Whats New Tomorrow ?

Start-Up BlueStacks Raises Cash to Bring Android Apps to Windows PCs

2011-05-25T13:46:00.000-07:00

A couple years back, Rosen Sharma, Suman Saraf and colleagues had founded a startup, BlueStacks, to work on virtualization. They just hadn’t figured out the right use of the technology on which to focus.

At least, they hadn’t until the summer of 2009 when Saraf took a trip to Switzerland with his family. Throughout the trip he allowed his then six-year-old daughter, Mahi, to play games on his Android phone. Of course, when he got home, Mahi wanted to keep playing the same games on the family computer–a Windows PC. And, with that, Saraf and team had their idea.

Now, they are ready to share their idea publicly. BlueStacks plans to show off its technology at the Citrix Synergy conference on Wednesday, as well as detail its ambitious plan to convince PC makers to load their software on new computers, ideally enabling tens of millions of Windows computers to run Android apps over the next couple of years.

The company plans to announce the first deals with computer makers next week at the Computex trade show in Taiwan. BlueStacks is also announcing it has nabbed $7.6 million in Series A funding from investors from Ignition Ventures, Radar Partners, Helion Ventures, Redpoint Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz.

Under the covers, BlueStacks uses virtualization, though the goal is to make all the techy stuff invisible to the user, so that all they see is a Windows PC that can also run Android apps.

Sharma, the company’s CEO, told us that the company thinks it will find eager customers among PC makers looking to stand out from one another, while reacting to the rise of the iPad and Android.

“All of them are suffering because the iPad came out,” Sharma said. “They don’t really have an answer. The answer most of them come up with is lets make an Android tablet.”

However, Sharma said he questions how many they will sell, particularly if they don’t have anything to stand out from the pack.

Of course, any system running BlueStacks’ software is, at its heart, a Windows machine with all the pros and cons that entails. That means it won’t have the battery life or instant start-up of an Android tablet or iPad, but it also can run all of the Windows apps, in addition to those for Android.

As for BlueStacks’ business model, Sharma said the company is focused on getting as broad distribution as it can, but is seeking payment for each PC that ships with its software. Though the deals vary, he said it is more than $10 per PC, though he wouldn’t be more specific.

“It’s not in the single digits,” he said.

In the initial release, BlueStacks software will support version 2.2 of Android, also known as Froyo, though it should be upgradeable in the future. The company also hopes to offer a version that existing PC owners can download to run Android on their PCs.

The idea of mixing mobile operating systems with Windows is not new, though others are taking somewhat different approaches. HP, for example, has said it plans to start enabling the WebOS used on Palm phones to run on the company’s Windows PCs. Meanwhile, Lenovo has shown a convertible tablet that runs Android when used as a tablet and then runs Windows when a keyboard is plugged in. In that case, though, it has two separate computers and the cost of the product is roughly the same as a PC and Android device combined.

Mac Sales Outpace Market… Again

2011-05-25T13:37:00.000-07:00

There’s really no other way to say this: The Mac is kicking ass. Not only is its growth outpacing that of the broader market, it’s doing it in virtually every segment from government to enterprise.

March marked the 20th consecutive quarter that Mac shipment growth exceeded that of the PC market.

Mac shipments grew 27.7 percent in March, a period that saw a 1.2 percent decline in total PC shipments, according to IDC data reported by Needham analyst Charlie Wolf. And that growth occurred in every single major regional market.

In Europe, Mac sales were up 10 percent year over year, while the PC market was down 17.5 percent; in Asia they were up 69.4 percent, while the PC market was up just 8.8 percent. And in Japan, Macs were up 21.1 percent in a PC market that declined 16.1 percent.

The story was pretty much the same in the PC market’s various segments. Mac shipments to business grew at a “torrid” 66 percent pace in a market that posted just 4.5 percent year over year. Shipments to government spiked 155.6 percent versus the broader market’s 2.3 percent. And shipments to the home market grew 21.6 percent, while those of PCs slipped 6.5 percent.

That’s some extraordinary growth, particularly since it’s largely organic. “… Shipment growth has resulted solely from an outward shift in the demand curve rather than from a relative reduction in Mac prices,” Wolf observes. Interestingly, the average price of a Mac has fallen at just 1.6 percent annually since 2005.

So what’s the engine of all this growth–aside, of course, from the Mac itself?

Apple’s iOS devices and its carefully cultivated retail presence.

