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Sketchy rumor suggests Huawei could manufacture a new Nexus 7 in 2016

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The last two Nexus 7 tablets were manufactured by ASUS, but if a new sketchy rumor (originating from none other than Chinese social network Weibo) is to be believed, Huawei — maker of the well-received Nexus 6P — could be next in line. Rumors from random users on Weibo aren’t usually the most dependable source of information, but this particular user seems to have experience in IC design and has more than 34,000 followers (and, to boot, seems to have at least some internal knowledge of Huawei, Oppo, and other Chinese companies)…


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Opinion: Now is the perfect time for another Samsung Galaxy Nexus

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This year, Google is rumored to be partnering with a Chinese manufacturer for the first time on its Nexus lineup. The Huawei Nexus isn’t just an experiment, or giving a new OEM a chance at making a device. If rumors are correct, the partnership was chosen because of Huawei’s influence in China. Google’s Play Services are limited in China, in that they’re basically non-existent. But still, as a consumer, I can’t help but feel this year should have been Samsung’s year, and next year definitely should be…


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Best Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ cases already available to order

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After first unveiling its new phablets five days ago, Samsung will start selling the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ smartphones this week. Some carriers will be selling it already, while others are waiting for the official August 21st release date. Chances are, you don’t want to take any risks with damaging your precious and ludicrously expensive smartphone. It may fare better than the S5 in drop tests, but it’s probably best for you not to test that, on purpose or by accident. With that in mind, check out some of the cases already announced by some of the best accessory makers around.


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Samsung’s first Galaxy Note 5 commercial airs: It’s all about that S-Pen

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Samsung pushed its first Galaxy Note 5 TV commercial to YouTube today, and no surprise, it’s all about what you can do with that S-Pen. Set to a fast-paced percussion soundtrack, with speedy cuts in the edit, it has been designed to make you excited at all you can do with the stylus as well as convey a sense of productivity and speed.


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Samsung Galaxy S6+ August 21 preorder date ‘accidentally’ leaked

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Samsung is set to announce the brand new Galaxy Note 5 alongside the Galaxy S6 Edge+ at an Unpacked event on Thursday, this week. Although the company hasn’t officially shed any light on what it intends to reveal, we’re pretty certain by now that the aforementioned phones will be shown off. With the number of leaks, including the most recent retail photos, it’s hard not to be confident of that fact. What we weren’t entirely sure of was the exact retail launch date.

Thanks to some sharp eyes from Dutch Samsung blog, Galaxy Club, we can see that the French Samsung site accidentally revealed the pre-order time frame, before promptly removing the information. Roughly translated, Samsung’s site says the phone will be available to pre-order between August 21st and September 3rd, perhaps suggesting a September 4 retail launch. What’s more, there’s a special where customers get a free pair of Level On headphones and three months of Google Play music with the Galaxy S6 Edge+.

While this leak seemingly confirms the pre-order date for French customers, it doesn’t reveal anything pertaining to its global launch schedule. We’re yet to discover if the US, UK and other nations will all receive their devices on the same date. Although we’d hope Samsung would synchronize the launch multi-nationally, we can never be sure with the giant Korean tech giant. It has prioritized Europe often in the past. Thankfully, we only have two days left to wait before Samsung reveals all.

Samsung’s Note 5 and S6 Edge+ are expected to share similar specifications, including a 5.7-inch QuadHD AMOLED display, an octa-core Exynos processor and 4GB RAM alongside a 16MP main camera and wireless charging. The one feature that should set the Note 5 apart from its sibling is the redesigned S-Pen, which will again act as the unique selling point for Samsung’s flagship phablet.

 

Galaxy Note 5 S-Pen leaks, it’s all shiny [Gallery]

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While there are tons of phablets on the market now, Samsung still manages to remain unique by equipping its Note series handsets with the versatile S-Pen. In my experience, it’s been great for making quick notes or grabbing quick screenshots to edit and share. It goes without saying then, that the Galaxy Note 5 will also ship with the advanced stylus. Judging from these most recent leaks, it’s going to be much shinier than previous versions and could have a press-able, or clickable end at the top.

Take a look at the pictures below. They were originally shared on Chinese social media site, Weibo and picked up by Steve Hemmerstoffer at NWE. If you look closely at the two images showing the top end of the S-Pen, you’ll clearly see that the gap between the end and the main shaft of the stylus is bigger in one than the other.

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If I had to guess as to why it was designed this way, I’d suggest that it’s almost certainly to help release the S-Pen from its silo. The way the phone has been designed (based on leaks) suggests that the stylus sits flush with the metal chassis of the smartphone. Case leaks have suggested that there’s not going to be any special room left for you to pry the stylus out with your fingernail. So, perhaps the end of the pen — when pressed — clicks and extends, so that you can easily remove the S-Pen from the body of the phone.

