Although we’re in the middle of an Apple related mayhem with their earnings report to Wall Street and the final release of OS X Mountain Lion to the Mac App Store, we mustn't forget what is going in other parts of the technology world. It wasn't that long ago when the Google team took to the stage during the first day of the I/O conference in San Francisco and introduced us all to the Nexus 7 and the Nexus Q hardware. In the weeks following much after the event, it seems to be the former device which is getting all of the attention, but the Nexus Q is getting its game up in the form of a dedicated app for Android devices.
Samsung's newest device, the Galaxy S III, has received a new OTA update internationally, removing the local search feature that has proved so controversial of late. Samsung has taken another step in its preemptive work to try and avoid Apple's legal juggernaut from being able to get another of the Koreans' handsets banned from sale.
Jelly Bean (4.1) is Google's latest and greatest Android release, and while many of the newer devices will be seeing (or already have seen) an OTA update of the buttery new operating system, it now appears the Samsung Galaxy S II - an oldie but goodie - will also be treated to the tasty new firmware.
As part of the ongoing court battles with Samsung, Apple is seeking to recover a whopping $2.5 billion in damages for patent infringement, as well as $30 per device sold by Samsung, according to new court filings.
Apple and Samsung's court battles are well documented in the blogosphere, and in the very latest, Apple has been granted an EU-wide injunction preventing sales of Samsung's Galaxy Tab 7.7.
Two new Smart Cover-like Nexus 7 cases have been outed by a UK accessory retailer, with the two protective options both featuring similar magnet technology that allows the tablet's screen to be turned on or off based on the case's position and orientation.
Android smartphones have, till recently, been notorious for their terrible power management and resulting awful battery life. This problem became apparent with earlier high end smartphones like the Nexus One and HTC Desire HD, became worse with 4G LTE devices like the HTC Thunderbolt on Verizon, improved a little with the Galaxy Nexus and has now, finally, reached a state where one can use a Galaxy S III and One X without carrying an extra charger to work. This is mostly thanks to newer hardware that sips less power.
Last week, we reported on murmurs started by Samsung that August 15th would be the date for a significant product launch, and now, BGR has learned via a "source close to" the Korean company, that said product will indeed be the rumored Galaxy Note II.
With a quad core processor, 1GB of RAM (2GB in certain variants), a 4.8” Super AMOLED HD display, 8 MP / 2 MP optics and being based on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the Samsung Galaxy S III is one hell of a powerhouse. The general public, it seems, has agreed to this fact as, according to sales figures, the Galaxy S III is selling like ice-cool lemonade on a hot day.
Developers who produce software for mobile smartphones and tablets are always looking to push the boundaries and are readily including the-next-big-technologies in their apps. In the past, we have seen apps reduced to minimalistic works of beauty, decisions made to remove buttons and houses navigation handled entirely by user gestures, and more recently, we are starting to see the serious emergence of augmented reality in mobile applications.
