HTC One - Is It Really the "One"?

HTC One is a name which seems to be hanging on the tip of every smartphone lover's tongue these days, and rightly so, as this Android phone single-handedly managed to not only slow down HTC's downfall as a smartphone manufacturer, but also to revive a bit of their old glamour, by showing a reasonable profit. This requires some further explanation, and we'll be more than willing to oblige; Most of the users must be aware of HTC's resources dwindling during the last couple of years. Though the Taiwanese firm managed to launch quite a few handsets in the past couple of years, none of them showed the leadership quality which would make them being termed as the "Hot-Favorites" of the season. To add to this blow, a couple of HTC's high-ranking officials left their jobs earlier this year, stating they didn't see any future in the company.
When it seemed that all was lost, and the hour of the "Armageddon" was just a stone's throw away, the company launched the HTC One. When this device was first introduced to the market, it had to face an enormous amount of competition in the form of iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S4, but still it managed to sail through and create a fan base, in fact this underdog even managed to outshine the above mentioned handsets in many countries. Though the heroic tales of this handsome piece of machinery are never-ending, this is not the reason why one opts for this device, the real reason why this head-turner is held in such high regard is because it looks awesome, and works even more efficiently.
When it comes to smart features in an Android phone, this device just falls short of slaying a dragon by converting into a Jedi sword or something, it supports BlinkFeed which makes you be a part of Social Networks or news and feeds, you want constant updates about, by placing them conveniently on your Home screen; the other important features included are Zoe which makes your very own live breathing gallery, which though seems freaky, is actually really awesome, it also features BoomSound, interactive TV guide, and Sense Voice which ensures call clarity, even when a "flash-mob" is performing right next to you.
The outer frame of the handset is pure aluminium, which makes it tough as well as gives it a really rich feel, something which was found lacking in the Samsung S4. The front of the frame has two stereo speakers with built-in amplifiers fitted right-above and just-below a massive 4.7 inch Super LCD3 capacitive touchscreen, which feels ultra-responsive to use. This screen offers 469 pixel density and has been protected by a Corning Gorilla Glass 2 while it is powered by HTC Sense UI v5. The front of this LTE supporting handset also offers a 2.1 MP secondary camera, which besides being brilliant for video chatting, also supports HDR, although the whole phone has proven to be something refreshingly new, the main innovation by HTC has been in the form of a rear 4 MP autofocus camera with LED flash, which comes installed with something called the Ultra-pixels, though many users argue that this sounds a lot like Nokia's PureView technology, which was introduced more than a year back, let us assure you it isn't! The ultra-pixels just fill in extra pixels wherever the camera couldn't manage to place them, making the picture a lot more lifelike by adding a whole new dimension of colors.
At the time of its launch this handset came running on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean OS, which can now be upgraded to the latest version of Android which is being called the 4.2.2 Jelly Bean from your app store. Whether you want to juggle your way through screens, or load heavy websites, or open and use huge apps, you can do all this within a blink of an eyelid, as it is powered by a massive 1.7 GHz Quad-core Qualcomm Krait 300 Snapdragon 600 processor with 2 GB of RAM and Adreno 320 GPU.
If you are planning to go in for this device, then you will be able to own it in either of the two 32GB or 64GB variants whose memories cannot be expanded, and in three colors which reportedly are Black, Silver and Red (which is a new addition). Using this phone even for a small duration is enough to make you realize that it is the 'One' you won't mind if not your entire life then at least the next couple of years with.

Practice Your Communication Skills On Strangers

One of the best ways to improve your communication skills is to engage in conversation with complete strangers. Everything starts from scratch and it's easy to practice being curious, which is one of the best communication skills to master.

As an entrepreneur you should always be looking for opportunities to build your network and reach out to potential clients. And when you're clear on all of the aspects of your business, you can have an effortless conversation with anyone about what you do, who you work best with and the results clients get from working with you. If you have your 60-second commercial practiced and ready to use at all times, it's becomes natural. And you never know who might discover that your business is the answer to their need.

Consider this story. While sitting on the airplane on my way home from NYC I started a casual conversation with the person sitting next to me. I considered reading my book for a while and then working on my laptop, but I decided to engage in some friendly conversation with my seat mate to help pass the time. We talked about how great it is to have a direct flight, how long we have each lived in Hawaii, the people that we know, and he ended up asking me what I did for work. I described who my clients are, how I help them and the results that they get; he immediately identified himself as a potential client of mine. My intention was not to have a "sales" conversation at all. I just wanted to break up the time with some friendly casual conversation for a little while.

