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Did the iPhone 4 Inspire Quanta’s Android Honeycomb Tablet’s Design

Posted: 31 May 2011 05:07 AM PDT

At the Computex trade show, manufacturer Quanta was showing off a reference Android Honeycomb tablet design that it is hoping to license to other brand names to quickly take to market. The design itself looks stylish and attractive, with a two-toned rear finish that combines a smooth soft touch rubberized strip that surrounds the rear camera and a metal aluminum rear panel. The device has a number of ports, SIM card slot, and micro SD card slot along the sides. Nicole Scott from Netbook News notes that the tablet looks like a giant iPhone, and I can potentially see the similarity with the stainless steel band and curved rounded corners of the iPhone 4 resembling this 10-inch Honeycomb slate.

The display on the tablet looks phenomenal and Scott notes that it looks to be like a Super AMOLED display where blacks are really rich and colors are vibrant. The tablet's powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.

It's unclear right now if Quanta has any companies signed up to take on this reference design. Given Apple's recent battle with Samsung for releasing products with similar packaging and trade dress to its own iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, it's unclear whether Apple would go after any company that does decide to commercialize this reference design and take it to market given the overall design similarities to the iPhone 4.

Overall, it's an attractive offering from Quanta and appears to be solidly built. As the design is a bit blocky–similar to the iphone 4–it's unclear if it would be comfortable to hold for long periods of time–the iPad and Xoom both have curved backs which may aid in ergonomics.

Samsung’s Aggressive Android Push Will Yield Galaxy S III Smartphone in 2012, 4G LTE Galaxy Tab Later This Year

Posted: 31 May 2011 04:38 AM PDT

Though neither of the company's latest Galaxy smartphones nor tablets have begun to go on sale in the U.S. as of yet, the success of the Galaxy S II overseas is pushing Samsung to be a bit more aggressive with its product offerings. Company exec JK Shin told the Wall Street Journal that the company will be releasing a 4G LTE-enabled Galaxy Tab 10.1 later this year and a potential refresh of the Galaxy S II, perhaps a Galaxy S III, in the first half of 2012.

Shin wasn't specific on details, but Samsung is showing its leadership in the Android space. Ever since the company had made its big Android push with the launch of the original Galaxy S smartphone–which was available in the U.S. as the Samsung Captivate on AT&T, the Sprint Epic 4G, the T-Mobile Vibrant, and the Verizon Wireless Fascinate–it had grown to be the leading smartphone and tablet manufacturer in the U.S. The company was one of the early companies to release a tablet, with an Android 2.2 Froyo-powered Galaxy Tab 7-inch.

Since the Galaxy S debuted, the company has released a number of Android smartphones in the U.S. and abroad, and it is estimated that more than half of the smartphones that Samsung sells rely on the Android OS, a figure that Samsung plans on increasing though did not specify by what margin. The company also makes phones powered by the Bada OS as well as Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 platform. Samsung had recently announced that its Galaxy S II has done well overseas, and is the company's fastest selling smartphone in history.

An aggressive launch for phones and tablets would mean that shelf life for current models would be extremely short. This could potentially be a double-edged sword. While new models may entice users who want the latest gadgets, it could also deter users who may want to purchase a smartphone as their is fear that Samsung could introduce an even newer model soon after, which could drive consumers to a wait and see approach to buying.

Though Samsung has found success in Android, it is not without some headache. The company was also recently sued by the tablet leading iPad-maker for infringement–that lawsuit is still on-going.

It's unclear which carrier Samsung intends on targeting its Galaxy Tab 10.1 4G LTE version at–AT&T is expected to launch a 4G network in the second half of this year and Verizon's roll-out is already underway with three smartphone launches already, and a Motorola Xoom tablet that will be upgradeable to 4G for free when the new modems are available. In the past, Samsung had seemingly maintained a carrier agnostic approach to launches, rather than take on carrier-exclusive model launches. Its Galaxy Tab and Galaxy S smartphone was found on all four major U.S. carriers. A 4G LTE tablet would deliver up to 10 times the mobile broadband speeds of 3G networks.

The company's WiFi-only Galaxy Tab 10.1 is expected to launch in the U.S. soon.

Will Nokia Launch a Windows Phone or a MeeGo Phone on June 21st?

