Hasta La Gadget!

Earlier this summer, a judge in The Netherlands ruled to ban sales of Samsung Galaxy S, S II and Ace smartphones, stating that the devices violated an Apple patent which deals with a “method of scrolling.” Well, nearly two months have passed, and Samsung is just now getting around to releasing “upgraded” versions of the affected devices, presumably implementing a non-infringing scroll tool. A Samsung spokesman told Reuters that the three phones will “shortly be available for sale,” neglecting to provide an exact release date — so we wouldn’t suggest lining up to get your Galaxy S II fix just yet. This small victory is only the latest in the Apple / Samsung lawsuit saga, which has created quite a stir in a handful of courts around the world. We have yet to hear about a solution to the Galaxy Tab 10.1 ban in Australia, for example, where fingers are being pointed in every direction.

Samsung modifies Galaxy smartphones to satisfy Dutch court, plans to resume sales soon originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Oct 2011 08:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sure, it may not be as exciting as those two LTE beasts from Samsung that we saw earlier today, but the Galaxy S WiFi 5.0 has crept on sale in the land of crumpets, Coldplay and some Middleton couple (we jest!). According to reviews on Amazon UK, it appears a lucky few have already got their hands on one, but they’re now available en masse; expect to fork out just shy of £200 ($310) for the five-inch media player. The Galaxy S WiFi 5.0 already feels a bit smaller after seeing the giant 5.3-inch Galaxy Note in action, and the software is a bit dated, arriving with Froyo-flavored Android. There’s no news about a Gingerbread update hitting this one just yet (though we’ve been told it’s upgradable), but Android 2.2 should be more than enough to tackle its veritable smorgasbord of app-based delights, alongside some smartphone-esque tech specs like Bluetooth and, naturally, WiFi.

[Thanks, Cliff]

Samsung Galaxy S WiFi 5.0 gets priced, goes on sale in UK originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Sep 2011 13:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s not hard to find a good inductive charging smartphone these days, but German IT student Qian Qin absolutely had to have the feature on his Galaxy S Plus. What’s more, it needed to be just right: no voiding of the warranty and no unsightly protrusions. So, instead of bumping his gums, he went out and purchased a Palm Pre back cover and a Touchstone dock for €30 ($40), ripped the charging circuit out of the Pre cover and stuck it into the Samsung’s cover, then finally soldered a wire from the circuit to the micro-USB port (plus another wire to the microSD slot for 0V). Job done. At first, the mere mention of a webOS device gave us a twinge of sadness, but then the video after the break cheered us right up again — you can tell within the first six seconds that this guy is a pure OCD perfectionist. You’ll also find more detailed instructions at the source link, and they should work equally well for the original Galaxy S too.

Continue reading Mr Fussy mods Samsung Galaxy S for inductive charging, without frazzling warranty (video)

Mr Fussy mods Samsung Galaxy S for inductive charging, without frazzling warranty (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 18 Sep 2011 19:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you haven’t heard about the Samsung Galaxy S II by now, you’re definitely tardy to the party. But as the proverbial saying goes, it’s better late than never, right? The Galaxy S, its predecessor with myriad chassis selections and carrier variants, is still selling like hotcakes all over the world, and the sequel is no lightweight (figuratively) either — selling three million units in 55 days only seems to be rivaled by a company based out of Cupertino — and for good reason. We gave the unlocked version high marks for its excellent performance, gorgeous display and top-of-the-line camera, so it was only natural that we’d spend the next four months wondering when we’d see the powerhouse make it Stateside.

Don’t get us wrong — we’ve seen our fair share of unlocked Galaxy S II devices proudly shown off in the US (most of them from our own editors, admittedly) because it’s already available at full retail (roughly $650-700) from multiple vendors. However, the Samsung Epic 4G Touch is the first to be offered at a subsidized cost in return for a two-year commitment, and it won’t be the last as AT&T and T-Mobile pull up the rear with their own styles of the same handset. So how does the landmark phone stand up to not only the test of time but several carrier-specific design changes? Are Sprint customers getting a “tainted” version of Sammy’s flagship Android device? These questions have been pondered for months, and we finally have the answers if you keep on reading.

Continue reading Samsung Epic 4G Touch review

Samsung Epic 4G Touch review originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Sep 2011 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It looks like Apple’s patent spat with Samsung has now reached the land of the rising sun. Reuters is reporting that Cupertino is taking the Korean manufacturer to court in Japan, over alleged patent violations pertaining to the iPhone and iPad. Japan’s Kyodo news agency first reported the news, citing unnamed insiders who claim that Apple is looking to halt sales of Samsung’s allegedly patent-infringing Galaxy S smartphones, while seeking ¥100 million (about $1.3 million) in damages. According to the sources, the first hearing was held in a Tokyo District Court on Wednesday, though a court spokesman would not comment on the pending case. Neither Samsung nor Apple have commented on the suit and details on the patents in question remain unclear, but we’ll keep you posted as we find out more.

Update: Ryuji Yamada, CEO of Japanese provider NTT DoCoMo, is now saying that Apple’s lawsuit will not have any effect on next month’s Galaxy Tab launch. “We have heard from Samsung that there will be no obstruction to sales,” Yamada confirmed.

Apple sues Samsung in Japan over alleged iPhone, iPad patent violations originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Sep 2011 03:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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