Samsung sells 3 million Galaxy Note II units in just over a month

Samsung have once again outdone themselves, this time with the Galaxy Note II. The 5.5-inch phablet is now ticking in 3 million pockets worldwide, just 37 days after the September launch.

"The rapid Galaxy Note 2 sales have a meaning of not just creating a new category of smartphone, but also of popularizing the category." says Samsung.

While the number is not as impressive Galaxy S III and far from Apples iPhone 5 sales, its still a milestone for the company and for any device in this class. The first Galaxy Note managed to sell just 2 million units four months after its premiere (way more than the initial expectations), so the Note II is a sound success indeed.

Source | Via

HTC Opera UL could be the official Facebook phone

Tags: HTC, Android, Touch UI, Facebook, Rumors

Samsung has sold 30 million Galaxy S III devices worldwide

Samsung has reached yet another sales milestone with its Galaxy S III flagship. The Korean giant just announced that it has sold 30 million units of the smartphone worldwide. The number includes the I9300 as well as carrier specific versions offered in specific markets such as the United States, Japan, and Korea and is spot on with earlier expectations.

The above number has been achieved in an impressively quick fashion the first Samsung Galaxy S III units hit the shelves roughly five months ago. With the upcoming holiday shopping season right around the corner, coupled with the healthy drop of the handsets price in some major markets, it is all but guaranteed that the number will increase even further, thus cementing the position of the device as the go-to top shelf Android smartphone these days.

Source

Motorola DROID RAZR HD review: Now in HD

Introduction

Roughly a year after Motorola brought the RAZR franchise back to the masses, we have the second generation of the popular DROID on our hands. The Motorola DROID RAZR HD for Verizon Wireless comes to the market hot on the heels of its frameless baby brother, bringing a few extra tricks to go with the more impressive screen.

Motorola DROID RAZR HD official photos

Unsurprisingly, the Motorola DROID RAZR HD is a major improvement over its predecessor. Starting with the 4.7" Super AMOLED screen of HD resolution, all the way to the Snapdragon S4 chipset, the smartphone packs enough punch to keep all but the most demanding users happy.

Here goes the full list of talents which the Motorola DROID RAZR HD has on tap:

Key features

• CDMA/EVDO network support
• Quad-band GSM and 3G support (available only outside of the United States with Verizon roaming)
• LTE network support
• 21 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA
• 4.7" 16M-color Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with HD resolution (1280 x 720 pixels); Corning Gorilla Glass
• Superb build quality; Kevlar coated, splash resistant body
• Lightly customized Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich
• 1.5 GHz dual-core Krait CPU; Adreno 225 GPU; Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8960 chipset
• 1 GB of RAM and 16GB of storage; microSD card slot
• 8 MP autofocus camera with LED flash; face detection and geotagging; 1080p video recording
• 1.3MP front-facing camera for video-chat
• Wi-Fi b/g/n and DLNA
• NFC connectivity with Android Beam preinstalled
• GPS with A-GPS
• Accelerometer, proximity sensor and auto-brightness sensor; compass
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• microUSB port (charging) and stereo Bluetooth v 4.0
• microHDMI port
• Beefy 2500mAh battery with good performance
• Smart dialing, voice dialing
• Google Chrome preinstalled as the default web browser
• DivX/XviD video support
• Office document editor

Main disadvantages

• No dedicated camera button
• CPU and chipset not on par with the latest crop of competitors
• Battery is not user-replaceable
• Huge amount of preinstalled bloatware

Even a quick glance at the spec sheet of the Motorola DROID RAZR HD is more than enough to show how massive an improvement the newcomer is over its predecessor. At the same time Motorola's designers have been extremely conservative with the looks of the DROID RAZR HD - the smartphone is unmistakably a RAZR.

Google's touch is strongly felt throughout the software of the device - staring with the barely modified UI, all the way to Google Chrome being the default web browser. An update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean is promised before year's end, so the overly anxious have no reasons to worry about being left with the cold Ice Cream Sandwich for long.

