Android Community |
- Samsung drops LCD patent case against LG
- Facebook update lets you change profile pic and report spam on mobile
- Samsung GALAXY S 4 pre-registrations are 4.5x that of the S III
- Amazon Kindle Fire not coming in $99 version
- Xiaomi MI-3 spotted in China with 1080p display and Qualcomm 800 quad-core
- Exynos 5 Octa not coming to UK Samsung GALAXY S 4
- Motorola teases a personalized phone buying experience
- Amazon “Send to Kindle” button brings the desktop to your Kindle
- 500px app gets updated
- New Samsung GALAXY S 3 lockscreen bypass discovered
- Adblock Plus 1.1 for Android released
- iSuppli performs a virtual teardown of the Samsung GALAXY S 4
- Jawbone UP joins the Android Community with official app
- Nexus 4 now back in stock in the UK
- LG claims Samsung infringed on its eye-tracking patent
- Google Drive allows 3rd party apps to implement realtime features
- NVIDIA reveals Tegra 5 “Logan” and Tegra 6 “Parker” SoC
- Reasoning behind HTC One shipment delays
| Samsung drops LCD patent case against LG Posted: 20 Mar 2013 11:57 AM PDT Samsung has announced today that it plans on dropping its LCD patent case against LG. The case was over Samsung’s OLED (organic light-emitting diode) displays. The case originated in 2011 when Samsung believed that 11 of its researchers leaked the details of its OLED displays over to LG. LG fired shots back by filing its own patent suits against Samsung, seeking an injunction against a variety of Samsung’s devices.
The battle between the two companies began to settle down in February, with both groups resorting to peaceful discussions rather than painful litigation. They were in talks and according to Samsung’s Display Chief Executive, the two were planning on cross-licensing their technologies. Whether or not the two have come into a cross-licensing agreement is still up in the air, however their legal woes have just begun. Just yesterday, LG claimed that Samsung infringed on its eye-tracking patent. The Samsung GALAXY S 4 presentation on March 14th showed Samsung’s device utilizing what it calls the Smart Pause feature. When the users eyes are looking away from the phone while a video is playing, the video pauses. Once the user looks back onto the screen, the video resumes playing. LG announced a very similar, well actually the exact same, feature for its upcoming LG Optimus G Pro update. There’s also speculation that one of the companies copied the other’s “eye-scrolling” feature. The feature, called Smart Scroll on Samsung’s devices, detects whether your face is looking up or down on a web page or email, and it scrolls accordingly. The LG Optimus G Pro will be receiving both these eye-tracking features next month via an update, around the same time the Samsung GALAXY S 4 is expected to launch. These eye-tracking features seem too similar to be a coincidence and they’re both coming out at the same time, so it’s very possible that Samsung and LG may really have spies in their companies. [via The Next Web] |
| Facebook update lets you change profile pic and report spam on mobile Posted: 20 Mar 2013 11:32 AM PDT Today the folks from Facebook and team Zuck have just issued a software update for their highly popular Android app. First off, no, this isn’t the new design they revealed a few weeks ago but it does bring some much needed improvement to a few features on mobile. For one they’ve streamlined the change your profile picture option, something that’s been a chore on the Android app.
For those who’ve tried to change their profile picture on the Android app, it certainly wasn’t easy. You had to fumble through your gallery, select the photo, go into options and find a “set as profile photo” option. Now they’ve made it dead simple, just tap your profile picture in app, and you’ll be prompted to change it with ease. Interestingly enough this update comes from the Play Store. Last week we received news Facebook would be pushing updates behind the scenes without the use of the Google’s Store. It’s about time Facebook! Then they’ve also added a few other features to make the mobile experience better, but they are minimal at best. Today’s update will also allow Android users to clean up and get their News Feed in order. Facebook’s added the option to quickly hide stories and even report spam in users Feed. This way you can remove and clear unwanted content in a single tap. Last but not least Facebook also updated the UI to allow fewer taps to start and join a group conversation or message. Basically it will take less taps to quickly join the group and begin chatting about the weekends plans, or what have you. It’s a small update but I’m just glad they’ve made it easier to report spam and remove content on mobile. Now about those automatic updates… [via Play Store] |
| Samsung GALAXY S 4 pre-registrations are 4.5x that of the S III Posted: 20 Mar 2013 11:13 AM PDT It looks like the anticipation for the Samsung GALAXY S 4 is really high, almost about 4.5x that of the Samsung Galaxy S III. According to Carphone Warehouse, pre-registrations for the Samsung GALAXY S 4 is 446% higher than the pre-registrations for the Samsung Galaxy S III. Now keep in mind, these are pre-registrations, and not pre-orders, so actual sales figures will vary.
