Apple has bolstered its lead as the top U.S. smartphone-maker, gaining 1.4 percentage points in terms of total subscribers between January and April, according to new data.

In a report released Tuesday, analytics firm ComScore revealed that the Cupertino, Calif. company captured a sizable 39.2% of OEM (original equipment manufacturer) market share during the three-month average period ending April 2013. (Comscore compared stats from this period to the three-month average period ending January 2013)

Rival Samsung managed to secure 22% market share (up 0.6 percentage points), followed by HTC with 8.9%, Motorola with 8.3% and LG with 6.7%. In total, 138.5 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones between January and April of this year Read more...

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It's usually an expensive endeavor, but thanks to smartphones, you can try your hand at shooting and editing video without the staggering price. We're not talking about Vine — which is great, of course — but apps uniquely designed for adding personal flare to video. Take a look at our favorites in the gallery up top.

Whether you're an iOS or Android user, these apps are sure to bring out the Spielberg in you.

Any noteworthy apps we missed? Share them with us in the comments

Homepage image via iStockphoto, TommL Read more...

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Fire Island, a 32-mile-long barrier island separating parts of Long Island's south shore from the Atlantic Ocean, was among Hurricane Sandy's most intensely ravaged victims. Dozens of homes and businesses were washed to sea, a major ferry terminal was destroyed and several of the area's famous beaches required intense cleanup efforts to be ready for this year's summer busy season.

Also among the victims: Verizon's copper infrastructure, much of which is either completely gone or corroded beyond repair by the ocean's salt water. Instead of repairing the copper lines, Verizon has chosen a technologically innovative but controversial plan to restore voice service to its few dozen customers on Fire Island: Put entire houses on Verizon Wireless. Read more...

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If today's move to offer free mobile service by an upstart mobile company gets the heavy adoption its creators expect, it may shake up the mobile ecosystem and force the big telecom companies to lower their rates and offer better deals to customers. It's a big if, but that's what seven-month-old FreedomPop is hoping for today as they launch a free package of user services that includes 500 MBs of 4G data, unlimited texting, and 200 monthly voice minutes.

FreedomPop, which offers cheap wireless broadband connections and for $99 turns your old iPod Touch into a virtual VoIP iPhone with its built-in 4G LTE hotspot case, is making a big play to increase their market share. The company is touting today's release as a 100% free mobile service, and while that's almost true, if enough people use the service, the Los Angeles based company may just make the dent in the industry it's hoping for. Read more...

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Almost a full week before its annual developer’s conference is set to begin, Apple has already started to move into San Francisco’s Moscone Center.

Half of a giant Apple adorned the side of the Moscone Center Tuesday evening, abandoned mid-construction. With no crew in sight, we suspect the other half will join it Wednesday morning.

Inside crews have already covered the back wall of the lobby with a giant multi-colored WWDC banner.

Many other rolled up signs and banners currently litter the lobby.

WWDC is set to kick off early next Monday morning. The annual conference focuses primarily on Apple’s mobile and desktop software: iOS and OSX. Apple has already acknowledged plans to announce new versions of both at this year’s event. Read more...

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How would you like to have your pizza delivered by a drone? The idea is far from impossible, as proven by Domino's UK franchise, which posted a YouTube video showing a pizza being delivered by an unmanned flying vehicle — the DomiCopter

In the video, the DomiCopter — created and operated by a drone company called AeroSight — appears to safely deliver a pizza over a large distance. Though it all may seem like a publicity stunt, the UK branch of Domino's seems quite serious about it. In a press release, the company talks about launching a Domino's Flight Academy "should the DomiCopter delivery service take off." Read more...

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For some people, the ideal getaway is rid of technology, like a digital detox summer camp. For others, the mere thought of parting from a smartphone is utter madness.

If you happen to fall in the later category, you prioritize tech amenities when booking your time away from home — a hotel that understands tech is a definite perk

These nine hotels put high-tech first: Think iPad concierges, paperless billing, robotic luggage handlers and infrared doorbell detectors, so housekeeping knows not to disturb. If you relish the though of checking into your next hotel via touchscreen, consider a stay at one of these hotels Read more...

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The new version of Microsoft Office comes installed for free on all Windows RT devices such as the Surface. It's not the complete Office, though — Outlook isn't included. In the coming months, however, Microsoft is going to change that.

Outlook 2013 will come to Windows RT devices at the same time Microsoft releases Windows 8.1 to the public later this year. Microsoft estimates Windows 8.1 will arrive in the fall, and it will be a free update for all Windows 8 and RT customers.

