Hasta La Gadget!

Google is reportedly recruiting a helpdesk of Android aficionados to provide tech support for the next Nexus launch, with headhunters supposedly combing campuses in the Bay Area for platform enthusiasts. Having been stung by complaints of patchy and confusing aftersales support following the Nexus 7 launch, Google is supposedly putting together a more comprehensive call center, Geek reports, using third-party recruiters to find “Google disciples/ambassadors” to answer phones and reply to emails.

According to the advert – which you can see below (click for full-sized version) – recruiters Randstand Staffing is looking for people with specialized knowledge in hardware, installation, financial transactions, or other product queries, along with the ability to address billing and payment queries.

The roles are described as full-time on a six month contract, though with the potential for an extension beyond that, starting in mid-September, and based in Mountain View. Although Google is not specifically mentioned, there’s at least one heavy hint: the “confidential client” is said to have “recently unveil [sic] a new Android tablet.”

That tablet, presumably the Nexus 7, frustrated some early-adopters with Google’s hands-off approach to customer care. Buyers got two weeks of Google support, after which responsibility was passed over to manufacturer ASUS.

According to sources with knowledge of the call center plans, Google apparently intends to have it staffed, trained, and operational by the end of October.

Google reportedly recruiting Android “ambassadors” for Nexus call center is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

While recent rumors suggested Sprint could be interested in snatching up Metro PCS, it may actually be the target of an acquisition.The Nikkei, Reuters and Wall Street Journal report it is in final buyout talks with Japanese carrier Softbank at a price in excess of 1 trillion yen ($12 billion US). Just over a week ago Softbank snapped up rival eAccess in a billion dollar deal that added 50 percent more base stations to its LTE network and will move it from third to second largest in the country when it is completed. It got to third place with a leveraged buyout of Vodafone’s Japanese arm back in 2006, and CEO Masayoshi Son mentioned last week that he has his eye on the number one spot. We’re not exactly sure how a potential purchase of the third place American carrier fits into its plans (or what this means for Sprint’s future, its LTE rollout and its often woeful 3G speeds), but we’re betting Softbank’s CFO is just trying to keep Son away from any juicy looking eBay “Buy It Now” auctions.

Update: Looks like those reports were on the money: Sprint just released a statement confirming it is in talks with Softbank about a possible transaction. Find that terse press release embedded below.

Continue reading Japan’s Softbank in ‘advanced talks’ to acquire Sprint for more than $12 billion (update: confirmed)

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sprint

Japan’s Softbank in ‘advanced talks’ to acquire Sprint for more than $12 billion (update: confirmed) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 07:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nissan is reportedly considering a budget version of the Leaf electric car, with hopes that a low-spec model could light a fire under dreary US sales. The new addition to the range, set to go on sale in the US in February 2013 according to Automotive News, would lack more expensive features like LED highlights and integrated navigation, as well as see changes under the metal.

Those changes would include the relocation of some of the components used, along with cheaper versions of them. Nissan will apparently be asking its suppliers to cut their costs, though it’s unclear whether new parts or simply cheaper versions of existing parts will be introduced.

Nissan’s existing model spec levels, the SV and SL, will continue to be offered in the 2013 model year, and there’s no word on whether their current pricing – $36,050 and $38,100 respectively – will be carried over. Similarly, pricing for the cheaper entry-level car is also unknown.

Costs will also be pared back  by shifting production, with US cars now being manufactured in Nissan’s Tennessee plant; until recently, the Leaf has been produced in Japan and shipped to the US.

A combination of pricing and uncertainty among consumers around electric cars has added up to mediocre sales. Nissan aimed to sell 20,000 Leaf cars in 2012, but has so far sold just 5,212. Sales in 2011 were just 9,674.

[via Motortrend]

Cheap 2013 Nissan Leaf rumored: Cut-spec to drive EV sales is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The iPad mini is likely to be WiFi-only, sources claim, and accompanied by a refreshed iPad 3 with Lightning connector and broader LTE support, though last-minute design changes could shake up Apple’s launch. Tipped to be a 7.85-inch slate hoping to bring Apple’s tablet success to a mid-point between the existing new iPad and the iPod touch, the iPad mini will lack 3G/4G, according to the Guardian‘s insiders, so as to help keep prices down and maintain the larger model’s halo.

That would mean the only way for iPad mini owners to get online with their slate would be to find a WiFi hotspot or tether it to their phone. Still, it’s a sensible way for Apple to cut costs: the 4G 9.7-inch iPad, for instance, carries a $130 premium over its WiFi-only sibling.

As for that larger iPad, according to the newspaper’s sources, Apple is indeed preparing a minor refresh to the third-gen model. That’s believed to include a new version of the Apple A6 processor but also switch the tablet from the old-style 30-pin Dock Connector to its new Lightning port.

It would also allow Apple to tweak the 4G radio in the larger iPad to support the new EE LTE network in the UK, it’s suggested. EE will be the only UK network to support LTE in the iPhone 5, at least for the time being.

Meanwhile, current leaked images purportedly showing the iPad mini may not be as accurate as once believed, with whispers that a “major accessory company” has ceased case production at the last minute. Sources close to the unnamed firm told Macotakara that production of the cases had been frozen after Apple changed the rounded shape of the smaller tablet, though it’s not clear exactly how it has been modified.

Leaked case designs have circulated for some time now, including examples suggesting a cellular model was, indeed, on the cards. Apple is believed to be holding a launch event for the next iPad mini later this month.

Design-tweaked iPad mini WiFi-only tip insiders while iPad 3 gets Lightning is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It’s not uncommon to see new smartphones and other gadgets tipped from simple text listings on inventory systems at various electronics retailers. Today a tip on a black and a white version of the LG Nexus 4 has surfaced from an inventory screen at UK mobile phone retailer Carphone Warehouse. Unfortunately, the only details tipped by the inventory listings are the two color options.

There have been several rumors floating around about a new LG Nexus device coming to market. However, in those previous rumors the Nexus 4 moniker wasn’t associated with the device. We assume that the “4″ in the product name is an indication of the screen size along the lines of the Nexus 7.

The last time we talked about the new Nexus smartphone rumor was at the beginning of the month. At the time, the new smartphone was tipped for sometime within the next few months. Indications are that the Nexus 4 will be based on the Optimus G.

Rumored specifications for the Optimus G have pointed to a 4.7-inch screen with a resolution of 1280 x 768. The device is also rumored to use a 1.5 GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and run Android Jelly Bean. We will certainly be on the lookout for more details on the Nexus 4 in the days and weeks ahead.

[via The Verge]

LG Nexus 4 tipped by Carphone Warehouse inventory screen is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.