Samsung Galaxy S4 Life Companion Expert Review

It's one of the most anticipated handsets of the year, it's the follow-up to one of the best-selling phones of last year, and it has been hyped to the extent that Samsung is starting to look like it's going to teach Apple a thing or two about generating anticipation. Enter then, the Samsung Galaxy S4.

In some ways, this device is more interesting than just a new phone. It marks an intriguing time for Samsung where the development of hardware has hit something of a wall, and this generation of phones is all about software. And so it's here that the company has invested, announcing new features and upgrading the old to look more sleek and modern.

Of course, that's not to say this phone isn't technologically advanced, because it is, and it's just about the most high-tech handset you can buy. But it's interesting to see what Samsung is doing to distance itself from the herd, and to stand out.

But enough small talk, let's look at one of the most hotly anticipated phones of the year.

Design

The good news is that Samsung has managed to do two things: it has kept the successful design of the Galaxy S range, while making it nicer than its predecessors. We really like the way the SGS4 has taken the rounded edges of the SGS3 and flattened them. Visually, it makes almost no difference - at first glance, no one will be able to tell this isn't the SGS3 - but in your hand, it feels better and, crucially, is less likely to fall to the ground.

The body of the phone is still plastic though, and that comes with its own problems. While it's light and cheap, it  doesn't feel as nice as a metal body does. It also attracts marks and fingerprints more readily than other materials and we've found that, on a hot day, sweat can mean Samsung's choice of plastics makes its phones hard to hold.

In terms of layout, nothing much has changed. The home button is in the same place and is pretty much the same shape bar a minor tweak. The power button is a little longer now, but in the same location as before, and the same goes for the volume rocker on the right of the phone. The headphone socket is still at the top, and the Micro-USB socket at the bottom.

Around the back the speaker has moved from near the camera to the bottom of the handset. The flash is now beneath the camera lens, where before it was to the side. We liked the old layout, and think the new back looks cheaper. The camera lens assembly is larger too, but it doesn't upset the design significantly.

Under the rear cover, the removable battery, microSD card and micro SIM are still the same, and in the same places. You can put up to 64GB of extra storage in the SGS4 with an optional SD card, and that goes along with either the 16, 32 or 64GB models available. In all honesty, you'd be crazy to buy a high-capacity phone when microSD cards are so cheap.

The raw numbers say this phone is smaller and lighter than the SGS3, and that's impressive considering it has a larger capacity battery and a larger, higher-resolution, display. It doesn't really feel any different though, and side-by-side with the older phone, there's really nothing significant to choose between them.

It screens quality

There are no two ways about it, 1080p screens on small phones are just the bee's knees. Here, what you get is a 5-inch screen which, at 1920 x 1080 equates to 441 pixels per inch. That's a higher resolution than Apple's iPhone, and it beats pretty much everything else on the market too, although 1080p displays are becoming the norm for high-end Android devices.

Looking at it, you can tell it's special. We found that it looks best when it's allowed to shine brightly. That's something common to AMOLED displays, and at lower brightnesses, things tend to look a bit dull and lifeless. Obviously, running your phone at full brightness will kill the battery more quickly, but it does make for a more fetching device. It's also worth pointing out that in very bright sunlight, this screen can get a little bit swamped. It is possible to see it, but be prepared to hunt for some shade when the sun is brightest. 

Thanks to the crazy quad-core processor, the screen doesn't have to suffer with low-bitrate, rubbish quality, video. Oh no. Throw it a high-bitrate, 1080p MKV file with MP4 encoded video and it's as super-happy as Larry. This is iimpressive, and it means you can use this phone to play media on your TV without the need for any other hardware. Samsung's own TVs have the ability to easily accept mirroring in this way, which is good if you exist in a Samsung-dominated world.

For everything else, the screen is great. The resolution means you can get a lot of webpage on the screen at once. The text will be small though, and while those with keen eyes will find it no problem, those who need larger fonts might find the screen size less than optimal. If that's the case, the Note 2 is an ideal choice for you, with a lower resolution and a bigger screen, it's better set up for the web than the SGS4.

Motion, voice and eye control

At some point, mobile phone manufacturers decided that although we'd all bought touchscreen phones, the absolute last thing we'd ever want to do with them is actually to touch them. So they all set about trying to invent new ways for us to interact with our telephones. Samsung has been a leader here, and while Apple got in first with really solid voice assistant tech, the Korean firm has taken voice and added motion and gestures to its arsenal.

What the Galaxy S4 has is the widest selection of non-touch controls we've seen. Some of them are better than others and all of them consume battery like it's going out of fashion.

Our favorite feature is "quick glance" which gives you key information when you reach toward the phone. We love this on the Note 2 as well, but the problem for us there was that it wasn't sensitive enough. Here, it's much more prepared to light up and tell you things when you go near it. It's ace, and we love that other apps can interact with it too - Outlook can show you when you have new Hotmail/Outlook/Live mail, for example.

