Verizon posts

Droid Does... only have 256MB of storage for apps

by Jay Hathaway Nov 9th 2009

Motorola's Droid is a sweet piece of hardware that's hyped to give the iPhone a run for its money, especially since it's running the new Android 2.0 OS, and works on the Verizon network in the US. We care about software here at Download Squad though, and there's some dismaying news about the Droid on that front: it has only 256MB for app storage. Seriously.

The Droid reportedly only packs a 512MB ROM (that's the built-in memory), of which only half is allocated for apps. There are some iPhone games that couldn't even fit in that teeny-weeny storage space! But at least it's expandable, right? Um, nope. Google doesn't support installing apps to the SD cards that Motorola relies on, so developers are pretty limited in terms of file sizes for their Android 2.0 software.

The Droid may have a solid CPU and GPU for gaming, but games that take full advantage of that hardware are likely to need 100 megabytes or more of storage space. That's going to make things pretty tough until Android 2.0 comes to a device with a lot more pre-installed flash memory.

[via Daring Fireball]

UPDATE: While it's true that the Droid only has 256MB for apps, commenters have pointed out that various resources for the apps (graphics, etc.) CAN be stored on the device's SD cards. It looks like the situation isn't as bad as the numbers seem to indicate at first.

Tags: android, apps, droid, motorola, storage, verizon

Filed under: OS Updates, Mobile, Android

Android 2.0 gets Facebook integration and a car mode

by Jay Hathaway Oct 19th 2009

When you hear that there's a new iPhone-killing Google Android phone that's coming to Verizon and has a name straight out of Star Wars - the Droid - it's easy to get so excited that you forget about the software side of things. Yes indeed, Android 2.0 is coming, and it has a spate of hot new features that might legitimately make iPhone users jealous. Gadget-blog Boy Genius Report ended up with a pre-release copy of Android 2.0 and posted a walkthrough of the OS's new features, including Facebook support in the address book, and a Car Home mode for drivers.

Facebook contact syncing is a pretty sweet feature on its own, but combine that with Android 2.0's new unified inbox – which collects messages from multiple email addresses (including Exchange accounts) and Facebook messages - and you've got a pretty sweet address book system. BGR says that Gmail accounts are handled in a separate app, which is presumably better able to support Gmail's many features. Car Home is a dashboard for using your phone in the car. It provides voice access to the apps you need when you're driving, so you can dial numbers or search for something on Google Maps without taking your hands off the wheel.

We won't know how cool the Droid is until we can actually touch one, but BGR reports that Android 2.0's software keyboard offers a nice haptic response – that slight vibration that lets you know when you're pressing keys. That puts it well ahead of other non-iPhone touchscreen smartphones (I'm looking at you, BlackBerry Storm), and I can't wait to give a Droid a try for myself.

Tags: android 2.0, Android2.0, droid, google android, GoogleAndroid, iphone killers, IphoneKillers, mobile, verizon

Filed under: News, Apple, Google, Open Source, Mobile, Lists, Android, Op-Ed

Preemptive FAIL : Five easy things Verizon isn't doing to fix Android

by Grant Robertson Oct 6th 2009

It's all over the place; Verizon is embracing Android. Google loving apologist geeks everywhere are heralding the 85 million new customers -- who are obviously ready to try Android, if only Verizon would let them -- as the beginning of a new era in mobile phone competition. The cries of panacea are all I've heard all day:

"It's going to be a floodgate of new users! "

"Death to the iPhone!"

And, as one particularly difficult to satisfy commenter on another blog wrote:

"Get over yourselves apple and make a new product."

I'll have to admit, as a current G2, and previous G1 owner, I was a little excited myself. Then I read one thing from the joint Verizon/Google press call which made me crestfallen.

"Verizon also has no plans to make any changes to the Android Market."

And with that, all my dreams of an Android controlled world ran away like so much sand through my fingers. This is an enormous mistake, Verizon. Care to know why? The Android Market is terrible. It's worse than terrible, it's horrible.

Horrible, and just a little bit dangerous.

