Samsung gets Apple patent smackdown

Samsung‘s bid to block sales of Apple gadgets in the Netherlands over alleged infringement of standards-essential wireless patents has been blocked, with a Dutch court arguing a ban can’t be applied while Apple shows willingness to negotiate. Meanwhile, Apple is free to continue selling iOS devices like the iPhone and iPad, Dow Jones reports, though Samsung still insists that the hardware uses its patented technology without first agreeing on licensing.


“The Dutch court said on Wednesday it cannot be said that Apple didn’t comply with the clauses on FRAND [fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory] terms,” Samsung spokesperson James Chung said of the ruling, “so Apple is allowed to sell their products [in the Netherlands] but that also means Apple should negotiate with Samsung on royalties.”
Apple, meanwhile, insists that no payments are necessary, and claims to be covered for its use of the patented wireless technologies under chipset provider Qualcomm’s agreement with Samsung. It also demanded an antitrust investigation into potential misuse of the FRAND patents by the Korean company, with the European Commission now looking at whether Samsung has taken unfair advantage of its patent portfolio.
The legal sparring continues, but so does Apple’s heavy reliance on Samsung components for its best-selling devices. Apple is tipped to spend as much as $11bn on Samsung tech in 2012 alone, with suggestions that Samsung is one of the few companies currently able to deliver the high-resolution Retina Displays for the new iPad.

Fixed Nexus S ICS update coming in “the next few weeks”

Google briefly began rolling out the Ice Cream Sandwich update for the Nexus S back in December, but it was quickly pulled after user complaints of poor battery life. Some users managed to see the tasty update, and custom ROMs have been plentiful on xda-developers, but those simply looking for the stock experience have been left waiting for several months. That wait will soon be over.

Engadget has confirmed with sources familiar with the matter that Google is expected to begin rolling out the Ice Cream Sandwich once again for the Nexus S and Nexus S 4G. Time wise you’re looking at “the next few weeks” – possibly pushing the much awaited update into April. That’s better than no update at all, though.
So what exactly was the problem with the original update that was pushed out back in December? Users on xda-developers noted that the Android OS was consuming a larger amount of battery life than normal when the Nexus S was running Ice Cream Sandwich. That led to poor battery life throughout the day, causing Google to pull the update while they could fix things.
When Ice Cream Sandwich does start rolling out to Nexus S’ again, users can look forward to a wide variety of changes, such as improved notifications, the new Roboto font, modified UI, as well as a refined Gmail experience. More details in our full Ice Cream Sandwich review.

Samsung NX20 WiFi camera leaks

Just a couple of days ago Samsung and Panasonic both revealed that they were mulling the idea of a smart camera, able to run Android and integrate with social networks via WiFi connectivity. Now a leak from Dutch website Focus Media suggests that a Samsung made digital camera with WiFi is indeed on the horizon.

They managed to get their hands on a pre-production model of Samsung’s NX20 camera and snapped a few pictures of it for good measure. They say that the design is similar to the NX11, although the body is slightly larger to give a better grip. Specs are said to include a 20.3 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, as well as ISO support from 100 all the way up to 12,800.
There’s a 3-inch VGA AMOLED display on the back so you can see exactly what you’re shooting. as well as 1080p video recording. There’s also a burst shot mode, capable of taking eight photos per second. The key feature, though, is the WiFi connectivity, which will apparently allow you to upload photos directly from the camera to social networks, or to backup solutions.
No word on pricing or availability yet, although the camera is expected to get an official announcement from Samsung very soon.

Samsung Galaxy S WiFi 3.6 confirmed for the US

In Samsung’s never-ending quest to fill every screen size niche down to the millimeter, they announced the Galaxy S WIFI 3.6 at IFA back in September. At the time there were no plans to extend it to the United States, but it looks like they’re shipping it over after all. Unfortunately, Samsung wasn’t forthcoming with a price or date for the portable media player, but it shouldn’t be too long before it joins the North American lineup. Previously Samsung has offered its Galaxy Player/Galaxy S WiFi series in only 4 and 5-inch versions in the United States.

