Flipboard is now available for Windows 8.1 devices

The popular news-gobbling app Flipboard is now officially available for Windows 8.1 devices, including those running the RT version of Redmond’s OS. The application is available to install from the Windows Marketplace.

As expected, Flipboard for Windows 8.1 comes with all the features we’ve come to like from its iOS and Android relatives. Furthermore, the Windows version allows users to pin magazines and sections to their Start screen, thus taking advantage of its live tiles functionality.
The app has also been optimized to work with the Windows 8.1 specific gestures. They include swiping up and down to perform various tasks, as well as viewing Flipboard side by side with other apps

Samsung looking to eclipse Apple and ship 100 million tablets in 2014

Apple’s stranglehold of the tablet market may be coming to an end next year, as Samsung has polled its supply chain to ship an even greater amount of tablets in 2014. The Korean company’s ambitions amount to some 100 million units.

This follows reports of a sizeable increase in tablet market share in Q3 2013 where Samsung was able to ship almost 10 million units, an increase of 123% over the same period in 2012.
For the same time period, Apple was able to increase its year-over-year growth by only 0.6%, and saw its market share fall from just over 40% in 3Q12 to 29.6% in 3Q13.
According to ETNews out of Korea, Samsung is in talks with several Korean panel makers to ensure it will have enough supply as it anticipates to eclipse its 2013 figures by more than two-fold.
Since bringing up yield for the production of touchscreen panels is both expensive and time consuming, it makes sense for Samsung to want to get their ducks in a line early so as to not suffer from production issues next year. As higher resolution displays come to market and component complexity increases, the risk of supply shortages becomes even more prominent – just take a look at Apple’s recent Retina iPad mini production woes.
Source | Via

Get 70 pound discount on the Apple iPad Air today

If you live in the UK, you can buy the latest Apple iPad Air for just £329 today. This is £70 off the official retail price and comes courtesy of a one day-promotion by Play.com.

The promotion is only for the 16GB Wi-Fi only Space Gray model of the iPad Air.
The amazing deal is available on UK’s Play.com as a part of the Mega Monday promotions. The slate is not sold directly from Play.com, but from a trusted seller.
International shipping is available on Play.com, so if you like this price you may want to check if your country is included into the delivery regions.
Once again, the promotions is valid for today only, so you might want to hurry up if you are to take advantage of it.
Source | Via

Qualcomm Toq smartwatch launches on December 2 for $350

Qualcomm will celebrate Cyber Monday – the Black Friday of buying tech online – with the release of its Toq smartwatch. The watch showcases Qualcomm tech like the color Mirasol display that uses ambient light (so it has great visibility outside) and the WiPower LE wireless charging tech for quick and painless top ups of the battery.

You’d need to do that about twice a week – the Qualcomm Toq has 3 day battery life. Check out how it compares against the Sony SmartWatch 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Gear here.
The Toq works with any Android phone running 4.0.3 and above (4.3 preferred) and will show notifications and allow you to accept incoming calls and talk on the optional wireless stereo headset. An AccuWeather app and a stock app by E*TRADE will be available at launch and Qualcomm promises future enhancements with software updates.

The Qualcomm will be available online on Cyber Monday, December 2, for $350. For comparison, the Samsung Galaxy Gear is $280 and the SonySmartWatch 2 is $170.
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Samsung suspends the Android 4.3 update for Galaxy S III

Just two weeks ago Samsung started seeding the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean firmware to its Galaxy S III ex-flagship. It brought variety of new features and support for the Galaxy Gear smartwatch, but was plagued by lots of issues.
Early adopters reported their Galaxy S III's becoming unresponsive on different occasions, crashing and being incapable of proper multi-tasking due to poor RAM manager, stuttering on music playback and even battery drain.
Today Samsung UK officially responded to requests for an official statement saying the following:
"As we are currently investigating the reported issues with Galaxy S3 4.3 Jelly Bean update, the upgrading service has been temporarily suspended. We are committed to providing customers with the best possible mobile experience, and will ensure to resume the upgrading service at the earliest possibility."
So, the Galaxy S III update has been pulled from Kies and the OTA service has been suspended. We hope Samsung resolves this issues quickly and resumes the update rollout shortly. The Galaxy S III skipped Android 4.2.2 and its owners are waiting a year to get a newer Android version since the official 4.1 Jelly Bean ROM was released in 2012.
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A Foxconn factory reportedly stops iPhone 5c production

