As you all know Verizon has announced the Droid DNA will be Free until May 21. Who knows this could be to rid stores of stock to clear the way for another device. Verizon has also mentioned that they will be making a HUGE announcement on May 22.

A new device with the model ID PNO73XX has just passed WIFI certification and is headed to Verizon. Apparently this device is the same device as the internal model ID M7_WLV. We know the “M7″ to be the HTC One! This is pretty convincing. It has been pretty well accepted that we would not see an HTC One on Verizon since HTC was not willing to allow the One to be bloated down with Verizon Garbage. Instead we were expecting to see an updated version of the Droid DNA. Maybe Verizon has seen the crazy success of the HTC One on other networks, and has come to their senses.

What do you guys think? Will we be seeing an HTC One on Verizon? If so are you buying it instead of the S4 or do you already have that phone preordered?

Via DroidForums

The best device hands down of 2012 in my eyes is now FREE! That’s right Verizon has announced that this behemoth Super phone will be free until may 21. This phone was released back in November, but it can still hang with the new kids on the block. It features the first 5″ 1080p screen to land stateside, a super ridiculous fast quad core processor. This phone is a complete steal for FREE! Head to the source link below and supply your email address to receive the special promotional offer!

Via Verizon

If you happened to be at work yesterday then you probably missed out on the livestream of the Google I/O keynote! Apparently you missed plenty. Many had said that the Larry Page speech was super inspirational and very much worth watching. Google has published this event so you can watch it at your convenience.

This Am Google announced that Wallet is now available on the Sprint variants of the Galaxy S4, Note2, and HTC One. What in the heck is Verizon waiting for. I really wish they would just give up the whole Isis thing and just accept Google Wallet like the rest of the major carriers. What are your thoughts are you holding out hope that Big Red will one day come to their senses and prohibit the blocking off this great product on our device? Or are you ready for  Isis to be unleashed?

Via Google+

The new Google Hangouts video from Google features a split second clip that features the all new Nexus 7. Well at least that is what is perceived. There has been no word at all from Google as to whether or not the Nexus 7 will be updated. In fact the only hardware news that we have seen from Google I/O has been the Nexus experience Samsung Galaxy S4 phone. I had fully expected to see a new Nexus 7 and even a Nexus 10 at I/O. It seems like the smart thing to do since the first version was popular enough to keep the tablet out of stock at release. My only guess is that maybe Google did not have the updated tablets ready in time and they will be made available within the next few months. I really hope we don’t have to wait until the fall.

Until now Google has not had the ability to save achievements. Google Play game services is much like Apple’s Game Center it will allow you to store achievements cloud save, match making, and leaderboards. This also works across platforms so it can be implemented by developers on Android, IOS, and the internet. No more loosing a save point when switching phones or Roms!

Via TheVerge 

The most exciting news coming out of Google I/O today has to be Google’s unveiling of the Stock Android Galaxy S4! This is huge in my opinion. This means that OEMs like Samsung are aware of the vocal few. We have been asking for skinless devices from these OEMs, and have been demanding unlocked bootloaders, and now Samsung delivers! If this were available on Verizon I would order one today since they are currently my carrier. For now I will keep my VZW S4 preorder. I kind of feel sorry for the folks who just shelled out big bucks for the TW variant of this same device on their carrier. I am sure some of them would have rather had this phone. I wonder if other OEMs are even considering this sort of option for their upcoming devices? If not we always have Cyanogen Mod!

Via Google I/O

You may have noticed around lunchtime today that your Google Talk went haywire! That is because today at Google I/O the new Hangouts was released! This will officially replace Talk. Hangouts allows you to finally share photos during chat sessions and includes new emojis. Video calls can now be held between up to 10 people at a time. This could kill skype in my opinion. You can watch public hangouts on air. The neatest part about Hangouts is that it works across platforms. You can get the app for IOS, Android and Chrome OS. This means that you could have a video chat between someone on an Ipad and someone on a Nexus10! This is great news for me as my wife has an Ipad and I have a Nexus Tablet! Is anyone else stoked about this?!

via Google

That awesome new unified messaging service by Google should be called Hangouts according to sources who alos claim that we will see it launched at Google I/O. This is pretty good news. The message service will be cross platform bringing Google message services to the iphone and other operating systems. It will also unify the plethora of Google services. No new information on the service itself has been released. I guess we will see if the product is worth the hype in a few days. I have a feeling it will be.

Via AndroidGuys

Google glass has been coined as “the future of mobile tech”. It has been talked about on all the tech shows and blogs. Many of you are probably just as curious as me about this device, and what it actually does. The video above gives some real life examples of just how Google Glass works. This has to be one of the best videos out there that shows exactly what you see on the screen, and how it will actually appear. It shows just exactly how this could really be used in our day to to day lives. The more I see the product in action the more I become a fan.

After seeing exactly how it works do you think this is something you could ever see yourself using on  a day to day basis?

Via Phandroid

HTC Sense 5.1 has been leaked for the Butterfly. This build features Android 4.2.2. This should quickly be ported to the HTC One and the Droid DNA. This build includes quick settings with brightness controls and other toggles. It looks like HTC is getting serious about bringing updates to their devices which  is great news!

Via Rootzwiki

Nothing has been confirmed or official about the Unicorn device “X phone” by Motorola so it is hard to say that the project has been “abandoned” by Google. However there have been so many leaks and rumors of an upcoming device by Motorola that many people are anxiously awaiting it’s arrival.

Analyst Sun Chang Xu out of China thinks that the project may have been scrapped by Google, and handed back over to Motorola for further production. The reason being that the “X Phone” is just not innovative enough. This doesn’t mean that the X Phone won’t continue to be developed, just that it won’t be developed by Google. Keep in mind that this is just an observation by a well known analyst, and take that for what its worth.

Via DroidForums

Well that didn’t take long. The Facebook bloat phone has been officially reduced from $99 to $.99. I am still not sure that anyone will buy this. Facebook Home was really strange to me and I loaded it to my Galaxy Note 2 and only kept it for about 2 hours before i was really sick of it. Chat heads is interesting and I would love to see some form of that integrated into Google services. Other than that I can’t believe this device has had as much attention as it has. Is anyone interested in this device for $.99? I think it should be free. You couldn’t pay me to use it!

On the bright side you can actually turn off Facebook Home in the settings and you get stock Android! The specs are pretty sweet for $.99. The decision is a bit more difficult when you consider these points.

Via AT&T

Take it with a grain of salt. EvLeaks has been known for being spot on in the past, but they have also passed along a few images over time that have turned out to be blatant fakes. The image above shows a Blue Razr HD, Blue Razr M, and Razr M Employee edition. Who knows if or when Verizon will release these Blue devices for public consumers. You can bet someone list their’s on ebay for $1,000 if this ends up being an employee exclusive.

What do you think? Does a blue version of the RAZR HD series support an earlier rumor that Motorola is looking to allow you to customize your device by offering tons of color options for future devices?

Via Twitter EvLeaks

AT&T has confirmed that the LG Optimus G Pro will land on their network on May 10. It will set you back $199 with a 2 year agreement. Specs are pretty outstanding fro this device. Th Optimus G Pro comes loaded with a Quad-Core 1.7ghz processor, 2GB Ram, a 5.5″ 1080p HD display, and a huge 314o mah battery. It is running Jelly Bean 4.1.2 out of the box. The device comes with 32GB of internal storage, am impressive 13mp rear facing camera, and 2.1 mp HD front facing camera.

AT&T will make this device available for preorder on May 3.

Via AT&T

Last week there was a benchmark for a “Google X” phone that stirred up a bit of excitement. Today a new Motorola device labeled “XT1055″ was benchmarked. Could this be the X-Phone? Who knows what this really is. It is by Motorola and we know that they have something coming down the pipeline.

Specs for this device include a SnapDragon 600 Quad-Core Processor clocked at 1.7GHz and 4.2.2 Jelly Bean operating system. The Antutu score is 18252. This could be a prototype or nothing at all. What do you guys think?

Via PhoneArena 

If you have considered shelling out the crazy cash that it would take to buy Google Glass you should check out the video above. It shows you the Google Glass UI using screen cast! Everything looks to be pretty simple. It is not nearly as flashy as I had imagined it to be in my mind. It is really neat to finally see first hand just exactly how Google Glass works.

What do you guys think? Pretty cool?

If  you preordered your Verizon Galaxy S4 a few days back I have some bad news for you. Only the 16GB variant was made available for preorder. It looks like the 16GB model only has 9GB of usable storage out of the box. That really isn’t much room. That is what you get when Samsung decides to add a million features.

The good news is that all U.S. variants have already been rooted! This means you will be able to install Titanium Backup and easily remove all the bloat ware which should free up some space.

What are your thoughts? Should OEMs only advertise usable storage? Or atleast include an astrick and explain the amount of usable storage?

Via Geek.com

If you don’t like the sub premium feel of the plastic back plate that comes with your Samsung Galaxy S4 no worries. There are some metal covers showing up on ebay. They come in just about any color you can think of to add not only a bit of a higher end feel but also a bit of customization! Who needs a case. You can grab this back plate for only $10.

Via Ebay / Droid-Life

SamMobile has obtained an allegedly leaked roadmap for upcoming Samsung products. There are many tablets listed in the roadmap, but what has to be the most interesting device listed is the Nexus 11. According to the document the Specs will still need to be approved by Google.

NEXUS 11*
- 11” Super PLS TFT
- 8 Megapixel
- 2 Megapixel
- Octa-Core A15 / A7 (Exynos 5410)
- Micro SD 64 GB (Rumoured)
* Needs to get approvement from Google (Worlds first Octa-Core tablet)

These are some pretty serious specs. This may not come to Google I/O which is just around the corner, but this very well may be the next version of the Google Tablet! Who is willing to part with their money for this?!

Via SamMobile

While Motorola thinks “bigger isn’t always better” Samsung continues to go with massive screens. The next version of the Galaxy Note series is being rumored to come with a 5.99″ mega screen. The Note2 came with a 5.5″ screen which often gives my thumb cramps, and I often find myself adjusting the device in my hand to reach different things on the screen. The image above is not of the Note3, but gives you an idea of what we might expect. Three designs are being considered. A Galaxy s4 like design, a totally new design, and a design featuring a flexible screen. This could be great for someone who really wants a tablet but just can’t see the point in purchasing two devices.

Other specs said to come with the Note3 include 1080p display, Exynos 5 Octa Core Processor clocked at 2.0GHz, 3GB RAM, and Android 4.2.2. Of course we have also seen other rumors stating the screen could be up to 6.3″ stemming from the Samsung game controller which supports screens up to that size. What are your thoughts. What is the maximum size you would be willing to tolerate from a SmartPhone screen?

via mobilsyrup

One of the best keyboards ever is finally available on the Play Store! It is only .99 for a limited time so you will want to pick it up now! If you grab it now you will have it for life. It is included on some Samsung devices, but now you can have it on any device! The keyboard not only allows you to swype your words it also is pretty good at predicting text and also has a speech feature as well.

Via Play Store

The day has finally come! Verizon has opened up pre-orders for the Samsung Galaxy S4. You may have a bit of trouble getting the order page to load as it is being flooded with traffic at the time. If you decide to order over the phone you will be holding for a while as well. The phone will set you back $199 on a 2 year contract or $649 if you buy it outright!

I have ordered mine and was told that it would ship by May 30. That is a full month after everyone else gets it. Oh well. Who else is pre-ordering this phone?

Verizon Wireless

Yesterday a Benchmark for a phone named “Google X” running Android 5.0.1 with a cpu clocked at 1.5Ghz made an appearance on Antutu. The score is 15,479 which is a far cry from benchmarks by the HTC One and the Galaxy S4 which are getting scores in the 25,000-28,000 range. Who knows this could be a very early test model. It could be a hoax. Their have been rumors that we would see a Motorola X device at Google I/O, but it looks like we will see a revamped Nexus 4 instead. Most people had assumed this meant that we would not se the X phone until the fall.

What do you guys think? Is this real?

Via PhoneArena

It is a bummer but it was to be expected. Google has been putting out a Nexus phone once a year in the fall for the past several years. This is what I was expecting for the Nexus 5. Google will be revamping the Nexus 4. It will still be manufactured by LG. It should have 32GB on board and should release with the next version of Android 5.0. Who knows we may get lucky and see an LTE variant for Sprint and Verizon.

If an LTE version is coming are you skipping the Galaxy S4 for an LTE Nexus 4?

Via Sidhtech

A few days ago Verizon announced a new Device Payment Plan similar to T-Mobile. After the petition reached over 100,000 views Verizon has decided to give us what we want! With the new plan you will be able to purchase a device at full cost over a 12 month period if you are qualified. The plan includes a $2 per device finance charge each month. The Device Payment Plan will allow you to upgrade whenever you want, and it will not in any way affect your current plan. Which means if you have the unlimited data plan you would now be able to upgrade and keep your current unlimited data plan! This is pretty exciting news. There are a few stipulations with the new Device Payment Plan.

You will be able to use this with phones costing $349 or more. You have 12 months to pay for the phone or tablet in full. There is a finance charge of $24 broken down in to 12 payments of $2 per month. You can choose to use Data Share and Share Everything Plans. You can pay the full balance of the phone at any time. You can only have 2 installment plans per customer with approved credit. You can only have installments for $1000 at a time.

This system could really work well for those of us who love to have the latest and greatest devices at all times!

Via Droid-Life

Here is some exciting news to get your day started! We still have no release date from Big Red on a release date for the Samsung Galaxy S4. For now we can only sign up for updates from Samsung.com. However BestBuy is sending out text messages to let folks know that you can stop by the store to make your preorder as early as today! I doubt if you will be able to extract any information on a release date form Best Buy employees. Hopefully we will hear something more exact from Verizon then “Sometime in May”.

Via Droid-Life

One sure fire way of picking up several thousand youtube views is to simply destroy all the latest devices. I am not sure why people love to watch these, but I guess it would be the same reason people can’t turn their heads when a train wrecks. Anyhow the above video shows a guy murdering a Brand New Galaxy S4 with a couple of butter knives and some pennies. It was no surprise that the Gorilla Glass of the S4 stood up pretty well.

Samsung has released their official lineup of Samsung Accessories for the Galaxy S4. My favorite has to be the S View cover case which allows you to get info like the time, date, and notifications from your device without actually having to open up the flip cover. They have also released a spare battery package which includes a spare battery and charger that doubles as a desk stand. The familiar Flip Cover has been launched in an assortment of colors. Some of the higher end accessories include a wireless charging pad, Galaxy S4 Gamepad, MHL HDTV adaptor, and more. You will probably want to stock up on these accessories since the device is coming to Verizon in the coming weeks.

Via Samsung Accessories

Today Verizon tweeted over their VZWNews handle that they would be releasing their variant of the highly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S4 in May. That is all they have given us so far with a promise to bring more details soon. I expect for the device to arrive on Verizon a week or two after it releases on the other major networks. This is what we have come to expect from Verizon. Who knows maybe we will get lucky and see this release on May 1, but I wouldn’t hold your breath. Think more like May 16th.

Via @VZWNews

Rumors abound for the upcoming X phone by Motorola! We have heard nothing from Google or Motorola specifically about this device. We have heard from plenty of sources that the phone coming down the pipeline is not impressive and others that it is ground breaking. Lately we have heard all kinds of rumors about the X Phone being very customizable. Yesterday we heard that the device would come with a “right size” screen, and that the phone would be designed around that idea that “better is better” instead of “bigger is better”.

Today phonearena sources are saying that the Motorola X Phone will be available in 20 different colors. Apparently you won’t be able to customize the phone in the way of hardware specs, rather the customization will come with the outward appearance of the phone. Would this sway you from purchasing another device? Color on its own would not sway me in any way. This phone will need to have more up its sleeve to impress me.

Sprint and T-mobile have each officially announced availability and pricing for the Galaxy S4! Sprint will have the device on April 27th and you can grab it for $250 on contract unless of course you are coming from another network and porting your old number to sprint in which case you will receive $100 off. Not bad. Sprint will also have preorders starting tomorrow.

T-mobile is getting away from subsidized pricing, and you will be able to snatch an S4 on their network for $150 down. You will then be able to pay monthly for the device until it is paid in full. T-Mo will have the device ready for you to purchase on April 24th.

Via AndroidPolice

The Galaxy S4 is finally here. Today Samsung put out a press release stating that the new S4 will be available on seven U.S. carrier networks including Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Cricket, C-Spire, and US Cellular. It will be available at many retail stores as well. Samsung says that the phone will be released across carriers before the end of this month. We should see specific release information coming from various carriers throughout the day. I am just hoping Verizon actually jumps on the ball and launches on day one with everyone else!

Via Samsung

This morning the Verizon Galaxy S4 popped up on Samsung’s site. This device was announced several weeks ago, but we have not heard anything from Verizon on availability or a release date. The device will come in Black Myst or White Frost. The Verizon version will not include an ugly Verizon branded home button which is quite refreshing. A leaked Staples roadmap has this device releasing on May 30th. This will be a few weeks later than everyone else.

Via Samsung

Here is some pretty exciting news! It looks like the next lineup of Motorola devices will come preloaded with Stock Android! The devices will also use the “right size” of display. Moto is deciding to use a “better is better” vs “bigger is better” mentality. Apparently these devices will have very slim bezels, displays being nearly edge to edge, much like the RazrM.

According to PC Mag these phones will be perfect for those who love stock android and normal sized displays. They should be released sometime in the second half of this year, and should be released under one brand! This may be the end of the line for the “Droid” lineup at least from Moto.

I looks like the device will be sold through google like the Nexus lineup. These devices will come with no bloat while devices brought directly from carriers may have some branded apps.

Via AndroidGuys

Eric Schmidt announced today at Dive Into Mobile that Google is now seeing 1.5million new activations of Android per day! That is staggering. The company is now on track for 1 billion total devices by the end of the year. Eric Schmidt says that the key to getting the next 5 billion people who are looking to get connected is to reach the $100 price point which they are getting close to.

Via Endgadget

AT&T has begun their Galaxy S4 preorders today as expected. Apparently they are having trouble keeping the site up due to the overwhelming demand. You can choose from White Frost or Black Mist each in 16GB for $199 on a two year contract. AT&T expects to ship these phones by April 30th with the phones in hand by May 3rd. AT&T also hopes to have preorders for the 32GB variant in the coming days!

As if my Note 2 were not big enough or borderline too big Samsung has announced a series of even larger behemoth devices.

The Galaxy Mega 5.8 will be a high end DUOS smartphone.  It will come with a 5.8″ qHD display 960×540 TFT, an 8mp rear facing camera, 2mp front facing camera, a dual-core processor clocked at 1.4GHz, 1.5GB RAM, and a 2600mAh battery. The phone will run Android 4.2.2 with the Nature UX interface.

The Galaxy Mega 6.3 will have a 6.3″PLS HD display, 8mp rear camera, 2mp front camera, dual-core processor clocked at 1.7GHZ, 1.5GB RAM, 3200mAh battery. It will also run Android 4.2.2 with the Nature UX Interface. There is said to be an LTE variant of this device.

Are these phones getting to big? My Note 2 is 5.5″ and my thumb tends to cramp up using it. I feel like 5″ really is the sweet spot. Any bigger and the device becomes a bit cumbersome as a phone. What are your thoughts?

Via SamMobile

It looks like we definitely won’t be seeing the Motorola X Phone at Google I/O this year. That early rumor was a long shot anyhow. Newer rumors had the phone slated to release in June or July, however there is word from sources close to the situation that are saying the phone won’t actually be released until August and maybe even later. Apparently the phone is still in the early prototype phase.

It should have a 4.7″ 1080p nearly edge to edge display,  and is said to look much like previously leaked photos. The prototype has no sdcard and runs a slightly modified version of Android 4.2.

Via PhoneArena

For the longest time Verizon’s “new every two” allowed the main line to be upgraded once a year. A while back Verizon decided to extend that to once every 20 months. Today they announced that they would allow you to upgrade your device on the 24th month of the contract.

A new phone every year works for me because batteries generally do not last as long as the phone itself. Lots of newer devices come with non removable batteries. The devices are getting more advanced, and most devices you can buy today would last for at least two years if not longer. However devices that have non removable batteries may become an issue for some people.

I imagine Verizon had kept the upgrade eligibility at 20 months for a while to help keep more people on board with their service. In the long run Verizon may make a few more bucks per device, but they may end up shooting themselves in the foot. If you must wait until the final month of your contract to update to a new device why not just hold out until the very end, and then shop around for service that may suite you better.

What do you guys think? Is this a poor move by Verizon?

Via Verizon

Facebook Home is finally here. There were some apps leaked earlier in the week but Facebook quickly shut those down. If you have not picked up a Facebook first phone then you have not had a chance to play with Facebook home. It is now available on select devices in the US.

Facebook home is a new launcher that puts your friends front and center on your phone. It gives you a live feed when you turn the phone on. There are also upfront notifications. Facebook messenger was also updated earlier today to include chat heads.

Via Play Store

The Droid DNA had an unlocked boot loader weeks after it was released. For some the thought of fully functional, even possibly Cyanogen Mod seemed to be the next major leap for this device. An unlocked boot loader in and of itself does not spell sure support by the dev community. It is vital for the developers to be able to obtain source code from the OEM in order to make everything work with Roms on a particular device.

Today HTC released Source code for the Verizon Droid DNA! This is pretty outstanding news. So far the development community has been able to get CM ported over to the device with just a few bugs mainly audio that have kept the Rom from being official. Hopefully they will be able to tie up any loose ends now that they have access to source from HTC!

Via HTCDev

Google has updated the Play store to 4.0. It has a much cleaner look and feel. It has the new Holo look and feel and features big cards with big pictures and a new quick action menu button that will allow you to add content to your wish list or install on the fly without leaving your current page. Overall the Play Store looks much cleaner and more fluid!

Download 

We are all expecting a new version of the Nexus 7 and 10 at Google I/O which is just around the corner. If you still have not purchased your very own first gen Nexus 7 you are in luck as it seems retailers are beginning to reduce the price of the first gen to maker room for the upcoming tablets. Ebay is featuring a refurbished 32GB Nexus 7 for the low price of $189. These are listed as being manufacturer refurbished. Shipping is FREE which makes this deal even better!

Grab One Here Ebay

Via Droid-Life

Today Google has begun the rollout process for their newly designed Play Store. We have seen leaked images popping up all week long, but now it is official. The new design puts content front and center with larger pictures, and a whole new layout. You will be able to discover more content and have an overall better browsing experience.

Google said the following on its blog:

The new design focuses on bigger images that jump off the page. Similarly themed content is grouped together so you can hone in on a magazine to read or an app to try. As you move down the page, new recommendations continue to appear so there is always more to see and explore. We’ve also simplified purchasing so you can breeze through checkout and get to enjoying your movie rental or other content.

I am patiently awaiting this update on my Galaxy Note 2. The rollout should be completed on all devices Froyo and within the next few weeks. Has anyone out there seen this update? What do you think?

Via PhoneBuff, AndroidBlog

Disney has been putting out some pretty popular games on Android lately. Four of those games Where’s My Water, Wreck It Ralph, Where’s My Perry, Temple Run Brave, are all Free on the playstore now. They should be free going forward since it is Google’s policy that once an app goes free it can’t be paid after that.

Wreck it Ralph, Where’s My Water, Where’s My Perry, Temple Run Brave

Here is some pretty exciting news for those of you that reside in Austin, TX. Google is expanding their super network “Google Fiber”! This is pretty exciting! Hopefully this becomes more than just a project. Google officially announced that they would bring their Gigabit internet service to Austin Texas which will make it the second city to receive Google’s graces. Kansas City is the only other city for now. I am hoping that eventually they will decide to blanket the whole nation with Gigabit internet. If not I may have to more to Austin!

Via Droid-Life

This is too cool. A kickstarter project is developing a great resolution to a problem may of us have faced. Some devices like the droid dna, and the Nexus tablets do not have an external SD card slot for expanding memory. This can be quite a pain on devices that have limited internal memory.

Their SDcard reader is a small dongle, smaller than a quarter, that connects to the mini usb drive on your phone. The phone will recognize it has device internal memory! This does not require root. It works out of the box for many devices such as S3, Note2, RazrHd, DroidDNA and many more! If you pledge $8 you get your very own card reader once they are released!

Via AndroidPolice , KickStarter

Samsung has announced their next mid-tier device. The Samsung Win will have a 4.7″ 800×800 display, 1.2ghz quad-core processor, 1GB of Ram, 5mp rear shooter, VGA front camera, 8GB of internal memory, micro sdcard slot, 2,000 mah battery, and Android 4.1. This phone actually looks to be a pretty sweet device for a mid range phone. If it comes for free with a contract it may be worth saving your $249 that you would have otherwise spent on the awesomeness that is the Galaxy S4. This would also be a great gift for grandma , or your bratty little niece.  Is anyone this interested in saving a few hundred bucks?

Via Samsung Tomorrow 

SamMobile has confirmed specs on two upcoming Galaxy Devices labeled “Mega”. Earlier today they confirmed a screen size of 5.8″ on a device and then a bit later they received some information that another device would be coming with a 6.3″ device. This tends to add up. Why else would Samsung sell a game pad accessory that was compatible with devices that have up to a 6.3″ screen?

The Galaxy Mega 6.3 will be rocking a 6.3″ PLS HD Display, 8mp rear facing camera, 2mp front facing camera, a dual-core processor clocked at 1.7ghz, 1.5GB of RAM, and a 3200 mah battery. How big is too big. My Note2 has a 5.5″ display and I often feel that i have to reach uncomfortably to access the whole screen. A 6.3″ device would probably be a no go for me. If it is too big Samsung is also said to be bringing a 5.8″ Mega phone to market.

Via SamMobile

In the U.S. consumers have become accustomed to getting what is perceived to be a “cheap” device in exchange for signing a 2 year contract. This ends up costing consumers more since they have to pay higher rates for service. Europeans generally pay full price for their phones then have the ability to carry that device that they own to whichever carrier has the best coverage and best deals on service.

This model would really make carriers focus on customers. If you provide the best service at the best price consumers will use your network when they aren’t swayed by cheap phones. Verizon CEO, Lowell McAdam, has expressed interest in doing away with contracts in lieu of customers paying full price for a phone and having smaller monthly bills, similar to what T-mobile has started, if that is what consumers want. He said that he would be watching T-mobile’s customer feedback to see if this would be a good direction for Verizon to go.

Would this be good for you? Would you prefer to pay a bit more for your device and less overall with cheaper monthly bills?

Via Cnet 

Htc has just made their Developer edition (unlockable bootloader) is now available for pre order. This takes all the headaches out of modifying your device. You will easily be able to flash whatever you want to your device. It is not the most desirable solution as it makes Rom development for the device less likely unless the secure consumer version is unlocked, but it is better than nothing. You can grab the Dev edition for $649 without a contract here.

They have also made a sim unlocked version available. This version will work on AT&T and T-mobile HSPA+ as well as T-mobile LTE. It will only set you back $575. You can grab it here.

Now if only it worked on the Verizon network I would be all set!

Via HTCDev

The video above gives a quick walkthrough of Facebook Home on the HTC First. Facebook Home’s core focus is to bring your friends directly to your screen. Swipe through photos on your lockscreen, double tap to like, bubble pop up for whose liked and commented. Facebook notifications are built directly into your system notifications. There is a demonstration of Chat Heads messaging service. This actually looks pretty interesting for anyone who is a Facebook addict. Do you think you will ever be able to talk to your Mom in real life again once she gets her hands on this?

Via Phandroid

We have all seen the miniature Apple Stores in Best Buy. They look nice but there is rarely anyone who is very knowledgeable there to help you in any real capacity. With Samsung growing its market share daily we knew it would only be a matter of time before we saw a Samsung type store inside Best Buy. This had been rumored for quite some time. Personally I hope the Samsung Experience Shops take up more space than the Apple shops. I think Samsung has more to offer with their various phones and tablets. Best Buy should have 900 of these shops open by May, and 1400 overall by year’s end. Maybe these will help Samsung to covert even more apple heads.

Via BestBuy

I have these two things to say about a new Launcher for Android by Facebook. First why can’t we get an app that scrolls as quickly as Google+ and get contact syncing with high resolution photos before focusing on an exclusive handset with an exclusive launcher?

That being said the Facebook Home doesn’t look half bad.. albiet maybe a bit creepy. You get a group of apps which include a new lockscreen that gives you essentially a slideshow of status updates and photos from your news feed, a new app launcher, and notifications with Facebook Chat Head (which looked pretty neat but what a cheesy name). This will be available on the Play Store on April 12th for some phones. It won’t be available for tablets. The Facebook First Phone will be the only device with Home preinstalled and will be available on April 12th for $100 on contract.

Thought?

9t05google has posted some images that they say are the new Facebook UI “Facebook Home” for the HTC device named “Facbook First” set to be announced tomorrow. It looks like they have made several changes to the Android experience including a new app drawer, the phone is obviously preloaded with facebook and facebook messenger apps, plus a whole new home/lockscreen. It appears to be a forked version of Android much like the Kindle Fire’s version of Android. This still has all of the Google apps and services included however. What do you guys think?

Via Droid-Life

For Samsung 500 million mobile phones actually may not be all that lofty of a goal! They sold just under 400 million phones in 2012. They are hoping that the release of the Galaxy S4 and the Note3 will propel them to a whole new level. Samsung was really just beginning to edge out competitors as the number one OEM when the Galaxy S3 released last summer. By now they are a household name. They look to grow their market share even more this year by continuing to expand their brand recognition with more witty ads and product placement. There are also some compelling mid tier devices coming later this year like the Galaxy S4 mini and the Galaxy Win that could push them over the 500 Million device mark. What do you think? Can they do it?

Via Digitimes

AT&T made some clarifications today on the pricing structure of the upcoming Galaxy S4. They will sell the 16GB model for $199 and the 32GB model for $249. This is likely the price structure that we can expect across carriers.

AT&T had initially announced the price of the 16GB model would be $249. It is unclear why they lowered the price. Maybe it was a mistake or maybe they got enough hate mail to change their minds. Either way we are happy with the price reduction.

Via AT&T

Rueter’s sources are saying that the next generation of Nexus7 devices will release in July and they will come with a Snapdragon Qualcomm processor instead of an Nvidia chip. They did state that the next tablet will be made by ASUS again. Apparently the decision was made for the Snapdragon chip because of “power reasons”. The next Nexus7 will come with a higher resolution display and an overall smaller bezel than the original model. Google may decide to release the new version for $199. It is likely that we will have final details on this device in May when Google I/O comes around.

Via Reuters

Evleaks is normally a pretty good source for phone specs and design leaks. They have leaked out some images of the Facebook HTC “First” phone that is expected to be announced in San Francisco tomorrow morning. It looks like the phone will e available in black, red, white, and blue. Rumored specs have the device sporting a Dual Core Snapdragon S4 plus, 1GB RAM, 5MP rear facing camera, 1.6MP front facing camera,  Sense 4.5, Android 4.1.2, and a 4.3″ 720p display. Of course the device should come with a whole new android home screen experience. This looks to be a great device for teens and facebook addicts. I guess we will see exactly what Zuck and friends have up their sleeves tomorrow.

Via Evleaks

It is difficult to decipher the news on a day like today. Obviously there has been plenty of trolling going on today all across the web. Google began their fooling last night, and have continued through the day. I thought it would be fun to compile a list of some of the best April Fool pranks that I have seen today on the web. Hope you weren’t fooled by any of these today.

Read More…

The above image was leaked by an anonymous source to Engadget. While there has been no official confirmation of a release schedule from any of the major carriers, we can see what AT&T is planning for their HTC One release. Preorders will go live at retail locations on April 5th while online presales will begin a day earlier. A 32 GB model in both black and silver will be $249.99 while. As soon as this is announced by AT&T you can likely expect an announcement from both T-mobile and Sprint. Verizon customers may be out of the loop on a new HTC device for a while longer.

Via Engadget

The Samsung Exynos official twitter account has confirmed that the Exynos 5 Octa CPU supports 20 bands of LTE. I had mentioned this in my “Everything You Need To Know About The Galaxy S4” video. So why not include the new chip across all cell phones. The initial guess was that it did not support LTE therefor it would not be included. Now that we know that is not the case why in the world wouldn’t Samsung just bless us with eight cores of goodness?!

It looks like the decision to not include the Exynos 5 is more a supply issue. The Snapdragon is apparently much easier to obtain in the quantities that Samsung needs in those markets releasing with the Qualcomm 600. Perhaps the Exynos 5 has not reached the level of quality necessary for release on LTE and needs a few more tweaks. Who knows maybe we will see this chipset in the upcoming Note3 when it releases later in the fall.

Via PocketNow

A unified Google chat service has been rumored for the past few weeks that is said to merge Google+ messenger, Voice, and Talk into one combined service. The latest news coming from Droid-Life sources suggest something even more exciting. The new services coined “Babel” will be a cross platform chat service that will work across Android, IOS, Chrome, G+, and Gmail.

The app features access to the same conversation list from anywhere, a new conversation based UI, Advanced Group conversations, ability to send pictures, and improved notifications across devices.

It would be nice to be able to chat on Talk to friends and family that are on Iphones and Ipads. Getting Apple heads to use more Google services could be like pulling teeth. What are your thoughts?

Via Droid-Life

The latest from NewYork Times suggest that Facebook won’t simply change the Launcher to be included on an upcoming HTC device. They will apparently be showing off a full on Facebook OS Forked Version of Android akin to the Kindle Fire OS. The Facebook OS would not only provide users with a News Feed from the homescreen, but would also take over core applications such as the camera, and messaging service tying them directly into Facebook. There is not much info on this right now. The device may or may not include Google Play. We may see whatever this is on Thursday. Is there any interest in a device like this.

Via NYT

Last year HTC released the Butterfly which was the first device of its kind to sport a 5″ 1080p display. We had a nearly identical experience with the Droid DNA in the US. Thanks to the overwhelming popularity of the Butterfly handset HTC CMO has mentioned that they are planning on a follow up device. We can only assume that the Droid DNA which had pretty good sales would also receive a follow up.

The DLXPLUS looks to be headed to Verizon with the same specs as the HTC One. It should have a 4.7″ 1080p display, 2GB Ram, UltraPixel Camera, HTC 5.0, Blinkfeed, Boom Sound and Zoe. Would this be enough for you to ditch your 6 month old phone for the upgrade? Of course we know the Verizon variant would have lots of bloat ware as well as a locked tight bootloader. There is no confirmation on this device and no information on a release date.

Via Engadget

A few of the most addictive games ever are now reduced in price. Both NBA Jam and Plants vs. Zombies can be had for only $.99 in Google Play. Popcap is getting ready to release its sequel to PvZ this summer so the reduction in price comes as no surprise. There has not been any announcement as to whether or not we can expect a sequel to the widely popular NBA Jam. Also we aren’t sure if this will last forever so you may want to jump right on this!

PvZ Play Link 

NBA JAM Play Link

Even though the Galaxy S4 is slightly thinner and overall about the same size as the Galaxy SIII it somehow manages to pack a battery that is 500mAh larger. This should make for an improvement in overall battery life one would assume. However that larger battery is also powering a quad core processor and a larger higher res screen.

The S4 beats the SIII in talk time by about 3 hours! Not too shabby. It got about 2 hours more web browsing time than the SIII, and about the same amount of time viewing video which is still an improvement since the screen is larger and houses far more pixels.

Overall the battery life of the S4 appears to be top of its class and may only be beat out by devices like the Razr Maxx Hd which get by on sheer mass. Is the improved battery life on the S4 reason enough to go out and upgrade from an SIII?

Via GSMArena

It looks like T-Mobile CEO John Legere has dropped another bomb shell! It looks like along with the new plans they will also release the HTC One for $99 upfront. The rest of the cost would be paid over a 24 month period and the small amount would be added to your bill. You would not be obligated to stay with T-Mobile once the full cost of the device is paid! This is pretty awesome stuff coming out of T-Mobile today!

Via TheVerge

In today’s press conference T-mobile announced pricing on their uncarrier plans. With the rollout of their new 4g network now may be the time to contemplate a switch. T-mobile will now be offering a Value Plan and a Classic Plan.

Value Plans offer unlimited Talk and Text with a cap on data. Unlimite Talk and Text plus 500MB of data will be $50, add 2GB for $10, all the way up to 12GB for an Extra $60 making the total bill $110 a month for that line. With the value plan comes included hotspot.

The Classic Plan comes with Unlimited Talk, Text, and Data for only $70 (hotspot not included). Compare that to Verizon’s 10GB plan for $100 since unlimited is no longer an option on their network. Does this sound appealing to anyone. Is it worth making the switch?

Via PhoneArena

The HTC One has been highly anticipated since it was announced several weeks ago. It has seen its fair share of media coverage and hype. According to HTC the demand for this device in the US is through the roof! HTC has confirmed that they have received several hundred thousands of pre-orders out of the US. This would make the HTC One a hotter commodity than any other previously released handset.

Users can’t wait to get their hands on this device but it looks like they will be forced to as HTC has had some supply issues that have since been addressed which caused a delay. The device will be shipped across seas by the end of April and should make it stateside shortly after.

Via Phandroid

This morning in a press conference this morning T-mobile announced that they would begin carrying the Galaxy S4 on May 1! They did not mention pricing for the new Samsung flagship, but it will launch with 4G LTE. T-mobile is the first U.S. carrier to announce a release data. Hopefully other carriers will follow suite. I would image other carriers like AT&T and Sprint would also have their variants available on May 1, but we aren’t likely to see an S4 from Verizon until much later.

Via TheVerge

The Motorola X Phone rumors are flooding in. Earlier today a source of PhoneArena said the phone wouldn’t release until November and it would have next gen specs. Now we have a supposed “Leaked” render form a GSMArena source of the Motorola X phone. The design looks nothing like the Motorola devices of the past. They really don’t look like the legitimate leaks that we got last week of the upcoming midrange device. It almost looks like a Motorola Screen on an HTC body. The OS in the render looks like a basically stock version of Android 4.2 with the Motorola Flip Clock widget. The Specs that accompany this leak mostly match the specs from earlier today with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 CPU, a 4.7″ 720p display and a huge 4000mAh battery. It may also be water resistant and incude a Gorilla Glass 3 display.

What do you think? Do all of these rumors point to a Google I/O release? Or are the GSMarena “sources” just blowing lots of smoke?

Via GSMArena

PhoneArena has put out some new Rumored specs today for the highly anticipated Motorola X phone. Lately there have been plenty of rumors such as a whole line of customizable phones for the X phone release which was quasi confirmed by Motorola advisor Guy Kawasaki who posted a video for the customizable Porsche Exclusive saying it would be nice if you could customize your phone in the same way.

PhoneArena’s tipster did not have any info on the customization theory but did drop off some specs. The device may have a 4.8″ Saphire glass display (3x harder to crack than Gorilla Glass), Rubber and carbon fiber body, Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 2GHz processor, a crazy ridiculous 4,000 mAh battery, and water resistance. The device may release in November. Who knows if these specs are legit. They are fun to look at.

Via PhoneArena

Last week we reported on some “leaked” screenshots of the upcoming Google Babble. Those images turned out to be fakes. Above is another supposed leaked image. This does look pretty believable. The screenshot above is much cleaner and doesn’t include grammer errors like the one from last week. The app is Holo-styled with touches of Google+. What do you guys think? Is this the real deal?

Via Phandroid

There are some new rumors popping up this week focusing on the next Nexus phone! They may surprise some of you.  According to rumors Google is going for a more compact device. Google is apparently choosing to focus on the camera. The camera on Nexus phones has generally been the low point of the devices. Google may be looking to change that in the next Nexus device.

According to sources the Nexus 5 will not look to compete with larger 1080p devices and will instead house a 4.5″ 720p display which will cover about 88% of the front of the phone. The phone is said to pack a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 quad-core processor clocked down to 1.5GHz, and a huge 28oomAh battery. The lower clocked processor with the much bigger battery should make for some crazy battery life which was another thing that the Nexus phones had issues with. The phone may also come with a high end 9mp CCD camera.

Bear in mind the release is more than likely coming in the fall so we still have plenty of time for this to develop. Nothing has been confirmed by Google. These specs look pretty intriguing though. Do you think other OEMs will follow suite with smaller displays and bigger batteries?

Via PhoneArena

A few days ago Archos’s game pad finally became available to some online retailers. The Game Pad features a low res 1024×600 5 point multitouch display, a dual core A9 Processor, 1GB Ram, and a quad-core GPU. This is definitely not the device for hardcore gamers, but could be great for the younger crowd. At least its not another bit of vapor ware from this year’s CES.

Via  Engadget

The Galaxy S4 Mini has been spotted in the wild. This looks to be a midrange phone with less than impressive specs. This could be a bit cheaper as well. The rumored Display is 960×540 and 256ppi, which is half the resolution of the Galaxy S4. It should be Super AMOLED qHD at 4.3″. It will house a 1.6GHz dual core processor, TW Nature UX 2.0, and Android 4.2.2. This phone should still be a fine phone for someone who is looking to save a couple of bucks. This phone has not been confirmed by Samsung, but it lines up with what Samsung did with the S3. We should know more later this summer.

Another Rumor suggest that it may include a quad-core processor that Samsung is currently working on. The Exynos 5210 appears to be a Quad core processor that utilizes Big Litte technology. It will house on Dual-core A15 and one Dual-core A7 processor.

Via SamMobile

The founder of Cyanogen Steve Kondik is a legend among the mod community! He has pioneered the way for many an Android Rom developer. In September of 2011 Samsung took notice and offered him a position. He has not said exactly what he worked on at Samsung. Maybe because he’s not allowed to say, or maybe because he would rather not. Today via Google+ he announced that he has left Samsung. He also took some time to say some nice things about the upcoming Galaxy S4. We aren’t sure why he left, or what he is planning to do. He told Android Police that Samsung was great and he was just ready to do something else. We wish him the best, and hope he will jump right back into CM if he has the time!

Via AndroidPolice

Sources of Sammobile are reporting that the next high end series of tablets from Samsung will include Full HD Super AMOLED displays. Samsung is looking to make a tablet that will compete directly with the IPAD. The screen size for the new premium tablet was not confirmed but may be between 10.1″-11.6″ in size. Apparently Samsung currently has prototypes with different screen sizes. The source also confirmed that the new tablet will be housing the new Exynos 5 Octa Core processor.

Samsung has already done pretty well at producing high quality displays. The display on the Nexus 10 is by far the best on the market currently. The Galaxy S4 will be the first device to include Samsung’s Full HD Super AMOLED display.

Via Sammobile

While Google innovates the real wearable tech of the future “Google Glass” other OEMs have decided to go with a more reasonable approach to the market space. Apple, Samsung, and LG are all developing wearable tech in the form of smart watches. Many current gen smart watches like the Nike Fuel band and the Pebble watch simply add to the experience of your smart phone.

According to the Financial Times Google is currently developing their own samrt watch. Apparently the Android team will be responsible for developing this new tech. Their goal will be to add to the users experience of the Android smartphone OS by making the device an extension of Android on the phone.

When I first heard of the smart watch revolution I had hoped for a device that could totally stand alone. Why do we need a product to help us interact with our phone. Then again most people said they didn’t see the need for a tablet and look how that market has blown up. What are your thoughts? Are you interested in wearable tech at all? If so what do you think about smart watches? Are the necessary?

Via FinancialTimes

A tweet went out today by a good friend of mine “P3Droid” that spurred a conversation. The big question was, “If you were to give up your Android for a week, which platform would you use.” These days many of us would be totally lost without our mobile devices. We use them to keep in touch with family, to stay connected to old friends, and they have become a life line to the outside world. Some of us have no clue what to do in the midst of boredom, or when we are waiting in line. Heaven forbid we actually strike up a conversation with a stranger.

We have determined that we would need something to replace our beloved Android to keep from the awful anxiety that would surely arrise. There are many other options on the market today, and even more options in the not so distant future, but which platform would you choose.

Read More…

There has been lots of talk lately surrounding the new rumored service from Google that would unify all chat services. Google Babble would be the service that combines Google Talk, Google+ Messenger, Google+ Hangouts, and Google Voice. The above images were “leaked” to Phandroid. The app apears to be a cleaner looking version of Google+ messenger with added features. Image sharing and even voting are features demoed in the screenshots. A popup menu gives access to other Google services, and there is an option to jump directly into a video chat.

Looks pretty sweet. I use Google Talk heavily, and have really begun to use Google+ pretty regularly so this is right up my ally.

Via Phandroid

You will be entering to win one of the following cases!

• Nexus 7 – Cruzerlite Androidified Smokey Grey Case
• Galaxy Nexus – Lime Green Spigen Ultra Capsule Case
• Galaxy Nexus – White Case Mate POP Case
• Galaxy S3 – Cruzerlite Lime Green or Red Androidified TPU Case
• Galaxy S3 – Spigen Folio Blue Case
• Galaxy S3 – Spigen Neo Hybrid Blue Case
• Galaxy Note 2 – Spigen White Ultra Flip Case

To win simply

share the Galaxy S4 video via twitter by tweeting the following “Check out this video by @DroidModderX Everything you need to know about the Galaxy S4, Full Specs, and Features http://goo.gl/OycUq”

Also leave one comment on this post

For extra entries Tweet anything including @DroidModderX and a link to this page. http://goo.gl/CUAZl

I will select the winner 1 week from today! I will announce the winner on Twitter so be sure you follow me there!

Motorola is no stranger to changing up the shape of their devices. The Droid RAZR had similar edges to this, but not nearly as prominent. Motorola has been awarded a patent for an octagonal smartphone by USPTO. I don’t think they will have any issues with other OEMs copying this design! I can only hope the next generation of Motorola design won’t include this bold design and more of a softer approach as with the RAZR HD and Atrix phones.

What do you guys think about this new design awful or groundbreaking?

Via GigaOm

Samsung will be releasing two versions of the Galaxy S4. Both will contain all of the same features, and most of the specs will be identical. The design will remain the same on both phones. The only thing that will change by region is the CPU. The standard model GTi9500 will include Samsung’s very own ground breaking Exynos 5 Octa-Core 1.6GHz chip, while LTE markets will have the GTi9505 which will include the Qualcomm 1.9GHz Quad Core Processor. To find out which chip your phone will have check out the list below.

North America

I9505 – Canada
I9505 – United States

Europe

I9505 – Austria
I9505 – Baltic
I9505 – Belgium / Luxemburg
I9505 – Bosnia and Herzegovina
I9505 – Bulgaria
I9505 – Cyprus
I9505 – Czech Republic
I9500 / I9505 – France
I9500 / I9505 – Germany
I9505 – Greece
I9500 / I9505 – Italy
I9505 – Macedonia
I9505 – Nordic Countries
I9500 / I9505 – Poland
I9500 / I9505 – Romania
I9505 – Portugal
I9505 – Slovakia
I9505 – Slovenia
I9505 – Spain
I9505 – Sweden
I9505 – Switzerland
I9505 – The Netherlands
I9500 / I9505 – United Kingdom
I9500 – Ukraine

Russia

I9500

Australia

I9505

Asia / Middle East

I9500 – Afghanistan
I9500 – Bangladesh
I9500 – China
I9500 / I9505 – Hong Kong
I9500 – India
I9500 – Indonesia
I9500 – Iran
I9500 – Iraq
I9500 – Kazakhstan
I9500 / I9505 – Korea
I9500 / I9505 – Malaysia
I9500 – Nepal
I9500 – Pakistan
I9500 / I9505 – Philippines
I9500 / I9505 – Saudi Arabia
I9505 – Singapore
I9500 – Sri Lanka
I9500 – Taiwan
I9500 – Thailand
I9500 – Turkey
I9500 / I9505 – United Arab Emirates
I9500 – Uzbekistan
I9500 – Vietnam

Africa

I9500 – Algeria
I9500 – Egypt
I9500 – Kenya
I9500 – Lybia
I9500 – Marocco
I9500 – Nigeria

Via SamMobile

Build 9.16.6 is rolling out to RAZR HD and RAZR MAXX HD users now! The update includes fixes to audio quality, connectivity improvements, as well as some improvements to the camera. This was released to soak testers and has now been approved for an official OTA release. You can grab this update by going to Settings/about phone/system updates.

If you are planning to update be sure to use a program like Voodoo OTA rootkeeper to protect your root as the update will more than likely unroot your device.

If you aren’t able to get it from system settings you can grab the file here , and manually update by placing the above file on your external sdcard, turn off the phone and reboot into recovery (Hold Volumeup+down+power to get into boot menu, use volume down to hilight recovery then use volume up to select recovery, When the Andy comes up press both volume buttons together to bring up the menu) select “Apply update from external storage”, then select the file you downloaded above. This method only works if you are fully stock.

Via Droid-Life

The Galaxy Note III along side the Galaxy Tab 3 could be announced at IFA. Sammobile claims that their inside sources have confirmed that the Galaxy Tab 3 will be released in the second half of 2013. He also mentioned that both devices may be announced at IFA in September. He couldn’t reveal any specs in the new devices, but did say that Samsung will discontinue support for the first generation Galaxy Tab. Galaxy Tab 2 will apparently receive Android 4.2.2 before Galaxy terminates support for it.

Via Sammobile

It appears that Google is preparing to release an update to Google Play. The update looks to include a whole UI overhaul. This is a long overdue update for those who hate for things to go stale. Google Play has not been updated since July 2011. The update includes a more Holo theme to match Jelly Bean. The layout for the way items are displayed has changed with a new box style which makes things look a bit cleaner in my opinion. You can see that everything has its own page now and things don’t bleed together. There are separate pages for  apps, movies, music, magazines, ect. The updated version appears to feature many more pictures and the home screen looks much cleaner. This could be around the corner or further out. No one knows at this point.

What do you guys think?

Via Droid-Life

Digitimes is reporting from sources that the Nexus 7 will come with a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip instead of a Tegra processor. This rumor is not entirely new and has been floating around for a while now. It was thought that the reason behind the change was to reduce production costs, but now it seems to be connected with the upcoming Nexus 7′s LTE/voice capabilities. The new Tegra 4 does have support for LTE, but it looks like Nvidia won’t be able to supply the CPU’s needed in time for the next gen Nexus 7′s release. This is unfortunate for Nvidia as they will be missing out on all those sales if this rumor turns out to be legit.

Via Phandroid

One of my favorite apps on my Note 2 device is the S-Note app. However I often find it cumbersome to save and transfer the notes that are taken with the app. There are plenty of alternatives on the Play Store today, and Google has decided to add their own note taking app. Google Keep is a note taking app that incorporates Google’s Holo style and other features to help you stay organized. With Google Keep you can add pictures, voice notes, checklist, and more to your notes!

All of this is great but Google has incorporated Google Drive. You can store your notes conveniently in drive and access them from any tablet, phone, or PC. This makes accessing your notes quite seamless.

Will Google Keep become your note taking app of choice?

Play Store

Last week we covered a big leak surrounding a Motorola device XT912A that was reported to be a mediocre and mid-range device. It turns out this may not be the case, however this is still more than likely not the Xphone and won’t be up to par with the upcoming Galaxy S4 and HTC One. The device we saw may very well be a first glimpse at what we may be able to expect out of Googarola in the coming years. The device drops the kevlar and sharp edges for a more Nexus like appearance.

There is a GLbenchmark for the device with AT&T branding. The phone is expected to make its way to the other carriers as well. According to the benchmark the Ghost packs some good but not elite tech such as a quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro clocked at 1.7GHz, a 720p display, on screen nav buttons, and Android 4.1.2. It should release with 4.2.2 though. With these specs we can hope for a bargain price since it won’t be able to stand beside the S4 and One at release. Is anyone interested in this device.

Via Droid-Life

Here is a fun yet highly unlikely rumor. The guys over at Androidandme have suggested that the LG phone codenamed “Megalodon” could be the next Nexus phone at 5.2″. The specs would be pretty sweet, but may be a little outlandish for a Nexus device.

Reportedly, the specifications include the following:

• 5.2″ OLED Display with 1920×1080 resolution
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 @ 2.3 GHz
• 3GB LPDDR3 Ram
• 16/32/64GB of internal storage
• 16MP rear camera by OmniVision (4k video recording @30FPS, 1080p video recording @60FPS, Real Time HDR & HDR video recording, optical image stabilization, BSI 2.0)
• 2.1MP front camera (1080p video recording @30FPS)
• 3300 mAh Lithium Polymer battery
• Front positioned stereo speakers
• Qualcomm RF360 (LTE 150 Mbps & HSPA+)
• Integrated DVB-T / ATSC-antenna
• Gesture like controls (navigation, zoom, etc)

If LG decided to offer this device as a standalone with a mostly vanilla version of Android this would be a great looking device for the summer. However Some of the specs do seem to be for a phone that would release in the fall, which would line up with the Nexus 5 release. I guess we will see. What do you guys think? Is this the next Nexus?

Via AndroidGuys

We now have confirmation that the Galaxy S4 will indeed include the Swiftkey Predictive Keyboard. Confirmation comes by way of an email from Swiftkey co-founder to Forbes detailing the new keyboard inclusion.

Swiftkey co-founder and Chief of Technology Officer Ben Medlock said, “We are excited to confirm that Samsung has chosen SwiftKey’s innovative keyboard technology to be at the heart of its flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S4. This is fantastic progress for our vision of bringing the best touchscreen typing experience to as many people as possible.”

Via SlashGear

Samsung has released their introductory video for their newest flagship device the S4. The video highlights the new design, and the long list of all new features.

The HTC account tweeted out earlier today that Verizon will not be carrying the HTC One. This is pretty sad news, and surprising since there have been plenty of rumors confirming the opposite. However It isn’t too surprising since we know that Verizon likes to put tons of bloat on their devices. Also they love to brand their devices as “DROID” products. There is still a chance that we will see a Droid DNA+ or Droid DNA2 release pretty soon. This phone will probably be nearly identical to the ONE just with the extra Droid branding and design.

Via Phandroid 

The Samsung Galaxy S4 email update page is now live. Not only will you get all the latest info on release dates and availability you will also automatically be entered to win a FREE Galaxy S4! You might as well sign up. Its worth a shot anyhow!

Via SamsungGalaxyS4

Via DroidForums TechnoBuffalo

Dimensions: 136.5 mm long x 70.6 mm wide x 7.9mm thin

Display: 5″ full 1080p HD super AMOLED with 441ppi

Connectivity: 4G LTE device supports downloads of over 100Mbps and uploads of 50Mbps, Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi abgnac, IR LED, MHL 2.0

Camera: Rear Camera 13mp, front facing camera 2mp

Memory: 2GB LPDDR Ram, 16GB of internal storage with 32GB and 64GB options, SDcard slot supports up to 64GB

Battery: 26oomah removable battery

Colors: Black Mist and White Frost

Features: Dual Camera (both rear and front at the same time), S-Translator, Hover Touch, Adapt Display, Samsung Home Sync, Story Album, S Voice Drive, Glove Friendly, Samsung Hub and More

Processor Was Not Mentioned but should be The Exynos 5 Internationally, and the Qualcomm 600 quad core processor Stateside

Available Internationally in April, Probably Stateside in May and Verizon later

It is finally here! We don’t have to speculate, leak, or conjure up rumors anymore. The Galaxy S4 is finally official! The next big thing has been unpacked at the live New York city press event. So here it is! Now more waiting!

More to come..

We are just mere hours away from the Galaxy S4 release, and over the past several weeks Samsung has done an outstanding job of keeping this device under wraps. Today a few videos leaked of the device showing off a few innovative features.

In the video above you will see a demo of Floating Touch which allows you to hold your finger above the screen and highlight links or blow up portraits without actually clicking on them and navigating away from the page. This feature sort of brings some of what we are used to with the Note2 Spen to the S4 without needing the actual Spen!. The video below shows off Smart Pause. The phone will pause a video if you look away, and start the video backup when you look back down.

Via Engadget

Over the past few years HTC has done their best to keep phones unlocked and open. They have brought us the HTCdev site which allows users to unlock bootloaders on just about every network other than Verizon. Today they have announced that they will be selling a developer edition version of the new HTC One. This version will come with both the Sim and the Bootloader Unlocked. Since it comes with the Sim unlocked it would not be illegal to take the phone between carriers which is a great thing.

I have never really liked it when OEMs come out with a normal consumer model and a developer version. It seems like if they want the user to have an unlocked bootloader they should just make it that way for everyone. The overwhelming majority of consumers will never even know the Developer option exist and later down the road when they decide to root and add Roms they are going to be pretty much forked. However the dev community will do all that it can to unlock the consumer editions or at least provide some sort of kexec support. That being said. It always seems like Rom and mod development is much slower on devices with Developer variants.

What are your thoughts? Do you like the new trend to for OEMs to sell both consumer and Developer variants?

Via HTC Blog

The above video shows a whole new design which is nothing like the Kevlar coated RAZRs of last year. Google looks to be taking the reigns on the design of this device leaked by Tinh te. The handset in the video does not appear to be the upcoming flagship Xphone device but rather a mid tier device.  The design is reminiscent of what we have seen in HTC devices with the soft touch back and curvy design. The back plate is non removable, and the software appears to be a Stock Vanilla Android with the standard Motorola clock widget which is no surprise as Motorola has been fleeing from the Blur of the past. Personally I do not mind the design and have actually been very fond of HTC designs here lately.  Google apparently has an 18 month release pipe cycle that they have to get through before we see any real all Google devices, and the Google has even said that we won’t be wowed by anything that Motorola puts out over the next few quarters.

Are you pleased with the direction that Motorola is seemingly taking with this device?

Via Tinh Te

If you were wanting to hang out with all the developers at Google I/O then you may be out of luck. Tickets sold out in less than 45 minutes! If you weren’t actively at your PC when sales went live then you probably missed out. Tickets were $900 which when you consider all of the free swag that will probably be handed out (ie New Nexus 7, New Nexus 10 perhaps, and maybe even an Xphone) that may have been a steal! Next year I’ll pay for anyone who is willing to give me all their goodies when they return!

Via Engadget

In case you were not already sick of all the S4 Rumors and Speculation Bloomberg has confirmed some of the specs in which we will see on the latest of the Galaxy S series. According to there sources we will see a 5″ screen a Qualcomm quad-core processor in the U.S., 8core Octa Chip Internationally, and the eye-tracking software.

The S4 is assumed to also be sporting a 13mp rear camera, 1080p resolution, and Android JB 4.2+. Apparently the eye tracking software will be limited at launch only being able to do simpler tasks like pausing a video when someone looks away. It may later be able to scroll a page by following the eyes movement.

Via TheVerge

Some pretty outlandish rumors have been circulating this week like a 16mp camera, and a new Tegra 4i chipset for the Motorola X Phone. These have been questioned and now they are being called out by Ausdroid who cites an anonymous source. There source claims the new Xphone will have much more modest features.

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Double Twist is releasing a music streaming service that is based on your personal taste and preferences. The new product is called MagicRadio. It is said to not only play music based on your artist or album preferences, but based on your overall musical taste. So the app will pick music relevant to the sub genera you like. This could be great for discovering new artist and new music.

Yesterday some images of the upcoming Galaxy S4 were “leaked” to the internet. They appeared a bit shady with some issues coming up like the off center front facing camera, and the shear thickness of the behemoth device. The image leaker decided to discredit the murmurings of the device possibly being housed in a dummy box.

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The above image was tweeted by Samsung last night! If you ask me it looks identical to the Galaxy S3. Of course just going by the image we can’t tell if the screen is any bigger, but we can see that it has the same exact rounded edges and the Samsung logo in the middle. Who knows this could be one huge tease and could be one major attempt to troll all the android sites as well. If it isn’t the S4 then they have confused me since they did tag TheNextBigThing, and have spoken of the March 14th event which is where they will unpack the S4.

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At SXSW Google put together a demonstration of some applications being built specifically for the upcoming Google Glass which is said to release by the end of this year. Before now Google Glass has been presented as a head mounted camera that gives good directions. Google wanted to show off some of the development that has been surrounding this product to let consumers know what it is really made of!

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This weekend the HTC6445LVW got a Bluetooth CIG certification. The DLXPLUS has been rumored since the announcement of the HTC one. The new HTC one is slated to land on all carriers minus Verizon. The Droid DNA’s model number is HTC6435LVW so it would stand to reason that this phone would be the next version of the DNA. Previous DLXPLUS specs matched up to the One. The device should be sporting 4.7″ 1080p display, 2GB Ram, Snapdragon 600 1.7ghz quad core processor, 2.1mp front facing camera, 13mp rear facing camera, Jelly Bean and Sense 5+. I would much rather see this drop as the HTC One and not the DNA+. What are your thoughts? Are you interested in this device?

Via Droid-Life

It looks like the Droid 4 will finally be getting some Jelly Bean love! Motorola has just sent out their invites for the Jelly Bean soak test. There is no official OTA release date, but normally we see updates a few weeks after the soak test as long as nothing major goes wrong during testing.

Via MotorolaSupport

Some suposed photos of the upcoming Galaxy S4 were posted on a Chinese forum 52Samsung late last night. This could be a dummy box as Samsung has been known to place unreleased phones in dummy boxes to hide the true design until release. In the photo above the phone certainly looks very similar to the Galaxy S3. In another photo the phone looks super thick which lends to the idea that this is probably an S4 wrapped in a dummy box. In the benchmark photos we can see that this phone is running a quad-core processor as expected, a 1080p screen, and is running Android 4.2.1. From the photos we can see that the phone will infact have a home button, side lock and volume buttons, and a nearly edge to edge display.

Are you guys ready for Thursday’s announcement already like me?!

Via 52Samsung

The fictitious game from the Samsung Commercials is now a reality! Samsung had a contest to create the real game. The winner was chosen and now the new Unicorn Apocalypse game is available in the Google PlayStore for free!

Game Description:

The Unicorn Apocalypse has come! As the world crumbles and burns, a lone unicorn wreaks havoc on the last of humanity. Play as the unicorn, the harbinger of the apocalypse. Race across urban rooftops avoiding the deadly unicorn traps and soldiers that the Anti Unicorn Force (AUF) has deployed. Beyond the foot soldiers exist enemies both cunning and strong, so use your magic dash and rainbow lasers to blast through your enemies, avoid your own death, and prolong the Unicorn Apocalypse!

Linear Difficulty Scaling
3 Menacing Boss Types
Epic Metal Soundtrack
Engaging Apocalyptic Environment

Bring Forth the Unicorn Apocalypse!

PlayStore Link

March 16th will put an end to all Galaxy S4 rumors when the phone is made official. Until then it is fun to speculate exactly what is coming. We are now less than a week away and all sorts of leaks are coming out for this heavily anticipated device. SamMobile put out a few leaks yesterday.

SamMobile’s sources have partially confirmed that Samsung is working on two prototypes. One has an LCD and Qualcomm chip (probably the version we will see State Side) and one has an AMOLED with the new Exynos 5 chip (could be the international version). Although they could ditch one version altogether.

Another tidbit leaked is the possible inclusion of floating touch. The source said “Users will be able to control the device without actually touching it.” Floating Touch was included in the Xperia Sola and allowed you to hover over the screen to interact with it. This could also mean that the rumors of eye-scrolling are accurate. Also the Display may be 30% more efficient thanks to the use of PHOLED which uses phosphorescent materials in the green and red OLEds and fluorescent materials in the blue OLEDs. Better Display tech and floating touch would each be sweet features.

Via   SamMobile

Google is celebrating their PlayStore’s first birthday by giving you some free stuff and lots of great deals on all kinds of apps, music, movies, and even some hotel deals. The deals may keep coming all week long according to the splash page.

So far the deals include an in app $20 gift card at Fancy, Free Track “Sweet Jane” by Velvet Underground, 10% off any Hotel purchase from within the Hotels.com app, Free Book “A Quest Of Heros”, Exclusive characters inside Yumby Smash app, 50% off Kung Fu Panda Movie, Free New World in Gnome Village, Free TV Breaking Bad Pilot Episode, Savings on in app Purchases in Royal Revolt, Free Track “All My Friends” by LCD Soundsystem, $20 in app gift cards for Gyft.

AndroidPolice will keep their list updated as new deals come out!

The latest Android Distribution Numbers are here and it looks like OEMs are becoming more dedicated than ever when it comes to bringing the latest versions to the consumer. Jelly Bean is really gaining some ground with an overall distribution rate of 16.5% (up from 13.4%), Ice Cream Sandwich is still at a pretty Hefty 28.6%, while Gingerbread holds the lead at 44.2%, and can you believe that there are still a few handsets out there running Donut?!

Via Android Developers

Expansys has created a landing page for the Galaxy S4. They are a reseller and have put together their own mock ups and also some suggested specs. Their really isn’t much to this as they have even admitted that this was all put together to serve as a placeholder, but it is always funto speculate.

According to Expansys the phone will have no home button (we know this won’t happen), no Samsung logo (also will not happen), and all the specs that have been pretty widely rumored.

• Eyetracking Software
• 5″1080p AMOLED display with Gorilla Glass 3
• Quadcore Exynos 5 Processor (i thought the Exynos 5 was 8core)
• 2GB of Ram
• 16Gb/32GB/64GB storage options
• expandable sdcard slot
• 13mp rear facing camera/ 2mp front facing camera
• Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
• 2500 mah battery

Via Expansys

EvLeaks has brought us plenty of leaked press renders in the past, all of which turned out to be legitimate. They have just released a few pictures of the Galaxy S4 to their twitter account @evleaks. If the images are accurate the Galaxy S4 will be sporting an all new design which is something that we have been expecting. In the images the phone has a more rectangular design which matches the case designs that have been popping up. Something else that is noteable in the images is the fact that there is no Samsung logo and there is also no Home Button!

What do you guys think? Does it look legit?

Via @Evleaks

Verizon will soon be transitioning to voice over LTE for most calls by the end of the year. Once this takes place they plan to begin selling LTE only devices with no CDMA chipsets. This would reduce both cost and subsidies. “No subsidies” has been an emerging trend in the US. This is common place everywhere else in the world, however it is not an idea that US consumers have latched on to just yet. Most US consumers have been conditioned to take a cheaper phone in lue of higher plan costs per month. T-mobile is launching its subsidy free plan which will allow customers to buy a phone at full price and build the financing cost into their monthly bill.

Taking away the CDMA radio in newer phones can be a great thing but could also bring up a few issues. Eliminating the CDMA radio should increase battery life considerably. Verizon is dedicated to extending its LTE reach to every corner of the US, however for now there are still quite a few arreas where LTE is not available or is very week. Hopefully the LTE network will be much stronger by the time Verizon implements the LTE only devices.

What are your thoughts? Could you get by on an LTE only device today, or would you be forced to find a new carrier?

Via theverge

Via Android Police

The LG Lucid 2 is Verizon’s version of the LG Optimus F5. While the LG Lucid is not particularly killing it in the Specs department it should be a great phone for those who are budget minded. The phone will release with a 4.3″ qHD display, 1.2 GHZ dual-core Snapdragon processor, Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and a 5mp camera.

Anyone looking to grab this when it drops next month?

Via UnwiredView

Samsung has pulled away from the rest of the pack. They have managed to do so by setting themselves apart from other OEMs with proprietary features. Last year the Galaxy S3 was released with the Smart Stay feature which kept the screen turned on as long as it recognized that your eyes were open and looking at the screen.

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It is official Samsung will unveil their next Galaxy phone at a press conference in New Your City on March 14th. Invitations for the event were sent out to the press today. Apparently U.S. carriers requested that the venue be in the country for the S4 announcement and Samsung obliged. We can expect a 1080p display that will more than likely be 5″ in size. The phone may come with a Qualcom Snapdragon 600 clocked at 1.9ghz instead of the Exynos Octa. We expect to see an improved 13megapixel rear camera, 2GB ram, micro sd card slot, we may see a new design (case makers are expecting this and are prepared for this). This phone will include even more unique apps and software. This phone will be available on all major carriers when it releases, and may even show up on Verizon at the same time as the rest of the U.S. carriers. This is great since Verizon is known for getting phones weeks after everyone else.

Sammobile has leaked a test build of Android 4.2.1 for the International version of the Samsung Galaxy S3. Surprisingly enough this build includes much of the functionality we have come to love from Stock Android 4.2. One of the most notable inclusions is the Lockscreen widget feature. Some other features that will be brought over to touchwiz include the second page of toggles in the notification area, daydream, more actionable notifications, voice commands, and an improved ripple effect from the lockscreen.

This Leak has been packaged into an easy to flash Odin file, but should only be flashed to the international I9300 version of the S3. I am sure that developers will have flashable Rom versions of this leak for our stateside phones soon enough.

Via SamMobile

Developer Roymam is currently working on a widget that will display notifications on the lockscreen in Android 4.2. The app may also work with widget locker on Android 4.0.4. The widget will be able to handle all dismissible notifications including those from sms, facebook, missed calls, gmail and more! The app is not ready to be published to the Google Play Store quite yet. However you can go and grab a beta copy at the source link below. It should be noted that this will only work for devices using Android 4.2.

Via XDA 

The image above shows a Galaxy Nexus running a new version of Android. We see 4.2.2 as the Android Version. Android 4.2.2 is expected to be the last bugfixer release ahead of Keylime Pie. KP could be Android 5.0 or 4.3 and should include more inovation and features. Apparently Google has asked employees to test the 4.2.2 build ahead of release. This update is expected to fix the audio stuttering issue when connected to a bluetooth headset with the Nexus7, and that is about it for this update. This may be released in the coming weeks. I guess only time will tell.

Via PhoneArena

HTC could be releasing a new “UltraPixel” camera tech in the upcoming M7. HTC has been known as of late for having some of the best cameras in phones such as the OneX and even the Droid DNA. They look to take that a step further. The new camera tech could possibly compete with Nokia’s Pureview cameras. They may use a three separate 4.3MP sensors to give their phones some of the sharpest cleanest mobile photos ever. HTC released an infographic on their Official blog giving a history of photography and stating that HTC will be kicking off a new sound and camera experience in 2013. This could be just the thing to make the upgrade from the DNA to the M7 palatable.

Full Infographic

Samsung announced today that they will be investing over $1.1Billion into the SSIC their new Samsung Strategy Inovation Center. They will mainly focus on Research and Development of “Cloud Infrastructure, Mobile Privacy, Internet of Things, Human Interface, and Mobile Health.” Who knows what will come of the new Inovation Centers, but it is great to see that Samsung is not willing to sit on their laurels and hope to profit forever from past success like some other companies cough..app…cough..le.

Find the Full release here. 

All the news on the M7 has pointed to a May release for all major U.S. carriers minus Verizon that is expected to delay its release of the new flagship device. This was very disappointing news, but also not anything that was unexpected as we all know that Verizon loves to add bloat and lock down bootloaders. Developer “LlabTooFer” has leaked out some specs of an updated Droid DNA.

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There is a new leaked build for the Verizon Galaxy S3. The new build number is VRBMA2. Galaxy S3 users have been hoping for an update that would include the premium features found in the Note2 like multi window and popup browser. It appears that this unofficial build does not include any of that. You can Install the leaked build and retain Root, Unlocked Bootloader Status, and Recovery using the guide listed below!

Install the latest Leak here

There has been tons of missinformation swarming the inter webs as of late! Tonight at dinner i over heard someone from the table behind me say to someone else at the same table “Didya know that it is now illegal to Jailbreak your phone?”. My wife also overheard it and could tell that I was a little more than uncomfortable as I was squirming trying not to turn around and let them have it. She told me that she had heard it. I then said in a fairly audible voice, “They are misinformed! Jailbreaking is not Illegal!”

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Digitimes is reporting that Google and Asus are working together for a next-gen Nexus 7. This is exciting news as the original Nexus 7 was highly popular. The device could be announced in May at Google I/O. Supposedly their have been some engineering samples out and about having 1080p displays with thinner bezels and a new industrial design. This will be running the latest and greatest version of Android once it releases whatever that may be by the time May and Google I/O arrive!

Via AndroidPolice 

The new GameStick has received a much needed design overall prior to release! The new controller looks less like a cassette tape and more like a genuine console controller. It includes nice rounded edges that should make it easier to grip, and give it a better in the hand feel. The palm grips are extended to give it a more substantial feel so you don’t feel like you will break it when you tense up right before you get killed in a heated battle.

The new design incorporates new materials a polished top deck, metalized middle section, and rubberized bottom deck. The D pad is now made of rubber so that it is easier to grip. They have included wireless charging. The controller will store games to the device and you will choose which screen you want to play on via miracast.

Via KickStarter

According to a recent report from Strategy Analytics Android is growing by leaps and bounds! The Q4 marketshare grew 38% over last year! This puts the Android Worldwide marketshare at a whopping 70.1%! Last year Android held the market at 51% while Apple was chugging along at 23.6%. Apple is now at 22% but the rest of the competition has all but bowed out. Android shipped over 152 million devices in Q4! Microsoft WindowsPhone8 and the upcoming BlackBerry10 have a lot of digging to get back into this, although it is more than likely too late!

Via Droid-Life

Over the past year Samsung has really become a household name! The Galaxy S III became one of the first Android phones to garner as much media attention at release as iphone’s from the past. Samsung has slowly gained more and more market share. These days I see more Galaxy S III’s and Note 2′s then Iphones in the wild. With the overwhelming success of this series its no surprise that spec rumors are heavily swirling around. We can say with some certainty what is to be expected from the newest version of the Galaxy S that will be announced in the spring.

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If you are looking for a steal on a new device then a couple of HUGE price drops happened today at Amazon Wireless. First up is the discounted price of the Galaxy Note II which can now be had for only $199 on a new contract that is down from $299 when the phone released. If you are like me and on an unlimited data plan then you probably dropped $650 on this phone! Verizon has been notorious for keeping their subsidized prices high, but recently they have been offering some great deals through sites like Amazon.

Up next is the RAZR HD. This may be one of the best deals out there at the moment. I love this phone. Motorola has done an awesome job with adding a little bit of extra functionality while letting Android be Android and not bogging down the device with an obnoxious skin! The RAZR HD has been discounted to $49. This is a great deal if you are looking to add a line.

Via Motorola DROID RAZR HD $49

Samsung Galaxy Note II Verizon $199

TechnoBuffalo got there hands on some leaked information from Samsung. The info includes the entire lineup of devices scheduled to release in the first half of 2013. The list includes the long awaited Note 8.0! The Next version of the Galaxy S series, likely the S4, is still rumored to release in the first half of this year, but was absent from the list.

According to the leak the Note 8.0 will feature an 8″ dislpay (no surprises there)  with a resolution of 1280×800. It will also feature a 1.6GHz quad core processor, 5mp rear facing camera, 1.3mp front facing camera, internal storage of 16GB or 32GB, micro sdcard support, 4600mah battery, HSPA+ and wifi connectivity, and S-pen software. This device should release in March.

If this device releases at a sub $300 price point it would be worth grabbing over the Ipad-mini easily.

Via TechnoBuffalo

Here is a pretty sweet looking phone that was announced last night by LG. The LG Optimus G Pro will be coming to carrier NTT Docomo, a Japanese carrier,  sometime in April. The G Pro will feature some premium specs including a 5″ 1080p display (5 inches is the sweet spot in my opinion, huge but not enough to cause finger cramping), a 1.7Ghz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB of Ram, a huge 3,000 mah battery, and a 13MP rear facing camera. It will be shown off at MWC next month.

I think i would pick this up if it came a variant came to Verizon. What are your thoughts!

Via NTTDocomo

This Rom is very Stable. I forgot to mention that the Camera and Camcorder work perfectly. The camera took pictures very slowly at first until the Rom settled in. Now it works just fine. The only other bugs to mention were nfc is flaky, and no bluetooth music streaming. The developer says that GPS may or may not work, but it worked perfectly for me. This Rom is very fast and all Rom Control customization options work!

The original Temple Run made for hours of time killing and could have been a major factor in the ever growing unemployment rate (just kidding). If you have somehow managed to tire of the first edition no worries the creators will be releasing Temple Run 2 to IOS on January 24th and to Android sometime after. The new version includes a Temple in the sky and looks much more appealing then the original! Graphics have been improved as you can see from screenshots above. There are several other new features in this game like a tilt steerable mine cart, different power ups for each playable character and more! Is anyone else excited for this game to release!?

Via Gaurdian

The new Sony Xperia Z lineup looks to be a very interesting series of phones. They look sleek, sturdy, and water resistant. Sony isn’t bogging down their devices with a heavy skin either. The Z has peaked my interest. We still aren’t sure when the device will release or to which carriers, but Sony did announce that the device will launch with 4.1 and be quickly updated to 4.2!

Xperia Z launches on JB 4.1, but will receive 4.2 shortly after launch. As always, we’ll share more info on this over the coming weeks on the blog.

Via Droid-Life

Since the announcement of Project glass I have wondered exactly how would you control the thing. I know that they demonstrated using voice commands, and that would be ok in some situations. For the most part I don’t think I would be willing to speak commands especially in loud public places. It just would not be practical. Google has thought about this as well and have come up with a clever solution. The idea that they have come up with is a lazer projected control system that would display buttons on your arm or any other object that happens to be within reach. Google is applying to patent this technology. I know that we have all seen the iphone5 fake video that includes a projected keyboard. It looks like Google may beat apple to the punch with this patent. The system would project navigation buttons or even a qwerty keyboard. As you touch the controls the camera and processor would try to determine finger movements to control the device. This looks to be a great solution!

Via Engadget

The Launch of “Mega” the site formally know as “MegaUpload” is set to go live this weekend! The founder Kim Dotcom had a few things to say about the launch via twitter.

#Mega will have very generous limits for free users. For example you get 50GB storage for free

— Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) January 17, 2013

Kim Dotcom has also said that his attorneys are working to get MegaUpload users access to their previously stored files as well as their premium status. This is a pretty big deal. Competitors like Dropbox only allow 2GB for free to start and Skydrive will give you only 7GB. The new Mega could be a force in the cloud storage market. That is if the site can stay open!

 2 more days until #Mega. 2 more days until the US government fails and Innovation wins. 2 more days. RT

— Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) January 17, 2013

Google glass was the talk of Google I/O. There was that crazy demo that included a guy jumping out of a plane and a bmx rider. The images from the Google Glass was live streamed back to I/O! During the demo google announced that developers could would be able to get their hands on this device early with the purchase of the Glass Explorers package for a $1500 fee. The time has come for developers to get some hands on time with this device!

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We keep hearing that IOS is dropping in popularity. Recently Apple stock has tanked from well over $700 a share down to just over $500 per share. Reports  are coming out that Teens no longer think the OS is hip, and other devices are stealing  Apple’s spotlight.

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The LG Optimus G2 should be released in the fall of 2013. This device was expected to release as early as last week at CES with a 1080p screen of 5″. There are reports that LG will be releasing another device “GK” at Mobile World Congress that is said to have a 5.5″ HD display, a quad-core processor, and should run 4.1 Jelly Bean. This may compete with the soon to be released Galaxy S 4. LG may be holding out on the next version of the Optimus G because they would prefer to have the latest version of Android when the device releases. This phone could be one of the first to hit the market with Android 5.0 Keylime pie!

Via Cnet

If you want to be a hipster then you know that old is new, and you should be an early adopter “I liked it before it was cool”. Now is your chance myspace has become so uncool over the past few years, but Justin Timberlake intends to make it cool again with its relaunch! He has chosen this as his platform to release his new Single Suite and Tie. Of course if you want to hear the single you will have to either sign in or sign up for a new account. It looks like the new Myspace won’t be just another social network, but rather this will be a platform for artist to release their music for free with the hopes of upselling it to downloads.  Some popular tech reviewers have made the jump back to myspace MKBHD and Duncan. What do you think are you in?

Via Wired

At Computerworld BlackBerry held two “port-a-thons” where over 15,000 ported apps were submitted to BlackBerry. The Port-A-Thons offered a $100 reward for non BlackBerry apps to be ported over to BB10 that pass RIM’s approval. One port a thon was focused on porting Android apps while the other Port a thon focused on all other apps. It is a pretty big deal that over 15,000 apps were developed in just a week for the platform. However it may just be a blip in the screen. Android currently has over 650,000 apps available while IOS has well over a million apps available. BB10 looks to be a solid OS but will suffer from lack of apps. This kind of excitement for development could be just the thing BlackBerry needs as release looms closer.

Via ArsTechnica

It is the new buzz in media that IOS is on its way out. It is no longer cool to own an Iphone. Apple is losing market share by leaps and bounds. Where are all those savy tech fans taking their business. It looks like they are all ditching their Iphones for Samsung devices. Samsung has now sold over 40 million Galaxy S3′s and the total number of S devices has now passed 100 million!

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It’s too bad that this tablet did not release before Christmas. I think everyone in my family would have received one as a gift from me. The MeMo pad is the low end tablet to kill all other low end tablets. The specs match the price. This is in no way a rip off of the highly successful Nexus 7. The tablet will drop with a 7″ screen with a low resolution of 1200×600, 1GHz VIA WM8950 with Mail-400 GPU which is based on the, 1GB of Ram, 8GB or 16GB of storage, an SDcard slot, and will be available in multiple colors. All of this can be had for $150. What do you guys think is it worth it for this device. Sound off in the comments below.

Redbox has begun to rollout the BETA program for instant streaming. The plan will include unlimited streaming of net movies, and 4 credits for redbox dvd rentals all for just $8 a month. This is cheaper than Redbox, but is it worth it. That all depends on the online library. Well now is your chance to try it out. Redbox opened up instant streaming for BETA testing. You can apply now for your code for one free month. I have still not received my credit. If you  guys have been able to try it out what are your thoughts? Will this compete with Netflix?

Via Redboxinstant.com

Now you can have the latest and greatest features of Google Chrome on your Android smartphone. Today Google released an official beta channel for chrome. Builds will “release early and release often” according to Chrome blog. Beta normally means buggy. So as the new releases hit you will have to sift through bugs until the stable builds release, but this is the price you pay to live on the cutting edge. Head to the Play Store to grab this!

Play link

Here is the next big thing that will come to the next iphone hoax video. Displair uses air and water drops to create a screen that can display images from a PC or laptop! The displair screen is completely interactive and displayed games of fruit ninja for tech fans at CES. It looks like something right out of Minority Report. The display is more energy efficient and cleaner than a conventional touch screen. Who knows if this could be practical. Your friends would be impressed though!

Via PCworld

Not all phones are flagship phones… and that’s ok! Pantech has developed some of the more popular mid to low end devices. The last android phone that Pantech released on Verizon was the QWERTY feature phone. Pantech looks to step up their game a bit with the Perception a sibling of the Discover that was just released on AT&T for $50. For the price this phone isn’t half bad. You’ll get an HD 720p screen, a Snapdragon S4 processor clocked at 1.5GHz, and of course LTE.

This is nice, but is it worth it in the long run to save $50-$100 when you will be tied to a data plan for 2 years? Your thoughts below in the comments.

via Unwired

Nvidia kicked off the Consumer Electronics Show with a bang announcing their Tegra 4 processor which is a quadcore chip with a 72 core GPU. Samsung refused to be outdone and announced a new processor of their own! They one uped Nvidia by announcing an octocore processor. The first of its kind for mobile. The processor is designed with battery life in mind. It has two sets of 4 processors. The first set is meant for high demand situations and includes four Cortex A15 cores, while the sencond set will kick in when less demanding task are performed. The second set includes four Cortex A7 cores. This processor is more suitable for smaller devices due to its form factor.

What do you think can we safely say that this will be the processor in the Galaxy S IV?

Via AndroidCentral

I know I joked about the next big tech breakthrough for mobile devices in 2013 would be 4k screens, but i never expected to see Panasonic show up to CES with a 4k tablet! The tablet is just a proof of concept for now, and there are some usability issues at the moment, but I suspect that this tablet may be far outside of my price range by the time it releases. This kind of screen tech for tablets being sold to the consumer market should still be a few generations out, but who knows I didn’t expect 1080p to be the standard for phones as quickly as that has happened. This could be set to cater to those with creative trades.

Read more…

We knew it was coming. Here it is the flexible display by Samsung! The Youm flexible display is not ready and there is no pricing information and no release dates, but Samsung did decide to slap the display into a prototype units to show it off at CES! Some units were curved while others were completely bent. The demo units were all around 5″ and had high resolutions. There were all kinds of scenarios set up. One scenario had the display edges curved down to highlight features. The most feasible use for this type of technology is obviously the fact that this display is virtually unbreakable!

Do you love the flexible displays? Do you want to be able to bend and flex your phone’s screen or are you only interested in this tech for its shear sturdiness?

Via TheVerge 

Alcatel had a few tricks up its sleeve for CES 2013! They brought the first ever phone to feature a quad-core MediaTek processor and the world’s thinnest phone.

The Alcatel One Touch Idol Ultra is the world’s thinnest phone at .25 inches. This phone is sporting a 4.7″ HD AMOLED, and is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor. It also includes an 8mp camera. The phone is to thin to include a 3.5mm headphone jack so you will have to rely on bluetooth for audio streaming. Alcatel has not been able to get this cleared by the FCC so we won’t be seeing the device stateside for a while. Instead we will see a slightly thicker version of this phone.

Via PCmag

Android Police got their hands on the new Huawei Ascend Mate at CES. The phone is massive at 6.1″. It is considerably larger than the Galaxy Note 2 which is already big enough to make my thumb cramp after several minutes of use. The device runs Android 4.1 with a Huawei skin reminiscent of MIUI (no app drawer). This device excites the masses and is appealing because of the ridiculous screen but it is very likely that we will not see this device stateside.

Via AndroidPolice

Archos brought their GamePad to CES as expected. They are hoping that their product can compete with the likes of the OUYA and the recently announced Nvidia Project Shield. It looks like Archos may only be able to compete at the price point though. The Archos Gamepad has a very noticeably low resolution 7″ 1024×700 display. The selling point here is that the GamePad maps on screen buttons to the built in physical buttons using a control emulator. Buttons tended to not map correctly with the test units on display at CES. Some high demand games like dead trigger crashed, however other low intensity games seemed to do well. The device will be released at a $169 price point. This may be the devices saving grace.

Portable TV’s have been all the rage in the Middle East and Asia. Portable Tv’s have come and gone in the USA. Products like FLO TV seemed awesome but eventually flopped. RCA’s new TV tablet hopes to merge the best of Android Tablets with a TV on the go solution. There are already plenty of Video viewing apps like Netflix, HULU, and others but they all require you to be connected to WIFI. The new TV Tablet has a built in tuner so theoretically you should be able to view TV anywhere, awesome right!

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The norm across seas has been to buy a phone at full retail price and then pop a sim card in from your favorite carrier. Here in the US the carriers have consumers by the collar! They subsidize prices by locking you in to a lengthy contract. This makes for cheap phones, but in the long run the crazy ridiculous prices we pay for data and cell service on a monthly basis end up making the phones cost more.  Last month T-mobile announced that it would eliminate the subsidizing of phones all together in 2013 introducing plans that allow for intrest free financing instead.

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We expected to see a new device from Sony at CES, here it is! The Xperia Z features a sleek design with a glass front and back. The phone comes in white and black models. The elegant design may be the best thing it has going for the device. The specs are pretty nice as well!  The Z includes a 5″ 1080p display, Qualcom Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core processor. The Z ditches apple’s rounded edges instead taking on a more sharp and blocky appearance! The Z includes a 13mp camera, with HDR video and HDR stills. Sony has included new battery saving software that will disable all background apps extending standby time of the 2330mah battery by up to 4 hours. As shown in the picture above the phone is all sealed up and is resistant to water.

Via PCmag

Samsung joins the 4K fun with their unveiling of the 85″ 4k Ultra HDTV! The UN85S9 is the largest 4K display ever, and also includes a revolutionary floating design! The floating TV sits inside of a metal frame that serves another purpose. The frame houses a 120w 2.2 speaker system for a premium audio experience. Samsung said that they will not focus on providing 4k natively however and will instead focus on their upscaling algorithms which may be a pretty logical decision as Blu-Ray and 1080p content is still king! It will be awhile before we see lots of 4K content. Until then this display will be able to up convert existing content, and do that well! The display is powered by a 1.35Ghz quad core processor. It will release in March, but there is no pricing info yet.

Vai TheVerge

Bigger is better at CES, and as expected TV manufactures are pushing 4K to the masses. 4k is twice the resolution of full hd, and it allows for larger TV’s. Sony has combined the super high resolution from a 4k display with the sharpness and clarity of OLED! According to those who have had the chance to lay eyes on it the quality is amazing. It is no where near ready for affordable consumerism, but it is nice to have something to wish for!

Via Engadget

LG has had a pretty large showing at CES early on. They announced this morning that they will release a Laser Projector that will project a 100″ 1080p image from only 22 inches away! The HECTO projector will also pack two 10W speakers and bulbs that will last 25,000 hours without needing to be replaced. The projector also includes LG’s smart tv functionality! It will be available in March. Who is picking one of these up?

Via LGnewsroom

Nvidia kicked things off at CES last night with their announcement of the new Tegra 4 processor. Vizio is one of the first out of the gate to show off their  new 10″ Android tablet featuring the Tegra 4 processor. The Tegra 4 is still quad core but features a 72 core GPU for the ultimate graphics and gaming experience in mobile! The 10″ screen packs a resolution of 2.560×1,600 wth a PPI of 301! It will have 32 GB of onboard storage NFC capabilities and will be Running Jelly Bean out of the box. They will also be releasing a 7″ version of the tablet that will also run JB but will lack NFC and the processor has not been specified. There is no release date or pricing information yet. This tablet looks pretty solid. Hope its not vapor ware!

Via ZDnet

Acer was one of the first to announce new wares at CES. The Iconia B1-A71 looks to take over the 7″ tablet market by undercutting the rest of the pack. Their tablet will sell for $150. The tablet will release with Jelly Bean and will a 1.2gHz dual core processor. It is a little light on Ram with only 512MB. It is rocking a 7″ WSVGA screen and 8gb of memory. This device is underpowered compared to the rest of the current 7″ tablet market. There is no release date for now.  Is anyone interested in this low priced tablet?

Via Engadget

Most of you have tried out the widely popular homescreen replacement app Nova Launcher. It has just received a major update to 2.0 that includes lots of changes.  More tweaks to the homescreen, improved scrolling, and lower memory usage are all included for an overall better experience. This also includes lots of bugfixes.

What’s in this version:

• Custom Icon Size (Prime)
• Swipe actions on any desktop icon (Prime)
• Custom wallpaper cropping
• Increase maximum desktop grid size
• Infinite Scroll Drawer Setting
• Alphabetical list drawer style
• Small Icons Dock Setting
• Force wallpaper scrolling on USA SGS2
• Aggressive Desktop Setting (Keep in memory)*
• Lower memory usage
• Improve scrolling performance
• Fixes, optimizations and tuning

*”Retrieve Running Apps” used for Aggressive Desktop and warning when multiple launchers are running

Additional changes:

• “Swipe to open folder” allowing swiping over a desktop or dock folder to open it, with the tap action doing something else (such as opening an app).

Via PlayStore

Aside from the new LG Google TV sets that should be announced at CES, they will also be updating some of their Smart Tv’s. The new LG Cinema 3D series will have and edge to edge plus other features like NFC stickers for pairing with an android device, and miracast so you can easily stream content from your phone or tablet to your TV. The tv’s will also make use of the new, redesigned Magic Remote which has motion sensing and voice control. The Tv’s will also include improved CPU’s and Graphics processors.

Via PocketLint

With CES just days away leaks are beginning to pour out. Maybe there will be a few surprises left when it gets here. The latest leak is a press shot of the Sony Xperia Z codenamed Yuga. This phone is to release with Jelly Bean and will be a direct competitor to the likes of the HTC Droid DNA, and Huawei Ascend D2. It will have a full 1080p HD 5″ display. It will have a quadcore processor and should be sporting a 13mp camera. Are you interested to see what else this device is packing?

Via Unwired

If you thought that Samsung was doing well this year apparently they don’t think well is well enough. They have their eyes set on even loftier goals. Samsung plans to hit 510 million in sales over the next 12 months with 390 million of those sells coming from smart phones and 120 million as featurea and budget phones. In 2012 Samsung sold 420 million devices so the 20% jump to 510 million devices may be feasible considering the much anticipated launch of the Galaxy S4 and even the Note3 on the horizon plus whatever they manage to come up with in the tablet world!

Via AndroidGuys

Rozetked has posted a “Concept” video of what we can possibly expect from the next iteration of the Galaxy S series! The video is labeled “First Look : Rendering” meaning this is not the actual Galaxy S4 device.

It includes one blaring similarity to early Iphone 5 Concept videos. The video shows the phone projecting a lazer keyboard. This type of technology already exist in bluetooth peripherals, but has not been built in to any phones. We can be sure that we won’t see in the S4. Even though it looks neat it is just not very practical.

The Video also shows a super thin device which includes a 1080p AMOLED edge-to-edge display, 2.0ghz quad core processor, 13mp camera, physical home button and similar design to the S3. This phone may be kept locked down by Samsung and we may not see any leaks until we get closer to the release. That being said we will probably see lots of speculation and guessing as to what the phone will feature like in the video.

Via Youtube

We have already heard mutterings of Samsung prepping the next Note at 6.3″. This rumor was met with pretty overwhelming dissatisfaction.  In fact it was a stretch for most Note2 owners to even go to a 5.5″ divice. Huawei doesn’t seem to mind. They will announce the behemoth device at CES. Although there won’t be many surprises at announcement. Richard Yu showed off his device at a Huawei store in Gaungzhou yesterday. According to rumors the Ascend Mate will drop with a 1.8ghz K3V3 quadcore  chip, a massive 4,000mah battery, 9.9mm of thickness, and will cost about $480! The display will have a ppi of 361 and will be full 1080p hd!

This looks like a sick device, but is it too big?

Via Engadget

The TV’s pictured above are the new models that will announced by LG at CES! They are Google TV’s until now Google TV has been limited to set top boxes. The two new LG models (GA7900 and GA6400) will both have Google TV built in! These Tv’s will be fully loaded each featuring a dual core processor, OnLive video gaming app, and a custom version of Google TV. The design is sleek with a thin bezzel and new stand. There is no pricing info yet, but we may find out this info at CES.

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Here is a bit of welcomed news for developers who own a Galaxy S III. Samsung has released source code for Jelly Bean 4.1 which was released a few weeks back. This will be a big help for Rom development. Developers can finally squash bugs and add new features.

Grab the source code here

Tapatalk brings Forums to your device. Most forums have their own dedicated apps, but tapatalk allows you to access all of your favorite forums (even some of the smaller ones) from the same app. Tapatalk has been working on making an HD version for tablets and it has been in beta since October. It is finally available in the PlayStore for Download to your tablet! The app is still in Beta and is available free from the playstore!

Playstore link

2012 was a year of great phone releases! Android finally became a high polished well greased machine. Windows finally put out an operating system that is bearable to use, and IOS “revolutionized” their latest release with lots of Android kangs! HTC started their comeback early in the year with the “One” series, and capped off a great release year with the DNA, Motorola released their lineup of battery sipping devices, and Samsung took the mobile world by storm, outselling Apple and racking up a few patent lawsuits on the way! There were a few less notable devices though. Here is my list of Disappointing Phones for 2012.

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We still have a few days left in the year, but with the world ending today I figured I might as well spend my last few minutes sharing with you my favorite phones of 2012. It seems like we have blown through a few generations of hardware all in one year, and new standards have been set for 2013!

The Best Of 2012!… Read More

The Rumor Mill is a churning. Just as you begin to settle into your Droid DNA now there are rumors of a new BIG flagship device release from HTC. We could see this new device known ad the M7 as soon as Mobile World Congress in February. Sources at Unwired View and @evleaks say that this new device will be packed with all the high end specs available! @evleaks were spot on with the DNA rumors leading up to the release.

The M7 is said to be sporting a 4.7″ 1080p full HD display with a PPI of 468. I would like to see a 5″ display, which after using the DNA, i feel is the sweet spot for screen size. Apparently HTC will be using a new tech “SoLux” for this display which may or may not be the same LCD3 we have seen in the DNA.

The M7 will release with a Snapdragon S4 Pro processor clocked at 1.7GHZ (the DNA is clocked at 1.5GHZ). There may also be a new version of Sense with this device. Hopefully the new Sense will be 4.2 with a slimmed down version of Sense. The rear facing camera is said to be 13mp with the improved aperture and software from the OneX series. The front facing camera will be 2mp and will be capable of recording 1080p video. The phone should come with a 2300mah battery and should be equipped with LTE.

This looks like a Serious device. What are your thoughts are you buying this if it drops in April?

Via Phandroid

The Cyanogen Mod Team has been hard at work to bring their custom build of Android 4.2 aka CM 10.1 to our devices. They had announced availability for the Verizon Galaxy Nexus, but today it was made available for other devices. The Samsung Galaxy S and the Galaxy S 3 each receive official Cm 10.1 nightlies today! The builds are limited to the T-mobile and AT&T variants only, but it should be available for Verizon and Sprint versions very soon. Android 4.2 includes photosphere, quick settings, gesture keyboard and more! Of course Nightly builds are experimental. Stable builds will come with the Monthly releases.

Via Get.cm

Google announced a new app called Youtube Capture. It will release first on the Iphone and then on Android which is backwards if you ask me. The cool thing about this app is that it allows you to quickly upload videos to youtube while also sharing the videos across other social networks like Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. The Android version will arrive very soon. With the app you will be able to to trim and add other enhancements like video stabilization  color correction, and background music when uploading. The app also forces users to film in landscape mode which will be greatly appreciated by youtubers around the world.

Via Phandroid

The Galaxy S 3 is a deal of the day at BestBuy today only December 16. You can save $150 as the device is available today for ony $49.99. This would be a great Christmas gift at a great price! You won’t want to miss out on this great deal!

Via Bestbuy.com

XDA developer alephzain has found a new kernel exploit. Developer Chainfire has also developed a one click root apk that takes advantage of this exploit. The bug is in Samsung’s kernel source. It allows users to have access to the device RAM, then you can freely dump it to see what is there or inject process of your own. This has made the Rounds as “Vicious Malware” by this definition any program that easily allows you to root your device would be malware. We know that this is not legitimate malware. However if left open by Samsung it could easily be legitamite malware based on the same exploit.

Affected devices include those that have Exynos 4210 and Exynos 4412 processors. This includes the Sprint Galaxy S II, International Galaxy S II, International Galaxy S3, International Galaxy Note, and the Galaxy Note 2 including the Verizon version. Also some tablets with the Exynos 4 are also included. Samsung is probably already hard at work fixing this.

Meanwhile check out the one click Root apk by chainfire.

The Droid DNA is an awesome device. The design is one of its main selling points with its soft touch back, redgrill on the sides, and the flush power button and volume rockers this device looks pretty slick. A few images of the Special Edition Verizon Employee version have popped up on the net. Im thinking this device looks even better in red. Im just not sure why Verizon isn’t making this available for customers who are holiday shopping. Other Verizon Employee Edition phones have been sold on ebay for ridiculous amounts. I can definitely see this being one of those devices. What do you think? Is it better in Black or Employee Edition Red?

Via DroidLife 

So we have been waiting and Jelly Bean 4.1 is finally coming to the Verizon Galaxy  S III. It will still be slightly behind Android’s latest build which is 4.2, but that is to be expected with a skinned device. We will finally get our Google Now, enhanced notifications, and project butter! This update will also bring ISIS support to the device! Of course if you were unlocked and rooted you probably have already experienced the awesomeness that is  Jelly Bean. The rest of you are probably pretty happy.

Via Verizon

The Verizon version of the Galaxy Note II has only been out for a few weeks and already rumors of the Note III are beginning to hit the mill! The latest rumor has the next device in the lineup sporting a 6.3″ screen. It makes sense kind of. The first Note released with a 5.3″ screen and the Note 2 pushed the limits at 5.5″. I have used the Note 2 as my primary device for the last week and have finally gotten used to the massive screen and i feel like i can reach everything with one hand. The Note 3 would not be an option for me if it really comes with a 6.3″ screen! Why not just put a radio in a Nexus 7?! Seriously! What are your thoughts does this excite you or has Samsung gone to far if this ends up being the case? Would you buy one?

Via SlashGear

Blackberry 10 has been in the works since the introduction of IOS on the original Iphone. Rim has still yet to announce exactly when that will release, but rumors peg it for release in quarter 1 2013. With all this time to prepare you would expect a pretty spectacular lineup of devices for launch. A few photo s of the upcoming L-Series device have been leaked out via Tinhte.vn. In the photos we can see that the device will have rounded edges, a 1800mah removeable battery, sdcard slot, and a power button in the center of the top. It will also be sporting HDMI output, and micro USB ports. This is not your fathers BlackBerry, but who knows if this device will be a contender. At this point BlackBerry’s greatest hope could be to somehow position itself as a top 5 smartphone OEM but I feel like these BB10 devices may be DOA. What do you think. Does the thought of a new smartphone OS excite you?

Via TheVerge

Hopefully you will never need this for unbricking your device. It is always good to have a safety net though. This also comes in handy incase you ever needed to return the phone for hardware defects. It is easy enough to install via Odin. The file is a whopping 1.5GB so be prepared for that.

Grab the file needed here

We all have at least one person on our shopping list who has everything they want already. Many of you may be that person. I know I am in my family. Tech geeks who are on the cutting edge mostly buy the latest gadgets as soon as they release. In this article we will rundown a list of my favorite gift ideas a Tech Geek like myself would love to receive!

Check out the list for all sorts of Awesome Gift Ideas after the Break

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This is just sick! If this turns out to be true I will be pretty amazed. We have been hearing rumors for quite some time that Samsung has been working on flexible displays, I had assumed this kind of tech was years away from being released. Now their are some rumors that the tech may be ready in time for the Galaxy Note IV release. Another Rumor has the next version of the Galaxy S releasing in April! That is pretty soon. Other rumors have the display at 441ppi, and a 13mp camera onboard as well. This is gearing up to be another huge Android release.

How do you feel about flexible, unbreakable screens?

Via Reuters

The Archos GamePad is now available in Europe and should be shipping out to us here in the US by the end of Q1 2013. This device could really be something great. If they can release it at a price point that competes with the likes of Nintendo DS and Playstation PSP we may have another classic on our hands. Mobile gaming is fast becoming the most common type of gaming. The only problem with playing games on your phone or tablet is that the controls tend to not be very intuitive. The Archos GamePad has revolutionary key mapping tools that allow you to map the controls to any game in seconds just by dragging and dropping. This could really change mobile gaming as we know it! It also includes a 7″ screen. It is said to be light weight.

FEATURES & SPECS

• Operating System: Google Certified Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• Smooth Gaming Experience with 3D Graphics: Quad-core Mali 400 MP GPU paired with a 1.6GHz Dual-core CPU.
• Memory: 8GB of internal memory with microSD slot or up to 64GB of additional space.
• Mini-HDMI: Use the mini-HDMI port to connect the GamePad to your TV for a big screen viewing experience.
• Google PlayTM: 700,000 apps and games and includes DRM support for downloading books, magazines, music, movies and TV shows.
• ARCHOS Media Center applications: tailor made apps for video and music that include metadata scraping, auto-subtitles and of course, the best format and codec support around including 1080p video decoding.

Via Archos.com

The latest and greatest version of Gmail is now available for Android devices 4.0 or higher! Some new features include Pinch-to-Zoom, and swype to archive/delete, in app video and photo attachments, larger photo previews, plus a ton of other features. Most of you should now be able to enjoy Gmail 4.2 since it is now available for ICS and up!

Via AndroidPolice

The Galaxy S III on the AT&T network is now receiving the JB 4.1.1 update via Kies! They are behind T-mobile and Sprint, but ahead of Verizon who is always last to the game. Of course this update comes with all the Jelly Bean updates that you would expect like Google Now, Project Butter, and enhanced notifications. The update is not available OTA but will likely come soon. The only question that I have is why is Verizon always so late to the party!

Via AndroidPolice

According to the ASUS website there is a new dock coming for the Nexus 7! The best part is that it may be here in time for you to wrap it up and put it under the Christmas tree. This is pretty exciting to hear considering that Google only just recently began to sell accessories to go with the pogo pins on the Galaxy Nexus and it has been out for a year! It is nice to see that Asus will have their accessories out a little quicker. It should release with a $40 price tag. Hopefully we do see this by December. If we do will you be purchasing one?

Via Droid-Life

A whole list of Rumors have come out of Korea. Sammobile has been tipped with info on upcoming Samsung devices.

Of course the rumors begin with info on the next version of the Galaxy S series.  Apparently Samsung is planning on announcing the next Galaxy S at a special event in April. The new Galaxy S is said to have a full HD AMOLED display along with a quad core cpu, 13mp camera, and a 5″ screen (this is the sweet spot in my opinion). These specs are only rumored and not confirmed.

There should also soon be a more basic version of the Note 2. This would be a more affordable version with less than stellar specs. This will still have the insanely huge 5.5″ screen! There will be no SPEN, and there will probably not be a sAMOLED screen.

Samsung also plans to release a 13.3″ behemoth tablet to rival the Asus Transformer series. It will include a Qwerty keyboard. It has not been confirmed what OS it will run though.

Lots of great stuff coming out of the Samsung camp!

Via Sammobile 

Black Friday is a tried and true tradition here in the USA. It has become just as much of a Holiday as the day that proceeds it in the minds of many Americans. The allure of  achieving the deal of a lifetime has reduced many to brawling. There are many attractive deals that are being advertised. Some you should avoid and some are worth going for!

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With Black Friday closing in you may be asking yourself which phone to buy for your loved ones this Holiday season. There are several factors to consider when making a large purchase like a smartphone. Not only will you be spending a considerable chunk of change you will most likely also be locking your family or friend into this device for the next two years if you buy it on an upgrade! There are several different OEMs and even a handful of Smartphone Operating Systems that are vying for your hard earned dollar. While Windows has come a long way with their new Windows 8 OS they still have alot of catching up to do in the way of APPs. The two smartphone Operating Systems that stand out are Android and IOS, but which one should you consider for your family member or friend and why.

I have owned both Android and IOS products and I will say that I am a bit of an Android fanboy, however I love my Apple products as well. My MacBook Pro is the best piece of Video editing Software that I have, and my baby girl loves her Ipad. That being said I will spend the next few paragraphs explaining why you should choose Android for your Holiday smartphone purchase.

There are at least 5 great reasons I think your family member or friend will love an Android smartphone.

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During the initial teardown of the Nexus 4 by “Ifixit” something quite exciting was discovered. Google and LG did in fact include a qualcomm 7 band LTE chip! Does this mean that the phone will eventually be coming to Verizon? Not necessarily. Could it be that the Nexus 4 build has a nearly identical build as the LG Optimus G which includes a 4G chip? Possibly. This could just be a way to future proof the device as current HSPA+ carriers in USA will be fleshing out their 4G LTE networks. Will you be willing to burn $500 if this phone drops on the Verizon network several months after release?

Via Ifixit

Motorola did say that they would have Jelly Bean 4.1 updates for the RAZR HD lineup of devices by years end at the device launch. This promise may come to fruition soon. Motorola has sent out the Soak Test invites to members of the Motorola Feedback Network. Historically we have seen a brief soak test period followed by the official OTA. The RAZR M already has Jelly Bean in what was one of Motorola’s fastest updates in quite sometime for a device on Verizon. They seem to really be pumping out the updates to their devices and focusing less on the custom skinning and more on just letting Android be the awesomeness that Android is!

Hope fully we will see this update soon.

Via Droid-Life

Samsung is doing quite well with the widely popular Galaxy S 3. In fact they eclipsed Iphone 4s shipments in Quarter 3. Samsung shipped 18million units to Apple’s 16million units in the third quarter. More than likely the looming release of the Iphone 5 kept many who were ready to upgrade from doing so in the third quarter while they waited on the Iphone 5. It is likely that Apple will do better with the I5 in the 4th quarter. However it doesn’t seem like Samsung is really loosing to much momentum with the sales of the S3, and the S3 should be the biggest bargain this holiday season going for $.99 or free for black friday and should be heavily discounted throughout the Holiday season.

Via AndroidCentral

The latest Humble Bundle continues to bring you cool new apps at a price of your choosing. Not only do you get to choose your price, but you also get to choose how your money is distributed between developers and charity.

New games include Walking Mars, Splice, Crayon Physics Deluxe, Eufloria HD,  and SuperBrothers: Sword & Sourcery.

Via HumbleBundle.com

Look what this guy ran into while browsing the Tech section at his local Walmart! This is the 32GB version of the Nexus 1o. It is marked at $499 which is the correct price. Apparently their was no sales associate near by to inquire about the tablet so it is unclear if Walmart is just preparing for the big day or if this is available for sale now. Looks like i will be checking out all the Walmarts in my area tomorrow!

Via Slickdeals

Galaxy Note 2 Case

Samsung has released their source code for 4.1 updates on the AT&T variant of the Galaxy Note II. This was pretty quick as it is required to be released by their agreement Samsung is tied to concerning the GPL code. Now this is great for the development community because having the source code helps to squash bugs.

Hopefully we will get this same sort of quick result in Samsung releasing source code when the device lands in mid to late November on Verizon. I am still thinking that it will hit later and maybe be presented as a black Friday deal for those wishing to sign a new two year contract.

Via Android Central

We have seen a few leaked press images which all but confirm the name of this monster HTC device. Now it has passed through FCC. There is still no announcement from Verizon or HTC and it has been rumored that this device will be releasing Mid November to early December. The Device will launch with a massive 5″ 1080p and a ppi of over 400!!!! I guess you could hang it on the wall! It will be rocking a quad core Snapdragon S4 pro processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage an 8MP camera, NFC, 4g LTE, and will come out of the box running Jelly Bean.

If you haven’t already preordered a Galaxy Note II this may be a good phone to hold out for!

Via Engadget

The Galaxy S3 was an instant hit upon release. Samsung has really done an awesome job marketing this device with clever ads that make IOS fanboys scratch their heads and wonder why in the world they ever bought the same phone 5 years in a row giving them “Deja, deja, deja, deja, deja vu”. The first time I saw that ad I was in a room full of people and laughed out loud. I felt like an instant dork. 30 million units in half a year is a crazy number. That is equivalent to 1 phone every half second!

I have personally seen more Galaxy S 3′s in the wild then Iphone 5′s. What about you guys?

Via Samsung Tomorrow 

With the Launch of this much anticipated game fast approaching it was about time that we see an official launch trailer from Rovio. In the trailer we get a glimpse of all the new bird characters and their respective powers. This game looks to be a blast, and will definitely add a new twist to a sometimes played out game. You will soon have an excuse to waste 100s of hours. The game is expected to release in the coming weeks.

Yesterday a Press image for the Verizon HTC Droid DNA 5″ super phone was posted to twitter via the twitter handle @evleaks. The image shows a black device with red accents, and what appears to be capacitive navigation buttons. Their was also mention that the device should release in early December. Prior rumors had it hitting shelves a few weeks from now. I figure this would be a great Black Friday phone. What do you guys think?

Via @Evleaks

With the big announcement that dropped a week ago we are all sitting on pins and needles for the release of 4.2! Lucky for us a few of the updated apps have been made available for us now. We can at the very least get a taste of Jelly Bean. The new Clock widget and the new keyboard with swype like gestures and word predictions have each been packaged up into nice and easy flashable zip files. The only requirements are that you be rooted and have a custom recovery installed. Then you just simply install the files, no data or cache wipe required!

Grab the Android 4.2 Clock App here

Grab the Android 4.2 Keyboard App here

Via Droid-life

Note 2 Accessories

My favorite use for the MHL adaptor is playing video games by far. I can see the whole game and my fingers dont block the screen. It is also great for viewing mobile video on a larger screen. All around a must have for your galaxy s iii, or note ii.

Earlier this week it had been reported that some folks had walked out of retail stores toting Nexus 7 devices that turned out to include 32GB of onboard storage. Today the Play Store ran out of 8GB Nexus 7′s. It is assumed that this is the end of the 8GB device which should be replaced by the 16GB version for the same price point of $199. This would pave the way for the heavily anticipated 32GB version to sell for $249! This is perfect timing as the holiday season is coming.

Via Google

Here is a Rumor for you! Today there has been plenty of murmuring about the Galaxy Note 2 release on Verizon. Sprint and AT&T releases have already been confirmed. Pre-orders are available for both of those carriers This Thursday October 25th! They will be in store on AT&T shelves November 9th. However Verizon has yet to announce anything in regards to their release. It is expected (hoped) that we will hear something last second from Verizon about a preorder for Thursday. Some have already stated that it will happen. We can at least hold out for a November 9th launch. This would make since. The SGS3 was released simultaneously across US carriers so we are hoping for the same thing with the Note 2. Exciting times!

This is it! This will be the HTC 5″ phone that will release on Verizon in about a month! Several images have been leaked out. What we can gather from these images is that it will have a matte black finish, with red trim, along with the Verizon branding. The HTC DLX is sporting a massive 5″ 1080p screen with a slim bezel. Also on board are an 8mp rear shooter and a 2mp front facing camera, beats audio, 16gb of storage, 2gb of RAM, a 25oomah battery, and a quadcore processor. It is running Sense 4 and Jelly Bean 4.1.1 out of the box.

This looks like a worth while device to me, however it is difficult to see myself being able to get through half a day with that huge screen and this not so impressive battery.

What areyour thoughts? Is thisdevice on your wishlist?

Via AndroidCentral

So if you are running a custom Rom then you know how big of a headache it can be to flash your Nexus 7 back to stock before applying the manual update. Not to mention you have to reroot, and reinstall recovery and you loose all of your data and it is just a big huge inconvenience. XDA member “Andrew211″ feels your pain. He put together a Stock Rooted 4.1.2 Rom to make your life nice and easy!

Grab the file here

A long time HTC developer @Football4PDA has tweeted out the official specs for the HTC DLX. If he is right then the device destined for Verizon will release with a 5″ FullHD display, a quad-core Snapdragon S4 processor, 1.5GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, a 12MP rear camera, 2MP front camera, a 2500mah non removable battery, and will run Jelly Bean 4.1.2! This looks to be a pretty sick device.

Are you going to grab the Droid Incredible X?

Via Twitter

The rumors have been around for the past few weeks about a 32GB Nexus 7. This could be just what Google needs to keep the Nexus 7 relevant as the mini ipad announcement looms ahead. A Japanese Nexus 7 buyer @oppese claimed on Twitter that he mistakenly received a 32GB Nexus 7 from Google. It was apparently boxed up and labeled as the 16GB that he had ordered. When powered on it revealed a total of 27GB available for media storage after 5GB were reserved for the OS. This looks promising. It should release at a really nice $250 price point.

Via Android Central 

The two mysterious devices “Occam” and “Manta” showed up on Friday in the AnTuTu Benchmark. These could very well be the next Nexus devices. Possibly the rumored LG Nexus, and Nexus 10? Some have speculated that these could be Motorola devices based on the codenames, but who knows. The Manata is running a 1.7ghz and runs Android version “JellyBeanM’ while the Occam is running a 1.5ghz processor and is running 4.2 which is supposedly coming with the next Nexus phone. It seems as if the Occam is running the Snapdragon S4 Quad-core processor since the processor speed is 1512mhz just like the HTC DLX. Looks exciting!

Via Droid-Life

The reseller is not shipping out the device yet, but they do plan to ship by October 24th. Apple has an event scheduled for October 10th were it is expected they will announce the Ipad Mini which is set out to kill the Kindle Fire HD. Could the 32GB Nexus 7 be the paradoxical device that makes the Ipad Mini irrelevant prior to release? The price tag could be $300. Would you be willing to pay an extra $100 for quadruple the storage? This device is not official so you should take all this with a grain of salt.

That time of year is here again! All sorts of crazy rumors are coming out on a weekly, scratch that daily, basis. We all know that there will be at least one Nexus phone released by Google in the fall. More and more it looks like there could be multiple Nexus phones. AndroidAndMe is now claiming to to have spoken to a source who has had hands on time with the LG Optimus G Nexus. He claims that the phone is “Optimus based” and looks much like a Galaxy Nexus.

Another website based in Korea is supporting this rumor, as well as adding that Samsung will release a Galaxy Nexus 2, and Sony will be releasing an Xperia Nexus. They seem to have covered all there basis surely one of there predictions will come to exist!

Apparently the LG device is coming in November which lines up with last years Galaxy Nexus release. If all of these devices really do come which one are you picking up?

So here is some exciting news. Verizon is already beginning to receive accessories for the Droid RAZR HD! Next week would be early according to Verizon Retail stores who have mentioned October 18th as a potential date. There have also been rumors that the device will be delayed until November due to antenna issues. It looks like stores are preparing for a release sooner than later.

With all the devices on the Horizon (Galaxy Note 2, HTC DLX, LG Spectrum 2) is the RAZR HD even on your radar?

Via Droid-Life

HTC announced the One X+ this morning. It will be headed to AT&T in the coming weeks. Verizon passed on the original OneX and we ended up with a lackluster Droid Incredible 4g LTE! Hopefully Verizon will opt for a variant of this beefy device this time around. It includes a crazy 1.7ghz quad core Tegra 3 processor, 4.7″ 720p HD screen, a top of the line 8megpixel rear shooter, and will launch with Jelly Bean 4.1. Would you pick up this phone’s cousin if released on Verizon?

via Droid-Life

Now is the Perfect time to buy a Galaxy Nexus being that Verizon has dropped the on contract price to $50. It could also be argued that this is the worst time to purchase a Galaxy Nexus since it is expected that Google will announce the next Nexus in October and whatever that ends up being will be available in early to mid November. Then again if you are up for an update now and $199 – $299 is more work than it would be worth to convince your wife, you should have no problem getting her to agree to $50 for a new smartphone. This has arguably been one of the best devices of 2012 and is already running Jelly Bean even though most of the newer more expensive phones are not. Get it while its hot!

Via Verizon

The next version of the Galaxy Note II is already available in select Asian and European countries, but we are still patiently waiting for the release here in the states! The good news is that the FCC gave clearance on the Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T versions of the phone recently. What we know is that the Verizon version will support simultaneous CDMA and LTE data using separate antenas while the T-mobile version will support the HSPA and the new LTE networks. Samsung will be holding a press event in New York City on October 24th where they are expected to announce this device.

Getting excited yet?

Via AndroidAuthority 

We have already seen some rumors for the new Nexus device that is likely coming by late October to Early November. There have been no releases from Google or any of the OEM’s which makes you wonder if it really will come in the fall. So far we have heard that HTC could bring a 5 inch phone called the Nexus 5, and we have heard that LG may release a modified version of the LG Optimus G as a Nexus device. According to sources at Androidandme the Next Nexus phone will be based on the LG Optimus G and will be announced by Google within the next 30days and will include an update to Android 4.2. The new version of Jelly Bean will include some new features like multi-user logins, enhanced Maps, enhanced dialer, enhanced camera features, and native support for wireless display standards like Miracast.

Apparently Andy Rubin will be announcing this device at the AllthingsD conference October 29-30 just like last year. The multi Nexus release rumor is still floating around as well so this announcement could be pretty huge!

What do you guys think? LG has struggled the past few years to remain relevant in the US smartphone market. Is LG a good OEM for the next Nexus?

Via DroidForums

Yesterday Netflix released its updated UI for Android devices which looked really sweet. However they never mentioned a new feature. Hidden inside the update is a really nice feature which allows you to use your phone as an advanced controller for PS3. Just connect both devices to your WiFi connection and when you play a video on your phone it will ask you which device you would like to play it from. Just select the PS3 and it will start playing on your PS3. Apparently this feature has not rolled out to everyone, but some of you should be able to replicate this. Try it out and report your findings.

Via Android Police

I do have Netflix and it is mainly used by my two year old who knows exactly how to access it on the Nexus 7 and start an episode of Barney. I did happen to notice a difference when she opened it up yesterday. Netflix has rolled out a new UI for Android devices. Apparently the new UI makes it easier than ever to find and discover new movies and shows. Check out the video above for more details. Is this UI better for you guys?

Via Phandroid

Here is a photo taken with a device (GT-i9260). This could very well be the Galaxy Nexus 2 since the Galaxy Nexus is GT-i9250. Samsung kept the Galaxy S lineup on a particular number scheme (Galaxy S i9000, Galaxy SII i9100, and Galaxy SIII i9300) it only stands to reason that whatever took this picture is probably the next iteration of the Galaxy Nexus. The only info we can take from this is the f/2.65 aperture and 4mm focal length. We have no real info on this device, but it is expected to basically be the same as the first Galaxy Nexus with a few updates in specs. So many rumored devices are you interested in this one?

Via Droid-Life

HTC is already expected to bring a 5″ phone to Verizon by the end of the year codenamed DLX (Droid Incredible X). A GSMArena tipster says that a Nexus 5 device is coming from HTC that will be designed after the 1080p Incredible X. It is said to run Android version 4.1.2 which is an updated build of Jelly Bean that is to include bug fixes, extra lockscreen functionality, and other minor tweaks. As far as specs are concerned the rumored phone would have a 1080p 5″ screen, a Snapdragon S4 pro series chip, a 12mp rear shooter, a 2mp front shooter, a decent sized 25oomAh battery, and 64GB of on board memory The tip is said to come from a reliable source inside HTC but there is absolutely no confirmation. I am sure many more rumors like this will pop up between now and the announcement of the next Nexus by Google this fall. I would love to see an HTC device with an unlocked bootloader and no sense! What do you guys think? Would you buy it?

Via GSMArena

This is one phone that I have been waiting on for a while. I remember when the first RAZR released I decided to pass because their were rumors of a RAZR HD that would come out very soon after. That phone turned out to be the RAZR Maxx, but the RAZR HD rumors never died. Now it has been officially announced and we are playing the waiting game here in the states. Meanwhile it was released today via a Brazilian retailer. It can be purchased now for the bargain price of $500 although chances are it won’t work on Verizon’s network, and it may be released in the US before yours gets through customs. The device will be released “before the Holidays” whenever that is.

Via CLARO

Im all for holding a tv up to my head to talk. I am really getting excited for all the 5″ and larger phones that are coming to Verizon. The heavily rumored HTC OneX5 or DLX is beginning to shape up as a device that could give the Note 2 a run for its money.

So far it is said to include:

5 inch 1080p 441ppi display, 1.5 ghz Qualcom Snapdragon S4 Quad-core processor, 2GB ram, 12megapixel rear camera, 2 megapixel front facing camera, 25oo mAh battery and Jelly Bean 4.1.

If it lands on Verizon with these specs it could easily be the top dog.

Would you consider this over the note if it dropped with these specs?

So it has been a mystery as to when the new Moto devices other than the M would be releasing since Moto would not give us a release date other than “before the holidays” during the live event earlier this month. We still do not have a U.S. release date. One could argue that Halloween is a holiday therefore the device should release before October 31st which lines up with the launch date according to the German Razr HD press release. Hopefully it will release just in time for the folks who live in the gated communities to hand out to those of us who still like to trick or treat.

Via Motorola

The above image is one of the first to appear for the Verizon Branded Galaxy Note 2. So the Verizon version will have one of the ugliest features of all the variants that is the home button will be plastered with an ugly Verizon logo. Again this is just a leaked photo of what could be a test device so hopefully Verizon will have  enough sense not to include their log on the physical home button. Are you as disgusted as I was about the logo on the home button?

Via Droid-life

It looks like the Iphone 5 will not be able to support simultaneous voice and data with the new all in one LTE chip! Simultaneous Voice and Data had been a big selling point for AT&T on their previous phones. A Verizon spokesperson said “The Iphone 5 was designed to allow customers to place a voice call on the Verizon wireless network, while letting customers access the internet over the WIFI.” AT&T had confirmed to TheVerge its version of the Iphone 5 will support simultaneous voice and data at slower speeds. Sprint has also confirmed that the feature will not work on their version. This is in contradiction to all the other LTE devices on Verizon’s network which can do simultaneous Voice and Data. Just something else to consider.

Is this feature all that important to you? I have found it useful when waiting on hold, or looking something up for someone who is on the line.

Via TheVerge

Samsung has reportedly confirmed October for the release of Jelly Bean on the International version of the Galaxy S III. This is soon which is pretty good news. Of course we know that Verizon is generally the last carrier to rollout updates so the sooner the better. Jelly Bean for the international and Tmobile versions have already been leaked to the public so we know Samsung is getting close. I would love to see the official version rollout by October which may be just in time for the Galaxy Note II which will release with Jelly Bean on board.

Via AndroidPolice

During the Apple event today Phil Schiller made an inaccurate claim when he stated that the “Iphone 5 is the world’s thinnest smartphone”. The Iphone 5 is incredibly thin at 7.6mm thin however the original Droid Razr is a mere 7.1mm thin. Apple may consider the camera hump on the Razr to be the factor in making their smartphone the thinnest. Either way I still feel they are playing catch up!

The Iphone 5 was announced today and many an Apple fanboy turned to their buddies to Brag and Boast of the new larger display, the slimmer body, the Dual core processor, and the 4G Lte. Many Android Fanboys like myself let out a big “MEH” after the announcement. All the world changing inovations made to the Iphone are old news to us Android users. The new bigger 4″ screen seems so 2010, The LTE connectivity is not fresh technology, and there are already flagship Android phones with quad core processors. It really felt like Apple was playing catch up with this device. All of that being said it is easy to poke fun at the apple worshiping Iphone fanboys, but If you live inside the IOS bubble this phone truely is an evolution. It is nothing new to Android users and in many ways is inferior to all the options we currently have available however this is a huge change for the Iphone. The design has basically been overhauled. I know that I am personally not impressed, but I am glad that the IOS folks can finally have a bigger screen. Now they will feel bad for looking at me like an idiot and calling my SGS3 a huge brick!

What are your thoughts. Impressed or “MEH”

Does anyone care about this device. I mean it does look pretty sweet. It does have a massive 5″ screen (albeit w/ a 4:3 aspect ratio… so 90′s), a wicked fast 1.5Ghz dual core snapdragon S4 processor, 1GB RAM, 8MP rear camera, and Ice Cream Sandwich. This one has a pretty large bezel which makes it a bit unwieldy. I would check out the Galaxy Note 2 before picking up this device.

Did anyone grab one of these today?

Apple will be forced to invalidate two patent claims made by HTC for data transmission in wireless devices if they plan to sell the new ipad and the iphone 5 which could release as early as next week. U.S. ITC Judge Thomas Pender said, “Clear and convincing means something to me.”, “I have to be pretty darn certain a U.S. patent is invalid.” This could turn out to be a difficult task for Apple, and this could result in the ban of the New Ipad that utilizes LTE and the Iphone5 if it is released with LTE. This could give HTC leverage to come into some kind of settlement with Apple. Thoughts?

Via Bloomberg

A screenshot was released yesterday that got the attention of many Verizon subscribers like myself who instantly became giddy with joy! When the Galaxy Note was released it met controversy when lots of folks couldn’t decide if the screen was just right or too big! Many of you never had the opportunity to make that decision since Verizon passed up the phone all together. I would not have picked up the device then, but after seeing plenty original Galaxy Note’s in the wild I am convinced that I need one! I was very excited today when I came across the Screenshot above that showed the model number as SCH-I605! This model number would mean that it is headed to Verizon. This is both good news and bad news. This version would more than likely come to us with a locked bootloader. However in the past Samsung has been good about doing a crappy job at keeping the bootloader locked down! Chances are the development community will have this thing unlocked in no time. Nothing has been made official yet. Will you pick one of these devices up if it lands on Verizon?

Via Briefmobile

Kindle fire announced a whole slew of new devices for the holiday season this afternoon all of which can be preorderd now!

The New Kindle Fire will have a 7″ display like before but the specs have been updated to hopefully take away all the lag that plagued the device before. It has a faster processor and double the RAM for an increase in speed of 40% battery life should be improved as well! It ships September 14th, and the best part is that the price has been reduced to $159!

The Kindle Fire HD will come with a 7″ display or an 8.9″ display each with 254ppi and 1920×1200 resolution. It is a slender 8.8mm thick and packs a OMAP4 4470 processor, 16GB of storage or more depending on the model you choose, HD front facing camera, dual stereo speakers, hdmi out, bluetooth and dual band wifi. They will start at $199. They will be ready before the holiday seaons.

A new ereader device was announced the paperwhite and is said to have a 9 week battery life! Other than that not to much to get hyped over, it is an e-reader.

Anyone picking up any of these devices?

The makers of the Goophone I5, the Android device that is designed after the numerous iphone 5 design leaks, has announced that they will be suing Apple upon the release of the Next Iphone. The Goophone design has been patented in China. I think they may be barking up the wrong tree. Im interested to see how this plays out. Your thoughts?

via Droid-Life 

The event came and it went and Motorola announced everything that we expected plus a few things that we certainly did not expect.

Three new devices were announced one can be ordered now, the Motorola Droid M, and two will be available before the holidays, the Droid Razr HD and Droid Razr Maxx HD.

The Droid Razr M is a pretty outstanding “entry level smartphone” It has a 4.3″ Super Amoled Advanced Edge-to-Edge display, 1.5gHz dual core processor, 4gLTE, NFC, 8MP camera, ICS with JB to be released ASAP. This phone can be ordered now for $99 on 2yr contract or unsubsidized for $549.

The Razr HD will pack a 4.7″ 720p display (finally a decent display on a Moto device!), Dual core Snapdragon 1.5gHz processor, 8MP rear camera, NFC, ICS with JB to be released ASAP, and a sizeable 2500mah battery. The updated version will have even more kevlar being almost fully encased in the stuff! The bezel has nearly been removed and the screen is almost edge-to-edge.

The only diference between the Razr HD and the Razr MAXX HD will be the battery. Razr MAXX HD will have a 3800mah battery for stupid crazy long talk times. It is said to be able to run 13hours of straight video playback!

Big question is are you buying one. They also announced that they will have developer unlocked versions of the devices which will cost the same as the unsubsidized versions. The big question is will Verizon allow the unlocked version to run on their network? They have said in the past they won’t let unlocked dev phones onto their network. Moto also said that if you bought your device this year and it can’t be upgraded to jelly bean they will give you a $100 credit towards the purchase of one of these devices.

I would like to pick one up. The Razr Maxx Hd looks pretty nice, but who knows what development will be like on these phones. I guess we will have to wait and see.

For $199 no one is complaining that the nexus 7 wasn’t preloaded with a gsm or cdma radio. The tablet is the perfect size for carrying on the go. Some folks can even tuck it in their back pocket. As portable as the device is some folks could have used the option to upgrade to a device with mobile connectivity. Paul O’Brien of MoDaCo has suggested that a 3G connected version of the Nexus 7 would be coming soon. It is expected to ship in about 6 weeks. There has been no information about pricing or carriers yet. This is still in Rumor status. Be on the lookout for more info on this.

Via AndroidPolice

HTC sent out a “Save The Date” notice today for September 19th. This is pretty convenient considering that Apple sent out a notice for their event which will be held one week prior meaning that the new iphone could possibly even be released on the same day as the HTC event. What can we expect to see from this event? That much is not clear yet. There has been heavy rumors of a new 5″ 1080p behemoth screen phone. There have been leaks of a tablet that is supposedly coming, and more recently their have been leaks of a device with red accents suggesting a new device for Verizon! Whatever is coming we will “see what is next” according to the notice that was sent out. The icon in the notice could be mock up of the Sense version of Google Now, which would lead us to believe that whatever is coming will have Jelly Bean.

Are you guys excited for this event. What do you think is coming?

The Event will go live at 2PM EST. Motorola will be announcing the release of their new device lineup for the fall. Motorola is expected to announce the release of the Razr HD and the Razr M. The Razr HD will be Motorola’s next flagship device. Hopefully we will se a bump in specs like a faster cpu. We know that the Razr HD will be sporting a new High def screen which has been lacking in the previous lineup. The Motorola M is Motorola’s new midrange device and is shaping up to be a pretty nice device as well.

Be sure to bookmark the page so you can watch the event!

Google Now became was one of the huge differentiators when Jelly Bean was released. It added all sorts of functionality to the Voice Search feature of Android. Google Now has been updated adding lots of features including Movies giving you easy access to showtimes and more, public alerts which I actually got to use some during Hurricane Issac  this week (it was super helpful as it alerted me when there were any type of area wide Warnings ie Tornado warning, Tornado watch, Flood warning ect), and one of the coolest features is the ability to add your favorite sports teams to follow real time. Not bad for a first update.

Of course if you visit this site regularly or you follow my twitter then you know that Jelly Bean has been available for the Samsung Galaxy S 3 for a while now in the form of CM10. However Samsung is finally gearing up to release their official update to Jelly Bean for the S3! Samsung has announced that the Note 2 and the Galaxy Camera will both ship with Jelly Bean so it only makes since that they will have it available for their current flagship device ASAP! Of course carriers will have to ok the update, and Verizon may be slow to update as usual. You can count on the fact that the official update will be made available for manual update well before it is officially rolled out OTA.

Via Droid-Life

It has been widely rumored that the next versions of the Nexus would be by various OEMs and that there could be as many as 5 new devices. The Nexus 7 and the Nexus Q were officially unveiled earlier this year meaning there would need to be 3 more Nexus variants to complete the rumor. It has been assumed that Samsung would do a refresh of their hardware for the next phone version of Nexus. This makes since because Samsung has had their hands in the last two versions of the phone. LG and Sony have each been thrown in the mix now. Japanese mobile provider NTT Docomo has included a Sony Xperia Nexus, an LG Optimus Nexus, and a Samsung Galaxy Nexus II to their release lineup.

What do you think of the potential of having several different versions of the Nexus device. Personally I think it is great that we will have more options when it comes to an unlocked bootloader, but I think I would prefer one Nexus device. Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Via DroidForums

Nexus 7 Cases

GiveAway Rules:

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And leave no more than one comment per day in the comments section of this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mki4OGyIKgo&feature=share&list=UU1J4DKcJXENzC-FkyMU6dow

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