Verizon says 4G LTE outage resolved, all other services worked during the outage

Verizon Wireless claims to have the nation’s most reliable network and while it was indeed the first to launch a LTE network, yesterday was the third time the 4G network went down this month. Luckily, 3G data wasn’t affected and the carrier managed to resolve the issues overnight so today LTE is back to operational, Big Red confirmed.

iPhone app BreathalEyes measures your... blood alcohol content

Yes, you read the headline correctly. BreathalEyes is an iPhone app that can measure an individual's blood alcohol content, and it allegedly does a pretty good job at it. How can that be possible you ask? Well, the application takes advantage of a phenomenon known as Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, which is an involuntary movement of the eyes, and alcohol use is one of the causes for it. All it takes for the trick to be performed is a scan of the subject's eye by using the iPhone's camera. The software should manage to measure BAC within a 0.02% to 0.17% range.

ZTE partners with Fashion TV for the FTV Phone

Now ZTE might not be the first name to come up when speaking about designer phones but the company has collaborated with Fashion TV to change its image and here’s what the end-product looks like: the ZTE FTV Phone. It’s a version of the ZTE Blade also known as the Orange San Francisco, but except for weird looks it has little to offer in terms of both hardware and software.

Elpida starts sampling next-gen RAM for smartphones and tablets

When it comes to RAM chips for mobile devices, Elpida is among the names that you are likely to hear the most. The company's memory modules are being used in devices made by a number of manufacturers, including Apple and Motorola.

Real deal game controller for iOS works with no batteries, can be yours for $50

No, this isn't a controller made for the nex-gen PlayStation or Xbox video game consoles. In fact, what you see is a gaming accessory tailored specifically for iOS devices. Designed by a company called 60beat, it works with the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Samsung Galaxy Note shipments reach 1 million as it gears for 2012 US release

The Samsung Galaxy Note is a 5.3-inch beast of a device standing right between a smartphone and a tablet. It’s definitely appealing to some and plain too huge to be a phone for others, but it hardly leaves people indifferent. Is it successful or not? Opinions will vary and only sales will tell the true story. 

Nokia Lumia 710 gets its own spot on the T-Mobile web site, to come with SmartAssist service

If you have your mind set on the Nokia Lumia 710 for T-Mobile, you are probably aware that the smartphone's launch is only two weeks away from today. And another sign reminding us that Nokia's first Windows Phone device bound for the U.S. is nearing its release is that T-Mobile already has it listed on its web page.

Zephyr brings the awesome UI ideas from MeeGo to the iPhone

The MeeGo-based Nokia N9 was far from successful - years of hard work over a new platform with an innovative user interaction model yielded an experimental handset which is not even sold on US carriers. That’s sad because MeeGo really seems to have nailed it with the swiping gestures - this intuitive way to switch between applications and interact with your device makes sense and is very simple.

Now, iOS developer chpwn has done some great worked an managed to get the same gestures on iOS. Chpwn developed a tweak, Zephyr, that allows you to swipe from the sides to switch between applications, and it also adds a nice swipe from the bottom for the multitasking menu. 

“I think this is probably the most efficient way to multitask on the iPhone,” the developer says and it’s hard to argue with that. Zephyr is available on Cydia, so you’d need to have your iOS device jailbroken for it to work.

The price of the application is $2.99, but it comes with the promise of more gestures to be added in the future. Below you’d find a video demonstration of the MeeGo-inspired Zephyr, and a refresher about how Nokia’s Swipe UI works.

source: 9to5Mac

Verizon to charge $2 for monthly bills paid online or over the phone

Starting January 15, every Verizon customer who chooses to pay their monthly bill online or over the phone will be charged a $2 convenience fee for the transaction. That is what becomes evident after examining these spy shots that a source for Droid Life provided. Yes, we know that the amount is not of epic proportions, but it sure is annoying having to pay an extra $24 per year if you have already opted in for a pretty hefty data plan. 

More Apple iPad rumors: High-end and mid-range models coming next month

The latest rumors about the next generation of the Apple iPad seem to stretch the definition of possibility, which is why we caution you to take this information with the proverbial grain of salt. According to DigiTimes, at the MacWorld/iWorld conference on January 26th, Apple will introduce both a high-end tablet called the Apple iPad 3, and a mid-range model, possibly called the Apple iPad 2S. Right off the bat, this seem unlikely since Apple said back in 2008 that it would no longer exhibit products at the conference following the January 2009 show.

App downloads on the Apple iPhone surged 83% in the U.S. last month over last year's total

The number of apps downloaded on the Apple iPhone surged in November by 83% year-over-year. This come's from mobile research firm Fiksu. The Fiksu App Store Competitive Index,which tracks the aggregate volume of the Top 200 free apps in the U.S., came out to 5.65 million downloads daily. This is the first time that the index has crossed 5 million apps per day and is a 15% increase from the previous record of 4.91 million apps daily that was set in October when the Apple iPhone 4S was released.

Fiksu says that the uptick in downloaded apps was expected as each launch of a new iPhone brings a number of first-time Apple iPhone users looking to explore the App Store. Add the number of iPhones that were updated to iOS 5 and you have a strong demand for users to add new apps on their device. Fiksu added that it expects the numbers to rise for this month thanks to a record setting Christmas Day that saw 6.8 million activations of iOS and Android devices combined.

The volume of daily downloads of the Top 200 free apps in the App Store rose to a record in November

Another index created by Fiksu, called the Cost per Loyal User Index tracks the cost required for a developer to obtain a loyal user for a particular app. A loyal user is defined as someone who opens an app at least three times. In the last few months, developers have been spending their marketing dollars wisely as the index has dropped from a peak of $1.64 in September to $1.47 in October and $1.43 in November. To define it, developers spent an average $1.43 per app for each loyal user.

