GSMArena News

Microsoft is toying with a version of Windows 8.1 that comes with Bing, which is a different, low-cost version of the OS that comes packaged with Microsoft applications and services.

Sources say that Windows 8.1 with Bing could even be a free upgrade option for current Windows 7 users.

It’s a smart move from Microsoft, who is looking to increase the number of Windows 8 users while also finding out a way to monetize their applications and cloud services. We aren’t sure just how committed Microsoft is to this low-cost version of Windows 8.1, but it is clear that they need to do something to get their customer based excited about Windows 8.1, as the 8 release was somewhat of a dud.

The Seattle-based tech giant is also looking to combine Windows RT and Windows Phone into one operating system for all ARM-based devices.

Also, the update for Windows 8.1 will be available on April 8th, which comes at the end of the Microsoft Developer BUILD conference. Stay tuned for any further updates on Microsoft’s latest desktop OS.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

How many times have you downloaded a “free” app that manages to sneak in advertisements and premium content that you need to pay extra for? Probably a lot.

Well the European Union is meeting with various companies today to lay down some rules and come up with clearer lingo that stipulates which applications are truly free, and which are “free.”

The European Commission is also looking to control the ways in which in-app payments are made, and include direct email addresses to the developer, in case you have a problem with a purchase.

EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reading had this to say:

“For the sector to deliver on its potential consumers must have confidence in new products…Misleading consumers is clearly the wrong business model and also goes against the spirit of EU rules on consumer protection.”

The proposed reforms could have a big impact on the European application business, which is predicted to be worth about 63 Billion Euros in the next five years. In Germany alone, in-app purchases double from 2012 to 2013, with over a million of the customers making the purchases being between the ages of 10 and 19.

The US has already seen some Apple app store changes go into effect. If users would like to make an app-store purchase they are required to re-input their password as part of a double-verification process. A separate lawsuit last year also resulted in a settlement that gave customers $32.5 million in refunds for mistaken in-app purchases and made it necessary for apps to indicate that their application does contain in-app purchases.

It is interesting to note that Google doesn’t require users to enter their passwords twice, but the software giant has said that it’s working on extra protection for Google Play Store purchases.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Details on the pricing of the freshly announced Sony Xperia M2 made the rounds in Netherlands. The mid-range device is said to launch in April for €289.

The smartphone will be offered with free multimedia content when available. It will include three Sony Pictures movie downloads and a free month of Music Unlimited streaming which gives access to over 25 million songs.

Sony Xperia M2 features a 4.8" qHD display and Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 SoC, tucked into a sleek-looking body with the same design as that of the company's high-end Android devices. You can find out more about the device in our MWC hands-on.

Source (in Dutch)

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

The highly anticipated HTC One successor made yet another unscheduled appearance on Twitter. This time around @evleaks posted a press image of the upcoming smartphone with AT&T branding.

The newly leaked image shows the HTC M8 with an aluminum finish and brings no surprises. It falls right in line with previous press photo leaks where the device appeared in gold, as well as black and gray.

HTC M8 will be released next month, on March 25, likely as the All New One. We will be attending the event, so be sure to tune in for the full scoop on the device.

Source

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

We managed to do a few “in the field” tests while at the MWC, including several benchmarks. We collected them all into one post to make it easier to compare several of the more interesting new devices from the Cognress.

The set of phones spans the whole spectrum, from expensive flagships to affordable entry-level phones.

Note: we borrowed results from the AnTuTu team for several devices.

We start off with Benchmark Pi, which we used on the more affordable phones. The relatively unknown European brand Wiko had a couple of devices, one of which was the first device with Tegra 4i, the Wiko WAX. Its counterpart, the Highway, uses an octa-core MediaTek chipset.

As for Nokia’s X phones, all of them (X, X+, XL) are powered by dual-core Cortex-A5 processors. Calculations took longer than on the Moto G (lower is better here), but the numbers still look good considering the Nokias cost half as much.

Benchmark Pi

Lower is better

• Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)
  132
• LG Optimus G Pro
  147
• HTC One
  151
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  169
• Wiko Highway
  226
• Wiko WAX
  261
• Sony Xperia Z
  264
• HTC Butterfly
  266
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  305
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  308
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  347
• Motorola Moto G
  392
• Nokia X
  677
• Nokia XL
  681

We ran AnTuTu 4 â€" a comprehensive benchmark â€" on every phone we could and the Galaxy S5 with its Snapdragon 801 chipset (AC variety) topped the chart. The Sony Xperia Z2 with a Snapdragon 801 (AB) was just behind the Galaxy S5. The AB version of the chipset has higher clockspeed for the GPU compared to a Snapdragon 800, while the AC has a higher CPU clock too.

That said, the Xperia Z2 has 3GB RAM versus the 2GB for the Galaxy S5, which should make a difference when multitasking with several apps.

Wiko did fairly well here with results not too far off the Note 3 either. Right behind them is the Gionee Elife S5.5, the thinnest smartphone yet. The affordable HTC Desire 816 phablet slots behind rivals from lesser known rivals, while the Huawei Ascend G6 and Lenovo S860 are at the lower end of the scale for mid-range phones.

The Huawei MediaPad X1 is an LTE-enabled 7″ tablet with voice calls. Physically it’s more compact than the Nexus 7 (2013) and it’s cheaper to boot. Huawei must be pleased with its victory over its Google-branded adversary.

As for the Nokias, they were at the bottom, but quite close to the current Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 with a dual-core Exynos 4212 chipset.

