HTC Rezound Combines 4.3″ True HD Screen with Beats Audio Technology
HTC and Verizon Wireless have officially announced the upcoming launch of cool new 4G LTE HTC Rezound Android-powered handset, which the companies claim as the only smartphone in the United States to integrate Beats Audio technology. Complemented with Mobile High Definition Link (MHL) connectivity and an included advanced Beats headphones that feature on-cable remote to let users enjoy their favorite music immensely.
HTC Rezound photo
HTC Rezound is initially based on Google Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system. Anyway, for those who like to taste the latest Android OS on the Rezound phone, HTC has promised to roll out Google Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) upgrade by early next year to deliver noticeably different user experience.
Key Features and Specs of HTC Rezound:
Large 4.3-inch multi-touch S-LCD with true HD 720p resolution (1280 x 720 pixels)
8-megapixel AF camera (f/2.2, 28mm wide-angle lens) with dual LED flash and full HD video capture
Powerful 1.5 GHz Qualcomm dual-core processor plus 1GB DDR2 RAM
4G Mobile Hotspot supports up to 10 Wi-Fi devices
Bluetooth 3.0 and Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/a connectivity
Huge 16GB internal memory
Rechargeable 1,620 mAh lithium battery
Size: 5.08 x 2.58 x 0.54 inches
The new high-end HTC Rezound smartphone looks very sturdy and solid, and its 720p true HD display also works well for animation, picture with its super-high resolution and brilliant color, seems like the true iPhone 4S rival!
HTC Rezound which comes bundled with a stylish new, lightweight Beats headset and an 16GB microSD memory card is slated to be available through Verizon Wireless and Best Buy starting November 14 for $299.99, based on a new 2-year service agreement.
Watch the promo video of new groundbreaking HTC Rezound smartphone below!
iOS 5 for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad Released for Download
The most anticipated software update for iDevices, namely iPhone, iPod touch and iPad has been released at around 10 AM PST, October 12th, 2011, a date as promised by Apple. iOS 5 brings over 200 new features and enhanced functionalities to the iOS mobile devices, including the Notification Center, iMessage, iCloud support and PC Free, and it’s the prerequisite to enjoy iCloud.
To get the update now, connect iPhone, iPad or iPod touch to iTunes via USB, and click on “Check for Updates” in the device’s information screen.
iOS 5 is available for iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 2, iPad, iPod touch (4th generation) and iPod touch (3rd generation).
iOS 5 Direct Download Links
iPhone 4S: iPhone4,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPhone 4 (GSM): iPhone3,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPhone 4 (CDMA -Verizon): iPhone3,3_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPhone 3GS: iPhone2,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPad 2 WiFi: iPad2,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPad 2 GSM: iPad2,2_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPad 2 CDMA: iPad2,3_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPad: iPad1,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPod touch (4th generation): iPod4,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
iPod touch (3rd generation): iPod3,1_5.0_9A334_Restore.ipsw
Apple TV (2G): AppleTV2,1_4.4_9A334v_Restore.ipsw
What's New in iOS 5
iOS 5 Software Update Changelog
- Notifications
- Swipe from the top of any screen to view notifications in one place with Notification Center
- New notifications appear briefly at the top of the screen
- View notifications from lock screen
- Slide the notification app icon to the right on the lock screen to go directly to the app
- iMessage
- Send and receive unlimited text, photo, and video messages with other iOS 5 users
- Track messages with delivery and read receipts
- Group messaging and secure encryption
- Works over cellular network and Wi-Fi
- Newsstand
- Automatically organizes magazine and newspaper subscriptions on Home Screen
- Displays the cover of the latest issue
- Background downloads of new issues
- Reminders for managing to do lists
- Syncs with iCloud, iCal and Outlook
- Location-based reminders when you leave or arrive at a location for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4
- Built-in support for Twitter
- Sign-in once in Settings and tweet directly from Camera, Photos, Maps, Safari and YouTube
- Add location to any tweet
- View twitter profile pictures and usernames in Contacts
- Camera improvements for devices with cameras
