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Samsung Galaxy A7 now rumored to have Full HD screen

Perhaps you've already had your fill of reports surrounding the premium-looking yet not so premium Samsung Galaxy A family the past few weeks. That said, however, most of the attention has been lavished only on the A3 (A300) and A5 (A500) models of the devices. This round, on the other hand, is dedicated to the still mysterious Galaxy A7, if only but a little. But worry not, because we still have one more rumor about the Galaxy A5 to go with it for good measure.



Thanks to TENAA certifications, we've gotten a more or less solid idea of what the Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 would look like, at least in terms of specs. The leaked photos and videos earlier this week even gave us a second-hand view of the actual devices in the flesh, so to speak. The Galaxy A7 has oddly been left out of the spotlight though, and it remains to be so, aside for one minor new update.


While the Galaxy A5 is now largely believed to have a 5-inch screen, the name of the A7 seemed to suggest something larger, though not necessarily 7 inches (since the A3 isn't 3 inches but is 4.5 inches). In reality, at least based on the rumors, the Galaxy A7 would have the same 5 inches as the A5. Later on that number was changed to 5.5 inches. This new information doesn't change that size one bit, but it does tweak the resolution considerably. Instead of the earlier rumored 720p resolution, same as the Galaxy A5, the Galaxy A7 is now said to sport 1080p Full HD, a more fitting number for a larger model. That said, the rest of the smartphone's specs remain shrouded in mystery, leading us to speculate it wold be mostly the same with the Galaxy A5's.


As for the latter, its arrival on the market might actually happen quite soon. The latest word is that the Galaxy A5 would launch in November, implying that a formal reveal will take place soon. As for the price tag, it is naturally lower than that of the more premium Galaxy Alpha but not exactly cheap either, ranging from $400 to $450 according to sources. Now all that's left to see if there will be much takers of this rather strange and new Samsung line.


VIA: SamMobile





Verizon to offer entry-level HTC Desire 612 this October

Verizon will be offering to its subscribers HTC's entry level device, the Desire 612. The name might sound familiar, as it is just a slightly redesigned version of the HTC Desire 610, as per request of the US carrier from the Taiwanese OEM. But while the smartphone is being positioned as a mid-level device, its features are not that bad and may serve you as a value for money device.



There are only very slight differences between the Desire 612 and the 610, the latter of which is being offered by Verizon's competitor, AT&T. The only major difference is that the Desire 612 has a 720p HD resolution to go along with its 4.7-inch display, as compared to the Desire 610's 540x960 qHD. Other than that, the specifications are the same and are pretty decent for the kind of smartphone positioning that it has. It will of course run on Android 4.4 Kitkat and has a 1.2 Ghz quad-core processor. It has 1MB RAM and 8GB internal memory that can be expanded with a 128GB microSD card. If that isn't enough, Verizon's More Everything subscribers get 25GB of cloud storage on Verizon Cloud.


For mobile photography enthusiasts, the Desire 612 has an 8-megapixel main camera and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing one. It also has dual front-facing speakers so that when you're watching a video on your device, the sound from the BoomSound speakers is directed at you. The smartphone also comes with other HTC specific features and apps like the BlinkFeed, their personalized and customizable news feed (which includes your Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds).


HTC Desire 612 will be offered for free for any new two-year contract with Verizon, starting October 9. If you wish to avail of it in the Verizon EDGE installment plan, you can also do so as long as you meet the eligibility requirements.


SOURCE: Verizon





Microsoft Research’s FingerShadow to reduce battery consumption

As smartphones and tablets continue to be more and more "sophisticated", one problem remains constant among all of them (yes, even you Samsung): battery life isn't all it's cracked up to be. The more you use your device, the more you need either a battery extender or to hug the wall socket. Microsoft has recently conducted a research that might lessen gadgets' battery consumption, at least for those that use OLED screens, and they're calling the project Fingershadow.



The basic idea is this: the parts of the display on the smartphone or tablet that are being covered by your fingers when you're swiping through the screen should be dimmed or even turned off temporarily in order to save energy. Users will hardly (hopefully) notice the difference since their fingers would be on those areas anyway. The dimming should also help with improving the focus of the users since the dimming will also lessen shadows and reflections on the screen.


To facilitate the study, they observed 10 users using the Samsung Galaxy S5. They used sensors to detect their finger positions at a height of 1.5 cm where they do not touch their phones' display. For the initial tests, they were able to save from 5%-22% of the device's energy consumption. But as mentioned earlier, this would only work on those that have OLED displays because it can control pixels individually, unlike with a TFT or LCD display where the whole screen is lit up when using.


So far, there are no plans yet to introduce FingerShadow to the market, but in case they do find a way to apply it to mobile devices, it would be great for those having battery problems. That is, if the technology itself would not require extra energy. It might also encourage more devices to adapt the OLED display, following in the footsteps of several Samsung and LG devices. If you want to read the full study, you can go to the Microsoft Research site.


