LG G Flex will hit over twenty European markets next month

Hot on the heels of the AT&T pricing and availability announcement in the United States, LG spilled the beans on the European arrival of the curved G Flex. The phablet will officially make its way to over twenty European markets beginning next month.

Users in major markets such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and Austria will be among the first to be offered the LG G Flex. The manufacturer is yet to release the complete list of European countries which will officially receive the device. The same goes for pricing and availability of the phablet (don’t expect it to come cheap though).

You can read about our take on the LG G Flex in our detailed review.

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/lg_g_flex_will_hit_over_twenty_european_markets_next_month-news-7615.php

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Rumour: 4.7-inch and 5.7-inch iPhone 6 handsets coming as soon as June

What's up there, short stack?

Despite the success of handsets 5-inches and larger, you felt it was with a certain amount of reluctance that Apple bumped up the iPhone from 3.5-inches to a dinky 4-inches with the iPhone 5.

Now, according to reports emerging from China, the company is tossing out its display size inhibitions and plans to launch two much larger iPhone 6 handsets later this year.

Chinese tech analyst (yes, we know and are sufficiently sceptical) Sun Changxu told the QQ.com website the smaller model will be 4.7-inches, with a 1136 x 640 resolution and will be unveiled at WWDC in June.

If you thought an extra seven-tenths of an inch was a big deal, Changxu reckons the larger of the two will arrive later rocking a massive 5.7-inch higher resolution display, giving Apple a change to make a play in the phablet arena.

Break from the norm

A staggered release for two different screen size would be a definite break from the norm, as would a smartphone launch at WWDC, where Apple has traditionally focused on software.

Of course, this is just one of a number of rumours circulating at the moment regarding the iPhone 6. As these analysts sure do like to make a name for themselves with their brazen predictions and claims of inside knowledge, so we're taking this prediction with the necessary sprinkling of salt.

Most of the rumours claim larger screens are on the way, but since September we've heard everything from 4.7- to 6-inches, so don't set your heart on that 5.7-inch screen just yet.

Other recent tips have suggested a tougher liquidmetal display or a wraparound flexible screen, while the camera may focus on image stability rather than another megapixel bump.

• To keep up to speed with all of the latest whispers from around the web, keep tabs on our iPhone 6 release date, news and rumours feature.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/rumour-4-7-inch-and-5-7-inch-iphone-6-handsets-coming-as-soon-as-june-1217019

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The Flex Express will roll into Europe as LG confirms G Flex arriving next month

Do you like 'em curvy?

LG has officially confirmed the intriguing G Flex smartphone will go on sale in 20 European countries, starting next month.

The handset, which was announced in October for the Korean market, will go on sale in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, Austria and others.

Although the 6-inch 720p curved device has been available to pre-order from the likes of Carphone Warehouse during January, this is the first time LG has officially acknowledged plans to launch in Europe.

So far it has only been available in the company's Korean homeland, while a U.S. launch was recently confirmed at the CES tech show at the beginning of the month in Las Vegas.

Face hugger

For what's likely to be a considerable expenditure (CPW wants £689 up front), those wishing to try a curved handset on for size, will also benefit from a 2.26GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chipset, 2GB of RAM and an embedded 3500mAh battery.

Only sitting within the G Flex is a 13-megapixel camera and a 2-megapixel front-facing webcam. The device will arrive out of the box with Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean.

It also boasts of a Wolverine-like self-healing coating that makes it impervious to scratches and nicks, according to the company.

• Yes, the LG G Flex does bend, but if you do, you could be in for a bumpy ride...

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/the-flex-express-will-roll-into-europe-as-lg-confirms-g-flex-arriving-next-month-1217017

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AT&T announces LG G Flex pre-order pricing and availability

Following Sprint’s announcement from last week, AT&T announced its own pricing and pre-order availability of the LG G Flex. AT&T customers will be able to claim their own curved phablet online or in store this Friday, on January 24.

Like its Sprint relative, the LG G Flex for AT&T is priced at $299.99 with a two-year commitment. AT&T Next 18 and Next 12 installment plans are also available for the device with monthly payments of $26.74 and $34.75 respectively.

The LG G Flex for AT&T comes with the usual promo video from the carrier. You can see it below.

You can check out our detailed review of the phablet over here.

