Sunday, February 13, 2011

LG Optimus 2X Showing Off Unreal Engine 3 Technology (Video)

3:30 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments

This, without a doubt, has to be a sure sign of great things to come for the Android gaming community.  Caught on tape is the LG Optimus 2X running Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3 technology.  During a look at the 2X, we saw the “Epic Citadel” tech demo running on the device and being mirrored via its HDMI out capabilities up on the big screen.  Check out the video below of the demo in action.  You can see the demo running flawlessly on the device and on the TV.  Not bad at all for a handheld eh?  This should bring high hopes to Android gamers everywhere as this type of technology begins to roll out in conjunction with dual-core processors and high end GPU’s.  I know Im highly looking forward to rocking games like Infinity Blade and Gears Of War on my Android device.  How about you?

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Samsung Galaxy S2 and Galaxy Tab 2 Press Info Leaked Early.

3:24 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments

Based on the press release photo and specs, it appears as though Samsung has plans to bring the thunder with their upcoming smartphone and tablet release.  The Samsung Galaxy S2 should be making its appearance at MWC on the 14th, but we’ve managed to search the depths of the Internet and scrape up some pre-released info on the device for you.  The specs and photo were leaked from a Korean blog called Paran, which revealed some pretty hefty particulars.  The Galaxy S2 will sport a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus multi-touch screen, a 1 GHz dual-core processor (Exynos?) and Bluetooth 3.0.  The device will also support WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n and come packed with HSPA+ compatibility.  Sounds like a powerhouse of a device to me.  Here’s to hoping Samsung stays on the ball and the device sees some “timely” updates.  Why are you laughing?  Although, it shouldn’t be that much of a deal breaker for you since the device will be released with Gingerbread (2.3).  
It’s also being touted that the device is super thin and light, coming in at 8.49 mm at its thickest point.  It’s weighing in at 116g (4.09 ounces).  If you thought the previous Galaxy S device was thin and light, you’re in for a bit of a surprise.  And of course, no Samsung device is complete without the latest version of TouchWiz.
And as we mentioned before, the blog also leaked info about the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Tab 2, which is purported to have a 10-inch screen and rocking none other than Honeycomb (3.0)  You can also expect to see a 1 GHz dual-core processor, an 8 MP camera and “full HD”, most likely referring to 720p recording (a bit of a translation mix up on the Korean blog).  The device will also come with rich media dual surround sound speakers. We’re sure to see more on the tablet at MWC, so don’t forget to check back with Talk Android.   Overall, these devices are packing some serious punch and will definitely be worthy contenders in the ever expanding Android market.  Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Update:
Our good friends over at Android Central managed to get their hands on this photo.
 

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Australian version of Nexus S will not have Super AMOLED display

3:21 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments

For those of you in Australia looking to pick up a Google Nexus S when it becomes available on Vodafone, there’s some bad news. The Nexus S to be distributed in Australia will not have a Super AMOLED display, instead sporting a Super LCD display.
Vodafone announced earlier this week that it’d be carrying the Nexus S in 24 countries, though it hasn’t been determined whether other countries will have to settle for the downgraded Nexus S screen. However, the Super AMOLED version of the phone appeared on a Vodafone Germany preview site. Perhaps the situation will vary from country to country.
Despite the screen issue, Australian users will still enjoy the following features of the Google Nexus S:
  • 4 inch touch screen
  • 5.0 megapixel with HD Video recording (720p)
  • Integrated Google services including:
  • Search™, Talk™, Maps™ Gmail™ and YouTube™2
  • Access to 100,000+ Android™ Market Apps
  • Latest Google updates using Google update service
  • Built-in GPS with Google Maps Navigation
  • Near Field Communication (NFC)
  • Wi-Fi, USB and Stereo Bluetooth connectivity
  • Front-facing video call camera
  • 16GB Internal Memory
  •  
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AT&T bring Gaming Platform to Android

3:19 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments

att android gaming
With AT&T’s commitment to bring more focus to its Android customers, and potential new customers, AT&T will develop a new gaming platform specifically for Android devices. They won’t be doing this alone, as they’ll be partnering with existing Android gaming platform OpenFeint to deliver the goods to AT&T’s 65 million registered users.
AT&T commented that they currently have a community of over 15,000 developers already contributing to the new Android gaming platform, however didn’t comment on when this will be available to AT&T’s Android community.
We’ll keep you all informed!

