Google+Facebook+iPhone: 07/22/12

Sunday, 22 July 2012

Could these be Apple's ads apologizing to Samsung?

Judge Colin Birss seems to have character. First, he declared that Samsung couldn't possibly have copied the iPad because Samsung's products are simply "not as cool."

This week, though, he ordered Apple to run ads on its UK Web site and in advertisements in British newspapers saying that Samsung wasn't a copycat.

There seems to be no firm direction, though, as to the actual copy of these ads. So I thought I'd give Apple a little help.

These are a little unpolished, but I hope they serve to offer the company some positive direction.

Ad No. 1

Apple, Samsung Chiefs Fail to Settle Out of Court

Apple chief Tim Cook and Samsung Electronics vice chairman Choi Gee-sung met for a second time behind closed doors to put an end to their patent battle in nine countries but failed to reach agreement. A senior industry insider on Friday said Choi and Cook met in San Francisco on July 16 but parted without agreement.

The two giant firms can no longer avoid a trial in the U.S. scheduled for July 30.

The meeting was arranged at the orders of Judge Lucy Koh of the Northern District Court of California. The two CEOs will meet again in court.

Since Apple launched its first lawsuit against Samsung in April last year, the two firms have been in legal confrontation in nine countries including Korea, Germany, and the U.S. in over 30 cases. The trial starting on July 30 affects only in the U.S., but since that is the world's largest market and Apple's home turf, the outcome will have considerable ripple effects.

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 benchmarks leak: it's very fast

Leaked benchmarks suggest the Note 2 could leave the Galaxy SIII in the dust

While Samsung's Galaxy SIII undoubtedly impresses on a number of levels, we'll always have a love for theGalaxy Note, with that amazingly huge screen and stylus combination.

The rumours of the Galaxy Note 2 (aka the GT-N7100) doing the rounds suggest that Samsung will up the screen size to 5.5in and pack in the same processor as the SIII. Currently, those in the know suggest the Note 2 will be annouced in August. A new twist, however, comes from some leaked benchmarks that suggest the clock speed on the Note 2 will be faster, actually letting it out-perform the Galaxy SIII.

Samsung’s also announced a US event on August 15. Consider how late America got the SIII compared to Australia, could a quick launch on the Note 2 into that region be a peace offering?

Samsung: Apple Refused to Negotiate to License 3G Patents

Samsung Electronics accused Apple of refusing to enter into negotiations to license essential 3G patents included in the iPhone and iPad during the first day of their patent trial on Monday in Federal Court in Sydney.

In Australia, Apple filed suit against Samsung in July 2011, alleging that the company's Galaxy tablet infringed on patents related to touchscreen technology. Samsung subsequently filed a cross-claim against Apple, claiming violation of three 3G data transmission patents in Apple's iPhone 4 and 4S models and second iPad model.

Monday's hearing focused on two of the three patents -- Australian patents No. 2005202512 and No. 2006241621 -- that Samsung alleges Apple has violated. The two patents deal with power control and the format of packet headers used for 3G data transmissions. The court will address patent No. 2005239657, which deals with rate matching patterns used in data transmission, in August.

Galaxy S3 sales top 10 million in less than two months

Samsung’s 2012 flagship device, the Galaxy S3, is doing a lot better when it comes to overall sales than its predecessors – sure, the comparison is not necessarily fair since from year to year we’re seeing more and more people dumping regular cell phones and feature phones in favor of smartphones. Hence, it makes sense to see the Galaxy S3 sell better than the 2011 Galaxy S2, which itself did better than the original 2010 Galaxy S.

The smartphone environment is dominated by the iPhone and by the Galaxy S flagship devices – when it comes to single device sales – in that order. While no Android maker managed to match Apple’s sales of a single handset, the Galaxy S3 is probably the first smartphone that will attempt to do it.

A new report now reveals that Samsung has already sold over 10 million Galaxy S3 units, after less than two months since its launch – the handset was first released in the UK on May 29.

Compete Report: Google Nexus 7

You’ve probably read that the Google Nexus 7 is the first credible challenger to Apple’s iPad and that it is markedly superior to other 7-inch Android tablets currently in the market. That’s not what I’ve found. Instead, the Nexus 7 is a solid, capable media tablet and a nice, Google-oriented alternative to the Amazon Kindle Fire if you’re looking for such a thing.

To me, reviewer reaction to the Nexus 7 was reminiscent of reviewer reaction to Windows Phone 7.5: Rather than admit that they were wrong about the products’ respective predecessors (Windows Phone 7, of course, and the Kindle Fire and other 7-inch Android tablets like the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus), they just pretend that, finally, magically, this time someone got it right. But that’s not the case at all. There’s nothing wrong with the Nexus 7, nothing at all, assuming you’re OK with this sort of device. But it’s also not demonstrably better than the Kindle Fire or Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus that I’ve used quite a bit over the past year.

Sorry.

It’s newer, of course, and runs a newer Android software version. It has a sharp and slightly higher resolution screen than its predecessors. It gets slightly better battery life. Positives, to be sure. None of them earth shattering.

Seven defends grieving family report

SEVEN News has denied broadcasting images of a mother hugging her daughter's body after she was killed riding a quad bike.

A statement from Chris Willis, the director of news for Channel Seven in Sydney, also apologised for removing comments about the video from its Facebook page, claiming the deletion was in error.

A social media storm erupted overnight on Seven’s Facebook page after the mother of a teenager who died called Seven “bastards” for intruding on her grief.

Molly Jean Lord, 13 died after a freak quad bike accident earlier this month on the family property at Kembla Grange in NSW.

Mrs Goldspink-Lord left this comment on Seven’s Facebook page and it attracted more than 32,000 Likes and 2000 comments.

“I am the mother of the beautiful Molly Lord who was killed on a quad bike last week. I would just like to let everyone know of the pain and harassment we suffered as a result of channel 7.

"A reporter was on our private property very soon after the accident and whilst Molly was still on the ground. He walked up to the house down to the stables anywhere looking for a story.

"I went outside at some point to go to her horse for some comfort when the channel 7 helicopter flew above me trying to get footage.

"My husband was overseas at the time of the accident but footage of myself sitting with my deceased daughter was put on the channel 7 website for the world to see before I had even told all of my family.

