Nokia asks the FCC for permission to upgrade the Nokia Lumia 620 to Bluetooth 4.0+LE

Nokia has asked the FCC for permission to upgrade the Nokia Lumia 620 (RM-846) to Bluetooth Low Energy support via a software update.  The update will bring support to the Bluetooth 4.0 chip which is already shipping with the handset, with only Bluetooth 3.0 features enabled.

Going along with this news is an interesting rumour – that Nokia is releasing a Bluetooth Low Energy Accessory in the form of the Nokia Treasure Tag WS2, which can be attached to keys, luggage or other items and which can then be located from your Windows Phone.

We certainly have no evidence for the veracity of that report, but Nokia is well known to support capabilities of their handsets with accessories, so it seems likely all the work to enable Bluetooth Low Energy support will probably also being some new accessories.

See the filing at the FCC here.

Google Engineer Explains Why Multi-User Isn't Enabled For Phones, Offers Hope For Future Functionality

Ever since its inception in Android 4.2, end-users have wondered why the multi-user function has been restricted to tablets. While switching between profiles desktop-style certainly makes the most sense on tablets, there's no technical reason why it couldn't be enabled for phones as well. Yesterday an official Android engineer took to Reddit to explain the reasoning behind the limitation.

"...it is not at all clear how it should work on a phone, specifically with respect to SMS and phone calls," writes Dan Morrill, Google Engineer and a regular on the popular /r/Android subreddit. "Suppose you have device sharing enabled and then a call comes in. Who gets it? Do you punch through to the current user? Only the owner gets it? If only the owner can answer, does it ring for the second user? Is it worse to annoy the current user with a ringing phone they can't answer, or worse for dad to miss a call from his boss because Junior was playing Angry Birds?"

Morrill cites user research as Google's primary reason for leaving multi-user off of post-4.2 phone builds. Apparently testers responded negatively to the idea of sharing phones, which are understandably more personal than tablets. (When's the last time you left the house without your trusty Android phone?) Even so, a few use cases like long-term device loans could benefit from the feature, especially now that Android 4.3 has introduced more robust controls. 

Morrill says that Google may revisit the idea of multi-user on phones, if only for some very targeted use cases. "Something like a 'lockdown mode' so Junior can play Angry Birds with his own scores might make sense," he writes, though he makes it clear that the full sharing option currently seen on tablets is likely to be enabled in AOSP. In the meantime, advanced users can try mods or custom ROMs, and there's nothing stopping manufacturers from enabling the feature on their customized software.

Source: Reddit

Google Wallet Not Officially Compatible With The 2013 Nexus 7

Update: Director of Product Management for Google Wallet Peter Hazlehurst dropped by our comments section below to confirm that Wallet is not compatible with the new Nexus 7 for the same reason as the HTC One Play Edition – the device does not carry a secure element, the small bit of hardware required to store encrypted card credentials on a device. This is required in order for Wallet to function, well, securely.

If you're the owner of a 2013 Nexus 7 and if were planning on using Google's own mobile payment solution with the NFC-toting slab, you may be surprised to learn that Google Wallet is in fact not compatible with the latest seven-inch addition to the Nexus family. Not yet, anyway.

Last night, we received a tip bringing this to our attention, and it turned out to be true – Wallet can't be installed from the Play Store, and can't be installed using the latest APK either.

 

Right now, we're not sure what the hold up is with Wallet compatibility, but we've reached out to Google on the matter for an official statement, or word on whether the service will ever live happily on the new Nexus 7. We'll keep you posted as we learn more.

Thanks Keith and Justin!

Standard Chartered release a Mobile Shopping for Windows Phone

Levitate  Mobile Technologies has released what appears to be an official Standard Chartered Mobile Shopping app for India.

The app  brings you a convenient method to shop for many products and order food at your finger tips right from your phone and delivered right to your doorstep.

The app allows one to order food for home delivery from over 1200 restaurants without having to find phone numbers or menus. The menus are on the phone itself and you can choose the items you want and order from anywhere, any time.

You can also order a variety of products and services under across different categories, send gifts to your family and friends and also access special offers while shopping.

You can make payment via COD, Credit card or debit card.

The app is free and can be found in the Windows Phone Store here.

Thanks S.M.A.Sithick for the tip.

