Mobile Devices - Page 150

Tactus Technology has shown off some impressive technology, a morphing touchscreen which creates physical buttons from your buttonless touchscreen. Tactus' technology works by providing "application-controlled, completely transparent physical buttons that rise up from the touch-screen surface on demand."

When the buttons are enabled, they pop up onto the screen, when disabled they recede back into the screen, leaving your once smooth and flat touchscreen back in its original state. Tactus enables the Tactile Layer, which is called microfluidics. These microfluidics are small channels that are routed throughout the Tactile Layer, allowing fluid to expand the top polymer layer, which creates physical buttons.

It sounds impressive, but it'll be more impressive once we see Tactus' technology built into the devices we know and love, and use.

CES 2014 - During our visit with Lenovo, we got the chance to check out one of the coolest pieces of PC tech on display at CES. The Lenovo Horizon 2 is a 27-inch monster-sized tablet that when paired up with an optional stand, becomes what Lenovo is calling a Table PC.

As you can see in the video, the Horizon features a screen with either a 1920 x 1080 resolution, or a 2560 x 1440 resolution depending on the customer's budget, but unfortunately the stand will have to be purchased separately. The tablet / table PC runs on an Intel Core i7, NVIDIA graphics, and a battery large enough to keep the device running for 4 hours of continuous use. As you can see in the video, things like image manipulation, gaming, and everything else is quite fun on the device! Lenovo says that the Horizon 2 retails for $1499 and will hit shelves in June.

Wireless carrier T-Mobile wants to poach subscribers from AT&T, Verizon Wireless and Sprint, and now is focusing on family plan subscribers. A recent survey revealed only 11 percent of AT&T and Verizon Wireless subscribers with shared data plans would be willing to switch in 2014, according to Strategy Analytics. As the battle in the booming 4G LTE market in 2014 increases, "cut-throat promotions" are expected to hit consumers later this year.

"Las Vegas has seen its share of famous fights, and this week at CES heavy weight defending champion AT&T (which shares the title with Verizon Wireless) dukes it out with mid-weight challengers T-Mobile and Sprint in the battle for the family plan," said Susan Welsh de Grimaldo, Strategy Analytics Director of Wireless Operator Strategies, in a blog post. "Sprint and T-Mobile are attacking the core source of scale at Verizon Wireless and AT&T - the family plan subscribers."

Mobile devices were on full display during CES 2014, as many companies showed off smartphones, tablets, mobile hotspots, and other cordless technologies. AT&T and Verizon might control the U.S. market, but constant pressure from T-Mobile, Sprint, and smaller carriers has steadily increased. Family plans are lucrative due to the number of wireless lines in the account, so consumers should see even better deals later this year. (Image: AP)

Mobile company OpenPeak is building relationships with AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, and other major wireless carriers seeking next-generation mobile security platforms. The SAMBA! (Safe Mobile Business Apps) will roll out as a managed software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering for Deutsche Telekom, providing secure Internet browsing, enterprise app store, and data security protocols.

"We're proud to provide carriers like Deutsche Telekom with a white-label enterprise mobility solution that they can brand, customize and sell directly to their customers," said Dan Gittleman, OpenPeak CEO, in a statement. "As a cloud-based solution, SAMBA! will evolve with our own efforts to improve the OpenPeak suite. We're committed to providing Deutsche Telekom and its customers with a solution that can meet the mobility challenges of the present and future."

There is a strong need for enterprise mobility solutions, as more employees and companies carefully embrace the 'bring your own device' craze.

CES 2014 - During today's visit with Acer, we got the chance to check out a new Windows 8 tablet as well as a new Chromebook that are being released in 2014. Acers new Iconia W4 appears to be the budget-friendly Windows tablet to consider in 2014, while its new Chromebook is the on-the-go consumers dream device.