There’s no doubt that the Samsung Galaxy S III has paved the way for the Samsung GALAXY S 4 to do well, and judging from the high-end specs the S 4 carries, it’s going to be a very impressive device. However, folks over in the UK may be disappointed once they find out that the UK version of the Samsung GALAXY S 4 will be utilizing a 1.9 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor rather than a 1.6GHz Exynos 5 Octa processor. That being said, if the processor isn’t a deal breaker, the phone will be another knock-out for Samsung. It hopes to sell 100 million of the devices globally, which is more than twice the amount the Samsung Galaxy S III have sold so far. 100 million is also the cumulative sales total of all of Samsung’s Galaxy S phones, so Samsung has really high hopes for its upcoming flagship smartphone. But if any Android company can do it, Samsung would be the company everyone would place their bets on. Samsung does face some fierce competition this year. HTC is planning on releasing its flagship smartphone, the HTC One, by the end of March or early April. The device has been highly praised and is claimed to be the most beautiful Android smartphone out there. Many consumers, who were disappointed by Samsung GALAXY S 4′s similar design to the S III, have been impressed by the HTC One’s aesthetics and specs, and say that it will be their next smartphone. We’ll see how both devices fare in the smartphone wars in the coming months. [via Pocket-Lint] Device Info
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| Amazon Kindle Fire not coming in $99 version Posted: 20 Mar 2013 10:39 AM PDT There have been rumors circulating the internet this morning about a potential $99 Amazon Kindle Fire. While that would have been an amazing feat for Amazon to pull off, unfortunately those rumors have been debunked. Amazon has even stated in the past that it does not generate any profit when it sells a Kindle Fire tablet, so it’s highly unlikely that the company would be able to sell the tablet at half the price (yet).
The rumors of the $99 Kindle Fire stated that Amazon was planning on sticking a low-end Texas Instrument processor inside of the tablet, and that the tablet would have a 1280×800 resolution display. The specs resemble that of the current Kindle Fire 7 (non-HD). The rumors seemed feasible because Amazon slashed the price of its Kindle Fire HD 8.9 tablets, which is usually an indicator of a new device coming out. There were also speculations that Amazon could just slash the price of its current non-HD Kindle Fire, and sell it at a loss. Like Amazon stated, it doesn’t generate any profit from the tablets themselves. Amazon breaks even from just selling the tablets, however they do generate a lot of revenue because Kindle Fire users tend to purchase a lot of digital media through Amazon’s store. So far, the only $99 tablets on the market are those low-end, terrible tablets created by no-name brands. We most likely won’t be seeing a decent $99 tablet anytime soon, but if anyone could pull it off, it’d either be Amazon or Google. The Android tablet market share would skyrocket, and there would be a lot more people utilizing Amazon’s new “Send to Kindle” button. [via Business Insider] |
| Xiaomi MI-3 spotted in China with 1080p display and Qualcomm 800 quad-core Posted: 20 Mar 2013 10:35 AM PDT The extremely popular smartphone manufacturer in China named Xiaomi sure have been successful lately, and with top tier specs for a low price we know why. Their devices sell out in days throughout China, and have become increasingly popular. Today their latest MI-3 has leaked complete with some stunning specs, and a processor we weren’t expecting to see for a few more months.
