Galaxy S5: Hardly Samsung's be all and end all

Samsung's Galaxy S5

BARCELONA, Spain -- The Galaxy S5 may be Samsung's flashiest device of the year, but it won't be the only important one.
The Korean electronics giant on Monday unveiled its newest flagship phone with all -- or at least most -- of the bells and whistles that consumers have come to expect. The device, with a fingerprint scanner and heart rate sensor, is sure to attract plenty of buyers in developed markets like the US and Western Europe. However, it's the cheaper smartphones for emerging regions that could really make a big difference for Samsung this year.
Increasingly, the battleground for mobile won't be waged on the streets of New York or London but in the alleys of Beijing and Mumbai. The market for low-end phones should grow about 17 percent each year through 2018 while the high-end smartphone segment -- the category the Galaxy S5 calls home, along with Apple's iPhone -- will increase only 4 percent annually, according to ARM Holdings, the chip company whose technology powers most of the mobile devices in the world. In mature regions, the biggest markets for high-end phones, essentially everyone who wants a smartphone has one.
"There's no question that emerging markets will provide a very large growth opportunity for mobile," Cristiano Amon, Qualcomm's president of mobile and computing, told CNET.

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That means Samsung, Apple, and all of the other handset makers must adjust. They have to keep developing their high-end devices to boost their brands and attract buyers in markets like the US. But they also need to put more focus on their cheaper smartphones and figure out how to compete in places like Brazil. For Samsung, that's not too much of a stretch. The company already is the top smartphone vendor in mainland China and other developing markets. It has long followed the strategy of releasing a wide variety of devices at different price levels, and that has helped buoy its position in many regions.

However, it's also seeing more competition from mobile up-and-comers such as Huawei, Lenovo, and Xiaomi. Right now those companies are gaining in China, but they also have plans to aggressively expand outside their home country. Lenovo, for one, will do that partly through its Motorola acquisition. That's something that should have Samsung worried.
"Samsung is still doing fairly well in most emerging markets," Jackdaw Research analyst Jan Dawson said. "But it's not growing share in most markets, just holding onto its position."

The Galaxy S5 comes in five colors.

Chinese vendors won't be the only phone makers targeting price-sensitive markets. Countless companies are showcasing their newest devices this week during the Mobile World Congress trade show here, and along with new flagship devices, most also have some sort of offering for developing markets with more limited features and lower pricing. For instance: LG, which showed off its G Pro 2 and G2 Mini, also unveiled an entry-level LTE device called the F70. And Nokia, the predominant Windows Phone maker, launched an Android device -- the Nokia X -- intended to garner attention, and buyers, in emerging markets. Even software giant Microsoft showed off a Qualcomm reference design that would help handset vendors make smartphones quickly and cheaply. The company has been benefiting from Nokia's strong position in developing nations.

"We're open for business on Windows Phone to anyone who wants to build a Windows Phone," said Nick Parker, the Microsoft executive who handles the company's relationship with hardware companies.
Of course, selling a bigger percentage of lower-priced phones than high-end devices comes with its own problems. The volumes will be much higher, but handset vendors don't make as much from those cheaper devices. Apple, in a bid to protect its high level of profitability, has decided not to play in low-end or even midrange devices, at least for now.
Samsung won't be following the same strategy as Apple, but it will have to decide just how far it's willing to go. The company's first course of business this year will be getting the Galaxy S5 into the market and convincing consumers that its tweaks are worth the upgrade. But after that, emerging markets await.

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Galaxy Note 3 'Lite' leak suggests 720p display

Seek and ye shall find: the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

As we polish off the last of the Quality Street and stretch out the leftovers to one final turkey sandwich, our thoughts inevitably turn to slimming down a bit. Samsung is making the same new year's resolution with the rumored "Lite" version of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 -- which will apparently sport a 720p screen.


A device called the SM-N750 has appeared in Samsung's user agent profile. That's reported to be the model number of the rumored Note Lite without LTE. In among the specs is mention of a 720p screen.


The current Note 3 boasts a Full HD 1,920x1,080-pixel screen, powered by a 2.3GHz quad-core processor and generous 3GB of RAM.

