Apple’s share of smartphone operating profit share rose to 94% this year
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We’ve previously heard of the dire state of Android manufacturers slowly losing all their profit margin in an increasingly competitive smartphone industry, but we had no idea it was this bad – or how badly Apple is beating everyone. According to Canaccord Genuity, Apple’s share of global smartphone operating profit share has risen to 94% in Q3 2015, a jump from 85% the same time last year. Perhaps the more depressing news from this analysis is that Samsung, the last remaining Android manufacturer to be making any kind of profit margin, has now decreased its share to 11%, a far cry from its 42% just two years ago.
As you can see, plenty of manufacturer’s profit margin have dipped to 0%, with some even incurring losses for every device made a la Microsoft and Lenovo/Motorola. Going forward, it’s not clear how some manufacturers will be able to increase their profit margin with how things are progressing, but presumably the hope is that devices start to get cheaper with more focus on usability and user experience over sheer performance.
What do you think about the smartphone operating profit share across all manufacturers? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Canaccord Genuity via Phone Arena, Apple Insider
The post Apple’s share of smartphone operating profit share rose to 94% this year appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Google+ receives a huge redesign centered around Communities and Collections (Updated)
Google today introduced a complete redesign for Google+ on Android, iOS and on the web. The new version of the social network will put an emphasis on Collections and Communities, and will make it much easier for users to post, search, connect and more.
For starters, Google+ is getting a new navigation system that’s centered around Collections and Communities. Collections let you view content relating to a specific topic, and Communities allow groups of people with the same interests to join together and discuss, post and discover new content relating to their common interests. These two features have been available in Google+ for some time, but now Google+ will put both facets at the forefront of the service. The new Google+ will also make it much easier to post, search and connect with other people, too. The home stream of Google+ is also getting a big redesign that will not only load much faster, but make it easier to consume relevant content at the right times.
Related: Google+ as we know it is changing, and that’s a good thing
You can preview the new Google+ on the web today by signing in and clicking the “Let’s go” button when you see the prompt. Google notes that since not all of the new features have made it into the updated version yet, so you can switch back to the older version at any time. Updates to the Android and iOS versions will be rolling out in the next couple days.
- Navigate to Settings from the drop down menu on the left-hand side of the web version
- Scroll down to the section called “Manage other apps & activity”
- Select “Manage Google+ activity”
- Click the search field at the top of the page, wait for the bar to turn gray, the click the Google+ logo to go home
This won’t switch you over to the new layout permanently, but it will allow you to navigate around the website as long as you stay on the same tab. Thanks for the tip, Peter!
So what are your thoughts? Excited to try the new redesign?
Pandora picks up failing Rdio for $75 million
Remember the last time you and your friends all gathered around and listened to Rdio together? No? Well, that’s because the plucky upstart company is filing for bankruptcy after failing to snag a winning percentage of the music streaming market.
There’s silver lining aplenty for this raincloud, however. Digital music streaming titan Pandora has scooped up Rdio’s technological and personnel assets for a cool $75 million. This looks like it’s going to be good news for Pandora fans everywhere, because Rdio let its users do a handful of things Pandora users still cannot. Streaming a specific album, for instance, is a capability that has long lingered outside of Pandora’s grasp due to copyright issues.
For a while there, Rdio was going head-to-head with leading music streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music and Pandora. They were an underdog song for quite some time, but 2015 showed them finally signing over the farm. Things looked bleak for Rdio, but after filing for bankruptcy, Pandora showed up with a wallet full of cash, ready to incorporate Rdio’s features into its own.
Changes like this can take quite a bit of time, however. Pandora isn’t slated for a major update to their service model until late 2016. The problem is that this particular marketplace is evolving at a rapid pace. Services like Spotify and Pandora are dominating, but other services like Google Play Music are also arising as competition. By the time late 2016 rolls around, will the changes Pandora brings to its service through the implementation of Rdio’s technology be enough to keep it in the game?
It’s an interesting competition to watch, but as consumers we are all part of this engagement. So what music streaming service do you use? I’m a Google Music fanatic all the way. Pandora drove me away with ads, but I’m not opposed to coming around if they start bringing a better user experience to their app. How about you? Where do you get your music and why do you prefer it to any competitors?