However, we can't help but notice that, even at its launch, the Motorola DROID RAZR HD appears outgunned by some of its competitors in terms of processing power. Quad-core is the talk of town these days and the latest DROID RAZR is not a member of the elite club. Read on to find out if it has enough other talents to overcome its shortage of CPU cores.

Motorola DROID RAZR HD live photos

As always, we are going to kick the review off with an unboxing, followed by a design and build quality inspection.

Editorial: You might notice that this review is shorter than usual and doesn't include all of our proprietary tests. The reason is it has been prepared and written far away from our office and test lab. The Motorola DROID RAZR HD for Verizon is a US-only phone, so it will probably never get to the shores of the Old Continent. Still, we think we've captured the essence of the phone in the same precise, informative and detailed way that's become our trademark. Enjoy the good read!

Android distribution unveils marginal Jelly Bean and ICS growth

Android distribution numbers for October are in and Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean are still short of the reach Google might have hoped for.

At merely 2.7%, Android 4.1 Jelly Bean usage has jumped just 0.9% compared to September, 2012. The OS debuted exactly 6 months ago, and despite Samsung and HTC's best efforts to update their high-end devices, Jelly Bean is still to get proper traction.

Ice Cream Sandwich distribution is also on the rise clocking in at 25.8%, almost 2 points up from last month. With most manufacturers having completed their scheduled ICS updates, we don't expect this number to continue to climb. Especially with the majority shifting their attention to Jelly Bean.

Finally, Gingerbread is continuing to drop from 55.8% in September to 53.9% in October. With most devices comprising this number being low-end droids that would never see an update in their life, this number isn't likely to plummet anytime soon.

For more details and data, click on the source link below.

Source

HTC Windows Phone 8X UK sales start

The HTC Windows Phone 8X signature device is up for sale in the UK on both Unlocked Mobiles and Clove. Off contract, it's priced 398.98 and 399.98 respectively, inclusive of VAT.

The device was on track to go on sale on November 2 so it's nice to see there weren't any delays.

The unlocked Windows Phone 8X's will work on all UK networks, except EE's LTE. As a refresher, it features a 4.3" 720p display with an impressive 342 ppi, an two wide-angle cameras, Windows Phone 8, dual-core Krait processor and more.

We've already had a taste of the WP 8X and you're welcome to check out our hands-on.

Source 1 | Source 2 | Via

Nokia 109 announced - cheap, small and old-school

Nokia has just announced the Nokia 109 entry-level phone. It packs a 1.8-inch TFT screen with 128x160 pixels resolution, dual-band GSM/EDGE connectivity, FM radio and microSD card.

Nokia 109 runs on S40 platform and comes with Nokias Xpress Browser, which compresses the web pages up to 90% and saves you data traffic. Some handy social apps will come pre-installed as well.

The phone spreads at 110x46x14.8 mm and it weighs just 77 grams. According to Nokia the battery will last 33 days in stand-by.

Cyan and Black versions of Nokia 109 will hit the shelves in Europe, Asia Pacific and China very soon for $42 before taxes.

Source

Windows Phone Italy's Facebook page reveals WP7.8 features

The big Microsoft event came and went and there wasnt even a word about Windows Phone 7.8. Joe Belfiore and co didnt even announce a date when the update will be released, but it will probably be a while after WP8 hits the shelves (which is already happening).

Whoever is managing the Windows Phone Italia Facebook page was more talkative, however, and answered a question from a fan, revealing the new features that v7.8 will bring. The response has been deleted since.

The list includes the new homescreen (which we already knew), something called 'Club', which we guess is Rooms, Xbox Music and SmartGlass.

Facebook is hardly a reliable source of info, but the features listed seem quite probable - we already know about the homescreen, Rooms and SmartGlass are available for other OSes too, so it's unlikely they will be excluded from WP7.8 and Xbox Music will bring the existing user base to Microsoft's new music service.

In case you don't know yet, Windows Phone 7.8 will be released for 7 and 7.5 devices, as the old hardware won't get updated to WP8.

Source (in Italian) | Via

Samsung Galaxy S III mini hits the UK on November 8

Samsung announced today that the Galaxy S III mini is heading to the UK as early as November 8, which aligns with earlier expectations.