"Channel 7 you are a disgrace and what should have been a private moment between a mother and [her] daughter was exploited for the sake of an exclusive story. You bastards.”

But the anger only grew when Seven removed her comment, and people copied and pasted it all over the site.

Facebook Efforts on Advertising Face a Day of Judgment

SAN FRANCISCO — In the race for digital advertising dollars, Google has been the clear winner, with its ability to customize advertisements based on what you search for. But Facebook, which customizes ads based on who you and your friends are, hopes to be a contender. An important test of how it is doing will come on Thursday, when it releases its first earnings numbers since going public.

The stakes could not be higher. Facebook made its initial public offering in May with an eye-poppingly high valuation, but its share price has plummeted since then. Advertising, largely in the United States, accounts for the bulk of its revenue, and the company is under intense pressure to show that it is growing fast enough to justify its high value.

In short, to please Wall Street, Facebook must first curry favor with Madison Avenue, and it is scrambling to do just that.

“Advertisers need more proof that actual advertising on Facebook offers a return on investment,” said Debra Aho Williamson, an analyst with the market research firm eMarketer. “There is such disagreement over whether Facebook is the next big thing on the Internet or whether it’s going to fail miserably.”

iPhone 5 release date: New information about the features of iPhone 5 arrive

For Apple fans, the launch of the iPhone 5proves to be very exciting. Although, iPhonelovers are increasingly losing patience over theiPhone 5 release date rumors. It will probably not be long now until we get concrete information about the iPhone 5, and if the actual presentation will be 07 August 2012.

There are many indications of a release of the iPhone 5 that day. Other analysts assume that Apple will stick to a publication date in the fall of 2012.

Earlier reports suggest Apple is currently at the stage of "Engineering Verification Test", abbreviated EVT. This test is now in the third phase. Following the EVT, Apple traditionally follows with the "Design Verification Test" (DVT). If these tests are completed successfully, production can start.

There have also been reports that mass production has already been started.

Permanent IMEI Unlock For AT&T iPhone Available Now

For some users, the process of jailbreaking or unlocking an iPhone is just too complicated. Imagine how complicated it must be to develop these jailbreaks and unlocks. Developing an unlock for iPhone has its ups and downs. A certain unlock solution might not be compatible with new firmware that brings a new baseband. AT&T iPhone users have something to be happy about. Applenberry has come up with apermanent IMEI unlock solution for those iPhones that are locked on AT&T’s network.

Applenberry has made quite a name for itself in the unlocking circuit. They have released several interposers in the past which have allowed hardware based unlock on devices that had higher basebands not unlockable through ultrasn0w. They are a legitimate name in this business. This newpermanent IMEI unlock service for AT&T iPhones that they have come out with does not depend on specific iOS firmware version or baseband.

Furthermore any iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S locked to AT&T’s network can be permanently unlocked through IMEI using this new service. iOS firmware versions or basebands do not matter. Since this unlock is permanent it won’t fail to work when the iPhone is restored to new firmware or the baseband is upgraded. Such was the problem with interposers which would fail to work if the iOS firmware version was changed to one that was not supported by said interposer.
Read more...

New iPhone Apps: Vyclone, Checkmark, And More

Checkmark: It’s so easy to forget those mundane things you have to do every day — pick up the dry cleaning, wash the car, drop off a prescription. Checkmark, however, is a location-based reminders app that will send you a notification based on where you are, so you never have an excuse to space on your errands. $0.99

Vyclone: The day after a party, you end up comparing all your pics with your friends. But what if you could combine a bunch of video clips taken by a bunch of people into one movie? Vyclone lets you do that, from every perspective. Free

Brewster: There are about a dozen ways you can get a hold of someone, which makes for a messy address book. organisation on your own is tedious, but Brewster pulls together all of your contacts from Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, your address book, and more into one place. It’s not available in the Australian iTunes Store yet, so break out your US accounts if you’ve got ‘em. Free

History Here: This is a good one to download for any trips you might be taking this summer. Using your phone’s GPS, it gives you relevant historical facts about thousands of places across the U.S. as you pass through them. So when you’re walking the streets of New York you can say “hey! that’s where Teddy Roosevelt lived!” It’s not available in the Australian iTunes Store yet, so break out your US accounts if you’ve got ‘em. Free

Dark Knight Rises Z+: Just in time for the release of the final instalment of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy comes an augmented audio app that makes you feel like you’ve been dropped in the middle of Gotham City. Listen to the Hans Zimmer-penned soundtrack, hear unreleased and exclusive tracks, and commentary from both Nolan and the aforementioned composer. Free

iPhone 5 needs efficient battery for bigger display

We know first hand what the Apple iPhone 4S and the Samsung Galaxy S3 has to offer when it comes to screen sizes and of course battery power, it seems Samsung has the winning formula when it comes to providing a substantial viewing area but yet not too big that it is cumbersome to carry around, yet the iPhone 4S in our eyes is a tad too small after using the SGS3, This leaves us asking the question of “What can Apple do to counter strike the Sammy handset?”

Please do not get us wrong, the iPhone 4S is a very good smartphone and we use one on a daily basis, it is a perfect phone for both pleasure and business, yet we still carry the Samsung Galaxy S3 with us as well because we like many other consumers like change. We are not here to be biased, we are here to let you know what Apple needs to do to, and to keep customers intrigued.

Lets talk about the display size and the battery on Apple devices, the iPad 3 aka New iPad that was released this year and came with a 2048×1536 Retina display, and because of this Apple needed to add a more powerful battery to counter the power within, this surely will happen with the iPhone 5, will Apple think about implementing of Li-ion batteries in its new model?

Apple heads into choppy waters as new iPhone awaited

(Reuters) - Apple Inc faces an unusual phenomenon when reporting earnings this time around: low expectations.

Few are expecting the world's most valuable technology company -- which surpasses Wall Street expectations with near regularity -- to deliver a bumper quarter once more on Tuesday.

The main reason: consumers holding out for the new iPhone.

Apple may still surprise market watchers, but many Wall Street analysts and investors remember how chatter over the launch of a new iPhone last year caused Apple to miss quarterly expectations in the fall, for the first time in years.