It took developers less money to obtain a loyal user of an app in the last two months

source: Fiksu via AppleInsider

Soon, app to turn iPhone into personal fitness hub

London, Dec 29 : Apple has won the patent for an application that aims to turn the iPhone into a personal hub to help users measure their progress, schedule classes and stay motivated between sessions.

The proposed fitness centre app would be linked to equipment and services at gyms, to allow users to easily monitor their exercise program and book classes or personal training sessions.

Stratfor delays website launch after hack attack

Private intelligence analysis firm Strategic Forecasting Inc., which was attacked by online hackers at the weekend, said in a letter to free subscribers that it has decided to delay the launching of its website by about a week.

The website of Strategic Forecasting, also known as Stratfor, has been offline for several days following the hacking attack.

Alibaba hires US lobbying firm as it eyes Yahoo

Alibaba Group has hired a Washington lobbying firm in a sign that the Chinese e-commerce company would be willing to make a bid for all of Yahoo Inc in the event that talks to unwind their Asian partnership fail.
Japan's Softbank Corp <9984.T>, which owns a 30 percent stake in Alibaba and is a partner in Yahoo Japan <4689.T>, is also listed as an Alibaba affiliate in the disclosure by the lobbying firm, Duberstein Group Inc.

New York Times sends email to millions by mistake

Some 8 million people received emails from the New York Times on Thursday offering a special discount if they would reconsider their decision to cancel their subscriptions.

The trouble is , the offer was supposed to go to only about 300 people who had decided to stop taking home delivery of the newpaper -- it was erroneously sent by a New York Times employee to more than 8 million people on an email marketing list.

Stuxnet weapon has at least 4 cousins -researchers

 The Stuxnet virus that last year damaged Iran's nuclear program was likely one of at least five cyber weapons developed on a single platform whose roots trace back to 2007, according to new research from Russian computer security firm Kaspersky Lab.

Security experts widely believe t hat the United States and Israel were behind Stuxnet, though the two nations have officially declined to comment on the matter.

A Pentagon spokesman on Wednesday declined comment on Kaspersky's research, which did not address who was behind Stuxnet.

U.S. online poker ruling at risk in future administrations

WASHINGTON  - While the Internet poker world salivates at the prospect of its business coming back to life thanks to an Obama administration ruling, a future U.S. president could reverse that decision and send the industry back to the drawing board if it is not codified into law.

Late on Friday, the eve of Christmas weekend, the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel issued a legal opinion stating that the 1961 Wire Act prohibited online betting only for sporting events and contests, not Internet games such as poker or lotteries.

RIM offers hefty discounts on PlayBook in India

TORONTO - BlackBerry maker Research In Motion said on Wednesday it has slashed prices on its PlayBook tablet in India in a move aimed at boosting dismal sales for a device that was briefly considered a potential threat to Apple's iPad.

A spokesman for RIM said it would offer discounts on all three PlayBook models in India until December 31. The promotion reflects similar price cuts offered in North American markets for more than a month.

The company is roughly halving the price of the PlayBook in India, which RIM views as a big growth market. Growing demand for the BlackBerry in many emerging markets has helped offset flagging North American sales of the once-vaunted smartphone.

NYTimes offers discounts in mistaken email gaffe

In today's digital age, it's easy to send out an email by mistake - even for a company that's in the business of communication.

The New York Times thought it was sending an email to a few hundred people who had recently canceled subscriptions, offering them a 50 percent discount for 16 weeks to lure them back.

Running a country? There's an app for that, almost

Britain's government says experts are considering developing a bespoke iPad app that would deliver key data straight to Prime Minister David Cameron's tablet computer.

Italy fines Apple for misleading consumers

Italy's anti-trust authority said on Tuesday it was imposing a 900,000-euro ($1.2-million) fine on US tech giant Apple for misleading consumers on assistance services and guarantees for its products.

Google India unveils new search format for ads

Google India on Tuesday unveiled a new format for media advertisements (ads) to target, pay for and experience video ads on its web search engine.

"The new ads format is designed to ensure users find the information they are looking for and enable advertisers to reach potential customers with the right information," Google India sales head Praveen Sharma said in a statement here.

Samsung, Sharp in LCD price-fixing settlement

South Korea's Samsung, Japan's Sharp and five other Asian firms have agreed to a $553 million settlement for illegally fixing liquid crystal display prices, New York state's attorney general said on Tuesday.

Year of tech, tweets, tablets and telecom (2011 in Retrospect)

The year Steve Jobs died was a busy one for global tech -- the rise of the iPad, the spread of pay-as-you-go cloud services and the turmoil in the smartphone market with iPhone and Android knocking out RIM BlackBerry and Nokia.

The year -- which saw India's first social-network-driven revolution, and an ill-conceived government effort to kill "objectionable" content on Facebook and other social media -- was also a packed one for India's information and communications technology space. Most of the action happened in telecom, with 3G and other milestones. IT crossed a landmark, too. Here are five top tech trends of 2011:

'Spreaders' behind 'Twitter' catalyse mass movements

What is the factor that makes social networks tick and catalyses mass mobilisations in revolutions and protest movements worldwide?

Sony, Samsung wind up LCD joint venture

Japanese electronics giant Sony has agreed to sell its stake in a joint liquid crystal display panel venture in South Korea to its partner Samsung Electronics, the two companies said on Monday.

Smartphones eating into camera sales in US

Smartphones are eating into sales of basic cameras and camcorders in the US, BBC reported citing a market research.

Review: Offline Gmail app good for casual use

Google's new software for using Gmail without an Internet connection comes across as a throwback to an era when we weren't connected all the time and on all sorts of devices, from phones to iPads.