Samsung says WP 8 devices are coming in the second half of 2012

For those of you who were worried about Samsung being too quiet on the Windows Phone field, we have some good news. The Korean giant's Taiwanese division has confirmed the that Windows Phone 8 Apollo running devices will hit the market in the second half of this year. The devices will hit the market no earlier than October - after Microsoft launches the next iteration of its mobile OS. There are currently no details on their specs. They will surely follow once Microsoft reveals the hardware requirements for Windows Phone 8. Source (in Chinese) | Via

Is this a live photo of Samsung Galaxy S III?

Just as we started to get a bit worried about the lack of Samsung Galaxy S III leaks for the past three days or so, our luck struck again. Get your salt ready, because here goes an alleged live photo of the upcoming Samsung top dog, courtesy of a person, who claims to be a device tester. As you can notice in the picture above, the suspected Samsung Galaxy S III sports a five-column UI, as well as a rectangular home button below its display. Both features fall right in line with previous leaks of the highly anticipated device. Of course, we wish we could take a better look at the UI, but, unfortunately, the image supplier has decided to give it the 8-bit treatment before releasing it into the wild. It does however, look a lot like a stock Android ICS, which leads us to think that we are looking at a test mule. Speaking of test mules, there is a high probability that the leaked design is not final either. In any case, we hope for an official announcement from Samsung, which will put an end to the "Galaxy S III leaks" saga, to take place in the near future. Thanks to everyone who sent this in! Source (in Polish)

Alleged Samsung Galaxy S III Leaked

A Polish tech blog posted a scoop. Its author, Piotr Pesta, wrote he received a tip from an anonymous source who claimed he (or she) is testing Samsung's Galaxy S III and had a photo to prove it. The image showed the supposed Samsung smartphone laid out on a flat surface with its icons pixelated, possibly to hide the source's identity. Other than the photo, the source did not elaborate on the details of the alleged Galaxy S III. However, looking at the image confirms some rumors about the device. One of the rumors floating around is that the Samsung Galaxy S III will have as much as five columns of apps in one screen, minimizing the need to swipe through pages as much. As for the physical aspect, we can say the smartphone features a physical home button, speakers, sensors, and a front-facing camera. Now we only have to confirm details about its hardware and OS. Rumor has it that the Samsung Galaxy S III will boast a 1.5GHz processor, a full HD screen, and Android 4.0.

Sony Xperia SmartWatch Already on Sale for $118 in the US [Deals]

Sony's Xperia SmartWatch has only been available for one day and it's already being offered at a pretty decent discount. Expansys USA is offering the little device for $118 compared to the $150 MSRP Sony's asking for. Over 60 apps can be used on the device which connects to your Android devices via Bluetooth, including Facebook, Gmail, and more. Head to Expansys if you want to get this great discount before it evaporates.

ChevronWP7 officially closes up shop for good, hands out App Hub memberships

We were a tad disappointed when ChevronWP7 stopped handing out unlock token for Windows Phones in early January, only two months after launching. But, we held out hope that one day the shop might reopen its doors and once again offer a cheap option to those of us that wish to free our WP7 devices from Microsoft's shackles. Sadly, that dream is officially dead, as ChevronWP7 has been shuttered for good. On the plus side, current customers will be rewarded with a one year membership to Microsoft's App Hub - currently the only legit way to unlock your Windows Phone. So, we're sad to see ChevronWP7 go but, if you were lucky enough to score a token before the 10,000 available sold out, you got a pretty sweet deal in paying $9 for a $99 App Hub membership. Hit up the source link for full details.[Thanks, Joe]

Sony began seeding ICS update to the 2011 Xperia lineup

Sony has began seeding the Android 4.0 ICS update to its 2011 lineup of Xperia smartphones - right in line with the previous report. The first handsets to get the treatment are the Xperia arc S, Xperia neo V and Xperia ray in the hands of users in Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Finland and Norway. Sony will further update on availability of the update in more markets. The rest of the Xperia lineup from last year is scheduled to get updated in late May/early June. Hit the two source links below for the full information on how to get the update. Also: don't forget to share your experience in the comments section. Source 1 | Source 2

