Saturday, January 28, 2012

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 10:20 PM PST

Yes, we know. The iPhone is the best selling smartphone in history. Does that make it the best? Does it have the latest and greatest technological innovations inside? Sure, it's a beautifully crafted device for people that love what technology can do, but perhaps don't necessarily want it to be to technical. It's difficult to sum up why it is so popular without being offensive or obtuse, but really, it boils down to marketing, ease of use, and these two things contribute to its overall appeal. That being said, it won't remain like this forever. Apple has a knack for adding technologies to their portfolio in a way that makes it seem like they are the ones that came up with it. This, however, isn't the case. For anyone that knows what is inside today's smartphones, they know that many, many researchers and companies are hard at work coming up with new designs, new technologies, and are working at a furious pace to improve the overall technological landscape. With this in mind, what sort of technological innovations can we look forward to in the months and years ahead? Let's take a peak, shall we?

Waterproof Devices


Several Japanese manufacturers including Panasonic and Fujitsu are pioneers in this space, and are bringing to market Android devices that are not just water resistant, but actually waterproof. For anyone that has ever lost a $500+ device because of the rain, or because they accidentally dropped it into a toilet, this will come as a huge step forward!

Video 

Self Charging Technologies

Dual cores, quad cores – so what? Aside from the absolutely massive battery (3300mAh) in the RAZR MAXX, most devices can run out of juice pretty quickly when put under ultra heavy loads. That being said, a brilliant team of researchers at the University of Cambridge is hard at work on a variety of technologies designed to curtail excessive energy waste and to extend and contribute to overall battery life.

To extend the time between charges, the research group created a prototype device that converts ambient light into electricity using an array of  solar cells made up of super thin film "hydrogenated amorphous" silicon that fits within the phones display. Essentially you can think of it as a solar cell inserted in between the display that collect residual light in between charges. It's smart because it's currently an unused venue for harvesting additional power, and because it takes advantage of the smartphone display's large footprint. The research team went on to say that in a typical organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display, most of the light generated actually escapes out of the sides, with only about 36% actually being projected onto the front of the screen. That means that 64% escapes out of the sides. They wanted to take it a step further and harness this wasted light by putting thin-film photo voltaic cells around the display's edges as well.
 More on this here

Ultra Rapid Charging


Researchers have long aspired to create a battery that is both long lasting, and fast charging. With significant applications for the medical, military, and commercial sectors, battery research is finally yielding some breakthroughs. Findings recently published in the March 20 online edition of the journal Nature Nanotechnology featured a group that developed a three-dimensional nanostructure for battery cathodes that enables significantly faster charging and discharging without giving up energy storage capacity.
"This system that we have gives you capacitor-like power with battery-like energy," said Braun, a professor of materials science and engineering. "Most capacitors store very little energy. They can release it very fast, but they can't hold much. Most batteries store a reasonably large amount of energy, but they can't provide or receive energy rapidly. This does both."
The performance of typical nickel metal hydride (NiMH) or lithium-ion (Li-ion) rechargeable batteries typically degrades substantially when they are either charged rapidly or discharged. The research group, led by Professor Braun, wrapped a very thin film into three-dimensional structure, which enable the battery to achieve the holy grail of battery achievement: high active volume (high capacity) and large current. They demonstrated that the battery electrodes can charge or discharge in a few seconds, 10 to 100 times faster than equivalent bulk electrodes, but can can still perform normally in existing consumer devices, like smartphones and tablets, and much more.

Remarkably, this kind of battery technology could soon lead to our smartphones, tablets, and notebooks being able to charge in minutes or even one day, seconds, thus removing the necessity for overnight charging. As our devices get more and more powerful, improvements in the area of battery technology such as this will likely be a very welcome addition, wouldn't you agree?
More on this here, here, and here

Quad-Core, Octo-Core & More

Over the next few months, there's going to be a ton of Quad (5 core, actually) Tegra 3 devices hitting the market. We've got the Lenovo K2010, with its 2GB of RAM and 1080p display, we've got the ASUS Transformer Prime, and the 700T variant with its 1080p display, and the ASUS Memo 370T, which comes in a 7 inch form factor, but is said to launch at the $249 price point. And there's lots more coming too! In our discussion with NVIDIA and ARM, both are already actively working on octo (8) core SoC's, which should be arriving in devices sometime in 2013. The thing to remember is that both companies have already demonstrated that they are increasing performance beyond that of Moore's law, and that the trend is accelerating.
Not too long ago, Samsung disclosed that they were actively working on a dual core 2 Ghz Cortex A15 chip called Exynos 5250.  Despite not being quad or even eight core, this dual core 2 Ghz Cortex A15 chip is reputed to be at least 2.5x as powerful as the current dual core 1.2 Ghz Cortex A9 chip in the Galaxy S2.
Furthermore, Samsung demoed a 10 inch display that featured a resolution of 2560×1600, which blows away current resolution on tablets not even released yet. Our writer Lucian Armasu tracked down some intel on this beast in this post here.
We should all look forward to insanely powerful devices in the years ahead, with this trend unlikely to ever stop. Of course, necessity is the mother of innovation, and in this case, I am confident that display technologies will continually improve, as will the batteries that continue to power the devices we know and love. More on this to come.

