| Microsoft and TracFone to provide pre-paid Windows Phones to diabetes patients Aug 21st 2014, 14:53, by Juan Martinez 
Diabetes treatment is about to get a whole lot more advanced. Microsoft, TracFone Wireless and Health Choice Network (HCN) have partnered on a program that will provide some diabetes patients with smartphones in order to help them better manage appointments and health regimens. Miami-based HCN will provide Windows Phones, loaded with prepaid TracFone text, calling and data plans, to select diabetes patients. HCN will register consenting users via an application that will deliver medical reminders, treatment education information, and blood sugar levels monitoring technology. In order to personalize treatment, the phones will feature Microsoft services including Cortana, Office 365, HealthVault, and Dynamics CRM. These applications will ensure data sent to each patient is consistent with their respective time zones, locations, preferences, treatment plans and schedules. Additionally, the apps will be backed by Microsoft's proprietary security and privacy features to protect patient data from being leaked. Cool Cortana featuresCortana can be programmed to remind patients to fill prescriptions when location data tells the system the patient is near a pharmacy. Cortana can also be programmed to remind patients to talk to their doctor about specific concerns when the phone receives a call or email from the patient's doctor. The phones will also come loaded with a variety of apps focused on diabetes care. The pilot's goal is to demonstrate how access to mobile technology can help improve patient compliance, education and ultimately disease-related outcomes, the companies said in a joint statement.        |  | Leaked Sony Xperia Z3 specs sound a lot like the Xperia Z2 Aug 21st 2014, 10:25, by James Rogerson 
Most of the rumours around the Sony Xperia Z3 haven't exactly pointed to the most exciting of handsets and the latest one is no better. Android Community spotted that a handset bearing the code name 'L55t' has just been certified by TENAA (the Chinese equivalent of the FCC). Now it doesn't actually mention the Z3 anywhere on the listing, but L55t has previously been associated with the Xperia Z3 so they're likely one and the same. Unfortunately though if this is the Z3 its specs are almost identical to those of the Sony Xperia Z2, which sadly is what we've been hearing for a while. According to TENAA it has a 2.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor, a 5.2-inch full HD display, a 20.7MP main camera, a 2MP front-facing snapper, 3GB of RAM, 16GB of storage and a microSD card slot. Slimmer and faster, but only slightlyThe only real difference between that and the Xperia Z2 is a slightly faster processor (the Z2 is clocked at 2.3GHz). The design may at least be in for a slight change though, as the Xperia Z3 is slimmer at 146.5 x 72.4 x 7.35mm (compared to the 146.8 x 73.3 x 8.2mm Xperia Z2) and slightly lighter at 158.4g, compared to the 163g of the current model. Other than that it sounds much the same. We should know for sure soon as Sony is expected to announce it at IFA 2014 at the beginning of September, but going by this you might want to hold on to your Z2 for a while longer.        | | Motorola may launch 8 smartphones before Christmas Aug 21st 2014, 10:13, by James Rogerson 
