Micromax Canvas Knight A350 with 5-inch 1080p display, Octa-Core processor, 16MP camera announced in Russia
Micromax Canvas Turo A250 is the company’s latest flagship, and the Canvas Turbo Mini A200 would launch soon. Micromax entered into the Russian market earlier this week with its Canvas line-up. It had also announced the Canvas Knight A350 in Russia, as reported by PCMag.Ru. It has a 5.0-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) IPS display, powered by a 2 GHz octa-core processor and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean). It features a 16-megapixel auto focus rear camera with LED Flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera.
- 5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) IPS display
- 2 GHz Octa-Core processor
- Dual SIM
- Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
- 16MP auto focus camera with LED Flash
- 5MP front-facing camera
- 7.3mm thick
- 3G HSPA+, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth, aGPS
- 3.5mm audio jack
- 2GB RAM, 32 GB internal memory
- 2350 mAh battery
LG G Pro 2 with 6-inch 1080p display, 3GB RAM rumored to debut at MWC 2014
Rumors about the LG G3 surfaced last month, which is expected only in the second half of 2014. As the MWC nears , more rumors have started flowing in about LG’s upcoming devices. The LG G Pro 2 phablet with a 6-inch full HD display is expected to be unveiled next month, according to Korea’s ETNews. The LG Optimus G Pro had a Snapdragon 600 processor and 2GB of RAM, the G Pro’s successor is expected to come with a Snapdragon 800 processor, similar to the LG G2 and would have 3GB of RAM to compete with the Note 3. It would run on Android 4.4 KitKat out of the box and have LTE-A support for select markets such as Korea.
Other details about the smartphone such as camera, Internal storage and the battery capacity are not available yet. It should probably have a better camera, more internal storage and a larger battery, since the phone would have a large screen. It might also bring new software features for better multi-tasking, similar to the Samsung’s Multi-Window.
Other competitors such as Sony and HTC are expected to unveil their flagship devices at the MWC 2014 or closer to the MWC late February. Rumors about the LG G2 mini surfaced last month, which might also be unveiled next month.
Qualcomm acquires a big patent portfolio from HP
In a recent move by Qualcomm to gain advantage in the smartphone market, it acquired patents of Palm Inc and iPaq smartphone among the other patents from HP. The total number of patents involved in the acquisition include 1,400 granted patents and pending patent applications from the United States and about 1,000 granted patents and pending patent applications from other countries that include China, England, Germany, Japan and South Korea. However, there was no word on the price that Qualcomm gave for the patents.
Qualcomm is currently the market leader in smartphone chipset technology. The chipset company from San Diego also earns by licensing its patents and with the new acquisition from HP that comprises Palm OS patents, it hopes to extend its income. Prior to being acquired by Qualcomm, Palm Inc was acquired by HP in 2010 along with its WebOS and PalmOS technologies. However, since both of them failed to catch up with Android, HP had to sell off WebOS to LG which is currently using WebOS for its range of smart TVs.
According to Qualcomm’s spokesperson the acquisition of new patents will not result in increased royalty rates for existing Qualcomm licensees.
Samsung sends invites for Tizen event at MWC
Delayed (again) but not dead (yet) – Samsung has sent out invites to a Tizen event at MWC where it will showcase the newest Tizen devices. "What devices?" you might be asking yourself – so far only a camera has been announced, a variation on the Android-powered Galaxy NX.
The event, which will be held at the Arts Hotel in Barcelona on February 23 is invite-only and will feature representatives from some of the biggest Korean carriers – SK Telecom, KT and LG U+. NTT DoCoMo, the biggest carrier in Japan, will likely not be there as it cancelled its initial plans for a Tizen device.
Now, officially there's no information on just what devices Samsung will be showing, but it can't be just for the camera, right?
Samsung originally announced that it will be showing Tizen phones at the MWC, but then another Samsung official backtracked on that. It won't be the first time Samsung officials promise something for the MWC only to have someone else say "no".
