Smartphone Archives - HTS Tech Tips

Android OS for Android Phones and Tablets

In the world of technology innovation the Android OS has emerged as a growing engine of change. Already powering a rapidly growing array of smartphones and tablet computers, the Android operating system has risen to a prominent role in the technology and gadget marketplace in just a few short years. A solid indication of the Android OS role is that savvy consumers now consider Android as a factor in making a buying decision along with price and other features. In fact Android powered phones are growing more rapidly than any other platform including Apple’s iOS.

What is the Android OS?

Android is a mobile operating system that was initially developed by Android Inc. According to the Android.com web site: ““Android is an open-source software stack for mobile phones and other devices.” The key here being that the Android operating system is open-source and therefore available to all licensed developers at a relatively small cost. Android is based upon a modified version of the Linux operating system kernel. It is also enhanced, extended and maintained by a wide range of people and organization along with Google.

Again from the Android web site, “Android was originated by a group of companies known as the Open Handset Alliance, led by Google. Today, many companies — both original members of the OHA and others — have invested heavily in Android, typically in the form of allocating significant engineering resources to improve Android and bring Android devices to Market.”

In the second and third quarters of 2010 the unit sales for Android OS smartphones ranked first among all smart phone OS handsets sold in the U.S. In the third quarter of 2010 Android smartphone market share had grown to 43%. In the last quarter of 2010, Google’s Android dethroned Nokia’s Symbian operating system as the global leader in smart phone software. This change illustrates how quickly Google has jumped to the top of the smart phone market, leapfrogging Apple in its rapid ascension.

Google, unlike Apple or Nokia, does not make its own smart phone hardware. Google instead offers the Android operating system free to other phone and tablet computer manufacturers who adapt Android to best fit with their smart phones.

More in depth information is available from Canalys here: “Google’s Android becomes the world’s leading smart phone platform”

Android OS: A Bit of History

The original Android, Inc. was incorporated on 2003 in Palo Alto, California. Initially producing operating software for mobile phones, Android Inc. was acquired by Google in 2005. The Android development effort at Google incorporated key elements of the Linux operating system into the new mobile platform.

The new platform provided handset makers the flexibility of an upgradeable system. Through an Open Handset Alliance with various mobile companies, the first Android OS platform powered by Linux kernel, version 2.6, was unveiled. Companies that participated in the alliance includes Sony Ericsson, LG, Samsung Electronics, Asustek Computer Inc., Toshiba Corp., Motorola and Texas Instruments.

Since the Android operating system was released, there have been a number of updates with most of them focused on updating OS features and minimizing bugs. Android OS’s most recent versions include version 2.0/2.1 (Éclair), 2.2 (Froyo), 2.3 (Gingerbread) and Version 3.0 (Honeycomb). A combination of versions 2.3 and 3.0 will be released by mid-2011.

Android OS: Changing the Landscape of Smart Phones and Tablets

The Android operating system software has seen explosive growth with an increasing number of consumers switching to gadgets powered by Android. To date, Android OS is activated by 350,000 users per day. Along with providing users with more options for their budget, Android phones and Android tablet PCs provides a high level of flexibility in choosing handsets and wireless carriers.

A key feature among Android phones and Android tablets is the ability to run multiple applications at the same time while keeping all the information visible on your home screen.

Following the release of HTC Dream on October 2008, more and more mobile phones and tablet PCs have rushed into the gadget marketplace. Among the top Android phones released this year are: HTC Desire, Google Nexus One, HTC Evo Shift 4G,LG Optimus, Motorola Droid X, Motorola ATRIX 4G, Samsung Galaxy S4G and the Sony Xperia Play. In the Android tablet market a wide range of devices from Samsung, Motorola, Acer, HP, Dell, Toshiba and many others, potentially including Google itself, are currently available or will be available during 2011.

Add a growing number of applications for the Android operating system to the growing number of hardware devices and a continually evolving operating system platform and one sees a great deal of momentum continuing to build. So, while the Android OS has had a great deal of success so far, it is quite possible that the greatest growth is yet to come. If you are interested in more information tablet PCs be sure to read the post Tablet PC Primer for more insights.

