LG G Flex set for international release

December date pegged for flexible phone.

LG’s much-vaunted G Flex, the company’s first phone to pack a flexible display, is set to make its international debut next month. The curved-screen wonder has been available in the company’s native South Korea since early November.
A special media event, detailing plans for the device’s global rollout, will be held on December 3rd in Hong Kong. Orange's French division has already said it’ll be selling the G Flex across the pond ahead of Christmas.

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HTC One Dual SIM makes UK debut

Number-switching comes to flagship phone.

HTC has confirmed that the One Dual SIM blower is on its way to the UK, having already made its debut in China in recent weeks.
The new version of the Taiwanese mobile-maker’s flagship device has the ability to handle two SIM cards simultaneously, making it perfect for those who pack two devices for work and home.
There’s a special dual-network manager tool, which allows users to personalise each SIM to prevent confusion when taking calls.

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iPhone 5S stock shortages ease on UK networks

Calm breaks out in the iPhone market.

Supply of the iPhone 5S is finally catching up with demand, spelling an end to mammoth delays that have blighted the phone’s release thus far.
Until recently, online orders placed with UK carriers were subject to wait times of up to four weeks. That applied irrespective of the colour or storage variant you were after.

However, signs are now abroad that the situation has eased. Just in time for this year's seasonal stampede.
Cursory visits to O2 and EE's sites pledge that orders processed today will be delivered within two working days. That goes for every colourway. Even the massively in-demand gold model.
Meanwhile, Vodafone promises delivery dates of between one to two weeks for grey and silver models. Alas, if you want the gold handset, you’re still looking at a wait of two-four weeks.

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Samsung Galaxy S5 concept packs flexible screen and aluminium unibody

Another designer gets all ‘what-if?’ on us.

The next flagship Galaxy S smartphone will be a radical break with form. Or at least it will be if the Samsung-fixated sorts at galaxys5info.com have anything to do with it.
A designer at the site has worked up a concept phone packing the flexible screen technology that’s been earmarked for Samsung phones for what feels like ages. But which has been omitted so far, presumably because it’s not market-ready yet.

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Samsung Galaxy S3 gets Android 4.3 Jelly Bean and Galaxy Gear support

One-time flagship phone now plays nice with smartwatch.

Samsung has made Android 4.3, aka Jelly Bean, available for UK editions of the Galaxy S3, bringing some swell new features to the smartphone as well as support for the Galaxy Gear smartwatch.
The software is available to download over the air now for Galaxy S3 owners who bought their handsets off-contract. To get it, just head to 'Settings' and select ‘More’. Done that? Good. Then go to ‘About device’ and choose ‘Software update’ to start the download.
If you got your phone via a monthly contract, you’ll have to wait until your carrier approves the update. That's having first ensured it plays nice with whatever bloatware and services they’ve stealthily dumped on your Galaxy S3.

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Samsung Galaxy Round to be first flexible phone?

Round the bend.

The name of the first-ever flexible screen-toting smartphone might just have leaked online, ahead of its debut later this month.
According to sources cited by South Korean site Asiae, Samsung will opt for the name 'Galaxy Round', which we’re guessing alludes to the curved effect of the display.

The report, which puts the phone's asking price at $900, also claims that it's spec sheet will closely resemble the Galaxy Note 3 and that it will be made in very limited quantities.
This chimes with earlier leaks that claimed this was down to low production yields for the screen tech, as well as Samsung's wariness of overcommitting to technology that has yet to be properly tested with the public.

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Apple trims price of iPad Air and iPad Mini for Black Friday

iPhone and iPad Mini 2 discounts a non-starter, though.

Apple has cut the price of its flagship iPad and first-generation micro tablet for 24 hours, as the buying bonanza-cum-newly-minted-Xmas-tradition that is Black Friday gets underway.
Buy an iPad Air from the Apple Store today and you’ll qualify for a £31 discount on the 16GB model in its Wi-Fi-only and 3G flavours, bringing the asking price down to £368. Reductions on the 32GB, 64GB and 128GB models are £41, £51 and £61 respectively.

Disappointingly, there’s no discount on the iPad 2, aka the slate that Apple’s diktats insist we refer to as the ‘iPad mini with Retina Display.

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Top 5 iPhone 5S alternatives

Other smartphones are available....

There’s an awful a lot to love about the iPhone 5S. But there’s a lot that people aren’t so keen on too.
Problems with iMessage and a divisive new version of Apple's operating system mean that for every person who loves iOS 7, there’s one who preferred iOS 6.
Look no further than our poll to see just how much His Iveness’s meisterwerk has split opinion.
Add to that glitches with gyroscope and compass levels, random reboots, reports that up to 25% of iOS users experience motion sickness due to the software’s whizzy animations and issues with logouts and it’s fair to say not everything is rosy in iPhone 5S land.
The good news is that you’re ready to leave the walled-garden of the iPhone and take a walk on the wilder, less restricted shores of Android and Windows Phone, there are plenty of cool smartphones to choose from.
We’ve corralled the pick of the year’s handset objets de desir right here to help you make your mind up.
 

