HTC 8XT Announced For Sprint – Windows Phone 8 with BoomSound Speakers and Qualcomm Snapdragon 400

Today HTC and Sprint announced the HTC 8XT Windows Phone 8 handset. The device is the first Windows Phone 8 handset that will ship with HTC’s BoomSound speakers, which first debuted on the Android-powered HTC One.

The HTC 8XT features a 4.3 inch display, 1.4GHz dual-core Snapdragon 400 CPU, 1GB RAM, 8GB internal memory, micro SD card slot (expandable to 64GB), 8 megapixel camera with f/2.0 aperture and LED flash, 1.6 megapixel front facing camera, and 1,800 mAh battery.

The new Windows Phone 8 handset will launch some time later this summer for $99.99 (with $50 mail-in rebate) on a new two-year contract.

Stay tuned for more info on this sexy new Windows Phone!

Press release below

Sprint Plans Summer Launches for First Two Windows Phone 8 Smartphones to Feature Truly Unlimited 4G LTE: HTC 8XT and Samsung ATIV S Neo

SAN FRANCISCO (BUSINESS WIRE), June 26, 2013 – Sprint (NYSE: S) and Microsoft Corp. today outlined plans to launch the first two Windows Phone 8 smartphones to offer Truly UnlimitedSM Sprint 4G LTE this summer – HTC® 8XT and Samsung ATIV S™ Neo. Customers will appreciate access to the advanced features and capabilities of these devices with the benefit of unlimited 4G LTE (available in select markets) data, text and calling to any mobile with no metering, no throttling, and no overages, all while on the Sprint network.

HTC 8XT will be available for $99.99 with a new line or eligible upgrade, two-year service agreement and $50 mail-in rebate via reward card1. ATIV S Neo will be priced at $149.99 with a new line or eligible upgrade, two-year service agreement and $50 mail-in rebate via reward card1. Exact availability dates and full feature lists for both smartphones will be shared at a later date. Customers can preregister for more information and email updates about Windows Phone 8 from Sprint and HTC 8XT and ATIV S Neo atwww.sprint.com/windows8.

“We know our customers are anxious to get their hands on these Windows Phone 8 smartphones, HTC 8XT and ATIV S Neo,” said Fared Adib, senior vice president-Product Development, Sprint. “Without a doubt, they will rival any smartphone on the market today. Our customers will appreciate being able to use them all day, every day without worrying about overages or data caps.”

Windows Phone 8 won the PC Magazine Readers’ Choice Award for best mobile operating system in March 2013. The only phone with Live Tiles, Windows Phone 8 offers a truly personal smartphone experience designed to keep customers connected to the people and things that matter most. Windows Phone brings together the best of Microsoft with the same modern look and feel, including Bing, Office, Xbox and Skype, for a rich customer experience. In addition, the Windows Phone Store includes more than 160,000 apps to choose from, with hundreds added daily.

”We are excited to be bringing the most personal smartphone experience to Sprint customers this summer,” said Terry Myerson, corporate vice president, Microsoft Windows Phone Division. “With compelling hardware from HTC and Samsung, coupled with unlimited 4G LTE from Sprint, these Windows Phones will offer the complete package.”

Must-Have Features from HTC

Music-lovers will appreciate the amazing sound capability of HTC 8XT with HTC BoomSound™, introducing for the first time on Windows Phone 8 dual front-facing stereo speakers with a dedicated amplifier that brings people closer to their music, videos and games they love. In addition, Beats Audio™ enables studio-quality sound, so listeners hear music the way the artist intended with unique audio tuning that delivers thundering bass, soaring midrange and crisp highs. And HDR recording uses advanced dual microphones and audio processing to capture clean, rich sound that is worthy of high-definition video.

“Inspired by the design that won the prestigious ‘red dot award: product design 2013,’ the new HTC 8XT brings a truly crafted smartphone with brilliant color, soft-to-the-touch texture and tapered design to be comfortable in the hand,” said Mike Woodward, president North America, HTC Corporation. “A pleasure to hold and a pleasure to hear, the front-facing stereo speakers are a first for a Windows Phone and deliver sounds that demand to be heard.”

HTC 8XT is also ideal for photo buffs with an 8-megapixel main camera with autofocus and LED flash, and a front-facing 1.6-megapixel camera. The main camera takes great photos in bright-light and low-light situations, and the ability to shoot video and take still pictures simultaneously. It also offers multishot burst mode to help capture the best picture of a moving photo subject, and a dedicated Windows Phone camera button to open the camera quickly, even when the phone is locked or sleeping, so users never miss an opportunity to capture life’s most important moments.

Inside the beautiful HTC 8XT is a Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 400 processor with 1.4GHz dual-core CPUs supporting 4G LTE and 1080p video capture, 1GB RAM, 8GB ROM memory, microSD™ memory card slot with support for up to 64GB memory cards, a crisp 4.3-inch display, Wi-Fi®, Bluetooth®, GPS support and 1,800mAh lithium-ion battery.

Advanced Features from Samsung

ATIV S Neo will offer a 1.4GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, microSD memory card slot, international roaming, 4.8-inch high-definition display, Wi-Fi and 2,000mAh lithium-ion removable battery. Sharing is easier than ever with ATIV S Neo featuring ATIV Beam using near field communication (NFC) to share photos, music and video with other Windows Phone 8 and select Android™ devices. ATIV S Neo includes the Samsung exclusive Now feature, which highlights top news, weather and relevant information at a single glance.

“Samsung is committed to offering smartphones across a variety of platforms and the rich Windows Phone 8 experience on the ATIV S Neo is a testament to this effort,” said Kevin Packingham, Samsung Mobile chief product officer. “The ATIV S Neo makes it easy to stay in-the-know while connecting with friends, family and colleagues, through new sharing features and powerful productivity applications.”

