New Directions: Apple iOS 7 and Google's Key Lime Pie

Apple has recently unveiled it iOS 7 operating system at WWDC.  iOS 7's design borrows a lot from other operating systems. The new \look of iOS 7, a move away from Steve Job's skeuomorphic design, looks like it was inspired by Microsoft's Windows Phone 8.  PCMag's Sacha Segan wrote: "The flatness, the focus on large fonts and sliding panels, even the fonts themselves; you see a lot of Windows Phone 8's much cleaner, more "modern" approach." Even the lock screen looks like Windows Phone. 

And it does not stop there.  Quick settings, automatic update of apps and live wallpaper? Android has had these features for some time. Today sounds like Google Now. Tab browsing on Safari now looks like Chrome OS. The weather app and multitasking menu look a lot like HTC Sense apps. The new more colorful or playful icons, remind me of Samsung's TouchWiz. Car integration was started by BlackBerry. It is really hard to find anything new in iOS7, except that it is new to Apple. 

But that does not really matter. When I first tried BlackBerry 10, I felt the same way, that it had taken the best of what other operating systems offered, and put it together in a really nice package. In the end, iOS 7 is more competent operating system, and ultimately, all operating systems will have the same feature sets.

Sadly, iOS 7 continues the trend started with iOS6 to leave older devices behind. While Apple will update devices as old as the iPhone 4 and iPad 2, to iOS 7, only the iPhone 5, iPod 5G and iPad 4 get all the new features. I really do not see any reason why the iPad 3, which is just over a year old wont be getting Air Drop or Camera filters. The iPhone 4S, does not get these updates too. The newer iPad mini is not getting camera filters.  

Key Lime Pie, the next Android OS release which we expect to see with the Nexus 5 in October, appears to be going a different direction. TheDroidGuy reports that while packing new features "the biggest new features from Key Lime Pie in the report is optimisation. The new Android update will run on almost all devices fast and smooth, including even the budget 1.0GHz single-core, 512MB of RAM Android smartphones."

This is an interesting piece of information. On the one hand it looked looked like single core devices with 512 MB of RAM were soon to become history. If this is true, we may see even cheaper Android smartphones last year running Google's latest and greatest. Smartphones running JellyBean have broken the US$100 barrier. If Key Lime Pie can run well on older hardware, the US$75 barrier could be breached early next year. 

So while Apple iOS does a good job of playing catchup, it looks like Google Key Lime Pie intends to inflict the death blow on feature phones.

Android Projected to Lead the Smartphone Market into 2017

If you are worried about moving to the Windows Phone platform or a worried keeping or trying a BlackBerry as the platform may die, there appears to be little to worry about. Canalys, a UK-based analysis company predicts that Android, iOS, Windows Phone and BlackBerry's OS will be alive and well in 2017.

By 2017, over 1.5 billion smartphones are projected to be sold, accounting for 73% of the total mobile market.

Android. In the next four years Android is expected to increase smartphone shipments from 470 million units per year, to over 1 billion units per year and maintain its 67% market share. 

iOS. Apple phone sales will also increase, but it will not keep up with the overall growth rate of the market. So while Apple will sell more smartphones, its share in the market will go down from 19.5% today to 14.1% in 2017. The reason for this is most of the growth in the smartphone market is expected to come from not from a great increase in demand for mobile phones in general, but from smartphones continuing to eat into the sales of feature phones. Since Apple does not compete in the lower cost segments, its market share is projected to decrease.

Windows Phone. Windows Phone is now competing even against entry level Androids with low cost offerings from Nokia, Huawei and soon, ZTE. Because of this, the market share of Windows Phone is expected to increase from 2.4% today, to 12.7% in 2017. This will put it back at about the same level as Windows Mobile hit in its peak in 2007.

BlackBerry. BlackBerry is supposed to hold it current market share, its current 4.8% market share being projected to be 4.6% in 2017. At it peak, in 2009 BlackBerry held nearly 20% of the market.

Others. While there are many new mobile operating systems in the works like Ubuntu, Firefox OS, Sailfish and most notably Tizen, these operating systems are not expected to have any significant impact. Other smartphone operating systems now how 5.6% of the market. This is expected drop to 1.5% be 2017.

So it looks like iOS and BlackBerry will continue to hold niche markets, while in the long run it is Android and Windows Phone which will be contending for the top spot.

