Hasta La Gadget!

The stat guardians at IDC are among the most reliable sources for keeping track of the latest developments in the smartphone market, but we’ve got to say their forecasts haven’t always benefited from the same accuracy. It’s with this disclaimer that we present you the world of 2015 as seen through the IDC prism. In just four years’ time, says the data, Windows Phone 7 (or whatever version it reaches by then) will have ascended to occupy a fifth of the market and second spot overall behind Android, whose leading position is expected to stabilize somewhere around the 45 percent mark. Apple and RIM are projected to hold steady with shares close to where they are today. It has to be humbling for the IDC, which predicted Symbian would continue to dominate all the way into 2013, to now have to foretell of its almost complete extinction (a mere 0.2 percent) and total irrelevance in the smartphone market. Alas, while the new prediction sounds very reasonable today, four years of unknown unknowns is a mighty long time to try and forecast through, and we have a feeling we’ll be looking back and chuckling at this within a few short months — probably (hopefully!) in the midst of a massive webOS revival.

Continue reading IDC fails to learn from previous mistakes, issues 2015 smartphone predictions

IDC fails to learn from previous mistakes, issues 2015 smartphone predictions originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 09:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s skinny, it’s fast, and it can do some seriously fun stuff with its gyroscope accelerometer. Yes, we’re talking about the Galaxy S II, Samsung’s upcoming followup to one of Android’s biggest successes to date, the Galaxy S. The new handset will bring with it a revised version of Sammy’s Android skin, TouchWiz 4.0, which will harness the motion sensors inside the phone to allow you to zoom in and out of webpages as well as navigate the UI with the movement of your hands. Basically, instead of the traditional pinch-to-zoom, resting two fingers atop the screen will allow you to zoom in by bringing the S II closer to your face or zoom out by holding it further away — a naturalistic gesture that makes all the sense in the world to us. Moreover, when adding new widgets to your home panels, you’ll be able to move between them by propelling the phone laterally. It’s quirky and appealing stuff, see it on video below.

[Thanks, Lawrence]

Update: We initially thought this was done using the gyroscope inside the Galaxy S II, but as commenter ClioCreslind helpfully points out, it’s far likelier that Samsung’s using the phone’s accelerometer to achieve its new fanciness.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy S II shows off motion-zoom option in TouchWiz 4.0 (video)

Samsung Galaxy S II shows off motion-zoom option in TouchWiz 4.0 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 06:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While one group of Android phone makers is swinging towards locking their hardware down, Sony Ericsson is resolutely headed in the other direction. The Swedo-Japanese consortium has just announced it will provide a secure and legal way for eager Android hackers to gain full control of the bootloader on some of its upcoming 2011 Xperia line of phones. All four models are covered, the Xperia Play, Neo, Pro, and Arc, however you have to make sure you buy a handset that isn’t SIM-locked to a carrier and then there are territorial considerations to take into account. Warranties may still be voided by fooling around with your Xperia’s software (again, depends on individual handsets and markets) and SE warns gravely of the potential for “physical injuries or material damage” if you freak your Android into overheating or worse. So proceed with caution, but know that Sony Ericsson is by your side*.

* Subject to terms and conditions, repair charges may be incurred, Android upgrades are promised but never guaranteed.

Sony Ericsson will let you unlock the bootloader on new Xperia Android phones — subject to conditions originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 04:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Earlier this year, HTC allowed its previously Verizon-exclusive brand name out to prowl the globe with the Incredible S, and now it’s doing the same with the heretofore Sprint-only EVO moniker. The EVO 3D, says a tweet from HTC’s French mouthpiece, is coming to the land of baguettes, stylish mustaches and stripy pullovers, though a little bit of mystery remains as to when exactly its arrival shall be. Whatever the schedule (the EVO 3D’s set for a “summer” release in the US), the rest of Europe’s unlikely to be left out, meaning a 4.3-inch superphone with a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1080p video recording in 2D and 720p in 3D, HTC’s newest Sense skin and Android’s freshest Gingerbread build, is headed out to the Old World. And that, fellow pilgrims, is a mighty awesome thing indeed.

Continue reading HTC EVO 3D coming to Europe, keeping the sexy name and specs

HTC EVO 3D coming to Europe, keeping the sexy name and specs originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 21:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Korean electronics manufacturer LG may be working on a Google-branded "Nexus" tablet.

Google is preparing its own hardware entry into the Android tablet market in collaboration with device manufacturer LG, according to a report circulating Monday morning.

The device will be an LG-made “Nexus” tablet, Google’s signature product name for its collaborations with independent hardware manufacturers, the report says.

The tablet could be complete by mid-summer to early autumn, according to speculation from tech site Mobile Review. The site did not disclose any further details or hardware specifications on the speculated device. One caveat: the LG-produced device could just be a prototype used internally by Google for development, as noted by The Boy Genius Report.

Google did not respond to our request for comment on the matter.

If a Google-branded tablet hits market, this wouldn’t be Google’s first entry into branding devices from outside manufacturers. Google’s previous Nexus devices include the HTC-manufactured Nexus One smartphone, which was widely regarded as a failure after lackluster sales and a lukewarm reception from the general public. The Samsung-produced Nexus S followed in late 2010, a phone that garnered much hype upon its initial release, but has been passed over by the myriad 2011 smartphone releases, which boast beefier hardware profiles and heftier ad campaigns.

A Google-branded Nexus tablet may have a better chance at success than its smartphone Nexus predecessors, however. Among other reasons, the Nexus One’s difficulties lay in AT&T’s and Verizon’s unwillingness to subsidize the handset — only T-Mobile (the carrier in last place in the U.S. in terms of adoption) backed the release.

While carrier subsidies can help sales, a new tablet’s popularity isn’t necessarily contingent on whether or not the major carriers are willing to play ball. Wi-Fi only versions of tablets like Apple’s iPad and the Motorola Xoom are sold at significantly lower prices than their 3G network-enabled counterparts, which means more potential sales without the headache of carrier choosing for customers.

But any new entry into the already crowded tablet market must take into account other factors, including a healthy media ecosystem and competitive pricing. Currently, the Android Market hosts over 200,000 apps for download, with many more available on independent, unofficial markets. Apple’s app store is home to double that amount at over 400,000. Recent improvements to Android’s payment system such as the launch of its web-based Android Market in February, however, could give Google more traction in developing its app environment.

LG is already producing its own Android-based tablet in collaboration with Google, the brevity-lacking “T-Mobile G-Slate with Google by LG.” The G-Slate will run Android version 3.0 (Honeycomb), and will be capable of playing and recording 3D and full HD video content.

See Also:

• LG Promises Two New Android Phones, Tablet
• LG’s Glasses-Free 3-D Phone is Pretty Impressive
• Gingerbread