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OnePlus teases with ‘promised’ wooden StyleSwap covers

The OnePlus One smartphone might probably reach “urban legend” status because of the one issue that prospective buyers have against it – availability. Regardless of that, the outfit that put out the first retail CyanogenMod smartphone is still pushing with its "promised" textured back covers for the very “rare” smartphone, the company tweeting about "knocking on wood" and referencing to a July 22nd date.



Over on the OnePlus forum threads, the admins put out a poll regarding materials that users would like to see used in the design of a smartphone. The poll itself was a giveaway, but in March they officially announced (promised?) that they will be releasing at least five different back covers for the OnePlus One smartphone – they will be textured in Silk, Sandstone, Denim, Bamboo, and Kevlar. Pretty cool?


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Not only will they be textured like these materials, they will also be made of these materials – except silk and sandstone for obvious practical reasons. OnePlus is going for a functional aesthetic, especially if you are the type who keeps dropping your phone. Why not go for a Kevlar back cover, for that rugged functional look that still oozes cool machismo.


There is little to dispel that OnePlus will finally be launching these textured back covers on July 22. Pricing has not been announced for the back covers, and OnePlus forum-dwellers have very early made known their hope that the back covers will be priced affordably, else they would just end up like the marketing pushes of the big smartphone manufacturers. Because, hey, OnePlus is different from all of the others, right?


SOURCE: OnePlus





Gamebench comes out with ‘usability’ benchmark app

Truth be told, ever since we found out that Samsung cheated on one of its devices AnTuTu benchmark results – which then prompted every other manufacturer to “game” their benchmarks – we started feeling “meh” about benchmark results and which handset is the greatest of them all. Gamebench wants to rebuild our faith in benchmarking with a new “usability”-centered process, featured in its new app.



The more famous benchmarking apps work in relatively one path, that is, for the app to put the phone under a fixed load and see how the elements fare. The predictability of the load the app puts the phone under is the primary reason why generic benchmarking apps like AnTuTu, GFX, CPUBench may – up to a certain extent – not be reliable anymore.


Gamebench is trying to pursue the “usability” metric – identified right now in their app in FPS (frames per second) in certain games, but not just in FPS but the amount of battery power it expends to get those frames. FPS is a very real indicator for people who would like to play games on their phones. But battery life is also a very real stat that tells us – in no vague terms – how long we can use our phones, hence the usability metric. Gamebench had earlier claimed that its process was "uncheatable".


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And the contrast here is that the app’s processes are not a one-time thing – the Gamebench app runs alongside your apps to get its data from your daily use. Data from units are also made available on a web portal so developers and users can compare the usability data they produce. The app is already available for download free via the Google Play Store.


SOURCE: Gamebench





Acer launching first Core i3-powered Chromebook C720

To date most Chromebooks have been powered by the smaller mobile processors – including Intel’s Atom and Celeron processors, and Samsung’s Exynos. With the exception of Google’s Pixel – which is powered by an Intel i5 chip –the Chromebook market has been the territory of smaller processors. Acer is looking to change that by putting out two Chromebook variations under the C720 model powered by 4th gen Intel i3 processors.



The two iterations of the C720 will be powered by an Intel Core i3-4005U Haswell processor, turning 2 cores at 1.7GHz. The variation will be in the RAM allocation, with either 4GB or 2GB RAM available for the model. The C720 also hopes to impress with faster boot-up times, sporting 32GB solid state hard drives.


The C720 has an 11.6-inch screen, clearly this model is in the netbook/small laptop realm. The small screen nevertheless provides HD visual at 1366x768 native resolution. The visuals of this Chromebook will be powered by the Haswell chip’s internal Intel HD 4000 graphics unit. Ample expansion is provided, as there will be both USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports, plus an HDMI output port for videos.


Acer Chromebook C720 forward angle Acer Chromebook C720 keyboard Acer Chromebook C720 forward Acer Chromebook C720 rear view half closed Acer Chromebook C720 rear view angled


The Chroomebook DNA will mean that the design of the device will be leaning heavily toward internet usage – with embedded Google and Chrome apps that Android users should be very familiar with. Gmail and Google Drive services are integrated into the system, making your documents available in the cloud. The 4GB RAM model will retail at USD$380 while the 2GB model will retail at USD$350. Both models will be available in North America this month. Check out the official product page here.





Notific helps manage notifications while your phone’s still locked

The more apps you install and use, the more your notifications can get messier and at times, more annoying. Yes, we know you can disable notifications per app, but for the ones that you really can’t let go, you need something to make it more manageable for you while you’re working and doing other activities. The Notific lockscreen notification app will attempt to do that for Android smartphone users.



Just like other notification apps, it displays yours even while your phone is on locked screen mode. But what makes Notific different is it is more intuitive and does not take up a lot of memory usage, which is sometimes the problem with these kind of apps. Along with the notification, there are quick action buttons that will allow you to choose who to respond to the message. It can also detect when your phone is in your pocket or bag and so the notification screen will not turn on unless you take it out within 10 seconds of receiving the notification.