The iPhone 5 is only expected to hit store shelves around October -- just in time for the holidays -- with a thinner, larger screen and fine-tuned search features. Couple that pre-launch lull with slowdowns in Europe and China, Apple's biggest markets outside of North America, and sentiment on the Wall Street darling is more muted than many can remember in a while.

"No longer is Apple the company that beats every time," said Tim Lesko, portfolio manager at Granite Investment Advisors, which owns Apple stock. "I expect Apple to beat Apple's guidance, but I don't know whether they will beat Wall Street's guidance."

iPhone 5 release date rumors: 4S sales expected to drop as iPhone 5 launch nears

As the time-frame for the rumored iPhone 5 release date nears, several rumors have begun to report a decline in iPhone 4S sales. The lack of 5th generation Apple smartphone sales is said to be due to the expected launched of the technology companies 6th generation model. However the 4S launched back in October, so is a sales decline due toiPhone 5 rumors, or is it because the current model has been out for nearly ten months?

According to Market Watch, a note to clients from Goldman Sachs' Bill Shope said “While multiple quarters of sequential declines in iPhone units would normally be expected to pressure Apple’s stock, we suspect the window for the bears is limited by the imminent iPhone 5 product cycle and already prudent near-term investor expectations,”

Most Apple fans who want the 4S have already purchased the device months ago, and are simply waiting for confirmation of when the newer model is going to drop. So many release rumors have been swirling around the Internet, so its often hard to discern what information is most accurate. Obviously no one knows for sure until Apple announces new hardware, but most fans are confident thenew iPhone release date will happen by October, and that the device will have a bigger display screen, and more RAM.

Google Samsung’s Galaxy SIII sales going gangbusters: 10+m sold!

It’s only been around two months since Samsung launched its attempt not only at “killing” the iPhone 4S but the iPhone 5 to come, and while there are those who wish to iWait, 10+ million people have done the Fandroid dance by going Samsung – and Google.

On top of an expected AUD $5.7 billion in “operating profit” for the second quarter of 2012, Samsung has announced intergalactic levels of sales performance for its flagship Galaxy SIII handset.

The head of Samsung’s mobile comms division, J.K. Shin, spoke of sales “appearing” to “exceed 10 million units” as reported by AFP.

The SIII has certainly managed to provide solid competition to HTC’s own range of One-series smartphones, also designed to not only outclass the iPhone 4S, but take on whatever Apple has planned for the iPhone 5, due within the next three months, too.

Samsung records robust sales of latest smartphone

SEOUL—South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, the world’s top smartphone maker, has sold more than 10 million units of its newest Galaxy S III model since its launch about two months ago, a report said Sunday.

The company said earlier this month it expected a record operating profit of 6.7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in the second quarter, boosted by strong sales of its flagship Galaxy smartphones.

The Korean firm, which is battling with Apple’s iPhone and iPad for supremacy in the lucrative smartphone and tablet market, has seen heavy demand for its new Galaxy S III phone, which was introduced in Europe in May.

“It appears that it (accumulated sales) has exceeded 10 million units,” said J.K. Shin, head of the Samsung’s mobile communications division, according to Yonhap news agency.

Shin said last month he expected the global sales of the new phone – available in more than 140 countries – would surpass 10 million by the end of July, including sales of about a million units at home.

Nissan will start building Rogue in Korea to meet U.S. demand

Nissan already announced that production of the next-generation Rogue crossover will shift to its Smyrna, Tennessee facility, but apparently, that won't be enough. In a new statement, the Renault-Nissan Alliance confirms that Rogue models will also be built at the Renault Samsung facility in Busan, South Korea.

The current Rogue, pictured above, is built in Japan. The next-generation Rogue is set to launch sometime in the next year as part of Nissan's new-product onslaught.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance plans to invest $160 million in its Busan facility to accommodate production of the new Rogue. According to the company, Busan will produce around 80,000 Rogues annually – that's in addition to the estimated 100,000 to 120,000 Rogues that will come out of Tennessee.

Samsung Gets Ready to Bring Jelly Bean to Galaxy S II and S III

Samsung is reportedly already preparing the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update for the Galaxy S III smartphone, and possibly the S II, as well. Exactly when users can expect this is still, however, unclear at present. Sammobile reports that the Galaxy S III smartphone could be getting it around August to September this year. Naturally, this device would be prioritized as it is the South Korean company’s current flagship phone.

That said, the Samsung Galaxy S II is still considered to be a hot item, and Samsung allegedly already had success in testing the latest update to the Android OS on the phone. If all goes according to plan, users of the Samsung Galaxy S II could also soon be enjoying Android Jelly Bean.

It is speculated that the Jelly Bean update will be available first on international versions of the S III that are unlocked. Thus, those using the S III that are locked to carriers in the United States might have to wait a little longer to enjoy the new features that Android Jelly Bean has to offer.
Read more at http://thedroidguy.com/2012/07/samsung-gets-ready-to-bring-jelly-bean-to-galaxy-s-ii-and-s-iii/#dOO4c4jCccdk0lLH.99

Samsung-Apple Global Patent Fight Moves to Australia Trial

Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc. (AAPL) (AAPL), in a global dispute over phone and tablet designs and wireless transmission technology, began a trial in Australia today in a prelude to proceedings in the U.S. and U.K.

Apple has accused Samsung of stealing its design ideas in computer tablets and phones. Samsung has countersued, claiming Apple has infringed three of its patents covering data- transmission. The two companies are scheduled to argue their cases before Australian Federal Court Justice Annabelle Bennett in Sydney until mid October.

Samsung, the biggest maker of smartphones, and Apple, the largest seller of tablet computers, are fighting for an increased share of a handset market that Bloomberg Industries said was worth $312 billion last year. Apple has won a ban on the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy 10.1 tablet in the U.S. and failed to win a ban in the U.K., pending patent infringement trials in those countries.

Big Obama Donor, Google's Marissa Mayer to Rake in Millions as New Yahoo! Chief

Former Google Vice President Marissa Mayeris set to rake in a million dollars a year and more than ten times that in stock options if she can stick it out for three years as the new Yahoo! chief executive.

