Rogers launched the first Canadian Android devices back in 2009 with the HTC Dream and the HTC Magic, they called this the “Android Revolution”. Every carrier these days has at least one device that’s powered by Google’s Android OS, but many of them have at least 50% of their selection. Take TELUS for example, 12 of their 24 current smartphones are powered by Android. Rogers currently has 14 smartphones and Bell has nine. This isn’t taking into account the sub-brands and new entrants, nor the Android-powered tablets.
Perhaps Rogers was a bit premature by stating the Android Revolution occurred in 2009, because it actually feels like it happened this year. Gartner Research has pegged the Android OS to capture about 40% of the global OS market share by the end of this year. There are no specific Canadian numbers so the closest we have is a 3rd party June 2011 report from comScore. They believe that the Android OS increased its Canadian market share by 7% in the last 6-months to 19%. RIM’s BlackBerry is still the leader with 38% market share, and Apple owns 31% market share.
There’s an interesting quote by Wade Oosterman, President of Bell Mobility, in Marketing Mag that stated Android is their fastest-growing platform, and specifically in July it exceeded BlackBerry to become their biggest OS – which is probably caused by the release of the Samsung Galaxy S II and that BlackBerry didn’t release a new product until August.
“Canadian numbers aren’t available, but service providers agree the product is a sales juggernaut. Android is Bell Mobility’s fastest- growing platform, becoming its biggest smartphone operating system overall in July, eclipsing Blackberry. “By Q4, the busy holiday season for wireless, we expect Android to account for the largest volume of new activations,” says Wade Oosterman, president Bell Mobility and residential services.”
It makes sense that Android is their fastest growing platform. Microsoft’s Windows Phone hasn’t seen a new device this year, BlackBerry has only released 4 new handsets and the new iPhone 4S was just launched. New Android devices are released at various price points about a couple times a month.
This coming Q4 will see even more Android handsets get released in Canada. Over the next few weeks the HTC Amaze and Holiday, Motorola RAZR, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Galaxy S II LTE, Galaxy S II X, Galaxy Tab 8.9 LTE, Sony Ericsson ray, LG Optimus Net and the LG Optimus LTE Eye… exciting times for the little green robot.
Jose Bautista remains the most valuable player in the American League in the eyes of baseball fans. The Toronto Blue Jays star won his second consecutive Hank Aaron Award as the most outstanding offensive performer in the AL.
Sit back and take notes while we… talk about Supernote. This note-taking app quietly debuted on the Eee Pad Transformer and Slider earlier this month, when ASUS rolled out an OTA update to Android 3.2.1, but the company has now provided substantially more details on the feature, which promises to “revolutionize the way you take notes in class.” With Supernote onboard, students can write or scribble using either the keyboard or their own fingers. That isn’t exactly enthralling, in and of itself, but what’s cool is the fact that Supernote will convert each hand-drawn item into an image, allowing users to seamlessly modify or delete their own characters as if they were typed text. The tool also makes it easy to insert graphs or charts, thanks to an “Add Annotation” option that integrates diagrams directly into your lecture notes. And, perhaps best of all, the app will even let you insert photos, meaning you can just take a shot of your professor’s blackboard and worry about understanding it later. Intrigued? Check out a demo video, after the break.
Those of us stationed inside the Engadget compound are always wishing we had better WiFi signal at the outer reaches of the battlements. Thank heavens for Amped Wireless’range of professional networking tools. With a 600mW amplifier and a high-gain bi-directional antenna, its SR600EX Pro Smart Repeater can expand the range of your internet transmissions by up to 1.5 miles. The device also has two extra network ports for other devices and is designed for large buildings, boats, RVs or, you know… massive gadget labs. On the other hand, the AP600EX Pro Access Point can sit on the end of a wired network and do the same job for building-to-building connections. Both devices come with a 30-foot power-over-ethernet cable and are available today for $180.
Hundreds of people are still waiting for emergency housing in Minot, N.D., following a massive flood this summer that displaced a quarter of the city’s population.
If we’re to believe some of the latest scientific research on sleep (or even just viral YouTube videos), the effects of dreams have likely bewildered Earth’s creatures for hundreds of millions of years. But humankind, in particular, has fostered a unique and lasting fascination with dreaming. More »
A comparison video of Battlefield 3 for Xbox 360 by WikiGamesGuides reveals what kind of difference the HD texture pack makes. Last week, EA finally fessed up to the feature, with executive producer Patrick Bach saying the difference would make the the game look “standard-def.” He wasn’t kidding — the difference is staggering.
The pack install is optional because, unlike PCs and PS3, hard drives aren’t standard for the Xbox 360. The real question, though, is why does it look this bad without the pack? Even ignoring all other non-EA, DICE games, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 didn’t require a hard drive install and still looked fantastic. If you don’t have a hard drive for your Xbox 360, consider this a warning.
Today we’re opening the map of Canada in Google Map Maker for users to add their expert local knowledge directly to Google Maps. Users know their neighborhood or hometown best, and with Google Map Maker they can ensure the places they care about are richly represented on the map.
Users can help make the map complete in many ways such as marking hiking paths and trails, fixing the name of a local business, or adding the buildings of a college campus so they appear in Google Maps. We’ve seen incredibly detailed contributions from users worldwide, for example, take a look at the map of a shopping mall in California before and after Map Maker was launched. We’re eager to see the same level of detail for locations throughout Canada.
Milpitas, CA (before, avant)
Milpitas, CA (after, après)
To confirm Map Maker user contributions are accurate, each edit will be reviewed. After approval, the edits will appear in Google Maps within minutes. To see examples of what people all around the world are adding in Map Maker, you can watch mapping in real-time.
