2013's Top Phones

So with the 2013 behind us here's to hoping 2014 will be brighter, faster, and smarter, at least in the mobile world of cellular devices.  Last year's phones were great and don't get me wrong, I loved some of the devices released last year and here's a list of 2013's top mobile devices by specific feature. First off the best battery life on a mobile smart phone title belongs to the one and only LG G2. This thing lasts and lasts and on top of that has a bright screen, great camera, and a plethora of features. As far as phablets are concerned I'd have to go with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. It's size might not be for all but it's battery life is just beaten out marginally by the LG G2 but has plenty under the hood going on to make it best Phablet of 2013. With 3gb of ram, micro sd expansion, amazing amoled screen, multi-tasking abilities this thing flies and without a hiccup. For build quality I had to choose from two different devices running two separate operating systems. For Android it's gotta be the HTC One. The build quality was just amazing for a Android device. Minus the underwhelming camera the overall performance of the device was actually pretty good. Secondly the title of best build goes to the unsurprising Apple iPhone 5s. It also had a few new bells and whistles including a finger print scanner and a 64-bit processing chip which will hopefully pave the way for future development both for mobile Android and Apple devices. Next is the camera department all of us who have been following the mobile industry are already familiar with Nokia lumia devices and the 41 megapixel 1020 was the clear winner in the Windows phone department but for Android it was much closer. The Samsung Galaxy S4 was amazing but the LG G2 seemed to have just slightly better results overall and the optical image stabilization helped quite a bit for the shaky hand photography as well. Call quality was a tough one which I feel was a close draw with the iPhone 5S and the Galaxy S4 just behind and that's just barely. My major complaining point with Android is not just the overall responsiveness but the touch response and still to this day is a pain point for me. Even with third party apps like SwiftKey it's still sometimes a burden and for that reasons I can't say Android has the top phone in this category for now at least. It's going to have to be the iphone 5s, it's just buttery smoother and responsive but I have a surprise waiting around the corner with this category as a Windows phone device comes in close second for touch response and that is the HTC 8x. This phone had one of the most responsive touch input from any phone I played with in 2013 and was surprisingly a decent phone other than a poor camera. So there are many more features I could list and go over for the mobile phone devices but for that reason alone I'm keeping it short and to the point. You can't go wrong with the LG G2, Galaxy Note 3, Iphone 5s depending on what you want and need. So here's to next year for a chance to take the crown and maybe in all departments, we can all dream right?

Happy Holidays & Let's Have Patent Talks With Apple & Samsung

So as many of you have heard the ongoing saga between Apple and Samsung has been tediously long and drawn out. Well recently it seems that more talks of patents have began between the two to try and hash out some sort of agreement. Again, yawn, this is gotten to be completely redundant and boring so on to some more exciting news.
Samsung rumors have the mill of the run recently with the unannounced Galaxy S5 looming around the corner. We have heard talk of a 2k display and also eye recognition software, think James Bond but not quite. I for one am more interested in the architecture of the new Exynos Chips and if they will support 64bit architecture because if they do then we are talking a entire new world of applications that can be used and also adding more power efficient ram would be a nice addition as well.  That aside I am pretty excited about the upcoming CES event and hope to hear more about the phone in the very near future.
So over this Christmas I had the pleasure of having multiple devices before returning to my go to daily driver. I'm going to go down the list and give some pros and cons of each device. First I will go with the iPhone 5s and list some things I liked and hated for the device.  I will keep this short and simple. Liked the speed, ease of use, build quality, camera simplicity, and plethora of apps. Disliked the crashes due to the new ios7, ios7 bugs, ios 7, size, fingerprint scanner. I felt like though iOS 7 is new and looks different and added some much needed functionality it also came up short on a lot of which I would like to discuss but as said before I am keeping it short.  The next device was the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Liked the real estate of the screen, screen picture quality, abundance of ram, performance. Disliked the size(just too big), slow camera performance, speaker quality.  Lastly I went back to my go to which is the LG G2. Like the camera quality, screen space, button placement, knock on feature, speed, screen resolution, overall performance. Dislike the speaker quality, occasional lag, build materials. All in all these phones are all great devices and depending on what you like as far as build quality, operating system, or size they are great phones.
Lastly I want to say that this year had better come out with some amazing devices, especially Windows, or the masses are going to grow tired and the mobile phone market might see a trending decline in sales. Here's to 2k/4k screen resolution, 64bit processors, fingerprint scanners, and any other gimmicky feature that came out this year and let's hope for a better year around the corner.

Best Phone I've Ever Had

By Many of my friends and family know me simply as the go to guy when it comes to mobile technology, especially cell phones. I've had dozens in the past few years if not hundreds and with each one something new and improved. With each cell phone I've come across there have been certain things I've liked, loved, disliked, and down right hated. From the Palm Pre, HTC Thunderbolt, Motorola Bionic, Blackberry Storm, Iphone 4-5, Samsung Galaxy S4 and many more. All of which had certain things that made them unique but never have I had one phone that just did it all and was well balanced not just in features but in actual real world usage until I decided to purchase the LG G2. I know what you're all thinking, it's LG, but this thing is amazingly balanced. The screen is bright and crisp with a high resolution of over 400 ppi and can be seen in direct sunlight. The camera is the best I've ever seen on an Android device and has tons of features built in for the photo buffs out there. The battery life I've never seen last this long on a smart phone without a battery pack. I get nearly 17 hours of continuous use out of it on a regular basis. The video recording is amazing and beautiful to watch on screen. The built in infrared and controller is awesome and works with pretty much anything out there that receives infrared signals. The speed and performance is the best I've seen thus far as well on Android. Lastly however is the most important in my opinion and that's call quality. It's clear and audible. Almost too loud at times but I'm not complaining.  If I had to complain about anything it would be the plastic backing that's seriously it. At the end of the day I come home satisfied with my LG G2 and highly recommend it to anyone who wants a overall balanced phone that works and works well.

Google Nexus 5, Iphone 5S, and Something Even Cooler!

