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IoT’s, I don’t have any IoT’s do I?
IoT devices, do I have any?
Here is a newish term that has been getting brandished around the Internet for some time now. At first as a techie I may think, Institute of Technology devices, Oh, I don’t have any of these. However, I would be so wrong. So what are they and what does it stand for?
IoT’s or Internet of things devices are now all around us whether we like it or not. They are devices that require an IP address to access the network or Internet. I like to think of them as Internet on Technology.
Your mobiles and any tech wear that you have, card reader machines, cash points, smart TV’s Tablet computers and any smart home devices that you may own. Your car, security cameras, home thermostats, amoung other things, even ticket machines and some vending machines.
What does it mean?
It means that things have progressed along a road that had been predicted, but the faster broadband speeds and methods of connectivity have meant it is now a reality.
Let’s rewind a little, A few years ago we have a desktop PC and then maybe a laptop and at first they did not connect to the Internet at all. We then got dial up Internet and we all tentatively put our toes in the water that was the Internet. Well, from there speeds just got faster and faster and Mobile phones came along, then they became smart. This meant connecting to the Internet and using it as a resource to feed you constant information. This meant improving phone signal strength and so we got up to 4G with 5G on its way.
Other devices then came along and allowed us to stream content around our houses and cars, how great was all this connectivity. Well, it is amazing how far we have come in such a short time.
So what’s all the fuss about, surely this is great news?
The reason that these devices are in the news a lot today is that there are now hundreds of thousands of them, being made by well-known companies and also so not so well known but less expensive alternatives and they all connect to the Internet. Now, securing our stand alone network that had no Internet connection was easy, what you put into it was the only danger. Now that these devices are on the Internet all the time they are able to pull all sorts of data into your device and if it is connected to your network, then onto your network as well.
You would think that this was matter of the device being smart and you being able to configure all the settings and hence protecting all that is does. However, loopholes in the software on these devices, not them all, but some are causing the security world a massive headache and some of the attacks to systems that you have read about recently have been because the software on these devices is not well written and is very insecure. Hackers are catching onto the fact that the world has a massive amount of these types of devices and there are more switched on each day and they are targeting their weaknesses.
So really the question is, “When is a smart device not so smart?” when it runs badly written software that has security holes that you can drive a programming bus through.
Here are a few articles to give you some more information: –
What are your thoughts about this and have you bought into any of these devices and are you using them. I have to admit I have some.
The operating system with no faults can throw the first stone.
It has come to my attention over a longish period now, as I get fed feeds from Hacker awareness sites and technology sites about weaknesses in Operating Systems and the fact they are being attacked by hackers and general no-gooders. The sites also feed me with, If only statements. If only the Operating system did this better and If only they didn’t do this.
Can perfection be achieved?
I think the problem is Operating systems by their very nature are developing all the time and when a corporation says we are launching our new version of an Operating System what they are not telling you is that they are already developing the next one in the background as the one they are about to launch is out of date. That’s because technology and we way we use it is changing so fast even they can’t keep up. Not only that we have greater expectations of what we want it to do and each rival vendor is trying to outdo the next one without infringing copyright laws. And there the problem arises as the developments are all copyrighted and each company is suing another company for infringement and also working with them at the same time to develop where they go from here.
Chaos you may think and I think you would be right.
So perfection is very subjective, as perfection to one person is so much different for another person and because the operating systems are always emerging and developing they will never ever tick all the boxes. This used to be the case with hardware and I would tell people, when you buy a computer it will be out of date before it is out the box. This is still the case most of the time. But Operating systems are now the drivers for what we want and how we want to use technology.
Operating Systems have the upper hand
Operating systems now have the upper hand, especially in mobile, with maybe Apple still holding its loyal users to their hardware and OS. Everyone else wants a nice user experience and not a flaky one that causes them to waste time and effort performing a simple task. So Android and Apple OS have taken the market, with Windows Phones really trying last ditch efforts to catch a percentage.
