Motorola Mobility Posts Strong Q4 but Warns About Q1
In its first earnings report since becoming a standalone company, Motorola Mobility said it was profitable in the fourth quarter of 2010 and shipped more than twice as many smartphones during the quarter as it did in all of 2009.
However, the company said it expects a net loss of US$26 million to $62 million for the current quarter, indicating that competition in the smartphone market continues to be heated. Executives plan to speak to industry analysts on Wednesday afternoon and may offer more details of the expectations then.
Remains of the Day: I Got 44 IPhones…
Once again, iPhones prove to be the smuggled good du jour. Also, a use for that old Mac that time forgot, and hope for heavy iPhone data users. Don’t worry: importing the remainders for Wednesday, January 26, 2011 is completely legal.
Woman nabbed with 44 iPhones in stockings at Ben-Gurion Airport (Haaretz)
Verizon’s iPhone 4
Much ado was made over the hotspot feature of Verizon’s version of the iPhone 4. However, some who may have thought the carrier was going to make this a standard feature may want to think again. A Verizon spokesperson has confirmed to Macworld that the tethering functionality would be an optional, extra-cost feature. Read more
Google’s Android 3.0 Multitasking
At last, Google has posted platform highlights for Android 3.0, the version of its OS designed with tablets in mind.
The short version: Android 3.0 has software-based navigation instead of physical buttons, tabbed web browsing, big-screen Google apps and developer tools for creating modular, panel based apps that work on tablets or phones.
HP Pavilion p6727c-b
HP has produced Pavilion p6000 series desktops for the past couple of years. The HP Pavilion p6727c-b ($749.99 list) is one of the better ones: it’s sold as a complete kit consisting of a tower PC plus a large 23-inch monitor. If you’re a Costco member in the market for a new desktop PC, the p6727c-b is one of the best bang for the buck choices; just be sure to budget an afternoon to uninstall all the extra bloatware.
Yahoo7 buys Spreets for $40m
YAHOO7 has joined one of the fastest growing segments of Australia’s digital economy by acquiring daily deal website Spreets for $40 million.
The Yahoo7 transaction means that most of the country’s biggest media companies have now backed deal-a-day websites, with global giant Groupon expected to ramp its local presence in the coming weeks.
Alcatel-Lucent
A KEY supplier to the government’s $36 billion National Broadband Network is on the verge of being ejected from Singapore’s equivalent project after it failed to fulfill a contract for the supply of crucial software systems.
The Australian has learned that network equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent is facing a multi-million-dollar penalty as it attempts to finalize a settlement with the network operator of Singapore’s $S6bn ($4.7bn) broadband network to allow it to walk out on a seven-year contract to supply systems used to sign up new customers, process bills and collect payments. Read more
Apple first quarter profit surges
APPLE Inc’s first quarter profit surged 78 per cent, beating forecasts, on record iPhone sales and strong sales of its iPad tablet.
The positive results were muted by the company’s disclosure Monday that chief executive Steve Jobs would take another unexpected medical leave. The company’s stock recovered during the regular session this morning, closing down 2.3 per cent to $US340.65. In late trading the shares were up to $US341.36.
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Android Phones Turned into Interpreters
GOOGLE began turning Android smartphones into interpreters with experimental software that lets the handsets translate conversations in real time.
An in-the-works version of “Conversation Mode” was made available as the internet giant updated a text translation feature it added to Android smartphones a year ago.
Android or iPhone
THE latest management craze, say industry experts, is for holidaying executives to take not one but two communications devices with them. There’s the BlackBerry, almost certainly, since it’s been around longer than any other potential competitor.
