Samsung to partner BlackBerry for Android security

BlackBerry on Thursday announced a new partnership
with Samsung that will provide the Korean company
with greater security on its Android devices. The
move, as you may have guessed, is designed to help
push Samsung devices into the enterprise market,
where Android might not necessarily have the
strongest reputation. BlackBerry’s end-to-end
encryption system will be used in conjunction with
Samsung’s Knox software.
Google’s latest Android update, Android 5.0 Lollipop,
already provides encryption turned on by default, with
SELinux enforcing for all apps to protect against
vulnerabilities and malware. Today’s partnership will
bring a similar level of security to devices like the
Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy S5 to protect against threats
posed by flawed applications, while also separating
business and personal data.
Today’s announcement was part of a broader push by
BlackBerry to further solidify its enterprise solutions,
which focuses on security, productivity,
communication and collaboration. Over the past
several months, the company has shifted focus almost
entirely over to its enterprise business, moving away
from the consumer-side where BlackBerry has
struggled to compete with competitors.
Another part of BlackBerry’s announcement included a
long-anticipated BES12 server software, which is a
cross-platform Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM)
solution to help businesses control access, data and
applications “across all mission-critical endpoints and
devices.” Enterprise is a big part of what made
BlackBerry such a household name, and today’s news
is a step toward recapturing past success.
Samsung said it decided to partner with BlackBerry
because it strives to be the “most secure in mobility.”
Via : techno buffalo

All Lumia windows 8 phones will be upgraded to Windows 10

Microsoft doesn't plan on making the same mistake
twice: the company has made a public pledge that all of
Nokia's Lumia Windows Phone 8 devices will be
upgraded to the mobile version of Windows 10 when it's
released. Responding to a customer's question on the
topic, Microsoft tweeted, "We plan to upgrade all
Windows Phone 8 devices to Windows 10 in the future."
Microsoft's next big operating system remains in early
development, so the company obviously isn't revealing
details as to when that update will arrive.
@lumia I want to buy Nokia Lumia 930.but
here's a question: will update it to windows
10 or will as in the past (7.8) 8.8 ?
Kalars 07 @Kalars07
@Kalars07 We plan to upgrade all Windows Phone 8
devices to Windows 10 in the future :)
3:15 PM - 13 Nov 2014
Lumia
@lumia
Follow
37 RETWEETS 26 FAVORITES
8h
Still, the direct confirmation should allow Lumia owners
to breathe a sigh of relief and know that history won't
repeat itself. Microsoft enraged its small but loyal base
of Windows Phone 7 users when it revealed existing
devices wouldn't make the jump to Windows Phone 8 in
2012. That was mostly due to a significant change in the
software's kernel, but the technical explanation did little
to heal the wound. The underpinnings between Windows
Phone 8 and Windows 10 aren't so drastically different,
so another cutoff wasn't expected. But a promise that
every last Lumia running Windows Phone 8 will get
Microsoft's latest software is still good to hear.
Via : The Verge

Windows users in wait as Microsoft focuses on Android and iOS

Windows Phone users are used to waiting for Microsoft
to deliver on its promises, but the company has been
testing their patience recently. Microsoft has abandoned
its "first and best on Windows" strategy in favor of
cross-platform apps that are nearly always better on
Android and iOS than their Windows tablet and phone
counterparts. Office is the latest proof of a continuous
trend that’s leaving Microsoft’s most loyal Windows
customers out in the cold.
After shipping Office for iPad earlier this year, way ahead
of a touch-optimized Windows release, Microsoft
followed up with an even better version for the iPhone
last week. While the initial Office for iPhone app,
released last year, offered basic editing like its Windows
Phone counterpart, the new app goes way above and
beyond the functionality Microsoft ships on Windows
Phone. Comparing the two almost feels unfair at this
stage. Microsoft is working on new touch-optimized
versions of Office for Windows tablets and phones, but
the company won’t deliver them until Windows 10 is
ready next year. It’s another period of waiting for
Windows fans.