Here's an information overload to help kickstart your day. According to a source speaking to TKTechNews, Motorola is working on a total of eight phones to potentially launch this year: the DROID, DROID Maxx, DROID Turbo, Moto G, Moto S, Moto X+1, Moto X Play and the Nexus Shamu. Some of these have popped up before. The Nexus Shamu, for example, has been doing the rounds for a while and is thought to be a high-end 5.9-inch device, likely to be called the Nexus 6 at launch. Moto, Moto everywhereThe Moto S is thought to be a similar 5.9-inch device and the Moto X Play is rumoured to be a smaller, 5.2-inch version of the Moto S. Meanwhile the Moto X+1 is the long-rumoured successor to the Moto X, and the Moto G is probably the Moto G2, since we already have a Moto G. The DROID Turbo is said to be another high-end handset, possibly packing a Snapdragon 805 processor, 3GB of RAM and a QHD screen according to Android Authority, and going by the name the DROID Maxx may have a focus on battery life. That's a lot of information to process, but it gets more complicated as not all of these phones may actually launch. Apparently the DROID Turbo might be canned if the Moto X+1 does well and Motorola may not release both the X Play and the Moto S, instead choosing the more popular display size, so Motorola's product line-up might not quite be so jam packed after all. Next year could be busy too as Phone Arena reports that multiple tablets are in testing for release in summer 2015. We're told there will probably be a 7-inch slate running on the Tegra K1 chip, while we may also get 11-inch and 12.5-inch tablets. Looks set to be a crazy few months - and we might get the first taste of what's to come next month at IFA.        | | LG L Fino and L Bello bring G3 interface to the budget market Aug 21st 2014, 09:22, by John McCann 
LG has announced two new smartphones that it will show off at IFA 2014 in Berlin, with the LG L Fino and L Bello aimed at the lower end of the mobile market. Both phones inherit some interface features from the flagship LG G3, including Gesture Shot, Knock Code, the QuickCircle Case and a front camera light. The LG L Fino is the smaller of the two handsets, boasting a 4.5-inch 800 x 480 display (with a 207ppi pixel density), 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage, 8MP rear camera and a VGA front facing snapper. You also get a 1900mAh battery, Android 4.4.2 KitKat and the choice of white, black, gold, red or green finish with the L Fino - although not all colours will be available in every market. This puts the LG L Fino in Nokia Lumia 530 and Motorola Moto G territory - which is some seriously tough competition. Ring my Bell-oMeanwhile the LG L Bello sports a larger 5-inch display, but with a 854 x 480 resolution the pixel density is lower at 196ppi. That means the screen will appear more pixelated, which may be off-putting. The L Bello does pack slightly more power with a 1.3GHz quad-core processor backed up by 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. You still get an 8MP camera on the back of the L Bello too, but the front camera gets a boost to 1MP and the battery increases to 2540mAh. Colour options are more limited here, with the L Bello rocking up in white, black and gold, while Android 4.4.2 KitKat remains. Both handsets will make their debuts in "key 3G markets" in Latin America (neither handsets have 4G), but LG has confirmed that it will roll out the devices to more locations in Europe, Asia, and CIS soon. Exact release dates and prices are currently unknown, but you can expect both to carry highly reasonable price tags.        | | 5.5-inch iPhone 6 leaked and shown alongside 4.7-inch model Aug 21st 2014, 09:19, by James Rogerson 
We've seen a whole bunch of images supposedly showing the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 or parts of it, but sightings of the 5.5-inch model have been relatively thin on the ground. Here's a new shot of it though, showing the shell alongside the 4.7-inch phones shell. The image was obtained by BestTechInfo and supposedly comes straight from the Apple supply chain in China. It essentially looks like a larger version of the 4.7-inch iPhone 6, as you'd expect and from the image it looks like both versions are exceedingly slim. That's no surprise. Going by previous rumours the 4.7-inch model will be 7mm thick while the 5.5-inch version might be just 6.7mm. 
