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Samsung Galaxy S4 Ranked as World’s Best Smartphone By Consumer Reports

Posted by Joe Rossignol at 5:17 pm

Consumer Reports has ranked the new Samsung Galaxy S4 as its top-rated smartphone, dethroning the LG Optimus G handset. Its rankings are determined by several critical areas of testing, including the camera. In particular, the report praises the Galaxy S4′s screen:

The S4 has an excellent 5-inch, high-definition (1080p) touch-screen display, as well as oodles of gesture- and sensor-based tools for accessing and sharing content you create and capture on your phone. The display is sensitive enough to use with gloves on—handy during cold weather.

Multitasking is another strong point for the Galaxy S4:

A true multi-tasker, the S4 lets you run two apps simultaneously in a split-screen view. For instance, you can watch a video while checking e-mail, or you can use Google Maps and Messaging simultaneously. We did find that battery life and voice quality varied slightly between cell carriers, as with the LG Optimus G.

I’ll still side with the HTC One as the best Android smartphone, but the Galaxy S4 is still almost equally as impressive.

[Consumer Reports]

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AT&T to Extend FaceTime Over Cellular to All Data Plans This Year

Posted by Joe Rossignol at 2:49 pm

facetime3g

At last, AT&T will be permitting access to pre-loaded video apps, including FaceTime and Google Hangouts, to all of its customers with any data plan whatsoever. AT&T issued a statement this afternoon to address the change, as reported by TechCrunch.

“Throughout the second half of this year, we plan to enable pre-loaded video chat apps over cellular for all our customers, regardless of data plan or device; that work is expected to be complete by yearend,” AT&T states. “Today, all of our customers can use any mobile video chat app that they download from the Internet, such as Skype.”

(more…)

Review: Aurisonics ASG-1 (Rev 3)

Posted by Marcus Nguyen at 2:00 pm

Aurisonics | In-Ear Monitors | $ 299.00

I rarely do product update reviews because they tend to be minor. Even with the previous update to the ASG-1, I only added an extension. Well, the third update to the 1 series is really a whole new product from Aurisonics. It offers a new shell that is more comfortable than its predecessor and updated sound. The new IEM is a welcome update to the old one that was already great. (more…)

Sony Posts Blurry Teaser Video of PlayStation 4

Posted by Joe Rossignol at 10:29 am

The next generation of console gaming is upon us. Nintendo entered the market first with its Wii U console, Microsoft is announcing the next-generation Xbox tomorrow and Sony announced its upcoming PlayStation 4 console back in February. One minor inconvenience: Sony still hasn’t shown off what the latest PlayStation looks like, now three months later.

Nevertheless, anxious gamers can finally get a sneak peek at the hotly-anticipated console. Sony has posted a new teaser video for the PlayStation 4 on its YouTube channel, although in extremely blurry fashion. Don’t expect to see much, asides from a few close-up elements that are rather difficult to interpret. Can you make out anything in particular?

Rumor Roundup: Lightweight iPad, 1.5-Inch iWatch and New MacBooks

Posted by Joe Rossignol at 9:47 am

Apple Products

The rumor mill has ramped up quickly to start the week, with three new reports on the table relating to Apple products. The first comes from hit-and-miss Taiwanese publication DigiTimes, which claims that fifth-generation iPad production will begin in July as monthly shipments reach 2 – 3 million by September.

The tablet will reportedly have the same 2,048 x 1536 pixels Retina display, although the display glass will be thinner at 0.2mm versus 0.25mm for the fourth-generation iPad. The next-generation iPad will have a narrow bezel, akin to the smaller iPad mini. But that’s not all. (more…)

Who Will Win the V-MODA Remix Remote Headphones?

Posted by Stephen Hall at 8:01 am

Last week we created a thread asking you to post your best iOS theme setup for a chance to win the V-MODA Remix Remote Headphones shown above. All entries have now been received and it’s time to vote. Head over to the voting thread for this competition and vote on who you think posted the best iOS theme setup. It’s up to you to decide which user will get these headphones–a retail value of $79.

Can an Android Tablet Replace a Laptop?

Posted by Stephen Hall at 3:38 pm

n10-intro-thin

Whether or not an iPad can–or should–replace a good ol’ laptop has long been debated across the internet. But what about Android tablets? Is there anything about having Android that makes ditching your laptop any more compelling?

iFans forum member Yamada has created a thread asking exactly this and the answers have overwhelmingly been “no.” What do you think? Do Android tablets such as the Nexus 10 bring enough productivity capabilities to make it a possibility? Do you have an Android tablet that does everything you need? Sound off in the comments.

iCloud Photo Stream Gaining Steam, Accounts for More Upload Traffic Than Dropbox

Posted by Stephen Hall at 6:14 pm

sandvine-2012

Photo Stream is a pretty big feature apart of Apple’s iCloud. Assuming you have the service turned on, every single photo you take with an iOS device paired with your Apple account is sent to the cloud. This, of course, makes sharing and moving photos between your devices a breeze. But how big is this service, exactly? The latest Sandvine report tells us that ”Apple Photostream” accounts for 1.34% of all North American upload traffic. (more…)

Galaxy S 4 Sales Approach 10 Million

Posted by Jonathan Kizer at 4:07 pm

Samsung Galaxy S4 S 4 Flat

The Galaxy S 4 may not have been quite as well received as HTC’s venerable One for various issues, but that hasn’t stopped sales. The device, which is now available in almost all regions of the world, is quickly approaching 10 million sales.

Pushed by a tidal wave of both good press, carrier backing, and a massive marketing push, the device’s sales are understandably great. It’s definitely safe to predict that this will quickly become the best-selling Android device to date, with estimates predicting that the phone may actually hit 100 million sales during its lifetime. No shock there: Samsung is absolutely killing it in the smartphone market. It’s unclear how well the S 4′s chief Android competitor, the HTC One, is doing in terms of sales. While the device has been well-received by reviewers and consumers alike, HTC doesn’t have the marketing budget of the Korean juggernaut, and it often shows.

[Korea Times]