Categories
Close
Menu
Menu
Close
Search
Search

Featured Articles

Opinion

Last week at The Fonecast: 14th January 2012

Mark

Harder, better, faster, stronger...

Share:

Print

Rate article:

No rating
Rate this article:
No rating

Mark Bridge writes:

Oh, how the mobile industry loves a superlative. Much like the work ethic celebrated by Daft Punk (or Kanye West, if you prefer), it’s always looking for a new angle.

The mobile part of last week’s CES show in Las Vegas presented us with the world’s largest smartphone and the world’s thinnest smartphone. Well, depending on your precise definition and probably only until Mobile World Congress.

Anyway, Alcatel came up with the 6.45mm deep (in places) Android-powered One Touch Idol Ultra smartphone, while Huawei’s Ascend Mate had a 6.1-inch screen. Also from Huawei came a Windows Phone 8 handset and a flagship Android phone with a 5-inch HD display, 13 megapixel camera and quad-core CPU… slightly taking the shine off Sony’s flagship Android phone, which had a 5-inch HD display, 13 megapixel camera and – I’m sure you’ve guessed – a quad-core CPU.

Meanwhile, in another part of the show, Belkin added a mobile-controlled WiFi light switch to its home automation product range while Glympse announced an in-car location-sharing feature in partnership with Ford.

Outside of CES, NTT Docomo said it’s planning a smartphone aimed specifically at pre-teen children and teenagers in Japan, UK pub company Punch Taverns arranged free WiFi in its pubs and Ordnance Survey launched its first official map application for Apple devices.

Finally, and away from the glitter of Vegas, we’ve had some preliminary financial results. HTC expects its quarterly profit to show a drop when official figures are released in the next few weeks, Nokia said it shipped 4.4 million Lumia smartphones (and 2.2 million Symbian smartphones) in the last three months and Samsung predicted a record quarter. Yes, yet another superlative.

Every Monday morning we summarise the past week’s mobile industry headlines in our newsletter. To receive it, simply register your email address at TheFonecast.com by clicking the link at the top right-hand corner of our home page.

Comments

Collapse Expand Comments (0)
You don't have permission to post comments.

Opinion Articles

Whatever happened to all my tech?

ExclusiveWhatever happened to all my tech?

Mark Bridge writes:

I've been taking a look back at the devices I've written about during the past few years. Some are still faithful companions, others... well, let's just say my faith was misplaced.

ExclusivePredictions for 2016: Network Function Virtualisation, 4G throttling and video calling

Mark Windle, head of marketing at OpenCloud, predicts that this year’s reduction in the number of traditional telecoms operators in some countries will provide an opportunity for other operators to innovate and capture market share in 2016.

He says next year will be a year of rapid change for telecoms… whether it’s MVNO disruption, competitive tariff pricing or simply defence from the ‘dark art’ of hacking.

Kapture review: the audio-recording wristband

ExclusiveKapture review: the audio-recording wristband

Mark Bridge writes:

The most memorable moments in life often go unrecorded. You don't have your camera in your hands. Your finger is still hovering over the 'pause' button on your audio recorder. Or you were simply too busy experiencing whatever was happening. It's all about the one that got away.

That's where Kapture can help.

Making mobile websites work better

ExclusiveMaking mobile websites work better

Mark Bridge writes:

James Rosewell shows me a colourful roll of paper that's the width of an iPhone but well over three metres long. When I look closer, I can see it's a printed copy of the Wall Street Journal's mobile website. That's a lot of scrolling to do... and a pretty unfriendly user experience for anyone reading the news online. Why does it work so badly?

RSS
1345678910Last

Recent Podcasts

ExclusivePodcast from Mobile World Congress 2015

Mark Bridge learns about the mobile technology trends at Mobile World Congress 2015 by chatting to James Rosewell of 51Degrees, Dr Kevin Curran from the IEEE and Chris Millington of Doro.

They talk about wearable devices, wireless charging, mobile operating systems and much more... including some of their favourite products from the exhibition.

ExclusiveLooking back at February: from security scares to multiple MVNOs

We're taking a look back at the biggest mobile industry news stories from February 2015, including allegations that the UK's security service tried to breach SIM card security by hacking into one of the world's biggest SIM producers.

We also talk about the planned BT and EE merger, the creation of two new UK virtual networks, some acquisitions in the mobile payment arena and a new Ubuntu smartphone.

ExclusiveA month of mobile: O2 counts on 3, Microsoft counts to 10 and Apple counts its profits

We're back with a month of mobile industry news, including takeover talks and takeover rumours. O2 and Three are said to be discussing a merger... but is there any truth in the suggestions that BlackBerry could be up for grabs?

We also discuss Apple's record-breaking quarterly figures, the highlights of CES and the launch of Microsoft Windows 10, as well as saying farewell to the current version of Google Glass.

RSS
1345678910Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Archive Calendar

«May 2026»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
27282930123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
1234567

Archive