Source: Canalysis

Two good laptops under 20K: Samsung ATIV Book 2 NP270E4V-K03PH and the Acer Aspire V5-131-10072G50A

The modern family. You are the geek in the family. Your primarily too is your shiny new HTC One. Your gaming is done on your aging Google Nexus 7. Your father is happy is can finally get a decent upgrade to his old BlackBerry Bold, and is happy to be taking delivery of the new Q10 in a few days. He is asking you to see how it will integrate with his PlayBook. Your mom, she is on her  iPhone talking with another doctor, while examining an X-Ray of a patient on her Apple iPad Retina. Your younger sister is driving the dog crazy as she chases it around the house taking video. She is thrilled with the Optical Image Stabilization feature of the Nokia Lumia 920. This is the modern family. Four members, four smartphones, three tablets and old faithful. Than it happens.

Old faithful is your trusty old HP Compaq 6910b from 2007. It has been on duty for six years now, and all of a sudden, old faithful gives up the ghost. She shut down and won't start up anymore. Old faithful has not been too useful as of late. It sits on one table in the house rarely moving. But you were planning to use it to right your Term Paper later this year. Your sister uses it to do school research on Wikipedia. Your father uses it from time to time to prepare presentations. The family budget is prepared by your mother, in long spreadsheets using old faithful.

You spend a fair amount of money on old faithful back in the day. But with four unlimited data plans, and you looking to upgrade your tablet to Full HD and your sister wanting a tablet with a pressure sensitive stylus, well there is not much room in the budget for a new laptop. It is a bit neglected, but you still need it. 

Luckily, these days, you don't have to spend much to get decent hardware. There are some really nice choices at below 20K.

1. Samsung ATIV Book 2 NP270E4V-K03PH (Php15,999 to Php18,999)

Samsung has recently rebranded its Windows devices under the ATIV brand. Not particularly catchy if you ask me. Still, they make decent hardware and you can pick up a entry level Samsung ATIV Book 2 for just Php15,999.

This 14-inch laptop is not spectacular, but it will get basic tasks done with a Intel Dual Core B847 processor and 2 GB of RAM. It has all the necessary connectivity options with WiFi, Bluetooth, HDMI out and USB 3.0. It even comes with a optical drive. At about 4.5 pounds, it is reasonably portable and has a six cell battery 

At Php15,999 it does not have Windows. But your family uses four different operating systems. Might be time to give Ubuntu or Linux Mint a try. If you want a Windows version, it comes with Windows 8 for just Php18,999.

2. Acer Aspire V5-131-10072G50A

If you are looking for something more portable, and can give up the optical drive, the Acer Aspire V5-131 is a nice choice. It has similar specifications to the entry Samsung ATIV Book 2 but its comes with a 11.6-inch display instead and is powered by Intel Celeron 1007u processor. The smaller size brings the wright down to just over 3 pounds. This will cost you all of Php18,900 with a Windows 8 license.

Cherry Mobile to update the Flare to JellyBean

The Cherry Mobile Flare wii be getting an update to JellyBean. I am impressed. Given with how "premium" brands  handle updates, I never expected a low cost phone like this would receive a software update.

The announcement was posted on Cherry Mobile's Facebook Page:

Yes, the JB Update of FLARE is available starting June 1 via Cherry Mobile Centers NATIONWIDE! Present your warranty card and official receipt to validate your purchase. 

Just remember to BACK UP all of your data before having the update. Cherry Mobile is not responsible for the loss of data of the owner.

A big thumbs up to CM.

Once upon a time, there was only Windows and Office

Once upon a time, if you wanted a low cost laptop there was only Windows. A few laptops with a Linux based operating system would also be sold, or the more techie buyers could buy a laptop with DOS on board, and install their favorite Linux distribution. But for the most part, if you wanted a low cost laptop, you had only Windows. 

Things have changed a lot in the past four years.

iOS. Most laptop buyers really did not need a laptop. Roughly half of a laptops bulk is due to the keyboard. So Apple yanked out the keyboard, used the smartphone operating system and came out with the iPad. Those in the past who would buy a netbook, which were decidedly poor in terms of build quality can get a very nice Apple iPad with a premium aluminum and glass finish starting at Php15,990.

Some would argue that a netbook is better, since it has a keyboard and can run Windows apps.

Anyone who used the keyboard a lot would eventually buy a real laptop. Typing on those small low quality keyboards netbooks came with was never very comfortable. I know. I owned two, replacing the first with a second model which promised a better keyboard, than I junked the netbook altogether realizing that that frame was simply to small to create a great keyboard. In addition, Apple iPad's, can also be equipped with keyboards. 