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YourVersion brings news app optimized for Android Tablets

3:00 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments

yourversion
YourVersion app users on Android smartphones can now have the same functionailty on your Android tablet devices as well, now that YourVersion has optimized their news reader app for tablet size screen resolution. YourVersion is totally free and brings breaking news, blogs and tweets right to your tablet or smartphone in a slick, easy to navigate interface.
The app makes it easy for you to integrate your social networking sites such as Twitter and facebook, while allowing you to easily share or blog interesting news articles to others. It can be seen as just another news reader, but they’ve paid specific attention to how the app displays on larger screens, making this a better user experience overall, rather than a regular reader app originally made for smaller screens, and stretched to fit a tablet size screen.
The app has a minimum resolution requirement of 1024×600 (same as Samsung Galaxy Tab). For tablet devices with smaller resolutions however, users are encouraged to still use the smartphone version of the app, which you can find here. Requires Android 2.1 and up.
Give it a try!
Scan the QR Code
yourversion tablet QR

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Preview of Mobile World Congress: Galaxy 2, 3D Phones

2:56 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments


We’ve been talking about Mobile World Congress for weeks now…pretty much since CES. It’s coming up this week, and IntoMobile has a great preview of the upcoming show. They seem to have a pretty good idea of who’s showing off what, and they’re breaking it down for us.

LG will be showing off the Optimus 3D – the first smartphone to have glasses-free 3D capability. It will be sporting a dual-core processor and a screen running somewhere in the 4-inch neighborhood. They’ve been teasing us with it for a while, and it’ll be good to finally see the thing in action.
Samsung will be introducing round 2 of their Galaxy lineup – both in phone and in tablet form. The second-generation Galaxy S phone is likely to show up, and is expecting to be sporting a 1.2 GHz (possibly dual-core) processor, 8 MP camera, and a 1.2 MP front-facing camera. The Galaxy Tab 2 should also make an appearance, and we’ll finally find out which CPU it’ll be sporting and what version of Android it’ll be running.
Sony’s big announcement is the Xperia Play — the “Playstation phone.” We’re pretty sure we know its basic specs. 1GHz CPU, 4-inch screen, running Android 2.3, with a slide-out gamepad. They’ll also be talking about their Playstation Suite, the game-purchasing platform that’ll enable you to get PSOne games on your device. A lot of gamers will be very interested in Sony’s presentations.
Nokia and Microsoft are expected to be giving some details on what they’ll be doing with their new partnership. While we obviously won’t be seeing any Android devices out of their show, the mobile community is still watching with anticipation, and the news coming from that could have a huge effect on the face of the mobile world.
HTC will be making announcements as well, but we don’t really know what they’re showing off yet. Find the full schedule for MWC below.
Feb. 13: Samsung MWC press conference 9 a.m. — Sony Ericsson press conference 9 a.m. — Nokia press event
Feb. 14: LG press conference 2 a.m. — Microsoft keynote with Steve Ballmer 7 a.m. — Samsung USA press conference 9 a.m.
Feb. 15: HTC press conference 12:30 a.m.
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Sonos Controller App Coming To An Android Device Near You, Soon.

