SMARTPHONE

The much-anticipated Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, is finally available in Verizon Wireless.

South Korea's Samsung Electronics aims to raise its global handset sales by 15 percent next year by boosting its smartphone sales, putting it in a closer race with bigger rival Nokia, a local newspaper said on Tuesday.

South Korea's Samsung Electronics aims to raise its global handset sales by 15 percent next year by boosting its smartphone sales, putting it in a closer race with bigger rival Nokia.

NTT Docomo Inc, Japan's biggest mobile phone service operator, said Tuesday it will partner with South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co and other Japanese firms to develop chips for smartphones.

LG's G2x is $100 on contract from T-Mobile, but Best Buy is selling the device for free as part of their Christmas sale this year. All of the major U.S. carriers offer phone deals through Best Buy, but both the LG G2x and the Nexus S are available now for free.

Apple has filed two patent applications related to Fuel Cell batteries, hoping to develop and launch technology that allows its devices including the iPhone, iPad tablet, and laptop computers like the MacBook go weeks without a battery charge.

The LG Nitro HD, which was made available on AT&T's network from Dec. 4, is expected to face heavy competition from the HTC Rezound, which was made available on Verizon's network from Nov. 14.

After Christmas Sales 2011: Walmart, Best Buy, Target's Best Holiday Shopping Deals

Sony Corp has agreed to sell its nearly 50 percent stake in an LCD joint venture with Samsung Electronics to Samsung for $940 million, the Korean firm said on Monday, as Sony struggles to staunch red ink at its TV business.

NORAD teamed up with Google Earth once again in 2011, tracking Father Christmas' progress around the world as volunteers fielded 100,000 calls. As NORAD reports a record holiday, find out how the Santa Tracker got started, and check out 2011's best Google Earth videos tracking Santa's progress, from the Great Wall and Taj Mahal to Hilo, Hawaii.

There is an interesting battle brewing among carriers providing 4G LTE services in Android smartphones. The competition is intense between the country's top two carriers - AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless.

Santa Claus tracking has gone digital for 2011, with many smartphone applications and online tools like a live video feed on Google Earth through Norad to track ole St. Nick on his journey from the North Pole.

Santa Claus tracking is set for a record-breaking year in 2011, as applications on smartphones are being used with North American Aerospace Defense Command data to track The Big Red One on his journey from the North Pole to all points south.

This year saw Android smartphones grow by leaps and bounds and Google Inc. release the latest version of its Operating System - Android 4.0 or Ice Cream Sandwich - in the latter half of the year.

Nokia's best high-end smartphone - the Lumia 800 - which is the fruit of its partnership with Microsoft is rumored to hit the U.S. market in January 2012. It will, however, face heavy competition from Samsung's Galaxy S2 Skyrocket, which has more specifications when compared to Lumia 800.

Samsung Galaxy S2, which runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS, received overwhelming responses from around the world. The smartphone sports Samsung's TouchWiz UI and available on AT&T for $200 on contract. However, Galaxy S2 is also available on T-Mobile and Sprint, whose version is called Samsung Galaxy S2 Epic 4G Touch.

Mike Bell likens his new job at Intel Corp to piloting a glider.

Via Motors spokesman David West offers a bold comparison for his company's latest line of electric vehicles: the iPhone.

There's a bad news for the millions of users of both Samsung Galaxy S and the 7-inch Galaxy Tab - the South Korean tech giant has confirmed that these two devices will not get the Android 4.0 “Ice Cream Sandwich” upgrade.

Experts discuss if crime will increase in 2012 for the third straight year.

Mike Bell likens his new job at Intel Corp to piloting a glider.