Microsoft Corp's Surface tablets have yet to make any profit as sputtering sales have been eclipsed by advertising costs and an accounting charge, according to the software company's annual report.
The two tablet models, introduced in October and February to challenge Apple Inc's popular iPad, have so far brought in revenue of $853 million, Microsoft revealed for the first time in its annual report filed with regulators on Tuesday.
That is less than the $900 million charge Microsoft announced earlier this month to write down the value of unsold Surface RT - the first model - still on its hands.
On top of that, Microsoft said its sales and marketing expenses increased $1.4 billion, or 10 percent, because of the huge advertising campaigns for Windows 8 and Surface. It also identified Surface (Review I Pictures) as one of the reasons its overall production costs rose.
The Surface is Microsoft's first foray into making its own computers after years of focusing on software, but its first attempts have not won over consumers. By comparison, Apple sold almost $24 billion worth of iPads over the last three quarters.
Samsung is in the news again with a new report now claiming that the South Korean device maker is allegedly working on tablets with 12.2-inch and 10-inch displays.
Twitter user @evleaks has revealed the specifications of Samsung SM-P900 and P600 which he claims are the model numbers of tablets featuring a 12.2-inch and 10-inch display, respectively. The tweet by @evleaks said, "Samsung SM-P900: 12.2-inch, Exynos 5 octa, 2560x1600, S-pen; P600: 10-inch, Snapdragon 800, also 2560x1600."
The tweet clearly mentions that the alleged 12.2-inch and 10-inch tablets will boast of a resolution of 2560x1600 pixels and would be powered by Exynos Octa 5 and Snapdragon 800 processor, respectively. The SM-P900 will supposedly support S-Pen, as per @evleaks.
Another technology site, RB Men has also published specifications of the alleged 12.2-inch model variant of the Samsung tablet dubbed as SM-P900. The site suggests that the SM-P900 tablet will run Android 4.2.
We had earlier reported about Samsung developing a 12.2-inch tablet of its own. The report claimed that the displays will be made by Sharp and will be based on IGZO (Indum-Gallium Zinc Oxide) technology. They'll sport a resolution of 2560x1600 pixels and will come with an S Pen stylus, which is usually bundled with devices under the Galaxy Note series. Samsung is likely to launch the tablet in the third quarter of 2013. It's worth mentioning that Apple is also said to be testing a large screen iPad measuring slightly less than 13-inches diagonally as per rumours.
Samsung has been launching tablets and phablets in various display sizes, one can fathom so it doesn't really come as a surprise but the tablets appear to be targeted at power users judging by their specifications. The South Korean device maker's list of screen sizes includes devices across 6.3-inch, 7-inch, 8-inch and 10.1-inch screens. The alleged SM-P900 will be the biggest device from the stable of Samsung in terms of screen size. However, there's no official word from the company about the two devices.
Meanwhile, Samsung's next generation Galaxy Note phablet, the Galaxy Note III has also been in the news for quite some time though there's no official word from the company, yet. The latest rumour claims that the alleged Galaxy Note III will feature a 5.7-inch display, 3GB of RAM and the latest Android 4.3 Jelly Bean OS.
More than two months after Microsoft announced the GDR 2 update for Windows Phone 8, the software update appears to be finally rolling out to HTC 8X and Samsung Ativ S smartphones.
Various online reports including one by WP Central(http://www.wpcentral.com/htc-8x-getting-gdr2-os-update-today) and comments on online forums by several users have confirmed the development.
Users who own an HTC 8X phone can check for the availability of the update through the 'Phone Update' option in the phone's Settings menu. The update can be downloaded over the air or through Windows Phone desktop software.
It's worth pointing out that the update has not yet hit Nokia's phones as the company is expected to roll out its own Amber update that also brings some additional functionality, in August.
However, the update is expected to reach other Non-Nokia phones later this month.
The update brings features like FM radio and adds CalDAV and CardDav support, which extend support for Gmail and other Google services. It activates FM radio in handsets that feature capable hardware. It's interesting to note that Windows Phone 7.x supported FM radio while Windows Phone 8 did not have this feature until this update. Nokia's new lineup of smartphones (barring the Lumia 620) sport FM hardware that will become functional after the update. The HTC 8X also features an FM tuner that gets activated after the update.
