AMAZON SMARTPHONE COULD ARRIVE IN 2013

AMAZON SMARTPHONE COULD ARRIVE IN 2013

A rumor which refuses to die is the Amazon phone, with fresh reports suggesting we could see the handset next summer. 

According to industry sources who spoke to Taiwanese news site Cens, Amazon has signed a deal with Foxconn to manufacturer the online retailer's first smartphone. 

Foxconn is one of the most well known Chinese Manufacturers, famed for producing products such as the iPhone and iPad, and it reckons it will shift 5 million Amazon Smartphones next year. 

HMM................

The report goes on to say the Amazon Smartphone release data is expected to fall between the second and third quarters of 2013, and the handset could be a steal at $100-200. 

No details on the hotly rumored handset were provided, but if the Amazon phone does indeed exist we'd expect it to sport a highly modified version of Google's Android platform-following in the footsteps of the Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD.

There's no guarantee these latest reports are true, or if Amazon is even making a Smartphone, but we wouldn't be overly surprised if the retailer sprung a handset on us next year. 

We're just left thinking, what's going to arrive first, the Facebook phone or Amazon's Smartphone?

ASUS AND OTHERS SET TO UNVEIL GOOGLE TV DEVICES NEXT WEEK

ASUS AND OTHERS SET TO UNVEIL GOOGLE TV DEVICES NEXT WEEK

Google is giving its good TV graces to a handful of manufactures at next week's Consumer Electronics Show, likely in the hopes of jolting some life into its struggling small screen venture. 

The company announced in a blog post Friday that three firms-Asus, Hisense and TCL- will unveil Google TV devices during the annual tech gathering. 

Existing partners like LG, Vizio, Sony and others are also slated to demonstrate Google's revamed TV platform through each companies' individual offerings. 

LG already set the wheels in motion when it revealed before christmas that it will show off seven new Google TV sets at the show, with the largest screen size, belonging to the GA6400, coming in at 60-inches. 

Time to shine

Google gave its struggling television platform an overhaul last November, updating it for speed and accessibility. 

The company has struggled from Day 1 to gain a following, both from consumers and big names like Samsung. Though the South Korean giant has announced a Google TV product, it has yet to follow through with actually releasing anything to the public. 

With the addition of Asus, Hisense and TCL, Google can count nine TV buddies, a decent pack if it hopes to keep growing its TV gig. 

The G-team also plans on showing its You Tube on TV feature on LG, Panasonic and Sony Smart TVs during the Vegas corral, so its presence will certainly be felt. 

TechRadar will land in Nevada before long and we'll let you know if the Google TV showcases hit the jackpot or go bust. 

SAMSUNG CONFIRMS TIZEN SMARTPHONES COMING IN 2013

SAMSUNG CONFIRMS TIZEN SMARTPHONES COMING IN 2013

While there have been numerous reports during the past year claiming Samsung was readying its own smartphone line-up using the Tizen operating system, the South Korean company hadn't made any official announcements.

On Thursday, Samsung revealed in a statement to Bloomberg that 2013 would indeed be the year that open-source OS phones would arrive.

"We plan to release new, competitive Tizen devices within this year and will keep expanding the lineup depending on market conditions,"Samsung stated.

The news comes just days after the Daily Yomiuri reported that anonymous sources claimed Samsung would unveil the first Tizen phone in Japan through NTT Docomo. 

Samsung still hasn't even shown off aproper model of a Tizen Smartphone, So it comes as no surprise the company didn't reveal an exact data or even a time frame for releases. 

Go your own way

Though Samsung has seen some incredible success in 2012 running Google's Android OS on phones like the Galaxy S3, The company is clearly looking to become a bit more self-reliant in 2013. 

Samsung sold 55 million Smartphones during the third quarter of 2012, leading all its competitors like Apple and Nokia by a wide margin. 

Tize will be faced with plenty of challenges in the coming year, particularly considering Android dominated the market with a 72.4 percent stake. 

