More mobile carriers are offering Netbooks as a way to lure new customers--a trend that's likely to surge and encompass notebooks as well.
By 2013, more than 60 percent of all mobile devices, including Netbooks and notebooks, are expected to be sold directly by wireless carriers, according to research released Wednesday by In-Stat. Almost 31 percent of notebooks alone will be sold through carriers, In-Stat predicts.
Bundling an inexpensive Netbook or notebook is a small price to pay for a carrier, which can then charge customers for a monthly data plan.
"In the U.S., carriers are charging up to $60 per month for a two-year contract with the subsidized purchase of a Netbook," In-Stat analyst Jim McGregor said in a statement. "While the subsidy costs the carrier $50 to $100, it generates $1,440 or more in service fees over the life of the contract."
Carriers such as Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and Sprint have already been dangling Netbooks as carrots to attract more mobile customers. Verizon is selling Netbooks from Hewlett-Packard and Gateway. AT&T is selling Dell, Acer, and Lenovo Netbooks, as well as a Nokia Booklet 3G. Sprint is also selling a Dell Netbook.
Thanks to the success of low-cost Netbooks, U.S. carriers are further testing the waters by bundling full-size notebooks along with a two-year contract. The strategy isn't just limited to the United States, noted In-Stat. Carriers in Europe and Asia are giving out Netbooks with a data plan, but often at lower prices than in the U.S. Asian carriers have also been offering the kissing cousins of Netbooks: mobile Internet devices and ultramobile PCs.
This trend will intensify as carriers boost the number of services offered and cut prices on those services due to higher competition and better bandwidth, In-Stat said. The mobile market itself is also expected to become more attractive, with richer content and increased bandwidth.
These days, there is a plethora of audio content available to stream over the Internet. Even traditional terrestrial radio often offers content streamed over the Web, diversifying the choices for how consumers can enjoy music and other audio. Although the legality is questionable, there are--and will always be--ways to record these streams. Streamed audio recordings for music are not going to offer the same sound quality as a ripped CD or even a purchased MP3, but it's a good option for talk programs and mixes that might not be available in other formats. This tutorial will show you how to record streamed audio as an MP3; just be sure to read the usage rules for any recording source before beginning.
Editors' note: This tutorial was completed using Windows XP.
Cost: Free
Time commitment: Varies
System Requirements: Windows
There's a reason you always see coin-op racing games lined up two, four, or even eight in a row: It's a lot more fun to race against live humans than AI opponents.
Unfortunately, only a handful of otherwise excellent iPhone racing games offer multiplayer modes. And most of those limit you to local competition via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi--only a couple offer online multiplayer.
I'm happy to report that Asphalt 5--sequel to the mega-popular Asphalt 4: Elite Racing--has joined the ranks of online-multiplayer racing games.
It's a good thing, too, because the Asphalt series suffers from a problem I have with many racing games: once you fall behind the AI drivers, it's nearly impossible to catch up.
But human opponents are just as error-prone as you are, so the competition feels fair and, most importantly, real.
After signing up for a free Gameloft account (which you can do in-game), I hopped into an online race and was quickly matched up with five other drivers. One dropped out mid-race (jerk), but the game didn't skip a beat.
And it was a blast. Asphalt 5 really is arcade racing at its finest, with jaw-dropping graphics, 30-plus glamorous real-world cars to drive, a dozen globe-spanning tracks, and eight different game modes.
Basically, if you liked Asphalt 4, you'll love Asphalt 5. And if you find that most racing games get old in a hurry, I think you'll agree that Internet multiplayer adds significantly more replay value.
While we're on the subject, check out these five awesome online-multiplayer games for the iPhone.
If you think Robocalypse is fun solo, try playing it online against live humans.
Solitaire is fine once in a while, but usually it's more fun to play games with other people.
Same goes for iPhone games: There's only so much mano-a-Bejeweled a person can take. Fortunately, there are some terrific apps that let you compete in real-time against other real, live humans.
And not just humans in your immediate, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi-enabled area, either: I'm talking about games that support online competition.
These five titles let you kick the butts of players across the globe:
- Galcon An insanely addictive space-based action game, Galcon plays like Risk at warp speed. Conquer other planets while protecting your own. Multiplayer options include not only one-on-one, but also two-on-two and one-on-two. Not sold? Try the free lite version. It doesn't offer multiplayer, but I guarantee it'll get you hooked.
- Mancala: FS5 Faster-moving than chess but no less fun, Mancala is one of my all-time favorite two-player games. This version makes it a snap to find and join an online game. The only downside: jerks who abandon the game when they start losing. (Don't be that guy!) Mancala: FS5 costs $1.99, but even the ad-supported freebie version supports multiplayer. ... Read more
Chris Mitchell from Muninetworks.org joins us to discuss Net Neutrality and who should own the pipes.
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Windows Marketplace for Mobile is a brand-new app store for Windows phones.
(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)This week, Microsoft's Windows Mobile 6.5 phones jumped onto retail shelves. There's a lot to know about the launch, from news of the platform's availability to hands-on reviews of the app store, and some of the services. We've rounded up stories, pictures, and videos here, and will continue to add links as news streams out.
