Best Buy is putting the iPhone 5 on sale starting Sunday. Two plus two equals?

According to a report by AllThingsD, Best Buy is planning to offer $50 off the iPhone 5, 4S, and 4 models starting Sunday and lasting for four weeks. The electronics retailer is also planning to offer discounts on older Android smartphones from Samsung and HTC … but not the just-released and hot-selling Samsung Galaxy S4.

Source: http://sjbbs.zol.com.cn/2/30_11361.html

The iPhone 5S in limited production, supposedly.

Rules aside, it’s not completely unheard of for iPhone to go on sale. And Apple has been experimenting lately with discounts (excuse me, incentives) in price-constrained markets such as India. But if it’s not the sign of the iPhone 5S showing up next month, it’s certainly the footsteps we’re hearing from the not-too-distant future.

Apple is certainly getting ready to release the 5S, with screens reportedly entering mass production in June, and one report saying actual phones hitting the market in August.

Which, if correct, means we still have three months to wait.

However, analyst Brian White of Topeka Capital Markets has predicted a June announcement and a July ship date for iPhone 5S as well as a new, cheaper iPhone Mini, which he says will be available in multiple colors.

photo credit: Incase. via photopin cc

In other words, the giant that sold almost 400 million phones last year is getting bigger. And faster.

There’s a reason Samsung gobbles up 95 percent of the profits in the Android device market. It knows how to produce, market, distribute, and sell phones and tablets in massive numbers.

And, it doesn’t rest on its laurels.

The company also announced today that it would soon be introducing more color variations. The S4 is currently only available in black or white, or, as Samsung likes to say, Black Forest and White Mist. New color options coming this summer include Blue Arctic, Red Aurora, Purple Mirage, and Brown Autumn.

Meanwhile, five and a half months after the introduction of the iPhone 5, Apple is still not offering varying color options, although this are rumored to be in the product pipeline, probably for a fall release.

One caveat on the numbers: Samsung typically counts shipped units as sold units. And the company very carefully worded its announcement as “global channel sales,” which should likely be construed as units that are sold and delivered to its channel sales partners. So it’s possible that in terms of actual units in the hands of customers, Samsung has not yet hit the 10 million mark.

But there’s no doubt that the device is successful and will sell a boatload of units.

I still maintain, however, that the extra software, add-ons, and flashy-but-buggy gewgaws Samsung has added to the device will spell the beginning of the end of Samsung’s smartphone dominance. And would suggest people interesting in buying one wait for the Nexus version, which is basically an Galaxy S4 stripped of all Samsung’s software, and featuring a pure Google Android experience.

Image credit: Samsung

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

South Korean electronics titan Samsung expects to take in an enormous $7.7 billion (8.7 trillion won) operating profit for the first quarter of 2013, the company said in its latest earnings guidance.

Samsung is one of the most formidable and popular electronics companies on the planet, and we’ve seen it post stunning quarterly earnings before. Just last quarter, the company posted a net profit of $6.6 billion. The company has a tremendous hold in the mobile market and also sells popular TVs, laptops, and appliances.

Not surprisingly, Samsung’s mobile unit is the biggest driver of its revenue. More than 60 percent of its revenue last quarter was generated from sales of smartphones including the Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II. This next quarter will likely be no different.

The company has another huge release on its plate for this quarter as well — the Galaxy S IV, which should hit stores at the very end of the earnings period. That phone is sure to be a massive seller, just like the Galaxy S III has been.

Samsung will post its full quarterly results on April 26. We’ll be sure to let you know if the company was able to meet — or maybe even beat — its guidance.

Photo via Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat

Apple’s iPhone 3G was released on July 11, 2008, and followed a little more than a year later by the faster 3GS on June 19, 2009. The iPhone 4 was released on June 24, 2010, and followed by the 4S sixteen months later on October 14, 2011. The iPhone 5 was launched on September 21, 2012, and if a rumor from Japan is correct, it will also be followed by a 5S model, to be released on June 20.

That is just an eight-month gap.

According to MacFan, a Japanese Apple fanzine that is celebrating its 20th anniversary, June 20 is the announce date of the newest iPhone, which will then ship in volume in July. How exactly a Japanese fanzine would be in possession of that privileged information is difficult to determine, but the timetable does square with analyst expectations. As CNet notes, Gene Munster and other Apple followers have identified June as the most likely launch window for the 5S.

If accurate, that’s a lot quicker than Apple has brought out upgrades in the past. But the pace of innovation has quickened, and the competition is getting hotter.

Samsung just recently unveiled its Galaxy S IV, the successor to its best-selling Galaxy S III, and the Korean manufacturer’s flagship phone against which Apple’s current iPhone 5 and next models will be compared. Samsung had released the S III in May of 2012, so the IV came out just ten months after — a much quicker model succession than Apple has traditionally managed. In addition, Galaxy IV pre-orders were 446 percent higher than III, at least for some carriers, and iPhone trade-ins doubled in the month leading up to the IV’s launch.

In other words, the Galaxy S IV is a major competitive threat, and Apple needs to address it. Which makes the June-July timeframe credible, even if the actual launch date is not June 20.

The only question, really, is whether Apple is prepared to run a quarterback sneak and maybe, just maybe, release multiple iPhone models simultaneously for the first time. With one that is just a bit cheaper for emerging markets – the cheaper iPhone that is supposed to come out in the latter half of 2013.

Now that would be interesting.

photo credit: Mez Love via photopin cc

SellCell.com reports that iPhone trade-ins were up 194 percent in the month preceding last week’s Samsung Galaxy S IV launch, compared to the month before its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S III, was launched in 2012.

This is bad news for Apple, and it’s not just due to increased volume in the market either. Galaxy S III trade-ins actually declined in the same period, sagging 4.8 percent. And in the day following the S IV launch, iPhone trade-ins were up 42.2 precent compared to the already relatively high preceding two Fridays.