The production of the iPhone 5c reportedly took yet another hit, according to DigiTimes. First, in the beginning of October we heard rumors Apple is halving the production of the iPhone 5c due to the low user demand and sales.
Just few days ago we learned Apple is cutting the iPhone 5c production in Foxconn's Zhengzhou factory from 50,000 per day down to just 8,000 per day.

Now a new report comes in, suggesting that the same Zhengzhou factory is going to cease all iPhone 5c production and will be switching to iPhone 5s instead.
Even though Apple earnings and sales are still amazingly high, we never actually learned how the plastic iPhone 5c is doing on the market as the company doesn't provide breakdown of its sales by model.
It seems the plastic iPhone isn't doing all so well - something that isn't going to surprise anyone who has had the chance to spend some time with it. The company earnings are safe, though, as the iPhone 5s is doing excellently, which probably was the plan in the first place. If Apple fails to react to the poor iPhone 5c performance it will be all but certain that the company never meant to diversify its portfolio with it, but just make sure the iPhone 5s gets all the attention.
Source | Via

More details on QHD Vivo Xplay 3S emerge

The Vivo Xplay 3S is shaping up to be a Galaxy Note 3 killer. A new batch of leaked specs reveal more about the mysterious phone with a 5.5" QHD screen (2,560 x 1,440). That resolution (4x 720p) requires a beefy GPU.
The chipset is a Snapdragon 800 with Adreno 330 and it's the 8974AB version, which has the GPU clocked at 550MHz instead of 450MHz, which is the norm in most Snapdragon 800-powered devices (including the Note 3). There's 3GB of RAM too.
The device will have a camera of unknown resolution with an f/1.8 aperture. There's also a built-in Hi-Fi audio chip" and USB 3.0 connectivity (which is unique to the Note 3 among pocketable devices).
Other connectivity includes 4G LTE – of the international and Chinese varieties.
The Vivo Xplay 3S is yet to be officially announced but rumors point to a launch in the first half of next year.
Source (in Chinese) | Via

Sony Xperia Z1S spotted again next to bigger Z1

We've encountered yet another image of the upcoming Sony Xperia Z1S, sitting next to the Xperia Z1. The Xperia Z1S is taunted as the international version of the NTT DoCoMo Japan-exclusive Xperia Z1F.
According to the source of the image the picture handset is Xperia Amami, but the widely rumored Xperia Z1S name hasn't been confirmed by Sony just yet.


We've already seen a similar image a couple of days ago. And earlier we also got a glimpse of the UI.
There's no way to know when Sony will be releasing an international Xperia Z1 mini, but it shouldn't take long now with the holiday season fast approaching.
Source (in Chinese, requires log-in) | Via

Samsung Galaxy J leaves Japan, Taiwan is first to get it

The Samsung Galaxy J is already official and on sale on Japan's DoCoMo carrier but it now appears the phone is getting a wider release. The Galaxy J has been spotted on the Taiwanese communications regulatory website carrying the model number SGH-N075T, which could mean it will be available in other parts of Asia.


The Samsung Galaxy J features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC, 3GB of RAM, and a 5" 1080p display. The Galaxy J will be available in three different color schemes Coral Pink, Satin White, and Lapis Blue.
While there's still a chance that the phone will remain exclusive to Taiwan and Japan, at this point it seems more likely that Samsung will launch it in at least several more markets. The Galaxy J, which looks like a mash-up between the Galaxy S4 and Note 3, will certainly find its fans outside Japan, so this is certainly good news.
Samsung currently holds the largest market share in terms of smartphones sold and the Koreans certainly have their diversified portfolio to thank for that. Adding another premium smartphone might have boost its lead even further, although it might cause trouble with after-sales support if the company doesn't have the resources to update so many devices.
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Nokia Music to make its way onto Android and iOS

A leaked internal document coming out of China reveals that the proprietary Nokia Music service will be coming to Android and iOS as a web app.

