| In Depth: LG G2 release date, news and rumours Jul 25th 2013, 14:25, by John McCann 
The LG G2 is coming. The Korean manufacturer has gone so far as to confirm the name of the handset and the event that it will be launched at. Couple that with the plethora of leaks which have surrounded the handset, originally dubbed the Optimus G2, and there's very little left to actually find out about LG's next flagship smartphone. Following on from the Optimus G and Optimus G Pro, the G2 will take its place at the top of LG's mobile lineup and it's hoped it will get a bigger global rollout than its rather Asia-orientated predecessors. We've pulled together the most coherent news and rumours from around the web to bring you an overview of what you might be able to expect from the LG G2. LG G2 release date and priceLG has been giddy over its G2 launch event, failing to contain its excitement and blurting out that it will be showing off the flagship handset on August 7 in New York. 
Having spelled out the name of the handset and the launch date, we're still a little unclear on the LG G2 release date, although rumours point towards a late August/early September launch. Pricing is equally as elusive at the moment, but taking a look a the specs below the G2 will probably be going head to head with the HTC One, Samsung Galaxy S4, Nokia Lumia 1020 and iPhone 5 - so expect to be shelling out a lot. LG G2 displayThe LG G2 is a flagship device which means it's going to be sporting a pretty big display with a juicy resolution to really show off. Various leaks have pointed towards a 5-inch, full HD screen and apparently it's cued up to sport a super thin bezel, which should keep the dimensions somewhat under control. However more recent reports have suggested that the screen may actually be slightly larger, with a couple of leaks pitching 5.2 inches as the display size. Resolution is thought to be a pin-sharp 1920 x 1080, putting the G2 in line with other full HD handsets such as the Sony Xperia Z and Galaxy S4. LG G2 processorYou can expect to find a pretty meaty processor packed inside the LG G2, with a 1.7GHz quad-core chip appearing as an early leader in the leaks. A benchmark test claiming to be for the LG G2 shows that the handset could have a Snapdragon 800 processor - which was later confirmed by Qualcomm and LG as the chip of choice for the next generation G-series mobile. Another report claims there will be a number of variants of the G2, with some packing 2GHz chips and others a more tame 1.5GHz option. There's also been the suggestion that the G2 could even pack a punchy 2.3GHz quad-core processor, which would deliver some serious power - so in short the speed is still up in the air. What seems to be staying consistent throughout all the chatter however is the RAM, which has been listed as 2GB pretty much everywhere. LG G2 operating systemWith Android 4.3 all but confirmed and featuring on the new Nexus 7 2 tablet, the LG G2 is really set up to roll off the production line with the latest version of Google's operating system, or so you may think. Some reports have said that the G2 will launch with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, which is certainly not out of the question as manufacturers tend to be a bit behind Google and its software rollout cycle. It's also been suggested than the G2 could launch with an even older version of the OS, Android 4.1.2, but this seems pretty unlikely. Other specsStorage is another important aspect on today's smartphones and the LG G2 should sport a respectable 32GB of internal space - although some of that will be taken up by the Android OS. There's no word currently on any microSD slot. Battery life is always a concern with the highly powered, large screened, full HD handsets and early reports pointing towards a 3000mAh power pack look to be a little optimistic. Conflicting images have popped up apparently confirming a 2540mAh battery for the G2, which is a touch smaller than the Galaxy S4 but bigger than the HTC One - with the added bonus of also being removable. Update: But hold the phone, what's this? Oh only another report claiming to reveal the battery in the LG G2, only this time it's claiming it'll sport a 2610mAh power pack. If the G2 is to go head to head with the Galaxy S4, Xperia Z and Lumia 1020 it will need to have a half decent camera, and a 13MP snapper should fit the bill. 
