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6 benefits of rooting your Android phone or tablet

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Most of you are probably familiar with the concept of rooting, the process of allowing <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S0" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">Android</a>
 smartphone and tablet owners to attain privileged control over the 
operating system. If not, you should definitely check out our <a class="dashed" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" style="border-bottom-style: none; color: #017801; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="root android">beginners guide to rooting</a> for
 some background information and tips of getting started with rooting. 
But even if you’re in the knowledge, the reasons to root may seem few 
and far between at first, and the tradeoff with voiding your warranty is
 a legitimate concern. Nevertheless, here are my top reasons to root 
your device, all of which can drastically improve your Android 
experience.</div>
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<span style="color: forestgreen;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="more"></a><br /></span></h2>
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<span style="color: forestgreen;">1- Put your handset on a diet</span></h2>
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The first benefit of accessing administrator privileges over Android is full control over the applications installed on your <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S1" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">handset</a>.
 No longer do you have to suffer from the cluttered app drawers and 
reduced memory space taken up by pre-installed carrier and manufacturer 
applications, you can instantly cut the bloatware and keep only the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S3" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">apps</a> that you really want.</div>
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Even if you’re up to date with Android 4.1 or above, which grants users 
the ability to disable these pre-installed apps if you don’t want to see
 or use them, you can’t permanently remove them, they’re still there 
eating up your memory space. Rooting is the only way to permanently get 
rid of these pesky apps, but please don’t uninstall something crucial or
 your handset may stop working properly. Apps like <a class="underline" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" style="border-bottom-style: none; color: #017801; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="Google Play">Titanium Backup</a> are particularly helpful for organising and culling this bloatware.</div>
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<span style="color: forestgreen;">2- Better backups</span></h2>
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This brings me nicely on to the next major benefit of Android, improved <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S7" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">backup</a>
 and restore options. As already mentioned, Titanium Backup is one of 
the most popular backup apps used by rooters, and this, or a similar 
app, is essential if you’re going to start tinkering around with Android
 software. But as well as acting as a <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S8" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">safety net</a> in case you uninstall something important, Titanium Backup can also be used to backup your user data, from <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S9" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">SMS messages</a> to browser bookmarks.</div>
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<img alt="ClockworkMod Recovery Backup Cropped" class="size-full wp-image-282388" height="395" src="http://m.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/ClockworkMod-Recovery-Backup-Cropped.jpg" style="border: 0px none; height: auto; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="645" /><br />
<div class="wp-caption-text" style="background-color: #eeeeee; color: black; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 15px; padding: 10px;">
ClockworkMod Recovery offers superior protection against faulty updates and bricking your handset.</div>
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Even better still, once rooted you can create complete backups of your 
entire handset using the ClockworkMod Recovery option, providing you 
with extra protecting in case of a major malfunction. Recovery can only 
be accessed before booting into Android, but it provides additional 
backup options in case, for whatever reason, Android fails to boot 
properly or experiences a crippling error. This makes ClockworkMod 
Recovery an essential tool for those looking to install custom versions 
of Android.</div>
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<span style="color: forestgreen;">3- Keep up to date with the latest version of Android</span></h2>
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Once you’re fully backed up you’re ready to move up to one of the other 
major perks of rooting, installing different versions of Android.</div>
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We all know that manufacturers are often pretty slow at delivering the latest Android offerings even to their flagship <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S5" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">handsets</a>,
 let alone aging devices. So if you’re not a Nexus or Play Edition 
device owner, rooting opens the door to much faster Android updates, 
thanks to the developers who put time into porting the latest updates to
 various handsets.</div>
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Pretty much every semi-popular handset has a decent following of 