Samsung's 'FLOW' ties devices together like Apple's continuity

The keynote of Samsung Developer Conference 2014 was
a wide-ranging, 90-minute affair that touched on topics
as varied as smart homes, virtual reality, and health.
More traditional computing and smartphones were
largely put on the back burner, but Samsung did drop
some details about a new initiative to make moving
between the many devices we use ever day easier. It's
called Samsung Flow, and it's basically Samsung's take
on Apple's Continuity features that are now baked into
iOS and OS X Yosemite.
At its most basic level, Flow lets you move content and
activities between your Samsung devices, including
smartphones, tablets, computers, smartwatches, and
even TV sets. As explained by Samsung Vice President
of Research Pranav Mistry, Flow consists of three main
components. Transfer is pretty self-explanatory — if
you're viewing a picture or a video, you can shoot it
from your tablet to your phone with just a few taps.
Shooting pictures between devices is pretty basic, but
Samsung also showed this feature off with video calls —
if you're taking a video call on your tablet and need to
get more mobile, you can shoot it to your phone.
TRANSFER, DEFER, AND NOTIFY
The second major feature for Flow is called Defer. As its
name implies, Defer lets you pause an activity in
whatever state it happens to be and pick it up later, on
the same device or on another device if you so choose.
Samsung gave the example of someone working on a
spreadsheet or other work document on their phone and
then deferring it until they're back at their desk, working
on a standard computer. Another example was watching
a movie on a phone and then pausing and deferring it
until you're back at your TV, where it can pick up right
where you left off. It's not clear exactly how setup works
on a TV or computer, though — we're guessing that
Samsung will make a Flow app to communicate with
PCs, or it could even work through Chrome.
The last piece is Notify, which essentially lets you push
notifications and device status alerts across your
devices. Much as your iPhone can now ring your Mac
and iPad, Notify lets you see incoming calls across all
your devices (yes, even your TV), as well as any other
notifications you choose. It also shares device states, so
if your smartphone is running out of battery, your watch
or tablet can let you know.
NOTIFICATIONS BEING PUSHED TO YOUR TV — WHAT
COULD GO WRONG?
Samsung has built a pretty simple interface for
transferring stuff between devices — compatible apps
can pull up a simple dialog box that shows all of your
Samsung devices that are in range and capable of
working with Flow. Just tapping the destination will
send your content where you want it. And building it
into apps should be pretty straightforward — Mistry said
that any app that supports the standard Android share
or view intents will work with Flow. There's no word on
exactly how and when Flow will roll out, but Samsung
will be hosting some sessions on developing for Flow
over the course of the conference. Of course, Samsung
is far from the only company working on this type of
technology for Android — a company called NextBit is
trying to build software that essentially lets you hit
pause in your apps.
Via : The Verge

Sony xperia Z4 on the way, CES press conference scheduled by Sony

Sony schedules CES press conference, Xperia
Z4 likely incoming
Is it a bit early to look forward to CES 2015? No way.
The premier tech event of the year is less then two
months away at this point, which means it’s time for
big manufacturers to begin scheduling press
conferences and inviting members of the media to
check out new products. One of the first to begin this
process is Sony, as it has scheduled a Sony CES
press conference for January 5 at 5:00 PM PST in the
LVCC.
Sony could be announcing – and likely will be – the
Xperia Z4, just as it introduced the Xperia Z1s and
Xperia Z1 Compact on the CES 2014 stage this year.
Other possibilities are the Xperia Z4 Compact, Xperia
Z4 Tablet Compact, and Xperia Z4 Ultra, but we have
no way of knowing for sure until non-speculative
leaks cross our news desk. If this speculation is on
the right track, that shouldn’t be too far away.
Via : pocket Now