Source

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/at_t_announces_lg_g_flex_preorder_pricing_and_availability-news-7613.php

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Nokia to add Lumia 1520 and 2520 models to trial scheme

it's back in business

Nokia is set to add the Lumia 1520 and 2520 models to its business trial scheme. The scheme, open to IT decision makers in the UK, gives organisations the chance to test a variety of Nokia handsets for 30 days.

Businesses can apply to trial the phones on the Nokia website. Those that qualify will currently receive a Nokia Lumia 520, 625 and 925 to test. Along with the phones, testers receive a built-in video player on which a preloaded video provides an introduction to the scheme, a variety of peripherals and tools for converting SIM cards to microSIM size and vice-versa.

Progressing in B2B

Talking to Mobile Magazine, Nokia Director of Business Sales for UK and Europe Adrian Williams said, "We have made good progress in 2013 and we now plan to scale our activities across all channels."

Nokia's share of the B2B market reportedly grew from 5 per cent in 2012 Q3 to 12 per cent in 2013 Q3. Williams explained whilst this is in part due to BlackBerry's poor performance, a dynamic market and Nokia's use of the Microsoft operating system were also both factors in its recent success.

"BlackBerry's situation does not change the fact that in the current economic climate all businesses are regularly considering their mobile strategy based on the need for best cost operation," he said. "For Nokia, having products that natively support the vast majority of company IT infrastructures this presents an accelerated opportunity, not to mention a more cost effective and simple upgrade path for our customers."

Williams also reportedly discussed a shift in focus for Nokia away from large businesses and towards SME and smaller organisations: "The smaller businesses represent the largest opportunity in the UK market and this is where we will be placing much more focus, to build awareness and demand. We have some very focused initiatives to engage with these customers."

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/nokia-to-add-lumia-1520-and-2520-models-to-trial-scheme-1216943

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SK Telecom to introduce 300Mbps LTE-A this year

Korean carrier SK Telecom plans to introduce its updated LTE-A network by the end of 2014, which will be capable of supporting speeds of up to 300Mbps.

The carrier will be able to double the standard LTE-A speed of 150Mbps by utilizing its new technology called 3band LTE-Advanced. It relies on aggregating different frequency bands in order to double the throughput and achieve the impressive 300Mbps downlink speeds. In the case of SK Telecom, the carrier plans to use the 20MHz and 1.8GHz bands in conjunction with the 10MHz and 800MHz bands.

The carrier will demo the new LTE-A technology at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month. South Korean customers of the carrier will be able to enjoy the new service by the year's end. Naturally, they'll need devices that is supports LTE-A to do so, but those aren't too rare these days.

Back in June 2013, SK Telecom and Samsung debuted the first generation (150Mbps) LTE-A service in South Korea with the Samsung Galaxy S4 Snapdragon 800 version.

Source | Via

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/sk_telecom_to_introduce_300mbps_ltea_this_year-news-7612.php

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HTC M8 to retain 1080p display resolution, user agent confirms

The HTC M8 leak marathon continues with an User Agent Profile coming straight from the HTC website. The successor to the popular HTC One didn't get too many of its specs listed there, but at least we got official confirmation of its screen resolution.

The profile confirms 1920 x 1080 pixel screen - the same as on the HTC One. We also learned an interesting detail on the controls of the smartphone - according to the profile the M8 won't have any physical buttons on its body. This means HTC might be shifting to virtual buttons - like on the Nexus line of devices, the LG G2, many Xperia smartphones and others.

There's nothing else worth mentioning so we'll do a little recap of what we've heard so far. The HTC M8 could be called HTC One+ or HTC Two, the latter appears unlikely but stranger things have happened.

The chipset is taunted as a MSM8974 - the same Snapdragon 800 found in the LG Nexus 5, LG G2, Nokia Lumia 1520 and others. The screen could be between 4.9" and 5", the camera is said to be another Ultrapixel unit with no word on the exact resolution. No word on whether the device will feature a fingerprint scanner like the HTC One Max, but chances seem high.

Source

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_m8_or_one_or_two_to_retain_1080p_resolution-news-7611.php

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Exynos-based Samsung Galaxy Note 3 gets Android 4.4 KitKat

The Android 4.4 KitKat firmware for the Snapdragon 800-powered Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is already seeding in Poland and even more countries will be getting it very soon.

Today, just a week after the S800 ROM became official, the Exynos 5 Octa powered Galaxy Note 3 is also tasting the sweet KitKat. The first country to get the latest Android release is Russia, but naturally, other regions will be joining the list in the next few days.

