We live in a very different world than our parents and grandparents did. We live in a world where the possibility of a person from California is able to see and communicate with a person in Beirut within a matter of seconds, sometimes even microseconds. The sobering news, however, is while we live in a connected world, that connectivity requires a ton of data to make it possible.
Last month we reported on an event in the Czech Republic where a representative of Microsoft revealed native versions of Microsoft Office were being prepared for both the Android and iOS platforms. The timeline hinted at mobile versions being ready sometime in the first quarter of 2013.
Today, The Verge was able to obtain some screenshots of the app that seem to indicate development is well underway. The screenshots suggest that at least MS Word, MS PowerPoint and MS Excel files will be supported. It is not clear how much editing may be possible using the app, assuming you would want to try that. The screenshots also seem to confirm the information suggesting an Office 365 subscription will be required. » Read the rest
PopCap recently conducted a survey of US and UK gamers showing around 50% of respondents preferred their phone to PC, console, or dedicated handheld gaming systems. For tablet owners, the result was a little more, at 57%. PopCap determined the most popular place for mobile gaming is in fact at home. 69% reported to play games on their phone at home on the couch (78% of tablet owners), 41% while watching TV (52% of tablet owners) and 57% while laying in bed (51% of tablet owners). In addition to that, PopCap is reporting 3% of those in the US questioned play mobile games while in houses of worship.
If you think about it, most of us live our daily lives either at work or at home. Since most of you can’t (or shouldn’t 
) play on your phones at work, the statistic makes sense! I know for me personally, I game while I’m sitting on the couch and relaxing. So there you have it, hit the source link to see all the polling information and let us know where YOU game in the comments!
source: Information Solutions Group
Indie Gala, similar to the widely known Humble Bundle is here again for mobile devices! You can unlock three games for any price you’d like to donate. Donations have been set at a minimum of one dollar to get rid of the not-so generous people along with shady characters. As you would with the Humble Bundle and the last Indie Gala, you choose who your donations go to. You can choose a charity, the developers or even the Indie Gala creators.
The three very basic games you can unlock are:
Back and forth we go with the precarious Google Wallet situation. First we saw the original security flaw, which immediately prompted Google to respond to users and highlight there are no known vulnerabilities while also encouraging users to install Google Wallet on non-rooted devices. In a mere few hours, a second method to hack Google Wallet was revealed, this time on non-rooted devices.
Naturally, the consecutive security breaches of Google Wallet has everyone on edge. That’s why many users have reached out to Google and question whether its Google Wallet service is safe enough for the masses to use in order to make mobile payments. Google offered its formal response and simply put it that yes, it is safe to make mobile payments using Google Wallet. Here’s Google Wallet VP Osama Bedier offering a formal statement: » Read the rest
After filing for an initial public offering (IPO) earlier this month, Facebook is looking to generate more revenue from its mobile audience, which comprises nearly half of their traffic. According to the Financial Times, Facebook plans to start displaying ads in their mobile app and the mobile version of their web site by early March. The Facebook IPO filing states that the company isn’t making any “meaningful revenue” from mobile, but it seems that this is about to change.
The First Round of Mobile Ads
Facebook’s IPO filing hinted that it is considering rolling out mobile Sponsored Stories, which launched in 2011 on the desktop version of the site. These are ads that use your friends’ likes, check-ins, and comments to determine what ads to display for you. From the IPO filing (emphasis mine):
Mobile Advertising. The global mobile advertising market was $1.5 billion in 2010 and is expected to grow at a 64% compound annual rate to $17.6 billion in 2015 according to an industry source. According to a third-party report published in September 2010, the Facebook app is the most frequently downloaded app across all major smartphone platforms in the United States. We had more than 425 million MAUs who used Facebook mobile products in December 2011. We currently do not show ads or directly generate any meaningful revenue from users accessing Facebook through our mobile products, but we believe that we may have potential future monetization opportunities such as the inclusion of sponsored stories in users’ mobile News Feeds.
