It is always a weird feeling to go on holidays where there is no wireless coverage and no daily news (gadget-related or otherwise). One of the things I was able to do was start reading the The Walking Dead comic book series. After the second TV season ended, I decided to read the comic to find out where the story would go next. I’ve not quite caught up (100+ issues at this point) but definitely a story I am enjoying and would recommend (albeit recognizing it is not for everyone).
Meanwhile, the news did not stop in the gadget world. Here are a few highlights (in case you were on holidays as well):
Samsung video teaser for its UNPACKED 2012 announcement at IFA:
Samsung to pay Apple US$1 billion in damages after losing US patent infringement case:
Apple won its US patent infringement case against Samsung and has been awarded damages of US$1,049,393,540. The jury found that a number of Samsung devices, including the Galaxy S II, Galaxy Tab, Nexus 4G, and Galaxy Ace, infringed on a number of Apple patents. Worse for Samsung was the conclusion that some of the infringement was willful in many cases.
Samsung is also facing a US ban on a number of its devices. A decision will be made in the coming weeks by U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh.
Needless to say Samsung has already announced plans to appeal the decision.
Spotify to launch radio service in Canada:
Spotify looks set to launch its music-streaming service in Canada perhaps later this year. The plans were revealed in Spotify Technologies SA’s (Spotify’s Luxembourg-based holding company) annual account filing. Plans are also in the works for expansion in “countries in Asia and South America.”
Rogers expands LTE network into Moncton:
Rogers announced that Moncton was the latest city in Atlantic Canada to get covered by its LTE network. Like St. John’s and Halifax which saw LTE go live earlier, it will offer download speeds up to 75Mbps with typical download speeds ranging from 12Mbps to 25Mbps. More cities are planned by year’s end as Rogers is aiming to offer LTE coverage to approximately 60 percent of the Canadian population by the end of the year.
Sony Mobile announces restructuring and layoffs:
Sony Mobile Communications is moving its corporate headquarters to Tokyo, Japan, as part of a larger restructuring effort that will see it lay off about 15% of its workforce (approximately 1000 people). Its mobile business, including its Xperia smartphone portfolio, will remain “one of its core businesses.”
Next Samsung Nexus device revealed?
Samsung appears to be getting its next Nexus device ready. The forthcoming device, model GT-I9260, looks to be a modest upgrade over the Galaxy Nexus which will leave the Samsung smartphone throne to the Galaxy S III. According to a leaked document, it will sport a 1.5GHz dual-core processor (and still using the ARM Cortex-A9 rather than the newer ARM Cortex-A15), a 4.65-inch Super AMOLED HD display, an 8MP rear-facing camera, a 1.9MP front-facing camera, 16GB of onboard storage, and a microSD card slot.
Rumours that Google would expand the Nexus program also got a shot in the arm with a leaked NTT DoCoMo Winter 2012 release schedule listing a Samsung Galaxy Nexus II alongside an LG Optimus Nexus and a Sony Xperia Nexus.
Android 4.0 upgrades:
A number of new Android 4.0 upgrades are now available. Among devices getting updates are the following:
- Rogers Motorola RAZR
- Asus Transformer Pad Infinity
- Asus Transformer Pad TF300T
With that, expect regular news coverage to resume over the next day or so (I still have some unpacking to do)…