For instance, a casting call for a young actor to star in a Galaxy Note 10.1 commercial was spotted by The Verge, no longer available officially but still visible in Google’s cache. The advert “will show a Galaxy Note 10.1 used for education, financial planning, and art” while the actor would play the role of a “teen student” that “uses his Galaxy Note 10.1 to record, take pictures, edit” and more.

It’s not the first we’ve heard of Samsung looking to extend S-Pen functionality beyond the 5.3-inch Galaxy Note. Back in January, a Samsung product marketing manager hinted that the company saw obvious advantages for tablets with digital pens; “I think a pen interface continues to make a lot of sense across a number of screen sizes,” Ryan Biden revealed, ”like the larger is more obvious of those.”

That Samsung would reuse the Wacom-based pen technology is unsurprising. An S-Pen SDK has already been released, allowing developers to create their own apps which use the more accurate input option, and Samsung has been releasing software tailored to the stylus through its own on-device app store.

With the Galaxy S III no longer expected at Mobile World Congress it looks like Samsung will still have a few interesting tricks up its sleeve for the show. We’ll be in Barcelona at the end of February to bring you all the details.

The company already offers Bluetooth speakers with the HTC Rhyme, but according to the tipsters and more substantial “wireless boombox” is in the pipeline. That would use Bluetooth to stream audio from HTC phones and tablets, as well as presumably offering some degree of remote control over playback.

HTC has apparently been in talks with Spotify previously, as well as other streaming music providers, around powering a service for HTC devices, but the negotiations failed to go anywhere. Instead, Iovine is believed to be using his heft in the industry to create a Spotify rival, something fellow music execs are tipped to approve of as it could potentially dilute Spotify’s rising star.

The service will be preinstalled on HTC devices, though it’s unclear as to whether it will demand a subscription or, like Nokia Music on the Finnish company’s Lumia devices, be a free addition intended to encourage shoppers to pick HTC phones and tablets rather than those of rival manufacturers, even if they run the same underlying OS. Pricing plans and other details are still being worked on, supposedly, but HTC is tipped to have “long harbored” ambitions around streaming music services. The company already offers streaming video using its HTC Watch rental system.

HTC could reveal the new music platform as early as the Barcelona mobile show at the end of February, where it’s also tipped to be bringing three new Android smartphones – including the Ville and Edge – and a new tablet. We’ll be at Mobile World Congress bringing back all the details as they’re announced, and you can keep up with all the news in our MWC 2012 hub.

“The customs have told us that it will be difficult to implement a ban because many Chinese consumers love Apple products” Proview Technology chairman Yang Long-san told Reuters. “The sheer size of the market is very big.”

Instead, the company is chasing piecemeal blocks at a local level. ”We have applied to some local customs for the ban and they’ll report to the headquarters in Beijing” Yang confirmed. Earlier this month, some evidence of that strategy had been seen in Chinese retailers, with government officials confiscating iPad 2 units out on public display. However, a heated unofficial trade in the tablets continued, with buyers still able to grab the iOS slate “under the counter.”

According to Yang, the best option for ending the iPad trademark saga is an out-of-court settlement. That wouldn’t be new for Apple, however; the company has argued it acquired worldwide rights to the trademark from a Taiwanese Proview subsidiary in a deal several years ago. However, Proview managed to convince the court that the deal did not cover use of “iPad” in China.

Even if Apple branches out into a second slate, it’s unlikely to subsequently follow Samsung’s path of a different tablet for every individual buyer. Part of Apple’s constraint is app resolution, or more accurately maintaining compatibility across multiple screen resolutions. Right now that means the initial iPhone (320 x 480), the Retina Display introduced by the iPhone 4 (640 x 960), and the iPad (1024 x 768). Talk of the Retina Display toting third-gen iPad has suggested a literally doubled resolution, to 2048 x 1536, with evidence of suitable graphics found in recent iOS 5.x betas.

The limiting factor isn’t technology, or even apps and usability – despite what Steve Jobs might have said – it’s supply. Apple needs to have sufficient amounts of whichever panel it settles on, likely a 7.85-inch IPS LCD according to previous rumors and past evidence, to ensure it can meet the expected demand. We’ve already seen what an LCD shortage can do to iPad availability, after all.

A 7.85-inch 1024 x 768 panel, therefore, would allow a so-called “iPad mini” to use the same apps as the existing iPad 2. Meanwhile, the  9.7-inch iPad could go on to adopt the high-resolution display in iPad 2S/3 form and, potentially, a higher sticker price, Apple perhaps assuaging any consumer frustrations with a price cut for the existing iPad 2.

Although rumors have suggested Apple will shift to a larger, perhaps 4-inch display on the next-gen iPhone 5, a tweener tablet and sticking with 3.5-inch smartphone screens arguably makes more sense. No dip in pixel density for the new iPhone, unlike if it spread its current 640 x 960 across a bigger panel, and no need for developers to cook up new handset versions of their apps, if instead the resolution changed.

We won’t know for sure until we see the first signs of Apple’s 2012 tablet strategy early next month, but until then let us know how excited you are about the upcoming iPad 2S/3 in the SlashGear poll below.

Attempting to pacify critics of the impending deal, Android-chief Rubin pointed out that Google intends to operate Motorola as a separate company. When it comes to partnering on future Nexus devices, he maintained, Motorola “will be part of that bidding process” but not guaranteed to win.

Still, Rubin’s comments belie Google’s obvious interest in Motorola’s upcoming product range, something chairman Eric Schmidt conceded in September last year. “We actually believe that the Motorola team has some amazing products coming … We’re excited to have the product line, to use the Motorola brand, the product architecture, the engineers” Schmidt said, “[we like] having at least one area where we can do integrated hardware and software.”