AnTuTu 4

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S5
  35145
• Sony Xperia Z2
  34986
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4
  34016
• LG G Pro 2
  33997
• Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 (S800)
  33996
• Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition
  
  33198
• Transformer Pad TF701T
  
  32991
• Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 (Exynos)
  
  32796
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  
  31109
• Wiko Highway
  26886
• Wiko WAX
  26560
• Gionee Elife S5.5
  26539
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1
  24236
• Huawei MediaPad X1
  22180
• Sony Xperia Tablet Z
  20216
• HTC Desire 816
  21828
• LG Optimus G Pro
  20056
• Asus Nexus 7 (2013)
  19131
• Huawei Ascend G6
  17658
• Lenovo S860
  17498
• Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0
  17159
• Google Nexus 10
  
  12695
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0
  9070
• Nokia X
  7745
• Nokia XL
  7529

We didn’t have time to run Quadrant on all phones, but the Galaxy S5 certainly outperforms the Galaxy Note 3. Another Gionee phone, the Elife E7 beat the Nexus 5 in this test by a wide margin.

Quadrant

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S5
  24258
• Sony Xperia Z1
  20388
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  20052
• LG G2
  19815
• Sony Xperia Z Ultra
  18177
• Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 (S800)
  17963
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4
  16769
• Gionee Elife E7
  14150
• LG Nexus 5
  8844

Time for some heavy duty 3D benches â€" the Samsung Galaxy S5 and Sony Xperia Z2 went head to head here. The two flagships were neck and neck here, with the Galaxy wining the newer benchmark by over 1fps.

GFXBench 2.7 T-Rex (1080p off-screen)

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia Z2
  27.7
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  27.5
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4
  26
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  26
• Apple iPad Air
  25
• Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 (S800)
  25
• Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 (Exynos)
  
  22
• Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition
  
  22
• Transformer Pad TF701T
  
  21
• Asus Nexus 7 (2013)
  15
• LG G Pad 8.3
  
  15
• Google Nexus 10
  13.9
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1
  7.0
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0
  4.0

GFXBench 3.0 Manhattan (1080p off-screen)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S5
  11.7
• Sony Xperia Z2
  10.1
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  9.7
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  9
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4
  8.9
• LG Nexus 5
  8.5
• Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 (S800)
  8.1
• Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 (Exynos)
  5.6
• Galaxy Note 10.1 (Exynos)
  5.6

Finally, a quick web test, the familiar SunSpider benchmark. Here the Galaxy S5 absolutely aced it, being behind only the iPad Air tablet. Apparently, Sony didn’t optimize JavaScript performance for this benchmark as the Xperia Z2 ended up behind the Wiko duo. As usual, the Nokia X phones were at the bottom.

SunSpider

Lower is better

• Apple iPad Air
  
  373
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  397
• Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 (Exynos)
  
  531
• Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition
  
  569
• Transformer Pad TF701T
  
  606
• Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 (S800)
  607
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4
  651
• Wiko Highway
  807
• Wiko WAX
  893
• Sony Xperia Z2
  952
• LG Optimus G Pro
  
  1011
• Asus Nexus 7 (2013)
  1150
• LG G Pad 8.3
  
  1190
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1
  1233
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0
  1366
• Google Nexus 7
  1703
• new Apple iPad
  1722
• Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1
  1891
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7
  1953
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus
  1992
• Galaxy Tab 2 7.0
  2253
• Huawei MediaPad
  2490
• Nokia X
  2624
• Nokia XL
  2719

We’ll have to revisit the Samsung Galaxy S5 vs. Sony Xperia Z2 battle as those are the first 2014 smartphone flagships (LG and HTC are yet to announce theirs). By the looks of it, things will be very close with a small edge for the Galaxy thanks to the higher CPU speed.

Up and coming brands like Wiko and Gionee impressed with their performance, staying close to premium products from the big manufacturers. The Android expansion has led to increasingly good offerings from small brands, so consumers have more options than ever before and we like it.

At the entry-level, Nokia showed decent but not great performance. The company’s goal isn’t blazing fast 3D games though, it’s bringing the amazing utility of smartphones to millions of people stuck on feature phones due to pricing considerations. We did notice that the Nokia X beat the Nokia XL more often than not, despite having less RAM. Is this a software issue or a slower (but bigger) RAM chip?

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Acer's smartphone strategy is currently focused solely on making Android smartphones but that may change if Windows Phone reaches 15% market share in Europe. The company's VP of Smartphones Allen Burnes said in an interview that Acer wants to see more demand from consumers on WP before they take risks with Microsoft's OS.

The Acer Allegro is the only WP smartphone the company has made so far. Now, almost three years from its launch, the company still hasn't made a second one, but that may change sooner than you think.

According to a recent report by ABI Research, WP sales have more than doubled in a year. Reports from Strategy Analytics and Kantar World Panel also share similar data.

Not everyone shares Acer's vision on Windows Phone, though. Sony has been rumored to be currently in talks with Microsoft to make a Windows Phone under the Vaio brand. An official photo of an upcoming Samsung WP has also leaked just yesterday.

Source | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Amazon UK is stepping up its promotions â€" first a 20% cut on Kindle Fire tablets, now 8 Android games with a combined cost of £10 for free. You don’t even need a Kindle tablet, just the Amazon App Store installed.

This promotion valid only today, February 28.