Wow it has been one heck of a year and a crazy one too in the tech world as well as mine. Sorry for the overdue lack thereof posts on here. That aside let's get back to business!
So there have been multiple rumors in Google land as of the recent months have gone by. We have the next goole phone aka Nexus 5 which is being manufactured by Lg. Here are some links over this way to give you the scoop on the phone and what to expect. 
We also have the iPhone 5S that has been out for some time now and the newly announced iPad Mini Retina Display version as well as the iPad Air.  The iPhone 5S I am not entirely impressed with, especially with the way the new ios 7 looks and performs on the device. I will say however that the 64 bit architecture is a step in the right direction but not something that can be totally utilize as of right now.
Now on to the really exciting stuff! We have been seeing a surge in Windows Phones recently, thanks to a bit of marketing and advertising and the Nokia deal. Nokia recently had its event where they announced a few new goodies and another surprise that wasn't mentioned.  The really cool thing though about the last unmentioned device which we know is now the Lumia 929 is that it's heading to the Nations Largest carrier and is shaping up to be actually a nice looking and much needed Windows Phone device for Verizon! We are looking at a full 1080p 5" amoled screen with a 20mp camera to boot! Now this might seems like not a big deal compared to the rest of the phones out there but Windows and Nokia have made some pretty nice point and shoot devices in the past for example the Lumia 1020 with its 41mp shooter. The problem before was however that it was really only known for its camera and that's it. Well with this device we are getting a full hd screen, possibly a quad core processor, smooth and simplistic operating system, and a great camera! For the tech geeks out there this is a big win, especially for Windows fans. Now if only we could get some more big name apps in their store Windows would definitely make some noise. I'n rooting for them though so here's to the future for No.. err I mean Windows Phone 8!

Trend Says Smart Phones Are Losing Their Luster

I wrote a bit about this last week but after reading a phonearena.com article my intuitiveness has been proven informative and accurate. The smart phone industry as a whole has been on a decline, not as rapid as the pc, but what does this mean for the future of the actual manufacturers. I remember when the first smartphone had a built in camera on it in a lowly vga quality yet it was still amazing at the time to actually use your camera for a photo. Then Apple revolutionized the smart phone with iOS and showed that you could have a smart phone that worked and worked smoothly and fast too. Palm came out with their Web OS which showed multitasking at its best on a smart phone. Htc came out with the Evo which was the first Wimax/partial 4G device in the US on Androids platform. Screen resolution started to become higher with the start of the retina display on the iphone 4. Nokia released a 41mp camera phone running on Windows as well as their gloves on touch enabled screen. Lg is now coming out with a phone with the volume rocker on the back of the phone and lastly Apple is working on possibly having a fingerprint reader implemented in their next phone. Oh wait also we have flexible screens in the works too. Question is, what out there is actually exciting and makes users want to continue to purchase new phones when the market has become as saturated as the PC world. One month you buy a new phone and a month later there is another one that's out that trumps it in hardware specs. It's becoming too much too little and what I mean by that is that sure you can have one phone that has a killer processor and high res screen but lacks in the camera department, or maybe a great Operating system that's smooth and lacks bugs and has great speakers but has a sub par camera. Even if a manufacturer comes out with a true "Hero" device and has all the killer specs with the great camera, smooth performance, fingerprint reader, loud speakers, fastest LTE, you still won't have a truly unique and exclusive phone for more than a few months at best. Here's where innovation needs to come into play. Why don't we have a phone that does something new and useful and I mean actually useful. We want great call quality, great photos, great ease of use, bigger, faster, smarter, but what's next that will rock the mobile world to the core? How's an actual phone that can just do what it's supposed to do, Simplify life. It's almost ironic sounding because that's what they are supposed to do right? With Facebook, and Instagram, and Twitter, What'sapp, Vine, Slacker, Pandora, Pinterest, and so many more it's almost a joke to me to think that this is making life simpler. Multitasking in my opinion is to be able to do many things at once in a proficient and time saving manner with maximum productivity, not being constantly distracted and glued to your device every time you see an led notification or hear a "ghost ring". Why not have a phone that actually does true multitasking where you don't need to constantly have to open and close apps, switch between multimedia and social applications to constantly stay on top of everything. My theoretic solution to this is simple.. Keep it clean, streamlined, and in the future.. Look at this video and let me know what you think of Nokias concept phone. Is it ridiculous or genius? If you guys have any suggestions or ideas shoot them over to me. I am all about hearing what you think would be innovative and a jaw dropper for the mobile industry and as always thanks for reading!

iOS 7, Samsung, HTC, BlackBerry And More Of The Same Ole Stuff

It's been entirely too long since the last post by myself or the other moderators on here and today will end that with a information overload on all the things we technology lovers care about the most. With that said let's start with Nokia announcing their newest device the Lumia 1020 which is priced at $300 on contract, $650 off, exclusively for AT&T. The phone comes in a variety of colors if you like white, black, or yellow, that is and is limited to 32gb of internal storage and did I mention it's exclusive to only AT&T? On the upside their is a 64gb version which can be purchased through Microsoft directly. So is it a killer of all phones? Maybe in the camera department whereas the camera sensor is stacked with a six lens 41mp camera which is just mind boggling if you think back how cameras used to be less than 8mp and today the standard is that/ However this is a Windows Phone 8 device and is limited to one carrier, so there are obvious pros and cons here. If you are a photo fanatic and like limited apps but a great and overall functional and stable operating system on a phone then pull the trigger. Personally I am satisfied with the 13mp camera on my Galaxy S4 and enjoyed the camera on the iPhone 5 just as much as any other average user. 

Apple has released the beta versions of iOS 7 which seem to be very similar to another existing operating system, cough Android cough, and honestly really doesn't seem to be implementing much innovation other than the home screen moving with your movements which Android has been capable of for years now. All in all after a month with the beta version I decided to go with the Galaxy S4.

Other news we have been hearing a lot about Motorolas X phone which may or may not be a big hit. With Google backing it so much it should be worth a look but from what the leaked specs appear to be it seems a bit under powered and not really something you would think a savior phone should or could be. Speaking of savior phones it looks like Blackberry is having a hard time getting their own z10 out the door as sales numbers came in way below expectations and they apparently have been leaking photos and specs for their new "killer" device and to be frank they are still lacking in the power house department with dual core processors and lower resolution screens it's just the same ole same ole. 

Samsung has released a few new phones within the past few months, one of which is a Galaxy S4 variant called the Active which again is exclusive to AT&T and is waterproof and dust proof and has almost identical specs to the regular S4, minus the Lcd screen and a lower resolution camera. Also Samsung came out with their Galaxy S4 Zoom camera phone which packs a punch in the photo department but not much better than the standard Galaxy S4. Do you see a trend here?

So with that said there are a ton of new devices coming out but from what I have been reading and seeing there is nothing that's coming out that really screams "WOW" or has really any kind of major innovation. So does this mean that the Mobile Phone Generation is starting to finally come to a stand still or worse a decline? The only thing I have seen or have been reading about as of late which makes phones seem like they haven't lost their innovative features is LG's G2 which  moved the volume button on from the traditional side to the back of device which is cool but honestly how useful. Apple is also supposedly working on a finger print reader for their next big release but how many people actually want or need that? Maybe instead of working on phones with one great feature why not make them have all the great features. Possibly a mobile phone in which you can have complete customization. Meaning able to upgrade the ram, or the internal memory, screen, camera sensor, dare I say even processor? I mean why can't a manufacturer actually offer a fully customized device based on what the user wants? Would they really lose that much money from the carriers by offering something that can be as tailored and exclusive as a customized device with your name engraved on it or a specific color or material such as brushed aluminum for the back plate. Guess we shall see what happens with the Motorola X and cross our fingers.

