Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Android and Me

Android and Me

ComScore finds Android and Samsung still dominating mobile

Posted: 02 Jul 2012 12:47 PM PDT

android-chart-up-300

ComScore has just released their latest quarterly mobile phone report, revealing the leaders in both platform and manufacturer market share in the US. Not much has changed since ComScore’s last report, which means Android and Samsung are still well in the lead.

According to ComScore, Android controls 50.9% of the smartphone market in the US. The second closest platform is of course iOS, with 31.9%. Everyone else in the industry, including RIM, Microsoft and Symbian, own less than 17% combined. RIM’s BlackBerry OS and Symbian are continuing to lose market share, slipping 2.4% together, while Microsoft is struggling to gain traction with Windows Phone. Microsoft may not have lost market share, but their 0.1% gain gives Windows Phone a mere 4% of the market overall.

As far as manufacturers go, smartphone platform market share is well reflected. When counting both phones and smartphones, Samsung owns 25.7% of the market. A 0.1% increase over last quarter. LG comes in second with 19.1% and Apple in third with 15%, but LG fell 0.3%, while Apple gained 1.5%.

With the way things are headed in the US, I wouldn’t expect these numbers to change too drastically before the end of the year. Apple may gobble up a bigger piece of the pie with the release of the iPhone 5 this fall, but demand for the Galaxy S III has been enormous. That combined with the highly anticipated Note II and whatever else HTC has up their sleeve should help balance things out.

Galaxy S III coming to AT&T July 6th, starting at $199.99

Posted: 02 Jul 2012 11:04 AM PDT

galaxy-s-iii-back-blue

The flagship Android device of 2012 is going on sale at AT&T stores this Friday, July 6th. Pricing will match that of other carriers, with the 16GB variant going for $199.99, and the 32GB model retailing at $249.99. In addition to the Marble White and Pebble Blue options, AT&T will be offering a red variant, though the red model won’t be available until later this summer.

What more can we say about the Galaxy S III? It’s easily the best Android smartphone on the market today, and likely will be for quite some time. The extra GB of RAM (2GB) makes the phone really fly, and will ensure the device receives the latest and greatest Android OSes for a lengthy period of time.

Full Specs for the Galaxy S III include:

  • 4.8″ Super AMOLED HD display
  • 1.5 GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor
  • 2GB RAM
  • Android 4.0
  • 8 megapixel rear camera with zero shutter lag
  • 1.9 megapixel front-facing camera
  • NFC
  • LTE/HSPA+ 42 connectivity (varies by carrier)
  • S-Voice
  • 16/32 GB on-board storage
  • 2,100 mAh battery

Who out there is planning on making the Galaxy S III their next Android phone? Sound off in the comments.

Dead Trigger coming to the Play Store today (update: tomorrow) for $0.99

Posted: 02 Jul 2012 08:36 AM PDT

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Madfinger Games, the company that brought us the likes of Shadowgun, have announced that Dead Trigger will be finally making its way to the Google Play Store today tomorrow, July 3rd. Dead Trigger is a zombie-blasting first person shooter game that has you as a gun-toting survivor hellbent on staying alive with your group of newly-found comrades. Of course, Dead Trigger continues the partnership with NVIDIA, and has been optimized to provide killer graphics on Tegra 3 powered devices.

Dead Trigger is a mission-based system, where each level takes you anywhere from 2-10 minutes, perfect for picking up when you have a minimal amount of spare time. Each mission has you either killing all the zombies in an area, retrieving/collecting items and bringing them to an evac point, or holding a location for a period of time.

As you progress, you’ll be able to upgrade weapons and items using money and gold you accumulate, both of which can be had via an in-app purchase if you want the most firepower early in the game. Weapons and items unlock for purchase as you progress in level, similar to most first-person-shooter games out there.

We will bring you additional impressions of Dead Trigger once we’re able to get our hands on it for a prolonged period of time. Suffice it to say that this game is a steal for $0.99. If you like Zombie games, you simply owe it to yourself to pick up the latest from Madfinger Games when it launches on the Play Store tomorrow.

Note: The following market link will go live when the game does.

Download App in the Android Market PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE goes on sale July 5 for $150

Posted: 02 Jul 2012 06:30 AM PDT

droid incredible 4g lte

The DROID Incredible series has been a solid entry to mid-range player on the Verizon Wireless network. HTC and Verizon are set to launch the next generation of Incredible on July 5th in Verizon stores, and will retail for $149.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate debit card. While not the Galaxy S III we know several of you readers are looking for, the DROID Incredible 4G LTE is a solid device for those of you who think 4.8″ screens are a tad on the large side.

HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE specificiations

  • 1.2Ghz dual-core Qualcomm S4 processor
  • 1GB of RAM
  • 4-inch qHD (960×540) Super LCD display (with Corning Gorilla Glass)
  • 8GB of internal storage
  • 8 megapixel camera with autofocus, LED flash, BSI f/2.2, 28mm lens and 1080p HD video recording
  • VGA front-facing camera
  • Size: 4.8 x 2.4 x .46 inches
  • Weight: 132 grams (4.66 ounces)
  • 1700 mAh removable battery
  • WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n
  • 3.5mm headphone jack
  • Beats Audio
  • Bluetooth 2.0
  • NFC
  • LTE
  • G-Sensor, Light Sensor, Digital Compass, Proximity Sensor
  • Android 4.0
  • HTC Sense 4.0

We’ve got the DROID Incredible 4G LTE in our hands now, and should have a full review of the device later this week. Anyone out there interested in the Incredible 4G LTE, or do you have your sights set on the Galaxy S III?
Posted by at 7:36 AM

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