Exactly how those two approaches will pan out remains to be seen. Motorola has already shown itself willing to take on Google at its own game, pushing out a developer version of the DROID RAZR to challenge the Samsung-made Galaxy Nexus; even if other manufacturers secure future Nexus contracts, they’ll face the prospect of competing Motorola devices that have potentially just as much input from Google as their own do. As Rubin described the Nexus strategy, ”all the teams [from Google and the OEM] huddle together in one building, they jointly work and these development efforts go on for 9-12 months”, something that seems likely to also be the case for Google’s greater involvement in Motorola’s impending range.

For consumers, there’s still no guarantee that the devices they buy will run the latest version of Android or, indeed, get a timely update. Motorola’s track record on this has been patchy; the XOOM tablet launched in early 2011 with all but the name pointing to it being the “official” Google Android slate, but lagged behind rivals for OS refreshes. Meanwhile, Motorola persists with its UI modifications to its smartphone range, contributing to delays in updates there.

The improved power management means that the 9800mAh battery is good for close to 18 hours per charge with use. The tablet has dual stereo speakers, 32 GB of storage space, a microSD port, and a five-megapixel camera. The tablet also has a SIM card slot allowing for 3G connectivity along with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

The new information we have is that the Wi-Fi only version will land in France and possibly the rest of Europe starting next month for €399. The tablet will come in black or silver and there’ll be a bunch of accessories available. That price is much more bearable than the original €499 that had been tipped last month.

[via Notebookitalia]

The smaller iPad will have a screen resolution the same – or “similar” – to the existing iPad 2, or 1024 x 768, one source indicated. That would suggest Apple was sticking with the 4:3 aspect ratio, sensible given iPad apps are currently designed for that. Similar rumors – citing the same suppliers – broke last October, with a 7.85-inch screen size tipped.

However, while the supplier insiders say Apple has been showing potential designs for the new tablet around suppliers, it’s also pointed out that such product flirtation isn’t unusual: and, it often doesn’t amount to a commercial device. Although the company has been slow and steady with its iPhone range, sticking to a single “flagship” device at any one time and keeping older models on the market to satisfy lower price points, Apple is supposedly considering an iPod-style strategy with tablets where different models would address different use-cases.

If true, the new “iPad mini” would be another example of Apple dismissing a product category before subsequently entering it. Steve Jobs memorably blasted 7-inch and similar tablets as “tweeners” back in October 2010, arguing that their scale “isn’t sufficient to create great tablet apps” and suggesting that such models should include sandpaper so that users could file their fingers down to a usable size.

“Apple has long contemplated different tablet designs” the WSJ’s sources say, though again there’s no guarantee that contemplation will lead to production. Nonetheless, even with a third-gen iPad expected on March 7, this looks to be a rumor that won’t die any time soon.

This release has been confirmed (in so many words) by the folks at The Loop and falls in line with “first week of March” rumors we’ve been hearing now for some weeks. This device will quite likely feature upgrades that number greater than what we’ve heard thus far, but for the most part this appears to be an upgrade of specifications rather than of operating system as well.

The iPad 3 (or the iPad 4S, as some are suggesting) will almost certainly have a much more powerful camera than any iPad before, details appearing this morning pointing at a shooter much closer to the iPhone 4S. Pricing details will appear on the day of the announcement, but will likely end up keeping with the pricing setup Apple has for the iPad 2 while the iPad 2 will have its price reduced as was the case when the iPad 2 was released and the original iPad’s price was cut down.

[via iMore]

What’s being confirmed here by Samsung to Sammy Hub is a set of prices that sit in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark, along with assurance that the Galaxy Tab 2 will release in the UK first. This tablet is shaping up to be rather similar to the ASUS MeMO tablet we saw at CES 2012, but at half the core power and twice the price. Will the high-powered display be enough to convince customers that this is the winning 7-incher?

Here is the official pricing and availability for the Scandinavian countries. Expected in March, the tablet will sell in both Wi-Fi-only and Wi-Fi + 3G versions.

Sweden:
Wi-Fi: 2,995SEK (450USD)
3G: 3,695 SEK (556USD)

Finland:
Wi-Fi: 349EUR (463USD)
3G: 429EUR (568USD)

Norway:
Wi-Fi: 2,400NOK (420USD)
3G: 2,990NOK (523USD)

Denmark:
Wi-Fi: 2,350DKK (419USD)
3G: 3,995DKK (512USD)

Take a trip down Chris Davies way to get a better understanding of this situation and head back to our last review of a Galaxy Tab to see what Samsung is about to offer. This is the billionth tablet shown off by Samsung in the last year it seems, and there’s no sign of them stopping in 2012. Tablets galore for all!

At first glance, obsession is an easy explanation. “Throw a lot at the wall and see which stick” is certainly a workable strategy, if an inelegant and profligate one. You could, though, give Samsung the benefit of the doubt and highlight that it’s merely refreshing an existing product point, bringing a single-core slate running a smartphone iteration of Android up to date with dual-core and Google’s latest tablet-centric build. The existence of the 7.0 Plus does somewhat muddy that argument, however.

Will the scattergun approach to tablets work for Samsung? On the one hand, it’s exactly the strategy the company has taken with smartphones, and it’s been a successful one. Samsung broke the 300m device barrier in phones last year, with a roadmap about as different to, say, Apple’s as you could imagine. Not just two or three generally similar devices targeting entry-, mid- and flagship-range buyers, but almost a different handset for every possible sub-section of the potential audience.

