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Hackulous Shuts Down: Piracy Apps Installous And AppSync Go With It

Plenty of people we know love their iPhone, but when pressed for what they love most, it’s from a cracked feature coming from something like Installous and AppSync – well, those days are over, folks. Hackulous is no more. The team behind Installous, the popular jailbreak app that allows for the installation of unofficial iOS apps, says as much.

First reported by iDownloadBlog, the shutdown is announced and explained by the team through a short note on the Hackulous website:

[quote]

Goodnight, sweet prince.

We are very sad to announce that Hackulous is shutting down. After many years, our community has become stagnant and our forums are a bit of a ghost town. It has become difficult to keep them online and well-moderated, despite the devotion of our staff. We’re incredibly thankful for the support we’ve had over the years and hope that new, greater communities blossom out of our absence.

With lots of love,
Hackulous Team

[/quote]

Installous and AppSync created by the Hackulous team made it very easy to install pirated apps on your jailbroken iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. If you’re a developer then the good news is that Hackulous has shut down, which means that users won’t be able to install Installous and AppSync.

This is certainly not the end of mobile app piracy, but it is one small step forward for developers who want to earn an honest living for building fun mobile applications, and for those of us users who are happy to pay the the dollar or two it takes to download an app the honest way.

We don’t support piracy and the installation of pirated apps, the purpose of jailbreaking an iOS device should be to gain access to features that Apple does not allow. The Hackulous repository, Installous for iOS and AppSync have been around for a very long time. We are sure that many jailbreakers won’t be too happy with the fact that these tools will never exist, ever again.

December 31, 2012
High Resolution Images Of BlackBerry X10 Smartphone Surface

Earlier we posted about some new BB10 photos of the Z10 which is the touch screen only BlackBerry due to be announced next month.

BlackBerry are known for their keyboards though and a BB10 handset is also in the making we believe to be called the X10. Some photos were posted recently of the said device but now there are even more photos with the X10 switched on to give you a better idea of what to expect.

The pictures clearly show the X10’s relatively tiny (in today’s world of 4″ and 5″ displays) display and QWERTY keyboard that extends from edge-to-edge.

The back of the phone also shows the camera lens and flash. Given that this is likely a prototype unit, we can excuse the rather cheap looking finish of this X10 pictured. Hopefully the production models will have better graining than what’s currently shown.

BB10 launches on 30 January — so a month to the day exactly. Many people think it’ll be make or break time for RIM, after its recent troubles. There was a rumour a while ago that RIM would have to split the company in half and sell off its networking business, or join forces with Microsoft. BB10 has already been delayed twice, so let’s hope 30 January is indeed the day it launches.

[N4BB]

December 31, 2012
Samsung Rolling Out Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean Firmware For Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 P3100
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 P3100 received the first Jelly Bean (Android 4.1.1) update to two weeks ago. While the previous update started rolling out from India, this time the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 P3100 users that have been chosen by Samsung to be blessed with the first Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean firmware update are French. The new update has already started rolling out and you can get it via Samsung Kies and on-device software update feature. You can check for the OTA update from Setting> About> Software Update.

In case you are not from France, or if you are unable to get the OTA update to Android 4.1.2 on your Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 P3100 because you have rooted it or for some other reason, you can still update your device to the latest version of Samsung’s Jelly Bean update version 4.1.2. In fact the firmware released for France is an Unbranded one, therefore it can be flashed on any Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (model number GT-P3100) across the globe that is not locked to a mobile operator/carrier.

Firmware Build P3100XXCLL2 Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean

Device: Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 GT-P3100
Region: Europe
Country: France
Android version: 4.1.2 Jelly Bean
PDA: P3100XXCLL2
CSC: P3100XEFCLK1
Baseband/Modem: P3100XXCLJ3
Build Date: Dec.12 2012

Samsung has added a lot of new features for Galaxy devices with the Android 4.1.2 update, most of these features are found from the Galaxy Note II. Here are some few features on 4.1.2 :
- Multi-Window (Multi-View allows users to run two apps splitting on the screen at the same time)
- New Gallery App
- Notification Panel
- Brightness Slider in Notification Panel
- Continues Input in Samsung Keyboard
- Paper Artist App
- Group Cast App
- Page Buddy
- Smart Rotation
[Droid Views]
December 30, 2012
Another Set Of BlackBerry Z10 Images Leaked

Research In Motion’s long awaited BlackBerry Z10 has popped up once again, showing off what an attractive handset it’s turning out to be. That all-black black candybar design and matted look really accentuate the company’s much anticipated OS, which is slated for a full unveil and release on Jan. 30 of next year.

