New hardware updates are inevitable, but could 2013 be the year Apple finally merges OS X and iOS into one unified operating system?

Apple had a very unique 2012 adjusting to life after the passing of co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs. Though the company introduced a plethora of new devices, 2012 wasn’t all peachy releases for Apple. Some of the lower points include: the layoff of Scott Forstall after the Apple Maps debacle, the displeasure with the quick release of the iPad 4 after the iPad 3 was only a few months old, and the lack of updates in the iPhone 5.

Even with these downfalls, Apple was still wildly successful, becoming the most valued company in history. In addition to the iPad 3, iPad 4, the year 2012 saw a new iPhone 5, a new MacBook Pro with Retina, and updated iMacs and MacBooks Airs. 

Apple also released Mac OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion), a hugely popular software update that gave us a glimpse into future updates, where Mac OS X and iOS operating systems will slowly be more and more alike. Mountain Lion added key iOS features – like Notification Center, Game Center, Notes, Reminders, and iMessage capabilities – to the Mac operating system, further unifying the two, which is something we can expect more of in the upcoming year.

But, even after such an eventful 2012, Apple could be gearing up for an even bigger year. So, what can we expect from the tech behemoth in 2013? We spoke to a number of experts about the potential updates Apple might introduce to its desktop, laptop, and Mac OS X software. Here’s what we think.  

Software updates

In 2013, Apple will introduce Mac OS X 10.9, the still-untitled software update for Macs. There have been numerous media reports regarding 10.9, but one thing is for certain: 10.9 will introduce Siri and Maps to Mac computers. Since Apple has slowly but steadily been introducing key iOS features in the Mac operating system, there’s almost no reason to doubt the reports. But will Siri and Maps be improved for OS X 10.9? Experts say yes.  

Siri

Introduced in the iPhone 4S, Siri has been one of the biggest updates to the iPhone. So what can we expect from Siri in 2013? Adam Fingerman, co-founder of app development company ArcTouch, thinks that Siri will open up for iOS and Mac developers beyond just voice dictation.

Craig Negoescu, CEO of NAKA Media and ex-media director of Frog Design, has a lot experience with Apple products. An inventor, technology strategist, and user experience designer, Negoescu says integrating Siri in Mac OS X 10.9 is very likely. “Despite a few stumbles, Apple is committed to Siri as a foundational element of user input, along with multitouch,” Negoescu said. “As Siri is more thoroughly integrated into apps and services, it becomes more valuable … It’s value increases exponentially the more it is tied into services, apps, and data.” Negoescu also thinks Siri will get better and more personal. “Watch ‘Iron Man,’” Negoescu said. “Jarvis is the goal.”

It’s important to note that a similar feature called Dictation, which allows your computer to transcribe text as you speak, is already available on Mountain Lion. While Siri is slightly different, the main programming is similar, which leads us to think that Siri might be available to every computer eligible for Mac OS X 10.9. That being said, Apple could use Siri as an incentive for users to buy new Macs, so the feature might not be available to older models.  

Apple Maps

As for Apple Maps on Mac OS X 10.9, people are less enthusiastic, but Apple users are hoping that Apple Maps to get a little better. According to Negoescu, it’s a “safe bet” that Apple’s “troubled (but improving) maps application” will be included in Mac OS X 10.9. After the Google Maps app on iOS made its celebrated debut earlier this month, it makes sense for Apple to continue to develop Apple Maps in hopes of making it better than the Google Maps app. 

Other additions

Apple will likely introduce other features in addition to Siri and Maps. In Mac OS X 10.8, Apple had over 200 changes. Some of the updates were big, like the Notification Bar, Notes, and Reminders; and some were small, like updates to the Finder interface. It’s obviously hard to predict some of the smaller changes that Apple will make, but analysts are predicting more iOS stock apps to make their way to Mac OS X 10.9. According to Negoescu, “iOS reader apps will likely move over as Apple wants to increase visibility and readership with live synchronization of the magazine or book page that’s open on your iPad or iPhone.”

According to Fingerman, further convergence between iOS and Mac OS X is inevitable. “iBooks is a good example of something that will likely come to Mac OS X,” Fingerman said. “The user-experience of the two will further converge with similar conventions to use and work with the applications.” Fingerman added that the Launchpad app is a great example of an iOS-like app that is currently just an option on Mac computers. He said Launchpad would probably develop into the default method in future versions of Mac OS, with the Finder method of sorting through files and apps becoming the fallback option. 

