Review TechRadar: Phone and communications news 09-07-2013

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Profile: The outspoken chief exec who engineered Microsoft's Nokia takeover Sep 7th 2013, 11:00, by Mary Branscombe Even before Microsoft announced that it was buying Nokia's phone business, Nokia CEO Stephen Elop was a favourite to replace Ballmer, at least on the betting sites. For many people that's because of his bold approach at Nokia, from his "burning platform" memo to mocking Samsung at the Lumia 920 announcement for announcing a phone they couldn't even demonstrate. He can be outspoken: back in 2009 he called the idea of putting everything in the cloud instead of using software on a device "hogwash." But his record on predicting trends is generally better than that statement suggests: at the same time he talked about consumer technology and social networks arriving inside companies, and both are commonplace now. He's certainly pragmatic. Faced with operator complaints about Skype undermining call revenue, he cleverly turned it into a way of working with the networks: "Instead of them just complaining about Skype, we can have a conversation. Some operators are looking at bundling Lumia, Skype and their own services with higher-bandwidth allotments to actually charge the consumer more and generate more revenue." Microsoft: emphasis on Start Screen shackled Windows 8 But he also managed to turn around Nokia's culture, which ranged from paranoid (a Nokia developer once told me the company couldn't open source its LifeBlog software because people hated Nokia and wouldn't participate) to stodgy. In 2011, Elop described Nokia as "reliable, durable, trustworthy. We comb our hair neatly each morning, we pick you up after school when we say we will, we always send you a birthday card." He managed to get the reserved Finns to speak up in meetings and to make firm commitments, and there's a new excitement among even long-time Nokia employees. Nokia has lost the massive market share it used to have; that was a trend that started long before he arrived there, and while selling the phone business to Microsoft can't have been what the Nokia board originally hoped for, you have to give Elop and Nokia credit for most of the success for Windows Phone 8 (since over 80% of all Windows Phones sold are from Nokia). When Nokia head-hunted him in September 2010, he was running Microsoft's Business division; that included Office and unified communications – Exchange, SharePoint, Lync, Project and Dynamics, as well as the Office applications. He was running Office when Office 2010 and the Office Web apps launched, and Office 365 was still in development. The Office Web apps weren't an immediate hit, but they were an important step in putting Office tools on more platforms than just Windows and Mac. At the time, Elop said the danger for Microsoft wasn't competition from free tools like Google Docs but resting on its laurels and not innovating enough. "We have to be out innovating the competition; at the end of the day if we provide more value we'll win." Elop's team has gone on to success Other products were definitely successful. SharePoint 2010 was one of the key milestones for the product and Exchange 2010 was also a significant launch, especially as it was followed by both Google and Apple (and indeed Nokia) licensing the Exchange ActiveSync protocol. At that point, the Exchange team was run by someone who's worked with Elop a lot since then: former Windows Phone head Terry Myerson, who is now in charge of all operating system development at Microsoft. In fact, a number of people who worked for Elop in the Business division have gone on to senior positions inside Microsoft. Kirill Tatarinov now runs Dynamics, Microsoft's software for running businesses (that's what Delta is using to power the Lumia handsets that cabin crew now use for all on-board sales). Antoine Leblonde is a Corporate Vice President in the Windows division (looking after the development of Windows) and Amy Hood recently took over from Peter Klein as Microsoft CFO. It's not clear how much of a mentor he could have been in a little under two years, but it certainly emphasizes how important the Microsoft Business division has been as a place for key Microsoft leaders to prove themselves. Microsoft recruited Elop from network hardware vendor Juniper; he only stayed there for a year as Chief Operating Officer, but it was good enterprise experience. Before that he ran Adobe's sales, support and marketing groups, a job he took after successfully negotiating the merger of his company Macromedia with Adobe (he had spent seven years working his way up to CEO, earning the nickname 'The General' for his no-nonsense approach). Macromedia brought Adobe both the Flash player that made them ubiquitous (which Elop had pushed macromedia to develop for early mobile phones) and the expertise in web development tools that will allow Adobe to replace Flash with HTML5. Before that he had a tastier job; CIO at Boston Chicken and Einstein Brothers Bagels (now the US fast food chain Boston Market). Windows 8.1 release date, news and features Despite the way he killed off projects like Meego that many at Nokia had pinned the company's hopes on, Elop has few detractors. Perhaps it's his down-to-earth attitude and the way he's seen as a steady pair of hands. Tributes to him are usually along the lines of 'very smart' or 'very hardworking'; when Elop left Microsoft, Ballmer called him "a good steward of the [Office] brand." Or perhaps it's the way he tends