As the announcement of Mayer's ascension to the position broke, industry watchers learned that, along with her $1 million per year salary, she will get a $2 million per year cash bonus if the Internet company reaches earnings goals. She will also get $12 million in Yahoo! stock after a three year vestment period not to mention a $30 million one-time award of stock after a five-year vestment.

Mayer will also reportedly get a $14 million bonus of stock to make up for compensation she'll lose as a top Google employee. Mayer was one of the earliest employees Google hired.

Google Now: There’s A Fine Line Between Cool And Creepy

There’s something very cool about Google Now, which the company announced at its I/O developer conference a few weeks ago. At the same time, though, Now also has the potential to become Google’s creepiest service yet. Here is what it does (assuming you opt in to the service and have a phone or tablet that runs Jelly Bean): Google Now learns from your search behavior and shows you cards with information you regularly search for (think game scores of your favorite teams, flight schedules) or that could be relevant to you because of your current location, including weather, nearby restaurants, schedules for the next bus station, how long it’s going to take you to drive home and currency information if it finds you are in a different country. It also uses a whimsical theme to highlight the time of day and where you are (it showed an image of Sydney’s Opera House, for example, when I was there a few weeks ago).

All of this could easily scream “invasion of privacy.” After all, this is one of the few Google services that really reveal how much the company really knows about you. The reason why it doesn’t quite feel like that yet is because of the limitations of the service. There is so much more Google could do with this service, but it almost feels as if Google deliberately kept some features back for the time being to ensure that users (or at least those few lucky ones who have access to a Jelly Bean device) can get used to how it works before adding more tools.

The Lesson of Google's Safari Hack

In the cyber age, privacy and security are two sides of the same coin. Digital privacy concerns can't be separated from security ones, and vice versa. That's why the government's response to "Safarigate"—in which Google hacked a popular Web browser, changing users' settings without their knowledge—is troubling.

In announcing recently that it would settle claims against Google in the case, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) addressed concerns about consumer privacy. But it failed to recognize the deeper problem that an invasion of privacy is often a security breach.

Users of the Safari Web browser (an Apple product) know that its ...

Google Nexus S Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: Live In Some Places, Not In Australia

Quite recently we were happy to report that the highly anticipated Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update has been rolled-out on some Samsung Galaxy Nexus models, and that a handful of other devices will follow shortly after. One of the gadgets expected to also get JB in a timely matter is the Motorola Xoom (click for the Android 4.1 -Xoom related article), and of course the Nexus S.

Google Nexus S Jelly Bean (Android 4.1)
Concerning the latter, a few days ago news came in from Vodafone Australia that the Nexus S will receive the Jelly Bean goodness on July 19th. However, things have taken a wrong turn and the roll-out process has been halted. Check back after the break for more details, and what to expect.

We know how eager Nexus S owners are to get their hands on the Jelly Bean goodness, but you might need to wait just a bit longer before you do so. However, things are not looking too grim.

Google it: Chick-fil-A boycotts Sundays so gays can eat more beef?

Media, same-sex marriage advocates (named Ed only?) get louder even as their cause loses state electoral contests

Two months ago, North Carolina voters rubbed their tar heels in the same-sex marriage movement's face and becoming the 31st state to pass a constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage (If only President Barack Obama had "evolved" sooner?). Ten other states have statutes defining marriage as exclusively a union between one man and one woman. Six states and the District of Columbia now issue marriage licences to same sex couples, but a majority of voters of no state has ever approved of the practice.

It turns out that one member of the vast majority of Americans that agrees with 88% of the states is Dan Cathy, president of Atlanta-based fast-food giant, Chick-fil-A:

With Google's Nexus 7 rising, Microsoft needs to 'Surface'

It's probably an understatement to say that Microsoft is in a hurry to release Windows 8 and the Surface tablets that run on top of it.

Enough of a hurry that Redmond, on Wednesday, needed to make sure you knew that Windows 8 will arrive by October 26.

I'm guessing the Surface products won't be too far behind.

With Google Nexus 7 on the rise, Microsoft wants to (let's call it a hunch) get in the game before consumers begin focusing too much attention on Android.

Android, you know, the OS that seemed to be stuck in neutral on tablets. Until the $199 Nexus 7 arrived. Now, apparently, Google can't make enough of them.

Google's Q2 Revenue Up 35%, Thanks in Part to Motorola

Google said Thursday that the company's revenue in the second quarter grew 35 percent year-over-year to $12.2 billion and rose 15 percent in comparison with the prior three-month period -- boosted in part by the contribution of revenue from the company's new Motorola Mobility business .

Minus Motorola's contribution, Google's revenue rose 21 percent year-over-year, but only grew 3 percent in comparison with the company's revenue in the first quarter of 2012.

Google did not complete its acquisition of Motorola Mobility until May 22, so the company's new mobile division only made a partial contribution to Google's latest quarterly results, Google CFO Patrick Pichette told investors on Thursday. During this so-called "stub period," Pichette said, Motorola generated $1.3 billion in revenue overall.

"Our mobile devices revenue for that period was $843 million, encouraged by the strength of the North American Verizon franchise driven by the RAZR MAXX sales," Pichette said. On the other hand, Google also saw "weaker revenues driven by the declining international sales of feature phones and mid-tier smartphones."

Nexus 7 screen irks users - but Google customer service annoys

Complaints are multiplying online about quality issues with the new Google Nexus 7 tablet, with a number of people complaining about "loose screens" which bleed light from the edges or move when touched. Some of those who have had problems say Google has been slow to respond to their concerns.

Reports of "loose screens" have begun occurring almost since the devices first arrived. Some users have complained that the touchscreen glass is slightly lifted around the edge of the device. In some cases that means that light seems to "bleed" into the display of a page, while others have said it means the screen actually moves.

In a post on the Android Central forums, a user called psycho9x reported that "Just got [my] N7 yesterday and I love it BUT I have noticed that the glass on the left side is separating from the case… When you look at it from the side you can see the glass sticking up a bit and when you push it back down you can hear the adhesive grab on then it lets go. I haven't even had it for 12 hours yet."

Facebook breaks its lobbying record in Q2 2012

Facebook has once again significantly increased its budget for wooing politicians. The social network giant spent $960,000 on lobbying in the second quarter of 2012, the transition quarter during which the company went public. This is up exactly 200 percent from the $320,000 the company spent in the first quarter of 2011, and up 47.69 percent from the $650,000 it spent in the fourth quarter of 2012.

