Sony Xperia SP and Xperia L modestly priced in UK

Sony Xperia SP and Xperia L modestly priced in UK

Are these handsets priced to move?

We've managed to grab a glimpse of the first pricing news regarding the recently announced Sony Xperia SP and Sony Xperia L.

Although Sony is yet to officially confirm the price of its new mid- and low-end handsets, online retailer Expansys already has the duo available for pre-order on its site.

The 4G-enabled Sony Xperia SP, which sports a 4.6-inch 720p display, 1.7GHz dual-core processor and 8MP camera, is listed at £339.99 - which should place it around the £20-£25 per month mark on contract.

There's also a Xperia SP release date noted on the site, with the mid-range smartphone apparently due to arrive on May 7.

If you fancier a cheaper thrill then the Xperia L may be more your bag: it's currently sporting a £239.99 pre-order price tag, so around £15 per month if you're waiting for networks to pick it up.

In terms of an Xperia L release date we could well see this low end handset arrive sooner than its brother, with Expansys listing April 29 as its in-stock date.

European tour

Android Authority is reporting that the Xperia L and Xperia SP have also been priced in Europe, although there seems to be some discrepancy in cost between countries.

In Holland the handsets are listed at €279 (around £240) and €399 (around £340) respectively, while in Italy and Germany they're apparently slightly dearer at €299 (around £255) and €419 (around £360).

The prices and release date are probably all subject to change, but it at least gives us a general idea of when to expect the handsets, and how much they'll set us back.


Source : techradar[dot]com

Nikon Camera Tech Coming to Google Nexus 5 Smartphone


If you’re in the market for a digital SLR camera, there are two names that dominate the industry: Nikon and Canon. As far as smartphone cameras may have evolved, they’re still not quite up to snuff with their bigger brothers. This could be slowly changing, because there is a rumor that the upcoming Google Nexus 5 flagship Android smartphone will boast some camera technology coming by way of Nikon.

They’re saying that the on-board camera will have a “triple sensor array” and its ability to take awesome pictures will be a big “selling point” for the device. This is in line with what Vic Gundotra of Google said last month, indicating that the company is “committed to making Nexus phones insanely great cameras.” I’m not sure if I would go so far as to say “insanely,” but smartphone camera tech is definitely evolving and getting a heck of a lot better, easily competing with some decent point and shoots on the market.

Let’s not forget that Google and Nikon are no strangers to one another. The Nikon Coolpix S800c is an Android-based camera and while it ran an older version of Android and it had its quirks, it represented a unique crossover point for the two companies. It brought smartphone tech into a camera and the Nexus 5 could go in exactly the opposite direction. The “three sensor” tech could put each of the sensor layers on top of one another, each with a smaller megapixel count, thus creating better color rendering and low light performance. This is potentially similar to HTC’s UltraPixel technology.

The rest of the rumored specs for the Nexus 5 fall in line with what we’ve heard. It’ll reportedly get a 5-inch 1080p display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor, 2GB of RAM, 8/16GB storage, and a massive 3140mAh battery.



Source : mobilemag[dot]com

Fake LG Nexus 5 press shot is fake: official

Fake LG Nexus 5 press shot is fake: official

Which is the fake? Both of them! (credit: Phone Arena)

It'd be remiss of us not to let you know that yesterday this "press shot" of the "LG Nexus 5" hit the "internet" - oh, wait, scratch the air quotes from that one - but you'll be pleased to heart that it has been debunked.

That's because it's actually a picture of a Chinese handset called the Caesar A9600 and not of an LG-made Nexus smartphone that may or may not exist.

Okay? Okay.

Blips are TechRadar's new news nuggets that you'll find percolating through the homepage - or you can see them all by hitting the blip keyword below.


Source : techradar[dot]com

Nokia's court success isn't actually a win, says HTC

Nokia's court success isn't actually a win, says HTC

So who's the winner?

A German court has found that HTC has breached a Nokia-owned patent regarding power saving, potentially giving Nokia enough fire power to charge HTC a fee for every device that contains the tech.

Foss Patents reports that the Nokia patent in question is lovingly known as EP0673175 and refers to the "reduction of power consumption in a mobile station".

The injunction only involves the Wildfire S, Desire S and Rhyme and HTC notes "the judgment only covers three handsets that HTC no longer imports into Germany - this judgment is of little significance".

'This patent is trivial'

The HTC statement continues: "The power-saving technology described in this patent is trivial and contributes only a negligible reduction in power-consumption, so HTC has removed any allegedly corresponding functionality from all of its current German handsets as a precaution against any attempt by Nokia to extend the scope of the judgment unfairly.

"HTC will be appealing the present decision but also believes that this patent is invalid and so will be continuing with the invalidity actions pending before the German Federal Patents Court and the English Patents Court."

Although HTC has avoided a possible patent licence row by removing the tech from the offending handsets, doing so could well see a reduction in battery life for the three devices in question.

HTC concludes: "This decision cannot be described as a 'win' for Nokia because it only applies to handsets that are no longer imported into Germany, and newer HTC handsets do not use the accused technology." Zing!


Source : techradar[dot]com

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 to be demoed in US with 5.9-inch display?

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 to be demoed in US with 5.9-inch display?

The (S) Pen is mightier than the sword

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 hasn't been given an official airing yet, but there's already a debate over its potential screen size with 5.9-inches the favourite in this latest report.

According to Korea Times, sources and a local supplier have "confirmed" that Samsung will be showing off a Galaxy Note 3 concept to US network AT&T this week.

An executive for Samsung's main parts supplier also went on to say the Galaxy Note 3 will sport a 5.9-inch display - which goes against suggestions of a 6.3-inch screen.

The executive also claims Samsung will use OLED technology for the display which is expected to sport a full HD resolution.

Super-size no surprise

If the Galaxy Note 3 does launch with a 5.9-inch display, it would place it between the 5.7-inch ZTE Grand Memo and the monster 6.1-inch Huawei Ascend Mate - which were launched at MWC 2013 and CES 2013 respectively.

It's not hard to believe that Samsung is working on a new iteration of its super-sized phone-cum-tablet, but we're not particularly confident with details which come from "sources and suppliers", as in the past many have turned out to be false.

In terms of a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 release date, the sources said they expected the handset to arrive towards the end of August, falling in line with IFA 2013 in Berlin - which would mimic the movements of the Galaxy Note 2 last year.


Source : techradar[dot]com

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