HTC Desire 820 is first Snapdragon 615-powered mid-ranger

Today at IFA 2014 in Berlin, HTC has announced the latest addition to its mid-range Desire family, the Desire 820. Following on from the Desire 816, launched earlier in the year, the 820 maintains the same 5.5-inch display size and 720p resolution, while cranking the processor up to a Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 — an octa-core chip with cores at 1.5GHz and 1.0GHz. On top of that there's 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, both increased from the Desire 816.
Other notables include a 13-megapixel rear camera with f/2.2 lens, a whopping 8-megapixel front-facing camera and 2,600mAh battery.
Out of the box, the Desire 820 runs Android 4.4 KitKat, though HTC tells us the phone will be updated to Android L to take full advantage of the Snapdragon 615's 64-bit capabilities. All of that's encased in in a "unibody" chassis with HTC's trademark front-facing speakers, with a variety of glossy and matte color versions available.


The HTC Desire 820 will be available globally from late September.

  

 

source:anroidcentral

Apple's rumored iPhone 6 mobile payment system seen as 'most legitimate potential threat' to PayPal

Apple is reported to have already inked deals with American Express, MasterCard and Visa for a digital payment system for iPhone 6, to be unveiled on September 9.
Baird analyst Colin Sebastian issued a note calling Apple's rumored "iWallet" the "elephant in the room," noting that, "while there is no shortage of competition in payments, we view Apple as perhaps the most legitimate potential threat to PayPal's strong position." The market for mobile payments is expected to reach $1 trillion worldwide by 2017, according to data from IDC. Among other recent entrants, including Amazon, Google and eBay, Apple "has a strong base of existing customers that it could leverage for mobile payments," Sebastian observed. Apple now has more than 800 million iTunes accounts, most of which are tied to credit cards. "We believe Apple's closed-platform, software expertise, and brand power position it well," Sebastian wrote. "Additionally, integration with its anticipated wearable device could be a key feature. We believe mobile payments could be a significant opportunity.""We view Apple as perhaps the most legitimate potential threat to PayPal's strong position" - Baird analyst Colin Sebastian In addition to having lots of active iTunes and App Store accounts, Apple's customers also represent the most valuable segment of buyers. Despite vast "market share" volumes of Android users, IBM announced last year that Apple's iOS was being used to do the most mobile shopping by a wide margin, from the important American Thanksgiving Black Friday throughout the Christmas holiday season. Analyzing terabytes of data from 800 retail sites, IBM reported that iOS devices accounted for more than five times the total sales of Android devices. The firm also said that iOS users spent an average of twice as much per order. IBM subsequently entered into an exclusive partnership with Apple to use the new Swift programming language to develop over 100 custom apps targeting the needs of enterprise users in specific markets.



source:Appleinsider

Samsung announces Galaxy Tab Active, a rugged tablet for businesses

Samsung, hot off announcing the Galaxy Note 4, Note Edge, and Gear VR, has gone official today with a new tablet targeted toward businesses: the Galaxy Tab Active.
The tablet employs a ruggedized yet compact design, taking after the Galaxy S5 Active in looks. The Galaxy Tab Active looks to deliver complete functionality for businesses, especially those which require devices to be quite rugged in order to survive daily work life, and has features like a removable battery to better accommodate those customers. There’s an anti-shock covering to withstand drops up to 1.2 meters, and there’s IP67 water and dust resistance certification. A 3.1MP auto-focus sensor makes up the rear camera, meant to scan barcodes, and near-field communication abilities are also inbuilt.
Samsung has also included its “C-Pen” installed at the top to make the tablet work in professions where the use of thick gloves prevents workers from being able to use their fingers to input information. There’s a 10-hour battery life, and there’s even a detachable battery and POGO pin charging too.
Being an enterprise-geared tablet, it’s no surprise that Samsung KNOX is also part of the package for enhanced security, and there’s also Samsung’s Mobile Care Service with an extended basic warranty up to three years.
The Galaxy Tab Active will come in both WiFi-only and LTE-supporting flavors, and will have 16GB of storage with microSD expansion. It’s available in Titanium Green, and comes with the protective cover and C-Pen.



