Samsung's blue Galaxy S III faces delay due to paint issues

Despite launching in several markets today, the "pebble blue" version of the Galaxy S III already faces a delay of two to three weeks.

Samsung's pebble blue version of the Galaxy S III.

(Credit: Luke Westaway/CNET UK)

Samsung apparently has difficulties with the color blue.

The "pebble blue" variant of its highly anticipated Galaxy S III smartphone faces delays due to issues with getting the color and its newly invented "hyper-glaze" process, according to several reports. Despite launching today in various markets in Europe and the Middle East, the blue version faces delays of two to three weeks.

New 27-inch Dell all-in-one matches iMac pixel for pixel

Dell's new XPS One 27 is the first Windows-based all-in-one to hit 2,560x1,440 pixels.

(Credit: Dell)

HP and Asus released the first 27-inch Windows-based all-in-ones this year, but with 1,920x,1,080 resolution screens, they failed to match Apple's high density, 2,560x1,440 iMacs. Dell's new XPS One 27 does.

Dell says the starting price for the new XPS One 27 is $1,399. That puts it ahead of the $1,249 HP Omni 27, but on par with the Asus ET2700I. All are also at least $300 below the most affordable 27-inch iMac.

At least for now those other 27-inch all-in-one also all use second-generation Intel Core CPUs (aka Sandy Bridge). The XPS One 27 has third-generation Core i5 and Core i7 CPUs (aka Ivy Bridge). All PC vendors will move to third-gen Core chips eventually, but for now, Dell seems to have a processing performance advantage.

(Credit: Dell)

Like the other 27-inchers, the XPS One 27 is not a touch screen, likely due to the high manufacturing costs. Dell has, however, transitioned to a pedestal design for the XPS One and a pair of new Inspiron Ones (23 and 20-inch models, the former with a third-gen Core option, the latter with only second-gen Core or budget Pentium CPUs). Dell's older all-in-one had a foot-and-kickstand chassis, but it moved to the pedestal design as "a result of direct customer feedback."

The high resolution display puts Dell ahead of its consumer-oriented Windows-based competitors, but video professionals might still prefer the large iMacs due to the XPS One 27's underwhelming graphics card options. The Intel HD 4000 graphics core embedded in the Dell's new Core i7 and Core i5 chips is a viable 3D processor, but neither that chip, nor the Dell's GeForce 640M upgrade option is a match for the iMac's high-end AMD Radeon HD 6970M.

Dell says its new all-in-ones will be available in Asia today, and throughout the rest of the world "in the coming weeks." I expect we'll see PC line updates from multiple vendors over the next month in the gear up to the back-to-school shopping season. It will be interesting to see how long Dell can hold onto its apparent competitive edge.

Source: news.cnet.com

Samsung revs up iTunes rival with new Galaxy S III

The Korean handset maker is unveiling its Music Hub service with today's launch of the new Galaxy S III smartphones across Europe and the Middle East.

 

(Credit: Screenshot by Lance Whitney/CNET)

Samsung has found yet another way to compete with Apple.

The Galaxy S smartphone maker is officially kicking off its new iTunes rival Music Hub servicestarting today. Available as an app with the new Galaxy S III phone launching in 28 different countries, Music Hub borrows more than a page or two from iTunes but also adds a paid subscription model.

The service will offer Samsung phone and tablet owners access to 19 million songs, with prices comparable to those found on iTunes, according to Reuters. Users can stream music and download it from the Hub to play it locally without having to stay connected to the cloud. They can preview a track for up to 30 seconds before deciding whether or not to purchase it.

But two subscription plans will offer customers access to unlimited streaming and downloading of more than 3 million tunes. For the $9.99-per-month unlimited mobile plan, Samsung users can access the Music Hub from a single device -- phone or tablet. For the $12.99-per-month unlimited premium plan, users can tap into the hub on up to four devices as well as a PC or Mac.

The premium edition also follows in the footsteps of iTunes Match by scanning songs on your mobile devices to match and store them in the cloud.

Music Hub will initially be available only on the new Samsung Galaxy S III but will eventually branch out to other devices, including Samsung Blu-ray players and Smart TVs.

The company is even hoping to design an iOS app to let Apple users access the service from their iPhones, according to the Register. But as CNET U.K. reporter Luke Westaway points out, we'll have to see if Samsung can sneak that one past Apple's approval process.

Six things to know about smartphone batteries

If you're trying to figure out what your iPhone 5 (or 6) -- or your next Android device or Windows Phone -- is going to look like, there are some things you need to know.

Temperatures can run high inside a smartphone...

(Credit: Leyden Energy)

Editors' note: This is a guest post. See Noam Kedem's bio at the bottom.

The smartphone market revolves around one question: how do you fit all-day access to all of a consumer's favorite applications and services comfortably into one hand? (The tablet market? Two hands.) The rest is commentary.

No smartphone manufacturer has managed to answer the question fully, because they all face a fundamental dilemma. The electronics that enable faster performance, higher-speed data, better video and gaming, a more vivid and detailed screen, are moving at the speed of Moore's Law. The lithium ion (Li-ion) pouch cell batteries that power them can't keep up. Little wonder that battery life is the biggest complaint of smartphone users!

The feature vs. run-time battle this imposes on smartphone designers is why the new iPad came in thicker and heavier than its predecessor. The battery needed to power the Retina Display, 4G LTE, and general and graphic processing improvements is 70 percent bigger and heavier. Even so, the new iPad's battery life (run-time) is slightly less than that of the iPad 2. The implications of that for the iPhone 5 are being hotly discussed.

Li-ion battery constraints go a long way toward explaining why smartphone vendors spend millions on incremental design advantages in a market that's moving with blinding speed. If you're trying to figure out what your iPhone 5 -- or your next Android device or Windows Phone -- is going to look like, here are six things you need to know about smartphone batteries.

1. Battery in a bag
A Li-ion pouch cell is a sealed bag containing carefully layered anode and cathode sheets, separators between them, and -- permeating all of these layers -- a liquid electrolyte. Although tablet batteries comprise several cells (three in the new iPad), smartphones are generally powered by single cells. Either way, at one end of the battery, a printed circuit board (PCB) is connected to the positive and negative terminals of each cell and provides active protection against short circuits, overcharge, and forced discharge. Li-ion pouch cells tend to be fragile and rely on the smartphone case for protection, and so officially are not user-replaceable.

2. Squeezing in run-time
The energy density of a Li-ion pouch cell determines how much run-time you can pack into a given size (volumetric) or weight (gravimetric). Li-ion technology hit the market in 1991. Since then, processor transistor count has increased more than a thousand-fold, Li-ion energy density only threefold. Denser electronics are what make dazzling features possible, but they draw ever more power. Unfortunately, battery manufacturers are having a harder and harder time increasing energy density. This is why non-replaceable Li-ion pouch batteries are popular with smartphone and tablet designers. Without the protective case needed to make a battery safe for consumers to handle -- which does nothing for energy capacity -- they are thinner and pack more run-time into a smaller space.