Apple’s software keeps evolving and people are constantly upgrading their devices with various levels of success and Android is much the same with the phone hardware vendor playing more of a part as they are allowed to add functionality to the Android system to give you special features if you buy their phones or tablets. This is called skinning and it varies. Sometimes not much is added and everything works well, and at other times, the Android system has changed so much the phone runs slower and looks different from other Android Devices. You may hear this referred to as bloatware.
Google are still commissioning manufacturers to make a range of what are known as Nexus devices that have hardware but can only have the raw Android install with no additional skinning or tampering with. These at present are my favourite, but have unrealistically gone up in price over their last few incarnations, so we will see.
So moan if you like
So basically we like to moan and make a fuss about this not happening and for goodness sake why can’t this be better. Just remember that the operating systems we use today are so much advanced than we used to use and they are in a constant state of flux all the time. They are never stable and are out of date almost before they are launched. They will get even better, smarter and then we will complain that it is boring and it does it all for us.
Go on shout at an operating system today, you know you want to….
Android Where? Or should I say Android Wear.
Android Wear
Yes, I have succumbed to the phenomenon that is Android wear and a testing a LG G Watch with my Nexus 5 phone to see what it can do and if it is really a great benefit to me in what I do.
I run a business and use mobile a lot as I am generally out and about and not tied to a desk as much as I used to be. This is a good thing and I like it, I use my Nexus Tablet and my Nexus phone to juggle all the information that is generally thrown at me every minute of every day. Up to this point the combination of my tablet, Phone and desktop have sufficed in keeping me mostly on top of the information overload.
Being a techie and as some would say a Geek I have also been aware of new developments and the hype around Android Wear, (and the Apple watch, bank loan wear).
So Father’s day came and I asked my sons to give me some money and I would add the rest and treat myself to not the top end but the lower end of the wear market as I am still uncertain how this will make my life better.
First Impressions
I have been using the watch now for around two weeks and here are my first impressions.
Ease of setting up was good and it immediately updated itself as the previous wear software had been getting bad press. The new software has changed the watch interface and usage considerably.
It connects to some of the popular Google Apps immediately and gives some interesting interactions through the watch face. Other apps are downloadable and there are a multitude of watch faces that can be installed to change the look and interaction with the watch.
The watch arrived with the watch itself, strap attached and a charging USB cable and cradle.
When placed on charge it automatically switches on and starts the charge. I have found that over the time I have been using it the battery charge survives depending on how much interaction you have with the watch, early on not long as I was using it a lot in setting up etc.
Connectivity was excellent and it connected to my Nexus 5 with ease and has interacted no problem. All though through Bluetooth and my other fear was the phone battery not lasting. At the start this may have been an issue as I was playing with the watch and downloading and changing settings etc.
But generally it has not drained the battery as much as I suspected it might. So that’s a good thing.
I have tended to place the watch on the charging cradle overnight and not worry about it during the day. It charges using pins on the rear of the watch body. I have cycled through some watch faces to get the one I use the most as well as playing with the LCARS one being a huge TNG fan.
Apps that have impressed
The usage of it I suppose is the question and I am still evaluating the benefits. However when an email pops in and I glance at my watch to see the heading and gist of it, I can take action quickly or just swipe it off to tackle it later. So I am finding that quite useful, not having to rake my tablet or phone out of my pocket every time it buzzes. Weather on the phone face and Google NOW journey times are useful at a glance.
My scary moment was the first time I used my phone for Google Navigation recently with the watch and it pinged the route navigation to the watch face. This caused me to giggle glance at the watch and loose concentration on the road. So good or bad thing I am unsure at this time with that one. I am sure you can disable it and I haven’t as yet.
Early days
So it is early days and I am sure I will find more intriguing benefits of having this Android wear device, I haven’t as yet answered a call from it in private or public. Looking like Dick Tracey I suppose. I suppose the answer to the title is Andoid everywhere.
I may post another update soon, but is anyone using these wear devices to great effect?
If so what are you using and what are you doing with it?
It would be great to hear from you.
The Communication Revolution
Communication Revolution
Nice to talk to you, how are things going?
Can you drop me a day and time for a meeting?