We also like "direct call", which calls any contact whose details you have on screen when you raise the phone to your head, and "smart alert", which tells you about calls you missed when you were away from the phone by vibrating when you pick the phone up. It's a bit pointless, but if you're in a rush it's good to know that something worth checking has happened.

While "smart scroll" is impressive enough in theory, in practice it leaves you making some comically over-zealous head movements to get text to scroll. It works really well, but you'll look like a fool using it. Meanwhile "smart stay" which keeps the screen on when you're looking at it, is fine, but hopeless if you look away: it goes off, then you want it to come back on again. When Samsung can turn the screen on when you do that, we'll be impressed.

Our final "smart" thing worth mentioning is the video pause feature. With video playing, if you look away, it will pause and resume when you look back. This worked perfectly for us when we were testing it, and we can see this being of use when we're trying to watch a movie and Mrs Lint wants us for something.

S Voice is still a major part of the "not touching your phone" offering. It works well enough, but we can't think of many reasons to use it apart from when you're in the car - when it's actually very good. Use Samsung's driving mode, and it will sit waiting for you to say "Hi Galaxy" - or your phrase - and you can then issue it commands. For example, ask for directions to a location or, as we did, ask it to find a local petrol station.

We'd say that the accuracy of S Voice is pretty remarkable - it's powered by Nuance software - and while other systems we've tried aren't so good with the road noise in a car, S Voice seemed fine with that and mostly knew what we were on about. Like all voice systems, it performs badly when you say "221b Baker Street, NW1" and you'll usually get some messed up location in Canada or somewhere. But overall, we think it works quite well.

Safety assistant

Perhaps the strangest new feature is "Safety assistant". What it does is allow you to set an emergency state on the phone. To do this, you press both the volume buttons and hold them for 3 seconds. Once you've done this, the phone locates you via GPS, and is then able to send a distress alert to numbers you specify. You can also opt to send photos from the front and back cameras as MMS messages. The messages clearly state where you are, in text - in our test it was a few roads out - and it also sends a link to Google Maps.

While we aren't sure quite how much use any of this will be, the core idea is solid. It could be some use to the elderly, although the two-button pressing thing is a bit fiddly, but the potential here is good. We'd leave it on, with a loved-one's details stored, and then if you're out and see something, or are involved in something, you can quickly send details. You may never use it, but there's really no reason not to set it up. Just warn your loved one that it will happen, and try to stay away from it when you're drunk.

Health board

Here's another solid set of features that we're pleased to see, and think will be popular. Health board brings together all the things you need to stay healthy. There's a step counter, exercise tracker and food-logging system all built in here. Operating in much the same way as a Weight Watchers diet, you can simply log all your food and exercise against each other and use that to keep your total intake lower than your energy use.

The step counter is nice, it's automatic and easy to use. It's the sort of thing that, while you have to rember to turn it on, once it's on you can sort of forget about it. We've used Jawbone's Up, and in some ways we prefer the step counter on the SGS4, because you can switch it off when you're not walking. With Up, it's on all the time, and counts typing and reaching to pick up a remote for the TV as a step.

The food management system is a faff though, to be honest. While we get what Samsung is doing, you really need to have a massive food database like Weight Watchers to make it work properly. You can take photos of your food, which is a good excuse for hipsters, and manually or automatically log calories. There is a database, but it's not as comprehensive as we'd like, and there doesn't seem to be any way to scan barcodes, as you can with Up.

It's a worthwhile system overall, and there's some exciting potential for the future too, especially if Samsung grows its database of foods and pushes people to hit their targets.

Internal storage 

One of the controversies that has arisen since we published this review initially, is about the internal storage capacity of the S4. With all of Samsung's gubbins installed, you get a fairly modest 9GB out of a capacity of 16GB to use for your purposes. 

There are a couple of issues here. The first is that people feel cheated when they buy a phone sold as 16GB but can't use all of it. Is it bad practice for Samsung to do this? Yes it is. Will it stop? Probably not. Given the cost of the phone, and the cost of storage, we think Should add extra space to make up for this, perhaps by adding an extra 12GB of space designed just for the operating system. Of course the other option would be to throw in some kind of microSD card with each phone and claim that's part of the storage. 

And, microSD is the saviour here, because despite the fuss, at least on a Samsung Galaxy S4 you can add as much as 64GB of additional storage. And while very high capacity cards are expensive, you can add 32GB for less than £20. It may still feel like you're being cheated, but you'll still be able to store hours of video and loads of photos and music. 

There's not much new here, and while we understand the frustration of the public, we also see this to some extent with every single phone we test, including the iPhone, although that has about 13GB on a 16GB device, clearly not as bad as the Samsung. 

Dropbox

Although it's a third-party app, we need to say a couple of words about Dropbox because its integration here is so good. What we really like is that in the video section you're able to see any video stored both on the device and on Dropbox. Obviously, the same is true for pictures. We really like this, and find it's one of the first "cloud" solutions that actually works in a meaningful way.