3. The XYZ of cells
Energy density is affected by the thickness and the ratio between width (X) and length (Y) of a Li-ion pouch cell. Volumetric energy density falls off as the pouch gets thinner because the packaging takes up a higher percentage of battery volume. The optimal X-Y ratio arises because when the PCB is installed on the short edge of a narrow battery, there's more room for the active materials (anode and cathode) that actually store energy. All other things being equal, a narrow, thicker battery will deliver better volumetric energy density than a more square one. (An interesting Apple patent reveals ways to mold batteries in more complex shapes to fit into places like the bezel that are presently impossible to use.)

...resulting in charging pauses and lockups.

(Credit: Leyden Energy)

4. The necessity of keeping cool
Li-ion pouch cells don't like it hot -- a common condition for smartphones, as anyone who's ever had to wait out the "cool down" message knows. The standard Li-ion chemistry depends on an electrolyte that reacts with residual moisture to create hydrofluoric acid, the most corrosive of all chemical compounds. Like all chemical reactions, this process doubles in speed with every increase in temperature of 10 degrees Celsius. The result is reduced calendar and cycle life: not only does run-time degrade with simple age, but each charge and discharge further reduces it, until the battery just doesn't last long enough between charges. Worse, Li-ion cells generate heat themselves during charge and discharge: the more power your smartphone calls for or the faster you charge it, the hotter the battery gets.

5. Building a smartphone
Three-layer or "carve-out"? The Motorola Droid Razr line (both Razr and Razr Maxx) is an example of the three-layer approach to smartphone design: screen, circuitry, and battery. The iPhone 4 comprises two layers -- screen and electronics -- with a space carved out of the PCB for the battery. In either case, a bigger screen means room for a bigger battery. Regardless of the other advantages of each approach, the narrower, thicker battery possible with the carve-out approach will offer higher energy density. In a three-layer approach, it's also more difficult to shield the battery from components that generate heat and thus shorten battery life.

6. Chemistry: Wild card of the pack
Improvements in Li-ion chemistry may offer dramatic improvements in energy density, giving smartphone designers more choices in the feature vs. run-time battle. There's a lot of promising research into new active materials and some new solutions already on the market. One of these uses a new Li-imide electrolyte that doesn't generate hydrofluoric acid and thus delivers a dramatic improvement in thermal stability and battery life. It also permits effectively thinner batteries by eliminating most of the swelling in thickness characteristic of current Li-ion pouch cells over their useful life, which forces designers to sacrifice cavity space to accommodate the swelling.

The bottom line
Don't expect dramatic departures in design from Apple or any other smartphone vendor until Li-ion pouch cells take the next step. This could come as soon as 12 to 18 months from now. New active materials (for example, silicon anode and high voltage/high capacity cathodes) combined with the new electrolyte mentioned above could deliver a 20 percent boost in run-time per charge in the same size battery. For the eventual iPhone 6, such a battery would give Apple more flexibility to consider faster processors, hungrier displays, and more applications without sacrificing run time, and make it easier to maintain the iPhone's famously sleek appearance.

In the meantime, keep your eye on Li-ion battery news with the six things above in mind, and you'll have a better idea of what to expect from the next generation of iPhone or Android smartphones.

Source: news.cnet.com

White Box Tablet Market Takes Shape While Android Tablet Prices Plummet

Is the $499 to $850 now touted for the third-generation Apple iPad beyond your price range? Well, you can find tablets with comparable feature sets for about a few hundred dollars; however, you may not get as much (maybe no) support or a warranty with these white box systems.
White box is a somewhat nebulous term that describes custom designed computer systems that come from non-name brand suppliers. These devices are often sold directly from the manufacturer, but in some cases are available through various channels, such as retail stores.
White box vendors try to match the quality and functions of branded counterparts but at a much cheaper price. The suppliers have taken a variety of approaches to meet this goal. System chips come from Freescale Inc., Intel Corp., and Via Technologies Inc. Many of the systems work with the Google Android operating system, but a few run Linux.
Given the nascent stage of the tablet market, the white box phenomenon is a recent development, but one that has been gaining momentum. “White box systems now account for about 20% of the worldwide tablet market,” stated Richard Shim, an analyst at NPD DisplaySearch.
Customers find a growing list of options. In fact, type the words White Box Tablet into alibaba.com, an electronics ecommerce site, and about 2,600 results pop up.
Why White Box?
White box options have emerged for several reasons. Supply constraint is one market force. “In China, white box vendors gained traction because Apple initially was not selling the iPad there,” noted Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner Inc.
Time is needed for vendors to get their products into different markets. In some cases, demand exceeds their ability to execute, opening the door to knock-off alternatives.
White box suppliers typically come from Asia, specialize in Integrated Circuit designer, and have built thriving businesses delivering copycat products. In fact, the Chinese government has actively tried to develop this sector as a major industry by offering tax incentives to suppliers. As a result, China is home to many of the world's best-known white-box suppliers today.
For instance, Chinavasion offers the Xinc tablet that features the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS and a 7-inch touchscreen with 800 x 480 resolution. The device, which sells for about $125, is powered by 1.0GHz Cortex A10 Multi-Core processor, 512M bytes of RAM, 4G bytes of Flash Memory, and a 3600mAh rechargeable battery.
The Systems
Fuzhou Rockchip Electronics Co. Ltd. sells an Android Tablet with a 7-inch touchscreen and 800 x 600resolution. The product, which costs about $200, is powered by a .6GHz ARM 7100 dual core processor, 128M bytes of RAM, and a 2G byte hard drive.
Ingenic Semiconductor also has an Android tablet, one with a list price of less than $100. The system features a 7 inch screen, a MIPS-based XBurst CPU 1Ghz processor, multi-touch screen, front and rear cameras, integrated Wi-Fi, and support for USB 2.0 and HDMI 1.3.
Visionsoft, a subsidiary of VIA Technologies, has systems costing about $200 and featuring an 800MHz CPU and support for the AVI format, Flash10 playback, and HTML5 video standard.
Buyer Beware
The devices sport warts as well as low prices. “Typically, white box systems force users into some type of system compromise,” explained NDP DisplaySearch’s Shin.
In some cases, they receive less functionality. The screen resolution may be lower, operating systems older, processors slower, and memory less expansive than branded alternatives.
The product quality may be inferior. The suppliers may buy components from fledgling vendors that take shortcuts to reduce pricing. Also, white-box tablet makers may use panels that have been rejected by major brands or purchase end-of-the-lot inventory that component suppliers are trying to clear.
Amenities may be missing. Some suppliers do not offer product warranties. In other cases, their return policy may be skewed to the seller rather than to the customer.
Rectifying such problems may be difficult. “The white box vendors usually do not have strong customer support groups,” noted Gartner’s Milanesi. Even when they do, using it can be difficult because the vendors are typically stationed overseas.
Worth It?
So customers must ask: Are the potential savings worth the potential risks? Tablet pricing has been dropping. With high-end Android tablets struggling to gain traction in the market, vendors have been cutting pricing in order to move inventory. Also, the emergence of the Amazon Kindle Fire, Samsung Galaxy Tab 2, and rumored Google ASUS tablet have pushed the market in the direction of the white box suppliers’ sweet spot, a few hundred dollars.
Despite those market shifts, the need for white box systems is expected to remain. “White boxes are widely accepted in established markets, like smartphones,” said Gartner’s Milanesi. Here, these systems are sold mainly in emerging economies where cost is key, and finding products can be difficult.
In established economies, they are not as significant a force. "In the US, white-box tablets will have limited appeal: they will be popular with value conscious buyers, such as students, whose choice is based almost exclusively on price," concluded Gartner’s Milanesi.
Source: tabletpcreview.com