“The key drivers of the growth in Mac shipments over the past five years have been the halo effects emanating from the iPod and iPhone,” Wolf says. “The Apple Stores have played an important supporting role in providing convenient destinations and support resources for Windows users new to the Mac.”

And those three things will become even more powerful drivers of Mac sales as Apple extends the reach of the iPhone and iPad with an ever-expanding rollout of international Apple Stores. Says Wolf, “The iPhone is competing in the mobile phone market, one measured in billions of units rather than the portable music player market, one measured in millions of units. Of course, the iPad is waiting in the wings.”

ElcomSoft Breaks iPhone iOS4 Encryption

2011-05-25T13:29:00.000-07:00

That certainly did not take them long. ElcomSoft, a Russian company, managed to crack the iOS4 encryption. With Apple's iPhone 3GS, the company introduced a hardware encryption chip. Following the release of iOS 4, Apple brought Data Protection feature, a 256-bit hardware encryption for all the devices featuring the chip, which is also why your device feels (and is) slower after the iOS 4 update.

The press release of the company states:

"ElcomSoft Co. Ltd. enables enhanced and near-instant forensic access to encrypted information stored in iPhone devices, and updates Elcomsoft Phone Password Breaker with tools that can access protected file system dumps extracted from iPhone devices, even if the data is hardware encrypted by iOS 4.

While iPhone backups store a lot of information about the usage of an iPhone device, they don't have everything. Forensic wise, dumping the contents of the physical device is the only proper way to handle an investigation. A decrypted dump of the file system can be analyzed by certified, highly advanced forensic tools."

You should not be worried about your data's safety though, unless you are planning to do something illegal and getting arrested. As it is clearly mentioned in the press release, a forensics expert needs to get a hold of the device itself in order to retrieve any data.

Google invests $55 million in wind farms in California's Mojave desert

2011-05-25T13:20:00.000-07:00

Google announced today that it will invest $55 million in a large Mojave Desert wind energy farm. The LA Times reports that the search giant is partnering with Citibank, "which is also shelling out $55 million to help finance part of the Alta Wind Energy Center, one of the world's largest wind installations," and that the move is seen as a "key step in California's efforts to regain its once enviable title as the world's capital for wind power." When the project is complete, it will be capable of generating 1.5 gigawatts, enough to power 450,000 homes.

Google invests $55 million in Mojave Desert wind farm (LA Times)

Zynga Preparing to File for IPO [REPORT]

2011-05-25T11:54:00.000-07:00

Less than a week after LinkedIn’s spectacular IPO, social gaming juggernaut Zynga is preparing to cash in with its own offering.

According to Kara Swisher at AllThingsD, the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission is likely to come in the next two weeks, though other reports claim the company will file for IPO in late June. Goldman Sachs could be one of the lead bankers in the deal, butMorgan Stanley, T. Rowe Price and Fidelity Investments also have investments in Zynga and would likely be involved in an IPO.

The gaming company is worth around $10 billion on the private markets — a figure already higher thanLinkedIn’s $9 billion IPO. So a Zynga IPO would likely trump LinkedIn’s strong showing on the markets. It makes $500 million to $1 billion per year in revenue, thanks to big partnerships and virtual goods. Zynga has also been on an acquisition spree as of late, acquiring 14 companies in the last 12 months alone.

Zynga’s top game, CityVille, boasts 90 million monthly active users, while the company’s breakout hitFarmVille has more than 45 million monthly active users.

Watch Out, Nook: Amazon Launches $164 Kindle 3G With Ads

2011-05-25T11:36:00.000-07:00

Watch out, Nook: Amazon has just launched a 3G version of its ad-supported Kindle for $164.

The new device, officially called the Kindle 3G With Special Offers, is almost identical to the $114 ad-supported Wi-Fi Kindle except for the addition of 3G functionality. The device is a 6-inch device that displays the occasional advertisement. In return, users get special offers and a $25 discount on the Kindle 3G’s $189 price tag. In a statement, Amazon Kindle director Jay Marine called it “the lowest price for any 3G ereader.”

The special deals associated with the 3G Kindle are similar to the Wi-Fi version. Some of the special offers Amazon will launch “in the coming weeks” include $10 for a $20 Amazon gift card, 20% discounts on 200 HDTVs, and $1 for select Kindle books.

The announcement of the Kindle 3G With Special Offers comes just hours after Barnes & Noble unveiled its $139 touchscreen Nook, a Wi-Fi-only ereader device that is lighter than the Kindle and boasts two months of battery life. Barnes & Noble also claims that it controls 25% of the ebook market, something that can’t be sitting well with Amazon.