Ultra HD Displays – Beyond 1080p


Not too long ago, Toshiba demonstrated what many consider to be the highest resolution display ever created for a mobile device.
Here's the specs: 
  • 6.1-inch LCD (to be further miniaturized to 4.65inch, and increase up to 10.1 inches, too)
  • 2560×1600 resolution
  • an extremely high density of 498 pixels per inch
  • dubbed "photographic quality," Toshiba said it even adds a sense of depth in 2D.
  • 1000:1 contrast ratio and wide 176-degree viewing angles.
  • Its color accuracy at 61 percent of the NTSC color range, which is substantially better than any mobile display on the market
  • 3D capable
People always ask me, why do we need quad-core? Why do we need that much power? The truth is, with such extremely high resolution displays coming to our mobile devices in the near future, extremely powerful and responsive hardware will be required to maintain the 60 frames per second we demand as consumers, for smooth performance. Imagine how many pixels need to be changed simultaneously, even with a quick flick of the finger, as the screen has to redraw absolutely everything – at 60 frames per second. That's a lot of calculations folks.  This particular display created by Toshiba has a resolution four times that of the iPad 1 & 2.

Rumors are persisting that Apple is aggressively courting Toshiba, as they've essentially burned a lot of bridges with their largest component supplier, Samsung, and many companies are actually actively withholding their latest and greatest from Apple in the hopes that they can bring their own devices to market, with their own technologies on board. That being said, companies love money, and that's something Apple has a lot of.
Either way, we can all look forward to glorious HD filled futures, whether the displays are in our smartphones or tablets!
More on this here.

Biometric Authentication Technology


Here we have another design win out of Fujitsu, which looks to radically improve the security of our devices. To any of you that have followed the incorporation of Face Unlock in Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, first featured in the Galaxy Nexus, this will likely be something that you are interested in.
Fujitsu has worked very hard to develop a "contactless palm vein pattern authentication technology" that uses our highly unique vascular patterns as personal identification data. Vein recognition technology is pretty much as secure as it gets because the authentication data exists inside the body itself, and is therefore almost impossible to forge. In their tests, they also showed that it is also highly accurate — in testing over 140,000 palm profiles of 70,000 individuals, it had a false acceptance rate of less than 0.00008% and a false rejection rate of 0.01%. Not bad eh? Maybe time to bust out the tinfoil hats, people. Either way, it's way more secure than Face Unlock, which can be duped by a photo. Finger prints can be read and replicated, thus foiling finger print readers like the one in the Motorola Atrix. Do you feel like your device is already secure enough? Would you welcome this additional security feature on your Android device?
More on this here.

 Ultra Fast Wireless File Transfer Between Devices 

Toshiba has come up with a wireless transfer protocol, called Transfer Jet, which looks like it has potential to revolutionize the way we transfer data in between devices. Got a 1GB 720p movie? Good luck Bluetoothing that. How about Wifi then? No thanks, still too long. Transfer Jet is a 360Mbps wireless transfer protocol that is able to send large files lightning quick.
More on Transfer Jet here!

Smudge Proof Displays


We know, we know. You've got a beautiful device, but you've got greasy hands, right? Well, everyone does. It's always a nuisance to to have to rub it clean, but it's looking like this won't always be the case. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research have released some findings on an inexpensive way to coat displays with a "liquid-droplet" repellent. Check out the video below.
They discovered that by collecting soot from a burning candle that they could further heat the soot to enable calcination to occur, thus making the soot transparent. After testing this surface, the researchers found out that it was extremely durable, and could even withstand sandblasting. Most importantly though, they realized it had other unique properties, and when the surface was sprayed with different liquids and water, the droplets "bounced up and down on the surface, became spherical, rolled off and left absolutely nothing behind". Pretty cool, right? Hopefully, we can all look forward to touchscreen displays that are water resistant, oil resistant, and soon – smudge proof!

What Are You Most Excited About? 

We've got a lot to look forward to, folks. Whether it's faster processing, more intuitive software with Android 5.0 Jelly Bean, brighter and more astonishing displays, more RAM, increased storage, self charging devices, thinner devices, waterproof, dust proof, smudge proof, you name it, it's coming. It's a lot to take in, I know. IF we know one thing about the pace of innovation is that it's not slowing down any time soon. Which Android device manufacturer is best positioned to take advantage of all of these amazing technological developments? Which one are you most excited about?