The convergence of iOS and Mac OS X

One thing almost every analyst agrees on is the merging of iOS and Mac OS X, but will there be only one unified operating system for both computers and mobile devices? In an interview with BusinessWeek, Tim Cook touched on the rumor, essentially squashing it. “We don’t subscribe to the vision that the OS for iPhones and iPads should be the same as Mac,” Cook said in the interview. “As you know, iOS and Mac OS are built on the same base … Customers want iOS and Mac OS X to work together seamlessly, not to be the same, but to work together seamlessly.” 

Since the company doesn’t depend on its Macs for revenue (the bulk of the company’s profits comes from the immensely popular Apple mobile devices), Apple has a unique ability to be a little risky with the operating systems for its computers. For this reason, Apple can continue to use OS X to cultivate and develop its “passion projects,” while continuing to meet consumer demands and meeting market trends for its iOS devices (like a bigger iPhone and a smaller iPad).

iTunes 11, the most recent update to the popular music program, is very different from the version on the iPhone and  iPad. To us, it seems like Apple is using iTunes 11 and its Mac computers to test out a future UI change to the app on its iOS devices. Perhaps Apple realized that not every change it makes will be a popular one (cough, Apple Maps), so the company is changing the way it introduces new products.

Apple’s Mac OS X operating system has the unique ability to withstand consumer influence since the company is not dependent on its success. For that reason, and a few others, we predict Apple will continue the tradition of keeping its Mac OS and iOS operating systems separate. 

Hardware changes

Over the past year, Apple has been making small but notable changes in its computer hardware. The MacBook Airs have gotten lighter and faster, implementing a new Intel Ivy Bridge chip for faster processing; the MacBook Pro added a brand new Retina screen for its 13-inch and 15-inch models; and the iMac became almost as skinny as a MacBook Air. Every year, Apple continues to update its popular MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, and this year should be no different. So what more can we expect from Apple in 2013?

MacBook Air and MacBook Pro

According to analysts, the MacBook Pro and Air will both get updated in 2013. In terms of the Air, we’ll likely see a faster CPU, increased RAM, a faster and larger solid-state drive, and the addition of a Retina display. We may even see a 15-inch screen, which would make a lot of sense considering the popularity of the Ultrabook. A more expensive version of the MacBook Air with a Retina screen is also a possibility, targeting the type of consumer that travels with their laptop and wants a super powerful computer – but without the heft of the heavy MacBook Pro.

As for the updated MacBook Pros, we foresee an upgrade to flash-based memory and SSD, similar to the MacBook Air. Not only is it faster, but it’s also less bulky, which should make the MacBook Pro lighter (and a lighter computer is something consumers never complain about).

Updates inside Apple computers

Intel is reportedly working on an update to its Ivy Bridge processors, one that cuts down on power usage and increases efficiency. The new chips could be up to 41 percent more efficient, increasing battery life and processing speeds while thinning in size and cutting down in power usage.

Apple is also said to be hiring ex-Texas Instrument employees in Israel to work on creating and developing new semiconductors for its devices. Of course, it wasn’t specified which devices these engineers would be working on. While Apple is obviously focused on its mobile market, and has created its own chips for the iPhone 5 and the iPad 4, called the A6X, what’s to say some of these developers aren’t working on chips for Apple computers? If Apple starts to develop its own semiconductor chips for its Macs, the tech giant could drastically update the performance of its computers.   

A touchscreen Apple computer?

With the launch of Windows 8 this year, touchscreen laptops are becoming the next big thing. According to Fingerman, a future Mac will have touch capability, either with direct touch or through a less-direct way, like what Leap Motion is doing with its gesture-based sensors. “We feel strongly that touch-based gestures (swipe, pinch/zoom, etc.) are a very natural way to interact with computing devices, and not just phones and tablets,” Fingerman said. He doesn’t expect Apple to get rid of a keyboard for a virtual keyboard, like the one it uses in iOS devices, but he does expect the first touchscreen Mac computer to be an iMac and not a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air.

But not everyone agrees that Apple could be heading for a potential touchscreen Mac computer. Negoescu predicts a (slightly) different future for Mac. He argues that the Mac already has great touchscreen integration via third-party software on the iPad and iPhone, and that using the “Actions” app on the iPad allows for full touch interactivity with his MacBook Pro. “I suspect the keyboard (iPad on the desk) is where a lot of the touch may go,” Negoescu said. “I have done similar research in the past and an adaptive touch surface where your keyboard/mouse used to be is an interesting way to go. Otherwise, you have a big, heavy tablet stuck on your desk in a vertical 90-degree orientation and your arms end up tired.” 

We think that a fully integrated touchscreen on a Mac is the next step in the convergence of iOS and Macs, but Apple has so far remained adamant about not wanting too many similarities between its iOS and Mac devices. By adding a touchscreen (and Siri), your MacBook will essentially become an oversized tablet.

