Monday, November 3, 2014

Samsung I9500 Galaxy S4 to get Lollipop early next year

The current Samsung flagship, the Galaxy S5, will be getting Android 5.0 Lollipop, it was even demoed on video. Last year's flagship will not be left out, sources claim the Galaxy S4 will be updated too. The question then is "which S4?" since there are plenty of versions.
The sources point to the Exynos-based Galaxy S4 with model number I9500 will be first. This should be early next year, barring any extra-long delays from carriers.


The Snapdragon 600 version (I9505) should be getting it sometime later on, the Galaxy S4 Active (I9295) should be getting at the same time since the internals are basically the same. There are also Snapdragon 800 versions – the Galaxy S4 LTE-A (I9506 and some local versions) and the Galaxy S4 Active LTE-A. Those are essentially based on the Galaxy Note 3 with S800 platform (the Note 3 with Exynos uses a different chipset than the I9500).
We'd love to see an official update calendar by Samsung for its recent flagships, instead of getting hearsay for each of the dozens of models and variations the company offers.

Apple iPhone 6 to get a $100 price cut with upcoming promo

The holiday season and Black Friday are upon us, kicking off November 28 this year. The retailers are already working on their promo offers and the Sam's Club one is particularly interesting. It seems iPhone 6 will be one of its hot promotions this year - it will offer it on half the price if you opt to get in on contract.
A leaked flyer for the upcoming promotion reveals Sam's Club will offer the Apple iPhone 6 for $99 for the 16GB flavor with a two-year contract. The 64GB and 128GB models will be available for purchase as well for $199 and $299 respectively.
The offer applies until December 31, but the numbers each store will have in stock are rather limited - 40-50 per club.
The first generation Apple iPad Air will be also on-sale in Sam's Club, as in many other retailers at $100 down the official price.
We guess other stores will be getting similar discounts for the latest Apple flagship. Do you plan of getting one for yourself this holiday season?

Motorola pushes Android 4.4.4 update to the Moto G in the US

If you have the first generation Moto G and live in the US, you should check your phone for an update. Motorola has started pushing an update for the XT1032 model that updates the phone to 4.4.4.

The original Moto G has so far been on Android 4.4.3 but the latest 21MB update brings it on par with the new 2014 model.

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Samsung refuses to pay licenses to Microsoft after Nokia buyout

Samsung has issued a court filing regarding its collaboration with Microsoft on Windows Phone and states that it refuses to fulfill its end of the deal as it now sees the software giant as a direct competitor. The business collaboration agreement between the two companies sees Samsung pay Microsoft north of $1 billion in patent royalties and $6.9 million interest due to payment delays. Microsoft took action in early August in an attempt to collect the cash.


However, that's unlikely to happen if the New York federal court, where the filing is made, decides in favor of Samsung. The company says that because of the Nokia acquisition, Microsoft violated its 2011 deal with Samsung. According to the deal, Samsung had to pay Microsoft royalties in exchange for a patent license on its Android smartphones.
Because Samsung is also making Windows Phone devices and shares confidential business information with Microsoft, the Redmont company agreed to reduce the royalty payments. Acquiring Nokia has made Microsoft a direct hardware competitor to Samsung and the South Koreans claim this will create problems with US antitrust laws for the software giant.
"The agreements, now between competitors, invite charges of collusion," Samsung said in the filing. However, Microsoft won't give up and is "confident" in the strength of its case. We'll continue to cover the development of the court case between the two companies and inform you if Microsoft will get its patent licensing fees or if Samsung will save $1 billion.

