Samsung Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo Available for Pre-Order on Amazon

via AndroidHeadlines.com |

Samsung now has their new wearables available on Amazon for pre-order, with a slated arrival date of April 11th. This is for the Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo. The Gear Fit is only available in Black while the Gear 2 Neo and Gear 2 are available in multiple colors. The Gear Fit and Gear 2 Neo are going for $199 while the Gear 2 is going for $299 – basically the same price as the Galaxy Gear last fall.

The Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo are only supported by Samsung devices, as expected. At launch these three wearables are compatible with the Samsung Galaxy S5, S4, S3, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Note 2, Galaxy Mega 5.8 and Galaxy Mega 6.3. We’ll probably see more Samsung devices getting their update to support the Gear family of wearables soon as well. Technically they need Android 4.3 and above, which brings Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy to the device so that the Gear Fit, Gear 2 or Gear 2 Neo can connect via Bluetooth and not use a ton of battery.

For those of you interested, we have the links to buy all three of these wearables down below. I am very interested in the Gear Fit, but unfortunately I don’t own a Samsung device, so I won’t be buying one – otherwise that’d be a pretty expensive wearable. How many of our readers are planning on picking up the Gear Fit, Gear 2, or the Gear 2 Neo? Let us know in the comments below.

Samsung Gear Fit Fitness Tracker – Black

Samsung Gear 2 Neo Smartwatch – Black

Samsung Gear 2 Smartwatch – Silver/Black

The post Samsung Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo Available for Pre-Order on Amazon appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

http://bit.ly/1hJ3mkk

Lenovo buying 3,800 3G and LTE Patents from NEC

via AndroidHeadlines.com |

In a press release today, Lenovo announced that they are buying a ton of patents from NEC. These all have to do with 3G and LTE technologies. This will drastically improve their portfolio, especially since they aren’t getting the Motorola patents with the deal with Google. Google has decided to keep the patents and use them for Android as a whole, which might be a bit better than selling them off to Lenovo. The Chinese OEM stated that this deal will give them the intellectual property needed as they continue to expand.

For those that hadn’t heard, Lenovo bought Motorola earlier this year. Now the deal isn’t final just yet, but it shouldn’t be much longer until it is. Lenovo bought Motorola to help boost their mobile division, which is still pretty new to the game. While Motorola has been making phones since the beginning. Literally. Motorola made the very first cell phone. With the Motorola purchase, Lenovo can really make a push into the US, since Motorola has all these great carrier relationships here, and a huge one with the largest carrier in the US, Verizon Wireless. That’s going to be a big deal for Lenovo going forward, I think. Although we are still waiting on that deal to go through, and we have no idea what Lenovo really plans to do with Motorola. We’ve heard talk of Motorola by Lenovo branding, but that’s just talk at this point.

Buying up nearly four-thousand patents though is a pretty big deal, especially since they are all smartphone patents. For those that are interested, the entire press release from Lenovo is down below:

Lenovo to buy mobile patents from NEC Corporation

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC – April 4, 2014: Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) announced that it has purchased a portfolio of patents from NEC Corporation (Tokyo: 6701) (OTC US: NIPNF).

The portfolio consists of more than 3,800 patent families filed in numerous countries around the world. The portfolio includes standard essential patents for 3G and LTE mobile technologies as well as patents that cover a broad range of features and technologies used in many of today’s most advanced mobile products such as smartphones.

“A strong patent portfolio is a key element for success in the smartphone business. This investment strengthens Lenovo’s existing intellectual property portfolio,” said Ira Blumberg, vice president of Intellectual Property, Lenovo. “As Lenovo expands its mobile PC Plus business into new markets, this investment shows it is committed to having the IP we need for global success.”

Lenovo will continue to acquire additional intellectual property assets both through its own innovation and engineering, as well as from external sources to support its rapidly expanding PC Plus business that includes mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.

The post Lenovo buying 3,800 3G and LTE Patents from NEC appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

http://bit.ly/1q6cmTm

Android How To: Add Android Headlines to Blinkfeed

via AndroidHeadlines.com |

For those of you with the HTC One M8, you should be using Blinkfeed, it’s one of my favorite features of the device. I even loved Blinkfeed on the HTC One M7 last year, although it’s been drastically improved since it debuted on the HTC One last year. You can add all kinds of services like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Google+ and more. You can also add some of your favorite subjects and sites RSS feeds into Blinkfeed. So what we are going to show you today is how to add Android Headlines to Blinkfeed. It’s actually quite easy to do.