The only slight problem is that video must be transferred to your device to play, and that can take quite a while to achieve, even with quite modestly sized clips. Still, it boosts the storage of your device, and Samsung's deal with Dropbox means you get 50GB free for two years when you sign in with a Galaxy S or other Samsung device.

TouchWiz

After so much generally positive talk about the Galaxy S4 it's time to mention something that's idiotic. The lock screen. By default this has no app icons for fast unlock - they're simple enough to enable - and instead there's a small clock and the words "Life companion" in a carefree font.

That's right. It says "Life companion" on the lock screen.

Once we'd finished vomiting, we were able to configure our own lockscreen message. Quite why you'd want a message on your lock screen eludes us slightly anyway, but, again, you can switch it off with minimal effort.

Elsewhere, TouchWiz has improved a lot, at least visually. Icons are a little less cartoony, and a nicer looking. They do still have a colour palette that you'll either love or hate, but the super-high resolution on this phone seems to have made it something worth looking at. We think "normal" users will get along with the interface fine, and advanced users are free to change pretty much everything, using free apps and themes readily available.

We do like the new clock and weather widget though, and while it's got a bit of a whiff of HTC's new Sense interface about it, it's still a nice design that's clear to use and pleasant to look at.

The two-headed beast

One of the big complaints about Samsung's approach is that it duplicates everything. With the SGS4 you have a choice of two app stores, two video stores and two music stores. Happily, Samsung has amalgamated all of its products into one hub now, and it's also undertaken a massive redesign. We have to say, it now looks great.

Prices seem about right, they're broadly similar to Google Play and iTunes. As always, there are differences, but at least you can do some shopping around - not on iTunes, of course, unless it's music. It's all expensive in our view, but there must be people out there buying this stuff. At least Samsung has TVs, tablets and phones that can all access this video content.

There are some of the usual nonsense restrictions in place, as per the rules of Hollywood. You can only watch films on the phone, or when connected via an HDMI cable with HDCP and some movies will even stop you using Samsung's own AnyCast to shift films to a Samsung TV. Thanks Hollywood, your prattery never ceases to amaze.

To some extent, we agree that the combination of Android and TouchWiz means there are often several ways of doing the same thing. Normal users won't struggle with this, but advanced users might find it a little frustrating. On the plus side, Android settings are now separated into more-logical categories, so tweaking things should be a little easier.

Battery

Here's where things start to become a bit difficult. We always refuse to give battery benchmarks because it's impossible to do properly. We could tell you how long a phone plays 720p video for, but as not a single soul uses a phone like that, it's worthless. What we do is tell you about our experiences.

And here, we've found the now familiar pattern with all Samsung Galaxy S handsets, namely, that the battery doesn't live up to the promises made by the phone. Essentially, The SGS4 has so many amazing features, but to use them all as intended, you'll crunch through the battery in a lot less than a full day.

We did a heavy use test, which involved using the phone to browse the web and tweet for a couple of hours in the morning, followed by two hour-long journeys, one with vanilla satellite navigation, the other with Samsung's "Driving mode" turned on. Doing this, we were down to the last few drops of power by 5pm, having started using the phone at 7am. That's not bad, to be honest, but it's still a bit of a compromise.

On the next day, we used the phone a little bit in the morning, and then on and off throughout the day. Things looked better, but we still didn't make it to bedtime without slipping in some extra juice. This is something of an issue, but these days people are simply getting used to charging their handsets during the day.

At least here you can switch the battery for a new one just by popping the cover off. That's a bit clunky, but it's a solution if you're out and about for long periods.

Camera

Samsung has upped the resolution of the rear camera to 13-megapixels. At Pocket-lint we aren't especially blown away by numbers, and the photos are far more important to us. Happily, the Galaxy S is something quite special in camera terms. Before, we would have argued that the iPhone 5 has just about the best images we've seen from a phone. Now we think Apple has some really stiff competition.

Images have good, solid colour and a really good level of detail. We've seen compact cameras produce images that look worse than the shots from this camera. Zoomed in to 100 per cent and there's little of that "cheap camera smooshing" that crushes detail and leaves a mush of splodges in its place.

It's also worth remembering that the Galaxy S has some utterly solid tricks too: for example, the ability to take five photos quickly, and remove moving objects. This is, quite possibly, one of the most breathtaking things we've seen. This feature is very useful if you're trying to take a nice tourist snap and other tourists keep getting in the way, and what's more, it's really very quick. The five photos happen in reasonably rapid succession, but it gives the camera enough time to capture the scene and enough information to edit out things moving at normal walking pace.

We've tested this a fair bit, and it's really rather good. It won't suit all occasions, but imagine the number of times you've photobombed a tourist in your life, and this feature will get rid of that. The final image quality is also very good indeed, and if you weren't told, it would be quite hard to guess that any processing had taken place at all.

