GSM

Google’s Android 2.2 OS also known as Froyo, making its way to mobile phone around the globe. But not all phones are getting the Froyo, so there are a lot of speculations and debates on which will really be upgraded.

Since its announcement in May 2010, many mobile companies have been secretive in revealing the specs on their Android 2.2 upgrading plans.  So far the following phones have received Froyo:

• Nexus One (updated version) – of course it is only expected that Google’s flagship phone will get the first chance for a Froyo upgrade.

• HTC EVO 4G (updated) – received the upgrade in August.

• Motorola Droid (updated) – received the upgrade right after the EVO also in August. There was a second upgrade that supports Adobe Flash.

• HTC Droid Incredible (updated) – upgraded on august 27, 2010.

• HTC Desire (updated ) – the upgrade rollout starts with unlock version of the phone then made its way to the various devices. In the USA the desire users will see the upgrade this January 2011.

• Motorola Droid X (updated) – the rollout began in mid-September but bad issues are being reported so, Motorola is working on the second upgrading.

• MyTouch 3G (updated) – the upgrade started on October 13 and lasted through mid-December on the original MyTouch 3G phone. The next upgrade will be on the MyTouch 3G 3.5mm, MyTouch Fender LE and MyTouch 3G Slide.

• Dell Streak (updated) – this tablet/phone is getting Froyo and posting it at the company’s official blog site.

• Acer Liquid E (new) – Acer Canada upgraded their Liquid E mobile phone in mid-November and the upgrade can be downloaded manually.

• Archos Internet Tablet – the Android 2.2 upgrade for Archos Internet Tablet was released in late November for models 28, 32, 43, 70, and 101.

• HTC Legend (updated) – users of carrier-bound HTC Legends received Froyo in November, users of unbranded Legends in December.

• HTC Magic (updated)  – the upgrade is being sent by waves so only a few clients a day will be able to receive the upgrade. A notification will be sent to the mobile once the upgrade is available.

• Samsung Intercept (updated) – the upgrade began on December 17, 2010 and the rollout is also being sent via air-waves.

• HTC Aria (updated) – the upgrading is ongoing right now but is not yet available in America. The users from Southeast Asia started receiving Froyo in mid-December.

The following are the list of phones expected to receive the Android 2.2:

• Samsung Galaxy
• T-Mobile Samsung Vibrant
• Samsung mesmerize
• U.S. Galaxy S
• Sprint’s Epic 4G
• Motorola Milestone
• Motorola Defy
• Samsung Transform
• Nook Color
• Samsung Galaxy Apollo
• Samsung Continuum
• Samsung Apex

Smartphones based on Google’s Android software will be the next on the marketing plan of AT&T Inc. and the company will no longer be the exclusive distributor of Apple iPhones in the US.

There will be a big shift in mobile industry as Verizon, the biggest supporter of Android will start selling the iPhone starting this February. Everybody will be holding their breaths as to whose strategy will succeed.

Motorola one of the biggest Android phone manufacturing companies are already seeing a big drop-off of its sales from Verizon since most customers are waiting for the telecommunication company’s iPhone releases.

AT&T Inc. said that they are going to play a major role in the Android market this year. Big changes are about to happen as the significant shift goes through.

AT&T have experience a big blow when they were only able to sign-up four hundred thousand new contract customer during last year’s last quarter. It was reported to be the lowest quarterly report in the last five years. This report have somewhat disappointed analysts but the telecommunications company announced that because of the new improvements and network upgrades they have made last year, they are expecting more revenues and larger number of contracts this year.

The fact that Verizon also provided services for tablet devices with contracts while AT&T did not added to the significant advantage the former had over the latter. Over all, AT&T has reached 95.5 million subscribers while Verizon has 102.2 million including other devices with services.

The $1.09 billion net income recorded by AT&T for the October-December period was actually 60 percent lower than what they had recorded for the year 2009. But for 2011, AT&T is expecting its earnings to grow with the coming of the big shift in the telecommunications network services industry.

