Nokia Android Smartphone Pics Leaked On The Web

This week Nokia has revealed a part of its future plans: the N9, a MeeGo-based smartphone with last year’s hardware specs, but with a gorgeous button-less design, a great UI, nice multitasking capabilities, and a beautiful touchscreen. Soon after that, the Nokia Sea Ray has been leaked, the first Nokia Windows Phone 7 device that should become available for purchase by the end of the year. Now let’s take a look at another Nokia device: an Android-powered smartphone.

The Nokia Android device follows the same design pattern as the N9 and Sea Ray, and I’m talking about that pillowshape which impressed many folks. At first sight it’s hard to understand why Nokia works on an Android smartphone when it has to focus on both MeeGo and WP7, but the answer is simple: in case the Windows Phone 7 platform fails, then Nokia has not one, but two back-up plans.

Android smartphones are selling better and better, and soon they will overtake Symbian as the most popular mobile platform, and it’s open source therefore it can explore the operating system whenever it wants on whatever it wants.

This Nokia device is powered by Android 2.3 Gingerbread and it seems like its part of the C-series though that’s not that important for the moment.

The sad part about this story (from Nokia’s point of view) is that Eldar Murtazin was once again right. I remember back when he tweeted that if Nokia’s deal with Microsoft will be a fiasco, then Nokia will finally switch to Android so this kinda contradicts the Finnish officials who’ve said that the Russian blogger’s rumors are getting less accurate.

There is no doubt that this Nokia Android smartphone is only a prototype and that the Finnish-based company is testing the environment, but Espoo should learn how to keep a secret. It already said that it will follow the Apple secrecy-based policy, but that WP7 device was leaked in no time and we know almost everything about it.

Check out the photos below to see for yourself!

Apple’s iOS 5 Will Put An End To iPhone, iPad, And iPod Touch Downgrade

Two years ago Apple was launching iOS 3 together with iPhone 3GS and was introducing a new system that was blocking the users to restore their devices to older iOS versions. Back then Dev Team found a method to overpass this restriction, by saving the SHSH and use it afterwards to be able to restore your device to any older iOS version, based on the saved SHSH.

We had lot of headaches with the SHSHs, and now it seems that Apple wants to save us from having problems with the whole SHSH fuss, by blocking the iOS downgradeprocedure. This means that once you will have iOS 5.1 installed on your device, you will not be able to return to iOS 5.0 at all.

Dev Team explained last night what the new restrictions imposed by Apple involves, comparing the new system with the one already existent for baseband downgrade. At the moment it’s impossible to downgrade the baseband, unless you have an iPhone 4 and install a beta version of iOS that comes with baseband you can return to a lower value. That’s what Apple will do with iOS 5, implementing a system that will generate a unique restore code for each iDevice, a code which will be checked every time you power on your device, and which, for now, is impossible to crack or duplicate.

The unique restore code is generated randomly at every restore and is not related to ECID SHSH, so without the Apple encryption code it will be difficult to “guess” the code or fake the iDevice’s authentication with every power on.

This new system will be introduced by Apple in the same time with iOS 5 and the interesting part is that Apple could let you return to a previous firmware version. This possibility may be provided by signing the restore codes (similar to SHSHs) for the old devices. Generally, after launching a new version of IOS Apple still singes the SHSS to the old version for a few days, so something similar could happen in iOS 5.

The good news for those owning a device compatible with iOS 5, except for iPad 2, is that limera1n exploit will still allow a tethered jailbreak for iOS 5 and that will be able to downgrade to iOS 4, if you previously saved the SHSH, but older versions of iTunes will be required in order to perform these actions. Dev Team claims that Apple will launch new versions of iTuens which will contain methods to block the restore to iOS versions, so we recommend you to keep iTunes 10.3 installation kit on a safe place on your computer, as you might need it later.