So, if you want a roughly iPhone-scale smartphone, running Android, but cheaper and with a mid-range camera… oh, and you specifically want it in metallic blue, Samsung likely has the model for you. If you tick most of those boxes, but prefer something a little larger than an iPhone, but don’t care too much about photography, there’s a device in Samsung’s range that should satisfy you as well. In short, there’s everything from bargain-basement to Galaxy S II flagship (with the GSIII on the way).

In the end, though, the tablet proposition boils down to price. Tablets aren’t generally sold with a subsidy, unlike cellphones, and that means there’s a minimum tideline that all manufacturers have having to challenge. Some of Samsung’s phones are sold free-on-contract: in contrast, a “bargain” slate is a $199 Kindle Fire or a $249 NOOK Tablet. Apple’s iPad isn’t the target here, beyond an aspirational figurehead: something to make consumers aware of tablets’ existence and fuel a desire for them.

If Samsung can bring the Galaxy Tab 2 in at under $300 – pricing is yet to be officially confirmed, but that looks to be the way the tag is heading based on rumors so far today – with the lure of Ice Cream Sandwich and the content ecosystem the company has created, it could stand a chance. A street price closer to the NOOK Tablet would be even more convincing. That’s also roughly the price of a high-end multifunction remote control; if you’ve got a Samsung Smart TV, you could turn your Galaxy Tab 2 into a universal remote and an extra, streaming screen with the free apps Samsung offers in its download store.

That works today, but whether Samsung – or the market – can sustain what feels like a new tablet every other month remains to be seen. Viewed from outside, it looks like a ridiculous challenge. Arguably, Samsung doesn’t have to convince everyone with every iteration: it only has to persuade those people on the market for the latest tablet at any one time. For now, then, the model works; Samsung just needs to find its breakthrough device sooner rather than later.

"HTML5 is a compelling technology for developing apps, and is quickly improving. Combined with the freedom to build what you want and distribute it directly to users on your own terms, it has great potential. But just as there are gaps to be filled from a technology point of view, there are gaps to be filled from an ecosystem point of view. The Web lacks standard, consistent ways to find, rate, review, purchase and prove ownership of apps. Mozilla’s goal is to foster an ecosystem that combines the best elements of the Web with the best elements of the app model" Mozilla Foundation

Although it might be the easy - and, given the challenges faced from Google's Chrome, Apple's Safari and Microsoft's Internet Explorer, some might argue sensible - route to make the apps Firefox-only, Mozilla is targeting cross-browser compatibility. The common standards the group intends would "support multiple app stores, direct distribution of apps by app developers, app portability and true end-user ownership of their apps."

As for distributing that software, Mozilla plans to extend its existing web-app Marketplace to cover phones and tablets in addition to desktop users. Apps will be supported in any browser, no matter the device or OS, and developers will be able to release paid as well as free titles.

Part of Mozilla's challenge is opening up broad hardware access to apps created in HTML5, CSS and JavaScript, which currently lack the flexibility of native code. To do that, it's pushing ahead with "Boot to Gecko" (B2G), the web-powered mobile platform for phones and tablets that, while using a trimmed-down Android base layer, will boot straight into a browser-style interface for native support of HTML5 and other web-app coding. Mozilla is aiming for a public product demo of B2G sometime this quarter.

[via CNET]

There are several signs that this is a budget model, targeting the entry-level in Samsung’s expansive tablet line-up. For a start, the main camera is fixed-focus, and has no LED flash; the front-facing camera, meanwhile, is VGA resolution rather than the more typical 1.3-megapixel or above. It’s also 10.5mm thick, not vast in the grand scheme of things, but still chubbier than other recent slates Samsung has produced.

That comparative heft is used to accommodate WiFi, Bluetooth 3.0, A-GPS and – likely optional – HSPA+ connectivity. There’s also either 16GB or 32GB of internal storage, plus a microSD card slot for augmenting that. A 4,000 mAh battery rounds things out, though Samsung isn’t saying how long that should last for.

Software, meanwhile, is Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich – the first Samsung slate to come preloaded with ICS, it seems – with TouchWiz modifications, the various content hubs, ChatON IM app, KIES Air and DLNA support. Pricing is unconfirmed, as is availability, though we’re assuming the Galaxy Tab 2 will be cheaper than the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus.

[via SammyHub - thanks Kote!]

TNW reports that Apple is the country’s top tablet maker with combined sales of original iPad and the new iPad 2 getting Apple 70% to 80% of the tablet market inside the country. According to reports, Apple has sold 700,000 iPad devices since the tablet launched in the country last April through the end of 2011. Sales of iPad devices this year put Apple over the 1 million mark.

One more interesting things from this report is that the number could actually be well over that 1 million tablets sold mark to South Korean consumers. This figure does not take into account the number of people who bought the iPad from other countries or through the gray market before the iPad was officially available in South Korea.

[via TheNextWeb]

Some retailers have pulled all of their visible stock, it’s suggested, in an attempt to avoid seizure by the authorities. However, under-the-counter sales are still going ahead. Those stores which didn’t move quickly enough have had visible stock removed.

Proview convinced Chinese courts that it held the iPad trademark back in early December 2011, having filed a suit the previous year. It filed the iPad trademark back in 2000, well before Apple’s tablet plans went public, and thus holds the rights to use the name within China.

Apple launched the iPad 2 in China last year, despite the ongoing trademark suit, and as of today is still offering online sales of the second-gen slate. The company is expected to appeal the ruling, though until that happens availability of the iPad may become more difficult in the country.