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Samsung Galaxy Note 3 bundled with free Galaxy Gear smartwatch

Flavor Flav-style massive timepiece up for grabs gratis.

One of the UK’s largest retailers is offering Samsung’s debut smartwatch for free when customers shell out for the Galaxy Note 3, amid reports that consumers’ response to the smartphone peripheral is more than a little disappointing.
Under the terms of Phones 4U’s offer, gadget-fanciers who buy the Note 3 on a two-year monthly contract at £42.99 per month before Thursday (that’s November 14th, date fans) qualify for a free Samsung Galaxy Gear.
Depending on where you do your gadget-shopping, the smartwatch is normally priced between £240 and £299 or so.
Alternatively, you can pick up Note 3 for £39.99 per month and shell out £99.99 upfront for the Gear. [Affects voiceover voice] ‘It really is up to you’.
Phones 4U’s promotion comes after evidence that the Gear was being returned by a frightening one out of three customers at Best Buy stores in the US, for reasons that have yet to be fully determined.

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iPad mini 2 on sale today from Apple, supply shortages looming already?

But for how long?

The iPad mini 2 is on sale now at the Apple Store, defying rumours that the tech giant would be forced to delay the slate due to manufacturing problems and stock shortages.
At the time of writing, the space grey and silver-white models were both in stock in all storage iterations. However, some models are in short supply already, it seems.

Order the space-grey Wi-Fi-only model in either the 16GB or 32GB flavour and you’re looking at a paltry wait of between one and three days before it’s dispatched. But if you want any the Wi-Fi-only 64GB or 128GB models or any of the 4G-capable editions, you’re warned to expect a wait of between five and ten days.
Choose the silver-white iPad mini 2 in any storage option and it's the same story, with delays of between five and ten days for it to be despatched in every iteration except the Wi-Fi only 16GB and 32GB iterations. As with the space-grey colourway, these ought to sent out within three days of reciept of your order.

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Moto G gets priced up ahead of launch

Cheap SIM-free price

Motorola’s Moto G smartphone isn’t due to get the official nod until September 13th. But Amazon UK appears to have got trigger happy, revealing the price and firming-up rumours about the device’s spec sheet.
The mid-tier Android phone will cost just £159.99 when it’s launched tomorrow. That’s for a 16GB model, with higher pricing expected for more capacious devices.
The rear shell will be available in a number of different, unspecified colours, while the screen will come in at a more than ample 4.5-inches. A quad-core processor completes the picture, suggesting the Moto G will be impressively specced considering the cost.

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Samsung Galaxy S5 concept packs flexible screen and aluminium unibody

Another designer gets all ‘what-if?’ on us.

The next flagship Galaxy S smartphone will be a radical break with form. Or at least it will be if the Samsung-fixated sorts at galaxys5info.com have anything to do with it.
A designer at the site has worked up a concept phone packing the flexible screen technology that’s been earmarked for Samsung phones for what feels like ages. But which has been omitted so far, presumably because it’s not market-ready yet.
The 5.3-inch flexible OLED YOUM screen wraps around the edges of the phone, with touch-sensitive controls where you’d normally expect to find a physical volume rocker. The standard physical home button has gone the way of all flesh too and is replaced by a touch sensor.

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iPad air and iPad mini 2 unveiled, more powerful and dropping November

Apple takes the fight to low-cost slates.

Apple landed a heavy one-two punch combination on its rivals in the burgeoning Christmas tablet market tonight, with the unveiling of new, significantly upgraded full-size and mini iPads.
The new full-size tablet has been re-christened the iPad air and was touted at the press event as the "biggest leap forward ever for the full-size iPad".

As its name suggests, it's 20% slimmer at 7.5mm thick and has slimmed down from 1.4lb to 1lb while retaining its 9.7-inch super-high-density Retina Display, thanks in part to a smaller bezel around the screen.
According to Apple's Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller this makes it by some distance the "lightest full-size tablet in the world" and offers a "dramatically different experience when you hold it".
Under the bonnet, the improvements are similarly far-reaching. For the first time, the iPad air debuts the same 64-bit A7 processor as the iPhone 5S, as well as the smartphone's M7 auxiliary processor. These combine for a tablet that's purportedly eight times faster than the original iPad.
The M7 takes some of the strain off the A7 and, in the case of the more portable iPhone 5S at least, serves a secondary purpose of offering more accurate motion-tracking for improved sports and so-called 'quantified self' apps.

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Samsung Galaxy S5 to pack 16-megapixel camera?

Camera details filter through.

Samsung’s Galaxy S4 has been on sale just shy of six months or so now. But already it seems the handset’s maker’s next flagship smartphone is starting to take shape.
Over recent weeks, a slew of reports have attested that the Galaxy S5 will pack iPhone 5S-style biometric security technology. But that it will scan users’ eyeballs and not fingerprints to determine their identity.

