Flick Your Virtual Business Card With CardFlick

CardFlick Flick your contacts! http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
Another product that attracted attention at the Techcrunch Disrupt, among many other, was this Cardflick that we have been planing to write about.
Cardflick is a social app that lets you create a business card to your liking, from a large cache of templates or themes. Once you have created the business card, the fun comes. You can flick the card upwards to share it with people nearby and have the Cardflick app installed. Once the card appear on your screen, swipe it in the right, the right direction, to keep the card. If it is from someone you don't know or do not want to keep the card, swipe it to the left and the card will disappear in to the ether.

You also can share your business card with people who does not have the app via email and the email include your contact information in Vcard format so that it can be easily imported into a device’s contact list
The cards can be accessed via your contacts on the phone. The cards are kept updated and any changes you make to the card will be reflected on the cards on your contacts have via syncing built in to the app.
The webapp and the iOS app is ready and running and an Android beta is on the way. You can find all the information at CardFlick. By the way if you were flicked by their requirement that you sign in via facebook, that requirement is gone now and you can sign in with a username and password so flick right back.

United States of Android and iOS

United States of Android and iOS http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/

Android and iOS union is anything but a dream so I was very surprised when I saw the title of this post. But when I looked closely they are as United as Republicans and Democrats at the moment on the hill. In this case Yellow is where Android DOminate and Blue is where iOS dominates. Blackberry area is depicted by Gray and square hatched are remains neutral for now..

All others are

There’s a clear pattern of Android over-indexing in the South and South west parts of the country with iOS doing well in the North east and Midwest states. Even though Blackberry is on the run, downhill, it is favoured by some states in the centre and east. Most probably waiting for contracts to run through.

The result above and other information in the paper is based on data pulled from over 83 million users on the Jumptap network. The paper is actually the MobileSTAT (Simple Targeting & Audience Trends),a monthly report on targeting and audience trends in mobile advertising.

MobileSTAT (PDF) via Jumptap

Android Leads iOS, RIM and Nokia In Mobile OS Sales! : Gartner

Android Leads iOS, RIM and Nokia http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/

If you wonder why Apple is suing everyone and anyone with Android alliance, this might be one of the reasons. Gartner published that the Google’s mobile OS, Android now accounts for 43.4% of all smartphone sales, up from 17.2% Q2 2010. Apple reached 18.2% of the smartphone share, up from 14.1% at the same time last year.

Together Android and iOS accounts for 62% of the Smartphone market share, which was only a 31% a year earlier.

Nokia's Symbian OS share is now at 22.1%, taking a big slide, down from 40.9% a year earlier. RIM did not fare well either, RIM's share of smartphone market droped to 12% in Q2, from 19% one year ago.

Microsoft was below the radar with 1.6% of the smartphone market share.

Gartner also told us that the worldwide sales of mobile devices grew 16.5% from this time last year, to reach 428.7 million units. Smartphones sales were up 74% year-over-year and accounted for 25% of the overall sales in Q2 2011, up from 17% in Q2 2010

Gartner News

Smartphone Market Supremacy : iOS vs Android, A Consumer Point Of View!

Android, Apple And RIM

Smartphone Market Supremacy http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/

Looks like more people are wanting an iPhone rather than an Android phone, according to a survey conducted by ChangeWave Research.Of 4163 respondents questioned, up to 46% of consumers planning to buy a smartphone in the next 90 days say they'll choose an Apple iPhone and 32% will look for an Android and measly 4% are still attached to them BlackBerry phones.

The survey sample consisted of 89% U.S. respondents and 11% from outside the U.S.

While the sample of respondents are wide enough to conclude where consumers want, it does not reveal what consumer can afford. Apple's marketing knew how to monger hype and it is paying off. Most of the consumers these days, associate iPhone with mobile phones, when they talk about phones generally or dream about them.

This seems to be extending beyond the iPhones themselves according to the same survey, people are willing to extend the loyalty in to other Apple products as well, Specially iCloud. 26% of the current Apple customers and 13% of non-Apple users have admitted that they will be swayed towards Apple products due to iCloud.

