samsung

Is Apple losing its edge to a cheaper, smarter tablet market?

At first glance, new numbers released by research firm IDC show that Apple has nothing to worry about regarding its control of the tablet market, but a closer look could raise some doubts.

While Apple is still the world's No. 1 tablet maker, Samsung is No. 2 and growing at a faster rate. Looking specifically at year-over-year growth from first quarter numbers, Apple grew by 65 percent -- not bad. But, Samsung grew by 282 percent, Asus grew by 350 percent, and Amazon grew by 157 percent.

The question is: Is this part and parcel of a bigger problem? … Read more

Apple remains tablet king, but Samsung climbs

The tablet market has grown by more than 140 percent over the course of a year, with Apple continuing to reign as the No. 1 provider of tablets, according to a report published Wednesday by IDC.

That means Apple shipped 19.5 million of the 49.2 million tablets shipped worldwide during this past three-month quarter. Samsung, in comparison, shipped 8.8 million tablets, but it's a figure that's grown more than 280 percent since last year. Asus shipped 2.7 million tablets, thanks to the Nexus 7, and Kindle maker Amazon shipped 1.8 million tablets. Microsoft … Read more

Samsung's first NX camera with NFC

Continuing its full-court press in camera connectivity, Samsung introduced the NX2000 interchangeable-lens camera, which features a phone-like touch screen and easy Autoshare toggling.

Essentially a slightly more feature-rich version of the NX1100 (which in turn is the NX1000 with Autoshare capability and a bundled version of Adobe Lightroom 4, which also comes with the NX2000). Both are based on the same sensor as the NX210, though the NX2000 has an updated version of the image-processing engine. Samsung says that it results in better image quality and faster performance, and that autofocus performance falls somewhere between the NX1100 and NX300; it'… Read more

Samsung's first NX camera with NFC

Continuing its full-court press in camera connectivity, Samsung introduced the NX2000 interchangeable-lens camera, which features a phone-like touch screen and easy Autoshare toggling.

Essentially a slightly more feature-rich version of the NX1100 (which in turn is the NX1000 with Autoshare capability and a bundled version of Adobe Lightroom 4, which also comes with the NX2000). Both are based on the same sensor as the NX210, though the NX2000 has an updated version of the image-processing engine. Samsung says that it results in better image quality and faster performance, and that autofocus performance falls somewhere between the NX1100 and NX300; it'… Read more

Is it time to ditch the iPhone for the Samsung Galaxy S4?

There is no question that Samsung's Galaxy line of smartphones are giving Apple's iPhone a run for its money. In fact, some loyal iPhone fans, disappointed with the incremental updates in the iPhone 5, already are looking for something new.

Smartphone aficionados agree that when it comes to innovation, Samsung has surpassed Apple. The Samsung Galaxy S4 in particular is a real standout in the smartphone market. Its bigger screen, higher resolution camera, and lots of bells and whistles are likely to attract a lot of consumers who are fed up waiting for Apple to reset the standard … Read more

Tennis star tweets his love for Galaxy S4 -- from his iPhone

Occasionally we sprinkle advice around here. It's intended to be both gracious and helpful.

Today's homily is for those who are paid by cell phone manufacturers to use their phones.

The advice is this: Please, please remember to use their phones.

I mention this only because of the latest telephonic faux pas committed by the very fetching Spanish tennis player David Ferrer.

It's the Madrid Open this week, so he thought he'd inform his almost 370,000 Twitter followers that he was so very, very happy with his new Samsung Galaxy S4.

Perhaps his competitive adrenaline … Read more

AT&T trade-in drops Galaxy S4, HTC One, others to $99

How's this for an instant discount? Beginning Wednesday, when you trade in (almost) any old smartphone, AT&T is knocking $100 off the price of any new smartphone -- including the HTC One, iPhone 5, BlackBerry Z10, and Samsung Galaxy S4.

Of course there are a few caveats. Smartphones can't be older than three years, and need to be in good working order. As a bonus, though, AT&T rates some trade-in phones at more than $100, which means you could get even more off that asking price.

The offer extends to AT&T retail … Read more

The 404 1,260: Where we work out the bugs (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Greenheart Games takes ironic aim at pirates.

- Samsung Galaxy S4 India launch weirdly tries "Gangnam Style."

- Original iPhone reportedly to be "obsolete" on June 11.

Bathroom break video: News reporter gets owned.… Read more

Samsung M400 does simple cell phone duties

If you're looking for a simple cell phone on Sprint, the Samsung M400 could do the trick. Configured as a flip phone, the silver handset has a small external display that shows the battery level, time, and alerts. Inside, a 2.4-inch screen navigates you around.

The M400 has a 1.3-megapixel camera launched by a dedicated hardware button on the side; there are personal essentials like an alarm clock, speakerphone, and browser; and in-case-of-emergency (ICE) settings round out the intentionally limited feature set. It also supports Bluetooth 3.0 for pairing with headsets and transferring photos.

As for … Read more

Apple, Samsung damages do-over trial set for November

Judge Lucy Koh, who has presided over the Apple v. Samsung patent spat, has given a management order that a new trial will focus on recalculation of the $450.5 million award given to Apple in August.

Due to begin November 12, the new trial will decide whether the damage award was incorrectly given by the jury in the original patent dispute, according to a court filing. Koh has previously stated that the jury's damage award was incorrectly calculated in part, and only a new trial will determine the final amount to be awarded to the iPad and iPhone … Read more