New ads confirm Nokia Lumia 928 with PureView camera
A new companion magazine ad spotted in Vanity Fair by Engadget confirms the Nokia Lumia 928. The Nokia Lumia 928, codenamed “Catwalk,” has been in the rumors for some time now. The smart phone is expected to come with a 4.5 inch OCTA AMOLED display with a resolution of 1280 x 768 pixels, and will be running the new Windows Phone 8 operating system. The main attraction here is going to be the PureView camera module on the smart phone, with a Carl Zeiss lens. The Verge reports that the smart phone will be coming to Verizon. But this is not yet confirmed on the billboard ad, or in this new magazine ad.
Source: Arstechnica
LG reportedly working on a new tablet
According to a new rumor on Munhwa, LG is working on a new tablet for the year. There is absolutely no info about the technical specification of the device, or which operating system the new tablet will be running. The only news out is that the company is working on a new tablet. But it is safe to assume that the tablet may be running Google’s new Android operating system. But it is also possible that LG may favor the all new Windows Blue or Windows RT Blue, just like HTC. But since the expected release is as soon as the third quarter, Windows Blue is not an option for the tablet manufacturer. But still, we will just have to wait and see.
Source: Unwired View
HTC said to be working on two Windows RT Blue tablets
According to a new rumor that has surfaced today, HTC is working on two tablets for the year, and surprisingly enough, these are not Android tablets. The Taiwanese electronics giant will be releasing two Windows RT tablets this year, according to the rumor. And not just any Windows RT tablets, but tablets that will be running on the new Windows RT Blue. If you are not aware, Microsoft is releasing a new and improved version of the Windows 8 and Windows RT OSes later this year, called as the Windows Blue.
According to the rumor, one of the tablets will be called the HTC R7. This tablet will come with a 7 inch full HD screen, 2.3 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad core processor, 2 GB of RAM, 16 GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot for storage expansion, 13 mega pixel camera at the back, Wi Fi, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 4.0, HSPA+, and A-GPS.
The second tablet will be the HTC R12. The only difference between the HTC R7 and the HTC R12 is that the R12 will come with a bigger 12 inch display with a resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels. If the rumor turns out to be true, these tablets are expected to see the light of day on the 13th of October along with the all new Microsoft Windows Blue.
Source: Slash Gear
Fairphone will be available for pre-order next week
Fairphone, a company that aims “to bring a fair smartphone to the market – one designed and produced with minimal harm to people and planet” is going on pre order next week. The smart phone will be made of minerals which are got from sources where there is no forced labor. The company needs at least 5,000 orders for the smart phone to go into production.
The raw materials for the smart phone are obtained from “a supply chain that guarantees sourcing minerals from areas that are free from violence and armed guards.” This also means that there will be no high profit margin over these smart phones. The organization aims to “have a transparent , long-term relationship with suppliers so as to ensure proper working conditions in the assembly line.”
“As we are not in the business of putting more phones on the market, but rather creating phones that last, we are shaping a business model that supports this ambition.” The company has released the four designs that you can see in the image. One out of these will be selected for the final production, if the pre orders reach the 5,000 mark. The smart phone will come with Android 4.2, Jelly Bean, and will have a 4.3 inch touch screen display. In case there are 5,000 pre orders, the smart phone will start shipping later this year for €325.
Source: The Register UK
AT&T Beam is a USB 4G LTE Modem with LCD display
AT&T has come up with a new product, the Beam, a wireless 4G LTE USB dongle from Sierra Wireless. It is being said that this product has been primarily developed for people in the business domain, but I am pretty sure anyone who would need a high speed internet connection on the go would prefer this. The device “offers the usual LTE domestically (700/AWS) along with tri-band HSPA+ (850/1900/2100) and quad-band GSM / EDGE.”
But the attraction here, as most people would agree, is the built in 96×64 monochrome LCD display. The display gives the usual data such as the signal strength, the amount of data used, and other stats. The device also comes with a GPS module built in, and a microSD card reader which supports cards up to 32 GB. The device is designed to work with the new Windows 8 and Windows RT tablets and laptops.
Source: Engadget
Facebook blocks Path for spam activity
Facebook, the world’s largest social networking site, has just blocked Path’s access to its social graph after it got a lot of complaints from its users about the spam messages that Path has been sending. Path, the mobile based social network, has been reported as sending text messages to Facebook friends of Path users as early as six in the morning. This was in the last week. This activity has disturbed many people in their sleep and hence, has annoyed them.
Even though Facebook has blocked access to Path for its social graph, you will still be able to log in to Path using your Facebook account, and you will still be able to post to your Facebook wall from Path. But you will just not be able to find your friends on Facebook via Path.
Source: Slash Gear
8.1 inch Windows 8 Acer tablet appears on Amazon
The Verge was able to get a glimpse of a new Windows 8 tablet by Acer listed on Amazon. The Acer W3-810 was listed on Amazon for a while, after being taken down. According to The Verge, the Acer W3-810 is a Windows 8 device which comes with an 8.1 inch display with a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels, a dual core 1.8 GHz Intel Atom processor, 2 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal storage, rear and front facing cameras of 2 mega pixels, a micro USB 2.0 port and a micro HDMI port. The tablet is said to weigh 1.1 pounds and will give a battery life of about 8 hours. The listing on Amazon was reported as having a price tag of $380.