As for Windows software. Most people wont miss it with over 300,000 iPad apps... which cost less than Windows apps.

Android. Google has followed Apple into the tablet arena, and these days you can find fast tablets with HD displays starting at Php3,990. 

Mac OS X. Many of us still need a laptop. While all Macbook's are premium products, Macbook's are cheaper than ever. The 11.6-inch Macbook Air starts at Php46,990. That is the lowest price for a Macbook ever. However instead of a white plastic MacBook that screams entry level, the cheapest MacBook today is a the most portable MacBook Air, which many would select even if they had a larger budget.

While looking at making the transition from Windows to Mac OS X, you may want to take a look at iWorks too. It is a lot cheaper than MS Office.

Chrome OS. Chrome OS devices have yet to land in the Philippines, so it is not a good choice for the consumer. But if you are one of the growing number of companies or entities migrating to Google Apps, importing a large number of these low cost laptops, starting at US$199 might be worth the effort.

Microsoft, and its Windows and Office products, are still a force to be reckoned with, but it is no longer the near monopoly it used to be. What is nice is that the new order was not created by EU restrictions or anti-monopoly laws, but by innovation, smart supply chain management (here is one to you, Tim Cook) and the free market.

Q1 2013: Android and Windows Phone up, iPhone and BlackBerry down

Three out of four smartphones sold last quarter was an Android phone. Android's share in the smartphone market was 75%, up from 59.1% on the same quarter in the previous year. This is pretty impressive given that the new Android's don't start showing up till the second and third quarter of the year.

Apple sold more more iPhone in the first quarter of 2013, as compared to the same quarter in the previous year, but its market share took a sharp dip, from 23% to 17.3%. Without a new iPhone planned till the September 2013, its numbers will probably continue to fall this quarter. This probably also explains all the iPhone promos we are seeing in the Philippine market today.

Windows Phone has managed to get 3.2% of the smartphones sold in the first quarter of 2013. While this is much higher than the 2% market share it obtained in the same quarter in the previous year, the market share obtained so far is too small for the platform to have a significant impact. Windows Mobile, Microsoft previous mobile operating system had 23% percent of smartphone sales in 2004, and held 14% of the market in 2008, until Microsoft announced that it was coming out with a new operating system in 2009.

Still with new low cost offerings like the Nokia Lumia 520 and the Huawei Ascend W1, there seems to be the possibility that Windows Phone will have a major breakout this quarter.

BlackBerry market share in Q1 of 2013, dropped to 2.9%. With this BlackBerry relinquishes the third spot to Windows Phone. We have to wait another quarter to see whether the new BlackBerry Z10 and Q10 will change the fortunes of this former premier smartphone maker.

Cloudfone Thrill 430x now upgraded to Jelly Bean

The Cloudfone Thrill 430x is undoubtably the most successful phone from the company. With a reasonably sharp 4.3-inch qHD display and a reasonably fast dual core Qualcom S4 Play processor it is still a good phone for the money half a year from the time it was released. The real jewel in the Cloudfone offering is the large 4160 mAh battery. The large battery gives the Cloudfone Thrill 430x two to three times the battery life of other entry level smartphones.

The only thing that made the phone feel dated as of late is that it ran Android 4.0.4, Ice Cream Sandwich. That is the thing of the past. The Cloudfone Thrill 430x now ships out of the box with Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean.

Olders of existing units can have their phone updated at the Cloudfone service center at Paseo de Magallanes.

Quick specifications:

• Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
• 4.3-inch qHD (540 x 960) display
• Dual sim support
• 4 GB internal storage expandable via a MicroSD card slot
• 768 MB RAM
• 1.2 GHz dual core Qualcomm Snapdragon Processor
• 8 MP autofocus primary camera with LED Flash
• 0.3 MP front camera
• HSPA
• WiFi
• Bluetooth
• A-GPS
• 4160 mAh battery

You can read more about the Cloudfone Thrill 430x at this link.

Windows gets 7% of the tablet market for Q1 of 2013

While Windows RT have not been a smashing success, in part because the full PC version of Windows 8 runs well on tablets. Windows 8 itself has been labeled a failure by many sectors, with a 14% drop in PC sales year-on-year. However, the two criticized operating systems have been a success for Microsoft in a very important arena. Windows 8 and Windows RT have captured 7% of the tablet market in Q1 2013. While, this might not be a roaring success, it is a firm foothold in the largest growing category of consumer electronic devices.

