5 Things You Need To Know About the Gorgeous Moto 360 (list)

5 Things You Need To Know About the Gorgeous Moto 360 (list)

Not too long ago, Google announced Android Wear, an operating system designed for wearable devices, with the initial push going towards smartwatches. Google also announced many OEMs are on board and will launch the smartwatches powered by Android Wear, including LG, Motorola, HTC and many more.

If you don’t remember, Motorola, a company that’s about to be acquired by Lenovo, dropped tidbits of information about launching a smartwatch back in Barcelona last month at the Mobile World Congress 2014. Now, the company has announced its upcoming smartwatch, the Moto 360, the most beautiful and elegant smartwatch we’ve seen to date.

1. Design

The Moto 360 is actually how smartwatches should have been when it comes to design. It comes with a traditional round face and is made with “premium materials” which will feel comfortable in hand, according to Motorola, and doesn’t look like all the gigantic smartwatches that are already available in the market. Pebble Steel might be an exception in my opinion, but the design of the Moto 360 is still way better. The smartwatch will be available with leather and metal straps (shown above) with analog watch faces and much more. Additionally, it will also offer users with more customization options such as interchangeable bands.

2. Features

The smartwatch will be powered by Android Wear, which mostly relies on the Google Now technology, and responds to users voice. All the user has to do is say the magic words, “OK Googe” and ask any question they would like, get reminders, schedule appointments, send a text, make call, take notes and much more. As far as the connection with Android devices is concerned, it should be able to connect with most Android devices running Android 4.3 or higher.

3. Secret Charging Method
There’s no word about the secret charging method of the smartwatch. It could be Qi wireless charging, but it will not be charged via USB due to the unavailability of visible ports, but the company mentioned its a major priority for them. For those of you who are wondering about the camera, well, there’s no camera on the smartwatch because Motorola feels its not required.

4. Release Date
There’s no exact launch date given by Motorola about the launch of this beautiful smartwatch, except that it will launch globally in “summer 2014.” Unfortunately, it will start with the US with more regions to follow later.

5. Pricing
As for the price, there’s no word about it, but we aren’t expecting it to be cheap. Motorola did mention that it will use premium materials for the watch, and thus, you should be prepared to see a hefty price tag for the watch.

That’s all we know about the smartwatch at the moment, but we’re hoping more details will emerge in the coming weeks.

Five Things You Need To Know About LG’s New G Watch

Five Things You Need To Know About LG’s New G Watch (List)

No sooner than Android Wear, Google’s announcement of a set of tools to build wearables for Android, was announced, than LG announced the upcoming G Watch as part of its line of smart devices. Here’s what we know so far, and how it might compare to other smartwatches out there.

It’s Built To Sync With Your Smartphone
One of our points of concern with “smart” watches is that you never know just how smart they actually are. How many functions can they do, in the absence of your smartphone? It’s not clear how smart the G Watch actually is, but LG is fairly up front that it’s designed to sync with pretty much anything that runs Android, unlike previous attempts to get a smartwatch on your wrist. So we’re guessing that it’s more of a “relatively intelligent for its size” watch.

It’s Going To Be Relatively Cheap
Another question is how much it’s going to cost. LG wouldn’t commit to a price in their announcement, but they did say that it was going to be priced so that there was a “low bar to entry” for developers to come up with their own apps and to develop for LG. How much of that is LG and how much of that is Google paying LG is an open question, especially considering device fragmentation has been a serious problem for Google and Android in the past.

Google Was Heavily Involved In The Design
It’s not a surprise that Motorola announced a smartwatch immediately after Android Wear was announced; after all, until very recently, they were Google’s hardware arm. But according to LG, the G Watch was built with Google’s help and they describe it as an opportunity to “pull out all the stops” in engineering and design. Which kind of makes you wonder exactly what they mean when you look at the thing, because, well…

Honestly, It’s Kind Of Clunky
It doesn’t help that the Moto 360 is a watch with a round face, that’s designed to actually look like a watch, not a computer strapped to your wrist. This… is most definitely designed to look like a computer strapped to your wrist. True, the square face certainly has its fans, and it’s not nearly as ugly as some other smartwatches we’ve seen in the past. But for these to catch on, they’ve got to blend into your outfit, and it’s not really clear the G Watch can pull this off.