The Galaxy S WiFi 3.6 isn’t out to set the world on fire for specifications, but it should be a good mix of utility and size. The 3.6-inch (duh) screen has a respectable 800×480 resolution on its LCD screen, with a 1Ghz Hummingbird processor powering Gingerbread and TouchWiz. (An ICS update is almost certainly not in the works.) The international version has either 8GB or 16GB of internal space plus an open MicroSD card slot, and both versions should make it to the states eventually. The cameras are a little underwhelming at 2MP and VGA for the rear and front, but at least there’s an LED flash.
At 3.6 inches, the iteration of the WiFi/Player should compete directly with the iPod Touch. That being the case, we might see a very compelling price indeed: the 4.0-inch version can already be found for less than $200, so the smaller option may be at or around the $150-170 range. One can only hope. The Galaxy S WiFi 3.6 was previously confirmed to have Google Apps and the Android Market, which should be updated to the Google Play Store upon release.

Rumor: Nexus S Ice Cream Sandwich update restarting soon

We got quite a response when we noted that owners of the Samsung Nexus S were more than a little upset that the official Ice Cream Sandwich update was months overdue. Now Engadget claims an anonymous source saying that Google intends to sestart the long overdue OTA software process in “the next few weeks”. Take it for what it’s worth (and without a confirmed cource, it isn’t worth much) but it’s at lest a ray of hope that those who paid for Nexus hardware and timely software will finally get their money’s worth.

As noted above, owners of the Nexus S and Nexus S 4G have been frustrated with Google and Samsung’s glacier-paced response to their complaints. The official Ice Cream Sandwich update began in December for GSM models, but was halted almost immediately for more bug fixing. Three months later, the vast majority of Nexus S owners (and all Nexus S 4G owners) are without an official upgrade path to the latest version of Ice Cream Sandwich, a feature promised to them when they bought the phone, unlike other models that are already seeing updates.
There’s always the option of rooting the phone and installing a custom ROM, and indeed, many do just that to take advantage of the Nexus’ large developer community. But they shouldn’t have to: as a developer phone, any device with the Nexus label is supposed to get updates “as fast as humanly possible”. Between this slow response for the Nexus S and a seemingly lowered level of support for CDMA devices like Verizon’s Galaxy Nexus and XOOM, previously high levels of excitement for the Nexus program are steadily dwindling among Android enthusiasts.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Nexus S

Manufactuer : Samsung

Carrier : T-Mobile

Announced Date : December 07, 2010

Release Date : December 16, 2010

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4.00 Inch
• Resolution : 480x800
• Screen Type : Super AMOLED

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 4.88 Inch
• Width : 2.48 Inch
• Depth : 0.43 Inch
• Weight : 129 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1500 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : 713 hours

Software

Android OS:
• 2.3.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• AMR
• MP3

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC
• MPEG-4 (MP4)

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Cortex A8 Hummingbird

CPU Clock Speed : 1000 Mhz

Core : 1

Ram : 512 MB

Internal Storage : 16.384 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Samsung Galaxy Ace Plus hits the UK on March 17th

Were you smitten with the low/mid-range Galaxy Ace Plus the moment Samsung showed it off, with a complete lack of pricing or availability? Then prepare to be thrilled, assuming you live in the United Kingdom: the phone will be available at retail starting tomorrow, March 17th. Though Samsung said that the Galaxy Ace Plus would be available at various locations including Vodafone, they were carefully silent on the matter of pricing. Given the price of the former Ace model, something in the  £300-350 range seems likely.

The Ace Plus is a little smaller and weaker in the specs department than the original Galaxy S, but not quite as diminutive as the Galaxy Mini or Mini 2. In Samsung’s continuing quest to saturate absolutely every screen size imaginable, they’ve equipped the Galaxy Ace Plus with a 3.65-inch LCD screen with a 480×320 resolution. A 1Ghz single-core processor is paired to 512MB of RAM and 3GB of on-board  storage, plus however much you add via the MicroSD card slot. The rear camera is a respectable 5 megapixels, while the front camera is indeterminate, but definitely there.
The familiar combination of Gingerbread topped with TouchWiz is present, and no, you probably shouldn’t hold out for an Ice Cream Sandwich update. There’s nothing here that stands out in the very crowded field of Android smartphones, but then someone’s got to fill out the niches in the market. Samsung seems hell-bent on finding every single one (at least oversees) and who are we to stop them? The Galaxy Ace Plus will work on all UK networks, and supports HSPA+ speeds.

