Google CEO Larry Page and Apple CEO Tim Cook are reportedly in talks regarding mobile patent disputes between the companies.
According to Reuters, which cited “people familiar with the matter,” both chiefs spoke on the phone last week while more discussions between “lower-level officials” are also underway:
Page and Cook are expected to talk again in the coming weeks, though no firm date has been set, the sources said. One source told Reuters that a meeting was scheduled for this Friday, but had been delayed for reasons that were unclear.
The two companies are keeping the lines of communication open at a high level against the backdrop of Apple’s decisive legal victory in a patent infringement case against Samsung, which uses Google’s Android software.
The Verge just posted a purported image of the new Kindle Fire:
We’re being told that a “pair” of Fires is likely — a 7- and a 10-incher — though it remains unclear whether both models will be introduced at the same time.
Amazon revealed earlier today that it “sold out” of the popular Kindle Fire eReader, which runs on a forked version of the Android OS, with additional news about the device supposedly capturing 22 percent of U.S. tablet sales. Amazon also recently announced a press conference for Sept. 6 in Los Angeles. The company typically holds media events for hardware launches, so many expected new Kindles, including an iPad-sized version or maybe even an Amazon phone, to come down the pipeline.
The low-end Xperia J smartphone, which Sony unveiled at IFA 2012 in Berlin yesterday, just received approval from the Federal Communications Commission. The Japan-based company did not seek confidentiality for the J, as Engadget first noted. So, thanks to newly published FCC teardown images (below), the world is able to peak inside the Android-powered handset less than 24 hours after it debuted.
Sony Mobile Communications and the band Metric released a music video for the song “Synthetica” completely shot with AT&T’s exclusive Android-powered Xperia ion smartphone.
“The music video features a rare acoustic performance of the song ‘Synthetica’ shot live at Hotel on Rivington’s penthouse in New York City,” announced Sony in a press release. “Audience members were given Xperia ion smartphones and were encouraged to unleash their creativity as they filmed the performance.”
Amazon has a bit of exciting Android-related news today: The mega online retailer announced the launch of its Appstore for Android in Europe and revealed its Android-powered Kindle Fire is currently sold out after gobbling up nearly one-fourth of United States tablet sales.
The Appstore opened in Germany, France, Italy and Spain for access to Android apps. Amazon also opened key features to European customers, such as: localized content and store for each country, popular Amazon benefits like “Free App of the Day, personalized recommendations, and one-click payments.
“Amazon has spent years developing innovative features that help customers find and discover the products that are right for them and have applied that know-how to the Amazon Appstore. We’re delighted to extend that experience to our European customers,” said Vice President of Amazon Appstore Jim Adkins in a press release.
As for the Android-powered Kindle Fire—it is the “most successful product launch in the history of Amazon.com” after capturing 22 percent of tablet sales in the U.S. With that said, Amazon recently announced a press conference for Sept. 6 in Los Angeles. The company typically holds media events for hardware launches, so we expect new Kindles, such as an iPad-sized version, or maybe even an Amazon phone, to come down the pipeline.
“We’re grateful to the millions of customers who have made Kindle Fire the most successful product launch in the history of Amazon,” said Amazon.com Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos in a press release. “Kindle Fire is sold out, but we have an exciting roadmap ahead—we will continue to offer our customers the best hardware, the best prices, the best customer service, the best cross-platform interoperability, and the best content ecosystem.”
The Kindle Fire debuted less than one year ago with a huge catalog of multimedia content including 22 million movies, games, books and more.
Google just launched biking navigation and directions for the Android version of Google Maps in 10 countries.
The countries —Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom— also got desktop biking directions last month. Today’s rollout specifically includes voice-guided Google Maps Navigation (beta) for turn-by-turn directions across a half-gigameter of biking lanes.
Today, there are more than 330,000 miles (equal to more than 530,000 kilometers, or half a gigameter) of green biking lines in Google Maps. Dark green lines on the map show dedicated bike trails and paths with no motor vehicles, light green lines show streets with bike lanes and dashed green lines show other streets recommended for cycling. Biking navigation even helps you avoid steep hills.
Sony Mobile Communications just unveiled a new range of Xperia smartphones and its first Xperia tablet at IFA in Berlin.