Lastly how about this for an idea, how about someone come up with a device that is as useful as implementing a complete operations system that can fully integrate with your life in every aspect including your vehicle and can be used in a HUD system for your vehicle to offer hands free internet viewing without distracting the driver, or text on screen(windshield) for viewing the internet, making calls, texting, or whatever you want to do with your phone. That's more innovative than a finger print reader in a phone or a quad core processor that can't handle more than a few tasks at a time until it bogs down. Let's see if anyone out there in the near future can do something to give the mobile world that wow factor again. Until the next update, thanks for reading!

iOS 7 Beta Hands Review

So as this is a beta version of iOS 7 this review is subject to change as typically there are four to five more updates till the gold seal of approval. With that said let's get on to the review.

Interface has had a unique and somewhat controversial overhaul. As far as the display and icons you are looking at more flat but also more cartoon based looking icons. The overall appearance is hit and miss as far as appearance is concerned. The screen background gives a almost 3 dimensional perspective with the icons on top remaining stationary but the wallpaper moves according to the users movements. It's actually something that's been seen on many Android devices before just not really made into a big hoopla.
The new search feature is rather confusing as the traditional swipe to the left has been replaced with a swipe down from any icon on the screen. Once you have been made aware it's rather simple to do but it's missing some features such as going straight to the web to search as before. I am sure this is just a beta issue and will be fixed in future versions.
Texting is somewhat buggy and honestly the colors pop too much, almost feels like it's too bright and distracting to the point of annoyance. Also it's a little buggy as of right now and feels like a beta keyboard but still you know it's apple if that makes sense. Also the colors in general are a bit annoying.
Camera is a nice change which brings in instagram like filters and you can swipe from left to right to do different views rather than going into settings to change things around. The addition of a hdr icon right on the screen is a nice addition as well. Things get a bit buggy though when switching from the lock screen to camera and often crash or freeze the phone. Again it's something expected with a beta and will be fixed for final release. Overall the camera has some nice features added into them and I am happy to say it's even snappier than before. The pictures are almost instantly saved or appear to be which is nice.
There are so many more features to write on and I will be getting to those within the next few days so stay tuned and I'll keep you all posted on the new iOS 7 as best I can!

iOS 7 initial impressions

So today I decided to download the beta for iOS 7 and give it a test drive and some initial first impressions. Well first things first. I can honestly say that this puts Apple back in the game and on the right track as far as their mobile os goes. The new features are much needed and don't even appear to be playing catch up with android but actually are still in a league of their own. Now don't get me wrong, there are still plenty of things I love about android but there are plenty of things I am loving about iOS 7 too and it's getting better the more I play with the new features. I'll have a full wrap up in a day or so. Stay tuned!

Long Needed Break and Down Time To Review The Samsung Galaxy SIV

So I had a chance to handle Samsung's new Galaxy SIV and am going to list initial impressions from the time I had with it. We will go down the list as far as performance, multimedia, screen input responsiveness, camera, and call quality.

Let me clarify first that I love Android, I mean love it. If I could have the perfect phone it would combine the speed of ios and the features of Android into a metal frame of cold steel with the internal hardware of the SIV and call it a day.

Performance on the SIV is as expected, pretty fast, however it wasn't without an occasional hiccup or two when switching in between apps. This for me was one of the most annoying things to deal with on the SIV mainly due to the fact that it's a next generation phone and it has amazing hardware internally. Also I noticed that most of the lagging was when using anything that opened up the keyboard function. I was also using Swiftkey so maybe that had something to do with it.

The multimedia experience is where it went into almost too much in my opinion. Some of the features were a nice addition while others were just unnecessary. The built in IR for remote control capabilities was a nice addition and worked rather well, much better than the HTC One's remote features. Air hover was neat but not really needed and impractical unless you just don't like touching your touch screen phone. As far as the media player its the same as it is on the S3 for the most part.

Screen input responsiveness was pretty good, not as great as some other phones I have used but good. Text input was speedy while using the stock keyboard, however not so much on Swiftkey. When playing touch based games it seemed rather smooth and no lag time between touch input responsiveness.

Camera enhancements were actually where I enjoyed the SIV the most. The camera takes amazing pictures in good lighting conditions and was extremely realistic and detailed. However in low light situations it suffered and I preferred to use my iPhone 5 over it. The extra additions such as animated images and cropping out unwanted photo bombers was very useful though and a much needed edition.

Call quality was good, not amazing, but good enough to hear clearly in a half way noisy environment. I do wish that the speaker output was a bit louder though but all in all it sufficed.

Overall this phone is a great edition to Android and I'd say one of the best Android devices out there at this time, however the screen still needs work as far as out door visibility which can't touch Lcd screens to this day. If you do already own an S3 though I would say keep your old phone unless you have to have the newest and best Android device out there. In comparison to the HTC One I'd say it has a slight advantage over it due to in my opinion a better camera and more useful features. However the HTC One has some exclusive goodies too.

Monday Funday!

Today in the news we have a plethora of random little things here and there. Such as Gmail for ios being updated. AT&T announcing a 32gb version of the Samsung Galaxy SIV coming for $249 soon. HTC One competing with Samsung's Galaxy SIV and who is selling more. Apple's stocks starting to bounce back a little. More Nokia Lumia rumors and speculation on their 925 and 928. Samsung's new television marketing explorations. Lastly Bill Gates bashing the iPad, gasp!

The Perfect Phone

With so many phones on the market and new ones around every corner it's hard for anyone these days to pick and choose from the crop as to what the "Best" phone is. We have so many feature phones on the market that advertise this feature and that to the point that it's become difficult to really remember what cell phones are or were made for in the first place. To talk on! So what's important to you as a smart phone or even non smart phone owner? Call Quality, battery life, camera, apps, ease of use, aesthetics? Has it gotten to the point where more phones are sporting gimmicky software and features rather than focusing on the things that matter? So lets take a poll and see what matters and then really make it interesting and pick from your favorite phones and see what you like about them and what you don't. Example: I wish my iPhone was more like my Samsung Galaxy S3 because of this feature.
Survey here!

PRINT WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!? Servin' up some frankenstein technology:)

Organovo Pushes to the Sci-Fi Frontier: Printing Human Organs

Kidneys, livers, whatever, made to order in a lab. With Organovo's 3-D printing technology, it's possible.

Photograph by Timothy Hogan

MADE TO ORDER The Novogen mmX Bioprinter builds tissue with real human cells.