Infographic: 41 Reasons to buy a Nokia Lumia 1020

WLC Gram is a new Instagram client for Windows Phone users

Third party Instagram clients are a dime a dozen in the Windows PhoneStore. Actually, it costs more than that. The latest of the apps that bring Instagram functionality to Windows Phone is available as WLC Gram is now here. The app will cost you 99 cents and there is a 9 hour free trial that you can try before you buy.

The features include the ability to register an Instagram account. After you take a picture, there are a number of filters that you can use, just like the real site, and you can view images uploaded by friends. You can alsoshare pictures with Instagram using the app. Checking the name of a friend or a particular hashtag, you can search for a specific profile page and view the pictures on those pages.

According to the developer, in progress is a way to "like" photos and comment on them, and a way to view Instagram videos. Another feature being worked on is the ability to share pictures with Facebook and Twitter users. You can check out WLC Gram, currently listed at the Windows Phone Store.

Screenshots from WLC Gram

source: WLCGram via WMPoweruser

Retail packaging for Apple iPhone 5C leaks

A picture showing a number of plastic retail boxes with an Apple iPhone 5C insignia printed on the side indicates that Apple could be using the letter "C" to differentiate the low-cost version of its smartphone with the next full-priced version of the phone. The next "premium" varaiant of the device is rumored to be called the Apple iPhone 5S. With the multi-colored plastic shells that have been floating around lately, purportedly for the low-cost iPhone, the "C" could stand for "color".

While we have to look at the photograph with a skeptical eye, the plastic packaging in the photo does resemble the way that the Apple iPod touch is currently sold. The 5th generation Apple iPod touch is sold in a similar plastic container with the device inside the container, covered with a transparent top.

The latest word we have is that Apple will introduce the Apple iPhone 5C and Apple iPhone 5S on September 18th with the actual launch taking place on September 27th. The Apple iPhone 5C will allegedly be similar to the Apple iPhone 5 but with a plastic shell and other key parts made from plastic to lower the build cost. Those buying the iPhone 5C will be able to select different from different colored shells. The phone is expected to help Apple compete in emerging markets with low-cost handsets like the Nokia Lumia 520.

Is this the retail packaging for the Apple iPhone 5C?

source: Weiphone (translated) via AppleInsider

Quad Drawer is a solution to an Android problem

 

In the Android world, there’s one constant: if you don’t like something on your phone, change it. From wallpaper to launcher to ROM to kernel to firmware, there is a lot about Android you can customize.

But at its core, using Android is a lot like iOS, or any other mobile operating system. You open an app from the home screen, press the home or multitasking button and proceed into another app. Yes, there are widgets, and you can open the notification shade or Google Now (OK, there’s a lot more than just opening and closing apps, but you get the gist) but fundamentally your experience is going to be pretty similar from one day to the next.

Android’s home screen, with its ability to create a combination of folders and widgets, has always made organizing and opening apps quite easy. But LevelUp Studio, the team behind blockbuster apps like Beautiful Widgets and Plume for Twitter, has envisioned a world of even simpler app launching, regardless of where you are and what you’re doing.

Quad Drawer is a simple $0.99 app that launches quickly to a T9-style keypad. Your apps are displayed either in alphabetical order or by frequency. Tapping the number keys whittles down the choices based on the letters included (so tapping on ’8′, for example, displays apps beginning with ‘T’, ‘U’ or ‘V’).

Quad Drawer is a standalone app itself, so you can easily access it from your launcher’s home screen, but it’s best used in Floating Window mode, sort of like Chat Heads for apps. This displays a tiny app drawer icon anywhere on the screen, which can be moved and hidden at a moment’s notice. Tapping on the icon will launch a windowed version of Quad Drawer, giving you quick access to a search bar and recently-launched apps.

My only qualm with Quad Drawer is that it doesn’t load fast enough. It’s the same issue I have with Google Now when searching for information, and that extra one to two seconds of waiting is often enough to just say, “screw it, I’ll find it myself.” I love the idea of Floating Window mode, and hope that LevelUp Studio can improve loading times and add a bit of customization to the icon; I’d love to be able to adjust its size and colour.

Quad Drawer definitely appeals to the terminal-loving, command prompt-using side of me, and fits in perfectly, with its Roboto fonts and minimalist UI, with the rest of the Holo aesthetic.

Download Quad Drawer for Android.