Having ATIV S Neo in your pocket means users can do more with their smartphone camera. It will offer an 8-megapixel main camera with LED flash and a front-facing 1.9-megapixel camera for video chat. It will include a variety of camera apps preloaded, including the Beauty Shot mode for smoother looking skin in headshots, Manga Camera to give pictures a fun twist by turning friends and family into cartoons, and built-in Photo Editor that allows the user to edit, color, effect, decorate or share their pictures quickly and easily.

These smartphones also make it easy for customers to stay productive with Office Mobile for Windows Phone. With Office Mobile, people can access, view and edit Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents from anywhere. Plus, customers can count on Office Mobile to keep content and formatting intact so documents still looks great when back on a PC, Windowstablet or Mac.

Microsoft Office 365 offered by Sprint is available for small and mid-sized businesses. It includes Sprint’s unique Carefree Cloud migration and onboarding assistance, end-user level support, predictable monthly costs with no up-front infrastructure expenses, pay-as-you-go plans, savings by bundling all of the necessary tools and advanced options to simplify management further, all with a single bill and single point of contact. Sprint recently announced expanded plans available with Office 365, including enhanced audio conferencing and availability at select Sprint retail stores.

Sprint offers 4G LTE in top summer destinations like Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Sprint offers 4G LTE service in 110 markets nationwide and expects to provide 200 million people with LTE by the end of 2013.

For the most up-to-date details on Sprint’s 4G LTE portfolio and rollout, visit www.sprint.com/network.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 55 million customers at the end of the first quarter of 2013 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The American Customer Satisfaction Index rated Sprint as the most improved company in customer satisfaction, across all 47 industries, during the last five years. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 3 in both its 2011 and 2012 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.

Specifications and features subject to change.
HTC, the HTC logo and HTC BoomSound are trademarks of HTC Corporation. Beats Audio is a trademark of Beats Electronics, LLC. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
Samsung and ATIV S are both registered trademarks of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. 4G LTE when used in connection with Samsung devices refers to the fact that the devices are capable of operating on Sprint’s 4G LTE network.

1The American Express Prepaid Reward Card (“Card”) provided in connection with this Rebate offer is a prepaid Card that is usable at U.S. merchants that accept American Express Card. Some limitations apply. The Card is not redeemable for cash (except where required by law) and does not provide ATM access. Use of Card constitutes acknowledgement that it is given as a reward and no consideration, value, or money has been paid by the holder to American Express in exchange for this Card. USE OF CARD IS SUBJECT TO THE CARDHOLDER AGREEMENT. SUBJECT TO APPLICABLE LAW, A $3.00 MONTHLY FEE WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST CARD BALANCE, STARTING SIX MONTHS AFTER CARD ISSUANCE, UNLESS FUNDS ARE EARLIER DEPLETED. For BALANCE, customer service and Cardholder Agreement, visit americanexpress.com/sprint or call 866-608-3756. Card issued by American Express Prepaid Card Management Corporation.

Why don’t we have a 7- or 8-inch tablet with a keyboard dock

Not all of us appreciate big tablets. In fact, we’re hearing that Apple’s iPad Mini is selling like hot cupcakes and Google sold more Nexus 7 than Nexus 10 units. And we’re seeing more and more companies releasing smaller tablets. However, what I’d like to see is a dockable tablet, something like the Asus Transformer Pad series, only smaller.

Few years ago HTC launched HTC Shift, which was a full-blown Windows PC with a 7-inch screen. Later on, we’ve seen Sony’s small Vaio P laptop. Isn’t now a perfect time to launch something similar?

Sure enough, we would like it to run Android, but some form of Linux would also work. The main idea here is to create an affordable device that would have a mass appeal — unlike the two mentioned products by HTC and Sony.

Sure enough, the keyboard would be smaller – but we would adopt for that extra portability we get in return. I’m not sure why we haven’t seen a single such device thus far. And don’t tell me I can use a keyboard case, cause I can’t / don’t want to. I want to hold such device in my lap, like a regular laptop so I can type while in the park.

Recently, Acer did something similar with its Windows 8-based W3 tablet but that big keyboard dock and the fact that it doesn’t have the great hardware under the hood to run Windows smoothly kill the deal for me.

Am I asking too much? A 7- or 8-inch tablet with a keyboard dock that transforms the tablet into a small laptop sounds like a great idea to me. What do you think?

With Echoes Of Summly And Siri, Wibbitz Relaunches Its Text-To-Video Service As A Consumer App

Chalk up another point for the growth of apps coming out of Israel that are focused on consumers, but draw on the country’s better-known heritage for producing big data and enterprise startups. Wibbitz, a platform that draws on natural language technology, artificial intelligence and some clever algorithms to automatically translate texts into videos, is today launching a consumer-focused app.

The startup, whose lead backer is Horizons Ventures — the same VC that backed Google-acquired Waze, as well as two other services built around using natural language processing to make mobile life easier, Yahoo-acquired Summly and Siri — says that this is the latest step for taking its technology mainstream. Last year, the company picked up a Series A round of $2.3 million from Horizons, Initial Capital and lool Ventures and launched as a web-based service aimed mainly at enterprises, with some 50,000 sites taking up the service and generating close to 20 million video views each month.

If you go back to that news from a year ago, you will see how the app used to look, and it provides a useful marker show just how far it’s come along, in its first major update since that funding was announced.

