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China’s got the ‘PlayStation phones’ that Sony never made

At present, it looks like Sony is giving up on the “Xperia Play” concept, depriving us of a current gen “PlayStation phone” that we all would want. But for those who will go hardcore to find something like that, you only need a friend in China to buy you either 78point or Much’s gaming phones – they are from the same OEM so they basically have the same hardware.



78point’s P01 and Much’s W1 are pretty much the same, only different in the Android 4.2 interfaces that they carry. The PSP-like phones have MediaTek's 1.7GHz octa-core MT6592 SoC as its engine, backstopped by 2GB of RAM and Mali-450 graphics. The phone-slash-gaming-console will give you 16GB of internal storage, which can be expanded to 64GB via microSD.


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On the phone side of things, the device has an 8MP/2MP camera combo, and has a generous enough 3,000mAh battery – for the games, of course. The devices (the P01 and the W1) also differ in their approach to console emulation – with 78point winning out on this aspect. Its device carries a multi-platform emulator (MAME, PSP, Dreamcast, NDS, GBA, NES, SNES, N64 etc.), while Much just stops at “recommending” emulators.


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Both devices weigh in at around 213.8g, a bit lighter than the PS Vita. And at the retail price of USD$330, the device is pretty darned competitive. Now, our only problem seems to be getting a supplier form in country (China) to get us these babies.


VIA: Engadget





A Sneaky Mom App Locks Smartphones and Is an Angsty Teen's Nightmare

A Sneaky Mom App Locks Smartphones and Is an Angsty Teen's Nightmare


What can only be described as the "end of days" for angsty teens eager to escape the yoke of overbearing parents, a new $2 Android app called Ignore No More turns any misbehaving miscreants' smartphone into a really, really dumb phone. In fact once locked, it can only do two things—call 911 or call mom.


Read more...
















Our Favorite Android, iOS, and Windows Phone Apps of the Week

Our Favorite Android, iOS, and Windows Phone Apps of the Week


You've probably been checking your smartphone for bad news all week. And it's been there, faithfully obeying. Take a break, and reward that little glowing rectangle with these, our favorite new apps this week.


Read more...
















Samsung Galaxy Alpha: a mediocre metal-bound oddity?

Finally, we see Samsung finally out a handset that packs a premium metal finish – but looking at a spec line that somehow fails to overwhelm, which shows in the relative lack of fanfare building up to the launch of the much-awaited Samsung Galaxy Alpha. The premise itself is interesting – a premium looking phone, with not-so-premium specs. Let’s take a closer look.



The main processor is the Exynos 5 octa-core beast (quad 1.8Ghz + quad 1.3Ghz), which will push pixels to a 720p HD display. Compared to the full HD of the Galaxy S5, this is a step down. The processor is backstopped by 2GB of RAM, and 4K resolution video capture. An update to the launch information says that the Galaxy Alpha will be launched with a Snapdragon 801 quad-core CPU in the US.


The most notable spec on the list is the 1,860mAh battery, a full 1,000mAh lesser than the Galaxy S5. This means that you would really need the ultra-battery saving mode that is available on the Android 4.4 KitKat TouchWiz UI. And just maybe because of the metal binding around the sides of the new device, Samsung chose to forgo the microSD expansion slot. The Galaxy Alpha comes with 32GB of internal storage.


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Does this point to a new design aesthetic to be followed by the Galaxy Note 4? There might be a possibility. The Galaxy Alpha is scheduled to arrive in September in variants of black, white, gold, silver and blue – although there is no word yet on the pricing. Are you impressed? Talk back to us in the comments section.


VIA: Hi-Tech.ru





Verizon Moto S display protector leaked

Here’s more information on the “other” Motorola device coming out soon, called by some rumors by the code name “Shamu”. This device is also apparently a candidate for Google’s prestigious Nexus program – the next device on line as the Nexus 6.



On this evidence, we can see that Motorola is sticking to the Moto X design of dual front-face speakers, if you look at the gaps on the screen protector. Unlike the more rumored new iteration of the Moto X, the new Moto S, or Shamu, has lacked anything in the type of coverage and leaks that its more prestigious cousin has had.


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If this is in fact Google’s Nexus 6, that lack of attention is very much unlikely. We’ve heard word that a Motorola-made Nexus device might have to wait until Lenovo completes its move to acquire Motorola. But the specs that were leaked seem formidable and equal to flagship type devices.




Google’s anticipated launch of Android L is still later into the end of the year. By that time, the Nexus 6 device might or might not be ready. That’s still a ways off, so we might be getting more information soon.


VIA: TK Tech News





Can your sweat power your phone in the future?

California researchers are on the brink of harnessing the power of human perspiration – yes, your sweat – to generate energy enough to power your electronic handheld devices. This is done, for now, through a temporary “tattoo” which has a sensor imprinted on it that could turn sweat into electrical power.



So in a sense, the more you sweat, the more energy is produced and collected. The sensor works by getting electrons from the lactate in human sweat, with a cathode that takes the said electrons for electrical energy. This system simply allows you to collect energy – albeit for now, pretty weak electricity – from sweat.


lactate-sensor


If we’re talking about the present, then the answer is undeniably – NO, we can’t yet power a handheld device from this system simply because it does not generate enough power. But in the future, when the system is bettered, and the power need of devices come down, this might actually be possible.




Dr. Wenzhao Jia, lead of the research team based in the University of California-San Diego, believes that it can be done. For reference, a regular electrical watch requires "at least 10 microWatts" to be powered. The electrodes that are in the temporary tattoo now generates around 4 microWatts. As the process is perfected, that gap might be bridged very, very soon.


VIA: SlashGear





New Moto X makes another benchmark appearance at GFXBench

Just around last week, we saw a new and yet previously unannounced Motorola device make an appearance at benchmarking software Geekbench. This time, we see potentially the same device appear now at the information databases of another popular benchmarking software GFXBench. With the launch of the new Moto X impending, it looks like information about the new potential flagship device is solidifying.



The device, still code-named the Motorola XT1097 – same as in Geekbench – is confirmed to have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC with the processor clocked at 2.5GHz, and an Adreno 330 graphics chip, backstopped by 2GB of RAM. The benchmarking software also detected a 13MP camera capable of recording video in 4K resolution, and a 2MP front-facing camera. This is all displayed on a 5.2-inch screen at full HD resolution. The internal storage of the device is marked at 16GB.


All things considered, the specs show a device at the level of most flagship devices, maybe slight less so. But users are still to see the actual aesthetic and design of the device. Moto X fans are known to be some of the most ardent admirers of the Motorola design, and if the leaks are any evidence, we should be treated to another effectively designed device.


moto-x-1-xt1097_gfxbench


So the announcement was made that Motorola will have a launch event on September 4. Is that the day that we see the new Moto X? It feels like it. It feels like we will be seeing the new device at IFA 2014 in Berlin. We are excited. That is an understatement, actually. We are very, VERY excited.


VIA: WebTrek





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