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COMPANY PROFILE

Company: Organovo

Headquarters: San Diego, CA

Year Founded: 2007

Revenues: $1.2 million

Employees: 30

Right now in the United States, nearly 120,000 people are waiting for an organ transplant. Among them, 95,000 are waiting for a kidney, 15,000 need a liver, and 3,000 must get a heart. Depending on age, blood type, and ethnicity, these patients will wait anywhere from a few months to a few years for an organ--and some won't get it in time.
Keith Murphy, CEO of the biomedical engineering start-up Organovo, thinks there's a better answer: 3-D bioprinting. Doctors could create an organ in a lab precisely when it's needed.
"Surgeons are very limited by what they have available today," Murphy says. "If you can give them tissue to order, you can multiply, exponentially, the types of surgery that we can even envision doing. And if you could do it with a patient's own cells, surgeons could go places they haven't gone before."
They're printing what?
Professor Gabor Forgacs and his team at the University of Missouri, Columbia, developed Organovo's technology and founded the company in 2007. Since then, Organovo has made startling progress in the tissue engineering field. Unlike other tissue engineering methods, which make use of polymers--biomaterials that create structure and bond to cells--Organovo's NovoGen MMX Bioprinter uses human cells and shapes them into real tissue.
It may sound like science fiction, but it's all possible through a carefully controlled engineering feat.As with any 3-D printer, lasers guide the production of each tissue. But instead of ink or plastic molding, the printer ejects a liquid filled with thousands of human cells. The process repeats, creating multiple "stacks" of cell layers, and a noninvasive gel holds the stacks together.
Then, cell biology kicks in: The cells assemble themselves as they would in a developing human body and mature, finally, into actual tissue.
Race to market
To be sure, Organovo isn't the only team working on 3-D bioprinting and tissue engineering. Academic institutions around the country, including Columbia, Cornell, and Wake Forest, have scores of researchers devoted to this very concept. But experts in the field point to Organovo's progress.

"If Organovo succeeds, it fundamentally alters the trajectory of health care. That's pretty hard to trump."
--Max Levchin

"These kinds of surgical tools have been lacking for a long time," says Dr. G. Sitta Sittampalam, a senior adviser and project manager at the National Institutes of Health and an expert in cell pharmacology and 3-D tissues. "This is very important."
To date, Organovo has used the technology to conduct research on liver cells and collaborated with both private enterprises and academic institutions (Pfizer and Harvard Medical School, for instance) to test tissue samples. In 2012, the company received multiple patents.
The biggest challenge in tissue engineering is thickness: Ultimately, Murphy says, going from tissues that are 1 millimeter thick to 5 millimeters thick will be harder than going from 5-millimeter tissue to building an organ. "We're still a couple years off," Murphy says, "but we're moving forward."

Eric Markowitz reports on start-ups, entrepreneurs, and issues that affect small businesses. Previously, he worked at Vanity Fair. He lives in New York City. @EricMarkowitz

The Next Big Thing

So with the Samsung Galaxy SIV being released around the corner and the HTC One already having been released as well as Blackberry's Z10 the question now is what will Apple pull out of its hat? Typically Apple has done modest upgrades here and there and focused primarily on the premium aesthetics and feel of their hardware and primarily on their software side of the the OS. So this leaves everyone thinking what's going to happen this year? As far as design aesthetics everyone has come to expect the same old same old which is one of the reasons Apple has been not a hot topic as much as usual. The past three iPhones look almost exactly the same other than a larger screen on the 5 and a aluminum brushed back plate. Android has made itself known to the masses and offers so many different features on their phones that Apple has begun to seem, well, very outdated. So this year we have apparently a low end model for Apple and the standard premium but the thing is will it be enough to regain the confidence of investors and real in the masses? Apple needs to do something new and bring innovation back on the table. Sure the iWatch will be cool but will it be great? We need Apple to do something big and new and innovative to actually hold the masses of Android devices back. If Apple releases another small upgrade to its newest phone then I fear they will be losing the market in the long run. Yes Apple makes great mobile devices, yes they have this premium aura that most people associate them with, yes they have a great and refined operating system, but are those good enough with an outdated OS and old looking hardware? I think not..

Why Didn't Verizon Get the HTC One?

So the HTC One has been somewhat of a hit thus far or at least it appears to have been as most of the larger US carriers are sold out of the device online but why did only three of the big four get the One? It appears Verizon held off on the One because they already had a quad core beast by HTC dubbed the DNA aka Butterfly overseas. However it appears that we have another variant of the Butterfly overseas dubbed the DLXPLUS which could very well be a variant for the Butterfly 2 for Verizon. If this is the case it would be interesting to see the aesthetics and overall specs of this model versus the current One that is out now. Time will tell I suppose. In the mid range Android wold we have the announcement from Pantech with Motion Sense gestures baked into the phone for hands free operation which is really quite snazzy for a mid ranger. Apparently Verizon will finally be announcing their flagship Nokia Lumina device the 928 which will probably be the best Windows 8 Phone on their list at least till the holidays. Lastly it seems Apple is just getting bashed everywhere I look today with low projected sales, falling stocks, delayed devices for their next iPhone and the list just goes on.

HTC One Review!

So it's time for a review of the recently available HTC One. I have had the past few days to go over the device extensively and here are my thoughts. I will break it down by screen quality, responsiveness, ease of use, build quality, text input, camera quality, call quality, batter quality, and features.

Screen Quality: The screen on this thing was nice to view and natural looking when viewed in the dark and indoors. However once outdoors it was visible but not nearly as much as some other phones I have used, such as the DNA or iPhone 5.  Also I had a of what I am sure was a quality control issue and received a new out of box One with a dead pixel on the screen. Barely noticeable unless you were viewing emails or light colored screens but still shouldn't be on a brand new phone like this. Viewing angles were pretty good while indoors but outdoors you might as well forget it unless it's overcast out. As far as the picture clarity goes the pictures are sharp and look great but a bit too cold for my liking. In the end I still was very impressed with the actual clarity and quality of the screen aside from the small imperfections.

Responsiveness: Well as far as I could gather this thing didn't have any hiccups at all with the exception of dropping wifi a few times while trying to watch videos on youtube. It did seem to render a bit slower than normal for youtube watching but I think it was due to the internet connectivity issues. As far as running memory intensive apps it worked very well. I played Horn and it didn't stutter a bit. Web pages loaded fast as well and it even gave me the option to load web pages with flash. I did have some issues watching some videos online however due to enabling flash but not too many. Swiping between screens and going from different applications was fine and had no lag at all. Definitely a great phone and can handle itself even under a load.

Ease Of Use: The new home page section integrates your social networks such as Facebook rather well but not entirely too sure it is needed. It however can be disabled, sort of, to where you can have the typical Android homepage experience. I didn't mind the actual home page integration itself and it reminded me of a live tile experience but a very limited one. Not a bad thing but not something that is much needed either. Making phone calls was simple and quick and the setup was rather nice too. Once you get used to the lack of the menu button everything was much simpler. Opening and closing apps was a breeze as well yet a menu button would be nice.

