Android

We’ve heard about it, now we’re seeing it. Pictured above are a set of alleged press renders for Samsung’s unannounced Galaxy Tab S 8.4 tablet. Obtained by @evleaks, this new slab kind of resembles a larger Galaxy S5, but is rumored to be a full-blown tablet. Samsung already has a giant tablet-like device that places phone calls.

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Asus today announced a number of new Android tablets for Computex 2014 including a new lineup for the MeMO Pad Series, a next-generation Fonepad, and a hybrid tablet/laptop/smartphone Transformer Book that runs both Windows and Android. Head below for all the details. 
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About a year later than first expected, Samsung has finally announced its first smartphone running Tizen instead of Android, the Samsung Z.

While this particular handset is only launching in Russia initially (sometime in Q3), it’s notable in a couple of ways. First, the spec – while not cutting edge – is pretty decent. Powered by a 2.3GHz quad-core processor and 2GB RAM, it has a 4.8-inch HD Super AMOLED display (though only in 1280×720 resolution) and the fingerprint sensor that has so far been exclusive to the S5. It’s not the low-end spec many had expected from Tizen … 
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Earlier this year, a report emerged claiming that Google was looking to further expand the capabilities of its “Ok, Google” functionality. Android Police has now published yet another report on this topic, detailing more features that Google will soon incorporate into Google Now. The earlier report claimed that Google was looking to add the ability to say “Ok, Google” anywhere within Android, no matter what app you were in at the time. Now, Android Police, is reporting that soon, you will be able to say “Ok, Google” and activate Google Now even when the device is turned off, with some caveats.

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Back in April, word got out that HP was planning to announce a touchscreen laptop running Android, and today, the company finally made the device official. In a press release, HP officially announced its 14-inch touchscreen SlateBook running Android. The laptop is powered by an Nvidia Tegra 4 processor and 2GB of RAM. It will come in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB storage variants, which is relatively small for a laptop, and have a microSD card.

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Samsung’s forthcoming Galaxy Tab S 10.5 has already been spotted by a blurry cam under dim lighting, but today we take a look at some pretty press images of the South Korean manufacturer’s new slab. Outed by @evleaks, these clean-cut renders give a better idea of what we might see on June 12th in New York. Since the Galaxy Tab S 10.5’s press shots line up with previously leaks, there’s a slightly better chance of the slate’s rumored specs being the real thing.

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LG recently revealed its new top-shelf smartphone to the world and while the company talked up its latest handset’s bells and whistles, we’ve yet to see what really makes the G3 tick. Enter the folks at uBreakiFix, who’ve managed to get their hands on the device and tear it apart. Aside from completely revealing the phone’s hardware, this exploratory surgery helps determine the G3’s repairability.

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Google is about to launch a new Android TV platform at its upcoming Google I/O conference in June, according to a new report from GigaOM. The report claims the new platform will be a revamped vision of what Google already has with its Google TV platform and will focus mainly on online content and Android gaming rather than integrating with existing pay TV services:

Android TV won’t be another device, but rather a platform that manufacturers of TVs and set-top boxes can use to bring streaming services to the television. In that way, it is similar to Google TV, the platform the company unveiled at its 2010 Google I/O conference. But while Google TV was focused on marrying existing pay TV services with apps, Android TV will at least initially be all about online media services and Android-based video games.

Google has apparently been making deals with partners in the lead up to launching the new platform, some of which are said to include Netflix and Hulu Plus as well as hardware partners that will build and sell the Android TV devices. The report also shared some details on the Android TV UI:
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Motorola Mobility’s journey to becoming a Lenovo-owned company has been filled with changes, but it looks like some of Google’s influence may endure this transition. Pictured above is a purported shot of the long rumored Moto X+1. While the photo’s appearance is quite sketchy, it was posted on the Google+ page of Antony Cheng, a former Motorola product specialist, based out of Hong Kong.

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Google originally launched App Indexing for Android users back in December before rolling it out globally in English for a number of apps back in April. As pictured above, the feature allows content from Android apps to show up in search results with a button for users to quickly launch the app. Today the company announced it’s expanding the feature once again and launching it for apps in several languages other than English. It’s also added some other English results in the U.S. including the Walmart, Tapatalk, and Fancy apps. 
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Motorola Mobility, still owned by Google until the sale to Lenovo completes, announced today that it’s closing the Texas-based manufacturing plant that it opened in May of last year to build its Moto X smartphone. The plant, which employees approximately 700 employees, is said to be closing its doors by the end of the year, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal:
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Samsung is dumping Android for Tizen. Well not completely, but the company is moving its Galaxy Gear smartwatch to its in-house operating system. An update for the first Galaxy Gear is now available through Samsung’s Kies software and in addition to a platform jump the download brings a trove of new features to this smart timepiece.

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There have been so many rumors surrounding the launch of a premium HTC One M8 that it’s almost hard to keep track of them all. Initially labeled as the HTC One M8 Prime, this device was said to feature a QHD display with specifications that would outweigh HTC’s recent One M8 release.

Tonight, renowned leaker Evleaks claimed that the Prime has been officially canned by HTC and we won’t be seeing a public launch any time soon. In a way this report is accurate. The “One M8 Prime” is not and never has been the official name of the device in question. According to our sources, however, the actual phone referred to by that title is still in development…

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The Samsung Galaxy S5 has been around for a bit more than a month now, but the much-expected ‘Active’ version of the phone was only just this morning released to the public—and, for better or for worse, it’s available exclusively at AT&T’s website and brick-and-mortar stores.
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The HTC One mini 2 is rumored to hit the US as the HTC One Remix and although we’ve officially seen the former, we’ve yet to see it materialize with any carrier branding. Today, however, we’re getting a closer look at what might be heading to Verizon thanks to the often reliable @evleaks. If in fact the Taiwanese electronics manufacturer decides to bring its petite smartphone to the US, it’ll most likely be coated with Big Red’s emblem.

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