As usual, the mini version of the company's Android flagship will be available both on contract and SIM-free. CarphoneWarehouse is listing the S III mini with a price of 299.95, while Phones4U offers the device for free with monthly plans starting from 25 and up.

The Samsung Galaxy S III mini packs a 4-inch WVGA Super AMOLED display and runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean on a 1GHz dual-core NovaThor 8420 processor. Additionally, with every device Samsung is giving away 50GB of free Dropbox storage for 2 years.

Fore more information make sure to check out our in-depth Galaxy S III mini preview.

Via

Samsung Ativ S review: A fresh start

Introduction

Microsoft's campaign is underway across the board with Windows 8, RT and WP 8 and all eyes are now set on Redmond's allies for a demonstration of fire power. Following some early warning shots from Nokia and HTC, Samsung are now free to fire at will.

Samsung Ativ S official pictures

Their Ativ S was the first Windows Phone 8 flagship announced and, respectful of chronology, the first we're about to properly review. The Nokia Lumia 920, the HTC Windows Phone 8X and the Ativ S are often painted as allies - but that's mostly rhetoric. To a certain point, they have little choice but to unite against the Android and iPhone hordes. On the other hand, these fine smartphones will be sworn enemies fighting over every user drawn close enough by Microsoft's upgraded platform.

And by the way, Windows Phone 8's appeal is easy enough to understand. It is now a consistent cross-device platform that will get app developers interested. Multiple-core-chipset and screen resolution support will help Microsoft-powered devices stand next to their Android and iOS counterparts as equals.

OEMs on the other hand are also giving potential users a good enough reason to be excited. Just look at what the Ativ S is offering to those who are willing to go with Samsung.

Key features

• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
• Quad-band 3G with 42 Mbps HSDPA and 5.7 Mbps HSUPA support
• 4.8" 16M-color Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen of 720 x 1280 pixel resolution
• Scratch resistant Gorilla Glass 2 display
• 8 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash, 1080p@30fps video recording
• 1.9MP front camera
• Windows Phone 8 OS
• 1.5GHz dual-core Krait CPU, Adreno 225 GPU, Qualcomm MSM8960 chipset, 1GB of RAM
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band
• GPS receiver with A-GPS and GLONASS support
• Digital compass
• 16/32GB of on-board storage
• microSD slot
• Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic
• Built-in accelerometer and proximity sensor
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• microUSB port
• Bluetooth v3.0 with A2DP and EDR, file transfers
• Impressively deep and coherent SNS integration throughout the interface
• Xbox Live integration and Xbox management
• Data Sense
• Class-leading JavaScript performance
• NFC support
• Samsung exclusive apps: Music hub, Chat on, Photo editor

Main disadvantages

• App catalog falls short of Android and iOS
• Competition has quad-core Krait CPUs already
• Costs more than the Galaxy S III SIM-free
• No FM radio
• No system-wide file manager
• No voice-guided navigation
• No music player equalizers
• No lockscreen shortcuts

So, there we are. The Ativ S is running an OS that has just had its potential unlocked by a major update. The hardware powering has been inspired by no other but Samsung's droid flagship, the Galaxy S III. OK, it's a different chipset, and a couple of CPU cores short, but most of the rest is there - from the HD Super AMOLED screen to the 8MP camera.

Windows Phone 8 has finally caught up with the industry leaders. There's a massive gap between Samsung's last generation of Windows Phone and the Ativ S. Goodbye, Omnia and, sorry to say, you won't be badly missed. They could've done better when naming the new lineup, that's for sure. But the fresh start most certainly called for a brand new name.

Samsung Ativ S live pictures

That's a minor point though - we can live with a name without a ring as long as the engine's got a hearty rumble. So, we're taking the Samsung Ativ S out for a spin and you're most welcome to join. Hit the jump to the design and build.

Huawei debuts 5-inch Ascend D2, quad-core and Jelly Bean in tow

Huawei is the latest manufacturer to join in the phablet race and it sets its sights on the Galaxy Note II, Oppo Find 5, Optimus Vu and the Pantech Vega R3. The company just unveiled the Ascend D2 and it's been showcased in China and promised to bring it to the (local) market in early 2013.