A little design quirk which looks almost certain to be on the LG G2 are a couple of buttons on the rear of the device, just below the camera lens. From various photo leaks these keys appear to be replacing the traditional volume rocker switch usually found on the side of smartphones. There's even a video online claiming to show the LG G2 in all its glory - back buttons and all. YouTube : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRtCJmcw-6AUpdate: If you fancy a bit of colour in your life than you may be in luck, as according to new images which have appeared on Twitter the G2 will be available in a number of hues - although we're less than convinced about the legitimacy of this. 
    |  | Blip: Is it budget iPhone or iPhony in this latest video? Jul 25th 2013, 11:36, by Hugh Langley 
With the endless stream of supposed cheap iPhone pics that have been fired our way, we wouldn't be surprised if you've already made some sort of flip book of the thing in motion. For those of you with less time on your hands, this should do the trick. The six-minute video by DetroitBORG shows the same plastic shell we've been seeing for some time now. It also puts the case side by side with some previous iPhone models to emphasise its iPod Touch-alike aesthetics. Needless to say, we remain suspicious. While this agrees with the other leaks so far, the internet is also full of trolls. And yes, many of them would go so far as to make a fake iPhone case for the hell of it. YouTube : www.youtube.com/watch?v=44biradk84YMore blips!Now check out more of our awesome blips:     | | Updated: Android 4.3 release date: when will you get it? Jul 25th 2013, 11:01, by Kate Solomon 
Google has unveiled its latest version of Android, an iterative update to Jelly Bean known as Android 4.3 - and phone manufacturers are eying it with interest. We already know the new Nexus 7 will be the first device to actually ship with Android 4.3, while the Neuxs 4, old Nexus 7, Samsung Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 10 should be receiving the update from July 24, with the Google Edition Samsung Galaxy S4 and Google Edition HTC One next in line. HTCUnfortunately, HTC couldn't tell us if or when Android 4.3 would come to the HTC range, nor which handsets would be in line for the update, despite Google itself confirming that the Google Edition HTC One would be getting the update "soon". But HTC's senior global online communications manager Jeff Gordon told us, "We're reviewing Android 4.3 to see how this update fits into our plans." The company hopes to have more info for us soon - and we hope that info will be, "Yeah, sure, we'll be bringing Android 4.3 to the whole line-up... tomorrow!" SamsungSamsung is sadly being more direct on a timescale, and it's not good news. It told TechRadar: "Samsung UK will confirm upgrade plans to Android 4.3 to selected Galaxy devices in the coming months". This means that it could be 2014 until we start seeing Samsung Galaxy S4 Android 4.3 updates...we just can't wait for the reams of stories about the rumours of this update coming. SonySony has been far more clear with its early Android 4.3 plans releasing the following statement: "Yesterday you probably saw Google announce the next version of Jelly Bean (Android 4.3). "We're already getting stuck in and can confirm we'll make 4.3 available for: Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR, Xperia Tablet Z, Xperia SP and Xperia Z Ultra." This isn't a complete list of devices which may be treated to the latest version of Jelly Bean however, with Sony also revealing that it was planning on "uplifting some of our other devices running 4.1 direct to 4.3" - so watch this space.     | | Blip: Now you can download 4OD shows on iOS and Android Jul 25th 2013, 10:50, by Kate Solomon 
Commuters, travellers and those afraid of the adverse effects of data signals on their brains will be happy to learn that they can now download Channel 4 shows through the iOS and Android apps. That's right, offline caching has arrived so you can enjoy all those 24 Hours in A&E and One Born Every Minutes in all their glory underground, overground and in reception black-spots. Rejoice. 4OD will be hoping that the new feature proves as popular as a similar offering from the BBC's iPlayer. 
More blips!But before you get mired in all that, get involved with some more bite-sized blips.   | | LG G2 battery confusion and colour options Jul 25th 2013, 10:40, by John McCann 
What's that? More LG G2 leaks? Oh go on then. Today sees a couple more snippets of information surrounding LG's next flagship smartphone surfacing, with various colour options revealed and yet another battery size to throw in the mix. First up are two images posted on Twitter by blogger Sonny Dickson, apparently showing the LG G2 in a number of hues. We're not totally convinced by these leaks as the coloured rear of the handset looks pretty shiny and rather plastic - we wouldn't be surprised if these were actually clip on cases. The colours in question are blue, pink, red and grey - but none of them are particularly attractive.
Baffling batteryThey are not the only images doing the rounds however, with Korean site Ruliweb also posting pictures claiming to show the LG G2, including the battery hidden under the rear cover. 