Microsoft's CFO and CMO of Windows, Tami Reller, made the announcement at the Computex trade show in Taipei Wednesday morning. Microsoft made the decision based on customer feedback, citing a Morgan Stanley study that found 61% of people shopping for a tablet see Office as the single most important software feature. Read more...

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That 3,200 x 1,800 screen from Samsung has barely been properly introduced, and it's already a hit among laptop makers. First, it was HP with its Envy Touchsmart 14, and now it's Fujitsu with its super-thin ultrabook: the UH90/L

Besides that amazing IGZO, 14-inch, 3,200 x 1,800 touch screen, the UH90/L also sports Intel's latest and greatest Haswell i5-4200U processor, 4GB of RAM and a 500GB hybrid hard-drive

The device is also quite tough: Its "ultra-compressed, solid core" design makes it able to withstand weight of around 200 kgf.

What's more, Fujitsu claims the UH90/L — at only 0.61 inches thick — is the thinnest 14-inch ultrabook in the world. Read more...

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You've probably never heard of Danbury, Conn., mayor Mark Boughton. Heck, you've probably never heard of Danbury

But Boughton brought on plenty of Twitter attention Tuesday morning when he live-tweeted — in mock tough guy, tongue-in-cheek fashion — the rescue of a 240-pound black bear from a downtown Danbury tree

Here's how @MayorMark, as he's known online, started off his narrative:

We have a very large bear stuck in a tree behind the Bishop Curtis Homes. - seriously#Danbury

— MayorMark (@MayorMark) June 4, 2013

In this tweet, "DEEP" refers to Connecticut's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection: Read more...

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In the upcoming film The Internship, comic duo Vince Vaughan and Owen Wilson play two ex-salesmen who embark on Google internships, with hilarious results — if the trailer is any indication.

Still, the comedy is a fictionalized account of what goes down at Mountain View, Calif., and not the real deal. Luckily, Google posted a video that gives an inside look at what "Nooglers" actually experience during the first week of their internships.

The nearly six-minute video follows five real interns from Google's various departments, and showcases the search giant's sprawling headquarters. Check it out, above. Read more...

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Ah, Facebook. We gripe, whine and criticize, yet can rarely bring ourselves to actually pull the plug.

The addictive pull of the world's biggest social network is hilariously portrayed in the musical number, above. Uploaded to YouTube on Monday, it's already attracted more than 120,000 views — a testament to its high production value and universal truth

Check out "Facebook the Musical" for yourself, and let us know what you think in the comments

Homepage image courtesy of YouTube, AVbyte Read more...

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Houston Rockets forward Chandler Parsons just wrapped up a breakout season, and established himself as one of the NBA's brightest young stars you may not have heard of

Chandler's stellar play has earned him plenty of new fans, including Houston-area high school student Stephanie Flores, who took to Twitter last month to invite him to prom:

@chandlerparsons pleaseeee make my life and escort me to my prom on May 31st!!! A simple response would make up for it. I am a huge fan!!!

— Stephanie Flores (@steph_marie03) May 20, 2013

She even rallied her friends to help the cause:

Twitter fam yall should help me out to get Parsons to go to prom with me!! Or at least notice me! I would love yall forever! :) lol

— Stephanie Flores (@steph_marie03) May 20, 2013 Read more...

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Tablets are great, but how productive can people really be with them? When it comes to getting things done, nothing beats a mouse and keyboard. The struggle to have it all in one device has led to hybrids like the Lenovo Yoga and productivity-focused tablets like the Surface Pro.

Those products have their individual merits, but they always force the user to make the PC equivalent of Sophie's Choice: Do you sacrifice the keyboard for greater portability, or do you keep it and just accept your laptop will always be bulkier than a tablet?

Sony may have just spared us that terrible decision with the Vaio Pro 11. The Windows 8 PC weighs just 1.92 pounds, or about an ounce lighter than the Surface Pro tablet, and it measures just 0.68 of an inch at its thickest point. And yes, it's a laptop. With touch. Read more...

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Boeing is using robots to help speed the production of its 777 commercial aircraft at an assembly plant in Washington state.

The Seattle Times reports that two robots now help paint Boeing 777 wings at the aerospace company's assembly plant in Everett, Wash. What normally takes a human team 4.5 hours to paint the first coat, the robots can complete in only 24 minutes.

It's a robotic system called the "Automated Spray Method" or ASM. Boeing says the robots take care of washing, priming and painting the wings, as the wings are horizontally held in place. Human employees still have to press a few buttons, as well as load/unload paint, mask the wings and service the robots. Read more...

