CrimePush app helps you report crime, but it’s still in beta
by Leigh Goessl (Guest contributor/Digital Journalist)
After being held at gunpoint on the streets of Washington, Shayan Pahlevani decided to take action. Using smartphone-app technology, Pahlevani came up with a solution to help people easily report crimes with the push of a button.
Pahlevani’s mobile solution, called CrimePush, became available on Feb. 1 on iTunes and is currently in beta. According to Forbes, CrimePush puts crime reporting in the hands of users and allows people to rapidly report the details of the crime to authorities.
The app is devised to report a crime it occurs, and witnesses can send authorities texts, photos, sound and video.Additionally, the app is said to be designed to report crimes anonymously. The concept behind the app is to allow individuals to empower themselves and help facilitate reporting crimes to law enforcement officials.
“There are often tense situations when calling the police is not an option. There are other times when inconvenience or fear of reprisal prevents one from reporting an incident,” said co-founder, Eman Pahlevani. “Featuring the ability to take a photo, record video and audio, and provide a description of the incident, citizens can now be assured that their phone has the capability to alert family, friends, and the authorities at the push of a button, should a threat arise.”
The company says this app will enable people to swiftly report crimes rather than ignore them. An example used by the company was a situation where individuals witness crimes, but do not stop and take the time to report what was observed. Or, according to the CrimePush makers, “there are other times when personal security is at stake and there is no discreet method of alert.”
Using high school and college students as an example, CrimePush says this app is useful for students coming home late at night, or victimized by hazing, drug use or bullying
.“Opening a new channel via a mobile application, youth populations will be more motivated to provide crime tips and informants will have better tools utilizing a phone’s built-in technology to capture audio, image, or video evidence,” Pahlevani said.
It appears there are mixed feelings about the app between would-be users and police.In Missouri, the St. Peters Police Department tested out the app and, according to KMOV, the results received were not what was “expected.”
“When our dispatcher downloaded the app and she entered in a complaint and pressed ‘send,’ it got lost in cyberspace somewhere,” Melissa Doss, St. Peters Police Department official, said. “There’s a connection missing and I want residents to know that this is not an app to use yet, to report any type of crime because help will not come to you.”
“I’m a big fan of its simplicity and definitely feel safer knowing that there’s a faster way to get crime reported,” said Mameeza Hossain. “It not only strengthens me, but makes me feel a lot more secure,” told WJLA.
It’s not yet as fast as dialing 9-1-1, however the app’s developers say this will be addressed as the company integrates the service with police departments. The St. Peters Police Department indicated they liked the idea, but feel “it is not ready for people to rely on.”
Currently dialing 9-1-1 is the most efficient way to report, say police.
Users placed warnings on the iTunes app’s page because the app is not fully integrated with police departments. One reviewer said, “Good idea, reckless execution.” Others warned not to use the app since it is not functional.
CrimePush has added a disclaimer stating the app is not yet fully operational and makes a plea for users’ help to make this happen. The statement also says:”By downloading this application, you understand and agree to these terms: The CrimePush application is NOT linked, NOR connected to any police, medical, or law-enforcement authority as of yet. By using this application at this time, you will not be assisted for any and all emergencies or crime-reports submitted. NO police department, medical emergency unit, or law enforcement agency will receive a distress message from this application. This is a Beta version that should ONLY be used by potential partners or clients to TEST the utility and user-friendliness of the application. should an emergency arise, you should dial 911.”
CrimePush plans to partner with high schools, law enforcement agencies, colleges and international mobile carries.CrimePush is patent pending, and the free app can currently be downloaded on Android’s Marketplace and the iTunes store. Just keep in mind, the app is in beta and not going to work properly at this time.
This article originally appeared on Digital Journal [Link]
On mobile devices, most people get news from social media, not apps
A new survey found most smartphone users tend to get their news fix from social media surfing rather than from dedicated news apps, according to Flurry Analytics.
U.S. mobile or tablet application users spend around 30 percent of their time social networking, while most play games (at 49 percent). News apps capture only 6 percent of total time on mobile apps, the data says.
The press release adds, “Further considering that Flurry does not track Facebook usage, the Social Networking category is actually larger.”
A Poynter article reminds us why people clamor to news apps in the first place: They are catered to the most-loyal fraction of a news outlet’s established audience, and may also get them to pay for content.
“The app fulfills those readers so dedicated to your brand that they want on-demand access to a comprehensive bundle of your content. These people who value your content most also are most likely to pay for it, and the app stores make those payments and subscriptions easier,” the author says.
The report also looked at time consumption. “The growth in time spent in mobile applications is slowing – from above 23% between December 2010 and June 2011 this year to a little over 15% from June 2011 to December 2011,” Flurry states.
Flurry accounted for its data by tracking anonymous sessions across more than 140,000 applications.
News applications are still popular with some smartphone lovers. A Nielsen study found 33 percent of consumers downloaded news apps during the past month. The study also found 51 percent of consumers “are more tolerant of in-app advertising if it means they can access content for free.”
