mobile

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

China Mobile jumps the gun with an ad of the two iPhone 6s models

China Mobile is already advertising the Apple iPhone 6 in its two varieties with a 4.7" and 5.5" display. A tipster sent us a photo of a carrier banner placed on a street in China.

As you can see, this is the first time we see an official render of the two phones side by side. Our Chinese isn't spotless, but a rough translation of the banner suggests China Mobile will be taking pre-orders for the 5.5" iPhone 6.In the banner, you can spot the calendar icon on the 4.7" iPhone 6 shows the date September 10. Most likely, the phone's pre-order will commence, while an educated guess will put the actual shipping date for either September 19 or 26.The banner ad mentions pricing, but it's for the carrier's iPhone 6 tariff and not the device itself. However, the 4.7" iPhone 6 pricing in Russia is tipped to be about $810 (RUB 29,990), while the 5.5" model will retail for approximately $945 (RUB 34,990). We assume those will be for the entry level storage option,which would be 16GB. The 128GB version of the 5.5" iPhone 6 is suggested to be in the $1215 - $1350 range (RUB 45000 - RUB 50000).The 5.5" iPhone 6 is rumored to sport a more potent hardware in addition to a sapphire display. We did an extended preview on what to expect from today's Apple event, where you'll find all the information there's to know.

Verizon launches Android 4.4.4 KitKat for the Samsung Galaxy S5

The Samsung Galaxy S5 on Verizon is receiving an over-the-air update today bumping Android to version 4.4.4 KitKat. The update weighs 346MB and fixes an issue with Bluetooth audio. Hopefully, there won't be the occasional loss of audio when using certain Bluetooth headsets anymore.

Additionally, there are some security patches part of Android 4.4.4. There aren't any changes regarding the user interface of any other features of the phone.

You can also check out the source link to the XDA Developer forums thread, where Verizon Galaxy S5 users are discussing the update. There, you'll also find the download link for the update, in case Verizon hasn't sent it out to you yet and you feel like flashing it manually.

UPDATE: Moto 360 teardown reveals lies: battery is smaller than claimed

t’s important for your devices to last you at least one day of use. You don’t want to be carrying around a useless device just because the battery ran out. That’s why there’s so much focus on the battery size in the current crop of Android Wear watches. The Gear Live has a 300 mAh battery, the G Watch a 400 mAh, and the Moto 360 an advertised 320 mAh battery.

iFixit did what they do best and disassembled the Moto 360, showing off every part in all of its round glory. However, one thing doesn’t match up: the battery. Inside the device, they found a 300 mAh battery, 20 mAh smaller than Motorola claims. While 20 mAh doesn’t seem like much, it’s over 6% of the battery gone.

Motorola definitely has some explaining to do, because this kind of deception isn’t exactly pleasant. While most people won’t care, we’ve already heard reports of less than stellar battery life compared to the competition. Hopefully there’s a good explanation for all of this.

Update: Motorola has responded to these allegations. Here is what it had to say:

The typical battery capacity for Moto 360 is 320mAh and the minimum is 300mAh. In the mobile industry, sometimes both the minimum and typical capacity is listed on the battery, with the typical capacity quoted as the official battery size. Both figures are included on the batteries of our Moto X, Moto E and Moto G devices. In the case of smaller devices, we aren’t always able to list both figures. For Moto 360, we only had room for one figure and choose to list the minimal capacity of the battery. We see how this can be confusing and we will look into ways to add the typical capacity as well in the future.
Motorola

While there is plenty of room to list both capacities, and most battery manufacturers don’t list both, we can leave it at that. If Motorola says it’s 320 mAh, we’ll believe them. Put your pitchforks down and let’s just enjoy the beauty of the Moto 360.

Moto X getting Android 4.4.4 update

Motorola has been busy announcing some new hardware, but it hasn’t been too busy to continue updating its devices. The first generation Moto X is rocking Android 4.4.4 on many carriers, and Canadian carrier Rogers is next.