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO, Wants to allow children under 13 to sign up or social networking

2011-05-25T11:34:00.000-07:00

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said it makes sense to find a safe way to allow children under 13 to sign up for the social network, but the company isn’t currently working on such an effort.

“We haven’t gone there yet, but over time it’s an important dialogue to have,” said Zuckerberg at the eG8 meeting of web giants and policy makers in Paris.

Mark Zuckerberg

Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters

Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks at the eG8 forum in Paris.

Current legislation in the U.S. and Europe makes it difficult for children under 13 to access web services such as Facebook. The company’s own policies prohibit children under 13 from using the site.

Zuckerberg said at this stage, he isn’t saying that children under 13 should be allowed on Facebook but that whether they should or not is a question that will need to be discussed some time, especially in relation to education.

“If children under 13 ever were [allowed to get on Facebook] we’d need to find a way for them to be safe,” the 27-year-old Facebook founder said.

Zuckerberg will be part of a delegation of six people attending the Group of Eight meeting beginning in Deauville Thursday to present a number of resolutions from the two-day e-G8 meeting which discussed the role of the web in society.

Earlier Wednesday, Zuckerberg had lunch with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who initiated the eG8 meeting.

When asked in an on-stage talk with Publicis Groupe SA’s CEO Maurice Levy when Facebook will become a public company, Zuckerberg briefly replied: “Not yet.”

- By Ruth Bender and Max Colchester

Motorola Droid X Android 2.3 Gingerbread Update Imminent

2011-05-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

After a couple of leaks, Motorola and Verizon have finally gone ahead and finalized a Droid XGingerbread build for official release. At the moment, Motorola is doing a “soak test”, and the update will be out once the testing is complete.

It looks like the testing will be over anytime soon, as Verizon has already updated the Droid X page on their website with the Gingerbread update details. According to the Verizon’s site, the Droid XGingerbread update will bring new features like a Download Manager, an all-new Multi-touch keyboard, improved text selection and copy and paste.

The update will also update the color scheme of the Moto Blur UI with new colors, widgets and icons. The auto-focus of the camera while taking pictures in low light conditions, and the ActiveSync performance has also been improved. The general system performance and responsiveness has also been improved noticeably. Droid X users can head over to this link for the full change-log.

Verizon and Motorola will start rolling out the update anytime now. The update weighs in at a whopping 112MB, and will wipe your X clean of all data.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 ships with Android 3.1 Honeycomb in the US

2011-05-25T11:18:00.000-07:00

In our Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 review, we played around with the Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system, but here is news for you – the model which ships to the US will feature Android 3.1 Honeycomb upon its release Stateside, at least according to Samsung’s Facebook page. How do you know that this is true? Just check out the product information page on its US website to have those question marks dispelled. Not only that, Samsung will also enhance the Galaxy Tab experience by throwing in the latest version of Samsung’s TouchWiz customization with L!vepanel.

The Galaxy Tab 10.1 is actually a modified version of the prototype that Samsung showed off earlier this year in order to go up against the Apple iPad 2, where it is even thinner than the original iPad at 10.9mm (not to mention the iPad 2, too). As for those who picked up the Limited Edition Galaxy Tab 10.1 will be able to get hold of the Android 3.1 Honeycomb update in the coming weeks.

Apple iPhone 4 to arrive in India by May 27, with Airtel and Aircel

2011-05-25T08:22:00.000-07:00

After various announcements, the last of which was more than a month and a half ago, operatorsAirtel and Aircel are finally making good on their claims of bringing the iPhone 4 to India. The duo will be launching it by May 27, or Friday, almost a year after it was launched in the United States, last June. So far, only Aircel has revealed pricing, and as expected, it has a slight premium attached.

The 16GB Apple iPhone 4 will retail for Rs. 34,500, and, the 32GB version will retail for Rs. 40,900. A requisite bumper, to avoid the ‘death grip’, will be charged for separately. This news fortunately is not too confusing for potential customers, as at that price, there are plenty of other phones with better specs, including the just-launched Samsung Galaxy S II, available for around Rs. 33,000.

Customers opting for a new connection will get a micro SIM for the device, and we expect some provision from the operators to help cut SIM cards for existing customers. We were hoping the iPhone 4 would launch with some sort of contract, enabling customers to buy it at a lower price. Aircel has come up with some plans, but we aren’t too sure they will entice customers.

