Apple's first 2013 earnings to be closely watched

Apple reports its first-quarter earnings this week, and the results could not be more closely watched for signs of the company's health and future.

The story is well-known by now. Shares of Apple's stock have been on the decline, going from $702 in late September to a close at an even $500 last week. That's a 28.4 percent drop in just over four months. Positive results -- and a look ahead when Apple puts out its numbers Wednesday -- could turn that trend.

Apple forecast $52 billion in revenue and earnings of $11.75 per share when it reported its previous quarterly results in October. Wall Street's expecting the company to top that at $54.69 billion and earnings per share of $13.41 based on a poll of 47 analysts done by Thomson First Call.

Those estimates are pared down from the $13.87 per share analysts were expecting ahead of last quarter's forecast, a shortcoming that caused concerns that Apple's growth had stalled. During a conference call with analysts, Apple chalked it up to tighter margins in the creation of its newest products including the
iPad Mini, which starts at $329 and is estimated to cost the company around $198 in parts and labor, according to IHS iSuppli.

Making things a bit more complex is that Apple ended its calendar year with a bang, refreshing nearly its entire line of computers and putting out new versions of the iPhone,
iPod, and iPad. That's expected to make this quarter -- which has historically been strong due to holiday sales -- a whopper. But it's also raised concerns about the company's performance during the rest of the year, given a long history of product launches that are staggered.

By the numbers
Product-wise, Apple's story remains focused on the iPhone, the company's mega profit driver. Analysts have long been concerned that the average sale price of the device, which has been one of the highest in the business, is set to fall dramatically as the smartphone market continues to mature. That issue has been compounded with the makeup of iPhones people are buying, with many customers choosing to buy last year's model or the one from the year before, which Apple sells at a lower price and profit margin.

Wall Street expects Apple to announce iPhone sales somewhere between 43 million and 53 million. That's up from the 37.04 million iPhones it sold the same quarter the year before, and 26.9 million the previous quarter. In fact, it would be the most iPhones sold during any quarter since the product's release.

This is the first quarter to include iPad Mini sales.

(Credit:
Apple)

For Apple's iPad, which the company refreshed in late October, Wall Street's expecting between 23 million and 25 million units. That, too, is up from 14 million in the previous quarter and 15.43 million in the same quarter last year. It would also top Apple's previous sales record of 17 million iPads from its June quarter last year.

One area to watch on Wednesday is Macs. Why's that? Some analysts are anticipating a possible year-over-year decline in sales, despite product refreshes last year that would point to stronger numbers. That's not necessarily the case, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster said in a note to investors last week.

"The December quarter of 2012 faces a difficult comparison from 2011 as the 2011 quarter had an additional week," Munster wrote. "As a result, we remain comfortable with our down 7 percent year over year estimate, which implies 4.8 million Macs."

Some other estimates expect Apple to beat last year's 5.2 million, including Gabelli & Co., which believes Apple sold 5.3 million computers, which would be an all-time sales record.

That kind of performance would be especially impressive given two things: One is that Apple's iMacs did not start shipping until the very tail end of November and late December for the larger model. The other is possible cannibalization by Apple's growing
tablet lineup, which doubled down with the iPad Mini during the quarter.

"We have learned over the years not to worry about cannibalization of our own product," Apple CEO Tim Cook said about just such a phenomenon during last quarter's earnings call with analysts. "It's much better for us to do that than for somebody else to do it."

Apple will report just after the market closes on Wednesday, followed by a conference call with executives at 2 p.m. PT.

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WikiLeaks says Aaron Swartz may have been a 'source'

WikiLeaks said late yesterday that recently deceased Internet activist Aaron Swartz assisted the organization, was in contact with Julian Assange, and may have been one of the organization's sources.

Reached in Iceland on Saturday evening, California time, WikiLeaks representative Kristinn Hrafnsson confirmed to CNET that the tweets were authentic but declined to elaborate.

In the tweets, the organization said it was revealing the information "due to the investigation into the Secret Service involvement" with Swartz.

Here are screenshots of the tweets:

The phrasing of the last tweet ("strong reasons to believe, but cannot prove") may be related to the precautions WikiLeaks says it takes to ensure its sources' anonymity. WikiLeaks' policy says:

...we operate a number of servers across multiple international jurisdictions and we we do not keep logs. Hence these logs can not be seized. Anonymization occurs early in the WikiLeaks network, long before information passes to our web servers. Without specialized global internet traffic analysis, multiple parts of our organisation must conspire with each other to strip submitters of their anonymity.

The Secret Service has a legal mandate to investigate computer crime, a task it shares with the FBI and other federal agencies, which the agency describes including "unauthorized access to protected computers" -- which Swartz is alleged to have been guilty of. It also investigates forgery, identity fraud, visa fraud, money laundering, food stamp fraud, wire fraud, and a host of other federal offenses.

