HTC to hold pre-MWC 2013 press conferences on February 19

HTC is holding a press conference on February 19, a whole week prior to the MWC 2013's kick off. The event will take place in London and will start at 10:00AM local time.

Unlike Nokia, which has already confirmed its pre-MWC press event for February 25. HTC's press conference will take place outside the MWC host city Barcelona, as HTC tries to have more of the spotlight for itself.

And it will most likely succeed, considering the strong possibility that the Taiwanese will announce its M7 future Android flagship there. The smartphone will boast the smallest 1080p screen on the market. As such the 4.7" display will have the mind-blowing pixel a pixel density of 468 ppi.

Parts of the the smartphone have already posed for the camera, so the M7 is all but officially confirmed at this point. It's highly likely the M7 to run HTC's latest Sense UI 5.0 on top of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

Update: In addition to the London press conference, HTC has also confirmed there will be a parallel event in New York on February 19.

Whatever the case may be, we'll be your eyes and ears for the event once February 19 comes.

Read more »

Posted in: news

Pantech Vega No 6 goes official in South Korea

Pantech has unveiled yet another excitingly sounding smartphone from the Vega lineup. Unfortunately, just like most of its siblings the Vega No 6 as the new device is called will remain exclusive to South Korea. It packs a 5.9-inch 1080p display and is powered by a quad-core 1.5GHz Krait processor.
The Pantech Vega No 6 also offers 2GB or RAM and generous 32GB internal storage, which can be expanded further through the microSD card slot. A 13MP primary camera and a 2MP front-facing snapper take care of your photography and video-chat needs.


The connectivity department of the Vega No 6 has everything - from Bluetooth, NFC, Wi-Fi and USB for local transfers to LTE for high-speed internet access on the go.
Pantech Vega No 6 runs on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean skinned with Pantech's own Flux UX. It will launch on all three South Korean carriers in February. It will cost KRW849,000 (about €580/$780) SIM-free, but if you are willing to sign a long-term contract you might get a sweeter deal.

Read more »

Posted in: news

Apple-Samsung patent ruling to be reviewed by the ITC

The US International Trade Commission will review ruling, which could lead to an import ban on few devices from Samsung.


The ITC will be reviewing the preliminary ruling, which found the Samsung smartphones and few tablets breaching upon the four patents held by Apple. The final verdict on the case was supposed to be come by March 27 and now that date is very likely to be rescheduled due to the trade body's review.
Samsung's hope of continuing its dominance in the mobile market relies heavily on the decision from the International Trade commission. However, the company remains confident that the commission will ultimately rule in its favor.

Read more »

Posted in: news

Huawei to hold its MWC 2013 press conference on February 24

   We got an invite from Huawei today, which urges us to save the date, February 24, when the Chinese company will hold a press conference. This is the Sunday before this year's Mobile World Congress kicks off, so we can reasonably expect Huawei to unveil its latest smartphones at the event.
The invitation gives a very subtle clue as to what device will be unveiled. All we see is a glimpse of the smartphone's front frame design.


Huawei already made waves this year at the Consumer Electronics Show. The Chinese announced the 5" 1080p Ascend D2, the 6.1" 720p Ascend Mate and the low-cost Windows Phone 8-running Ascend W1.
We expect the February 24 event to feature the manufacturer's first flagship-grade WP8 device, the Ascend W3. It rocks a 4.5" 1280 x 720 display, an 8 MP camera and should run on a dual-core Krait processor with 1 GB worth of RAM. We've already seen the Ascend W3 in the wild so it going official shouldn't be a huge surprise.
Still there could be more in store for us on February 24, so you might want to check back with us when the time comes. We'll be on site covering the whole thing as it unfolds.

Read more »

Posted in: news

LG sells 1 million Optimus G units and counting

LG just announced it has sold worldwide more than a million units of its flagship smartphone - the Optimus G. A similar recent announcement put their L-series sales in the range of 10 million.
The LG Optimus G sale numbers come in a stark contrast with Apple and Samsung flagship sales, but then again, there's a reason these guys are high on the list of the top mobile phone manufacturers.


Other reports claim that LG has sold a total of 55 million handsets in 2012 but plans on boosting their sales up to 75 million in 2013.
LG has had some troubles in the past few years, but their last Q3 results have shown the company is back on its feet, ready to fight back the big dogs.
A leak from earlier today, showing the LG Optimus G Pro, may suggest they already have the right weapon in their armory.

Read more »

Posted in: news

HTC Butterfly hits stores in Russia, rest of Europe to follow soon

Just ten days after the HTC Butterfly hit Australian shores, now the 5", 1080p smartphone is finally making its way to Europe's stores, specifically those in Russia.

