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Smartphone can be handy when severe weather approaches 0

The severe weather season is underway, and with it comes the likelihood that you will have to take steps to protect yourself and your family in case of a tornado, hurricane or other serious weather event.

tornado2_artYour smartphone can connect you to a source of emergency information that notifies you of severe weather events. It’s called the Wireless Emergency Alert, or WEA, and it is similar to the Emergency Alert System that broadcasters use.

The WEA is a cooperative effort between wireless service providers, the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It delivers text message-like warnings to areas facing an imminent weather threat, such as tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis and high winds.

A WEA-enabled phone will receive alerts based on your current location, rather than your home service area, if the phone is using a cell tower in the location you are in. These message often complement alerts issued by local agencies that are sent to your mobile device.

The WEA is also broadcast for child abduction incidents, called Amber Alerts, and for presidential bulletins regarding national emergencies. This service is offered for free by wireless carriers, and WEA messages do not count towards texting limits on your wireless plan.

WEA messages have been issued for the past two years. Most newer handsets, including smartphones, are capable of receiving these alerts. You may check with your service provider to see if your device is WEA capable.

 

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Android nudges past Apple’s iOS in mobile ad traffic 0

Advertising traffic on mobile devices operating on Google’s Android platform has surpassed that on iOS for the first time.

android_artA new quarterly report from San Mateo, Calif.-based Opera Mediaworks on the state of mobile advertising puts Android as the overall smart device platform, with 42.8 percent of all traffic, compared to iOS’ 38.2 percent of traffic.

The report could be a factor for content marketing pros in their decisions on which device platform is best suited for their company’s efforts to reach the most customers.

Apple’s iOS remains the revenue leader, accounting for 52 percent of total ad traffic revenue. But Android is catching up, accounting for just over 33 percent of total revenue, up from 26.72 percent last year.

As Android-operating phones continue to improve, advertisers shifted from an almost exclusive preference for the iPhone market toward the much larger number of consumers who use mobile devices with Google’s operating system.

The result, according to Opera, is a substantial growth in ad traffic not only on Android devices, but tablets running on the system as well.

 

We are MyMobileLyfe and we can help your company develop a content marketing strategy to reach people on the go. Click here to contact us.

 

 

Why people like educational apps 0

Why do people buy educational apps for their mobile devices?

For kids and their parents, educational apps offer fun and creative ways to learn. Apps like Sprout Games and Videos for the iPad and First Words with Phonics for Windows motivate kids to work on their reading, math and other classroom skills, often using a familiar character like Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat.

A study by global trade organization MEF finds that 17 percent of mobile device users worldwide download an educational app. In its recently released report analyzing regional and global trends for mobile education products and services, MEF finds that educational apps rank ninth among all app categories.

But learning is not the prime motivation for people downloading education apps. Many users see them as playful or fun; the MEF study finds that 47 percent of people who buy an app from an educational site cited the entertainment value.

You can read more about MEF’s study in the infographic below.

educationapps_art

We are MyMobileLyfe and we can help your company develop a content marketing strategy to reach people on the go. Click here to contact us.

 

Starwood Hotels launching Google Glass app 0

Did you buy a pair of Google Glass eyewear at this week’s one-day only blowout? You now have a use for them.

googleglass_artOne day after Google — according to some reports — exhausted its stock of the computer-equipped eyewear after offering the $1,500 devices at a one-day public sale to U.S. residents, Starwood Hotels announced plans to release an app that lets Google Glass wearers search its 1,100 hotels and resorts and reserve a room with voice commands.

The SPG for Glass app also allows users to get turn-by-turn directions, access up to date account information and explore hotel photos. A beta version of the app is undergoing testing.

It’s the latest tech-savvy move for the Stamford, Conn.-based lodging chain. As we posted recently, Starwood is working on a new virtual door key system for its hotels that allow guests to enter their rooms using an app on their smartphones, which would unlock the door via Bluetooth technology.