to roll up his sleeves and join in; at university he helped lay 22km of Ethernet cable to create one of Canada's first Internet-connected networks. With Windows Phone a solid number three in the phone market and Surface sales languishing, he's going to have to roll up his sleeves and get down to work again now he's back at Microsoft. Why not read: Ballmer leaves Microsoft. But in what shape? BBM for iPhone submitted two weeks ago, awaiting App Store approval Sep 7th 2013, 09:28, by Chris Smith BlackBerry has revealed its new Messenger app for iPhone was submitted for Apple's approval two weeks ago, indicating the app could arrive at any time. The news comes from the Twitter account of BlackBerry's Alex Kinsella who, on Friday afternoon, admitted the company was now playing the waiting game as Apple takes a peek at the completed app. He wrote: "Just in case we forgot to mention, BBM for iPhone was submitted for review 2 weeks ago. #waiting #BBM4ALL" An online app tracker from Shiny Development claims the average review time for iOS apps is currently only four days, so perhaps Apple is making its old rival sweat before offering a thumbs up. Before September ends BBM, which helped BlackBerry handsets stay popular long after the decline set in at Waterloo, is coming to Android and iOS as part of an effort to make the app a universal tool for for all. The company announced the expansion plans at its BlackBerry World event back in May and all indications suggest the app will drop on both platforms by the end of September. In the case of the iPhone app, maybe sooner. Updated: Amazon phone release date, news and rumors Sep 6th 2013, 22:58, by Alex Roth Release dates, rumors, and more With the runaway success of Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet - the media-happy device owns over half the Android tablet market - it seems only natural that the company would turn to smartphones next. Amazon's strategy of putting all its media content directly into consumers' hands has worked out well so far, so wouldn't the Seattle company take the next logical step? Like the Kindle Fire, an Amazon smartphone would be a veritable home-shopping network - replete with Kindle books, Android apps and Amazon Prime video - only as a phone, so it would be the only device users would really need. Given the anticipation that's built up around a product that's not even certain to exist, we figured it wise to compile all the rumors and speculation in one place. Get this: Amazon will give the phone away for free We've heard of free shipping and low-priced phones on a two-year contract, but this is ridiculous. The latest rumor says Amazon will give its handset away for free. Could it be true? Well, possibly. Amazon has a history of pricing its hardware dirt cheap, expecting to clean up on apps rather than the initial investment. It's not a bad plan, especially if the retail behemoth can get people signed up for Amazon Prime using the deal. Amazon working on two phones, one of them 3D We've debated whether it will be called the Kindle phone, Amazon phone or something else, but now it seems that Amazon is working on more than one device. That's the latest rumor coming in over the wire. Beyond that, apparently one of the handsets will have 3D projection capabilities, sans glasses. That sort of technology has been a success for the Nintendo 3DS, but remember the LG Optimus 3D and HTC Evo 3D? We hardly do either, which makes us wonder what the online retail giant is planning. Evi to be the Amazon Phone's Siri? Back in January, Amazon acquired the startup behind a natural voice search engine similar to the Apple's Siri. Now the scent on the wind is that Amazon will be putting a chat-to app called Evi on its Amazon Phone . It sounds logical, because Amazon would need this technology to be competitive, and it would be great on Kindle devices, too. Imagine yelling at those lock screen ads that you don't want Fifty Shades of Grey. Amazon hires Windows Phone 7 head honcho Amazon has added Microsoft's ex-Windows Phone General Manager to its stable of talent. Could this be a big name hire for developing the Amazon Kindle phone? The former Microsoft man is named Kindel, Charlie Kindel, so we'd say he has the proper pedigree to help Amazon break into the market with an Amazon Phone or Kindle Phone, whatever the name ends up being. And despite the naming coincidence and the news breaking on April 1, we're confident there's nothing phony about this story. "I'm building a new team going after a totally new area for Amazon. I'm hiring cloud and mobile developers and testers, program managers, and product managers," Kindel commented, immediately sending the internet into a flurry of rumors and sidelong interpretations. Amazon phone to hedge its bets with a reasonable 4.7-inch display According to Digitimes, so called "industry supply chain sources" have put a ruler to the Amazon Phone. They say the handset will have a 4.7-inch display, which would put it in between an iPhone 5 and a Galaxy S4 when it comes to visual real estate. This supposed fact, combined with a rumored low asking price, suggests that Amazon is going for the casual smartphone user, one who does not want to spend a fortune and would like to be able to carry the phone in their pocket with ease. Amazon phone will miss rumored Q2 2013 release date, still looking like a Foxconn product It's all still the stuff of rumors, but previous rumblings pegged the Amazon Phone (or maybe Kindle Phone) as arriving in the second quarter of 2013. Now it looks as though that