“Based on feedback from our partners and the news of several big product launches from HTC, BlackBerry and now Samsung, we get the feeling that the luster of the iPhone line for Apple fans may be waning a bit,” SellCell’s managing director Colin White said in a statement. “Our data bears this out as more people trade-in and search for iPhone quotes on the site than other product lines, an effect that we believe is from the introduction of new smartphones and features that iPhones don’t have.”

Apple occupies the entire top five spots in SellCell’s trade-in list right now, with the low-end iPhone 3G fetching only $40, while the much more recent iPhone 4 16GB brings in almost $190. And while iPhones, like Apple laptops and desktops, have traditionally held their value very well, Samsung devices are starting to do so as well.

“In particular, the growing, fierce rivalry between Samsung and Apple extends to the trade-in world as the GALAXY line of phones is beginning to hold value like the iPhone, which has traditionally been the best smartphone investment as it depreciates the least,” White said.

Although the Galaxy S IV price has not yet been revealed, SellCell has already assigned it a trade-in value of $550.

That new Android-based smartphone from the biggest phone manufacturer in the world with the big New York launch, the massive screen, and the 13-megapixel camera? Looks like it’s pre-selling like proverbial hotcakes.

Carphone Warehouse, a big UK mobile distributor, says the Samsung Galaxy S IV is pre-selling at more than four times the rate of its predecessor, the Galaxy S III. Which was already a best-ever launch for Carphone.

“The record breaking launch of the Galaxy SIII last year was always going to be a tough one to beat,” said Carphone Warehouse COO Graham Stapleton. “But Samsung have pulled out all the stops with a dazzling new device that’s sure to inspire many people to make the switch to Android from other operating systems.”

The phones aren’t scheduled to be available until April 26, and pricing hasn’t been announced yet. Even so, with pre-orders at 446 percent of S III levels, it looks like Samsung has impressed enough of the Android faithful to deliver another best-seller.

The SII sold 10 million units in its first two months and 30 million in five months, so beating those numbers won’t be easy. But Samsung did ship 57 million smartphones in Q3 last year as part of over 400 million phones shipped in all of 2012, so anything seems to be possible.

The question will be: Can Samsung top Apple’s iPhone 5, which was the top-selling phone in the last quarter of 2012?

Perhaps.

“We’re anticipating a massive amount of customer interest in this handset and are expecting our stores to be busier than at the height of the Christmas period,” Stapleton said. “We are planning to extend opening hours at our larger sites to cope with the increased demand.”

None of which changes my contention that the Samsung Galaxy S IV will mark the beginning of the end of Samsung’s smartphone dominance.

Smoked by Windows is Microsoft’s fun, social, and viral YouTube campaign targeting iPhone and Android users. But now it’s moving offline and going to network TV — ESPN and CBS — just in time for March Madness.

And Microsoft is taking specific aim at Samsung:

The ads feature Microsoft’s top Windows Phone marketing manager, Ben Rudolph, who told us that he has the best job in Microsoft when we chatted a couple of months ago. It’s his job as director of Windows Phone evangelism to convince hundreds of millions of Android and iPhone users to switch to Windows phone … and he’s pretty persuasive.

But this particular tactic won’t work for long — the new Samsung Galaxy S IV sports a 13-megapixel camera which is bound to be better than the S III’s eight megapixel effort. And likely to best the Nokia 920′s 8.7 megapixel camera too, in spite of the built-in image stabilization that does give the 920 great night-time photos.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

I’m going way out on a limb here, and cutting it off behind me.

But I have a theory. The more Samsung “adds value” to Android by customizing a version of it for the Galaxy line of phones, as it’s doing with its new Galaxy S IV, the more it will suck.

This is, of course, the company that sold 400 million freaking phones last year. And 57 million smartphones in just one quarter of 2012. Samsung seems, more than any other, to be the company that has shaved a few hundred billion off Apple’s share price.

But companies, like people, do best when they stick to what they’re good at. Better yet, what they’re great at.

And let me tell you, there’s no way that Samsung is great at machine language translation. And facial/eye recognition to drive smart document scrolling. And building app stores for hundreds of millions of global users. And tying Kinect-style hand gestures to phone functionality navigation. And building a personal health/self quantification system. And programming a voice-controlled smart personal assistant. And implementing a ticket-and-card aggregating Apple Passbook clone. And any of a thousand other software-based features Samsung is adding to its phones and laying at the pagan feet of the ruthless god called product differentiation.

No bloody way.

Not as good as Google, for the features that Google chooses to build, and are amenable to machine learning and improvement. Not as good as Fitbit or Up or other companies whose livelihood is self-quantification and health. Not as good as Kinect, or Leap Motion, which are focused on gesture control.

“Some of the features definitely didn’t seem to work all that well,” analyst Avi Greengart, who Samsung pre-briefed about its phone, told me today. “For the hover feature … you have pick the exact right distance from the screen for it to activate, and you select things you weren’t intending to select.”

Other features worked better, like a camera app that puts you in the picture while you take the picture, Greengart said, though he was most concerned about the sheer quantity of new features overwhelming consumers.

“A lot of it will drive people crazy,” he said. “But at the same time people will buy the phone so they can check it out.”

There are a bunch of reasons for that. One is that Samsung is not a software company, in much the same way that Intel, though it employs thousands of software engineers, is not a software company. Another is that ancillary features added by a company that is primarily focused on using those features to sell more of that product are seldom as good as the features created by companies that focus on those things exclusively.

But the big one is that Google is getting frightfully good at software. Partly because it learns a million times a minute as customers interact with its solutions, and data drives its decisions, but also partly because it gets mobile in a way that few other companies do. Google currently has five of the top six apps in North America on any platform.

Do you really think Samsung can build a better mobile user experience than Google?

