Samsung’s wearable blitz may not be over: here comes the ‘S-Circle’
Compared to the glitz surrounding its latest Gear smartwatches, Samsung’s more basic fitness bands have so far failed to garner much attention. The electronics giant doesn’t seem to be giving up on this cheaper sort of wearable, however, because an unannounced model called the “S-Circle” has just cropped up at the FCC, having already appeared at the Bluetooth SIG a while back. The FCC paperwork confirms the device’s model number (EI-AN900A) and description as an “activity tracker,” as well as its inclusion of Bluetooth Low-Energy, and all of this points to it being a member of the same family as the S Band (shown above) and Heart Rate Monitor Band that launched with the Galaxy S4 last year. There’s at least some chance that the S-Circle will combine these functions into a single low-cost device, transmitting both movement and heart rate data to Samsung’s S-Health app, but that’s just optimistic speculation on our part. Either way, it looks like Galaxy S5 owners who care more about muscle tone than Moschino may have the option of another accessory pretty soon.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wearables, Mobile, Samsung
Via: Samsung Updates
Source: FCC
Bitcoin’s elusive founder reportedly discovered living in California
There have been many theories banded about as to the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin. Nothing conclusive has married the name to an individual or group, but now Newsweek claims to have found the Nakamoto, a 64-year-old Japanese-American man of the same name residing in California. Allegedly living an understated life, Nakamoto’s said to no longer be connected to the digital currency he’s implicated in making. We know this all sounds annoyingly cut and dried (a story’s often more exciting than the reality, after all), but there’s still Nakamoto’s name changes and classified government work, among other things, to keep things mysterious. Whether this truly is the father of Bitcoin is still up for discussion, too — there’s still been no clear admission as such — so we’ll just point you to the Newsweek piece and let you make your own mind up.
[Image credit: Newsweek]
Filed under: Internet
Source: Newsweek
HTC’s overpriced Desire 310 ready to underwhelm Europe in April
When the Desire 310 popped up on HTC’s Chinese site a few days ago, we wrote it off as a regional product with no international aspirations. Well, we were mistaken, and though there’s no word on the low-end handset coming to the US, it’s most certainly bound for Europe. HTC didn’t invite the Desire 310 to party at MWC, but then again, there’s not much to celebrate. The handset bundles a 4.5-inch, 854 x 480 display with a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek CPU, a gig of RAM, 4GB of storage (expandable via microSD), a 5MP camera, 2,000mAh battery, 3G connectivity and Android 4.2. It’s an incremental improvement over the Desire 300, with a few design tweaks like the omission of soft keys (a recent trend for HTC). We’re told in the UK that the Desire 301 will arrive at O2, Vodafone and Carphone Warehouse at the end of April in a selection of hues, and the folks over at GSMinfo.nl note a recommended price of 169 euros for The Netherlands, or around £140 (UK pricing isn’t available yet). With the far superior Moto G going for £100 on pay-as-you-go or £130 unlocked in the UK, though, we can only suggest HTC raise the stakes soon if it’s serious about betting on lower-end devices.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC
Source: HTC, GSMinfo.nl
Apple Loses Renewed Bid for U.S. Ban on Samsung Products [iOS Blog]
In the time of the first Apple v. Samsung trial in 2011, Apple requested an injunction to prevent Samsung from selling its Galaxy line of smartphones and tablets within the United States. Apple stated that the 23 products in question violated three of its multitouch software patents, including the scroll-back, tap-to-zoom, and pinch-to-zoom patents. Judge Lucy Koh then denied Apple’s request, stating there was no proof Apple would be damaged if Samsung was able to continue the sale of its products.
In November 2013 however, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that Judge Koh would be required to reconsider her decision to not ban Samsung devices that infringed on Apple products. In December, Apple formally filed another motion calling for a U.S. ban on Samsung products.
Now, FOSS Patents reports that Judge Koh has denied Apple’s new bid calling for a U.S. ban on Samsung products, stating that the company has not proved that its infringed upon patents drive consumer demand for Samsung devices.