This Is Going To Be Just One Of Many

Google is going all-in with wearables; in addition to Motorola and LG, HTC, ASUS and Samsung are going to be putting out their own versions of the Google Watch, and presumably they’ll be offering some options as well. The G Watch certainly is interesting, but before you get too excited, take a breath and keep your eye out. There’s going to be plenty of other options out there, if you want Google on your wrist

Batman Arkham Knight Steam Key Pre-Order Only $40

Batman Arkham Knight Steam Key Pre-Order Only $40

The sequel to Batman: Arkham City got its October 14th release date announced just this week from WB Games. Batman: Arkham Knight is available for preorder on the Xbox One and PS4 for $59.99, but the PC listing is something of interest.

This week GameStop, Best Buy, and Amazon all have the PC physical copy listed for $59.99. However, the UK based digital retailer Green Man Gaming, is listing the Batman Arkham Knight Steam key for only $49.99. Better still, there’s a 20% off coupon code available dropping the price an additional $10.

Batman Arkham Knight is $40 after coupon H799RH-7L8NPP-RCKKT8

The coupon code is entered in at checkout. You’ll have to act on this deal over the weekend, since the coupon is set to expire on Monday, March 17th at 11 AM Eastern.

It could be Green Man Gaming made a price mistake with thier $49.99 listing, or it’s an indicator that publishers are favoring digital delivery vs. physical discs. We’ve had hints at this move when Microsoft debated removing the CD-drive in the Xbox One. Could it be that the PC physical price is really $10, or after coupon $20 more than a digital only copy? Batman: Arkham Knight is not up for sale yet on Steam, so without confirmation from them it’s impossible to say at this point.

Never the less, if Green Man Gaming got the pricing wrong on Batman: Arkham Knight this could be an opportunity to pick up the download at a $20 discount.

Motorola Moto X will also be a Flipkart exclusive, could launch on March 19

Motorola Moto X will also be a Flipkart exclusive, could launch on March 19

Earlier today, Flipkart teased that it will be launching the flagship Motorola Moto X in India soon. After the teaser went live, the online retailer has been hounded by questions and in answering them it has revealed a few details of the forthcoming device.
Unlike the Moto G, the Motorola Moto X will only be arriving in a single-SIM avatar and will also get one storage option — 16GB. Flipkart also revealed that Motorola will not be bringing Moto Maker to India. Moto Maker, if you remember, is the customization tool that let users create their unique Moto X by combining different colored front and back panels. That is not to say the Moto X will only come in a black or white variant. Flipkart revealed that it will arrive in black, white, royal blue, cherry, turquoise and two wood finishes — teak and walnut. The device will also run on Android 4.4 KitKat out of the box.

The online retailer hasn’t revealed when it plans on launching the device, but NDTV Gadgets claims it could be as early as next week on March 19. Flipkart says it will reveal the pricing details over the next couple of days, so stay tuned.

Wallet Carries Your Cash and Charges Your Phone, Provides Additional Hours of Talk Time On The Go

Wallet Carries Your Cash and Charges Your Phone, Provides Additional Hours of Talk Time On The Go

A product isn’t good if it can’t do more than one thing these days. It always has to have multiple functions in order to appeal to us. And because everyone has a smartphone and wallet, putting them together was genius. No, we’re not talking about a wallet with smartphone abilities, but rather a wallet that features a built-in 680 mAh rechargeable battery integrated into one panel that’ll charge your phone anywhere you need some extra juice.

The wallet will provide up to two additional hours of talk tome without requiring access to a power outlet. Made from genuine genuine calfskin, a supple yet durable cowhide, the wallet is as stylish as it is functional. It’ll resist the wear and tear of everyday use while staying buttery soft to the touch. The Smartphone Charging Wallet also features six interior slots that will hold up to nine cards, a full-length compartment for your cash and a snap fastener. Its battery recharges in 30 minutes via the included micro-USB adapter and it’s available for both Android and iPhone. Hammacher Schlemmer has it for $79.95.

"Nokia X" series launched in India

"Nokia X" series launched in India, to be available for Rs8,500

The Nokia X was announced alongside the Nokia X+ and Nokia XL.
Nokia X
The Nokia X was announced on Monday alongside the Nokia X+ and Nokia XL at the Mobile World Congress 2014 with a price tag of Rs8,500.

Nokia X software platform is based on Google's Android. The online retailer has stated that the Nokia X smartphone is available from March 15, 2014 on sale. 

 The new platform, Nokia X, is based on the Android Open Source project (AOSP).

The Nokia X+,and Nokia XL have been announced for India as well, and will be launched within the next two months.

The dual-sim phone is power-driven by a 1GHz dual-core Qualcomm snapdragon processor and 512MB RAM with 4GB internal storage expandable up to 32GB via microSD card.

Nokia X options a 3MP fixed-focus camera and does not sport an crystal rectifier flash. In terms of property choices, the phone offers Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and A-GPS. It comes with a 1,500mAh removable battery and therefore the company claims a chat time of 10.5 hours on 3G and standby time of 28 days.