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For the first time, the Republican Party has a Chief Technology Officer: outgoing Facebook Engineering Manager Andy Barkett

As CTO, Barkett will oversee the Republican National Committee's recently announced plans to restructure itself around data and analytics. He will also be responsible for training Republican candidates and staffers on social media and technology as well as building relationships with technology leaders across the country.

“It’s essential that the Republican Party has the resources to drive voter turnout as we look toward the elections of 2014, 2016 and beyond," said Barkett in a statement. "Silicon Valley welcomes the party’s efforts to be more creative and innovative, and I look forward to helping the party accomplish these goals." Read more...

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Sunday night's Game of Thrones episode lit up the Twittersphere like one of Daenerys Targaryen's dragons torching a would-be enemy. All through Sunday night and Monday, Twitter was home to funny reactions, angry reactions, I'm-freaking-out reactions and the best reaction of all, which came from one of the show's stars

NFL superstar Aaron Rodgers got into the conversation, as well. The Green Bay Packer's Monday night tweet, however, drew big-time backlash from many of his 950,000-plus followers for spoiling a major plot point:

Can't believe the Starks have been wiped out on GOT. At least the mother of dragons is still alive#hot#midrange#

— Aaron Rodgers (@AaronRodgers12) June 4, 2013 Read more...

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Dust off your chemistry knowledge, because a team of scientists from the University of California at Berkeley has stumbled upon a breakthrough that might influence what you remember from high school.

Using an atomic force microscope and a bit of luck, Berkeley Lab scientists captured the first-ever high-resolution images of a molecule breaking and reforming its bonds. The team was actually trying to create graphene nanostructures using a new, controlled approach to chemical reactions. (Graphene is an extremely strong, light carbon material valuable to both science and industry.) But their findings went in a different direction. Read more...

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Summer is almost upon on us here in the Northern Hemisphere, and that means sunbaths on the beach, outdoor sports and other activities associated with the warmest months of the year.

It's also time for summer reading, whether you're a student fulfilling a curriculum requirement or just finally finding the time to read leisurely.

In this comic, Grant Snider of Incidental Comics redesigns the covers of classic books to describe the various aspects of your summer. Does it hit home for you?

You can purchase Snider's comics as prints through his poster shop.

Comic illustration by Grant Snider, Incidental Comics. Published with permission; all rights reserved. Read more...

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Next time you visit the hardware store, you can probably get most of the materials you'll need to build a robotic hand

Especially if you follow instructions from Aaron Thomen.

For a little less than $200, Thomen built a Terminator-like robotic hand. And it's not just a cool-looking contraption. It’s powered by servomotors — which are extremely precise motors — and an Arduino controller. The combination results in a mechanical hand that has the finesse to use a pair of scissors and the strength to lift a jug of water.

Thomen didn’t just design and build a robotic hand — "anyone" can do that. He created a set of video instructions to go with an instructables post so virtually anyone can replicate the process Read more...

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Could future iPhone or iPad devices have gaze detection technology? A new patent application recently filed by Apple reveals the company has its sights set on reading eye movement

Apple detailed in a patent application a gaze detection function that would know when the user is looking at the screen and respond accordingly

"An electronic device may have gaze detection capabilities that allow the device to detect when a user is looking at the device," the filing said. "When the device detects that the user has looked away from the device, the device may dim a display screen and may perform other suitable actions. The device may pause a video playback operation when the device detects that the user has looked away from the device." Read more...

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Did it feel like everyone was talking about the "Red Wedding" episode of Game of Thrones on Monday? Actually, they weren't.

The show got 367,000 mentions on Twitter, according to Twitter. That broke the previous record of 277,000 mentions for the show's season premiere, and is a high number of tweets for scripted dramas — but doesn't come close to the number of mentions of live shows like sports and award ceremonies. For instance, this year's Super Bowl got 24 million mentions, more than 50 times the "Red Wedding" mentions. Twitter's data on scripted shows isn't hugely extensive, and the platform's audience grows each year — making the concept of keeping a record moot Read more...

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Pop star Justin Bieber lost the race to be the first Twitter user to reach 10 million, 20 million and 30 million followers, but on Tuesday, he became the first to hit 40 million followers

He celebrated with tweetsOne tweet uses the hashtag #dreamBIG and links to this photo, which features his tweet from the day in 2009 he hit 40 — yes, only 40 — followers:

Mashable obtained statistics from analytics company Twitter Counter that show he hit 40 million on June 4. We've detailed when he reached his milestones the above infographic.