- Double click the home button when device is asleep to bring up a camera shortcut on iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod touch (4th generation)
- Volume Up button to take a picture
- Optional grid lines to line up shots
- Pinch to zoom in the preview screen
- Swipe to camera roll from preview screen
- Tap and hold to lock focus and exposure, iPad 2 and iPod touch (4th generation) only support exposure lock
- Photo improvements for devices with cameras
- Crop and rotate
- Red eye removal
- One tap enhance
- Organize photos into albums
- Mail improvements
- Format text using bold, italic, or underlined fonts
- Indentation control
- Drag to rearrange names in address fields
- Flag messages
- Mass mark messages as flagged, read or unread
- Customize mail alert sounds
- S/MIME
- Calendar improvements
- Year view on iPad and new Week view for iPhone and iPod touch
- Tap to create an event
- View and add event attachments
- Game Center improvements
- Use personal photos for your Game Center account
- Compare your overall achievement scores with your friends
- Find new Game Center friends with friend recommendations and friends of friends
- Discover new games with custom game recommendations
- AirPlay Mirroring for iPad 2 and iPhone 4S
- Multitasking Gestures for iPad
- Use four or five fingers to pinch to the Home Screen
- Swipe up to reveal the multitasking bar
- Swipe left or right to switch between apps
- On-device setup, activation and configuration with Setup Assistant
- Software updates available over the air without tethering
- iCloud support
- iTunes in the Cloud
- Photo Stream
- Documents in the Cloud
- Apps and Books automatic download and purchase history
- Backup
- Contacts, Calendar, and Mail
- Find My iPhone
- Redesigned Music app for iPad
- Hourly weather forecast
- Real-time stock quotes
- Wireless sync to iTunes
- Keyboard improvements
- Split keyboard for iPad
- Improved autocorrection accuracy
- Improved Chinese and Japanese input
- New Emoji keyboard
- Personal dictionary for autocorrection
- Optionally create keyboard short cuts for frequently used words
- Accessibility improvements
- Option to light LED flash on incoming calls and alerts for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4
- Custom vibration patterns for incoming calls on iPhone
- New interface for using iOS with mobility-impairment input devices
- Option to speak a selection of text
- Custom element labeling for VoiceOver
- Exchange ActiveSync improvements
- Wirelessly sync tasks
- Mark messages as flagged, read or unread
- Improved offline support
- Save a new contact from a GAL service
- More than 1,500 new developer APIs
- Bug fixes
iCloud Lives
The official Apple iCloud website has been put online ahead of the release of iOS 5 which will be available for download in a few hours time. iCloud has been one of the core service that included in iOS 5, where its primary function is to automatically, effortlessly and seamlessly stores all your music, photos, documents, and more and wirelessly pushes them to all your devices.
Login to iCloud via https://www.icloud.com/.
However, you can sign up for iCloud service on the website. Instead, uses are required to sign up for an iCloud account on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch running iOS 5, or on a Mac running OS X Lion v10.7.2, in order to start using free service of Mail, Contacts, Calendar and iWork. Find My iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac service is already live as it’s been available for free previously.
iCloud includes:
iTunes in the Cloud: Music you purchase in iTunes appears automatically on your devices. You can also download your past music or TV show purchases.
Note: iTunes in the Cloud availability varies by country. TV shows is U.S. only.
Photo Stream: When you take a photo on one iOS device, it automatically appears on your other devices with no syncing required.
Documents in the Cloud: If you’ve installed an app that supports Documents in the Cloud on more than one device, iCloud automatically keeps your documents up to date across your devices.
Apps and Books: Apps and books that you purchase appear on your iOS devices automatically. You can also download your past purchases of apps and books.
Backup: iCloud automatically backs up your iOS device daily over Wi-Fi when it’s connected to a power source and the device is screen-locked. iCloud backs up your purchased music and TV shows, apps, books, Camera Roll, device settings, app data, Home screen and app organization, messages (iMessage, SMS, and MMS), and ringtones.
Note: Backup of purchased music is not available in all countries. Backup of purchased TV shows is U.S. only.