The Nokia X has a single capacitive button for navigation, unlike the three capacitive buttons on a Windows Phone smartphone.

The phone runs a extremely bespoken version of android (based on android 4.1.2) and apps as well as the Play Store. Nokia X comes with HERE Drive, Nokia’s own app store, Maps for location service and Nokia MixRadio music service.

Nokia has additionally bundled Microsoft’s cloud storage service, One Drive with the phone and is providing 10GB of 1 Drive storage for free, together with one month of free unlimited Skype calls to land lines and mobiles.

The negative aspect is that Nokia X users can't have access to the Google Play Store for apps. Microsoft services such as Bing search, Skype communications and OneDrive file storage. 

The Nokia X is the entry-level model in the family. The Nokia X+ offers more memory and storage. Finally, the Nokia XL packs a 5-inch screen, 5 megapixel rear-facing and 2 megapixel front-facing camera.

All three devices are powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon dual-core processor and are dual-SIM phones. A range of third-party apps comes pre-installed, including BBM, Plants vs Zombies 2, Viber, Vine and Twitter.

Jussi Nevanlinna, Nokia's vice president for product marketing, said the Finnish company is positioning the Nokia X as a bridge to high-end Windows smartphones under the Lumia brand.

Nokia is holding a Wiki Challenge to celebrate the launch of our new Nokia X software platform Nokia X device and the Nokia X software platform. Accordingly, prizes will be a Nokia X device and DVLUP XP for up to five Wiki contributors.

Specifications: 

Display: 4-inch IPS LCD with a resolution of 800x480 pixels
Features: 3G, Bluetooth, Colour Screen, Dual Core, Email, External Memory, FM Radio, GSM, Gaming, GPRS, GPS, Internet Browser, MMS enabled, MP3 Player

Model: X

Weight: 129 grams

RAM: 512MB

Storage: 4GB internal, support for microSD cards up to 32GB

Operating System: Android Nokia X 1.0 Ul

Warranty:  Manufacturer Warranty

Duration: 1 year

OS: Android 4.1.2. (Jelly Bean)

Camera:  3.0 MP, no front camera

Warranty Details: Repair

Colour: Available in six colours - Green, Pink, Yellow, Black, White and Blue.

Processor: 1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 Play

Battery: 1500mAh

Nokia X is a budget smartphone targetted at middle-class college-goers in line with Nokia Asha in the smartphone category.

The potential best Android phone of the year is also the worst kept secret of the year

The potential best Android phone of the year is also the worst kept secret of the year

The All New HTC One, or HTC’s 2014 flagship smartphone has appeared in a variety of new leaks over the weekend, with the company also releasing a third teaser video for the handset to build up anticipation. In the third video clip, HTC hints that the new smartphone will have an even better Ultrapixel camera, without actually revealing what’s new about it.

However, the numerous unofficial leaks all show that the 2014 HTC One model will have two cameras on the back, although their functionality is yet to be officially explained, as well as an improved Flash.

Meanwhile, @evleaks provided new image leaks, which seem to reveal that The All New HTC One will have some interesting cases that will be available in a variety of colors and will have some sort of LED holes on the front, which will display the time and apparently the weather. These pictures also show the phone comes with dual rear cameras.

A series of images showing a China Mobile version of the new HTC One have also been published online, via Chinese social network Weibo, revealing among other things, the phone’s size relative to the HTC One Max.

Finally, MobileSyrup has dug up a press image of the HTC One (2014) from Telus, one of the Canadian carriers that are expected to offer the device at launch. Speaking of launch, the phone is apparently going to be released two weeks after its March 25 official announcement, according to what Russian HTCFamily.ru posted on Twitter, with HTC launching the handset in 110 countries around the world. That means the new HTC One may hit stores a few days before the Galaxy S5 is available.

The new HTC One is so far the worst kept secret of the year, considering all the leaks and especially an extensive hands-on video with an HTC One (2014) prototype posted last week on YouTube, that may have gotten the person who had access to the phone in trouble.

6 of the Best Devices That Were Unveiled at Mobile World Congress 2014

6 of the Best Devices That Were Unveiled at Mobile World Congress 2014 (list)

Mobile World Congress 2014 turned out to be an action-packed event last week. Several OEMs showcased their flagship devices at the big event, mostly mobile. This year, OEMs didn’t only focused on smartphones and tablets, but also unveiled a number of wearables as well. If you, for any reason, missed the Mobile World Congress 2014 last week, we’ll do a quick roundup for the best devices showcased at the grand stage in Barcelona.