I haven’t yet handled, played with, or slept beside a Galaxy S IV. But the early reviews on that cool eye-tracking technology that auto-scrolls documents for you? It works “better in theory than they did in practice,” according to CNet. And that neat gesture phone control technology? It seems to “work intermittently.”

ZDnet wonders if this is innovation or gimmicks, and Gizmodo hits the nail on the smartphone head:

Truthfully, there are too many modifications to go into, and most of them aren’t things you’ll ever use. Which is really the S IV’s biggest problem.

In other words, Samsung’s over-the-top Broadway launch for the Galaxy S IV might be the perfect metaphor for a phone that has everything you don’t need: A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer in your pants.

Now, we’re talking about unreleased hardware and software, and there are bound to be improvements before Samsung ships the Galaxy S IV to customers. But putting together a coherent, excellent operating system with well-integrated features is hard. Google went through multiple iterations before finally starting to get it really right perhaps a couple of years ago. Microsoft went through hell for years, trying to find its way in mobile operating systems.

Is it likely that Samsung, which is building on the Android foundation but chipping away at every piece of Google’s fingerprints it can while doing so, can get it right?

I think not.

“Look at the Samsung Galaxy S III,” ABI Research analyst Aapo Markkanen told me. “Everything that was good about the software came from Google, and everything that was annoying came from Samsung.”

Others that I’ve talked to agree, but still see a role for Samsung’s innovation.

“I agree that some of the software is buggy,” Rocky Agrawal, an analyst and mobile consultant who also writes for VentureBeat, told me. “If they would stick to the non-core things that they’re adding it could make sense … but to go in and mess up core stuff like keyboards and error correction, that’s just innovation for the sake of innovation. You should differentiate on things that matter.”

We have seen this movie before, during the 90s and 2000s, in a different industry: the PC market. Much as Android is to iOS what Windows was to Macintosh, Android vendors are to each other what HP was to Dell was to Compaq was to every other faceless PC manufacturer: a clone trying to be an individual.

And with every vendor trying to deliver unique value, a unique product, and a unique brand in a by-nature commoditized market, they get desperate. The result: software that adds a line item in the product comparison chart and a bullet point in the marketing blurb, but is really just crapware.

I’ve been there. I’ve done that. I’ve been that crapware vendor, sad to say, bundling a solution into HP’s, Asus’s, and even Intel’s offerings.

And my money’s on something similar happening here.

(Oh, and these user interface issues will be at the heart of our discussion at the Mobile Summit in Sausalito on April 1 and 2, where we’ve invited the mobile industry’s leading players. We’re hosting a wide cross-section of ecosystem from Google, Samsung, Facebook across the major carriers like AT&T and Verizon, to Cisco, Intel and the major analytics folks, like Flurry — along with the top 60 or so publishers and disruptive private companies.)

photo credit: Great Beyond via photopin cc

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Seventy-seven percent of all new smartphones and tablets activated in the enterprise last quarter were Apple devices, according to a new report from Good Technology.

The most popular device was Apple’s new iPhone 5, with 32 percent of all activations. The top five devices activated also included the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPad 3, and iPad2. Out of the top 10, eight were Apple devices, including the iPad 4, the aged iPad 1, and the equally venerable iPhone 3GS.

Essentially, it’s utter enterprise domination by Apple’s iOS:

Source: Good Technologies

Top 10 devices activated in the enterprise: Q4 2012

Android’s first foray into the enterprise comes at number six, with the Samsung Galaxy S III, and its only other contestant is the S III’s baby brother, the Galaxy S II, which clocks in at number 10. iOS activations were up 8.5 percent year-over-year.

Good Technologies offers solution for secure collaboration, communication, and data. With 4,000 enterprise customers and half of the Fortune 500 in its stable, it has fairly good insight into what the enterprise is doing in mobility.

One place Android is gaining somewhat? Tablets.

“Between Q1 and the end of Q4 2012, Android tablet activations jumped from 2.7 percent to nearly 7 percent of total activations,” Good says in its report, attributing the spike in part to the rise of fablets: hybrid phone-tablet devices like the Samsung Galaxy Note.

Source: Good Technologies

Tablet activations in the enterprise: Q4 2012

Windows reigns, of course, on the enterprise desktop, but it is a marginal, niche player so far in enterprise mobility. Only .5 percent of enterprise device activations in the fourth quarter were Windows phones or tablets. That may, of course, change as Windows 8 edges into the enterprise and CIOs look at the potential benefits of a more unified desktop-mobile operating system environment.

Source: Good Technologies

Q4 2012 activations by device type

One interesting note: The business sector that is driving down Apple’s stock valuation is the same industry that is purchasing the most of Apple’s products. According to Good Technologies, between 30 percent and 36 percent of all iPads activated in enterprise where purchased by the financial services industry. The next closest sector is business and professional services, at under 20 percent.

Curious, no?

Source: Good Technologies

iPad activations by industry

photo credit: papalars via photopin cc

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Apple might have some problems keeping investors interested, but consumers are clearly still Apple-hungry. The iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S were the two best-selling smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to a new Strategy Analytics report.

Strategy Analytics’ data showed the iPhone 5 was the overall champ, with 27.4 million iPhone 5 units sold in the fourth quarter, while 17.4 million 4S units were sold, and 15.4 million Galaxy S III units were sold. The iPhone 5 and 4S combined accounted for 1 in 5 of smartphones shipped in the world in Q4 2012.

“The iPhone 5 captured an impressive 13 percent share of all smartphones shipped globally, and it has become the world’s bestselling smartphone model for the first time ever,” Strategy Analytics wrote in its report. “A rich touchscreen design, extensive distribution across dozens of countries, and generous operator subsidies have been among the main causes of the iPhone 5’s success.”

In the third quarter of 2012, by comparison, the Galaxy S III was on top with 18 million units sold, the iPhone 5 (which was barely available in Q3) sold 6 million units, and the iPhone 4S had 16.2 million units sold.

