MeeGo

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July 16, 2012
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Jolla Interview

Meet Jolla, the startup trying to combat Apple and Google by breathing life back into MeeGo

By on July 16, 2012 at 11:30 AM.

Meet Jolla, the startup trying to combat Apple and Google by breathing life back into MeeGo

A new Finnish company called Jolla made a bit of a splash earlier this month by declaring it will become a new smartphone vendor using the MeeGo operating system to power its devices. Interest in MeeGo in United States is tepid, but in Europe and Asia, the OS attracted a lot of interest before Nokia chose to effectively kill its development in 2011. Can Jolla help resurrect MeeGo as a viable mobile OS alternative, or is this crusade just a lost cause in a market dominated by Google and Apple? More →

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Business
May 8, 2012
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Samsung looks beyond Android

By on May 8, 2012 at 11:45 AM.

Samsung looks beyond Android

Samsung looks past Android to find an alternative OS

Android has been good to Samsung. Very, very good. Samsung recently reported its second consecutive quarter of record earnings, thanks in no small part to its wildly popular line of Android-powered Galaxy smartphones. The South Korea-based vendor also just took the wraps off its next-generation flagship Android smartphone, the Galaxy S III. While the device may have opened the door for rivals to make some moves if they can act quickly enough, Samsung is currently the No.1 smartphone vendor in the world by volume and the Galaxy S III should help it retain that title. As good as Android has been for Samsung, however, the vendor continues to make it clear that it does not want to put all its eggs in one basket. More →

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mobile
March 28, 2012
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MeeGo gets a stay of execution? Two new Nokia MeeGo phones reportedly in the works

By on March 28, 2012 at 7:25 PM.

MeeGo gets a stay of execution? Two new Nokia MeeGo phones reportedly in the works

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop had several tough decisions to make when he came on board and replaced former chief executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo. Of course the biggest shift for Elop’s Nokia came in mid-February last year when the company confirmed that the burning platform had scorched MeeGo, and Nokia planned to dump its Linux-based mobile operating system for Microsoft’s Windows Phone OS. Nokia still went on to launch the N9, and it was widely believed that the handset would be the only MeeGo device from Nokia to ever see the light of day. According to a recent report, however, the Finnish vendor may have new MeeGo devices works. More →

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mobile
September 28, 2011
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Intel kills MeeGo in favor of Tizen

By on September 28, 2011 at 11:35 PM.

Intel kills MeeGo in favor of Tizen

Intel announced on Wednesday that it will be shifting its efforts from MeeGo to the new “Tizen” mobile operating system recently announced by The Linux Foundation. The move is in line with reports from early September that suggested Intel would move on due to a lack of consumer enthusiasm surrounding the OS. Nokia launched the MeeGo-powered N9 this month but also announced in June that it was ditching the platform in favor of Microsoft’s Windows Phone OS. “We believe the future belongs to HTML5-based applications, outside of a relatively small percentage of apps, and we are firmly convinced that our investment needs to shift toward HTML5,” Intel said in a blog post, explaining why it did not decide to evolve MeeGo. “Shifting to HTML5 doesn’t just mean slapping a web runtime on an existing Linux, even one aimed at mobile, as MeeGo has been.” Intel also noted Tizen will support smartphones, tablets, netbooks, smart TVs and in-vehicle systems.  More →

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mobile
September 5, 2011
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Intel to bail on MeeGo OS, report claims

By on September 5, 2011 at 12:45 PM.

Intel to bail on MeeGo OS, report claims

Intel plans to discontinue development of its MeeGo operating system for the time being due to a lack of enthusiasm for the platform, DigiTimes reported on Friday. Citing multiple anonymous industry sources, the report claims Intel will instead focus on “handset platforms to be paired with either Android or Windows Phone in 2012.” Nokia had initially been Intel’s premier partner on the MeeGo platform, but the company recently announced that it was dumping MeeGo in favor of Microsoft’s Windows Phone platform. Nokia did unveil one MeeGo-powered phone this past June — the Nokia N9 — but the Finnish vendor simultaneously confirmed that the N9 would be the first and only MeeGo smartphone Nokia produces. In response to DigiTimes’ claims, Intel commented that it “remains committed to MeeGo and will continue to work with the community to develop and help meet the needs of customers and end users with open source.” More →

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mobile
August 9, 2011
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Nokia N9 will not launch in the United States

By on August 9, 2011 at 11:35 PM.

