WSJ: Nokia will release its first Android device this month

According to The Wall Street Journal, Nokia will release its first Android smartphone this month. Known as Nokia Normandy, the low-cost handset will reportedly be showcased during MWC in Barcelona.

According to WSJ’s sources, Nokia was hard at work on the device while Microsoft was performing due diligence prior to its acquisition of the Finnish company. The smartphone will allegedly go official as Nokia X.

Unsurprisingly, the smartphone is tipped to launch without Google Play support, similarly to Amazon’s Kindle products. Instead, it will be focused on services provided by Microsoft and Nokia. In line with recent leaks, the UI of the upcoming smartphone is also said to be closely related to Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8.

Rumored specs of the Nokia X include dual-core Snapdragon 200 SoC, dual-SIM, 4” WVGA display, 4GB of built-in memory, and 512MB of RAM. The handset will reportedly be priced in line with Nokia Asha devices.

All things considered, The Wall Street Journal report reaffirms the already floating batch of rumors. We are quite curious to find out how the device’s launch will affect the sales of Nokia’s popular low-end Windows Phone devices such as the Lumia 520 and 525. Nokia Lumia 520 in particular is responsible for 30% of all Windows Phone sales.

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Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/wsj_nokia_will_release_its_first_android_device_this_month-news-7782.php

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iTunes Radio international roll out officially starts in Australia, UK to follow?

Eminem's new LP featured in the 'first play' section of iTunes Radio

Apple's iTunes Radio service is now officially available in Australia, marking the first time the customised radio service has been available outside of the United States.

In a press release sent out to the Aussie media, the company announced the availability on devices running iOS 7, the set top box and PCs and Macs with the latest version of iTunes.

The internet radio service, which rivals similar offerings from Spotify, Pandora and more, rolled out in the United States in September 2013, alongside the launch of iOS 7.

It allows users to create free radio stations based on songs and artists, as well as access stations created by Apple and guest musicians.

There's also 'first listens' where albums from the likes of Eminem have made debuts and the opportunity to add songs to an iTunes wishlist where they can be purchased to own.

UK-bound?

Since Apple launched iTunes Radio in the United States, Apple users have patiently waited the international roll-out.

There have been a few false starts, with the service becoming briefly available to a few iTunes users in the UK and Canada in recent weeks.

Will the Australian launch mean an arrival in Blighty to give Spotify a run for its money is imminent? We've reached out to Apple and will update this story should a response be forthcoming.

• Google's "I'm Feeling Lucky" Radio looking to take the fight to iTunes Radio. It's another Apple vs Google showdown.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/software/applications/itunes-radio-international-roll-out-officially-starts-in-australia-uk-to-follow--1223308

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Nokia's 'Normandy' Android phone to debut this month without Google Play?

Alleged photos of the Nokia Normandy Android phone (credit: @evleaks)

The Nokia "Normandy," the long-rumored Nokia Android phone, will be officially announced at MWC 2014, says a new report.

The Nokia Normandy will also be released in February, The Wall Street Journal reports.

But apparently the Normandy will be specially tailored so that some Google features won't be promoted as heavily as they might be on a traditional Android phone - you know, one not made by a company now owned by Microsoft.

That means no Google Play store, and the Normandy will instead feature a selection of apps created by Nokia and Microsoft, like Here maps and Mix Radio, plus a Nokia app store full of Android apps, the site's sources said.

Let's be practical

Nokia has long been focused on Windows Phone, but its work on an Android handset has been rumored for months. The Normandy's debut at MWC has even been touched on before.

However, ever since Microsoft picked up the Finnish phone maker for $7.4 billion (about £4.4 billion, AU$7.9 billion) in 2013, the Nokia Android phone's fate has presumably been up in the air.

Considering it was never officially announced to begin with, it seemed Microsoft could put its foot down at any time and cancel it altogether.

But the WSJ report says Nokia's engineers were working on the Android phone long before Microsoft began conducting due diligence leading up to the purchase, and the Windows company will reportedly let it continue all the way to retail.

The reason for that? Pragmatism, apparently. If the phone is debuting in a matter of weeks, then the legwork was likely completed months ago, and Microsoft would likely rather make some money off of it - even if it does run Android - then scrap it entirely and throw away all of Nokia's hard work.