HTC Golf press image leaked

Sometime last month, there were whispers of a new smartphone from HTC known as the HTC Golf, which surprisingly enough will not be part of the flagship range, but rather, has every intention of making a splash on the entry level to mid-range market. We do know that it will run on the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system, and the folks over at PocketNow managed to snag what they deem to be the first press image of the HTC Golf. Heck, there are even whispers going around that the HTC Golf might be renamed as the Wildfire C eventually. Despite that, it will still resemble the latest One series in terms of design, sporting a white frame which will most probably hold a single core processor that is no faster than 1GHz, 512MB RAM, and 4GB of internal memory. Since this Ice Cream Sandwich device will also carry HTC's Sense 4.0 user interface, you can be sure that it will be a snap to use in line with other HTC devices that have Sense 4.0 running on top as well. Not only that, it is said that you will benefit from an additional 25GB of free Dropbox storage as well.

2011 Xperia smartphones Ice Cream Sandwich software update

For those of you who own an Xperia smartphone from the 2011 range upwards will be pleased to hear that Sony Mobile has officially announced a software upgrade that will include an update to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The Xperia arc S, Xperia neo V and Xperia ray will be the first smartphones to receive this software upgrade, and even then, it will be made available only for consumers living in Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Finland and Norway. As for the rest of the world, the entire rollout will take around a month to 6 weeks. For those who want to make the upgrade, you will first need to hook up your Xperia smartphone to a PC or Mac, giving some love to http://www.sonymobile.com/update and follow the subsequent instructions. As for owners of the Xperia arc, Xperia PLAY, Xperia neo, Xperia mini, Xperia mini pro, Xperia pro, Xperia active and Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman, you can look forward to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich from the end of May or early June onwards.

HTC One X power management flaw discovered, unofficial fix boosts battery life by 10 to 20 percent

Before shipping their latest flagship device, it makes sense that HTC would have checked and double-checked that the phone's power management systems were up to snuff. The handset's quad-core processor and big HD display predictably test the limits of its non-removable 1800mAh battery, but as things often go some final software tweaks were overlooked resulting in battery life that came up short of its potential. Leave it to the developer of a homebrew One X ROM to discover the discrepancy. A misplaced APK is the culprit, and it's been robbing users of 10 to 20 percent extra battery life. A fix has been made available for users ready to take the dive, but the process does require a bit of technical know-how. It is likely that HTC will push an update to the One X that should address the issue, so those not wishing to root their device should be able to take advantage of improve power management in the future. When that might happen is anyone's guess.

Sony begins Ice Cream Sandwich rollout for 2011 Xperia smartphones, Nordic countries first in line

Several Sony Xperia smartphones are being updated to Ice Cream Sandwich, the start of a new software rollout that will continue into early summer. The Xperia arc S, Xperia neo V, and Xperia ray are the first Sony handset's to receive Android 4.0 with the update kicking off for owners in Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Finland, and Norway. The rollout process will continue for 4 to 6 weeks as it spreads to more regions. Further updates are expected for the Xperia arc, Xperia Play, Xperia neo, Xperia mini, Xperia mini pro, Xperia pro, Xperia active, and the Android-power Walkman starting in late May/ early June and moving into the summer months. Sony has shown nothing but class in their effort to get Ice Cream Sandwich to the meat of their smartphone lineup, going so far as to offer beta builds of the new software for several handsets.