Depending on who you believe, the S5 is also rumoured to feature a faux-leather, Galaxy Note 3-style back, an aluminium unibody construction and possibly even a flexible display. Oh and could sport the octa-core Exynos processor that some expected to debut in the S4 too.
Today, we’ve been graced with some details about the S5’s camera. And assuming they’re on-point, it sounds like it could be one of its standout features.
According to Unwired View, which picked up the story from ET News, the S5 is almost certain to pack a 16-megapixel camera – up from the 13-megapixel snapper that features on the S4.
What’s less clear is who’ll be making it. The site claims that Samsung’s LSI wing and Sony are competing to get the nod, with obvious benefits and disadvantages either way. Not least the depth of experience with SLRs that Sony would bring.

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Microsoft’s iPad attack: If tablets are 'easy' why was the Surface a flop?

Back-biting is never a good look, says Joe Minihane.

This week’s blistering attack by Microsoft’s vice president of communications Frank Shaw on Apple’s decision to release the new iWork for free, and by extension its new iPad Air, shows an astonishing level of hubris.
In a blog post that appeared just hours after Tim Cook had gazumped Microsoft and Nokia’s announcements of new Windows Phones and a new Lumia tablet, Shaw tore into Apple’s move.
According to the Big M’s man, it showed that the ‘reality distortion field’ of an Apple event had extended beyond Cupertino, suggesting the coverage of the decision to free iWork was disproportionate.
This is always a complaint of companies who feel they’ve been treated unfairly by the media, when in fact they’ve been releasing products that have simply failed to capture the imagination of tech’s hardcore or the general public.
But beyond Shaw’s complaints about iWork, it’s his comments about Microsoft Surface that are particularly interesting.
He describes the tablet as a “single, simple, affordable device that helps you both lean in and kick back”.

Surface may well let you ‘lean in and kick back’. But the simple fact is that it has been an unmitigated disaster for Microsoft.
It had to write down $900 million to cover the cost of the device, making just $853 million from sales up to July.
There’s still no official word on how many were sold, even if the tech giant claims sales doubled in the most recent quarter.
This failure to reveal numbers means the slate has been a flop, make no mistake about that.
If it had been a success, Steve Ballmer would have been shouting from the rooftops.
Shaw’s assertion that “helping folks kill time on a tablet is relatively easy. Give them books, music, videos and games, and they’ll figure out the rest. Pretty much all tablets do that,” is also hilarious.

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HTC One and One Max get update to Android 4.3 Jelly Bean

Sense 5.5 incoming too.

HTC has begun rolling out Android 4.3 and HTC Sense 5.5 to its flagship One phone and its phablet cousin the One Max, bringing a suite of spiffy new features to the handsets.
Originally scheduled to arrive on European smartphones back in September, Android 4.3 isn’t a massive upgrade over 4.2. But it’s not without its merits, not least among them the fact it adds support for multiple users with security-protected profiles.
The fresh software (fresh-ish, anyway) also enables One and One Max users to pair their handsets with Bluetooth Smart accessories.
And the latest version of HTC’s Sense custom skin isn’t to be sneezed at either. This offers the chance to disable BlinkFeed and revamped, improved Camera, music and Gallery apps.

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LG G Flex curved phone official

Korea only.

LG has pulled the wrappers off the new G Flex curved phone in its home territory of South Korea. The first LG handset with a flexible display, it’s going head-to-head with key rival Samsung’s recently revealed Galaxy Round.
Rather than curving from left to right like Sammy’s effort, the G Flex uses a flexible display which curves from top to bottom. The idea is that the handset sits more comfortably when taking calls.
Packing a whacking 6-inch screen, the G Flex only manages to squeeze in 720p resolution, a step down from the 1080p devices that are dominating the top-end of the smartphone sector.

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iPad air to defy predictions and outsell iPad mini 2 by 2 to 1, survey reveals

Top-end tablet is most in-demand.

Analysts who forecast the iPad mini 2 would trounce the refreshed version of the top-end Apple slate in the sales stakes were wide of the mark, a survey suggest.
The second-gen iPad and the fifth-gen full-size tablet, now rebranded as the iPad air, debuted last week at an uncommonly busy launch event down at Yerba Buena.
In the week before the showcase, smartphone-industry sages from the likes of RBC Capital Markets predicted that the iPad mini 2’s Retina Display and keen price point would see it outsell its more established stablemate by a margin of two to one.
Not so, it seems. At least not if a uSwitch Tech poll can be believed.
Of the 538 customers asked which of the slates they intended to buy, 65.75% (or almost two thirds) named the iPad air. That’s an almost exact reversal of what analysts told us in the run-up to their grand unveiling.

