Mobile world: news and happenings

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/mobile-news 
http://techcrunch.com/mobile/ 
http://googlemobile.blogspot.com/  
http://blog.infostretch.com/category/mobile  
http://www.engadget.com/  
http://venturebeat.com/category/mobile/ 
http://www.insidermobile.com/news  
http://gigaom.com/mobile/ 
http://www.mobiletechnews.com/  
http://mashable.com/mobile/ 
http://blog.flurry.com/  
http://www.puremobile.com/insiderblog/  
http://www.mobilemarketer.com/ 
http://www.gomonews.com/category/mobile-news/ 
http://www.wirelessandmobilenews.com/  
http://mobile.alltop.com/ 
http://www.mobilewhack.com/category/mobile-news/ 
http://techie-buzz.com/category/mobile-news  
http://www.appleinsider.com/ 
http://www.mediapost.com/publications/ 
http://www.puremobile.com/insiderblog/ 
http://www.tmsmobilenews.com/  
http://www.mobilenewsasia.com/  
http://www.feelandroid.com/2011/09/17-top-android-3-0-honeycomb-apps/ http://www.marketingcharts.com/direct/more-mobile-news-and-research-august-2-2011-18600/ http://www.wirelessandmobilenews.com/

Emulators Vs Devices

Emulators	Real devices
The application can be installed through apk file backup which is a time consuming process and it requires a real device	The application can be directly installed in the device.
Real time applications (i.e. GPS based, server based, motion, multitouch or tilt control based) cannot be tested on emulators	All types of application can be very accurately tested on a real device.
Emulator is slower than a real device. So, the app performance cannot be measured accurately and slower speed of emulators effects productivity	A real device is always more accurate than an emulator
Communication with the emulated device may be blocked by a firewall program running on computer because the emulator can act like a normal application on workstation.	There are no firewall restrictions on a real devices
There is no support for USB connections, SD card insert/eject, battery charge level, device-attached headphones etc.	Real devices supports all of this without any restriction

Android ICS Features

1.  Enhanced user interface

Richer, larger icons and functionality shortcuts will make it easier for you to use your tablet. New fonts are clearer and the color palette is more vibrant for a more vivid user experience.

2.  More robust Google apps

Calendar, People and other Google apps have all been dramatically improved and optimized for 10-inch tablets. You’ll be able to take advantage of more data fields, for example, to capture more of the information you need. The new People app offers high-resolution display pictures and a button for connecting to integrated social networks.

3.  Enhanced camera capability

Image capture hasn’t been a hugely popular tablet feature, but that may change with the enhanced camera and gallery features in ICS. When you’re unlocking your device, for example, you can go directly into camera mode so you won’t miss any magic moments. Zero shutter lag and continuous autofocus with automatic face detection make it faster and easier to take pictures, which can be important for claims adjusters, service technicians and other field service personnel. The gallery app offers a built-in photo editor that lets you add effects, crop and rotate without affecting the original image. Video is also improved, with 1080p capture, continuous autofocus, time-lapse settings and the ability to zoom while recording.

4.  Enhanced browser performance

With ICS, you’ll spend a lot less time loading Web pages, and you can toggle back and forth between desktop and mobile mode. You can also save Web pages in a new tab for offline reading, and set preferences for every browser tab. This last feature can come in handy if, for example, you want to visit certain sites with cookies disabled.

5.  Enhanced email support

With a more functional email client, it’ll be easier than ever to manage your messages with ICS. You can create quick responses and store them in the application for use when you need them, and you can toggle a message to Reply All and Forward without changing screens. Managing multiple accounts will be easier, and enterprise users will appreciate the support of

6.  Exchange ActiveSync version 14.0

An easy way to take screen shots. ICS will make it easy to capture screen shots while you’re surfing the Web, which is great for remembering important statistics, quotes and images for use later on.

7.  New application programming interfaces (API)
Android is known for being developer friendly, and ICS makes it even easier for businesses to build their own applications, whether you’re trying to take your business processes mobile or promote your products and services to more customers.