developers working on porting the latest versions of Android to their 
handsets, most of which can be found over on the XDA Forum. The only 
sacrifice here is that you won’t receive official manufacturer versions 
of Android, so no updated Touchwizz or Sense5 features, but if we were 
really too worried about that we probably wouldn’t be rooting  in the 
first place.</div>
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<span style="color: forestgreen;">4- Custom ROMs galore</span></h2>
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If stock Android isn’t your thing, there are also tons of other customized <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="Y118747S6" style="color: #000fff; text-decoration: underline;">ROMs</a> offering unique features and improvements to the default Android experience.</div>
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<img alt="AOSP has given us so many custom ROM's, and has extended the lifespan of many an Android." class="size-full wp-image-253904" height="430" src="http://m.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/AOSP-custom-roms-larger.jpg" style="border: 0px none; height: auto; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="645" /><br />
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AOSP has given us so many custom ROM’s, and has extended the lifespan of many an Android handset.</div>
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I’m sure you’ve all heard of the biggest names, CyanogenMod, Paranoid 
Android, MIUI to name just a few of the most popular ones. Many custom 
ROMs are actually at the forefront of innovation on Android, offering 
several features that aren’t available anywhere else. Paranoid Android’s
 Halo feature or OmniROM’s multi-workspace mode are just a couple of 
examples.</div>
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But as well as these big third party developments, you’ll also find a 
lot of smaller developers tweaking away at the core Android experience, 
offering ROMs with vastly superior battery life or overclocked processor
 speeds. Not to mention that most custom ROMs are updated to the latest 
version of Android very quickly too, bringing you the best of both 
worlds.</div>
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<span style="color: forestgreen;">5- Administrator privileged apps</span></h2>
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As rooting opens up administrator type privileges on your handset you’ll
 instantly have access to all the core files on your handset. File 
browser apps can take full advantage of this, allowing you to move stuff
 around on your internal memory if so require.</div>
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App wise, we’ve already touched on Titanium Backup, but there are far 
more apps that can make use of root permissions, and simply aren’t 
available with a non-rooted device. The speed junkies among you could 
take advantage of overclocking software to boost performance or save on 
battery life, providing that your Kernel supports overclocking. 
Alternatively, fans of custom ROMs can use a ROM manager to install and 
update their operating system without the need to flash zip files from 
Recovery.</div>
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Rooting is sometimes criticized for compromising handset security, but 
security apps, such as Cerberus, use root functions to bury themselves 
deep down into the operating system, making them hard for would be 
thieves to remove. These apps can also be granted permissions that 
aren’t available on unrooted devices, such as access to GPS data even 
when the device is locked.</div>
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There’s also additional <a class="underline" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" style="border-bottom-style: none; color: #017801; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="Google Play">gesture apps</a>, data syncing software, and even theme managers to customize the look of your handset.</div>
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<span style="color: forestgreen;">6- Dress to impress</span></h2>
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My final reason for rooting your handset is the wider range of 
customization and theming options, after all who doesn’t want their 
desktop to look pretty.</div>
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<img alt="Looking good there Android." class="size-full wp-image-284432" height="358" src="http://m.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Custom-Android-Themes.jpg" style="border: 0px none; height: auto; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="645" /><br />
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Looking good there Android.</div>
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Although there are options to tweak themes and whatnot that don’t 
require rooting, usually through third part launchers such as ADW, 
rooting gives you access to the important files needed to make changes 
in folders that are usually hidden from users. Access to the <i>/system/fonts </i>folder
 allows users to install and replace custom fonts. You can also flash 
zip files from Recovery to install themes too. But if all that folder 
browsing isn’t for you, there are also a few root only theme 
applications to choose from.</div>
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One example is Theme Chooser, included by default as part of 
CyanogenMod, which has plenty of custom themes available, and even works
 with ADW themes too. Alternatively, the <a class="underline" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" style="border-bottom-style: none; color: #017801; text-decoration: none;">XThemeEngine</a>works
 with all rooted handsets, allowing you to pick between themes after 
installing them from traditional apk files, so there’s no need to 
flashing zip files or tinkering in system folders.</div>

