Samsung to play Plus card with S8, sport Beast mode and launch late

The next Galaxy smartphone, which may act as the knight in shinning armour for the Korean giant, was expected to launch or at least showcased at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona but now a new date in April is being sought.

Samsung might be going for the kill with the new Galaxy S8 due to its setback with the Note 7. It no longer wants to hurry but take its time and go in for a bulls-eye.

The next Galaxy smartphone, which may act as the knight in shinning armour for the Korean giant, was expected to launch or at least showcased at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona but now a new date in April is being sought. 

Change in Launch Strategy

Experts claim that the delay in the launch is to make sure that all battery issues are resolved unlike Note 7 and also ensure that marketing and communications teams have enough time to bring back confidence about the brand after the fiasco. The time might also be used to harvest some hype about the flagship as well.

The date change has tactical advantages as well, experts said. The push back to April gives Samsung a different tactical angle to take with its press launch. Even if Apple does not release the equivalent of an iPhone SE 2, the Galaxy S8 launch will come a few weeks after all of Samsung’s Android-powered rivals will have shown off the handsets at Mobile World Congress. Samsung’s press launch will be in the enviable position of making the last move with this generation of handsets.

                                                            Beast Mode

Apart from launch strategy, the new phone is expected to come with a ‘Beast’ mode. Samsung, which unveiled the mode in a trademark application, is expected to launch the mode in competition to battery-saving modes currently available in Android. The ‘Beast’ mode may be able to leverage greater processing power, graphical ability and increased memory of the handset.

Hardware Changes

The Korean giant is also expected to emulate Apple’s startegy of adding an ‘S’ or ‘Plus’ variant with the upcoming flagship. It is rumoured to be making two different Galaxy S8 sizes - one, called Galaxy S8, will have a display around five inches in size, just like its predecessor - the Galaxy S7. The other phone will be the company’s first 6-inch phone. The Plus is also speculated to arrive at the same time with a AMOLED display. However, experts claim that the S8 Plus has similar overall footpront as the now-discontinued Galaxy Note7.

According to a tipster on weibo who has been accurate on previous calls related to Samsung devices, the Samsung Galaxy S8 will feature 8GB of RAM. In addition, it will also sport a UFS 2.1 flash storage chip. In addition, S8 Plus might sport a dual-camera set up at the rear just like the iPhone 7 Plus.

Both the phones, either might be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor or an Exynos 8895. The devices are expected to be running on Android 7.0 Nougat.

New Artificial Intelligence

Samsung might also include its new AI powered assistants reportedly named Bixby (male) and Kestra (female) with the Galaxy S8. Speculations are adrift that Google is talking to the Galaxy device-maker about making Google Assistant the only voice activated personal assistant on the device.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Receiving December Security Patch

                                                                               

Android’s security updates are designed to improve security on smartphones which run on Android. All changes take place under the hood and consist of vulnerability patches, meaning that these updates should be top priority for any Android smartphone user wanting to access online services and content in a secure environment. Well, it is now early December and if you happen to own a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge in Australia, which is not locked to any wireless carrier, then you should be receiving the December security patch in the coming days or in a couple of weeks time.

The update which is being pushed out to the Galaxy S7 Edge, comes with the firmware version G935FXXU1BPJG and the changes the update will bring about is likely minor, though we can’t be certain until Samsung releases the full changelog for the December security patch. Earlier this week, Samsung detailed the vulnerabilities and bugs which have been fixed with the December security update on its high end devices, though the company did not specifically mention the bugs which have been fixed on the Galaxy S7 Edge. Samsung hasn’t given any confirmation regarding the countries which are receiving the update now but Australia happens to be the only one receiving it at the moment, but more markets should be receiving it in the coming days or weeks.

If you haven’t already received the notification prompting you to update your device, you could check whether the December security update is available for your Galaxy S7 Edge, and all you have to do is proceed to Settings, select About Device, tap on Software Update, and tap the option titled Download Updates Manually. On the other hand, you could wait for the system to prompt you to install the security update when it is available for your device. However, for that to happen, you will need to have at least 50% of battery life remaining in your device or it is plugged into an outlet. As the December security update is being delivered over-the-air (OTA), it might take a few days for you to receive it as it is released to compatible devices in stages to avoid the possibility of the servers being overloaded.

