Huawei announces Ascend D Series – includes ‘world’s fastest smartphone’

Huawei Chairman Richard Yu took the stage at the Mobile World Congress to unveil what he claims to be the world’s fastest smartphone – Huawei Ascend D Quad. Unlike most of today’s quad-core smartphones, it has a unique processor – the K3V2 built by the same company. Huawei says the K3 processor is faster than any other quad-core processor in the market.

NVIDIA and Qualcomm are today’s leading manufacturers of smartphone processors. NVIDIA already pushed out Tegra 3 4-PLUS-1 processors for HTC One X and LG Optimus 4X HD. Huawei took a big leap by making their very own quad-core processor, K3V2. They say it’s 49 percent faster than today’s fastest smartphones – which is a bit vague since they may be referring to dual-core devices.

In addition to a quad-core processor, Ascend D Quad runs on Ice Cream Sandwich. It has a large 4.5-inch screen with 720p HD display, 1 GB RAM, 1800mAh of battery, an 8MP rear camera, a 1.3MP front-facing camera, 1080p video capture, and 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound for audio. Measuring 8.9mm in thickness, it is about 1mm thicker than the thinnest smartphone to date – HTC One X.

Also announced by Huawei Chairman is Ascend D Quad XL. Packed with similar specs but a better battery, it can last up to three days of use. Huawei Ascend D1 was also shown during the event. Specs-wise it resembles Ascend D Quad. However, it only has a dual-core processor and a humble 1670mAh battery. We can expect a cheaper price tag on it.
source: gadgetmania

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Panasonic Eluga Power: 5-inch 720p display, 9.6mm thin, S4 processor

Remember Panasonic’s Eluga? The phone with a name that sounded like you’d eaten too much popcorn before going on a roller coaster now has a bigger brother to protect the family insignia: the Eluga Power. It’s a 5-inch (1280 x 720) display-toting premium version of the device running ICS on a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 CPU. The 9.6mm thick device includes a 1,800mAh battery that can reportedly quick-charge to 50 percent in half an hour. It’s packing NFC, an 8-megapixel camera as well as an unspecified front-facer for video calls, 8GB storage and a microSD slot — giving you up to 32GB expandable storage. There’s a gallery below and full PR after the break.

source: gadgetcom

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Orange announces first Intel-powered Android phone for Europe, codenamed Santa Clara

Orange will be the first to offer a Medfield-powered Android phone in Europe. Codenamed Santa Clara, and arriving some time this summer, it looks pretty similar to Intel's reference model -- in both design and specs. The phone totes a 4-inch 600 x 1024 display, with a solid 8-megapixel camera capable of 1080p video and burst capture of up to 10 shots within a second. The Santa Clara (the final name is likely to manifest itself somewhere between now and its eventual release) runs on Intel's Atom Z2460 processor, clocked at 1.6GHz. This should be more than enough to smoothly steer Android Gingerbread, with Orange vowing to bring ICS soon after launch. The device can handle HSPA speeds of 21.1Mbps down and 5.6Mbps up, while HDMI-out is housed within the MHL port. Other features include mobile wallet features through NFC and the likes of Orange's HD voice call and gesture navigation built in. The phone network is also pushing Intel's Medfield processor credentials, with its low power performance of up to 14 days on standby or eight hours of 3G calls. The European carrier has also told us that despite these respectable middleweight specifications, the phone will remain "aggressively priced" -- not dissimilar to its previously town-themed iterations. We hope to get some hands-on time with the device very soon, but until then, you can glean a closer look at the gallery below.

source: engadget

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Samsung unveils new Galaxy Beam smartphone / projector combo with dual core CPU

Samsung has finally started to reveal its new products at MWC 2012, starting with this refresh of the Galaxy Beam packing Android 2.3 and a 1GHz dual-core CPU. Just like its predecessor it brings an integrated projector capable of 15 lumens of brightness, enough to shoot a high definition image that's up to 50 inches wide. There's a dedicated app that activates the projection, letting users pump out video and pictures, as well as interact with games when the 4-inch WVGA screen just isn't big enough. It has a 2000 mAh battery to keep the party going -- handy when you're stuck somewhere inconvenient with a few dozen of your coworkers -- 8GB of built-in storage and a claimed 6GB of RAM (we're double checking that, consider it a likely typo until you hear otherwise). There's more details and specs in the press release after the break, but no word on release date or market availability of this HSPA phone just yet.
source: samsung

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Telus confirms March 2nd launch for Nokia Lumia 800

