Making use of before/after effects, NVIDIA showed off the graphics and performance of Dead Trigger 2 with a Tegra 4 processor in comparison to Tegra 3. This is all in preparation for the 2013 E3 gaming conference scheduled for next week. The Tegra series emphasizes low power consumption and high performance for playing audio and video. There are definitely some nice improvements— check it out for yourself after the break. » Read the rest
Samsung has released a new video on YouTube touting the capabilities of the Galaxy Note 8.0. Samsung’s S-Pen equipped note devices previously came in the phablet size hovering around 5.5-inches or the large tablet size at 10-inches. The new device which went on sale this year, tries to bring the Note’s strengths to the small tablet market with an 8-inch screen. Like its siblings, the device sports an S-Pen with “air” capabilities and the ability to run multi-window capable apps.
The video follows a male character throughout his day, first traveling to work, then attending some meetings, and finally running some errands before meeting a girl. Along the way he describes via his voice-over some of the things he can get done with his Galaxy Note 8.0 like reading, scheduling meetings, taking notes, and navigating with the device. Throughout the video, Samsung stresses the Galaxy Note 8.0 is the “best fit” for the demands of daily life.
Check out the video after the break. » Read the rest
The event that Asus began promoting about a month ago with its series of video trailers is now available to watch in its entirety. Asus made use of the “We Transform” mantra as expected, and unveiled some pretty interesting products including the Transformer Pad Infinity, Fonepad Note, MeMoPad HD7, MeMoPad FHD 10 and Transformer Book Trio. Check out the full video after the break. » Read the rest
Developer Days of Wonder has released the Android version of their popular Ticket To Ride title to the Google Play Store. The game is available across a variety of platforms, including a non-digital board game. With an intuitive interface, users should be able to jump right in and play this strategy title, but to do well they may want to check out the video tutorial below to better understand the basic flow and options in the game. Gameplay involves a virtual board with train routes laid out from and to several destinations. Players receive “cards” for trains and destinations with the challenge then to claim routes on the board. The longer your routes, the more points you can earn. However, other players may block your route if they sense your plans. This can not only reduce the length of your routes diminishing your possible points, you could end up holding destinations in your hand which results in negative points. » Read the rest
Radio Shack is unveiling a new deal that will allow customers to trade in their old devices for an in-store credit toward the purchase of any Samsung device.
There are a few caveats, however. The Samsung device you are getting in return must be branded by Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint, and the amount of credit you receive for your trade-in varies by device and the accessories that you trade in along with the device. According to Radio Shack, the only two devices that will get you a $300 credit are the Samsung Galaxy Note II and the AT&T 64GB iPhone 5. You also have to sign a new 2-year contract with the purchase of your Samsung phone.
The deal ends on July 7th, so if you’re looking to get a new phone, you may want to take advantage of this program.
Source: Radio Shack
It’s the first week of June gang— so it’s time for us to go through the latest comScore report with you all. Based off the the latest data, Apple continues to hold steady as the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer with a 39% market share (a minor increase from the previous month-end period), followed by Samsung at 22% and HTC at 8.9% (a 0.8% decline from the previous period). Despite Apple’s cemented status as the top dog in smartphone manufacturing king, it’s the Android platform that is still the overwhelming leader in the mobile world. Google’s popular platform currently holds over half of the overall smartphone market with a comfortable 52% share, followed by Apple (with a 1.4% increase in the market) at a 39.2% share and Blackberry at 5.1%.
Asus has been busy this week announcing two new tablets, a phone and a transforming laptop/tablet that dual-boots Android and Windows. If that wasn’t enough, Asus CEO Jerry Shen took the opportunity to show off an unannounced tablet (called the MeMo Pad FHD 10 LTE) with an LTE radio built in during a Qualcomm keynote. The device, due out sometime in Q3 of this year, will obviously be powered by one of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors.
The tablet is almost identical to the MeMo Pad FHD 10, including a full HD display and ditching the Intel Atom processor for a Snapdragon. In his words, “In Q3 of this year, we will raise the bar of mobile devices by launching an incredible LTE tablet, which will have Qualcomm Snapdragon, full HD display and ASUS SonicMaster to bring our consumers the most superior and seamless mobile experience. I will save the rest for our launch event in the fall.”
Unfortunately that is all we know for now, but as usual check back constantly for more news as we get it.
Source: Engadget
As proven by Dr. Dre’s Beats Audio venture and its inclusion in multiple HTC handsets, there is money to be made in endorsement deals, especially of the hip-hop variety. Page Six reports that hip-hop mogul and entrepreneur Jay-Z is putting the finishing touches on a huge $20-million dollar deal with tech giants Samsung that may include a new social media network. If true, this has been a big year for Jay, launching a talent agency, music festival and co-producing a major motion picture.
Not much else is known about the deal but feel free to speculate in the comments section below. Samsung Galaxy S Hova? Jigga-branded headphones? Perhaps new media-creation software? Anything is possible, and I for one am excited to see what comes out of this partnership.
Source: Huffington Post
Last week I wrote a story about my thoughts on where I think the Nexus line is headed. Google was never a hardware company, but when Android was at its infancy, Google got into it for investing in cutting edge hardware along with their partners to guide the ecosystem. Fast forward to now and things have changed a lot. Google no longer needs to guide the ecosystem. Companies like Samsung, HTC, LG, and Sony are doing just fine in investing in the latest and greatest. It is this reason that I believe Google will not release a Nexus phone moving forward, and instead, let OEM’s release Nexus Editions for their current hardware. The reason for all of this is quite simple, Google isn’t a hardware company, they are an advertising and service company.
A recent article at DigiTimes suggests that my conclusions were right. They are reporting that Google will cut a lot of the resources and money they have spent on handset development and shift it to improving its software and core business. Just take a look at this year’s Google I/O for further evidence. Hardware was never mentioned other than the Galaxy S 4 Nexus Edition. Yes, the reason was because they wanted to “concentrate on developers” since it is a developer conference, but it’s obvious that hardware isn’t going to be the focal point anymore, at least for handsets. They will still invest resources in other newer and developing technologies like Google Glass, set top TV boxes, and smartwatches.
More photos of the alleged HTC One Mini (originally codenamed the M4) have found their way to the internet showing off the phone’s gorgeous design. As you can see it is extremely similar to the HTC One including HTC’s signature front-facing speakers and a 4.3-inch display (with a reported resolution of 720 by 1280). Also evident in the photo is HTC’s inclusion of Sense 5 on top of Android Jellybean 4.2.2.
Packed into the device is 2 GB of RAM, some sort of dual-core processor and 16 GB of internal storage. The camera is the same 4-megapixel camera as seen on the HTC One, with UltraPixel technology included. What the device’s body is made from is still a mystery, although it looks like it may be the same seamless metal design as the One. Hit the break for more photos of this exciting new device. » Read the rest