Around the Web: Android Activations and Amazon International

Android activations have reached 1.5 million per day. This is up from 700,000 per day sixteen months ago on December 2011, and 400,000 per day in May 2011. 

Amazon looks to get a bigger piece of this pie. Phone Arena reports that the Amazon Android App store is about to launch internationally. More importantly, that means that the Kindle Fire line of Amazon tablets will probably be made available in more countries too.

Why Windows RT Failed

Windows RT is Windows for ARM devices other than smartphones.  Rather than using the Windows Phone 8 operating system for tablets, Microsoft develop a new one. This gives Microsoft three operating systems. Windows Phone 8 which is designed for use with ARM processors and for use on smartphones. Windows 8 which is designed for use with x86 (Intel and AMD) processors and for use on desktops and hybrid devices. Windows RT which is designed for use with ARM processors and for use on tablets and hybrid devices. All three versions of Windows use a common interface, and porting applications from one to another is supposedly not too difficult.

The approach taken is different from Apple, which has a mobile operating for phones and tablets in iOS which is compatible with ARM processors, and a desktop operating system which is compatible with x86 processors. The approach is also different from Google, which has Android for phones and tablets, and Chrome OS for desktops. Android and Chrome are compatible with both ARM and x86 processors.

The advantage of ARM was that it was the lower cost solution, and had good battery life. ARM processor also did not have the power to run a full desktop operating system. The death of Windows RT is due mainly to two factors:

1. Intel has closed the gap with ARM. Intel Atom processors can run the full Windows 8 operating system on a tablet, and give battery life more or less equivalent to other tablets. Basically, why run RT and when can run full Windows 8. With Intel's new Haswell, the need for Windows RT will be even less.

2. Microsoft kept too tight a control of ARM. Microsoft imposed tight controls on the development and production of Windows RT devices. All Windows RT devices were designed in cooperation with Microsoft. All Windows RT devices were built to strict design and hardware specifications provided by Microsoft. Three participating ARM chip makers were only allowed to partner with up to two PC manufacturers to develop the first wave of Windows RT devices. Qualcomm partnered with Samsung and HP, Nvidia with Asus and Lenovo, and Texas Instruments with Toshiba. Additionally, Microsoft partnered with Nvidia to produce its own Windows RT tablet, known as Surface.

Acer and Sony did not participate, whether by decision of Microsoft or the OEM's, I do not know. HTC was not allowed to build a Windows RT tablet. Lower cost ARM component manufacturers were also left out.

The end result was only five Windows RT devices being released, with Toshiba canceling their offering before launch. Effectively, there are only four left with Samsung canceling their ATIV Tab after release.

Acer built a Windows 8 tablet, and so did Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung. These devices matched the prices and the features of the five magical Windows RT devices. Windows RT on ARM might actually have been able to provide lower cost Windows devices. 

Windows RT already had the daunting task of trying to take out the Apple iPad. The end result was a situation where instead of Windows RT competing with the iPad and Android tablets,  Windows RT's first competitor was Windows 8. Apple iPad's and Android tablets, were at a different and lower price point all-together. 

Basically, when you read about that booming tablet environment, most of it is being done be devices that cost less than Windows RT and Windows 8 tablets. For Windows 8 tablets, this is to be expected. They are premium products which will be the choice of those who need Windows XP/Vista/7 compatible software on a tablet. 

Windows RT, needed mass acceptance to succeed. Without a large user base it would not be able to attract app developers. Without a large app ecosystem, it really has little hope of competing with the iPad.

In sum, Intel rendered Windows RT irrelevant with advancements in its processors. Microsoft rendered Windows RT irrelevant by creating a environment for its development which resulted in it coming into the market as a premium product.

Microsoft has the most operating systems, and many OEM partners, collectively they have not come out with a single product that can match the price of an Apple iPad 2. Never mind the iPad mini, Android and Kindle tablets sold cheaper than that. Instead Microsoft, leveraging MS Office, tried to go head-on with the Apple iPad Retina, and its 300,000 app ecosystem. 

The scariest message Windows RT send Microsoft is that, "We can live without MS Office."

The PC sales drop is simple math. The real question is, is this the end of the OEM's?

