Balasubramanyam Seshan

Samsung's most-anticipated Galaxy Note, which is a hybrid of smartphone and tablet, is hitting the shelves of AT&T Feb. 19.

AT&T confirmed Monday the availability of the most-anticipated Samsung Galaxy Note from Feb. 19 for $299.99 with a two-year contract. With a huge 5.3-inch display, the Galaxy Note is considered to be neither a phone nor a tablet but a happy combination of both.

The Motorola Droid Razr Maxx, which was showcased at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and made available through Verizon Wireless last week, is expected to see stiff competition from the HTC Rezound.

Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx, which was showcased at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas Jan. 9, is available on Verizon Wireless from Thursday for $299.99 with a two-year contract.

Apple Inc. has a high-quality balance sheet with net cash of $97.6 billion or $103.6 per share at the end of fiscal first quarter. Investors look puzzled regarding what Apple intends to do with its cash hoard.

President Barack Obama delivered a State of the Union address last night that was heavy on populist themes, highlighting successes from his first three years in office and outlining his goals for the year ahead.

After conducting an in-depth study, Research In Motion Ltd.'s (NASDAQ: RIMM) new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Thorsten Heins will conclude that a significant restructuring is necessary, as the company cannot otherwise compete with Apple Inc. and Google Inc.'s Android operating system, said brokerage firm Jefferies.

Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) said its Co-Chief Executive Officers (CEO) Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis have stepped down. They have been succeeded by Chief Operating Officer Thorsten Heins, as President, CEO and Director of the company, effective immediately.

The Motorola Droid Razr Maxx, which was showcased at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas on Jan. 9, is expected to hit the markets on Thursday.

Apple Inc. unveiled two new educational opportunities, including iBooks 2 for iPad and an all new iTunes U app, at a press event in New York Thursday.

HTC EVO family legacy was continued by Sprint with the addition of HTC EVO Design 4G, the first EVO family member touting World Phone capabilities. But the phone faces immense pressure from Samsung Galaxy S2 Skyrocket, which is a Long Term Evolution (LTE) version of the Galaxy S2 and debuted in AT&T network Nov. 6.

The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: F5 Networks, Xilinx, Riverbed Technology, Golar LNG, Altera, Logitech International, eBay, and Apple. The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: Neurocrine Biosciences, Vodafone Group, Research In Motion, and Huntington Bancshares.

Jefferies feels incrementally better about its base case for potential merchant litigation outcomes as it relates to "buy" rated Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) and MasterCard Inc. (NYSE: MA).

Jefferies believes the press reports suggesting that Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) is talking to Samsung are likely true.

ASUS has selected to roll out the next tablet version, Eee Pad Transformer Prime TF700T, which is expected to come with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The battle between ASUS and Apple Inc. is anticipated to grew, as both tablet makers are bringing out their best weapons.

HTC EVO family legacy was continued by Sprint with the addition of HTC EVO Design 4G, the first EVO family member touting World Phone capabilities. But the phone faces immense pressure from Samsung Galaxy S2, which is considered to be the best Android smartphone yet.

ASUS has chosen to roll out the next tablet - Eee Pad Transformer Prime TF700T - in the Transformer Prime series after the predecessor had some design flaw. However, the tablet has to deal with the iconic Apple Inc.'s iPad 2, as the benchmark for design and performance has been set by the California giant.

Motorola Droid RAZR MAXX, which was showcased at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas Monday, is considered to be a value-addition to the RAZR family.

T-Mobile showcased Samsung's new 4G smartphone - Galaxy S Blaze - at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2012. It is expected the battle between Samsung products is set to become fiercer, with the Galaxy S Blaze 4G targeting the hugely anticipated Galaxy S3.

The combination of lightweight operating systems, low-power processors, and near-ubiquitous high speed broadband will empower the disruption of the living room paradigm in 2012, says an analyst.

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime is expected to get the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update much earlier than promised. The battle between ASUS and Apple Inc. is predicted to become more intense, as both tablet makers are bringing out their best weapons.

Barclays Capital reiterated its belief that China is a big growth opportunity for Apple Inc. and could be bigger than even the U.S., within a few years.

Barclays Capital expects ultrabooks to take center stage at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) as the thin and light concept emerges at the forefront of new product design trends.

The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Lululemon Athletica, Cirrus Logic, Focus Media Holding, Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Research In Motion and Apple. The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: WebMD Health, Illumina, Affymax, Brocade Communications Systems and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries.

Barclays Capital expects Apple Inc. to ship iPad 3 in March/April but other rumors suggest the next-generation of iPad is coming sometime in the next two months.

The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market gainers are: Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Achillion Pharmaceuticals, VIVUS, MAKO Surgical, Questcor Pharmaceuticals, Research In Motion and Apple. The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market losers are: IPC The Hospitalist Company, Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Akamai Technologies, Logitech International and Costco Wholesale.

The battle between Apple Inc. and Samsung is expected to get fierce as both the smartphone makers are prepared to release their best ones in the market this year.

Wedbush Securities expects Apple Inc. to launch the iPad 3 in the fiscal second quarter but other rumors suggest the next-generation of iPad is coming sometime in the next two months.

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime, which is the world's first tablet to have NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor, will get Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update from next week. However, the ASUS tablet has to deal with the Toshiba Thrive, which was launched July 10, 2011.