6 benefits of rooting your Android phone or tablet

Most of you are probably familiar with the concept of rooting, the process of allowing Android smartphone and tablet owners to attain p...

03:07

MediaTek MT6592 unveiled as "world's first true octa-core" mobile processor

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTcEWcAxjQ_LS5o-3n5Huw4siMUMYPfAnjAqEPU_k7GmBGWQGUtZSsMHx-7xUtFrWpviF98PXFa3mrz4SQTBNMyEQRrZ4v4UAIMUoIFK0qkQCuZHXrTOw-lssRuNrH5WFbv8pKt1FAp11w/s1600/mediatek-mt-6592-launch-635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTcEWcAxjQ_LS5o-3n5Huw4siMUMYPfAnjAqEPU_k7GmBGWQGUtZSsMHx-7xUtFrWpviF98PXFa3mrz4SQTBNMyEQRrZ4v4UAIMUoIFK0qkQCuZHXrTOw-lssRuNrH5WFbv8pKt1FAp11w/s1600/mediatek-mt-6592-launch-635.jpg" /></a></div>
MediaTek has launched the MT6592 chipset, which it has been claiming is 
the world's first true octa-core mobile 
processor. MediaTek expects the
 new chipset to be available in devices running Android Jelly Bean by 
the end of this year, while Android KitKat-based smartphones powered 
with MT6592 are likely to be released in early 2014.<br />
As per the 
company, the MT6592 is a heterogeneous computing SOC which comes with 
scalable multi-core processing for advanced multi-tasking. The MT6592 
chipset is built on the 28nm HPM (high-performance process) and includes
 eight CPU cores, each capable of clock speeds up to 2GHz. MediaTek says
 the MT6592 chipset can run both low-power consuming and more demanding 
tasks equally well, by attaching the full capabilities of all 
eight-cores in any combination. Further, the new chipset comes with an 
advanced scheduling algorithm that monitors the temperature and power 
consumption to ensure optimal performance of the smartphone at all 
times.<br />
The MT6592 features an advanced video playback system 
supporting Ultra HD 4Kx2K H.264 video playback, and support for new 
video codecs such as H.265 and VP9. It also supports a 16-megapixel 
camera and a full-HD display. Some of the other new additions in the 
MT6592 include full connectivity capability for dual-band 801.11n Wi-Fi,
 Miracast screen-sharing as well as Bluetooth, GPS and an FM tuner.<br />
In
 addition, Intex showcased its 
first true octa-core smartphone prototype at an event on Wednesday. The 
company announced that the still-to-be-named smartphone powered by the 
MT6592 chipset will be launched in January 2014 and can be expected to 
be priced around Rs. 20,000 in India.<br />
Intex also revealed the 
specifications of the smartphone, which includes a octa-core MediaTek 
MT6592 processer clocked at 1.7GHz, coupled with 700 MHz Mali 450-MP4 
GPU. Other specifications included a 6-inch HD IPS LCD display; 2GB of 
RAM; 16GB and 32GB inbuilt storage variants. The smartphone is likely to
 run Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean or 4.4 KitKat.

MediaTek MT6592 unveiled as "world's first true octa-core" mobile processor

MediaTek has launched the MT6592 chipset, which it has been claiming is the world's first true octa-core mobile processor. MediaTek...

