Samsung US Confirms Unpacked Cancellation

Anyone still not believing the Unpacked event is cancelled? A few other blogs out there have been reluctant to report the news but we’ve been able to confirm with Samsung US that this is, indeed, true. Here is their official statement:

Samsung and Google have decided to postpone the Samsung Mobile Unpacked event during the CTIA in San Diego, previously scheduled for Oct. 11.  Under the current circumstances, both parties have agreed that this is not the appropriate time for the announcement of a new product.  We would ask for the understanding of our clients and media for any inconvenience caused. We will announce a new date and venue in due course.
Thank you,
Samsung Mobile PR

Read more »

Minecraft Pocket Edition coming to the Android Market today

Minecraft addicts, prepare to have your productivity assassinated in more places than just your home. The super-popular independent game is releasing in the Android Market later today, according to a developer’s Twitter posting. Android-using Minecraft fans have been waiting months for the announcement.

Minecraft Pocket Edition has been available for some time on the Sony Ericsson XPERIA Play, but it was an exclusive release for that device. In order to ensure compatibility on a wide range of Android phones, developer Mojang needed more time and resources devoted to the project. The PC version of Minecraft is a smash hit, combining addictive open-world gameplay with simple visuals that allow it to be played on even the most anemic of graphics cards. The game has sold an incredible three million copies… and it’s not even out of beta yet.
The Android version of Minecraft was previously scheduled for release on September 29th, but the developers found some critical last-minute errors in the code and had to postpone it on the scheduled day of release. Let’s hope that the early news isn’t a red herring – Android fans could hardly take two enormous delays on the same day. Keep an eye on the Android Market throughout the day to see if Minecraft Pocket Edition pops up. The XPERIA version is $6.99 USD, and the mass-market edition is likely to cost the same. Mojang will also release a demo version.

Read more »

Sprint details 4G LTE network roll-out plans, launch in mid-2012

During Sprint's Network Vision announcement this morning, the carrier detailed its plans to transition from its 4G WiMAX network over to a 4G LTE network. Sprint will be aggressively deploying LTE over a variety of spectrum holdings that it has access to.
The first thing that Sprint plans to do is to shut down its iDEN network, used for its push-to-talk services for the Nextel brand. The iDEN network runs on 800MHz spectrum, and Sprint intends to migrate users from iDEN to its new CDMA-based push-to-talk services by 2013.
Before the iDEN network is shut down, though, Sprint will deploy 4G LTE services on its 1900MHz spectrum. The carrier is aggressively deploying this, with a launch planned for mid-2012. The LTE rollout is expected to be largely complete by 2013. This isn't Sprint's only LTE plan, as it has a partnership with LightSquared to use the 1600MHz band for LTE as well, provided LightSquared's network is approved by the FCC. Sprint also has access to Clearwire's 2,500MHz spectrum, which it currently uses for WiMAX service. The carrier said that it could eventually utilize that for LTE capacity in the future.
Once the iDEN network has been decommissioned, the 800MHz spectrum will be freed up for 3G CDMA voice service and 4G LTE data service. Sprint is confident that it has enough spectrum holdings to maintain capacity through 2015. It claims to be prepared for the onslaught of new devices, including the iPhone, and has been preparing its network capacity for months.
Sprint's LTE plans include four different bands of spectrum: 1,900MHz, 1,600MHz, 800MHz, and possibly 2,500MHz. All of these are different from the 700MHz spectrum that AT&T and Verizon Wireless already use for LTE, which makes device interoperability between the networks nearly impossible.
Sprint expects to cover 120 million residents with LTE in 2012, with 250 million covered by the end of 2013. It currently covers 123 million with WiMAX, and the future LTE network will overlap with that.

Read more »

Sprint promises to sell WiMAX devices through 2012, despite LTE roll-out

Sprint has confirmed that it will continue to offer 4G WiMAX devices through 2012, despite its concurrent roll-out of its new LTE network.
Sprint's WiMAX devices will not be compatible with its new LTE network, but the carrier is committed to supporting WiMAX devices for the near future. LTE devices are expected to be available for the network's launch in mid-2012.
Sprint did not clarify if it would continue to offer WiMAX devices after 2012.