Agreement makes ‘kill switch’ standard on smartphones by 2015 0

The “kill switch” technology that can remotely disable a stolen smartphone will soon be standard by the summer of 2015.

lockedphone_artA new initiative announced this week by the wireless trade group CTIA has the backing of phone manufacturers Apple, Google, Samsung, Microsoft and others, and wireless carriers including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon.

Under the terms of the Smartphone Anti-Theft Voluntary Commitment, smartphones manufactured after July 2015 for sale in the United States will have the technology to render the phone inoperable if it is stolen, remotely wipe out all data, and prevent reactivation without the authorized user’s permission.

The technology would also allow the reversal of the smartphone’s inoperability and retrieval of data if it is recovered by the authorized user.

The technology will be offered at no cost to consumers.

As we have posted before, theft is a serious problem confronting owners of mobile devices. In major cities like New York and San Francisco, smartphone theft accounts for half of all robberies.

It is estimated that it costs consumers about $580 million a year to replace stolen smartphones and about $4.8 billion a year in premiums to insure the handsets. The idea is for the disabling technology to be an effective deterrent by making the smartphones worthless to thieves.

The pledge marks a reversal by wireless carriers, which had resisted pressure from state lawmakers to make the kill-switch technology mandatory.

California legislators earlier this year introduced a bill requiring the technology to be installed in smartphones, and Minnesota’s legislature is poised to adopt a similar bill. Federal lawmakers proposed legislation in the House as well.

The CTIA had also originally opposed making the technology mandatory, citing potential hacking and privacy risks that could affected entire groups of smartphone customers.

Says Steve Largent, president and CEO of the CTIA:

“We appreciate the commitment made by these companies to protect wireless users in the event their smartphones are lost or stolen. … At the same time, it’s important different technologies are available so that a ‘trap door’ isn’t created that could be exploited by hackers and criminals. By working together with policymakers, law enforcement and consumers, we will deter theft and protect users’ personal information on smartphones.”

 

 

Google Glass’ one-day only offer 0

Talk about one-day only sales.

googleglass_artGoogle is making its groundbreaking Google Glass available to anyone who wants to purchase a pair. The computer-equipped eyewear will be available for purchase for a single day, April 15, and only to U.S. residents who sign up in advance or return to Google’s site at 9 a.m. on that date. Orders will include a free sunglass shade or one of its newly introduced prescription glasses frames.

The offer is an expansion of Google’s Explorer Program that makes the eyewear available to select users who act as brand ambassadors.

Says Google:

“To discover new places, sometimes we need to leave the map behind. And that’s what Glass Explorers do. They are the first to make, to tinker, to create, to shape, and to share through Glass. We’re expanding little by little, and experimenting with different ways of bringing new Explorers into the program.”

With this controlled step the company is putting the $1,500 devices in the hands – or rather, on the faces – of more people in advance of the device’s launch to the general public.

The Verge first reported the plans for Google Glass, citing leaked slideshows detailing the promotion plans.

Choices to make: mobile app or website 0

As the population of consumers using mobile devices continues to rise, companies have decisions to make. Should they develop mobile device apps, or optimize their websites to be viewed on smartphones?

This infographic by Boca Raton, Fla.-based MDG Advertising helps break it down. Let us know what you think.

mobileapp_art

 

Older Americans favor tablets, e-book readers 0

olderadults1_artA new study says older adults are favoring tablets and e-book readers over smartphones, even as smartphone ownership among Americans has exceeded 50 percent.

Only 18 percent of Americans 65 and older own a smartphone, up from 11 percent in 2011, the Pew Internet Research Project says in its study released today.

They are gravitating to tablet computers and e-book readers. Some 18% of seniors own an e-book reader, and an identical 18% own a tablet computer. Taken together, 27% of older adults own a tablet, an e-book reader, or both.

This is even as older people consider them primarily “elite” devices, according to Pew. Older consumers who graduated from college and have annual incomes of $75,000 or more are three times as likely to own a tablet or e-book reader as those without college degrees and substantially lower incomes.