Canadians may still have to wait a bit longer for some official word of the Lumia 900's possible debut in the country (the latest rumors suggest it may be heading to Rogers), but there's now at least a firm date for the launch of its slightly smaller counterpart. Telus confirmed today that the Nokia Lumia 800 will be available on March 2nd (in your choice of black, cyan or magenta), although it's unfortunately still not providing a price. As you may recall, Nokia's other new Windows Phone, the Lumia 710, made its Canadian debut on Rogers earlier this month, where it can be had for as little as $50 on-contract or just over $250 off-contract.

source: mobilesyrup

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Samsung Galaxy Mini 2 leaked, says it'll arrive later this month

Whoa there, another phone leak? It could only be the run-up to Mobile World Congress. This time, it's Samsung that's let slip, and the not-particularly high-end Galaxy Mini 2. Mini in size, minor in specifications, it will purportedly arrive with a 3.3-inch display at 480 x 320 resolution, running Gingerbread on an 800MHz processor. Unfortunately, at that speed, don't expect to get any Adobe Flash action on this presumably entry-level phone. It'll be capable of HSDPA data speeds up to 7.2Mbps; add in a three-megapixel camera, 3GB of built-in storage and it's all starting to sound a bit 2008. GSM Arena's mole pegs it for a February release, so that could mean it sprints out ahead of MWC, but it'll find it hard to avoid the bright lights of Barcelona.

source: gsmarena

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Motorola Droid 4 review

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. For a phone that single-handedly resuscitated the business prospects of its parent company, gave a much-needed boost to Google’s fledgling Android and finally added a compelling product to Verizon’s lineup, the Droid can’t get no respect. Initially billed as the anti-iPhone, the OG flagship embodied an aggressively tech for tech’s sake design ethos, with its masculine, hard-edged build, geeky OS and Lucasfilm-licensed moniker.

That was all once upon a time. Now, two years later and sucked of its disruptive significance, the only legacy remaining for the red-eyed Droid franchise is its brand equity and QWERTY slider appeal. Aside from BlackBerry addicts, most consumers appear none too chuffed to see those slide-out keypads become the stuff of mobile lore, and instead prefer those increasingly ubiquitous slabs (namely, of the 4.3-inch-and-up persuasion). So, where did it all go wrong? Why is the Droid 4, now imbued with LTE, getting the B-list treatment? Does a $200 price tag and a host of minor spec bumps (a 1.2GHz dual-core CPU, 1.3 megapixel front-facer and beefier 1,785mAh battery) merit another spin around the two-year contract pole? Head on past the break to see whether this former trailblazer can still do what it’s namesake robot supposedly does.

source: gadgetcom

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WiFi Kindle Touch gets its passport, now available internationally

The Kindle Touch has been gettin a lot of American love since its launch, but people outside the United States cannot purchase this wonder of an e-book reader. That, however, is about to change.

With very little fanfare–Amazon did not even announce it with a press release–but a peek on the Kindle Touch WiFi version’s product page and you can see that the $139 device is available for shipping almost anywhere around the world. There are markets that remain unreachable to Kindle Touch, such as the Middle East, North Africa, Indonesia, and China. Also, countries with its own Amazon portals like Germany, France, and United Kingdom would have to settle for the Kindle 4.

source: engadget

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Samsung Galaxy Note Comes to AT&T on February 19

Wireless carrier AT&T has announced it will offer the Samsung Galaxy Note beginning February 19, but consumers can pre-order it online or any authorized retail stores from February 5 to 15 and have it delivered two days earlier. Choose from two color options: carbon blue and ceramic white.

The Samsung Galaxy Note is part-smartphone and part-tablet. It features a 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED screen with 1,280 x 800 resolution, 1.4GHz dual-core processor, 8-megapixel back-facing camera with full HD video recording and playback, 16GB expandable internal memory, Android 2.3 Gingerbread, Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity among others. It also comes with the S Pen stylus to tap into the device’s handwriting recognition capability to sketch, make notes, and write emails. The package includes a microUSB adapter, HDTV smart adapter, car power charger with detachable data cable, microUSB data cable, travel charger, and a premium pair of wired headsets.

The Galaxy Note will cost $299.99 with a two-year contract with AT&T.

source: engadge

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Nexus S 4G Ice Cream Sandwich update leaks, official release coming soon

The xda-developers forum has gotten its hands on what appears to be the official Ice Cream Sandwich update for the Nexus S 4G. Numbered Android 4.0.4, the ROM’s appearance appears ahead of the over-the-air update from Google itself.