If you own a Rogers Moto X, you should be getting the update right now. Head to Settings > About phone and check for new updates. While the update won’t be changing much, it’ll add some security fixes and bug fixes, along with the option to turn off the carrier name in the status bar (if it’s like the other 4.4.4 updates, that is). Let us know when you get yours!

LG G Watch goes on sale, only $179

We’re sure you’ve heard of the Apple Watch by now. Yes, Apple has just announced its own smart watch, and it looks quite a bit like an LG G Watch (you can argue which looks better in the comments). However, with a far away release date and a crazy price tag of $350, it seems much harder to justify. And to make it even better, LG has temporarily dropped the price of the G Watch.

For fall, the LG G Watch now costs $179 on the Play Store. This is literally half of what the Apple Watch costs, which is surely no coincidence. With the Apple Watch being so ridiculously expensive, I don’t think LG could have made a better move than to put the G Watch on sale. This will surely appeal to fans of Android.

If you want to grab one, hit the source link or head to a Best Buy, which also has the device on sale. You have until September 23 to take advantage of this deal, so get on it!

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Top 5 most popular Android apps from last week: Folr, Blinkist

Every week we cover new Android apps with Fresh Meat on Wednesday, followed by Android Gaming on Thursday and Top 10 App Updates on Friday. When Monday rolls around, we look back to see which apps were the most appealing to our audience. Read on for the 5 most popular Android apps from last week. These apps are ones that are most likely new and haven’t appeared in the Top 5 list more than 3 times.

1. Bring! Shopping List

App info: Bring! allows you to create a shopping list in seconds. At a glance, Bring! informs you which items still need to go into the shopping cart. And thanks to the automatic sorting, shopping is a breeze.

2. MIX by Camera360

App info: Created by the team behind the popular Camera360 app, MIX is the most creative and comprehensive standalone DIY photo effects layering and blending app.

3. Blinkist

App info: Tailored for your mobile lifestyle, each of our blinks can be read in no more than 2 minutes. Whether you want to make the most of your waiting time or learn something new on your daily commute, we support the pursuit of continuous learning even in the busiest of schedules.

4. Metromile

App info: The Metromile app helps make car ownership easier, less expensive and more enjoyable! Review your driving stats, get insights into your car’s running condition and even find your car if it’s missing. After you sign up for an account, we’ll send you our “Metronome” device that plugs into your car’s OBD-II port.

5. Folr

App info: Folr is a location-tracking application that gives real-time information on the whereabouts of family members, significant others, best friends and more. Installed on any mobile device (smartphone or tablet), it unobtrusively updates you on the locations of the most important people in your life.

Note: To ensure that all apps receive a fair chance to make the list, we will retire any app that has made the list for three consecutive weeks and will place it in our Android and Me App Hall of Fame. We will post this Hall of Fame list in a dedicated series. Any app with * next to the title indicates it will now be added to our Hall of Fame list and will no longer be listed in this article.

Apple TV special events channel launches hours ahead of 'iPhone 6' & 'iWatch' event

As Apple gears up for what at least one national news channel has called a "historic" announcement, the iPhone maker has re-added its own Special Events channel the Apple TV, providing interested consumers with another avenue for watching the event unfold live.

The channel is predictably sparse, given its single-purpose mission, providing a countdown to Tuesday's event as well as the ability to rewatch previous Apple keynotes. Its icon has been updated to match the stark Apple artwork that adorns the latest event-related materials.

Apple is widely expected to introduce at least one model of the next-generation iPhone — possibly two, with a 5.5-inch "phablet" device joining the 4.7-inch variant — alongside as the long-anticipated "iWatch" and a new iTunes-backed mobile payment system. The second-generation iPad Air has been rumored to make an appearance as well, though that has gone largely unsubstantiated.

In addition to second- and third-generation Apple TVs, interested parties can watch the live stream on Apple's website, where it has taken over top billing. Viewers will need Safari 5.1.10 or later on OS X 10.6.8 or later, or iOS 6.0 or later if watching from an iPhone or iPad.

AppleInsider will be on hand at the Flint Center in Cupertino and will bring live coverage of Tuesday's announcements.