While it's true Samsung was the number one selling Android device maker. there's no telling if consumers will follow the manufacturer when it strikes off on its own. 

Even if Samsung contributed to a large portion that number, there are no guarantees the new OS will be able to make waves among-st the likes of iOS, Windows Phone 8, and BlackBerry 10, each of which is vying for a much smaller piece of the pie. 

WHY THE iPAD IS GREAT FOR CONTENT CREATION

WHY THE iPAD IS GREAT FOR CONTENT CREATION

The 'iPad isn't for content creation' card has started rearing its ugly head again, this time prompted in part by the appearance of more Google android tablets kike the more Google Android tablets. 

The Nexus 7 (I've got one so you don't have to) is very much not a content creation device: Google's announcement focused on how it integrated with its play store for content like books, games, films and TV shows, with ne'er a mention of actually doing anything creative. 

The iPad, on the other hand, is much more capable of creativity than the Nexus 7, largely because of its big screen. This isn't simply about the size of the keyboard-focusing on the keyboard as the only route to creativity is as silly as insisting you can't paint with your fingers. 

Instead, the larger screen (yes, aside form the iPad mini) enables developers to create richer apps that give you more creative options available at any one time. It's all about what the large screen opens up to developers, not just users. 

Focusing on consumption

I don't think there's anything wrong with devices that focus on content consumption, though. If you take a look at what you do with desktop computers most of the time, it's more consumption than creation. sure, you might write a little, do a bit of photo-editing. But I spend most of my time on my Mac listening to music (consumption), using social media (mostly consumption) and pootling around on the internet. 

Being what is politely termed a 'veteran' computer user (and impolitely termed 'an old git with ever-more grey hair') something has been nagging at the back of my head about all this debate. It seemed so familiar, somehow.

And then it hit me: it's basically the same arguments that were made when the first mac was launched. I remember being told how the Mac was 'great for graphics, but you can't do proper computing with it' by wispily bearded computer science undergrads who viewed anything that didn't involve baroque keyboard shortcuts as trivial. 

Unix windowing systems were all right, because they let you run more terminals at the same time-but no way could you do real, productive work with a graphical user interface. You just didn't get 'close enough to the code'. 

Can you get more done with a mouse?

This kind of thing happens every time the paradigm of computing shifts. The old guard, reared on 'how we do things', simply can't stop trying to impose the way they work on to the devices that meet the needs of other people. The Mac was useless because the mouse 'got in the way' of doing 'proper' computer stuff on a command line. 

And today, it's all about the iPad, and how it 'isn't for creation'. However, what they really mean is that the iPad 'isn't for creation-because some tech people just can't imagine that you can get more done faster with touch interfaces than you can with a mouse.'

When these kinds of tech people talk about 'creation', what they mean is programming , because  that's the only kind of creation that really counts for them, and they're not able to conceive of the new ways that new interfaces let you create things. 

All the other hundreds of kinds of creativity, from playing around with photos, writing words, to manipulating data with your fingertips-all these kinds of creativity don't really count, because they're not complex commands. 

With the iPad you get to create with the most intimate and effective tools you have, honed by millions of years of evolution: your fingertips. 

EVERYTHING ELSE

EVERYTHING ELSE

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Amazon are having quite a lot of success with their Kindle Fire line, so expect the 3rd generation Fire to launch sometime next year, ready to go head-to-head with the new Nexus. 

There is likely to be an increasing number of low-cost, high-spec tablets available form other manufacturers too. 

Asus are rumored to be working on a low-cost 7-inch slate and other companies will probably look to release budget devices of their own in order to stay competitive.

With BlackBerry 10 launching in January there's  every chance that RIM will make another play for the tablet market too. Whether they'll have any more success than with the ill-fated BlackBerry playbook remains to be seen.

With all this, and probably a few surprises besides, it looks set to be one of the biggest years yet for tablets, and we'll bring you coverage of it all as it happens.