Most Popular Laptops for April 2012

In that sense, think of this list as the "most clickable laptops of the month" ... the notebooks that most of the people visiting this site are interested in learning about. Keep in mind that clicks directly on the "Most Viewed Laptops" list do not count toward the total - keeping the list as fair as possible each month. The only clicks that count toward the monthly totals come from web searches like Google or from visitors who have clicked on a laptop after visiting our "Notebook Database" or inside our forums.
The HP Pavilion g6 budget-priced notebook is yet again holding firm to the #1 position with more than 22,000 page views for the month. The next highest ranked notebook on our site is new Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3, a 15-inch ultrabook with the new NVIDIA 600M-series Kepler graphics. That means for the first time we have four ultrabooks in our monthly Top 10 list.

1. HP Pavilion g6 (Still #1) - The Pavilion g6 is a budget-priced laptop that tries to balance great design, solid performance, and affordability. The Pavilion g6t series with 15.6-inch LED display features a range of available Intel Pentium and Core i series processors, Windows 7, multiple graphics options, and a 6-cell battery with more than four hours of battery life while browsing the web. (22,608 unique views) Purchase the HP Pavilion g6 View the NotebookReview.com Review for the HP Pavilion g6

2. Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3 (New to the Top 10) - The Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3 is a 15.6-inch multimedia and gaming ultrabook. The Ultra M3 stands out because it's the first ultrabook that packs a dedicated graphics card. Not only that, it is the first ultrabook on the market with the new NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M graphics. It can also support up to 6GB of RAM and a hybrid storage drive. It weighs in at 4.4 pounds and measures in at 14.8 x 10 x 0.79 inches. (21,155 unique views) View NotebookReview.com Review for the Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3

3. Lenovo G570 (Previously #2) - The G570 is part of the budget-priced/general use G-Series line by Lenovo. Running on Windows 7 Home Premium on a 15.6-inch display (1366x768), the G570 has an Intel Core i5-2410M dual-core processor and up to 8GB of RAM. Choose from a 500GB capacity hard drive at 5400rpm or a 750GB capacity hard drive at 5400rpm. The graphics card included with the system is an Intel HD 3000 (integrated). (17,071 unique views) View NotebookReview.com Review for the Lenovo G570

4. Asus Zenbook UX31 (Previously #3) - The Asus Zenbook UX31 is a 13.3-inch notebook with a 900p screen. It also comes with the option of a 11.6-inch screen. It was designed to compete with Apple's MacBook Air because of its higher-end specifications in a slim form factor. You can customize this notebook with up to 4GB-1333 DDR3 RAM. It has a 50Whr polymer (non-removable) battery. (14,061 unique views) View the NotebookReview.com Review for the ASUS Zenbook UX31

5. Asus B23E (New to the Top 10) - The Asus B23E is a 12.5-inch business netbook that can be equipped with up to an Intel Core i7 2640M dual-core processor and Intel HD graphics. It weighs in at only 3.4 pounds and its dimensions are only 12 x 8.1 x 1.1 inches, making it very portable. Equip it with up to 8GB-1333 memory and up to 750GB/7200rpm storage. (12,542 unique views) View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Asus B23E

6. Lenovo ThinkPad X220 (Previously #4) - The 12.5-inch Lenovo ThinkPad X220 is an ultraportable business notebook that will soon replace the popular X201. The X220 comes built with the latest of the Intel Sandy Bridge processors (Core i3, i5 or i7), has a high-quality IPS display, and can deliver more than eight and a half hours of battery life. With the optional battery slice this system can deliver 18 and a half hours of mobile life. Choose up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM and a hard drive with up to 320GB of hard drive storage. (11,488 unique views) View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Lenovo ThinkPad X220

7. HP Folio 13 (Previously #9) - The HP Folio 13 is a 13-inch ultrabook encased in aluminum. It has a thickness of 0.7 inches and is equipped with a second-gen Intel Core i5 processor and 128GB solid state drive. It weighs in at 3.3 pounds. (9,323 unique views) Read the NotebookReview.com Review for the HP Folio 13 Purchase the HP Folio 13

8. Dell XPS 15z (Previously #10) - The Dell XPS 15z is a 15-inch multimedia notebook with an ultra-thin metal chassis, an optional 1080p display and a backlit keyboard. The XPS 15z can be configured with a second-generation Intel Core i7 processor and Nvidia GeForce GT 525M dedicated graphics for serious multimedia performance. With a starting weight of just 5.5 pounds and an attractive metal exterior this is an interesting alternative to Apple's MacBook Pro. (7,672 unique views) Purchase the Dell XPS 15z View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Dell XPS 15z

9. Toshiba Portege Z830 (Previously #5) - The Toshiba Portege Z830/Z835 is a thin and light consumer notebook with a 13.3-inch 720p display and a dual-core Intel Core i3-2367M processor. Known as an "Ultrabook," it comes equipped with 4GB DDR3-1333MHz memory (max. 6GB), a 128GB solid state drive, USB 3.0 and a backlit keyboard. The battery provided six hours of life during our tests. (7,402 unique views) View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Toshiba Portege Z835

10. Lenovo ThinkPad W520 (Previously #8) - The Lenovo ThinkPad W520 is Lenovo's upgrade to the W510 mobile workstation notebook. This 15.6-inch notebook is powered by up to an Intel Core i7-2920XM processor and equipped with up to a discrete NVIDIA Quadro 2000M GPU, switchable to Intel HD integrated graphics. (7,320 unique views) View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Lenovo ThinkPad W520 Source: Notebookreview.com

The $1 million electric supercar goes on sale

Only 88 of the 1,088-horsepower Croatian electric cars will be sold -- for a hefty price.