SmartBand Talk rolling out right about now

SmartBand Talk rolling out right about now

Some exciting news – today, the SmartBand Talk app has just gone live in the Google Play Store, as our new SmartWear device launches over the coming weeks*.
SmartBand Talk is our powerful, IP68-rated lifelogger – we built it for those who live life to the fullest. The curved, always-on 1.4” E-ink display is a fresh creative approach, based on your feedback – it’s power efficient lasting up to three days, but highly visible and clear, so you can view notifications & the time at a glance, and monitor Lifelog activity.
It sits above compact but powerful sensors – accelerometer and altimeter technology feel how you move – and how much – enabling you to accurately log life. You can see how active you were, what you’ve been doing and how you have been communicating, as it pulls all of your information to display a digest on-screen and the full story within Lifelog.
Our favourite feature? SmartBand Talk has an in-built microphone and speaker so you can take and make calls, complete with HD Voice support – useful for when you’re on the move or your phone is out of reach!
SmartBand Talk Small
The SmartBand Talk app will let you do some pretty neat stuff (if we say so ourselves), including;
  • Connecting to, and remotely locating SmartBand Talk
  • Customisation of your settings:  notifications, text orientation… to name but a few
  • Extension control – management of those extra additions to your experience; media player, weather, life bookmark, call favourites… with many more to come!
Stay tuned for more on SmartBand Talk over the coming weeks, as we plan to add more features to the software to keep the experiences as current as they possibly can be.
*Timings & availability will vary by market/operator, and some regional operator & market exceptions will apply – please check in locally for the latest information

Impossibly slim, breathtakingly light – Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact

Impossibly slim, breathtakingly light - Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact

You’ve all heard about our new Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact and how it’s the world’s slimmest and lightest waterproof compact tablet*. Well, with the retail launch just around the corner, we wanted to bring you a little infographic to show you just why we’re so proud of the new edition to our Xperia tablet family.
Z3 Tablet Compact infographic
*Compact Tablets are defined by Strategy Analytics as tablets with a display size greater than 7 inches and less than 9 inches. Xperia™ Z3 Tablet Compact is slim (6.4mm), light (270g), dust-tight and waterproof (in compliance with IP65/68).  Specifications verified by Strategy Analytics’ SpecTRAX Service as of 26th August 2014, for more information on Strategy Analytics results go to: www.sonymobile.com/testresults. For more on waterproof go 

Trick or Triathlon – Happy Halloween from Sony.

Trick or Triathlon – Happy Halloween from Sony.

This week physical stamina meets phone stamina as we challenged the Olympic triathlon medallists – brothers Jonny and Alistair Brownlee to an endurance test like no other.
The #GoTheDistance challenge involved a two day race across northern England where the sporting champions were pushed against a surprising competitor – Another athletic star? Another Olympic medallist? No, the brothers raced against the battery life of Sony Mobile’s new Xperia Z3 to test just how much is possible from one single charge.
Day one of the ordeal saw the brothers and Xperia Z3 compete through a range of events starting with swimming across the ice-cold Ellerton Lake, cycling the summit of Buttertubs Pass and finally running towards the Scottish border through Northumberland National Park.
The Xperia Z3 was used continuously throughout each stage and impressively ends “Day 1” with 50% charge, but which team will triumph in the end? The flagship smartphone or the world acclaimed sporting brothers?
You’ll have to stay tuned, but you can catch the first instalment of the action below:
From racing to releases – we’re pleased to announce that the PlayMemories Online App has become accessible for PS4 users this week. Users can now access their entire photographic collection directly through their PlayStation 4 with unlimited uploads via a PC, Mac, iOS or Android phone. PlayMemories Online allows users to sync, organise and enjoy each and every one of their visual memories – anywhere, anytime. Try it out now and bring your old memories back to life, the app is available to download via the PlayStation Network.
With today’s festivities we’re sure you’ve got plenty of funny snaps to share! But why not make your Halloween photos stand out from the crowd with our latest terrifying AR theme – Horror. Edit and add gruesome and animated effects to all of your Halloween pictures and videos to ensure your family and friends are shaking in their boots. The petrifying app allows you to discover an amazing augmented reality world where your friends are transformed into a series of ghosts, monsters, zombies and ghouls!
Talking of transformations tomorrow marks the beginning of Movemeber.
The Movember campaign is an annual event that sees men from all over the world put down their razors for 30 days and dramatically change their appearance by growing an elaborate moustache. The event aims to raise awareness of men’s health issues for an array of charities by sparking conversations and raising funds.
Look out for some marvellous moustache makeovers whilst you’re playing your PS4 as illustrator Tom Mac has redesigned some famous Sony characters as ‘you’ve never seen them before’ including Sackboy, iota, Delsin and Ellie.
To showcase your own hairy makeover simply tweet us a photo with our official hashtag #PS4Movember. If facial hair isn’t your thing then why not support the cause by purchasing one of our DualShock 4 light bar vinyl moustache stickers and give your controller a revamp instead. Stickers are available at selected retailers now.
That’s it from us now; we hope you have a frightful Friday!