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Samsung Galaxy Gear returns running at 1 in 3, says US retailer

First iterations of new gadgets are never perfect. But even so…

The Samsung Galaxy Gear has left early adopters unimpressed, it seems, with return rates at a cripplingly high level at one of the US’s largest gadget retailers.
According to a hush-hush doc procured from Best Buy reps by Geek, Samsung’s heavily marketed smartphone accessory is being brought back by 30 per cent of buyers.
The document states: "The Galaxy Gear attachment rate within Best Buy is the highest among all channels; however the overall return rate is trending above 30 per cent,
The reason for the slew of unhappy customers isn’t yet clear. But it’s certainly something Best Buy is keen to discern and has asked Samsung to help it investigate.
Until we find out for sure, our money is on the fact that right now very few Galaxy kits support the Gear; just the Galaxy S4 and the Galaxy Note 3. More importantly, this isn’t immediately apparent unless you closely follow news on tech blogs, so there's a good chance that punters are buying it without realising.
On the positive side, the range of supported kits is set to expand soon enough when Samsung rolls out Android 4.3 to the S3 and Note 2, both of which are expected to join the Galaxy Gear club soon.
Samsung is also set to add support for Samsung's Galaxy S4 Mini, S4 Active, Mega 5.8, Mega 6.3, and S4 Zoom at the end of the month with a separate update.
Reviews of the Gear in the tech press were distinctly average, with many highlighting a lack of third-party apps and the fact that Gmail is not supported as key deficiencies.

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Samsung Galaxy Gear returns running at 1 in 3, says US retailer

First iterations of new gadgets are never perfect. But even so…

The Samsung Galaxy Gear has left early adopters unimpressed, it seems, with return rates at a cripplingly high level at one of the US’s largest gadget retailers.
According to a hush-hush doc procured from Best Buy reps by Geek, Samsung’s heavily marketed smartphone accessory is being brought back by 30 per cent of buyers.
The document states: "The Galaxy Gear attachment rate within Best Buy is the highest among all channels; however the overall return rate is trending above 30 per cent,
The reason for the slew of unhappy customers isn’t yet clear. But it’s certainly something Best Buy is keen to discern and has asked Samsung to help it investigate.
Until we find out for sure, our money is on the fact that right now very few Galaxy kits support the Gear; just the Galaxy S4 and the Galaxy Note 3. More importantly, this isn’t immediately apparent unless you closely follow news on tech blogs, so there's a good chance that punters are buying it without realising.
On the positive side, the range of supported kits is set to expand soon enough when Samsung rolls out Android 4.3 to the S3 and Note 2, both of which are expected to join the Galaxy Gear club soon.
Samsung is also set to add support for Samsung's Galaxy S4 Mini, S4 Active, Mega 5.8, Mega 6.3, and S4 Zoom at the end of the month with a separate update.
Reviews of the Gear in the tech press were distinctly average, with many highlighting a lack of third-party apps and the fact that Gmail is not supported as key deficiencies.

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LG G Flex: Why curved phones will never catch on

LG’s new G Flex phone is the second curved phone released in the past month. The Korean company’s big-time rival Samsung released its Galaxy Round device to much fanfare in its home territory a few weeks ago.
It means flexible screens, so often touted as ‘the next big thing’ at tech trade shows, are finally getting something approaching mainstream recognition.
There are key differences between the two devices. LG’s phone curves from top to bottom, meaning it supposedly sits more comfortably on the face when taking calls.
Sammy’s effort curves from side to side, offering neat features which allow it to be pushed up to notifications without turning it on.
LG’s already giving it the big talk about the G Flex. It says it’s the first ‘real’ curved phone (it isn’t).
Its clever ‘self-healing’ rear cover is certainly a pointer to a time when minor scratches disappear after a few minutes.

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iPhone sales soar, but Apple profits drop

iPhone still on top.

Apple sold a massive 33.8 million iPhones in the three months from July to September, smashing its previous record for the quarter.
The number represents a substantial jump from the tech giant's sales of 26.9 million in the same period last year and 31.2 million handsets shifted from April to June this year.
That headline number covers the launch of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, which accounted for nine million sales in their opening weekend alone.
However, both devices only launched in the last week of the reported period, suggesting iPhone 5 sales remained strong over the summer.
Despite these impressive results, Apple profits slipped to $7.5 billion, down from $8.2 billion in the same quarter in 2012.

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Samsung Galaxy Round to be first flexible phone?

Round the bend.

The name of the first-ever flexible screen-toting smartphone might just have leaked online, ahead of its debut later this month.
According to sources cited by South Korean site Asiae, Samsung will opt for the name 'Galaxy Round', which we’re guessing alludes to the curved effect of the display.

The report, which puts the phone's asking price at $900, also claims that it's spec sheet will closely resemble the Galaxy Note 3 and that it will be made in very limited quantities.
This chimes with earlier leaks that claimed this was down to low production yields for the screen tech, as well as Samsung's wariness of overcommitting to technology that has yet to be properly tested with the public.
JK Shin, co-CEO at Samsung Electronics, is reputed to have told Korean press sorts to expect the tech giant’s first flexible smartphone this week.
The company, which was joined by LG in making a firm announcement about flexi-screen tech earlier today, has been touting bendy phones as concept devices at trade shows for years.

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Samsung Galaxy S5 concept packs flexible screen and aluminium unibody

Another designer gets all ‘what-if?’ on us.

