Posts tagged Rumors
Is Facebook Finally Bringing Video Chat To The iPhone?
May 4th
Facebook Video Chat– coming soon to the iPhone?
With Facebook Video Chat having been available for Windows and Mac for almost a year now, it seemed like it would only be a matter of time before they brought the feature over to their mobile apps. And according to the site 9to5Mac, that time is finally almost here.
The folks over at 9to5Mac have gotten a sneak peak at a beta for an upcoming update to Facebook’s Messenger app for iPhone. In addition to the usual bug-fixes and performance improvements expected in a normal update they found this: the ability to make Skype Video Chats right from your iPhone/iPod Touch just like you already can from your computer. Making a video call is pretty simple too– if the person who you’re talking to is at their computer or on iPhone/iTouch you’ll see a blue arrow next to their name. Tap that arrow and you’re calling them.
9to5Mac also says that Facebook has a similar update planned for the Android version of the Messenger app (as well as a version of the Messenger app for the iPad), but that will probably come after the iPhone gets its update this summer.
Samsung’s Announcing The Galaxy S III Later Today– Here’s What We Expect
May 3rd
Later today Samsung plans to take the wraps off of the next generation in their hugely successful Galaxy line, the Galaxy S III. The Galaxy S II last year really raised the bar for Android phones with its amazingly thin design and awesome 4.3 inch screen (so much so that it’s still one of the top Android phones today on AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint) so obviously it’s gonna be hard for Samsung to top that. But we think they can and well, according to the latest rumors it looks like today Samsung’s going to be raising the bar yet again.
Verizon To Launch Family Data Plans This Summer
Apr 26th
With more and more people buying smartphones that require data plans, and more and more of us teens in particular upgrading to iPhones and Androids it seemed like this would be only a matter of time: family data plans. I mean, we have it for calling and texting so why not this too?
Well, Verizon understands this and they have announced that this summer they will finally launch family data plans. In addition to hopefully lowering your monthly bill, this should be great for anyone out there looking to upgrade to an iPhone but can’t convince their parents to allow them to get data. We’re not sure exactly how this will work but we imagine it going something like this: instead of paying $30 a month for 2 GB of data for each person’s phone (which is what you have to do today), your family pays $100 a month and gets 10 GB of data for all 5 lines of your family plan to share (with things like the leaked Verizon screenshot above to help you figure out how much data you’re family needs). If you have multiple members of your family with smartphones and data plans this could be a really great way to help lower your monthly phone bill (even if it’s only by a little).
Again, all Verizon has said at this point is that this will be coming sometime this summer– so we don’t yet know how much data you’ll be getting or how much it will cost, but we’ll of course keep you updated on that as we learn more. In the meantime, let’s hope AT&T and T-Mobile add this soon too.
UPDATE: As Unclesameisen pointed out in the comments, Sprint already offers family data as part of their Everything Data Family plan (see here for more info on that).
Pic from PhoneArena
Top 5 New and Upcoming AT&T Phones: Spring 2012
Apr 18th
So you’re on AT&T, you’ve got an upgrade coming up sometime over the next couple of months and while you like some of the phones already out there, you really wanna know what AT&T’s got coming out during the next few weeks or months so you don’t go out and buy something only to really regret it a week later. Well we wanna try to help you avoid that, so here are 5 phones out now or on their way to AT&T and that any AT&T user with an upgrade should be really excited for.
Verizon Galaxy Nexus Ads Leak, Release Coming Next Week?
Nov 27th
While this month has seen a whole bunch of awesome new Android superphones for Verizon (like the Droid RAZR and HTC Rezound), there still may be some more awesomeness left before the year is out. Yes, it looks like the long-awaited Samsung Galaxy Nexus is finally on its way to Verizon, and according to the latest rumors it should be out December 8th (or a week from this Thursday). In fact the Galaxy Nexus has even begun appearing in ads this weekend, such as a leaked Verizon Holiday ad and the December issue of Best Buy’s Buyer’s Guide (the same ad where we first we first saw the Droid Bionic a few weeks back. We’ve got some of the shots from the Best Buy ad after the break, but you can see them for yourself on pages 11, 21 and 44 in the ad).
But that’s not even the best part. From the looks of that leaked Verizon ad there is a chance that Verizon will price this beast at just $200 with a new 2 year contract and not their usual 4G phone price of $300. Verizon, Google and Samsung haven’t officially confirmed any of this yet and it can change, but like you we’re really hoping it’s true.