Fingerman thinks that, despite Apple’s public reluctance against such a device, it’s still a possibility. “I know that Apple has previously suggested that a Mac/iPad hybrid is not where they are heading – but that doesn’t mean they won’t,” Fingerman said. “They would never communicate a radical product direction like that before publicly introducing it.”

Apple in 2013

In the history of Apple, there’s never been a time where the company takes a year off and coasts. And judging from Cook’s recent interview with Brian Williams, we won’t see one anytime soon. Cook essentially said that he expects the company to continue to grow for as long as possible thanks to innovative products and a unique ability to figure out what customers want before they do.

 However, because competition from companies like Samsung, Google, and even Microsoft, is drastically increasing, Apple is also starting to realize that it needs to improve its products and work on duds like Siri and Apple Maps. Before Windows 8, Apple might not have had the biggest share in the computer operating system market, but it was always the prettiest. But by producing a powerful operating system that is also aesthetically pleasing, Microsoft has taken a page from Apple’s book, meaning Apple has a lot more to contend with in 2013.

With big software changes coming in Mac OS X 10.9, groundbreaking computer concepts, and updates to existing products on the horizon, we’re certain 2013 will be another huge year for Apple. 

A string of harmful Android apps posing as other popular games have been found in the Google Play Store on Friday.

Android users, watch out! There could be malicious apps in Google’s Play Store posing as some of your favorite games.

As a Redditor pointed out earlier today, an illegitimate developer account in the Google Play Store has been recently discovered. This account has been uploading phony apps that are complete rip-offs of other titles in the Android app store. Some of the more popular ones include an imitation version of Imangi’s Temple Run game and Glu Mobile.

The developer behind the operation, known as “apkdeveloper,” appears to be decompiling the APKs of these apps and injecting code that could be harmful. APK stands for Android Package, and it is the type of file used to distribute and install application software onto Google’s mobile operating system. After this alleged hacker inputs malicious code, he or she recompiles the APK and uploads the file to the store, posing as legitimate apps. Each of these apps as the word “super” tacked on to the end of its name. These illegitimate apps also have a lengthy list of device permissions in comparison to the actual apps, so be wary to avoid them.

For example, Imangi’s Temple Run only requests permission to access the device’s full network and to perform, read and write operations to storage. Temple Run Super, however, also asks for location information, phone status and identity, access to accounts on the device, and more.

Luckily many Android users can differentiate these phony apps from the real ones. According to Android news blog Phandroid, it doesn’t seem as if many users have downloaded these harmful apps. This means that little is known about what this code is actually capable of, but reports have indicated that it could add unwanted advertisements to various parts of your device. For example, these permissions could allow ads to pop up on a user’s home screen or notification bar. While this might not crash Android smartphones or tablets or erase a user’s data, it’s sure to be quite an annoyance.

It’s always important to be cautious and careful when downloading apps. Check the name of the developer and ensure that the app is coming from a legitimate source before installing it.

The last big rush to the app markets before the holidays brings some must-haves for surviving this time of year. YouTube Capture and Facebook Poke make media sharing easy, Rise Alarm Clock will get you up on time, and Pudding Monster will entertain you during dull moments.

It’s the last weekend of the year, meaning it’s best you rest up as much as possible for the madness that is about to ensue over New Year’s eve. Before you head to all your parties with friends, family, and co-workers, make sure to fill up your phone with all of the newest and best apps available. Best case scenario: they will serve as a talking point to fill in during those awkward lulls. Worst case scenario: you play with them with your head down as you avoid conversation with uncomfortable acquaintances and odd relatives. Here are the best apps and updates worth downloading for the last two weeks in 2012.

Updates

Tumblr (iOS, Android)

No longer just for phone users, Tumblr’s latest update brings an expansion to the tablet. The popular blogging platform brings it’s love of .gifs and memes to both the iPad and the Android tablet family. To make infectious spreading of content even easier on the go, Tumblr also now features an Explore tab and markdown support. But you don’t care about any of that. You need to keep your friends updated with your “Moustaches on things that don’t need moustaches” blog.

Evernote Food (iOS)

The iPad gets to add another app to it’s repertoire thanks to Evernote Food getting optimized for the tablet. This will make pictures of your favorite recipes and best culinary creations even bigger and more tempting. The app also features a new design that encourages you to turn to it for all your food-related needs. Save recipes, build your own cookbook, and check out restaurants and their offerings, for ideas for your next night out. Evernote Food really serves one purpose: Make you hungry.