Here’s the list of games:

• Wreck-It Ralph (Kindle Tablet Edition)
• Ski Safari (Kindle Tablet Edition)
• LUMI
• Buddy & Me
• Sonic Jump
• Gravity Guy
• Wheel of Fortune
• HorseWorld 3D: My Riding Horse

You can check out the games with info and screenshots at Amazon UK. Again, this is UK only, everyone else is getting a “We are sorry” banner.

Note that those games are available on the Play Store too and Lumi is free. Gravity Guy and HorseWorld 3D have free versions on the Play Store alongside the paid ones, it’s the paid versions that the Amazon store is offering.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

The LG G Pad 8.3 had its price slashed over at Newegg and now costs just $224.99. This makes the premium slate, which also has an Google Play Edition version out, $5 cheaper than the Nexus 7.

The promo applies for the 16GB model of the G Pad 8.3, but considering the slate packs a microSD card slot, storage isn’t a big issue. Sadly, only US residents can take advantage of the deal right now, but nevertheless it’s a pretty nice one.

To get a G Pro 8.3 at this price, go to Newegg and use this code: EMCPHHC28.

The tablet packs a 1.7GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 chip with 2GB of RAM and its 8.3 IPS display features a 1920 x 1200 pixels resolution. The battery is 4,600mAh, which as we found out in our test managed more than 7 hours of constant web browsing action. Follow the source link below to find out more about the deal

Also, make sure to check out our full-blown LG G Pad 8.3 review to find out everything there is about the tablet.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Yahoo is hosting an Android Tech Talk on March 20. The news comes from Jean-Baptiste Quéru, former AOSP lead at Google and current Yahoo employee. He’ll do a short presentation, focusing on architecture, but there will be other speakers as well.

The event will be held in the New York office and is invite-only.

There’s limited space for the event, so better sign up quick if you want to go. Here’s the sign-up form.

Other than JBQ, Yahoo’s Mobile & Emerging Products Team will be there possibly giving presentations themselves. There’s also a strong possibility of a coding competition (with prizes) and the certainty of tacos, music and drinks.

So, what’s this talk about? JQB says “This is also a good time to have an up-to-date resume ready” and the sign-up form does ask for plenty of details on your experience in Android app development. Other than semi-stealth recruitment, the talk would may include info on Yahoo’s Aviate launcher and any of the other Yahoo apps.

P.S. Did you notice that the sign-up form is hosted on Google Docs?

Source

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

A few months back, Google had released an extension for Chrome that would allow you to use search simply by using your voice and saying the phrase “Ok Google”. Now, that functionality is being built-in to the browser and is available first through the new beta.

If you install or update to the latest Chrome beta, you will be able to do a voice search from the Google homepage or from the new tab page. You can use it the same way you’d use it on your Android phone, by starting with “Okay Google” and then saying your query. You can also use it to set a timer or a reminder. You will just have to go to Google.com, click on the mic icon and click on “Enable Ok Google”.

You can get the Chrome beta from the link below.

Download • Source

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

We know Android apps can be sideloaded on Nokia X devices, but XDA-Developers member opseemnik flipped the tables on them and found a way to install the Nokia Store on regular Android devices.

While the Nokia Store isn’t nearly as rich as the Play Store, it does have some exclusive apps many people would love to get their hands on, HERE Maps especially.

When asked about HERE Maps, opseemnik only gave a concise answer â€" “in progress”. It’s not just the maps though, Nokia Mix Radio has already been ported (note: you need root to modify your phone’s build.prop info).

Also, Nokia has some of the coolest vendor-made apps around â€" remember Refocus? Similar functionality seems to have made its way to Android flagships. There are great stuff coming out of Nokia Beta Labs as well.

Anyway, the installation process is fairly simple â€" you just sideload NStore.apk like you would any other APK file. The latest version doesn’t need build.prop modifications to work, so root is not required. If you have an earlier version installed, you’ll need to remove it first.

Note that not all apps install properly, apparently there are issues with some permissions and apps that rely on Nokia’s APIs also won’t work. Still, Nokia’s “75% of all Android apps are compatible with Nokia X” claim cuts both ways.

Some people are also reporting that the app doesn’t work for them, check the XDA thread for more details.

By the way, boot animations, icons and sounds are also being ripped from the Nokias.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Asus has announced its plans to upgrade the latest PadFone devices with Android 4.4 KitKat. The update will not only bring your device to the latest Android version, but will also install the latest Asus Zen UI.

So, the compatible PadFones to get KitKat + Zen UI are Padfone Infinity (also known as PadFone A80), PadFone Infinity 2 and PadFone 2. There is no word on other PadFone devices, but we hope Asus will consider updating the mini PadFones as well.

The Android 4.4 KitKat update is currently in development for all three gadgets. It will launch in Q2 for the PadFone 2 and PadFone Infinity, while the PadFone Infinity 2 will get it in Q3.

Source | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Google has released a major update to the iOS version of the Hangouts mobile app. Whereas the previous app left a lot to be desired and didn’t look or work as you’d expect from an app on iOS, the updated version completely changes that and also adds some new features.

One of the most noticeable changes in the new version is the new UI redesigned for iOS 7. The conversation list view is different and you’ll see your profile right up top. Click on it and you’ll get options related to your profile, such as account settings and snooze settings. The chat list looks different and you can now swipe on an item in the list and get options to favorite, video call the contact, mute or archive the conversation. All of this works with silky smooth fancy new transition animations.

