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DOMK Receives Confirmation That 1st “SolaPad” Units Are Being Prepared for Shipment
25 May 2012 12:30 PM | No Commentsvar AdBrite_Title_Color = '0000FF'; var AdBrite_Text_Color = '000000'; var AdBrite_Background_Color = 'FFFFFF'; var AdBrite_Border_Color = 'CCCCCC'; var AdBrite_URL_Color = '008000'; try{var AdBrite_Iframe=window.top!=window.self?2:1;var AdBrite_Referrer=document.referrer==''?document.location:document.referrer;AdBrite_Referrer=encodeURIComponent(AdBrite_Referrer);}catch(e){var AdBrite_Iframe='';var AdBrite_Referrer='';} document.write(String.fromCharCode(60,83,67,82,73,80,84));document.write(' src="http://ads.adbrite.com/mb/text_group.php?sid=2053203&zs=3436385f3630&ifr='+AdBrite_Iframe+'&ref='+AdBrite_Referrer+'" type="text/javascript">');document.write(String.fromCharCode(60,47,83,67,82,73,80,84,62)); LONGWOOD, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–DoMark International Inc. (OTCBB: DOMK) announced today that management of its wholly-owned subsidiary, SolaWerks, has...
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New Autodesk SketchBook Ink App Delivers Stunning Creative Tools for iPad
24 May 2012 12:59 PM | No CommentsSAN RAFAEL, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) launched Autodesk SketchBook Ink for iPad paint and drawing app, the latest release from the company’s popular SketchBook...
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Vegas Tech Start Up Questionable LLC Launches Questionable Friends iPhone App
23 May 2012 4:53 PM | No CommentsLAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Questionable™ today introduced Questionable Friends™ for iPhone®. Questionable Friends lets you send questions to your contacts and provides instant feedback as questions are answered. Answers can be ...
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Sidecar Revolutionizes Phone Calls by Bringing “Smart Calling” to Smartphones
22 May 2012 12:00 PM | No CommentsSAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Launching today, Sidecar (www.sidecar.me) is a new mobile app that brings Smart Calling to smartphones. Smart Calling allows people to share live See What I See video, brilliant ...
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TransCore Launches Mobile iPad App for TransSuite Traffic Management System
21 May 2012 12:00 PM | No CommentsWASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Intelligent Transportation Society of America Annual Meeting – TransCore brings the ease of mobile computing to its TransSuite® advanced traffic management system (ATMS), launching its iPad® ...
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Japan Archive
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Fujitsu, Toshiba lock up handset division merger
Posted on June 17, 2010 | No CommentsThe I's have been dotted, the T's have been crossed, and two of Japan's mobile giants -- Fujitsu and Toshiba -- have apparently brought their handset division merger talks to a fruitful conclusion. Fujitsu will take a majority stake in the joint venture, which should become Japan's number two domestic market phone supplier behind Sharp; together, they'll still have virtually no significance on the global stage, but this might be an interesting opportunity for phones like the TG01 and its successors to get a little more play around the world. For its part, Toshiba is looking at the deal to step back from an unprofitable business; margins on phones in the Japanese domestic market are razor-thin, and other players like Mitusbishi have already bowed out entirely. Best of luck, you lovebirds.
Fujitsu, Toshiba lock up handset division merger originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 13:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Confirmed: Fujitsu and Toshiba to merge cell phone units, go international
Posted on June 17, 2010 | No Comments
We reported last week that two of Japan's top cell phone makers, Fujitsu and Toshiba, were in talks to merge their cell phone businesses. And today, we have the rumor confirmed. Under the agreement, Toshiba will spin off its handset unit and Fujitsu is expected to take the majority stake in the joint venture (between a whopping 70 and 80%, according to reports in Japanese media).
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Fujitsu, Toshiba in talks to merge mobile units
Posted on June 11, 2010 | No CommentsThe domestic Japanese phone market has been in a state of contraction for some time, most notably evidenced by Mitsubishi's decision to exit the game altogether and the Sanyo-Kyocera tie-up from a couple years back. Fujitsu and Toshiba are the next two giants looking to combine their resources in the mobile space, a move that would create Japan's number two phone manufacturing venture behind Sharp and reduce to six the total number of firms making handsets there (down from ten in 2007). Though technologically years ahead of the rest of the world, Japan also suffers from deeper market saturation than perhaps anywhere else -- and the opportunities for product differentiation are sharply reduced by carrier RFPs that emphasize conformity to a standard spec sheet. Fujitsu is said to likely hold the majority stake if the deal goes down, but for what it's worth, nothing's been finalized yet. If a deal improves the odds of bringing hardware to North America by even the smallest of fractions, we're all for it.Fujitsu, Toshiba in talks to merge mobile units originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Fri, 11 Jun 2010 13:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Report: Fujitsu and Toshiba to merge cell phone operations
Posted on June 11, 2010 | No Comments
Big news from the Japanese cell phone industry today: Two of Japan's top handset makers, namely Fujitsu and Toshiba, are in talks to merge their cell phone operations within this year. According to the Nikkei ("Japan's Wall Street Journal" and usually a reliable source), negotiations already reached the "final stage".
