[RUMOUR] Report alleges the Nokia X won’t be the last Android Nokia Phone
Whether or not you balked when you saw the suspected specs for the Android-powered Nokia X, many within the smartphone community have been seeing the Nokia X, AKA the Nokia Normandy, as Nokia‘s last hurrah before becoming one with Microsoft. Not so, says one report, which not only says that the Nokia X won’t be the last Android Nokia Phone, but that Nokia is going to be exclusively in charge of the Asha line with lower and higher spec models due in May or June of this year.
Of course, we’ve all heard that the Nokia X likely won’t have any core Google apps like the Google Play Store, which puts it at a significant disadvantage, within the Android arena at least, compared to Android behemoths like Samsung and LG. That said, the other forked Android OS, Kindle OS, had done quite well for itself (with significant support from Amazon, of course), so it will be interesting to see how Nokia’s effort does when it makes its expected debut at MWC 2014 in just a few weeks’ time.
What do you think about this news: would you want to see a higher spec Nokia X-like device in a few months time? Let us know what you think in the comments.
Source: Tech.qq via Phone Arena
Oppo’s next smartphone due in March with 2K and 1080p display options
You may cringe at this “Find 7 [are] coming” line, but it’s actually an intentional typo, as Oppo’s releasing its Find 5 follow-up with two screen resolutions. You see, back in December, the Chinese company teased that its next flagship phone will be using JDI’s (not LG’s) 5.5-inch 2,560 x 1,440 (538 ppi) panel, which is even sharper than the 6-inch counterpart on the Vivo Xplay 3S. Then to confuse us, earlier this week a Find 7 benchmark showed up on GFXBench with a 1080p display instead, along with a Snapdragon 800 SoC and Android 4.3.
We’ve since checked with our own sources, and we can now confirm that said device will indeed be offered with more than one display option to please everyone: 2K for the spec chasers, and 1080p for the humble users. We also understand that other specs may differ between the two versions, so if all goes well, we’ll take a closer look at the Find 7 variants in Beijing’s 798 Art Zone on March 19th.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Via: Engadget Chinese
Source: Sina Weibo (Oppo), GFXBench
First-time Firefox users will soon see ads in their tabs
Advertisements? In my virgin tab page? It’s more likely than you think, new Firefox user. That’s because Mozilla will soon launch Directory Tiles, a program that’ll ensure you see something other than blank squares the first time you launch the browser. Instead, it’ll populate those spaces with various Mozilla links and, more significantly, sponsored content. Those tiles will be clearly labeled as ads, however, and the change will help make Mozilla “more sustainable as a project,” according to its blog. That sounds like a coded way of saying it’ll generate some cash — which seems reasonable, considering that its competitors have Scrooge McDuck-like vaults of money to throw at their browsers.
Filed under: Internet
Source: Mozilla
Which smartphone has the largest screen-to-phone-size percentage?
For some smartphone enthusiasts, screen-to-phone-size percentage, that is, the ratio of the phone’s front that is screen and not bezel, is as important when choosing a phone as any hardware specification, and to a certain degree, that’s true. Devices that have thinner bezels do generally look quite attractive, and this of course means that the phone’s overall size will have been minimized while still maximizing the size of the screen. And when your phone is going to have at least a 5-inch screen, that is going to make all the difference. So exactly which smartphone has the largest screen-to-phone-size percentage?
According to @somospostpc’s infographic, the phone that has the honour of best screen-to-phone-size is the LG G2 with 75.7%, which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise considering how minimal its bezels are. As you look through the names on the infographic, what you will notice is that the newer phones do generally have a higher screen-to-phone-size ratio which is pretty much what you want when you’re getting the monstrous Note 3′s and LG G2′s of the smartphone world. What you will also notice is that even the best of the iPhones, the iPhone 5S, languishes down the order with a screen-to-phone-size ratio of just 60.6%. Just saying…
Check out the full infographic above and tell us what you think: did you see any surprises? Let us know your thoughts on screen-to-phone-size percentage in the comments below.
