Other companies also do this same thing.  Samsung for example does the same thing, however they don’t charge quite as much for their smartphones and this their yield on each is less.  This is clearly seen as we check out the chart below brought to us by Statista via: Mashable.

Obviously numbers don’t tell the whole story, but for the most part you can see how skewed the bar graph is.  The iPhone on average sells for around $675 each.  The blackberry is the next most pricy device at $324.  And then Windows and Android follow as some of the lowest priced smartphones.

The iPhone itself is built with a lot more quality “feel.”  I love the Android for everything it has done, but for some reason every time I use one, I feel like it is “cheap.”  This could be due the the extensive use of plastic and synthetic components, or it could be due to the fact that it isn’t worth as much.  Either way, Apple has an advantage because their users know they paid a lot.  They also are treated with services that tops Android or any other device carrier.  This all lends to the price and adage: “you get what you pay for.”  These seems to be the truth when it comes to the smartphone market and changing prices.  If only the iPhone had Android many of us would make the switch purely out of love for really quality.  Android has been known as a budget phone.  More people can afford Android and therefore more people end up buying them.  Cheaper isn’t better and you can see this by the consistent prices seen in even the old iPhone 3G smartphone created years ago!  You can also see that the old 3G phone still holds up to speed tests as seen here:  iPhone vs. iPhone.

(via: Mashable)

When Android was first starting to gain it’s popularity they lacked the number of apps to sustain a thriving mobile OS experience.  However the rise in usage has motivated developers to create apps on Android as well.  There are also more Android users currently downloading apps because of that fact that app developers might get more sales via Android.  The end result as seen bellow is a thriving Android app store and the data specifically for smartphones indicates a rise to over 700K apps apposed to only 600K in the iTunes store specifically designed for the iPhone.  Its important to note that Apple screens their app submissions much more then the Google Play and Android.  Some of Androids apps don’t actually work as well as many in the iTunes store because Apple scrutinizes each individual submission to make sure it stacks up their ideals.  However Android is growing and gaining traction as one of the largest app stores against their arch-rival, iTunes.

It’s also interesting to note that most smartphone users are from the age of 25 to 34.  The rest of the distribution is fairly even with the exception of 13-17 year old teenagers which only take up 6.3% if the handset by age pie.   This does seem interesting but the most likely culprit of this is the price to own a smartphone is not affordable for many teenagers that have school expenses and other interests.  This may be a little skewed due to the fact that the parents are the ones buying their teenagers the plan, and this the stats may be a little less.  However it does seem to indicate that teenagers are not the largest group of people using smartphones.  This is some interesting news for sure!

There is also some startling and highly informative data seen below.  A special thanks to Coupon Audit for helping us collect and design this informative infographic.

Feel free to use this infographic on your blog, website, or other places.  Please give credit to Coupon Audit (provides Finish Line coupon code) and Vault Feed when using the info graphic elsewhere.

So what do you think?  Leave your comments below:

As you can see this new design would feature the edge-to-edge glass display that would cary up most of front of the devices real-estate.  The Blackberry Q30 has not been launched yet by Blackberry, but we’re sure that they are taking notes and possibly hiring up the genius minds that sketch up these concepts.  This is one of the best looking blackberry phones I’ve seen.  I personally hope that the adopt this concept in some ways at least!  I think Blackberry could make their product along the lines of these concept sketch ups.  Obviously they could make some edits and additions to the design, but overall it wouldn’t look bad at all!

This first black design would feature a black back housing most likely.  The front seems to be a gradience of black to sliver, which is a cool concept.  I hope that Blackberry chooses a hybrid aluminum unibody design for the back.  I wouldn’t personally appreciate the carbon fiber look for the back as they did with the Z30.  Carbon fiber looks cool, but sometimes it can take on a “cheap” and “fake” feel.  This obviously isn’t what Blackberry wants, so if I were to advise, Id stick with a solid aluminum back with laser etched lettering.

The other two colors are also really nice featuring white.  I think that the more squared look appears a little better, but depending on the trends, it seems to be possible.  The Blackberry Q30 will be a great phone if they implement a similar design to this.  I truly hope they do!

I personally believe that Blackberry has a chance in the market.  They have a niche, and with all this talk of the Blackberry company failing, its easy to loose hope on the company.  However I believe that the “doomsday talk” around the internet blogsphere isn’t a fair representation of the reality of Blackberry and its company state.  You can read my post on why I believe Blackberry can succeed here: Blackberry Has a Niche Market.  I do believe that these concepts would make Blackberry look even better and I truly hope Blackberry is taking notes via the fellow blogger on CrackBerry Blackberry Forum, and via BlackberryEmpire.

Would you buy a Blackberry if it resembled the Q10 blackberry concepts above?

BlackBerry has created devices since 1999 when it first created a pager, and now continues to make smartphones in 2013.  People seem to side with the iPhone or an Android variant phones but many people still buy Blackberry devices.  Blackberry has the business niche cornered better than any other niche, and if they market for that and work towards creating the best business phones they could succeed in the long run!