 
Source: Samsung

Apple invents method of hardening sapphire screens to reduce cracking

As noted in Apple's "Sapphire property modification through ion implantation" patent filing, traditional chemical strengthening techniques used on glass screens may not be effective when applied to other materials such as sapphire.
Thus, Apple proposes a new hardening method of impregnating the crystalline lattice structure of corundum, of which sapphire is a variety, with ions to create a compressive stress layer that enhances stability. The invention points out that when a sapphire structure fails or breaks, it's usually the result of propagations of surface flaws when the component is put under stress. To prevent against cracks during a drop event, Apple's ion implantation method embeds ions within the sapphire substrate, either between existing crystal lattice sites or naturally occurring voids. In one embodiment, ions may be embedded so as to form an amorphous, or non-crystalline, section within the sapphire substructure. A variety of technologies can be employed in the ion embedding procedure, including high energy implantation, ion accelerators, plasma immersion techniques, pumping systems and electrical deposition methods, among others. Also variable is the size of implanted ions, their depth and concentration. In some cases, the strengthening procedure may result in localized tinting of the sapphire material. As coloration is undesirable for a device display, Apple proposes using ions like iron or titanium that would create a specific color, such as black, to intentionally create a masked area. For example, the blacked-out bezels seen on current iPhones would be achieved by embedding ions directly into the display glass instead of laying ink on the interior surface. The filing goes into great detail on ion impregnation techniques, as well as the creation of selective compressive stress zones that help prevent cracks from propagating. Apple's sapphire strengthening patent filing was first applied for in March 2013 and credits Dale N. Memering, Christopher D. Prest and Douglas Weber as its inventors.
 




 Source: USPTO

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 3: first look

It’s the new versus the old! The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 rocketed into our minds for being a well-rounded, fully equipped smartphone that screamed quality in every facet. Single handedly, it managed to dominate the phablet category yet again over the course of the last year, which isn’t all too surprising as we look at the offerings from its rivals. In typical style, the Galaxy Note 3 is relinquishing its strangle hold to only a single, worthy smartphone – its successor in the Samsung Galaxy Note 4. Knowing that the Note 4’s release is around the block, the question that’s most pertinent at the moment is whether current Note 3 owners should consider ditching the prized phone in favor of the newer model.



We know that some people are itching to grab their hands on the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 4, since it’s one rich smartphone from head-to-toe. However, for those folks out there currently calling the Note 3 as their daily drivers, they’re surely in a predicament with the inevitable release of the Note 4. The question that’ll nag them is whether it’s logical for them to ditch their Note 3, and just jump right in with the Note 4. Undoubtedly, we wouldn’t be too shocked by the idea, since anything newer will usually draw in people, but it’s going to be a hard fought battle because the Note 3 is still one noteworthy smartphone in the space – more so when we think about the phablet category.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge hands-on

To the surprise of many, Samsung unveiled not one, but two new models that will reinforce the company's critically-acclaimed Note series -- the Note 4, and the far more interesting Note Edge. Quite frankly, the Edge is a Note 4 with a twist -- an additional screen on the side (or edge) of the device -- but what a twist it is! 

Indeed, this is the first time anybody has ever done this, and it seems like the millions Samsung poured in developing innovative display solutions are finally paying off. Of course, the ultimate test lies in capturing the hearts of consumers, as this won't be the first time seemingly good, novel ideas flop.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lumia Denim is the next firmware update for Nokia Lumia devices

Microsoft's event is already going strong, and we expect a couple of new Lumia smartphones, but before Redmond unveiled these, it unwrapped Lumia Denim - the next firmware update for Lumia devices. It will arrive on the Lumia 930/Icon and the Lumia 1520, while the newly-unveiled Lumia 830 and Lumia 730 will come with it out of the box.
What does this Lumia Denim firmware consist of? It brings some improvements to Cortana, Microsoft's voice assistant, and allows you to "summon" it by simply saying the "Hey, Cortana!" hotword, similar to the way you'd launch Siri and Google Now. It has apparently taken a page or two from Apple's and Google's books, but that's not all that the Denim update will bring on the table. See, it allows Cortana to keep tabs on your whereabouts and recognize the geographic areas in which you currently are.Additionally, Lumia Denim will bring some pretty impressive improvements to the camera software in the supported devices. Microsoft claimed that thanks to Denim, the camera does not only start faster, it also snaps individual photos in a quick fashion. What's more, you can now snap a 4K video clip and still images at the same time. If you have missed the moment, however, don't fret - you'll be able to extract photos from an already-recorded 4K video. All thanks to Lumia Denim.The alpha version of this firmware update will initially arrive as alpha in India and Canada, while its beta version will be tested in the UK and China. When should we expect the Lumia Denim update? Well, it will be available for the Lumia 930/Icon and the Lumia 1520 in Q4 2014. 
 


source: Microsoft