IBLOG SPACE

As the video and instant chat group Skype announced today, GroupMe has been acquired by big blue, this the latest in a long long of acquisitions and partnerships that have been unfolding over the past few months in the group chat world. Most notably Facebook has tied up with Skype for video chat on Facebook and Microsoft has acquired Skype, this agreement getting FTC approval just this June – this possibly leading to Skype on Windows Phone 7 soon having been on Android for several months with video calling, hitting the iPad and iPad 2earlier this month. Now Skype has acquired GroupMe, an odd move for a group that already has similar capabilities in several of their application iterations. On the other hand, GroupMe’s most recent update has brought in-browser chat capabilities (within a week of Facebook adding messenger to mobile, mind you,) GroupMe and Facebook Messenger thusly having very similar services working much in the same way. As Jared Hecht, GroupMe’s Co-Founder notes that “T

While we were pretty darn sure the first (leaked) video for Samsung’s upcoming “Unpacked II” event, the second in a line of Unpacked events they’re hosting this year at tech events around the world, this second (or first, depending on how you look at it) trailer has us guessing again. A calm summer blue sky, blurry trees, sunlight, some waves pushing in from the sea, an odd bit of metal and plastic connected at the seams — looking like a weather vane quite possible, a slow moving girl with hair blowing in the wind, a slow moving boy with no shirt on and also some hair blowing in the wind, that same weather vane again, waves, and the phrase “Sketches of Your Desire.” The Unpacked event we saw back at CTIA 2011 featured the phrase “What’s your Tab Life?” and lead us to find that two tablets were in the mix: the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and the Tab 8.9, the former being released now and the latter coming soon. What we’d assumed when we saw the first teaser, having the same “Sketches” phras

Down here in Texas, we invented the State Fair. That may not technically be true, but everything you know and love to hate about state fairs, we invented. The Corny Dog came from Texas (and yes, you’ve been spelling it wrong all this time). Put a stick in a hotdog, dip it in batter and fry it, and you’re halfway to Dallas. Fried butter? Suck it, Iowa. We’ve had fried butter in Texas for years. And fried beer. And deep fried frito pie, which is fritos topped with chili and cheese, somehow dipped in batter and deep fried into a mound of goodness. Take a whiff. Ahhhh . . . wait, don’t smell the air. We’re at Air Quality Level Orange down here, so maybe you should just look at the pretty pictures. [Image credit: Perfect Porridge] So, you can imagine our Texas-sized surprise when our governor and now-presidential candidate Rick Perry went to the Iowa state fair and made this comment on Twitter: Can’t beat a pork chop on a stick at the Iowa State Fair. What?! In case you didn’t realize, that

Android has come a LONG WAY in a just a couple of years, especially when it comes to mobile applications. Ease in developing for a single device on Apple has kept developers from moving to the Android operating system basically since its inception due to the relative difficulty in creating apps that work on a multitude of devices running the same OS. That time has all but ended, if you ask me, giant games and names such as the following three continuing to pave the way for the biggest and the best: In-Fusio presents Night of the Living Dead tower defense game, Freddy Krueger’s Wallbreaker, and Halloween Pinball HD. Each of the films associated with these games: Halloween, Night of the Living Dead, and Nightmare on Elm Street are classics in the horror genre, paving the way for the future and serving as the go-to must-see for any inner-horror genre enthusiast. So too must these games be made to be above and beyond the current state of apps in the Android world today – here’s hoping: In-

It appears that an iPhone 5 4G LTE is still in the works as a 4G Long-Term Evolution testing code has been discovered in beta builds of Apple’s next version of their mobile operating system iOS 5. This is but a single one of several reports, leaks, or otherwise rumors that have been reported over the past year of an iPhone 5 running the next-generation mobile connectivity, the most recent of which appeared August 15th when the report was that LTE iPhone 5 carrier testing had begun. Code referring to 4G LTE mobile connections testing inside the device documents relating to the situation supposedly appears amid iPhone 5 firmware in this case as well – does this mean we’re looking at a 2011 iPhone 5 LTE? We’ve also heard just the opposite as far back as October of 2010 when we were still waiting for a Verizon-carried iPhone. In that report it was simply stated that no version of an iPhone would be released with LTE inside 2011. Meanwhile a May 2011 report noted that there may well be an L