Many smartphone manufacturers have attempted to gain traction with the business smartphone niche, but because most consumers don’t need business phones, it takes away from the potential market possibilities.  Because of the thin market for business smartphones, no other makes a smartphone that can truly compete with Blackberry and their Enterprise Server features.  BlackBerry has focused on the business smartphone niche, and they have done a good job.

However I believe that BlackBerry has even another feature that could set them even further apart from other possible competition.  This is the Multi-Platform Device Management.  This feature implemented on BlackBerry devices allows businesses to manage how their devices are used during work times.  If an employee wants to access their favorite websites, they will most likely try on the company computer.  If that fails to work, they will get on their smartphone and visit the website they want.  They will surf Facebook and waste a lot of time!  Forbes recently noted on the wast of time and saying “64 percent of employees visit non-work related websites every day at work. Of that group, 39 percent spend one hour or less per week, 29 percent spend 2 hours per week, 21 percent waste five hours per week, and only 3 percent said they waste 10 hours or more doing unrelated activities.”  Russ Warner, CEO of ContentWatch, also noted “My experience as a CEO tells me these figures are probably underestimated.”  This is sad!

As you can see, employees are wasting their time.  BlackBerry however has a niche through their Multi-Platform Device Management that corrects this problem perfectly in a way that no other smartphone efficiently can do.  Employers can simply adjust the uses for the blackberry in the workspace.  As soon as an employee clocks into work, their smartphone disallows certain time wasters like Facebook and others (this is determined by the policy that the employer sets).  This equates to a more efficient workplace.  BlackBerry may not be the best smartphone on the market, but from an employer’s view, this device could save a company millions of dollars per year in lost work efficiency!

Because of these hard facts, I believe that BlackBerry still has a good chance at capturing the market in a way that no other manufacturer can.

Do you believe that the Multi-Platform Device Management on BlackBerry smartphones is enough to revive BlackBerry and bring them from their potential grave to a new and higher success?  Please leave your comments below:

If you use a carrier based smartphone, its about time you read this post!  You may find yourself wanting to purchase an iPhone, or a different smartphone, however if its used, you will want to check the ESN and the EMEI number to make sure that it is “clean.”  What I mean by that, is that the phone you are purchasing is off the account with its carrier and able to be used with your new number.  This is NOT the same term as “Unlocked.”  Even if a phone is unlocked, it can be blocked in the U.S. and other locations if the EMEI is bad.  Its important to check both prior to any third-party cell phone purchase.  If you buy it new, you won’t have to worry about this if your purchasing it from a reputable company!

(Also Read:  Completely Delete Yourself From The Internet)

(Also Read:  How To Check Apple iPhone Warranty)

(Also Read:  iPhone Unlock Check Via IMEI)

First locate your settings app and navigate to the “About” section for iPhone, or the “advanced” section or “phone information” section of the device if its android and blackberry.  Some versions are different.  Then simply locate the numbers starting with “A10000xxxxxxxxxx”  If it is Verizon / Sprint, or other CDMA.  If it is GSM, all you need to do is check the EMEI blacklist on the CheckEsnFree.com.  Find the EMEI in your GSM iPhone by pressing into the phone keypad: *#06#.  If you need to check the EMEI, all you have to do in most cases to check the number is hit *#06#.  This will then give you the number that you will input to CheckEsnFree.com.

If you need more help finding the number on the iPhone, you can go here:  Apple Support Document.

After you have located the ESN or EMEI numbers you just need to head on over to CheckEsnFree.com.  Then you will need to select your appropriate carrier from the list of carriers.  In my case I chose SPRINT US, because that is my current carrier.  THen I entered my ESN number which started like this A10000xxxxxxx.  Then it tells you if it is clear and good to go!

Never buy another smartphone, iPhone, or other device without knowing FOR SURE if it is not blacklisted, or on another account.  This could save you a lot of time, money, and hassle!

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(image credit: AppleInsider)

We all like to share our cool photos on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest but the threats of using your smartphone is higher then you would normally think.  Lets say you share a picture of your new office that you just moved into.  Well thats cool, however most images are publicly available and if someone sees that picture, all they have to do is put it into special programs or just upload it to an iPhone and see exactly where it was taken!  In fact you can see the coordinates of where each picture was taken just by looking at the “get info” on that photo.

Without special care to removing these location based photo tracking systems, you could be vulnerable to theft, rape, and other things that you don’t want!  Ill show you in the following instructions how to remove these options inside your smartphone, iPhone, or Blackberry device.  Don’t worry, you can begin again with a new level of protection.  If you know anyone that could be vulnerable to these threats because of their photo tracking phone, make sure they know what their phone is doing each time they take a picture.  If you share this, you could save your friends a lot of trouble if a photo was compromised and someone found the exact location of where you lived?

if your girlfriend was super smart and geeky, she could ruin your surprise by finding your location if you ever posted a photo on your way to see her!  This is the least of your worries.  Some people’s things get stolen because people can track the location of where the photo was taken, and hence showing where the things are for theives to steal.  Change your settings soon so you wont be compromised.