News
- Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrade details
- With My Phone mobile sync, Microsoft reinvents the wheel
- Shazam debuts in Windows Marketplace for Mobile
- Windows mobile app store, My Phone service officially opening
- IE 6 for Windows phones: Interface improved
- Microsoft's Windows phones hit the market
Windows Mobile 6.5 phones
- Fall collection: Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphones
- AT&T unveils Windows 6.5 phones: HTC Tilt 2, Pure
- Microsoft to launch more than 30 Windows Mobile 6.5 devices by end of year
In pictures:
- Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone photos
- Windows Marketplace for Mobile--screenshots
- Inside Internet Explorer for Windows Mobile 6.5
Windows Mobile 6.5 videos:
Internet Explorer Mobile 6: First Look video
HTC Touch 2: First Look video
For a long time, Microsoft's browser for Windows Mobile phones has been a weak link in the Windows Mobile operating system. Internet Explorer Mobile has been infamous for being ungainly, slow, and so thin on browsing features that many high-end smartphones come preloaded with Opera Mobile 9.5.
Internet Explorer Mobile 6, now found on Windows Mobile 6.5 phones, addresses some of these failings head-on. The overhauled interface pulls navigation commands out of a text menu and places five round icons on the bottom that are just large enough to tap with a fingertip or a stylus. The browser shows off a cool, light theme instead of teal (the exact color scheme may vary by carrier).
Following a trend in mobile browser design, the navigation in Internet Explorer Mobile 6 disappears after a few seconds of disuse, leaving a full screen for browsing and a small button to call back the buttons, which include a back button, favorites menu, keyboard call-up, zoom key, and "More" menu. The "More" button presents a list of further options, including copy and paste.
... Read more
"I hope at their best they are beautiful, funny, warm, poignant, odd, and memorable," Sophie Blackall says of the paintings in her Missed Connections series.
(Credit: Sophie Blackall)OK, so your "Missed Connection" post on Craigslist never led to a great romance with that cute hipster who looked your way on the L train--let alone an e-mail from anyone vaguely resembling her. But those hopeful words you sent out into the ether may not be lost after all.
Brooklyn illustrator Sophie Blackall is immortalizing Missed Connections posts in the form of some pretty wonderful and whimsical paintings. And who knows? Maybe your note to that girl with the nose ring and headphones is now a work of art.
"Messages in bottles, smoke signals, letters written in the sand; the modern equivalents are the funny, sad, beautiful, hopeful, hopeless, poetic posts on Missed Connections Web sites," Blackall writes on her blog. "Every day hundreds of strangers reach out to other strangers on the strength of a glance, a smile or a blue hat. Their messages have the lifespan of a butterfly. I'm trying to pin a few of them down."
Her original paintings, created with Chinese ink and watercolor, measure about 11 inches by 17 inches and have names like "Hairy Bearded Swimmer," "I Had a Blue Hat," and "Seeking Girl Who Bit Me TWICE Last Night While We Were Dancing."
Blackall sells 8.5 inch by 11 inch prints of her illustrations for $40 (with free shipping) on crafts site Etsy and plans to release a book based on the series in 2012.
... Read moreCould Intel's new Moblin 2.1 OS make a dent against Windows in the mobile and desktop markets?
At this week's Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, the chipmaker debuted a beta version of its Moblin 2.1 open-source operating system targeted to run on a variety of devices, including smartphones, Netbooks, nettops, Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs), and in-car systems.
Moblin 2.1 will compete with other open-source operating systems like Google's Android and bump up against Microsoft in the burgeoning nettop arena.
Originally developed for Netbooks, Moblin 2.1 (short for mobile Linux) will come in three flavors--one for handhelds, another for Netbooks, and a third for nettops.
In the market for handheld gadgets such as smartphones and MIDs, Moblin 2.1 will run on Atom chip-based devices. The beta demoed by Intel at IDF showed off capabilities for touch-screen and gesture input. The new interface will also let users switch among different open applications and will provide shortcuts to social-networking apps.
The Moblin 2.1 Web browser will also support Flash and Microsoft's Silverlight 3 technology to run interactive Web-based apps.
... Read more
(Credit:
John P. Falcone/CNET)
HP has one big request for when you're talking about its new DreamScreen product line: don't call it just a digital photo frame.
Fair enough. The DreamScreen can display your photos effortlessly, but that just scratches the surface of what it can do. Available in 10.2-inch and 13.3-inch versions (both 800x480 resolution), the DreamScreen offers 2GB of onboard memory, plus slots for all standard flash media card types as well as USB storage. If loading your digital media via flash memory is too old-fashioned for you, the DreamScreen can also connect to your home network via Wi-Fi or Ethernet, and--according to HP--the included software lets you drag and drop the files you want to move to it via the network.
Beyond photos, the DreamScreen can also play videos (MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4, H.264) and music (MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV) through its built-in speakers (or you can use the headphone jack to connect to an outboard stereo); it can also play music in the background while displaying a slideshow. But if you don't have a single audio file, you can instead opt for one of thousands of Internet radio stations or Pandora's streaming audio service instead.
But wait, there's more! ... Read more