I've got a list of five things Verizon must do to the Android Market if they're to have any hope of even modest success.

Tags: android, bad ideas, BadIdeas, FAIL, G1, G2, iphone, lists, market, verizon

Filed under: Internet, Video

Starz kills Vongo online movie service

by Brad Linder Aug 12th 2008

It seems like every day a new company is launching a new way to stream movies online or download them to your computer. Today, there's one less. Vongo, a service provided by Starz Entertainment, was one of the first major players in the online movie space. But it looks like Starz has decided to pull the plug on Vongo.

Starz will now focus on Starz Play, a service the company recently launched for Verizon. Starz Play looks and feels a lot like Vongo -- but it has Verizon branding all over it. Starz is pursuing similar partnerships with other companies.

Current Vongo customers can continue using the service through September 30th. There's some good news in the announcement. Vongo customers paid $9.99 a month for unlimited movie downloads. Starz Play charges just $5.99 for access to the same content library.

[via NewTeeVee]

Tags: online-video, starz, starz-play, verizon, video-downloads, vongo

Filed under: Weekend Review

Download Squad Week in Review

by Brad Linder Nov 10th 2007

It's been a busy week here at Download Squad HQ. We produced our first ever Squadcast, spent way too much time playing with our new Eee PC, and drafted a plan for fixing our parents' broken computer over the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Here's what you might have missed if you weren't paying attention this week. And shame on you for that, by the way.

The Squadcast: Episode #01

Download Squad's Grant Robertson and Christina Warren got together to talk shop. On the menu this week, first impressions and problems with OS X Leopard, the Eee PC, and using IMAP with Gmail. As you can probably guess from the title, this is the first episode of the Squadcat, but it will not be the last.

Eee PC tips: A crash course in Linux

Last week we gave you a first look at the new $400, Linux-based Eee PC from Asus. This week we started digging into the software and figuring out how to configure the Eee PC to make it act a bit less like a toy and more like a computer. If you're new to Linux, this tutorial is a must read.

Tags: eee-pc, emoze, fios, itunes, linux, troubleshooting, verizon

Filed under: Internet

Verizon FIOS customers getting searchjacked

by Ted Wallingford Nov 9th 2007

It appears that Google and Yahoo aren't the only game in town when it comes to search, though they may be the only ones not benefiting from an arguably underhanded tactic called searchjacking. When you key in a typo on Google, you're often given a suggestion, a la "did you mean to say" followed by what Google thinks is the actual keyword you fat-fingered.

But, if you're a Verizon FIOS customer, you may have ended up at a Verizon-branded search page without even trying, because the big telco sometimes takes a different approach with your typos. That is, if you mistype a URL into your browser on the high-speed fiber service, there's a decent chance you'll end up at Verizon's search page instead of the familiar 'Page Cannot be Displayed' message.

The term searchjacking was first used to describe Internet Explorer's tendency to redirect user's to a Microsoft-branded search page when they've mis-typed a URL or experience a DNS name lookup failure. Well, it looks like Verizon has decided to take the low road as well. The objective, of course, is to sell ads on Verizon's customer portal. But one wonders just how large the accidental content delivery market really is.

Tags: search, verizon

Filed under: Internet

Verizon tees up 20 mbit residential fiber

by Ted Wallingford Oct 24th 2007

If you want more Internet access speed, your options are getting more and more. Thanks to services like AT&T's UVERSE Elite offering, next-generation broadband over copper cables is beginning to show up as a legit service (as opposed to the do-it-yourself approach), giving its users effective speeds of up to 6 mbits/second downloading and 1 mbit uploading, or about double what most users can expect out of a standard residential DSL service.

But for the true bandwidth junky, there's nothing (yet) that can come close to Verizon's symmetrical FiOS service, which doesn't place a speed limit on uploading. This is a big shift of attitude for a telco-based ISP like Verizon. Even better, FiOS users will enjoy 20 mbits/sec of unadulterated speed delivered using fiber, not copper. The only catch is that Verizon's FiOS network footprint is still tiny. Only pockets of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut are able to jump on board at this point.

