Press shots of Moto X and refreshed Nexus 7 leaked

Serial leaker @evleaks has been at it again. On Saturday, press shots of the much-hyped Moto X had been leaked. However, nothing new whatsoever has been revealed in the images. Still, it should help to actually be able to see the closest thing we'll get to an official picture of the smartphone till the official unveiling. The smartphone is set to be officially unveiled at Motorola’s August 1 event.

 The leaker has also leaked out what seem to be press shots of the much-anticipated refresh to the Nexus 7 tablet. One of the biggest new things revealed in the pictures is the presence of a new camera on the back of the tablet. @evleaks has also suggested that 16GB and 32GB variants of the tablet will be available on launch.

The tablet seems to be quite close to being announced. The company had recently sent out invites to an event set to take place on July 24. While not much details about the event are available, it is rumoured that the company will be unveiling the refreshed Nexus 7 along with an update to Android, bringing it up to version 4.3. The event is set to be led by Android and Chrome OS chief Sundar Pichai.

Canonical looks to Indiegogo to crowdfund the Ubuntu Edge smartphone

Ubuntu developer Canonical has started a crowd-funding campaign on Indiegogo. The aim of the campaign is to raise $32,000,000 to develop a new smartphone, dubbed the Ubuntu Edge. The smartphone will be able to dual-boot on both Android as well as the open-source Ubuntu Mobile operating system. Getting your hands on the phone could be a pricey affair, however, since the minimum backing required to get the handset is $800 (Rs 47,770 approx)

The handset itself is quite powerful. It is going to have at least 4GB of RAM and Canonical has stated that it will be scouring the earth for the “fastest available multi-core processor”. For the display, the company is opting for a safe 4.5-inch screen size with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, which it deems is perfect for the gesture-heavy UI of Ubuntu mobile. The display will be protected not by Gorilla Glass or Dragontrail. Instead, Canonical will be shoving pure sapphire crystal on to the handset. To top things off, it will have 128GB of internal storage space, an LTE chip and HDMI port.

Other features include an 8 megapixel low-light camera on the back, a 2 megapixel front-facing camera, Bluetooth 4, NFC, an MHL connector, Wi-Fi. All of this will be kept alive by a Silicon-anode Li-Ion battery with an unspecified capacity.

On the software side of things, the Ubuntu Edge will dual-boot with Ubuntu phone OS and Android, and will also have the capability to turn into a full-scale Ubuntu desktop PC whenever it is connected to a computer. Ubuntu desktop can be launched from either Ubuntu phone or Android..

New LG Optimus G Pro E988

LG Optimus G Pro E988 Key Features

• 5.5-inch 1080p Full HD IPS Screen (400 ppi Resolution)
  
• Latest Android Jellybean (v4.1.2)
• 3140 mAh Battery Capacity
• QRemote
• 13 MP Primary and 2.1 MP Secondary Full HD Camera
• Dual Camera / Dual Recording
• VR Panorama
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 1.7 GHz Quad Core Processor

Flagship phones are always designed to be very powerful and future proof to a certain level. The LG Optimus line of phones has been in the forefront of the LG arsenal when tackling the competition. The Optimus G Pro is a Candy Bar model with a single SIM slot. The GSM phone is very well suited for power users as well as Android fans.
System and Memory
The Device runs on the latest Android Jelly Bean OS with v4.1.2. This, together with the Optimus 3.0 User Interface, gives you a truly smooth and fluid performance in terms of transitions and general graphics as well. The graphics in the device is supported by the Adreno 320 processor. The phone itself has a 1.7 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 Quad Core processor. This immense processing power lets you shred through tasks with the device, and it experiences almost no lag or difficulty.
The LG Optimus G Pro phone has a RAM of 2 GB, which leaves you ample space to carry out a ton of multitasking capabilities. The Optimus smart phone has an internal memory of 16 GB, of which 10.5 GB is User Memory.
Power Management
The phone comes with a massive 3140 mAh battery that can last you for a very long time before needing a recharge, as compared to most other Android smartphones in its class.
Display
The capacitive screen has a massive size of 5.5 inches with IPS Display and Corning Gorilla Glass 2. It can support 16 M colors to give a truly pleasurable viewing experience.
Camera and Multimedia
The phone comes with a primary camera of 13 MP. High quality images are possible under varying conditions with the right settings engaged. The secondary camera of the device has a sensor of 2.1 MP. The LED flash is adequate in lighting up the subjects in the dark. It is capable of HD Video Recording at 1920 x 1080 p at 30 fps. The phone also supports GPRS, EDGE, WiFi, 3G and Bluetooth as well. It comes with A-GPS and Google Maps. The LG Optimus smartphone can also serve as a very versatile media player, supporting all the major formats, including FLAC and MP4 as well.

