Why Only Samsung Builds Phones That Outsell iPhones

For the first time in years, one single handset model has reportedly outsold the iPhone. Strategy Analytics says that more Samsung Galaxy S III phones than Apple iPhone 4S handsets were sold in third quarter of this year. 

Samsung Electronics (005930) moved 18 million such handsets, while Apple (AAPL) sold 16.2 million during the three-month period, says the research firm. It should be noted that Samsung’s figures represent shipments, not actual sales, but there’s a bigger point to be made here: Samsung is currently the only company that can even come close to competing with Apple when it comes to smartphones.

 Before explaining why, here’s a closer look at the data. Apple’s figures represent actual sales, while Samsung’s numbers reflect the shipments of Galaxy S III handsets to carriers. That means if a carrier has an unsold Galaxy S III on the store shelf, it counts in this comparison. As a result, the Samsung figures of actual sales are lower than shipments. And if you were to count the 6 million iPhone 5 shipments in the Strategy Analytics report, Apple would outpace Samsung: 26.2 million to 18 million.

 In the big picture, however, that doesn’t matter. Back in 2010, I noted that Samsung was taking an Apple-like strategy for its smartphone business. At the time, Samsung offered the first Galaxy S handset running Google (GOOG) Android and Samsung’s own TouchWiz user interface. Instead of multiple handset models offered, Samsung decided to focus on one handset for its flagship phone. Others, such as Motorola (MMI) and HTC (2498), for example, opted for a slew of handsets, each similar but yet different. With one phone model—just like Apple—Samsung benefits from production scale, common components, and similar experience for its Galaxy phone owners.

 I revisited this topic again a year later when Samsung was about to surpass Nokia (NOK) as the top seller of smartphones worldwide. I explained why Samsung was about to become the new smartphone king, pointing out even more reasons for the company’s rapid smartphone success. Samsung then introduced a successor flagship phone, the Galaxy S II, and it set a sales record: 1 million sales in the first 70 days of launch. Here’s the thing: Inside the Galaxy S, the Galaxy S II, and now the Galaxy S III are various hardware components manufactured directly by Samsung.

 The company makes its own chips to power phones, Super Amoled handset displays, and flash memory for internal storage. Apple controls its iPhone hardware as well but not directly: It designs the chips for iOS devices, for example, which someone else builds, and it often invests billions of dollars in component manufacturing plants in return for good pricing and primary production capacity. Aside from Samsung and Apple, who else can manage the component supply chain this well? Not Nokia, Motorola, HTC, LG Electronics (066570), or any other smartphone competitor I can think of. Apple is using that manufacturing edge to produce more units with each new iPhone as well. That’s important, because it helps Apple introduce its smartphone in more countries and on more carriers as soon as possible after launch. 

Guess what: When Samsung introduced the Galaxy S III this year in May, it said it would begin sales in Europe with 145 additional countries soon after. Not two weeks later, five U.S. carriers launched the device—a vast difference in the Galaxy S II launch, where the U.S. didn’t see the phone for six months or more. With each Galaxy smartphone iteration, Samsung continues to follow the Apple-like approach of controlling its own destiny as much as possible. 

Other competitors simply aren’t equipped to do so. So while Apple may have created the playbook for smartphone success, Samsung has replicated it more so than any other in this market. That actually shouldn’t surprise you if you’ve followed the Apple v. Samsung trials: The courts have already found in favor of Apple for Samsung’s replication of certain smartphone design, features, and functions. Again, we can bicker over the definitions of sales and shipments, but I’m not sure that matters unless you want to declare a real “winner” today. More important to me is that Apple finally has some real competition in the market, even though it looks to be just one true competitor.

Saturday, November 10, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

Whoops! BlackBerry rep shows off secret phone

Someone forgot to tell a BlackBerry rep in Mexico that the company's newest L-Series phone is supposed to be a secret.

 The rep demoed the phone to Mexican site Hola Telcel, which posted a video online. During the clip (below), the rep shows off features of the new BlackBerry 10 operating system like the ability to virtually "rewind" a photo taken with the device to settle on an expression you most prefer.

 The video isn't the first leak about the device, with photos and video showing up last month.

 RIM is counting on the new devices to help it better compete against Apple and the Android handset vendors, particularly Samsung.

 The company hasn't provided many specifics about the device thus far, but the L-Series is expected to hit stores early next year.

Saturday, October 13, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

Apple's iPad mini unveiling reportedly set for Oct. 23

The drumroll in advance of the so-called iPad mini is getting deafening.

 John Paczkowski -- who is rarely wrong about these things -- reported Friday that "people familiar with Apple's plans" tell him that the company will introduce a new, smaller version of the 9.8-inch iPad on Oct. 23 -- nearly a week later than we had predicted.

