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1. Virtual Machines

One method of making a personal phone safe for work data is through software installed onto your personal phone by your employer. Mobile Device Management (MDM) software like Microsoft’s system Center can control settings on your phone, making sure your security setup is safe for work data. another option is virtual machine software like VMware’s MVP, which was demonstrated at CES on an Android-powered LG phone, which allows a phone to maintain a separate business environment with its own apps and settings, like a phone within a phone, making a clear distinction between work and personal data. These solutions are still very new, so they may not be an option yet at your workplace.

2. Remote Desktop

Similar to using a virtual machine, there are many apps that allow a smartphone to access a Mac or PC, letting you see and control the programs running on the faraway computer. Examples include TeamViewer on iOS and Android, or LogMeIn on iOS and LogMeIn Ignition on Android. such remote desktop apps provide another way to have a clear line between work and personal data, but this method relies heavily on having a reliable data connection. Without that, you won’t be able to see your work computer or access any of its programs or data.

3. Proxy Account

For some purposes, there are ways to access the data from one type of account via another account. For example, using forwarding and filters, it’s possible to forward messages from your work email account automatically to a specific folder or label in your personal account. this is also common on calendars, where you could give your Google Apps for Business Calendar work account full proxy access to allowing you to see and manage it through your personal Google Calendar. you can even use Google Voice to forward calls from one of your numbers to the other. Some of these options are available through other systems as well, like Exchange with Outlook.

4. Multiple Accounts

LogMeIn IgnitionHaving multiple accounts, similar to using multiple login profiles on a computer, is another possibility. though Android phones don’t provide multiple profiles, they do allow syncing with multiple Google accounts. Google’s Calendar app uses this to display calendars from multiple accounts, all comingled on the same screen. Google’s Gmail app does something similar, but keeps the data from multiple accounts separate, allowing you to switch among them. you can even have different notification sounds for each account, so you know by the tone when work or personal email arrives. Windows Phone 7.5 just added some limited syncing options as well, allowing access to 25 Google calendars on a handset, and a “Send Mail As” option that can include your work email address.

5. Multiple Apps

For those instances where one app won’t work for both work and personal purposes, then two apps will have to do. On any phone this is common for email, where you might use the Gmail or Yahoo mobile apps for personal mail, and the Email app which can use Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync for access to your company’s Exchange server. If you want to keep your Web browser bookmarks, cookies, and cache separate, you can use the default smartphone browser for personal while installing another browser, like Dolphin, on Android and iOS for work.

What’s best?

What method works best for you depends on your circumstances. In general, comingling your data isn’t a good idea, and many companies have policies against accessing your work mail through a personal email account. In a business where data security is vital, MDM or virtual machine software is best. If you always have a strong data connection from your smartphone, a remote desktop app will also keep sensitive data safe. Short of that, most people are likely to have a mix of apps that support multiple accounts, like Gmail on Android for their email, while using multiple apps for other activities where one app can’t do both.

Joseph Fieber has 25 years experience as an IT pro, with a background in computer consulting and software training. Follow him on Google+, Facebook, or Twitter, or contact him through his website, JosephFieber.com.

Five Ways to Mix Business and Personal Data on Your Smartphone

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Holiday shoppers whipped out their mobile phones to help them find the best deals, in yet another sign of how the cell phone is becoming more and more of a shopping and e-commerce tool.

More than half of U.S. cell phone owners said they used their phones at least once during the holiday shopping season, using it to call a friend for shopping advice, to look up product reviews while they were in the store or to check for better prices elsewhere, the Pew Internet & American Life Project said in a report.

Among shopping apps, Palo Alto’s Shopkick announced Tuesday that its smart-phone app drove $110 million in revenue to its retail partners, such as Target, Old Navy and Toys R us. the app encourages shoppers to go into stores by rewarding them once they’re inside, giving them points that they can redeem for goodies such as iTunes gift cards and Facebook Credits. it also gives its 3 million users points for finding and scanning products in the store.

It calculated the $110 million figure by factoring in the number of shoppers that went into the store, scanned a product and purchased it or took advantage of special offers and deals in the app.

During the holidays, Shopkick users saw 1 billion deals in the app, walked into 5 million stores and scanned 10 million products, the startup said.

