Bell is launching Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 4G LTE on December 7, 2011

 

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 4G LTE is Bell’s first 4G LTE tablet.

Fast and powerful:

·         4G LTE download speeds up to 75Mbps (expected average speeds of 12–25 Mbps)

·         HSPA download speeds up to 42 Mbps

·         1.5GHz dual-core processor

·         Android 3.2 Honeycomb platform with a customized Touch Wiz experience

·         Rich web browsing, with Adobe Flash 10.2 support

·         16 GB internal memory

Easily portable:

·         8.9” screen for easier mobility on the go

·         Thin and light - 8.6mm profile, weighing only 453g (just under a pound)

·         Long-lasting battery for extended use

Latest tablet experience:

Home screen ‘live panel”:

·         Widgets with real-time data updates

·         Customizable home screen

Mini-apps:

·         Advanced multitasking feature

·         Easily access commonly used features from anywhere

·         Pop-up over full screen applications (launch the mini-app tray over any page being viewed)

Camera and video:

·         Snap beautiful pictures in low light with the built-in 3 MP camera with LED flash, or create a stunning 720p HD video

·         Quickly switch to the 2MP front-facing camera for self-portraits, or video chatting with a friend or client

·         Full HD playback with built in dual speakers surrounding the screen

·         1080p playback capable, using an HDMI connection to an HDTV

Wind Mobile backer regrets Canadian launch

The billionaire financier behind the Wind Mobile cellular telephone company says he regrets getting involved in Canada in the first place.

That's one of several revelations made by Naguib Sawiris, the Egyptian founder of the Orascom media conglomerate, in an interview with the CBC's Amanda Lang.

Orascom provided much of the financing for Globalive's Wind Mobile service when the brand launched in 2009.

"It was a bad idea," he said in the interview, which aired on The Lang & O'Leary Exchange at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday.

'Why aren't they everywhere if they're so good? The answer is simple, here they're protected.'—Naguib Sawiris on Canadian telecom incumbents

Globalive, headed by Canadian entrepreneur Anthony Lacavera, has a complex ownership structure under which the Canadian equity owners control the company, but Orascom put up more than 80 per cent of the funding.

That raised the ire of telecom incumbents Rogers Communications Inc., BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. which complained to the CRTC that the company doesn't adhere to Canada's stringent foreign ownership rules.

After a lengthy process, Canadian officials eventually ruled that Wind was within the rules and was allowed to launch a cellular service in late 2009.

Canada is the only country in the world, besides China, that hasn't opened up to foreign direct investment for foreign capital, Sawiris said. "I don't know why Canada wants to be matched with China," he said. "There's only two countries [with] very ridiculous old laws, and nothing is happening."

"There's no real political will here to introduce competition into this closed market," he said.

Spectrum auction

Sawiris spent roughly $500 million in a wireless spectrum auction in 2008 to get the necessary space on airwaves to launch a cellular service. The federal government set aside a certain percentage of that spectrum specifically for new entrants, in the hopes of spurring competition.

Another spectrum auction of more powerful 700 MHz frequency auction is coming up, but based on his Canadian experiences thus far, Sawiris says Wind won't be bidding on any new spectrum.

"We would like to, but these are not fair rules," he said. "Our position is clear: if they don't set aside, we won't bid for it — why would we go in and just increase the price so the government makes more money and we get devastated," Sawiris said.

Sawiris said Canada's antiquated telecom rules are destined to hurt the economy's productivity and dampen innovation.

"You need to ask yourself, why isn't Rogers in the U.K., like Vodafone or France Telecom," he said.

"Why aren't they everywhere if they're so good? The answer is simple, here they're protected. They can be inefficient, their cost structure can be expensive."

'We are trying to help [consumers] and not because we are good guys — because we want to make money.'—Naguib Sawiris, Orascom founder

He says Wind helped bring down cellphone prices by an average of 30 per cent across the board. He says the three incumbents all have virtually identical ARPU numbers — an acronym meaning average revenue per user, or the amount of money they get from each customer. That's an indication of a market with no competition, he says.