Wunderlist (iOS, Android)

One of the better apps for staying on track in the past, Wunderlist has been rebuilt from the ground up to look better and work smarter. While it was a great option before, it’s now making a case for itself as one of the best to-do apps around. Reoccurring tasks make their first appearance in the update, as does a new collaborative list function that will keep groups of people on task at all times. Email reminders and push notifications are available to make sure you never miss a deadline or forget what you’re doing.

Flipboard (Android)

Flipboard keeps getting bigger. We’re not just talking user base – it’s now available on Android tablets. The favorite option for social readers makes it debut on the bigger screen with a bang. A gorgeous looking layout that puts content in a virtual magazine, you’ll be flipping pages for quite some time before you lift your head up from the screen. It features everything you’d expect from Flipboard, just a bit bigger. Bigger may not always better, but in this case it definitely isn’t hurting.

New Apps

Rise Alarm Clock (iOS)

Need to make sure you’re awake as early as possible on Christmas day to open presents from Santa? Rise is probably your best bet. A new alarm clock option for iOS, Rise is simple, easy, and elegant. Fall asleep to an iTunes playlist and wake up to a custom melody or tone. You can also modify your snooze options and alarm volume so your routine can be tweaked for your needs. A simple app that fills a basic need and does it well.

Facebook Poke (iOS)

Facebook Poke totally has nothing to do with the popularity of SnapChat, though it does essentially the same thing as it. Recreating the once-iconic Poke option on Facebook with a new multimedia catch, Facebook Poke allows users to get in touch with friends by sending them a quick message, photo, or video with an expiration date. Location data will let them know exactly where you’re sending it from. If your friend takes a screenshot to keep it longer, you’ll be told about it.

YouTube Capture (iOS)

The perfect app for holiday happenings, YouTube Capture simplifies the YouTube upload process. Easily record with the tap of a button, then make some quick edits like color correction and image stabilization. You can also add music tracks to the video with a couple quick taps, making this app a great option for quick and easy video sharing. Pass around your film to family that couldn’t be there or send it out to the public as a cry for help. Depends on how well you get along with your family.

Beanstalk (Android)

Keeping your files on multiple cloud storage options because you can’t fit it all in one? Beanstalk will stretch across the platforms and give you a unified cloud experience. Allowing you to log in to Dropbox, Box.net, and Microsoft Skydrive in a single app, Beanstalk gives you control over the files in all of them. Move your information to and from different storage locations and keep track of all your data no matter what cloud it calls home.

New Games

Penny Arcade The Game: Gamers vs. Evil (iOS)

No one knows gamers quick like Penny Arcade. The company branched out to card games, creating a unique universe and adventure that takes place on the flimsy but familiar game piece. Not content with the physical offering, the game is now also available to play digitally on your iOS devices. Build decks based on your favorite Penny Arcade characters and use their abilities to master your opponents, be they computer or human controlled.

Pudding Monsters (iOS, Android)

The makers of Cut the Rope created a new franchise, and we won’t be surprised if it’s just as successful as the first. Capitalizing on the cuteness factor that made Om Nom in Cut the Rope so popular, Pudding Monsters brings a whole cast of bouncing blobs of dessert to the table. It’s up to players to bring these piles of pudding together to create – what else? – a pudding monster. A sliding puzzle style game with people of appeal that you’d expect from the makers of a hit game, Pudding Monsters‘ gameplay is just as delicious as its main character.

The world didn't end, unless it did and we all have been so distracted by our mobile devices to notice. The mobile world has definitely kept spinning as the year winds down. Research in Motion, Rovio, and ZeptoLab all have reasons to be excited for 2013, Instagram has trouble making friends, and more in the year-end mobile news recap.

‘Twas the week of Christmas and all across the world, mobile devices were being delivered to good boys and girls. Sure it would be difficult and elves would work to no end, and gifts would be brought by a non-denominational holiday giver so as not to offend. December 21st passed and our world kept on turning, so for mobile news our audience is yearning. And since even in during the holidays, the industry keeps going, I have to write this recap of news worth knowing. The biggest name in games promise to bring more cheer and will have new games on your portable device in the new year. 4G is expanding and Google Maps makes iOS better, but Istagram’s TOS is uglier than a Christmas sweater. Research in Motion may be in need of a creditor, and I have to stop rhyming before I annoy the editor. Before this limerick style gets shelved, here’s the news in mobile for the last weeks of 2012.

