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Samsung’s new ad “note” a dig at Apple, “note”-iceably funny

Just when we've despaired that Samsung would never come out with an ad that will not disparage its competitors (and when we say competitor, of course we mean Apple), the OEM surprises us with a hilarious, if a bit long, video. The almost 4 1/2 minute video is a refreshing ad for the Galaxy Note 4 that banks on sense of humor rather than just poking fun at Apple products and hopefully heralds the dawn of a new kind of campaign for its smartphones and tablets. Well, at least when it comes to advertising.



"Despite being Note-orious for its large display, the Galaxy Note 4 is so much more. It’s Note just a phone – it’s a conversation starter," thus reads the description of the video on its YouTube channel. Based on that and on the ad's title, "Note Pun intended," then you have an idea what the video is about. Two guys try to outdo each other by coming up with Note-related puns during conversations with each other, ordering in bars and coffee shops, and even picking up women. "Note in my house" "Pi"note" noir", "I'm note pregnote," are just some of the ways they inject the word in different situations, even involving the girlfriend/wife of one of the characters.


Aside from the non-bashing of any competitor, what also makes this ad stand out is that it doesn't even mention or highlight the features of the Galaxy Note 4. The different situations they are in show some functions of the phablet, but it doesn't hard sell them to viewers. It may even have a bigger impact than having to outline and stress what the newest gadget from Samsung can do, as it will entice the viewers to buy or consider buying the Note 4 when it is shown in actual real-life situations.


Samsung is known for having one of the biggest advertising budget among the OEMs. But it has been facing criticism lately for flagging a dead horse situation as their ads keep bashing Apple products like the new iPhone 6. People were getting tired (and annoyed) with this tactic, and this new fun and pun-filled ad will restore some faith in Samsung. Now let's see if Apple takes note (oh wait, isn't that how you do it?)







Samsung SM-A3000 leaks, another mid-range phone

It looks like Samsung is committed to pushing their “premium feel” phones further, as after the Samsung Galaxy Alpha, the recently outed Samsung Galaxy A5, and the leaks for the A500, another one from the “A Series” is on the pipeline – it’s name-coded as the SM-A3000, with pics leaking from China source TENAA.



As we can see from the pics – and as with the A500 – we can see the design of the phone harking back to the first iteration of this series, the Galaxy Alpha. We can’t be sure if it still carries the metal bindings of its higher-priced, better-specced predecessor but the design language definitely fits the bill.


Specs will be kind of incomplete as is usual from TENAA, but from what we can see, the new device will have a 4.5-inch quarter HD 540×960 display. It will be powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor (we don’t know of which make) and supported by 1GB RAM. The phone will have 8GB of internal storage, expandable to 64GB via microSD. The SM-A3000 will also have an 8MP/5MP camera combo.


A3000_1 A3000_2 A3000_3 A3000_4


For a mid-ranger, the fact that it will have LTE connectivity is a real selling point. It would be fair to expect this to sell at around USD$200 or thereabouts. As to what market Samsung is targeting, we have no information yet. But it shouldn’t take too long for them to officially announce this phone.


SOURCE: TENAA





XDA Xposed Tuesday: Modify the Look of Your Volume Control – XDA TV

statusbarvolume

How many screenshots have you seen with a volume status bar in the middle? How often do you wish that your volume statusbar didn’t pop up right in front of your YouTube Video? Well, with the power of the Xposed Module, you have the option of customizing your volume status bar.


In this episode of XDA Xposed Tuesday, XDA TV Producer TK reviews an Xposed Module that lets you customize the display of your volume statusbar. Xposed Developer niko001 created the StatusbarVolume module. TK shows off the modules and gives his thoughts, so check out this Xposed Tuesday video.




Be sure to check out other great XDA Developer TV Videos



The post XDA Xposed Tuesday: Modify the Look of Your Volume Control – XDA TV appeared first on xda-developers.


Did Google confirm that Android L will be Lollipop?

If you believe that lollipops have business being on top of (or even in) cakes, then please disregard this piece of guesswork. People are buzzing (maybe with too much cake) because of Google's 16th anniversary birthday cake which they posted yesterday. But instead of candy flowers or cupcake toppings, they used lollipops, fueling speculation that the upcoming Android L will indeed be named after the round candy on a stick treat.



Lollipop has been a frontrunner for the Android upgrade coming out before the end of the year. But suddenly, another sweet treat became the number 1 suspect for Android L: Lemon Meringue Pie. While that is a somewhat long name for a usually one-word name for updates, several sources and documents showed Android L being referred to as "lmp", giving credence to the lemon meringue pie name. Google hasn't yet made an official announcement since the build isn't final yet. But yesterday's 16th birthday cake may indicate that it came back to the original plan of using lollipop.


While the launch of Android L is still a few months away, not much is known until now, except for the things that Google teased during the I/O earlier this year. Initial leaks say it will allow multiple-user accounts in smartphones and tablets. The new Material design is being rolled out not just with the upgrade but with all Google products and some apps have already capitalized on this by updating their look and design. Android L will also have ART runtime by default.