We’ve been at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, a yearly car show displaying nothing but the newest, the futuristic, and the most classic vehicles, a fantastic couple of days we’ve been attending courtesy of Infiniti. What we’ve got here is a roundup of the three fabulous vehicles Infiniti revealed during this event including the JX Concept, the Ethera, and the IPL Convertible. Take an amazing trip with us down the Nissan luxury division Infiniti’s newest lineup with design chief Shiro Nakamura, our kind host. Infiniti JX Concept First we’ve got Infiniti’s latest luxury crossover, a vehicle set to arrive on the showroom floor inside 2012, the Infiniti JX Concept. This vehicle is a seven-seat, three seat row having, V6 engine running four-wheel or front-wheel drive and a CVT (continuous variable transmission) that’s both fuel-efficient and mimics a stepped transmission for sport-tuned performance. This vehicle has Bose audio, Blind Spot Intervention and Backup Collision Intervention, an

The folks at the Au KDDI store in Nishi-Kasai in Tokyo Japan have just tweeted something that’ll get your Windows Phone Mango ears ringin’, that being that they’re going to have the Fujitsu IS12T as early as this Thursday, August 25th, 2011. Windows Phone 7.5 Mango has been juicing up the Microsoft-loving public for some weeks now, especially after a slightly early build leaked this past week. Last we’d heard, this device was already supposed to be released to the public by this time – that did not happen, but this new release certainly appears to be legit! This Fujitsu Toshiba masterpiece going by the name of IS12T comes in a couple of fantastically loud colors or your choice of black, and it runs Windows Phone 7.5 Mango. This is the cellular partnerships’ first Windows Phone ever AND it appears very much to be the first device to be released with Mango out of the box. This device has a massive 13.2-megapixel camera, 32GB of internal storage, and is both waterproof and dust-resistant!

When I use Netflix, Amazon’s streaming service, and all the others out there, I can’t help but think about film studios. I analyze their decision-making, I see where they place their content, I hear what they have to say about entertainment and its relation to technology today, and I can’t help but come to one simple conclusion: these companies are clueless. Film studios, and even television studios, have real issues with the changing tech space. They look at Redbox’s kiosk rentals as a financial pitfall, yet they believe that allowing cable companies to offer on-demand access to content before all others make sense. They make Netflix wait an inordinate amount of time to stream their content, yet they charge people $30 for a Blu-ray disc to get it now. See, film studios see the changing times as a threat to their business, rather than an opportunity for them to expand outside their current constraints to make even more cash. They would like for it to be 1975 again when they didn’t need

Infiniti has unveiled its latest droptop, the 2013 IPL G Convertible, set to hit showrooms in spring 2012. Part of the company’s Infiniti Performance Line (IPL), and based on the existing Infiniti G37 Convertible, the new G Convertible pairs a retractable hardtop roof with a 3.7-liter V6 for high-performance, roof-down motoring. Brought in concept form to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance this weekend, the IPL G Convertible shows off its IPL-tuned engine, exhaust and suspension as well as a specially crafted red leather interior. There are also eye-catching 19-inch IPL aluminum-alloy wheels, and Infiniti says the production model will share most of the equipment and styling when it goes on sale next year. The production version of the Infiniti 2013 IPL G Convertible will go on show at the LA Auto Show this coming November, where the company will announce details like performance and pricing. Given the IPL G Coupe starts at $48,900 and that the convertible version of the G37 carries

The folks at Samsung have revealed a device by the name of Galaxy Precedent, a device that would certainly have appeared to be a decent little phone on the top of the mid-range in 2010, but now certainly has the specs that work with its price at $150. But here’s the thing: this isn’t the price you’ll be paying if you buy the phone connected to a two-year contract, it’s the price you’re paying OFF contract. That means that this is a good deal, for real. This device is the Samsung M828C, what’s very similar to the Samsung Galaxy Prevail, and is available at places like Walmart and places where TracFone are sold. This device is not yet available, but once it is, you’ll have the ability to connect it to a no contract unlimited $45 30-day plan which includes talk, text, web, and calls to 411. Of course this plan is subject to quite a few limitations, as a truly unlimited plan for $45 a month would otherwise be the best deal in the USA without question. Instead there are a few limitations as

