Jul 15
Jul 15
Verizon leak shows VZ Edge upgrade program: trade your phone in once you’ve paid off half of it
Posted in: Today's Chili
T-Mobile’s been grabbing a lot of headlines lately with its consumer-friendly handset deals and upgrade programs, but it appears that Big Red has similar ideas. The folks at Droid Life have acquired a Verizon document detailing a new VZ Edge program that’ll allow folks to trade in their phones once they’ve paid off 50 percent of the purchase price. To join the program, Verizon will merely require a monthly fee of unknown amount, and in return, folks can get their upgrades early fee free and sans contract. When will customers get the option to do so? According to the doc, launch is scheduled for Q3, August 25th, to be exact. So, if Verizon can stick to its schedule, its customers are just under six weeks away from being free from the tyranny of the new every two upgrade cycle.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Verizon
Source: Droid Life
Jul 15
Microsoft’s Surface team has taken on development of the company’s upcoming smartwatch, it’s reported, with the wrist-worn gadget supposedly running a modified version of Windows 8. The Surface smartwatch is being built on an original design by the Xbox team, The Verge‘s sources claim, which had been tinkering with a “Joule” heart-rate monitor prototype for the Xbox 360.
Speculation as to the capabilities of the watch have varied, though Microsoft is believed to be making its wearable more functional than some of the existing designs we’ve seen. A modified version of Windows 8 is an ambitious strategy, where existing alternatives like Pebble are more accurately remote displays for the user’s phone.
According to the leaks, the Surface smartwatch is intended to be integrated with other Windows-powered devices, which presumably means both Windows 8 on desktops, notebooks, and tablets, and Windows Phone on handsets. Already suggested is a 1.5-inch display, making the watch bigger than Pebble and other options.
Meanwhile, there’s also talk of customization support with different colored watchbands. AmongTech claimed last week that Microsoft would offer red, blue, yellow, black, white, and grey straps, something The Verge says it has independently confirmed.
Still in the air are other suggestions from the site’s sources, which include a casing made of Oxynitride Aluminum that, as well as being tougher than glass, is also transparent, and both 6GB of storage and integrated LTE. The latter seems a tall order, given the power consumption of 4G radios and the minimal space for batteries in smartwatches, though it’s said to be part of Microsoft’s attempt to integrate the Surface watch with its various cloud services.
One workaround to the power issue is Microsoft making the smartwatch particularly easy to recharge, something implied by rumors back in April that it would use the magnetic Surface connector already used on the detachable keyboards.
Microsoft isn’t the only company believed to be working on a smartwatch. Intel has confirmed it has a design in R&D, while Dell too has said it is investing in wearables.
Most frequently rumored, however, is the Apple iWatch, which is believed to be the Cupertino firm’s attempt to bring iOS to the wrist. That, however, isn’t expected to launch until sometime in 2014.
Surface smartwatch tipped to clad tweaked-Windows in transparent metal is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jul 15
HTC One Mini tipped for July; One Max phablet readies direct Note III attack
Posted in: Today's ChiliHTC’s next variants on the HTC One could begin launching within the next two weeks, leaks suggest, with the HTC One Mini due imminently and a larger model shortly after. The HTC One Mini – expected to have a 4.3-inch display, versus the One’s 4.7-inch panel – will be launched before July is out, MobileGeeks sources in Taiwan claim, while the HTC One Max is supposedly due before the end of Q3 2013.
The One Mini is tipped to be HTC’s attempt to distill down what makes the original One special, into a more affordable and compact device. While leaked images indicate it will share the same aluminum unibody styling of the One, the specifications are generally more humble: the 4.3-inch LCD display runs at 720p, for instance, rather than 1080p, and there’s a mere Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 1.4GHz dualcore at the helm.
RAM, too, is believed to have been halved versus the original One, and there’s 16GB of internal memory though no expectation of a microSD card slot. Leaks earlier this month indicated a launch by the end of Q3 was on the cards, in silver and black, but these new rumors suggest HTC is working hard to get the One Mini out even more promptly, likely motivated by the company’s appalling Q2 financial results.
Far more interesting, though, from a tech-lover’s-perspective is the HTC One Max, the company’s first attempt at the “phablet” segment. Believed to pack a 6-inch, 1080p Super LCD 3 display and Qualcomm’s 2.3GHz Snapdragon 800 chipset, the Max would enlarge the One experience for those who might ordinarily opt for Samsung’s Galaxy Note series.
The One Max is expected to have 2GB of RAM and a choice of either 32GB or 64GB of internal storage, along with a 3,200 mAh battery: a fair step up from the 2,300 mAh in the original One. According to MobileGeeks’ source, HTC intends to launch the phablet in early September, which should put it up against Samsung’s Galaxy Note III.
It’s a direct challenge to Samsung we’ve seen HTC attempt before. What remains to be proved is whether HTC can muster its supply-chain to actually deliver it: the HTC One, for instance, was meant to have launched in around 80 countries before the Galaxy S 4 was announced, but production issues – particularly around the UltraPixel camera, which is expected to be carried over to these new One variations – meant many locations only got the phone after Samsung had revealed its attention-consuming flagship.
HTC One Mini tipped for July; One Max phablet readies direct Note III attack is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jul 14
Just when we’re getting bored of all these static Moto X leaks, a couple of new video clips popped up to finally show off some of the software goodies. The first one appears to be a leaked Rogers promotional video (embedded after the break), in which a nice lady introduces us to a new Google Now voice command feature, which can be toggled with a custom phrase even when the screen is off. According to another clip uploaded by kronikbudz, said feature is called Open Mic, but there’s no indication as to whether this will be exclusive to Motorola devices or whether it’ll come with the next Android release.
