Siri was THE killer feature of the newly released iPhone 4S and the reactions of millions of Android phone users is quite understandable and actually predictable – they want a Siri counterpart for Android. There are a number of so-called personal digital assistants being offered at the Android store but these apps didn’t gain a lot of popularity. People are still looking for that one app that will go over and become widely accepted. A new contender in th Android space in the field of personal digital assistants is Cluzee.

Cluzee, which is being dubbed as a “talking intelligent personal digital asssostant”, is getting a lot of attention since it was released. The app is a free 19Mb download that can be installed on all Android devices running OS 2.1 or higher. More →

The Android mobile operating system is so popular right now. In fact, it is arguably the most popular smartphone mobile platform that is used by multiple phone manufacturers. Android’s popularity has gotten to a point that other operating systems are simply being forgotten. For example, Samsung may be one of the top manufacturers of Android powered phones but it actually has its own proprietary operating system, the Bada.

Samsung has realized that developing the Bada is a good strategy and it has focused on developing it into a competitive mobile platform that should be able to compete with the top mobile platforms right now – Android and iOS. In fact, Samsung is penetrating certain markets successfully using Bada, making it a strong competitor in the market. He company is now planning to strengthen its position more by releasing the Samsung Wave 3, which was recently launched in France. More →

Are the first-date jitters bugging you? Do not worry – there is a myriad of phone apps out there to assist you on the dangerous road to love.

Going to the movies

Most people choose to go to a movie on the first date. It is a good way to ease into a potential relationship – you do not need to communicate, you can just sit and watch and maybe hold hands in the dark. This is a pleasant experience no matter your age. What is more, having similar tastes is a prerequisite for a successful relationship. With the app Rotten Tomatoes by Flixster you can find movie theatres in the area and see what’s on at the box office. You can also avoid bad movies by reading the movie ratings. More →

Motorola is intent on finishing the year strongly as it is gearing up another phone to add to its product offerings. New information has leaked about a new Motorola phone that will reportedly come out in a few weeks. The new phone, the Droid 5, might become available in time for the Christmas holidays, specifically by December 5.

The Droid 4 will be the fifth mobile phone that Motorola will be releasing just for this year. It has already released the Droid X2, Droid 3, Droid Bionic, and the new Droid RAZR, which was just released few weeks ago. More →

Today’s teenagers travelling abroad have many more tools available than the backpacking generations that came before. Countless apps can keep them from getting lost, getting on the wrong train or saying the wrong thing in foreign language. Parents rest a little easier when their young adult children wander off into the wilderness. Before you send them off on teen tours in the wild blue, make sure they have the tools they need.

Mobile Phone Travel Basics

It starts with checking on your phone’s service plan. Some plans charge per kilobyte and will run up a bill into the tens of thousands if you do not configure your plan for international use. When you ask your phone provider about their options, read the fine print.

AT&T’s International Calling Plan only includes some countries and caps you at 20MB of data use. Most pictures and videos are at least 2MB, so you would run through that very quickly if you were depending on your apps abroad. To safeguard yourself against piling on obscene fees, ask a rep to give you the steps you need to shut off your network service on your device and only access your email from hotel or café internet services. You can use all your apps and make Skype phone calls through whatever Wi-Fi is available. You can easily reconnect to your network whenever you would like. More →

Another company has entered the ebook reader market that is slowly getting crowded.

The Kyobo Book Centre from South Korea has released the Kyobo eReader a new eReader that boasts of a 5.7 inch XGA display and a battery life that lasts for weeks. The device runs on a modified version of Android, and of course, is geared towards Korean content.

The Kyobo eReader is generating interest among gadget fans because it is arguably the only eReader that uses a Qualcomm XGA mirasol display. Why is this new display getting a lot of attention?  It’s a new technology that offers very long battery life similar to what E Ink displays consume but instead of gray-scale graphics it produces full color images and has fast response times that will allow for the playback of video content and still be completely readable under direct sunlight. More →

Everybody knows that it was really inevitable.

In a recent survey conducted by Strategy Analytics, a respected research company, it was determined that China has now overtaken the United States in the total number of smartphone shipments. Shipments of smartphones to China reached 23.9 million devices in the third quarter of this year, compared to the 23.3 million that was shipped to the United States. The increase in smartphone shipments to China was 58 percent over the figures posted in the second quarter, which is phenomenally significant. Compare this to the United States where shipments dropped seven percent for the same period. More →

In what is considered a move that could be followed by other top book publishers, the Penguin Group  has announced that it has asked Amazon to remove all of its e-books from the Amazon Kindle library lending service. The publisher said that security fears are the main reason it is stopping the lending of its books.

According to OverDrive, the company that works with Amazon in managing digital content to different institutions like libraries, schools and retailers, the Penguin Group said that it has asked to “suspend availability of new Penguin e-book titles from our library catalog and disable ‘Get for Kindle’  functionality for all Penguin e-books.” More →

The Entertainment Software Rating Board or ESRB is an organization that gamers know quite well. It is the main organization that provides ratings for games in the United States. The ESRB’s domain has always been limited to video games that come out on game consoles, PCs and gaming handhelds. But the organization is now setting its sights on the fastest growing gaming niche in the market today, mobile devices.

The ESRB, along wth the CTIA Wireless Trade Association, is planning to release a new rating system that is aimed solely at mobile games. The unveiling is reportedly scheduled on November 29. The ESRB’s presentation will be held in Washington DC at an event that will be hosted by ESRB President Patricia Vance and CTIA President Steve Largent. The event is going to have some political flavor with US Senators Kelly Ayotte and Mark Pryor attending as well. More →

One of the come-ons for the Android operating system is support Adobe Flash, much to the delight of people who love playing Farmville on Facebook. Adobe Flash support is one factor that makes people decide to get an Android smartphone or tablet instead of an Apple device. But with the upcoming Ice Cream Sandwich, the newest version of the Android mobile OS, Flash won’t be included yet. More →