Thursday, March 31, 2011

Today's Headlines

Maybe It Is Rocket Science:  Popular Science Sells 10,000 App Subscriptions in First 5 Weeks
Mashable
In a development that should cheer the hearts of magazine publishers, Ppular Science magazine has generated more than 10,000 subscriptions for its iPad app.  It's a fraction of its 1.2 million print subscriptions but it bodes well for the future of magazine apps. Since its launch in April 2010, the magazine has been selling an average of 10,000 to 12,000 single issues per month at $4.99 apiece, the same as its basic newsstand cover price.

Amazon Creates Digital Storefront for Android Apps
The New York Times
Last week the Amazon Appstore debuted selling only Android apps.  In the opinion of New York Times writer Bob Tedeshi, "Those who visit Amazon’s Appstore on their devices get a better shopping experience than they would get at Google’s Android Market."

In 7 Years, Tablets and E-Readers Will Generate 50% of Revenue for Book and Magazine Publishers
Publishing Executive
According to David Renard of mediaIDEAS, "We forecast that by 2020 there will be more than 1.1 billion tablets and e-paper e-readers in use worldwide, and more than 260 million in the U.S. alone. Over the next 7 years, this will represent more than 50 percent of our revenue as an industry"

Most Expensive Country to Buy an iPad 2?  Hungary
San Francisco Chronicle
Residents of the country have to pay $736, according to this report. 

Ranking the Top Three Tablets:  iPad 2, Xoom and Playbook
ABC News
Tech contributing editor Andreas Smith discusses the top tablets.  (Video)

Analyst:  iPad 2 Sales This Year Could Reach 30 Million
TUAW (The Unofficial Apple Weblog)
Wall Street analyst Charlie Wolf of Needham & Company is now predicting that Apple will sell 30 million iPads this year, 10 million more than his original estimate. And, he predicts, Apple will sell 40 million in 2011.

Apps for Android Barely Increasing
PadGadget
Nearly a month after the Motorola Xoom was released, the first Honeycomb tablet, the number of Android tablet apps available in Google’s Android Market has hardly budged.  According to Electronista, developer Justin Williams looked through the Android Market and found there were fewer than 100 Android 3 native apps.

PC Manufacturers Stung by Surging Sales of Tablets and E-Readers
PDF Devices
Sales of tablets and eReaders have doubled and tripled in 2010. These developments have been great news for Apple, Samsung, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon, but it has created problems for PC manufacturers.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Today's Headlines

Microsoft Fighting Apple's App Store Trademark
The Register
As part of its battle, Microsoft has hired a linguistic expert, Dr. Ronald R. Butters, Professor Emeritus, English and cultural anthropology, at Duke University, who supportsMicrosoft's ongoing claims that the app store name is generic. "The compound noun app store means simply ‘store at which apps are offered for sale’, which is merely a definition of the thing itself – a generic characterization," he writes in a declaration filed with the USPTO.

Tablet Market Heats Up as Lenovo and Asustek Prepare Models
The Wall Street Journal
Both Lenovo’s LePad tablet and Asustek’s product, called Eee Pad Transformer, have 10-inch screens and use Google’s Android operating system.  The devices are already sold in China. 

World's Worst-Named Tablet Ready to Be Released
Good Gear Guide
At an event in Sydney, Australia today, Acer unveiled its iPad competitor the Iconia A500 Android tablet. It's set to hit Australian retailers in mid-April.  It boasts a ten-inch screen and it runs the Honeycomb operating system. 


Did Steve Jobs Give President Obama an iPad 2?
The Daily Mail
The London Daily speculates that Steve Jobs gifted the technology-challenged President an iPad 2 in February. 

Office Depot to Begin Selling RIM's Playbook
All Things D
The office supply giant joins Best Buy, Radio Shack and Staples that will offer the tablet on April 19. 

