Mobile Devices - Page 157

It appears that the Google Edition of HTC's One will be replaced by yet another HTC One. This morning, records have popped up on the Bluetooth SIG website that indicate a version of the HTC One running Android 4.3 Jelly Bean is in existence with the model number PN071, which is the same model number listed on the existing Google Play Store listing.

This second version of the HTC One will feature Bluetooth 4.0 LE support which is why it is making an appearance at the Bluetooth Special Interest Group. With more leaks and images of Android 4.3 popping up everywhere these days, it can only indicate that the official Android 4.3 launch is imminent. While 4.3 is mostly a backend update, there are a few features that will be sure to wow hardcore Androidians.

Most importantly, Android 4.3 will bring us yet another step closer to Android 5.0 which is supposed to bring forth a new era of smartphone and tablet innovation. The jury is still out on whether this will happen, but with every generation of Android being better than the last, we can safely say that whatever 5.0 brings, it will be amazing!

We have been hearing rumors of a PureView based Nokia Lumia for months now, and it appears today that we finally have real-world confirmation that the device actually exists. Officially named the Lumia 1020, the smartphone will feature a 41-megapixel image sensor that is backed up by a Carl Zeiss lens.

Some sample photos have popped up on Flickr by Microsoft Windows Phone manager Joe Belfiore. The series features several shots from various Lumia Windows Phones, but the interesting images are two that appear as "Nokia Lumia 1020." Looking at the EXIF info of the two photos reveal an aperture of f/2.2 and a resolution density of 240x240 dots per inch.

The images appear to be very sharp at their original resolution of 2947 x 1658 which appears to have been resized in Adobe Lightroom. I have included screen caps of the EXIF information in the News Gallery images below as well as linked to the original sized images posted on Flickr at Source #2 and #3 below.

Future Apple devices could be flexible according to their latest patent application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Their patent talks about the creation of a flexible battery shape, which could take form in their iWatch that has been rumored for quite a while now.

The patent was filed all the way back in December 2011 and published yesterday, sees a flexible battery pack that uses a number of different cells connected through a laminate layer which is designed to "allow the battery to be shaped to fit a form factor of the electronic device."

Things have been looking down for Hewlett Packard for years now. The company can not seem to find a foothold in any of the new emerging tech devices even after acquiring companies like Palm. They failed rather epically with WebOS, and their iPAQ branded phones are just horrible.

Yam Su Yin, HPs senior director for Consumer PCs and Tablets in the Asia Pacific region told reporters that HP was working on a new generation of smartphone, but could not give a timetable as to when information would be released. He said that "It would be silly" for HP to say no to a new smartphone and that "HP has to be in the game!"

Honestly, I feel that HP has delayed long enough; they never really had a firm foothold in the phone market, and even the sales from Palm dried up rather quickly. With companies like BlackBerry who do smartphones very well, struggling to keep afloat in the current market, HP has to hit a serious high-end home run for their new phone to even be able to post semi-respectable sales. My advice to them is to spare no expense and release something that blows all else out of the water.

Motorola's X phone just might be the most anticipated phone of the year; after all, we've been talking about it since before January. We have posted more than half a dozen leaks on the mystified X Phone and it appears that this morning we're getting our first real glimpse of what it will actually look like.

Mobile device website, Phone Arena, has reportedly received the above photo from a source who is said to be testing the X Phone on Sprint's LTE network. This leak comes hot on the heels of the official FCC documents (source #2) pointing to the phone's application for approval on Sprint's LTE network.

Surprisingly, it appears that the phone might arrive with a 4.7-inch 720p screen which is a really big letdown if true. Hardware-wise we expect a 1.7GHz QUALCOMM Snapdragon processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of system memory. The phone does appear to be running Android 4.2.2 and there is still no official word on a release date or pricing.

As a huge fan of Sony's Xperia Z, I'm loving the look of their new Xperia Z Ultra, Sony's new 'phablet'. Samsung may be pushing the boundaries with a 5.5-inch Galaxy Note II, but Sony have gone for the home stretch with a 6.4-inch smartphone.