Today, as you can see in the video below, there are significantly more dynamic video clips, info graphics and an overall smoother look to the product. Zohar Dayan, the CEO and co-founder of the company, says that Wibbitz has been working on the product you see today for over two years. “A lot of core technology and machine learning created by some very talented people went into this,” he says.

And the mobile app is just the beginning: “Right now we’re focusing on mobile, where reading text is difficult on a small screen. We see the most potential and highest need there,” he says. But he says that Wibbitz “also sees pain in smart TVs as well.” As more web content makes its way to bigger screens, he says, it can be just as difficult to read that as it is on small screens: “Reading text articles on TVs is impossible,” he says.

Launching a consumer app does not mean that Wibbitz is abandoning its B2B prospects, either. In a “stage two” in a few months time, Dayan says that it will be releasing the technology as an embedded service on third-party apps. One of the first that will use this is the Telegraph newspaper in the UK.

It is also in the process of raising another round of financing to keep moving ahead with its bigger plans to move away from text in places where it may be too challenging to read.

After years of competition, Oracle teams up with Microsoft to bring its database software to the Windows cloud

Microsoft and Oracle announced a significant partnership on Monday to bring Java, Oracle Database, and other Oracle software to Microsoft's Windows Azure platform. The unusual collaboration will allow developers to simply spin up an Oracle Database on Microsoft's cloud platform with full support from Oracle. Java developers and businesses will benefit from the integration, allowing them to move legacy software that runs on a desktop straight into a cloud-based system.

The news is unusual as the two companies have been fierce competitors for years, with Oracle's Database software going head-to-head with Microsoft's SQL server. Oracle also hired private investigators back in 2000 to look through the trash contents of Microsoft supporters, with many branding the episode as "trashgate" at the time. It's clear that traditional software vendors are increasingly looking to the cloud as the future platform, and Oracle isn't afraid to bury old grudges to get there. The announcement comes just days before Microsoft kicks off its Build conference in San Francisco, where the company is expected to detail its latest developer offerings and improvements to Windows 8.1.

Apple releases second iOS 7 developer beta, now with iPad support

Apple has just rolled out the second beta preview of iOS 7 to developers. Unlike the first release distributed shortly after WWDC, beta 2 has been optimized for the iPad in addition to iPhone and iPod touch. Aside from a few screenshots from Apple and unofficial simulator hacks, we've yet to get a good glimpse at how Apple's revamped mobile operating system will look on the larger device — until now. 9to5Mac has posted screenshots of the new beta running on Apple's tablet. An all-new Voice Memos app is also revealed in the images.

With the help of a transition guide outlining the design philosophy behind iOS 7, app makers will now be able to see how their iPad software looks before the public update reaches consumers this fall. Despite welcome additions like Control Center and the removal of skeuomorphic UI elements, Apple has faced some criticism for design and iconography choices seen in the first beta, though its work on iOS 7 is by no means complete.

Sony Xperia Z Ultra takes on the Galaxy Note with insanely large 6.4-inch display

For good or ill, the oversized smartphone trend shows no signs of abating. In fact, Sony's just taken it to the next level with the Xperia Z Ultra — a new smartphone with a simply monstrous 6.4-inch, 1080p screen. Despite the huge panel and respectable 3,000mAh battery (which it surely needs to power that massive screen), the phone is also extremely thin at only 6.5mm and weighs 212 grams. That's thinner than the iPhone 5, but also twice as heavy — we'll have to see how these dimensions feel when you're holding Sony's supersized phone. Other noteworthy features include a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor clocked at 2.2GHz, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of storage plus a microSD slot, Android 4.2, and an 8-megapixel camera
.

Peloton’s Android exercise bike with a 21.5-inch screen raising money at Kickstarter

We’ve seen a number of different Android devices, including phones, tablets, cameras, TVs and set-top boxes. Like that’s not enough, now we have an exercise bike relying on Google’s mobile platform raising cash and awareness at Kickstarter.

The Peloton Bike has top notch specs, including:

• Frame: Carbon steel and aluminum monocoque construction
• Resistance: Neodymium rare earth magnet resistance system
• Drive: Poly V power transmission belt drive
• Pedals: LOOK Delta compatible thermoplastic pedals
• Seat: Sport series saddle with depressed ergonomic center channel
• Crank arms: 170mm carbon steel
• Bottom bracket: Precision steel 13/68mm

As for the brains part, there’s a 21.5-inch full HD touchscreen running Android 4.1. Inside that big-ass display, you have TI’s OMAP 4470 dual-core processor clocked at 1.5GHz, 1GB of RAM, wired (Ethernet) and wireless (Wi-Fi + Bluetooth) connectivity, stereo speakers, 1.3-megapixel camera, and all the software an exercise fan could need (with the ability to install even more apps).

LG G2 caught in leaked slides: super-thin body with volume keys on the back

Some time ago we’ve told you that the forthcoming LG Optimus G2 (or that’s just G2) may be so thin that LG has opted to put its buttons on the back of the phone. Well, now we know that rumor had some merit as you can see from the few images here.

The G2 will be one of the thinnest phones around, perhaps even thinner than the Huawei Ascend P6. Moreover, it will also have super-powerful guts that include Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor coupled with 2GB of RAM. Plus let’s not forget its 5-inch full HD screen and a 13-megapixel camera on the back. Flexible display will have to wait for some G3, though…

Check out the few slides from LG’s presentation that was leaked to the Interwebs, compliments to the ever-savvy EVleaks. Hopefully, the Korean company will officially launch its new flagship device on August 7th. Can’t wait. 

Android-powered Garmin Monterra is a powerful, expensive outdoor GPS with Wi-Fi

Garmin announced a new Android device called Monterra. It’s not a smartphone, but a Wi-Fi enabled outdoor GPS unit featuring the company’s powerful location and mapping capabilities.

