Monday, April 27, 2015

Apple iPad Mini 3 Is Dying, Could iPad Mini 4 And Its Rumors, Leaked Photos Breathe New Life Into Apple iPad?

Apple iPad Mini 3 and Apple Mini 4 rumors circle the blogosphere daily. Recent iPad Mini 3 rumors show Apple fans tiring of the device, while iPad Mini 4 rumors point to a potential release date and some design and hardware specifications, some of which are rumored to leave a lot to be desired.

According to the International Business Times, the Apple iPad Mini 3 was supposed to be the greatest thing to happen to iPad since sliced bread, but it has not won any popularity contests recently.

According to Ming-Chi Kuo from KGI via 9to5Mac, the iPad Mini 3 is predicted to experience its slowest year ever. According to KGI figures, the iPad brand is already experiencing general decline in popularity.

Not to put too fine a point on the issue, but the brand peaked in 2013, and has declined ever since, according to KGI via 9to5Mac.


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Sunday, April 26, 2015

Samsung Fights Success With The Galaxy S6 Edge

It looks like you can’t keep a good curve down. Samsung is reportedly bringing a third production line up to speed to build more curved screens for the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge. Bloomberg Business believes that this will allow production of the innovative smartphone to jump from two million to five million units per month.

Samsung Display now has three plants that make displays using organic light-emitting diodes, or OLED, which offer sharper images at lower power than most liquid-crystal displays. The new production line uses a facility south of Seoul, located near one of the company’s existing plants making curved screens.

The Galaxy S6 Edge has picked up critical acclaim around the world alongside the standard Galaxy S6, and early indications are that the more advanced handset has been selling out, with customers ready to wait for more stock on the S6 Edge rather than switch sales to the vanilla S6. Samsung’s JK Shin has been forthright in the stock issues around the screen, citing lower yields than expected on the organic LED screen.

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Wednesday, April 22, 2015

How does Samsung let things like this happen?

It’s a universal truth: when it comes to branding and marketing, consistency is key. Tell your potential customers exactly what you want to sell them. Then tell them again, and again, and again. Consistency in marketing and advertising builds recognition, and that’s the name of the game.

Why hasn’t anyone explained this to Samsung?

Let’s consider Apple’s latest flagship iPhone for a moment. It’s called the “iPhone 6.” Apple markets it as the “iPhone 6,” it’s labeled “iPhone 6″ in print and TV ads, and all of Apple’s partners advertise it as the “iPhone 6.” Now, imagine how ridiculous it would be if the phone itself was branded “i Phone 6.”

As silly as that seems, it’s exactly what Samsung has done with its latest flagship phones.

For whatever reasons, Samsung has chosen to sell its latest flagship phones as the “Galaxy S 6” and “Galaxy S 6 edge” in the United States. These are the phones’ names. Not Samsung S6 and not Galaxy S6, Galaxy S 6.

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Monday, April 20, 2015

HTC One M9 Review: A Little Bit Meh…

There was a time when HTC could do no wrong. After the launch of the HTC One M7, the company became the darling of the Android space. It made premium looking phones that gave Apple’s designers a run for their money, and while HTC wasn’t shifting units in anywhere near the same volume as Apple's iPhones, the company had developed a very solid foundation from which to build on in the coming years.

Forget the HTC One Max. That handset never happened. Up next was the HTC One M8, the all-important and infinitely trickier “second album”. HTC made no bones about sticking to the design philosophy it had adapted for the birth of its One range of phones, and most were onboard with this –– if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The CPU was updated, there were some smallish tweaks to the shape and gait of the chassis, and that was about it… but most startlingly HTC, for whatever reason, DIDN’T ditch its grossly underpowered 4MP UltraPixel technology despite a veritable firestorm of criticism. Horror of horrors.

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Saturday, April 18, 2015

New Samsung Galaxy Tab 5 specifications leak

A brand new Samsung Galaxy Tab 5 has been spotted on TENAA, as well as in a Bluetooth certification. This means that the next iteration of the tablet family is well on its way, which, frankly, surprised us a little.

