PALO ALTO, USA: waze Inc., the first free provider of driver-generated maps and real-time road information, announced the public beta of its mobile application for Android users, who are invited to download the application at the Android market.
Through a community-based approach, waze harnesses driver-generated data to build navigable road maps and provide real-time information to commuters on the most optimal route to their destination as well as the latest road conditions, traffic updates, street closures, speed traps and more. The application first opened as a private alpha in San Francisco, and is now available nationwide to all with an Android phone.
“The Android community was the first to receive access to waze alpha in the US. These users are forming the core of our community, and we now look forward to welcoming even more Android users into waze’s network of drivers, nationally,” said Noam Bardin, CEO.
“By building a community of drivers on the road, we are able to provide the real-time road intelligence that helps commuters answer the every-day question, ‘Which way should I go today?’ We are excited to open our doors to all Android users and invite them into our community of drivers.”
As the waze application runs on a user’s smartphone, it automatically and anonymously sends back GPS points as they drive. This data is used to build and constantly update the road grid, driving directions, road changes, traffic flow, and more. waze also uses aggregated driving speed data to determine traffic jams and other changes in road conditions.
All of this information is collected passively, but drivers can also take a more active role, reporting road problems and map inaccuracies easily from their mobile device; more extensive map editing is done via the waze website. The waze map platform is soon to open APIs to allow developers to build other features and applications that leverage the waze-generated collection of live map data.
waze will soon announce availability of the application on additional mobile platforms.
Showing posts with label Android smartphones. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Android smartphones. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Huawei showcases smartphones at CommunicAsia 2009
HYDERABAD, ANDHRA PRADESH: Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd today showcased two new smartphones at CommunicAsia 2009 in Singapore -– the Android-powered U8230, and the C8000, which use the Windows Mobile operating system.
Equipped with the latest mobile handset technologies, the new smartphones were being exhibited in advance of their commercial release in the second half of 2009.
The Android-powered U8230 smartphone allows users to switch between full and half QWERTY keyboards and to navigate programs easily via a 3.5-inch LCD touch screen. Huawei’s U8230 uses the Google Chrome Internet browser which supports a variety of Google applications such as Google Map, Google Search and Google Talk. It is also fitted with a battery which has a capacity of 1500 mAH - the longest battery capacity among Android-powered handsets currently available.
The C8000, which supports Windows Mobile operating software, incorporates a 3-D menu GUI and a unique independent display adapter, which enables the smooth presentation of video files and DVD-quality pictures on a 2.8-inch touch screen. With optimized power management, the new handset is capable of playing video files continuously for six to eight hours.
“Having joined the Open Handset Alliance in 2008, Huawei is rapidly moving forward with the development of cutting-edge high-end handsets, especially smartphones powered by Android and Windows Mobile operating systems,” said Glory Chueng, the spokesperson of Huawei Terminals. “The U8230 and the C8000 handsets on display here at CommunicAsia take the interactivity experience of smartphones to a whole new level, and Huawei is looking forward to working with our customers to bring them to market later this year.”
Huawei plans to launch a series of touchscreen handsets that support WCDMA, CDMA, and TD-SCDMA standards in the second half of 2009. Meanwhile, Huawei’s progress in handset sales is gaining momentum, with shipments of CDMA handsets recently surpassing the 50 million mark.
Equipped with the latest mobile handset technologies, the new smartphones were being exhibited in advance of their commercial release in the second half of 2009.
The Android-powered U8230 smartphone allows users to switch between full and half QWERTY keyboards and to navigate programs easily via a 3.5-inch LCD touch screen. Huawei’s U8230 uses the Google Chrome Internet browser which supports a variety of Google applications such as Google Map, Google Search and Google Talk. It is also fitted with a battery which has a capacity of 1500 mAH - the longest battery capacity among Android-powered handsets currently available.
The C8000, which supports Windows Mobile operating software, incorporates a 3-D menu GUI and a unique independent display adapter, which enables the smooth presentation of video files and DVD-quality pictures on a 2.8-inch touch screen. With optimized power management, the new handset is capable of playing video files continuously for six to eight hours.
