IT News Head Lines (Techradar) 1/31/2015

Updated: HTC One M9 release date, news and rumors

HTC One M9 release date, news and rumors

While we don't know anything for sure about the HTC One M9 (other than the fact that it's coming and is probably codenamed Hima), it's going to be a massive deal - will it be the best Android phone of 2015?
Mooted specs include: a QHD display, a Snapdragon 810 processor, 3GB of RAM, a waterproof body and more megapixels in the camera, making the One M9 one of the highest-specification phones on the market.
Updates: A new photo of the phone has appeared, a shot supposedly taken with the camera and a benchmark has given up a number of specs.

Cut to the chase

• What is it? HTC's next flagship smartphone
• When is it out? Launch event set for March 1
• What will it cost? Likely at least £549 / $649 / AU$849

HTC One M9 release date

HTC has sent out invites to an event on March 1 at MWC 2015 in Barcelona, and it's almost certainly going to unveil it's next flagship smartphone here.

The invite reads "utopia in progress" - possibly a hint at the name for the flagship phone, or perhaps it's another new camera mode HTC has developed.
What we do know is we'll be there, reporting live on the event so you get all the latest news as it breaks.

News and rumors

The most recent rumors regarding this new phone seem to make the most sense: the HTC One M9 will have an octa core Qualcomm 810 Snapdragon chipset at the heart, according to recent benchmarks - which saw it score over 20% better results compared to the One M8.
This dovetails with rumours from retired leaker @upleaks, saying the new HTC phone will have 3GB of RAM and an octa-core 64-bit Snapdragon 810 processor, with four cores running at 2.0GHz and four at 1.5GHz, allowing it to switch between them depending on what it's doing, using the slower cores to conserve battery when the extra power isn't needed.
Further rumors have corroborated and smoothed these early specs: from a source speaking to Bloomberg stated that there will be a 20MP snapper on the back and an UltraPixel one on the front (probably 4 UltraPixels but that's not specified).
The source goes on to say that the HTC One M9 / Hima will include Dolby 5.1 audio technology.
A rumor from GforGames states the HTC One M9 might have a MediaTek processor rather than a Qualcomm one, but if it does that will likely be a regional version for China and possibly some other markets but not the whole world.
While it's possible that all versions will sport it we'd be surprised, as MediaTek chips tend to be cheaper and less powerful than Qualcomm's. More likely if this is on the cards at all it will be for developing markets.
Unsurprisingly it's rumored to run Android 5.0 Lollipop but that's hardly a surprise - imagine if it launched on KitKat?
In terms of power, it will apparently have just a 2840 mAh battery, but that's still an upgrade on the One M8's power pack and combined with a more efficient processor it could get the job done, especially as rumors claim HTC will be sticking with a 5-inch 1080p screen, rather than moving to QHD.
With the same size screen as the One M8 comes similar dimensions apparently, as the HTC One M9 is said to be 144.3 x 69.4 x 9.56mm, making it marginally shorter but actually slightly fatter than the 146.4 x 70.6 x 9.4mm HTC One (M8).

However, following the 5.5-inch and 5.0-inch rumors there's now talk that the HTC One M9 could meet them in the middle and have a 5.2-inch screen. That's according to Nowhereelse.fr, which even has images purportedly showing the display panel to back it up.

We also may have got our first real look at the HTC One M9, as two images of an alleged prototype have been sent to Nowhereelse.fr. The images show a device which looks a lot like the HTC One M8 or even the original HTC One, suggesting the company isn't straying far from its existing designs.
The front has speakers above and below the screen, while the back shows a curved metal shell with a camera and a dual-flash, though as the top of the phone has been cut off in the image it's impossible to say whether it's got a second sensor, like on the HTC One M8.

It's also hard to say whether they're accurate. They don't look fake and nor are they an exact match for any existing HTC handset, but they could easily be of an HTC One M8 protoype.

