Nokia announced the Nokia 808 PureView, the successor to the Nokia N8 in the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2012 today in Barcelona. One of the most notable features of the 808 PureView is obviously the camera – the whole 41 mega-pixels of it. No, it’s not a typo – PureView’s 41 mega-pixel camera was made possible by combining Carl Zeiss optics and Nokia-developed pixel over-sampling technology.

Farewell! VGA Camera Phones

While the number of pixels certainly does not guarantee great photos, it’s still pretty amazing how a phone could pack so many pixels looking back to the days when we had VGA cameras.

In the audio department, the PureView comes with Dolby Digital Plus audio recording, with an HDMI output.

The PureView runs on Nokia Belle – formerly known as the Symbian Belle – and sports an Android-like interface. It’s powered by a 1.3 GHz single-core chip and has a 4-inch core-to-corner display size with a resolution of 360 x 640 (nHD). The phone comes equipped with 512 MB of RAM and 16 GB of on-board storage with added expandability via microSD.

The Nokia 808 PureView will go on sale in Europe at around €450 pre-tax and subsidies in May. No word on a US launch, yet; however we’re expecting the unlocked versions to show up shortly after the European launch.

For those anxious to have a look, here’s Engadget’s Hands-On. Take a look!

Image Credit: Slash Gear, CyberIndian Tech

Related articles

• Nokia Teases PureView Ahead Of Launch (trustedreviews.com)
• Nokia Teases “Pure View” Imaging Ahead Of MWC (techcrunch.com)
• Nokia teases ‘pure view’ camera innovation for MWC 2012 (theverge.com)
• VIDEO: Nokia teases ‘Pure View’ camera smartphone, to come at MWC (mobigyaan.com)
• Nokia ‘Pure View’ camera tech teased, N8 sequel incoming (somobile.co.uk)
• Nokia Belle earns corporate street-cred with Microsoft Office apps (madshrimps.be)
• Nokia to Unveil ‘Pure View’ at Mobile World Congress (pcworld.com)
• Nokia N8 successor in the works? (ubergizmo.com)

Technorati: Camera, Carl Zeiss, Carl Zeiss AG, carl zeiss optics, Dolby Digital Plus, HDMI, Mobile, Mobile World Congress, Nokia, Nokia N8, Photo, Pixels, Pure View, PureView, resolution, Smartphone, Symbian

Apple sure knows how to deliver a message within their 30-second commercials. Apple’s latest commercial features the iCloud, showcasing a number of iCloud’s most notable features including seamless sync across any Apple devices.

When you take pictures on your iPhone, using iCloud’s Photo Stream function, your photos are displayed across your iPhone, iPad, Macbook – you name a (recent) Apple product, you’ll see your pictures there.

Apps? Download an app on your iPad and the app will appear on your iPhone as well – no need to remember to look up the app in the App Store again.

iCloud’s features allow for an all-in-one solution to keep your photos, documents, music, books, apps, email, contacts, and calendars all in sync – it even backs up your iOS devices automatically so in any critical circumstances that you lose your phone, your ‘new’ phone could be restored with your latest back up right from iCloud.

Simply put,

With iCloud, the stuff you love is everywhere you need it. Automatically.
     - @Apple on YouTube video description

Related articles

• Apple Airs New ‘iCloud Harmony’ Commercial (macrumors.com)
• iOS Basics: Set up iOS calendar syncing (macworld.com)
• Apple Disables iCloud Push Email Services In Germany Following Motorola Patent Dispute (cultofmac.com)
• Apple’s iCloud Is No Dropbox Killer (It’s Much More) (techcrunch.com)
• Apple reminds lagging MobileMe users to migrate to iCloud before June 30th deadline (thenextweb.com)

Technorati: App Store, Apple, iCloud, iOS, iOS 5, iOS devices, iPad, iPhone, iPod, iPod Touch, iTunes, Mac, MacBook, MobileMe, Photo Stream, YouTube

Recent reports have revealed that Apple may be equipping the Apple iPad 3 with A5X chip instead of the A6 as many have predicted in the weeks prior. While there seems to be a common consensus among the industry watchers that the iPad 3 will have a similar design to the iPad 2 and the Retina display, there are still quite a bit of disagreement whether the next generation iPad will come with a quad-core A6 chip or a dual-core improved A5 chip.