Acers new Iconia W4 tablet features a ultra-sharp 1280x800 8-inch IPS display that is directly bonded to the protective glass which provides for a true HD experience while providing almost 180 degrees of viewing angle. A 4th Generation Intel Atom Clover Trail processor is on board and running at 1.8 GHz. Imaging duties are handled by a 2-megapixel front facing camera as well as a 5-megapixel rear shooter. A full copy of Windows 8.1 is onboard and includes a copy of office. The W4 felt quick, snappy, and overall felt like a very high-end tablet. The W4 retails for $329 for the 32GB version and $379 for the 64GB model.

While the C720 Touchscreen Chromebook has been out for a few months, Acer has expanded the line to include new colors, including a sleek, new MoonStone while color that is both ultra modern, and stylish. The entire chassis is white, giving the device a consistently stylish look from any angle. A touch enabled 11.6-inch HD LED back-lit display is present and features 10-points of touch sensitivity. The MoonStone White version will be available to the US market later this month at a pricing point of $299.

CES 2014 - If you've been waiting for a new smartphone to be unveiled from Sony, the Japanese giant took the CES 2014 event in Las Vegas to announce its new Xperia Z1S smartphone.

The Xperia Z1S will be an exclusive to T-Mobile in the United States, but the smartphone itself is pretty identical to the Xperia Z1 with just a few changes. The first of which is the Z1S has an IP58 water resistance rating, which means it is completely waterproof. Normally a "waterproof" smartphone is simply "water-resistant", but the Xperia Z1S is the real deal.

Filling out the hardware side of things, we have a 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor, 3000mAh battery, 5-inch 1920x1080-pixel "Triluminous" Sony display, a 20.7-megapixel rear-facing camera and Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. Sony Mobile US President, Ravi Nookala, has said: "As a waterproof smartphone complete with the best of Sony's technology, Xperia Z1s breaks the mold of not only what you can do with a smartphone, but where you can take it. Building on the momentum of the successful partnership for the launch of Xperia Z, T-Mobile's shared vision of delivering an uncompromised mobile experience makes them the perfect exclusive partner to bring Xperia Z1s to the U.S."

CES 2014 - During ASUS' keynote speech at CES 2014, ASUS chairman and all-round cool guy Jonney Shih announced a new range of smartphones from the Taiwanese giant, the ZenFone series.

ASUS' ZenFone series comes in multiple products: ZenFone 4, 5, and 6. Starting with the ZenFone 4, which is a low-end smartphone with a 4-inch display and measly 800x480 resolution, it has a 5-megapixel rear-snapper, and is powered by Intel's Atom Z2520 CPU clocked at 1.2GHz. The ASUS ZenFone 4 will be priced at just $99 - a steal!

Moving onto the ZenFone 5, which features the Intel Atom Z2580 CPU clocked at 2GHz. It has a 1280x720-pixel 5-inch display, and an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera. The ZenFone 5 will retail for $149.

The iPad is currently stuck at the 9.7-inch ceiling, but this could all change with a new iPad rumored to be on the horizon. The new iPad Pro, a name it could go by, is being reported by Evercore analyst Patrick Wang.

Wang's report states that supply chain sources are backing up the claim of an enterprise iPad. Wang's sources state the Cupertino-based giant is looking to launch a 12-inch iPad in the fall of 2014, targeting the enterprise market with a new "hybrid" device that would bring the tablet and notebook worlds together.

Wang talked about the bill-of-materials (BOM) of this new iPad, estimating that the cost of the A6 processor inside the new high-end iPad costs just 4% of the total materials, while the MacBook Air's processor, which is made by Intel, costs 22% of the total. The iPad obviously has much higher costs involving its touchscreen, taking 30% of the BOM, while the MBA's display uses just 11% of the total BOM.

CES 2014 - Today Lenovo unveiled its newest addition to its already impressive smartphone lineup. The all new Vibe Z is Lenovo's first LTE-based smartphone and includes features such as gesture controls, photo enhancement software as well as other exciting technology.

The Vibe Z measures in at just 7.9mm thick and features a 5.5-inch 1920x1080 IPS display. A quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor is on-board and has been clocked to 2.2GHz, while 2GB of RAM keeps everything running nice and smooth. 16GB of on-board storage is present, and Android 4.3 is the Vibe Z's operating system of choice. Most importantly, the Vibe Z is Lenovo's first foray into LTE, with the device being capable of super-fast data upload at up to 50 Mb/s and downloading at up to 150 Mb/s to satisfy the most data hungry of individuals. The Vibe Z operates on GSM/UMTS networks up to 2100 and also comes with 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0.