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This article, Top Technologies Android Devices Will Get Before the iPhone , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 10:06 PM PST

Users of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus are currently enjoying the delightful treats offered by the sweetest and latest Google experience in the form of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Phone manufacturers, such as HTC, are in a mad rush to push out their ICS updates with a twist of their respective Android skins, but no one is sure about when exactly the updates will arrive on the HTC handsets.
However, thanks to the Virtuous Quattro ROM, owners of the HTC Sensation can freshen up their handsets with pure Android 4.0.3–minus HTC's custom user interface.
According to the ROM's developers on XDA Developers, Virtuous Quattro is still a work-in-progress (currently in Alpha 3 stage), although most of ICS core features are properly functioning.  The camera and Bluetooth are still not working.  There are also other undiscovered issues and bugs, which can be expected since the ROM is still being developed.
The following works with the ROM:
  • Wallpapers
  • Live Wallpapers
  • Sounds
  • Boots without any problems
  • 2G/3G Radios
  • Facebook contact sync
  • Touchscreen and keys
  • SD card
  • Tethering
  • All Sensors
  • Gallery
  • Root
  • Headphones
  • Wi-Fi
  • Microphones
  • Advance power menu
  • Screenshots
  • Android Market
  • 3D Accelerator
  • 3D games
  • EGL
  • GPS
  • Video Playback
According to developers, Virtuous Quattro ROM is compiled directly from AOSP code (which means it is "pure" ICS), has been optimized for the target devices, is pre-rooted, and will install Android 4.0.3 ICS to the device.  If you've got the supported device and want to taste the pure sweetness of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, read the rest of this guide for installing Virtuous Quattro ROM on your Android phone.

Requirements and Reminders

These are the few things you need before you can flash Virtuous Quattro to your HTC phone:
  • A rooted HTC Sensation
  • ClockworkMod Recovery installed in your mobile phone
  • Create a backup of all your phone data or transfer all files in your SD card in case it gets corrupted while installing the ROM
  • Have at least 60% battery power or more to keep your device running throughout the entire process.
  • Install the ROM at your own risk. We are not held liable for any damages arising from the use of this guide.

Instructions

  1. Download the Virtuous Quattro Alpha 3 ROM here and save it to your computer.
  2. Copy downloaded file directly into the root of the external SD card in your HTC device.
  3. Turn your phone off and reboot it into ClockworkMod Recovery, as follows:
    1. Press the Volume Down and Power buttons simultaneously.
    2. On the screen that appears, highlight "bootloader" (use the Volume keys) and select it using the Power button.
    3. On the next screen, highlight "recovery" (use the Volume keys) and select it using the Power button.  This will bring your phone into recovery mode.
  4. In recovery mode, create a backup of your existing working ROM. To do that, select Backup and Restore > Backup.
  5. Perform a full wipe of your phone data by doing the following:
    • Select "Wipe data/factory reset" then confirm the action on the next screen.
    • Select "Wipe Cache Partition" then confirm the action on the next screen.
    • Go to "Advanced Settings" from the main menu, then select "Wipe Dalvik cach" and confirm the action on the next screen.
  6. After wiping the cache, select "Install zip from sdcard".
  7. Select "Choose ZIP from sdcard" and select the downloaded ROM file.  Once you confirm, the ROM will be flashed onto the device.
  8. Select "Go back" and choose "Reboot system now" to restart your phone into Ice Cream Sandwich.
Congratulations! You have successfully installed Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich on your HTC Sensation via the Virtuous Quattro Alpha 3 ROM.

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This article, Install Stock Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich on HTC Sensation , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 08:40 PM PST


I've had a very bad feeling about the change of CEO's at RIM since day one. And the more I see the new CEO talk, the more I think RIM can only be worse off after this transition, even though the whole reason why they even did this was to change things for the better.
The reason I initially thought it's a bad change, was mainly because he seems to want the same thing the former leadership wanted, and not to rock the boat too much. But this vision is exactly why everyone from the outside thought RIM should get rid of the 2 CEO's in the first place. The current "vision" of the company is exactly why it's in trouble now, and it's on a downwards hill.
So you'd think that if you wanted to improve  things, you'd first go after the vision that led to this mess. But apparently that's not the case at RIM, because they think that the way to make the company healthy again is to do more of the same. And that's pretty much what the new CEO said in the first day. So now we have a new CEO that wants to follow the same vision as before, but is more inexperienced than the 2 CEO's who built the company before him. So why change in the first place then? Just as a PR move? Well that doesn't seem to have worked so well for them either, because most of the blogosphere didn't like the change, and neither did their shareholders, because their stocks dropped 8% in that day.
But as I said, the more he talks the more he looks like he doesn't really understand why he got the job. He just said that RIM will not use Android going forward, because all Android phones are the same. This pretty much mirrors what Nokia said a few years ago, and just like Nokia they are completely missing the point.
RIM still think they can live in their own dreamworld, where the competition doesn't affect them, so they can have whatever they want. They can have the cake and eat it, too. Well, sorry RIM, but you can't. They seem to think that having their own OS will provide them "true differentiation". First of all, that is far from the #1 priority for any smartphone manufacturer right now. There are more important factors they should be concerned with.
And second, even if did provide them differentiation, their sales would still be cannibalized by Android devices, as they already are. The same has happened with Nokia, too. They said having their own OS would give them differentiation, and they would somehow maintain higher profits. Well, none of that has happened. Their profits are falling, because now  they have to heavily discount their own phones to compete with Android phones. If anything that "differentiation" has only hurt them, because they are in a much smaller ecosystem, whether we are talking about Symbian or WP7.
Does RIM honestly think they can dig themselves out of the hole and fight against Android and iOS with their own QNX/Playbook/BB10 OS? How has that worked for the Playbook so far?
RIM needs to wake up that this is not 2005 anymore, where every manufacturer can mind his own business and do whatever he wants, and still be successful. No. That's all gone now. Now you can only compete with the iPhone, which is already aggressively moving in the enterprise market, RIM's best market, by joining an ecosystem that is just as strong – by joining Android. This is simple logic, RIM. It can't get any simpler than that.
Of course, I realize RIM won't listen to this, because they refuse to listen to this type of device, just as they've refused to listen to it for the past few years – and look where that has gotten them. If they were really ready to listen, they would've replaced the 2 CEO's with one that actually wants to turn RIM around, and not with one that just wants to continue the legacy of the previous two.

