| Motorola teases augmented reality app with "Windy Day" video ad Oct 25th 2013, 02:51, by Juan Carlos Torres Looks like Motorola is cooking up a treat and has enlisted the help of animation studio Pixar to bring in a new augmented reality experience exclusively to users of its impressive Moto X smartphone. 
Augmented reality has somewhat been a holy grail of mobile information and interactivity, ranging from simply map overlays in apps like Layar to one-time marketing and sales gimmicks to full-fledged alternate reality games like Ingress. Most of these, however, involved showing static displays, images, or overlays. Motorola, however, seems to have planned something new, creative, and ambitious, but it will need some help from the people who know those words best. Academy Award-winning director Jan Pinkava created an animated short entitled “Windy Day” which was used at Qualcomm’s Uplinq conference to demonstrate Pixar’s real-time animation process. Motorola and Pixar have now teamed up to bring Pinkava’s masterpiece into the hands of Moto X users, with an augmented reality bent. Not much is known yet about this collaboration, but the video below created by Motorola shows people using the Moto X and spinning around or looking in all directions with the smartphone as if following something flying about in the real world. The video ends with a very short glimpse of what looks to be an app or game running on the Moto X. No further details are available, but this new app or game is said to be launching in a few weeks’ time. VIA: Android Central |  | Samsung reveals surge in operating profits, predicts slower smartphone rise Oct 25th 2013, 02:10, by Juan Carlos Torres Samsung has just released its third-quarter earnings report and, quite unsurprisingly, the figures show a strong quarter with a rise in the manufacturer’s operating profits. Analysts, however, are concerned about the company’s ability to surpass that in light of the very fierce competition in the mobile device industry. 
The Korean manufacturer’s operating profits from July to September rose to 10.16 trillion won, roughly $9.56 billion, up by 7% from the second quarter’s 9.53 trillion won or $8.97 billion. The biggest source of earnings, of course, came from the company’s IT and mobile division, its smartphones, bringing in profits of 6.70 trillion won, around $6.3 billion. Interestingly, this rise in smartphone profits is attributed mostly to Samsung casting an extremely wide net with a large variety of cheaper Android-powered Galaxy devices instead of putting everything in the high-end smartphone basket. But Samsung’s biggest growth rate actually came from its chip manufacturing business, specifically from its DRAM and NAND mobile memory chips. That business clocked in profits of 2.06 trillion won, $2.45 billion, twice the amount from the same period last year and so far its highest in three years. Samsung predicts shipments of its chips will stay strong and demand will go even higher as manufacturers try to churn out more devices for the holiday season. 
This may be Samsung’s record profit so far, but analysts wonder if Samsung will be able to maintain its winning streak, likening it to Nokia who has peaked in its market share and has gone downhill since. Samsung is indeed facing a tough road ahead and the company knows it, projecting slower smartphone growth in the months ahead due to the coming season when competition between smartphone manufacturers dramatically increases. Download: Samsung Earnings Report (PDF)
SOURCE: Reuters | | Xtorm outs 3000 mAh battery pack for Samsung Galaxy S 4, charges under the sun Oct 25th 2013, 01:28, by Juan Carlos Torres Despite all the sophistication and power of high-end smartphones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S 4, one thing that almost always ruins the experience is a short battery life. Xtorm has produced a new kind of battery pack that helps delay reaching for a wall charger and in a environment-friendly way to boot. 
Chargers, battery power packs, and even smartphone cases with an extra built-in battery have become one of the staples of the smartphone accessories business today. Xtorm’s new power pack is quite similar to other products out there, sporting a 3000 mAh battery that will give your Galaxy S 4 an extra life in a pinch. To some extent, the Xtorm pack might even be worse than other options out there due to its size. However, the one thing that makes it unique is the addition of photovoltaic cells that is used to charge the large battery via solar power. This means that you won’t have to rush into a building and race for wall sockets to charge the pack itself. Unfortunately, the battery pack does add a considerable amount of bulk but it seems not meant to be used as a permanent smartphone case. Simply let the battery charge by itself under the sun when unused and slip in the Galaxy S 4 when some extra juice is needed. If Xtorm’s solar-powered 3000 mAh battery is your thing, you might have to wait for little longer, unless you live in Europe. This accessory for the Galaxy S 4 is expected to become available in European markets within a few weeks, with a price tag of 50 euros, or roughly $70. VIA: SamMobile | |
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