Posted: 31 May 2011 02:08 AM PDT

As part of the CommunicAsia 2011 event, Nokia will also be hosting its own Nokia Connection 2011 summit, which is described to be "Nokia's biggest event of the year," perhaps launching the summit as a new name for the historic Nokia World event. The June 21st event may be host to an unveiling of Nokia's Windows Phone device(s) or even a MeeGo-powered N9/N950 smartphone.

On its Connection website, Nokia invites users to 'join Nokia Connection 2011 to experience first-hand, the new Nokia ecosystem that will be introduced to the world.' Company CEO Stephen Elop will also be giving a presentation at the event. According to the presentation schedule, he will be talking about the company's strategy, its partnershup with Microsoft, and a focus on the South East Asia Pacific region.

Mr. Stephen Elop will provide an overview of Nokia's new strategy, including an update on the company's partnership with Microsoft, and the resulting new ecosystem and the importance of the South East Asia Pacific market in the new strategy. He will set the stage for a number of exciting Nokia product and service launches.

As the agenda seems to be more geared to Windows Phone, perhaps Nokia will leverage CommunicAsia and its Connection event to introduce the fruits of its labor and partnership with Microsoft.

As Nokia is also rumored to be releasing a MeeGo smartphone, dubbed the N9 or N950, to developers in the June timeframe, MeeGo fans are also hopeful that the event will also be the platform where Nokia will unveil its MeeGo phones.

Via: My Nokia Blog

Nokia E6, X7 Now Shipping with Anna; E7, N8, C6 Update is ‘Coming Soon’

Posted: 31 May 2011 01:56 AM PDT

Nokia has revealed that its Symbian^3 Nokia E6 and X7 are now shipping, and both devices will ship pre-loaded with the Symbian software update called Anna, formally known as PR 2.0. Unfortunately, though the news is somewhat bittersweet for early adopters of Nokia's Symbian^3 products like the Nokia E7, a handset with a landscape-oriented QWERTY keyboard, the Nokia N8 with its stellar camera, and the consumer-centric C6 as Anna is still not yet available. In its blog, Nokia promises that Anna for the older handsets will be coming soon: "And fear not Nokia N8, E7, C7 and C6 fans – Symbian Ann will be available for you in the coming months."

Here's what Nokia is listing as some of the highlights of Anna:

Symbian Anna

- Faster and better web experience with an all new browser.
- The long-awaited portrait QWERTY plus split screen text input.
- All new Ovi Maps with public transport routes and other enhancements.

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Android 3.1 Update Rolling Out Tomorrow

Posted: 30 May 2011 12:42 PM PDT

ASUS has confirmed that the Android 3.1 Honeycomb update for its Eee Pad Transformer tablet will be rolling out starting tomorrow, just as we suspected it would be.

Just to recap, the Android 3.1 update includes numerous upgrades and will be bringing Movies from the Android Marketplace, re-sizable widgets, USB host support, full flash support for Flash Player 10.2, and more to the Eee Pad Transformer.

Now that the company has announced the roll out of Android 3.1, let's hope ASUS is able to get something else into the hands of customers out there, the device itself. Since its release, the Eee Pad Transformer has been nearly impossible to find in the United States.

ASUS promised to ramp up production for North America during May and June so availability of the device should be easing soon which means that folks in the U.S. should be able to actually find the Android 3.1 tablet on shelves in the near future.

Samsung Galaxy S II Poised to Make Big Splash in U.S.

Posted: 30 May 2011 12:22 PM PDT

Samsung announced today that its Android superphone, the Samsung Galaxy S II, has already surpassed 1 million units sold in Korea saying that the phone has been "selling like hotcakes." The company also revealed that the Galaxy S II has sold faster than any of its previous devices even surpassing the fast start of the Samsung Galaxy S by a whopping 40 days.

The Galaxy S II debuted in Korea on April 29th and has slowly been making its way around the world. And one place that it hasn't been released yet is in the United States. It's currently unknown when the device is going to be hitting shelves here in the U.S. but it appears that Samsung might be undertaking a release similar to what it did for the original Galaxy S.

Currently, no carriers are known, but it appears likely that the Galaxy S II will be arriving on AT&T, Sprint and Verizon. T-Mobile also accidentally confirmed the device back when it was announced so it's possible that we could see a launch on all four major U.S. carriers.