Google Official Confirms That New Nexus 10 Is in the Works

After the announcement of the New Nexus 7 tablet, Google has unofficially confirmed the upgrade of the bigger, more expensive, but less popular Nexus 10 tablet. Just like it happened with the previous generation, the New Nexus 10 will be co-developed by Google and Samsung and it’s launch is due soon.

Google’s Sundar Pichai, who is in charge with Android, Chrome and Google Apps affairs, has confirmed for a Wall Street Journal reporter that the New Nexus 10 is in the works. According to the Google official, the 10-inch tablet will be manufactured by Samsung and it will be launched in the near future. The Mountain View-based company made a habit out of announcing new Nexus smartphones and tablets each year and since the Nexus 10 was officially introduced in October, we should expect an upgraded version to see the light of day in a couple of months.

It’s a bit early to speculate about the Nexus 10 technical specifications, but since the last generation has impressed the public with it’s 2,560 x 1,600 pixels display expect the New Nexus 10 to come with a screen that has a resolution at least this high.

In case you forgot I remind you that last year’s Nexus 10 came with a 10.1-inch Super PLS TFT  display with a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600 pixels and an amazing 299 ppi, while sporting 16/32 GB of internal storage and 2 GB of RAM.

Since the terminal was manufactured by Samsung, the South Koreans agreed with Google to fit its proprietary Exynos 5 Dual chipset underneath its case, a powerful processing unit based on two Cortex A15 cores clocked at 1.7 GHz and Mali T604 GPU. The Nexus 10 also sports a 5 megapixel camera on the back with support for full HD video recording and a 1.9 megapixel front-facing camera that comes in handy when video calling your friends.

The Nexus 10 was an WiFi-only tablet with support for Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA standards, also packing Bluetooth 3.0, NFC, dual stereo speakers and microUSB 2.0.

The 10.1-inch tablet was launch synchronized with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, but after the recent Google press event, the slate got its Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update. What are your expectations for the next-gen Nexus 10?

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Won’t Come With a Fingerprint Reader

• Samsung Galaxy Note 3

It’s been rumored lately that all next-gen high-end smartphones will come with a fingerprint reader for enhanced security. Samsung Galaxy Note 3′s release date is due in a couple of months and many rumors have been talking about a fingerprint reader built into the physical button. Though it seems that Samsung encountered some issues with the fingerprint sensors and will not be able to ship the Galaxy Note 3 with them anymore.

According to ET News, a Korean website, Samsung’s contractor for the sensors, Validity Sensors, isn’t able to produce enough units, so the phone will have to come without them. It also seems that the Galaxy Note 3 is at the final development stage, which means we could soon start seeing more and more leaks, as they begin testing it.

Apple has also had problems with their fingerprint sensors, according to other rumors, so we might not see many smartphones with fingerprint readers this year after all.

Microsoft gets XboxOne.com title

For some companies, the release of new products could not get control of the relevant domain name, does bring a lot of trouble, especially in this age of the Internet, it is hard to imagine the input iPhone.com or Office.com, has entered do not know what stuff website. Microsoft released in May next generation home entertainment system Xbox One to suffer such embarrassment, but fortunately with forensic services company Richard Law Group 's help, Microsoft has already obtained XboxOne.com and XboxOne.net domain name.

Microsoft promises ‘unlimited free hard drive space’ via Xbox One’s extensive cloud network

Microsoft has had a less-than-stellar track record with the Xbox One so far: with somewhat fumbling PR and a host of unpopular features and policies, the Xbox One’s reveal didn’t go over so well in the gaming sphere.

Now Microsoft is aiming to change that by pushing a variety of newly announced features and content in order to redeem the console’s overall public image, and their most recent attempts have proven successful.

At this year’s PAX Australia, Microsoft unveiled some pretty impressive features for their next-gen Xbox One. First off, the Redmond-based gaming giant announced that gamers will be able to use the next-gen system to create and self-publish their own indie games–a move that was well received by many indie enthusiasts.

Now Microsoft offers something that every gamer can appreciate–more HDD capacity. 500 gigs isn’t by any means a smallish figure, but when gamers are downloading HD videos and huge next-gen gaming content via Xbox LIVE, that hard drive may be full before you know it.

To solve this, Microsoft has promised gamers the Xbox One will have “unlimited” drive space via the console’s extensive cloud network, and that it won’t cost users a dime.

According to a PR spokesperson from Microsoft, the cloud storage feature will be offered to allXbox LIVE subscribers and won’t be restricted to just Xbox LIVE Gold members–which is quite surprising, given the perks offered by the premium subscription.