I bet you didn’t know Stanford had some cool nerds on their roster did you? Yep, some of the folks over there decided to tinker around using an NFC enabled Android device along with a remote control also housing an NFC chip. Check out what these guys have managed to come up with:
Check out the quick demo below where you can see all of these in action and don’t forget to let us know what you think in the comments below. I don’t know about you, but I love when nerds get bored. They always wind up producing something useful for the rest of us 
For more information hit up the source link to check out their blog at Stanford.edu
Video Demo
Along side the tidbit that the Galaxy Nexus (GSM) was receiving a 4.0.2 update addressing bug fixes, the boys over at the Official Google Blog have announced that they have updated search for non ICS 4.0 devices. Heck yeah! With the update brings speed and a ton of other highlighted features Google wants to point out:
Hot on the heels of Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, we’ve updated Google Search for previous versions of Android: it’s all around faster, to get what you need quickly. In this version, you’ll notice:
- Faster, smoother performance, with an updated and simplified user interface.
- Suggestions for your search grouped by type, with web suggestions at the top.
- Country-specific suggestions and search results for all countries with Google domains.
- Long press to remove history items.
Here are some additional tips we’d like to share:
- Tap the arrow to the right of a search suggestion or history item to add it to your search term before searching.
- Get suggestions from other apps on your phone – check out searchable items in Search settings.
- Long press on home screen to add the Google Search widget, if you don’t have it already, to access search faster.
If you have Android 2.2, 2.3 or 3.x, you can download the app from Android Market or scan the QR code below.
[via Google Mobile Blog]
Google+ continues to evolve as a social medium right on our mobile handsets. It seems like only yesterday we were given the ability to beat box with up to 9 of our friends. While it was cool knowing the app had the ability to join a Hangout from a mobile device, many of you loathed the fact it was impossible to actually create a Hangout– or “go live”. Well friends, Google has heard your cries and the engineers have been developing a software update which should make everything all squared. With the update, users will now be able to start up a video chat Hangout from anytime, anywhere. The update is being finalized as we speak and should be available in the next few days in the Android Market. Oh and for those of you with friends who play for the other team, there’s a version for them too that’s currently in development. Everyone is certainly a winner today.
Google has a sweet ad with a Galaxy Nexus being the chosen device to showcase the new Hangout feature. Take a gander of the ad and enjoy a nice rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody, why don’t you? Go on… you know you want to.
[via Google Blog]
This year has been wrought with so-called “Facebook phones” popping up all along the way and ultimately, only giving its users a colorful designated button, a few easy sharing features… and not much more. Facebook itself has served as a mere collaborator in these unimpressive efforts that came with silly monikers like Cha Cha, Salsa and Status to name a few. But now, in an effort to create a better, more “deeply social” device, Facebook has chosen HTC (even over manufactures such as Samsung), as its partner in the development of what will be the “real” Facebook phone, code-named, “Buffy”. Yes, that’s right, named after the TV show and film character. Regarding the company’s mobile strategy, a spokesman recently told AllThingsD:
“Our mobile strategy is simple: We think every mobile device is better if it is deeply social. We’re working across the entire mobile industry; with operators, hardware manufacturers, OS providers, and application developers to bring powerful social experiences to more people around the world.”
Staking their own claim of mobile control will be an uphill climb for Facebook, though undoubtedly a necessary one as its competitors, Google and Apple, are clearly the ones in control when it comes to their own operating systems. Further complicating matters is the recently launched Google+, a direct competition to its services and the fact that Apple is snuggling up with Twitter as its closest social partner.
Since Buffy is still in very early development, she isn’t expected to appear on your friendly neighborhood retailer’s shelves for as many as 12-18 months or more. When put into perspective though, the wave of innovations made over the next year could change the way we live and interact with people on a daily basis in a major way and on a grander scale, a real Facebook phone makes sense as the next step for “inherently social” mobile devices as Facebook CTO Bret Taylor recently called them.
[via allthingsd]
