RIM facing mass defection over BlackBerry blunders

RIM may believe its BlackBerry outage compensation is “a pretty comprehensive set of efforts” but it may not be enough to staunch the flow of users ditching the platform, according to new research. A full 30-percent of large scale BlackBerry users plan to jump ship in 2012, Enterprise Management Associates‘ figures claim, with a mere 14-percent of users themselves happy with their RIM smartphone. In comparison, 44-percent of iPhone users were content with their device.

“We expected to see some market share loss by RIM,” EMA research director Steve Brasen suggests, ”but these results were far more dramatic than we could have anticipated.” BlackBerry always had its security and reliability counting in its favor, but last week’s outage – which lasted for up to three days for some users, and saw RIM admit it had no idea what was the cause of the technical fault – has scraped away at that confidence.

As well as throwing free apps at users – with the promise of over $100 worth of previously premium titles now being given away free through the BlackBerry App World over the next four weeks – RIM has also attempted to court frustrated enterprise customers. They’ll be offered a month’s free technical support, usually a subscription-based service, in the hope that the extra attention will encourage them to stay.

Nonetheless, if EMA’s figures are correct, RIM’s market share among enterprise customers with 10,000 or more users will drop next year from the majority platform, at 52-percent, to just 36-percent.

[via InfoWorld]

Sears’ Alphaline digital download store closes down

Another digital content provider has apparently gone quietly to the graveyard, with RoxioNow-powered Alphaline Entertainment no longer operational. The service – which launched back in December 2010 as a partnership between retailer Sears and platform provider Sonic Solutions – has been taken offline, with the company’s site now suggesting that, as of September, Alphaline was no longer available.

“We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause you” the terse message on the site reads. “If you have purchased content for ownership through Alphaline Entertainment, we have sent you an email setting out how purchased content for ownership is being handled.”

There’s no mention on Sears’ site as to what happened to the service, though it’s likely that waning appeal in an over-saturated digital downloads marketplace saw usage underwhelm. Alphaline was charging around $19.99 for movie purchases or $3.99 for rentals, with availability promised for the same day as physical media release. Back in March, Sears added further compatibility with internet-connected TVs and other platforms.

Did you use Alphaline Entertainment for digital downloads or rentals? Received an email telling you what to do with your purchases now? Let us know in the comments.

[Thanks Chris!]

Nokia Sabre Windows Phone pic leaks

We already know that Nokia and Microsoft are tying up to try and save the Nokia smartphone business and pull Windows Phone out of the slump it is in with some appealing new devices. A photo has leaked online today that is claimed to be a shot of the Nokia Sabre smartphone running Mango. We heard a bit about the Sabre back in September. The source of the leak offered up some claimed specs for the smartphone as well.

The source claims that the Sabre features a 1.4GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, and a 3.5-inch WVGA screen. The rear camera is a 5MP unit and it is claimed to have a price of 300-350 EU or roughly $410 to $480. The spy pic snapper did the typical spy photo thing and over exposed parts of the image so we can’t make out all of the details.

Presumably somewhere in the white blob section would be the back, home and search buttons that Windows phones all share. We expect that the phone will go official along with lots more at the Nokia World event set to kick off soon.

Android Face Unlock might be fooled with a photo

Google has admitted that the Face Unlock feature in its new version of Android could be fooled by a photo of the user, telling SlashGear that the security system is still in its early stages. The Ice Cream Sandwich feature – which logs into an Android 4.0 device by recognizing a pre-registered face, rather than using a PIN code or other credentials – struggled to recognize Google head of user experience Matias Duarte under the keynote lighting earlier this week, but could, we’re told, still be convinced by a snapshot.

Google acquired the facial recognition technology used in Face Unlock when it bought PittPatt earlier this year, a startup that was spun out of Carnegie Mellon University. The recognition engine they developed consists of “tools to search images for faces, determine if faces are the same person, track faces in video sequences, and pinpoint constituent landmarks in faces using a straightforward C-language interface” and has already been used to mine Facebook profiles in third-party research.

“[Face Unlock] will only get better” we were told by a Google representative when we questioned the potential for fooling the system with a still image. Using a photograph to unofficially log in “might work” they conceded, but only because the technology is still relatively young.

Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich demo:

Still, while Google is undoubtedly refining its recognition engine, it’s a potentially embarrassing hiccup in the new Android platform. Google isn’t the only one to come in for great attention over possible security flaws: earlier today, researchers criticized Apple’s Siri voice recognition system because, by default, it can be accessed even when the iPhone 4S is PIN-locked, giving anybody who picks the phone up the ability to send messages and use its other features.

Update: It’s worth noting that another Google Androider, Tim Bray, has previously said that Face Unlock should be able to differentiate between a photo and a real person.

More on Ice Cream Sandwich in our full hands-on report, as well as in our Galaxy Nexus hands-on.

Motorola Admiral push-to-talk QWERTY Android announced

You didn’t think the portrait-style QWERTY smartphone was dead, did you? No way, Jose, it’s just beginning! Here with the Motorola Admiral, an otherwise mid-range device with Android 2.3 Gingerbread, a single-core 1.2GHz processor, and a 3.1-inch VGA touchscreen, is the first time a smartphone is available with Direct Connect. And not only that, the specs are what Motorola is calling “military spec tough.” This device will be available on the 23rd of October for $99.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate via reward card, November 13th in stores — is this your new work phone?

This device has the ability to work with Direct Connect, what the first carrier of this device calls its gold-standard push-to-talk capabilities, and meets military standard 810G for dust, shock, solar radiation, vibration, low pressure, and temperatures of all kinds. The display is made of Corning Gorilla Glass – only diamonds, more Gorilla Glass, or really sharp puppy teeth can bust it. What we’ve got to ask here is of Motorola – is this combined with the Motorola DROID RAZR the start of a tough lineup throughout the future?

Because check it out if you haven’t already: the DROID RAZR is made of mostly metal, Kevlar plating and Gorilla Glass on the front. It’s both super thin and nearly indestructible for your day to day activities – and here comes to the Admiral, a device we first heard about several weeks ago in name only, now we see that it’s not only inexpensive, its tough as nails! This look like a device you might pick up

Andy Rubin asks: Should smartphones be assistants or tools?

We’re right in the midst of a possible rift in the way smart devices function and act, ladies and gentlemen, and though the functionality has been there for some time, it is Apple that’s brought the idea that the smartphone should be your assistant rather than just your tool for communicating to the forefront. I’d like to concentrate today on a statement made by Andy Rubin (SVP of Google) this week at AllThingsD’s AsiaD conference, he here asking (or telling, rather) whether or not it makes sense for a system like Siri, currently planted on the iPhone 4S, to turn your smart device into a personal assistant rather than just allowing the device to act as a tool for communication. I invite you, the reader and the user, to lay down your opinions as well.

This week at AsiaD, Andy Rubin spoke highly of both the iPhone and future Windows Phones by saying “Apple is a good competitor, but a different one. Both [an iPhone and a Windows phone] are going to feel very good in your hand and both going to look very beautiful physically…” This statement written up by Daily Tech and the following statement written up by Ina Fried of AllThingsD. Certainly nice words from the leader of the main competition for both of those platforms. The real bomb came later when Rubin spoke on the nature of the smartphone:

“I don’t believe that your phone should be an assistant. Your phone is a tool for communicating. You shouldn’t be communicating with the phone; you should be communicating with somebody on the other side of the phone. … To some degree it is natural for you to talk to your phone. We’ll see how pervasive it gets. … This isn’t a new notion. In projecting the future, I think Apple did a good job of figuring out when the technology was ready to be consumer-grade.” — Andy Rubin of Google at AsiaD, October 19, 2011

What do you think? If you ask me, I’m in agreement with Rubin on the idea that the device should be a tool, not a replacement for a human assistant, a tool for communicating with people, entertaining ones self with media, and presenting media to your colleagues. Of course therein lies the specific nature of the situation — isn’t that allowing the device to act as your assistant again?

Without a doubt, this question is more about defining the functions of a smartphone than it is deciding how a smartphone should act. Smart devices have been changing the lives of millions of people across the earth now for several years – does it really matter what we call them? You decide!