Source: Twitter via Phone Arena
New Samsung Galaxy S5 concept looks awfully Nexus with a side of TouchWiz
Yesterday, Samsung teased what looked like what the icons on its new Android KitKat TouchWiz interface might be, and they looked like a significant departure from what we’re normally used to in TouchWiz UI‘s. As is usually the case, some diligent designers have been working around the clock to come up with new mockups that feature the teased icons, like this latest Samsung Galaxy S5 concept from Jinesh Shah which appears to make use of the icons we saw yesterday.
Despite using the coloured icons from yesterday’s teaser, the appearance of the UI is overwhelmingly reminiscent of a Nexus device running stock Android given that the device has on-screen buttons; as is Samsung’s penchant, we’re expecting the Samsung Galaxy S5 to have the trademark physical home button which should be accompanied by capacitive buttons. That’s not to say it’s a 100% sure either, and I think many of us would love to think the Galaxy S5 might have a simple and clean UI like in this concept. It’s always nice to dream…
What do you think about Shah’s Samsung Galaxy S5 concept? Think the next TouchWiz UI will look anything like this? Let us know your opinion in the comments below.
Source: Behance via Concept Phones
HTC’s leaked ‘Desire 8’ mid-ranger looks big and beautiful
Despite HTC’s recent blast of Desire phones, the company admitted that it still needs to push harder in the lower price tiers. Lo and behold, here’s a leak of an upcoming “New Desire 8″ series mid-range device, courtesy of Chinese site MyDrivers and with confirmation from our own sources. This dual-SIM phone will reportedly pack a 5.5-inch display of unknown resolution, which will make it the largest non-flagship HTC phone since the Desire 700. There will also be a 13-megapixel main camera (not UltraPixel), along with a 5-megapixel front imager with beautification mode. We’re assuming that this is a plastic body — available in white, red, yellow, orange and cyan — with stereo front-facing speakers, which is now a signature feature on many HTC phones. But where are the Android buttons? Chances are this Desire model is joining the M8 flagship to embrace on-screen keys, despite their absence in this render.
The screenshot mentions “March 18th” plus Beijing, so unless Peter Chou is messing with us here, we’ll be making ourselves available that day for the launch event in China. Having said that, we might also get to see it at MWC in two weeks’ time, so stay tuned.
Update: A reliable tipster sent in the original image, so we’ve updated this article with it.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC
Source: MyDrivers
The FCC is working on a plan to fix net neutrality, save the internet
Remember when Verizon skewered the FCC’s net neutrality rules? It may have won the battle, but Tom Wheeler doesn’t believe that the carrier has won the war. The FCC chief has let slip that he’s working on a plan to reinstate provisions for a free and open internet in the near future. He’s backed by five Democratic senators, who are urging the head to be swift in restoring balance to the force US communications business. The belief is that, in order to get around the loophole Verizon used to such good effect, the commission will simply reclassify broadband providers as common carriers, liable to the same regulation covering phone companies. It wouldn’t go down well with Big Red and the like, but at least it’d hamper their evil plans to penalize you for that Netflix subscription.
Filed under: Internet, Verizon
Via: Electronista
Source: CNET
Seidio is having a 25% off sale for Valentine’s Day
I just got this my inbox; titled “Protect the thing you love the most – your device”, Seidio is having a 25% off sale for Valentine’s Day. This is for all of you who have forgotten to get your significant other a gift for Valentine’s Day, or merely feel like giving your your phone a new case. If you haven’t heard of Seidio before, they specialize in heavy-duty smartphone cases that range in capabilities from being a basic protective case to the full shebang: a airtight, watertight case that will never let your device succumb to the elements. If you want to read more about how Seidio cases are to use, we’ve previously reviewed the Convert Case for Galaxy Note 2 (read here) and the OBEX Case for Galaxy S3 (read here).