The pics were posted online via a blog called “Fou6an” and have since been removed. So we’ll really only know if these images, along with all the others, are a true when RIM announces them.

The latest speculation has the BlackBerry Z10 offering a 4.2 inch screen with resolution of 768 x 1280 with a high pixel density of 356ppi, well above the Retina display on the Apple iPhone 5.

A dual-core 1.5GHz processor will be doing the heavy lifting and the U.S.models are expected to have the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8960 under the hood. 2GB of RAM is on board while there is 16GB of native storage that can be expanded using a hot swappable microSD slot.

The 8MP camera on back captures video in 1080p while there is a 2MP front-facing shooter. An 1800mAh cell powers the device. The Blackberry Z10 will have LTE connectivity and supports NFC.

December 30, 2012
Rumour : Samsung Galaxy Note II To Be Released In Matte Black

Even though black is considered as standard color for smart phones, Samsung always tries different colors in smart phones. It generally releases the smart phones with Titanium Grey and Pebble Blue colors. Such colors are seen in the case of Galaxy Note 2 and Galaxy S3 mobiles.

Rumours say Samsung may be about to release a stunning matte black version of the venerable phablet. According to Android Slash, the new colour will be introduced to markets in early 2013.

A hi-resolution press rendering was discovered showing off the Samsung GALAXY Note II in black. With CES 2013 just weeks away in Las Vegas, and MWC 2013 coming the following month to Barcelona, we could see a whole new color range for the device introduced at either show. Last month, an anonymous tipster passed along the information that the Samsung GALAXY Note II was fitted for three new colors, Amber Brown, Topaz Blue and Ruby Wine. The new colors are supposed to be available and the end of this year or during Q1 of 2013, but this tip did not mention black as one of the new colors.

What do you think?

December 29, 2012
Rumour : Galaxy S4 Will Feature S Pen, Launching In April

The Samsung Galaxy S4 rumor mill got heated up Friday when a new report, coming straight from South Korea, hit the web saying that the next generation Galaxy S smartphone would be released in April 2013 with S Pen functionality.

This would imply Samsung’s looking to go at least 5 inches as far as display size goes, but that’s another story for another day. The S4 would introduce all the familiar S Pen features we’ve come to know and love, as well as new features that Samsung’s sure to be cooking up as we type.

A refresh of previous rumours had Samsung launching this in April 2013 and once again increasing the size of their flagship Android to a 5-inch display (1080×1920 resolution) with 441 pixels per inch (ppi), embedding a quad-core processor and a 13-megapixel camera, plus running Jelly Bean.

In addition, the report also indicated that the GS IV will be 9.1mm thin, which is also a bit thicker than the current Galaxy S III at 8.6mm thin.

Samsung found quite the niche market with the Samsung Galaxy Note, and combining the two would help line its pockets even more. After all, what sense does it make to have your main flagship play second fiddle to the “little big brother” each year? While some characteristics of the Galaxy S3 — such as its less encumbering size — are more desirable for some people, it’s no secret that the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 either matches it or outclasses it in every other way.

December 29, 2012
Huawei Ascend Mate Images Show Up Before Its Official Announcement

Additional shots of Huawei’s upcoming Ascend Mate have leaked out, showing off a neatly curved rear shell and that enormous 6.1-inch screen. The photos obtained by MyDrivers, show what is essentially a big black slab, with on-screen buttons.

There appears to be a slight curve to the back of the device, which should make it a little nicer to hold in the hand. If a 6.1 inch smartphone could ever, truly feel nice in the hand.

The Ascend Mate with is entering the phablet market, currently dominated by Samsung Galaxy Note devices. The rumoured specs of the Ascend Mate have it coming with a 6.1-inch 1080p Full HD display, quad-core 1.8 GHz processor, 2 GB of RAM, 13MP camera, 9.9 mm thin and packing an impressive 4,000 mAh battery.

Huawei intends on unleashing this 6.1-inch titan at next month’s CES.

December 29, 2012
BLU Products Announces The VIVO 4.65 HD, To Cost $300 In The US

BLU Products, announced the new VIVO 4.65 HD, as a big brother to the VIVO 4.3 which launched earlier this year. Improvements on the VIVO 4.65 HD, include an increased screen size to 4.65″, as opposed to 4.3″ from the previous model, as well as improved display resolution with an HD Super AMOLED display, and increase to 1GB of RAM.