The MI-One sold out in 13 minutes when it launched back in 2012, and their second generation smartphone was quite the successful device too. Today however their upcoming device looks to be the best of them all and packs quite a sheet of top-tier specs. The most interesting part being the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 series 2.3 GHz quad-core processor is on board. The Snapdragon 600 powers the HTC One, Samsung’s GALAXY S 4, and is blowing through the roof on benchmark scores and tests, but the 800 will be even faster. It looks like Xiaomi might be one of the first with the new CPU too, although again only in China. The specs include an aluminum design (looks like the ONE) and comes complete with a 5-inch 1920x1080p full HD display, the Snapdragon 800 at 2.3 GHz, 2GB of RAM, a 13 megapixel camera and 2 on the front, all powered by Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie and a 3,000 mAh battery. Sign me up! All of this will most likely beat pricing from any other handset, just like the MI-2 topped the Nexus 4 at a cheaper price point. It looks like this new top end smartphone could retail for as low as $320 too. We’d love to see these Xiaomi phones stateside, but that probably won’t be happening any time soon. I can’t wait to see some benchmarks with that Snapdragon 800, and hopefully they appear sometime soon. [via UnwiredView] |
| Exynos 5 Octa not coming to UK Samsung GALAXY S 4 Posted: 20 Mar 2013 10:09 AM PDT Here’s some very disappointing news for those of you living in the UK. The UK version of the Samsung GALAXY S 4 will not be carrying Samsung’s highly anticipated Exynos 5 Octa processor, but instead will be coming with a 1.9GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor. This news has been confirmed by Samsung, and there may be a possibility that several other markets will find their S 4′s shipping with a Snapdragon 600 as well.
The folks at Omio confirmed the story with Samsung earlier today, however Samsung isn’t releasing any details about the other markets. While the Snapdragon 600 isn’t a terrible processor at all (in fact, even with the Snapdragon 600 processor, the S 4 still boasts a benchmark score twice that of the iPhone 5′s and twice that of the U.S Samsung Galaxy S III). But even so, many consumers were looking forward to using an 8-core processor that capitalizes on both power savings as well as high-end mobile processing. A GALAXY S 4 without an Exynos 5 Octa may be a deal breaker for many, especially for those who believe that the Samsung GALAXY S 4 is more of a slightly boosted Galaxy S III than it is an innovative new phone. Perhaps the lack of an Exynos 5 Octa is enough to drive consumers to the HTC One. The Samsung GALAXY S 4 made a splash onto the scene March 14th in a huge, Broadway, soul-wrenching presentation. It boasts the latest high-end specs in the market, and even better features that Samsung believes will make it your “companion for life”. However, Samsung received a lot of critiques from consumers who say its too similar to the Galaxy S III. And with the reports that the Exynos 5 Octa won’t be making it to several markets globally, we’ll see if it can reach its forecasted “100 million S 4 sales goal”. [via SlashGear] Device Info
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| Motorola teases a personalized phone buying experience Posted: 20 Mar 2013 09:50 AM PDT With all the wild rumors floating around regarding the next Motorola smartphone, or the X-Phone, we might as well get the rumor mill started up again today. Motorola’s recently hired Advisor, and former Apple evangelist Guy Kawasaki just gave us a head start. After rumors suggesting the X-Phone could be customizable at the Play Store while ordering, Guy’s now teasing that very idea.