The waiting gameWhile this new image adds further evidence to the existence of the long-rumoured 5.5-inch iPhone 6, the information that accompanies it suggests we might be waiting a while for it. According to BestTechInfo's source there was a "very limited" number of back housing components for the 5.5-inch model at the factory where this one was obtained and it's "unlikely" that it will see a September release. We've heard suggestions in the past that the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 might be facing delays, so this all lines up. So if you've got your heart set on the iPhablet you might have to wait just a little bit longer.        | | Does the HTC One M8 have better battery life with Windows Phone? Aug 20th 2014, 21:27, by Michael Rougeau 
It was made official Tuesday: HTC is releasing a new version of its flagship HTC One M8 running Windows Phone instead of Android. That news had been rumored for a long time, but the bigger scoop is the HTC One M8 for Windows Phone reportedly has better battery life than its Android predecessor. This wouldn't necessarily be so unusual if not for the fact that the two versions of the HTC One M8 have utterly identical hardware. It's a pretty good indication that Windows Phone 8.1 inherently drains less battery power than current versions of Android. Surprising numbersThe HTC One M8's 2,600mAh battery is said to last for 22 hours of talk time and 528 hours in standby when running Windows Phone, whereas the older Android version with otherwise identical specs gets 20 and 496 hours, respectively. These numbers come straight from HTC's official specifications for the two devices. The lengths cited by Verizon - the HTC One M8 for Windows Phone's sole carrier at the moment - show an even more drastic difference; just 12 hours of usage time and 12.2 days on standby for the Android version, and 21 hours and 15.5 days for the Windows flavor. It appears Verizon and HTC used different criteria to evaluate the phones' batteries, which helps explain the discrepancy between the lengths the carrier and the phone maker claim. But regardless, they agree that the Windows Phone version has the superior battery life. We asked both HTC and Verizon about these numbers, and spokespeople for both companies said they're looking into them. We'll update here if they provide anything worthwhile.        | | Galaxy Note 4 tipped to get its very own ultrasonic cover Aug 20th 2014, 20:42, by klee 
Nifty smartphone covers keep popping up next to flagships; just look at the HTC One M8 dot case or the LG G3's windowed and wireless charging shawl to see what we mean. Now SamMobile reports Samsung is developing an ultrasonic cover for its upcoming Galaxy Note 4. Supposedly the new cover is being made to help vision impaired users get around. The cover reportedly works by emitting ultrasonic sound (sound too high in frequency for humans to hear) to detect nearby objects in front of the users and provide feedback. The report doesn't say how users will be notified of the objects. However, if the new cover works anything like Samsung's previous ultrasonic case for the Galaxy Core Advanced, it will warn users of obstacles by vibrating or via spoken alerts. 
The Galaxy Core Advanced's ultrasonic cover added a protruding prong to the already sizable 4.7-inch handset. It's unlikely everyday users will want to throw this case onto the even larger 5.7-inch Galaxy Note 4, assuming the two share the same shape. We're going to need a bigger boxWhile it's possible Samsung might introduce a new ultrasonic cover and the Galaxy Mega 2 at its pre-IFA 2014 event on September 3, we're much more excited about the new Galaxy Note 4 itself. Rumors so far have pointed to a new phablet featuring a Super AMOLED 2,560 x 1440 pixel display and an optically stabilized 16MP rear camera. The smartphone has been said to come in two models with different processors: one with a 2.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon 805 chip and the other rocking a significantly faster octa-core Exynos 5433 processor. Rounding out the rest of the spec sheet are 4GB of RAM plus storage options including 16GB, 32GB or 64GB, which users can stack up to 128GB of additional memory with a microSD card. Stay tuned to this space as we'll be on the ground covering everything Samsung has in store for Berlin.        | | Snapchat reportedly plans to make news, ads part of vanishing act Aug 20th 2014, 18:55, by JR Bookwalter 
As the old saying goes, nothing in life is truly free - and roughly 27 million Snapchat users may soon this lesson learn the hard way as their favorite disappearing message app starts getting cluttered up with revenue-generating content. The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that messaging service Snapchat appears to be enlisting new partnerships with advertisers and content providers in the hopes of monetizing the popular mobile app. Rumored to debut in November, the new Snapchat Discovery service would provide users with non-messaging content including news and advertisements from a dozen or more media companies, including magazines and television networks. According to unnamed sources, one of the first content providers tapped for Snapchat Discovery is MailOnline, the web presence for British newspaper The Daily Mail, who would presumably lend their brand of news coverage to the service. Mo' moneySince tossing a $3 billion (about UK£1.8B, AU$2.23B) acquisition offer from Facebook in the trash last year, Snapchat has accelerated fundraising efforts, but has yet to produce any meaningful income to show investors. With a captive audience of young, tech-savvy users, Snapchat Discovery could be the first baby steps toward such revenue, thanks to a combination of mobile ads and entertainment content. Discovery reportedly works much like photos and messages do today: User will be able to read daily news content or watch clips of movies and TV shows by holding a finger on the smartphone display, and afterwards the content would vanish into thin air. Snapchat is no stranger to promotional gimmicks, but Discovery would likely provide far more lucrative income from companies whose deep pockets are finding new ways to get the eyes of millions of upwardly mobile users viewing such paid content.        | | Buying Guide: Best Nokia Lumia 530 deals Aug 20th 2014, 11:37, by TechRadar 
There's a new budget maestro in town in the form of the Nokia Lumia 530, and we've got some amazing deals - but they won't last long so you'll have to be quick. These deals have just arrived and will be available for a limited time - they're a great chance to grab the phone for a lower cost that usual, so if you're in the market for a Nokia Lumia 530 then make sure you click through as soon as possible... once they're gone, they're gone! We'll be updating this page very soon with even more great deals, but these are the best around to get you started. Recommended dealYou can get yourself the Nokia Lumia 530 in green for free over at Carphone Warehouse, and you'll only have to stump up £12.50 per month for two years. That will get you 500 minutes, 5000 text messages and 1GB of data from TalkMobile, totalling just £300 over the life of the contract. 