I’ll Never Ditch Netflix (And You Shouldn’t Either)

Just yesterday, I was listening to the radio and before the DJ introduced the next song, he got into a discussion about Netflix with his co-host. They were discussing the company’s streaming library and said that based on what they’ve found, it’s filled with old movies and in many cases, television shows they’ll never want to watch.

Based on that, they said, they had decided to save their $7.99 per month and end their Netflix subscriptions.

The discussion and their eventual conclusion took me by surprise. I’ll be the first to admit that Netflix could be better and I would also argue that the service’s selection of movies could be more up-to-date. But to say that the smart move because of that is to end a subscription is just plain nonsense.

The fact is, Netflix is loaded with quality content. Right now, I can launch the service to turn on “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad” if I’m in the mood to watch some television. If I’m in a movie mode, I can sift through the nearly endless supply of quality documentaries or check out any number of film classics, including “Die Hard,” “Toy Story 3,” and a more recent favorite of mine, “The Fighter.”

Moreover, Netflix appears committed to bringing more television content to the service. The company recently inked a deal with Discovery Communications to bring content from that company’s many networks to the service. And its expanded relationship with AMC made “Breaking Bad” available to stream. (Pro tip: “The Walking Dead,” another new addition to Netflix, is one more show worth checking out on the service.) By all measure, Netflix is a television juggernaut.

Now, on the movie side, I’ll admit things could be better. And I’m a little worried that Netflix and Starz have broken off their talks to extend their content partnership past next February. But I’ve been in this place of doubt before with Netflix. And each and every time, the company finds a way to deliver programming that I want. Therefore, I’m somewhat confident that even if it loses Starz content, it can overcome that.

"At $7.99, I view it as a bargain, even though it doesn’t have every movie I want to watch"

But let’s just say that you’re someone who isn’t so enthusiastic about Netflix. Let’s say that you only like a few of the shows on the service, and every now and then you’ll turn Netflix on to watch an old movie. Although you might wish to see more, wouldn’t you agree that for just $7.99 per month, it’s worth it to keep Netflix?

The cost of Netflix is perhaps the most compelling argument I can think of to continue to subscribe to the service. If Netflix cost me $20 per month, like many, I might start to question my subscription to the service. But at $7.99, I view it as a bargain, even though it doesn’t have every movie I want to watch.

So, I won’t be ditching Netflix anytime soon. And I don’t think you should either. For as many flaws as Netflix has — and there are many — it’s still a worthwhile option for just about anyone who enjoys to be entertained in the living room or while on the road.

Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich complete guide

It’s time we learned about a whole new version of the Android mobile operating system from Google, this one numbered 4.0 and titled Ice Cream Sandwich. Google describes this version of Android as having improved multitasking, brought resizable widgets, added rich notifications and customizable home screens, and increases interactivity to a much deeper level. Google chose Samsung to represent this version of Android with the Galaxy Nexus, a device that will be the next hero device running vanilla Android, here with 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

First here’s a couple of hands-on videos I’m sure you’ll enjoy, both of them filmed in Hong Kong at the formal release of both the Galaxy Nexus and the final build of Ice Cream Sandwich.

Ice Cream Sandwich hands-on demo

Google leaks upcoming Gmail redesign

Google posted a video to its YouTube account today revealing some of the changes to its upcoming revamp of the Gmail interface. The redesigned UI unsurprisingly carries over the new theme introduced with the Google+ social network and focuses on making Gmail as clean, simple, and intuitive as possible. Overall, the interface is a lot sleeker and more customizable.

The new interface can automatically adapt to fit nicely into any size window and you can manually resize Labels and Chat windows. You can also choose the density of the interface to suit your preferences, which affects the amount of white space and how densely components are laid out on the page. And there’s several updated high-resolution themes that you can choose from to customize the look of your Gmail account.

Threaded emails now appear in a new conversation view interface that looks similar to what you see with Facebook Messages and includes a profile pic for each person. It’s also easier to go through and read previous messages in the thread.

Additionally, there will be a more advanced search box that drops down from the search field at the top of the page. It makes it quick and easy to access different search features and also allows you to create filters directly from within the search box.

Some users have already been previewing the new theme on their Gmail accounts since June, but it’s not clear when the full revamp will roll out to everyone. But given the video preview, it’ll probably be sooner than later.