Guy Kawasaki took to his Google+ account, which also confirms he’s now employed by Motorola, and asked the readers and fans “Wouldn’t it be great if you could personalize your phone like this?” And in regards to that question posted a video of Porsche Exclusive vehicles getting completely customized by the customer. Down to every last detail with more than 600 options. Custom rims, interior, paint job, stereo, and making everything extremely personal with your new ride. Now what if we could do the same with our Android smartphones? More specifically, what if we could do the same with our Motorola smartphones? That could be Motorola’s next move here. Obviously we won’t be able to change things like camera or processor, as that would require massive changes for any smartphone. It’s things like RAM, internal storage, color, apps installed when you receive it and more. Here’s the video Guy posted, just for fun. The video is titled: “Porsche Exclusive – The most personal car” What if at Google I/O they announces the new Motorola X series along the same lines. “Motorola X – the most personal smartphone” sounds pretty good right? Recent rumors from a few sources reported this exact plan early last week, so this could actually be something we’ll see in the future from Motorola. So far rumors are just that, rumors. However we recently saw a leaked Motorola smartphone with strong Nexus design cues that could be a part of the Google/Motorola future. Whether this new Google sales model will take effect with only Google devices, or everything Motorola – we’ll have to wait and see. |
| Amazon “Send to Kindle” button brings the desktop to your Kindle Posted: 20 Mar 2013 09:36 AM PDT Amazon’s “Send to Kindle” button has become official. It’s similar to the “Chrome-to-Phone” app where you can send any website page you’re viewing straight to your Kindle device. The button is available on many platforms, including Chrome, Firefox, email, desktop, or even your Android device. Yes, you can send content from your Android device straight to your Kindle Fire, be it a webpage you want to view on a bigger screen, or a document you keep on your mobile.
The Send to Kindle button isn’t limited to just owners of an Amazon Kindle Fire. If you have a Kindle app for your Android phone or tablet, you can have your content redirected there. All you have to do is install the Send to Kindle button (which appears as an app on your desktop, or as a extension button on your browser), and select a primary device to send the content to. The Send to Fire desktop app will let you send various documents to your Kindle tablet or Kindle app via a drag and drop feature. So if you have a report you need to proofread, or a short story you need to read, Amazon makes it easy for you to send it to its reading app. Amazon’s Send to Kindle button will also be making its way to many blogs and websites, similar to the Facebook “Share” button. All of your Send to Kindle websites will be archived into the button’s history tab, something that I don’t believe Chrome to Phone has implemented. So if you need to access a previously visited website, but you just don’t remember what it was called, you can easily browse through your history for it. That of course being said, you might want to clear your history if you’ve been visiting some risque sites. [via SlashGear] |
| Posted: 20 Mar 2013 05:38 AM PDT Fans of the Android app 500px can now download an update for the application that brings new features. The updated application was released this week and promises a better ability to discover photos and find friends using the application. The application is also nearing 500,000 downloads.
The cofounder of the company behind the app also recently noted that there are more active users on the Android platform than those accessing 500px from Apple devices. The update brings a new Flow feature and a new Find Friends option. The Flow feature wants to be something like personalized Pinterest according to the developer of the app. The feature allows users to discover new photos and it displays photos that the user’s friends have like, added to favorites, or commented on. The images are a type of curated content from a user’s friends. The new Find Friends option is just like the option found in the web version of the application. This feature allows users to find people through Twitter and Facebook who are using the 500px service. Users of the application that are adventurous and want to try the newest features first can also now download the 500px Beta test version to try out the newest features before they are added to the official stable release. [via The Next Web] |
| New Samsung GALAXY S 3 lockscreen bypass discovered Posted: 20 Mar 2013 05:31 AM PDT Over the last month or so hacks that bypass the lockscreen for some Samsung smartphones have been identified. Another lockscreen bypass has now been identified that allows access to PIN-secured Galaxy smartphones by unauthorized users. The exploit uses a combination of key presses and commands to bypass the lockscreen.
This new exploit has a specific set of circumstances required for it to function. The exploit is reportedly reliant on brief visibility of the phone display after a failed emergency call is placed from the lock screen. The hack was unveiled by Terrence Eden who has discovered Samsung exploits in the past. In fact, Eden was responsible for discovering the security flaw that allowed users to bypass the home screen on the GALAXY Note II earlier this month. This new lockscreen bypass only allows the nefarious user to briefly interact with the phone. However, with enough time to repeat the process a nefarious user could take advantage of this bypass to place calls, download apps, view data, and perform other tasks. Samsung has promised a software patch to fix this issue at some point in the future. However, those who are highly security sensitive have no recourse to block this particular vulnerability aside from installing their own custom ROM on their device. Interestingly, Eden says that he offered to not publish details of the vulnerability until Samsung issued a patch and Samsung declined. [via SlashGear] |
| Adblock Plus 1.1 for Android released Posted: 20 Mar 2013 05:09 AM PDT There has been a bit of drama going on with the ad blocking application for Android devices called Adblock Plus. Earlier this month Google pulled the application from its Google Play marketplace. Adblock Plus wasn’t the only ad blocking application removed, several others were as well.