If sales in Korea and around the world are any indication, the Galaxy S II surely has a chance to break more records when it's finally in the United States.

Anyone here in the U.S. already committed to buying this phone?

HTC Working on Windows Phone with 12-Megapixel Camera (Photos)

Posted: 30 May 2011 12:06 PM PDT

It appears that HTC is possibly developing two Windows Phone 7 devices with high megapixel cameras as another mysterious device has been outed by Elder Murtazin who posted an image and gave his impression of a device said to be rocking a 12 megapixel camera.

You might recall the news about the HTC Bresson a couple of weeks ago, a device that is said to be coming equipped with a 16MP camera. It's unknown if Murtazin's device is actually the Bresson or if Windows Phone 7 enthusiasts should get prepared for two WP7 smartphones with high-end cameras.

The device we see here apparently supports RAW images and takes some characteristics in the hardware department from the Verizon's Windows Phone 7 device, the HTC Trophy.

Other than that, the phone remains a mystery including release date, pricing and the possible carriers (if this is in fact the Bresson, it'll be headed to- T-Mobile) that this thing might end up on. Might we see HTC launch a couple of phones around the time Windows 7.1 Mango arrives later this year? As of right now, that's what we'd be putting our money on.

Will Your Next Netbook Come with ARM Inside?

Posted: 30 May 2011 11:54 AM PDT

Having conquered the smartphone market and emerging consumer tablet market with its reference chip designs, ARM is looking towards the mobile PC market for growth and the company's ambitious goal is to have its chips inside half of all mobile PCs sold by 2015.

ARM's reference chip designs are found in many popular consumer products, including a vast number of Android and Droid-branded smartphones, Apple's iPhone, the BlackBerry PlayBook, the Motorola Xoom and iPad tablets, and others. The reference design has been adopted and tweaked, adding graphics power, wireless connectivity, and a number of additional sensors and radios into products like NVIDIA's dual-core Tegra 2 system-on-a-chip, Texas Instruments' forthcoming TI OMAP chips that is rumored to power the coveted Motorola Droid Bionic, Apple's A4 and A5 chipsets, and Qualcomm's Snapdragon designs on the HTC Flyer, Sensation, and EVO 3D to name a few.

So far, though, Intel has held a market lead in anything that's Windows-based, but that may change soon. At CES, Microsoft had announced that it will work on making Windows playable on ARM chips, and the chips are coming with increasing power and capabilities that are now rivaling some of Intel's designs while still offering energy efficiency. Since that announcement, however, there has been conflicting information on whether or not ARM would run Windows fully as Intel had gone on the offensive saying that ARM machines won't run legacy apps.

PC World writes:

"Today we have about 10 percent market share [in mobile PCs]. By the end of 2011 we believe we will have about 15 percent of that market share as tablets grow," said Tudor Brown, president of the U.K.-based company, during a news conference at the Computex trade show in Taipei. "By 2015, we expect that to be over 50 percent of the mobile PC market."

In more recent news, the company's reference design has been rumored to be powering Apple's next-generation MacBook Air, but industry observers have noted that the potential for that to happen right now is slim and Apple would probably wait for ARM to release its next-generation ARM Cortex A15 chipset. When that does happen, and if Apple adopts ARM for OS X, it would have most likely implement some proprietary changes like it does to the current A4 and A5 chips on the iPhone and iPad.

The Cortex A15 is currently based on the 32 or 28 nm manufacturing process. Intel is also approaching the 32 nm space with its Atom-based Cedar Trail platform that is coming later this year. A smaller manufacturing process would yield powerful, but power efficient chips. ARM says that it's working on 20 nm designs and the future roadmap would take chips down to a 14 nm manufacturing process.

Both Intel and ARM have been aggressive with the mobile PC market, including tablets, smartphones, and netbooks. The former is looking to get its Atom chipsets placed into more tablets and phones and has promised that 10 tablet announcements will be made with Atom processors at Computex.

ARM expects its commercial A15-based chips to be coming in early 2012.

For now, NVIDIA is demonstrating powerful graphics and processing capabilities of its ARM-based quad-core Kal-El processor, which is rumored to land as the Tegra 3 chipset though NVIDIA hasn't approved any official consumer branding to its Kal-El designs yet.

