Samba’s free mobile data network shuts down as ads fail to cover costs
If 500MB of free browsing a month in exchange for watching a few ads seemed too good to be true, it was — Samba, the free, data-only MVNO is no more. According to the company’s blog, it came down to the increasing price of wholesale data, which made the ad model unsustainable. Fortunately, if you bought a SIM card recently or paid for a data top-up (another option if you didn’t want ads), you’ll get a refund. There’ll be no credit for time spent watching ads, though — but it’s a pretty good bet you were doing something else at the time anyway.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Internet, Mobile
Samsung Galaxy S5 Prime could launch as soon as June
Despite the Samsung Galaxy S5 not exactly being an old device, it seems Samsung are set to release the Galaxy S5 Prime as soon as June. Whilst the upcoming device is only supported by rumours at the moment, suggestions peg the device at having a 2560 x 1440 resolution with a 5.2-inch Super AMOLED display and an octa-core Exynos 5430 CPU.
Whilst Samsung is certainly not going to win prizes for customer satisfaction releasing an upgraded Galaxy S5 device so shortly after their flagship device, if the Galaxy S5 Prime is real it certainly is shaping up to be a great phone, and could land as soon as June.
The post Samsung Galaxy S5 Prime could launch as soon as June appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Raspberry Pi modded into a $160 cellphone
Remember how happy you were when you got your Raspberry Pi project to do, well, anything? Programming savant and photographer David Hunt has merely created a working cellphone with his, complete with video proof (below). The PiPhone consists of a bunch of off-the-shelf parts, like a PiTFT touchscreen and 2,500mAh battery that cost a grand total of $158. While that might seem a lot for an ungainly dumbphone, bear in mind that it’s a one-off with no economies of scale working for it. As any Pi hobbyist knows, it’s also an impressive feat and Hunt is willing to upload his source code if you’re brave enough to give it a crack.
[Image credit: David Hunt]
Filed under: Cellphones
Via: Kotaku
Source: David Hunt
Apple Regains Market Share in Some Countries with Strong iPhone 5s Sales
Research firm Kantar Worldpanel has released a new report (via TechCrunch) highlighting worldwide smartphone sales over the January-March period, finding that Apple has regained market share in countries such as Europe, Japan and Australia due in part to the strong sales performance of the iPhone 5s.
Dominic Sunnebo, strategic insight director at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, comments: “Apple regained ground in the first quarter of 2014, primarily due to the strong performance of the iPhone 5S, growing its sales share in Europe, Japan and Australia. By contrast, Windows had a tough start to the year as a result of its entry-level Nokia models facing fierce competition from low-end Motorola, LG and Samsung Android smartphones.”
Apple’s total market share in Japan, Australia, and Europe hit 57.6%, 33.1%, and 19.2%, which are increases of 8.6%, 2.0%, and 0.1% compared to the same timeframe last year, respectively. In the United States, Apple’s market share was at 35.9%, which was down 7.8% compared to the 43.7% market share it held a year ago.
However, Sunnebo noted in a prior Kantar report highlighting smartphone sales over the August-October 2013 period that customers in the U.S. generally react better to “full releases” like the iPhone 4 and iPhone 5 than “incremental” updates such as the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c. Apple is expected to release a larger-screen iPhone 6 this year with new features including a thinner profile, faster A8 processor, Touch ID fingerprint sensor, and an improved camera with optical image stabilization.
Meanwhile, the iPhone’s surging popularity in Japan has continued in the months following its debut on the country’s largest carrier, NTT DoCoMo:
Sunnebo continues: “Japan’s love affair with Apple shows no sign of fading. Even though the iPhone has now been available on Japan’s largest carrier, NTT DoCoMo, for a number of months Apple still accounts for more than 40% of sales on the network. The success of the iPhone is also filtering through to the iPad, with almost a quarter of Japanese iPhone owners also owning an iPad. With smartphone penetration in Japan lagging well behind Europe and the US, Japan will remain a key growth market for Apple.”
Despite its solid market share in numerous countries however, the iPhone continues to face challenges from Google’s Android platform, which had its market share continue hover above 70% in many markets. Microsoft’s Windows Phone also increased its market share, with the platform even holding a 4.3% advantage over iOS in Italy.
Paper Icon Pack Review: scrunched up paper has never looked so Good
You may have caught our announcement a few weeks ago of a new icon pack from our good friend Samer Zayer (check out the announcement post here). The Paper icon pack is an extremely unique take on icons, taking the texture of scrunched up, creased paper and applying it to square bordered icons and the effect is amazing. We took a more in-depth look at the icon pack in our video review:
As you can see, yet another very comprehensive icon pack from Samer. As I mentioned in the video, the pack already includes 900+ icons with cloud-stored wallpapers and very regular updates and of course, all the latest launchers are supported. The pack is also currently on sale on Google Play which will let you pick it up for just $0.99 so make sure you take advantage of that price before the sale is over (link is below).
Let us know what you think about the Paper icon pack or if you’ve tried any of Samer Zayer’s work before (P.S. be sure to follow Samer on Google+ for updates on his icon packs and his new projects).