While ad blocking applications have been available on the Google Play store for a while, they were in violation of the store’s terms of service. If you still want to use Adblock Plus, the developers have a new update for the application that is available to download right now. The catch is that you will have to manually install the update or you won’t get updates in the future. There are a lot of new features in the new version, which brings the application to 1.1. One of the key new features is the implementation of automatic updates. The update also brings additional dialogue to help users set up manual proxy configurations. The newly updated app also switches to the Holo user interface theme. Rounding out some the other major fixes is a workaround for a Chrome issue that causes blank pages. An issue with URLs containing apostrophes was also fixed and icon hiding was improved. You can download the application right now from the link below. [via Adblock Plus] |
| iSuppli performs a virtual teardown of the Samsung GALAXY S 4 Posted: 20 Mar 2013 04:57 AM PDT One of the most anticipated Android smartphones in recent memory is the Samsung GALAXY S 4. While the device isn’t available for consumers to purchase yet, IHS iSuppli has performed a virtual tear down of the device to come up with a bill of materials. The virtual teardown shows that the S 4 is significantly more expensive to build than the S 3.
To perform the virtual teardown iSuppli used its Mobile Handset Cost Model Service in lieu of getting hands on an actual GALAXY S 4 and ripping it apart. According to the findings, the cost to build the HSPA+ version of the S 4 is $236. When it comes to individual components, the teardown shows that the HD resolution display and touch screen technology costs $75. The processor used in the new smartphone is pegged at $30, compared to the $17.50 the processor used in the GALAXY S 3 cost last year. iSuppli also notes that the user interface and sensor system in the S 4 costs about $16. Interestingly, the LTE version of the GALAXY S 4 costs less build better slower sibling. The estimated bill of materials for the LTE version of the device is $233. The manufacturing costs for the smartphone and to $8.50. iSuppli reports that the HSPA+ GALAXY S 4 with 16 GB of storage costs $244 to build when the manufacturing cost is added in. [via SlashGear] |
| Jawbone UP joins the Android Community with official app Posted: 19 Mar 2013 09:04 PM PDT Today you’ll be able to join the masses of health-conscious Jawbone UP device-wearers with your own Android-based app. This device in the past was only working with an iOS app for the iPhone and/or iPod touch, and today’s push allows the Jawbone crew to team up with the millions of Android users out there in the wild – in the cold, dark wild. If you’re not able to see the Jawbone UP app in the Google Play app store right this minute, you’ll be able to see it soon – it’s on the way!
This announcement joins one by Jawbone that the Jawbone UP health wristband device will be available outside the USA and UK starting right now! Greater Europe will be seeing the Jawbone UP device in-stores starting this week, while Asia, Australia, and the Middle East will be seeing the device available next month. Sound like a deal?
Meanwhile you’ll want to see the SlashGear review of Jawbone UP to experience the loveliness for yourself. You won’t be able to do a whole heck of a lot with the Android app without the device itself, but seeing SlashGear use it is second best! If you do choose to pick the Jawbone UP accessory up, you’ll be tossing down right around $129 – grab it! Below you’ll find some other bits and pieces we’ve seen and used with Jawbone heading up the show. Jawbone is a company that’s made some excellent audio-blasting devices in the past, and with the UP, they’ve successfully taken hold of the health bracelet segment in the USA and the UK. Let’s see where they go next! |
| Nexus 4 now back in stock in the UK Posted: 19 Mar 2013 02:23 PM PDT If you’re in the UK, and you’ve been waiting patiently (or not so patiently) to get your hands on Google and LG’s Nexus 4, the wait is over. The Google Play store in UK has just updated its listings for the Nexus 4 as “In Stock”. You will be able to pick up an 8GB version of the device for 239 pounds, or the 16GB version of the device for 279 pounds. The device will ship in 3-5 days.
