Minggu, 26 Januari 2014

Samsung and Google sitting in a tree

from Greg
Samsung and Google have been in legal battle for years over patents. They announced today a 10 year deal to share patents. This is good news for both companies but particularly Samsung. This ensures a decade of innovation in the Galaxy phone line and Motorola products.

Check out two great cell phone deal HERE

from Samsung
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. and Google Inc. today furthered their long-term cooperative partnership with a global patent cross-license agreement covering a broad range of technologies and business areas. The mutually beneficial agreement covers the two companies’ existing patents as well as those filed over the next 10 years.

“We’re pleased to enter into a cross-license with our partner Samsung,” said Allen Lo, Deputy General Counsel for Patents at Google. “By working together on agreements like this, companies can reduce the potential for litigation and focus instead on innovation.”

With this agreement, Samsung and Google gain access to each other’s industry-leading patent portfolios, paving the way for deeper collaboration on research and development of current and future products and technologies.

“This agreement with Google is highly significant for the technology industry,” said Dr. Seungho Ahn, the Head of Samsung’s Intellectual Property Center. “Samsung and Google are showing the rest of the industry that there is more to gain from cooperating than engaging in unnecessary patent disputes.”

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Kamis, 16 Januari 2014

Apple beats Samsung in Mobile

Earlier this week I posted about the amazing deal Best Buy had on the the Samsung S4 and S3. The S4 rated higher than the iPhone 5S on the current CNET rankings. It is superior in every physical way. However they are on sale 75% off while iPhone remains at the same price as launched.

Read the post HERE

Now I think I know why. The NPD Group announced that research showed iPhone ownership increased from 35 percent in Q4 2012 to 42 percent in Q4 2013. Likewise, Samsung Android phones increased from 22 percent of smartphones owned in Q4 2012 to 26 percent in Q4 2013. In contrast, fewer smartphone owners reported having an HTC, Motorola, or Blackberry device in Q4 2013.

Source: The NPD Group/Connected Intelligence Connected Home Report

The NPD's first retail tracking service was for toys in 1984 and has launched services in more than a dozen industries since then. Today, they track businesses representing over $1 trillion in sales in the Americas and more across Europe and Asia-Pac.

Read the full story HERE
As more US consumers migrate to smartphones, they are increasingly opting for iPhones and Samsung Android phones. According to the Connected Intelligence Connected Home Report from The NPD Group, over the past year, smartphone penetration increased from 52 percent in Q4 2012 to six-in-ten cell phone users in Q4 2013.

Apple and Samsung were the winners as more consumers migrated to their flagship devices. iPhone ownership increased from 35 percent in Q4 2012 to 42 percent in Q4 2013. Likewise, Samsung Android phones increased from 22 percent of smartphones owned in Q4 2012 to 26 percent in Q4 2013. In contrast, fewer smartphone owners reported having an HTC, Motorola, or Blackberry device in Q4 2013.

As smartphone penetration increased over the past year, so has consumers’ data usage, which went from 5.5 GB per month in Q4 2012 to 6.6 GB per month in Q4 2013. While this increase in data usage came from a variety of activities, a key driver has been the adoption of streaming music services such as Pandora and iHeart Radio.

According to the Connected Intelligence Smartphone Usage Report, the percent of smartphone owners that use an app to stream music increased from 41 percent in Q4 2012 to 52 percent in Q4 2013.

The market for streaming music services is getting more competitive. While Pandora remains the most commonly used music app in Q4 2013, it is followed by iHeart Radio, Spotify, TuneIn Radio, and Slacker Radio, all of which experienced an increase in incidence of usage over the past year.

Top 5 Music Apps Used on Smart Phones
(Q4 2013)
1 Pandora
2 iHeart Radio
3 Spotify
4 TuneIn Radio
5 Slacker Radio
Source: The NPD Group/Connected Intelligence, Smartphone Usage Report

“Considering the increase in prominence of smartphone music apps, it’s not surprising that hardware manufacturers such as Beats are leveraging partnerships with carriers, like AT&T to break into the streaming music market,” said John Buffone, Executive Director, Industry Analyst, Connected Intelligence. “This allows AT&T to offer subscribers more of what they want in the way of innovative music apps and provides Beats a partner capable of driving trial in a market where consumers already have an affinity for the music services they use.”