“This year’s IFA marks an important milestone for Sony and Sony Mobile Communications. Xperia smartphones are at the heart of Sony’s mobile strategy of delivering a consistent user experience across devices, enabling consumers to easily and quickly access the world of entertainment that Sony delivers,” announced Sony Mobile President and CEO Kunimasa Suzuki in a press release.
The Xperia Tablet S is set to release Sept. 7, and the Xperia T will also launch globally over the next few weeks, where as the Xperia V and Xperia J will launch globally in Q4 2012. Pricing details are not available at this time.
Sprint today introduced its 4G LTE high-speed data network to customers in Baltimore, Md., Gainesville, Ga., Manhattan/Junction City, Kan., and Sedalia, Mo. Additionally, Sprint customers in Baltimore, Boston and Washington, D.C., are beginning to enjoy the benefits of Sprint’s all-new 3G service – which is expected to deliver an exceptionally clear signal, better in-building coverage and fewer dropped/blocked calls.
Sprint, which was the first national wireless carrier to introduce 4G (WiMAX) service in 2008, further told customers on its website to “stay tuned,” as more markets will launch “in the coming months.”
Google started giving Google Apps users access to Google+ in October, and the company added to its initiative today by publicly launching Google+ for enterprise uses with a set of new business-focused social features.
According to a post by Google Apps Product Management Director Clay Bavor on the Google Enterprise Blog, the features include restricted sharing options, Hangouts integrated into Gmail, Calendar, Docs and other Google services, and administrative controls:
So today we’re launching an initial set of Google+ features designed specifically for businesses, and we’re excited to move into a full preview mode for Apps customers. During this preview period, organizations that have gone Google will be able to use the business features of Google+ for free through the end of 2013 while we continue to add more features and administrative controls designed for organizations.
For the past few months, pilot customers like Kaplan and Banshee Wines have been using Google+ to help employees engage and connect with each other. We’ve worked hard to incorporate early feedback from pilot customers into our plans, and we’re thrilled to begin offering Google+ features tailored to organizations.
Archos took advantage of Ice Cream Sandwich’s native support for physical gaming controls and developed a 7-inch touchscreen handheld called “the GamePad”.
According to a press release (PDF), the specs include:
The GamePad features a 7-inch, capacitive screen, physical control buttons and analog sticks. This Google certified tablet has full access to Google PlayTM for the tens of thousands of games available, runs a dual-core processor @ 1.5 GHz combined with a Mali 400mp quad-core GPU. In addition, the GamePad includes automatic game recognition and mapping tools – patented technology to ensure control compatibility with every advanced Android game.
Motorola and Intel sent invitations today for a Sept. 18 event in London.
The two companies previously announced a partnership at CES 2012 in Las Vegas for a Medfield-powered smartphone due to launch sometime this year. Little is known about the first Intel-powered Motorola handset, but rumors speculate it will boast Android 4.0 to start and a stellar camera. With that said, the London event will likely mark the device’s unveiling.
It is worth noting that Paul Otellini, the current president and chief executive of Intel, also serves on the board of directors at Google (Motorola’s new owner).
It is interesting to watch people frantically scramble and play catch up, but it is even more entertaining to watch companies.
Enter Time Warner Cable. According to CNET, the leading cable and Internet provider is set to announce a $25 million investment today. The money will expand its fiber broadband network, which pipes data at 1 gigabit per second, to New York City businesses. The Brooklyn Navy Yard is one of the key sites that will “gain advanced broadband infrastructure,” and the company said a second Time Warner Cable Learning Lab would also come to the borough.
“We are very pleased to work with the City of New York to make significant investments to ensure that this city has the technology infrastructure to successfully compete in a worldwide marketplace,” said President of Time Warner Cable Business Class Ken Fitzpatrick in a press release. “Our fiber optic network provides dedicated Internet access at incredible speeds and high-bandwidth capabilities to serve the communications needs of any business.”
The new fiber network will be built in Brooklyn as well as to parts of Manhattan such as the Financial and Flatiron districts. Last year, Time Warner and the city of New York reached a franchise agreement in which Time Warner said it would expand its fiber network to areas that don’t currently have access.
The new service will offer speeds up to 1 gigabit per second, the company said in a press release (not yet available online). The company will target companies that have high data needs, such as design firms and technology companies.
Businesses in the newly revitalized Brooklyn Navy Yard have already seen the benefits of an upgraded and fast fiber network from Time Warner Cable. Time Warner is also building a second Time Warner Learning Lab in Brooklyn at the Navy Yard. This facility provide the public with free access to computers and high-speed Internet. The facility will be part of the Navy Yard’s onsite Employment Center.
Today’s news comes just one month after Google, yes…the search engine-turned-Internet giant, dipped its toes in Time Warner Cable’s territory. Google launched its Fiber Internet and TV service in Kansas City, Kan., in mid-summer, and reports from earlier this month indicated Time Warner Cable immediately began ramping up hiring in the city. It looked to fill 81 new jobs in sales, customer service, and other departments.
Samsung initially launched the Galaxy S III in Pebble blue and Ceramic white, but now the manufacturer is expanding to four new, charmingly named flavors.
Say hello to Titanium gray, Sapphire black, Garnet red, and Amber brown. Their availability varies depending on carrier or store.
“By expanding the colour range of the Galaxy S II we are continuing to evolve the Minimal Organic design theme of the handset,” announced Samsung Vice President and lead designer Minhyouk Lee.
Google announced earlier this summer that it would retire iGoogle on Nov. 1, 2013, but it appears the search giant has already begun axing private APIs despite the 15 months remaining that it allotted folks for sufficiently exporting data.
The Weather API, for instance, is now six feet under. There is no official word from Mountain View about closing it, but the product that the API maintained, as first noted by TheNextWeb, is now using Wundergrond.com (examples: 94102 and Mountain View). Therefore, the switch is calculated…and quiet. A glance at Status Dashboard indicates Google edged out the Weather API starting Aug. 27.
Web developers from everywhere have also reported issues when trying to use the Weather API, such as Hacker News and StackOverflow, with many Twitterers further giving Google flack for pulling support without a proper warning. Google notified the public that it would shutdown iGoogle, however, so today’s news should not be too astonishing.
Mobile analytics firm Flurry published a new report today asserting Android and iOS handsets have experienced adoption at such a supersonic speed that their growth rate has now eclipsed all consumer technology in history.
The rate of iOS and Android device adoption has surpassed that of any consumer technology in history. Compared to recent technologies, smart device adoption is being adopted 10X faster than that of the 80s PC revolution, 2X faster than that of 90s Internet Boom and 3X faster than that of recent social network adoption. Five years into the smart device growth curve, expansion of this new technology is rapidly expanding beyond early adopter markets such as such as North America and Western Europe, creating a true worldwide addressable market. Overall, Flurry estimates that there were over 640 million iOS and Android devices in use during the month of July 2012.
Smartphones making headway as they spread worldwide is nothing new, but their history-making adoption rate is certainly notable. The report illustrated countries with the greatest number of device activations as well as the fasting growing markets. The results indicated the United States sits at No. 1 with 165 million iOS and Android handset activations for July, but China experienced a leading 401 percent activation growth during the same period.
The Optimus Vu II, or the “all-in-one remote control,” just unveiled for Korea, but Engadget promptly noted the announcement falsely claimed it is the first smartphone to sport infrared. LG dubbed the Optimus Vu II the “the world’s first smartphone using infrared,” and it gave the Android handset a general launch date for “next month.” The device’s tech is built around the QRemote remote control app, which subsequently allows users to manage set-top boxes, appliances, TVs, and even competitors’ electronic products, but the presser did not name additional specs or pricing.
Amazon, NBCUniversal Cable and New Media Distribution announced an agreement today that will bulk the online retailer’s Prime Instant Video selection with hundreds of award-winning TV episodes.
Amazon’s Instant Video touts 22,000 movies and episodes for Prime members to stream on the Android-powered Kindle Fire or other supported devices like the iPad. A few of today’s catalog additions include “Parks and Recreation”, “Parenthood”, “Friday Night Lights”, “Heroes” and “Battlestar Galactica”.
““We are thrilled to have several of our iconic programs available to subscribers of Amazon Prime, a service focused on the best possible consumer experience,” said President of Cable & New Media Distribution for NBCUniversal Frances Manfredi in a press release. “We look forward to further expanding NBCU’s content offering available to Prime subscribers in the near future.”
It is worth noting non-Prime members can test Amazon Instant Video for one complimentary month. Oh, and a list of compatible devices is here.