As we pointed out earlier, the update brings support for the protocols CalDAV (for Calendars) and CardDAV (for Contacts), which, when combined with IMAP (for Email, already in Windows Phone 8) will be able to fully replace the Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync protocol, to synchronise email, contacts, and calendar with Google and other services that support these protocols. The update's rollout was expected as Google had earlier announced that it would cease support for its Google Sync service for new users starting 30th January 2013, later extending the date to 31st July. This would've meant Windows Phone users won't have been able to setup their Google account on the OS beyond this 'sunset date'.
The update also brings some changes to Xbox Music making it easier to select, download, and pin tunes in Xbox Music and improves the accuracy of song information and other metadata. It will also extend the Data Sense feature of Windows Phone 8 to more telecom operators.
Apple has long been rumoured to enter the TV space, either with a television set of its own, or a TV service with support from the big networks, or, indeed, both. While wait for the mythical Apple TV - the television - continues, a new report has disclosed some rather interesting details of Apple's TV service.
According to a report by Jessica Lessin, former reporter and editor for The Wall Street Journal, Apple's TV service will come with a feature that will allow users to skip ads. The feature will appeal to new generation of users who have grown up with DVRs that let you record content and, thus, skip ads when actually sit down to watch the show.
Naturally, the TV networks are not thrilled with the idea, but, the report claims, Apple plans to offer monetary compensation for any loss of revenue that may result from the ad-skipping. Based on the report, the initial response from networks doesn't seem to be very positive, though the negotiations are likely to continue for a while.
The report also confirms a few other murmurs we've been hearing for a while, like the discussion between Apple and the networks and cable companies have been going on for over a year now. Apple is said to be seeking rights for a service that would allow users to watch live and on-demand TV content. Apple may deliver this content via the existing Apple TV, any other set-top box, or its rumoured television set.
The report claims the discussions have been "highly secretive" and CEO Tim Cook and Senior Vice President Eddy Cue held talks with some media companies as recently as last week at a conference in Sun Valley.
Android's open nature may be lauded by many but it also leaves your device vulnerable to malware, freezes & slowdowns. Here we show you how to keep your devices running like new with little effort.
Manage your applications
Most if not all android devices have a built in task manager which shows you all the background apps (running apps) and lets you selectively remove them from memory.Keeping them running will pull them up faster when you need them, but beyond a point, too many apps will slow the device down. the app manager is usually pulled up with a long press on the home or options button.If you need to install a third-party app to do the same thing, you can get advanced task manager (by infolife) or android app manager (by smartwho).
The advantage that either of these apps can offer is a home screen widget which allows you to close running apps with just one tap.
Guard against malware & bad apps
If you download a lot of apps from unknown sources (places other than google's play store), chances are that your phone is already infected with malware.Trend micro reports that there are over 500 sources that host malicious apps. While most malware will send texts to premium numbers without your knowledge, some could also be mining data (and consequently slowing down your device)If you must get apps from unknown sources, you should get an anti-virus app. some of the best free options include avast, avg, lookout, norton, eset & zoner.Note that you shouldn't install more than one of these at one time and having one isn't a guarantee against bad apps — but it helps.
Manage RAM for smooth multitasking
One of the biggest reasons why your device runs out of steam is limited available RAM. This is more true of devices with 512MB and to a certain extent, 1GB of total RAM
Depending on the number of applications you have installed (and how many of them are running in the background), the amount of free RAM your device has may not be enough to smoothly switch between apps.To solve this problem, get a free app called Clean Master by KS Mobile. Not only does it have a task killer (to free up RAM), but it can also delete history (web browser data & history), clean the cache, properly uninstall apps and remove residual files (remnants of previously deleted apps) to free up space on the device memory.
Get your settings straight
Take a look at your device's settings page. are you signed in to any accounts that you are not using? remove them. you can also check for sync intervals (how often these accounts check for updates).Are additional functions like bluetooth, nfc and wifi on when you don't need them? some of these might keep hunting for a connection and slow down other services. if you are using a third-party launcher, set it as the default.