By : cnet

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Mea Culpa: On its U.K. site, Apple admits to publishing inaccurate statement about Samsung

Apple and Samsung continue to battle in court

Just the other day we told you how a U.K. Court of Appeal ordered Apple to replace the prank-like notice it put up to satisfy a court order. The judge had made a request that Apple inform the public that Samsung's tablets did not infringe on Apple's patents and the ad Apple put up was more of an advertisement for its Apple iPad than the notice demanded by the court. It included an earlier comment made by a judge stating that the Samsung tablets were "not as cool" as the iPad.

Apple replaced its self-serving ad with something more in line with what the court had ordered, and published it in a U.K. newspaper as we told you on Friday. Now, Apple has moved the ad to its U.K.website. In a large font (14.6 pixels), Apple posted a link to another page which contained a boilerplate statement about the court order with links to the actual documents.

There are no injunctions against the tablets in question, the Samsung GALAXY Tab 10.1, the Samsung GALAXY Tab 8.9 and the Samsung GALAXY Tab 7.7, and all three were found not to have infringed on Apple patents. And thanks to the new ad by Apple, everyone knows it.

"On 25 October 2012, Apple Inc. published a statement on its UK website in relation to Samsung's Galaxy tablet computers. That statement was inaccurate and did not comply with the order of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales. The correct statement is at Samsung/Apple UK judgement."-Apple statement on its U.K. website

source: Apple via AndroidCentral

Apple's new statement appears to pass muster with the court

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Samsung Galaxy Premier visits the FCC without LTE connectivity

The Samsung Galaxy Premier has visited the FCC

Back last month, we told you how the Samsung Galaxy Premier had visited the NCC in Taiwan, which is that country's version of the FCC. Now, the decidedly mid-range device has visited the actual FCC and as it turns out, does not offer 4G LTE connectivity. It does have the right bands that would allow it to work on AT&T's HSPA 3G network. But the device is expected to launch in Europe and Asia after all, and if it does come to the U.S., it would be as an unlocked import. In other words, we don't expect to see this model subsidized by a stateside carrier.

Ironically, when Samsung first registered the Samsung Galaxy Premier name back in March, we expected something definitely more high-end than the mid-range model that it turned out to be. Still, the device managed to score a decent 7,736 on theAnTuTu benchmark. On the other hand, its performance on the GLBenchmark site was nothing to brag about.

Regardless, we're sure that the Samsung Galaxy Premier will attract some buyers overseas for whom 4G LTE connectivity is not a necessity either by personal choice or the carrier's lack of such a pipeline.

source: FCC via Engadget

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Samsung Galaxy S III: 30 million units sold

Samsung has sold 30 million units of the Samsung Galaxy S III

Thursday night, we passed along the word that 3 million units of the Samsung GALAXY Note II had been sold globally in the first month after its launch. Now, Sammy is back to brag about its flagship Android device, the Samsung Galaxy S III. The Korean based manufacturer says it has sold a whopping 30 million units of the phone. The original Samsung Galaxy S sold 10 million units in 2011 and the Samsung Galaxy S II sold 20 million by earlier this year. Considering that the device has been available for about 5 months, this is quite an impressive feat. Interestingly, Samsung said that four out of the the 5 best selling weeks for the Samsung Galaxy S III came after the launch of the Apple iPhone 5.

We've seen the Samsung Galaxy S III come down in price as low as $100 and we wouldn't be surprised to see some enterprising retailer take it down again for the holiday season. While this is obviously good news for the Korean based manufacturer, the industry is always about the, uh, next big thing which means in a few weeks, it will be time to look ahead to the Samsung Galaxy S IV. Already there has been speculation that the Galaxy S IV will sport a 13MP camera and be powered by a quad-core Exynos 5450 Cortex A15-based chip.

source: Samsung via GSMArena

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Samsung Galaxy Note II stars in a set of detailed hands-on videos

That the Samsung Galaxy Note II is actually pretty awesome is something that 3 million people around the world already know. With its humongous HD screen, ultra-fast quad-core processor, and rich set of features, it is among the best Android devices currently available on the market. But in case you are still not convinced, here is a set of videos that Samsung just posted on YouTube just for you.