deadline will make a delightful whooshing noise as it blows past. Somewhat infamous manufacturing mogul Foxconn is said to be on deck to produce the dirt cheap device. Its subsidiary Ensky Tech made the original Kindle Fire and now produces the Kindle Fire HD and the Kindle Paperwhite, so it would be no shock at all to see the two collaborate on the project. As far as what's causing the delay, a report at Digitimes blames the "engineering verification test period due to issues related to its mobile platform," saying that the process, "has not been as smooth as expected." This is surprising, given the great deal of experience Foxconn and its partners have in this field. It has us wondering what Amazon could have up its sleeve that's making the phone such a bother. As always, rumors are like cheap takeout; they just leaving you hungry for more. Foxconn to manufacture Amazon phone for summer 2013 release date This might be the most concrete rumor yet regarding the Amazon phone. Supposedly the online retail giant has inked a deal with Foxconn to manufacture its first smartphone. Industry insiders also expect a summer 2013 release. According to the reports, the phone may also have a dirt-cheap asking price of $100-200 (around £60-120/AU$95-190). This would fall in step with Amazon's strategy with its Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Paperwhite line, devices sold at highly competitive prices in order to get customers investing in Amazon's media library. While the involvement of Foxconn is not surprising, since the company has become a prolific manufacturer of all things electronic, it is somewhat troubling given its reputation for overworked, striking employees. Maybe the Amazon phone will be one of the first devices assembled in American Foxconn factories? Amazon Phone rumors catch fire Rumors of an Amazon Phone started to catch on in late 2011, when analysts began predicting the Amazon Phone's existence, despite a lack of hard evidence. That hard evidence, by the way, still hasn't made an appearance, but that hasn't stopped the rumor mill from churning away. Kicking things off, analyst firm CitiGroup reported that it discovered the existence of the then-unheard of Amazon Phone through its "supply chain channel checks in Asia." Analyst Mark Mahaney led the Amazon Phone charge, proclaiming that the bookseller was in cahoots with infamous Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn to build the device. Other analysts agreed: "A smartphone would be a logical next step for Amazon," ABI Research's Aapo Markkanen told Wired in May. "The lock-in effect of a great content ecosystem shouldn't be under-estimated," he continued. Bloomberg fed more fuel to the Amazon Phone fire in July, when its anonymous sources ("people with knowledge of the matter") confirmed that Amazon and Foxconn remained hard at work on the smartphone. Further, the same report claimed that Amazon is busy hoarding as many wireless patents as possible to defend itself from the inevitable infringement suits that follow any modicum of success in the market. Windows Phone executives board the good ship Amazon The summer heat must have helped the Amazon Phone fires spread, as July gave birth to yet another bout of speculation when two Windows Phone vets joined Amazon. First Brandon Watson left the Windows Phone team to become Amazon's director of Kindle cross platform, then Robert Williams, previously Windows Phone's senior director of business development, joined Amazon as its app store director. Of course, the mere fact that the two previously worked on Windows Phone in no way proved that Amazon had brought them on to work on its own phone - but then again, it's not that far of a stretch, is it? To further stoke the flames, it appeared toward the end of July that Amazon's innovation center - Lab 126 - had been hiring workers to develop new mobile devices that would run on wireless carriers' networks. In other words: an Amazon Phone. Imagine that. Amazon Phone release date In CitiGroup's original 2011 report, the firm predicted that the Amazon Phone release date would fall in Q4 2012, though that's looking less and less likely the more time passes without a peep from Amazon. That doesn't mean it's not going to happen, of course, but other rumors since then have been somewhat less optimistic about the Amazon Phone release date. Less than a week after Bloomberg's report that Amazon and Foxconn still had their collective noses to the grindstone, another source (this one from Amazon's component suppliers) told the Wall Street Journal that the bookseller was already testing Amazon Phone prototypes. That report claimed that the device could go into production during the second half of 2012, and that the Amazon phone release could fall in late 2012 or early 2013. Amazon Phone price From the beginning, speculators foretold that an Amazon Phone would hit the low end of the price spectrum. In part, it's assumed that Amazon would sell the device wholesale (or maybe even at a loss) in order to further expand its digital content distribution. Every pair of hands holding an Amazon Phone comes with eyes, ears and a wallet, after all. CitiGroup analyst Kevin Chang said in 2011, "For a normal brand like HTC, they need to price the product at $243 to make 30 percent gross margin. If Amazon is actually willing to lose some money on the device, the price gap could be even bigger." That means the Amazon Phone price could sink as low as $170 or even $150, though Amazon would surely make up the difference somehow - just like it does with