It appears that everyone who suggested HP sell their webOS tablets for unbelievably cheap prices or straight up give them away were right on track with what HP was thinking, because starting today you can purchase a TouchPad for the fabulous fire sale price of $100. Or you WOULD be able to if they weren’t experiencing a problem with their cart system which turns your price back to the most recent prices of either $399 or $499depending on if you’d like the 16 or 32GB version. At this very moment it appears that HP has shut down sales operations again for the time being, but you can expect a fix inside the next few days more than likely. The real question now is, of course: what will we do with a TouchPad when its very operating system is in jeopardy of being axed completely? HP says they’re looking for a solution for the webOS situation, planning more than likely to license the software to manufacturers across the board, but as it should be obvious to everyone on earth, there is no oper

Infiniti has already shown off its Etherea concept before, with the compact having made its debut at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, but it’s getting its first public North American outing at the Concours d’Elegance here at Pebble Beach. Still eye-catching despite the familiarity, beyond the illuminated grille it’s the sharply styled C-pillar that’s the Etherea’s main flourish, something Infiniti carried forward to the JX Concept unveiled yesterday. The Etherea is a significantly smaller car than the seven-seater JX, however, and Infiniti’s “four-door coupe” styling makes it look even more compact. The continuously variable transmission is carried over, though here only in front wheel drive, with power from a supercharged 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine good, the company says, for 250 horsepower. That’s paired with an electric motor for hybrid convenience, the Earth-friendly side taking charge for low-speed driving or giving an extra boost at high-speed. Infiniti is still saying the Etherea is

Though you may think your iPhone is already as small as its going to get, industrial designer Zeki Ozek has a different idea: cut MORE off of the non-display hardware off than the already ultra-minimalistic iPhone 4 already has, taking a page out of Android’s next OS version Ice Cream Sandwich‘s book of button-less workings and adding on gestures. Changes in this hypothetical device include OS changes as well of course, including the ability to assign one app to each of your fingerprints – if there’s one thing I want in life from a future phone, it’s that. I must remind you, as I always try to, that when we’re looking at a concept device like this , especially one with technology that hasn’t been invented or finalized quite yet, that it’s more of an exercise in wild possibilities made for the sake of inspiring future generations of inventors and scientists, not to mention other industrial designers. This iPhone 5 concept is what Ozek says is 23% smaller than the current model iPhone 4.

Now that webOS devices will be discontinued what are webOS developers to do? Well, they could become developers for the Windows Phone platform and receive a free handset while they’re at it. Only a day after the HP announcement, Microsoft is already moving in on webOS developers, pledging that they’ll provide all the tools they need to succeed. Senior Director of Windows Phone 7 Brandon Watson has posted a message via Twitter pledging to offer free phones, developer tools, and training to webOS developers that make the switch to the Windows Phone platform. The tweet reads: “To Any Published WebOS Devs: We’ll give you what you need to be successful on #WindowsPhone, incl.free phones, dev tools, and training, etc.” Although HP has made it clear that they are “not walking away from webOS” and that they are simply discontinuing the hardware, the future of webOS remains murky. HP may be exploring options to license the platform or to sell it off entirely.

Hidden in today’s release of iOS 5 beta 6 was a key change that blocks developers from accessing UDIDs. This unique device identifier is an important tool to developers and other third-parties for tracking user behavior. However, the move will help alleviate privacy concerns over how developers and ad networks track users without their knowledge or consent. The UDID works like a unique serial number that identifies a device to a mobile network. Regardless of the user or the app that’s currently running on a particular device, the UDID remains unchanged. Developers have used UDIDs to specify certain devices for testing beta apps by registering the UDID with Apple. UDIDs can also be used to record what device is using a particular app and ad networks usually use the UDID to track the use of mobile devices. With this change, developers and other third-parties will now have to create a unique identifier specific to their apps, which would work much like browser cookies. This could preven

More details on RIM’s BlackBerry music streaming service are beginning to surface following rumors that the app could be rolling out very soon. Reports yesterday said that RIM was already in late-stage negotiations with the four major US record label companies while news on the BlackBerry App World 3.0 today suggest that the music service could launch as early as next week. The BlackBerry music streaming service was said to involve the BlackBerry Messenger, but other than that there were few details. However, Crackberry was able to dig up more information on the BlackBerry music service and reveals that it will cost $5 per month after the free trial expires. The service will be offered in a standalone app that can be downloaded from the BlackBerry App World and will only allow you to install up to 50 songs. And how does the service integrate with BBM? Well, it lets you use BBM to invite your contacts to join your music sharing network. And since each person can store up to 50 songs,

