| YouTube rumored to be working on premium music service Oct 24th 2013, 02:56, by Juan Carlos Torres You know that YouTube, primarily a video viewing and sharing service, has become bigger than itself when people start using it listen to music more than just to watch. It seems that YouTube plans to capitalize on this latest user trend by launching a subscription-based music service soon. 
YouTube has amassed a not insignificant amount of music videos over the years. Users these days turn YouTube into a sort of jukebox, searching for their favorite artist or song and listening, if not watching, to them. Sources close to the matter are saying that YouTube is planning on making that activity an official YouTube thing with a premium music service later this year. According to these sources, there will be both free and paid tiers to the service. Surprisingly, the free tier is said to already give unlimited access to full tracks, making it a bit hard to imagine what the benefits of a paid subscription would be. A “no ads” feature immediately comes to mind. Of course, Google would not comment to confirm or deny rumors. But it is not hard to imagine YouTube going down that road in the near future as it already has a lot of the necessary pieces in place, including licenses from various artists and studios. Moreover, last September, Google elaborated on offline viewing for YouTube, which sounds like a good fit for a subscription service feature. SOURCE: Billboard |  | Samsung Galaxy S 4 with Snapdragon 800, LTE-A arrives in Europe Oct 24th 2013, 02:28, by Juan Carlos Torres With nary a word save for a Swedish press release, Samsung has quietly brought the refreshed version of its Galaxy S 4 flagship into European territory. This model, previously exclusive only to its home market of Korea, features a different processor and support for LTE-Advanced technology. 
It is probably already common knowledge that not only does Samsung churn out numerous smartphone models like crazy, it also sometimes puts out unequal variants of the same model, available only in a few territories. The latest is its new Galaxy Note 3 phablet, with a non-LTE Exynos-powered version available in some markets whereas others have LTE-enabled Snapdragon 800 chips. There is also a rumor that the manufacturer is planning on refreshing its Galaxy S4 Active with an upgraded processor. The Samsung Galaxy S 4, half a year old by now, has not escaped unscathed. Last June, the company announced a revamped version of the device, sporting a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor instead of the Exynos octa-core it originally came with, as well as support for LTE-A networks. Unfortunately, that variant has only been available in South Korea. At least until now, it seems. There are still no pricing details for this newer Galaxy S 4 with LTE-A and no store has made an announcement of its availability yet. It has, however, appeared on Samsung’s German site and an international online retailer suggests a rather high $950 price tag. VIA: GSMArena | | Samsung Galaxy Express 2 revealed, available from Vodafone UK this week Oct 24th 2013, 01:54, by Juan Carlos Torres Without much fuss or fanfare, Samsung has just announced the Galaxy Express 2, a slight upgrade from last year’s Galaxy Express model. This mid-range smartphone will be heading for the UK first and has given UK carrier Vodafone an exclusive advantage. 
In terms of hardware, the Samsung Galaxy Express 2 is unimpressive but solid. It is powered by a 1.7 GHz dual-core processor, probably a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 and 1.5 GB of RAM. It sports a 4.5-inch qHD display with a 540×960 pixel resolution. It has 8 GB of internal storage, expandable with a microSD card. It has a variety of connectivity features, including NFC and, like its predecessor, LTE support. If the specs sound a bit like the Galaxy S4 Mini, albeit with a larger screen, you would not be the only one to think so. On the software side, the Galaxy Express 2 will be running Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and, of course, Samsung’s TouchWiz custom interface. It will also have access to some Samsung exclusives such as S Travel, Story Album, and S Translator to help users maximize their travel experience. Smart Stay face detection and Group Play file sharing will also be available. Samsung has not mentioned pricing details but the Galaxy Express 2 will be available in the UK, starting today as a Vodafone exclusive with other retailers to follow. The smartphone comes in a Ceramic White color option, but Vodafone customers will also be able to purchase it in Rigel Blue, also exclusive to the carrier. VIA: SamMobile | | HTC Desire 300 up for grabs only from Telstra starting next week Oct 24th 2013, 01:23, by Juan Carlos Torres HTC and Telstra are getting back together for an exclusive partnership that hasn’t happened since 2010. Coming to the Australian mobile company’s portfolio next week is HTC’s latest budget smartphone, the HTC Desire 300. 
The HTC Desire 300 doesn’t really pack quite the punch, but it is one of those smartphones that has just the right combination of hardware and pricing that makes it ideal for some people, especially casual users. It has a manageable 4.3-inch 800×480 display, driven by a 1 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 and 512 MB of RAM. Internal storage is capped at 4 GB but there is a microSD card slot for expansion. It does have a 5 megapixel autofocus rear camera but only a VGA front-facing camera. The 1650 mAh battery should just be about the right capacity for average uses. The smartphone does run a slightly older Android 4.1.2 version. Of course, it uses HTC’s custom Sense UI. This means that the HTC Desire 300 will at least include the popular BlinkFeed app, giving users access to news, sports scores, social media updates and more with an interesting presentation. HTC and Telestra have already joined forces way back in 2010 for the launch of the first HTC Desire. The HTC Desire 300 will, again, be a Telestra exclusive and will hit stores starting October 29 with a price tag of $179. VIA: Ausdroid | |
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