The joint venture, if it happens, will create Japan's second largest cell phone maker (with a combined 18.7% domestic market share), following Sharp (26.1%). Fujitsu (the current No. 3 among Japan's handset makers with over 5 million handsets shipped in 2009) is expected to become the main stakeholder in the joint venture. Toshiba is the eighth biggest (1.28 million units).
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Murata’s paper-thin waterproof speaker perfect for phones, pool parties
Posted on June 10, 2010 | No CommentsWaterproof phones are few and far between stateside, but in Japan, they're pretty common -- and hey, who wouldn't like to be able to safely take that two-hour conference call from the comfort of your bubble bath? To that end, Murata is touting its new ultra-thin piezoelectric speaker that clocks in at just 0.9mm thick while maintaining IPX7 compliance for water resistance. It's said that waterproof phones are traditionally made by covering speaker holes with a film, compromising sound quality -- but with Murata's design, no film is necessary, offering you that symphony hall-style audio you so desperately need from sixteen inches under the surface of your swirling hot tub. Party on!
Murata's paper-thin waterproof speaker perfect for phones, pool parties originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Jun 2010 17:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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First sales survey indicates iPad is big hit in Japan
Posted on June 10, 2010 | No Comments
The iPhone turned out to be a mega-hit in Japan's competitive cell phone market, and the iPad is poised to replicate this success. Tokyo-based market research firm BCN [JP] today said Apple's share of the domestic notebook market more than tripled in May (on a month-to-month basis) to reach 11.5% - thanks to the iPad.
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New Japanese cell phone behemoth NEC Casio Mobile to go America soon
Posted on May 27, 2010 | No Comments
We reported last year that NEC, Hitachi and Casio were in negotiations to merge their cell phone operations to become Japan’s second biggest manufacturer, following Sharp. And the new company, which is called NEC Casio Mobile Communications and was established on May 1, just yesterday announced ambitious expansion plans.
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CE-Oh no he didn’t!: Sony’s Sir Howard says ‘when you beat Apple, you’re dominating’
Posted on May 20, 2010 | No CommentsSony CEO Sir Howard Stringer has always been delightfully direct, and he didn't hold back at Google's I/O conference: talking about Sony Ericsson with Eric Schmidt during the Google TV launch, Sir Howard noted that the Xperia X10 is the best-selling handset in Japan, and that "when you beat Apple, you're dominating -- it's the new definition." Strong words from a gadget titan -- we'll leave it to you to debate their veracity.
CE-Oh no he didn't!: Sony's Sir Howard says 'when you beat Apple, you're dominating' originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 May 2010 14:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Photo gallery and video: NTT Docomo unveils 20 (partly amazing) cell phones
Posted on May 19, 2010 | No Comments
Japan has been flooded with new cell phones over the last few days. We've shown you KDDI au's 10 new handsets Monday, SoftBank Mobile's 13 new models yesterday, and now it's time for NTT Docomo's summer lineup. Japan's biggest mobile carrier (55 million) unveiled 20 new cell phones [press release in English] yesterday, some of which are just awesome.
Here’s Docomo's complete line-up for this summer.
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NTT DoCoMo, KDDI launch their endless Summer 2010 collections
Posted on May 19, 2010 | No CommentsSurprise: Japanese carriers are announcing literally dozens of phones at once. Okay, look, that's not a surprise at all, but bear with us, because there are a few shining jewels in here amongst the seemingly endless array of WVGA displays and one-seg tuners from NTT DoCoMo and KDDI au, both of whom have announced their Summer 2010 collections of handsets this week. Of note, two of the models from DoCoMo -- the Fujitsu F-06B and Sharp SH-07B are capable of shooting 1080p video, while KDDI's SH008 from Sharp, S003 from Sony Ericsson, and CA005 from Casio all feature sensors of 12 megapixels or larger. Several of the devices can also be used as WiFi hotspots, and Hitachi's trick Beskey for KDDI has interchangeable keypads that change the shape of the keys, not the layout -- a bit superficial, perhaps, but we're all about choice. DoCoMo is also launching a handful of smartphones: the Lynx SH-10B from Sharp (not to be confused with the old Atari handheld of the same name) that features Android atop a 5-inch touchscreen, Toshiba's 4.1-inch T-01B Dynapocket with WinMo, and RIM's plain old BlackBerry Bold 9700. Don't get us wrong, it's still quite a haul, but we can't help but feel that the gap between Japan's wireless scene and the rest of the world is closing fast.
NTT DoCoMo, KDDI launch their endless Summer 2010 collections originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 19 May 2010 00:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Photo gallery: Japan’s SoftBank shows 13 new, Twitter-powered cell phones
Posted on May 18, 2010 | No Comments
We've shown you the summer cell phone lineup from KDDI (Japan's No. 2 carrier) yesterday. Today, Japan's third largest carrier, SoftBank Mobile, showed its own summer lineup during a special press conference, and all of their 13 new models have one thing in common: they all come with Twitter pre-installed.
The buyers of these cell phones will be able to access Twitter either via a pre-installed app or through a pre-installed widget on the homescreen. The background is that SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son himself is a huge Twitter fan (he has almost 300,000 followers) and believes Japan is set to become Twitter country. And in fact, by some measures it's already No. 2.
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NTT DoCoMo shows off automatic email generator for mobiles (video)
Posted on May 18, 2010 | No CommentsDemonstrated at the Wireless Technology Park 2010 exhibition last week, this automatic email generator from NTT DoCoMo promises to take just three words' worth of input, whether spoken or typed in, and convert them into a fully fleshed out, anatomically correct email. An anthropomorphic genie creature serves as your guide on this journey into gimmick world, although some rather nice sophistication is also on the cards. The carrier's rep informs us that the composition of the missive will be dependent on the sort of person that you are and your relationship to the recipient. Thus, an email from a teenager to his parents will read quite differently to one from an employee to her boss, even if both believe they're writing to their draconian overlords. Check it out on video after the break.
Continue reading NTT DoCoMo shows off automatic email generator for mobiles (video)
NTT DoCoMo shows off automatic email generator for mobiles (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 07:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Photo gallery: Japan’s KDDI shows summer cell phone line-up
Posted on May 17, 2010 | No Comments
Japan's second biggest mobile company KDDI today unveiled [JP] the 10 cell phones of their new line-up for this summer. The first of these models, the majority of which are waterproof (which seems to indicate a new trend in Japan's cell phone industry), will be rolled out in Japan as early as at the end of this month.
Here's the complete line-up.
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Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 is likely NTT DoCoMo’s best selling smartphone — ever
Posted on May 13, 2010 | No CommentsJapan's wireless networks have a longstanding, legendary reputation for existing in some parallel plane that's technologically light years ahead of the rest of the world, but that reputation's unquestionably in greater danger today than in any point in the past fifteen years. Why? Though the featurephones offered by NTT DoCoMo, SoftBank, and KDDI are ultra high-spec beasts, they're still featurephones at the end of the day -- and this comes at a time when smartphones are finally becoming true cultural phenomena across the remainder of the developed world (and, in some cases, the developing world).
There's no greater evidence of this than the word this week that Sony Ericsson's Xperia X10 -- a phone that's been met with lukewarm reviews, including from Engadget Japanese's own Ittousai -- has allegedly become NTT DoCoMo's best-selling smartphone in history, a fact that would seem completely inexplicable in any other market globally. What makes it possible in Japan, of course, is DoCoMo's historically lame selection of true smartphones, a lineup that currently includes localized versions of the HTC Magic, and the original HTC Touch Diamond and BlackBerry Bold. What's more, many of these devices integrate poorly with popular carrier services on account of their super-tight control of the operating systems running across the featurephone lineup, something they've got less control over with a device running Android or Windows Mobile.
In other words, when it's reported that DoCoMo had sold 100,000 X10s in its first 20 days -- and a third-party retailer claims that the Magic-esque HT-03A is the next best seller at 80,000 units in 10 months -- it seems plausible, if not likely (and Ittousai agrees). Yeah, even though the localized device has been plagued with performance problems and bugs, incompatibilities with DoCoMo's i-mode push email, and so on. It's hard to say what it's going to take for these guys to make an honest-to-goodness transition to the brave new world of open platforms and freewheeling third-party development, but they're clearly not there yet.Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 is likely NTT DoCoMo's best selling smartphone -- ever originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 May 2010 20:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Japanese mobile gaming giant DeNA goes global with iPhone social network MiniNation
Posted on May 11, 2010 | No Comments
Japan has two listed mobile gaming companies with a multi-billion US-dollar market capitalization, GREE ($2.7 billion) and DeNA ($4.2 billion), with both companies offering services in Japan only. But DeNA just yesterday rolled out MiniNation on the App Store, a social network for the iPhone based around games and avatars that targets a global audience.
MiniNation started out with a total of four (free) games in English [iTunes link], all of which are based on popular titles found on DeNA's Japanese social gaming portal, Mobage-town (which boasts 18 million members). The avatar system is already in place, and according to DeNA, the first four games (Bandit Nation, Mini Solitaire, Mini BalloonHunt and Mini NumberPlace) are just the beginning.