If you use more than one launcher at a time, resources are usually shared between them, making everything slower. it also helps if you remove any widgets that you aren't using (because they keep updating in the background) and remove any extra homescreen pages.
Get a fresh start
Sometimes, whatever you do may not be enough. If your phone or tablet still keeps freezing or drags its feet with even the simplest of tasks, it may be time for a factory reset. A factory reset restores your device to original settings — like the way it was when you first got it
Luckily, every Android device has a factory reset option built in.
Initialising the factory reset is a simple, one-step process — just head to settings and 'privacy' or 'backup & reset'. Keep in mind that doing a factory reset erases everything on the device: all installed apps, contacts, calendar entries, photos, texts, videos & any accounts that you're signed in to will be removed. So before you reset, use an app called inDefend to backup your contacts & messages, use App Backup & Restore (by Infolife) to backup apps, SMS Backup & Restore for SMS & Dropbox to save your photos & videos to the cloud.
Periodically clean out messages and gallery
If you've owned your phone for a while, chances are you have thousands of texts, photos & videos stored. You can take a backup of all essential data and clean out stuff — starting from the oldest first. Since these apps won't have to cache as much data, they'll load much faster.
Moving data to external memory card
Even if you have 16GB storage, some of that is taken up by the operating system and essential apps. You should keep at least 2GB of that free. Move all non-essential data and apps to the external memory card using the file manager and a free app called App2SD.
Nova Launcher
Phone makers have a tendency to use heavy interfaces with animations & features that you may never use. Download Nova Launcher from the app store to give your device an instant speed boost. It's also way more customisable than the stock interface that you get.
Switch off live wallpapers
Using a live (animated) wallpaper on your device uses up a fair bit of processing power — power that could easily be put to use by making apps load up faster and making the interface smoother. While this is more true of budget devices, switch off your live wallpaper and you'll also see better battery life.
These are the days in Helsinki when the sun never seems to set. So maybe it’s not so surprising that Stephen Elop, the CEO of the beleaguered Finnish phone giant Nokia, rejects the conventional wisdom that his company is as lifeless as the salted cod served in local restaurants. Instead, he sees a moment ripe with opportunity.
Apple’s pioneering iPhone has not seen a major reset in many months. Samsung, the dominant player in the Android system, just released a flagship phone with a chaotic blur of features, none of them truly memorable.
So Nokia’s unveiling today of the Lumia 1020 represents a chance — maybe the last, best one — to make its case to users, and to demonstrate that there’s actually room for the “third ecosystem” that Elop hopes Nokia will become. The case for the previous Lumias –- the well-received WinPhone operating system, a slick design, and some other nice features — has won a foothold but not much more. For Nokia to gain true momentum, it must provide something new and big. Something that people can not get elsewhere. Something technolust-worthy. Something actually useful. To engage in Elop-speak: a true differentiator.
“The basis we’ve chosen to compete on is innovation and differentiation,” he says. “We have to set ourselves apart from the people who are leading the smartphone industry. The tonality has changed a little bit in the industry. Look at the recent products launched. Their makers say: ‘This is the next one.’ But is it that innovative? Have they really differentiated this current generation from the previous generation product?”
The Nokia 1020 — to be released on July 26 for $300 and a two-year AT&T contract — does have something genuinely unique. It boasts a suite of imaging features built around a technology called PureView, involving what Nokia describes as a “41-megapixel backside illuminated sensor.” Cut the jargon and what you get is a leap in camera tech.
As I saw first-hand at Nokia’s research center in Tampere, Finland, the PureView sensor captures so much information that you can do a detailed zoom after you take the picture. It’s like a real-time implementation of all the rigmarole that the photographer in the 1966 movie “Blow Up” went through when he noticed a detail in his photo that proved evidence to a murder. Years after the fact, information stored in these “superpixels” could unearth similarly amazing, if not incriminating, artifacts.