the Kindle Fire. Amazon Phone specs There's been little speculation about the Amazon Phone's specific hardware features, considering there's yet to be any official word - or even a measly leaked prototype image - to go off of. But the WSJ's source claimed that the Amazon Phone's screen size would fall somewhere between 4 inches and 5 inches, placing it right in line with top Android phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S3 andHTC One X. The Amazon Phone would at least need to perform well enough to reliably stream content and be integrated with Amazon's various media and cloud services, and the better the resolution, the more attractive the device would be for streaming video. Battery life will be another important factor, as nothing will turn the average consumer off faster than being interrupted in the middle of "Real Housewives" by a pesky low power warning. Will the Amazon Phone run Android? An Amazon Phone is almost dead certain to run on some variation of Android, as Google and Amazon, despite occasionally finding themselves at one another's throats, can just as often be found sitting snugly in one another's pockets. According to some reports, the retail giant has even considered stocking Google tablets like the Nexus 7 in its stores, indicating that their rivalry can't really be all that heated. Besides, Windows Phone is sat firmly in Nokia's camp, at least for the lifespan of Windows Phone 8 - Microsoft's not about to throw away years of build-up just to hop in bed with Amazon. That leaves BlackBerry maker Research in Motion, who - to be fair - is rumored to be shopping the BlackBerry 10 OS around for a licensing deal. But there's a chance BB10 will be more or less dead on arrival, and either way, an OS swap at this point would just be too risky for Amazon, who'll already be tossing the dice with a smartphone gambit in the first place. Furthermore, Citigroup's initial Amazon Phone report from 2011 claimed that the bookseller would have to pay royalties to Microsoft, all but spelling out that the phone would be another Android device. Amazon phone: 10 things we want to see TechRadar's Amazon Phone wish list We at TechRadar aren't immune to the charms of an Amazon Phone, even if it does only exist in the imaginations of analysts and tech bloggers at the moment. That's where this wish list of Amazon Phone features came from, as well, after all. On the list are such far-fetched notions as an at-cost Amazon Phone price point, something that's basically been assumed all along, as well as slick cloud and streaming integration, a refreshed app store, exclusive shopping discounts, and killer hardware features like NFC. Whether any of that will actually come to fruition - or whether the Amazon truly even exists or really is just a figment of a thousand overactive imaginations - will be seen only when Amazon decides to step out of the shadows and into the firelight. Here are 10 things we'd like to see in the Amazon phone, in order for it to make a dent in the smartphone space. 1. Discount the Amazon phone price Amazon was willing to sell Kindles at a loss in order to grow the device's base from zero to hero. Just how far is the online retail giant willing to go to cut the Amazon phone price in order to entice customers? It's hard to justify a brand-new smartphone purchase at non-contract prices. What can Amazon do to sweeten the deal for upgraders and off-upgraders alike? 2. Tie in services It goes without saying, but Amazon's going to have to do a superb job integrating its cloud storage, web-based MP3 service, and streaming video collection into a phone. These service gems all sound like familiar offerings from Google, Apple, or Microsoft: To be different, Amazon has to raise the bar with what it offers (more storage!) or how it allows users to interact with its other services. 3. Play nice We get it. Amazon wants to use Google's operating system as the base for its phone (or so the rumors go), but Amazon doesn't want to allow users to easily tap into Google's goods and services. Competition is fair. But, please, for the sake of usability - don't just throw the baby out with the bathwater. Amazon might not like Google Play, but that doesn't mean it has to ditch every Google-branded app out there, especially if they exist in a market that Amazon doesn't play in (Maps?) 4. Update the appstore for Android Sorry, Amazon. Your appstore leaves a lot to be desired. Refresh the interface, quicken it up, allow users to more easily navigate through apps that they might want to try out, and consider adding some social features to help one's friends recommend diamond apps in the rough. Or, feature weekly rotating lists of must-have apps that are worth downloading based on editor feedback, not just because they're inexpensive. 5. Integrated discounts Free apps. Amazon's Gold Box. Shipping discounts for Amazon Prime members. Affiliates. There's a lot of magic surrounding many of Amazon's core services and cold, hard cash. Amazon, extend these options to your phone. Court larger developers to offer better free applications. Offer rolling discounts for apps (people actually want to use) in special time-limited sales that you tease throughout the week. Allow users to make money by recommending apps to their friends, colleagues, and peers. Bring the mercantile magic of Amazon dot com into Amazon Phone (or whatever it'll be called). 