1. Sony Xperia Z2

Sony unveiled their latest flagship device at the Mobile World Congress 2014, dubbed as the Sony Xperia Z2. It looks quite similar to the Sony Xperia Z1, but brings an improved set of specifications compared to its predecessor. Sony Xperia Z2 comes with a bigger 5.2-inch Full HD Live Color LED TRILUMINOS display with X-Reality for mobile picture engine and sports a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels.

The handset is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 801 chipset with Adreno 330 GPU, 3GB of RAM, 16GB storage with a microSD card support, 20MP camera with 4K video recording capabilities, 2MP front-facing camera, a 3,200 mAh batery and runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat pre-installed out of the box. The handset is expected to hit retail in March globally.

2. Samsung Galaxy S5

The main star of the event was the Samsung Galaxy S5. The extremely hyped handset was made official at the event, but it did turn out to be a little disappointing as it didn’t bring the specifications we heard so much about before it’s launch.

Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a slightly bigger 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display sporting a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, a quad-core 2.5GHz Snapdragon 801 chipset with Adreno 330 GPU and 2GB of RAM on board. Other features include 16/32GB internal storage with a microSD card slot, a 2,800 mAh battery, 16MP camera for photos and videos, heart rate sensor, a fingerprint scanner for additional security and runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat with an improved version of TouchWiz UI on top of it.

Samsung Galaxy S5 does bring some useful features, such as the Ultra Battery Saving modes, which converts your display into black and white to make sure the device can provide an extended battery time, as long as 24 hours with 10 percent of battery. The handset will hit retail shelves across 150 countries on April 11th, and rumors suggest it will be cheaper than the competition, even the Samsung Galaxy S4 at launch.

3. Samsung Galaxy Gear Fit

Samsung launched their first wearable device dubbed as Galaxy Gear last year, but it didn’t turn out to be as successful as the Korean OEM thought it would be. At the Mobile World Congress, the Korean OEM launched a number of wearables, including the successor of the not-so-popular Samsung Galaxy Gear, as well as a health-oriented Galaxy Gear Fit and Galaxy Gear 2 Neo.

Galaxy Gear Fit brings a handful of fitness-related features such as a pedometer, heart rate sensor, ability to connect with Galaxy devices via Bluetooth and display incoming notifications for emails, messages, calls and more. The wearable was also crowned as the best device at the Mobile World Congress 2014 as well.

4. Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet

Sony had a pretty decent Mobile World Congress. The company unveiled a number of new products, including the Sony Xperia Z2, as well as a new Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet that brings top-of-the-line specifications at the table. The tablet rocks a 10.1-inch display sporting a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels resolution, and is touted as the world’s slimmest tablet.

Under the hood, it comes with a quad-core 2.3GHz Snapdragon 801 chipset with 3GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage with a microSD card slot, a 8.1MP camera at the back for photos and videos, LTE connectivity support, a 6,000 mAh battery to make sure there’s enough juice for the tablet and runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat as its OS.

5. YotaPhone 2

While all eyes were fixed on the Samsung Galaxy S5, there was another smartphone that many of us may have missed. It was the next-generation Yotaphone with dual-display; one on the front, while the second is the e-ink display on the back of the handset.

The handset rocks a 5-inch 1080p display on the front as well as a 4.7-inch qHD e-Ink touchscreen. It’s powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 800 chipset with a clock speed of 2.3GHz and 2GB of RAM on board. Other features include 32GB internal storage, 8MP rear camera with 108-p video recording capabilities, a 2,550 mAh battery, LTE support, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, GLONASS and runs Android 4.4 KitKat pre-installed out of the box.

YotaPhone 2 is expected to hit the EMEA regions and Russia in Q4 2014, and is also expected to hit the US and Asian markets.

6. Huawei MediaPad X1

Huawei also made an appearance at the Mobile World Congress, but the device which has caught our eye is the MediaPad X1, the ultimate phablet carrying a screen size of 7-inch and comes with cellular connectivity, which means it can act as a smartphone as well, touted as the “the world’s slimmest 7-inch LTE Cat4-enabled all-in-one phablet.”

The phablet cum tablet comes with a 7-inch sporting a resolution of 1900 x 1200 pixels, and is powered by a 1.6GHz quad-core Hisilicon Kirin 910 processor with 2GB of RAM and 16GB internal storage on board. On the rear, it comes with a 13MP camera for photos and videos with a 5MP front-facing camera. The only disappointing part of the phablet is its operating system — it’s running the old Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. To make sure there’s enough juice for the oversized phablet, there’s a 5,000 mAh battery as well.