Yukking it up: One of the projects at Twitter’s “Hack Week” last week was to come up with the best worst job recruiting video of all time. they succeeded. the “At Twitter, the Future is You!” video is so corny, it’s hilarious. And since Friday, it’s received more than a half million plays on YouTube.

But we couldn’t help noticing Twitter’s video bears a resemblance to a “Saturday Night Live” skit called “Laser Cats,” with SNL Producer Lorne Michaels playing the big boss in the same deadpan style as Twitter CEO Dick Costolo, who used to be a stand-up comic.

This article appeared on page D – 5 of the San Francisco Chronicle

Shopkick rides surge in shopping with cell phones

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Microsoft has come up with a new improved mobile platform with Windows Phone 7. the new mobile platform which was recently unveiled in Taiwan is available with the Nokia Lumia series and HTC’s two new phones: HD7 and Mozart.

The mobile platform is a means for Microsoft to recover lost ground in the mobile market which has drastically changed in the last three to four years. Windows Mobile 6 wasn’t much of a success as the iPhone won accolades for its path-breaking design and features. even the Android OS was touted to be an iOS killer and is indeed revving up competition.

The new offering from Microsoft which is Windows Mobile 7 is a clean break from the previous version. Windows Phone 7 has to capitalize on its features and market well and is still not an iPhone/Android killer. It can though put up a worthy fight with the biggies. the Nokia Lumia series which has Windows Mobile 7 has a touch screen keyboard which does work well and the applications which support mails, music and video are fantastic. Additionally, according to analysts, the new OS boasts of clarity and simplicity.

Windows Mobile 7 apps offer different choices to the market and differentiate from the crowd. one of the best parts of WP7 is that it supports Zune and Xbox Live integration. there are a number of third party applications related to social media like Twitter and Seesmic.

Windows Mobile 7 application development involves optimum utilization of the.NET framework. Microsoft has molded the framework for apps creation. Developers can write programs in different languages which are supported by the framework, one of them is C#. the apps are run within a runtime environment which is termed as Common Language Runtime or CLR.

One can use several approaches while developing apps for the Windows Phone 7 development. one can make use of Silverlight or one can even use the XNA framework. Silverlight was the original choice of the developers for creating rich internet applications. Silverlight is slowly becoming popular but has a long way to go to compete with other similar technologies. there has been better market adoption though in recent years. one of the developments is that Netflix is now using Silverlight to stream videos one of the most popular TV channels NBC recently used Silverlight for the broadcast of Olympic games.

On the other hand, XNA is Microsoft’s own game development framework which has been widely used for making apps for Windows and Xbox 360. the XNA is almost perfectly suitable for games development.

Windows Mobile 7 And The Smartphone Market

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To get a better night's sleep, some people would do almost anything. But now you don't need a doctor to sleep better, you just need a smart phone and a new application.

We talked to an employee at Best buy in Phoenix; he sleeps with a wristband that monitors how much deep sleep, light sleep, and no sleep he gets throughout the night. Then he synchronizes that information with his phone, and he practically becomes his own sleep clinic. 

“I went to bed at about 1 in the morning took me obviously, about 20 minutes to fall asleep,” Walter Mack said, who works at the Best buy near 22nd Street and Camelback Road. he bought UP from the company Jawbone. it comes with software and a wristband that tracks his sleep habits on his iPhone.

“I probably had less dreams this night,” Mack said, showing us what he has learned on his phone. Best buy sells a bunch of these fitness trackers that you sync up with your smart phone. While Mack told us he just wants to be healthy, it could have larger implications.

“I really like that there's are these tools out there now to measure how much sleep we're getting,” said Lauri Leadley, the founder of Valley Sleep Center, which has five valley locations. She said while these smart phone applications are a good start, nothing beats a real sleep study that nowadays, most insurance companies cover.

“This would actually record 12,000 times faster than a device you would normally wear, like an app,” Leadley said, describing the equipment they use to track sleep habits.

So while these applications, ranging from $100-$175 may kill the curiosity, they won't stifle the snore.

“I just notice the days I work out harder are the days I get better sleep,” Mack said, saying nothing beats a healthy lifestyle.

If you're interested in trying these applications you can get them online or at some valley stores. right now, though, the UP wristband that Mack used is currently recalled because of poor battery life, but the company should be rolling out a new version soon.

Copyright 2011 KPHO. all rights reserved.

