| BlackBerry eyes up MWC 2014 for new handsets launch Jan 27th 2014, 12:44, by John McCann 
BlackBerry's woes are well documented, but the Canadian firm isn't giving up without a fight as news surfaces that it's planning to launch some new handsets very soon. The news comes from Foxconn's CEO Terry Gou, whose company recently signed a deal with BlackBerry to design and produce a series of low-end handsets for emerging markets over the next five years. BlackBerry is said to be eyeing up MWC 2014 in Barcelona as the platform to showcase its new wares, with Gou being quoted by Focus Taiwan saying: "We are working with them to design a new device, and we will showcase multiple devices at the trade show in Barcelona in February." BlackBerry set to emergeOne of the rumored entry-level handsets is apparently codenamed "Jakata", and will be targeted at countries such as Indonesia and Mexico. BlackBerry is shifting its focus to a more business-orientated view, but insists it isn't giving up on the consumer side of things - and perhaps its new focus here is low-cost, low end devices. It's not clear whether BlackBerry will aim to bring any of the rumoured handsets to the UK, or indeed how many phones it will actually reveal during MWC at the end of February.        |  | KitKat and Sense 6.0 release dates for HTC One leaked Jan 27th 2014, 12:16, by John McCann 
If you're getting bored with your HTC One then good news, there are a couple of software updates on the horizon for the flagship smartphone. HTC confirmed on its Twitter feed that US-based HTC One owners can expect the Android 4.4 KitKat update to land within the next week, which means it can't be too far off the rest of the world. The tweet in question reads: "We're getting close. Final KitKat software has entered carrier labs for final testing, and we expect certification next week." This is hardly a surprise, as HTC had revealed it planned to get the KitKat update out to One handsets in February - so it looks like the manufacturer is bang on schedule. We need more Sense!With the HTC M8 - the successor to the One - hotly tipped for an arrival in the next couple of months sporting both Android 4.4 KitKat and the new Sense 6.0 UI, questions are being raised over whether its predecessor will also get the new version of Sense. Apparently Sense 6.0 is due to land on the HTC One during summer or autumn of 2014 - that's if you believe the leaked software update plans posted by @LlabTooFeR - while older handsets such as the One X, One X+ and One S will miss out on all the goodies. We have pressed HTC for more information on the various software updates planned for the one, and we'll update this article once we hear back.        | | Nokia going low-end Android with the Normandy, according to new specs Jan 27th 2014, 12:16, by Thomas Thorn 
Another handset that keeps popping its Nordic head above water is the Nokia Normandy (or Nokia X), the Finnish brand's long awaited Android toting handset. Ahead of a possible February 25 launch date (smack bang in the middle of MWC 2014), Vietnam's largest online retailer thegioididong.com may just have given away a rather comprehensive looking specs list. Running on a 4-inch 480 x 854 FWVGA screen comes a skinned version of Android 4.4 KitKat, the very same skin that we have seen from twitter tipster evleaks. A 5MP camera capable of recording HD 720p video is also included although there is no flash, and no forward facing camera for those all important selfies. This seems a little odd given that the image clearly shows a Skype tile. A budget blessing or midrange misstepTo keep all this running is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 SoC with a dual-core 1GHz CPU, Adreno 302 GPU and 512MB RAM. Those that like to download a lot of apps may be left a little disappointed as there's only 4GB of storage, although this can be expanded up to 32GB through microSD. The good news for app fans is the Normandy looks to have Google Play Store, as the same listing shows that the Nokia Normandy will support "Google Play, Google Search, Google Now, Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Calendar". If you've got the ability to have those on there, then Google has to have certified the phone is imbued with the correct hardware on board, so apps-a-plenty seems on the cards. 