While this news is good for Apple, Samsung can’t be counted out looking forward. Samsung is rumored to be releasing its Galaxy S IV — the successor to the Galaxy S III — some time in March. If that timing holds true and the phone is more powerful and flashy than the S III, the S IV could easily overtake the iPhone 5′s sales in the second quarter of 2013.

Take a look at Strategy Analytics’ numbers below:

In the fourth quarter of 2012, manufacturers shipped 52 million phones in the United States, according to Strategy Analytics. Apple shipped 17.7 million of them, and Samsung shipped 16.8 million. The next largest competitor, LG, shipped only 4.7 million.

Everything else is buried in the dreaded “Other” category: What those numbers mean is that Apple and Samsung have cornered 65 percent of the market (or 69 percent, according to the NPD Group’s numbers). But it’s even more shocking when you look at phone models. The top five models all come from the only two smartphone vendors that have won significant market share in the U.S.

“Apple and Samsung continued to run away from all the other smartphone makers accounting for nearly 70 percent of all sales during Q4 2012,” analyst firm NPD Group said in a statement.

The iPhone 5 was the top-selling smartphone in the last quarter of 2012, according to that NPD Group report, and Apple has three more spots in the top five, with its old model iPhone 4S and even older model iPhone 4 still selling well.

Source: NPD Group

Top 5 selling smartphones in the U.S.

Still think Apple shouldn’t build a cheaper iPhone, by the way?

Samsung is doing very well also, of course, with two phones in the top five: its flagship Galaxy S III and the slightly less-well-endowed Galaxy S II. And of course, Samsung has a raft of other products in its Galaxy and other model lines targeted various consumer niches.

Besides the fact that the smartphone race in the U.S. is a two-horse race, another thing is completely clear: Smartphones have clearly beaten feature phones. And that’s going to force another set of changes in the market.

“While smartphone sales continued on their torrid pace in the fourth quarter, the seeds of change are evident in the sales numbers,” the NPD Group’s VP of industry analysis Stephen Baker said in a statement. “With of the vast majority of all phone sales now smartphones, and with the largest unit-sales growth within smartphones occurring in the prepaid segment, today’s product pricing and channel models will need to adapt to accommodate this new reality.”

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Samsung may be spending all of its CES stage time talking about televisions and refrigerators, but it’s the company’s smartphone sales that are really driving its profits.

Samsung made $8.3 billion in profit last quarter according to its latest earnings guidance.

Fueling those gains, of course, are sales of the Galaxy S III, which overtook the iPhone as the world’s best-selling smartphone in November. Samsung sold close to 500 phones per minute last quarter. That’s 30,000 phones per hour.

But while the Galaxy S III is a top-seller, at the core of Samsung’s success were the dozens of other devices it offered. Samsung released 37 phones last year, as Reuters points out, most of which it tailored to specific demographics and price points. Compare that to the nine devices Nokia released and the one from Apple and it should be clear why Samsung is at the top of the Android pile.

It’s also tough not to compare these numbers to rival HTC, which reported its own, awful earnings on Monday. HTC’s decimated profits show that it has a lot to learn from its fellow smartphone maker. Lesson one? Make lots and lots of phones, and market them to death.

Samsung plans to release its full earnings on Jan. 25.

Photo: Nan Palmero/Flickr

We’ve seen the clash of titans in mobile as Apple, Google, and Microsoft have released new phones, tablets, and mobile operating systems. We’ve seen a single network connect over a billion people worldwide. We’ve seen the once-great mobile company of the far European north forced to hawk its headquarters to raise cash. And we’ve seen social media move from cutting-edge to mainstream as the Obama campaign celebrated four more years.

In every year, we see winners and losers: companies, devices, or operating systems. Here’s our look at some of the biggest successes and failures of 2012.

The winners

	Android What more can you say about Android? With 75 percent market share in the third quarter of 2012, the free mobile operating system from Google looks poised to take over the world.
	Samsung  Not many companies sell 55 million smartphones in a quarter. Samsung did, and it will probably do it again.
	Galaxy S III Samsung is hot in large part due to its top smartphone, the Galaxy S III. With over 18 million units shipped in the third quarter, and 30 million shipped in five months, it’s easy to see why.
	iPhone 5 Sure, it was Time’s gadget of the year. But more importantly, iPhone 5 catapulted Apple back into the smartphone leadership position, at least in the U.S.
	iPad Mini We called it immediately: light, portable, awesome, and expensive. And it even looked better up close and person in our review. But we had no clue it would become one of Apple’s best-selling iPads. And now that it’s probably going Retina in April/May, it’s just getting better.
	YouTube YouTube continues to be the online leader, by far, in online video with 800 million visitors and billion-view channels created by individuals and brands. Despite getting the boot from iOS6, YouTube just continues to grow, with 25 times the video streams of its nearest competitor.
	Twitter 2012 is the year that Twitter went mainstream, reaching 500 million users mid-summer and just recently announcing 200 million monthly active users. And despite major new API restrictions that soured its relationship with developers, a very public spat with Instagram, and an evolving shift from social utility to media company, the company continues to grow and solidify its space in fast-breaking news.
	Instagram With a sale initially priced at almost $1.3 billion and an exploding user count, not even a tone-deaf terms-of-service change that spurred a class action lawsuit and a possible exodus of some users can keep Instagram off our winner list.
	Google Android is hot — 75 percent market-share hot. Search is still a massive strength for the iconic company that runs an ad 30 billion times each and every day. And so Google makes over $100 million a day – and hits our list of hot companies in 2012.
	ARM With the vast majority of the chips in smartphones running ARM processors, ARM has people wondering whether the mobile juggernaut will challenge Intel for CPU dominance. That’s still a stretch, but not nearly what it was just a few years ago.
	Reddit With 3.8 billion page views and 46 million unique visitors in October — double the previous year’s numbers — Reddit is continuing its torrid growth. And it doesn’t hurt when the POTUS himself chooses your site to do an informal meet-the-people session — which required 60 dedicated servers.

