Jordan Kahn

AT&T announced today that it will begin selling the Samsung Galaxy S III mini, which was first released in November of last year, as a smaller entry level version of Samsung’s flagship at the time, the Galaxy S III. It might be a last generation device– Samsung unveiled the S4 mini at its event back in June— but that’s why AT&T will sell it for 99 cents on contract when it becomes available on September 27.

As a reminder, the S III mini includes a 4-inch Super AMOLED display, comes with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out of the box, and packs in a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and a 5 megapixel main camera. You’ll also of course get Samsung’s TouchWiz UI on top of with S Beam, S Voice, Group Play, and other Samsung goodies.

AT&T will kick off preorders for the Galaxy S III mini starting tomorrow.
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Update: Verizon explained in a statement that support for the LTE Nexus 7 is on the way:

The Google Nexus 7 is not yet a Verizon 4G LTE certified device, though it entered our process in August and we expect it will be certified shortly. Once the device is certified, we will work with Google to enable the device to be activated on our 4G LTE network.

Verizon Wireless’ certification process, which generally takes between four and six weeks, is one of the most rigorous testing protocols of any carrier, and is focused on guarding the safety and security of our network. Certification is done by third party labs approved by Verizon, and selected by the device manufacturer. Over the years, Verizon Wireless has certified hundreds of devices; information on the certification process is available to anyone at opennetwork.verizonwireless.com.

Verizon is committed to ensuring our customers have the best overall experience when any device becomes available on the nation’s most reliable network.

When Google first announced its new Nexus 7, the company said at the time that an 4G LTE capable version of the device would be available in the weeks to come. Up until now Google has had only a WiFi-only version of the tablet, but today it announced that the LTE model is finally available through Google Play in 9 countries.

Google announced that the LTE model is available in not only the US, but also in Australia, Canada, Germany, Spain, France, UK, Japan, and Korea. In most of the countries listed above the 32GB LTE Nexus 7 is sold unlocked (for $349 in the US), but it’s also available with an AT&T or T-Mobile SIM directly from Google Play for U.S. customers. AT&T made things official in a press release announcing availability of the Nexus 7 only through Google Play.

https://twitter.com/VZWSupport/statuses/379946773730443264

Interestingly, word has it that Verizon won’t be activating the new Nexus 7 on its network. While there doesn’t seem to be a clear reason why the device wouldn’t be compatible with Verizon’s network (Google even showed a Verizon logo on stage when announcing the device), using a Verizon SIM card that’s already been activated with another device will apparently work on the new Nexus 7. The problem, according to AndroidCommunity, is that the Nexus 7 won’t work on Verizon’s CDMA network and only LTE. That means for users without LTE coverage the tablet wouldn’t work at all, and that’s likely the reason Verizon is yet to officially support the device. The carrier confirmed in a statement saying the Nexus 7 “is not yet a device that is Verizon 4G LTE certified. We’ll let folks know when it’s certified.”

You can get the Nexus 7 now in all of the countries mentioned above as well as Italy, which finally for the first time gets access to purchase Google Play devices today.

Google announced today on its Google Commerce blog that a new version of Google Wallet is beginning to roll out to all Android devices in the U.S. running Android 2.3 and up. It also brings the app to users on Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile, although those carriers won’t be allowing NFC payments as they opt for competitive ISIS mobile payment platform.

The new app rolling out this week will allow users to send money to any US email address and also adds improved features for saving loyalty cards and redeeming offers. While Google is currently in the process of rolling out the ability to send money using Google Wallet through Gmail, the new Wallet app for Android will let users send money to any friend age 18 and up through any U.S. email address:

It’s free to send money directly from your bank account or Google Wallet Balance, and low fees apply when using your linked credit or debit card. And as an added bonus, once you send money with the Google Wallet app, you’ll also get early access to sending money in Gmail from your desktop while we continue to roll out the feature broadly to Gmail users.

The new app will also let all users (not just those with NFC enabled devices), scan barcodes of loyalty cards in order to earn points and use the app at checkout. Google notes that you’ll be able to “join new programs like Alaska Airlines, Belly, and Red Mango within the Google Wallet app.” Some other programs coming soon include: Avis Car Rental, BJ’s Restaurants, Cosi, Hard Rock International, InterContinental Hotels Group, Marriott International, Raley’s, and The Body Shop.

Google is also adding some new and improved features for Offers in the new Wallet app:
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Earlier this month images from FCC filings showed what appeared to be Google’s LG-made Nexus 5 following the device first leaking in Google’s promotional video for Android 4.4 KitKat. Today we’ve received the images above showing what looks to be the Nexus 5 in the wild, and it looks identical to pre-production units floating through the FCC and elsewhere. The tipster also sent along the videos below, which could give us a glimpse at Android 4.4 KitKat running on the Nexus 5, although it looks like the bootup from Google Play Edition phones.

