smartphones Archives

Apple sells 78m iPhones in quarter, record revenue in tow
By Hadlee Simons on 1 February, 2017
Apple didn't have the greatest fourth quarter results last year, but the new iPhone has done massive business for the brand. "The company posted all-time record quarterly revenue of $78.4-billion and all-time record quarterly earnings per diluted share of $3.36. These results compare to revenue of $75.9-billion and earnings per diluted share of $3.28 in the year-ago quarter," read an excerpt of the Q1 fiscal year earnings report. The firm added that 64% of their revenue came from international markets. "We're thrilled to report that our holiday quarter results generated Apple's highest quarterly revenue ever, and broke multiple records along the way....

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Hugo Barra has announced departure from Xiaomi
By Hadlee Simons on 23 January, 2017
When Hugo Barra announced that he was leaving Google for Xiaomi back in 2013, there were many people questioning the move. But after overseeing the company's international expansion, it's hard to argue with the decision. Now, Barra has announced his departure from the Chinese smartphone firm, using an open letter on Facebook to reveal the news. "When Lei Jun and Bin Lin came to me nearly four years ago with the opportunity to help turn a young rockstar startup into a global player, I embarked on what has been the greatest and most challenging adventure of my...

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Here’s how to make GIFs on your smartphone
By Hadlee Simons on 20 October, 2016
There are quite a few mobile manufacturers offering the ability to make GIFs, but app stores are filled with capable tools for the job as well. And why not? The moving picture format are supported by practically every social media platform and messaging app, from WhatsApp to Twitter, to Facebook and Telegram. One of the more capable apps for making GIFs is GIF Maker -- GIF Editor for Android, allowing you to make GIFs from a locally stored clip or an online video (such as from YouTube). Making GIFs on your smartphone is pretty simple, especially with this handy guide If your friend happens to...

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Lenovo lays off a ton of Motorola staff – report
By Hadlee Simons on 27 September, 2016
Lenovo has reportedly laid off "hundreds of employees" working at Motorola, apparently leaving less than 50% of the workforce remaining. One source told Droid-Life that over 700 employees out of 1200 will be laid off, while another claimed that Lenovo was moving more operations to China. The Chinese tech firm confirmed the news in a press statement, saying it was part of "ongoing strategic integration" between the two. Lenovo said the Motorola layoffs were part of plans to "streamline its portfolio" of products "Lenovo today announced a resource action impacting less than 2% of its approximately 55 000 employees globally. The majority of the positions being eliminated...

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Former Rovio CEO to lead Nokia brand’s return to market
By Hadlee Simons on 16 August, 2016
Earlier this year, it was announced that new firm HMD Global would be bringing the Nokia name back to the smartphone world. At the time, HMD Global said it would be using the Nokia name for smartphones and tablets and that these devices would be running Android. The company already has several high-profile executives, but you can add another one to the list, in the form of ex-Rovio Entertainment CEO Pekka Rantala. The executive, who was also a senior vice-president of global marketing at Nokia, is now the chief marketing officer at HMD Global, the company announced. Rantala has 17-years of experience at Nokia, before...

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Stop charging import duties on mobile phones – WASPA
By Hadlee Simons on 26 July, 2016
The Wireless Application Services Providers' Association (WASPA) has called on the government to stop charging import duties on smartphones, saying that they aren't a luxury. The association said that mobile use needs to be encouraged, because of the relationship between mobile data usage and GDP growth. It cited a GSMA study, which found that doubling mobile data usage resulted in the GDP growing by 0.5%. "Unfortunately, while cellphone handsets enable this GDP-boosting data usage, smartphones attract ad valorem duty, plus 14% VAT, when imported into the country," WASPA explained in a statement. Read more: Telkom reveals FreeMe - six rather attractive mobile data plans "WASPA...
Edward Snowden working on spy-proof smartphone case for cyber-sleuths
By Matthew Alexander on 25 July, 2016
Notorious public whistleblower Edward Snowden and famous hacker Andrew “Bunnie” Huang are co-developing a smartphone case that aims to protect users from wireless device snooping. According to the duo's paper "Against the Law: Countering Lawful Abuses of Digital Surveillance", the device will prevent journalists falling foul to their "own tools". "Front-line journalists are high-value targets, and their enemies will spare no expense to silence them. Unfortunately, journalists can be betrayed by their own tools. Their smartphones are also the perfect tracking device," they add. The device, called the introspection engine, will clip onto a device, and checks if a phone is transmitting radio signals....
Telkom reveals FreeMe: 6 rather attractive mobile data plans
By Hadlee Simons on 21 July, 2016
Telkom Mobile has announced the launch of its FreeMe mobile plan, offering six tiers of pricing. The pricing itself seems reasonable, but there are a number of surprising perks as well. All plans include free SMS messages (limited to 50 per day), zero-rated WhatsApp/Viber/BBM calls (2GB fair usage policy) and free access to over 6000 WiFi hotspots. The two most expensive plans (20GB and unlimited data) also include free calls to any network - albeit limited to only 1500 and 3000 minutes respectively. The other plans feature free on-network calls only, with a fair usage policy of 3000 minutes. Interestingly enough, the plans...