Inside, it packs GPS + GLONASS alongside other sensors like 3-axis compass with accelero meter and gyro, as well as barometric altimeter to track changes in pressure to pinpoint precise altitude, and monitor weather conditions.

In addition, there’s also a highly durable 4-inch mineral glass transflective display and even an 8-megapixel camera with LED flash for taking photos, along with 6GB of expandable storage (using microSD cards).

Perhaps more importantly, Monterra is fully ruggedized and has an IPX7 waterproof rating, and (the best part) can be powered both by a built-in Li-ion battery or traditional AA batteries. Pretty darn cool when you’re out of power.

When it comes to connectivity options, Garmin’s baby has Wi-Fi, ANT+, Bluetooth 3.0 and NFC capabilities, allowing users to share data, maps, waypoints, tracks, routes and geocaches with other wireless devices. Additionally, Monterra is compatible with BaseCamp, a free software that lets you view and organize maps, waypoints, routes and tracks.

The Garmin Monterra will be available in Q3 2013 at a recommended retail price of £599.99 (about $927) with preloaded Rec Map Europe with Navteq roads. Kinda expensive though I guess “outdoor professionals” won’t mind spending an extra few grands for this kind of device…

With its 5.6mm body, Umeox X5 steals the “world’s thinnest smartphone” title from Huawei Ascend P6

Just when we’ve told you that Huawei Ascend P6 is the world’s thinnest smartphone in the world a new device appeared to steal that title from the Chinese company. It’s Umeox X5 which will be available in few European countries (including France) during the summer.

However, it’s important to add that this phone isn’t as solidly built as Huawei’s baby, though it’s decent nonetheless. The X5 has a 5.3-inch screen with most likely 720p HD resolution, dual-core processor, 8-megapixel camera on the back and 3-megapixel front-facing camera, while Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean is running the show right from the get-go. And the most important part – it has a 5.6mm-thin body which is 0.5mm thinner than the Huawei Ascend P6.

We’re still not sure how much this phone will cost but if you’re looking for a thin device, we say go for the Ascend P6. It’s much better phone with better software, aluminum body and it comes from a more reputable company that will likely stay in the business for the years to come…

Yahoo’s Shopping Spree Continues With Conference Calling Startup Rondee

Thought Yahoo’s acquisition spree would culminate with a $1.1 billion deal for Tumblr? Nope, not so much. In fact, the buy-happy company just quietly made its second acquisition in 24 hours — in two different markets, no less. Yes, Yahoo followed this morning’s purchase of iOS photo app maker, GhostBird Software, by making a play into the enterprise conference calling space. Wait, what?

Yep, users of six-year-old free conference calling service, Rondee, were tonight informed via email that the startup has been acquired by Yahoo for an undisclosed sum. It will also suffer the same fate met by other recent Yahoo acquisitions — like MileWise, Astrid, GoPollGo and Loki Studios to name just four — in that it will soon be going the way of the dinosaur. After June 30th, the company’s website now reads, users will no longer be allowed to access their data or create new conference calls.

The startup will continue its progressive shut down from there, officially closing operations on July 12th, before ultimately cutting off user access to their calling data on July 30th, the startup said in an email to its customers today (copied below). However, to avoid stranding its users completely on such short notice, the company said that it’s arranging for “user Login ID and on-demand pins to work with InstantConference,” a company (and, previously, a competitor) it describes as a “highly reputable conference calling service.” Not sure that’s much consolation. “Hey, we may be forcing you to leave … but at least the place we’re sending you has electricity, right?”

WHAT’S A RONDEE

Rondee, for those who haven’t been following the crowded and congested conference calling market,launched in 2007 on a mission to build the “Evite for conference calls.” The startup set out to lower the barriers to entry in the conference calling arena and make it accessible to the masses. Today, that means it offers basic conference calling capabilities around the clock (for free) to anyone with an email address.

Granted, for those looking to get “fancy” with call recording, like having access to audio, custom tones, call directories and call scheduling, some account setup is required. But that’s about it. Users can choose between free, on-demand conference calling, or free, “Scheduled Rondees,” in which users can pick a future date and time to schedule a conference call and let Rondee send out email invitations to which invitees can respond to and use via the company’s website. Straightforward, easy to use and free.

Of course, while those are traits every company should shoot for, the VoIP market looks a little bit different than it did six years ago, becoming nearly ubiquitous thanks to companies like Skype and Google, meanwhile, startups like UberConference have moved onto free visual conference calling to compete with Hangouts et al. Today, Rondee’s basic VoIP model sounds very familiar.

SO WHY DID YAHOO JUST BUY THIS?

While Yahoo nor Rondee has shared any real details on the terms of the deal or the motivation, we do know from a quick Google search (and a look at its press page) that the startup has been pretty quiet of late. Sure, it’s likely this wasn’t an exorbitantly expensive buy for Yahoo, but this also hasn’t been an area of strength (or focus) for Yahoo for a long time, which starts to make it seem like there isn’t really a good explanation for this one.

Maybe Yahoo wants to integrate Rondee into its internal conference solution, for internal IT use, seeing as it’s cheaper than buying an enterprise solution? Probably not.

ER, MAYBE BECAUSE…

What may be more likely (and hopefully is the case) is that Yahoo liked the team and was eager to make use of its talent, so Marissa Mayer pushed Yahoo’s Acme Acqui-hire Button so that Rondee can join it in re-building Yahoo Messenger. Maybe? After all, on its website, Rondee says that it will be joining Yahoo’s Small Business Team, so while it may be a stretch, motivation could lie in the company’s has-been messaging client.