In the meantime, those of us in flyover country will just keep shleppin' it with our 1.5 mbit DSL.

Tags: dsl, fiber, fios, uverse, verizon

Filed under: Business, Google

Chances are, Google Phone won't show up at the Verizon Store

by Ted Wallingford Oct 4th 2007

As Google and Verizon are locked in a tiff over the way 700 MHz radio spectrum is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission, it looks less and less likely that we're going to see the forthcoming Google Phone at wireless retail stores when it finally hits the market. Google contends that the licensee of the radio spectrum should be forced to sell "unlocked" devices, therefore permitting open applications on their network, a move which would certainly benefit Google and other powers whose bread and butter is mainly software.

Verizon, on the other hand, argues that they don't need to make unlocked phones available, since it's possible to get unlocked phones from other sources. Google's response? Big carrier retail sells 95% of the phones in North America, so arguably less than 5% of available phones are unlocked and open. Google, of course, isn't accustomed to having access to just 5% of the market these days. Nevertheless, the spectrum license reads as follows (quoted from Google's public policy blog):

"[Licensee] shall not deny, limit, or restrict the ability of their customers to use the devices and applications of their choice."

It's a clash of business models. Verizon makes money by selling applications they control. Google makes money by giving applications away and monetizing the mindshare they gain by doing so. Wireless is a wild frontier for somebody like Google, because the power brokers in the cellular industry don't want to compete with new players from other spaces, like a search engine company.

Bottom line, it doesn't look like the Google Phone is going to be on Verizon's store shelves, and something tells me Google isn't about to start a retail chain of its own.

Tags: fcc, google, radio, spectrum, verizon

Filed under: Macintosh, Mobile Minute

Apple WWAN support for Sprint, Verizon

by Ted Wallingford Aug 29th 2007

For those of you who don't regularly keep tabs on your Software Update notifications, Apple released its WWAN support update 1.0 via software update, offering improved wireless broadband support for AT&T/Cingular, Sprint, and Verizon networks. The update was actually released in February, but it flew under my radar as, being a Macbook user with no PCMCIA slot, I didn't realize there was a Mac-compatible USB WWAN adapter. So if you've been looking to get your Apple laptop onto wireless broadband, now would be the time. No guarantees that the retail clerk won't run in terror when you tote your scary Apple-logo-carrying laptop into the wireless store, though.

So you can successfully convince Mac-wary retailers that their wireless cards will indeed work with your "weird computer", here's the info you need. The update includes drivers for Novatel EVDO and HSDPA cards--which are chief among those being sold at wireless retail. They've also added support for Novatel's Ovation USB adapter--handy for all us Macbook users who don't have a PCMCIA slot. Just make sure your Mac laptop is an Intel-based one. This update won't work with PowerPC-based Macs.

Tags: cingular, mac, ovation, sprint, verizon

Filed under: Internet, Video

Upload videos to YouTube with a Verizon phone

by Brad Linder Jul 24th 2007

Verizon Wireless customers can now shoot and record videos on a cellphone and then upload them to YouTube by dialing 98823, which happens to spell YTUBE.

You'll need to add your cellphone number to your YouTube account by visiting www.youtube.com/mobile. You don't need Verizon's V CAST service to upload movies, but the $3/day or $15/month service will let you watch videos. Or you can just eat into your data minutes by visiting YouTube's mobile site.

So let's see. You can upload videos from your phone, you can update your blog from your phone, and you can make phone calls from your computer. What's this world coming to?

[via SolSie]

Tags: cellphone, mobile phone, MobilePhone, verizon, verizon wireless, VerizonWireless, youtube

Filed under: Business, Developer, Finance, Microsoft

Software Patents - good or evil?

by Jason Clarke Jun 12th 2007

The New York Times published an opinion piece by Timothy B. Lee yesterday that compares the current patent conflict between Vonage and Verizon to the software patent landscape of the early 1990's. Back then, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates published a memo to Microsoft's senior management extolling the evils of software patents, claiming that they could lead to a complete stall in technological advancement.