Simply unlock your HTC One M8, and go onto the Blinkfeed page. Then tap on the three lines in the corner, or swipe over to open up the slide-out menu. In the “Search for Content” box, type in either “Android” or “Android Headlines” and you should see Android Headlines listed there. Just tap on the icon to the right, which looks like a newspaper with a plus sign.

It’s literally just that easy. Blinkfeed is built by Mobiles Republic who is also responsible for Appy Geek, which is what everyone else is using for news these days. With Blinkfeed you can now keep up to date with Android Headlines – since we do post a lot of content each day. This is just the start of all our HTC One M8 content, so be sure you stay tuned to Android Headlines for everything HTC One M8. And don’t worry, those that love the Galaxy S5, we’ll be covering that when it comes out in about a week. And I’m sure all of you will get tired of all this stuff.

The post Android How To: Add Android Headlines to Blinkfeed appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

http://bit.ly/1q64j8U

iFixit Tears Down the Amazon Fire TV

via AndroidHeadlines.com |

This week, Amazon finally made their Fire TV official, after many months of rumors, speculation and even some leaks. It’s a set-top box that is competing with the Roku and the Apple TV, I’m not so sure about it competing with Chromecast given the different functionality, but it’s definitely there. The Fire TV is also pretty beastly when it comes to specs, especially compared to its competition. While the Roku, Apple TV and Chromecast all have around 512MB of RAM, the Fire TV actually has 2GB of RAM, which is crazy.

iFixit tore down Amazon’s new set-top box this week – which we’ve been waiting for since they tear down everything after it gets announced – and the Fire TV received a repairability score of 6/10. It appears that the set-top box comes apart pretty easily. Which is great to know, if for some reason you need to fix something, or upgrade it, etc. There’s not much inside that we didn’t already know about. But you can see the Qualcomm quad-core 1.7GHz processor and the 2GB of RAM from Samsung. There’s also a pretty hefty heatsink inside the Fire TV, which is needed since the Fire TV can put out a lot of heat from running different apps and such.

It’s always interesting to see these tear downs from iFixit, especially for devices that we don’t know the specs of, but Amazon was pretty open about the Fire TV specs since it is a pretty high-end device. The Fire TV is already available through Amazon, and will likely hit other retailers soon – probably the same retailers that sell the Kindle Fire line of tablets. The Fire TV seems to be a big hit for Amazon, even at $99. It also does gaming pretty well, which is interesting for a set-top box. The Roku does gaming, but nothing like what the Fire TV does.

The post iFixit Tears Down the Amazon Fire TV appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

http://bit.ly/1hIKwtR

Verizon Puts Galaxy S5 Up for Pre-Order; Offers Free Device in the Process

via AndroidHeadlines.com |

It feels like a long time ago that Samsung announced the Galaxy S5 onto the world, but in reality it was only February, during Mobile World Congress, that we saw Samsung announce their latest and greatest. With the release date still a week or so away most users have already placed their pre-orders on their chosen networks throughout the globe, but as usual, Verizon is a little late to the party. The company now has Samsung’s Galaxy S5 up for pre-order, but they’re giving folks a little something back.

If you pre-order the Galaxy S5 on Verizon (with a 2-year agreement, naturally) then you’re eligible for another device, completely free. That means you can either get you and your partner a Galaxy S5, or buy a Galaxy S5 and get an HTC One (M8) for free, giving you the best of both worlds. Still, you’ll need to set up a two-year contract on this free device as well, so it’s not the best deal out there, but what did you expect from Verizon?

Love them or hate them, Verizon is the biggest network in the US, so having their Galaxy S5 on the network is a pretty important step for the global launch of Samsung’s latest and greatest flagship. Of course, now that pretty much every major carrier in the US has put up the device for pre-order, the choice is both easier and more difficult. One things’s for certain however, is that the Galaxy S5 costs much the same no matter where you go, so as usual this sort of thing comes down to how good a carrier’s service is in your area and how affordable to you their services are. If the best carrier for you where you are is Verizon, then here’s your chance to get a little something back, you can even choose a free Windows Phone if that’s your thing.

