Adobe on Monday announced partnerships with numerous handset operating system makers, including Research in Motion, Nokia, Palm, Google and Microsoft, to bring Flash Player 10.1 to smartphones. Absent from the list: Apple. 

Flash 10.1 is expected to be available as a public beta for Google Android and Nokia’s Symbian OS in early 2010. Developer betas of the browser-based runtime will be available for Windows Mobile and Palm webOS later this year. No date was given for BlackBerry devices. 

Adobe said that the new mobile version of Flash offers accelerated video and graphics capabilities while conserving battery life. The new player offers streaming video in HD and browser-based Web applications. 

“With Flash Player moving to new mobile platforms, users will be able to experience virtually all Flash technology based Web content and applications wherever they are,” said David Wadhwani, general manager and vice president, Platform Business Unit at Adobe. “We are excited about the broad collaboration of close to 50 industry leaders in the Open Screen Project and the ongoing collaboration with 19 out of the top 20 handset manufacturers worldwide. It will be great to see first devices ship with full Flash Player in the first half of next year.” 

Of course, the elusive twentieth manufacturer missing from Adobe’s lineup is Apple. 

Though the iPhone is not included among the handsets, past reports have suggested that Adobe hopes to bring it to the platform. If that were to happen, though, Flash would have to overcome its various shortcomings on mobile devices as perceived by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. 

With Flash 10.1, Adobe aims to have cross-compatibility with PCs, smartphones, netbooks and a range of devices with various screen sizes. The effort is a part of the company’s Open Screen Project initiative, which includes more than 50 companies.

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Though Flash is still not available on the iPhone, Adobe announced Monday that developers will be able to export their applications created in the format within CS5 for submission to Apple’s App Store. 

Accordingly, Adobe launched its new “Applications for iPhone” Web page, touting the ability to build applications for the iPhone and iPod touch using ActionScript 3. The page shows three applications that were created via Flash and ported to the iPhone OS as native software. 

“We’ve done a lot of work to make sure that applications are quick and interactive, and give you the kind of experience that you would expect from Flash, as well as the kind of experience that you’ve come to expect on your iPhone,” said Adrian Ludwig, a member of Adobe’s Flash team. 

The applications currently available on the App Store are Chroma Circuit, Trading Stuff, Fickleblox, Just Letters, South Park, That Roach Game and Red Hood. All were created with a pre-relse build of Flash Professional CS5. 

“What developers have to do is they have to go inside of Flash Pro and they have to export that project to a native application for the iPhone,” Ludwig said. “While you’re using Flash Pro to build these applications, it’s being converted from .SWF to .IPA.” 

He noted that the method is in compliance with the iPhone developer agreement, which means the software can be submitted to the App Store for approval. The feature will be available for both PC and Mac, and a public beta is planned for later this year. 

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Apple’s penchant for keeping its partners out of the loop reportedly cost the company its relationship with alternative rock band U2, which recently drew sponsorship from rival smartphone market Research in Motion.

According to a report in the GlobeAndMail, Toronto-based radio DJ Alan Cross recently came face-to-face with Bono following a secret concert in Boston where he struck up a conversation with the U2 frontman about the band’s new partnership with RIM.

“I’m very excited about this,” Bono is reported to have said. “Research In Motion is going to give us what Apple wouldn’t — access to their labs and their people so we can do something really spectacular.”

Asked whether this had something to do with a new application U2 wanted to create to allow fans to interact with the band as part of its “U2 360″ tour, Bono reportedly said, “You’re not far off,” before disappearing into a crowd of people.

Last month, U2 announced that the new tour — expected to be its biggest yet – would be sponsored by Research In Motion’s BlackBerry line of smartphones, distancing itself from its one-time ally in the iPod maker.

“This tour announcement marks the first stage of a relationship and shared vision between RIM and U2 that we expect will lead to new and innovative ways to enhance the mobile music experience on the BlackBerry platform for U2 fans,” said U2’s manager Paul McGuinness. “We look forward to sharing more details as the relationship unfolds.”

In October 2004 Apple and the band hosted a special event together to introduce the new black and red iPod U2 Special Edition.

“U2 is one of the greatest bands in the world and we are floored to be working with them,” Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said at the time. “We just want to make some innovative products together, and we hope U2 fans will love having their very own special edition iPod.”