Samsung Galaxy s6 to be available earlier than you think

Samsung is just now finally starting to get its Galaxy
Note Edge on the market, following the release of the
Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy S5 earlier this year, but
rumors out of Korea are already starting to brew up
fresh details on the Galaxy S6. Samsung is apparently
already well on its way developing the Galaxy S6 – no
surprise there given standard product cycles – but it’s
reportedly trying to start the process from scratch this
time around, a plan internally dubbed “Project Zero,”
according to some reports.
Korean news outlet Daum on Tuesday said that
Samsung is working to push up the launch of its
Galaxy S6 smartphone by a month. Instead of releasing
the handset in April, as it typically does for its Galaxy
Sx refreshes, it’s currently working to push the Galaxy
S6 out the door in March. Samsung typically unveils its
new devices during the Mobile World Congress trade
show in Barcelona each year, which happens to fall in
March in 2015, so this could mean that there’s going
to be a super narrow time-frame between
announcement and launch of the phone.
We’re still a bit in the dark when it comes to
knowledge on what the Galaxy S6 will offer. One
analyst recently said he believes Samsung will offer a
display with two curved edges , which might draw on
lessons learned from the curved screen on the Galaxy
Note Edge. That makes sense, too, especially if the
Note Edge starts to build a solid development
community that takes advantage of that new screen
area. Samsung will reportedly sell models equipped
with 64-bit Exynos processors and others, for markets
like the United States, with Snapdragon 810 chips.

Via : techno buffalo

Apple in legal suit over missing message text

A judge has ordered Apple to face a federal lawsuit for
failing to tell customers that switching from an iPhone
to some other mobile platform would prevent them
from receiving messages from other iPhone owners.
This comes just days after Apple released a new web
tool that allowed users who switched from an iPhone
to deregister their phone number from iMessage.
The problem occurs because the phone number is still
registered on Apple’s servers, so Apple tries to route
messages sent from an iPhone through iMessage
rather than sending it as an SMS through your carrier’s
network.
Reuters reports that Judge Lucy Koh has ruled that
former iPhone customer Adrianne Moore’s lawsuit will
be allowed to continue. Interestingly, Judge Koh had
presided over the Apple’s and Samsung’s landmark
patent lawsuit. Moore had filed a lawsuit earlier in the
year which alleged that she did not receive messages
after switching from an iPhone to a Samsung Galaxy
S4, which interfered with her contract with Verizon for
wireless service.
Moore, who seeks class-action status and
unspecified damages, claimed that Apple failed to
disclose how its iOS 5 software operating system
would obstruct the delivery of “countless” messages
from other Apple device users if iPhone users
switched to non-Apple devices.
In a Monday night decision, Koh said Moore
deserved a chance to show Apple disrupted her
wireless service contract and violated a California
unfair competition law, by blocking messages meant
for her.
“Plaintiff does not have to allege an absolute right to
receive every text message in order to allege that
Apple’s intentional acts have caused an actual
breach or disruption of the contractual relationship,”
Koh wrote.
The court documents reveal that Apple’s lawyers
argued that it never claimed that its iMessage service
and Messages app would recognize when iPhone
users switched to other mobile platforms, and that the
law does not cover technology that “simply does not
function as plaintiff subjectively believes it should.”
Over the weekend, Apple launched a new tool which
allows users to manually deregister their phone
number from iMessage to ensure that they can
continue to receive messages from iPhone owners after
switching to another device. However, it still doesn’t
solve the issue raised by the plaintiff of notifying
users when they switch to non-Apple devices.
Apple should probably look at implementing a system,
which delivers the text message as an SMS if it can’t
successfully deliver the message via iMessage. Apple
should seriously consider making “Send as
SMS” (found under iMessage) if the iMessage is not
delivered as default.

Lumia 535 offers more at a cheaper price

Following teasers and leaks, Microsoft has
officially unveiled its first smartphone without Nokia
branding - Lumia 535. The smartphone will be
available in dual-sim and single sim variants from
November at an estimated price of 110 euros (Rs 8,400
approximately) (excluding taxes and subsidies) with
sales starting in China, Hong Kong and Bangladesh.
There's no information on the India pricing and release
of the phone.
Lumia 535 looks similar to Lumia 530 which was
unveiled earlier this year, complete with rounded
corners and a coloured back cover.
However, it does not sport any Nokia branding. Also,
Microsoft has tried to fill in some gaps to make it more
feature complete. For instance, the phone has a 5MP
front camera for selfies and Skype calls and an LED
flash at the back to take low-light photos. It also has
1GB RAM unlike the Lumia 530 which was unable to
run games that demanded more memory.
Lumia 535 sports a 5-inch qHD (960x540p, 220ppi) IPS
LCD display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3. The phone is
powered by a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 quad-
core processor and 1GB RAM. It comes with 8GB
internal storage and supports microSD card slots of up
to 128GB for expansion. The phone has a 1905mAh
battery.
READ ALSO: Microsoft might 'kill' Windows Phone
The smartphone runs Windows Phone 8.1 with Lumia
Denim update and supports Cortana voice assistant,
depending on the region.
Lumia 535 sports a 5MP rear camera (1/4 inch sensor,
f/2.4 aperture and 28mm focal length) with auto-focus
and LED flash and a 5MP front-facing camera for selfie
fans. It can shoot video at 848x480p resolution.
In terms of connectivity, the phone offers 3G, Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth 4.0 and A-GPS.
Microsoft Lumia 535 will be available in cyan, bright
green, bright orange, white, dark grey, and black
colour options.
Via : ToI

What Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella thinks Apple and Google do best

At a recent event on its Redmond campus, Microsoft CEO
Satya Nadella detailed his views on what Google and
Apple do best.
His comments, as the chief executive of the company
worth less than Apple, but more than Google,
are notable. For context, in his thus-short tenure at
Microsoft , Nadella has completed its purchase of Nokia,
and also continued the company’s push into cloud
computing.
Here’s Nadella’s quote on his rivals:
When I think about what Apple does, what Google
does and what Microsoft does, therein lies perhaps
the simplest answer to why these three identities are
actually pretty distinct. To me Apple’s very, very
clear, and, in fact, I think Tim Cook did a great job of
even describing that very recently where he said
they sell devices and that’s what Apple is all about.
And Google is about being, it’s about data or it’s
about advertising, it is about serving you ads in a
tasteful way, and they’ve done a great job of that
business.
Apple’s massive success in hardware has driven its
historic revenue and profit growth . Though, naturally,
those successes have been undergirded by prescient
software choices, including adding an application
marketplace to iPhone when that product was in its
infancy. The App Store has been a key strength that
Apple used to help launch the iPad to strong market
adoption, and will, presumably, assist its upcoming
Watch product also see quick initial sales.
Google’s advertising prowess is obvious, but again isn’t
the full story: The company’s search products made
selling ads possible; if Google hadn’t built the dominant
search tool for most of the world, its ad incomes
wouldn’t have soared as they have.
But that doesn’t mean Nadella is wrong, merely that
there is nuance to the point. The executive continued
directly, making a case for Microsoft’s own strengths:
Whereas in our case our identity really is about
empowering others to build products. It’s not really
about us and our products. Of course, we have a
revenue model and a business model, but to me the
place where Microsoft can be distinct and where it
comes naturally to us more so than anything else is
from the creator of a document to a developer
writing an app, to anyone else who is in the
business of actually their own creation we want to
be the tools provider, the platform provider. That’s
the core identity, and productivity to me that’s why
it has deep meaning.
To be most basic, Apple’s core strength is the iPhone,
Google’s search, and Microsoft’s selling Windows and
Office. Apple wants to get into cloud services, as
evinced by its iCloud Drive product, Google wants to
win productivity and cloud computing, and Microsoft is
setting itself along similar lines, working to convert
Office into a cloud subscription service, and growing its
Azure cloud platform.
As I’ve written in the past , the large platform companies
are combating across a host of surface areas. Apple and
Google and Microsoft are each in apps, and hardware,
and so forth. The question is which will be the most
adept at converting past success into new winnings.
Whichever wins a new segment could see its market
capitalization advance, and perhaps challenge the other
two for dominance in the next decade of technology.

Alleged Lumia 1330 leaked

A smudgy shot has been making the rounds lately,
showing the soon to be announced Lumia 535. Microsoft
is expected to announce the entry level Lumia next week
- on November 11.
Attentive readers however have spotted that next to it
on the blurry image there is a yet-unseen Lumia phablet.
The size comparison to the Lumia 535 and the Lumia
1520 , which is also seen in the shot, suggests it should
have a screen of around 6 inches. The design resembles
the Lumia 1320 (with the Nokia logo gone), leading
some to believe it may be a Lumia 1330 of sorts.
And it would not be outlandish to suggest that this new
Lumia might see the light of day together with the Lumia
535 on November 11.
The Lumia 535 recently leaked in great detail but this is
the first time we hear about a Lumia 1330. The Lumia 535
should have a 5-inch screen and a Snapdragon 200
chipset.