Nokia N9 will not launch in the United States

Nokia confirmed on Tuesday that its flagship MeeGo-powered N9 smartphone will not launch in the United States. Nokia reached out to Engadget with the official statement on the matter:

After the very positive reception to the launch of the Nokia N9, the product is now being rolled out in countries around the world. At this time we will not be making it available in the U.S. Nokia takes a market by market approach to a product rollout, and each country makes its own decisions about which products to introduce from those available. Decisions are based on an assessment of existing and upcoming products that make up Nokia’s extensive product portfolio and the best way in which to address local market opportunities.

No doubt carriers in the United States are waiting for Nokia’s upcoming Windows Phone Mango handsets. The Finnish company could make the announcement about its first Mango phone during its annual Nokia World conference, which kicks off on October 26th. More →

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mobile
August 4, 2011
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Android least open of open source platforms, report says

By on August 4, 2011 at 4:55 PM.

Android least open of open source platforms, report says

Android may be an open source operating system, but it’s not as open as other platforms according to a new research report from VisionMobile. The research firm compared Android, Eclipse, Firefox, the Linux kernel, MeeGo, Qt and Symbian and found that, of those open source environments, Android was the least “open.” According to the report’s “open governance index,” which scored each environment on how open it is, Android scored a 23%. It was far below the others; Eclipse scored the best with an 84% open governance index and no other platform scored less than a 58%, ArsTechnica said. Google’s Android compatibility chief Dan Morrill likely swayed the opinion on Android a bit when he said Google was using compatibility “as a club to make [phone maker's] do things we want,” and the report cites that quote specifically. However, VisionMobile also backs up its findings with a statement that can be read in full after the break. More →

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Business
July 18, 2011
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Nokia may slash prices across entire cell phone line this fall

By on July 18, 2011 at 7:19 AM.

Nokia may slash prices across entire cell phone line this fall

Nokia plans to drop prices across its entire product line this September in an attempt to bolster sales, industry insider Eldar Murtazin claimed on Friday. The struggling Finnish cell phone vendor will cut phone prices by 10% according to the Russian blogger, who has an extensive history of accurately reporting inside information pertaining to Nokia and other smartphone vendors. “Nokia are going to cut prices for the whole product line by 10 per cent in September,” Murtazin posted on his Twitter account. “They struggle for a market share worldwide.” Nokia’s share of the global cell phone market has been steadily declining as the company failed to adjust its strategy to the changing marketplace over the past few years. As a result, Nokia recently announced that it would dump its aging Symbian smartphone platform in favor of Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system moving forward. The vendor is expected to launch several new Symbian devices through the first half of 2012, but it will offer Windows Phones as well beginning later this year with a device codenamed “Sea Ray.” More →

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mobile
June 21, 2011
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Nokia unveils MeeGo-based N9 smartphone [video]

By on June 21, 2011 at 7:39 AM.

Nokia unveils MeeGo-based N9 smartphone [video]

Nokia took the wraps off its first MeeGo-based smartphone early Tuesday morning in Singapore. The Nokia N9 features gorgeous, elegant hardware and software that Nokia has already announced it will dump in favor of Microsoft’s Windows Phone platform. The decision to move forward with the N9′s release is an interesting one, though we have a feeling this sleek smartphone will see limited distribution once it finally reaches market. Pricing and availability are still a mystery, but the N9 features MeeGo 1.2, a 3.9-inch OLED display, an 8-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, NFC support and either 16GB or 64GB of internal storage. The phone is beautiful and the software looks intuitive and modern, but it’s not easy to get behind a phone running an OS that Nokia deemed not suitable for its devices moving forward. Nokia’s full press release and a video can be found below. More →

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Business
June 2, 2011
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An exec recounts the moment Nokia’s burning platform scorched MeeGo

By on June 2, 2011 at 7:53 PM.