The chat view is different, too, and much classier than before. There is now an attachment button next to the text box that lets you add an image, location (previously available on Android but now on iOS as well) and a new addition, stickers. Yes, Hangouts finally gets support for stickers and the iOS app is the first one to have them. This feature is not yet available on Android app or the Chrome extension, although you can still view them since they are simply animated GIFs. The stickers in question are just animated versions of the Hangouts/Android KitKat emoji.

The iPad version gets the bulk of the UI changes with a new split screen mode that makes better use of the larger screen. The previous Hangouts app would just fill the whole screen and looked like a stretched mobile app but the new one splits the screen into conversation list on the left and chats on the right. If you go landscape you’ll also see a video call button on the right. To start a video call, simple drag the button across the screen towards the left. The iPad app also gets picture-in-picture video calling, the way you do on desktop Hangouts.

Lastly, there is also a new ten-second video clip feature, that lets you record and send ten-second clips to your contacts instead of doing the whole video call thing.

The new Hangouts app for iOS is finally a legit app that offers the quality that you expect from an app on iOS, with a high level of polish and good design decisions. It’s out on the App Store now and if you use Hangouts you should definitely update to it immediately.

App Store

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

According to a report in Chinese online media, the freshly announced HTC Desire 816 will cost below $300 when launched. Allegedly, the phablet will be priced at ¥1799 (about $294) when it goes on sale in China in the near future.

Should the reported pricing turn out to be the real deal, the HTC Desire 816 is bound to become a mighty good mid-range proposition. The phablet sports a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 SoC, 1.5GB of RAM, 13MP camera, and 5.5" 720p display, tucked into a sleek-looking, well-built body.

There is no word on international pricing of the HTC Desire just yet. We surely hope that it remains in the same vicinity as in China.

You can find out all about the HTC Desire 816 in our MWC hands-on.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Want a speed test app for your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad? Why not try out the FCC’s?

The speed test application from the Federal Communications Commission measures mobile internet speed and provides a visual breakdown for you to enjoy.

With the ad-free application, you can measure the performance of your device’s download speed, upload speed, packet loss and latency.

The application also saves your previous test results so you can match your speeds in different areas and at different times, to see how they stack up against one another.

Running the application also makes users “volunteers”, where your data is aggregated, anonymously, and used to test mobile broadband performance across the US.

Check out the source link below for the official word from the FCC. Anyone looking to install this on their iDevices?

Source

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Sundar Pichai, the head of Android at Google made an interesting statement regarding the safety of the popular mobile OS. According to the executive, Android was designed with freedom, not safety in mind.

Mr. Pichai delivered the words as a response to a question from a journalist regarding the high amount of malware targeting Android. See the full statement below.

We cannot guarantee that Android is designed to be safe, the format was designed to give more freedom. When people talk about 90% of malware for Android, they must of course take into account the fact that it is the most popular operating system in the world. If I had a company dedicated to malware, I would also be addressing my attacks on Android.

What do you think? Is less security a fair tradeoff for the freedom which Android offers? Feel free to drop us a line in the comments section.

Source (in French) | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

According to a report in Time, Google's project Ara smartphone could arrive in early 2015 with an entry price tag of $50. The search giant retained the team behind the project when it sold Motorola to Lenovo last month.

The affordable price is said to include the most basic setup with Wi-Fi, but no cellular connection. Additional modules will cost extra. Multiple models may be available when the device is launched.

Google's Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group told Time that Project Ara will come in three different sizes which will cover everything from a pocket-friendly device to a full-blown phablet. Size of the devices will reportedly not be customizable.

As expected, Project Ara will be built around an endoskeleton which will be supplied by Google. This way, the search giant will be able to maintain tight control over the platform.

According to the report, the prototype of a Project Ara main unit with added modules is 9.7 mm thick. With larger batteries planned, the thickness of a full setup is expected to remain in the ballpark of 10mm.

Project Ara will also likely be visually customizable. ATAP is working with 3D printer tech to allow users to change the look and the materials of their device.

More info on who will be making additional Project Ara modules is expected soon. We already told you that Google will be holding a dedicated conference on its brainchild in mid-April.

There is a lot of work to be done before Project Ara becomes reality, though is certainly exciting to know that Google is working on it. We will be keeping a close eye on any developments.

Source | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

In a not so surprising move Samsung released its latest flagship with a fingerprint scanner just as rumors suggested. the home button on the Galaxy S5 does more than just unlocking the phone and features in the software.

Samsung is also providing its fingerprint scanner information for use with other apps so developers can, for example, replace passwords with biometric print data.

This is don with the Pass API, released as part of the Galaxy S5 development kit. PayPal is the first to utilize the open API and will allow confirming payments via fingerprint on the Galaxy S5.

Apple on the other side held its fingerprint scanning information under lock and key inside the A7 chip and only allows data to be shared (read used) with its own services (like iTunes, iBooks, etc.).

Some might argue the latter is a safer approach amid constant raiding of online-accessible personal information. On the other hand the fingerprint scanner opens a world of possibility and enhanced usability.

What say you, loyal readers? And while you're mulling it, here's our hands-on with the Samsung Galaxy S5.

Source

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Those of you using the Facebook Messenger on Windows probably got the same message as myself this morning. According to the notification, the Messenger will stop working on Monday, March 3.

There is no explanation why Facebook decided to kill its standalone messenger app, but it isn’t unexpected.

The Facebook Messenger installer for Windows has disappeared completely from Facebook’s website a while ago. Even its Help articles on the website were hard to find, so it was clear back then Facebook will be dropping support for the tool in the future.