Gadget Trade-In and Recycling Services That Pay

By MikeM

Looking for a good way to get rid of all those old computers and electronic devices that you no longer use? How about electronics trade in and recycling services that take your unwanted computers, electronics and gadgets, help you ship them, process them safely, and pay you too? What if you could actually get a few bucks for each of them along with knowing that they were reused or at least disposed of in an ecologically safe manner?

Best Electronics Trade In Services

You’re in luck. There are a growing number of services that can meet your needs. This post will look at 7 gadget trade in and recycling services that take your unwanted computers, electronics and gadgets, help you ship them, process them safely, and pay you too.

One of the best known electronics trade in and recycling services is Gazelle.com where along with giving you some cash for your old cell phone will also take a wide range of other electronics including digital cameras, MP3 players, PDAs, laptops, gaming consoles, GPS devices, camcorders, satellite radios, external hard drives, video games, LCD monitors, movies, Blu-Ray players, desktop computers (Apple only), and calculators.

There are a number of other electronic gadget trade-in and recycling services in addition to Gazelle.com. The devices they accept, how much they pay and how the process your order varies between services. Services to check out include:

BuyMyTronics.com — www.buymytronics.com

EcoNew.com — www.econewonline.com

MyBoneyard.com — http://myboneyard.com

Consumer Electronics Recycling — www.cerecycle.com

YouRenew.com — www.yourenew.com

Nextworth.com — http://nextworth.com

Gazelle.com — www.gazelle.com

Acceptable Gadgets and Payments Will Vary – Shop Around

The electronic devices accepted for payment or recycling varies between the different services as does the amount they are willing to pay. Some services focus on cell phones, MP3 players and other small devices. Others such as Gazelle, My BoneYard and EcoNew will take desktop PCs and monitors. Payments for devices can vary significantly so it is worthwhile to check more than one site if you are looking to maximize your revenue. Remember, not all devices have monetary value. For some devices you may not receive anything more than the knowledge that your device was disposed of in an ecologically safe manner.

How the Gadget Trade-in and Recycling Process Works

So you’ve identified what you want to get rid of, what’s next? First step is to evaluate which service will best meet your needs. This will vary depending on what type of devices you have to trade-in and what a specific trade-in service will pay for it. Here is a general framework of how the process works:

Device Condition – before you even get online you should determine the condition of your devices that you want to trade-in: does each one turn on? Do you have any necessary power adapters? Do you have any other original accessories that came with each device? What is its condition in terms of scratches, dents, or cracks? Remember that the condition will be evaluated at the other end.
Answer the online questionnaire – answer the questions for each device to assess the particular info the trade-in services needs for establishing a price.
Finalize your list of what you want to sell and what you will be paid and submit it along with your contact and shipping information.
Determine method of payment – the options for payment can vary by service. Common options include: check, PayPal, charity donation, and gift certificate for a specific merchant.
Submit your order and wait for the postage paid shipping containers or prepaid shipping labels to arrive. Some services will send you boxes and packaging material, others will send a prepaid shipping label and you provide the packaging.
Ship your items based on the instructions from the trade-in and recycling service.

Getting Paid for Your Electronics Trade Ins — Yeah!

Once the service gets your items they inspect them to determine if your original assessment of the equipment’s condition is accurate. If it is they send you the agreed upon payment. If there is a discrepancy they will send you an email with the revised price that they are offering. Once everyone agrees, your payment is sent. If an item has no market value they will recycle the device. Most services quote 7 – 10 days to get payment to you once they have received your shipment.

Some Pointers for Locating the Best Service or Deal

Here are a few thoughts for keeping your electronics trade in and recycling process as simple as possible:

Know the manufacturer and model number for each of your devices.
For a computer trade-in be sure to know the CPU type and speed and the memory (RAM) installed in the computer.
Round up any accessories that came with the device. If you have the original box that can be a plus.
Be accurate in how you assess the physical condition of the device. Services will decrease your payment if the device they receive doesn’t resemble what you had described.
If you have several different devices consider using two different services to get the best deal.
Wipe all your personal data off your devices. Most services offer some privacy guarantees but this can vary significantly. If this is a concern, be sure to check on the data privacy policy before shipping your devices.

These services are growing and evolving quickly with new services springing up and existing services expanding the types of devices they will accept. Check the different web sites for the latest info for selecting the service that works best for your collection of unwanted electronics. Happy recycling.