Nokia Music lets you download playlists to listen offline for a monthly subscription fee, and is available in some 43 countries.
This latest development is contrary to what was initially thought would be Microsoft’s plans for Nokia Music.The service was expected to either be shut down altogether, or incorporated into an eventual Xbox Music platform once Microsoft’s acquisition of Nokia’s Devices and Services division is complete.

Also revealed is support for Windows 8 and RT desktops, as well as Mac OSX. No word on when we can expect to see the expanded Nokia Music service on other operating systems, mobile or otherwise, but it will likely occur after the planned acquisition by Microsoft around the beginning of next year.
Source (Chinese) | Via

LG G Flex clears FCC and goes on sale in the US

Eager for some curved screen action? Why don’t you have an LG G Flex? It will still cost you dearly, but at least you don’t have to travel to Korea to get it any more. The smartphone has just gone on sale in the US for a few dollars north of $1000.
Overseas Electronics has the LG G Flex in stock and asks for a cent under $1050 for it. The listing mentions LTE-A support on the 850 and 1800 bands, which means that it won’t work on any carrier in the US. Of course that was to be expected given that these are imported Korean units, rather than a tailor-made US version.
Negri Electronics also has the LG G Flex listed on its website, but it's a pre-order and there's no delivery date mentioned. The e-tailer priced it at $1109.50 and gives you the choice of KT Telecom and SK Telecom versions. The former has some limited compatibility with LTE networks in the US, but you better not count on it.


Curious as the curved smartphone might be, it’s really hard to recommend spending so much money on a version not even meant for sale in that market. The LG G Flex has just cleared the FCC, which aligns nicely with previous rumors, which suggested that it will be officially hitting AT&T, Sprint and Verizon in January. So unless you absolutely have to have a curved smartphone for Christmas, you are better off waiting for a couple of months more.

Samsung Galaxy J leaves Japan, Taiwan is first to get it

The Samsung Galaxy J is already official and on sale on Japan's DoCoMo carrier but it now appears the phone is getting a wider release. The Galaxy J has been spotted on the Taiwanese communications regulatory website carrying the model number SGH-N075T, which could mean it will be available in other parts of Asia.


The Samsung Galaxy J features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC, 3GB of RAM, and a 5" 1080p display. The Galaxy J will be available in three different color schemes Coral Pink, Satin White, and Lapis Blue.
While there's still a chance that the phone will remain exclusive to Taiwan and Japan, at this point it seems more likely that Samsung will launch it in at least several more markets. The Galaxy J, which looks like a mash-up between the Galaxy S4 and Note 3, will certainly find its fans outside Japan, so this is certainly good news.
Samsung currently holds the largest market share in terms of smartphones sold and the Koreans certainly have their diversified portfolio to thank for that. Adding another premium smartphone might have boost its lead even further, although it might cause trouble with after-sales support if the company doesn't have the resources to update so many devices.
Via

LG-made Nexus 10 leaks in two images

A Reddit user claiming to be an employee at carrier Telefonica has leaked out two images of what is allegedly the LG-made Nexus 10 tablet.

The tablet looks pretty similar to the current-gen Nexus 10 that’s made by Samsung. The image suggests the model number of the upcoming Google table is LG-V510. Despite the poor image quality, you can see the a single speaker on top of the display – the Samsung Nexus 10 packed a dual-speaker configuration.
As the second image shows, the Nexus 10 by LG will be priced at £299 for the cellular version. The source claims, this will be the first Nexus tablet to be offered in black and white configurations. According to him, sales will commence on November 22 with both the Wi-Fi and cellular versions getting their launch at the same time.

