Thursday, July 12, 2012

MobileBurn.com

MobileBurn.com

New York's Metro-North railroad to trial smartphone ticketing system in August

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 02:34 PM PDT

The New York Metro Transit Authority has announced plans to trial a smartphone-based ticketing system on the Metro-North railroad next month. The system will be tested by MTA employees, and is powered by Masabi, which also powers the ticketing system that will be used in Boston this fall. The app supports iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry smartphones, and will let riders purchase and redeem any type of ticket from their smartphones. Conductors will validate the ticket visually or with a bar code scanner. The employees testing the service will be studying its efficiency and security, and if all goes well, the MTA plans to make it available to commuters. Hopefully, the trial is successful, because as a regular rider of the Metro-North, not having to deal with paper tickets will be a major improvement. Now only if they would figure out how to install Wi-Fi on the trains.
Read the full story here.


Facebook releases new SDK for iOS developers

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 01:54 PM PDT

Facebook released a beta version of its SDK 3.0 for iOS today, providing developers with new tools to integrate Facebook features into their iOS apps. The new features includes such things as better user session management, new user interface components, Objective-C language features support, and better support for Facebook APIs. More importantly, the new SDK lets developers prep their apps for the tighter Facebook integration that is coming with iOS 6 this fall. Additionally, Facebook launched a new iOS Developer Center to help new developers learn the ropes of the SDK. Interested developers can head to developers.facebook.com/ios to learn more and download the new SDK.
Read the full story here.


Sprint releases maintenance update for Motorola PHOTON 4G smartphone

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 12:06 PM PDT

The HTC EVO 4G LTE isn't the only smartphone in Sprint's stable seeing an update this week, as the carrier has also announced a software update for the Motorola PHOTON 4G smartphone. The PHOTON's update addresses a number of bugs and performance issues and adds new features, like the ability to import contacts from the SD card and the ability to record 1080p HD video (previously, the PHOTON could only shoot video up to 720p resolution). Sprint also says that music streaming and the Wi-Fi hotspot features have been improved, and that it is easier to accept and create calendar notices from the phone. Unfortunately, this update does not bring Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich with it. Users should get a notification on their handsets when the update is ready to be downloaded and installed, and Sprint says that the update will be gradually rolled out over the next few days.
Read the full story here.


Nokia adds three more patents to its case against RIM in Germany

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 08:10 AM PDT

The bulk of the news concerning patent litigation seems to circle around Apple and Samsung, but they aren't the only companies using the courts to enforce patent licensing. According to FOSS Patents, Nokia has added three more patent infractions to its lawsuit against RIM in Germany. The new patents added to the case cover a "method and system for storing and transferring multimedia tags"; a "method and apparatus for updating the software of a mobile terminal using the air interface"; and a "method for transferring resource information." Nokia is also asserting some of its patents against HTC and Viewsonic in the U.S. and Germany, but, so far, it has only sued RIM in Germany.
Read the full story here.


Sprint speaks out against patent-based device injunctions

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 07:03 AM PDT

Sprint has put in its own two cents into the ongoing trial between Samsung and Apple over the Google Galaxy Nexus smartphone. The carrier filed a brief with the courts in favor of Samsung, and it says that it is opposed to device injunctions because they make carriers "unwitting victims" when they can't sell certain devices. "[An] immediate preliminary injunction against a device substantially and irreparably harms Sprint by leaving a void in its device portfolio," noted the carrier in its brief. Sprint has seen quite a few effects of the litigation between smartphone manufacturers this year, as it had to delay the launch of the HTC EVO 4G LTE smartphone while the International Trade Commission determined if the phone was in violation of Apple's patents.
Read the full story here.


Sprint outs update for HTC EVO 4G LTE, includes Google Wallet fix

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 06:41 AM PDT

Sprint is rolling out an update to the HTC EVO 4G LTE smartphone that addresses the problem with Google Wallet reported last month. The update will let users once again make payments at retailers with their phone and the Google Wallet app. In addition to the Google Wallet fix, the update also provides a number of other performance enhancements related to Wi-Fi, the Gallery app, time zones, and random power cycling. Owners of the EVO 4G LTE should receive a notification for the update on their handsets today.
Read the full story here.


Starbucks refreshes Android app, rolls out mobile payments to UK, Canada

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 06:15 AM PDT

Starbucks has released a new version of its app for Android smartphones that features an all-new user interface, more ways to reload Starbucks cards, and supports mobile payments in the UK and Canada in addition to the U.S. The new interface comes with a handy home screen widget that lets users quickly pull up their Starbucks card for quick scanning at the register, and it now lets users top off their cards with a PayPal account in addition to a credit or debit card. Users can also see a history of the rewards they have earned by using the Starbucks card app. The updated Starbucks app is free and available in the Google Play Store now.
Read the full story here.


Samsung offers Verizon version of Galaxy S III with unlocked bootloader directly to developers

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 05:48 AM PDT

A number of prospective Samsung Galaxy S III customers that were hoping to pick up Verizon Wireless' version of the phone have been up in arms since it was revealed that Big Red's model would come with a locked bootloader, thereby making it difficult to load custom software on the device. Samsung has decided to offer an alternative, however, as it will sell a special edition of the Verizon Galaxy S III with a user-unlockable bootloader directly to developers.
Read the full story here.


Press Release: SugarSync Expands Partnership with Samsung, Now Shipping on AllShare Play-Enabled Mobile Devices

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 05:38 AM PDT

SugarSync Now Shipping on the Samsung GALAXY S III
Read the full story here.


T-Mobile outs new myTouch, myTouch Q smartphones built by Huawei

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 05:29 AM PDT

T-Mobile has announced a pair of new smartphones that are part of its myTouch line: the myTouch and myTouch Q built by Huawei. Though they have the same name as the myTouch smartphones released last fall, these new models feature larger displays and faster processors than the older versions.
Read the full story here.


Google rolls out Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean update for Nexus 7, Galaxy Nexus

Posted: 11 Jul 2012 05:22 AM PDT

Last night, Google announced that the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update would immediately start rolling out to owners of the GSM version of the Galaxy Nexus smartphone. The update includes all of the enhancements that come with Jelly Bean, such as faster and smoother performance, improved notifications, and the Google Now search feature. Additionally, Google also pushed out the Android 4.1.1 update to the Nexus 7 tablet, which brings it to parity with the version being deployed to the Galaxy Nexus smartphone. The Nexus 7 update is small, but it promises to offer improved performance and includes the Google Wallet app. Google says that other versions of the Galaxy Nexus, the Galaxy S, and the Motorola XOOM are slated to get the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update next.
Read the full story here.


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