Simple math. The big news today is that PC sales dropped for a fourth quarter in a row. IDC estimates the drop at 14% while Gartner own estimates say PC sales slumped by 11% last quarter. This post-PC era news has been the subject of debate for two years. Some blame Windows 8, others blame OEM's for lack of innovation. It is a confluence of many things, but really, it is simple math.

From the consumer users perspective, assuming you had twenty buyers who would have replaced their existing PC this year, what they might do would look something like this. Lets says 17, buy a personal computer, as planned adding it to their smartphone or smartphone and tablet combo. Two, decide to pick-up a tablet and decide they don't need a PC anymore. One, maybe someone who has been using netbooks for the past five years, decided that the smartphone alone is just enough. Twenty potential buyers, and seven sales. You have a 15% drop right there.

Look around you. Out of ten friends who own PC's, has not at least one given up the PC for a slab? Out of twenty people you know who are PC owners, has at least one basically moved their entire computing experience to a phablet of smartphone?

With first time buyers, the situation will be different all-together. Your children will probably be getting a smartphone or tablet as their first PC. They may still buy, or you may buy them, a PC later in life when they have to write a thesis or do some more serious work. But definitely, your children, well their entry into the PC world will be delayed a decade or so by the tablet.

PC's are expensive. Locally, our bang for the buck tablet is the Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt. A 7-inch with a HD display (1280 x 800) and a quad core processor running on Android Jelly Bean. That will set you back, Php3,999, or about US$99, inclusive of the local value added tax. The cheapest PC I have seen on retail shelves as of late is the 10.1-inch Lenovo S110, with an Intel N2800 processor. It is priced at Php10,299, and at the price ships with a DOS CD. 

PC software is expensive. Adding an OEM copy of Windows 8 (SL) on the Lenovo S10 would push up the price to Php14,500. That copy of Windows 8 (SL) cost more than the Cherry Mobile tablet. Adding Microsoft Home & Student 2013 would set the buyer back another Php5,750. That brings up the price of my new but obsolete netbook to Php20,250!  A total of Php9,951 on software. 

It is pretty hard to spend Php9,951 on software at the Android Marker or the Apple App Store. Quick Office Pro for either an Android tablet or iPad will cost you less than Php900. Productivity software for Windows cost more than Android or iOS. PC games cost more than games for Android or iOS.

The PC is a premium device in a world, where the tablet is more stylish. OEM's building around the Windows 8 ecosystem have not created anything compelling enough to justify the staggering difference in prices of hardware and ecosystem.

Unless Microsoft, and Windows software developers drop the prices of software radically, this is not going to change soon.

Do Microsoft and other Windows developers need to see the light? Microsoft could start to drastically reduce the prices for Windows and Office. But this may be counter productive. Even in the post-PC world, you expect 250 million+ PC's to ship each year. If Microsoft and Windows developers cut the cost of Windows and Windows software by half, it won't double PC sales.

Go from a software company to a tech company. Two hundred fifty million of anything is a big market. If Microsoft had to improve profit, its best approach would be to cut out it OEM partners. Build it's own hardware. Basically, cut out the middle man and keep all the profits in the shrinking market to yourself. It could be like Apple. Apple could have just 25%

Now that would be the real nightmare for Dell, HP, Lenovo, Acer, Asus & Co. Maybe these companies best look into their own plans about finding an alternative operating system. 

The HTC Desire HD - Aging Gracefully Part 2

The first part of this post is at this link.

Okay. Where were we. Android 4.2.2, by CyangenMod, on the HTC Desire HD. The nice thing about newer versions of Android is that the lock-screen is being given more functionality. When I wake my phone, I get to see my Agenda for the next few hours or days, depending on your settings.

In the screenshot about, the quick view into the agenda is brought via CyanogenMod's cLock widget. I used to keep an Agenda widget on one home screen, but if I can have it one the lock-screen, so much the better.

Swipe the lock-screen left and it brings up the camera app. Swipe it right and you can access other widgets that you place on the lock-screen. Swipe up the bottom part of the screen to unclock, and you see something which should be pretty familiar looking to those who own Nexus phones, a pretty much Vanilla Android look.

Here is what my default home screen looks like. Sometimes I wonder how important it is to have the weather on your home screen, but I got use to it with the HTC Sense Flip Clock Weather Widget. So I created same basic set-up on a with a Holo look using a widget from the 1Weather. It is add supported, but you can remove the adds for US$1.99, which is what I decided to do.

I do not use too many home screens. On HTC Sense I used five. With my agenda on the lock screen I just just use three on CyanogenMod 10.1. Swipe right an it is my "work" page.