RIM’s outlook for 2012 is gloomy, at best
If BlackBerry maker Research in Motion is going to rebound in 2012, it better forget all about an ugly 2011. Its tablet PlayBook never dented Apple’s huge market share, BlackBerry fans were frustrated by several worldwide blackouts and off-the-court incidents marred its image horribly. Essentially, any year can be better than 2011 for RIM.
But will it be? Look at RIM’s own projections, as outlined in its recent quarterly statement: its BlackBerry 10 phones won’t be available until the second half of 2012 because it is waiting on the manufacturing of dual-core LTE chipsets to power the smartphones. Also, “it expects the number of devices it ships in the quarter including Christmas will drop as much as 26 percent from a year ago,” as Fox reports. Ouch.
Analysts are equally bearish about RIM. Research firm Strategy Analytics predicts RIM’s share of the U.S. smartphone market to fall to 12 percent this year, a sharp drop from 2007, when RIM had a 44 per cent share, Toronto Star writes.
Other analysts believe RIM has to sell its handset business and focus on the super-secure data network it so highly prizes. Recently, Jaguar Financial wrote, “[we believe] that the road map to value restoration lies in a sale of RIM whether as a whole or in separate parts.” Jaguar also called for a change in leadership, saying Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie need to make way for new transformative talent.
“Clearly, something has got to change at RIM pretty quickly,” an analyst told AllThingsD. “They are eroding market share at a pretty rapid rate here.” That essentially sums up RIM’s mountainous challenge in 2012, and the Canadian company needs to do something drastic to change its fortunes. Otherwise, it may end up becoming another Nortel.
Photo courtesy of Official Blackberry Images
Android accounts for half of all smartphone sales
by Leigh Goessl (Guest contributor/Digital Journalist)
The success of Android continues to grow, and according to third quarter data in 2011, its rise soared. New figures published by Gartner found more than half of all smartphone sales are running the Android OS platform.
Gartner reported global sales of mobile devices equated to 440.5 million units in the third quarter of 2011, which is an increase of 5.6 percent from the third quarter of 2010.
The organization said, “Non-smartphone devices performed well, driven by demand in emerging markets for low-cost devices from white-box manufacturers, and for dual-subscriber identity module (SIM) devices.”
Gartner also said, “Smartphone sales to end users reached 115 million units in the third quarter of 2011 [globally], up 42 percent from the third quarter of 2010.”Of those devices Android seems to currently be the clear market leader (60,490.4 units during 3Q 2011). Google’s OS has jumped to its current 52 percent market share, which is up from 25.3 percent of Android sales a year ago. This growth has come at the expense of competitors, all other platforms have declined in this market over the course of the last year.
Android is effectively “outstripping the growth of the overall smartphone market,” according to PaidContent.org. Bloomberg Business Week reported, “Android benefited from more mass-market offerings, a weaker competitive environment, and the lack of exciting new products on alternative operating systems,” Roberta Cozza, an analyst in Gartner’s European unit based in Egham, England, said in the report.
“The entry-level Android smartphones are getting better and better,” Cozza said. “This lower end is really what will be driving more growth next year.”
Microsoft’s Symbian saw a significant tumble in its command of the market, but remains in the number two place in terms of actual sales, however its market share saw a distinctive drop. While Apple’s iOS grew in actual units sold, their market share decreased. Last year the technology giant owned 16.6 percent for 3Q, but this year dropped slightly to 15 percent.
Research in Motion (RIM) also experienced a dip, losing four percent of its market share, despite the fact it sold an additional 200,000 devices when contrasted with last year’s 3Q.Growth of smartphones in the U.S., Western Europe, Latin America, Middle East and Africa, has slowed, while China and Russia are seeing a significant boost, Gartner reported.
Experts say the slowdown can be partially due to economic uncertainty, but also could be attributed to the fact many consumers wait until the fourth quarter to purchase their devices during holiday promotions and/or as newer models become available towards the end of the year.
Last month Digital Journal reported Google TV updates coming that would integrate the Android interface.
This article originally appeared on Digital Journal [Link]
Photo courtesy of Flickr user Paul Jacobson
Samsung wants iPhone 4S banned in France and Italy
by Henry Cole (Guest Contributor/Digital Journalist)
Samsung is seeking an injunction to ban Apple’s new iPhone 4S in France and Italy, due to Apple’s use of Samsung-patented technologies in the phone, the company claims.
An official Samsung press release earlier today claims Apple have infringed two Samsung patents related specifically to Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) standards for 3G mobile phones, a technology which Samsung believes is essential to the functioning of modern phones.
Apple and Samsung have quite a history when it comes to patent wars, starting with Apple’s claim earlier this year regarding the similarity of the design of Samsung’s Galaxy range of phones and tablets to that of Apple’s iPhone and iPad.
Samsung announced recently that they believe it’s time for them to take a tougher stance in the patent wars, and they seem to be living up to this claim, as their press release states “Apple has continued to flagrantly violate our intellectual property rights and free ride on our technology. We believe it is now necessary to take legal action to protect our innovation.”
Samsung also claims that they will be looking to file more preliminary injunctions in other countries, after “further review.”
This article originally appeared on Digital Journal [Link]
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