Xbox Live offers Xbox One unlimited storage space in the cloud for all Xbox Live members to store numerous types of Xbox Live content, including your profile, games, Achievements and entertainment.

This content is stored and saved in the cloud so you can automatically access it anywhere, anytime, no matter where you are.

While Microsoft has touted their cloud network since the Xbox One was formally announced, we haven’t had very much clear-cut information regarding the specifics of the cloud. This new announcement may be enough to win a percentage of gamers who are still on the fence about which next-gen console is right for them, and it will be interesting to see if Sony counters with their own focus on cloud storage.

The PlayStation 4‘s cloud network, Gaikai, will be optimized for Sony’s PlayStation Store offering and may feature a variety of classics from the previous PlayStation consoles all the way back to the PS1. While Sony’s cloud-based service will offer a ton of content from a smattering of providers, we may not see unlimited hard drive space.

Even so the PS4 remains the dominant choice, and we’ll likely see the console war heat up in the coming months with Gamescom and this year’s Tokyo Game Show around the corner.

Via Examiner

Flight simulator player puts a real 737 cockpit in his home

So you think your triple screen flight sim setup is amazing…Think again, because it’s nothing compared to this man’s homemade cockpit of a 737.

40-year-old bartender Laurent Aigon, along with the help of some friends, spent thousands of euros over a span of about five years to obtain the necessary parts, and bit by bit they pieced the cockpit together until it became the master piece that it is today.

The impressive 737 cockpit is wedged in between a closet and a bunk-bed in his kid’s room, but that shouldn’t matter to the kids if they can brag about having a life-size airplane cockpit in their room.

Aigon’s passion for planes and flying began when he was 12 when he would spend countless hours watching planes land and take off at a nearby airport, but unlike his passion for taking off and landing planes, Aigon lacked the passion to follow through with further schooling to become an actual pilot.  So at 40, Aigon and his pals are still doing what kids do best, and that’s use their imagination—albeit with some more sophistication and funding at this stage.

What’s next for Aigon? Reportedly, now that he has experience in building a flight sim cockpit, the 40-year-old is thinking about pursuing a career in professional cockpit building to train professional pilots.  That, however, will require Aigon to take a couple courses (and then some), but hopefully he’s serious about it because we all know this man has got some serious talent.

Source: sudouest

Gaming at Ultra HD and beyond

4K Ultra HD is the next generation high-resolution display standard poised to replace 1080p Full HD. What could be like to be able to game at 4K Ultra HD and beyond?

Technically speaking, 4K represents the display resolution of 4096 × 2160. The general public sometimes refer to 4K as the collection of display size with horizontal resolution of about 4000 pixels. Ultra HD, on the other hand, is a new television standard with a resolution of 3840 x 2160, which is exactly four times the resolution of current the 1080p display. With the help of AMD, Microsoft put together 3 Ultra HD Sharp PN-K321 in Eyefinity 3×1 configuration powered by a ASUS Direct CU II 7970 to demonstrate Ultra HD gaming.

To showcase the awesomeness, Dirt 3 was chosen for the wide panaromic effect. A single ASUS Direct CU II 7970 graphics card is enough to push a 35 FPS at 11520 x 2160 on medium high overall settings with Multi Sampling Anti-aliasing (MSAA) turned off. Although Dirt 3 is not a particularly demanding game, this goes to show that the power of current generation GPUs are far beyond the mainstream 1080p resolution.

Due to the limitation of bandwidth, one display port can push out 4K resolution at 30 Hz. To sweeten the deal, 60 Hz is made possible by using a MST hub to create virtual displays through multiple display port connections. To achieve 11520 x 2160 at 60 Hz, 6 virtual 4K displays are linked into an Eyefinity group. With three 7970s in crossfire and a custom version of driver from AMD, Microsoft was able to achieve 62-67 average FPS in Dirt 3 with all settings on “high” except shadow detail and particles. Microsoft did not indicate the MSAA setting but it is assumed to be turned off.

This video shows Ultra HD gaming in action.

The price of the three displays alone is a whopping non mainstream $15,000. However, when the industry start adopting 4K as a standard, prices of monitors are bound to come down. 4K gaming is certainly not a far-fetched dream.