HTC One M9: What we want to see

Two day battery life

We were pretty impressed by the battery life of the HTC One M8, but the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the Sony Xperia Z2 had it beat, while it looks like the Sony Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z3 Compact might well widen the gap even further.
So we'd love for the HTC One M9 to have more juice. We don't think two days of battery life should be unrealistic, after all the HTC One M8 and a number of other phones can already comfortably make it into a second day, they just need a bit of a boost to make it to the end of the day.
If HTC can deliver even more than that then great, but we'd be happy with two days, at least until the M10 comes around.

A better camera

The HTC One M8 is great in low light as its lens lets more light in than competing smartphone cameras, but when you're trying to take photos in bright conditions all the extra light it takes in actually seems to work against it, causing the image to over-expose.

On top of that it's only got a 4MP sensor, which is fine when you're just viewing shots on your phone, but blow them up and there'll be noticeable noise.
So ideally we want more megapixels and a sensor which is as adept in bright light as low light. It almost seems like HTC itself might be moving away from UltraPixels, given that the HTC One Mini 2 and the HTC One E8 both have 13MP snappers, so we might well see a big change to the camera in the HTC One M9.

A QHD display

The HTC One M8 has a gorgeous screen, but it's very much an early 2014 screen, as the LG G3 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 are now bringing QHD (1440 x 2560) displays to the mainstream.
All those extra pixels don't make a huge difference but it is a noticeable one and if the HTC One M9 doesn't have a QHD display then it risks being overlooked, because you can be almost certain that the competition will.

A sapphire screen

Since we're talking about the screen, how about making it with sapphire crystal glass? The HTC One M9 is bound to be expensive, so many people are going to want to put it in a case to keep it protected, but it's also bound to be a thing of beauty so it would be a shame to cover it up.

The more durable it is the less necessary that becomes and a sapphire crystal screen would help a lot. The iPhone 6 didn't have one in the end, so if the HTC One M9 does it could also be the first mainstream smartphone to do so, which would surely be a big selling point.

Water and dust resistance

Another way to keep it protected is with dust and water resistance. We don't need to be able to take it swimming, but knowing that it could survive a spill or a bit of rain would certainly be reassuring and now that Samsung and Sony are both water and dust proofing their phones there's little excuse for HTC not to do the same.

HTC One M9: More of what we want to see

More of a health and fitness focus

The world is going health and fitness mad, or at least that's what many of the latest smartphones and smartwatches would lead you to believe. HTC though doesn't seem so interested and we can't help but feel that it's missing a trick, especially if the market for fitness focused tech continues to grow.
Sure a heart rate monitor and UV sensor are hardly essential components of a smartphone, but we wouldn't say no to them and we'd also be quite happy to see more of a focus on fitness software from HTC, rather than it relying on third party solutions, as HTC has done with the M8 by simply including the Fitbit app. Apple has Health, Samsung has S Health, HTC needs something.

Lots of power

It's reached the point where almost every high end phone and a fair few lower end ones feel fast and powerful, so we don't really need a lot more power in the HTC One M9.
But specs sell and while HTC's flagships are always powerful they're not always quite as powerful as the competition, at least on paper. So next year we hope that changes. Impress us HTC, put in an octa-core Snapdragon 810 with 6GB of RAM, or at least make sure your phone is a match for the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Sony Xperia Z4.

An even better design and build

Design is one of the things HTC has done best in recent years, with the One M8 rivalling even Apple's products, but it could still be better.

There's that black bar below the screen for example. On the original HTC One that housed some capacitive buttons, but they've gone from the HTC One M8 so it no longer serves any visible purpose. There may well be some internal reasons for it but we'd love it if HTC could find a way to remove it.
HTC could also improve the buttons, which feel a little plastic on the M8 and we'd rather have the headphone port on the top than the bottom.

More storage

HTC wisely added a microSD card slot to the M8, but we'd still love more internal storage. Apple now offers 128GB iPhones, so why can't an Android phone do the same? And more specifically why can't HTC?
Do that while still including microSD support and we could be looking at a phone with 256GB of combined storage, which is far more than most people are ever likely to need, but we'd rather have too much than too little.