As you can see in the chart below, Facebook has been lobbying since 2009 but only cranked up the gears last year. In fact, 2011 was the first year Facebook spent more than $1 million for lobbying. To put the latest numbers into perspective, Facebook spent almost $1 million this past quarter alone, and in the first half of 2012 ($1.61 million) it has already blown past its total 2011 expenses ($1.35 million):

Facebook's 16-page lobbying report for the second quarter of 2012 (PDF) lists the following specific lobbying issues:

Mystery of suspect James Holmes’ missing Facebook account

(CBS News) “I am not a 24-year-old gun-slinging killer from Aurora,” James P. Holmes wrote on Facebook Friday morning.

Holmes is a Denver man who shares first and last names with the suspect in the deadly shooting that took place at a midnight screening of the latest Batman movie just hours before, James Eagan Holmes.

As the investigation got under way in the shooting at the “The Dark Knight Rises” premiere, in which 70 members of the estimated 300-seat crowd were killed or injured, those looking for clues to make sense of it all went online for a digital footprint for the suspect – to no avail.

It appears that the suspect Holmes is not on any social networks – at least not under his legal name. The picture of Holmes that has been painted is not much different than a typical, perhaps disenchanted college student.

This is what we know about James Eagan Holmes: He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from the University of California, Riverside, and was about to drop out of graduate school at University of Colorado, Denver. The reasons why Holmes would get dressed in all black, a ballistic helmet and tactical gloves and walk into that AMC Theater early Friday morning and open fire on innocent people remain a mystery.

Facebook braces itself for disastrous first quarter losses since IPO valued company at $100bn

Facebook is expected to post losses when it declares its first quarterly earnings this week since going public.

The technology giant's disappointing performance follows on from one of the most closely watched initial public offerings of all time in May.

Since being launched, however, Facebook shares have fallen in value and closed on Friday at $28.76 (£22.38) - almost $10 below their initial price.

Market observers are awaiting Thursday's declaration with interest to see how investors feel about the stock since a mostly disappointing start.

More than half of the 36 financial analysts dealing with shares in the company do not rate Facebook as a 'Buy' - historically the threshold needed to encourage investors on Wall Street to part with their funds.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2177273/Facebook-ready-face-losses-declares-quarterly-earnings-IPO-valued-company-100bn.html#ixzz21NiT1S1X

FACEBOOK CAMPAIGN URGES CHRISTIAN BALE TO VISIT AURORA VICTIMS DRESSED AS BATMAN

There's a Facebook campaign afoot to do something positive in the wake of Friday'sDark Knight Rises massacre which left 12 people dead and nearly 60 injured: a user is asking Christian Bale to don his Batman costume and visit injured children hospitalized after the Aurora, Colorado shooting.

The campaign, which seems to have originated from the account of user Jonathan Jared Adams, reads:

Hey Facebook, I have an idea ... All those kids in the hospital recovering from gunshot wounds at the Batman massacre could use a visit from their hero. I propose we (as in all of Facebook) should make enough noise asking Christian Bale to visit these kids in the hospital dressed in the real Batman outfit. They need to know heroes can be real, too, not just the bad guys. Not asking anything fancy from you, if you read this, share it on your wall. If you want to go the extra mile, post it in other sites as well. Show the kids there really are heroes.

"Dear Christian Bale, please visit the injured children from the movie massacre as Batman. You have the power to be a hero right now —not a movie hero, a real flesh and blood one. Sincerely, Everyone"

'Facebook freeze' ends as 2 tech stocks begin trading

SAN JOSE, CALIF. - More than two months after Facebook's much-hyped initial public offering led to a botched first day of trading and a descending stock price for the world's most popular social network, Wall Street's IPO business seems to be returning to health.

Two tech companies debuted in the market Friday, double the number of major tech companies that have traversed the IPO process since Facebook, and both saw shares jump in the first day of trading.

Only four companies total went public in the entire month of June. But two companies made their debut on Thursday, and two tech companies followed the same route Friday.

Network security company Palo Alto Networks follows a formula that has been consistently popular with investors in the past year: Develop a strong enterprise software offering, and quickly grow your revenue.

The company certainly behaved as if its IPO found a strong following during its road show, increasing the price range for shares Wednesday, then pricing its shares even higher on Thursday, at $42 apiece.

In Twitter-era Olympics, athletes must dodge the distractions

LONDON – Hello (at)Twitter world!!! I'm at (hash)Olympics. Shd be training not tweeting ... LOL

Laugh if you like, but there was a bit of a buzz Friday about athletes risking their medal chances with every "tweet" and "like" on Twitter and Facebook.

"I have found quite a close correlation between the number of tweets at competitive times and the level of under-performance," said Sebastian Coe, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in the 1,500 meters and the head organizer of what is being dubbed the "Social Media Games."

"From a personal perspective, when I was an athlete I just wanted complete and total focus," he said. "I knew it was my time and that they don't come around that often. If I was focusing on trying to defend a title I wouldn't be reading Twitter, I wouldn't be interested in it. Why would I?"

British tennis star Andy Murray echoed those sentiments.

"You don't want to be on it (Twitter) too much," Murray said Friday. "It's a bit like sitting on a computer 20 minutes, 30 minutes before your match. You wouldn't be advised to do that. The same applies with tweeting or mobile phones, I would have thought."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2012/07/22/twitter-olympics-beware-distractions/#ixzz21Nh9etOT

Rdio Android app gets major update with UI tweaks and extended search results

Spotify, Pandora, Rdio and Music Unlimited. These are probably the most well-known and popular music subscription services available globally, and they are currently involved in a take no prisoners battle that can only benefit the regular music-loving tech-savvy user.

But while the competition should get the best out of online music streaming, there are still a few areas where neither service has managed to reach perfection. We are talking, of course, about the still steep subscription fees and the services’ sometimes-buggy mobile apps.

On the first front, there hasn’t been much movement recently and it almost seems like the competitors are in evil cahoots to keep the price bar high, but as far as that second inconvenience goes, we are noticing quite the involvement from the highly acclaimed streaming services.

