Celeb Gadgets

Thanks to a variety of devices and smart pricing, smartphones based on Google’s OS may take over the US and global cellular market by 2014. Who will be the runner up? Clue: it doesn’t have an apple on the back of it. ArsTechnica website reports that Android based devices threaten to take second place from Apple’s iPhone in the American smartphones market and by the end of the year are expected to lead the market. The German research company,Gertner, believes that by 2014 Android based devices will rule the cellular market and their distribution will be second only to Nokia’s symbian devices. RIM’s Blackberry and Apple’s iPhone will settle for third and fourth place. Read the complete article on ifreshnews.com

Researchers at Fujitsu Laboratories have developed a wireless charging system that they say can simultaneously charge a variety of portable gadgets over a distance of several centimeters without the need for cables. The system, which will be detailed at a technical conference in Japan this week, could begin appearing in mobile phones and other products as soon as 2012, the company said. Wireless charging has been attracting increased interest in the last few years as the number of portable gadgets multiples. Manufacturers suppose that consumers are eager to get rid of the myriad of chargers and associated cables that can clutter up a modern home. Many of the wireless systems developed to date rely on inductive coupling between two coils -- a method that works over a very short distance and typically requires gadgets are placed on a charging pad. Inductive systems can also waste a lot of the power consumed. Read the complete article on pcworld.com

Google's week just keeps on getting better. Not only has it set the blogosphere buzzing with its post-Labor Day Google Doodle Mystery and the Wednesday news event announcing Google Instant, but now tech research company Gartner reports that Google's Android will be in striking distance of Nokia's Symbian system for world champion in mobile operating systems, leaping past Research in Motion's Blackberry and Apple's iPhone iOS. Read the complete article at MSN .

Devices running Google's Android mobile operating system now account for 25 percent of mobile web consumption in North America, up 2 percent month over month and an 18.6 percent year-over-year increase, according to new data published by web metrics firm Quantcast. Android's gains come at the expense of Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS, which now represents 56 percent of mobile web consumption, down 0.3 percent month-over-month and 11.4 percent year-over-year; Research In Motion's (NASDAQ:RIMM) also slipped, dropping 0.6 percent month-over-month and 1.6 percent year-over-year, and now accounts for 9.0 percent of mobile web use. Rival operating systems make up the remaining 10 percent, down 1.1 percent month-over-month and 5.7 percent year-over-year. Quantcast adds its research is based on more than 4 billion mobile pageviews reported during August 2010. Read more: FierceMobileContent

Shares of Adobe Systems Inc. jumped Thursday after Apple Inc. removed one obstacle keeping developers of mobile software for Apple's app store from using Adobe's technology. THE SPARK: Apple said that it will lift a ban on third-party software developers using tools that translate code written for other venues. That means app developers will be able to covert programs written with Adobe's Flash technology without having to rewrite them using a competing standard. THE BIG PICTURE: Apple CEO Steve Jobs has resisted allowing Flash on Apple's mobile gadgets, calling it outdated and unreliable. He favors alternatives such as HTML5. Because Apple products such as the iPhone and iPad have proven so popular, the company's resistance to Flash threatened to push more software developers away from Adobe's technology. SHARE ACTION: Adobe shares jumped $3.17, or 11 percent, to $32.48 in morning trading. Source: businessweek

If Samsung's Galaxy Tab reads like a how-to for making a decent Android tablet, Toshiba's Folio 100 seems to serve an opposite purpose (starting with that unfortunate name), which is disappointing for a company like Toshiba. The tablet just got official here at IFA, after being spotted on the show floor earlier today, but there's nothing in the press release to change our initial impressions of the device. There's a 1024 x 600 10.1-inch capacitive touchscreen, Tegra 2 under the hood, 16GB of built-in storage, SD card expansion, HDMI out, 802.11n WiFi, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, and Android 2.2 with Flash 10.1 running on top of it all. Toshiba claims 7 hours of battery of "regular" use (65% web browsing, 10% video playback, 25% standby), and everything is packed into a 0.55-inch thick form factor that weighs 1.7 pounds. Software-wise Toshiba has baked in Opera, Toshiba Media Player, FBReader, Fring (for video calls), Documents To Go, and Evernote, with Tos...

There was a time when going out for a run meant putting on some sneakers and leaving for a jog around the park. But if you need any indication of how far we’ve come, take a look at Nike’s latest Nike+ GPS app for the iPhone, released today on Apple’s App Store. Using the iPhone’s GPS and accelerometer, the app lets you track not only your pace, distance, and calories when you go out for runs, but visually maps your run routes on Google Maps, showing you where you went and at which exact points you sprinted or slowed down. Unlike previous Nike+ iPod offerings, no special sensors or kits are required for the app to function. A couple of features worth mentioning are voice feedback — which lets you know how you’re doing — and the ability to tap on the map at anytime to see how far you’ve come. Additionally, some will appreciate its integration with the popular PowerSongs feature from other Nike+ apps, which lets you setup and play specific songs for different types of runs. The ...