Earlier this month, Apple crossed a record 25 billion downloads from more than 550,000 available apps, while Google in December surpassed 10 billion downloads from 400,000 available apps. Analytics firm Flurry on Friday announced the results of a new study that examined various mobile app markets, and interestingly enough, the study found that apps in Amazon’s competing Android Appstore earns three times more revenue than those within Google’s own marketplace. Apple’s App Store took in the most revenue, with the Amazon Appstore earning 89% of the revenue Apple did and Google’s Play marketplace making just 23%. “Another way to interpret the results is that for every $1.00 an app generates in the iTunes App Store, it generates $0.89 in the
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MasterCard and Visa warn of possible massive security breach
The world’s two largest credit card processors have notified U.S. banks of a potential security breach that may affect more than 10 million cardholders, Reuters reported on Friday. MasterCard and Visa have said that the issue was the result of a third-party vendor and not their own internal systems. MasterCard said it has taken the proper steps by alerting law enforcement officials and hiring an independent data-security organization to review the possible breach. “MasterCard is concerned whenever there is any possibility that cardholders could be inconvenienced and we continue to both monitor this event and take steps to safeguard account information,” the company said in a statement. “If cardholders have any concerns about their individual accounts, they should contact their
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Selling used Android phones poses huge identity theft risk, expert says
Android users who are looking to sell their old devices should be wary of the possible consequences. McAfee identity theft researcher Robert Siciliano warned that personal data from Android devices is not completely removed after a user activates the built-in wipe option, The Los Angeles Times reported on Friday. “What’s really scary is even if you follow protocol, the data is still there,” Siciliano said. If you have a BlackBerry or Apple device, Siciliano said your data can be fully deleted by following the manufacturer’s directions. As for smartphones running the Android operating system and computers running Windows XP, Siciliano recommends that people don’t bother with selling them at all. “Put it in the back of a closet, or put
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Foxconn workers react to reduced hours, same pay
In response to one of the largest investigations ever conducted of a U.S. company’s foreign partners, Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn has agreed to hire tens of thousands of new workers, eliminate illegal overtime, improve safety condition and upgrade workers’ housing and other amenities, Reuters reported on Friday. After probing three Foxconn plants and interviewing over 35,000 workers, the Fair Labor Association reported that it found serious violations of Chinese labor laws, such as illegal and unpaid overtime, and extreme hours. Foxconn plans to reduce workers’ hours to 49 per week, which includes overtime, and it does not plan to raise salaries. The company will also hire additional workers and build more housing and canteens to combat overcrowding. While some of
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$35 Raspberry Pi Linux PC delayed once again
Development of the Raspberry Pi single-board Linux computer has been rocky thus far. After a high demand once pre-sales were made available, the $35 computer has been plagued with manufacturing hiccups and more recently, two of its U.K. retail partners have refused to distribute the device without proper CE marking — a certification that ensures the manufacturer has complied with European regulations. The Raspberry Pi team did not seek approval because it believed the single-board computer was not a “finished end product” and did not require the certification. The company said that the first 2,000 boards arrived in the U.K. on Monday, however, and are in the process of getting CE marked “as soon as is humanly possible, in parallel with
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Sprint rumored to launch HTC One X as the EVO One
Reports last week indicated that Sprint would launch a smartphone code-named the HTC Jet on June 10th. The handset was a variant of HTC’s One X and would launch nearly two years after Sprint’s iconic HTC EVO 4G, the carrier’s first WiMAX-enabled smartphone. New information from AndroidCentral, however, claims that the device will be called the HTC EVO One and is slated for a June 6th release. The EVO One is equipped with a 4.7-inch 720p AMOLED display and a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, the same CPU found in AT&T’s upcoming version of the One X. The handset will also supposedly feature a 2,650 mAh non-removable battery, 16GB of internal storage, a microSD slot, an 8-megapixel rear and 2.0-megapixel front facing
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Sprint won’t launch any new WiMAX devices, exec confirms
While speaking at the Competitive Carriers Global Expo, Sprint’s senior vice president of networks Bob Azzi said that while the company has experienced success with its WiMAX handsets, it will not launch any additional WiMAX devices. The announcement comes after Sprint previously confirmed that it would continue to offer 4G WiMAX devices through 2012 and support the service through 2015. Instead, the company plans to focus on its Network Vision project and upcoming 4G LTE netowrk, Fierce Wireless reported on Thursday. “We are wrapping up final field integration tests,” Azzi said. “The technology works and delivers more benefits than we expected.” The executive noted that the company’s Network Vision project will result in a 50% reduction in cost-per-gigabyte to deliver
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Nearly 1 billion smart connected devices shipped in 2011
The International Data Corporation on Wednesday announced that shipments of smart connected devices —including PCs, tablets and smartphones — reached 916 million units and surpassed $489 billion in revenue in 2011. “Whether it’s consumers looking for a phone that can tap into several robust ‘app’ ecosystems, businesses looking at deploying tablet devices into their environments, or educational institutions working to update their school’s computer labs, smart, connected, compute-capable devices are playing an increasingly important role in nearly every individual’s life,” said Bob O’Donnell, vice president of Clients and Displays at IDC. The firm estimates that worldwide shipments of smart connected devices will top 1.1 billion in 2012 and double to 1.84 billion by 2016. IDC’s numbers represent a compound annual
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T-Mobile may launch HTC One S on April 22nd
The HTC One S may launch on the nation’s fourth largest network on April 22nd, according to a purported internal screenshot obtained by TmoNews. The One S features an ultra-thin 7.9-millimeter case that houses a 4.3-inch qHD AMOLED display, a du…
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Production of new 15-inch MacBook Pro could start in April, 13-inch model in June
Apple has reportedly scheduled mass production of its new 15-inch MacBook Pro to begin in April, and production of a new 13.3-inch model will ramp up in June, according to a report from Digitimes. The site’s unnamed sources from Apple’s s…
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