CBS 5 – KPHO Get better sleep with your smart phone?

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Getting a lower price, it appears, is an unconditional quest for many consumers. At least, that’s one conclusion I draw from a survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers that found 33% of urban and 26% of suburban consumers wielded smartphones in store aisles to compare prices. In comparison, 9% of those living in rural areas made these price checks, according to the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project.

Retailers have to figure out a plan to contend with the new ways that consumers shop. In the days of yore, before smartphones, data plans and reliable cell phone signals, shoppers used e-commerce sites to check prices, which was easier than going from store to store. now, with the Internet in their pockets, consumers can stand inside a store and check the prices of many sellers without trekking home or to another mall.

I have some theories why fewer rural shoppers engage in in-store price checking. One, smartphone penetration may not be as high in rural markets as in cities. Two, the wireless signal may not be fast enough to warrant an online search. And, three, rural consumers may have fewer stores to choose from, an especially significant factor if the consumer doesn’t want to wait for a product to ship.

Retailers aren’t going to ignore rural consumers, but they shouldn’t be forgotten either. Smartphone adoption is going to increase. more than 126 million U.S. consumers will own a smartphone by 2013, a 147% increase from the nearly 51 million smartphone owners in 2008, according to research firm eMarketer.

While many rural consumers may not be checking prices while in the stores, there’s nothing to prevent shoppers from checking prices from their desktop computers. everybody wants the best deal.

Look for more on the subject of who the smartphone shopper is and how they shop in stores in a story I’m writing for the March issue of Internet Retailer.

Online Sales: Growth: See more Online Sales: Growth: See more Online Sales: Growth: See More

Do farmers compare prices via smartphones?

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LG Electronics was hit by a drop in revenue and a net loss for its fourth quarter, but that loss was lower than a year ago thanks to strong demand for smartphones and TVs.

For the quarter ended in December, sales dipped 6 percent, while the net loss narrowed to 111.6 billion won ($99 million), compared with a loss of 256.4 billion won in 2010′s final quarter. Operating profits hit the black, jumping to 23 billion won ($20.5 million), compared with a loss of 32 billion won in the prior year’s quarter.

The quarter was helped by healthy demand for higher-end smartphones and flat-screen TVs.

Though mobile-phone shipments fell to 17.7 million from 21.1 million in the third quarter, revenue rose due to higher smartphone sales. LG saw strong sales from its Optimus LTE handset and good growth from other smartphone models. The Optimus LTE has scooped up more than 1 million in unit sales since its debut in October.

In the home entertainment business, TV shipments hit 8.8 million for the quarter, helped by strong holiday shopping.

Still, the company faces a highly competitive landscape. LG’s share of the smartphone market fell to 4 percent during the quarter, compared with overall industry growth of around 8.5 percent, says a report from Oppenheimer & Co. as such, the financial firm is forecasting a difficult 2012.

“Management’s focus remains on smartphones (especially 4G LTE/premium) and a move away from feature phones,” noted the Oppenheimer report. “This suggests 2012 could be another year of overall market share losses for the company given a still meaningful contribution from feature phones. The improvement in LG’s operating results is a positive, but it’s still well behind the competition, especially those solely focused on smartphones.”

For 2012 overall, LG is aiming for sales of $53 billion with plans to spend $1.5 billion and invest around $2.4 billion in R&D.

Smartphone and TV sales trim losses for LG

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Nintendo’s boss is bullish on future of 3DS despite smartphone dominance, reports CIARA O’BRIEN 

ANY DOUBTS about the smartphone’s effect on the games industry will have been dispelled this week.

Nintendo, which has dominated the handheld gaming market for more years than we can remember, is on track to report its first loss in March. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said the company was facing its worst results since it entered the games business.

Nintendo’s woes aren’t all down to the handheld games sector; it also faces more competition in the console market from Microsoft and Sony, which have both opted to introduce gesture control in the past 18 months. Add in an ageing console and the promise of a new Wii for 2012, and you can see where the problems have taken hold.

But smartphones certainly haven’t helped. Sales of the 3DS haven’t reached expectations, resulting in a price cut in an effort to boost sales of the 3D-enabled games device. At its original launch price of about €270, it was a bit of an investment. and, with more and more high-quality games available for smartphones and tablets (more versatile than the handheld), it wasn’t surprising Nintendo decided last summer that a price cut was in order. Irish gamers can now get their hands on one for about €170.

