Facebook patents smartphone manufacturing technique; new First in the works?

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

Last spring, Facebook and HTC asked the world the question “are you interested in a smartphone that puts Facebook front and center as the core of your user experience?” The answer from consumers was almost a resounding “no,” and the HTC First failed in spectacular fashion. Even the Facebook Home software that could be deployed on existing Android phones stagnated, and despite claims from Facebook that the project is still ...

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Facebook home update supports Instagram and more on your lock screen

Posted on by Jaime Rivera

I’m sure that most of us will admit we completely forgot about Facebook Home. Yes, it is a cool launcher that makes your experience with your device more personal, but still, having your world revolve around Facebook isn’t necessarily good. Specially when all you get are invites to Candy Crush. Still, the social media giant keeps working on improving the service, even if their phone venture with HTC flopped very badly. A new update that’s being pushed today allows users to not just have to revolve around Facebook. It allows you to set services like Instagram, Tumblr, ...

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Survey confirms low Facebook Home interest, as AT&T discusses HTC First sales

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

It’s almost hard to believe how quickly Facebook Home – and the HTC First along with it – grabbed the spotlight before almost immediately fading away. Sure, it was risky project that didn’t quite deliver in the ways we were hoping, but it was still a big deal to see a company releasing software like this, and it got us wondering who else might cook up a Facebook Home of their own. Now that the dust has settled, it seems a lot less likely that anyone might be interested in ...

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What happened to HTC’s advertising ambush?

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Companies make mistakes. It’s part of doing business: if you want to win big, you might have to put yourself in a position where you’re open to failure. Smart companies keep their offerings diversified enough not to let one misstep send them spiraling out of control, and most importantly, learn from their mistakes. That’s absolutely vital, and lets companies approach new challenges without repeating past errors. This issue seems be at the heart of what’s so infuriating about HTC and its approach ...

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Nokia targets HTC with a new ITC complaint, asks for ban on the One

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“Nokia has filed further cases in the United States alleging that HTC products infringe additional Nokia patents” is the wording from a Nokia statement. The Finnish phone maker has filed another ITC complaint against the Taiwanese manufacturer, targeting the HTC One, among others. “We began actions against HTC in 2012 to end the unauthorised use of our proprietary innovations and technologies. Since then, despite the German courts confirming infringements of Nokia patents in HTC products, HTC has shown no intention to end its practices, instead it has tried to shift ...

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iPhone 5S details, GS4 Developer Edition, HTC Desire 600 & more – Pocketnow Daily

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Watch today’s Pocketnow Daily as we talk about LG’s demo of a smartphone with no bezel, and the possibilities of it ever happening. We later talk about Samsung, the sales results of the Galaxy S 4 and their future Developer Edition. We later go through how the Facebook phone is now being pulled away from the UK because of the obvious bad results on sales, even though they don’t tell you that. We then cover HTC, their results with the sales of the HTC One, and their new HTC Desire 600. We end today’s show talking about the iPhone 5S and iPad 5, manufacturing dates ...

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HTC First: R.I.P. or Wait-and-See?

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Last week’s news of a big HTC First price cut resulted in mixed reactions. Some saw it as great news, making an already hot phone even more affordable. On the other hand, that big of a cut, that early on in the phone’s life, had others talking about the beginning of the end for the First. Today a new rumor claims that the latter situation is closer to the truth, and the First could be getting an early retirement. BGR claims to have heard from its sources that dismal First sales – to the tune of a mere 15,000 ...

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New Galaxy Releases, LG Event, Nokia EOS Launch Date & More – Pocketnow Daily

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Watch today’s Pocketnow Daily as we talk about Google’s new offer to iOS developers to use Chrome as their navigation tool. LG is next as we talk about their probable tablet plans for the fall, along with their scheduled event for May 30th. Then let’s talk about the HTC First which now gets a big price cut on AT&T, for reasons we can only assume. Samsung is next as we talk about the new galaxy devices that they’ll release in the next coming months, and no, by new galaxy we don’t mean the Galaxy S 4. We end today’s show talking about Nokia, their EOS ...

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HTC First Gets a Big Price Cut

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The HTC First is a surprisingly decent mid-ranger that has found itself more than a bit overshadowed by the Facebook Home software that comes pre-installed. That’s a bit of a shame, because your feelings about Facebook Home aside, the First is an attractive little phone in its own right and deserves to get some more attention. A week ago, we were musing about whether or not people would actually flock to the First, especially in light of heavyweights like the HTC One or ...

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Pocketnow Weekly 042: HTC One-and-a-Half, Galaxy S 4 Octa, & Super-Cheap Windows Phones (Podcast)

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Not all of us have read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, so not all of us were exactly qualified to make the lame joke that kicks off this week’s podcast. But we made it, and we stand behind it. Because as hundreds of fifth-rate “manufacturers” well know, sometimes you just have to fake it. But we’re not talking about secondhand knockoff products in this episode of the Weekly. Rather, we get serious about octa-core comparisons, the till-recently-mythical HTC M4, the insanely cheap new Lumia out of Finland, and just how tired we are or aren’t of the ...

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Has Anyone Actually Bought an HTC First?

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Launched in the midst of much higher-profile devices, one of the best mid-range smartphones – one that stands for much more than just another mid-range phone – has suffered from a terrible case of bad timing. After spending 11 days with the phone, our full review of the HTC First went live one week ago today. When we first caught wind of the First, there really wasn’t a lot to get excited about. It was, in a sense, the elusive Facebook phone; its specifications were mediocre; its build and design were ...

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Is the HTC First Worth It for Non-Facebook Fans?

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Although neither HTC, AT&T or Facebook consider the HTC First to be the Facebook phone in any official capacity, that’s exactly what it is to the rest of the world. It’s phone that HTC and Facebook worked on for “a really long time”, the phone that was talked about in dozens of rumors over the course of two years, the phone that comes pre-loaded with Facebook Home. The Facebook phone. But is it really a Facebook phone? Does it really only appeal to those seeking a greater Facebook experience? According to the marketing, we have no reason to think otherwise. ...

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HTC First vs Galaxy S III (Video)

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The Samsung Galaxy S III is shaping up to be one of the most iconic Android smartphones ever. Even approaching one-year-old and with its successor, the Galaxy S 4, nearing release, it's still very relevant and successful. At the time of its launch, it featured some the best specifications around, a horde of unique software features and offered tons of value. HTC's latest smartphone, the HTC First, known for being the first smartphone to come with Facebook ...

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HTC First Review

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The elusive Facebook phone has been rumored for years. Facebook has been searching for a better way to monetize its service for mobile, and partnering with a hardware manufacturer seemed like the obvious move. There were two Android devices made by HTC in mid-2011, the ChaCha (Status here in the States) and Salsa, which featured dedicated Facebook share buttons on the lower right portion of the face. But Facebook never officially endorsed these two devices as Facebook phones. They were simply Android phones with a hardware integration with Facebook. Nothing more. Even after these two ...

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The Pocketnow Weekly Podcast, Episode 040

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We didn’t expect to run the Weekly with a skeleton crew two weeks in a row – and it’s a good thing we didn’t have to. Mere minutes into this week’s Tony-and-Michael-only podcast, Taylor Martin arrives to save us from the spectre of a fun, but low-energy, two-man show. In its place: jokes, laughs, and a lot of industry insight you’re gonna wanna put your ears on. We talk phone batteries that can jump-start your car, what place Twitter has in music, whether we should be excited about Motorola’s X phone or Nokia’s aluminum Catwalk, and the ...

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