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Samsung T699 may become Galaxy S Blaze Q, compete for silliest phone name ever on August 15th
T-Mobile might have just gone with the nuclear option when it comes to ridiculous smartphone names. Apparently not content to let Sprint's Galaxy S II, Epic 4G Touch hold on to the crown for unnecessarily wordy titles, Magenta is reportedly launching Samsung's T699 as the Galaxy S Blaze Q. Yep. If you've stopped giggling, you'll be glad to know TmoNews' leaked photos and details at least hint at a serious QWERTY slider attached to the silly name. The Android 4.0 hardware should be a slightly detuned Galaxy S III, with the familiar 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 and 720p display being tempered by a more restrained 1GB of RAM and a 5-megapixel back camera. As long as a store layout document proves accurate, we'll have the choice of snagging a Blaze Q at T-Mobile on August 15th... assuming the store clerk doesn't get tongue-tied first.
Samsung's GT-B5330 shows up in leaked photos, flaunts its QWERTY traits
If all those bells and whistles packed inside that famed Galaxy S III are a wee bit much for you, then perhaps you might be interested in this Sammy-branded GT-B5330 and all of its relatively modest qualities. For starters, the device is bound to be a delight to those who love the feel of physical QWERTY keys, with Sammy Hub also reporting that it's sporting an unpretentious QVGA, 320 x 240 screen and a bearable 850MHz processor -- all while being powered by a Samsung flavor of Ice Cream Sandwich. As is usually the case with these early appearances, though, mum's the word on when this GT-B5330 will make its official debut. That said, something tells us this won't be the last time we'll be seeing this guy show off its typing attributes.
T-Mobile Galaxy S III pricing plans revealed, and they aren't exactly 'cheap'
Not interested in paying $200 on contract for a new Galaxy S III over at Sprint / AT&T? Fret not, lost souls -- T-Mobile USA will soon be willing to sell you one for more. Much more. We just landed our hands on an internal pricing sheet for the forthcoming Android superphone, with the 16GB model listed at $229.99 on a Value Plan contract, or $279.99 (after $50 mail-in rebate, no less) on a Classic Plan contract. Those on the latter can snag it for $449.99 if you're eligible for an early upgrade, while those who'd rather not extend their contractual relationship can pay $629.99 for a (still carrier locked) off-contract handset. The notice also states that no sales can occur prior to June 21st (that's tomorrow, folks!), but of course, it'll be even later if you aren't in one of those "top 29 markets." [Thanks, Anonymous]
Tiered system reportedly on its way to Sprint's Total Equipment Protection plans
We'll likely never know what's driving this purported move, but we can safely imagine it has something to do with the cost of high-end devices like that Galaxy Nexus or HTC EVO 4G LTE. Either way, a recent report by the folks over at TechnoBuffalo suggests Sprint is about to switch its Total Equipment Protection plans to a tiered-based system. The adjustments, which are said to take place as soon as June 17th, will see the TEP and ERP (Equipment Replacement Program) prices change to $8 and $5, respectively, for slabs under $550, while any device -- including the aforementioned couple -- over that amount gets an $11 TEP and $9 ERP fee. As you can tell by the picture above, deductibles have also taken a hit, ranging anywhere from $50 for Now Network devices worth less than $325, all the way to $200 for those over $600. Of note, iPhone owners need not to worry, as Sprint's still holding you to Apple's careful insurance.
Leaked WWE 13 trailer shows off slams, jams and a Nov. 1 2012 release date
The above leaked trailer for WWE 13, assuming it hasn't been ripped from the pages of YouTube by THQ, shows off many of the wrestling acrobatics and tiny shorts one can look forward to performing and wearing this fall, when the game pile drives its way onto retail shelves come November 1.Eagle-eyed readers will recognize wrestling legends The Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Mankind, among newer faces like Sheamus, Mark Henry, CM Punk and Chris Jericho. Hey THQ, how 'bout bringing back some Doink?