T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G unboxing

Samsung’s latest Galaxy S device is about to land on T-Mobile next week. It’s known as the Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G and will be available March 21st, and nationwide starting on the 27th for the low price of just $149. Today we’ve been lucky enough to get one early for some hands-on and an unboxing session so check it out below. Don’t forget to notice how speedy those 4G speedtest results are.


The Galaxy S Blaze 4G is what I’d consider an upper mid-range smartphone. It’s almost as high end as they come with a few very minor shortcomings. Does that make it a bad phone? Heck no! The specs are still awesome and will make anyone happy that doesn’t want to pay those $299 prices for LTE phones on Verizon and AT&T.

The Blaze 4G specs include a 4-inch 480 x 800 AMOLED display, a 1.5 GHz dual-core Qualcomm S3 processor, 1GB of RAM, and 8 GB of storage (4GB built-in, 4GB user replaceable micro-SD). The device also comes equipped with a 720p capable 5 megapixel shooter on the rear with a 1.3 front camera for video chatting with Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread.
Check out my hands-on and unboxing video below for a better idea of the hardware but my initial impressions are quite favorable, especially with what you get for the price. While the slight curve on top wrapped in aluminum feels a little too much like a Blackberry, the design is still quite excellent and feels nice in your hands. The soft-coated rubber battery cover also gives users an easy and safe grip.

Since this is T-Mobiles latest 4G (HSPA+) device we gave it a run of speedtest just for good measure, and came away pleasantly surprised. Getting around 9-12 MB/s on average here in Vegas for download speeds is comparable to Verizon’s 4G LTE on average, although LTE does have those days and spots where I crank out 25 MB/s constantly. Upload speeds were still a little slow here for T-Mobile but better than what we’ve seen in the past.
So far the T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G is shaping up to be an excellent choice come these next few months as we head into summer. It will be $149 with a new 2-year contract and you can learn all the details from the timeline links below. Sadly we don’t have Ice Cream Sandwich but hopefully that update will come soon enough, depends on how Samsung feels i suppose. Enjoy the video and stay tuned for our full review next week.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Galaxy S Blaze 4G

Manufactuer : Samsung

Carrier : T-Mobile

Announced Date : February 22, 2012

Release Date : March 21, 2012

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4 Inch
• Resolution : 480x800
• Screen Type : Super AMOLED

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 4.79 Inch
• Width : 2.48 Inch
• Depth : .44 Inch
• Weight : 127 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1750 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : NA

Software

Android OS:
• 2.3.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• AMR
• MID
• MP3
• WAV
• WMA

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC
• MPEG-4 (MP4)

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS
• IM

Hardware

CPU : Qualcomm S3

CPU Clock Speed : 1500 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1000 MB

Internal Storage : 8GB GB

Front Facing Camera :

Samsung, LG and Pantech fined $40 million for price fixing

It seems that a few of the big Korean manufacturers and network carriers haven’t been playing fair. The South Korean Fair Trade Commision found that Hardware companies Samsung, LG and Pantech have been collaborating with the big 3 carriers KT, LG Uplus and SK Telecom in order fix prices. The investigation showed that the manufacturers were raising the price of handsets in order to subsidise discounts for the carriers thus creating the illusion to the customer that they’re getting a good deal. It may sound like standard practice to many of us however the FTC felt fit to impose some pretty hefty fines as punishment.
Over $40 million in fines were shared amongst the 6 firms with Samsung and SK Telecom hit the hardest picking up $12.6 million and $17.8 million fines respectively. Furthermore the FTC have imposed a series of sales restrictions in order to prevent similar practices in the future.

Android 4.0 Update For Nexus S And Nexus S 4G Smartphones Is Very Much Real And On Its Way

It’s been so long since Ice Cream Sandwich was released, so it’s a bit surprising Google’s Nexus S and Nexus S 4G hasn’t been given any official love. For those of you who have been lamenting over the fact the update hasn’t arrived yet for your Nexus S phones, cheer up— word on the street is is Google hasn’t forgotten about you and is finally ready to push out the official update. No exact date of when the updates will arrive, but we do know it will arrive on devices “in the next few weeks.”
Let’s just hope we don’t have a repeat of Google teasing us with a buggy update. We’ll let you know when the update is officially pushed to devices.