The Huawei MediaPad X1 is set to launch in China, Russia, Western Europe, the Middle East, Japan and Latin America in March later this year, but there’s no word about its pricing at the moment.

If you think we missed any device from the list, feel free to let us know using the comments below.

Batmobile Tumbler Replica Sells for $1 Million

Batmobile Tumbler Replica Sells for $1 Million, Totally Street Legal

Somewhere a huge Batman fan is relishing in his (or her) big splurge…a totally street-legal Batmobile Tumbler replica that recently sold for a whopping $1 million on a luxury goods site. The replica was from Batman Begins (directed by Christopher Nolan and starred Christian Bale, in case you’ve been living under a rock) and is drivable on the road. The listing appeared on the James Edition site, with the seller stating, “We have built this insane vehicle to be street legal; however, please understand that this is not a daily driver!” Not sure if the fanboy will be using it as his daily driver, but it’s definitely worth taking out for a cruise every now and then.

The car is unweaponized but does features an 8-cylinder LS1 engine mated to an automatic transmission, in addition to a custom-built frame, chassis and drive line. It rides on massive 44″ “super swamp tires” with custom wheels and an all-black interior black interior boasting five driver-assist cameras, GPS navigation and a stereo with Bluetooth and iPhone integration. It’s definitely not a family car since it only seats two and the only color is comes in is pitch black. There’s no specific name to pinpoint the creator of this replica, but the listing did say its location was Indialantic, Florida. But since it’s not a Warner Bros. official replica, the buyer might be hit with a lawsuit (good thing they’re rich) since Batman is a copyrighted character (the studio won a suit last year after Mark Towle, a California man who operates Gotham Garage and creates replicas of automobiles featured in movies, wasn’t authorized to create his own Batmobile)

Samsung Milk music streaming service

Samsung Milk music streaming service for Galaxy smartphones launched

Samsung announced on Friday that it has officially entered the music streaming market with a brand new app on Google Play called Milk Music. Milk Music is a radio service much like Pandora, but will be exclusive to Galaxy devices. Best of all, Milk is completely ad-free without any subscription fee to speak of. You are still limited to six skips an hour on any given station, but according to Samsung, you’ll never hear an ad on Milk Music.
Although you are free to create your own station based on a favorite artist or song, Milk’s primary feature is a large dial that dominates the home screen. The dial lists nine genres, and after you decide on a genre, you can fine-tune your station to include new music, popular music or music you’ve favorited in the past. You can even personalize the dial to include only the genre that you plan on listening to. If you can’t be bothered to deal with genre stations, the app also features a “Spotlight” section curated by “music tastemakers and influencers.”

Milk Music is now available on Google Play. The full press release follows below.

Samsung Introduces Milk, the Next Big Thing in Music

Free Radio Service with 200 Ad-free Stations Offers Fully Customizable Experience to Your Taste

March 7 – DALLAS, TX – Delivering on the passion points of consumers, Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC (Samsung Mobile) today introduced Milk Music™, a new, free and ad-free radio service that offers an effortless and entertaining way to enjoy the music you love and discover new, unexpected music. Fully customizable, Milk is designed with an elegant, easy-to-use interface and more than 200 stations that makes tuning into your favorite music a more enjoyable and enriching experience.

“Milk introduces a fresh approach to music that reflects our innovation leadership and our focus on creating best-in-class consumer experiences,” said Gregory Lee, president and CEO of Samsung Telecommunications America and Samsung Electronics North America Headquarters. “We’re offering consumers amazing, rich music experiences built around what matters most to them and their lifestyle.”

Milk powered by Slacker is available now exclusively for Galaxy consumers to download on Google Play
on the Galaxy S® 4, Galaxy S® III, Galaxy Note® 3, Galaxy Note® II, Galaxy Mega™ and Galaxy S® 4 mini across all carrier and retail channels as well as the Galaxy S® 5 in April. Coming soon, Samsung will be offering unique music programming from top selling and emerging artists available exclusively through Milk.

Milk Makes More of Your Signature Sounds

Instant and Effortless Listening:
Milk’s distinctive dial design provides a more intuitive and natural way to listen to music that is more organic and fun. With no log-in required and no need to think of a specific artist, song name or browsing through a list of choices, you can just starting listening to music instantly. From Pop to Jazz and everything in between, the dial displays up to nine genre-based stations featuring a wide variety of music listening choices, with a simple and quick turn of the dial.

More of the Music You Love:
With a growing music catalog of 200 genre-based and curated stations, and 13M songs, Milk connects people with the best music, whether it’s a standby song or a new discovery, with significantly fewer repeats. In addition, the “Spotlight” feature offers a continuous curated selection of songs and albums handpicked by music tastemakers and influencers. “My Stations” allows you to create personal stations based on your favorite songs and albums, easily accessible on the dial, providing limitless listening options. Milk also allows you six song skips per hour per station.