To persuade the Court to grant Apple such an extraordinary injunction—to bar such complex devices for incorporating three touchscreen software features—Apple bears the burden to prove that these three touchscreen software features drive consumer demand for Samsung’s products. Apple has not met this burden.
The ruling comes ahead of a second patent lawsuit between Apple and Samsung set to begin on March 13, 2014. Notably, Samsung will only be allowed to have four patent claims to bring to the trial, as Judge Koh voided two of its patent claims in January. Apple will be able to bring all five of its patent claims to the trial.
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Huawei Ascend P6 gets Android 4.4.2 via OTA update in China
A whole slew of Android smartphones have been getting updated to the latest software, Android 4.4.2, and the latest to join the party is the Huawei Ascend P6 which reportedly started getting its update as an over-the-air (OTA) update in China. Seeing as the P6 is still on Android 4.2.2 and using the slightly outdated Emotion UI 1.6, the updated should see the P6 get all the Android KitKat goods as well as the latest and greatest Emotion UI 2.0.
While this update hasn’t exactly been on time (Huawei promised the P6 would get its KitKat update in January), it’s better late than never and perfect timing seeing as all its competitors are being updated at this time as well. Seeing as the update is rolling out now in China, it’s only a matter of time before the update spreads around the world. Briefly holding the title of thinnest smartphone on the market, the P6 never quite found its feet away from its native China, but nonetheless has still helped the Chinese manufacturer reach third behind Samsung and LG on the Android manufacturers leaderboard.
Anybody out there excited that the Huawei Ascend P6 gets Android 4.4.2? We’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Source: Huawei News via Phones Review
HTC Desire 310 gets officially announced, fills out HTC’s line-up to start 2014
HTC seems to be in device release overdrive these last few weeks; while still not talking much about the inevitable release of its next flagship, the All New HTC One, it has been releasing the other devices that will make up its family of devices to start 2014. Joining the Desire 816 and Desire 610 is the HTC Desire 310, unsurprisingly the tail-ender of the Desire family, bringing budget hardware for hopefully what will be a budget price.
The Desire 310 will have a quad-core 1.3GHz processor with 512MB, 4GB storage with microSD support, and a 4.5-inch 854×480 resolution display. Along for the party will also be a 5MP rear camera and 0.3MP front camera, with all the standard connectivity features: Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, 3G (no LTE of course) and a 2,000mAh battery. No software version was specified for the Desire 310 but its been previously rumoured to be running Android 4.2.2.
The Desire 310 looks awfully similar to the specs of the Nokia X, and while it’s a no-brainer for us as to which one to pick, for the consumers on the fence, the Desire 310 needs to be priced competitively to have a chance of winning the budget market over. What do you think of the HTC Desire 310? Would you consider getting one? Let us know your opinion in the comments.
Source: Phones Review
The pricing for the Samsung Gear wearable devices leaks out; more of the same from Samsung
With the unveiling of their new wearable devices, the Samsung Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo and the fitness-oriented Gear Fit, Samsung looks to be taking a more thoughtful approach to the smartwatch industry in 2014. While the watches definitely look the part, we’ve been wondering since they were officially announced how they would be priced and it looks as though TalkAndroid has the low down on the pricing.
According to their sources, the daddy of the bunch, the Gear 2, will be looking at a 300 Euro ($412 USD) price-tag whereas the Gear 2 Neo and Gear Fit are expected to cost the same at 200 Euros ($275 USD). As with the original Galaxy Gear, that’s not exactly pocket change, though many of us are already used to Samsung’s pricing tricks with all their accessories, often pricing them on the very expensive size. Despite Samsung’s decision to move their smartwatches to the Tizen OS, there’s been very little change to the devices in general; compared to other smartwatch devices that arguably perform better and definitely last longer, these Samsung devices will carry an extremely hefty disadvantage if these prices are correct.
What do you think about these prices: would you be willing to shell out that much for one of these Samsung Gear devices? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Source: TalkAndroid
The Growing World of Programming
Programming is a term that’s usually associated with computers. But in the modern world we have a whole host of devices from our cars, to our domestic appliances, that are controlled by electronics. That means that at some point their functions need to be programmed.