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10 examples of Pokemon Go going way too far on Twitter
By Hadlee Simons on 14 July, 2016
We're starting to get a little Drowzee tired of Pokemon Go news in the office this week, as people go to ridiculous lengths to play the game and make non-stop posts. Just how ridiculous can it get though? Well, Twitter users have done a good job capturing the world's obsession with the mobile title. So this Just happened... #PokemonGO pic.twitter.com/PWZRxXHtcv — Ismail Amen (@bigish41) July 14, 2016 The world in 2016 #PokemonGO pic.twitter.com/vEYMx0gpTA — Geoff D. ⭐ (@Geoffdx) July 13, 2016 Pokémon Go user playing while driving successfully catches a tree https://t.co/iFnyuzeGhN pic.twitter.com/TbjhubdCWy — Jalopnik (@Jalopnik) July 13, 2016 Ha! Just saw this over I-43 in Milwaukee. #PokemonGO...

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Microsoft cuts 1850 jobs in mobile unit, takes $950m hit
By Hadlee Simons on 25 May, 2016
Microsoft's mobile division has endured a torrid time in recent years, seeing lay-offs, mergers and spin-offs. Unfortunately, the company has announced another round of job cuts. The Redmond company plans to "streamline" its smartphone hardware division, affecting up to 1850 jobs in the process, it announced in a press statement. "As a result, the company will record an impairment and restructuring charge of approximately $950-million, of which approximately $200-million will relate to severance payments," the company explained. Read more: Microsoft sells its feature phone unit for $350m, Nokia devices coming "We are focusing our phone efforts where we have differentiation - with enterprises that value security,...

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Microsoft sells its feature phone unit for $350m, Nokia devices coming
By Hadlee Simons on 18 May, 2016
Microsoft's mobile divisions are no stranger to upheaval. After all, the US company added Nokia's mobile unit to the stable several years ago and mobile saw plenty of layoffs last year. Now, there's more big news as the Redmond company is spinning off the feature phone unit. The US company has announced plans to sell the feature phone business to FIH Mobile, a subsidiary of manufacturing colossus Foxconn, and HMD Global for US$350-million. The deal will also see Microsoft selling its Vietnamese manufacturing facility to Foxconn. "Upon close of this deal, approximately 4500 employees will transfer to, or have the opportunity to join, FIH Mobile Ltd. or HMD Global,...

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Survey: new technology ‘too complicated’ for most South Africans
By Myolisi Sikupela: Staff Reporter on 12 January, 2015
According to a new report from Accenture, a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, titled Engaging the Digital Consumer in the New Connected World, most consumers experience challenges using several new types of smart high-tech devices. The survey was conducted online in October and November 2014, with 24 000 consumers in 24 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the United States. The sample size in each country was representative of the online...
Is Africa ready for the $50 smartphone? [T4ALagos]
By Mich Atagana on 18 July, 2014
There are around 750-million SIM cards in Africa (versus 220-million desktops), which means that the US$50 smartphone presents a massive opportunity for the continent. But are African tech entrepreneurs ready for the coming explosion? When US$50 smartphones become the norm, only those who are able to build for them will survive. “Do we want the Germans coming to our shores and eating our lunch?” Gareth Knight asks the audience at Tech4Africa in Lagos, Nigeria. “When the US$50 smartphone hits the continent, where will they get the apps and who is building those apps for them?” Knight, who has been running...
Former Apple CEO John Sculley to take on Indian smartphone market
By Nur Bremmen: Staff reporter on 7 March, 2014
He may be best known as the man who effectively forced Steve Jobs out of Apple, but John Sculley reckons he still has a role to play in the tech space. More specifically, he wants to go after the Indian smartphone market. According to BGR, the former Apple CEO is getting ready to launch a new smartphone brand in India alongside former Micromax smartphone head Ajay Sharma. The venture, which is reportedly being bankrolled by Singapore-based Inflexionpoint (a company that counts Sculley among its founding partners), reportedly already has a team on the ground consisting mainly of Sharma's former...

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Smartphones and emerging markets: where we’re headed in 2014
By Jonathan Houston on 9 January, 2014
There are few emerging market countries that are particularly mature in terms of their cellphone and smartphone usage and buying patterns (China, in particular stands out); but there is a large contingent of emerging markets who are not as mature in this regard. What are some of the factors that have held back smartphone adoption in these markets and further to that; what is being done to accelerate the adoption rates? In 2008; smartphone sales accounted for just nine percent of all phone sales in China. In 2012; that number skyrocketed to 59% of all phones being sold in China...

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