We know that a bunch of mobile gadgets are being manufactured in China. Your laptops, netbooks, and PC certainly are. So are many smartphones. And we certainly know that Apple's iPhones and iPad are made in China (but designed in California). And then we hear a lot about some tech jobs outsourced to India.
I recently had a conversation with a friend who made a trip to India to do some work with his counterparts there. Now it has me wondering just where the manufacturing is in India and how much outsourcing of some development jobs are sent to China?
I reckon because India has a large English speaking population, it could be easier for US companies to set up offices in India.
And could we soon have devices "Made in India"? And does it matter?
Certainly. Take for instance the iPhone. It's only recently that the iPhone 4 was made available in India, nearly a year after it was released in general use in the US. And China has had the iPhone 4 for months. Certainly where the device is manufactured has some bearing on availability.
On top of that, China is currently one of the largest app market in the world. In fact, It is the second biggest after the US market for Apple's iOS app store (MIC Gadget).
Supposedly if the iPhone was available in large markets like India or other BRIC members at an earlier date, it is conceivable that the app and iOS development could be greatly influenced by the native population of mobile warriors.
The same could be said for other mobile platforms like Android and Blackberry. It won't be long before Apple gives more attention to markets like India that I consider underserved. And it would be foolish for any tech giants to do so much longer.
So perhaps devices will probably continue to be assembled in China for the foreseeable future but I am certain that app development from other BRIC nations will have greater influence sooner. And for US and EU users, we can feel that influence as well.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Pics Of Google Plus Webapp For Mobile
For those of you that have access to Google Plus (through your own means or through me), you may be accessing your profile through your Android app or the browser on your PC.
Here are a few screen shots that I've captured on my iPhone to show you. It works exactly the same on Android devices. I have to say that Google has done a great job with their mobile dev. This is way beyond what Facebook has been able to do.
This is the homepage of sort. Nothing ground-breaking here.
This is the stream page where you can write updates and share them with which ever circle you wish.
This is the circles page. This manipulation for sharing your stream updates with specific people is very easy. You can't do this easily on Facebook so expect Facebook to copy this. Hey it is how the industry works sometimes.
This is the profile page. It's like the stream page except this page allows you to focus one specific individual in your circle.
Again, Google has come a long long way since their mobile search and email pages. With the Plus effort, Google has leaped over everyone and showed just what can be done to create a Webapp if you are willing to innovate.
With Plus, Google has take a huge swipe at Facebook and blurred the line between native and Web-based apps.
Here are a few screen shots that I've captured on my iPhone to show you. It works exactly the same on Android devices. I have to say that Google has done a great job with their mobile dev. This is way beyond what Facebook has been able to do.
This is the homepage of sort. Nothing ground-breaking here.
This is the stream page where you can write updates and share them with which ever circle you wish.
This is the circles page. This manipulation for sharing your stream updates with specific people is very easy. You can't do this easily on Facebook so expect Facebook to copy this. Hey it is how the industry works sometimes.
This is the profile page. It's like the stream page except this page allows you to focus one specific individual in your circle.
Again, Google has come a long long way since their mobile search and email pages. With the Plus effort, Google has leaped over everyone and showed just what can be done to create a Webapp if you are willing to innovate.
With Plus, Google has take a huge swipe at Facebook and blurred the line between native and Web-based apps.
Latest On Google Plus: Invitations Still Halted And Loophole Still Closed
Hi, this is a quick update on the Google Plus situation. On Friday (7/1), I put out a notice on my blog that how those of us with access to Google Plus can invite family and friends into Plus. It was not a direct invitation but a way to e-mail stream update to people. From there, they can click on the "Learn more about Google Plus" icon and gain access that way.
As far as I know, I was able to add those of you interested in getting a Google Plus account as of early morning the next day. Luckily, I was able to invite a few dozen and was pretty happy about that.
But those that received the email after that or read their e-mails too late were shut out. And I tested it against this morning and the situation remains the same. And Google has not opened up on our pages official invitations to invite friends from within our stream page.
I will continue to reply to those of you who e-mailed me for access. When things change, I will e-mail you directly again and post a new blog post notifying you of the change. I hope to get all of you on Plus as soon as possible and hope that we remains friends after. Since this experience, I have made friends from all over the world.
I can tell you this about Plus. It is truly a remarkable experience.
More at Onxo.
Samsung Has A Lasting Hit: Galaxy Brand Shows Legs as New Android Device Outsells Original
According to BGR, the Galaxy S II, has sold over three million units worldwide and it had not even launch in the North America yet. And the S II has already sold more units than the original Galaxy S.
What is amazing is that the Galaxy brand was the effort of Samsung alone without the support of a carrier. Remember that the Droid brand by Verizon Wireless with Motorola's Android devices.
Where does Samsung go from here with the Galaxy brand? Right now, the Korean megacorp is embroiled in a number of lawsuits, the biggest one involved Apple. Apple has accused Samsung of copying its designs.
Despite this, Samsung will continue to expand this line into new markets. And Galaxy tablets based on Android as also just coming to the market.
Furthermore, I expect Google and Samsung will get closer over time as the mobile war escalates in the courts and the market.
Source: Boy Genius Report
What is amazing is that the Galaxy brand was the effort of Samsung alone without the support of a carrier. Remember that the Droid brand by Verizon Wireless with Motorola's Android devices.
Where does Samsung go from here with the Galaxy brand? Right now, the Korean megacorp is embroiled in a number of lawsuits, the biggest one involved Apple. Apple has accused Samsung of copying its designs.
Despite this, Samsung will continue to expand this line into new markets. And Galaxy tablets based on Android as also just coming to the market.
Furthermore, I expect Google and Samsung will get closer over time as the mobile war escalates in the courts and the market.