"Why would an Egyptian like me be in 25 countries, and a big company [stay] here? Because they're pampered," he said. "How can you create innovation if you close up yourself like that? What's the argument? I don't see it."

Wind Mobile added 45,000 new customers last quarter, bringing its subscriber base to 317,000 in total. That's an impressive growth rate, but still a long way off the 9.1 million wireless customers Rogers has, or the 7.3 million at Bell or 7.1 million at Telus.

Sawiris says he isn't afraid of competing with the big boys — but Canadian competition rules make that impossible.

"We are trying to help [consumers] and not because we are good guys — because we want to make money," he said. "We want to come here and earn with hard work, but we are encountering nightmares," he said.

He says wireless prices remain higher than they should be on the retail level. "If they can reduce their prices 30 per cent, why didn't they do that before we came?" he asked.

"And how will they continue after we leave? If we leave, maybe prices will go up to where they were."

Galaxy Nexus from Google

The first superphone with Android 4.0. Launching December 8.

The highly-anticipated Galaxy Nexus – the first superphone with Android 4.0. 

The new Android 4.0.

Android 4.0, known as Ice Cream Sandwich, brings Android to a whole new level. It has a new lock screen, widgets, notifications, efficient multi-tasking and more. Its been entirely rethought and refined to make Android simple, beautiful and beyond smart.

Face Unlock technology.

Unlock your phone with a smile using Face Unlock. No more complicated passwords to remember - just switch it on and look into the camera to quickly unlock your phone.

HD Super AMOLED display.

Galaxy Nexus is the world's first phone with a 4.65" high-definition Super AMOLED display making text, videos & games look crisp, vibrant and rich. With an edge-to-edge 720p screen high-definition, videos look amazing and the unique contour display curves nicely to make it easier to hold and view.

Super fast 4G speeds
& dual-core processor.

Galaxy Nexus runs at 4G speeds of up to 21 Mbps (expected average download 3.5-Mbps) so you can browse, watch movies, video chat & share without delay. With the 1.2 GHZ dual-core processor, you can quickly switch between apps, games, and a lightning fast web browser.

For the good of the company? Five Apple products Steve Jobs killed

When Steven P. Jobs returned to Apple 1997, he returned to a slew of ill-conceived product lines. Some were excessive, and some were downright silly, but many were ultimately killed off for their poor alignment with consumer needs and wants. Still, even with Jobs’ discerning eye, he wasn’t immune to having to deal with a few bad product decisions. Here are four products Jobs rightfully discontinued, and one misstep of his own.

The Pippin

Apple developed Pippin as a multimedia platform based on PowerPC Macs, running a pared-down version of the Mac OS. Though it looked like a gaming console, complete with boomerang-style controllers, the system was intended for more "general purpose" media use. Titles for the Pippin ran off of CD-ROMs, each of which included the operating system, since the Pippin platform had no onboard storage to speak of.

The only company that licensed the platform was Bandai in 1994, resulting in the Bandai Pippin @World player, available in white or black. But there was no room for a fourth console in a market dominated by the Nintendo 64, Sony Playstation, and Sega Saturn, systems that were both more powerful and already well integrated into the market. The only Pippin was discontinued in 1997, and fewer than 12,000 of the $599 systems were sold in the US between 1996 and 1998.

The Newton

The Newton predated Jobs’s return to Apple by some years, with the first MessagePad released in 1993. The PDA was developed under then-CEO John Sculley, who insisted in a keynote speech at the 1992 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that such devices would one day be commonplace.

The Newton platform was initially conceived as a range of tablets, including a 9” x 12” model priced at $5,000, but eventually leadership feared competition with Macs and launched only the smallest version, a 4.5” x 7” handheld model.

The first Message Pad was derided for its poor handwriting recognition and short AAA-fueled battery life, but the initial set of 5,000 units at MacWorld Boston in August 1993 sold out within hours at $800 apiece. The Newton was never exactly a failure, nor was it a runaway success over its five years on the market. When Jobs returned as CEO, he killed the Newton project rather than try to keep propping up a legacy that wasn't his own, planning to make a splash with his own line of mobile devices later on.