It would not be unusual, in other words, for the Secret Service to be involved in a criminal probe of Swartz's alleged bulk downloading from the JSTOR database. Some other examples: The Secret Service, which is now part of the Department of Homeland Security, has investigated an artist who installed photo-taking software in Apple stores, a credit card theft ring, spyware installed on college campuses, and a possible theft of GOP candidate Mitt Romney's income tax returns.

The ambiguous WikiLeaks tweets have prompted speculation about what the group was trying to suggest. The Verge's Tim Carmody wrote that "the aim of these tweets could be to imply that the US Attorney's Office and Secret Service targeted Swartz in order to get at WikiLeaks, and that Swartz died still defending his contacts' anonymity. Taking that implied claim at face value would be irresponsible without more evidence." And blog emptywheel wrote that if true, the tweets "strongly indicate" that "the US government used the grand jury investigation into Aaron's JSTOR downloads as a premise to investigate WikiLeaks."

Until WikiLeaks elaborates on what it intended to say by highlighting the Secret Service's involvement, and provides supporting evidence, it will be difficult to draw any conclusions.

After confirming the authenticity of the tweets, WikiLeaks representative Hrafnsson asked that we contact him later with any further questions. We'll do that and let you know what we find out.

It seems the only thing that's now certain is that criticisms of, and speculation about, the government's handling of the Swartz-Jstor case isn't likely to die down overnight.

CNET's Declan McCullagh contributed to this report.

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Go ahead and spill on this nanotech menswear

This inside compartment lets you use your smartphone without removing it from the waterproof pocket.

(Credit:
Indochino)

A new line of men's suits from custom online menswear brand Indochino might not contain aloe vera and algae extracts like these new skin-pampering blue jeans, but they still join the denims in the fancy-futuristic-fabric category.

The Ultimate Tech Collection boasts nanotech suits that supposedly repel liquid and stains and resist odors and wrinkles, all while staying breathable and comfortable. If the suits live up to their promise, you should be able to run through a rainstorm while sweating profusely, then break a ballpoint pen over your leg -- and still show up at the board meeting looking no worse for the wear.

The wool suits not only sport a protective nanotech coating that ought to keep you relatively unscathed by the elements, they also include a detachable down "storm flap" that's designed to protect your neck and chest from the cold.

Available in navy, light blue, and look-over-here orange, the flap buttons into the inside of the jacket as a kind of scarf stand-in.

The jacket joins the growing list of gadget-compatible garments with a touch-responsive Smart Pocket that lets you operate your smartphone straight from the suit (from the look of the pocket's location, that could require some maneuvering). The jacket also comes with a metal earphone cable clip and rubber earphone hole under the lapel.

So how much will one of these weather-resistant, smartphone-loving getups run you? They fall in the mid to high range, at approximately $630. Again, that includes a storm flap but not aloe vera sleeves.

A rubber earphone hole under the suit's lapel helps the wearer stay untangled and hands-free.

(Credit:
Indochino)

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LG Optimus G Pro details leak online

Is a pro version of the Optimus G2 on tap?

(Credit:
Josh Miller/CNET)

A newer and beefier version of LG's Optimus G could be coming to town, at least to someone's town.

A leaked slide sent to blog site Engadget teased a host of details about the Optimus G Pro. If the slide is on the money, the new smartphone would sport a 5-inch 1,920 x 1,080 pixel display and tap into a 1.7Ghz Qualcomm quad-core Snapdragon processor for its power.

Running
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, the Pro model would include 2GB of memory, 32GB of storage, and support for LTE. Also along for the ride will be a 2.4-megapixel camera in front and a 13-MP camera on the rear.

Many of those specs would be improvements over those found in the Optimus G, though certain variants of the current model already include some of those features.

Details revealed by Web site Blog of Mobile match up with virtually all of those revealed by Engadget.

The information doesn't indicate when or where the new phone will debut. But certain built-in features signal that it'll be offered by Japanese carrier NTTDoCoMo, according to Engadget. The current Optimus G is sold in Japan, South Korea, Canada, and the United States.

A recent batch of rumors also suggests that LG will release an Optimus G2 phone later this year.

CNET contacted LG for comment and will update the story if the company responds.

Meanwhile, the current Optimus G is doing quite well all by itself. LG revealed today that it has sold more than 1 million units since the phone debuted four months ago, reports the Yonhap News Agency.

LG also plans to launch the Optimus G in China and several European countries this quarter, a company spokesman told Yonhap.

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Playboy hit with $160,000 fine over child restrictions

Playboy has been hit with a hefty fine for allegedly making it too easy for children to access pornographic material on its Web sites.

Ofcom, the U.K.'s communications regulator and competition authority, announced yesterday that it has fined Playboy 100,000 British pounds ($160,200) for failing to include "acceptable controls" ensuring a person viewing pornographic material on Playboy TV and Demand Adult was aged 18 and over.