The highlights of the Huawei Ascend D2's specs sheet include a 5" screen of an unknown resolution, a quad-core processor with four 1.5 GHz cores (probably the home-backed K3V), a 13 MP snapper on the back and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean installed. There's also a 1.3 MP front-facing camera and 3000 mAh battery.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

Samsung announces the I9260 Galaxy Premier

Samsung has announced the new I9260 Galaxy Premier. This phone is essentially the Galaxy Nexus with slightly updated hardware and running Samsung's proprietary TouchWiz interface on top of Android 4.1.

The Galaxy Premier has a 4.65-inch, 1280 x 720 Super AMOLED display, 8 megapixel rear camera with 1080p video recording, 1.9 megapixel front facing camera, 1GB RAM, 8 or 16GB internal memory with microSD card slot, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi, GPS, NFC and a 2,100mAh battery.

We don't know the exact SoC inside this phone but from what we have seen in the leaked benchmark scores the Galaxy Premier runs on a TI OMAP4470 with a dual-core 1.5GHz ARM Cortex A9 CPU and PowerVR SGX544 GPU.

As mentioned before, the Galaxy Premier runs on Samsung's Android skin and comes with all the usual bells and whistles you expect such as S Voice, S Beam, Smart Stay, Pop-up Play, etc.

The Galaxy Premier will go on sale starting next month and in Ukraine in December for around 5,555UAH ($680).

Source

Scott Forstall, senior VP of iOS, to leave Apple in 2013

Apple has announced some major changes in the company's management, starting with the exit of senior vice-president of iOS software Scott Forstall from the company. Forstall will leave Apple in 2013 and till then will act as an advisor to CEO Tim Cook.

In the wake of him leaving the company, his responsibilities will be shared by four of Apple's current executives. Jony Ive, who is in charge of the Industrial Design department at Apple will now head the Human Interface department as well. This means Ive will now be in charge of the hardware as well as the software designs at Apple.

Meanwhile, Eddy Cue will take on responsibilities of Siri and Maps, Craig Federighi will lead both iOS and OS X and Bob Mansfield will lead a new group called Technologies that covers all the wireless teams at Apple.

It is said the Forstall was liked by few people within the company, least of all by Jony Ive, who apparently wouldn't even sit in the same meeting room as Forstall. According to John Gruber of Daring Fireball, Forstall's "design taste, engineering management and abrasive style, and the whole iOS 6 Maps thing" were key factors in Forstall leaving the company, or to put it bluntly, him being made to leave the company.

According to The Verge, Forstall's biggest mistake was him refusing to sign his name on the apology letter that Apple issued regarding the customer dissatisfaction with the new iOS 6 Maps software. He thought the complaints over the data quality were over-blown, so instead Tim Cook signed his name on the letter.

With Craig Federighi leading iOS and Jony Ive handling the design department, we are really looking forward to some new design innovations in iOS in the future versions. Jony Ive's minimalist design taste with the hardware is almost universally loved and we would love to see more of that in the software, with less leather and linen backgrounds. Still, we would like to give credit where it's due and would like to thank Scott Forstall for giving us one of the best mobile operating systems of all time, which was nothing short of groundbreaking at the time it came out.

In other news, Apple's head of Retail John Browett is also leaving Apple. Browett joined the company in January this year and was apparently not one of the best employee choices made by Apple.

Source

Rumor suggests the Galaxy S IV will use Exynos 5450 chipset

The new Samsung-made Nexus 10 uses the next-generation Exynos chipset - an Exynos 5 with two Cortex-A15 cores at 1.7GHz and Mali-604 GPU (the same chipset as the new Chromebook).

So, rumors that the next Samsung Galaxy S IV will use an Exynos 5 chipset should come as no surprise, but the rumor is dreaming bigger than we would have thought. It points to the Exynos 5450 - with a quad-core A15 processor, clocked at 2GHz and a beefier Mali-658 GPU.

We already saw early benchmarks of the 604 (which is a quad-core GPU), so the 658 should be wipe the floor with current GPUs (it's an octa-core GPU). We have yet to see Cortex-A15 benchmarks but it should easily top Krait's per-core performance.