6. Primed for Prime Here's the big one: What benefit do Prime subscribers get if they pick up an Amazon phone? Big discount? Increased access to services (like streaming video)? More storage space? Prime is Amazon's big change to sell its phone on the cheap and incentivize owners to pay more, annually, for a more exclusive slice of Amazon's pie. Make the bonuses killer, and you've just locked in a user for an extra $160 (or so) over the course of a two-year contract. 7. Ignore exclusivity, choose and stick to a release date Well, for carriers at least. Nothing would hurt Amazon more in its quest to establish a foothold in the smartphone market than allying itself with a single carrier - worse, a carrier that isn't the top in the market for good ol' 4G LTE service. Amazon needs to capitalize on its brand recognition and, as the saying goes, "go big or go home." Pick one chip that supports GSM and CDMA for non-4G LTE service and allow customers to switch carriers without hassle (unlock that phone!) And as far as a Amazon phone release date, pick one and stick to it. Don't keep it pushing it back like other carriers. Think worldly, Amazon. 8. Consider prepaid plans The big buzzword today is "prepaid" smartphones, but the concept does come with a bit of hassle – the smartphones cost a bit more, might not be as good as some of the top-shelf items you can purchase, and prepaid providers just don't have as good of a reach as the cellular industry's big guns. If Amazon were to somehow flex its clout and get the main carriers to work more harmoniously with prepaid service plans (or the smaller carriers that support them)… that would be quite an eye-opener, wouldn't it? 9. Amazon phone specs need killer hardware It goes without saying (again), but Amazon might not want to slink into the smartphone market with a low- to medium-powered device. You can't just Kindle Fire your way into the market from absolutely nothing. To make a dent, Amazon will have to make a splash. It's unclear how Amazon would go up against some of the market's leading manufactures and their speedier, faster, larger, and more feature-packed devices (that release on a more consistent timeframe). But there's a little thing called the iPhone 5 that's going to start capturing a lot of attention as we inch closer to the end of the year. Amazon needs to capture the buzz with, quite simply, a "cooler" phone. 10. NFC for you and me Amazon's an online shopping powerhouse. So, turn the phone into a powerhouse shopping device: Give users a super-easy method for comparing what they're looking at against products in Amazon's database to determine whether they're getting the best possible deal. Or, better yet, incentivize users who price match with their devices by giving them a small discount on Amazon.com purchases itself. Help users remember what to buy and where to buy it (if not from Amazon). Tie in Amazon's reviewing service so users can recommend, on the fly, Amazon-hosted alternatives for items they might want to buy. And then there's the biggie: Tie NFC payments to one's Amazon account and allow users to pay for products using their phones, not their wallets. Transform the offline shopping experience with a smartphone the same way you transformed the online shopping experience with Amazon's. Cheap iPhone bound for China Mobile, according to new report Sep 6th 2013, 22:03, by Matt Swider Add China to the list of words that the C in iPhone 5C could stand for - right next to color and cheap. Apple is readying a shipment of the less-expensive iPhone to China Mobile, the world's largest wireless carrier, according to a Wall Street Journal report today. The company is said to have asked its overseas device manufacturer Foxconn to add China Mobile to the list of iPhone 5C carriers, reported the paper citing unnamed sources. While the official agreement between the companies is thought to be complete, the release date for the cheap iPhone in China is still unknown. Staggering numbers The deal would open Apple up to China's state-owned carrier and its nearly 745 million customers. To put that into perspective, the China Mobile customer base is seven times larger than the No. 1 U.S. carrier, Verizon. Not even the U.K.'s Vodafone, the world's second-largest carrier, touches China Mobile, which surpasses its subscriber totals by more than 300 million. Leveling the playing ground The iPhone 5C, expected to be announced on Sept. 10 alongside the iPhone 5S, may be made of cheaper plastic instead of aluminum. But that's okay for the majority of the customers in Greater China. That leads to another staggering number: the iPhone 5 is selling for about 5,000 yuan, or $815 (about £521, AU$887) without a contract, according to the Wall Street Journal. Apple needs to bring the price down in the neighborhood of $200 (about £128, AU$218), which is how much a majority of smartphones cost in China. If Apple is indeed making headway into the country with a China Mobile deal, it could help stem the worldwide domination that has Android devices controlling a whopping 79 percent of the market. Speaking of China, Apple is facing fresh labor abuse allegations Will the Amazon smartphone come to customers free of charge? Sep 6th 2013, 21:01, by Michelle Fitzsimmons The Amazon phone is the device everyone knows is coming - it's just a matter of the etailer confirming the darn thing exists. While we are no closer to Jeff Bezos admitting his company has a handset cooking, new details out today reveal that when the handset does launch, Amazon may offer it free of charge. In a report on Jessica Lessin's blog, she and fellow former Wall Street Journal reporter Amir Efrati reveal that according to people familiar with the matter, Amazon