Ofcom charged Playboy with "failing to protect children from potentially harmful pornographic material," adding that the failure was "serious, repeated, and reckless."

Playboy did have age restrictions in place on Demand Adult and Playboy TV. In the first case, Demand Adult asked that users click a button labeled "Enter I am over 18" before being able to view hardcore material. Upon paying with a debit card, they could access more material. With Playboy TV, users were asked to "self-certify their age," according to Ofcom.

Despite those measures, Ofcom argues that the controls are not "effective age verification systems."

Ofcom didn't say what would constitute an "effective" verification system. However, the organization pointed to Rule 11 of the Authority for Television On Demand rules:

If an on-demand programme service contains material which might seriously impair the physical, mental or moral development of persons under the age of eighteen, the material must be made available in a manner which secures that such persons will not normally see or hear it.

CNET has contacted Playboy for comment on the Ofcom fine. We will update this story when we have more information.

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Nintendo to combine handheld, console gaming divisions -- report

Nintendo's current corporate structure separating consoles and handhelds will be replaced, according to a new report.

Japan-based news outlet Nikkei is reporting today that Japan plans to combine its handheld and console divisions by February 16. The combined team will have 280 employees, made up of 130 employees from the console side and 150 from handhelds.

According to IGN, which was able to access the entire story behind a paywall, the team members will be organized by their specialties, including circuits, design, and others. Engadget claims to have spoken to a Nintendo spokesperson, which confirmed the news.

Nintendo has faced some trouble over the last few years as its latest hardware launches -- the 3DS and the
Wii U -- have failed to generate the kind of interest and sales of its previous releases. During December, for example, Nintendo could only muster 460,000 Wii U unit sales in the U.S., according to the company. NPD DisplaySearch, which releases game sales data for the U.S., said "sales of the
Wii U were lower on a unit basis when compared to the original Wii in December 2006."

It was a similarly troubling launch for the 3DS in 2011, when that device proved too expensive for consumers. After slashing the handheld's price, sales started to creep up.

By combining its handheld and console divisions, Nintendo believes that it will be able to deliver better products, according to Nikkei. The news outlet said that the combined effort will help Nintendo build next-generation hardware "that will turn heads." It's not clear what that means for the Wii U, which only launched a couple of months ago.

CNET has contacted Nintendo for comment on the Nikkei report. We will update this story when we have more information.

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The biggest thing in the universe is really, really big

The Milky Way galaxy barely takes up a single pixel in this representation of Huge-LQG.

(Credit:
Roger G. Clowes)

You and I are really, really small. And we're even smaller than we thought we were last month, at least when compared with the size of the largest known item in the universe.

Last week, a team of astronomers based in the U.K. discovered the largest object in all of our observable existence: a celestial structure made up of 73 quasars that is up to 4 billion light years long.

How big is that exactly? Well, it would take tens of thousands of our own Milky Ways -- the big, galactic one, not the one that comes in a wrapper -- to equal the size of Huge-LQG (for Large Quasar Group), as it's become affectionately known.

Feel insignificant yet?

Yes, it does seem like something so inconceivably massive should have been noticed by now, and that's actually the most interesting part of the discovery.

The discovery of an astronomical body so large throws doubt upon one of the basic assumptions of the nature of the universe. That notion, known as the cosmological principle, assumes that the little corner of the universe we're able to observe from this particular rock is a reasonable sample of what the rest of the universe must also be like.

But Huge-LQG turns out to be so huge that it makes up a few percentage points of the observable universe on its own. It's a little bit like if we suddenly discovered a 51st state that consists entirely of a single building the size of Iowa.

So not only are we less than the most insignificant of specks in our universe, we apparently don't know nearly as much about that universe as we thought.

(Via The Atlantic.)

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Samsung: We've sold 100 million Galaxy S smartphones

Samsung's Galaxy S series smartphones have crossed the threshold of 100 million sales.

According to Samsung's Tomorrow Flickr page, its flagship Galaxy S series has managed to surpass that mark in 2 years and 7 months since the launch of the first Galaxy smartphone in May 2010.

In addition, the firm says that the Galaxy S3 is selling "at [a] much faster rate," smashing through the 1 million barrier in 50 days. Sales of the flagship Galaxy S3 reached 30 million units in 5 months, and 40 million in 7 months, with average daily sales of about 190,000 units. The Galaxy S2 is described as a steady bet after recording sales of over 40 million in 20 months.

Samsung calls the Galaxy series "the driving force" behind the electronics maker's "rise to the top" in the global smartphone market. The firm has estimated that overall sales will reach 56 trillion won ($52.6 billion) in its fourth-quarter results, to be announced on January 25.

