Android

Designed to overcome the frustration of listening to phone calls in noisy environments, Kyocera's new URBANO PROGRESSO smartphone provides an alternative to the traditional speaker by transmitting sound through vibrations in the handset’s display screen. Read More

Smartphone cameras are undoubtedly handy for snapping a picture of a receipt, memo or other note to quickly record or remind you of some task that needs taking care of. It's faster than using a dedicated scanner, but the results are often below par. Scanbox aims to improve the quality of these phone camera "scans" by providing a portable stage that puts the camera and the subject in just the right position. Read More

Apple is expected to unveil the next iPhone at its annual mobile keynote this year and as is the case with any high profile product launch, rumors about the device are beginning to materialize months before the event is scheduled to take place. Most recently, Wall Street Journal sources suggest that Apple intends to upsize the iPhone’s display from 3.5 to 4 inches. Read More

It's not that long ago that GPS capabilities in a mobile phone were considered a standout feature. Today, GPS navigation is standard for smartphones, and as a result, many of us have come to rely on them when it comes to getting from A to B. However, GPS technology isn't without its faults, and if A to B is located under a roof, out of sight of the orbiting GPS satellites, then you can end up falling back on the not always reliable sense of direction. To fix the problem, Fraunhofer Research is developing Smartsense, a smartphone sensor capable of providing accurate navigation indoors, without the aid of GPS. Read More

HTC is looking to NASA to improve the durability on its latest slimline smartphone. The aluminum housing on the HTC One S is treated with a process called microarc oxidation - an electrochemical surface treatment process used on many NASA satellites that results in a housing three times stronger than stainless steel. Read More

Samsung is currently the number one Android handset maker in the world, with market researcher NPD recently reporting that one in every four smartphones sold in the U.S. bear the Samsung logo. So it comes as no surprise that the Galaxy S III has become one of the most highly anticipated phones of 2012, but does it live up to the hype? Read More

Smartphones and the technology that powers them continue to evolve at an incredible rate. Year after year, phones have continued to close the power gap that separates them with their traditional PC counterparts. Taking advantage of the latest in mobile processors, Canonical is set to release Ubuntu for Android. The OS effectively turns your phone into a full Ubuntu desktop computer when docked and connected to a monitor, meaning the day your smartphone could act as your primary computer is drawing nearer. Read More

Google has finally released Drive, a new cloud storage option for all Google account holders, offering up to 5 GB worth of free storage. While it may be easy to draw comparisons to Dropbox, Microsoft's SkyDrive, or Amazon Cloud, Google Drive represents the final element of a powerful cloud platform, with services that rival those of Apple's iCloud. Read More

Samsung has announced U.S. availability for new versions of its Galaxy Tab Android tablet computer and two new portable media players. Both Galaxy Tab 2 devices run on Google's Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) operating platform with full access to Google Play (formerly Android Market), are powered by a 1GHz dual-core processor, have built-in GPS, and both front- and rear-facing cameras. The Galaxy Players also run on Android, but it's the Gingerbread (2.3) flavor instead of ICS. Read More