Twentieth Anniversary Mac

A favorite adjective of Apple critics is “overpriced,” one that Apple fully embraced with the release of a $9,995 desktop celebrating the company’s 20th anniversary in March 1997. From the limo delivery to the white-gloved home setup by a man in a tuxedo to the custom Bose sound system, the TAM was an exercise in excess. There was even a wrist rest on the keyboard, because carpal tunnel syndrome is for poor people.

But even with the wrist rest, there wasn’t enough excess to justify the price—the PowerMac 6500 introduced a month earlier had a nearly identical configuration for a fifth of the price. Around the same time Jobs ended the Newton program, he also ended the TAM’s run—the model was discontinued in March 1998, and the remaining computers were priced at $1,995 to get the stock moving.

Mac clones

In 1994, Apple decided the best way to expand its seven percent market share would be to start licensing its operating system to other manufacturers. Contracts were drawn up with licensing fees and royalties for each “clone” computer sold by OEMs such as DayStar, Motorola, Power Computing, and UMAX.

When the clones arrived on the market, Apple saw that the licensed OS wasn’t expanding the company's share at all—it was just eating into the company’s already modest hardware sales. The licensing agreements covered only Apple’s System 7, so when Jobs returned, he openly criticized the program and let the contracts expire, offering no new licenses for Mac OS 8.

Control of Macs returned to Apple, whose computer has since flourished thanks in part to the business' vertical integration. But the company had trouble stopping some manufacturers, such as Psystar, from making their own illicit Mac clones.

… And a Jobsian mistake: The Cube

The Power Mac G4 Cube, a computer suspended in a clear plastic box, was designed by Jonathan Ive and released in July 2000. The Cube sported a 450MHz G4 processor, 20GB hard drive, and 64MB of RAM for $1,799, but no PCI slots or conventional audio outputs or inputs, favoring instead a USB amplifier and a set of Harman Kardon speakers. The machine was known in certain circles as Jobs' baby.

While Apple hoped the computer would be a smash hit, few customers could see their way to buying the monitor-less Cube when the all-in-one iMac could be purchased for less, and a full-sized PowerMac G4 introduced a month later with the same specs could be had for $1,599. Apple attempted to re-price and re-spec the Cube in the following months, but Jobs ended up murdering one of his own darlings, suspending production of the model exactly one year after its release. While the Cube's design is still revered (it's part of the MoMA's collection), it proved consumers won't buy a product for its design alone.

iPhone 4S coming to India on Nov 25th

Aircel has confirmed the date to The Mobile Indian today and Airtel is also likely to launch the smartphone on the same date.

Apple iPhone 4S is set to come to India on 25th of this month. Both Airtel and Aircel have earlier confirmed bringing the latest iPhone couple of days back.

"We are likely to launch iPhone 4S in India on November 25. Tariff plans will be announced later," Aircel spokesperson told The Mobile Indian.

Both the operators are likely to offer attractive money back tariff plans for the iPhone buyers. Both the operators are currently offering iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 with up to 100 per cent money back offers through discounted tariff plans.

Difference between iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S.

The iPhone 4S comes with the new Siri voice-activated personal assistant, A5 processor, CMDA+GSMchip, 1080p video capability, faster download speeds, improved graphics, improved camera and an intelligent switching antenna. The iPhone 4S also has a new operating system - iOS 5, as well but that will be available for older iPhones as well.

In terms of design, iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S look identical as both have Glass Sandwich design. The letter S in the name iPhone 4S probably stands for improved 'speed'. The storage has also gone too high, up to 64 GB. The iPhone 4 storage went up to 32 GB only. The image quality is expected to be better even in low light conditions, the video resolution would also be better.

The iPhone 4S comes with an 8 megapixel camera compared to the 5 megapixel of iPhone 4. In terms of pixels, the front facing camera goes from 720 pixels to 1080 pixels though it still remains a 0.3 MP one. The iPhone 4S also has hybrid GSM/ CDMA cellular connectivity whereas the iPhone 4 had quad-band GSM/CDMA cellular connectivity.

