Each successive Apple iPhone that rolls out is a nipped and tucked offshoot of the previous model – with modifications that keep getting more and more sophisticated. However, in its fifth installment, is the iPhone 5 merely a retouched version of its predecessor?

What’s New

At 7.6mm, Apple’s new baby is the world’s thinnest smartphone. And if you thought the 960×640 resolution of the iPhone 4 didn’t play up the subtleties in your photos and videos quite enough, the newcomer’s 4-inch screen features a 1136×640 resolution Retina display. Each pixel doubles as a touch-sensing electrode, a departure from the double-layered touch screens of old that feature touch sensors below the pixel display. It is this clever quirk that enables the iPhone 5 to weigh a wispy 112 grams.

The A6 chip and iOS 6 mobile operating system join forces to deliver “twice the CPU and graphics performance,” claims the press release. Always striving to be superlative, Apple has created the first smartphone with LTE wireless capabilities, which support speeds of up to 150Mbps – a godsend for those who enjoy streaming movies on the go.

Critics have marveled at the ‘Panorama’ feature of the gadget’s 8 megapixel iSight camera, which “stitches” sequences of shots together to form a 240 degree photograph by swiping the phone across a scene. Furthermore, the camera’s sapphire crystal lens is more scratch-resistant and dust-deflecting than the iPhone 4’s standard glass lens. The 1.2 megapixel front-facing FaceTime camera is supported by cellular wideband audio that cancels background noise for clearer video calls.

Apple has bumped off Google Maps, supplanting it for software of its own that features real-time traffic data and turn-by-turn navigation. 3D rendering of major cities and tourism hotbeds is, for the most part, reliable; however, picture quality tends to deviate as users navigate away from these sites.

What the World Says

Despite Apple’s uncanny ability to stretch the iPhone’s product life cycle, technology experts are divided between the impressed and the skeptical. As the first iPhone to feature a 4G network, the iPhone 5 is “playing catch-up with other smartphones on the market,” according to David Bottomley, Business Editor of TODAY. The Economist rates the iPhone 5 a “five out of ten,” dismissing its new advances as “incremental changes.”

The new ‘Lightning’ dock connector has also caused considerable contention, as it renders the charging cables, car adapters and docks of previous models incompatible – unless users purchase the cable or plug adapter for $39 and $29 respectively. “These adapters should not be a profit center for Apple; they should be a gesture of kindness to those of us who’ve bought accessories based on the old connector,” wrote David Pogue in The New York Times.

These minor grievances notwithstanding, analysts have predicted sales of 10-12 million units this September, with stocks for online preorders having depleted within the hour of its 12:01am opening on September 14.

Should users of the iPhone 4 switch to the iPhone 5?

Apple idolaters will no doubt trade their iPhone 4 for the newbie – by no means a shortchange – however, those who watched Wednesday’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live may hesitate. ABC crew took to the streets to ask passersby to test the “new iPhone 5.” Subjects were handed the iPhone 4S, presumed to be the iPhone 5, and asked to compare. Not one person surmised the hoax. “Oh my God, it feels a lot lighter and more high quality!” one man enthused. Three others made remarks about its “superior” speed. One woman took out her iPhone 4, held it up next to the fake iPhone and nodded. “Yeah, that one’s definitely faster.”

While the spoof may have been a hilarious TV moment, audiences began to realize how media hype and trendsetting informs much of Apple’s brand loyalty. In a move that might seem self-effacing, Apple is enabling the iOS 6, the operating system which distinguishes the iPhone 5, to be downloaded for free onto previous models of the iPhone.

The iPhone 5 retails in the USA, UK and Canada on September 21.

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San Francisco, U.S.A. – 4G World 2012 Conference and Expo, the only conference and expo covering the entire ecosystem of next-generation 4G mobile broadband technologies, have opened the call for entries for its annual Best of 4G Awards program. The Best of 4G Awards will recognize those that are driving innovation and the adoption of 4G mobile broadband. Winners will be announced at the annual 4G World conference being held from October 29 to November 1, 2012 at McCormick Place in Chicago.