“Having joined the Open Handset Alliance in 2008, Huawei is rapidly moving forward with the development of cutting-edge high-end handsets, especially smartphones powered by Android and Windows Mobile operating systems,” said Glory Chueng, the spokesperson of Huawei Terminals. “The U8230 and the C8000 handsets on display here at CommunicAsia take the interactivity experience of smartphones to a whole new level, and Huawei is looking forward to working with our customers to bring them to market later this year.”
Huawei plans to launch a series of touchscreen handsets that support WCDMA, CDMA, and TD-SCDMA standards in the second half of 2009. Meanwhile, Huawei’s progress in handset sales is gaining momentum, with shipments of CDMA handsets recently surpassing the 50 million mark.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
iPhone 3G S: 'Lack of innovation' hides true assets
Comment from Tony Cripps, principal analyst, Ovum
UK: Apple’s faithful may be disappointed with the iPhone 3GS’s apparent failure to move the smartphone goalposts, but the refinement of the device through continual software platform evolution remains a key differentiator that others should emulate where possible.
iPhone’s real beauty is its ability to refresh itself
Apple’s latest iPhone offered few surprises to those familiar with the iPhone SDK 3.0 – new features are, after all, ultimately constrained by the capabilities of the device’s software. While this might disappoint Apple’s devoted followers, underlying this gradual evolution is Apple’s key contribution to the smartphone space –- namely, proving the value of firmware upgrades to refresh its devices, whether the new iPhone 3GS, its predecessors or its iPod Touch cousins.
While mobile software management and firmware upgrades (over the air or otherwise) have long been touted as potentially valuable tools for operators and manufacturers, they won’t typically work well across a broad portfolio of devices –- too many variations make the creation and distribution of updates hard to manage.
Apple broke this impasse by effectively limiting its device platform to a single variant. While this has the effect of limiting hardware innovation (all iterations of the iPhone are, barring core phone functions, similar), the payback has been the ability to gradually evolve the device through software, while relying on a proven -– and still a benchmark -– hardware design.
For consumers, the end result is a device that improves over time and isn’t rendered redundant by the next update or uber device from a rival. The opening up of the device to third-party applications is the most visible evidence of this (spawning the billion-plus downloads to date) but the smaller improvements haven’t hurt either.
Browser tweaks, touch-screen sensitivity and many other features have all notably improved the device since its first iteration, without having to change the physical device itself. Increased stickiness between Apple and the consumer is the end result.
It’s no surprise to see Google following suit with Android. Indeed, the recent 1.5 ‘cupcake’ release (over the air, to boot) has had similar benefits, and from a lower starting point. This has considerably improved the user experience of the HTC/T-Mobile G1, helping build confidence between buyer and vendor.
Others are also recognising the benefits of such refreshes. Nokia’s 5800 touch-screen phone received a similar upgrade, albeit user initiated. RIM also provides updates for more recent devices, although the upgrade process via a PC is both clunky and nerve-wracking. And there will be more.
True smartness lies in active management of experience, not the OS
The risk is in operators and makers of mainstream devices attempting to follow suit. As we said above, this is a difficult process to manage and variety, in devices, is absolutely not the spice of life in this instance.
Better, we feel, to see mobile devices in future falling into two main categories, neither of which corresponds neatly with divisions based on ‘smartness’ or ‘featureness’. These are:
* Those that are being actively managed by the controller off the software platform on the device, with the active participation of the user. Such devices are likely to remain fairly high end. Planned obsolescence through software becomes a viable means to alter this dynamic in time. Don’t be surprised to see Apple invoke this clause when it’s ready.
* Those that aren’t required to be actively managed by anyone. This could easily include many so-called smartphones as well as more basic devices –- the emphasis here should instead be on enabling cloud-based applications easily, but with little or no obligation to upgrade the experience over time.