Aircel postpaid customers will be able to get the phone for “free” in the Premium Money Back plan, by paying up front, and then availing voice and data plans that are equal to the phone’s value, valid for 24 months. The Advantage Money Back plan is the same thing, at half the phone’s value and for one year validity. Let us hope Airtel comes up with better plans.

Dual SIM Nokia X1-01 announced

2011-05-25T08:19:00.000-07:00

The dual SIM Nokia X1-01 has just been announced, where it is touted to offer a totally radical experience compared to any other model that you can find elsewhere regardless of make and model where multiple SIM card installations are concerned. Capable of remembering the settings of up to 5 different SIM cards without causing any compromise on battery life, music features or messaging, we’re stoked to know more about the Nokia X1-01.

This unique handset is also a Dual-Standby device – where you can choose just which SIM card is used for calls, messages and other functions, while alternating between them in a jiffy from call to call. As for the Dual-Standby bit, it also means an advancement that most of you would like – you will always receive notification of calls and messages on each account without having to switch your SIM cards on and off.

The music-centric Nokia X1-01 is one loud puppy, delivering a whopping 106 phon level – where a phon is a unit of perceived loudness, so packing in more than a century of those on something so small means your ears will be treated to a really, really loud performance. Other hardware specifications include an SD memory card slot, an integrated FM radio, MP3 playback, music keys playback, a 3.5mm jack, and a flashlight – all going for just €34 when it ships this quarter.

Gear Deal: Dell XPS 15z Ultra-Thin Core i5 Laptop

2011-05-25T08:08:00.000-07:00

Dell XPS

Delll brings us the brand new 15.6″ XPS 15z Ultra-slim Laptop. It is available now starting at $999.99. The new laptop weighs 5.54lbs, is less than an inch thick and sports an anodized aluminum case. It has a backlit chiclet keyboard and a Magnesium alloy palmrest.

The XPS 15z is powered by the 2nd Generation Intel Core i5/ i7 “Sandy Bridge” processor, has up to 8GB RAM,has a 750GB 7200RPM Hard Drive and 2GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M of discrete graphics with Optimus. The laptop features HDMI 1.4, a miniDisplayPort, a 1.3-Megapixel Webcam, is Intel Wireless Display ready, has Bluetooth 3.0, 802.11n WiFi, two USB 3.0 ports, 9-in-1 card reader, and more.

Sony Ericsson Canada hacked

2011-05-25T08:05:00.000-07:00

After hacking Sony Music Japan, hackers hacked Sony Ericsson Canada . The hackers stole the names and email addresses of about 2,000 customers from the website adding to the growing list of stolen data retrieved from the company’s networks.

What started as an attack on the game network has spread to the rest of Sony’s businesses and it doesn’t look like it’s going to stop anytime soon. What will it take for the hackers to leave Sony alone? A public apology? A change in its policies? Its stocks have already fallen 24% this year according to Bloomberg Businessweek, and it’s probably going to keep dropping until the attacks top.

Are these cyber terrorists teaching the company a lesson in security? Or are they still lashing out at them for cracking down on PlayStation 3 hackers? Do you think Sony has suffered enough yet, and should these hackers move on with their lives?

Nokia Oro 18-Carat Smartphone Launched

2011-05-25T06:16:00.000-07:00

If the Nokia C7 wasn’t stylish enough the Nokia Oro delivers something a little special, in the form of 18-carat gold plating, a sapphire crystal and leather casing from one of Scotland’s finest Caledonian herds. To find out more about this rather unique take on the C7 join us after the jump.

High fashion, you either get it or you don’t, as long as your bank balance says you’ve got it why care. The Nokia Oro is set to cost 800 Euros, before taxes, and is designed with the Wag in your life. There is a choice of Nokia Oro Dark or Nokia Oro Light, with the difference being in the colour of the leather finish.

If you’re looking for a smartphone to help you stand out from the crowd then you may not be too bothered about the tech spec inside but the Nokia Oro has everything you’ll need, such as HSDPA 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity, as well as a 3.5-inch AMOLED touchscreen display.

If you want to take photos of your glamorous, or of the paps following you, then the 8-megapixel camera with 720p video recording is all you’ll ever need.