The Best of 4G Awards program includes a wide range of categories and is open to all members of the mobile ecosystem (including those not attending, supporting or participating in the 4G World Conference and Expo). An independent panel of judges, comprised of the industry’s leading analysts and academics, will review all submissions and select finalists and winners.

Award categories for this year’s Best of 4G Awards include:

• Mobile Broadband Technology Innovation
• RAN and Small Cell Technology Product
• 4G Smartphone and Tablet Product Innovation
• 4G Deployment (2012) by an Operator
• 4G Innovation by an Operator
• User Experience and Policy Management Solution
• Mobile Cloud Enabler
• Mobile Backhaul and Core Network Innovation
• Impactful M2M Application or Solution
• Solution for Spectrum Optimization
• Best ‘Connected Life’ Application or Solution
• Mobile Innovation by a Start-up

A product, service or solution may be submitted in multiple categories, with one entry per applicable category. The submission fee for each award entry is US$195. For more information on the Best of 4G Awards program, including details on award categories and links to the online submission form, visit http://www.4gworld.com/chicago/events/best-of-4g.php.

The call for entries closes on September 7, 2012. Finalists will be announced on September 25, 2012. Winners will be announced at the 4G World 2012 Awards Reception being held at the 4G World Conference and Expo on Monday, October 29, 2012.

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comScore, a leader in measuring the digital world, on February 09, 2012 released the 2012 U.S. Digital Future in Focus report. This annual report examines how the prevailing trends in social media, search, online video, digital advertising, mobile and e-commerce are defining the current marketplace and what these trends mean for the year ahead.

“2012 promises to be an exciting year for the digital media industry as the explosion of available content and proliferation of web-enabled devices drive the evolution of the digital consumer, creating new opportunities and challenges for the entire digital ecosystem,” said Linda Abraham, comScore CMO and EVP of Global Product Development. “In order to be successful in this new paradigm, digital marketers must understand the key trends shaping the current marketplace and what that means for the future of their businesses.”

Key insights from the 2012 U.S. Digital Future in Focus include:

Facebook-Led Social Media Market is Redefining Communication in the Digital and Physical Worlds

• Social Networking accounted for 16.6 percent of all online minutes at the end of 2011 and is on track to surpass Portals as the most engaging online activity in 2012. Facebook continues to lead as the driving force behind this shift in consumer behavior, accounting for the largest share of online minutes across the entire web in 2011.

Bing Gains Ground in Search

• Although Google maintains a strong lead in the U.S. search market, one of the most notable stories in search in 2011 was Bing’s positive growth trajectory. Bing closed out the year by surpassing Yahoo! for the #2 position among core search engines for the first time in its history, bolstered in part by its social search partnership with Facebook implemented in early 2011.

Online Video Boom Signals Sea Change in Video Ecosystem

• Online video viewing witnessed impressive gains across a variety of measures in 2011, signaling a behavioral shift in how Americans are consuming video content. More than 100 million Americans watched online video content on an average day to close out 2011, representing a 43-percent increase versus year ago.

Digital Advertising Enters Era of Increased Accountability as Brand Dollars Continue to Shift Online

• A staggering 4.8 trillion display ad impressions were delivered across the U.S. web in 2011 as brand advertisers continued to shift dollars to the digital medium. This shift in ad dollars has magnified the need for greater transparency and accountability in ad delivery across the digital advertising ecosystem.

Smartphone and Tablets Fuel the Rise of the Digital Omnivore

• The rise of smartphones and tablets has drastically altered consumers’ digital media consumption. In 2011, the majority of all mobile phone owners consumed mobile media on their device, marking an important milestone in the evolution of mobile from primarily a communication device to also a content consumption tool. At the end of the year, more than 8 percent of all digital traffic was consumed beyond the ‘classic web’ via devices such as smartphones and tablets.

