Smartphones have existed as a product class for a long time before the iPhone came on scene. The most popular smartphone manufacturer was Research In Motion (RIM), and their Blackberry continues to be a popular device. Nokia too, had a range of multifunction phones that could access the Internet and perform a variety of tasks that normal mobile phones could not do.

When the iPhone came on scene, it did a number of things that were truly innovative for a phone. It featured a huge full touch screen that was very responsive to fingers. Most other touch screens till then seemed a bit slow. Further, the Gorilla glass screen was scratch resistant and allowed you to keep your phone in your pocket with other knickknacks, without the fear of it getting scratched. The sleek phone with just one physical button and a firm aluminum casing was very innovative. Continue reading this post ->

There’s no denying that Apple has found itself in unfamiliar territory this year, which is to say, on the losing end. Earlier in the year they lost a portion of a factory at their Chinese manufacturer Foxconn due to an explosion (which later brought out stories of horrendous working conditions). Then they lost their long-time, visionary leader when Steve Jobs finally succumbed to a lengthy illness (and their stock dipped accordingly). But they pulled themselves back up to release…not the iPhone 5. Although consumers came out in decent numbers to purchase the iPhone 4S and its Siri (surly? – or at least cynical) software, the truth is that most buyers were hoping for the iPhone 5 and they will hold off on buying a new phone until it hits the market. So yeah, Apple maybe hasn’t had the best year.

But luckily, they don’t have to outshine their own accomplishments in order to be successful; they just have to do better than the competition. And it seems that their competitors have a plan to make it easy for them. Research in Motion (RIM) and their BlackBerry devices (if you can even call them competition) recently experienced a massive service outage (stemming from an issue at a data center in Europe) that left many users wanting to jump ship (or file a class action lawsuit). And then there is Google’s Android platform, which is the only real competitor to the iPhone.

Although Apple fans tend to be pretty die-hard in their devotion to the company, there are a few Android handsets that might turn their heads, if only for the fact that Android makes it easy to do your own thing. You don’t even have to have mad computer skills to crack these devices in order to control your storage, speed, and functionality as well as add non-approved software and apps created by the Android community (jailbreaking iPhones is possible, but much more difficult). This is appealing to a large group of consumers that would like to have access to and control of their smart phones, but it does come with a downside. If the average Joe can hack his own phone, so can anyone else within range of the signal, and security for Android phones is terrible.

Okay, let’s let the cat out of the bag here. Security is bad for all cell phones! Don’t you watch the news? Celebrities are always griping about their phones getting hacked and their nude photos getting stolen (and posted online by the highest bidder). A guy in Florida was just arrested for leaking ScarJo’s bare derriere (and other bits) on the internet, and he apparently hacked about 50 other people, as well. Why? Because he can! Cell phone security is a joke. Unfortunately, it seems that Android phones may be a bit more vulnerable than the rest simply because they have made it so easy for users to “access” their phones. While they still create quality tech, the fact that they’re easy to hack may just give Apple an edge.

[Labho]

You don’t have to be a whiz kid at a Santa Clara data center to realize what this could mean for Apple. If the so called “Android bomb” ever explodes (hackers are able to sneak in malware that affects a wide range of users), Apple’s stock could get a big vote of confidence. Of course, that’s not likely to happen in this fiscal year, so they’re just going to have to cut their losses. But with iPad sales going strong, iPods still the number one MP3 player on the market, and the iPhone 5 on the horizon, they’re probably not too worried. Continue reading this post ->

Google recently claimed that 500,000 Android devices are getting activated every single day! At this rate, there will be more phones than people in the next few years. But does that mean it’s time game developers started focusing their energies on building games for Android and focused less on Apple? I am not sure if that’s a good idea. At least as of now. Here are 8 reasons why. Continue reading this post ->

Phosphor Games Studio, a highly regarded developer of innovative video games, confirmed that The Dark Meadow will look better than ever when it makes its Android debut in early 2012 with upgraded tech and features.

Just announced during the Spike TV “Video Game Awards 2011” this past Saturday, the Android version will deliver enhanced visuals and physics resulting from the integration of the new NVIDIA® Tegra® 3 quad-core mobile processor, as well as new gameplay features including new game modes, story elements, levels and characters.

“The response we’ve received since launching The Dark Meadow has been incredible. It’s clear that mobile players want console-style production values in their games,” said Chip Sineni, Director at Phosphor Games Studios. “We’re very excited to work with NVIDIA on incorporating Tegra 3’s quad-core power and give Android owners an unrivaled visual experience to add to our new game modes, levels and characters.”

Developed utilizing the acclaimed Unreal Engine 3, The Dark Meadow is a stunning first-person, action/adventure game where players fight to escape a nightmare world filled with fantastical creatures bent on destroying them. You awake in a hospital uncertain of how you arrived there or why. An old man warns of a beautiful witch whose minions roam the halls seeking to kill the living. It is only when the witch is destroyed that you will be released from this unrelenting torment.

As you explore the photo-realistic world, you will need both your crossbow for ranged combat as well as your sword for in close, melee combat. Gesture-based “pull back and fire” as well as slashing combat will be instantly recognizable to touch screen players, and node-based movement through the world makes navigation simple yet compelling.

Role-playing game mechanics enhance the exploration, as a wide variety of items are secreted throughout the world from hidden scraps of paper that reveal the mystery of your imprisonment, to money which can be used to purchase better equipment and weapons.

The Dark Meadow arrives on Android in early 2012 and will be available in English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Korean and Italian. An exact date and price will be announced shortly.

Editor’s note

While this isn’t iPhone or Mac related, The Dark Meadow is a highly popular iOS game and we thought it would be helpful to let any of those who do happen to own both an iOS device and Android device (or just an Android device) know that this game is coming next year.

New research is showing that even though there are more Android activations (550,000 vs. 450,000 for iOS), the legendary iPhone still kicks Android’s but when it comes to apps revenue. This is mainly because developers still prefer iOS over Android any day when it comes to new app development and implementation.

There are a variety of reasons for such a behavior. The iPhone comes in only 1 screen size (3.5 inches) so it’s much more easier to build out pixel perfect graphics that don’t need to be scaled up or down (like for Android). And since the iPhone is revamped only once a year, it’s easier to build apps that are optimized to run for one particular hardware/software configuration. The talent pool of engineers who have expertise in iOS development far outnumbers the engineers who are specialized in Android development. So the entry barriers are lower too. And lastly, the largest pool of casual gamers are women in their mid-30’s (yup), and this particular demographic absolutely adores the iPhone. Android needs to work much harder to get some love from this demographic.

Developer support for Android has waned as well, dropping from 33 percent of all new projects to roughly 25 percent of new projects.

One key difference is also believed to be the fact that every iPhone requires that users enter their credit card information for iTunes, creating a more friction-free way to pay. By contrast, Android phones have no such requirement, though they are looking to encourage such information with Google Checkout.

In the end, it looks like Android’s dominance might still hit the ground further once Microsoft launches its newest phones in an exclusive partnership with the worlds largest phone manufacturer Nokia. Things are just about to get more interesting in the smartphone world.

Aabid recently joined PocketFullOfApps as a writer. You can follow him on Twitter @aabidsiddique for the latest news and updates.