An advertisement for U2’s upcoming tour | Image courtesy of U2365.com.

The partnership continued to blossom the following year when U2 helped launch the new iPod video with an ad campaign featuring a live music video for the track “Original of the Species.” In June 2006, yet another product emerged as a result of the partnership: a U2 branded video iPod.

U2’s Bono was also believed to be instrumental in compelling Apple to release several (Product) Red-braned iPods (1, 2, 3, 4), a portion of the sales of which went to help benefit the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

(via AppleInsider.com)

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Apple has released an iTunes update. According to Apple this makes iTunes faster and more responsive. This also improves working with large libraries, browsing the iTunes Store, preparing sync with iPod and iPhone, and optimizing photos for syncing.

In addition:

• Supports syncing with iPod shuffle (3rd generation).
• Allows friends to request songs for iTunes DJ.
• Adds Genius sidebar for your Movies and TV Shows.
• Improves performance when downloading iTunes Plus songs.
• Provides AutoFill for manually managed iPods.
• Allows CDs to be imported at the same sound quality as iTunes Plus.
• Includes many accessibility improvements.
• Allows iTunes U and the iTunes Store to be disabled separately using Parental Controls.

iTunes 8.1.1 also adds support for HD movie rentals and also fixes a number of bugs, including issues with VoiceOver and syncing with iPhone or iPod touch.

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As soon as Apple rolled out its preview of iPhone OS 3.0, the comparisons to existing (and forthcoming) mobile OSs started flying. While the major update isn’t exactly a done deal, it’s pretty far along, and we’ve been able to glean quite a bit from our time with the developer beta we’ve been checking out. iPhone OS, Android, webOS, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, S60; if you’re in the market for a new smartphone, your choices have been getting exponentially more complicated lately, and 3.0 won’t make the selection any easier. Luckily for you, Engadget is here to make sense of a frightening and uncertain landscape. Read on for an in-depth look at the similarities — and differences — between modern mobile operating systems.

Basics | User Interface | Core Functionality | Third-Party Development

Basics

When it comes to OSs, it’s generally true that you’re only as good as your kernel, and these days, there’s no shortage of options in that department. Comparing core systems is difficult — each one has its own strengths and weaknesses, but we’d be lying if we didn’t say that the underlying structure of the iPhone OS is pretty robust. Since it’s built atop OS X, which in turn is built atop Unix, it tends to be fairly sophisticated and stable (even if Apple has managed to lag it up with its UI). Android is Linux based, though its basic functionality is sandboxed in a particularly healthy variation of Java. S60 and Windows Mobile may be more mature, but that age doesn’t always work to their advantage, and while RIM has done a tremendous job at updating its look and feel, the OS — which is based around a proprietary kernel — still showcases some of its ugly, underlying Java from time to time.

As you can see in the chart below, the basics slot these devices into fairly specific categories, though it’s obvious that Apple is trying to nudge its way into the enterprise world (the company went out of its way to cite business customer satisfaction at the preview event). Of course, we don’t expect to see the BlackBerry OS and Windows Mobile leaving that space any time soon.

Basics						Return to Top
	Android Cupcake	BlackBerry OS 4.7	iPhone OS 3.0	S60 5th Edition	Palm WebOS	Windows Mobile 6.5
Kernel Type	Linux	Proprietary	OS X	Symbian	Linux	Windows CE
Platform Adaptability	Excellent	Good	Poor	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent
Platform Age	Young	Mature	Adolescent	Mature	Young	Mature
First-party Enterprise Support	None	BlackBerry	Exchange	Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry	Exchange	Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry
Wireless Technologies	GSM, WiFi	GSM, CDMA, WiFi	GSM, WiFi	GSM, WiFi	GSM, CDMA, WiFi	GSM, CDMA, WiFi

User Interface

Apple nailed it out of the gate with many of its UI ideas. Gestures, lists with inertia, and plenty of touch-friendly sliders, wheels, and buttons generally make the iPhone OS a pleasure to navigate. While Android borrows some of that functionality, its uneven UI still doesn’t match up (though Cupcake certainly makes a few welcome improvements). Windows Mobile and the BlackBerry OS have made some gains here over the years, but they still suffer from inborn deficiencies that are clear the moment you start using them (especially the Storm’s 4.7 implementation), and S60 has a long, long way to go before it’s up to speed. The only real competitor in terms of user-experience right now appears to be the Palm Pre, which capitalizes on many of the gains Apple pioneered and throws in a few tricks of its own, like those cards as well as a bigger emphasis on gestures.