Build Quality: The phones design aesthetics are certainly one of the best I have seen on an Android device in a very long time, possibly ever. It had a sturdy feel and wasn't too terribly heavy in the hand without a case attached to it. As for the screen it did seem to not be exactly flush with the bezel. Part of it was or seemed to be above the metal bezel at the top of the phone and more flush at the bottom. This could just be a quality control issue though and not an actual design flaw. I also received a new in the box unit that had a dead pixel on the screen right out of the box so it could of been just a dud. When holding the device it felt rather comfortable but if you have small hands it might not be the phone for you as its actually slightly larger than a Galaxy S3. Overall I enjoyed the feel and build quality of the phone.

Text Input: This one I was a bit uneasy about mainly because I felt that even though the responsiveness of the phone was great the keyboard was not laid out very well and felt cramped and unresponsive so I opted to use Swiftkey instead as it has better predictive input and feels less cramped overall. The built in emotions were kind of a cool perk but nothing that made the keyboard feel top notch.

Camera Quality: This is where I left most disappointed. The camera on this thing was/is supposed to be not just good but great and though indoor shots were good they weren't great and it became worse as the day progressed. The outdoor night shots just didn't seem nearly as crisp and sharp as the SGS3 or the iPhone 5 and at the clubs you might as well forget it. I tried hdr, night shot, and auto, night shot was the best one I got but you had to stay still and the processing time took way too long to get a sub-par picture. Maybe I was doing something wrong but I just didn't come home at the end of the night impressed with the shots. However Zoe is extremely intuitive and useful and made a lot of my sub-par photos come out to be acceptable.

Call Quality: Call quality was great, when I actually had service, I used Sprint and well it's really hit and miss with them. Voices sounded clear and very audible even at a low volume setting. Also the speakerphone was loud and clear and didn't distort at all with my calls. As far as dropping calls I didn't at all but some calls faded in and out and this was clearly due to the network the phone was on and not a quality issue with the phone in my opinion. All in all it was more than acceptable.

Battery: I got about 8 hours of usage on the phone without having to recharge. The usual email checking, text messaging, Pandora Streaming Bluetooth, and movie watching was not at a high but moderate level and it seemed to work fine. I did however leave the phone uncharged for a day and at night when I went to bed it was about 3/4 full and went to less than half during my sleep which I am not sure if that was due to the wifi connectivity dropping or not. I do think the phone if being used on LTE would of put a more severe battery drain on it as I was strictly on 3G and WiFi during my time with it.

Feautures: Zoe, The Amazingly Loud Speakers with Beats Audio, were great and definitely make this phone a top contender and worth getting but I am weary about the overall camera quality still and if you are a photo hobbyist I might say wait and see what else comes out in the next few months. However I have to applaud the speaker build and quality of this thing. The sound will fill a quiet room and make it sound like you have a radio playing. It's just that good.

Conclusion: Would I recommend this phone to a friend on T-Mobile, AT&T, or Sprint? Most definitely I would if you don't have small hands and sub-par picture quality. Overall the phone is amazing and I think stands a good chance of doing well against Samsung's upcoming SIV and possibly other new flagship phones coming this year. If they got their camera right and possibly the keyboard a revamp I'd give this thing a 9.3 but I am settling with a 8.75 due the small yet significant shortcomings.

HTC One, Apple Not Doing So Well & More!

So things haven't been looking too well for Apple and apparently with the low sales projections their stocks quality control issues for their iPhone line. Veering away from Apple Samsung rumors are flying about the next Note to have a flexible shatterproof display that's made of plastic? HTC is offering its One phone to the US in an unlocked flavor and check back later for a full review of the One. Also for HTC One if you order from Radioshack you get a $50 play store card for those much needed apps and games.  AT&T is making way for their version of the Samsung Galaxy SIV for April 23 launch and Verizon has put up their pre-order page.
are taking a pretty hard hit. Also it seems Apple is taking hits elsewhere too with

HTC One Demoed!

So today I decided to demo HTCs new baby the One and all I can say is woah. I mean wow this thing flies and has an amazing build quality and screen to back it up. Also the camera I did some shots with and was impressed. I meant iPhone 5 is amazing in that category but I feel that the One did just as good of a job. Not to say that once on the big screen it would still hold up but still amazing clarity. I also noticed that the responsiveness was very above average and everything flew by with no issues at all. So far this phone is one that I'm digging. Lets see what Sammy can pull out of their magic hat with the SIV!

HTC One Available Today & More!

Today the HTC One is available at retailers such as Sprint, AT&T, & More. More press shots of the rumored Nokia 928 were released today also in Nokia world we have heard that there will be a new flagship device coming within the next few months. I have to post this one just to give LG props for doing something hilarious and different.  Bad news for Verizon customers, they will not be getting the Samsung Galaxy SIV this month which may come to a disappointment to some. HTC Desire L was announced today and is basically a mid ranger. That's it for now folks! Thanks for reading!

Why Don't We Get Awesome Drool Worthy Phones & More!

So today as I was actually free to browse the web for new mobile tech today I ran across this little beauty made by Zopo today and became instantly jealous of China. It's sporting some pretty amazing specs all for around $230 which is pretty amazing. In other news Samsung and Sprint are taking Galaxy SIV pre-orders starting on April 19th for $250 for existing customers or $150 for new customers porting their number from another carrier. T-Mobile also announced their pricing for the Sammy flagship as well. Blackberry also apparently has a phablet in the works which may or may not come to see the light in the next few months. Moto is working on a phone for the masses putting emphasis on size and hopefully specs too which should be coming in the second half of 2013. Oh and lastly, chuckle chuckle, Apple shares have fallen to the lowest levels since 2011.. Hmmm wonder why?

Samsung Announces Release Date For The SGSIV End Of April!

“The Galaxy S line of smartphones has achieved momentous success with 100 million in unit sales worldwide in less than three years. This validates that we are addressing what consumers want from a smartphone,” said Dale Sohn, president of Samsung Telecommunications America. “The fourth generation of Samsung’s flagship device builds upon the tradition of excellence and provides consumers with even more innovation that simplifies and redefines the way individuals will interact with their Galaxy S 4. We believe this device will be a true companion to all aspects of a consumer’s life from work, to travel and even watching TV.”

Meaningful Moments

The Galaxy S 4 combines the simple and visual interface introduced with the Galaxy Camera with a 13- megapixel rear-facing camera to take professional looking photographs with a smartphone. The front-facing 2- megapixel camera on the Galaxy S 4 allows consumers to capture special moments in unique and new ways with the Dual Camera shooting mode. Dual Camera mode takes pictures with both the rear and front cameras simultaneously to enable the photographer to be in the photo as well.