The phone is slated to begin shipping in January, and is priced at $300 in the US and will soon follow through to parts of Asia.

[quote]”We are thrilled as we continue to add to the successful series of VIVO smartphone devices using Super AMOLED Technology displays, resulting in remarkably bright and vivid color reproduction, with the best viewing experience available on a mobile phone today,” said Samuel-Ohev-Zion, CEO of BLU Products. “BLU is determined to continue to bring the best technology and specs available on mobile devices, with several incredible product launches coming in the first half of 2013.”[/quote]

The Vivo 4.65 HD features a MediaTek MT6577 Cortex A9 1.2GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. The rear camera is 8-megapixels and offers HD video recordering. The handset features 3G and HSPA conenctivity, as well as dual SIM support; the handset is unlocked. There’s no Jelly Bean here, unfortunately, with the device running Ice Cream Sandwich.

Interestingly, we expect the next device in the Micromax A90 line up to have similar specs, as that was the case when the A90 was launched. Its specs were notoriously similar to the VIVO 4.3.

[toggle_box title=”Press Release” width=”Width of toggle box”]

BLU Products, one of the fastest growing mobile phone manufacturers in the world, announced the new VIVO 4.65 HD, as a big brother to the already popular and bestselling VIVO 4.3 which launched earlier this year. Improvements on the VIVO 4.65 HD, include an increased screen size to 4.65″, as opposed to 4.3″ from the previous model, as well as improved display resolution with an HD Super AMOLED display, and increase to 1GB of RAM.

“We are thrilled as we continue to add to the successful series of VIVO smartphone devices using Super AMOLED Technology displays, resulting in remarkably bright and vivid color reproduction, with the best viewing experience available on a mobile phone today,” said Samuel-Ohev-Zion, CEO of BLU Products. “BLU is determined to continue to bring the best technology and specs available on mobile devices, with several incredible product launches coming in the first half of 2013.”

The VIVO 4.65 HD, continues with its predecessor’s design language, which features no physical hardware buttons on the front to ensure a seamless elegant design, and is run by a MediaTek MT6577 dual core 1.2 GHz Cortex™-A9 CPU with 3G/HSPA connectivity, running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich Operating System. Additionally, the VIVO 4.65 HD is designed to deliver high-end multimedia capability, with an 8MP autofocus camera, and HD video recording and playback. The highlights of the phone include the rich viewing experience of the brilliant HD Super AMOLED 4.65″ Display, along with true dual SIM capability allowing both SIMs to be active and receive calls simultaneously.

The unlocked VIVO 4.65 HD will begin shipping to major US Retailers in January of 2013, with an MSRP of $299.99 and will soon follow through Latin America, and parts of Asia.

[/toggle_box]

December 28, 2012
LG Wants Ban On Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 Tablet Sales in Korea

The war between Korea’s two biggest mobile makers continues after LG Display moved to ban the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet on the grounds that it infringes three of its display patents, according to a Dow Jones report.

A statement made to the news agency confirmed that LG has made the request for a sales injunction and is seeking compensation of 1 billion won ($933,000) for each day of the “continued non-compliance”.

The two companies have been in a patent row since September when LG Display one of the world’s top flat-screen TV makers filed suits against Samsung Electronics and Samsung Display for allegedly infringing patents on seven organic light-emitting diode (OLED)-related technologies.

LG said that five of Samsung’s products, including its global hit Galaxy S-series smartphones and tablet computer Galaxy Tab, infringed its patents.

Later the same month, Samsung filed a court complaint accusing LG of luring away senior Samsung OLED researchers even though they had signed contracts preventing them working for a rival. LG’s new suit comes just over a month after Samsung moved to have seven of its rival’s patents annulled by Korean courts.

Samsung has also been battling Apple’s patent infringement allegations for a while now. Recently, in a rather interesting turn of events, Samsung affirmed that it would drop its lawsuits seeking a sales ban on Apple’s products in Europe. The company said it will not make attempts to stop the sale of some Apple products in Germany, Britain, France, Italy and the Netherlands. Interestingly though, Samsung has made no mention of whether it would put an end to its court battle for compensation.

December 28, 2012
Report : 2013 may Unleash the Budget Quad Core in India

With several Indian companies running in haste to deliver smartphones, tablets and now phablets into the market. Most have left out essential ingredients to delivering a smart – experience. Some have shoddy screens others have dwindling hardware and most have little RAM.