Nokia MWC 2014 event scheduled for February 24
Nokia has pinpointed the date for its Mobile World Congress 2014 press event. You can mark your calendars for Monday, February 24 when the event will start at 8:30AM (7:30AM GMT).Reading "Meet us under the tree," the press invite carefully keeps Nokia's cards close to its chest and doesn't reveal anything. It's possible for the company to be having a word play with "tree" standing for three smartphones.
In fact there are rumors floating about for three new additions to the Lumia family: the 1520V, 1525 and 1820. The Lumia 1520V is rumored to be a 4.3" smartphone with a design similar to that of the Lumia 1520 (hence the name). With a 1080p resolution, 2GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, the Lumia 1520V is set to rival the Sony Xperia Z1 Compact and will feature a Snapdragon 800 chipset like its bigger brother, the Lumia 1520.
The mini Lumia 1520V is also said to pack a 14MP camera at the back with a 3,000mAh battery capable of wireless charging. Moreover, it's believed to debut the Windows Phone 8.1 operating system, but for now those remain unfounded rumors.
Onto the Nokia Lumia 1820, which is expected to feature the latest Snapdragon 805 chipset with 3GB of RAM and a 5.2" display of 2K resolution. The juicy configuration is going to draw power from a 3,400mAh battery. The internal storage is going to be 32GB with no microSD card to be making its way to the rumored phone just yet.
The rumor mill reckons the Lumia 1525 phablet is going to be the third phone of the family that'll make it to MWC 2014. At this point, there aren't much rumors to paint a picture for it, but it's believed to be a 6" phablet.
Lastly, there's the highly anticipated Android smartphone from Nokia codenamed Normandy. It's been leaking extensively with live photos and UI screenshots, but nobody knows if Nokia will unveil it at MWC 2014. The Mobile World Congress saw Nokia make a bang in 2012 with the 808 PureView cameraphone, so why not shock the world again in 2014 with an Android phone?
The Nokia Normandy is said to run Android 4.4.1 KitKat and pack a 854 x 540 resolution display. It's also hinted by the leaked UI screenshots to boast dual-SIM functionality.
You can bet we'll be there to cover everything that Nokia has to offer in Barcelona this February. Tune in for extensive coverage from the MWC 2014 showroom floor next month!
Intel introduces Android-based Education Tablet with 10.1-inch HD display, Atom Z2520 processor
Intel has introduced its first Android-based Education Tablet reference design aimed at students and schools. The tablet has Education materials for students, and tools for teachers to manage e-learning classrooms. It is a part of Intel Education Solutions which has Intel Education Software that includes tools for 21st century learning, communication, collaboration, problem solving, critical thinking and literary skills. This tablet is rugged, which can withstand 70 cm drop, has IP52 rating for dust and water resistance.
It has also introduced classmate PC running on Windows 8.1 and Intel Celeron processor N2806 at the Bett 2014 in London, which is also aimed at education.
The tablet comes with a range of useful educational accessories including,
- Active stylus
- Snap-on magnification lens
- Plug-in thermal (temperature sensor) probe for experiments that plugs into the tablet’s audio jack
- 10.1-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) IPS LCD 5-point multi-touch display
- Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
- 1.2 GHz dual-core Intel Atom Z2520 processor
- 5MP rear camera
- 1.26MP front-facing camera
- 70cm drop-resistance, IPS2 for dust and water-resistance
- 1GB LPDDR2 RAM, 8/16/32GB internal storage, micro SD card slot
- 3G (Optional ), WiFi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, NFC (Optional), Micro HDMI, GPS (Optional)
- Up to 12 hours of battery life
Dual-SIM Samsung Galaxy S III Neo+ goes official in China
While the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo continues its journey of leaks, the company has launched the Galaxy S III Neo+ in China.Featuring a similar design to the Galaxy S3, the S3 Neo+ is built around a 4.8" Super AMOLED display, which rocks 720p resolution. The pixel density is 306 ppi, which is very respectable. Under the hood, there's a 1.4GHz quad-core CPU of unknown architecture - we guess it's the dated Exynos 4 Quad 4412 with four Cortex-A9 cores, but it could also be a Snapdragon 400 with Cortex-A7 processor. It's joined by 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal memory, which is expandable via the microSD card slot that's on board.