The usual modes are also present, as you'd expect. Panorama, HDR and best photo all earn a spot. It does feel like the camera's user interface has learnt extensively from Samsung's Galaxy Camera, but this is a smart move, as that device was well designed, if perhaps not the best camera we've ever tested.

Call me, maybe?

Some people use their phones to make calls to people. Sometimes they're Canadian pop stars, sometimes it's just their friends and family. Happily, we found the calling quality of the SGS4 to be outstanding. Our house rests in a fairly low signal area, and the phone had very little trouble delivering good quality calls. Sometimes there were some wobbles at the start of the call, but things soon settled down. 

We also noted that the phone's speaker is incredibly loud. In fact, we were quite startled by how much sound it could produce. The big problem with the speaker is that, while it's stereo, there's only one place where the sound escapes from the cover. This makes it incredibly easy to block the speaker and reduce the sound substantially. 

The best suggestion we can give you for getting good sound out of the SGS4 is to use a set of headphones with a built-in microphone. 

The competition

It's worth spending a few minutes to think about the competition. We can ignore the iPhone to some extent, although anyone thinking of making the move from iOS to Android could do a lot worse than pick Samsung as the handset company to defect to.

READ: iPhone 5 review

If you look at these phones through a defector's eyes, iPhone users would be far more likely to go for the HTC One, and would find it a more similar experience to their Apple devices. For a start, the metal construction of the HTC is a very welcome sight, and the way the phone has been designed from a software point of view will please most people looking for a pretty user interface. The Samsung is a contender here, but the HTC does have a slight edge in terms of style, it's just perhaps not as feature-heavy as the SGS now is - and the camera doesn't meet our expectations, honestly. Also, the sound from the One's speakers is in a different league from the SGS. 

READ: HTC One review

The Sony Xperia Z is another possible option. We don't think iPhone deserters would be that keen, but for an Android phone, Sony has done a great job of keeping the feel of Google's OS, while still adding some really nice extra features. Sony's obsession with messing with things has died, and while there are still those duplicates of the Google Play features, it's less marked than it is on Samsung's phone. It is water-resistant, however.

READ: Sony Xperia Z review

And it seems silly not to mention that you could also opt for the Galaxy Note 2. After all, there are lots of shared features, and the Note has some advantages - like, for example, a bigger screen and better battery life.

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Verdict

As we type this we have the SGS3 and the SGS4 on our desk. While, superficially, there's really not a lot of difference between the two, to hold, they couldn't feel more different. We really like the new, more square-feeling SGS4. At the back, we prefer the SGS3  aesthetically, although the case design of the new phone is nicer - albeit still plastic.

There are a stack more options here. Some we like, and think we might use, others we can see the value in, and some we think are ridiculous. But, if nothing else, Samsung continues to try hard, and work on new features. Many of these are unique and interesting, rather than just copies of other devices.

We are certain that the SGS4 is a better phone than the SGS3. Loads more features, improvements everywhere and very little that has got worse - you might laugh, but this does happen with successful devices sometimes.

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On the negative side, we still think the battery life is a problem, and if you switch of the power-draining features, then you'll end up with the same Android phone as everyone else has, so there's not much point in that, is there? On the whole though, battery life and management seems better on this phone than the last. With normal use, we can get through the working day, so that's pretty reasonable.

As always, the sign of a good gadget is one that we don't want to give back. Our review SGS4 is being returned tomorrow, and the truth is that we're really going to miss it. It is, therefore, a product we heartily commend.

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Samsung Patents Reveal Future Features

The patent wars. Yes, it is just as real as the browser wars, and all other tech wars out there. It is nothing new either, with mobile companies suing each other left and right in past few years. It even reached a point when we needed a graphical representation of companies suing each other, as we couldn’t keep track of things any more!

According to mobile analyst Chetan Sharma, though, the future is looking bright for Samsung. At least in terms of patents received. We know just how dynamic the mobile market is, and it is imperative for companies to make sure that they hold the intellectual property rights to potential money-making technology. If they want to survive, that is.

And when it comes to hoarding patents and keeping them sacred (so the competition can’t pull one on them), Apple and Samsung are at the forefront of the battle. Sharma took a look at the patent world in the United States and Europe, and found out that Samsung has gained an advantage over its main competitor. According to his report, there were more than 7 million mobile patents awarded in those areas in 2012. That’s a whole lot of patents, but they didn’t all go to Apple and Samsung, obviously. Brands such as Sony, Microsoft, RIM, LG, Qualcomm, Ericsson, Panasonic, Alcatel-Lucent, and Nokia are still active in this regard, although to a lesser degree.

Among some of the patents are gentle hints at the features and new UI’s we’ll likely see with the Samsung Galaxy SV and other key new phones. For example-the patent below shows how Samsung intends to visualise folder management for future phones.