No less than two of the “Big Four” have pushed some much awaited and appreciated updates to Android in the past couple of days or so, with Rdio quickly following Music Unlimited’s suite (or the other way around). Although we don’t want to compare apples and oranges, seeing as the two updates don’t have much in common, we have to say that Rdio seems to have put a bit more effort into the new Android app than Sony did in its Music Unlimited update.

Free dementia app now available on Android

The world's first mobile application aimed at reducing people's dementia risk is now available for Android phone users.

BrainyApp, which was developed by Alzheimer's Australia and Bupa Health Foundation, has been downloaded more than 200,000 times worldwide since it was made available for iPhone and iPad in November last year.

Alzheimer's Australia national president Ita Buttrose said Android phone users had inundated the organisation with requests to access the mobile app since its launch.

"We have had enquiries from people and other Alzheimer's associations from around the world, including The Netherlands, South Africa, Mexico and Iceland, wanting to know when the Android version will be available," she said in a statement on Monday.

"It is extremely encouraging to see that so many people want to make active lifestyle changes to reduce their risk of developing dementia."

ASUS has issued a notice to its customers to assure that its Transformer range of tablets will be equipped with thelatest version of Android.

The manufacturer which built the Nexus 7 tablet on behalf of Google says the popular Transformer Prime,Transformer Pad and Transformer Pad Infinity are all in-line for the Jelly Bean upgrade.

Although owners of the lesser-known Transformer Slide and the first Transformer tablet are not immediately scheduled for the software refit, they may get it at a later time.

The company, which was among the first to bring Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich to tablets, says adding the latest software reaffirms its commitment to its 'design thinking' philosophy.

iPhone app developed at U-M helps track skin cancer

A new iPhone application developed at the University of Michigan Health System helps users monitor changes in their skin over time as a self-screening for cancer.

The app, named UMSkinCheck, is free and available for download to iPhones and iPads from iTunes. Just a week after it was released to the market July 10, the app already has broken the top 10 of free apps offered in the "Medical" category.

In doctor’s offices, whole-body photography is used to track patients at risk for melanoma.

“However, it requires a professional photographer, is not always covered by insurance, and can be an inconvenience,” said Dr. Michael Sabel, lead physician in the development of the app and an associate professor of surgery at the U-M Medical School.

“Now that many people have digital cameras on their phones, it’s more feasible to do this at home,” Sabel said in a statement.

The app instructs users to take a series of 23 photos of different parts of their body from head to toe. Photos are stored within the app, which then sends out automated reminders to repeat the self-exam on a regular basis.

Should the mole or skin lesion change or grow, the user would then be able to share them with a dermatologist.

The app also includes a function for users to calculate their individual risk of skin cancer.

iPhone 5 size credibility

The credibility of Apple’s phone has been proven through amazing growth and sales, which considering we are talking about one phone it is a success story worth admiring. The iPhone 5 has recently been predicted to have 80 million sales lined-up already, if a certain report is to be believed, although we would expect this to be pretty spot on after looking at sales of the 4S model.

The photo above shows the iPhone 4S next to a Samsung Galaxy Note, and this illustrates how the size of the iPhone has kept pretty much the same while other smartphones are growing at each release. One reason a number of users are moving to Samsung is the bigger screen size, and this includes some iPhone users, but Apple know they need to increase the iPhone 5 display size and this is expected but only by a small amount.
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Is It Too Late To Buy An iPhone 4S?

Whenever I meet someone new and say I write about tech for a living, the next question out of his or her mouth is usually:

"When does the next iPhone come out?"

Same goes when I get an email or Facebook message from a family member or close friend I haven't heard from in awhile.

"Hey Steve, I'm thinking about buying a new phone. Should I buy the iPhone now or wait for the next one?"

It seems to be on everyone's mind.

But the answer to whether you should buy a new iPhone now or wait for the next model isn't as simple as "yes" or "no."

All signs point to another October launch for Apple's next iPhone. That means we're just under three months away.

Should you wait that long?

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/should-you-buy-an-iphone-2012-7#ixzz21Nddgi13

iPhone 5 Could Debut in Fourth Quarter, Verizon CFO Hints

Verizon's chief financial officer hints of a "big smartphone" release in the fourth quarter, what many assume to be Apple's new iPhone.

The latest version of Apple's popular iPhone smartphone may be released in the fourth quarter of this year, Verizon chief financial officer Fran Shammohinted during the company's quarterly conference call on Thursday. Shammo dropped the hint during the question and answer section of the call, referencing a “big smartphone” release the company expected in that time period.

Rumors have been running rampant on the release of the new iPhone, colloquially referred to as the iPhone 5, with some pegging the release date as soon as August, but the wide majority of reports putting the release sometime in September or October. Several blogs recently reported that the new iPhone was already in production, and Taobao, China's largest e-commerce site, is already offering the device for sale as a preorder, complete with renderings of what the phone will look like, alongside technical specifications, according to a report last week from Reuters.

MacOS KenDensed: The Apple, Moto & Samsung Love-fest

Apple likes EPEAT again, Motorola’s Xoom won a small victory in Germany, analysts are all hot and bothered over the iPhone, a U.K. Judge wants Apple to give Samsung some promotional love, and the media wants to rename your smartphone. Mac OS Ken’s Ken Ray takes on all of those topics and Rob Enderle, too.

Apple to EPEAT: Let’s Kiss & Make Up
Apple is giving EPEAT a bit of a repeat. In one of the company’s fastest reversals in recent memory, Apple has returned all eligible products to the EPEAT environmental certification program.

In a letter posted in the “environment” section of the company’swebsite, departing Senior VP of Hardware Engineering Bob Mansfield said, “We’ve recently heard from many loyal Apple customers who were disappointed to learn that we had removed our products from the EPEAT rating system. I recognize that this was a mistake. Starting today, all eligible Apple products are back on EPEAT.”

And then they put one in that seems to not be a qualifying product, that being the MacBook Pro with Retina Display. And they gave it a gold star to boot.

Samsung Galaxy S3 64GB will arrive this year

Samsung has confirmed the 64GB model of its Galaxy S3smartphone will be released later this year.