Marissa Mayer has made talent acquisition one of her top priorities since becoming CEO, and mostly her shopping spree has targeted mobile — in other words, showing the company understands that its mobile strategy and products have to evolve if Yahoo ever hopes to be truly relevant again. (And, really, it’s probably a little late, but…)

Right now, it’s easy to take a look at Yahoo’s product portfolio and sigh. Case in point: People used to Yahoo Messenger as their go-to chat app. (Well, some people did, somewhere. We’re still trying to find out who they are exactly.) But the point is that Yahoo’s messaging client used to be enormous, and now it’s about as cool as the Macarena. Meanwhile, sadly for Yahoo, gamified and chat-ified messaging apps are all the rage and continue to proliferate, especially in emerging markets. In some Upside Down World, this could mean that there’s still opportunity here for Yahoo.

DON’T SHOOT THE MESSENGER?

Though with Google’s assets like gChat, Google Voice, Gmail and Hangouts, just to name a few, Yahoo has a long way to go. A pretty long way. Sure, if anyone knows how to get Yahoo up to speed using Google’s playbook, it’s Marissa Mayer. But then there’s WhatsApp, iMessage, Viber and too many more to name. Google launched free voice calling from Gmail nearly three years ago, and adding similar capabilities and enhancements to Yahoo Mail would make sense — and wouldn’t hurt. Of course, even if it were somehow able to pull it off, weakly copying Googles Roadmap doesn’t do Yahoo any favors. It’s dangerous and, well, just sad.

Or maybe not. Maybe Yahoo will use Rondee as part of a foundation on which it will build a Hangouts competitor. Why the world needs that, of course, is another question entirely — sorry to say, Yahoo Mail diehards.

These are a few possible explanations for Yahoo acquiring Rondee, though I’m not sure they’re particularly satisfying. To this point, it’s worth reading this post (really, lament) on Yahoo Messenger from Yahoo’s former director of global tech initiatives. Marissa Mayer seems to be making an effort to address some of the internal idiocy Smith cites as contributing not only to the downfall of Messenger itself but to the downfall of products subsequently created (internally!) that might have saved it or at least prolonged its life.

Mostly, Smith attributes Yahoo’s struggles to crappy leadership, a management focused on preservation rather than trimming-to-grow or innovation, the ole “it’s hard to get stuff done at a big company” line and a lack of a unifying product vision. The latter of which, at least, fittingly smacks of the very product strategy currently at work in Google Land.

This seems to be a familiar tune at Yahoo, though it is heartening that some of that stuff is fixable. However, watching Marissa Mayer acquire all these start ups that are on their last lifeline or just keeping their head above water is suspect. Now, it could be questionable in a good way, provoking media attention, buzz and providing a (relatively) cheap way to bring in quality talent. And maybe we’re watching a grand vision unfold, with Marissa acting as the Great Unifier it sounds like Yahoo desperately needs.

Sure, this could be akin to watching Tony Stark miraculously build an Iron Man suit from spare parts and scrap metal … or this turnaround strategy very well prove to be suspect in the same way that a bunch of bricks painted yellow does not gold bullion make.

For more, find Rondee’s email to users below:

Dear Rondee User:

We thank you for being with us over the last six years as we grew Rondee’s free conference calling service. It has been a privilege to work with you.

Yahoo! has just acquired Rondee, and we will be joining Yahoo! Small Business to continue innovating with technologies that help small businesses and groups.

Starting July 12, 2013, RONDEE WILL NO LONGER BE OPERATIVE. To minimize inconvenience to you, we have arranged for your Login ID and Rondee On Demand PINs to work with Instant Conference, a highly reputable conference calling service. Instant Conference has created a special free plan for Rondee users with unlimited minutes, unlimited conferences and up to 150 callers per conference.

You’ll do On Demand calls with Instant Conference the same way you did with Rondee:

REDACTED
If you want to use advanced features such as audio recording, call scheduling using the Outlook add-on or real-time monitoring, you’ll need to log in to the account created for you at Instant Conference.

REDACTED
There are three main differences between advanced features on Rondee vs. Instant Conference:

Call recording works differently on Instant Conference. Instead of activating audio recording in advance online, the organizer does it on the call by pressing *9 and entering the 4 digit code shown above, or by turning on audio recording through a moderator control panel. Learn More

InstantConference has a fully featured moderator control panel. You can monitor call attendance, mute, disconnect, or lock the conference in real-time. Learn More

InstantConference has a different way of handling scheduled conferences. Rather than the web-based format used by Rondee, InstantConference offers an Outlook Add-On which is convenient and easy to use. Learn More
BY USING YOUR RONDEE LOGIN AND PIN(S) WITH INSTANTCONFERENCE, YOU CONSENT TO THE INSTANTCONFERENCE TERMS OF SERVICE AND PRIVACY POLICY.

CLICK HERE for Terms and Conditions.

CLICK HERE for Privacy Policy.

For Premium users with balances in their PayPal account, we will be refunding those balances right after July 12, 2013. Instant Conference also offers toll-free conferencing with plans as low as 2.9 cents a minute.

PLEASE NOTE: The Rondee service will soon no longer be operative and will no longer accept new sign-ups. Current users will be able to continue using Rondee for conference calls through July 12, 2013 and log in to access account information through August 12, 2013.

For questions about the Rondee service or your Rondee account, click here.

For questions about InstantConference, click here.

Thank you again for your support,

The Rondee Team

Google Updates Local Search Results On Desktop With Carousel Design

At the end of last year, Google introduced a new design for some local search results on tablets that put a carousel with the top results at the top of the page. Today, it’s bringing this design to the desktop, too. This new feature can be triggered by searches for restaurants, bars and other local places, Google says, and it’s currently rolling out in English in the U.S. and should roll out for other languages in the future.