Is the future of the handheld device in jeopardy? no, says Iwata. he pointed to a jump in 3DS sales following the launch of a number of software titles for the device in the end stages of last year as evidence that Nintendo has disproved the theory that demand for dedicated handheld gaming devices no longer exists.

Iwata is also confident that Nintendo losses on the 3DS can be made up for in software sales.

Sony obviously feels just as confident about the future of its games devices, with its PlayStation Vita only weeks away from debuting on the Irish market. like Nintendo, Sony is betting heavily that gamers still want something they can play that isn’t their smartphone. (Sony is trying to tap into the social networking trend by offering a 3G-enabled device.)

The Vita, due for launch on February 22nd in Europe and North America, has already been on sale for more than a month in Japan, where it sold 325,000 units in its first few days. By January 5th it had sold a total of 500,000.

How European consumers will take to the PS Vita will be known in a matter of weeks.

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The player – The Irish Times – Fri, Feb 03, 2012

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IDG News Service – Apple has emerged as the top smartphone vendor worldwide in the fourth quarter of 2011, by a small margin, after losing ground to Samsung in the previous quarter, research firms Strategy Analytics and IHS iSuppli said.

But the Korean giant has emerged as the market leader for the first time in 2011, the research firms said Thursday. Samsung shipped nearly 100 million smartphones during the year.

Samsung had a close to 20 percent share for the year, in comparison to Apple’s 19 percent share, according to Strategy Analytics.

Samsung had overtaken Apple in the third quarter, as customers waited for the iPhone 4S. Apple’s introduction of the new phone in the fourth quarter unleashed tremendous pent-up demand for the iPhone as consumers awaited the arrival of the latest model, said IHS iSuppli.

Besides competing in the market, Apple and Samsung are in fierce patent litigation, with Apple trying to block Samsung devices in many markets.

Global smartphone shipments grew 54 percent annually to reach a record 155 million units in the fourth quarter, said Strategy Analytics.

Apple’s smartphone shipments in the fourth quarter were 37 million, up 128 percent from the same quarter a year ago, it said. Shipments by Samsung in the quarter were 36.5 million, up 241 percent.

Nokia’s global smartphone market share halved from 33 percent in 2010 to 16 percent in 2011, mainly on account of a lackluster touchscreen smartphone portfolio and a limited presence in the U.S. market, Strategy Analytics said. Nokia’s partnership with Microsoft will be very much in focus during 2012, and the industry will be watching closely to see how swiftly the two companies can expand in the high-value 4G LTE (long term evolution) market that is rapidly emerging across the U.S., Japan and elsewhere, it added.

Other major Android licensees like Sony Ericsson and Motorola did not match Samsung’s strong smartphone performance in the fourth quarter or for the entire year, indicating that the Android smartphone market is becoming too crowded “as the various licensees compete for limited consumer mindshare and shelf space”, IHS iSuppli said.

Sony Ericsson shipped 9 million phones in the fourth quarter, a 20 percent decrease year-on-year, citing fierce competition and price erosion as reasons for the poor result. Its results for the quarter, which included a net loss and a drop in revenue, highlighted the struggles of many vendors who rely on Google’s Android to power its smartphones.

Global handset shipments meanwhile were 445 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011, up 11 percent from the same quarter in the previous year. Nokia is still the leader with a 25.5 percent share for the quarter and close to 27 percent share for the full year, but its share has fallen from over 30 percent in the previous year. Strategy Analytics said. Samsung was the number two, followed by Apple.

John Ribeiro covers outsourcing and general technology breaking news from India for The IDG News Service. Follow John on Twitter at @Johnribeiro. John’s e-mail address is john_ribeiro@idg.com

Apple is the No. 1 smartphone vendor again, say research firms

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Just about everyone owns a cellular phone these days. You’ll know that in addition to making and receiving voice calls and text messages, your phone has some added features like an address book, a clock and calendar and a few games. however, with technology advancing fast now and increasing competition among cellphone manufacturers, it’s not too surprising that many of the new models are packed full of features that were previously only seen in laptops and other large computing devices.