02:38

Smartphone LG G Flex with a flexible display & curved

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The South Korean company <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="More LG Mobile Phones">LG</a> Electronics officially unveiled the LG G Flex – a <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="All Smartphones">smartphone</a>
 whose body profile “twisted” on the profile of the person, and has its 
own development of the design in the form of a curved screen and 
battery, and additional user interface features that take advantage of 
the curved design of the display. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiymd5s96WN88uq-FcD1NVSraGd4-DjFEjMK-5T1bmMF2RgW9y1nXQmnKAUNaYhSfUVbga5IxFxlJ2lDHJCImDiKfp15pDXyl8qvr2_2CrJnCapglZ12zQ5fCH27zSfbPYR9AxuzVreflr1/s1600/LG-G-FLEX-Curved-Mobiles-600x564.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiymd5s96WN88uq-FcD1NVSraGd4-DjFEjMK-5T1bmMF2RgW9y1nXQmnKAUNaYhSfUVbga5IxFxlJ2lDHJCImDiKfp15pDXyl8qvr2_2CrJnCapglZ12zQ5fCH27zSfbPYR9AxuzVreflr1/s1600/LG-G-FLEX-Curved-Mobiles-600x564.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
As
 the producer, such a curvature in the body design of its new products 
can not only increase the volume in the dynamics of the smartphone when 
talking by 3 dB, but also provides improved voice quality and sound. In 
addition to games, movies and videos in portrait orientation, LG G Flex 
provides IMAX-like experience with the most comfortable angle for 
viewing.<br />
In addition to this, LG refused to use a G Flex side 
buttons, and move them to the rear panel to avoid accidental clicks 
adjust the volume or turn off the unit. Now, all control can be made 
forefinger, similar to how it is implemented in the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="LG G2 Full Specifications & Price in Pakistan">LG G2</a>.<br />
<h2>
<span style="font-size: 1.17em;">New user interface features listed below:</span></h2>
<ul>
<li><b> QTheater</b> : quick access to photos, videos and YouTube directly from the lock screen;</li>
<li><b>Dual Window</b> : shared a 6-inch display new items into two separate areas that can run two separate applications;</li>
<li><b>Swing Lockscreen</b> : access to events in the lock mode oscillation of the smartphone;</li>
<li><b>Face Detection Indicator (LED Face Detection)</b>: The LED indicator on the rear control key, confirming the status of the mode switch and focusing;</li>
<li><b>Camera</b> Timer (Timer Camera) LED (back button) flashes when the timer turned on the camera;</li>
<li><b>Urgent Call Alert</b>
 (missed an important indicator of calls) on the back of the indicator 
flashes red when the number of consecutive calls from one person 
remained unanswered.</li>
</ul>
<span class="wt-highlight wt-highlight-">LG
 G Flex will be available Coming Soon in market. About the beginning of 
sales of new products in other markets will be announced later.</span><br />
<h2>
What Key Features LG G Flex has?</h2>
<ul>
<li><b>Support communications standards</b>: LTE-A / LTE / HSPA + / GSM</li>
<li><b>Processor</b>: 2.26 GHz, quad, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM 8974)</li>
<li><b>Display</b>: 6-inch, curved P-OLED, resolution of 1280×720</li>
<li><b>Main Camera</b>: <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="See More Mobile Phones having 13MP Camera">13 MP</a></li>
<li><b>Front camera</b>: 2.1 MP</li>
<li><b>Memory</b>: 2 GB RAM (LP DDR3), 32GB of internal</li>
<li><b>Communications</b>: WiFi 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac, BLuetooth v4.0, USB 3.0, NFC</li>
<li><b>Battery</b>: 3500 mA / h</li>
<li><b>Misc. Features</b>: Digital TV Tuner (TDMB), support for playback of 24-bit/192kHz audio</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>

Smartphone LG G Flex with a flexible display & curved

The South Korean company LG Electronics officially unveiled the LG G Flex – a smartphone whose body profile “twisted” on the profile o...

01:59

BlackBerry CEO Tells Businesses Company Is ‘Very Much Alive’

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoIQ1SuKnWoygI-EIFE_gJ4OKo6jUGIioYYO1knDvPkKbgGVIsMjVFzO_AkfaPTrj-Jw6g2JmhaCZ4SwrqiwAUPNYdNGZT1GQbwR3uJQSyVOfdtjUyTVb6au34pS7bOC8R1a3jkXGEzQ1/s1600/ibRLdcIez5Zo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoIQ1SuKnWoygI-EIFE_gJ4OKo6jUGIioYYO1knDvPkKbgGVIsMjVFzO_AkfaPTrj-Jw6g2JmhaCZ4SwrqiwAUPNYdNGZT1GQbwR3uJQSyVOfdtjUyTVb6au34pS7bOC8R1a3jkXGEzQ1/s400/ibRLdcIez5Zo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
BlackBerry Ltd. (BBRY)’s
 new chief executive officer urged customers to stick with the company 
because it remains committed to technology that helps corporate clients 
manage mobile devices, including those made by competitors. <br />
 BlackBerry’s
 device-management business caters to iPhone and Android smartphone 
users and is no more expensive than rival firms, contrary to what 
competitors say, CEO John Chen said in a letter to clients. The 
company’s customer base is growing for such services, he said in the 
letter, which was posted today on the company’s Inside BlackBerry blog. <br />
 “We
 are very much alive, thank you,” said Chen, who took over as CEO of the
 struggling Canadian smartphone maker last month. “We understand the 
realities of the enterprise mobility market better than anyone, and 
we’re in the game for the long term.” <br />
 Chen is seeking to 
reassure large business customers that the company will be there for 
them amid speculation that it might be broken up, with smartphone sales 
sliding and losses mounting. His hiring was announced on Nov. 4 after 
the company canceled plans to be bought by a group led by <a class="web_ticker" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="Get Quote">Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. (FFH)</a> and taken private. <br />
 BlackBerry rose 1.3 percent to $6.41 at the close in New York. The stock has dropped 46 percent this year. <br />
 Chen’s
 letter follows a series of full-page ads the Waterloo, Ontario-based 
company took out in newspapers around the world in October, 
communicating a similar message. Slow sales of new models such as the 
Z10 led to a 45 percent revenue decline in the quarter that ended in 
August, prompting a $934 million inventory writedown. <br />
 <h2>
Wavering Support </h2>
Wireless carriers and other partners have begun to waver in their support for BlackBerry’s devices. <a class="web_ticker" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="Get Quote">T-Mobile US Inc. (TMUS)</a>,
 the fourth-largest U.S. carrier, said in September it would begin 
removing BlackBerry inventory from its stores, requiring buyers to have 
the phones shipped to them instead. <a class="web_ticker" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="Get Quote">Morgan Stanley (MS)</a> and <a class="web_ticker" href="http://www.blogger.com/null" title="Get Quote">UBS AG (UBSN)</a>,
 two of the world’s biggest banks, have held off on a switch to 
BlackBerry 10, while Credit Suisse Group AG has decided not to upgrade 
at all. <br />
 Without naming any specific new customers, Chen stressed
 that the company is thriving and that BlackBerry plans to be around for
 a while.