Instagram Institutes API Changes That Will Kill Off Malicious Third-Party Apps
Following the recent discovery that malicious app InstaAgent was stealing Instagram passwords from users, Instagram has instituted much stricter rules for accessing its API, effectively killing off a large number of apps that read Instagram feeds.
In a notice posted today on its developer site, Instagram explains it will no longer permit apps that access the Instagram feed API, as that API is being shut down. In the future, third-party Instagram apps will have much more limited capabilities.
We’ve updated our Platform Policy to explicitly list the use cases we will support moving forward. These include apps and services that:
Help individuals share their own content with 3rd party apps, such as apps that let you print your photos and import an Instagram photo as a profile picture.
Help brands and advertisers understand and manage their audience, develop their content strategy, and get digital rights to media. Established apps in this space may apply for our newly announced Instagram Partner Program.
Help broadcasters and publishers discover content, get digital rights to media, and share media using web embeds.
Starting today, Instagram is instituting a new review process and preventing new apps from using its APIs until it starts conducting reviews on December 3. Existing apps have until June 1, 2016 to comply with Instagram’s new platform rules, and the users/self/feed and media/popular API endpoints will be available until the end of the review period. Instagram is also launching a new Sandbox Mode to allow developers to privately build and test apps using Instagram’s APIs.
Instagram’s new policy will put an end to dozens of questionable third-party Instagram apps that promised users new followers and the ability to track follows and unfollows. Apps are no longer able to use “like,” “share,” “comment,” or “follower” exchange programs nor can they use follower information for “anything other than analytics” without Instagram’s permission.
Unfortunately, as no apps will be able to access the full Instagram feed, it will also have an impact on legitimate Instagram clients for the iPad and the Mac, where Instagram is not natively available. As TechCrunch points out, this will affect apps like Retro, Flow, Padgram, Webstagram, Instagreat, and more.
With today’s changes, Instagram says it plans to institute a “more sustainable environment built around authentic experiences on the platform” and give users more control over their content.
Discuss this article in our forums
Jony Ive: Apple Pencil Will Not ‘Replace the Finger as a Point of Interface’
To promote the iPad Pro, Apple Pencil, and Smart Keyboard, several Apple executives gave interviews to a number of media outlets ahead of the release of the tablet and its accessories. Last week we shared a Jony Ive interview from The Telegraph where he spoke on the Apple Pencil, and today, Wallpaper has published a second Ive interview with even more of the design chief’s thoughts on the stylus accessory.
Speaking on the conception of the Apple Pencil, Ive said that while it was originally “fundamentally important” to develop a user interface that was based on fingers, Apple discovered there were people who would benefit from an instrument that would enable more precise interactions for drawing and writing. Ive said developing the Apple Pencil and iPad Pro in tandem was essential for a natural drawing experience.
It was important that we develop the UI based upon multi-touch, based on our fingers. The reasons are obvious. I think it is equally obvious that you’re just not as dexterous as you are with a pen or a pencil for certain things.
What we found is that there’s clearly a group of people that would value an instrument that would enable then to paint or draw in ways that you just can’t with your finger. And I suspect that this isn’t a small group of people. I don’t think it’s confined to those of us who went to art school.
Ive went on to talk about the naming of the Apple Pencil, explaining that he preferred “Pencil” to “stylus” because stylus “seems a product that’s about technology,” while Pencil “seems very analogue in its association.”
Apple has a specific role in mind for the Apple Pencil, and that is not as a finger replacement. According to Ive, the Pencil is for making marks, while the finger is to be used for other user interface interactions. Each tool has its purpose, with the Pencil serving as a “far better” way to make marks on the iPad Pro.
I think there’s a potential to confuse the role of the Pencil with the role of your finger in iOS, and I actually think it’s very clear the Pencil is for making marks, and the finger is a fundamental point of interface for everything within the operating system. And those are two very different activities with two very different goals.
So we are very clear in our own minds that this will absolutely not replace the finger as a point of interface. But it is, and I don’t think anybody would argue, a far better tool than your finger when your focus becomes exclusively making marks.
For more of Ive’s opinions on the Apple Pencil, his full interview is worth checking out over at Wallpaper. The Apple Pencil can be ordered from the online Apple Store for $99, but shipping dates range into late December. Apple retail stores have begun receiving larger Apple Pencil shipments as of today, so customers hoping for an Apple Pencil may want to seek one out in a store.