WhatsApp is blocking these popular smartphones in 2017

WHATSAPP Extended blocking deadline for Blackberry and Nokia users giving them a bit more time to switch to Android or Apple smartphones.

    

There was some bad news coming to some WhatsApp users at the end of this month.

The world's most popular messaging service had said that numerous devices including BlackBerry, Nokia and some Android phones would face a permanent block from the app.

However, WhatsApp now seems to have had a change of heart.

In a recent update to firm's blog they are now stating: "We are extending support for BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10, Nokia S40 and Nokia Symbian S60 until June 30, 2017."

This will come as a huge relief to many BlackBerry owners who looked like they'd soon need to switch to the lastest Android or Apple smartphones.

Sadly, not everyone will be so happy as some phones will still lose support in a few weeks time.

These include: Android 2.1 and Android 2.2, Windows Phone 7 and iPhone 3GS/iOS 6.

WhatsApp understands the news won't go down well for many users saying: "While these mobile devices have been an important part of our story, they don't offer the kind of capabilities we need to expand our app's features in the future.

"This was a tough decision for us to make, but the right one in order to give people better ways to keep in touch with friends, family, and loved ones using WhatsApp.

"If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer Android, iPhone, or Windows Phone before the end of 2016 to continue using WhatsApp."

Despite these big changes, WhatsApp is more popular than ever, topping the iOS App Store download charts for 2016.

Apple has just revealed its yearly iTunes and App Store download figures and WhatsApp comes out on top as the biggest free app of the year on the iPhone.

WhatsApp is now used by over one billion people with 42 billion messages and 250 million videos sent every day.

Along with WhatsApp other popular downloads from Apple include Face Swap Live, Minecraft and Candy Crush Saga.

Spotify also continues to be hugely popular although Apple has announced that its new Music streaming service now has over 20 million paid subscribers.

Android Phones: What to expect in 2017

There are  Android phones coming in 2017 – here’s our view.

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This is for phone lovers, the Android space is the place to be. Inside the Android Kingdom things move fast and, for the most part, set the goalposts for the rest of the market. Often, what you find in contemporary Android phones eventually makes its way down to iPhones and what few other rivals remain.

QHD panels is one example of this; dual-lens cameras and curved OLED displays are others. 2016 was a decent year for Android releases, with strong handsets from all major players. Sales were, once again, dominated by Samsung in the Android sphere (and Apple elsewhere).

There were some  big developments, however, such as the Galaxy Note 7 disaster and Google entering the fray with its Pixel phones. The latter point is a huge deal for hardcore Android fans, as this is the first time Google has actually taken the bull by the horns and released its own, bespoke smartphone.

We had Nexus phones before, phones that will be greatly missed, but what Google is doing with Pixel is bigger, better, and far more innovative. And while the entry of Android’s keeper into the mix will give Google’s many hardware partners cause for concern, from a user perspective it is brilliant.

The Android space now, truly, has an iPhone equivalent handset that will get timely updates as soon as they’re ready. That means no more waiting six-twelve months for the latest version of Android and access to a bunch of exclusive Android software features.

But if 2016 was good, well… you ain’t seen nothing yet. Already, next year’s Android space looks hugely innovative and very competitive. Below is a break down of the Android phones we’re looking forward to most.

Android Nokia Phones

Nokia is returning to the market it helped create. Only this time it will be releasing Android-powered phones. These handsets have been rumoured for over 12 months now, but it looks as if we’ll finally see them unveiled at MWC 2017 inside Q1 next year.

There will be a mid-range handset and a flagship handset. Obviously, we’re most interested in the flagship, which is tipped to build on Nokia’s existing design pedigree with support from the latest hardware and specs.

Out of all the phones on this list, the Nokia Android phone is perhaps the most tantalising. After all, it’s not very often one of the greats comes out of retirement for one last stab at the top spot.

OnePlus 5

OnePlus’ 2017 flagship release will not be called the OnePlus 4, apparently; rather, the company will skip the number four – it is bad luck in Asia – and go right along to five. This isn’t a big deal, but it does have the potential to confuse a few punters!