The next flagship Galaxy S smartphone will be a radical break with form. Or at least it will be if the Samsung-fixated sorts at galaxys5info.com have anything to do with it.
A designer at the site has worked up a concept phone packing the flexible screen technology that’s been earmarked for Samsung phones for what feels like ages. But which has been omitted so far, presumably because it’s not market-ready yet.
The 5.3-inch flexible OLED YOUM screen wraps around the edges of the phone, with touch-sensitive controls where you’d normally expect to find a physical volume rocker. The standard physical home button has gone the way of all flesh too and is replaced by a touch sensor.

Read more »

Samsung Galaxy S5 concept packs flexible screen and aluminium unibody

Another designer gets all ‘what-if?’ on us.

The next flagship Galaxy S smartphone will be a radical break with form. Or at least it will be if the Samsung-fixated sorts at galaxys5info.com have anything to do with it.
A designer at the site has worked up a concept phone packing the flexible screen technology that’s been earmarked for Samsung phones for what feels like ages. But which has been omitted so far, presumably because it’s not market-ready yet.
The 5.3-inch flexible OLED YOUM screen wraps around the edges of the phone, with touch-sensitive controls where you’d normally expect to find a physical volume rocker. The standard physical home button has gone the way of all flesh too and is replaced by a touch sensor.

Read more »

Samsung Galaxy S5 concept packs flexible screen and aluminium unibody

Another designer gets all ‘what-if?’ on us.

The next flagship Galaxy S smartphone will be a radical break with form. Or at least it will be if the Samsung-fixated sorts at galaxys5info.com have anything to do with it.
A designer at the site has worked up a concept phone packing the flexible screen technology that’s been earmarked for Samsung phones for what feels like ages. But which has been omitted so far, presumably because it’s not market-ready yet.
The 5.3-inch flexible OLED YOUM screen wraps around the edges of the phone, with touch-sensitive controls where you’d normally expect to find a physical volume rocker. The standard physical home button has gone the way of all flesh too and is replaced by a touch sensor.

Read more »

LG G Pro Lite gets official

Phablet unveiled.

LG has given the official nod to the recently leaked G Pro Lite device. The super-sized phablet packs in average-sounding specs, pitting it against the slightly cheaper Samsung Galaxy Mega, as opposed to its Korean rival’s new, high-end Galaxy Note 3.
The Android 4.1.2-powered phone's key feature is the 5.5-inch display. That’s more than ample for watching movies on the move, although the 960x540 resolution doesn’t exactly excite. Sure, things will look sharp, but they’ll be well short of the HD standard we’ve come to expect.
There’s also an 8-megapixel snapper round the back, while under the bonnet there's 1GB of RAM and a 1GHz dual-core processor to keep things ticking along. That’s pretty sluggish by today’s standards, but should at least ensure the G Pro Lite is cheap.

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Google Nexus 5 and Android 4.4 Kit Kat dropping October 15th?

Google clearing the decks for double-whammy.

The future of the Android platform will hove into view next week, rumours suggest, amid chatter that October 15th will see the unveiling of the fifth-gen Nexus phone alongside all-new smartphone software.
Talk doing the rounds among developers at the Google Launchpad event indicates that the Nexus 5 and Android 4.4, aka Kit Kat, will show their faces at a press event in New York next Tuesday.
A double-whammy of announcements is entirely in keeping with Google’s previous form. The search giant typically uses new Nexus devices to showcase freshly baked versions of Android and set standards for manufacturing partners who base their handsets on the OS.

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BlackBerry sale: why it's descended into farce

Things have taken a turn for the ridiculous in Ontario.

For a once-great company, BlackBerry is really making a hash of its sale.
While Nokia bowed out gracefully, fixing up its inevitable deal with Microsoft with minimal fanfare, the deal to sell BlackBerry is becoming much like the launch of its products: Drawn-out and tedious.
After seemingly arranging a deal to sell to key investor Fairfax Financial, the company said others would be welcome to bid.
It then turned out it had spoken to Google and attempted to draw Samsung and LG into a battle for its patents and enterprise network.
That’s understandable. Analysts have said already that the company is worth far more broken-up than as a single entity.
But now Fairfax appears to be struggling to raise the necessary $4.7 billion to push its deal through.
And to make things worse, Mike Lazaridis, the man who founded the company but oversaw its descent into irrelevance, says he wants to buy the company.

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iOS 7 blocks unofficial Lightning cables

Third-party peripherals given the heave-ho.

iPhone owners will no longer be able to use unofficial Lightning cables to charge their handsets, reports reveal, with the news that Apple’s new software renders them incompatible.
According to 9 to 5 Mac, iOS 7 blocks third-party cables from charging iKits that use the newish dock standard. That's the iPhone 5, iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c. Official Apple cables pack a chip as a means of authentication.
It’s not clear if all non-certified cables are affected all the time. However, an unreliable charger isn’t much use, given how rubs smartphone batteries are in the first place.
That’s especially the case in light of the fact that some iPhone 5 users are apparently experiencing longevity problems since downloading iOS 7.

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iPhone 5 and 4S to be discontinued to make way for iPhone 5S and iPhone 6?

Current-gen model to go the way of all flesh?

