Snazzier Laptops Steal Netbooks' Thunder

Personal Finance News from Yahoo! Finance: "Pricier, more powerful notebook computers are sucking some of the steam from netbooks, the low-priced darlings that helped fuel sales for the PC industry in the past two years.

Many consumers—searching for more computing power than the compact, portable netbooks can deliver—are opting to pay more for laptops with bigger displays and circuitry suited for jobs like manipulating photos and video, which is beyond the capability of most netbooks.

Other buyers are being seduced by different hardware altogether—including high-end smartphones and Apple Inc.'s (NasdaqGS: AAPL, News) new iPad.

Not many people are ready to call an end to the boom in netbooks, which are machines typically priced around $300, with screens measuring 10.2 inches or less. But another category is also experiencing rapid growth: larger notebooks for a bit more money than netbooks that manufacturers are packing with additional features.

The shift is a sharp reversal of recent buying patterns, when netbooks provided some of the industry's only growth through the recession.

'I think it has taken a lot of folks by surprise,' said Brad Brooks, vice president for Windows consumer software marketing at Microsoft Corp."

Adobe 'shifting focus' from Apple

Adobe 'shifting focus' from Apple | Apple - CNET News: "In response to Apple CEO Steve Jobs' explanation on why his company refuses to let Adobe Systems' Flash Player on his company's iPhone, Adobe's chief technology officer sounded an upbeat tone and said the company was moving on without Apple.

'We feel confident that were Apple and Adobe to work together as we are with a number of other partners, we could provide a terrific experience with Flash on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch,' Adobe CTO Kevin Lynch wrote in a company blog post late Thursday. 'However, as we posted last week, given the legal terms Apple has imposed on developers, we have already decided to shift our focus away from Apple devices for both Flash Player and AIR.'

Lynch also said made a point of highlighting Adobe's work on an iPhone competitor.

'We look forward to delivering Flash Player 10.1 for Android smartphones as a public preview at Google I/O in May, and then a general release in June,' he said.

Earlier Thursday, Apple published a rare open letter from Jobs that criticized Flash for being proprietary, sapping battery power, not supporting multitouch interfaces, posing security risks, and being unstable. 'Flash is the No. 1 reason Macs crash,' Jobs said.

Flash Player, a programming foundation that's ubiquitous on personal computers, is widely used for tasks such as online games, photo editors, and video streaming, and with the upcoming version 10.1, Adobe is trying anew to bring Flash to mobile devices.

The software is designed to work on phones using RIM's BlackBerry OS, Microsoft's Windows Phone 7, Palm's WebOS, Nokia's Symbian, and Google's Android. But Adobe has been increasingly vocal about its dissatisfaction with the Apple situation, especially after Apple barred a new tool from Adobe that would let Flash developers turn their programs into native iPhone applications."

20-app showdown: iPhone vs. iPad

20-app showdown: iPhone vs. iPad | Web Crawler - CNET News: "A few weeks back we (CNET) put together some screenshots of games on the iPhone versus their iPad iterations. It was a resounding hit with the exception of our execution, which was to shoehorn the lovely, full-size comparisons into a little under 600-pixel-width screens. To make amends for this, we're giving it another go. But this time we're taking a look at some popular non-game applications, as well as bringing it to you in pixel-for-pixel goodness.

You'll find that not all of the apps on this list are necessarily better than their pocket counterparts. In fact, in a few cases they look or function a little worse. There are, however, quite a few that offer a dramatically different experience than what's available for smaller screens. Read on to see what we dug up.

Editor's note: To see the full-size version of each screen, you just need to click on it. Hitting the back button in your browser will bring you right back to the story. You can also click through these in slideshow form by hitting the link just below this text."

Jon Stewart to Steve Jobs: 'Chill, baby'

Jon Stewart to Steve Jobs: 'Chill, baby' - Apple 2.0 - Fortune Brainstorm Tech: "You know a story has turned a corner when Jon Stewart takes it on, as he did Wednesday night with the case of the lost iPhone prototype.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
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The satirical host of Comedy Central's The Daily Show devotes nearly nine minutes to the saga. He gets a few facts wrong and glosses over the possibility that crimes were committed, but by the end it's abundantly clear that he — and his audience — think Apple (AAPL) has gone too far.

“Apple, you guys were the rebels, man, the underdogs,' he says at one point. 'People believed in you. But now, are you becoming The Man? Remember back in 1984, you had those awesome ads about overthrowing Big Brother? Look in the mirror, man!”

