Rumored Galaxy S5 Prime spotted in India

There have been some murmurs that Samsung, in an effort to grab some of HTC's premium phone market share (and undoubtedly the upcoming iPhone 6's), release a high-end version of their Galaxy S5 phone, called the S5 Prime. The upgraded version of the Korean manufacturer's latest flagship is supposed to have an aluminum encasing, 2K screen, and 3GB RAM.


Now Samsung has been mum on their plans with the Samsung Galaxy S5 prime, and haven't even acknowledged that they're working on the device, but it seems to be a pretty poorly kept secret with a series of leaks hinting at the phone's development.
The latest development is an Indian shipping manifest that shows a device with a code number SM-G906S, which is supposed to be a regional version of the Galaxy S5 Prime.
The G906S has also shown up on GFXBench, with the following specs detailed:
•5.2-inch 2560×1440 display
•2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 quad-core processor •with Adreno 420 GPU

•3GB of RAM
•32GB of storage
•16 MP rear/ 2MP front-facing camera
•Android 4.4.2 KitKat
We have to yet to see if these rumors are going to turn out true, and in the meantime, we'll just be forced to play the waiting game. Let's say that these leaks are credible and Samsung is indeed planning on releasing a premium version of the S5, would you be willing to pay a premium price for a premium S5?
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Samsung Galaxy S5 Neo leaks again, 5.1-inch display in tow

The Samsung device that goes by the model number SM-G750 has popped up again on an Indian import database site Zauba. We've seen the model number before and speculations suggest it could turn out be the Galaxy S5 Neo. In its previous leak it sported a screen resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels and an 2.3 GHz CPU.
Though the new leak we gather some new information - the screen size is slated as a 5.1" - the same as the Galaxy S5. The SM-G750 is listed as SM-G750A, SM-G750F and SM-G750H - probably regional options for different markets.


Previously it was though the SM-G750 is the Galaxy S5 mini but that goes by the name of SM-G800 and sports a 4.5" display.
Sadly that's all the info we get at this point. Hopefully the Galaxy S5 Neo goes official and we get some solid information soon.
Source | Via (in Dutch)

Samsung announces the Galaxy K zoom camera phone

Samsung has officially announced the Galaxy K zoom camera phone, the successor to the Galaxy S4 zoom launched last year. Like its predecessor, the Galaxy K zoom combines a regular smartphone with the hardware of a point and shoot camera.

On the camera-side, the Galaxy K zoom has a 20.7 megapixel 1/2.3 BSI CMOS sensor and a 10x, 24-240mm F3.1-6.3 zoom lens with optical image stabilization (OIS). The phone has a xenon flash with an LED autofocus assist. On the front is a relatively humble 2 megapixel camera.
On the smartphone side, the Galaxy K zoom has a 4.8-inch, 1280x720 resolution Super AMOLED display, Exynos 5 Hexa SoC with six CPU cores comprising of four 1.3GHz ARM Cortex A7 and two 1.7GHz ARM Cortex A15; along with a Mali-T624 GPU, 2GB RAM, 8GB internal memory with microSD support (up to 64GB), LTE, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, NFC, 2,430mAh battery and Android 4.4 KitKat.

The Galaxy K zoom will be available in May in black, white and blue for €499.
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More alleged details on HTC M8 Ace make the rounds online

More alleged details on the previously leaked HTC M8 Ace made the rounds online. According to a report in Engadget, the yet to be announced smartphone will offer Samsung Galaxy S5-matching specs for significantly less money.
The HTC M8 Ace will reportedly feature plastic unibody design, similar to the one seen in HTC Desire 610. The specs are tipped to include a 5” 1080p display and Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC with 2.5GHz quad-core CPU.
Most importantly, the launch price of the smartphone is said to be CN¥3,000 (around $480).This means that the M8 Ace will significantly undercut the Samsung Galaxy S5 when available.
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LG Q1 2014 results show 12.3 million smartphones sold

LG's financial report for Q1 2014 is out and things are looking good for the Korean company as it managed to ship 12.3 million smartphones for the period. That's a 19% increase compared to the same quarter of 2013 and helped LG's mobile division to ramp up its revenue to KRW3.41 trillion ($3.19 billion) - a 6% YoY increase.


Out of the 12.3 million smartphones, 5 million were LTE-enabled, which is the highest the company has sold in a quarter so far.
Additionally, the financial results press release points to the launch of the upcoming LG G3 in Q2. Not only did it confirm the name of the phone, but it also confirmed the launch of more L-series III smartphones.
We saw the LG G3 leak in an exclusive picture sent to us by a tipster. The rear-mounted keys are here to stay and the phone is rumored to pack 3GB of RAM and a 5.5" QHD display. We also saw a bunch of screenshot depicting the phone's latest Optimus UI with a flatter design.

Overall, the company's Q1 net profit marks a 319% yearly increase - to KRW92.60 billion ($86.62 million). The consolidated first-quarter revenues are KRW 14.27 trillion (USD 13.35 billion). Compared to the same quarter in 2013, that's a 1.2% increase.
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Samsung’s Q1 2014 results reveal a net profit of $8.2billion

Samsung released its 1 2014 earnings report. In line with the earnings guidance from earlier this month, the Korean giant posted a net profit of 8.5 trillion won ($8.2 billion) from 53.68 trillion won ($51.8 billion) of revenue.
The company’s net profit took a 3% dip compared to the same period last year. Samsung attributed the second straight fall of quarterly profit to a weakness in the market for flat-screen panels and maturing high-end smartphone segment.
Samsung’s mobile division raked in an operating profit of 6.43 trillion Won ($6.2 billion USD) for the quarter. The number is down 1.2% from a year ago, but 18% up compared to the previous quarter.
Unsurprisingly, Samsung Galaxy S5 is expected to lead increased demand over next quarter, despite continued weak seasonality. Samsung expects its current flagship to outsell its predecessor, the Galaxy S4.
Going forward, Samsung expects its profits to increase in the next quarter thanks to improved sales of display panels and home appliances. The upcoming World Cup in Brazil is expected to be a major sales booster for the company.
Source | Via

BlackBerry Z3 goes on pre-order, specs finally detailed

The BlackBerry Z3 which was officially announced at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this past February alongside the Q20 is now available for pre-order in Indonesia through local carriers Indosat and XL. The device will be launched (and probably shipped as well) on May 13 in Jakarta.
Aside from the standard Z3 there will also be a Jakarta Edition, which will have the name of the Indonesian capital engraved on its back panel. The special version will be available for a limited time to commemorate the launch of the first BB smartphone built for the Indonesian market.


Just as previously promised, the device will cost under $200 - BlackBerry expects a price of IDR 2,199,000 (amounting to around €137 and $190). We also got a recap of the specs of the smartphone - there wasn't much info about those when the Z30 was announced.
The BlackBerry Z3 has a 5" qHD (540 x 960) display, 8 GB of expandable on-board storage, 1.5 GB of RAM to accompany the dual-core 1.2 GHz Snapdragon 200 processor. The cameras are a 5 MP unit on the back along with a 1.1 MP 720p unit on the front.

There are no physical QWERTY keyboards here, this is a full touch device. The BlackBerry Z3 will carry BlackBerry OS version 10.2.1 and be powered by a 2,500 mAh battery.
Sadly word on availability outside the Indonesian market wasn't given.
Source | Via