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BLU Jenny and Tank offer color screen, camera and microSD slot for under $20

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BLU is moving in to steal Nokia’s claim to having the cheapest handset – meet Tank and Jenny. Both phones offer a good deal more than the €16 Nokia 103, even if they do lack the pedigree of the Finnish phone.

The two phones pack a 1.8″ color displays. The image quality most certainly won’t be brilliant but at this price range you’re typically looking at monochrome screens. They even have a camera capable of video recording – the press release doesn’t say anything about resolution, but any camera is a step above none, right? Read more »

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean already ported to HTC One X, not ready for prime time yet

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Just as expected, the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean ROMs for the Samsung Galaxy Nexus are already out – both officially and unofficially – but the HTC One X gets to join in on the action too.

Initially based on the SDK, the ROM created by an XDA-Developers member is now based on the Galaxy Nexus images. Read more »

Google’s Nexus 7 priced at GBP159/GBP199 in the UK

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Google revealed the super attractive US pricing of the Google Nexus 7 tablet at yesterday’s keynote speech, but didn’t say anything on the cost of the tablet in the UK. Fortunately, we only got to wait a few hours to find out how expensive the trip across the ocean turned out.

If you live in Britain, you are now able to pre-order an 8GB Google Nexus 7 for £159, while the 16GB version of the slate will set you back £199. This is about 25% more expensive than what US residents will pay for the Nexus 7, but then again that’s how things usually work in this business. Read more »

Google Maps for Android ver. 6.9 brings Offline Maps (to supported countries)

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Google just released the latest version of Google Maps to most Android devices (Android 2.2+). The release brings the hotly anticipated feature of offline maps pre-caching.

Before you jump in joy, make a note that there are some limitations that are not clearly mentioned on the lid. Read more »

Don’t like an Android app you paid for? You actually have 48h to get a refund

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Whether it be for a quick one shot task or just a game to kill some time, we’ve all bought an app on impulse that we quickly come to loathe for one reason or another, all the more so because we paid money for it.

While it may be too late to get your money back for your particular regretful purchase, there is a way to get a refund on your next one, if you act quickly enough. Read more »

Nokia 808 PureView takes an impressive video of a racing catamaran

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After getting so much praise for its incredible 41MP camera, the Nokia 808 PureView decided to take a well deserved vacation. Instead of spending all day on the beach though, the 808 found itself shooting a video of the racing catamaran Nacra Infusion MKII.

The impressive video you are about to see was actually shot using two 808 PureView units tightly packed into a plastic bag with holes for the lenses. Read more »

Apple wins an injunction against Samsung, halts the sales of Galaxy Tab 10.1 in the United States

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The latest chapter of the patent feud between Samsung and Apple has come upon us, people. This one is actually more important than the usual, as it marks Apple’s greatest achievement against its Korean rival in the United States – a preliminary injunction, banning the sales of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1.

Yes, that’s the same Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, which got banned in Germany last year, prompting Samsung to release a redesigned version of the slate. Read more »

Samsung Galaxy S III uses Wolfson’s WM1811 audio chip

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The Samsung Galaxy S III uses Wolfson Microelectronics’ WM1811 Audio Hub – the chip device that converts digital sound into analog, bringing users crystal clear HD sound during calls and during audio playback. This information was confirmed by Wolfson itself on the company’s website.

For those unfamiliar with Wolfson and Samsung’s partnership the Wave and Galaxy S both used the WM8994 Audio Hub and have been regarded as stellar performers. Read more »

OneCloud from Box now available on Android

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Box.com’s recently released OneCloud platform, aimed at providing enterprise level cloud storage solutions, is now available to Android users.

OneCloud is designed to allow third-party app developers the ability to sync to a Box account from within their app, which eliminates the problems when trying to view files edited via a mobile platform in a desktop environment. Read more »

The eco-friendly Samsung Galaxy Exhilarate for AT&T dropped by, here’s a hands-on

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The AT&T exclusive Samsung Galaxy Exhilarate i577 is not the first Android smartphone with eco credentials from the Korean giant. However, the LTE packing, inconspicuously looking handset offers last year’s top shelf spec sheet to go with its low price . All in all, enough to get us curious.

The Samsung Galaxy Exhilarate features a Qalcomm Snapdragon S3 chipset with two 1.2 GHz Scorpion cores, and a gig of RAM. Read more »

The Nokia heavyweight is here, we take the Lumia 900 for a spin

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Just days after the exciting Windows Phone 8 announcement we have the Lumia 900 at our doorstep.

The Nokia Lumia 900 immediately felt special with its glossy white finish and gorgeous display. Jump past the break for more. Read more »

PureView’s take on the PureView: We shoot a hands-on video with the Nokia 808

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We’ve had a lot of requests for all sorts of tests of the PureView’s camera capabilities, and one which caught our eye was using the device to shoot one of our hands-on videos.

And what more appropriate smartphone to put in front of the camera than…another PureView! PureViewception anyone? Check out our video to see how well it did. Read more »

Quad-core comes to town: the LG Optimus 4X HD pays us a visit

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What we have in the office is something special. LG’s new flagship is at our door and it looks eager to strut its stuff and flex some quad-core muscles.

The LG Optimus 4X HD has a strong claim as one of the best phones on the market right now. And if quad-core Tegra 3 processing, True HD-IPS display of 720p resolution and Android 4.0.3 aren’t enough by themselves, take a peek inside for our video of the 4X HD in action. Read more »

Huawei Ascend P1 battery life test completes, scores come out mixed

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We’ve had the Huawei Ascend P1 in our office long enough to run the battery tests. Since we couldn’t find official battery life numbers on Huawei’s website, this is our first look at how long the 1670mAh battery lasts.

The Ascend P1 performed more or less as we expected it to – with web browsing once again proving to be the bane of AMOLED screens. The other numbers are very good though. Read more »

Editorial: A few thoughts on Windows Phone 8

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Microsoft officially pulled the curtain on Windows Phone 8 at yesterday’s Windows Phone Summit and we see promise of exciting times for the industry.

While it’s temptingly easy to pass verdicts before we’ve actually seen any real WP8-rocking hardware, here go a few of my thoughts on the announcements. Read more »