The device in the images was apparently left charging unsupervised by a Google employee at a bar (yeah, lol) where an employee of the bar was able to snap the photos and short videos…
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Bump, the mobile app that lets users share photos, videos, contacts, files and more by physically bumping their devices together, today announced it is joining Google (via TechCrunch). There’s not many details about the acquisition in a short message posted on Bump’s website by its CEO and cofounder David Lieb, but it does confirm that “the Bump team is joining Google.”

Our mission at Bump has always been to build the simplest tools for sharing the information you care about with other people and devices.  We strive to create experiences that feel like magic, enabled behind the scene with innovations in math, data processing, and algorithms.  So we couldn’t be more thrilled to join Google, a company that shares our belief that the application of computing to difficult problems can fundamentally change the way that we interact with one another and the world.

Bump says it uses “math, data processing, and algorithms” to allow users to share data wirelessly through its mobile app, but didn’t share how Google might take advantage of the technology. Lieb confirmed that Bump, and the company’s photo sharing app Flock, “will continue to work as they always have for now; stay tuned for future updates.” 
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Receive texts on your wrist? Yes, please. @SamsungMobileUS #GalaxyGear pre-orders start tomorrow. http://t.co/fDUmhOIodf

— AT&T (@ATT) September 16, 2013

Update: Sprint announced today that the Galaxy Note 3 will become available on October 4 for $349.99 on the usual two-year agreement. It will also have the Galaxy Gear companion smartwatch for $299.99 in Jet Black, Oatmeal Beige and Wild Orange.

AT&T has announced today in a tweet that preorders for the new Galaxy Gear smartwatch, which will act as a companion to the new Galaxy Note 3, will go up for preorder starting Wednesday, September 18. The carrier previously announced that the Galaxy Note 3 would begin shipping from its website on October 1. Through AT&T, the Note 3 sells for $299 on the usual two-year agreement. Samsung originally announced that the device would launch on partners around the world starting September 25.

T-Mobile also made things official for the Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Gear today with a press release confirming that preorders, like AT&T, will also begin on Wednesday. On T-Mobile the device will sell for $199.99 down with 24 month payments of $21 with preorders expected to ship by October 2. 
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After accidentally leaking the device in its video for the upcoming Android 4.4 KitKat software release, today we get a better look at the upcoming Nexus 5 thanks to FCC documents (via Phonescoop).

It’s clear the device in these FCC images is the same as the one we spotted in the promotional video earlier this month, and we also get a clearer look at the much larger camera lens on the back of the device. It’s also more solid proof that the device will indeed be manufactured by LG– and likely based of its new LG G2– after rumors that Google’s Motorola could potentially produce the Nexus 5 started circling last month.

Last week FCC documents surfaced online that also pointed to an LG-made device, as well as a Snapdragon 800 processor, a 5-inch display, and LTE support for AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint. As with past Nexus launches, it will also be running the latest version of Android, which by the time the device launches will be Android 4.4. Kitkat.

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The Verge has a great behind-the-scenes look at Motorola’s Moto X factory in Texas that is currently pumping out around 100,000 units of the new flagship device per week. We reported this morning that Motorola is currently shipping a disappointing 100k units a week, so it’s not that surprising to learn that around 200,000 square feet of the factory is not being used.

To accomplish this, Motorola partnered with Flextronics to refab a factory in Texas formerly used by Nokia. In a mere six months, the factory was completely updated and transformed to Motorola’s specifications, which including the hiring of 2,500 workers to make it run. Motorola did not actually make a final call to do manufacturing in the US until late 2012, but the factory was operational by August 6th of this year. The factory currently puts out about 100,000 devices per week, but Motorola says that it’s possible to scale it to tens of millions of units. Given that more than half of the over 400,000 square foot factory floor sits unused right now, that’s not too hard to believe.

It also spoke with Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside about why bringing assembly to the US was crucial for the Moto X’s MotoMaker customizations features. 
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When LG announced its new G Pad 8.3 ahead of the IFA consumer electronics show this week, it didn’t seem to get as much attention as the company was perhaps hoping for by releasing the news before anyone had a chance to get a look in Berlin. The good news is that after playing with the device today, our first impression is that the new G Pad could be serious contender for the best Android tablet on the market. In fact, it might even give Apple a run for its money for those looking for an iPad mini Android alternative that doesn’t compromise on build quality.

The aluminum on the back gives the device an extremely high quality finish that puts it more in the iPad and HTC One build-quality category, and the 1920 x 1200,  273 ppi, Full HD WUXGA display might be the best in the mid sized tablet category. The device packs in 2GB of RAM, a 1.7GHz quad-core processor, and we didn’t have any performance issues in our hands-on with the tablet today. It comes in black and white (as pictured above), and also offers some of LG’s unique software features like QPair for connecting a smartphone to the tablet and receiving calls, messages, and more on both devices.