I'm innately a friendly and personable person, I don't shy away from talking to people and I'm genuinely interested in people's story. So when I have the opportunity to get to know someone, whether I will ever see them again or not, I take it.

Being open, courageous, and curious is something that I highly recommend that every entrepreneur be in the habit of. Talking with someone for the first time is a great way to practice all three! Even if the conversation doesn't offer an opening for you to share about your business, it's still a great opportunity to practice being curious and being interested.

Many people don't strike up conversations with strangers because they are shy and it's out of their comfort zone, or they are preoccupied doing something else at that moment. But we really do become best at the things we make a point to practice and if you try to engage in a conversation with a stranger, you'll be surprised at how easy it becomes.

Not just as an entrepreneur, but as a person conversing with another person, you want to focus on really listening first to what they are saying before you respond in any way. Your goal should be focused on making them feel important by asking questions that allow them to share something they are passionate about and, if appropriate, create a call to action such as meeting again sometime for coffee, a phone conversation or email follow up.

As you practice being more bold and courageous by taking the initiative to start a conversation, this will also boost your confidence. And you never know, you could discover a new business contact or potential client out of a casual friendly conversation.

5 Most Important Marketing Pieces For Your Small Business

Business Cards
The humble business card is often considered the cornerstone of any marketing strategy. A business card serves many different purposes. It tells people who you are, what you can do for them and it gives them something to remember you by. It's best to have a powerful design so that the card can stand out among all of the others that the person has.

While the design should be powerful, the text should be simple. Just tell people what your name is, your occupation and how they can reach you.

Postcards
Direct mail advertising is still alive and well. Many businesses have exponentially increased their sales with a good direct mail campaign. While you can send letters, it's in your best interest to send a postcard. This allows the person to quickly read your message and see your design. Much like business cards, a good design will ensure that people notice your postcards.

You need a strong message and discount on your postcard. This will ensure that people read the message and buy whatever you are selling. Just adding a coupon code for 10 to 20 percent off will work wonders for your campaign.

Banners
Most small business owners don't understand just how powerful the large banner can be. It can easily attract someone's attention and it's much more noticeable than a small business card or postcard. The problem is that the banner is wasted if you don't use it properly.

If you have a physical store, then you should add signage around the store to make people buy certain items. If you are at a tradeshow or expo, then you'll need a banner to tell people who you are. Most people will only glance at the tables. Having a good banner can turn this glance into a new client.

Flyers
Flyers are similar to postcards because they need a strong message and a coupon to make people quickly buy your product or service. The only difference between them is that the flyer is bigger. This gives you more room to talk about your business, but you should still be brief. It also allows you to use a larger design, which can be beneficial.

These are used to make people buy now. They can also be used to tell people about an event that you are hosting.

Brochures
Many people don't understand the difference between brochures and flyers because they are similar. Everyone knows that brochures are folded and flyers aren't, but that's not their major difference. The brochure is used to educate the prospect. Instead of making him or her buy right now, this is for people that are unsure about your business.

You can use these to show prospects why you're the best choice. Coupon codes are a good idea, but they aren't essential. Brochures give you the opportunity to write a long message that people will read from beginning to end.

Conclusion
If you want the best marketing campaigns, then you need these five printed marketing materials. Not only have they proven their usefulness throughout the years, but they continue to help business owners make more sales. While there are many other useful marketing materials, these five are essential if you want new customers.

What's The Best Market For New Investors in 2013?

Which real estate market is best for new real estate wholesalers in 2013?

The news is full of headlines about various housing markets around the country every day, debating their pros and cons. Sometimes they even predict an imminent new housing bubble or paint a picture of gloom among foreclosure ridden neighborhoods for the same city in the same day. So if you are new to wholesaling houses, where's the best place to get started?

There are various ways to pick new 'hotspots' from lists on industry blogs to following job growth, business relocation, rents and even birthrates. However, the truth is that there are deals to be done virtually everywhere today.

As a real estate investment strategy wholesaling homes is a little different, and may not require the extended hands on and babysitting that rehabbing and flipping or buy and hold rentals do. Still, newer investors may often find that sticking close to home is the best move. If they've been watching the local market, own a home there and have an eye on trends they can do a much better job of estimating values and demand, rather than on homes clear across the country that they've never seen.