[pullquote_right]Have companies like Micromax and Karbonn truly understood the Indian market?[/pullquote_right]Looks like that is about to change, really soon. Have companies like Micromax and Karbonn truly understood the Indian market? Where Micromax broke the barrier with their A100 and A110 Canvas phones along side their Super Amoled based A90 and A90s . Karbonn had several A Series phones to offer to this mashup of Smartphone goodness.

Agreed that these phone truly penetrated the market and gave the user the New Android experience and “somewhat of an upgrade” when it came to hardware capability. However, these devices truly lacked panache, and if the 2012 line of Nexus devices has shown us anything, that price will not equal quality in all cases.

[pullquote_left] Heavily invested in the overall quality and user experience[/pullquote_left]In our recent meeting with one of the Indian Manufacturers, we learnt that the Indian Companies have heavily invested in the overall quality and user experience that users will get from their 2013 lineup of smartphones. With Micromax working on quad core variants of their Canvas and Pixel series, Karbonn has heavily invested in quad core Phablets.

These devices promise, Quad Core Mediatek Processors, bumped up graphics and minimum 1 GB of RAM, Micromax Plans to make 8GB standard the In-Built storage with expandability via a 64GB capable slot. Where as Karbonn is talking about storage size options in their quad core Phablets. Some designers are also hinting at close ties with NVidia, so don’t be surprised if you soon see budget NVidia Tegra 3 based smartphones and Tablets running Google’s flagship OS and running against their own Nexus Series.

However this circle does not stop there, the gap between flagship technologies and cheaper alternatives is soon deteriorating, and we dont see that date far when A flagship Smartphone will see an identical low budget replacement less than weeks from its launch.

December 28, 2012
Blimey! 5 Year Old Boy Finds Porn On Christmas Present Nintendo 3DS Bought From GameStop!

A five-year-old boy in Colorado got a nasty surprise on Christmas morning when he unwrapped a Nintendo from Santa to find it had pornographic images on it. His father said he had to return the refurbished Nintendo 3DS Santa had left under the Christmas tree after discovering the images on the device purchased at GameStop.

Unfortunately for all involved, the device wasn’t properly wiped of its previous owner’s content, which included porn. As such, Braydon discovered the images while playing with the device and asked his brother for help in getting rid of them.

Mark Giles, from Colorado, said his son Bryton had been waiting all year for a Nintendo 3DS but when he finally opened it both father and child broke into tears.

He cried as he told NBC News his son told him about the porn straight away, saying “Dad, I don’t think you should be looking at these pictures.”

“I just handed him the 3DS,” Bryton said.

After complaining to GameStop electronics store where he had bought the device, Mr Giles said he was told the six homemade images were put there by a previous owner and weren’t spotted before the device was resold. But he said the damage had already been done when it came to his son.

[quote]”You can’t unsee this, he’s five years old… he’s not going to forget about this tomorrow,” he said.[/quote]

GameStop has issued a statement saying it wants to make it up to the Giles family.

[quote]”We have a rigorous quality control process in place to ensure that existing content is removed from all devices before they are re-sold. Out of millions of transactions each year, ones like this happen very rarely. Our number one priority is to make this right for our customer,” the company said.[/quote]

GameStop sent the family a new Nintendo 3DS, as well as a handful of games.

[CNET]

December 28, 2012
Huawei Ascend D2 Pictured Ahead Of CES

CES 2013 will be soon upon us, and Huawei is one of the manufacturers that will unveil a new flagship phone, the Ascend D2. The folks over at ithome have just published several live pictures of the Huawei Ascend D2 smartphone.

We’re starting to see many high-end Android handsets come to market with 1080p displays and quad-core chips, though, and the Ascend D2 looks like Huawei’s addition to that trend. The pictures above reportedly depict the five-inch Ascend D2 but aside from these photos not much else is unveiled, except a confirmation of previous rumors talking about a 5-inch 1080p display, quad-core 1.5GHz processor, 2GB of RAM, 13MP camera, and Jelly Bean with the power of a 3000 mah battery behind it.

We all remember its predecessor, the D Quad, and it’s battery-boosted bro, the D Quad XL, but the D2 stands to be a significant step up from both of them.

The smartphone will be available for purchase for around $500/€380 outright, though we don’t have any info on the exact release date.

It’s great to see Huawei continuing to push the higher-end market and get those devices selling – after all, competition is good, especially on price point. We may also see a new 6.1-inch tablet from Huawei at CES, which will be interesting to try out, to say the least.

December 28, 2012
Marvell Ordered to Pay $1.17 Billion in Carnegie Mellon University Patent Case

A jury on Wednesday hit Marvell Technology Group with a billion-dollar verdict, ruling that the US chip maker “willfully” infringed on patents held by Carnegie Mellon University.

