When ZTE initially announced the Grand S at CES, they only mentioned details of the phone arriving in China. Now after some careful prying, ZTE Head of North American Business, Lixin Cheng has confirmed the 5-inch phone will make an appearance in the U.S. as well.

Cheng didn’t go in to details about when the Grand S will go on sale, or how much it will cost, but he did mention that the overall impression from carriers has been very positive.

The ZTE Grand S launched at CES earlier this week as the world’s thinnest 5-inch, 1080 quad-core phone, and features a Qualcomm S4 pro CPU, 2GB RAM, 13 mega-pixel rear camera and 5-inch 1080 Full High-Definition screen.

What do you think, would you be interested in the Grand S if it hits North America at a reasonable price point?

[ Source ]

The post ZTE Grand S Headed to the U.S appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

I like to use the Galaxy series as a prime example: the original Galaxy S Captivate had a 4-inch display. The Galaxy S II got up to the 4.3-inch range (with some variations) and the Galaxy S III is in the 4.8-inch range. Then, the Galaxy Note and Note II arrived, pushing screen size to 5.3 and 5.5-inches respectively. A device like the Huawei Mate was inevitable.

Announced here at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the Huawei Mate is a beast of an Android smartphone. It has really pushed the envelope by offering a huge 6.1-inch display. This is getting awfully close to the 7-inch range where “true” Android tablets begin their range. Interestingly, although there are now a few 5-inch offerings with 1080p displays, the Huawei Mate has stuck with 720p. I suppose this will help with battery life, but in using it in person, its display doesn’t quite look quite as crisp, given the lower pixel density.

That said, it is still a very nice display. Huawei went with a HD IPS+ panel for great viewing angles and, not surprisingly, it’s protected by Corning Gorilla Glass. I still feel that it doesn’t quite get the same kind of color saturation as an AMOLED family display, looking more like a blown up version of the screen you see on the Optimus G for example, but it certainly does the job.

You can tell that Huawei has borrowed some design inspiration from Samsung with a rounded smooth back and the overall slate style, but it’s really hard to differentiate the core design of a slate-style smartphone these days. So, Huawei decided to go big. In fact, the marketing materials that accompany it proudly proclaim it to have the “world’s largest screen.” Did this make it unwieldly? I think it depends on the size of your hands. I thought it was perfectly comfortable as a two-handed experience, but trying to do much of anything one-handed is going to be a challenge. You can hold it up to your face for a phone call, but you can’t really expect to reach around much of the screen when you’re only holding it with one hand. The larger display, though, is great for GPS navigation, video watching and other multimedia functions.

The performance should be up to spec with most higher end smartphones these days, given that it is powered by a quad core 1.5GHz Hi-Silicon K3V2 processor, backed with Intel XMM6260. It wouldn’t really be fair for me to completely gauge its performance at this time, seeing how it’s not quite ready for market and I only had it in my hands for a few minutes, but it did seem to lag and hang a little when switching between apps or opening new apps. It’s not slow, per se, but it’s not quite as fast as what we’ve seen on other high-end Android devices.

At the end of the day, a device like the Huawei Mate isn’t going to be for everyone. It’s huge, but it should still fit in larger jacket pockets without too much trouble. As with the Galaxy Note II, it may also appeal more to women as it can easily fit into a purse, though there are plenty of guys who carry around bags too. It doesn’t have the “S Pen” stylus of the Galaxy Note II, but I don’t think too many people use that anyway. For now, the Huawei Mate makes a firm statement about where the industry is heading. I remember when I thought the 4.3-inch smartphones were big. Now, compared to the something like the Motorola RAZR HD, those 4.3-inch phones just seem so tiny.

The post Hands-On with the 6.1-Inch Huawei Mate Android Smartphone appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

At CES Samsung has been busy showing off a prototype Android phone which features a curved glass display, tech that some are claiming will soon be available to buy in the next generation Samsung Galaxy S4 and possibly even the Note 3.

In addition to Samsung’s own phones devices, LG are also reportedly looking into using flexible screens on some of it’s own devices which might also include tablets, TV screens and laptops.

It’s still unclear just how much the Youm display from Samsung can bend, and how the curved areas will be used to enhance users experience, but judging by the state of the current hardware we won’t have long to find out.

