Sony Odin could be next Jelly-Bean toting flagship smartphone

The Sony Odin - a phone with Godly potential?

The first scant details on the next flasgship Xperia handset may have just appeared online, as the Sony Odin makes itself known.

Not to be confused with the god from Norse mythology, the code-named Odin handset will apparently land early next year and knock the likes of the Sony Xperia S and Xperia T off the top spot in the Japanese firm's line-up.

According to a leaked User-Agent Profile (or UAProf for short) which has popped up on Chinese site Blog of Mobile, the Sony Odin also sports the IDs C6502, C6503 and C6506.

Multiple versions could mean 4G

It's thought that all three model numbers refer to the same Sony Odin smartphone, with each model offering a slightly different set-up, potentially to support differing 4G frequencies in various regions.

The UAProf also reveals the Sony Odin will coming running the latest flavour of Android, Jelly Bean, with version 4.1.1 being listed in the leak, alongside firmware build 10.1.A.0.XXX.

We've contacted Sony about this, but it had nothing to say on the rumour, so we will have to keep an eye peeled for more info in the coming months.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/sony-odin-could-be-next-jelly-bean-toting-flagship-smartphone-1103066

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Nokia’s Lumia 810 with Windows Phone 8 is heading exclusively to T-Mobile later this year

T-Mobile has announced it has grabbed the Nokia Lumia 810, a variation of the Lumia 820, as an exclusive release set for later this year.

Hot on the heels of AT&T’s cheeky exclusivity deal concerning the Lumia 820 and 920, T-Mobile USA has announced it to has bagged an exclusive Nokia Lumia phone, named the Lumia 810.

If you don’t recall that name from Nokia’s recent Windows Phone 8 event, you’d be correct, as it’s a variation of the Lumia 820 revealed that day. How different is it? Let’s find out.

A 4.3-inch OLED touchscreen can be found on the front of the device, along with T-Mobile branding above it, and it boasts ClearBlack technology and a WVGA — that’s 800 x 480 — pixel resolution. Around the back is an 8-megapixel camera with a Carl Zeiss lens and a dual-LED flash, plus there is a 1.2-megapixel video call lens above the screen.

Inside is a dual-core, 1.5GHz Snapdragon processor with 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage, plus a microSD card slot to give that figure a boost. On the software side, Nokia Drive comes as standard, as does Nokia City Lens, and the Lumia 810 will have Nokia Music, the free on-or-offline streaming music service too. Windows Phone 8 is the operating system, and the phone is all ready to connect to T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network.

T-Mobile’s press release mentions the Lumia 810 has interchangeable rear covers — offered in cyan and black apparently — and that the phone will support Nokia’s wireless charging system.

Aside from a slightly different design, this specification appears to be identical to the Lumia 820, although NFC hasn’t been mentioned for the Lumia 810 yet, but we’ve no reason to think it won’t be included. How do you feel about that exclusivity deal now, AT&T?

T-Mobile has yet to confirm an exact release date for the Lumia 810, saying only that it’ll be available in the coming weeks, nor has any price been mentioned. But as this is a Windows Phone 8 product, that’s no great surprise.

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/t-mobile-announces-exclusive-nokia-lumia-810/

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Touchscreen controls are tough to crack, says EA Sports

Touchscreen has inherent problems for gamers

Peripherals may well not be the answer to the problems with gaming on mobile devices, according to an executive at EA Sports.

Mike McCabe is the head of emerging markets and developing platforms on the Fifa franchise, and has been puzzling over the best ways to make games more playable on our phones and tablets for years.

Speaking to TechRadar after the stellar launch of Fifa 13, McCabe talked about the issues with touchscreen controls and the problems with peripherals.

Touchy problem

"I don't know whether peripherals will solve the problem [of gaming on tablets and phones] it's something we look at a lot, said McCabe.

"The touchscreen interface doesn't give you the variety of interface points that ten point controllers do with a combination of buttons and analogue sticks so we are always going to have a slightly different control interface.

