October, 2013

• 7 October

  Orange charges £1 for iPhone visual voicemail, free on EE

  

  Blinkin’ cheek. A feature that has been available on O2 for free on iPhones since the thing launched six years ago has recently been turned on by Orange — and it’s charging for it. Visual voicemail, which Steve Jobs proudly showed off as he announced Apple’s first ever mobile, is now available on the fruit-flavoured …

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• 7 October

  Spoiler Shield app protects you from blabbermouth friends

  

  I wasn’t able to watch last weekend’s “Breaking Bad” finale on the night it aired, meaning I faced a risk bigger than Walter White taking on Gus Fring: spoilers. Come Monday morning, one look at Facebook or Twitter and I’d almost certainly read something that gave away important plot points. And I’m spoiler-averse right down to my very core. But …

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• 7 October

  Nexus 5 couldn’t be more leaked as manual confirms specs

  

  Google’s new flagship blower is surely mere days from launch, as the eagerly awaited mobile’s full service manual has appeared online. Leaked by an anonymous source to Android Police, which later took it down at the request of manufacturer LG, it apparently confirms many of the phone’s expected specs. Much like LG’s powerhouse G2, the Nexus 5 is driven by …

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• 7 October

  Samsung Galaxy Round tipped to be first flexible phone

  

  Round and round we go with rumours of the future of phones: and the future is flexible with the Samsung Galaxy Round and its hotly-tipped curved screen. If new rumours from Korea are to be believed, Samsung’s first phone to sport a curved display will also be the first to hit shops, potentially beating the banana-shaped LG Z revealed last …

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• 7 October

  Nexus 5 alleged service manual reveals key specs

  

  An alleged LG service document leaked online spilled the beans on the Nexus 5. Posted on Scribd, the manual is geared toward service technicians and offers a lot of technical troubleshooting diagrams and steps. Some of the phone’s major specs are also laid out. Based on the manual, LG’s Nexus 5 will include a 4.95-inch 1,920×1,080 IPS (in-plane switching) screen, …

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• 7 October

  Qualcomm weighs in on the state of wireless charging

  

  Qualcomm hopes to bring some sanity to the fragmented world of wireless charging, one in which disputes over standards have left consumers without the ability to easily charge their phones without any cables. Such has been the dilemma with wireless charging, which is split between three camps: The Power Matters Alliance (PMA), which has got its wireless charging pads in …

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• 7 October

  Samsung Galaxy J, Sony Xperia Z1f leaked for Japanese market

  

  Samsung and Sony are respectively expected to introduce new variants of their flagship smartphones, the Samsung Galaxy S4 and Sony Xperia Z1, specifically intended for the Japanese market. According to a leaked NTT DoCoMo brochure obtained by RBMen, both phones should join the carrier’s roster over the next few quarters. Related stories Catch our full Samsung Galaxy S4 review Best …

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• 7 October

  AT&T’s U

  

  Got a hankering for watching HBO, VH1, or Showtime live from your smartphone or tablet? AT&T has good(ish) news for you. On Monday, the carrier launched over 100 live TV channels as part of its U-Verse app for select iOS and Android devices. There are a few catches, however. You’ll already need to subscribe to a AT&T’s U-verse TV package, …

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• 7 October

  LG to rev up production of flexible smartphone screens

  

  LG is set to gear up mass production of curved smartphone screens as it preps its own flexible display phone. “LG Display is launching a new era of flexible displays for smartphones with its industry-leading technology,” Sang Deog Yeo, chief technology officer of LG Display, said in a statement Monday. “The flexible display market is expected to grow quickly as …

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• 6 October

  BlackBerry accused of propping up stock with false claims

  

  A BlackBerry shareholder has filed a lawsuit against the struggling handset maker and two of its executives, alleging they made false and misleading statements about the company’s financial health and the prospects for BlackBerry 10. In a lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in Manhattan, investor Marvin Pearlstein alleges the company misled investors last year by saying BlackBerry was “progressing …

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