Palm Pre Smartphone – Beyond the Treo

By MikeM

Once the King-of-the-Smartphone-Hill with its Treo series of devices, Palm is trying to fight its way back into the lead with a brand new smartphone entry – the Palm Pre. The Pre smartphone has received a great deal of very positive pre-launch publicity since it was initially unveiled in January with many direct comparisons to the Apple iPhone 3G and the BlackBerry Storm.

The Pre will be the successor to Palm’s well known Treo family of smartphones and be available exclusively on the Sprint 3G Network. Featuring Palm’s new WebOS operating system, the Pre is currently targeted for general availability in the second quarter 2009 with the exact date being a point of much specualtion.

Palm Pre – The Details

Palm Pre is an internet-connected multimedia smartphone featuring a multi-touch screen, a full vertical slide-out QWERTY keyboard, accelerometer, 3G EVDO-capability, Bluetooth 2.1 with stereo support, GPS and 8GB of storage. The Pre has a 3.1-inch size display with 24-bit color 320-by-480 resolution and weighs a little less than 5 ounces. Overall Physical dimensions are: width: 2.3”, height: 3.9”, thickness: 0.67”

The Pre is also Wi-Fi-enabled for additional connectivity options, and functions as a camera phone, a portable media player, and an Internet client – with text messaging, email, and a responsive well-designed web browser. Detailed specs are available at the Palm Pre web site.

Additional features for the Pre include a 3.0-megapixel camera with an LED flash and extended depth of field, but no zoom capability, high speed USB 2.0 support and a standard 3.5-mm headphone jack. The Pre also features a group of sensors similar to Apple’s iPhone 3G including a proximity sensor, an ambient light sensor to raise or lower the brightness automatically, and an accelerometer that allows the user to shift the viewing orientation from vertical (portrait) mode to horizontal (landscape) mode. Palm has partnered with the Amazon Mobile Music Store, so owners will be able to easily purchase and download DRM-free music tracks directly to the phone over the air.

The casing of the phone is made from sleek, glossy plastic and the phone has a bit of a curve to its body both in the back and around the sides. The QWERTY keyboard slides out from the bottom of the device downward in a curving slope. Initial reports are that the device feels very good in a person’s hand. Based on the released information the Pre is slightly smaller than an iPhone when closed and slightly larger when open.

WebOS Phone Operating System

While reports on the Palm Pre hardware have been quite positive it’s the Web OS software that has drawn the greatest praise. Palm’s WebOS operating system is based on the Linux operating system and includes what Palm calls “Synergy” for synching information from various sources into one seamless application. For example, Palm’s e-mail application can receive email from multiple accounts into a common Inbox folder thus simplifying checking for and managing of email. The synergy technology provides similar functionality for contacts and calendars.

Cutting Edge Phone Charger

One of the unique features of the Pre is the Touchstone inductive charger that lets you charge you phone by simply placing it on top of the charger. There are magnets to assist in snapping the device into place, but no cable is necessary. This type of wireless charging is known as electromagnetic induction.

Sometimes releasing new technology products – such as the Palm Pre – can be like a marathon race. A company spends many months developing a great product and then has to sprint to the finish line to generate big sales before they are leapfrogged by someone else with better technology or before the company’s financial situation turns ugly. Palm seems to be working from this script with their new Palm Pre smartphone.

The publicity for the Pre has been so positive that anticipation of the new phone apparently has many potential Palm customers deferring any new Palm phone purchases. Coupled with the current economic conditions the company’s sales have dropped dramatically in recent months. Seemingly placing Palm in a dash to the finish line to beginning generating new revenues from the Pre before the economics become too dire. It should be interesting to see how the story plays out.

Send Email Messages to Mobile Phones

By MikeM

Cellular carriers provide a service that many people are unaware of — the ability to send email to a cell phone. In other words, this is how to send a text message from email. Carriers assign an email address to each phone number utilizing a format that is specific to each carrier. Using this format you can compose email or text messages with Microsoft Outlook, Yahoo Mail, AOL, Gmail or other email programs and easily send your email message to the cell phone of a person or a group of people.