Your Music Your Way:
Samsung is delivering an incredibly personalized experience by offering users many ways to fine-tune Milk to suit their individual listening preferences. The dial is customizable to showcase only the genres that are most relevant to your personal tastes and preferences. Offering more personalization options, the “Fine-Tune Station” feature allows you to adjust the genre-based station based on popularity, novelty and song favorites to further optimize recommendations for the best personalized listening experience.

Former Apple CEO John Sculley to launch smartphone brand in India

Former Apple CEO John Sculley to launch smartphone brand in India: Here’s how it could succeed

Naturally, everyone wants a piece of one of the fastest growing smartphone markets in the world. India has seen a number of new brands make an entry in the smartphone market last year alone. From Chinese companies such as Gionee and Oppo, to American PC giants HP to brands such as Japan’s Panasonic, which has given up on the smartphone game back home, but has a big budget for India. Motorola made a comeback with the ultra-popular Moto G.

So it’s no surprise that former Apple CEO John Sculley is planning on adding to the number, according to a report in BGR India. Former Micromax and HTC top exec Ajay Sharma will be leading the business in India. The company will launch a series of smartphone, with the first device said to be coming in April. The supposed price range is between Rs 5,000 and Rs 15,000, which makes us a bit sceptical about the brand’s chances.

In the report, talking about the new company, Sharma is said to have insisted that their “forthcoming devices will have a different positioning and USP.” But in the same price range as most well-known Indian brands, there’s very little head room for playing the brand positioning game. Once again, it could be about the price and specs proposition and as we have said in the past, it takes more than just that.

For one, consumers are more than tired of no after-sales service from many Indian companies. Sculley and Sharma’s company should put that on top of their to-do list. Secondly, people like to know that the phone will receive updates in the future. This is a big shortcoming in many Indian brands, something that Motorola made sure doesn’t plague them with a swift KitKat update for the Moto G.

Secondly, we are hoping that Sculley’s reputation in the industry has made it possible to tie-up some content or value-addition deals. Micromax and the likes have already caught on to this, with bundling of apps and operator eco-system tie-ups, such as free data for using certain services. This is a crucial bait to lure customers.

India has seen tremendous growth in the smartphone segment. IDC’s year-ending numbers say shipments skyrocketed from 16.2 million in 2012 to 44 million last year. The growth is expected to continue as smartphones become less expensive and mobile internet infrastructure improves, but how much of a role the new brands will play in the growth is yet to be determined.

With so many brands in the melee, gaining recognition, especially long-term recognition, is a slow game and involves taking the right steps towards service and value creation. Sculley’s Apple history will no doubt help earn some of that, but a lot more of it will depend on whether the brand is banking on more than just the price and specs to take it through.

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Galaxy S4 (comparison)

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Galaxy S4 (comparison)

Samsung officially unveiled the Galaxy S5 at the Mobile World Congress 2014 last week in Barcelona. The handset will hit retail in over 150 countries on April 11th on several carriers and retailers across the globe. For those of you who are still in possession of the last year’s flagship from the Korean OEM, and want to know if it’s worth to spend some extra bucks to make a switch to the Galaxy S5, check out our comparison below and see what’s different. And, decide yourself if it’s worth upgrading.

Display:
Let’s just start with the most basic functions, that is, the display. There isn’t much different here when it comes to both flagship devices, but the latest Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a slightly bigger 5.1-inch display, compared to 5-inch on the Samsung Galaxy S4. Both devices rocks the same resolution and comes with Super AMOLED touchscreen.

Processor:
Samsung Galaxy S4 came in two variants: one of them was powered by a Snapdragon 600 SoC while the other one came with Samsung’s Exynos 5 Octa chipsets for 3G-enabled markets. While these processors aren’t too slow, but it seems Samsung felt they need to give their latest flagship device a considerable bump in this area. Samsung Galaxy S5 is powered by the latest Snapdragon 801 chipset with the same Adreno 330 GPU that’s found inside the Galaxy S4 as well. The processor on this beastie is clocked at 2.5GHz, while the Galaxy S4 ws clocked at 1.9GHz on the Snapdragon 600 variant.

Camera:
This area received a pretty decent bump when it comes to Samsung Galaxy S5. It comes with a 16MP camera, with 1/2.6′ sensor size, on the back compared to 13MP on the previous iteration. Additionally, it’s  capable of recording 4K videos, although it might be a little difficult to find displays that can run those videos, without the consumer spending a couple of extra hundred bucks just to get a compatible display. Other features include HDR (Rich tone), selective focus, virtual tour shot, shot&more.