Taking this bipartite approach will help avoid costly mistakes and help all parties in the mobile handset value chain to focus on core competencies.
Ovum expects 171.9 million smartphones globally to be shipped this year, a growth of 23 percent on 2008, and that smartphones will represent 15 percent of the total worldwide mobile phone market in 2009.
The concepts outlined here are explained in greater detail in the report Of iPhones and Androids: redefining the smartphone and other devices.
UK: Apple’s faithful may be disappointed with the iPhone 3GS’s apparent failure to move the smartphone goalposts, but the refinement of the device through continual software platform evolution remains a key differentiator that others should emulate where possible.
iPhone’s real beauty is its ability to refresh itself
Apple’s latest iPhone offered few surprises to those familiar with the iPhone SDK 3.0 – new features are, after all, ultimately constrained by the capabilities of the device’s software. While this might disappoint Apple’s devoted followers, underlying this gradual evolution is Apple’s key contribution to the smartphone space –- namely, proving the value of firmware upgrades to refresh its devices, whether the new iPhone 3GS, its predecessors or its iPod Touch cousins.
While mobile software management and firmware upgrades (over the air or otherwise) have long been touted as potentially valuable tools for operators and manufacturers, they won’t typically work well across a broad portfolio of devices –- too many variations make the creation and distribution of updates hard to manage.
Apple broke this impasse by effectively limiting its device platform to a single variant. While this has the effect of limiting hardware innovation (all iterations of the iPhone are, barring core phone functions, similar), the payback has been the ability to gradually evolve the device through software, while relying on a proven -– and still a benchmark -– hardware design.
For consumers, the end result is a device that improves over time and isn’t rendered redundant by the next update or uber device from a rival. The opening up of the device to third-party applications is the most visible evidence of this (spawning the billion-plus downloads to date) but the smaller improvements haven’t hurt either.
Browser tweaks, touch-screen sensitivity and many other features have all notably improved the device since its first iteration, without having to change the physical device itself. Increased stickiness between Apple and the consumer is the end result.
It’s no surprise to see Google following suit with Android. Indeed, the recent 1.5 ‘cupcake’ release (over the air, to boot) has had similar benefits, and from a lower starting point. This has considerably improved the user experience of the HTC/T-Mobile G1, helping build confidence between buyer and vendor.
Others are also recognising the benefits of such refreshes. Nokia’s 5800 touch-screen phone received a similar upgrade, albeit user initiated. RIM also provides updates for more recent devices, although the upgrade process via a PC is both clunky and nerve-wracking. And there will be more.
True smartness lies in active management of experience, not the OS
The risk is in operators and makers of mainstream devices attempting to follow suit. As we said above, this is a difficult process to manage and variety, in devices, is absolutely not the spice of life in this instance.
Better, we feel, to see mobile devices in future falling into two main categories, neither of which corresponds neatly with divisions based on ‘smartness’ or ‘featureness’. These are:
* Those that are being actively managed by the controller off the software platform on the device, with the active participation of the user. Such devices are likely to remain fairly high end. Planned obsolescence through software becomes a viable means to alter this dynamic in time. Don’t be surprised to see Apple invoke this clause when it’s ready.
* Those that aren’t required to be actively managed by anyone. This could easily include many so-called smartphones as well as more basic devices –- the emphasis here should instead be on enabling cloud-based applications easily, but with little or no obligation to upgrade the experience over time.
Taking this bipartite approach will help avoid costly mistakes and help all parties in the mobile handset value chain to focus on core competencies.
Ovum expects 171.9 million smartphones globally to be shipped this year, a growth of 23 percent on 2008, and that smartphones will represent 15 percent of the total worldwide mobile phone market in 2009.
The concepts outlined here are explained in greater detail in the report Of iPhones and Androids: redefining the smartphone and other devices.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Open Kernel Labs accelerates smartphone deployments with OK:Android
CHICAGO, USA: Open Kernel Labs (OK Labs), the leading provider of virtualization software for mobile phones and broadband internet devices, today introduced OK:Android, an off-the-shelf paravirtualized version of the Android smartphone platform.
