November 21, 2012

Samsung galaxy s4 specification leaked:Looks like an impressive smart phone


So much expectation is attached with Android operated Samsung Galaxy s4.Millions of people who follow Samsung is hoping that an extra ordinary next version of Galaxy S3 will surely hit market which will really unsettle the market of  those who claim to be the best in the field.Now indications are coming that Samsung has done some fabulous work on Samsung Galaxy S4 and the South Korean company wants to go big with its cash cow.
Samsung Galaxy S1v is rumored to have a 4.99 Super Amoled 1080 p screen with a 19020×1080 resolution having 441 pixel per inch density.This latest version may have quad-core Cortex-A15 CPU along with Exynos 5450 chipset. Another hot thing about this rumored smart phone is 13 MP camera.I hope that Samsung could come up with 13 MP :) because I have some doubts as Samsung Galaxy Note 2 was also in the news that it will include 13MP camera but in the end it came out with 8MP shooter.The reason behind was Sony couldn’t make enough sensors for Samsung as Sony has already in the deal with LG  Optimus G so now I can only wish that things go will otherwise Samsung Galaxy s4 will be the continuous third generation to have same camera spec in it.
Samsung Galaxy s4 probably unveil in CES 2013 which will be held in January but even then it can’t come into our hands before Q2 so you all guys waiting desperately for Samsung Galaxy s4 will have to hold your patience.

Source
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November 20, 2012

HTC and Apple start playing nice, Peter Chou negates media estimates

If you haven’t heard, HTC and Apple reached a sudden 10-year licensing agreement in their ongoing patent lawsuits. It made a little noise, and gave us hope that OEMs will stop pointless patent wars and get back to innovating. No details on the deal were released, but media reports estimated that HTC will be paying $5 to $8 for every Android phone sold as part of the deal.  Peter Chou, the CEO of HTC, was quick to shoot down this number:
“I think that these estimates are baseless and very, very wrong. It is a outrageous number, but I’m not going to comment anything on a specific number. I believe we have a very, very happy settlement and a good ending.”
While Chou was adamant in saying that these numbers are wrong, he declined to provide any actual details. This is troubling to some, although at this point many of us in the Android community are glad that the HTC-Apple war is over (at least on the patent front). Of course, there’s always the Samsung patent suits if you’re looking for some corporate drama.
We’d like to hear your thoughts on this one. Do you think HTC and Apple should release the details, or is a public “we’re friends now” good enough? Drop a comment below!
Source Reuters
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Nexus 7 shipments expected to top 5 million in 2012

Nexus 7 Sales 2012
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Skype version 3.0 arrives on Android devices: Microsoft login, refreshed tablet UI (hands-on)


Skype version 3.0 arrives on Android devices: Microsoft login, refreshed tablet UI (hands-on)
Arriving just after its debut on Windows Phone 8, Skype's updated its Android app, with a focus on improving the tablet experience. Surely thanks to improved Google tablet sales, Skype references that it's optimized the new UI for the Galaxy Tab 2, the Nexus 7 and ASUS' Transformer Prime, among a few others. Menus and navigation are both repurposed to make use of the extra space, and while the navigation home screen still exists on the phone version (which hasn't changed, design-wise), you'll be staring at your contact list most of the time when using it on a tablet. In fact a persistent tab on the left side of the screen will take you to recent calls and the base contact list, while settings, search and the phone dialer all reside in the top right corner.
Video calls are generally better with bigger slabs, offering more screen real estate to beam your friends, family and co-workers to. However, tablets aren't well known for their camera skills, and our camera output was obviously far sharper on the Note II than on the Nexus 7. Supplanting Messenger as Microsoft's chat app of choice, you'll also be able to login with (and combine) your Microsoft account and this was relatively painless on both the phone and tablet. Skype has also updated the app with its latest SILK audio codecs, attuned specifically for human speech and -- more importantly -- varying internet speeds. After some initial 'robot voice' while connecting, we soon had no issues with several international video calls through WiFi. Hardware demands for Skype's latest encompass the minimum of Android 2.1 OS and an 800MHz processor or faster and if you pass those requirements, the source below is ready to offer you the download.
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New Sony Yuga, Odin 1080p Android Specifics Leak

We’ve got some opinions of our own about what Sony should be planning for its Android offerings next year, but if we concentrate on those rumors we’ve actually heard, there have been two models at the forefront of what Sony’s been developing: the models codenamed Yuga and Odin. Both have been attached to specs like five-inch 1080p screens, but why would Sony be planning two such very similar handsets? Some new rumors hope to clarify just what Sony’s thinking there, as well as provide us some new details about the phones’ construction.
Supposedly, the Yuga might be the hardware that Japan gets, with features like the water resistance that’s so popular over there. The Odin, on the other hand, would be the version of the phone that’s released to the international market.
According to one tipster, the Yuga will measure 138.6 x 71 x 8.1 millimeters and weigh 140 grams, while the Odin will be 131.6 x 69.7 x 9.8 millimeters and weigh 147 grams. As you can see, there’s a bit of trading-off in both directions there, and neither stands out as particularly larger or smaller; while the Yuga wins in thinness and having a low weight, its profile is slightly larger than Odin’s.
Besides those dimensions, we also hear that Odin should feature an IR emitter for functioning as a remote control, and that T-Mobile may be thinking about carrying the phone upon launch.
Source: XDA-Developers forum
Via: phoneArena
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Nexus 4 and Nexus 10 rooted to crack open Jelly Bean