The Korean hardware giant has cleared up some confusion floating around suggesting the model might have been ditched all together. When is does arrive the Galaxy S3 will match the storage capacities available on the Apple iPhone. See also: Samsung Galaxy S3 vs Apple iPhone 4S comparison review.

Samsung said: "The 64GB model of the Galaxy S III will be available during the second half of this year. The market availability and timing may vary and will be determined at the time."

Samsung Galaxy S3, S2 and Note Android Jelly Bean update tipped

July 22, 2012, 6:45 A.M. New York local time —Samsung to update the Galaxy S3, original Galaxy Note and Galaxy S2 to Android Jelly Bean before the release of the next iPhone says a new rumor.

Rumor has it that Samsung’s flagship phones are scheduled to receive the much-anticipated Android Jelly Bean update, the new Android platform which includes a slew of new features like the new Google Now platform, smoother UI, improved search with voice, new camera app and other bug fixes and software enhancements.

According to Sam Mobile, the 2011 flagship Samsung Galaxy S2, and this year’s most popular Android phone, the Samsung Galaxy S3, and also the first Samsung Galaxy Note are reportedly headed to Android Jelly Bean from Android Ice Cream Sandwich, and the Kies or OTA or over the air update is reportedly arriving by August or September.

Samsung readies first batch of super-thin bendable AMOLED displays

(Phys.org) -- Samsung is set to begin manufacturing its "Youm" displays which have been generating pre-launch excitement as ultra-thin AMOLED panels that will be bendable, stretchable, rollable and foldable like a piece of paper. Samsung expects to begin production of its 0.6mm Youm displays this quarter, with a goal of seeing the first products with the technology to market by the end of the year. Oddly, though, the displays to roll out this year in the first batch will not have a flexible substrate. They will have a protective glass layer, which in turn will make them unable to take other forms or shapes, the very bend-it, fold-it feature that draws interest at industry shows.

According to those close to developments at Samsung, the real deal AMOLED displays with flexible substrates will appear in 2014. The early batch at the least will carry the AMOLED features of being very thin, with one third the thickness of current mobile screens.

OLED displays are thinner, more efficient and offer better picture quality than LCD or plasma displays; OLED is a flat light emitting technology made by placing a series of organic thin films between two conductors. OLEDs also can be made to be flexible and transparent. The term AMOLED stands for Active-Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode, an advanced display technology that is still considered in an embryonic stage. Asia has become the hub of AMOLED display manufacturing activity, with South Korea, Taiwan and China the key players. The United States represents the single largest market for AMOLED displays.

Furious wife 'stabs husband over Facebook posts'

A wife is in jail for allegedly getting so furious over posts on her husband's Facebook page that she stabbed him with a knife.

Rhonda Roshell Washington, from Bryan, Texas, was arrested on Thursday morning after a heated argument with her unnamed partner turned into an all out brawl in which she chased him around the house with a knife and stabbed him in the hand.

Police were called to the 800 block of East 26th St around 4.45am and officers said a man was outside the residence with a bloody wound on his hand when they arrived, according to The Eagle.

Ms Washington, 33, denies the fight was provoked by Facebook, instead she told police the couple had been arguing over her husband's use of the drug PCP, which she said he was high with at the time.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2177219/Rhonda-Roshell-Washington-Furious-wife-stabs-husband-Facebook-posts.html#ixzz21NldUxMF

A Facebook Phone Has 0% Chance of Success

Surely, you've heard the rumors by now: Facebook (NAS: FB) is building a smartphone. A New York Times report in May has renewed talk of a Facebook Phone, while speculation dates as far back as 2010. All Things D chimed in last November, saying the social networker was tapping HTC for the hardware, although the recent report says Facebook now wants to do its own hardware.

The problem for Facebook is that it would have exactly a 0% chance of succeeding.

Where do we start?Assuming Facebook is interested in building a smartphone, how would it even accomplish this? What operating system will it run?

iOS is only available to companies whose names rhyme with "chapel," and Facebook already loathes Google (NAS: GOOG) , as in let's-hire-a-PR-firm-to-launch-a-smear-campaign-against-it loathing, so standard Android seems far-fetched. It has numerous ties with Microsoft, but Windows Phone has an embarrassingly low market share.

Hewlett-Packard's (NYS: HPQ) webOS is about to see an open-source release, but who really wants to be associated with that platform after its tumultuous history? Not even HP, as making webOS open-source is akin to donating it to charity, complete with a tax write-off from all the impairments it ate. I doubt that Facebook wants to go with the equivalent of a "free to a good home" Craigslist post for a major strategic shift.

Nexus 7: Top 5 Problems with the Hottest Android Tablet

The Nexus 7 is evidently the hottest Android tablet at the moment. The tablet is now shipping to users, but it appears that some consumers are not completely happy with it.

The best thing about the Nexus 7 tablet is its affordable price tag. However, it looks like Google sacrificed some quality while manufacturing the Jelly Bean tablet. Ever since people started getting their hands on the Nexus 7 tablets, we have started hearing about different problems associated with it.

Most of the issues in the tablet are related to device's hardware, mainly to the IPS LCD display. Here are the top 5 issues Android fans are encountering with the Jelly Bean tablet.
The display in the Nexus 7 is not properly held in many units. In some cases, users can notice tablet's display creaking when touched at a certain point. The Nexus 7 appears to have a faulty display that juts slightly out of the plastic bezel sometime. This problem can be solved manually, but we recommend replacing the tablet. Google's 15-day return policy will come handy.

Dark Knight Rises Android game video review

I’m sure most batman fans have been hitting the theatres already to get the newest slice of bat action in the recently released The Dark Knight Rises movie with Christian Bale reprising the roll of Batman. And by now many of the Android faithful might have grabbed The Dark Knight Rises game for Android from Google Play, but if you haven’t yet done so, as you would like to see what the game offers first, then you are in luck.

What we have for our Android gaming readers today is a video review of The Dark Knight Rises for Android, which comes our way courtesy of Android Central who got a copy of the latest batman game and gave it a whirl on camera for your viewing pleasure below.

According to the guys, with The Dark Knight Rises Android game, the missions follows closely in the footsteps of the movie, and as you move along you can kit out Bruce Wayne with the technology to upgrade certain parts of his Batman suit, and his vehicles, along with an abundance of hidden items, and open world exploration.

