How do you feel about smartphones at the dinner table? Android or iOS? In this week’s edition of Weekend Reading we debate these hot topics while learning about the internet’s physical space and the Nokia Lumia 920!

To tweet or not to tweet during meals?

We thought it might be fun to kick off this week’s edition of Weekend Reading with a little debate spurred by an interesting article in the Washington Post. Entitled “In defense of the bathroom smartphone user,” the author takes a different approach to what we usually associate with bathroom use and handheld devices. The focus instead is placed on manners, and using the washroom as a scapegoat to check your phone during dinner, which should come as no surprise since 4% would give up interacting with people in real life first! So we want to know: is it more acceptable to use your phone at the table because of our need to stay connected? OR should we just put away our smartphones during the meal and focus on our company like the good old days? Read the full article and let us know what you think. Where do you stand on smartphones at the dinner table?

How long will Android stay on top?

As 2012 winds down, analysts are already making their predictions for 2013 – but some are looking as far ahead as 2016 when it comes to forecasting the most popular mobile platform. Several tech blogs reported this week on findings from the IDC (International Data Corporation) suggesting that Android would remain the most popular platform for the next 4 years.

Digital Trends noted that Android had an advantage by partnering with companies such as Samsung, LG and Sony for their devices, while iPhone Headlines focused on current market share percentages that revealed Android has 68.3% while iOS only has 18.8%. Android Headlines was excited to share the IDC’s future percentage predictions, but BGR was quick to note that the Windows Phone stands to gain the most market share.

Do you agree with the IDC’s findings? What’s your favourite platform?

Estimating how much space the internet takes up

Gizmodo had a thought-provoking post this week on the concept of the internet as a physical entity among us. How did they measure this? We’ll give you a hint – it involves hard drives and some math. Head over to the full article for the surprising answer here!

Jany Jang’s take on the Nokia Lumia 920

Recently one of our Rogers Social Insiders took part in Pure Imagination, a Microsoft event and 24-hour Hackathon, coinciding with the recent release of Windows 8. One of the perks was getting to demo the brand new Windows device on the Rogers LTE network. We sat down and spoke with Jany about her favourite features of the Nokia Lumia 920 and new Windows 8 platform, what it was like to build an app, and what went down at the Pure Imagination event. Read our blog post with Jany here. What have been your favourite features of the Nokia Lumia 920?

Kelly is a regular contributor for RedBoard