A key innovation over the past couple years has been the emergence of capacitive touchscreens in mobile devices, which allow for lighter touch, greater display clarity, and true multitouch at the expense of stylus compatibility. The iPhone, webOS, and Android have all embraced the technology, but Windows Mobile and S60 aren’t quite there yet, largely because they still make use of UI elements too small to accurately press with a human finger. To keep up, they’ll need to get cranking on this over the coming versions. Of course, all of these platforms (save for webOS) can sport a virtual keyboard of some sort — a technology particularly suited to a capacitive screen — but we’ve yet to see a single one pull off a typing experience as solid as what Apple offers.

As good as they may be in stock form, both Apple and Palm leave users hanging if they want to customize — hell, changing font sizes is taboo with the iPhone, much less a total reskinning of the interface. If you’re into making your device all your own, Windows Mobile and BlackBerry are where you want to be; customization isn’t just allowed with these platforms, it’s practically encouraged. In fact, Microsoft pretty much touts the flexibility as a feature nowadays (a quick glance at this year’s MWC offerings is proof of that).

User Interface						Return to Top
	Android Cupcake	BlackBerry OS 4.7	iPhone OS 3.0	S60 5th Edition	Palm WebOS	Windows Mobile 6.5
Screen Gestures	Yes	Yes	Yes	Limited	Yes	Limited
Screen Technology	Capacitive	Capacitive	Capacitive	Resistive / Capacitive	Capacitive	Resistive
Multitouch	Yes (unofficial)	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
UI Skinning	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes
Input Methods	Virtual keyboard, physical keyboard	Virtual keyboard	Virtual Keyboard	Virtual keyboard, T9, and triple tap; character recognition; physical keyboard	Physical keyboard	Virtual keyboard, character recognition, physical keyboard

Core functionality

Now here’s a category where the operating systems really start to show their colors. While Apple is finally adding the promised — but delayed — push notification to its devices, it’s still lagging far behind in some pretty important areas. First off: multitasking. Much like an original Palm OS device, Apple seems stuck in the past with its open-quit-open app switching scheme, which it claims is in the interest of preserving battery life. Windows Mobile, S60, Android, webOS, and BlackBerry all handle true multitasking, allowing you keep multiple apps open in the background. The push notifications will help, but nothing beats being able to return to an active app, particularly if you’re doing something like loading a web page or using a map to get around.

Palm is smartly introducing a web-centric functionality called Synergy in its webOS, which allows you to pool contacts and calendars from disparate sources, while the iPhone OS, BlackBerry OS, Windows Mobile, S60, and Android still present mostly siloed options in that department (without some third-party involvement). Apple has made strides with its new calendar functionality — CalDAV support, for example — but it still doesn’t present anything as revolutionary for dealing with scores of contacts. We do give the company marks for finally, mercifully, allowing users to share contact cards, however.

A big problem that Apple has yet to address with OS 3.0 is its obnoxious, obtrusive notifications. Where Android and webOS slide a handy “tray” into view to let you know you’ve got something incoming, the iPhone regularly piles on one notice after another, leaving you with a stacked, productivity-stalling, ugly mess of pop-ups. Apple, you kill this kind of annoying garbage in your browser — why do you think users want it in their phone? Even older systems get this one more right than Apple does — both Windows Mobile and the BlackBerry OS use a mixture of pop-ups and background notifications. It’s perplexing that a company so concerned with usability and simplicity has done nothing to address the situation in three iterations of its software.

Still, Apple has certainly answered the call (no pun intended) on a lot of user-requested features. Stereo Bluetooth support, MMS, that new Spotlight homescreen (aka global search), tethering capabilities, unlocked Bluetooth support for the touch, turn-by-turn direction capability, and a whole lot more. The sad part is that these additions only really bring the OS to speed with almost all of its competition, making this update a victory, but still kind of a bummer if you take the long-view.

And don’t even get us started on copy and paste.