How To Turn Off Location Photo Tracking On iPhone / iPad / IOS

1. Head to the “Settings” app
2. Select “General”
3. Select “Location Services”
4. Set Camera to “Off”

Some older versions of IOS cannot turn off location based services on all apps at a time.  You will have to select the location based services individually or just update your iPhone.  If you have a iPhone 3G, you wont be able to update and thats just too bad; you own a Apple, and its rotten.  Sorry!

How To Turn Off Location Photo Tracking On Android Phones

1. Start your “camera” application
2. Hit the “Settings” button
3. Scroll on down and find the “GPS Tag” option and turn it to “off”

If you have an older Android version it may be called “Store Location,” but the process stays the same to switch it off!

How To Turn Off Location Photo Tracking On Windows Phone 7 / 8

1. Go into Settings
2. Select “Applications”
3. Go down to “Pictures & Camera”
4. Set “include location (GPS) info in Pictures you take” to “Off”

How To Turn Off Location Photo Tracking On Blackberry Devices

1. Open the “Camera” app
2. Set Location icon to “Disabled”

For most earlier versions, select the Menu and Option buttons before changing your setting to “Disabled.”

Now you can rest easy and know that the pictures you share from now on wont be giving out confidential information pertaining to your location.  If your settings are configured the way directed above you wont have any problems with location being attached to your photos, however if you are very serious and very worried call your phone service line to make sure you are covered.  There are no other methods that we have found other then the methods listed above.

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Even though this is an awesome idea, I’m slightly critical on how its going to work.  First off, this “tile” must be attached to things for it to be used.  And if someone is really going to steal something they will remove the tile because everyone will know about it by that time (If in fact the “tile” makes its popularity).  The idea of being able to track your things is really cool, but why not make little GPS modules that you can actually track the exact location of?  I feel this would be a whole lot more useful!  What if not everyone has the tile app and what if for some reason you are not in “distance” with the tile.

The main issue I can identify with this “tile” device is that it needs to be within distance to be seen on the device.  It makes it hard to find your item if you have to be within a few feed to see it.  I can see that it would be helpful if your trying to find keys on your house or something, but as a way to recover a stolen item, or as a way to track a vehicle or similar uses where you can actually “track” its true “location”, it sucks!  Great idea, but I would buy it if it was a little bit different.

If the “tile” could track the exact location at any time it would be a HUGE hit.  I would buy something like that even if it cost $50+ dollars or even more!  Insurance companies would also buy them from you to track cars being insured in high-risk theft regions.  There are countless ways that something like this could be improved, however the limited distance of this “tile’ tracker and the limited market share of people actually wanting something that can only track things within your house makes it not a worthy buy!

I love the idea of crowd-sorcing-location but how will it really work?  Many times we get all skeptical about things we haven’t seen and I understand that.  The issue is that Apple actually has an app “find my iPhone” which is an excellent app which you can see the currant location of ALL devices that are connected to your MAC iCloud account.  This technology is already a lot farther in advancement then the “tile”.  I feel like the “tile” and its app is like taking something awesome and making it old again.  Isn’t there a way to triangulate somehow and make a tile that can be seen on an actual map without the “need” of people crowd-sourcing it’s location?  I know there is a way!  In the currant the tile kinda sucks.. sadly to say.  I love new ideas but this one.. is a little over hyped i’d say…

When Steve Jobs demanded that the computer needed “Type-Face” and fonts, people thought it couldn’t happen, and they thought it was crazy!  But the truth is that it was VERY necessary.  Like this, I believe that if people think its not possible, it can be possible!  The “tile” app can be much more then it really is!

I hope the tile team makes a team effort at changing the way we locate things in an even more genius way!  For now, I won’t be buying any tiles.  its worthless unless I can see it on a map!

(source: 9to5mac, Tile)

Watch the video bellow so you know what this is!

200 people were entered into this study.  Each of the participants was able to us iPhone apps and then not use any iPhone apps for 4 days.  The results are very interesting as it shows how much we really do rely on our iPhones and smartphones in our everyday lives!  It also shows a possible addiction trend since the rise of the smartphone!

eBay challenged these participants to really see how life is without apps.  Its very interesting that over 1/3 of ALL of the participants couldn’t actually make it through the 4 days.  They couldn’t handle the loss of not having their iPhone.  This truly shows an addiction!

As seen bellow the most common us sages of your iPhone are as follows:

• Social networking with iPhone apps.

• Photo sharing via apps and networks

• Navigation and GPS functionality.

• Daily weather apps.

Most people as you can read and see bellow felt utterly powerless and lost without their iPhone and apps.  This also is another strong indicator that your smartphone is in fact addicting!  The other facts are in the image bellow.

Should smartphone usage really be this deeply addicting in our daily lives?  I personally feel that this addiction could be ruining our society IQ and making it slightly harder for our lives to continue in more normal ways.  Before we lived fine, but after we can’t live without it?  Isn’t this a bad thing?

Summary:

This info graphic re-uncovers the understated fact that out iPhones and smartphones are addicting though the pas we use daily.  We can’t do anything without them!  What if someone too away our iPhones?  Our smartphones?  And our computers what would happen?  Chaos might actually happen!  What do you think?

(source: eBay)

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