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This past quarter hasn't been the most eventful one in Google's history but analysts were still expecting it to be a profitable one with a consensus earnings estimate of $6.40 per share on about $15.5 billion in revenue. The company on Wednesday missed those expectations by posting a first-quarter profit of $6.27 per share on $15.4 billion in sales. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

One of famed graffiti artist Banksy's most recent works is a commentary on how distracted we all are by constant connectivity. Dubbed "Mobile Lovers," the piece shows a man and a woman looking past each other's shoulders at their smartphones while embracing. It's a terrific work of art, as all of Banksy's pieces are, but it was recently torn down by a local man, as BBC reported. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

After teasing it a month ago, Samsung released a website today that highlights its design prowess under the tagline of “make it meaningful.” The website explains its design philosophy, showcases some of its best designs, and lists the design awards it has won. According to the website, Samsung designs with three principles in mind: balance of reason and feeling, simplicity with resonance, and meaningful innovation. Samsung says it “believes in the value of people’s dreams. Therefore, our design should begin with empathy for people’s lives.” Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

Senator Al Franken (D, Minn.) has been one of the most vocal critics of the proposed merger between Comcast and Time Warner Cable and now he's trying to bring in the big guns to help him kill it once and for all. Franken on Wednesday sent a letter to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings asking him or his company to publicly weigh in on a merger that Franken says will hurt competition for online video services going forward. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

Blizzard announced on Wednesday that its free-to-play collectible card game, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, is finally rolling out worldwide for the iPad. Hearthstone has been available on the iPad in select regions for a few weeks, but April 16th represents the app's official international launch. The app supports the 2nd, 3rd and 4th generation iPads as well as the iPad mini, Retina iPad mini and iPad Air. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

Google decided to try a new tactic with their Explorer program for Google Glass by opening up sales of the device to anyone in the U.S. on April 15th. According to the Google Glass team, they succeeded in filling all spots in their Explorer program, although it is not clear whether that means they sold out of all stock of the current version. In creating this event, Google also opened themselves up to a bit of mockery, especially amongst TV show hosts like Conan O’Brien and Ellen DeGeneres. On her show yesterday, Ellen took the opportunity to show off a pair of Google glasses she says she bought off of Craigslist for $1,495. The results were… interesting. Hit the break…

Whether intentional or not, LG is ending up with a lot of rumors and leaks floating around on the Internet about their next flagship device, the LG G3. Yesterday we learned that an announcement may come as early as July or even late June as the company tries to keep pace with other manufacturers releasing new flagship devices this year. Today some AnTuTu benchmark data has surfaced for a couple LG devices, at least one of which comes with the LG G3 model name. According to the AnTuTu entry for an LG G3, the device was tested with a Snapdragon 801 chip driving a 2560 x 1440 resolution screen. This is backed up with 2GB of RAM. Most of the information to date has indic…

Google has released more than a few stock Android apps into the Play Store, but the Camera app wasn’t one of them. Good news folks!! They just released today. It’s essentially the same Camera app found on Nexus devices, so that means you can get the stock Android camera experience with any device. Plus, you get Photo Sphere too. With this release, they did add one update, which is a lens blur effect. Unfortunately this app is only for those running Android 4.4 KitKat or higher. We’re not sure if it will open up to users Jelly Bean and below, but we certainly hope so. Hit the break for the full features list, screenshots, and download links. Features Photo S…

Google is giving everyone access to the Chrome Remote Desktop application starting today. It was previously in an invite-only beta, but now the company has released it for the masses. Android devices running 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and above can run Chrome Remote Desktop. As the name suggests, Chrome Remote Desktop will allow users to access their computers directly from a smartphone or tablet. Just how responsive a user’s experience will be may vary depending upon the device’s power and the connectivity. Regardless, it is a handy tool to have by your side. To get started, users need both the application available in the Play Store as well as the one found in the Chrome…

If you’re waiting to get your hands on a Project Ara device, you’ll only have to wait until January of next year. Google has announced that the customizable devices will be available to purchase in January 2015 through a configuration tool similar to Moto Maker for the Moto X. Project Ara plans to go beyond the simple color tweaking that you could get through Moto Maker, though, and it will allow you to change the components and design of the phone, in addition to different colors and materials. If you’re a developer, Google plans on making these devices available slightly ahead of the January launch date. Google hasn’t clarified exactly when that will be, but it wo…

Even though Google does not have a Heartbleed problem, particularly since the company has known about the OpenSSL bug a month before everyone else, a large number of Android users may still be at risk, The Guardian reports. And that’s not because Google has not patched the security flaw, but rather because Heartbleed indirectly benefits from several factors. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

It pays to be an executive in one of the hottest industries on the planet. Very well, in fact. Fierce Wireless has compiled a list of the top 10 highest paid CEOs in the wireless industry in 2013, featuring many familiar faces, but leaving out some of the biggest names in the wireless world. As for notable omissions, Tim Cook didn't rank among the top 10 for the first time in several years, and Stephen Elop disappeared as well. T-Mobile CEO John Legere is also absent from the list, but T-Mobile has yet to announce executive compensation for last year. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