Software and Design:
Samsung Galaxy S5 will come with Android 4.4.2 KitKat as it’s operating system. While the latest operating system is rolling out for the Samsung Galaxy S4 as well, the OS is still a little different than the one on Samsung Galaxy S5. Although there aren’t many changes, but the most drastic ones are found in the quick settings toggles screen, where there are a couple of changes.

Additionally, Samsung has released an updated S Health app that goes well with the Galaxy Gear smartwatches the company unveiled at the MWC 2014.

As far as the design is concerned, we heard several leaks suggesting Samsung might ditch the plastic form factor in it’s Galaxy S5, but they turned out to be incorrect. Samsung Galaxy S5 does look and feels a little premium, but it still shows how much the company loves plastic.

What's different:
The Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a few features that are not present in the Samsung Galaxy S4. Following Apple’s footsteps, Samsung also added a fingerprint scanner on the Samsung Galaxy S5 that resides under the home button, but it works differently and is a swipe sensor, and allow users to unlock the device as well as PayPal integration.

Samsung Galaxy S5 also comes with a heart sensor and is present under the rear camera of the smartphone. Lastly, it’s IP67 certified, making the handset dust and water-resistant.

Samsung Galaxy S5 also comes with a slightly bigger 2,800 mAh battery compared to the 2,600 one in the previous iteration. The handset comes with a new Ultra Saving Mode that turns the display black & white and shuts down unnecessary background processes when it reaches a certain level, resulting in improved battery life. Samsung says with the mode enabled, Samsung Galaxy S5 with 10 percent battery can provide users with 24 hours of battery life. We’ll find out if that’s true once the handset is available in the market.

Worth the upgrade?
The handset will hit the shelves in April, and we don’t know how good all these shiny new sensors are in real life. We can’t just recommend  the handset without giving it a go. Nonetheless. Samsung did a good job with the Galaxy S5, but it came out to be a little below the expectations as rumors really created a hype about this device being a monster.

It also depends on the price tag it will come with when it hits different regions. Reports suggests it will come with a competitive price, but recent listings by UK retailers posts a different picture. The handset costs as high as $1000 in unlocked flavor, but the pricing might be different in the US and other regions.

Overall, it appears to be a minor upgrade over the Galaxy S4, especially if the new fingerprint or the heart sensor doesn’t catch your eye.

A Mysterious Samsung Wearable Known As S Circle Spotted At The FCC And Bluetooth SIG

A Mysterious Samsung Wearable Known As S Circle Spotted At The FCC And Bluetooth SIG

GADGET REVIEW
7 March 2014
Not too long ago, Samsung unveiled a bunch of wearables, including the sequel of the Galaxy Gear, as well as a Galaxy Gear Fit, which might be one of the best wearable devices we’ve seen lately. If you think Samsung is done with the wearable devices for now, think again as another mysterious device was spotted on the FCC, as well as the Bluetooth SIG, known as S Circle.

There’s no word about what this device is, but it’ appears to be an activity tracker without a display and comes with Bluetooth support. That might be one of the reasons why it has passed Bluetooth SIG as well, and may as well come with the ability to connect to Galaxy devices via Bluetooth. Once connected, the wearable will reportedly feed data to the new S-Health app that will launch alongside the Samsung Galaxy S5. It may be a wearable similar to Jawborne, and other similar products in the market that provides users with health-related metrics such as distance tracking, steps walked and more.

There’s no official word from Samsung about any such device, but we’re a little surprised to see the Korean OEM working on yet another wearable device, especially after launching the amazing Galaxy Gear Fit. Whatever it is, it will definitely be cheaper than the Galaxy Gear 2 and the Galaxy Gear Fit. Samsung has done a pretty good job in making sure it stays secret.  It’s just a speculation so let’s just wait for the device to get official before making up conclusions. And, the above posted image is not S Circle.

Nokia Lumia 630 leaked

Nokia Lumia 630 leaked, Loses camera key and flash

The Nokia Lumia 630 (code named Moneypenny) has been rumored for a while now and thanks to Evleaks we now get a better look at the handset. The handset which’ll be announced around Build in April will run Windows Phone 8.1. The image reveals subtle breaks from the design language of the Lumia 620 and the 625.