[ Source ]

The post Samsung Youm Flexible Display Demoed at CES appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

Manufacturers at CES have shown us plenty of new ways to use a TV this year, ranging from 3D smart TVs to curved OLED displays, there’s certainly been a lot of room for experimentation.

One new product by Panasonic takes a simple idea and places it onto the big screen. The new Electronic Touch Pen allows you to digitally draw on Panasonic compatible TVs via Bluetooth.

At CES, the pen was shown to be interacting with the TV smoothly, allowing users to scribble over built-in software available on the TV. Currently use for the pen is quite limited, however with Panasonic’s Swipe and Share app, iOS and Android users can display their smartphone screen on the big TV and then paint and draw over the display of your smartphone’s screen, before sending it back to your handset as an image file.

There are also a few pen-touch games bundled with the software capable of using the pen, but other than that the new tech seems quite limited. Perhaps in the future more apps and software will be released to bulk up the current offering, as with a big 1080P screen, there is quite a lot of room for potential.

What’d be cool to see in the future is a pen that has the accuracy of high-end PC drawing tablets, as this would open up a huge amount of opportunity for professional and hobbyist artists.

Currently pricing on the Electronic Touch Pen have not been announced, but Panasonic has stated that they will be selling the pens in bundles of two later this year.

What are your opinions on the Electronic Touch Pen? Is this something you’d enjoy using on your TV at home?

[Source]

The post New Panasonic Electronic Touch Pen Allows Drawing on the Big Screen appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

And it’s easy to see why he feel so confident. His company has just unveiled two of the most talked about phones of CES, the Ascend Mate and Ascend D2, and they surely have more great products to come.

In an interview with The Verge, Yu claimed that Samsung’s plastic is cheap when asked about the Galaxy S3, and suggested Apple lacks innovation without Steve Jobs.

Unfortunately for Huawei, phone carriers in the U.S don’t seem to share Yu’s passion for Huawei products. The company is having a hard time gaining a footing in the high end phone market, and are struggling to shake off their “cheap phone” persona.

As optimistic as ever though, Yu says that Huawei just “needs some time for the US carriers to accept high end product from Huawei”. With phones like the 5-inch Ascend D2 and 6.1-inch Ascend Mate, which cost around 20% less then rivals, I personally don’t think it will take long for that to happen.

What do you think, excited by Huawei’s latest offerings or not?

The post Is Huawei’s Spirit Enough to Take on Apple and Samsung? appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

While the Microsoft Surface RT certainly tons of media coverage early on, it has only sold modestly at this point. There are several reasons for this, such as limited retail distribution early on, but pricing could also be a big factor.

Paying $500 for a device that currently has limited app selection and an unestablished ecosystem might be a bit of a hard sell for some consumers, especially since you can’t even use legacy Windows desktop apps since the Surface RT doesn’t actually run Windows 8 (it instead runs the ARM-based Windows RT).

The good news is $500 (or lower) Windows 8 tablets are starting to emerge, giving consumers both a unique Windows Store experience and the ability to run some of their legacy desktop apps. One such device was announced by Dell at CES today, the Latitude 10 Essentials.

This basic Windows 8 tablet weighs 1.34 pounds, has a magnesium alloy case and a 10.1-inch display. Other specs include a 1.8GHz Atom Clover Trail processor, 2GB of RAM and 32 or 64GB of storage. There is also a usb slot, full-size SD storage, and the ability to work with a special dock that adds more ports and lets it act as a small “all-in-one” PC.

This could be particularly useful for educational environments and businesses where having access to specific Windows legacy apps could be crucial. The base model of the Dell Latitude 10 Essentials will run you just $500, the same price as an iPad.
Is this worth it over the iPad or the even cheaper Nexus 10? Honestly, depends on your needs. If you care more about a wide range of touch-optimized apps, Android or iOS might be the better choice.

If you want to use some of your Windows legacy programs, this could be perfect for you. Just keep in mind that this tablet runs an Atom processor so don’t expect to play games like Crysis, or use resource-heavy applications on this thing. What do you think, interested or not?

[ source ]

The post Dell Latitude 10 Essentials Windows 8 Tablet Announced, Starts at $499 appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

While Blackberry’s B10 event isn’t until later this month, that doesn’t stop RIM from talking about the future of Blackberry 10 at CES this week. Specifically, the conversation with RIM turned to hardware in a recent interview conducted by Fierce Wireless.

