Android 4.3 rolling out for Galaxy S4 and One Google Play edition

The Google Play editions of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and the HTC One are receiving an OTA update that will upgrade them to Android 4.3.
The update arrives merely a week after it was officially announced and started rolling out for the Nexus devices. In fact, many of the Nexus devices are still to receive the update, so you can say the Google Play editions are more or less on par with the Nexus devices in terms of receiving updates.

 

When Google announced the Google Play edition of the S4, they promised quick updated along with a stock Android experience. These are two of the main reasons to get these devices over their standard versions that come with OEM customizations and are bound to receive the 4.3 update much, much later.
The Android 4.3 update was announced last week at an event, alongside the new Nexus 7 tablet and the Chromecast media streaming device. Although not a major update, it brings features such as restricted user profiles (only on tablets), Bluetooth Low Energy profile, virtual surround sound, autocomplete for dialpad, improved keyboard, OpenGL ES 3.0 support and a handful of other things. You can find a list of Android 4.3 features here.
Over and above these features, the Android 4.3 update enables Bluetooth tethering on the Galaxy S4 and the IR port on the One.
You can check out our review of the Google Play edition Galaxy S4 and the One here and here, respectively.
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Strategy Analytics: Android had 80% market share in Q2

It’s safe to say that the Android OS has extended its dominance without any real competition from any other mobile operating systems out there. According to Strategy Analytics, Android has recorded a whopping 80% global market share during Q2, 2013.
The Google developed Android OS has accounted for 182.6 million out of the 229.6 million sold globally. Apple's iOS scored a 13.6% market share with 31.2 million iPhones and is in the second spot, while Windows Phone managed to grab the third place with a 3.9% share.

 

According to the report, Apple's iOS global market share is the lowest since Q2, 2010. However, the Cupertino giant still had a strong quarter with its overall shipments rising from 26 million over the same period last year. Android has seen a significant boost from the previous year, where 108.7 million Android devices were shipped.
The popular analytic firm also notes that the only way for Microsoft to increase its global market share is by charging less for the software licensing and by making its platform more competitive with Android eco-system.
It's worth noting that Strategy Analytics posted a similar report on the tablet market earlier this week, which contains numbers some way off the Canalys estimates from today.
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Canalys: Small tablets help Android to tablet market dominance

Following the research of Strategy Analytics from a couple of days ago now comes a report from Canalys who confirms Android’s lead in the tablet market.

 

Samsung, Amazon, Lenovo and Acer combined have sold nearly 12 million tablets. Add to that number the smaller companies and the white-box tablet manufacturers, and the overall Android tablets sold for the quarter reached 19.5 million units.




Apple has still managed to ship 14,6 million iPad and iPad mini tablets, taking 42.7% of the tablet market in Q2 2013. The shipments dropped by 14.2% compared to Q2 2012 when the company sold a bit over 17 million tablets and its market share contracted by 28.5 percent points.

 

The second quarter of the year saw the shipment of 34 million tablets, which is a 43% year-over-year increase. As a result, tablets now take a 31% chunk of the worldwide PC shipments pie. According to Canalys, 68% of the tablets shipped in Q2 are below 9″. We suspect the new Nexus 7 will continue Android’s tablet market push in Q3 as well.
It shuld be pointed out that the Canalys report differs quite a bit from the one of Strategy Analytics on the Android tablet shipments. According to them Android tablets boast a 67% market share with 34.6 million units sold out of the overall 51.7 million tablets that were shipped for the second quarter. We are not sure if SA includes some other manufacturers in its numbers, but it’s unlikely that they account for such huge numbers. It’s probably some difference in the methodology and one of the numbers is closer to the truth than the other.
In the end, one thing is certain – Apple’s iOS has been dethroned from its cozy seat at the top and now Android gets to enjoy it for a while. However, individual Android tablet makers still have a long way to go until they reach the success of Apple’s iPad line-up.
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Android in July: 4.1 JB now more popular than 2.3 Gingerbread

The Android masses are getting younger – the OS versions we mean. In the month of July, v4.1 Jelly Bean has at long last dethroned Gingerbread as the single most popular Android OS release. In June Jelly Bean beat Gingerbread, but that was only if you added the two JB branches (4.1 and 4.2).

