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Samsung is already advertising its free gifts that will be available to Galaxy S5 buyers. Worth almost $600, these gifts include free subscriptions to certain services and access to premium apps – or essentially free bloatware that should convince consumers to buy the new handset. But one U.K. carrier has devised a more interesting way to attract buyers to a brand new Android handset. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

We know more than ever before about the mysterious OnePlus One Android smartphone, but there's still plenty the company hasn't revealed. The members of the OnePlus team appear to be rectifying that piecemeal, beginning with a deep dive into the battery that will power the One. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

http://androidforum.us/data/MetaMirrorCache/def7ed936eafc2b75a7e40cae4b4a087.jpg If you've got more than $2,000 to spend and you love PC gaming then it looks like you can't go wrong with the MSI GS60 Ghost Pro, which from Engadget's description sounds like the best gaming laptop we've seen this year. According to Engadget, the GS60 Ghost Pro features a 15.6-inch display and a NVIDIA GPU that MSI says "should be able to handle many of the latest games at high settings on their unit's optional "3K" (2,880 x 1,620) display." But that's not the best part — no, the best part is that the GS60 Ghost Pro is ridiculously light for such a high-powered laptop and checks in at just …

First things first: Killzone Shadow Fall looks absolutely amazing on the PlayStation 4. There isn't much room for debate — you can check out some gorgeous Killzone Shadow Fall panoramic screenshots here, or read our in-depth Killzone Shadow Fall review here. But there is plenty of debate, senseless though it may or may not be, surrounding whether or not the new game is actually displayed at true native 1080p resolution. Sony was recently shamed for "lying" to gamers in its marketing for the popular title, and now the title's developer has issued a public response to the controversy. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

We’ve seen a number of steps towards moving away from the subsidized phone model from many of the big phone providers in the past couple months. Except Verizon. It seems that Verizon is a little more cautious than their competitors when it comes to making those steps, and instead is focusing on promoting its traditional subsidized plan. Verizon CFO Fred Shammo today spoke at the Deutsche Bank media conference, giving some insight as to why the company isn’t taking the same steps as other companies. During the conference he mentioned that Verizon believes “that the subsidy model is an extremely good model. It has done wonders for us in this industry. So I think to aband…

With Google’s Nexus 8 tablet rumored to be released this July alongside Google I/O, several other rumors about the device has surfaced. One glaring rumor is that Google is opting for Intel’s Moorefield CPU rather than Qualcomm’s Snapdragon, which is currently being used in their Nexus 7 (2013) and Nexus 5 devices. The Moorefield chip clocks in at a max of 2.33 GHz and is powered by a PowerVR G6430 graphics engine, so either way, there’s no doubt that the rumored Nexus 8 will be a powerhouse whichever direction Google decides to take. Of course, these are just rumors so take all of this with a grain of salt. Either way, we’ll all know for sure this coming Google I/O 201…

Today Sony launched the new “Xperia Themes” for Xperia phones that are running Android 4.3 or later. This allows users to be able to better customize their phones user interface, and according to Sony users will be able to “skin up to 280 assets” on their device. These “assets” will include the users lock screen, icons, navigation bar, and so on. Xperia Themes is using themes that are already downloadable via Google Play, and to download new themes, you can go to the “Themes” menu on your handset and press the + icon in the top right hand corner of the screen. Source: Sony Come comment on this article: Sony introduces “Xperia Themes” for phones running Android …

Need to give a new alarm clock app a try? Smart Alarm Clock aims to learn about your sleeping patterns in order to wake you up at the perfect time. By using the sensors already built-in to a smartphone, Smart Alarm Clock detects movement and sound as you sleep. The app costs just $1.99 and I am sure if you are having sleeping problems, two buck won’t hurt to give Smart Alarm Clock a try. According to the app’s description in the Play Store, here are the main features: * Determines the best time to wake you up * Provides detailed statistics of your sleep cycles and stages * Weather forecast: detailed weather stats from anywhere in the world * Records your bedro…

