Six Eye-Opening Mobile Trends for 2016

With no Touch ID button in the rumored iPhone 8, there's growing speculation Apple may use 3D facing scanning.

Looking at your iPhone 8 may be enough to unlock it, without needing to press a Touch ID fingerprint sensor, a button that Apple may be replacing altogether.

The rumored 10th anniversary iPhone is being tested using a 3D facing-scanning sensor that's said to be a jack-of-all trades: it can unlock the phone, authenticate Apple Pay transactions and launch secure apps, according to Bloomberg.

With more people conducting more online business via mobile, it's vital that all brands develop an understanding of mobile marketing best practices.

Facebook today filled the biggest hole in its chatbot platform. Messenger bots can accept payments natively without sending users to an external website,..

At its keynote, there was an upgrade that Apple only briefly touched on but it could be the biggest opportunity for brands and marketers: an iMessage app store.

Some of the world's top e-commerce players are being outpaced by rivals in mobile commerce, dimming their future prospects.

Shockingly, some companies still don't have a website. Here's a look at why those companies have avoided creating one and why those excuses don't make sense in our connected world.

What mobile trends in marketing and technology should you and your business have its eyes on the rest of this year? Here are 6 to watch.

Gigabit Wi-Fi offers no such guarantees. Championed by both Starry and Facebook's Terragraph project, the new technology uses higher frequencies to send data through the air at rates as high as 7 Gbit/s. But that speed comes with a price. The smaller waves are easily absorbed by moisture or flying objects, so any single link could degrade or drop out at any time. Since a given connection might rely on half a dozen different links, shepherding data through the system requires routing programs that can make smart decisions at almost instantaneous speeds. 

Google this morning launched a new application for iOS devices called Gboard that puts the power of Google search directly into your mobile device’s keyboard. This keyboard had been rumored to be in development earlier this year, and it appears the original reports were accurate. Not only does the app allow for an easy way to use Google search, it also offers swipe-based typing and access to GIFs, as previously reported. And it includes easy access to common keyboard functions, like emojis and word predictions.

Of course, the most interesting feature of this keyboard is its direct integration with Google’s services.

Online marketplaces such as Etsy, eBay, and Amazon Marketplace helped to create and then boost an online shopping environment. There’s no denying that online marketplaces—something like a flea market for the internet—have been useful to thousands of startup ecommerce companies.

At some point, however, you have to leave the flea market behind and start your own endeavor. If you’re still bringing in plenty of money as a vendor through one of these marketplaces, the idea of moving on may seem ludicrous. Why shake up a good thing? Why risk everything you have while reaching for more? Well, here’s why. 

Bloomberg reports that Google paid Apple $1 billion to retain its position as the default search bar provider on iOS, according to court documents.

This information was revealed through a court transcript from Oracle’s copyright lawsuit against Google. The deal between Apple and Google took place in 2014, at which time an agreement was also made that Apple would get a cut of the revenue Google generates on iOS devices

What if we could use existing technologies to provide Internet access to the more than 4 billion people living in places where the infrastructure can't support it? Using off-the-shelf LEDs and solar cells, Harald Haas and his team have pioneered a new technology that transmits data using light, and it may just be the key to bridging the digital divide. Take a look at what the future of the Internet could look like.

Microsoft’s mobile strategy and products could quickly shift in consumer desire. Businesses may need to reconsider their mobile app strategy to accommodate.

In this mobile age, when many folks carry a Internet-connected device with them everywhere, useful content marketing that helps potential customers complete specific tasks may be a powerful way to engage those patrons when they want immediate help learning, doing, or buying something.

Research suggests that many people will use their smartphone nearly 150 times each day for about one minute at a time. While the majority of these mobile sessions may be focused on texting, email, or social media, some will be searches and inquiries. These are the moments when folks want and need help.