• Speaking of Android, here's everything we know about the Samsung Galaxy S5

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/nokia-s-normandy-android-phone-could-debut-this-month-without-google-play-1223300

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Blackberry Ontario caught speeding in Geekbench benchmarks

Is Ontario BlackBerry's next smartphone?

The rumored Blackberry handset code named Ontario has appeared in a leaked Geekbench benchmarking site.

As revealed by the test Ontario will run with BlackBerry OS 10.3, a 2.15GHz Quad-core Snapdragon 800, and 2GB RAM.

As BlackBerry previously announced it does not have plans to leave the smartphone businesses having inked a deal with Foxconn to produce cheaper handsets. The manufacturing contract agreement would have the Chinese company create devices while Blackberry supplied the software.

The high-contender

N4BB later confirmed the leaked benchmark, speaking with sources that said the phone would be part of Blackberry's O-series of smartphones.

Earlier last September BlackBerry revealed its older version 7 smartphones were actually outselling its high-end 10 devices causing the company to hemorrhage revenue.

It seems all but likely that Blackberry is continuing to go for only the high-end and low-end markets with the Ontario aiming squarely for the affordable spectrum.

Besides Ontario, N4BB's other sources say the struggling phone maker is still planning on using the more potent 2.5GHz Snapdragon MSM8994 chip. The higher-end chip is built octa-core 64-bit architecture with an Adreno 430 GPU and 4GB of RAM.

For now all we have on BlackBerry's future is a bunch of benchmarks and early reports, hopefully there will be some real smartphones to see soon. Until then stay tuned for more.

• The smartphone world is getting busy, the LG G Pro 2 might jump the MWC 2014 gun for an earlier showing

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/blackberry-ontario-caught-speeding-in-geekbench-benchmarks-1223293

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Huawei smartwatch is a go for MWC 2014

Nipping at ZTE's smartwatch lead

At the rate Apple is going, it may very well be the last maker of consumer electronics to introduce a smartwatch now that China's Huawei is reportedly readying their own device set to unveil later this month.

WSJ.D reported Monday that another contender for the smartwatch crown is planning to step into the ring during this year's Mobile World Congress event, which kicks off in Barcelona, Spain on February 24.

A spokeswoman for China-based Huawei Technologies declined to elaborate on the company's smartwatch plans, which will make their debut alongside a new smartphone and two new tablets at the annual mobile conference.

One thing's for sure, however: The smartphone Huawei plans to announce won't be a sequel to the Ascend P6, instead choosing to hold a separate launch event for the company's next-generation flagship handset.

Tick-tock

The burgeoning smartwatch market continues to make headlines, with Sony, Pebble, Samsung and others duking it out amidst rumors that Apple will soon jump into the fray with its own Bluetooth-connected wearable for the wrist.

Although Huawei is ranked third behind Samsung and Apple as a major player in the global smartphone market, the Chinese vendor has little brand recognition for anything but networking gear outside of its home turf.

Huawei took the wraps off a video game console called the Tron at last month's Consumer Electronics Show, but now plans to follow rival Chinese manufacturer ZTE into the wearables market.

Ironically, smartwatches appear to be a "market" in name only thus far: Canalys recently claimed a mere 500,000 such devices would ship globally last year, but expected that figure to mushroom to five million in 2014 - assuming major players like Apple, Google and Microsoft decide to join the fray.

• Get a glimpse of what the Samsung Galaxy S5 might have in store for us!

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/portable-devices/other-devices/huawei-becomes-latest-manufacturer-to-join-smartwatch-craze-1223281

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Exciting LG G Pro 2 specs confirmed by AnTuTu scorecard

LG G Pro 2 existence was confirmed earlier this year by a few live pictures of the device. The G Pro 2 has the G2 looks but comes with a bigger 6" display. It should go live at a press event scheduled to take place on February 13 in Korea.

Today, just three days ahead of the official premiere, the LG G Pro 2 specs leaked via AnTuTu's database. It seems someone has put the two G Pro 2 units (Korea-bound F350L/F350K and the international D837 version) through the benchmark and you can check both the specs and the scores of the upcoming gadget.