Will the iPhone 4 be discontinued?

Unlike iPhone 3GS, the iPhone 4 will not make sense along with the 4S. However, you never know in India after all five generation of Maruti Zen co-existed in India.

Difference between iPhone 4S and iPhone 4

In terms of design, iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S look identical as both have glass sandwich design. The letter S in the name iPhone 4S probably stands for improved speeds, but the storage now goes way too high, up to 64 GB.

Apple has finally come out with its latest device - the iPhone 4S. The device, in contrary to the earlier reports, does not have an astonishingly thin body not the revolutionary NFC chip. Of course, the users get better camera, a new processor and better than ever download speeds. The new features are definitely good, but nothing compared to what the users are expecting in the device.

When the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 are compared head to head, the iPhone 4S goes ahead with its Siri voice-activated personal assistant, A5 processor, CMDA+GSM chip, 1080p video capability, faster download speeds, improved graphics, improved camera and an intelligent switching antenna. The iPhone 4S also has a new operating system - iOS 5, as well, but that will be available for older iPhones as well.

In terms of design, iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S look identical as both have Glass Sandwich design. The letter S in the name iPhone 4S probably stands for improved 'speed'. The storage has also gone too high, up to 64 GB. The iPhone 4 storage went up to 32 GB only. The image quality is expected to be better even in low light conditions, the video resolution would also be better.

The iPhone 4S comes with an 8 megapixel camera compared to the 5 megapixel of iPhone 4. In terms of pixels, the front facing camera goes from 720 pixels to 1080 pixels though it still remains a 0.3 MP one. The iPhone 4S also has hybrid GSM/ CDMA cellular connectivity whereas the iPhone 4 had quad-band GSM/ CDMA cellular connectivity.

Simply stated, the iPhone 4S owners will find it easier to roam between countries which are predominantly GSM network country and those places where CDMA networks are prevalent. The faster A5 dual core processor will make it powerful device, with a claimed battery life of 8 hours. Last, but not the least is the Siri personal assistant which may prove to be quite an attraction for the users. The screen size in both the phones is 3.5 inches with 640x960 retina display.

About the RAM, a website has claimed it would be 1 GB for iPhone 4S but we didn't find supporting evidence on the Apple website. The iPhone 4 has a RAM of 512 MB only.

Tips for setting your password

Password security measures have been established to protect confidential information in your user profile. For the greatest security, please consider the following guidelines when forming your password:

• Use at least 6 characters in your password.
• Use a mix of upper case and lower case keystrokes.
• Use a mix of letters, numerals, and special characters ({}[],.<>;:'"?/|\`~!@#$%^&*()_-+=).
• Use a random set of characters, rather than a true word.
• Do not use your username as your password.
• Do not reuse a previous password.
• Do not use a "universal" password for all your secured on-line accounts.

For greatest security, be careful when storing your password:

• Do not write your password down, display it in the open, or store it in an easily accessed location.
• Do not give your password to anyone.

If you suspect your password security has been compromised, reset your password immediately.