The Lumia 630 has lost a fair bit of weight and now has marked resemblance to the new Nokia X. The phone also loses the camera key and the flash. The phone will also ship in a range of colors as with most Lumia devices though we’re quite excited to see the addition of an orange shade here. The entire range will include green, orange, yellow and the standard white, black colors. The phone will ship with WP8.1 onboard that brings a wide variety of enhancements to the operating system including a full fledged notification center, better multitasking and even a virtual assistant called Cortana that’ll work in a way not dissimilar to Siri or Cortana. Windows Phone 8.1 brings with with it support for Dual SIM handsets and the Lumia 630 should be one of the first Windows Phone devices to get a dual SIM variant. We’ll have more on the Lumia 630 as soon as we find out.


[Via - Evleaks]

Micromax Canvas Knight with octa-core chipset

Micromax Canvas Knight with octa-core chipset, 5-inch full-HD display launched at Rs. 19,999

Micromax has launched its first octa-core smartphone, the Canvas Knight, in India at Rs. 19,999.
The popular domestic handset maker has announced that the Canvas Knight smartphone will be exclusively available via company's online store starting Wednesday.

The highlight of the Micromax Canvas Knight is its octa-core MediaTek (MT6592T) processor clocked at 2GHz, coupled with 2GB of RAM.

The Canvas Knight offers dual-SIM (both Micro-SIMs) support and runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean out-of-the-box. It comes with a 5-inch (1080x1920 pixels) full-HD IPS display with a pixel density of 443ppi.

The Canvas Knight comes with 32GB of inbuilt storage, which is non-expandable. It sports a 16-megapixel rear camera with OmniVision CameraChip sensor and M8 Largan Lens, while there is a secondary 8-megapixel front-facing camera.

On the connectivity front, the Canvas Knight includes 3G, Wi-Fi, Micro-USB, and Bluetooth. The new smartphone from Micromax packs a 2350mAh battery, which is rated to deliver up to 7.5 hours of talk time and up to 175 hours of standby time.

The Micromax Canvas Knight comes preloaded with apps such as BBM, Hike, GetIt, Truecaller, Spuul, Kingsoft Office Suite, Opera Mini, M!Live, M!Vault, M!Security and Games (RealSteel WRB, Where's My Perry and Where's My Water).

The smartphone will be available in three colour variants: Black, Black and Gold, and White and Gold.

Commenting on the launch, Rahul Sharma, Co-Founder, Micromax said, "Canvas Knight is another milestone for Micromax to bring the best combination of technology, style and affordability for the masses." He further added, "With the launch of Canvas Knight, our first octa-core smartphone, we have yet again raised the bar of affordable innovation in the country".

Dr. Finbarr Moynihan, General Manager, International Sales & Marketing, MediaTek Inc, said, "The MT6592T enables consumers to experience premium gaming performance and enhanced web browsing. With MediaTek's tru octa-core MT6592T, users can enjoy heavy web downloading, hardcore gaming, high-quality premium video viewing or other types of rigorous multitasking without experiencing lag times or excessive battery consumption."

Micromax Canvas Knight detailed specifications:

General
Alternate names	A350
Release date	March 2014
Form factor	Touchscreen
Battery capacity (mAh)	2350
Removable battery	No
Colours	Black, Black and Gold, White and Gold
SAR value	NA
Display
Screen size (inches)	5.00
Touchscreen	Yes
Touchscreen type	Capacitive
Resolution	1080x1920 pixels
Pixels per inch (PPI)	443
Colours	16.7M
Hardware
Processor	2GHz  octa-core
Processor make	MediaTek 6592T
RAM	2GB
Internal storage	32GB
Camera
Rear camera	16-megapixel
Flash	Yes
Front camera	8-megapixel
Software
Operating System	Android 4.2.2
Java support	Yes
Browser supports Flash	No
Connectivity
Wi-Fi	Yes
Wi-Fi standards supported	NA
GPS	Yes
Bluetooth	Yes, v 4.00
NFC	No
Infrared	No
DLNA	No
Wi-Fi Direct	No
MHL Out	No
HDMI	No
Headphones	3.5mm
FM	Yes
USB	Micro-USB
Charging via Micro-USB	Yes
Proprietary charging connector	No
Proprietary data connector	No
Number of SIMs	2
SIM 1
SIM Type	Micro-SIM
GSM/ CDMA	GSM
2G frequencies supported	GSM 850/ 900/ 1800/ 1900
3G	Yes
3G frequencies supported	900, 2100
SIM 2
SIM Type	Micro-SIM
GSM/ CDMA	GSM
2G frequencies supported	GSM 850/ 900/ 1800/ 1900
3G	Yes
3G frequencies supported	900, 2100
Sensors
Compass/ Magnetometer	Yes
Proximity sensor	Yes
Accelerometer	Yes
Ambient light sensor	Yes
Gyroscope	Yes
Barometer	No
Temperature sensor	No