In this weekly feature we want to give our readers the opportunity to provide some point-and-click style input on some of the questions we have been pondering. Got a great poll idea? Drop us a note!
In a recent interview, Nokia execs have shown some of the first public signs of tension towards Microsoft's commitment to Windows Phone 8. It could easily be argued that Nokia is a larger driving force behind the platform than anyone else at this point. A prime example is they did what Microsoft, and Google, have yet to do: Build a YouTube app for WP8.
The world is full of what-ifs, but one can't help but wonder: What if Nokia had chosen Android? It's an easy statement to say they would have been better off choosing a much more mature, established platform 2 years ago, but what if they did it now? Nokia would still realistically have two competitors in HTC and Samsung. In those two, they have a stronger software team than HTC, and a much better hardware division than Samsung. Could Nokia still compete in the Android landscape?
Let us know your opinion on a Nokia Android phone in this weeks poll!
The other members of our editorial group sometimes find me hard to understand. Honestly, I don't blame them. I'm the guy on the team who is constantly trying devices. In the last two months, I have used the BlackBerry Z10, HTC 8X, and Droid DNA. Changing smartphones is one thing, but another move has really turned some of their heads. I moved my primary email from Gmail to an Outlook.com account.
This move may be weird for some of my peers, but I find Outlook a better solution for me. I had grown uneasy with some of the decisions that Google had made with Gmail. As a user of multiple mobile platforms, the decision to drop Exchange ActiveSync for the email service hurts my end experience when not using Android. I don't like feeling like a company is leveraging me with services to lean a certain way on my device decisions. I know this is their prerogative as a business, but it doesn't mean I have to like it.
I also don't care for the new changes Google has made in the UI department of Gmail. I don't want my emails separated into tabs that I didn't designate. I know this can be turned off in settings, but one has to wonder how long it will take for this to be the default interface. In contrast, Outlook offers a minimalistic, fast approach to their web interface that I find very appealing.
Now, my recent return to Android brought a new experiment for me. How would using Android be without Gmail? Surprisingly well. I could not be happier with the experience of Outlook.com via the default email app. I can easily access both my Outlook, and other accounts, under one unified email application.
Many of you are probably wondering why I don't just download the Outlook.com app from the Play Store. As funny as it sounds in this whole scenario, it just feels too foreign on Android. The Android email account feels much smoother, and the UI flows much better, than the Outlook app from Microsoft. With a few minutes of manual setup via the Outlook webpage , it also offers full ActiveSync of all my emails, contacts, and calendars.
Overall, I have found no disadvantages to using Outlook.com in replacement of Gmail on Android. The experience has been rather painless, and I am using the email service that I currently prefer. If you haven't checked out Outlook.com since the demise of Hotmail, I would urge you to at least give it a peek. The new UI is a far cry from the clunkiness that Microsoft used to claim. You may think I'm crazy...but it wouldn't be the first time someone has said that about me.
Verizon has never been a carrier who wants to be upstaged. With both T-Mobile and AT&T announcing new early upgrades, with payment options, today is not to be the exception. Verizon officially revealed their new Edge upgrade and device payment options this afternoon.
The new contract add-on options offer similarities to both the Jump plan from T-Mobile, and the Next plan form AT&T:
Verizon Edge is a flexible equipment payment plan that spreads the retail price of a phone over 24 months.
Upgrade to a new phone after six months if 50 percent of the retail cost of your current device has been paid.
There is no upgrade fee for Verizon Edge customers.
Available to customers on Share Everything plans starting August 25th.
More information, as always, can be found on Verizon's website. You can also check out the full press release below:
July 18, 2013
Verizon Edge Device Payment and Early Upgrade Plan
Technology changes fast. You purchase a phone or tablet and within a few short months, something new hits the shelves.
If you want to stay on top of the latest technology,
the new Verizon Edge device payment plan offers an affordable way to
upgrade to the newest device and satisfy your love of technology.