Well, it is time. The app will stop working on March 3. The help section is available now and explains how to uninstall the Messenger off your PC.

As a user who really got used to the app, I am quite disappointed. I guess my only option now is to rely on the dedicated Metro/Modern Facebook app. Bugger!

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Speaking to Japanese K-Tai.Impress Sony Mobile's Creative Director, Director of Product Planning and UX General Manager, Yoshiro Kurozumi addresses the early rise to the throne by the Xperia Z2 and why he thinks a half a year upgrade cycle is a better fit for this industry.

According to him, in order to maintain a flagship, you must upgrade faster and went on to confirm that the Xperia Z2 will likely be Sony's flagship for the first half of 2014.

He also went on to comment about design, saying Sony doesn't want to rely on a single design, which could mean the company will perhaps move away from its OmniBalance design, which has dominated the Xperia Z, Z1 and Z2 (compacts and ultras included).

And while we can extrapulate from Mr. Kurozumi's words that Sony will be releasing its next flagship somewhere between Q3 and Q4 of 2014 and it may feature a new design, we truly hope Sony will at least continue to update its Z and Z1 flagships for the sake of those users, invested in said devices (all of which are awaiting Android 4.4 KitKat).

Source (in Japanese) | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Samsung Huron for Verizon has been confirmed via the GFXBenchmark's database and @evleaks tweets. Huron is supposed to be a Windows Phone 8.1 running device headed to Verizon this spring.

According to the latest info, courtesy once again of the notorious @evleaks, Samsung codenamed Huron will be called ATIV SE. Since Verizon is already offering the first ATIV, we guess the SE might be short for Second Edition.

Anyway, Samsung ATIV SE is rumored to pack either a 4.3" 720p or a 5" 1080p display. It should be running on a quad-core Snapdragon processor with 2GB RAM and a 13MP camera.

As the latest rumor has it the ATIV SE will come with the latest available Windows Phone 8.1 OS. This means it will most probably launch in April or later, after the Microsoft's BUILD conference where the WP 8.1 is going to premiere.

Source | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

The ASUS Nexus 7 (2013) is getting some new accessories to play with – a dock station with HDMI output for 1080p content enjoyment on a TV or monitor and a Qi wireless charging stand.

Sadly for 2012 Nexus 7 owners the new toys will only be pairable with the newer model. The Wireless Charging Stand, however will be able to recharge any Qi-enabled device you have on you.

The ASUS Dock for the Nexus 7 (2013) will charge the device and you need only slip and slide the tablet in. The dock supports both portrait and landscape mode use. The HDMI port on it will enable smooth FullHD streaming of the Nexus 7′s screen onto a monitor or TV. The PW100 Wireless Charging Stand has a built-in LED indicator that will shine when the device is charging and offers a pyramid shaped, textured design, allowing for the slate to rest at an angular, 60-degree position. It will charge the device in either portrait and landscape mode as well.

The ASUS Dock for the Nexus 7 (2013) will cost $49.99 while the PW100 Wireless CHarging Stand should cost $89.99 – both will be available though various retailers and Amazon. No specific dates were given.

As for the covers in the video, they’re not new but get some air time themselves. Here goes a video.

Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Google is keenly working on Project Ara, a new endeavor to build a modular smartphone started while Motorola was part of the company, and has scheduled an Ara Developers' Conference on April 15-16.

The event will take place in Mountain View, California and will be streamed online to the whole world. In fact, Google claims that Project Ara is designed for 6 billion people. This indicates that Android maker may be working on a highly affordable modular phone for the masses.

However, everything surrounding Ara has been kept under strict secrecy and nothing has leaked so far.

Google reveals that it has its focus on releasing an alpha version of the Ara Module Developers' Kit (MDK), which will hit the web as a free and open platform specification reference. It will guide and contain developers through everything that's necessary to get them familiar on how to develop an Ara module.

The company wants developers and companies of "all shapes and sizes" to give project Ara a whirl. We'll see what Google has got in store for its modular phone concept in mid-April.

Source • Source (2) | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Microsoft has issued an update for Skype on Windows Phone bringing the app to version 2.16.0.266. Available in the Windows Phone Store, the new Skype version fixes bugs and introduces slight improvements in the sign up/sign in process for users.

Now, first-time Skype users will have no choice but to register with the same Microsoft account that they’re currently using on their phone. Anther minor improvement is the introduction of the typing indicator icon whenever someone is writing you.

Another less stalker-ish improvement is the option to mark new messages as read, so they don’t bug you. Naturally, there are also a couple of bugs squashed under the hood of the popular voice calling and messaging app, but Microsoft has just listed them as “general fixes”.

Check out the source link below to download the latest Skype version for Windows Phone 8.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

French carrier SFR has posted the Android 4.4 KitKat update plans for the LG G2 and the flagship Sony Xperia phones.

The 4.4.2 update for LG's flagship will arrive over the air on March 3. Note that the KitKat update for the AT&T G2 and Korean G2 is already available, but this should get the ball rolling for all G2's with no update yet.

The current Sony flagship models – Xperia Z1, Z1 Compact and Z Ultra – will get KitKat in April. The Xperia Z1 and Z Ultra were updated to Android 4.3 Jelly Bean in mid-December (Z1 Compact launched with 4.3).

Note that this update schedule applies for SFR and your carrier might be on a different schedule.