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01:47

Nokia Lumia 1520 review

<div class="section mb-10 clearfix">
<div class="column-3 first">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIspLQL6pNYOILU1o7HgBJLP2OeV3N6qJNIsDIVyePl9VhXilwPIjQu2GjO3XFZpuAVc47d-MEJABF3ECPw7T91V3_B2naQ4iQM-mzT26EMpmpdtLfhNL0qnIL41xrcgIIEVSfgzmKkGcR/s1600/440x330-nokia-lumia-1520.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIspLQL6pNYOILU1o7HgBJLP2OeV3N6qJNIsDIVyePl9VhXilwPIjQu2GjO3XFZpuAVc47d-MEJABF3ECPw7T91V3_B2naQ4iQM-mzT26EMpmpdtLfhNL0qnIL41xrcgIIEVSfgzmKkGcR/s1600/440x330-nokia-lumia-1520.jpg" /></a></div>
<h2>
<span style="color: lime;"> </span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="color: lime;">Good</span></h2>
<ul class="pros">
<li>Great high-definition screen</li>
<li>Attractive, sturdy design</li>
<li>Powerful processor</li>
<li>Good battery life</li>
<li>Decent camera</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="column-3 last">
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: red;">Bad</span></h2>
<ul class="cons" style="text-align: left;">
<li>Enormous size won't be to everyone's taste</li>
<li>Windows Phone app store is still very poorly stocked</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div class="content clearfix">
<div class="column-3" id="article-contents">
<div class="focus-box">
<h3>
In this review</h3>
<ol class="mb-0">
<li>Should I buy the Nokia Lumia 1520?</li>
<li>Design and build quality</li>
<li class="mb-0">Display</li>
<li>Software and processor</li>
<li>Camera</li>
<li>Battery</li>
<li class="mb-0">Conclusion</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<br />
<article>

Not happy with pumping out the best camera phone in the business in the form of the Lumia 1020,
 Nokia now wants to show it can still play a blinder on the specs front 
too. A recent update to Windows Phone brought support for Full HD 
displays and quad-core processors, allowing Nokia to finally stuff the 
most cutting-edge tech into its phones.<br />

The Lumia 1520 is the first of Nokia's phones to take advantage of 
the update, packing a whopping 6-inch Full HD display, a 2.2GHz 
quad-core processor, 4G and a 20-megapixel camera -- making it the most 
technologically advanced phone Nokia has made to date.<br />

Nokia will be announcing the price and release date of this 
super-phone on Monday, but it's expected to set you back around £500, 
SIM-free. Meanwhile, Carphone Warehouse has started preorders -- you can get it free from £38 per month on a two-year Vodafone contract.<br />

<h2>
Should I buy the Nokia Lumia 1520?</h2>
The Nokia Lumia 1520's bold, Full HD display makes the phone a great 
choice for movies on the move. Its processor is powerful, its battery 
puts up a good fight and the camera isn't at all bad either. Oh, and it 
looks nice. At 6 inches however, the 1520 is a giant beast of a mobile 
that really won't suit you if you're just looking for a good all-round 
phone. <br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520 front" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/product_media/40003186/image1/440x330-nokia-lumia-1520.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">The Lumia 1520 looks good, and has a huge 6-inch Full HD display.</b></div>
</div>
If you're looking for a more pocketable Windows Phone mobile, check out the metal-edged Nokia Lumia 925 or the Lumia 1020
 with its phenomenal camera. Bear in mind too that while Windows Phone 
looks good and is fun to use, it has a pitiful app store compared to 
Android.<br />

