Posted on by Rahsheen on Black Web 2.0

Tech Week in Review 11-12-2010

Windows Phone 7 On Sale Now

Windows Phone 7 went on sale in the US this week. For everyone who favors a Microsoft product over the iPhoneys, Wackberrys, and Blandroids, your day has come. Even as a hardcore #teamandroid member, I have to admit these Windows phones look good. The live tile interface is also interesting and, according to Microsoft’s commercials, will keep you from ignoring your friends and family. On a related note, Windows Phone 7 comes with Slacker Radio, which had the online radio service trending as curious users tried to figure out what it was.


via Engadget

Opera Mobile Comes to Android

While Opera Mini has been available on Android for a while now, Opera Mobile brings the full Opera browsing experience to your Android phone. It’s still in beta, but is probably worth a look. Here are some of the features to expect according to TechCrunch:
  • speedy page loading compared to other browsers, particularly on slower networks (courtesy of Opera Turbo)
  • smooth scrolling, zooming and panning (rather than having to tap to zoom in, which is definitely a huge improvement)
  • Speed Dial
  • Visual tabs for easy tab management
  • Built-in geolocation support
  • Ability to sync bookmarks across devices
  • SVG support
If you’re using something like Dolphin, Opera Mobile probably doesn’t look that exciting. It’s missing some features like sharing pages, but it’s snappy and polished. Also, it’s still in beta so I’ll be keeping an eye on this one. Check out it’s tab-management interface in this video.

Android Smartphones Continue to Dominate

According to Gartner, worldwide mobile phone sales grew 35% in the third quarter of 2010. Smartphone sales jumped 96%. The cause is most likely falling smartphone prices and increased visibility in the mobile market. I don’t recall seeing nearly as many smartphone commercials on TV as we see now. You can even get a prepaid smartphone from your local Walmart. Gartner’s take on the numbers leans toward iPhone and Android strategies as the means for success in the current mobile market. Either you diversify and innovate quickly, or create one seriously awesome and focused device. The numbers also show that one in 5 mobile devices sold are smartphones, while one in four are running Android.

  • Company
  • 3Q10 Units
  • 3Q10 Market Share (%)
  • 3Q09 Units
  • 3Q09 Market Share (%)
  • Symbian
  • 29,480.1
  • 36.6
  • 18,314.8
  • 44.6
  • Android
  • 20,500.0
  • 25.5
  • 1,424.5
  • 3.5
  • iOS
  • 13,484.4
  • 16.7
  • 7,040.4
  • 17.1
  • Research In Motion
  • 11,908.3
  • 14.8
  • 8,522.7
  • 20.7
  • Windows Mobile
  • 2,247.9
  • 2.8
  • 3,259.9
  • 7.9
  • Linux
  • 1,697.1
  • 2.1
  • 1,918.5
  • 4.7
  • Other OS
  • 1,214.8
  • 1.5
  • 612.5
  • 1.5
  • Total
  • 80,532.6
  • 100.0
  • 41,093.3
  • 100.0
    Source: Gartner

via Wired

RIM Soars with Announcement of Tablet Under $500

With the announcement that the BlackBerry PlayBook (which I still think should have been called the BlackPad) will be priced “less than $500,” RIM rose $3.44, or 6.3 percent, to $58.44 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading on the 10th. There are going to be a gang of new tablet devices coming for the holidays. The iPad has the obvious head-start, but the average consumer may opt for a competing product based on price alone. Will the BlackPad Playbook challenge the iPad? Hard to tell. What do you think?

via Bloomberg


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