Earlier this month, the current generation Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, received a 64-bit processor upgrade and so did the Galaxy Tab 4 8.0, a few months earlier, so we naturally assumed Samsung was futureproofing its tech and thus postponing a fifth series.

A set of recently uncovered TENAA certification pages definitely says otherwise. According to the enclosed specifications, the pair of devices will come equipped with an 8.0-inch screen with a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels. Both will also feature quad-core CPUs, clocked at 1.2 GHz, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage.

In terms of dimensions, the Tab 5 will be thinner than the previous Galaxy Tab 4, but perhaps, a little shorter and wider. The certification pages for both models seem to show little difference between then, so at this point, we can't really be sure what their main distinction will be. The SM-P355C is listed as being a little heavier and only with white color as an option, although its picture clearly shows a different pallet.

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Friday, April 17, 2015

Samsung Galaxy S6 vs Apple iPhone argument ends in stabbing

There are few rivalries as strong in the mobile world as the one between Samsung and Apple fans. Apple fans insist Samsung is nothing more than a cheap copy of Apple, Samsung insists that the iPhone is locked down and inferior to the Galaxy series. With the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge finally pushing their design forward, this argument is apparently about to get even more heated. How heated? At least in the case of two Tulsa area roommates, it’s a subject worth stabbing over. No, we aren’t kidding.

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Apple's plan to avoid 'bendgate 2' on the iPhone 7

Apple took the whole 'bendgate' fiasco quite seriously, and a fresh report suggest it is experimenting with some new materials to adapt into the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus to ensure the issue won't be repeated.

The Apple Watch Sport uses Apple's own Series 7000 aluminium alloy which is designed to be stronger than the material currently used in iPhone models and a new rumour from Taiwan's Economic Daily News suggests it'll be launching on the new set of phones.

The material is 60% stronger than other aluminums but is still lightweight as it's a third of the density of stainless steel – the perfect material to be used on an iPhone.

Baby's got the bends

Apple received a lot of flack for the iPhone 6 Plus 'bendgate' scandal after creating a phone that could be bent easily than it should be, so it's not a big surprise the company wants to act on it for the next generation.

The rumour should be taken with a heavy helping of salt though as we can't see the source Economic Daily News has used, suggesting it's just speculation from the publication or other sources.

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Thursday, April 16, 2015

Android 5.1 Lollipop Update Release Date Soon for HTC Devices: Taiwanese Manufacturer Skipping Version 5.0.2

HTC is known for releasing Android updates on time or at least a few weeks after the official update rolled out. However, it seems that for Android Lollipop, the Taiwanese manufacturer will be making an exception.

According to a report by Phone Arena, HTC's current devices that are now running on Android 5.0 Lollipop will skip the 5.0.2 update, which was released a couple of months ago.

Instead, the phone maker will head straight to Android 5.1, where there will be more changes and improvements.
The Android smartphone maker will release the Android 5.1 Lollipop update together with its new Sense 7.0 UI.
Some of the devices that will support Android's latest version include the HTC One M8, HTC One M8s, HTC Desire EYE, HTC Butterfly 2, and other handsets.
Of course, the latest One M9 and the upcoming One M9 Plus will get the update as well.
For many years, HTC has been one of the top Android device makers in the market. However, after peaking in sales in 2011, it has been a continuous downfall for the Taiwanese manufacturer.

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Tuesday, April 14, 2015

LG G4 specs and design revealed in microsite, 5.5-inch ‘Quantum’ display with handcrafted leather backing

LG is having a media event on April 28th to unveil the G4, its newest flagship smartphone. However, amidst all the spec leaks and press renders, LG has seemingly confirmed all the bells and whistles in its dedicated microsite. This could very well be an intentional PR move as the Samsung Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 edge, and the HTC One M9 went on sale yesterday in some countries.

LG points out three main characteristics of the G4: Artful Moments; Handcrafted Designs; and Personalized Experience. The text is all the same for all sections, currently stating, “Every day, people take more photos with phone than with any other camera. That’s because the camera makes it so remarkably easy.”