If you're keen on big screens and want a host of apps to display on them, Samsung's Galaxy Note 3
 is a solid choice. It too packs a Full HD display and a potent chip, 
but also comes with a stylus for handwriting your own notes.<br />

<h2>
Design and build quality</h2>
The Lumia 1520 is Nokia's biggest smart phone to date, measuring 
163mm long, 85mm wide and 8.7mm thick. By using small bezels, Nokia 
hasn't wasted any space around the screen, but even so, the phone is an 
absolute goliath. <br />

The 5-inch Samsung Galaxy S4
 measures 136mm long and even that is too big for some. It's very 
difficult to use with one hand -- I found it almost impossible to 
stretch my thumb to the far corners when holding it as I would a phone. 
I'm not going to say it's "too big" as that is of course subjective and 
depends on what you're looking for in a device. What I will say, 
however, is that if you just want a regular phone, the 1520 almost 
certainly isn't going to suit. Instead, check out Nokia's Lumia 925.<br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520 back" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/product_media/40003186/image2/440x330-nokia-lumia-1520-2.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">This huge phone is Nokia's biggest yet.</b></div>
</div>
It makes sense that the Note 3 is so huge as its included stylus lets
 you use the phone as a notebook, turning it into a valuable work tool. 
The Lumia 1520's skills instead lie more in displaying videos.<br />

The 1520 shares most of the design cues with other phones in Nokia's 
Lumia range. Its body is made up of a single piece of polycarbonate, 
which, although plastic, has a very solid construction. It feels very 
sturdy to hold and there's no unpleasant flex or creaking in the 
chassis. It looks good too, with its bright colours and rounded edges, 
standing out from the usual black and grey shades found on other phones.<br />

On the edges you'll find a nano-SIM tray (the extra-small SIM card you'll find on the iPhone 5),
 a 3.5mm headphone jack, power and volume buttons and a dedicated camera
 shutter button. There's a generous 32GB of storage, which you can 
expand with a microSD card.<br />

<h2>
Display</h2>
The 1520 is the first Windows Phone device to boast a Full HD 
display, thanks to a recent update to the software that supports higher 
resolutions. Spread over its 6-inch display, the display has a density 
of 367 pixels per inch, slightly beating the 334ppi of the Lumia 1020.<br />

It results in a screen that's very sharp, with crisp edges on the 
large, colourful homescreen tiles and very clear text in Web pages. High
 definition photos and videos look great and the resolution is 
particularly useful if you're working with Excel spreadsheets in the 
Microsoft Office app.<br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520 display" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/product_media/40003186/image5/440x330-nokia-lumia-1520-5.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">The display is sharp and crisp with great colours.</b></div>
</div>
It has great colours too, thanks to deep black levels, which provide 
rich contrast. The colours remain punchy, without looking oversaturated 
-- something the similarly-sized Galaxy Note 3 can suffer from at times.
 Mix in the good viewing angles and its low reflectivity (making it 
easier to view under bright lights), and the 1520's display is one of 
the best you'll find on a big phone.<br />
<h2>
Software and processor</h2>
The Lumia 1520 comes with the latest version of Windows Phone. The 
first thing you'll notice about the software is the extra column of 
icons on the homescreen. It allows for more apps and information from 
live tiles to be displayed at once, which makes sense on a phone this 
size.<br />

Elsewhere, the interface is much the same as it is on any of Nokia's 
other Lumias. The homescreen tiles are clear and easy to read and a 
swipe to the left takes you into the app list to browse your collection,
 listed alphabetically. You can resize the homescreen icons and move 
them around to make sure that your most crucial tools are right where 
you need them, and the extra column lets you sit up to six app icons 
across one row.<br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/c/blg/cat/mobiles/nokia-lumia-1520-uploads/nokia-lumia-1520-home.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">The homescreen can show three columns of tiles, in order to make full use of that whopping screen.</b></div>
</div>
One of my favourite aspects of Windows Phone is the People hub, which
 combines all your social network contacts into one place, allowing you 
to see all updates -- as well as post simultaneously to them all -- from
 the hub, without having to jump into different apps.<br />