 

Basically what happened in July was Ice Cream Sandwich, Gingerbread and the older versions combined shed about a percentage each, to the benefit of Jelly Bean 4.1 and 4.2. The newest version, Jelly Bean 4.3 has yet to make a mark but it was only announced at the end of July. Still, with the Nexus 7 2 launching immediately with the announcement, v4.3 will probably have something to show next month.
The adoption of Jelly Bean 4.2 seems to be slowing a bit though. In May it was 4%, then jumped to 5.6% in June and now it's at 6.5%. It will probably climb higher as makers push out their 4.2 updates, but with 4.3 already on the roadmaps it probably won't get very high.
There's a lot of talk of Android fragmentation, but with Google slowing down the release schedule (4.3 was supposed to be out months ago at I/O) and pushing out only relatively small updates (which will allow makers to catch up quicker), we might be seeing the beginning of Android's unification.
Note that Google is not slowing down the release of new features, the company is just doing it through apps. Google recently moved the malicious app scanning function to the Play Store app so that even Gingerbread devices can use it, the Play Games is an app, not a native OS feature and so on.

Facebook brings Cover Feed to Android app, makes Facebook Home seem even more pointless

Facebook has released a new update for their Android app, which brings one of the key features of the ill-fated Facebook Home app. Now, through an option in the settings menu, you can enable the Cover Feed feature on your Android device, without having to install Facebook Home app.

If you are not aware, Cover Feed takes over the lockscreen on your Android device with a custom lockscreen that plays a slideshow of your friends’ Facebook photos in the background underneath the unlock button. While it sounds great in theory, actually having all your friends’ photos appear on your lockscreen isn’t such a great idea as most of the time the photos aren’t as good as you’d like them to be (not with my friends, at least).
Cover Feed, along with Chat Heads, was one of the key features of Facebook Home. Now, you can have both without actually installing that app (Chat Heads are available through the Facebook Messenger app). This means now you have even fewer reasons to install Facebook Home, and there weren’t many to begin with.
There is a catch, however. Just like the Facebook Home app, the Cover Feed feature only works on select Android devices as of now. The list currently includes Samsung Galaxy S4, Samsung Galaxy S III, Samsung Galaxy Note II, Nexus 4, HTC One X, HTC One X+ and HTC One. More devices should be added in future.
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Motorola Moto X gets a trio of promo videos

Motorola has just unleashed its Moto X flagship smartphone and, as tradition dictates, the announcement was accompanied by the release of a few promo videos.

 

The Moto X got a trio of clips – the first two focus on its unique software features, while the third one is dedicated to its Moto Maker customization software.



The first 30 second clip is all about the always-on voice commands, which don’t even require the Moto X to be unlocked to work.

 Next comes the Quick Draw promo, showing you how you can unlock the smartphone and launch its camera by simply flicking your wrist.

Finally, there’s the Moto Maker video – it’s the longest of the set, but that’s because there are so many options to go through.

Motorola Moto X goes live with X8 chipset, 4.7" AMOLED screen

Motorola has officially taken the wraps off the Moto X - the first phone that has been entirely developed under the supervision of Google. It's also the company's first phone in a while to be fully assembled in the USA.
The Motorola Moto X is build around a 4.7" AMOLED display with full RGB matrix and 720p resolution. This results in a pixel density of 316 ppi. The screen is protected by a new type of Gorilla Glass, which is dubbed Magic Glass due to its curves towards the edges of the phone.

