Nokia Phablet Coming Soon

Nokia

(Image Credit: http://www.slashgear.com)

“Strike when the iron is hot” appears to be the idiom of the day for Nokia as reports hinted at the possible release of a Nokia phablet that will go up against similar large-display smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy Note.

An unidentified source revealed that the Finnish multinational company is aiming to enter the phablet market with a number of devices that are set to be released before the end of the year including the reported Nokia phablet. The source revealed that the device will be a smartphone/tablet hybrid similar to the device currently being offered by the South Korean company in the market.

In addition to the reported Nokia phablet, the company is also set to release a number of high-end smartphones within the year. This comes as the Nokia Lumia product lineup continues to struggle to increase its share of the market that is currently being dominated by iOS and Android devices.

One of these high-end devices will be the first Nokia Lumia smartphone featuring the Pureview technology of the company. It will come with a forty-megapixel camera and is set to be introduced by the company by July.  Another smartphone that is set to be released is an enhanced version of the Nokia Lumia 920 along with a low-cost model, which will be released by fall.

The company revealed that it was able to deliver around 5.6 million units of its Lumia smartphone in the first quarter, which is higher than the 4.4 million units it delivered in the fourth quarter last year. However, this is nowhere near to the shipments that its competitors have reported for their respective devices.

Apple revealed that it delivered around 37 million units of its iPhones last quarter while Samsung reportedly shipped over 61 million units in the same period.

The Finnish company anticipates a 27 percent increase in shipments for its Lumia smartphones during the present quarter. Despite the upcoming release of Nokia phablet and other high-end smartphones, the company will have to double its effort in order to get a good enough share of the market that is currently dominated by Samsung and Apple.

June 20 Event For Samsung Galaxy S3

Samsung Galaxy S3

(Image Credit: telegraph.co.uk)

A press event is reportedly going to be held by Samsung in New York for the upcoming release of the Samsung Galaxy S3 into the US market.

The reported press event is scheduled to be held on June 20 as the South Korean company prepares for the introduction of its latest smartphone offering in the UnitedStates. The venue of the press event will be at the Skylight Studios of New York and will highlight the Samsung Galaxy S3, which is considered as the ‘next big thing’ by the company.

Earlier reports have indicated that pre-orders for the Samsung Galaxy S3 were already being accepted by some US-based mobile service providers as its release into the North American market nears. Although the US version of the upcoming Samsung smartphone will not feature a quad-core processor, it is still considered a remarkable device by some industry watchers.

The upcoming Samsung Galaxy S3 will feature a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED HD screen display, dual-core processor, 4G LTE network support and the Android 4.0 OS.

More US Carriers To Offer Samsung Galaxy S3 By June

Samsung Galaxy S3

(Image Credit: telegraph.co.uk)

It appears that the Samsung Galaxy S3 will not be limited to T-Mobile when it will enter the US market since four other carriers will be offering the latest smartphone offering of Samsung.

In addition to T-Mobile, US Cellular, Sprint, AT&T and Verizon are expected to include the Samsung Galaxy S3 on their respective smartphone lineups. The upcoming release of the latest flagship smartphone of Samsung through the five US-based carriers was announced recently by Samsung and although there were no specific release dates, the Samsung Galaxy S3 will be released by these US carriers within the month of June. Prices for the upcoming smartphone from Samsung will start at around $200.

The US variant of the Samsung Galaxy S3 will feature a dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 processor rather than the quad-core 1.4GHz Exynos processor of Samsung, which is featured on the international version of the device.

The incompatibility between the quad-core processor and the LTE networks of the US carriers may have been the reason for the use of the Qualcomm processor for the US variant of the Samsung Galaxy S3. The US variant of the HTC One X also uses as similar processor as opposed to the Tegra 3 processor that comes with the international version of the device.

Despite using a dual-core processor for the US variant of the Samsung Galaxy S3, observers have revealed that it still offers optimum performance for the upcoming device.

The other features on the Samsung Galaxy S3 include a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED HD screen display, 8MP camera that is capable of recording 1080p HD videos, 4G LTE network support and a number of applications that are featured on the Android 4.0 mobile platform from Google.

The display of the Samsung Galaxy S3 also features the Gorilla Glass 2.0 which offer a slim yet stronger protection for the device. The latest Samsung flagship smartphone also comes with a 2GB RAM and an internal storage of 16GB or 32GB.

Sprint HTC EVO 4G LTE Enters US Market

HTC EVO 4G LTE

(Image Credit: pcmag.com)

Following a recent delay in the release of the HTC EVO 4G LTE due to a customs-related issue, the latest smartphone offering of Sprint was released recently into the US market by Sprint.

