Hasta La Gadget!

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean might be all the rage these days, but the team over at CyanogenMod has yet to forget about CyanogenMod 9.1, where it will now come with support for SimplyTapp NFC (Near Field Communication) system. SimplyTap is more or less the blood and sweat of a couple of dedicated CyanogenMod users, where they intend to broaden NFC payment usage through a more open implementation of the embattled standard. At point of publishing, Tapp app is only compatible with CyanogenMod 9.1, as CyanogenMod 10 is touted to move a wee bit too fast for the two of them to reliably add the relevant and necessary code.

Needless to say, in order to take advantage of the SimplyTapp service, you will also need to rely on an NFC-enabled device. Right now we do know that the Nexus S, Galaxy Nexus and the Galaxy S2 are the only officially supported devices, although in theory, it ought to play nice with virtually any CyanogenMod 9.1 device which comes with an NFC chip. U.S. dollars are the only viable currency at the moment.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: iPhone 5 part leak hints at NFC hardware?, Stable CyanogenMod 9 version to roll out tonight,

Welcome to Tuesday evening, folks. A number of Samsung devices are threatened by Apple’s motion to ban their sale, but Samsung assured today that it will “take all necessary measures to ensure the availability” of those targeted devices in the US. Jury foreman Velvin Hogan spoke to Bloomberg about the Apple-Samsung trial today, discussing the difficulties the group ran into while trying to decide a winner in the case and the process of determining which company was in the right. It’s an interesting interview, so be sure to give it a watch.

On the same day that the NPD says that good tech service is the reason why Apple has so many repeat customers, a supposed Apple Genius training manual leaks, giving us a rare look at how Apple trains its employees. The T-Mobile Galaxy S II has been updated with support for NFC and Isis, and T-Mobile has some big plans for NFC. Speaking of T-Mobile, it looks like the company has a new plan to sell against the next iPhone when it (hopefully) launches next month. MetroPCS is offering a new phone to go along with its 4G LTE push, and Samsung has released a new Galaxy S III app aimed at making things easier for those who use their phone while driving.

The Nexus 7 has snuck onto the Google homepage, and the Google Election Hub is up and running today, offering coverage from the Republican and Democratic National Conventions. Nokia users worldwide were treated to Nokia Belle Refresh today, and it appears that Motorola and Apple are close to striking a licensing deal in Germany. It seems that the iPhone 5 won’t be getting NFC capabilities as originally rumored, Steve Perlman actually isn’t staying on as CEO of OnLive following the asset acquisition by a silent investor, and Google has a new patent for an object recognition system that could be huge. Hopefully you’re ready to play the role of homeowner, because in Skyrim‘s new DLC, you’ll be doing just that.

The Samsung Galaxy S III is getting a handful of new color variations – we’re partial to the grey, to be honest – while the company also gave us some more details about its incoming Series 5 all-in-one PC. Curiosity has beamed back some new images of Mars, which is always exciting, and Garmin detailed its new Forerunner 10 smart watch with GPS. Radio Shack’s wireless rates for no contract phone plans leaked today, and same-day delivery service Shutl has received a significant investment from the folks at UPS.

Finally tonight, we have a review of the Acer Aspire V5 from Cory Gunther for you to check out. Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday evening everyone!

SlashGear Evening Wrap-Up: August 28, 2012 is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Mobile payments, those made from a phone and typically via NFC, haven’t exactly had a huge impact on the average American consumer just yet, but look past that and you’ll see a battle is brewing. Google had been making the most noise, with its Google Wallet, but today the competing service Isis just launched its first proper salvo. The T-Mobile version of the Galaxy S II is currently receiving an OTA update (T989UVLH1) that, among a few other tweaks, enables support for Isis NFC payments, making it the first such device on the market. Many more are inbound from AT&T and Verizon as well, setting the stage for an epic virtual currency battle that only the peaceniks at the Mobile Payments Committee stand a chance of mitigating.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Mild-mannered Samsung Galaxy S II update brings Isis mobile payment support originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Aug 2012 13:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This week there’s been quite a bit of talk on the possibility of NFC technology finding its way into the new iPhone set for release later this year (or as soon as a month from now) – as it turns out, it might not be possible at all. With analysis done by Brian Klug and Anand Lal Shimpi of AnandTech this week on the new iPhone, it’s made quite simple: NFC chips wouldn’t fit with the iPhone 5 model we’ve seen so far. With the metal panels on the backside and the glass (or plastic) panels at the top and the bottom being too small to support our current NFC technology, it’s extremely unlikely that the wireless capability will be included in this generation of Apple smartphone.

There’s been another bit of confirmation on this absence of NFC in the new iPhone with a simple “yep” from Jim Darlrymple of The Loop. On the other hand, a brand new Apple patent has appeared today that brings on “Motion based payment confirmation” for the Apple collection of devices. NFC is included specifically as one of several platforms that will work with this mobile payment confirmation technology.

This patent includes the following text describing how it will work (or already works, as it were).

Payment transactions increasingly occur without the use of physical payment objects such as credit cards or cash. For example, online purchases may be made using credit card information stored in an online account maintained by a merchant or by a payment service such as PayPal. Further, financial account information may be stored on electronic devices and transferred using contactless means, such as near field communication (NFC), radio-frequency identification (RFID), or networking, to complete payment transactions.

So it’s not impossible that the iPhone 5 will have mobile payments in one or more ways, but it’s unlikely that it’ll be with NFC specifically. Have a peek at our iPhone 5 tag to see all the rumors you could possibly want or need, and check the timeline below for more NFC news related to the iPhone as well – we’ll see soon!

[via AppleInsider]

iPhone 5 a no-go for NFC with current technology is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

LG has been teasing its upcoming Optimus G smartphone for weeks after promising LTE phones that would be “second to none” and now we finally have the full specs. When it arrives in Korea next month it will be the first with LTE mounted to a quad-core CPU, thanks to the 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 at its center. The display is also groundbreaking, featuring LG’s fully integrated touch technology — sounds like its new in-cell touch to us –for a thinner screen and bezel. It’s a True HD (1280 x 768) IPS LCD, and LG claims when it’s turned off the 3mm bezel and body of the phone match the screen when it’s turned off. Just the leaks indicated, it also has 2GB of RAM, a 13MP rear camera, 1.3MP front camera and 2,100mAh battery, all while measuring only 8mm thick.

The only bad news so far? It will arrive in Korea next month (and on NTT Docomo in October or November as the L-01E in black and red, seen after the break) with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, not Jelly Bean. The software will be as we’ve seen on other high-powered LG units like the Optimus Vu, with the addition of a “live zoom” feature on video and Dual Screen Dual Play mirroring for external displays. The real triumph for LG however, is its ability to vertically integrate technology from its various units to create the device. LG Chem provided a battery that is the first to offer a lifespan of 800 cycles, while LG Display created the screen and partnered with LG Innotek on the G2 Touch Hybrid Display unibody tech that eliminates the gap between the glass and the LCD panel. A worldwide launch is promised later in the year, although we’d expect to hear more soon at IFA 2012.

Update: The English PR is now available and embedded after the break. Check it out for the full specs, including the Optimus G’s Adreno 320 GPU, Bluetooth 4.0, MHL and NFC capabilities and more software enhancements including Time Catch Shot picture selection and Cheese Shutter voice command to take a picture.

Continue reading LG Optimus G revealed: 1.5GHz quad-core CPU, ICS, LTE, 4.7-inch screen with in-cell touch

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

LG Optimus G revealed: 1.5GHz quad-core CPU, ICS, LTE, 4.7-inch screen with in-cell touch originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Aug 2012 00:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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