When can we talk about the training you need?
You know I see around a hundred questions a day coming my way in various guises and usually keep on top of them, but I have noticed recently that I have dropped the ball on a couple and wondered why.
I use technology for most things and particularly admin, tasks and communication so how can this be happening? Well in fact the very saviour that I use to keep me organised is the very thing that is making me drop the ball.
How is technology failing me?
I have been doing some historical research and asking the question of how we communicate and of course using my age, no comments here please, as I remember using various versions of communication over my years in industry and business.
Here is a rough breakdown of what I experienced: –
- Phoned into the office once or twice a day to see if there were any messages for me
- Got a pager that bleeped when the office needed me, then found a phone and phoned into the office
- Technology improved and I got given a pager that had a scrolling screen across the top and I could read the messages. This was amazing, where was technology taking us?
- Got my first company car with built in car phone, large box in the boot and aerial on the roof. The handset took up most of the foot well and a microphone hung in your face as you drove. But, hey that was advances in technology and don’t be fooled I loved it. It also meant I now couldn’t hide anywhere.
- The next was a company car with a cradle and no large box in the boot and no aerial on the roof. The phone had it all built in and could be removed from the car. What…I was lost for words and it was great. It fitted in my pocket and I could call the office or any clients I wanted. This was just amazing.
- Then on top of all this I was given a small portable compute that had all my product range on it that I was selling and could work out a quote on the spot for a client. I was then hooked on technology. The tech kept me informed and allowed me to be more flexible in what I was doing, simply brilliant. I could juggle all these no problem and I was mobile even back then.
So where are we now? And I still haven’t answered why technology is letting me down?
Yes, sorry was caught up in nostalgia when times were developing fast and things were simpler.
Now I sound like my gran.
Well, now we have the Internet, the cloud, the web, back then we didn’t so communication was done differently. Now I can get communication from all sections of the Internet that I am active in and believe you me there are a lot of them. Because I am also mobile a lot of the time these communications come in as I am on the hop and I read them quickly and think I will answer that when I get back to base and have time to think it through and check a few things out.
So where do my communications come from now? Well here is the current list and I may have missed some: –
- Letter, or snail mail as it is called.
- Emails, quite a lot of emails to various accounts I use
- Direct messages I get from Facebook, three possible accounts
- Direct messages I get from Twitter, three possible accounts.
- Emails I get from LinkedIn
- Messages I get from my blog I founded and write
- Messages form my website activity
- Messages from any LinkedIn groups I am in
- Messages from Facebook pages I manage
- Google Hangouts, sometimes a few open at one time talking to more than one person, like holding two phone calls at once.
- Skype, which I must admit I don’t use a lot really
- Phone calls on landline and on mobile
- Text messages
- Even my file server at home emails me when it updates or has had a problem…….
So my dilemma is that I have on occasion been out the office and mobile and got a message through one of these mediums and read it over and thought I will answer that once I can put a reasonable response together. I then get back to base and there is something in my mind about a message I must answer so I open my emails and check each account, all emails have been read, which of course they have as I looked at it when I was out and about. So it doesn’t jump out at me.
Or on occasion I can’t find an email and think how else did the message come in and spend a bit of time going through all of the above until I hopefully stumble across it. An example recently was one that I had read over when I was out and about that it was a direct message and then my day got busy and confusing. When I got back to base I looked and it wasn’t there. I checked emails and other areas and couldn’t find it. Finally I think found it as a direct message to one of my Twitter accounts I use.
So maybe you can see my dilemma, the very thing I have embraced to make my profile and business public and found easily is also the very thing that is causing me to be juggling so many forms and ways to communicate that I occasionally drop the ball.
What’s the solution, or is there one?
Well, the solution is obviously a difficult one. I could peal back the activity to the essential areas and not over complicate things. Hence only check and receive important messages. But being into all the aspects of the current Internet I find this difficult to rationalise. I even teach people to use it to its fullest. No I will just have to be more organised again and make sure I am aware of the source of communications that come my way and prioritise and deal with them as appropriate. A few extra hours each day might be useful.