Well it may be that both groups are correct with regards to the chips – Apple looks to have been developing both chips at the same time.

So far, reputable publications such as iMore and Bloomberg have both reported that the iPad 3 will come with a quad-core chip whereas The Verge reported that it will be coming with a dual-core chip with improved graphics engine. 9to5 Mac published a report recently analyzing the naming trends of the Apple chips to justify the naming of the A5X chip:

The original iPad’s A4 chip was called S5L8930X, the iPad 2′s A5 chip was called the S5L8940X, and now this A5X chip is labeled as S5L8945X. Notice the jump of 10 in the labeling on the A4 to A5, and notice the jump of only 5 on the A5 to “A5X.” The 5 would note a half-way upgrade, something that an A5X chip with improved graphics, but still dual-core processing, would be likely referred to as.

Logically speaking, if the naming scheme holds true to 9to5 Mac‘s analysis, the A6 chip would be S5L8950X. Deep in the codes embedded in the iOS 5.1 betas, 9to5 Mac reports that there are references to both S5L8945X and S5L8950X. The recent evident points quite clearly that Apple have been developing both chips to be used with the iOS 5.

Now that we know(?) the Apple has been developing two chips, A5X and A6, any number of speculation could be in place of why Apple decided to develop two chips, simultaneously.

9to5 Mac‘s Mark Gurman suggest a number of speculations:

• Apple simply developed both chips simultaneously to see which would better fit the new iPad.
• The quad-core A6 is for the iPad 3, while the A5X is for rumored Apple TV update, the next-generation iPhone, or another iOS device
• Apple will sell a cheaper iPad with the A5X chip and the higher-end iPad 3 has the A6.
• The rumored 8 inch iPad has the A5x processor

Related articles

• Apple working on enhanced A5 chip (A5X) AND completely new chip (A6) (9to5mac.com)
• iPad 3 Logic Board With “A5X” Processor Suggests We Won’t See Quad-Core A6 Chip Next Month [Image] (cultofmac.com)
• Another iPad 3 Rear Panel Reveals New Camera, Slightly Modified Design (cultofmac.com)
• iPad 3 debug screenshots reveal quad-core A6 processor, two models (techspot.com)
• Apple Employee Promises iPad 3 Will Have “Truly Amazing” Display (cultofmac.com)
• Technolog – Purported leaks give details about iPad 3 guts, appearance (kissmygrits1.newsvine.com)
• iPad 3 leaks: new chip, thicker case, March launch? (csmonitor.com)
• Reports: iPad 3 Camera, Resolution, Chip System Confirmed (dailytech.com)
• Apple seen working on both A5X and A6 chips (electronista.com)
• Apple working on A5X and A6 processors – Report (edibleapple.com)

Technorati: 9to5 Mac, 9to5Mac, a5, A5 chip, A5X chip, A5x processor, A6 chip, A6 processor, Apple, Apple iPad, dual-core chip, iOS, iOS 5, iOS 5.1, iPad, iPad 2, iPad 3, iPhone, Mark Gurman, News, Prototype, quad-core A6, quad-core A6 processor, quad-core chip, Retina, Retina Display, Rumor, Rumors

“Phabulet” has been rolling off our tongues lately with the recent launch of the Samsung Galaxy Note on AT&T. Now we have a…’phojector’? One of the buzz surrounding the ‘minus 1′, press day for the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona is the new Samsung Galaxy Beam. As the name suggests, the device is designed to work both as a smartphone and a pico projector.

The phone itself isn’t very appealing, given the impressive stats of recent smartphones; however it does feature a built-in TI DLP nHD (640 x 360) projector at 15 lumens of brightness. The Galaxy Beam packs the phone and the projector in just 12.5 mm – compare that to the 8.71 mm thickness on the Samsung Galaxy S II. It is certainly thicker than the thinnest smartphones in the market but 12.5 mm with a projector – it’s certainly the ‘thinnest’ phone+projector hybrid.

