Android Authority |
- Blurry Sony Yuga pics leak, Sony Odin might sport 1080p WhiteMagic display
- A look into Android 4.2 Jelly Bean’s wireless display mirroring through Miracast standard
- Angry Birds Star Wars gameplay footage showcased by Rovio
- Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro review [video]
- Nexus 10, Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 3G: full specs, features and image gallery sets
- Nexus 10, Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 3G release date and pricing – what you need to know
- Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update – when will it be released?
- Breaking: iOS 6 chief Scott Forstall leaving Apple, announcement made on Android 4.2 & Windows Phone 8 launch day
- O2 Nexus 4 comes with free LG HDTV, offer limited to first 100 customers
- Galaxy Nexus pulled from Google Play store, as new Nexus 4 smartphone arrives
| Blurry Sony Yuga pics leak, Sony Odin might sport 1080p WhiteMagic display Posted: 30 Oct 2012 03:06 AM PDT
Although Sony is unlikely to bring anything new and powerful by the end of the year in the Android décor, rumors about the company's next flagship phones are gaining traction by the day. The 5-inch Xperia "Odin" C650X and the 6-inch "Yuga" C660X will most likely get a glamorous unveiling at next year's CES or MWC, but we're already starting to get a good picture of what's in store for us. We've already heard a little something about Odin's display, we saw the 5-incher in all its splendor in an outdoor pic, while the 6-incher has had parts of its spec sheet revealed in two occasions. Now we think we've uncovered two new (small) pieces of the puzzles, courtesy of a leak and a speculation. First, the leak. That shows two tiny parts of what is supposedly Yuga's body in a couple of awfully blurry pics. It's very difficult to make out anything of importance from the two photos, but it's pretty obvious that Sony will look to take the new phones in different design directions than previous handhelds.
According to the source of the images, the Yuga will sport a glass chassis and measure only 8 mm thin, which sounds very exciting. We have no way to verify those claims though, so let's give it some time. As for the speculation, that comes following a press release from Japan Display Co., a Sony partner/screen manufacturer. The company has unveiled a new 5-inch 1920 x 1080 Full HD display that we're ready to bet will be introduced with next year's Odin. The new panel uses the WhiteMagic technology we've already seen in the Xperia P and that modifies the regular RGB matrix to an RGBW (red, green, blue and white). With the adding of that extra white pixel, the display can either double the brightness or save up to 50% of power consumption compared with usual RGB screens. There’s obviously no way to know for sure this display will be used on Odin’s manufacturing, but the timing of this announcement seems ideal for that to happen. We should definitely find out more about the Odin/Yuga duo soon, so keep in touch if you’re excited about the upcoming “phablets”. Are you? Related Posts |
| A look into Android 4.2 Jelly Bean’s wireless display mirroring through Miracast standard Posted: 30 Oct 2012 01:47 AM PDT
You might say that this is not exactly a new technology, as similar features are present in older handsets. Take for instance DLNA-enabled smartphones and TV sets. The Digital Living Network Alliance standard offers sharing of content across devices. Apple also has its own AirPlay technology. But the inherent advantage of Android’s more open nature is that with wireless display mirroring as a standard, more brands and manufacturers will adopt the technology. This means that we can expect to enjoy display mirroring on more devices in the future. But how does this technology work exactly? It uses a wireless-syncing technology called Miracast (which sounds like “mirror cast” to me). This technology is a standard created by the Wi-Fi alliance, and uses Wi-Fi direct access, similar to creating an ad-hoc network. This means that you can share content across devices using the built-in WiFi radio, without the need for a central router or hub. But since not all display devices support Miracast out of the box, so-called legacy TVs and other devices can support wireless display mirroring through an add-on dongle. One example is the Netgear Push2TV PTV3000, which plugs into any device with an HDMI port. As with any standard, what’s important is brand adoption. You’re familiar with the VHS vs. Betamax wars, right? How about Blu-Ray versus HD-DVD? What’s great with having a prevalent standard is that brands can offer inter-operability with each other. While brands like Sony and Samsung have initially pushed DLNA, LG seems to be making a big push for Miracast in its future devices, including TV sets and smartphones. Other brands that have committed to the standard include NVIDIA, Texas Instruments, Qualcomm and Marvell Technologies. Not intrigued enough? Check out the demo video below, in which Texas Instruments has showcased the capabilities of Miracast. Related Posts |
| Angry Birds Star Wars gameplay footage showcased by Rovio Posted: 29 Oct 2012 11:34 PM PDT