[via DigiCha]

According to Xbox World Magazine, the successor to the Xbox 360 will use controllers that have “an HD screen surrounded by the traditional 360 buttons and sticks.” The main purpose of incorporating a display into the controller is apparently to demonstrate the multipurpose functionality of the Xbox 720. That is to say, when you’re playing an Xbox game the controller will display game menus and functions, but when you’re watching streaming video it might be used as a virtual TV remote.

The Xbox 360 has obviously been transformed from a game box that had no HDMI output or Wi-Fi connectivity, to a living room hub with the ability to do everything from log into social networks to watching live TV without ever needing to pick up your TV remote. However, it appears Microsoft might be heading down the same road Sony did when it went from PS2 to PS3 – going too far too fast, and expecting customers to pay an arm and a leg to keep up. Xbox World Magazine projects that the Xbox 720 will retail for more than $500.

[via CVG]

GSM Arena obtained the document, which reveals that the first samples for the Berry Pink Galaxy Note will arrive on the 8th week of this year, with public availability starting in the 9th week, or about three weeks from now. The device will also be available in its standard Carbon Blue and Ceramic White, with which we’ve recently spent some hands-on time.

The new color makes sense since Samsung has admitted to targeting the female demographic with the Galaxy Note. The device’s size is generally too big for comfort in pants pockets, but fine in purses and handbags. Unfortunately, the device just misses Valentines Day, but will likely make a showing at Mobile World Congress later this month.

[via Android Community]

If you’ll take a look back at our first of several posts regarding the Retina status of the future iPad’s display, you’ll find a leaked photo of some iPad 3 components. In this photo you’ll find a three wide ribbon cables as opposed to the two that the previous models had. This extra cable is more than likely in place to carry additional data to the high resolution display. Should the iPad 3 carry a Retina display at the massive 2048 x 1536 pixels that are being rumored, the data transfer of three cables will be needed.

Next there’s a peek at iBooks 2 icons that were released some weeks ago. These icons show the requirements for future apps, the amount of pixels being the same change that’d be in play should the Retina display be in full effect on this next iPad. Retina Display code has been spotted in developer code. This week’s iPad 3 component photo leak suggests a new LCD. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Apple recently updated their requirements for developers sending in screenshots for their apps, as seen here:

When you create or update your apps in iTunes Connect, you must upload screenshots that are high-resolution. We require your screenshots as high-resolution images so that your app is optimized for the Retina display.

The requirements for high-resolution images are 960 x 640, 960 x 600, 640 x 960, or 640 x 920 pixels. Images must be at least 72 dpi, in the RGB color space, and the file must be .jpeg, .jpg, .tif, .tiff, or .png. You can update your screenshot files at any time in iTunes Connect.

This could mean that iPhones before the iPhone 4 are simply being phased out, the same being true of older iPod Touches leading up to new models in 2012, but as MG Siegler says, “[if] Apple allows the iPad to run iPhone/iPod touch apps with the option to scale them up 2x, non-Retina iPhone apps (480 × 320) will undoubtedly look pretty bad on the Retina iPad.” This may very well be happening in desktop and laptop machines as well, the crisp nature of the future being Apple’s to take in this 2012 season.

So developers, heed the call – amp up your graphics, develop with the future in mind!

The tablet we’re looking at here is essentially a rebranded Zenithink C71, a device which in that iteration ran Google Android. In this Spark release, the tablet will be packaged with the ability to run Mer as well as Plasma Active. You’ll see more than just a little bit of lag here and there, as even though the tablet has a 1 GHz AMLogic ARM Cortex-A9 processor with Mali 400 graphics, we’re still seeing less than suitable power for even this relatively small screen.

The display here is a mere 800 x 600 pixels for the entirety of its 7-inches, and inside you’ll find 4GB storage, 802.11 b/g Wifi, and a 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera. What’s being marketed here is not just the mediocre tablet specs or the software, but the fact that this is the first “truly open” tablet on the market. It has open source software, an unlocked bootloader, and a content store based on the same open sourced platform the OS is on – the store itself can be created and distributed by anyone.

We’ll watch how this project develops and see if the idea spreads to the rest of the tablet / smartphone world. Likely it’ll remain in the wings and “underground” for some time to come. Also check out this demonstration of the Plasma Active interface on a slightly nicer piece of hardware to see its true potential:

[via Liliputing]

Although Apple was historically known for its premium pricing, rival manufacturers and carriers offering Android tablets have struggled to match or significantly undercut the iPad’s sticker price. It’s unclear at this stage whether Apple will be forced to raise the cost of the iPad 3/2S because of the new technologies involved, but even if it does, the company could salve the pain by slashing the price of the existing model.

Apple has shown it is willing to play the long game on building out its product range. Although rumors of an “iPhone mini” have persisted almost as long as the original iPhone speculation itself, Apple has preferred to wait until its existing line has matured to the point where production costs allow for free-on-contract pricing. The launch of the iPhone 4S saw a three model smartphone line-up for the first time, the aging iPhone 3GS kept on as the “new” entry-level model while the superseded iPhone 4 grabbed the mid-tier spot.

That sort of strategy could well work for the iPad, especially given the tablet – unlike its smartphone counterpart – isn’t generally subsidized by carriers. Previous leaks from iPad 2 display suppliers have lent weight to the idea that Apple will maintain production of the second-gen model, and a more affordable device – say, from $399 or even less – would significantly increase pressure on any new tablets launched at MWC 2012.