What are you experiences of this phenomenon, is it something you have experienced or is it just me?
Who has the lion’s share?
Who has the lion’s share?
In this post I thought we could have a look at who has the lion’s share of the Operating system market. That’s not such an easy question anymore, as the idea of sitting at a desk and performing all your duties has changed drastically over the last few years.
The operating systems we use daily are now spread over the following device types:
- Desktop Computers and laptops
- Tablet computers
- Smart Phones
- Server machines
Gone are the days of the Microsoft Windows revolution, the massive change in how we used computers that made us all want one, and then get really frustrated with it as the technology kept changing. In the pursuit of progress, the Operating system was continually transformed into something else just as soon as we were just getting to grips with it. Our parent company, IT Turning Point, exists primarily to educate and inform. This keeps everyone using their systems and software correctly, and ensure they always work to their benefit.
Let’s look at the Desktop
|
Desktop operating system browsing statistics on Net Applications |
||||
| Windows 7 |
47.53% |
|||
| Windows XP |
28.53% |
|||
| Windows 8 |
10.68% |
|||
| OS X |
7.68% |
|||
| Windows Vista |
2.10% |
|||
| Linux |
1.48% |
|||
| Desktop OS Market Share as of February 2014 according to Net Applications |
Microsoft still has a massive share in the desktop market, primarily because of their prevalence in the business world and enterprise companies. They have the history of targeting this market successfully, and that past success really what made them who they are today. It is interesting to note the various incarnations of the Windows operating system still dominating the desktop marketplace.
When it comes to mobile, things are different indeed
Microsoft did not see the mobile market as their main thrust, and as such they left their entry into the arena a bit late. By the time they made their move, Apple had introduced us to the touch screen smart phone, and the mobile landscape had changed. Google entered the market with Android, its operating system for mobile devices, and the landscape changed once more. Let’s look at the picture for mobile devices as things stand:
|
Worldwide smartphone sales to end users by operating system in 2013 |
||||
| Android |
79.0% |
|||
| iOS |
14.2% |
|||
| Windows Phone |
3.3% |
|||
| BlackBerry |
2.7% |
|||
| Other |
0.9% |
|||
| Mobile OS Market Share as of 2nd quarter 2013 Gartner | ||||
|
Mobile operating system browsing statistics on Net Applications |
||||
| iOS |
52.96% |
|||
| Android |
36.14% |
|||
| Java ME |
4.44% |
|||
| Symbian |
3.50% |
|||
| BlackBerry |
1.42% |
|||
| Kindle |
0.93% |
|||
| Windows Phone |
0.45% |
|||
| Other |
0.16% |
|||
| Mobile OS Market Share as of February 2014 Net Applications[1] |
As you can see, the companies in the mobile arena are very different from those on the desktop, and it’s still evolving – these mobile devices also include tablet computers as well.
Android have swept the floor with their OS, a large amount of key hardware manufacturers signing up and skinning the core Android to make it their own. Layers such as HTC’s Sense and Samsung’s Touchwiz enable these devices to stand apart despite the same underlying core. Google have kept their hand in with Android devices running an unskinned version of Android – these devices are all part of Google’s Nexus range. See our recent posts for articles on these devices.
The current statistics vary drastically, but it is now being suggested that around 72% of Internet traffic is coming from mobile devices. A very interesting statistic, and again as we mentioned at the beginning, this changes the way we do computing in a big way.
The second table above shows the Operating systems we are browsing with in the mobile market, as you can see Windows is at the bottom and Microsoft are now desperately playing catch-up.
Conclusion
Microsoft have still got a lot to offer, and they still have the main desktop market sewn up for now. They have moved late for the mobile market however, and the writer has to wonder whether they will continue in this arena or pull back and concentrate on what they do best. Considering that we are moving more towards mobile working, and more tablet computers are being bought every day, that may not be a move they can afford if they wish to maintain their own future growth.
What OS do you use and what devices do you have? Let us know your thoughts.
Do I use Protection?
Password protection of course.