The device should make the Russians quite happy as they are the first in Europe to have the opportunity to purchase the first Android smartphone with a full HD display.
The price however is a little steep at €692 (RUR27,990). Having in mind though, that smartphones in Russia tend to be a bit overpriced, we expect the HTC Butterfly to sell for less when it finally makes its way to Western Europe.
That kind of cash gets you a 5.0" Super LCD3 screen of FullHD resolution and Gorilla Glass 2 protection for it. Inside there's a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 SoC with a quad-core 1.5GHz Krait CPU and Adreno 320 GPU as well as 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage (with a microSD card slot).
At the back, there's an 8 megapixel primary camera with 1080p video recording, 2.1 megapixel front facing camera. Connectivity is covered with Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, A-GPS + GLONASS, NFC.

Read more »

Posted in: news

BlackBerry 10 retail ads surface ahead of announcement

The new slides show the BlackBerry Z10 in black and white and flaunt some of the new features of the mobile OS.


Among the new features, visible on the slides, is the video calling with device screen sharing, the Balance feature, which allows for switching between a work-time setup and a free-time setup, and the revamped BlackBerry keyboard.

RIM has planned the BB 10 unveiling event for January 30, so we are bound to learn more in a few weeks' time.
Rumors have it that along with the new software and hardware announcement, RIM will also lower the steep prices of the specialized data plans needed for using the company's services by end consumers.

Read more »

Posted in: news

Apple CEO Confirms iPad Mini 3G/4G Version Coming to China This Month

While there’s still no clear news or even a speculation on the iPad Mini 2 (Retina), we do get information about the evolution of the current iPad Mini in Asia. The tablet, in its cellular version will hit China in late January, it appears. Or at least so says Tim Cook.

The WiFi model has already arrived in China early last month, merely one month after its debut in the States. Tim Cook, the famous Apple CEO was on a visit to China and reported on the release of the product in an interview with local reporters today. This means that if you’re in China you’ll be able to buy the cellular iPad Mini this month or in February, if you’re preparing a gift for the Chinese New Year. The iPhone 5 went on sale in China reasonably late, on December 14th, a bit over two weeks after getting its regulatory approval.
Tim Cook admitted that it does take quite a while for devices to reach China, because the approval process of the products takes a long while. Apple has mentioned that they’re taking steps to decrease the wait times. Cook predicted that China will become Apple’s largest market in the future, with Cupertino already having 25 retail stores there.

Read more »

Posted in: tablet

Acer Officially Announces the Iconia B1-A71 Tablet

After the Bulgarian first time review, Acer has officially announced its B1-A71 tablet during today’s CES event. The 7 inch Jelly Bean tablet will be available on the market as a direct competitor to the Nexus  7 and other devices in the same category, rumored to be priced around $150 or less.

As stated in the first unofficial review, the tablet offers a 7 inch display with 1024 x 600 pixel resolution – behind the Nexus 7 in this category. It is powered by a a dual core MediaTek 8317 1.2 GHz chip and 512 MB of RAM. Other features include  8GB of internal storage space, microSD card slot and a 0.3 megapixel front-facing camera.
The Acer B1-A71 comes with Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and and weights in at 320 grams, given its 2170 mAh battery. The manufacturer describes it as  “ideal for new users or families opting for a 2nd tablet for their children.” It looks great and comes with the stock Google Play Store installed with over 750.000 apps available. Acer also announced no more than three 10-inch tablets running Android.

Read more »

Posted in: tablet

Vizio shows 5" 1080p Android phablet and 4.7" 720p phone

Vizio made a splash with the first Tegra 4 tablet, but the company also brought two stock Android mobiles to CES - a 5" 1080p phablet and a 4.7" 720p phone. The smaller device is also a dual-SIM phone. This is quite rare unless we're talking about a China-bound phone, which unfortunately we are.

Vizio 5" 1080p phablet (images courtesy of The Verge)
Both devices use laminated screens to reduce glare and pack dual-core processors. The 5" Vizio phablet is powered by a dual-core Krait CPU clocked at 1.5GHz with 2GB of RAM, while the 4.7" phone relies on a MediaTek chipset with 1GB of RAM.

Vizio 4.7" 720p phone (images courtesy of The Verge)
The phone has a unibody design and its card slots (two SIM card slots and a microSD card slot) are hidden at the bottom of the device.
Both devices are headed to China initially, though they support AT&T 3G frequencies (no LTE though), so depending on their performance overseas, Vizio might bring them home to the US.

Read more »

Posted in: news

HTC Butterfly now on sale in Australia, Europe still waiting

The international, unlocked variant of the HTC J Butterfly (or DROID DNA as our US friends know it), known as HTC X920e Butterfly, is now available for purchase in Australia.

Currently, the unlocked, SIM-free device is offered exclusively by MobiCity and is sold for AUD849, which converts to $891 and will start shipping on January 18. While currently not available in Europe, this gives us a rough idea how much the X920e would cost in the Old continent.
The HTC Butterfly has a 5.0-inch, 1920 x 1080 resolution, Super LCD 3 with Gorilla Glass 2, Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 SoC with a quad-core 1.5GHz Krait CPU and Adreno 320 GPU, 2GB of RAM. With 16GB internal memory (with a microSD card slot), the smartphone sports a 8 megapixel rear camera with 1080p video recording, 2.1 megapixel front facing camera. Connectivity is covered with Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, A-GPS + GLONASS, NFC.
The device is still awaited to break European ground, as HTC has reportedly been struggling to keep up with its production due to the very high demand.