That comes as little surprise, given the most commonly leaked details about the upcoming tablet refresh are around its display and GPU abilities. While the first two iPad generations used a 1024 x 768 resolution display, Apple is tipped to have doubled that for the new model. That should add up to smoother, Retina Display style graphics and more detailed video playback.

Meanwhile, the graphics chip inside the iPad 3 is also said to have seen a significant boost, with Apple expected to use the new tablet to launch the A6 processor. Conflicting rumors have tipped the A6 as both a dualcore and a quadcore CPU, however.

Those apps that make Apple’s grade for the iPad launch event are also being considered for the inevitable big-budget ad campaign for the slate. The first advert is likely to be shown at the launch event itself, followed up with TV spots highlighting the newer features.

Gottheil dismissed rumors that the iPad 3 will have a quad-core processor due to the power requirements, believing instead that Apple may introduce a new A6 processor that’s a faster dual-core chip. However, he feels certain that the next-gen iPad will sport a high-resolution screen similar to the iPhone’s Retina display.

In more predictions, Gottheil believes that the next-gen iPad will integrate Siri and that the iPad 2 will get a price reduction to around $400 for the 16GB WiFi-only version.

Despite Steve Jobs’ previous objections to a smaller 7-inch form factor, Gottheil says that a smaller iPad has always been part of the plan. He believes that Apple is working on a 7-inch iPad that will be introduced later this year along with a wireless keyboard-case accessory for the tablet.

[via ComputerWorld]

The GSMA weren’t the only ones who felt the iPhone 4 shone brightest at last year’s show; the fourth-gen smartphone was a constant benchmark for every new handset brought out to play. HTC managed to scoop device manufacturer of the year – something we think the firm may struggle to achieve in 2012, with Samsung a likely candidate instead – but each new phone was inevitably compared to Apple’s popular model.

Mobile World Congress 2012 is later in the month than in previous years, pushed back to the final week of February rather than around Valentine’s Day. That means geeks can finally spend the day of romance with their loved-ones – or alternatively lamenting that they’re Forever Alone – but it also plays neatly into Apple’s scheduling. With the third-gen iPad reportedly ready for March sales, it was probably too much to resist scheduling an event the invitations for which – in Apple tradition going out a week in advance – would drop straight in the middle of MWC and rivals’ big launches.

What’s interesting, though, is that 2012 could be the year that Android tablets come of age. Ice Cream Sandwich is a huge improvement on the clunky, uninspiring Honeycomb, and in effect hits reset on the Android tablet segment. Where 2011 was all about how smartphones held up to iPhones, this year’s burning question will be whether each manufacturer has done enough to prepare for the oncoming iPad onslaught.

The best challenge may well come from Samsung, which is tipped to bring a 2560 x 1600 11.6-inch tablet to the show, “barely larger” than the Galaxy Tab 10.1 thanks to a wafer-thin bezel, and running the new home-grown Exynos 5250 chipset. Samsung has already announced it will be saving the new Galaxy S III until later in the first-half of this year, presumably hoping to mimic Apple’s strategy and foreshadow the iPhone 5 believed to be coming in June or July.

Apple news or otherwise, SlashGear will be at Mobile World Congress later this month bringing back all the news as it’s announced. Keep up with all the details at our MWC 2012 hub.

Still, based on past timescales, a retail release around a week after the iPad is unveiled seems most likely. Rumors had previously suggested that the third-gen iPad would be shown off publicly sometime this month, but sources later changed their story and suggested March would be the most likely launch window so as to allow sales close to the big reveal.

As for specifications, it’s unclear if the tablet will be the iPad 3 or the iPad 2S, but a “Retina Display” running at 2048 x 1536 is expected. Persistent rumors had indicated a quadcore processor, too, though more recent leaks have questioned whether the Apple A6 chipset believed to be at the heart of the new iPad could, in fact, be a faster dualcore.

A bigger battery and slightly redesigned casing are also in the pipeline, we’re led to believe, along with LTE connectivity. Apple declined to comment on the launch date suggestions, though if they turn out to be true we’re likely to see official invites fired out in the week prior, just in time for the company to distract from Mobile World Congress.

The Edge is believed to be at the pinnacle of HTC’s new “Hero Device” strategy, as the company attempts to break away from the quantity-over-quality strategy that saw it lose market share in 2011. HTC has also formed a new “HTC Studio” division, bringing together key engineering, design, software and other expertise to focus on polished phones and tablets, along with the flexibility to look beyond current bosom-buddy Qualcomm for its chip supplies.

Companies opting for Tegra 2 last year saw their dual-core Android phones hit the market well in advance of HTC’s Qualcomm-based dual-cores, leaving the firm on the back foot in marketing terms at least. NVIDIA’s graphics expertise is also cited by the sources as of key interest to HTC.

HTC is expected to launch a new tablet early in 2012, in addition to phones, though it remains to be seen if the company will use Tegra 3 for that as well as the Edge. Meanwhile LG and others are already believed to have committed to NVIDIA’s chip.

The key differences between the iPad 2 and iPad 3 back panels include very different mounts for the logic board, which implies a major change in the shape of the logic board in the next-gen iPad. This change gives more space for a larger battery, which falls in line with rumors that the iPad 3 would offer greater battery life.

The back panel also reveals that the camera on the iPad 3 will be mounted at a new location, implying that there may be some tweaks to the camera as well. The mounting for the LCD is also modified suggesting a new display. The iPad 3 is rumored to sport a new high-res Retina Display.