 According to Paczkowski, the unveiling will occur at an invitation-only event, probably at the Apple's (AAPL) Town Hall auditorium in Cupertino. Beyond that, he says, details are slim: "Sources say the iPad's diminutive sibling will feature a 7.85-inch liquid-crystal display and a Lightning connector.

 It will also probably be thinner. And that's about it." Meanwhile, Topeka's Brian White, who is wrapping up a tour of Apple's Asian component suppliers, reported Friday that he has held what he believes to be a prototype of the iPad mini.

 He writes: We uncovered over twenty suppliers that showed us accessories for the iPad Mini (some already have the accessories boxed, labeled and ready for order) and we actually had the opportunity to play with a pilot iPad Mini used by one of the vendors.

 This 7.85-inch iPad Mini fit our hands like a glove and we were easily able to tuck the device in our sport coat, offering consumers a more mobile iPad experience for certain use cases.

 Last week, we highlighted the improved aesthetics of the new device and we believe consumers will like this improved feel to the back casing.

 Also, the fatigue factor is less of an issue given the lighter weight and smaller size.

Saturday, October 13, 2012 | 1 comments | Read More

Mobile use 'topping six billion'

There are almost as many mobile phone subscriptions in the world as people, a United Nations telecom agency has said.

 A report by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said there were about six billion subscriptions at the end of 2011.

 There are nearly seven billion people on Earth.

 Almost one billion subscriptions were in China, the study found. The report, called Measuring the Information Society 2012, looked at 155 countries, assessing their access to and use of information and communication technology (ICT).

 The head of the agency's data division, Susan Teltscher, said: "We count Sim cards, not the number of devices or people, so if one person has two Sim cards in one device, it counts as two subscriptions; and we count monthly subscriptions as well."

 Sim cards used in a tablet or to access the internet on a laptop computer had not been taken into account, she added.

 The Geneva-based agency also said almost two billion people - about one-third of the world's population - had been internet users by the end of 2011.

 In developed countries, 70% of the population was online, compared with 24% in developing regions, it said.

 There were almost twice as many mobile broadband subscriptions globally as fixed broadband ones, said the agency.

 The director of ITU's Telecommunication Development Bureau, Brahima Sanou, said: "The surge in numbers of mobile-broadband subscriptions in developing countries has brought the internet to a multitude of new users.

 "But despite the downward trend, prices remain relatively high in many low-income countries.

 "For mobile broadband to replicate the mobile-cellular miracle and bring more people from developing countries online, 3G network coverage has to be extended and prices have to go down even further."

 On 14 October, leading names in the ICT industry will gather at ITU Telecom World 2012 - a global networking and knowledge-sharing event in Dubai.

 Some 300 global leaders are expected to attend the conference, including heads of state, ministers, regulators, academics, and representatives of such companies as Cisco, Kaspersky Lab, Huawei, Verizon, Qualcomm, Ericsson.

Saturday, October 13, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

Toyota to recall 8,700 units of Corolla and Camry due to faulty power window switches

Car-maker Toyota has decided to recall 8,700 units of its Corolla and Camry models in India so as to rectify faulty power window switches.

Reportedly, the Japanese automaker will recall Corolla Altis manufactured between July 30 to December 31 in 2008 and Camry's models manufactured from September 1, 2006 to July 31, 2008. The recall is a part of a global exercise and will start from next month.

 

The firm is reportedly going to recall around 2.47 million vehicles in the US, 1.40 million vehicles in China and 1.39 million vehicles in Europe. Moreover, Toyota will also recall 650,000 vehicles in Australia and Asia and around 490,000 vehicles in the near and Middle East.

 

The recall comes on the back of news that the company reported a dip in September sales by 48.9%, YoY, in China. Toyota’s decision to recall its vehicles is the second biggest single recall since Ford Motors pulled back 7.9 million vehicles in 1996.

Thursday, October 11, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

Toyota recalls 240,000 vehicles in Canada

 Toyota is announcing another massive recall.This one involves 7.43-million vehicles around the world—including nearly 240-thousand in Canada—for a faulty power-window switch.

The recall by the Japanese auto giant affects more than a dozen models produced from 2005 through 2010.

Toyota says the switch on the driver’s side didn’t have grease applied evenly during production, causing friction and sometimes smoke.

No crashes or injuries have been reported.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

Japanese Car Named “Lowest Roadworthy Car in the World”

The Japanese have come up with a car which has been titled and certified by the Guiness World Records as the “Lowest Roadworthy Car in the World”. Christened the Mirai, the car was developed by a High School class in Japan.