The iPhone 5 may not be long for this world, it has emerged, amid speculation that the handset could be phased out when new models land later this year.
According to Korean site ET News, whose scoop was brought to the western world by MacRumors, the current-generation iPhone, plus the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4, are being dropped to make way for the new standard iPhone and the low-cost model.

Apple’s move is partly aimed at allowing it to phase out its trad iPhone connector and ensure the newer standard it adopted last year is used across its smartphone range.
The iPhone 5 will apparently be joining the older Apple kits in the phone graveyard because the touchscreen it uses is not “suitable for low-volume production", making the handset unviable as a mid-range or low-cost option.

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iPhone 5s and 5c: Five key differences between them

Colours, cameras, cases and more.

Apple made history this week by announcing not one but two new iPhones. But which one is right for you?
We've put together a list of the main differences between them, so you can decide which to make room for in your pocket.

1 Price

The 5c was rumoured to be a budget iPhone, but that turned out to be off the mark.
It'll set you back £469 SIM-free, or starting at £30 on contract (though you'll have to shell out £32 a month for two years). And that's the more affordable of the two new additions to the iPhone range.

Read more »

Samsung Galaxy S5 concept packs flexible screen and aluminium unibody

Another designer gets all ‘what-if?’ on us.

The next flagship Galaxy S smartphone will be a radical break with form. Or at least it will be if the Samsung-fixated sorts at galaxys5info.com have anything to do with it.
A designer at the site has worked up a concept phone packing the flexible screen technology that’s been earmarked for Samsung phones for what feels like ages. But which has been omitted so far, presumably because it’s not market-ready yet.
The 5.3-inch flexible OLED YOUM screen wraps around the edges of the phone, with touch-sensitive controls where you’d normally expect to find a physical volume rocker. The standard physical home button has gone the way of all flesh too and is replaced by a touch sensor.

Read more »

BlackBerry co-founders keen on takeover bid

Lazaridis rises.

Mike Lazaradis, the erstwhile-BlackBerry CEO, company-founder and the man who oversaw BlackBerry's rise and fall, is said to be readying a takeover bid for the company.
Partnering with co-founder Doug Fregin, Lazaradis has asked Goldman Sachs to help find potential backers for a $4.7 billion deal. That’s according to a filing made with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the US.
The men already own an 8% stake in the failing mobile-maker. They started the firm in 1984, with Lazaradis helping it to become dominant in the pre-iPhone era.
However, his and co-CEO Jim Balsillie’s blasé approach to the threats of Apple and Google helped turn BlackBery into the tech world’s biggest basket case.

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iPhone 6 could feature Liquidmetal exterior

Very metal.

Changes could be afoot when it comes to the iPhone’s build quality, it has emerged, amid signs that Apple could ditch the glass and aluminium construction of the current-gen model for Liquidmetal.
Rumours that Liquidmetal would figure in a future iPhone have been circulating since April last year. The alloy is favoured by Apple because it is less scratch-prone than glass but still offers the same silky smooth surfaces.

However, speculation that a LiquidMetal iPhone is an idea whose time may have come got fresh legs today after a site discovered a patent awarded to Crucible Intellectual Property. This is the inauspicious-sounding company at the heart of Apple’s licensing deal with LiquidMetal Technologies.
The patent details a fresh approach to production, which has until now been restricted to SIM ejector tools. This is due to unspecified manufacturing challenges, of the sort that LiquidMetal inventor Dr Atakan Peker outlined last year.
How viable the new method is for mass production of devices isn’t clear. But while it’s unlikely that the next iPhone will debut the technology, there’s a very good chance that Apple will feature LiquidMetal for iPhones some time in the future.
Under the terms of its agreement with LiquidMetal Technologies, which was signed in 2010, Apple has exclusive rights to use the technology.

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Microsoft: Nokia deal won’t affect other Windows Phone partners

Really?

Microsoft’s acquisition of Nokia will not affect other mobile makers’ Windows Phone plans. That’s according to Big M executive vice president of operating systems, Terry Myerson, who says the tie-up will help build the third place OS’s market share.
In a post on the Official Windows Blog, Myerson writes, “Today’s announcement doesn’t change [our approach] – acquiring Nokia’s Devices group will help make the market for all Windows Phones, from Microsoft or our OEM partners.”
“We have exciting ideas, and so do our OEM partners. Our partners bring innovation, diversity and scale to Windows.”

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Android exec Hugo Barra quits for Chinese mobile maker

Moving to Xiaomi.

One of Android’s leading execs has quit his post and is heading to China to work for one of the country’s mobile manufacturers. Hugo Barra, Android’s vice-president of product management who has worked at Google for five and a half years, is set to join Xiaomi, working on developing their Android portfolio.
In a post on Google+, Barra said, “In a few weeks, I'll be joining the Xiaomi team in China to help them expand their incredible product portfolio and business globally — as Vice President, Xiaomi Global.
“I'm really looking forward to this new challenge, and am particularly excited about the opportunity to continue to help drive the Android ecosystem.”
Barra’s departure follows that of Andy Rubin, Android’s creator, who left the Android team to work on other Google projects.

