Viber's free, no-registration 3G VoIP app officially launches on Android

Hey there, friends. Do you have the voice-calling blues, wishing for a better way to talk to your friends -- without using your minutes? Consider Viber, a free VoIP app that launched for the iPhone last year. Usable over 3G or WiFi, with built-in SMS, it requires no registration, using your existing phone number and contact list. Our only quibble? A disheartening lack of Android support. But our spirits are lifted today, with the app making its way to the everyone's favorite olive-green market. It has all the compelling features of the iOS version, plus a few extras we saw in the limited beta, like pop-up text message notification, in-app call logs, and the option to use Viber as your default dialer. The company must be doing something right, as it claims 12 million active users just seven months after launch. Interested in being one of them? Check the full PR -- with video! -- after the break.

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Viber Officially Launches Android Version and Announces 12 Million Active Users

NEW YORK, July 20th, 2011 - Viber, the revolutionary mobile application that offers users free phone calls and text messaging to other Viber users over 3G and Wi-Fi, is announcing today the official launch of the Android version of the app, bringing Viber to millions of additional users. Viber is also announcing that it has acquired over 12 million active users (last 30 days) and has an impressive call traffic volume of over one billion minutes of calls per quarter.

"This is an incredibly exciting day for us," said Talmon Marco, Viber CEO. "We have been looking forward to launching our Android app, especially after having received a staggering number of requests from Android users asking us to bring Viber to the Android market. Our latest user numbers are the best indicator of how much our users love to talk and send messages for free with Viber."

The incredibly fast growth of Viber is even more remarkable considering that Viber was released for iPhone just seven months ago. Viber now has over 20 million registered users and 12 million active users who currently talk on Viber for 11 million minutes every day, with an average of 6 minutes per call.

"We'd like to take this opportunity to thank more than 50,000 users who have been testing the beta version of Viber for Android since May," Marco said "The beta test allowed us to refine the app and prepare it for widespread release."

The Android version of Viber features the same super-easy setup process and high- quality calls that drove its success on the iPhone. The Android version of Viber includes several exclusive features:

Full call screen whenever a Viber call is received;
Popup text message notification, which lets users respond to text messages without having to open Viber;
Tighter integration with the phone, which allows users to see their regular call logs and messages within Viber;
A default dialer setting that enables users to use the Viber dialer for all their phone calls, not just for Viber calls.

The release of Viber on Android is also good news for the millions of users of the iPhone version of the app. With Viber offering free calls and texts for both Android and iPhone devices, users can now enjoy using Viber with even more friends and contacts.

Watch this video to find out more about Viber for Android: http://goo.gl/WRtaO

About Viber Media

Viber Media is revolutionizing personal communication by enabling users to make free Viber to Viber calls and text messages on their mobile phones. Having reached more than 20 million registered users within its first 7 months, Viber is the world's fastest growing VoIP service.

See more at:

Facebook: Facebook.com/viber
Twitter: Twitter.com/viber

Sprint's Fared Adib: we made a conscious decision to scale back bloatware on smartphones

If you've ever wondered what companies take your advice (read: complaints) to heart, here's yet another one that is: Sprint. Recently, HTC received oodles of praise from a minuscule-but-passionate group of folks who appreciate the company's stance on unlocking its bootloaders, and today we learned that folks at The Now Network made a similarly impressive change after hearing yet another enthusiastic sect... our readers. If you'll recall, Sprint's VP of Product Development Fared Adib appeared on the November 2010 episode of The Engadget Show, and it was during that appearance that he heard a rather shrill cry of users begging for a smaller amount of "bloatware," or at the very least, bloatware that users could customize or outright remove. For those unfamiliar with the term, it generally refers to applications that are preloaded onto devices from the carrier; by and large, these clutter up the application grid, and many power users aren't exactly enthralled by any carrier-imposed OS changes.

In speaking at length today with Adib during a Sprint campus walkthrough, he confessed that he jetted back from NYC and immediately informed his team that the bloatware needed to go. To quote: "Ben, we've got to get rid of these preloaded apps on our devices. A lot of customers don't want this." You may have noticed a dearth of those very apps on the EVO 3D, and according to Fared, customer feedback on the newly cleaned slate has been overwhelmingly positive. We inquired on whether this approach would be pushed across the company's product spectrum, and he seemed eager to admit that it would. In fact, Sprint's taking quite the different approach internally than some folks may be used to. It's effectively trying to get out of the way in as many areas as possible, and in turn, litter your future phones with as little content as possible. In fact, he's pushing to make whatever programs Sprint does preload user-removable, and it's a mantra we can only hope other carriers latch onto. Nothing against NASCAR, of course, but having the ability to burn rubber in our own way is definitely preferred.

P.S. - This slide was just one of many, and is definitely not a comprehensive view of partners and plans. We were specifically informed to not read into it as a solo slide.

g.co, the official URL shortcut for Google websites

Google URL shortcut, shorter URL

Today, Google announcing a new URL shortcut that will only link to official Google products and services: g.co. The shorter a URL, the easier it is to share and remember. The downside is, you often can’t tell what website you’re going to be redirected to. They’ll only use g.co to send you to webpages that are owned by Google, and only they can create g.co shortcuts. That means you can visit a g.co shortcut confident you will always end up at a page for a Google product or service. There’s no need to fret about the fate of goo.gl; They like it as much as you do, and nothing is changing on that front. It will continue to be our public URL shortener that anybody can use to shorten URLs across the web.