The 6.4-inch display is greeted with a beautiful 1920x1080-pixel display, which provides us with 344 PPI. Sony have jam-packed the device with multiple input methods, where you can use a regular pencil or a pen as a stylus, as well as it being a capacitive stylus. Not only is the display gorgeous, but it is running the latest and greatest System on a Chip (SoC) from Qualcomm: the Snapdragon 800.

This means we have a quad-core processor clocking in at 2.2GHz, making it the Xperia Z Ultra the first official device with the Snapdragon 800 SoC as its heart. We have Android 4.2.2 as the OS, with a revamped Sony software that will make better use of the 6.4-inch 1080p display. The Xperia Z Ultra is waterproof, like its sibling, and has 4G LTE connectivity, HD Voice as well as NFC.

This morning, book retailing giant Barnes & Noble announced that they have decided to stop manufacturing their own line of tablet devices in favor of outsourcing production to a third-party company. This move comes at a time when Barnes & Noble is experiencing massive losses in its Nook division thanks to heavy competition from rival Amazon.

The news of the decision came via the company's fourth-quarter 2013 earnings report. Barnes & Noble said that it will now divert attention away from the hardware strategy of its Nook line and will instead focus on digital media and app sales. The company has not yet released who it is partnering with to produce the Nook hardware, but many industry insiders suspect some sort of partnership with Microsoft to be in the works.

An excerpt from the earnings report reads:

This morning, Apple officially released iOS 7 beta-2 for iPhone 5, 4S, 4, iPod Touch, iPad, and iPad mini, and it is now available for download from iTunes. This release comes two weeks after the original beta was handed to developers immediately after Apple's WWDC conference.

iOS 7 Beta 2 has been optimized for the iPad and iPad mini, in addition to the iPhone and iPod touch. At the moment, we haven't had a chance to take a more in-depth look, but developers are reporting numerous bug fixes and improvements for all devices as well as the addition of the voice memos app. Siri also gets new voices in English and, as we reported earlier, name recognition is improved as well.

We first saw Huawei's 7-inch budget tablet back in March when it was leaked by @evleaks, and today we're finally getting our first official look at the wallet-friendly tablet. Huawei has just announced the existence of the MediaPad 7 Vogue, a 7-inch Android tablet aimed at taking some market share back from the Google's Nexus 7.

The new tablet is available in both 3G and Wi-Fi only flavors and sports a five-point multi-touch IPS display with a resolution of 1024x600. Handling the processing duties is Huawei's own in-house K3V2 ARM Cortex-A9 1.2GHz quad-core processor.

The device features 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage, which is augmented by an microSD slot capable of up to 32GB of additional space. On the back is a three-megapixel camera capable of shooting 1080p video at 30 frames per second, while a 0.3-megapixel virtually useless camera upfront handles the video calling and selfie duties.

This morning, HP unveiled what has to be the largest Android tablet in existence. The 21.5-inch Slate 21 AIO is HP solution to a dwindling PC market which has seen a steady decline in sales ever since tablets became popular.

Not much is known about the hardware featured in the Slate 21 AIO at the moment, but we do know that it is powered by an NVIDIA Tegra 4 processor and runs Android 4.2.2. The display is a 21.5-inch full HD diagonal reclining IPS touchscreen with super wide viewing angles.

It has built-in DTS sound and HP TrueVision HD WebCam and wireless direct which enables users to share videos photos and data between devices without the need of a network connection. HP says the Slate 21 will be available in September with prices starting at $399.

We'll learn everything there is to know about the new Sony Xperia Z Ultra, as well as the new Sony SmartWatch, the Xperia C, and a new version of the Xperia SP, in less than 24 hours when Sony holds its event at the Mobile Asia Expo. Until then, we will have to settle on a couple of leaks that have popped up around the web this morning.

A new Xperia Z model has shown up that features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor instead of the previously seen Snapdragon S4. The leak comes courtesy of serial Russian smartphone leaker Eldar Murtazin via his Twitter account. Murtazin says that the upgraded Xperia Z is "really fast," and that the screen appears to be an upgraded LCD3-type, similar to the one featured on the HTC One.

This new version is being dubbed the Xperia Z Ultra and appears to come in white. A metal chassis also appears to be present and the screen seems to be pencil friendly. This would bolster rumors that the screen does not need a digitizer much like the Galaxy S4 from Samsung.