Let's go straight to the root of this one: the Google Nexus 4 and Nexus 10 have been rooted ready for you to take control of Jelly Bean's secret settings.
Fans of tinkering and tweaking have been all over the new Nexus phones and tablets since they went on sale last week, and Addictive Tips' Haroon Raja has posted the first method of accessing the root settings of the Nexus 4. That was then joined by a new version of ClockWorkMod Recovery, which makes it easy to adjust the phone's settings, flash the system or change ROMs.
To root your Nexus 4 phone or Nexus 10 tablet, either use ClockWorkMod or go the long way round by unlocking the bootloader, flashing an insecure boot image and then manually transferring root files onto your phone via the Android Development Bridge.
Rooting means accessing the core settings of your Android device to take even more control over your phone or tablet. By diving into the core settings you can do cool stuff like overclocking your processor, adding custom apps or versions of Android, and unlocking features of your phone that are denied to you by The Man.
Remember, though, that rooting is done at your own risk, so remember to back up your phone first.
For more on rooting your Android kit, here's how to root your Google Nexus 7.
The Nexus 4 and Nexus 10 sold out almost instantly, leading many phone fans to question whether Google had deliberately limited the supply of phones and tablets at the much-trumpeted bargain prices.
Have you got your hands on a Nexus 4 yet? Have you rooted your phone? What's the coolest thing you've done to your rooted phone? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.
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Motorola's RAZR i MT788 announced with 2GHz Intel chip, heading to China Mobile next month

Motorola
Motorola created quite some buzz with its first "Intel inside" Android phone, the RAZR i, back in September, so it's only natural to see the company tapping into the Chinese market with a localized variant. Dubbed the RAZR i MT788, this China Mobile device bears much similarity to its Western sibling on paper: 2GHz Intel Atom Z2480, 4.3-inch 960 x 540 AMOLED display (with Gorilla Glass), eight-megapixel camera, microSD expansion (up to 32GB) and Android Ice Cream Sandwich.
The difference? Well, the chassis is the most obvious one: instead of using the same design as the original RAZR i, the new MT788 looks identical to the MSM8625-powered dual-SIM XT788 on China Telecom. On top of that, the battery is rated at just 1,735mAh instead of the RAZR i's 2,000mAh, and there's just 4GB of built-in memory instead 16GB; but the front-facing camera's bumped up from 0.3 megapixels to 1.3. There's no price just yet, but interested buyers can pick one up in China starting in mid-December. Will the world's largest carrier help Intel take a significant bite out of the mobile phone market? Only time will tell.
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Google forgets to include 'December' in Android 4.2

andorid_4.2_no_December.png
Someone at Google doesn't seem to like Christmas, or more specifically, the entire month of December. In a rather glaring omission, the People app in the latest version of Android (v4.2) does not let you set any date in December as the birth date of a contact (see screenshots above).

The issue was first reported to the Android development mailing list on November 14:

Today I was inserting birthday of a friend in my contact list so that I can sync the birthdays in my calendar. I noticed that the December month is missing. When I pressed new event the calendar came but it was not having the option for the month December. I'm using Galaxy nexus running on 4.2 jelly bean which I installed yesterday on 14 November 2012.
Please help me with this as I use the calendar a lot
Just to be clear, the problem is that the option is missing from the front-end. If you add a contact via Gmail, the information syncs up just fine with your phone. Just that you cannot add/ edit contact details to include a date in December.

Thankfully for Google, Android 4.2 users form a tiny fraction of the Android user base, so this is nothing more than a mere embarrassment for its QA team. If you are amongst the few already on Android 4.2, there's good news as Google has acknowledged the problem, so you can expect a fix pretty quickly.

Until then, hope Santa doesn't forget you this Christmas because your phone doesn't have 'understand' December!

(Screenshots courtesy Android Police)
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November 17, 2012

Dual SIM HTC Desire SV hitting Europe later this month

HTC Desire SV, the dual SIM capable Android smartphone which has been announced for India, will start selling in Europe later this month. The first country to get it is Russia, but we assume other countries will follow shortly afterwards.
As we said in our previous post, this isn’t a spectacular smartphone, but that’s usually the case with devices packing an additional SIM card slot. The Desire SV sports a 4.3-inch WVGA screen with Gorilla Glass 2, dual-core processor clocked at 1GHz, 768MB of RAM, 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, Beats Audio and 4GB of built-in storage.
In Russia, HTC will sell its baby for 14,900 Rubles, which translates into about 370 EUR. Kinda steep, but then again if you badly need a dual SIM capable Android smartphone, this is arguably one of the best options there is…
[Via: Mobile-Review]
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HTC Deluxe leaks as 5-inch Note 2 rival for the world