BlackBerry

The big wigs at Research in Motion are just really ready for 2012 to end. The company might not even have been that upset if the whole Mayan apocalypse thing turned out to be true. Instead they have to deal with the sales figures from the third quarter of 2012 that prove to be a mixed bag at best. Still optimistic that the company’s outlook looks good for 2013, the company continues to gear up for the launch of BlackBerry 10. The first handset, the Z10, has been announced along with a UK launch that will include 4G access. Research in Motion even finally solved its patent dispute with Nokia with a simple solution: Throwing money at it and forgetting about it. A fresh start will be welcomed RIM headquarters.

Big Game News

The mobile app industry proved to be profitable in 2012, with revenue up across both the Apple App Store and the Android’s Google Play Store. Much of that can be attributed to the success of the mobile gaming industry, a place of regular profit for game makers. Two of the finest studios in the business, ZeptoLab and Rovio, are planning on taking on 2013 with all new IPs. ZeptoLab released it’s offering, Pudding Monsters, this week and will likely expand it over the course of next year. Rovio plans on exploring some new ideas to expand upon the success of Angry Birds. We’re sure both companies will also be releasing tons of plush toys and other merch that we’ll make fun of but secretly crave and decorate our rooms with.

Google Maps

Apple and Google might technically have a rivalry, but Apple can’t be too mad at the search giant. After the failure of Apple Maps kept people from updating to iOS 6, the release of Google Maps for iOS converted a considerable amount of holdouts. Of course, Google can thank Apple dumping it’s navigation tool and giving the company the motivation to come back better than ever. It’s like getting dumped and making sure you look better for the next time you run into your former lover. A total of 10 million people downloaded Google Maps, doing their best to guarantee they won’t end up lost during their holiday travels.

4G

America usually looks to Europe as an example of a more progressive society, but that’s not quite the case when it comes to wireless networks. The United Kingdom just got it’s first 4G network just a few months ago. Now an auction of a 4G LTE spectrum will take place between seven companies vying for position at the top of the UK class. Meanwhile in America, Verizon continues to make its 4G LTE presence felt everywhere it can. It’s latest expansion brings it to 29 new markets, including Green Bay, Wisconsin. If the playoffs go poorly for the Packers, expect the drunkenly typed out tweets of rage to come faster than ever.

Instagram Fallout

Instagram just can’t make friends with anyone. After cutting ties with Twitter, the photo-filter app started cutting ties with…its users. Probably not the best idea. It likely wasn’t intentional, but some people that actually take the time to read terms of service agreements noticed some wording that was less than agreeable. Upon the news spreading, users were sent into a fit of rage, swearing to never use the free service again–until everyone wants to take pictures of their holiday parties and add a nice sepia tone. Since Facebook bought up Instagram, the social network has been looking for ways to make the service profitable. Instagram has since backpedaled on the policy and promised not to sell people’s pictures, meaning they’ll have to find a different way to make money off what is essentially the world’s largest database of food pictures.

Are you a blogger or Web publisher who uses WordPress? Want to improve your productivity, boost your site's traffic, and make your pages look gorgeous? Check out this roundup of the best WordPress plugins that'll do all that and more.

WordPress is arguably the best Web publishing platform in existence. Since it was first rolled out in 2003, the free and open-source blogging platform/content management system has won the hearts of millions of Web publishers. It’s currently used in 19 percent of Alexa’s top 1 million websites, and handles 22 percent of all new websites created in 2012.

So why is it so popular? Well, aside from being completely free, WP has likely been embraced by the Web community for it’s extensibility. Thanks to the fact that it’s open-source, developers have created a massive library of WP plugins that allow users to do just about anything imaginable. The WP library currently has more than 22,000 free plugins available for download, as well as thousands of paid-for premium plugins. Don’t worry though, you don’t have to spend all day sifting through this massive catalog of great plugins – we’ve done it for you! Read on to see which WordPress plugins are our favorites. 

Slider Revolution

There are tons of sliders out there that’ll give your site a snazzy look, but none can match the wide range of customization options that Slider Revolution has. You can embed just about everything: simple images, text, 3D images, and videos; and you can add some killer transitions between them as well.

LayerSlider

LayerSlider is another slider plugin for your WordPress landing page that allows you to create gorgeous interactive sliders by using layers. It works with just about any HTML content you can throw at it: text, images, embedded videos, flash content, and any mixture of these that you can think of.

WordPress SEO by Yoast

Yoast is a dead-simple SEO plugin that helps your posts perform better in search engine results. Written from the ground up by WordPress SEO consultant Joost de Valk, it was designed to help improve SEO for your site in just about every way. Check the link for more info.

Global Gallery

You guessed it; this plugin lets you create an unlimited number of photo galleries on your site. It’s more than just a static array of pictures though; each one is fully responsive and easy to customize.