On the inside, the Motorola Moto X features a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro chipset with dual 1.7GHz Krait cores, Adreno 320 GPU and 2GB of RAM. Internal storage is 16GB or 32GB depending on the version you choose but there's no card slot for further expansion. Just like the latest DROID line-up, the Snapdragon S4 Pro chipset is part of the Motorola X8 board, which also includes a natural language processor and contextual computing processor.
The Moto X camera has a 10MP sensor and uses the ClearPixel technology for superior low-light performance. Every other green portion of the Bayer filter array, which sits in front of the image sensor, is replaced by a clear one, allowing more light to reach the sensor.
On the software side, the camera offers HDR, burst shots and panorama. The Moto X can also shoot full HD videos at 30fps and there are features like face detection and geo-tagging on board. At the front, there's a 2MP camera capable of 1080p video recording that serves for video-chatting purposes.
Motorola has gone great lengths to make the Moto X a truly customizable phone. Customers can choose whether the front panel to be black or white, as well as the color of the back panel from 18 options. There's also a third customizable area called accent - it covers the camera rim and side buttons. Further customization includes adding a name or short message on the back of the phone as choosing a Google account and wallpaper to come preinstalled on the device.
The Motorola Moto X runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, which at first glance looks as clean as stock, but Motorola has added a few touches of its own. One of them is the Active Display feature, which makes use of the OLED screen and brings a snippet of information (the time, new messages and voicemail) on a blank black screen. Think of it as an Android version of Nokia's Glance Screen feature.
Motorola has also preinstalled a transfer app called Migrate. It allows you to transfer your photos, videos, SIM contacts and even call and text history from any Android phone running Android 2.2 or higher.
Because of the curved back, the Motorola Moto X thickness varies from 5.6 to 10.4mm. The phone has a pretty decent footprint for its 4.7" display - 129.3 x 65.3mm with a weight of the very acceptable 130 grams.
Below the customizable back panel sits a 2200mAh battery, which Motorola rates at 13 hours of 3G talk time and up to 24 hours of mixed usage endurance.
The Motorola Moto X a will be available on the five largest carriers in the USA - AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile and US Cellular. It will cost $200 for the 16GB version and $250 for the 32GB units, both with a two-year contract.

Google to start selling the Moto X on the Play Store, too

Yesterday, Motorola finally announced the Moto X, which will soon go on sale in the US on all the major carriers on a contract. However, Google has now announced that you will also be able to purchase the Moto X from the Play Store as well

 

The Google Play edition of the Moto X will be similar to the Galaxy S4 and the HTC One, where it would come with a stock version of Android. Although the Moto X does have relatively stock Android even on carrier branded models, it does come with the usual carrier bloatware, along with some of Motorola's customizations, such as the always-on voice feature, shake to start camera and the active lockscreen.
Although Motorola promised quick updates to the Moto X, the Google Play edition will get them even quicker since they don't have to go through the carrier before being pushed to your device.
Just like the GPe of the S4 and the One, the Moto X will also be sold unlocked and at full price. The exact price is not yet known as of now, nor is the actual date when the phone will be available on the Play Store, but considering the specs of the device, you can expect a price of around $299 for the 16GB model. It's unlikely though that Google would offer the Moto X in any other color option other than the standard black and white.
You can check out our hands-on with the Moto X here.
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The Moto X Customizations are Simply WOW: Rosewood, Bamboo, Teak and What Not

Many years ago, when the inventor of the first PC mouse used wood to design the product, the whole concept seemed to be atrocious. The Moto X looks to take inspiration from the same and has come up with some unique design customization options. Its as if Motorola are saying that if you have the fabric and material, we have a back panel for you. Some months ago, Motorola had promised us that it will deliver a phone that is completely customizable and completely manufactured in the U.S.


This could probably be one of the rare phones that can actually make it big without having a great hardware. With the customizations included in the Moto X, Google sends out a loud and clear message, “The number of cores do not matter, the phone being yours does!”.
There are different forms of customizations that a customer may be able to do while ordering the device. With the help of a swanky looking site called the “MotoMaker”, a person can chose the Moto X customizations to suit his needs.

Colours:

 

 

The new Moto X will be available in as many as 18 different colours. You had that right, 18! However, at the time of the launch, only 2 colours, that is black and white will be available. These colours also include 6 ascent colours.

