Nexus One Phone Officially Pits Google Against Apple

The Nexus One Phone is anticipated to be wider but slimmer than Apple's market-leading iPhone and faster than Motorola's Fortune 500, is the first handset to be designed, marketed and sold exclusively by Google.

It will run the search leader's Android operating system on a high-speed processor with the complete binding touch-screen and virtual keyboard of the smartphone.

Google has alleged little about the Nexus One since giving the device to its employees last month for testing. But it is expected to reveal its plans for the phone during a press conference about the Android system at its Mountain View headquarters in California today.

Early assesses imply the Nexus camera, that comes with a flash, is preferred to that on the iPhone, and it is expected to win the battle over battery life, with the facility to hold full charge for at least 24 hours. It will also come complete with a light sensor, proximity sensor and an accelerometer.

But the Nexus will fall short of the iPhone in the applications arena, with around 16,000 available for Android phones compared with 100,000 at the Apple App Store.

The phone, which stores audio and video, will also not offer a connection to Apple's iTunes online music library.

CES 2010 Flashpoints: The platforms for the next decade in electronics

Every year, the Consumer Electronics Show is a gauge of the directions in which platforms are moving, a barometer of the evolution of functionality. In no doubt, we see ample of tidy toys, many of which wind up either being for kids or making us feel like kids. And definitely, we hear ample of slackly coupled metaphors that play to our need to be excited, like how a certain device unleashes connectivity or harnesses the power of disruption -- phrases that read like they were assembled using that word game you play with refrigerator magnets. The devices, known as tablet computers, have screens of between 7in and 10in in size, and dissimilar traditional laptops, they use an on-screen "virtual" keyboard, like that used by Apple's iPhone, rather than a physical keyboard.

From March Apple is likely to open its own tablet computer, alleged to be named the iSlate and competitor computer makers are thought to be keen to expose their designs ahead of any Apple press conference.

Freescale, A US company, has shown off a archetype device that could be used by other electronics manufacturers to create advanced tablet computers that will cost less than $200. The 7in touch-screen tablet turns on quickly and connects instantly to the internet via Wi-Fi or the mobile phone network, and provides a full day of battery life.

Dozens of other manufacturers will also use the Consumer Electronics Show to showcase their tablet devices. Notion Ink, an Indian manufacturer, will unveil its tablet computer, which runs Google's Android operating system and features an energy-saving 10in scratch-proof touch-screen, and will allow users to watch high-definition video on the move, and to surf the internet and send emails. Dell might also launch an Android-based tablet device, while gadget fans will be hoping that Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive, uses his keynote speech on Wednesday evening to share more details about the Courier, a dual-screen tablet computer and ebook reader that Microsoft is rumoured to be working on.

"Missing link" between PCs and smartphones" Henri Richard, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Freescale, said "The PC has been stale in terms of its ability to innovate. Smartphones have been making progress, but they have limitations," he said.

Analysts at DisplaySearch expect the tablet computer market to be worth $3.5 billion by the end of the year, a significant figure for an emerging device category. "We're talking about a brand-new market," said John Jacobs, a senior analyst with DisplaySearch.

The tablet revolution is being driven by the growing ubiquity of wireless internet connections, and consumers' desire to surf the internet and watch videos on devices that are bigger than a smart phone, but smaller than a conventional laptop.

Glen Burchers, director of consumer product marketing for Freescale, said his company's tablet computer was aimed at people aged between 12 and 30, who wanted a web-friendly device with a bigger screen than a smart phone to surf sites such as Facebook and YouTube.

"The tablet is the newest category of mobile device, and we believe it has the potential to be the fastest-growing," he said. "Everyone who uses the internet finds value there."

Nokia asks court to bar U.S. imports of Apple's Macs, iPhones, iPods

In a further acceleration of an already bitter dispute, Nokia asked a federal court to bar the importation of Apple hardware. Nokia claims to stop importation Apple’s iPhone, iPod and Mac products. The lawsuit- the second Nokia has filed against Apple in the patent war that broke out last October- coincides with a complaint the company filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission last week.

In the new complaint Nokia claimed that Apple is violating in its products, and looks for a restriction barring Apple from further infringement, as well as damages from Apple. Since the trade commission does not make decisions about monetary compensation, Nokia had to file the federal lawsuit in addition to its objection with the ITC.

The lawsuit claimed that almost every major piece of hardware Apple sells violates one or more of the seven patents. The complete list includes the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS smart phones; the iPod Touch, iPod Nano and iPod Classic music players; the iMac Mac Mini and Mac Pro desktops; and the MacBook, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air notebooks.

Nokia thrust off its clash with Apple in October with a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Delaware charging Apple's iPhone violates on ten Nokia patents. In December Apple charged against Nokia that its products violate on 13 of its own patents. In its countersuit, Apple laid out in fiery rhetoric its position on the matter. "Other companies must compete with us by inventing their own technologies, not just by stealing ours," Bruce Sewell, Apple's general counsel, alleged in a statement at the time.

"Nokia has been the leading developer of many key technologies in small electronic devices" said Paul Melin, head of Nokia's patent-licensing efforts, in declaration the company's complaint with the ITC. "This action is about protecting the results of such pioneering development."

Nokia asked for a adjudicators trial in its second claim, and wants Apple to pay compensation, with interest, if the company is found responsible of patent abuse.

New Sony Ericsson Kanna Phone leaked

The phone-terrain now gets one more drop in its pail. Now it appears that Sony Ericsson failed to hide from view its brand-new phone from a spark of camera for so long. According to FoneArena, in the past days there was a Sony Ericsson phone that was leaked for everybody to feast eyes on.