The white HP TouchPad, which became available in Europe yesterday, is now available here in the US. It seems like someone in HP didn’t get the memo that the webOS ecosystem will be abandoned. Either that, or HP figures it’s got the stock, might as well ship—hopefully someone will be oblivious enough to buy it. The 64GB white model showed up today on HP’s USA website priced at $599. It’s not a bad price for a tablet of that capacity, but for a platform with such an uncertain future, you’d have to be a real webOS loyalist or a collector of antiques to be rushing for one of these. Compared to the original HP TouchPad, which came out no more than seven weeks ago, this white version has a faster 1.5GHz Qualcomm dual-core processor. The white finish, however, is only on the backside as the front face remains black. HP made the announcement of discontinuing the webOS ecosystem yesterday during the company’s quarterly earnings call. The Veer, Pre3, and TouchPad were first introduced back in Fe

Sprint is reportedly in talks with cable companies to buyout Clearwire, which has recently announced adoption of 4G LTE and its need for funding to build out the new network. The carrier is already invested in Clearwire, but may seek to buyout the remaining portion of the company and may do so jointly with Comcast and other cable partners. According to Bloomberg, three people familiar with the situation say that the carrier is still in early talks and that there could be several scenarios. Sprint could raise funding among cable partners such as Comcast, Cablevision, and Cox, to jointly buyout Clearwire or simply invest further in the company. Clearwire has stated before that it needs an additional $600 million in order to build out its LTE network. This deal with Sprint may be appealing for cable companies as it would allow them to compete more effectively against telephone rivals such as AT&T and Verizon, which both offer landline, wireless, internet and TV bundles. This deal i

Facebook isn’t liked in Germany. The social network has already been under fire in the country for its privacy issues pertaining to facial recognition feature used in identifying and tagging friends quickly in photos. And now, the German government has declared the Facebook “Like” button as being illegal. Germany is very strict on privacy rights and deems the Like button as a violation of the country’s privacy laws. Thilo Weichert, an official from the northern German state of Schelswig-Holstein data protection center, says that the Like button has the ability to track a person’s movement across the web. Weichert adds that this also violates the data protection laws of the European Union. Facebook has rejected the claims, stating that any data stored, such as web activity in relation to a unique IP address, is deleted after the industry standard 90-day period. Nonetheless, websites operated in Schleswig-Holstein have until September 30 to remove their Facebook Like buttons. A fine fo

HTC CEO Peter Chou has reaffirmed the company’s support for the Android platform following Google’s announcement to purchase Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion. Google’s PR had posted the very genericcongratulatory remarks from its platform partners earlier this week, but Chou elaborated more on HTC’s stance during his interview today, revealing that the company has no plans to bail nor to start its own mobile platform. Although Google’s purchase of Motorola Mobility seems like a move that would pit it against its Android partners, the company has insisted that its intentions are only to protect the Android platform by securing Motorola’s massive portfolio of over 17,000 patents. This has been communicated to its platform partners, including HTC, LG, Sony Ericsson, and Samsung, but that doesn’t mean these manufacturers are completely comfortable with the purchase as it does have the potential of creating an uneven playing field with Motorola set as the lead. It’s been rumored that S

In a lovely letter sent out to his clients this Friday, Piper Jaffray resident Apple analyst Gene Munster covered a hypothetical situation in which once Google’s Motorola deal goes through, it closes off Android from all other manufacturers and takes the Apple route by being creator of both hardware and software at once, this happening inside 2012. His analysis is thus: Apple keeps the same share regardless of the hypothetical situation, but Android falls from a 43% global market share to 15% while the “Other” category, mostly comprised of Windows Phone 7, takes the spoils, jumping from 14.4% to 44.5%. Munster continues in his hypothetical charts by showing the “Other” category continuing to grow at a decent rate after taking a tiny dip of half a point from 2013 to 2014, taking nearly 50% of the market share by 2015! on the other hand, Android begins to grow once more from 2013 to 2014 by 3 points, taking slightly less of the pie than it had all the way back 5 years before, having 21.3