It is undeniable that the Galaxy series is popular. According to new research, a number of the younger generation -- Generation Y, if you will -- are branding Samsung phones "cool" in comparison to Apple's offerings. If Samsung products are the ones to own these days, then the recently announced Galaxy S2 Plus, complete with
Android's Jelly Bean operating system, might be the next model in line to surpass the company's sales records.

This news follows a number of announcements made by the South Korean company at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week, including Youm flexible displays and a new eight-core processor for mobile devices.

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JSTOR says it mourns `tragic loss' of Aaron Swartz

As the Internet exploded with anger over news that online activist Aaron Swartz had committed suicide on Friday, the subscription-only archive he was accused of hacking said late today that it "regretted" having been drawn to "this sad event."

Swartz, a celebrated computer activist and programming prodigy, was fighting two-year-old charges that he stole 4 million documents from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and JSTOR, or Journal Storage, an archive of scientific journals and academic papers. If convicted, Swartz faced a maximum of $4 million in fines and more than 50 years in prison after the government increased the number of felony counts against Swartz to 13 from 4.

Federal authorities alleged that Swartz broke into computer networks at M.I.T. to illegally gain access to JSTOR's archive. But critics of the government said the Feds were unfairly trying to make an example out of Swartz. In a post today Prosecutor as bully legal scholar Larry Lessig wrote that "the government worked as hard as it could to characterize what Aaron did in the most extreme and absurd way."

Here is the text of the JSTOR release:

We are deeply saddened to hear the news about Aaron Swartz. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Aaron's family, friends, and everyone who loved, knew, and admired him. He was a truly gifted person who made important contributions to the development of the internet and the web from which we all benefit.

We have had inquiries about JSTOR's view of this sad event given the charges against Aaron and the trial scheduled for April. The case is one that we ourselves had regretted being drawn into from the outset, since JSTOR's mission is to foster widespread access to the world's body of scholarly knowledge. At the same time, as one of the largest archives of scholarly literature in the world, we must be careful stewards of the information entrusted to use by the owners and creators of that content. To that end.

Aaron returned the data he had in his possession and JSTOR settled any civil claims we might have had against him in June 2011. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service and a member of the internet community.l We will continue to work to distribute the content under our care as widely as possible while balancing the interests of researchers, students, libraries, and publishers as we pursue our commitment to the long-term preservation of this important scholarly literature. We join those who are mourning this tragic loss.

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ZTE readies itself for U.S. expansion in 2013

Lixin Cheng, the CEO of ZTE USA, at CES 2013.

(Credit:
Lynn La/CNET)

LAS VEGAS--Lixin Cheng and the rest of his division are determined to make it in America.

Cheng is the CEO of ZTE's U.S. division, and in addition to strengthening the company's carrier relationships, Cheng also has big plans in the near future to increase ZTE's presence in the U.S.

"There are a lot of things already in the pipeline," he said, referring to the devices planned through U.S. carriers.

But other than just spending money on developing handsets (though Cheng does refer to it as ZTE's "bread and butter"), the company also plans on using the $30 million that it recently announced to expanding its U.S. infrastructure, warehousing, and local research and development.

Of course, there are serious obstacles to face. Last fall, the U.S. House Intelligence Committee held a hearing expressing security concerns over alleged ties Huawei and ZTE had with the Chinese government.

Though both companies tried to reassure the lawmakers and the American public that there was nothing to worry about, a veil of suspicion from U.S. consumers remains.

For Cheng, the entire issue was troubling, but there were a few silver linings. First, it helped ZTE increase its transparency with the FCC. Secondly, as the old saying goes - any press is good press.

"From a branding point of view, it increased out brand awareness and a lot of people know ZTE more," he said. "I can't believe there is a positive side, but that's one, I think."

And as for concerns about competing with the tech giants already dominating the U.S. market, Cheng said there isn't any really.

He continued, saying he has full respect for Samsung and Apple, but because ZTE provides such a wide range of inexpensive and prepaid handsets, the company fulfills a niche role in the market that the other two do not satisfy.

"Honestly, I'm not focused on competitors," he said. "That's just our strategy. We're focused on our customers."

For now, what's important are the things that have a more immediate impact, like bringing the ZTE Grand S, the company's new flagship handset, to the U.S. after its initial Chinese launch.

The ZTE Grand S.

(Credit:
Lynn La/CNET)

Cheng is determined to have it available on our shores because it would mark a notable departure from ZTE's usual line of mid-range handsets in the U.S. With this smartphone, along with carrier branding, the Grand S could the company be the boost it needs to make a more positive name for itself.

Especially when considering the money that's at stake. Even though ZTE increased its U.S. market share five to six percent in the last two years, the financial gains from last year weren't so high. Cheng, however, remains steadfast.

"Last year was a very challenging year for us," he said. "But despite that, ZTE is committed to the U.S. market."

