HTC now charging for its Windows Phone navigation app

Well, the free ride is over for those of you who like to use HTC’s Windows Phone GPS application called ‘Locations’. The app will now carry a price tag for its navigation services. This offering from the Taiwanese based manufacturer was a counter to Nokia’s offering for its Lumia Windows Phones. I guess all good things must come to an end, right? No one has a clue why HTC is taxing users for its navigation application, but it could suggest that the cost to operate the app began to take … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

Apple offers $16M, Proview wants $400M for iPad trademark

We all knew at some point Apple and Proview’s squabbles over who owned the iPad trademark would come down to a bid. Well, there are reports saying that Apple is offering up $16 million (100 million yuan) for the right to use the iPad name in China. Of course, Proview didn’t agree with that number, instead, the cash deprived Chinese-based company wanted more. A lot more. Try $400 million, this according to sources familiar with the negotiations between Apple and Proview. This large number is believed to cover most of … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

Digitimes: Pegatron working on new iPhone, Foxconn making 7-inch iPad

Ready to hear some more new iPhone and iPad rumors? Well, everyones favorite Apple rumor starter, Digitimes, has gotten word that Pegatron Technology has landed orders for a new-generation iPhone to be launched in September and a 10-inch iPad to be launched in the fourth quarter. Pegatron is currently an OEM for the iPhone 4S and new iPad. The company has already gotten its work staff expanded to properly handle the high demand for the for next upcoming generations of the two wildly popular iProducts. Furthermore, the chinese-based site is still … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

Virgin Mobile to sell the Evo V 4G starting May 31

Virgin Mobile today announced the launch of its first 4G phone, the EVO V. Customers will be able to get their hands on this new handset on the company’s website at the end of the month May 31. The handset will feature some decent specs, including a 4.3-inch qHD display, 1GB of RAM, and a 5-megapixel camera that is EVO 3D-like with its “3D HD imaging.” Moreover, customers can also expect the device to come preloaded with an 8GB microSD card, an HDMI out port, and mobile hotspot functionality for … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

Google and AT&T trade barbs over Android updates

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson has been on a roll as of late. First, he flat out admitted that customers should expect to see their wireless services prices go up thanks to the company’s botched acquisition of T-Mobile. Second, the AT&T boss expressed his regret of not getting rid of unlimited data plans a lot sooner. Boy, you got to love that good old Death Star. Just when you thought these disturbing confessions weren’t grim enough, Stephenson, has now blamed Google for delayed updates to its Android smartphones. Yes, you heard … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

RIM hires new chief operating officer, new marketing officer

Research in Motion (RIM) just announced two new hires to its executive leadership team, employing Kristian Tear as COO and Frank Boulben as CMO. This move is apart of new RIM boss Thorsten Heins’ massive restructuring of the company to get rid of some of the “fat on the hip,” as he called it. These hires are also apart of Heins’ operation ‘laser focus’. Who is Kristian Tear and Frank Boulben, you ask? Well, Tear comes to RIM from Sony Mobile, where he most recently worked as executive VP, while … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

HTC releases source code for One X, US variant not included

Hackers rejoice … HTC has released the source code for the wildly popular One X. Yesterday, we wrote how MoDaCo noticed that the AT&T version of the HTC One X ships with a locked bootloader that isn’t unlocked by HTC’s bootloader unlock tool, a revelation that was later confirmed to The Verge by HTC. The Death Star strikes again! Well, thanks to some diligent developers and angry customers, HTC has now offered up the One X source code for several countries (including Australia, France, New Zealand, Europe, Taiwan, UK, and … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

AT&T to start testing home automation system for mobile devices

AT&T revealed additional details about its Digital Life home automation and security platform. The second largest wireless provider in the United States plans to test the new service sometime during the summer, with trials set to go out in Dallas and Atlanta before it launches nationwide. If the company manages to avoid any hiccups along the way, consumers can expect to use this later this year. What the hell is AT&T Digit Life, you ask? Well, it’s a variety of sensors that are being installed in the user’s home or … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

China overtakes the US to become world’s largest smartphone market

Canalys, an analysis and consulting services company, today released to clients its detailed smart phone shipment estimates by country for Q1 2012. In the release, the company found that total shipments in smartphones worldwide grew 45 percent year on year to 146 million units. The most significant part of the stats were the differences in country and region. The way the numbers break down, the United States showed only moderate growth (5 percent year-on-year), while markets in the Asia Pacific region exploded to an 81 percent spirt. Shipments in China … Read more

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3 weeks ago

Charles West

HTC: Sense is better than stock Android

Recently, Laptop Magazine sat down with Drew Bamford, HTC’s AVP of user experience, and the HTC exec had some interesting things to say about Sense stacked up against stock Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The latest version of Sense 4.0, HTC’s software for ICS phones, added many improvements that made the custom skin unobtrusive. The Taiwanese phone maker toned down the glossy graphics in favor of ICS’s matte visuals. In the interview, Bamford was asked a group of questions about the HTC Sense 4.0 experience compared to that of Google’s … Read more

3 weeks ago

Charles West

Walmart slashing prices on the iPhone 4S (Updated)

Walmart is dropping the prices on both the iPhone 4 and 4S in select locations. According to Cult of Mac, a Walmart store out in Edmond, Oklahoma is offering the 16GB iPhone 4S for $114, and The Verge reported this morning that an Austin, Texas Walmart store is offering the 16GB iPhone 4S for $114 as well. These stores are selling the latest iOS smartphone at a $74 discount compared to the competition. Not bad, huh? If you hit up Wal-Mart’s Web site, the price of the iPhone 4S is $188 with a note … Read more