What do you get when you combine two successful franchises in the entertainment industry? If prior success in the Angry Birds franchise is any indication, then we might just get ourselves another mobile gaming hit. We earlier shared that mobile game developer Rovio has a Star Wars crossover in the works, and has likewise released a few teaser videos and images. We now have a sneak peak through a gameplay footage video. This new teaser video shows us a snippet of the upcoming title’s gameplay. We earlier speculated that the new crossover game might feature some elements borrowed from other games in the Angry Birds franchise. It seems casual gaming enthusiasts will not be disappointed. More than the usual slingshot-action, Angry Birds Star Wars will pose additional challenges, such as an AT-AT Walker, which actually shoots back at your birds while they travel in the air. Of course, the major gameplay characteristics are retained, such as the physics-oriented nature of Angry Birds. I wonder, though, whether there will be differences depending on which planet or place you are in the Star Wars canon. Which brings us to the question: Are franchise crossovers a great way for game developers to spark interest among its target audience? Can gaming crossovers drum up interest in an expanded audience altogether? For instance, will Angry Birds Star Wars attract fans of the Star Wars who may otherwise be disinterested with the mobile game? Either way, the additional gameplay elements will be sure to be an interesting addition. Rovio seems to be diligent enough to introduce something significantly new in each iteration of Angry Birds. Related Posts |
| Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro review [video] Posted: 29 Oct 2012 09:13 PM PDT
Not everyone who needs a smartphone has the luxury of being able to baby it. Whether it’s because of their job or simple clumsiness, some people need a phone that is tougher than most smartphones, and that’s where the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro comes in. Built to stand up to both the elements and the general rigors of daily use, the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro is tough, but that doesn’t mean that it throws performance out the window for the sake of durability. Read on to see our thoughts on the phone, or jump ahead to either the video review or the conclusion. Specs
First Impressions
The first think you notice when you take the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro out of the box is just how burly it looks compared to other smartphones. While it is still an attractive looking phone, you can tell simply by looking at it that it will stand up to far more use and abuse than other smartphones. The Galaxy Rugby Pro doesn’t look like a cell phone from the 1980s, but compared to the super-thin phones on the market now, it certainly looks thicker and wider than many phones with a similar screen size. Build QualityObviously, the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro puts a lot of emphasis on its build quality.The phone is thick and sturdy, but surprisingly light, weighing in at only 4.6 oz. As mentioned above, the phone is a little bigger than many phones with a similar screen size, with dimensions of 5.04 x 2.64 x 0.5 inches.
The Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro is MIL-STD-810G certified, and resistant to salt, dust, moisture, vibration and shock, to name a few. While it is built like a very small tank, the Galaxy Rugby Pro is still easy to hold and use. In our testing we never ran into a case where the phone’s slightly larger dimensions felt unwieldy. While the grippy material used for the casing is meant for durability, it has the handy side effect of making the phone less prone to attracting fingerprints. DisplayWhile the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro’s display may not seem impressive with phones beginning to arrive with 1080p displays, the 4-inch WVGA Super AMOLED display is definitely adequate for daily use. With a resolution of 480 x 800 and 16 million colors, images are bright and crisp, and text is sharp and easy to read. Unlike the casing, the screen is a bit of a fingerprint magnet, but is is far from unusual with any touchscreen device. PerformanceAs with the display, the performance of the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro may not seem impressive compared to today’s quad-core powerhouses, but is no slouch either. The phone runs a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Plus MSM8960 chipset with a 1.5 GHz dual-core Krait CPU, an Adreno 305 GPU and 1 GB of RAM. Internal storage is 8 GB, expandable by up to 32 GB via the microSD slot, which is hidden under the battery cover.
Running apps and games was no problem for the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro, with no noticeable performance hiccups or occurrences of slowdown. The only time we noticed any stuttering was when rapidly scrolling through the phone’s homescreens. Luckily, this isn’t necessary for daily use, so users of the Galaxy Rugby Pro shouldn’t encounter this issue very often. Battery life for the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro’s 1,850 mAh battery is rated at up to 11 hours of talk time and up to 336 hours of standby time. We never ran the battery down, even with fairly heavy use, so these figures are believable. SoftwareThe Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro runs Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich, with Samsung’s TouchWiz UI running on top of it. So far, there is no word on whether the phone will see an upgrade to Jelly Bean in the future, but as it was just released earlier this month, an upgrade seems likely.
