Hasta La Gadget!

The Apple v. Samsung patent war that will seemingly never end has taken another turn today, as Apple is asking the court to add newer Samsung Galaxy hardware, including the Galaxy S III, Verizon Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note and Galaxy Note 10.1 to its complaint against the Galaxy Nexus and other related devices. If you thought updated software and designs would keep these newer smartphones and tablets out of the fight — you were wrong. Just to help you keep things straight, remember this is a separate case from the one that ended exactly a week ago with a decision in Apple’s favor to the tune of more than $1 billion in damages.

At issue here are eight of Apple’s utility patents that it says Samsung has infringed upon. The headliner patents at issue are ‘721 which covers slide to unlock, and ‘604, which could apply to the universal search feature Samsung has been pulling from its phones recently. Another familiar entry is the ‘647 patent Apple slapped HTC with in 2010, which has a vague description but applies to clicking on a phone number in an email, for example, to call it. You can read the details on each and every one in the PDF linked below, we’ll be doing… anything else.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Apple adds Samsung’s Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note and Galaxy Note 10.1 to ongoing patent lawsuit originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Aug 2012 21:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s not as specific as we’re guessing some would like, but Samsung confirmed during its IFA 2012 keynote today that a Jelly Bean update is coming to both the Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note 10.1 “very soon.” That is at least a bit more encouraging than the “later this year” that we last heard for the Note 10.1, and follows a leak of an official GS3 Jelly Bean build earlier this month. The original Galaxy Note wasn’t specifically mentioned on stage, but it did make an appearance on the company’s Jelly Bean slide, so we’d assume an update for it is coming as well, if not necessarily “very soon.”

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile

Samsung says Jelly Bean update coming to Galaxy S III and Note 10.1 ‘very soon’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 14:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Today at its IFA 2012 press conference, Samsung confirmed that the newly announced Galaxy Note II will make use of a new, redesigned S Pen. In addition to boasting an improved 8mm grip, it has a rubber tip. It also recognizes 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity, which is already true of the Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet. Other than that, Samsung hasn’t shared much in the way of specifics, but if you’d like to see video of the new Note in action, we can at least offer that.

Filed under: Tablets

Samsung Galaxy Note II getting redesigned S Pen with rubber tip, improved grip originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 13:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you’re waiting for the US release date for Samsung’s Galaxy Note II, we’re sorry to say that you won’t find one today. While this version of the form-defining phablet is destined for European, Asian and Middle Eastern-markets, the company promises a version of the device will hit American shores before the end of 2012, as you can see in the quote we’ve got from the company below.

“Samsung Mobile is planning a U.S. version of Galaxy Note II, which will be available later in 2012. Building on the success of the original Galaxy Note, we’re confident that the Galaxy Note II continues to redefine what consumers should expect from their smartphone and delivers a powerful, innovative and unique experience. Exact timing and retail channel availability is not being announced at this time, we will continue to share information as it becomes available.“

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Samsung Galaxy Note II coming to the US ‘later in 2012’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 13:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With Sony’s big IFA press conference out of the way, Samsung is next in line to show off its new (and oft-rumored) wares. That said, it looks like one of the company’s most anticipated products has gotten its share of spotlight ahead of schedule — PocketNow has come into possession of some Galaxy Note II press images, and some technical details to go with them.

First up, the rumors about the screen appear to be true — the new Note indeed sports a 5.5-inch display that runs at 720p, which is a bit of a bummer since the original had a higher resolution (1280×800) panel and higher pixel density to boot. C’est la vie, I suppose. That said, the new model is just a hair thinner than the original, but has put on an extra 2 grams in comparison.

Inside the little behemoth is a 1.6 GHz quad-core chipset of unspecified make (PocketNow thinks its an Exynos, I don’t see how it couldn’t be), and 2GB of RAM. A quick look around the back reveals a standard 8-megapixel camera, while a 1.9-megapixel counterpart sits just to the right of the front speaker. All of those components could make for some sketchy battery life, but the Note II crams a whopping 3,100mAh hour battery into its svelte frame to make sure users can doodle into the wee hours of the morning. Expect to hear about 16, 32, and 64GB variants during the official announcement, as well as LTE-enabled models for certain markets.

In fairness, these sorts of last minute leaks are nothing new for Samsung — half-decent photos and a full spec listing for the Galaxy Nexus appeared online just a half hour before the device was officially unveiled in Hong Kong — but it does put a bit of a damper on Samsung’s show. With any luck, the Korean electronics giant will pull something crazy (like an Android-powered camera) out of its hat to keep us on our toes.