Verizon Edge is a flexible equipment payment plan that spreads the
retail price of a phone over 24 months. You can also upgrade to a new
phone after six months if 50 percent of the retail cost has been paid.
Here’s how it works: Choose the phone you want and
sign up for a month-to-month service plan, it’s as easy as that. The
full retail price of the phone will be divided over 24 months and you’ll
pay the first month at the time of purchase. If you want to upgrade
after 6 months, just pay off 50% of the full retail price of the phone
and you can choose a new phone and start all over again.
There are no long-term service contracts, finance
charges or upgrade fees with Verizon Edge. Every six months, as long as
50 percent of the cost of the phone has been paid, you can upgrade to
the newest basic or smartphone available.
Verizon Edge will be available to customers on Share Everything plans starting August 25th.
Many of us on the interwebs have been asking OEMs to produce a smaller handset lineup than the 4.5 inch-plus variety that has been the norm as of late. Samsung has address this need in the Galaxy S4 brand with the SG4 mini, and now HTC has followed suit with offering the new, HTC One mini. HTC announced the new mini-me One at a press event in the wee hours of this morning, and while the 4.3" phone is intended to hit "two price points below" the full-size One, the specs are pretty respectable.
4.3" 720p S-LCD3 screen
1.4GHz dual-core Snapdragon 400 processor
1GB of RAM
Android 4.2.2, with Sense 5
4MP Ultrapixel rear camera; 1.6MP front camera
ImageChip2
1,800mAh battery
Beats Audio with BoomSound
LTE
As far as the design of the One mini goes, it looks almost identical to its big brother. However, some concessions were made in materials. While the back of the device is aluminum, the sides of the One mini are polycarbonate. Also, the Ultrapixel camera is present, but there is no dedicated optical image stabilization. Lastly, NFC was left on the cutting room floor as well on this model.
Overall, the HTC One mini seems to be a decent, smaller handset some of us have been craving. HTC is pushing the phrase "no concessions" with the device, but I will reserve judgement until I have time to play with the unit. Most of the decisions to downsize I don't have an issue with, but I feel that Android is almost to the point where 1GB of RAM is pushing it to have fluid performance. The One mini is set to release in select countries in August, and globally in September.
With the Moto X just around the corner, the recent Google Play editions now seem to have some much stiffer competition. HTC and Samsung both filled a pretty big void of a flagship phone running bare, stock Android. We had not seen a decent device hit this category in the market since the Nexus 4 launch, back in November of 2012.
The Moto X is presumed to run stock as well, or at least something close. So, if you include the Nexus 4, that brings the count of deserving hardware running pure Android up to 4 devices. However, in this weeks poll, I want to know which you see yourself having the most interest in buying? Is the HTC One variant what you have been asking the smartphone gods for? Or are you waiting to see what Google and Motorola have in store with the X? Sound off in this week's Tuesdays at the Polls!
AT&T teased us with the mystery of "What's Next" last week and today is the day we find out just what is "NEXT." AT&T has announced AT&T NEXT today where new and existing customers can upgrade to the latest and greatest AT&T has to offer every 12 months. A few perks are
- No down payment.
- No activation fee.
- No upgrade fee.
- No financing fee
- A new device every year
“With AT&T Next, customers can get the newest smartphone or tablet every year with no down payment. That’s hard to beat, and it’s an incredible value for customers who want the latest and greatest every year,” said Ralph de la Vega, president and chief executive officer of AT&T Mobility."
