Samsung gamepad for the Galaxy Note and Galaxy 3 S4: A second impression

Samsung has announced at the same time with the Galaxy S4 a gamepad, this was revised several times and shown at the IFA 2013 in an almost final version. For a few days the gamepad is now available in Germany as the first market - time for a second impression.

I had won on the Samsung Games Event The first impression and was surprised to say the least. The gamepad and an HDMI adapters convert the score 3 in a console. I'm not a big fan of consoles, but the gamepad is fun.

The noticeable limitation is still the Content: A couple of SEGA classics, a few well-known Android games, but here goes even more. Problem for me, too: Some of the games I had already purchased on Google Play, but the local versions do not always support the gamepad, so had to be moved into a customized version of the Samsung Apps. Teething, which is the first such device Samsung gamepad from a reputable manufacturer.

The games are somewhere between Playstation 2 and Playstation 3-level, cost significantly less, but do it anyway mood. The gamepad is 197 grams amazingly well in hand, the permanently installed 400 mAh battery lasts forever. The metal spring which presses the phone into two rubber lips at first getting used to (with three hands it would be easier ), but the smartphone will not budge in the holder.

In racing games, a position sensor, which would have probably also driven the price down to too high a level is missing. Use the buttons to do it, but the analog stick in the top left not really the first choice, a more accurate pressure point and if one gambles longer, the fingers slide quickly from the surface down. If possible, I constantly switched to the lower, digital, stick. Gaming for Android could do with the gamepad a giant leap. With new processors should be soon scratched the graphic quality of the PS3. Nintendo is absolutely necessary to tremble: Still rich titles to numerically be the market leader - if Samsung or Google but drive up the content amount, it is very fast tight, Sony and Microsoft have not (yet) a huge performance advantage. Yet.

Samsung Galaxy S II Plus gets Android 4.2.2 in Germany - even before the Galaxy S III and Mark II [XXUBMG8]

While users of last year's flagship Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II are still waiting for an update to Android 4.2.2, get the Samsung Galaxy S II Plus in Germany now just this Android iteration.

The update with the version number XXUBMG8 (more I9105PXXUBMG8) is available via KIES and brings some improvements in performance with it, also part of TouchWiz were adjusted.Since the Samsung Galaxy S II Plus with an approximately similar performance hardware as the Galaxy S II is an update to Android 4.2.2, it is quite likely that the Galaxy S II (conceived differently by Connect without any source) a receives update to Android 4.2.2.

That the Galaxy S II Plus now gets in front of the Galaxy S III and the Note II Android 4.2.2, in my opinion could have two reasons: Firstly, the less popular device could be a kind of guinea pig for the update - but for others, it might also indicate that Samsung will bring Android 4.3 for the Galaxy S III and Mark II actually directly.

Source: Android Help via MrMad

Nokia EOS to launch as "first real PureView Windows Phone" later this year: Report

Ever since the launch of the first Nokia PureView device, there have been speculations that Nokia may launch a similar camera smartphone based on the Windows Phone OS. And if reports by The Verge are to be believed then this smartphone could already be in the works.

The tech blog claims that Nokia is currently working on a smartphone that is codenamed "EOS" and it sports a camera sensor, which is similar to the one that is on Nokia's 808 PureView. Furthermore, it claims that unlike the recent devices in the Lumia series, the EOS smartphone might sport an aluminium exterior instead of polycarbonate.

The Verge also states that the EOS is expected to be a new flagship device from the company that will launch later in the year. For now, there are no more details available regarding specifications of the device.

Nokia had first showcased its 808 PureView at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2012. This smartphone garnered a lot of attention, thanks to the massive 41-megapixel camera sensor that it has on-board. Other features of the smartphone include a 4-inch 360x640pixel AMOLED display, 16GB of internal storage, 1.3GHz processor and Nokia Symbian Belle OS.

Nokia 808 PureView debuted in India in June 2012. Its current price is mentioned as Rs. 26,499 but it is currently listed as out of stock on Nokia India official store.

Earlier in the month there were also reports doing the rounds that Nokia is working on a successor to its current flagship smartphone the Lumia 920, which is codenamed "Catwalk". The reports also claimed that this device will come with an aluminium body and will be lighter and thinner than the Lumia 920.