[via AppleInsider]

The LTE-enabled Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 will be given to each Suns player complete with the team’s playbook, video from team practices and games, and scouting reports on opponents. It will also be easier for the team to manage their master itinerary and other travel plans.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab will also be used by the Suns throughout US Airways Center on game-nights such as for showing clients interactive views of game seating, presentations for season ticketholders, and other in-game promotions. The tablets will also be integrated into the Suns’ TV and radio broadcasts as a way to interact with digital fans via social media.

This case is 11 inches tall, 9 inches wide, and 1 inch deep, it weighing in at 1.25 points on its own, so it’s not exactly the most tiny case in the land. It’s not made for your briefcase, it’s not made to be used with your day to day school backpack (everyone knows that’s already full to the brim with textbooks anyway, right?) Instead you’ll be tossing any sort of 10-inch tablet you’ve got in here, be it your Samsung Galaxy Tab, your Acer Iconia Tab A500, your HP TouchPad, or even your Motorola XOOM, and bringing it mountain climbing.

Have a peek at what this case actually looks like in the hands-on video above, then feel free to check out the most impressive of all the many ultra-amazing drops that this case has gone through below. This video shows the case carrying an iPad and being dropped from 100,000 feet above the earth. Can you guess what happens when it hits the ground?

As with all G-Form products, this case is not a guarantee that you device will go completely unharmed. Instead what’s included in your limited warrantee is a guarantee that the case itself will hold up (this basically implying that the contents will hold up too, but still.) So when you do have this case, it’s probably better not to try to skewer your pad with a spike or anything like that. Have fun, but don’t go completely crazy. As G-Form notes:

Please Note: We’re happy that some of our customers’ electronics have survived their testing of our Extreme products, but we don’t encourage or recommend intentionally dangerous stunts, and although we are confident that G-Form provides the best protection available, we can’t guarantee your electronics from damage from any specific drop or impact in our Extreme products whether accidental or intentional.  The terms of our limited warranty and liability disclaimer can be found here, and as you can see it covers your portfolio but not your personal property/electronics whether inside or outside!

So our final judgement is this: truly this case is a sight to behold, and we’d bet that there’s nothing we could do to destroy the iPad held within. That said, we’re not going to go out and toss it under a semi-truck just to prove G-Form wrong, so the real test is this: is there any real function to this case other than ultra-protection? Sure! You could use this when traveling to ensure your pad doesn’t get damaged in a bag of rocks, or you could, as I mention above, take this case mountain climbing or biking, or you could potentially use it when you’re camping. The outer bits of the case are rather squishy and feel nice when pressed against your face – why not use it as a pillow?

Other than that, the sheer bulk included here takes out the possibility that you’ll be using this on a regular day-to-day basis. If you work as a gladiator, on the other hand, you’ll be golden! You can purchase this case from G-Form right this second in their online shop for $89.95.

“Samsung is looking forward to introducing and demonstrating exciting new mobile products at Mobile World Congress 2012″ the company said last week, before dashing hopes that they would include the Galaxy S III. Instead, the third-gen Galaxy flagship will be launched at an event of its own sometime in the first half of this year, allowing Samsung to announce the smartphone closer to the point of commercial availability but also monopolize the limelight.

The strategy by Samsung to play MWC cool follows Microsoft’s decision to ditch its traditional CES keynote spot. Microsoft said that the early January show no longer fitted in to its own timescales for product launches, and that standalone events made more sense moving forward.

Samsung’s products are rumored to include a new tablet, based on the company’s quadcore Exynos 5250 chipset, and potentially including a 2560 x 1600 display. There’s also likely to be several new handsets, while the role the company sees Tizen playing in its line-up will probably be on the agenda as well.

[Image credit: Mondo3]

The video you’re about to see shows both the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and the ASUS Transformer Prime, each of them running Android 4.x Ice Cream Sandwich, each of them running this first public release of Chrome Beta. You’ll find the experiences to be very similar with slight changes in icons and text locations due to size of display, and the same ability to see other devices as well as pre-fetch data from webpages before they’re needed. Notice though the slight differences – the ability to use the voice recognition engine on the tablet and the same option not appearing on the phone.

You’ll find that the nicest looking (or perhaps just the most visually striking) feature is the tabs browser. As you hit the number next to your URL bar – or “Omnibox” as Google has taken to calling it – you’ll see several cards appear. These cards are you tabs, and they can be accessed by tapping, destroyed by swiping, and pushed apart or together – the coolness of this increased by your ability to turn on Tilt Scrolling. This appears to use gravity but actually uses your accelerometer in your device to make the cards appear to move on their own when you tilt your device.

Link Previewing is a feature that Google speaks about in their trailer for the browser but we’ve not encountered a use for thus far. It’s supposed to have links popping up in balloons, essentially, when they’d otherwise be hard to tap. Using these previews has been so off-and-on for us that we’ll wait to show it off in any real manner. Signing in works far better, it allowing you, again, to access the tabs you’ve been using on other machines with Chrome on the fly. Your Chrome iterations also learn from one another for smart URL completion, but watch out if you’re using your Transformer Prime and expect to be able to select one of these pre-typed selections with your arrow keys – that’s not yet integrated.

Another point of interest when comparing the two different sized versions here: Tilt Scrolling is an option for both, but there’s no card tabs in the tablet-based Chrome like there is in the smartphone-based Chrome. You can still push your tabs back and forth in a similar manner above your browser window, but they don’t slide exactly like the smartphone-based card tabs.

Bookmark syncing works between devices, and the whole experience is appearing already to be a much faster and more pleasing experience than the stock Android browser as it stands today. Check the gallery below for some benchmark results as we grab them, and don’t forget to download the browser for yourself. Chrome Beta is available on the Android Market right this minute for free, [download it instantly] for your Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and above device.