Bieber thanked fans in his first tweet ("#40MillionBeliebers - thank u. i love u. #grateful") and encouraged them to rally with hashtag #40MillionStrong in a second tweet. Read more...

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The United States International Trade Commission (ITC) has placed a U.S import ban on a number of older iPhone and iPad devices, claiming that those units infringe on patents owned by Samsung.

Specifically having to do with the "apparatus and method for encoding/decoding transport format combination indicator in CDMA mobile communication system," the ban covers the iPhone 4 and below and iPad 3 and below; but only on AT&T

Newer models of the iPhone and iPad, and those not on AT&T’s network, do not use the technology and are not affected under the ban.

Samsung’s patent complaint was originally filed in June 2011, with complaints pertaining to five patents Read more...

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Who is buying portable wireless speakers? Everyone, apparently, since market research shows sales in the category tripled last year — and the more portable, the better. After taking a stab in the category with its SoundLink speaker, Bose is elevating things to a new, more compact level with the SoundLink Mini.

Although small-size wireless speakers such as little Jambox and UE Boom are popular, Bose took its time creating a smaller Bluetooth speaker because it didn't want to compromise on sound quality. With the SoundLink Mini, Bose says it built a speaker capable of "full-range" audio in a compact package that measures just 2 x 7 x 2 inches. Read more...

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When you hear "noise-canceling headphones," you probably think big, bulky, over-the-ear cansBose is seriously challenging that image with its new QuietComfort 20 headphones — or should I say earbuds — which incorporate active noise-canceling tech into an extremely compact design. They sound pretty good, too.

Bose showed off its new headphones at a demo at Grand Central Station in New York City. Noting that many passers-by were wearing headphones, a Bose rep said there were currently 700 headphone manufacturers with over 6,000 models available for sale.

He then made the bold claim that the Bose QC20 was the best of them all, regardless of model, design or price. Bose is daring customers to compare its new headphones with the over-the-ear models like Beats or Simon Cowell's Sony cans in addition to in-ear designs — a strategy made clear by the price: $299. Read more...

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If you've always wanted to step into the tights of Marvel's biggest heroes like Captain America, Spider-Man or the Hulk, you'll get your chance Tuesday with the launch of free-to-play massively multiplayer game Marvel Heroes.

In Marvel Heroes, you can play as one of 21 popular Marvel characters. Some are available for free at the start, while others can be purchased with in-game currency or cash. You can pick their costumes based on the 70-plus years of Marvel's history, including costumes from last summer's The Avengers blockbuster, also for in-game currency.

Players level up their characters for Marvel Heroes by completing missions solo or on teams. New superpowers customized for each hero are available as you level, giving each hero a different gameplay experience. The game allows players to take on the major Marvel villains, and also fight each other in PvP zones. Read more...

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The Wizard of Oz, the 1939 classic about Kansas girl Dorothy's unplanned journey into the Land of Oz, is getting a 3D makeover for the movie's 75th anniversary.

Warner Bros. will show off the digitally remastered version in IMAX 3D theaters for only the week of Sept. 20 in North America

"This film revolutionized the use of color and special effects in cinema, and we’re excited to add another 'first' — bringing this timeless classic to moviegoers through the power of The IMAX 3D Experience for the very first time," Greg Foster, chairman and president of IMAX Entertainment, said in a statement. Read more...

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A newly revealed global malware campaign hit 350 high-profile targets in 40 different countries. The cyberespionage campaign, codenamed Operation NetTraveler, has been active since at least 2004, stealing more than 22 gigabytes of data from computers around the world

The malware attacks were uncovered on Tuesday by Russian online security company Kaspersky Lab. The hackers behind the campaign used a data-exfiltration tool called NetTraveler — not a very sophisticated malware designed to steal sensitive data and information

The name originates from a string contained in the malware code: "NetTraveler is Running!" Read more...

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NASA's Chris Cassidy wanted to give fellow astronaut Luca Parmitano a warm welcome to the International Space Station last week, but a bottle of wine or a nice casserole wouldn't cut it. Cassidy buzzed his head to match Parmitano's signature clean-shaven look. (Hey, imitation is the best form of flattery.)

However, even the most menial of tasks take on a whole new level in zero gravity. Cassidy couldn't just pick up a standard razor — hair would be floating around the ISS for weeks. Instead, he used an electric hair trimmer and a vacuum.

“I don’t think I’ve looked like this since Plebe Summer!” joked Cassidy, who has a reputation as a notorious prankster. When he arrived on board the ISS in March, he donned an over-the-top fake mustache for Commander Chris Hadfield. Read more...

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