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Android on the Verge of Getting a Major App Boost

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 07:00 AM PDT

android-kitkat-3-650x0

Apple has traditionally been recognized as having superior apps, but recent reports suggest Android apps are about to take off.

Android was once popular because it was known as the platform for “free apps.”  Of course there were quite a few technically minded consumers that preferred the open source model, preferred the customization and widgets available, and then some people went with Android strictly because it wasn’t Apple.

The landscape has changed significantly as both mobile ecosystems have matured, but one thing has remained basically the same: The iPhone has better apps.  This is not nearly as stark of a situation it was just a few short years ago, but the iPhone does have a reputation for having better developed apps.

This is demonstrated by the fact that of the top 50 payed apps and top 50 free apps, 30% are iPhone exclusive.  If Android has over 79% market share, then why does Apple have such a disproportionate exclusivity on the big apps?  Most of it comes down to developers.

First, Apple iOS apps are easier to develop.  In short, Apple makes it much easier to develop good apps.  Google is getting much better at this, but Apple apps require much simpler coding, the API’s are easier to use, and you only have to develop for a small range of devices and screen sizes since Apple is the only manufacturer that makes iOS devices.

Second, iOS apps are far more profitable for developers.  Part of it comes from the crowd.  Apple users are more likely to pony up $1.99 for for their favorite app.  There is a bit of circular reasoning here as well, but people are more likely to pay for an app that is better developed.  Since iOS has better developed apps, people are willing to pay for them, which in turn attracts developers to continue making better apps for iOS.It is also more difficult to pirate apps for iOS.  Android apps can be downloaded and installed with relative ease, making the Google Play Store almost an honor system when it comes to app purchases.  Developers routinely look at the number of apps in use on devices and find that the number far exceeds the number of apps sold via the Google Play Store.

Third, iOS apps are easier to support after launch.  Developing an Android app is a big commitment.  Although the majority of Android use is focused on a few dozen devices, there are over 12,000 unique Android phone and tablet types out there.  Having to debug and release patches to fix that many potential issues is a daunting task and is a big push away from Android and towards iOS for most developers.

As I said before, though, Google is making it easier for developers to create new apps for Android.  Last year at Google I/O, there were several new developer tools launched to make it easier for developers to support a range of devices, so it isn’t unreasonable to anticipate additional announcements at this year’s Google I/O.

A recent report was also released, showing that Android is actually a more stable platform for apps.  Android phones running Android 4.4 KitKat were found to only have apps crash 0.7% of the time, whereas iOS 7.1 apps crash 1.6% of the time.  iOS 7.1 does have a much larger adoption rate than KitKat, but it is still a good indication as to the strength of the platform.

Combined with the recent news of likely security improvements for Android, many developers may be drawn to Google’s platform.  Such a move will actually be good for all apps, regardless of platform.  Despite the competitive nature of comparing Google’s numbers to Apple’s, the more profitable apps are for developers (for either platform), the better quality apps will be in general.

If people didn’t have to choose phones based on app compatibility, we would see more features improved by manufacturers in order to find new areas to compete.  Not only would the overall level of app quality be improved, but cameras, batteries, screen resolution, and other less common features like wireless charging will see a massive boost from the increase in competition.

Source: The Guardian, Digital Trends, Tech Crunch, Business Insider

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Read more on Walyou, Google Expected to Beef Up Android Security for Enterprise, Microsoft Collaborates With Apple to Launch Office for iPad

How E-Readers are Changing the Online Education World

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 06:00 AM PDT

Kindle Paperwhite 2013

Technology is constantly molding the world around you – and education is no different. Here are six ways how E-Readers are changing the online education world.

E-Readers Save Students Money

Image via Flickr by epSos .de

It costs students an average of $1,168 a year to carry around over-sized textbooks and related materials, according to the Huffington Post. Compare that to the price of a Kindle at $139.

While there’s a lot to consider when buying an E-Reader, such as finding the service that has the type of textbooks you’re looking for, E-readers like the Kindle offer much less impact on your wallet than paper textbooks. The books themselves are also much cheaper, with some eBooks boasting 20 to 30 percent or more in savings.