Price: Rs.38980

<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/WAr1MYyOT20" width="480"></iframe>

Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean official Firmware List For Samsung Galaxy S4 GT-I9500

If you are a Samsung Galaxy S4 (GT-I9500) user and want to have the latest Jelly Bean update installed on your device but cannot get it the official way, a manual installation procedure is explained below. Users will need to download the respective firmware package, according to the region they belong to, and then flash it on their handset using a tool called Odin.

DOWNLOAD

You can click on the link provided with each of the firmware updates to download the appropriate zip file. A tutorial to install the same follows thereafter.

Xolo Play T1000 Every gamer desire

XOLO Launches NVIDIA Tegra 3-Powered XOLO Play T1000
 Tegra 4-based phones may be all the rage lately, but many in India haven't even had a shot at the Tegra 3 not very fair, we'd say. Xolo is addressing that deficit by launching the Play T1000, which brings the Tegra 3 to the country for the first time. The quad-core processor adds a gaming-friendly spin to what's otherwise a close cousin of the X1000 we saw back in March. Both phones share a 4.7-inch 720p LCD, 21Mbps HSPA+ and an 8MP rear camera; the T1000 cuts the (thankfully expandable) storage down to 4GB in return for a sharper 2MP front camera. Pricing may clinch the deal for some Indians, however. The Play T1000 is available now for 15,999 rupees ($268) off-contract -- a price low enough to make us wish there were plans for a US release.

How to Use Facebook Profile Pictures as Emoticons During Chat

The Facebook users usually experience tagging friends and monitoring their activities. This is how you can personalize the updates you generally share with your friends on Facebook and it helps you in organizing and sharing pictures quite easily. The features of tagging friends and mentioning friends are absolutely functional, but you can bring a little bit fun while you are using Facebook chat function. You can use your Profile pictures as emoticons during chat on Facebook. The emoticons can add more strength to your chat. If you are using a profile picture of any user of Facebook as an emotion, it will not work as a link to the profile of that user.

How Does It Work?

If you want to use a profile picture of any brand or of your friend in your chat, you should know his chat ID on Facebook. You can find this ID if you visit his profile and observe keenly the address bar. You can see the screenshot that has been given below. Here, the Facebook ID is shnoman.

 

If you want to use it as an emotion, you need to go to the Chat option on Facebook and add two square brackets”[[]]“. Now insert the profile ID in between them and press “Enter”. The image used on the profile page of this user has been included in the thumbnails of the chatting.

Example: [[shnoman]]

It is effective only in the web and when you open Facebook app on your mobile and your open chatting, it will not show you the profile picture of any of your friend and you will see only some specific codes instead of them. Yet, if you insert the same codes on your mobile Facebook app, you will see the image. When any of your contacts with whom you are chatting sees it, they will see an image instead of code.

So guys, it does not only add more fun in your chatting, but also can be said the best way to refer any brand or to any of your contacts. Try it out for experiencing a Facebook chat in a much better way.
 

CyanogenMod 10.1.2 Stable can be Downloaded Now-

Following the release of the latest update Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean, CyanogenMod ROMs have been the most sorted after the releases. These have been developed into the stable versions with the release of 3^Rd Edition as Cm 10.1.2 Stable that users can now download. This build supports up to 50 various devices and news says more are joining the list.

CyanogenMod 10.1.2 has finally been released today as a stable build for users to download. This update includes major security enhancements to CM 10.1 Operating System along with other tweaks and developments. Get your files straight from Get.CM site and run the stable build through a Recovery mode.
Users downloading CM 10.1.2 will also have Master Key security tweak which has become the popular Google tool released this year and included in a number of ROMs. Much has not changed from the earlier CM 10.1.1 build but as all programs suggest you should always run the latest build for pretty much everything.

