It is Twitter's 6th birthday

Twitter is celebrating its sixth birthday today. The sheer fact that you can understand that sentence shows you how far Twitter has gone since then. It has become the de facto short message system of the internet and the favorite social networking service of celebrities all around the world.

And, with over 500 million users, it is the largest one-to-many open communication platform on the web.It wasn't long before its public debut on July 15 as Twitter and since then the service's popularity has exploded.

Today Twitter has an estimated 350 million registered users, with about 100 million of them posting regularly on the site in 2011. The service has attracted numerous celebrities, politicians, brands, and influencers from all fields to the platform. Depending on who you ask (or follow), you'll find that Twitter can be used to comment on the mundane, for personal micro-blogging, as a promotional tool, an RSS reader replacement, or to learn about current events in real time.

Here are some quick facts about Twitter gathered from around the web:

• Born from a 5-member team, Twitter is now available in 28 languages and employs over 835 people.
• Over 60 billion tweets were sent out in all of 2011.
• 1 million Twitter accounts are opened every day
• The record for maximum tweets per second as of date is 12233, set during Superbowl 2012.
• It took 3 years, 2 months and 1 day to hit the first billion tweets. Now it takes less than a week.
• A 2011 study from the University of Washington says Twitter and other social media sites played a central role leading up to the toppling of the Tunisian and Egyptian dictators.
• Lady Gaga (@LadyGaga) has over 21 million followers on Twitter, making her the most "followed" user. Barack Obama (@BarackObama) is by the most popular politician on Twitter with over 13 million followers, while YouTube (@YouTube) is the most popular brand on Twitter with 10 million followers.

[Source: Mashable and Techspot]

Chrome became best browser for one day

Google’s Chrome browser became the most-used browser in the world for one day last weekend, according to web analytics company StatCounter.

A new report by StatCounter revealed that Chrome became the top global Internet browser for the first time on Sunday. It was the most popular browser in India, Russia and Brazil, which helped contribute to it becoming the number one PC browser for the day.

“While it is only one day, this is a milestone,” said StatCounter CEO Aodhan Cullen.About 32.7% of global web browsing occurred on Chrome on March 18, followed by Internet Explorer with 32.5%, according to a Reuters report. On Monday, Chrome occupied 30% of browsing while Internet Explorer accounted for about 35%. Firefox occupies about 25% of the global market share, while Safari trails with 7%.

Chrome still has a way to go to beat Internet Explorer and Firefox in many regions, including China, United States and Germany.

“Whether Chrome can take the lead in the browser wars in the long term remains to be seen, however the trend towards Chrome usage at weekends is undeniable,” Cullen added. “At weekends, when people are free to choose what browser to use, many of them are selecting Chrome in preference to Internet Explorer.”

[Source: Mashable]

Windows 8 may come this october

Microsoft plans to finish working on its Windows 8 operating system this summer and have it ready for personal computers and tablets in October, according to unnamed sources familiar with the matter speaking with Bloomberg.

The sources also revealed that the Redmond-based company plans to release both the traditional x86 version of Windows 8 and the new ARM version at the same time. It is expected that five ARM-based devices will feature the new OS on launch day, with more expected in the future.

According to the sources, three of them will be ARM-based tablets, and Microsoft’s tight control of the number is to ensure extensive quality control standards are kept to, so that the first devices exceed consumer expectations.

In many ways it makes sense, as the software house is an expert at crafting operating systems using the x86 architecture, but this is their first attempt at providing consumers with an identical version on ARM-based devices. By limiting the initial offering of ARM devices it frees the company to focus extensively on each one to ensure they operate as expected.

A launch around this time would also be ideal for Microsoft to target Christmas shoppers and claw back some of the consumer interest that has largely focused on Apple products over the course of the last year.

[Source: Techspot]

New iPad Smart cover problem

Smart covers, which attach to the iPad’s built-in magnets, are supposed to turn the tablet on automatically when you flip them open. But as dozens of iPad users in this Apple forum concurred, that was no longer the case with many smart covers on the new iPad.

That seemed odd, as the new iPad is physically no different from the iPad 2 — on the surface, at least. But it turns out Apple has been messing with the polarity of its magnets under the hood.

Photographer Mark Booth uncovered this when he did some experiments with magnets, iPads and a couple of smart covers. You can see the results in a video on Booth’s blog.