It's way too early to declare BlackBerry on the comeback trail, but Wired nonetheless finds a lot to like in the company's recent investment in health tech startup NantHealth, a move that the publication calls BlackBerry's "first good idea in years." Why is this particular investment such a good idea? As Wired explains, it's a sign that BlackBerry has really and truly thrown in the towel trying to compete with Apple and Google and is instead focussing on niche markets where its core strengths are actually valued. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

It was too good to be true after all. Speaking with Ars Technica on Wednesday, a Google spokesperson made it clear that there are no plans to bring Google Fiber to the New York area at this time, despite a seemingly surreptitious job listing discovered earlier this week. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

Releasing a new flagship smartphone has become tricky because you don't want to release it too closely to new Samsung flagships that launch in the spring or new iPhones that launch in the fall. With this in mind, it looks like LG will be releasing its latest flagship device in July, according to a new report from ZDNet Korea. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

French company LaCie, maker of various storage solutions, on Tuesday announced that it has been the victim of a massive attack that exposed the personal data of buyers, including credit cards, to a third party. The company said it was informed by the FBI on March 19 that “an unauthorized person used malware to gain access to information from customer transactions that were made through LaCie’s website.” The company has hired an investigation firm, and has temporarily disabled its online store, while it secures it. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

New evidence from the second U.S. Apple vs Samsung patent lawsuit has revealed that Samsung was somewhat afraid of starting a clear, full-fledged anti-iPhone marketing campaign in 2011 – a move which actually proved to be detrimental to Samsung’s success in the mobile business. However, the death of Steve Jobs provided Samsung the “best opportunity to attack iPhone,” according to a highly confidential email exchange between Samsung execs presented as evidence in the trial and obtained by AppleInsider. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

Apple did not announce the iPhone 6 yet, but numerous leaks have already shown alleged components and manufacturing molds of the handset. Furthermore, case makers are already working on cases for the upcoming flagship model, with many such companies having presented accessories for the device at this year’s Hong Kong Electronics Fair. Macotakara reports that at least one company had iPhone 6 mockups made of metal on display, and they are supposedly based on the actual design of Apple’s upcoming handsets. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

If you're confused when it comes to Samsung's smartwatch strategy, don't worry — it looks like Samsung is just as confused as you are. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

The second U.S. Apple vs Samsung patent trial marches on, with the South Korean giant now making its case in the San Jose, California, court. Samsung’s counsel has already called up several witnesses who testified that the company has not been influenced in any way by Apple or the iPhone. However, internal Samsung documents that have been called into evidence by Apple’s attorneys tell a different story. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

Vivo’s previously rumored Xshot has finally had its camera hardware revealed, and it looks pretty impressive at first glance. The Xshot will sport a Sony 24 megapixel rear camera along with a great f/1.8 aperture and optical image stabilization, plus dual LED flash. It will be capable of shooting 3D pictures as well as 4k video, and the dedicated camera button makes a return on the side of the device. The front camera isn’t quite as nice, but it will reportedly have a 7.68 megapixel count, which is will arguably take the best selfies ever. There’s also rumored to be a 1080p screen and 3 GB of RAM, as well as a Snapdragon 801 CPU. No word on an official release…

The wearables game is always getting more and more competitive. But when you look deeper into it, smart glasses aren’t all that common. The most notable device is Google Glass, of course. But that could all be changing. Samsung, who enters just about any market possible, has a patent that reveals a Glass-like device. As you can see in the image above, Samsung would keep the device’s design very simple. Rather than wearing it like a pair of glasses, this wearable would be worn on an ear with a built-in earbud. The display extends forward to be in front of the users eye. And the display can be moved out of the way when not in use. Whether or not this device ever gets rel…

Samsung is not setting low expectations for the brand new Galaxy S 5. When the device was announced, the general reaction was that it did not offer any exceeding advantages over last year’s Galaxy S 4; however, the Galaxy S 5 experienced a very good global launch. Now a report out of South Korea has Samsung’s target for the device’s sales at 35 million for this quarter. Quite an ambitious number, but is anyone really surprised? Regardless of what people say, Samsung has a magic touch when it comes to sales. They sell a massive amount of devices each quarter and the company expects the GS5 to do the same this quarter. Source: Korea Times Via: Phone Arena Come c…

We last heard from MediaTek back in February when they announced their MT6732 chipset, bringing 64-bit and LTE support to the table. Now, the company has just showcased the MT6595, a 32-bit chip, at the China Information Technology Expo that took place over the weekend. Perhaps the most important function of this new chipset is that it features an integrated LTE modem that will certainly cut back on additional parts. The modem is slated to support TD-LTE/FDD-LTE/WCDMA/TD-SCDMA/GSM networks, making it a great choice for a variety of different markets. In terms of hardware support, the MT6595 will support up to 20 megapixel cameras, making it a fantastic competitor. …

With hectic schedules, it can be hard to keep track of everything in your news feed. That’s why we created the TalkAndroid Daily Dose. This is where we recap the day’s hottest stories so you can get yourself up to speed in quick fashion. Happy reading!! Apple vs Samsung Google exec claims they didn’t copy iPhone software features Carriers Download Booster on Verizon and AT&T Galaxy S5 hidden but can be activated Galaxy S 5 available for pre-order on Ting for less than $600 Gaming Humble Mobile Bundle 5 launched with 6 games Google Google exec claims they didn’t copy iPhone software features Google’s Gmail makes access to your smartphone…