Opinion: The OnePlus One lottery.

   The beautiful device which you see pictured above this text is the OnePlus One. The company is made of a few people who used to work for Oppo, you can probably tell given the similarities between this device and the Find 5. But, looks aside the OnePlus One is a powerhouse with the Snapdragon 801, Full HD 1080p 5.5" screen, 3GB of RAM, 16 or 64GB of internal storage and a 3100mAh which should last you pretty well. 

   The best thing about the phone though is the price. £229 for a 16GB version or £269 for the 64GB variant which simply blows everything out of the water in terms of price to performance ratio, especially when you consider that the device will be kept up to date by the guys over at CyanogenMod, this thing becomes a very interesting beast for people who like to buy their phones sim free.

   So what's the catch? Well seemingly nothing with regards to the phone, the problem though is that it's nothing short of a lottery to get hold of one! We know the problems that some companies (I'm looking at you Google) have when they try to launch a new device and people can't wait to get their hands on the shiny new toy as soon as possible. To alleviate this issue OnePlus have decided that they will release a very limited stock onto the market and then from there you will be able to get hold of a phone by invite only.

   On the surface this is a good way of managing demand while the early production issues, which there will inevitably be with a new company and new device, get ironed out. But, where does that leave the consumers, the people who actually want to buy this phone. Well, in a bit of a predicament. Why would someone who wants a new phone try desperately to get hold of this phone by bribing someone for an invite or smashing their old phone when they can just walk into the nearest Carphone Warehouse or navigate their browser straight from here to Google Play or Amazon to pick up the Nexus 5 or any other device they want? 

   Yes, the price is the only reason why you would wait for this phone. The problem for OnePlus is how quickly they can go from these 100 phone smashing incidents to taking the money from everyone who wants to carry one of the 'Ones' in their pockets. If they take a few months something better will come out, but they have a couple of months to scale things up and if they can do it fast enough, then they'll stand some sort of chance of having a successful product.

   I think the phrase to finish this off with should be slightly ominous, so I suppose 'time will tell'.

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Acer announce the Liquid S1 'phablet'.

   Where Samsung takes Android it seems everyone else follows and the latest people to have a go at cracking the 'phablet' arena are Acer. The Taiwanese company have today announced their latest smartphone and it's the Liquid S1, which is essentially a budget phablet.

   In terms of what you'll be getting here there's a 720p 5.7-inch display taking centre stage, that should be pushed along comfortably by a 1.5GHz quad-core processor from the guys at MediaTek. That package will be backed up by 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage, which mercifully is MicroSD expandable with cards of up to 32GB in size. 

   As you would expect there's a solid 8MP camera on the rear and a front-facing webcam too. The debice has all of the connectivity options you'd expect from this sort of handset and there's BlueTooth, WiFi and 3G connections, with support for dual-SIM cards.

   Our one concern would be that the tiny 2,400 mAh battery might not, as Acer say, 'last a day' and that tiny cell may well cripple this phone.

  If that doesn't phase you then the device will be available with its aluminium side grips in matte black or white colourings in the third quarter of the year and it will cost around €349 or £298 ($455)  when it lands in France, Belgium, Netherlands, Ukraine, Russia, UK and Germany, and later in Spain and Italy. 

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Samsung announce the Galaxy Tab 3 8-inch!

   We knew Samsung would have some tablets on the way for us, but it seems like they've waited until the first day of Computex to tell us. The first of their new tablets is the Tab 3 8.0: it's a mid-range device with pretty much everything you want from a nicely-sized tablet too!

   The 8 inch display has a solid 1280 x 800p resolution, making the ppi 189. The unspecified brand of processor inside is a dual-core model clocked at 1.5 GHz, this will be backed up by 1.5 GB of RAM and your choice of 16 or 32 GB of internal storage which is MicroSD expandable.

   Around the back you'll find a 3MP camera for all those holiday snaps this summer, you can Skype home from your destination of choice with a 1.3MP front-facing camera and all of this is powered by a nice big 4450 mAh battery.

   As bonus additions there's Touchwiz-ed Android 4.2 on board and there is an option which will have 3G and LTE connectivity too! At the moment there's no word on pricing or availability and the full spec sheet is embedded below

Click to enlarge.

The press release is embedded below:

Next-generation GALAXY tablets integrate intuitive new features
and enhanced performance for all


SEOUL, Korea, June 03, 2013 - Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, a global leader in digital media and digital convergence technologies, today announced the introduction of the GALAXY Tab 3 8-inch and 10.1-inch which will be available globally beginning of June. Offering an expanded range of options along with previously announced 7-inch version, the GALAXY Tab 3 Series provides customers various ways to view, listen, create, and share meaningful events and special content with those who matter most. Whether surfing the web at home or reading during the commute, each device is packed with enhanced content and intuitive design perfect for viewing or sharing content with friends and family, and capturing all of life’s spontaneous moments.