It never fails. When an Apple product is a month to a few weeks away from launch, we begin to see leaked rumors, images, and hardware info begin to surface from just about every corner of the internet. The past few weeks have been no different with the upcoming so-called "low-cost iPhone".

This morning images have appeared over at MacRumors of the alleged iPhone 5S. A shot of the internal hardware alongside a shot of the back are said to be of a very early prototype with a larger battery that is present in the production model. The processor does bear the Apple logo, but no model number such as A6, is present. A date code visible on the bottom of the main chip reads "1243", signifying that the chip was manufactured in the 43rd week of 2012, corresponding to late October, which lends some credence to it being an early prototype.

Taking a look at the rear shell, we can see that the LED flash window is now elongated and vertical, which seems to prove the rumors that the 5S would be getting a dual LED flash system. This aligns with external case designs we have seen from third parties recently as well.

We're told to expect a cheaper iPhone to be unveiled later this year, something that could hit the very sweet spot of $350-$400. At this price, it would compete with what I think is the hardest to beat smartphone on the market right now, the Nexus 4.

But, it looks like the new cheaper iPhone might not actually be so cheap according to some reports from the China Times. The claims are coming directly from Pegatron chairman T.H. Tung. If you don't already know, Pegatron are one of the main builders of the low-cost iPhone, with Foxconn all hands on deck for the upcoming iPhone 5S.

Japanese site Macotakara are the ones reporting the news from the China Times, reporting that Tung addressed the iPhone at a meeting of Pegatron's shareholders. He expressed his displeasure with reports that the new iPhone could be "cheap" and noted that the "price is still high". Tung believes that attaching the word "cheap" anywhere near the word "iPhone" would make it look like a low-value feature phone.

Earlier this month, Samsung announced the Galaxy S4 Zoom. Today we got to see it live for the first time. At this afternoon's Premiere 2013 event in London, Samsung finally showed off its smartphone/point-and-shoot camera mashup. Samsung says the S4 Zoom is a realization of Samsung's mission to create a single device that fills the role of an amazing smartphone and high-end compact camera.

"The Samsung GALAXY S4 zoom represents yet another step forward in the way Samsung is working to enhance the lives of our customers around the world," said JK Shin, President and CEO, Head of IT & Mobile Communications Division, Samsung Electronics. "As communication continues to become increasingly visual in nature, people wish to capture and share their moments in the highest quality possible, but often do not have the space or inclination to carry a dedicated camera for this purpose. The GALAXY S4 zoom changes this forever, combining the industry leading functionality and connectivity of the GALAXY S4 with the high quality photographic experience you'd expect from a compact camera. The result is truly the best of both worlds, without compromise."

Combining a 10x Optical Zoom, a 16-megapixel CMOS sensor, OIS and a Xenon flash with the very latest Samsung GALAXY S4 technology, the GALAXY S4 Zoom is likely the most advanced compact point-and-shoot camera on the market today. The S4 Zoom features a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1.5GB of RAM, and 8GB of internal memory that is expandable via a micro SD card. A 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED screen and a 2330mAh battery round things out. Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean is present and the device features the usual 3G and 4G connectivity along with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Johannes Knapp is currently at the Huawei launch event in London right now for what the Chinese company is marketing as the world's thinnest smartphone. Let's discuss the Ascend P6 a little.

In our hands-on video which is embedded above, you'll get a great close-up look at the new P6. As far as specs go, it includes a decently sized 4.7-inch 720p display and is powered by a Hisense 1.5GHz quad-core processor with 2GB of onboard memory and an 8GB ROM. There is also a microSD card slot for expanding the storage capabilities. Inside the phone is a 2000 mAh battery and it comes installed with Android 4.2.2.

Besides the fact that the device is super thin, Huawei is also making a big deal about the camera capabilities of the new device. Included is an 8 megapixel camera on the back for up to 1080p videos and on the front is a really impressive 5 megapixel camera for chatting at up to 720p. Johannes noted in our video above that the camera quality is excellent, with nice vibrant colors - Huawei is setting this device to compete against Samsung's S4 and Apple's iPhone 5, and initial impressions seem pretty solid.