With Close to 3 Million in Sales, Color Nook May Be iPad's True Rival
The Pop Herald
Nook Color doesn’t have a camera, but many believe that the cheaper asking price of the Nook Color (compared to other Android tablets), is one of the reasons why it reached millions of sales. Plus, the Nook Color is a WiFi only-like “tablet,” so it’s carrier-independent.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Today's Headlines

NY Times App to Cost $260 a Year as Company Erects Pay Wall
The New York Times
Readers can access 20 articles a month for free.  Once readers click on their 21st article, they will have the option of buying one of three digital news packages — $15 every four weeks for access to the Web site and a mobile phone app (or $195 for a full year), $20 for Web access and an iPad app ($260 a year) or $35 for an all-access plan ($455 a year).

E-Book Sales Soar in 2011
Reuters
Sales of electronic books in January increased by more than 115 percent compared to the same time the year before, a report released by the Association of American Publishers.

Thinner iPad 2 Glass May Lead to More Breaks
Computerworld
Apple's decision to shave the iPad 2's profile and reduce its weight may mean a slight increase in broken screens, a repair expert said today.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Today's Headlines

Sneak Peek at Dell's Tablet-Netbook Hybrid
The Register
Dell's Inspiron Duo attempts to combine the best of a tablet with the best of a netbook (remember those?).  Read this article to see if it succeeds. 

Why Apple's Stock Plunged Despite Roaring Success of iPad2
Gigaom
Among the causes for the worst drop in nine months:  Apple’s heavy reliance on Japanese components, which  is causing investor jitters in light of last week’s earthquake and tsunami.

Problems in Japan Resulting in Availability of iPad2
Mobiledia
Customers who ordered the iPad 2 earlier this week face a wait time of a month or more because of supply chain disruptions resulting from the Japanese earthquake, tsunamis and nuclear reactor troubles. 

Review of iMovie for iPad 2
MacWorld
That tactile interactivity makes video editing more engaging. Users get a better sense of assembling the movie using fingers instead of being once removed by the mouse on a computer.  Four stars (out of five).

Wow, That Was Fast!  Verizon Captures 12% of U.S. iPhone Market
Macworld (from Network World)
Since Verizon began selling the iPhone 4 more than a month ago, it has already snared as much as 12.7 percent of the U.S. iPhone market, according to stats released by ad network Chitika. 

Five Lessons Learned from Magazine Apps
eBookNewswer
Lesson #2:  hire a veteran Hollywood actor like Travel + Leisure did with Andrew McCarthy to direct your videos.  It helps get your app noticed. 

The Terrible Price of Free:  Reading Jane Austen Via Google's E-Books
The Scholarly Kitchen
Writer Joe Esposito's conclusion:  "Rather than pay for the Penguin or any other edited version of Austen, I decided to be a cheapskate and searched for free Google versions.  And that’s when things began to go wrong.  The Google editions were packed with errors."

The Battle at the Digital Newsstand
eMedia Vitals
There are many questions about the future of digital newsstands.  Speaking Thursday at an event hosted by MPA, executives from Next Issue Media, Pixel Mags and Zinio continued to tease out forthcoming newsstand products. And there was no shortage of panelist digs at Apple's subscription plan.

Good-bye Kindle.  Hello Indle (Yep...Another E-Reading Device)
Vanity Fair
Problem: You’re tempted by the convenience of Amazon’s Kindle or the iPad but don’t want to put your beloved independent bookstore out of business. Solution: the Indle, the new portable electronic reader from DimLight, a nationwide consortium of more than 300 indie book merchants.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Today's Headlines

Look Out iTunes:  HP Developing App Store
The Register
HP's cloud and its app store will be based on - and will deliver software based on - technology that it has both acquired and built, in addition to software from partners.  The s company said on Monday that it plans an Amazon-like public cloud and Apple-like app store that serves apps to consumers and business users on smart devices.