Back Panel Material:

If there is something that has got us intrigues, it has to be this aspect of the new Moto X. The Moto X is truly custom made, if you can personalise your home screen, your clothes, your make up and even your shoes, so why shall the back cover of your phone be similar to the millions of other phones? With the use of many different, yet unique materials like wood, Motorola is all set to start a new trend.
Wait! Did we just say Wood? Well yeah! The use of wood has actually been achieved and was up for display as a prototype device at the press event. Materials like Rosewood, Teak and even Bamboo are in the works. Don’t believe us? Have a look at the pictures

image courtsey: DroidLife

image courtsey: AndroidCentral

Engravings and Accessories:

Not only do you get an option to choose from the wide list of products mentioned above, Moto X customizations allow you to personalize your device to the extent of which you can ask for custom engravings to be done on the back panel. This along with a customised wallpaper can be ordered as per your will.
They even announced a partnership with popular brands that will make accessories especially for the Moto X.
Since the manufacturing plants are in the U.S itself, Motorola promises that it may take a maximum of 4 days per device customization. What if you spend all this time customizing it only to find you don’t like your colour combo when it arrives? Motorola gives you 14 days to return it or get a new design, no questions asked.
A TOTAL OF 2000 DIFFERENT COMBINATIONS AND PERMUTATIONS IS POSSIBLE!

BlackBerry Q5 Coming To Several Canadian Carriers On August 13th

 

When we first got a glimpse of the BlackBerry Q5 back in May, it was made clear that North America wasn't in the plans for this "emerging market" device. Earlier this week, BlackBerry surprised many people by announcing that the BlackBerry Q5 would be available on Bell, Fido, Koodo, Sasktel, TELUS, and Virgin Mobile Canada effective August 13th. Sadly, it seems that Rogers has been left out.

There will be two colour models in Canada - Black and Pure Red - with the latter being a Virgin Mobile exclusive. Pricing is unconfirmed at this time, but you can expect to see the Q5 arrive at a $300-350 outright price.

 

BlackBerry Q5 Smartphone Launches in Canada

WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - July 30, 2013) -
BlackBerry® (NASDAQ:BBRY)(TSX:BB) today announced that the newest BlackBerry® 10 smartphone, the BlackBerry® Q5 smartphone, will arrive in Canada on August 13, 2013. The new smartphone will be available from authorized partners Bell, Fido, Koodo, Sasktel, TELUS, and Virgin Mobile Canada, as well as retail stores Best Buy Canada, Future Shop, Target, TBooth Wireless, The Mobile Shop, The Source, Walmart, and WIRELESSWAVE, across the country.
The BlackBerry Q5 smartphone features a QWERTY keyboard in a stunning, youthful design that radiates confidence. With its dual core 1.2GHz processor, vibrant touchscreen and 4G/LTE network support, the BlackBerry Q5 smartphone offers a smooth, fast and rich browsing experience. Its messaging and social networking features enable customers to have fun, create, share and stay connected, while on the move.
Available in two colour models in Canada - Black and Pure Red* - the BlackBerry Q5 smartphone offers a powerful and unique mobile computing experience with its cutting-edge BlackBerry 10 functionality. Features and apps work seamlessly together, allowing customers to flow easily from one activity to the next. With its classic QWERTY keyboard re-engineered for optimized typing and its 3.1" touchscreen, the BlackBerry Q5 smartphone gives you the best of both worlds.
Andrew MacLeod, Managing Director for Canada at BlackBerry said, "Canada is our home, and bringing the BlackBerry Q5 smartphone here is a testament to our strong partner support and ongoing commitment to delivering innovative technologies that enable Canadian enterprises and consumers to improve how they connect and communicate."
Offering superior business productivity features, market-leading enterprise security and a fast, effortless experience, the BlackBerry Q5 smartphone is a perfect mobility solution for any Canadian organization. For enterprise customers who want to upgrade to BlackBerry 10 and BlackBerry® Enterprise Service 10, the BlackBerry Q5 smartphone is a powerful and cost-effective device to roll out across any organization.
The BlackBerry Q5 smartphone comes with BlackBerry 10 version 10.1. As part of the BlackBerry 10 experience, a peek into the BlackBerry® Hub lets you stay close to what's important to you without stopping what you're doing. Create the perfect shot every time with the camera Time Shift mode, tell your story using BlackBerry® Story Maker, and instantly share updates with friends on Facebook® and Twitter®. Use BBM™ Video with Screen Share to connect with contacts**, and visit the BlackBerry® World™ storefront to discover the more than 120,000 available apps.
For more information on the BlackBerry Q5 smartphone, please visit http://ca.blackberry.com/
* The Pure Red model available from Virgin Mobile Canada.
** Compatible BlackBerry 10 smartphones, Wi-Fi, 4G or HSPA+ connection required. Additional restrictions apply, visit blackberry.com for details.
About BlackBerry
A global leader in wireless innovation, BlackBerry® revolutionized the mobile industry when it was introduced in 1999. Today, BlackBerry aims to inspire the success of our millions of customers around the world by continuously pushing the boundaries of mobile experiences. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America. BlackBerry is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market (NASDAQ:BBRY) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:BB). For more information, visitwww.blackberry.com
Forward-looking statements in this news release are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities laws. When used herein, words such as "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "should", "intend", "believe", and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions made by BlackBerry Limited in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors that BlackBerry believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Many factors could cause BlackBerry's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including those described in the "Risk Factors" section of BlackBerry's Annual Information Form, which is included in its Annual Report on Form 40-F (copies of which filings may be obtained at www.sedar.com orwww.sec.gov). These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on BlackBerry's forward-looking statements. BlackBerry has no intention and undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
BlackBerry and related trademarks, names and logos are the property of BlackBerry Limited and are registered and/or used in the U.S. and countries around the world. All other marks are the property of their respective owners. BlackBerry is not responsible for any third-party products or services.