Currently, Samsung Mobile Display is jointly owned by Samsung Electroncs, with 64.4-percent, and Samsung SDI, holding the minority 35.6-percent. The joint-venture is unlisted on the stock exchange, but operates semi-independently, supplying not only Samsung Electronics but other companies with AMOLED displays.

That could change, at least partly, if Samsung Electronics decides to bring the display business in-house. Such a move with give the company even more choice for the first-pick of new panel technologies, and allow it to better control the access of rivals to the screens.

As the smartphone and tablet markets heat up, that advantage could see Samsung extend its lead in the Android segment, as well as better challenge high-profile rivals like the iPhone. Apple has already shown how tight control over the supply-chain can work to a firm’s advantage; now Samsung looks to be following in those footsteps.

[via OLED-Info]

This study is showing off what a bit of number crunching can do to show not only the difference between the two major forces in the industry, but what they’ve been doing to the rest of the environment. There’s a crushing blow to be seen here, folks, and it’s not just that your mind should be amazed by the fact that a former titan like BlackBerry is included in that 9%. Android and iOS are growing, and it says a whole lot for Apple that even though their operating system only sits on a few devices, it’s got a comparable market share with Android, which has the ability to be placed on devices galore.

Have a look back at the rest of the statistics from studies in weeks bast. See the Android and Apple reports and find how no matter what’s found by the various forces that be, both are heading for a non-stop popularity festival through many years to come. Also remember that Windows Phone is included in that 9% as well, and that feature phones are not included in this study at all. It’s a tiny, tiny world we’re living in now, where dominance in smartphone OS versions is clear.

The products HTC launched in Q4 2011 “are not selling as well as we expected” Yung said, a detail that comes as little surprise given the numbers the company announced earlier in the day. Revenue in Q4 fell 2.49-percent year-on-year and by more than a quarter from Q3, to NT$101.42bn ($3.44bn), and HTC saw its margins shrink as well.

Yung echoed earlier suggestions from HTC’s press release, saying that the company was now waiting for “the next product cycle” to restore its fortunes. Nonetheless, revenues of just NT$65-70bn ($2.2-2.4bn) are predicted for Q1 2012, with a 25-percent gross margin, given the time it will take for newly-announced devices to actually reach the market.

The first of those new handsets are expected to be revealed at Mobile World Congress later this month. On the cards – according to the rumor-mill, at least – are the HTC Ville and the HTC Edge. We’ll be at MWC 2012 to bring back all the details.

The Huawei MediaPad features a 7-inch IPS multitouch display with 1280 x 800 pixel resolution, a 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera, and 5-megapixel rear-facing camera. The rear camera is capable of 4X zoom, AF, and 1080p Full HD video capture. The tablet also sports HDMI output and has a 4,100mAh battery for a six-hour battery life.

Although Huawei is set to launch MediaPads with the latest Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich on board, this MediaPad for AT&T will not. Instead, it will running Android 3.2 Honeycomb with the ICS update likely to come over-the-air sometime this first quarter of 2012. It’s not clear if AT&T will be releasing a more consumer-targeted version in addition to this enterprise offering.

[via PRNewswire]

There’s also a microSD card slot, WiFi b/g and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, along with a rear 5-megapixel camera. GPS, stereo speakers, a headphones socket and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera round out the main specs, along with a 4,000 mAh Li-Ion battery.

On the software side, Swype comes preloaded along with various sports apps, together with the usual suite of Google software.

The ZTE Optik will go on sale this coming Sunday, February 5 2012, priced at either $99.99 with a new, two-year agreement, or $349.99 upfront. Data plans will be $19.99 for 1GB of data, $34.99 for 3GB of data, $49.99 for 6GB of data and $79.99 for 12GB of data, with tethering a $29.99 per month add-on.

[via Android Community]

Hirai says that corporate structure is what has kept Sony from capitalizing on product innovations, and in fact has kept the company trapped in the past. “We really need to buckle down and be realistic,” he told the newspaper. “I don’t think everybody is on board, but I think people are coming around to the idea.”

To deliver on that, Hirai will use the same strategy that worked so well in Sony’s gaming division. The exec turned the PlayStation around from $2bn losses to profit in just four years, though mediocre sales of the PS3 had a detrimental effect on fiscal Q3 2011 results.

“I thought turning around the PlayStation business was going to be the toughest challenge of my career, but I guess not. It’s one issue after another. I feel like ‘Holy s—, now what?” Kazuo Hirai, CEO and President, Sony

“User experience” not just solid hardware is the way forward for Sony, the new CEO believes. His predecessor, Howard Stringer – who will take position as chair of the Sony board later this year – set out plans for a “four screen” strategy last year, integrating TV, PC, tablet and smartphone in an overall ecosystem; however, that means Hirai has to persuade would-be customers to buy not just one Sony device, but four of them.

“We can’t just continue to be a great purveyor of hardware products,” Hirai concludes, “even though some people expect us to do that.”

Details on the February press gathering are unknown, and only described as “strange”; however, it’s said to be a non-product related event. That could mean services, similar to the iBooks event earlier this month.

The new iPad, meanwhile, will be shown off in early March, supposedly, then released later in the month. It’s unclear whether the refreshed model will be the iPad 3, as suspected until now, or the iPad 2S, a bridging model that will introduce a faster, Apple A6 processor and “Retina Display” screen, but leave more fundamental changes until later in 2012 or even beyond.