According to latest surveys and reports mobile email usage is one of the most common way of communication next to text messaging. The best thing about sending and receiving emails on handset is that you do not have to be home or in the office infront of the PC to be able to check your mails. If you are away and on the move, you do not need a laptop or a notebook, your mobile phone is all you need to keep in touch with family and collegues.

Another advantage email has over SMS is the cost and the length limitations. You can type as many characters as you like for free. Email is easy and can be used on many paltforms.

Even before the implementation of any of the new operating systems on mobile like Android and iOS, email has already been optiomised on handheld phones. Most non-smartphones also features email and so more people are able to use this great feature.

With this useful feature on most mobile phones people are more excited to be on the net even while they are out. Imagine being able to reply to emails even when doing your grocery shopping. Or greeting a friend abroad on his birthday even when you are on the bus. All you need is that compact device that fits your pocket.

Emailing on the go beats texting anytime of the day, anywhere you may be.

Mobile phone themes are folders that contain a set of icons, images, even music and ring tones. These themes are categorized depending on the phone brand or models and also according to topics. A mobile brand kind of theme is of course not useful for other phone brands.

Each mobile phone brand has its own unique set of themes that are easily recognizable as the brand’s signature themes. These themes are installed in the handsets during manufacture. There are also themes that you can do on your phone is you are not satisfies with what your phone has. These personally created themes can then be shared with your friends by uploading. There are sites that offer free tools for creating themes.

Popular mobile themes that are downloadable from the Internet are those scenes from blockbuster films, pictures of characters from TV and movies, animals, nature scenes, various hobbies ( like sports), passions ( like cars and bikes) and many more.

Mobile theme sites offers new and attractive themes and you can change always your theme if you find one that captures your interest. You chosen theme personalize your device as it represents your personality and preferences. Your mobile unit will have a completely altered look once you have selected a mobile theme of your choice.

In general, all latest handheld devices are GPRS or Wi-Fi ready so mobile themes can directly downloaded from mobile theme sites to your mobile unit. Some themes can also be shared with another person via Bluetooth. But before downloading or sharing, be sure to check on the brand compatibility of the themes.

Google is soon going to announce the release of the android Honeycomb, the latest version of the Andoid OS that has been specifically optimised for tablets.

The new features to be expected from the Honeycomb are the following:

• A new button for multitasking on the homescreen for easier acces on running applications.
• Reusable widget components that may be installed on the homescreen
• Notifications that are absolutly unintrusive with more informations than what you can get on your mobile phones
• Fruit Ninya that is same version originally created for smartphones
• Application Fragments for additional applications
• Side by side fragments in comparision to smartphones one time fragment display
• RenderScript – a graphics engine for top grade perormance 3D graphics
• New anination framework that allows for sppeeding up of native hardware
• Supproted multi-core processor that ensures smooth performance of 3D applications
• A 3D-esque CoverFlow way of browsing for new music apps
• Google Body – a 3D providing app of the human body that works just like Google Maps but for the body
• Easy game playing just like in a PS3 but cooler
• A new camera app with a cool novel circular controlled user interface
• Image stabilization for a smoother video chat
• Contact shortcuts that lets you access your contact list while viewing their pictures. Easily connect with friends via email, SMS or video chat
• CNN app – a free appliaction for tablets that lets you create your own news from your tablet. It also allows you capture pictures or take videos on your tablet’s camera, write reports on what you have seen and capture and then upload them via iRep[ort in an instant.

These changes in the Andoid OS is really a big step towards better communication and bigger opportunities for tablet users. They also give developers more chances of using more flexible ways to build up applications.

Samsung

Samsung is soon to release the predecessor to the Samsung Star, the Samsung Star II S5260. The original Star was a big success because it has all the features that the customers needed.

The new Star II will have additional features like a Social Networking Support and TouchWiz 3.0. This new version will not run though on Samsung’s Bada OS but rather will be running on a “feature phone” category.

The Star II will be initially available in Germany this February to be followed by other Europeans countries, Middle East, South America and India.

Apple

In the latest advertisement from Apple, the popular mobile company describes Apple iPhone had a tag line that goes: Two is better than one.