Huawei finally launches Ascend W1 with Windows Phone 8

After launching Huawei Ascend Mate and Ascend D2 at the CES 2013, the Chinese handset maker is now showing some Windows Phone 8 love.
Huawei had long been mentioned as one of the four original Windows Phone 8 manufacturers and while we've seen Windows Phone 8 offerings from Nokia, HTC and Samsung, Huawei had been missing in action until now.
Huawei has finally launched its Ascend W1 smartphone, which comes with a 4-inch IPS LCD screen and a resolution of 480x800. It is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8230 dual-core 1.2GHz processor with 512 MB of RAM. There is 4GB on-board memory, which can be expanded to up to 32GB with a microSD card.
Huawei Ascend W1 runs on Windows Phone 8 and comes with 1,950mAh battery that claims to give 470 hours of standby time,. There is 5-megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash on-board.
The company has announced that this smartphone will be first available in China and Russia markets from January 2013. Later it will be available to UK customers through operators Telefonica O2. It will come in two colour options - blue and ruby-pink. So far, Huawei has not indicated the price for this smartphone.
Huawei Device UK and Ireland Executive Vice President Mark Mitchinson said: "Windows Phone 8 is tremendously exciting in terms of both its functionality and the practical benefits it delivers. With the Ascend W1, Huawei has created a product to put this fresh smartphone experience within reach of a much wider audience. O2's record of championing innovative brands and technologies is remarkable, and we are delighted to partner with it for launch of the Ascend W1 in the UK."


Key Specs of Huawei Ascend W1

• 4-inch IPS LCD screen with 480x800 resolution
• Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8230 dual-core 1.2GHz processor
• 512MB RAM
• 4GB internal storage, can be expanded up to 32GB
• 5-megapixel autofocus rear camera
• Windows Phone 8
• 1,950 mAh battery

Nokia to launch Lumia 920 and Lumia 820 in India on January 10

After much delay, Nokia is finally set to launch its Windows 8 flagship devices, Nokia Lumia 920 and Lumia 820 in India. The company has already sent out invites for a January 10 event. Additionally the Finnish handset maker is also running small teaser television ads featuring a yellow Nokia Lumia 920 with a yellow wireless charger to help create buzz around the smartphones.

Nokia introduced Lumia 920 and Lumia 820 at a gala event in September 2012. Nokia Lumia 920 is a Windows 8 smartphone, which features a 4.5-inch PureMotion HD display. It is powered by dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 CPU with 1GB of RAM. It has 32 GB of internal storage, 8.7-megapixel rear camera and a 1.2-megapixel front shooter. Nokia Lumia 920 has a 2000mAh battery and supports wireless charging.

Nokia Lumia 820 on the other hand is a mid-range smartphone. It features a 4.3-inch Clearblack display and is powered by 1.5GHz Qualcomm S4 dual-core processor. It comes with a 8-megapixel rear shooter and a VGA front camera. Nokia Lumia comes with 8GB of internal storage and runs on Windows 8. The India price for both these smartphones is not known so far.

Nokia Lumia 920 first started shipping to markets like France and UK markets in October, and it was earlier speculated that Nokia Lumia 920 will be launched in India by November. However, that did not happen, perhaps because the device was in short supply in some markets.

The smartphone has received a warm response in United States mostly due to the aggressive pricing strategy adopted by Nokia in this market. Even in a price sensitive market like India, Nokia will have to price the smartphone attractively to make sure that it generates keen interest amongst Indian consumers.

Samsung Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note, Galaxy S Duos, Galaxy Ace Duos India prices slashed

Samsung seems to be looking at spreading some New Year cheer for its patrons in India. According tofonearena.com, the Korean smartphone maker has dropped the prices of Samsung Galaxy S III, Samsung Galaxy Note, Samsung Galaxy S Duos and the Galaxy Ace Duos.
Samsung had launched its flagship smartphone Samsung Galaxy S III in May 2012 for Rs. 43,180. This smartphone had got a sharp price cut in September 2012 and was retailing for Rs. 34,900 and is currently available for Rs. 31,990.
Similarly, Samsung Galaxy Note, which was retailing for Rs. 29,990 from September onwards, is now available for Rs. 27,500.
The 4-inch Samsung Galaxy S Duos which was launched in September for Rs. 17,900 is available for Rs. 14,900 after the price revision. The other features of this smartphone include 1GHz processor, 5-megapixel rear camera and VGA front camera. It runs on Android 4.0.
Lastly, Samsung Galaxy Ace Duos is now retailing for Rs. 10,900. This smartphone was launched in India in the month of June for Rs. 15,090. It is a dual-SIM smartphone, which has a 3.5-inch TFT touch screen display with a 320x480 pixel resolution. Samsung Galaxy Ace Duos is powered by 832 MHz processor, has 512MB RAM and 3GB internal memory, which is expandable up to 32GB via microSD card.