Official Android 4.2.2 ROM for Samsung Galaxy S II Plus

We already know that Android 4.2 Jelly Bean upgrade will be the last major update for the Samsung Galaxy S II and Galaxy S II smartphones. But the good news is the wait is almost over and Samsung might soon start seeding the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update for the Galaxy S II Plus. What's more an official (if probably not final) ROM has been leaked and if you are really impatient you can flash it right now.

 

The ROM is based on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean and has a built date July 24. Unfortunately, there is no change log available at the moment, nor a list of what issues (if any) it has. Still, early adopters mention launcher, weather widget and lock screen from the Samsung Galaxy S4 and a slightly smoother performance.
Unfortunately, the multi-window feature is still not available for the Samsung Galaxy S II Plus users. Samsung will start rolling out the official update in the coming days and Germany will be the first region to get the taste of Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean.
Meanwhile, if you are in a hurry to check out the Android 4.2.2 on your Galaxy S II Plus smartphones, then the firmware is available in the source link below.
As a reminder, flashing process involves some risk and would void your warranty. So, please continue with the instructions only if you are sure about what you are doing.
Source

Giveaway: Win A Custom Color Paint Job By ColorWare For Your BlackBerry Z10/Q10!

 

Have you ever wanted to customize your BlackBerry with your favorite colors? ColorWare can make that all possible with their custom color painting service for your BlackBerry Q10 or Z10. ColorWare products are creative and fashionable, giving their customers something unique that sets them apart from all the rest. They offer their services for both the BlackBerry Z10 and Q10 at only $249 per custom painting. A small price to pay to give yourself a unique phone!

Contest: We've teamed up with ColorWare to offer BlackBerryOS readers a chance to win a free custom colored paint job (value $249) for your BlackBerry Z10 or Q10!

Want to have a chance at being that lucky winner? Enter the ColorWare contest now! 

BBM for Android Starts sending out Invites to Beta Testers

And BOOM! Just like that, the moment many ex BlackBerry users had been waiting for is finally here. Several reports are now claiming that they are getting Emails for beta testing the new BBM for Android.