Google Should Run App Store More Like Apple's iTunes
Business Insider
 In an interview with Business Insider, MLB.com's Bob Bowman says Google should do a better job curating its app store. Android owners seem less interested in paying for apps than iPhone owners -- perhaps in some part because of the way Google runs its store. Bowman estimates app sales are 5-to-1 in favor of Apple over Google, despite the fact that there are more Android subscribers in the U.S. than iPhone subscribers.
Why Thinner Isn't Always Better:  Reflections on iPad 2
Mashable
Here's the problem that this writer sees:  "Lighter, faster and more confident as it seems — as a lot of us seem when we get thinner — it also gets much hotter in your lap, feels slightly cheaper, and its upgrade process is significantly flawed."

10 Reasons Consumers Snapped Up iPad 2 Last Weekend
eWeek
Reasons number 1 and 5:  The cameras matter and the color white.

4 Reasons Not to Get a White iPad 2
 ismashphone
Reasons number 3 and 4:  Grime will be visible around the white home button and a possible lower resale value.

New WiFi Tablets:  Too Little, Too Late?
BusinessWeek
Unlike Apple's iPad2, new tablets from Samsung, RIM and Motorola are essentially unproven and offer far fewer apps.  

"Angry Birds Rio" Debuting Via Amazon App Store
PC Magazine
The new version of the popular game, which ties into the feature film "Rio," will debut exclusively on the Android App Store. Amazon did not say when its App Store will launch, but Rovio, the manufacturer of the game, said Angry Birds Rio will be available on March 22

Publishers Mull Expiration Date for Library E-Books
The New  York Times
For years, public libraries building their e-book collections have typically done so with the agreement from publishers that once a library buys an e-book, it can lend it out, one reader at a time, an unlimited number of times.  Now, with the popular advent of tablets, publishers are reconsidering those arrangements. Already, Harper Collins is enforcing restrictions that allows one of its e-books to be checked out only 26 times.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Today's Headlines

Sold Out!  Buyers Flock to iPad 2 
Mashable
The iPad 2 sold out in its first weekend in stores according to Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster and his team, which surveyed Apple retail stores over the weekend.

Sales of iPad 2 Rattle the Cash Register in First Weekend with 500,000 Units Sold
24/7 Wall St
Analysts expect the new device to be a powerful sales engine for the company for at least the next two years.  But they are wary of competition and the criticism that iPad 2 lacks a fast processor. 

NYC College Student Sells Her Spot in line at Apple Store for $900
Mashable
After waiting more than 40 hours at the head of the line at Apple's flagship Manhattan store, a college student sold her spot to an eager buyer for $900.  The buyer was an app developer.  The student plans to use the cash to buy a ticket to a Lady Gaga concert. 


Tablet Deathmatch:  iPad 2 vs Motorola Xoom
Yahoo News
The initial assessment:  "The iPad 2 neutralizes the Xoom's advantages, giving the iPad an overall edge. But let's not forget that the Xoom remains a strong choice for tablet buyers -- and its approach to app widgets continues to pose an advantage over the iPad 2."

 Is Google One Pass a One-Way Street
Cleeng
While it addresses the need for single registration and cross-browser readership, the challenge with One Pass is that it forces both Publishers and Users to get into a locked ecosystem, with limited flexibility toward future market evolutions. It limits freedom

Friday, March 11, 2011

Today's Headlines

The Insider's Guide to iPad 2 Launch Day
Macworld
Answers questions like how to get an iPad 2, what types of models are available, and what the editors think  of the device. 

iPad 2 Now Available While Competitors Appear Stymied
AllThingsD
Says "Mobilized" columnist Ina Fried:  "...what strikes me is that while Apple is now ready with its second-generation tablet, many of its would-be rivals still haven’t made it out of the starting gate."

3 Software Programs That Add to the Appeal of iPad 2 (as if that's needed)
The New York Times
Tech columnist David Pogue cites iMovie, Photo Booth and GarageBand. 