Samsung Galaxy Note is finally available on Three UK

No phone creates more buzz than the Samsung Galaxy Note. Just whip one out anywhere in public and watch the heads turn. The Galaxy Note has been available in the UK for several months, but it was never available on Three. Good news because it’s finally available on contract or Pay As You Go from all Three stores or online.
You can get it on contract for plans ranging from £30 to £38 per month. If off contact is your fancy, you can grab it for £499 and select from either the All in One 15 (£15) or the All in One 25 (£25) monthly plans. Also check out our full review of the LTE U.S. version.
Full press release after the break:

Samsung Galaxy Note available now on Three.

London, March 16^th 2012: The Samsung Galaxy Note is now available on Contract or Pay As You Go from all Three stores or online at three.co.uk.
The sleek and speedy Samsung Galaxy Note is a PC and smartphone all wrapped into one. It comes with a powerful 1.4 GHz dual processor, delivering the productivity of a PC in a handy smartphone size. Its impressive 5.3” Super AMOLED display is perfect for enjoying apps, games and watching high definition videos and the intuitive S-Pen allows users to sketch drawings, crop images and take notes with ease.
Sylvia Chind, head of handsets at Three said, “We’re delighted to bring the Samsung Galaxy Note to Three. It’s the perfect choice for those who love tablets but want a device that will fit in their pocket. The Samsung Galaxy Note is HSPA+ compatible and has a large memory, perfect for streaming videos from sites like YouTube over Three’ superfast HSPA+ network.”
Earlier this month Three launched two great value price plans that offer worry free internet for all – Essential Internet and Ultimate Internet. Customers can get the Samsung Galaxy Note on Essential 500 for £32.00 per month which includes 5000 texts, 500 minutes and 250MB of data with absolutely zero chance of out of bundle data charges. Visit three.co.uk for further details on our Pay Monthly plans.
The handset is also available on Pay As You Go for £499. All in One 15 costs £15 and gives 30-day access to all-you-can-eat data along with 300 any-network minutes and 3,000 texts. Or All in One 25 costs £25 and offers 500 minutes, 3,000 texts and all-you-can-eat data for a 30-day period.
Key features:
- 5.3” Super AMOLED display
- 1.4 GHz dual core processor
- Edit and share notes with the included S-pen
- S Pen
- 8 megapixel camera with LED flashCreate, edit and share notes and ideas with S-pen and S-memo

Deal of the Day: 49% Off Case-Mate Tough Case for Samsung Epic 4G Touch

  Grab the Case-Mate Tough Case for Samsung Epic 4G Touch for $17.95.  That's $17 off the list price!

 

The Tough Case combines high quality protection with a custom color combination for your Samsung Epic 4G Touch. Dual layers form together to guard against any fumbles, and a form-fitting silicone skin surrounds the device completely while absorbing shocks and impacts. The ABS plastic hard shell wraps around the skin for extra protection, as well as an easy-to-hold grip. Get yours while supplies last!

List Price: $34.99          Today: $17.95

Sprint Galaxy Nexus flies through the FCC; still no word on release date

This, ladies and germs, is the Sprint version of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, as seen by the Federal Communications Commission. We've been happily ignoring FCC listings of already announced and gently fondled smartphones -- particularly ones that we've twice reviewed already (Verizon, GSM), but this one's a bit special because it's Sprint's, and we know how patient all you Sprint folks have been watching Verizon customers rock their own LTE versions.
So what do we learn from Sprint's Galaxy Nexus FCC listing? Not a damn thing of any real use. We still have no idea when it'll be released (first half of the year, in conjunction with Sprint's LTE rollout, is the best we've got), which really is the only question we have at this point.
And, so, we keep on waiting, and hope to see Sprint's lineup of LTE-enabled cities expand beyond the half-dozen already named.

Samsung Galaxy Note now available on Three UK

It has been a bit of a wait, but as of today the Samsung Galaxy Note is available to Three UK customers. 

The international version of the Galaxy Note has been available since November, and Three's customers have had to be patient. Initially, the white version is on sale, and can be had both on contract and on pay as you go. 