Finally, Dev Team claims that the new system will block the downgrade starting with iOS 5 GM which will be launched in a few months. I believe that lot of us expected Apple to introduce such restrictions, but just like SHSH method appear two years ago, new restore methods will be found, and Dev Team said they already found some ways to combat the restrictions.

In conclusion, starting with iOS 5 we will have to use new ways to restore older iOS firmware versions.

Here Are The First Leaked Pics Of Nokia N5 Running On Symbian Anna

Even though it looks like Nokia is going down, the international press rumored a lot about the Finnish company lately.

First they said that Microsoft will buy Nokia, then they said that Samsung made a bid to for the Finnish telecommunications company.

Leaving the rumors behind, a lot have happened in Nokia’s yard, all very fast. A week ago they launched Nokia N9, the first and only device running on MeeGo, then they confirmed a new developer’s toy, the Nokia N950, we spotted the first Nokia smartphone running on Windows Phone, then one running on Android.

Exactly one week ago, Nokia revealed the release date for their Symbian Ann firmware update. All these happened in just one week, keeping the Nokia officials and thejournalists busy.

Today we are talking about a some leaked photos of a smartphone which apparently is the new Nokia N5.

Nokia N5 is a smartphone underpinned by an updated Symbian platform, delivered with a changed user interface, looking very much alike the one we found on Nokia N9 (that new Finnish smartphone running on MeeGo).

As we could appreciate from the leaked pictures, Nokia N5 features a 3.2-inch display, assisted by buttons for accessing the menus and initiating calls. We could also spot the Volume Up and Down buttons and a button starting the camera on the right side of the device.

The back of Nokia N5 hides a 5MP camera with LED flash and incorporated speaker.

When it will be officially announced, Nokia N5 might come along with some superior-speced versions -Nokia N6 and N9, coming with bigger screens and better cameras.

The new models are meant for the low-end touchscreen smartphones range and they will replace the current models, based on Symbian S60 5th Edition.

Whether low-end or high-end, it’s a new smartphone, so we are eager to learn more about the device, so keep in touch as we are sure that the first specs are just around the corner.

 

  

enTourage Pocket eDGe Dualbook Alternative Android Tablet

Most know of all the popular branded Android tablets available out there in the big wide tablet world such as the Motorola Xoom or Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 to name just two, but if they are above your price range there are others out there that are a tab more affordable depending on what you wish to do with the device of course.
The enTourage Pocket eDGe Dualbook actually combines a tablet/netbook with a notepad/ereader and audio/video player all into one concise unit that enables the user to take notes, send email and IMs, play music, watch videos, read eBooks and surf the Internet.
So what are the specs of the Android enTourage Pocket eDGe Dualbook? Well the device offers a 7-inch WXGA touch screen, with a 6-inch E-Ink ereader display, a 2 megapixel front facing camera, 1.2GHz Marvel processor, 3GB internal memory, WiFi, Bluetooth and microSD expansion, and runs Android 1.6 Donut OS.
For those that might be interested in the enTourage Pocket eDGe Dualbook, the tablet commands a price tag of $119.99 and $5 shipping and is available in black or red from Woot.

Download Mac OS X 10.6.8 Snow Leopard to Get OS X Lion

Apple has released its eighth update for Mac O X Snow Leopard which consists of number of bug fixes including Mac Defender Malware. This would be probably the last update before Apple releases Mac OS X Lion. OS X Lion will be released next month and you must upgrade to OS X 10.6.8 in order to get it. OS X Lion will consist of 250 new features and will be available through Mac App Store for $29.99.

According to Apple support page, this update fixes the following issues.

• Enhances the Mac App Store for the Lion OS X Upgrade
• Fixes a bug in Preview that would cause it to quit unexpectedly
• Improves support for IPv6
• Improves VPN reliability
• Identifies and removes known variations of Mac Defender

Update you Macs before OS X Lion hits the Mac App Store in July from Apple Support Page.

India registers 27 percent growth in iOS app downloads

Apple is finally registering growth of app downloads in Asia with China leading the charge, followed by Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. The number of downloads registered in China is only next to US.