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4G UK: which next-gen network is the best?

With the UK’s 4G revolution in full swing, which network has the best proposition for you?

With Three's official confirmation that it will be offering 4G for free to existing customers when it launches its next-gen network in December, we now have a clear idea of every network’s LTE plans. O2 and Vodafone have both recently launched their offerings, with EE’s service now almost one year old.
So, how does each service break down and which one should you go for? Read on to get the lowdown.

O2

Launched this week in London, Leeds and Bradford, O2’s 4G packages offer basic deals, with charges varying depending on the device you decide to buy. As with Vodafone, O2 isn’t offering the iPhone 5 on 4G. That’s because in the 4G network, neither network won coverage in the 2600MHz range, the only LTE that Apple’s device supports. You can bet though, that the iPhone 5S will change all that. In terms of deals, O2’s prices start at £22 a month for 1GB data and unlimited calls and texts on its O2 Refresh deal. That’s before you’ve paid your monthly fee for your handset and runs over two years. Sign up before October 31st and you can get more data on its £27 and £32 month deals. Have a read here.

For SIM-only fiends, prices start at £26 for 1GB of data, rising to £36 for 8GB. Be aware that that 8GB offer drops to 5GB after October 31st. In terms of perks, O2 has a special Priority Sports channel, O2 4G Tracks for free access to Top 40 music and music videos and Gameloft games that can be played without eating into data allowances. There’s also free Wi-Fi access at 9,000 points across the UK. PAYG 4G deals are expected by the end of the year.

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Samsung Galaxy Gear: New screens confirm specs

App unveiled.

Samsung’s Galaxy Gear is all set for its official unveiling on September 4th. But the chaps at @evleaks are still unearthing the goods about Sammy’s forthcoming new smart watch, this time revealing screen shots of the device’s smartphone control app.
The pair of screens confirm a string of info which has already leaked about the timepiece. NFC is mentioned, with a diagram showing a Samsung phone and a Galaxy Gear pairing via touch.

A ‘My Apps’ tab supports rumours that the Galaxy Gear will have its own suite of dedicated add-ons. And, interestingly, there’s a ‘Find My Watch’ function mentioned too.
How this works is as yet unclear, but we’d be willing to bet it could be a potential flashpoint with Apple, whose ‘Find My iPhone’ feature is hugely popular.

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iPhone 5S: champagne and graphite models star in new videos

Golden future.

Apple’s forthcoming champagne and graphite iPhones have starred in a pair of new videos, as their planned September 10th launch date edges ever closer.
The champagne iPhone 5S, filmed by the guys at TLD, highlights the differences with the current iPhone 5. Aside from the colour options, the video also looks at the internal changes, with greater space for the battery, suggesting Apple might have at last cracked its power woes.
In a separate video, the graphite iPhone 5S is shown alongside the current black and white editions of the iPhone 5. But with initial iPhone 5 prototypes having come in this colour, it’s been suggested in some quarters that this version may not go on sale later next month.

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Wozniak’s note of caution is a rare slice of common sense

Is the Woz-man right to urge more patience with Apple's pace of innovation? Joe Minihane gives his two cents.

The pace at which the world of smartphones and tablets moves today means that the demands from hardcore fans, hungry for bleeding edge updates, are relentless. If a new phone doesn’t cram in a game-changing feature, then it’s instantly dismissed as irrelevant, despite the fact its software may be spanking new and a game-changer in and of itself.
That’s why this week’s words from Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak are so refreshing. In an interview with the BBC, Wozniak essentially put demanding fans in their place. “Everybody says, ‘oh my gosh, two years have passed and we need something really new and great from Apple’,” he said. “Well yeah, great advances for mankind don't happen every year.”
Wozniak was answering a question about whether Apple had lost its innovative edge since Tim Cook took over the helm at Cupertino. But his remarks are telling and show how ludicrous things have got that a wholly rejigged iPhone 5S, albeit with a similar design, is dismissed outright as iterative and unexciting in some quarters.
In the past seven years, Apple has released two products that have completely reshaped tech as we know it. The iPhone and iPad were both trailblazers and updates to those devices are only ever going to offer a minor jump on the last year’s model. Cumulatively, that can add up to a huge difference, as is being seen with the move to iOS 7 and a bulging App Store, full of stunning native and third party add-ons.

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BlackBerry boss: We can survive as niche company

Not over yet.

BlackBerry can continue to exist as a niche company and will not be completely killed off once it’s been bought out. That’s the opinion of Bert Nordberg, who sits on the ailing mobile maker’s board.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Wall Street Journal, Nordberg said, “I think BlackBerry is able to survive as a niche company.
"But being a niche company means deciding to be a niche company. Historically, BlackBerry has had larger ambitions. But battling giants like Apple, Google, and Samsung is tough."
Nordberg said that BlackBerry’s products did still have something to offer. “BlackBerry's unique assets make it stand apart from other phone makers.
“BlackBerry is strong on the enterprise business, its products are NSA-proof in the sense that you can't intercept their communication, its handsets' keyboards have many fans around the globe, and the company has a leading worldwide data network.”