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Friday, April 10, 2015

Samsung Galaxy S6 shipments expected to break records

When Samsung dubbed development of its latest smartphones "Project Zero," it was sounding a note of desperation as sales tumbled and it lost pole position in the crucial Chinese market to rivals Xiaomi and Apple.

The results of its overhaul, the flagship Galaxy S6 smartphone and its curved-edge version the S6 Edge, go on sale in 20 countries on Friday, with Samsung expecting record shipments.

Samsung, which said "Project Zero" signified starting from scratch, is hoping a revamped design, a more intuitive interface and less clutter will help claw back lost market share.

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Wednesday, April 8, 2015

HTC unveils a China-only One M9+ with fingerprint sensor and larger screen

HTC has unveiled a new version of its flagship HTC One M9 for the Chinese market. The HTC One M9+ looks nearly identical to the all-metal M9, but comes with a slightly larger screen and a fingerprint sensor on the lower-front bezel. Like all of Apple's fingerprint sensors and Samsung's latest offerings in the S6 and S6 Edge, the sensor works with a touch — no need to swipe — although how fast it is remains to be seen.

In addition, the One M9+ offers a 5.2-inch, 2K screen — larger and sharper than the 5-inch, 1080p display on the regular One M9. There's also a new octa-core, 2.2GHz MediaTek Helio X10 processor inside for smoother games and video playback, and HTC has spruced up the M9's 20-megapixel lens with the Duo Camera hardware first introduced in the One M8.


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Monday, April 6, 2015

Samsung Denies Paying People To Attend Galaxy S6 Launch Event In China

 Samsung has denied a report that it paid people to pose as fans at the launch event for its new Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge phones in Shanghai, China.

The Paper, a Shanghai-based news company, claimed that up to half of the 1,000 attendees were sourced by a recruiter and paid 30 yuan (US$4.80) for an hour of their time. The Chinese report — summarized in English by Want China Times — suggested that Samsung’s Beijing office vetted an initial 20 paid fans, but that number was later upped to 400-500.

Samsung called the report “totally groundless and bogus” in a statement issued this morning on its blog.

“Our findings have indicated that under no circumstances has anyone been hired or given money to attend the event. In fact, the more than 1,100 attendees, including consumers and industry officials, have all been formally invited to the Shanghai Culture Square where the event took place,” the company said.

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Friday, April 3, 2015

HTC One M9 vs. Samsung Galaxy S6: What’s the Best Phone?

Two great smartphones are hitting store shelves in April. Samsung’s new S6 smartphone and HTC’s new One M9 phone have both gotten solid reviews. For Android fans, it can be tough to decide which phone is worthy of their hard-earned cash.

Should you buy the HTC One M9 or the Samsung Galaxy S6? That depends on who you are, and what you’re looking for in a smartphone. We’ve compared these phones across four key areas: price, features, battery life, and camera quality. We’ll also see how these phones compare across key specs like display, processor, and RAM. Read on to see how these two flagship smartphones stack up against each other.

Still not sure whether the S6 or S6 Edge is better? Check out our comparison post on the S6 vs. S6 Edge.

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Wednesday, April 1, 2015

Review: Samsung Galaxy S6

The very best thing about the Samsung Galaxy S6 isn’t the new design or the gorgeous high-res screen. (Those are nice, though.) It’s the fact that no matter what you’re doing, no matter where you are on the phone, all you have to do is click twice on the Home button and you’re immediately launched into the camera. There’s no journey to the home screen, no swiping through a control panel menu; you just click-click, and tap to shoot.

The S6 is, as you could probably guess, the sixth in Samsung’s massively popular, industry-shaping Galaxy S lineup. Yes, it keeps some of the hallmark features of doesn’t-quite-get-it Samsung software, and sure, it looks a lot like the iPhone. Samsung apparently decided the best way to compete with the iPhone is to borrow from Apple. So what? Borrowing—from Xerox Parc, from those dozens of hideous MP3 players—is part of what made Apple great in the first place.

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