| Nexus 5 smashes Galaxy S4 in leaked benchmarks Sep 26th 2013, 10:00, by James Rogerson 
The Google Nexus 5 has made an appearance on GFXBench, where it's completed two different benchmark tests with very impressive scores. The first test, '2.7 T-Rex HD Offscreen', takes devices to their limits to test their graphics performance and the Nexus 5 came away with a score of 23.1fps. To put that into perspective, that's an identical score to the Sony Xperia Z1, substantially higher than the Samsung Galaxy S4 (which averaged 17.2fps) and only marginally worse than the iPhone 5S, which completed the test with an average score of 24.7fps. The other test that the Nexus 5 has completed is '2.5 Egypt HD Offscreen'. As with the first benchmark, it tests the phones graphics capabilities, but it's not quite so intensive. That's highlighted in the 59.2fps score the Nexus 5 received, which topped the Samsung Galaxy S4's score of 43.9fps and even the iPhone 5S, which managed 56.7fps. Though it did marginally worse on this test than the Sony Xperia Z1, which scored 60.6fps. Leader of the packThe gist of all that is that in terms of raw power the Nexus 5 looks set to sit at the top of the Android pack when it launches later this year and it even sports a similar level of graphics performance to the iPhone 5S. That's not too much of a surprise, assuming the previous rumours of it sporting a 2.3GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor and 3GB of RAM are to be believed. But given that it will presumably come with an affordable price tag it's still pretty impressive. The Nexus 5 is also thought to have a 5.2-inch screen and a glass back. It won't be long until we know how true all this is, as the latest rumours point to it being announced on 14 October. - Can't wait for the Nexus 5? Check out what we made of the Google Nexus 4.
       |  | Samsung won't use fingerprint scanner on Galaxy S5 or Galaxy Note 3 Active Sep 26th 2013, 09:25, by Hugh Langley 
Samsung apparently has no plans to conjure up an iPhone 5S-style fingerprint scanner in the foreseeable future. According to the Korea Herald, a Samsung official said that the company is "not yet developing the technology" for its handsets, which we strongly suspect will include the Samsung Galaxy S5. Samsung does have a 10% stake in rival phone company Pantech, which has implemented fingerprint scanning technology into some of its phones, however it is believed that this technology still has some way to go to catch up with Apple. The iPhone 5S and its fingerprint scanner launched officially last week but time will tell if its security feature proves popular with buyers or end up an unused gimmick. We're pretty big fans of it though. Finger scannin' goodThis also means we wouldn't expect such a security feature to show up on the new flexible-screen variant of the Galaxy Note 3, which we believe could be arriving as early as next month. According to Android Community, the new Note variant, which will use Samsung's YOUM flexible display technology, will touch down in October. Though the device's actual name appears to be no more than speculation right now, the handset is being referred to as the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Active.        | | Magellan launches Echo, a fitness-app companion smartwatch Sep 26th 2013, 03:18, by Farrha Khan 
While there are bunch of smartwatches emerging that are aimed for the more fitness-minded, they can be clunky and problematic when syncing with fitness apps. Alternatively, it gets hard relying on just fitness apps on your phone, as it may get hard to squint at your smartphone-toting armband while running or dangerous to pull out the handset in case of clumsy fingers causing cracked mid-workout. Magellan has announced the Echo, which finds itself sitting somewhere between a GPS fitness smartwatch, like the TomTom Runner and Multi-Sport, and fitness trackers like the Jawbone Up and Fitbit Flex. It has a rugged and shower proof design which comes in blue, orange or black. There's also an optional heart rate monitor accessory available too, ussing Bluetooth Low Energy technology for connection. EchoedThe Magellan Echo works in conjunction with your smartphone apps, linking up via Bluetooth 4.0 on an iPhone, though Android compatibility is "coming soon". It uses your phone's GPS to track distance, time, pace and elevation, as well as sync up with third-party fitness apps, like iSmoothRun, MapMyRun, Strava, Runtastic and Wahoo Fitness. "The popularity of apps as a fitness tool is hard to deny," said Paris Basson, Brand Manager Magellan Australia/New Zealand, as the Echo works more like a companion device. "As its name suggests, this device echoes anything your fitness app tracks." So while the Echo is not a dedicated fitness smartwatch, you'll still need to have your phone on you when you're out and about with the Echo, but you won't need to pull your phone out as all the necessary information will be displayed on the Echo's face. Connected fitnessThe great thing is that the Echo has an open API, meaning more apps will probably become compatible with it, while the device will also get free software updates via the Magellan Active website. As the data collected syncs up with fitness apps using Bluetooth, you won't need to connect it to a computer. When not linked to your smartphone, the device can work as just a regular watch. You also won't need to recharge it, as it comes with a replaceable battery that Magellan says should last up to 6 months. Magellan says that the Echo will land in store from November for $149. Bundled with the heart rate monitor, it will cost $199.        | | iOS 7 hits a high download mark, but is it giving users motion sickness? Sep 26th 2013, 00:21, by Lily Prasuethsut 