How much Cdns plan to spend on holidays

TORONTO - Feelings of financial insecurity could overwhelm the Christmas giving spirit, pressuring Canadians to be more frugal holiday shoppers this season, according to a survey released Tuesday by Deloitte Canada.
The financial services agency predicts spending will grow by a modest two per cent over last year — but the growth is due to higher prices while inflation is also up by two per cent. That will stretch shopping budgets, giving consumers less gift for their buck.
On average, Canadians will spend $1,080, although that figure was skewed upward by big spenders in Calgary and Toronto.
Half of Canadians surveyed said they will stick to a budget, with the median being around $477. Those earning less than $30,000 reported a median budget of $264 while those households with an income greater than $150,000 reported a median budget of $816.
It is the first year Deloitte has asked specific spending level questions in its annual survey, so there is no year-ago comparison.
While survey respondents said their highest priority is to pay off lingering bills, as household debt-to-income ratios continue to rise, that goal can be obscured during the holidays as festive sentiment encourages further spending, said Jean-Philippe Vorsanger, a retail consultant with Deloitte Canada.
"People's horizon is always short-term, people know in the back of their mind that things may go bad — but it's Christmas ," he said Tuesday after the survey's release.
"They get in the spirit of the moment and they spend money."
Those who have trouble reining in their holiday shopping budgets risk a tough financial lesson once the holiday season ends and the bills start to arrive, Vorsanger said.
Government officials have been warning Canadians about piling on too much debt during this low interest rate climate because it could become too burdensome to pay back when interest rates inevitably rise.
The latest jobs report — showing a surprising 54,000 jobs lost in October — stock market volatility, the pressure of a high loonie and rising food and fuel prices have taken their toll on consumer confidence, said Vorsanger.
Only 29 per cent of respondents in the Deloitte survey said they expect the economy to improve in the coming year, while 33 per cent thought it will decline, the report found.
Last year, nearly half — 49 per cent — of Canadians were optimistic about the economy for the coming year and 15 per cent had a negative outlook.
Deloitte noted that its consumer confidence index has dropped to 75 from 89 last year — though Canadians are still more optimistic that shoppers south of the border, where the confidence index hovers around 45.
But Vorsanger said while the predictions aren't optimistic, at least they're not negative, as they were during the Christmas of 2008.
That Christmas , Canada had officially entered a recession and there were huge job losses and holiday sales were down 1.5 per cent.
"When people are unemployed they just don't spend money," said Vorsanger.
"As long as employment is at a reasonable level or going up, you can see flat or a small growth in retail. It's when employment goes down in very large numbers, like it did in 2008, that you start seeing negative growth."
The findings are in line with two earlier surveys.
A report by OTX and Google released last Tuesday found Canadians plan to be more frugal this year. The average amount Canadians said they planned to spend this year was $711, down from $728 last holiday season.
And a Bank of Montreal study predicted in October that Canadian retail sales will be up about 2.5 per cent in November and December, compared with a gain of 3.1 per cent in last year's holiday season.
The BMO study also noted that retail sales will be restrained by high household debt, modest wage growth and turbulent global markets.
Meanwhile, retailers, who are also feeling the pinch of a slowing economy, anticipate slow sales and have cut back inventory accordingly, Vorsanger said.
That means stores are unlikely to hold big sales and deep discounts to attract customers, he said.
"I don't think retailers are out there making splashes with big promotions early in the season — they will wait."
Electronic spending will be a key driver of holiday sales, with that category expected to increase 10 per cent from last year when there was a lack of hot tech items on the market.
This year, as competition ramps up in the tablet computing market, price wars are also heating up, which could drive sales.

Adobe throws in towel to Apple in Web software war

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Adobe Systems Inc halted development of its Flash Player for mobile browsers, surrendering to Apple Inc in a war over Web standards as the company surprised investors with a restructuring plan.

While the matter might seem like inside baseball for the average person, it is likely to improve the browsing experiences of tens of millions of iPhone and iPad users, who have trouble accessing sites built with Flash.

That is because Adobe's decision means Web developers who currently use Flash tools to produce Web content will likely move over to the newer HTML5 technology, which Adobe embraced on Wednesday.

Adobe's concession to Apple and its late founder Steve Jobs, who famously derided Flash as an inefficient power-hog, came as the design software specialist warned that revenue growth will slow next year.

That is because the company is scaling back development of some products and shifting toward leasing other types of software via the cloud on a subscription basis, instead of selling licenses up front.

The news, detailed Wednesday at the company's annual analyst day, sent shares in the company tumbling nearly 8 percent.

Adobe announced a restructuring plan on Tuesday that involves laying off about 7 percent of its workforce.

Adobe said revenue growth is expected to slow to 4 to 6 percent in fiscal 2012 -- below the roughly 9 percent Wall Street was projecting, on average.

The company said the revenue shortfall is partly because it plans to scale back promotion of its LifeCycle business process management software and Connect web conferencing businesses. It will stop marketing those products to most customers, though it will continue to support them.

