Archive for category Mobile
Microsoft to pay Nokia ‘billions’ to ditch its mobile operating system
Nokia will get billions of dollars from Microsoft to ditch its current smartphone software in favour of Windows Phone 7, Nokia CEO Stephen Elop said, in a defence of the deal.
Nokia, the world’s largest maker of phones, and Microsoft announced their alliance late last week. Both investors and employees reacted with dismay: Nokia’s stock dived 14 per cent and Finnish employees used flex time to go home early.
Today, a day ahead of the start of the Mobile World Congress mobile phone trade show in Barcelona, Elop told press, analysts and industry players that apart from the benefits of the alliance that were laid out late last week, Microsoft is paying Nokia billions of dollars to switch to Windows Phone 7.
“This is something I don’t think was completely explained,” Elop said.
Elop, a former Microsoft executive, said Finland-based Nokia had been courted by Google as well, which sought to convince it to use its popular Android software for smart phones. Microsoft’s payments are recognition that Nokia had “substantial value to contribute”, said Elop.
Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft introduced Windows Phone 7 last year, on phones made by LG Electronics and HTC, but has only captured a few percentage points of the smartphone market, according to analysts.
Nokia’s worldwide market share in smartphones was just over 30 per cent in last year’s fourth quarter, down from 40 per cent a year earlier. Those phones use Symbian, a relatively old software package that wasn’t designed to be used with touchscreens.
Money and in-kind contributions will flow both ways in the deal, Elop reiterated. Nokia will be contributing its Ovi mapping service and will be paying Microsoft royalties for the use of its software, as other manufacturers do. It will save money by not continuing development of its own software. The net benefit is still in the billions, he said.
Analysts believe Google pays manufacturers to use Android, but no figures have come to light.
Elop was hired in September to shake things up at Nokia, but he may face an uphill battle in getting employees on board. At the Barcelona event, Elop was asked whether he’s a “Trojan horse” – a Microsoft insider who’s penetrated Nokia and steered it in a direction favorable to Microsoft.
“The obvious answer is ‘No’,” Elop said. “Thanks for asking.”
He said the decision to go with Windows Phone was unanimous in Nokia’s senior management team. Nokia’s board approved the deal a day ahead of the announcement in London.
Adding Nokia’s market share to that of existing Android phones would have left the world with only two real players in smartphone software, Elop said. He didn’t mention the iPhone, but it’s the other dominant force in smartphones. A duopoly would have big ramifications for everyone, he said.
“A decision to go with Windows Phone creates a very different dynamic,” Elop said. “It’s an environment where now, Windows Phone is a challenger.”
Microsoft has made smartphone software for more than a decade. Windows Phone 7 is an attempt to make a clean break with the past, and create an operating system designed for big iPhone-style touch screens.
Information Source smh.com.au
Apple to launch smaller iPhone
Apple is working on new versions of the iPhone that are aimed at slowing the advance of competing handsets based on Google’s Android software, according to people who have been briefed on the plans.
One version would be cheaper and smaller than the most recent iPhone, said a person who has seen a prototype and asked not to be identified because the plans haven’t been made public. Apple also is developing technology that makes it easier to use the iPhone on multiple wireless networks, two people said.
Chief executive officer Steve Jobs, who remains involved in strategic decisions while on medical leave, aims to narrow the price gap that has made phones running Android more popular than iPhones. Google’s share of the global smartphone market more than tripled to 32.9 per cent in the fourth quarter, eclipsing Apple’s 16 per cent, according to Canalys.
Apple has considered selling the new iPhone for about $US200 in the US, without obligating users to sign a two-year service contract, said the person who has seen it. Android phones sell for a range of prices at AT&T, Verizon Wireless and other US carriers, and typically come with agreements that include a fee for broken contracts. The iPhone 4, sold in the U.S. by AT&T and Verizon Wireless, costs $US200 to $US300 with a contract.
Natalie Kerris, a spokeswoman for Apple, declined to comment.
While Apple has aimed to unveil the device near mid-year, the introduction may be delayed or scrapped, the person said. Few Apple employees know the details of the project, the person said. Apple often works on products that don’t get released.
The prototype was about one-third smaller than the iPhone 4, said the person, who saw it last year.
Apple can sell it at a low price mainly because the smartphone will use a processor, display and other components similar to those used in the current model, rather than pricier, more advanced parts that will be in the next iPhone, the person said. Component prices typically drop over time.
Apple is also working on a so-called dual-mode phone, two people said. This device would be able to work with the world’s two main wireless standards – the global system for mobile communications, used by AT&T and carriers such as Vodafone, and code division multiple access, used by Verizon Wireless. It isn’t known whether Apple intended to include this capability in the cheaper iPhone.
Universal SIM
Apple is working on a technology called a Universal SIM, which would let iPhone users toggle between GSM networks without having to switch the so-called SIM cards that associate a phone with a network, according to one person. This would help cut the cost of distributing and managing millions of SIM cards.
The new features could also give Apple an advantage over mobile carriers in influencing customers. The device would be affordable without a carrier subsidy, so buyers wouldn’t need to agree to terms, such as termination fees, that carriers demand in exchange for subsidising the cost of the phone.
Apple has also worked on redesigned iPhone software that would let customers choose a network and configure their device on their own, without relying on a store clerk or representative of a carrier, according to the person.
Information Source smh.com.au
Apple begins production of new iPad
Apple has begun to make a new version of its iPad tablet computer with a front-facing camera and faster processor, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
The new iPad will be thinner and lighter than the first model and sport a more powerful graphics processor, the Journal said.
It will have at least one camera on its front for features such as video conferencing, and will also have more memory, according to the paper, adding Apple plans to unveil the new iPad through telcos Verizon Wireless and AT&T in the US.
Early in February, a Reuters eyewitness saw what appeared to be a working model of the next iPad with a front-facing camera at the top edge of the glass screen at a press conference to mark the debut of News Corp’s Daily online paper in New York.
Apple was not available for comment.
Information Source smh.com.au
We’re all hanging up the landline
THE number of people ditching fixed-line telephone services in favour of mobiles is larger than previously thought; just two-thirds of young Australians connect landlines when they move out of home.
About 14 per cent of mobile-phone users no longer have a fixed-line telephone at home, says a survey of 18,000 people by the Australian Communications and Media Authority.
This is bad news for Telstra, which owns and operates the copper wire telephone network and has experienced declining revenue from this high margin product line. Its revenue from fixed-line rental and call tariffs has declined from about $7 billion in 2006 to $5.8 billion last financial year.
Of those choosing to keep their fixed telephone line, a third said it was convenient or cheaper than mobile, and just 13 per cent said it was because fixed lines offer better quality or more reliable service.
About 7 per cent of respondents said they kept a fixed line for an internet connection.
The number of fixed telephone lines has remained at 10.7 million since June 2000, but the number of mobile telephone connections has increased from 8 million to 24.2 million in the same period.
Information Source smh.com.au
Top 10 mobile phones for 2010
Judging by the announcements at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, 2010 is going to be the year of the Android. Google’s mobile platform was everywhere, with most major phone makers announcing new Android phones and a range of Android tablet devices and netbooks on diplay.
Manufacturers clearly value the open-source nature of Android, which they can customise to their hearts’ content. But Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 is definitely a contender and it will be interesting to see what devices the phone makers can come up with by the end of the year.
Here are my top 10 mobile announcements and phones from the show:
Windows Phone 7 – There’s a lot riding on Microsoft’s next mobile operating system. For the last 18 months Windows Mobile has lagged newer rivals like the iPhone, BlackBerry and Android. Its market share has dropped.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas was dry and lacked major new announcements, so I was skeptical about whether Microsoft could pull it off in Barcelona.
The jury is still out as we wait until Christmas to see some final handsets but from the early Windows Phone 7 prototypes at MWC, it’s clear Microsoft has wiped the slate clean and started fresh with a new platform and a revamped, innovative user interface.
The demo version I saw was an early version and slightly buggy but i’m impressed with the tight integration with social networking sites and online email and calendar sites. The inclusion of Xbox Live for multiplayer gaming and a Zune music player puts it squarely in iPhone territory.
But Microsoft’s insistence on manufacturers keeping its tile-based UI may limit phone makers like HTC, which has done wonders to dolly up Windows Mobile 6.5 with its Sense interface. And the inability to upgrade existing Windows Mobile phones to Windows Phone 7 may frustrate those who recently shelled out for a 6.5 device.
Samsung Wave – Samsung is going out on a limb by introducing a completely new phone platform, banking on developers supporting it with enough interesting and useful apps to compete with iPhone and the open-source Android platform from Google.
It’s risky. But the 3.3-inch Super AMOLED touch-screen display is gorgeous and Samsung will have complete control of both the hardware and software, which has definitely been beneficial for Apple with the iPhone.
Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini pro – Looking at this handset in a picture is deceiving. While other smartphone makers are moving to bigger screens, like the HTC HD2′s giant 4.3-inch display, this one is tiny at 2.6-inch.The device measures just 90x52x17mm.
But big phones aren’t for everyone and Sony Ericsson makes it work with a good touchscreen user interface and the Timescape app, which puts friends’ Facebook posts, Tweets, messages and calls into a single stream. Other apps can be downloaded from the Android market.
HTC Legend – Most phones have a front and back that clip together but the Legend’s casing is machined out of a single block of aluminium. As soon as I saw it I wanted one. The Legend is an Android phone running HTC’s highly customised, intuitive Sense user interface.
HTC Desire – It’s not as pretty as the Legend but while the Legend has just a 600MHz processor, the Desire offers a much gruntier 1GHz chip. It runs the latest version of Android, 2.1, and features a 3.7-inch screen – the closest you’ll get to the Google Nexus One, which hasn’t yet been launched in Australia. The Desire will be available in Australia from Telstra in April.
HTC HD mini – Think of this one as a smaller version of the giant HD2. Like its sibling, the HD mini runs Windows Mobile 6.5 and includes the unique ability to launch a personal WiFi hotspot, which users can connect to on a laptop to browse the web over their mobile’s 3G network from anywhere.A very cool feature that I would love to see replicated by other manufacturers.
Samsung Beam – It doesn’t look like this phone will come to Australia any time soon but it’s worth a mention because it’s one of the first handsets to include a built-in projector for viewing content stored on the phone on any wall.
Samsung definitely gets points for innovation but the market for this one may be somewhat limited and the projector is only really effective in darker rooms. The battery is drained in about three hours with the projector on.
Asus-Garmin Nuvifone A50 – This is the fruit of a partnership between electronics maker Asus and GPS navigation specialist Garmin, so it’s designed to replace the GPS device in your car and double as your primary mobile. It runs the Android operating system but the interface has been completely redesigned to the point that it barely resembles other Android phones.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz – The Vivaz has a QWERTY keyboard and 3.2-inch touchscreen but, unlike most phones, is also capable of shooting high-definition 720p video and includes an 8-megapixel camera.
Motorola Milestone – Motorola has been extremely quiet in Australia over the last few years but i’m hoping it comes to market with the Milestone, which is similar to the Droid that Motorola launched in the US.
It runs Android 2.0 and has iPhone-like multitouch support, with users able to pinch the 3.7-inch screen to zoom on web pages, maps and photos. The phones comes with Motorola’s turn-by-turn GPS navigation software, MOTONAV, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a 5-megapixel camera.
Information Source smh.com.au