“The iPad 2′s sleep/wake sensor wasn’t polarity specific,” Booth explains. And that apparently led to an issue for iPad 2 users who flipped their smart covers around so that they sat flush with the back of the tablet — an everyday act that could cause the iPad 2 to switch off unintentionally.So it seems the new iPad’s sleep/wake sensor does require a specific polarity. But in fixing one issue, Apple appears to have caused another for users who want to use their old smart covers with their new tablets. 

Booth theorizes that Apple quietly made the polarity change in their smart covers at some point in 2011, since newer Apple-made smart covers do seem to work with the new iPad. If you got yours for the holidays, there’s a good chance you won’t see a problem.

If your smart cover hails from early 2011, try taking it back to the Apple store; Booth says he’s hearing from users that the store will exchange old smart covers for new ones.

[Source courtesy: Mashable]

Galaxy Tab 2.0.7 coming in India

Samsung has announced at the on-going South-West Asia Regional forum that it will be launching recently announced Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 aka Tab 310 in South-West Asia including India next month. There is no word on the exact launch date or the pricing as of now.

Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 is the successor of the original Galaxy Tab and comes with features like Android 4.0, 1GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 7-inch 1024×600 PLS LCD display, 3MP rear camera, and a VGA camera on front. Other specs include HSPA+, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, A-GPS and a 4000mAh battery. Company has stated that it will be releasing both Wi-Fi only and 3G variants in the region but we don’t think India will be getting the Wi-Fi only version.

Samsung has also revealed that it also plans to launch Galaxy Beam projector phone in South-West Asia in May. There is no word whether India will get it too.

Hands on with Android Google Chrome

Google rolled its signature Chrome browser to Android phones on Tuesday, 7 Feb 2012. If you’re one of the lucky ones running Ice Cream Sandwich, commonly known as Android 4.0, you’ll be able to download Chrome from the Android Market, now Play Store.

As you can see from the above gallery of screenshots taken from both Google and our experience running Chrome on a Galaxy Nexus, tabbed browsing is a big highlight of Chrome for Android. It also boasts the ability to have simple private browsing sessions.

Most importantly, Chrome for Android blends in with other Google services seamlessly, such as Google Maps and YouTube. It was easy for us to import tabs from our computer browsers as well.

[Content taken form here]

View this gallery for features:

YouTube and Google Maps are both integrated into the new Chrome for Android. 

 

It is easy to use.

 

Google's search bar is also easy to find. 

 

Google imports your tabs from your Chrome session on your computer. 

 

The tabs view gives you a neat way to see all your open pages at once. 

 

Flipping your phone sideways offers expanded maps. 

 

The tabs also function just as well sideways. 

 

Google's suggestion engine helps fill in what you're searching for. 

 

Chrome for Android even includes private browsing sessions. 

 

ou can do many features, like find on page, from the Chrome options.

 

It also makes it much easier to save pages for offline reading. 

 

Your bookmarks are imported from your desktop and separated from your mobile bookmarks. 

 

Verizon 4G iPads can also run on AT&T

Purchasing a Verizon iPad doesn’t mean you can’t also surf the web on AT&T’s network–for now, at least.

One enterprising MacRumors commenter, jsnuff1, discovered Friday morning that the Verizon version of the tablet can also run AT&T’s data network.All you have to do is swap out the micro-SIM in the tablet and update the iPad’s carrier settings.

“I was one of the first to obtain a Verizon iPad and can happily confirm that this is allowed,” writes jsnuff1. “I used my AT&T iPhone 4S sim card and took out the Verizon sim, and data worked! You must apply the AT&T APN carrier settings before this works though.” The commenter also shot a video of his iPad running on the network.

Sure enough, after inserting the AT&T micro-SIM from an iPhone 4S into a Verizon iPad, we saw the familiar “AT&T 4G” appear on the screen. Using an AT&T SIM in your Verizon iPad won’t actually get you 4G speeds.

That is likely why many opted to purchase the LTE version of the tablet over the Wi-Fi version in the first place. AT&T data cards will only be able to connect to the carrier’s 3G, HSPA+, and EDGE networks rather than the much faster LTE network the AT&T iPad runs on.

The fact that the Verizon iPad can run on other carrier’s networks also isn’t entirely surprising. The micro-SIM card slot on the tablet is designed to be used for roaming internationally when Verizon’s network isn’t available.