HTC could be cooking up a 5-inch smart phone for the UK, if new leaks are to be believed.
A render of the so-called HTC Deluxe was posted to Twitter by mobile tipster evleaks, and is apparently a "global edition" of the phone. It's always worth taking rumours like this with a pinch of salt, though there are other 5-inch HTC mobiles out there that make this leak a bit more credible.
The palm-stretching mobile looks likely to be a European variant of the HTC Droid DNA, which features a 5-inch display, a quad-core processor and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. That screen has a 1080p resolution to boot.
There's a Japanese variant doing the rounds too, dubbed the HTC J Butterfly, which frankly is a far superior name to 'Deluxe'. Where's our J Butterfly, eh, HTC?
The Droid DNA has already been reviewed by our US colleagues, who said, "Text and details in photo and video looked crisp and colours vibrant," while also praising the phone's power and a sterling design.
Lots to be excited about then, though that review also noted a frustrating lack of a microSD card slot, and a bulky frame that makes the phone hard to squeeze into your pockets.
HTC is in a spot of trouble right now, having recently seen a dramatic drop in the number of smart phones it's flogging. I know big phones like the Galaxy Note 2 have the potential to be popular, but is HTC coming too late to the big-screen party? Tell me in the comments or on our Facebook wall.
Image credit: evleaks
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LG F240 Leaked With 1080p Display and Snapdragon S4 Pro

It’s clear that with HTC’s launch of their Droid DNA on Verizon, year 2013 will be all about 1080p displays. Such is the case of a recent leak that mentions a new LG F240 device in the works. The device doesn’t only plan to go head-to-head with HTC in the display though, as it’ll also be running the Snapdragon S4 Pro clocked at 1.5GHz that the Droid DNA runs. The addition of an Adreno 320 GPU will also be included in order to keep things running smoothly.
The leaks also show that the device will be running Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, which is sadly not the new flavor Android 4.2 that we already find in most Nexus devices. Things can obviously change from here to the undisclosed release date, but this is just to prove that if the Droid DNA doesn’t have enough power for your desires, or if you don’t plan on switching carriers just to get a 1080p display, there will be more competition coming soon.
Via: Engadget Mobile
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Head to head benchmark tests with the HTC Droid DNA and the LG Nexus 4

First off, let me point out that I am no guru when it comes to benchmark tests, but some of the numbers shown here make a compelling case to consider the HTC Droid DNA as a fierce competitor to all other Android phones on the market including the latest and greatest Nexus 4.
The Droid DNA and Nexus 4 are clearly the fastest smartphones as of today. Both super-phones are sporting the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core processor at 1.5 GHz and 2 GB’s of RAM. One of the biggest differences is the software. The Droid DNA is shipping with Android 4.1 (w/HTC Sense user interface) and the Nexus 4 with Android 4.2 (w/stock user interface). In all of the benchmark tests that Droid-Life’s, Kellex conducted the HTC Droid DNA performed better than the Nexus 4. It is surprising to see both phones are cradling the same processor yet in some benchmarks the Droid DNA outclasses the Nexus 4.
 
Like I said earlier, I do not know much about the authenticity of benchmarks, but I do know that Qualcomm released their own app in the Play store called Vellamo and the results from a phone with a Qualcomm processor should be pretty telling of what it can do. Vellamo scores the Droid DNA nearly 800 points higher than the Nexus 4. Here is what the HTML 5 chapter covers:
This series of tests evaluates many of the underlying systems within a device, from graphics rendering and JavaScript to pixel blending and network stack performance. The HTML 5 Chapter tests are:
  • See the Sun Canvas
  • Pixel Blender
  • Canvas Crossfader
  • Aquarium Canvas
  • Sun Spider, v0.9.1
  • V8 Benchmark Suite
  • Surf Wax Binder
  • DOM Node Surfer
  • Reflo
  • Image Scroller
  • Ocean Scroller
  • WebGL Jellyfish
  • Inline Video
  • Load And Reload
Both phones have impressive hardware and one is stronger in some areas where the other one is stronger in other places. So what is it going to come down to for you if you had to pick a favorite out of the two? Do you need to have an LTE radio? Do you need to have a better screen? Do you need to have the latest version of Android (I know this is something everyone wants)? What items are more important to you?
Source: Droid-Life
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Nexus 4 Dot Live Wallpaper Puts The Mesmerizing Back Of The Nexus 4 On Your Homescreen

Do you love the sea of reflective dots that adorn the back of the Nexus 4? And do you, having had your pre-order delayed up to three weeks, absolutely crave that shiny goodness in your life right now? There's a live wallpaper for that: the Nexus 4 Dot live wallpaper, to be precise.
unnamed (1) unnamed (2) unnamed
Actually, it's quite pretty, and decently tweakable (though there are ads in the settings menus). So yeah, it's the back of a Nexus 4, in multiple colors, on your homescreen. Neat. Hit up the Play Store to grab it now.
Nexus 4 Dot Live Wallpaper'

Download Nexus 4 Dot Live Wallpaper from Google Play
QR code for https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.androidwasabi.livewallpaper.nexusdot
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Windows Phone 8 Hacked By A 16-Year-Old?

His new project: Windows Phone 8. According to Gawde, he’ll show the world just how he can infect a Windows Phone 8 device during the Malcon Security Conference in New Delhi next month. Now sadly, this is not the sort of demonstration we were hoping for. His plans are not really to show us how to Jailbreak a phone, but instead to show us how the exploits he discovered will allow a hacker to steal your contact information, personal data and even photos from devices. Yeah, I’m still trying to find the ethics in this whole project.
Shantanu Gawde, a 16-year old kid from India, is more than what you’d call a kid. He’s not into pushing his Dad for the car keys, nor trying to act older at a club entrance like we did at his age. At age 7 he became a Microsoft Certified Application Developer, and today he’s being regarded as the youngest “ethical hacker” in India, even if ethics and hacking don’t always go together. He recently became famous for hacking Kinect into taking photographs of their users without their consent, which doesn’t bare any ethics at all, but this is just to give you an idea of how geeky a true geek is.
At this time there is sadly no proof that his intentions have worked, but Malcon is scheduled for November 23rd, and I’m sure we’ll all have a public view of just how this works. I’m sure Microsoft will too.
Via: Phonearena
Source: Sophos
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Everything You Need To Know About Wireless Charging

