Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) is ready! No, not really.
Google is done with Ice Cream Sandwich, but the process of getting it to customers is far from over. Having Google release the source code is just the first step in the process — now the real work for handset makers begins.
Google’s Eric Schmidt:
“Developers will finally start focusing on Android first instead of iOS in the next half a year, Google chairman Eric Schmidt said in his presentation at the Le Web conference Friday.”
Sure they will, Eric.
Electronista: Dell on Monday confirmed that it had stopped selling the Streak 7. The tablet is no longer available online and is withdrawing just months after Dell axed the Streak 5. In a statement, it said it would still be … Continued
Apple is introducing a subscription model to games, if a recent Big Fish Games release is any indication.
The US International Trade Commission has dismissed a complaint against Apple filed by S3 Graphics, putting HTC’s complaint into jeopardy as well.
JBL has taken the wraps off their OnBeat Extreme, a new portable dock for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch with support for Bluetooth wireless connectivity. It’s priced at $599. The OnBeat Extreme has dual bass drivers and tweeters, and … Continued
The Time Command Mini is a compact alarm clock designed especially for iOS devices; an app enhances its use.
The developers of North Carolina have spoken, and we’ve listened. By popular demand, CocoaConf will be coming to downtown Raleigh, NC, in early December.
The conference is December 2-3.
Reuters: The support takes the form of information sharing, industry expertise and access to Google’s patents for licensing and legal purposes, Schmidt said. Google trying to comfort its partners, but it’s a significant olive branch.
Editor’s Note: Matt Alexander is the owner and editor of ONE37.net, a writer, a technology enthusiast, and a contributing writer for The Loop. Mobile Flash is, and always has been, pointless. Regardless of platform, Mobile Flash absorbs battery life, heats … Continued
Jason Perlow got this from his sources. It’s announcement that Adobe will make: Our future work with Flash on mobile devices will be focused on enabling Flash developers to package native apps with Adobe AIR for all the major app … Continued
There’s been a lot of talk today about Eric Schmidt’s statement that Android pre-dated Apple’s iOS, so it couldn’t possibly be a rip-off. People have been quick to point out that Android started in 2003 and was bought by Google … Continued
Apple’s iOS is continuing to grow, as it reached an all-time high among mobile operating systems accessing the Web in October.
Michael DeGusta:
I went back and found every Android phone shipped in the United States1 up through the middle of last year. I then tracked down every update that was released for each device – be it a major OS upgrade or a minor support patch – as well as prices and release & discontinuation dates. I compared these dates & versions to the currently shipping version of Android at the time. The resulting picture isn’t pretty – well, not for Android users:
Wow. That’s all I got for that one.
The Nest Learning Thermostat is making the round of tech blogs today. This pricey $249 thermostat – currently available for pre-order – replaces the ones in your house and helps you conserve energy by learning your schedule. What’s more, it’s … Continued
Horace Dediu: But more importantly the iPad and the Mac both outgrew the PC market. Taken as OS X vs. Windows, the growth rates were 27.7% vs. 2.5%. If iOS is included along OS X, Apple grew its “computer” shipments … Continued
Dave Caolo:
iCloud’s Photo Stream feature is handy, in that it pushes photos shot with a compatible iPhone, iPad or iPod touch to Apple’s servers and then back to other authorized devices. It’s a hindrance for the same reason, in that my iPhone, iPad and Mac are now cluttered with space-hogging one-offs I shot for the sake of a tweet or a Facebook update.
I haven’t noticed this myself, but perhaps I just don’t take enough pictures for it to be a problem.
Good technology on Thursday released a report comparing activations of Apple products to Android-based devices. Among its customers, Apple is still in the lead. The report, which focuses on the third quarter of 2011, counts thousands of enterprise and public … Continued
Inside Mobile Apps: Without a platform-wide offering from Google, the individual providers will have to continue to battle it out for domination. Hopefully, eventually one (or possibly two) will win and everyone will use that service for social connectivity. But … Continued
The detail on the close-ups is just incredible.
Game developer Telltale Games, makers of Jurassic Park, Sam & Max, Back to the Future and Tales of Monkey Island games, announced Wednesday that the iPad is its fastest growing platform. The company has already released 18 games and plans … Continued
Harman Kardon on Tuesday introduced the MS 150, a new stereo equipped with a dock suitable for iPhone or iOS, slot-loading CD player and FM radio tuner. It costs a staggering $689.95, putting it in the high end of iOS-compatible … Continued
Oopsie.
NPD Research: Among smartphone users, 82 percent have no security products installed on their phones; however, the percentage of users addressing this concern varies by platform, according to NPD’s “Emerging Technology Trends: Mobile Security” report. Although iPhone and Android smartphone … Continued
Microsoft last week unveiled Windows 8, the company’s new desktop and tablet operating. With the announcement, Microsoft joins Amazon as companies that are expected to enter the tablet market within the next 12 months. However, I don’t believe they will … Continued
The following demo was made using a variety of CSS techniques. Rounded corners, shadows, gradients, rgba, pseudo-elements, and transforms are just some of them. A lot of these were generated by helpful tools, such as westciv’s tools and Border Radius. … Continued
Chris Herbert for MacStories: Freemium apps (free to download, but require an in-app purchase to expand the app) are growing particularly faster in the in-app purchasing paradise. Free app downloads have increased by 34% since 2010 while paid downloads only … Continued
Logitech on Tuesday introduced the Harmony Link, a new system that connects an iOS or Android device to your home entertainment system and turns it into a sophisticated wireless remote control. It’s a combination of hardware and software, and it … Continued
Winrumors.com did a comparison.
Apple and Google are dragging their feet to assist with the Macrosolve and Lodsys patent bullying of small businesses, entrepeneurs, and developers. Without Apple’s and Google’s assistance, the app development community is vulnerable to the strategic attacks made by these … Continued