Next page: The losers

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The vulnerability was discovered about a week ago by a security researcher named “alephzain,” who posted an overview of the exploit on XDA-Developers. Essentially, malicious code from shady applications can use a security hole in a phone’s source code to gain control of anything in physical memory … and thereby install apps, backdoors, or simply read your personal data.

Unfortunately, “alephzain” also posted working sample source code before informing Samsung … meaning that the bad guys could already have made apps to attack your Samsung phone.

In its statement, Samsung says it is working on patching the hole as soon as possible:

Samsung is aware of the potential security issue related to the Exynos processor and plans to provide a software update to address it as quickly as possible.

The issue may arise only when a malicious application is operated on the affected devices; however, this does not affect most devices operating credible and authenticated applications.

Samsung will continue to closely monitor the situation until the software fix has been made available to all affected mobile devices.

This is not a vulnerability in the Android operating system as created by Google per se. The vulnerable portion is the kernel — the base level of an operating system — and Samsung has modified the Android kernel to run on its proprietary Exynos processor. Those modifications contain the unsafe code that enables the security breach.

If you’re concerned about your phone being vulnerable, there are a number of things you can do:

1. Don’t download any apps until Samsung releases a fix
2. Or, only download apps from known good sources (e.g., Google Play)
3. Even at Google Play, only download apps that are from known and verified publishers
4. Or, if you must, install an instant fix (which may have some negative effects on your phone’s functioning).

photo credit: vernieman via photopin cc

The Grand will run Android 4.1.2 — Jelly Bean, the latest and greatest from Google — and sports an unnamed 1.2 GHz dual-core processor. Samsung says the 8-megapixel rear camera has “zero shutter-lag,” which is impressive if true, “ultra-quick” camera startup, and can handle full HD video recording.

But that screen, while large, sports just a WVGA resolution: 800 x 480 pixels. That’s only 385,000 pixels, just over half what the iPhone 5 sports and less than half of what its Samsung companion, the Galaxy S III, offers.

That sub-par screen is on a phone that is a little more than 3″ wide and 5.6″ tall —  just a bit bigger than than the S III, but closing in on an inch taller than Apple’s iPhone5 while also being half an inch wider. It’s also probably about the same size as the rumored Galaxy S 4, which is likely to have a 4.99″ screen.

Fortunately, since Samsung is pitching the phone as “an ideal smartphone for users with fast-paced mobile lifestyles,” the phone is significantly smaller than the Galaxy Note, with its 5.55″ display and a full 6″ of height.

One cool feature is the Grand’s dual-SIM capability, which will allow users to have multiple SIMs and multiple phone plans. You could have a work and phone number on the same phone, or a local and international SIM, if you travel a lot.

That said, though, if you’re looking for an Android phone from Samsung, you’d be better off with the S III … or waiting a few months for Samsung’s next version, the 4.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

The iPhone 5 probably won’t sell as much as Samsung’s Galaxy S III this year, but it did win another coveted prize: Time Magazine’s gadget of the year.

Time’s Harry McCracken calls the iPhone 5 “one of the most artfully polished gadgets anyone’s ever built,” adding that “when it comes to melding hardware, software and services so tightly that the seams fade away, Apple still has no peer.”

Despite 5 million units sold in its opening weekend, and stellar sales results that catapulted iOS back into the mobile operating system lead in November, the iPhone 5 probably can’t catch the Samsung Galaxy S III, which launched in the summer and reached 18 million units by early November.

At least, in 2012 sales numbers.

This nod from Time, however, is a prestigious indicator that Apple is still in the smartphone market leader position in terms of overall device and operation system quality.

The other top 10 gadgets selected by Time?

1. iPhone 5
2. Nintendo Wii U
3. Sony Cyber-shot RX100
4. Raspberry Pi Model B
5. Lytro
6. Apple 15″ MacBook Pro with Retina Display
7. Microsoft Surface with Windows RT
8. Samsung Galaxy Note II
9. Nest
10. Simple.TV

Interestingly, there are two tablets, neither of which are iPads. That’s particularly surprising given the warm reception to the iPad mini in October (which we named our tablet of the year), and the third-generation iPad with the Retina Display in March.

photo credit: archer10 (Dennis) via photopin cc

Samsung’s on a roll with news tonight. It has put up a teaser for a new device to be launched at CES next month, as well a further look at its upcoming Premium Suite Upgrade for the Galaxy S III.

A clip on the Samsung Tomorrow website promises “something new” at CES — though it’s short on details and heavy on marketing jargon (Innovation! Ideas! Design! Dreams! Wonder! THE FUTURE!). It’s only been seven months since Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S III, but there’s still a crazy chance it may divulge some details on its successor the Galaxy S IV. Otherwise, I have no idea what Samsung is getting so worked up over.

Samsung isn’t holding back with the Galaxy S III’s Premium Suite Upgrade — a fancy name for a bunch of new Samsung-only features coming alongside an upcoming Android Jelly Bean update. Among the new features, Samsung’s flagship smartphone will get a new low light camera shot option and the ability to choose the best face for people in a group shot. The latter feature originally appeared on the Galaxy Note II, as will some previously announced Premium Suite features, including the ability to open two apps at the same time.

Unfortunately, availability of the Premium Suite upgrade hasn’t been announced yet (because it’s mostly up to the carriers).

Photo: Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

If your Galaxy S III is still in good shape, thank Samsung’s engineers.

In a video posted on YouTube, Samsung details the elaborate, particular, and sometimes absurd extent it goes to just to ensure its phones can withstand the trials of everyday life in your back pockets.

Sadly, the video is entirely in Korean, but that doesn’t prevent its message from getting through: Samsung’s phones are definitely put through their paces before they ship.