The videos go over the features and specifics of the Samsung Galaxy Note II and thoroughly describe the benefits they bring, so those who own the device might learn something new, while those who don't might now find a reason to consider getting one. The first video in the set is all about hardware and design. Then the second one goes over the multitasking features of the Samsung Galaxy Note II and introduces a number of cool things you can do with the S Pen. Next in line are a couple of videos rightfully titled "Expression tools" - they take an in-depth look at the many pre-loaded apps and features, including apps for sketching and image editing and the advanced camera features. Last but not least, the final video presents a few more of the things that you can do with a Galaxy Note II.

We have embedded all videos in the slideshow below for your viewing pleasure, so don't hesitate to check all of them out!

source: Samsung

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Apple pulls hypocritical 'apology' to Samsung, replaces it with matter-of-fact statement

Yesterday, we heard about the dumbfounded reaction of the U.K. Court of Appeal in London after it learned Apple hypocritically paid lip service instead of posting the matter-of-fact note required to inform the public about the court’s decision that Samsung with its tablets did not infringe on Apple patents.

Judge Robin Jacob was “at a loss” seeing a company the magnitude of Apple breach order.

Now, after the court gave Apple 24 hours to remove the notice that felt more like a prank for the U.K. judicial system, the Cupertino-based company has finally taken it down.

We can’t see the new note anywhere on its UK website yet, but it is already in the newspapers. Apple has published it already In today’s morning Guardian. The new statement is rather dry, saying clearly that the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, 8.9 and 7.7 did not infringe on Apple patents. It also clarifies that the decision has effect across the European Union. It’s printed in 14pt Arial font, concurring with the court decision.

And this dry technicality is about exactly what the judge had ordered. We are yet to see Apple publish it on its website, but it should soon. And this should finally seal this unnecessary long story. Hopefully.

source: The Next Web

Image courtesy of Tim Acheson

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Samsung GALAXY Note II sells 3 million units globally in one month

The Samsung GALAXY Note II is another big winner (pardon the pun) from the Korean manufacturer. After one month of availability overseas, the phablet has rung up 3 million units in sales. You might remember that Samsung's J.K. Shin said that 20 million units of the 5.5 inch device would be sold after 1 year, double the amount that the original Samsung GALAXY Note managed to hit.

With Verizon and AT&T taking pre-orders for the device, there are many more sales ahead to count. Launching on all four major U.S. carriers is a good way to get a boost in those numbers. But as hot as the Samsung GALAXY Note II is, and make no mistake that it is hot, the phablet will be hard pressed to match the 20 million units sold by the Samsung Galaxy S III after its first 100 days on the market.

source: SamsungTomorrow (translated) via Engadget

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Apple's 'apology' to Samsung leaves U.K. judge "at loss"

Apple might have won some cases against Samsung in the United States, but when it comes to the UK, that is not the case. Apple lost the case as the judge decided that Samsung did not copy the iPad in its tablets, and a couple of weeks ago the company from Cupertino was ordered to put out a notice on its website that would make it clear that Samsung did not copy.

What followed was quite funny for a company the size of Apple. The notice that ended up on the website contained more references to court decisions outside the case. Overall, the message was so diluted it felt like Apple played a joke on the UK judicial system.

Now, the U.K. Court of Appeal in London reacts and it is clearly unhappy with the “untrue” and “incorrect” notice Apple posted.

“I’m at a loss that a company such as Apple would do this,” Judge Robin Jacob said. “That is a plain breach of the order.”
The U.K. Court of Appeal ordered Apple to take down the statement within 24 hours and replace it with a new notice that would take into account the earlier incorrect comments.

Funnily, Apple requested 14 days to make those changes on its own website. That request was rejected. You can check out the original notice Apple posted on its web page below.

source: Bloomberg

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Apple iPad mini torn down: stereo speakers, screen from Samsung

If you wanted to see the Apple iPad mini from the inside you are not alone, and what’s more important - now you can. Device surgeons from iFixit have gotten their hands on the 7.9-inch iPad and are posting the teardown live.