But it was expected that the slot would lock out other carriers while in the U.S. Apple may well fix that soon enough in a future iOS update.If they leave it this way, however, the functionality could come in handy for Verizon buyers when traveling in areas in the U.S. where they might not get the best coverage.

Facebook's new feature: Interest lists

Facebook introduced a new tool Thursday that allows you to organize your newsfeed into a personalized newspaper.

The feature, which will be rolled out to users in the coming weeks, lets you create and subscribe to topical feeds such as “Recipes” or “Fashion.” Under a list for “Sports,” for instance, you could add the public Facebook pages of all of your favorite teams, athletes, publications and pundits.

It functions much like Twitter lists, which allows you to create and follow lists of users who tweet about the same topics, and Google Reader, which lets you subscribe to folders containing different sources about a single subject.

Your lists will appear on the left-hand side of your newsfeed. Top stories from each interest will occasionally appear in your primary newsfeed.

Interest lists made a brief apperance when Facebook introduced Timeline for brand pages last week. Facebook declined to furnish any details about the feature before Thursday.

Another shot:

[Original article posted here on Mashable]

Google App for Windows Phone

Shortly after Windows Phone 7 first launched, Google released a search app for the platform. We took a look at Google’s offering at the time, but were soundly unimpressed with what we saw and how little it had to offer over the mobile web version of Google.

That was a long time ago, though, and Google’s ready for a second shot at showing Windows Phone users just what its search technology can offer. To that end, the company has today come out with a newly-redesigned Google Search app for Mango handsets.

We noted the lack of voice input as one of our issues with the implementation. That limitation’s a thing of the past, and the new Search app will start processing speech with just a tap of its microphone icon. The app still uses location data to help find relevant local results, and this redesign adds support for auto-completing queries using Google’s database.

The new Google Search app is available now in the Windows Marketplace.

New iPad features

The new 9.7-inch iPad has 2048 x 1536-pixel retina display, 5-megapixel camera (with the same optics sensor from the iPhone 4S) and 1080p video recording. It is available March 16 in black and white, powered by A5X chip (with quad-core graphics) and supports 4G LTE networks. It's 9.4 millimeters thick and 1.4 pounds.

Pick up the new iPad and suddenly, it’s clear. You’re actually touching your photos, reading a book, playing the piano. Nothing comes between you and what you love. To make that hands-on experience even better, we made the fundamental elements of iPad better — the display, the camera, the wireless connection. All of which makes the new, third-generation iPad capable of so much more than you ever imagined.

Four times more pixels than iPad 2. Razor-sharp text. Richer colors. The Retina display transforms the entire iPad experience. So everything looks and feels incredibly lifelike and perfectly detailed. 

Apple is working on two LTE versions of the iPad with AT&T and Verizon in the U.S., as well as Rogers, Telus and Bell in Canada. Both LTE U.S. models will be 3G ready, too. 

The new iPad features Apple’s 5-megapixel iSight camera. Designed with advanced optics, it lets you shoot gorgeous photos and 1080p HD video. 

The new iPad features all of these built-in apps. A lot are same of iPad 2.

New iPad sports a new app for photo editing called iPhoto. It has a lot of pro like features. iPhoto on the iPad features smart browsing, multi-touch editing, professional quality effects, brushes, photo beaming and photo journals.

With brushes, touch-ups are exactly that — you use your finger to paint adjustments onto an image. Swipe over an area to make it lighter or darker. Zoom in to brush away blemishes with the powerful Repair tool. Select the Sharpen brush to bring out the fine details. Or use the Soften brush to smooth hard lines and edges. (It works wonders on wrinkles, too.) 

iPhoto completely changes the way you edit photos. You don’t need to be a professional or watch hours of web tutorials to know how it works. Simply touch the part of an image you want to change, then drag up, down, left, or right to turn any piece into a masterpiece. 

Choose from dozens of beautifully designed photo effects to give your pictures that little extra something. Something dramatic, something soft and dreamy, something from another era, or something just plain quirky. Use the swatch book to change the look and feel of each photo. Then pinch, zoom, or slide to adjust an effect. And just like that, you’ve applied hours of professional edits in the blink of an eye. 

For complete specifications for the new iPad, click here. 