Driving around and feel like you are missing something? It is 4G LTE connectivity, of course! AT&T and Audi are teaming up to solve this predicament. Starting with the upcoming 2015 Audi A3, the German car manufacturer will bring AT&T’s 4G LTE network right into the vehicle… at a cost. Audi is offering two separate plans. The first will cost $99 and it covers six months with 5GB. The other, which Audi is calling its “best value,” supplies 30GB across thirty months for a whopping $499. In case shelling out that kind of money made you feel uneasy (because buying an car isn’t), the A3 will come with a free six-month trial. Then you can decide whether or not 4G LTE…

Netflix may own the streaming rights for House of Cards in the U.S., but fans don’t necessarily need a subscription to watch the show as long as they’re Comcast customers, Variety reveals. The cable operator has inked a deal with Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, which manages international and home video distribution for House of Cards, to offer customers access to season one of the critically acclaimed Netflix drama via the recently launched Xfinity Store. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

The DVD market is still alive and kicking, but Sony and Panasonic have already revealed the next-gen follow-up to Blu-ray Disc. The new format, dubbed Archival Disc, will allow for optical discs with storage capacities of up to 300GB, a six-fold increase over current dual layer Blu-ray Discs. As time goes on, Sony and Panasonic plan to expand the recording capacity to 500GB and eventually 1 terabyte. With a terabyte of data on a single disc, 4K suddenly becomes a viable option for home video releases. According to the press release, Sony and Panasonic plan to launch the first Archival Disc systems in summer of 2015. What this means for DVD, Blu-ray and the new game consol…

Various reports have indicated that Google may be discontinuing the Nexus 7 tablet line this year, in favor of a new 8-inch Nexus 8 tablet that could be launched alongside Android 4.5 at some point this summer. While this device and its launch are far from being confirmed by Google, AndroidPit speculates that the summer launch may have something to do with Intel’s release plans for a new mobile processor, suggesting that Google and Intel may partner up for this particular Nexus device. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

Julian Assange, founder of Wikileaks, criticized the NSA and hinted at future leaks in a Skype interview at the SXSW conference in Austin, Texas. Assange, who is holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London, did not give any details about what would be included in future leaks. He also blasted the Obama administration for its weak response to the NSA leaks by Edward Snowden. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

In 1775, all-American patriot Patrick Henry helped spur on a revolution with his famous speech that included the quote "Give me liberty or give me death!" 239 years later, another American patriot has come up with his own version of this creed: "I will give away my privacy for utility." Barron's reports that Rackspace startup liaison officer and notorious Google Glass fan Robert Scoble told a panel at SXSW this week that he no longer thinks maintaining his privacy is nearly as important as it used to be if it means having access to all of the great services now available through mobile devices and wearable computers. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Repo…

As it stands today, Comcast is a massive service provider that controls home and business broadband offerings across a number of key markets. Following the company's $45 billion acquisition of Time Warner Cable — should it gain approval from shareholders and regulators — Comcast will control a huge majority of the broadband market in the U.S. This seems like a fairly obvious statement, but two maps created recently by an Internet marketing firm give us a great visual representation of just how much of the country Comcast will control. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

http://androidforum.us/data/MetaMirrorCache/5b3e912a22477e147c3bff12d3e19e06.jpg Just over one month after its last iOS 7.1 beta was released, Apple’s has pushed the release version of its iOS 7.1 software out to the public. Apple's last pre-release version of its mobile software, iOS 7.1 beta 5, was released on February 4th and as BGR's sources had previously stated, it was intended to be the final beta version for developers ahead of the iOS 7.1 Gold Master (GM) version. Curiously, Apple has decided to skip the GM build and release iOS 7.1 to the public. According to an earlier BGR report, iOS 7.1 has been scheduled to be released to the public sometime in early or mid…

After a report last week suggested that TSMC may be the sole manufacturer of Apple’s A8 chip that’s expected to be found inside this year’s new iPhone and iPad model leaving Samsung out of the A8 manufacturing deal, a new story from South Korea now says otherwise. According to ZDNet Korea’s sources, Samsung will still get its hands on A8 production despite rumors that suggested the company was struggling with poor yield rates for the A8. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