Apparently the control of the game are fairly simple, with the usual dual-stick set-up, with the left side stick controlling Batman’s moves, whilst swiping anywhere controls where he looks. When it comes to gameplay, the guys say the game is pretty standard with combat it is mostly bashing the attach button vigorously.
Read more...

Mozilla's Firefox Mobile OS to battle an Android monopoly

The corporate chiefs of Apple, Google and Microsoft betting billions of dollars and thousands of highly-paid engineers on their competing mobile operating systems. Despite these high stakes, Mozilla, the non-profit organisation behind the open source Firefox web browser, is planning to take a seat at the table with its own smartphone software.

The question is whether Mozilla, with 2011 revenues of $121m, can really compete with the big three, who between them enjoyed sales of more than $200bn last year.

Mozilla’s reason for taking on the task is clear. Its share of the desktop market is falling, thanks mainly to its biggest benefactor (via the deal that makes Google the default search engine for Firefox users), Google, and its rival software Chrome, which has enjoyed a rapid rise to become the world’s most popular web browser.

Meanwhile, as Mozilla loses ground on PCs, its corporate rivals are carving up the mobile market. Smartphones and tablets are now widely viewed as the most important computing platforms.

Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" Heading To Selected HTC, Asus And Samsung Devices

A popular question I’m getting from Android device owner is is “When will I see Jelly Bean?”

Depending on what hardware you have, you might see it — sometime — or you might never see it unless you buy new hardware.

Top Android smartphone and tablet manufacturers have confirmed that the Android 4.1 “Jelly Bean” update it headed out to a selection of hardware — mostly premium devices — including the HTC One X, the HTC One S, and the Asus Transformer Prime.

Jelly Bean brings with it a number of cool features, including the “Project Butter” which makes Android run far smoother than previous Android versions, “Google Now” which tries to predict what data you’re going to need and get it for you before you ask for it, Voice Search — competition for Apple‘s Siri — as well as a far superior notifications system.

Mobile advertising rapidly rising in popularity on back of iPhone

Advertising on mobile platforms is a rapidly growing business around the world, with the iPhone the top smartphone device in monetisation performance followed closely by Android, and the United States and Canada generating the majority of ad requests, with 73 percent of the global total. Australia is well down the global league table at number 10 just behind China.

In its first State of Mobile Advertising report just published, and based on insights from the second quarter of this year, Opera Software reports that the company served more than 9,000 global customers, with more than 35 billion ad impressions per month, to drive over US$240 million of revenue to mobile publishers in 2011.

According to Mahi de Silva, EVP of Consumer Mobile for Opera, iOS “rules the roost,” in the mobile advertising market, commanding an average eCPM - effective cost per thousand impressions - on iPhone at $2.85, followed by Android at $2.10 and Windows Phone a distant third at $0.20 eCPM and the rest of the mobile phone field significantly behind.

Google to Apple: We’ve Got Mail!

Google is coming at Apple’s iPhone even harder.

Google is purchasing Sparrow, a tiny start-up that makes a popular app for using Gmail on the iPhone. The news first came from Sparrow in a briefblog post.

The companies did not disclose the acquisition price, but one person briefed on the deal said it was several million dollars — a very small amount of money for Google.

“We’re joining the Gmail team to accomplish a bigger vision,” Dom Leca, Sparrow’s chief executive, wrote in the post. That vision is something beyond an “intuitive and pleasurable mailing experience,” he indicated, but he didn’t say what.

It’s possible, however, to see important ways that Google can use Sparrow to gain a bigger presence on the iPhone at a time when Apple is trying to move Google away from the iPhone experience by building Apple versions of things like maps.

In an interview last March, Mr. Leca said that Apple made it difficult to get content from third parties on the phone.

“Bringing up all of the other tasks from Facebook, Twitter, Google and stuff like this is something that we can add,” he said. “It seems necessary for mail and that isn’t there because of political reasons.”

Google halts new orders for 16GB Nexus 7, surprised by demand

Sources close to Google say the search giant seriously underestimated the demand for the 16GB version of its 7in Nexus 7 tablet, which has sold out from stockists and other sources while demand for the smaller 8GB version remains comparatively low.

The company has now halted further orders of the 16GB version of the tablet, costing £199, on its Google Play store in the US and UK. Orders made in the period up to the end of last week are due to be fulfilled, but a shortage of stock now means a hiatus in sales.

While the 8GB model, which costs £159, is shown as "in stock" and being delivered in 3-5 business days, the 16GB version only offers an option to "sign up to be notified by email" when it becomes available.

The 8GB version is only being sold through Google's own store, rather than physical retailers - but online buyers appear to have shunned it, surprising Google, which had thought that the cheaper version, despite having only half as much storage, would sell better than it has.

Google CEO Larry Page's absence again causes concern

London: Google CEO Larry Page was again absent from a company meeting that raised concerns about his health and how it will affect the internet giant, a media report said.

Page missed the company's quarterly earnings conference call Thursday. He has also not been at any of Google's public events in the last month and skipped the annual stockholders meeting, the Daily Mail reported.

The company only said he has been advised not to use his voice but insist he continues to run the company.

Google calls for iPhone patents to be made industry standards

As the on-going patent disputes between Apple andGoogle continue to escalate, Google has called for a number of Apple iPhone patents to be considered industry standards.

In a bid to quell the raft of Android based Apple enforced lawsuits, Google has appealed to have a selection of Apple held telecommunication patents that are utilised in the iPhone to be made standardised systems due to their generic nature and industry wide use.

In a letter to the US Senate Judiciary Committee, Google’s counsel Kent Walker has raised concerns over a selection of Apple’s proprietary technologies and put forward the idea that such tech sound be standardised and made freely accessible to all.

"While collaborative Standards Setting Organizations (SSOs) play an important part in the overall standard setting system, and are particularly prominent in industries such as telecommunications, they are not the only source of standards,” he wrote.

"Indeed, many of the same interoperability benefits that the FTC and others have touted in the SSO context also occur when one firm publishes information about an otherwise proprietary standard and other firms then independently decide (whether by choice or of necessity) to make complementary investments to support that standard in their products.

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Sunday, 22 July 2012