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This article, The New RIM CEO Is Worse than the Ones He Replaced. There, I Said It , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 08:38 PM PST

Sony has finally gained full control over Sony Ericsson after they paid 1.05 billion euro for the shares they didn't own before. So what does this mean for Sony and where does the smartphone division go from here?
Sony realizes that smartphones are becoming more important than ever – perhaps more important than simple phones ever were. The smartphone doesn't just fulfill the simple function of calling anymore. It's also your very personal computing that you take everywhere with you. And in many poor countries, a cheap smartphone may be the only type of computer young people could have for years, before they even have their own PC.
A smartphone is able to offer you almost the full web experience, although on a smaller screen, and you can use pretty much any chat program you want. It's also a device that provides educational or entertaining content in the form of videos, movies, books or games. And speaking of games, Sony makes the PSP and the PS3 consoles, so they will also try make these 2 divisions collaborate better, so they can have a competitive advantage in market.
Sony has already started doing this with the PS Suite on their new Xperia phones, and they promised to make the PS Suite available for more phones, too. Unfortunately, while the strategy sounds good, Sony hasn't been so good at executing it. They've mostly just used very old PS1 games (not even the PSP ones), and with barely any new games, probably because they are trying to save  those for their PS Vita device, and also because they've been pretty slow with putting the best tech in their phones, so their phones haven't been among the most capable so far.
Hopefully, now that they completely own the Sony Ericsson mobile division, they'll be able demand better devices from them, and ask them to make the phones a lot more competitive and forward-looking. As soon as they make a device that most people recognize as the best phone on the market at the time of launch, it's when they'll become a mobile player that the media will take a lot more seriously, and will help them gain more mind-share, as well as market share.

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This article, The European Commission Approves Sony's Acquisition of Sony Ericsson , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 05:21 PM PST

Remember that just around the time when the Galaxy S 2 was being launched in US, there were rumors about the Galaxy S3 launching as soon Q1 2012? Some people were upset about it arriving so early, especially Americans who just got theirs, while others were wondering if that would even be possible.
Technically, I think it's possible for a true next-gen device to replace the previous version after only 9 months. But this can only be done by the best and the most efficient manufacturers in the industry right now – like Samsung, HTC and even Motorola (disregarding the Bionic here). Others like Sony Ericsson or Nokia are much slower, and need at least 12 months to be ready with a true next-gen device. So considering the Galaxy S2 was first released in May 2011, releasing the Galaxy S3 in Q1 2012 sounded about right.
But lately, it has become apparent that the Galaxy S 3 won't even be announced at MWC, let alone be released. It even seems the date isn't certain internally, and some rumors even say it might arrive just before summer. Now that we discovered some rumors about the next-gen Galaxy Tab and its Cortex A15 processor and Mali T604 GPU, could it be that Samsung is saving Galaxy S3 until they can put this CPU and GPU in it?
The "safest" rumor about the Galaxy S3 has been that it has a quad core 1.5 Ghz processor, most likely based on Cortex A9. While that will certainly be competitive this spring, I don't think the competitive edge will be that big for the Galaxy S3 to maintain the lead in performance for too long.
This is why I'm hoping Samsung will reconsider using the quad core Exynos 4412, and instead use the dual core Cortex A15 Exynos 5250 that is rumored to appear in the next gen Galaxy Tab. This would ensure the Galaxy S3 will once again lead the market for the next 6 months in performance. Both the Cortex A15 CPU and the Mali T604 GPU are monsters in terms of performance, and as long as they aren't exchanging too much battery efficiency for performance, it would be a much smarter decision to wait a month or two, and get that Exynos 5250 chip inside the Galaxy S3.
But besides raw performance, that would even surpass some of Intel's low-end chips, what I like about these chips is that they will bring new features that are exciting for the future of Android – like hardware virtualization (Cortex A15) and OpenCL GPGPU computing (Mali T604). This could give rise to a whole new series of applications of Android, so I'm excited about their potential.
Here are the announcement videos (from a while ago) for the Cortex A15 and the Mali T604, and you can learn more about the technical stuff from them:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vF0ALmcCiLA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7fM6yBC084

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This article, Should the Galaxy S3 Wait for a Dual Core Cortex A15 CPU and a Mali T604 GPU? , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 04:03 PM PST
We've seen so many price drops at Verizon Wireless lately it's not even funny. We've seen the Droid 3 drop, the original Droid Razr (16GB), and the HTC Droid Incredible 2 all drop their prices in the last week. With the LG Spectrum and Droid Razr Maxx having launched recently are we going to see the Droid 4 launch very soon? How about some other devices?
Let's get back to the Droid Razr, Verizon has now dropped the price from $299 to $249, but why not spend the extra $50 and get the Droid Razr Maxx with that huge 3300mAh battery? That would be my choice. Don't forget the Droid Razr is now available in a variety of colors including purple and white, along with the standard black. With that 4.3″ display and under 8mm thick it still a great phone.
So if you're on the hunt for a Droid Razr, you may want to give this a look. But then you might be faced with a difficult decision. Get the Droid Razr for $249 or the Droid Razr Maxx for $299? Which one would you rather get? Let us know in the comments.