Unsurprisingly, the battery cover is removable and reveals the dual SIM card slots (3G + GSM), the aforementioned microSD card slot and the 2100mAh battery. The Samsung Galaxy S3 Neo+ weighs 132 grams and measures 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6mm - exactly the same as the Galaxy S3 (with the negligible difference of 1 gram in weight). At the back, there's an 8MP camera with LED flash capable of recording 1080p video.
The dual-SIM capabilities of the Galaxy S3 Neo+ include dual-standby and there's a neat manager available inside Android 4.3 Jelly Bean that handles the switching between the two. The supported WCDMA networks bands include 850/900/1900/2100 MHz, while on GSM, they're 850/900/1800/1900 MHz.
Pricing and availability aren't detailed at this point. We suspect the Galaxy S3 Neo+ will make an appearance in Chinese retail stores as well as major carriers pretty soon.
Huawei Ascend P6 S with 4.7-inch 720p display, 1.6 GHz quad-core processor launched in China
Huawei has launched the Ascend P6 S, the successor of last year’s Ascend P6 in China. It has a 4.7-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) display based on in-cell LCD screen technology, similar to the Ascend P6, but this one is powered by a 1.6 GHz quad-core processor and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) with Huawei’s own Emotion UI 2.0 on top. It is not clear if this uses quad-core Huawei HiSilicon processor.
Huawei Ascend P6 S specifications
- 4.7-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) capacitive touch screen display based on in-cell LCD screen technology
- 1.6 GHz quad-core processor
- Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) with Emotion UI
- 8MP camera with BSI sensor, F2.0 aperture, 4cm macro lens
- 1080P full HD video recording and playback
- Dual SIM (micro SIM) with dual standby
- 5-megapixel front-facing camera
- 6.48 mm thick and weighs 120 grams
- 2GB RAM, 16GB internal memory
- 3G HSPA+, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, USB OTG, NFC
- 2000 mAh battery
Huawei MediaPad 7 Youth2 with 7-inch display, quad-core processor, Android 4.3 announced
Huawei unveiled the MediaPad 7 Youth last year, now the company has unveiled MediaPad 7 Youth2, successor of the first MediaPad Youth tablet . It has a 7 -inch (1024 x 600 pixels) 5-point multi-touch display, powered by a 1.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snadpragon processor and runs on Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) with Huawei’s Emotion UI 1.6 on top. It has 3G connectivity through a SIM card slot, 3-megapixel rear camera and a VGA front-facing camera.
It has a sleek metallic frame and comes with a 4100 mAh battery that uses Huawei’s owb patented power-saving tech and Dynamic Power Management system for better battery. This would directly compete with the Galaxy Tab 3 Lite, that was announced recently.
- 7-inch (1024 x 600 pixels) capacitive touch screen display
- 1.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snadpragon processor
- Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) with Huawei Emotion UI 1.6
- 3MP rear camera
- 0.3MP front-facing Camera
- 9.9 mm thick and weighs 350grams
- 1GB RAM, 4GB Internal memory Expandable memory up to 32GB with micro SD
- 3G (HSPA+ up to 21Mbps), Wi-Fi b/g/n, GPS / aGPS
- 1080p Full HD Video Playback
- 3.5mm audio jack
- 4100 mAh Li-Polymer battery
Sony D6503 Sirus specs leaked, 5.2-inch 1080p display, 3GB RAM and Android 4.4
Images of Sony D6503 surfaced recently, now detailed specifications of the smartphone has leaked on the same XDA thread. This reveals that the phone would feature a 5.2-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) display, powered by a 2.26 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974AB) processor with Adreno 330 GPU and run on Android 4.4.2 (KitKat) OS. It would have a 20.7-megapixel rear camera and a 2.1-megapixel front-facing camera.
