Samsung Galaxy Nexus Goes On Sale In Canada

Whilst we are still waiting to find out when the Samsung Galaxy Nexus will be available in the US, it looks more like next week now rather than today, our Canadian readers will be pleased to know that the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is now available in Canada.
The Galaxy nexus is available in Canada will mobile carriers Bell and Virgin Mobile and the handset is available for $159 when you sign up to a new three year contract with either of the carriers.

We still don’t have any word from Verizon on when the Galaxy Nexus will be available in the US, as soon as we get some actual information we will let you guys know.
Source Android and Me

Samsung Galaxy Note Tips and Tricks: Using S-Memo

Continuing our Samsung Galaxy Note tips and tricks, we are looking closely at the new S-Memo, which works well with the Samsung Galaxy Note’s widescreen and the S-Pen to jot down important notes and reminders.
Converting Handwriting into Text

When you are bored with typing or dislike the moment when you can’t get the right letter, try S-Memo to convert handwriting into text.

1.      Launch S-Memo on the screen

2.      Type in anything on the screen using S-Pen

3.      Press menu button on the Samsung Galaxy Note

4.      Tap on Handwriting to Text

5.      The Samsung Galaxy Note will convert the writing into text and allows you to check for errors.



S-Memo also allows you to draw around on your personal memo. There are four different drawing modes – pen, pencil, paintbrush and highlighter. It also allows you to include pictures, sound clips and a map from Google maps.

Finally there is also an option to share your memo with your friends. Tap the menu button and press “share via” and start sharing out with your friends.

Samsung Galaxy Note Tips and Tricks: How to make the most of the S-Pen

The tablets-esque Samsung Galaxy Note just made its way into Malaysia, and it comes with S-Pen which is embedded into the Galaxy Note which allows you to write, draw and takes screenshots. We’ll walk you through a few tips to make the most out the stylus and quick UI gestures you can do with it.

Taking a screenshot with the S-Pen

Pressing the S-Pen’s button, and hold a press on the screen. You can then crop the photos and add text to the screenshot.

Gestures

1. Pressing the Pen’s Button + Double Tap with the pen brings up the S memo feature

1. Pressing the Pen’s Button + Stroke up will bring up the menu button
2. Pressing the Pen’s Button + Swiping left will cancel your last task

Comparison - Nokia Lumia 800 vs Samsung Galaxy S II

The Nokia Lumia 800 was announced in October 2011, way after the Samsung Galaxy S II was announced during the Mobile World Congress in February 2011. There is something to be said about the Samsung Galaxy S II, which is still holding its own against newer devices in a field where three months is about as long as a lifetime.

Both handsets are touchscreen candybar devices with 8-megapixel cameras and LED flash. They support WiFi and use a microUSB connector for charging and data transfer. The similarity ends here as the Lumia 800 is supposed to be the first of many Windows Phone devices that Nokia is making, whereas the Samsung Galaxy S II has been considered the top Android device for a while now.

The Nokia Lumia 800 is the heavier one in this comparison by about 25% (142g vs 116g). It has a 1.4 GHz single-core processor with 512 MBs of RAM and 16GBs of storage. It is thicker than its rival here but returns lower height and width measurements. We quite wonder where the extra weight came from if the Samsung is a larger (but thinner) device.

The Samsung Galaxy S II appears to have more talk time (18 hours vs 13 hours) and standby time (710 hours vs 265 hours). This is probably due to its slightly larger battery capacity (1650 mAh vs 1450 mAh). It has a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor with 1 GB of RAM and 32 GBs of storage.

It also has better video recording capability at 1920 x 1080 (1080p HD). The Lumia 800 is only capable of 1280 x 720 (720p HD).

The price for both devices is now almost the same, The Samsung Galaxy S II has dropped from its opening price to an amount a little less than what we expect the Nokia Lumia 800 to debut at. We would think that the Galaxy S II is the preference here. It has more storage and probably slightly better performance with double the RAM. Finally, the Android Marketplace gives you more options than the corresponding Windows Marketplace, at least for now.
Nokia Lumia 800 

3.5G 14.4Mbps HSDPA + WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, 3.7-inch Touchscreen Candybar, 8.0 MP camera + 16GB internal memory, Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango)

Touted as Nokia’s “first real Windows Phone”, the Nokia Lumia 800 is the Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) flagship by Nokia. It shares the same exterior design with the Nokia N9, but with an additional camera shutter button on the bottom right of the phone. It has a smaller display than the N9 to make space for the three touch buttons (Back, Start and Search) on Windows Phone platform.

It includes some exclusive goodies such as free 25GB SkyDrive cloud storage, Nokia Drive turn-by-turn voice navigation free app and Nokia Music with Mix Radio. Spec-wise, the Lumia 800 has a 3.7-inch WVGA (480 x 800) AMOLED display with ClearBlack technology, a 1.4GHz processor, 512MB of RAM, 16GB internal storage, 8-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics and supports HSDPA 14.4Mbps, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1.