Analysts were uncertain when Adobe's moves would deliver, despite executives saying that top line growth should return to normal in 2013.

"Shifting from a license model to a recurring model is hard," said Brigantine Advisors analyst Barbara Coffey.

"Longer-term, Adobe will be a stronger company. However, in the meantime we believe that the shares will languish until revenue growth is evident."

VICTORY FOR JOBS

Adobe's surrender signals the end of a long-running war with Apple that has overshadowed the software maker's other activities.

At one point in the battle, Steve Jobs wrote a nearly 1,700-word "manifesto," calling Flash unreliable and ill-suited for mobile devices. Adobe retaliated by taking out newspaper ads saying Jobs was just plain wrong.

Analysts say the cessation on Flash development might be a setback to rivals of Apple who tout the ability to support Flash as a reason to buy their equipment. They include Asustek Computer Inc, Google Inc, HTC Corp, Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc, Research in Motion Ltd and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.

"It certainly changes the position a little bit for those who said that iOS products such as iPhone and iPad were disadvantaged for not supporting flash," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with Gartner.

While Adobe only publicly conceded on Wednesday that HTML5 has become the preferred standard for creating mobile browser content, it has long been investing in the technology.

For example, it worked with magazine publisher Conde Nast for about year developing software that allows for the use of HTML5 technology to publish digital editions of magazines, including the New Yorker and Wired.

This means any content producer can use Adobe's publishing software to build video and motion graphics suitable for the iPad, as well as most other mobile devices.

Plus, Adobe incorporated HTML5 into its popular Illustrator and Dreamweaver software programs and highlighted an HTML5 program dubbed Edge for creating animated Web content it highlighted at its analyst meeting.

The company said it plans to infuse HTML5 technology across its entire product line over the coming years, offering increasingly sophisticated tools and services to design professionals, publishers, retailers and other businesses.

David Wadhwani, head of Adobe's digital media business unit, said the company was in "close collaboration" with Apple as well as Google, Microsoft Corp and others as it developed these new products.

"There is rocket science in this," he said. "There is enough innovation here to last a decade."

He said the company would continue to invest in Flash technology for use in mobile applications that would run on devices through its Adobe AIR platform. To access those applications, a user must first install Adobe's AIR software.

It will also invest in technology to produce Flash applications for desktop computers, including ones that render 3D graphics.

Adobe shares closed down 7.7 percent at $28.08 on Nasdaq, while Apple shares were down 2.7 percent at $395.28.

Samsung Electronics eyes record spending in 2012: report

SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics plans to invest a record 38 trillion won ($33.9 billion) in facilities and R&D next year, a 27 percent jump from an estimated 30 trillion won this year, local media reported on Wednesday, citing Samsung and industry officials.

Edaily reported that the company plans to sharply boost spending on its "system LSI business," which includes microprocessor chips used in Apple's iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy S, and OLED displays mainly used in Samsung's mobile devices.

Strong sales of mobile chips and displays, propelled by robust demand for smartphones and tablets, helped Samsung better cope with weakness in its traditional memory chips and displays used in PCs and TVs.

The world's top memory chip maker plans to spend around 15 trillion won in its chip business next year, out of which about 8 trillion won will be used in the system LSI business, the report said.

The report also said Samsung, a leading flat-screen maker, plans to boost investment on OLED displays to 7 trillion won and halve its investment in liquid crystal display (LCD) facilities to 2 trillion won next year.

A Samsung spokesman declined to comment on the report.

Samsung shares ended up 1.55 percent on Wednesday in a wider market that was up 0.23 percent.

Electronics set to power holiday sales: report

Electronics sales are set to light up an otherwise dreary US holiday shopping season, according to the Consumer Electronics Association.

The trade group released figures Tuesday predicting an increase in holiday electronics sales of 5.6 percent this year, with the average household spending $246 on gadgets, roughly a third of its gift budget of $769.

Tablets and computers rank second and third on the list of gifts most sought after by adults, with clothes taking the top slot. Peace, happiness, and money followed behind all three, according to the CEA.

