Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve been waiting to see what Motorola would produce now that it’s a part of Google, and one of its first phones to bring the stock Android 4.2 experience may have just been revealed in an FCC filing. The XT1058 sports AT&T compatible LTE bands and NFC, and its model number matches some of the rumors mentioned for phones codenamed Yeti, Ghost or Sasquatch. More concrete ties to the original X Phone rumors are pictures of an AT&T-bound “XFON” posted by @evleaks last week, and the XT912 Vietnamese site Tinhte.vn got its hands on in March. When will we find out what’s hiding behind door number 1? Google I/O is next week and it seems (to us) like the perfect time for a big reveal, while we wait you can hit the source link to dig through the documents for any more information.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Google

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Source: FCC

If you’ve been torn between Samsung’s NX300 and NX1000 mirrorless cameras, you should know the company has officially split the difference with its new NX2000. While it likely won’t sway NEX-3N lovers away from Sony, the $650 NX2000 is only a Benjamin more than Sammy’s lower-end NX1000 and packs the same 3D-capable DRIMe IV processor and NFC functionality as the pricier NX300. Of course, you still get the 20.3-megapixel APS-C sensor seen across the line. The differentiating factor from its siblings is the Galaxy Camera-like 3.7-inch, 1,152k-dot touchscreen (fixed) on the back, rather than the usual assortment of rear buttons. The 100 to 25,600 ISO range and maximum JPG burst rate of 8 fps is just like the 300’s, though this is only capable of recording 1080p video at 60 fps. Unfortunately, the autofocus is only contrast-detection, but Samsung claims that it’s one of the fastest to the draw.

As you’d expect, this shooter features WiFi (single band) for connecting through AllShare or the Smart Camera app, plus there’s a microSD slot for transferring files physically. Sure, it’s not the most exciting update to Samsung’s camera line, but it’s clearly a big leap up from the NX1000 — on paper, anyway. The NX2000 will be available soon in your choice of white, black or pink, and it comes bundled with Adobe Lightroom 4, a 20-50mm lens and a hotshoe-powered flash. Grab more looks in the gallery below and hit the press release after the break for all the technical details.

Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report.

Filed under: Cameras

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It seems that the Samsung GALAXY S 4 now uses a BCM2079x NFC controller instead of the NXP PN544 NFC controller, making it incompatible with the original Samsung TecTiles. The current TecTiles are MIFARE Classic 1k tags, which are unreadable by the BCM2079x controller, meaning that those of you who plan on getting a GALAXY S 4 and want to use TecTiles will have to replace your current tags with Samsung’s upcoming TecTile 2 tags.

Samsung stated that it will be introducing the next-gen TecTile 2, which is set to be released within the coming weeks. TecTile 2 will be using the standard NFC Forum tag types, which are readable by a variety of NFC-enabled devices, like the Nexus 4. Samsung says that TecTile 2 will also be usable by other NFC-capable Samsung devices currently on the market. In the statement it released, Samsung says,

“TecTile 2 will use the current NFC technology on the market, allowing Samsung customer to further incorporate NFC into their daily lives and to use with the latest Samsung Mobile products and services, including the GALAXY S 4. As industry standard continue to evolve, Samsung remains committed to meeting those standards and adapting its technologies if necessary.”

TecTiles are NFC stickers developed by Samsung. Using the Samsung TecTile’s app, a user can program the tags before they are used. Users then place the stickers anywhere they feel convenient, such as their night stand. In order to active the TecTile’s action, all the user has to do is place or tap their NFC-enabled phones onto the tag. There can be a variety of actions performed with TecTile tags, including setting alarms, switching a phone to silent mode, starting up media players, and more.

Luckily for current Samsung Galaxy S III and Samsung Galaxy Note II owners, TecTile 2 tags will still be usable with your device. Unfortunately for TecTile users looking to purchase the Samsung GALAXY S 4, you’re going to have to replace your tags. While the pricing hasn’t been released for the TecTile 2 tags, it should be relatively the same as the current TecTile prices. Samsung has taken down their TecTile’s purchase page to prepare for the launch of its new tags. Also, if you’re still deciding whether or not to purchase the Samsung GALAXY S 4, you can check out our review of the phone here to see if it’ll meet your needs.

[via AnandTech]

GALAXY S 4 abandons original Samsung-made NFC tags for second-gen is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
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Given Sony’s heritage, it’s no surprise that the company loves its audio — but we can imagine that some might be overwhelmed when the company has priced and dated the cores of its 2013 home and shelf audio lineups in one sitting. Don’t worry, we’ll break it all down. On the home audio side, both the BDV-N7100W and BDV-7100W home-theaters-in-a-box (N8100W shown above) are already shipping at respective $599 and $699 prices with 1,000W 5.1-channel output, internet-linked Blu-ray players and both Bluetooth as well as OneTouch NFC pairing. TV watchers who can wait until June will also see the STR-DN1040, a $599 7.2-channel receiver with 4K upscaling, Bluetooth, WiFi and 165W per channel; the $449 STR-DN840 receiver, which scales back to 4K passthrough and 150W per channel; and the $399 HT-C660 soundbar, which adds NFC pairing to the same wireless mix as the receivers.

Shelf audio is simpler, with every new entry arriving May 27th. Both the LBT-GPX55 (below) and LBT-GPX77 mini stereos offer a respective 1,600W and 1,800W of output alongside Bluetooth, NFC, a CD player (!) and dual USB ports at a $499 starting price. Those who don’t need their walls rattled quite so thoroughly can spring for the $349 RDH-GTK37iP boombox, which puts out a still-substantial 420W on top of Bluetooth, NFC, an iOS dock and attention-getting strobe lights. That’s a lot to process, we know. If you’re not satisfied even after that deluge of information, however, Sony’s pressers await after the break.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Portable Audio/Video, HD, Sony

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Source: Sony

Panasonic has just announced a new mid-range Micro Four Thirds camera, the Lumix G6, that brings a solid list of specs for a mid-range camera. The 16-megapixel shooter can fire at a respectable 7fps in burst mode, has a top sensitivity of ISO 25,600 and like the recently launched Lumix GF6, has WiFi and NFC for device syncing. It also sports a 1,440K-dot OLED LVF, 0.5 second startup time, 3-inch, 1,036K-dot touchscreen with a 180 degree swivel and 270 degrees of tilt, new Venus image engine and full-area touch AF. It’ll likely cheer hard-core video fans as well since it packs a similar sensor to the popular GH2 / GH3 models, along with 1080/60p video, AVCHD or MP4 recording, stereo audio, live autofocus and Touch AF that allows “professional-like rack focusing.” There’s no pricing or availability yet, but expect it to cost considerably less than the flagship Lumix GH-3‘s $1,500 sticker — which may pose a quandary for shoppers on the fence about that model.

Filed under: Cameras

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