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This article, Droid Razr 32GB Price Drops to $249 at Verizon Wireless , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 01:28 PM PST
One of the best things about ASUS that other manufacturers, so far, haven't done is they identify a problem pretty quickly and work on a fix even quicker. A couple weeks ago we asked our readers if their Transformer Prime was randomly rebooting, and quite a bit of people said yes it was. Well ASUS heard you, and they have no come out and said they are working on a fix and it should be out in February. That is pretty quick considering all the testing that goes on before updates are rolled out.
They also plan to fix some WiFi and Bluetooth dropout issues with a server side fix, something they are also aiming to fix next month. ASUS is currently collecting serial numbers from users through technical marketing manager Gary Keys on XDA. They are doing this so they can try and mirror your Transformer Prime and test to see how well the bug fix update will fix all the problems seen so far in the ICS update.
On another note, ASUS has not said anything further about when the original Transformer would be getting it's official taste of Ice Cream Sandwich, but it looks like it's still in Google's hands. As soon as we hear anything we will bring you the news, like we always do.
Is your Transformer Prime rebooting? What is your Transformer Prime doing before it reboots? Let us know in the comments, I'm sure some ASUS people use Google to see what people are doing to get the random reboots.

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This article, ASUS Working on Fix for Transformer Prime Lockups after ICS Upgrade , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 11:17 AM PST

Last November Samsung said they were working on a dual core 2 Ghz Cortex A15 chip called Exynos 5250.  A dual core 2 Ghz Cortex A15 chip should be at least 2.5x as powerful as the current dual core 1.2 Ghz Cortex A9 chip in Galaxy S 2. And that's a difference that you will feel in real world performance, unlike with current quad core chips, where you might feel an improvement in performance, but not twice as big, and only for certain apps and games.
This chip will apparently use the much more powerful Mali T604 GPU, which should be about 5x as powerful as the current Mali, according to ARM. And it will apparently be used to power the resolution of the next-gen Galaxy Tab (running Android 4.0), which will features a breathtaking 2560×1600 resolution. This may sound unbelievable, but Samsung demoed this resolution on a 10″ panel last year in May, and said it would be available in the first half of this year. So all the pieces are falling into place.
AndroidAndMe is reporting that this tablet might be bigger than 10.1″. I've been wondering why Samsung and others are willing to take risks with smaller tablets than 10″, but they don't want to risk making a bigger one. I can see how a 10″ tablet would be too small for people who don't need to hold the tablet with one hand in air all the time.
For example, I think a 11.6″ tablet would make perfect sense for a Transformer-like hybrid device, because then it would be more like an actual ultra-portable laptop. Plus, I'm sure Samsung's tablet will be even lighter this time around than their Galaxy Tab 10.1, which was 599 grams. I was very surprised by the weight of their Galaxy Tab 7.7, which is only 335 grams. That is crazy light, and they can probably make this tablet weigh only around 500 grams or so. This means, even if the tablet becomes a little larger, it wouldn't be heavier.
Going back to the Cortex A15, Taylor is probably right about them being able to make it before TI's OMAP 5 because it's made at a 32 nm processing node, while the OMAP 5 is made at 28 nm, which wasn't as ready and stable, but I think it's also because TI is reaching straight for the maximum of 2.5 Ghz per core, while Samsung decided to leave it at 2 Ghz so they don't have to work on optimizations for as long, and be able to release it early in the market.
That was a smart decision, because Cortex A15 will bring massive improvements over Cortex A9, and they'll be the first ones to market it and sell it with their devices, while still being able to upgrade it to 2.5 Ghz by the end of the year, so it can compete with the OMAP 5.
The question remains, will this chip be in the Galaxy S 3, too? I wouldn't be able to say either way right now, because on one hand Cortex A15 may be more power hungry, which is why they are putting it in a tablet perhaps. On the other hand Samsung has also said they will be able to ship Cortex A7 processors in big.Little configuration by the end of 2012.
So it's possible the Galaxy S 3 will have a quad core processor made out of a dual core 2 Ghz Cortex A15 for very high-end tasks, and a dual core 1-1.5 ghz Cortex A7 that will handle most of the other tasks. But if they weren't able to do it like that this early, perhaps it's better they stick with Cortex A9 for the GS3. I probably wouldn't want Cortex A15 in a phone until it's ready to work with Cortex A7 as its companion core. But it's all speculation for now, and it's possible that a 32 nm Cortex A15 could be even more efficient than an overclocked Cortex A9.