Send Email to Cell Phone – Benefits

Email to text functionality may appeal to someone who does not have a full QWERTY keyboard on their phone but is frequently in front of a computer. Typing on a standard keyboard and sending a message from an email program can have some efficiency pluses over many mobile phones. Using email to reach mobile phones is also great for people who need to send text messages to a group of people.

With an email program you can quickly type your 160 character message, add multiple recipients for the message and quickly reach a group of people via a text message. An added benefit with email to text is that email messages sent to a phone also generate an easy to recall record of the message in the email Sent Items folder.

There is no special add-on or plug-in required for the sender but any message recipient will need to have text messaging enabled on their phone. Text messages are limited to a 160 character maximum so if you are using a signature block in your email be sure to remove it from your message. Phones only support plain text messages and many people send email messages in HTML format. This is not a problem as the carriers automatically convert messages to plain text.

How To Send A Text Message From Email

As an example, to send email to a cell phone with a Verizon account you would use the “@vtext.com” extension in the email address. The email address would look something like 4151112222@vtext.com. Below are the email address formats for several large cellular carriers:

Verizon –    “phonenumber@vtext.com” or 4151112222@vtext.com
AT&T —     4151112222@txt.att.net.
Nextel –      4151112222@messaging.nextel.com
Sprint –      4151112222@messaging.sprintpcs.com
T-Mobile – 4151112222@tmomail.net

Normal text messaging rates will apply to people who receive email messages. Recipients can respond just like they would to a standard text message from another mobile phone.

BlackBerry Storm Smartphone – Two Months After Launch, An Update

By MikeM

The clamor has died down, the dust has settled, and real people (not just reviewers) are actually using the touchscreen BlackBerry Storm. I had an earlier post –“Tech News – BlackBerry Storm, New Touch Screen Phone from RIM” that provided the initial pre-launch information on the Storm. The device has now been available to the public for over two months. While it isn’t the trumpeted “iPhone Killer” the some people were predicting when the Storm was first unveiled, the overall user feedback and reviews have been quite positive.

Many users love the bright, sharp touchscreen display combined with the physical feedback of actually pressing a key on the “SurePress” touchscreen. There is strong general agreement that the voice quality and phone functionality are up to the level people have come to expect from a BlackBerry device. Email, contacts, calendar and synchronization, other traditional BlackBerry strong points, also receive high marks from most users.

A Learning Curve

Another item that seems to be consistent with reviews and user comments is that there is a definite learning curve with the Storm. This is not a device where you activate it and begin easily using every single feature fifteen minutes later. So plan on investing a few hours with your Storm to really become comfortable with it. This learning process may also include tweaking some settings such as the Swipe Sensitivity and Key Rate to help adjust the device to your personal needs.

iPhone Comparisons

As a touchscreen phone there have been a lot of comparisons between the Storm and the iPhone 3G. There are many areas where the devices are similar. Here are a few areas of where they differ:

The Storm has a full horizontal QWERTY keypad and the iPhone does not;
The battery in the Storm is user replaceable (allowing you to carry a spare battery or to replace a worn out battery), the iPhone requires a trip to Apple to replace the battery;
The iPhone can sync with songs purchased through iTunes with copy protection (DRM) and the Storm can only sync with non-copy protected songs such as MP3 files.

Other Resources For the BlackBerry Storm

If you want to learn more about the BlackBerry Storm or Blackberry devices in general a good site is CrackBerry.com. The forums include lots of information and user feedback.

Support for the Storm is available at BlackBerry Storm (RIM) technical support.

A well written review of the Storm from a more Apple focused perspective can be found at Macworld magazine – “Review: BlackBerry Storm 9500”

A Matter of Perspective

A user’s perspective is often shaped by how a device will be used. Traditionally BlackBerry users have been business users where communication, anytime, anywhere, both verbal and written (email/text messaging), has been the driving factor. The last couple years have seen that begin to shift a bit with the BlackBerry Pearl, the BlackBerry Curve and now the MiFi Storm.

How well you might like the Storm will depend to some degree on what you want to do with it. There are a large number of features including phone, email, contacts manager, calendar, synchronization, text messaging, web browser, music player, video camera, still camera, full qwerty keyboard, and much, much more. The Storm excels more in some areas than in others so your opinion will most likely depend on which features are most important to you.