When applications are grouped in a folder they appear stacked on the main app screen. Folders can then be opened by tapping on the folder or by pinching the folder to open a pop out screen with the folder contents. Within the folder you can then scroll vertically. The focus on this and some of the other recent patents seems to be multitasking. An area BlackBerry have marketed heavily with the new BlackBerry Z10.

What does this mean for the future? For consumers, this might just mean that we will be seeing better products from Samsung in the future. Having gained mobile patents for God-knows-what, and considering its constant struggles with Apple, Samsung will probably go all out to attract mobile gadget enthusiasts to their corner. Seeing quite a handful of people switching from Apple to Samsung phones in my circle, I can’t help but be curious. Still, I don’t believe that that Apple will lag far behind, patents or not. After all, it still has one of the most brilliant designers alive.

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Samsung And Mozilla Creating Servo – New Android Browser

Samsung and Mozilla are not exactly a pair that comes to mind immediately, but they have come together for a new project. Something that will, in all likelihood, only fuel the browser wars. Early this month, Mozilla made an announcement that serves to support their mission to advance the Web as a platform for all. And with that announcement came the revelation that they have partnered up with Samsung to create a new Android browser.

Meet Servo

Servo is the name of the advanced technology Web browser engine that the project revolves around. From the blog post:

We are now pleased to announce with Samsung that together we are bringing both the Rust programming language and Servo, the experimental web browser engine, to Android and ARM. This is an exciting step in the evolution of both projects that will allow us to start deeper research with Servo on mobile. Samsung has already contributed an ARM backend to Rust and the build infrastructure necessary to cross-compile to Android, along with many other improvements.

If you’re a programmer, you can find out more about Rust and Servo from GitHub. For average Joes like me, read on without clicking.

Why the collaboration?

There is no doubt that something interesting and ultra useful can come out of this project. Two big names coming together with the aim of delivering a browser that might very well change the way we surf on our mobile devices – that is something every tech enthusiast can look forward to!

But there is another noteworthy angle to look at. Why should Samsung and Mozilla partner up when Samsung is pretty much good with Android? More so, Mozilla is creating its own mobile OS. On the surface, it doesn’t seem to make sense for the two entities to strike a deal, does it?

If you think about it, though, Samsung is rather dependent on Google – thanks to its dependence on Android. And if rumors are to be believed, Google is not that happy with how Samsung is dominating the Android market. Things could very well turn sour in the future. And that’s where a new partnership, which could lessen Samsung’s dependence on Google, comes in handy. Now it makes more sense!

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Samsung Intros Galaxy Mega Devices With Two New Phablets

Samsung must really believe in the phablet market as the company has announced the arrival of two new oversized devices. The company on Thursday said it has added Galaxy Mega devices to its phablet series. If you are unfamiliar with phablet’s they are sized between a phone and a mini-tablet, hence their naming convention.

According to Samsung the devices will come in 5.8-inch and 6.3-inch screen sizes with differing specs built on the model chosen.

Samsung says the devices will be sold globally “beginning in may for Europe and Russia.”

The Samsung Mega devices will feature dual-core chipsets, making them less robust than the Galaxy Note II and its quad-core chipset.  That fact points to cheaper devices for acquisition, although Samsung has not provided pricing at this time.

In a message to customers Samsung describes the Mega phablets as such:

The newest addition to the GALAXY family balances an optimal viewing experience on a 6.3-inch HD screen, yet is ultra-thin and portable enough to put into a pocket or hold in one hand. The GALAXY Mega offers a mix of popular smartphone and tablet features such as an effortless user experience, a split screen, multitasking between video and other apps and more.

JK Shin, CEO of Samsung’s mobile business adds:

“We are aware of a great potential in the bigger screen for extensive viewing multimedia, web browsing, and more. We are excited to provide another choice to meet our consumers’ varying lifestyles, all while maintaining the high-quality features of the award-winning GALAXY series.”

The move closely follows Samsung’s strategy of releasing devices for every consumer preference and price range. The company offers low-end devices for developing nations all the way to high end devices preferred in other parts of the world.

Samsung’s move to larger displays was seen as a gamble when the company first proposed then enacted the move, since that time Apple has increased its screen realty and other device manufacturers have been quick to follow suit.

Here is a first look at the Samsung Mega 5.8-inch:

And here is the Samsung Mega 6.3-inch:

 Both devices come packed with Samsung’s software suite of applications which include S Travel, Story Album, Group Play, Samsung WatchON, and various other options.

On the 6.3 inch Mega side the device also features full HD alongside 4G/LTE connectivity and a 1.7GHz dual-core chip. On the 5.8-inch display users receive a QHD display, HSPA+ and a 1.4GHz dual-core chip. Both devices also take advantage of an 8 megapixel rear camera and a 1.9 megapixel front-facing lens.

Both devices ship with 1.5GB RAM and offer internal memory choice of 8GB/16GB (6.3-inch) and 8GB for the smaller device.

