Survey: iPhone owners most loyal to brand among mobile users

November 24, 2011 By Trevor Mogg

The results of a new survey show that brand loyalty in the mobile market is strongest among iPhone owners, with 84 percent of them declaring they would choose another iPhone when they decide to replace their existing Apple device. 

When it comes to brand loyalty in the smartphone market, Apple appears to be ahead of the pack. According to the results of a survey by research firm GfK, 84 percent of iPhone owners said they would choose another iPhone when they next replace their smartphone.

Among users of phones powered by Google’s Android operating system, 60 percent said they would stay with a phone using the same software.

Brand loyalty was weaker among BlackBerry users, with only 48 percent saying they would likely stick with one of Research In Motion’s devices. Last month the Canadian company had a torrid time of it, together with users of its smartphones, when its communication network suffered a three-day outage.

With 63 percent of consumers saying they will keep with the kind of phone that they currently own, it’s clearly getting more and more difficult for rival brands to elbow their way in. Of course, there are still opportunities – if a company came out with a real head-turner of a product, it would undoubtedly shake up the market and put a consumer’s loyalty to the test.

Also, GfK analyst Ryan Garner suggests “the richest rewards will go to those providers that can create the most harmonious user experience.”

For many people, Apple’s success can be attributed to clever marketing that encouraged consumers to make an emotional connection with its products. On top of that, the company got in early with the iPhone. It may not have been the first smartphone on the market, but for many consumers it was the first one that was actually smart. They lapped it up, and continue to do so, with more than four million units of the Cupertino company’s latest version of the device, the iPhone 4S, selling on its opening weekend last month.

But companies know they can’t rest on their laurels when it comes to loyalty. Slip behind the field in coming up with innovative ideas and groundbreaking products, or mess up badly with your service, and consumers will start looking elsewhere.

For its survey, GfK questioned approximately 4,500 people in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, China, the United States and Japan.

[Source: Reuters] [Image: Reno Martin / Shutterstock]

Source  http://www.digitaltrends.com

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Sony Tablet P on sale in the UK, brings hefty price tag with it

By Richard Devine   24 Nov 2011 12:47 pm

The clamshell Sony Tablet P has found its way out into the wild in the UK, bringing to market with it a hefty pricetag just a penny under £500. 

The Tegra 2, dual 5.5 inch screened device brings Honeycomb 3.2 along for the ride. It also comes with Sony's Playstation certification much like its sibling, the more conventional Tablet S. Sony claims that the styling will make it more comfortable to hold sideways for reading books, but many would be put off by its unusual design. 

Besides the price, Sony's timing to launch the Tablet P now with the Asus Transformer Prime and its Ice Cream Sandwich flavouring right around the corner is quite baffling. Nevertheless, if the Tablet P appeals to you, your local Sony Centre or Dixons online is the place to go. 

Source: Sony, http://www.androidcentral.com

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First-generation phone runs fourth-generation Android

by Stephen Shankland November 24, 2011 4:48 AM PST

A demonstration of Ice Cream Sandwich on the first-generation Android phone, the 2008-era T-Mobile G1.

(Credit: screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET)

Running a newly released version of Windows or Mac OS X on a three-year old personal computer is an unremarkable feat. 

But it's a lot more difficult in the smartphone world, where hardware and software have been changing at a breakneck pace. That's why I recommend watching this brief demonstration of Ice Cream Sandwich, aka Android 4.0, on the first-generation Android phone, the T-Mobile G1 from October 2008. 

XDA Developers forum member jcarrz1 posted the video and an alpha version of his OS build yesterday, nine days after Google released the Ice Cream Sandwich source code. 

As you may expect, the new OS drags on the comparatively ancient hardware, with slow app launches and long lags between a touch action and the phone's response. But all the ICS apps work.

What doesn't work at this stage, jcarrz1 said: Wi-Fi networking, Bluetooth, and screen rotation.

Ice Cream Sandwich arrived a week ago on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, a much more powerful device. It's not clear yet which beyond a handful of phones will get the ICS upgrade, but jcarrz1's work shows that business reasons, not technology reasons, are most likely responsible for keeping it off newer phones. 

The current version of Apple's mobile operating system, iOS 5, requires a 2009-era iPhone 3GS or newer phone. In the Android realm, it's less common to see the latest OS supported on older phones.

In the ICS on G1 demo, jcarrz1 shows the unlock screen, the settings app, the phone app, and the clock. I'm guessing we won't be seeing Riptide GP any time soon, though.

Via Antuan Goodwin

A demonstration of Ice Cream Sandwich on the first-generation Android phone, the 2008-era T-Mobile G1.

(Credit: screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET)

Stephen Shankland

Stephen Shankland writes about a wide range of technology and products, but has a particular focus on browsers and digital photography. He joined CNET News in 1998 and since then also has covered Google, Yahoo, servers, supercomputing, Linux and open-source software and science.

Source   http://news.cnet.com

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Expansys USA offering unlocked Galaxy Nexus, taking orders now

By Richard Devine   24 Nov 2011 9:04 am

We'll keep this short and sweet, because we're pretty sure a few of you will be interested in this. The Galaxy Nexus is available to order in the USA. 

Expansys USA have the unlocked, 16GB GSM version in stock now and are shipping within days. (Ours will be here Friday!) As the image here shows though, there's not many and as this is written the initial batch have been allocated. At present they're showing as shipping within 4 days.

If you haven't done already, check out our review of the GSM version of the Galaxy Nexus. Then if you're on AT&T or T-Mobile, hit the source link for the product page.

Source: Expansys

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First inkjet-printed graphene computer circuit is transparent, flexible

• By Sebastian Anthony on November 24, 2011 at 10:11 am

You can add another crazy characteristic to graphene’s ever-expanding list of “wonder material” properties: It can now be used to create flexible, transparent thin-film transistors… using an inkjet printer.

The discovery comes from researchers at the University of Cambridge, UK, who were trying to ameliorate the lackluster performance of existing inkjet-printed electronics. As we covered last month, it’s possible to print standard CMOS transistors using different ferroelectric polymer inks, but the resultant circuit is so slow that it can’t actually function as a computer. If graphene could replace or augment the interconnects or transistors, these circuits would be a lot faster — and that’s what these Cambridge engineers have done.

The actual meat of the discovery is that graphene has been successfully chipped off a block of graphite using a chemical solvent. These flakes are then filtered to remove any larger, print head-clogging chunks, and then turned into a polymer ink. Despite its amazing properties, graphene hasn’t yet found a way into our computers is because it’s currently very hard and expensive to produce, isolate, and use in silicon circuits. Cambridge’s discovery probably won’t help IBM bring 100GHz graphene circuits to market, though — but it could enable, quite literally, wearable computers.
So far, the results are promising: the graphene-based inks are comparable to existing printed circuits, or a little bit faster — and for a first attempt, that’s not bad. The researchers seem very positive about the long-term prospects of the discovery, too: “This paves the way to all-printed, flexible and transparent graphene devices on arbitrary substrates.” In this case, substrates means everything from thin films that can be applied to clothing, all the way through to e-paper and/or flexible TFT displays. Graphene-based inks are transparent, too, incidentally — by virtue of being incredibly thin, and because of graphene’s regular, honeycomb arrangement (see above).

Did anyone think, when they saw their first inkjet printer in the ’80s or ’90s, that they would one day be capable of printing computer circuits? Even more outlandishly, some 3D printers also use inkjet technology — one nozzle places the resin, and an inkjet then fires out a binder to stick it all together. It provides a very interesting counterpoint to standard chip fab processes, too — a silicon wafer might go through five, multi-million-dollar machines to turn into a chip, while all you need to make a graphene chip is a very accurate stepping motor, a pot of graphene ink, and a piezoelectric actuator to propel the ink in minute quantities.

Source  http://www.extremetech.com

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Microsoft announces official Kinect for Windows

By Ray Walters on November 23, 2011 at 12:59 pm

It’s official: Kinect is not just a toy anymore (not that it ever was). In a statement today, Microsoft has announced that it’s responding to consumer feedback and creating a PC version of its ultra-popular device, which will be available sometime early next year. This should open up the device even more to developers to come up with creative uses in conjunction with their software offerings.

The hardware changes in the new version are mostly “optimization” tweaks according to Craig Eisler, the GM for the Kinect project. They include making the cable a bit shorter, as well as a new (smaller?) dongle to “improve coexistence with other USB peripherals.” Probably the most important update is the new ability for the device to see a person (or object) sitting as close as 50 centimeters away, where the Xbox 360 model requires a full body scan from a distance of eight feet. There has been criticism that Redmond needs to address people who want to use the device that may be in wheel chairs or with other disabilities that would prevent them from standing. With the updated firmware, it could be possible that current Kinect for 360 devices could have the upgraded functionality.

Even with ten million units sold, it seems that third-party developers are still skittish when it comes to the Kinect. Microsoft has reported getting questions of how committed the company is to continued development of the platform, since third-party companies are reluctant to sink monetary resources into something that might not be around in the near future. Eisler responded to those question with the announcement that the division is creating a new initiative called the Kinect Accelerator incubation project. 10 companies will be chosen to receive $20,000 and support from key personnel in the division to develop for the Windows-based Kinect. The projects will also be presented to angel investors for additional funding possibilities. Smart move on Eisler’s part to make this happen, as the benefit to the company will be way more than the $200,000 invested.

As far as what to expect from this development, I think you will see Kinect become a big part of the final version of Windows 8. I would love to be able to interact with my PC using gestures and motions, as well as being able to participate in gaming that takes advantage of the tech. In my opinion, Kinect will become as important a peripheral as the mouse and keyboard, if for nothing than the adult gaming industry to take advantage of.

Read more at the Kinect for Windows blog

Source  http://www.extremetech.com

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PayPal predicts the future of money: No wallets required in the UK by 2016

Back in 2007, the Chief Executive of Visa Europe claimed that we could all be living in a cashless society by 2012. With that milestone fast approaching, it’s safe to assume that notes/bills and coins won’t be going the way of the dodo that quickly, but a new forecast has emerged from another giant from the finance world.

PayPal has produced a new report which will be released shortly – Money: The Digital Tipping Point – in which it predicts not only that consumers won’t need cash to go shopping, but they won’t need a wallet at all. And when can we expect this vision to be realized? 2016, it seems.

We’ve written quite extensively about mobile payment technology in recent times. Back in September we spoke with Ben Milne, founder of peer-to-peer Web and mobile payment platform Dwolla, who discussed the future of m-commerce. And prior to that, The Next Web’s Brad McCarty looked at how NFC will get its piece of the $4 quadrillion payments pie. There’s little question mobile payments will play a big part in the future of commerce. But will it completely outmanoeuvre paper, coins AND plastic by 2016?

Around 45 million people in the UK use a mobile phone, and 49% of mobile users surveyed use their device to purchase products at least once every three months. But there is still a big demand for in-store purchases too, as we saw with London’s Oxford Street retailers gearing up for Christmas by introducing a number of tech initiatives to help capitalize on the growing m-commerce trend.

PayPal’s findings are based on interviews by Forrester Consulting with 10 senior executives from major UK retailers and other businesses, with a combined turnover of £85bn.

“We’ll see a huge change over the next few years in the way we shop and pay for things”, says Carl Scheible, Managing Director of PayPal UK. “By 2016, you’ll be able to leave your wallet at home and use your mobile as the 21st century digital wallet. Our vision of money is to enable you to pay for something from wherever you are, whatever device you’re on – a PC, mobile phone, tablet, games console and a whole lot more.”

Indeed, Scheible continued by saying that it will take another 4 years before we’ll see the real beginning of money’s digital switchover in the UK, but he stopped short of any discussion relating to a ‘cashless society’. “We’re not saying cash will disappear entirely, but we’ll increasingly use our phones and other devices rather than our wallets to pay in-store as well as online”, he says. “The lines between the online world and high street will soon disappear altogether. Children born today will become the UK’s first ‘cashless generation’. It will be completely natural for them to pay by mobile.”

So the real prediction here is that the uptake of mobile payment technology will increase significantly over the next 4 years – something that most people would probably agree with. But at the rate we’re currently going at, and with the likes of NFC technology gaining momentum in the micro-payment sphere, cash could be under threat sooner than we may otherwise have realized.

By 2016, it’s thought that UK mobile retail sales will hit £2.5bn. PayPal currently has over 14m active UK accounts, over a million of which have been used to send a mobile payment. Around the world, PayPal expects to process more than $3.5bn (£2.25bn) in mobile payments this year, five times more than in 2010.

Meanwhile, PayPal has produced this little infographic, outlining its vision:

Source  http://thenextweb.com

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AT&T Pulls T-Mobile Merger Application From FCC, Will Take $4B Charge

• By Chloe Albanesius November 24, 2011 10:09am EST

The chairman's recommendation was basically a rejection of the deal. But technically, the FCC cannot block a transaction; it can only approve, approve with conditions, or refer to an administrative law judge. In reviewing the deal, the commission found that a combined AT&T and T-Mobile would result in unprecedented concentration and massive layoffs, FCC officials said, prompting Tuesday's order.

 

An administrative law review operates much like a normal trial, overseen by Judge Richard L. Sippel. The last case of this size to be referred to an administrative law judge was EchoStar-DirecTV in 2002.The wireless carrier insisted, however, that the deal is not dead, and said it will instead focus on winning an antitrust lawsuit brought forth by the Department of Justice, which seeks to block the merger over competition concerns.AT&T said today that it withdrew from the Federal Communications Commission its application to acquire T-Mobile, and will incur a $4 billion "break-up fee."The DOJ's case against the merger goes to trial in February.

 

Consumer groups viewed the move as a last-ditch effort to save the merger."After today's actions, the chances that AT&T will take over T-Mobile are almost gone," Gigi B. Sohn, president and co-founder of Public Knowledge, said in a statement. "While you can never count out AT&T entirely, the fact that they pulled their FCC application speaks volumes about the company's lack of confidence that it could prove in a legal setting at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) the claims it spent millions of dollars to make about job creation and rural deployment of broadband, among other issues."Andrew Jay Schwartzman, senior vice president and policy director of the Media Access Project, said the move was an "act of desperation."The move comes two days after FCC chairman Julius Genachowski recommended to his fellow commissioners that the merger be reviewed by an administrative law judge because it was not in the public interest.Sohn suggested that AT&T was trying to "prevent the FCC from making public its many, well-documented findings that the deal is not in the public interest." She called on the carrier to also withdraw its application from the DOJ "and end this charade once and for all.""The record clearly shows that—in no uncertain terms—this merger would result in a massive loss of U.S. jobs and investment," a senior FCC official said at the time.
"AT&T Inc. and [T-Mobile parent company] Deutsche Telekom AG are continuing to pursue the sale of Deutsche Telekom's U.S. wireless assets to AT&T and are taking this step to facilitate the consideration of all options at the FCC and to focus their continuing efforts on obtaining antitrust clearance for the transaction from the Department of Justice either through the litigation pending before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia ... or alternate means," AT&T said in a statement. "As soon as practical, AT&T Inc. and Deutsche Telekom AG intend to seek the necessary FCC approval."

The break-up fee, meanwhile, covers $3 billion in cash and spectrum worth $1 billion.

"It is time for vainglorious managers at AT&T to accept that there is no way that this deal can obtain approval of the FCC and the courts," he said.

On an otherwise quiet Sunday afternoon in March, AT&T surprised the tech community when it announced plans to acquire T-Mobile for $39 billion. AT&T argued that the purchase will help stop the spectrum crunch and spur the companies' deployment of 4G service. Detractors, especially rival Sprint, countered that the deal would lead to a duopoly, with AT&T and Verizon controlling the wireless industry, and likely lead to job cuts and price hikes.

For more, see AT&T and T-Mobile: What's Next? Also check out the slideshow below, which chronicles some of the biggest tech-related antitrust suits.
For more from Chloe, follow her on Twitter @ChloeAlbanesius.
For the top stories in tech, follow us on Twitter at @PCMag.source  http://www.pcmag.com

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China Passes U.S. as Top Smartphone Market by Volume

• By Damon Poete  November 23, 2011 03:39pm EST

China overtook the United States as the largest market in terms of unit shipments in the third quarter of 2011, according to a new report from Strategy Analytics. The research firm said Wednesday that nearly 24 million smartphones were shipped in China in the quarter, as compared with just over 23 million units shipped in the U.S. during that period.

"Smartphone shipments grew 58 percent sequentially to reach a record 23.9 million units in China during Q3 2011," Strategy Analytics analyst Linda Sui said in a statement emailed to PCMag. "In contrast, smartphone shipments fell 7 percent sequentially to reach 23.3 million units in the United States. China has overtaken the United States for the first time to become the world's largest smartphone market by volume."

Nokia shipped 6.8 million smartphones to China in the third quarter, making it the market share leader in the country with 28.5 percent of all unit shipments. Samsung, which shipped 4.2 million smartphones, held the second spot with 17.6 percent market share, while all other vendors combined to ship 12.9 million units to make up 54 percent of the Chinese smartphone market in the quarter, according to Strategy Analytics.

"China is now at the forefront of the worldwide mobile computing boom," said Strategy Analytics executive director Neil Mawston. "China has become a large and growing smartphone market that no hardware vendor, component maker or content developer can afford to ignore."

In the U.S. market, HTC edged out Apple as the top shipper of smartphones in the quarter. HTC shipped 5.6 million units in the U.S. in the third quarter to capture 24.0 percent of the market, while Apple shipped 4.8 million of its iPhones for a 20.6 percent share of the market. Other smartphone makers combined to ship 12.9 million units, totaling 55.4 percent of the U.S. market in the quarter.

"China's rapid growth has been driven by an increasing availability of smartphones in retail channels, aggressive subsidizing by operators of high-end models like the Apple iPhone, and an emerging wave of low-cost Android models from local Chinese brands such as ZTE," said Strategy Analytics director Tom Kang.

But while China surpassed the U.S. in unit shipment volume for the first time, the U.S. remained the world's largest smartphone market in terms of revenue, the research firm noted.


For the top stories in tech, follow us on Twitter at @PCMag.source :  http://www.pcmag.com

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iPad 3: super-high-res displays a go, but yields will be low

By Jon Phillips, Wired.com | Published about 15 hours ago

By all accounts, the screen in the upcoming iPad 3 should be two times more spectacular than the display in the iPad 2, shown here.

 

It’s the most definitive assurance yet that Apple’s next iPad will include a screen with a near “retina display”-quality resolution: DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim has told CNET that “production has started” for 2048x1536, 10-inch-class tablet screens, and three manufacturers—Samsung, Sharp and LGD—are supplying parts to Apple.

“It takes a couple of weeks for the production to go to the [the manufacturers],” Shim told CNET. “Then the manufacturer puts them in the housing. Then, that goes off to shipment. We could start seeing finished devices produced in December. And then being ready to be shipped in January. With volumes gearing up in February and March.”

Shim’s words bear a confidence that’s been missing from most discussions concerning the iPad 3’s display aspirations. 

Just three weeks ago, when I directly asked DisplaySearch Senior Vice President Paul Semenza if he thought Apple would be able to deliver an iPad 3 with a 2048×1536 screen resolution by the first quarter of 2012, he told me, “We don’t have a forecast on it, no. But I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t get there. They’re dealing with a lot of new technologies.”

Indeed, producing relatively small, ultra-high-resolution displays is still a significant manufacturing challenge. The display industry’s manufacturing infrastructure hasn’t been optimized to deliver this type of display, and the fabrication machines— or “fabs” —that would produce the displays in mass volume have been slow to go online. 

What’s more, because their pixels are so small, and packed together so densely in such small physical spaces, it’s very difficult for a manufacturer to maintain high production yields (a problem exacerbated by the slow roll-out of appropriate manufacturing machinery). Multiple displays are fabbed on a single poly-silicon wafer, and for every perfect display a fab produces, it may have to junk another. 

“We know there are yield issues. This is certainly a huge step up as far as pixel format, and every time you do that, there will be yield issues. But this is going forward,” said Rhoda Alexander, director of tablet and monitor research for the research firm iSuppli.

So what’s a “yield issue” anyhow? It’s a term that’s been casually tossed around anytime the iPad 3’s super-high-res display is discussed—but what does it really mean? 

“There are a number of reasons why a panel would be rejected—a dead pixel, a pixel stuck on, a pixel stuck off. You may get issues where luminescence is inconsistent from edge to edge, and all manner of other problems,” Alexander says.

Yield issues notwithstanding, industry analysts now seem confident that Apple is moving forward with a super-high-resolution iPad for sale in the new year, and if history tells us anything, the company is willing to pay high manufacturing prices up front for the promise of delivering a high-impact product that no other company is shipping. 

In fact, says Alexander, Apple has been down this road already with the original iPad.

“When we look at the iPad 1,” says Alexander, “when it was first released, the yield issues were down around 50 percent. For every 100 panels made, 50 didn’t make spec. This is not an unusual situation, and this is at the point when the iPad 1 was released. So, while yields may be low, [the display manufacturers] can still produce acceptable products. But they will improve their yields and at a faster pace than you would expect them to. Panel prices go down over time, and Apple will realize efficiencies over an entire product cycle.”

It should be noted that if the iPad 3 arrives with a 9.7-inch, 2048×1536 display, that screen’s pixel density would still be 264 pixels per inch—far short of the 300 pixels per inch that Apple defines as “retina display” quality (“a pixel density so high that the human eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels,” according to Apple marketing claims). 

Whether Apple’s retina display claims are valid—when the iPhone 4 launched, one of the world’s pre-emininent display experts told us they’re not—the new iPad 3’s screen should still be spectacular. The current iPad 2’s display bears a pixel density of just 132 pixels per inch, so a purported 264 pixels per inch in the iPad 3 should be dazzling.

Perhaps even more dazzling: Shim told CNET that Apple is interested in making a smaller iPad with a 7.85-inch screen and late 2012 launch date. “If there’s demand, there’s no reason they wouldn’t build a 7.85-inch iPad,” Shim said.

Right. No reason save the fact Steve Jobs was vehemently opposed to smaller tablet form factors. Seeing Tim Cook scuttle the mandate of Steve Jobs post-mortem would be a spectacle indeed.

Jim Merithew

From :  http://arstechnica.com

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Android Market Now Installs Apps On Officially Unsupported Devices

Google has this week rolled out a new update for its Android Market place, which has added support for additional unofficially supported devices. The new devices to now be included within the Android Market for applications to be installed on them include : HP TouchPad, Barnes & Noble NOOK Tablet, and Amazon Kindle Fire.

So if you have loaded Android on to any devices that didn’t originally ship with Android, you can now enjoy a simple install process directly from the Android Market.But be aware the Android Market will also recognise some apps you might have installed from non-Android Market sources, and will try to update them but will fail.

Source: Liliputing

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Solid-state hard drives can save your life, so says this well played OCZ promo

23rd November 2011 by Drew Olanoff

Selling hard drives online isn’t the sexiest of ventures, therefore you have to get a little creative in how you grab people’s interest.

One site, that appears to be a promo for OCZ SSD’s (solid-state drives), asks you how much time you spend on your computer, and suggests a hard drive that will save you time. “SSDSavedMyLife” is that site.

Here is the site’s explanation of how SSD’s could change your life:

This handy tool assumes that you save between 20 seconds and a minute per hour with a solid-state drive. It also adds in some saved time on computer bootups. The period of time considered is 3 years, with a few vacation/computer-free weeks in there.

Sure, it’s a bit of a stretch, but if you’re looking to save computing time, a solid-state hard drive isn’t a bad idea.

Simply enter how much time you spend on your computer weekly, along with how you’d categorize your usage. Mine was clearly “intense”. The site will calculate how much time you can save with a solid-state drive.

According to the app, I could save 126 wasted hours over the course of my lifetime, if I were to purchase a solid-state drive. Of course, the OCZ drive is conveniently the only suggestion that the site makes for which model you should buy:

It’s fun to see how much time the site thinks you could save by switching to a solid-state drive, but the OCZ drives are some of the most expensive on the market, so do some homework before picking one up.

From : http://thenextweb.com

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5 challenges facing YouTube as a family destination

23rd November 2011 by Anna Heim

Disney movies are coming to YouTube, following a deal announced today. Great animation movies such as “Cars,” “Cars 2″ and “Winnie the Pooh” will be available for rental on the video platform, making it an obvious online destination during the holiday season.

Yet, this also raises questions with regard to YouTube’s positioning and strategy: is it a portal on which parents want to see their children spend time? While this concern also exists for other supports, such as TV, it appears that YouTube faces very specific challenges if it wants to become a kids-friendly destination:

1. Search

This is a well-known fact in the film business: Google’s belief in the power of search is almost ideological. This philosophy also applies to its video platform YouTube, where organic search still dominates. The problem from Hollywood’s point of view? Not pushing content editorially means that movies can be buried in the middle of random amateur videos.

Not only did it make the first movies Google licensed very hard to find, it also doesn’t create a very favorable environment for kids. Still, YouTube seems to be learning lessons, and its decision to increasingly promote its Movies landing page seems to go in the right direction.

2. Comments

The quality of comments on YouTube is notoriously terrible. Not only is this section completely overtaken by an army of trolls, but the moderation is also very low, which means that offensive comments remain visible for a very long period of time. While it has become more of a joke among adults, it’s not something we usually want the kids around us to be exposed to.

3. Terms of Service

According to YouTube’s own Terms of Service, minors under thirteen “may not use the Services”:

While this may only be legalese to comply with US legislation, mentioning the necessity of being supervised by an adult would make much more sense.

This also clashes with making Disney animation movies available on the platform. Overall, this deal comes across as paradoxical from a film studio like Disney, which seems to be putting a lot of effort in making its kids’ social network Club Penguin a safe playground for children.

4. Competition

 

YouTube includes a “Safety Mode” which should prevent users from accidentally stumbling upon offensive content, but it’s still fairly limited. In contrast, Netflix, which is competing with YouTube, offers a “Just for Kids” section, also available on TV sets via Nintendo’s Wii.

5. Vision

 

In the end, it all comes down to vision: is Google prepared to do what it takes to bring its platform to the next level? The customized version of YouTube created for its updated Google TV seems to show it is the case.

Yet, this is not only about building a “Leanback” experience; if YouTube wants to enter families’ living rooms as a central entertainment destination, it will have to make sure children can use it safely.

Do you think YouTube can become more kids-friendly? Let us know in the comments.

from :http://thenextweb.com

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Apple TV Rumors Persist

By John C. Dvora  November 23, 2011

Apple is poised to enter new markets, starting with television and here's what the imminent Apple TV should accomplish.

The latest iteration of the Apple TV rumors claim the company is working on a design in conjunction with Sharp to produce something called the iTV.

So immediately there is a problem.

If Apple is ever going to have an issue with a trademark, it will be with this one. Besides being a moniker for "interactive TV," it also means "Independent TV," and is protected by all sorts of trademarks. If Apple calls it THE TV, Apple TV, or even Apple iTV, then it might be ok.

In wagering what the device might be like, let me begin by deconstructing what it will not be: a TV set with a touch screen. That would be nearly impossible and dumb. If we look at recent Apple innovations, I think we can be assured that it will have a remote control that is more like an iPhone or iPad than anything else. And why not? It would be a soft controller that might actually have a video screen and can preview channels that would be transferred back to the screen.

The cool thing about a large format controller such as an iPad is that it could scroll through shows whose producers could actually create the splash pages. They could even pay for certain kinds of placement on the controller page. This would put Apple far ahead of anyone selling a large TV set with an old fashioned push button channel Up and Down channel controller. You'll look like an idiot with the old-style remote control.

As for a DVR function, how about using the iCloud? A virtual DVR in the cloud would be far more reliable than the limited-sized hard disk utilized by a standard DVR. And you could keep an archive of old shows with an iTunes-like interface.

Users would all have Apple TV apps on their iPhones that allow them to program the DVR while at work or on the road. Years and years ago, Steve Wozniac used to harp on the necessity of being able to record a show you forgot about while you were away. This idea has always been a good one and this set will do that—if you own an iPhone.

The set itself will be sleek and Apple-looking with the highest quality display modules available. It will win awards for its design.

It will not be cheap. This is the mistake people make when saying Apple is crazy to go into the low margin TV business. The Apple TV will not be a low margin TV. It will be the premium TV for which people will probably pay an extra $500. Getting the extra money for what will appear to be a superior product will not be hard for Apple.

Apple has not stumbled for a decade and until it does, it will command attention and premium prices. I've always thought the company should branch out once it established a product and defined a market. It cannot grow just selling iPhones. Big ticket consumer items need to be attacked.

Will there ever be an Apple washing machine or refrigerator? To be honest, I do not see any reason why there can't be. The company is known for employing the best in-house industrial design team. It knows quality. It knows marketing. It knows users' needs. It should branch out and it should start with the TV. 

 

from : http://www.pcmag.com

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Microsoft's New Cloud Strategy: Windows 8 and SkyDrive

Microsoft has been taking a long, hard look at its cloud strategy, in the face of competition from the likes of Apple's iCloud and Google's Docs and other services. This week, the team behind Microsoft's SkyDrive cloud storage service outlined its thinking on what the company needs to do with its cloud strategy, and made frank comparisons with offerings from Apple and Google.

SkyDrive group program manager Omar Shahine broke personal cloud services down into three types: File clouds, such as Microsoft's own SkyDrive service; Device clouds, with Apple's iCloud the prime example, as it requires Apple devices; and App clouds. The last group is broken down into two subcategories—those built from the ground up for the cloud, such as Google Docs and Evernote, and those that serve media to subscribers, such as Netflix and Pandora.

Microsoft also looked at the adoption of cloud services by specific user groups—college students, gadget fans, and photo enthusiasts. They found that fewer than 10 percent of college students considered using SkyDrive for their shared documents, even though most of them started and ended the documents in Microsoft Office.

Of course, the point of all this cloud soul-searching is that Microsoft wants Windows 8 and Windows Phone to offer more appealing cloud services. At Microsoft's Build Conference in September, the company showed how all Windows 8 users will get SkyDrive cloud accounts, and how developers can use it to build cloud support right into their apps. Mike Torres, group program manager of the SkyDrive Devices and Roaming, also wrote in depth about this topic on the Building Windows 8 blog.

But Shahine notes that all the existing personal cloud services have limitations, including his own team's SkyDrive service. He outlines both table stakes and winning factors for a cloud service that "seamlessly connects today’s files with tomorrow’s modern device and app experiences." Table stakes include simplicity, security, reasonable storage allowances, and the ability to work across any device.
Winning factors include cloud-enabling the whole PC: "A cloud tailored for this device would provide access to all of your content from anywhere, with no complex setup or configuration," he said. It also nees to "work with key apps and services to let you organize, collaborate, and share in new ways," and connect people, content, and devices at scale.

Microsoft is aware of people's pain points with SkyDrive, Shahine wrote, with complaints being addressed on Twitter. He also listed some usage stats:

• How many people are storing content on SkyDrive every month - 17 million (October 2011)
• How much content are they uploading and sharing every month - 360 million files (October 2011)
• How many devices connect to SkyDrive every month - 5 million devices (October 2011)

I couldn't readily find the comparable numbers for Google Docs, but a Google rep told me that Google Docs users numbered in the "tens of millions." I'll update this article if more detail becomes available.
In any case, it will be interesting to see the new shapes that SkyDrive takes in the face of tough competition from Apple's iCloud and Google's many cloud services. The blog post makes it clear that big changes are ahead for Microsoft's cloud.
For more from Michael, follow him on Twitter @mikemuch.
For the top stories in tech, follow us on Twitter at @PCMag.from: http://www.pcmag.com

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Kindle vs. Nook vs. iPad: Which e-book reader should you buy?

by John P. Falcone November 23, 2011 3:52 PM PST

Shopping for an e-book reader? At first glance, the task seems daunting--there are more choices than ever before. The good news is that the list of worthwhile choices is actually pretty short. The other good news? Prices and features are better than ever. 

When we say "e-book readers," we're now really referring to three classes of products: black-and-white e-ink readers ($80 to $150); 7-inch color LCD media tablets ($200 to $250); and full-size color tablets like the iPad (most $500 and above). The market has consolidated around a handful of major players: Amazon, Apple, and Barnes & Noble are the leaders, with Kobo, Sony, and a host of Android tablet manufacturers bringing up the rear. 

Choosing among those three categories of readers is the dilemma facing any shopper today. But don't worry; CNET's here to help. If you're an experienced shopper, you can jump straight to our current recommendations--or check our lists of top e-book readers and top tablets. And, if you're just trying to decide between a Kindle Fire and a Nook Tablet, check out Kindle Fire vs. Nook Tablet: How to choose. But if you're looking for a more in-depth discussion, read on to consult this quick guide, which boils the purchase decision down to 7 questions:

1. Reader vs. tablet: Do you want more than just reading?
Start by asking yourself what you're really looking for. Do you just want to read books? How about magazines and newspapers? What about browsing the Web? Want to add multimedia to the mix--music, audiobooks, or video? Are you a Netflix junkie? Do you need Flash support? Email and messaging? Gaming?

New products like the Nook Tablet (left) and Kindle Fire split the difference between e-reader and tablet. If you want to stick with "just reading"--books, and maybe some newspapers and magazines (in black and white)--an e-ink reader ($79 to $149) is probably your best bet. They come closest to duplicating the experience of reading a book, and-- while they have some online features--you won't be distracted while reading by a stream of incoming emails, tweets, or Facebook messages.

If you want more functionality--and a color screen--you'll need to step up to a tablet. High-end full-size tablets like the iPad 2 or the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 are much more versatile than e-ink readers, and they can replace a laptop for some tasks. But they'll cost you upwards of $500 to start.

But there's a growing class of smaller tablets that split the difference between e-ink readers and full-size tablets. The Nook Color blazed the trail in 2010, and has since been joined by the Nook Tablet and the Amazon Kindle Fire. In addition to working as e-readers, these 7-inch color LCD tablets utilize customized versions of the Android operating system to deliver a growing variety of media, productivity, and entertainment apps. Most significantly, these products are priced from $199 to $249--at least half the price of larger (and, admittedly, more full-featured) tablets like the iPad.

Best basic e-book reader: Amazon Kindle ($79, no touch-screen), Amazon Kindle Touch ($99 to $189, with touch-screen), Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch ($99, touch-screen),

Best reading tablet for under $250: Amazon Kindle Fire, Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet

Best all-around full-featured reading tablets: Apple iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

2. How large of a screen (and weight) do you want?

Even if you plan to never leave home with your e-book reader, you should consider its size before buying one. Since you hold the device in front of you whenever you want to read, the weight and size is a critical issue.

The smallest and lightest dedicated e-book reader that we can recommend is the entry-level 2011 Kindle. Unlike the step-up Kindle Touch model, the baseline Kindle includes neither a touch-screen nor any audio features. However, the trade-off is that you get the lightest e-book reader currently on the market--just under 6 ounces. 

Touch-screen models all weigh a tad more. The 2011 Kobo weighs a bit less than 7.1 ounces. The Nook Simple Touch, meanwhile, tips the scales at a very portable 7.5 ounces--more than a third lighter than the original. And the aforementioned Kindle Touch weighs 7.5 to 7.8 ounces, depending if you go with the Wi-Fi or 3G model. But even with cases, all of these 6-inch e-ink models are light enough to hold for extended reading sessions without tiring.

With their color screens and beefier batteries, the 7-inch tablets are heavier than their e-ink counterparts. The Nook Tablet weighs 14.1 ounces, the Kindle Fire weighs 14.6 ounces, and the Nook Color is almost a full pound (15.8 ounces). To put that into perspective: the 10-inch Apple iPad 2 weighs 1.33 to 1.35 pounds (21.3 to 21.6 ounces--the heavier one is the 3G model), but it has twice the screen area of the 7 inchers. That's why many people pick up a 7-inch tablet and say, "This is heavier than I expected."

Besides the iPad 2, other 10-inch models include the e-ink Kindle DX and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (or similar Android models). All of them weigh between 1.2 and 1.4 pounds. 

Remember, all e-book readers let you adjust the font size of the content you're reading, so even a small screen can display much larger type than you're used to seeing in a book, magazine, or newspaper. In other words, a smaller screen does not mean you need to sacrifice text readability. However, small screens often make magazine and PDFs look cramped, since they're generally designed with large print sizes in mind.

e of the screen, the weight is often a bigger issue. Unlike a laptop--which sits on a table or in your lap while in use--you'll be actively holding these readers or tablets aloft. For long reading sessions--say, more than 45 minutes or so--many users will find that their fingers and arms becoming strained.

Finally, remember that if you add a case or a screen cover to your reader or tablet of choice, it's going to add some weight as well.

Lightest e-book readers: Amazon Kindle, Kobo eReader Touch Edition, Barnes & Noble Nook, Amazon Kindle Touch

Mid-sized readers/tablets: Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet, Amazon Kindle Fire, Nook Color

Large-screen readers/tablets: Amazon Kindle DX, Apple iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

3. What are your screen preferences: E-ink or color LCD?

E-ink: As close as you'll get to a printed page

Dedicated e-book readers, such as the Nook, Kindle, Kobo, and Sony Reader, use an e-ink screen. However, e-ink screens have some drawbacks: they're black and white, and the pages don't refresh as quickly as those on an LCD do. However, they do an excellent job of reproducing the look of printed paper. They're not backlit--so you can't read in the dark--but you can read them in direct sunlight, which is something you can't do on an LCD screen (a fact Amazon is keen to point out in its advertising).

If you prefer to read at night with e-ink, however, all is not lost; cases with built-in lights are available for the top Amazon models--but they are pricey: Lighted Cover for Kindle ($60); Lighted Cover for Kindle Touch ($60).

The "Pearl" screen by E Ink is now standard on all major e-ink readers. So, whether you're getting the Nook or Kobo or Sony Reader or Kindle, you're basically getting the same exact screen. Furthermore, E Ink has confirmed that it won't be releasing a Pearl successor before the end of 2011.

Many users of e-ink readers dislike the refresh flashing that occurs between page turns. While those flashes still exist, user settings now allow them to happen once every five to six pageturns, rather than every time a page is refreshed. Also, pageturns on the latest e-ink screens are notably faster than on previous years' models.

LCD: Bright, backlit--and potentially tiring
Color LCD screens found on all tablets (including the Nook Tablet and Kindle Fire) are bright, colorful, beautiful displays. But those advantages have trade-offs. The reflective screens on LCD tablets make it hard to read in bright light, and many people find that the backlight tires their eyes over long reading sessions.

LCD readers are prone to glare.

(Credit: David Carnoy/CNET)

 

Touch screen: All but the entry-level Kindle
All tablets (iPad, Android, Kindle Fire, Nook tablet, etc.) have touch screens, as do all current models of major brand e-ink readers--except the entry-level $79 Kindle. Most users will find the touch-screen to be the most natural way to interact with a device. That said, if you're only interested in reading--without taking notes, tweeting, or doing other text input--that supercheap, superlight Kindle may well be all you need.

How to choose
So, which screen is better for reading: e-ink or LCD? We can't answer that question for you. (See "LCD vs. e-ink: The eyestrain debate".) If you don't have a problem staring at your laptop or LCD monitor screen for hours on end--or if you enjoy reading in low light without an external light source--you'll probably like an LCD screen. Likewise, if you enjoy reading Web sites, magazines, and newspapers, and if you want support for interactive children's books, you'll want to go with color. However, if you prefer the look of newsprint or if you enjoy reading outside, an e-ink display is your friend. 

Whether you're checking your preference for e-ink versus LCD or touch screen versus keyboard controls, we'd strongly recommend that you try a few devices before you buy one. You'll find most major e-book readers (Kindles, Nooks, Sony Readers, Apple iPads, Android tablets) under one roof at your local Best Buy.

Best e-ink readers: Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Amazon Kindle Touch

Best LCD readers/tablets: Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet, Amazon Kindle Fire, Apple iPad 2, or any good tablet

4. Do you need always-on wireless data?

When buying many tablets and some e-book readers, you'll need to make a choice between two versions: the Wi-Fi model or the 3G version. In other words: do you want the more affordable Wi-Fi model (which requires you to be near a Wi-Fi hot spot to download books or access the Internet), or do you prefer to pay a premium--via a higher up-front price and/or a monthly bill--to add 3G access on a cellular wireless network?

If you're primarily interested in reading books, you're probably going to be fine opting for Wi-Fi-only models. You only need Wi-Fi access when you're buying new books. (E-book files are stored on the device--once downloaded, Internet access isn't necessary.) So, if you're a voracious reader, you can (for instance) buy a bunch of books, toggle off your Wi-Fi, and work your way through them at your leisure. In fact, many users keep the wireless on their readers switched off most of the time since it significantly boosts battery life. 

If you're using your hardware to access anything besides e-books--magazine or newspaper subscriptions, e-mail, the Web, apps, and so forth--ubiquitous wireless access becomes more important. Still, if you're using the reader/tablet primarily at home, Wi-Fi will probably remain sufficient.

If you're a power user or frequent traveler, opting for a 3G product is worth considering.

The current Nook, Nook Tablet, Kindle Fire, and Kobo models are only available in Wi-Fi versions. Amazon offers two versions of the Kindle Touch with 3G wireless (using AT&T's cellular network). The wireless is free, but it's really only useful for shopping for new books and downloading new issues of magazines and newspapers--don't expect to be surfing the Web and watching video on those e-ink screens.

Tablets, of course, offer a much wider array of media options--and, as a result, 3G (or 4G) data access is much more tempting. Many Android tablets, such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab, are available in carrier-specific versions with terms similar to that of smartphones: you get a discount on the hardware, but you'll need to sign up for a two-year contract with beefy monthly bills. (Most Android tablets now also offer contract-free Wi-Fi-only versions.)

On the 3G versions of the iPad, you'll pay a monthly fee to the cellular company (AT&T or Verizon), but it's a prepaid monthly service, not a long-term contract; in other words, you can cancel or restart any time, without paying an expensive early-termination fee. But for the privilege of 3G connectivity, the iPad costs $130 more than its respective Wi-Fi-only equivalent model.

Ironically, the Kindle Fire offers no 3G version. With its reliance on "cloud" entertainment options--streaming video and audio from the Amazon online store--it's a curious omission. (That said, some--but not all--videos can be donwloaded and stored on the Fire for offline viewing.)

Is 3G wireless a must-have? That's a question you'll need to answer. Just remember that--with more phones offering Wi-Fi hot-spot functionality and establishments such as Starbucks offering free Wi-Fi--there are plenty of ways to get seamless online coverage with your reading device without it having 3G network support built-in. 

Best Wi-Fi e-ink readers: Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch, Amazon Kindle Touch

Best Wi-Fi tablets: Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet, Amazon Kindle Fire, Apple iPad 2 (Wi-Fi), Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

Best 3G e-ink reader: Amazon Kindle Touch (3G/Wi-Fi): With Special Offers; Without Special Offers

 Best 3G tablet: Apple iPad 2 (3G/Wi-Fi): Verizon or AT&T

5. Apps vs. hardware: Which reading platform offers the most flexibility?

One of the advantages of having your reading collection "in the cloud" is that you can access your books on multiple devices, though some e-book vendors offer better cross-platform support than others do.

This is where terminology can get a bit confusing: the e-book stores can be available on different devices, including (in the case of Apple) those of rival e-book publishers--the e-book equivalent of buying a can of Pepsi from a Coke vending machine.

The iPad offers access to all major e-book stores via their respective apps.

This multidevice support is accomplished through apps. On tablets (iPad, Android, and more), smartphones (iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, and others), and PCs (Mac and Windows), users can download free apps that let them read e-books from a variety of vendors. So, you can read a Kindle book on your iPad, a Nook book on your Android phone, or a Kobo book on your BlackBerry--and that's just for starters.

As of November 2011, here's how app support breaks down for each major e-book platform:

Kindle: Besides Kindle hardware readers, Kindle books can be accessed on iPads, iPhones, iPod Touch handhelds, Android phones (version 2.1 and later), Android tablets, many BlackBerry phones, Windows PCs, Macs, Windows Phone 7 phones, and via HTML 5-compatible browsers (the Kindle Cloud Reader). Full details here.

Nook: Besides Nook hardware readers, Nook books can be accessed on iPads, iPhones, iPod Touch handhelds, Android phones (version 2.1 and later), Android tablets, many BlackBerry phones, Windows PCs, and Macs. Full details here.

Kobo: Besides Kobo hardware readers, Kobo books can be accessed on iPads, iPhones, iPod Touch handhelds, Android phones (version 2.1 and later), Android tablets, many BlackBerry phones, the Palm Pre (WebOS), the BlackBerry PlayBook, Windows PCs, and Macs. Full details: smartphones, tablets, PCs/Macs.

iBooks: Apple's e-book store is currently only available on Apple iOS devices--iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch.

Sony Reader: Besides Sony Reader hardware, Sony books can be accessed on Android phones, Windows PCs, and Macs. (Now that Apple has modified the terms of the App Store, we expect that the Sony Reader iOS app--originally rejected by Apple--will be modified and resubmitted.) Full details: Android phones, PCs/Macs

Nearly all of these apps allow you to sync your position in a book across devices, so if you read up to, say, Page 229 on your phone, you can pick up on that same page on your tablet or reader, and vice versa.

All of the apps are free, and--since each bookstore offers a wide selection of free books--you can freely experiment with any and all of the apps that work with your respective hardware.

Best cross-platform providers: Kindle, Nook, Kobo

Most versatile hardware readers: Apple iPad 2, Apple iPhone, Apple iPod Touch, Android phones with full Android Market support, Android tablets with full Android Market support

6. Can I check out e-books from my local library? 

Many local libraries offer the ability to check out an e-book on loan--just as you can do with a regular book. Previously, support for this varied across e-readers and tablets. However, now it's basically universal. The Kindle was the last major holdout, but as of September 21, Amazon's e-reader can be used to read free library loaners as well.

Library support is generally accomplished in one of three ways (all of which, of course, require you to have an account with your local library):

For dedicated e-readers--download and sync: Users of the Nook, Kobo, and Sony Readers can download e-book files from their local library's Web site and transfer them to the readers via a USB cable. You'll need free software such as Adobe Digital Editions to complete the process. The video below details the process on the Nook, but the process is similar on Kobo, Sony, and other EPUB-compatible readers. (You can also do a version of USB sync for the Kindle--see below.)

Get free library books on your Nook

For tablets, smartphones, and computers--OverDrive Media Console: If you're reading on a tablet (iPad or Android), a smartphone (iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Phone 7), or a computer (Windows or Mac), reading e-books from the library is far simpler. Just install the free OverDrive Media Console app. OverDrive will allow you to download and read library e-books--and MP3 audiobooks--within the app itself, without the need to sync up with a computer. (See the video below for more information.)

Get free e-books from the library

For Amazon Kindle (hardware or app): Amazon partnered with OverDrive to enable library lending, and the result is pretty seamless. Choose the e-book from the Web site of your local library, add the Kindle version to the cart, and check out. You'll be redirected to the book's corresponding Amazon page, where you can automatically send it to your Kindle reader or app (next time you sync via Wi-Fi), or you can download the file and sync via USB.

Read: How to get free library books on your Kindle

Amazon Kindle Owners' Lending Library: It's also worth mentioning that Amazon has its own version of a library. The Kindle Owners' Lending Library makes thousands of books available to Amazon Prime subscribers at no additional charge--think of it as "Netflix for books." (Prime costs $79 per year, and also entitles members to free two- day shipping on most physical Amazon orders, plus free access to thousands of streaming video titles on Amazon Instant.) There are many caveats: besides needing to pay the Prime membership fee, you can only "check out" one book per month, and it only works Kindle hardware (not via Kindle apps on other devices). The biggest issue is the comparative dearth of titles--less than 6,000 are available, with very few from the large publishing houses. And because of the licensing issues (read: potential loss of sales), don't count on more publishers signing on.

Current recommendations

As of September 2011, CNET can enthusiastically recommend three e-ink e-book readers and one full-size LCD tablet. We can also recommend two 7-inch LCD reading tablets with minor reservations. 

Best overall e-ink reader: Amazon Kindle Touch with Special Offers. Unlike the Nook Simple Touch, the Kindle supports audio (Audible audiobooks, MP3 playback, and text-to-voice autonarration). It's also a great touch-screen e-reader. Add support for library lending, the Kindle Owners' Lending Library (for Prime members), and integration with Amazon's world-class online store, and you've got an e-ink reader that edges out the competition for just $99. 

Best ad-free e-ink reader: Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch. Personally, we kind of like the "Special Offers" found on the ad-supported Kindle models. Some of the offers are useful (cheap e-books, local Groupon-style bargains), and they only appear on the Kindle's screen saver and main menu screen-- never within the books themselves. But some folks, with good reason, don't want any ads at all. For them, the Nook Simple Touch--ad-free at $99--is the best choice for a touch-screen e-ink reader.

Best bargain e-ink reader: Amazon Kindle. It's pretty much the only e-reader you can buy that doesn't have a touch-screen. Nor does it have the audio or "X-ray" (Wiki-powered metadata) features found on its big brother, the Kindle Touch, that costs only $20 more. But at $79 (with ads), the 2011 Kindle is the cheapest--and lightest--e-reader you can buy. And if you don't need touch-screen navigation and you don't do a lot of text input (for notes or social media), it's a pretty great basic e-reader.

Best sub-$250 color e-reader: Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet or Amazon Kindle Fire. We're not gonna lie: choosing between these two products is a game of inches. Both products are great deals at the price ($199 for Kindle Fire, $249 for the Nook Tablet), but each requires the user to be prepared for some compromises and caveats. To help figure it out based on your needs, check out Kindle Fire vs. Nook Tablet: How to choose.

Best full-featured reading tablet: Apple iPad 2. If you want a more full-featured tablet that can double as an e-book reader, the Apple iPad 2 is currently the best choice. It offers free Kindle, Nook, and Kobo reading apps, with full access to the content in those e-book stores. (Additionally, the iPad offers Apple's own iBooks application, though those e-books can't be accessed on any non-iOS device.) And the iPad's Good Reader app remains the best way to read, edit, and annotate PDF files that we've seen to date. To be fair, Android tablets also double as good e-book readers, with those same three major e-book apps available--but for $500, we'd still rather have an iPad. The Sony Tablet S and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 are currently our top-rated Android tablets.

Depending on what features are important to you--color versus black-and-white screen, backlight versus readability in the sun, touch screen versus not, cheap versus expensive, 3G versus Wi-Fi, lightweight versus heavy, reading-only versus full-featured--the device you prefer may be different from ours. However, there's no arguing that the range of choices for e-book readers is better and more affordable now than it ever has been. 

Share your thoughts and experiences about e-book reader preferences in the comments below.

Editors' note, November 23, 2011: This story has been updated since its original publication to reflect the latest products (including the Kindle Touch, Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet).

From : http://news.cnet.com

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