Hasta La Gadget!

Remember the Samsung Stratosphere II that got all sorts of official the other day? Well, a little birdie just fed us a few more details to flesh out this tale, including our first pics of an actual device and not just some press renders. In addition to the QWERTY keyboard and dual-core 1.2GHz CPU, we can also tell you this guy sports 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage and a 5 megapixel camera. If the paltry internal storage has you hemming and hawing, you can take solace in the microSD slot. The one spec that has us a tad concerned is the smallish 1,800mAh battery, but we’ll reserve judgement there until we see it in action.

Interestingly, the street date is blank in Best Buy’s inventory system, so we have no idea when you’ll be able to pick this guy up. Heck, it could be on shelves now in some stores, though we sincerely doubt that, as it’s yet to make an appearance on Verizon’s site. But, when it does you’ll be able to snag one for $100 with a two-year contract, which is $30 less than the announced pricing from Big Red. Check out the gallery below for a bit more.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Samsung Stratosphere II makes IRL appearance at Best Buy for $100 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Nov 2012 18:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A blast from the recent past, Pantech’s Magnus has leaked again — this time with the screen switched on. We’ve already gleaned that a 8-megapixel, quad-band LTE, MSM8960 dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor and NFC are all part of the AT&T-bound package, while those onscreen buttons suggest Android 4.0 — at the least. While the Twitter-based evleaks decided to obscure the calendar widget (and the probable launch date), we doubt it’ll much longer before AT&T offers a full explanation.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, AT&T

AT&T Pantech Magnus (P9090) reappears after fall vacation originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Nov 2012 09:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Speculation around Steven Sinofsky’s abrupt departure from Microsoft, announced earlier today, continues, with chatter that the Windows exec’s ambitions for the CEO top spot were the final straw. Sinofsky’s immediate exit from Microsoft – and his replacement by Julie Larson-Green and Tami Reller – came as a surprise this morning, but according to unconfirmed insiders was the culmination of tense working conditions and a promotion ultimatum the company couldn’t concede to.

Sinofsky had demanded that Microsoft name him Steve Ballmer’s successor as CEO, Business Insider‘s tipster says, though he would not take the helm until Ballmer’s retirement expected in 2017 at the earliest. However, Microsoft – and Ballmer – refused to comply, even after the Windows head threatened to resign should his request not be granted.

That came amid whispers of stubborn working practices that saw Ballmer forced to step in and smooth relations between Microsoft and its OEM hardware partners. Having sprung Surface on them unexpectedly, Sinofsky supposedly refused to listen to OEM complaints, the WSJ reports, leaving the CEO to handle the concerns.

The same reluctance to compromise also apparently impacted how Microsoft’s own engineers were able to operate within the company, with suggestions that Sinofsky’s tightened reins “curbed the freedom” of staff.

Microsoft declined to comment on the rumors that Sinofsky was angling for the CEO position, and comments from Sinofsky leaked from an internal email to staff that denied a power struggle was the root cause. In that email, Forbes reports, the exec says the suddenness of his departure is simply an attempt to keep the focus on the products and remaining teams at Microsoft.

“Some might notice a bit of chatter speculating about this decision or timing. I can assure you that none could be true as this was a personal and private choice that in no way reflects any speculation or theories one might read–about me, opportunity, the company or its leadership” Steven Sinofsky

Steven Sinofsky leaving over failed Microsoft CEO ultimatum says source is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Federal filings aside, what we’re staring at here is the first look at Samsung’s initial US-bound Windows Phone 8. The ATIV Odyssey’s certainly not going to be confused for the Galaxy S III ATIV S we’ve already taken for a test drive, and while there’s not much to compare this early leaked render with, it appears to be a slightly chunky 4G smartphone that’ll be heading to Verizon this December. Samsung’s not letting us peek at the spec sheet just yet and presumably Big Red’s still busy with other things at the moment, but we’ll let you know more when we hear it.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung, Verizon

Samsung ATIV Odyssey Windows Phone 8 leaked with Verizon branding originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Nov 2012 04:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The iPad mini may be in short supply, but Apple’s hardware partners are already readying the Retina-spec display for the iPad mini 2, according to sources in China. AU Optronics, which is one of Apple’s suppliers of 1024 x 768 panels for the current iPad mini, expects to begin mass producing 2048 x 1536 resolution 7.9-inch displays by the second half of 2013, DoNews reports, with eye-pleasing pixel density of 324 ppi.

Apple has been criticized by some for not bringing the iPad mini into the Retina fold already, with the tablet’s screen described as “just a very capable display” by some experts. However, as we highlighted in our review of the mini, by sticking with the same resolution as the original iPad, Apple has ensured all apps for the tablet work with the newest, smaller model out of the gate.

However, that Apple has Retina ambitions for the iPad mini is hardly a surprise, though technical feasibility has been a stumbling block so far. AUO’s breakthrough has been in adopting IGZO (indium gallium zinc oxide), MENAFN reports, a Sharp technology we’ve seen used to prolong battery life without sacrificing brightness on the KDDI AQUOS Pad SHT21, albeit at a mere 1280 x 800 resolution.

AUO will also use Gate IC on array (GOA), it’s claimed, which will enable a thinner frame around the outside of the display. Meanwhile, the company says it has also addressed the yield issues around the current iPad mini display, cutting out the light leakage problem that has constrained supplies.

Apple’s yearly refresh cycle is apparently set to continue with the iPad mini, despite the premature replacement of the third-gen iPad with the new, Apple A6X powered model with its Lightning connector. The second-gen iPad mini isn’t expected to ship until Q4 2013, the insiders say.

iPad mini 2 Retina display tipped already in pipeline from AUO is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.