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Samsung Galaxy Note 4 makes appearance in AnTuTu database

Samsung has been very active in putting out its latest and greatest devices for its adoring market – the Samsung Galaxy S5 and its variants the S5 Active, the S5 K Zoom, and most recently the S5 LTE-A. One of those not yet released but anticipated for this year us the Samsung Galaxy Note 4, which most industry watchers think will be released at the IFA 2014 consumer electronics trade show. September is still a long ways, so for now, let us be content with the details of two variants of the Galaxy Note 4 which showed up in the database of benchmarking app AnTuTu.



This is one of those solid leaks that had to happen at some point, and it gives us a peek at what’s under the hood of these gadgets. Samsung, as expected, will be providing two variants of its phablet model, and the specs of these two somewhat conveniently found their way to AnTuTu’s database.


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We do not know the final marketing names for the products, but we are able to separate the two via their model names. The SM-N910S is the quad-core version, sporting a Snapdragon 805 CPU, an Adreno 420 GPU, 32GB of internal memory, and a very ample 3GB of RAM. The other unit that showed up was named the SM-N910C, and this one has an octa-core Exynos processor that Samsung makes in-house playing tag team with an ARM Mali-T760 GPU, along with the same amount of RAM.


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Aside from these details, the database also recorded that both variants have 2560 x 1440 displays, and a 16MP main camera. The operating systems are both Android 4.4.3 Kitkat. At least these details have been semi-confirmed. The other prominent rumors include the Note 4 coming with curved glass, and a 5.7 QHD display that has now been all but solidified by this AnTuTu leak.


VIA: Gforgames





Samsung smartwatch to be launched as Android Wear at Google I/O

Wearables have the potential to be really big, and market leaders are scrambling to position their own products to leverage on the oncoming rush. Samsung has been marking its next wearable to be part of Android Wear, to be launched at the Google I/O developer conference – a smartwatch, in the mold of the Galaxy Gear devices released earlier.



Android Wear is a version of the popular open source operating system that has been tweaked so that it runs more efficiently in smaller devices like smartwatches. Samsung committed itself to this effort, even as it was pushing its proprietary OS Tizen, saying that it was probably more efficient than Android in providing power to wearable devices.


As of this moment, it is still not clear what kind of wearable device Samsung will launch at the Google I/O conference. In September of 2013, Samsung released Galaxy Gear – a smartwatch that runs Android OS. The second version of Gear, as well as the Gear 2 Neo was already on Tizen. There is no doubt at all that Samsung is showing some efforts to separate itself from Google, but the commitment to Android Wear was an interesting move, to say the least.


Later this year, Samsung’s rival Apple is rumored to be releasing its own smartwatch – probably dubbed iWatch – and Samsung will feel that it is at the brink of the breaking out of a new market. This battle is set to happen this year, even with co-Android Wear manufacturers like LG and possibly Motorola as well.


VIA: CNet





T-Mobile Galaxy S5 and Note 3 updates adding VoLTE network support

T-Mobile has recently announced that Galaxy S5 and Galaxy Note 3 users have an update on the way. Both updates are already in the process of rolling out, and in both cases -- the handsets will be getting support for VoLTE services. And equally important as the updates is the VoLTE market support.



Originally supported in San Francisco and Seattle, T-Mobile now lists VoLTE support for more than a dozen markets. The list includes Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Long Island, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New England, New Jersey, New York, Philadelphia and Washington DC as well as the previously mentioned San Francisco and Seattle.


This update will leave the Galaxy S5 and Galaxy Note 3 with Android 4.4.2 Kit Kat. In the case of the Galaxy S5, users will have see baseband version G900TUVU1BNF6. Galaxy Note 3 users will end up with baseband version N900TUVUDNF1. Users with either of these handsets will be able to grab the update over-the-air -- provided they are in one of the VoLTE markets.


If you happen to live outside of those markets and still want to upgrade (you may end up traveling to one of those markets), you'll need to update using Kies. Bottom line here, if you have a Galaxy S5 or Galaxy Note 3 and live in any of those VoLTE markets -- make sure to keep an eye out for an update notification.


Otherwise, T-Mobile LG G Flex users should already be taken care of as a similar update rolled out beginning back on May 22.


SOURCE: T-Mobile (Galaxy S5), T-Mobile (Galaxy Note 3)





Yo app founder confirms “security issues”

It seems most users either love, or hate the recently released Yo app. The app is touted as being the "simplest and most efficient communication tool in the world." Basically, the Yo app allows you to say yo. But more important for today are the recently confirmed security issues.



Yo founder Or Arbel has confirmed the app is experiencing some "security issues." Arbel told TechCrunch that "some of the stuff has been fixed." In addition, Arbel also confirmed they are still working on some issues and they "are taking this very seriously." Simply put, if you have the Yo app installed -- you may want to keep an eye out for an update notification.