A lot of these sophisticated new phones can justifiably be called smartphones. Up until the late 1990s, people used to carry a cellphone that offered basic telephone capabilities, and a PDA (personal digital assistant) that served as a personal organizer that could be synched with a PC. then both types of device started to acquire wireless connectivity that enabled them to link to email and messaging accounts. as time went on, PDAs and phones borrowed more and more features from each other, all the while adding the latest technology, and the smartphone was born.

There’s no official definition for the smartphone, and each one boasts a slightly different array of bells and whistles, but these are some of the basic features that are common to devices in this product category:

Operating system: your smartphone needs an operating system (OS) so you can use multiple applications at the same time. for example, it allows you to take an incoming call while watching a video, or check the calendar in the middle of writing an email or instant message. Blackberries and iPhones have their own, proprietory operating systems, while other smartphones run on systems such as Symbian, Android and Windows 7.

Software: Just like a PC, a smartphone can be loaded up with various types of software that allow you to play video and audio files, edit photos, use Microsoft Office programs, find your way with a GPS, or download all kinds of apps. this makes it extremely customizable and adaptable for use in just about any situation. for example, if it has the right technical specs you can set a smartphone up to function as a near-replacement for your laptop or PC when you’re out of the office.

Internet access: all smartphones let you access the web to browse your favorite sites, and not just check your email. 3G and even 4G connectivity are becoming increasingly common, as is wi-fi support, so many models now allow you to watch streaming videos.

Qwerty keyboard: A smartphone includes a real keyboard laid out like the one on your PC, so you don’t need to fumble around pressing each key several times to get the letter you need. A lot of recent models have large touchscreens with virtual keyboards, while others include physical keys, and most can also connect to a larger, external keyboard.

Message capabilities: any cellular phone can handle text messages, but a smartphone can get you online and connect with all your email accounts, as well as your favorite instant messaging services, your Twitter and Facebook accounts, and much more.

These are just some of the many things these phones can do, and the list is growing fast now. the smartphones manufactured in China are leading the pack in terms of innovative features and excellent value for money. these highly affordable, stylish devices are well made, and come with advanced features such as multiple mHz bands, the ability to use two or three SIM cards at once, analog TV support, GPS capability, one or two cameras, handwriting recognition and capacitive touchscreens. so make the smart choice and switch to a smartphone next time

What Is a Smartphone, and How Does It Differ From a Regular Cellphone?

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Google has launched handsets that run Android in its vanilla form. The first handset to bear the ‘Nexus’ name was the Nexus One. this smartphone was manufactured by HTC. The second was the Nexus S. Samsung was contracted to create this handset. Now, the Korean tech giant was chosen yet again to create the next Android flagship. this is the Galaxy Nexus. Currently, this is the best smartphone Android has to offer.

Like all Android flagships, this new handset has the latest iteration of Google’s mobile operating system pre-installed. this is Ice Cream Sandwich (Android version 4.0). other handsets such as the Galaxy S2 would have to wait for the update to roll out. this means that you get to enjoy everything this latest version has to offer right out of the box.

Aside from the latest software, this handset also comes with impressive hardware. it comes with a 4.65 inch Super AMOLED touch screen that has a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels. it has a pixel density of 316 PPI. this means that you get to view everything on the smartphone’s display in high-definition.

Like the majority of today’s smartphones, the Galaxy Nexus comes with a powerful dual-core processor. it comes with a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, similar to the CPU found on the Galaxy S2. this will allow you to do heavy multi-tasking and run the most demanding apps available such as games. this powerful processor will never let you down.

There are other advantages this new smartphone has to offer. One of these is the ability to check on your data usage. this is ideal if you are not on an unlimited data plan. By being able to check on your data consumption, you get to avoid paying extra for going over your allotted data plan.

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus also allows users to type fast. this is ideal when responding to emails or text messages. The phone’s enhanced virtual keyboard comes with better touch recognition and auto-correction. With its spell checker, you will get to edit misspelled words in no time. Typing long messages is now a breeze.

Typing on the phone does not require users to use their fingers. you can actually use your own voice to type. all you have to do is touch the microphone found on the virtual keyboard. The voice-to-text software supports more than 20 languages. it can be used with text messaging and emails.

Lastly, the handset comes with a unique security system called Face Unlock. Normally, users type in a PIN or password to unlock their phones. With this phone, all you have to do is look into the front-facing camera to unlock the phone.

With the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, you will definitely get to enjoy the best Android has to offer.

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus – The Best Android Has to Offer

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