The post Verizon Puts Galaxy S5 Up for Pre-Order; Offers Free Device in the Process appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

http://bit.ly/1ltHc6e

Rumor: The Xiaomi Mi3S Will Feature the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 Processor

via AndroidHeadlines.com |

Rumors are circulating about Chinese smartphone maker, Xiaomi, and its upcoming Mi3S smartphone, especially in regards to its processor. Word has it that the follow-up to the Mi3 — currently touted by Xiaomi as being its fastest phone ever — will come rocking a Snapdragon 801 chipset. If true, there will be more than enough computing power in the Mi3S to run even the most graphic-intense mobile games on the Google Play Store.

In addition to a faster processor, the Mi3S is also said to have 3GB of RAM, a 13-megapixel rear camera, an impressive 8-megapixel front-facing camera (though this sounds like a bit of a longshot — the Mi3’s front-facer is only 2-megapixel), 16GB of internal storage, and 4G LTE (FDD-LTE and TD-LTE) connectivity. The added network support would come as a welcome addition, as the Mi3 does not offer LTE compatibility.

No word has leaked on-screen size or display, but we can only imagine it will be a step up from the Mi3’s brilliant 5-inch 1080 x 1920 IPS LCD display. It’s probably also safe to assume the phone will come running Android 4.4 KitKat. The rumored pricing point for the Xiaomi Mi3S is 1999 Yuan (US $321.61). There’s also no word on if we will see the Mi3 in markets outside of China. Obviously, these are questions that we will have to wait to have answered at the official announcement, whenever that may be.

The device is expected to be unveiled this month during the upcoming Xaomi Fans Festival, which focuses on consumer products. The festival is held annually on April 9th, and it is also believed that we’ll see the Hongmi 2 at the event. The Hongmi 2 is rumored to come in two flavors: an eight-core model with 3G connectivity and a quad-core version with 4G connectivity.

We will certainly be keeping our eyes on this story to see how it unfolds, but until then we would like to know how you feel about the relatively new company, Xiaomi. Are you looking forward to the release of the Mi3S? Is there anything you didn’t see mentioned in the rumored specs list that you would like to see in the Mi3S? Don’t be shy! Drop us a comment in the thread below.

The post Rumor: The Xiaomi Mi3S Will Feature the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 Processor appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

http://bit.ly/1mOJmQO

HTC One (M8) Gold-Plated Version Launching Today, ‘Real Gold’ Edition to Follow

via AndroidHeadlines.com |

Every once in a while, we here at Android Headlines get the pleasure of covering phones aimed at a more opulent crowd. Normally these phones come from the likes of Vertu, though lately Lamborghini has entered the fray. Today, however, the phone in question comes from a more mainstream manufacturer: HTC. The company is launching a gold-plated variant of the new HTC One (M8) in the Middle East on Friday, April 4, with the device will selling for SAR 2,800 in Saudi Arabia and Dhs 2,750 in the United Arab Emirates.

The One (M8)’s Saudi Arabian price equates to around $750 US, so consumers will be paying a little more for the gold-plated edition of the phone. Other than the aesthetic changes, the phone’s specifications appear to be staying the same, so not much will change in the jump to the Middle East. Still, the gold-plated version costs a little more than an off-contract One (M8) goes for here in the States, so it is commanding a bit of a premium price.

That isn’t all though, as HTC also announced plans to launch a “real gold” version of device in the region. The phone should be launching at the end of April or early next month, and while no official price was given (it never is), HTC EMEA President Phil Blair told Gulf Business “It will be very expensive.” If you ever thought it would be a good idea to carry around a phone made of gold, we suppose now is your chance.

Interestingly enough, it sounds like this gold edition will be hitting other regions of the world, as Blair said the Middle East would have exclusivity for at least a few weeks after launch. That suggests it will be launching in other territories before long, so maybe more people around the world will get the opportunity to spend a ton of money on a blinged out version of the M8. Will this premium edition of the M8 end up reaching Vertu phone prices? That remains to be seen, but if it actually features real gold, we wouldn’t be surprised. Keep it here and Android Headlines for more.

The post HTC One (M8) Gold-Plated Version Launching Today, ‘Real Gold’ Edition to Follow appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

http://bit.ly/1mH4kOM