Convert your Audio into Mono from Stereo in Galaxy S4 (How to)-

The new users do not know very well how they can change audio from stereo to mono on the Samsung Galaxy S4. They consider it a hard nut to crack indeed. Well! Samsung Galaxy has a wide range of cool and unique features for its users and due to this reason; the users are not well informed about its structure and applications. They do not know how to use it properly. They can easily operate their new Smartphone if they are well guided about its features and settings. Here, you will find the detailed information for the users of Galaxy S4 to change audio from stereo to mono in a very easy way. You do not need to go in depth for an activating mono feature in Galaxy S4.

 

Steps to Convert Audio from Mono to Stereo in Galaxy S4

Below you will find the detailed steps regarding how to enable audio to mono from stereo in your Smartphone.
Step 1: First, you need to go to the “Setting” app. The “Setting” app can be searched on the “Home Screen” of your Galaxy S4.
Step2: Now you need to click to the tab named as “My Device”. This tab can be found in the next menu screen where you will be led after clicking to the “Setting”. The tab “My Device” will be located on the top of the screen in front of you.
Step 3: Once you have clicked to the tab “My Device”, it will take you towards “Accessibility” option that needs to be clicked to go ahead.
Step 4: Now you will see an option “Hearing” and once you click this option, you will find another option “Mono Audio”. You will see a box in front of “Mono Audio” that should be clicked to change the audio to mono from stereo.
Now you have successfully done your job and the rest will be done by your Galaxy S4 for you. You do not need to take any step further now. You have changed the audio to mono and you see! How easy it is to perform this task. It does not need any experience or skills.

How to Perform Factory Reset Your HTC One

HTC One provides its users an incomparable performance and excellent lifetime companionship. It will serve you as long as you let it serve you. Many times while using your stylish Smartphone, you may need to factory reset your HTC One.

When it happens, you just need to know how to perform this task to bring your Smartphone back into the properly working state. If you want to perform the process of “Factory Reset” in HTC One, you need to save all of your personal data and then repair the major issues occurring with your stylish and advanced Smartphone because all of the data saved on your device will vanish once you perform the task of “Factory Reset” in your Smartphone. It will delete all of your personal files, media files and applications saved on your device. So it is advised to you to save your data securely before performing the process of “Factory Reset”.

What Type of Data will be Vanished By Factory Reset
When you want to perform the process of “Factory Reset”, the following data will be vanished from your HTC One.

• The details about your Google Account will be removed.
• Accounts saved in “Accounts & Sync” and the data of these accounts will be vanished.
• Your personal data, profile, messages, email, contacts, calender events and many other things will be removed.
• Data and system apps and settings will be vanished.
•  The apps you downloaded from the internet will also be removed.

How To Root the Xolo Q700 and flash CWM Recovery

Just purchased the Xolo Q700? Do you want to root it? Do you want to install CWM recovery and take backups, install custom ROMs and do more? Well, here's a step by step method to root the phone and install CWM recovery. This method was cited on the XDA forums recently and we combined the procedure for you in a How-To. Lets head straight for it.

Requirements:

• The Xolo Q700 phone fully charged
• Download the USB and ADB drivers for the Xolo Q700 from here and here
• Download the Motochopper rooting utility from here
• Download the flash tool for the recovery from here
• Download the recovery image from here

Google Play has a new design to make it easier to browse and discover new favorites.

We've changed a few things... Google Play has a new design to make it easier to browse and discover new favorites.

Nokia Asha 501 detailed review

Nokia’s Asha 501 launch was a grand affair, so much so that Nokia’s very own CEO Stephen Elop flew down to our nation’s capital for the big unveiling. The Asha series hasn’t exactly been a runaway success mostly because, even at its selling price, the user experience left a lot to be desired. Local smartphone makers have changed the perception of a cheap mobile phone. After being exposed to Android ICS at prices as low as Rs 5,000, the Asha series paled in comparison.

The Asha 501 is the first in the new series of Asha phones with which Nokia hopes to gain better traction against the never ending horde of budget droids. We’ve had a chance to spend some time with the phone so here’s our first impression of the device. 