The thickness provides space for a 2000mAh battery, which is pretty big for an ordinary 4-inch device without LTE support – Samsung is aiming for over three hours of continuous projector use on a charge.

Samsung notes that the Galaxy Beam could project images up to 50-inches wide, which is pretty sizable considering that the images are projected from…well, a phone. There are limitations, however, as The Verge reports that the Galaxy Beam is no better than the pico projecting phones in the years past – the images aren’t visible at all in a bright room, although dimming the lights allow for a decent environment for a quick presentation or a slideshow.

Head over to The Verge for more pics and video of the Samsung Galaxy Beam.

Samsung GALAXY Beam Product Specifications 

＊ All functionality, features, specifications and other product information provided in this document including, but not limited to, the benefits, design, pricing, components, performance, availability, and capabilities of the product are subject to change without notice or obligation.

via The Verge, Gizmag

Image Credit: CNET

Related articles

• Samsung announces Galaxy Beam smartphone with built-in projector (ubergizmo.com)
• Samsung’s projector smartphone ‘Galaxy Beam’ (ibnlive.in.com)
• Samsung Galaxy Beam hands-on at MWC 2012 (engadget.com)
• Samsung unveils new Galaxy Beam smartphone / projector combo with dual core CPU (engadget.com)
• Samsung unveils new Galaxy Beam smartphone / projector combo with dual core CPU (Richard Lawler/Engadget) (techmeme.com)
• Samsung Galaxy Beam: Part phone, part projector, all Android 2.3 (gigaom.com)
• Samsung to debut the smartphone-turned-projector, Galaxy Beam (digitaltrends.com)

Technorati: Android, Galaxy, Galaxy Beam, Gingerbread, Mobile, Mobile World Congress, Multi-core processor, MWC, News, Samsung, Samsung Galaxy, Samsung Galaxy Note, Samsung Galaxy S II, Smartphone, Smartphones, technology

Best Buy is cutting $50 off the prices of the Apple iPad 2, starting at just $449.99 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model. Apple discounts do come by every now and then – albeit the discounts are relatively meager compared to other vendors, cheaper is (almost) always good, right? Besides, $45 discount was what Best Buy offered for the customers during Black Friday 2011, so $50 appears to be a pretty good deal…

Don’t rush off to your Best Buy just yet, however. The next generation Apple iPad 3 looks to be packed with some impressive specifications and its launch is rumored to be just around the corner. The iPad 2, however, is a wonderful device. I use it on a daily basis and often take it to trips abroad with me in lieu of my MacBook. That said, I personally would hold off to see what the iPad 3 holds in store for us.

If you simply want to try the iPad out and/or want to jump in on the discount, remember that Best Buy has a no-hassle return policy for 14-days from purchase date.

via TUAW

Image Credit: TUAW, Business Review USA

Related articles

• Best Buy offers $50 discount on iPad 2 models (tuaw.com)
• Apple iPad 2 Wi-Fi + 3G 64GB Tablet $700 at Newegg (bensbargains.net)
• Foxconn supposedly shipping iPad 3 in secret (electronista.com)
• Apple’s iPad 3: What We Know (thestreet.com)
• Newegg Coupon Code: 20% Off Select Refurbished Items (iPad 2 64GB 3G Verizon $575) at Newegg (techbargains.com)
• iPad 2 gets $50 discount at Best Buy as Apple ships iPad 3 from China (digitaltrends.com)
• Refurb iPad 2 32GB WiFi + 3G for VZW for $504, 64GB for $576 + free shipping (dealnews.com)

Technorati: Apple, Apple iPad, Best Buy, BestBuy, Deals, iPad, iPad 2, iPad 3, MacBook, News, Tablet, TUAW, Wi-Fi, WiFi

On Sunday, Adobe accidentally and prematurely released its Photoshop Touch app for the iPad 2, only to be quickly taken down from the App Store amid claims that the official launch date was Monday, February 27.

The Photoshop Touch is now available on the App Store, and you could now own a copy for yourself for $9.99. Currently, the Photoshop Touch is compatible with only the iPad 2 running on iOS 5.