Mirai is the handiwork of the students and teachers at the Okayama Sanyo High School in Asakuchi, Japan. The single-seater hugs the tarmac with the highest point on the car being as low as 45.2 cms which is 6 cms less than the Flatmobile, the previous record holder. 

The Flatmobile was a far outrageous concept by all standards. Being jet-powered and with a top speed of 100mph, the Batmobile replica crafted by Britain’s Perrywinkle Customs, will certainly leave the battery-powered Mirai behind in a trail of dust.

Still the effort taken by these chaps in Japan deserve to be applauded. The driving unit comes from a “Q-car”, produced by CQ motors while the switching console is borrowed from a motorbike.

 The chassis, body, suspension, steering system, lights, seat and all other parts were crafted in-house at the High School. The power for driving the motors is sourced from six main batteries.

Harada Kazunari, Principal at Okayama Sanyo High School, says, “It can be frightening to drive MIRAI on a big street, especially when the speed goes over 40km/h because the road is very close to the driver’s eye point. Also, you can feel afraid that you will be run over by other cars. So, we make it a rule, when we drive MIRAI on a busy street, to place a leading car to the front of MIRAI, and a guarding car in the rear.“ Interestingly enough, the Mirai lends the phrase “hitting an all-time low” with an all new meaning.

Tuesday, October 09, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

Australia Unveils New $155 Million ASKAP Telescope

 Australia has unveiled a new $155 million telescope that could start to capture radio images as soon as today.The Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) is one of the world’s fastest telescopes and sits in Australia’s outback.

ASKAP has 36 antennas with a diameter of 40 feet each and forms part of the world’s biggest radio telescope projects.The telescope is located at the Murchison Radio-Astronomy Observatory, 196 miles northeast of Geraldton in the Western Australian desert.

Dr. John O’Sullivan, from Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), told BBC that the telescope is a “very powerful instrument to start to get a look [at] the origins of galaxies… It is the beginning of a great new period, I think.”

The telescope’s remote location offers an area with very little interference from man-made radio signals.ASKAP will help scientists look for black holes in the universe, which are mysterious, hard to observe objects.

The new telescope is part of the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) that is set to begin construction sometime in 2016.

SKA will become the world’s biggest radio telescope project based in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. This project will consist of thousands of radio-wave antennas that will all link together by high bandwidth optical fiber.

The antennas will work together as a single instrument with a collecting area approximating one square kilometer, or .38 square miles.CSIRO built the telescope. The organization announced back in August that a new supercomputer would be installed at iVEC’s Pawsey Centre in Perth, Western Australia to help support the data being carried out using ASKAP.

“I’m delighted that years of hard work, by so many people in so many organizations, has paid off,” the Australia–New Zealand SKA Project Director, Dr. Brian Boyle, who is also from CSIRO, said in a statement. “A dual SKA site will ensure that the expertise brought to the international project is truly capitalized on.

 Concentrating radio-wave antennas at the superbly radio quiet MRO will maximize our scientific return. We look forward to further details as they evolve.”

redOrbit

Saturday, October 06, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

Facebook 'likes' add automatically without user-clicks

Facebook 'likes' are being added to webpages irrespective of whether users have clicked a like button or not, or even visited the social networking site, the company has acknowledged.

A US security researcher has found that simply sending a web address to a friend using Facebook's private messaging function adds two likes to the page.

Leaving a comment on a story within a Facebook page also adds to the tally, the 'BBC news' reported.

"We did recently find a bug with our social plug-ins where at times the count for the Share or Like goes up by two, and we are working on fix to solve the issue now," the site said.

Facebook explained that the figure represented how many times an item was shared - not how often users had clicked "like" on the page.

However, the number appears next to the word "like" and the site's distinctive thumbs up icon.

This means that users who may be sharing pages to highlight negative content - such as campaigners - are inadvertently making the page appear more popular.

The news comes a day after Facebook said it has surpassed the milestone of one billion monthly active users. 

Saturday, October 06, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

6 Creative Ways to Earn Extra Money

There are a lot ways you can earn some extra cash on the side. Plus, with today's economic condition, earning some extra money wouldn't hurt. With today's economy, people have undoubtedly limited the way they spend their money. 

 1.Start a Blog 

 In the world of blogging, there's a place of expertise for everyone. If you're an expert at something, people would want to know about your expertise. Advertisements or recommending products could help you earn some profit from your blog. Connecting to services like Google adsense,Addyanamo,Chikita and other affialiates program could bring in a good cash flow.

2.Take Advantage of your artistic talents 

Get your creative juices flowing by designing t-shirts and selling them online. You can check out Café Pressor or Zazzle where you can set the price of your t-shirts.