The Mango smartphone’s expected retail price is 420 Euros (estimated RM 1850) and will be available from November onwards, with gradual release across the globe
Samsung Galaxy S II 
3.5G HSPA + WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Touchscreen candybar, 8.0 MP camera, 16GB Memory + microSD (Up to 32GB), Android OS 2.3 (Gingerbread)

The Samsung Galaxy S II has a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus display with 480 x 800 resolution (which is an increase of screen size, though it retains the same resolution seen in its predecessor), a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and running on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) with TouchWiz UI 4.0.

It boasts an 8-megapixel camera which is capable of capturing videos at full HD 1080p @ 30fps. The Samsung Galaxy S II also has HSPA+ (21Mbps) network support, WiFi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0 as well as an HDMI-out with mirroring and DLNA for media sharing.

Samsung’s Attempt To Have iPhone 4S Banned In France Denied

Apple and Samsung are suing each other in more that 20 separate court cases around the world, we heard this morning that Apple’s attempt to continue to have the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 banned in Australia had been denied.
Now its Samsung’s turns, as a French court has denied Samsung’s request to have Apple’s new iPhone 4S banned in France, although Samsung is still trying to have the iPhone 4S banned in other countries, which include Australia, Japan and Italy.

No doubt there will be more of these cases where each company attempts to have the others products banned in various companies, each one accusing the other of infringing on their patents.
Source Pocket Now

Verizon Galaxy Nexus bootloader unlocking process

With the Samsung Galaxy Nexus on Verizon now being released on December 9th, some of you may be wanting to unlock the bootloader.
Unlike past devices that have required you the user, to hack into your device or even bypass the bootloader, the Galaxy Nexus has been designed to allow you to open it up straight away.
As droid-life.com stated before you start, advice is to get the Android SDK installed with recognition from your device through adb. This will then set the wheels in motion for simple commands and a quick volume press on the smartphone. To get a full listing of the instructions, brief breakdown of each and some of your important questions already being answered, follow the link for droid-life.
First up the unlocked bootloader will only work with Windows, and the most important step to follow beforehand is to set up the Android SDK properly. Now to make a start, place a fastboot.exe file into your SDK folder if its not already there and download. All being well, then turn on your device with USB debugging (Settings>Developer options>USB debugging), plug the Nexus into your computer, head into your SDK/Tools folder or where your adb.exe and fastboot.exe files are located.
Next you have to hold SHIFT and right click and choose open command window here. Type the following: adb reboot bootloader. Your Nexus will then switch off and reboot to the bootloader. Now type: fastboot oem unlock, you will then be asked to unlock. Using the volume keys say, “Yes” then press the power button. Your bootloader should now be unlocked. The Galaxy Nexus will factory reset itself and reboot, with you now being able to use the unlocked Nexus.

Samsung secures bundle of bucks to fight Apple

I’m sure if you frequent the mobile arena you’ll know that Apple has been after Samsung blood for quite some time claiming old Sammy infringes of the design of the iPhone and Apple iPad with several Samsung products, and recently Samsung managed to get an Australian ban of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 overturned and has had Apple’s demand to have Samsung products banned in the US deigned.
However the fight between Apple and Samsung doesn’t end there and will no doubt continue for some time into the future, and according to an article over on Pocket Now via the Korea Times , Geesung Choi, the president and chief exec of digital media at Samsung Electronics has said they have secured a rather large lump of cash to continue the fight against Apple across the globe in courtrooms.
That large bundle of cash secured by Samsung is to the tune of some 200 million bucks, a fairly substantial sum to throw at lawyers to fight the Samsung front. Although no doubt Apple has a hefty pile of cash to also throw at their own lawyers in order to continue the fight.
Samsung’s recent victories against Apple in the courtrooms aren’t permanent though as they cover preliminary injunctions against Samsung rather than the actual outcome of the cases, which Apple could still win.
Just think what that cash could be used for if Apple and Samsung were to bury the hatchet once and for all rather than wasting it on legal teams to hash it out in court.
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Galaxy Note possibly for AT&T approved by FCC

For all you Android faithful over in the good old US of A you’ll probably know the smartphone/tablet hybrid Samsung Galaxy Note hit the Federal Communications Commission some time ago, well now the word is the Galaxy Note has now receiver the official stamp of approval from the FCC, which means the Android device should be coming out to play soon.
According to the guys over at Ubergizmo by way of Wireless Goodness Sammy’s 5.3-inch touch screen Galaxy Note has been given FCC approval for GSM 850/1900 bands along with WCDMA bands II and IV, which are used by AT&T and Canada.
Although of course AT&T hasn’t actually come right out and announced they will offer the Samsung Galaxy Note, so if or when the Android 2.3 Gingerbread device will become available still remains a mystery.
However if it does you can expect that 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED touch screen along with an 8 megapixel rear facing camera, 2 megapixel front facing camera, 1.4GHz dual core processor, 2,500mAh battery and that S Pen stylus of course.
As it stands currently there is no word on whether the Samsung Galaxy Note will be updated to Android Ice Cream Sandwich, but as the device is quite new one would have thought it would be a prime candidate for Android 4.0 at some point in the future.
So, if the Samsung Galaxy Note does arrive on AT&T in the not too distant future is it a device you would consider picking up?
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