Electricity has always been a thing of wonder, but like most technological advancements, it’s had its challenges and even a fight for what standard to adopt.
Thomas Edison developed what would become the first commercially available electrical power transmission using direct current (DC). One of the drawbacks of DC is its relatively limited range due to loss as distribution lines stretched further away from the power plants. Eventually power plants were created in neighborhoods and business districts to overcome the loss, but the plants were large, somewhat noisy, and generally undesirable in all but industrial areas. Nikola Tesla had a different idea for electricity, alternating current (AC), which allowed for much smaller power stations and simplified transmission over distances.

Fast-forward to today

We live in a world where power is transmitted to our homes and electrical outlets using AC, then converted into DC for use in most of our electronic devices. Most of our smartphones and tablets are charged through micro-USB cables that are either connected to computers or to “wall-warts” which convert the electricity from AC to DC for us. It wasn’t always that way.
Not that long ago it seemed like every manufacturer had a different connector to get that direct current into our devices. Some tablets still suffer from this illness, but we won’t point any fingers at the culprits. Now we are looking at what could be the widespread adoption of “wireless charging” as a standard.
Some of us at Pocketnow think wireless charging will become commonplace and could end up inside speaker and other docks to recharge our devices while listening to music or watching movies – it will probably even end up in our cars.

How does inductive charging work?

locomotive
What does a train have to do with wireless charging?!
Put simply, when an electric charge is run through a wire, not only are electrons pushed down the wire, but an electromagnetic field travels with it — on the outside of the wire. Think of it like a train running down a track. The track is analogous to the wire, the train would then be the electrical charge moving down the wire. Have you ever stood by a railroad crossing as a train passed? They usually throw off a lot of “wind” — air that’s being displaced as the train races by. That’s similar to the electromagnetic field that accompanies electricity racing down a wire.
Induction
Induction sends electromagnetic waves over short distances to induce a current in an otherwise disconnected wire. How geeky is that?!

Sounds great! What’s the problem?

We have the technology to implement inductive charging today, but just like AC versus DC, there’s a standards battle brewing.
Power Matters Alliance has their version called “PMA” and is backed by Duracell, Google, AT&T, Starbucks, and apparently hip hop artist Jay-Z. This standard is the one powering Duracell’s PowerMat which is currently available as an aftermarket solution.
Power Matters Alliance’s biggest challenger is the Wireless Power Consortium with members that include LG Electronics, Energizer, and Nokia. This version calls their technology “Qi” and is being built into smartphones today (Nexus 4Lumia 920, and LG Spectrum 2). The irony, of course, is that Google backs PMA, but Google’s newest flagship phone, the Nexus 4, uses the Qi standard.
If two competing standards wasn’t bad enough, there’s a third player in the game: Alliance for Wireless Power (A4WP). Backers for this standard include over 20 companies, including Samsung. Just in case you weren’t ware, Samsung is the world’s largest phone maker. If Samsung were to include A4WP in all their devices it wouldn’t be long before others would start building this standard into their products — including car makers — and the scales would probably tip toward A4WP.
“The market opportunity is wide open. The wireless industry is full of examples where original-equipment manufacturers have started down one technology path only to find out they need to quickly change.” – Kamil Grajski, president of A4WP
It looks like it’s not a matter of “if” but “when” we’ll see wireless charging as a standard in our smartphones and tablets. Which standard that turns out to be is still up for debate. For various auto makers, they’re hedging their bets and working on the possibility of supporting multiple charging standards.
In the meantime, that micro-USB port isn’t looking so bad, is it?
UPDATE 1: Michael Fisher has been able to confirm that the HTC DNA can charge wirelessly via the Nokia 920 wireless charging plate.
UPDATE 2:  “The Wireless Power Consortium’s Qi wireless charging standard has been announced as a key feature in the new HTC Droid DNA, the new flagship smartphone from WPC members HTC and Verizon Wireless.”
Yes, the HTC Droid DNA is features fully integrated Qi wireless charging!
Induction Image Source: Cellphones.ca
Locomotive Image Source: Wikipedia
Via: BusinessWeek

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HTC Desire X review: one last hurrah for a former flagship?

HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for HTC's former flagship
Before we go into more detail on HTC's Desire X, cast your memory back to a time before the outfit announced the "One" line of Android phones. You may remember names such as Wildfire, Sensation, Rhyme and, of course, Desire. Likewise, you may also remember a certain amount of company talk about its plans to simplify its Android offerings, and turn out phones at a slower, more considered pace. So, it was a little confusing when we first heard about the Desire X. HTC already had an affordable phone, the One V, but seemingly deemed it not affordable enough -- and the Desire C already fills the most entry-level position. With a 1GHz dual-core processor, a WVGA (800 x 480) display and a 5-megapixel camera, the specs are from the same era as the OG Desire, but with a slightly more current price: €299 in Europe. So, stripped of any "One" branding, but bearing a name that many will remember fondly, is the Desire X a good phone that's been reinvented, or just a throwback from HTC of old? We spent some time in its company to find out for ourselves.
Hardware
If you examine the spec sheets of the original Desire and the Desire X, you'll see that in the two years or so that separate them, the screen has grown from 3.7 to 4 inches (capacitive buttons are still present on the X); there's 768, rather than 512MB of RAM; and the 5-megapixel camera resolution has remained the same. The clock speed hasn't changed either, but you're getting an extra core this time with the Qualcomm MSM8225 Snapdragon chipset. Not everything is looking back to the past, though.
The perimeter to the camera is made from ridged plastic that almost feels like a cut-out from a vinyl record.
The phone's overall design takes some cues from the One line, which gives it a modern look and feel. Starting at the back, the removable battery cover has a matte, almost soft-touch finish, save for a plastic section surrounding the camera lens and LED flash. The perimeter of the camera is made from ridged plastic that almost feels like a cut-out from a vinyl record. Beneath this is an HTC logo embossed at 90 degrees, and a Beats audio badge along the base. To the left of this branding are some tiny drilled holes that cover the speaker. This rear shell also contains holes for the headphone jack, micro-USB port and mic, as well as the power / stand-by button and volume rocker. There isn't, however, an ingress for you to slip a fingernail under if you wish to remove it; instead you'll have to work something into the gap where there's a touch more leverage (mainly around the top). The bonus here is that it makes the phone look like one solid unit. The downside is that getting under the hood is a clumsy undertaking. Once you've found your way in, though, you'll find a 1,650mAh battery, plus full-size SIM and microSD slots.
It's when you find your way back to the front of the device that its family lineage is most apparent. Aside from the tiny drilled speaker holes up top, and the Android 4.X-flavored capacitive buttons along the bottom, the resemblance to the Desire S is strong. There's the familiar two-tone bezel at the bottom, where the brushed-finish fascia presses itself next to the matte detail cover reaching around from the back, meeting on the phone's distinctive family chin. As you work upwards around the edges, that brushed finish carries on up the sides, and flanks the gloss black of the frame around the display with sharply cut edges. These edges are actually sharp enough to become uncomfortable with prolonged, firm gripping.
HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for HTC's former flagship
It's that 4-inch super LCD display that is probably one of the more surprising elements of the phone. With a rather average 800 x 480 resolution, you might not be expecting much. But the non-PenTile screen is laminated, reducing glare and making colors really bright and vivid. That, in combination with the not overly large size means that, while there might be more pixel-dense displays around, what you're getting on the Desire X doesn't appear to be low-quality, or second-rate. Whites appear untainted and clear, but blacks render a little bright, with light coming through and a subtle bluish tone throughout. It's not to the point of distraction we must add, but it's noticeable when put side by side with another handset (a Galaxy Nexus or Acer CloudMobile, for example). You'll be pleased to hear that the vivid image reproduction also doesn't come at the expense of overbearing contrast levels either, with photos and videos appearing to have similar levels to viewing the same file on a desktop.
The Desire X's radio will tune in to GSM / EDGE (850/900/1800/1900) and HSPA+ (900/2100), but there's also Bluetooth 4.0, GPS and single-band 802.11b/g/n plus support for DLNA. The built-in media player has a feature that will let you "select a player" for sharing with compatible devices. We tested this with a Samsung SmartTV on the same WiFi network, and the phone found it instantly. Once selected, the video we chose started playing, without us even touching the controls on the TV once. A little bit brutal perhaps, but it works.
Camera

DNP HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for the former flagship
There's only one camera to concern yourself with here, and that's the 5-megapixel shooter on the back. It comes with HTC's dedicated ImageChip / BSI sensor, has an f/2.0 aperture and 28mm lens. There's autofocus, which seemed quick and responsive for photos (less so for video), but you can tap to focus too, should you want something in particular to get more attention -- or if the phone doesn't get there itself (this never happened to us in our tests).
If you like to meddle with your pictures a little once you've taken them, the vintage, sepia, vignette effects et al are still here to help you get your filter fix.
In the camera app itself, there are the same features that we've seen already on other phones with Sense 4.0. That means you get the ability to take stills while shooting video, and continuous shooting mode, just by keeping your finger down. The latter of those two features works pleasingly well, with images firing off quickly, popping up in the gallery right away. The settings, flash and "mode" menus remain on screen at all times, and let you jump to HDR, Panorama or any of the other scene presets (landscape, close-up and so on) with ease. If you like to meddle with your pictures a little once you've taken them, the vintage, sepia, vignette effects et al are still here to help you get your filter fix.
HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for HTC's former flagship
As for the pictures themselves, we found them to be generally pleasing, with good low-light performance in HDR mode. Not everything was quite as sharp as we'd like when we were shooting at night in Auto mode, and colors were sometimes prone to looking washed out. But in more ideal conditions (say, a brightly lit room, with a static target) you'll definitely be able to produce some satisfactory shots.
As for the video side of things, there's no HD shooting, sadly, with resolution still maxing out at WVGA, or 800 x 480. We took a few sample clips, as you'll see below, it's a fairly far cry from some of the more pixel-dense / 720p competition (this is one of the specifications where the One V wins out), you can still capture some serviceable video that'd be okay for sharing with friends, or for casual YouTube memories, but for more important memories, you'll be wanting to use something else.
Software