What this means is that when you upgrade to a new device, you can choose to make monthly payments for the device for a 20 month agreement with 0% APR, but after 12 months, you can trade in the device for the newest one on the block with no fees or penalties. "For example, a customer purchasing a Samsung Galaxy S4 would have no down payment, and pay $32 per month, in addition to the monthly wireless service plan they choose, with the option to trade in their device and upgrade after 12 payments, or to keep using the device, and pay off the installment plan in full after 20 months. There’s no penalty for paying off the installment plan early." AT&T Next is available on July 26th for new and existing customers and can be used for smartphones or tablets. Here is the full press release below-
AT&T CUSTOMERS CAN GET A NEW SMARTPHONE
OR TABLET EVERY YEAR WITH NO DOWN PAYMENT
WITH “AT&T NEXT”
No Down Payment, No Upgrade or Activation Fees,
and All On The Nation’s Fastest 4G LTE Network
AT&T 4G LTE Now Covers More than 225 Million People
DALLAS, JULY 16, 2013—Today, AT&T* introduces what’s next in wireless. Beginning nationwide on July 26, consumers can get a new AT&T smartphone or tablet every year with no down payment, no activation fee, no upgrade fee and no financing fees.**
With AT&T Next, customers purchase a smartphone or tablet with no down payment and agree to pay monthly installments for the device. After 12 payments, they can trade it in and upgrade to a brand new device — again with no down payment — or they can keep using their device and have no more payments after 20 months. AT&T Next is available for new AT&T customers or existing customers who are upgrade eligible.
“With AT&T Next, customers can get the newest smartphone or tablet every year with no down payment. That’s hard to beat, and it’s an incredible value for customers who want the latest and greatest every year,” said Ralph de la Vega, president and chief executive officer of AT&T Mobility.
AT&T’s 4G LTE network now covers more than 225 million people nationwide and 328 markets. AT&T’s 4G LTE deployment is expected to cover 300 million people by year-end 2014, with nearly 90 percent of the build completed by the end of this year.
The great performance of AT&T’s network continues to be validated by independent third-party testing. AT&T 4G LTE service was recognized as having faster average download and upload speeds than any of our competitors in PCWorld/TechHive’s most recent 20-market speed tests — the second consecutive year that AT&T has ranked first overall. PCWorld/TechHive also ranked AT&T’s as the fastest combination of 3G and 4G services in the 20 cities it tested.*** And AT&T was named America’s fastest 4G LTE network in PC Magazine’s 2013 Fastest Mobile Networks 30-market study — and also swept the top rankings in all six U.S. regions from coast to coast: Northeast, Southeast, North-Central, South-Central, Northwest and Southwest.****
AT&T Next is available for any current smartphone or tablet in AT&T’s industry-leading selection of devices. The interest-free monthly device installments range from $15 to $50, depending on the device selected. For example, a customer purchasing a Samsung Galaxy® S 4 would have no down payment and pay $32 per month, in addition to the monthly wireless service plan they choose, with the option to trade in their device and upgrade after 12 payments or to keep using the device and pay off the installment plan in full after 20 months. There’s no penalty for paying off the installment plan early.
AT&T offers a broad choice of device purchasing options. In addition to AT&T Next, customers continue to have their choice of all current options, including getting a discounted device with a two-year service commitment; paying full retail price for a device with no-commitment; getting a partial discount for an early upgrade after six months with a two-year service commitment; or bringing their own compatible device.
*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.
**Requires 20-month 0% APR installment agreement & qualifying credit. Wireless service req. (voice & data for smartphones/data for tablets). If you cancel wireless service, remaining balance on device becomes due. Sales tax due at sale. Qualifying devices only. Upgrade after 1 yr.: Req. min. 12 installment payments, acct. in good standing, plus trade-in of current device in good & functional condition & purchase of new device/wireless agreement & service plan. After upgrade remaining unbilled installment payments are waived. AT&T Next available only at AT&T owned retail stores & att.com. If device is returned, restocking fee up to $35 for smartphones or 10% of tablet sales price may apply. Terms subject to change.
*** PCWorld/TechHive, May 23, 2013, “AT&T clocks best overall speeds with 3G/4G combo”
You can find out more here. Are you an existing AT&T customer and love this? Will this make you switch to AT&T? Let us know in the comments below what you think of "What's Next"!