is looking into launching its phone for free, though details of how this would work are still very murky. One catch to this unprecedented move could be a requirement to sign up for an Amazon Prime membership. While sources are unsure Amazon could pull off a free device, the company apparently wants consumers to have access to the phone regardless if they sign up for a new wireless plan concurrently. Carriers will often discount phones when customers opt for a new agreement. Holy free-joles Amazon has reportedly spoken with carriers about offering its handset, however it stands to reason it would also sell the device via its own online retail channel. A free Amazon phone is far from a done deal, and a number of factors, including working out financial Xs and Os with hardware partners, could affect the plan. Reports of the Amazon phone stretch as far back as two years ago, but the company has reportedly had a time of it finding hardware partners not already committed to pumping out Android devices. Amazon has a line of tablets and ereaders, and is expected to launch a refreshed Kindle Fire HD 2, among other products, before the holidays. The Amazon phone release date remains a mystery, but it will likely run a forked version of Android, much like Kindle tablets. If Amazon does successfully launch a free device, it could severely undercut hardware giants like Apple and Samsung. Apple is expected to launch a "cheap" iPhone 5C on Sept. 10, but Amazon's free phone could potentially snare that market share. Like Google, Amazon's primary profits come not from hardware but from another core business (e-commerce for Amazon, online ads for Google). Unlike Apple and Samsung, Amazon can take a hit from a free phone in order to grab customers, especially in developing countries. A free phone is one thing, but Amazon may have a 3D-equipped handsets in the works. Nokia Lumia 1520 makes a Twitter leak appearance, 1080p screen spotlighted Sep 6th 2013, 19:19, by Michelle Fitzsimmons We've possibly seen the Lumia 1520 cuddling with the Lumia 1020, but today a purported press shot gives us a look at the still-rumored phone's homescreen in full bloom. @evleaks is out with yet another unannounced phone's mug, claiming via Twitter that the device is the Lumia 1520, and that it's due in 2013. The image shows the front and back of the yellow handset, and it looks much like its smaller 1020 sibling, though without a hulking 41MP camera. What we do see is a very busy homescreen littered with tiles. It's widely believed that the Lumia 1520 will come rocking an update to Windows Phone 8 referred to as GDR3. This could be a peak at the refreshed OS (sort of) in action. Counting columns While there's not too much to gather from @evleaks' post as far as specs are concerned, it backs up the assertion that GDR3 is indeed destined for the Lumia 1520. Known in full form as General Distribution Release 3, the Windows Phone 8 update could come rocking an autorotate screen, a basic feature found in most other phones. More uniquely, the Lumia 1520 will likely sport a 1080p screen, a first for a Windows Phone. As you can see in the leak, the Lumia 1520 flashes two additional columns on its homescreen. Do we really need more tiles? It's not like Windows Phone is exactly swimming in apps, but perhaps by the Lumia 1520's rumored Sept. 26 launch, Microsoft and Nokia will have more to brag about. How does the Lumia 1020 stack up to the iPhone 5 and Olympus E-PL5 when it comes to snapping pics? Crafty cookies: Intelligence agencies said to have foiled online encryptions Sep 6th 2013, 17:30, by JR Bookwalter Edward Snowden may have spent his summer hanging out in a Moscow airport, but he's still dishing out intelligence secrets, this time potentially exposing U.S. and U.K. governments for successfully dodging online encryption methods. Several reports this week revealed that government intelligence agencies in the United States and United Kingdom may have successfully cracked the encryption codes used to protect millions of internet users. The top-secret operations are the latest disclosure from Snowden, the former computer specialist who began leaking details about classified government surveillance back in May prior to seeking asylum in Russia last month. According to the report, U.S. and U.K. intelligence agencies have successfully decoded encryption techniques in use by Facebook, Google and Yahoo, as well as countless email, online shopping and remote communications portals and 4G-enabled smartphones. Not-so civil wars The U.S. National Security Association (NSA) is said to spend as much as $250 million (about £160m, AU$272m) per year to fund its own project, codenamed "Bullrun" after the first major land battle of the American Civil War in 1861. U.K. spy agency GCHQ is said to have its own equivalent called "Edgehill," likewise named after the first battle of the English Civil War in 1642. The latest disclosures outline the NSA's plan for running its own supercomputers capable of cracking internet encryption protocols, aided by "technical trickery, court orders and behind-the-scenes persuasion to undermine the major tools protecting the privacy of everyday communications," as reported by The New York Times. British analysts were said to have been "gobsmacked" by the extent of the schemes, part of more than 50,000 documents provided by Snowden to news agencies, although they do not specify which technology companies may have participated. Tap into all the latest news on Verizon finally getting the HTC One. Xbox One's SmartGlass app