Now, before you get all over-excited, remember retailers have a habit of combing the net and putting up rumored specs and leaked photos as a holding page, rather than always accidentally leaking a product page too soon - here's hoping it's the latter in this case though.        | | Samsung Galaxy Gear 2 to rock a radical new flexible design Jan 27th 2014, 11:35, by Hugh Langley 
The Galaxy Gear might not have been a triumph, but at least a number of Samsung bods have recognised that a rethink is needed for its next smartwatch. Rumours of what the Galaxy Gear 2 may or may not feature have been floating about for months, and the latest we're hearing is that the watch will have a completely new design with a flexible display. How that new design will actually look isn't made clear, but "an industry source" told ZDNet Korea that Samsung is changing up the parts that "looked dull or boring," which hopefully means cutting down that bezel for one thing. Galaxy questThe same source also said the Galaxy Gear 2 is likely to be launched in April or March in London. Samsung previously said that the Galaxy S5 would launch at this same time, joined by the new Galaxy Gear. Interestingly, this new tipster also claims that the big unveiling is set to happen in London. Could this be where the S5 is also unveiled? It certainly makes sense for Samsung to bundle the two closely together. Samsung is reportedly keeping a close eye on what Apple and LG are up to with their own smartwatch efforts. Here's hoping the Korean company has something more appealing by the time the iWatch (probably) rolls around.        | | Nokia Lumia 1520 mini may launch as Lumia 930 with fewer headlining specs Jan 27th 2014, 11:08, by Thomas Thorn 
We've heard a few things about the upcoming Nokia Lumia 1520 mini, including that it might be called the Nokia Lumia 1520V, or even the Lumia 930. We're now able to put a potential face to those names, as well as reveal a little more about what the Lumia 1520V may pack inside its slender frame. An image spotted on microblogging site Weibo MiLeaks claims to show the upcoming Nokia Lumia 1520V (the V stands for Viisi, the Finnish word for five). Interestingly, the picture shows the full three columns of live tiles that also adorn the Lumia 1520 phablet. That 4.3-inch full HD screen which has been rumored previously might actually be a 4.45-inch HD screen with a more realistic sounding 768 x 1280 screen, according to WMPoweruser who spotted the new specs on WPBar. 
New specs sound sensibleOther leaked specs include a 2370mAh battery, giving it slightly more juice than the 2300mAh battery that is found in the upcoming Sony Xperia Z1 Compact - which seems more palatable than the 3000mAh option we've seen elsewhere. According to twitter tipster @NextLeaks the Lumia 1520V will actually launch as the Nokia Lumia 930, presumably as an update to the Nokia Lumia 925. Given that @NextLeaks has only posted six tweets to date, we are currently advising a far less healthy dose of salt, even if the Lumia 930 name seems a little more realistic. Either way, we shouldn't be left waiting to long to find out who is right with the Lumia 1520 mini expected to launch alongside Windows Phone 8.1 in April.        | | Updated: Google and Samsung form landmark patent alliance to aid fight against iOS Jan 27th 2014, 10:12, by Chris Smith 
Perceived tensions between Google and Samsung had threatened to derail the dominance of Android, but a landmark patent agreement, announced this weekend, seems to have put all that nonsense to bed. The Korean hardware giant confirmed a wide-ranging ten-year licensing alliance, which includes all existing patents and those filed by both companies over the next decade. Update: Samsung's making friends all over the place. It has now sealed a licensing deal with Ericsson, agreeing to pay around $650m upfront and a regular on-going fee to allow it to use some of Ericsson's patented tech in Samsung phones. Original story continues... The news comes following countless damaging legal battles raged around the world where Samsung and Apple have bickered around the world, often related to Samsung's use of the Android operating system. Despite Google and Samsung's previous reluctance to take action against each other, the agreement seems like a symbolic amnesty in the hope that the tide of suit and counter suit might subside. Better friends than enemiesThe agreement also places Google firmly in Samsung's corner as the pair continue to battle iOS in the smartphone and tablet arena. "This agreement with Google is highly significant for the industry," said Dr. Seungho Ahn, the Head of Samsung's Intellectual Property Center, before taking a swipe at Apple. "Samsung and Google are showing the rest of the industry that there is more to gain from cooperating than engaging in unnecessary patent disputes," he said. Google's Allen Lo added: "By working together on agreements like this, companies can reduce the potential for litigation and focus instead on innovation." Reports over the last few years have highlighted the threat Samsung poses to Android with its ever-increasing market monopoly. Many observers have suggested that Samsung could use its power to influence the future of the operating system, but it appears that both companies have decided, for now, that they're better friends than enemies.        | | Is Google about to kill off the Nexus? Jan 27th 2014, 10:10, by Hugh Langley 