Core Functionality						Return to Top
	Android Cupcake	BlackBerry OS 4.7	iPhone OS 3.0	S60 5th Edition	Palm WebOS	Windows Mobile 6.5
Notification Style	Tray	Pop-up, background	Pop-up	Pop-up	Tray	Tray, pop-up
Contact Integration / Management	Google	BES, BIS	Exchange, ActiveSync, Mac OS Address Book	Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry, iSync	Synergy	Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry, ActiveSync
Multitasking	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Copy / paste	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Media Support / Ecosystem	Amazon	Non-DRM iTunes	iTunes	Ovi	Amazon	Windows Media Player / None
Global Search	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Firmware Updates	OTA	Tethered, OTA	Tethered	Tethered, OTA	Unknown	Tethered, OTA
Browser Engine	WebKit	Proprietary	WebKit	WebKit	WebKit	Internet Explorer
Tethering	Yes (unofficial)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Stereo Bluetooth	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

Third-party development

This is where Apple really shines. While Windows Mobile and S60 have had thriving developer bases for a while, no one has brought applications and app development to the forefront like Apple. It goes without saying that the company has revolutionized the way devs do business, and torn down dozens of barriers to entry in the process. No single company has made it easier for developers to create work (and profit from it) on a mobile platform. The new version of the iPhone OS seems designed to stoke that system, introducing 1,000 new APIs and allowing developers to offer things like in-game commerce and peer-to-peer networking.

Of course, the system isn’t without its negatives, and Apple has endured more than its share of (deserved) critics of its opaque and sometimes unfair application approval process. While they say 96 percent of apps receive approval, we’re fairly confident what gets left on the cutting room floor is hurting end users. Just think, with its current policies, you’ll never see an Opera or Firefox browser for the device.

Regardless, other companies are currently playing catch up to Cupertino’s game, with all of the major OSs offering some version of an application store now or in the near future. To date, none have been remotely as successful as Apple’s outing, but none have the luxury of being tied to a pre-existing revenue stream like the iTunes Store — and with the exception of Android’s Market, they really haven’t had time to marinate with the public. Only time will tell if companies like Palm, Google, and (gasp) Microsoft will be able to turn on the fire hose of development and go toe-to-toe with Apple.

Third-Party Development						Return to Top
	Android Cupcake	BlackBerry OS 4.7	iPhone OS 3.0	S60 5th Edition	Palm WebOS	Windows Mobile 6.5
SDK Availability / Support	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Official App Store	Yes	Coming	Yes	Coming	Yes	Yes
App Availability	Medium	Medium	High	Medium	Low	High
Native Applications	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
On-Device App Management	Excellent	Good	Excellent	Good	Excellent	Good

Wrap up

Ultimately, there are loyalties and preferences that no chart can help you navigate. We won’t go as far as saying it’s a matter of choice — we believe that the newer, younger operating systems offer far more than the aging ones can at this point (unless you absolutely need something like BES). In particular, the improvements Apple’s made in its forthcoming update speak to many of the issues we’ve had since the platform’s launch in 2007, patching a slew of flaws in its mobile OS, and making the advantages of something like Android or webOS (what we know of it) a little less obvious. That said, you won’t find the open source freedom of the former, and there are a handful of innovations in the latter (yet to be roadtested, but extremely promising nonetheless). One thing is sure regardless of what side you throw your lot in with: the hype Apple created with its devices has spurred a space race in smartphones, and the end user is reaping the benefits.

Galleries

iPhone OS 3.0 hands-on	Microsoft announces Windows Mobile 6.5	Palm Pre: official UI shots
Android Cupcake	BlackBerry OS 4.7	S60 5th Edition

(via Engaget.com)

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While reports have suggested that Apple may attend next year’s CES to “sit amongst its competition” in consumer electronics, the company has elected not to attend the GSMA Mobile World Congress being held in Barcelona this week. That hasn’t stopped the iPhone from dominating talk at the mobile conference.

Journalists seem to find it hard to cover any news coming out of the event without mentioning Apple’s smartphone by name as a point of reference, even when the announcements seemingly have nothing to do with Apple. 