Smartphone Usage Report
Data is sourced from an on-device meter "SmartMeter" leveraging a three month rolling panel that provides the equivalent base of 4,500 smartphone users. The panel is weighted and representative of the Android and iPhone U.S. smartphone base. The data was collected between September and November 2013 and compared to trends from the same period in 2012.

Connected Home Report
More than 5,000 US consumers, age 18 and older were surveyed in the fourth quarter of 2013 for the Connected Home study; trended results are compared to the Q4 2012 survey.

About Connected Intelligence
Connected Intelligence provides competitive intelligence and insight on the rapidly evolving consumer’s connected environment. The service focuses on the three core components of the connected market: the device, the broadband access that provides the connectivity and the content that drives consumer behavior. These three pillars of the connected ecosystem are analyzed through a comprehensive review of what is available, adopted, and consumed by the customer, as well as reviewing how the market will evolve over time and what the various vendors can do to best position themselves in this evolving market.

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Jumat, 10 Januari 2014

T Mobile Wants Biz

From Greg
Business Insider ran a story about the great deals T Mobile is offering to get new customers. If you switch to T-Mobile from Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint, T-Mobile will now pay the early termination fee up to $350 per line.

T-Mobile's plans are cheaper. You can pay $65 per month for 2.5 GB of data and unlimited calling/texting. Unlike Verizon, T-Mobile doesn't charge you extra if you go over your data allotment. Instead, it slows your data down a bit until the next billing cycle starts. Get a new iPhone 5S, pay $25 per month.

Read the full story at Business Insider HERE

by Steve Kovach

Next to cable providers and airlines, wireless carriers are probably the most hated service that we pretty much have no choice but to pay for.

About a year and a half ago, I switched to Verizon from AT&T because I had a lot of problems making calls that didn't drop. (Yes, I still talk on the phone a lot. My family lives thousands of miles away in Texas and it's still the best way for me to keep up with them.)

I've been mostly happy with Verizon. The data speeds are fast. I don't think I've ever had a dropped call. And I'm covered just about anywhere I travel.

But boy is it expensive. I pay $110 per month for 2 GB of data and unlimited calling/texting.

Yesterday, T-Mobile made an offer I can't refuse.

If you switch to T-Mobile from Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint, T-Mobile will now pay the early termination fee (ETF) carriers charge you to cancel your contract, up to $350 per line. You're also required to trade in your old smartphone, which T-Mobile will pay you for so you can buy a new one. That means there's no risk for me to abandon my contract from Verizon. T-Mobile will foot the bill.

And T-Mobile's plans are cheaper. I can pay $65 per month for 2.5 GB of data and unlimited calling/texting. Unlike Verizon, T-Mobile doesn't charge you extra if you go over your data allotment. Instead, it slows your data down a bit until the next billing cycle starts. Assuming I get a new iPhone 5S, I'll also be paying $25 per month for my phone. (T-Mobile sells you an iPhone 5S for $0 down plus $25 per month for 24 months. You also have the option to pay off the phone in full right away if you'd like.)

So if I switch now, I'll only be paying $90 per month, $20 less than I do now. Plus I'll be getting 500 MB more data per month, and I won't have to worry about getting slapped with the occasional $10 fee Verizon sometimes charges me if I happen to go over my data plan. I'd rather have slightly slower data for a few days than pay that fee.

Then there's the question of devices. I have an iPhone 5 now, and I've been holding out for the iPhone 6 (or whatever Apple ends up calling it) that should launch this fall. If I switch to an iPhone 5S now, then I'd still theoretically be paying it off in the fall and won't be able to get the new model.

But T-Mobile has a fix for that. It lets you pay off your phone whenever you want and switch to a new device on the payment plan. So when the next iPhone comes out, I'll pay off my 5S, sell it on Craigslist (iPhones hold their value really well), and get the new iPhone on T-Mobile's monthly payment plan. Not bad. And I'm still saving money in the long run.

My biggest concern is coverage. T-Mobile's 4G LTE network (the fastest wireless standard available today) is still tiny compared to what AT&T and Verizon can offer. Luckily, from what I understand, T-Mobile's LTE is pretty good in New York where I live. In fact, my former colleague Dan Frommer says it's better and more reliable than Verizon. That's pretty appealing.

My other concern has nothing to do with T-Mobile. I imagine when I tell Verizon I want to cancel my contract they won't make it easy on me. And I'm pretty sure it's going to take some time to get my ETF refund from T-Mobile. These kinds of things can't happen overnight.

But in the long run, I'm going to be saving money every month on my wireless bill. And that's worth a little bit of hassle.