AT&T have announced both the pricing and availability of the upcoming Galaxy Note 8.0 from Samsung, where they're offering a nice incentive to people who want to purchase the device. Starting on June 21, if you purchase the 8-inch slate it will set you back $399 on a two-year contract.

This isn't the only purchasing option the US carrier have on offer, though, so if you purchase a Galaxy S4, Galaxy S4 Active or Galaxy Note II at the same time as the Galaxy Note 8.0, AT&T will drop the price from $399 to just $199 - shaving it in half. This isn't too bad at all, if you were after a tablet $199 isn't too much money to plonk down on an 8-inch slate. The Note 8.0 features a 1.6GHz quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, an 8-inch 1280x800 display and a decent 4600mAh battery.

Samsung's Galaxy S4 is redefining diversity in the mobile phone market. The company has already released several iterations of its flagship phone including what is basically a point and shoot camera glued onto the back. This morning we are catching word of yet another variant that will propel the S4 into another level of speed.

Samsung's co-CEO JK Shin confirmed this morning that the company is working on a modified version of the Galaxy S4 that will support 4G LTE Advanced. This next generation radio will boost the S4's speeds significantly, up to as much as 3Gbps down and 1.5Gbs up in theory. Real-world speeds will be somewhere in the 300Mbs down and 150mbs up due to software constraints.

"We'll be the first with the commercial launch of the advanced 4G version of the smartphone," Shin told Reuters, adding that he expects the device to be a crucial part of its product portfolio. "The new LTE-Advanced (4G) phone will be another addition to our high-end segment offerings that ensure healthy profit margins."

Over the weekend a very mysterious AT&T branded, Nokia Lumia 920 Windows Phone popped up on the popular social networking site Reddit. The phone appeared to be running a new prototype of Windows Phone 8, and was confirmed when information was posted about the version of Windows Phone it was running was revealed in a screen shot.

The Lumia 920 appeared to be running a Windows Phone build of 12084.WPMAIN(wpbldlab).20130509-1407, which gives us a compile date of May 9th. As for new features, a notification center can be seen in one of the screenshots, providing access to the typical Live Tile notifications, as well as a redesigned calendar interface, and the ability to sort apps by name or by the most used.

Redmond appears to be working on improving multitasking in the new OS as well, which is apparent by the new ability to close apps in the multitasking view. The prototype phone was purchased on ebay, and the buyer mentioned that the phone has many apps whose name begin with the letter Z leading us to believe that it once belonged to a developer.

This morning, Verizon posted two new LG Optimus smartphones to its pre-paid device catalog. The LG Optimus Zone is a rebranded version of the Optimus L3, while the Optimus Exceed appears to be a rebranded Lucid. Oddly enough, the devices have disappeared shortly after the posting.

The Optimus Zone is quite the low-end Android phone, featuring Android 2.3, a single-core 800MHz processor, 512 MB of RAM, and 4GB of internal storage. The device also features a 3.2-inch QVGA display, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS, a 3.2 megapixel camera, and a 1540mAh battery.

The Optimus Exceed is nothing more than a rebranded Lucid that we saw last year. It features Android 4.0, a 4-inch WVGA display, a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, and 1 GB of RAM. On the rear, a five-megapixel camera handles the photo taking duties and internal storage is set at what appears to be 8GB. The Zone will sell for $80 off-contract, while the Exceed will retail for $130.

Computex Taipei 2013 - Yesterday we had a meeting with Intel at the Grand Hyatt where they showed us some interesting Haswell and power consumption demos, but Intel products were not all that was focused on.

Intel had a Google Nexus 10 tablet setup with direct measurements of heat and power consumption. In the measurement chart demo we saw that the N10 would start off would start off with normal power consumption on the CPU rail and then after just a second or two the CPU line power consumption would drop right down and then a few seconds later, pick right back up again, and then go back down again. This was happening with basic operation of the N10, HD video playback.

It didn't take much for us to see that this was due to the dual-core A15 CPU throttling. Due to heat issues, it was quite clear to see that the N10 was not running at its main clock speed all of the time.