In the “key test”, for example, Samsung employed robotic fingers to press its devices’ home keys thousands of times. Slightly more amusing is what I can only assume is called the “butt test,” which measures how much downward pressure it takes to damage a device’s screen.

Samsung also drenches its devices in all sorts of ways, including dropping them in simulated washing machines, exposing them to simulated rain, and spraying them with simulated water hoses.

The result is a unintentionally funny video that shows just how much work goes into ensuring Samsung’s devices don’t fall apart as soon as owners start using them.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Remember that “terms not disclosed” patent licensing agreement between Apple and HTC? After a court order today, Samsung — Apple’s bitter rival and HTC’s competitor — will get a chance to review that complete and unredacted contract, including the details of how much HTC pays Apple for each and every Android phone.

Score one for Samsung in the long-running court battle that started way back in August with that billion-dollar judgement against the Korean company.

As a result of that win, Apple is seeking a ban on the importation of Samsung’s Android smartphones and tablets. Samsung, of course, is arguing that this is unnecessary, while also trying to overturn that judgement. U.S. District Court judge Paul Grewal’s decision today makes a ban on Samsung products much less likely.

Essentially, the legal logic is this: Apple can’t have its cake and eat it too.

In other words, Apple cannot both argue that Samsung’s infringements are so severe that basically all of its Android smartphones must be banned from importation into the U.S., and at the same time cut a licensing deal with HTC that allows substantially similar products to enter the American market.

Danger for Apple

Knowing what HTC has already negotiated with Apple, of course, is a major advantage to Samsung if and when it chooses to seek a licensing agreement of its own. HTC’s royalty payment, reached at the end of negotiations, would be the new deal’s starting point, and Samsung — especially with its vastly great volumes of shipped product — could hardly fail to negotiate a better deal.

HTC had argued to the court that the agreement should not be shared — at least not with all financial data — because of the agreement’s competitive value to Samsung.

Judge Grewal, however, disagreed.

In his order, Grewal said that “the court is not persuaded by HTC’s argument.” Citing legal precedent, he added that “many third parties to this case have had their licensing agreements disclosed – without any redaction of financial terms.” In addition, Grewal further wrote that “the confidential financial terms [are] clearly relevant to the dispute between Apple and Samsung.”

Danger for Samsung

There is some danger for Samsung here as well, however.

It cannot argue in good faith that a full injunction is not necessary (because licensing worked for HTC) if it really has no intention whatsoever of actually working out some kind of licensing agreement with Apple. Which, of course, at least one company executive has gone on record saying the company has absolutely no intention of doing.

So committing itself to this course puts it on the path, at least temporarily of working out some kind of arrangement with Apple, perhaps based on the HTC model.

That path can be altered, of course, if Samsung successfully overturns the original judgement.

The saga will doubtless continue after a Thanksgiving hiatus.

photo credit: andyi via photopin cc, hat tip: Apple Insider

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Anyone who thought a sudden wave of peace, love, and joy was going to erupt in the mobile marketplace just in time for Christmas — keep dreaming.

Unlike HTC, Samsung is not planning to pay Apple any patent royalties on its Android smartphone sales, according to the Korean company’s head of mobile. Rather, the fight will continue.

Just this past weekend Apple and HTC buried the hatchet, ceasing all lawsuits and cross-licensing each other’s patents. That settlement is believed to be worth between $6 to $8 per Android phone for Apple, and speculation was — yes, my speculation, too — that Samsung might be next.

But today, Samsung has closed that door, according to the AFP. Executive J.K. Shin, who leads the Korean company’s mobile division, was asked if Samsung would seek a similar arrangement.

“We have no such intention,” he replied.

Whether this is simply negotiation or the dug-in heels of a bitter competition between the two mobile giants is impossible to say right now. Samsung, of course, may be liable for up to $1.5 billion in a legal settlement that is still entangled with challenges and reviews — and potential increases. Both companies have had some legal wins and losses, and the two companies have more than 50 ongoing or filed lawsuits around the globe.

Meanwhile, Samsung is killing it in the marketplace, shipping 57 million smartphones last quarter and expecting as much or more this coming quarter, according to Shin.

All of which means that although Apple may be getting $160 million to $200 million a year in royalties from HTC, the company’s accountants should not yet start anticipating another $1.5 billion from Samsung.

And, that we can expect to see more Apple-Samsung courtroom battles.

photo credit: Dunechaser via photopin cc

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Samsung has shipped more than 30 million units of its flagship Galaxy S III smartphone in five months, the company giant announced today in a somewhat misleading blog post.

The electronics giant claims it “surpassed 30 million global sales,” but it later clarified that these were “channel sales” (aka shipments) rather than direct sales to customers.

The Galaxy S III went on sale in June, and we’re fans of the device. In September, Samsung said that it had sold 20 million Galaxy S III smartphones to retailers. At that rate, it shipped a head-spinning 10 million phones during the past two months, even with heavy competition from Apple’s iPhone 5 and other powerful Android smartphones.

“The Galaxy S III continues to be a runaway favorite with customers around the world,” JK Shin, the president of Samsung’s mobile division, said in a statement. “Meeting this sales milestone in five months sets another record for Samsung, and we are extremely proud and yet motivated to continue to provide our customers with products that they love.”

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Samsung shipped 56.9 million of the 162 million smartphones sold globally in the third quarter of 2012, according to the latest research from Strategy Analytics. That adds up to a massive 35 percent global share in a market that is also growing at 35 percent annually.

“This was the largest number of units ever shipped by a smartphone vendor in a single quarter,” Neil Mawston, Strategy Analytics’ executive director, said in a statement.

In other words, Samsung is putting the pedal to the not-so-metaphorical metal.

Legal issues, billion-dollar lawsuits, ITC judgements — none of it seems to be interfering with Samsung’s focus, which is winning with the customer. While Samsung shipped 56.9 million units, Apple — which just reported good but not great financial results in its recent quarter — shipped 26.9 million iPhones.