SOURCE: Microsoft


Virgin Mobile Custom now has app to manage controls

Do you remember the days when kids (and even teenagers) did not have mobile phones and had to wait until they were earning their own money to be able to get one? No? Well, believe us, that existed before, but now, kids as young as 5 are toting their own phones and tablets. Virgin Mobile Custom has allowed parents to exercise some semblance of control over their kids' devices, and now they're extending it by launching a free Android app to help manage the family lines.



Just last July, Virgin Mobile launched a customizable cell phone plan for the family that lets the parents control how many texts and how many minutes their kids can spend talking on their mobile phone. You could activate up to five phone lines and then get a Custom phone for each line. The primary user can then adjust the text, call or data allowable consumption of each line at any time during the month or even on a daily basis. Now Virgin has made it easier for the parental units to manage this with the app, available both for iOS and Android Custom units as well as any other smartphone that you want to use.


The app lets you allocate the text messages, call minutes and data usage to the other plans. It also allows you to add or remove certain services, probably depending on your mood or your plan's monthly bill. You can even set curfews on their usage of their phones, like what times they can access and what time they are blocked from using their device. The app also lets you monitor who are your kids' (and spouse's too, if you really want to do that) contacts and you can block those whom you don't want them to communicate with.


This app is a parents' dream and a kids' worst nightmare. If you belong to the former, then you can download the app for free from the Google Play Store. If you belong to the latter, tough luck kid, just wait till you get your own mobile device from your own pockets.


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SOURCE: Virgin Mobile


Smash Rider crashes into Android

A new game called Smash Rider has landed on Google Play this week. This new game challenges players to take the wheel of several different cars in an attempt to evade the police for the longest distance possible. While running from the police, drivers of the virtual cars get to smash into other cars on the road for points.



The game has tilt controls and there are ten different vehicles that players can choose from. Players can achieve over 50 different distance levels and the game supports global leader boards.


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Smash Rider has 50 competitive challenges and 50 different achievements. To help you set those distance records and smash traffic, there are different power-ups available. The game promises HD optimized graphics and fast paced game play.


The developer of the game is underDOGS Gaming Private Limited from India. The app hit Google Play on October 1 and is 19MB in size. Android 2.3 or higher is required to play.


SOURCE: Google Play


Straight Talk launches Bring Your Own Tablet program

Most households nowadays own a tablet or two. For some, each family member has a tablet to use for school, home, or the office. There’s no denying that mobile devices like smartphones, tablets, laptops, and soon wearables, have taken over our digital lives.



The Bring Your Own Tablet (BYOT) program was recently introduced by Straight Talk to bring more people access to the Internet. It’s a special offering by Straight Talk that lets the tablet owner to choose a data plan for mobile surfing even without a contract. Straight Talk is a wireless service provider that doesn't offer any contract, only unlimited data plans usable for a limited number of days or as needed.


With this new program, you can do almost anything for your family whether you’re out or simply at home. Need a recipe to cook for dinner or your son’s upcoming party? Check your tablet for some of the greatest recipes online. You can also watch tutorials on how to cook properly and prepare a grocery-shopping list with your Straight Talk connection. If you’re a mamarazzi, you can always share your kids’ photos on your favorite social network and share with your friends and family. Check the weather to know if it’s safe and sunny to play outside. No need to spend more on an exclusive contract now that Straight Talk is here.


If you want to relax and pass some time, you can watch movies or play games on your tablet. The BYOT can help you entertain kids when they are bored or if you need an instant babysitter while doing some important office work. Download a book and read or play some music to put you in a good mood. Straight Talk offers you all these and more with your choice of data plans and at 4G LTE speeds for some tablet models.


The BYOT program works with any GSM-enabled Android tablet. You can bring your unlocked tablet to Straight Talk to get data plan even without any contract. The $45 unlimited data plan will last for 30 days and will include talk, text, and data services.




SOURCE: Straight Talk





Adobe Creative Cloud now in preview mode on Android

For designers and creative people that are dependent on Adobe's suite of products (Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects, etc), it can sometimes be a pain to work mobile-wise, as you often cannot carry those programs and the files on your smartphone or tablet. Adobe has now shown a sort-of workaround to that with the launch, or at least preview, of the Adobe Creative Cloud for Android devices.



Now don't get that excited and think that you can actually work directly from your mobile device. They actually haven't reached that point yet. But what the app does is it allows you to browse and preview your Adobe files that are saved in their very own cloud storage. You can also organize the files that are stored in there, so you can manage your creative projects from the app itself by sharing it with other members of your team.


So, for example, you are going on vacation but would like to keep a close eye on the designs for an upcoming advertising pitch for a major brand, you can ask your graphic designers to upload their working files from Photoshop and Illustrator on the Creative Cloud. Then you could view them, make comments and suggestions (but probably through your messaging app of choice) so you can let your team know the changes or improvements that they can make to the current designs.


The Creative Cloud is subscription-based, but if you sign up for a free account, you get 2GB of cloud space as well as trial access to all creative tools from Adobe. However, it's still just working on mobile phones as of now, and most creative people would probably prefer to view designs on tablets. And since it's still on preview mode in the Google Play Store, you can expect a few bugs and kinks for now. But if you'd like to sample how the app works, you can download it for free (subscription isn't free though).


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