E-Commerce is Back and Better Than Ever

• Despite the backdrop of continued economic uncertainty, 2011 was a strong year for retail e-commerce. Throughout the year, growth rates versus the prior year remained in double-digits to significantly outpace growth at brick-and-mortar retail. Total U.S. retail and travel-related e-commerce reached $256 billion in 2011, up 12 percent from 2010.

Webinar – 2012 U.S. Digital Future in Focus: Trends Every Marketer Needs to Know

Join Jeff Hackett, executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix, and Eli Goodman, comScore Media Evangelist, on Wednesday February 22nd at 2 PM EST, as they share key insights from the 2012 U.S. Digital Future in Focus report and discuss what these trends mean for today’s marketers. For more information and to register, please visit: http://www.comscore.com/2012_Future_in_Focus_Webinar

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Zendesk, the cloud-based help desk support platform, released an early look at its new Customer Satisfaction Index, showing that UK customers are the fifth happiest globally and second European-wide with the service they receive, with an 83 percent satisfaction rating. The index measured customer happiness across 65 million consumers in 137 countries.

Zendesk creates the Customer Satisfaction Index by analyzing data from 65 million customers via the Zendesk ‘Customer Satisfaction Rating’ feature. After a customer service request is solved, Zendesk enables companies to automatically contact their customers to collect feedback on the service that was provided.

Not only is this a quick and easy way to track customer satisfaction and reduce customer churn, it also provides tremendous insight into comprehensive customer satisfaction.

Considering countries with high gross domestic product, Australians and Canadians jointly share first place as the most satisfied customers in the world, coming in at a high 93 percent. This is followed by Germany at 88 percent, the United States at 87 percent, and the UK finishing off the top five at 83 percent.

From a European stand-point, the UK is second only to Germany in happy customers, while Spain and Italy follow close behind the UK at 81 percent each. France, however, trails behind, coming in the bottom of the table at 57 percent.

“The UK is an important vocal market for consumers. The proliferation of smartphone and tablet users has seen an increasing number turn to social media as the main means of customer support. As such, offering good customer service to this very public audience is imperative,” notes Mikkel Svane, Zendesk’s CEO.

This listing provides an early look at the type of information that readers can expect from Zendesk’s Customer Satisfaction Index. The full document will be published on a quarterly basis and will report on additional data, such as customer service efficiency and quality in various industries, geographies, and company size.

Kamira / Shutterstock.com

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Gazelle (www.gazelle.com), the nation’s largest consumer electronics direct-to-consumer reCommerce service, announced January 13 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the results of a survey that polled show-floor attendees to reveal connections between mobile phone ownership and one’s outlook on life.

The survey aimed to draw a correlation between one’s level of optimism or pessimism and the smartphone and tablet one owns. The results were particularly telling and, amongst the juiciest of findings, the survey pointed to the fact that 29% of iPhone owners expect the best in uncertain times, 3% more than the next set of users (Android).

The study also showed that 33% of BlackBerry users hardly ever expect things to go their way, suggesting an overall malaise amongst BlackBerry users.  Research also found that iPhone users were particularly resilient in these tough economic conditions with 36% saying they don’t get upset too easily, even during difficult economic times.

Because Gazelle accepts hundreds of thousands of consumer electronic trade-ins each year, the company serves as a unique barometer of U.S. consumer electronics consumption habits.  Gazelle is using CES to celebrate collective consumer love for gadgets and to better understand, with a twist, the sociology behind certain Smartphone and tablet users.