Nokia Lumia 900 Review

By Introducing the Lumia 900, Nokia is effectively bringing a larger, 4G LTE, version of their Lumia 800 to the market. It has just about all the qualities of its predecessor, but the larger size changes the user experience slightly, and the battery life seems to be better out of the box. The Nokia Lumia 900 builds on the new industrial introduced by the Nokia N9 which uses a single bloc of polycarbonate that effectively becomes a cradle for the rest of the phone. This makes it extremely resistant to shocks, while giving it a soft texture. The question is: are you ready to try Windows Phone? Context We all use smartphones differently, so it's important that I tell you what I do with my smartphone: I typically check my email often with the built-in email app (via Microsoft Exchange), and I reply moderately because the virtual keyboard is slow, even on large displays. I browse the web several times a day to check on news sites, but I rarely watch movies or play music. I don't call much - maybe 10mn a day, if at all. On the "apps" side, I have a couple of social networks, a receipts manager, but I rarely play games or do something super-intensive. This usage pattern will affect battery life and the perception of what features are useful. External design The Nokia Lumia 900 inherits of everything that is great about the Lumia 800 smartphone. The 900 body is made of a single block of polycarbonate, using a similar molding process. All the internals are then inserted into the device, then the phone is closed off by the display. The result is a very soft, curvy, and organic shape that fits very well in the hand. If you wonder: this does not feel like "cheap plastic" at all. The main difference with the Nokia Lumia 800 (besides the size) is that the gorilla glass that tops the display does not have a curved edge. As I hinted in my Lumia 800, the rounded edge was a nice feature, but one that I could do easily do without. It looks like Nokia agrees, although I don't know exactly why this design element has been removed At the top, you can find the micro-SIM tray, which now requires a tool (a pin) to remove. Next to the SIM tray, there's a micro-USB port to sync/charge. I like the fact that the port is open, and easily accessible. Finally, there is also a standard 3.5mm audio connector. Note that when cables are located at the top or bottom, they don't hinder the normal manipulation of the phone. I find the top location is convenient when using headphones with the smartphone in a pocket. The right side has several buttons, which include volume controls, power and camera shutter. I'm usually not a big fan of having a lot of buttons of the side because of possible accidental key presses, but so far this hasn't been a problem. Finally, I'd like to add that I would prefer having a Power button that is at the top or in the front of the phone, as this is the single most important button on any smartphone. The loudspeaker is located at the bottom, which is typically a good strategy to obtain a loud sound, even if it makes it hard to do stereo etc… The Lumia 900 speaker works remarkably well, and I've been asked to lower the volume at the office, which is always a good sign for a smartphone speaker. Display I liked the AMOLED display on the Nokia Lumia 800, but the larger size on the Lumia 900 makes it even better from many points of view. First, it's a bit easier to read on. Secondly, it's easier to type with the virtual keyboard because the leys are a bit bigger. In terms of image quality, this AMOLED display is beautiful and well-tuned. Out of the box, the colors aren't too "flashy", and everything looks bright and contrasted. Windows Phone Windows Phone currently holds a relatively small market share, and if you have not tried it, you may ask yourself a number of questions. I'll try to provide an overview of its strengths and weaknesses as an Operating System (OS), then I'll cover key applications in the next section. You may remember that some years ago, Windows CE which became Windows Mobile, held a large market share in the smartphone segment. Back then, I believe that Microsoft saw it as an IT tool. With the rise of the iPhone, then Android, Windows Mobile quickly lost market share as its user interface was clunky and rather inefficient. The Windows Mobile devices were also seen as being relatively slow and power-inefficient. It all changed when Microsoft decided to put Windows Mobile under new management. What came out of it was a new operating system with a user interface based off the excellent “Metro” design, which is now making its way to Windows 8. Windows Mobile became Windows Phone, and the current version is 7.5. The bottom-line is: forget about Windows Mobile. Windows Phone is a completely new beast. Windows Phone is very “fast and fluid” (the official motto at Microsoft these days). It is remarkable that regardless of which hardware it runs on (including low-end phones with only 256MB of RAM), the user interface remains absolutely fluid. The user-interface is also simple and clear, and the typography is beautiful. In a nutshell, these are the strengths of Windows Phone. But it is not perfect: Windows Phone has less applications than iOS or Android, even among the most popular ones. It also tends to lag in terms of features. For instance, it only recently got tethering capabilities, and multi-core is still unsupported. For developers, C and C++, two of the most popular programming languages are not supported by the SDK, which means that iOS or Android applications need to be re-written to work on Windows Phone. This may explain the lack of apps… However, the Windows Marketplace has grown considerably since the Windows Phone launch, so if the set of applications that is useful to you is available, chances are that you will have a very good user experience. I did. Killer Apps Despite everything that modern smartphones do, most smartphone users activity usually revolve around these activities/apps. And curiously, most apps