2010 Shipments of Tablets Estimated at Close to 18 Million
Businessweek
Apple Inc. and other makers of tablet computers shipped nearly 18 million of the devices worldwide in 2010 and are expected to ship 50 million in 2011, according to research group IDC.

What Publishers Can Expect with the Google and Apple Digital Newsstands
Folio
A q&a with the head of consumer marketing for publishing giant Bonnier on two early digital newsstand efforts. 

Popularity of E-Book Lending Mushrooms
The Wall Street Journal
In the past few months, online clubs with such names as BookLending.com and Lendle.me have proliferated. The sites, some of which have gathered thousands of users, allow strangers to borrow and lend e-books for  Kindle and Nook free.
 


 

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Today's Headlines

Free iPad App Uses Twitter to Personalize News Sites
USA Today
With half of all iPad owners using their devices to read magazines or newspapers, the race is on to develop apps that cater to this burgeoning market. Zite, a new app that debuts today, personalizes news stories based on the user's Twitter activity. 

Steve Colbert Really, Really Wants iPad 2 (or maybe iPad 3)
Comedy Central
He wants it so badly that he can taste it (and he says it tastes like apples and Steve Jobs's beard). As for iPad 3:  "I heard it's going to have a built-in time-machine, so you can immediately travel ahead a year and buy the iPad 4."

Samsung Galaxy Tab Big Brother Set for March  22 Release
Endgadget
This version will be slightly larger at 8.9 inches. 


RIM's Playbook Tablet to Come Pre-Installed with Huge Music Store (not iTunes)
Reuters
Blackberry-maker Research In Motion will release its long-awaited PlayBook tablet computer with Britain's 7digital music store.The music store of 7digital, half-owned by HMV, which has some 13 million tracks, will be pre-installed on the tablet at its launch in the United States and Canada, with further international roll out in 2011.

Barclay's Lowers RIM's Profit Projections
International Business Times
An aging lineup of products is hurting the company.  The unveiling of the Playbook this quarter is expected to have only a modest impact.


Review of the Advent Vega Tablet
TheRegister
After 30 minutes, the reviewer felt a strong urge to fling the device across the office. 


Why I'm Returning My Motorola Xoom
Gotta Be Mobile
Critic Xavier Lanier writes, "The number one reason I’m returning the device is because I’m simply not using it as much as I had expected to.  The user experience still some rough edges and  I just don’t have the patience to wait for the Honeycomb ecosystem to evolve"

Avon Launches Digital Imprint for Romance Titles
PC Magazine
According to the publishing giant:  According to Avon, "The growth of e-readers and e-books have created a new opportunity that allows us to begin increasing the number and diversity of our romance list for the first time in 10 years."


Zinio Digital Newsstand, Down Four Days, Now Operational Again
Folio
The problems raise question about subscription liabilities. The solutions may impact emerging newsstands from Apple and Google.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Today's Headlines

Robust Market Develops for Used iPads
The New York Times
Gazelle, a company that buys and sells used electronics equipment, has already purchased more than 7,000 first-generation iPads.  The copmpany is paying between $300-$500 for each device. 

10 Cool Tips to Master the iPad
PCWorld
Among them:  common keyboard shortcuts, smarter searches and closing background apps.

Apple's Incredible iPad Business
Business Insider
Dan Frommer says that Apple's iPad business could generate $20 billion this year. 


Staples May Carry Motorola Xoom By Early April
Phandroid
Unconfirmed rumors of the device's availability April 3 at the giant retailer. 

$199 Tablet Set to Hit Market in April from IN Media
Slash Gear
It will feature a 7-inch screen, bluetooth, camera, WiFi and a removalbe SD card for storage.   

Google Takes Hit on App Security
The Wall Street Journal
Security experts are criticizing Google for not doing enough to make sure that apps are secure before they are available to smartphone users.  Last week more than 50 malacious apps were uploaded to Google's Android market. 