Apple and Samsung appear to be almost the only companies that matter in mobile. Maybe Robert Scoble was right when he said Apple’s billion-dollar judgement was actually a win for Samsung.

“Samsung and Apple combined now account for over half of all smartphones shipped worldwide, up from around one-third a year ago,” said Neil Shah, an analyst at Strategy Analytics. “Volumes have polarized around those two brands.”

The once-mighty Nokia has dipped to single digits, winning just four percent of the smartphone market by moving 6.3 million units. That’s less than half of the 16.8 million it shipped in the equivalent quarter last year.

“Nokia has now slipped outside the top three global smartphone rankings for the first time in history,” added Shaw.

photo credit: vernieman via photopin cc

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Like the look of Samsung’s Galaxy S III, but find its huge 4.8-inch screen a bit much? You’ll soon have a smaller option.

Samsung mobile head JK Shin confirmed earlier this morning that the company is working on a 4-inch Galaxy S III mini, according to Korean news sites. Even better, Samsung will unveil the smaller phone tomorrow (October 11) in Germany.

Shin said there’s plenty of demand for 4-inch smartphones in Europe, and he doesn’t view the Galaxy S III mini as an entry level device, as translated by the Verge. Flagship Android phones these days don’t dare offer screens below 4.5-inches, but with the success of Apple’s 4-inch iPhone 5, it may be worth it for Android manufacturers to refocus on smaller phones.

By announcing the Galaxy S III mini tomorrow, Samsung will also steal a bit of “mini” limelight from Apple, which is expected to announce the iPad Mini in the next few weeks.

You won’t have to wait until tomorrow to get the full skinny on the Galaxy S III mini: German tech site Mobile Geeks has gotten its hands on the first image of the new phone (above), as well as a full rundown of specifications. In addition to the 4-inch screen, the Galaxy S III mini will sport a 1 gigahertz dual-core processor, 1 gigabyte of RAM, 16GB of storage, and will run Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

As you can see, the smaller phone looks very similar to its larger sibling, so you can expect a similar plastic build and removable rear battery case. It’d be a nice surprise if Samsung stepped up its manufacturing process, but I wouldn’t count on that since it’s likely trying to offer this phone at low cost.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

If you’re a Samsung Galaxy S III owner in Poland, you’ll be among the first to receive the official update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

For everyone else in the world, Samsung’s announcement today that it is rolling out the Jelly Bean update to its flagship phone is the beginning of a long wait. It’s still up to carriers to release the Jelly Bean update, which means many Galaxy S III owners outside of Poland will likely be waiting several weeks for the update (and perhaps even months).

Jelly Bean is the latest version of Google’s mobile OS, and it includes Google Now, a bold Siri-like voice search feature that can also learn your habits, as well as a number of design improvements. Google named the design initiative behind Jelly Bean “Project Butter,” because it makes just about everything you do on Android seem buttery smooth.

In addition to the improvements in Jelly Bean, Samsung naturally added some features of its own: Now you can change the size of the Pop Up Play video window (a useful feature that lets you watch video on top of any app), and a new Easy Mode for arranging widgets on the home screen.

If you’ve been holding out on getting a new Android phone, the Galaxy S III is still one of your best options. And once it gets the Jelly Bean update, it’ll be an even more tempting upgrade.

Samsung also announced a list of 10 phones that’ll be receiving the Jelly Bean update, including the Galaxy S II, Galaxy Note, and Galaxy Beam. Samsung’s four most recent tablets will also get the update, including the Galaxy Note 10.1 and the latest 7-inch and 10-inch Galaxy Tab models.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Planning to wait in line for Apple’s iPhone 5 during the next few days? Samsung thinks you’re a chump!

Samsung’s new 90-second ad for the Galaxy S III targets the many Apple fans who can’t wait to get their hands on Apple’s latest creation by insisting that “the next big thing is already here.”

In the ad, iPhone 5 buyers talk about “finally getting everything we didn’t get last year.” The potential buyers also talk enthusiastically about the headphone jack being on the bottom and how Apple makes the “best adapters,” referencing the new Lightning port that needs an adapter to connect to older accessories.

Watch the ad above and let us know in the comments below if you think it’s an effective marketing tool.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Samsung’s monthly habit of gloating about its device sales continues today with the Galaxy S III.

Samsung says that it’s sold 20 million Galaxy S III smartphones to retailers since May. Broken down by region, those numbers look like this: 6 million units in Europe, 4.5 million in Asia, and 4 million in North America. (Samsung moved 2.5 million units in South Korea alone, in case you were wondering.)

To which we reply: We get it, Samsung.

Samsung released similar sales figures in July, announcing that it had moved 10 million Galaxy S III’s in two months. The announcement followed the June news that the company had sold 50 million Galaxy S devices. If there’s a pattern here, it’s this: Samsung’s devices sell well. And Samsung has to let everyone know about it.

While the sales numbers announcement probably isn’t all that interesting by itself, it is a big deal for Samsung. With the next iPhone drawing ever closer, Samsung needs proof that the Galaxy S III has staying power. Judging by the device’s sales numbers, Samsung probably doesn’t have much to worry about.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Samsung is aiming to double-down on its Austin, Texas chip making plant: The company announced today that it would invest around $4 billion in the plant to boost the production of mobile processors.

The investment in Samsung Austin Semiconductor will be the single largest injection of foreign funds ever into Texas, according to MarketWatch. Samsung has now spent over $13 billion on the Austin plant since it launched in 1996.

It makes sense for Samsung to pump up its chip production since it needs to keep a steady supply of chips for its Galaxy S III line, as well as its many other models. Samsung toppled Nokia back in April as the world’s biggest mobile phone maker — partially due to the strong sales of its low-end devices and Galaxy line, and partially due to Nokia’s market share free fall. If Samsung is to continue growing, it’ll need the chip capacity to power future phones.