Another great option you have is Threadless, where you can submit your design for the website community to vote for and comment on your design. If your idea is selected you will receive $2000 in cash and $500 in gift certificates. 

3.Learn How to DJ  

If you love music and like to mix it up then learn the trade of a DJ. DJ's earn big money today and if your music is good you can gain reputation fast. 

4.Write a Book
 If you have the knack for writing, try writing your own book. You can uses LULU to self-publish your book using one of their templates. Just write the content and Lulu will do the rest (while taking their cut of course).

5.Do freelance work 

Nowadays, almost any job can be done on a contract or freelance basis. Check out sites like Sologig, which lead jobs seekers to consulting, freelancing, and part-time projects that will help you earn money.


 6.You can even take up writing online articles, become a graphic designer, you can end up designing logos, or marketing campaigns for companies since most companies today are looking to outsource their work.

Tuesday, September 25, 2012 | 1 comments | Read More

Apple unveils iPhone 5: Thinner, lighter, 16:9 4-inch display, LTE, and available Sept 21

Apple CEO Tim Cook and vice president Phil Schiller have unveiled the iPhone 5. In most major markets, the phone will be preorderable on September 14 and will begin shipping on September 21. In December, the iPhone 5 will be made available in 100 countries on 240 carriers. The iPhone 5 will cost the same as the iPhone 4S (starting at $199 in the US with a two-year contract).

The iPhone 5 looks exactly as the leaks suggested — longer and narrower than the iPhone 4 — but we now know that the iPhone 5 is also considerably thinner (7.6mm, the thinnest smartphone in the world, apparently) and much lighter (112g, 20% lighter than the iPhone 4S).

The iPhone 5 has a 4-inch 1136×640 (326 PPI) Retina display — so yes, Apple has finally moved from the 4:3 aspect ratio to 16:9. As far as we can tell, this new space will simply be used for another row of icons on the home screen — and other important apps, iPhoto, iMovie, Keynote, etc. have all been updated to use the additional real estate. In the case of apps that haven’t been updated, the new iPhone will simply display the app at standard resolution (960×640) with black bars above and below (yes, I can hardly believe it, but there you go).

The new 16:9 display also ups color saturation by 44%, bringing its color gamut to full sRGB — “the most accurate display in the industry,” according to Apple. The touchscreen assembly is apparently built into the display, making it more accurate — but we don’t have any more details on that yet.

The Apple A6 SoC

Powering the iPhone 5 is the new Apple A6 SoC, which is apparently twice as fast as the A5, both in terms of graphics and computation. Apple wheeled out some EA executive to tell us that the A6 is capable of “full console quality” graphics, but we remain dubious. Battery life is apparently slightly improved from the iPhone 4S, too.

We don’t have any more details to share at this point, but given the doubling in speed the A6 is probably a dual-core Cortex-A15 design — similar to Samsung’s Exynos 5.

LTE support, no NFC

Beyond the new chassis, the other “big” feature is the addition of a cellular radio capable of HSPA+, DC-HSDPDA, and LTE. Details weren’t given, but we believe this modem is the Qualcomm MDM9615, a single-chip 28nm solution. A large number of supported carriers were listed, including AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon in the US, and a bunch of European and Asian providers. We will have much more details on the iPhone 5′s radio capabilities later.

Perhaps surprisingly, there is no NFC support on the iPhone 5 — indicating Apple still doesn’t believe that NFC is ready for prime time.

iSight camera

The iPhone 5 features an 8-megapixel shooter, with a backside illuminated CMOS sensor, f/2.4 aperture, and other fancy tricks to improve image quality and low-light performance. The new A6 SoC also has some new hardware in it that will improve image quality. Apparently the iPhone 5 is 40% faster at capturing an image (presumably we’re talking about processing time here, rather than shutter speed or something else). There isn’t any optical image stabilization like the Lumia 920, though!

Apple did show some amazing sample images during the presentation, but we’ll have to get our hands on some real sample images before we can decide if Apple or Nokia will be this generation’s camera king.

Rounding out the camera, there’s a few other neat features (face detection, panorama mode), and the front-facing camera can now do FaceTime calls over cellular networks (unless AT&T stops you, of course).

Die, 30-pin connector, die

With the iPhone 5, Apple is debuting a new 8-pin connector called Lightning (to go withThunderbolt, get it?). Other than being a lot smaller, the most exciting aspect of Lightning is that it’s reversible; you can shove it in whichever way you want. There is of course an adapter ($29!) if you need to connect your new iPhone to some old hardware (such as, you know, your car).