ARM says it has captured about 10 percent of the market and anticipates to have 15 percent market share with the rise of tablets. It hopes to have chips inside notebooks, tablets, and other mobile PCs by 2015 and capture 50% of that market, though the category was ambiguously defined by ARM.

Can Asus Price the MeeGo Smartbook to Kill off Chromebooks?

Posted: 30 May 2011 11:21 AM PDT

While Samsung and Acer have both signed on as early OEM partners with Google to deliver the Chromebook, a netbook running Chrome OS, at Google I/O, Asus is taking on the lightweight computing category with its own smartbook running the MeeGo operating system. The slim MeeGo smartbook hardware was shown off at the Computex trade show, which is going on this week in Taiwan.

The new hardware offering, dubbed the Eee PC X101, features a chicklet keyboard, large trackpad sans buttons, 10.1-inch 1,024 X 600 matte display, Atom N435 clocked at 1.33 GHz, WiFi, USB 2.0, and micro SD card slot. A higher end Eee PC X101H will be forthcoming, which will feature a hybrid SSD and hard drive combo option.

The base X101 is rumored to be priced at $199, which would best Google's Chromebook offerings and the affordable price tag of the MeeGo smartbook may entice people over from a traditional Windows 7 netbook whose models' starting average is around $300.

Via: Netbook News

Top 5 iPhone and iPad Grilling Apps- Master the Grill from Your iPhone

Posted: 30 May 2011 11:07 AM PDT

Are you an iPhone or iPad owner that wishes you could grill better? Well fear not, the iTunes App store is full of grilling apps to help you grill the perfect steak or season the perfect chicken breast as you fire up your grill for the season.

These apps are perfect for figuring out how long to cook a steak, how to grill different dishes and to find recipes and become a master of your grill or BBQ. Most of these apps will work on the iPad and iPhone, so you can be as mobile as you want. It certainly beats cutting steak apart to figure out if you've cooked it long enough. We even have an app with an optional thermometer that will wirelessly send the temperature to your iPhone or iPad.

Top 5 iPhone and iPad Grilling Apps

Weber's On the Grill – $4.99

Weber's On the Grill app for the iPhone includes over 200 recipes for grilling as well as 40 recipes dedicated to rubs and marinades in order to make tasty meals on the grill. The Weber app also allows you to create a shopping list and favorite your recipes.

iGrillMaster – $.99

The iGrillMaster is a cheap app that allows you to quickly set timers for cooking steak, burgers, chicken, pork, fish, veggies and more. You just choose the thickness and how done you want the meat and you are ready to go. If you need to set a custom timer or run multiple timers at the same time, you can do that too.

Grill It! – $.99

If you need an inspiring collection of grilling recipes that covers everything from steak to seafood, check out Grill It! for the iPhone. One of the things we really like about the Grill It! app is the inclusion of starters and vegetables, which round out a meal.

Omaha Steaks Steak Time HD – Free

Grab over 100 steak recipes and learn all about how to cook steaks in the Omaha Steaks app from Steak 101. The included videos will help you figure out how to put grill marks on a steak and how to prep your steak. One fo the best free grilling apps for the iPad. Check out the iPhone version as well.

iGrill – Free ($99.99 for Wireless Monitoring)

The iGrill system is a combination of an app and a wireless temperature monitoring station that will beam your steak's temperature to your iPhone or iPad. View the temperature on the iGrill device or on your paired iOS device. The app allows you to set timers and view time remaining so you know when to start the other parts of your meal.

Asus Refreshes Eee Pad MeMO with Glasses-Free 3D Display

Posted: 30 May 2011 11:05 AM PDT

It looks like Asus is breathing new life into the Asus Eee Pad MeMO, a tabletphone combo with a Bluetooth dongle to route calls and control parts of the Android Honeycomb slate on the go while the tablet's safely stowed in a bag, as the company has announced a MeMO with a glasses-free 3D display at the Computex trade show. The refreshed model will be dubbed the Eee Pad MeMO 3D.