The Galaxy S 4 is loaded with several innovative capabilities that let anyone shoot like a professional:

Drama Shot: Capture a progressive event, like a baby’s first steps or a basketball player’s slam dunk, in one frame
Eraser Shot: Remove unwanted objects or people from an otherwise perfect picture
Animation Shot: Turn your favorite moments into animated GIF
Live Filters: With built-in filter options, an individual can now see how a picture will look– on both the camera and camcorder – before the photo is taken
Compile photos with location and weather information with Story AlbumTM to create the most comprehensive and personalized memory book. Integration with Blurb’s photo book printing service allows consumers to e asily print a physical book to keep or share.

Effortless Experience

The Galaxy S 4 introduces a completely new way to interact with a smartphone – without a touch. A simple wave of the hand over the screen scrolls through a screen and changes a song; holding a finger over the screen allows one to preview content within the photo gallery, email and calendar; pause a video by looking away from the screen and scroll to the top or bottom of a page by looking up or down.

Features include:

Air Gesture: Answer a call or skip to the next song by waving your hand in front of the screen. Useful when your hands are otherwise occupied
Air ViewTM: Preview emails, photos in the gallery, or even the stories in Flipboard® by hovering your finger over the screen
Samsung Smart Pause: Pause a video by looking away from the screen
Samsung Optical Reader: Automatically recognizes text, a business card or QR codes and take immediate action like placing a call from a scanned card or translating text
Protect Work and Personal Information

The Galaxy S 4 is not only perfect for personal use, but it is enterprise ready as a SAFETM-designated device. The Galaxy S 4 is the first Samsung device to include Samsung’s KNOX solution, which provides comprehensive mobile security at the hardware level and enhanced personal privacy for individuals at the software level. All framework components come standard on the device, and full-feature activation by solution providers and distribution channels will be available at a later date.

The Galaxy S 4 simultaneously delivers on IT executives’ need for industry-leading mobile security for companies with stringent security requirements. KNOX enables consumers to separate work via Samsung’s containerization approach. IT managers can now access and manage the passcode-protected work container without disturbing the content within an individual’s personal space on the device so consumer content, including photos, emails, music files and social network data remain intact on the device when an employee separates from a company.

Ease of Use

With the Galaxy S 4, there are a number of features to simplify the experience for first-time smartphone owners, those interested in switching from another operating system and long-time Samsung consumers. The Galaxy S 4 has a streamlined start-up wizard so consumers can begin using the device faster and learn about its unique features from the start.

Easy Mode, which was first introduced on the Galaxy S III, has been enhanced to smooth the transition for first- time smartphone owners by simplifying the home screen layout, camera, calendar, messaging and the internet browser to make the settings menu easy to navigate. Once a user is more comfortable with their Galaxy S 4, they can easily switch back to the standard home screen interface.

With the launch of the Galaxy S 4, Samsung is also introducing Samsung Smart SwitchTM, a PC application that lets new owners transfer contacts, messages, photos, music, calendar notifications and more from another phone to the Galaxy S 4. Smart Switch can identify favorite applications and recommend the same or similar applications within Google PlayTM.

The Galaxy S 4 greatly improves upon the popular notification shade, which provides quick control of new innovative features, and the functionality most often accessed and changed by consumers. The expanded notification shade shows 19 settings so consumers can quickly and easily toggle them on and off as needed.

Powerful Performance

The sophisticated Galaxy S 4 is designed with a full-HD Super AMOLEDTM (1920 X 1080) display with 441ppi for brilliant, stunning graphics on the device’s 5-inch screen. The slimmer, sleeker smartphone weighs 4.6 ounces, is 7.9 millimeters thin and has a minimized bezel to maximize the viewing experience.

The Galaxy S 4 includes AndroidTM 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) with TouchWiz® enhancements, a 1.9 GHz quad core CPU and 2GB of internal RAM. The Galaxy S 4 is also uses Gorilla Glass® 3.0 – the most advanced, fortified glass for its stunning 5-inch display, making it stronger and more resistant to scratches and cracks than ever before.

The Galaxy S 4, available at select carriers in Black Mist and White Frost, is powered by a removable 2,600 mAh battery for extended use on a single charge. Users can store large libraries of photos, music and videos on the Galaxy S 4 with expandable memory of up to 64 GB to complement the standard 16GB or 32GB of onboard storage.

Protect the Galaxy S 4 with the S View Flip Cover, a specially designed flip cover that has a clear window to read a text message, answer or reject a call, and view the battery status. Sold separately, the S View Flip Cover comes in Black Mist and White Frost to add style, while protecting the device and providing privacy, and is sold separately.

For more information on the Galaxy S 4 and accessories, please visit http://www.samsung.com/us/galaxys4 or http://www.samsungmobileuspress.com.

Phone Arenas Results Poll For Samsung Galaxy SIV Woes

So normally I wouldn't do this but I had to post the poll results from phonearena.com on the Samsung Galaxy SIV for apparent reasons. Spoiler alert! Look at the last answer and who wrote it. :-)
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Heres-what-our-readers-dislike-about-the-Galaxy-S4_id41903

Why Does North America Always Get The Lower End Flagships?

So today in the news we have results for the Global version of Samsungs Galaxy SIV which smokes the US and European versions in the antutu benchmark scores and HTC has their Global edition of the One which has expandable storage and dual sim card slots. So what is it that keeps these flagships not being so flagship when they hit North America and Europe. Here's a little hint, money. If you think on it the FCC regulates what comes in here in North America and restricts certain devices based on a multitude of things, bandwidths, radiation levels, and money. Yes money controls all and unfortunately it's a dog eat dog world and in order to have certain premium devices we have to pay a premium price but it's never just that simple or is it?
Other things in the news today we have T-Mobile working on a revised bid in order to save the merger for Metro PCS. Also Samsung is televising their new Galaxy SIV Models and actually not bashing Apple. Lastly Lg Optimus Pro might be released in the upcoming months for AT&T. Thanks for reading!

HTC Woes And More!

So today in the news we have HTC taking another big loss in their earnings report and having their flagship One device being delayed isn't going to help with Samsung Galaxy SIV being released around the corner. The One should be available with T-Mobile April 19th however. Other interesting news today we have Windows Blue rumored to merge Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8 into one product which seems to be the route they have been going from the start with the release of 8. More news follows as we see it and thanks for reading.

No New Facebook Phone! Debunked Folks! Update:

Facebooks very own Mark Zuckerberg just debunked the Facebook phone rumor and has stated they aren't working on a phone. Details at the link!
Update: Here is a link showing some of the cool features of Facebook Home. It looks like there is a bit of a Web OS element here and that's kind of cool to see yet somewhat sad too since Web OS was such a intuitive operating system back when it was announced. Maybe LG will do something with it in the future rather that just use it for their television line. Time will tell...

Facebook Home Event Today!

Today Facebook should shed some rumors on their Facebook Home event and maybe even announce a Facebook centric phone. Announcement is at 1 pm Eastern Standard Time and we will be updating as we hear more.

Cell Phones Turn 40 Today, HTC One Global Edition & More!