Source: Microsoft Blog

Cybercrimes causes $500 billion in economic losses and takes away millions of jobs

It’s extremely difficult to put an exact number on how much individuals and companies are losing each and every day due to cybercrimes, which can range from intellectual property theft to cyber espionage, among other activities.  Direct ‘stealing’ of data and personal information is what we usually hear about in the press, but the root of the problem goes a lot deeper.

According to the report, cybercrimes can destroy a company’s image, jeopardize national security, and leave hundreds of thousands of people jobless.  The digital landscape is as much a part of the real world as the physical landscape is to the information super highway. Loss in export resulting from intellectual property theft and malicious cyber activities is being correlated with job loss for real individuals.

The report estimates that for every $1 billion in loss of export, 5,080 jobs are lost.  So if global economic losses are in the range of several hundred billion dollars, we can guess as to how much that can influence the global job market.

Companies based in countries like the U.S. are, consequently, outsourcing jobs partly due to the fact that they are incurring losses due to cybercrimes.  Therefore, domestic unemployment due to labor outsourcing isn’t just about increasing profit, but also because some companies simply can’t stay afloat if they maintain high wage while taking hits every day from cybercrimes.

“If a good portion of these jobs were high-end manufacturing jobs that moved overseas because of intellectual property losses, the effects could be more wide ranging,” said James Lewis, co-author of the report.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 surfaced in database 5,5 - 5.7 and is 6.0 inch screen

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 has surfaced several times in a database called Indian Zauba. Herein is still unannounced phablet named with three different screen sizes, namely 5.5 to 5.7 and 6.0 inches. As the database suggests, these models are designed for the R & D department and the test specimens. This may well mean that the Korean manufacturer is itself not out yet is how big the screen will be the Galaxy Note 3.

I rather think that there are different sizes are used to tech followers on a false urges to continue in order to keep. Information secret as long as possible According to a previously leaked manual already found that the screen will be 5.7 inches wide so there I would put money on me.

It will not be that the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 in stores will be located. In three different sizes This seems highly unlikely.

However, where a difference will sit, in the use of the processor. This variable will depend on the region where you live.European and American population will probably get the phablet with 800 Snapdragon processor and Samsung's own Exynos SoC perform the calculations in Asia.

The third generation Galaxy Note will officially go during the IFA fair in Berlin. Announced in early September

( via )

How to Add Secondary Keyboard to iPhone

Adding a second keyboard to the iPhone is a very useful tool that can save time and increase productivity for many users. By default the iPhone only has a single keyboard enabled, which is the language most commonly used in your country. While this is fine, many people who speak multiple languages are left in the dust.

The iPhone has 40 different languages pre-installed, so there’s a good chance that the one in which you would like to add is already there. Adding multiple keyboards to the iPhone allows users to communicate more efficiently, compared to using translation apps to change their messages for family and friends.

Luckily with a few changes in settings multiple keyboards are only a button click away. Follow the guide below to set up more than one keyboard language for the iPhone.

Setup Multiple Keyboards.

From the home screen, open Settings.

Scroll down and select General.

Tap Keyboard.

Underneath the keyboard options, select Keyboards.

More than likely only one keyboard will be in the list. To add another keyboard tap Add New Keyboard.

On the next screen are all the language options available to choose from. By default the iPhone has 40 different language keyboards installed. Once you find the one that you would like to add, select it from the list by tapping on it.

After you have chosen your language it will then appear next to the other keyboard language on the previous page.

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To see your new keyboard in action head on over to the Messages app. Once in the app, you should notice something different about the keyboard compared to when there was only one installed. A small globe looking button will appear next to Siri on the bottom row of keys. This button is for switching back and forth between keyboards on the iPhone. To switch to the keyboard you just installed tap the Globe icon in the bottom of the screen.

After tapping the button your new keyboard will replace the one that you are using.

To switch back to the first keyboard select the globe icon again and the keyboard will shift back.

Some other options that might be helpful with multiple keyboards are the order in which they appear. For example if spanish is your primary language it could be more efficient to have this be the first keyboard. To change these settings go back to the list of keyboards and select Edit in the top right corner.

To reorganize the keyboard order drag them in the order that you would like them to appear from top to bottom. In this case if you wanted the Arabic keyboard to display first it would be on top and then the second keyboard second and so on.

To remove a keyboard from the list select the Red Circle to the right of the keyboard that you are eliminating.

Tap Delete.

And the keyboard will then be removed from the list. Once finished editing tap Done in the upper right hand corner.