We still have to wait a few more weeks maybe to find out which of our sweet tooth cravings will be satisfied, digitally. We're still hoping out for Lime (Key) Pie, or maybe, based on Google's birthday cake, Layer cake is even a possibility.


SOURCE: +Google





The upcoming Google Nexus 6: What we know so far

We have been inundated with a lot of news about this new “whale” phone from Motorola, which is very much likely the Nexus 6. Details are becoming clearer now as news about specs keep flowing in d. The fact of the matter is, pretty soon we will be seeing the new phone that will bear Google and Android’s stamp of approval for the next year or so.



Firstly, there is good reason to believe that it’s going to be a very, very large phone – due mainly to its 5.9-inch screen. For comparison, it will be almost as large as Nokia’s gigantic Lumia 1520 phone (with its 6-inch screen). I’ve personally had a go at a Lumia 1520 and there is just no way of holding that monster in one hand comfortably. The screen on the Nexus 6 is purportedly Quad HD resolution, powered by an equally large 3,200mAh battery.


nexus_6_mock up


It is also reported that the phone will be rocking Android 5.0 – or as you know it, Android L – which has not launched yet, leading people to believe that the launch dates of both the Nexus 6 and Android L are somehow linked. The phone will also, according to sources, have a 13MP/2MP camera combo, and a mechanism for superfast charging. On the record, Motorola says that 15 minutes of charging through this process will give you 8 hours of battery life. Not bad at all.


The final question will be the obvious one – will there be a smaller version of this whale of a phone for those who don’t fancy holding and carrying a huge slab of phone? Sadly, the answer is that there are no logical indications that Motorola will be manufacturing a smaller Nexus 6. Either that OR they have totally kept the smaller Nexus 6 a secret, which is very highly unlikely. So bring on the launch event then.


VIA: Android Police





FM Radio app for Moto E and Moto G updated, now with Bluetooth support

Motorola Mobility has been updating a number of apps lately for some of its Moto handsets. The latest recipients of an app update are the Moto E and all generations of Moto G with the newly enhanced Motorola FM Radio. The app offers free FM radio streaming right on your Android smartphone. You can scan for stations, make a favorites list, and see live information about the song currently playing.



The Motorla FM Radio features a navigation that can be controlled with a simple swipe. However, you still need to have a wired headset as it will work as the FM antenna. With the recent app update, Motorola has improved on issue scanning frequencies in Colombia which have been experiencing some errors. Playing, seeking, or pausing/stopping a song from the lock screen is now possible too. Motorola also added seek up or down buttons to FM radio notification controls. No need to open the app to just change FM bands. And of course, the developer did some stability fixes for a better FM radio listening experience.


What’s new on the app is that it now features Bluetooth support. Listening via a paired Bluetooth headset, car head unit, or portable speaker has been enabled. This means you can listen to FM radio even without a wired headset. Simply put on a Bluetooth earpiece and connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth.


Note that Motorola released the update on the Google Play Store even if the FM Radio app is exclusive to Moto E and Moto G phones for owners to be immediately notified of the release. Even without a system upgrade, the FM Radio app can now be easily updated.


Moto E and Moto G device owners can download the updated Motorola FM Radio app from the Google Play Store





Motorola’s new DROID Turbo appears at GFX Bench

One of those things we love about smartphone manufacturers is when they need their egos stroked (or destroyed) in wanting to see how their new unlaunched, super-secret phones stack up against others – hence the need to use benchmarking software. It practically gives us a full look into the innards of their new phones, like this new Motorola DROID Turbo, which recently made an appearance at GFX Bench.



The DROID line is Motorola’s special agreement with Verizon – a full line of DROID devices exclusive to the carrier. There have been conflicting reports about the specs of the new phone that’s set to launch before the year ends, but this appearance will give us some clarity. First up, the DROID Turbo is benched here sporting a kickass, top of the line Snapdragon 805 quad-core 2.6Ghz processor – whereas it was rumored that it was going to be the slower, much older Snapdragon 800.


droid_turbo_gfx


We also get a confirmation of a 5.2-inch Quad HD (2560 x 1440) screen being powered by an Adreno 420 graphics chip and 3GB of RAM. There might possibly be 32GB of internal storage and a 19MP main shooter capable of capturing 4K video. The unit is still running the latest version of Android Kitkat (4.4.4), but it remains to be seen if the model will launch with Android L.


Our question here is this – these are flagship level specs. Is Motorola endangering the existence of their flagship Moto X device by putting out a niche market smartphone that has slightly better specs? I for one questioned why the Moto X wasn’t running the Snapdragon 805 beast, but I guess that was a nod to make pricing a little more reachable. Let’s see if this new DROID Turbo turns up in Verizon’s catalogs soon.


SOURCE: GFX Bench





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