It will not drain much both your battery and your memory usage, as it uses the proximity sensor for only 10 seconds and only around 2-10MB of memory is used. They are also assuring users that they are not mining your data, especially since the app doesn’t need Internet connection to work. Even when it crashes, it will not ask you to send data reports or Google analytics to their server.


While the app is still in active development mode, it is already available in the Google Play Store for $.99. But there is also a free version APK which has almost all of the features except for the blacklist/whitelist function. You might encounter a bit of problems with the sensor, since it was calibrated for Nexus devices originally, but you can try calibrating it manually in your settings. The developer said users should expect more updates and features in the next few months.


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VIA: XDA Developers





Unknown Motorola phablet leaked, running Android L

There have been rumors that Motorola is working on putting out a phablet, but those have not been substantiated – until now. A couple of new videos have been making its rounds in tech circles showing a device that is apparently larger than a Nexus 5 and seems to be running – at least from visual checks – some sort of version of Android L.



On first inspection, the screen seems to be bigger than the 5-inch screen of Google’s Nexus 5 device – one was conveniently included in the videos for comparison. It looks to be in full HD resolution, with some speculating that it might be a Super AMOLED screen. As you might remember, the rumors about the Moto X+1 is that it has a larger screen than the Moto X’s 4.7-inch display. Is this the first real look we are getting of the Moto X+1?


As Moto employees have apparently confirmed this to be a “legit device” (via a Hangouts chat), the only other question would be is this is truly the Moto X+1 or just another device Motorola is planning to launch this year. What do you guys think? Ogle at the videos below while you’re thinking.






The device is said to be running on Verizon’s network, although some tape is seen in the videos to hide some incriminating information about whoever leaked these videos. All indications from this unnamed device fits the Moto X+1, but we’re still left wondering if it really is it.


VIA: SlashGear





Samsung Exynos ModAP joins the LTE big leagues

Samsung has just announced a new Exynos chip and this time it doesn't bear the usual four-digit name. Simply called the Exynos ModAP, this latest SoC brings together a quad-core CPU with a Category 4 LTE modem, which will allow future Exynos-bearing Samsung smartphones to be available in more LTE-enabled markets.



Samsung's self-made Exynos chips are no underdogs, being one of the first to implement octa-core CPUs and Heterogeneous Multi Processing (HMP) using ARM's big.LITTLE architecture. Their use in Samsung's devices, however, have been relatively few, foiled primarily by the lack of LTE support. That all changes with the Exynos ModAP. This chip is capable of handling Cat4 LTE, with theoretical speeds of 150 Mbps on downlink, support for duplex modes and support for both FDD and TDD bands, ensuring that the chip can be used in as many regions as possible.


The LTE feature alone might be enough to make the Exynos ModAP interesting, but of course there's more. The chip is equipped with an Image Signal Processor (ISP) that is capable of handling 8 megapixels at 30 frames per second. According to Samsung, this allows for high resolution recording and playback, though it doesn't really say up to what resolutions it can handle. There is also a 6.4 GB/s high memory bandwidth that allows more data to be shuttled faster to and fro processors and memory, translating to smoother performance even in more graphics intensive situations.


Curiously, the Exynos ModAP is noted to only have four cores, manufactured using a 28nm process. Not your usual Samsung octa-core flair. This could imply that the first beneficiaries of this new SoC will be Samsung's mid-tier smartphones and not the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 as expected. But now that Samsung has the technology in place, particularly its new Exynos Modem 300, it is also possible that an octa-core version might be found inside the upcoming phablet as well.


SOURCE: Samsung (1), (2)





Kyocera leak shows sapphire display phone in the works

Sapphire crystal displays might soon be the in thing, probably much to Corning's dismay. Now even Kyocera might be outfitting one of its upcoming smartphones with the almost indestructible material, as seen in this leaked lab test video, which might actually be a perfect fit given the company's line of devices.



Saphire crystal glass has recently caught the attention of the mobile industry, primarily due to rumors of Apple employing the material for its upcoming iPhone 6 smartphone. Or smartphones, if you consider that there will be two size variants. Apple already uses just a small serving of the material to protect its camera lens and, more recently, to cover its Touch ID sensor. Sapphire glass is durable, scratch resistant, and clear. But Corning, who manufacturers the popular Gorilla Glass screens, says that it is also more expensive, heavier, and more harmful to the environment, while not really denying sapphire's enticing qualities.


The video below shows Kyocera testing out those qualities itself, in what can be best described as a torture test for smartphones. On one hand you have a smartphone with a regular impact-resistant glass, most probably Corning's, and on the other corner you have a Kyocera Sapphire. Scratching with a stone, dropping the display over a sharp object, and all manner of rather painful simulated "accidents" are unleashed on the two devices, with the sapphire one obviously surviving unscathed. Well, almost unscathed.




Kyocera manufacturers quite a number of smartphones, but its mainstay line are rugged and element-resistant ones. It definitely makes sense that the company would be looking into something like sapphire crystal to improve its smartphones. However, the determining factor will most likely be one of price. Kyocera's handsets aren't exactly the most expensive in the market, but utilizing sapphire glass could very well push those price tags up, which could be a bitter pill to swallow for some of Kyocera's loyal customers.


VIA: CNET





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