlett-Packard in offering bounties for bugs got a unanimous thumbs up from security researchers.

A noted vulnerability researcher who has pushed a "No More Free Bugs" concept applauded Facebook's decision.

"It's a great start," said Charlie Miller, a four-time winner at the Pwn2Own hacking contest, and with others, a proponent for researcher rewards. "Moving from paying zero to paying anything is probably the hardest hurdle for companies to get over."

Miller is a principal research consultant for the Denver-based security consulting company Accuvant.

Earlier today, Facebook announced that it will offer a base reward of $500 for each security vulnerability outsiders report via a new portal. Bounties may be higher for significant flaws, but the company has not said what its top-dollar award will be.

Several other bounty programs pay researchers considerably more.

Although HP TippingPoint -- the largest vendor-independent buyer of vulnerabilities -- does not publicly disclose the amounts it pays researchers, others do.

Google, for example, pays up to $3,133 for flaws reported in its Chrome browser and websites and online services. So far this year, Google has laid out over $90,000 to dozens of researchers for scores of vulnerabilities.

Mozilla also pays bounties as high as $3,000 for vulnerabilities in Firefox and several of its online applications, including its Bugzilla bug-tracking database.

Although Facebook's payment rate is significantly less than Google's, Mozilla's or TippingPoint's, the social networking site made a smart decision, said another well-known security researcher.

Read more at http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9218751/Researchers_praise_Facebook_for_paying_bug_bounties

Extremists flocking to Facebook for recruits

LONDON (AP) — When the English Defense League sprang to life two years ago, it had fewer than 50 members — a rough-and-tumble bunch of mostly white guys shouting from a street corner about what they viewed as uncontrolled Muslim immigration.

Now, the far-right group mentioned by confessed Norway gunman Anders Behring Breivik as an inspiration says its ranks have swollen to more than 10,000 people, a spectacular rise its leaders attribute to the immense global power of Facebook and other social networking sites.

"I knew that social networking sites were the way to go," EDL leader Stephen Lennon told The Associated Press. "But to say that we inspired this lunatic to do what he did is wrong. We've never once told our supporters its alright to go out and be violent."

A Facebook page under Breivik's name was taken down shortly after the attacks last week. A Twitter account under his name had only one Tweet, on July 17, loosely citing English philosopher John Stuart Mill: "One person with a belief is equal to the force of 100,000 who have only interests."

Norwegian investigators have pored through data on Breivik's computer and say they now believe he was acting alone. They have also said they haven't found any links of concern between Breivik and far right British groups such as the EDL.

In addition to Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter, the Internet hosts thousands of forums for far-left, far-right and other extremist groups. In Germany alone, far-right groups ran some 1,000 websites and 38 online radio stations as of late last year with many aimed at recruiting followers. Social networking sites, complete with politically charged music, are particularly drawing younger audiences who increasingly get their information outside of traditional media.

Extremists "still favor online chat platforms — often with several hundred participants — but they are increasingly turning to social media," said Germany's Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which called the danger of recruitment "considerable."

Intelligence and law enforcement officials have mixed feelings about the sites. On one hand, they recognize the potential for recruiting groups or individuals into violent movements. On the other, the sites allow officials to track and catch perpetrators. Germany's interior minister, Hans-Peter Friedrich, told local media this week that he's more worried about extremists who go underground and "radicalize in secret."

Most agree that the most violent criminals often give little to no clear warning of the deadly acts they are about to commit, and that sometimes it's difficult to know when a person is simply boasting or whether their online activity suggests they could become killers.

What's undeniable is the social media's power to bring together people with like-minded views.

"Fifty years ago, if you believed that the Earth was populated by spies from Jupiter, it would have taken you quite some time to find someone else who shared the same belief," said Bob Ayers, a London-based former U.S. intelligence official. "That's not the case today. Social networking sites have changed the mathematics of things, and with that change, comes both pros and cons."

Several of the email addresses to which Breivik sent his 1,516-page manifesto hours before the Oslo bombing matched Facebook profiles of people flaunting neo-Nazi or ultra-nationalist symbols.

Those profiles, in turn, were set up to connect with like-minded people. One apparently Italian addressee — whose profile picture shows a swastika, the SS-symbol, and a skull — linked to Facebook groups representing "Fascist Music," the biography of former Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini, as well as firearms.

Read more at http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hFJzp87gvin-JlY-SziENxMsL9GA?docId=b93a87a4ce8a49f299653c72ceac5d13

Microsoft takes jabs at Google

Only a few more hours until the weekend. Hang in there.