Previous reports have been conflicting when it comes to the G2's battery, with one pegging it at 3000mAh, while another suggested a smaller 2540mAh offering. Things aren't becoming any clearer either, with the latest leak now apparently showing a 2610mAh battery housed inside the G2. What we do know is that the LG G2 will be officially unveiled on August 7 in New York, and TechRadar will be in attendance to bring you all the information live.   | | BlackBerry A10 pops up again in clearest leak yet Jul 25th 2013, 09:45, by John McCann 
The BlackBerry A10 seems to be leaking all over the shop and we might have just got our clearest view of the super-sized handset to date. A series of photos appeared on Taiwanese site Tinhte alongside a video claiming to show the A10 and a list of specs for the smartphone. What's surprising about the latest photos is their clarity, with detailed high resolution shots giving us a good view of what is probably the BlackBerry A10 - and they're quite different from the blurry images we've had to go on recently. A-class imagesWhile the Taiwanese site may have got hold of the pictures, the handset featuring in the snaps appears to be a US variant as it's sporting the AT&T carrier logo on its rear. 
The specs accompanying the photos and video seem to match those leaked last week, with the site claiming the A10 will sport a 5-inch display, 1.7GHz dual-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, 8MP rear camera, 2MP front camera and a 2800mAh battery. There's a bit of bad news for battery fans though, as the power pack doesn't seem to be removable in the BlackBerry A10 if these leaks are accurate. 
This wouldn't be the first BlackBerry 10 handset to feature a non-removable battery with the Q5 sporting a sealed chassis, but the flagship Z10 and Q10 both give you the option to pop it out. In terms of a BlackBerry A10 release date rumours suggest it will arrive before the year is out, but there's no clear date just yet.     | | As campaign tops a few million, Ubuntu Edge adds a few more price points Jul 24th 2013, 21:22, by Michael Rougeau 
Canonical has added three new pricing tiers to its Ubuntu Edge crowdfunding campaign, which already surpassed $5 million (about £3.25m, AU$5.44m) in just a few days. If that sounds like a lot, it's because it is - but it's only a fraction of the $32 million (about £20.8m, AU$34.8m) Canonical is seeking to fund its high-end new smartphone on Indiegogo. The $600 (about £390, AU$653) price point - which allowed 5,000 backers to secure the phone for themselves when it launches - sold out practically immediately, so the company has added $625 (about £406, AU$680), $675 (about £439, AU$734), and $725 (about £471, AU$789) tiers as well. The next-lowest pricing tier after $600 was previously $830 (about £540, AU$903), and Canonical is likely trying to rope in more on-the-fence customers while it's still riding the wave of buzz from its initial announcement. Get 'em while they're hotLike the original $600 tier, each of the new price points gets backers a pre-order Ubuntu Edge smartphone. All three have 1,250 slots available, though Canonical will offer more and more sub-$830 spots as the campaign continues. The Ubuntu Edge is designed to be more powerful than anything that's being offered on the smartphone market today, including flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One, iPhone 5, and Lumia 928. With 4GB of RAM, dual LTE receivers, 128GB of storage, and likely a 4.5-inch display made of pure sapphire crystal, it may well succeed. It's more concept car than consumer product however, but it could well be the beginning of something bigger at Canonical and for Ubuntu. That of course depends on Canonical actually raising that $32 million, which seems only slightly less insane now that the campaign has reached $5 million since Monday. The company currently plans to make just 40,000 of the high-end Ubuntu Edge smartphones, with other, low- to mid-tier phones running Ubuntu possibly coming afterward.     | | 2GB of RAM? Pah! Samsung outs 3GB memory unit, may debut in Note 3 Jul 24th 2013, 18:15, by Chris Smith 
The forthcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 3 could be thundering along at an almighty pace thanks to a new 3GB memory unit announced by the Korean company today. The company's new low-power LPDDR3 chip has now entered mass production with Samsung promising to slide it into devices during the second half of 2013. With the Note 3 heavily tipped for a pre-IFA arrival on Sept. 4, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to suggest that famed phablet may be the first to benefit from the improvement in memory tech. Samsung has promised PC-like performance and a "generational shift" from the current 2GB packages, which resides within handsets like the Galaxy Note 2 and Galaxy S4 smartphone. Better, thinner, fasterAmong the benefits, Samsung promises smoother full HD video streaming, faster multitasking and support for faster 4G LTE-Advanced data. The thinner chipset, built on 20-nanometer architecture, will also free up more space for larger batteries in slimmer phones, the company said, adding credence to reports suggesting the Note 3 will be more slender. "Three gigabyte mobile DRAM will be adopted in the most up-to-date, high-end smartphones starting in the second half of this year − an initial adoption that will expand to most high-end smartphones worldwide next year," said Young-Hyun Jun, executive vice president, memory sales & marketing, Samsung. As well the likelihood it'll appear in the Galaxy Note 3, that statement seems to confirm the Samsung Galaxy S5 will also boast 3GB of RAM.     | | Google officially launches Android 4.3 Jelly Bean Jul 24th 2013, 16:23, by John McCann 
Google has finally taken the covers off the next version of its mobile platform, but Android 4.3 Jelly Bean is more iteration than next-generation. With that in mind the changes that Android 4.3 are relatively minor in the grand scheme of things, with updates to multi-user and OpenGL ES 3.0 support among the points in system's changelog. Google added multi-user support in Android 4.2 on tablets and with version 4.3 it's gone further with Restricted Profiles. This allows you control access to content and apps for particular users. Google pitches this mainly at parents, as it gives them piece of mind, allowing them to control what their kids can access. Good for gamersSomething which has made waves in the media recently is kids racking up huge bills on parent's accounts through in app purchases, but with Android 4.3 these payment processes can now be completely hidden from certain users. There's good news for gamers too, as Android 4.3 upgrades the OpenGL support to the latest OpenGL ES 3.0 version allowing developers to make even better games. The new Nexus 7 will be the first device to ship with the new Android 4.3 software. Google is also pushing out the Android 4.3 update from today to Nexus 4, Nexus 7, Nexus 10 and Samsung Galaxy Nexus devices, with the Google Editions of the Galaxy S4 and HTC One getting it soon.     | | PC graphics arrive on smartphones as Nvidia flaunts Project Logan Jul 24th 2013, 16:00, by Hugh Langley 
Another day, another example of how mobile graphics are snapping at the heels of desktops and laptops. But today Nvidia has truly gone from talking the talk to walking the walk, showing off Project Logan – its first mobile chips that shares the same Kepler graphics architecture found in its recent desktop GPUs. Nvidia's first Tegra 4 devices, including Shield, are set to hit the market soon, but the company is already getting serious about the future. While Nvidia says it's still early days, it plans to get what will likely arrive as Tegra 5 off the production line and into the market in the first half of next year. Logan's runWhile Nvidia is still holding back on detailing some of the spec jumps over Tegra 4, it has said that the new chip will use less than a third of the power consumption of GPUs in today's tablets such as the iPad. And in case Nvidia's word just isn't good enough for you, it's also put up some footage of the chip running Ira, its face expression demo that was shown off earlier this year running on a desktop PC. YouTube : www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx0t-WJFXzo    | | Blip: Identified PAYG deals in bagging area as Sainsbury's launches mobile network Jul 24th 2013, 11:55, by Hugh Langley 
Mobile by Sainsbury's, the supermarket's Vodafone-partnered network, has launched today, hoping to entice you with some tasty pay as you go deals. The handsets on offer aren't anything to write home about but the SIM deals do look pretty good. The Basic bundle gives you 8p per minute calls, 4p texts and 50p for 25MB of data per day. Then there are three 30-day options - £10, £15, and £20 - all with varying minutes and data, but with unlimited texts across the board. Plus, you get Nectar points when you top up. Just like on Tesco Mobile but, you know, totally different. More blips!Now checkout some of our other blips:   | | Gary Marshall: Is the iPhone going the way of the iPod? Jul 24th 2013, 11:15, by Gary Marshall 
