The iPad 2
A look at gadget happenings, as Apple reaches its 25 billionth app download, Android’s browser tops the mobile browser share in February and Asus hopes to have the first devices running on Android 5.0 Jelly Bean.
Apple reaches 25bn app download landmark
There have now been 25bn apps downloaded from Apple’s app store. The company confirmed this landmark on its home page, thanking its users for helping it reach this milestone.
The figure comes just in time for Apple’s press event on Wednesday, where the next iPad will be unveiled.
To celebrate, Apple offered a US$10,000 app store gift card for the person who downloaded the 25 billionth app.
Apple launched its iOS App Store in 2008 and it opened its Mac App Store a few years later.
Android browser tops mobile browser usage charts
The native Android web browser became the most-used mobile browser in the world in February 2012, according to new figures from StatCounter.
According to the data, while Opera browser usage has been decreasing from December, iPhone and Android browser usage has been consistently increasing.
The Android browser surpassed the Opera browser in February, taking up a 22.67pc market share.
Opera came second with a 21.7pc market share and the iPhone’s native browser Safari came in closely at third place with a 21.06pc market share.
Asus hoping to offer first Android 5.0 Jelly Bean device
Consumer technology firm Asus said it was hoping to become the first to offer devices running Android 5.0 Jelly Bean.
Its corporate vice-president Benson Lin told TechRadar that as Asus was “very close” to Google, it believed that once Android 5.0 was ready, there could be a ‘high possibility’ that Asus will be ‘the first wave’ to offer the update.
Each year, Google partners with an OEM to develop a flagship device which is the first to offer the next update of the Android operating system. For the last two years, Samsung has been Google’s OEM of choice, first releasing the Nexus S and then releasing the Galaxy Nexus. HTC worked with Google before this on the Nexus One.
After this Nexus device is released, OEMs can upgrade existing devices to the new version of the OS and release new devices running the operating system.
Asus recently announced an Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich 3-in-1 device at Mobile World Congress, which combines a mobile phone, tablet and netbook.
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