It's still way too early in this console generation to tell how things are going to turn out, but by all accounts both Microsoft and Sony are enjoying solid early sales of their new video game consoles. Sony's PlayStation 4 took a quick lead with sales totaling 6 million units through the beginning of March, but Microsoft sold 3 million Xbox One consoles in 2013 and a recent report also suggests that anticipation of Titanfall's upcoming release added at least another 1 million units to the company's running total. On what might be something of a negative note for Xbox fans, however, the same source who reported that Xbox One sales have skyrocketed thanks to Titanfall also…

Expected to be one of the main Galaxy S5 competitors (it was even referred to as a "Galaxy S5 killer) alongside the Xperia Z2 and new HTC One model, the LG G3 is apparently going to be waterproof and dustproof, according to ETnews' sources. However, it’s not clear what certification the device will have, assuming the report is accurate. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report

A fire early yesterday morning at an Anseong, South Korea plant could put a damper on Galaxy S 5 supplies. This factory manufactures printed circuit boards (PCBs) for the upcoming flagship. The fire started around 7:00am and it took close to 6 hours and 300 firefighters to get it under control. The damage was estimated to be around $1 billion, but the good news is that Samsung does partner with other manufacturers for the PCBs. Samsung doesn’t expect a delay of the launch, which is scheduled for April 11, but this could affect supplies moving forward. It’s impossible to know how much, and there is no reason to panic. We will just have to wait and see how it plays out. …

The CeBit show is going on now in Hanover, Germany, which is the world’s largest IT and office automation trade show. Samsung already has their award winning KNOX platform, but Samsung Electronics Printing Solutions just announced Samsung Cloud Print to go along with it. It’s aimed at small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), and not only includes and app, but NFC-enabled printers too. It’s basically a secure way for employees to print documents since it’s compatible with KNOX. Users can control which printer does the print job and at which time using NFC. Users can easily be registered for sharing documents to print with their phone numbers, and smartphones can be con…

Oppo’s Find 7 is shaping up to be a real top tier device. With specs that rival the Galaxy S 5, the device could be a real hit in respective markets. As with most OEM’s and their pre-announced handsets, we’re only seeing tid-bits being “leaked.” Today’s leak confirms the Find 7′s specs and debunks the 50MP camera rumor. So far, we know that there will be two different models of the Find 7. One will sport a 1080p (1080×1920) full HD resolution and the other will have a 1440p (1440×2560) QHD resolution. The full HD version will rock a Snapdragon 800, 2 GB of RAM 5MP front facing camera and will have 16GB of on-board storage. There’s also news regarding the supposed 50…

Like so many tech companies, ASUS is scrambling to become a player in the “wearable device” market. According to previous reports, their first device to reach the market is shaping up to be a smartwatch that will be “feature packed.” In an interview over the weekend, chairman of the board Jonney Shih indicated the new device will likely be used to complement a smartphone as opposed to being a standalone device. He also hopes to incorporate “more natural user interfaces such as voice or movement controls.” ASUS, like other manufacturers, face several challenges in making a compelling smartwatch device. With small screens, touch-based commands and interactions can be a c…

Last week a video revealing the all new HTC One appeared on YouTube— it wasn’t the best review, but it showed the device in all its glory. This made some HTC execs unhappy, which caused him to later pull the video off of YouTube. Although some have downloaded the video’s content and posted it elsewhere, many are still looking for more information on the new device. A new video, posted by another user, appeared on YouTube yesterday. It was a minute and 30 seconds long, and didn’t share any of the specs. The person shooting the video stated, “I’ll wait for HTC to do that.” The video was dark and grainy and didn’t really give any information that we don’t already know, so…

With wearables set to become the technology growth market of the next few years, Google isn't content letting its Android partners do all of the driving. According to a report on Sunday from The Wall Street Journal, Google has confirmed that within the next two weeks, it will launch a new Android software development kit (SDK) tailored specifically for the wearable devices market. Continue reading... Via BRG - Boy Genius Report