"We constantly strive to come up with a way we can do things differently and we still work on it.

"We've been trying out peripheral [controllers] even in the java days - those bluetooth game controllers - I had one when we had java games.

"It was basically a [Nintendo] Gameboy type interface, but it's not something I would carry around with me and it's not sophisticated as the device.

"People expect more and I don't know what the answer is - we constantly look and every year we challenge the mobile group with improving the mobile interface."

Fifa 13 for mobile

McCabe explained to TechRadar that the iOS version of Fifa 13 included some major changes, and talked us through the reasons for the differences.

"A couple of things we did this year with Fifa 13 was using swipe as one of the means to be able to change the balance of play, added McCabe.

"We added the skill button because users had said the double tap away from the core was never used because it was too difficult."

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/touchscreen-controls-are-tough-to-crack-says-ea-sports-1102813

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Nokia’s head of marketing resigns after 15 years, was it over the faked Lumia ad?

Nokia's VP of Product Marketing, Ilari Nurmi, has resigned from the company just as its new Lumia handsets are ready for launch.

Nokia’s Vice President of Product Marketing, Ilari Nurmi, has announced that he has left the company after 15-years of service. It’s a high-profile departure that comes just before one of the company’s most important product launches ever, and shortly after a marketing blunder that soured the announcement party for its new Windows Phone 8 Lumia handsets.

The news was broken by Reuters, and confirmed by Nurmi’s own Twitter account, where he said “I have left Nokia. I am thankful for almost 15 years there. I wish Nokia all the best and look forward to getting Lumia 920 once available.” A company man ‘till the last, then.

His departure from the company was relayed to Reuters in an email, in which “he did not make clear whether he left of his own accord,” and Nokia refused to comment on the reason Nurmi is no longer with them.

There are three ways of looking at this. The first is that it was his time to go, as before Nurmi worked on product marketing, he was vice president of Nokia’s Eseries line. Those with long memories will remember these were business-focused phones, and included successes such as the E71 and Nokia’s Communicator range. Before this, he was Director of Product Management for S60, Nokia’s user interface for the Symbian operating system.

With Eseries and Symbian both long gone, along with plenty of other alterations behind the scenes, Nokia today is probably very different to the Nokia Nurmi joined back in 1998.

Faked Lumia 920 video

However, if we don our conspiracy hat for a moment, there is a chance Nurmi resigned over the mishandling of the Lumia 920 teaser campaign, which brought suspicion and negative press down on the company at exactly the time it hoped for nothing by positive attention.

Specifically, we’re talking about the now infamous girl-on-a-bicycle footage, which was supposed to demonstrate the image stabilization abilities of Lumia 920’s PureView camera, but actually demonstrated the abilities of a professional camera securely mounted in a van.

ZDNet.com’s Zack Whittaker points the finger of blame at Nurmi, saying he “would have been ultimately responsible for the gaffe.”

Then there is the third possibility, which should be spoken only in hushed tones, which is that Nurmi didn’t relish the idea of trying to pull Nokia back from the brink, hopped into one of the nearest lifeboats, and sailed away. Whatever his reason for leaving is, it’s unlikely the truth will ever come out.

Nurmi has yet to talk about where he’s headed to next, and at the time of writing his Facebook and LinkedIn accounts still say he’s working for Nokia.

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/marketing-vp-ilari-nurmi-resigns-from-nokia/

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Nokia Lumia 'Atlas' for Verizon leaked

A new Nokia Lumia phone, codenamed 'Atlas', with the Verizon logo has surfaced. The image was posted by @evleaks on their Twitter account.

The phone looks like it could be a variant of the Lumia 820, with similar specifications but meant for Verizon's network. Just a few hours ago, we saw Nokia pull this same trick with the Lumia 810, a variant of the Lumia 820 for T-Mobile.

Not much can be said looking at the solitary photo that was posted, other than the phone has more pronounced rounded corners than the 820 or the 810, a front facing camera and a Verizon logo that looks like it was added at the last moment and pasted on the only place that was available.

