We knew a snowed-out version of Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus was on pace for a February release, and while we’ve still got a few weeks left, it looks as if one or two have slipped through the cracks. The fine folks over at HDBlog.it managed to get a hold of the prized possession and for anyone who has managed to pass their eyes over the white Galaxy S II, there’s not a lot to be shocked by. The bezel along the front remains black, but hey — beggars can’t be picky, right? Tap that source link for a gallery’s worth of eye candy.
IBM has been selling off a sizable number of its patents these past few months, but according to a new research report, the company still ended 2011 with the world’s largest artillery. For the 19th straight year, IBM has come out on top of IFI Claims Patent Services’ annual rankings of the world’s top 50 US utility patent holders, with a record 6,180 patents. That’s up five percent from 2010, though there are several contenders hot on its heels. Second-place Samsung saw an eight percent spike in its holdings, while Canon overtook Microsoft for third place, on the strength of an eleven percent year-on surge. Qualcomm, meanwhile, was among the biggest gainers, with a full 40 percent increase, along with RIM, which enjoyed 38 percent growth. Perhaps the biggest winner? The continent of Asia, where a full 25 of the top 50 companies are based.
Samsung has revealed over at CES that it’ll be matching rival LG’s 55-inch OLED TV… when a 55-inch OLED TV of its own. Not surprisingly, the outfit’s trumpeting its terrific color reproduction, the virtual absence of motion blur and face recognition. Sadly, there’s not even a model number to mark down, and a price estimate should be even harder to find. It is, however, expected to ship in the latter half of 2012. There’s no color filter needed here, either, as the self-emitting RGB sub-pixels take care of themselves; since light output on the Super OLED is controlled on a pixel-to-pixel basis, you can rest assured that your blacks will be deep and your whites bright. Other specs include a dual-core processor and 3D support, and more will be revealed when the product is ready for launching.
Samsung isn’t letting CES go by without introducing a few new accessories for its mobile devices. A pair of Bluetooth headsets is on tap, the HM1800 and HM6000 (the latter of which boasts a pair of mics for noise cancellation) but, oddly enough, it the company’s “your sound” wired models that are getting the bulk of the attention. The EHS-60, 63, 70 and 71 all offer a twist on the wired stereo headset model. The high-end 70 and 71 are crafted of aluminum and include welcome features like anti-tangle cords. The most interesting, though, are certainly the asymmetrical EHS-63s which feature an in-ear bud for higher frequencies and an open-air speaker for low-end.
New year, new you ROMs. Yep, the Galaxy S II is getting even more attention, with a duo of Ice Cream Sandwich versions landing on that capacious 4.3-inch screen. They consist of an early Android 4.0.1 build made on December 20th and version 4.0.3 crafted just ten days later. The interesting part is that, according to YouMobile, both of these will arrive through Kies, Samsung’s Android connectivity software. The mobile news site also suspects that these are close (but still buggy) approximations of what we’ll see on our as-yet un-tinkered Galaxy S IIs in the very near future. These Kies-capable builds also have a few cosmetic differences to the build leaked earlier, like a distinct lack of Tron hues adorning the notification bar at the top. While we await a release through the official channels, you can check out a swift run-through right after the break.
When it comes to camera, Samsung is definitely not the first brand that comes to our mind, not even in the point-and-shoot box. But they’re trying hard to fix that. Samsung is extending its “highly popular” DualView point-and-shoot line with a WiFi cam, launching the DV300F today. Yes, a camera with WiFi ability. Not surprised, as your TV and your fridges can now come with WiFi too, so why not your camera eh?
Consistent with previous models, this latest 16 megapixel snapper includes a 3-inch 460k-dot LCD on the rear, along with a 1.5-inch 61k-dot screen up front. Naturally, a front-facing screen makes self-portraits a snap, while also serving to entertain toddlers with things like an animated clown loop. As for that WiFi connectivity, the DV300F can upload pics directly to sharing sites like Facebook and Picasa, videos to YouTube or the full contents of your card to a PC using the Auto PC Backup function — there’s also a microSD slot for local storage.
We’d like to think that ownership of a Galaxy Note reveals something about a person’s approach to life: they jot stuff down, they’re organized, and — above all — they don’t procrastinate. In which case, this first glimpse of an Android 4.0.3 CM9 ROM for the Note should go down well, even if it’s only an experimental build and Sammy’s official ICS update is just around the corner. You can clear your diary and download it now, or you can wait for a more stable build with better camera and Bluetooth support.
The Galaxy Note, Samsung’s unconventional powerhouse, has managed to ship 1 million units in under two months. While eager US customers still wait for the 5.3-inch tabletphone hybrid to arrive on their shores, the Galaxy Note has apparently struck a chord in Europe and Asia. The number of units shipped is always more substantial than the number devices out there in end-users’ (preferably large) hands, but it bodes well for the device’s eventual reception in the US.
Google itself has just affirmed on its own social networking branch that Android 4.0 will begin to hit GSM / UMTS (yes, that means no Ice Cream Sandwich for Nexus S 4G from Sprint) Nexus S devices over the coming month, with the luckiest few to get it starting today. Outside of that, there’s no more specific time table to be had, but if you’re able to suck it down in the coming hours, definitely sound off on the improvements in comments below. For T-Mobile Nexus S owners, you’ll be able to get the download package from here.
People in the states, get ready. Get the conga line going, because Verizon’s finally come out of its non-committal shell and announced that its version of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, as expected, can be purchased in stores and online starting tomorrow for $300 with a new two-year commitment. If you go through the official site to grab your copy, they’ll be ready to go at 1AM ET.
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