It wasn’t that long ago when American wireless subscribers seemed resigned to the fact that AT&T (T) was going to gobble up T-Mobile and that Sprint (S) would likely be bought up by Verizon (VZ) shortly after, thus dooming us all to live under a wireless duopoly. But then something happened: The government decided that an AT&T/T-Mobile merger would consolidate the wireless industry too much and moved to block it. And since then, there have been some encouraging signs that the U.S. wireless market may be getting more, rather than less, competitive. More →
There’s no shortage of people criticizing Microsoft (MSFT) over the decisions it has made with Windows 8 and its Surface tablet, from analysts to OEMs to game developers. And to be fair, I think a good deal of the criticism has merit: the switch from the standard desktop UI to the UI Formerly Known as Metro might indeed be too jarring for many users — the UI may be great for tablets, but it seems to be a complete debacle as a desktop UI. Microsoft might have to do some serious kiss-and-make-up with disgruntled OEMs as well if its Surface tablet doesn’t create an instant market for Windows tablets. So why do I think the Microsoft deserves some applause for Windows 8 and the Surface despite all these potential issues? Because it’s the first time I can remember that the company has taken a significant risk to do something innovative. More →
It’s no secret that AT&T (T) is a terrible wireless carrier — just ask anyone who uses, or has used AT&T. Its calls drop, data is unusable in any location with more than four wireless subscribers within a square mile, and it nickel and dimes every single fucking thing. You know what set me off though? The fact that AT&T is limiting FaceTime over cellular and making subscribers switch to a new shared data plan if they want to use it. It was bad enough AT&T brazenly charges you a fee if you want to use the data you pay for on another device via tethering, but now AT&T is trying to control just what you can and can’t do with your own data, which you pay for every month, down to the specific application. More →
Although Facebook (FB) met expectations in its first-ever earnings report on Thursday, the reaction from investors has been decidedly ugly so far. By the end of trading on Friday, the company’s stock price had dropped by 117% to close at $23.70, or about half the value of its 52-week peak of $45. Making things worse, Facebook’s big slide came on a day when the NASDAQ closed up 2.24%, meaning Facebook can’t plausibly blame its slide on weak U.S. GDP numbers or other external factors. More →
Yes, Google Fiber is only being launched in Kansas City so far. And sure, there’s not much hope that it will spread across the entire country for the near future. But that doesn’t mean Google’s (GOOG) insanely fast 1Gbps fiber network shouldn’t be pushing cable companies and other ISPs to up their games in terms of both service quality and pricing. More →
When Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone 4 and its stunning Retina display, he said it would set the standard for mobile displays for the following five years. Five years is a lifetime in the smartphone industry, but two years later it’s safe to say the iPhone’s screen is easily still a market leader — I would even go as far as to say no mobile display even comes close to matching the iPhone’s in terms of clarity. But as sharp as Apple’s (AAPL) screen is, it is quickly falling behind the pack in another key area. More →
When the history of gaming is written, Rovio’s Angry Birds will to be touchscreen device games what Super Mario Bros. was to 8-bit consoles — that is, the seminal title that helped bring an emerging gaming platform into the mainstream. Rovio has certainly set a high bar for itself and the release of Amazing Alex on Thursday is the company’s attempt to show it can do much more than simply fling birds with slingshots. While Amazing Alex is definitely a clever puzzle game with an intriguing setup, it lacks the visceral sense of immediacy that made Angry Birds so much fun. More →
I was somewhat surprised to learn this week that Microsoft had developed a tablet that’s actually pretty cool. My expectations were admittedly low when I attended the company’s big unveiling event in Los Angeles but once I saw the tablet and played around with it for a bit, I gradually grew more impressed, something I haven’t felt about any Microsoft product other than the Xbox in a long time. More →
Look, I think everyone was expecting a little more from iOS 6. There are plenty of features Apple didn’t add to the latest version of its mobile operating system. I could literally go on and on about how there aren’t automatic app updates in the background, or how you still can’t access Bluetooth or Wi-Fi from the Notification Center (although Bluetooth is now on the first page of settings making it a little easier), or how apps are still represented by static icons instead of some form of widgets. The fact is, however, that just from using iOS 6 since it was available for developers yesterday afternoon, the entire OS feels even more cohesive, more thought out, and much tighter than anything Android has delivered. More →
While I may recommend the iPhone to the majority of people who ask, Android is still my mobile operating system of choice. Google has created a truly amazing and innovative platform, and because it is open-source anyone can tweak it and customize it. Even devices that weren’t meant for Android, such as my HP TouchPad, can run the mobile OS beautifully thanks to dedicated third-party developers. As I spend more and more time with an iPhone, however, I realize that my love for open-source is slowly beginning to fade. While I used to believe open-source would play a huge role in pushing Android ahead of the competition, which it did, I now believe it may end up being the thing that kills it. More →
I sat at my computer in amazement a little earlier. Most of me knew that RIM is too damaged and too slow to pivot, and just too out of touch with its customers to know it actually has a chance. But, there was this small part of me that was genuinely excited for BlackBerry World’s announcements. Then I saw Thorston Heins start off the company’s most crucial keynote ever with Salesforce and Cisco. More →
I saw from the inside and outside how RIM transformed the mobile landscape, and how the company even battled its own inner demons throughout the years. Here are my thoughts on the company’s worst quarter in five years:
RIM grew incredibly fast. It grew faster than the company knew how to manage, and RIM slowly — and then quickly — slipped as a result. This is the company that used to make users choose between a device with Wi-Fi and no GPS, or GPS and no Wi-Fi, just to have two products on the market instead of one. This is the company that refused to take the consumer market seriously for a number of years. This is the company that couldn’t see the future when it was right in front of them. More →