The 7-inch slate comes with an unusually high pixel count for its size. Traditionally, slates of that size, including the 7-inch Galaxy Tab and the HTC Flyer, come with 1,024 X 600 pixels, but Asus is cramming a whopping 1,280 X 800 pixels into this display, a resolution more common on 10-inch slates like the Xoom and the Asus Eee Pad Transformer. However, given that the 7-inch Iconia Tab from Acer has been delayed due to compatibility issues with the smaller display on Honeycomb, perhaps Asus is being smart by making the resolution similar to the 10-inch Honeycomb slates of today to ensure app compatibility at this early stage.

The Eee Pad 3D will come with the MeMIC dongle in the box, rather than as an optional accessory.

Pricing and availability information is forthcoming.

Via: Engadget

Top 5 Android Grilling Apps: Grill Better Steaks, Burgers, Chicken and Seafood

Posted: 30 May 2011 09:11 AM PDT

Judging by the 90 degree temps that have finally settled into the Midwest and the Memorial Day weekend festivities, Summer has finally arrived! It's time to clean off those grills and break out the propane and charcoal for a summer of wonderful grilling and barbecues.

To help you cook the perfect steak, burger, chicken or seafood as well as make sure you plan a perfect cookout. Best of all, you can purchase all of these Android grilling apps for just $2.99, leaving plenty of cash left to pick out the best cuts for the grill.

After you get through grilling with these apps, you'll deserve to wear that "Kiss the Cook" Apron you've been trying to pull off for the last five years. When you start grilling, don't forget to grill us a nice cut on Medium.

Top 5 Android Apps For Grilling and BBQing

Omaha Steaks Steak Time App – Free

If you want to grill the perfect steak, the Omaha Steaks app has you covered with a collection of over 100 recipes, numerous how to videos and a steak timer to help you cook steaks perfect without cutting them apart on the grill to check how done they are. Search recipes by ingredients and easily add ingredients to your shopping list all form within the free grilling app. If you're short on conversation, you can play "Conversation Cards" in the app to generate ice-breaker type questions like, "What would be different about the world if there were no birds?", but we recommend you stick to the grilling side of the app.

Grill It! – $.99

Grill It! is another great grilling app for Android with a collection of recipes covering beef, lamb, seafood, chicken and other grillable food. This app has a great selection of recipes that cover a broad range of foods, and cover how to grill your favorite vegetables like asparagus so that you can complete your meal.

Steak Timer Plus – $1.01

Steak Timer Plus takes steak timing to the next level, allowing you to set times for different levels of doneness and assigning a name and location to a steak so you don't mix up Jim's well done steak with Sally's rare steak. If you are grilling steaks for more than two or three people, this is a must have app.

BBQ Planner – $.99

If you are inviting a group over for a summer cookout at home or on a camping trip, the BBQ Planner Android app will help you remember all the items you need to take with you. You can probably come up with most of these items on your own, but if you love checklists, this is an app for you.

Epicurious and AllRecipes – Free

If you need some more recipes to spice up your cookout, take these two apps from our favorite recipe websites and start looking and cooking. Between Epicurious and AllRecipes.com, you'll have your appetizers, entrees, sides and deserts covered. These apps offer easy to follow recipes and pictures of recipes to help you plate the perfect meal.

Grilling Photo via Flickr - Mike Johnson – TheBusyBrain.com

Asus PadFone Details, First Impression & Hands On Video Roundup

Posted: 30 May 2011 07:44 AM PDT

Asus has unveiled a new tablet concept at Computex 2011 called the Asus PadFone, which has an opening in the back that allows you to dock your smartphone to power the tablet, similar to how the Motorola Atrix 4G powers a laptop dock. The Asus PadFone has been announced, but the details are still scarce and ASUS may change the screen size and other details before the PadFone arrives on store shelves.

What is the ASUS PadFone?

The Asus PadFone is a new take on the companion device concept announced at Computex 2011 that combines a smartphone with a tablet to extend the user experience. The PadFone phone is a 4.3″ smartphone that will likely be running the next version of Android, code named Ice Cream Sandwich. The tablet part of the PadFone is currently a 10.1″ display with a 1280 x 800 resolution that looks to run Android 3.1. The PadFone tablet brings a big screen, speakers, extra battery and a collection of ports to the mix, but will rely on the smartphone to deliver the actual power. The Asus PadFone and may be the first product the marries Google's phone and tablet operating systems, with a delicious sounding HoneyComb Ice Cream Sandwich.