Apps Make E-Readers Easy to Use

Technology makes life easier, and that’s exactly what mobile apps do for students. CourseSmart’s app isn’t only free, but it gives students access to more than 90 percent of higher education texts in North America, which adds up to 60 percent savings when compared to brand new hardcover textbooks.

It also offers instantaneous downloads, and there’s no need to take any trips to the post office when a class is finished. And don’t forget that an E-Reader weighs a fraction of a textbook, yet can hold thousands of pages of information and more than 1,500 eBooks.

Students can Take Online Classes On the Go

There are more nontraditional students going to college these days, creating a rise in demand for education. And with 7.1 million students taking at least one online class — many times while still maintaining a full-time job — time can run a little scarce.

E-readers are taken on the go, have Wi-Fi capabilities, and aren’t as bulky as text books. Students can take their classes anywhere: on the job, at home, or on the bus to school.

Teachers Love Them

Many universities are incorporating eBooks into the curriculum, with some offering degrees completely online. Monash University ranked in the top 1 percent of world universities according to the 2013-2014 Times Higher Education World University Rankings.

Monash University is known as a supporter of digital learning materials such as E-Readers and tablet computers. It has brought the world closer together by offering online college master degrees for more than 280,000 alumni who have utilized technology to earn their degrees.

E-Readers are More Eco-Friendly

Image via Flickr by epSos.de

There’s no concrete proof that E-Readers or physical textbooks have either environmental benefits or drawbacks. However, it’s easy to discern that E-Readers are more eco-friendly because they use less raw materials, such as paper and ink distribution.

Amazon was the first to report that eBooks outsold traditional books in 2011, where the online retail sold 105 eBooks for every 100 physical books. And eBook sales have continued to rise since then. E-Readers are only getting better with more memory capacity, clearer pictures, and color screens. It might not be long before students in every classroom have an E-Reader in the palm of their hands.

Getting a degree online or in the classroom has never been easier than with the help of E-Readers, tablets, and eBooks. The students that use leading technology of today will be the innovators of tomorrow.

Android Silver Could Unite Google Support Under One Roof

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 05:00 AM PDT

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For many of the technically uninclined, making the switch to Android can be daunting, but Google may soon launch a service to make the decision easier.

Google has many great services than can be plugged into through Android and many manufacturers create devices that utilize these services and features, but the decentralized nature of Android causes some problems.  Who runs Android?  If someone has an issue with their Android phone, who are they going to call (considering the ghost busters wouldn’t be of much use)?

Recent reports suggest Google has been working on a program called Android Silver.  The search giant has been working with various carriers and devices manufacturers to create a customer care experience to rival Apple and assist those that are not in the know (mostly people that would never be reading this article) with their Android devices.  Android Silver would be a 24/7 help desk where Google approved devices could be serviced and a Google support team would provide troubleshooting and guidance for anyone needing to set up Google accounts, configure their device, or use the Play Store.

Despite Android becoming more and more mainstream in the past few years, it is just not as approachable as iOS.  Apple provides help desk support and is very successful at getting people who are normally not tech inclined to plug into their services and use their apps.  If most customers knew there was readily available 24/7 Google support available for Android, that might give many people the confidence they need to leave Apple, or finally make the leap from a flip phone.

This will likely also be used as another form of leverage to encourage various OEMs to fall in line with Google’s attempts at Android unification.  We’ve already seen their plan to enforce device certification by leveraging allowed access to Google Play Services.  Now they are also requiring manufacturers to include a “powered by Android” splash screen on bootup as well.

Since fragmentation has the potential to be the undoing of Android, it only makes sense for Google to create tools that are useful to device manufacturers, such as access to Google play apps and the rest of the Google Play ecosystem.  Now if they can also leverage access to an Android support line, any sane manufacturer would jump at the opportunity to get that kind of customer support once they launch a device.

Android Silver will also go a long way towards attracting more developers to Android.  Many developers prefer to focus on iOS development since it is easier and can be more profitable.  Google intends to use Android Silver to encourage and assist unfamiliar customers with how to use the Google Play Store and also provide some app support.  This would be huge for any Android development holdouts and could be the push many developers need to start creating better Android apps.