Northern California-based Marvell violated CMU patents on technology that increase the accuracy of reading data from high-speed magnetic disks, according to a verdict delivered in federal court in the state of Pennsylvania, where the university is based.

Jurors rejected the argument by Marvell that the CMU patents were not valid and ordered Marvel to pay $1.1 billion in damages, according to the K&L Gates legal team that represented the university at trial.

[quote]”We take special pride in this trial victory because of the decades-long relationship between our firm and Carnegie Mellon University and our deep appreciation for CMU’s path breaking and leadership role in the Information Age,” said law firm partner Peter Kalis.[/quote]

Shares of Marvell fell 10.3 percent on Wednesday, closing down 85 cents at $7.40 on the Nasdaq.

Carnegie Mellon said it was gratified by the verdict. “Protection of the discoveries of our faculty and students is very important to us,” it said.

Marvell is based in Hamilton, Bermuda. Its U.S. operating unit Marvell Semiconductor Inc is based in Santa Clara, California, and was also a defendant in the case.

The company posted a $615.1 million profit on net revenue of $3.39 billion in its most recent fiscal year, which ended on January 28. It counts Western Digital Corp and Seagate Technology Plc among its largest customers.

December 27, 2012
Samsung To Ship Half A Billion Phones In 2013

Samsung expects to sell 510 million phones in 2013, the company announced on Wednesday. Samsung says most of those devices will be smart phones, cementing the company’s status as the world’s biggest phone manufacturer.

Apple sold 26.9 million iPhones in its fiscal Q4 2012 (or calendar year Q3 2012). The street consensus for the current quarter is somewhere between 46 and 48 million iPhones, based on strong demand for the new iPhone 5.

Samsung says three out of four devices it is on course to sell in the next twelve months will be smartphones and predicts an overall 20 per cent jump in phone sales on 2012.
Research firm Gartner, however, reckons Samsung might be just a little over optimistic in its forecasts. It has predicted the company’s phone sales in 2013 are likely to fall somewhere between 250 million and 300 million, though that’s still a quantum leap on the mere 23.9 million it sold just two years ago in 2010.

[quote]”Samsung’s proven ability to quickly produce and replace a wide range of handsets aimed at several different markets contrasts with Nokia’s struggles and Apple’s difficulties that are mainly related to parts sourcing problems,” said Hwang Min-seong, an analyst at Samsung Securities.[/quote]

As it gears up for further expansion Samsung, meanwhile, is expanding its manufacturing base beyond its own shores and into Vietnam, China and India where the lion’s share of new phones will be made.

December 27, 2012
Canon Launches The EOS-1D C In Japan!

Canon has launched its super-expensive EOS-1D C in Japan, and will be following it up with a launch in the United States rumored to take place in the next couple days. At $11,999, this latest Canon 1D is hardly set to become a DSLR bestseller, but there are certainly a few pro shooters willing to line up for an incredibly versatile 18-megapixel 4K cam, with EOS lens compatibility and a full-frame sensor.

For those interested, the 4K video is recorded using 8-bit Motion JPEG compression at 24p, and Full HD (1920 x 1080) video capture is available at frame rates up to 1080/60p. The camera supports internal recording to CF cards at all resolutions up to and including 4K, offering enhanced mobility. Video can also be output to external recorders (excluding 4K video) via an integrated HDMI terminal using an uncompressed YCbCr 4:2:2 signal.

Support for 24, 25, 30, 50 and 60p frame rates in Full HD resolution shooting is also included, as is the ability to capture 12fps continuous stills shooting (14fps in Super High speed shooting mode) in bursts of up to 180 large JPEG images (38 RAW) and a wide ISO range of 100 to 25600 for movies and 100-51200 for stills expandable up to ISO 204800.

There is a Super 35mm Crop Mode and Canon Log Gamma. In terms of hardware, the 1D offers an integrated headphone port and HDMI with time code. You will need UDMA 7 Cards that record at least 100MB/s to do the 4K video, and even then because of the high 500mbits per sec bitrate (Higher than RED EPIC’s 5K 24 fps 350mbps for some reason) , 1 min of footage will take up 4 GB of space!

Other stats to brag about the EOS-1D C are the 61-point AF system, the Dual “DIGIC 5+” processor and a 1,040k-dot 3.2inch Clear View II LCD screen.

There are a handful of nice test videos and images clicked from the EOS-1D C floating around online.

[Engadget]

December 27, 2012