 

Mobile Video Consumption to Surpass 693 Billion Minutes by 2015

Mobile video consumption is a rapidly developing market. Although many mobile video products have only recently launched, providers are experiencing significant growth in usage rates. According to In-Stat survey results, nearly two-thirds of smartphone owners have watched video on their device, while nearly 86% of tablet owners have done so.

While the propensity to watch full length premium video is only a portion of these viewers, these numbers indicate the potential market demand. These examples are indicative of a larger trend of strong growth in mobile video consumption worldwide. New In-Stat research forecasts mobile video consumption to surpass 693 billion minutes by 2015. 

Samsung delivers world’s first virtual desktop monitor with Cisco Universal power-over-ethernet technology

Samsung virtual desktop monitor

The Samsung NC220 monitor with Cisco UPOE powers and connects individual monitors via the network to a “virtualized” central server that executes all tasks and applications, offering businesses a flexible and convenient cloud computing alternative to the traditional workstation setup. 

Samsung designed the NC220 with its new LED BLU technology, which offers bright and clear pictures on an ultra-slim, eco-friendly design—and markedly reduces energy consumption when compared with conventional CCFL (cold cathode fluorescent lamp) monitors. Such innovations have allowed Samsung to remain the undisputed global leader in monitors for 19 straight quarters, according to a recent report from market research firm IDC.

 

This easy-to-deploy, easy-to-maintain desktop virtualization system reduces IT burden at every step. Software and security updates can be deployed in minutes from a centralized location, eliminating the need to service each individual workstation. Additionally, the Cisco UPOE technology is designed to enable that both data and power can be supplied through a single Ethernet cable, allowing for easier installation and more flexibility when configuring an office space.

 

“Samsung and Cisco are leading the way in transforming enterprise workspaces,” said Jeong-Hwan Kim, senior vice president of Display Sales & Marketing at Samsung Electronics. “Now every workstation can leverage the power and speed of the company’s centralized server, while reducing energy costs and creating a more beautiful, less cluttered environment.”

 

The addition of Cisco UPOE increases flexibility and choice for businesses by extending network power resiliency, at reduced costs compared to traditional power infrastructure, to an unprecedented range of devices. Cisco UPOE can supply up to 60 watts of power—twice as much as existing power-over-Ethernet technologies, which is currently restricted to 30 watts.

 

“Cisco UPOE doubles the amount power delivered over the Ethernet to support many more devices, including the Samsung zero client desktop virtualization devices,” said Jeff Reed, vice president of Cisco’s Unified Access Business Unit. “Now the same Ethernet cable that provides network access will power Samsung’s industry leading virtual desktop devices—dramatically simplifying deployment and management of these devices.”

 

Enterprises can save additional energy by implementing Cisco’s EnergyWise to better manage and monitor the power consumption of IT devices powered and connected to their Cisco network.

 

Zero client monitors like the Samsung NC220 are server-based monitors for businesses’ cloud computing systems. These products eliminate the need for local CPU, memory and storage at each individual workstation; instead, the monitor is connected via the network to a central server that executes tasks traditionally handled by a desktop PC. Samsung and Cisco have been working togetherto embed the Cisco UPOE on the Samsung NC220 since the two companies entered into an alliance earlier this year.

 

Rumour:HP Pre 3 Not Coming To Sprint

When the original Palm Pre was released two years ago, was available exclusively in the U.S. with mobile operator Sprint, but now it appears that Sprint may have chosen not Pre latest smartphone is the stock HP HP Pre 3.

The HP Pre 3 recently went on sale in Europe, and now according to the guys over at This is my next, it appears that Sprint has decided not to carry the HP Pre 3, and have also decided to carry any future HP Pre smartphone devices.The 3 has a 3.58 inch touchscreen and a sliding QWERTY keyboard, the screen comes with a 480 x 800 pixels, the processing is provided by a Qualcomm processor 1.4 GHz.

Pre has 3 512 MB of RAM, plus there will be two models available, one with 16 GB of storage and built one with 32 GB of storage built in, there are 801.11 b / g / n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR.

Droid 3 disassembled by iFixit Jawas

It's time for the squeamish to avert their eyes. The latest entry in Motorola's popular Droid line has taken a trip to internet Tatooine, getting the classic teardown treatment from the folks at iFixit. As always, there were some interesting findings beneath its shiny, gadgety exterior, including a SIM card and so, so many hidden screws. More gory shots in the source link below.

Make's Redpark Breakout Pack lets you build iOS apps with Arduino assistance

In the mood for some homebrew iOS app-building fun? Well, Make's got a kit just for you that bundles the Redpark Serial Cable for iOS with an RS232-to-TTL board and the 60 plus component Minitronics Survival pack for $80. Hailing it as "the first general-purpose serial cable that Apple has approved," this limited supply pack will let you get your Arduino-tinkering hands all sorts of iPhone dirty -- jailbreak not required. And if you're the uninitiated type, the DIY magazine's also put together a helpful, hand-holding guide to walk you through some basic first-timer projects. Hit the source to order your own Jobs-certified cable.

[Thanks, Marc]