The Photoshop Touch boast some impressive features including and not limited to the ability to work in layers, use “sophisticated” selection tools and “scribble” over images to remove unwanted portions. With the app, not only can the users perform simple touch up of photos but also combine images along with professional effects and share seamlessly on Facebook and other sharing means.

Adobe plans on launching a ‘suite’ of iPad Touch Apps, “Inspired by Adobe’s Creative Suite” and will include:

• Adobe Collage
• Adobe Debut presentation software
• Adobe Ideas (similar to Illustrator)
• Adobe Kuler (color theme manager)
• Adobe Proto (website-prototyping and wireframe tool)

For more information and a detailed early review, check out MacStories for a nice roundup. Adobe also has an impressive lineup of videos demonstrating the Photoshop Touch, so please check that out as well.

via Macrumors, Mashable

Image Credit: Venture Beat

Related articles

• Photoshop Touch coming to the iPad, reminds us Adobe finally gets mobile (venturebeat.com)
• Nearly 1 year after the demo, Adobe releases Photoshop Touch for the iPad (thenextweb.com)
• Adobe Photoshop Touch hits iPad 2 for US$9.99 (9to5Mac) (techmeme.com)
• Adobe Photoshop Touch for iPad 2 Accidentally Launched, Officially Coming Monday (macrumors.com)
• Adobe plans to launch Photoshop Touch on iPad (slashgear.com)
• Adobe Photoshop Touch hits iPad 2 for US$9.99 (9to5mac.com)
• Adobe Brings Photoshop Touch to the iPad (mashable.com)
• Adobe Photoshop Touch for iPad 2 (solsie.com)
• Adobe Touch apps hands-on: Photoshop Touch, Kuler, Proto, and more come to Android (Thomas Houston/The Verge) (techmeme.com)

Technorati: Adobe, Adobe Kuler, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Systems, AdobeTV, App, App Store, Apple, AppStore, Creative Suite, Facebook, iOS, iOS 5, iPad, iPad 2, iTunes, Macrumors, MacStories, Mashable, Mobile, Photo, Photoshop, Photoshop Touch, Photoshop Touch app, Review, VentureBeat

Unlocking a phone almost always is a hassle to do. SIM unlocks can be accomplished by doing a number of things, such as using the hex editor among other things, and it often requires some computer knowledge to go about it – to put it simply, I wouldn’t recommend my mom to unlock her phone using a hex editor.

There are, of course, other methods to go about unlocking your phone – either by paying your carrier or paying a third-party to give you the unlock code. Paying for your SIM unlock is, however, never ideal.

If you currently own a Samsung Galaxy S and/or a Samsung Galaxy S II (please note the restrictions with newer models. further development is under way), you may be in luck because a Senior Member of the XDA Developers community, Grooby, has put together a nifty easy tool to perform a SIM Unlock on your SGS2 and SGS on Windows.

The SIM Unlocker tool is based on the unlock by XDA Recognized Developer Odia and if you’re curious about the method, check out the original development thread here.

XDA reports:

The application works only for older models of the Samsung Galaxy S II I9100, as some users report the method not working with hardware versions 1.4 or beyond. The older version of the tool will work for users carrying a Samsung Galaxy S I9000.

If you happen to have the supported models, you could download the appropriate tools and instructions in the original thread over at XDA Developers.

Development is under way for the tool to support newer versions of the Galaxy S2 models, so if the tool doesn’t work for you, you may have to wait a bit longer for the update to roll around.

Good luck!

Image Credit: The Handheld Blog, Android Headlines, Newro Cell USA

via XDA

Technorati: Android, Galaxy, Grooby, Samsung, Samsung Galaxy, Samsung Galaxy S, Samsung Galaxy S II, SIM, SIM Unlock, Smartphone, Unlock, XDA, XDA Developers

Samsung evidently wants to expand its mobile territory further – rugged phones. Rugged phones have been, as Brian Chen of New York Times puts it, “Microsoft’s turf“. The Windows Mobile platform has been powering the rugged mobile devices for years now and it now faces a real contender – an Android-based rugged phone.

On Thursday, Samsung announced that the Samsung Rugby Smart will be coming to AT&T on March 4, 2012 for $99 with a two-year contract.

