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US Update: Flash Player, quad-core Snapdragon, iPhone 5 adds keyboard
Words with Friends comes to Android, finally
LG Optimus Pad versus Apple iPad: video battle
Quad-core Snapdragon APQ8064 chipset brings 2.5 GHz of power
iPhone 5 prototype with hardware keyboard incoming?
Flash matters: Adobe confirms 20m smartphones with Flash Player 10.1 shipped
Teatime Tech: Windows Phone 7 major updates incoming, ViewSonic Android tablets aplenty and Foursquare recommendations
Win a Sony iPod dock: Last orders!
Best iPad apps: app of the day – Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for iPad
Windows Phone 7 as Kinect controller: photos and video incoming

US Update: Flash Player, quad-core Snapdragon, iPhone 5 adds keyboard

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 05:53 PM PST

We're bringing the heat this morning with your daily dose of tech. In today's US Update we uncover the latest forecasts on mobile Adobe on Flash Player installs, look at the new iPhone 5 prototype with a hardware keyboard, check out the upcoming quad-core Snapdragon processors and more.

Adobe has confirmed more than 20m smartphones were shipped or upgraded to Adobe Flash Player 10.1 on over 35 certified devices in the first sixth months following launch. It looks like Steve Jobs was wrong, Flash matters. According to Apple insider website apple.pro, there is a third iPhone 5 prototype and it comes with a hardware QWERTY keyboard. Are you ready for a slide-out keyboard on an iPhone?

Qualcomm has announced their upcoming quad-core Snapdragon chipset, the APQ8064. Sample chips are scheduled to ship in early 2012. With quad 2.5 GHz cores and up to 20 megapixel camera sensor support, the future of mobile phones and tablets is looking very bright. A video has been released by LG, putting their Optimus Pad up against Apple's iPad. Who do you think won the battle?

Last up is news on Words with Friends for Android. The highly-anticipated game is now available in the Android Market. Priced to sell (free), this Scrabble-like game has been downloaded more than 50,000 times since launching a few hours ago.

That wraps up the latest and greatest in tech from my side of the pond. As always, I'm Nick Marshall and I'll see you again tomorrow as we break the news from Mobile World Congress 2011.

Words with Friends comes to Android, finally

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 05:40 PM PST

The wait is over. Words with Friends is now available in the Android Market. The self-proclaimed number one word game is compatible across platforms, allowing play between iOS and Android with ease. If you've been wondering why millions of iOS users have been raving about this Scrabble-style word game, it's showtime.

Since launching this morning, Words with Friends for Android has already racked up between 50,000 and 100,000 downloads (according to the Android Market). The price of admission is free, the only requirement is that you have an Android 1.6 or higher device. With 526 customer ratings and an average score of three and a half stars (out of five), why not?

Words With Friends Free, the wildly popular word game, is now available on Android! Play Words With Friends with both your Android and iPhone/iPad-toting friends. Experience for yourself why millions of players are addicted to the word building, triple score seeking, chat bubble sending goodness of Words With Friends.

Free | Out Now | Android Market

LG Optimus Pad versus Apple iPad: video battle

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 05:20 PM PST

LG is taking off the gloves, ready to battle the Apple iPad with their own wonder tablet, the Android-powered, dual-core Optimus Pad. In a fresh new video authored by the manufacturer, the two minute clip shows off the specs and brings a side-by-side comparison for you to decide a champion. Ready to wage war?

Clearly, the highlights of the LG Optimus Pad stem from the dual-core processor and stereoscopic camera for 3d video recording. Android 3.0 Honeycomb has been widely praised and offers a fresh take on the tablet OS. The Apple iPad on the other hand is quite aged at this point, not offering a camera of any sort and limited by a single-core chip.

Without a confirmed price tag, it's tough to decide a winner. Clearly, Apple has a leg up on the market with their $499 cost of admission for a no-contract, WiFi-only iPad. There's also the upcoming iPad 2 to consider, widely speculated to maintain the current pricing model or possibly $100 more. For now, the choice is yours. We'll be heading back to the convention floor to get more hand-on time with LG Optimus Pad to form our own conclusion.

Have questions? Feel free to fire away.

via AndroidGuys

Quad-core Snapdragon APQ8064 chipset brings 2.5 GHz of power

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 04:56 PM PST

Forget the quad-core OMAP5 platform and the dual-core Samsung Exynos, it's Snapdragon time. Qualcomm rocked the mobile industry this afternoon at Mobile World Congress with their next-generation, quad-core Snapdragon CPU architecture and Adreno GPU. With speeds of up to 2.5 GHz per core, the quad-core Snapdragon chipset is set to redefine the modern tablet.

The new quad-core APQ8064 chipset will be the flagship of the new Snapdragon family based on new micro-architecture code named "Krait". Built on 28nm micro-acrhitecture, each of the four cores can achieve speeds of up to 2.5 GHz — minimizing power consumption and heat generation, the perfect combination for ultra thin and light form factors. If you think the Samsung Galaxy S II is thin, just wait.

“With its WiFi integration and ability to seamlessly interface with Qualcomm’s 3G and LTE modules, the APQ8064 will provide OEM’s with a flexible, cost efficient and fast time to market platform that can meet all of their design configuration needs for tablets and next generation computing and consumer electronic devices.” – Luis Pineda, senior vice president of computing and consumer products at Qualcomm

Spec sheets are nice, but what does the quad-core Snapdragon chipset mean to the end user? For starters, the Adreno 320 quad-core GPU delivers fifteen times greater performance than the original Adreno GPU. The chipset also supports up to 20 megapixel cameras and can internally syncrhonize two camera sensors for 3D video recording and external 3d video playback.