The product is not yet official, but it is expected to be announced by the company very soon.
Source: Electronista
Acer says “no value” in Windows RT tablets now
Acer is currently focusing on Windows 8 and Android tablets, and the company wants to wait for the next version of Windows RT to start manufacturing Windows RT tablets. “The plan for an RT tablet is ongoing,” said Acer President Jim Wong in an interview Friday at a company event in New York. “To be honest, there’s no value doing the current version of RT,” Wong said.
Windows RT tablets are not doing as expected in the market. The demand for Windows RT tablets is very less when compared to the Apple iPad and the vast range of Android tablets. Acer being one of the major manufacturers of Android tablets, the company has a good experience in the tablet market.
Wong said that the demand for Windows 8 tablets may increase in the second half of the year, as compared to the first quarter. Also, he said that 25 per cent of the tablet business of the company is expected to come from Windows 8 tablets in the second half of the year. “We believe Windows 8 has some more chances. That’s why we continue to invest in Windows 8 tablets,” Wong said.
Source: Cite World
Fullscreen BEAM app for Google Glass helps share videos
If you have a Google Glass Explorer Edition with you, there is no doubt you would be recording a lot of videos. And if you want to make them public, you need to upload them to YouTube. Now, Fullscreen Labs has come up with a very nice Google Glass app which will let you share your videos to your YouTube account very easily. The app is called Fullscreen BEAM.
You need to sign up for the service at beam.fullscreen.net. Once this is done, you need to associate your Google Glass with this account. You can set up your Twitter account with this so that you can automatically tweet the link to your video once it is uploaded to YouTube.
You also have the option to make your videos private when they are uploaded so that you can review them online at a later time before making them public. For more info, watch the video below.
Source: Talk Android
Sony Xperia L visits the FCC
One of the new smart phones from Sony, the Sony Xperia L, has paid a visit to the FCC. There have been reports on the internet about this today. And there was a rumor that the “L” in the name of the device stands for LTE. But you would be disappointed to know that the smart phone does not come with LTE support.
According to the FCC, the Sony Xperia L comes with 3G HSPA support for AT&T, Straight Talk, T Mobile, and a few Canadian networks as well. So plainly, no 4G LTE. Other than this, the smart phone is a pretty mediocre one with a 4.3 inch touch screen with WVGA resolution. This puts the pixels per inch to 228 ppi. Under the hood, the smart phone holds a dual core 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Plus MSM8230 processor with an Adreno 305 GPU. The smart phone comes with 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of on board storage.
But there is one attraction. The Sony Xperia L comes with an 8 mega pixel camera at the back, with an Exmor RS sensor. And this is the same sensor which is on the new flag ship device by the company, the HTC One. The camera features the HDR feature and records videos at 720p. There is a 0.3 mega pixel front facing camera as well.
Source: Phone Arena
Samsung’s new Page Turn patent
Last year Apple received a patent for the way it turns the pages on its devices, the faux page turn patent. And since the South Korean tech giant, Samsung, is often blamed of copying Apple, the company decided to get its own patent for turning pages, and that is what we are seeing here. Samsung has applied for a patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office with the application number 20130104017. The application is from last week, and describes in great detail how it is doing the page turns in its applications. The company has gone to in depth physics for the patent. You can download the patent application here (PDF) and have a look at the different gestures that the company has mentioned.
Source: The Digital Reader
Yahoo acquires to-do app Astrid
Yahoo is in the news again, and this time for acquiring the to do app, Astrid. The amount involved in the acquisition that happened on Thursday has not been disclosed. Astrid CEO, Jon Paris, has said that the app will continue to work as is for the next 90 days, and after that, the switch will be made. He also said that there will be a refund for eligible premium account holders, and there will be no more premium account sign ups for now. “To make future changes as easy as possible, we’ll be in touch with users shortly to share how to download data,” Paris wrote in the blog.
Yahoo has also confirmed the acquisition in a statement to CNET. “We’re excited to welcome Astrid to Yahoo!’s mobile team,” the statement said. “Their background in personalized mobile experiences is impressive, and we know they will be a huge asset to as we continue to re-imagine our products.”
Yahoo’s CEO, Marissa Mayer, believes that going strong on mobile platform is very much needed for a company like Yahoo right now, and that is what she is trying to do.
Source: CENT
Twitter updates its apps on iOS and Android
Twitter updated its app on both iOS and Android recently, adding more features to both the app versions. The iOS app has been favored with a few more updates than the Android version. On iOS, Twitter users will now be able to invite their friends to Twitter directly from within the app. But how much useful this feature would be is a thinker. Also, when you reply to a retweet, the app will automatically mention the author of the original tweet, and the retweeter as well.
On Android, you will now be able to switch Twitter accounts using the menu. And there are a few bug fixes. But nothing more than that here. Also, the company updated its video sharing app, Vine, yesterday. The app now gives you access to your smart phone’s front facing camera. So if you have not updated these apps already, do it now.
Source: Venture Beat