Alternative Wii U controller design makes brief appearance on Twitter, goes into hiding
Excited for Nintendo's new tablet-esque controller? So are the kids in TT Games' QA department. An over-excited tester tweeted out an image of a slightly different Wii U slab than the one we laid hands on at E3 2011, teasing "look we what we have at work!" Answering the call does indeed reveal something worth looking at -- a somewhat wider looking Wii U slate featuring two full-sized analog sticks (as opposed to 3DS-like circle pads), a pair of unmarked button-like squares, and a new starboard home for the controller's plus and minus buttons. The tweet was summarily pulled, of course, but not before our friends at Joystiq nabbed a screenshot. Naturally, the rumor mill started right up, churning out speculation of developer specific slabs, early prototypes and late redesigns. The truth? We'll probably need to wait until E3 to find out, but we reached out to Nintendo for a comment all the same. We'll let you know if we hear anything more than the usual "Nintendo doesn't comment on rumors and speculation" line.
Samsung Galaxy S III S Voice APK leaked online
If you find yourself with nothing better to do this weekend, then you might have a bit of fun playing around with Samsung's soon-to-be-released S Voice application on your rooted Android 4.0 smartphone. The APK has now made its way into the wild, and we couldn't help but take it for a spin on our Nexus S. First off, while we can't vouch for the security of the file, we can confirm that it's indeed functional. Secondly, while some of the S Voice features work just fine -- such as search or contact queries -- other requests such as navigation repeatedly caused the app to crash. In other words, if you're expecting this app to behave as it should on the Galaxy S III, you might be in for a disappointment. If you're merely looking to poke around with the S Voice functionality, however, the download seems quite worthwhile. At this point, we're most curious to know whether non-Samsung owners have similar luck. If you're willing to give 'er a go, let us know your experience in the comments below. Update: We've also now tested the leaked APK on our Galaxy Nexus, and are happy to report that S Voice works quite flawlessly. As always, your mileage may vary.
LG LS970 'superphone' shows up again, flaunts its removable battery and NFC chip
It's only been a few days since we first heard the rumors about an upcoming, Sprint-bound LG quad-core slab, and now that same LS970 "superphone" is back for more action. Thanks to yet another snap acquired by the folks over at BriefMobile, we can now spot a couple extra details on the device, including its previously unknown NFC capabilities. Contrary to earlier beliefs, the alleged LG Eclipse also seems to offer a removable battery, which is likely to make some power users very content. Something tells us this isn't the last we're going to see of this super handset, though, so we'll keep you in the loop if any more noteworthy findings appear.
Motorola Droid 4 gets leaked ICS build, official Android 4.0.4 may soon follow
We've known for quite some time that Motorola intended to push Ice Cream Sandwich to the Droid 4, but until now the waiting game continued, with no end in sight. It now appears that the smartphone maker is making serious progress on its own Motoblur-infused flavor of ICS, with a stock version of the upgrade making the rounds since last night. According to early adopters, the build seems to enable complete functionality, but upgrading early will leave your device locked to 4.0.4, with no option for future updates. So, for now, it makes sense to hang tight, but it'd be reasonable to assume that Moto-sanctioned ICS is indeed on its way to the Droid 4. Impatient owners will find everything they need at the source link after the break.
Lenovo LePhone S899t with ICS reportedly in the works for China Mobile
According to a recent leak on Chinese site PConline, Lenovo's reportedly working on an Ice Cream Sandwich slab with China Mobile said to be on the receiving end of the delivery. Currently known as the LePhone S899t, this handset's allegedly friendly with the carrier's TD-SDCMA 3G network, while it's also said to feature a dual-core, NovaThor U8500 CPU, a 4.5-inch, IPS display for all viewing pleasures and, as stated earlier, it runs flavor of Google's latest OS. Aside from the purported specs, Lenovo's LePhone S899t is expected to be priced at a mere 1,299 yuan (around $200) once China Mobile makes the device official (no word on when that'll be). Either way, it's not like Lenovo's giving you a shortage of options.