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This article, Next-Gen Galaxy Tab to Have a Dual Core 2 Ghz Cortex A15 Chip and 2560×1600 Resolution , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 10:34 AM PST
Manufacturer skins, some of us hate them while others of us love them. HTC's Sense UI is probably the biggest battery hog out of all the skins out there. We all expected HTC to review HTC Sense 4.0 User Interface at Mobile World Congress, but it looks like we are getting a bit of a sneak peek here. PocketNow and Android Community was able to get a sneak peek in prime time as to the changes in the fourth edition of HTC Sense.
The homescreen can finally function in landscape mode without any hacking or tweaking. This is a feature that is bafflingly absent form almost all stock phones and is often inserted by modders and aftermarket ROM developers.  Sliders and icons go with a slate gray look instead of the current glossy black, and the sometimes obtrusive icons are augmented and in some areas replaced with text. The task switcher is similar to the card system found on stock Ice Cream Sandwich, but uses a 3D effect like the current Sense carousel.
The lockscreen also gets a makeover with a more straightforward notification system, reportedly aping the iPhone 4 and 4S. Looks another episode of Apple vs. HTC will be taking place after Mobile World Congress. PocketNow reports that HTC plans for all of its devices to use capacitive physical buttons, not on-screen buttons as was assumed to be standard for Ice Cream Sandwich phones. Some hardware will move to a three-button layout even so. The new guest mode allows you to lock all private data and apps to allow a friend or acquaintance to borrow your phone for a quick call or search.
We are excited to see what else is going to happen with Sense 4.0 – most of us would like stock Android on our HTC devices right? We will be learning more about HTC Sense 4.0 and all these rumored HTC devices we've seen lately at Mobile World Congress in late February. Stay locked to Android Authority for all the details.

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This article, HTC Sense 4.0 details emerge before Mobile World Congress , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.

Posted: 27 Jan 2012 10:20 AM PST
Yesterday we told you about the deep discount Amazon was giving on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, and today they still have that price but they have added the Droid Razr Maxx for only $200 versus the $299 price tag Verizon has. That's $99 off, and for current customers looking to upgrade its a $69 discount. Although the only down side is that Amazon Wireless is saying it will ship in 1-2 weeks, hopefully it won't take that long for it to get to your doorstep.
The device boasts all of the same features from the original – dual-core processor, 4G, 1GB of RAM, 4.3 inch qHD display and more – but has a 3300 mAh battery that Verizon claims will get users 21 hours of talk time, or Google Navigation from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. Now that's a killer battery right? According to Droid-Life today, on their first charge (while reviewing the Droid Razr Maxx) they got about 19 hours of battery life, pretty nice right?
So for those that have been thinking about getting the Droid Razr Maxx but didn't want to pay that $299 price tag, you might just want to go ahead and click the source link below and purchase your's from Amazon Wireless. If you purchase your's let us know how excited you are to get your hands on it in the comments.
Don't forget to check out our hands on with the Droid Razr Maxx from CES earlier this month.


Google News

News10 new results for android india
Google dominates Indian Android app space
Moneycontrol.com
It's no surprise that Google's Android platform has turned out to be the most budding platform. It's also the case in the slightly more price sensitive Indian market. Apple's iOS-based iPhones and iPads are still pretty expensive for mainstream ...
See all stories on this topic »
Google tops Android apps race in India
AndroidOS.in
Ever wondered which Android apps are the most used apps by Indian users, Nielsen has got the answer. According to a survey done by Nielsen Informate panel, Indian users spend 25pc of their time on Android apps developed by Google itself, ...
See all stories on this topic »
Tablet wars - India's Adam takes a bite of Apple's ipad
Russia & India Report
The Android tablet sports a 10-inch screen, has a 178 degree rotating swivel camera and a PixelQi screen, which makes it the only tablet you can read in direct sunlight. Try reading the iPad outdoors and you'll see what I mean.
See all stories on this topic »

Russia & India Report
Review: Amazon Kindle Fire
Techtree.com
The tablet has been priced higher for India as compared to the $200 (approx. Rs 10250) asking price ofthe US version. Although its features look promising, a partial implementation of Android Gingerbread is a dampner. Let us find out how the Amazon's ...
See all stories on this topic »

Techtree.com
Now access your PC on your mobile and tablets
The Mobile Indian
By Nilabh Jha, The Mobile Indian, New Delhi, January 28, 2012 A startup Nivio has started to offer virtual Windows desktop to tablets, phones or any other connected device. Nivio, a cloud service provider, has launched a new service that will allow ...
See all stories on this topic »

The Mobile Indian
LG Optimus Sol now available in India for INR 16990
AndroidOS.in
LG's mid-range Android phone Optimus Sol E730 is now available in India. Priced at INR 16990, it can be purchased from Flipkart. Globally announced back in August last year, LG Optimus Sol comes with Gingerbread and 1GHz processor.
See all stories on this topic »