All in One SEO pack

With well over 12 million downloads, the All in One SEO Pack currently holds the title for most popular WordPress plugin – and for good reason. Among other things, it automatically optimizes your titles for search engines and allows you to override and set any title, meta description, or keyword that you choose.

Visual Composer

Just as you’d expect, Visual Composer allows you to compose WP pages and posts in a highly visual way. It gives you the ability to choose different types of media from a drop-down menu, and quickly arrange them into an aesthetically pleasing format. Follow the link and check out the video to get a better idea of how it works.

wpStickies

wpStickies is an awesome image tagging plugin that gives users a simple way to interact with images on their site. Users can tag things with simple dots or tag entire areas by drawing a box around them. When users hover over these points, the information you specify is displayed in a bubble.

FontPress

FontPress allows you to customize the typography on your site quickly and efficiently. You can tweak fonts that appear anywhere on your page, and can change their style, color, size, line height, and shadow. 

After the Deadline

ATD is a spell checker plugin/digital grammar wizard for WP. If you’ve ever used MS Word, you probably have an idea what it does, but this little plugin puts Microsoft to shame. It uses contextual spell checking, customizable style checking, and intelligent grammar checking – all of which help you spend more time writing and less time editing your work. 

What Would Seth Godin Do?

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could distinguish between new and returning visitors to your site and offer a welcome to those who are visiting for the first time? That’s exactly what WWSGD does. It uses cookies to determine whether a person has been to your site before.

Hotfix

Hotfix helps WP work better by providing unofficial fixes for selected bugs. It won’t fix every bug you might encounter, but it does a good job of fixing the ones that matter. However, installing Hotfix will not eliminate the need for you to update WP every so often. 

Akismet

Tired of having your comment threads bombarded with spam comments for erection pills and herbal supplements? Akismet can help. It’s essentially a filter that blocks spam comments. Each time a new comment, trackback, or pingback is added to your site, it’s submitted to the Akismet Web service which runs hundreds of tests on the comment and returns a thumbs up or thumbs down.

UserNoise Pro

UserNoise is a plugin for gathering and discussing user feedback on your site. It’s got a simple, minimalist interface that’s incredibly easy to customize, and comes with the added bonus of giving you deep debug info each time feedback is submitted. 

bbPress

Designed by the folks who made WordPress, bbPress is a super lightweight forum plugin that’s lean, but powerful. Simple to install and even easier to use, bbPress lets users assign admins, moderate forum posts, and more.

Social Slider

Want to give users a simple way to share content on their favorite social network? Give the Social Slider plugin a look. It’s got tabs for over 35 of the most popular social sites, and is completely customizable.

W3 Total Cache

Studies have shown that page performance plays a big role in how long people stay on your site. To make sure that your site loads quickly, give W3 Total Cache a try. The plugin boosts load times and improves user experience via caching.

uPricing

If you sell a product or service and offer an array of different pricing or payment options, check out uPricing. It displays a stylish, professional, and fully interactive grid for your pricing plans, and allows you to insert any information you’d like. Check out the live preview to see it in action.

CSS3 Responsive Web Pricing Tables

This one is remarkably similar to uPricing, but it has a slightly different admin interface. 

SocialPop

Just about every card-carrying website on the net has buttons that allow users to connect with them via social media, and there are a number of plugins that’ll give these buttons some flair. SocialPop is easily one of the best in this category. It currently supports 27 different social networking sites, and will make buttons pop up when hovered over with your cursor. 

Sexy Bookmarks

SexyBookmarks is a lot like SocialPop, and looks incredibly similar. Made by Shareaholic, the plugin also offers a Classic Bookmarks plugin, as well as a plugin called Sassy Bookmarks that’s optimized for mobile devices.

Foobar

Foobar puts a simple and easy-to-customize bar at the top any page you choose, giving you a clean, minimally intrusive way to post notifications on your site. It can handle anything from custom HTML to social links and RSS.

Hello Bar

Similar to Foobar, but packing a different look to it, Hello Bar displays a customizable bar at the top of any page you choose. The plugin helps you drive traffic to specific areas of your site, promote certain posts, sell products, get email signups, or display links to social media sites. 

WP Touch

This nifty little plugin will quickly create a version of your site that’s optimized for mobile access without modifying a single bit of code. It comes with all the requisite customization options you’d expect and gives users the option of viewing your pages in either the mobile or full-size format. 

upPrev

upPrev is a fantastic tool for keeping readers on your site. When users reach the end of an article or post, a pop-up will appear in the bottom right corner of the screen and provide links to similar stories for them to read. 