Source: BGR

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Read more on Walyou, The All New HTC One M8 is Official and Already Available, Google Expected to Beef Up Android Security for Enterprise

Bionic Kangaroo with Self-Recharging Legs Can Hop Endlessly

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 01:15 PM PDT

BionicKangaroo

When creating robots that resemble living beings, engineers go either for a humanoid design or for insects, so this bionic kangaroo might as well be the first of its kind. Its self-recharging legs could in theory help this robo-roo hop forever and ever, till the end of time.

The German group Festo, which is behind this bionic kangaroo, proved that robots don’t have to be evil, since conspiracy theorists are certain of the fact that our metallic companions will break bad someday, in the not-so-distant future. That’s what the group tries to prove, despite admitting that they’ve been working on secret on this project. In this context, maybe it wouldn’t be wrong to assume that the BionicKangaroo (that’s really how this robot is called, so Festo must have lacked imagination in the naming department) could at some point fight for world domination.

Festo’s Dr Heinrich Frontzek pointed out that “With the BionicKangaroo we have precisely reproduced the most characteristic features of natural kangaroos: recuperating and storing energy, and then releasing it once more in the next bound.”

More precisely, the secret of this potential perpetuum mobile is the elastic spring that charges the legs while landing from a jump, fact that helps the BionicKangaroo make the next jump. What prevents this from being a real perpetuum mobile is the fact that a small part of the energy is lost after each jump, making the following ever so inferior.

The group’s Bionic Learning Network equipped the BionicKangaroo with a small storage tank containing high-pressure air needed by the pneumatic muscles for powering the movement. Judging by the motion patterns of this robot, one could say that the engineers who developed it have studied real-life kangaroos for quite some time. After all, this is what it takes when creating a bio-inspired robot.

BionicKangaroo weighs only 15 lb (7kg) and measures just 3ft 3inches (1m), but this doesn’t stop it from hopping 1ft 3inches (40cm) vertically and 2ft 7 inch (0.8 meters) horizontally. The robot recreates the jumps of real kangaroos with great accuracy, its pneumatic pumps acting exactly like organic tendons and muscles.

This definitely represents a great step in the evolution of bio-inspired robots, and it will be worth waiting to see what Festo have in store for us in the future. We only hope that they don’t make such a big secret of their future projects.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the RoboRoach smartphone app that lets you control cockroaches, and the hexapod hexacopter robot.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Zoom Shows Up in Leaked Image

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 12:30 PM PDT

Samsung Galaxy S5 Zoom

It looks like like the Samsung Galaxy S5 also has a cousin who ranks better in the camera department, if we are to believe these leaked images and technical specifications.

There have been rumors of Samsung launching two version of the Galaxy S5, and when the South Korean company only launched one, the whole world sighed in disappointment. Now, a leaked imaged of what presumably is an SGS5 Zoom appeared on the Internet and the spark of hope was reignited. Unlike its predecessors, the Samsung Galaxy Camera and the Galaxy S4 Zoom, this one is a lot thinner. Obviously, there are plenty of there features that were improved, but it’s anyone’s guess that the main focus when developing this device was on the camera.

This camera-smartphone hybrid is definitely thicker than the basic (calling a flagship smartphone basic certainly feels weird) Samsung Galaxy S5, but that definitely makes sense when you think that the lens extends beyond the body of the device. Rumor has it that the manufacturer equipped the SGS5 Zoom with a 4.4-44mm 1:3.3-6.7 24mm, 20-megapixel lens with 10x optical zoom.

While the ones passing around the rumors know for a fact that the SGS5 Zoom will come with a 4.8-inch display, they’re pretty indecisive in what concerns the resolution of this display. As a consequence, some say that it’s a 720, while others are certain that Samsung equipped it with a 1080p display.

Other rumored features include an Exynos 6-core processor, NFC and Android 4.4 KitKat. It remains to be seen whether the South Korean tech company wants to change any of these features prior to the launch or not, but until now, these are not that bad.

Given the retail price of the Samsung Galaxy S5 Zoom, people might be better of buying a basic Android smartphone and an entry-level DSLR, especially since the prices of the latter have gone low in the past years. It goes without saying that carrying an SGS5 Zoom is easier than going around with a DSLR around the neck, but the quality of a smartphone’s camera has yet to match the one of a full-fledged sensor. The battery life also makes a difference between the two categories of products, especially since the SGS5 Zoom will also be used for other things than taking pictures.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom and the early rumors regarding Samsung Galaxy S5.

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