Some investors contest this wholesaling strategy due to the fact that they are in extremely high cost markets and want to pay cash. This is almost understandable if the median home price in your zip code is $700k or $1.5 million, but educated wholesalers know that they don't really need to use their own money to buy, and are often better not using it, even if they have the extra cash laying around.

Still, if you are in this pool, then many investors in a recent thread on a popular real estate forum suggested looking for markets within a two hour radius of home base. This can be by foot, car, air or water.

Still struggling? Perhaps try some of your favorite vacation spots where you will visit frequently anyway, and already own or would like to own a second home or retirement property anyway.

Don't be fazed by price, niches, etc., it's all pretty much the same game with a few quirks.

Finally, those getting into wholesaling houses that are concerned about competition from other investors and buyers may find their sweet spot in looking for the inventory. Today this may include heavily hit foreclosure markets in Florida, Illinois, Southeast Michigan, Las Vegas, New York or even Phoenix which is ramping up for another growth spurt.

Google Vs Apple Battle to Become Even More Intense

Google and Apple have always been in battle, as the two companies have been competing against each other in the mobile OS segment. Google's Android OS and Apple's iOS have been two of the most popular and successful operating systems in the mobile world. Very soon, this battle will be taken to the next level when Google introduces a number of new hardware products, most of which are expected to run on Android OS.

The report from Wall Street Journal says that Google is working on a number of new hardware products to be able to 'match', if not compete against the new hardware devices that Apple is expected to offer. These hardware products include Apple TV, Apple iWatch and in a way, the new Apple iPhone as well. If you are wondering how Google plans to match these products, the answer is simple - create similar products that are better in quality and effectively priced.

To give us a hint about what Google might be working on, the WSJ also gave out a list of future products as shown below

• An Android-based gaming console similar to the OUYA game console

• A wearable smart device (smartwatch) that can connects to smartphones via Bluetooth

• A new Google Nexus Q, which will be better and cheaper than the first-gen version

• A new lightweight version of Android OS

• A new smartphone from Motorola - Google X Phone (added by us, not WSJ)

The Android-based game console will help expand the reach of Android games to consumers who want to play them at home. The Google Smartwatch and Apple iWatch are both expected to be similar to the Sony Smartwatch that allows you to connect to your Xperia phones and easily access basic features like messages, SMS, contacts etc.

As mentioned in the above list, Google is also expected to come up with a new version of Android OS that will be designed to appeal to low-cost devices for emerging markets. The WSJ also said that this new version of Android could be used in notebook computers as well as home appliances like refrigerators.

Finally, we come to the X Phone, the first true product, that will be the result of Google and Motorola working together. The Motorola X Phone (or the Google X Phone) is expected to be a smartphone that will balance power and performance along with an extremely good battery backup. And this X Phone is expected to be the competitor that the Apple iPhone 5S will have to face.

The battle between next generation Google and Apple devices is about to begin.

8 Tips For Distinguishing Your Mobile App

It seemed only yesterday that the App Store first started. Realistically it's more like 5 years. And with over one and a half million apps in Google Play and the App Store, mobile app marketers face the enormous challenge of getting their apps discovered, with a sustained download rate and ultimately PROFIT. Successfully taking your app to market will require more than strategic mobile buying and compelling, creative advertisements. High performance app marketers have a crystal clear focus on targeted user acquisition, and it's all about snatching up people who will become loyal to your app... people who take action, such as in-app purchases, registration, social media sharing and word-of-mouth spruikers. It's these loyal users who will get you your return on investment.

In this article we will explore 8 wicked tips to distinguish your app from the rest of the rubble in the app marketplace:

• Set Goals For Loyal Users

Exactly what "loyal user" means will vary from app to app. Perhaps the it's opening your app a certain number of times of completing an in-app purchase, or sharing your app to Facebook/Twitter. But it's your job to define that goal before you start any user acquisition campaigns. You will also need to determine your lifetime value per customer/user so that you can set the cost per user/conversion targets - for example, how much are you willing to pay for a user whose lifetime value is only $4?

• Spread Your Marketing Over Several Traffic Sources

There are a number of traffic sources available for mobile apps: real-time bidding exchanges, ad networks, incentivized download networks, and more. using only one (or even just one from each category) doesn't give you enough traffic to choose from. You will miss out on valuable opportunities to identify the best traffic sources for high volumes of loyal users. Realistically, using several traffic sources can increase your loyal user acquisition results by up to 5 times.