The Rimac Concept One.

(Credit: Rimac)

Croatian automotive startup Rimac officially opened the order books for the electric supercar it debuted at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show. Only 88 of these exotic vehicles will be produced, but don't feel like you have to rush to order. Rimac may have a hard time finding buyers willing to throw down the near $1 million it will take to purchase the Concept One.

Rimac Concept One (photos)

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The Concept One went on sale at the start of the Top Marques Monaco, where Prince Albert II of Monaco spent some time behind the wheel of the EV. It's priced at $980,000 according to MotorAutority.com. Nearly $1 million may seem a lot for an electric car from an automaker you've never heard of, but this isn't any ordinary EV.
With 1,088 horsepower under the hood, the Concept One joins the elusive club of production vehicles, such as the Bugatti Veyron, that boast more than 1,000-hp. Its 0-60 mph acceleration time is a whiplash-inducing 2.8 seconds. The vehicle is propelled by four motors that drive each wheel independently, and its 92 kWh battery pack offers a 370-mile range, or less if you're driving the vehicle at its 190-mph top speed. The interior is crafted by a team of former Pininfarina designers, and boasts a tablet-size infotainment system.
This may finally be the electric car you can see yourself driving. That is, if you can get past the million-dollar price tag. Delivery of these supercars is expected to begin in 2013.

Source: news.cnet.com

Samsung Galaxy S III (GT-i9300) - Hands-on: Hardware

MasterCard gives PayPass blessings to HTC One X, 16 other NFC phones

MasterCard is widening the universe of phones that officially support PayPass in a big way, with a new MasterCard PayPass Ready program certifying that devices with NFC will play nicely with its mobile payment system. A total of 17 phones are part of the first wave getting the official A-OK. Some of these are known quantities already using PayPass, like the LG Viper 4G LTE and the Samsung Galaxy Nexus HSPA+, but others are new to the PayPass ways. Among the picks are the HTC One X, Intel's smartphone reference device and the Nokia Lumia 610 NFC. A raft of BlackBerrys and lower-end Samsung Galaxy phones are likewise in the fray. While only a handful of these might ever work with Google Wallet or other US-focused NFC payment methods, you can check out the full roster in the release after the break.

MasterCard Certifies NFC Phones from HTC, Intel, LG Electronics, Nokia, RIM, Samsung Electronics and Sony
Unveils "MasterCard PayPass Ready" brand mark for device manufacturers
PURCHASE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MasterCard Worldwide today announced several near field communications (NFC) enabled smartphones have been certified for use with MasterCard PayPass® technology, providing consumers with devices capable of making fast, secure contactless payments at hundreds of thousands of PayPass merchant locations around the globe. The new MasterCard-certified devices include the BlackBerry® Bold™ 9900 / 9790 and BlackBerry® Curve™ 9360 / 9380, HTC One X, Intel® Smartphone Reference Device, LG Viper™ 4G LTE, LG Optimus Elite, Nokia 603, Nokia Lumia 610 NFC, Samsung Wave Y, Samsung Galaxy mini 2, Samsung Galaxy S Advance, Samsung Galaxy Nexus (GT-i9250), Sony Xperia S, Sony Xperia P and Sony Xperia sola.
MasterCard also unveiled a new brand identifier – "MasterCard PayPass® Ready" – now available to device manufacturers to use with NFC-enabled smartphones that have been tested and certified by MasterCard for use with PayPass technology. The MasterCard PayPass Ready identifier will signify a device is available for commercial deployment of PayPass, and can be included as a sticker on the approved device, and in an approved device's packaging, marketing collateral and advertisements. Nokia and BlackBerry-maker RIM are among the first handset manufacturers committed to supporting this brand mark.
"Nokia is honored that the Nokia Lumia 610 NFC will be one the world's first smartphones to include MasterCard's PayPass Ready brand mark," said Andrea Bacioccola, NFC Lead Program Manager, Nokia. "This sends a clear message to operators, banks and other service providers that Nokia is able to quickly enable their payment services on this smartphone."
"We are pleased to support the MasterCard PayPass Ready brand mark as it provides consumers with a visual confirmation that an NFC-enabled BlackBerry smartphone can easily be enabled with a MasterCard account for tap-and-go payments," said Andrew Bocking, SVP Software Product Management, RIM.
By working closely with standards bodies including EMVCo and the NFC Forum, MasterCard continues to lead the industry in testing and certification processes for mobile payment devices. Devices certified by MasterCard go through a rigorous testing process by a MasterCard-accredited laboratory to ensure devices are functionally reliable and interoperable.
"In the near future, millions of phones will ship with NFC technology embedded within them. The new PayPass Ready identifier will help consumers make informed device purchasing decisions by providing a visual mark that indicates devices are certified to make simple, smart and secure payments via the MasterCard PayPass network," said Mung Ki Woo, group executive, Mobile at MasterCard.

Source: Engadget

Samsung Galaxy S III vs. rival flagships: iPhone 4S, HTC One X, Lumia 900

Oh yes, it's a good time to go shopping for a smartphone, particularly if you've acquired a taste for an abundance of pixels and silicon cores. But which phones ought to be considered flagships worthy of comparison with the shiny new GS III? Yes, we're including the Lumia 900 in this context, for the sake of platform neutrality and also in recognition of the fact that raw specs don't count for everything -- but we can't overlook that this handset is sorely lacking in terms of ppi and some other areas. The next two choices are more obvious: the eternal (or infernal) iPhone 4S and AT&T's version of the HTC One X. So here it is: one table to rule them all, right after the break.