Using Secure HyperCell Technology, OK:Android enables Android to be used as a guest operating system running in a secure hypercell on top of the OKL4 microvisor, the OK Labs mobile phone virtualization platform. OK:Android gives handset manufacturers (OEMs) a short path to developing and delivering new designs with Android. The combination of OK:Android and OKL4 also extends new levels of security and robustness to the increasingly popular smartphone OS from Google and the Open Handset Alliance (OHA).
To date, Android-based handsets have been delivered by Taiwan-based HTC, with additional designs announced by Motorola, Samsung and other handset OEMs. Although Google and the OHA have been successful in engaging device suppliers and building a developer community, semiconductor suppliers, mobile OEMs and mobile network operators (MNOs) still face the significant challenges involved in porting and hosting Android on current chipsets and on new mobile hardware.
By providing a flexible framework for Android integration with specific handset hardware and a straightforward way to reuse legacy software in new Android devices, OK:Android helps reduce time to market for a new wave of Android devices.
Since its introduction in 2008, Android has enjoyed a rapidly-growing market presence and bullish prospects for new deployments. One million Android-based handsets have shipped in 2008 as indicated by HTC; and research and consulting firm Strategy Analytics projects nine times that number in 2009.
“Virtualization technology is being evaluated by many handset OEMs today, primarily for its significant time-to-market benefits for new phone designs,” noted Andreas Constantinou, lead analyst at VisionMobile. OK Labs virtualization technology already ships in over 300 million mobile handsets, including Android-based devices where OKL4 runs on the baseband processor. With OK:Android and the OKL4 microvisor, OK Labs can further accelerate Android adoption for new designs.
“OK:Android builds on the strong synergies between the OKL4 microvisor and the Android mobile OS,” said Steve Subar, OK Labs CEO. “Both Android and OKL4 are based on dynamic open source projects, both are shipping in volume, and both streamline development through abstraction –- Android at the applications level and OKL4 for system software, including Android itself. Together in OK:Android, they offer OEMs, MNOs and ISVs a flexible, portable and secure applications and services platform.”
OK:Android: Platform for Mobile OEMs, MNOs and ISVs
The impact of OK:Android starts by helping OEMs bring designs to market faster, and further extends its impact by incorporating a range of benefits across the emerging Android ecosystem. In particular, OK:Android enables OEMs, MNOs and ISVs to:
* Offer new options for creating and prototyping Android-based devices and applications with embedded virtualization.
* Create more secure and robust mobile devices, applications and services with Android and OKL4.
* Run Android together with other mobile OSes and/or deploy multiple instances of Android on a single device.
* Consolidate hardware (e.g., base band and application CPU cores) for more aggressive price-points for Android-based handsets.
* Create new Android-based devices enabled for mobile-to-enterprise virtualization (M2E). M2E is a set of joint solutions developed by Citrix Systems, Inc. and OK Labs for delivering enterprise applications to mobile devices.
OK:Android and OKL4 are available immediately from OK Labs and its global channel partners.
Using Secure HyperCell Technology, OK:Android enables Android to be used as a guest operating system running in a secure hypercell on top of the OKL4 microvisor, the OK Labs mobile phone virtualization platform. OK:Android gives handset manufacturers (OEMs) a short path to developing and delivering new designs with Android. The combination of OK:Android and OKL4 also extends new levels of security and robustness to the increasingly popular smartphone OS from Google and the Open Handset Alliance (OHA).
To date, Android-based handsets have been delivered by Taiwan-based HTC, with additional designs announced by Motorola, Samsung and other handset OEMs. Although Google and the OHA have been successful in engaging device suppliers and building a developer community, semiconductor suppliers, mobile OEMs and mobile network operators (MNOs) still face the significant challenges involved in porting and hosting Android on current chipsets and on new mobile hardware.
By providing a flexible framework for Android integration with specific handset hardware and a straightforward way to reuse legacy software in new Android devices, OK:Android helps reduce time to market for a new wave of Android devices.