Yah, we know: there’s the BlackBerry Z10 and the Blackberry X10. Actually, while those are the first two devices that will launch, that’s far from their entire BB10 offering for 2013.

According to CMO Frank Boulben of RIM, we should expect at least six Blackberry 10 devices this year in order to cover the widest range of price points possible. Having a wide range of devices out the door within the first year of the platform’s life certainly sounds like a good plan, and really isn’t all that surprising.

The big question on everyone’s mind is if RIM and the Blackberry brand have what it takes to break out of being a niche product. While I personally don’t think RIM is going anywhere anytime soon, they are far from one of the big mobile players these days.

Do you think that Blackberry 10 can change their fate in the mobile market or are they doomed to stay a distant third (or even fourth?) in the mobile market going forward? Conversely, do you look forward to the Z10 and X10 or will you hold out for their other handsets later in the year?

[ source ]

The post RIM Plans to Release Around Six New Blackberry 10 Devices This Year appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

Hisense has unveiled a new Google TV this year at CES, the XT780.  While Hisense may not be a make you are familiar with, they are quickly trying to change that.  Hisense first got into the Google TV market back in 2012 at IFA in Berlin.  They unveiled the Pulse set top box, add-on hardware similar to the Roku series.

This year they stepped it up with a TV, with integrated Google TV and other standard pre-loaded apps like Netflix, Pandora, Google Play Store and Chrome browser.  This TV will be available in a 55 inch and 65 inch model.

The XT780 also has a smart search that will search live TV and paid and free services to find the content that you want.  It also allows for multitasking, being able to browse the net or social network while watching television.

Also a multiscreen play feature allows users to share content and control between iOS and Android based devices so that with a simple swipe of the device screen they can share music, movies and photos.  The remote control for the XT780 comes with some premium features as well, a double sided wedge shaped remote that even has a built-in touchpad and a QWERTY keyboard for easy web surfing.  The remote also has a built in mic for voice control of the device.

The Vice President of Consumer Electronics at Hisense USA said “The XT780 gives a whole new audience the opportunity to enjoy Google TV,” “Offering access to a vast array of content and services, the intuitive XT780 with Google TV brings the convenience of an all in one entertainment hub in a beautifully designed, upgradeable package.”

I would say Hisense is doing it right, and I look forward to picking up one of their sets.  Hopefully the price point will be one that makes them a common name in households across North America and beyond.

[ source ]

The post Hisense Unveils New Google Integrated TV at CES appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

So what are they going to use that money for?  Obviously they have used a majority of the funds to smooth the development of the first release console.  But they will use some of it for something a bit more exciting, a 3D version.  We don’t know anything else other than it will offer stereoscopic gaming on compatible 3D TVs.

According to Pocket-Lint, not only will this system be released in the U.S. for $99, but will also hit the UK with a price tag of £99 available March of 2013.

Pocket-Lint also reported that when the standard OUYA is finally released, it will be an Amazon.com exclusive, if true, it could limit the market, which could be what they want, considering this is more of an enthusiast indie console and not so much of a mainstream device like the Xbox 360 or Playstation 3.  Still, with NVIDIA unveiling a much more advanced handheld Android system just yesterday, they might adjust their marketing plan.

Are you still excited for the OUYA release or not?

The post Some Exciting Announcements Out of the OUYA Camp appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

[CES 2013] Remember the Diamond Multimedia AMP1000 Android media player? Well Diamond is back at CES with a sequel, the AMP 2000.

Like the AMP1000, you get an Android-based box that is powered by a unique remote, though it looks like a lot of changes have been made to the keyboard/virtual-mouse control with the newest AMP2000.

They also make mention that it will have Netflix, Google Play and other features found in the first AMP device.

Besides the new remote, what else is different? This time around Diamond says that the device will feature “Google TV” capabilities, though they are pretty vague on the details here. Honestly, Diamond was pretty scarce on details all around, and so we know little about when this is coming or how much it will cost.

What Diamond did reveal is that it will arrive in March or April of this year. As for the cost, the original AMP-1000 was around $100, so hopefully this newer model isn’t too much more.

What do you think, interested or not?

[ source ]

The post Diamond Announces New AMP2000 Android Player with Google TV Support appeared first on Mobile Magazine.