Monday, March 7, 2011

Today's Headlines

Best Feature of the iPad?  Its  Price
The New York Times
Prices for the iPad and iPad 2 start at $499 and at this point in this emerging market, competitors cannot beat or match it.  “There have been nearly a hundred competitive tablets that have been introduced since the iPad,” said Toni Sacconaghi, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein. “But it seems that no one has eclipsed or even matched Apple on pricing.”

Rumor:  Best Buy Mulling Giving All Sales Associates iPads
Forbes
The huge retailer, with more than 1,000 U.S. stores, is reportedly considering letting every one of its sales associates on the floor have an iPad.   If true, the optics of thousands Pad-slinging Best Buy sales associates could be a huge plus for Apple and spur even more sales. 

RIM CMO Bolts Before Playbook Competes with iPad
Vator.tv
As Research in Motion prepares the launch of it Playbook tablet, the company announced last week that its Chief Marketing Officer has left the company for personal reasons.


Glamour Video Series for iPad, Allows Viewers to Buy Clothes Seen in the Program
The New  York Times
The magazine has created an original reality series produced exclusively for the iPad that lets viewers stop the program and purchase clothing worn by the characters, straigt from Gap.com.“This is cracking the code — finding a way to integrate products organically in the storytelling and actually having it be of value to the reader,” said William J. Wackermann, senior vice president and publishing director for Condé Nast Publications.

Adobe Releases Tablet Publishing Tool
CNET
Adobe Systems is marketing the Enterprise Edition of its Digital Publishing Suite, which can be used for creating interactive publications on tablets.  It allows designers produce digital publications for iPad, Playbook, Xoom and the Galaxy Tab.

Let the App Store Wars Begin:  Mozilla to Open Its Own Virtual Outlet
The Register
According to the story, "Firefox daddy Mozllla has released early code in its campaign to create a completely open alternative not only to Apple's app stores but also Google's fledging Chrome web store."

Friday, March 4, 2011

Today's Headlines

Tablets Predicted to Stunt PC Sales
WSJ
The research firm Gartner revised its forecast for the PC shipments.  Previously Gartner predicted growth of 15.9%; now it sees growth of 10.5%.  The biggest reason:  tablets.

Costco and Sam's Club Selling Motorola's Xoom; Let the Price Cuts Begin
Slashgear
The advertised price at Sam's Club:  $539, with no details on the price plan. 

Table Manufacturers Scramble with Launch Schedules to Battle iPad 2
Digitimes
Citing unknown sources, Digitimes reports that the early launch of iPad2 threw a wrench into launch plans of tablet manufacturers.   They had expected iPad 2 to come out in the second quarter.  Includes thorough chart. 

The New York Times
A report released yesterday by Nielsen revealed that in the U.S. market, Android is the leading software with 29% of the market. 

The Street
Weak competition is cited as cited as the main reason.  For instance:  "Samsung's Galaxy Tab may be exhibit A for Apple's lack of urgency to cut prices. The 7-inch, touch-screen Android device arrived with a big splash in November during a New York debut party, but sales have been harder to track."

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Today's Headlines

Review Roundup of iPad 2 Announcement
Computerworld
An aggregation -- with links -- of seven reviews by bloggers of yesterday's iPad 2 announcement. 

Jobs Returns to the Spotlight to Unveil iPad 2
The Wall Street Journal
Steve Jobs surprised Apple press conference attendees as he took the stage to unveil the iPad 2.  He displayed the thinner, lighter iPad 2 and threw in some digs are the tablet rivals that are circling his popular tablet device. 