Read more »

Free Android app of the day: Paper Camera

Today’s free premium app of the day at the Amazon Appstore is Paper Camera. If you haven’t used this app yet, we suggest that you give it a try especially that that it is offered for free, today only. Otherwise, it will set you back $1.99 if you grab it from the Android Market.
Paper Camera uses a camera filter to change the appearance of your pictures making them look like they were drawn by a sketch artist on a wrinkled piece of paper. Here are some of the filters used: Pastel Perfect, Comic Boom, Sketch Up, Acquarello, Old Printer, Neon Cola, Con Tours, Bleaching, and Gotham Noir.
Amazon listed these features for Paper Camera:

• Use unique camera filters that transform your reality into more than just a photo
• Look through your camera’s video feed and view effects in real-time
• Turn your reality into a sketch, comic book, cartoon, and more
• Take a photo and it’s automatically saved to your device’s gallery
• Share your creative creations through the lens of a paper camera

If you want to see what Paper Camera is all about, we included a promo video of it below. Also included, are the link and QR code to the Amazon Appstore if you’d like to access it directly from your phone or tablet.





Amazon AppStore Link

Read more »

HP TouchPad Go clears the FCC, HP gearing for launch?

Now we have some potentially good news for folks who didn’t manage to pick up the HP ToucPad after HP decided to slash its price to $99 – there is a chance that you might be able to pick up the TouchPad’s smaller brother – the TouchPad Go. According to reports online, it appears that the 7″ webOS tablet has paid a visit to the office of the FCC and gotten the stamp of approval. Now this isn’t the first time that the TouchPad Go has visited the FCC, so it shows that HP has actually made some changes to the device – but why would you make change to a tablet after you announce its cancellation? Unless you’ve got plans to put it up for sale.
Now of course, that’s just being a bit optimistic about the whole situation. After all, it could just be a case of HP forgetting to inform the FCC that the tablet was discontinued, or it could be that HP didn’t care at all. With no official announcement from the company, it’s hard to say what’s going to happen – but until then, don’t hold your breath. It’s okay to keep those fingers crossed though; HP is capable of surprises after all.

Read more »

HTC’s customer service criticised on BBC’s Watchdog

HTC’s customer service division has been given a right kicking by BBC consumer show Watchdog, which featured numerous tales about tech issues, repairs, and the poor service some people have received from the company’s repair department.
Watchdog says it’s received “over 100″ complaints from HTC users this year, regarding HTC’s failing repairs system, covering lost phones, failed fixes, accidental damage and more.

See a lot of sad people being sad about their phones over on the BBC Watchdog site, where you can view the entire report. One man describes the HTC Sensation as being “A poor man’s iPhone” :(

Read more »

More pictures of Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, hit the net

Some screen shots of Google’s upcoming Android OS update dubbed Ice Cream Sandwich has hit the web, courtesy of Romanian site mobilissimo. A video of the OS in action running on the Galaxy Nexus also made its way to the net.
Ice Cream Sandwich is Google’s OS that is supposed to bridge Android 2.3 Gingerbread (which is made for phones) with Android 3.0 Honeycomb (Which is made for tablets) into one OS that can be used on both phones and tablets.
Here is what was clearly noticeable from the screenshots.

• It looks like Android 4.0 will be the official name
• The device used to take the screenshot is in dire need of a SIM card. There’s no telling if it’s begging for a GSM card or a Verizon Wireless LTE SIM card
• The back, home, and applications buttons are clearly part of the OS now; no more capacitive touch buttons
• A window with nothing but Google applications is visible with the title Google below
• Placing icons on home screens is now done just like in Honeycomb, with a full preview of the widget
• The app drawer now has a tab for widgets, which shows all the available widgets and how they look
• Currently open applications are displayed just like Honeycomb, with a quick preview of the application in its last state

Samsung and Google have scheduled a press event for Tuesday, October 11 for the announcement of both Ice Cream Sandwich and the next Nexus device.
Enjoy the pictures and video below.

   

    

Read more »

Samsung Google Galaxy Nexus launch gets pushed

Things in the tech world can change very quickly. Only a short while ago I was talking about the Samsung Nexus Prime video surfacing and how the phone would be launching next week. Just now Samsung and Google have announced that they have pulled the CTIA Fall product launch that was widely expected to be the official coming out for the Galaxy Nexus Prime.

The official reason for the cancellation is vague. Samsung and Google stated, “Samsung and Google decide to postpone the new product announcement at CTIA Fall. We agree that it is just not the right time to announce a new product. New date and venue will be shortly announced.” With all that has gone on in the tech world this week perhaps the death of Steve Jobs has something to do with the cancellation of the launch.
It would be a bit difficult to tout how a new smartphone would be destroying the iPhone 4S is light of the very sad death of Steve Jobs. That is all speculation though; it could just as easily be a sign that the Nexus is not ready for launch. Stay tuned for more updates once the new date is offered.
[via SlashGear]

Read more »