Pre-ordered units of the HTC EVO 4G LTE were delivered by Sprint last week together with a free casing as a peace offering to customers due to the delay in the release of the units. The HTC EVO 4G LTE of Sprint will have a price tag of around $200 with the standard two-year service contract.

The latest entry into the smartphone lineup of Sprint features a 4.7-inch display screen with a720 by 1280 resolution, 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB RAM and an expandable internal storage of 16GB. The device also comes with an 8MP camera that features a LED flash.

The HTC EVO 4G LTE was supposed to enter the US market last May 18 however its release was delayed due to a patent dispute between HTC and Apple. This resulted to its being held by US Customs as ordered by the International Trade Commission. Following the removal of the code that supposedly infringed the patent held by Apple, the HTC EVO 4G LTE was cleared for release into the US market.

Users of the HTC EVO 4G LTE will be able to benefit from the LTE network of Sprint, which will reportedly become available before the end of the year.

Facebook Smartphone May Be Unveiled Next Year

Facebook Smartphone

The so-so performance of Facebook in the stock exchange did not seem to affect the company as recent reports have hinted at the possibility that the company will be releasing a smartphone by next year. According to anonymous sources, a Facebook smartphone is reportedly is in the future plans of the social networking company.

The sources were reportedly Facebook employees, engineers and individuals who had an idea on the plans of the company. Reports have indicated that at least six former employees of Apple were hired by the company who will likely work on the reported Facebook smartphone.

These former employees of Apple were reportedly hardware and software engineers who were involved in development of the Apple iPhone as well as the iPad.

The supposed Facebook smartphone calls to mind earlier reports where the company was supposedly planning on producing a Facebook smartphone last November. Earlier reports hinted at a Facebook smartphone that will integrate the social network into the core of the device and was given the codename ‘Buffy’. HTC was supposed to produced the Facebook smartphone last November, which was supposedly going to be introduced in the third quarter of this year.

During the 2011 Mobile World Congress, two smartphones, which featured a dedicated Facebook button, were introduced by HTC, the HTC ChaCha and the HTC Salsa. The HTC ChaCha was later released as the HTC Status.

According to recent reports, the ‘Buffy’ project was expanded by the company as it created a team of engineers who have experience in developing devices. One of the engineers in the team that will supposedly produce the Facebook smartphone was a part of the team that worked on the Apple iPhone. The engineer was able to meet the head of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, who asked him questions about a smartphone.

For the moment no statements were issued by Facebook in connection to the reports of a possible launch of a Facebook smartphone since the company does not make comments on speculations and rumors.

Samsung Omnia M Introduced in the European Market

Samsung Omnia M

(Image Credit: crave.cnet.co.uk)

Another low-end Windows Phone was introduced by Samsung in Europe recently, the Samsung Omnia M.

The Samsung Omnia M features a four-inch Super AMOLED screen display, 1GHz processor, 384MB RAM, 4GB internal storage and a five-megapixel camera. Although the South Korean company did not reveal the price of the latest Windows Phone-powered device, its features indicates that the Samsung Omnia M will likely go up against the Nokia Lumia 610, a low-end device.

In comparison to the Samsung Omnia M, the Nokia Lumia 610 comes with a 3.7-inch screen display, 800MHz processor, 256MB RAM, 8GB internal storage and a five-megapixel camera.

Basing on this comparison, the two Windows Phone devices offer similar features with the Samsung Omnia M having the upper hand in terms of the display, processor, and RAM. On the other hand, the Nokia Lumia 610 has a bigger internal storage compared to the Samsung Omnia M. Both devices feature a five-megapixel camera.

Although both devices have a smaller RAM compared to most Windows Phone-powered smartphones, the Windows Phone 7.5 can be used on devices that have a smaller RAM than an earlier version of the mobile OS though it may be necessary for apps to be optimized by developers to allow them to run using a 256MB RAM.

The Samsung Omnia M is only 10.5 millimeters thick, which makes it slimmer compared to the 12 millimeter thickness of the Nokia Lumia 610. The Nokia device is also heavier at 131.5 grams compared to the 119 grams of the Samsung device. The similarity of the features of the two devices has led industry watchers to speculate that the price of the Samsung Omnia M to be similar to the $244 price tag of the Nokia Lumia 610.

Although the Samsung Galaxy SIII is currently hogging the headlines, the introduction of the Samsung Omnia M shows that the company does not want to limit itself to the Android OS, which would provide it more flexibility in the market.

The Samsung Omnia M will be available initially in the European market although it will be released in other markets as well.