that people “can't live without" are in fact text-based. Keyboard (excellent): I've said it in pretty much all my smartphone reviews: the Windows Phone 7 keyboard is the best in terms of responsiveness and ability to predict which key you're trying to hit with your fingers. If you have never tried it, I suggest you do – some call it “voodoo”. The Nokia Lumia 900 takes this to the next-level because the display is bigger. Typing is a real pleasure, and I would rather do email with the Lumia 900 than any other device – including the Samsung Galaxy Galaxy Note, only because the Note is slightly “laggy”. Despite the lack of voice dictation, I'm giving an "excellent" rating to the keyboard. If you're a text-person, take note. Facebook (excellent): First, it is worth noting that the Facebook integration in the Windows Phone OS itself is simply extraordinary. From the People HUB, it is possible to post an update (to multiple social networks) and see your friends' updates. In the photo gallery, the Facebook albums are accessible and the image loading is even pretty fast, which makes me wonder if the photos are pulled to a Microsoft server, shrunk down before being sent back to Windows Phone. To access the full array of features in Facebook, there's a native app which has a Windows Phone "look and feel". All the Facebook features that I normally use are there (updtes, photo uploads, like/comments), but I don't know if something is missing when compared to iOS and Android versions. Skype (in beta): with a front camera, the Lumia 900 is now video-chat capable, and that's great because Skype is now in beta for Windows Phone. Unfortunately Skype is very much in "beta" state, and doesn't really work great yet. It is slow, and the contacts can't be filtered by online/offline. It is also not very stable and overall, it deserves its “beta” status. Nokia has preloaded Tango, which is a viable alternative to Skype. It's great, but the only issue is that most people haven't used it yet. [Windows phone Skype download link] Email (excellent): the email support is “top notch” in my opinion. It's true that you don't have things like the Blackberry shortcuts, but the Exchange Server support is great, the setup is extremely easy: I basically just had to enter my email and password. On Android and iOS I have to enter 5 or 6 long strings of information with the server URL, etc...it's so annoying. The font used in Windows Phone and the ultra-clean design makes emails very readable. Overall, I love the WP7 email experience. I'll take the WP7 email experience over iOS or Android any day. Only Blackberry remains the king of the hill on that one, especially on the Bold 9xxx. Finally, Windows Phone actually downloads the message upon receiving the notification. It's great because many smartphone out there don't download the message in the background, which means that the download happens when you open the email app. I can't stand it as that makes me wait another 4-10 seconds to access my email. Fortunately, this is not the case here. Maps (good): the default mapping application on Windows Phone is Bing Maps. It's pretty good, but unfortunately, it's not as good as Google Maps, especially when the Android version has had so many improvements over the past year. Yet, it should be good enough for most use cases in pedestrian mode. If you are trying to use it while driving (should you?) things can be a bit tough because street names aren't as pervasive or readable than with Google Maps. It would also be nice if this app could cache maps on the local storage. Navigation (very good): Fortunately, for driving around, there is Nokia Drive a true personal navigation application that is great: For one, the maps are stored locally on the phone itself, so the phone does not need to download the maps in real-time, which is great for speed and battery life. The map is also a bit better in terms of street names readability. The best part is that it's free - and you can download maps for *almost* every countries in the world (Japan isn't available, for example). Web Browsing (good): The new Windows Phone browser is now using the Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) rendering engine, which is much better than the IE7 engine used previously. This time, I have not seen any site compatibility issues, and overall, things work fairly well, but this phone won't break any performance record in terms of Javascript benchmarking - more on that topic in the performance section... Unfortunately, there is no Flash support, and although Microsoft has declared that it has no "philosophical issue" with having Flash on its platform, the current reality is that Flash isn't available. HTML5 is well supported, so you may try your luck on HTML5 sites, but I usually hear that many smaller services, especially in Europe, still run video on Flash. Actually, that's the #1 complaint that I hear about the iPad in Europe. Windows Phone 7.5 will have the same issue, although as a handset, it seems less of a problem than it is for a tablet. Web search (Bing-centric): it's not a surprise, but the default search engine is Bing (from Microsoft), and it works reasonably well. If you want, you can install Google Search as an app, but to be honest, I would have preferred to have a better integration of Google. Bing is OK, but I find it inferior to Google Search when it comes to searching for tech stuff in forums etc… Imaging / Photography (average) The iPhone 4S comes out sharper. Check the original photos on our flickr page The Lumia 900 had a harder time dealing with the strong contrast between the tree and the cloudy sky In terms of photography, the competitive landscape is brutal: this is obviously a feature that a lot of people care about, and that's probably the #3 item, after the overall design and user experience. Unfortunately, the Lumia 900 does not take the best photos and videos. In my tests, I found that the iPhone 4S, or the Samsung Galaxy S2 (or Galaxy Note) can easily beat the Nokia Lumia 900 in