Nokia smartwatch prototype with multiple displays spotted in patent filing

Following Samsung and Sony's lead, Nokia is working on a smartwatch, according to a report.

Engadget reports Nokia's alleged smartwatch prototype, codenamed 'Facet' has been spotted at US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) site. As per the patent filing, the Finnish major's smartwatch prototype appears more like a bracelet that houses multi-displays. The report suggests that each display is dedicated to a different function. Further, the site details that for using each display on the alleged smartwatch, one would require the particular display to kept facing up, towards the eyes.

The site further claims that Kent Lyons, a member of Nokia Research Centre, who had released a paper on the Facet multi-segment wrist worn system last year, has now revealed that versions of the alleged smartwatch are being tested out. As of now, not many details about the alleged Nokia 'Facet' smartwatch have surfaced. While it seems Nokia's plans have not yet been finalised, if all goes well, the Finnish major may come up with its first wearable tech device soon.

Samsung has already unveiled its first wearable tech device, the Galaxy Gear smartwatch, which presently only works with the Galaxy Note 3 and the Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition, and now, the Galaxy S4, according to latest report.

The Korean manufacturer had announced after the launch of the Galaxy Gear smartwatch that the wearable tech device will soon also be compatible with other Galaxy smartphones, like the Galaxy S4, Galaxy SIII and Galaxy Note II. Sony recently also launched its SmartWatch 2, the successor to its SmartWatch.

A recent report suggested that smartwatch success could be a lucrative battle in smartphone race, but as of yet, only a handful of companies have been able to push their smartwatches into the market.

Ubuntu phones one step closer to the market with Ubuntu 13.10 release

Canonical has released the latest version of its Linux-based operating system, Ubuntu 13.10. Besides the desktop OS, the company has also released Ubuntu for phones, though it gives a disclaimer that the release is meant for developers and industry partners and warns that it can potentially brick the user's device, leaving it unusable. 

The OS can be installed on the Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4 smartphones and Canonical has given a detailed instruction set for installation, on its website. 

It's worth pointing out that the build of the OS only includes core apps (a browser, calendar, clock, weather, and calculator), allows phones to connect to GSM networks, supports phone calls and SMS, Wi-Fi data connectivity, and rear and front cameras. Also, the OS build offers limited functionality. For instance, the camera app does't support video capture.

Nonetheless, the release is a significant landmark for Canonical and signals that Ubuntu based smartphones are now a step closer to reality as device makers and developers can evaluate and test their devices and apps on the final build of the OS.
Canonical had first released images and open source code for the Developer Preview of the Ubuntu Smartphone OS for touchscreen devices in February, after announcing the launch of the OS in January.

Earlier, the company had announced a crowd-funding campaign to build the first batch of Ubuntu Edge phones. However, it failed to raise a target funding of $32 million to manufacture a limited batch of 40,000 devices, missing it by $20 million.

The Ubuntu Edge phone was said to support dual-boot with Ubuntu phone OS and Android, and would have featured the capability to transform into a PC when docked with a monitor with full Ubuntu desktop with shared access to all the phone's files.

Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Canonical, had said that carriers and handset makers "were definitely interested in building handsets which will run the mobile Linux - but that they will not be the top-end "superphones" which the Edge project hoped to produce."

Nexus 5 pictured in new leaked images, revealing rear and side panels

The rumoured Nexus 5 has been leaked again in new purported images revealing the rear and sides of the device.

The new set of images, which come courtesy of Anton Kuznetsov, a Google+ user, are of slightly lower resolution than the previous leaked images, but reveal nothing in the way of new information about innards of the device, and instead show the overall design and style of the smartphone.

The leaked images show the rear of the alleged Nexus smartphone featuring rubberised plastic finish that appears to be fingerprint magnet accompanied by large camera sensor. The rear panel's design appears to be identical to that of the Nexus 7 (2013) tablet, in-line with our previous reports. Other images show the sides which house the volume rocker buttons along with power button and device's lockscreen which is set on pattern lock.

Earlier this month, the Nexus 5 was leaked via Spigen, a case-maker that posted the device's rear panel showing the large sensor camera and Nexus 7 (2013) tablet styling.