Samsung will be replacing equipment meant for making memory chips with newer hardware for building mobile chips, reports the Statesman. The company will hire around 2,000 temporary workers to complete the equipment upgrade, and it says there won’t be any layoffs at the Austin plant.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Samsung’s strong sales of premium smartphones including the latest Galaxy S III boosted the record profits for the second quarter of 2012. But the competition over both high- and low-end smartphones will challenge its position in the coming quarters, analysts say.

The world’s largest mobile phone and TV maker’s operating profit shot up 79 percent to 6.7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in the April-to-June quarter, from 3.8 trillion won a year ago. Samsung gave us a taste of its record profits earlier this month, but now we have further details with its full Q2 earnings report. Net income jumped 48 percent to 5.2 trillion won and revenues rose 21 percent to 47.6 trillion won.

Despite the weak demand for panels used in PCs and laptops, handset earnings jumped by 75 percent from a year-earlier period, thanks to stellar sales of its new flagship Galaxy S III and the 5-inch smartphone Galaxy Note, Samsung said during a conference call Friday.

Nearly 62 percent of the profits came from mobile business according to Lee Sun Tae, an analyst with NH Investment & Securities. Samsung is estimated to have shipped more than 49 million smartphones in the quarter, including 7 million Galaxy S III units (which is expected to reach 20 million in the next quarter).

The mobile business market is expected to grow around 10 percent in the third quarter and Samsung shipment will match the market trend, the company said.

“The third quarter will be comfortable for Samsung, the only risk factor is what Apple would introduce with its new iPhone in September like a revolutionary UI… nonetheless it won’t be reflected in the third quarter,” said Sungin Kim, senior analyst with Kiwoom Securities.

Competition over low-end smartphones will become intense, too, with the emerging brands such as China’s Huawei Technologies. Kim lowered the forecast of total smartphone shipments to 55 million for the third quarter due to this factor.

Panels and semiconductors for mobile devices will continue to do well, especially after the recent acquisition of CSR’s mobile business and NanoRadio, the company said.

Separate from its own smartphone design, Samsung is a key component supplier of display screens, chips and processors for Apple’s iPhone and iPad. Samsung and Apple have been battling over patents for more than a year. A court in California recently ordered preliminary injunctions against the Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus smartphone and Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet sales in the U.S.

The next San Jose court trial between Apple and Samsung is scheduled for next Monday. So far, we know Apple is going to try and prove Samsung willingly copied its designs, while Samsung will attempt to show that Apple was actually similarly inspired by Sony’s products.

Photo: Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Samsung is riding high on the Galaxy S III after selling 10 million phones in under two months, but as attractive as its new smartphone is, it still can’t compete against Apple when it comes to consumer demand.

According to the latest survey from ChangeWave Research, 14 percent of consumers said they were “very likely” to purchase an iPhone 5, while 17 percent were “somewhat likely.” In comparison, only 2 percent of those surveyed said they were very likely to get a Galaxy S III, and 7 percent said they were somewhat likely.

Apple’s next iPhone is expected to land sometime in the fall (likely in October like the iPhone 4S), so at least Samsung has a good lure for consumers who need a new smartphone right away. 19 percent of consumers said they were planning to buy a Samsung smartphone over the next three months, according to the ChangeWave survey.

The big takeaway is that demand for the iPhone 5 has reached far beyond demand for the iPhone 4S. ChangeWave’s numbers from last year showed that only 10 percent of consumers were very likely to get the 4S and 11.5 percent were somewhat likely. Given that the iPhone 4S is the most successful smartphone ever, with 4 million units sold in just its first weekend, you can expect the iPhone 5 to see even crazier numbers upon its release.

In other iPhone 5 news, it looks like all of those past rumors about a smaller dock connector are likely true. Two sources tell Reuters that the next iPhone will sport a smaller 19-pin connector, which should be considerably smaller than the wide 30-pin port that has been standard on the iPhone and iPods over the past decade. The new dock connector should allow Apple to make the iPhone thinner and to cram in more hardware.

Not surprisingly, the new dock connector will likely spur on a new wave of iPhone accessories. But I suspect Apple will offer some sort of of adapter to let the iPhone 5 work with older accessories.

Based on current rumors, Apple’s iPhone 5 is expected to feature a longer, 3.95-inch screen and a quad-core A6 processor. Various case leaks online have pointed to the longer screen as well as the smaller dock connector.

Updated: iMore, which was one of the first sites to report on news of the iPhone 5′s smaller dock connector, reports that Apple will indeed have an adapter available to let the new iPhone use older accessories.

iPhone 5 mockup via Niilo Autio

While the smartphone sales battle between Samsung and Apple has been a close one, Samsung may finally have gotten the upper hand.

That’s the story according to a recent Reuters poll, which asked over three dozen analysts which company they thought came out on top during the second quarter.

For most of them, the answer was Samsung, which is estimated to have moved 50 million phones in the past three months. Apple, in comparison, is projected to have moved just 30.2 million.

Much of Samsung’s success has been fueled by sales of its latest and greatest smartphone, the Galaxy S III, which it expected to sell 10 million of in July alone.

But what’s most surprising about Samsung’s 50 million number is that, only last month, the company announced an identical total for worldwide sales for its entire Galaxy S line. So either analysts are far too bullish, or Samsung has sold as many phones in the past three months as it has Galaxy S phones over the past two years.

Apple, on the other hand, is seen as being a bit too new-iPhone-dependent for its own good, a reliance that’s preventing its smartphone sales from reaching Samsung’s lofty heights. (We’ve speculated previously that a pre-paid iPhone would be smart move on Apple’s part.)

Samsung’s projected success comes as many investors brace for weak earnings from technology companies this quarter. So while the tech sector may be bracing for a slump, it’s doesn’t seem as if Samsung will contribute to it.

Photo: Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat