Hasta La Gadget!

There was a time when the BenQ brand could be seen on laptops and mobile phones, but nowadays you’d have to turn your eyes to projectors, LCD monitors and cameras (in select markets) in order to spot it. If you’re in China, you might have even come across the gigantic BenQ Medical Center in Nanjing. That’s right, a hospital; and later this year BenQ will be opening another one in Suzhou, which is where the company’s Chinese operation is based. Interesting times, right? But as to whether BenQ has any intention to re-enter the two mobile markets in the near future, the answer is a firm “no.”

Continue reading BenQ: We’re not going back to cellphones and laptops, but check out our luxury lamps!

Filed under: Misc

BenQ: We’re not going back to cellphones and laptops, but check out our luxury lamps! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Sep 2012 06:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Photos that appeared online over the weekend appear to have been taken with an as yet unannounced Samsung phone, which seemingly fits in with Samsung’s Nexus device naming system. More »

When Samsung announced the Galaxy Note at IFA last year, we’re sure that many thought that this would just be a trend, or a novelty. After all, who would want something that’s half smartphone half tablet, right? Well Samsung’s competitors certainly do not think that this is a novelty as companies such as LG (and possibly HTC) have since released devices to compete with the Galaxy Note and its successor, the Galaxy Note 2. Well it looks like another Korean company is here to add more variety to the mix and it is none other than Pantech with the Vega R3.

Featuring a 5.3” HD display, the Vega R3 will be powered by Qualcomm’s quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 processor, the same found in LG’s upcoming Optimus G, a whopping 13MP rear-facing camera, a 2MP front-facing camera, NFC, 4G LTE, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, a 2,600mAh battery and will run on Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box. We have to admit we are slightly disappointed with the last bit as we expected Android 4.1 Jelly Bean to be the icing on the cake, but we don’t see why the Vega R3 will not be updated in due time. No word on when the Pantech Vega R3 will be released in other countries, but in the meantime the phone is set for a release on major South Korean carriers.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Pantech Magnus gets pictured, Pantech P9090 “Magnus” spotted in benchmarks, looks quite promising,

Android Voice Xtreme or AVX is a newly released voice assistant for Android smartphones. The developers of the application say that the app is useful in the car and offers features that aren’t found of Apple’s similar Siri voice assistant. AVX offers support for NFC tags on compatible devices and has a number of other features that can be accessed using your voice.

AVX will read and reply to incoming text messages, including messages from a Google Voice account. The voice assistant also allows users to read and reply to e-mails and configure multiple e-mail accounts, including MS Exchange. AVX also allows users to schedule calendar appointments as quick reminders or fully integrated Google calendar events.

Other features of the voice assistant include location-based reminders and actions that allow you to be reminded or run other commands when you leave, pass, or arrive at a specific location. These location-based reminders and actions can also be set to activate depending on the direction you’re traveling or the time of day. Other supported features include getting directions via Google Maps and the ability to find local businesses or restaurants with commands such as “I’m hungry” for a list of local establishments.

AVX supports the making of lists, taking memos, and making journal entries using your voice. It also has Evernote integration allowing all the memos, lists, and journal entries to be stored using Evernote. Using the application users can read and reply to their Facebook feed, or twitter feed. The voice assistant also supports home automation devices from Insteon allowing you to control home lighting or even the garage door using your voice. The app is available on Google Play for download right now.

Android Voice Xtreme wants to be Android Siri is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Asha Touch mobile phones from Nokia have been around for a while and are aimed at the low-end smartphone market. Nokia has announced the addition of two new budget smartphones in the Asha line called the Asha 308 and Asha 309. The difference between the two is that 308 is a dual SIM device, and the 309 has a single SIM.

Both devices are designed to provide fast web access at a low price. The smartphones use a new version of the Nokia Xpress Browser allowing devices to be up to 90% more efficient when accessing the mobile Internet. Both new smartphones have Nokia’s fluid “swipe” user interface and an open environment allowing for third-party application development.

Nokia says that these two smartphones are the most affordable capacitive touchscreen devices yet. The retail price for each of the devices expected to be around $99 in the US with shipments starting in Q4 2012. Both smartphones are 2G devices and have three-inch WQVGA capacitive touchscreen displays. The smartphones also feature multiple home screens, stereo radios, loudspeakers, and up to 32 GB of storage via microSD cards.

The 309 uses a single SIM card and has integrated Wi-Fi. The 308 supports dual SIM cards and uses Nokia’s Easy Swap technology allowing for quick and easy changing of SIM cards. Both phones will ship with 40 premium EA games, standalone Facebook and twitter clients, and Nokia Messaging Service. The smartphones will also be able to stream video through the browser from YouTube, which is a first for the Asha Touch range.

Nokia unveils new Asha 308 and Asha 309 budget smartphones is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.