Stepping back though. The issues were discovered by a few Georgia Tech students. The students mentioned how they have discovered how to get the phone number of any Yo user. They also mentioned how they texted the founder of the app, only to have him call back. Naturally, that just goes to show how Arbel is indeed taking this seriously and working to get everything fixed.


The other issue with the Yo app came in regards to spoofing. The students said they discovered a way to spoof Yo's from any user and were able to send push notifications with any text they want. Anyway, Arbel didn't say which of these items were still able to be exploited, though he does expect they will all be fixed within the "next few hours."


SOURCE: TechCrunch





Google Play Music and Xbox Music lead T-Mobile ‘Music Freedom’ voting

T-Mobile recently announced something called Music Freedom. This essentially means Simple Choice customers will be able to stream music (over a 4G LTE connection) without having to worry about data limits. T-Mobile has said Music Freedom means no overages, no data caps and unlimited streaming.



While all that seems to add up to a solid feature set -- there is one limitation that may leave some disappointed. Music Freedom is only available for the services approved by T-Mobile. The list isn't short, but it doesn't include every music service. And one in particular that may be a favorite amongst Android users is missing -- Google Play Music.


Beats Music, Rdio, Last.fm and others are also missing. But here is where T-Mobile is looking toward the users. The carrier has launched a voting poll asking users which services they would like to see added to the Music Freedom setup. Voting is already open, and those who have yet to cast their vote should follow this link to make that happen.


Details coming from T-Mobile CEO John Legere touch on how more than 75,000 users have already voted. Legere has dubbed this a "huge response" and so far Google Play Music and Xbox Music are leading in the voting. Anyway, at the moment T-Mobile users are able to have 'Music Freedom' with Pandora, iHeartRadio, iTunes Radio, Rhapsody, Spotify, Slacker and Milk Music.


SOURCE: T-Mobile





Archos steps into the home automation market with Smart Home

Tablet and Android device manufacturer Archos continues to put out various devices in an effort to diversify its product catalog, which the new Smart Home system is part of. Archos, which started in portable media players, now is trying to enter a very premium home automation market by leveraging on relatively cheaper devices and the Android app ecosystem.



The Smart Home system is basically a network of wireless devices that one can control using an app – whether on the dedicated Archos Smart Home Tablet, or the app installed on a remote Android or iOS device. The tablet itself is a fully functional tablet running Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out of the box. Under the hood you will see a Rockchip dual-core processor running at 1.2Ghz, pretty decent 1GB portion of RAM, and a 7-inch screen. Not really a head turner, but it will do what it’s made to do – which is bring together the whole Smart Home system – and then some.


The mini wireless devices provide the versatility of the Smart Home package. Included in the “starter pack” box – priced at around USD$345 – are 2 Weather Tags, 2 Movement Tags, and 2 Mini-Cameras. Other accessories like the Siren, Motion Ball, and Smart Plug are purchasable add-ons – and really, you need these add-ons to get the best out of the Smart Home system.




The Smart Home system is based on creating certain scenarios or changes in your home and having the system react to it by either prompting an action or giving the owner certain information. For instance, the combination of a Motion Ball and a Mini-Camera will allow you to be informed via email when someone is at your door. The camera can even take a picture of the detected person and send it to a specific email address. And with Tasker integration, the whole system has the capability to open up a wider range of programmed tasks. The system is targeted to modern wireless-capable homes with the internet bandwith to spare. Time will tell if these products are able to make a foundation for Archos in this market.


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LG G Watch sighting shows Android Wear app for phone

As the expected official launch of the LG G Watch comes closer and closer, people are getting even more curious to see what the actual watch looks like. A new leaked photo showing the smartwatch has confirmed some of the rumoured specs as well as revealing some new information about the latest addition to the wearable gadgets family.



The photo shows the watch being charged using what looks like a microUSB charging cable. What’s even more interesting is that there’s a message on the watch saying “Install Android Wear on your phone”. This looks like the phone that will be paired with the smartwatch should have an Android Wear app installed in it. The LG G Watch and the other newcomer to the market, the Moto 360 will be the first smartwatches that will be using the Android Wear platform.


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An RFQ sheet leaked a few weeks ago confirmed some of the rumours that had been floating around regarding the specifications of the LG G Watch. If the spec sheet is to be believed, it will be 37.9 x 46.5 x 9.95 mm and will have a 1.6 inch display and a 280x280 pixels resolution. It will also be running on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset and will have a 512MB RAM, 4GB of built-in storage and a 400 mAh battery.


It is expected to be officially announced at Google’s I/O developer conference by next week. The price is estimated at around $199 for the US market and will be available for purchase by July. While the specs are also a bit lower, the LG G Watch is also much cheaper than Samsung’s Gear 2.


VIA: GSM Arena


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