A Hands-On Critique of iPad 2
The Washington Post
Writer Rob Pegoraro's assessment:  "After Wednesday morning's unveiling of the iPad 2, Apple invited attendees to try out the hardware up close for the next hour or so.I only needed a minute to confirm one of Apple's claims: Yes, it's thin. At .34 inches,  it makes a MacBook Air look fat."

iPad 2:  Let's Be Kind and Call it iPad 1.5
The Register
A tough look at the new version of Apple's tablet:  "(A)t 1.3 pounds..., it remains a handful. Its display hasn't been upgraded, nor has its 30-pin proprietary port, nor has its maximum flash-storage allotment."

Review of Remote Control Apps from Cable Companies
The New York Times
Writer David Pogue's clever assessment of iPad apps that let you control your cable box and watch tv programs on your  iPad. 

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Today's Headlines

Amazon to Launch Online App Store
Bloomberg
The world's largest online retailer is opening a virtual store at some undetermined date to sell apps for Android devices.  Amazon is expected to take 30 percent of the app sale revenue.  Aaron Rubenson of Amazon will oversee the venture. 

What the iPad 2 Can Teach Google
PC Magazine
With Apple predicted to announce its second tablet on the way, Google should be paying attention if it wants   Honeycomb—and Android as a whole—to thrive.

Japanese Phone Manufacturers Hope to Capitalize on Android's Surge
The New York Times
Cellphones in Japan are extremely sophisticated but they haven't been popular abroad.  But major manufacturers like Sony Ericsson and Sharp are eying overseas markets.

Eight Reasons Motorola's Xoom Is Better Than the iPad
Computerworld
Reasons number 4 and 5:  It has Flash and it has front and rear cameras.

Apple Doesn't Have to Worry About this Misfit Toy
ZDNET
A harsh look at the Motorola Xoom.  Includes video review. 


Apple Battles Microsoft's "App Store" Challenge
CNET
What's in a name?  Plenty, according to this battle brewing between Apple and Microsoft.  Apple is defending its effort to trademark the phrase "App Store" against a Microsoft challenge, arguing the term is no more generic than the software giant's trademarked "Windows."

No More Toasters:  Conn. Back to Offer Free Kindles with New Bank Accounts
The Hartford Courant
The People's United Bank of Hartford, Conn., is offering the deal
.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Today's Headlines

102 Tablets Now on Sale
CNN/Money
The consulting firm PRTM estimates that 102 tablets are on sale or in progress rom 64 different manufacturers,And 200 million tablets will be sold in the next three years.


iPad 2:  Just When YouThought It Was Safe to Enter the Tablet Market
AllThingsD
Predictions about what the next version of the iPad will offer. 

RIM's Playbook Is a Huge Disappoint So Far
Business Insider
An early critical look at the RIM finds flaws with the developer experience. 

"You Win RIM!" -- An Open Complaint to RIM Playbook's Developer Relations
James Murai's Blog
A blooger vents about the difficulties of developing apps for the RIM tablet.  "Considering how terribly designed the entire process is, from the registration right through to loading an app into the simulator, I can only assume that you are trying to drive developers away by inconveniencing them as much as humanly possible"

Kindle Price May Plummet to Free by Year's End
The Technium
The trick is determining out how Amazon could bundle the free Kindle and still make money. One model to consider:  the cell phone model: a free Kindle if you buy X number of e-books.

iPad 2's Bigest Enemy Might Be Apple's Subscription Plan
Computerworld
Apple's subscription has many disadvantages for publisher.  The terms of the service will dent Apple's image, open doors to the competition, and mortgage the iPad's future. Such stakes underscore the criticality of apps, not hardware, in the tablet wars, according to this article.

Random House Switches to E-Book Agency Model
The Los Angeles Times
Random House Inc. on Monday ended its long stand against the so-called "agency model" for sales of e-books, a move that could pave the way for the publisher to join its competitors on Apple's iPad.

Ditch the Clicker:  DirecTV App Turns Tablet into Remote
PCWorld
Yesterday DirecTV released an iPad app that turns the Apple tablet into a remote control for the satellite service.  Users can also the DVR at home or away.