New iPad finally disclosed

Apple clarified a lot of rumors about the new iPad at its event, except what to call it. When CEO Tim Cook finally left the stage, having unveiled an iPad with a high-resolution“retina” display, an improved processor and options for LTE connectivity, he simply said it was “the new iPad.”

Wait, what? Putting aside the near-infinite rumors that circulated ahead of the event that said it would be called either the iPad 3 or iPad HD, that name’s just plain confusing. “New iPad” is a ridiculous product name because when next March, next January or even October this year roll around, it won’t be new anymore.

Apple announced a new 4G LTE iPad featuring a 9.7-inch retina display Wednesday, following months of speculation about the company’s next big launch.

Its name? The new iPad.

The company made the reveal on stage at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, home to Apple’s previous two iPad launches.The new iPad — which starts at $499 — has retina display, a 5-megapixel camera (with the same optics sensor from the iPhone 4S) and 1080p video recording.

“It has text sharper than a newspaper. Photos will look incredible. Fonts look amazing,” said Phil Schiller, Apple’s SVP of worldwide marketing, during the event. “It has the best mobile display that has ever shipped.”

The new iPad will hit stores Friday, March 16, in the U.S., as well as in Japan, the UK, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, France, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia. It will be available in both black and white.Weighing in at 1.4 lbs and 9.4mm thick, the LTE device will work with AT&T and Verizon in the U.S., and Bell, Telus and Rogers in Canada. It will have 10 hours of battery life and 9 hours on 4G.

New iPad may be called iPad HD

On Wednesday, Apple is expected to announce the next-generation iPad. For the most part, it has been assumed that the device will be called the "iPad 3," but now reports of a different name — iPad HD —are resurfacing.


In addition to a source who discussed the next-generation iPad's name, Hardawar has another who claims that Apple is "buying up 7.1-inch screen components." Such a detail has been previously reported by Digitimes, though the displays discussed in that were 7.85-inch versions. 
One big remaining question is whether that name is already in use. Apple owns the rights to the iPad name in the U.S. and other countries (though that's being debated in courts in China right now), but have others already beaten it to the punch online?


According to MacRumors, Apple’s high number of shipments are making it difficult for other companies to get products out of China. MacRumors cited one source who saw shipping rates increase 20 percent in one week, apparently due to Apple’s volume of shipments. Another shipping manager told MacRumors a similar story. 


Historically, Apple makes its Mac and iPod products available either on the same day or on the day after a major announcement. Online orders often ship directly from China. However, Apple Stores and other authorized retailers are often stocked with new products in time for launch events.

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Apple app store has reached 25M downloads

Apple customers have collectively downloaded 25 billion apps from the App Store, the company has announced on its webpage. That’s more than three apps per person in the world.

The milestone signals not only a vast appetite for apps, but also growing smartphone penetration and Apple profits (the company takes a 30% cut from every app or in-app purchase).

People with iOS devices are downloading an increasing number of apps. One 2011 study, for instance, concluded iOS owners download about 60 apps each, which is 50 more apps that the same researcher found each iOS owner downloaded in 2008.

And as the number of apps per device has grown, so has the number of devices. In a 2011 Pew Survey, 35% of the 2,277 U.S. adults questioned in English or Spanish said that they owned a smartphone. Pew released another study this week that found this percentage has since jumped to 46%. More Americans now own smartphones than feature phones, and the world bought 37 million of them from Apple last quarter alone.

Growing app downloads and growing device sales are a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation: Do people buy iPhones because they want to download apps or do they download apps because they have iPhones?

Combined net sales for the iTunes Store, App Store and iBookstore in 2011 was $5.4 billion — just 6% of Apple’s net sales, but a 33% increase compared to 2010.

Whether devices are driving app sales or the app store is driving device sales (or, more realistically, some combination of both), growing app demand and growing mobile device penetration have served Apple’s bottom line quite nicely.

The company reported its highest revenue and earnings ever last quarter. If you go by its market cap, it is now worth more than all the tea in China.

In this context, the $10,000 gift card Apple promised to give away when it hit the 25 billionth app from its App Store looks less over-the-top. Apple hasn’t yet announced the winner, but considering that to enter the contest, users were required to agree to publicly share some App Store picks with the Apple community if they won, we’ll likely be meeting the lucky winner soon.