this area. This does not mean that the Nokia Lumia 900 is "bad". It's decent, but it can't compete in terms of photo image quality, there's no question about it. Fortunately, it's fairly good for web use (social networks, emails, twitpic…).The video quality pretty much reflect this as well. It's pretty good, but doesn't handle high contrast as well. Note that during my tests in relatively difficult lighting, both the Lumia 900 and the iPhone 4S experienced autofocus difficulties at different moments. Entertainment (Very good) Video playback: the Lumia 900 uses the same hardware as the Lumia 800 and it is therefore just as capable in terms of multimedia. I have tested the usual Starcraft and Gran Turismo 5 1080p trailers: both played well and looked beautiful on the big AMOLED display. Note that I've been only using .MP4 files and that they were all copied to the phone via the Zune software. I haven't tried all kinds of file formats, so if there's a demand for it, I can dig further into it. Photo Gallery: I like the photo gallery, it's efficient, and I can sort it by month, people or albums. It lets me access my online albums as well (I mainly view Facebook's photos - mines and my friends') and it's relatively fast, even over 3G. I also love the fact that the background image in the Pictures HUB is randomly selected from my recent photos. Good stuff! Music: obviously, you can import/buy Mp3 files, but each Windows Phone is also a Zune player, which means that you can also buy videos and subscribe to an listen music service from Microsoft. I used it for a while, and it's pretty good. If you want more choices, there is a host of apps that are available through Marketplace: Rhapsody, Slacker, LastFM, Amazon, Sirius - just to name the most famous. Nokia Music: this app/service is exclusive to Nokia handsets: Nokia music for Windows Phone was introduced at Nokia World, and it is dead simple: choose your music style, press play, and it will start streaming music. Don't like the current song? Skip to the next one.The radio is completely free, no login required, just tap and listen. System performance (synthetically slow, perceptibly fast) Again, the Lumia 900 will perform exactly like the Lumia 800 (see charts below). They use the same hardware, so expect the same performance. to be blunt, the Lumia 900 is not going to impress in any synthetic benchmark, and it is actually far behind in the carts. The explanation is twofold. First, Microsoft's Javascript engine is much slower than Apple's and Google's. That's why it basically loses badly in all the Javascript benchmarks. That said, Javascript benchmarks unfortunately represent much of the web experience, even if they are interesting to look at. Secondly, the Lumia 900 is not multi-core. This means that if we were to benchmark raw CPU performance, it would also lose badly to dual-core, and quad-core systems currently on the market. This performance would be needed to run physics in games, and faster image processing, just to give you two examples. The Lumia 900 and 800 share the same performance characteristics The Lumia 900 and 800 share the same performance characteristics Perceived performance (excellent) Ironically, the "perceived" performance is excellent. The Lumia 900 is more fluid than most smartphones  on the market, and its user interface is incredibly responsive. It's actually not easy to put the phone in a situation where the lack of CPU raw power is a problem. In fact, only games and select few apps would do that. The short explanation is that user-interface fluidity and raw CPU power are completely unrelated. We've had smooth scrolling since the days where 8-bit computers ran at 8MHz, and if you look at three of the major mobile operating systems out there (Android, iOS, Windows Phone), only Android suffers from user interface jerkiness (especially pre 4.0). iOS and Windows Phone have been fluid from day one. Battery Life (good+) In terms of battery life, I like to look at the standard depletion rate in standby mode, when the phone is working at a minimum, just to keep things up to date. This basically show the maximum battery life possible with my current settings. with my settings, the Lumia 900 loses about 10% of its battery overnight (8hrs), which I would consider to be relatively good, and definitely in-line, or slightly better than most high-end devices. That translates to an effective two days of standby mode with LTE on – not bad! From there, things can change radically depending on one's activity. The AMOLED display should be a major power draw, followed by the processor. I'll update this section by posting a 60mn of idling with display ON, a 60mn video test, and maybe a 60mn gaming test. Those two should give you the lower-bound for battery life. I didn't want to hold the review while we wait for those. Conclusion (very good) The Nokia Lumia 900 is a beautiful 4G LTE Windows Phone. It has a great design, great ergonomics and thanks to its polycarbonate build, it is remarkably solid. If you have not used the Windows Phone operating system, I would encourage you to check it out, and try it in a store if you can. It is very fast and clear but it's really up to you to decide if you like the design and the ergonomics. Windows Phone works well for what I do (see "context"), and I'm just about sure that it has a lot of potential for many, but particularly for first-time smartphone owners. Now, it is clear that Windows Phone is still facing an uphill battle, and the main thing that you need to look at is whether or not it has the apps that you need. That is the single most important thing that you need to figure out. If your needs are simple (email, text, web, music, videos), this should be easy. If you find the Windows Phone software proposition to be compelling, then the Nokia Lumia 900 is a great smartphone candidate. To make a long story short, the Lumia 900 is simply the best Windows Phone handset on the market, but the fight with other high-end smartphone is most definitely tough.