WINDOWS TABLETS

WINDOWS TABLETS

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Having ignored it for a long lime, Microsoft is finally making a big play for the tablet market. They've launched not one, but two tablet-friendly operating systems in the form of Windows 8 and Windows RT, and Microsoft's own Surface tablet has already launched. 

Next year should see a host of new Windows tablets from other manufacturers. We already know about a bunch of them, from the Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2, to the Acer Lconia W700. 

But that's just the beginning. 

CES 2013 is just around the corner and it's not unlikely that manufacturers will use the opportunity to announce new Windows tablets. 

Just don't expect a keynote from Microsoft-2012 was its last. Any big news from Microsoft themselves is unlikely to come before its 'Build' event towards the end of the year.

iPAD MINI 2

iPAD MINI 2

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Apple isn't likely to forget about the iPad's little brother either and it's a pretty safe bet that we'll see the next iPad mini launched in 2013.

In fact, the first one might have only just been released but there are already rumors about the iPad mini 2.

It should come as absolutely no surprise that the biggest addition is likely to be a retina display or something similar, bringing the display up to a rumored 324 pixels pre nch.

After all, just about every other Apple product has a Retina display and the screen on the iPad mini was one of the few bad things about it.

There's no release date yet but expect it sometime in the latter half of 2013.

There's a good chance Apple will roll out iOS 7 to go with their shiny new tablets, and while literally nothing is yet known about that, you could always check out the 12 things we want to see. 

iPAD 5

iPAD 5

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This one's a given-Apple release a new iPad every year-and in fact last year they released two! Three if you count the iPad mini.

Despite the iPad 4 only just having launched, the wait for a new iPad might not be long, as it's rumored that the iPad 5 might even appear early in the year and display a slimmer, lighter form factor, more in line with the iPad mini.

IS THIS THE FIRST REAL GLIMPSE OF THE SAMSUNG GALAXY S4

IS THIS THE FIRST REAL GLIMPSE OF THE SAMSUNG GALAXY S4

What is supposedly the first press shot of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Has Emerged online. 

The photo was first published by Sam Mobile, which claims to have received it from an " insider at Samsung", who was unable to provide any further detail on the Galaxy SIV. 

Unsurprisingly, we're approaching this with plenty of caution after the deluge of fake snaps of the Samsung Galaxy S3- just take a look our gallery. 

Button-less

The big talking point is the missing home button-will Samsung really do away with the physical button given that it has remained a Samsung staple even on its most recent handsets such as the Galaxy Note 2 and Galaxy Premier?

Although the design of the phone shown here is very similar to that of the Galaxy S3, the screen appears elongated compared to the older phone suggesting we'll see onscreen Android keys-something which Google has wanted manufacturers to adopt even since Ice Cream Sandwich was launched. 

We're not holding out any hope that this is the real deal as the image could easily have been faked, but this will surely open the floodgates to more images claiming to show Samsung Galaxy S4 over the coming months. 

What do you think, is this the real deal or a shoddy forgery? Let us know in the comments below.

WINDOWS PHONE BECOMES THE THIRD BIGGEST MOBILE PLATFORM

WINDOWS PHONE BECOMES THE THIRD BIGGEST MOBILE PLATFORM

Why: 

Windows Phone 8 is really nice and the phones are good too: It's a proper alternative to iOS and Android, and RIM's misfortunes could be an opportunity for Microsoft to regain some of its lost mobile market share.

Why Not:

One lost BlackBerry customer doesn't necessarily mean one new Windows phone customer--they might buy a Samsung Galaxy S3 or an iPhone. Microsoft is facing an uphill challenge here, even if RIM self--destructs.

The Odds: 

5/2. A lot depends on whether RIM can stop its nose--dive. 