Tagged as ‘Kanna’, the eye-catching device runs on Symbian S60 5th Edition OS and comes equipped with a 3.2-inch touchscreen display, a highly impressive 8.1-megapixel camera and Wi-Fi connectivity, reveals FoneArena.

Seemingly, other leaked details of the new Sony Ericsson Kanna include 360 x 640 pixels resolution, QWERTY keyboard, microUSB port, and that weighty 8.1-megapixel camera with autofocus.

It seems that, the satiny phone is a sister of Kurara. The compelling camera further lends support to 720p HD video recording and also features a 3.4mm audio jack.

The newest offering from Sony Ericsson is likely to be announced at the Mobile World Congress, on February 14, 2010.

Facebook blocks 'social media suicide' website

Are you bored by the status updates of your friends? Do you want to get rid of your online teenage years and delete your MySpace account? Are you tired of living your life so that you have something to tweet about? Then get reality back, and commit social media suicide with Web2.0 Suicide Machine.

In a spectacular way The Dutch website created by your unfriendly neighbourhood medialab moddr_ is designed to end users' social lives on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and LinkedIn.

No, users don't deactivate their account. The website makes a feast out of the assessment as it shows you how it unfriends person after person on Facebook, or removes bit by bit the people you follow on Twitter.

The purpose of the social media was to make it richer, but we all know that they were never meant to replace social life. However, now that the early elation about social media is over, people are starting to use them more effectively or are stopping using them at all.

You only need to select the social network on the website, enter the user name and your password to commit social media suicide. Next to your profile picture on a memorial page that Suicide Machine maintains, you can send out your last words there.

The project seems to be quite successful. According to Suicide Machine's figures, 56,243 friends have been unfriended, 202,386 tweets have been removed and 856 people quit their online lives, since its launch in December.

But Facebook didn't see the funny side of the site. Facebook has started to prevent its use by blocking Suicide Machine's IP address yesterday, thus making it impossible to use the website to unfriend people.

"Web 2.0 Suicide Machine collects login credentials and scrapes Facebook pages, which violates of our Statement of Rights and Responsibilities”- in a statement the social media platform said. “We've blocked the site's access to Facebook as is our policy for sites that violate our SRR."

The computer students and hackers from Rotterdam, troop behind Suicide Machine, try to find a way to work around the problem. Seppukoo, a service that enabled users to automate the process of deleting their profile, was closed by Facebook last week.

So while Suicide Machine works well with Twitter, LinkedIn and MySpace, the only option for Facebook is at the moment to die hard.

Rare blue moon will illuminate skies on New Year's Eve

 When the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve, remember to do one thing: Look up. A full moon will be shining down from its highest point, illuminating the landscape.

``It will be so clear it will take your breath away,'' said Jack Horkheimer, host of the PBS show Star Gazer. ``It will be super bright and super high for us.''

It will be the second full moon of the month -- a phonomenon known as a ``blue moon.'' A full moon on New Year's Eve last occurred on Dec. 31, 1990; it won't happen again until 2028.

Horkheimer, 71, held a ``Howl at the Full Moon'' party 19 years ago for families with kids in his Miami neighborhood.

``They came in their bath robes and pajamas,'' he said.

``It was the most fun New Year's Eve I ever had in my life. Those children are now adults, and they still remember it.''

Horkheimer encourages families to ring in 2010 in similar fashion.

Women love their mobile phone more than their boyfriend – surprised?

It appears that the modern woman is now more in love and more reliant on their mobile phone than they are their boyfriend. But the man in their life does rank higher than their laptop and iPod. So that’s something.
According to The Daily Mail, online pawnbroker Borro recently surveyed 4,000 women about what they’d be willing to pawn to raise much-needed cash.
Four in 10 of the respondents said they’d be “devastated” if they lost their phone, more than the number who’d be gutted to lose either their boyfriend or best friend. Can this possibly be true? Do women really hold their mobile phone more dear to their heart than their current squeeze? Women only place Mother and Photographs above their cellphone.
Borro CEO Paul Aitken commented:
The list certainly threw up some surprises with boyfriends featuring below photos and mobile phones. It’s understandable why mums come out top though – they are there to lend an ear, offer support and a best friend to many girls. Photos hold fun and significant memories which could be devastating to lose and a mobile phone keeps women connected and it’s always by their side.
I’m now going to have to do what every male in a relationship is going to – ask my girlfriend whether she loves her phone more than she loves me. Or maybe I shouldn’t, as the answer may not be very appetizing to hear.

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare 2, Best Selling Game On Amazon

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the hugely popular video game which had sold 1.4 million copies within 24 hours of being released in Britain, has topped Amazon UK’s list of top selling items in 2009.

Amazon.co.uk has revealed that Modern Warfare 2, is one of the two video games, second being Fifa 10, that have gotten 2 slots in the list of top 5 best-selling items on Amazon this year.

Brian Mcbride, the managing director at Amazon.co.uk, said that "Clearly with the success of Nintendo's Wii console, many families have a games console somewhere in the house. It's no longer just for teenagers. Lots of the family sit around and play games."

Modern Warfare 2 which incidentally has received a 94 percent aggregate by Metacritic, edged out the DVD of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince to get the top spot on the list which placed the DVD of Michael McIntyre Live 2009 on the third position with SanDisk 8GB SDHC Secure Digital Card and Fifa 10 getting the 4th and 5th position respectively.