There are quite a lot of apps bundled with the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro, and the usefulness of these apps varies by quite a wide margin. Samsung’s own Kies Air and S Voice apps are certainly useful, but the quality of the AT&T bundled apps is debatable. AT&T Navigator might be useful, but with Google Maps already installed, it doesn’t seem likely that many users will find themselves running it. Some of the other apps, like AT&T Smart Wi-Fi or AT&T Code Scanner don’t seem as if users will be running them often at all. With the rest of the apps, like Allshare Play, which has functionality similar to Kies Air; the simply named Memo; and the Qik Lite video calling software, whether they are useful is a decision that only the user can make, depending on their needs. CameraThe Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro has a 5-megapixel rear facing camera. The quality of photos taken with the camera are generally good, but in certain situations, colors appear washed out and are certainly not as vivid as they should be.
The Galaxy Rugby Pro is also capable of capturing 1080p video, which you can see in action in the video review below. Video quality is nice and sharp, especially for video taken from a smartphone, though it suffers from the same issues with colors that photos taken with the camera do. Video ReviewConclusion
Accidents happen, no matter how well you may treat your phone, and with the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro, those accidents may no longer mean severely damaging your device. That’s something that everyone could find useful, not just those in certain lines of work.        What are your thoughts on Samsung’s latest tough creation? What would you have liked to see? Let us know down below! Related Posts |
| Nexus 10, Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 3G: full specs, features and image gallery sets Posted: 29 Oct 2012 06:02 PM PDT
Even though Google cancelled today's media announcement due to Hurricane Sandy – and we received official word that it won't be rescheduled for a later date – the company went ahead and unveiled new products. After all, Google wasn't going to let the tech world talk about Windows Phone 8 devices today, was it? We have already talked about the Nexus 4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 today, but let's look at the complete set of specs and features for each device. And we have an image gallery ready for each new Nexus toy, which it'll just have to be good enough for Android fans until we get our hands on the handset and new tablet versions. Nexus 4We're not going to pretend the LG Nexus 4 surprised us today. We know what this device is capable of since it's basically an LG Optimus G variant, not to mention that it was the star of countless leaks in the recent weeks. However, the smartphone has two drawbacks, depending on who you ask: lack of microSD support and no 4G LTE connectivity. Here's the full specs and features lists for the handset:
        Nexus 7 3GGoogle unveiled today two 32GB Nexus 7 versions, a Wi-Fi-only version and a 3G model. Both are identical with their 8GB/16GB older brothers, but for the sake of the argument we'll share the specs list of the 32GB Nexus 7 3G version:
       Nexus 10Google's first iPad rival, the Samsung-made Nexus 10 will soon hit stores. Before you order, make sure you check specs and prices for the device:
     In case you need availability details for any of the new Nexus devices, check out this post right here. Related Posts |
| Nexus 10, Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 3G release date and pricing – what you need to know Posted: 29 Oct 2012 04:51 PM PDT
Google's Nexus lineup for the Christmas season was made official earlier today, and we have showed them to you already, at least virtually: the Nexus 4, the Nexus 7 and the Nexus 10. But if you're planning to write a letter to Santa asking for new Nexus toys, you'd better tell him when they're supposed to ship. The new smartphone and tablets will be available in a variety of markets, both from Google's Play Store, but also from mobile operators that will carry some of them. In what follows, we're going to share with you more availability details about each of the new Nexus models.
Nexus 4Made by LG, the new Nexus 4 will be available on November 13 in two versions, 8GB and 16GB priced at $299 and $349, respectively. These are very affordable unlocked prices, so the Nexus 4 sounds even more interesting. The handset is already listed in the Google Play Store in various countries, including the U.S., Canada, Australia, U.K., France, Germany and Spain. Two mobile operators have already shared launch plans for the handset, T-Mobile in the U.S. and O2 in the U.K.. T-Mobile will sell the 16GB version for $199 with a new two-year contract, while O2 is ready to offer free LG HDTV to the first 100 Nexus 4 buyers. It's worth mentioning that for now the Nexus 4 will only be available in an HSPA+ version, meaning that it won't be compatible with CDMA carriers in America such as Verizon or Sprint. Moreover, the Nexus 4 won't sport 4G LTE connectivity, so you'll have to look for a different handset in case that's a must-have feature for you.