This is the afternoon pick-u-up.

A new video from Microsoft is taking a swipe at Google’s GMail service. In it, Microsoft introduces GMail man. He looks like a regular mail carrier, except for the large GMail “M” branded envelopes that he carries and reads to gather keywords for Google’s AdSense service.

According to ZDNet’s Mary-Jo Foley, the video was shown at Microsoft’s Global Exchange sales conference on July 20 and was uploaded to YouTube by ZDNet’s Foley.

A Google spokesperson defended the company’s search and ad-retrieval technique in statement, which read: 
Like most major email services, our computers scan messages to prevent spam and malware. We use similar technology to show ads that are relevant to you—these are triggered by keywords in your e-mails. No human is involved in this process or reading your e-mails.

The video encourages users to jump over to Office365, Microsoft’s bundle of business applications that includes an e-mail service, calendar, and video conferencing service.

However, the video is somewhat misleading. Google does not always crawl the accounts of their Apps for Business program, which is a direct competitor to Office365 and offers many of the same services. Company administrators can choose to turn the text ads off. The spokesperson also pointed to a defense of their GMail service, as posted on Google+ by the company’s president of Enterprise, Dave Girouard




Read more at http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/post/microsoft-takes-jabs-at-google/2011/07/29/gIQA0SWihI_blog.html

Ouch! Google TV Returns Outnumber Sales

Consumers aren’t going as gaga for Google TV as manufacturers had hoped. In fact, people are flocking to return the smart TV set-top box.

Logitech International, maker of the Revue Google TV unit, announced that Revue profits were “slightly negative” last quarter as more people returned the device than purchased it.

In response, Logitech said it is going to drop the price of the Revue from $250 (a price cut from the original price of $300) to $100.

“We launched Revue with the expectation that it would generate significant sales growth in spite of a relatively high price point and the newness of both the smart TV category and the underlying platform,” Logitech chairman Guerrino De Luca said in a conference call on Thursday. “In hindsight, there are a number of things we should have done differently.”

Google TV is available through Logitech’s set-top box and a Sony HDTV and Blu-ray player. It provides access to the internet, live television programming, on-demand programming, recorded shows, pay TV, and online video clips. When Google announced Google TV last summer, the launch was surrounded with praise and positivity: smart TVs are the future of television; Google TV put Apple TV to shame. But Google TV was soon plagued by problems from major broadcast networks, preventing their content from being streamed by the set-top box and opposing a legislative proposal that would provide Google TV with easy access to cable content.

Google is not the only player in the space — there are plenty of ways to turn your TV into a web-connected powerhouse, but some are just more convenient or more fleshed out than others. For instance, LG has a similar smart TV upgraded set-top box, and Yahoo! and Samsung also have web-integrated TV offerings.

Hopefully, Logitech’s lowered price point will help spur consumer adoption of the Revue. Other set-top boxes, like the Roku box, fall in the $100 price range, a pricing level most people are better able to swallow than the close to $300 the Revue was selling at.

“There was a significant gap between our price and the value perceived by the consumer,” De Luca said during the conference call.

It’s not totally clear why users were returning the unit. In Wired.com’s roundup of HDTV streamers, the Logitech Revue came out on top, despite its hefty price tag. However, Geekdad felt that the Boxee Box was easier to use for the average consumer. The Revue was said to be the more intriguing option “if you’re a tech-head.” De Luca posited that “Google TV has not yet fully delivered to its own promises.” And perhaps, in such a tight economy, customers just felt they weren’t getting their money’s worth.

“Google TV has a number of issues beyond the demand for Internet connected televisions. There is a lot that needs to be sorted out for this type of platform to succeed and the issues are centered around business models more than around technology,” says Van Baker, Research Vice President for Gartner.

Google plans to update the Google TV software later this year.

Read more at http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/07/google-tv-not-selling/

Nortel Patent Probe Picks Up

WASHINGTON—The Justice Department is intensifying an investigation into whether tech giants including Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Research in Motion Ltd. could use a recently acquired trove of patents to unfairly hobble competing smartphones using Google Inc.'s Android software, according to people familiar with the matter.

A consortium of six companies last month paid $4.5 billion to acquire a portfolio of 6,000 patents auctioned by the bankrupt Canadian telecom equipment maker Nortel Networks Corp., thwarting Google's interest.

The final amount, five times Google's original $900 million "stalking horse" bid, stunned observers and raised concerns about how the consortium intended to ...

Read more at  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903635604576476430510833852.html#ixzz1TXgFpE4d