Refresh Roundup: week of May 7th, 2012
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Refresh Roundup: week of April 30th, 2012
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Ivy Bridge-packing Inspiron 15R hiding in plain sight on Dell's Singapore site
It may not be as wavy as the alloyed 15R from a couple of years back, but this new "special edition" Inspiron is packing a few goodies that are far more interesting than a set of sinuous patterns. Thanks to a product page on Dell's Singapore website, we were able to spot one of the company's first Ivy Bridge machines, the Inspiron 15R. Per the listing, Dell's 15.6-inch laptop is sporting a hot-off-the-press Core i7-3612QM CPU, 6GB or 8GB of RAM (depending on configuration), AMD Radeon HD 7730M graphics and a 1TB, 5400RPM hard drive. Additionally, you'll be able to choose between two different displays: an HD WLED, 1366 x 768 or a 1920 x 1080, FHD True-Life. As of right now, the better-specced of the two models is carrying a hefty S$1,749 price tag (around $1,410 in American dollars), while the lower-end 15R is S$1,599. Those living in Singapore can hit up the source link below if you'd like to grab a piece of that fresh Ivy Bridge pie. [Thanks, Jason]
Refresh Roundup: week of April 23rd, 2012
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Leaked T-Mobile roadmap outlines Ice Cream Sandwich updates, new myTouch devices
Looks like our friends over at TMoNews have unearthed a roadmap with some tasty morsels of info about what's coming down the pipe from T-Mobile USA in the next few months. Of course, none of this is set in stone or even confirmed, so take it with a grain of salt. Most interesting is a pair of dates for Ice Cream sandwich updates, with Magenta's Galaxy S II slated to receive Android 4.0 on May 14th, followed by the Sensation 4G and Amaze 4G getting ICS (with Sense 3.6, presumably) on June 16th. A bunch of device launches from Samsung and Huawei round up the list of dates, with no sign of HTC's One X, Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S III, or T-Mobile's rumored Galaxy Note variant. Sadness. Check out the entire bounty below. May 9th: Huawei Astor (low-end phone for 7-Eleven) July 11th: Huawei Buddy and Phoenix (myTouch QWERTY and slate, respectively) July 11th: Samsung Gravity TXT (new color) Aug 1st: Samsung T159 Cacao (low-end handset) Aug 15th: Samsung Apex Q (mystery device)
Sony Xperia ST21i with ICS leaks out, shows off its chunky physique
It may not be as sleek as its S kin, or even as powerful as that mid-level U, but this recently leaked Xperia ST21i might just have enough goodies to lure a handful of you in. According to Techblog, this thick, 3.2-inch unit packs some pretty run-of-the-mill features, including an 800MHz Qualcomm chip paired with 512MB of RAM, a 3-megapixel shooter to help with those Instagram shots and a low 480 x 320 screen res. Unlike a few of the other Xperias still waiting to be served, though, the ST21i has already been filled with a portion of Google's famous ICS. No word yet on when the pudgy device will see a legit introduction, but until then you can peek at some extra photos at the source link below.
BlackBerry Curve 9320 spotted in Vietnam, leaves nothing to the imagination
Indeed, the Curve 9320's been anything but shy in these past couple of months. First, it was spotted while on a purported trip to India and shortly after that posing for T-Mobile's UK site. Now, the BlackBerry handset has been pampered by a full hands-on treatment from the Vietnamese folks over at Sohoa. Unlike its other adventures, though, this one presents far less speculation. As we'd previously heard, the device is in fact running BlackBerry OS 7.1, as well as being equipped with that undisclosed single-core CPU, 512MB of RAM, 3.2-megapixel rear shooter and a 1450mAh battery. Per the translation, Sohoa also notes the Curve 9320 offers a "better keyboard" and is thinner than the rest of the Curve lineup. There's an extra photo for your viewing pleasure after the break, but for the entire rundown be sure to check out the source link below. [Thanks, @tranquochuyvn]
AnTuTu pegs Galaxy S III as most powerful Android device, potentially reveals its specs
Ah, the Galaxy S III. We always knew it'd be a keystone among Android smartphones, but according to the AnTuTu benchmark suite, it'll be the one device to rule them all. While there's no way to verify whether this test is indeed legitimate, all Android users may currently peep the AnTuTu app, which not only shows the smartphone as having bested the mighty Transformer Prime tablet, but it also reveals the most comprehensive set of specs we've yet seen for the Galaxy S III -- again, take this with a grain of salt. The device is said to wield a Samsung Exynos 4212 SoC with a dual-core 1.4GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM and a 4.7-inch, 720p HD display. This lines up similarly with the product listing from Amazon Germany, as the specs also reveal a 12 megapixel primary camera on the rear, along with a 2MP shooter on the front. No big surprises for the OS, which is listed as Android 4.0. Should the benchmark tests turn out to be legitimate, the HTC One X will no doubt have some very stiff competition. Update: Samsung has revealed the 1.4GHz Exynos 4 Quad as the basis for its next superphone.