The Nexus 4 has been highly coveted for its high-end specs and its very affordable price point. With the device, you will get the latest Android OS updates from Google, as well as Google’s Stock Android experience. You don’t have to worry about dealing with custom interfaces or carrier-installed bloatware. Also, by buying the device directly from Google, you won’t have to sign a binding contract with a carrier. The Nexus 4 saw a bunch of shipment delays since its launch in November. Google and LG continuously blamed each other for the shortage of devices. Google blamed LG for their “short and erratic” supplies and the communication failures between the two companies. LG blamed Google for not having an accurate forecast on how many Nexus 4 devices it would actually sell, which it says led to the shortage of supplies. The device finally went back in-stock in the United States in late January, and maintained its status for quite a long time. The device would ship within 1-2 weeks, to the gratefulness of Google’s customers. Demand for the device is still strong, with Google now saying that it will ship out the device to American consumers by March 29th. If you’re in the UK, and you’ve been eyeing the device, you should make your purchase now, because who knows how long that “3-5 day” shipping estimate will last. [via Google] Device Info
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| LG claims Samsung infringed on its eye-tracking patent Posted: 19 Mar 2013 01:49 PM PDT LG and Samsung are looking to go to war not only in the mobile phone marketplace, but in the courtroom as well. LG claims that Samsung has infringed on its eye-tracking patent with its Samsung GALAXY S 4. The Samsung GALAXY S 4 has the “Smart Pause” feature that pauses videos when your eyes aren’t looking at your phone’s screen. When it detects that your eyes are looking back onto the screen, it will resume playback.
The “Smart Pause” feature frustrated LG because it too has a similar feature called “Smart Video”. It was planning on bringing the feature to its LG Optimus G Pro next month via a “value pack update”, and to its other high-end devices in the future. The Smart Video feature does exactly the same thing Samsung’s Smart Pause feature does. Exactly the same thing. LG says that it applied for the eye-tracking patent in 2009, as well as several other eye-tracking patents back in 2005. Samsung replied, saying that it used its own technology to develop its Smart Pause feature. Along with the video pausing capabilities, LG is also enabling an eye scrolling feature that’s similar to Samsung’s Smart Scroll. There’s probably a high chance that one of the two companies will claim patent-infringement on that feature as well. It does seem pretty evident that there’s some sort of infringement going on here, especially seeing as both Korean companies are offering the same, innovative features at exactly the same time. LG will not be able to do anything to Samsung until the Samsung GALAXY S 4 launches next month. When that happens, we’ll find out what’s really going on and if this is a matter of coincidence, or if there really are spies amongst the companies. [via SlashGear] |
| Google Drive allows 3rd party apps to implement realtime features Posted: 19 Mar 2013 01:27 PM PDT Google Drive has just released a new API that will allow 3rd party developers to implement realtime Drive features in their apps. The API is called the Google Drive Realtime API, and it handles “network communication, storage, presence, conflict resolution, and other collaborative details” so all you need to do is focus building your own app. It will handle the rest.
By implementing Google Drive’s Realtime API, users will now be able to edit files in their Google Drive accounts, like Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides, straight from a 3rd party app. The files will automatically update and sync throughout their Google Drive accounts. For those of you who are working on a group project, the API will allow you to see other “collaborators” who are currently working on the project at the same time as you. The collaboration feature is one of the highlights of the Realtime API. Not only will you be able to see who is currently online and working on your group projects, you will also be able to see the changes they make in real time. There will be colored labels indicating who made updates/changes and where. Some apps, who have already implemented the API into their system, showed that apps are also able to include a chat feature that lets you communicate with your fellow collaborators. There are currently three 3rd party apps that have implemented the Realtime API. There’s Neutron Drive, an online text and source code editor, Gantter, an online project scheduling tool that features an integrated chat room, and draw.io, a diagramming app that lets you create flowcharts, diagrams, and other illustrations. We should be seeing Google Drive’s realtime features implemented in many other apps soon, including Android apps. [via SlashGear] |
| NVIDIA reveals Tegra 5 “Logan” and Tegra 6 “Parker” SoC Posted: 19 Mar 2013 12:44 PM PDT NVIDIA held an event today at the GPU Technology Conference, and it unveiled a bunch of new features its future Tegra SoCs will have. Many of these features are game changers and will allow mobile devices to do “everything a modern computer should do.” NVIDIA’s CEO revealed details about the next-gen Tegra processor codenamed Logan (most likely the Tegra 5), as well as the next-next gen Tegra processor codenamed Parker (most likely the Tegra 6).