Galaxy S III

iPhone 4S

HTC One X

Lumia 900

Platform	Android 4 with TouchWiz	iOS 5	Android 4 with HTC Sense 4	Windows Phone 7.5 Mango
Processor	Quad-core 1.4GHz Samsung Exynos	Dual-core Apple A5	Dual-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4	Single-core 1.4GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S2
RAM	1GB	512MB	1GB	512MB
Storage	16GB / 32GB / 64GB internal, microSD expandable	16GB / 32GB / 64GB internal	16GB internal	16GB internal
Cellular	HSPA+ 21, LTE model expected	HSPA+ 14.4, CDMA / EDVO Rev. A	LTE and HSPA+	LTE and HSPA+
Display size	4.8 inches	3.5 inches	4.7 inches	4.3 inches
Pixels per inch	306	326	316	217
Display resolution	1280 x 720	960 x 640	1280 x 720	800 x 480
Display technology	HD Super AMOLED (PenTile)	IPS LCD	Super LCD 2	AMOLED (non-PenTile)
Integrated TV-out	MHL & DLNA	Dock & AirPlay	MHL & DLNA	DLNA
Primary camera	8-megapixel, unknown aperture	8-megapixel, f/2.4	8-megapixel, f/2.0	8-megapixel, f/2.2
Secondary camera	1.9-megapixel	VGA	1.3-megapixel	VGA
Video recording	1080p	1080p	1080p	720p
Location / orientation sensors	AGPS, compass, accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer	AGPS, compass, accelerometer, gyroscope	AGPS, compass, accelerometer, gyroscope	AGPS, compass, accelerometer, gyroscope
SIM standard	SIM	micro-SIM	micro-SIM	micro-SIM
Battery	2,100mAh removable	1420mAh fixed	1800mAh, fixed	1,840mAh, fixed
Weight	133 grams / 4.7 oz.	140 grams / 4.9 oz. to 130 grams / 4.6 oz.	130 grams / 4.6 oz.	159 grams / 5.6 oz.
Dimensions	136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6mm	115.2 x 58.6 x 9.3mm	134.6 x 69.9 x 8.9mm	128 x 69 x 12mm

LG announces Optimus LTE2, coming to Korea mid-May with True HD IPS and 2GB RAM

Unlike today's other phone announcement, we can't say we were expecting to see LG come out with something of its own -- and it's a bit of a doozy, at that. Samsung's Korean rival decided not to let the Galaxy S III have the full spotlight for long, officially unleashing the Optimus LTE2. The mind-blowing portion of the spec sheet is its inclusion of 2GB RAM, a milestone we haven't yet seen in a smartphone. Additionally, the LTE2 will feature the company's "True HD IPS" display, WPC-backed wireless charging capabilities, Android 4.0 and a 2,150mAh battery that LG claims will increase the battery life by an astounding 40 percent. We haven't received word on which CPU will be used, though we're hopeful that a quad-core beast (or Krait, perhaps?) will complement the astounding amount of RAM. The LTE2 is due to land on at least three carriers in Korea sometime in mid-May, but we haven't heard any pricing or additional country availability at this time. We'll keep you posted as we learn more. In the meantime, check out LG's Flickr page down below for more images, and start thinking of ways to take advantage of the extra horsepower.

Source: Engadget

Samsung Galaxy S III launching on Vodafone, Orange, O2, T-Mobile and Three in the UK

 
While we wait for the LTE version of the Samsung Galaxy S III to arrive in the US this summer, UK punters will have opportunities to preorder the new flagship device starting right away on these carriers: Vodafone, Orange, O2, T-Mobile and Three. Although details and specific availability vary from carrier to carrier, retailer Carphone Warehouse currently lists a SIM-free preorder price of £499.95. While Orange didn't mention any other details than that it will offer the phone, Vodafone has revealed that beyond the 16GB edition, it has a timed month long exclusive on the 32GB version. On Three, preorders open tomorrow, May 4th, with the all-you-can-eat data One plan for £34 monthly. The phone will launch May 30th in the UK, a day after the May 29th global release date. There's a few UK / Ireland specific press releases included after the break and links below, check those out for all details, preregistration and information on preorder bonuses some are offering.

SAMSUNG INTRODUCES THE GALAXY S III
Effortlessly smart and intuitively simple - a new kind of smartphone
3 May 2012, London, UK – Samsung Electronics today announced the third generation Galaxy S, the Galaxy S III, a phone so intuitive that it is able to recognise your voice and understand your intention. Sleek and innovative, this latest smartphone is packed with enhanced intelligence to make everyday life easier: designed for humans and inspired by nature.

With the Samsung Galaxy S IIII, you can view content like never before on a 4.8 inch HD Super AMOLED display, whilst an 8MP camera and an 1.9MP front camera offer a variety of intelligent camera features and face recognition related options so you can capture all moments easily and instantly. The Samsung Galaxy S III is powered by Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and full of intuitive technology, delivering a uniquely personalised mobile experience.

Andy Griffiths, Managing Director, Samsung UK and Ireland said: "Our aim with the Galaxy S III was to develop the best smartphone ever made, and by focusing on creating a unique user experience through superior hardware and enhanced usability we believe we have done just that. The device has been created by keeping in mind our daily needs and capabilities as human beings. Simple yet brilliant, the Galaxy S III is packed with smart features that enable it to understand and respond to our actions providing the most seamless, natural and human-centric mobile experience."

Introducing Natural Interaction
The Galaxy S III's main USP is that it enhances the interaction between the device and its owner. Smart enough to detect your face, voice and gestures, the Galaxy S III adapts to the individual user to provide a more convenient and natural user experience. With the innovative 'Smart stay' feature, the device recognises how you are using your phone – reading an e-book or browsing the web for instance – by using the front camera to identify your eyes; the phone maintains a bright display for continued viewing pleasure.

With 'S Voice,' an advanced natural language user interface, the Galaxy S III listens and responds to your words. In addition to allowing information search and basic device-user communication, 'S Voice' provides powerful device control and commands. When your phone alarm goes off but you need a little extra rest, just tell the Galaxy S III "snooze" – and it snoozes. You can also use 'S Voice' to play your favorite songs, turn the volume up or down, send text messages and emails, organise your schedules, or automatically launch the camera and capture a photo – all through you speaking to the device.

In addition to recognising your face and voice, the Galaxy S III understands your motions. If you are messaging someone but decide to call them instead, simply lift your phone to your ear and 'Direct call' will dial their number. With 'Smart alert,' the Galaxy S III will catch any missed messages or calls; your phone will vibrate to notify missed statuses when picked up after being idle.

Easy and Instant Sharing
The Samsung Galaxy S III is more than a personal device that can be enjoyed by one person - it wants you to share and experience smartphone benefits with family and friends, regardless of where you are. With the new 'S Beam,' the Galaxy S III expands upon Android™ Beam, allowing a 1GB movie file to be shared within three minutes and a 10MB music file within two seconds by simply touching another Galaxy S III phone, even without a Wi-Fi or cellular signal. The 'Buddy photo share' function also allows photos to be easily and simultaneously shared with all your friends pictured in an image directly from a camera or photo gallery.

With 'AllShare Cast', you can wirelessly connect your Galaxy S III to your television to immediately transfer smartphone content onto a larger display. 'AllShare Play' can be used to instantly share any files between your Galaxy S III and DLNA supported tablet, PC, and televisions regardless of the distance between the devices. The 'Group Cast' feature also allows you to share your screen among multiple friends on the same Wi-Fi network; you can make comments and draw changes at the same time with your co-workers, witnessing real-time sharing on your individual device.



