What’s better than a powerhouse of a tablet that’s running on Android? The same tab running on CyanogenMod 10.1, which entails Android 4.2 goodness for all that support it. Why, you ask me? Because CM 10.1, or any AOSP ROM, for that matter, brings with it a freedom that you are very unlikely to find anywhere else. For most power users of Google’s smartphone and tablet operating system, trying different ROMs is almost a weekly affair, if not more frequent. Following suit, I have tried a lot of ROMs on my Android tablets, from Stock to ROM ports to AOSP builds like CyanogenMod and Android Open Kang Project (AOKP), but I have always kept coming back to CM because of the ‘balance’ that it offers, between features and stability, and because it carries with it a sense of reliability.
Samsung’s smartphone-tablet hybrid, known as the Galaxy Note II, has managed to turn many heads since its announcement this last August. Should your bank balance be way too uncomfortable to get your hands on one, no worries: there’s a new knockoff in town that might actually be convincing enough to trick your less tech-savvy friends.
Samsung's "phablet" Galaxy Note series has proved a surprise hit with consumers, and with the second iteration boasting one of the largest displays in the smartphone industry, its successor - according to a report from Samsung's native South Korea - will set a new benchmark in terms of screen real-estate. The Note II may already be enormous with its 5.5-inch offering, but as TheKoreaTimes reports, the Galaxy Note III could boast an eye-watering 6.3-inch display upon its release next year.
When Apple's iOS 6 initially launched back in September, the backlash against the Apple Maps offering was fierce, and Samsung made sure Apple lived to rue its shortcomings by running an ad mocking the Cupertino's paltry replacement of Google Maps. But with Australian police having gone one step further in labeling Apple Maps as a potential no go, Sammy is once again dancing on the proverbial grave, as CNET Australia reports.
The iPhone 5 was a landmark release by Apple for a variety of reasons, and as well as finally breaking the mold of a 3.5-inch display, it was also the very first time in which the Cupertino included 4G LTE into one of its handsets. The iPad 3, which launched back in March of this year, was the very first Apple device to offer the next-gen cellular chip, and with the release of the sixth-gen smartphone just a couple of months ago, Apple's LTE market share has gathered a little more steam - climbing to an impressive 27 percent.
It has been around 7 months since Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S III to the world, but it still remains one of the most popular and powerful Android devices on the market and has managed to do a fantastic job in succeeding Samsung's previous S II device which is still a firm favorite in the Android community. We all know by now that companies like Samsung and Apple don't rest on their laurels when it comes to manufacturing and launching their next big product, and it looks like Samsung could be set to make a Galaxy S4 announcement early next year during the CES trade show that is being held from January 8th - 11th.
New and exclusive features are aplenty in the swiftly-evolving world of Android, but thankfully for those don't have the latest device and / or firmware version, the modding community is on hand to deliver those new niceties to those rocking an older device or software. For example, the Galaxy Note II has brought with it a very exciting, infinitely useful multi-window feature, but unless you happen to be in ownership of the phablet sequel (or an S III running the currently OTA-ing Android Jelly Bean 4.1.2), there's no way for you to enjoy this multitasking marvel; or at least there wasn't until today.
It may not have happened to you personally, but everybody has seen the what happens when a mobile device meets gravity. Such is the toughness of displays today, that many survive an accidental drop without so much as a crack, but when they do succumb and shatter, they become a hazard unto their owner, with shards and slivers aplenty. Recognizing this, rumor has it that Samsung is planning to release an "unbreakable" screen with the upcoming Galaxy S III smartphone.
One of the biggest hindrances with buying a top-of-the-line smartphone, is the premium price that you have to pay for it. There are usually two ways of how high-end phones are sold; either you pay the full price to the manufacturer and get an unlocked device, whereby getting the freedom to go with whatever network fancies you. Or, you may opt to buy the phone through a wireless carrier, where you pay a much subsidized rate for a big trade-off: getting stuck with that carrier for the term of your contract. In the latter case, the carrier pays the full price to the manufacturer but sells you the device at a much lower rate, and in turn, locks down the smartphone to their network, so you cannot use a SIM card from another network just like that. That’s a generally agreeable rule for most users.
Apple and Samsung are two great rivals in the world of modern technology, and it's only natural that when one of them brings a shiny new smartphone to the table, the other won't want you to have it. Samsung made its feelings known on the release of the iPhone 5 back in September by compiling the ‘iSheep’ (The Next Best Thing is Already Here) ad, a reference to those Apple evangelists that queue for hours to grab the next Cupertino iDevice. As well as poking fun at some of the iPhone's features, on-looking spectators were left fascinated instead by the S III, as its perceived superiority was showcased amid an awestruck ensemble of would-be iPhone buyers. Today, that ad has been named as the top tech ad of 2012.