Samples of the APQ8064 quad-core Snapdragon chipset are expeted in early 2012, right in line with Texas Instrument's OMAP5 platform. In comparison, OMAP5 features four cores – two cores up to 2 GHz and two low-power cores for responsiveness, and supports camera modules up to 24 megapixel. 2012 is looking like the year of mobile, anyone else excited?

via prnewswire

iPhone 5 prototype with hardware keyboard incoming?

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 04:14 PM PST

Think you've heard it all? Think again. According to Apple rumor site apple.pro, not only is Apple working on the traditional iPhone 5 and an iPhone mini prototype, they're also working on a third model — complete with a hardware QWERTY keyboard. Is this the real deal?

A rumor should always be taken with a grain of salt — trust us. The iPhone 5 with physical keyboard has yet to be seen, much like the iPhone mini we covered last week. However, apple.pro has a fairly solid track record stemming from their scoop on the new iPod nano's screen. For now, this might just be another prototype, destined to faid off before wide-scale manufacturing begins.

In related news, Macrumors is reporting that iOS 4.3 (originally scheduled for 10am PT release today) is coming on February 28th. Based on subscription information for the Daily magazine, that super popular iOS digital magazine, its appears iOS 4.3 will be released on that day. For iPhone 4 owners riding the mobile pipes via At&t here in the US, it is unclear whether the new Hotspot feature will be included at that time.

via apple.pro | macrumors

Flash matters: Adobe confirms 20m smartphones with Flash Player 10.1 shipped

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 03:56 PM PST

Still believing that Adobe Flash support is as trivial as Apple's head honcho Steve Jobs suggests? According to Adobe, more than 20m smartphones were shipped or upgraded to Adobe Flash Player 10.1 on over 35 certified devices in the first sixth months following launch. Yes friends, Flash matters.

Now that we've laid out the figure for 2010, here's the scoop on 2011. Adobe expects Flash Player to be supported on more than 132m units worldwide this year. With more than 50 tablets supporting Adobe Flash, combined with an endless assortment of Android handsets, the install base will be substantial.

“We are thrilled to see mobile adoption of Flash Player and AIR exceeding even our own expectations, with much more to come in the months ahead,” said David Wadhwani, senior vice president, Creative and Interactive Solutions Business Unit, Adobe.

So how does Adobe expect to hit 132m units in 2011? Simple, in 2010 there were 300m smartphones shipped worldwide. Roughly 16 percent (50m) came from Apple and 33 percent (100m) came from Nokia, leaving roughly 225m possible smartphones to install Adobe Flash. Since only 20m smartphones had Adobe Flash Player 10.1 last year, the market is relatively untapped.

via Guardian

Teatime Tech: Windows Phone 7 major updates incoming, ViewSonic Android tablets aplenty and Foursquare recommendations

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 09:58 AM PST

It’s been quite the busy afternoon in gadgetry, courtesy of the world’s biggest mobile expo, Mobile World Congress, going on in Barcelona right now. See what’s been going on there and elsewhere here in our teatime tech news roundup.

First up, let’s talk Windows Phone 7. Microsoft followed up Friday’s sucker punch with a right hook today, confirming that multitasking and Twitter integration are coming to its smarpthone OS this year – and demoing an incredible syncing game between Kinect and a handset!

On the Android side of things meanwhile, we got hands on with ViewSonic’s Google family, including the ViewPad 4, V350 dual SIM Android phone and the 10-inch ViewPad 10 Pro. Check out all the photos!

Finally, Foursquare, now the plucky underdog against Facebook Places, is adding recommendations to the location service next month. What does that mean for you? Read here to find out!

Still want more news? Head on over to the homepage and help yourself!

Win a Sony iPod dock: Last orders!

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 09:01 AM PST

We’ve been running a competition for the last month, giving you the chance to win one of two Sony iPod docks, or headphones for three runners up – and the deadline for entries is tomorrow. All you have to do is tell us what gadgets you’d use to pimp your ride and cross your fingers – check out the video and terms of conditions here. Good luck!

Win a Sony iPod dock: How would you pimp your ride?

Best iPad apps: app of the day – Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for iPad

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 09:00 AM PST

“Get over here!” If that phrase – the iconic taunt from Mortal Kombat character Scorpion just sent a tingle down your spine, you need this iPad app in your life. Mortal Kombat 3 for iPad has arrived; following on from the recent release of the iPhone version, but with more screen space to lay down some brutal beat-downs. It’s been available on iPhone for just under two months. So what else makes this one of the best iPad apps for joystick hogs? Read on to find out.

As an iPad-exclusive treat, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for iPad also hosts a two-player mode letting players fight head-to-head on the same iPad. If you’re a Mortal Kombat fan, it comes well recommended.

Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for iPad is packed with all the gut-wrenching (literally) fatality moves you’ll remember from the console games. Publisher EA told us back in December that more additional (and free) Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for iPad bonus content will be available to download in future, so look out for that too.

Out now | £2.99 | iTunes

Windows Phone 7 as Kinect controller: photos and video incoming

Posted: 14 Feb 2011 07:58 AM PST

We’ve just got an eyeful of Windows Phone 7 being used as a Kinect controller at MWC 2011. The demo showed a block-breaker game, where the object is to jump around batting balls away, being controlled by two people using Windows Phone 7 devices. Click through for more pictures, and an incoming video!

The players could choose where the balls appeared to try and out-fox the other player. The Windows Phone 7 screens also appeared to show a live ’skeleton’ of the person playing too, so you can play target practice form your smartphone.

We’re uploading a video as we speak, so stay tuned! In the meantime, take a flick through the gallery to see what we mean.