2:54 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments

If you have a Sonos Wireless Music System in your home, then first off, I just want to say…darn I’m jealous.  Secondly, you’re in for some good news.  Sonos has not forgotten about you as they’ve announced that an Android app is in the works and should be arriving soon.  The app allows you to seamlessly control your audio system throughout your home.  You can control music flow in one or multiple rooms simultaneously.  Check out the video for the intro of the app and hit the source link for the sign up page, to be the first to know when it’s released.  And don’t forget to let us know what you think in the comments below.
YouTube Preview Image 
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Saturday, February 12, 2011

Angry Birds Developer And Finnish Neighbor To Nokia Says Nokia Is Beyond Saving

1:57 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments


We haven’t decided yet whether Stephen Elop is turning Nokia around or accelerating it’s tailspin however in case you missed the other 8,439,324 stories, it was announced this morning (well late last night) that Nokia was forming a partnership with Microsoft and WP7 would be the OS of choice for Nokia phones going forward.
In this announcement today before Nokia’s investors, Elop announced a corporate restructuring and 1000 people in their Symbian unit walked out of work at their Finnish Headquarters.
We were looking for the story to tell and dive into and we found it.
Earlier in the day, after the news broke, twitter user @janole tweeted
“Nokia can only be saved if @roviomobile announces Angry Birds for WP7 Today!”
@roviomobile tweeted back:
“afraid there’s only so much we can do… Nokia probably beyond saving at this point.”
@janole replied suggesting that Rovio should buy Nokia to which they replied
yes, we need more space and the Nokia House is very nice.”
Rovio Mobile’s Angry Birds is the biggest multi platform mobile game in the world. They recently released Angry Birds Seasons the Valentine’s Day edition and we are anxiously awaiting Angry Birds goes to Rio in conjunction with the 20th Century Fox animated film “Rio”.
Prior to Angry Birds, Rovio Mobile had produced and developed over 50 other titles, mostly for Nokia.
In a separate but we’re going to make it related announcement today Activision announced they are killing the Guitar Hero franchise.  Many speculate it’s because they couldn’t hold their horses between releases. An industry insider also told us today that part of the demise of Guitar Hero was that they got too focused on one artist and one niche.  By next month Rovio Mobile will have released 5 different versions of the game in under a year; Angry Birds Original, Seasons Halloween, Seasons Christmas, Seasons Valentines Day and Rio. We are hoping to hear they have new titles on the horizon at MWC next week in Barcelona however without something new in the pipeline when will you grow tired of the birds?
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Samsung’s Mobile Processors Gain Exynos Name, Dual-Core 4210 (Orion) to Be First

1:00 PM Simranpal SIngh No comments

This image has no alt text 

If you believe the rumors that the Samsung Galaxy S2 will feature the dual-core Orion processor, we are sad to say but it’s just not true. Well, not true at least in the sense of the name the processor will bear. The chip we expect to see in the Galaxy S2 will officially be known as the Exynos 4210, the first of a new lineup of chips that Samsung will apply the Exynos name to.
Production on the new chipset is said to begin next month, meaning we can all but expect the CPU to feature heavily in Sammy’s MWC announcements. Press release below.
Samsung Assigns New Nomenclature to Application Processor Family
SEOUL–(Korea Newswire) February 11, 2011 — Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced semiconductor solutions, today announced a new brand name for its application processor family. Exynos will be applied to Samsung’s application processors, which are designed to power mobile devices such as smartphonesand tablets.
“Application processors for the mobile market are one of the flagship products in our semiconductor business,” saidSeh-Woong Jeong, executive vice president of marketing, System LSI Division, Samsung Electronics. “We are excited to introduce the brand name of Exynos for Samsung’s application processorfamily. As consumers demand more from their mobile products, Samsung’s Exynos chips will be the power inside enabling the coolest HD multi-media features with even longer battery life.”
Exynos associates Samsung’s “smart and green” strategy adopted by its semiconductor devices and solutions developed specifically to support the stringent performance and power requirements of mobile devices. Smart refers to high-performance aspect and Green represents low power features of Samsung’s application processors. Exynos originates from the Greek words smart (exypnos) and green (prasinos).
The new naming system will be first applied to the dual core processor codenamed Orion, which was announced in September 2010. Carrying the name Exynos 4210, Samsung’s powerful 1GHz dual-core application processor is scheduled for production next month.








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