In this post, we are looking at passwords – and what people do or don’t do with them. It was inspired by a recent report online about the most common passwords of 2013. It scares me when I see what is being used. Strong passwords are one of those things we know we need, and should be using, but tend to put little to no effort into. Then we tend to be the first to shout ‘my details were taken’ when things go wrong.
So what are the rules then? Different camps will give you different instructions, and some will claim a password is strong when in fact it isn’t.
Let’s look at the most common methods:
- Use Different passwords everywhere.
Why should we have to do this when it is so easy to use our pets name at every password prompt? Well it’s simple really. If someone guesses your pets name, and believe me they will, then they have access to every site you use. A study by an online company, called BitDefender, showed that 75% of people will use the same password for their email and Facebook. If that is then also your PayPal password, and it’s discovered, say goodbye to some funds and your friends. - Remember the Underwear Meme
Seemingly the saying goes like this: Passwords are like underwear. You should change them often, maybe not every day of course. Don’t share them. Don’t leave them out for others to see. (No Post Its). They should also be mysterious and a secret to others. So make them something that they can’t guess. - Avoid Common Passwords
If the word can be found in a dictionary, it is not a strong password. If you use numbers and letter as they appear on the keyboard, it’s not a strong password. Relatives names and pets names, NO. Even if you follow them with a number. Birthdays and anniversaries are just as bad sadly. Hackers will try all these things first. They actually run programs to check all these kinds of passwords, and for the love of all that’s techie, if you use “password” as your password, please just sign off the Internet right now. SplashData has been listing the 25 worst passwords for some years now, and “password” has always topped the list as the most common password. This year it was deposed by the long-time second worst password: “123456.” No, really!
So what are you tips I hear you cry!
Don’t cry, here is some advice.
Strong Password Solutions
How to Build Strength
To create a strong password, it is suggested you should use a string of text that mixes numbers, letters that are both lowercase and uppercase, and special characters. It should be eight characters, but preferably many more. A lot more. The characters should be random, and not include words, flow alphabetically, or be from your keyboard layout.
So how do you make such a password?
1) Spell a word backwards. (Example: Turn “New York” into “kroywen.”)
2) Use l33t speak: Substitute numbers for certain letters. (Example: Turn “kroywen” into “kr0yw3n.”)
3) Randomly throw in some capital letters. (Example: Turn “kr0yw3n” into “Kr0yw3n.”)
4) Don’t forget the special character. (Example: Turn “Kr0yw3n” into “Kr0yw3^.”)
You don’t have to go for the obvious and use “0” for “o,” or “@” for “a,” or “3” for “e,” either. As long as your replacement makes sense to you, that’s all that matters. A “^” for an “n” makes sense to me.
The suggested best form today seems to be creating a sentence and type it in, including spaces. It takes algorithms much longer to crack something like that than it does just for straight words – even if you have changed the letters for symbols and numbers. (Example: “I love yellow trousers”). This believe it or not is quite secure, and has the added advantage of being easier to remember. Of course, I could also swap numbers for letters and include symbols as well.
Well I hope you got the point and the Protection is definitely needed.
To finish, here is last year’s list of the 25 most commonly used passwords. I expect to hear the cries of despair as you recognise yours. It also shows their change in rank from the year before, and includes some newcomers for this year as well.
1. 123456 (Up 1)
2. password (Down 1)
3. 12345678 (Unchanged)
4. qwerty (Up 1)
5. abc123 (Down 1)
6. 123456789 (New)
7. 111111 ( Up 2)
8. 1234567 (Up 5)
9. iloveyou (Up 2)
10. adobe123 (New)
11. 123123 (Up 5)
12. admin (New)
13. 1234567890 (New)
14. letmein (Down 7)
15. photoshop (New)
16. 1234 (New)
17. monkey (Down 11)
18. shadow (Unchanged)
19. sunshine (Down 5)
20. 12345 (New)
21. password1 (up 4)
22. princess (New)
23. azerty (New)
24. trustno1 (Down12)
25. 000000 (New)
Let us know what you think, and how you cope with remembering all the various passwords you use.
Sniffing Around CES2014 in Vegas!