 Display
The 3-inch display feels a little too small for a phone without a keyboard. Not only that, the resolution (240 x 320) is very low which makes everything pixelated. Don’t be fooled by the crisp and vivid display seen on Nokia’s website or the press shots; it looks nothing like that in reality. The screen sensitivity is pretty good however and even slight gestures are registered. There’s no ambient light sensor onboard, just a proximity sensor and accelerometer.

 Interface
The Asha 501 debuts Nokia’s brand new Asha software platform v1.0. The UI is quite a bit faster as compared to the older Asha series but not what we’d called smooth. With just 64MB of RAM onboard, the interface gets sluggish quite fast. The other issue that’s parcelled with a new platform is apps. The ones available for the previous Asha series will have to be ported over so apps like Whatsapp is still not available for the 501.

The new UI gets rid of Nokia’s typical S40 homescreen. Switching the 501 on will take you straight to the list of apps on your phone. Nokia has added a new feature called ‘FastLane’ which essentially keeps a track of any and all activity performed on the 501. This means, you can just swipe right from the homescreen to see your recent activity and jump to that app directly.

 The audio quality is quite good given the size of the speaker. Music and alerts can be heard clearly, even in relatively noisy environments. Video playback is not great due to the low resolution screen. The camera has a fixed-focus and quite frankly, it wouldn’t have made a difference if it weren’t there. 

The Nokia Asha 501 is definitely a fresher and more interesting offering compared to its predecessors. A couple of features you’ll find lacking in the 501 is 3G and a front-facing camera but we won’t hold this against it since it's supposed to be an entry-level phone. Looking at the market however, we do feel the pricing is a bit high especially since you can find Android handsets with better specifications around the same price (the Karbonn Smart A4+ is one such example). The low resolution screen and lack of popular apps could be the two big factors to hold back sales of the device. 

Online price in India 
Rs. 5,199-5,400

Micromax launches 5-inch, quad-core Canvas 4 priced at Rs 17,999

It is finally here. The much-awaited Micromax Canvas 4 has been launched today at an event in New Delhi. The latest flagship from Micromax has been priced at Rs 17,999. This is significantly lower than what was expected. The phone has seen a lot of buzz thanks to a high volume TV campaign that has been running since June 19. The "blink-and-you'll-miss it" TV ad showed precious little about the phone, except an aluminium frame and what looked like a plastic body. Turns out that like the iPhone 4, the aluminium casing houses the antenna.

The 5-inch Canvas 4, which you can, emm, blow to unlock, is powered by a quad-core processor. The True HD IPS display is not full-HD, but a disappointing 720p.

The dual-SIM phone comes with a 13MP rear camera that has a 5 lens array. It also has optical image stabilisation, HDR,  effects and filters, and does 1080p videos. The phone also has a 5MP front-facing camera. Micromax has said that the phone will also get OTA updates.
Like the latest phones by Samsung in the Galaxy series, the Canvas 4 has a bunch of features, such as burst mode for the camera that shoots 99 pictures in 15 seconds, video pinning, simultaneous video playback, look away to pause video and other gesture controls.
Here's a quick look at the official specs of the Micromax Canvas 4:

• Display & Resolution: 5-inch True IPS HD display with 720p resolution at 293ppi
• Processor: 1.2Ghz quad-core MT6589 Mediatek processor
• Camera: 13MP camera at the back and 5MP front-facing shooter
• OS: Android 4.2.1
• Memory: 1GB RAM
• Storage: 16GB internal memory, expandable to 32GBvia microSD card
• Battery: 2000 mAh

Micromax does not operate in a bubble. It has a keen eye on the competition and the thought of Micromax not going after Samsung’s kingpin, the Galaxy S4, does not sit well with us. Already the teasers and first images reveal a phone with a very similar design to the S4. Secondly, Micromax is the closest Indian rival to Samsung, so naturally, the Canvas 4 will be going head-to-head against the S4. And a lower resolution display sounds like weak weapons to take into that fight. Forget Samsung, even Micromax’s Indian rivals are prepping 1080p display-toting smartphones. Karbonn S6 Titanium, being one example.

These are strong motivators for Micromax and it would be folly to ignore them, if at all the company has. We wouldn't be surprised if the rumour of a 720p display has been floated around just to create a false negative buzz. After all, who doesn't love a pleasant surprise?

