TalkAndroid Daily Dose for May 20, 2013

by Robert Nazarian on May 20th 2013, 11:28pm
tagged Daily Doses

With hectic schedules, it can be hard to keep track of everything in your news feed. That’s why we created the TalkAndroid Daily Dose. This is where we recap the day’s hottest stories so you can get yourself up to speed in quick fashion. Happy reading!!

Guides

How to disable annoying Android notifications

Apps

Samsung’s annual Smart App Challenge has arrived, will focus on Chord SDK

Google+ Android app update includes photo enhancement and auto-backup features

Google Hangouts to seamlessly integrate Google Voice in the future

» Read the rest

T-Mobile set to introduce the Galaxy S III LTE June 5th, Galaxy Exhibit smartphone on May 29th

by Roy Alugbue on May 20th 2013, 2:41pm
tagged Galaxy Exhibit, Galaxy S III LTE, LTE, Samsung, SGH-T599, T-Mobile

In an effort to keep its devices up-to-date and current, it appears that T-Mobile has a few new bad boys the way for its customers. First off the bat, the gang at TmoNews got some information on the imminent Galaxy S III LTE variant that is on the way. According to the leak, T-Mo plans on updating its Galaxy S III supplies with the LTE variant and plans on unveiling the device to its customers on June 5th. Of course we new that this special version of the device was in the works for some time now, but hey— the release is better late than never, right? » Read the rest

Samsung WatchOn app update hints at the Galaxy S 4 Mega, Mini, and Active

by Aditya Thawardas on May 20th 2013, 12:30pm
tagged galaxy s 4, Galaxy S 4 Active, galaxy s 4 mega, Galaxy S 4 Mini, Samsung

For some time now, rumors have been going around that Samsung will release different versions of the Galaxy S 4, including the S4 Mini and a rugged version, reportedly called the S4 Active (previously the Activ). A recent update to the Samsung WatchON app further supports the rumors.

The recent 5.4 update to Samsung WatchON includes the following text in the changelog: “Added support for upcoming S4 Mega, S4 mini and S4 Active.” We hadn’t heard about the Galaxy S4 Mega yet, but it doesn’t take a genius to suggest that it will be what its name suggests — a bigger version of the S4. Another possibility is that Samsung made a typo and they instead meant the Galaxy Mega, which is in fact supposed to come with WatchOn.

Considering this is an app developed and released by Samsung, I think this provides enough evidence to think that these phones will be arriving in the near future. Just when? Here are the release dates that were leaked earlier this month.

Source: Android Central

Retailer Adorama lists Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 for $199

by Jeff Causey on May 20th 2013, 12:26pm
tagged Adorama, galaxy tab 3 7.0, Samsung

Although Samsung has not announced official pricing for the upcoming line of Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 devices, one retailer has already listed the 7-inch version on their web site for $199.99. Adorama added an 8GB version of the Galaxy Tab 3 in white to their shopping cart system, indicating buyers won’t be charged until the item is shipped. However, they do not give any indication as to an expected shipping date. Considering the low price point, this is most likely the WiFi only version which Samsung indicated would be available starting in May. A 3G capable version is expected in June.

Some people are expecting Samsung to set price points for the Galaxy Tab 3 devices at increments of $100 as you move up in size from 7-inch to 8-inch to 10-inch. If true, that would put the Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 at $399 for a base model.

source: SamMobile

Samsung’s annual Smart App Challenge has arrived, will focus on Chord SDK

by Harrison Kaminsky on May 20th 2013, 11:32am
tagged Chord SDK, Group Play, Samsung, Smart Apps Challenge

This year’s Smart App Challenge by Samsung has arrived, and will focus on creative usage with its Chord SDK. The Chord SDK features quick peer-to-peer sharing, and allows for collaboration and sharing info/media between multiple devices on the fly.

There’s $800,000 in prize money at stake for 10 different applications. The possibilities are essentially limitless for this new technology, and perhaps the most impressive demonstration of what the SDK can do is featured in the surround sound speaker mode. Samsung will take entries from June 20th to August 31st and the winner will be announced this December.

This adds a fresh perspective to what Samsung is trying to accomplish and it will be exciting to see the outcome of the competition.

Source: Samsung Developer Site

LG to unveil 5-inch unbreakable and flexible OLED display this week

by Robert Nazarian on May 20th 2013, 10:12am
tagged flexible displays, LG, Samsung, unbreakable displays

The Society for Information Display’s annual show is taking place this week in Vancouver, Canada and LG something special to unveil. For the first time in public, they will show off a 5-inch unbreakable and flexible OLED panel for mobile devices. The flexible part is cool, but the unbreakable part might actually be more meaningful right now. Replacing panels on phones and tablets can be pretty costly.