Read more »

Posted in: news

The upcoming BlackBerry Z10 gets its internal revealed

RIM's upcoming BlackBerry Z10 flagship smartphone has leaked yet again. This time, though, it's not just posing for the camera, but also having its internals exposed, revealing some interesting details.

For starters, BusinessInsiders has acquired two photos of the BlackBerry Z10 being compared to the iPhone 4S. According to their source, the build quality is really solid with the back cover sporting a nice rubbery grip.

Additionally, the 4.3" screen looks really good. The person familiar with the matter also shares that the newly redesigned AppWorld looks a lot like Google's Play Store.
The leaks continue with smartphone parts company ETrade Supply, who also got hold of some components of the BlackBerry Z10 and in their usual fashion decided to showcase them.
Their investigation reveals a microSD card slot and an HDMI port. Rather peculiarly, the SIM card slot's position varies on the different prototypes, suggesting they are from different stages of the smartphone's design cycle. The smartphone will reportedly be about 10mm thick, which isn't too bad, but far from record-breaking either.

RIM will announce the BlackBerry Z10 alongside its redesigned BB10 OS on January 30 at a special event, so stay tuned.

Read more »

Posted in: news

Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour

 
The #1 FPS is back on smartphone with a new chapter to push the boundaries of mobile gaming even further. In the wake of a nuclear disaster, the only chance to avoid global devastation is in the hands of the few elite soldiers who must track down and rescue the world’s leaders from a frighteningly familiar terrorist group.

• Feel the story’s dramatic intensity by also playing the villain, Edward Page.
• The first Gameloft title powered by the Havok Engine for amazing ragdoll effects!
• Dominate the battlefield with a new tactical movement system!
• Feel the chaos of war with console-like graphics, lifelike animations and dynamic objects.
• Forge your own gameplay profile with an improved loadout system & over 20,000 weapon arrangements!
• Lead your character to the top of the leaderboards with a new ranking system!

 

Read more »

Posted in: android games

RCA Mobile TV Tablet Unveiled, Coming This Spring

RCA has recently unveiled a brand new tablet, an Android model that they’ll bring at CES 2013. The device is dubbed RCA Mobile TV Tablet and it’s based significantly on TV services and television features. The slate packs a dual tuner, that’s composed of a standard over the air tuner and a Dyle mobile TV tuner.

The device allows users to access about 130 mobile television channels all over the country. The RCA tablet’s specs include an 8 inch IPS display at 1024 x 768, a 1 GHz Cortex A5 processor, 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage, plus a microSD card slot. Other feats include WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, HDMI, microUSB, USB, GPS, a pair of speakers and a dual cameras: front and rear. The tablet is supposed to weigh 1.4 pounds and it will also allow access to the Google Play Store.
The battery should offer up to 4 hours in mobile TV mode or up to 10 hours of web browsing. As far as price goes, this model will sell for a price tag of $299 and it’s debuting this Spring in all sorts of shops. The name Dyle from its TV tuners is famous for the mobile TV support on the Samsung Galaxy S Lightray 4G handset on MetroPCS, that has this service.

Read more »

Posted in: tablet

Xperia Z leaks again, shows off its slick design

The Sony Xperia Z, which was known as the Yuga until a few days ago, has leaked once again, this time in a series of images extracted from what is likely a promo video.
The new images tell us that the smartphone will feature a water resistant chassis on a "skeleton frame structure", and a 13MP Exmor RS camera accompanied by HDR photo and video capability.
The images also confirm what we already know about the device, including the 5 inch FullHD Reality display, and quad-core APQ8064 Snapdragon S4 chipset. The Z is set to ship with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean out of box.

Our earlier leak hinted at an MSRP of roughly $655 when the Z hits retail, although we expect to have full details on the Xperia Z and all other Sony devices from CES 2013 in just a few short days, so be sure to check back with us.

Read more »

Posted in: news

Huawei W1, Ascend D2 and Ascend Mate official photos leak

The first day of 2013 surely brought us a plethora of leaked images of upcoming phones. After we saw Sony's Xperia Z and ZL, now it's Huawei's turn.
We encountered the Ascend Mate phablet numerous times before - on leaked info, photos, even a Huawei Chairman showed the thing at a Huawei retail store in China.
Today, just a few days before the official announcement at CES, a new press shot made its way on the internet.


But the leaked images doesn’t stop with the Ascend Mate. The quietly announced Ascend D2 also got a higher resolution photo, where we can spot Huawei's Emotion UI in greater detail than before. Just like Mate, D2 will also get its official debut at CES.

Finally, Huawei's Windows Phone 8 gadget, the W1, got to show its four different colors. The W1 will be the third smartphone that Huawei will unveil at CES.

Read more »

Posted in: news