Somewhere under that Sense UI, is Android 4.0. So, we're not all that far behind in terms of core software. And, while it's not been confirmed that the Desire X will get Jelly Bean, it's also not been ruled out -- unlike the Desire C and the One V, both of which miss out after HTC claimed they don't have enough RAM.
Those not coming from an Android background at all will likely find it an easy in-road to the operating system's universe.
As for that slathering of Sense, well, we already made our thoughts on it pretty clear in our review, but to recap, it's a clear improvement over previous incarnations. Rather than rake over the same likes and dislikes as before, we'll look at it from the perspective of the Desire X. The first thing to mention is that, while the UI generally feels cohesive, and blends in well with Android's native features, if you are used to stock Ice Cream Sandwich, Sense might slow you down at first. That's especially true on a phone such as this where there's relatively less processor punch (more on this later). If, on the other hand, you're migrating from other skinned versions of Android, or older iterations of Sense, then you're probably going to feel at home. Those not coming from an Android background at all will likely find it an easy in-road to the operating system's universe. Menu options are generally intuitively located, and features such as the lock screen widgets help it feel modern.
HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for HTC's former flagship
There are some simple tweaks that we really enjoy, too, such as the mini-weather widget that appears in the calendar showing you how each day in the near future is expected to turn out, and the 3D rotating home screens add a little contemporary flavor. As already mentioned, those quick shortcuts from the lock screen will be a great time saver for many too. One minor quirk we noticed was that notifications for email took a long time to clear if, for example, you deleted new mail on a different device. You might think more messages have arrived and then check the phone, only to find it's the message you deleted nearly an hour ago.
One last software feature that's worth mentioning is Beats audio mode. The collaboration between HTC and Dre's headphone brand has been going on for some time now, and has received mixed responses. The Desire X even has a Beats logo on its backside, so we thought we'd give it more than just a quick listen. We set some music playing, and then piped it through a PC, recording sections with Beats enabled, and again with the feature switched off. Our main takeaway? Beats makes things loud. Very loud. We wanted to see a little bit more of what was going on, so we inspected the waveform, and put a spectral analyzer on the track to see the changes in sound in real time, both are in the image below.
HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for HTC's former flagship
As you can see, in the lower section it's instantly clear when Beats is activated (the thick part of the wave) and when it isn't. This thickness represents volume, and a good few decibels of it, too (around four to five). The top part shows a snapshot of the signal. The lower, stronger line is without the feature, and the taller, fainter one is the curve when Beats is on. It's pretty clear that there are big boosts around 100Hz and below (bass) and 1kHz (mid-high) ranges. This represents a curve you might introduce with a multi-band EQ on a home stereo if you wanted to crank up the bass, and balance with some "sparkle" higher up the spectrum. In short, it's juicing up the sound in a very similar way to other equalizer presets on other players. Great if you like it loud.
In short, it's juicing up the sound in a very similar way to other equalizer presets on other players.
Performance and battery life

When we first got our hands of the Desire X back at IFA we weren't terribly impressed with its performance. In the short time between then and now, very little has changed. Users coming from older, lesser-specced phones might find this a bit of a treat, but if you've used anything with a little more processor muscle, it can feel a touch slow. Navigating screens and flicking through menus has that slight feel of a pro sports player that's seen better days. Quick, it but won't nudge out the competition. The 1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 8255 and 768MB RAM are going to hold out for now, but if you're entering into a two-year contract, be aware that it might feel outdated long before your upgrade appears on the horizon.
HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for HTC's former flagship
We spent a lot of our downtime thumbing at a range of casual games, and there's certainly nothing bad to report here, though it's not a device we'd recommend for anything more graphically intense. In our general use (i.e., outside games) we did experience the occasional flicker and screen glitch. Not all day, or all the time, but perhaps once or twice throughout the morning we'd catch it when changing between apps. When we repeated whatever we were doing in hope of reproducing the glitch, it never occurred twice in close proximity. To get a better idea of the phone's strong and weak points, we put it to the benchmarks to decide, as you can see below.
HTC Desire X Samsung Galaxy Beam Sony Xperia U
Quadrant (v2.0) 2,682 2,764 2,125
Vellamo (v2.0) 1,147 684 N/A
AnTuTu 4,938 5,250 5,348
SunSpider 0.9.1 (ms) 3,448 2,391 2,696
GLBenchmark 2.5 1080p Egypt Offscreen (fps) Wouldn't run Wouldn't run N/A
CF-Bench 5,460 5,138 5,346
SunSpider: lower scores are better. Xperias were tested on GLBench 2.1 and Vellamo 1.0, which are now obsolete.
So, it's a mixed bag as far as numbers go, which roughly reflect our anecdotal experience, too: generally good, with the odd glitch in performance. As for the battery, with a 1,650mAh cell under the hood, and some potential savings to be made from the smaller screen, it managed a reasonable six hours and 33 minutes in our standard video rundown test (WiFi on, but not connected, and brightness fixed at 50 percent). In real-world use, we'd get well into the following day before we'd start getting nervous about finding a power point. If you're the sort that switches off overnight, then it might even last a full two days with moderate use.
We already mentioned some aspects of the audio, but not everything is all about the Beats; you may also want to make the odd phone call or two. And if you do, then you'll enjoy them just fine. Voices sounded clear and crisp. As for data, again, we put the HSPA+ radios to test at various places around London, and found download speeds to be well within the normal range of what the O2 network had to offer in those areas (between 3 Mbps and 4 Mbps), with no obvious breaks in connection or service.
Wrap-up