We have been hearing about similar products from Samsung as well, but LG is expected to trump Samsung by bringing this new technology to market quicker. Many people were hoping that the Galaxy Note III would sport something flexible, but Samsung just isn’t in a position to make that happen yet. Depending on the jumpstart, LG could put a dent into Samsung’s mobile market share.

Hit the break for the full press release.

» Read the rest

Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active outed for your viewing pleasure

by Roy Alugbue on May 20th 2013, 9:54am
tagged galaxy s 4, Galaxy S 4 Active, leaks, Samsung

We have certainly heard about the Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active before, but we finally have a concrete idea of what to expect upon its imminent release in the immediate future. The design will not exactly be similar to the Galaxy S 4 smartphone, as it will feature an appealing and sporty red and black profile, as well as hard buttons below the display (sigh). Additionally, the device will feature a Snapdragon 600 1.9GHz quad-core processor + Adreno 320 GPU and a 5-inch 1080p Super AMOLED display.

Unfortunately, there are still no other details regarding the device’s specs, nor are there concrete dates on when the device will be released (though we suspect it will be sometime in July), but here’s hoping we see something revealed sooner than later.

source: GSM Arena

Unlocked Samsung Galaxy S III gets a taste of Android 4.2.2, thanks to leaked firmware

by Roy Alugbue on May 20th 2013, 9:32am
tagged Android 4.2.2, galaxy s iii, GT-i9300, leaks, Samsung

Despite it aging at a fast rate (in Android years at least), the Galaxy S III smartphone is still one hell of a smartphone. So that’s why Samsung has been hard at work ensuring its most successful device to date will continue to receive prompt updates in order to keep things current. With that in mind— a leaked Android 4.2.2 firmware has surfaced for the unlocked variant of the device, courtesy of the fine folks at SamMobile. As expected, the leaked firmware is based off an incomplete version of the imminent update— but fortunately it appears that Samsung is pretty much done ironing out the bugs and should have the finished Android 4.2.2 build by the time June rolls around. Aside from the fact it is an incomplete version, the update does bring a ton of new goodies for the device including a new lockscreen, new S Voice, Driving Mode and a revamped Settings UI, among other things.

If you are a GT-I9300 owner and want more deets on the mouthwatering firmware, hit the break to grab the download link, as well as full instructions on how to flash the update to your device. » Read the rest

Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 rumored to ship with Intel processor

by Harrison Kaminsky on May 19th 2013, 2:14pm
tagged atom, Clover Trail+, Galaxy tab 3 10.1, Intel, Samsung

According to a GL Benchmark test, a device with the model number GT-P5200 is going to include a 1.6GHz dual-core Intel Atom Z2560 Clover Trail+ processor working with a PowerVR SGX 544MP GPU. The GT-P5200 name seems to code for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1, as the GT-P5100 was the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1.

There were reports earlier this month of the same device running a 1.6GHz processor on the AnTuTu Benchmark site, which matches perfectly with the current information. It is rumored that Samsung is working on three variants of this device, one coming with only WiFi capabilities, one with both 3G and WiFi, and another with 4G LTE and WiFi.

We expect the device to launch with a 10.1-inch screen with a 1280 by 800 resolution. There’s no word yet on when the new Galaxy Tab will launch, and how much it will cost.

Source: GFX Bench

TalkAndroid Weekly Recap for May 13 – May 19, 2013

by Robert Nazarian on May 19th 2013, 1:55pm
tagged Weekly Recaps

We had another busy week at TalkAndroid so here’s a recap of all the top stories. Google I/O was this week, so it’s no surprise that it dominated the headlines. Google officially unveiled their new unified messaging service called Hangouts and their new gaming service called Play Games Services. They also unveiled their new streaming music serviced called Play Music All Access. The only hardware announcement was the Galaxy S 4 Google Edition. All in all, it was an exciting event that featured a lot of new stuff for development, which is what Google I/O is all about. Even though I/O was the focal point for the week, there was still a lot of other news, so it’s time to get caught up and get ready for another exciting week.

Guides

Best Android music playing applications [May 2013]

Reviews

Quiz of Seers [Brain & Puzzle]

WeVideo – Video Editor [Media]

Google I/O

Re-experience all three exciting hours of the Google I/O 2013 keynote right here

Google I/O 2013 Keynote: Android activations account for nearly 1/7th of the world’s population with 900 million total activations

Google I/O 2013 Keynote: Play Store will bring more personalized recommendation, apps that will be “Designed for Tablets” and new All Access music subscription service

Google announces unlocked Samsung Galaxy S 4 with stock Android coming June 26 for $649

Google Play Developer Console gets a major injection of new features

Google announces Google Play for Education at Google I/O 2013