The Moto X has been one of the most rumored devices over the last 6 months. Since Google acquired Motorola back in May of last year, many have wondered when we would see the first smartphone from the new partnership. And then we waited. It seemed as if we would never see that day, but now the Moto X is coming...soon.
Love at First Sight
The rumor mill surrounding this phone started back in March. Vietnemese blog site, Tinhte, leaked a hands on video and photos of the device. Honestly, these images still give us the biggest peek into what this phone may have in store to date. The site also gave us some insight into the internals of the Moto X. Supposedly, it will feature a 720p display, Qualcomm SnapDragon S4 processor, 2GB of RAM, and 2,000mAh internal battery. Screen size is up for debate, but looks to be between 4.3 and 4.5 inches.
Made in the US and Knows Your Moves
Next, we had some tech talk from Motorola's top brass at tech conference, AllThingsD, in May. CEO, Dennis Woodside, stated that the Moto X is real, and it will be assembled in the United States. A large manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas will assemble the new smartphone, and touts the way the Moto X will have multiple sensors to help determine how to get through your day. I'm sure that means the standard array of gyroscopes, GPS, Bluetooth, etc., but Woodside hinted that the Moto X may have a dedicated chip to regulate battery usage.
A Google Company
Up until the Moto X sightings, Google had taken somewhat of a hands-off approach to the takeover of Motorola. However, with the launch of the X drawing close, Google has imprinted the OEM, right down to their new logo, and ad campaigns. It has also been made quite clear that the Moto X will be made available on all the major US carriers, and will not carry the Droid branding on Verizon. Eric Schmidt was recently photographed carrying a white unit at the annual Sun Valley Conference. Google is making no qualms that the X is a device that is very much born with the help of their brain-trust. They are also lending their pocket book with a $500M budget for marketing of the X.
Make it Your Own
Nokia has made a small impression with colorful phones on the Lumia line for awhile. I guess Google was taking notes. The Moto X will be offered in several custom-colored back covers, and will even have the option of personal engraving on the phone. Users will have the ability to design their phone to their liking and then have the Moto X dropped shipped directly to their homes. This PC-like approach could have quite of an effect, if successful, on the smartphone market.
Always Listening to Your Voice
Android has always had a very good voice control feature baked into the OS. With recent additions, like Google Now, Android's voice features have become some of the best in the business. It looks like the Moto X is going to step the game up a bit with always on voice commands. In the leaked video below, Canadian carrier, Rogers, takes you through waking the X simply by giving the command "OK Google Now," and then takes appropriate action similar to what we have seen with Google Glass.
What Does it Mean
The Moto X is a big move for Google, and the overall Android landscape. Samsung has all but taken control of the market share for Google's mobile OS. The company can't exactly be thrilled that one OEM has amassed such a stronghold over the Android mindshare. The acquisition of Motorola has given Google the opportunity to legitimately have an Android hardware division. The Moto X is going to have the "Google Vision" of what Android should be written all over it.
I also can't help but wonder what the success of the Moto X will hold for the Nexus program. If it sells a considerable amounts of units, Google could scrap the idea of having to partner with other OEMs to produce the true Google Experience they want. They could simply fire up the new assembly line in Fort Worth and pump out anything to their liking. However, in the same breath, Google has to be careful in not scaring away their struggling Android partners, such as HTC and LG.
The Moto X is a highly anticipated smartphone this year, and a bold venture for Google, Android, and Motorola. Google has hopes to inject new life into the Motorola brand, and stock Android. I can't wait to see it in person and watch this whole scenario play out.
I have had Google Glass for two weeks now, and if I had one word to describe it, I would have to say, Awesome! Especially after the XE7 software update with its new features and enhancements.
