WhatsApp soon to offer voice calls

The possibility of VoIP functionality in WhatsApp has been floating around in the rumor mill for quite some time now. While it has never been officially confirmed, little bits and pieces have been popping out here and there.

Recently a few interesting screenshots have surfaced, showcasing the popular chat application adorned with shiny new voice features.



While the functionality is still not available and probably not even fully complete, Android enthusiasts have managed to dig up a glimpse of what it may look like.

As it turns out, the Android version of WhatsApp exists in two main build branches, One stable branch, which can be found on the Play Store and which almost everybody has on their devices and another one, distributed directly off of the company’s website.

The latter gets updated a lot more frequently and avid Android tinkerers and developers have figured out that it often includes features that are still in the making. Those are hidden away for testing purposes.

The latest version of the application, supplied by the Facebook owned company, includes a lot of new secret screens that set the ground for a future voice calling function.



The leaked screenshots prove, almost without a doubt that voice calls are in the works, although still unconfirmed officially. There are a few bits of information that can be discovered by analyzing the screenshots. For one, the whole calling functionality seems, at least at present, pretty much separated from the chat function. There are separate screens that handle dialing, call logs and of course, the obligatory contacts screen and call status.

Little traces of voice conversation do however make their way into the standard chat interface as past or missed calls seem to pop up in the chat log, just like pictures. Perhaps this separation is simply artificial and solely for the sake of testing the new feature and things might look different when the service goes live.

Another interesting possibility that the photos hint at is that perhaps WhatsApp will allow for calls to be recorded and played back at a later time, which is definitely a nice little bonus.

As far as availability and pricing goes, we can’t really be sure yet. Facebook has made it clear that, for the time being, it does not intend to monetize on WhatsApp and will keep the app ad-free. It is somewhat safe to assume that the new voice feature will be free, or at least for the first year, as is the app itself at present.

Currently, the discovery is pretty intriguing, but it is too early to draw any conclusions based on the early screenshots. If you think that there is something to this story and know your way around the Android debug console, you could poke around and see what else you can find by yourself.

Be sure to check back with any interesting scoops.

Nokia C1 is the company's first post-Microsoft Android phone

Following the announcement of the Nokia N1, the company's first Android tablet after the Microsoft deal, now we hear the Finns are working on a phone running Google's mobile OS. The phone is dubbed simply C1 and an alleged product shot of it popped up.

Alongside it, there's also a rumored spec sheet, which includes an Intel-made chipset with 2GB RAM. The Nokia C1 would sport a 5" display, probably of 720p resolution, and have 32GB of storage. At the back, there is believed to be an 8MP camera joined by a 5MP one at the front.
The Nokia C1 will launch with Android 5.0 Lollipop garnished with Nokia's Z Launcher, just like the N1 tablet. It will be manufactured by Foxconn, since Nokia is prohibited from manufacturing devices until 2016 as per its acquisition contract with Microsoft.
There's no information regarding availability just yet. We suspect Nokia will announce the phone in the first quarter of 2015, but we're yet to see and hear more about the C1.

HTC One (M8) gets caught with Android 5.0.1 and Sense 6.0

Screenshots and videos of HTC One (M8) running Android 5.0.1 with Sense 6.0 made the rounds online. This time, the device boots software number 4.1 as opposed to 4.0 from a past leak.

Unsurprisingly, the Sense-d Android 5.0 on the HTC One (M8) looks fresh yet familiar. The Recents view is almost stock Android-like, while the Notification area and the Quick Settings are, in terms of design, a fusion between the language seen in Google's Lollipop and HTC Sense.


The new OS version should arrive on the Taiwanese company’s flagship smartphone in the near future. HTC promised to update the One (M8) to Android 5.0 by February 2, 2015.

Samsung rumoured to unveil Galaxy S6 at CES 2015

Although Samsung typically announces its Galaxy S series smartphones in the February-May period, rumor mills are abuzz that the company could unveil its upcoming flagship, the Galaxy S6, a bit earlier this time.

According to a report from Korean online publication Chosun Biz, which cites analysts from South Korea-based Mirae Asset Securities (MAS), the Galaxy S6 could be unveiled between January 6 and 9. That coincides with the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Furthermore, if the latest rumors are to be believed, we might see the curved screen variant debut alongside the Galaxy S6.
MAS analysts also predict that the South Korean company is aiming to sell a total of around 45 million units of the Galaxy S6, including 10 million units of the Edge variant. Needless to say, none of this has been officially confirmed by Samsung, so like all rumors take it with a pinch of salt.
The Galaxy S6 is expected to feature an Exynos 7420 octa-core processor, 5.5-inch QHD (1440×2560 pixels) display, 3GB of RAM, and 32GB internal storage. The device is said to have a 20-megapixel rear camera and a 5-megapixel front snapper.

Samsung launches the Galaxy A3 and A5 in Taiwan

Today Samsung held a press conference in Taiwan during which it made the Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 smartphones official for that particular market. Of the two, we've seen the A5 already up for grabs in both China and Russia.
And now it's headed to Taiwan, along with its smaller and less capable sibling. The Galaxy A3 will be priced at TWD 8,990, which is about $287 or €231, while the A5 will retail for TWD 11,990 ($383, €307).

Both phones come with the same specs as elsewhere, and with the metal bodies you can expect from members of the new A series of Samsung handsets.
The Galaxy A3 has a 4.5-inch 540x960 Super AMOLED touchscreen, an 8 MP rear camera with LED flash, a 5 MP secondary cam, and a 1,900 mAh battery. It's powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 chipset, with a 1.2 GHz quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU, aided by 1.5GB of RAM. There's 16GB of storage inside, and the device runs Android 4.4.4 KitKat.
The Galaxy A5 sports a 5-inch 720p Super AMOLED screen, a 13 MP rear snapper, 2GB of RAM, and a 2,300 mAh battery. Otherwise, it's identical to the A3

LG G3 Lollipop update spreads to more European countries

t looks like LG is going to actually deliver on its promise to update the G3 to Android 5.0 Lollipop by the end of this year. A couple of days ago we told you that units sold by Vodafone UK started getting the new bits, and now it turns out that the rollout has spread to many more European countries. This follows past releases in South Korea and Poland.
As this is an over-the-air rollout, it might take а few days for it to reach your particular G3, but if you are in one of the countries in the list below, then the update is on the way to you.

As always, devices bought unlocked and SIM-free might get the update sooner than ones purchased from carriers. After installing the new software, you'll be running version D85520e.
Now that it's made its way to Europe, hopefully the Lollipop update for the G3 will soon travel to the USA. And then LG could focus on the G2, last year's flagship.

New photos of Lumia 1030 leak, device said to be here to stay

A few interesting photos found their way to Baidu today. They show a Lumia prototype device, which is said to be the 1030 McLaren. Interestingly enough we saw very similar photos last month of what appears to be the same unit and perhaps even the same photo-shoot.
   
Back then, the Lumia at hand was said to be a cancelled successor to the Lumia 1020, but the new info says it's actually an upcoming Microsoft smartphone.
The newly leaked shots, unlike the initial ones, show a lot more from the device. It appears to be fully working and we can gather bits and pieces for its specifications from the new post. The alleged Lumia 1030 will supposedly feature a 1080p display, 2GB of RAM, 32GB onboard storage and if initial rumors are to be believed, a quad-core Snapdragon chipset.
   
A clearer close-up view of the PureView module, Zeiss-certified camera and confirmation thatthe device will have a dual-LED flash, as opposed to the xenon one found in its predecessor. One of the photos also reviews that the new handset will support 4G, while another clearly shows a microSD slot along with a micro SIM. We also got a few side-by-side shots with the iPhone 6 for size reference.
   
As curious as these new photos are the new alleged Lumia 1030 is still not confirmed in any official way so it may indeed end up as a dead prototype. So this new information should be taken with a grain of salt for the time being.

First phablet with Gorilla Glass 4 is Samsung galaxy note 4

We first heard about the potential next Gorilla Glass 4 edition when a Lumia flagship prototype leaked out, and was featured with the tough and thin protective layer on top of its display. At the time it was dismissed as a typo or a fake rumor, but a few weeks later, at the end of November, Corning indeed took to the airwaves, and announced the fourth iteration of its Gorilla Glass franchise. This one is thinner and stronger than its predecessor, as they always are, but we knew nothing about which handsets are or will be equipped with the durable sheets.

Well, yesterday Corning issued a press release to inform us that it's the Galaxy Alpha that had the privilege to be the first handset flaunting Gorilla Glass 4, which allowed it to remain thin, light and yet a tough nut to crack. Now, we are learning that there is at least another handset out there with the new cover sheet from Corning, and it is none other than the Note 4 - the world's first phablet with Gorilla Glass 4, suits it right.

Kirin-powered Huawei Honor 4X gets listed before announcement

According to an oizoioi report, a Kirin 620-powered version of the Huawei Honor 4X is now available for pre-sale. This is particularly interesting given the fact that the company hasn’t yet announced the device - a launch event is scheduled for December 16.

The device is powered by the Kirin 620, rather than the Snapdragon 410 used on the original version. The home-baked chipset still offers 64-bit and LTE support, but it features an octa-core CPU and the Mali 450 GPU.
Other features include a 5.5 inch HD display, 13 MP rear camera, and 5 MP front camera. In addition, the device packs in a 3000mAh battery, and will be available in two versions: a lower-end version with 1GB of RAM and a higher end version with 2GB of RAM.
As for the price, the report says the 1GB version is expected to retail for 799 yuan ($129), while the 2GB version is expected to retail for 999 yuan ($161).
Aside from the Honor 4X LTE, the upcoming event will also see the launch of the Honor 6Plus with Dual Rear Camera.

Next Samsung Exynos SoC rumored to feature Cat.10 LTE

LTE Cat. 6 is quickly becoming the standard with new flagship handsets. It delivers quite respectable data speeds of up to 300Mbps on the downlink wherever capable enough networks are available.
And while carriers still have a long way to go to catch up to current tech, chipset manufacturers are already preparing to move forward. Recently Qualcomm announced a Cat.10 LTE-capable chip, which boasts speeds of up to 450 Mbps. The chipset in question, however, is not the Snapdragon 810, that will power a lot of next generation flagships, as it features Cat. 6 LTE.
But surprisingly enough, Cat. 10 modems might be closer to consumer markets than we thought. According to the Korean media, Samsung will be shipping Exynos devices with the new technology as early as next year. Rumors even extend further and speculate that the Samsung Galaxy S6 might support the new bandwidths in its Exynos-powered version.


This marks a huge step forward for Samsung for two main reasons. Firstly if the Korean tech giant does manage to incorporate Cat. 10 LTE in consumer devices in time for the arrival of the next Galaxy S flagship, that would give the company's own SoC a formidable advantage over Qualcomm's Snapdragon series.
Perhaps even more importantly this would mark another move towards a full in-house chip manufacturing process for Samsung. Having its own CPU, GPU and Modem would allow Samsung to pursue new development strategies and consumer markets.
This, however is still entirely in the realm of speculations and for the time being Samsung will most likely be sticking to the current scheme of offering Qualcomm chips its their own.
There are a number of reasons for this arrangement ranging from lower costs to marketing and manufacturing concerns and Samsung might even never achieve, or for that matter want a completly closed production circle.

Samsung starts rolling out Lollipop to Galaxy S5 in Korea

After several leaks Samsung has now started rolling out the Android 5.0 Lollipop update for the Galaxy S5 in Korea. The update is rolling out on all three major carriers, namely KT, SK Telecom and LG Uplus.

We have talked about Samsung's Lollipop update previously but if you missed it, honestly, it's not much. Surely there are under the hood changes but if you are expecting a major leap forward in terms of design you won't get it. It still very much looks like TouchWiz did on KitKat with some minor changes.
No word on when the update will roll out to other regions but it probably won't be too long from now.

Samsung Galaxy Core Prime (SM-G360) released in India

Although not officially, Samsung has released the Galaxy Core Prime SM-G360 in India. The entry-level Android device is now listed on eBay and Amazon.in at a price tag of INR9,380 ($151) and INR10,200 ($164), respectively.

The device is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor and features a 4.5 inch WVGA (480×800 pixels) LCD display, 5 megapixel rear camera with LED Flash and 2 megapixel front-facing camera take care of photography. Internal storage is 8GB and is expandable by up to 64 GB, RAM is 1GB. The whole thing runs Android on 4.4 KitKat.
The smartphone is equipped with dual SIM slots, and has multiple connectivity options including Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS and HSPA+.
The release comes nearly two months after the smartphone was briefly listed on one of the country’s largest e-commerce websites, Flipkart.

Lamborghini Tauri 88 smartphone runs Android, packs 20MP camera

You're getting into your Lamborghini and your phone rings – with the default iPhone ringtone. Well, that's embarrassing, a 16 year old school kid has one of those. To prevent future embarrassments you need something like the Tonino Lamborghini Tauri 88, a smartphone with premium materials, Italian design and good specs.
The Tauri 88 is made of steel (available in Gold, Black or plain steel colors) and leather (a choice of Black, Blue, Red, Orange and Brown) complete with decorative stitches. The phone was designed in Italy and sports the recognizable raging bull logo (which was inspired by the Taurus constellation).


The phone packs quite a punch – a 5" screen with 1080p resolution, runs Android on a Snapdragon 801 chipset with 3GB of RAM, 64GB of built-in expandable storage and a beefy 3,400mAh battery that promises up to 35 hours of 3G talk time. If you can afford a phone like this, you'll be making a lot of calls so that's good.
There's a 20MP camera on the back (most likely from Sony) and an impressive 8MP camera on the front – Tonino Lamborghini is challenging you to take the most luxurious selfie in the world (post it on Instagram with #TheLavishSelfie), apparently even big shots are not immune to the selfie craze.


Anyway, only 1947 Tonino Lamborghini Tauri 88 phones will be built, each costing $6,000. In case you were wondering, Antonio "Tonino" Lamborghini is the son of Ferruccio, the founder of Lamborghini, and was born in 1947.

 Flagship camera shootout 2014HTC One (E8) review NEWS Samsung announces its press conference for CES 2015

Following Sony, Samsung is the second mobile device maker to officially unveil its schedule for CES 2015. The huge trade show is fast approaching, as we're now exactly one month away from its debut.
January 5 is when Samsung will hold a press conference at CES, starting at 2 pm Las Vegas Time. This will be followed by a keynote address by BK Yoon, Samsung Electronics CEO and President, at 6:30 pm.

On the same day Sony will hold its CES presentation, though that will start at 5 pm. So this is shaping up to be a pretty crowded day, as the day before the trade show's doors open has always been.
Right now it's unclear if Samsung will use this avenue for announcing new devices, but given past behavior we wouldn't rule that out.

Apple is on its way to a record quarter thanks to iPhone 6

According to research data gathered by Kantar Worldpanel ComTech through the month of October, Apple is on its way to a record quarterly performance. Unsurprisingly, sales of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are the main reason for the impending achievement.
The launch of the iPhone 6 product family led to jump in Apple sales in most major markets. The latter include Australia, the United States, and major European economies headed by Great Britain.
UK sales have been particularly stellar for Apple. The company has the highest share of sales to date with almost 40%. The transactions have been driven mostly by loyal Apple fans (86% to be precise) - only 5% switche from a Samsung device.
A traditional Apple stronghold, the US market saw iPhone sales rise by a modest 0.7% from the same period last year. AT&T and Verizon are responsible for the majority of all iPhone 6 sales (83.6% combined). In line with what we know already, Kantar data suggests that iPhone 6 outsells its bigger brother by 3:1 ratio.
China saw Apple sales grow 0.2 to 15.7% through October. It is worth noting that the iPhone 6 didn’t launch until October 17 on the Chinese market. We reckon that a timelier start of sales would have made a more significant impact.
Xiaomi was the most dominant company in China for the period in question with almost 30% share of the market. The RedMi Note was the company’s bestseller.

Android 5.0 arrives on Samsung Galaxy S5 in Europe

Android 5.0 Lollipop is now seeding to Samsung Galaxy S5 handsets in Europe. The exact device model to receive the new build is SM-G900F.
As seen already, Samsung Galaxy S5 runs TouchWiz-ed version of Android 5.0, so the user experience will not be dramatically different from the one in version 4.4. However, thanks to the brand new ART runtime, we reckon that users will feel a noticeable improvement in the responsiveness of the device.
The update is currently available for the devices in Poland. It will begin rolling out to more markets across Europe soon.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 for Verizon gets Android 4.4.4 KitKat

Verizon unleashed Android 4.4.4 KitKat update for the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and while at it pushed a few bug fixes and some of its proprietary carrier apps. The update improves LTE data connectivity and touts enhanced voice performance.


The Galaxy Note 3 now shouldn't experience issues with audio over Bluetooth when connected to a Wi-Fi network and random bugs with SMS sending are also squashed. Using a VPN will no longer cause the phone to disconnect mobile data, too.
As for the added software, Verizon includes in the update Find My Mobile, Side Sync call forwarding, Virtual tour camera mode and Kids Mode. Knox 2.0 for enterprises is also baked into the update.
Expect Android 4.4.4 KitKat for your Verizon Galaxy Note 3 in the coming days.

Android 5.0 Lollipop demonstrated on the Samsung Galaxy Note 4

We have seen Android 5.0 Lollipop being shown off before on the Galaxy S5 and the Galaxy S4. Now, SamMobile has managed to get their hands on the Lollipop ROM for the new Galaxy Note 4.
If you have seen the images and videos for the S4 and S5 Lollipop ROMs, you know what to expect by now. The general look and feel of the UI is still very much TouchWiz, to the point where most people will find them indistinguishable. There are only minor changes in the UI, most notably in the notification area, but that's pretty much it. Samsung is still sticking to its own UI design and only making minor modification to fit in with the new Material Design of Lollipop.
You can check out the UI in the video below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2DW6YKhLxY

Sony Xperia Z Ultra GPe getting Android 5.0 Lollipop update

Sony may have demoed early Android 5.0 Lollipop builds on the Xperia Z1, Z2, Z3 trio but it’s the Sony Xperia Z Ultra GPe that is getting the coveted update first. GPe – short for Google Play Edition – is a line of purified flagship devices from several makers, like a branded Nexus line.
Some lucky bloke on the Android Central forums already downloaded the system update, weighing in at 397.3MB it requires at least 500MB free to install (that’s not much, considering iOS 8 requires 4-5GB).

Android 5.0 Lollipop update for the Sony Xperia Z Ultra GPe now available
The update introduces a "bold new visual style" (Material Design), improves performance and adds new features. Among them are notifications on the lock screen, interruption controls for the notifications and Smart Lock (disable the secure lockscreen when connected to certain Bluetooth devices or NFC tags). The battery saving mode has also been improved.
Again, note that this update is for the Sony Xperia Z Ultra Google Play Edition, the one with Xperia software is still waiting (but will certainly get the Lollipop update).
Go on, check for updates on your phone and if it’s available, drop a line in the comments with your region – it will be very informative to our other readers.

Downgrading to iOS 8.1 no longer possible

Nearly a couple of weeks after releasing iOS 8.1.1, which brought along several bug fixes as well as increased stability and performance improvements for the iPad 2 and iPhone 4S, Apple has stopped signing iOS 8.1. This means that you’ll no longer be able to downgrade or restore to the previous firmware version.

The change in the signing status of iOS 8.1 can be confirmed on the popular third-party iOS firmware database IPSW Downloads -- the iOS 8.1 page on the website now shows red ‘!’ icons instead of green check mark icons.
If you prefer jailbroken devices, you’ll be pleased to know that iOS 8.1.1, which is compatible with the iPhone 4S and newer, iPad 2 and newer, and the fifth-generation iPod touch, is jailbreakable as well.

Samsung may be working on an in-house GPU

Late last year we heard that Samsung may be designing its own processor core. That is yet to materialize, but now reports from Korean media suggest the tech giant is looking to make in-house GPUs too.
The GPU will reportedly be ready by the middle of next year. It's not entirely clear if it will be combined into an all-Samsung chipset with the homebrewed CPU or not, but if it is the plans are for a chipset with a 64-bit capable big.LITTLE processor and a Cat. 6 LTE modem.


The company already has its own modems and if it lives up to both its CPU and GPU ambitions, it will join the ranks of Qualcomm, Intel and Nvidia, companies that make chipsets from all in-house parts.
Until now Samsung had its Exynos line (using ARM-designed CPUs and GPUs), but over the last couple of years it was mostly relying on Qualcomm’s offerings.
The GPU information was revealed as part of a conversation with the SEC – Samsung is currently embroiled in a battle with Nvidia over GPU patents.

5 things that Nokia did before (but not necessarily better than) Google

While Google and Nokia started as (and have always been) very different companies, there are quite a few important things that the two have in common. In its glory days, Nokia accomplished things that Google also achieved some years later. Unlike Nokia, however, Google seems to be doing everything better - maybe just because times have changed, or because Google simply knows how to make plans work. Or maybe both reasons are valid. In any case, we could say that, in some ways, Google is now what Nokia once was.

Naturally, Google is evolving differently, thanks to its astonishing financial power and all the talented employees it has. Meanwhile, Nokia is no longer involved in the phone making business (having sold its Devices and Services unit to Microsoft) - so we thought that this would be a good time to look back and check out some of the things that the Finnish company managed to do before its collapse. Mind you, we're talking about Nokia's collapse strictly as a phone maker. 

1. At some point, Nokia was the sole owner of the world’s most popular smartphone OS

Symbian Ltd. was established in the late 90s, following a partnership between Nokia, Motorola, Ericsson, and Psion. It wasn’t until 2008 that Nokia fully acquired it, thus becoming the sole owner of Symbian OS. Nokia then created the Symbian Foundation, making the platform open-source. At the time, Symbian was still the undisputed leader in the smartphone market, with a share of over 50%. For the record, 2008 was Android’s first year of public existence, ending with a 0.5% market share for Google’s OS.

Nokia’s control over what was the world’s most popular smartphone OS only lasted for 2 years: in the fourth quarter of 2010, Android took over Symbian, thus forever ending its hegemony. After that, Symbian went downhill, and its development ceased in 2012.

Fast forward to today: Google is about to enter its fifth year as the owner of the world’s leading smartphone OS. Right now, Android’s market share sits at over 80%. Things are looking very promising for the future, and it’s hard to believe that Android will lose its top position anytime soon.
 
1. A look at the evolution of the main smartphone OSes from 2009 to 2011

2. Nokia offered maps navigation for its smartphones before Google

Google launched Maps Navigation for Android (for free!) in November 2009, first only in the US, with other markets receiving the service starting 2010. Nokia was already providing maps navigation for its Symbian handsets via what was called Ovi Maps from 2007 to 2011. Nokia made some major acquisitions in this regard, with NAVTEQ (bought in 2007 for $8.1 billion) being the most important among them. Right now, Nokia’s mapping and navigation services are controlled and developed by HERE - a separate business unit of the company, which recently started offering HERE maps for Android.

3. Nokia had a mobile gaming platform

Five years before Google launched its Play Games service (in 2013), Nokia introduced N-Gage: its very own mobile gaming platform for select Symbian S60 devices. The platform’s release was delayed from 2007 to 2008, when it was finally released to the public on the Nokia N81 (with more compatible smartphones being added not long after that). Apart from letting users discover and download games, Nokia N-Gage also had social features, including friends lists and score tables. The platform was not well received, and Nokia had no clear strategy regarding it. Thus, in 2009, Nokia started offering games via Ovi Store, announcing it would scrap the N-Gage platform. As for Google, its Play Games service is wildly successful, luring more than 100 million users this year alone.

4. Nokia had a WebKit-based browser for smartphones since the mid 2000s

Nokia’s Symbian S60 web browser was based on WebKit starting 2005, thus being included on lots of iconic Symbian smartphones - like the Nokia N95 and the Nokia E71. Google also relied on WebKit to build its Android browser that debuted on the T-Mobile G1 in late 2008. At the moment, Chrome for Android (which replaced the original Android browser) is based on an engine called Blink - this uses some WebKit components, too.

5. Nokia was behind smartphones believed to be "iPhone killers"

The term “iPhone killer” was quite popular some years back, but now almost no one uses it anymore (probably because everyone realized that the iPhone can’t be killed). Nokia introduced several smartphones believed by some to have had the potential of being iPhone killers, including the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic (released in 2008), the Nokia N97 (announced in 2008, but launched in 2009), and the Nokia N8 from 2010. Needless to say, Google was also behind some so-called iPhone killers, though not always directly: the original Motorola Droid, the original Samsung Galaxy S, the Nexus One, the original HTC Desire, and others.

Samsung SM-E700F joins the upcoming E series

Just a few days ago a Samsung SM-E500F was spotted entering India for testing purposes by an import tracking website.
And now it's been joined by the Samsung SM-E700F, and in this case we're even graced with a couple of specs for the device. The E700 will apparently come with a 5.5-inch touchscreen, as well as dual-SIM support, though no other details about it are known at this time.

Still, this is more than we know about the previously mentioned SM-E500F. These handsets could very well be two members of a new Galaxy E series of devices from Samsung. The Korean company has been rumored to adopt more and more letter-based lineups, following the first one which was the A series. That was recently made official with the announcement of the Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5, and a Galaxy A7 should join those two pretty soon, as it's just been given the go-ahead at the FCC.
Since the A3 and A5 have the model numbers SM-A300 and SM-A500 respectively, you can see why we'd assume the SM-E500 and SM-E700 will be sold as the Galaxy E5 and Galaxy E7. If that happens (which is by no means a given), then expect the E5 to be smaller and perhaps a bit lesser-specced than the E7.

WP8.1 update now on over half, Lumia 63x on the rise

This month Windows Phone reached an important milestone - the latest version (WP8.1) now powers over half of all devices. Added together with devices still on WP8.0 (which could be updated to 8.1), that leaves about one seventh as legacy devices (WP7.x, which cannot be updated).

There's more good news too, new devices are climbing up in market share. There's a bit of bad news to go along with that too, it's the Lumia 63x that is seeing the biggest gains.

The Other group keeps growing - this month by 2% - which suggests there is some diversification going on in Windows Phone land, but the market is still heavily skewed towards the entry-level devices.

"Other" grew when it comes to manufacturers too, but Nokia - that is Microsoft - still has 95% of the market. That will change soon, but only because Microsoft has retired the "Nokia" brand in favor of its own.
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IDC: India is fastest growing Asia Pacific smartphone market

DC put out a new report, stating that India continues to be the fastest growing Asia Pacific market for smartphones. The Q3 smartphone sales saw a growth of 82% over the same period of 2013.
The data also mentions a quarter-on-quarter growth of 27%. This exponential growth has largely been boosted by the festive demands.


There are also a number of other reasons that have played a crucial part in forming the favorable statistics that exceed every other market in the Asian Pacific region in terms of growth. Karan Thakkar, senior market analyst at IDC India, puts a lot of emphasis on positive customer attitude toward the market and mostly the existing low levels of inflation.
He believes, that these are the needed ingredients to ensure a fast paced and quickly refreshing device market. When the intensifying push towards 4G is added to the mix, Karan predicts an even greater spike in demand, reaching upwards of 80 million units in 2015.


Another peculiar trend, identified by the same researcher is a possible rise in interest towards phablet devices, which the IDC defines as having a screen size between 5.5 and 6.99 inches. At current their overall market share in India is pretty low and constant at 6%. Consumers still regard smartphones with screens between 4.5 and 5.5 inches as the ideal everyday device. Karan, however believes that richer media content and faster data connection will bring about a need for higher resolution and bigger screens and definitely sees this type of hardware making a return.

The Galaxy Note 4 with Exynos chipset has an ISOCELL camera

Samsung was strangely vague about the image sensor in the Galaxy Note 4. It bragged about its in-house ISOCELL sensor in the Galaxy S5, but not a peep about who made the Note's sensor. The deal was resolved with the simplest solution – an eyes on test, which found a Sony IMX240 sensor.
Or was it? New evidence suggests there's more than a difference in chipsets between the two Galaxy Note 4 versions – the Snapdragon 805 one and the Exynos 5433 one. Using a hidden service menu the camera firmware version was checked to find that the two different models report two different things.


The Exynos-based Note 4 version string is very similar to what the Galaxy S5 reports, while the Snapdragon variation just outputs SONY_IMX240.
You can check your Note 4 phablet by opening the dialer and typing *#34971539# and hitting the ISP Ver Check button.
Anyway, this raises the question – does the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (Exynos) camera support phase-detection autofocus? The sensor does and it is used in the Galaxy S5. Samsung tries to equalize performance between the Snapdragon/Exynos versions but the ISP version does differ from that of the S5.

Microsoft to detail Windows 10 for phones, tablets in January

There's already a Technical Preview of Windows 10 out, which you can download and install if you're so inclined, but that's only for computers. When Microsoft first introduced its next version of Windows back in September, it mainly presented the new developer-focused features of the OS, along with just a few consumer-oriented tidbits.
Ever since that point, Microsoft has been promising a consumer announcement of Windows 10 which should come in the future, and now a rumor claims that will happen in January.

Although Microsoft will be present at CES in early January, that's not the avenue it will use for the Windows 10 intro. Apparently the company will hold a separate conference towards the end of the month, and it could be a more comprehensive one compared to the one from September.
Alongside making all the consumer-facing features of Windows 10 known, during the same late January gathering Microsoft will also unveil Windows 10 for phones and tablets. This will thus be the first time we'll get a glimpse at the mobile version of the new OS.
Windows 10 is designed to run across multiple devices, such as PCs, tablets, phones, and the Xbox One. The exact date of the event in January is expected to be made official by the end of this year.

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 gets a stability-oriented update

Following a firmware update focused on improving battery life, Samsung Galaxy Note 4 owners are now treated with another one targeting performance and stability. Users in Germany and Greece are reporting their smartphones are prompted to install the latest Galaxy Note 4 firmware with build number N910FXXU1ANK4, which weighs 137MB.
The update is built on November 17 and Samsung hasn't revealed more details regarding the effects of the update besides that it improves the overall performance. The underlying Android version is still 4.4.4 KitKat.
If you haven't received the update, it should be rolling out gradually over the course of the upcoming days so fret not.
Samsung is hard at work on the Android 5.0 Lollipop update for its flagship devices. A short preview of the firmware update for the Galaxy S5 was shown last early last month. Check it out to get a glimpse on what to expect for your Galaxy Note 4 once the Lollipop update is finished.

Microsoft accepts Opera Mobile Store as default for Nokia phones

Microsoft and Opera have signed a contract, which will make the Opera Mobile Store the default app store for Nokia feature phones, those running Symbian as well as Nokia X devices. The change will happen in the beginning of 2015 and people who are still using Series 40, Series 60, Symbian, Asha and Nokia X devices will be redirected from the Nokia Store to the Opera Mobile Store.

According to Microsoft, the change enables millions of people using classic Nokia phones to continue having a "trusted source for apps, games and content."
Because the process includes changing the default app store of so many users, both companies estimate the change will take place over the good part of the first half of 2015. Then, the Nokia Store will close its doors.
"We continue to sell and support classic Nokia devices, which remain popular in many parts of the world," said Rich Bernardo, Vice President, Phones, Microsoft. "We're delighted to partner with Opera Software and continue to provide a reliable app store experience for consumers and developers alike."
Once the transition ends, the Opera Mobile Store will become the third largest app store in terms of downloads. Currently, the store boasts close to 300,000 apps and games with support for more than 7,500 devices ranging from feature phones to smartphones. 40,000 developers from around the world have contributed to the store's range of app offerings.

Samsung and Apple reach a chip manufacturing agreement

Apple and Samsung have reached a chip manufacturing agreement. Worth billions of dollars, the deal will make Samsung the primary supplier of application processors for Apple from 2016 onwards.

The deal will see the Korean giant manufacture 80% of the application processors needed by Apple. The remainder of the production will be handled by the Taiwan-based TSMC. The latter handles most of Cupertino’s chip manufacturing at the moment.
The agreement arrives shortly after Samsung and Apple agreed to drop all lawsuits against each other in outside the United States. Unsurprisingly, Apple will continue to design its processors. Samsung will handle the production of the 14nm chips in partnership with the California-based semiconductor manufacturer GlobalFoundries.
Application processors are significantly more profitable to manufacture than flash memory - another Samsung staple in demand from Apple. The revenue stream will allow the Korean company to make up for the declining profits from its smartphone operations.

Nokia Z Launcher lands on the Play Store

Nokia’s custom Z Launcher is ready to graduate from beta – it lands in the Play Store today and it even works out of the box on the new Nokia N1 tablet.



The tablet is similar to Aviate – it learns from your usage and picks up contextual cues (e.g. whether it’s morning or evening), but the feature that sets it apart is scribbling.

Instead of having to hunt down the right shortcut though an alphabetized list, you just your finger to write the first letter and the Z Launcher will display matching apps sorted by how much you use each one of them.

The Z Launcher on the Lollipop-running Nokia N1 tablet is an exclusive version, but a generic version can be had from the Play Store for a small taste of the experience engineered by Nokia.

Nokia launches N1 Android Tablet running Lollipop

In a rather surprising move, Nokia has launched a new Android tablet. Called the Nokia N1, the device is 7.9-inch tablet running Android 5.0 Lollipop and Nokia Z Launcher on top.

Here are the complete specs of the device:
7.9-inch, 2048x1536 (4:3) IPS LCD with Gorilla Glass 3 and fully laminated zero air gap display
64-bit 2.3GHz Intel Atom Z3580 processor, PowerVR G6430 GPU with 2GB RAM
32GB built-in memory (non-expandable)
8 megapixel rear camera, 5 megapixel front camera
Dual channel 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi with MIMO, Bluetooth 4.0
Micro-USB 2.0 with a Type-C reversible connector
Stereo speakers
5300mAh battery
Unibody aluminum design; available in Natural Aluminum or Lava Gray colors

The Nokia N1 will be launched in China first in Q1 2015 for an estimated price of $249 (without taxes) and in other markets at a later date

Sony IMX230 sensor features 192-point autofocus, Z4 bound

Sony just unveiled its latest mobile IMX230 EXMOR RS camera sensor, which might very well be the star on the back of the future Xperia Z4. The sensor shoots at 21MP resolution, just like the IMX135 it replaces, and uses stacked design. Sony says this makes the CMOS imaging sensor smaller and outputs higher image quality and improved functionality.
The size of the IMX230 image sensor is 1/2.4" and the pixel size is 1.12μm. The sensor will be joined later by a 16MP stacked CMOS image sensor. In the photo below, you can see how the new IMX230 sensor fares against its predecessor in HDR shooting.


The sensor is the first CMOS one to feature an onboard image plane phase detection AF signal processing function. This helps it achieve superior focus tracking of fast-moving objects, compared to the old generation image sensor. In fact, the IMX230 sports 192-point autofocus, which is impressive considering its predecessor packs 172 AF points. On top, the HDR capabilities now support higher resolution still images and 4K video recording.
The Sony IMX230 will start shipping to the company's partners in April 2015 with a listed price of $18 (CNY 2,100). We have very little doubt that the Xperia Z4 will be packing this sensor in its camera, but the phone is far away from launch to make any conclusions so early on.

OmniVision outs two sensors with phase-detection autofocus

It's a day for sensors it seems – first Sony and now OmniVision has chimed in with two new sensors. Like Sony's sensor, the OmniVision sensors use a stacked design (with a brand name of PureCel-S). Both sensors measure about the same and one is 23.8MP, the other 21.4MP and both record the same video.
The two sensors feature phase-detection autofocus in addition to the regular contrast autofocus. The modules measure 10.5x10.5mm and are about 6mm tall, the higher res module is slightly taller at 6.3mm.
The OmniVision OV23850 is a 1/2.3" sensor with 23.8MP resolution. It can output 5,632 x 4,224px photos at 24fps. The other sensor, OmniVision OV21840, is 1/2.4" big and outputs 21.8MP (5,344 x 4,016px) photos at 27fps.
The two have the same video recording skills – QHD at 30fps or 1080p at up to 90fps. For an even higher frame rate there's 720p@120fps. The 23.8MP sensor is also capable of 4.5MP video at 60fps, which is slightly above QHD but nowhere near the 8.3MP that is 2160p video.
Samples of the two sensors are currently available for sampling with mass production expected to start in the first three months of next year.

Nokia is done with phones but has new product coming up

Nokia won't be returning to the handset industry - this was confirmed by Nokia CEO Rajeev Suri at a recent analyst meeting in London. He said that Nokia isn't "looking to a direct consumer return to handsets". He did add that Nokia "will return to the consumer world" though.
And the former biggest phonemaker in the world could get its return as soon as tomorrow - Nokia just teased that it has been working on something. It will show it off or talk about it at the Slush 14 startup and entrepreneur meetup that starts tomorrow in Helsinki and is said to gather some 10 thousand people.


The teaser itself shows a new device but we can only guess what it is - a HTPC, a TV, home automation tech? Hopefully we're going to know all about it tomorrow.
Slush 14 will also be the venue for Finish maker Jolla's "something BIG" event.
It's hard to imagine Nokia not making any smartphones or phones in general but we'd wager a guess that it's not all over for the company, despite what its CEO reassures us of now. CEOs change and so do plans in the tech world and Nokia is only forbidden to make Nokia phones until December 31 of 2015.
For now Nokia will focus on its Networking, Technologies and Here maps divisions and whatever it has in store for us tomorrow.

Why Android phones need 3GB of RAM and iOS gets by with 1GB of the stuff

One of the great mysteries of life, right up there with Stonehenge and the JFK Assassination, is how an iPhone can run so smoothly on 1GB of RAM while Android handsets need at least 2GB, or 3GB of the sweet stuff, to run just as smoothly. According to Quora, a website that answers your questions, the difference has to with the fact that Android apps use Java.

Along with the use of Java comes a process called garbage collection. Once an Android user closes an app, the garbage collection process recycles the memory. The problem is that the garbage collectors require four to eight times the memory that it is using in order for the job to be done quickly. If the required amount of memory is not available, things slow down. Because iOS does not use these garbage collectors, Apple can get away with putting 1GB of RAM in the iPhone, and match or surpass the performance of Android phones. 

So this should clear up one of those mysteries that have you scratching your head every now and then. And just in case you are curious, the answer was posted on Quora by a Glyn Williams, who received 2700 upvotes for his response.

iPhone 6 is selling three times better than iPhone 6 Plus

Although it's been selling a lot of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus units, Apple doesn't like to break down the numbers by model. So effectively we have no way of telling how many of those millions of units moved are iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus.
Not an official way, at least, because now Consumer Intelligence Research Partners has produced a report which attempts to estimate just that - what percentage of iPhones sold are the smaller iPhone 6, and the bigger 6 Plus.

And it turns out that, at least in the US, the 4.7" handset is winning in terms of sales. For the first 30 days of availability of the two new devices, the iPhone 6 accounted for 68% of all iPhone sales, while the iPhone 6 Plus had to make do with a share of just 23 to 24%.
Together, the new iPhones made up around 91% of all iPhone sales in that month, with the additional 9% represented by the older iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C.
Last year, those two - which were then the new kids on the block - represented 84% of total iPhone sales after their first month of availability. So it looks like people are more interested in the iPhone 6 models than they were in the 5S and 5C in 2013, which makes sense considering how they're both bigger than all of their predecessors.
The researchers also looked at the average storage capacity of the iPhone 6 models sold in the first month, and found it to be 48GB. That's almost doubled since last year, undoubtedly aided by Apple's dropping of the 32GB models, and offering the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus in 16, 64, and 128GB iterations only.

HTC One Google Play Editions to get Lollipop next week

Now that the Android 5.0 Lollipop updates for older devices have started in earnest, you may be wondering how long you still need to wait for the new bits if you own an HTC One Google Play Edition device. These, of course, are supposed to be on the fast track for OS updates - just like Nexus handsets.
If you are wondering that, know that you aren't alone. Some other people were curious too, and they decided to ask Mo Versi, HTC's VP of Product Management, about the situation.
And on Twitter, he responded saying that his company is targeting an "early next week" rollout of the Lollipop updates for the HTC One Google Play Edition. Unfortunately, it's still unclear whether he meant both the One (M8)'s GPE and that of the original One, or just the former.
Either way, if there aren't going to be any delays, we should find out for sure in just a few days.

Jolla to announce something big on November 19

Jolla may not be huge in the smartphone market but does attract a serious amount of attention because it's made up of former Nokia employees and uses Nokia and Intel's old lovechild MeeGo OS in the form of its Sailfish OS.
It has just one product so far - the midrange Jolla - but has just teased on Twitter and its website that "Something BIG is about to begin" November 19.

The teaser has a counter leading up to the date and what looks like the edge of some device which we can only guess will be either a new Jolla smartphone or, judging by the BIG in the teaser, a phablet or tablet running Sailfish OS.
We can't tell much by the teaser but we can conclude that the hardware design will be different.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge now available in the US

The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge has curved its way into the stores of three US retailers. You can get it off contract, on-contract and with the carrier's respective upgrade early plan. You might want to sit down before we get to the pricing though.
AT&T
AT&T has put a $946 price tag on the Galaxy Note Edge for those who don't want a contract. And it's something you might want to consider, since signing a 2-year commitment brings down the price to $400. For comparison a Galaxy Note 4 is $826 off contract and $300 with a contract.
AT&T Next starts at $31.54 a month for 30 months, the middle stage is $39.42 for 24 months and the quickest option is $47.30 for 20 months. All these options total $946 at the end, of course.
T-Mobile
T-Mobile's Uncarrier strategy means there's no subsidy but you can get a Samsung Galaxy Note Edge for $870 or space them out to $36.25 a month for 24 months.
A Galaxy Note 4 is $750 or $31.24 for two years.

Sprint
Sprint has priced the Galaxy Note Edge the cheapest - $840 – but the two-year contract has you paying the most - $430 up front. The other option is 24 monthly payments of $35.
Again for comparison, a Galaxy Note 4 sets you back $720 off contract, $300 up front with a two-year Sprint contract or 24 payments of $30.
Verizon
Verizon isn't selling the Galaxy Note Edge yet but you can pre-register for it. There's no price yet.
US Cellular should offer the Note Edge as well, but there isn't a pre-register page just yet.

Windows 10 will be released to all WP8 Lumia phones

We have some wonderful news to all Lumia owners around the world. Today Microsoft announced via its Twitter account that all Windows Phone 8-based Lumia smartphones will be treated to the upcoming Windows 10 OS next year.

The next iteration of Windows was announced recently and it will unify the Windows OS and make it compatible to phones, tablets and PCs with just one installation. Windows 10 is coming sometime next year and it is currently in development.
It's really good news to see Microsoft updating even three-year old phones with less RAM to the latest Windows OS. We know Microsoft's decision to ditch all WP7 phones when switching to WP8 was a huge blow to the fans and the Windows Phone OS popularity itself. But apparently Microsoft has learned a valuable lesson since then and won't make the same mistake again.

Samsung sues Nvidia overa false benchmark results

Samsung has undertaken court action to sue Nvidia accusing it of false advertising as it presumably faked some benchmark results, which compare the Exynos 5433 to the Tegra K1. The false advertising claim concerns the Galaxy Note 4, which Nvidia compared to the Shield Tablet not too long ago. Nvidia claims the Tegra K1 residing in it is the "world's fastest mobile processor" and Samsung isn't too happy with this, as it considers the Exynos 5433 chip to be the fastest one available.
The lawsuit also includes claims of infringement eight patents - Nvidia would be violating six of them, while Velocity Micro (an Nvidia client) is accused of violating two.
In a response to Samsung's accusations, Nvidia posted a clarification online explaining they ran the benchmarks on the out-of-the-box units of the Galaxy Note 4 and the Shield tablet.

Samsung's lawsuit comes a couple of months after Nvidia took action against the Korean company and Qualcomm for infringing its own patents. Nvidia wants the ITC to block shipments of the Samsung Galaxy smartphones and tablets utilizing the Qualcomm Adreno, ARM Mali and Imagination PowerVR graphics chips. The company says a total of seven patents are infringed by these GPUs and it's the first time the it is initiating a patent lawsuit in its 21 years of history.
Nvidia brushed on its ongoing patent lawsuit with Samsung saying that they weren't surprised by the counter lawsuit but they are convinced their initial patent infringement case is moving forward and that it's "a far more serious problem" for Samsung.

Samsung Galaxy S6 to pack next-gen UFS memory

Korean newspaper ETNews has outed a report citing a Samsung insider, who claims the company is going to use a next-gen NAND flash storage in the upcoming Galaxy S6. The storage technology in question is called UFS 2.0, which stands for Universal Flash Storage.


UFS can reach SSD-like transfer speeds, but is cheap to manufacture like eMMC memory chips. In fact, it's three times faster than eMMC memory with a transfer speed of up to 1.2GB/s. Power consumption is lower than eMMC storage, which won't lead to battery drains or overheating. Recent UFS 2.0 technology development has lead to half the power consumption of eMMC 5.0, the source says.
The standard is established under the Joint Electron Device Engineering Council (JEDEC) initiative by Samsung, Nokia and Micron in 2007. Toshiba and SK Hynix are also involved in the development of the UFS 2.0 memory. Samsung is expected to start mass producing the new NAND flash storage in the coming weeks.
However, Samsung isn't alone doing this. Xiaomi is also reported to use UFS 2.0 NAND memory in its upcoming products. Samsung is very conscious of the advancements its Chinese rival is making. The company is now third behind Samsung and Apple is market share as per IDC's Q3 2014 report though that has reportedly changed now that Lenovo finally formally acquired Motorola.
Samsung is also going to slowly replace its SD and microSD cards with UFS tech inside in addition to smartphones. The first of them is very likely to be the Galaxy S6 followed by the Galaxy Note 5.
"UFS is an important element for our smart phone business next year. We will start the application centering on flagship smart phones,” the source inside Samsung shares. "However, we cannot disclose any details because the time of a new smart phone release next year and specifications of this new model have not been finalized."

LG unveils the Aka - a smartphone that has an eye on you

Sure, Siri can crack a joke, but can it really look at you? Of course it can't, silly, it doesn't have eyes – not like the LG Aka. Supposedly pronounced "aw-kuh", this Android-powered phone has eyes, which peek out from its case, and tries to establish an emotional connection with you.
There are four Akas, which more or less follow the color scheme of Pacman's ghosts and just like them have their own names and personalities. Eggy is yellow and easily falls in love, Wooky is white and is a bit of a bully, YoYo is pink and has difficulties sticking to its diet (so its weight yo-yo's) and Soul comes in Black and is a music lover. There's a backstory about the Akas, which involves an alien invasion.

The phone itself is a mid-ranger with ties to the LG G series. It features a 5" 720p screen, runs Android 4.4 KitKat on a 1.2GHz quad-core processor with 1.5GB RAM, an 8MP camera, 16GB of storage, a microSD card slot, LTE connectivity and a 2,610mAh battery.
The camera has the laser-assisted focus and the volume rocker and power button are placed on the back, which is the G series trademark. There's a 2MP front-facing camera, which can be used to snap selfies with your Aka (in lieu of real friends).
 
LG Aka: meet Eggy, Wooky, Soul and YoYo
The LG Aka's eyes react to you and serve as sort of notifications. They get dizzy when you shake the phone, they look down when you need to take the phone out of the case (i.e. there's a notification) and so on. Eye color changes from red to green to indicate different emotions.
You can buy different color cases, which lets you switch between Aka personalities. There's a point system associated with buying new accessories for your Aka, an interesting (if a bit questionable) monetization strategy from LG.


If you miss your Tamagotchi or Sims family – and live in South Korea – you can grab an LG Aka for KRW 500,000 ($455). It's not clear if it will be launched outside its home country.

Microsoft Lumia 535 goes official with 5” qHD display

The first Windows Phone smartphone to carry the Microsoft name is now a fact. The already leaked, entry-level Microsoft Lumia 535 will being rolling out to key markets this month in single or dual-SIM variants.

Microsoft Lumia 535 features Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 chipset with 1.2GHz quad-core CPU. There’s 1GB of RAM and 8GB of built-in memory, which can be further expanded via a microSD card slot.

The display of the handset is a 5” IPS unit with qHD resolution(960 x 540 pixels), enhanced sunlight readability, and Corning Gorilla Glass 3. A duo of 5MP cameras grace the front and the back of the Lumia 535. Combined with the 5” screen, they give the device a “5x5x5 smartphone package” moniker.

The physical measures of Microsoft Lumia 535 are 140.2 x 72.4 x 8.8mm, while its weight tips the scale at 146 grams. A 1,905mAh battery powers the smartphone.

The handset boots Windows Phone 8.1 with Lumia Denim. Naturally, it offers free access to the usual plethora of Microsoft services for free.
Microsoft Lumia 535 will be available in a plethora of characterful colors on its exchangeable back cover. It will cost around €110 before any taxes and subsidies.

Leak details where the Galaxy Note Edge will be sold

The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge may be a niche device, but it's one that's gotten a lot of people interested in it. On the other hand, Samsung's only confirmed its release in the US, Japan, and its home country of South Korea.
Yet if you were wondering where else the Note Edge will be sold, the latest rumor on the matter wants to deliver. We have, in fact, a full list of countries and territories in which to expect the Note Edge to be on store shelves at some point.

Here they are: Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, Luxembourg, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Poland, France, the Nordic countries, Austria, Portugal, Russia, Kazakhstan, India, Australia, Singapore, and Nepal.
Those are all the places where the Note Edge will be seen, according to this particular leak. Of course Samsung may expand this phablet's reach after a few months, but remember that the company said this would be a "limited edition concept". So for now, if you want one and aren't in the aforementioned countries, you're out of luck.
In Europe, you should expect to pay around €899 for the Note Edge, and its release date for Denmark has been set at December 12. It might become available around the same time in other European countries too, but nothing's certain just yet.

LG G3 will begin receiving Android 5.0 this week

LG G3 will begin receiving update to Android 5.0 Lollipop this week. The Korean manufacturer announced its OS upgrade plans shortly after an Android 5.0 ROM for its flagship leaked out.

The rollout of Android 5.0 to the handset will begin in Poland. More key markets will follow shortly.
The Korean giant is the first major smartphone manufacturer to deliver the latest Android build to its halo smartphone. LG will subsequently announce Android 5.0 upgrade schedule for the rest of its lineup of mobile devices.
As expected, Android 5.0 Lollipop will bring a host of improvements to the LG G3. They include new UI design language, new security features, as well as a brand new Android ART runtime.

Samsung Galaxy Note 5 likely to feature a 4K 6-inch AMOLED

Samsung has been teasing its development of a 4K AMOLED display for a long time now, but now a new piece of information suggests the first phone to brag with it is the Galaxy Note 5. According to a tip sent to PhoneArena, Samsung 4K AMOLED screen is 6" in diagonal and packs a pixel density of 743ppi.


Take this information with a pinch of salt, of course, but it's very likely for Samsung to be considering this. The Galaxy Note family of smartphones grow ever so larger in terms of display, so a 6" would be a logical evolutionary step for the Galaxy Note 5.
Moreover, a recent set of rumors suggest the Galaxy S6 will be powered by an Exynos 7420 chipset, which would have four Cortex-A57 cores and four Cortex-A53. We wouldn't be surprised to see this configuration in the Galaxy Note 5 as well.
Traditionally, Samsung launches a new Galaxy Note smartphone in the fall at IFA consumer show in Berlin, Germany. There's a lot of time until September 2015 and the Galaxy S6 is the first of Samsung's flagships to be anticipated.

WhatsApp update brings read reports to the messaging platform

Going forward you will know when people have read your WhatsApp messages. An stealthy update to the popular messenger brought the nifty feature onboard.



The new trick is as simple as its gets. When the recipient has read your message, the usual duo of grey check marks next to it turn blue.

The new functionality does not require you to update your app. It works on group messages too – the check marks turn blue when all participants have read the message.

Have you experienced the new WhatsApp feature yet? Tell us how you like it in the comments below.

Samsung Galaxy S6 gets first round of rumored specs

Sure, the Galaxy Note 4 might be doing pretty well in terms of sales (at least in some places), but that doesn't mean Samsung isn't already working on its next top of the line device. As you may have guessed, we're talking about the successor to the Galaxy S5 (pictured to the left).
The Galaxy S6 apparently has the codename Project Zero, and some unnamed "insiders" have allegedly come forward and shared a few of its specs.
The screen resolution will be QHD (2,560x1,440), just like that of the Note 4, which is hardly a surprise. The exact display size is still a mystery, though, possibly because Samsung execs haven't yet decided on it.
The rear camera will apparently be borrowed from the Galaxy Note 4 too, thus being a Sony-made IMX240. What's still up for debate over at Samsung HQ is whether to go for a 16 MP module or a 20 MP one. In either case, hopefully it will come with optical image stabilization.
The selfie snapper at the front will be bumped to 5 MP, matching the sensors in the recently unveiled Galaxy A series. Storage-wise, Samsung seems ready to move to 32GB as the new base level - so no more 16GB model. Handsets with 64 or 128GB of built-in storage will also be offered, and we assume the microSD expansion will stick around too.
In terms of chipset, the Galaxy S6 will be powered by an Exynos 7420, which is on track to be the company's first SoC with active 64-bit support. The Exynos 5433 in the Galaxy Note 4 is also technically 64-bit, but Samsung has only enabled 32-bit support for it until now. That might have something to do with the fact that Android will only work with 64-bit chipsets starting with version 5.0 (Lollipop).
Anyway, the Exynos 7420 should sport four Cortex-A57 cores and four Cortex-A53. It will get a new in-house developed modem, the Exynos Modem 333 (model SS333). This will replace the Intel modem found in older Exynos chips. Broadcom's BCM4773 will be inside too, and this combines Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS on the same chip, allowing for lower power consumption compared to devices on the market today.
The Galaxy S6 will also have a version powered by a Qualcomm SoC, as has been the tradition for many years now. The part used will be the Snapdragon 810, Qualcomm's first 64-bit high-end chipset.
Finally, we have the S6's model number to speak of. This will be SM-G920 or SM-G925, depending on carrier and local version. Since all of this comes from one source, don't forget your grain of salt. Now that the floodgates (of Galaxy S6-related rumors and leaks) have opened, we're sure we'll find out more pretty soon.

Galaxy Note 4 sales outpace the Note 3 in North America and EU

Samsung's Senior Vice President, Kim Hyun-joon, revealed that the Galaxy Note 4 sales in North America and Western Europe are doing great. In fact, in those regions the Note 4 is outpacing the sales of its predecessor, the Galaxy Note 3, from last year.


The senior exec added that Samsung expects Galaxy Note 4 sales to improve further in the following months. The holiday shopping season as well as the expanded availability of the phablet are all in the company's favor.
The Galaxy Note 4 hit the 4.5 million sales mark in a month after its September 26 launch, but that is 500,000 short of what its predecessor managed for the same period. Nevertheless, the jump in sales in the developed western markets is certainly making Samsung happy, as those regions traditionally have high concentrations of iPhones.
Samsung's Senior Vice President shared that in the short term the company will focus on maintaining stable double-digit margins. No more specifics were given, but we're yet to see the official Galaxy Note 4 sale numbers in the company's Q4 financial report.

Microsoft rebranding Nokia apps, memories.nokia.com to shut down

Microsoft is discontinuing the Nokia brand for its smartphones and is in the process of renaming Nokia-branded apps to “Lumia”. Some apps have already been rebadged but for some it’s a little harder – Nokia Cinemagraph used to host shared images on memories.nokia.com, but that’s shutting down and “memories” will be deleted come January.



Cinemagraphs stored on your phone will not be affected but if you have any on the Nokia site you’ll have to manually download a copy.

Microsoft is making sharing easier – a cinemagraph can be uploaded to OneDrive or shared on a social network like Facebook using the new app. It would have been nice to provide an automated transfer solution though.

The Nokia Camera app got rebranded Lumia Camera and an update will add Moment Capture and Rich Capture functionality. This update will be distributed to the Lumia 830, Lumia 930, Lumia Icon and Lumia 1520 along with the Lumia Denim update. Denim should roll out by the end of the year.

Microsoft details Lumia Denim update, coming this year

Microsoft has detailed the Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1 plus Lumia Denim upcoming firmware release. It is going to roll out by the end of this year and will be available to all Windows Phone 8-running Lumia phones.

The Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1 brings these new features:
Cortana: Updated in the US; Beta in the UK and China; Alpha in Australia, Canada and India.
Folders on the Start screen.
Apps Corner mode - very similar to Kid's mode - a separate and secure Start screen with customized access.
SMS merge and forwarding.
Consumer VPN.
Faster Internet Explorer.
Naturally all of these enhancements will be available to all Windows Phone 8-based smartphones, not just the Lumia range.
The Lumia Denim update is exclusive to Lumia devices though and also brings lots of new features:
Better and faster Lumia Camera app.
Faster photo snapping (not available on Lumia 1020, Lumia 920 and Lumia 925).
Moment Capture feature shooting 4K@24fps videos (sensor-dependent, may be limited to 1080p).
Rich Capture - Auto HDR and Dynamic Flash.
Improved image processing for even better photos.
"Hey Cortana" - voice activation (Lumia 930, Lumia Icon, Lumia 1520).
Better Glance Screen with Bing Weather, Bing Health & Fitness.
So, Lumia Denim running on top of the Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1 will be coming before the end of the year. Not all features from Denim will make it to all devices, but at least Microsoft is doing its best to keep everything up to date. Are you excited about the new update?

5.5-inch Samsung Galaxy Grand 3 benchmarked with 64-bit CPU

The Samsung Galaxy Grand will grow into its name with a 5.5" version, which left its footsteps in the GFXBench database. The phone was dubbed "Galaxy Grand 3" by the rumor mill and features a bigger, 5.5" screen – up 0.25" on the Grand 2.
The new large-screened mid-ranger has been upgraded from head to toe. The 5.5" screen has 720p resolution (unlike the recent Galaxy Grand Prime) and is powered by a 64-bit processor inside the Snapdragon 410 chipset – quad Cortex-A53 at 1.2GHz, 1.5GB of RAM and Adreno 306 GPU. The phone ran Android 4.4.4 KitKat for the benchmark.


The Galaxy Grand 3 retains the 5MP selfie camera of the Grand Prime but upgrades the main camera to 13MP stills. Both cameras can record 1080p video. There was 12GB user-available storage, with 4GB going to Android and TouchWiz.
There's no info on when the Samsung SM-G7200 - that's the model number of the Galaxy Grand 3 - will launch (rumors say in a few weeks), but it has already been certified for Bluetooth 4.0 compliance.

Android in October: KitKat distribution share edges past 30%

Google released the Android distribution report for the month of October. Unsurprisingly, Android 4.4 KitKat continued its march towards bigger distribution share - it now boots on more than 30% of all devices out there.

Android 4.1, 4.2, and 4.3 Jelly Bean is still the most dominant OS version with 50.9% share. However, it is down almost 3% from the month of September.
The three-year old Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is still booting on 8.5% of all devices. Android 2.3 Gingerbread on the other hand saw its distribution share drop into single digits to 9.8%.
The latest Android 5.0 Lollipop will likely appear on the map during next month’s distribution report.

HTC to update One M8 and M7 to Lollipop within 90 days

HTC has announced that it will be updating the HTC One M8 and M7 to Android 5.0 Lollipop within 90 days from now. The company claims to have received the source code from Google and is working on the update.


It's rather odd that HTC is receiving the source code now, considering Google is supposed to provide the source code to OEMs in advance as they had promised earlier. Also, HTC made the Nexus 9, so they clearly had access to Lollipop source code before this.
Anyway, if you have an M7 or an M8, expect to hear from HTC soon regarding the update. No word on when the other phones will be getting the update.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge kicks off in the USA on Nov 7

Samsung has just announced the availability of the Galaxy Note Edge for the United States. The smartphone will become available as early as this week and major operators will be carrying it.
Samsung Galaxy Note Edge was announced back at IFA expo in September, but later Samsung specified it will be a limited availability device. NTT DoCoMo and KDDI in Japan were the first to offer the Note Edge, but now its reach is expanding beyond Asia.

All major carriers - AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and U.S. Cellular - will be getting the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge by the end of this week. It will be available with a two-year agreement or SIM-free. Aside from the carriers, you will be able to get the unique phablet from the Samsung Experience Shop in Best Buy and some other unspecified retailers.
AT&T was the first to detail the Galaxy Note Edge availability - it will go on sale urchase on November 7. As expected the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is quite a pricy device - it costs $399.99 with a two-year contract or $945.99 if you go contract-free. Naturally AT&T Next lease options are available as well.
We guess the other carriers will offer similar pricing to AT&T's and the release date should be around the same time.
Just a quick reminder - the SIM-enables Samsung Gear S smartwatch is also set to launch on November 7 in the USA, so you might want to pair your new Note with the powerful Gear S.