Motorola X-Phone render falsified as leaks continue

Today is turning into a rather fun day in the world of Android leaks. First some supposed pictures of the Samsung Galaxy S4 arrived, and now we’re getting some leaks of the rumored Motorola X-Phone with new specs and all. Sadly both are probably fake, and we can obviously confirm the render below making the rounds has been falsified and is just a mock-up by an eager fan.

The leak shows an oddly shaped device with the name “Motorola NXT” and given their history, I could see Motorola launching a device with a terrible name like that. Then along with the leaked “first look at the X-Phone” above, we also got a nice new list of specs for the Google/Motorola flagship device. They all sound great in theory, and some could be correct, but we’ll take it all with a grain of salt – as should you.
According to the leak found (and proven false) by AndroidWorld, the X-Phone will sport a 4.7-inch full HD 1920x1080p display and be powered by NVIDIA’s new Tegra 4i quad-core 2.3 GHz 4G LTE processor and 2GB of RAM. Then the leak goes on to state a 16 megapixel camera (really guys) and a 5 megapixel front shooter for video chat with Google Hangouts and Google Talk. It all sounds nice but we need better cameras, not just higher megapixel counts. Then here comes the good part.

The image above is the real version without the angle, blur, and “leaked” look. The person who made it has confirmed it to be fake, and basically is telling us all to continue on with our day. And that’s exactly what we should do. While we’re all extremely excited to see what Google and Motorola can come up with, it doesn’t look like that will be coming soon. We might not even see it at Google I/O if recent comments from Google prove to be accurate about certain devices still in the pipeline before Google can make any impact.
We were overly excited to possibly be learning more about the X-Phone, but today is not the day. We’ll keep our eyes open and ear listening though. Drop us a comment with what you’d like to see in the X-Phone.

Auto Wallpaper Updates with Gainos Fresh Wallpapers

There are a number of Android apps available that manipulate your wallpaper in some way, be it changing colours or updating it from images stored on your phone. Some apps take it one step further. Gainos Fresh Wallpapers, developed by XDA Forum Member alinium_, is one such app.

Gainos Fresh Wallpapers will automatically update your device’s wallpaper at a predetermined interval. Rather than using a library of images stored locally on your device, it will download a random image from the Flickr website’s “Explore” stream. For those phones or tablets with a higher resolution display, the app will download higher resolution images to suit the device, for the best viewing quality.
You can change the predetermined time interval at which the wallpaper is changed. This can be set from every ten minutes, all the way up to once per week. In order to avoid excess data charges, you can choose to only download new wallpapers when connected to a WiFi network.
Your last 10 wallpapers are stored, to allow you to go back if you com across one you particularly like. And for those running Android Jelly Bean, the app support the new “Daydream” feature and will start a screensaver when your device is docked.
If you’re sick of having the same wallpaper every day, and want to freshen up your device, pay a visit to the app thread.

This is how you promote the water-proof Xperia Z

The hot-new Sony Xperia Z is the only water-proof high-end smartphone available in the West, and as far as we know, that will remain the case for the time being. To emphasize this very-important feature of Sony’s super-phone, one of T-Mobile’s stores in Prague, the Czech Republic prepared quite a show for its visitors, featuring swimsuit models taking a bath with the phone. There was something both for guys and ladies — T-Mobile doesn’t want to be accused of sexism — though judging by the images we’ve got, the male audience was more interested about Xperia Z’s features… or did they? In any case, we like how the local arm of T-Mobile is using the old paradigm “sex sells” to its advantage (and to entertain its guests). Check out the image gallery below…

[Via: XperiaBlog]

Confirmed: Samsung to bring Galaxy S IV DUOS GT-I9502

 