My to do list is displayed in the Task app by Team Tasks. I used Google Drive because I use Google Doc's in my office. Dropbox contains my work related files. I have not go around to migrating the files to Google Drive, though I keep telling myself I will. Box holds my personal files.

On the rightmost home screen I have my social page.

I use Twitter that way most people use RSS feeds. Google+ is where I go when I feel like doing some online socializing. That about it. I just use three home screens.

Performance of CyanogenMod 10.1 probably the fastest ROM I have ever had on this ROM. It looks like a 1 GHz processor and 768 MB of RAM is more than enough to run Android 4.2.2. Battery life on Android 4.2.2 seems to be rather good. Usually, when I use a "Vanilla" ROM, I get poorer battery life than a HTC Sense ROM. With CyanogenMod 10.1 is about the same as with Sense.

Bugs. The biggest issue is camera performance with this ROM is not as good as with the official ROM or a HTC Sense ROM. Occasionally, after taking a picture the screen is covered in a green tinge for a second, but it does not affect the picture quality. The only other small issue I have is wake time is not properly displayed in the battery history graph.

All-in-all, a small price to pay for running Google's latest and greatest. Not bad for a two and a half year old phone.

Cherry Mobile Titan gets a Jelly Bean Update

When you buy a low end phone, you really are not expecting any significant software update. Low cost devices rarely received updates. Buyers of the Cherry Mobile Titan will be pleasantly surprised. The Cherry Mobile Titan is going to be updated to Jelly Bean. 

You won't get an over the air update or be able to download one yourself. The update will be available through Cherry Mobile service centers starting April 15, 2013. The Cherry Mobile Titan is still available in the market, with a suggested retail price of Php6,499. 

The HTC Desire HD - Aging Gracefully Part 1

The HTC Desire HD, released in November 2010 is now thirty months old. 

The hardware itself has aged surprisingly well. With what used to be a massive 4.3-inch display it does not look too small in todays world of 4.7 to 5-inch Android smartphones. With a user replaceable battery, a few dollars spend on Amazon can score you a new battery. But you problem is going to be the software. The last official update for this phone was released at the end of 2011, with the phone being updated to Android 2.3.5 with HTC Sense 3.0. Android 2.3.5 is really looking old these days. 

The solution, root the phone and install a third party operating system. You have a very nice Sense 3.6, Android 4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich) ROM from Team Blackout, or if you are having HTC One X envy, you can install a Sense 4.1, Android 4.0.4 ROM from Team Venom. Me, I am having some serious Nexus 4 envy, so I opted to go with a Android 4.2.2 ROM. Yup, Google's latest and greatest. 

When it comes to Android 4.2.2, you have over half a dozen options. After looking at my options, I decided to use Mustaavalkosta's Desire HD port of CyanogenMod 10.1.  

Rooting. Rooting the HTC Desire HD was pretty easy before with attn1 Advance Ace Hack Kit. Unfortunately, that service is no available. You will have to do it through a more difficult route, but the gents at the Android Forums will be very happy to help you out:

How to root a HTC Desire HD by scotty85

How to achieve S-Off by scotty85

Okay, that all for now. In the next part of this article, I will show you what all this effort brings.

Part 2 of this post is at this link.

HTC's BlinkFeed

HTC has released the most radical modification to the Android home screen ever with BlinkFeed on its new HTC One. The Android desktop consist of multiple home screens which can be assessed by swiping your finger to the left of the right. On these screens you can place icons, widgets or shortcuts. With HTC's Sense 5, it converts one of the home screens into a dedicated BlinkFeed page. The closest I can described this is that it is like having a Flipboard like app occupying one home screen. 

The BlinkFeed home screen has a new clock and weather widget on top. The design of the new widget is a minimalist version of the default HTC flipclock and weather widget you find in older HTC  Android phones

Below that you have BlinkFeed. Before we go any further, best you see what it is like through HTC's BlinkFeed demo.

BlinkFeed displays content from Facebook, Flickr, LinkedIn,  Twitter,  your calendar, a list of news and information. The news and information sites available are limited to a set selected by HTC. You cannot add your own sources. Interestingly enough, for an Android phone, while it supports four major social networks in BlinkFeed, Google+ is not one of them. BlinkFeed will display two or three posts by default, and you can scroll up to display more. 