Samsung reportedly ready to launch two Galaxy S II Plus variants in Jan 2013

2012 witnessed the launch of plenty of interesting Near Field Communication (NFC) smartphones and looks like 2013 is going to be no different in this regards. About fortnight ago we had reported that Samsung is working on Samsung Galaxy Grand Duos and Galaxy S II Plus.
According to Unwired, Samsung is expected to launch two variants of Samsung Galaxy S II Plus - GT-i9105, and GT-i9105P. The only difference between these two Samsung devices will be that GT-i9105P will support NFC while GT-i9105 will not.
Samsung has launched Samsung Galaxy S Plus in August 2011 as an upgrade to Samsung Galaxy S. However, this time around Samsung Galaxy S Plus II does not seem to be much of an upgrade. Reason being Samsung Galaxy S Plus II is speculated to have the same 4.3-inch screen with 480X800 pixel resolution like Samsung Galaxy S. Moreover, instead of 1.2GHz processor, Samsung Galaxy S Plus II is expected to have just a 1GHz processor.
On the positive side, Samsung Galaxy S Plus II will most likely be running on Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean)
It is being speculated that Samsung Galaxy S II Plus will be launched in January 2013 and Sam Mobileclaims that it will be available in two colour options - Chic White and Dark Blue. However, there is no information available in regards to what could be the price of this smartphone
There are also speculations that Samsung will be launching an upgraded version of Samsung Galaxy Pocket, which will be dubbed Samsung Galaxy Pocket Plus S5301.

Samsung Galaxy Music Duos now for Rs. 9,199

Samsung has officially started selling the Galaxy Music Duos through its official online store for Rs. 9,199.
Samsung had announced the Galaxy Music and Galaxy Music Duos smartphones back in October. Samsung Galaxy Music Duos is a dual-SIM phone which comes with a 3.0-inch QVGA display. It comes with 512MB RAM, 4GB internal storage (expandable by another 32GB) and runs on Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich).
Other features include a 3-megapixel rear camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and a 1300mAh battery. The smartphone is targeted at music lovers and comes with a dedicated music key, music player with SoundAlive, 3.5mm ear jack, stereo FM radio with RDS, built-in FM antenna and frontal stereo loudspeaker with SRS surround audio effect.
It is available in two colour options blue and white. Earlier this month, Samsung's online store had started taking pre-booking for this smartphone but taken it off in a matter of minutes.
Samsung Galaxy Music Duos will be competing with the likes of Sony Xperia tipo dual. Sony Xperia tipo dual features a 3.2-inch TFT display with 480x320 pixel resolution and run on Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). There is 800MHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor on board along with 512MB of RAM. This smartphone comes with 2.5GB internal storage and can be expanded up to 32GB via microSD. It is currently retailing at a street price of approximately Rs. 10,000.
The Sony smartphone has a slightly bigger screen and is a little bit costlier than Samsung Galaxy Music Duos.
Samsung Galaxy Music Duos key specifications

• 3.0-inch QVGA(240x320) display
• 4GB User memory + 512MB(RAM), microSD (up to 32 GB)
• Dual-SIM GSM+GSM
• 3-megapixel fixed-focus rear camera w/ no flash
• Music player with SoundAlive
• 3.5mm ear jack, stereo FM radio with RDS
• Built-in FM Antenna
• Frontal stereo loudspeaker w/ SRS surround audio effect
• GPS/ Glonass
• Bluetooth 3.0, USB 2.0, Wi-Fi b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct
• 110.1 x 59.0 x 12.25mm, 106.9g
• Li-ion 1,300mAh battery

Bend it like Samsung: New Galaxy phone may have unbreakable screen

Samsung Electronics, the world's leading technology company by revenue, is likely accelerating the launch of its next-generation flagship Galaxy smartphone - which may come with a breakthrough unbreakable screen.

Codenamed "Project J" after mobile division chief JK Shin, development of the new Galaxy S IV could be aimed for release by as early as April, according to analysts and tech blogs.

And, as smartphones increasingly look alike - the converging form factor - an unbreakable screen could be a big selling point for the Galaxy, which is battling Apple Inc's iPhone to lead the $200 billion plus smartphone market.

The Galaxy S IV is also expected to have bigger and better display, powerful quad-core processing power and a 13-megapixel camera, with picture density improving to 441 pixels per inch (ppi), a big improvement from the Galaxy S III's 306 ppi and better than the iPhone 5's 326 ppi.

