Hasta La Gadget!

CES 2013 may be winding down, but the news keeps on rolling. Today, a handful of screenshots have leaked that apparently show off HTC’s Sense 5 user interface for Android, which will run on the also rumored M7 that we’ve talked about in the past. The group of screenshots also comes with a picture of the UI running on an HTC phone which could possibly be the M7 itself.

This is technically the first actual photo of what may possibly be the HTC M7. However, it doesn’t show off much, other than the display and a little bit of the bezel. Then again, it looks like HTC will be bringing their polycarbonate design over from Windows Phone 8, so we’ll know what to expect slightly, given those circumstances.

The screenshots show a little bit of what to expect out of Sense 5, and it’s definitely been given a slight redesign. However, for those wishing that the new HTC Sense UI will someday be closer to stock Android, we can’t see that happening anytime soon, since the company loves its Sense interface and many users love it right back.

However, the screenshots hint at a little bit of details on the hardware of the M7. We still see the legacy menu button in the screenshots, which suggest that the M7 will come with the same three capacitive touch buttons just like the HTC One series, with a dedicated on-screen menu button when needed. Overall, though, the Sense 5 UI looks bit a cleaner and simpler than Sense 4.x.

As far as other rumors go for the M7, we’re looking at a 4.7-inch 1080p display with a 1.7GHz quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM. There’s also supposedly going to be 32GB of internal storage, a 13MP f/2.0 rear camera, 2MP front-facing camera, and a 2300mAh battery to power it all.

[via Android Community]

HTC M7 and Sense 5 UI leak reveals more details is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

On December 21, a leak surfaced stating that the Sony “Yuga” is officially named the Xperia Z, and now more information on the handset has appeared. According to a leaked promotional video, the Xperia Z has a “skeleton frame” and is water/dust resistant. In addition, it has an Exmor RS image sensor and can take images and record video in HDR.

The so-called skeleton frame is composed of individual components, according to Sony, upon which the phone is assembled. In addition, there’s an OptiContrast panel, a 13-megapixel Exmor RS camera, a full HD Reality display, and the ability to both take images and record videos in the HDR mode. Also demonstrated is its water-resistant body, with images showing the handset covered in large droplets of water.

Aside from the new features in the promotional video, we got a nice look at the handset via the Russian website Mobile Review, which claimed to have a copy of the handset, which it reviewed in detail. According to current leaks, the Xperia Z has a 1080p display, a unibody design, a beautiful power button on the side, and glass backing.

The Z is said to run a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon processor with 2GB of RAM and an Adreno 320 GPU. The 5-inch display has a resolution of 1794 x 1080 with the on-screen buttons. According to leaked images, it is running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. So far, everything we’ve seen points to an exceptional, sleek handset. Sony is rumored to show off the device at CES, and we’ll be sure to keep a lookout for it.

[via Xperia Blog]

Sony Xperia Z leaked promotional video shows water resistant body, HDR camera is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Acer has released a couple of smartphones already, but they haven’t yet made a lot of noise in the smartphone industry. However, details of a new Acer handset point to the company’s first Jelly Bean smartphone that could make a splash in the market. Called the V360, the leaked device is rumored to arrive early next year, and it includes specs that put it right beside a lot of today’s current mid-range smartphones.

What we know so far is that it’ll have a 4.5-inch display with a rather disappointing qHD resolution (960 x 540). On the inside, it’ll run a dual-core 1GHz processor, and will feature a 5MP rear camera with a VGA-quality front-facing camera. It’s said it’ll run Android 4.1, as opposed to 4.2, but at least it’s getting Jelly Bean to begin with.

There’s no mention of how much RAM this puppy will hold, nor is there any say on whether a microSD card slot will be available. The device is said to weigh in at just under five ounces and has measurements of 132mm x 68.5mm x 9.9mm, making it a fairly large handset, but not anything that we haven’t seen before.

The V360 is expected to be available in both black and white, and will debut somewhere around $300 without a contract, which isn’t a bad price at, especially off-contract. Of course, it’s definitely not a high-end device by any means, so it’s certainly believable that it won’t cost as much as some top-tier phones currently on the market.

[via Android Community]

Acer V360 smartphone leaks, 4.5-inch display and Jelly Bean tipped is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

A little over a week ago, we heard word about a rumored international version of the HTC DROID DNA that could be coming to users outside of the US and Japan. More photos were leaked to today in the form of what look to be press shots. In the photos, there’s a white, black, and brown version of the global model — which is likely to be called the Deluxe DLX — and the brown version seems to have a glossier backing than the other two models.

Details are still pretty scarce at this point, still. However, it’s expected to come with roughly the same specs as the US’s DROID DNA and Japan’s J Butterfly. We’ll certainly see the 5-inch 1080p Super LCD3 display, and the 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon Krait processor with 2GB of RAM. Other than that, it’s all up in the air.

However, it will most likely come with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean out of the box, and the 8MP rear camera with the 2.1MP front-facing shooter will also make an appearance. Overall, I think we should expect mostly the same specs and features that American and Japanese users are currently taking advantage of, save for a different radio and data band.

The only think we’re not at all certain about is whether the Deluxe DLX will come with some form of data — either 3G or 4G. We’ll most likely see at least 3G capabilities, but considering how a lot of European carriers don’t yet have prominent LTE networks like the US has, we’re not sure if HTC will bite the bullet and pack in a LTE chip in the rumored device. We’ll have to wait and see.

[via Android Community]

Press photos of HTC Deluxe leak is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

While Game Informer might have released some more details of Grand Theft Auto V in their latest issue, another magazine has a few more details to throw at us. ShortList Magazine leaked a screenshot from the game, as well as some background info on one of the protagonists in the magazine’s latest issue.

The screenshot is of what appears to be one of the game’s protagonists riding a personal watercraft and firing a submachine gun back at what we think are police officers trying to catch him. The personal watercraft has “Los Santos Beach” and “Lifeguard” inscribed on it, which makes us believe that the watercraft was stolen (obviously).

The magazine also provides us with a few details and some background information about the protagonist. The magazine explains that “the protagonist is an East Coast gangster” who moved to Los Santos (Rockstar‘s take on Los Angeles) for a fresh, new start. “But, as in The Godfather III – just as he thought he was out, they pulled him back in.”

The screenshot has since been removed, proving that we now bear an important leaked piece of Grand Theft Auto V information. While gamers were able to operate watercrafts in past Grand Theft Auto installments, maybe we’ll see more interactive features dealing with that front in the upcoming sequel.

[via Digital Spy]

Grand Theft Auto V details leak in magazine article is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.