HTC Desire X review One last hurrah for HTC's former flagship
We liked the idea of HTC doing away with its confusing approach to phone releases, and seemingly random naming convention (Sensation? Explorer?). So, we're still a little curious as to why the Desire brand lives on. The Desire C is much lower spec, but confusingly, the low-but-premium One V gets bested by the Desire X on some key features (notably RAM and number of processor cores). So, is it all about design and build quality? Or old habits sneaking back in? Perhaps the Desire name is just too intertwined with HTC's heritage for the company to give it up fully. Whatever the reason, the Desire X exists.
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November 14, 2012

Your Skype account can be hijacked using only your email address

Skype Windows 8 stock
Russian hackers have discovered a security hole in Skype's password recovery tool that allows a third party to take control of your account. All the hackers require is your Skype username and the email address that Skype account is registered to. With those details, they'll be able to access your account and change the password in a matter of minutes. The Next Web has tested out the five-step hack and reports that the process worked across several accounts. The site says it contacted Skype several hours before going public with the story.
It's worth noting that your account is only vulnerable if the would-be hacker knows your email address. If you're worried that your address may be common knowledge, the simplest way to protect yourself from any attack would be to change the address your account is registered with. We've spoken to Skype, which says that it is currently looking into the issue.
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November 13, 2012

The Next CEO Of Microsoft Suddenly No Longer Works At Microsoft


Usual-Suspects-m01

“Floored.” “Wow.” “Wild.”
Those are some of the reactions within Microsoft tonight upon hearing that Windows and Windows Live President Steven Sinofsky would be leaving the company “effective immediately“. Those are the reactions because nearly all Microsoft employees found out about the news tonight alongside the rest of us.
Microsoft and Sinofsky are trying to spin this as a “mutual decision” — and understandably so. That’s how this works. Nearly all of these types of exits are “mutual” until reported otherwise. From my understanding, this is no different. The details will undoubtedly trickle out in the days to come, but based on conversations with no less than a dozen current and former Microsoft employees ranging from mid to high-level, Sinofsky was indeed let go and the decision was made (or finalized) this morning, quickly. The “mutual” stuff is all about letting a longtime lieutenant save face.
But why? That’s the big question that no one seems quite sure about just yet. There are whispers of internal division and strife. I have some other thoughts that may play out over the next few months. But the reality is that we just don’t know right now. The strife card makes sense to play given the recent departure of iOS SVP Scott Forstall from Apple. On the surface (forgive me), there seems to be many parallels. But in a few respects, this Sinofsky situation appears to be almost the opposite of that situation.
The iOS Maps debacle gave Apple some cover to do something they’ve wanted to do for some time: get rid of Forstall. This Sinofsky move is “out of the blue,” as two sources put it. That Microsoft and others can play it off as “this is no different from the recent Apple transition” is convenient, but…
Sinofsky was the guy that nearly everyone I spoke with thought was going to be the next CEO of Microsoft. In fact, many believed he was no-so-secretly being “groomed” for the role. And yet, he now finds himself out of the company.
Many I spoke with thought it was way too early for Surface sales to have anything to do with this exit. The same seems to be true of Windows 8, though the writing may have been a bit more clear on that wall… At the end of the day, this immediate move — and how many things that Microsoft does are immediate? — did not happen for no reason. It just may take some time for that reason to become apparent. But it’s there, right now, in front of us.
Microsoft would not get rid of the “future CEO of the company” on a random night in November after 23 years of service and right after the launch of two key products under his watch for no reason. This is not Apple CEO Tim Cook making a move one year into the job in an attempt to create an operating flow closer to his managerial style. Steve Ballmer has been in charge of Microsoft for nearly 13 years and Sinofsky has been close by for all of those years.
People on the outside thought Scott Forstall had a shot of being the next CEO of Apple, but people on the inside were sure that Steven Sinofsky was going to be the next CEO of Microsoft. Instead, he’s just the latest in a string of executive departures over the past few years. And any spin that this was “planned” or “mutual” reeks of bullshit. Steven Sinofsky is taking the fall for something. (Or something is not being disclosed.) And we’re all going to know what that is soon.
In the meantime, feel free to listen to Sinofsky himself try to pre-empt speculation about his departure:
Some might notice a bit of chatter speculating about this decision or timing. I can assure you that none could be true as this was a personal and private choice that in no way reflects any speculation or theories one might read–about me, opportunity, the company or its leadership.
So, Sinofsky woke up today and decided he didn’t want to be CEO of Microsoft. He decided he wanted to sleep in. Right.
“The next morning, whoever’s sleeping is your man.”
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HTC may send Apple up to $8 for every Android phone it sells

Apple HTC Patent License Estimate
The biggest news over the weekend was the surprising announcement that HTC (2498) has agreed to a pay for a 10-year licensing deal that’ll allow it to use Apple’s (AAPL), past, present and future patents. While the terms of the agreement and how much HTC actually forked over to Apple were not disclosed, Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu told Business Insider he believes Apple will make between $6 to $8 for every Android smartphone HTC will sell based on “conversations with industry sources.” Wu estimates Apple will make about $180 to $280 million annually from HTC if the Taiwan-based company continues to sell 30 to 35 million Android smartphones per year. HTC’s decision to pay up came as a surprise because it was only at the end of August that it said it wouldn’t settle with Apple.
Tags:
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Via:
9to5Mac
Source:
BusinessInsider
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Alleged DROID DNA pictures leak out just ahead of official announcement