Source (in French) | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Boeing has announced a new Android smartphone called the Boeing Black with security and modular design in mind. The hardware and the software on the phone is built from the grounds up for securely storing and transmitting data especially for the US defense and security community.

You get features like disk encryption, hardware root of trust, hardware crpto engine, embedded secure components, trusted platform modules and secure boot to safeguard your data. The phone will even go as far as to delete the data if it detects some is trying to break open the casing of the device.

The design is also modular to some extent, so you can remove the back cover and attach various modules such as extended battery, satellite transceivers, advanced location tracking sensors, etc.

On the specification side, the Boeing Black has a 4.3-inch, qHD display, 1.2GHz dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 CPU, microSD card slot, dual SIM support, Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR, 1590mAh battery and an unspecified version of Android.

No pricing or availability details have been revealed, yet.

Source

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

One of the features that was exclusive to the Nexus 5 so far was the Google Now Launcher, that allowed you to go to the Google Now screen just by a swipe on the homescreen and to bring up the voice search simply by saying “Ok Google”.

Google has now released the Google Now Launcher on the Play Store and made it compatible with a wider range of devices, For now this includes only the Nexus devices and the Play Edition devices. Which means you can officially install it on the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 4, Nexus 7 (2012), Nexus 7 (2013), Nexus 10, Galaxy S4 GPe, HTC One GPe, Moto G GPe, Xperia Z Ultra GPe and the LG G Pad 8.3 GPe.

The launcher is identical to the one on the Nexus 5, so other than the aforementioned two features you also get things like bigger icons and widget menu that was moved to press and hold on the homescreen instead of a separate tab in the app drawer. You still won’t get transparency effects on the Nexus 10, however.

You can download the Google Now Launcher from the link below if you have one of the supported devices.

Play Store

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

The LG L40, L70, and L90 are all available for pre-order through Clove starting today.

There’s no set date when the phones will arrive, but we do know a bit about their specs, as these phones all made an appearance on the Mobile World Congress which is currently going on in Barcelona.

All three of the phones have Android Kit-Kat 4.4 out of the box and are limited to 3G connectivity. The L40 is the smallest of the bunch, with a 3.5” (480 x 320) screen, 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 4GB internal storage, 17000mAh battery, and 3MP camera.

The L70 comes with a 4.5” (800 x 400) display, 2100mAh battery, and an 8MP camera. The rest of the specs are identical to the L40.

The L90 is the best of the bunch with a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 4.7” IPS qHD display, 8GB internal storage, and a 2540mAh battery.

Anyone interested in snatching up one of these low to mid-range Android phones?

Source

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

HTC has released a video that teases their upcoming HTC One handset.

The next HTC flagship phone should be making its debut on March 25th in New York.

The video is a funny one, which starts off by boasting about the great sound quality of HTC’s devices.

Then the characters in the video bring out a blurred-out phone, and when they speak about the details of this mystery device, the words are censored.

Unfortunately, the video doesn’t give us much insight into the technical specs of HTC’s next powerhouse phone, or even an idea of what the handset will look like. All it really does is let us know that the phone is indeed, coming.

Check out the video below and let us know what you think. The full announcement is only a month away, so all of our questions will be answered then. For now, the video will have to suffice.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Apple and Gorilla Glass will be parting ways with the release of their iPhone 6, as the Cupertino-based tech giant will be switching to sapphire screen-coating for their next line of smartphones.

Sapphire coating has been used in high-end watches for a while due to its high-durability and scratch-resistance.

Currently, sapphire coating has only been used on iPhone camera lenses and the iPhone 5s fingerprint sensor. The upcoming iWatch will supposedly enjoy sapphire coating as well.

And the company behind Apple's sapphire coating, GT Advanced, stands to make a pretty penny from their deal. They are looking at $500-$700 Million for the first six months, since coating a display with sapphire costs 3-4 times more than coating it with Gorilla Glass (which only costs $3 per screen).

Although the specific number of displays GT Advanced will be producing isn't known, we do know they haven't produced enough to make a May shipment date of the iPhone 6. Analysts believe that, based on GT Advanced's shipments, that the iPhone 6 will be ready for sale come September 2014.

Anyone excited to see how the sapphire displays will hold up on the iPhone 6?

Source

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

Jussi Nevanlinna, VP for Mobile Phone marketing, officially confirmed for Nokia Conversations that the three devices, which make up Nokia's X series, won't be available in the North America, Canada, Korea, and Japan.

Jussi Nevanlinna, VP for Mobile Phone marketing at the Global Mobile Awards 2014 (Photo: GSMA)

When they announced the Nokia X series back the other day, Nokia's official press materials only mentioned launch dates for the Asia-Pacific, Europe, India, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa. So up until now it wasn't clear whether the devices will reach other key markets such as the US, Canada, Korea, and Japan.

Then again, perhaps those markets are too developed for low-cost smartphones to make a dent on the grand picture. On the other hand a 5-inch Android smartphone that cheap, made by one of the world's most renowned manufacturers, would not go unnoticed no matter the country.

As a reminder, the Nokia X should be available right away for €89. The Nokia X+ (€99) and Nokia XL (€109) will launch in early Q2 2014.

But that's not all. Jussi Nevanlinna says we should expect even more Nokia X smartophones later this year. These will push the price points even further down.

Source | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

While handling the Nokia X phones we installed a couple of benchmarks from Nokia’s app store and it dawned on us that it will be interesting to find out just how rich the app store is on what is basically Day 1.