Google's Nexus line has proven to be a good way to show off Android in its purest stock form at an affordable price. But Mobile Review's Eldar Murtazin reckons that Google is going to kiss goodbye to its Nexus line in 2015, replacing it with a rebranded Google Play Edition series instead. "Nexus line by Google is over in 2015," he said. "Yes – this line will be replaced by Play Edition (current name, it will be rebranded)" Play timeReplying to an interested party on Twitter, Murtazin said he believed that Google would still launch some Nexus devices in 2013, but it'll be RIP for the line next year. With the number of Play Edition devices that Google currently has, it wouldn't be the craziest decision to make. And if true, there's also a chance that we could see Google use Motorola to provide an almost-Nexus replacement. However there's nothing close to an official confirmation on any of this. Murtazin has been on the money with claims in the past, though he also claimed that the Samsung Galaxy S5 will get an MWC reveal - something that's looking pretty unlikely now. - Our verdict on G's latest, the Nexus 5
  | | The Phone Show: Why Tizen won't be coming to the Samsung Galaxy S5 Jan 27th 2014, 10:00, by TechRadar 
We like phones. If that isn't abundantly clear, we're doing something very wrong. In fact, we like them so much that we've decided to dedicate an entire show to talking about them. The Phone Show aims to take you deeper into the smartphone scene to bring you all the latest goings-on, releases and rumours from in and around the industry. To kick things off, our in-house mobile moguls Gareth Beavis and John McCann set their sights on the Samsung Galaxy S5 and whether there will or won't be a Tizen-flavoured edition. There's also talk of the HTC M8/ One 2, as well as discussing the outlook for BlackBerry in 2014 and beyond. We also take a look at the latest whisperings around the iPhone 6, Sony's Xperia Z2 and the upcoming Nokia X/ Normandy Android phone All you have to do is click the 'play' button below. Enjoy the show, and be sure to leave us your thoughts in the comments section. FutTv : 03IH18h2bR06z       | | LG G Pro 2 confirmed for a MWC 2014 debut Jan 27th 2014, 09:35, by Kate Solomon 
We now know at least one product we'll definitely see for sure at MWC 2014: LG has announced that it will announce the LG G Pro 2 at the phones show in February. Unfortunately we'll have to wait until the show kicks off to find out anything more concrete about the handset, which looks set to take the LG Optimus G Pro's place in LG's oversized phone line-up. Go ProIt may not be the eagerly awaited LG G3 (which is now pegged for a later 2014 release date), but the LG G Pro 2 will see the original Pro's get a spec-boost if some leaked information is anything to go by. We're expecting a 1080p 6-inch screen (up from the original Pro's 5.2-inch affair) as well as a Snapdragon 800 processor, 3GB of RAM and Android 4.4 KitKat. Whether we'll see the handset launch in the US, UK or Australia is anyone's guess at this point, but given that the G Pro never made it beyond Korea's borders then we'd say possibly not.        | | Samsung confirms its phones and tablets will only get bigger Jan 24th 2014, 12:40, by James Rogerson 
Samsung's betting big on, well, big, as the South Korean company looks to be focusing on large, 5- to 6-inch smartphones and even bigger tablets, with sizes of up to 20 inches expected. G4Games is reporting that during its quarterly earnings conference call Samsung's Executive Director, Hyunjoon Kim, revealed the company's big plans. Samsung led the phablet charge with the Galaxy Note back in 2011 and it's still the market leader in that space, so it's no wonder the company is planning to focus on that area. Too big?But 20-inch tablets is another matter altogether, as they'll almost certainly be a fairly niche product, though we've recently seen Samsung edge in this direction with the 12.2-inch Galaxy Note Pro. Kim stated that these giant devices will be a new tablet category and that the slates will have high resolution screens. There's certainly a market for such things but we'd be surprised if they fly off the shelves. He also stated that the company will be producing various tablets which will be modified versions of the Galaxy Tab, as if the market wasn't already flooded with enough different Samsung tablets. Finally, Kim reiterated that the company will be improving the screen sensitivity of its devices, which will allow for the likes of improved Air Gestures.   | | In Depth: Dark matters: the reason your smartphone photos are better than ever Jan 24th 2014, 12:25, by Chris Mills 
If 2013's going to be remembered for one thing in the smartphone world, it's as the year where cameras got good. Almost any device you'd care to name now has a shooter that takes more-than-decent photos in daylight. That leaves only one battleground where smartphone cameras don't fare so well – in the dark. On some of the biggest phones of the year, the main boasts haven't been about processing power or even the number of megapixels in the camera; but rather how good they are at taking photos once the sun goes down. The HTC One, for example, was launched in March with only a 4MP camera, but one with much larger pixels (what HTC calls 'Ultrapixels). The reasoning behind that was clear: larger pixels means less noise, better light-gathering and all-round superior low-light performance. Nokia, as well, has been focused on low-light performance, with both the Lumia 925 and Lumia 1020 featuring innovations like optical image stabilisation and oversampling to improve the phone's low-light performance. Even Apple put a wider lens and better flash into its iPhone 5S, innovations that are almost exclusively geared towards taking better photos in the dark. These approaches are a little different from those taken by other manufacturers: Sony is a prime example, with both of its 2013 flagships, the Xperia Z and Xperia Z1, sporting cameras that were big on the megapixel count, but suffered badly compared to the competition once things got dark. 