8.  Built-in support for Bluetooth Health Device Profile (HDP)

Bolstering the tablet’s effectiveness in health and medical fields, ICS lets you connect to wireless medical devices and sensors in hospitals, fitness centers, homes and other locations with support from third-party apps.

9. Use folders as a widget

Aggregate common tools in a single folder to better manage your experience. 




References:

http://www.jeff-klein.com/2012/04/10-advantage-of-android-ice-cream-sandwich/

http://www.tabletsatwork.com/2012/04/9-reasons-why-android-ics-is-hot/

Android ICS vs iOS 5

Features	Android ICS	iOS 5
Google Services	The instant account-based access you get to Gmail, Google Maps, the contacts, the calendar, Latitude, and chat are great.	You can download Google apps from the App Store, too. The Google Voice app has a better layout for iOS but it's also slower and much less stable.
Camera Tools	Ice Cream Sandwich brings on a whole lot of new photo tools, the most significant of which are the photo-editing tools in the image gallery. They include red-eye reduction, straightening, and "hipster filters," whatever those are. The camera app itself adds a useful panorama mode that seamlessly creates a landscape still.	iOS 5 has great software image rendering, but photo quality also requires the image sensor and camera lens In the camera roll, you can create a slideshow, plus crop, rotate, remove red-eye, and auto-enhance, but from the looks of it Ice Cream Sandwich have more features.
NFC	NFC (near-field communications) is becoming a big deal in mobile. If you have an NFC-compatible phone, you'll be able to use the on-board Google Wallet software right away to pay for purchases by tapping or waving your phone near a compatible terminal .	No NFC for iOS 5 yet
Cloud feature	Android has long enjoyed over-the-air OS updates, and its online Android Market also takes advantage of over-the-air app installation. Google Music is one big cloud feature	iCloud does over-the-air syncing from the device to the cloud (no more USB connection to the computer!) and syncs content like apps, music, and contacts, so you can later restore. You can also wirelessly edit photos, manage e-mail folders, and create and delete calendars.
Voice Action App	Android has also had its own voice actions app, which can launch navigation, calls, texts, search, and more, at your command	‘Siri’ is the voice-triggered assistant with an attitude that replaces the Voice Control app. ‘Siri' can create reminders, search for directions, text people, call you a cab, and so on
Turn-by-turn voice navigation	Google's turn-by-turn voice navigation for driving directions can effectively replace your in-car dash or GPS navigator--and possibly save you hundreds of dollars	Integrated Google maps are great, but there's no voice readout

Basic cloud computing applications & services that we use:

Desktop / Server Application	Cloud Application	Usage
Microsoft office	Google Docs	Google Docs provides the basic functions of Microsoft Office but runs in a Google Inc. computer center rather than in the user's own computer.
PowerPoint	Preezo	An Ajax based web application that support to create and sharing presentations over the web without software or plug-in
Adobe photo shop	Splash Up	Splashup is the only full-featured, free range, image editor online
instant messenger	Meebo	Meebo, the web platform for IM on any network or site
Adobe Illustrator	Aviary	Aviary is a suite of powerful creative applications with a goal of recreating Adobe’s most popular design tools that you can use right in your web browser
Flash	Ajax Animator	The goal of the Ajax Animator is to create a fully standards-based, online, collaborative, web-based animation suite
Movie Maker	Jaycut	Online video editing tool
Quicken	Mint	a free web-based financial organizer
Oracle customer relationship management	Salesforce.com application	Salesforce.com Inc. sells its software for contact management and other functions as a service
Backup disk	Mozy.com	a unit of storage provider EMC, sells remote backup storage.
Intel servers	Amazon EC2	The Elastic Compute Cloud is a service from Amazon.com Inc. that allows developers to buy computing power and storage as needed.