While it isn’t quite certain if the update is the official one, it’s notable that it’s slightly newer than the Android 4.0.3 running on the Galaxy Nexus. WiMax drivers in tow, this release is only intended to work with the 4G version of the phone. Google released the GSM update last December.

Even if Nexus S 4G aren’t too keen on the idea of doing a risky phone-flashing, the appearance of the update is probably a good indication that the official release is well on its way.

source: theverge

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Samsung loses second German 3G patent lawsuit against Apple

About a week after suffering a legal setback in Germany, Samsung received another bit of bad news this morning, when the Mannheim Regional Court rejected the second of its patent infringement claims against Apple. As with last week's ruling, today's decision addresses one of Samsung's arguments that Apple's 3G / UMTS technology infringes upon its patents. Judge Andreas Voss officially shot down these claims early this morning, though he didn't offer an immediate reason for his ruling. As FOSS Patents points out, however, these initial decisions against Samsung may be based on the validity of the specific patents themselves, and would therefore have no bearing upon the outcome of the Korean manufacturer's three other claims -- all of which are based upon different 3G / UMTS patents. In addition, the company is pursuing two lawsuits based on patents not related to 3G standards, including one, apparently, that details a way to type smiley emoticons on a mobile handset. We're still awaiting more information on today's outcome and will update this post as soon as we hear more.

sourse: fosspatents

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first eco-friendly 4G LTE smartphone - LG Viper

The LG Viper looks pretty good and feels solid, although it’s a bit thicker than the competition, but for a mid-range smartphone it’s alright. It has no special exterior features that would make it stand out from the crowd, but it’s not ugly either, with a chrome accented frame around the sides, a brushed metal finish on the back and the big display on the front.

The display is LG’s own 4 inch NOVA unit, which is supposed to be brighter than other LCD displays while consuming 50% less power. It works quite nicely and as advertised, and the visibility in direct sunlight is pretty good, as well. The resolution is a nice 800×480 pixels, and although it could be higher, it’s good enough for any tasks, including Web browsing and watching videos.

The phone is powered by a dual core 1.2 GHz Tegra 2 processor, which is still powerful enough to take on any apps and games, despite the onslaught of faster dual cores and the new Tegra 3 quad core platform. The integrated GeForce GPU is exceptionally good at games and any 3D/graphical apps, but the 512 MB of RAM that accompany the chipset is a bit on the low side, although with Android Gingerbread, it’s more than enough.

The other hardware specs of the LG Viper are all that you’d expect from a modern smartphone: besides the 4G LTE radio, you’ll find a Wifi N and Bluetooth adapters, GPS, DLNA compatibility, a 5 megapixels camera on the back with support for 720p HD video recording, a 1.3 megapixels camera on the front that should be great for video calls and VoIP chat, a 3.5 mm audio out jack, a micro SD card slot for your storage space, and even an NFC radio on the back, which means that you can use Google Wallet, Square and other payment methods that need it.

The handset will be running Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread out of the box, as I already mentioned, and there will be no interface customizations – you will get the vanilla Android experience – which in my opinion is great. Gingerbread is a great OS on its own, but if you’re hoping for an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich, I don’t think it’s going to happen on the Viper – it’s a low-mid range budget handset, after all. Still, it will probably be possible to get Android 4.0 with a custom ROM, which is even better.

source:gadgetmania

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Upcoming Sony smartphones to support the Russian GLONASS

Sony has announced that their newly announced Xperia smartphones, the Xperia S and Xperia Ion, will come equipped with the GLONASS satellite navigation system built-in. What’s more, they have also revealed that some of their previous smartphones on sale right now have had GLONASS support built-in since launch. These other handsets include the Xperia arc, Xperia arc S, Xperia ray, Xperia neo, Xperia pro, Xperia PLAY, Xperia active and Live with Walkman.

In case you weren’t aware of it, GLONASS is to Russia what GPS is to America. Most of the phones have just GPS on-board, which restricts them to 31 satellites but having both, GPS as well as GLONASS on-board, you have access to 24 additional satellites, which not only speeds up lock-on time but also ensures you get a lock-on in trickier places, such as when you’re surrounded by tall buildings.

Sony is not the only company to have GLONASS along with GPS built-into their phones. Apple, Nokia, Samsung and Motorola too have a few models that include this functionality. Hopefully, more phones will include this feature in future.

posted by:Tech News World

Source:gsmtribune

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