The rumoured Nexus 5 has been in the news for the past couple of months ever since Google announced its next iteration of mobile operating system, Android 4.4 KitKat.

A report had also suggested that Google might pull the wraps off its much-anticipated smartphone on October 15 along with Android 4.4 KitKat.

Rumoured specifications of the Nexus 5 include a 4.95-inch full-HD (1080p) IPS LCD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor clocked at 2.3GHz, 2GB of RAM, 8-megapixel rear camera with OIS and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. The alleged Nexus 4 successor has also been expected to include a host of sensors like ambient light, proximity, pressure as well as accelerometer, compass, notification LED and gyroscope.

Spice Pinnacle Stylus with 5.5-inch HD display launched at Rs. 15,999

After being listed online, the Spice Pinnacle Stylus phablet has been officially launched for Rs. 15,999.

The latest phablet will join the Spice Pinnacle family, which already has the Pinnacle FHD, Pinnacle Pro and Pinnacle Mi-530.

The Spice Pinnacle Stylus comes with 5.5-inch TFT LCD HD (720x1280 pixel) display and runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out-of-the-box. The latest phablet is powered by 1.2GHz quad-core processor alongside 1GB of RAM. There is 8GB of inbuilt storage which can be further expandable up to 32GB with microSD card.

Spice Pinnacle Stylus is a dual-SIM phablet with 3G support on both SIM cards, a feature that is not found on other devices in this segment. It sports an 8-megapixel rear camera with dual-LED flash while also housing a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. It packs a 2500mAh battery (talktime and standby time not specified) and comes with host of sensors like G-Sensor, proximity, ambient light sensor and gyroscope. Connectivity options on the phablet include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, EDGE, GPRS and 3G.

As the name suggests, the phablet comes with stylus pen support. Spice is offering a complimentary one-year subscription of Evernote Premium which is worth Rs. 3,000, and will also include premium access to Skitch app.

Commenting on the launch, T M Ramakrishnan, CEO, Devices, S Mobility Ltd, said, "This phone is powered with Evernote and Skitch which makes the phone even more interesting and allows users to visually communicate more effectively than ever. With the new smartphone, we aim to satiate the consumer needs with the best-in-class technological innovations. "

Earlier this month, the company launched Spice Smart Flo Pace 3 budget phablet running Android 4.2 for Rs. 7,499.

Spice Pinnacle Stylus key specifications

• 5.5-inch TFT LCD HD (720x1280) display
• 1.2GHz quad-core processor
• Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
• 1GB RAM
• 8GB inbuilt storage, expandable storage up to 32GB via microSD card
• 8-megapixel rear camera with dual LED flash
• 2-megapixel front-facing camera
• Dual SIM with 3G+3G support
• 2500mAh battery

Karbonn launches four budget Android dual-SIM smartphones under Rs. 7,500

Domestic handset maker, Karbonn Mobiles has launched four new budget Android smartphones for the Indian market, the Karbonn A16, Karbonn A35, Karbonn A90 and Karbonn A99. The company states in a press note that the newly launched budget Android smartphones are aimed for the festive season.

The Karbonn A16 comes at a price of Rs. 6,490; while the Karbonn A35 is the costliest among the four newly launched smartphone and is priced at Rs. 7,490. Meanwhile, the Karbonn A90 comes for Rs. 5,490, and the Karbonn A99 is available at Rs. 6,590.

Out of the four new Karbonn smartphones, the Karbonn A16 and Karbonn A99 were listed onlineearlier this week. Both the Karbonn A16 and Karbonn A99 handsets interestingly come with identical specifications; with the sole difference that the Karbonn A99 packs a 1400mAh battery, while the Karbonn A16 packs a 1350mAh battery. Both the Karbonn A16 and A99 are dual-SIM devices with support for GSM+GSM.

Other specifications of the Karbonn A16 and A99 budget smartphones include 4-inch WVGA (480x800 pixels) display, dual-core 1.3GHz processor, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of inbuilt storage further expandable up to 32GB with microSD card, a 5-megapixel rear camera, and a VGA front-facing camera. Both the handsets, the Karbonn A16 and Karbonn A99, run Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out-of-the-box.