"We created the new Vibe Z with its elegant design, high performance and custom software so that people can truly have the best smartphone experience now at the speed of LTE," said Liu Jun, senior vice president, Lenovo Business Group, Lenovo. "Along with the Vibe Z, our new S and A Series smartphones offer consumers choices of screen size and features so they can pick the Lenovo smartphone that's right for them."

Despite what companies like Apple wants to believe, a new report has been released that shows that many mobile customers want a cheaper smartphone. AdDuplex, a cross promotion marketing network has just released a report that states that Nokia's Lumia 520 and 521 now dominate the Windows Phone market with a 30-percent market share.

This news comes just under a year after the Lumia 521 was released, and slightly before the Lumia 525 takes the role of flagship budget phone for Nokia. Just a few months ago, the 520/521 combo was said to account for only 23-percent of all Lumia smartphones on the market. Many industry analyst are predicting that as smartphones get more powerful, we will begin to see a shift towards mid-range and upper low-end models dominating as they will be more than powerful enough to handle most users day-to-day needs.

No. 1 PC manufacturer Lenovo will continue to battle Hewlett-Packard in the PC consumer market, and the company won't become stagnant by avoiding newer ventures. Lenovo plans to attack the smartphone market across the world in 2014, as the company has strong market presence in China.

"I'll be very clear: Our aspiration is someday to be No. 1 in the mobile space," Lenovo executives told the media. Earlier in the year, there were rumors that Lenovo wanted to purchase the BlackBerry phone unit - but the deal never materialized, and BlackBerry is no longer for sale. The smartphone market is highly saturated in the United States, but Lenovo can gain market share in the US and across Europe if done properly.

Just a few years ago, many doubted Lenovo would be able to climb the sales charts in the PC market - and the Chinese electronics maker is spending more time researching server products for the enterprise.

There were rumors of this all the way back in September, but it looks like a 12.2-inch tablet from Samsung is becoming a reality. A photo of the 12.2-inch slate was posted on a Korean forum, with some specs.

Now we have a report coming out of South Korea, stating that the new "Galaxy Note Pro" or "Galaxy Note 12" slate would launch early next year. ZDNet Korea is now reporting from an unnamed industry source that the slate will feature a massive 12.2-inch 2560x1600-pixel display, 2.4GHz processor, 3GB of RAM, a gigantic 9500mAh battery and Android 4.4 KitKat.

We should see this tablet at CES 2014 in just a couple of weeks time, where we will hopefully have some hands-on time with it.

It looks like ASUS could have a great year in 2014 with its PadFone line of devices, with a new PadFone turning up on AnTuTu's benchmark database, which was pulled down quite quick.

The PadFone X, as it was teased, featured the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC, Android 4.4 KitKat, and smashed into some benchmarks, smacking around a few of the established smartphone heavyweights. The screen resolution on the PadFone X should be 1920x1080, but we don't know what size just yet. 2GB of RAM is featured, and 16GB of on-board flash storage should make the cut.

We should see a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, backed up by a decent front-facer, but that 5-megapixel camera on the rear is most likely a placeholder for something better in the final consumer version. We should be expecting 8-megapixel cameras by default now. ASUS should unveil the PadFone X sometime in early 2014.

Our friends over at New Gadgets have been on the ground with Bungbungame, a company that took to crowdfunding through Indiegogo for its Project S smartphone.

I've never heard of the Project S smartphone until now, but wow does it pack a punch: 8-core processor, 3GB of RAM, WQHD resolution, a body made from glass and aluminum, but the best bit? Just $299. Yes, $299. We're looking at a 5.8-inch 2560x1440 screen, which is just super impressive, especially given its $299 price.