Windows Phone combines the simplicity, minimalist layout and ease of 
use of iOS with the customisability of Android. Sounds like an ideal 
solution, but it's not perfect. The main issue that plagues the software
 is the distinct lack of apps in the app store. While some good titles 
-- Spotify, Netflix, Skype -- are available, many big-name services are 
still missing.<br />

If developers even do bother to write apps for Windows Phone, it 
tends to receive them much later than Android or iOS. Vine has only just
 made it to the store and Instagram has literally appeared in the last 
day. While the situation is improving, it's happening at a glacial pace.
 If you're keen on adding new services and tools to your phone or love 
checking out new games, Windows Phone really isn't going to suit you.<br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/c/blg/cat/mobiles/nokia-lumia-1520-uploads/nokia-lumia-1520-maps.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">Nokia's maps and satellite navigation software are handy additions.</b></div>
</div>
Nokia has bundled a bunch of its own apps to help plug the holes 
though. Its maps software is great, providing a wealth of local business
 information -- as well as letting you view nearby points of interest 
around you in an augmented reality view. Its Transit app shows live 
information about local public transport services and Here Drive gives 
turn-by-turn GPS satellite navigation, complete with downloadable maps 
for offline use.<br />

A new addition is Nokia Storyteller, which lets you view your photos 
organised into groups (based on time and location taken), letting you 
annotate the pictures and easily view them on a map. For reminiscing 
about your holiday, Storyteller could be a very useful tool.<br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/c/blg/cat/mobiles/nokia-lumia-1520-uploads/nokia-lumia-1520-storyteller.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">The Storyteller app is hardly groundbreaking, but it's an attractive way of viewing sets of photos.</b></div>
</div>
The Lumia 1520 packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor, 
clocked at a mighty 2.2GHz. The latest Windows Phone update brought with
 it support for quad-core processors, but I'm not exactly sure this 
level of power is necessary just yet. With such a lack of apps, there's 
very little that can challenge the processor right now -- it's like 
buying a Ferrari but only ever taking it to the shops and back.<br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/c/blg/cat/mobiles/nokia-lumia-1520-uploads/nokia-lumia-1520-asphalt.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">Asphalt
 8 is probably the most demanding app you can find for Windows Phones 
right now. Thankfully, the 1520 handled it without trouble.</b></div>
</div>
It does at least make swiping around the interface very swift. 
There's zero delay in opening apps and menus and the camera starts up 
quickly too. I found the camera on the Lumia 1020 a little sluggish, but
 the 1520 has no such problem. High-definition video playback is handled
 well and racing game <i>Asphalt 8</i> played very smoothly, with high frame rates.<br />

<a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="camera"></a><h2>
Camera</h2>
The back of the phone is home to a 20-megapixel camera. That's a 
lower resolution than the ludicrous 41 megapixels of the 
photography-focused Lumia 1020, and the sensor size is physically 
smaller, meaning it can't take in as much light. The 1020 is a superb 
camera phone -- probably the best around -- so should still be on your 
shopping list if photography is your chief concern.<br />

<div align="center">
<a href="http://www.cnet.co.uk/i/c/blg/cat/mobiles/nokia-lumia-1520-uploads/nokia-lumia-1520-camera.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520 camera test" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/c/blg/cat/mobiles/nokia-lumia-1520-uploads/nokia-lumia-1520-camera-inline.jpg" /></a><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">Nokia Lumia 1520 camera test (click image to enlarge).</b></div>
</div>
It still packs loads of megapixels though, along with high-quality 
Carl Zeiss optics, so I was hoping for great image quality and I wasn't 
disappointed. On my test shot, the 1520 achieved a very nice exposure of
 the autumn light over St Paul's Cathedral. I found several of my images
 had some blue colour cast -- the white balance seemed to err on the 
colder side -- but that's easily countered by changing the white balance
 settings.<br />

Quality is very high too. Even at full screen, there's plenty of 
detail to be seen on the fine brickwork on the opposite buildings. The 
high resolution of the phone allows you to digitally zoom in to the 
scene without losing quality -- something that is a particular skill of 
the super-high resolution Lumia 1020.<br />

