Phones

We all know Google Talk aka GTalk and GChat oh so well, and this is a highly popular instant messaging platform that we even use on a daily basis to keep in contact with business friends. Things have now changed and now Google Hangouts (replaces Talk) app is now available, but how will the fair with the likes of the new BBM app coming to Android and iOS. Google have now decided to revamp what was already good and reinvented Google Talk as Google Plus Hangouts, in a nutshell this basically combines the goodness of two popular platforms, the combination of Google Plus Messenger and Google Plus video Hangouts, but it does take away a few features of Google Talk. The new Google Hangouts app for Android and iOS as well as a Chrome-based app for desktops is now available, Google Talk as we know was pre-installed on Android Devices, we in fact installed IM+ Pro on our iPhone 5 and this works very well. Google Talk was not available as an app in Google Play, but now the Google Hangouts app is available to download and install. The new Google Hangouts app features group conversations, one-on-one chat, video calls for free, emoji and a new lease of life with photos. The good thing about the app is you can see when the other person is typing and if they have read your message. Google Hangouts does not support “invisible” status, the new app is all well and good but how will this compare with the new BBM app soon to be released on Android and iOS? BBM chat will release first on Android and iOS platforms, soon after will come BBM Channels, BBM Video and BBM Voice, we know BlackBerry is losing ground but BlackBerry Messenger is highly popular and will be most welcome on other platforms. If you wish to try out the Google Hangouts app please visit Google Play or the App Store. Would you rather use BBM or Google Hangouts app on Android or iOS?

There will be many of us that don’t need or want to pay out a lot of money and own the latest and greatest smartphone device, but luckily there are still plenty of worthy options available that are priced competitively. Leading UK carrier Vodafone is now offering the Smart 3 that offers customers Android Jelly Bean on a budget via a value for money smartphone. This new version of the popular budget smartphone range from the company replaces the Ice Cream Sandwich running Smart 2, and is available to Pay monthly and Pay as you go customers. The handset features a great looking 4-inch WVGA Capacitive touchscreen display with a resolution of 480 x 800 that is powered by a single core processor clocked at 1GHz. It doesn’t stop there as the Vodafone Smart 3 features a 5-megapixel rear facing camera with auto focus and LED flash, and what will appeal to many would be consumers is the fact the device will come running the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system. There is 512MB of RAM with 4GB of internal storage that can be expanded by another 32GB thanks to the microSD card support, and the camera is even capable of 720p video capture. This impressive device measures in at 123.2mm x 64.4mm x 10.9mm weighing only 136 grams, and comes in black or white colour options. Now for that all important pricing as the Smart 3 will only set Pay as you go customers back £95, or for pay monthly users the device is being offered for free on two year contracts as low as £13 per month. So if you are after a new Android smartphone that costs less the Vodafone Smart 3 is well worth a look. Head over to the official Vodafone website for more information or to pick up the Smart 3.

Need to get your zombie fix while The Walking Dead is on break? Check out The Becoming series by CrackBerry member Jessica Meigs! Back in 2010, CrackBerry member Jessica Meigs wrote a zombie book called The Becoming: Outbreak, and she did it all on her BlackBerry. Over the course of two years, using a variety of BlackBerry smartphones (BlackBerry Bold 9000, the BlackBerry Curve 8900, the BlackBerry Bold 9700, and the BlackBerry Torch 9800), Jessica penned her first novel, which quickly grew into a series of novels. Read More »

ZTE Telecom India, owned by of China’s ZTE Corp has announced that it would enter the Indian market with its range of smartphones and tablets later this year. The company would launch 5 smartphones ranging from Rs 5,799 to Rs 14,999 These smartphones would be available in all the major by the end of October, said the company. The company also plans to launch their tablets followed by it. They have partnered with  Pune-based Calyx Telecommunications to sell the devices. Gaurav Somani, Executive Director, Calyx Telecommunications said they are aiming at five states, Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, where they would start selling their smartphone and tablet portfolio initially. The company would invest about 500 crores in setting up a distribution network.  These devices would be available in 60 cities and towns through over 7,000 touch points. Xu Dejun,Chief Executive Officer,  ZTE India  said Globally, ZTE is the fourth largest handset manufacturer and we are certain to strengthen our position in India, which is a key growth propeller for us, contributing to 10 per cent of our overall revenues. Our tablets will be in the premium category based on 3G or 4G technology and we are looking at launching them by Diwali. ZTE introduced high-end devices at the CES and the MWC 2013 earlier ...

If you want to jailbreak your device with this guide, make sure your device and its iOS version are in the list above. [Read: How to Check the iOS version of Your iDevice] It does NOT support any other iOS version or iOS devices that are not listed above!!!Source: ijailbreakguide.com