RETAILERS WILL EMBRACE NFC

RETAILERS WILL EMBRACE NFC

Why: 

The banks want it. The credit card companies want it. Most of the mobile makers want it. NFC is quick. convenient, saves you from having to mess around with plastic cards when you're buying a cup of coffee, and pretty much every phone maker bar apple is on board. 

Why Not:

Recession-hit retailers are wary of splashing out on new NFC-enabled tills when it's unclear whether they'll get that money back. 

In--app purchasing and alternative payment systems such as square are stealing some of NFC's thunder. Paypal reckons it's a technology looking for a problem to solve, not a must-have for shops. 

The Odds:

7/2. We're not at the tipping point yet.

WINDOWS PHONE BECOMES THE THIRD BIGGEST MOBILE PLATFORM

WINDOWS PHONE BECOMES THE THIRD BIGGEST MOBILE PLATFORM

Why: 

Windows Phone 8 is really nice and the phones are good too: It's a proper alternative to iOS and Android, and RIM's misfortunes could be an opportunity for Microsoft to regain some of its lost mobile market share.

Why Not:

One lost BlackBerry customer doesn't necessarily mean one new Windows phone customer--they might buy a Samsung Galaxy S3 or an iPhone. Microsoft is facing an uphill challenge here, even if RIM self--destructs.

The Odds: 

5/2. A lot depends on whether RIM can stop its nose--dive. 

ANDROID OUTSELLS APPLE-NOT JUST IN PHONES, BUT IN TABLETS TOO

ANDROID OUTSELLS APPLE-NOT JUST IN PHONES, BUT IN TABLETS TOO

Why:

Not everyone wants an iPhone, likes iOS or wants to pay apple prices Android has more manufacturers making more models at more price points than any other mobile operation system. These days it's bloody good, too.

Why Not:

In tablets, Apple dominates the market, and the iPad mini should help sell a lot more iOS devices. Apple's widening the range to meet a wider range of budgets, and it has a cool factor that Android lacks.

The Odds:

2/1. It happened in phones, it'll happen in tablets. 

CHROME BOOKS SELL IN SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS

CHROME BOOKS SELL IN SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS

Why:

Google's Chrome OS gets better with each release, and there's a decent range of kit to choose from, much of it at rock-bottom prices. 

In these tough times, cheap laptops should be an easy sell. 

Why Not:

You can't make a brilliant laptop and sell it for £ 200--but you can make an excellent tablet and sell it for considerably less. 

If we had £ 200 we'd buy a nexus 7 and a key board. Sales figures suggest you would too.

The Odds:

7/2. Your kids want a tablet.

WINDOWS RT FALLS FLAT

Windows RT falls flat

Why: 

Microsoft upset its OEM partners by making its own surface, whose sales are currently behind target, and many Windows RT tablets have been delayed. 

At the time of writing, Facebook and Google don't see windows RT as worth writing apps for, consumer reaction has been lukewarm and businesses aren't interested. 

Why Not:

Microsoft is coming from a standing start here, so of course it isn't going to do iPad numbers in the first couple of months.

OEMs will come on board and consumers will get the message. 

The Odds:

5/2. It's looking a bit shaky right now. 

BLACKBERRY 10 SEVES RIM AND PUTS BALACKBERRY BACK ON THE MOBILE MAP

BLACKBERRY 10 SEVES RIM AND PUTS BALACKBERRY BACK ON THE MOBILE MAP

Why:

It's a lovely operating system, a big step forward, and the hardware's looking pretty tasty-and both enterprise customers and BBM-crazed teens love their BlackBerry's. The BlackBerry's back, baby!

Why Not:

RIM's in deep, deep trouble and BB10 should have shipped in 2012.

Apple and android are bigger players than BlackBerry now, and nobody's pulled off this king of recovery since Steve jobs returned to Apple. RIM doesn't have a Steve Jobs.

The Odds:

7/1. We hope it happens, but we wouldn't bet our shirts on it.