India has registered a growth of + 27 percent since December,2010. These percentages don’t show the success of iPhone 4 which got released recently. It shows only the growth of app store which also includes the number of apps downloaded from iPod and iPad.

The revenue earned by developers is not great in comparison to the market of US with Asia contributing just two-third, the percentage of US. See the chart below. The most downloaded category is games. Developers have to seek a better revenue generating mechanism in Asia, either by displaying ads or some other way.

The popularity of regional localized apps in India is very less, may be owing to a English concentric usage population.  On the other side, localization appears to be key to becoming popular especially when considering countries like China, South Korea, and Japan.

This study comes from a new report published by Distimo. The study also found remarkable number of downloads from South Korea, despite being a country with small population.

iOS 5 Beta 1 Will Expire On August 4, 2011 [Warning]

We have some serious news for those of you using iOS 5 beta 1 : it expires on August 4, 2011. iOS 5 beta 1 was released at WWDC 2011, and we gave you the download links too. If you activated your UDID and installed the firmware, just keep in mind that the beta has a timebomb attached to it. On August 4, iOS 5 b1 will stop working (meaning that the build will lock you out of your iDevice). Remember to sync and maintain regular backups of all your stuff. Read on for more info.
Read on for all your problems and doubts on this...

Q : Can the timebomb be deactivated ?
A : No. That involves modifying lockdownd, which would cause it to return an invalid signature on boot and therefore brick your iDevice. Unfortunately, we don’t have an iBoot-level exploit for iOS 5 beta 1, so we can’t break the boot chain.

Q : Can I backup my iDevice after the build deactivates itself ?
A : We are not completely sure, most probably it doesn’t.

Q : Will it make a difference if I have a Wi-Fi only iDevice and just change the date and time ?
A : That won’t work.

Q : Will iTunes let me restore iOS 4.3.3 back to my iDevice, and will everything still be there ?
A : Yes! Just plug in your iDevice and click Restore. All of your data will be restored back the way you had it.

Q : Why did Apple timebombed iOS 5 ?
A : Because you’re not supposed to be using them for your personal uses. They are meant to help developers in porting their apps to iOS 5.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray and Active Announced: Videos

Sony Ericsson is expanding their Xperia range of devices with the addition of two more Xperia handsets, and has officially announced the Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray and Sony Ericsson Xperia Active, and we have a couple of videos below for your viewing pleasure.
The videos of the Xperia Ray and Xperia Active come our way courtesy of the guys over at Phone Arena and by way of the Sony Ericsson YouTube page, and the Phone Arena guys have come up with the specs for each handset.
So The Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray is like the Xperia Arc in as much as its light at 3.53 ounces and is 9.4mm thick, sports a 1GHz Qualcomm processor and an 8 megapixel Exmor R auto-focus camera with flash and 720p video, with a 3.30-inhc capacitive touch screen, Android 2.3 Gingerbread, A-GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, turn-by-turn and voice navigation, 300MB built-in memory and microSD expansion up to 32GB.
The Sony Ericsson Xperia Active sports a 3-inch scratch resistant display and is a waterproof handset up to 3 feet for 30 minutes and boasts being able to accurately track the users finger even when wet, and is also dust proof, Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS, 1GHz Cortex-A8 processor, 5 megapixel auto-focus camera with flash and 720p video, GPS and Bluetooth.
No word on a release date for both Xperia devices but apparently they are scheduled for release in Q3 of 2011, and obviously not word on pricing. So there you go, all you need do now is hit those play buttons to check out the two new Android handsets…enjoy.

Symbian Anna coming this July, update for existing Symbian^3 devices in August

Nokia announced Symbian Anna this April along with the Nokia E6 and X7. Today at Nokia Connection in Singapore they have announced that Symbian Anna would ship with new Symbian^3 devices this July and the update for existing Symbian^3 devices like N8, C7 and C6-01 would be available at the end of August.

