Way before smartphones became popular, users spent most of their time using applications on their computers, with some web browsing on the side. Despite the growth of the Web over the last few years, it turns out that the habits of users are still much the same: choosing locally installed apps over websites. This is even true on smartphones, according to a study performed by an American market research company. More details can be found after the jump.
Although things have been somewhat quiet from Nokia and Windows Phone 8 in light of the upcoming smartphone releases from Samsung and HTC, the camera of the Finnish company's Lumia 920 is still considered among the best in the business. Conversely, the Samsung Galaxy S Series' snappers have tended to underperform, and while Nokia's flagship completely smoked the Galaxy S III in terms of still camera performance (particularly in low light), the Galaxy S4's much-hyped 13-megapixel offering brings the kinds of improvements you would expect of a next-gen handset. To test one category, one user has taken the opportunity to produce a stabilization comparison video of Samsung's apparent best video camera against that of the 920, which of course includes that much-lauded PureView technology. Which came out on top? Find out, after the break!
The native ability of most mobile devices to take screenshots can be incredibly useful, particularly if, like us, you're in the business of reviewing apps and games. As you may have noticed from some of our jailbreak posts, adding a device-like frame can turn a boring old capture into a beautiful, lifelike impression of a device in action, and although Photoshop skills tend to be required for these kinds of edits to be made, you can now add such frames natively on both iOS and Android. We've found two of the best apps in Screenshot - Frame Maker for iOS and Device Frame Generator for Android, and if you'd like to visually enhance some of your screen captures, check out the lowdown on each after the break!
There are those bands of Android and iOS users that see the interchanging of features between the two as some kind of satanic gesture. An iOS wallpaper for Android? Forget it! An HTC clock widget gracing iOS? Don’t make me laugh! Fortunately, those less closed-minded will recognize that each respective mobile OS has its strengths and weaknesses, and moreover, the vast majority is down to preference. Recognizing that not everybody is a partisan loyalist, the creators of Espier Screen Locker have decided to bring the famed iOS lock screen to Android, and in actual fact, it does look fairly plausible.
Android Jelly Bean 4.2 is inarguably the best version of Google's mobile OS to date. As well as being almost as smooth as its Cupertino rival thanks to the heavily-publicized Project Butter, it provides a vast array of functions which many users on older generations could usually only dream of. However, considering the vast majority of Droidsters are on older software, and with some of the more antiquated handsets having little to no hope of seeing any of Jelly Bean's niceties any time soon, developer AntTek has sought to bring one newer feature to those languishing on Android 2.1 - 4.1. Named AntTek Quick Settings, it brings Jelly Bean's useful quick setting feature to any device running on the aforementioned software versions, and with no root required whatsoever, this one is truly accessible to everybody.
Yesterday, the famously-accurate Twitter handle evleaks distributed what were thought to be press renders of the HTC First Facebook Phone, the initial device set to run Facebook's new socially-orientated Android launcher. Today, the same source is back with more information pertaining the software itself, and not only does it look set to offer a great deal more than your typical launcher, it also offers a beautiful user interface.
Firefox has been one browser that has improved a lot over time, and while Internet Explorer continues to receive the negative feedback from users across the globe, Mozilla’s offering has actually grown into a worthy contender against almost any internet browser, most notably Google Chrome. Mozilla’s focus towards bringing the best of the best to its users continues, and with the release of Firefox 20, they’ve brought some much needed (and appreciated) enhancements to their already popular browser. The new Firefox 20 has not only been released for desktop systems – including Windows, OS X and Linux – but also for Android, albeit with a slightly different change log. Let’s take a look at what’s new and improved just past the fold.
The jury may still be out on whether 3D viewing is to be a significant part of the technology industry moving forward, or whether in fact it's just a novelty feature to be enjoyed from time to time. If you're of the opinion that yes, 3D viewing is a key part of digital viewing in future, then you may be interested by the creation of a Singapore-based bunch of researchers, who've developed a special type of film that can help mobile displays output in three dimensions.
Samsung is well known for pushing the boundaries in the mobile division, never shy to pack in seemingly excessive hardware like the Galaxy S4's octa-core Exynos 5 processor. As well as continually pushing the overpowered SoCs, the Korean company also enjoys pushing the displays sizes up further and further, and although there must eventually come a point whereby the limit is reached and the screen cannot get any bigger, it doesn't look as though that time will be coming anytime soon. With the Galaxy Note II at 5.5-inches and the Galaxy S4 offering 5-inches of real estate, the latest reports suggest the company is ready to turn things up a notch with a new line of 5.8-inch and 6.3-inch 'Galaxy Mega' handsets.
BlackBerry has spent the past year preparing and reinventing itself for another serious assault on the smartphone market, and although the company did try sticking with the old formula and essentially flogged a dead horse for far to long, the company looks ready to be taken seriously again. BlackBerry 10 looks like an intuitive, innovative operating system much more in line with the likes of iOS and Android, and with the BlackBerry Z10 certainly strong enough to hold its own against many of the market's considered elite, the Waterloo, Ontario-based company is looking for customers once more.