For those who don’t know, the Galaxy Nexus is the future of the Android phone. It is the first phone to run the latest and greatest version of Android called Ice Cream Sandwich and is loaded with all the top of the line specs you’d expect: a massive, 4.65 inch Super AMOLED HD curved screen (which will make everything– games, videos, pictures, texts– look absolutely incredible on here. Think of this as a HDTV in your pocket– the screen on here is that amazing), 1.2 GHZ dual-core processor with 1 GB of RAM (for speed), 5 megapixel back camera (with the ability to instantly capture pictures the second you tap the screen) with a 1.3 megapixel front camera for high quality video chat, and of course, support for Verizon’s blazing fast 4G LTE network. It may not be as thin as the Droid RAZR or pack built-in Beats like the Rezound, but if you want the latest Android has to offer (and don’t want to wait until who knows when for the Ice Cream Sandwich update to come to those phones) you’re gonna want to check this out.
We’ll make sure to keep you updated once Verizon finally makes this all official, so stay tuned!
Is HTC Announcing Their First US Beats Phone This Week?
Oct 30th
Excited for Verizon’s upcoming HTC superphone, the HTC Rezound with built-in Beats Audio? Well, it looks like your wait may soon be over. HTC has sent out invites for an event in New York this Thursday (November 3rd) where they are going to show off their “latest innovation,” an innovation that from the invite above looks to have a lot to do with Beats. And seeing as the latest rumors have the Rezound coming out exactly one week after this event (on November 10th), this looks to be the perfect place for it to finally be announced.
For those who don’t know, the Rezound looks to be one beast of a phone, with incredible specs like: a 1.5 GHZ dual-core processor with 1 GB of RAM (even faster than the already quick Droid RAZR and Galaxy Nexus), support for Verizon’s 4G LTE network, 8 megapixel back camera with a second 2 megapixel front camera for HD video chat, 4.3 inch 720p HD screen (or the same, awesome HDTV-like screen as the Galaxy Nexus) and of course, built-in Beats Audio (so everything sounds just amazing as it looks). Yeah, it’s pretty insane (and this is before we find out if HTC will include some sort of Beats headphones in the box like they did with their first Beats phone, the non-US Sensation XE. Let’s hope they do!).
As always we’ll have everything covered for you back here, so make sure to check back on Thursday for everything you’re gonna need to know on whatever new awesomeness HTC announces.
Samsung and Google To Finally Show Off The Next Version Of Android This Week
Oct 16th
This week is really looking like the week of Android. First we’ve got the big Motorola/Verizon event on Tuesday (the 18th), where we expect them to release an incredible beast of a phone known as the Droid RAZR. On Wednesday though that may already be old news as Samsung and Google will finally show off the next version of Android– Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich– and with it the all new Galaxy Nexus (previously known as the Nexus Prime or Droid Prime). Yeah, this will be a crazy week indeed.
For those who don’t know, the Galaxy Nexus is, like the Droid RAZR, said to be a beast of a phone headed to Verizon over the coming weeks. Rumored specs on the Galaxy Nexus say that it will have a massive 4.5 inch or 4.65 inch 720p HD screen (or in other words, it’s like having your HDTV in your pocket and everything– movies, games, pictures, Facebook, texts– should look beyond insane on here), a pencil thin design with a curved screen (like the new Galaxy S IIs and Nexus S), a fast dual core processor with 1 GB of RAM (so everything– from opening Facebook, to sending a text, to gaming, to doing all of that at once– runs fast and smooth and without any freezes or lags), and support for Verizon’s 4G LTE network. Yeah, now’s a pretty great time to be on Verizon and have an upgrade.
And while we won’t be at this new event live (it’s taking place in Hong Kong now), we’ll of course have all the info you’re gonna want and need to know about everything Google and Samsung show off. And if you’re interested in watching all the action live as it unfolds, head to YouTube.com/Android at 10 PM Eastern (7 PM Pacific) on Tuesday night (it’ll be 10 AM Wednesday morning in Hong Kong) for the livestream.
Are Motorola and Verizon Announcing The Droid RAZR Next Week?
Oct 14th
If you thought the Atrix 2 was a quick upgrade you ain’t seen nothing yet. Motorola and Verizon have sent out invites for a big event next Tuesday, October 18th, teasing some new devices that are “faster, thinner, smarter, stronger.” And while we’re not sure exactly what devices will be shown off next week, the latest rumors are that we’ll not only see a new Xoom 2 (an upgrade to the original Xoom from earlier this year)– but also the all new Droid RAZR, a super Verizon Android phone that looks to be right up there with Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Nexus/Nexus Prime. Yeah, and this is only a month after the Droid Bionic finally came out.