The handset is tipped to feature a unique ceramic chassis, Qualcomm's next-generation CPU, which has yet to be announced, mega amounts of RAM, a bump to QHD for the display and big advancements to its imaging capabilities.

Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus

Apple’s apparently doing three iPhones in 2017 and, as we all now know, anything Apple can do, Samsung can do better. True to form, and likely a move to make up for this year’s Note 7 fiasco, Samsung is prepping three versions of its market-leading Galaxy S flagship: the Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8 EDGE and Galaxy S8 Plus.

The PLUS model will be the ultimate flagship in the series, packing a 5.8in 4K AMOLED panel, crazy amounts of spec and hardware and, according to some sources, full support for Samsung’s S-Pen.

Nothing’s official in this regard just yet. But the move makes sense given Apple’s plans and the removal of the Note 7 from 2016’s market.

Samsung Galaxy X

The Samsung Galaxy X could well be the most interesting and controversial phone of 2017. Reports suggest this handset will be the first, truly flexible handset, meaning you can fold it, roll it and bend it.

Samsung has been trialling this flexible OLED technology for years, and apparently 2017 is the year we will FINALLY see it put to use inside a commercial release...assuming the Galaxy Note 7 debacle hasn't scared the bejesus out of the firm enough not to bother with anything new - that is one line of rumour, but hopefully an inaccurate one. You can read more about the handset in our Mega Thread ALL About The Samsung Galaxy X.

LG G6

The LG G5 was a flop in 2016. Big time. And this was a massive shame because the handset itself was one of the most interesting released this year. It was also a solid performer and it had a brilliant camera.

LG has confirmed it is ditching the modules for this year’s flagship, but hope to see plenty of additional innovation inside the handset, as LG, more than any other brand in the space, has been consistently pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with phone design

Motorola Moto M India launch

Motorola Moto M India launch confirmed: Here are the specifications

Motorola has confirmed that the Moto M smartphone will be launching in India soon, confirms company.

Motorola Moto M is coming to India soon, confirmed the company. Here are the specifications and features.

Lenovo-owned Motorola has confirmed that the Moto M smartphone will be launching in India as well. The smartphone went on sale in China earlier this month, and press renders of the device were leaked ahead of its official launch. Motorola India’s Twitter handle tweeted saying, “Something different is coming your way. Stay tuned to know more,” with a picture of device all covered in gold. Given the level of bling in the photo, it’s safe to presume this is the Moto M, since it launched in a gold coloured variant in China.

Moto M features a a metal unibody design, with antenna bands on the top and bottom of the phone. Dimensions of the Moto M are 151.35 x 75.35 x 7.85 mm and it weighs 163g. The fingerprint scanner is on the back of the device, and it doesn’t have the square button like the one seen on the Moto Z, Moto Z Play smartphones.

Moto M has a 5.5 inch full HD Super AMOLED display at 401 ppi, runs the 64-bit MediaTek P15 octa-core processor clocked at 2.2GHz along with Mali T860 GPU. Moto M phone comes with 4GB LPDDR3 RAM and 32GB storage (supports microSD card slot of up to 128GB).

The new Moto phone has a waterproof coating and is splash resistant. The rear camera on the Moto M is 16MP with f/2.0 aperture and 1um pixel size, along with PDAF and dual LED flash. The front camera is 8MP with 1.12um pixel size. This is a dual SIM smartphone and also has a 3.5 mm headphone jack.

Battery of Moto M is 3050mAh with fast charge support with type-C USB charging, and OTG support. The smartphone run Android Marshmallow 6.0. In terms of connectivity, Moto M has Bluetooth version 4.1 and WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac 2.4 GHz + 5 GHz band MIMO. It also has Dolby Atmos audio boost feature.

Motorola launched the phone in China at Yuan 1999 which is around Rs 19,990 on conversion, so the pricing will likely be around this range. Unlike last year’s Moto X Play which launched at under Rs 20,000 price band, the company doesn’t have any new offerings in this bracket for 2016. The Moto Z and Moto Z Play are firmly playing in the premium segment, so it is likely the Moto M will likely be the phone in the Rs 20,000 price bracket.