Emulator keyboard mapping

Emulated Device Key	Keyboard Key
Home	HOME
Menu (left softkey)	F2 or Page-up button
Star (right softkey)	Shift-F2 or Page Down
Back	ESC
Call/dial button	F3
Hangup/end call button	F4
Search	F5
Power button	F7
Audio volume up button	KEYPAD_PLUS, Ctrl-F5
Audio volume down button	KEYPAD_MINUS, Ctrl-F6
Camera button	Ctrl-KEYPAD_5, Ctrl-F3
Switch to previous layout orientation (for example, portrait, landscape)	KEYPAD_7, Ctrl-F11
Switch to next layout orientation (for example, portrait, landscape)	KEYPAD_9, Ctrl-F12
Toggle cell networking on/off	F8
Toggle code profiling	F9 (only with -trace startup option)
Toggle fullscreen mode	Alt-Enter
Toggle trackball mode	F6
Enter trackball mode temporarily (while key is pressed)	Delete
DPad left/up/right/down	KEYPAD_4/8/6/2
DPad center click	KEYPAD_5
Onion alpha increase/decrease	KEYPAD_MULTIPLY(*) / KEYPAD_DIVIDE(/)

Running Selenium IDE scripts from command line

With Selenium RC installed we can use the following command line syntax to run a test suite
of Selenium IDE scripts in browsers.

java -jar selenium-server-standalone-2.19.0.jar -htmlSuite "*chrome" "
http://www.rediff.com" "c:\selenium_ide\test_suite.htm" "c:\
selenium_ide\results.htm"

whitepapers by Perfecto mobile

Stickyminds.com link:
http://app.en25.com/e/es.aspx?s=1156&e=41722&elq=d56f0d59072b44d2a931ed9cbf0938b9


Mobile Testing Enterprise Apps: A Practical Guide
Mobile QA/Test: Real devices or Emulators?
Top 10 Reasons Why Enterprises Should Adopt a Cloud-based Approach for Mobile Application Testing
Learn How to Extend Your Functional and Regression Testing to Mobile Using QTP

Good read: about mobile emulators

Don't put all your trust in mobile emulators

Steve Souders on how he reduces the development risks of mobile emulators.

Compatibility test on Android emulator based on different device configurations

Sample compatibility matrix:

Sno.	Module	Page name/ Funcationality	Motorola  Droid razr	Samsung Epic
			Resoulation:540*960 LCD Density:256 RAM:1024 Heap:	Resoulation:480*800 LCD Density:233 RAM:512 Heap:24
1	Launch App	App Icon	YES	YES
2	Launch App	Splash screen	YES	YES
3	Launch App	Login Page	YES	YES
4	Launch App	Reset password page	YES	YES
5	Launch App	Login Page	YES	YES
6	Profile Screen	Create profile page	YES	YES
7	Profile Screen	Profile screen	YES	YES
8	Profile Screen	Edit Profile screen	YES	YES

Emulator based device configurations:

Motorola  Droid razr	Samsung Epic	HTC Droid Incredible	HTC Inspire	HTC Desire HD	HTC Desire	Samsung Galaxy S2	HTC Evo 4G	Samsung Galaxy S	HTC Wild Fire	LG Optmus ONE P500	Samsung Glaxy Mini
Resoulation:540*960 LCD Density:256 RAM:1024 Heap:	Resoulation:480*800 LCD Density:233 RAM:512 Heap:24	Resoulation:480 × 800 LCD Density:252 RAM:512 Heap:25	Resoulation:480x800 LCD Density:217 RAM:768 Heap:24	Resoulation:480*800 LCD Density:240 RAM:768 Heap:38	Resoulation:480*800 LCD Density:240 RAM:576 Heap:24	Resoulation:480*800 LCD Density:218 RAM:1024 Heap:64	Resoulation:800×480 LCD Density:240 RAM:512 Heap:48	Resoulation:800×480 LCD Density:233 RAM:512 Heap:48	Resoulation:240*320 LCD Density: RAM: Heap:	Resoulation:320x480 LCD Density:160 RAM:512 Heap:24	Resoulation: 240×320 LCD Density: RAM: 160 Heap:24