Human-centric Design with Uncompromised Performance
The Galaxy S III not only has features with enhanced usability, but also provides an ergonomic and comfortable experience through its human-centric design, with a comfortable grip, gentle curves, and organic form. Inspired by nature, its design concept is the flow and movement of nature. The elements of wind, water and light are all evoked in the physical construct of the Galaxy S III. Available in Pebble Blue and Marble White at launch, Samsung will introduce a variety of additional colour options at a later date.

Thanks to its 4.8" HD Super AMOLED display, the Galaxy S III offers a large and vivid viewing experience. Samsung Mobile's heritage Super AMOLED display even enhances to HD and 16:9 wider viewing angles. To ensure faster connectivity, the Galaxy S III offers Wi-Fi Channel Bonding which doubles the Wi-Fi bandwidth.

The Galaxy S III also sports a range of additional features that boost performance and the overall user experience in entirely new ways. It introduces 'Pop up play,' a feature that allows you to play a video anywhere on your screen while simultaneously running other tasks, eliminating the need to close and restart videos when checking new emails or surfing the Web. Its 8MP camera features a zero-lag shutter speed that lets you capture moving objects easily without delay – the image you see is the picture you take.

With the 'Burst shot' function that instantly captures twenty continuous frames, and the 'Best photo' feature that selects the best of eight photographs for you, the Galaxy S III offers a more enhanced and memorable camera experience. HD video can be recorded even with the 1.9MP front facing camera, which you can use to capture a video of yourself. Improved backside illumination further helps to eliminate blur in photos that result from shaking, even under low lights.

Mobile payment is also accessible with the device through advanced Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. The gaming experience is enhanced through 'Game Hub', providing access to numerous social games, whilst Video Hub brings users high quality TV and movies. Furthermore, Samsung Music Hub will offer a personal music streaming service. Game Hub, Video Hub and Music Hub will be introduced in select countries initially before being rolled out globally.

The Samsung Galaxy S III will be available in the UK from the Samsung Brand Store at Westfield Stratford City and all other retailers.
For multimedia content and more detailed information, please visit www.samsungmobilepress.com.
- Ends -
Note to Editors:
Samsung Galaxy S III Product Specifications
Network
2.5G (GSM/ GPRS/ EDGE): 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz
3G (HSPA+ 21Mbps): 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 MHz
4G (Dependent on market)
Display
4.8 inch HD Super AMOLED (1280x720) display
OS
Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
Camera
Main(Rear): 8 Mega pixel Auto Focus camera with Flash & Zero Shutter Lag, BIS
Sub (Front): 1.9 Mega pixel camera, HD recording @30fps with Zero Shutter Lag, BSI
Video
Codec: MPEG4, H.264, H.263, DivX, DivX3.11, VC-1, VP8, WMV7/8, Sorenson Spark
Recording & Playback: Full HD (1080p)
Audio
Codec: MP3, AMR-NB/WB, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA, OGG, FLAC, AC-3, apt-X
Additional
Features
S Beam, Buddy photo share, Share shot
AllShare Play, AllShare Cast
Smart stay, Social tag, Group tag, Face zoom, Face slide show
Direct call, Smart alert, Tap to top, Camera quick access
Pop up play
S Voice
Burst shot & Best photo, Recording snapshot, HDR
Google™ Mobile Services
Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, Google Latitude
Google Play Store, Google Play Books, Google Play Movies
Google Plus, YouTube, Google Talk,
Google Places, Google Navigation, Google Downloads
Connectivity
WiFi a/b/g/n, WiFi HT40
GPS/GLONASS
NFC
Bluetooth® 4.0(LE)
Sensor
Accelerometer, RGB light, Digital compass, Proximity, Gyro, Barometer
Memory
16/ 32GB User memory (64GB available soon) + microSD slot (up to 64GB)
Dimension
136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6 mm, 133g
Battery
2,100 mAh
* Specifications above may differ on the LTE version.
* All functionality, features, specifications and other product information provided in this document including, but not limited to, the benefits, design, pricing, components, performance, availability, and capabilities of the product are subject to change without notice or obligation.
* Android, Google, Android Beam, Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, Google Latitude, Google Play Store, Google Play Books, Google Play Movies, Google Plus, YouTube, Google Talk, Google Places, Google Navigation, Google Downloads are trademarks of Google Inc.
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2011 consolidated sales of US$143.1 billion. Employing approximately 206,000 people in 197 offices across 72 countries, the company operates two separate organisations to coordinate its nine independent business units: Digital Media & Communications, comprising Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, and Digital Imaging; and Device Solutions, consisting of Memory, System LSI and LED. Recognised for its industry-leading performance across a range of economic, environmental and social criteria, Samsung Electronics was named the world's most sustainable technology company in the 2011 Dow Jones Sustainability Index. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.
Samsung Galaxy SIII – available to pre-order on Three from 4th May.

Samsung's much anticipated smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy SIII, will be available to pre-order on Three from 4th May.

The Galaxy SIII will be available on The One Plan with all-you-can-eat data at £34 per month and with no upfront cost.
In addition, everyone that pre-orders the Samsung Galaxy SIII with Three before the 30th May will be automatically entered into a daily draw to win one of 26 brand new Samsung Smart TVs.
Nigel Field, director of devices at Three, said, "We can't wait to bring Samsung's amazing Galaxy SIII to Three, and we're very proud to be one of their UK launch partners. With our high speed, award-winning network and market-leading all-you-can-eat data, we believe we can deliver the ultimate mobile internet experience to our customers with this phone.
"The Galaxy SII was one of the smartphones of 2011, and we're expecting its successor, the Samsung Galaxy SIII, to be amongst 2012's biggest mobile success stories."
Customers can pre-order a Samsung Galaxy SIII by calling 0800 358 1799 from 9am tomorrow, or by visiting their local 3Store. They can register for updates and information about the Samsung Galaxy SIII at http://three.co.uk/SamsungGalaxy .
Pricing:
Samsung Galaxy SIII on The One Plan
£34 per month
No upfront cost
All-you-can-eat data
2000 any network minutes
5000 Three-to-Three minutes
5000 texts
Tethering included
Orange UK is pleased to confirm that it will be ranging the new Samsung Galaxy SIII. More details on pricing and availability will be announced on www.orange.co.uk in due course.
Carphone Warehouse confirms Samsung Galaxy SIII
First 1,000 customers to place pre-orders* online and over the phone
receive a 10" Galaxy Tab absolutely FREE!
http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/NEW-SAMSUNG-GALAXY
LONDON, 3rd May 2012 – Following today's announcement by Samsung in
London, Carphone Warehouse has confirmed that it will be stocking the
hotly anticipated Samsung Galaxy SIII. The new handset will be
available to purchase in stores nationwide, but eager fans who don't
want to wait can pre-order the new device in store, online and over
the phone. The handset is available on Vodafone, Orange, O2, T-Mobile
and Three and will be available for free on a selection of tariffs
from £36 per month.
The first 1,000 customers to place pay monthly pre-orders online and
on the phone (via the Carphone Warehouse call centre) will receive a
FREE 10" Samsung Galaxy Tab (worth at least £399), InvisibleSHIELD™
screen protector (RRP £14.99) and in-car micro USB charger (RRP
£14.99) – a combined value of £428.98.
All other customers who pre-order a device will receive a free Sandisk
32GB micro SD memory card (RRP normally £29.99), Invisishield Screen
Protector (RRP £14.99) and in-car micro USB charger (RRP 14.99) –a
combined value of £59.97. The addition of the Sandisk memory card will
bring the combined memory capacity of the device to a massive 48GB,
making it unlikely that even the most active users will be short on
space to store their videos, pictures, music and favourite apps.
Andrew Harrison, CEO of Carphone Warehouse said: "Anticipation
surrounding the Samsung Galaxy SIII launch has been huge, it's one of
the biggest launches of the year and marks an exciting and innovative
new stage in the smartphone market. The unveiling at Earl's Court
today certainly didn't disappoint - this phone is an impressive piece
of kit, perfect for people looking for a large high resolution screen
and a fluid user experience. We're sure that Carphone Warehouse
customers will be very keen to try it out".
The Samsung Galaxy SIII will be available from Carphone Warehouse
stores nationwide, and customers can pre-order at
http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/NEW-SAMSUNG-GALAXY now.
*Pre-orders are available on new subscriptions only and not on upgrades.