They are almost done, and it seems the iPad mini is not extremely tough to repair. For once the LCD and front glass are separate, so you can replace just one of them. Additionally, somewhat surprisingly Apple has used a Samsung-made LCD. This contradicts rumors about Apple trying to cut its ties with Samsung, but it could also be the case that Samsung is not the only company making screens for the iPad mini.

Good news is - as we’ve recently learned - that the iPad mini features stereo speakers in an improvement over earlier iPads. This is one of the benefits from the smaller Lightning connector, and you thought there weren’t any!

Check it all out at the source below.

source: iFixit

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Samsung Galaxy Note II official Smart Dock out with full-size HDMI and 3 USB ports for $99.99

Samsung Galaxy Note II just got equipped with an official dock that allows you to transform the already versatile device into a computer of sorts. There is a full-size HDMI port on the back for hooking the phone to a TV without an adapter, as well as audio out for connecting it to your stereo.

No less than three USB ports are found on both sides, for connecting various peripherals like a mouse and keyboard, or a flash drive. The dock, of course, charges the phone, when it is connected to it via the microUSB port.

The clean white Smart Dock will set you back $99.99 when it ships, and is only intended to work with the Samsung Galaxy Note II 5.5" monster, but "functions whether or not a Flip Cover and most slim case options are installed." Giddyup!

source: Samsung

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LG Nexus 4 Specs Review: Can LG's Nexus crush Samsung's "Next Big Thing"?

Without any notice in advance, Google has just announced its new Nexus smartphone - the LG Nexus 4. As the name implies, this time Google has decided to partner with LG for the production of its latest 'pure Android' handset, instead of Samsung, which was the producer of the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus. Apparently, this year LG has managed to impress El Goog with the remarkable technology that it managed to pack inside its Optimus G - not only does this phone excel when it comes to the quality of its screen, but it also features a faster processor and more RAM... overall, it's a geek's dream come true.

It comes as no surprise then that the Optimus G has served as a template for the Nexus 4. Last year's Galaxy Nexus wasn't particularly impressive specs-wise even when it launched, and it was soon largely overshadowed by other, higher-spec'd devices that came out. Well, this time it's different. No Android handset can currently compete with the Nexus 4 when it comes to sheer specs and screen quality, and with the other major players' top phones for the year already revealed, chances are that things will stay like this at least for a while.

But LG has a tough journey ahead of it. It's facing a fearful opponent in Samsung, which is constantly in pursuit of "The Next Big Thing." In our case, this means that Samsung is not only successful, but it's also surprising customers with new gadgets and ideas - some of which not making much sense, but the company's pushing them anyway, flooding the market and drowning everything in its way. With the Nexus 4, though, LG has a window of opportunity. Very rarely does the smaller South Korean company manage to come out with tech that is ahead of its bigger neighbor, and now is one of those rare occasions. Not only that, but it has also gotten the blessing from Google, which can be a pretty significant boost in the land of smartphones.

So who is going to win this battle? Of course, we cannot talk about winning the war, but we have a very interesting battle going on at the end of 2012, which will probably extend to the beginning of 2013 as well. On one hand, we have LG with its well-balanced Nexus 4, and on the other, we have Samsung's line-up of "Next Big Things." Will LG's affair with Google be enough to disrupt the empire that Samsung is building on top of Android? Let's take a closer look at what the LG Nexus 4 offers and try to determine its chances of delivering a heavy blow to the seemingly unstoppable force that Samsung is becoming.

1. LG Nexus 4 Specs Comparison  |  2. Android 4.2's new features  |  3. Nexus 4 wireless charging

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SPECS REVIEW

We said it already - the hardware of the Nexus 4 is remarkable. From the display to the chipset, everything in the LG Nexus 4 screams power.

The display is one of the main assets of the Nexus 4, and it's also one that will likely not be bested by Samsung soon. That is because LG has decided to specialize in the LCD technology, while Samsung is developing its screens around the AMOLED tech. Of course, it cannot be said that one is definitely better than the other, as both have their pros and cons, but for the time being, LG's in-cell touch panels have a clear lead against Samsung's Super AMOLED, as far as resolution and color quality goes. When it comes to the size, the LG Nexus 4 is just as generous as Samsung's top smartphone, the Galaxy S III, so every geek should be happy with it.