Nexus 7Google also announced two new Nexus 7 tablet versions today, both featuring 32GB of storage. Obviously, one comes with Wi-Fi support, while the other also includes 3G connectivity. The 32GB Nexus 7 Wi-Fi version will retail for $249 and it's already available in the U.S., Canada, Japan, Australia U.K., France, Germany and Spain. In addition to Google, other retailers will stock the tablet, including Walmart, Staples, Office Depot, Office Max and Gamestop. The 3G version will go on sale starting with November 13 in 7 countries including the U.S., Canada, Australia, U.K., France, Germany and Spain and will cost $299. That's the unlocked price of the device. The 16GB model will retail for $199 and it's already available in the same markets as the 32GB Nexus 7 Wi-Fi model. The 8GB model has been discontinued.
Nexus 10Maybe the most interesting addition to Google's lineup of Nexus devices, the bigger Nexus 10 tablet made in cooperation with Samsung will also be launched on November 13. Initially, the tablet will launch in two Wi-Fi versions, 16GB and 32GB, priced at $399 and $499, respectively. The tablet will be available to order from the Google Play Store in the U.S., Canada, Japan, Australia, U.K., France, Germany and Spain. In America, the 32GB Nexus 10 model will be available in "more than 2,000 Walmart stores." Galaxy NexusWe have already told you that the Galaxy Nexus is not available for purchase on the Play Store any longer, so we'll remind you to pick up yours from a different retailer, in case you still want to buy the third-generation Nexus smartphone. What Nexus device are you buying? Related Posts |
| Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update – when will it be released? Posted: 29 Oct 2012 04:07 PM PDT
Because Google canceled its Nexus and Android 4.2 media event that should have taken place in New York City today, it was forced to unveil its new products via press releases that are limited in terms of what they can reveal. We have already covered the Nexus 4, Nexus 7, Nexus 10 and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean in great detail, but we still have unanswered questions. The most important one is related to Android 4.2. When will it be released and what devices will it get it first? Google's materials failed to reveal such details, although we would have expected the company to share Android 4.2 availability details with the crowds. And don't tell us that Google doesn't have an internal Android 4.2 roll out plan in order! We obviously expect all the new Nexus devices to be launched with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean pre-installed out of the box, but what about existing Nexus devices, including the Nexus 7 tablets sold by Google since its launch in late June? What about Android devices that were just upgraded to Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean? When will they get the bump to Android 4.2? What about Ice Cream Sandwich devices, including the recently launched new RAZRs that are still on Android 4.0? Will they be upgraded to Android 4.1 at first, and receive the Android 4.2 update at some point in the future? Considering that the adoption rate of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean is still rather low, it certainly isn't in Google's favor not to mention any details about Android 4.2 upgrades. What good does it do the company to unveil new Android features that the majority of users won't be able to use yet?
Let's not forget about the whole Android PDK initiative, meant to help OEMs better prepare for upcoming Android OS versions. Is it already working? Will we see Android makers come out with faster Android 4.2 updates? Not to mention that just earlier today we heard that one of the reasons Google decided not to include 4G LTE support in the Nexus 4 was its desire to offer timely Android updates for the handset in the future, unhindered by carrier's agendas. But that definitely doesn't help Android buyers that purchase any other devices, especially high-end ones – and we're currently looking at 1.3 million Android activations per day. The most likely day to see Android 4.2 Jelly Bean rolled out to older Nexus devices seems to be November 13, which is when the new Nexus smartphone and tablets will be released, right alongside new Google Play features. But for some reason, Google is yet to make such plans official. Are you ready to wait for the official Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update for as long as it takes to arrive, or are you buying a new Nexus 4/7/10 right away? Related Posts |
| Posted: 29 Oct 2012 02:46 PM PDT
We interrupt our extensive Nexus and Android 4.2 coverage to reveal one interesting, and unforeseen, predicament in the mobile business. Scott Forstall, Senior Vice President of iOS Software, the man responsible for iOS development inside Apple, will leave the company. We have no idea whether he was fired or decided to leave the company on his own, but what's clear that he'll be out of iOS development starting with 2013:
Isn’t iOS 6 good enough or is Forstall bored? Does Apple Maps have anything to do with his departure? What about Siri? No wonder he was a no show in Apple’s recent iPad mini event and promo video. For some reason, Apple decided to announce these leadership changes today, which happens to be a very important day for its main competitors, Google and Microsoft, each unveiling a new OS version, Android 4.2 and Windows Phone 8, and accompanying devices. It'll certainly be interesting to see what Forstall's departure will mean to iOS development. Is it good news for Android? Even more interesting will be his next destination, because we're probably see companies in the mobile ecosystem flock to get his services in the coming year(s). Meanwhile, Cue will handle Siri and Maps inside Apple, while Federeghi will lead both the iOS and OS X teams. Mansfield, who was thought to also leave Apple for good, will lead a Technologies group, encompassing all of Apple's wireless teams. And let's close with a wild question, is it possible for Forstall to join Google’s Android crew at any point in the future? Apple Announces Changes to Increase Collaboration Across Hardware, Software & Services Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi Add Responsibilities to Their Roles CUPERTINO, California—October 29, 2012—Apple® today announced executive management changes that will encourage even more collaboration between the Company's world-class hardware, software and services teams. As part of these changes, Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi will add more responsibilities to their roles. Apple also announced that Scott Forstall will be leaving Apple next year and will serve as an advisor to CEO Tim Cook in the interim. "We are in one of the most prolific periods of innovation and new products in Apple's history," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "The amazing products that we've introduced in September and October, iPhone 5, iOS 6, iPad mini, iPad, iMac, MacBook Pro, iPod touch, iPod nano and many of our applications, could only have been created at Apple and are the direct result of our relentless focus on tightly integrating world-class hardware, software and services." Jony Ive will provide leadership and direction for Human Interface (HI) across the company in addition to his role as the leader of Industrial Design. His incredible design aesthetic has been the driving force behind the look and feel of Apple's products for more than a decade. Eddy Cue will take on the additional responsibility of Siri® and Maps, placing all of our online services in one group. This organization has overseen major successes such as the iTunes Store®, the App Store℠, the iBookstore℠ and iCloud®. This group has an excellent track record of building and strengthening Apple's online services to meet and exceed the high expectations of our customers. Craig Federighi will lead both iOS and OS X®. Apple has the most advanced mobile and desktop operating systems, and this move brings together the OS teams to make it even easier to deliver the best technology and user experience innovations to both platforms. Bob Mansfield will lead a new group, Technologies, which combines all of Apple's wireless teams across the company in one organization, fostering innovation in this area at an even higher level. This organization will also include the semiconductor teams, who have ambitious plans for the future. Additionally, John Browett is leaving Apple. A search for a new head of Retail is underway and in the interim, the Retail team will report directly to Tim Cook. Apple's Retail organization has an incredibly strong network of leaders at the store and regional level who will continue the excellent work that has been done over the past decade to revolutionize retailing with unique, innovative services for customers. Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad. Related Posts |
| O2 Nexus 4 comes with free LG HDTV, offer limited to first 100 customers Posted: 29 Oct 2012 02:21 PM PDT
The new Google flagship handset was unveiled earlier today, although we knew almost everything there was to know about it for weeks now, and it will soon hit various retailers around the world, carriers included. In the UK, O2 will have a brief 1-month exclusivity deal on the device, and to make things even more interesting, the carrier will offer a great incentive to customers looking to buy the handset, a free LG HDTV. Unfortunately the promotion is only available to the first 100 customers that will get the handset next month:
While we have no idea what kind of LG TV will be offered to the first lucky Nexus 4 buyers, it's still a great deal to take advantage of, especially with the holiday season upon us. Depending on how you look at it, you'd end up either with a free TV or a free Nexus smartphone, although certain conditions could apply – and by that we expect that in order to qualify for the free TV customers will have to ink a new contract with the carrier. It's worth noting that Carphone Warehouse's recent Nexus 4 leak revealed that the phone would be selling with O2 and Vodafone contracts at first, while other UK carriers, namely EE, were not mentioned on that product page. However, that page went down on the same day, so we expect to find out more details about UK Nexus 4 availability dates in the near future. Any excited O2 Nexus 4 buyers out there? Related Posts |
| Galaxy Nexus pulled from Google Play store, as new Nexus 4 smartphone arrives Posted: 29 Oct 2012 01:56 PM PDT
In case you didn't buy one yet, you won't be able to get one as Google has pulled it from the Google Play store. I'm obviously talking about the third Nexus smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus (HSPA+ version) that's now no longer available for sale from Google. Sure, you can still find it in various electronics and mobile operators stores, not to mention that you'll most certainly get a great deal on second-hand or refurbished Galaxy Nexus units. But Google is focusing on the future, with the Galaxy Nexus not hanging around for one more year. The LG Nexus 4 is Google's next flagship device, and the one you should consider buying. In fact the handset has already been listed on Google Play, so better get your cash affairs in order to buy it – alternatively you can always get it on contract from T-Mobile in the following months. Should Google have kept the Galaxy Nexus in its lineup just like Apple does with its previous-generation iOS smartphone, sold for (a bit) less than the latest-gen iPhone? Would you still buy a Galaxy Nexus if it was significantly cheaper? Related Posts |
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean has been 
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