It is expected to come with 3GB of RAM and obviously have a micro SD slot, as we had seen on the leaked images, but details about the internal storage and battery life are not available yet. As you can see, the phone has a white status bar on top with new fonts in KitKat, but the specs details on the left side still shows older Android 4.3 build. The KitKat update is also expected to bring new features to the phone.
Even though Sony had already confirmed KitKat update for a range of devices, it is still rolling out Android 4.3 for its devices. Will this be the first to launch with Android 4.4 out of the box? Let us wait till MWC next month to find out.
HTC M8 to retain 1080p display resolution, user agent confirms
The HTC M8 leak marathon continues with an User Agent Profile coming straight from the HTC website. The successor to the popular HTC One didn't get too many of its specs listed there, but at least we got official confirmation of its screen resolution.The profile confirms 1920 x 1080 pixel screen - the same as on the HTC One. We also learned an interesting detail on the controls of the smartphone - according to the profile the M8 won't have any physical buttons on its body. This means HTC might be shifting to virtual buttons - like on the Nexus line of devices, the LG G2, many Xperia smartphones and others.
There's nothing else worth mentioning so we'll do a little recap of what we've heard so far. The HTC M8 could be called HTC One+ or HTC Two, the latter appears unlikely but stranger things have happened.
The chipset is taunted as a MSM8974 - the same Snapdragon 800 found in the LG Nexus 5, LG G2, Nokia Lumia 1520 and others. The screen could be between 4.9" and 5", the camera is said to be another Ultrapixel unit with no word on the exact resolution. No word on whether the device will feature a fingerprint scanner like the HTC One Max, but chances seem high.
Samsung Galaxy S5 - no iris but fingerprint scanner
According to reports from various industry sources Samsung has decided to skip the iris scanner for its upcoming Galaxy S5 flagship, but instead will focus on fingerprint scanning technology.According to a KoreanHerald source, who wished to remain unnamed, Samsung is testing different types of biometric scanners but has deemed the iris (read eye) an unintuitive one. Just imagine getting your eye close to the front of the device every time you want to unlock it. Now imaging doing so in a dark room, cinema or when you're wearing sunglasses.
Such a scanner will also involve placing a new, long-range, camera module inside the device - either one for selfies and one for scanning or a more elaborate one for both tasks.
Despite executive vice president Lee Young-hee's claim that the company is studying iris recognition as an option, it will reportedly focus instead on embedding a fingerprint scanner under the display so that the device will unlock once you touch it.
Biometric companies IriTech Inc. and Sambon Precision and Electronics Co. both deny reports of having talks with Samsung about using their iris-scanning technology. Swedish fingerprint-scanning firm Fingerprint Cards AB, however, has acknowledged that it's talking with major smartphone makers, including Korean ones. Keep in mind that LG is also reportedly working on embedding a fingerprint scanner in its LG G3 smartphone, that is coming this year.
Apple revived the fingerprint scanner by using it in their iPhone 5s smartphone and others, like HTC, have been working on implementing the technology even before Apple. As it turned out, though, the HTC One Max arrived to the market later than Apple's flagship.
SK Telecom to introduce 300Mbps LTE-A this year
Korean carrier SK Telecom plans to introduce its updated LTE-A network by the end of 2014, which will be capable of supporting speeds of up to 300Mbps.
The carrier will be able to double the standard LTE-A speed of 150Mbps by utilizing its new technology called 3band LTE-Advanced. It relies on aggregating different frequency bands in order to double the throughput and achieve the impressive 300Mbps downlink speeds. In the case of SK Telecom, the carrier plans to use the 20MHz and 1.8GHz bands in conjunction with the 10MHz and 800MHz bands.