Samsung Galaxy Note for T-Mobile spotted in the wild, pretends it's no big deal
Oh, snap. By all appearances, the T-Mobile folks haven't lost sight of the popularity of the Galaxy Note, as a collection of snapshots obtained by TmoNews have revealed Samsung's phablet in none other than Magenta colors. At the very least, this suggests the Bellevue crew is considering bringing the 5.3-inch handset to its stores, and while the carrier's subscribers are currently able to use AT&T's Galaxy Note LTE on the Magenta network, it's a rather roundabout process and the results are less than ideal. We can only hope this one pans out, because really, who wouldn't love to take this monster for a proper ride on the little network that could?
Google Drive official: 5GB of free storage, Chrome web apps, Wave-like sharing and editing (video)
If it happened any other way, it just wouldn't be as satisfying, now would it? After years of leaks, murmurs, hubbub and other familiar synonyms, Google's mythical cloud storage platform is now official... sort of. As Lady Fate would have it, the company apparently outed a memo of the features on its French blog earlier today, but before it could yank the 'pull' switch, an eagle-eyed reader managed to grab the text and run it through -- surprise, surprise -- Google Translate. What's left is an official-as-you'll-get-right-now transcript of Google Drive's features, but contrary to the hype, it all feels way more enterprise-centric than consumers may have wanted. For starters, there's no real mention of music (we guess Google Music is on its own, there), and there's just 5GB of free storage for "documents, videos, photos, Google Docs, PDFs, etc." According to the brief, it's designed to let users "live, work and play in the cloud," with direct integration with Docs and Google+. We're also told that Drive can be installed on one's Mac, PC or Android phone / tablet, while an iOS version will be "available in the coming weeks." Of note, Google's making this accessible to visually impaired consumers with the use of a screen reader. As for features? Naturally, Google's flexing its search muscles in as many ways as possible; if you scan in a newspaper clipping, a simple Search All within Drive will allow results to appear directly from said clipping. If you upload a shot of the Eiffel Tower, it'll show up whenever you search for the aforesaid icon. Moreover, Drive will allow folks to open over 30 types of documents directly from a web browser, including HD video, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop and more -- "even without the software installed on your computer." For those concerned about access, the new platform will have the same infrastructure as any other Google Apps services, giving admins a familiar set of management tools on that end. On the topic of storage, just 5GB are provided gratis, with 25GB costing $2.49 per month, 100GB running you $4.99 per month and 1TB demanding $49.99 per month, with a maximum of 16TB ($799.99 per month, if you're curious) per user; thankfully, Google Docs will not be included in your usage total. Finally, the note played up the ability to "attach documents directly into your Drive Gmail," and given that it's intended to be an open platform, Goog's promising to work with third party developers in order to enhance Drive's functionality even further. The source link below is still dead as of right now, but it simply can't be long before the lights are officially turned on. Oh, and if you're not enamored at the moment, the outfit's suggesting that "many more developments" will be arriving in the coming weeks. Update: It's live on the Google Play store, and a pair of explanatory videos are embedded after the break!
