A Shape-Shifting Smartphone Touch Screen
A microfluidic panel lets users push buttons on a flat interface.Tactus Technology, a startup in Fremont, California, is prototyping touch-screen hardware with buttons that emerge when you need the...
View ArticleThe Most Controlling Smartphone Ever Made
A custom version of Android exerts total control over what you can do, depending on where you are and what apps or networks you are using.This is one smartphone your boss and IT guy will love.
View ArticleFour Charts That Illustrate The Transformation of Personal Computing
You’ve probably already heard or read about the massive shift to mobile computing that is underway. But a picture’s worth a thousand words.Venture capitalist Mary Meeker gave her year-end “State of the...
View ArticleIn Russia, Innovation Happens on Both Sides of the Smartphone
Apple is the leader in innovation, right? Think again.There’s a general feeling in the mobile market that Apple is the world’s most innovative company. Those same folks tend to believe that Samsung is...
View ArticleIs Nokia ‘Too Big to Fail’?
Nokia is one of those companies that matters too much to the worldwide mobile market to die off.When the financial collapse ravaged the world and sent most countries into a recession, there was a...
View ArticleCloud-Powered GPS Chip Slashes Smartphone Power Consumption
A Microsoft Research project offloads data and calculations to save battery life.If you’ve used location services on a phone for any length of time, you know they can quickly drain the battery. A...
View ArticleA Do-It-All Programmable Processor for Smartphones
The new processor hints at the next wave of mobile communications breakthroughs.The year 2012 saw continued growth in the adoption of mobile communications gadgets, but few technological breakthroughs....
View ArticleNew Mobile OSs May Mean the End of the Closed App Store
Operating systems that support open Web standards could undermine tightly-controlled marketplaces for mobile apps.
View ArticleStartup Lets Retail Stores Track Shoppers As Websites Do
By monitoring people’s mobile devices, brick-and-mortar stores can get data on foot traffic much as websites follow clicks.To get a sense of how much time customers spent in his shopping centers, John...
View ArticleRIM Is Down but Not Out
With new software, smartphones, and apps, the BlackBerry maker may still have a chance.They used to call it the CrackBerry—owing to users’ addiction to the device. But that was back in 2006, before the...
View ArticleThe Browser Wars Go Mobile
Startups are bringing creative features to the small screen in hopes of luring iPhone, Android users away from the default browser.When surfing the Web on a smartphone, most of us stick with the...
View ArticleHow Many Tries Does Microsoft Get?
Microsoft revamps its corporate structure to “rally behind a single strategy.” What took so long?When Windows 8 turned out to be strange and disappointing, the problems had a familiar ring. After all,...
View ArticleCES 2014: GM and AT&T Blur Line Between Car and Smartphone
General Motors says 4G LTE will become a standard feature of its Chevrolet car models.Most 2015 models of Chevrolet will have 4G LTE cellular connections built in to provide Wi-Fi to people inside and...
View ArticleGoogle Announces Sub- $100 Smartphone
A new line of smartphones designed by Google could spread Internet access more widely in poor regions of the world.A low-cost smartphone designed by Google will go on sale in India this fall before...
View ArticleGoogle Makes Its Search Engine a Remote Control for Some Mobile Apps
Google wants you to talk to its search box instead of spending time hunting through the jumble of apps on your smartphone.Getting stuff done using a smartphone often involves swiping through a jumble...
View ArticleCheap, Scratch-Resistant Displays
Ultrathin sapphire laminates could lead to new screen covers that are harder to break.Glass touch-screen displays are easily cracked and scratched, making them a weak point in today’s ubiquitous mobile...
View ArticleFuture Smartphones Won’t Need Cell Towers to Connect
Qualcomm, Facebook, and other tech companies are experimenting with technology that lets smartphones use their LTE radio to connect directly to other devices up to 500 meters away.A new feature being...
View ArticleSmartphones Will Soon Learn to Recognize Faces and More
Smartphone apps will be able to perceive objects and perform other intelligent tricks thanks to Qualcomm’s newest mobile chips.Smartphone camera apps could soon do more than just capture images....
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