The Rogers video adds that the Moto X will provide ambient “active updates” notifications on the screen when the phone is locked, and this is pitched as a more sensible replacement for the meaningless blinking light. Later on, the same lady demonstrates how one can activate the phone’s camera — even when locked — by simply twisting the wrist twice. We’re a bit worried that this may allow accidental activations, unless the phone can detect whether it is inside a pocket or bag.
Finally, the lady says the Moto X will be “exclusively” heading to Rogers this August in either black or white, thus confirming the “late Summer” window that we were previously told. Enjoy your very own exclusivity while it lasts, Mr. Schmidt!
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Via: MobileSyrup, Android Authority
Source: Google+
Jul 14
Dual-SIM HTC Butterfly S certified for China, comes with removable back cover
Posted in: Today's Chili
It’s a given that HTC will eventually launch its new Butterfly S in China, but will it be a dual-SIM version like the One Dual variants offered over there? The answer is yes, according to a filing in TENAA’s database. This particular “9060” device comes with WCDMA radio, meaning it’ll be picked up by China Unicom but will also work in many parts of the world.
According to a source of ours, the entire back cover (black or white; with NFC antenna) is removable to give access to the two micro-SIM card slots, as well as a microSD slot as featured on the One Dual. The trade-off, however, is the increased 10.89mm thickness from the original 10.6mm. That said, the listed 158g weight is a little below the original 160g, so we’re not sure if the battery capacity is still at 3,200mAh.
The rest of the phone should otherwise be identical to its single-SIM sibling: 1.9GHz quad-core processor (so should be the same Snapdragon 600 SoC), 5-inch 1080p LCD, UltraPixel main camera, BoomSound stereo speakers and Android 4.2.2. As always, we shall keep an eye out for a price and date.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC
Via: SlashGear
Source: TENAA
Jul 13
Hot on the heels of the BlackBerry Z10 getting an update to BB 10.1 and price cuts at various retailers, a future model to come out of Waterloo has apparently been leaked. In a video posted to YouTube, accessory maker Vivix gives a brief look at what’s purported to be the A10 “Aristo.” According to N4BB, the device sports a five-inch touchscreen, dual-core processor with a quad-core GPU and an eight-megapixel camera — not to mention it matches up with a previously leaked image. Details are sparse beyond all that, but you can at least grab look for yourself in the video after the break.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Blackberry
Via: N4BB
Source: Vivix (YouTube)
Jul 13
What’s said to be the Moto X has been breaking cover left and right, and now it’s made yet another appearance. Android Central has scored a new photo of the device in question, and while it looks nearly identical to an earlier snapshot, a keen eye will notice a Verizon 4G logo sitting in the status bar. The outlet also notes that the soft navigation keys are slightly translucent like those in the previous leak, which may point to an unreleased version of Android. Paired with an internal document from Big Red that pegs the hardware for an August 23rd arrival, it looks like the Moto X is a sure bet on the carrier.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Source: Android Central
Jul 13
What’s said to be the Moto X has been breaking cover left and right, and now it’s made yet another appearance. Android Central has scored a new photo of the device in question, and while it looks nearly identical to an earlier snapshot, a keen eye will notice a Verizon 4G logo sitting in the status bar. The outlet also notes that the soft navigation keys are slightly translucent like those in the previous leak, which may point to an unreleased version of Android. Paired with an internal document from Big Red that pegs the hardware for an August 23rd arrival, it looks like the Moto X is a sure bet on the carrier.
Update: It bears mentioning that an unknown Moto phone we saw way back in March may be the same model. Head past the break to check out the video.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Source: Android Central
Jul 12
Earlier this week, we saw the BlackBerry A10′s specs leak alongside the BlackBerry 9720, the first of which is a reboot of the currently available Z10 handset. The following day, someone leaked an image of the front of the A10, as well as a screenshot of the system screen. Now the folks over at Tinh te have nabbed some pictures of the handset’s back cover.
There are four images of what is said to be the back of the BlackBerry A10, the rest of which you can see in the gallery below. This in addition to the leaked image of the front of the device, which was sent to the folks over at BGR and visible below. Combined, we get a good idea where BlackBerry is heading with its reboot of the A10, something it is reportedly aiming towards gaming and power.
According to BGR, which first leaked an image of the handset, this version is more refined and finished than the Z10 handset, with the entire handset being more rounded in nature than what you’ll find with some of the company’s other recent handsets. What we see in these images is in line with what was reported about the back of the device (with it being similar to the Q10), of which we’re now seeing it for the first time.
The specifications leak has the BlackBerry A10 pegged with a 5-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1280 x 720. Inside, users will reportedly find a dual-core processor and a separate graphics chip, which is something that deviates away from BlackBerry’s typical usage of integrated chips in its more recent smartphones. This is along with 2GB of RAM.
In the images from this leak, we see an AT&T logo on the back over of the device serving as a pretty strong hint that the handset will be cropping up the carrier in the future. That’s the extent of what we know about the handset right now, but at the rate of the A10 leaks, we’ll be keeping an eye out for more information as it surfaces.
SOURCE: Tinh te
BlackBerry A10 back cover revealed in images is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.
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