The Slide

Yeah, this one is essentially the same thing as upPrev, but looks a bit different. Want to see what it looks like? Scroll to the bottom of this page and you’ll get an idea. 

What do you think of our best WordPress plugins list? Did we miss something? Let us know in the comments below.

Tech analyst Rob Enderle gets to play with a lot of gadgets, but these three from 2012 prove gadgets really can make life better.

Last week, I talked about all the products I wanted that didn’t arrive in 2012, or arrived half baked. This week, I’ll get a little more positive and discuss my three favorite products of 2012. Of all of the products I used and tested, these are the ones that generally go with me everywhere.

Kindle Fire HD

I’ve been a Kindle fan since the first one of these shipped. It’s just an amazing pleasure to have something with days of battery life, yet still light enough that I’m comfortable going through most of a book in one sitting. Last week, I read all five books in the Iron Druid Chronicles while traveling to visit Dell and Qualcomm. Plane trips go by quickly now, and if someone leaves me sitting for a long time waiting for a meeting, rather than getting upset, I appreciate the extra time to read the next installment in a compelling adventure. If I get up and discover I don’t have my Kindle, my heart nearly stops as panic takes hold – not because it’s too expensive to replace, but because I’ll be left with time and nothing interesting to fill it with. The Kindle Fire HD helps keep me sane (well, relatively), and it is one of my favorite products this year.

Microsoft Surface tablet

You have no idea how wonderful one of these new tablets is until you take it on a trip instead of a laptop. It gives me all-day battery life, near-instant wireless network connections, instant suspend resume, a touch screen, and Office. I do miss Outlook a bit, but the feather-light weight and incredibly long battery life has me often carrying this instead of my notebook. So far, it’s the only tablet I’ve found (that isn’t a notebook in disguise) that allows me to really leave the laptop at home. It has done wonders for my back by keeping my backpack light, and wonders for my piece of mind because I don’t sweat the battery life. I would have never thought that Microsoft could create something this good, much less with a first-generation. My other tablets must look longingly at my Surface Tablet and say “we are not worthy.”

Nokia Lumia 920 smartphone

If I could take just one product with me to a desert island (assuming it had phone reception), it would be the Nokia Lumia 920. In a pinch, this rather large phone can actually sub for my other two favorite devices. I’ve gone to dinners where I couldn’t bring my Kindle, so I’ve read the book I was reading on the Lumia instead. I’ve been without my laptop or Surface Tablet and still done real work on this not-so-little phone. The best part: It has the highest quality camera on the market. I have pictures that I wouldn’t have been able to take if it weren’t for this phone. Who knew I could enjoy a phone like this so much? It integrates with my car’s sound system so I can listen to tunes off of Slacker or my music library, works flawlessly with my headsets and car for phone calls, and it actually isn’t bad at all for movies and TV.

Looking forward to 2013

I can hardly wait to see the second-generation Microsoft Surface, given how wonderful the first generation is. While lots of folks live for the next iProduct, I kind of live for the next Kindle. But I’m really struggling with how you’d make a better phone, for my needs, than the Nokia Lumia 920 – so I’m especially looking forward to the next phones from that company. You know, 2013 is looking like it will be an amazing year for cool new products.

How about you, what were your favorite products of 2012?

What will be the major trends and releases in the world of mobile for 2013? Join us as we take a look into our crystal ball.

It has been a busy year in mobile. 2012 was the year that saw Android establish a clear lead by closing in on a 75 percent share of the smartphone market. Samsung and Apple topped the manufacturer charts and duked it out in the courtroom. Microsoft hoped it would be third time lucky with Windows Phone 8. Tablets got smaller, smartphones got bigger, and the market for both just kept on growing.

On the verge of 2013 it’s time to cast your eyes forward and take a look at the year ahead. What are the big trends going to be? Who will be making major moves in mobile? We think it’s still a bit too early for widespread adoption of wearable tech or flexible displays, and it’s a bit too late to herald the arrival of mobile payments even if they haven’t really caught on yet, but there’s still plenty to get excited about.

BlackBerry 10 launch

It’s no secret that RIM has had a tough year. The eulogies have been rolling in thick and fast, but under new CEO, Thorsten Heins, the company has been quietly working away on BlackBerry 10. The new platform has been described as RIM’s last roll of the dice and it might well be. Market share has been dwindling for a while now, but RIM also just announced its first ever drop in worldwide subscribers as 1 million people abandoned the platform, taking its total down to 79 million subscribers.