A rumored shot of the upcoming Droid RAZR (pic from Engadget)
The rumored specs on the Droid RAZR (though it may also be called the Droid HD) are everything you’d expect of a new top of the line superphone: 1.2 GHZ dual-core processor with 1 GB of RAM (for excellent speed), a 4.3 inch qHD Super AMOLED screen (or an amazing screen that should be right up there with the iPhone 4S’s Retina Display and Samsung’s Super AMOLED Plus screens), an 8 megapixel back camera with an HD front camera (for HD video chat), support for Verizon’s blazing fast 4G LTE network, and a casing made from Kelvar (or a casing from the same material that’s used to make bulletproof vests– yeah, this would definitely be stronger!). Yeah– this looks to be insane.
As usual Motorola put out a teaser video for next week’s big announcement (a video that has a lot of bullets and even a picture of a bulletproof vest at the 20 second mark) which we’ve added after the break. As usual we’ll have all the info you need to know covered for you back here, but if you’re looking for a new Verizon phone we really think you should try to wait it out until next week.
Samsung And Google Showing Off The Future Of Android Next Week
Oct 3rd
Not into a new iPhone? Want to know what’s next for Android before you decide what phone to upgrade to? Well, as with everyone waiting for the new iPhone, your wait also looks to be almost over. Over the weekend we received the invite you see above from Samsung, inviting us to Samsung’s next big Unpacked event taking place a week from this Tuesday, October 11th (or a week after Apple’s big iPhone event which is this Tuesday). And like all of Samsung’s Unpacked events, this looks to be huge.
So, what can we expect? The invite says we’ll be seeing “what’s new from Android,” and according to the latest rumors it looks that means we’ll finally be seeing Google’s next major version of Android called Ice Cream Sandwich (Google for whatever reason likes naming their new versions of Android after deserts in alphabetical order. For example, the last two versions of Android were called Gingerbread and Honeycomb). Not much is known right now about what exactly will be new in Ice Cream Sandwich, but Google has said that it will be a major update and that it will combine Gingerbread (the latest phone version of Android) and Honeycomb (the tablet version of Android) so that your Android experience will be the same whether you are using a phone or tablet (something that should make both much better. Hopefully this will also lead to some much better Android tablet apps, something current Android tablets are really missing).
And like with Gingerbread last year, Samsung is expected to have a new Nexus phone (rumored to be called the Nexus Prime) to go along with Ice Cream Sandwich to really show off what the new software can do. And trust us, if you’re looking for a superphone to rival the iPhone 5, this is it. Rumored specs on the Nexus Prime say it will have a massive 4.5 inch or 4.65 inch 720p HD screen (or in other words, it’s like having your HDTV in your pocket and everything– movies, games, pictures, Facebook, texts– should look beyond insane on here), a pencil thin design (like the new Galaxy S IIs), a fast dual core processor with 1 GB of RAM (so everything– from opening Facebook, to sending a text, to gaming, to doing all of that at once– runs fast and smooth and without any freezes or lags), and support for Verizon’s 4G LTE network (if you remember, Verizon is said to have passed on the Galaxy S II so it could be the first to get this beast). Yeah, this will definitely be huge.
We’ll of course have all the info you’re gonna want and need to know about whatever Samsung and Google show off covered for back here. So stay tuned– something tells us this October new phone craziness is only just getting started.
All Things D: iPhone 5 Announcement Coming October 4th
Sep 21st
Well, it looks like the long wait for the iPhone 5 is finally coming to an end. According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal’s All Things D blog (a site that knows what it’s talking about when it comes to Apple rumors), in just under two weeks Apple will finally reveal the next iPhone to the world. Yes, October 4th looks to be new iPhone day.
So, beyond the iPhone 5 (which according to the latest rumors is said to have that incredibly thin new design, larger screen and 8 megapixel camera) what else can we expect Apple to show off in two weeks? According to the latest rumors, Apple will also use this big event to release its new iCloud service (which allows you to store all your music, videos, pictures, apps, documents etc. online and access it from any internet-connected device like an iPhone, iPod, iPad or computer), iOS 5 (including iMessage, Apple’s version of BBM), and possibly even a new/upgraded iPod Touch and an upgraded iPhone 4 (rumored to be called the iPhone 4S. This iPhone will look pretty much the same as today’s iPhone 4 but will also be faster, have a plastic design– the current iPhone 4 is made of glass– and be priced much lower than the iPhone 5. Think of this as the new iPhone 3GS which AT&T sells today for just $50 with new 2 year contract and data plan).
As for when the new iPhone 5 will be out, All Things D says we can expect it ”within a few weeks” of the announcement, though when exactly is still unknown (maybe October 15th?).
Now remember– Apple still hasn’t confirmed anything and All Things D also mentions that while October 4th is right now the plan, Apple still may change the date. We’ll of course keep you updated as more info comes out, so stay tuned!
More info: All Things D, iPhone 5 mockup pic from This Is My Next