A typical search to see this feature would be something like “Mexican restaurants in nyc.” Google will then put the carousel at the top of the page, including a photo, the standard Zagat ratings, price class and cuisine. A click on these places will bring up their Google+ Local sites with more information.

Users can click on an arrow in the right to see more places and they can use the map in the sidebar to zoom in and the carousel will automatically restrict your searches to this specific area.

Google, of course, also uses a similar design for some of its Knowledge Graph results. As a number of bloggers noticed recently, these Knowledge Graph carousel results seem to be popping up more frequently now than ever before. Given today’s addition of the local search carousel, chances are that Google’s stats show that this is a very effective way of presenting search results. I wouldn’t be surprised if the company continued to expand its use of this design element for other kinds of queries in the near future.

Uh-oh: Windows Phone Store just passes 145,000 apps with sluggish growth

Windows Phone news is always a mixed bag because you never know if you’re going to see something positive about how the OS is doing or something suggesting Microsoft has a problem on its hands. In this case, unfortunately, it’s the latter. As part of theofficial unveiling of the Nokia Lumia 928 for Verizon this morning, the folks in Redmond slipped in some revealing stats about the Windows Phone Store: it now has 145,000 apps in it.

Worded in that way, that sounds like a pretty decent accomplishment. It’s a relatively new platform and it has 145,000 apps available to its users. Sweet. The problem arises when you look at past milestones and when they occurred. The Windows Phone Store hit 100,000 apps last June. That means in the 11 months that have gone by, the store has gained only 45,000 new apps.

Before the 100,000 milestone, Windows Phone was able to double its number of apps in 6 months. Now in the 11 months that have passed afterward, the number of apps have increased by 45 percent. That’s a real slow-down in growth.

The good news is Windows Phone 8 seems to gain a tiny bit more spotlight every day, so Microsoft is doing something right. However, smartphones nowadays are all about apps, and lacking developer interest could pose a significant threat to Windows Phone’s future. I’m sure Microsoft is not naive to this possibility, so we’ll have to keep an eye out for any initiatives the company might take to increase the number of Windows Phone apps

Vimeo for Windows Phone 8 updated with voice controls

The official version of Vimeo for Windows Phone 8 has been updated. In version 2.1 users get the ability to do search or pause their video playback with voice commands. The Vimeo WP8 does much more than voice commands, as it lets folks watch and manage their existing Vimeo videos, use NFC Tap-to-Share to share your videos, search for videos, upload footage in High Definition.

The new voice command feature is a bit buggy, but we’re sure the kinks will be worked out in the next version. For all those interested in trying out the new Vimeo app for Windows Phone 8, can grab it for free here in the Windows Phone Store. Other features come at a cost once you sign up for the video services’ subscription.

HTC One with Windows Phone launching this fall?

It looks like HTC is working on an HTC One variant that would run Windows Phone 8 rather than Android. The information comes from Neowin, which claims that such a device could be launched at some point in the fall, featuring a 4- to 5-inch screen, “a mostly metal body,” and Windows Phone 8 GDR3. An Ultrapixel camera may also be included, but that’s still not confirmed.

The HTC One is the second best-selling high-end Android smartphone (after Samsung Galaxy S4) and it makes perfect sense for the Taiwanese company to rely on the popularity of its existing product to expand to other markets.

At present, HTC sells two Windows Phone devices, 8S and 8X, which sit in the shadow of Nokia’s Lumia range. The HTC One running Microsoft’s mobile platform could help shift the tide in HTC’s favor while at the same time helping the Redmond giant expand its market share…

Windows Phone voice recognition improved, Microsoft claims it's 'twice as fast' with increased accuracy

Microsoft has been working on improving its Bing voice recognition in Windows Phone recently. We saw some early advancements debut in a leaked video earlier this year, but the company now appears to be ready to launch some of those changes this week. The processing part of the voice recognition in Windows Phone, powered by Bing, has been improved for searches and composing text messages. Microsoft claims the tweaks mean results return twice as fast and the accuracy of picking up words has been increased by 15 percent.

The improvements all come thanks to some Microsoft Research work known as Deep Neural Networks (DNNs). The software giant claims the system can detect patterns in a similar way that biological systems analyze huge sets of data and recognize similar patterns. While Microsoft previously revealed a "streaming mode" for Windows Phone voice recognition in private, that lets users search while they speak, the updated improvements simply improve the speed and accuracy for now.

LG not interested in competition with Apple and Samsung on price’

Manufacturer will let rivals battle it out on price as it reveals it has no plans to release a tablet this year

LG says it is happy to let Apple and Samsung battle it out in the “very high tier” for smartphone devices.

The comments came from LG UK head of mobile Andy Coughlin during the launch of the manufacturer’s new Optimus G smartphone (pictured) at Mobile World Congress.

Coughlin said LG is focused on releasing devices across all ends of the market, but will not launch devices in the same price bracket as, say, the iPhone 5 and the Galaxy S III.

He also told Mobile News LG has no plans get involved in the “distracting” tablet market this year. The firm’s last launch in this area at MWC was the LG Optimus Pad back in 2011.

Coughlin said a decision on price for the Optimus G is yet to be made, but he said it will be “nowhere near” as expensive as devices such as the Galaxy S III and iPhone 5.

No immediate decision on a UK launch for the Optimus G Pro phablet, unveiled at MWC, has been made. It will go on sale in Asia first.