Other possibilities are easily eliminated. It’s clearly not replacing the Air Command button, since that’s still built in to the shaft of the pen. And it doesn’t extend the tip of the S-Pen either, since that’s ever-present, and visible in the photos, regardless of whether or not the top end is extended.

Rumors so far have indicated we’ll see this new Galaxy Note 5 launch alongside a Galaxy S6 Edge+ at the end of August. Both devices will essentially look like the S6 and S6 Edge, except much larger and with the inclusion of this redesigned stylus.

Report: Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+ due to be announced on August 12, released August 21

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By now we’ve heard multiple rumors and reports on Samsung’s next generation phablet. In today’s latest report from SamMobile, the publication claims that it knows when the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+ will be unveiled and released to the public. Citing its “insiders”, the report states that the Galaxy Note 5 will be announced on August 12th and be available to buy shortly afterwards on August 21th.


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WSJ: Samsung bringing Galaxy Note 5 launch forward to August, ahead of Apple

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The existing Galaxy Note 4

Samsung is planning to bring forward the launch of the Galaxy Note 5 from September to August, according to the WSJ. It’s believed the change in schedule is designed to get the device on sale ahead of Apple’s anticipated September launch of the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, which is likely to dominate tech media coverage that month.

Samsung has always previously launched its Note models on the eve of the IFA conference, which takes place in Berlin in September. The WSJ cites only a single source for the claim, but it’s not the first time we’ve heard suggestions that the company may bring forward the launch this year … 
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Leaked dimensions & battery capacity match earlier rumors of Samsung Galaxy S6/edge Plus

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Rumors that Samsung plans to launch a larger-screened version of the the Galaxy S6 edge kicked off at the beginning of the month, with the first alleged image appearing a day later. A later claimed image seemed to suggest a display size of around 5.5-inches, and dimensions and battery capacity reported today by SamMobile are in line with this kind of screen size.

It is around 151 mm tall and around 73 mm wide, which makes it 9 mm taller and 3 mm wider than the Galaxy S6 edge […] According to the insider information that we’ve received, the device will house a 3,000 mAh battery.

The phablet, which may be called the Samsung Galaxy S6 Plus or Samsung Galaxy S6 edge Plus, is said to go by the internal codename of Project Zero 2. Earlier rumors had suggested the device would have a hexa-core Snapdragon 808 processor, 32GB storage, 16MP rear camera and 5MP front camera.

While the rumored device is gaining in credibility, there’s no word yet on when it may launch.

Rumored Galaxy S6 Edge Plus will reportedly have a 5.7-inch dual-curved display

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We’ve been following rumors claiming that Samsung is planning on launching a phablet-sized Galaxy S6 Edge—starting with a report from Italian blog HDBlog and then images leaked by YouTuber MKBHD—and today the story continues with new information from SamMobile.

The Samsung-focused blog is reporting on new information from “insiders” that the Galaxy S6 Edge Plus will sport a 5.7-inch display, not unlike the Note 4, and run Android 5.1.1 out of the box. Initial rumors pointed to a 5.5-inch display, but that information has seemingly since changed.
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Leaked images claim to show LG’s upcoming G4 Note phablet

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A new set of photos published on XDA Developers claim to show LG’s upcoming G4 Note flagship smartphone. The images show a device with design similar to that of the G Flex 2, which was unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this year, but with a stylus.

It’s unclear if the device shown in these leaked images has an all metal body like reports have claimed the LG flagship will offer. One notable quality of the design, however, is that a stylus for the device appears to be located at the top left of the phone. This lends credit to the possibility that these images are of the G4 Note, not the standard G4. The G4 Note is said to be a higher-end device than the G4, similar to what Samsung offers with its Galaxy Note phablet line-up. Some, however, have suggested that what appears to be the stylus is actually just an antenna.


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Samsung Galaxy Note 4 now supports Chromecast mirroring

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We like Samsung’s Galaxy Note 4 very much indeed, but it has had one flaw: it didn’t support screen mirroring to ChromecastAndroid Police noticed that this has now been fixed.

Since TouchWiz doesn’t support the transient tile to initiate a screen cast, you’ll have to fire it up manually through the Chromecast app. To get things started, just pull out the navigation drawer, tap on Cast screen, and hit the Cast Screen button. If the button is missing and there’s a warning about there being no compatible devices, you can probably get everything on the right track by restarting your phone.

Sony’s Xperia Z3v, Z2 and Z2 Tablet were also added to the list of supported devices a couple of weeks ago.