• Skype’s new bundling deals with handset makers Nokia and Sony Ericsson were nearly dismissed for being irrelevant because the addition of VoIP Read more…

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Seems that another computer manufacturer has decided to take the lead that Apple has made with the jump to smartphone manufacturing. (Acer being the other)

The Wall Street Journal is weighing in on Dell’s rumored smartphone offering, adding further weight to rumors predicting the PC maker will enter the arena to take on Apple’s iPhone.

Citing sources familiar with Dell’s plans, the financial paper reported the Round Rock, Texas-based company has an office in the Chicago area where a group of engineers have been working on the phone “for more than a year.”

“They produced prototypes built on Google Inc.’s Android operating system and Microsoft’s Windows Mobile software,” said the report.

One model has a touchscreen with no physical keyboard, like the iPhone.  Another is a slider-style phone with a keypad that slides out from beneath the screen, like the Pre.  The report also notes Dell’s recent hiring of two former Motorola employees.

“We haven’t committed to anything,” a Dell spokesman told the Journal, which concluded Dell hasn’t finalized its plans and could still give up the effort without releasing a device.

Meanwhile, Kaufman Brothers’ analyst Shaw Wu wrote in a research note released to clients today that the news is consistent with his supply chain checks and his own comments from earlier this month, predicting an entrance into the cell phone market for Dell as soon as mid-February.

Dell might make its announcement at the GSMA Mobile World Congress event (formerly 3GSM) in Barcelona, Wu said.

“We believe it makes sense for Dell and other PC makers to pursue more aggressive strategies in the smart phone space,” Wu wrote.  ”We believe smart phones are moving upstream into the notebook space.  Dell is the latest PC vendor to enter the market…So far, only Apple has made material inroads.”

The analyst reiterated his warning that Dell will need to stand out from the crowded market in order to succeed, recommending the company use its own operating system because “most of the other players use the same software, including Windows Mobile, Symbian, and/or Google Android, leaving little room for innovation.”

Dell, like Research In Motion’s BlackBerry Storm and the anticipated yet unreleased Palm Pre, faces a formidable opponent in the iPhone 3G.  Last quarter saw the Apple device outsell the Storm four-to-one.

Since going on sale last summer, the iPhone 3G has sold more than 4.3 million units in the United States.  Recent signs also point to a major update to the iPhone in June, possibly making it that much more difficult for any competitor to gain headway in the sector.

The Wall Street Journal also reported Hewlett-Packard is selling phones in Europe with an automatic backup feature, while Acer is planning to join Lenovo in the smartphone marketplace as well.  Together, the iPhone and BlackBerry control 70% of the U.S. market.

This is a critical time for Dell to find a “hit”, as the company is losing PC market share, including a 0.9 percent year-over-year decline last quarter.  Shares of the company’s stock have fallen 60 percent since August.

(via AppleInsider.com)

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Image via Wikipedia

Here’s probably a little something that you didn’t know about US President-Elect Barack Obama, he uses a Mac. This is one of 50 little tidbits about the to be first African-American President that has been complied by Telegraph (a UK website).

And knowing that Obama’s a Mac user, it’s highly likely that his chat client of choice is iChat. Michelle Obama told People magazine that the one gadget her husband would never leave at home is a webcam, which he uses to stay in touch with her and the kids whenever he’s traveling. iChat’s the best Mac app for video chatting, and it’s the easiest to use, too.

Unfortunately though, he is not an owner of the subject of this website…the iPhone. “He says his worst habit is constantly checking his BlackBerry,” Telegraph writes. That’s kind of a relief, because in terms of security, the iPhone has as many holes as a worn-out pair of Vans slip-ons.

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The NPD Group issued a press release today revealing that the Apple iPhone is now ranked #1 in consumer phone sales for the 3rd quarter of 2008. The iPhone surpassed Motorola’s RAZR phone which had been ranked #1 for the previous 12 quarters.

The top handset models in rank order, based on unit sales in Q3, were as follows:

1. Apple iPhone 3G
2. Motorola RAZR V3 (all models)
3. RIM Blackberry Curve (all models)
4. LG Rumor
5. LG enV2

[via MacRumors and TheAppleBlog]

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Wow - RIM Never Heard of Haptic Feedback? Imagine how hard it would be to write a SMS or Email? Having to actually press hard enough to click the screen each time to pressed a key, where on the iPhone you simply tap and glide your finger around the user interface.

What do you think?

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