 

A pen that vibrates when you spell 'liek tihs'

You have got to hand it to the Germans. They honestly believe in perfection, even when it comes to the simple act of writing a letter. German inventors have now developed a new hi-tech pen that gently vibrates every time it senses a spelling mistake or sloppy handwriting in real time. The spell check is definitely a feature that most of us wish was around in the days before Microsoft Word spell checks came to save the day.

While Lernstift is a regular pen with real ink, on the inside it sports a special motion sensor as well as a small battery-powered stripped-down Linux computer with a Wi-Fi chip. Together those parts allow the pen to recognise specific movements, letter shapes and know a wide assortment of words. If it senses bad letter formation or messy handwriting, it will vibrate, ABC News reported.

Users can choose between two functions: Calligraphy Mode, which will point out flaws of form and legibility or Orthography Mode, which will recognise words and compare the word to a language database. If the word isn't recognised it will vibrate, according to Daniel Kaesmacher, the 33-year-old co-founder of Lernstift from Munich.

The other co-founder Falk Wolsky, 36, had the idea for the pen last year while his 10-year-old son was doing his homework. "His son had been struggling with his work and staying focused and Falk thought there should be a pen that gives him some sort of signal so he stays focused," Kaesmacher said.

After a year and a half in development, the founders have now brought Lernstift to Kickstarter to begin raising money and gauging interest. The project is looking to raise $181,476, and if you want this pen for yourself or your kids, a contribution of at least $150 is needed. The device, because you simply can’t call it just a pen, should definitely have a lot of interested takers. And people who may not want to shell out the cash, but love the concept, should definitely check out the video below.

New HTC One Mini leak shows 1.4GHz Snapdragon 400, Android 4.2.2 OS

HTC One Mini has been popping up a lot on the Internet lately. Following up to a number of leaks revealing a 4.3-inch screen, the smartphone has once again been spotted; this time with fresh photos and specifications, according to AndroidNext.

While talking about the specifications of the as-yet-unreleased smartphone, it seems like the HTC One Mini will be coming to the market with slightly less power compared to some of the other high-end HTC devices. The smartphone should, however, come with Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean as well as the latest Sense 5.0 UI being thrown in.

Here is a quick look at the specifications of the HTC One Mini, which have been confirmed by latest reports: 

• 4.3-inch display with 720p resolution
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 dual-core processor
• 1GB RAM
• 4.3 UltraPixel camera (same as HTC One)
• Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean
• Sense 5.0 UI
• Adreno 305 GPU

The earlier news of the HTC One Mini coming with a 4.3-inch 720p display and a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels have also been reinforced by the new data. This should amount to the screen having a pixel density of 342 ppi.
Similar to the HTC One, the HTC One Mini may also sport the same 4 megapixel UltraPixel camera as well as a 1.6 megapixel front camera.  In terms of memory, the device will come with 16GB worth of storage, out of which 12 GB will be user-accessible, according to the source site.

Xolo has launched its new smartphone, dubbed the Xolo Play T1000.

Xolo has launched its new smartphone, dubbed the Xolo Play T1000. Disappointingly, despite sounding like the name of a Terminator, the phone only runs on the Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core chip (the same one that powers the Nexus 7 tablet). The handset is available for Rs 15,999, which is quite a competitive price since it runs on a Tegra 3. It comes out of the box with Android Jelly Bean.

The Play T1000 features a 4.7-inch IPS screen with a 720p display resolution. It is equipped with an 8 megapixel camera on the back and 2 megapixel front-facing shooter. It has 4GB of internal memory with a microSD card, giving it expandable memory up to 32GB. Thanks to the chip, the phone is capable of recording as well as playing videos at full 1080p resolution. The chip, coupled with 1GB of RAM, gives the smartphone adequate multitasking capabilities. Connectivity options include the standard 3G, 2G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities. All of this is kept alive by a 1,900 mAh battery.

Since it runs on a Tegra 3, Xolo is hoping to sell the handset as a gaming machine, hence the “Play” in its Terminator-esque name. Thanks to the Tegra 3’s setup of having four cores for processing and an extra underclocked battery-saver core, the Xolo Play T1000 should be able to handle battery and CPU intensive tasks (such as gaming) with ease. As with any device that runs on a Tegra chip, the Play T1000 comes pre-loaded with Nvidia’s TegraZone app, which is essentially an alternative app store that has games that make better use of the Tegra 3’s power.