If true, Verizon should be making an announcement for it shortly.

Source

Source : http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_lumia_atlas_for_verizon_leaked-news-4920.php

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EA Sports: Why add on games controllers for mobiles might not solve problem

Touchscreen has inherent problems for gamers

Peripherals may well not be the answer to the problems with gaming on mobile devices, according to an executive at EA Sports.

Mike McCabe is the head of emerging markets and developing platforms on the Fifa franchise, and has been puzzling over the best ways to make games more playable on our phones and tablets for years.

Speaking to TechRadar after the stellar launch of Fifa 13, McCabe talked about the issues with touchscreen controls and the problems with peripherals.

Touchy problem

"I don't know whether peripherals will solve the problem [of gaming on tablets and phones] it's something we look at a lot, said McCabe.

"The touchscreen interface doesn't give you the variety of interface points that ten point controllers do with a combination of buttons and analogue sticks so we are always going to have a slightly different control interface.

"We constantly strive to come up with a way we can do things differently and we still work on it.

"We've been trying out peripheral [controllers] even in the java days - those bluetooth game controllers - I had one when we had java games.

"It was basically a [Nintendo] Gameboy type interface, but it's not something I would carry around with me and it's not sophisticated as the device.

"People expect more and I don't know what the answer is - we constantly look and every year we challenge the mobile group with improving the mobile interface."

Fifa 13 for mobile

McCabe explained to TechRadar that the iOS version of Fifa 13 included some major changes, and talked us through the reasons for the differences.

"A couple of things we did this year with Fifa 13 was using swipe as one of the means to be able to change the balance of play, added McCabe.

"We added the skill button because users had said the double tap away from the core was never used because it was too difficult."

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/ea-sports-why-add-on-games-controllers-for-mobiles-might-not-solve-problem-1102813

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In-flight chat: Emirates lets passengers use cell phones during flights

Dubai-based Emirates is now allowing passengers on its A380 planes to use their cell phones to make calls during flights.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about airlines finally giving the green light to passengers wishing to talk on their cell phones up in the air, though whether the majority of flyers are actually in favor of such a move isn’t certain. Being stuck beside someone on a long-haul flight jabbering away into the mouthpiece of their cell phone – as well into your ear – might, after all, be enough to make you want to go for a wing walk to escape the noise.

How passengers really feel, though, may be immaterial as it seems inevitable that a future of planes filled with cell phone owners bellowing into their handsets “I’m on the plane” is just around the corner.

Dubai-based carrier Emirates is leading the charge, allowing passengers on its double-decker A380 jets to use their phones to make calls from this week. The first call was reportedly made 11,500 meters (38,000 feet) up, to a location in China. The nature of the call isn’t known, though if it’s anything like the ones you hear on trains and buses, it won’t have been anything too important.

As an AllThingsD report on the development points out, Emirates is no slacker when it comes to offering passengers options regarding in-flight tech services. In the 1990s, on-board phones and fax machines were installed in its Airbus aircraft, while email and text messaging via in-seat facilities has been offered since 2006.

‘Pushing the boundaries’

In a statement about Emirates’ new service, the airline’s vice president, Patrick Brannelly, said, “Beginning in 1993 with first passenger satellite phone service to last year with our A380 Wi-Fi system, Emirates has always taken the approach that providing the latest in in-flight service and connectivity is a key part of our passengers’ journey”

He added, “Emirates continues to invest in the most innovative technology possible and promises to keep pushing the boundaries of in-flight innovation for the benefit of our passengers.”

Flyers in the US, or those traveling to and from the country, may or may not be pleased to know that a long-standing safety-related ban on the use of cell phones in aircraft imposed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) means the service will be blocked when the plane is flying over the US or within 250 miles of the country.

It was reported in August that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is planning to take another look at the restrictions placed on the use of personal electronic devices (PEDs) on planes in the US, though cell phones will not be included in the review.

[Image: Dimitriy Shironosov / Shutterstock]

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/emirates-lets-passengers-use-cell-phones-during-flights/

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