With the larger screen also comes a larger 3,200 mAh battery compared to the other devices 2,600mAh option.

Samsung is shipping both devices with Google Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and Samsung’s TouchWiz UI.

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Apple Shareholder Goes To Court Over Stocks

Apple has long had a reputation amongst its investors for hoarding cash.  In  fact, the company has 137 billion in cash reserves. Some believe that Apple’s reluctance to distribute cash to their investors is a by product of the fact that they almost went bankrupt in the past.  For Apple supporters, it is just one part of why the company continues to be hugely successful.  However, for one former supporter, Apple’s cash hoarding has been cause for action.

Hedge fund operator David Einhorn hopes to be able to change the way that Apple can distribute stock and force Apple to give more cash to shareholders. Einhorn’s plan called for $50 billion in preferred stock, valued at $1 a share, to be issued to holders of existing shares of Apple stock. Each of the shares issued by Apple would then pay an annual dividend of four percent forever.

Apple has fought back against Einhorns plan.  The company has decided to remove the board’s power to issue preferred shares.  This removal of power is an item on Apple’s proxy statement that would be voted on at the annual meeting.  The unusual move to give away power is Apple’s attempt to maintain their cash reserve.

Einhorn is attempting to block Apple from making that move.  He has filed a lawsuit in order to prevent Apple’s board from being able to give away its own power to issue preferred stock.  This legal challenge is part of a unique attempt in what is likely an uphill battle to get Apple to allocate more of their cash to investors.

Whether or not the legal challenge is successful, the action taken by Einhorn has certainly cast a light on how Apple chooses to maintain such a huge cash reserve.  It has brought forth the issue into the arena of public discussion.  What do you think Apple should do?  Do you think that they are right to maintain such a huge cash reserve?  Do you think Einhorn is right to take legal action?  These are questions that at this point, look as though they will be determined in court.

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LG Optimus G Pro Officially Unveiled In South Korea

The LG Optimus G Pro smartphone was officially unveiled by the electronics firm on Monday. The phone debuted in LG’s home country of South Korea.

The Optimus G Pro is the first full HD smartphone for the tech giant and with that new feature comes some powerhouse additions.

Powering the devices 5.5-inch 1080p display is a 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor that runs alongside 2GB of DDR RAM and 32GB internal storage. LG also offers expandable memory viamicroSD memory cards.

The LG Optimus G Pro runs on Google Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and stays on for long periods of time thanks to a 3,140mAh battery.

In the company’s ever growing attempt to capture a larger chunk of the Android smartphone market LG has added some new and useful features. For example, users can take advantage of Dual Recording, a new video capture mode that simultaneously captures video from the front and rear camera. LG has also added in VR Panorama, a feature that enables users to shoot horizontally or vertically with 360-degree access.

The Optimus G Pro is epxected to make its hands-on appearance during the Mobile World Congressin Barcelona. MWC takes place from February 25 through February 28.

In the meantime, LG has plans to make the LG Optimus G Pro available for sale in South Korea within the week. No pricing has been announced for the smartphone.

LG has not provided any further information about European or North American release dates or pricing. Given the standard $199 pricing for many of today’s most popular smartphones it is likely carriers will stick to that tried and consumer accepted price point.

Will you be running out to purchase the LG Optimus G Pro or will you await the arrival of the Samsung Galaxy S IV or Apple iPhone 6?

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How to Jailbreak 6.0.1 on iPhone 5s & iPod 4th Generation

In this article I am going to show you how to jailbreak 6.0.1 on the iPhone 4, the iPod Touch 4^thGeneration, as well as the iPhone 3Gs. First, before we actually get into the Jailbreak aspect of this tutorial, now first I want to mention that of course, iOS 6.0.1 is Apple’s latest promo and released it yesterday. As of now, the iPhone Dev Team has yet to put out an updated version of Red Snow. However, what we are going to do is pointed at older version of iOS 6 IPSW2, trick into thinking that we’re on iOS 6 when in reality we are using iOS 6.0.1. So of course i will be making an updated tutorial as soon as RedSnow is updated to a version that can natively support iOS 6.0.1. Here fully guide on iPhone 5s jailbreak you can easy to implement on your iphone.