Symbian Anna would bring some of the new features like split screen and portrait QWERTY keyboard, faster browser, new photo gallery and updates for OVI maps that includes new public transportation routes and Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare sharing. The updated social client would let you view the tweets of your followers in the phone’s contacts.

Some of the features have also been included for business users like Microsoft Communicator Mobile, E-mail enhancements with full meeting request support, hardware accelerated encryption for better security and intranet access.

Nokia N9 Launch Countries – India , USA missing

The Nokia N9 was announced in Nokia Connection 2011 event in Singapore. Nokia also released a check availability page which indicates the countries in which the Nokia N9 is available. Sadly India is missing from that list and even USA. We might wonder that Nokia is working on carrier deals for USA but for India looks like it might be same story like the N900.

The list of countries Nokia N9 will be available are

• Austria
• Bulgaria
• China
• Croatia
• Finland
• Greece
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• Malaysia
• New Zealand
• Portugal
• Poland
• Romania
• Russia
• Saudi Arabia
• Serbia
• Singapore
• Slovenia
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• UAE
• Vietnam

You can signup to a email notification in Check Availability page if you live in any one of the above listed countries. Anyone from India who interested to buy the N9 ?

The Nokia N9 uses a microSIM Card Slot !

While we are still summing up details about the Nokia N9, one thing we wanted to share ASAP. The N9 uses a microSIM card slot similar to the iPad 3G and iPhone 4. Here is what we found on the official specs page of the N9. It mentions Micro SIM card. No wonder the device is so thin at 12.1mm at the maximum and 7.6 mm at the edges.

Looks like the rumours about more manufacturers jumping on the microSIM ship turned out to be true. Now can we expect Apple to reduce this even further and come up with a nano SIM card in the iPhone 5 ?

Nokia N9: A savior or delusion

So, Nokia finally announced its MeeGo-powered N9 and all of a sudden we're getting all the more excited about the phone, the OS and the company's future as a whole. After today's announcement, we don't doubt that many have already gotten their hopes high for the Nokia N9. While this might be justified indeed, we wouldn't rush it just yet. There are still too many questions that need to be answered, before we know if the Nokia N9 will be ready to serve its purpose as a contemporary feature-packed high-end smartphone (that's what we want, right?), or simply turns out to be a sweet delusion with its attractive unibody construction and competitive spec sheet, but sub-par user experience.
All-touchscreen concept

It goes without saying that what has helped build most of the interest in the handset is its concept of having absolutely no keys to clutter the front. It's just you and that 3.9” AMOLED touchscreen. This, of course, makes the handset look somewhat innovative and intriguing, and we're totally in for it. Whether navigation will be comfortable though is another story. It depends on how it'll be implemented with the interface of the MeeGo OS. From the available demos so far (not much info), we can only say that it looks mostly straightforward. Whether this will be the case with the finalized product still remains to be seen.

The screen plays a vital role when it comes to the positioning of the device on the market. In that aspect, the Nokia N9 seems well-prepared to us with its 3.9” display, which is pretty close to what some of you recently quoted as their most desirable screen size. We also find 3.9 inches to be a good balance between size and comfort. Nokia has been opting for AMOLED tech in its high-end smartphones ever since the N8, and we wouldn't blame it for the most part. AMOLED screens are indeed pretty impressive with their popping colors and high contrast levels, so the Nokia N9 is surely being competitive by counting on this particular screen technology.

One thing we should all be thankful to MeeGo for is that it finally brought Nokia out of the 360x640 world. The N9 will sport a contemporary resolution of 480x854 pixels, but it should be noted that for this screen res to stay relevant (at least in the high-end world), the handset should be released right about... now. Or at least very soon, because qHD phones are already popping up here and there.

We wouldn't waste time discussing the device's build and execution. Nokia has showed us many times that it is capable of crafting beautiful and unique-looking handsets, and as it seems it won't disappoint us with the N9. It's not the hardware that we're uneasy about though, it's the software.