The National Retail Federation last month predicted that total holiday retail sales would rise 2.8 percent, to $465.6 billion, less than the 5.2 percent growth registered in 2008 but slightly better than the 10-year average.

"The 2011 holiday season can be summed up in one word: average," it said.

Americans will be hoping for a much stronger season that can help combat the economic downturn and perhaps chip away at the country's stubborn 9.0 percent unemployment rate.

The economy created 80,000 jobs in October, slightly worse than economists expected, although there were heavy upward revisions for previous months.

Future Shop, Best Buy Canada to hire thousands for the holidays to meet demand

By LuAnn LaSalle, The Canadian Press  | October 03, 2011

MONTREAL - Consumers are expected to buy Internet-connected TVs, tablet computers and smartphones this holiday season — enough gadgets that the country's biggest electronics chains will add thousands of seasonal workers to meet the demand.

Future Shop says it will increase its workforce by 40 per cent between November and January by adding 4,000 more jobs in Canada.

Meanwhile, sister company Best Buy Canada will increase its staff by nearly 30 per cent by adding more 2,000 jobs.

"The staff increases are about the same as last year and many will stay on as full-time employees," said Annalisa King, chief financial officer and senior vice-president of Best Buy Canada and Future Shop.

Consumers are starting to move away from flat screen televisions to so-called smart TVs and they're flocking to tablets like Apple's iPad instead of small, netbook computers, King said in an interview from Burnaby, B.C.

Future Shop has 149 stores across Canada and is based in the Vancouver suburb. The company generated more than $5 billion in revenues in 2008, the last year figures are fully available.

Best Buy Canada, also based in Burnaby, has grown rapidly and expanded across Canada as well.

King noted the highly competitive consumer electronics market can shift quickly depending on new technology and consumer tastes.

"There's a big shift in the mix of our products and things that were big three years ago were not as big, and things that did not exist three years ago are huge," she said.

Smartphones are still a hot and growing category with consumers moving to touchscreen and 3D-capable phones, said King.

"We see the advance of touchscreen phones, the advance of 3D phones, the ability to really have flexibility in your hand being a huge thing for consumers."

Consumers have been voting with their fingers since Apple first introduced the iPhone in 2007, rapidly driving up the popularity of touchscreen smartphones. Tech firm ABI Research is predicting 97 per cent of all smartphones will have touchscreens by 2016.

As for televisions, the market for flatscreens is maturing and smart TVs that let consumers do everything from make a phone call to check social media site Facebook are expected to be popular, King said.

"The new TVs that are coming out are fantastically diversified," she said. "There's Wi-Fi TV, you can Skype, you can rent movies through a digital download as well as have a 3D option, which is a broad enough differentiation from the old TVs that people are seeing much more value in that."

King said Canadian consumers are still confident but they're being "choosy" and are looking for deals.

"But at the same time they're going to make trade offs and buy the things they want to buy and buy the things they see value in."

Retail analyst John Williams said Canadian confidence is generally holding up unlike in the United States, where it's dipping.

"For the consumer electronics, the big issue is what new games, what new gizmos and gadgets are coming out," said Williams, senior partner at J.C. Williams Group Ltd. in Toronto.

"It's very dependent on having something to replace the big screen TV, the newest Apple or RIM or whatever product is there."

Williams said there doesn't have to be a popular "it" gadget in highly competitive consumer electronics industry.

"But it sure helps," he said.

In the United States, parent Best Buy Co. said its second-quarter profit fell 30 per cent as consumers hit the pause button on buying electronics, particularly TVs and smartphones with the lack of a major smartphone introduction hurting results.

The two companies are both owned by Best Buy Co. Inc., the American consumer electronics giant (NYSE:BBY) that controls nearly 20 per cent of the American market.

The U.S. company has 1,150 stores and also operates in Mexico, China and the United Kingdom.

King also says that Blu-ray DVD players, movies, gaming consoles, single-serving coffee makers and other small appliances are expected to do well with consumers.

Will there be a must-have, "it" product this season?

"I would say it's yet to be determined," King said.