Sony To Unveil the Sony Xperia P and the Sony Xperia U at MWC

(Image Credit: cnet.com.au)

Two Sony Xperia smartphones will be unveiled by Sony during the Mobile World Congress. These smartphones, the Sony Xperia P and the Sony Xperia U, will be the first dual-core Android-powered smartphones of the company following its acquisition of Ericsson recently.

The Sony Xperia P and the Sony Xperia U are expected to be delivered to Barcelona for the annual trade event for mobile gadgets.  The Sony Xperia P and the Sony Xperia U will have the capability of connecting to the Sony Entertainment Network, which would provide users with a number of entertainment options.

The Sony Xperia P and the Sony Xperia U will also feature the Bravia graphics, which will facilitate the display of websites, games, and HD movies.

Even as Sony Xperia P and the Sony Xperia U share some features, they also have some differences which would give users of the two Android-powered smartphones different user experiences.

The Sony Xperia P will feature the WhiteMagic technology that allows the display of text and images with excellent illumination. The four-inch screen of the smartphone will also focus on the content and provide solid details with its 960 by 540 qHD resolution. The Sony Xperia P also features an eight-megapixel camera that has the capability of recording 2D as well as 3D panoramas.

In contrast, the Sony Xperia U will come with a 3.5-inch display screen that features an 854 by 480 resolution. The Sony Xperia U also features a five-megapixel camera.

The two Android-powered smartphones from Sony also features the near field communication or NFC technology, which would allow the devices to utilize the more advanced features of the Android 4.0 OS like the Google Beam and Google Wallet. This is however dependent on an Android 4.0 update or the use of the latest Android OS for the device.

However, some observers have indicated that they were somewhat disappointed by the use of the dual-core processor on the Sony Xperia P and the Sony Xperia U instead of a quad-core processor. For the moment the price tag of the two devices were not yet revealed by the company.

Leak Reveals Sony Xperia U

Sony Xperia U

A recent leak has revealed a new model under the Xperia smartphone line of Sony, the Sony Xperia U.

The Sony Xperia U is a mid-range smartphone that will have a removable battery and is anticipated to be unveiled in the Mobile World Congress within this month.

The device will reportedly feature a smaller-sized touchscreen at around 3.5 inches, which is similar to that of the iPhone 4S although it will have a lower resolution in comparison to the Apple smartphone.

The Sony Xperia U is considered by some industry watchers as the ‘brother’ of the Sony Xperia S, which will enter the market in the coming weeks.

The Sony Xperia U also comes with a number of features according to information that was leaked online. These features include a 1GHz dual-core processor, the Gingerbread Android OS with the custom skin from Sony, and a five-megapixel rear-facing camera.

The 1290mAh battery of the Sony Xperia U will reportedly be a removable component of the smartphone.

Even as the Sony Xperia U is expected to be introduced during the upcoming Mobile World Congress, sales of the Sony Xperia S will start in the coming month through service providers in the UK and a number of third party sellers. This high-end smartphone can also be delivered to the US and other markets around the world.

Since the Sony Xperia S comes with a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 720p HD screen and a twelve-megapixel camera, the device is a high-end smartphone. This is in contrast to the Sony Xperia U, which has somewhat lower yet notable specifications.

The Sony Xperia S will also come with the Gingerbread Android OS, similar to that of the Samsung Galaxy U, although the Ice Cream Sandwich Android is expected in the second quarter on the present year.

Google Nexus One Rising

Google recently launched its answer to Apple's iPhone, the Google Nexus One. This entry to the global mobile phone market will be initially available to consumers through plans offered through T-Mobile at $79.99 per month. This will be an unlimited call and text plan. But consumers can also

get the phone through a Google-run Website. Verizon will make it available in their network by spring this year. An unlocked version of the phone is also offered at $529 at Google's phone store.

The Nexus One's features include a 3.7 inch touchscreen, the soon-to-be-standard 5 MP camera with autofocus and a 2x digital zoom, Micro SD card slot, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, as well as an assisted global positioning system (AGPS) receiver. It runs using Google's Android Mobile Technology Platform 2.1 OS.

With its 1 Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, it has more memory compared to the iPhone. Its size is also smaller with a thickness of 11.5 mm compared to the iPhone's 12. 3 mm. In terms of cost, it will cost lesser compared to the iPhone in a comparative analysis made in a PC World article by JR Raphael.

With all the anticipation for the Google Nexus One to come out in the market, US consumers will have the first crack at the phone and test its performance against the other smartphones out in the market today. They even set up a You Tube channel for the phone to reach a bigger consumer base when it starts selling on a global scale.