ASUS PadFone Hands On Video

Jkk of JkkMobile has one of the first hands on videos of the Asus PadFone from Computex 2011, showing off the docking mechanism and a hole in the dock that allows for the use of the ASUS PadFone phone's camera while docked in the tablet. The video also gives you a port tour of the PadFone, which doesn't have many ports, and overall impressions on the form factor.

ASUS PadFone Features

Docking - The biggest feature of the PadFone, which sets it apart from the competition is, as you guessed, the ability to dock your phone into a tablet form factor to grab a bigger touchscreen and extended battery life. This is similar to the docking concept of the Motorola Atrix 4G, but plays on the more popular tablet form factor.

Tegra 2 Dual Core Processor – Currently, the PadFone is reportedly relying on a dual core Tegra 2 processor to power the device, but ASUS has said that the specs and form factor may change by the time the PadFone hits the market late this year. It is possible, and we really hope, that the production version of the PadFone comes with a NVIDIA quad core Kal-El processor which delivers a boost in power that translates into stunning on screen visuals.

ASUS PadFone Pricing and Availability

The Asus PadFone has note yet been given an official launch date, but company reps have confirmed to multiple sources that ASUS is aiming for a PadFone launch later this year, specifically in December. There has been no announcement on PadFone pricing or which carriers the PadFone will work on. When the PadFone arrives stateside, expect to see a some carrier try to add a data premium to the phone and tablet combo.

ASUS PadFone Hands On & First Impression Videos

ASUS PadFone – Make The Switch: In this promotional video from ASUS, the world bends to your will when you have a PadFone. Apparently ASUS never got the memo that we have collectively moved past selling gadgets based on the premise that you will be more attractive to the opposite sex, as you'll see in the end of this video.

ASUS PadFone – Design: In this video, take a look at why ASUS thinks you need the PadFone in your life and what went into the design of the smartphone and tablet combo. While we are still waiting to draw our own conclusions about the place of the PadFone in our lives, we can't argue with the reasoning ASUS gives for merging the smartphone and tablet.

PadFone Hands On – Engadget delivers another hands on with the ASUS PadFone mockup, showing off an even closer look at the phone and the connection between phone and tablet. The two devices appear to join up over USB and HDMI ports on the phone, which should also allow you to connect over HDMI to a HDTV.

PadFone Announcement at Computex - NetbookNews delivers a video of the Asus press conference that where ASUS announces the PadFone.

PadFone Hands On Video in German – Sascha from NetbookNews.de delivers a hands on with the ASUS PadFone, giving you an overview of the PadFone in German.

ASUS PadFone Gallery

NVIDIA Kal-El Quad Core Tablet Demo Delivers Dynamic Lighting & Physics (Video)

Posted: 30 May 2011 06:36 AM PDT

NVIDIA is off to a good start at Computex with a demo of next gen tablet gaming thanks to the quad core Kal-El processor and 12 core GPU, which should be arriving in tablets this fall.

That's right, quad core tablet processing is on the way this August and after this beautiful demo shows you the dynamic lighting and real time physics that this combo is capable of, you'll wish you had held off on that Eee Pad Transformer purchase.

The power of Kal-El won't be limited to Tablets, NVIDIA is expecting this solution to also arrive in smartphones. All of this power will allow apps like the demo above to render animations, lighting and physics effects on your device, rather than sticking to a prebuilt animation that lacks realism. NVIDIA claims that there will be a 25-30% boost in performance over the demo you see below as the processor moves form pre-production to production. To demonstrate the power of quad core mobile processors compared to the dual core processors just making their way into phones, the demo disables two of the cores and you can watch the framerates drop to unplayable levels.

If developers come running to the Kal-El powered Android tablets this fall, Android could actually get a jump on Apple with specs that can be translated into actual power that consumers will be drawn to thanks to the, "ohh shiny!" factor. Typically iPad competitors like to deck out the spec sheets, but have trouble delivering an in-app and on screen experience that sets them apart. With Kal-El, manufacturers have an opportunity to take smartphone and tablet apps and gaming to a whole new level.

Expect to see the NVIDIA Kal-El quad core processor hit smartphones and tablets in August, after sending pre-production Kal-El chips to vendors back in February, and look for the carnival game demo to arrive on the Android Market alongside Kal-El tablets.