1. Also this is a tethered jailbreak and that it only works on iphone 4, iphone 3Gs and the 4^th Generation iPod Touch. However, what we can do after this tethered jailbreak is essentially converted to a semi-tethered or semi-untethered jailbreak. Now, I’ll explain that more towards the end of this article after we complete the tethered jailbreak with RedSnow.
2. Now what you need to download first is the latest version of the RedSnow as well as your iOS 6 IPSW for your device. Now, again I did say iOS 6 because we will be using iOS 6 far more instead of iOS 6.0.1, eventhough we are on 6.0.1.
3. Now of course I will have a post down below in the “More Info” with download links to both RedSnow and 6.0 for your corresponding device. I need to show you guys here that in my iPhone 4 is indeed on iOS 6.0.1 as you can see down below and for the version it does say 6.0.1 and just inside the standardSettings app > General and About.
4. Now, we got that out of the way, let’s go ahead and get into this tutorial so once you have your RedSnow and IPSW downloaded, simply open up RedSnow.
5. Now, if you’re on Mac, what you gonna have to do is either hold down Controlor right-click on RedSnow, you’ll get this menu here and then simply clickOpen and that will actually be able to Jailbreak your device.
6. Again, that’s just what you have to do with this latest version of RedSnow. Now, what we have to do from here is go to the Extras option and then go toSelect IPSW towards the bottom and what we’re going to do is point it at our iOS 6 IPSW which I have right here on my desktop.
7. Alright, now that we get a dialog selection window, we can go ahead and select our 6.0 IPSW and once it’s identified, it will say successfully identified.
8. As you can see we have a new window from RedSnow here. We can click OKto that and then let’s go back and then from here we can click “JailBreak”.
9. Alright now, as you can see we have the option to install Cydia, that’s what we’re going to check. That’s all we need to check and then from here we’re going to click Next and now it’s just telling us to make sure the devices are both plugged in and powered off and it’s going to tell you how to enter DFU mode once you continue.
10. Now what we’re going to do is enter DFU mode. All you have to do is plug your device into your computer via USB cable and simply hold down the Home andPower button together for a total of 10 seconds.
11. Once that 10 seconds is up, you can go ahead and let go of the Power buttonand continue holding the Home button for roughly 10-15 seconds.
12. Now, once that time is up, it will automatically bypass that screen and RedSnow and it will continue through the Jailbreak process.
13. Right now, as you can see it’s just downloading the Jailbreak data to the iPhone right now. And it’s saying that this process is done, everything else will take place on the device just leave it plugged in even though it says it’s done.
14. Alright, finally it’s moved passed that stage in the scrolling text portion of the jailbreak where it said “Please wait” again just leave your device alone, it will proceed.
15. Alright now, this stage actually takes the longest-moving applications, again just be sure to leave your device alone. It will continue pass this step once it’s finished. Alright now, let’s move on to installing bundles, the iPhone should reboot here shortly.
16. Now we’re just waiting for it normally boot back up, which shouldn’t take long at all. So while we’re waiting for this to do its thing, let’s go ahead and close out of RedSnow and let’s reopen it.
17. Again if you are on a Mac or an iOS-based computer, what you have to do isright-click or control click onto RedSnow and once you do that, you can clickOpen from there.
18. Now, this step is crucial. Again, we do have to close out of RedSnow and then reopen it. And then we’ll actually be able to boot tethered. So now that our iPhone is back up here, let’s go ahead and slide to unlock.
19. Now, you will notice that you don’t have anything on your device yet, that’s because, again, we have to boot tethered. Let’s go ahead and do that right now, inside of RedSnow, if we just close that up and then reopen. So I’m just going to set this iPhone down for a second and then we’re actually be going to go through the simple process of booting tethered.
20. So what we need to do from here is go to Extras and then select IPSW again and you will get this selection window, we can go ahead and plain it towards our iOS 6.0 IPSW, not 6.0.1, again because we are tricking reds now because it has not been updated yet.
21. So let’s go ahead and click OK to that. And from here let’s just select the top option which is the “Just Boot”. And you will actually have to do this every single time your device powers off and you want to bring it back up or you want to turn it back on with full jailbreak functionality. Again once we install this semi-untethered or the semi-tethered jailbreak after we complete this, you will be able to turn it back on, however you won’t be able to use everything on your device and we’ll get into that more towards the end of this tutorial.
22. But, like I said, now that we have selected our IPSW, we’ve hit “Just Boot”, now we have to plug our device into our computer, which we’ve already done. We haven’t even unplugged it, it’s just been the same so now that it’s plugged in, we’re ready to go. We’re going to enter DFU mode again, it just gives you the same screen words, telling you to both plug in and turn off your device and it will tell you how to enter DFU mode and we can do that ahead of time, just like before, hold down Home and Power button together for a total of 10 seconds. Now that 10 seconds is up, you can go ahead and let go of thePower button and continue holding the Home button for roughly 10-15 seconds.
23. The DFU mode is a black screen so you won’t notice any difference. It will just automatically bypass it inside of RedSnow if you’ve done it correctly, which in this case, of course, we have. So, it’s just going to go through the process and patch it with the limerain exploit, and then it will turn back on and then we will have Cydia. And another thing, as you can see right inside here on RedSnow it says it’s done so this is just going to take the normal time to take to actually reboot your device. So this part shouldn’t take long at all.
24. Alright, there we go. Maybe it made me a little longer that it would take to normally turn on but we have our Iphone 4 up now. Let’s go ahead and slide to unlock, and scroll over and as you can see now we do have Cydia. It did take a while to actually come up there.
25. So what I’m going to do now is just open up Cydia and hit Cancel to refresh our packages there and once that’s done we’re going to just scroll down and like I said, down below towards the bottom, it does say that I’m on an iPhone 4 on 6.0.1 with Cydia 1.1.8.