So Engadget posted an article today about the HTC One gloabl edition having a removable back cover and addition of a micro sd card and two sim card slots. The sim card slots are not a big deal but the addition of the micro sd slot for more memory has me a bit envious of people outside the US who have access to this phone. Today is the 40th birthday for cell phones which is pretty awesome if you think about it and how far they have come. Best Buy and Walmart are slashing Apple iPad and iPad Mini prices to open the path for newer iPad models in the next few months. In the rumor mill we have a possible HTC Facebook phone called HTC First which may or may not be a flop. Nokia might have a new device in the works dubbed the Nokia Lumina 950 which will obviously be a Windows phone. Lastly we have T-Mobile possibly having a carrier update for existing iPhones on their network to enable LTE which might make some very happy. Thanks for reading!

HTC One Review From BGR Is Comical & More!

So BGR decided to do a review on the HTC One yesterday and give it a best Android Phone Ever shout out without even saying anything about the battery life and comparing the screen to Apple's iPhone but in the same sentence saying it's not as good is a total joke. I literally lol'd myself after reading the poor satire of an review. Check the link for the full read. In other news we have the HTC One doing quite some promotional marketing for their new device which is slated for the end of April and it seems each carrier is offering different incentive. Also Samsung maybe have a leak on their hands for their new tablet over at Phonearena.com  Lastly for now we have a Google rumor of an actual Android laptop in the works. Check the link for the write up and thanks for reading!

T-Mobile & MetroPCS, Win, Lose, Or Draw!

With the T-Mobile and MetroPCS shareholder voting around the corner we could have a make or break on our hands for T-Mobile. If it goes through and T-Mob does go through with the merger it will help T-Mobile significantly in the LTE race and possibly push it towards number three instead of last place for the Nations largest carriers. Here's the logistics of the story at the link. In other news Sony is apparently in the works for a Cyber Shot quality camera phone with possibly a 20mp sensor. Here's an interesting one for you, apparently Facebook has or is in the works for making a Facebook Home Icon for Android which is familiar of what Htc is doing with its One phone now with the whole live tile like home page. Taking a page right out of Windows Phone 8? It sure looks that way. The Samsung GSIV looks like it paid a visit to the FCC this weekend, hopefully by the time it's released the Exynos processors will not be on the hard to find list. Lastly in the rumor and April fools world we have an floating iPhone 5s in the works, courtesy of Phone Arena. That's it for now folks, have a good Monday morning!

Today In The News, Blackberry, Samsung, Apple & More!

T-Mobiles Apple iPhone 5 is expected to sell a healthy 3 million units this year which is kind of a big deal since T-Mob hasn't really had a big launch event for any flagship phone as of late. Also in the news we have a review for the Samsung Galaxy S IV vs. Apple iPhone 5 here at the link. Blackberry Z10 is now available on Verizon's network. Also in Apple world we have a patent that was leaked on the web today that is quite innovative and shows a wrap around amoled screen which would be an amazing feat. Samsung seems to be asking a premium price for their new flagship, at least on AT&T anyway. Lastly Motorola rumors suggest that their new "X" phone will not be as awesome as some have hoped for. Meh....

Pocketnow Apple Article I Love

Pocketnow has an article up talking about Apple and how they need more than the iPhone 5s in order to compete again and I whole heartily agree. Check out the link here!

Are Smartphones Really That Smart?

So instead of writing about talking about Samsung or Apple today per the usual I am emphasizing more on core features of the smartphone and what makes them so smart. First and foremost internet browsing is great to have but even non smart phones could do that before we had today's smartphones. Cameras were also prevalent on non smartphones too as well as texting capabilities. So what is it that makes smartphones stand out so much? It certainly isn't their battery life, my old phones used to last me two days before needing a charge and that was with texting and making a few calls a day. In fact the only smart phone that I am aware of that actually last for a couple days without charge is the Droid Razor Maxx. So again I reiterate what makes a smartphone so special? Hint, Apple has made a killing off of it since the beginning of the iPhone. Apps and if you guessed that then goo job. Most non smart phones are only capable of carrier made apps or if you have a phone that supports J2ME(Java To Micro Edition). With the introduction to apps we have a world full of customization, or lack there of depending on the platform, which makes our smartphones just that much more smart. However there is a cost to this. First and foremost you pay a premium for the handset, the service, the carrier plans, and the battery life. On average app can drain you battery life by 25% and some as much as half depending on what app you are using. Pandora is one of the power hungry ones that I personally love but hate too. So where or what is the fix for this? So far it seems power sipping processors and customizing the software is helping but what really makes the phones last longer? The battery of course! The problem with the battery is that they can only be so big before compromising the size and aesthetics of the phone. Hence the screen wars. Everyone thinks the bigger the better the screen but is it really because manufacturers want bigger screens or are there underlying reasons, cough Larger battery placement cough, that is the question here. So is their another solution besides processors and larger batteries? Yes and the solution is not as simple as the answer. Solar power for your cellular phones. Yes you still need a battery to run a solar powered phone and yes you still will have to charge the phone from time to time and you will also be sacrificing the aesthetics a bit and size will be an issue but what if you didn't mind having the back of the phone covered in solar panels and just used a clear case for extra protection? Technology is advanced enough to be able to do this and sorry to say the money hungry corporations out there that want you to buy new batteries and new phones all the time are whats making solar power not just for phones difficult to accomplish. So with all of this said I ask you the consumer. What kind of smartphone do you want for the future? One that's truly smart or one that's just what the manufacturers want you to think is smart?

T-Mobile's Big Surprise Err Not So Much Surprise

So today T-Mob announced(officially) their new uncarrier plans and that they will be carrying the iPhone 5, $99 on contract, as well as the Samsung Galaxy SIV. The cool thing here is that you can buy a phone and pay an up front fee without having to be in a contract. In theory this is awesome right? Well there's always a catch. Yes you pay a small up front fee and only $20 a month for 20 months which is $500 for an iPhone 5 but if you decide to leave T-Mobile and go elsewhere you have to pay for the phone up front of make monthly payments until the phone can be unlocked from T-Mobile and used elsewhere. So is that necessarily a bad thing? Not really but it's still a catch but hey they have to look out for themselves someway. In other news T-Mobile has the Blackberry Z10 available today and lets just say the trend I saw with AT&T is sticking. No marketing and reps barely knew anything about the device. Either Rim hasn't been sending out enough field reps for training in store reps or something is amiss.

Uber For Windows Phone and BB7 Now Available

Uber just released an updated version of it's ingenious application for Android recently; which, in turn, brought it up to snuff. According to the official announcement, the latest version introduces a plethora of new, desirable features -- 4sq integration, a fare calculator and a redesigned UI. 

But what's more interesting is the release of Uber for Windows Phone (7.8+) and BB7. Now everyone and their mother can easily summon a private car at will. There's been no indication that Uber intends to support BB10, but chances are they will. It seems the company aims to get their app on every device imaginable, and you can't be mad at that. Follow the link for store links and more information. 