Rather than being related to Thunderbolt, though, Lightning is probably based on USB 3.0. Again, we don’t have any specifics to share (seems to be a recurring theme, for some reason).

Thursday, September 13, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

90,000 Chrome users fall for malicious Facebook Timeline extension

Security researchers at Barracuda Networks have spotted a handful of malicious Chrome extensions lurking in the Web Store that shared a common M.O. All of them were designed to track a user’s browsing activity, and all were disguised as Facebook mods that could revert the site from Timeline to its traditional layout. In total, around 90,000 Chrome users had been tricked into installing the three extensions spotted by Barracuda.

Beyond tracking their users, the extensions also pushed bogus surveys and urge users into joining fake Facebook events. That part of the scam is what attracts new users to scammy extensions like this in the first place. In the Web Store, it’s hard for them to stand out when other legitimate extensions are already established and offer a long list of reviews and good ratings that prove their utility. In order to lure their marks into the van, the extension authors push it on Facebook — where frustrated users are more likely to jump on the first thing they see that promises to undo the Timeline view.

Fortunately for Chrome users, Google has already caught on to the scam, too. As of this morning, all three of the extensions flagged by Barracuda as malicious have been removed from the Web Store.

Now that Chrome is the most-used web browser in the world, Google’s going to need to remain vigilant. It should be a bit easier to keep malicious extensions at bay now, what with the company’s acquisition of the web-based malware scanning service VirusTotal going down last week.

Wednesday, September 12, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

FBI launches 1 billion dollar nationwide facial recognition system

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation has begun rolling out its new $1 billion biometric Next Generation Identification (NGI) system. In essence, NGI is a nationwide database of mugshots, iris scans, DNA records, voice samples, and other biometrics, that will help the FBI identify and catch criminals — but it ishow this biometric data is captured, through a nationwide network of cameras and photo databases, that is raising the eyebrows of privacy advocates.

Until now, the FBI relied on IAFIS, a national fingerprint database that has long been due an overhaul. Over the last few months, the FBI has been pilot testing a facial recognition system — and soon, detectives will also be able to search the system for other biometrics such as DNA records and iris scans. In theory, this should result in much faster positive identifications of criminals and fewer unsolved cases.

According to New Scientist, facial recognition systems have reached the point where they can match a single face from a pool of 1.6 million mugshots/passport photos with 92% accuracy, in under 1.2 seconds [PDF]. In the case of automated, biometric border controls where your face and corresponding mugshot are well lit, the accuracy approaches 100%. Likewise, where DNA or iris records exist, it’s a very expedient way of accurately identifying suspects.

So far, so good — catching criminals faster and making less false arrests must be a good thing, right? Well, yes, but there are some important caveats that we must bear in mind. For a start, the pilot study has only used mugshots and driving license photos of known criminals — but the FBI hasn’t guaranteed that this will always be the case. There may come a time when the NGI is filled with as many photos as possible, from as many sources as possible, of as many people as possible — criminal or otherwise. This might be as overt as parsing CCTV footage and collating every single face into a database; or maybe you’re just unlucky and your face ends up in the system because you’re in the background of a photo starring a known criminal.

Imagine if the NGI had full access to every driving license and passport photo in the country — and DNA records kept by doctors, and iris scans kept by businesses. The FBI’s NGI, if the right checks and balances aren’t in place, could very easily become a tool that decimates civilian privacy and freedom. Time to invest in a hoodie, I think…

Wednesday, September 12, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More

New Coke Machine Can Take Your Picture, Has a 46" video screen,a Microphone,,,

Intel showed off a new fancy Coca-Cola machine at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco today. Why did Intel show off a glorified sugar water dispenser? Well, that’s because the device happens to house an Intel Core i7 microprocessor.

 It needs all that computer horsepower to function its many doodads, like the microphone it has for no apparent reason. The machine also comes equipped with a camera, which would theoretically be used to gather demographic information, but is thoroughly creepy regardless. Dadi Perlmutter, Intel’s executive vice president, presented the machine during his keynote speech. 

Old coke dispenser

A camera and microphone isn’t all it has, according to VentureBeat:

 Perlmutter said the 46-inch video screen has full 1080p high-definition playback and a microphone. It has a Wi-Fi wireless network, a QR Code reader, and an old-fashioned money slot and dispenser. In case you want to watch a movie on the Coke machine, it’s entirely possible.

 Why a soda machine would have the majority of these additional options is confusing. It’s takes the glorious no-nonsense approach of a traditional dispenser out of the equation and replaces it with depressingly corporate set of shenanigans. At least it will look snazzy, though.

Wednesday, September 12, 2012 | 0 comments | Read More