On contract, the Galaxy Note is available from free and for no more than £38 a month. Three's top tier plans include all-you-can-eat data on their HSPA+ network, which is a tantalizing prospect when coupled with a device like this. On Pay As You Go, the Galaxy Note will run you for £499.

The Note is available now online and in all Three retail stores. If you're still undecided, don't forget to check out our full review of the International version.

Nexus S ICS updates reportedly restarting in 'a few weeks'

Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich was briefly pushed to the Nexus S last December, before being pulled due to battery life issues on some handsets. Now reports suggest that the official resumption of over-the-air updates to ICS may be just a few weeks away, and that the Nexus S 4G will finally see the latest version of Android, too.

Engadget​ reports via "trusted sources" that the Nexus S and Sprint Nexus S 4G will both receive fresh updates to ICS in "the next few weeks." It's been a long wait for Nexus S 4G users in particular, who've yet to see anything official besides a leaked 4.0.4 build.

If you'd rather not wait a few weeks to get Ice Cream Sandwich on your Nexus S, you can check out our guide to manually installing the update. And like we said, there's always that leaked build for the Nexus S 4G -- though you'll have to muddle through with the same radio issues that affected Gingerbread on some devices.

International Samsung Galaxy Note updated, obscure video editor bugs fixed

A new firmware update is rolling out over the air to owners of the international Samsung Galaxy Note (GT-N7000). The new version is still based on Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread, but brings a new cellular radio (version XXLB2) and updated Samsung software (XXLC1). The update from the previous version (XXLB1) weighs in at just under 40MB.
The Note seems fast as ever on the new firmware, and we've noticed that a couple of obscure bugs introduced in an earlier update has now been fixed. Previously, when working with clips of different frame rates in the video editor app, the sections recorded at a lower frame rate would stutter and introduce artifacts when rendered. In addition, using the "fade" transition effect with certain video files would result in artifacting. Both bugs are fixed in the new firmware.
The Galaxy Note is still waiting on its update to Ice Cream Sandwich, which was due by the end of March, but may have slipped into Q2 if the latest rumors are to be believed. As with any Android device, the timing of updates will likely depend on your country and carrier. Our Note is an unlocked German model, which is generally among the first to receive new firmware from Samsung.
If you've updated your international Note and noticed anything else that's new in the updated firmware, then hit the comments and let us know.

Anonymous User Takes Generic Photo With Upcoming Samsung Galaxy S III Smartphone

In yet the latest chapter of the Samsung i-9300 saga, an image has appeared highlighting what is possibly the upcoming phone’s camera features… which may be lackluster to say the least. An anonymous individual casually snapped an image of his or her desk using supposedly the Galaxy S III’s camera which shows this EXIF data as the end result. Considering the device the device has an 8.1MP camera, it’s quite possible the person who took the photo either has some unsteady hands or was perhaps fiddling with the camera features a little too much.
Yes this photo is not impressive, but let’s hope we have more photos taken from the phone’s 8.1MP camera which will truly highlight its potential.

Rumor: Google Nexus Tablet gets a refresh on its spec sheet

If you are among the many Android users who are patiently holding off on buying a tablet now, yet anxiously waiting for the latest on the Google “Nexus Tablet”, then here is a juicy piece of rumor. An anonymous source has come forward and stated that the “Nexus Tablet” is indeed on its way and that there have been some modifications to the previously purported spec sheet. According to the undercover source, not only is Asus manufacturing the “Nexus Tablet”, but they have decided to scrap their plans for the upcoming Asus MeMo 370T that was previewed at CES 2012, in place for the shiny new Nexus. If you remember from our previous article on the MeMo 370T, it was reported to have Ice Cream Sandwich, the new Tegra 3 quad-core CPU, to sell at an incredible price point of $250, and to be the first 7-inch tab with an IPS display. The source goes on to say that the price will now drop to $149, the Tegra 3 is no longer in the picture and only the 7 inch display is a definite go at this point in time. Perhaps Asus and Google decided to use the basic blueprints of the MeMo 370T and install cheaper hardware to allow for lower, more competitive pricing. With the Kindle Fire still selling well at $199, I can understand the motivation. Of course this is still a big fat rumor, but perhaps we will see this new tablet revealed at the CTIA Wireless show in mid-May.