Apple's iOS 7 has been prowling in the wild for a bit now, and in that time has made it onto quite a lot of iOS devices. We previously reported on the high adoption rate of iOS 7 on launch day, but one week later, ad network Chitika has some more data to share. The site states iOS 7 has been downloaded onto 51.8% of all North American Apple devices as of Sept. 25. The site tracked the number of iOS 7 "adoption rates" and compared the data with last year's iOS 6 downloads over a period of seven days from launch. The older OS, Chitika found, only made it to 47% of Apple devices. Global numbers were not included, but on Sept. 23, Apple reported iOS 7 had been downloaded a whopping 200 million times. iOS 7 is dizzyingly troublesomeThough iOS 7 has been widely downloaded, it has seen its fair share of issues from buggy lock screens to hacks. Now it seems to be causing quite a stir on an Apple forum. A surprisingly large amount of users have asked for help alleviating motion sickness caused by the parallax effect (the movement of the background image and icons to match the movement of the device) and animations of iOS 7. For owners of the iPhone 4S and iPhone 5, "Reduce motion" can be enabled, but according to one commenter, for those using anything below, it appears you're out of luck and can't get rid of the animations.        | | HTC One Max 'tester' outs potential new camera features Sep 25th 2013, 21:04, by Michael Rougeau 
An alleged tester with access to the HTC One Max released a couple of pictures Sept. 24 that appear to show off the unannounced phablet's new camera features. Like the HTC One, the One Max will reportedly sport a UltraPixel camera that HTC claims is scientifically better than its megapixel-based competition. But the enlarged HTC One Max will also feature camera improvements like a "beauty mode" with three levels of blemish correction and a panorama mode, according to the leakster. The HTC One Max will also come packing HDR video recording, if the screenshots are anything to go by. 
Let the fingerprint wars beginWe're used to leaks upon leaks in this industry, but the HTC One Max seems to be subject to even more than your average "Hot New Device." The device's fingerprint scanner has been well publicized by now, and the tester who released the camera images this week on China's Weibo forum also confirmed its existence. The tester said it's proved accurate so far, with a "very high" recognition rate and "no awkward situation." That's a good thing to hear, we suppose. Phone Arena said it appears to be the same fingerprint recognition technology found in Apple's iPhone 5S, making the HTC One Max likely the second phone to feature it. That's barring any trademarks disputes between Apple and HTC, which - let's be honest - doesn't seem farfetched. Anything else?Other HTC One Max rumors have outed a possible release date this year, a full specs lowdown including Android 4.3 and a flood of more pictures. At the moment, we're expecting to see a 2.3GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 chip, a 5.9-inch 1080p display and 2GB of memory on the HTC One Max. Should we expect an announcement soon as well? Now that remains to be seen.        | | In case of emergency... sign up for Twitter Alerts Sep 25th 2013, 20:19, by Chris Smith 
Twitter announced a new alert service today that will notify users by SMS when a there's an emergency situation developing in their locale. The new Twitter Alerts tool allows users to sign up for alerts from reputable organisations and receive crucial information via text message, rather than having to check their Twitter timeline. Texts, which will also appear as pop-up notifications for users on iOS and Android, will be sent whenever a group like the Federal Emergency Management Agency or the American Red Cross in the United States mark a tweet as an alert. Twitter Alerts builds on the Lifeline service Twitter debuted last year, in response to the devastating Japanese earthquake and tsunami. Expanding the lifelineIn a post on its official blog, Twitter wrote: "Today, we're launching Twitter Alerts, a new feature that brings us one step closer to helping users get important and accurate information from credible organisations during emergencies, natural disasters or moments when other communications services aren't accessible. "We know from our users how important it is to be able to receive reliable information during these times. With that in mind, last year we announced Lifeline (a feature that helps Japanese users find emergency accounts during crises), and since then, we've been working on a related feature for people around the world." Currently the organisations involved are limited to the United States, Japan and Korea, but Twitter plans to expand the initiative to more countries in due course.        | | Updated: Samsung Galaxy Gear and Note 3 finally go on sale Sep 25th 2013, 15:04, by Gareth Beavis 
Samsung has plopped its Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Gear smartwatch on shop shelves, and consumers cn head to a few outlets to pick one up. Update: We've had a scout around and added in some more Note 3 prices, as well as a couple for the Galaxy Gear, so if you want to know where to get it, this is the place to come. Although you're already here, which negates that somewhat. Tell a friend. The main place those that don't want to mess around with a contract, but are desperate to have both devices, should head is directly to Samsung itself, where it's offering the two for £868. That's a £50 saving over buying the Note 3 (£629) and the Gear (£219) separately, although you can only have the smartwatch in black or white if you go through this portal. The Galaxy Gear is in limited supply around the web, with Expansys still stating it's only for pre-order (and bringing the cost up to £335) and Clove offering it in unknown colours for £282... although still not available. The Carphone Warehouse is following Samsung's lead and offering up the Galaxy Gear for cheaper if bundled with the Note 3 - we just spoke to their sales team and while they don't have any idea on how much the Gear will be, the phone seller is now offering it for £100 off (not the £50 listed on its site), with prices expected to be £199 with discount. Note 3The Galaxy Note 3, as you can imagine, is a pricier beast, with EE, O2, Orange, Carphone Warehouse, Phones4U and Amazon all starting off with it on sale. 