How to install this semi-tethered or semi-untethered jailbreak

What we need to do is go to the bottom to Manage and then Sources, and then Edit > Add and then we’re going to add this source. It’s “thebigboss.org/semitether”. Alright, once we’ve typed that in, we can go ahead and just click Add Source and we’ll verify the URL and it’ll actually update the sources.

1. And alright now that it’s done updating that data and adding that source we can just go ahead and hit “Return to Cydia” and then let’s go tothebigboss.org right here for slash SemiTether and then we can go to that source and the only package in that source is “SemiTether”.
2. You can go ahead and click that and click on Install or tap on Install, rather. And then go ahead and tap Confirm.
3. From there it will install this semi-tethered or the semi-untethered jailbreak. Alright now, once it says Restart Springboard so let’s go ahead and do that right now.
4. Alright, I’m going to slide to unlock and again, you won’t really notice anything. You do have one icon, the SemiTether right there. What we’re going to do though is actually unplug our iPhone from the computer and I’m also going to close the RedSnow here on the computer.
5. I’m going to turn off the iPhone and turn it back on so that you do know that this is a semi-tethered or a semi-untethered jailbreak. Because again with just a regular tethered jailbreak, you have to actually plug your device into your computer and select Just Boot option inside of RedSnow with this method that I’m telling you guys.
6. But because we did install this semi-tethered jailbreak, we can go ahead and turn it on, and it will boot back up with limited functionality.
7. Safari will not work just right off the back after you do that’s semi-tethered jailbreak. So after you plug your device into your computer and re-run that Just Boot option if you want most of these applications to work. But it’s essentially just like your lifeline, if you absolutely have to reboot your device and you’re not in your computer.
8. So I hope you guys  like this tutorial and if you did, please be sure to rate it up and leave comment down below in the comments section and don’t forget to hit that Subscribe button to be notified every time I release new tutorials including jailbreak videos and updated tutorial for 6.0.1.

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Where Mobile Is Going In 2013

Mobile technology has entered each side of our skilled and private lives. Its impact on publication and every one media is positive and irreversible, most so the possibilities square measure sensible that you simplysquare measure reading this text on a smartphone or hand-held pill.

• To help you see the ways in which mobile technology can amendment however we tend to do business, have relationships, and detain bit with news from round the world, we provide our "top 5 mobile trends to look at in 2013."
• App growth won't block. in line with Forrester analysis, the planet has begun to maneuver aloof from the online and also the computer, toward Associate in Nursing "app Internet" wherever powerful native devices,like the iPad, square measure running programs that transparently link to resources within the cloud. The appweb market was recently calculable to be price $2.2 billion, in line with St. George F. Colony, Forrester’s Chairman and corporate executive, World Health Organization foreseen in a very diary post that the market can expand by eighty five p.c.
• Users can over ever expect a extremely integrated expertise as they move from the online, to the mobile device, and back. Kindle’s Whispersync provides a wonderful illustration; it permits readers to choose up fromwherever they left off, in spite of if they're reading on-line, on a Kindle device, or {in a|during a|in Associate in Nursing exceedingly|in a very} Kindle app on an iPad. The result's a seamless content consumption expertise – and a closer-than-ever approximation to what users expect once they are reading in print. For publishers, too, the advantages square measure significant; instead of having anonymous users, publishers can currently be able to profile their audiences, build user histories, and create any reading suggestions with targeted merchandise. With individual user counts, publishers acquire a wealth of user metrics.
• The cloud is returning to the workplace. Dropbox, Box.net and different cloud storage devices can enable usersto attach to their media where they are going, as well as their preferences for viewing. customers were the primary adopters of this technology, quickly followed by the enterprise.
• Content curation is king. The mounted instrumentality of content may be a dying breed. In 2013 and on the far side, publishers can let users create the content their own to form additional meaty use of it. to form their appsreally sticky and helpful, publishers should enable skilled users to require the content deeper and deeper into their progress.
• The digital textbook is however the new generation of scholars can learn. The opportunities within theeducation market square measure tremendous and transformative. The approach content is employed isdynamical, with e-textbooks and new textbook-type apps leading the approach. Interactive charts and graphs, embedded audio and visual media as well as video, and period sharing and live discussions square measure amongthe various new ways in which students can act with one another, their instructors, and even with their textbooks' authors. the times of book-filled backpacks square measure numbered. within the future, childrenof all ages can expect the content to be live, updateable, interactive and social.

We have seen this motion picture before. In 1995, the planet Wide net brought new business opportunitiestogether with questions on managing belongings rights. identical plot additionally vie out starting within the Seventies with the industrial availableness of photocopiers. The secret's to deal with technology-driven challenges with technology-driven solutions.

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