Instead, Coughlin said LG’s UK focus is on its L series, with the low-end L32 (RRP £79.99) and L52 (£129.99) coming to the UK at the end of March. Mid-tier smartphones the L72 and L92, whose prices have not been announced, are coming to the UK in the summer.

“Our aim is to have the largest display at all price points,” Coughlin said.

“There is a need to be in the premium end. But the Optimus G will be nowhere near as expensive as Apple and Samsung. LG are not in the business of playing in the very high tier space.

“I can’t control what the others do, we are not in a fight with Apple and Samsung. We are not concerned with what they do.”

Fujitsu in talks with Orange to sell senior phone in EE stores

Discussions ongoing about bringing the Stylistic S01 smartphone to the UK high street through operator

Fujitsu is in talks with Orange to bring its smartphone aimed at the senior market to the UK through EE stores.

The Stylistic S01 (pictured) launches in France next month and is aimed at the wealthier group of over-55s who are looking to move from high-end feature phones to a mid-range smartphone.

It is fully hearing-aid compatible, has a setting to slow down the voice of an incoming caller and can adjust the screen contrast for those with below average eyesight.

Although it runs Android Ice Cream Sandwich, the user interface has been adapted to downward-scrolling tiles and simplified for its target market. Each screen on the OS also has a help icon to take users through the features.

No prices are currently available, but Fujitsu EMEA mobile business product marketing director James Mayard confirmed it would be priced alongside mid-range smartphones.

“We’ve been very targeted,” he said.

“A year ago we looked at the market and saw it was very saturated. There are hundreds of smartphones and the key thing for us was to differentiate from everyone else. Seniors who want smartphones are under-served.

“We’re working closely with Orange on a roll-out outside of France and also are discussing how we can implement training of retail staff so they can educate the customers.

“It’s easy to just chuck an iPhone at everyone who comes in and what we’re trying to do is get carriers to tell their retail staff that this is the device for that specific demographic.”

Lemon’s Mobile Wallet Gets More Useful With New Expense Reporting Service; Support For Transactions Is Next

Although you can’t ditch your leather-bound billfold yet, a startup called Lemon has been slowly building up a mobile wallet platform that’s encroaching on the traditional wallet’s territory, and even making it better in some cases. Today, it’s extending its feature set again with the addition of an expense reporting tool, which serves to augment its previously available receipt capture function.

Operating as a digital copy of your physical wallet, Lemon already helps you track credit card balances, access your saved cards on the go, cancel credit cards when your real wallet is lost or stolen, and save receipts by snapping a photo of them. But users have been demanding more, explains founder and CEO Wences Casares.

“The most active users of receipts were using them for their expense reports. And those users kept asking for more functionality,” he says. “They were doing a lot of inconvenient things to use it for receipts.”

Given that there are plenty of receipt trackers out there on the market today from services like QuickBooks, Expensify, Concur, and others, it’s somewhat surprising to find that users were turning to a consumer-facing tool to get the job done, especially when it required more manual effort.

Casares says that’s because, in many cases, expense tracking solutions (like Concur, e.g.) are sold to the enterprise, and then the company tells its employees this is what we have that you can use. But when users had more choice, they were opting for a simpler option: just snap a photo and be done with it, then deal with the headache of expense reporting later on.

Now Lemon can help with that latter part. Its new expense reporting application can accommodate photos of receipts and e-receipts which are forwarded to expenses@lemon.com for processing. When complete, receipts are saved in a PDF format for the user, and attached directly the expense report itself, which can also be output in CSV or XLS format for importing into other expense software.

Though Lemon has been designed for consumers, expense reporting pushes the product more towards business users, though not enterprise. With its centralized management dashboard, admins can group expense reports by individual, category or user-created tags, then approve and/or route approvals to others who process the reimbursements. The solution works well for smaller businesses or even individuals, who just need to track their expenses in a more organized manner.

The system is offered as a free trial within Lemon’s mobile app, updated today, and then the cost is $5/month per user going forward.

Casares says the company is now working to support deeper Quick Books integration, and will soon offer a refreshed mobile wallet user interface which allows users to group their cards into compartments – the way a “real” wallet works. Though he declined to provide download figures or user numbers, he says that Lemon is now capturing 1,000 new cards per hour.

Following the refresh, the next big move for Lemon will be to begin enabling transactions, using the data users’ have saved within their wallets already. Cesares says they’re considering many different avenues for this, but the plan is to start with e-commerce, not at point-of-sale. Guess you’ll have to hang on to your billfold for a bit longer, then.

Hands-On With Samsung’s Galaxy S4 Zoom, The Smartphone With A 10x Optical Zoom Lens

Samsung’s Galaxy S4 Zoom steers its Galaxy brand into slightly new territory, by creating a hybrid smartphone-cum-pocket-camera. Unlike pretty much every other cameraphone around, the Zoom has a 10x optical zoom lens protruding from its rear.

In short, it’s a phone with two faces: one pure Galaxy smartphone, the second resembling a classic point-and-shoot camera. It’s a curious move that’s likely to grab consumers’ attention, but there’s a bigger question here — what’s it like using it?

If you only look at the Zoom’s phone half, you’d quickly discover it’s largely standard mid-range Galaxy fare — the usual TouchWiz interface runs atop Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean, and there’s a dual-core 1.5GHz chipset powering the show. It felt fast and responsive during my brief hands on, and the 4.3-inch qHD AMOLED screen was bright and plenty big enough for all the typical smartphone uses, without being as huge a pane as Samsung’s flagship high-end smartphones.

The Zoom has a removable battery, accessible via a side door near the camera grip that also covers the SIM slot. Your usual selection of ports is accounted for too, though the microSD card slot, headphone jack, and micro-USB charger port are joined by a tripod mount on the base.