Contacts, Calendar, Mail: iCloud stores your calendars and contacts and automatically keeps them up to date across your devices. With iCloud, you can also get a me.com email account that pushes new messages to your devices. iCloud also stores and updates your bookmarks, reminders, and notes.
Find My iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac: If you misplace your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac, you can use Find My iPhone to help you find its location on a map, play a sound at full volume, send a message, lock the screen, or erase its data. You can use the Find My iPhone web application at icloud.com on any computer, or download and use the free app on your iOS device.
Back to My Mac: Using Back to My Mac, you can securely connect to your remote Mac from another Mac over the Internet, and access files or control its screen.
AT&T and Verizon (UMTS/GSM vs CDMA) iPhone 4 Features Comparison and Differe
iPhone finally available on Verizon Wireless, and though the new iPhone for CDMA network looks identical to the existing iPhone for UTMS (3GSM) and GSM mobile networks (used on AT&T and most mobile carriers worldwide), there are still some differences between them in terms of design, layout, features and specifications.
The main change is to make iPhone work on a CDMA network, a distinctive mobile communication technology from UTMS/GSM. Apple also makes the change on design to fix the antenna drops signal issue.
iPhone 4 AT&T (GSM/UTMS) iPhone 4 Verizon (CDMA)
| Network | UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA (850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz); GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz) | CDMA EV-DO Rev. A (800, 1900 MHz) |
| Price (on 2-year contract) | 16GB: $199 32GB: $299 | 16GB: $199 32GB: $299 |
| Data Plan | 200MB: $15 2GB: $25 2GB with Internet tethering: $45 | Pricing is not announced yet, with rumor saying $30 for unlimited data usage. Current data plans for other smartphones are $15 for 150MB; $29.99 for unlimited; $49.99 for unlimited with tethering |
| Data Transfer Rate | Up to 7.2 Mbit/s | Up to 3.1 Mbit/s |
| Early Upgrade Available at Launch | Yes | No |
| Global Roaming | Yes | Yes (only few countries with CDMA carriers) |
| Simultaneous Voice and Data Usage | Yes | No |
| Personal Wi-Fi Hotspot | No | Yes |
| 4G (HSPA+/LTE) | No | No |
| SAR (Specific Absorption Rate) | 1.17 W/kg | 1.18 W/kg |
| SIM Card Slot | MicroSIM | No SIM card slot required |
| Power and Battery | Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery Talk time: Up to 7 hours on 3G and up to 14 hours on 2G Standby time: Up to 300 hours Internet use: Up to 6 hours on 3G and up to 10 hours on Wi-F Video playback: Up to 10 hours Audio playback: Up to 40 hours | Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery Talk time: Up to 7 hours on 3G Standby time: Up to 300 hours Internet use: Up to 6 hours on 3G and up to 10 hours on Wi-F Video playback: Up to 10 hours Audio playback: Up to 40 hours |
| Size | Height:4.5 inches (115.2 mm) Width:2.31 inches (58.6 mm) Depth:0.37 inches (9.3 mm) | Height:4.5 inches (115.2 mm) Width:2.31 inches (58.6 mm) Depth:0.37 inches (9.3 mm) |
| Weight | 4.8 ounces (137 grams) | 4.8 ounces (137 grams) |
| Colors | Black and White (not yet available) | Black and White (not yet available) |
| Crapware | No carrier apps installed | No carrier apps installed |
| Antenna Gap Death Grip | Affected | Not Affected |
| Rating for Hearing Aids | 3G network – 850/1900MHz: M4, T4 2G network – 850MHz: M3, T3 2G network – 1900MHz: M2, T3 | M4, T4 |
| Cosmetic Change and Differences | A gap on stainless steel band (antenna metal bar) on top of the phone Both sides of stainless steel band has a gap at the bottom | Volume buttons and mute slider are place slightly up to the top. No gap on top stainless steel band (meta antenna bar). Both sides of stainless steel band has two gaps on top and bottom. |
How to Pre-Order iPhone 4 on Verizon (Register Interest)
The CDMA version of iPhone 4 will be only available for pre-order on or around February 3rd, 2011, but apparently Verizon has already started to accept registration of interest. Thus, for people who wants to be the first to know when the official pre-order starts, sign up for Verizon mailing list to be in the loop.