That is exactly where Google seem to fail. Google has been providing cloud services for ages, like GMail storage but I guess beyond techies, many people do not even know it exists, let alone by a catchy name like iCloud. Microsoft and Amazon are not doing any better in that front either.

The differences do not stop there, 70% of current iOS device users said that they were satisfied with Apple products and it was 50% for Android users. Windows phone 7 users, 57% were very happy with their phones.

I was at a major retail store for electronic goods to get a protective shield installed on my iPad 2 (64GB) and my colleague's Asus EEE Pad Transformer. I saw many people lingering around Apple iPad isle but equally similar number on all other tablet isles.

I think this report will shed some light into how people are thinking when it comes to mobile phones and other associated devices. So if you are associated with selling or developing for mobile market, the information can come in very handy.

Report details include:

• Competition between Apple (AAPL), Motorola (MMI), Research In Motion (RIMM), Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Samsung and HTC, among others
• Customer Satisfaction Ratings by Manufacturer
• Satisfaction Comparison: Apple vs. RIM BlackBerry – 4 Year Comparison
• Planned Buying Trends by Operating System – biggest winners and losers
• 3 Year Comparison of Android OS Demand vs. Apple iOS Demand
• Customer Satisfaction Ratings by Mobile OS
• Growth Trends: Overall Smart Phone Market
• Impact of Apple iCloud Service and Planned Consumer Usage
• Mobile Apps: Android OS vs. Apple iOS – comparison of money spent and number of apps downloaded in past 90 days

ChangeWave Report

Google Sync For iOS Updated

Google Sync http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
Google Sync keeps your phone or mobile device in sync with your GMail, Google Calendar and contacts. But Google sync for iOS will bring you even more, now from your iPhone or iPad you can;

• Search all your emails, locally stored and on the server.
• Accept, decline and or edit Calendar events from the iOS Calendar App.
• Send emails from a selected email address, if you have multiple address' managed by a single Google Account.

These three updates are available to both Gmail and Google Apps email accounts.
For more information, visit Setting up Google Sync with your iOS device

Three new updates to Google Sync for iPhone and iPad - Official Google Mobile Blog

Apple Files Motion To Intervene Against LodSys

Apple Files Motion To Intervene Against LodSys http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/

As expected, even though a bit late, Apple has stepped up to the plate and filed a motion to intervene against the proceedings against iOS app Developers that LodSys targeted.
FOSS Patents has uploaded the motion and its attachments (except for a sealed one) to this Scribd folder.
We hope that court court grants the Apple to be an intervenor, Apple already has the answer to complaint and the counterclaim filed.
We are very much interested in this development and wish that the court grants Apple's and our wish and mainly those developers who got sued. Interpreting the motion, Apple seems to backing those developers, as it stated explicitly that the sued app developers are;
"are individuals or small entities with far fewer resources than Apple and [...] lack the technical information, ability, and incentive to adequately protect Apple's rights under its license agreement."
Even though Apple is not seeking to invalidate LodSys patents, at the moment, there are others who do.
FOSS Patents has much more information on the matter and more.

Worldwide Smartphone Market Will Grow By 55% In 2011 And Android Will Lead Them All

Android will lead smartphone market http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
According to IDC, a Market researcher, Android market share is expected to surpass 40% of the by the end of the 2011 and that percentage could reach 44% by 2015.
With Android ruling the waves,  Nokia's Symbian platform will remain the number two for the year 2011, but it's market share will fall further to 20.6% from its highs it enjoyed previously. I think Nokia missed the boat by quite a length. Symbian could be come a distant memory if and when it's share drops to just 0.1% of the market by 2015.

So who in for the third place and the rest? IDC estimates Apple iOS, BlackBerry OS, and Windows Phone to be in line, in that order. By the end of 2011, iOS will have 18.2% of the market, BlackBerry OS will have 14.2%, and Windows Phone will have 3.8%.

It is an interesting reading and here is the IDC press release;

Worldwide Smartphone Market Expected to Grow 55% in 2011 and Approach Shipments of One Billion in 2015, According to IDC

09 Jun 2011

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. June 9, 2011 – The worldwide smartphone market is forecast to grow 55% year over year in 2011 as a growing number of users turn in their feature phones for more advanced devices. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, vendors will ship a total of 472 million smartphones in 2011 compared to roughly 305 million units shipped in 2010. That figure will nearly double to 982 million by the end of 2015.

The fast-growing smartphone market, which will grow more than four times the rate of the overall mobile phone market this year, is being fuelled by falling average selling prices, increased phone functionality, and lower-cost data plans among other factors, which make the devices more accessible to a wider range of users.

"The smartphone floodgates are open wide," said Kevin Restivo, senior research analyst with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. "Mobile phone users around the world are turning in their 'talk-and-text' devices for smartphones as these devices allow users to perform daily tasks like shopping and banking from anywhere. The growth trend is particularly pronounced in emerging markets where adoption is still in its early days. As a result, the growth in regions such as Asia/Pacific and Latin America, will be dramatic over the coming years."

Smartphone Operating Systems

"Underpinning smartphone growth is the rapidly shifting operating system landscape," added Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst with IDC's Mobile Phone Technology and Trends team. "End-users are becoming more sophisticated about what kinds of experiences are offered by the different operating systems. Taking this as their cue, operating system developers will strive for more intuitive and seamless experiences, but will also look to differentiate themselves along key features and characteristics."

IDC expects Android, which passed Symbian as the leading operating system worldwide in Q4 2010, to grow to more than 40% of the market in the second half of 2011. A significant and growing list of vendors who have made Android the cornerstone of their respective smartphone strategies is propelling the growth of Android.

Symbian will steadily lose share throughout the forecast period as its biggest supporter Nokia transitions its smartphone strategy to Windows Phone. This will present a huge opportunity for competing operating systems to gain footing. Still, Nokia's commitment to support Symbian devices until 2016 will keep the installed base of Symbian-powered smartphone users on par with its competitors.

Windows Phone 7/Windows Mobile will benefit from Nokia's support, scope, and breadth within markets where Nokia has historically had a strong presence. Until Nokia begins introducing Windows Phone-powered smartphones in large volumes in 2012, Windows Phone 7/Windows Mobile will only capture a small share of the market as the release of Mango-powered smartphones are not expected to reach the market until late 2011. Nevertheless, assuming that Nokia's transition to Windows Phone goes smoothly, the OS is expected to defend a number 2 rank and more than 20% share in 2015.

iOS was the third ranked OS going into 2011 and will remain a force in the mobile phone market throughout the forecast. After an initial explosive growth period, iOS is expected to grow at a more modest pace throughout the latter half of the forecast as the smartphone market matures and diversifies. Although a small market share decline is expected, IDC expects significant overall shipment volume growth through the end of 2015.

BlackBerry OS is expected to maintain its position as a Top 4 smartphone operating system over the forecast period. Like iOS, the BlackBerry OS will experience market share decline even as shipment volumes grow throughout our forecast.

iPhone Passes Blackberry In Smarphone Marketshare, But Android Is Still Way Ahead Of Both Of Them

Smarphone Marketshare http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
Comscore has released the latest report on US Smartphone Market share and Android (36.4%) is way ahead of second in line iPhone (26%). But iPhone has surpassed the Blackberry (25.7%) in terms of  active user base. I guess the rise of the Android is still strong.
As Platforms only Android and iOS gained in the last quarter, but 5.7% growth of Android base well exceeded that of iOS giving Google more than 10.4% lead over Apple. 

On the hardware front, Samsung LG and Motorola lead the bunch and fourth place Apple (8.3%) is way behind the third place Motorola (15.6%) and has a way to go. RIM is 0.1 percent behind Apple.
Comscore

Of 234 million Americans ages 13 and older who used mobile devices, Comscore found, 74.6 million . owned smartphones, at the end of April,  up 13% from the three-month period ending in January 2011.

Android Continue to Lead iOS In Mobile Ad Share, Owns 51% : Millennial

Android Continue to Lead http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/

According to Millennial Media’s monthly mobile report for the third month in a row, Android continued to lead iOS as the largest Smartphone OS on the Millennial network with over half 51% of all U.S. mobile ad impression share, which accounted to be about 21 billion each. Millennial ads reach 90.3 million users monthly in the U.S. and is the third largest mobile advertiser bihind AdMob and iAD. You can read about our report on the same subject on February Millennial Monthly Mix

In the ad network Apple's iOS has 27% share and Blackberry (RIM) found a chunk of 14& which is actually higher than previous month.

From the Millennial Monthly Mix;

• Samsung grew 50% month-over-month to reclaim the number two position on the Top 15 Manufacturers ranking. The Samsung Galaxy Tablet made its debut as a Top 30 Mobile Device – the first Android Connected Device to make our ranking. Samsung also had three new Smartphones enter the Top 30 Mobile Devices ranking in February: the Samsung Fascinate, the Samsung Forte, and the Samsung Captivate.
• The Verizon iPhone launch had on impact on overall iPhone impressions on our network. In the first two weeks the device launched, it represented 4.5% of all U.S. iPhone impressions.
• Android continued to lead iOS as the largest Smartphone OS on our network for the third consecutive month, with a 51% impression share in February.
• According to eMarketer, Apple was the clear leader in tablet device sales, with more than 10 million Apple iPads sold in 2010. Apple is predicted to remain the market leader over the next two years, selling an estimated 50 million devices by 2012. This year, Android and Microsoft tablet sales are both expected to grow more than 400%. More than 32 million Android tablets are predicted to be sold by 2012.

Millennial Blog via Techcrunch

Google Search Instant Previews Goes Mobile With Android And iOS

Google Search Instant Previews Goes Mobile http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/

Instant Previews that we all have been using to enhance our searches and search results are going mobile from March 8, 2011, that is today! Google Instant Previews will be available on Android and iOS based phones across 38 languages. If you want to try the feature, you will need a device with Android 2.2 or later, iOS 4.0 or later.
When you search on Google using any of the above devices, there will be magnifying glass icon next to each search result, just tap on the icon and web page previews for the first page of results will appear in side by side comparison view. Preview and tap on the most appealing result and as usual you will be taken tot he web site.
If you need any further help you go to google's Help Center.
Official Google Blog: Instant Previews now available on mobile
and
Instant Previews now available on mobile - Official Google Mobile Blog

Android Winning Over iOS In Many A Fronts, Subscribers, Ad Impressions!

Android Winning http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/

Looks like the Apple's iPhone ans RIM's Blackberry are losing to Android in number of subscribers and Ad impressions.
The Comscore published data showing that Android is leading and both RIM and Apple are falling behind. Android surged pass iPhone (iOS) previously in the number of subscribers but this is the first time Android took the helm from RIM,  The data from October 2010 to January 2011 indicated that 65.8 million people in the U.S. owned a smartphone, which itself up by 8% from the previous period.
As of January 2011, with 31.2% market share; RIM ranked second with 30.4% market share, with Apple following with 24.7% share. Microsoft had a 8% market share, with Palm taking 3.2% share.

As with number of smartphones increasing, so are the ad impressions. In this front too, Android is gliding past iOS in style. According to a report by Inmobi Android is way ahead with 37% of ad impressions verses Apple's iPhone only showing 23% of the share. According to Inmobi, Android surged ahead with 17% increase since last October and Apple actually dropped 1.3%. But keep in mind these figures are from Inmobi network only and does not include other ad networks or Apple's own iADs. Either way still Android is gaining on all fronts.
Via Techcrunch