Today, the very first “pictures” of the Galaxy S IV showed up. Now we do not know if this is the real device but what we do know is there will be a DUAL-SIM version of the Galaxy S IV. SamMobile is able to confirm the Galaxy S IV DUOS, thanks to our insider for the information.The person who posted the images said that the DUAL-SIM version is, at the moment, only for chinese network provider “Unicorn”. The person person who posted the images had I9502ZNUAMB1 firmware installed and Samsung is currently testing I9502ZNUAMB5 firmware with I9502CHUAMB5 CSC.
The Galaxy S IV is rumoured to feature an Exynos 5 (5410) Octa CPU, PowerVR SGX 544MP3 GPU, 4.99″ Full HD AMOLED Display, 2GB of RAM, 13 Megapixel Rear facing Camera capable of shooting 1080p Full HD Videos at 30FPS, 2 Megapixel front facing camera capable of shooting 1080p HD Videos and run Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out of the box.
Samsung will annouce the Galaxy S IV this week on March 14th in New York City!

Samsung's Galaxy S 4 may have leaked on Chinese forum

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Some fairly convincing images of a previously-unseen Samsung smartphone have surfaced, possibly revealing a Chinese variant of the yet-to-be-announced Galaxy S 4. The images show a 5-inch smartphone with similar styling to the Galaxy S III, complete with a physical oblong home button and glossy back. The images were uploaded to Chinese forum 52 Samsung a few hours ago, and if legitimate confirm a number of the heavily-rumored specifications.


Apparently customized for local carrier Unicom, the phone is described as "GT-I9502." It has a 1080p display, runs Android 4.2.1, and has a "Universal5410" 1.8GHz processor with 2GB of RAM and a PoverVR SGX 544MP GPU. Those specs match up with recent leaks, with "Universal5410" likely a codename for the Exynos Octa 5410, an eight-core processor with four A15 cores for power and four A7 cores for power efficiency.

Last year, the Galaxy S III was leaked several times in dummy boxes that concealed the phone's final design. While this leak doesn't have a visibly-fake outer shell, there's every chance Samsung could've crafted a false casing for testing purposes — just as there's every chance this could be an elaborate hoax. Either way, we'll find out for ourselves in just three days time, when Samsung will unveil its latest flagship phone at an Unpacked event in New York City.

• Via Sammy Hub

Facebook planning facial recognition for picture uploads? (update: yes!)

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It is indeed less earth-shattering than that alleged (and, it turns out, false) Google app we heard about a few days back, but one of our loyal readers has stumbled across what appears to be an up-and-coming (and thus far inactive) facial recognition feature in his Facebook privacy settings. And, you know what? We have found the same thing! Although we are somewhat mollified by the prospect that this bad boy (when and if it becomes active) will only highlight our mug in pictures uploaded by friends, we bemoan the possibility that even more of our lives will be spent untagging ourselves from embarrassing party snaps.

Update: Looks like this is the same ol' "box around the face" update that's been gradually rolling out for quite some time. Is it new to you? It's enabled by default -- but feel free to disable it in your privacy settings.

Samsung and Apple To Adopt Wireless Charging For Upcoming Flagships?

Wireless charging is an inevitable evolution whether you like it or not and companies like Nokia, LG and HTC, have already identified a market niche — or acknowledged the trend — offering wireless charging solution in some of their flagship phones.
According to the rumor mill Samsung and Apple will jump on the wireless charging bandwagon, of course, each with its own take. Unnamed sources claim that the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S IV will support QI standard wireless charging, however, with a twist: it will not be there out of the box but could be enabled by purchasing a special, official though, battery cover to enable this — not that there aren’t already hacks out there.
Apple on the other hand, who continues to opt for its special plugs instead of the industry-standard microUSB, is rumored to offer its own wireless charging solution, developed internally. It is yet unknown whether the next Apple phone will offer such functionality on its own or with the help of some accessories.
This begs for the question: will the lack of wireless charging on the next Galaxy S phone and the iPhone be a deal-breaker for you?
Source: DigiTimes

