Polaroid is reaching out to the next generation of digerati with a 7-inch Kids Tablet. Rugged and rubberized, it’s a three-button unit that won’t make parents’ hearts skip a beat when it’s dropped. The $149 model comes with 8GB of memory and a 2-megapixel rear camera. Parental controls round out the picture on the Android device (which is being unofficially marketed as “easy enough for an adult to set up!”). Continue reading CES 2013: Polaroid Launches Kids Tablet and Opens Fotobars

Google’s new “send to TV” feature is starting to pop up on a collection of new TVs and devices from companies like Sony, LG, Panasonic and Bang & Olufsen. The feature turns a consumer’s Android device into a YouTube remote for the big screen, and also allows users to push videos from devices to Google-equipped TVs. These YouTube-friendly sets will premiere at CES this week. Continue reading CES 2013: Android Devices Are Now YouTube Remotes for TVs

Chinese manufacturer Huawei has been on our radar since rumors began buzzing about its long-awaited Windows Phone 8 handsets and a possible 5-inch smartphone/tablet hybrid announcement. Then news was leaked regarding its Android-powered Ascend Mate with 6.1-inch screen, designed to take on the 5.5-inch Samsung Galaxy Note 2. Well, it’s now official. The company announced today that its Ascend Mate has the largest screen of any smartphone in the world. Continue reading CES 2013: Huawei Unveils World’s Largest Smartphone Screen

In the first big news at CES 2013, NVIDIA announced Project Shield, a portable open platform gaming device designed for serious gamers that will run both Android and PC games. During a pre-show press event at the Palms Hotel on Sunday, January 6th, the company also unveiled its new powerhouse Tegra 4, which it claims is “the world’s fastest mobile processor.” Continue reading CES 2013: NVIDIA Announces Project Shield and Tegra 4

A favorite pastime of analysts in recent years has been attempting to forecast what will prove to be the top trends emerging from the annual International CES confab in Las Vegas. Of course, this year is no different, as consumer electronics continue to branch out from purely an interest of the technorati, become more intrinsically tied to our lifestyles and subsequently draw more mainstream media attention. As we get ready to hit the show floor when the exhibition opens its doors tomorrow, we take a look at some of the more interesting forecasts recently published. (One of our favorite pastimes is discovering who will be right and who will end up missing the mark.) Continue reading CES 2013: A Look at Some of the More Interesting Predictions

The smartphone continues to grow in popularity and power as the always-on processing unit of choice. Quad-core units, phones with screen displays of 1080p and outsized “phablets” are expected to take center stage at the 2013 International CES. There’ll be a wow-factor, like the 5.5-inch flexible screen Samsung prototype, and a now-factor, like wireless pocket chargers from Energizer and Lilliputian that provide up to 20x life. Continue reading CES 2013: Phones to Tout Quad Cores, 1080p and Flexible Screens

Apple and Samsung continue to dominate the U.S. smartphone market, according to a new report from Tavis McCourt, technology analyst for financial services firm Raymond James. While iPhone retention remains roughly 86 percent, Samsung is consolidating the Android space domestically as it has already successfully achieved in much of the European market. Continue reading Apple and Samsung Tighten Control of U.S. Smartphone Market

The interest in 3D entertainment and augmented reality has inspired numerous new head-mounted displays and wearable technology. Using Bluetooth technology and wireless connections to offload processing, these displays come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but all have similar aims: to create an immersive entertainment experience or overlay relevant information onto our surroundings. We expect to see some compelling new products at CES. Continue reading CES 2013: Head-Mounted Displays and Wearable Tech

Google Now “brings together virtually everything Google knows about you and where you are and then turns all of this information into a useful dashboard on your phone,” according to TechCrunch. The new product is a standard feature of Android Jelly Bean and up. It shows users information about their daily commute, appointments, local weather, upcoming flight and hotel reservations and much more. Continue reading Mobile: Google Now To Become Central Hub for Android

Christopher Chute, research director with IDC, offers his take on emerging digital camera trends and what we should expect to see play out in 2013. Chute expects that full-frame DSLRs and mirrorless cameras will continue to come down in price, while models with Android and Wi-Fi will become more prevalent. He also suggests that entry-level point-and-shoot cameras will eventually be abandoned. Continue reading Forecast: More Cameras with Wi-Fi, Mirrorless Tech and Android

As China continues to expand its smartphone market, edging past the U.S. for the title of world’s largest, “the rise of the Android mobile operating system should be a huge success story for Google, which developed and maintains Android,” writes Technology Review. However, even as shipments of the more affordable Android devices are on the rise in China, it’s often overlooked “how little Google itself is benefiting from Android’s growth in China,” according to the article. Continue reading Android Devices On the Rise in China, But Stripped of Google Play Store