Citizen cartographers using Google Map Makerin more than 180 other regions of the world help keep maps of their areas accurate and up to date. We are delighted to welcome Canada to the Map Maker family. To learn more, visit our handy guide to mapping Map Makerpedia or check out a video tutorial. Get started mapping at www.google.ca/mapmaker.
Note:Translated to French below.
Posted by James Kelly, Product Manager, Google Map Maker
Ajoutez de la couleur locale à la carte avec l’édition canadienne de Google Map Maker
Aujourd’hui, nous ouvrons la carte du Canada dans Google Map Maker afin que les utilisateurs puissent ajouter directement leurs propres connaissances locales aux cartes Google. Les utilisateurs connaissent leur quartier ou leur ville mieux que quiconque, et grâce à Google Map Maker, ils peuvent s’assurer que leurs endroits préférés figurent sur la carte.
Les utilisateurs peuvent contribuer à enrichir la carte de nombreuses façons, notamment en indiquant les pistes cyclables et les sentiers, en identifiant les commerces locaux, ou en ajoutant les édifices d’un campus universitaire afin qu’ils apparaissent dans Google Maps. Nous avons vu des contributions incroyablement détaillés de la part d’utilisateurs du monde entier. Par exemple, jetez un coup d’oeil à la carte d’un centre commercial en Californie, avant et après le lancement de Map Maker. Nous avons hâte de voir le même souci du détail pour des emplacements situés à travers le Canada.
Afin de confirmer l’exactitude des contributions des utilisateurs de Map Maker, chaque ajout sera révisé. Après approbation, les changements apparaîtront sur Google Maps en quelques minutes. Pour avoir un aperçu de ce que les gens à travers le monde ajoutent à Map Maker, vous pouvez visionner la cartographie en temps réel.
Les citoyens cartographes utilisant Google Map Maker dans plus de 180 autres régions du monde contribuent à rendre les cartes de leur région les plus précises et à jour possible. Nous sommes ravis d’accueillir le Canada dans la famille de Map Maker. Pour vous familiariser avec cet outil, consultez notre guide pratique de cartographie Map Makerpedia ou visionnez notre vidéo pédagogique. Ne perdez pas une minute. Rendez-vous à www.google.ca/mapmaker.
Publié par James Kelly, chef de produit, Google Map Maker
The Wall Street Journal reports that Google Music will launch in the next two weeks—regardless of whether or not Google has inked deals with the four major record label giants. That's a ballsy move, Google. More »
Android: There’s no shortage of mobile apps that allow you to look up recipes, bookmark them, and share them with your friends, but ChefTap also imports recipes from other web sites and food blogs, and walks you through their recipes, step by step, as you cook them. More »
Find an interesting article, add its author. That’s the very simple idea behind a very simple feature that Google has just begun testing. As TechCrunch recently noticed, Big G has started rolling out a new “add to Circles” button within some search results, allowing readers to more easily and instantaneously follow their favorite web authors on Google+. Writer profiles have already been integrated within search pages, but until now, users had to actually click on author pages before following them. This new circle button, on the other hand, cuts out that middle click and seems like a logical next step in Google’s ongoing integration. It also seems like a great way to help writers feel better about themselves, which we always support. And if you’re not seeing it, you’re not going crazy — Google’s just rolling it out to only a few users.
Want to catch every frame of your next extreme sports wipeout in all of its grotesque glory? GoPro knows where you’re coming from, and has updated its line of high definition helmet cams to help you capture every bone-breaking moment. The HD Hero2 competitively boasts that it’s twice as powerful its 2009 predecessor, the original HD Hero. The new helmet cam promises to capture 1080p 16:9 footage from atop your sweaty noggin at both narrow (90-degree), wide (170-degree) and medium (127-degree) angles, and can snap up to ten 11 megapixel photos per second. The camera’s mini-HDMI port, composite out, USB, SD card and HERO ports will help you share the spoils of your spills when your adventure ends — at least until this winter, when GoPro’s WiFi BacPac promises to enable live broadcasting and camera control over WiFi. Best of all? The Hero2 kills the original HD Hero’s confusing 3-digit code interface in favor of a simple language-based menu.
The HD Hero2 comes in three $300 configurations: outdoor, motorsports, and surf editions, all of which are compatible with existing accessories. Too rich for your blood? Then you’ll be happy to know that the previous models are getting price drops — $200 for the original HD Hero and a paltry $150 for its “960” variant. Hit the break for the official PR and a full list of features.
YouTube user Martin Craig shows us an easy way to shuck corn without having do deal with messy corn silk threads—just microwave each ear for four minutes, cut the end off, and slide the corn out as shown in the video above. More »
Many of you have been wondering if Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich will allow users to use USB game controllers with their phones and/or tablets. We have good news as Android engineer Roman Guy tweeted the above. This can’t be a surprise since this feature was added to Android 3.1 Honeycomb, so why would they drop it now with 4.0?
Of course it will be up to the developers to make their games compatible with controllers, but I think by this time next year all the major games will support it. If you are dying to try it out, you can always try Sixaxis Controller which will let you use a PlayStation 3 Sixaxis or dualshock 3 on your phone or tablet that is rooted.
Police formally arrested two drivers suspected of running over a toddler who died a week after she was struck on a busy market street in southern China and was ignored by passers-by, newspapers reported Sunday.
Zounds! So this is what my ex-girlfriend meant when she said sex with me was akin to “carnal relations with an empty husk.” Too much web porn! It’s killing our libidos, lads, one frantically one-handed mouse click at a time. More »
Albert Pujols joined Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson as the only players to hit three home runs in a World Series game, tying records with five hits and six RBIs that led the Cardinals to a 16-7 rout of the Texas Rangers on Saturday night that gave St. Louis a 2-1 Series lead.