The carrier will demo the new LTE-A technology at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month. South Korean customers of the carrier will be able to enjoy the new service by the year's end. Naturally, they'll need devices that is supports LTE-A to do so, but those aren't too rare these days.
Back in June 2013, SK Telecom and Samsung debuted the first generation (150Mbps) LTE-A service in South Korea with the Samsung Galaxy S4 Snapdragon 800 version.
Apple could out a 4.7-inch iPhone 6 as early as June
Chinese analyst Sun Chyang Xu has reported that Apple plans to release an upcoming iPhone 6 model with a 4.7" screen this June, with production expected to get under way in May. Unfortunately, it will retain the 1136 x 640 pixel density of its current iPhone 5s flagship.
This confirms earlier gossip coming out of Apple's supply chain regarding two upcoming iPhone 6 screen sizes. Additionally the additional information regarding the production and release dates makes sense, as it would coincide with Apple's WWDC on June 10.
Two major iPhone variants would also fall in line with Apple's new release cycle of two devices per year, which it introduced this year with the iPhone 5s and 5c.
XOLO Q700S announced with 4.5" display and quad-core CPU
It has metallic finish for premium look and feel, says Xolo. The company launched the Q700, its second smartphone in the Q CORE series back in May 2013 and launched the Xolo Q700i with upgraded camera in October.
Xolo Q700S Specifications
- 4.5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) IPS display
- 1.3 GHz Quad-core Mediatek MT6582M processor
- Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
- Dual SIM (GSM + GSM)
- 8MP rear camera with LED Flash, 1080p video recording
- 0.3MP front-facing camera
- 8.9 mm thick
- 3.5mm audio jack, FM Radio
- 1GB RAM, 4GB internal memory, 32GB expandable memory with MicroSD
- 3G (HSDPA: 21 Mbps, HSUPA: 11 Mbps), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS
- 1800 mAh battery
The XOLO Q700S is priced at INR 9,999 ($162) and will be available in silver and gold.
Nokia’s unannounced Lumia 929 goes on sale in China
In a truly bizarre fashion, the yet to be announced, Nokia Lumia 929 went on sale in China. The top-end Windows Phone device is currently available for purchase in the popular online marketplace TaoBao for ¥3800 ($628).
Also known as Nokia Lumia Icon, the smartphone is shown in a number of live photos, proudly wearing its Verizon Wireless branding. This is hardly a surprise, as the handset is bound to replace the Nokia Lumia 928 when it goes official on the Big Red.
In addition to the host of live photos, the seller reveals the full specs of the Nokia Lumia 929. They include Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in memory, microSD card slot, 5” 1080p display, and 20MP PureView camera.
With enough leaks this far to leave nothing to imagination, all Verizon and Nokia are left with, is to finally take the wraps off the device. Considering its recent appearance on the carrier’s webpage, we doubt it will be a long wait.
Huawei quietly launches Ascend P6 S with minor changes
Huawei quietly put out an S version of its super-thin Ascend P6 smartphone. The Huawei Ascend P6 S is 0.3 thicker, but still only goes as high as 6.5mm, though it has the same battery capacity of 2,000mAh.
The chipset has been bumped up a bit and now features a quad-core 1.6GHz processor (up from 1.5GHz). It’s not clear if it’s Huawei’s own chipset again, but there’s no LTE support either way. It’s a dual-SIM, dual-standby phone, the original P6 had a dual-SIM option.
The rest of the specs are identical - 4.7” LCD with 720p resolution (the display works with gloves), 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, 8MP main camera and a 5MP front-facing camera.
The Ascend P6 S runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean with Emotion UI 2.0 on top. The phone is currently available on Vmall (Huawei’s own web store) and is available only on China Unicom.
The price is CNY 2,700 ($446 / €330), but is temporarily CNY 300 off (until tomorrow). This puts the price at the same level as the 8GB Ascend P6 (CNY 2,400). The regular price is the same as the Ascend Mate 2, which went on sale a couple of days ago.
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