Samsung GALAXY Tab 3 8-inch
  • Exceptional Reading and Entertainment Experience: Designed to be held in one hand, the new GALAXY Tab 3 8-inch
   is the optimal device for viewing videos, playing enhanced games, and reading e-Books anytime, anywhere.
   Outstanding slim bezel for effective and maximum screen use makes Samsung’s “reading mode” technology
   which optimizes the display to deliver perfect illumination and tone for comfortable paperlike readability in a variety of
   lighting conditions work better on its 8-inch screen. Samsung’s Sound Alive for Audio and Dolby Surround for Video
   Play maximize every sound allow users to enjoy clearer dialogue, consistent volume levels, and superior audio to
   further enhance the overall multimedia experience with the new device. Also, the physical keys on the bezel at
   bottom give users a comfortable smartphone-like experience in navigating.
  • Enhanced Smart Usability: Making travel and discovery more effortless, the GALAXY Tab 3 8-inch features S
   Translator, which provides instant translation through voice recognition and via text on applications including email,
   text message, and ChatON. This instant translation is possible both from speech-to-text and text-to-speech,
   ensuring that you can communicate with ease while traveling internationally. Also, S Travel, the Smart Travel
   Companion, provides real-time local information in need for travel along with user's travel paths. Users can get
   information and make reservation of the places classified in various categories such as Place, Hotel, Tickets, Food
   and Forum, and more. In addition, intuitive features such as Story Album and Group Play also allow users more ways
   to instantly share and enjoy music, photos, documents, and games with those around them.

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Samsung finally announce the Galaxy S4 Mini: Mid-range awesomeness on the way!

   After all of the leaks, we can only assume Samsung has had enough as they've finally announced the the Galaxy S4 Mini and it's pretty much what we expect. It's a solid mid-range phone with everything which you would expect from a downgraded Galaxy S4!

   On the inside there's a solid 4.3-inch display with that much rumoured 960 x 540p qHD display. That will be backed up by dual-core processor clocked in at 1.7GHz and 1.5GB of RAM. The internal storage is 8GB and only about 5GB of that will be user accessible once all of Samsung's customisations are complete, thankfully there's also a microSD card slot. Those customisations will be Samsung's traditional Touchwiz enhancements on top of Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. The software won't be the only thing which will be filling up should satisfy most of your shooting needs!

   Samsung have treated future Galaxy S4 Mini users to some of the apps which the normal S4 has with the notable inclusions of camera editing features, S Voice, S Translator, GroupPlay and WatchOn, the last of which will make use of the built in infrared blaster! Other connections include WiFi a/b/g/n, GPS, GLONASS, Bluetooth 4.0 and if you choose the LTE option then there will be NFC too!

   Talking of that LTE option there will in fact be three different builds of this phone. There will be standard 3G with quad-band GSM/EDGE and up to 21Mbps HSPA+ support, there's a dual-SIM version and finally there's the 4G option with 42Mbps HSPA+ and LTE support which will vary by market.

   At the moment we have no idea how much this will cost or when it will be here, but we expect that we'll have much more news on this device when Samsung hold their event on the 20th of June in London! Oh and the colour options are the lovely black and white hues which you can see above!

Via SamsungTomorrow.

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Huawei's super thin Ascend P6 pops up on EVLeaks!

   So the Huawei Ascend P6 was never much of a surprise: it's been leaked possibly more than any other phone in the past few weeks, but that doesn't mean we're still not excited to see what is in store for us. Today the guys at EVLeaks have again managed to get their hands on some press pictures of the new device and wow, this device looks stunning.

   As you can see from the picture embedded to the right, the phone has definitely got itself in shape for the summer and it looks to be unbelievably thing! We're not sure how thin it is, but it looks impressive alright. Rumours suggest it's 6.2mm thick, but it's impossible to say at the moment. That tiny chassis is meant to hold a 4.7 display, which is likely to be 720p if we know Huawei, as well as a 1.5GHz quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM. At the moment there's no word on the battery, but we can expect it to be a small unit just to ensure that everything fitted in here. That tiny little camera sensor on the rear of the phone is said to be 5MP and you can see the flash on the rear of the phone too!

   The device is reported to have Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean on board and as you can see Huawei seem to have skinned that pretty heavily, but strangely enough there doesn't appear to be any navigation buttons. That might just be down to the way EVLeaks have applied a skin to the phone outline, or they might be hidden a little more subtly as capacitive buttons around that Huawei logo.

   And finally, Huawei's boss let it slip on Weibo that the phone will launch on June the 19th in London, but naturally that status has now been deleted! So what do you guys think? Is this going to be a great phone or is it just Huawei showing off a little? More importantly though, do you want one?

Via EVLeaks (1), (2), (3) and (4) and CNet.

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Samsung remix Gangnam Style for their Galaxy S4 launch in India!

   Samsung seem to have interesting ways of showing off their new devices lately. You might remember the way the Galaxy S4 was announced through Broadway in America a couple of months back, well it seems that that wasn't enough for Sammy. 

   In a nod to their South Korean origin the guys chose to remix Gangnam Style to declare the features of the Galaxy S4 during the devices launch in India. This will have undoubtedly got a few people's attention and because it's so unique it's managed to get the launch into the news. 

   They say any publicity is good publicity and well that's what Samsung's managed with their latest effort! Check out the video below to see the remixed Gangnam Style sounds!

Via TheNextWeb.

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04/10/2012

Nokia continues their verbal war. Says their offering is 'a step above'.

   Today Nokia's CEO, Stephen Elop, has refuted claims that HTC has eked out an advantage in the Windows Phone market by securing the deal with Microsoft for the 'signature Windows Phone' brand on their new handsets.

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03/10/2012

RIM release Playbook OS 2.1!

   RIM and their Playbook in particular are interesting entities. The Playbook's themselves are great little devices and they are selling extremely cheaply at the moment. But, RIM has also had a good track record with their updates too! Every time the company has promised some improvements they have arrived, if slightly late a couple of times.

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