For more of CNET's CES 2013 coverage, click here.

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Firefox 19 betas: built-in PDF viewing, broader Android reach

Adobe Systems' Flash Player plug-in has been under attack in Web development circles for years, but now Adobe's Reader software is becoming more of a target in the war against plug-ins.

Mozilla released the with its own built-in PDF reader, called PDF.js, which uses the browser's own JavaScript engine to decode the Adobe-created but industry-standard document format.

The Portable Document Format for years was an awkward part of the Web, often ambushing the unwary with long page-load times as the Adobe Reader plug-in loaded. But PDFs have become more common, exposed in Google search results and used for everything from bank statements to tax forms. In
Safari, Apple bypassed Adobe's software with its own PDF-reading plug-in, but Google went a step farther by building PDF rendering directly into Chrome.

Mozilla launched its PDF.js project in 2011, taking advantage of newer browser abilities such as Canvas to display more complicated documents.

Mozilla also released a new Firefox beta for Android that it says reaches about 15 million more phones. Previously, the browser required an 800MHz ARMv6 processor or faster, but Mozilla lowered the requirement to 600MHz, along with 512MB of memory, and HVGA (480x320 pixels) screen resolution.

"This includes popular phones like LG Optimus One, T-Mobile myTouch 3G slide, HTC Wildfire S, and ZTE R750," Mozilla said in a blog post.

The new
Android beta also adds themes so people can customize the browser's look, handles CSS' formatting set using viewport percentages, and can be localized into traditional Chinese and simplified Chinese languages.

The
Firefox beta for PCs gets the CSS feature, too, along with faster startup and a feature that offers to reset the search engine setting for the awesomebar (aka Web address or location bar) if third-party software changes it.

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Nexus 7 dock to go on sale this month for $39.99

Nexus 7 owners will finally be able to pick up a dock for their tablet made by Asus.

Citing a "reliable source," The Verge says that Asus will offer the dock in the U.S. within the next two weeks at a price tag of $39.99.

Backing up on that claim is a product page for the dock from Manhattan retailer B&H. The page shows the price of the dock and gives an expected delivery date of January 16. Fellow retailer Adorama also lists the dock and its price but says the product is currently backordered.

The dock comes with a mini-Google
Nexus 7 (32GB, Wi-Fi only)USB port for charging the Nexus 7 and a 3.5mm audio jack for playing music through external speakers. Other Nexus 7 docks have been released by third-party vendors and at cheaper prices, but this is the first one made directly by Asus.

Though the Nexus 7 is branded and sold under Google's name, Asus is the actual manufacturer. Asus has been busy demoing the new dock at
CES this week.

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LinkedIn reaches 200 million members

LinkedIn has reached an important milestone.

The professional social network today announced that it now has over 200 million members across more than 200 countries and territories around the world. Those members are speaking 19 languages.

"I'd like to thank each of you for helping build the LinkedIn network into what it is today," LinkedIn senior vice president of products and user experience, Deep Nishar, wrote today in a blog post. "It's been amazing to see how our members have been able to transform their professional lives through LinkedIn. You truly grasp the power of LinkedIn when you start to focus on these individual success stories."

LinkedIn has been growing quite rapidly. The company announced in March 2011 that it had hit 100 million users -- eight years after its founding in 2003. In November, the company announced that its membership had risen to 187 million users.

A key component in LinkedIn's growth has been international expansion. The company reported today that Turkey, Colombia, and Indonesia are its fastest-growing markets. On the mobile side, China, Brazil, and Portugal are leading the way. All told, over 64 percent of LinkedIn members are currently living outside the U.S.

Still, the U.S. is central to LinkedIn's success. According to the company, 74 million members are in the U.S., easily dwarfing the second-place country, India, which has 18 million members. The U.K. and Brazil both tied for third place with 11 million members.

One other interesting tidbit: 4 million of LinkedIn's members identify themselves as working in the IT sector. Financial services and higher education take the next spots with 2 million and 1.95 million members, respectively.

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Tablet shipments to outshine notebooks this year, says report

Tablets will edge out notebooks in global shipments this year, according to a report out yesterday from NPD DisplaySearch.

Tablet shipments are expected to surpass 240 million, while notebooks shipments will reach around 207 million. For the first time ever,
tablets will grab more than 50 percent of the annual market share this year, up from around 38 percent last year and 26 percent in 2011.

Growth in tablet shipments will rise 64 percent this year from 2012, driven not necessarily by the
iPad but by a variety of other choices, the report said. Demand for tablets around the world has opened up the market for a range of players, both large and small.

Tablets with 7 inch and 8 inch screens will grab 45 percent of the market, accounting for shipments of 108 million units, NPD DisplaySearch said. In contrast, 9.7-inch tablets like the traditional iPad will eke out a share of 17 percent, triggered by shipments of around 41 million.