If you’re wanting to jump on this deal, visit the Seidio site and after you’ve selected the case of your choice, use the coupon code VDAY25 at the checkout to cash in your 25% discount. The deal should be live now and will end on the 16th of February, but you probably shouldn’t leave it till then if it’s for your better half…
If you pick something up for yourself or your Valentine’s, let us know what you went for in the comments!
Source: Seidio
Microsoft: Bing’s altered Chinese search results are a glitch, not censorship
Anti-censorship blogs have found that when using Bing, it appears the Chinese government’s muzzle for “damaging” web-based news extends beyond its borders, but Microsoft says that’s not the case. Bing search queries are returning with wildly different results for Chinese-language users on US soil, according to Greatfire. The site tested a series of searches in Chinese for hot-button topics ranging from the Dalai Lama, Tiananmen Square and the corrupt government official Bo Xilai. In the case of the Tibetan spiritual leader, results don’t include his Wikipedia page, personal website or various news reports like they do for searches in English. Instead, Chinese-language Bing users both domestic and foreign found links to a state-sponsored documentary and China’s heavily censored version of Wikipedia, Baidu Baike. If a user is in mainland China, Bing denotes that the search results have been altered, but not so in the US according to The Guardian.
Bing’s Senior Director Stefan Weitz has denied this and tells us that it wasn’t complying with China’s stringent legal requirements — it was a glitch. According to a statement by Weitz, an error caused “an incorrect results removal notification for some searches noted in the report” but that the results were unaltered outside of China. However, Redmond didn’t note whether or not the error had been fixed. We’ve included the full statement from Microsoft after the break.
[Image credit: Freddie boy/Flickr]
“We’ve conducted an investigation of the claims raised by Greatfire.org.
First, Bing does not apply China’s legal requirements to searches conducted outside of China. Due to an error in our system, we triggered an incorrect results removal notification for some searches noted in the report but the results themselves are and were unaltered outside of China.
Second, with regard to the freeweibo.com homepage being absent from Bing search results, our investigation indicates that at some time in the past the page was marked as inappropriate due to low quality or adult content. After review, we have determined the page is acceptable for inclusion in global search results.
Bing aims to provide a robust set of high-quality, relevant search results to our users. In doing so, Bing has extremely high standards that respect human rights, privacy and freedom of expression.
Microsoft is a signatory to the Global Network Initiative, which is an effort by a multi-stakeholder group of companies, civil society organizations (including human rights and press freedom groups), investors and academics to protect and advance freedom of expression and privacy on the Internet. As part of our commitment to GNI, Microsoft follows a strict set of internal procedures for how we respond to specific demands from governments requiring us to block access to content. We apply these principles carefully and thoughtfully to our Bing version for the People’s Republic of China.”
Filed under: Internet, Microsoft
Via: The Guardian
Source: Greatfire (Chinese)
Researchers develop smartglasses that help surgeons see cancerous cells
If you think cancer removal surgery is but a one-time procedure, you’d be wrong. Doctors don’t always cut out all affected tissues in one go, but a new pair of high-tech eyewear could help make that happen. The device, developed by a Washington University research team led by Samuel Achilefu, can make cancer cells perfectly visible to surgeons as they operate. It’s loaded with custom software that makes cancerous cells glow blue (due to a molecular imaging agent that gives it color) to anyone wearing the headset — surgeons can then clearly distinguish affected tissues from their healthy counterparts and excise them all. Achilefu and his colleagues are hoping the device eventually eliminates the need for follow-up surgeries.
A Washington U doctor used the technology for the first time on an actual surgery yesterday, February 10th, but it still needs to be tested and developed further before we can count it as a surefire weapon against the disease. If and when the medical eyewear becomes available, though, it will make a great companion to that smart knife that sniffs out cancer as you cut that’s already being used in the UK.
Via: Gizmodo
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