The KitKat firmware boosts the performance of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, improves the RAM management and increase the system stability. It will also bring you monochrome status bar icons, full-screen album art on the lockscreen, plus some bug fixes. There is still no info on the battery performance, but fingers crossed it will get better as well.

Via

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/android_44_kitkat_now_seeding_on_exynosbased_galaxy_note_3-news-7610.php

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HTC M8 looks set to shun 2K display

Two speakers but no 2K screen?

Unable to be kept quiet before a possible MWC 2014 launch, more specifications of the upcoming HTC M8 have made their way onto the worldwide web.

A User Agent Profile (UAprof), highlighted by Twitter tipster @evleaks, reveals the upcoming HTC flagship will ship with a full HD 1920 x 1080 screen, as well as the latest version of Android.

This latest leak appears to confirm that the HTC M8 may already lag behind the impending Samsung Galaxy S5, a handset that is heavily rumoured to launch with a 2K display.

It makes Sense

This all corroborates with previous leaks, with an AnTuTu benchmark showing off the M8 running Android KitKat on a 5-inch Full HD display, as well as a previous evleaks tweet.

HTC is highly expected to customise the M8 with its all new Sense 6.0 UI, bringing over an improved version of BlinkFeed.

• Find out what else is being said about the HTC One Two

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/htc-m8-looks-set-to-shun-2k-display-1216834

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Sony Xperia Z2 UI screenshots leak

Sony is hard at work on its Xperia Z1 successor that should debut at the MWC in Barcelona next month. The alleged device is has the the codename Sirius, but should be called Xperia Z2 once it goes official.

Just e few days ago we saw high-res live pictures of the Xperia D6503 Sirius. It packs a 5.2" 1080p display, runs on Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974-AB chipset with a quad-core 2.3GHz Krait 400 CPU, faster Adreno 330 GPU and 3GB of RAM). At the back there's a 20.7MP camera with a larger than usual sensor, while Android 4.3 Jelly Bean with a newer version of Sony's home-baked launcher is under the hood.

Sony's new Android launcher

So, the XDA user who gave us the first live pictures of the D6503 is now giving us some screenshots of Sony's new UI. Some rumors suggest the retail device will be running on Android 4.4 KitKat, but the one we are seeing today seems to be running on an older firmware build with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. Still, the screenshots are enough to show us some of the changes coming with Sony's new launcher.

Sony's new Android launcher

You can see the new icons on the Quick Settings page, the option for managing notifications from the Personalization menu and the new themes. If the XDA forum user decide to post even more shots, you bet we'll be adding them as well.

Sony's new Android launcher

Hopefully we'll know everything about the Xperia Z2 and its new launcher in a few weeks when the MWC kicks off.

Thank you, xJokerz94, for the tip!

Source | Source 2

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z2_ui_screenshots_leak-news-7607.php

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ZTE Geek could be first Tizen smartphone at MWC 2014

Is it time for Tizen at last?

We've been waiting and waiting for a Tizen phone to emerge and finally we may get one at MWC 2014, but perhaps not from the source we were expecting.

Samsung is a major player in the Tizen project and the Korean firm has been heavily linked with smartphones running the alternative software for a while, but it could be beaten to the punch by Chinese manufacturer ZTE.

On the official Tizen website, details of its presence at MWC 2014 include a mention of a "ZTE Geek demo."

Going Geek

The ZTE Geek launched as a middle of the road Android 4.3 Jelly Bean smartphone in April 2013, but it could be able to make a comeback with an all new OS on board.

Questions are being raised over Tizen's appeal however, after Japanese network NTT DoCoMo opted not to range a Tizen handset due to its small market.

TechRadar will be at the Barcelona show to bring you all the latest mobile news, included developments in the Tizen arena.

• You can already find Tizen in a fridge and in a camera

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/zte-geek-could-be-first-tizen-smartphone-at-mwc-2014-1216787

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Fate of Samsung Galaxy S5 retina scanner still unclear

Here's looking at you...

As the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S5 edges closer, more specs are making their way onto the web. Unfortunately, that eye-scanner that we keep hearing about looks to have been omitted from the upcoming flagship, or has it?

According to industry sources talking to the Korea Herald "the tech giant will go for fingerprint authentication rather than unintuitive user experience of iris recognition".

This is in part due to a necessary redesign of the Galaxy S range, as well a current need to hold the phone to your eye in order to have it accurately scanned.

