Mobile | featured news

Content has become a large initiative on LinkedIn’s web property, but it hasn’t translated as well to its mobile apps. More users are shifting to mobile, and as the Pulse team was mostly focused on mobile, they can contribute to LinkedIn’s content efforts specifically on mobile platforms.

Douglas Rushkoff says Facebook's new app just increases disorientation and isn't getting rave reviews from users... And when I looked up Facebook Home online to try to find out just what it was, the first search results that came up were from users sharing how to disable it. This way, consumers can buy the discounted phones on which Facebook Home ships, and turn them back into a regular Android smartphones, where Facebook is just another app we can use in our own good time.

A movement urging Verizon to get rid of wireless contracts appears to be gaining steam. A petition calling for the carrier to end contracts for smartphones and "create an affordable way for consumers to purchase their devices" had attracted more than 55,000 signatures by midday Tuesday on Change.org, the online petition platform.

Smartphones are powerful tools, and with the right apps and accessories, they can become even more so. A California-based tech company has launched a tool that turns a regular iPhone 4 or 4S into a powerful biometrics scanning tool. AOptix has unveiled its app and a wrap-around device for turning the smartphone into a portable iris, face, fingerprint and voice scanner.

Alibaba seeks to weaken Google's dominance of the Chinese smartphone market with subsidies and other support for its rival Amos operating system. The firm has set up a one billion yuan ($162m; £105m) programme to support app developers and is offering monthly payments to handset makers for every phone using its platform they sell.

Dish Network Corp. is trying to snag U.S. wireless carrier Sprint Nextel Corp. away from its Japanese suitor in recognition of the way satellite dishes are losing their relevance in the age of cellphones that play YouTube videos.

All in all, Facebook Home is ideal for true social network addicts. But those who aren’t constantly checking Facebook mobile for updates might find it more distracting than helpful.

Facebook announced their new social home screen replacement called Facebook Home last week, and today it's available in the Play Store for certain devices. The suite of apps puts more focus on your friends and social sharing than the separate apps you use to communicate, with a new home and lock screen, a new notifications area, and (of course) serious Facebook integration. Facebook Home is available for the HTC First, HTC One X and One X+, the Samsung Galaxy S III, and the Galaxy Note II. Support for the HTC One and Galaxy S4 are coming in the future, along with (hopefully) other devices. Check out the video above to see it in action, read our original post for more information, and if you have a supported device, hit the link below to try it out.