First, lets start with the device itself. Google gives you two attachments: a clear attachment and a Maui Jim sunglass attachment. During the heatwave over the July 4th weekend I have been using the sunglass attachment and it works very well, and looks stylish. The device, unfortunately, is not balanced as all the computing parts are on the right side. (For a complete breakdown check out this great post over at Catwig.
The device fits on your face very comfortably though, with or without, the attachments. They feel like sunglasses, or regular glasses, albeit a tad bit heavier.
After a few days, it feels normal to have Glass on. It sits on your face and feels rather unobtrusive. You don’t see the prism in your perspective and only see the screen when looking up and while it's activated. I have the "head wake up detection" set to 20 degrees, which allows me to tilt my head up to wake up glass. Sort of like a “what's up" head gesture.
You do get a lot of different looks from people while wearing glass, ranging from the inquisitive look, to the “look at this douche bag” look. I have been averaging about 5 people a day asking me about Glass, and I do about 2 demos a day. The most common response with the demos is, “Wow this is so cool!”, followed by being asked if I could take a picture of them with their smart phone while they have Glass on. Of the 5 people a day, I would say 3 out of the 5 would buy it if the price is right when it is released to the masses ($300-$500).
Now, on to daily use of Glass. A typical day for me is to put Google glass on in the morning while getting ready for work. Immediately, I am greeted by the OK Glass screen and scroll my timeline, which shows the weather forecast for home and work, meetings for the day, today’s top stories, and traffic to work; essentially my Google Now.
When I head to work, I use Navigation which puts the HUD up in my prism, along with turn by turn directions through the bone induction speaker. Once I get to work, my automatic check in kicks in which is shared with my friends on Google Plus. Glass is tethered via bluetooth to my Nexus 4 for data and other functionality (GPS, Voice, Text). I turn off Google Voice forwarding from 9 to 5 to the Nexus so I don’t get personal phone calls. I get my voicemail to text transcriptions through Glass with a notification. Important emails come to my Glass, as well as Twitter Direct Messages throughout the day allowing me to read them quickly and even reply if need be.
The great thing about Glass is that I can be sitting in my office working on a spreadsheet or report and hear notifications. By nodding my head upwards I can see my text, email, meeting reminder or Twitter DM without pulling my hands and eyes away from what I'm doing. When I am close to leaving the office, I can take a quick glance at how the traffic is on the way home. With XE7, you now have the ability to view web pages and YouTube videos with Glass. Here is a demo video from SlashgearTV:
This adds a whole new dimension to Glass allowing you to be less dependent on pulling a phone out of your pocket. You basically pan and zoom websites using your head and the touchpad, even allowing you to play videos and click on links! However, Glass runs extremely hot after a few minutes of browsing for me.
Throughout the day, I can take quick pictures/videos and post them to Twitter, Facebook, or Google Plus by sharing them privately, publicly, or direct to contacts. Taking pictures with Glass is very simple, either with the voice commands, or using the button directly on Glass. The advantage to Glass is since the camera is on you at all times you can capture moments quickly.
To post a status update to social media direct from Glass, I added the posting email address of each social network as a contact, along with a picture of the social network as the contact pic. What this allows me to do is say, for example, "Ok Glass, Send a message to, Twitter, 'Having a great time at my family reunion.'"
I love Glass right now and I just see it getting better and better with the new software updates and apps that are rolling out. I will start reviewing some of these as well as provide another update on Glass when version XE8 rolls out.
Until then, if you want to know more about Glass follow me on Twitter @wlassalle or Google Plus gplus.to/wlassalle .
We have all known BlackBerry was in trouble. However, many had hoped that the launch of BlackBerry 10 would help the company rebound. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case. After another lackluster quarter earnings, that recorded an 84 million dollar loss, BlackBerry seems as low as ever. A buyout, or merger, could be eminent for the former king of mobile.
In these weeks poll, we want to know if you feel BlackBerry will rise from the ashes of BB7? Or will they crash and burn like the newly discontinued BlackBerry PlayBook? Give us your vote in this weeks poll.
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