Mobile & Wireless

People already use their mobile devices for comparative shopping when paying visits to brick-and-mortar retailers – but it’s about to get a lot worse. Amazon has integrated shopping-by-camera functionality into its main iOS application, which is even easier than the previous barcode scanning feature it used to let shoppers compare prices. The image recognition feature Continue Reading →

Sony, which is essentially a non-player in the U.S. ebook market at this point, is cutting its losses and shutting down its digital bookstore in the U.S. and Canada, the company reported Thursday. “Sony is withdrawing from the digital reading business in the United States,” Sony spokeswoman Maya Wasserman confirmed. The beneficiary is Kobo, which Continue Reading →

Have you ever wanted to send flowers to someone “just because”? Backed by investors like Ashton Kutcher and Joe Montana, BloomThat on Thursday announced it raised a $2 million seed funding round. BloomThat also announced the launch of its mobile app, available as a free download in Apple’s iTunes store, which lets you quickly and Continue Reading →

Google officially introduced the latest KitKat version of its Android operating system in October last year, and despite three months passing, it continues to be installed on less than 2 percent of all active Android devices worldwide, according to new data. KitKat is installed on 1.8 percent of all Android phones or tablets that log Continue Reading →

Recent leaks have shown us that Samsung is working on a gorgeous new user interface that will likely debut on its flagship Galaxy S5 smartphone later this month. While the UI borrows from Google Now and Windows Phone in some areas, a brief closer look at Samsung’s new S Voice app suggested that much of Continue Reading →

Have U.S. Internet users’ worst fears just been realized? A new report from iScan Online programmer David Raphael claims to confirm that Verizon, which you might recall helped lead the charge against net neutrality regulations, has begun limiting the bandwidth utilized by certain websites for its FiOS Internet subscribers. In a blog post on Wednesday, Continue Reading →

Say you’re going to Sochi for the Winter Olympics. You’ve magically found a hotel that’s actually complete and not full of trash and construction equipment. Crisis averted, right? Not quite—because as NBC Nightly News’ experiment shows, your computer or smartphone could be hacked in seconds in Sochi. Hackers will be going after your computer or Continue Reading →

AT&T is no longer offering to pay hundreds of dollars to T-Mobile customers willing to switch to its network. Since Jan. 3, AT&T had been giving up to $450 in credit to T-Mobile customers, a preemptive strike made days before T-Mobile launched its own campaign aimed at switchers. AT&T confirmed to Re/code on Monday that Continue Reading →

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler expressed his skepticism about a potential merger between Sprint Corp and T-Mobile US Inc in a meeting with Sprint Chairman Masayoshi Son on Monday, according to an FCC official briefed on the matter. Son, chief executive at Tokyo-based SoftBank Corp, which acquired Sprint last year, met with the top Continue Reading →

Foursquare is getting some help from Microsoft as it seeks to turn its location-based mobile app into a sustainable business. Microsoft has invested $15 million and agreed to a strategic partnership with the New York-based startup, Chief Executive Dennis Crowley said in an interview. The investment will be added to the $35 million investment round Continue Reading →