MTS brings out Android smartphones under Rs. 5,000

MTS have announced the launch of their new Android smartphones today, according to Telecom Talk. These two new phones have been named the MTS MTag 3.1 (Huawei  C8511) and MTS Livewire (ZTE N600). Both the phones run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S1 processor and work on the CDMA EV-DO REVA technology.

The MTS MTag 3.1 has a 2.8-inch capacitive touchscreen with a display resolution of 240 x 320. It features a 3.2 megapixel rear camera along with an MTS TV application that allows users to view Live TV and on-demand video playback. It also includes voice search capabilities and comes equipped with a 3.5 mm headphone jack slot. On the other hand, not many details have been disclosed about the MTS Livewire besides the fact that it operates on the CDMA EV-DO network and will provide users easy access to Google services like YouTube, Google Mail, Google Talk and Google Maps.

Both the smartphones will be equipped with Google’s Android 2.2 Froyo OS and will be launched in the sub Rs. 5,000 category. It seems that Android is going viral amongst both phone and tablet manufacturers in India. The launch of the sub Rs. 5,000 Android smartphones definitely gives MTS an edge over the competition, but eventually it’s the performance and complete specs that will decide the phones' success.

Google Acquires Motorola Mobility to 'Supercharge' Android

Image via CrunchBase

August is normally a slow news month, but not today. Google announced Monday that it will acquire Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion in order to "supercharge" its Android mobile operating system and build up its patent portfolio.

In a blog post championing the acquisition, Google chief Larry Page insisted the acquisition will not change Google's commitment to keeping Android open. "We will run Motorola as a separate business," he wrote. "Many hardware partners have contributed to Android’s success and we look forward to continuing to work with all of them to deliver outstanding user experiences."

Andy Rubin, senior vice president of mobile at Google, echoed those sentiments. "We expect that this combination will enable us to break new ground for the Android ecosystem. However, our vision for Android is unchanged and Google remains firmly committed to Android as an open platform and a vibrant open source community," Rubin said in a statement. "We will continue to work with all of our valued Android partners to develop and distribute innovative Android-powered devices."

Perhaps more important to Google's bottom line will be the acquisition of Motorola Mobility's patent portfolio. "Our acquisition of Motorola will increase competition by strengthening Google’s patent portfolio, which will enable us to better protect Android from anti-competitive threats from Microsoft, Apple and other companies," Page wrote.

Earlier this month, Google accused Apple, Microsoft, and other tech giants of trying to "strangle" Android with its coordinated patent purchases and pledged to "intensely" defend its mobile OS through patent purchases of its own and opposition to what it considers anti-competitive patent bids.

Last month, a consortium of tech rivals purchased 6,000 wireless technology patents held by Nortel, which Google had said it wanted to buy. Apple, EMC, Ericsson, Microsoft, Research in Motion, and Sony joined forces to purchase the patents, which cover wireless, wireless  4G, data networking, optical, voice, Internet, service provider,  semiconductors, and other patent portfolios. Microsoft and Apple also teamed up to purchase patents from Novell, along with Oracle and EMC.

Page said Motorola's 2008 decision to "bet big" and make Android the sole operating system across all of its smartphone devices "is one of many reasons that there is a natural fit between our two companies."

"We believe that their mobile business is on an upward trajectory and poised for explosive growth," Page wrote. "The combination of Google and Motorola will not only supercharge Android, but will also enhance competition and offer consumers accelerating innovation, greater choice, and wonderful user experiences."

"We have shared a productive partnership with Google to advance the Android platform, and now through this combination we will be able to do even more to innovate and deliver outstanding mobility solutions across our mobile devices and home businesses," said Sanjay Jha, CEO of Motorola Mobility.

Google said it hopes to close the deal by the end of 2011 or early 2012, pending regulatory approval.

Stay tuned for more details.

HTC Sensation unlocked priced in UK

Image via WikipediaAs you probably know, HTC Sensation was announced to be headed to UK market. Looking to purchase this powerful dual-core smartphone? The online retailer Play.com offers the handset for £499.99 SIM free, which meand you'll be able to use a SIM card anywhere in the world on any operator.

Contract-free, the Android smartphone can be pre-ordered from Play.com with the mention that the due date for release is set for June 30. Converting the amount in dollars, it means around $820, a little too pricey.

But there is also an alternatie. You can take advantage on a monthly contract, to get the Sensation for free or less expensive. Unless, you're too anxious to be among the first owners of an HTC Sensation in UK.

Take Android Market Share Numbers With A Grain Of Salt

Recently, many reports have arrived showing the open source Android mobile OS beating Apple's iPhone and iOS in market share terms, with some over-enthusiastic observers pronouncing the iPhone "dead in the water." These have been accompanies by forecasts showing that Android will trounce the iPhone and iOS over time. In an attempt to get to the bottom of the competition,
Business Insider has conducted its own survey of smartphone users--2,000 of them, to be specific--focusing on the Android vs. iPhone competition. The results, while interesting, show that it's important to take Android market share numbers with a grain of salt.
Here are some of the basic findings from the Business Insider survey:
Almost all of the survey participants already use smartphones
The majority of participants use Android, with most of the rest using iPhones. (This is similar to the recent market-share figures from Comscore, although Android and iPhone appear to be over-represented and BlackBerry appears to be under-represented).
Most survey participants are planning to upgrade to a new smartphone in the next year or two.
Most participants say they will upgrade to the "latest, greatest" smartphone, not an older, cheaper one.
Most survey participants are NOT planning to switch platforms when they upgrade
Most participants say "features" and "platform" are the most important factors when choosing a smartphone.
Of course, the big data point that jumps out of these results is that most of the respondents say they use Android. However, there is no information to accompany the survey results regarding who was surveyed. In many enterprises, Android phones are not even sanctioned as business devices, and internal app development is often done only for the iPhone, BlackBerry, and non-Android devices. Android is, no doubt, emerging as a consumer success story, but the iPhone and the BlackBerry are favored by businesses over Android. Android is also favored by open source-friendly users, and it's not clear from the latest survey results whether the audience was skewed in this way.
Android is such a new operating system still--having only picked up momentum in the last 18 months--that it remains important to watch its success as a consumer phenomenon and a business phenomenon on separate tracks. Time will tell if the OS wins in both of these arenas.

source : ostatic.com