Since its introduction in 2008, Android has enjoyed a rapidly-growing market presence and bullish prospects for new deployments. One million Android-based handsets have shipped in 2008 as indicated by HTC; and research and consulting firm Strategy Analytics projects nine times that number in 2009.
“Virtualization technology is being evaluated by many handset OEMs today, primarily for its significant time-to-market benefits for new phone designs,” noted Andreas Constantinou, lead analyst at VisionMobile. OK Labs virtualization technology already ships in over 300 million mobile handsets, including Android-based devices where OKL4 runs on the baseband processor. With OK:Android and the OKL4 microvisor, OK Labs can further accelerate Android adoption for new designs.
“OK:Android builds on the strong synergies between the OKL4 microvisor and the Android mobile OS,” said Steve Subar, OK Labs CEO. “Both Android and OKL4 are based on dynamic open source projects, both are shipping in volume, and both streamline development through abstraction –- Android at the applications level and OKL4 for system software, including Android itself. Together in OK:Android, they offer OEMs, MNOs and ISVs a flexible, portable and secure applications and services platform.”
OK:Android: Platform for Mobile OEMs, MNOs and ISVs
The impact of OK:Android starts by helping OEMs bring designs to market faster, and further extends its impact by incorporating a range of benefits across the emerging Android ecosystem. In particular, OK:Android enables OEMs, MNOs and ISVs to:
* Offer new options for creating and prototyping Android-based devices and applications with embedded virtualization.
* Create more secure and robust mobile devices, applications and services with Android and OKL4.
* Run Android together with other mobile OSes and/or deploy multiple instances of Android on a single device.
* Consolidate hardware (e.g., base band and application CPU cores) for more aggressive price-points for Android-based handsets.
* Create new Android-based devices enabled for mobile-to-enterprise virtualization (M2E). M2E is a set of joint solutions developed by Citrix Systems, Inc. and OK Labs for delivering enterprise applications to mobile devices.
OK:Android and OKL4 are available immediately from OK Labs and its global channel partners.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Android smartphone shipments to grow 900 percent in 2009
BOSTON, USA: According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global Android smartphone shipments will grow 900 percent in 2009. Healthy support from operators, vendors and developers is driving adoption. Apple iPhone OS will be the next fastest-growing smartphone operating system in 2009, with a 79 percent growth rate.
Tom Kang, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, said: "We forecast global Android smartphone shipments to grow an impressive 900 percent annually during 2009. The Android mobile operating system from Google gained early traction in the United States in the second half of 2008 and it is gradually spreading its presence into Europe and Asia during 2009. Android is expanding from a low base and it is consequently outgrowing the iPhone OS from Apple, which we estimate will grow at a relatively lower 79 percent annually in 2009."
Neil Mawston, Director at Strategy Analytics, added: "Android has fast been winning healthy support among operators, vendors and developers. A relatively low-cost licensing model, its semi-open-source structure and Google's support for cloud services have encouraged companies such as HTC, Motorola, Samsung, T Mobile, Vodafone and others to support the Android operating system. Android is now in a good position to become a top-tier player in smartphones over the next two to three years."
Tom Kang, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, said: "We forecast global Android smartphone shipments to grow an impressive 900 percent annually during 2009. The Android mobile operating system from Google gained early traction in the United States in the second half of 2008 and it is gradually spreading its presence into Europe and Asia during 2009. Android is expanding from a low base and it is consequently outgrowing the iPhone OS from Apple, which we estimate will grow at a relatively lower 79 percent annually in 2009."
Neil Mawston, Director at Strategy Analytics, added: "Android has fast been winning healthy support among operators, vendors and developers. A relatively low-cost licensing model, its semi-open-source structure and Google's support for cloud services have encouraged companies such as HTC, Motorola, Samsung, T Mobile, Vodafone and others to support the Android operating system. Android is now in a good position to become a top-tier player in smartphones over the next two to three years."
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