APPLE RELEASES iPAD MINI 2 WITH RETINA DISPLAY 2013

Apple releases iPad mini 2 with Retina Display

Why: 

It's the one weakness in Apple's otherwise-excellent little, and of Apple can do it in Phones, iPod touches, iPads and MacBookes, then it can cram one into the iPad mini too.

Why Not:

Retina Displays are more complicated and need more power than non-Retina ones, and that means heavier, more expensive devices. Hands up who thinks the iPad mini needs a price hike?

The Odds:

2/1. We know it's going to happen, and we don't want to pay out too much when it does.

LG UNVEILS SMARTER, MORE REFINED SMART TV LINEUP FOR CES 2013

NEW SMART LG TV

The next Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas will be happening very soon but you don't have to wait till then to see what you can look forward to in 2013, LG Electronics recently unveiled its new CINEMA 3D Smart TV lineup for CES 2013 That offers easier content access and sharing, along with its updated magic Remote. LG will be showcasing a variety of models at CES including the 84'' Ultra HD and 55" OLED TVs. 

With an upgraded CPU and GPu, LG's 2013 line up of CINEMA 3D Smart TV will deliver a much smoother and clearer images for an enhanced gaming, viewing and multitasking experience, The CPU speeds are now over 100% faster than before and as though that's not enough, the upgraded CPU can deliver a whopping 300% faster speed.

"LG always strives to provide the most engaging, most convenient user experience to consumers all over the globe. We have been singularly uncompromising, both in developing and improving the LG Smart TV platform. As a result, we are confident The UX our 2013 Models will  shatter all expectations and demonstrate that LG has moved the medium of Smart TV forward.''---Havis Kwon, President and CEO of the LG Home Entertainment Company.

Hit the break to find out more. 

Smart Control: Simple and Intuitive

 LG Offers the very definition of Smart Control with its enhanced Smart Home and Magic Remote. The new Smart Home onscreen interface featuring my interest cards---a special folder provides easy, quick access to what's trending on new sites as well as up-to-the-minute weather information, my interest Cards can be cunstomized according to the needs and preferences of the user. 

The magic Remote has been redesigned to fine-tune content and menu navigation, making interaction as simple and intuitive as possible, The device still incorporates the fundamental control capabilities of earlier magic remotes--point, wheel, gesture and voice recognition, At CES, LG will demonstrate Voice Mate, an enhanced version of the company's voice control technology capable of recognizing the natural flow of language. The Voice Mate feature offers a new voice search option that simultaneously filters search results from all corners of the LG Smart TV platform ---VoD Services, search engines, external devices and more. LG's Smart Control with magic Remote is like no LG Smart TV. 

Smart Sharing

The enhanced SmartShare'tm feature offers users the ability to mirror or transfer content from smart defvices to LG Smart TVs via a multitude of connectivity options, including WiDi and Miracast. The 2013 lineup will enhance inter--device sharing further by implementing Tag on. This feature immediately connects two devices for speedy media sharing. To use Tag On, the user simply holds a smartphone or other NFC--enabled device against the NFC sticer on a CINEMA 3D Smart TV. The 2013 lineup also supports LG Cloud, which allows the user to remotely stream high--quality content from practically any location. 

Smarter Discovery in Sea of Content

Smart TV users have a steadily growing selection of content from which to choose. But how can Smart TV users easily find what they want in a vast sea of Video-on-Demand (VoD) and live Broadcasts from multiple sources? The LG Smart TV offers a solution to the problem via an advanced recommendation function called On Now. The Convenient Service suggests trending VoD and broadcast content. Results pop-up with handy thumbnail images, making it faster and easier for the viewer to make a content selection. 

With a vast array of movie, lifestyle, gaming and 3D choices, consumers looking for international or local content can quickly find what they want on their LG CINEMA 3D Smart TVs. Partnerships with a growing list of providers from around the world, including local broadcasters and subscription programming services., allow LG to keep its content offerings relevant and fresh. 