Naturally, don’t take those leaks too seriously for now, as later in the summer we saw a report suggesting ASUS will be the manufacturer to make the 2013-edition Nexus 10. We’ll just have to wait for November 22 to see if those rumors pan out.
Source • Source (2) | Via

Octa-core Ascend P6S confirmed by Huawei president

The Huawei Ascend P6 is not only one of the slimmest, but also among the best looking smartphones around. It is also a pretty decent smartphone with the only part of its hardware that wasn’t quite impressive being the chipset, which tended to deliver more heat that actual processing power.
The Chinese manufacturer has obviously acknowledged that as it’s now preparing to release an upgraded version of the smartphone featuring a new chipset with an octa-core CPU. The news was delivered by the company’s president Xu Xin Quan through the Weibo blogging platform.


Powering the upcoming Huawei Ascend P6S will be another custom designed SoC that will come to replace the K3V2 on the company’s products. It will come will a true-octa core processor, meaning that all cores will be able to operate simultaneously, unlike the current crop of Samsung Exynos chipsets which only allow up to four cores to work at a time.
The rest of the Ascend P6S specifications remain unknown, but the naming suggests that it won’t be a huge upgrade over the Ascend P6 (pictured above). We also have no information just yet on pricing and launch dates for the new smartphone.
Source (in Chinese) | Via

Sony sells 1 million PlayStation 4 consoles in 24 hours

Sony managed an amazing achievement with its latest PlayStation 4 console topping 1 million sales in the first 24 hours. With the console being available only in the US and Canada for now, the figure sounds even more impressive.

The PlayStation 4 will have its wider rollout on November 29, when it’s going to hit Europe and Australia. Sony expects to sell as many as 3 million units of the console by the end of the year. Sony has reported to Bloomberg that it will have “adequate supplies” of the PS4 through Christmas and expects to hit the 5 million sales mark in March.
“This is a marathon, not a sprint, but getting out to a nice start is a good thing,” , Jack Tretton, president and chief executive officer of the company’s U.S. computer entertainment division, said. “That hurdle has been cleared. We’re very, very confident we’re in great shape.”
The Xbox One by Microsoft will have a much wider launch than the PS4 and will be available in 13 countries on the day of its release – November 22. We’ll see how if it manages to outdo the PS4 oppening sales.
Source | Via

Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update for Samsung Galaxy Note II leaks

The Android 4.3 update should be hitting the Samsung Galaxy Note II pretty shortly, but if you don’t feel like waiting any longer you’d be interested to know that a leaked ROM is available for flashing right now. It’s reportedly a build very close to the final ones, so it will have no trouble serving as a daily driver.

Along with incrementing the Android version number to 4.3 and bringing the core features of the last of the three Jelly Bean releases, the update also brings several changes to the Galaxy Note II UI. It now looks much closer to the Galaxy S4 and the Note 3, which already received the Android 4.3 treatment. Samsung Knox and Samsung Wallet are debuting on the Note II as part of the Android 4.3 update. Here’s the complete changelog:

• OpenGL 3.0 Support
• ANT+ Support
• Samsung KNOX Implementation (KNOX bootloader and dedicated application)
• Samsung Wallet comes pre-loaded
• Improved RAM management
• Improved Display colour reproduction (Display looks much sharper than before)
• Improved TouchWiz Launcher (Much less launcher redraws and less lag)
• New Samsung Keyboard
• New Samsung Browser (Full screen by default, new tab interface and more)
• New Reading Mode (Optimises display for reading, used by only a few specific applications)
• New Camera firmware
• Minor UI tweaks (Contacts app, Flashlight Widget, dialog boxes etc)

The leaked ROM is only compatible with the N7100 version of the Galaxy Note II, so if you happen to have a N7105 LTE unit you are unfortunately out of luck. You can download the necessary files and find the instructions on how to flash them by following the source link below.
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