But with screens this big, what's going on with the dimensions of the phones? It is very interesting to see how the Nexus 4 stacks up against the GS III in this respect, because Samsung is known for its quite thin and light devices. Well, while the Optimus G is a very large smartphone, LG has come up with an entirely different design for the Nexus 4, and the result is a device that is surprisingly compact (for that screen size, that is). The Nexus 4 is both shorter and narrower than the GS III, and is only 0.5 mm thicker.

In terms of looks, Nexus devices have never been ugly. The same goes for the LG Nexus 4, which may not win a design award (at least we hope it won't), but is by no means bad. Comparing it to Samsung's latest creations like the Galaxy S III and Note II, we do think that LG has the upper hand in this department.

Moving on to the chipset now. This is another area where LG currently has a lead, but Samsung will probably catch up soon. The Nexus 4 uses Qualcomm's marvelous Snapdragon S4 Pro, which features four powerful Krait cores clocked at 1.5 GHz, while Samsung's top offerings right now, the GS III and Note II are equipped with the quad-core Exynos 4 processor, which is still extremely fast, but not quite on the same level as the Snapdragon S4 Pro. Using the Optimus G, we've found the S4 Pro to be incredibly snappy, although its full potential is not really revealed because of LG's Optimus UI. In the Nexus 4, though, this software skin will not be present, so we expect the handset to perform unbelievably well, especially when we know that it packs numerous performance enhancements courtesy of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

One thing that the Nexus 4 won't be that excellent, though, is storage space. The base variant of the handset comes with "just" 8 GB, and there's also one with 16 GB. Since this is a Nexus device, however, there is not microSD card slot anywhere on the handset. Meanwhile, Samsung, which likes to put all sorts of features and options in its devices, offers the Galaxy S III with up to 32 GB of built-in storage and a microSD card slot for a lot more. All in all, this should trouble only those users who have enormous music and video libraries and want to store them all on their mobile device, you know, just in case there's a hurricane going through the city and the power goes down.

Who likes to take photos? That's right - almost everyone. That is why phone manufacturers are constantly trying to improve the quality of the cameras they are using, although we wouldn't say that there has been much advancement in the recent years, save for some monster camera phones by Nokia which we wouldn't really consider to be mainstream smartphones. Still, after we tested the cameras of the Optimus G for AT&T and Sprint, we were left somewhat disappointed by the results, which lacked any wow-factor. They were OK for the most part, but not as great as what we've come to expect from the other top-end smartphones out there like the iPhone 5 and Galaxy S III. To tell you the truth, we don't expect the camera of the Nexus 4 to be any better. But who says that every smartphone should be a great camera phone as well? Obviously, the Nexus 4's main strengths will be the display and performance, while the camera mastery in the Android world will remain a Samsung exclusive.

Always a major part of the whole experience, software is yet another strong side of the LG Nexus 4.

Always a major part of the whole experience, software is yet another strong side of the LG Nexus 4. With LG's custom UI nowhere to be seen on this phone, and with Google ready with the latest version of Android - 4.2, we can only be super-excited about the platform experience of the Nexus 4. Not only will it be super-fast and good-looking, but we'll also be enjoying a number of cool new features that won't be present on other handsets for the time being. These include lockscreen widgets, updated Gmail app, Play Store, Google Now Photo Sphere and more.

Obviously, the Nexus 4 will have a vanilla Android 4.2 UI, which we quite like, and if we have to pit it against Samsung's TouchWiz Nature UX, we'd probably prefer the stock Android one. Samsung does have a strong player now with its latest TouchWiz, which is good-looking (except for certain manus and pop-ups) and smooth, but with so many TouchWiz phones out there, it's like the stock Android UI is the exotic one here, and it's an exotic that will certainly be much quicker in getting software fixes and updates. Plus, there's nothing in TouchWiz that we can't live without, so this seems to be a win for LG. If only it could learn from this experience and improve the custom UI it uses for its other phones...