Facebook redesigns News Feed with multiple feeds and 'mobile-inspired' interface

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Facebook has announced a redesigned News Feed that separates streams of content into multiple categories and optimizes the user interface with a "mobile-inspired" design. Describing the goal of News Feed as providing a "personalized newspaper," Mark Zuckerberg says it's being changed to take advantage of more photo and other visual content sharing, as well as the difference between personal stories and posts from public figures. "We want updates from our friends, but we also want updates from publications" and others.
Noting that half of posts on the News Feed are photos and visual content, the Facebook team has made photos and albums larger, evoking what it's done for the Timeline. Articles have also been expanded to include a fuller summary and the logo of the publication. Facebook is similarly working to make third-party content from places like Pinterest more attractive. When multiple people share something like an article, hovering over profile icons on the left-hand side will display what each of them has said about this.

Facebook's redesigned news feed (photos)

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Besides the visual redesign, Facebook is also trying to take advantage of its "Like" system and multiple streams of information from apps or different groups of friends. Along with user's friends' stories, it will begin including recommended articles or other content from people or pages that they're interested in — the example given was seeing articles about Taylor Swift if you've liked her on Facebook. A list of multiple feeds is shown on the left (or the top on mobile), showing friends' posts for things like photos, music, or games. Some of these already existed: games and "close friends" already got their own feeds, for example. There's a new dedicated feed for people you follow but aren't friends with, another nod to the change from pure social network to "newspaper."
Developing...

• Source Facebook

Alternative Music Experience with ArmAmp

There are quite a few third party music player apps available for your Android device. They all have various different features that may or may not be of use to many, but all in all, share the same core function of simply playing your music. Now there’s one more that’s popped up in the XDA Forums called ArmAmp.
Developed by XDA Forum Member twelveteen, ArmAmp was developed and designed to be as easy to use as a desktop application. The app plays basically all audio formats and has compatibility of five different playlist formats. Other features include a built-in file browser, an extensively configurable 10-band equalizer, configurable reverb, balance, pitch and tempo. It’s user interface is very minimalist and straightforward, with no fancy graphics and animations to use up phone memory, but rather a bar of standard music options i.e. play/pause, previous and next, a ‘currently playing’ list of songs and options to turn shuffle or repeat on and off, a shortcut to the equalizer and the file browser. Twelveteen acknowledges that ArmAmp is still undergoing development with more updates and improvements to come.
Supporting Android versions 2.1 and newer, twelveteen has made ArmAmp free exclusively on the XDA forums. The download link along with more details can be found in the original thread.

LG's 55-inch OLED HDTV gets UK launch details: £9,999, ships in July

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Nearly a year after LG first showed off the production design for its 55-inch OLED HDTV and just as it begins shipping in Korea and the US, the company has announced UK details for the set. The 55EM970V with its ultra-thin frame and high contrast screen is available for pre-order now at Harrods, Knightsbridge for about £9,999, with delivery expected in July. The only problem (other than scraping together the necessary cash) is deciding between this one and LG's other "world's first" HDTV, the 84-inch 4K model it's also currently shipping. Of course, waiting until 2014 (or beyond) for more supply and lower prices is also an option -- we're sure you will choose wisely.

Report: Apple’s iWatch To Run A Full Version Of iOS, Launch Later This Year

Here’s something interesting to begin your Monday with. Apple is currently testing various versions of an iWatch, which are running on a full version of iOS instead of the software on the current iPod Nano. The company wants the iWatch to work perfectly with other iOS devices. This, however, is causing problems with the battery life, which consumers expect to last at least a week.

Apparently, BloomBerg and The Verge have heard from sources that Apple is dwelling more into an iWatch instead of the iTV. That does sound right, because we haven’t really heard any rumors/reports about Apple’s iTV in a while. Bloomberg’s report suggests that the iWatch business would be much more profitable to Apple and that the company is currently developing one. Last month, the site also reported that Apple’s Jony Ive is leading a team of 100 designers who are working on the iWatch. Apple has also filed various patents that detail a wearable device with a flexible screen etc.