This newest advertisements on the iPhone 4 is not yet available live on Apple’s official YouTube channel, but a YouTube user was able to record an HD version of the advert and people can now watch it.

The controversial advert recorded by Canamerica6776 is short with no voiceover. It shows both AT&T and Verizon iPhones doing exactly the same features. This may sound funny but these rival companies are both promoting the iPhone 4.

So Apple is currently enjoying the support of two fighting networks and selling more and more of its smartphones. People have more options and Apple does not mind which one the customers take as long as people will keep on buying an iPhone.

Smartphones are currently dominating the mobile phone market for the past several years and they will continue to do so into the future. In fact it is said that shipments of these most advanced handsets will reach 850 million by 2015. It may even reach a billionth mark before that year ends because of the high demands for these superbly designed devices.

The growth in demand is reasonable because Smartphones are powerful handsets with large memory, wide screens and open operating systems. They offer faster connectivity than any basic mobile feature phones. While both types of handsets are able to run applications on certain platforms, it is a smartphone that actually have the better capability to install and run more advanced applications. Add the fact that you can also get faster Internet connectivity with a smartphone than any basic mobile phone.

It is estimated that over 45.5 million people in the United States alone owned smartphones. Last year only a 20 percent of the total mobile phone shipments are smartphone, but by 2012 more than half of the US shipments will be smartphones. That is how greatly welcomed this great modern innovation was.

The significant aspects that make the smartphone success are it excellent features like; a powerful browser, various applications, user-friendly interface and great keyboard or the touch screen. The fact also that it is indeed a very trendy device adds to demand for it.

Motorola is set to expand its influence in the UK market and it will broaden the distribution channels to support the promotion of its Motorola ATRIX, the company’s “superphone” and the Motorola XOOM.

The successful launching of the Motorola Defy smartphone last year is what prompted the company to make this bold move and to embark on a big and aggressive campaign that will hopefully put the Motorola name into a significant position in the UK market.

Tom Satchwell. Motorola’s European marketing director said that the UK market is very important because it is believed to be the most significant market in all of Europe due to the biggest numbers of retailers and consumers it boasts. The fact also that the marketing campaign at CES 2011 in Las Vegas was very successful is what keeps this company hopeful in making another success, this time in the UK.

The latest Sony Ericsson mobile phone to be released in the market is the Xperia Arc. It has been prematurely disclosed even before the actual launching but Sony Ericsson UK is confident that this early revelation of the new handset that will replace the Xperia X10 will not be a big problem.

A big marketing campaign is set for the launching of the Xperia Arc handset in the UK and the company is betting big on this new handset variety. The promotion is said to be bigger than that done on the “Spark Something” campaign on October 2009.

The Xperia Arc handset is a 4.2 Android smartphone that has the same look of that of the Xperia X10 but a thinner version of only 8.7 mm. The Arc handset is the fifth installment from the Android-based Xperia series the former models being; the X10, X10 mini, X10 mini pro and the one released last year, the X8. It is set for upgarding to Android 3.0 honeycomb as soon as it is released in the market.

Nokia is ceasing its unlimited music download offer to its subscribers but only in 6 markets. It is a sure sign that the company is currently suffering difficulties in keeping its position in the smartphone market.

The unlimited Ovi Music subscription was launched in 2008; this service allows the users to download as much music as they want for free. The unlimited music comes with the Nokia phones which have such service included for one year.

The company said that the current subscriptions will be honored but there will be no renewal of contracts and there will be no more new phones with unlimited music features that will be released after this year.

When this feature was introduced by Nokia, it shook the Apple’s iTune music store. But the restrictions on Nokia’s Ovi music store failed to gain advantage over iTunes so it is now being discontinued.

The restrictions included: the DRM or Digital Rights Management could only be played on a Nokia mobile or a personal computer.

This suspension on the unlimited Ovi music is a big set back for the company although they remain the top mobile phone producer worldwide. This is due to the fact that Nokia phones are still the best selling cellular phones in most developing countries.

So far, Apple’s iTunes stays the number one digital music store around the globe, holding at least 60 percent of the market, being followed by Amazon’s music service at 13 Percent.