Best data dealIf you need more than 1GB of data a month you can grab a black Nokia Lumia 530 with unlimited data and texts, plus 250 minutes for only £29.99 per month. The two year contract also gets you a free phone on T-Mobile and comes out at £719.76 all in. 
SIM-free dealFor those of you who don't like being tied down to a contract the Nokia Lumia 530 is also available SIM-free. In fact you can get it for just £89.95 in your choice of black, orange or green (the latter is still on pre-order) at Carphone Warehouse.   | | UK police pushing Apple and Samsung to put passwords on all new phones Aug 19th 2014, 12:04, by Hugh Langley 
The issue of mobile phone security is heating up, and by way of response the Metropolitan police has been pushing for phone manufacturers to place mandatory passwords on their devices. Senior officers from the National Mobile Phone Crime Unit (yes, that does exist) have been discussing the prospect with companies such as Apple and Samsung, and even the government, according to The Register. The idea is that phone will be sold with a pincode pre-set on the device, in the hope that it will encourage users to maintain some security on their smartphones. "We are trying to get [passwords] to be set as a default on new phones, so that when you purchase it you will physically have to switch the password off, rather than switch it on," a spokesperson told the site. Unlocked potentialWhat's perhaps most surprising is that the talks have been taking place for two years, but apparently the idea has gained "a lot of traction". The logic behind all of this is certainly sound: the sheer amount of personal information potentially available to the thief of an unlocked phone should be a concern to anyone. But this may just be one facet of the solution. Thomas Labarthe, managing director Europe for mobile security company Lookout commented: "I expect to see more manufacturers adopt what Apple has done with TouchID." He added: "Phone theft needs to be tackled from multiple angles to really put a damper on the smartphone black market. The goal is to make it harder for the bad guys to profit from stealing phones." Samsung has confirmed that it's working with the Home Office on the issue, and we've contacted some other manufacturers to ask whether this might be a possibility in the future. We'll let you know if we get any interesting responses.   | | EE comes out as network top dog once again, but Three is catching up Aug 19th 2014, 11:23, by James Rogerson 
EE is top dog once again in a ranking of network reliability, but it seems that Three might be starting to nip at its heels. In a test by RootMetrics, EE came out as number one in every category with an overall reliability score of 90.5, with Three following closely behind with an overall reliability score of 89.9 - certainly not a bad showing from the numeric network. In fact while EE edged the victory UK-wide, Three has the highest reliability score in Northern Ireland and Scotland and joint highest in Wales. Comprehensive testsThese scores are awarded based on how consistently a network can carry out data, call and texting tasks in cities across the UK and are the culmination of over 900,000 tests. So they should be fairly accurate, and a high reliability score suggests that Three has a consistently good service. It may not always be the fastest but it will get the job done. Three also came second for text performance, mobile internet performance, speed and overall score, though it came dead last for call performance. That's not entirely surprising as a recent report from Ofcom suggested that Three is the third best of the four networks for successfully connecting calls. But while Three certainly has work to do it does look like it's catching up with EE in most areas.   | |
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