The number one reason why 'proper' cameras – DSLRs – are so much better at taking photos in the dark is that they're a lot bigger. The camera's sensor, the little rectangle that 'sees' the outside world and turns light into electrons, is orders of magnitude larger in a professional full-frame camera like the Nikon D3S, or even a more enthusiast-level mirrorless camera like the Sony NEX C-3. That matters because the bigger the sensor, the more light that hits it, and the brighter the picture is. It's like leaving a Post-It and an A3 sheet of paper out in the rain – far more water's going to hit your giant sheet of paper. 
Click here to see the full-res image The end result is that low-light photos, like the one taken above, look great with a large-sensored DSLR, but are a poor-detailed mess on smartphones. In addition to just not being bright enough, there's another problem that plagues smartphone photos taken in the dark: noise. To compensate for the small sensor size, smartphones often increase the sensitivity of their sensors, a value often referred to as ISO – the higher the ISO setting, the more sensitive the sensor is to light. However, higher ISOs also generate 'noise', random pixels that light up or change colour, making the photo look grainy and downright horrible. It's not unlike turning your speakers up past where they were meant to – everything turns into a muddy mush. Bigger (and more expensive) sensors can generally go up to much higher ISO settings without noise, which is one of the reasons DSLRs can shoot much better in low light. Whereas an iPhone or Samsung Galaxy can dial up to around ISO 3200, the very best DSLRs go all the way to 204,800, and even more pedestrian mirrorless cameras hit an ISO around 25,600 with ease. 
Click here to see the full-res image To get around the problems of noise at higher ISO levels, manufacturers – in particular Nokia – have been turning to clever software tricks. Thanks to the 41MP sensor in the Lumia 1020, Nokia are able to employ oversampling, a trick that essentially combines pixels, reducing the overall megapixel count of the camera, but in turn cutting out those rogue pixels that cause noise. According to Juha Alakarhu, Head of Imaging Technologies at Nokia: "With oversampling, we can avoid many of the problems that traditional cameras have, and we not only overcome the problems but make things much better". Another factor in capturing good low-light images is the quality and size of the lens. For light to actually get to the sensor in the first place, it has to go through the optics, and for low-light photography, one number is important above all others: the aperture size. This number, measured as an f-stop (where, bizarrely, smaller is bigger), determines how wide the aperture on the lens goes at maximum, and therefore how much light goes through to hit the sensor. Again, aperture size is something phone manufacturers are pushing hard. Whereas the iPhone 4 and Samsung Galaxy S2 both featured aperture sizes of around f2.7, the iPhone 5S goes all the way down to f2.2 – and Nokia goes even bigger, with even its midrange phones like the Lumia 720 sporting a f1.9 lens. That's close to the performance of full-sized cameras, where even the best lenses, costing thousands of pounds, rarely get beyond f1.4. In addition to the aperture size, there's something else manufacturers can play with: optical image stabilization. The reason many hardcore photographers use tripods to capture images in the dark is that by increasing the exposure time (how long the shutter's open for), you increase how much light hits the sensor. Sadly, long exposures also mean one other thing: blur, from our ever-fallible shaky human hands. Optical image stabilization is a means of staving off blur: by essentially giving the lens a bit of suspension, minor shaking can be eliminated, and slightly longer – and brighter – exposures can be taken. Although optical image stabilisation has been a staple in high-end camera lenses for around a decade, it's a relatively new (and welcome) addition to the smartphone world, with Nokia adding it since the Lumia 920, and the HTC One following close behind. However, optical image stabilisation, being a physical process, adds bulk to phones – one of the reasons the camera is so prominent on phones like the HTC One and Lumia 925. That's the reason why many manufacturers are now looking to a software solution to low-light photography – post-processing. 
