samsung

Believe it or not, few in the business of suing people for patent infringement or defending against patent suits believe 2012 brought more patent litigation than any other year.

That's right. The tech industry is worked into a lather about something that's always been a problem and probably always will be a problem. Despite Facebook's giant initial public offering, the heated and often entertaining competition among smartphone makers, and Microsoft's new operating system, one story dominated them all this year: the U.S. patent system.

So why are people so upset?

Let's start with this: … Read more

Chipmakers are preparing for the second-generation iPad Mini and Samsung is on track for a phone with a bendable display and possibly an early intro of the Galaxy S4, according to a research note from RBC Capital Markets.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Doug Freedman -- who is in China visiting chip companies this week -- offered this ambiguous Apple note: "iPad Mini Gen-2: Apple's gen-2 iPad mini is getting pulled-in, and is likely to have several new suppliers, with TXN gaining content."

"Pulled in" would seem to imply that Apple is moving up introduction of … Read more

Samsung Electronics is the new leader in cell phones.

Already ahead of the pack in smartphones, Samsung extended its dominance over the entire worldwide handset industry by displacing longtime cell phone king Nokia, according to a study by IHS.

The role reversal illustrates how fast Samsung has risen, thanks largely to its Galaxy S smartphone franchise, and how far Nokia has fallen. Prior to this year, Nokia enjoyed a 14-year reign atop the cell phone market, though its past few years were propped up by its legacy Symbian platform.

Samsung controlled 29 percent of the overall cell phone market, and … Read more

AT&T said today that it has brought its faster 4G LTE network to five more cities, as well as expanded coverage in a few major cities.

Green Bay, Wis.; Springfield, Mass.; Tucson, Ariz.; Melbourne, Fla.; and Oxford, Miss. are the newest additions to AT&T's LTE network. That brings the total to 125 cities.

Customers in Phoenix, Los Angeles, New York, and Salt Lake City should all benefit from better coverage as well.

The faster connection enabled by a 4G LTE network has been a chief selling point for the carriers this year. Verizon, however, has … Read more

Samsung Electronics has withdrawn its requests to ban Apple products in several European countries, citing its wish to "protect consumer choice."

The Korean smartphone maker will drop its requests in Germany, the U.K., France, Italy and the Netherlands, according to the Verge, which got a statement from the company earlier today.

Foss Patents legal consultant Florian Mueller noted that Samsung never actually mentioned lawsuit in the statement, and that the company is still suing for compensation. Samsung has confirmed that it is still pursuing compensation.

Samsung had alleged that Apple had violated the use of its patents, … Read more

Samsung today unveiled the Samsung Galaxy Grand smartphone, which runs the Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean mobile operating system and sports a 5-inch WVGA display.

The smartphone also features a powerful dual-core 1.2GHz processor, along with 1GB of RAM, an 8-megapixel rear camera offering 1080p video recording and a 2-megapixel front camera.

It also includes 8GB of internal memory with a microSD memory expansion slot, Wi-Fi b/g/n, GPS functionality, and the usual perks, such as an accelerometer, compass, and gyroscopic sensor.

The Galaxy Grand also connects to high-speed HSPA+ networks, but falls short of offering 4G … Read more

A federal judge has denied Samsung's request for dismissal of Apple's verdict and for a new trial based on allegations of jury misconduct, saying Samsung should have done more work during jury questioning.

In seeking to have Apple's $1 billion verdict arising from software patents on mobile devices overturned, the South Korean electronics giant argued it was tainted by the jury foreman's failure to disclose previous litigation with Seagate Technology, a company in which Samsung is a major investor, as well as an alleged bias made evident by statements made to the media after the verdict. … Read more

A U.S. District Court judge denied Apple's bid to ban a number of Samsung's devices from sale in the U.S., a little more than a week after a hearing on the matter.

In a late ruling Monday, Judge Lucy Koh -- who presided over the entire trial between the two tech giants -- denied Apple's bid for a sales ban on 26 Samsung products, saying that any infringing features were just part of a larger feature set, thus making a sales ban too broad.

"The phones at issue in this case contain a broad … Read more

If you own a Samsung Galaxy S3 with U.S. Cellular, an update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean is just around the corner.

Starting Friday, December 21, GS3 owners can begin the update process wirelessly, or manually by plugging in their phone via USB cable and visiting this U.S. Cellular site.

U.S. Cellular is one of the last carriers to offer the Android 4.1 update; a process that's been kicked into high gear as part of the busy holiday season.

Android 4.1 enhances features like the Google search app, the notifications menu, and some … Read more