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iPhone 5C: New manual and package images leaked

One week to go.

Just eight days before Tim Cook is due to reveal the iPhone 5C, new images purporting to show the device’s packaging and manual have appeared online.
The most intriguing is a snap of the red version of the budget handset. The packaging is consistent with previously leaked pics of the phone, with the same design and a mocked up screen of iOS 7.
Users on Chinese site Weibo have also been treated to shots of the iPhone 5C’s one card manual, as well as a photo of the classic Apple SIM ejection tool bundled with the blower.

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Samsung Galaxy Gear photos leak, fitness monitor highlighted

Not much of a looker. And pretty huge at 3-inches too.

Images purportedly showing a prototype of the soon-to-land Samsung Galaxy Gear have leaked online, ahead of the device’s launch tomorrow.
Sourced by VentureBeat, the work-in-progress smartwatch appears to blend industrial design aesthetics with the, um, practical, unshowy looks of Garmin’s sportswatches and packs a whopping three-inch screen that has seen it termed unappealingly bulky in some quarters.
But while it’s indisputably not much of a looker, it may yet emerge that what we’re looking at is unrecognisable from the finished product. That's certainly been the case with Samsung Galaxy smartphone prototypes, with the square-looking test models bearing little resemblance to the curved kits that eventually emerged into the spotlight at launch.

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iPhone 5C and iPhone 5S dropping Sept 20th, network leak reveals

Carrier cancels holiday, sparks release-date chatter.

Speculation that the next-generation iPhone and its cheaper stablemate will go on sale on September 20th got a good deal more credible today, amid rumours that one of the largest US networks has cancelled holiday for staff for the period.
Talk of the handsets tipping up on the 20th has been abroad for months now. The date was initially mooted after some keen-minded deduction on the part of the editor of the International Business Times, who based his prediction on Apple’s previous form.
His claim got fresh legs over the weekend when mysterious sources told TmoNews that T-Mobile employees over The Pond have been barred from taking holiday between September 20th and 22nd. This is so that the carrier is able to cope with the huge swell in demand that marks the release of new Apple smartphones.
AT&T is also reported to have issued a blanket ban on holidays over that weekend. However, seemingly anticipating even greater demand than its rival, T-Mo’s competitor is forbidding staff from taking holidays for all remaining days in September too.
Demand for the low-cost iPhone 5C, which features a money-saving plastic shell, is expected to be buoyed by a price point of around £250. This will arguably make the iPhone a viable pay as you go handset for the first time ever.

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iPhone 5C working model crops up on video

First time we’ve seen iOS 7 and plastic shell in tandem.

With shells in multiple colours, buttons, screens and mock-up devices appearing online in recent months, the iPhone 5C could well be Apple’s most-leaked phone ever. But there’s been no sign of a working model. Until now, that is.
A lo-fi, grainy clip has surfaced on Chinese tech site C Technology showing the phone fully assembled, running the forthcoming iOS 7 version of Apple’s operating system and working well enough to enable the user to conduct a web search.
Judging by the footage, the iPhone 5C and its proprietary Safari browser zip along at a fair old lick for what’s being touted as a cheap phone, which could corroborate claims that the handset will offer 4G support.
Some tech scribes suggested the low-cost iPhone might be restricted to last-gen 3G networks, helping to differentiate it from the top-end iPhone 5S.
However, before you get too excited it’s worth noting that the clip is pretty low-grade, making it hard to tell what we’re seeing.
And given that the user doesn’t see fit to show us the tell-tale product info that Apple secretes at the rear of phones, there’s even more reason to remain somewhat incredulous that we’re looking at the real deal.

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Microsoft buys Nokia phones business for £4.6 billion

Nokia sold.

Microsoft is to buy Nokia’s phones division in a deal worth £4.6 billion. The news, announced overnight, will see Microsoft take ownership of Nokia’s Devices and Services, as well as licensing its HERE maps and patents.
While the Big M will own the Lumia and Asha brands, the Nokia name will be licensed for ten years and used to brand ‘current Nokia mobile phone products’ according to a statement from Microsoft.
Nokia CEO Stephen Elop, along with a number of other senior executives, will now work for Microsoft, with Risto Siilasmaa, Chairman of the Nokia Board of Directors, stepping up to act as Interim CEO.

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HTC Zara: new mid-range smartphone leaked

Plastic model incoming.

HTC is working on a new plastic handset, dubbed the Zara, with a release date pegged for late 2013.
The device was leaked by evleaks, which is developing a solid-gold reputation for getting the inside line on new mobiles.

With HTC unleashing aluminium handsets earlier this year, with the One and One Mini leading the line, a plastic device makes sense in light of the impending release of Apple’s iPhone 5C.
The Zara is said to pack a 4.5-inch qHD display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 plus processor and 1GB of RAM.
Beats Audio and an ample eight-megapixel camera complete the package. A Q4 release date is expected.

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