"The tablet PC market saw increasing investments in North America in the second half of 2012, from major brands that tested not only new screen sizes and price points, but also unconventional business models to support their efforts," NPD DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim said in a statement. "In 2013, further investments are expected worldwide, stoking demand to the point that tablet PC shipments will exceed those of notebook PCs."

North America will remain the biggest tablet customer, grabbing around 85 million units and a 35 percent share this year. But emerging markets will also play a huge role in tablet adoption.

Driven by local manufacturers, China will account for 65 million units and a 27 percent slice of the market. Last year, tablet shipments in both North America and China had already surpassed those of notebooks.

Shipments of notebooks have been hurt by sluggish demand worldwide, even in emerging markets, the report noted. But the notebook industry may recover some of that demand in the second half of the year. Manufacturers are expected to increasingly add more tablet features to their notebooks, such as instant-on, all-day battery life, and sleeker form factors.

Of course, the definition of a tablet versus that of a notebook is getting fuzzier.

More manufacturers are releasing hybrid devices that double as tablet and laptop. Consumers who want the best of both worlds will find a greater array of choices. That evolution may make it more difficult to decipher market share but should benefit the industry overall.

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Dropbox rolls out Windows 8 app

Dropbox for Windows 8.

(Credit:
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/CNET)

Dropbox users running Windows 8 or Windows RT can now access their online files right from the Start screen.

The new and free Dropbox app for
Windows 8 displays tiles for all of the folders and files stored in your online account. The app offers the usual touch-friendly approach, so you can swipe and tap your way around the screen to view your files.

Using the Search charm, you can search for specific files by name or extension. You can right-click a file, open the Share charm, and share the file via e-mail or a social network. And you can open, edit, and save
Microsoft Office documents and other types of editable files stored on Dropbox.

But that's about it.

You can't view your locally synced files or upload new files to Dropbox from your PC or
tablet. For those options, you'll still need to install the standard Dropbox desktop application, which provides the full array of features.

Dropbox for Windows 8 is a decent first step, but the app needs a few tweaks to make it worth using over its desktop counterpart.

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Dropped call: Mobile biggies conspicuous by absence at CES

Escalator up to the South Hall entrance of the Las Vegas Convention Center at CES 2012.

(Credit:
Sarah Tew/CNET)

LAS VEGAS -- Mobile is supposed to be a hot category in tech, right? You'd never know it looking at the announcements that are slated to start pouring in this week.

Many of the major companies in the mobile industry have opted to skip or limit their presence at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, which kicks off tomorrow for the media before officially opening on Tuesday. The announcements that do come out will emerge from lower-tier companies hoping to make more of a name for themselves and their products.

The dearth of wireless-related news at a time when the tech world is going increasingly mobile underscores the dilemmas that a show like
CES faces: too many competing conferences, more companies opting to hold their own events, and unfortunate timing after a large wave of product announcements ahead of the holidays. As a result, don't expect to have your mind blown with the mobile announcements coming out this week.

"There aren't really high expectations for lots of big news coming out from CES," said Daniel Hays, a consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers. "CES is an increasingly crowded forum to get your message out. That probably causes some vendors to hold back in making major announcements."

Apple and Google, authors of the two largest mobile operating systems in the world, have long had minimal to zero presence at CES. Microsoft, which made its big push for Windows Phone 8 in October, held its last keynote address here a year ago. Research In Motion, the other significant mobile operating system, will formally unveil its next-generation BlackBerry 10 operating system at its own event later this month.

Samsung has long had one of the largest presences at CES, but it won't have much in terms of smartphone or
tablet announcements, having already heavily invested in a campaign for its Galaxy Note 2 and the continued run of its Galaxy S III late last year. The company also pulled out of the
CTIA Wireless show last year, opting instead to launch its flagship phone at its own event, much like Apple.

Other traditional mobile heavy hitters, including Google's Motorola Mobility, Nokia, and HTC, won't have much to say as well.

The carriers, which in recent years have stepped up their presence at CES, are expected to remain quiet this year. Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam has a keynote address scheduled for tomorrow, but the company isn't expected to make any major wireless announcements, a far cry from the splashy launch of its 4G LTE network two years ago. AT&T, which holds its own developer summit separately from CES but usually offers some mobile news, is likewise expected to remain mum.

T-Mobile USA will hold a press conference and likely talk about its network plans and pending deal with MetroPCS, although actual phone announcements could be slim. Sprint Nextel, still working through its own pending merger with SoftBank, doesn't have any formal event scheduled.

Mobile World Congress around the corner


Mobile World Congress, based in Barcelona, has always been a major force. And with everything going more mobile, the show has grown even more in prominence and influence over the years. The U.S. carriers, which traditionally opted to skip MWC, are increasingly taking part in that show.