 

Source: Engadget

Barnes & Noble chops e-reader prices for Mother's Day

For a limited time, the Nook Simple Touch is available for $79 while the Nook Color drops to $149.

Barnes & Noble is also throwing in a gift bag when you order a Nook Simple Touch or Nook Color.

(Credit: Barnes & Noble)

A day after getting a $300 investment from Microsoft, Barnes & Noble is on the offensive again, chopping $20 off its Nook Simple Touch e-ink e-reader and the Nook Color tablet for Mother's Day.
You can now pick up the Nook Simple Touch for $79 and the Nook Color for $149. The sale runs until May 12 and Barnes & Noble will also throw in a free Nook gift bag with purchases of those devices (while supplies last). The bag doesn't look all that exciting, but hey, it's better than a plastic bag.
It should be noted that the Nook Simple Touch didn't sell as well as Barnes & Noble had hoped during last year's holiday season and the company recently started shipping the hot-selling $139 Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight, which earned a CNET Editors' Choice and is back-ordered until May 7. The Nook Color is also an older model that came out in 2010 and doesn't have the faster processor of the $199 Nook Tablet.
Barnes & Noble has discounted the Nook Simple Touch to $79 a couple times before, but that price point is the lowest for a touch-screen e-reader and matches Amazon's highly rated non-touch Kindle 2011 with Special Offers, which costs $79 and is ad-supported.
CNET readers frequently point out that you can get refurbished Nook e-readers at nicely discounted prices. A quick look at Google shows that most refurbished Nook Simple Touch units are selling for $79, though I did spot one for $59.99.

How to spot dangerous links before you click them

 Internet crooks are adept at breaching Web security techniques, which makes it more important than ever for people to verify sites before they visit them.

You probably got to this page by clicking a link. Links are the ties that bind the Web. But each click is also a leap of faith. How do you know you're going to the page you think you're going to?
Google search results let you preview pages before you follow the link, but elsewhere the best you can do is hover over the link to see at the bottom of the browser the URL of the page the link will open. (See below for more on free browser add-ons that rate the security of links in search results.)
Since 1994 a Certificate Authority based on the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) standard has managed the validation of Web sites. Several private companies sell various levels of certificates to organizations that own domain names and host Web servers.
According to the recently released Volume 17 of Symantec's Internet Security Threat Report, on at least 10 occasions in 2011 an SSL certificate authority came under attack by Internet criminals.
One of the handful of successful attacks targeted a Comodo affiliate that had been granted authority to issue SSL certificates. The bad guys had stolen a user name and password. Elinor Mills and Declan McCullogh describe the attack in the Privacy, Inc. blog.
SSL implementation survey gives sites low grades for security
Last week more questions arose about SSL's ability to secure Web transactions. The Trustworthy Internet Movement's SSL Implementation survey of 200,000 popular SSL-secured Web sites found that only 10 percent of the sites were safe.
The organization's SSL Pulse page includes a link to SSL Labs' free service for testing a site's SSL security. Simply enter a domain name to run it through the labs' SSL Server Test.

SSL Labs' domain-name checker gives sites an overall letter grade and rates their SSL security in various categories.

(Credit: screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET)

There's nothing new about SSL vulnerabilities, which have been reported regularly by researchers since at least 2003. After nearly two decades and despite all the criticism, SSL has proven itself secure enough to protect nearly all online purchases and other sensitive Internet transactions. At least so far.
Browser add-ons add a safety rating to links
Unless you're a network manager, there's not much you can do to ensure that the sites you visit are secure. One way to lower the risk is to be warned about a potentially insecure site before you click the link that opens it.
My favorite link authenticator is the free Web of Trust (WOT), which is available for Firefox and Google Chrome. WOT adds a green-yellow-red rating to links in Web search results and to the top of each page you visit.
When you install WOT the program asks you to choose one of three settings: Basic (recommended), Light, and Parental Control, which blocks adult sites.

The Web of Trust add-on for Firefox and Google Chrome lets you choose one of three presets, one of which automatically blocks adult sites.

(Credit: screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET)

(I first wrote about WOT in a post from 2009 that also described McAfee's free SiteAdvisor and the LinkExtend add-ons for Firefox, as well as several other security extensions for the browser.)
The Tech Support Alert site describes several services that let you copy and paste a link into a text field and search the URL in databases of known dangerous domains. The downside of these services is the extra time required to run Web addresses you're leery about through the checkers.
Personal sites and blogs most likely to be infected
Conventional wisdom says malware lurks in the seamy regions of the Web. Certain to be one of the most-discussed findings of Symantec's latest Internet Security Threat Report is that pornographic sites are less likely to be infected than any of the 10 categories of sites in the survey.
Only 2.4 percent of adult sites scanned by Symantec were infected, the lowest infection rate of the 10 site categories, which include shopping (7.7 percent), education/reference (6.8 percent), entertainment and music (3.8 percent) and automotive (also 3.8 percent).
Be careful when you visit your brother-in-law's site highlighting his collection of 19th century beer bottles, though: nearly 20 percent of blogs and more than 15 percent of personal sites had malware, according to the report.
When it comes to browser plug-in vulnerabilities, ActiveX continues to be the most likely source of a Web-borne infection, accounting for 29 percent of the 308 vulnerabilities Symantec detected in 2011. That's a decrease from the 34 percent of the 346 plug-in vulnerabilities detected in 2010.
Java vulnerabilities accounted for 20 percent of the total recorded in 2011, up from 17 percent the year earlier. Likewise, Adobe Flash vulnerabilities represented 20 percent of the total number of browser plug-in vulnerabilities in 2011, a 2 percent increase from 2010.
As for the future, Symantec anticipates an increase in targeted attacks and advanced persistent threats, as well as malware authors using Facebook to take advantage of the lack of tech savvy among the service's users.
All the security software in the world will never take the place of a healthy dose of skepticism regarding the safety of any site. Whatever the address bar may say, if you get a bad feeling about the page you're on, close your browser (not just the suspicious tab).
And while we're talking paranoia, when was the last time you ran a full manual scan on your PC? (I'll leave Macs out of it... for now.)