This has led to a growing demand for the skills needed to program, not just the high level languages used in computers, but the lower level code used on embedded chips.
What is Programming?
Put simply, programming involves creating a set of instructions to be interpreted by a machine. The resulting code is usually compiled into a form that the machine’s processor can understand. Many of the current generation of programmers will have been introduced to it through languages like BASIC on home computers.
Whilst Visual BASIC is still a popular choice it’s languages like Java and various versions of C that are most commonly used today. Many applications now are accessed via the web so the likes of JavaScript, allowing applications to run within a browser, are also popular.
There is still some demand for legacy languages like COBOL which continue to underpin many older business systems. A lot of the techniques needed to create good code such as structuring and documenting are common to all languages so a good grounding in programming techniques can prepare you to work with a variety of systems.
Programming Processor Chips
Programming a chip to carry out robotics functions is slightly different in that, rather than programming the device directly, the code is created on a computer and then transferred to the device. This is usually done using C or some variant of it.
Off-the-shelf processor development kits like those from Arduino are a good way of learning the basics. These are supplied with components to allow you to build simple circuits. The language used is based on C and kits come with a series of projects which allow you to learn whilst creating programs to control lights or make music for example. You can buy an Arduino starter kit here and they work with Windows, Mac and Linux systems so it doesn’t matter what type of computer you have. If you’re keen to learn how to program, these kits are a great introduction.
Whatever your interest, whether it’s coding for processor chips or writing computer applications, programming is an interesting and fulfilling activity. It can be frustrating at times and requires patience as you may need to spend a lot of time tracking down errors, but when you see something that you’ve created there’s a major sense of achievement.
Demand for programming skills shows no signs of going away, so as a career choice it’s attractive. It is an ever changing world though so you may need to retrain at times in the course of a career. But whether you want to work as a programmer or simply pursue it as a hobby there are plenty of opportunities.
Opera’s Android browser catches up to rivals with support for webpage video chats
Given Google’s Chrome dominance, it’s easy to forget that there are other Android browsers. Opera is one of the also-rans, and it’s just brought a new version with a nice round number, 20, for your consideration. It’s touting WebRTC as the main hook, which lets you do video calls straight from Opera to any recipient with another WebRTC browser. That includes Opera, Chrome or Firefox, since the latter two apps have actually supported WebRTC on Android for quite awhile. Other additions include a new UI layout that you can customize for tablets or phones, an update to the Chromium 33 core (yes, Opera now uses WebKit), search improvements and a new download manager. It still claims to use less data than other browsers thanks to its off-road function, so if you’re pushing that hard carrier limit, check the source.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile
Source: Opera
Azoi Unveils ‘Wello’ Health Tracking Case for iPhone [iOS Blog]
Science and technology company Azoi has unveiled the Wello health monitoring case for the iPhone 4S, iPhone 5 and iPhont 5s, allowing users to track various human metrics such as blood pressure, heart rate, temperature and more, reports GigaOM.
The case itself features a thin design with Bluetooth functionality, and includes a microprocessor along with two sensors on its rear. Users are able to measure their health metrics by placing two fingers over designated holes on the back of the case, with a reading taking a few seconds and appearing on a companion app.
Azoi states that the Wello can sync with accessories such as a Wi-Fi scale and other fitness trackers, and contains a battery that lasts up to two months on a single charge. The accessory also allows multiple users to register their health metrics through the app, as health trends and patterns will be displayed over time.
Apple is rumored to be including health tracking functionality similar to the Wello in its wearable iWatch device, which is reportedly in development for a release later this year. A report earlier this month stated that the iWatch could perhaps incorporate optical sensors to measure physical functions such as heart rate and oxygen levels, as Apple is rumored to be including a”Healthbook” app in iOS 8 that would assist users in tracking health statistics in conjunction with the iWatch and iPhone.
The Wello is available to pre-order for $199, as Azoi plans to launch the product later this year pending approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration. Those who pre-order early will also receive a free spirometer attachment to measure lung functions.
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