DROID DNA Release Date Pictures
We are only a day away from HTC and Verizon’s joint press event in New York City and anticipation around their latest Android offering is building. The two companies are expected to announce the DROID DNA smartphone, a device BGR exclusively reported details on this past April. The handset is believed to be based off HTC’s J Butterfly smartphone and is expected to feature a 5-inch display with a full HD 1920 × 1080 resolution with a staggering 440 pixels-per-inch. The DROID DNA may also be equipped with a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and include a micro SD slot, 4G LTE connectivity and NFC.
While we have seen the soon-to-be-announced phone on display in a variety of leaked images, over the weekend Evleaks posted what it says are the official press renders of the DROID DNA. Verizon (VZ) also revealed on its DROID DOES website that it will be conducting a live unboxing of its “newest DROID smartphone” on November 19th, a day before the device is rumored to go on sale.
Source:
Evleaks, Verizon
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Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7 Android 4.2 updates available to download

Galaxy Nexus Jelly Bean
Today's the day the Nexus 4 goes on sale, but if you're a Galaxy Nexus owner not quite ready to upgrade to Google's latest flagship phone, don't worry — there's still something to look forward to. We're seeing evidence and tips of an over-the-air rollout of Android 4.2 for the Galaxy Nexus, although it appears to be limited to certain users of a certain variant: the unlocked HSPA+ model that was made available through the Google Play Store earlier this year.
However, Phandroid points out that if you're comfortable with flashing a ROM yourself, you can download the necessary files from Google right now. We've contacted Google for comment on when the latest version of Jelly Bean will be made available to other Galaxy Nexus handsets, but it appears that you shouldn't have too long to wait.
Update: Android Police has download links for the Nexus 7 as well, though it's not clear if Google has started pushing out over-the-air updates to the 7-inch tablet just yet.
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Google’s Nexus 4 Smartphone Sells Out In U.K. Within Hours Of Going On Sale; 32GB Nexus 10 Tablet Also Out Of Stock

Google’s latest Nexus-branded hardware went on sale in Europe today. The Nexus 4 smartphone and Nexus 10 tablet were both due to be available today on the Play store, alongside the refreshed Nexus 7 tablet. But it appears that the newest Nexus hardware is selling out fast. Both versions of Nexus 4 are now listed as ‘coming soon’ on the Play Store in the U.K., and the 32GB version of the Nexus 10 tablet is also apparently no longer in stock.
At the time of writing the 16GB Nexus 10 is still listed as ‘in stock’ in the U.K. store, while all versions of the Nexus 7 mini tablet are ‘in stock’. The Nexus 4 and Nexus 10 also went on sale in Australia earlier today — and have both now sold out, according to AusDroid.
We’ve reached out to Google to confirm the sales situation in Europe and will update with any response. It’s unclear how much stock of the new Nexus devices Google has made available. It’s notable that the Nexus 7 mini tablet does not appear to have sold out in the U.K., in any of its flavours (16GB, 32GB, 32GB plus 3G) — despite being beefed up with more memory.
The Nexus 4 is made by LG, and — in addition to running the very latest iteration of Google’s Android OS, 4.2 Jelly Bean —  it packs a 4.7 inch display and a 1.5GHz quad-core chip. In the U.K. its price-tag starts at £240 for the 8GB version — which effectively means you’re getting a high end 3G device for a mid-range price.
Meanwhile, the Nexus 10 tablet is made by Samsung, powered by its Exynos 5 dual-core chip. Its biggest boast is a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600. Its price-tag starts at £320 for the 16GB version.
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November 9, 2012

HTC One SV with LTE launching in Australia, Singapore and Europe

The Desire SV isn’t the only device in the new “SV” class HTC launched recently. The Taiwanese company also unveiled the One SV which is a better smartphone though unfortunately it lacks the second SIM card slot.
Specs wise, this phone packs a 4.3-inch Super LCD 2 WVGA display, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S4 Plus processor clocked at 1.2GHz, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of built-in storage, 5-megapixel camera on the back, front-facing camera, Beats Audio technology, and a microSD memory card slot.
The new HTC device will be available in select markets, including Singapore, Australia and Europe. The suggested retail price of an unlocked unit is $560, making for a tough sell since that money can get you a much better smartphone these days. Not sure what HTC was smoking thinking…
[Via: Unwired View]
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November 7, 2012

New In Titanium Backup: Create Flashable Zips Of All Your Apps And Data

How many times have you gone through this: download a new ROM, backup all your apps with Titanium, reboot into recovery, perform a nandroid backup, wipe, install new ROM, boot and set up, then restore all your apps and data. Yeah, it's crazy. And it takes forever.
What if you could cut that time by a solid 20 or 30 minutes? Thanks to a new feature just incorporated in Titanium Backup, you can. With the newest update to TB Pro, you can now create a flashable zip of all your apps and data. That means that you can flash all your goodies right after a new ROM and fire up a system that's ready to go right out of the box. Awesome.
Screenshot_2012-11-06-23-05-59 Screenshot_2012-11-06-23-06-31
The newest update also brings a few smaller features as well, like the ability to upload files larger than 150 MB to Dropbox, an improved "overview of app storage use" screen, and many other fixes/enhancements.
If you're a TB Pro user, the update is available now in the Store. If you root/ROM and don't use TB, there's never been a better time to check it out.
Download Titanium Backup from Google Play
QR code for https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.keramidas.TitaniumBackup
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