Unfortunately BlinkFeed is not optional. It cannot be disabled. If you don'y like it, the best you can do is set another screen as your home screen. You can have up to five home screens on HTC Sense 5, including the BlinkFeed screen. If you don't use it and want to minimize battery drain, best you can do it remove all information sources, leaving you with pretty much a blank screen.

iOS Goes Past Symbian in Mobile Smartphone OS Usage in the Philippines

Based on webpage visits monitored by Statcounter, this is how the top mobile operating systems fared in terms of usage in the Philippines in March 2013.

• Google Android - 42.8%
• Apple iOS - 23.9%
• Symbian OS/Series 40 - 22.2%
• BlackBerry - 1.4%
• Windows Phone - 0.6%

March marks a milestone for iOS in the Philippines, as it passed the combined Symbian OS/Series 40 usage for the  first time. 

To put these results into perspective, they do not represent mobile device sales, but online usage. Symbian OS and Series 40 phones accounted for over 40% of online usage in 2012, and the decline of Symbian usage corresponds to the gains made in Android and iOS usage. 

BlackBerry usage has remained constant while Windows Phone usage has maintained its slow increase.

Microsoft in the Post PC Era

Many a desktop user has complained about Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system migrating to a user interface more suitable to a smartphone or tablet. They do not see the big picture.

If you are old enough to remember the days before the internet, the personal computer was a tool for work and than a gaming device. When the internet became part of our daily lives, computer sales took off. One day, everyone would have a personal computer. This is still true today, but the definition of what is a personal computer has changed. 

For some people, a smartphone alone will be enough to meet their personal computing needs. Others, finding a smartphone insufficient, would select or add a tablet to their stable of devices. Desktops and laptops will eventually be relegated to their status of prior to the advent of the Internet age: machines for work.  

IDC estimates that this year tablets will outsell traditional desktops. By the end of 2014, tablet sales will surpass laptop sales. Nearly three smartphones are sold today, per desktop of laptop sold. All this means, is in two years time, desktops and laptops will make up just about one in every five computers sold.

In what has been dubbed as the Post-PC era, you find Microsoft which once held a 90% share in personal computers, now looking at holding a 90% share in one in five personal computers sold within two years tie. That is really just an 18% share of all personal computers. Holding on to that 18% share is going to be harder in the Post-PC era.

Microsoft's stranglehold on the personal computer market, was secured by the fact that is was the center of application development. Pretty much all software developed was Windows compatible, with only a fraction of the software developed for Windows also being released for Mac OS and Linux. If you wanted a computer that could run your work related applications, and your entertainment applications, a Windows computer was the ultimate jack-of-all-trades.

This is the raison d'être for Windows 8 is to maintain this status. With Windows Phone 8, Windows RT and Windows 8, Microsoft is hoping to get a substantial share of the smartphone and tablet market... the segment which will soon comprise four in every five computers sold. With a substantial share of the smartphone and tablet market, apps would be created for Windows Phones and Windows Tablets, could be easily ported for Windows desktops and laptops. 

If Microsoft is unable to break into the smartphone and tablet market, it will find itself holding on to the lions share of the traditional desktop market, but stagnating app development for desktops in general would further threaten its postion. The app ecosystem that has made Windows dominant for so long, would cease to exist.

As the traditional personal computer retreats to becoming a work device, consumer software development will focus on Apple's iOS and Google Android. Less and less consumer software will be developed for desktops. In this environment, operating systems like Mac OS, Chrome OS and the various Linux distributions will find it easier to compete with Windows. When desktops and laptops are no longer expected to be multi-faceted devices but rather dedicated business machines, it is of little importance whether or not you laptop can run Starcraft III.

Those claiming that Windows 8 tablet centric interface will be the death of Windows on the traditional desktop are missing the point. The failure of Windows Phone and Windows 8 on the tablet is what would sound the death knell for Microsoft's desktop operating system.

Galaxy Nexus 4.2.1 update

Galaxy Nexus updating on a Smart Communications issued unit...

.. Android 4.2.1 flashing.

Why Chrome OS will Morph Into a Full Desktop Operating System

With the release of Google Chromebook Pixel I think we all get the feeling that the Internet giant is looking to make some major improvements to its desktop operating system: Chrome OS. Over time, this operating system which is based on Google Chrome browser and designed to run web apps will have more and more offline capability. 

Over the past year Google has added offline document editing, an offline email client, offline media player and a offline phone editor. The photo editor is rather on the basic side though limiting edits to cropping and rotating images, adjusting brightness and contrast and has a one button auto fix feature.