Blug_fred writes "For the second edition, today is the time to celebrate Culture Freedom Day. While not as popular as HFD or SFD, celebrating Free Culture involves finding Free Culture artists, inviting them to your place and having them perform, display or talk about what their creation(s). Of course you can always simply project a couple of Free Culture movies and launch a discussion about their business models. Either way you can find all the happening for today here on the map and we sincerely hope there will be something of interest near you." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Not so long ago we showed off a great looking smartphone concept called the Micromax Canvas M1, which if real would come in two versions with one featuring a 5.1-inch full HD display and a 4.7-inch one. Well, now we can reveal a new model called the Micromax Canvas HD+ 5-inch super spec for India. It is such a shame these phones mentioned are only concepts, come on Micromax India would like a little reality and not just concepts. Ok, we know the Micromax A120 Canvas HD Pro is arriving sometime in June for India but we are guessing a few more releases would go down well – anyways, moving on. Designer Suman Chatterjee has created a new concept called the Micromax Canvas HD+ and this one looks stunning and comes with some specs that should be real and not just a thought in someone’s head. If the Micromax Canvas HD+ were to release it would be a flagship model featuring a 5-inch Super AMOLED Plus Full HD screen, Android 4.3 operating system, 2-megapixel camera on the front, as well as a 13-megapixel rear camera with dual LED flash. It would be powered by a 1.5 GHz processor, possibly of the Qualcomm or MediaTek type, the smartphone would come with 8 GB of storage, 2300 mAh battery and 2 GB of RAM. Just like the Sony Xperia Z the Micromax Canvas HD+ is also water and dust resistant, nice touch as they say. If the Micromax Canvas HD+ were to release in India would you be tempted to purchase one? Source – Concept Phones

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You’d be forgiven for thinking that most of the top-end phones of 2013 have already broken cover. The Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One, Sony Xperia Z and Blackberry Z10 are all out in the open. Nokia and LG have yet to reveal their flagship handsets, true – but considering the rash of mid-rangers LG unveiled at this year’s Mobile World Congress, and Nokia’s tentative Lumia 925 (an incremental upgrade over the previous Lumia 920 flagship), we think it unlikely that either of the two are going to break cover and release something dramatic. And Apple released their iPhone 5 only last September, so we’re not expecting an iPhone 5S or iPhone 6 until late autumn, at the very earliest. No, the top-end marketplace looks to be sorted for this year, barring a shake-up courtesy of the Sony Honami or the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, secondary flagships which are set to make their appearances later on in the year. But there could be a surprise late entry for the competition of best device of 2013, courtesy of the long-overlooked Motorola! The past few years have been unusual for Motorola Mobility. They went the path of Blackberry, reigning as a top-tier manufacturer towards the end of the 2000s, only to fall into financial turmoil when the smartphone market began to expand. They were bought by Google in 2011, a deal that was closed for good on May 22nd 2012 to the tune of $12 billion. As a subsidiary of Google, we haven’t seen much action from Motorola. But according to industry insiders, Motorola had a roadmap of products, which they were committed to working on – and now that they have completed their roadmap, Google are free to use their acquisition however they like! And how is that? Well, rumours have been floating around for several months now about the existence of the ‘Motorola X Phone’, a top-end handset that may be the new Nexus handset (Nexus devices, if you’re unaware, are manufactured closely in partnership with Google, and use basic stock Android software instead of the usual overlays). Though many pundits also predict that LG are going to make a return for the next Nexus, heralding an LG Nexus 5, the fact remains that Motorola are definitely working on a handset. According to best insider projections, the Motorola X phone will be equipped with 4.7-inch screen – a suggestion prompted by a discussion with Motorola design chief Jim Wicks, who spoke out against the trend towards super-sized ‘phablets’ when it comes to smartphones. Specifically, he said of Motorola’s design philosophy: “better is better, rather than bigger is better”, and Motorola’s handsets will be “… just about right” in terms of size. In terms of internal specifications, we’re less confident with projecting – but we’re likely to see a 1.7+ GHz quad-core processor at the very least. Hopefully, Qualcomm’s upcoming Snapdragon 800 chipset will make an appearance, for a significant boost in power. And making the 4.7-inch screen a full HD offering would result in some truly superb pixel density, which would certainly be appreciated. In terms of software, the Motorola X phone could be equipped with stock Android; if so, it’s most likely going to be the Nexus handset of 2013. If not, then we could expect to see a refreshed suite of Motorola-engineered apps, to bring the handset more in line with the proprietary selection of tertiary features that Samsung phones are loaded down with. (Or maybe not – Samsung have faced some criticism for their memory-intensive suite of “S-Apps” lately. Motorola may opt for a more stripped-down user experience specifically to counteract this perception.) It remains to be seen exactly when Motorola will announce or release the so-called X phone. Though there have been several encouraging benchmark leaks over the last few months, the disparate Motorola phones bearing the X moniker have

The HTC One is among the most sought after smartphones currently available which is down to its stylish premium design and standout specifications and features, and now the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update for the device is being tipped to arrive soon. While some versions of the HTC One have already received some minor software updates the handset is still waiting to be treated to the highly anticipated Android 4.2 Jelly Bean firmware, but now a reliable HTC tipster has claimed the new software will be arriving in a matter of weeks. Previously reliable leaker @LlabTooFeR has stated that the Android 4.2 update is likely to arrive for the HTC One in two or three weeks time, and could even come earlier than that. We heard only yesterday that the company had promised to push out the Sense 5 update to the HTC J Butterfly by the end of this month, and the Android overlay is likely to come as part of a Jelly Bean update so you would have thought the company’s flagship handset would at least get the new software at the same time or even earlier. The new firmware won’t bring massive changes to the handset but does include such things as a gesture enhanced keyboard and lock screen widgets. This update has been promised to be coming to a whole host of other HTC handsets in the coming months, and owners will always like to see new features added to their smartphones. Source: GottaBe Mobile.