Various carriers around the world have already announced that they will be offering new BB10 devices. The launch events have been scheduled for January 30. Early demos and leaks have been promising. RIM’s traditional base in the enterprise is already road-testing the new platform. RIM hasn’t rushed to market this time and BB10 has real potential. If the platform can claw back some market share from Android, or even iOS, then it will be the comeback story of the year.

Augmented reality

It has been around for a while now, but 2013 could be the year that sees augmented reality apps and games really taking off. More and more people have capable smartphones and tablets, advertisers are clamoring to deploy AR in marketing, and wearable tech could prove to be the catalyst that spurs AR onwards. Juniper Research is predicting that AR will generate $300 million in 2013 as it builds momentum towards 2.5 billion annual app and game downloads within five years.

Platforms like metaio are offering an AR platform that brands can easily adopt and they report strong growth, however, it could be another year or two before AR is truly widespread. The ascent starts in 2013, but it won’t reach its zenith for a few years yet.

Cloud apps and services

The cloud has been generating a deafening buzz as it is held up as a panacea for the business world. Thanks to a perfect storm of enabling factors it will also be having a great impact on the consumer world in 2013. The expansion of 4G LTE networks, improvements in Wi-Fi technology and hotspot availability, and lightweight demands in terms of installation and storage overhead, should drive cloud-connected apps and services in the coming year.

Expect to see Sony’s acquisition of Gaikai bear fruit in terms of mobile gaming as high-end releases come to smartphones. We’ll also see more people relying on service like Google Music to store and stream content. Syncing across devices is another important development that makes life easier – you read, watch, or play something on your tablet in the morning, pick it up on your smartphone as you commute, and finish it off on your computer when you reach work. The local device is just an entry point for content that we expect to be available and synced across the board.

Web adapts to mobile

In 2013 smartphones and tablets will surpass PCs to become the most commonly used devices for accessing the Internet. The impact of mobile on the Internet can already be seen. Most major websites now have a dedicated mobile version; some are being simplified overall with mobile screens as a primary concern. Mobile apps are still a vitally important link between devices and the web and we don’t think the much-vaunted HTML5 is in a position to usurp traditional apps with web apps for a good while yet.

Content curation and easy navigation are becoming more and more important for a web that focusses on the needs of mobile users first.

Real smartphone competition

If you thought 2012 was a competitive year in mobile you ain’t seen nothing yet. As smartphones reach saturation point in certain markets, such as the U.S. , we’re going to see companies fight harder than ever before. When the market stops growing that market share becomes more meaningful.

Android and iOS could have some real competition in the shape of Windows Phone 8 and BlackBerry 10. Analysts have been predicting an increased market share for Microsoft for years now, in 2013 we’ll find out for sure. We’ve also got a flurry of new devices to look forward to from the Samsung Galaxy S4 to the iPhone 5S. We may even see the long rumored Amazon smartphone or a WP8 device from Microsoft. HTC, LG, and Sony have all made noises about claiming third place behind Samsung and Apple. Game on!

An end to the patent madness

We are hopeful that the patent wars might be settled once and for all in 2013. Various judges have expressed a desire to end the steady stream of patent infringement lawsuits pouring into their courtrooms. Definitive decisions on fair licensing terms look closer than ever, most of the Android manufacturers have signed agreements, and the ongoing fight is not enhancing reputations with consumers. Much depends on Apple’s willingness to settle.

If 2012 was the year of the patent wars then we have our fingers crossed that 2013 will see a lasting peace and the big tech players can get back to focusing on making us irresistible gadgets. We wouldn’t advise your holding breath for this, though.

Tablets, tablets everywhere

We’ll see more tablets, we’ll see prices drop further, and we’ll see sales rocket in 2013 as tablets usurp smartphones as the fastest selling tech devices. As smartphones grow and tablets shrink we may see more of a blurring of the line between the two, something that “phablets” like the Galaxy Note 2 and Droid DNA have already introduced.

We’ll also see the BYOD trend continue to grow and tablets will become increasingly common in the workplace and in education. We can expect that trend to fuel a developer drive towards apps and services for the enterprise and education sector. There’s plenty of room for improvement.

More mobile predictions for 2013

We think quite a few other mobile features will see a steady rise in popularity in 2013. NFC should roll out on more devices and we’ll see that functionality exploited in more ways, beyond mobile payments. In terms of mobile payments expect a few competitors to offer cloud-based digital wallets and alternative tech to NFC as consumer adoption and confidence grows slowly. Wireless charging is also set to grow in stature over the coming year and it will be interesting to see how many businesses decide to offer facilities.

No doubt there will be a few surprises as well. Let’s hope so, because that’s what keeps things interesting. Got a suggestion or hunch of your own? Post a comment and share your mobile predictions for 2013.

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