Now, there's a bit of a problem - power usage. With four Cortex-A15 cores and eight GPU cores, even a big battery would be drained pretty quickly. The Exynos 5450 will be made on a 28nm process (instead of 32nm as the Exynos 5250) and the CPU will probably be downclocked to at least 1.7GHz, but even then battery might be an issue.

Anyway, we wouldn't be surprised to see an Exynos 5250 inside next year's Galaxy S flagship, but the 5450 - as awesome as it would be - might be be too much to ask so don't get your hopes too high.

Source (in Korean) | Via

Huawei announces Honor 2 with a quad-core CPU and 2GB RAM

Huawei has announced the Android-based Honor 2, which comes with some major hardware improvements over its predecessor.

The Honor 2 has a 4.5-inch, 1280 x 720 resolution display with a pixel density of 326ppi. Inside, there is Huawei's K3V2 1.4GHz quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM. The Honor 2 also has 8GB internal memory with a microSD card slot. On the back is an 8 megapixel camera with 1080p video recording.

The Huawei Honor 2 will be releasing in China later this week for 1,888 yuan ($302).

Source

Jelly Bean update for HTC One X boosts performance

The Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update for the HTC One X recently started rolling out and it brings a good performance boost with it. One of our readers (thanks, Safal) sent in screenshots of some benchmarks he ran on a JB-running One X.

SunSpider Quadrant * AnTuTu

The web browser saw the biggest boost and its the area where the HTC One X most needed one. The old results just weren't fit of its quad-core flagship status. A slight boost in AnTuTu and Quadrant point to an overall performance increase too.

Here's how the updated phone stacks up against its ICS-running self and other high-enders.

AnTuTu

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  13562
• HTC One X (Tegra 3, JB)
  12932
• Samsung Galaxy S III (JB)
  12288
• Meizu MX 4-core
  11820
• LG Optimus 4X HD
  11735
• HTC One X (Tegra 3)
  11633
• LG Optimus G
  11226

Quadrant

Higher is better

• LG Optimus G
  7439
• HTC One X (Tegra 3, JB)
  6822
• HTC One X (Tegra 3)
  5952
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  5916
• Samsung Galaxy S III (JB)
  5375
• Meizu MX 4-core
  5170
• LG Optimus 4X HD
  4814

SunSpider

Lower is better

• Apple iPhone 5
  915
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  972
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  1059
• HTC One X (Tegra 3, JB)
  1117
• Samsung Galaxy S III (JB)
  1192
• Meizu MX 4-core
  1312
• LG Optimus G
  1353
• LG Optimus 4X HD
  1446
• HTC One X (Tegra 3)
  1468

The Jelly Bean-running HTC One X gets ahead of a Jelly Bean-running Samsung Galaxy S III, at least in these benchmarks, and makes it very competitive with the LG Optimus G (which has a next-gen Snapdragon S4 Pro chipset but ICS is keeping it back).

Note that we're talking about the regular One X here, not the zippier One X+ and its overclocked Tegra 3 chipset (it will launch with JB out of the box too).

Leaked press shot of the Lumia 822 reveals multiple colors

The Nokia Lumia 822 has leaked yet again. This time we got a press photo, revealing the color choices that'll be available for the Verizon-bound device.

The leaked photo reveals that the The Lumia 822 will be available in white, grey and black colors. The device, which is a carrier specific version of the Lumia 820 boasts very similar specs, but with added 4G LTE support and matte finish.

The Lumia 822 is expected to make an appearance on today's Microsoft Windows Phone 8 event in San Francisco, so stay tuned for more.

Via | Source

Nokia Lumia 822 for Verizon goes official

Nokia's flagship Windows Phone 8 handset may be exclusive to AT&T for the first half year, but its Lumia 820 sibling is not - Nokia just announced the Lumia 822, Verizon's version of the device.

The phone comes fully loaded - it has the Nokia Drive+ offline navigation with US maps pre-installed, the City Lens and Transit apps and several camera apps (Smart Shoot, Cinemagraph, Panorama and Creative Studio).

The free, no-ads, no-log-in Nokia Music streaming service will be available on the phone too, to make use of that fast 4G LTE connectivity.