Stewart is one of America's most influential opinion makers, who can turn his young audience — a key demographic — against a politician, a celebrity or a product with a few well-honed barbs. The targets of the kind of treatment he gave Apple and Steve Jobs Wednesday night may never quite recover. Just ask John McCain, Jim Cramer, Glenn Beck or the hosts of the now defunct CNN Crossfire."

With Palm, HP reboots mobile strategy

With Palm, HP reboots mobile strategy - CNN.com: "With its purchase of Palm, Hewlett-Packard acquired more than just a smartphone maker. It also picked up a whole new strategy for its mobile devices.

HP said Wednesday it plans to acquire Palm for $1.2 billion, or $5.70 per share, which amounts to a 23 percent premium over Palm's actual stock price at the end of the day. But for a leading technology company like HP with almost zero mobile phone presence and $13.5 billion in cash, picking up a company with a fully developed mobile operating system, a decent lineup of devices, and trove of mobile patents is a bargain.

It will also make HP a viable competitor in the growing mobile market.

Mobile phones are now a $100 billion market. There were 182 million smartphones shipped in 2009, and that number is expected to rise to 247 million units this year, according to iSuppli.

HP not getting in on that is unthinkable, particularly since practically all of its major competitors in the consumer space have some sort of mobile strategy. With Palm, HP gets the 10th largest smartphone brand as of the end of last year. Palm's hardware accounted for 1.5 percent of all smartphones, but wasn't growing, according to iSuppli.

By planning to infuse plenty of funding into its new mobile strategy with Palm, HP is expecting 'solid growth' going forward, Todd Bradley, executive vice president of HP's Personal Systems Group, said on a conference call with investors Wednesday.

It's been years since mobile phones were a priority for HP. Compaq, which was acquired by HP, was an early leader in handhelds, creating the iPaq, the first handheld running Windows CE to get much popularity."

Droid Incredible new king of smartphones

Droid Incredible new king of smartphones | freep.com | Detroit Free Press: "The bombastically named Droid Incredible clearly has a lot to live up to.

The smartphone -- debuting today on the Verizon Wireless network -- enters an increasingly crowded smartphone market with high-profile handsets from Google, Blackberry and, of course, the Apple iPhone.

Android-based phones have been making up some serious ground this year, though, and the HTC-developed Incredible now leads the pack.

At just 4.59 ounces, the Incredible feels great in your hand and features an unusual topographic backplate with red accents.

Packed into the Incredible's svelte and lightweight frame is an 8-megapixel camera, a 3.7-inch touch-screen display and a screamingly fast 1 GHz processor. (All of those features top iPhone.)

The Incredible runs on Android 2.1, the latest version of Google's smartphone operating system, and adds HTC Sense, which displays seven home screens of customizable widgets for easy access to things like Facebook, Twitter, text messages and weather."

Hewlett-Packard to buy Palm for $1.4B in cash

Hewlett-Packard to buy Palm for $1.4B in cash - U.S. business- msnbc.com: "Palm Inc. a pioneer in the smart phone business that couldn't quite make the comeback it needed, has agreed to be bought out by Hewlett-Packard Co. for about $1.4 billion in cash.

The two Silicon Valley companies announced Wednesday that the deal will see HP pay $5.70 for every Palm common share and certain preferred shares. Palm had closed trading Wednesday at $4.63 but traded as high as $18.09 in the past 52 weeks.

In after-hours trading, Palm shares jumped $1.25, or 27 percent to $5.88 — meaning some investors were willing to bet another suitor will step forward. HP shares dipped 35 cents to $52.93.
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Palm was founded in 1992 by Donna Dubinsky and Jeff Hawkins and helped originate the handheld computing market with its Palm Pilot 'personal digital assistants' in the 1990s. But after Palm reshuffled itself repeatedly — it was bought by U.S. Robotics, a modem maker that itself was bought by 3Com Corp. in 1997, and then spun off again as its own company in 2000 — other companies took control of the market.

In recent years, as handheld computers morphed into 'smart phones,' Palm struggled to keep up as consumers flocked to such devices as Apple Inc.'s iPhone and Research In Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry. In the past year, phones that use Google Inc.'s Android operating software have added new competition.

Palm got itself into position for a turnaround last June, when it released a sleek touch-screen smart phone called the Pre and fresh operating software for it that won good reviews. But consumers were slow to embrace the Pre and its newer, smaller sibling, the Pixi. In the most recent quarter, Palm sold just 408,000 phones. In its last quarter Apple sold 8.75 million iPhones."