detailed, will hit devices by Christmas Sep 6th 2013, 16:00, by Kate Solomon The Xbox One will get an upgraded edition of Microsoft's SmartGlass app in time for Christmas. The updated "second screen" experience will bring the speed and power of the Xbox One to your phones, tablets and laptops so you can use your devices as controllers, TV remotes and to browse the Xbox games store, among other things. SmartGlass for Xbox One will see you pairing your devices almost instantly - Microsoft reckons it's about 3.5 times faster than the Xbox 360 app thanks to the fact that SmartGlass now commmunicates with the console over your own Wi-Fi/LAN network rather than via an external datacentre. The company has also increased the number of devices you can connect to the console from four to 16, and will allow you to search the Xbox Games Store and check out achievements, activity and so on when you're out and about, as well as offering some basic TV controls. Make me a match One updated feature is matchmaking, which Microsoft's Ron Pessner calls "super important": it now lets you search for a similarly skilled player for a multiplay session without interrupting what's going on on the TV. The Xbox One games that will have SmartGlass integration at launch include Dead Rising 3 and Project Spark, as well as other yet-to-be-announced titles. You'll also be able to control some games using your tablet or smartphone because the connection between the two is so much more robust than its predecessors'. However, this will only be available on certain titles. TechRadar sat down for an in-depth chat with Ron Pessner - find out why SmartGlass is integral to the Xbox One here. Updated: 10 best Android phones - which should you buy? Sep 6th 2013, 03:23, by TechRadar Staff Best Android phone: 10 - 6 Our verdict on the best Android phones - constantly updated It's a great time to buy an Android phone. Competition is at a fever pitch, with the HTC One and the Galaxy S4 duking it out for the right to be called the best Android phone - or the best selling Android phone, at least. As a quick primer, Android is Google's mobile operating system, its answer to Apple's iOS which powers the iPhone. Android really came into its own back in 2011, with Android 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich. The most current version is now, Android 4.2: Jelly Bean and the newest addition soon to be released, Android 4.4 KitKat. Yes, Google names its mobile software after desserts, and no, the software on every Android phone is not created equal; you'll also encounter software put there by manufacturers and service providers. FutTv : X07b7PVMTE6VW So if you're a tad confused, fear not. Our list of the best Android phones is here to help you navigate the somewhat splintered world of Android to find the perfect device for you. It may seem like a two horse race between HTC and Samsung, but there are plenty of great devices running Google's mobile OS. So sit back and start scrolling - let's find the best Android phone for you. 10. HTC Droid DNA The Droid DNA is a very good, very big phone exclusive to Verizon. Its hardware is the definition of consistency, giving snappy load times and overall excellent performance. The battery was merely ok, which is not surprising on a 4G LTE phone with a humongous screen, but better than other HTC devices like the One X+. Still, if you go easy on the media streaming, the DNA will get you through the day just fine. A few flaws aside, the Droid DNA by HTC is one of the best deals. You can't get more performance for $199 than with the DNA - for now, at least. Read more: HTC Droid DNA review 9. LG Nexus 4 Google and LG have worked together to bring to market a fantastic offering. Essentially, this is a handset with world class specs – yet it's at a price you'd expect to get a budget phone for. Sure, there are a few things that could have been done better, but the positives definitely outweigh the negatives. Had it not been crippled by silly things like a paltry memory allowance and not-quite-there camera, we'd have recommended it immediately and given it a five star rating. But make no mistake – this is the best Nexus handset so far by a long shot. Read more: Nexus 4 review 8. HTC One X Oh, where do we begin? The super-thin chassis. The HD screen. The beautiful graphics. The next-generation Android platform, all rolled into one. Essentially, this is EXACTLY the kind of phone we want to see at the top end of its range if it wants to stay relevant in the smartphone business. Fusing top level CPU power with a beautiful screen (and a whopping one at that) and really thinking about how it wants to strip back its skin on top of the latest version of Android without compromising its identity. Despite the frustration with the battery and being frugal with the phone to get through the day, it's not an insurmountable problem and the HTC One X manages to be a great device. Read more: HTC One X review 7. Motorola Droid Razr M The Droid Razr M is a light, snappy little phone. It's a pleasure to whip across its multiple home screens, and those Circle widgets are just plain adorable. If there's one thing we love about the Droid Razr M (and there's certainly more than one), it's the satisfying agility of this phone. Small enough to be carried comfortably, yet it packs a screen that's colorful and plenty big. Still, it's not too large that its cumbersome in the hand. Its 1.5 Ghz processor and 1GB of RAM provide snappy performance. High-quality streaming videos were blurrier than we would have liked, and the indoor