Icons: Paper Icon Pack
Price: $0.99
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Forked Android Based Nokia X Selling Very Well In India
Nokia’s first Android smartphone, the Nokia X which was launched last month is selling very well in India. It is already being listed as one of the best-selling and popular smartphones in all the leading online stores such as Flipkart and Snapdeal. Similar is the case with offline retail stores in the country. Priced at around INR 7,000 in India, the Nokia X runs a custom version of Android, usually referred to as ‘forked Android’ on top of entry-level hardware.
To remind you, the Nokia X is equipped with a 4 inch IPS LCD screen, 1 GHz dual-core processor, 512 MB of RAM, 3 MP camera and dual SIM card slots. Nokia X replaces all the Google services with Microsoft versions such as HERE Maps, Outlook, OneDrive and Bing Search. There is Nokia’s own Android app store but it only lists free applications and games. Other third-party app stores like 1Mobile Market, Yandex or Amazon App Store can be installed to get paid applications and games. You can also root the Nokia X and install stock Android custom ROM along with Google Play Store if you want.
Nokia X With Forked Android
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Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini along with SM-T705 & SM-T700 tablet devices leaked
The Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini was listed on Samsung New Zealand website under the warranty terms and conditions for water proof devices along with the Galaxy S5 and Galaxy S4 Active. After it was listed mistakenly, Samsung has pulled the information offline. It was thus confirmed to be water-proof with a IP67 certification. Apart from being water-proof, the Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini is rumoured to be equipped with a 4.5 inch HD screen, quad-core processor, 1.5 GB of RAM and 8 MP camera.
Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini Listed On Samsung New Zealand Website
Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini Possible Specifications
- Android 4.4 KitKat
- 4.5 inch HD touchscreen, water-proof IP67 certified
- 1.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor
- 1.5 GB of RAM, 8 GB of internal storage, microSD card slot
- 8 MP primary camera, 2 MP secondary camera
A couple of Samsung tablets bearing model numbers SM-T700 and SM-T705 have also been leaked via User Agent profiles. Both the tablets feature 8.4 inch screens with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels running Android 4.4 KitKat. The SM-T705 will be a 4G LTE variant of the SM-T700. No other information about these tablets have been revealed as of now.
Source: Samsung New Zealand, Samsung Mobile UAProf | Via: GSMArena, PhoneArena
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AcDisplay 2.1 BETA Makes Your Lockscreen Sexy – APP OF THE WEEK
AcDisplay has been featured on App of the Week before, but that was the older version. They have something new and improved now gang, and once I got the BETA 2.1 version on my phone, I fell in love
The developer has done a complete UI overhaul to AcDisplay, by not trying to emulate the Moto X Active Display as much. Sure there are still similarities to Active Display, but look at my image above and tell me that isn’t different and sexy. Instead of getting a little window at the top of your screen with your icon and message, you get the whole display showing you the icon, and the message appears in the middle of the screen with a smooth animation that is pleasing to the eyeballs. You have all the shortcut features you have in your notification bar too, which is a huge improvement from the older version. You can also use the wallpaper that is currently on your homescreen, instead of just having a black background. They haven’t added a custom wallpaper feature yet, but it wouldn’t surprise me if that is coming in a later version.
One little gripe people may have with this new version is the fact that you can’t one-finger your notification. You have to use two fingers, which I thought maybe that would have been a nuisance, but it doesn’t bother me at all.
To get AcDisplay 2.1 you have to join the community and become a beta tester. Lick the link provided below to do so, and check out the app in action in my video below. Let us know how you like it.
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The horse riding simulator that pairs the Oculus Rift with an exercise machine
In the midst of the mind-boggling Nico Nico Chou-Kaigi, an event hosted by one of Japan’s leading video streaming sites, there was no shortage of Oculus Rift demos for attendees to drop their jaws at. Our allies at Engadget Japanese toured military carriers, controlled robot arms… generally did a load of fun things and pretended like it was work. The Hashilus horse riding simulator looked to be the most intriguing, however. It combined a horse riding exercise machine with an Oculus Rift set (oh and a fan, for immersion), to offer a relatively straightforward no-bad-guys-to-kill race, up and down a few hills. It’s a simplified experience, there’s no steering here, but players can use the tambourine-ish controller to speed up, or slow down, their steed, all while drinking in that Rift-provided 360-degree view. Bikes, schmikes.
Extra: It looks like Oculus Rift founder Palmer Luckey even got the chance to try it out earlier this month. You can see his reaction after the break — he seemed to like it.
Filed under: Peripherals, Transportation, Software
Source: Engadget Japanese
How would you change Samsung’s ATIV Tab?
I don’t normally discuss products that I’ve reviewed on How Would You Change, but I’m making an exception for Samsung’s ATIV Tab. The Korean company pondered the merits of launching the device right up to its debut, and swiftly axed any US expansion before it could get off the ground. As one of the first Windows RT devices, it came with a hobbled operating system, but the hardware was staggeringly good. Unfortunately, it’s rare that anyone actually splashed out on this unit, but I’m still asking anyone who owned one of these units to chip in. Come to the forum and share your experiences of using the ATIV Tab. What did you like, what did you hate and what would you have changed?
Filed under: Tablets, Samsung, Microsoft
Source: Engadget Product Forums
AIVAnet 