CDMA and LTE with Verizon bands aside, the Nokia Lumia 822 features the same specs as its GSM twin, including an 8MP camera with Carl Zeiss lens, 4.3" WVGA ClearBlack AMOLED display and dual-core Krait processor.

Different shells can be put on the back of the Lumia 822 to enhance its looks and functionality, including a shell that enables wireless charging.

Source

LG E960 Nexus 4 manual leaks, leaves nothing to imagination

The upcoming LG E960 Nexus 4 has shaped up to be one of the worst kept secrets in the industry. After being fully reviewed and lost in a bar, it was time for the handset's user manual to make the rounds.

The manual which has subsequently been removed from LG's website reveals yet again the Nexus 4's close relationship with the LG Optimus G. Built-in 8 and 16GB memory options are all but confirmed, as well as the presence of induction coil for wireless charging.

The LG Nexus 4 will be unveiled at a Google event in New York City on Monday alongside the also leaked, Samsung made Google Nexus 10. We will be live from the spot, so expect the full scoop on both devices on Monday.

Source | Via

Google cancels October 29 event due to hurricane

Google's October 29 event has reportedly been cancelled after a state of emergency has been issued in the US due to the imminent arrival of Hurricane Sandy, which will be passing through New York City, Google's venue for the event.

Although Google did not announce the specific purpose of the event, other than calling it an 'Android event', it was generally assumed that the company was going to announce the LG manufactured Nexus 4 smartphone and a 10-inch Samsung manufactured Nexus 10 tablet.

The event has likely been postponed to a later date although we are yet to hear when exactly it will be taking place. Meanwhile, Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 event in San Francisco is still on track, so we still have something to look forward to.

Source

LG Optimus G v Samsung Galaxy S III: Beast wars

Introduction

In an attempt to LG recapture some of its old glory LG released the first phone with the next generation Snapdragon S4 Pro chipset. The Samsung Galaxy S III has been out for several months now, but is yet to beaten as the best Androids smartphone on the market. The Optimus G looks like the strongest challenger so far and it seems to have a very good chance of being pronounced the new king by the end of this review.

Together, the two handsets represent the quad-core Android phone elite, so we just had to pit them against each other to decide who's the best. We kick off with the most prominent advantages that each of the contenders holds over its opponent.

LG Optimus G over Samsung Galaxy S III

• Next generation chipset, with new CPU and GPU architectures
• Sharper screen
• 13MP camera on some models (others have 8MP cameras)
• More compact
• LTE and 2GB RAM on all models (international S III only has HSPA+ and 1GB RAM)

Samsung Galaxy S III over Optimus G

• Better sunlight legibility
• microSD card slot
• User-replaceable battery
• Already updating to Jelly Bean
• Better battery life
• Lower price

Having a next-generation chipset is a great advantage for the Optimus G, as it should give it both performance and power efficiency advantage over the Galaxy S III. On the flipside, the Galaxy S III and its Exynos 4 chipset have the optimizations of Jelly Bean on their side, so it might not be a walk in the park for the LG flagship.

LG also brought the best that its display divisions had to offer - the Optimus G is betting on a True HD-IPS+ LCD. The Samsung Galaxy S III on the other hand didn't stay in the R&D lab long enough to get a three-subpixel-per-pixel AMOLED like the Galaxy Note II, so it has to settle for a PenTile matrix. However, the AMOLED technology has some key advantages over LCD, so again we'll have to do some testing before we find out who comes on top.

The camera sensors on both smartphone beasts are Sony-made, but while LG thought ahead and secured 13MP unit, Samsung used 8MP sensor. And while LG does have a theoretical advantage here, lens and image processing might make a big difference, too.

The LG Optimus G and Samsung Galaxy S III just before they go into the ring

In theory, the LG Optimus G should walk away with the win here. Having spend a few extra months in development and managing to snag newer components, the LG flagship is the clear favorite in this fight. However, the Galaxy S III won't give up the crown without a fight. After all, there's a reason why Samsung is the world's largest smartphone manufacturer with a near two-fold advantage over the second-placed Apple.

Strap on your seat belts, as it might get rough.