Google recently revealed that Chromecast users have used the device a total of 650 million times, with over 10,000 apps in the pipeline. Showtime Anytime and Starz Play were the most recent additions to the platform, just a few days ago.

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Samsung’s 7-inch phablet-defining ‘Galaxy W’ is official in Korea

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It may not be the Samsung Galaxy Mega 2 that has been rumored widely, but a new smartphone/tablet dubbed the Galaxy W has now been made official in Korea (via Engadget). Clocking in at 7 inches, its screen size isn’t far off from other Samsung phablets — like the Galaxy Mega 6.3 — and ultimately, holding it up to your face will feel dorky as ever. But this phone in particular hopes to be the best tablet-smartphone blend yet, promising to be more comfortable than other 7-inchers in the market.

We reported on a 7-inch mystery device that passed through the FCC late last week, and it’s clear that this may very well be that device when comparing specs. Both that FCC filing as well as this press release describe the phone as having a 7-inch display (sadly at just 720p), a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1.5GB of RAM, and a camera duo made up of a 2-megapixel front-facing lens and an 8-megapixel primary lens.

The device is going to ship with almost-year-old Android 4.3, and will have an off-contract price tag of approximately 499,400 won — or $489.

Google’s modular Ara phone will be held together with electropermanent magnets

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Ahead of the first Ara Development Conference on 15 & 16 April, Google has released a teaser video showing a few glimpses into the project to create a phone with swappable modules, allowing customers to configure a phone to order and update individual components at a later date … 
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LG announces the GX, an Optimus G Pro variant with G2’s ‘knock on’ feature

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Just when you thought there wasn’t room for yet another variation of an existing model, LG has announced the LG GX, a 5,5-inch phablet which is essentially an LG Optimus G Pro in a different case, a few user-interface tweaks and the ‘knock on’ feature from the G2 (where the device switches on when you tap twice on the screen).

The specs are identical to the Optimus: 5.5-inch 1080p IPS display, quad-core Snapdragon 600 CPU, 13MP camera, 32GB storage and a 3,140mAh battery.

It’s only available in Korea at launch.

Via Engadget

Samsung offers $50 sweetener to U.S. Galaxy Note 3 buyers

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Android Police reports that Samsung is offering a $50 Google Play Store credit to owners of its Galaxy Note 3 phablet.

The good news is that, unlike most promotions, this one appears to apply to existing owners – a welcome unexpected bonus. The bad news is that it’s U.S. only. Full details of how to get your credit below the fold … 
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Best Buy page suggests HTC One Max arriving on Sprint on Friday

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Although no official launch date has been given for HTC’s new phablet, a Best Buy webpage suggests the HTC One Max will be available on Friday. It is priced at $249 with a two-year contract, and is available now for pre-order.

The device was officially announced a month ago, though we had a pretty good idea what to expect as long ago as July … 
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Images of HTC One Max leak, HTC teases “big things ahead”

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We’ve heard rumors of a larger HTC One variant for a long time now, but thanks to ePrice we now have our first clear images of the device. The pictures don’t show all that much, though. Essentially, the One Max is a larger version of the One with the same design and build quality. The screen will supposedly be a whopping 5.9-inches and come in with a 1080p resolution. The specs of the One Max will be much improved, however, with the device being powered by a 2.3GHz Snapdragon 800 processor and 3,300mAh battery. It’s also worth pointing out that the bezel is nearly nonexistent, which means that while the screen is large, the overall form factor might be a tad more reasonable.

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Hot on the heels of Samsung sending out its Unpacked 2013 event for the Galaxy Note III, HTC also released a teaser video for an upcoming ad campaign. The company says that there are “big things ahead”, which given recent events, seems like a tease for the One Max. The video clip also shows a new “Happy Telephone Company” tagline for the company. HTC recently ditched its “Quietly Brilliant” branding that it used for so long.

The HTC One Max is definitely pushing the boarders of being too big, but hopefully the bezels are small enough to truly make a difference.
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ASUS announces a tablet, a phablet and … something very odd

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ASUS announced a bunch of new products at Computex (via Engadget), with the relevant ones for us being a tablet, a phablet and … well, this.

The Transformer Book Trio is a weird hybrid laptop and tablet. Nothing especially odd there, you may think: it’s just an Android tablet with a detachable keyboard. Except in this case there’s a Windows 8 notebook housed in that keyboard, enabling the device to run both systems. Why Trio rather than Duo? It also comes with a dock housing a 750Gb hard drive and connectivity for an external monitor, which ASUS reckons makes it qualify as a desktop PC too … 
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