LG G pro 2 on AnTuTu

The LG G Pro 2 is now confirmed to come with a 6" 1080p display and be powered by the Snapdragon 800 chipset (four Krait 400 at 2.26GHz, Adreno 330 and 3GB of RAM). The Android version ticking inside is 4.4 KitKat. The camera info is also out now - 13MP main shooter and a 2MP front-facing snapper.

Here is hoping the LG G Pro 2 will do better on the market than its predecessor which never reached its full potential.

Source | Via

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/exciting_lg_g_pro_2_specs_confirmed_by_antutu_scorecard-news-7781.php

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LG G Pro 2 to beat MWC rabble with early launch

Your move Samsung...

Remember when LG announced that the LG G Pro 2 would be making its debut this month and everyone figured that that meant it would show its massive face at MWC?

Apparently that rather reasonable assumption was way off and we're set to see it a lot sooner, February 13 in fact.

An invitation posted by ZDNet shows an event this Thursday between 10:30am and 1pm in Seoul prefaced with the line "Knock-knock knockin' on", a reference the knock-on feature that originally graced the LG G2.

3..2..GO!

A pre-MWC launch would certainly guarantee LG's latest flagship more attention than getting lost amidst the MWC noise.

It would also give the G Pro 2 an 11-day head start over its Korean rival the Galaxy S5.

Little snippets of information, including the 13MP camera with "OIS plus" technology, Ultra HD video recording and a 1W speaker, have already got us salivating over a handset expected to sport a 6-inch screen.

Whether the LG G Pro 2 decides to step into the limelight on Thursday or at MWC 2014 you can guarantee that we're going to bring you all the latest gossip so don't go anywhere.

• What else should you expect from MWC 2014?

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/lg-g-pro-2-to-beat-mwc-rabble-with-early-launch-1223178

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HTC looks to cheaper handsets to reverse sales slump

Aim high, swing low

With the HTC M8 launch just around the corner it might seem a little odd that HTC is currently talking about targeting the middle ground rather than the premium end of the market.

Driven by two years of poor sales and a corresponding 80% share price drop the Taiwenese firm has said that it will look towards its cheaper range, currently toting the HTC Desire 300 and Desire 500, as a way of combating the heavy decline.

Speaking to Reuters in New York HTC Chairwoman Cher Wang stated that she believes the problem was that "we only concentrated on our flagship. We missed a huge chunk of the mid-tier market".

Looking lower

This means that HTC will look to releasing handsets around $150 to $300 (around £90 to £180, AU$168 to AU$335) putting them up against the likes of the impressive Moto G, although avoiding the "very, very low-end market".

According to Richard Ko of Taipei based analyst firm KGI Securities a move to more affordable handsets is needed as "low-price and high-spec" is a "trend for this year". A quad-core budget HTC Desire 310 would certainly fit that bill.

Lower price points would allow HTC to target both the established smartphone markets dominated by Samsung and Apple handsets, as well as emerging markets where Chinese manufacturers like Huawei and ZTE are making waves.

A need to take on the marketing might of Apple and Samsung has also been highlighted as rave reviews of the HTC One (including our own five-stars) didn't translate into strong sales. Not even Iron Man could help despite being backed up by sharp suits and hipster trolls.

Back to basics?

When it comes to producing cheaper handsets HTC certainly has the know how having made its name as a manufacturer of network branded handsets, although that isn't an area that HTC plans to return to in its effort to boost sales.

"We're not even considering that," Wang confirmed - stating that manufacturing partnerships must include HTC branding alongside those of mobile carriers.

2014 is certainly shaping up to be an important year for HTC with the invitations to the HTC M8 launch event due to be sent out in about two weeks sitting alongside a fight to stave off a third straight quarter of operating losses.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/htc-looks-to-cheaper-handsets-to-reverse-sales-slump-1223147

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HTC ends 2013 with an operating loss, but net profit

HTC has just posted its financial report for Q4 of 2013 showing it made a profit of $10.3 million thanks to selling its remaining stake in Beats Electornics.

Take that out and you see a quarterly operating loss of $52.7 million - a second consecutive one after a disappointing Q3. Total revenue for the period was $1.4 billion.

The company's Q1 2014 won't be rosy either with its forecast pointing to between $1.12 billion and $1.18 billion in revenue.