The news comes as a welcome surprise to many as they had been anticipating this moment ever since BlackBerry first officially confirmed the same. The picture above shows that BlackBerry has set the process rolling by sending out Email invites to be Beta testers. Not every one who had subscribed to be be beta testers have received such Emails. If you were one of the many who had previously subscribed to be informed when the app releases, we strongly recommend you guys to check your mails.
The date for official release is still expected to be around the the end of summer. This means the by September end you may be seeing the official launch on the play store. This news has certainly got us all excited! What about you?
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Samsung Caught Boosting International Galaxy S4 Benchmarks

Samsung recently came out with a new version of the popular Galaxy S4 for international markets. The updated phone, powered by a new processor, boasted of amazing performance, almost seeming unrealistic. Powered by a new Exynos 5 Octa system on a chip, the international version of Samsung’s Galaxy S4 performed impressively in benchmark tests — a graphical processing unit that runs at 532 megahertz and a central processing unit that tops out at 1.2GHz.

 

However, Samsung got caught in a lie about the performance of the new phone after basically gaming a piece of software to show the phone as faster than it actually is.
When people over at AnandTech started sifting through data for two Exynos octacore variants of the Galaxy S 4, they discovered that multiple benchmarks that appear to run those devices at higher CPU and GPU clock speeds than they normally run. Some of the apps included in the report are GLBench 2.5.1, AnTuTu, Quadrant and Linpack. Incidentally, they also found a string of code called ‘Benchmark Booster’ that apparently allowed the international Galaxy S4 to trick the benchmarking software into reporting higher speeds. The encoded ‘Benchmark Booster’ pulled this off by allowing the phone to operate at speeds no real world user or app would ever have access to.

 

Samsung has created within the Exynos 5 Octa-based Galaxy S4 a white list for certain benchmarking apps that allows them — and only them — to take advantage of the full power of the chipset. When the device detects that a white-listed benchmark app is running, it shifts into a high-performance mode not available to ‘real world’ applications.
In other words, Samsung has optimized the Galaxy S4 to perform better in the lab than it does in the real world, enabling full-speed GPU performance only while running specific benchmarks, and maxing out CPU performance, as well.
What Samsung needs to do going forward, is either open up these settings for all users or applications (offer a configurable setting that fixes the CPU governor in a high performance mode, and unlocks the 532MHz GPU frequency) or remove the optimization altogether. However, it’s interesting to note that Samsung refused to comment to reporters on the scandal.

Expected Rumors for the next-generation iPhone

The iPhone 5S is expected to be the next expected iPhone device, after the iPhone 5. It would be quite similar to its predecessor but nonetheless without extra internal features. Let us see what all is in store for us.

EXPECTED (CONFIRMED) FEATURES

• Support for 4G LTE-advance networks.
• May sport a quad-core graphics processor (preferably a 554 MP4).
• A 12/13 MP back camera with dual LED flash.
• A 5.92 WHr battery, a slightly big upgrade.
• iOS 7, instantly expected due to its previous launch. 

 

EXPECTED (UNCONFIRMED) FEATURES

• NFC expected, solely for the reason for the implementation of Passbook.
• A quad-core processor, highly unlikely seeing the power of the dual-core one.
• Reduced pricing strategies, getting toppled to the second most profitable phone seller.
• A Super HD screen display with a resolution of 1080p.
• A slightly different exterior casing.

Apart from these standard features, a rare rumour of a fingerprint reader/scanner is coming up which could be installed right into the home button. But although due to these tough rumours, we don’t believe that this could be a feature in the next iPhone, as Apple is not known to cram things into small spaces (pun intended).

[Breaking] EA Hikes Game Prices in India!

There have been many rumors going around the internet this last few months, regarding the significant price hike of Electronics Arts games in India. Many Indian average PC gamers were hoping and praying that this should not be true. I came home from work last night and saw loads of notifications on Facebook. Curious at first, I soon came to realized the truth. All EA’s flagship games are on pre order! There was no controlling me from going on an buy-em-all spree..until I clicked on the link.