Nokia has a bunch of apps for camera use too. As well as the 
standard, no-nonsense camera app, you'll find Nokia Pro Cam, which gives
 you manual control over settings like white balance and shutter speed. 
Separate apps for Panorama and animated photos exist too. While there's 
plenty to keep a shutterbug happy, it's a little frustrating to have to 
keep switching into different apps each time. An all-encompassing 
photography app would be good to see in the future.<br />

<a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="battery"></a><h2>
Battery</h2>
Nokia has filled the 1520's enormous body with a whopping great 
3,400mAh battery, promising up to 25 hours of talktime on 3G. That's a 
very impressive figure, but keep in mind that that will be under optimal
 conditions so your own times will vary, depending on how you use it.<br />

In my own tests I found the battery to be pretty good though. With 
medium-intensity use (a bit of gaming, sending and receiving some 
emails, streaming a bit of Netflix), I found it still had plenty of 
juice at the end of the working day after being taken off charge first 
thing in the morning.<br />

If you use it cautiously -- keep the brightness down and avoid 
demanding tasks like gaming -- then you shouldn't struggle to get 
through the whole day and even have some power remaining the next 
morning. With regular, less careful use, you'll probably need to give it
 a charge overnight to ensure you don't run out of power before lunch 
the next day.<br />

<div align="center">
<img alt="Nokia Lumia 1520 side" src="http://cdn-static.cnet.co.uk/i/product_media/40003186/image3/440x330-nokia-lumia-1520-3.jpg" /><br />
<div style="padding: 5px 0px; text-align: left; width: 440px;">
<b class="v1">This is an enormous and potentially cumbersome phone, but its screen, camera and quality make it a good option despite that.</b></div>
</div>
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="conclusion"></a><h2>
Conclusion</h2>
The Nokia Lumia 1520 is colourful, well made, has a brilliant screen,
 good battery life and a good camera, all of which make a solid phone 
all round. It is enormous and cumbersome though, which means it won't 
suit everyone's taste, and its Windows Phone operating system still 
suffers from a poorly stocked app store.<br />
<br />

</article>
 </div>

Nokia Lumia 1520 review

Good Great high-definition screen Attractive, sturdy design Powerful processor Good battery life Decent camera Bad Eno...

08:35

Samsung Galaxy S5 rumoured for February after poor S4 sales

Samsung is set to launch the follow-up to the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">Galaxy S4</a> in just a few months' time, according to a report out of Korea, after the flagship phone has <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">failed to top its spectacularly popular predecessors</a>.
<br />

The Galaxy S5 will launch in February, <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">Korean site ET News reports</a>,
 quoting an unnamed Samsung official, alongside a refreshed Galaxy Gear 2
 smart watch. That's three months earlier than usual for the S series, 
which is usually shipped in May.
<br />

This premature mobile will come in two editions, the report says, with a <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">Galaxy Round</a>-esque
 curved metal option alongside a cheaper version in the usual plastic. 
Both will have 3GB of RAM, a 16-megapixel camera, a huge 4,000mAh 
battery and run on <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">Android 4.4 KitKat</a> from the get-go.
<br />

Samsung did not have any comment on the rumour at time of publication.
<br />

Samsung may be keen to cut its losses on the S4, which has suffered 
along with other high-end smart phone makers as budget Androids have 
become better and better. Bringing out a new flagship phone in February 
would certainly make Mobile World Congress interesting, and dominate the
 show in the same way the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">Galaxy Note 3</a> and <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">Galaxy Gear were by far the biggest deals at IFA</a> back in September.
<br />

While the S4 is immensely powerful and has an incredibly good screen, it is superficially very similar to its predecessor, the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">S3</a>. Android aficionados may have skipped it for the sleek metal of the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">HTC One</a>, undoubtedly the most stylish phone of the year.
<br />

Are you perfectly happy with your S4, or peeved that it may be 
superseded so soon? What would you like to see in a future flagship from
 Samsung? Predict the future down in the comments, or over on our 
future-proof <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" target="" title="">Facebook page</a>.

<br />

</article>
</div>

Samsung Galaxy S5 rumoured for February after poor S4 sales

Samsung is set to launch the follow-up to the Galaxy S4 in just a few months' time, according to a report out of Korea,...

08:17