Likewise, a lot of major smartphone and tablet announcements are getting made there, rather than at CES. Asus, for instance, cancelled its press conference at CES, opting to debut its mobile products at MWC in February instead.

While Google isn't so high on CES, it has had a large presence at MWC over the past few years, including large booths complete with a slide, an array of demonstration booths, and toy claw machine giving away stuffed Android dolls.

MWC's legacy in mobile gives it an advantage over CES, which has traditionally been about televisions, PCs, and other random gadgets. The transition has been bumpy.

"It's all about your audience. CES has historically drawn an audience primarily focused on retailers. Increasingly, that audience are not just at CES; they're at other influential shows like MWC," Hays said.

CES is making the shift. Mobile chipset companies, for instance, make up some of the early announcements for the show. Tonight, Nvidia will kick things off with its own press event, unveiling its newest Tegra processor.

Meanwhile, Paul Jacobs, CEO of mobile chipmaker Qualcomm, takes over tomorrow's end-of-day keynote slot long occupied by Microsoft and its CEO, Steve Ballmer, another illustration of the shift from PC to mobile.

Opportunities for the second-tier companies


With a Samsung or Motorola out of the picture, that gives companies eager for some attention a chance to shine.

Sony is one of the few companies expected to announce a smartphone or two, and details have already begun leaking out.

Huawei and ZTE, two Chinese vendors eager to stake a larger claim of the U.S. market, are also expected to unveil smartphones at CES. Both are known primarily for low- and mid-tier smartphones and tablets, but the companies want to change that.

ZTE is expected to unveil a high-end flagship smartphone, the Grand S, at CES. It's still unclear whether it will actually sell in the U.S. though.

ZTE could be making a big splash at CES this year.

(Credit:
Josh Miller/CNET)

Huawei, meanwhile, is expected to go big with the Ascend Mate, a large phone with a 6.1-inch display that falls into a category many call "phablet," most notably led by the Galaxy Note franchise by Samsung.

Whether these products ever end up in the consumers' hands is still up in the air. But with some of better-known companies opting to save their ammunition for later, the companies presenting now will at least get heard.

"CES is still an extremely powerful platform for announcing new products and positioning yourself as a leader in the mobile space," Hays said.

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What does the International Space Station sound like?

Can you hear me, Major Tom? Hadfield rocks out in the ISS cupola.

(Credit:
Canadian Space Agency)

If you're heading to the International Space Station, try to bunk in the Japanese section. It's as quiet as a Zen temple.

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield recently went aboard the ISS and has been recording what it sounds like. It's not quite the elegant "2001: A Space Odyssey" experience you might expect. It's more like a noisy tin can.

After recording last week the ambient sounds of the U.S. lab, with its noisy air pumps and fans, Hadfield managed to get samples of what the ISS toilet sounds like, as well as the relative serenity of the Japanese Experiment Module (aka Kibo).

Check them out below, or listen to a larger selection here.

Hadfield has been very busy taking some amazing photos of Earth, updating his Facebook status, and performing the odd astro-duty like running experiments.

A couple of days ago, he received a message on Twitter from William Shatner, who asked whether he was tweeting from space.

"Yes, Standard Orbit, Captain," Hadfield replied. "And we're detecting signs of life on the surface."

That gave Trekkies, including yours truly, tribble-like quivers of delight.

Inspired by the view from the ISS cupola, the mustachioed commander of Expedition 35 grabbed a guitar and recorded an original tune, a first for the station. He titled it "Jewel in the Night" and uploaded it to YouTube. Give it a listen below.

It doesn't have the makings of a space classic like "Rocket Man" (the Shat version, of course), but it's heartfelt and quite a bit better than Spock's "Maiden Wine."

And likely a welcome relief for crewmates from all that high-tech racket.

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Apple could launch 'iPhone Mini' next year, analyst says

Will the iPhone get a baby brother?

(Credit:
CNET)

Is an "iPhone Mini" on the horizon? Strategy Analytics analyst Neil Mawston thinks so. But why?

Samsung has been the clear winner in the smartphone wars, with Apple playing second fiddle. And that lead may wider further in 2013.

Based on data sent to CNET, Mawston expects Samsung to carve out a 33 percent chunk of the smartphone market this year, up from a projected 31 percent in 2012. At the same time, Apple's share will inch up to 21 percent from 20 percent last year. Samsung could sell as many as 290 million smartphones this year, while Apple is likely to sell 180 million iPhones.

The Korean handset maker has the edge over Apple in large part because it "plays in more segments," Mawston told Reuters, allowing it to "capture more volume than Apple."

To fight back, Apple may try to win over a larger base of consumers by launching a smaller, cheaper variant of the iPhone, dubbed the "iPhone Mini" by the analyst.

With the
iPhone 5 grabbing huge demand and sales, a low-end model may not be on Apple's agenda this year. But Mawston told CNET he thinks it's coming.