Of course, today Microsoft owns a massive number of patents, and actively uses them to protect their position in the market. And the Vonage / Verizon patent dispute is a shining example of how patents can be used to attempt to kill technological advancement.

So, here's your chance to sound off and spout your opinion. We want to know if the ability to acquire a patent for a software process is good, or evil. For the purposes of this discussion, "good" is defined as supporting technological advancement, whereas "evil" refers to technological stagnation. As much as the example given here clearly shows a bias, there are probably good arguments from both sides of this debate; let's hear them.

Tags: Microsoft patents, MicrosoftPatents, patent debate, PatentDebate, Patents, software patent debate, Software Patents, SoftwarePatentDebate, SoftwarePatents, Verizon, Vonage, Vonage Verizon, VonageVerizon

Filed under: Audio, Internet, VoIP

Vonage might survive after all: finds patent workarounds

by Brad Linder May 11th 2007

Last month Vonage officials said they weren't sure they could find a way to continue offering VoIP telephone service without using technology that a jury said infringed on patents held by Verizon. But it seems like things are looking up for the troubled company.

During a quarterly earnings call, Vonage CEO Jeffrey Citron said the company would be ready to roll out a workaround for two of the patents its said to be violating soon. They're still working on a way to get around a third patent which applies to wireless transmission of phone calls.

There's no word on exactly what these workarounds will entail. Vonage is seeking an appeal in its case against Verizon, but a federal judge had already ordered the company to stop signing up new customers. That order has been stayed, but it seems like a generally good idea for Vonage to explore alternative technologies whether they're successful on appeal or not.

Tags: lawsuit, legal, patent, patents, verizon, vonage

Filed under: Internet, News, VoIP

Court rejects Vonage's request for retrial

by Brad Linder May 4th 2007

Well, you got to hand it to them for trying. On Wednesday Vonage requested a new trial in their patent infringement case. Verizon claims that Vonage's internet telephony technology is based on patents held by the phone company. But Thursday, the appeals court denied the request for a retrial.

Vonage had hoped that a recent Supreme Court ruling would give reason for a new trial. The Supreme Court basically said too many patents have been given out for obvious technologies. The appeals court said Vonage can cite that ruling in its appeal, but that there weren't sufficient grounds for trying the case over again.

If you're getting whiplash from the back and forth, here's the score: Vonage can still continue business as usual while the appeal is pending. If it loses the appeal, there's a good chance the company will be put out of business.

Tags: court, legal, verizon, vonage

Filed under: Internet, VoIP

Vonage V. Verizon update: Vonage gets to add new subscribers

by Brad Linder Apr 24th 2007

It looks like a federal appeals court has issued a permanent stay on a lower court ruling banning Vonage from signing up new customers.

Earlier this year a jury found that Vonage's internet telephony service violates patents held by Verizon, kicking off a whole slew of legal troubles for Vonage.

Today's ruling came just two hours after the appeals court heard arguments from the two sides.

The stay only applies while Vonage is appealing the initial ruling. If Vonage loses the appeal, the company could be finished. That said, Vonage stock jumped closed to 50% today on the first good news the company's had in months.

Tags: legal, patent, telephone, telephony, verizon, vonage

Filed under: Internet, VoIP

Vonage sees no workaround to Verizon's VoIP patent

by Brad Linder Apr 17th 2007

Remember how Vonage said it would try to find a way to continue providing internet telephone service to customers without violating Verizon's patent? Yeah, that might not work.

Last month, a federal jury found that Vonage's VoIP technology violated patents held by Verizon. A judge ordered Vonage to stop signing up new customers, but that order was stayed pending appeal.

Now it looks like all of Vonage's eggs are in that appeals basket. Because the company says Verizon's patent is so broad that it might not be possible to pass phone calls between the internet and telephone lines without violating (or licensing) Verizon's intellectual property.

On Friday, Vonage filed documents that suggest it would take months to set up a technical workaround -- if one could even be found. The company predicts (probably correctly) that its current customers would not stick around waiting for such a workaround to be found.

[via Techdirt]

Tags: lawsuit, patent, verizon, vonage

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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