Of course, Android 4.2 is a much bigger topic that deserves its own article. If you'd like to learn more about Google's latest mobile OS, please check this post for more details.


CLOSING WORDS

All in all, we are convinced that LG has a shot at closing in on Samsung, but the Nexus 4 will not be enough. It's very hard to close such an enormous gap with a single handset, no matter how good it is. Instead, LG will have to continue producing such impressive devices, in order to change its status of an underdog in people's minds. But while it's more than certain that Samsung is much more deeply ingrained in the mind of the smartphone user, it's also undeniable that the best Android handset this Holiday season will, most probably, be an LG.

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HTC 8X beats the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S III in SunSpider browser test

Microsoft said it has put a lot of effort optimizing the browser section of Windows Phone 8, and it has seemingly paid off.

A SunSpider test, where lower score is the better one, measured the JavaScript performance on three high-end phones - the HTC 8X, iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S III - and the results are nothing short of astonishing for the Internet Explorer browser.

Well, the HTC 8X came out on top, beating the famed A6 processor rendering of the iPhone 5 by a whiff, and staying ahead of the Galaxy S III by a huge margin.

This goes to show that with the IE optimizations in Windows Phone 8, and the dual-core Snapdragon S4 processors, the WP8 flagships are up with the best for browsing - if you don't come across an Adobe Flash-laden site you need to check out, of course, but this holds true for iOS, too, and for the latest iterations of Android as well.

via WMPU

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Nokia Lumia 920 low light shots vs iPhone 5 vs Galaxy S III vs HTC One X vs 808 PureView

We've seen one comprehensive prototype Nokia Lumia 920 camera comparison with the main competitors, and a few sporadic ones, but now we have one of what is probably much closer to a production version, and the low-light results are indeed something.

The Nokia Lumia 920 was pitted against the iPhone 5, Samsung Galaxy S III, HTC One X, and the 41 MP Nokia PureView 808 photographic juggernaut. The improvised testing was done on the streets of Helsinki, and the authors used every trick the phones had, shooting in normal, HDR and low light modes, if the phones had them, then posting the best result for comparison.

Thus the Lumia 920 is with its low light mode turned on, which lets much more luminance in, and when you couple that with the optical image stabilization system inside, its photos look much brighter than the rest of the gang, almost unnaturally so, thus if you want more night-ish photos from the Lumia 920, you'd apparently be better off shooting in the normal regime.

Have a look at the comparison shots in the slideshow below, and be patient while the full sizes load, there are also three bonus pictures from the Lumia 920 at the end on the streets of Helsinki.

source: Test-Mobile.fr via WPCentral

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Leaked document shows November 29th as Verizon's launch date for the Samsung GALAXY Note II

While pre-orders for the Samsung GALAXY Note II are now being accepted by Verizon, there is a little question about when the device will actually be delivered by the carrier. A leaked internal Verizon document shows that the phablet is set to launch on November 29th while Big Red's own website shows a November 27th delivery date. And this is one case where the MAP list doesn't help. The effective date of the MAP for the Samsung GALAXY Note II for Verizon was October 24th.

We can understand how hard it might be to expect the Samsung GALAXY Note II to come on the 27th and have to wait two extra days for it to arrive. But if you use that old Jedi mind trick and tell yourself that it won't arrive until the 29th regardless, you won't be disappointed and in fact, you might end up pleasantly surprised when your Samsung GALAXY Note II arrives on the 27th after all.

The price of the Samsung GALAXY Note II is $299.99 with a signed two-year pact. If you're interested in pre-ordering the phablet, click on the sourcelink.

source: Verizon via DroidLife

A leaked internal Verizon memo (L) shows a November 29th launch date for the Samsung GALAXY Note II while Verizon's web site shows a November 27th delivery date

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Samsung Galaxy S III mini visits FCC to stir up rumors of U.S. launch

The Samsung Galaxy S III mini has visited the FCC

The FCC has just had a visit from the Samsung Galaxy S III mini, and while it doesn't necessarily mean to expect the device to launch in the states, it does leave that door open. With its smaller form factor, from the outside the phone looks just like a smaller version of the flagship Samsung Galaxy S III. However, the specs inside are far from what you will find in the Galaxy S III despite the inclusion of Android 4.1.1 out of the box.