Discuss this article in our forums
LG reportedly conforming to a full metal build on the G5
This year, LG was left abandoned in the stand to continue offering a removable back cover and swappable battery in a flagship phone. Its last accomplice, Samsung, gave in and overhauled its lineup this year in favor for a more fashionable build. That didn’t sit well with a lot of Samsung’s fans. Unfortunately, it’s sounding like LG’s flagship may be susceptible to a similar fate next year.
According to a report via the Korean tech news site etnews, LG is moving forward with a “full metal case” for the G5. We know LG’s functionality stance, but underwhelming sales this year may be what’s behind the push to present customers with a “premium” design, especially amid the fierce competition.
The recently launched V10 can be seen as evidence for this transition. LG introduced stainless-steel metal in the V10’s design, as bumpers on the sides of the phone. We praised the design in our review, both in appearance and practicality. The V10 is still a plastic-built phone and has a user-accessible battery. But this might not be enough to capture customer attention.
Fortunately, it sounds like LG won’t be copying other metal case strategies (which can’t be said of every OEM). It is said that the new design will differentiate LG from the competition.
““A person, whom saw LG Electronics’ prototype, from this industry said that he or she definitely felt design that took a major step forward than previous Smartphones.”“
The LG G5 is expected to drop in Q1 of next year, most likely in the February time-frame near Mobile World Congress. This means it’ll be toe-to-toe with the Galaxy S7. It is also said that LG wants the G5 to be available as soon as it’s announced. Be prepared for an aggressive launch and competition soon.
What are your thoughts about LG’s developments? I’m banking that it can figure out a balance that will satisfy everyone.
The post LG reportedly conforming to a full metal build on the G5 appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Playdate: Crushing the Rebel scum in ‘Star Wars: Battlefront’
Not too long from now, on a Twitch stream in the very near future, Sean Buckley and myself will be blasting Rebel scum in Star Wars: Battlefront. The sci-fi shooter’s the topic du jour on the latest edition of Playdate and you can tune in starting at 6 PM ET/ 3 PM Pacific to catch two hours of the hot Empire on Rebel action across Sullust, Hoth, and who even knows where else? And since we streamed the game’s beta on PlayStation 4 we’re giving the full version a go on PC today. As always, you can tune in here on this post, the Engadget Gaming homepage or Twitch.tv/Joystiq if you’d like to join us in chat — it’s your destiny.
The Apple Watch looks like it’s getting an official dock
If you’ve been wishing for an Apple-made dock to go with your Watch, you should start making room for it soon. Based on a couple of leaks, the Cupertino company appears to be ready to introduce a charging station for its wearable. The white circular dock (pictured above) uses a built-in magnetic puck, similar to the one that’s included out of the box, to power up the Apple Watch wirelessly. However, the main difference here is that a Lightning port plugs in directly to the dock, rather than being a single USB-powered charging cable. Naturally, right now it is unclear when, or if, Apple will release this purported Watch peripheral, but the spilled packaging images suggest it could cost as much as $100.
Via: AppleInsider, 9to5Mac
Source: Grobgebloggt.de, iGen.fr
Pushbullet’s ‘Pro’ syncing service is stuff that used to be free
Pushbullet, the mighty app that lets you sync notifications, links, photos and SMS between your phone and computer, has just announced that it will be offering a Pro tier. But here’s the kicker: paying $4.99 a month or $39.99 annually doesn’t actually buy you anything new (other than supporting its developer’s needs for things like food and shelter). A blog post announcing the changes tried to justify the move, but its explanations seem oddly close to threats. “We could have kept Pushbullet completely free, following the path of many free services by showing ads and selling data to make money. We don’t want to do that.” And we certainly hope they don’t have to!
Source: Pushbullet
Congress considers letting US companies hack Chinese attackers
Your parents probably told you that revenge solves nothing, but the US might be willing to make an exception to that rule when it comes to hacks. A Congressional commission’s report suggests that the government should consider letting companies hack the Chinese hackers that break into their systems. Theoretically, firms could erase or recover any stolen data from the original hack. The study also suggests creating a court that would hear evidence from cyberattack victims and determine whether or not the US should launch counter-hacks on their behalf.
Source: Associated Press
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