We opened Google Play Store on one of our standard Android phones and checked the Editor’s Choice and Top Free sections, then we searched for those apps on the Nokia’s.

What we found is that the X phones use an interesting setup â€" there’s Nokia’s app store, but there are several other ones preinstalled too.

If an app isn’t available in Nokia’s store, but is available in one of the others, it will show up in the search results. Just tap on it and the other app store will launch and repeat the search. We spotted 4-5 different app stores in our searches. Apps marked with a * are from other play stores.

As you can see the list of missing apps is longer, but those are mostly games, the only app we really miss is Nova Launcher.

On the list of apps that is there, it’s basically the social networking basics (Facebook and Twitter), popular chat apps (WhatsApp, Skype, Line, even Telegram). Popular keyboard replacements SwiftKey and Swype are also available.

And what’s this â€" the Nokia X (X+ and XL too) will have Instagram on Day 1! We are, of course, alluding to how much effort Nokia put into bringing Instagram to Windows Phone (remember all those #2InstaWithLove updates?).

Using Android has advantages after all, huh? More importantly, this seemingly confirms Nokia’s claim that most apps are compatible with its brand of Android (the missing apps may be missing because they are not uploaded to the alternative app stores, not that they’re incompatible).

By the way, Nokia has a cool site to help developers test if their app is compatible with Nokia X â€" it’s literally just drag and drop.

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Internet Explorer 11 has been captured on a short YouTube video and users can take a look at some of the mobile browser’s new features.

It includes Reading Mode, the ability to save passwords, and stop and refresh buttons in the address toolbar. Hit the jump to learn more about these new features.

Reasing Mode is one of the coolest new features as it allows you to read web pages without advertisements and formatting. There are different styles as well, such as Bright, Light, Medium, Dark, and Justified.

Saving passwords works just like it sounds: you’ll now be able to store your passwords in Internet Explorer 11, as well as the ability to the stop the loading of web pages and refresh them with simple buttons in the address toolbar.

Check out the video below to see IE11 in action.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Samsung Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo went official just three days ago, running on a Tizen-based OS. This time around though Samsung has confirmed both smartwatches will support third-party apps.

The lack of third-party apps was a major drawback on the first Gear watch and we are happy to see Samsung is changing its strategy. So, just as promised at the announcement, the SDK for the Gear 2 duo is now live.

Even better, the SDK also supports the Tizen-based Galaxy Fit band, so it will also welcome third-party apps once it hits the shelves.

Finally, Samsung is launching another SDK for the S-Health services.

Both SDK kits are now available for download on Samsung’s Developer Portal.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

The new Nokia X line of phones slot between the Lumia and Asha families and tout affordability as one of their key features. Still, the Nokia XL has a 5MP camera with a 1/4″ sensor, the same setup as the Lumia 520 (no 720p recording though). The Nokia X has a 3.15MP camera with a smaller, 1/5″ sensor.

We snapped photos with both for an early glimpse of what those cameras can deliver.

Here are four shots from the Nokia XL:

Nokia XL camera samples

And three from the Nokia X:

Nokia X camera samples

The lighting here in the halls of the MWC are not the best for photo comparisons, so a more detailed look into the matter will have to wait until the review.

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Nokia X is a brand new platform but its app store felt acceptably full, considering it launched just a couple of days ago. There we found a couple of the usual benchmarks we run (there’s also the browser-based SunSpider) so we decided to find out how the Nokia X and XL stack up against the competition.

The Nokia X prioritizes affordability over performance, Nokia made it clear that Lumia is its top performer.

Still, the Moto G offers goodies like a quad-core processor (a Cortex-A7 no less) and a 720p screen, but it’s nearly double the price. The 4.5″ Moto G starts at €170, while the 4″ Nokia X and 5″ XL are €90 and €110 respectively.

Benchmark Pi

Lower is better

• Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)
  132
• LG Optimus G Pro
  147
• HTC One
  151
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  169
• Sony Xperia Z
  264
• HTC Butterfly
  266
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  305
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  308
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  347
• Motorola Moto G
  392
• Sony Xperia M
  400
• Samsung Galaxy Core LTE
  466
• Nokia X
  677
• Nokia XL
  681

AnTuTu 4

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)
  24716
• HTC One
  22678
• Sony Xperia Z
  20794
• LG Optimus G Pro
  20056
• HTC Butterfly
  19513
• Motorola Moto G
  17214
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  15714
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  15667
• Oppo Find 5
  15167
• Samsung Galaxy Core LTE
  13109
• Sony Xperia M
  9902
• Nokia X
  7745
• Nokia XL
  7529

SunSpider

Lower is better

• Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)
  810
• Apple iPhone 5
  915
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  972
• LG Optimus G Pro
  1011
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  1059
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  1065
• HTC One
  1124
• Motorola Moto G
  1308
• Sony Xperia Z
  1336
• HTC Butterfly
  1433
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  1646
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  1741
• Samsung Galaxy Core LTE
  1680
• Sony Xperia M
  1867
• Nokia X
  2624
• Nokia XL
  2719

The Nokia X and XL are certainly not the fastest phones around, but their price advantage over most brand-name smartphones is undeniable. Certainly, Android smartphones at the Nokia X price point don’t perform as well as the Moto G, so developing markets might fall in love with the Moto X and XL. Or traditional low-cost Android makers might beat Nokia at the price cutting game.

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Amazon launched Instant Video and Prime Instant Video in the UK and to celebrate, it slashed 20% of all Kindle Fire prices.

The offer is valid until March 4, so you have about a week to decide.