We believe Apple will have to launch an 'iPhone Mini' at some point over the next three years to address the hundreds of millions of prepaid users worldwide that cannot afford the current iPhone. The iPhone 5 is growing fast and profitably right now, so there is limited incentive for Apple to launch a profit-squeezing 'iPhone Mini' this year. We expect the 'iPhone Mini' to be more likely next year, in 2014, when Apple's penetration of the global postpaid smartphone market will be nearing saturation and Apple will be forced to discover fresh growth streams elsewhere.

Jefferies analyst Peter Misek also sees a low-cost iPhone in Apple's future but thinks it could launch early this summer at a price of $200 to $250. He cautions that a low-end iPhone hasn't gotten the go-ahead yet because Apple feels such a Apple iPhone 5product would bite into gross margins.

Apple and Samsung will continue to battle over market share as they introduce new flagship phones for 2013.

Samsung is expected to launch the Galaxy S4 this year. One initial report said the new phone could reach consumers this February or March, but the company quickly downplayed those rumors.

Apple will have a new iPhone on tap, most likely a refresh of the iPhone 5. Though the iPhone 5 came out last September, some analysts believe the iPhone 5S could pop up around June.

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Maybe China Mobile needs the iPhone more than it thinks

Apple's iPhone 5.

(Credit:
CBS Interactive)

China Mobile, the largest carrier in China, and the crown jewel for Apple, might be suffering by not offering the iPhone to customers, an analyst claims.

In a note to investors, Evercore Partners analyst Rob Cihra said that he believes "China Mobile could be starting to need the iPhone more." He pointed out that China Mobile's 3G market share is down 7 percent year-over-year to end 2012 at 37 percent. The company's chief competitors China Telecom and China Unicom combined for a 7 percent gain to land at 63 percent.

"China Unicom alone has added nearly 2 million more 3G subs than China Mobile year-to-date despite being almost 1/3 the size, and overall share losses look to correlate with introduction of the iPhone in Mainland China," Cihra said in the note, which was obtained and first reported on by All Things Digital.

Apple has for years been trying to woo China Mobile. The carrier currently has approximately 700 million subscribers across China, dwarfing its closest competitor, China Unicom, which has 236 million subscribers, and creating a potentially huge opportunity for Apple. However, China Mobile and Apple have been unable to come to terms. It's believed that China Mobile has held out for better terms, citing its massive size as the main reason Apple must play ball.

Last month, China Mobile president Li Yue confirmed that his company has been in talks with Apple since 2009. Li said that a snag in making the deal happen is that China Mobile uses a TD-SCDMA network that's incompatible with the
iPhone 4S and
iPhone 5. And although that issue can be overcome somewhat easily, Li said that "the business model and benefit sharing still need further discussion" before they can sign a deal.

Li didn't elaborate on what kind of "benefit sharing" his company is seeking, but it's been rumored that China Mobile wants a cut of the revenue Apple generates through its App Store on all China Mobile customers. Apple has never offered such a deal to other carriers.

Still, it Cihra is correct, China Mobile might have no choice but to temper its terms.

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Judge decides to keep Samsung sales data unsealed

U.S. District Court Judge Lucy Koh has denied Samsung's request to keep its phone and device sales data out of the public's eye.

According to Bloomberg, which obtained a copy of an order filed earlier this week, Koh decided that Samsung must file and cannot seal an exhibit detailing total units sold on certain Samsung products. The products included in that exhibit, as well as the span of time in which the sales were registered, were not disclosed in Koh's order.

Judge Koh has been at the epicenter of Apple and Samsung's vicious patent battle in a San Jose court. The judge presided over Apple's first major victory in their battle, when the iPhone maker was awarded more than $1 billion from a jury that found Samsung violated several of its patents. Last month, Judge Koh denied Apple's request for a sales ban on Samsung products.

Still, the case continues on, as Apple tries to seek more damages from Samsung, and Samsung plans its appeal to a Federal Circuit court. According to Bloomberg, Samsung wanted to keep its sales data out of the court record until its appeal was heard by that circuit court -- a plea Koh struck down.

"Samsung's appeal involves pricing information and profit margins," Koh wrote in her order, according to Bloomberg, adding that the soon-to-be unsealed exhibit "only lists the number of units sold in each of several recent months."

This isn't the first time sales data has been made public. In August, Apple was forced to reveal sales data on its iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch over a period of five years. Samsung had to do the same on its Galaxy Prevail mobile phone. Just a couple of months later, Apple was ordered by Judge Koh to share its sales, earnings, and profit margins, on the iPhone.

It wasn't a total loss for Samsung this time around. In a separate order, Judge Koh said that the company would be able to seal operating profit on two unidentified Samsung phones.

CNET has contacted Samsung for comment on the judge's order. We will update this story when we have more information.

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