Apple, with its iconic brand and lucrative retail network, is poised to tap into the growing watch industry. Headway in the business would help compensate for slowing growth in other areas, such as iPhones and iPods. Apple’s stock has slumped by more than a third since peaking in September on signs of accelerating competition led by Samsung Electronics Co. and concern over how quickly Chief Executive Officer Cook is pushing into new products.

Backing this report, The Verge has also received word from sources that Apple has a lot of work to do before delivering this product. Problems such as battery life is currently the main concern. Also, various new features will be added for iOS on the iPhone and iPad to work seamlessly with the iWatch. They also believe that the iWatch will be released later this year, so it can help Apple regain in the stock market.
Wearable computing is obviously going to be the next big thing. With Google’s Glass and Apple’s iWatch and Samsung’s copy of the iWatch, we have some cool things to look forward to. What would you prefer, an Apple iWatch or the Google Glass?

Mycestro, the wearable finger mouse

 

(Credit: Nick Mastandrea)

What if you could move your mouse cursor by just slightly moving your hand?
Consumer-level gesture control for your PC is growing ever closer. There's the Leap Motion, which uses stereoscopic motion tracking, and Myo, which reads both movement and the electrical signals along your muscles.
Mycestro is a little different again. The device is a small, finger-mounted mouse that operates in 3D space.
Equipped with motion tracking, Mycestro is activated by a small touch-sensitive panel. When you touch it with your thumb, Mycestro comes to life, allowing you to move your cursor around the screen. Lifting your thumb, then tapping left, middle or right acts as a mouse "click". Until you touch the panel, the cursor is inactive — which means that you can type or gesture without your cursor swinging wildly around the screen.
There are a number of gestures that operate Mycestro; a single tap to click; single tap followed by touch and hold to highlight or scroll; double-tap for a double-click; triple-tap for triple-click; and sliding your thumb along the panel to scroll.
Compatible with Bluetooth 4.0, the device can also be recharged via micro USB and comes packaged with a Bluetooth dongle. Out of the box, it will be compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux; the Bluetooth support means that it will also work with any Bluetooth Smart Ready devices, such as iPads and iPods.
The price of a Mycestro is US$75 on Kickstarter, with an estimated shipping date of October 2013.
Head on over to the Mycestro Kickstarter page for more information.

How to create Windows 8 Start Screen shortcut tiles manually and manage them

Ever wonder what folder stores the shortcut tiles that are seen on your Windows 8 Start Screen? This guide will briefly showcase the location of the tiles so you can manually delete, edit, or add your own tiles.
In essence, shortcuts can be created on the Start Screen by simply creating a folder in "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs". You can even create multiple shortcuts to the same exe or app with the same AppID will result in only one shortcut displayed on the Start Screen. All you need to do is create your shortcut in the above mentioned location and you are set. Your shortcut will even display under the Apps page and can also be found via the Search Charm. Pretty cool stuff.

Source: 

MSDN

Google Announces More Details For I/O Registration, Adds Awesome Easter Eggs To Get Into The Spirit

In the lead up to registration for I/O 2013, Google wants to make sure everybody is ready for the frenzied ticket grab that is scheduled for March 13th at 7:AM PT. To help prepare hopeful attendees, the company has posted some new details and a few reminders. Like last year, you need both a Google+ account and Google Wallet account to make your purchase. Ticket prices are remaining steady at $900 for general admission and $300 for those that qualify for an academic discount. There's also new information for travel planning, event details, schedules, and child care (a first for I/O), all of which are covered in the FAQ page.

In Google's signature style, the search giant included several new easter eggs on the I/O landing page. Once the page is loaded, simply click on the massive 'I' and 'O' to enter the codes. So far, we've found 8 codes to launch different toys and games. Among some of the games, you will find Google variants of Simon, Pong, and the awesomely-named "experiment bacon."

These are the codes we have so far:

• OOIOIOIO
• OOIIIOOI
• OIOIOOII
• OIIIOIOI
• OIIIIIII
• IOOOOOOI
• IOOIOOOO
• IIOIOOII

Go try them out for yourselves!
Sources: Google Developers Blog