The Lumia 1020 is also augmented with a Xenon flash that grabs sharp pictures in low light that the iPhone and the Samsung portray as blurs. Nokia has augmented its already excellent capabilities in image stabilization to allow users to capture steady high-def video, even in rocky conditions. And it will be a platform for an endless parade of nifty features. One example available on launch is the ability to use part of an image as an animated GIF while the rest of the image remains a static photo.
PureView really is a differentiator. When I got a demo of it early last year in Nokia’s research lab, it was clear that this could make a difference to a lot of users. After all, taking photos is a core smart phone activity. But I was disappointed to learn that Nokia’s first implementation of the technology would not be appear in the Lumia series of Windows phones that represented the company’s future. Instead, Nokia chose to put its most amazing advances in the PureView 808 — a phone running the doomed Symbian operating system. It was like opening a new Danny Meyer restaurant in Chernobyl.
Elop defends the move now by saying that the 808 was successful on its own terms. “It sold well,” he said, while not giving any numbers. (But I’ll bet most of you have never seen one in the wild.) Its photography-crazy users loved it. But 808’s real value was as a test bed for PureView. Nokia was able to gauge from real users how to improve the technology for the next iteration, the one now on the 1020.
Sure enough, this version of PureView seems ready for prime time. To accommodate the advanced camera, the 808 had a hideous unsightly bulge in its middle. It looked like it was momentarily about to give birth to an MP3 player. The 1020 has only a modest rise where around the lens — it reminds me of the stoic eye of HAL in Kubrick’s “2001” — and is around the same thickness as the trim Lumia 920.
If this powerful imaging technology had been part of the last iPhone release, the internet would have exploded with Blogosphere hosannas and the lines outside Apple stores would have clogged entire metropolitan areas. But can innovation and differentiation really help Nokia make today’s one-on-one smartphone battle into something more à trois? Skeptics — and plenty of people not normally inclined to skepticism — will probably stick to their view that at this point there is nothing Nokia can do to turn things around, and that the Finnish giant will wind up, with Blackberry, in high-tech’s dustbin.
But Elop has a point to make about tables turning. “If you had asked anyone in the smartphone world on January 1, 2007, they would have said Nokia was incomparable,” he says. “It had such a strong share, so much lock-in, so much brand awareness that no one could challenge it. And yet innovation, disorientation, disruption changed that. It set Nokia on an entirely different trajectory.”
That trajectory turned downward so precipitously that Nokia’s very survival is at stake. But Elop believes that PureView — along with future differentiators he says are in the works — will help him paint a very different picture. With 41 megapixels.
Just a day after Micromax launched its new flagship Canvas 4 phablet in India, Samsung has rolled out two smartphones in the country. Both new handsets - Galaxy S4 mini and Galaxy S4 zoom are variants of the South Korean company's top-end device Galaxy S4, launched earlier this year.
Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S4 mini in May with a 4.3-inch SuperAMOLED screen having 960x540p resolution and pixel density of 256ppi. It is powered by a 1.7GHz dual-core CPU and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean). This smartphone has been priced at Rs 27,990 in the Indian smartphone market.
The phone has 8GB internal storage, 1.5GB RAM and microSD support up to 64GB. On the back of the phone is an 8MP camera with LED flash, while a 1.9MP unit is on the front panel. Connectivity options in the smartphone are 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, microUSB 2.0, NFC and infrared.
Unveiled in June, Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom, priced at Rs 29,990, boasts of better camera than the original Galaxy S4. It features a 16MP rear camera with 10X optical zoom with xenon flash on the back. This new phone's camera boasts of optical image stabilization as well as 24mm wide lens and can record 1080p videos at 30fps.
The all-new Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom also has a 4.3-inch SuperAMOLED screen with 960x540p resolution with 256ppi pixel density. The device is powered by Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) and runs on a dual-core 1.5GHz processor. It has 8GB internal storage, 1.5GB RAM and supports microSD cards with capacities up to 32GB.
Connectivity suite of this smartphone has features2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, infrared and microUSB 2.0. This handset has a 2,330mAh battery and features a 1.9MP front camera. At 208gram, it is heavier that the likes of Samsung Galaxy Note II and Nokia Lumia 920.
Both the phones come with a free flip cover, 2GB free data on 3G network and interest-free EMI option for six months.