First up we have Logan. Logan will show off two new features that have never been seen in a mobile processor. It would be incorporating CUDA (in the form of CUDA 5), a programming platform developed by NVIDIA that will dramatically increase computing performance by utilizing the SoC’s GPU. Speaking of GPUs, Logan will also feature the Kepler GPU, a first for mobile processors, that will deliver “breakthrough performance” up to 3x that of other rival GPUs. Logan will also bring OpenGL 4.3 to the table. Its looking at an early-2014 launch. Next up we have Parker. Sure, it may be a little to early to announce the next-next gen Tegra processor, but see if NVIDIA cares. Parker is speculated to be the Tegra 6, and it brings even more advanced changes than Logan. Parker will have a Denver CPU, which is the first 64-bit mobile processor, and it will be able to utilize ARMv8 cores. It will be paired with NVIDIA’s Maxwell GPU, which promises more than twice the processing power per watt compared to the Kepler GPU. Parker will also be the first SoC to utilize FinFet transistors. Parker is said to be released sometime during 2015. Both NVIDIA’s Logan and Parker shows us a promising, next chapter for mobile devices. It’s surprising to see that Logan will be released in early-2014, considering how the NVIDIA Tegra 4 SoC (codenamed Wayne) is looking at a release date in the second half of 2013. NVIDIA’s announcements certainly has everyone excited, and it will be very interesting to see how rivals like Qualcomm or Exynos will compete. [via SlashGear] |
| Reasoning behind HTC One shipment delays Posted: 19 Mar 2013 12:02 PM PDT So we’ve already heard about the reports of the HTC One facing shortages in its Ultrapixel cameras, however that news has been confirmed today by HTC itself. However, not only is HTC facing shortages in its Ultrapixel cameras, the company is also seeing supply shortages in its metal casings as well. HTC has informed many of its resellers, including Best Buy and Vodafone, of the shipping delays and shortages.
An executive at HTC stated that the supply issues are due to suppliers no longer considering HTC a “tier-one customer”. The executive stated that the main reason for this is because of HTC’s rapid decline in smartphone shipments last year, and its frequent and drastic changes in shipment forecasts. HTC is currently working as quickly as possible to work out these supply kinks in order to fulfill HTC One pre-orders by the end of the month. It hopes to ship the HTC One out to several markets at the beginning of April. HTC has placed all of its cards on HTC One, and it may be its last chance of getting itself out of its financial predicament. HTC’s Peter Chou has even staked his job on the line, saying that if the HTC One fails, he will step down as CEO. In order to make sure the HTC One succeeds, HTC will be going all-out with marketing this year, and has even hired a new marketing chief to take point on its campaigns. Due to its huge delay in shipments, the HTC One faces very tough competition. Had it been able to ship its device out mid-March like it had planned, HTC would have been able to grab enough sales to stay afloat, but now it has to deal with the likes of Samsung’s GALAXY S 4 as well as Sony’s Xperia Z. And HTC’s marketing will most likely be outshined by Samsung’s, who spent $401 million in advertising alone last year compared to HTC’s measly 60 million. However, HTC’s HTC One has been well received so far by critics and consumers alike, so hopefully the power of word-of-mouth advertising is enough to make the device a success. [via The Wall Street Journal] Device Info
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