Many online resellers like Game4u , Flipkart have placed EA’s latest upcoming games for pre-order. It seems like that the rumors were true. Most of the gamers were happy to see it on preorders and many of them got shocked to see the price of the games like Battlefield 4, Need for speed and Fifa 14.

New prices are as follows:

Battlefield 4 – 3499 INR
Need for Speed Rivals- 3499 INR
Fifa 2014 – 2499 INR


Expect to see a similar price tag on more upcoming EA titles.
As you can see , the prices of the games is almost triple the amount before the hike. EA was looking to increase the price and make is equal to the international price. People tried to buy games from Indian origin websites through some proxies with significantly less price. There was no protection implemented against it. Thus, EA was suffering major loss.


This was going to happen anyway as there was increase in dollar price. But no one knew that the amount would be triple the amount they were used to pay. Most of the Indian PC gamer audience is unhappy with unfair pricing. You might just say that the pricing is fair as gamers in other countries pay 60$ for a game. But you have to understand low priced PC games is the reason why Indian gamer was so insisting of building himself a Gaming PC. Major part of the Indian gaming community own PC’s. PC hardware costs more in Indian market. So investment in the gaming PC might be more than console, but you have to look at the future point of view. You were better off buying a decent Next-gen gaming PC with better configuration compared to a console and spend less to buy PC games which were not only less expensive but much more advanced in graphics quality.

You will stumble upon quotes like this -

“Now that the game pricing is same, gamers might be better off with consoles as there are much better console exclusive goodness.”

If you were to head over to the Indian gaming communities on facebook or various forums, Gamers are really unhappy with EA right now. You will even see hordes of new topics related to this all over facebook pages, peoples timelines etc. Many fans have even decided not to pre-order their favorite sequels.


Of course gamers won’t be happy to pay triple the amount they used to pay before. Changing price from 20$ to 60$ is major step which might just go against EA sooner or later. 1700INR or 1800INR was a reasonable price tag to opt for. EA should have made some security arrangements in order to reduce losses from other countries. Changing regional pricing policy won’t be accepted if the difference is so huge. Many other big names such as Ubisoft have already increased their price tag on games due to this.  Watch dogs which was priced 999INR for pre-order, is now available for 1500INR. It will be interesting to see how these games will sell in India after this price hike.

What do you think about this sudden price hike? Would you rather pre-order right now to get your gaming titles for cheaper? Let us know in the comments below!

Samsung Galaxy S4 Shipments Surpass 20 Million in 2 months

Only a few weeks back, on May 23, 2013, Samsung announced that the Samsung Galaxy S4 shipments through global channels had crossed the 10 million mark, and now reports all over the Internet suggest that in just a little over a month, the company managed to double that number.


Overseas reports are indicating that Samsung has shipped a total of 20 million Galaxy S4 devices to their global partners. J.K. Shin, Samsung’s CEO, confirmed this figure to reporters in Korea and that Samsung has achieved this milestone within 2 months. Note that this number is not total sales to customers, but specifically to carriers and retailers around the world.



Its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S III took about 100 days to get to 20 million, so the galaxy S4 is selling 1.7 times faster. This speed reportedly put the Galaxy S4 at the #1 position in shipments for Q2 this year. Despite reports (which were denied) of Samsung cutting down orders for Galaxy S4 parts, the company’s flagship is selling very well.

The Korean firm’s future calculations may get a little fragmented, however, since it has launched a number of Galaxy S4 variants like the Galaxy S4 Zoom, Mini, LTE-A, and Active to extend the reach and appeal of the device to new customer segments.



Source: SamMobile

3 Android apps to Learn HTML5

You want to learn to work with HTML5 to boast of another line in your skill set?  Too proud to ask someone to teach you? Well. It isn’t really required either. Here are 3 wonderful Android Apps to learn HTML5.