Apple's latest earnings report has an interesting story to tell, and it's one you might have heard before: a single high-end product becomes an entire product line, the market matures and explosive growth slows down. We saw it with the iPod, and now it appears to be happening to the iPhone. Apple's hardly on its death bed, but things are changing: while iPhone sales are up (31.2 million compared to 26 million in the same period last year) the average selling price is down ($581 / £380 / AU$630 compared to $608 / £400 / $660) and overall profit margins are down too (36.98% compared to 42.8%). Apple is selling more phones, but the phones it's selling are cheaper. Take India, for example, an area Tim Cook singled out for particular praise. According to the Times of India: "Apple has started marketing its products aggressively and brought trade-in and instalment schemes to make its smartphones more affordable. Currently, the company offers up to Rs 8,000 discounts to users who exchange their smartphones for the three-year-old iPhone 4." The iPhone 5 remains Apple's most popular phone, but Apple's also aggressively targeting first-time smartphone buyers with the iPhone 4 - and it'll continue to do so with the cheaper iPhone we know it's building. Then what? History repeatsThose cheery plastic cases leaking from Apple's supply chains don't just look like iPod cases; they reflect an iPod strategy too - a strategy that's crucial for markets where people aren't keen on dropping huge sums on new phones. Apple isn't suddenly going downmarket, but it's trying to do exactly what it did with the iPod: that too started off as a single high-end product, but as the market matured Apple widened the product range to attract a wider range of buyers. If history really is repeating, it's worth looking at where the iPod is now: while it remains a great little device its glory days are long gone and sales are down 31% year on year. Steve Jobs saw that decline coming, and knew that eventually the smartphone would kill off the music player - so Apple set out to create the iPod killer itself. I wonder, has Apple worked out what's going to do the same to smartphones? Is the next killer product category already up its sleeve? - Find out everything we know so far about the upcoming budget iPhone
  | | 4G take up doubles as EE sets sights on UK domination Jul 24th 2013, 10:35, by Hugh Langley 
With just about everyone announcing their all-too-exciting financials right now, EE has come out to predict a bright future for 4G. The network announced it has doubled the rate at which it signed up 4G customers in the second financial quarter compared to the first three months of the year, with some 687,000 people now on the high speed service. According to the company, 56% of those buying or upgrading with EE are now opting for either 4G contracts or 4G-ready phones. While it's a positive sign, the 687,000 figure means that still only around 2.5% of its customers are on LTE. EE now covers almost 60% of the country and the network is planning to push that up to 98% by the end of 2014, while aiming for a cool million customers on 4G by the same time. Keep rolling, rolling, rollingTo coincide with these celebrations, EE also announced that it's rolling out its 4G LTE network to 10 new UK towns. So if you happen to live in Altrincham, Bedford, Camberley, Crawley, Farnborough, Farnham, Maidstone, Rochdale, Tonbridge or Welwyn Garden City, 4G will be available in your area starting today. You lucky things. But wait, there's more! EE continues to push out its double speed 4G, adding Belfast, Newcastle and Southampton to its ultrafast lineup.   | | AT&T sells a record number of Android smartphones Jul 24th 2013, 02:15, by Matt Swider 
AT&T may be the iPhone leader in the U.S., but it's touting record Android smartphone sales for the second quarter of 2013. The No. 2 carrier in the country highlighted its historic high "second-quarter smartphone sales of 6.8 million, including record Android sales." AT&T wouldn't get into specifics on just how many Androids were sold, leaving us to rely on last year's data for context. Insead, the hard numbers included 632,000 total subscribers added in the second quarter, with 398,000 of them being for cellular-based tablets, and $17.3 billion in wireless revenue. Just how many iPhones were sold?The iPhone wasn't mentioned in today's earnings report press release nor was any Apple device, but the we can glean some data from the company's conference call. AT&T said that it sold more iPhones in the last three months ending in June than it did in the same quarter a year ago, according to All Things D. Looking back at last year's numbers, the carrier sold 3.7 million iPhones in the second quarter of 2012, meaning it sold at least as many or more than that figure in this year's quarter. Why might AT&T be numbers shy when it comes to its iPhone sales? Verizon announced that it had activated 3.9 million iPhones in the this year's second quarter. If you can't beat 'em, be vague about it. So record Android smartphone sales get highlighted despite the fact that it's impossible for the Google-powered devices to make up the rest of the 6.8 million smartphones sold.   | |
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