"Since iris recognition requires a long range camera, the smartphone, if fitted with the camera, needs a completely different design from previous models" said the unnamed source.

Now you see me..?

All is not lost for the eye-scanning tech though, with a tip passed to Phone Arena claiming that the Galaxy S5 will come with a refreshed design and a retina scanner - leaving us scratching our heads as to who is right.

Given that one of the biggest gripes with the Galaxy S4 was that it was so close in design to the Galaxy S3, an all new look for the S5 will be well received, yet Samsung will apparently stick to an all plastic construction.

The same leak also claims that the Galaxy S5 will come with that 2K QHD screen (1440 x 2560 pixels) we keep hearing about, as well as a 2900mAh battery. Could this be the fast-charging power pack that we heard about last week?

A 20MP camera has also been touted, contradicting rumours of a 16MP lens and putting it in the same league as the 20.7MP Sony Xperia Z1. It will record in 4K (like the Note 3) as well as simultaneously snap photos.

Given that all previous leaks have pointed towards a 16MP sensor, we'd advise taking this with a smidgeon of salt, and as far as eye scanners go, your guess is as good as ours.

• Hey, did you hear that Samsung is also refreshing the design of the UI?

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/fate-of-samsung-galaxy-s5-retina-scanner-still-unclear-1216762

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Lumia 929 aka Icon caught on video

While Nokia is absurdly holding off announcing the Lumia 929, or Icon, the device has added a new leak to its portfolio. This time by means of a video on YouTube.

The video is low on quality but compensates with usefulness by showing all of the device's sides. The top has the ejectable SIM slot and center-placed headphone jack, then there's the camera lens and dual LED flash on the back.

The front isn't particularly interesting with the usual three capacitive WP buttons below the screen. The device runs on Windows Phone 8 and has a screen resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels. The Icon is rumored to feature a quad-core Snapdragon 800 chipset, 20 MP 1/2.5" camera sensor with Carl Zeiss lens and PureView technology, and a screen diagonal of 5".

The Lumia 929 should be Verizon-bound, which we gather from recent leaks on Verizon's website and the carrier logo on the back of the smartphone in the video.

The device has even popped up on sale in China. So where's the announcement? We know we're not the only ones in waiting for a reasonably-sized powerful device from Nokia - the Lumia 1520 phablet is just too big for many.

Via

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/lumia_929_aka_icon_caught_on_video-news-7606.php

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Samsung's new TouchWiz UI leaks as a prettier Google Now

Google Now, but nicer (credit: @evleaks)

It's that time of year where Samsung Galaxy S5 rumours are flying in thick and fast, and further leaks point towards a new user interface (UI) and "multi-hovering" controls.

First up is a screen leak from @evleaks - a usually reliable source of mobile slips - revealing a potentially revamped homescreen with large, Windows Phone-esque tiles with information you'd commonly find in the Google Now.

This isn't the first time we've seen screens along this theme, with the same Twitter leaker revealing some similar shots earlier this year.

It also resembles the design of the Magazine UI found on the new Galaxy Tab Pro tablets - although function appears to be different for the smartphone version.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 is expected to be the next flagship device to make its way out of the South Korean firm, and this new TouchWiz UI is tipped to feature on the handset.

Touch is so last year

That's not the only Samsung/Galaxy S5 related leak we have for your though, oh no, there's word from ETNews that the smartphone with take its Air View to the next level with multi-hovering.

A Samsung insider for the Korean publication claims the Galaxy S5 will off enhanced touch-free gestures, allowing users to hover not one, but two fingers above the screen to perform various tasks, with the system also boasting greater accuracy.

We weren't overly impressed with the Air View on the Galaxy S4, so unless Samsung has totally reinvented the system we're not getting particularly excited about this potential feature.

• What else is rumoured for the Samsung Galaxy S5?

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/samsung-s-new-touchwiz-ui-leaks-as-a-prettier-google-now-1216737

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XOLO Q700S announced with 4.5" display and quad-core processor

XOLO has launched the new Q700S smartphone in India. This budget Android phone has a 4.5-inch, 800x480 resolution IPS display, 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 4GB internal memory with microSD card slot, 8 megapixel rear camera, VGA front camera, 1,800mAh battery and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. The phone is 8.9mm thin and has a metallic finish to it.

The XOLO Q700S is priced at INR 9,999 ($162) and will be available in silver and gold.

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/xolo_q700s_announced_with_45_display_and_quadcore_processor-news-7605.php

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