Source: Boy Genius Report
Another Tablet Use: Law Firms Give iPads To Clients To Stay in Touch
The iPad is the tablet right now. There just is not way of going around it. However I believe it's only time until we see Android tablets in greater numbers in homes, schools, and workplaces. Meanwhile here is a prime example of how tablets are currently being used and and where can go from here.
Many attorneys are already using iPads in the offices and courtrooms. However, a couple of lawyers in Phoenix, Arizona had gone a step further. They equipped some of their biggest clients with iPads that will allow the clients to stay in touch with their cases and attorneys.
Think about this. This is a field that has required updated informations at all time. But there are other fields that require up-to-date information for easy consumption.
According to Arizona Central, Fennemore Craig is a personal injury firm but it looks like other types of law practiced could benefit greatly as well. iPads and other tablets used to help with disseminating information or provide informative information through presentations.
This practice could be put to uses in other industries. What'd amazing is that the use of tablets in such a manner is just a transplant of what we can already do on laptops and netbooks but the form factor of the tablet about the size of a notepad is managed to transform the perception of mobile tech and allowed more to be done than just on PCs.
What other uses are available to us on tablets will increase exponentially in the coming years. And yes, while it will happen, it will take years.
For instance, while the iPad is now more than a year old, we still don't see university and Hugh school students carrying around tablets instead textbooks. And yet, we know that day will come. Already, more ebooks are being sold on Amazon than physical books.
If you work in the law industry, imagine going into a meeting with a client with your iPad, Xoom, or Windows tablet and have the interview automatically recorded and transcribed. Then you can just as easily manipulate the information into formats that can be used by other lawyers and the courts.
That day will happen. It could be a while but the day is coming. And imagine the amount of papers, man hours, and other expenses be saved because of this.
- Posted using BlogPress
Many attorneys are already using iPads in the offices and courtrooms. However, a couple of lawyers in Phoenix, Arizona had gone a step further. They equipped some of their biggest clients with iPads that will allow the clients to stay in touch with their cases and attorneys.
Think about this. This is a field that has required updated informations at all time. But there are other fields that require up-to-date information for easy consumption.
According to Arizona Central, Fennemore Craig is a personal injury firm but it looks like other types of law practiced could benefit greatly as well. iPads and other tablets used to help with disseminating information or provide informative information through presentations.
This practice could be put to uses in other industries. What'd amazing is that the use of tablets in such a manner is just a transplant of what we can already do on laptops and netbooks but the form factor of the tablet about the size of a notepad is managed to transform the perception of mobile tech and allowed more to be done than just on PCs.
What other uses are available to us on tablets will increase exponentially in the coming years. And yes, while it will happen, it will take years.
For instance, while the iPad is now more than a year old, we still don't see university and Hugh school students carrying around tablets instead textbooks. And yet, we know that day will come. Already, more ebooks are being sold on Amazon than physical books.
If you work in the law industry, imagine going into a meeting with a client with your iPad, Xoom, or Windows tablet and have the interview automatically recorded and transcribed. Then you can just as easily manipulate the information into formats that can be used by other lawyers and the courts.
That day will happen. It could be a while but the day is coming. And imagine the amount of papers, man hours, and other expenses be saved because of this.
- Posted using BlogPress
AT&T Provides iPhone Insurance On July 17th
Starting on July 17th, AT&T will begin offering insurance to iPhone users. For new owners who sign up within 30 days of activation, they can sign up for iPhone coverage for $5 a month. More information at Macnn.
What I do find interesting is the timing of the issue. In the past, typical changes mobile plans and policies take place weeks or just a couple of months before new iPhone are introduced AT&T did just before the iPhone 4 went on sale by ending unlimited data plans.
So with this insurance policy change, I reckon it's one of recent signals that the next iPhone is coming sooner rather than later. What other signs are there?
Verizon Wireless, which started selling the iPhone in February, will pointed end their unlimited data plans on July 17th.
More than rumors, the timing of moves by mobile wireless providers can provide us with more valuable information about Apple's iOS releases. How would you like to see the next iPhone 5 (or iPhone 4S) in August?
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Android Devices Growing But iOS Devices Could Be Defining Mobile Use
Android adoption has grown at a rate head-and-shoulders above everyone else. The latest figure provided by Google showed that Android adoption is coming in at 500,000 units a day. This information come across as a tweet from Andy Rubin, Google's Android-in-chief (Venture Beat). And while no one else can lay claim to anything close, it could be Apple's iOS devices that are leading the charge in actual mobile use and future habits.
These Android figures do not accurate definite what is actually being sold, updates, or anything along that line. What we do know is that Android tablets are gaining as wide an acceptance as its smartphone counterparts. More than that, Apple's tablet, the iPad, is controlling more than a lion's share of use. Internationally, the iPad controls nearly 90% of tablet browsing while it controls 97% of US share on the Web for tablets (Macrumors). Now, comes word that iOS browsing controls 60% of all US mobile browsing (Fortune).
That is saying quite a bit for a platform that many consider lose marketshare in a few years and even be overtaken by Microsoft's Windows Phone. Whether that'll happen or not, time will tell but near terms, iPhone sales are growing once against and Android sales are now flat thank largely to CDMA iPhone sales.
And with the pace of innovation and the coming iOS 5 update as well as a possible new iPhone hardware in the wings, it could be Apple further defining how mobile users, not only iOS users, use their smartphones and tablets. It is not just native apps versus web apps but in areas like multi-touch, voice, and messaging.
Thus, it's imperative that Google, RIM, Microsoft, and others continue to innovate in areas and absolutely avoid playing to Apple's rules. And yes, Apple does need a kick in the butt from time to time. And perhaps, iOS will go from second to third in a few years in terms of market share but by then, the market will expect other platforms to conform to how iOS devices work and serve our mobile needs.
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