AndroidOS.in
Apple's mobile web share reportedly slid in Q4 as Android took No.1 spot
BGR
Although Apple outsold all Android vendors in the fourth quarter, the Cupertino-based company's share of mobile internet usage is reportedly beginning to slide. An analysis of last year's Internet usage shows that in the United States, the proportion ...
See all stories on this topic »
As growth plateaus, Micromax brings in industry professionals
Economic Times
At least that's how Deepak Mehrotra convinced himself to get behind the wheels of Micromax, the the largest Indian-owned brand by sales. The corner office and chief executive post had to be created for Mehrotra because till recently Micromax was ...
See all stories on this topic »
Micromax brings in industry professionals
Times of India
After setting a scorching growth pace since 2008 when it entered the Indian handset market, Micromax has hit a plateau. MUMBAI: "I felt this company is like a crouching tiger, waiting to take that giant leap." At least that's how Deepak Mehrotra ...
See all stories on this topic »
RIM's Heins 'Here to Fight' for BlackBerry Revival Against Apple
BusinessWeek
Heins, a 24-year veteran of Siemens AG, faces the challenge of reversing momentum at RIM after the company lost out in the smartphone market to Apple Inc.'s iPhone and devices that run on Google Inc.'s Android software. RIM's revenue has slumped for ...
See all stories on this topic »

Web3 new results for android india
Samsung rolls out Android 2.3.6 for Galaxy Ace S5830 in India
The update is expected to bring some bug fixes though nothing has been revealed by Samsung officially.
www.themobileindian.com/.../4895_Samsung-rolls-out-Andro...
Cheapest Best 9.1'', 10.1'' Tablet PC India Price | Loudable
list of buy cheapest best 9.1 inches Android, Windows tablet pc in India with price , cheapest best 10.1 inches tablet PC in India with price. which is the cheap and ...
www.loudable.com/cheapest-best-9-1-10-1-android-windows-...
Samsung Galaxy Ace S5830 Android 2.3.6 update in India ...
Samsung Galaxy Ace S5830 is one of the best android phones from Samsung, and Samsung too has been taking care of it by updating it. 4 months ago ...
geekprison.com/4750-samsung-galaxy-ace-s5830-android-2-3...


Posted: 27 Jan 2012 03:33 PM PST
Ah yes, behold the long-awaited Verizon ZTE V66 tablet in all its glory. We already knew it was on its way as we saw it make a brief appearance last month, but we hadn't heard any further news about it until now. The V66 comes in at 7-inches and will carry Honeycomb 3.2 along with a handy custom lock screen among its noteworthy features. Furthermore, rumor has it this nice tablet could arrive around "February 2x", which means it will possibly arrive right in the middle of Mobile World Congress.
Naturally we expect Verizon to give the mysterious tablet a more formal name, though we have no indication of what it will be just yet. Keep it locked with Talk Android for further updates, especially as we approach MWC.




Posted: 27 Jan 2012 03:13 PM PST
We know Samsung is pushing its Exynos line of processors in its devices. That's a given. However, we all know Sammy has yet to really push the boundaries of its impressive chip. It's exactly why the brand is hard at work on its Exynos 5250 series of chips. According to Phandroid, Sammy is looking to take the ARM Cortex-A15-based processor and push it into 2GHz territory. You read that correctly folks, it is looking to have its chips at a whopping 2GHz. Moreover, rumor has it that while the chip will be insanely fast, it will suck less power than that the earlier chipsets. As it stands, the chips are currently in testing right now and we can expect to see them in devices by Q2 of this year.
Naturally you can't have a chip in the works without a device made for it. That's why Sammy is also rumored to be developing a special Galaxy Tab that will take full advantage of the Exynos 5250 series of chips. The tablet can support a resolution of up to 2560×1600, all in a WXQGA display of greater than 10-inches of course. Further details are scarce at the moment, but we expect to see something demoed or previewed at the upcoming MWC.




Posted: 27 Jan 2012 02:14 PM PST
Well if you are wanting a XYBOARD, the sequel to Motorola's first tablet the Xoom, but didn't want to give your hard earned dollar monthly to Verizon to own one, today is your lucky day. Motorola is releasing the wifi version of the Xoom 2… er… XYBOARD and it's available on their web site as you read this. You can purchase either the 10.1-inch or 8.2″-inch tablet in either 16GB or 32GB versions. The 8.2-inch 16GB model will run you $399 and the 10.1-inch starts at $499. So if you're wanting the "RAZR" of tablets (form factor) with the freedom of no carriers, head on over to the links below to check them out and while they don't have ICS just yet, they will be getting it down the road. Also if you haven't heard much on these tablets you can check out both the initial hands-on review and a full review of the XYBOARD 8.2. Enjoy!
10.1-Inch XYBOARD – Link
8.2-Inch XYBOARD – Link




Posted: 27 Jan 2012 11:59 AM PST
At the beginning of the week we told you about the leaked LG CX2, the successor to the LG Optimus 3D, and that it's believed to make an appearance at MWC in February. According to new reports, the new CX2 will soon sport the 3D Max market name, and will be dubbed the LG 3D MAX, or Optimus 3D Max.
For those who missed out on the leaked specs, the 3D Max is said to have a 1.2GHz dual-core processor (TI OMAP) and sport a glasses-free, 4.3-inch WVGA NOVA auto-stereoscopic display capable of improved 2D-3D conversion. The device will manage to stay at 10mm thin even though it packs dual 5MP cameras for shooting 3D pictures. The real question remains, will those cameras be able to shoot 3D 1080p videos? Among other goodies, you can expect DNLA and NFC capabilities as well.
Hopefully we will see the LG 3D Max at the end of February alongside the quad-core LG X3 flagship phone. My only concern with the 3D Max is that it's reportedly running Android Gingerbread. What gives?
source: GSM-Israel
via: Pocketnow




