Is this a surprise?

Smartphone ownership has now reached the majority, albeit by a slim margin, says a Nielsen survey.

As of March, 50.4% of U.S. mobile subscribers owned a smartphone, up from 47.8% last December.

The smartphone is particularly attractive to adults age 25-34, with more than two out of three owning the mobile device, the survey finds.

We’ve seen a stunning reversal over the past five years. With the success of the iPhone and the Android platform, companies like Nokia have been left in the dust.

The biggest technology and gadget show, CES, just kicked off in Las Vegas, and as usual much of the talk surrounds Apple:

Apple is the only company that consistently gets big buzz out of the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas — without even attending.

This year will be no different.

Connected TVs — TVs that connect to and can access content from the Internet — will be a big part of CES this year. And just about everyone in tech expects Apple at some point to launch such a television — an iTV — that easily consumes and shares with other Apple devices content served from the company’s media-storing iCloud.

Microsoft made news earlier by saying this was the last year they would attend CES/ Why attend if Apple gets all the buzz anyways? Maybe Microsoft should focus on new products instead of protecting its Windows/Office cash cow? Or maybe not . . .

Public pressure can build quickly in the social media age. Verizon tried to push through a new $2 fee and ended up with a PR nightmare.

Verizon Wireless bowed to a torrent of criticism on Friday and reversed a day-old plan to impose a $2 bill-paying fee that would have applied to only some customers.

The consumer vitriol, which cascaded across Twitter and onto blogs and petitions all around the Web, struck a chord with a company that was clearly not expecting it.

“The company made the decision in response to customer feedback about the plan, which was designed to improve the efficiency of those transactions,” Verizon Wireless said in a statement referring to the reversal.

Everything is changing, as consumers have real power now with social media.

People love to gamble and they love to play games on their computers and phones. With that the trends will just accelerate on games like poker that can be played in all sorts of settings. Now with new smartphones there are even more ways to play. You can play real games against real people, or just play practice games against a computer so you learn to avoid losing all your cash.

The new rules from the Obama administration announced Friday might make this even more popular, as the new rule suggests that the federal government can only restrict sports betting under the current federal law. This can lead to an explosion of state regulations overseeing and encouraging online play in order to generate tax revenues.

This decision makes sense, as people love playing online casino games. Now with smartphones exploding, imagine how much more time people will spend playing these games. You can play blackjack hands while standing in the line at the grocery store. So get ready for a bunch of new players as people start using their Christmas gadgets!

Poker is fun, and tons of people love to play. Like most games, it was a huge leap forward when we could play them on our computers. Then game better networks and amazing online experiences with these games.

Smart phones have taken all of this to a new level. Now you can play games of every kind everywhere. You can play by yourself or with other people. Add in social networking, and gaming even becomes a new way of communicating with friends – let’s chat while we play a game!

Of course this is going to drive tons of holiday sales, and phones, iPads and other devices fly off the shelves. People of all ages love this stuff, and kids are obsessed with it. Tons of companies are cashing in on mobile gaming as tons of mobile betting apps are downloaded for all sorts of devices.

Stuff like iCoud makes mobile gaming even better. Now you can track your games and scores from multiple Apple devices, from your iPhone to your iPad to your laptop. It’s just amazing.

The growth here is exponential, so expect some huge numbers from the holiday season and the week after Christmas when people downloads apps on the new gadgets they found under the Christmas tree!

I hate it when my headphones get all tangled up. Here’s a review of new headphones that have fettuccine type no-tangle cords.

Here are some helpful tips for how to get more battery life from your new iPhone. Apple has acknowledged the problem and is working on a software fix.

Bottom line – turn off a lot of the automatic updates and notifications. I have most of mine off and haven’t had much of a battery problem.

Some stories are coming out about the iPhone 4S and problems with battery life. I just got a new one and I love it, but I was a little surprised at how quickly the battery was depleted. Apple is apparently looking into it, so we’ll see if this becomes a bigger story.

The new iPhone 4S is a massive hit, so if you got one, you should be in the market for a cool case or two. Check out this review of the new XtremeMac Microshield. If you like a smooth and slick cover, this one will be perfect.

Last month, everyone was worried about a double-dip recession. Now we have news that the economy grew at 2.5% in the third quarter and that consumer spending is on the rise again, and suddenly we have a situation where the holiday shopping season might be better than usual. Consumer sentiment is critical. Consumers were spending when things were bad, so if the economy is getting a little better, maybe consumer spending will ramp up even more.

There are definitely some cool products out there. The iPhone 4S is a massive hit, and everyone thinks the Kindle Fire, with its $199 price tag, will be a huge hit with consumers as well. It will be interesting to see if we have a massive dud like 3D televisions like last year.

Another issue might be supply. Have tech companies been aggressive enough with their inventories and production schedules? Have they been ramping up booklet printing for promotional items and product instructions? Will they be faced with shortages in products if the shopping season is a hit?

I suspect that Apple and Amazon will be ready.