Still, e-book reader ownership among seniors remains lower than the national average — 24 percent of all U.S. adults own the devices. Tablet ownership among older users is about half the national average of 34 percent.

Older Americans also continue to stay relatively detached from online and mobile life, according to Pew — 41 percent do not use the Internet at all, 53 percent do not have broadband access at home, and 23 percent do not use cell phones of any kind.

A glance at who’s wearing the wearables 0

The person most likely to own wearable technology is in his mid to upper 20s, earns a pretty good salary and had embraced tech gadgets at an early age. And if they get their wish, the next device may come in the form of a jeweled pendant.

smartwatch_artWearable tech – smart watches, Google Glass, fitness bands and the like – is growing in acceptance and popularity, and companies are investing heavily in the potential market of users. The market forecast for wearables is projected to hit more than $1.5 billion this year. That’s an emerging opportunity for producers of content to exploit.

So, who are these people who wear their tech? And what is the appeal of it?

The research firm Nielsen turned to those consumers who are already using the devices, and in its recently released Connected Life Report found out that:

  • The majority of those owning wearables are young adults, with nearly half between 18 and 34. They typically have the disposable income for the devices, with 29 percent earning over $100,000 a year.
  • Fitness bands are the most popular devices, with 61 percent of those surveyed by Nielsen owning them, followed by smart watches (45 percent) and mobile health devices (17 percent). However, 72 percent of those surveyed wished wearables were less expensive.
  • Those owning wearables are not technology novices. Three-quarters of the owners consider themselves “early adopters” of technology.
  • This may get designers’ attention: Nielsen found that 62 percent of those surveyed would like wearables in forms other than wrist bands and watches, and 53 percent would like to seem wearables look more like jewelry.

Nielsen obtained the results from 3,956 adults 18 and over who completed the survey in November 2013.

Smartphone ‘kill switch’ could save consumers billions, researcher says 0

Technology that can render a stolen smartphone worthless to thieves could save consumers $2.6 billion a year in product replacement and insurance premiums if it significantly reduces thefts of the devices, a new report says.

lockedphone_artThe study by Creighton University researcher William Duckworth is the latest argument for the installation of so-called “kill switch” technology in smartphones. California became the first state in the nation to propose making the disabling technology mandatory on the devices when state legislators proposed a bill in February. Federal lawmakers are also considering legislation in Washington.

Wireless carriers have mostly resisted these requests, and the wireless trade group CTIA has come out in opposition, citing potential hacking and privacy risks that could affect entire groups of smartphone customers.

Duckworth, an assistant professor of statistics, data science and analytics at Creighton, surveyed 1,200 smartphone owners in February using ResearchNow and reviewed the average cost of the devices and insurance as part of his study.

Duckworth estimated that it costs consumers about $580 million a year to replace stolen smartphones and another $4.8 billion annually to insure premium handsets like the iPhone. Duckworth summarizes in his report:

“A stolen smartphone – such as the iPhone 5S – could sell for $800 or more in the United States and overseas. For criminals, a stolen phone could be worth more than a stolen wallet, a tablet, or even a laptop.”

The professor said his research showed that if the kill switch technology proves an effective deterrent by rendering stolen smartphones useless, leaving no incentive for thieves to steal them, most of the $580 million spent by users to replace the devices would be saved.

Another $2 billion a year would be saved by customers who switch to cheaper insurance coverage for their devices. Duckworth says at least half of smartphone users would do this if the disabling technology reduced the theft threat.

Says Duckworth:

“Overall, it seems clear that Americans want the Kill Switch and that an industry-wide implementation of the technology could significantly improve public safety and save consumers billions of dollars a year.”

Duckworth’s survey also found that:

  • 99 percent of smartphone owners believe wireless carries should allow consumers the option to disable the device if it is stolen
  • 93 percent believe owners should not be expected to pay extra for the ability to disable a stolen phone
  • 83 percent believe a kill switch would reduce smartphone theft.