Cell phone patent fight heats up

Cell phone patent fight heats up - Yahoo! News: "A simple news release crossed the wire Wednesday morning, with Microsoft announcing that 'Microsoft Corp. and HTC Corp. have signed a patent agreement that provides broad coverage under Microsoft’s patent portfolio for HTC’s mobile phones running the Android mobile platform.'

On any other day and any other part of the tech industry, this would be business as usual. Patent agreements and cross-license deals are announced every day, and no one raises an eyebrow.

But this deal covers the now-cutthroat world of cell phones, where Microsoft is once again trying to make a move toward relevance with the help of its just-announced Windows Phone 7 operating system, set to be released this fall.

Microsoft certainly has its work cut out for it. The iPhone has been an unstoppable juggernaut, and Google's Android operating system has made some enormous strides, by some measures even surpassing the popularity of the iPhone. And then there's the Blackberry, still keeping the corporate mobility dream alive.

So what's going on with this HTC deal? With this announcement HTC is essentially confessing that it is using some of Microsoft's patents in its hardware, CNET reports, and is heading off a lawsuit that could push HTC phones like the Nexus One off the market. Now HTC will be paying Microsoft when it sells hardware, which won't be great for the coffers, because HTC is currently also embroiled with a lawsuit from Apple over this very issue. HTC already makes Windows Mobile hardware, too, so this deal should expand HTC's ability to continue to do so without fear of crossing a patent line.

But there's more to it than just Android and Windows making nice.

Fast Company's Kit Eaton smartly connects the dots, saying Microsoft and HTC are effectively joining forces with this agreement in order to fight Apple as 'a smartphone IP bloc' that will help both Android and Windows Phone 7 to improve their chances of success in an Apple-dominated world.

Will it work? The iPhone's success story has few parallels in recent years, and betting against Apple right now would be folly. This move does at least give the others a fighting chance.

— Christopher Null is a technology writer for Yahoo! News."

Nokia swings for fences with N8 smartphone, revamped Symbian OS

READ Yahoo! News: "So, what do Nokia and RIM have in common? The two smartphone titans are both saddled with operating systems that look painfully behind the times compared with competitors such as the iPhone and the new Android-powered HTC Incredible, and both are looking to turn their respective tides this year: RIM with its just-unveiled BlackBerry 6.0 operating system, and Nokia with its new N8 handset, complete with a 12-megapixel camera and the redesigned Symbian^3 OS.

Long rumored but officially unveiled only Tuesday (the same day that RIM previewed its next-generation OS), the N8 (set for release next quarter for 370 euros, about $500) boasts a series of impressive hardware features, not the least of which being its Carl Zeiss optics-enhanced 12MP camera with auto-focus, Xenon flash, and 720p video capture.



The N8's 3.5-inch, 640-by-360-pixel display also represents a much-needed step up for Nokia in that it's a capacitive, rather than resistive, screen. Earlier Nokia touchscreen phones used resistive technology, which registers a tap when the user presses layers of plastic together — perfect for a stylus, not so great when it comes to fingers. Capacitive displays (like those used by the iPhone, WebOS, and Android phones) detect taps via the electrical charge from bare skin, like a fingertip, making for a much more responsive (and far less mushy) touch display.

The half-inch-thick, 4.8-ounce N8 also packs in features such as an FM transmitter (for broadcasting tunes over an FM car stereo) and tuner, HDMI video output, support for Dolby Digital Plus sound, and 16GB of onboard storage (plus a microSD memory slot), but the phone's main claim to fame also represents Nokia's shot at launching itself back into the touchscreen game: Symbian^3, the all-new version of Nokia's aging Symbian OS."

How Netflix Succeeded Where Blockbuster Failed

READ Personal Finance News from Yahoo! Finance

The more traditional rental business was too late to the streaming video party.

Constant evolution and increased device support allowed red envelopes to trounce blue snapcases.

At this point, no one would confuse the winner of the 13-year Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) versus Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI) war. One continues to grow as the other attempts one last-ditch effort after another. But last week, as Netflix reported its first-quarter earnings and Blockbuster continues to shutter locations and flirt with Chapter 11 -- despite a recent sharp uptick in the market -- the online retailer delivered news indicating that it not only won the war, but it's delivered a flaming bag of Wild Wild West VHS tapes on Blockbuster's doorstep.

Netflix finished up a stupendous quarter, earning $0.59 per share -- topping Wall Street targets by a nickel. The retailer gained a record 1.7 million new subscribers and closed out the three-month period with almost 14 million customers. Revenue for that quarter neared $500 million and represented a 25% year-over-year growth. Churn rate dropped, gross margin grew, and the company projects a stronger second quarter.