Posted: 27 Jan 2012 11:08 AM PST
We had a chance to get our hands on the upcoming Xperia S at CES, the first Xperia phone to be branded by Sony (without Ericsson in its name). They showed off all the wonderful specs, but for whatever reason they didn't bother to tell us about a couple of interesting features.
The first is that it will come with an anti-stain coating. It will be a special nano coating that is not only a dirt repellent, but also UV active. The second is that will have the ability to charge quicker than normal. It will supposedly charge in half the time, and word is a 10-minute charge can keep the phone going for an hour.
source: pocketpc
via: briefmobile





Posted: 27 Jan 2012 10:45 AM PST
Since Google is transitioning to a buttonless style OS with Honeycomb and Ice Cream Sandwich, it isn't a shock they are telling developers to move their menu functions to the action bar. All phones up to this point have a dedicated menu button, but that won't be the case moving forward. Google has instituted an action bar that includes the three dots that work as the new Menu.
The problem with some apps is they're still pointing towards a physical menu button and since Ice Cream Sandwich, and particularly the Galaxy Nexus, doesn't have a dedicated menu button, the system shifts the three dot action overflow button beside the system navigation. Normally this is on top.
According to Google, this is doesn't provide an ideal user experience. I will say that for me personally, I have noticed the action button moving from top to bottom (and vice versa) between apps, and it's a little annoying. Google recently posted instructions for developers on how to migrate to the action bar or remove it all together. Hit the source link to find out more.






Posted: 27 Jan 2012 10:29 AM PST
It looks to be another great week for buying discounted phones from Amazon. Hot on the heels of the freshly marked down Galaxy Nexus, Amazon just listed the DROID RAZR MAXX at only $199.99 for new customers, and $229.99 for existing. As always, to get this deal you must sign a two-year agreement but I'm sure your used to that by now.
In case you need a refresher, the RAZR MAXX has the same specs as the OG DROID RAZR only it has a much larger 3300mAh battery. The device is only 8.9mm thin and still manages to maintain a reported 21 hour talk time. To see this device in action, check out our hands on from this years CES.
This is a great deal for a great phone considering you could buy it right now from Verizon for $100 more. I mean who wants to pay retail, right? Although, as you can tell from the image above, there will be a slight wait for delivery because the device is on backorder and will ship within 1-2 weeks. Hit up the link below to get your discounted MAXX on!
Thanks, Trent!
Source: Amazon






Posted: 27 Jan 2012 09:10 AM PST
Going thorough my Google+ stream this morning I noticed  an entry from Koush, the man behind CloworkMod and CWM Tether, and boy does he have something awesome up his sleeve! As you can see in the video below, Koush is working on a new touch version of ClockWorkMod Recovery that is going to make things a heck of a lot easier, especially for the uber sensitive Galaxy Nexus.
I know that other forms of "touch" recovery are available, like TWRP from TeamWin, but Koush's new method that he is working on will allow for swiping and tapping your selections rather than using buttons. Although Koush is teasing his new recovery method via Google+, this is still just a tease. Currently downloads are not available, and according to Koush, "there will be better graphics and whatnot later." By that I assume the text might be a little easier to read and the UI might get a slight makeover. Whatever it ends up as, I'm sure it will be an amazing finished product. In the meantime, check out the video below and be sure to let us know what you think. Who else is looking forward to some swipe recovery action ?
Jump past the break to see it in action.

Click here to view the embedded video.






Posted: 27 Jan 2012 08:36 AM PST
The other day we gave you that
wonderful
news that the Samsung Galaxy S III might not be revealed at next month's Mobile World Congress. During their recent earnings conference call, Mrs. Younghee Lee said they're "still reviewing" options for the launch. Meanwhile, Samsung's support site is showing model GT-i9300, but it doesn't exist yet. Looking back at past models, the Galaxy S was in the i90xx range and the Galaxy S II had i91xx. The Galaxy Nexus used i9250, so one would assume that the Galaxy S III would jump to the i93xx range. Sounds logical to me. Either way, we know a Galaxy S III will launch this year, the only real question is when will it be officially unveiled?
source: samsung
via: pocketnow, sammyhub




Posted: 27 Jan 2012 06:50 AM PST
Google Music is awesome right? Even if you don't use it, I always recommend everyone to upload their tunes anyway because it's a free and safe backup for your collection, not to mention you will have access to your music from anywhere in the world. The only problem with the backup argument was the fact that you couldn't download your tunes back to your desktop if you computer crashed. Well Google just took care of that because with the latest update to the Music Manager, you can download all your music back to your desktop, including tunes you uploaded and tunes you purchased. Now we can feel safe knowing we can restore our music if we ever need to.
Google also added the ability to easily share YouTube videos for the songs you've uploaded. As you know you can easily share full plays for songs you've purchased to your circles on Google+, but this gives us an option for the music we already own.