Is RIM getting its mojo back with BlackBerry 10?

RIM shows off its new software at BlackBerry World to rave reviews. But can the company deliver? And will it be enough to compete with Apple and Google?

RIM's CEO Thorsten Heins shows off the company's new BlackBerry 10 software at the BlackBerry World event.

(Credit: Brian Bennett/CNET)

ORLANDO, Fla. -- BlackBerry maker Research In Motion showed off some cool new features today for its upcoming BlackBerry 10 software, but will it be enough to stop the company's free-fall into the smartphone abyss?
That's the big question that fans of the once mighty smartphone and other industry watchers are asking here today at the BlackBerry World conference. Gartner analyst Michael Gartenberg said he is optimistic about the company's prospects, if the company is really able to deliver on its promises.
"RIM's sneak peek of the new BlackBerry 10 shows the company is focused on details that differentiate meaningfully," Gartenberg said. "But the key will be shipping and execution."
Indeed, RIM did not show off any actual devices here at the conference, the company's annual pow-wow where customers, partners, fanboys, and press descend to hear what's next from the handset maker. Instead the company showed off reference devices it's calling BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha. It's even been handing out these reference devices to developers to help seed the market ahead of the launch of new smartphones that actually run BlackBerry 10.
RIM's new CEO Thorsten Heins said he understands that the market is anxious to get its hands on BlackBerry 10 devices. But he said the company is taking its time to make sure it is getting the software and the hardware just right. He didn't give any indication when the new devices will hit the market. But some rumors peg the launch as early as August of this year, while others say it could be October.

One thing is clear -- the longer that RIM waits to launch its device the more it risks losing even more market share to competitors, Apple and Android. In the past year, RIM has lost nearly half of its market share, according to Gartner. In the fourth quarter of 2010, the company had about 14 percent global market share. By the end of 2011, it had about 8.8 percent market share. RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Sue told Reuters that RIM's market share could go down to less than 5 percent.
The problem that RIM faces as it tries to retrench and get its new software in order is that its competitors are not holding back. Google Android and Apple continue to pick up share from customers who are fleeing the tired and stale BlackBerry platform. A major worldwide outage in 2011 also didn't help build confidence among loyal enterprise users, who are now looking to other platforms as more and more of their employees bring their own devices to work.
But Heins said that the company is on track to deliver the devices this year. And he said he doesn't foresee any delays, something that has plagued the company in the past as it tried to launch new products.
"We are on schedule with the launch," he said. "And we are really close."
What's more, he indicated that the new BlackBerry devices will be using fully baked software. This was a problem with the launch of the BlackBerry PlayBook table a year ago. When the device launched, the software was still nearly in beta testing. Few apps existed and the software was buggy. The device has largely been a flop, and devices still sit on shelves unused and unsold.
Some of the new features that RIM showed off during its demo here today included a revamped virtual keyboard that learns not only the words users might use but the typing behavior of that user to make typing more accurate. It also showed off a camera app that allows users to recapture moments they may have missed because their fingers were too slow in hitting the shutter. The camera actually caches frames in view of the lens, so that users can roll back to images that may have been captured seconds earlier. And the company showed off the multitasking chops of the new device showing how apps can run in the background and can easily be tabbed and navigated.
Analysts, BlackBerry fans, and partners were generally impressed with the new features and what they foretell for the upcoming devices.
"If these demos are representative of the final BB10 experience, then RIM has its groove back," Ross Rubin, an analyst with NPD Group, tweeted during the keynote speech this morning.

RIM showed off its new virtual keyboard as part of its demo of the BlackBerry 10 software here at BlackBerry World 2012.

(Credit: Brian Bennett/CNET)

Still, there's no question RIM has a long road ahead of it. And many here were reminded of the failings of other companies that developed slick new software that came much too late to the market. Palm, which essentially invented the smartphone market with its early Palm Pilots, had lagged behind its competitors for years. The company tried to revive its fortunes with the WebOS platform, which got rave reviews from the technology press and from some consumers. But the software came much too late. And the hardware was only so-so. Palm, which didn't have the scale to compete against the likes of the iPhone and the growing dominance of Google, sold out to Hewlett-Packard. And with that sale, the WebOS platform died a quick death.
But Kevin Michaluk of the blog Crackberry said that BlackBerry is in a far different place than Palm.
"BlackBerry devices are in the mainstream," he said. "Palm was for early adopters. It never had the scale that BlackBerry has had."
Indeed, even with RIM's declining market share, BlackBerry still has more than 77 million customers. And its reach is global. RIM says that its customers are in 164 markets and territories worldwide. And it has plans to roll out devices in additional countries.
RIM executives also say the company is making headway with developers. And at the BlackBerry World conference here the company highlighted the fact that it's seen a 240 percent growth in Playbook apps over the past year. Of course this growth isn't so impressive when you think that it was starting from zero. But executives say that even this growth shows that some developers still see RIM as a valuable company to develop applications for. And the company sees Playbook app development as a precursor to BlackBerry 10 apps.
Alec Saunders, vice president of developer relations for RIM, said that his team is working hard to sign up new developers and to get them excited about the platform. He said that apps will be an important selling point for the new BlackBerry 10 smartphones because they must be able to compete with the iPhone and Google Android devices. But he said that the company's real focus and differentiation is creating devices that will help communicate more efficiently. After all, he said that is what BlackBerry has always been about.
"BlackBerry users are people who are hungry to get something done," he said. "They aren't the ones sitting on the train watching episodes of Seinfeld."
Still he said that carrying all the popular apps and having a good multimedia experience for users is necessary to compete.
"It has to be a great multimedia device," he said. "That's table stakes these days. But that doesn't mean we have to go out and build an iTunes-like store."