The 4 inch WVGA Super AMOLED screen is closer to the display on the Samsung Galaxy S II while the dual-core 1GHz NovaThor processor is so last year. We won't even get into the 5MP camera on back. Still, there is demand for a 4 inch phone like this in Europe, according to Samsung, and the lack of 4G LTE connectivity would really seem to make this a hard sell in the states.

Priced at 439 EUR ($568 USD), the FCC sign-off does leave a crack in the door for a future U.S. version of the Samsung Galaxy S III mini to be sold.

source: FCC via Engadget

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SAMSUNG Mobile Hosts Interactive Consumer Event to Celebrate the U.S. Sales Start of Galaxy Note® II and Introduction of Galaxy Camera™

 Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC (Samsung Mobile) – the No.1 mobile phone provider in the United States and a subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the No. 1 smartphone provider worldwide¹ – celebrated the U.S. launch of the Galaxy Note® II in New York City at the iconic Skylight at Moynihan Station with its fans, who received a first-look and chance to experience the Galaxy Note II and the recently unveiled Galaxy Camera™.

With the original Samsung Galaxy Note launch last year, Samsung defined a new category – the ultimate combination of a smartphone and tablet. This product, unlike any other on the market, transformed the way consumers interact and create on their mobile device. The Galaxy Note II with the revolutionary S Pen™ is the ultimate device for on-the-go creativity and productivity, helping people work, multi-task, collaborate and now share.

In keeping with category defining moves, Samsung’s Galaxy Camera uniquely blends high performance photography with the familiar and intuitive Android™ 4.1 Jelly Bean, resulting in a powerful, socially connected photography experience. As announced previously, the Galaxy Camera will be available from AT&T in time for the holidays.

“With the launch of the Galaxy Note II and the Galaxy Camera, Samsung is delivering on its commitment to give consumers new and innovative smartphone experiences,” said Dale Sohn, president of Samsung Telecommunications America. “With more than 10 million of the original Galaxy Notes sold globally within 9 months, consumers have demonstrated that they want the best of a smartphone and a tablet in one device. With all major carriers selling the Galaxy Note II, we expect it to exceed the success of the original Galaxy Note.”

More than 1,000 Samsung fans were selected from among its 17.5 million plus Samsung Mobile USA Facebook fans and 3 million Samsung Mobile US Twitter followers to participate in the exclusive celebration. The evening included an experiential event and an exclusive performance by artist, Kanye West.



For this exclusive preview event, Samsung provided fans an opportunity to learn about the product through interactive experiences designed around work, art, culinary, music and photography to bring the Galaxy Note II’s unique capabilities to life. Guests were also able to conduct hands-on demos at stations with celebrity hosts, including:

• Interior Designer Kelly Wearstler created custom inspiration boards using the Galaxy Note II’s redesigned S Pen with interior designer. With the Galaxy Note II, users instantly outlined and cropped content on the screen into any shape to save, share or post to their own customized design portfolio.
• Chef Alfred Portale of Gotham Bar and Grill and Milk and Honey mixologist Sam Ross helped attendees order custom cocktails and desserts from using S Beam on the Galaxy Note II. Attendees used the Note II Air View feature to hover over a picture gallery of several cocktail and dessert options and then used S Beam to place their order.
• Photographer Tyler Shields captured and customized photos taken by with the Galaxy Note II and Galaxy Camera. Attendees posed for their picture and were able to choose the best facial expression for each individual in the group using the Galaxy Note II’s Best Face camera function.
• Artist Futura provided a personal touch to the event by curating attendees contributions to a unique art piece created during the event. Each attendee used the S Pen to contribute to the art piece. Users could even handwrite keywords that would then match illustration images through the Idea Sketch feature.

Known for several hits such as “Gold Digger” and “Jesus Walks,” West is a self-made artist rising from the ranks of trendsetting producer to award-winning artist and acclaimed fashion designer. West’s journey to becoming the next big thing made him the perfect fit for celebrating Samsung’s launch of its “next big thing,” the Galaxy Note II.