Nevertheless HTC CEO Peter Chou stays optimistic and emphasized that the company will turn more attention to a solid mid-range family of products in hopes to become more profitable. He stated that HTC will continue to stay focused on making the best smartphone building a compelling mid-range portfolio.

His words are backed up by Cher Wang, HTC's co-founder and chairwoman, who earlier said in an interview to Reuters: "The problem with us last year was we only concentrated on our flagship. We missed a huge chunk of the mid-tier market."

Source

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_reports_negative_operating_margin_for_q4_2013-news-7780.php

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Galaxy S5 might still come in two flavours according to new benchmarks

Samsung is king of variation

Talk of Samsung releasing two flavours of its Galaxy S5 flagship may have died down in recent weeks but that hasn't stopped two massively-varied spec lists showing up on benchmarking app AnTuTu.

Picked up by Sam Mobile, the first benchmarks show the almost-expected quad-core 2.5GHz Snapdragon 800 CPU and 3GB RAM Galaxy S5.

Interestingly this higher powered SM-G900R4 variant's display is also set to rock a 2560 x 1440 QHD resolution appearing to dispel rumours that it would only pack a 1080p screen.

Things take a little turn for the worse when it comes to the SM-G900H variant with the majority of specifications taking a hit.

That quad-core Qualcomm CPU has been upgraded to an octa-core Exynos but has been clocked at 1.5GHz with only 2GB RAM to back it up.

Location, location, location

A full HD 1920 x 1080 screen is also set to feature on this lower-powered handset - likely the one we saw mentioned a couple of days ago.

Elsewhere, specs match up a lot better with the same 2MP and 16MP cameras and Android 4.4.2 KitKat, although the higher-powered variant does also come with 32GB of storage compared to the 16GB in the G900H.

This means we could be set to see two rather different handsets roll up in a couple of weeks time at MWC 2014 but questions still remain as to why.

Samsung was always likely to launch models of its flagship in order to better suit different markets. Best guesses involve the Galaxy S5 varying because of one key factor; 4G LTE. After all, last year's Galaxy S4 drew a lot of criticism for the same reasons - so here's hoping that it's just the same as previously, where two CPU models were unleashed for different markets.

• If that's set to be the case, John McCann will certainly be happy.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/galaxy-s5-might-still-come-in-two-flavours-according-to-new-benchmarks-1223058

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Nokia slashes €100 off the Lumia 1520 price in Russia

Nokia Russia has slashed the price of the Lumia 1520. The phablet launched in November for RUB29,990. (€630), but it seems Nokia is unhappy with its sales so it has decided to give it a nice RUB5,000 price cut.

If you live in Russia, you can now have the Lumia 1520 for 24,990 (€525) - just overn €100 off the launch price. It's still a steep price, but the phone is a flagship material after all. You can check its pros and cons over our in-depth review.

There is no official information on whether other markets will get the same discount as Russia on not. The Lumia sales aren't that great with Nokia selling just 8.2 mullion Lumias during the Holiday quarter, so we guess more price cuts will be happening soon.

Source | Via

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_slashes_100_off_the_lumia_1520_price_in_russia-news-7779.php

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iOS 7.1 set to get an overdue polish in March

Tim's Cooking up a few welcome tweaks

Apple's iOS 7.1 isn't expected to make any revolutionary changes to the OS, but a few welcome bug fixes are certainly expected.

And as for when we'll get our fingers on it, some "reliable sources" have told 9to5Mac that we can expect the update in March, echoing a claim we'd previously heard.

We're told not to expect any surprise features beyond some speed enhancements, an improved Calendar app and a bunch of bug fixes.

Though there's also a chance we could see Apple's anticipated iOS in the Car feature debut alongside.

• Tempted to go Apple? Read our iOS 7 review.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/ios-7-1-to-get-an-overdue-polish-in-march-1223041

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Nokia rolls out firmware update for the Lumia 1520

Nokia has started rolling out a firmware update for their newest Lumia 1520 smartphone. The update brings the version number to 1028.3562.1402.00xx in EU and 1028.3534.1347.2001 in the US.

Nokia hasn't really gone in-depth about the exact changes this update brings other than stating general fixes and improvements in the change log. This should take care of any minor niggles that may be there but you'll have to wait longer if want to see any major improvements in performance.

Source

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_rolls_out_firmware_update_for_the_lumia_1520-news-7778.php

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