Click here to see the full-res image Just as Photoshop can fix red-eye and a wonky horizon, software can also fix the noise: it's just a matter of processing power. With phone processors now routinely quad-core monsters like those packed into the Samsung Galaxy S4 and Lumia 1520, processing power is abundant – and image processing, historically a task out of reach of mobile devices, is now pretty simple. Nokia has been "building its own propriety imaging algorithms", and it's now even added support for the lossless RAW image format, which is far more friendly to post-processing on computers. Hopefully, that means upcoming smartphones will hit higher ISO levels with less noise, all meaning there's a better chance of you getting a half-decent selfie in the next bar you choose to frequent. Across the board, then, there's no indication of the low-light improvements slowing down. Although some things – like the size of the aperture – are almost as good as they can physically get, there's constant improvement across the board, all minor changes that promise major rewards in the near future. According to Nokia, "The overall image quality is the combination of all these things coming together, and we continue to work hard and push the boundaries in all of these areas". But with the best cameras still costing thousands of pounds, not to mention being larger than a whole flock of iPhones, the challenge is reducing these breakthroughs down to a size – and more importantly, price – where they can be crammed into our pockets.   | | Samsung's 'hot corners' may bring ultimate one-handed control to your smartphone Jan 24th 2014, 11:30, by James Rogerson 
We might soon be seeing some major changes to Samsung's TouchWiz smartphone interface, as some recently uncovered patents point to the addition of 'hot corners'. By tapping one of the four corners of the screen a selection of shortcuts will apparently appear, giving users quick access to apps, settings and notifications. Not only would these shortcuts make it quicker and easier to access commonly used apps and features, but they could also make one-handed operation more viable on large handsets. Each corner seems able to house at least three shortcuts, for a minimum of twelve in total, though as the corners resemble dials it's possible that you can turn them to reveal even more shortcuts. 
Social soundsThe patents, turned up by GalaxyClub, also suggest that Samsung is working on new social features for its music app, allowing users to share music that they like with friends and comment on other people's shared music. It's unclear if or when we'll see these features in a Samsung phone, but with a TouchWiz overhaul rumoured for the Galaxy S5 it's not unreasonable to think that these changes might feature in the flagship handset too. - Samsung may be looking at hardware changes too, with the home button rumoured to be biting the bullet
  | | Galaxy S5 MWC 2014 launch is actually a Tizen event Jan 24th 2014, 11:25, by John McCann 
Remember all that fuss over a potential Samsung Galaxy S5 launch at MWC 2014? We weren't convinced, and it now looks like we were right to be wary. News is hitting the web that Samsung has started sending out invites to an event at MWC 2014 - but it won't be to launch the Galaxy S5, instead it'll be all about Tizen. The news broke on the Korean arm of ZDnet, revealing that Samsung will be providing a preview of various Tizen devices. Tizen onlyWith this being a Tizen-only event, it reinforces suggestions that Samsung will give the Galaxy S5 its own launch event in March - in either New York or London. Before that though we'll be in Barcelona to bring you all the latest from MWC, including Samsung's Tizen goodies.   | | Nokia's mysterious Android phone could launch as Nokia X Jan 24th 2014, 10:21, by James Rogerson 
The much rumoured Nokia Normandy Android smartphone may in fact be called the Nokia X if and when it's officially unveiled. That's according to a tweet by the often reliable @evleaks, which said simply "Project Normandy = Nokia X". If the Nokia X does manage to break cover we could be looking at a 4-inch display, a Qualcomm S4 processor, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of storage and a 3MP camera according to a source which spoke to The Verge. 
Lower your X-pectationsNokia's Normandy handset has been popping up with alarming regularity lately and its very existence is a little puzzling given the Microsoft sale. But we've seen so much of it now that there's little doubt it exists and if the Nokia X is ever going to see the light of day it will likely do so during Nokia's press event at MWC 2014 next month. Though given those specs it's unlikely to be a show stealer. - Wondering what other wonders might emerge at MWC? We'll guide you through what to expect.
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