• Track After-Download Activity

As your user acquisition campaigns are running, it's important to track the activities of your users AFTER they've downloaded your app. They you can link this data back to the traffic source to pinpoint which campaigns are driving your most loyal users, not just downloads.

• Tweak Ads In Real-time

By measuring real-time data, you can eliminate poorly performing ad spend and shift budget to those traffic sources and campaigns that are bringing you the best results.

• Use An Automated Campaign Optimisation Solution

Tweaking and optimising ad campaigns based on after-download actions can be tough, but there are automated solutions available at your fingertips. If you're not big on reading analytics you can use Automated Campaign Optimisation Solutions to manage a huge matrix of ad networks, creative, costs, downloads, and conversion rates, on the fly.

• Conduct ongoing closed-loop analysis.

On-going and never ending marketing campaign performance analysis, for after-download user activity, and revenue-return allows you to clearly identify where you're making your wins. It's important to delve into the analytics on the regular to tweak the performance of your campaigns with low level marketing objectives.

• Conduct a loyal user acquisition test.

If you're still not sure that targeting your marketing efforts to loyal users will produce results then we can fix that pretty easily. Set us a test by assigning a portion of your overall marketing budget to a test campaign that uses the strategies outlined above. You'll gain valuable insight into how the loyal acquisition strategy impacts your return on investment in comparison to your current strategy.

• Compare Your Campaign Performance Against Industry Averages

The quickest way to increase your mobile app marketing results is to understand the competitive landscape your throwing your budget at.

The best way to improve your mobile marketing results is to more precisely understand the competitive landscape you're pouring your budget into. By comparing your app marketing performance against the industry averages you'll get to see the bigger picture of the trends impacting your marketing goals, allowing you to make changes and adapt your plan with more agility.

Marketing isn't guess work anymore. It's about deploying strategies that have been proven to work, and testing them out over several weeks, whilst constantly making tweaks to improve their performance. By testing a number of different traffic sources, you can quickly work out what sources work best for you and where you should be allocating your marketing budget.

For more tips on mobile app marketing grab your free app development/marketing resources.

To learn more about app branding and marketing, grab our Free app development resources from our website at Buzinga App Development.

For Free App Development Resources with 360 degree focus on developing successful mobile app businesses, check out the Resources page on the Buzinga website site, innovators in app development.

Android OS

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Basically android is a new technology as compaired to the nokia os, As nokia application are limited and doest not contain huge amount of games and other applications. While on the other hand Android just released on 2007-2008 with version 1.0 with alot of applications.
At version 1.0 it contains Android Market, Web browser, Gmail app, google maps, google search, google talk, media player, instant message, bluetooth, youtube app and wi-fi.
On 2009 a new version of android (1.5, 1.6 and 1.7) just came which resolve some mistakes appeared on version 1.0.
On Oct 2009 android version 2.0 was released which Improved Google Maps, Microsoft Exchange email support, Numerous new camera features, Refreshed browser UI with bookmark thumbnails, Optimized hardware speed, Addition of live wallpapers, Calendar agenda view enhanced.
During 2009-2010 android versions 2.0.1, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.3.3, 2.3.2, 2.3.3, 2.3.7 was released which fixes many bugs and released alot of new features.
On 22 Feb 2011 android version 3.0 was released which Optimized tablet, Added System Bar, Added Action Bar, Simplified multitasking, Redesigned keyboard, Simplified(easier to copy and paste text), Quick access to camera, Ability to view albums, New two-pane Contacts, Support for video chat using Google Talk, Hardware acceleration.
On 2011 android version 3.1 and 3.2 was released which fixes many bugs and other minor improvements was also done.
During 2011-2012 a new android version of 4 series was released with remarkable improvements and unbelievable applications include Soft buttons, Separation of widgets in a new tab, A customizable launcher, Face Unlock, Better voice integration, Improved camera app, New gallery layout, 1080p video recording, Fixed minor bugs, Ability to access apps from the main screen and many others.
At the end of 2012 android version 4.1 was released which fix minor bugs and improve many things.
On 2013 android releases 4.2 version with New sounds for wireless charging and low battery, USB debug whitelist, Bug fixes and performance enhancements, Fixed Bluetooth audio streaming, Lock screen improvements, New clock app, Photo Sphere panorama photos, Group Messaging and many other improvements was also done.