In a press release, CEO Reed Hastings referenced one of the main factors to its success. He said, 'It is clear that our performance, and the overall appeal of the Netflix service, is being driven by subscribers watching instantly. On that score, we reached a milestone in the quarter as more than half of all members -- 55% and growing -- enjoyed movies and TV episodes streamed from Netflix over the Internet.'

Yes, 55% of Netflix subscribers have watched more than 15 minutes of content streamed to their computer or Netflix-supported device. And the number of those devices continues to grow. The retailer has only recently added the Nintendo Wii and its 30 million American users to the fray, but its service is also compatible with the Xbox 360 (Nasdaq: MSFT), PlayStation 3 (NYSE: SNE), TiVo (Nasdaq: TIVO), and decks from Panasonic (NYSE: PC), Insignia, and Seagate (Nasdaq: STX). Also, along with the highly anticipated Boxee Box, Netflix aims to add support to Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), Android, and Windows 7 mobile devices.

Nexus One Is Out at Verizon, But 'Cousin' Will Be Offered

Nexus One Is Out at Verizon, But 'Cousin' Will Be Offered - Yahoo! News: "If you were hoping to get fixed up with Google's Nexus One on the Verizon Wireless network this week, you're in for some disappointment. But Google, which markets and sells the HTC-made Nexus One, wants you to get its 'cousin.'

That's Incredible

The Nexus One blog linked to Google's online phone store broke the news Monday that Verizon isn't in the picture. Instead, it said fans of both the Android mobile operating system and the nation's largest mobile network can 'pre-order the Droid Incredible by HTC, a powerful new Android phone and a cousin of the Nexus One that is similarly feature-packed.'

The Incredible hits Verizon stores on Thursday. It will sell for $199 with a two-year contract.

Both the Incredible and the Nexus One are equipped with a one-gigahertz Snapdragon processor, run Android 2.1, and have a 3.7-inch touchscreen, but the Incredible ships with 8GB of memory compared to Nexus One's 4GB and has an eight-megapixel camera compared to Nexus One's five megapixels. Some early previews say the Incredible also offers a better multi-touch experience.

Google touted the HDMA-compatible version of the Nexus One when it unveiled the smartphone to great fanfare in January.

In a statement, Google said, 'We won't be selling a Nexus One with Verizon, and this is a reflection of the amazing innovation happening across the open Android ecosystem.'"

RIM Introduces Two New BlackBerry Phones

Research in Motion has announced two new BlackBerry devices today, the BlackBerry Bold 9650 and the BlackBerry Pearl 3G. The announcement comes a day before the company’s Wireless Enterprise Symposium (WES), where it will show off further software and hardware developments. Both phones offer significant upgrades to their respective product lines.

The BlackBerry Bold 9650 is a CDMA device that appears to be a bit of a souped-up BlackBerry Tour in both appearance and features. However, the phone trades the scroll ball for an optical trackpad, more device memory (512MB as opposed to 256MB) and the addition of Wi-Fi support for 802.11b/g networks.

Check out this video for the BlackBerry Bold 9650:



The BlackBerry Pearl 3G is an update to the immensely popular BlackBerry Pearl series, which combines BlackBerry functionality with a more traditional candy bar design. The new phone adds speed, more device memory (256MB), 3G support, GPS and an optical trackpad. The phone includes support for Wi-Fi 802.11.b/g/n networks and has a higher resolution 360×400 screen. The Pearl has always been marketed as a starter BlackBerry, or a BlackBerry for the non-business user. This is in part because the smaller size compresses the QWERTY keypad.

The BlackBerry Pearl 3G will be available in two models with different key layouts. The BlackBerry Pearl 9100 has the traditional 14-key layout while the Pearl 9105 has an expanded 20-key layout for an enhanced QWERTY experience.

SHOW #89 - NerdBoyTV: Asurion, HTC Desire, Eye-Fi

In this episode, Ryan Yee kicks off NerdBoyTV's 3rd Anniversary Show with a discussion on the importance of smartphone insurance, the new HTC Desire, and the Eye-Fi memory card for digital cameras.

Is Facebook the new Internet?

Mark Cuban: Is Facebook the new Internet? - Tech and gadgets- msnbc.com: "A question for you. When was the last time you surfed the 'Net? Can you remember when you just clicked around looking to discover new sites or a site to occupy your time? Now ask yourself when was the last time you sat on your couch or laid in bed clicking the remote looking for something to watch on TV. Finally, how long do you regularly spend on Facebook? How much time do you spend checking out your Wall, your friends’ Wall and hopping from profile to profile checking people out?