To sign up and register for interest on iPhone 4, head to the following iPhone page on Verizon Wireless or directly to the following URL:
http://ecrm.vzwshop.com/2011_ECRM/consumer/2011_Program_CES/1101_device/?LANGCODE=EN
The pre-oder is only available to Verizon Wireless customers only, on a “first come, first serve” basis via VerizonWireless.com. Both home and business pre-order buy must be made online, with store order only available on February 10th, 2011, the official launch date.
It’s unclear what priority will be given to those who register for interest though, although the registration page specifies that current Verizon Wireless customers who sign up will have an exclusive opportunity to get an iPhone 4 from the carrier’s reserved quantity before they’re available to everyone else.
Acer Liquid Mini Android Smartphone Overview
Besides announcingbeTouch E210 Android smartphone, Acer has also announced a new Android smartphone which is named as Acer Liquid Mini. The Acer Liquid Mini has been designed to run on Android 2.2 Froyo operating systems and powered by a 600MHz Qualcomm 7227 processor.
Featured with a 3.2-inch HVGA touchscreen which operates at 480 x 320 resolutions, the Acer Liquid Mini is also equipped with a 5-megapixel camera with capability of 480p video recording. It boasts a GPS, has built-in stereo FM radio, 512MB RAM, supports HSDPA and DLNA connectivity and comes with a battery that provides up to 6.5 hours of talk time and up to 20 hours of standby time. In addition, it is Bluetooth enabled and supports up to 32GB of microSD memory card.
Available in five vibrant colors such as jet silver, royal blue, piano black, lime green and light pink, the Acer Liquid Mini is expected to be available on 11 April in UK . However, the price of the Android smartphone is not yet announced.
Motorola Droid Bionic LTE 4G Android Smartphone Specifications
Motorola Droid Bionic is the first LTE 4G Android smartphone from Motorola. The smartphone has been designed to run on Verizon’s new LTE network. The Android smartphone is runs on Android 2.2 Froyo operating systems and powered by Dual core 1000 MHz Processor.
Key features of the Motorola Droid Bionic includes:
A 4.3-inches capacitive Touchscreen display with 540 x 960 resolutions.
Supports Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n and A-GPS.
Bluetooth 2.1 enabled with EDR and A2DP.
3D graphics hardware accelerator.
Computer synchronization, OTA synchronization and DLNA connectivity.
A front-facing VGA camera and a rear-facing 8-megapixel camera with AF and LED flash.
Supports HD 1080p video recording.
Supports HTML5 and Adobe Flash Player.
Supports MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+ and MIDI audio formats and MP4, H.263, H.264 video playback.
Comes with a Li-ion 1930 mAh battery, 16GB of internal memory and 512MB RAM.
Supports up to 32GB of microSD card memory.
Has built-in 3.5mm audio jack, micro USB 2.0 and HDMI port.
The Motorola Droid Bionic with dimensions of 125.9×66.9×13.3mm and weighs 158 gram is expected to be available in second quarter of 2011. However, the price of the Android smartphone is not yet announced.
Microsoft Touch Mouse With Multitouch Surface
Microsoft corporation has unveiled its new multitouch mouse, named as Microsoft Touch Mouse, which is designed specifically to extend your Windows 7 usage with the ability of clicking, flicking, scrolling and swiping, providing an easy and fun way to interact with your Windows 7 PC.
Key features of Microsoft Touch Mouse:
New multitouch surface allows users to snap, navigate and control content by using natural gestures
New flick scrolling functionality enables users to quickly scroll and pan through windows and documents
New improved, simple task switching on Windows 7
BlueTrack Technology for tracking virtually anywhere, anytime
Ambidextrous design for use with left- or right-hand
Snap-in USB nano transceiver supports a range of 30 foot
Microsoft Touch Mouse is now available for pre-order at Microsoft Store online and Amazon.com, expected to hit the market in June 2011 for around $80.
Watch the demo video for Microsoft Touch Mouse:
