http://www.robgilmour.com/feed en-us http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Sweetcron rob@rasweb.co.za http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/4238/iphone-4-and-sex-the-good-the-bad-and-the-hd-ugly-iphone-4 Debby Herbenick—our sexology and human relationships expert—looks into the iPhone 4 and the implications for your sex life. More » iPhone - Smartphone - Handhelds - iPhone 4 - Wallpapers and Themes ]]> Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:20:00 +0200 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/4238/iphone-4-and-sex-the-good-the-bad-and-the-hd-ugly-iphone-4 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/4120/iphone-and-android-now-make-up-25-percent-of-smartphone-sales Google-powered Android phones and iPhones are both gobbling up market share. The combined worldwide market share of both operating systems reached 25 percent in the first quarter, up from 12 percent the year before, according to Gartner. The iPhone still has a bigger share, at 15.4 percent (up 5 points), but Android is catching up fast with 9.6 percent (up 8 points). All other smartphones lost relative share during the quarter, even RIM Blackberries, although they still grew in absolute numbers (see table below) Android is now the fourth largest smartphone operating system, displacing Windows Mobile, which is now No. 5. The iPhone OS is No. 3, RIM is No. 2, and Symbian is still No. 1 on a worldwide basis. If you look at all mobile phone sales, RIM is No. 4 with 3.4 percent share, and the iPhone is No. 7 with 2.7 percent share. While Android is rising faster than the iPhone in relative share, it is still trailing in absolute numbers. Gartner estimates consumers bought about 8.4 million iPhones in the first quarter, compared to 5.2 million Android phones. Apple sold 4.9 million more iPhones in the first quarter than the year before, while Android sales were up by 4.6 million units. Can Android sales catch up to the iPhone? Table 2 Worldwide Smartphone Sales to End Users by Operating System in 1Q10 (Thousands of Units) Company 1Q10 Units 1Q10 Market Share (%) 1Q09 Units 1Q09 Market Share (%) Symbian 24,069.8 44.3 17,825.3 48.8 Research In Motion 10,552.6 19.4 7,533.6 20.6 iPhone OS 8,359.7 15.4 3,848.1 10.5 Android 5,214.7 9.6 575.3 1.6 Microsoft Windows Mobile 3,706.0 6.8 3,738.7 10.2 Linux 1,993.9 3.7 2,540.5 7.0 Other OSs 404.8 0.7 445.9 1.2 Total 54,301.4 100.0 36,507.4 100.0 Source: Gartner (May 2010) CrunchBase InformationAndroidiPhone 3GSInformation provided by CrunchBase ]]> Wed, 19 May 2010 15:24:00 +0200 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/4120/iphone-and-android-now-make-up-25-percent-of-smartphone-sales http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/3103/watch-the-iphone-swipe-a-credit-card-square Square, one of a few iPhone peripherals hoping to turn the iPhone into a credit card swiper, sounds promising. But how does it work? YouTube shows us!Through its own app, Square processes a credit card, produces a receipt and even takes a signature. But as you'll see in this clip, there's one petty but fixable problem to the system—the Square dongle. Watch as Rose needs to steady the plug with his finger to swipe a card without popping anything loose. I mention this now because I'm hoping that Twitter's Jack Dorsey and Digg's Kevin Rose—who are both behind the project (Rose just financially)—don't each have an alpine garage full of these horribly designed dongles. Beef up the casing a bit to increase its surface area against the iPhone, just as Mophie has with their recently announced credit card scanner, and everything will be right as rain. [Kevin Rose via Ubergizmo] ]]> Mon, 18 Jan 2010 16:00:00 +0200 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/3103/watch-the-iphone-swipe-a-credit-card-square http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/2539/motorola-droid-first-impressions It’s been less than a week since the Motorola Droid unexpectedly landed on my doorstep after making quite a fuss on the intertubes. So it’s time for a reality check. Does this über phone live up to all the hype? The short answer: yes, absolutely! Does it challenge the mighty Nokia N900 to the throne of geekdom? The long answer: possibly, maybe… If the iPhone is the device for the masses, and the N900 the device for the hackers, then the Droid is the device for the nerds. Curves vs. edges, shiny vs. matte, simple vs. tweakable, closed vs. open, OS X vs. Android, Apple vs. Google, GSM vs. CDMA, AT&T vs. Verizon, virtual vs. physical keyboard, sealed vs. removable battery – the Droid is the anti-iPhone :) What’s hot: - Slim, retro design - Awesome display (3.7″, 848×480 resolution) - Fast, responsive UI - Android 2.0 (Eclair) - Google Navigation (the killer app) - Multiple Google accounts (mail, contacts, calendar) - Built-in Facebook support (contacts) - Exchange support - Dedicated two-stage camera button - DVD-quality video recording What’s not: - No multitouch - Problems with camera auto-focus - Average keyboard - No built-in Twitter support (Twidroid not pre-installed) - No built-in Flickr support - No Bluetooth or USB DUN - CDMA only ]]> Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:36:00 +0200 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/2539/motorola-droid-first-impressions http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/1907/square-iphone-payment-system-turns-your-phone-into-credit-card-reader Everyone and their uncle Steve uses WinCE terminals to execute cashless transactions these days, and while you'd expect Apple to remedy that right quick, the Square credit card reader has beaten it to the punch. Plugging into the headphone jack of either an iPhone or iPod Touch, the dongle takes a swipe of your card, the seller enters the purchase data and you do your best penless John Hancock on the touchscreen. After that, a receipt is delivered by email and the app retains geotagging data for each transaction. Spiffy, right? Well, there is a surcharge to pay, and it's still in early alpha testing in New York, but should it prove popular, there's no reason not to see this appendage make an appearance on Android or WinMo phones as well. Rest easy, Gotham, we're sure nothing could possibly go wrong.[Thanks, Derek]Filed under: CellphonesSquare iPhone Payment System turns your phone into credit card reader originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 03 Aug 2009 18:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments ]]> Tue, 04 Aug 2009 01:09:00 +0200 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/1907/square-iphone-payment-system-turns-your-phone-into-credit-card-reader http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/946/iphone-3gs-review-matrix-what-everybodys-saying-review-matrix It's time for another roundup of pundits espousing heartfelt admiration and none-too-bloody criticism of a pretty hot Apple product. How did they—I mean "it"—do this time around? Have a look-see... As usual, this matrix is just the tip of the molehill—if you want to really get in deep with these colorful characters, here's where to look: • NYT - David Pogue • WSJ - Walt Mossberg • USA Today - Ed Baig • Wired - Steven Levy • Cnet - Kent German • Engadget - Josh Topolsky • Gizmodo - Jason Chen ]]> Thu, 18 Jun 2009 08:00:00 +0200 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/946/iphone-3gs-review-matrix-what-everybodys-saying-review-matrix http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/820/mossberg-on-new-iphone-itll-have-lots-of-added-features-available-within-a-month Let's just be totally honest with each other here: Walt Mossberg probably has a new iPhone that none of us have ever seen. In fact, he could very well have two or more, depending on exactly what Apple intends to unveil at WWDC next week. We doubt the guy's actively trying to blow Apple's cover, but he's been surprisingly candid in the past ahead of press embargoes both on the original model and the 3G, so it's anyone's guess what's really going on in that mind of his -- other than proper goatee grooming techniques, obviously -- and there's a little gem in his just-released Pre review that gives us pause:"Whether the Pre is better than the iPhone depends on your personal preferences, though I'd note that the new iPhone to be unveiled next week will have lots of added features that could alter those calculations."Now granted, Walt could simply be talking about all the great stuff 3.0 will bring to the platform, but we tend to think there's something a little more revealing afoot here -- the notion that the new iPhone is awesome enough to potentially tip the scale against the Pre for some cross-shoppers. Whether it's the rumored 3.2 megapixel AF camera, the integrated radio tuner, the OLED display, the faster processor, the butter pecan ice cream dispenser, or some totally unknown stuff that has him fired up, we don't know -- but we wouldn't be surprised if Palm execs were furiously refreshing our liveblog of Schiller's keynote come next Monday.Update: Reading further into the review, Walt continues to walk the fine line between harmless speculation and thinly-veiled news leakage, saying that new iPhone hardware will be "likely available within a month." He also goes on to mention that it'll "likely" lack a physical keyboard, quashing a longstanding rumor that's gone quiet in recent months.Filed under: Cellphones, HandheldsMossberg on new iPhone: it'll have "lots of added features," available within a month? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 01:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments ]]> Thu, 04 Jun 2009 08:20:00 +0200 http://www.robgilmour.com/items/view/820/mossberg-on-new-iphone-itll-have-lots-of-added-features-available-within-a-month