“This was a celebration for our consumers as much as it was the launch of the Galaxy Note II and Galaxy Camera. It takes a true innovator and creative force like Kanye West to celebrate the launch of devices this iconic,” said Todd Pendleton, Chief Marketing Officer of Samsung Telecommunications America.



The Samsung Galaxy Note II smartphone features a larger screen, redesigned S Pen and quad-core Exynos™ processor in a thinner and lighter form factor, and is available now through T-Mobile and Sprint. Verizon Wireless will begin taking pre-orders for the Galaxy Note II starting today with availability in the next several weeks. AT&T pre-orders of the Galaxy Note II will also begin today with in-store and online availability on November 9th, in time for the holidays. U.S. Cellular will be available online and in stores throughout the day on Friday, October 26th.

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Samsung Nexus 10 gets shown off in photos!

Until a couple of days ago it was widely thought that the fabled high-resolution Nexus 10 from Samsung wouldn’t see the light of day until 2013, but via Brief Mobile intrepid tipsters are now supplying a whole slew of pictures to share with you. The device looks just like the line drawings we saw yesterday in a leaked user manual, and would seem to confirm the legitimacy of that leak. Other important details confirmed are the 10.1” screen with a 2560 x 1600 pixel resolution (that works out to just under 300 PPI), 2GB of RAM, and an Exynos 5 CPU clocked at 1.7GHz.

But you probably don’t want to see us go blathering on about the specs right now, you want to see the pictures! So for those of you who were waiting to see the curved metalic surfaces of the Nexus 10, enjoy the following gallery. And let us know if you think this may be the tablet you’ve been waiting for?

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Apple posts the court-mandated apology to Samsung on its UK website, tucks it in the small print

Apple recently lost the appeal against an UK court decision to post on its website and in leading printed media that the court found Samsung not infringing on its iPad patents, and now the mandated apology is up on its UK website. 

The UK judge joked in his case arguments that Samsung's tablets don't have that "cool" status the iPad possesses, so they can't be infringing, and Apple is saving face by repeating those lines, and reminding readers that in other places Samsung has been found violating its patents:

Samsung / Apple UK judgment

On 9th July 2012 the High Court of Justice of England and Wales ruled that Samsung Electronic (UK) Limited’s Galaxy Tablet Computer, namely the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Tab 8.9 and Tab 7.7 do not infringe Apple’s registered design No. 0000181607-0001. A copy of the full judgment of the High court is available on the following link www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Patents/2012/1882.html.

In the ruling, the judge made several important points comparing the designs of the Apple and Samsung products:

"The extreme simplicity of the Apple design is striking. Overall it has undecorated flat surfaces with a plate of glass on the front all the way out to a very thin rim and a blank back. There is a crisp edge around the rim and a combination of curves, both at the corners and the sides. The design looks like an object the informed user would want to pick up and hold. It is an understated, smooth and simple product. It is a cool design."

"The informed user's overall impression of each of the Samsung Galaxy Tablets is the following. From the front they belong to the family which includes the Apple design; but the Samsung products are very thin, almost insubstantial members of that family with unusual details on the back. They do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design. They are not as cool."

That Judgment has effect throughout the European Union and was upheld by the Court of Appeal on 18 October 2012. A copy of the Court of Appeal’s judgment is available on the following link www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2012/1339.html. There is no injunction in respect of the registered design in force anywhere in Europe.

However, in a case tried in Germany regarding the same patent, the court found that Samsung engaged in unfair competition by copying the iPad design. A U.S. jury also found Samsung guilty of infringing on Apple's design and utility patents, awarding over one billion U.S. dollars in damages to Apple Inc. So while the U.K. court did not find Samsung guilty of infringement, other courts have recognized that in the course of creating its Galaxy tablet, Samsung willfully copied Apple's far more popular iPad.

The info about the UK court's decision is tucked away in the lower right corner as a simple link, but it's there, and the printed version in UK newspapers and magazines shouldn't be far behind.

source: AppleUK

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