Hasta La Gadget!

Following last year’s launch of its potent, price-savvy Android smartphone, Xiaomi is already purportedly crafting its even more powerful successor. Alongside a bundle of blurry cam images, leaks from within factories making the next iteration say that it’ll pack a 720p screen, one of Qualcomm’s quad-core processors and a dual-flash setup alongside the camera. There’s still the curious absence of a front-facing camera, but this should to help ensure the phone lands with a price tag just as attractive as Xiaomi’s last device. While rival manufacturer Meizu priced its latest quad-core phone at around $480, the Foxconn-based moles reckon this next-generation (likely MIUI-powered) slab could land at just over of $300. If all these rumors (and that price) have piqued your interest, you can head on the source for a handful of extra images.

Filed under: Cellphones

Next-generation Xiaomi Phone rumored to house quad-core processor, 720p display originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Jul 2012 07:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia is considering inking exclusivity deals with European operators for Windows Phone 8 smartphones, promising a financial stake in the success of the next-gen handsets, in an attempt to boost its profile. Partnerships with specific carriers in European countries would be paired with a promised share of the sales proceeds, a source tells the Financial Times, to encourage in-store promotion. The whispers don’t come as a huge surprise, however; CEO Stephen Elop said in the aftermath of the company’s last quarter financial results that Nokia would trim its European carriers to mimic the deal with AT&T in the US.

Nokia has already begun talks with potential carrier partners, the insiders claim, with France Telecom named but apparently not yet inking a deal. Negotiations are described as “exploratory” and potentially unfounded, and there’s the possibility of a more broad-ranging deal with T-Mobile’s owner Deutsche Telekom that could see handsets crop up on Everything Everywhere in the UK too.

The move would be a considerable departure from Nokia’s sales strategy to-date, including its Windows Phone 7 Lumia handsets, in Europe. Nokia has traditionally pushed for the broadest possible availability, relying on saturation to boost demand. However, according to Elop, the complete opposite approach undertaken in the US – pairing up with AT&T on the Lumia 900 for a concerted and focused push into a market dominated by iPhone and Android – has been more successful.

Exactly by what metric that success is measured is unclear, though it’s presumably in bang-for-buck terms. Actual sales of Nokia devices in North America totaled just 600,000, dwarfed by sales in other regions, including Europe. However, it’s not clear how much Nokia (and Microsoft) spent in promotion per handset sale across regions.

The goal, it’s believed, is to encourage carriers to push Windows Phone devices through in-store promotions, retail staff  training and advertising, by giving them a greater-than-average kick back based on the platform’s success. In contrast, Apple is believed to be relatively miserly with its deals with carriers, relying on the iPhone’s existing allure for sales, while the market for Android devices is growing increasingly saturated.

Nokia in Windows Phone 8 carrier revenue sharing talks say insiders is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Faster Thunderbolt connections will have to wait until 2014, according to new talk on Intel’s high-speed interconnect tech, with the next-gen version expected to stick to the 10 Gbps of the existing link. Thunderbolt, which was co-developed by Intel and Apple as a replacement for USB, display connections and more, will see an upgrade to the third-gen “Redwood Ridge” chip in Q2 2013, DigiTimes reports, with support for 10 Gbps as well as the latest DisplayPort standards.

Those standards include DisplayPort v1.1a and DisplayPort v1.2 Redriver, a version which supports strengthening of signals over longer stretches of cable. However, it had been hoped that Intel might coax more raw data speed out of the new Thunderbolt version.

That won’t happen until 2014, the sources say. Codenamed “Falcon Ridge” the new chips will be boosted to 20 Gbps through two channels, making the interconnect even more suitable for daisy-chaining multiple high speed devices such as RAID arrays, high-quality audio and video interfaces, and monitors.

Redwood Ridge Thunderbolt will arrive alongside Intel’s Haswell “Shark Bay” processors, themselves expected sometime in the first half of 2013. Currently Thunderbolt is still seeing only minor adoption, usually in high-end desktops and notebooks, with Apple them most enthusiastic having replaced its Mini DisplayPort connections on all MacBooks with at least one Thunderbolt port.

No Thunderbolt 20Gbps until 2014 is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Earlier this week it was reported that European carriers were stockpiling new nano-SIM cards after the standard had been approved by the ETSI. Speculation followed that Apple was preparing nano-SIM usage for the next iPhone, with one source even claiming that Apple had already designed the next iPhone around its own unapproved nano-SIM standard. Now BGR claims to have heard from carrier sources confirming that the next iPhone will indeed utilize nano-SIMs.

BGR claims to have heard from multiple carriers sources saying that “Apple is supplying nano-SIM adapters” so that the companies can test the compatibility on their networks. That will give the carriers a chance to make sure everything works smoothlys before a full scale deployment with the release of the next iPhone. AT&T is said to be one of the carriers testing testing the new nano-SIMs.

The CFO of Verizon, Fran Shammo, also dropped a hint during today’s earnings conference call that the next iPhone may make an appearance sometime in the fourth quarter. That falls in line with past reports that indicate the next iPhone would make a debut in September or October, mirroring the introduction of the iPhone 4S and sticking to Apple’s one year cycle between new handsets.

Next iPhone to feature nano-SIM, Verizon hints at Q4 debut is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

AT&T may charge users of FaceTime over 3G, the updated version of Apple’s video calling system which, as of iOS 6, will allow for calls over 3G connections instead of solely WiFi. Screenshots of AT&T handsets running the iOS 6 beta shared in the MacRumors forums show an error message similar to that given when users without a compatible data plan try to activate tethering.

For tethering, AT&T – like many other carriers – requires that subscribers pay for an extra data plan. It’s suggested that, given FaceTime will likely increase the amount of 3G traffic users consume, the carrier will demand they cough up another fee to cover it.

Interestingly, 9to5Mac found that Verizon handsets do not give the same error message as AT&T devices running iOS 6, though it’s not conclusive proof that the carrier will not be demanding an extra tithe for FaceTime 3G calls.

Whether AT&T’s fee is in the form of a set allowance for FaceTime 3G traffic, a pay-per-call charge, or a flat fee covering “unlimited” use each month (though likely with a “fair use” policy) remains to be seen. “We’re working closely with Apple on the new developer build of iOS 6″ AT&T said in a statement, “and we’ll share more information with our customers as it becomes available.”

It’s exact form could have a significant impact on those AT&T subscribers still clinging onto their older, now-discontinued unlimited data plans. If AT&T demands an all-new data package that covers FaceTime 3G, rather than simply adding the service as an account add-on, such users may have to choose between their grandfathered plans or the ability to make video calls over cellular data connections.

[via MacRumors]

AT&T FaceTime 3G fees tipped for iOS 6 is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.