Below is a more in-depth look at how Apple, Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone users view their life outlook:

iPhone and iPad users are optimistic, calm and also social

• In uncertain times, 29% of iPhone users and 60% of iPad users expect the best
• 52% of iPhone users and 58% of iPad users are always optimistic about their future
• 25% of iPhone users and 26% of iPad users don’t get upset too easily
• 65% of iPhone users and 52% of iPad users enjoy their friends a lot

Android users are generally optimistic and active

• 28% of Android smartphone users and 36% of Android tablet users are always optimistic about their future
• 48% of Android smartphone users and 64% of Android tablet users think it’s important to keep busy
• 31% of Android smartphone users and 55% of Android tablet users often expect more good things to happen than bad
• 18% of Android smartphone users and 27% of Android tablet users don’t get upset too easily

BlackBerry users are pessimistic and uneasy about their future

• 33% of BlackBerry users believe if something can go wrong for them, it will
• 33% of BlackBerry users rarely count on good things happening to them
• 16% of BlackBerry users hardly ever expect things to go their way
• 0% of BlackBerry users usually expect the best

“Who knew that Apple users had such a promising outlook on life, while BlackBerry owners hardly expect things to go their way?” said Israel Ganot, co-founder and CEO of Gazelle. “Our survey aimed to celebrate the passion many at CES have for their gadgets and the latest and greatest trends in consumer electronics.

One of the reasons for the rapid growth of the reCommerce industry is that many have recognized the value possessed by used electronics and the lucrative benefits of trading in one’s gadgets for cash.”

Image Courtesy of    http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivyfield/

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Chili’s Grill & Bar takes digital integration to the next level by expanding the guest experience beyond the four walls of the restaurant and right into the palm of their hands. With an estimated 142 million smart phones sold this holiday season, new iPhone and Android users as well as smart phone veterans, can now enjoy the new Chili’s app, making location searches, driving directions, updated menu and online ordering available at just the push of a few buttons.

The new apps and mobile site are user-friendly with a clean interface, making it easy for new smart phone users and Digital Natives alike to search for the nearest restaurant with the geo-mapping function. Using the guest’s physical location, the technology allows users to find the phone number, address and driving directions to the closest Chili’s.

“With the constant evolution of technology, our world continues to receive information and entertainment at the touch of our fingertips,” said Edithann Ramey, senior director of marketing for Chili’s Grill & Bar. “Our guests lead busy lives and Chili’s is making it easier for them to enjoy the convenience of our bold menu offerings with these enhanced applications.”

Guests can peruse the menu browser option to choose exactly what they want to ease their hunger pains. Featured items for dine-in and To Go are all at the touch of a button including Chili’s $20 Dinner for 2, where guests select one appetizer and two entrees for one great price, and the brand’s Custom Combinations, which features any two entrees served with seasonal veggies and loaded mashed potatoes.

There are several ways to download the Chili’s app. From an iPhone, go to the App Store and type in a search for “chilis.” Follow the directions once the Chili’s icon pops up. To download the app from a computer, visit the iTunes store at www.apple.com/iTunes, plug in “chilis” into the search box to access the app. From Android Market, search for “chilis” to install the free application. For other smart phone users, simply visit www.chilistogo.com to view the mobile site with the same online ordering functionality as the iPhone and Android app.

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China mobile phone suppliers are producing more smartphones and 3G models as they ride the trend for all-in-one functionality. Price cuts are another key strategy as competition intensifies.

This is according to Global Sources‘ China Sourcing Report: Mobile Phones. The report covers the major products of China’s mobile phone industry, namely 3G, GSM and smartphones, and projector and QWERTY variants.

The report shows China manufacturers are carving a niche with lower-priced models to avoid the high-end dominated by top international brands. Even so, their releases offer a range of features, depending on the model and price point. These include dual-SIM functionality, touch-screens, web browsers, cameras, TVs, FM radios, MP3/MP4 players, video recorders, e-book readers and games.

Products incorporate Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and GPS, support GSM, CDMA and 3G networks. Among smartphones, the Android platform is gaining popularity, thanks to its open source attributes. Even so, Windows Mobile 6.5 will continue to have a solid foothold. Small and midsize manufacturers of 3G phones are offering W-CDMA and CDMA2000 models in expanding their overseas presence.