1. Learn HTML5

Created for a thesis about interactive textbooks for Internet technologies, this educational app is easy to use, and ideal for beginners. Listing all the elements used in the HTML5 Explanation as well as presenting tests in statistical tables adds to the user-friendly nature. Popular among users, it’s scored an average of 4.7 stars out of 5 on Google Play.

Download Here

2. HTML5 & PHP

‘Another useful  tutorial for those new to HTML5. This handy app helps you learn the new upgrade via the various tags associated with HTML5 and PHP. This is a particularly useful app for those just starting out as it allows users to attach notes. You can also access all content offline, for those pesky times when you’re out of wireless reach.

Download Here

3. HTML WAGmob

If you’re completely new to HTML5 you can’t go past WAGmob’s handy app. Featuring flash cards and quizzes alongside tutorials, WAGmob provides easy tips and lessons designed to accompany the HTML5 guidebook. With an average rating of 4.2 from Google play users this is definitely one app to invest in if you’re looking to get to grips with HTML5. Available for Android.

The world of computer language development can be a difficult one to navigate but armed with one of these easy to use guides you’ll be a master of HTML5 in no time!

Download here

[App Review] Floating Notifications

Pop notifications have been around since sometime now and we’re here to tell you about a fun way to completely change how you interact with incoming Notifications on your Android with, Floating Notifications.

Just recently Facebook came up with round-creative idea for pop-up notifications (they quite literally popped the hell out of the screen). “Chatheads” were formerly meant to be a part of the Facebook Home launcher but they later went on to integrate it with the Facebook Messenger application. For the all the late-comers, Chatheads are small circle which pop-up everytime you get a Facebook message, you simply hit the Chathead for the message space to pop-down for you to reply back, without even opening the app.


Paranoid Android, a renowned developer for the AOSP, soon adopted this feature in their ROM calling it “Halo”. In the early release, “Halo” wasn’t nearly as promising as Chatheads. Although, with time, PA very recently released the developed iteration of “Halo”. The new one looks very stable and has a lot more functionality to it, for eg. Smoother and optimized multitasking across several applications.

Which brings us to Floating Notifications, there is a recent app developed which implements this Halo feature called Floating notifications. This app enables you to check your notifications for IMs and also lets you assign shortcuts to Apps.

Layout

Layout of the app is tabular and simple. A picture below shows you App notifications, customize and settings tab. It will let you be the king here and customize the size, theme color and shortcuts too.




The app is new and frankly has some visual bugs which are evident but will be fixed in later updates. Positively, Floating Notifications is a really good app, snappy interface and style. We recommend you to definitely check this floating application!.

PS: There is some trouble with TTS Accessibility in Samsung phones. This app is available in play store as trial and paid version

LINK: FLOATING NOTIFICATION

Apple seeds second beta of iOS 7 to developers

Apple has seeded the seeded the second beta of iOS 7 to developers who're testing the new operating system.

The update comes exactly two weeks after the release of the first beta of the operating system. It was also first showcased during the keynote at Apple's WWDC event on the same day.

The update which is available over the air, mentions that it contains bug fixes and improvements. However, the most major feature of the second beta is that it also includes support for the iPad and iPad mini, which were left out when Apple released the first beta limited to the iPhone and iPod touch devices.

The update reportedly brings back the Voice Memos app that lets users record voice notes, which was missing in the first beta. The update also brings some minor cosmetic changes including tweaked music playback controls in the lock screen, a new Clock app icon in the Control Center, revamped notification app and Newsstand interface. It also brings new Male and Female Siri voices which were announced during the WWDC keynote.

Apple will release several beta versions of iOS 7 before it seeds the final release in Fall (September/ October), which will be available to everyone and not just registered developers.



Apple unveiled iOS 7 on June 10th with a brand new interface, and a slew of new features. In Apple's words this is "the most significant iOS update since the original iPhone." Not only does the next iteration of the OS bring a completely overhauled user interface design, it also adds many missing features that were being offered by rival mobile platforms.

While the overall reception of the revamped design has been good, a large number of people have criticised the bright coloured icons for lack of refinement and for some inconsistent UI elements.