Mobile and Wireless

Mobile and Wireless Topic Center

News, reviews and analysis about mobile and wireless technology

Social media takes over the Super Bowl

For Sunday's Super Bowl, fans will split their attention between the screens on their TVs, laptops, smartphones and tablets. The big game is going social.
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Systems management, cloud services likely in Dell's software acquisition plans

Dell's formation of a new software group, which was announced Thursday, could be the forerunner to a string of acquisitions by the vendor, with some observers predicting a focus on systems management and cloud services provisioning.

Smartphone shipments outpaced PCs in 2011 for first time

Smartphone shipments overtook personal computers -- including tablets, laptops, netbooks and desktops -- for the first time in 2011, according to Canalys.

Presidential candidates' mobile websites ripped for poor performance

Despite pronouncements that they are pro-technology, all of the U.S. presidential candidates have made fairly feeble attempts at building mobile campaign websites.

Sprint to sell $100 tablet from ZTE

Sprint is rolling out one of the lowest cost tablets on the market -- a ZTE tablet with midrange specs -- but you'll have to sign a two-year service contract to get the low US$100 price tag.

Tiff over LightSquared reveals odd partnership

LightSquared founder Philip Falcone's response to ethics allegations by a U.S. senator sheds some light on a strange chapter in the carrier's ongoing bid to build a controversial cellular data network.

Lease program would offer users new phone every year

Wish you could have the latest hot smartphone even with a year left on your contract? TMNG Global has devised a leasing program that could let you upgrade your phone every year.

SAP-SuccessFactors deal delayed as US regulators conduct investigation

SAP's US$3.4 billion purchase of cloud software vendor SuccessFactors has been delayed indefinitely while a U.S. regulatory body investigates the deal, an SAP spokesman confirmed Wednesday.

India's top court strikes down 122 2G mobile licenses

India's Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that 122 mobile licenses awarded across 32 service areas in 2008 should be cancelled, giving a new dimension to investigations into alleged malpractices and corruption in the allotment of the 2G licenses.

Symantec recants Android malware claims

Symantec has backtracked from assertions that 13 Android apps distributed by Google's Android Market were malicious. It now says the code in question comes from an aggressive ad network that provides revenue to the smartphone programs.

Send Faxes From the Web: Three Services Tested

Though you might be tempted to ditch your office fax machine, you probably have to send out at least a few faxes every year. Windows lets you fax from the OS itself; but it requires you to use a landline that your small business may not want tied up, and it lacks security and mobile features that your business may need.

Take Great Product Photos for Your Online Store

When you're selling items on shopping sites such as eBay and Etsy, presentation and marketing are just as important as producing a high-quality product. Customers are bombarded with images of goods of all shapes and sizes. Since they can't try things on or test them out, it's important for you to provide a clear, accurate, and appealing representation. Even if the cashmere scarf you knitted is beautiful in person, no one will want it if it appears out of focus, looks poorly lit, or sits wrapped around your unshaven friend's neck.

Goodbye e-books, hello apps

E-book sales are, surprisingly, flattening and Gibbs knows why: E-books don't really work very well.

Apple forcing IT shops to "adapt or die"

Many IT departments are struggling with Apple's "take it or leave it" attitude, based on discussions last week at MacIT, which is Macworld|iWorld's companion conference for IT professionals.

Evernote vs. OneNote: Note-Taking Apps Showdown

Among the many options for storing information digitally, the biggest players in the note-taking software market are OneNote and Evernote. These applications come in handy for taking notes, making lists, managing projects, storing and organizing information, and sharing it with others.

Will this be the year of Apple in the enterprise?

All of the big trends in IT right now -- cloud computing, mobile solutions and the consumerization of IT -- look good for Apple as it slowly worms its way into the enterprise. Columnist Ryan Faas explains why it's happening now.

Retrieve Your Entire Music Library from Your Google Music Account

For a while now I've been using Google Music as a kind of cloud-based backup for my music library. Except that it wasn't really a backup, because I couldn't easily retrieve all the songs I'd uploaded. In the event of a system failure, I'd have to download tunes in batches of 100. Bleh.

Expo Notes: more work tools for the iPad

I met with a bunch of the vendors at Macworld | iWorld who are touting tools they say will make iPads and iPhones better business tools. Two in particular stood out.

HP Envy 15: A great laptop marred by serious flaws

The new Envy 15, which HP released right at the end of 2011, finally features a whole new design. For the most part, it's great, but a few nagging issues keep the system from being an easy recommendation.

Twine, jump-started by Kickstarter

Gibbs follows up on last week's column on the Lantronix xPrintServer and looks at Twine, a wireless sensor device that got funded on Kickstarter.