Samsung’s camera-centric chimera has a surprisingly pleasing feel, considering it’s considerably heavier than the company’s usual, plasticy smartphones. Despite the extra heft the overall feel is balanced. You won’t be putting it into the pocket of your skinny jeans as it would certainly drag you down, but the extra weight doesn’t feel too unwieldy. Perhaps because it looks so camera-like that the expectation is of more weight from the get-go.

The look of the device is exactly that of a hybrid. Holding it from the phone side it looks exactly like theGalaxy S4 Mini. Indeed, ignore the camera half and it is basically that phone, says Samsung. Turn it around and it’s a point and shoot digital camera.  The only odd moments come when you’re holding it like a camera, so it’s in landscape orientation, but using the phone’s Android homescreen or menus. These stay in portrait orientation. Of course the camera app interface supports both landscape and portrait orientations, as do other apps – such as the web browser – but homescreens remain portrait-only.

Construction feels solid. There’s plenty of plastic on the device but the lens enclosure is metal. The edges of the phone also have the same brushed silver bands as the rest of the S4 range – albeit that appears to be plastic, rather than metal. The camera ergonomics work reasonably well, with a nicely shaped front ridge for gripping with your right hand. This is the same shiny plastic as the rest of the casing, so there’s no rubberised covering to aid grip.

The positioning of the phone power key (on the left of the top edge, when holding the phone in the camera stance) is potentially slightly awkward as it is close to where your left hand rests when you’re using the camera in landscape mode. There’s just about enough room to avoid it but a few accidental strikes are probably inevitable.

Now we’re getting to the fun part. The Galaxy Zoom has a 16MP sensor with optical image stabilisation, 10x optical zoom and a 24mm lens. Photo quality was difficult to assess in the relatively dingy conditions of the press room where the device was being demoed, and with limited hands-on time, but test shots did display a fair amount of noise. Exposure could also be uneven, and lower light shots came off with some noticeable blur, despite the image stabilisation tech inside the device.

Overall photo quality looked fair, but left plenty to be desired. Shooting in brighter outdoor conditions would undoubtedly result in crisper detail but as with many cameraphones the Galaxy Zoom appears to be a middling performer in less ideal lighting conditions (not that the average consumer will immediately realise that). The Zoom’s tactile optical zoom lens and physical camera looks are likely to win over a portion of Samsung’s target user based on their familiarity with the traditional camera form factor. Samsung cited “busy mums” as one target – i.e. people who take a lot of shots, and care about the results, but aren’t as discerning about image quality as camera pros.

Samsung has added an ‘expert’ mode to the Zoom’s camera interface for users who want to play around with a few more controls. This mode allows manual tweaking of setting like EV brightness, colour tone, saturation, sharpness, contrast, shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance and metering. However  the typical Galaxy Zoom user is likely going to be sticking with its auto mode or consumer friendly ‘smart mode’ which offers a carousel of pre-sets to pick from, such as landscape, dawn, best face (which takes a series of shots and lets you pick the best one) and kids shot. The latter plays a baby-friendly noise to attract the subject’s attention so they’re looking at the camera before it snaps the shot. File that under ‘parent friendly’.

Likewise, the mechanical operation of the zoom lens is likely to take a little getting used to as it’s sited close to the edge of the device which means the lens can push against your fingers if you’re wrapping your hand around the back of the device, causing your grip to slip. It won’t take a user long to get accustomed to the moving protrusion, however. When you’re using the device as a phone, so when the lens is at its most retracted, it does stick out into your palm, feeling a bit lumpy. It’s not actually too bad though — and gives something grippy to tighten your palm around.

On the top right of the device, when holding the phone in the classic camera stance, is its round physical shutter key. This looks like a traditional camera shutter button. It requires a very light touch for the initial focus depression, and more of a squeeze to take the photo as  you’d expect. The button felt nice and responsive during my hands on. It can also be used to jump right into camera mode from elsewhere in the OS by holding the button down.

When not in the camera application, turning the lens ring activates a camera shortcut menu where you can choose from a range of camera mode options – either by tapping  the touchscreen or turning the dial to move the selection then hitting the shutter to select the mode you want. Modes are also accessible from within the camera app via a touch key at the right hand side of the interface.

When using the lens ring shortcut, modes on offer are night, animated photo, macro, landscape, beauty face (a mode that automatically ‘airbrushes’ portraits), the gallery and an auto mode that pre-selects the mode to take the shot in, based on what the camera calculates is the most appropriate mode for the conditions you’re shooting in.

The zoom ring can also be used to navigate inside the gallery, including to zoom into shots to look at details. The navigation doesn’t seem especially well thought through, however, as you can’t apparently move through photos in sequence. To browse shots you have to resort to using your finger on the screen. The fly-by-wire feel of the lens ring is also slightly too loose to be entirely pleasing. Plus there’s a slight lag between you turning and the camera interface responding by zooming in/out. It’s not a huge lag, but does make it feel slightly unresponsive.

Overall, the Galaxy S4 Zoom feels like a well thought through concept — the combining of the traditional camera form with a smartphone works surprisingly well and doesn’t feel unbalanced. But the let down is not that it looks too ugly or feels too heavy or is just weird to operate. Rather what’s a bit disappointing is that the picture quality isn’t better. For a mid range cameraphone the Galaxy S4 Zoom’s photos are probably about as good as you’d expect. But with such a whopping zoom lens on the back it’s hard not to hope for a little more photographic oomph. Still, this device’s mainstream consumer target may well be perfectly happy with what its lens can turn out — and zoom in on.