HTC One X gets unofficial power management fix, boosts battery life 10 to 20 percent

Somewhere along mike1986's development of Android Revolution HD, a custom ROM for the HTC One X, he found that something amiss with the smartphone's stock system - its Tegra 3 power management software didn't function properly. According to the developer, an app known as NvCPLSvc.apk was misplaced in the /system/bin folder, rather than its proper destination of /system/app. Along with the custom ROM, mike1986 has released the fix as a separate bundle, which is detailed in the source below. To apply the patch, users must push the new APK to their handset via ADB, and then alter the file's permissions. Unless you're seriously hindered by your phone's battery life, however, it seems safe to wait for an official update from HTC. On the upside, users report an battery life increase in the neighborhood of 10 to 20 percent once with the fix in place, and we can only hope that all users will soon benefit from similar gains.[Thanks, Nitin]

Verizon expands 4G LTE coverage in the West

Verizon is bent on blanketing the entire US in a warm and cozy quilt of 4G, announcing a series of expansions that will bring LTE coverage to new markets in California and Nevada. Markets with expanded coverage include Stockton, Fresno, Monterey, and the San Francisco Bay area. The sole city outside of the Golden State to benefit from the latest network additions is Reno. Verizon has been ramping up its 4G rollouts as competition heats up with the other major carriers. AT&T has already introduced its new LTE network, while Sprint is set to launch their own network utilizing the technology in the coming months.

UK: Samsung Galaxy Ace now just �135 on Vodafone

While it may already have not one, but two successors on the market (or coming soon), the Samsung Galaxy Ace is still a pretty decent Android smartphone in terms of specs. Sure, it's not high-end (and it never was), but it gets the job done. It's always been pretty affordable, yet it looks like some retailers now want to clear their stocks. That's since the midrange Ace is now selling for a low-end price: just £135 at ASDA. That's right, dirt cheap. And there's no contract to be signed or anything like that. There is one caveat, though. The device is locked to Vodafone. So you'll only be able to use it on Big Red's network.

Magenta Nokia Lumia 900 spotted at Microsoft store

The Nokia Lumia 900 from AT&T has gotten off to a mixed start – sure, it managed to top of the Amazon sales chart just after a couple of days on sale, despite some users complaining about a glitch. The handset itself has also been speculated to cost around $217 to manufacture in total, and has since received a Lego charging dock of its own, but so far, we only know that it came in cyan, white and black shades. However, someone managed to spot a magenta version of the Nokia Lumia 900 at a Microsoft store recently, where this particular model could actually make it to the market in time for Mother's Day. The magenta Nokia Lumia 900 will most probably arrive at AT&T as well, although it can be quite hard to tell the difference between a spanking new color or just a Lumia 900 that had slipped on an extremely tight case which is magenta in color. Assuming the Nokia Lumia 900 will arrive in a new shade, would you be making provisions to bring this puppy home then?