The Project S is just a prototype right now, but with a finalized design, we should expect everything you see here for $299. For shooting abilities, we have a 16-megapixel rear-facing camera, and a 2-megapixel front-facing snapper. Expandable storage is also featured, which is a nice touch these days.

With Mobile World Congress 2014 under two months away, the rumor mill is working hard at churning out new unconfirmed specs on the most anticipated smartphones of 2014. Today a new rumor has surfaced about the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S5.

The latest rumors include reports of Samsung developing both a plastic and metal framed version of its next-generation flagship, and that they will be sold side by side with the metal version being branded as the premium model. Other reports are suggesting that the phone will feature a Quad-HD 2560x1440 display, 16-megapixel camera, 3GB of RAM, and a 4,000mAh battery.

While the high-resolution screen and metal framed chassis are expected, many analyst suggest that 4GB of RAM and a 2.5GHz processor will be needed to handle the 2560x1440 screen. Android 4.4 will most definitely be on board and an upgrade to Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie will come before years end.

It was just a few days ago that a UK court banned the sale of HTC One Mini smartphones after the court ruled that HTC was infringing on patents held by Nokia. Today a UK Court of Appeals has ruled to suspend the injunction banning the sales of the device.

HTC says that it plans to "aggressively appeal the [patent] validity decision," and that it will be be "engaging with chip suppliers on alternative solutions." While the future is not clear on UK imports of the HTC One Mini, it is clear that HTC will fight the previous ruling until the bitter end.

It wasn't long ago that a Galaxy S4 smartphone owner had his smartphone catch fire, where he took a video of it for proof, which you can watch below. Well, he contacted Samsung, who offered to swap the phone, but Samsung wanted him to remove the video, and agree to its terms, first.

Richard, the owner of the Galaxy S4, declined, where he put the terms and conditions Samsung sent him, on video, which is below.

Well, the story gets better, as Nokia came to the rescue, offering Richard a free Lumia smartphone, saying: "Let me send you a Nokia Lumia so you can experience how customer service should *really* work". Pow, right in the kisser, Samsung.

Our friends at Mobile Geeks were at a special event in Taiwan hosted by ASUS, where the Taiwanese giant showed off its PadFone Mini smartphone, which is a smaller version of its 10-inch PadFone Infinity.

The ASUS PadFone Mini has a 4.3-inch Super IPS display with a 960x540 resolution, the 1.4GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 SoC, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of internal flash storage which is expandable to 64GB through microSD, a 1500mAh battery, and weighs just 105g. Of course, there's a dock it can slide into, which sports a 7-inch 1280x800 display, adds another 2200mAh battery, and itself weighs 310g.

ASUS will be pricing the PadFone Mini at around $400, which is Nexus 5 territory. But, this price is for the smartphone, and the dock - which is a surprisingly good price from ASUS.

Samsung Taiwan has just released a 22-second video, titled 'Just for you'. In the video, the South Korean giant teases a few things: 'Just fit' with a smartphone (the Galaxy S5 I'm guessing) and the Galaxy Gear smartwatch.

We also see 'Just simple' with a thin, nice-looking smartphone, 'Just elegant' which teases the beauty of the new device, 'Just fast' with LTE capabilities, and finishes with 'Just for you' and that it is 'coming soon'. There's nothing to go on here, apart from that 22-second tease. I think we're seeing the first marketing tease for the upcoming Galaxy S5, but this could be something else entirely, too.

One thing to note, is that the Galaxy Gear is showing a date of December 9 - should we expect a bigger tease, or better yet, an announcement in just a days time?

Google spent around $500 million marketing its Moto X smartphone, but it looks like this hasn't done much to help the Moto X penetrate into the US smartphone market, according to comScore's new numbers.

comScore's numbers show that Motorola's US smartphone market jumped ever so slightly between July and October, from 6.9% to 7%. In that time, Motorola launched multiple devices, but didn't gain any much market share at all in the US. Motorola is battling all sides of the Android war right now, and with Google behind it using LG and ASUS to build its Nexus devices, it's really just shooting itself in the foot with its multi-billion-dollar acquisition, and now $500 million marketing bill for the Moto X.