iPhone Is Not For Everyone But Android Is, Steve Wozniak

#iPhone Is Not For Everyone But #Android Is, Steve #WoZniak http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
In an interview with Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, straight speaking Steve Wozniak, the man who created the first Apple computer and a major Apple share holder, told the world that iPhone has the quality and the Android mass appeal,in other words, Android will be the dominant smartphone platform.
Speaking about the iPhone, he mentioned thet the phone was conceived in 2004 in collaboration with a Japanese company but was shelved, until 2007, when it was time, the ripe time for amazing the world.
His take on Android is that the Android OS is like early windows and it could be polished to like the iOS that runs on iPhones, iPads and iPods.
The engineer, who is still on Apple payroll concluded the interview with a jab at Nokia, saying it is a brand of yesteryear and that it need to come up with a product that appeal to younger generations, I wonder about leader of the mobile market share is that bad or that all those Nokia users (33% world market share) are old folks.
Either way, Steve Wozniak is a man to watch.
De Telegraaf  (Translated) via engadget

iPhone Applications Privacy Issues! Did Apple Lie About UDID?

#iPhone #UDID And iPhone Privacy Did Apple Knew? http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
Of course Apple knew, when it addressed Congress in July but still went ahead and told that Apple could not track or tie the UDID (Unique Device IDentifier) of Apple devices,to their owners. But it did not tell that it's developers could.
Bucknell University Network Admin and two time DefCon wardriving champ, Eric Smith tells us that a bunch od Apple iOS developers are doing just that.
He equates iOS UDID to serial number bearing Intel's Pentium III processor that made world upside down. Intel and manufacturers of pc's even developed BIOS to block Serial Numbers on those processors and Intel never did that again.
Smith selected a number of applications from "most Popular Apps" and "Top free Apps" from the Apple App Store. (You can see the report PDF for more information). He ran the applications and analyzed the data being sent out by each app.
What he found was alarming,

68% of these applications were transmitting UDIDs to servers under the application vendor’s control each time the application is launched.  Furthermore, 18% of the applications tested encrypted their communications such that it was not clear what type of data was being shared.   A scant 14% of the tested applications appear to be clean.  We also confirmed that some applications are able to link the UDID to a real-world identity.

I am to renew my contract with AT&T for the iPhone and with this info, looks like I am going to end up with another Android. The current 3GS will join the rest of my test bench phones.
I uninstalled NPR App and installed Huffington Post App

Executive summery of iPhone App Privacy investigation
 iPhone-Applications-Privacy-Issues.pdf

Netflix On iPhone And iPod

Netflix on iPhone iPod http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
Now you can add more to the load on AT&T networks with Netflix on iPhone and iPod touch. I think it would be enjoyable over the WiFi but I do not know about 3G as I have not had much luck with it. At least iPhone and iPod users now can stand abreast with iPad users watching Netflix movies..
The App is available at iTunes Store and Netflix members can watch TV shows or Movies.
Here is the Netflix press release;

LOS GATOS, Calif., Aug. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Netflix, Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX) today announced the availability of its free Netflix App for iPhone and iPod touch, allowing Netflix members on plans starting at just $8.99 a month to instantly watch a vast selection of TV episodes and movies streamed to their iPhone or iPod touch at no additional cost.
The Netflix App is available for free from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.
“Apple has changed the game for mobile devices,” said Reed Hastings, Netflix co-founder and chief executive officer. “We’re excited that our members can now carry Netflix around in their pockets and instantly watch movies and TV shows streamed from Netflix right to their iPhone or iPod touch.”
The Netflix App delivers a high-quality viewing experience, a broad array of movie and TV choices and a clean, intuitive interface. It is available via both Wi-Fi and 3G networks. TV episodes and movies are conveniently organized into a variety of categories based on members’ personal preferences, popular genres, new arrivals and members’ individual instant Queues. Members can choose a movie or TV episode from any of the lists and just tap the innovative Multi-Touch user interface to watch instantly or to save the title for viewing later.
Additionally, users have the option of fast-forwarding and rewinding the video stream, and stopping at any time. When users want to start watching again, the video stream starts exactly where it was stopped, even on a different device capable of streaming from Netflix.
The Netflix App supports any iPhone or iPod touch device running iOS version 3.13 or later.

Images from CrunchGear