Micromax outs Canvas Doodle 2 affordable quad-core droid

Micromax has unveiled the latest addition to its smartphone lineup, dubbed Canvas Doodle 2. The device will retail for INR19,990 (approximately $310) and will be available throughout India starting today.

The Micromax Canvas Doodle 2 has a 5.7" IPS LCD with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, which results in a density of around 257 ppi. Te Canvas Doodle 2 is powered by a MediaTek 6589 chipset with quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7 CPU and 1GB of RAM. A 2600 mAh battery powers the whole thing.

  
Micromax Canvas Doodle 2 • the stylus

It runs on Android 4.2.1. Imaging is handled by a 12 MP rear camera and a 5 MP front-facing one. There's also 1080p video recording. There are 16 GB of internal storage, which sadly appear to not be expandable.

Equipped with a stylus, which comes in the retail package, the Canvas Doodle 2 lets you... well, doodle over pictures with the M!Doodle app. There's also a flip cover accessory, which moonlights as a kick-stand.

The Micromax Canvas Doodle 2 comes with M!Doodle, M!Live, M!Zone and M!Security preinstalled among other apps. On a more absurd note you can blow on the device to wake it up and also shake it if you want to appear more normal.

Gray SIM card tray for iPhone 5S points to a fourth color option

The gold / champagne colored iPhone 5S has been getting a lot of attention from the rumor mill, but there might be a fourth color option on the way. A grey SIM card tray popped up in a repair shop in Japan and it looks just like the leaked iPhone 5S trays.

The image above compares it to the gold iPhone 5S nanoSIM tray and the white iPhone 5 tray.

The gray SIM tray is too dark for the white iPhone and too light for the black iPhone. It's possible that Apple will tweak one of the two standard flavors of its next iPhone but it's also possible that the company is trying out a fourth color.

  
White and grey trays • color comparison with white, gold and black iPhone

Even if Apple is indeed testing a fourth color, there's no guarantee we'll see them all at the iPhone unveiling (which is allegedly scheduled for September 10). Companies usually try different prototypes before settling on a final design.

Source (in Japanese) | Via

Samsung preps 16MP OIS camera, won't premiere on Note III

A new report coming from Korea reveals Samsung is working on a 16MP camera module with optical image stabilization. The new sensor is intended to be used in company's upcoming Galaxy flagships.

Unfortunately Samsung's suppliers won't make enough sensors in time for the Galaxy Note III release. This means that the new camera will most probably premiere with the Galaxy S5 next year according to the report.

Samsung already has a smartphone with a 16MP OIS camera - the Galaxy S4 Zoom - but it's a hybrid device with 10x optical zoom and therefore it's pretty huge.

Samsung will unveil the Galaxy Note III next month in Berlin, so we'll know soon enough if those new sensors will make it to the phablet or not.

Source (in Korean) | Via

Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Kids edition launches next month

Samsung seems to be preparing a Kids edition of its Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 slate. The tablet is called Galaxy Tab 3 Kids and will launch this September.

The specs of the customized Tab 3 Kids are identical with those its vanilla sibling – it comes with a 7″ TFT display with a resolution of 1024×600 pixels, runs on a 1.2GHz dual-core processor and features a 3MP camera, 1GB of RAM and 8GB expandable storage.

The Tab 3 Kids runs on a deeply customized Android 4.1 Jelly Bean with completely redesigned and simplified UI. Samsung will preload lots of educational software, games and multimedia for the kids too.

There is no official announcement yet, nor is there a rumored date and price. Samsung’s official website for Korea has already listed the slate’s manual, so we guess the Galaxy Tab 3 Kids will indeed hit the stores very soon as the source suggests.

Source | Manual

A pair of new leaked videos show more iPhone 5C panels

File this under rumors with a capital "R." While they may be a bit misleading in their titles, the latest iPhone 5C video leaks show off an "unboxing" of the device panels, as well as a "scratch test."

This scratch test video doesn't really put the panel through its paces, but it does include some measurements - though they're oddly of still images rather than a live shot. Take the 124.55 x 59.13 x 8.98 dimensions with perhaps more than the usual grain of salt.

Not much is revealed in the second video either, but if these panels do turn out to be the real deal, then the iPhone 5C will come in white, blue, green, red, and yellow.

We'll hopefully find out more as the rumored September 10 Apple announcement date nears.

Moto X hits AT&T stores as the Moto Maker site also goes live

Motorola's recently announced Moto X flagship smartphone is the first to be developed entirely under Google's supervision. The smartphone is now available from AT&T in USA and the 16GB variant of the device costs you $199 and the 32GB unit is priced at $249, both with a two-year contract.

The unlocked version of the Moto X will also be up for grabs and the SIM-free variant carries a price tag of $580.

The Moto Maker customization site is also live now. It allows you to choose the color combination for your Moto X along with its storage space and the matching accessories. The site also offers you to link your Google account even before the smartphone is shipped to you.

However, the service is not offering online purchases just yet. The Moto Maker's engraving feature will not be initially available due to some technical difficulties.

Stay tuned for our detailed Moto X review, which will come out later tonight.

Source 1 | Source 2

Sony Xperia Z1 press image and metal chassis leaks

The Sony Xperia Z1, erstwhile known as 'Honami', has leaked once again, this time through a press image. This latest image shows the device in three colors: black, white and purple.

The colors are identical to the ones the Xperia Z is sold in and the device itself looks remarkably similar.

One major difference between the exterior of the Z and the Z1, however, is the metal frame that runs around the device. It's unclear whether the metal acts are merely the frame for the device or also doubles up as the antenna as on the iPhone.

The Xperia Z1 is Sony's upcoming flagship Android smartphone that has been rumored for quite some time now. It is said to have a 5.0-inch FullHD display, quad-core 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, 2GB RAM, 20 megapixel camera and all the bells and whistles you expect from a flagship Android device these days.

The Xperia Z1 is expected to be announced officially at an event in Berlin on September 4.

Source

More images of the iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5C leak

With just couple more weeks left for the alleged launch event of the next generation iPhone, you can say the device is just around the corner. That also means, however, that the leaks are now coming in thick and fast to the point where there will be little new left to learn when the device(s) actually get announced.

Today we have more images of both the iPhone 5S as well as the iPhone 5C. The iPhone 5S here is seen in the new shade of champagne gold. It also has the glass back panels painted in white, so we now have a proper idea of what the final unit will look like, at least from the rear. The front should be identical to the current white iPhone 5. For more images of the iPhone 5S, click on the first source link below.

Then there are also images of the iPhone 5C, seen here in all five alleged shades that it would be sold in. Seen here are the yellow, green, white, cyan and pink colors with a possible color choice of black or white panel for the front.

At this point we have pretty much seen what there is to see in these new iPhones, at least as far as the design is concerned. Hopefully, the event invites come soon and it is indeed on the rumored September 10 date.

Source 1 • Source 2

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More Apple iPhone 5S concepts surface, suggest 2 screen sizes

We came across a couple of iPhone designs which we haven't seen before. The first appears to be made out of plastic and closely resembles the popular iPod Touch. It will allegedly be the rumored cheaper new iPhone. It also appears to have a slightly smaller screen than the current 4" Retina on the iPhone 5.

iPhone 5S and cheaper new iPhone

The second device is the more interesting one and is slated as the iPhone 5S (or maybe even iPhone 6). It's larger than the current iPhone 5 and sports a bigger, almost bezel-less screen with sloping edges. It sports a rather strange-looking cyan color and the front appears to be entirely made of glass. The back, like on the smaller device, looks to be plastic as well.

The images aren't of the best quality so the material used on the concept phones could be something other than plastic, like glossy aluminum. The edges around the screen look to be precision cut - just like on the iPhone 5.

 
The two new iPhone concepts

We urge you to take these images with a pinch of salt as they can prove to be nothing more than clever renders. That being said, there is always the possibility that what we're seeing are prototypes that Apple's working on prior to launching the final hardware.

This is not the first time we've seen an alleged iPhone render-slash-concept and these are likely to start popping up even more with the summer just around the corner.

Source (Dutch) | Via

Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 will hit US stores on April 11 for $400

Following last weeks debut in the UK, Samsung has announced the Galaxy Note 8.0 will hit US stores on April 11 for a suggested price of $400.

It will be available directly from Samsung, as well as Amazon, Best Buy, Newegg, Staples and others.

Accessories for the Note 8.0 will be available from mid-April. Those include Book Covers in white, grey, pink or green, USB and HDMI adapters, travel charger, etc.

The Note 8.0 will also be preloaded with content, estimated at around $200, like 50 GB of Dropbox storage for 24 months, 1 month of unlimited Music Hub streaming, etc. There's a limited $25 Google Play voucher which will be given when you register the device. The Note 8.0 will also premiere the company's WatchON service, which acts as a digital TV guide.

Oppo working on a quad-core smartphone with 6.1mm profile

The Chinese manufacturer Oppo had created a buzz among the tech enthusiast with its Find 5 smartphone, which was the slimmest FullHD flagship when it was announced. As we found later it was also able to stand its ground quite successfully against the established players in the smartphone game.

It looks like Oppo is going continue its trend of build slimmer devices as the company is rumored to be working on a quad-core smartphone, which is only 6.13mm thick.

Information about the specifications of the Oppo R809T is scarce at the moment, but the smartphone is rumored to sport a 4.5-inch 720p display and is expected to feature a quad-core Mediatek MT6589 processor along with 1 GB of RAM.

The Oppo R809T is rumored to be announced on April 26 and the device is said to carry a price tag of 2500 yuan (about $400) for the unlocked version.

Source | Via

Alleged fith-gen Apple iPad front panel surfaces

A photo of what looks to be the front panel of the upcoming fifth-gen Apple iPad has surfaced today, giving us a hint of what the upcoming slate might look like.

Judging from the photo, the new iPad will sport many of the design characteristics of the iPad Mini, but on a larger scale. The edges aren’t as round as the current-gen iPad, and the side bezel is much narrower, too. The usual Home button appears to be intact as well.

As always, this information should be taken with a pinch of salt, but the guys over at nowhereelse.fr, who obtained the photo in question, have a history of accurate leaks.

Additionally, the photo of the alleged iPad 5 front panel suggests that the production of the slate has commenced. If everything goes as planned for Apple, we should see the iPad 5 ready for prime time some time this autumn.

Source (French) | Via

Samsung describes what each of the nine sensors on the Galaxy S4 does

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is one of the most feature-rich smartphones around, and it duly packs a wide array of sensors. Samsung published an image that explains what each sensor does and what feature uses it.

There are the standard sensors that have been around since smartphones first appeared, like an accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer and proximity sensor. But then there are unusual sensors like a humidity sensor (used by S Health to calculate “comfort level”), and others.

Here’s the image in question:

The barometer is used for quicker GPS locks, but it can also accurately calculate how many calories you’ve burned if you’re going up a hill. The gesture sensor is separate from the proximity sensor and is, of course, used for Air Gestures.

You can also read the full press release for more details on the individual sensors. For example, there are interesting tidbits like a special Micro Controller Unit (MCU) that only wakes up the powerful CPU if it’s needed. The MCU can control the sensors itself, so Samsung says the Galaxy S4 is very battery efficient despite having so many sensors.

Source | Via

Images of Micromax A115 Canvas 3D surface online

The Micromax A110 Canvas 2 and the Micromax A116 Canvas HD enjoyed quite good reception and it looks like the Indian firm is all set to introduce the 3D version of its phablet. The images of Micromax A115 Canvas 3D have surfaced online.

The 3D version of the popular phablet is said to come out with a 5" WVGA display and the device will be powered by a 1 GHz Dual-core MediaTek MT6577 processor. Furthermore, the Micromax A115 Canvas 3D is rumored to feature a 8-megapixel rear camera, 2 megapixel front camera, 1 GB RAM, 4 GB of internal memory, Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and 3D imaging with playback.

  
Leaked images of Micromax A115 Canvas 3D

Micromax is allegedly working on the successor of its A116 Canvas HD phablet and the upcoming device is said to be named as A120 Canvas 3. The third generation Canvas is rumored to feature a 5" Super AMOLED display and is expected to be powered by a Quad-core processor. Micromax A120 Canvas 3 will also feature a 13-megapixel rear camera and the latest Android 4.2 Jelly Bean OS.

Unfortunately, there is no official confirmation on the release date and the pricing of either upcoming device.

Source | Via

Samsung Galaxy Mega specs confirmed, 5.8-inch display in tow

Samsung is all set to introduce a new series of "Galaxy Mega" smartphones and the detailed specifications of the first of those have surfaced online.

According to a report from SamMobile, the Galaxy Mega 5.8, which is codenamed as GT-I9152 will be a Dual-SIM phablet. The Galaxy Mega will sport a 5.8" qHD display with a resolution of 960 x 540 pixels and will measure 164 x 83.8 x 9.7mm. The device will feature a 1.4 GHz Dual-core processor with 1.5 GB of RAM, 8 megapixel rear camera and a 2 megapixel front shooter.

Samsung Galaxy Mega 5.8 will come with the latest connectivity options, which include Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 80211 a/b/g/n and GPS support. The upcoming phablet will be powered by Android 4.1.2 or 4.2.2 Jelly Bean and as usual Samsung will be preinstalling its own Nature UX on top of that. The juice for the phablet is coming from a 2,600mAh battery.

Source

Unaudited Q1 results from HTC show 98% decline in net profit

HTC included some preliminary Q1 results in its monthly financial report and the numbers aren’t looking good. After a poor performance in the second half of last year, HTC was hoping the One will help it bounce back up, but difficulties in manufacturing meant that the company had to push back the launch. Only three countries saw the One launch on time.

The net income for HTC in the first quarter was just $2.8 million, a painful 98% drop compared to the year ago quarter. Still, any profit is better than a loss, so it's not all bad. Revenue for Q1 2013 was $1.4 billion, down 37% over the year ago quarter (which saw $470 million in net income).

An analyst from Taipei-based Daiwa Securities says "HTC One’s production shortage means lost sales in the first quarter will be lost forever, not just delayed," but thinks the One will still launch early enough ahead of the Samsung Galaxy S4 launch to give HTC a "good chance" of posting good second quarter results after six consecutive quarters of declining results.

There’s also the Facebook phone – the HTC First – which targets the social network's 1+ billion people with a Facebook-made launcher called Home.

Anyway, these are the early unaudited results. We can expect to see the detailed report later on.

Source (PDF) | Via

Samsung announces global availability for the Galaxy Win

The Samsung Galaxy Win was announced last week as a China exclusive, but today the company announced it's going to be making the mid-ranger available globally.

The smartphone runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean on a 1.2GHz quad-core CPU, packs a 4.7” TFT screen of WVGA resolution (199ppi pixel density). It has a 5MP camera that shoots D1 video, a 0.3MP front-facing camera and a microSD card slot. The battery has 2,000mAh capacity.

Available in two color variants - Ceramic White and Titan Gray - the Galaxy Win will be hitting multiple markets in single-SIM and dual-SIM versions. Pricing and availability, however, are still undisclosed by Samsung.

Via

Samsung Galaxy S4 with Exynos 5 processor gets rooted ahead of its global launch

Samsung’s latest flagship smartphone is yet to go sale and the developers at XDA forums have already managed to gain root access on the smartphone. The tech enthusiasts have found a way to root theGalaxy S4, which runs on the Exynos 5 octa-core processor, while the root for the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 chipset version is yet to come.

Samsung Galaxy S4 can be rooted with a ROM, which is packed with ROOT&Busybox image. You can flash that using Odin and gain root access on your smartphone in just a few minutes.

Unfortunately, most of the devices in the first Galaxy S4 batch is said to come out with the Qualcomm powered Snapdragon 600 processors. However, we expect the developers to come up with the methods to root the Snapdragon version of the smartphone in the coming days.

Keep in mind that rooting or flashing any custom ROMs on your smartphone involves some risk and would void your warranty. So, please continue with the instructions from the source link below only if you are sure about what you are doing.

Source

Alleged Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Plus images and specs leak, might be called Galaxy S Tab

Two images supposedly showing the Samsung GT-P8200 Galaxy Tab 3 Plus slate leaked today. The tablet’s design looks much like the Galaxy Note 8.0 and features the new Galaxy S4 lockscreen wallpaper.

The rumors go even further suggesting Samsung might change the lineup’s moniker.

The slate is supposed to pack a 10-inch 2560×1600 pixels (300ppi) SuperAMOLED Pentile or PLS LCD display. Samsung’s own Exynos 5410 Octa chipset should be powering the Tab – a 1.6GHz quad-core ARM Cortex-A15 and a 1.2GHz quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 processors, 2GB LPDDR3 RAM and PowerVR SGX 544MP3 graphics.

The rest of the rumored specs include an 8MP rear camera with 1080p video, a 2MP front snapper, 32/64GB internal storage expandable via a microSD card slot, an IR blaster and a 9000mAh battery unit.

As the rumor has it Samsung might change the naming convention for the new Galaxy Tab 3 lineup and call it Galaxy S Tab after the successful Galaxy S smartphones. I guess we’ll have to wait for the official announcement to shed more light on this.

Source

Windows Phone apps on the rise in the coming year

In a survey done by the Aberdeen Group, some 348 enterprise application developers were asked which mobile platforms they've released or were planning on releasing their products to.

While iOS and Android were unsurprisingly at the top of the chart, Microsoft's mobile OS's saw some great responses by developers, with the Windows Phone and Surface Tablet having 25% and 35%, respectively, of developers planning on releasing apps within the next 12 months.

Aberdeen ties this rise with the growing emergence of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) in the corporate world. Samsung has been heavily promoting that campaign hoping that it will help boost the sales of devices like the Galaxy Note II.

In light of what looks like a bright future for Microsoft, the news is not so good for BlackBerry. Despite the release of the BlackBerry 10 OS, businesses have all but lost faith in the Canadian company, due to their oft-delayed operating system, and unclear plans for the future, especially in regard to its PlayBook tablet.

Source | Via

Sony Xperia SP and Xperia L to go on sale in UK this month

Sony extended its collection of mid-range smartphones with the launch of Xperia SP and the Xperia L to its budget line up. Previously we only knew the smartphones will launch in Q2, but the good news is that we will only have to wait until the end of this month to get them in UK, according to a listing from some online retailers.

The Sony Xperia SP and Xperia L have been listed as "expected in April" at the Carphone Warehouse's website. Clove is also expecting to get its first stock this month.

These early listing point to a price tag of £323(about $490) for the Sony Xperia SP, while the Xperia L is expected to be priced around £234 (about $355).

And while you are waiting for the stock to arrive, feel free to check out our first hands-on impressions ofSony Xperia SP and Sony Xperia L.

Source

LG Optimus G Pro sales in Korea reach half a million in 40 days

The recently launched LG Optimus G Pro has been enjoying quite warm reception in its home country. According to LG, its latest phablet has already managed to achieve half a million sales in just 40 days after its launch in Korea.

LG Optimus G Pro sports a huge 5.5" True HD IPS Plus display and features a 1.7 GHz Krait 300 Quad-core processor along with 2 GB of RAM, 13 megapixel rear camera with LED, 2.1 megapixel front facing camera, 32 GB in-built memory card. The phablet runs Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and is powered by a 3,140 mAh battery.

LG's latest achievement is in no small part due to its successful marketing and promotional strategy. LG allowed its Optimus G Pro potential consumers to try the device for a period of 30 days to get used to the size of the phablet and also its features.

The LG Optimus G Pro is yet to launch globally, but it already swung by our office. Check out ourdetailed review of the phablet for a complete insight of the device.

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Samsung start Android 4.1 Jelly Bean updates for Galaxy Ace 2

If was a known fact that Samsung was testing out the Jelly Bean firmware for its Galaxy Ace 2 smartphone and the leaked firmware had confirmed that the official rollout was just around the corner. Now, Samsung has officially announced that the first phase of the update is in progress.

The Android 4.1.2 (build JZO54K) Jelly Bean update for Galaxy Ace 2 comes with the improved notifications, performance, battery life and a new TouchWiz. The update is currently rolling out in Portugal and is available through Samsung KIES and Over-the-Air (OTA).

Unfortunately, there is no official confirmation on what regions will follow and how long it will take for the update to go global.

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