pictures taken by the Droid Razr M were nothing to write home about. Finally, since the battery just barely makes it through the day, the option to swap in a fresh cell would have been really nice. We'd recommend the Droid Razr M to consumers who want a balanced, affordable 4G phone with a premium feel. Read more: Motorola Droid Razr M review 6. Galaxy Note 2 Samsung has taken a product many people expected to sink, due to its sheer size, and made it work. The 6-inch Note 2 is faster, stronger, better looking, and more functional than its predecessor. Thanks to the increased screen size, it now takes the crown in our eyes as the perfect media player. But keep in mind, it's also expensive, and the kind of handset that we think will struggle to find mass appeal. Yet it does almost everything it sets out to do perfectly, with grace, class and maximum functionality that if you're in the market for a larger smartphone or a small tablet, there really is no better device. Read more: Galaxy Note 2 review Best Android phone: 6-1 5. Samsung Galaxy S4 The Samsung Galaxy S4 is a phone that we really, really like. It's slick, it's fast and it wipes the floor with the competition in so many ways. The 13MP camera is one of the best we've seen on a phone for getting that picture, with rich colors and texture. But for a phone that's so quick to run through nearly every task we were a little upset to see how long it takes to load a gallery up. This problem is compounded with a microSD card, and the more stuff on there, the more the phone has to parse. However, the Galaxy S4 is a great, great device re-inventing what it means to own a brilliant smartphone in a number of ways. The gestures are cool, with the touch-less experience amazing at times. In short, it's a wonderful phone you want to pull out of your pocket again and again and again. Also, TouchWiz is getting a little complex now. The simplicity of HTC Sense shines through, and the HTC One is a superior device in many ways because the innovation is based on things users want. Where Samsung brought the ability to wave to move photos, the HTC One made the speaker better. Read more: Galaxy S4 review 4. HTC One Mini We're excited about the prospect of the HTC One Mini, as it's a handset with all the best bits of the HTC One without as much of the cost. That's got to be hitting a new segment of the market, right? We love that the functionality of the One Mini isn't compromised from its larger relative, with the likes of UltraPixels and BoomSound all involved without being watered down. HTC has been very clever in the design of this phone by bringing nearly every great element of the One to the smaller version, and packaging it in a way that still makes it very attractive. The issues with the battery and storage do rankle somewhat, and do detract from an otherwise flawless performance from one of HTC's best phones out there. But they're more caveats on an otherwise top-end phone rather than reasons not to buy it, and placing it two price tiers below the HTC One is a great move indeed. Read more: HTC One Mini review 3. Moto X The Moto X is a whole lot of first. It's the first flagship device Motorola has produced since it was snapped up by Google. It's the first Jelly Bean Android flagship with LTE that's under five inches. It's the first mass produced phone that lets you customize its look to a ridiculous degree. This is one of the best constructed phones around. It's dense and solid but not too heavy, a lot like aniPhone 5 or an HTC One. Unlike those metal bodied phones however, it's polycarbonate (read: plastic. Good feeling plastic) body stands up to scrapes and drops with getting mauled. If only the camera were better and Motorola's apps were a little sharper, we'd give it a no holds barred recommendation. As it is now, the Moto X deserves to be in the conversation when discussing the best Android has to offer, and simply only that. Read more: Moto X review 2. HTC One As we said, this is the best HTC phone ever, without a doubt. But we'll go one better than that: it's the one of the best phones on the market. We would caveat the recommendation by mentioning the One's poor battery life, as it will really depend on how you use the phone on whether you'll love it or hate it. There's no doubt that Samsung makes better phones for the power user, at least in terms of battery consumption, but they're also made of plastic, where the One is probably the most premium-feeling out there. Read more: HTC One review 1. Sony Xperia Z The Sony Xperia Z has incredible specs - from that beautiful screen, to its breathtaking design and powerful innards, there is so much that Sony has got right here. It has built on the strong heritage of the Walkman and given power users one of the things they often desperately crave - a good battery performance and top speeds. The design is robust and fits very well in the hand - and despite the fact the 5-inch screen is whopping, the way its integrated into the chassis mitigates that issue well. And when you turn on the Full HD screen, well, the clarity is almost mind-melting. There is so much to love about the Sony Xperia Z - and while there are some annoyances, they pale in comparison. Yes, we think it's a bit annoying that we encountered software bugs, but we suppose they can be fixed easily enough, and they weren't bad enough that we had crashes or lost data. With this in top spot, we can't wait to do a full on review to its successor the Sony Xperia Z1. Read more: Sony Xperia Z

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