Download the new Android Market version 3.1.3 for smartphones

If you have a smartphone running on Android 2.2 (Froyo) or Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), I recommend you to upgrade your Android Market to the latest version 3.1.3. This is the new release, more recent than the previous Android Market 3.0.26 / 3.0.27.

You can download the APK file of this new Android Market 3.1.3 from any of the links listed here:

• Location 1
• Location 2
• Location 3

You don't need root access to upgrade your Android Market to this new version. Same as the other APK installation, you'll need to enable "Unknown sources" installation in the phone's Settings > Applications.

This is how the new Android Market 3.1.3 looks like.

Its starting page is the Featured list. It has separate navigation listing for Top  Paid, Top Free, Top Grossing, Top New Paid, Top New Free and Trending. You can filter the listing by Categories and the result will be listed accordingly.

The Android Market 3.1.3 introduced Google's +1 feature, so you can +1 the apps you like.

Press the Menu button of your Android phone, and select My Apps to view the listing of the apps installed in your phone.

Another remarkable new feature in Android Market 3.1.3 is the PIN setting security for making purchases. You might be aware that previous versions of Android Market will let you make purchase of new apps with your Google Checkout account just by tapping on the Purchase button. If you let other people use or play with your phone, you have to be alerted that they can open the Market app and start purchasing paid apps using your account. Now, if you have set a PIN and locked down the purchase function with your PIN, that danger won't simply happen anymore.

Note: If you have an Android tablet running on Android 3.0 (Honeycomb), this Android Market 3.1.3 upgrade might not be applicable to your device.

The new Sunway (5211) after the merger

The new Sunway is expected to be listed in KLSE on Tuesday 23 August 2011 with the new stock code of 5211 under the Properties sector of the main board.

The will mark the completion of the merging exercise of SunCity (6289, Properties sector) and old Sunway (4308, Construction sector), resulting in a total of 1,292,505,004 Sunway ordinary shares and 258,501,000 Sunway warrants (exercise price RM2.80, expires on 17 August 2016) issued and listed.

According to its Prospectus dated 18 August 2011, the key financial data of the new Sunway for FYE Dec 2010 is as follow:

Revenue: RM3.134 billion
Gross profit: RM1.058 billion (margin: 33.8%)
Operating profit: RM592.142 million
PBT: RM717.267 million (margin: 22.9%)
PAT: RM997.483 million (margin: 31.8%)
Cash on hand: RM856.193 million
Debts: RM2.332 billion
Total equity: RM2.982 billion
Total liability: RM4.403 billion

EPS: 53.3 sen
Fully diluted EPS: 44.4 sen
NTA: RM2.01

Current ratio: 1.5
Gross gearing ratio: 0.9
Net gearing ratio: 0.6

Note that the PAT is higher than PBT for FYE 2010 due to reversal of deferred tax liability pursuant to the sale of certain properties to Sunway REIT.

And according to the unaudited FYE 2011 Q1 result announced in KLSE on 16 August 2011, the 1st quarter result is as below:

Revenue: RM833.711 million (26.6% of last year annual revenue)
PBT: RM79.219 million (11% of last year annual PBT)
PAT: RM88.921 million (8.9% of last year annual PAT)
Cash on hand: RM961.822 million (up by RM105.63 million or 12.34%)
Debts: RM2.328 billion (reduced by 4 million)
Total equity: RM3.079 billion (up by RM97 million or 3.25%)
Total liability: RM4.15 billion (reduced by RM253 million or 5.75%)

EPS: 5.28 sen (9.9% of last year EPS)
Fully diluted EPS: 4.4 sen (9.9% of last year diluted EPS)
NTA: 2.07 (up by 6 sen or 2.99%)

Unbilled sales: RM1.7 billion
Total order book: RM2.4 billion

Note that Sunway has just recently been awarded the Package B of Kelana Jaya line LRT extension project worth RM569 million, which will push their total order book to RM3 billion and above.

Disclaimer: This article is intended for sharing of point of view only. It is not an advice or recommendation to buy or sell any of the mentioned stock counters. You should do your own homework before trading in Bursa Malaysia.

Google to buy over Motorola Mobility for $12.5b

It seems that the patent lawsuits among Google and its competitors have extended into some eye popping M&A activities.

Despite losing up in the contest for Nortel (which carries 6000+ wireless technology patents) to the joint alliance formed by Apple, EMC, Ericsson, Microsoft, RIM and Sony, Google managed to increase its bargaining chips by snapping up 1000+ patents from IBM in late July 2011. And now, out of a sudden surprise, Google announced its move to acquire Motorola Mobility which carries 17000+  issued patents worldwide and 7500+ pending patents under application process.

Beside gaining a large amount of patents through this $12.5b exercise, by acquiring Motorola Mobility, Google will also move into Android phone hardware manufacturing business and compete with its partners in the Android alliance including Samsung, HTC, LG, etc. Anyhow, Larry Page calmed his fellow Android partners that this acquisition will not change Google commitment to run Android as an open platform, and that Motorola will be run as a separate business.

What impact has this move on the Android community and the entire smartphone market? Time will tell. Hopefully, it will bring more good than bad.

Click here to read the announcement made by Larry Page about the Motorola Mobility acquisition.