The first continues to dominate supply. In the months ahead, R&D efforts are expected to emphasize even better price-to-performance ratio, especially as more suppliers target emerging markets in South East Asia and South America.

Publisher of the report, Livia Yip, said: “In our survey, 96 percent of suppliers see their 2011 export volume surpassing last year’s sales. Nearly half of manufacturers project increases exceeding 20 percent. Besides their release of features-packed models, optimism for substantial orders growth stems from suppliers’ success in cultivating emerging markets.

For many companies, shipments to new markets such as Southeast Asia and South America collectively now match their volume to the EU, traditionally the main export destination.”

China suppliers cut prices for advantage in new, traditional markets

The report reveals that as competition tightens, most China suppliers are cutting their prices to gain an edge. While reductions are generally at 10 percent or lower, some surveyed companies plan to drop quotes by as much as 15 percent to attract more orders. About one-third of manufacturers, however, feel the need to increase prices slightly to compensate for higher expenditure amid rising labor costs and the yuan appreciation.

While some raw materials are becoming more expensive, the falling cost of chipsets in particular is enabling manufacturers to reduce quotes. Companies are confident that their price advantage and heightened product capability should boost sales in emerging markets, the EU and North America, which ranks as China’s third-largest market for mobile phones.

Supplier profiles, price forecasts, and the latest mobile phones for export

The 62-page China Sourcing Report: Mobile Phones provides detailed profiles of 25 suppliers with verified manufacturing and export credentials, plus contact details of 16 more suppliers. It also includes a Product Gallery featuring 63 of the most popular export models, with key specifications and full-color pictures.

The report’s survey, price trends and supply forecasts aim to help buyers make better-informed purchasing decisions.

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Leaving your wallet at home will not be a problem anymore with the new application by Google. Google Wallet is an Android app, only available on the USA for Nexus S 4G and Sprint phones, which literally transforms your phone into a wallet. The application launched at the same time Visa, Discover and American Express announced that they will join Google´s project.

So far Google Wallet works with Citi MasterCard and the Google Prepaid Card. Moreover, Google wanted to thank people who are adopting this new method of payment before the end of the year by adding a $10 free bonus to the Google prepaid Card. From now on people will be able to pay with one action — simply tapping their phone on a reader.

Google Wallet uses the NFC technology (Near Field Communication) that allows simplified transactions, data exchange, and wireless connections between two devices with up to a 10-centimeter distance.

Thinking about the protection of the ecosystem, the Google team created this app to help the environment. Instead of having a bunch of plastic credit cards, people will just need their phone. But that’s not all — Google Wallet offers a lot of other advantages such us having your loyalty cards, gift cards, receipts, boarding passes, tickets, even your keys attached to this app.

In addition, Google has created a web site, similar to the one that they created for Google Plus, where users can find tips and information about this new app. On this site, by typing in their zip code, people will also be able to look for the nearest location where they can use the new app.

Regarding privacy issues, Google won’t be able to know what customers have purchased. Google does record local transactions on the phone, but these transactions are only identified by amount and location and are only viewable to the users.

First reactions

Web site pages such as eWeek.com have already speculated in chances of failure of the new app. The site listed about four reasons why Google Wallet won’t succeed: The lack of knowledge from the users, the possibility that iPhone 5 release a similar application, the limited phone availability and the risk that Google Wallet won’t be rapidly adopted in the market.

On the other hand, the believers think that Google Wallet is a brilliant idea and they wonder why NFC technology has taken so long to be adopted in the US, since it already exists in Asia.

Moreover, the biggest opportunity that people see its use in is for Google Offers. One of the bloggers on Mashable.com published that “Google Offers as an app is a nice way to browse for deals, specials and coupons. You can clip those offers digitally to Google Wallet and then show the coupons at merchants, whether they are NFC-enabled or not.”

Over time, Google plans on expanding support to more phones. Google Wallet’s challenge will be to distinguish itself in a growing market. Some of its users also think that this is just the beginning of what is sure to be a great technology succeeds in less than two years.

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