LG renames Optimus LTE to Optimus True HD LTE, disses Samsung's HD Super AMOLED

While the Optimus LTE's already made its way to South Korea, Japan and the US (in the guise of the Spectrum and the Nitro HD), LG's decided to give this dual-core handset a new name ahead of its Hong Kong launch at the end of this month. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Optimus True HD LTE. Alas, the "true HD" part here doesn't actually mean the phone's getting 1080p resolution on a 4.5-inch panel (which would be 490ppi; yet Toshiba's actually done it!); but we were told that 'tis really just a dig at Samsung's HD Super AMOLED technology - you know, the magic behind that 4.65-inch screen on the Galaxy Nexus and the Galaxy S II HD LTE.Simply put, LG doesn't think that 1,280 x 720 on PenTile counts as HD due to the lower number of sub-pixels; and while it's at it, the company also criticized AMOLED's over-expressed colors and higher power consumption in "normal user environment" - for the latter, LG showed that its AH-IPS has a more consistent power consumption across varying levels of overall whiteness. You can see the relevant slides after the break.Of course, we've already expressed (twice) how much we like the HD Super AMOLED display on the Galaxy Nexus. The clearness issue now is much less noticeable when compared to the original Super AMOLED; but as for color accuracy, many of us are indeed deceived by the vibrancy that we naturally enjoy - except when you need to inspect photos, of course. Regardless, we're pretty sure that it's only a matter of time before Samsung strikes back with a, ahem, "true HD" Super AMOLED (Plus) panel - hopefully in time for the upcoming Galaxy S III.

Panasonic Eluga now available in Germany, headed to the UK April 24

The Panasonic Eluga, which launched last month in Japan, has made its way to Europe. The Android 2.3 handset that we first saw at Mobile World Congress is so far on sale only in Germany, but will makes its way to the UK by the end of the month. Folks interested in the Eluga can find it for as low as €399 depending on where they shop. The Eluga features a waterproof casing, 4.3-inch IPS display, and 1.5GHz dual-core CPU. The phone also carries NFC support. The phone will ship in the UK starting April 24th and should make its way to other European locales in due time.

HTC Wildfire C (Golf) gets leaked press render, will be out before the end of June with Android ICS

Aside from the recently unveiled One line of Android smartphones, HTC is also getting ready to launch a lower-end device in the future. It's codename for now is HTC Golf, and we first heard about its existence last month. Today an official-looking press render of the Golf has been leaked to PocketNow. Golf won't be the name it will be sold under. Rather, it seems that HTC will call it Wildfire C. It will stand just below the HTC One V in the Taiwanese company's 2012 portfolio. The Wildfire C will apparently arrive in stores before the end of June. It will come with a sub-gigahertz processor (most likely 600 MHz or 800 MHz), a 3.5-inch 480×320 touchscreen, 512 MB of RAM, 4 GB of built-in storage, microSD card support, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Beats Audio, and a front-facing camera (which is still a rather rare feature to have in this price segment).

Three UK Releases Samsung Galaxy Y

The new Samsung Galaxy Y is now available for purchase via Three UK. The handset retails for 79.99 GBP (about $128) on Pay As You Go. To remind you, the Galaxy Y packs a 3.0-inch 320 x 240 capacitive touchscreen display, an 830MHz processor, a 290MB RAM, a 180MB of internal memory, a microSD card slot, a 2MP rear-facing camera, WiFi, Bluetooth and runs on Android 2.3 OS. [Softpedia]

Panasonic Eluga Released In Germany

The Panasonic Eluga Android smartphone is currently available in Germany via GetGoods for €398,90 ($520). Powered by the Google Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread OS, the Panasonic Eluga comes jam packed with a 4.3-inch qHD display, a 1GHz dual-core processor, a 1GB of RAM, an 8GB of storage space, NFC, Wi-Fi, HSPA+, a GPS navigation and an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera. [Unwiredview]

Nokia Lumia 900 connectivity fix gets outed ahead of schedule

In a truly remarkable display of customer care, the folks at Nokia have managed to out the software fix to Lumia 900's connectivity issues already. That's only two days after the Finnish company acknowledged the problem's existence, and an impressive three days earlier than promised. The software update can be applied via Microsoft's Zune software. In case you don't feel like dealing with USB cables and such, you can also exchange your Nokia Lumia 900 at any AT&T store free of charge as well. And by the way, Nokia and AT&T are still going to give you a $100 bill credit if you purchase a new device between now and April 21st as a goodwill gesture, thus making it free on a contract. Source

Nokia Lumia 900 data connectivity fix available now, three days early

Good news came late today for all those Lumia 900 owners out there. It appears that Nokia has officially released the software update to resolve the handset's data connectivity issues — a full three days early, in fact. Users may download the software through either Zune on the PC or Windows Phone 7 Connector on the Mac. For those who'd prefer to swap out their handset at an AT&T store, you have between now and April 21st to complete the exchange. Naturally, the limited-time offer remains in place for all those who purchase a Lumia 900 before April 21st to receive a $100 credit to their AT&T phone bill, courtesy of Nokia. Quite the graceful recovery, indeed.