smartphones

After struggling throughout 2009, mobile phone maker HTC is eyeing an upturn in sales this year, though profit margins are still likely to be down.

Earlier this month, HTC announced a 31 percent drop in fourth quarter 2009 earnings to 5.6 billion Taiwan dollars ($175 million) from 8 billion ($250 million) in 2008's final quarter. Sales fell 13.2 percent to 41 billion Taiwan dollars ($1.28 billion) from 47.3 billion ($1.48 billion) the same quarter in 2008. Results were reportedly hurt by heavy spending on marketing as HTC aggressively tried to promote itself and its … Read more

Smartphone customers and the bandwidth-hungry applications they're using have forced wireless carriers to accelerate their plans for big upgrades as they move toward the next iteration of their networks.

The biggest challenge these wireless operators will face is making sure they have enough capacity in a part of their networks known as backhaul to feed the hungry appetites of wireless data customers.

In short, this ongoing effort is meant to ensure smartphone customers, today and in the future, aren't as routinely annoyed as some iPhone customers say they have been over the past year.

"Backhaul is at … Read more

Google's Android is expected to take the smartphone market by storm in the next few years, growing faster than all its competitors, according to an IDC report published Monday.

Android is expected to be the fastest growing wireless operating system from now until 2013, when the software will be the second most used smartphone operating system throughout the world, the report said.

Today, the Symbian operating system, used mostly on Nokia phones, dominates the smartphone operating system market worldwide. BlackBerry maker Research In Motion holds the No.2 spot currently, with Apple in the No.3 spot globally.

The … Read more

Back in December, I did roundup of the most notable tech products for 2009. Well, looking back is nostalgic and all, but looking forward is more fun.

Since many companies like to keep future new releases under tight wraps so they don't short-circuit sales of their current products, we can't predict what all the new hot gadgets will be this year. But we did see a fair amount of intriguing stuff at this year's CES in Vegas and we know that plenty of sequels to today's popular products are on the way--whether the company wants you … Read more

Sony Ericsson is finally stepping into the Android smartphone market.

The company announced Thursday that it will launch its first Android smartphone in April in Japan. Sold through the large Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo, the Xperia X10--or SO-O1B as it will be known in Japan--will sport a 4-inch WVGA touchscreen and 8.1-megapixel camera. It will include both entertainment and social networking features.

The X10 is set for release in other regions, including the U.S., later this year.

Despite any hopes that the X10 might take advantage of the latest 2.0 version of Android, the phone will … Read more

Nokia Ovi Maps has been set free--free as in beer, free as a bird. Not only that, it's now better than the current paid-for version, with free Lonely Planet and Michelin guides.

We got our hands on Ovi Maps, which is available as of Thursday on 10 handsets--so if you've got a recent E-series or touch-screen Nokia, you can go to Nokia's Web site and download it right now. The exception is the Nokia N97--only its littler twin, the Nokia N97 mini, is supported, but Nokia tells us N97 users should get theirs next week.

Read … Read more

Apple and Nokia each control big chunks of the worldwide mobile market and are duking it out for more.

In the final quarter of 2009, Apple's iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPhone operating system reigned in markets in Western Europe, North America, Latin America, and Oceania (Australia, New Zealand, and nearby countries), according to an AdMob report (PDF) released Thursday.

Meanwhile, Nokia's mobile devices and the Symbian OS led in Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe,

AdMob sells text and banner ads to publishers on mobile platforms; as such, it tracks and measures which phones and mobile devices are used … Read more

Joining the other carriers, Alltel added the RIM BlackBerry Curve 8530 to its lineup. It's available now for $49.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate, with a one-year contract and qualifying Smart Choice Pack (rates start at $69.99 per month for unlimited data, e-mail, and Web access).

Though more of an entry-level device, the Curve 8530 offers plenty of features, including Wi-Fi, 3G, Bluetooth, and GPS. The smartphone also has a 2-megapixel camera, 256MB Flash memory (expandable up to 32GB via the microSD/SDHC slot), dedicated media controls, and optical trackpad.

The RIM BlackBerry Curve 8530 for Alltel … Read more

Nokia is making its navigation service free to all GPS-enabled Nokia devices in a move that will help the company better compete in the smartphone market against the likes of Apple and Google.

Starting Thursday, Nokia users will be able to download for free the client that enables GPS phones to get Ovi Maps and Navigation, as well as, various city guides on their phones. Nokia has been offering the maps and navigation service for more than two years. After its acquisition of Navteq announced in 2007, it enhanced the service by adding turn-by-turn pedestrian navigation. And it added premium content from partners, such as Lonely Planet.… Read more