The base model, Fire HD with 8GB storage and Special Offers (i.e. ads), is £95.20. For the flagship 7″ model, the Fire HDX (16GB, Special Offers, Wi-Fi only), it’s £160.

For comparison, a 16GB Wi-Fi only Nexus 7 (2014) is £200. If you’re looking for a cheap deal though, the 7″ Nook HD is at £80 with similar specs, plus microSD card slot and Google Play Store access.

This is an important point if you’re unfamiliar with Kindle Fires – they run customized Android and do not have access to the Play Store, instead you use Amazon’s app and content store.

By the way, the price for Prime in the UK jumped from £50 to £80 a year. If you buy a Fire by March 4 though, you get a 30-day free trial for Prime.

In related news, Amazon China now offers Kindle Fires too.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Did you hear about the Samsung Galaxy S5 and how it’s rugged? Archos has one of those too â€" the Quenchua with an IP54 rating. Watch a video of Archo’s CEO nonchalantly drop it on the floor and dunk it in a glass of water.

In case you’re not familiar with the IP ratings, the second digit indicates water resistance and 4 means the device can resist splashes of water, not submersion.

Even the official site for the Quenchua reads “It is designed to withstand splattering with water” (or they changed it after the fact). Anyway, the CEO didn’t know about IP ratings and things went as can be expected:

Le directeur d’Archos casse un smartphone censé… by Spi0n

That didn’t go nearly as well as putting the Moto G in water (a phone with no official water-resistance rating).

The Archos CEO must be feeling pretty bad right now (and some employee is getting the axe), but it’s possible one of the port flaps was open after the drop causing the issue. This sort of mishap can happen to the best of them:

Anyway, here’s a bit more about the phone â€" the Archos Quenchua has a 5″ WVGA display, Snapdragon S4 8225Q chipset (quad-core 1.2GHz Cortex-A5), 5MP / 720p camera a beefy 3,500mAh battery and a barometer for accurate height readings. It runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and has an IP54 rating.

Source | Via

CategoryBlog || Source blog.gsmarena.com

Following in the footsteps of the Xperia Z2, the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet is available for pre-order. We made the rounds and collected the prices of the tablet around Europe. The launch date will be in April, the same time frame as the the Z2 phone.

The good news is that it's cheaper than the phone in most places – in the UK, it's £500 (€610) both from Sony's official web site and from Clove UK. This is for the 16GB Wi-Fi only version.

The price in Germany is €500 (and €650 from Sony's official web site). Note that these are pre-order prices and might change in time for the launch. The 32GB Wi-Fi model is €550, the 16GB LTE model is €650.

In France and the Netherlands the Xperia Z2 tablet is €630, €670 in Sweden (SEK 5 995,00) and €700 in Spain and Poland (PLN 2 899). These prices are from the official site, so it's possible that regional stores have it cheaper (like in Germany). If you find such a store, drop a link in the comments!

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com

It has begun a tradition Samsung to out two models of its top-tier devices. The Galaxy S4 was the first to get a Snapdragon and an Exynos version, followed by the Galaxy Note 3. Now the Galaxy S5 is getting a similar treatment as well. The Exynos 5 Octa chipset, even though it didn't become as popular as Samsung probably hoped for, is still quite a capable chipset with flagship performance.

In an attempt to popularize its Exynos SoC, Samsung has recently started to power the non-LTE models of its slates (the Galaxy Tab and Note Pro series). We already met with some of those and their performance turned out great.

Today Samsung has introduced the newest revision of the Exynos 5 Octa system-on-chip - the Exynos 5422 Octa. It has four Cortex-A15 cores clocked at 2.1GHz and four Cortex-A7 cores @ 1.5GHz. This is a good 200MHz upgrade over the previous Exynos 5420 SoC. The 5422, naturally, uses the big.LITTLE ARM architecture, but comes with Samsung's own tweak - HMP (Heterogeneous Multi Processing) technology. The HMP allows the device to utilize any combination of cores, even all eight, at once.

There is nothing official on the GPU inside the new Exynos Octa revision, but we guess it is the same as the 5420 chip - Mali-T628.

Samsung has also detailed the Exynos 5260 Hexa chipset, we already met on the Galaxy Note 3 Neo. It offers two Cortex-A15 @ 1.7GHz cores and four Cortex-A7 @ 1.3GHz cores. The processor supports big.LITTLE with HMP, so the device can use all six cores simultaneously.

Samsung once again didn't specify the GPU, but we already know from the Note 3 Neo that Mali-T624 is in charge of the graphics department.

Both new platforms support displays up to 2560x1600 pixels resolution. The Exynos 5422 Octa also supports 4K video playback and recording, while the Exynos 5260 Hexa offers Full HD @ 60fps playback/recording.

Exynos 5422 Octa will enter mass production by the end of March, while the Hexa model is already in mass production.

Samsung has also introduced its newest 16MP and 13MP (16:9) ISOCELL CMOS camera sensors. Both offers 1.12µm big ISOCELL pixels and 1080p video recording. The 16MP sensor is capable of 1080p@60 fps capturing plus burst mode at 16MP at 60fps and will enter mass production this quarter. The 13MP one supports 13MP burst mode at 30fps and will be available in Q2, 2014.

Samsung Galaxy S5 is probably using the new 16MP ISOCELL sensor, so we can't wait to get our hands on a retail unit to do a thorough test.

Source | Via

CategoryNews || Source www.gsmarena.com