Yesterday we reported that Gartner projects the Android operating system will reach 1.1 billion users in 2014. Meanwhile, Actix reports that in terms of data usage, the three most used phones in Europe and North America in 2013 were the iPhone 4S, the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 4. In additional milestone news, Apple reports that its App Store customers spent more than $10 billion in 2013. During December alone, the App Store earned more than $1 billion in sales and experienced nearly 3 billion total app downloads. Continue reading Apple Announces its App Store Sales Top $10 Billion in 2013

Android will hit the new milestone of one billion users in 2014 with a new shipment of smartphones and tablets with the operating system built in. To be precise, Android will officially reach 1.1 billion users, which according to research group Gartner, is up 26 percent from last year. By comparison, Apple’s iOS and Mac OS operating systems will be in 344 million new Apple products this year, a 28 percent increase from last year. Continue reading Gartner Research: Android to Reach One Billion Users In 2014

Considering a mere five percent of U.S. consumers wear activity trackers, will wearables ever cross-over to the mainstream? Even the experts in this field have trouble agreeing. Steven Pierce, of IBM’s global business development, said we’ll have ten devices on our bodies very soon. “Wearables will be the key source of information in five years,” he said, listing implantables and injectables as future wearables. But Sonny Vu, founder of Misfit Wearables, disagreed. “Five years isn’t that far away,” he said. “I don’t think science will advance that fast.” Continue reading Wearables Waiting For a Killer App to Take Them Mainstream

At a panel provocatively titled “The Sixth Sense is Digital,” several wearables pioneers gathered to discuss the evolving changes and direction of the burgeoning industry. NeuroSky CEO Stanley Yang started it off with a series of important questions: “First, you have to ask — do I need to wear anything? If I do, what’s helpful? After motion tracking, what do you do with it? Who can design the next wearable technology for the masses with the functions we need?” Continue reading CES Panel: Sixth Sense is Digital, Say Wearables Innovators

Even a cursory look at the news coming out of CES makes it clear that wearables have garnered a lot of the buzz. Smartwatches, augmented reality headsets, digital health solutions and fitness tracking monitors are all the rage here. What’s not clear is if wearables will ever intersect with the entertainment industry. Although the question itself may seem risible, it’s worth remembering that most people dismissed the mobile phone as an entertainment device only a few years ago. Continue reading Will Wearable Tech Have a Future in Entertainment Media?

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) announced Tuesday that CE revenues for 2014 are projected to reach a new record of $208 billion in the U.S., an increase of 2.4 percent over 2013. According to the latest “Consumer Electronics Sales and Forecast” report, smartphones are expected to continue leading the charge shipping 152 million units, up from 138 million in 2013. The report, published twice a year, also predicts increased sales of UHD displays and tablet PCs. Continue reading CEA Projects Record Year in Consumer Electronics Spending

Industry leaders speaking at two CES panels this week addressed new directions in entertainment media. During the panel “What are the Entertainment Trends at CES 2014?”, wearables were discussed, smartwatches in particular, and what it will take to spark consumer adoption. During “The State of the New TV Business: What Comes Next?” panel, speakers examined how networks are tackling distribution and monetization of content in an era of streaming media. Continue reading CES Panelists Discuss Entertainment Trends and Future of TV

Thought leaders are looking beyond smartphones in anticipation of smart cities and smart nations. The Internet of Things — or what Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers refers to as the Internet of Everything (IoE) — presents a $19 trillion revenue opportunity. “Think of the change the Internet brought into our lives, and imagine that 5- to 10-fold over the next decade,” Chambers shared in a Tuesday keynote address at the Venetian during CES. Continue reading Cisco CEO John Chambers Heralds Trillion Dollar IoE Boom

The Audi of the future is more than mere transportation. In a CES keynote presentation, Professor Rupert Stadler, chairman of the board of management of Audi AG, demonstrated how the “connected car” is redefining today’s automobile with an array of innovations that include piloted driving and “a new dimension of in-car entertainment.” Audi cleverly cast Kunal Nayyar of “The Big Bang Theory” to introduce and host the tech-heavy presentation. Continue reading Audi Connects with Future of Mobility in CES Keynote Address

Smart TVs and appliances, 4K displays, cars with built-in mobile technology and wearable devices are all the rage at this year’s CES, and technology-loving consumers are lining up, wallets in hand, to make big purchases. But what’s most likely to capture the attention of millennials isn’t a 105-inch TV or a refrigerator that can send text messages, but wearable devices that are affordable, stylish and truly convenient alternatives or aides to the smartphones and other devices we already own. Continue reading CES 2014: What Millennials Will Be Talking About and Buying

“Content without strategy is a home movie,” said David Tochterman, head of digital media for Innovative Artists, a bi-coastal talent agency. “And all of us on this panel are investing our time not just in good content, but the strategy to make it successful.” The panel he was referring to was a Digital Hollywood focus on how today’s multitude of media platforms has significantly changed the content game — from development and production to marketing and distribution. Continue reading Digital Hollywood: Content Strategies for Multiple Platforms

Steve Koenig, director of industry analysis for the Consumer Electronics Association, presented the organization’s annual “State of the Global CE Industry” press event at CES. Koenig explained that worldwide sales of consumer electronics grew 3 percent last year to a new record of $1.068 trillion, but growth is expected to remain flat or decline by 1 percent in 2014. Sales of smartphones and tablets have tapered off in major markets and Ultra HDTVs are not expected to gain significant traction until at least 2017. Continue reading CEA’s Steve Koenig on the State of the Global CE Industry

The fitness wearables market is booming. “We see this becoming a $1 billion industry in 2014,” said CEA Senior Research Analyst Kevin Tillmann during a CE Research Summit session. 2013 numbers were up 32 percent over 2012’s market, which was valued at $648 million. The 2012 market showed significant growth of 170 percent from 2011. The wrist is the ideal place for a fitness wearable, according to the vast majority of consumers polled by the Consumer Electronics Association. Continue reading CEA: Fitness Wearables to Become $1 Billion Industry in 2014

DreamWorks has partnered with Fuhu, maker of the Nabi line of children’s tablets, on an Android tablet called the DreamTab designed specifically for kids. The tablets will be available this year with a number of DreamWorks-branded accessories, such as headphones and carrying cases. They will feature original animation, educational videos, and have the ability to communicate wirelessly with DreamWorks-made toys. The studio will be able to program the device similar to programming a cable channel. Continue reading DreamWorks and Fuhu Partner to Offer New Children’s Tablet

Ultra high-definition TV prices are plummeting as more models enter the market, and many of those models will be revealed at CES in Las Vegas this week. When Ultra HDTVs first entered the market, prices ranged from $9,000 to $25,000, yielding little interest from most consumers. Now, many of them have seen prices slashed to just a couple thousand dollars, and those price reductions — combined with more options in the market — are drawing the attention of potential buyers. Continue reading Ultra HDTV Sees Jump in Model Options and Drop in Prices