"Looking to the first half of 2013, we see evidence of Samsung likely accelerating the release of the Galaxy S IV - compared with May (this year) for the Galaxy S III," said UBS analyst Nicolas Gaudois. "We believe preparations for volume manufacturing of unbreakable plastic substrate displays continue. All in all, we could see a strong products push in the high-end in the first half, followed by other releases."

Samsung declined to comment.

Samsung, a major backer of organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display, is a frontrunner in developing unbreakable screens, as OLED panels can replace glass substrate with plastic material. Down the road, mobile gadgets could be flexible as well as unbreakable.

"Eventually, they'll have unbreakable and flexible displays. Either the Galaxy S IV or S V will have unbreakable and even possibly flexible and foldable displays by 2014. That's going to be a game-changer," said Mark Newman, an analyst at Stanford Bernstein in Hong Kong.

Both Newman and Gaudois are ranked as 5-star analysts, the top ranking, by Thomson Reuters StarMine for their recommendations on Samsung.

Courtroom revisited 
It would also be a game-changer for Samsung, which has built its reputation as a 'fast follower' of others' technologies and designs.

The South Korean consumer electronics giant faces off against Apple again on Thursday in a U.S. courtroom for a follow-up ruling on whether it copied some of its U.S. rival's patents and should pay the $1 billion awarded to Apple by jurors in an August verdict.

Samsung wants the verdict overturned, while Apple wants the damages to be increased and Samsung phones banned in the United States.

Since that landmark verdict, however, Samsung shares have gained 14 percent to record highs, while Apple shares - dented by a maps app fiasco, tight supply of its iPhone 5 and ever tougher competition in the mobile market - have slipped by nearly a fifth, wiping more than $120 billion off its market value.

Barring any extra costs related to the U.S. ruling, Samsung should report a fifth straight record profit this quarter, as profits from its component business recover and more than offset thinning margins on mobile phones - squeezed by higher year-end holiday marketing campaigns.

"Samsung's strength extends beyond cool products, they're also a leader in the technology behind these devices. We see further upside to Samsung's stock as success in smartphones continues and chips and display profits also rebound," said Newman. "In smartphones, the opportunity is for Samsung to take more share from Apple in the premium segment, where Apple is still dominant."

UBS estimates Samsung will ship around 22.5 million of its Galaxy S III and Note II devices in the quarter to end-December, up from 20 million in July-September. Shin said in November that Galaxy S III sales would hit 40 million by the end of this month.

In a worst-case scenario for Samsung, U.S. judge Lucy Koh could treble the damages payable to Apple, given the jury in August found Samsung "wilfully" infringed some Apple patents.

"That would be a major blow to Samsung's fundamentals and overall investor sentiment, but it's not the most likely scenario," said Young Park, a 4-star StarMine analyst at Woori Investment & Securities.

© Thomson Reuters 2012

LG launches Optimus L9 with Android 4.0 for Rs. 23,000

LG has officially launched its Optimus L9 in India for Rs. 23,000. Last week, we had reported that this smartphone was up for pre-orders for Rs. 19,990.
LG Optimus L9 comes with 1GHz dual-core processor and 4.7-inch IPS display. It has a qHD (960x540 pixels) display and runs on Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). The smartphone also comes with 1GB RAM, 5-megapixel rear camera and high-density 2150 mAH SiO+ battery.

While Optimus L9 does come with premium design elements that were taken from Prada Phone for LG, the main focus seems to be on the software part. LG has bundled QTranslator, MY Style Keypad and QMemo apps on the smartphone.

According to Mr. Soon Kwon, President South West Asia Region & MD, LG India, "Smartphones today have become an essential part of life. People see it as an extension of themselves. Smartphones have come a long way from where they had started and today's smartphones are a far cry from their bulky ancestors. LG Optimus L9 has been designed in a way that it can cater to every need of smart consumers who demands a powerhouse of style, performance and efficiency in their smartphones."

"With LG Optimus L9, users can take advantage of premium smartphone features - a stunning display, a powerful processor and a long-lasting battery - in a sleek design. LG Optimus L9 is equipped with the an updated software, state-of-the-art hardware, and several new exciting features, helping it elevate user experience to a whole new level", added Mr. Soon Kwon.

Apart from LG Optimus L9, the Optimus L-Series of smartphones includes the Optimus L7, L5, and L3.

Key specs for LG Optimus L9

• Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
• 1GHz Dual-Core
• 4.7-inch IPS Display
• 1GB DDR2 (RAM) / 4GB e-MMC
• 5MP rear / VGA front
• 2150mAh SiO+ batttery
• 131.9 x 68.2 x 9.1mm / 125g
• DLNA