An exec recounts the moment Nokia’s burning platform scorched MeeGo

Bloomberg’s new cover story, titled “Stephen Elop’s Nokia Adventure,” takes an in depth look at Nokia, its CEO and its “epic fail.” Peppered with great moments, one in particular caught our attention: following the elimination of Symbian, Nokia was left with MeeGo as its smartphone platform of the future. Chief Development Officer Kai Oistämö had concerns about the platform, and after voicing them to Elop, the pair decided to reevaluate the company’s path. Elop mapped out several things on a whiteboard — products in development, projected launch dates, OS bugs and so on. After stepping back and realizing that the company might only launch three new MeeGo devices before 2014, Elop and Oistämö had the chat that would change Nokia forever. “It was truly an oh-s–t moment—and really, really painful to realize where we were,” Oistämö told Bloomberg. “MeeGo had been the collective hope of the company, and we’d come to the conclusion that the emperor had no clothes. It’s not a nice thing.” More →

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Computers
May 31, 2011
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Intel discusses new ‘Ultrabook’ notebooks, Atom roadmap

By on May 31, 2011 at 7:53 PM.

Intel discusses new ‘Ultrabook’ notebooks, Atom roadmap

During the Computex trade show in Taiwan on Tuesday, Intel’s executive vice president Sean Maloney discussed a new category of laptop computers called “Ultrabooks” that Intel says will dominate 40% of the consumer market by the end of next year. Ultrabooks will blend the performance of today’s laptops with a tablet-like experience in a thin and light product, and the first such product is ASUS’ brand new UX21 laptop, which is due out by the 2011 holiday season. Initially, Ultrabooks will be powered by Intel’s latest Core processors, but they will also be powered by the firm’s new 22nm Ivy Bridge processor by the first half of next year. By 2013, Ultrabooks will be powered by Intel’s next generation “Haswell” processors. Maloney also said that its Atom processor family will “outpace Moore’s law” and that Intel will accelerate the processor from 32nm through 22nm to 14nm in just three years. The move will allow for more powerful and more battery-efficient Atom processors for tablets, netbooks, and smartphones. The firm also said that Android and MeeGo tablets running its Medfield processor will hit the market during the first half of 2012, and that Medfield will enable sub-9mm designs and products that weigh under 1.5 pounds. Hit the jump for Intel’s full press release. More →

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Gaming
May 30, 2011
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Angry Birds Magic demo shows off NFC capabilities [video]

By on May 30, 2011 at 11:01 PM.

Angry Birds Magic demo shows off NFC capabilities [video]

We can’t say this is the most exciting use of NFC technology we’ve seen in recent history, but at least the team behind Rovio’s Angry Birds franchise is trying to breathe new life into the lab’s aging fowl. Last week at the MeeGo conference, Rovio was on hand showing off a new game called Angry Birds Magic. While details are slim for the time being, the firm did show off a nifty new feature — by simply tapping two Nokia C7 smartphones together while running the new Angry Birds game, five new levels are instantly unlocked. The implementation is neat but the concept isn’t overly exciting, so we hope Rovio can fan things out a bit and add some more novel NFC functionality before launching the game. Hit the break for a video of Angry Birds Magic’s NFC capabilities in action. More →

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mobile
May 17, 2011
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Nokia’s N9 seen in brief teaser video

By on May 17, 2011 at 10:44 PM.

Nokia’s N9 seen in brief teaser video

Nokia’s N9 handset has made a brief cameo via a one-minute, official-looking video clip. What do we learn from said video? Not a heck of a lot. What we do see is a 12-megapixel camera complete with Carl Zeiss optics flash before our eyes, and the iconography seen suggests that the device will be a Symbian offering complete with the Anna software update. The rumor mill states the N9 will be a pentaband GSM handset that could make an appearance stateside, although… since Nokia is going all-in with Windows Phone, we’re not sure what the fate of this handset is. The video is after the break. Have a look for yourself.
More →

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