According to its specs, the Samsung Rugby Smart meets the U.S. military spec 810F for dust, humidity, rain, shock, and temperature. In addition, the rugged phone is semi-water proof – it can be submerged in up to 3 feet of water for 30 minutes, when the ports are tightly closed. So if you need to take a quick dive here and there, the Rugby Smart will be your companion.

Notable spec highlights include:

• 3.7-inch (800 x 480 pixel) WVGA Super AMOLED touchscreen display
• Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
• 5-megapixel rear-facing camera
• 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera
• 720p video capture
• 1,650 mAh battery (8 hrs talk time, up to 16 hrs standby)
• 512MB of RAM
• microSD card slot (up to 32GB storage)
• AT&T’s HSPA+ network
• 4.8 in x 2.6 in x 0.5 in (HWD)
• 4.2 ounces

Curious about how durable this phone is? Check out this video. I’m pretty sure my iPhone can’t do this…

via FoneArena, PCMag, BGR, and NY Times Bits

Related articles

• Samsung announces armor-plated Android, the Rugby Smart (news.cnet.com)
• Samsung Rugby Smart to arrive at AT&T (ubergizmo.com)
• With Rugged Phones, Samsung Seeks Business Customers (bits.blogs.nytimes.com)
• Samsung Rugby Smart for AT&T gets pictured (ubergizmo.com)
• Samsung’s Galaxy S II celebrates 20 million sold, just in time for MWC (engadget.com)

Technorati: AMOLED, Android, AT&T, FoneArena, Gingerbread, iPhone, microSD, mobile devices, New York Times, News, PCMag, Rugby, Rugby Smart, Rugged, rugged mobile devices, Samsung, Smartphone, Super AMOLED, U.S., Windows Mobile, WVGA

Chomp is a web/mobile service for both iOS and Android that helps you find the right and best apps in the App Store and Android Market.

“Chomp’s proprietary algorithm learns the functions and topics of apps, so you can search based on what apps do, not just what they’re called. Try searching for “puzzle games”, “kids games”, “expense trackers”, “tip calculators” or “chat” and start finding great apps.”

Searching for apps in the App Store is, for me at least, always a pain to do. You always get bogus apps (sorry developers, not all apps are bogus but..many still are) and especially while on your iPhone, you’re never certain if this is the app you need for your purposes.

Image via Wikipedia

In addition, App Store search isn’t ‘smart’ like Google Search and often pulls up a list of apps that’s completely irrelevant to you but appeared simply because the app shared a ‘related’ keyword.

Good things may be on the way for the App Store – on Thursday, Apple reportedly acquired Chomp, along with its talent to redesign how people find apps through the App Store, according to TechCrunch.

The acquisition will ‘hopefully’ bring more useful search results whenever we search on the App Store – I’m sure we’ll hear more about it in the near future.

If you’re like me and just heard about ‘Chomp’, the app and the web search is still available for free on the App Store and on http://www.chomp.com, so head on over and try it out. It’s pretty nifty, I’m surprised I haven’t found this app earlier!

Cheers,

Digital Cupcake

via Venture Beat via TechCrunch

Image Credit: ZiggyTek

Related articles

• Apple acquires app discovery start-up Chomp (currenteditorials.com)
• Apple Acquires Chomp to Recreate App Store Search and Discovery (macrumors.com)
• Apple Acquires Chomp; App Store Search And Discovery To Be Completely Revamped (techcrunch.com)
• Apple acquires Chomp to make its App Store search and discovery actually useful (thenextweb.com)
• Report: Apple picks up Chomp to bolster App Store (news.cnet.com)
• Apple Acquires Chomp; App Store Search And Discovery To Be Completely Revamped (MG Siegler/TechCrunch) (techmeme.com)
• What Apple’s Chomp Acquisition Means For the Future of the App Store (readwriteweb.com)
• Apple acquires Chomp for its app discovery tech, talent (theverge.com)
• Android apps more expensive on average than iPhone counterparts (tuaw.com)
• Apple buys Chomp to ‘revamp’ App Store search (techradar.com)
• Daily iPhone App: App Deals helps you score an app while it’s on sale (tuaw.com)

Technorati: Android, Android Market, App, App Store, Apple, AppStore, Chomp, iOS, iPhone, TechCrunch

Another day and yes, another OS X Lion 10.7.3 Update problem. This time is’s a ‘No Audio’ crisis that’s giving grief to a number of 10.7.3 users.