If bling is your thing, the Nokia Oro will start selling in selected countries across the Europe, Eastern Europe, China and the Middle East in Q3 2011.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Play Up For Pre-Order At Amazon For $99.99

2011-05-25T06:12:00.000-07:00

Sony Ericsson announced the world’s first PlayStation certified smartphone, the Xperia Play at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2011 in Barcelona. This handset runs on the Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)Operating System and it will be exclusively available on the airwaves of Verizon in the US. Xperia Play is already available for pre-order at Verizon for $199.99 with a 2 years service agreement. If you are planning to buy this handset and save a few bucks, then you can go ahead and pre-order the powerfulXperia Play from Amazon for just $99.99.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Play comes with a 4 inch capacitive multi-touch display with 480 x 854 pixels resolution, 1 GHz Scorpion ARMv7 processor, Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) OS, slide-out gaming keypad, 5 megapixel camera with auto-focus and flash, 400 MB internal memory, microSD card slot, 8 GB microSD card included, up to 32 GB expandable memory and more.

Other features include a 3.5 mm audio jack, Bluetooth stereo (A2DP), PlayNow service, USB 2.0, Wi-Fi Connectivity, Sony Ericsson Music player, Gesture gaming, Motion gaming, aGPS, DLNA Certified, Micro USB, Android Market, Android Cloud to Device messaging, up to 8 hrs 25 min talk-time, up to 425 hrs standby time, up to 5 hrs 35 min game play time, up to 30 hrs 35 min music playback and a 1500 mAh battery.

This handset will be released on May 26th, but if you pre-order this smartphone from Amazon, then you will have to wait for 8 to 9 days, since the phone is currently listed as backordered on Amazon. Xperia Play will ship with 7 games – Asphalt 6, Madden NFL 11, Bruce Lee Dragon Warrior, The Sims, Star Battalion, Crash Bandicoot and Tetris.

Apple: Mac OS X update coming to block MacDefender malware

2011-05-25T04:49:00.000-07:00

Good news for people who’ve been infected with the Mac Defender malware that’s been making its rounds on Mac computers all over the world. According to an announcement from Apple this afternoon, they will be releasing an update for Mac OS X that will automatically find and remove the software from your computer. Everything is fine in the world of Macs again.

But for those who want to remove it by themselves, Apple has posted the instructions online on the Mac Support site. There aren’t a lot of steps involved and it’s not very complicated, so even a novice will be able to get rid of the malware by him/herself.

I’m pretty sure most of you weren’t hit by Mac Defender, but it’s always good to know that the malware will now just be another thing of the past. Be careful every time you open a link and every time you’re prompted to enter something important such as your password or credit card number – make sure you’re not on some phishing site or being tricked by some malware on your computer.

Google May Unveil Its Mobile Payments System This Week

2011-05-25T04:43:00.000-07:00

Google will announce a new mobile payments service on Thursday, Bloomberg reports. The new service utilizes Near Field Communications (NFC) and so will be only be available on those Android phones that have that technology - namely, the Nexus S from Sprint.

By utilizing NFC, this new mobile payments service will mean that consumers will be able to pay for goods and redeem handsets via specially equipped NFC cash registers. According to Bloomberg, the service will get a trial run in five cities - New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington DC

Bloomberg says that Google is using hardware and software from VeriFone Systems and ViVOtech in order to run the service, but we might see some other companies involved too, including perhaps Mastercard which has been on the forefront of both NFC and mobile payments.

There have been a number of rumors and reports circulating lately about Google's plans for NFC and mobile payments, particularly as its Gingerbread Android OS added support for NFC and as Google incorporated the technology into a number of its local services, such as Hotpot.

Google refused to comment on this latest story, but has sent out invitations to a press event scheduled that day.

Windows Phone Mango details announced by Microsof

2011-05-25T04:34:00.000-07:00

Nokia has taken note of Microsoft’s announcement concerning the new Windows Phone 7 (better known as Mango – what is it with all these fruity names?) that will be demonstrated on several Nokia handsets. You might find yourself taking some time to get used to the “Nokia with Windows Phone” branding – after all, it isn’t as natural as HTC’s partnership with Google right from the get go.

Nokia has this to say about their strategic partnership, “Today Microsoft has announced the key new ingredients of the latest ‘Mango’ release of the Windows Phone operating system. This is the software that will be used on the first Nokia with Windows Phone device, and so should be of keen interest to Nokia-watchers everywhere.”

Interestingly enough, Microsoft already has Nokia phones that run on Mango in its labs, and in this day and age, with no leak occuring it is nothing short of a miracle. You also cannot rule out a possibility of a CDMA Nokia handset down the road, as Nokia is surely heading down that path in order to regain its former glory. Do you think the partnership with Microsoft will bear much fruit?