The Karbonn A35 features a 5-inch qHD IPS display and is powered by 1GHz dual-core processor. The smartphone runs dated Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. It packs an 1800mAh battery while there is a 5-megapixel rear autofocus camera and also onboard is a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. The Karbonn A35 comes with 512MB of RAM and includes 4GB of inbuilt storage, with no details of expandable storage. The device also comes preloaded with apps like Hungama, Karbonn Live, Whatsapp and Office Suite.

Last of the newly launched handsets, is the Karbonn A90, which comes with 4-inch IPS display (unspecified resolution) and runs Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The smartphone is powered by a 1GHz processor with no word on chipset used and has 512MB of RAM. It sports a 5-megapixel rear camera while there is mention of the front-facing camera. Other specifications of the Karbonn A90 include dual-SIM (GSM+GSM) support and 1400mAh battery.

Commenting on the launch, Shashin Devsare, Executive Director, Karbonn said, "Karbonn intends to 'Massify Technology' with its innovative range of smart devices. Going a step forward with our value-for-money product offerings, we are confident to lighten the mood of the consumers, thus 'Massifying Happiness'. We are looking towards aggressive market penetration and in this festive season where volume sales are greater we seek to augment our market share with this product range. With this new smartphone range aimed for this festive season, we have enabled our consumers with a wider range of perfect gifting options." 

iPhone 4S price slashed to Rs. 31,500 by Apple

Following the announcement of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c launch in India, Apple has now officiallyannounced the pricing of the two phones, in addition to revising the pricing of the iPhone 4S, the only other model of the iPhone that will sell apart from the two new ones.

The iPhone 4S now costs Rs. 31,500 including taxes, for the 8GB version of the phone. It's worth pointing out that the iPhone 4S was initially launched in India at a price point of Rs. 44,500 for the 16GB version. The prices did go down by Rs. 3,000 when Apple launched the iPhone 5. Online retailers like Flipkart have been selling the 16GB model at Rs. 38,500. 

It's worth pointing out that Apple had also included the iPhone 4S under a buyback offer that it introduced, earlier in the year.

When it unveiled the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, Apple announced that it would stop selling the iPhone 5, which was introduced last year, replacing it with the iPhone 5c. However, it mentioned that it would continue offering the iPhone 4S in a new 8GB variant. 

The iPhone 4S has has done well in terms of sales, as the second best option in the iPhone lineup. Though we wonder if halving the internal storage to 8GB makes sense as apps are increasingly occupying more space on the device. Also, the iPhone 4S doesn't offer an external memory card slot for expansion. Interestingly, Apple had even reintroduced a 16GB version of the iPhone 4, in June. 

The iPhone 4S comes with a 3.5-inch Retina display (640x960 pixels), a dual-core processor, an 8-megapixel rear camera and a VGA front camera. It is upgradable to iOS 7, Apple's latest mobile operating system, though it doesn't support some features like live camera filters and AirDrop file transfer. 

Fifth-generation iPad spotted in high-resolution leaked images

Sonny Dickson, the Australian teen who made a name for himself by repeatedly leaking images of Apple's iPhone 5s before its release, has posted a series of high-resolution images of Apple's upcoming tablet.

The fifth-generation iPad can be seen in what are perhaps its clearest pictures yet in the image set posted on Dickson's website. The images, which appear legitimate, 'confirm' what's been widely known based on various leaks, that the next-generation iPad will take its design cues from Apple's wildly popular iPad mini.

The set of images shows a Space Grey fifth-generation iPad from various angles, including close ups of its edges, curves, as well as buttons and other elements like the camera lens. The set also includes images of the display assembly, the chassis and other components that are used in making the iPad.

Sonny Dickson, who lives with his parents in suburban Melbourne, attracted attention earlier this year after he leaked detailed pictures and videos, which were later confirmed as accurate, of the then unreleased Space Grey and Champagne iPhone 5s.

(Also see: Meet the Australian teen behind iPhone 5S leaks)

The images posted by Dickson are in line with earlier fifth-generation iPad-related leaks by other parties, including a recent video that compared the upcoming iPad with the existing iPad and iPad mini.

Apple is widely expected to unveil next-generation iPad and iPad mini at a special event that will reportedly be held on October 22. While the iPad is likely to get upgraded internals, the iPad mini is expected to get a Retina display, just like its bigger sibling and members of the iPhone family.