Consummer Electricla Show 2014 in Vegas
I have always wanted to put that as a title. However sadly we are not at CES 2014 in Vegas but we are sniffing around some of the reports that are appearing online to see what is being displayed and demoed this year.
The news if heavy with all sorts of reports from all our favourite electrical companies, Samsung stealing a lot of the press with their Ativ Book 9 2014 edition and of course their curved televisions 50-inch OLED.
LG have released their curved phones, which use OLED technology. They have also been showing off their Fireweb Firefox driven phone and not to be left out of course have launched and showed of their 4K curved OLED TV, 77-inch in size with a picture that is stunning.
Sony is producing facts and figures about sales of the new PS4 against the Xbox One and it looks like Sony is in the lead now and if the figures are to be believed, well in front.
Other news, is that Android devices are to top 1 billion in 2014, so not much slow down there.
One of the most interesting facts is that there are more wearable devices than ever before and a lot of talk about Intel moving in this direction. This is firing up rumours that Intel might be giving up on its mobile ambitions to pursue the wearable market. Time will tell.
Lenovo are still prominent this year with their Lenovo Thinkpad 8, they claim this newest offering, “will put a full PC in the palm of your hands.”
Other memorable news feeds are talking about the progress of self-driving vehicles, again this technology is developing fast and the computers are now able to handle more data than ever before, so watch out for the self-driving vehicle coming your way soon, no pun intended.
I will leave you with this link to a 3D food printer that has appeared at CES this year, it prints chocolate and candy….now there’s a printer for the office……
Yes, CES 2014 has once again not let any of us GEEKS down. There are developments from the hardware manufacturers like Tegra and snapdragon showing off where things are going next right down to new travel experiences and viewing delights.
Check out some of the feeds online and start to get excited about what is happening in the world of tech.
What would you like to see come sooner rather than later, let us know?
Ian Thomson
IT Turning Point
Ho! Ho! Ho! The Christmas Gadget List……
Happy Christmas from us All
It’s that time of the year again when people are eying up their Christmas want lists and gadgets are almost likely to be up there near the very top for many of us.
From a new mobile to a tablet computer there are an array of gadgets that can keep us drooling and wanting the next best thing. So who are doing the most obvious pushing this Christmas Time? Who will Santa be wooed over by when he is choosing your and my presents this year.
Phones
The IPhone 5S is still high in the popularity stakes with its clean looks and fingerprint recognition. Will an Apple at Christmas be your thing. At around £549 to buy.
HTC One is the competitor and again sturdy design with HTC’s proven record of phone technology. Fabulous sound through two front facing speakers. Made from a solid piece of aluminium. At around £479 to buy.
Cameras
The cannon EOS 700d might be the present you are seeking from Father Christmas, get the professional shots you have always wanted. 18 Megapixel sensor and great build quality; this puppy will set you around £750 to buy.
Samsung have their NX300 out as well to compete and being Samsung the name is there as far as technology is concerned. It has a 20.3 Megapixel sensor and talks to all other Samsung devices. It will take around £600 out of your Christmas savings account.
Apple again
Apple MacBook Air is still popular, the 2013 edition. Only a small upgrade to previous versions but still maybe on your Christmas list if you are and avid Apple follower. Apple never does anything by half so this baby will cost you around £849 to buy.
TV’s
A large new TV, which would be a great Christmas present. Samsung again with their Samsung UE46F8000ST, 35mm thick with e tiny 5mm surround bezel has to be a great pick. Image quality is meant to be one of the best from an LED TV. And it includes all the gesture recognition that is coming in. Basically a computer on board containing Quad cores……This screen will steal around £1800 from your savings.
Panasonic have their TX-P60ZT65, which is rumoured to be the best HD TV out there with extremely fine picture detail. Smart with Internet options and also acts as a media streamer. However the elves will raid your bank account to the tune of around £3650.
To finish our Teaser list…..
How about a JL Built-in Wine Cooler, this small cabinet fits in the smallest of spaces in a kitchen and chills the wine, 7 bottles, and is very quiet with a noise count of only 36dB. Doesn’t frost up either it seem? This will cost your around £180, so not such a sting on those savings this time.