If you are like most, you kill more time hopping around on Facebook than you do exploring the 'Net. IMHO, while good old TV remains the ultimate passive cure for boredom at home, Facebook is now where we kill time at work, on our mobile devices or while at home with the TV on.

Everything that the 'Net was five or more years ago, Facebook is today."

Oprah goes mobile with iPhone, Android and BlackBerry apps

iPhone app article - Kristen Nicole: "Oprah is now officially mobile. The release of her mobile apps today span the gamut of major platforms - including titles for the iPhone, BlackBerry, Palm and Android. It’s a hefty and widespread release, with ambitions of reaching every consumer on every smart phone. Given Oprah’s latest moves towards extending her brand with an evening show, the empire that already covers print, film, television and social media can claim the mobile industry as well.

Oprah Mobile for iPhoneWith a first look at the $1.99 Oprah Mobile app for the iPhone and Android devices, I admit I was surprised to find the app’s icon does not feature Oprah’s image—simply her name. With Oprah celebrating her 100th magazine cover, I imagined that the mobile apps would be more distinctly branded."

Rivals moving to take on iPad

Rivals moving to take on iPad - Yahoo! News: "US bookstore giant Barnes & Noble added Web surfing and games to its electronic reader Friday as rivals move to break the momentum of Apple's freshly launched iPad tablet computer.

Barnes & Noble updated its Nook devices with features that included letting users browse complete works instead of just getting summaries of the content of digital books they are considering buying.

The Nook software update includes 'new games and many other entertaining features to continue to deliver on our promise to make Nook the most fun, easy-to-use e-book reader,' said Tony Astarita, vice president of digital products at the bookseller's website.

Amazon will make its Kindle electronic book reader available at US retail giant Target later this year in a deal that marks the first time the device will be available anywhere other than the Amazon.com website.

The basic Kindle sells for 259 dollars, the same price as a Nook.

The moves come nearly three weeks after the US launch of the iPad, a multi-purpose table computer that lists rich electronic book reading as just one of its features."

CNET Top 5 — April 2010

The most popular products in April (and no, the iPad didn't make the list yet!).

Interactive TV Program Guide for Your Apple iPad

Yahoo! Entertainment iPad App: "Get an interactive TV program guide, up-to-the-minute video, just-in news, and more—all on your Apple® iPad™.

The TV shows you want to watch

Plan your viewing with an interactive program guide that highlights your favorite TV shows. Get the lineup from your local provider; see programs by time, day, channel, content, or genre; or just find your favorites.

Video designed for your iPad

View always-current video feeds from top providers in sports, news, finance, business, entertainment, weather, and more. Watch popular Yahoo!-created content like Tech Ticker, Primetime in No Time, and Daytime in No Time—all designed for viewing on your iPad.

News you’ll want to know about

Stay on top of current news articles and photos, delivered 24-7 to your iPad, with in-depth coverage in key areas. Read fashion articles, advice columns, book reviews, odd stories, entertainment news, comics, and more.

Nearly 800,000 U.S. TV households 'cut the cord,' report says

Nearly 800,000 U.S. TV households 'cut the cord,' report says - Yahoo! News: "Make no mistake: The big cable, satellite, and telco carriers are still sitting pretty with more than 100 million TV subscribers. Nevertheless, a new report claims that more and more viewers are 'cutting the cord' in favor of watching their favorite shows via over-the-air antennas (remember those?), Netflix, or the Web.

TechCrunch has the scoop on a new report from the Toronto-based Convergence Consulting Group, and though the figures may not be a 'serious threat' to the big cable and satellite carriers yet, the trend might eventually spell trouble for the like of Cablevision, Comcast, DirecTV, and Time Warner Cable.

To wit: Nearly 800,000 households in the U.S. have 'cut the cord,' dumping their cable, satellite, or telco TV providers (such as AT&T U-verse or Verizon FiOS) and turning instead to Web-based videos (like Hulu), downloadable shows (iTunes), by-mail subscription services (Netflix), or even good ol' over-the-air antennas for their favorite shows, according to the report.

Now, as TechCrunch points out, the estimated 800,000 cord cutters represent less than 1 percent of the 100 million U.S. households (give or take) currently subscribing to a cable/satellite/telco TV carrier, so it's not like we're talking a mass exodus here. But by the end of 2011, the report guesstimates, the number of cord-cutting households in the U.S. will double to about 1.6 million, and if the trend continues, well..."