Our reader, RTU5, left us a comment on our initial post about problems with the 10.7.3 update:

In my case there is no audio! No sound coming out fom the matchbook anymore!
Is there a way to cancel the 10.7.3 and return to 10.7.2?

The OS X Lion Update 10.7.3 has to be one of the buggiest update ever – for those of you new to the Apple-osphere, don’t worry, Apple doesn’t break updates…this much…ever…

Anyway, there are a number of ways to go about this No Audio problem.

• Reboot
• Sometimes computer are stupid like this…a simple reboot often is the magic ingredient
  .
• Reset SMC (System Management Controller)
• http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
  .
• Reset PRAM (Parameter Random Access Memory)
• http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1379
  .
• Switch from Soundflower (2ch) to Headphones/Internal Speakers
• You may or may not have Soundflower on your computer – I believe my Soundflower came with my Splashtop Remote Desktop but you may have it installed for other apps/reasons.
• To change it, go to:
  System Preferences > Sound > If Soundflower is selected, select Headphones/Internal Speakers
• .
• ‘Kickstart’ Volume with Audio MIDI Setup
• With Macs, there’s a nifty tool called Audio MIDI Setup that allows you to manage your audio settings. There’s a volume bar in the app and sometimes you could ‘kickstart’ your audio by moving around the volume bar.
• Applications > Utilities > Audio MIDI Setup > Move the volume bar(s) around on Output
  .
•  If you have Windows on Bootcamp, boot to it, enable Sound and reboot to Mac
• Simply boot into your Windows on Bootcamp, enable sound on Windows, reboot to Mac and your audio is back on your Mac
  .
• Terminal command to restart CoreAudio
• Here’s a temporary workaround that involves Terminal.
• Applications > Utilities > Terminal > sudo killall coreaudiod
  this command will restart the sound system if your computer booted without.
  .
• Reinstall 10.7.3 Combo Updater
• Visit our previous post for tips on how to go about this.
  .
• Roll back to 10.7.2 (Restore with a backup – Time Machine)
• Not the most favorable of choices but you could roll back to 10.7.2 if you have a Time Machine or other backup. Otherwise…you’re going to have to find another option
  .
• Reinstall Mac OS X completely
• *Just a warning, while the method was proposed by one of the members on Apple Discussions, reinstalling and such do come with some risk of losing your data. Please, back up your computer first, then try the fix. Digital Cupcake will not be responsible for any loss of data
• CUI CUI CUI error 10.7.3 all apps crashes - Apple Support Communities

Here are a few forum threads to check out as well:

• After updating to 10.7.3 there is no sound. - Apple Support Communities
• No Audio? – Macrumors
• 10.7.3 Upgrade Muted my Sound – Macrumors
• Update to 10.7.3 and no sound – Apple Support Communities

As always, BEST OF LUCK with troubleshooting your Mac!! Also please let us know in comment which method worked or not worked for you! Thanks again!

(Thank you RTU!)

Related articles

• Apple issues firmware update for 2011 Mac models (macworld.com)
• OS X 10.7.3 causing CUI errors for some, Combo Update recommended (tuaw.com)
• Dropping Wi-Fi Connectivity on Mac OS X 10.7.3 ‘Lion’ – reports of issues spreading (digitalcupcake.net)
• Apple removes faulty Mac OS X Lion 10.7.3 updater for the Combo Updater in response to the CUI and crashing bug (digitalcupcake.net)
• Mac OS X Lion 10.7.3 Update woes – Here’s how to stop crashing apps and fix the “CUI” bug (digitalcupcake.net)

Technorati: Apple, Apple Discussions, Apple Support, Audio, Boot Camp, Bootcamp, Combo Updater, CoreAudio, Mac, Mac OS, Mac OS X, Mac OS X Lion, Macrumors, Macs, PRAM, reset pram, SMC, Soundflower, Terminal, Tips, Woes