Hasta La Gadget!

It feels like just yesterday that we were getting acquainted with the back-to-basics ways of HTC’s Sense 4.0. Well-known HTC phone modder Football doesn’t want us to get comfy: he claims to have both obtained a leaked version of Sense 4.1’s ROM Upgrade Utility (RUU) and folded it into the 2.2 update to his Maximus firmware for the international One X. While it’s no Jelly Bean, the Maximus-tuned version of HTC’s Android 4.0 flavor appears to give Sense a shot in the arm, taking care of lag in the launcher and live wallpapers in addition to delivering a healthy overall speed boost. That 0.1 numbering gives a good indication of just how light the visible feature set might be, though — other than an existing update to substitute the virtual menu button for a long-press of the home key, the interface changes are mostly limited to dedicated buttons for switching browser tabs and between different cameras. It’s no surprise that HTC hasn’t said a word about its own plans; rumors of new One devices, however, can’t help but fuel suspicions that Sense 4.1 is just around the bend.

Filed under: Cellphones

HTC Sense 4.1 reportedly leaked with custom ROM, One X owners taste the future originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Aug 2012 10:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve got a good few updates rolling in on the Galaxy Note 10.1 front today. For starters, Samsung has announced that the S Pen equipped slate will available globally from August in WiFi and 3G varieties, with an LTE version coming later in the year. The press release and spec sheet after the break also confirm that the Note 10.1 will indeed possess a quad-core Exynos processor (alongside a 2GB dose of RAM), rather than the dual-core engine seen in our initial hands-on — although we’d already gleaned that much from retailer listings. Finally, there’s now an official video on YouTube showing off the tablet’s interface, including a multi-screen function to make use of that stylus. Samsung’s definitely pushing the productivity angle here, with the S Note / S Pen combo looking more like a publishing program than a doodle board. A sizeable and movable keyboard is also detailed, which should address the problem of landscape keys devouring screen space. Whether the UI runs on the new processor as swiftly and smoothly as the video suggests is unknown, but we’ll sort the spin from the truth in our review coming very soon.

Continue reading Samsung’s Galaxy Note 10.1 coming worldwide this month, UI shown off on YouTube

Filed under: Tablet PCs

Samsung’s Galaxy Note 10.1 coming worldwide this month, UI shown off on YouTube originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Aug 2012 05:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bell’s version of the Motorola RAZR V might not be the media darling that is the Atrix HD, but that shouldn’t dampen the interest for Canadians that can at last buy what’s potentially a slick deal for an Android 4.0 phone. For $30 on a 3-year contract, or $400 contract-free, the carrier is offering an arguably improved version of the late 2011 RAZR (Droid RAZR for Yankees). Although it bulks up slightly to a third of an inch thick, it’s still a skinny, Kevlar-clad wedge. The primary upgrade outside of the OS is a swap-out of that frankly mediocre Super AMOLED screen of the original RAZR smartphone for a much nicer ColorBoost LCD — sorry, ColourBoost. Otherwise, you’re getting the familiar 1.2GHz processor, 14.4Mbps HSPA+ data and 8-megapixel rear camera, although Motorola has shaved the built-in storage to 4GB to keep the costs down. We’d still be tempted to snag the Galaxy Nexus across the aisle to get us a taste of Jelly Bean for the same money, but Canucks with a penchant for Smart Actions now have an option outside of Rogers to get their fix.

Filed under: Cellphones

Motorola RAZR V goes on sale at Bell, gives Canadians a thin slice of Ice Cream Sandwich originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Aug 2012 22:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Direct Merchandise Marketing might not have the most alluring name as a tablet maker, but it still raised a few eyebrows with its Matrix One in June: it hoped to crack the $100 barrier while still producing a device you’d still be proud to take home to Mother. The 7-inch slate is going on sale ever so slightly past its late July target, but with a surprise price drop to $90 — more or less, considering that shipping costs a minimum $10. Whether or not that extra Hamilton bill’s difference is an illusion, you’re still getting a surprisingly competent device for the money, with a 1.5GHz ARM Cortex-A8 chip, 512MB of RAM and 4GB of built-in storage moving Android 4.0 along at a decent clip. The 2-megapixel front camera, full-size USB and HDMI also help reinforce that it’s more than just a no-frills slab. Having said this, we’d be brave enough to crack the triple-digit barrier and spring for the considerably more future-proof $130 edition with 1GB of RAM and 16GB of space. The feature gap is still wide enough that Nexus 7 owners won’t experience buyer’s remorse; at this price, however, it’s not hard to imagine handing out Matrix Ones to family members like so much candy.

Filed under: Tablet PCs

Matrix One tablet goes on sale for an even more frugal $90 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 23:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Negri Electronics, the apparent one stop shop for hard-to-find tablets, is now offering pre-orders for Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Note 10.1. The listing — which carries a heavy $750 price tag — outfits Sammy’s new slate with a familiar 1.4GHz quad-core Exynos processor, 16 GB of internal storage, and a requisite 10.1-inch 1,280 x 800 resolution touchscreen. Negri also states the slab will rock a quadband 21Mbps HSPA 1900/1800/900/850 radio, which would come as a nice surprise if true. Saltier still, is the firm’s proposed ship date — August 3rd, which is tomorrow. If you don’t mind shelling out for the privilege of being an early adopter, feel free to empty your wallet at the source link below.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 available for pre-order from Negri Electronics, ship date set for tomorrow

Filed under: Tablet PCs

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 available for pre-order from Negri Electronics, ship date set for tomorrow originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 22:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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