Magic Stand And CINEMA SCREEN Design

The new 2013 models embody LG's minimalist CINEMA SCREEN Design. The TV's bezels have been significantly reduced toprovide a greater sense of immersion. The Magic Stand further enhances the effect, enabling the screen to appear as if floating. Both elegant and functional, the stand complements the screen without creating any visual distraction. Thissleek formation effortlessly blends into any modern interior design scheme. The stand also features a convenient swivel and roller function, allowing the TV to be repositioned with ease.

Comfortable CINEMA 3D

LG's CINEMA 3D Smart TVs employ Film patterned Retarder (FPR) technology for superior 3D viewing Confort. This technology uses lightweight glasses to crate a comfortable 3D viewing experience without the distracting flicker or crosstalk of active shutter-style glasses. 

Eco-Friendly and Safe

LG's CINEMA 3D Smart TV has won CES Innovations Awards for its superiority in hardware and software a number of times, including at the 2013 CES Innovations Awards. Another accolade was bestowed on the CINEMA 3D Smart TV lineup in

December when the 55LA6900 model earned an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) from Underwriters laboratories Inc. The 55LA6900 was singled out for its remarkable energy efficiency and eco-friendly qualities. 

2013 TREND: DUAL-IDENTITY SMARTPHONES

DUAL-IDENTITY SMARTPHONES 2013

Manufacturers will be incorporating processors that allow users to separate their business life from their personal life, or their personal life from their very personal life.

At September's BlackBerry Jam event in the US, struggling mobile market RIM unveiled a raft of new features for the handset that it hopes will re-establish the BlackBerry alongside Apple and Samsung, chief among which was 'BlackBerry Balance'---a feature that allows users to keep their work emails, contacts and apps separate from their personal lives. Essentially combining two handsets in one device.

Aimed at the growing trend of BYOD (Bring your own device ---to work), it was one of the stars of the show and a clear differentiator between it and its iOS and Android peers.

When the long-awaited new BlackBerry 10 is unveiled in January 2013 it will be the first to offer this feature, but it won't stay unique for long as a number of software and chip developers have been contracted to develop the same technology for Android phones and the same dual--handset feature is expected to start rolling out on LG Samsung and Motorola phones before the second half of next year.

And while the intention is to help  businesses keep their data secure when letting Employees use their own smartphones for work, if the latest smartphone user surveys are to be believed, it could have another more widespread use--for keeping secrets from partners.

According to research by Bull Guard, published in November, one in five UK men has a secret email account they use for hiding correspondence from their partner and 5 percent have gone as far as buying a second smartphone for fear of their partner snooping on their messages and photos.

A similar study in the US from virgin Mobile Live found that 20 percent of married people said they felt uncomfortable giving their phone to their partner and 44 percent of women admitted to going through their partner's phone behind their backs.

The New Apple iTV Smart Television

THE NEW APPLE iTV AND SMART TELEVISION 2013

It is possibly true that Samsung Smart TV set the pace in modern television, but there is much in the waiting that may just revolutionize how television viewing is done. 

A Smart TV is different from the traditional TV set in that it runs a specialized operating system, which seamlessly integrates web services, multitasking, modern gaming and enhanced human interactivity-all in addition to normal TV Services. 

A major step should possibly be realized with the launch of the much anticipated iTV From Apple.

Rumors and endless speculations talk of top of the bar iTV that will do more than simply display movies and produce sound. loaded with targeted apps, the new TV will well be integrated with Facetime, Siri-much like Microsoft's own Kinect, and a possible retina display. 

iTV promises to offer the ultimate in facial recognition, effortless voice interaction and the ultimate in use of gestures. The current breed of smart TV sets are still lacking in these features. 

How far Apple intends to prefect these features remain to be seen, and if all the Hullaballoo about their 'next being thing' is to be believed, then the next smart TV from Cupertino should be a wonder. 

The iTV is expected in 2013 and will possibly hit the shelves by the end of the year.