[News]Samsung set to announce the Galaxy S IV on March 14th, here's what to expect

On March 14th in New York City Samsung is announcing its new Galaxy S IV (GSIV) flagship smartphone.

Very little has been confirmed, so take this all with a grain of salt, but based on the latest leaks/rumors here's what to expect:

Samsung Galaxy S IV

Estimated Releaes Date: April 2013

Carrier(s): AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon

Price: $199.99 on contract

CPU/GPU: Quad-Core Snapdragon 600 @ 1.9ghz/Adreno 320

Screen: 4.99" SoLex LCD 1920 x 1080p

Camera: 2.1MP(Fr)/13MP(R)/1080p@60fps

Memory: 2GB RAM

Storage: 16GB/32GB/64GB
SD Card Slot: Yes
Battery: Removable/2600mah

[Rumor] Is this benchmark for the Verizon Galaxy S4?

A recent benchmark showed up for a smartphone with the device ID "SCH-I545" - this just may be the latest flagship from Samsung, the Galaxy S4.  The Galaxy S3 for Verizon bore a device ID of "SCH-I535" and several other Samsung smartphones have similar code names on Verizon as well.

As you can see from the bench mark, we'd expect this phone to sport a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, a full 1080p display, and the Adreno 320 GPU.  The Samsung event is scheduled for 03/14/13, and no doubt it will be one of the most hyped events of the year for tech enthusiasts.

*Source:  Droid-Life

[News]Qualcomm RF360: The Holy Grail of LTE modems?

The Qualcomm RF360 is the modem we've been waiting for, the Holy Grail of LTE !  Why is that you might ask?  Because it's the first modem that covers all global LTE frequencies - 40 in all.

Why is that important to you?  The answer is that the RF360 would allow Google to make a subsidized Nexus, or Motorola X-phone that would work on any carrier's LTE network.  Google's goal of being able to free customers from expensive carrier contracts and offering cheap unsubsidized phones that work on any network may finally be a reality.



Google I/O starts on May 15th and the Motorola X-phone is expected to be announced.  Hopefully it will be the first global LTE smartphone.  Would it be too much to hope that Google sells it directly through the Play Store at the same price points as the Nexus 4?  Hey, we can dream, right?

EDIT: Apparently it won't be available in any products until the second half of the year, which may be too late for the X-Phone :(

[PSA]Beware the battery of the Sony Xperia Z

It's clear Sony worked hard on the Xperia Z.  The design is excellent and the hardware is top notch.  I thought Sony had a winner on its hands.  Then I read the review on Engadget yesterday and saw the battery rundown result for the Z.

For those that missed it, here's the result as compared to some other high end smartphones:

Motorola Droid Razr Maxx HD - 14 hours and 4 minutes
Apple iPhone 5 - 11 hours and 15 minutes
Samsung Galaxy Note II - 10 hours and 45 minutes
Motorola Droid Razr HD - 10 hours and 42 minutes
Samsung Galaxy S III - 9 hours and 2 minutes
LG Optimus G - 8 hours and 43 minutes
HTC One X+ - 7 hours and 32 minutes
HTC Droid DNA - 6 hours and 38 minutes
Sony Xperia Z - 5 hours and 35 minutes

Hopefully Engadget just got a defective unit, because otherwise unless you're planning to use the Xperia Z as a really nice paperweight you should probably stay away.

At least when the battery dies you can pretend it's a fish though

[Op-Ed]HTC goes big with the One and mostly succeeds

Yesterday HTC took the wraps off it's latest flagship smartphone, the One.  Will the One be the handset that turns around HTC's fortunes?  Let's dive it and find out.

The Good:

Design:
The design of the HTC One is nothing short of stunning and is in my opinion the best looking Android phone of all time.  Previously that distinction fell to the white HTC One-X, but the One is even better.  It features an aluminum unibody with injection molded polycarbonate accents and stereo speakers on each side of the screen.  It looks very apple-esque (I mean that in a good way) and looks extremely premium.  Suffice to say, I love the design.  The One is gorgeous.

[News] HTC One officially announced

The rumors have ended...HTC has launched their new flagship phone - the HTC One.  No longer the rumored "M7" device, this new smartphone really pushes the envelope when it comes to high end devices, from HTC or any other manufacturer.

This bad boy sports a 1.7GHz quad core Snapdragon 600 processor, 4.7" 1080p display, 2GB of RAM, and a generous 2300mAh non-removable battery.  Certainly nothing to sneeze at in terms of spec.  The edge to edge display and "zero gap" aluminum body are very cool, and in terms of design, HTC has a winner here.

[Rumor] HTC M7 to be released at "HTC One"

HTC's One X+ (but it could be the HTC One also)

HTC is getting ready to launch that flagship that's for so long been known as the M7 - until the latest rumor has surfaced. The latest news from HTC is that the new device could actually be known simply as the "HTC One."  This would put it in line with previously released devices like the One X, One S, and the One X+ - however; this might end up confusing consumers, as all these other devices were released before this newest one.

To top it off, the M7 most closely resembles the recently released Droid DNA, released on Verizon, and if Verizon gets the M7, its unclear why the Droid DNA would have ever been sold to begin with.  It's no secret that around here, the 2 Tech Geeks are puzzled by HTC's business strategies of late, most notably with the battery technology they put in their phones.  In any event, HTC has a long road ahead of it if they want to get back into the smartphone race...does anyone think the rumors of the M7 device are the way they do it?

*Source:  BGR

[Rumor] LG to push up launch date of Optimus G Pro?

In advance of the juggernaut that will likely be Samsung's Galaxy S4 launch, LG is rumored to be considering launching their new flagship, the Optimus G Pro, later on this month - probably near the end of February.  Why do this?  To hopefully steal the Galaxy S4's thunder, of course!  Well...its probably more along the lines of hoping to get consumers to purchase the not-unimpressive Optimus G Pro before they get wind of the GS4.  For a full spec sheet on the Optimus G Pro (OGP?), check out this article.

*Source:  Phone Arena