The HTC Butterfly 2 is half of the company’s replacement squad for the HTC One (M8) in markets where the flagship isn’t available. Coupled with the HTC One (E8), it uses more or less the same platform as the One (M8) but lacks the premium build materials and the hefty price tag that comes with them.

Despite its name this is the third overall Butterfly smartphone behind the original and the Butterfly S and HTC hasn’t stood still for the past year. The HTC Butterfly 2 has a key differentiator from the One (E8) and that’s its ability to withstand water for up to 1 meter and dust. Read more »

Announced earlier this month, the new Moto G succeeds the most successful smartphone in Motorola’s history. The first generation of the stylish, budget-friendly handset is solely responsible for bringing the manufacturer back in contention in a number of key markets globally.

The newcomer has grown in size compared to its predecessor, thanks to its larger display. Read more »

The semi-circular LCD on the Moto 360 seems to be having a problem with image retention. A couple of users have reported their Moto 360 continues to show the circular charging bar on the screen even after you stop charging.

Certain LCDs are occasionally prone to image retention or persistence issue, wherein if an image is displayed on the screen continuously for too long it gets stuck on the screen for a while and is visible even if you go to another screen. This is different from image burn-in that happens on AMOLED panels, where the pixels are permanently transformed and it’s temporary on LCD but it’s still annoying to see the previous image faintly on the screen even after you move to the next one. Read more »

Following our Apple iPhone 6 poll, it’s now time for its bigger brother, the iPhone 6 Plus, to go under the spotlight. This is the first time Apple is making a 5.5″ smartphone, but the Android competition is more than ready in the face of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4, Galaxy Note Edge and the LG G3.

What’s left is to pit each one of them against the largest iPhone to date and see which you think is the better one in each of the polls. Read more »

Last Sunday, we asked you to choose between the Apple iPhone 6, Samsung Galaxy Alpha and the Sony Xperia Z3 Compact in our weekly survey. All of the phones are in the high-end compact smartphone realm and offer premium build quality with a ton of features and heaps of charisma.

But which one is the best according to you? Well, certainly that’s not the iPhone 6. In both polls, the majority of you chose the Galaxy Alpha and the Xperia Z3 Compact. Read more »

Sony announced that it has its own Google Glass competitor in the works called SmartEyeglass. A software development kit for the gadget is already available to interested developers.

Sony SmartEyeglass packs a number of sensors that include CMOS image solution, accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, microphone, and brightness sensor. Read more »

Samsung’s enterprise-oriented security feature, KNOX, got a sizable discount – it costs $0 for the basic Express version. With it your employer can create a password-protected partition on the device where apps and data are kept safe.

This new offering comes from a partnership between Samsung and Centrify, which will handle the management layer. Read more »

In lieu of Apple’s detailed commitment to user privacy, Google followed suit by laying out its own plans for handling the matter. The search giant will begin encrypting user data by default starting with the next major mobile OS release, currently known as Android L.

Android encryption has been available since 2011. Read more »

Verizon has started selling the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 today. The tablet is being offered with built-in 4G LTE connectivity, as you’d expect. It’s already up for grabs at the carrier online, as well as in brick and mortar stores.

For a limited time, if you get it with a two-year data contract you’ll only need to pay $499.99. Otherwise, the full price of the Tab S is $599.99. You can also use Verizon’s Edge installment plan to pick up the tablet. In this case, you don’t pay anything upfront, but then you have to make 20 monthly payments of $29.99. Read more »

Amazon has announced a special Kids Edition of the Kindle Fire HD. This is essentially the newly announced Kindle Fire HD in 6-inch and 7-inch sizes but with a special rubber case around it to prevent it from being damaged.

If, however, your kid does somehow managed to break it, the Kids Edition comes with a two-year, no questions asked replacement guarantee. Read more »

A week ago, Google unveiled the Chrome OS support for certain Android apps. Now, thanks to a custom tool for Chrome OS, you can install any Android app you like, not just a select few.

Called chrome-apk, the tool requires a bit of tinkering to install, but is well worth it if you don’t have the intention to wait for Google to promote the the new Chrome OS App Runtime out of beta. Read more »

OnePlus cancelled production of the optional bamboo StyleSwap covers for its affordable flagship killer. The optional back covers made their debut alongside the OnePlus One back in April.

It turns out that OnePlus experienced technical difficulties in mass-producing the accessories. Read more »

To garner more attention to its newest Moto X flagship, Motorola has released a trio of TV spots highlighting its new – and some not so new – features.

Motorola released its latest Moto X flagship earlier this month without much fanfare, in an exclusive US event held separately from the IFA festivities in Europe. Read more »

Apple may have tried to Photoshop out the protruding camera on its new iPhones but everyone – including Sony – has seen through it. Sony has posted a jab directed at Apple on its Facebook page saying “the only thing that sticks out with the Xperia Z3 camera is its features…”

Granted the Xperia Z3 is slightly thicker but it’s just by a hair – it measures 7.3mm thick, while the iPhone 6 is 6.9mm thick. Read more »

There is no doubt the new iPhone 6 and especially the iPhone 6 Plus are aimed squarely at the flagship Android devices. Tim Cook himself admitted in a recent interview that it is an opportunity for them to switch people from Android to iOS, and they are doing everything they can to win back those people who they lost to Android because they didn’t have a big screen phone.

Well, other than just having a big screen phone, Apple is also helping out people who might be on the fence to switching over. One thing they did is put up a support page on their website that details how you can go about migrating your content from your Android phone to an iPhone. Read more »