Well, have a great Christmas and a fabulous new year and let me know below what your gadget for Christmas would-be this year.
IT Tech Point
Why the Nexus range, and do phone users even care?
New Nexus 7 2013
I am, as you probably know by this time, into all things tech (with some exceptions) and have been over the last few years been into the smart phone market. Now, when I rummage around and find one of my old Nokia phones, I really wonder how I managed to survive with it. The smart phone market has revolutionised our opinion of what a phone should do, and in fact the phone element of any device seems the part least spoken about.
I have tried a number of smart phones over the years, and have drawn my own conclusions as to which ones are doing what I need then to do, while potentially taking the whole smart phone market further. I am always looking at what we have now, and what we could have in a very short period of time. Apple, as everyone now knows, got this whole snowball rolling and changed the perception of the mobile phone market. Then they launched the first successful tablet computer, not the first though, as Microsoft had tried the idea years earlier – but the market place was not ready for them back in the late 90’s, and they did not take off.
The Battle was on!
After the launch of the first iPhone, the battle for control of the smart phone market was now on. Apple had stolen the early lead with the touch screen phone and tablet market, wrestling market share from Nokia and it’s aging Symbian system. Other phone manufacturers could only try and catch up, some with more success than others.
Today, Nokia mobile are no more – the technology now owned by Microsoft who are using it to drive the Windows platform forward. Motorola Mobile are now owned by Google, a purchase that solidified the patent armoury most corporations have these days. Blackberry did not react fast enough, at time of writing they company is currently facing being sold off to various bidders (including names like Lenovo) in various packages.
The challengers
After their initial domination of the market, Apple began to face a challenge; Google acquired a company called Android, Inc (who unsurprisingly produced the Android operating system) and then got various manufacturers to buy into using Android for smart phone device and tablets – with these manufacturers they formed the Open Handset Alliance in order to further Android sortware and corresponding hardware. It had suddenly stopped being a one horse race, and Apple now had serious competition for their smart phones and tablets.
Through development of Android, Google has continued to push the boundaries of what can be done, and more and more manufacturers have joined the OHA. Apple has stuck to their tactics of premium prices and quality build, backed by a locked down operating system that is partially customisable. The story again, at time of writing, is that there are more Android devices switched on per day than Apple and all other phone operating systems combined.
In an attempt to aim for a premium phone experience, Google have created a range of devices branded Nexus. Hand chosen manufacturers have been asked to build these, and Google work closely with them on the software and hardware designs. The final products run a vanilla build of Android, and are pushed updates instantly as they are released.
This was partially in response to the problem Google encountered with other Android device manufacturers (such as HTC , Samsung etc.) would take the raw Android operating system, and then skin it with their own logos and interfaces in order to brand it as their device. While this allowed these manufacturers to make their phones unique from their competitors, it did mean the end user was at the mercy of the OEM for their Android updates, and many handsets are still several versions of Android behind, despite being less than a year old.
The Nexus Range
The latest incarnations of the Nexus range are the Nexus 5 phone (launched November 2013), and the Nexus 7 tablet (launched July 2013). There is also the Nexus 10 tablet (launched November 2012), but a new one is due to be launched imminently.
The benefits of a Nexus tablet or phone are the instant Android updates, and the fact that it all works with the hardware flawlessly. The devices all synchronise via the cloud, so data transfers seamlessly between them to allow mobile working at its best.
We test drove the Nexus 7 2012 version, and the Nexus 7 2013 version on this very blog – check them out and see what our thoughts and findings were.
So what do the public think?
Does any of this behind the scenes work affect what the public think about their next phone? I think for the majority it probably doesn’t, and it’s the next clever advert that may sell them their next phone. But for anyone who is, dare I say it, slightly geeky and interested in where their phone has come from – and, perhaps even more importantly, interested in where their phone might be going, this info might just sway their opinion.
What is your take on mobile development and where it might be going?
Thanks to Graham Thomson for his input into this article.