Amazon wants you to part with the best part of £800 to get the 32GB version, although has listed this as out of stock. Other prices on contract range from £51 a month for 4G on EE (with a £30 upfront phone cost) to free on £42 a month deals with Carphone, to £52 a month with a free phone on O2 Refresh (more if you fancy 4G). Orange is listed as a retailer by Samsung, but is still listing the Note 3 for pre-order, and Vodafone has nothing on the device at all just yet. Three is going to be stocking the new Note, but will be sending it out on 9 October.        | | Updated: Samsung Galaxy Note 3: Where can I get it? Sep 25th 2013, 14:34, by John McCann 
The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 release date is, well it's actually come and gone, so now's the time to start planning where you'll get hold of one. The newly announced phone-that-moonlights-as-a-tablet is available on a number of British networks, and we've sorted out what's what to make life easier for you. EEThe 4G-loving EE has the Galaxy Note 3 available in its 32GB guise, although there's no option of a free handset. You can pay as little as £29.99 up front, but you'll need to commit to paying EE £51 every month for two years - you do get 20GB of data each month though. The handset will set you back £69.99 on EE's recommended £46/month 24-month contract which comes with 10GB of data and unlimited calls and texts. If you don't want to be locked in for two years then you can always plump for a 12 month contract, but you'll be paying more up front. The lowest initial payment is £49.99 on a £66 per month contract which gives you 8GB of data. Orange is charging £42 a month with an initial outlay of £120 on a boring old 3G contract, although its site says the Note 3 is still in pre-order. O2Meanwhile over at O2 the stock is in, the 4G is live and there's an option to pay nothing up front for a Samsung Galaxy Note 3. That £0 up front does come at a cost - £42 per month to be exact if you want a two year Refresh 3G contract with 1GB of data, or £47 per month for the same period with 4G connectivity and 1GB of data. There's no sign of PAYG or SIM-free offers here though. ThreeThree has confirmed that it will be bearing its namesake Note, but hasn't let slip its contract deals just yet - even though it's in stock at other retailers. VodafoneVodafone hasn't shown any sign that it will be stocking the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, but we're chasing the big red for more information. Phones 4U The keen-bean phone retailer is selling the Galaxy Note 3 on a variety of tariffs spanning four networks - although two of those (T-Mobile and Orange) and owned by EE. The other network in question is Vodafone - who has been oddly quiet on everything Note 3 thus far. You can grab yourself a free Note 3 on Orange or Vodafone from Phones 4 U, although it will require you signing up to the network for two years and splashing £47 per month. Carphone WarehouseCarphone is also getting in on the Galaxy Note 3 action with tariffs from all the major networks listed above, plus TalkMobile, so there's certainly a lot of choice here. If you pick yourself up a Galaxy Note 3 at Carphone Warehouse you can also get £100 off the Galaxy Gear smartwatch - which currently only works with this handset. Online retailersFancy some SIM-free, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 action? We'll we hope your pockets are deep as it's not coming cheap. Expansys has the white Note 3 in stock now, with the black version expected in the next few days, and both will set you back a hefty £619.99. The price is the other side of £600 over on Clove, which claims it has both the black and white Note 3 models in stock at £594 a pop. Unlocked-Mobiles expects stock to arrive on September 26 and is offering both colours at 598.97 a piece.        | |
No comments:
Post a Comment