The real beauty of the design is that the 8.3-inch display doesn’t feel much bigger in your hand than a 7-inch tablet thanks to a nice thin bezel, and it is still easily pocketable wherever your 7-incher can fit. It’s hard to give a recommendation on the Android 4.2.2 tablet since we don’t know pricing yet, but if it’s price competitively with the Nexus 7, LG might have just made the #1 or #2 Android tablet for the year and heading into next. Hopefully we have good news to report when pricing gets announced at launch time in Q4.
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG_nkqHhCDA&feature=youtu.be]

With last night’s introduction of the new Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 edition, both devices got spec bumps, better displays, and a new leather-like textured back– but Samsung isn’t introducing any radical design changes. It’s not exactly surprising– it did the same with the Galaxy S4– and the upgraded specs will only help the company continue the success it’s had with the stylus focused devices. However, the real stand out features of the new Notes come in the way of S Pen features accessible through the new “Air Command” function. The feature pops up a radial menu from just about anywhere when hovering the S Pen and clicking its button, and the menu will let you access a few handy (gimmicky?) new features for multitasking and quickly saving content. Samsung is focusing on the new S Pen features in its ads for Note 3 and new Note 10.1, and we decided to go hands on in the video above to get some first impressions. We quite enjoyed using the new S Window feature to open apps in a sizeable window within another, but some shortcomings with the new multitasking features might make them more gimmicky than a faster alternative to other solutions with third-party apps. You can also quickly access Quick Action memos and Screen Write for annotating screenshots, nice additions to the radial menu but nothing that we couldn’t do with the S Pen previously. 
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUe6fl6d3sY&feature=youtu.be]

If you haven’t heard by now, Samsung just announced its Galaxy Gear smart watch at its Unpacked 2013 event in Berlin and we were able to get a little bit of hands-on time with the device after the show. We were quite impressed with the build quality of the watch, and we’re hoping Samsung is able to work out some minor kinks with certain touch screen gestures not always behaving as expected. For the most part Samsung has done a great job of simplifying the UI of apps its including on the device, but sometimes that simplicity leaves a little to be desired for those of us used to interacting with our smartphones on a daily basis. We weren’t able to try any of the fitness features of the device in our limited time with the Gear, but the majority of apps we did play with were simple and intuitive. S Voice wasn’t playing nice, but, again, we hope Samsung will put a little bit more polish on some of the included software before it gets in the hands of users.

All in all, it beat out most the Bluetooth smart watches we’ve tried simply based on the hardware and excellent implementation of apps with extremely simplified UIs. It does, however, have the same problems a lot of other bluetooth smart watches have: it’s much bigger than your standard, traditional wrist watch, and that’s a big hurdle for people that might not even wear a regular watch day-to-day in the first place. The Galaxy Gear will launch for $299 later this month and we plan on bringing you a full review soon. Full specs and details here.

We’re in our seats live at Samsung’s Unpacked 2013 press conference taking place in Berlin and things are about to kick off. We already know that the company will be unveiling its new Galaxy Gear smartwatch, but up until now details on the device haven’t been confirmed. Leaked rumors point to varying specs for the prototypes floating around, so we’re excited to see exactly what Samsung has packed into the smartwatch. That, and expect some other new Galaxy announcements. We’ll have the latest in our live blog below and full coverage on 9to5Google:
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We’re live at Sony’s 2013 IFA press conference where the company is expected to announced new Xperia devices alongside the much rumored attachable camera lens product for smartphones that just landed on Amazon for $500. We’ll be bringing you the live blow by blow when the event kicks off in the coming minutes.

– Sony execs are talking innovation and its success in the European market with televisions and its digital camera line.

-Sony announced the next generation Cybershot RX1R

– Sony execs just briefly mentioned a new music video recorder and a new action cam- no word on Android yet.

– New 4K handycam coming later this month along with two new models of 4K tvs for the European market– still no Android.

-Sony just officially announced the Xperia Z1 (aka the “Honami” that has leaked out a lot in recent weeks.

– Exmor RS G lens and Bionz for Mobile in Xperia Z1.

– A new ‘Social Live’ feature for Xperia Z1 will let users capture video and stream it to social networks live as they are filming.

– Sony is detailing Timeshift burst, a feature that allows users to snap and save multiple photos at once.

-AR effect lets users capture images with augmented reality effects on the new Xperia. It includes an open SDK for app developers.

– The Xperia Z1 will come in black, white, and blue as pictured above

-Qualcomm snapdragon process (“and all the specs you’d expect”, according to Sony)

-will come with 100 euro worth of content from Music Unlimited and Sony’s movie services.

-Sony says its previously announced SmartWatch 2 will launch later this month.

-CyberShot lens officially announced. Two models (QX10 and QX100) will be available for the Xperia Z1 and Xperia Z.

-On top of Xperia devices, Sony says the CyberShot lens will work with “almost any smartphone” with an attachment.

-Xperia Z1 launches later this month.