Android World: AndroidGuys

Thursday, February 7, 2013

AndroidGuys

What we expect: Samsung Galaxy S4
LG teases new mystery phone on Facebook
Samsung Galaxy S4 announcement rumored for March 15
Gingerbread holds top spot as Android 4.0+ closes in
25 fantastic icon packs for Android

Posted: 06 Feb 2013 11:06 AM PST

As one of the most rumored and anticipated devices of the year, the Samsung Galaxy S4 is expected to show up in the next few weeks. Well, at least an announcement is rumored for next month (March 15).

It’s no secret that Samsung has gone to great lengths to keep the details for the Galaxy S4 locked up and away from the public eyes. That is not to suggest, however, that the rumor mill hasn’t gone into overdrive these last few weeks. Spend some time looking around and you’ll no doubt see a handful of specs and features are out there just waiting to be confirmed.

We took the opportunity to gather up some of the juiciest and most likely rumors and put them in one place. What you’ll find below is a growing list of things we expect or feel strongly about as it pertains to the Samsung Galaxy S4.

If you see something that doesn’t look right or something we may have missed, let us know! We will update this post as we learn more about the Samsung smartphone.

Likely

5-Inch Super AMOLED Display

Rumors have long been in circulation that Samsung will go even bigger for the Galaxy S4, moving up from the 4.8-inch on the Galaxy SIII. Much of the chatter seems to be centered around 4.99-inch or 5-inch Super AMOLED displays with a true HD (1080p) screen.

Samsung Eynos Octa 5 processor

The Samsung Galaxy S4 will likely get its power from Samsung’s recently unveiled Exynos 5 Octa processor. As the world’s first “8-core mobile processor” it offers four Cortex-A15 processor cores (high-end performance) and four ARM Cortex-A7 cores (low power consumption). Sounds awesome and drool-worthy but we don’t expect Samsung to put too much emphasis on the benchmarks. Rather, Samsung will tout the benefits for real-world usage.

MALI-450 MP graphics

Gamers and heavy users will enjoy the Mali-450 MP GPU as it offers twice the performance over last year’s Mali-400. Average folks will be happy that it sips power at a slower rate than predecessors.

With many of today’s top Android phones inching upwards with battery life, the Samsung Galaxy S4 should keep pace. And, because of a larger display and bigger CPU/GPU, Samsung will need more than the 2100mAh battery in the Galaxy S III. According to recent reports, the Galaxy S4 will boast a 2600mAh battery.

Wireless charging capabilities

Given that Samsung is in the Wireless Power Consortium we would not be surprised if the next model were to include wireless charging capabilities. It’s the sort of thing that Samsung could sell separately (extra revenue) but it’s also something that many of today’s top phones employ. To not offer this would be seen as a misstep.

Android 4.2 Jelly Bean

We fully expect Samsung to release the Samsung Galaxy S4 with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. This version of the platform is a few months old now so the company has had plenty of time to ready it for the new model. Going a step further, we imagine Samsung has cooked up a new take on the TouchWiz/Nature UX for the Galaxy S4.

Better eye and facial recognition

We’ve gotten comfortable with the Smart Stay technology in the Galaxy S III so we hope to see more advancements for the new handset. Rumor has it that the Galaxy S4 could offer Eye Scroll, Eye Pause, and other fun stuff along those lines.

March 15 debut

As one of the more recent rumors to surface, we’ve come to trust the source. Reportedly, the Samsung Galaxy S4 will be introduced on March 15 and then released in April. Europe and Asia will be among the first markets to offer the phone, with the U.S. and others following in May or June.

Unlikely

13-megapixel camera

As much as the average person would like to equate megapixels with image quality this simply is not the case. Samsung has employed an 8-megapixel camera in the last two models of Galaxy S phone so we would expect the same for the Galaxy S4. Rumors exist of a 13-megapixel camera but we’d like to think Samsung is more focused on camera features and sensor size.

Flexible or unbreakable display

As much as we would like to see an unbreakable or flexible display in the Galaxy S4, we aren’t holding our breath. Sure, we’ve have concepts for a few years now however we don’t think this is a retail-ready technology.

S Pen functionality

As far as the S Pen function for the Galaxy S4 goes, we're not too quick to jump on this one. As something that differentiates the Galaxy S series from the Galaxy Note series, it seems like the sort of tech that belongs in extra large form factors.

The post What we expect: Samsung Galaxy S4 appeared first on AndroidGuys.

LG teases new mystery phone on Facebook

Posted: 06 Feb 2013 09:42 AM PST

With Mobile World Congress in sight at a distance of just a few weeks, LG has decided to drop a bomb… a mysterious bomb. *Cue dramatic music*

The company has made a post on their Facebook, saying “See what surprise LG has in store for you this time, with an unexpected distinction”. Some are focusing on the “L-shape” of the box in the image, saying that LG has talked about some new, different phone styles.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments.

via facebook

The post LG teases new mystery phone on Facebook appeared first on AndroidGuys.

Samsung Galaxy S4 announcement rumored for March 15

Posted: 06 Feb 2013 08:19 AM PST

Samsung Mobile will introduce the Galaxy S4 at an Unpacked event on March 15, according to Samsung rumor blog SamMobile. As is the case with previous iterations of the flagship smartphone, Europe and Asia will get their hands on the S4 first, followed by the Americas and other markets. Specifically, the source indicates that the Samsung Galaxy S4 will roll out by the end of April, however the U.S. model is slated for May or June.

SamMobile

The post Samsung Galaxy S4 announcement rumored for March 15 appeared first on AndroidGuys.

Gingerbread holds top spot as Android 4.0+ closes in

Posted: 06 Feb 2013 08:04 AM PST

Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) remains the most popular version of the platform but 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) and 4.1 (Jelly Bean) are closing the gap. New figures in the Android Developers Dashboard are out and things look to be moving right along with older stuff dying slowly and newer stuff inching forward.

Thanks to devices such as the Galaxy S III and a few Motorola models picking up Jelly Bean, the newest release is gaining fast. Still, it’s going to be a while before Gingerbread goes away. Heck, there are still 10% of Android users running around with 2.1 (Eclair) and 2.2 (Froyo).

Android Developers Dashboard

The post Gingerbread holds top spot as Android 4.0+ closes in appeared first on AndroidGuys.

25 fantastic icon packs for Android

Posted: 06 Feb 2013 06:43 AM PST

So you’ve gotten into customizing your phone or tablet a bit and now you want to tweak a bit more. Dude, that’s great, we’re glad to hear it!

One of the easiest ways to change your existing look is to install a new launcher. Once you do that, it’s even easier to swap icons in and out. Want to shake off the winter blues and put something a bit more spring-like or colorful? Presto. Prefer a minimal look with single colors across the board? Done. All you need is a great icon pack or two and you’re on your way.

We’ve gathered up 25 of our favorite icon packs and suggest you start here. We know there’s a ton of them out there and the list of resources keeps growing. We’ll be curating a number of these types of lists and will return with more once we’ve scooped up enough!

Check out the big gallery for a sample of the great icon packs available for Android. Mouse over anything that appeals to you and find out the name then head below for links!

Note that there are a number of launchers for Android and that not all of these may play nice. Our advice is to read the details and check out the user comments if you aren’t quite sure. Further, some of these will require manual selection and adjustment.