The next step in the Chrome OS evolution will be to integrate a Quick Office to provide offline document, spreadsheet and presentation creation. Hopefully, a more powerful photo editor is in the works. The Chrome OS Pixlr Editor, which is an online only app would be an excellent choice for an offline photo editor.

 But even when and if all these changes are made, it Chromebook's will still be a niche product for the casual user and for institutions which use Google apps. It won't run the apps and games Windows and Mac users are accustomed too.  

Still the Chrome OS fills a void in the Google ecosystem. For a user whose computing life is centered on a smartphone or tablet, Chromebook's will provide a low cost secondary or tertiary device for those actives where a smartphone or tablet are not the best choices for ergonomic reasons.

Eventually, Google has hinted that it will be merging Android and the Chrome OS. I would think the best way to do this is to simply allow Chrome OS to run Android apps. The touchscreen capability of the Chromebook Pixel is the first sep to such an effort. The 2560 x 1700 display on the Chomebook Prixel is aligned to the 2560 x 1600 display of the Google Nexus 10. Apps built for 10.1-inch tablets, should scale well enough with 11 to 13 inch Pixel type Chromebooks.

Chrome OS with the ability to run Android apps would really start to make Google's desktop operating system a threat to long dominant Microsoft Windows and Office environment.

Why is Google making the move now? Google foray into the operating system arena have been defensive in character. Google lives on revenue from advertising income and its ability to do so is enhance by its web services and browser.

When Apple iOS came with a closed ecosystem, Google unleashed Android. Microsoft's Windows 8 would like to see all apps migrate to the "Metro" interface with these new apps being sold through a Microsoft run app store.  With Microsoft closing the Windows ecosystem. Google will unleash a more capable Chrome OS.

Microsoft Seems Lost in Mobile and is a Plastic MacBook Away from Disaster

It looks like Microsoft is seems to be completely lost in the mobile market. 

The Windows RT debacle. In 2012, it came ready to do battle with Apple's iPad, with Windows RT. Windows RT is terrible confusing. First, what does RT even mean. Since you have Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8, it might be best to call your tablet operating system, Windows Tablet 8. Second, it looks like Windows RT has no place on the Windows line-up. Windows RT was designed to run on ARM processors to give long battery life. But Intel has comes out with its Atom Z processors, which can run the full version of Windows 8 with as long a battery life as Windows RT on ARM. 

Surely, Intel had a roadmap somewhere. Microsoft apparently failed to read it. Windows RT now seems to be a superfluous operating system. 

Windows RT should have been based on Windows Phone 8.
That should work fine on 7-inches.

The 7-inch setback. Okay, so you have Windows 8 and Windows RT, two fine operating systems which can work on tablets. But it looks like Microsoft only came prepared to do battle with the 9.7-inch iPads. Neither Windows 8 or Windows RT will work on a 7-inch display. This Microsoft without a product to compete with the Amazon Kindle Fire, Google Nexus 7, Apple's iPad mini and the gaggle of other small tablets in the market.

I guess Microsoft did not notice how well the Kindle Fire was selling, back in 2011.

Windows Phone Take 2: Deja vu.  When Microsoft launched Windows Phone 7 in 2010, it did not foresee the quick move of phones to qHD and HD displays and dual core processors. From 2011 to 2012, Microsoft was competing with WVGA phones with single core processors against the like of the Apple iPhone 4S, Samsung Galaxy S II and S III, HTC's Sensation and One X, and so on. 

So you have Windows Phone 8. Support for 720p displays? Check. Dual core processors? Check. Support for 1080p displays? Not officially supported. Quad core processor support? Coming in a future update.

You really get the feeling that Microsoft's product designers are not looking at the hardware roadmaps.

On the brink. Innovation is hard. Foresight is never as good as hindsight. But the trends Microsoft missed, well, Microsoft was clearly focusing on one tree. 

Luckily for Microsoft, no one has yet come to lay siege on its capital. Hundreds of Linux distributions are chipping aimlessly away. Really, if Linux wants a shot a taking down Goliath, it needs to find its David. Google and its Chrome OS is chipping away too, in a more purposeful manner. Apple, well its chipping away little by little every year. If Apple came out with lower cost plastic MacBooks (something they could do fairly quickly) it really could be game over Microsoft. Wandering aimlessly in mobile, a serious threat to its desktop base would topple the giant.