Called It! Blackberry Sales Are Amiss!

With the launch of the Z10 from Blackberry last week the sales have been more than lacking. I decided to check out a few AT&T stores to get some input here in Richmond and my original thoughts were spot on. None of the stores had any marketing for the Z10 at all and when I spoke with the reps one even said sales were less than sub par and even said they will be a flop and dead in the water within a year. Did I agree with him? You bet I did and here's why. I reiterate that history repeats itself here and Blackberry sure seems to be going the same route as Palm did. Maybe not so much in the new OS route but definitely in the way of having lackluster hardware and marketing to push their new flagship model. I mean even Palm pushed marketing for their Pre in the weirdest television ads I have seen for mobile devices to date but at least they did something. So this leads me to believe that if Blackberry doesn't do something quick, and not announcing a better future device before the newest flagship is available, they are dead in the water... 

Remembering the Words of Wisdom: "HUAWEI"

Huawei Premia 4G now available at MetroPCS

The carrier's second Huawei 4G LTE smartphone runs Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and features a 4.0-inch display.

by Scott Webster

@swebster77

The Huawei Premia 4G is MetroPCS's latest Android smartphone.

(Credit: MetroPCS)

Today, MetroPCS and Huawei announced their latest collaboration, the Huawei Premia 4G.

Related stories:

• Feds approves T-Mobile and MetroPCS merger
• LG Spirit 4G now available from MetroPCS
• T-Mobile reportedly plans layoffs ahead of MetroPCS merger

Powered by Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the Huawei Premia 4G is the carrier's second smartphone to feature 4G LTE connectivity.
Hardware details include a 4-inch display, a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB RAM, and a 5-megapixel camera. Falling somewhere between the ZTE Avid 4G and the LG Spirit 4G, the Premia 4G should appeal to first-time smartphone buyers.
While the handset does run an older version of Android, Ice Cream Sandwich is still modern enough to hold its appeal. As an affordable smartphone capable of 4G data speeds, the Premia 4G features Joyn by MetroPCS, as well as access to Rhapsody Unlimited Music service.
The Huawei Premia 4G is available in stores and online beginning today for $149.99 and can be paired with rate plans starting at $40 per month.

Blackberry Available For AT&T Today & More!

Blackberry has the Z10 available through AT&T today and I for one am curious as to how they will sell. Apparently Thorsten Heins has said that they have a even better device in the works for the holidays. Double edged sword? Maybe but who knows how the consumers will respond to this news and how it will affect the Z10 sales. I for one think history repeats itself and Blackberry has been brushed off as another Palm. In other news we have ZTE bringing to light the Grand X Quad which looks to be a pretty decent device and a sibling to the Grand S running a quad core processor clocked at 1.2GHz. HTC says the One will be available in the US at the end of April which may or not be a good thing since Samsung Galaxy S IV will be available just around the corner. Lastly here's a bit of info on T-Mobile value plans and that's it so far!

Google Releases Evernote Competitor

Following the announcement of the tragic demise of Reader [I know, it breaks my heart, too,] Google pulls the veil off their latest take on a product that already exists in an effort to garner an audience that seeks a solution to a problem that's already been addressed accordingly. 

Google Keep, for all intents and purposes, is a direct reflection of  Evernote.The app is a tool that allows one to efficiently organize and record their thoughts in one place. It supports a variety of media -- text, audio, photo etc. -- and is fully integrated with Google Drive, keeping your data insanely secure and wildly accessible. It also has a web component, adding yet another layer of accessibility. 

Keep is currently exclusive to Android devices, so I haven't had the opportunity to use it yet. However, judging from what I've seen, it's very well-designed. The interface is slick and vibrant; you've got a little tile-action going on there, which I like. It strikes me as an app that's pretty easy to use. I think it'll be well-received by those that choose to try it. Will those users find value in it? I don't know. Is it any better than products like Evernote or, let's say, Catch? Well that's to be determined. 

Keep is currently live in Google Play. Install it, toy around with it, and let me know how you feel about it. I'm intrigued. 

Pandora for Windows Phone 8 Finally!

So Pandora finally has come out with their Windows Phone 8 app, which is amazingly done by the way. It also supports unlimited skipping which is nice and is commercial free. So now Android and iOS users have something to be jealous about. I am for once a tid bit jealous. Apple has come in once again on top with customer satisfaction from J.D. Power. Blackberry is touting that they now have topped one hundred thousand apps in their market, which I doubt will save them if they are't major apps. Eric Schmidt hinted at a Google now app for iOS which Apple may or may not approve. Also one company to look out for is Huawei as a whole they are starting to gain ground in the Android market, small but nonetheless something you shouldn't overlook. Thanks for reading!

What's Going On With Samsung & Microsoft?

In the news today we have more Samsung babble and jibber jabber but here's an interesting take on Windows attacking Samsung. Apparently Samsung has ruffled Window's feathers a bit especially with not adapting their Windows Mobile platform on their devices which may or may not be a way to cripple Windows in order to promote their own OS Tizen. In other news we have rumors of potential Kindle Fire HD tablets running at $99 which would be a noticeable competitor in the low end tablet category. Also in today's news Google is working on their Babble project in order to unify multiple chat clients to go head to head with BBM and Apple ios messaging. Lastly there are rumors floating around about Nokia working on solar powered devices which is interesting to hear because the devices size would be compromised and since thinner is apparently better would it be something people would actually be interested in for the long haul. Thanks for reading folks!

The Day Of Samsung?

So today in news we have more trash talk coming from HTC against Samsung. HTC also was showing off their new HTC One in NYC last week to compete against Samsung. Also in news Samsung has a watch in the works to go head to head with Apples new watch. LG has its sites also on Samsung for infringing on certain patents. Also in Samsung world we have new benchmarks that have been done by Geekbench testing the new Galaxy S IV out against Apple's iPhone 5, HTC One, and the Nexus 4, the results are impressive. Lastly in Samsung world we have a controller being used to play games on the Samsung S IV to compete against actual consoles apparently.

In the rumor mill we have Motorola dropping a few code names, Yeti, Sasquatch, and Ghost, one of which could be the next Google X phone and that's it so far for today folks!

HTC ONE, SAMSUNG GALAXY S IV, APPLE & MORE

Today is Monday folks, we all have our Monday stories but to distract us from the Monday blues here's some for the day. Verizon twitters no HTC One in the works for them. Disappointing? I'm not because it only means they'll do something along the lines as with what they did for the incredible series. Nokia 928 apparently had some camera time in beta mode recently. Apple has become stagnant? Samsung CEO defends the cheap materials used on the SGSIV,and Asus apparently is prepping another nexus device. Any other noteworthy news cones up and I'll update accordingly. Thanks fit reading folks!