The full press release is below. This article is cross-posted on 9to5Mac.
The latest version notably includes an all-new look with tweaks to navigation and design elements, while another improvement adds song history options for reviewing and bookmarking previously played tracks. Moreover, users can now access full song lyrics, artist biographies, similar music content, and Music Genome Project features. Oh, and the usual bug fixes are included.
Changelog:
All new look with improved navigation and design updates
Song history – review, rate, or bookmark previously played tracks
Explore the music you love with: full song lyrics, artist bios, similar artists and tracks, and track features from the Music Genome Project
Facebook for Android just updated to version 1.9.8.
The latest version notably includes a new uploader for selecting and uploading multiple images, while another tweak adds the ability to enter photos and emoji characters in messages. Moreover, users can now create an event with various options like inputting location details.
Every hear of Cambridge Bay? It is not in the United Kingdom, as one might think, but rather the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut in Canada’s Arctic and Google is trying to put it on the map.
There are 4,000 years’ worth of stories waiting to be told on this map. Today, we’re setting out on an ambitious mission to tell some of those stories and to build the most comprehensive map of the region to date. It is the furthest north the Google Maps Street View team has traveled in Canada, and our first visit to Nunavut. Using the tools of 21st century cartography, we’re empowering a community and putting Cambridge Bay on the proverbial map of tomorrow.
Google further revealed a local nonprofit group, Nunavut Tunngavik, is helping to map the hamlet in both English and Inuktitut, which is one of Nunavut’s official languages, while the Internet giant pedals around with a tripod and the Street View trike to collect imagery.
“This is a place with a vast amount of local knowledge and a rich history. By putting these tools in the hands of our people, we will tell Nunavut’s story to the world,” said Nunavut Tunngavik’s Chris Kalluk, who’s organization helped plot the remnants of an ancient Dorset stone longhouse that pre-dates Inuit culture.
Get more mapping details and images at the Google blog.
The Archos 101 XS just unveiled with a bevy of attractive features for a budget-friendly tablet.
The Ice Cream Sandwich-powered, 10-inch slate will land in November for $400 with a detachable, full QWERTY keyboard dock, dubbed the “coverboard,” that connects to the tablet magnetically. The coverboard notably boasts keys for Home, Recently Opened, etc., so Android OS browsing is more streamlined.
The tablet further features support for Micro USB, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0, and it includes a 1,280-by-800-pixel display, 16GB of internal storage, 1.3-megapixel 720p front-facing camera, and Office Suite Pro 6 preloaded. Archos said the slate would even upgrade to Jelly Bean in October. A slew of accessories also unveiled with the 101 XS—including a speaker dock, docking station and protective carrying pouches.
Google posted two new videos on its YouTube channel last night that demonstrate Google Wallet’s online service and tap-and-pay capabilities. The above video details how users can pay online by signing into their account anywhere Google Wallet is accepted, where as the video below shows how they can pay in-store by tapping a Google Wallet-enabled smartphone anywhere “contactless” NFC payments are accepted.
We detailed how Sustrans partnered with Google to bring cycling routes to United Kingdom-based Google Maps users in July, and now the Internet giant wants folks to know how its free mapping tool helped Detroit Greenways Coordinator Todd Scott add new information about biking paths to various Detroit trails on Google Maps.
Detroit is embracing a greener outlook, according to Map Maker Community Manager Lori Savageau on the official Google blog, and the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance is aiding the transition by creating an “interconnected statewide system of trails and greenways, including the development of bike paths throughout the Detroit area.”
Google launched the YouTube Elections Hub today so folks have a complete video resource for all-things political until the U.S. Election Day on Nov. 6.
“You can watch all of the live speeches from the floor of the upcoming Republican and Democratic National Conventions, see Google+ Hangouts with power brokers behind the scenes, and watch a live stream of the official Presidential and Vice Presidential debates,” announced YouTube News Manager Olivia Ma on the YouTube Blog. “You won’t need to go anywhere else for the must-watch moments of this election cycle…”
The hub will feature videos from politicians, parties, and well-known media, as well as shared coverage with live and on-demand content from ABC News, Al Jazeera English, BuzzFeed, Larry King, The New York Times, Phil DeFranco, Univision, and the Wall Street Journal.