Leaks earlier this week, reportedly from a user with early access to the iPad 3, suggest the tablet will come with a global 3G/4G option. Apple is apparently using a combination GSM/CDMA/LTE modem, that will allow the slate to run on HSPA+ networks as well as LTE ones, though specific carrier support is unknown at this stage.

[via Mac Rumors]

Qualcomm’s revenues are up 14% over the last quarter of 2011 and up a whopping 40% over this same period last year, sitting them in cool and pretty at $4.68 billion. This puts them up to $1.55 billion in operating income, an amount which puts them 24% and 25% higher than they were last year and last quarter, respectively. Their net income is right up around the O.I. with 1.40 billion, this up 20% from Q1 2011 and 33% from Q4 2011. Things are looking up all around!

In the estimates chart for 3G/4G device shipments you’re seeing here, growth is apparent of course, but what’s more interesting is how tiny growth has been in Japan and Korea compared to every other region. You’ll find North America to be growing at a healthy rate with China and India essentially exploding year over year, and estimates for 2012 hitting a slightly less fabulous percentage growth over 2011, but certainly looking pretty impressive compared to 2010.

In this quarterly total reported device sales chart, you’ll find that it’s been an ever-so-slightly bumpy road since December of 2008, but that December of 2011 is likely to reach nearly double what it was 3 years ago. Compared to the last four quarters, Qualcomm has been growing each quarter by a significant amount, with this first quarter always being the biggest of the year. If this chart holds true, we can expect a bit of a dip in Q2′s total reported device sales, with a continued upward swing until sometime next year.

In other words, Qualcomm is doing quite well right now as chips are up, mobile is up, and everything’s turning up Milhouse for the company that’s made a big showing at CES 2012 and is set to make another big bang at MWC 2012 – seeya there!

The patent in question covers scrolling display behaviors, namely the way in which a software list shows that the user has reached the bottom. Apple argued that its implementation, as patented, differs from any previous list systems. Samsung, however, argued that the patent hadn’t exceeded the nine month period during which it could be contested, and that no sales ban should be implemented until that had expired.

The court agreed, and Samsung free to sell the Galaxy Tab 10.1N in the German market. The variant has a tweaked bezel, thicker at the shorter sides than at the longer edges, with forward-facing speakers, and was created to work around Apple’s design patents. Apple complained, but courts decided that the design of the 10.1N was sufficiently different.

However, earlier this week a German judge upheld Apple’s original sales injunction against the Tab 10.1, and Samsung has seen two 3G standards-related cases against its rivals thrown out. Now the Korean company faces EU antitrust investigations over whether it misused the patented wireless technologies.

The Apple A6 processor, meanwhile, has the model number S5L8945X. Details on the A6 have not been released by Apple, but the chipset is expected to have not only four cores but upgraded graphics capabilities driving a “Retina Display” panel running at 2048 x 1536 resolution. Despite their legal differences currently clogging up courts worldwide, Samsung is believed to be manufacturing the A6 for Apple.

As for connectivity, LTE has been well-rumored and would certainly fit in with Verizon and AT&T in the US. The combination modem would also make sense for the multiple countries without 4G LTE networks, presumably offering HSPA+ connectivity as well.

Of course, this sort of screenshot would be relatively straightforward to fake, and so – as with most Apple rumors – we’ll take them with a heaped serving spoon of salt. It’s unclear whether the tablet will be the iPad 3 or, as other rumors have indicated, that Apple will push out an iPad 2S first as a more incremental update.

Hirai’s promotion has led to a small bout of executive shuffles. Most notable is the company’s new Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President Tadashi Saito, who until now has been President of Sony’s Semiconductor Business Group and Deputy President of the Professional, Device & Solutions Group. Although little has been said about overall strategy – Sony will likely outline more on its approach on Thursday, when it reveals its latest financial results – the promotion of a chipset exec likely recognizes the increasing “smart” potential of home entertainment devices like TVs.

“We can more rapidly and more widely offer consumers smartphones, laptops, tablets and televisions that seamlessly connect with one another and open up new worlds of online entertainment” Stringer said of the four-screen strategy back in October 2011. “This includes Sony’s own acclaimed network services, like the PlayStation Network and Sony Entertainment Network.”

Hirai’s big decision is exactly how closed an ecosystem Sony can afford to push. Apple’s approach – with iTunes, the iPod, iPhone, iPad and the App Store – has arguably worked because of the brand’s unique cachet with iOS. Sony, meanwhile, has struggled in the Android marketplace with its tablets, while Sony Ericsson has lingered behind Samsung and HTC in Android smartphones. The company’s TV business is also in trouble – a fourth year of losses for Sony, fueled by its underperforming TV division, is expected to be confirmed on Thursday – and it lacks the exclusivity of OS X or the cheap prices of Dell, HP, Acer and ASUS in computers.

If Sony goes for broad appeal – hoping to be at least one or two of the screens in front of non-Apple adopters, and adopting open standards like DLNA for content streaming – then it opens itself to rivals not only stepping into its ecosystem but doing better than it can. If the company takes the opposite approach, mimics Apple with proprietary systems, then it runs the risk of not finding enough buyers willing to splurge on an all Sony setup. The obvious halfway measure would be some degree of generic features with an exclusive subset solely for Sony devices, though that would require a careful balancing act.

It’s that balancing act that Stringer and the Sony Board apparently believes Hirai is capable of. Sony’s shares have plummeted in recent years, while those of its Cupertino rival has skyrocketed; the new CEO has plenty of work to do to convince not only buyers but investors that Sony has the ability – and he himself the vision – to deliver the compelling Apple alternative that has so far been conspicuous by its absence.