Category 6 LTE

4G is taking off in a big way, but while current phones are equipped to support the fastest speeds we're likely to get in most places right now, they're not particularly future-proofed. That's why we'd like to see HTC put Category 6 LTE support in the HTC One M9.
That would theoretically allow it to reach download speeds of around 300Mbps, which is double what most current handsets can manage and should make it a viable handset right up until 5G arrives.

• Can't decide between the M8 and the Mini 2? Here's how they stack up.

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2015's dark horse superphone will launch on February 2

The impressive Saygus V2 appeared at CES 2015 and proved it was the best smartphone you've probably never heard of. A pre-order price of $549 for the device has now been announced, but you'll want to be quick.
Saygus is expecting a lot of attention for its new handset, with the pre-order registration period being extended to midday on Monday February 2. Pre-orders will officially commence at 11:59pm MST on the same day from Saygus' website.
Those who are organised enough to pre-register before they pre-order won't just get a special introductory price, which is $50 off the standard $599 cost, but will also get an extra battery and a customised replaceable glass screen protector.

Coming worldwide

Although the prices and times of the pre-order are rather US specific, we've had it confirmed that the Saygus V2 will be available worldwide as a GSM unlocked variant.
There will be a limit of 10 units per customer, so it seems like Saygus is confident it has a hit on its hands.
From what we saw at CES 2015, it could be right to expect as much. The Saygus V2 will come with a 5-inch Full HD display, 3GB of RAM, a massive (removable) 3100mAh battery (that can last 50% longer than phones with similar batteries) and a Snapdragon 801 chipset.
The rear-facing camera will be a 21-megapixel snapper, with the front camera boasting of an almost just as impressive 13-megapixel sensor.

• CES 2015 was a bit light on smartphones. What are we expecting to see at MWC 2015?

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Download of the day: Launchy

Find and open any program, file or folder with ease using Launchy.

Why you need it

Very often, getting work done efficiently is reliant on being able to quickly find the programs and files you need to complete the task at hand. But with an ever-expanding contingent of installed programs and saved documents to sift through, that's often easier said than done.
What you need is Launchy. This simple little app opens up when you hit Alt + Space and allows you to quickly search for the program you need – or the file, folder or bookmark, in fact. Launchy displays a list of matches that is automatically populated as you type, so it's not actually necessary to type the full name of the program before it appears. Highlight it and hit enter and Launchy loads it up, ready for use.
It's very straightforward and easy to use, but should you want to do more then there are plenty of useful plugins to extend its functionality further. There's Killy, which kills processes instead of launching them, Mathy Resurrected, which adds an advanced calculator to Launchy, plus more.

Key features

• Works on: PC
• Versions: Free (although a donation is suggested)
• Find anything: Launchy indexes your Start Menu programs and can find your files and documents quickly and simply, making it a breeze to launch pretty much anything
• Auto-populated list: Search results appear as you type, so you can find what you're looking for before you've even finished typing
• Extra features: Launchy features plenty of community-made plugins that can add more features to it for free

You'll also like

• CrystalDiskInfo
• FreeFileSync
• Glary Utilities
• Wise Registry Cleaner
• CCleaner

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Jay Z is buying Tidal to take on Spotify and Beats

Dr. Dre isn't the only one who sees bright lights in the future of music streaming. Rapper Jay Z is now snapping up high-quality music service Tidal as part of an acquisition of Swedish firm Aspiro, making him the latest A-lister to put his name to a big music brand.
The bid has actually been made by Project Panther, a company owned by Jay Z's S. Carter Enterprises. If everything goes to plan it'll also be bagging WiMP, another streaming service owned by Aspiro.
Neither WiMP or Tidal are quite up to competing with Spotify or Beats in terms of subscribers, but Tidal made some serious waves when it launched last year, offering streamable CD quality FLAC music at a more premium price.
Dre's proven the value of sticking a 'sleb name on something in this business. The rapper made more than a few pennies when Apple bought Beats last year - can Jay Z follow in Dre's footsteps and give Tidal the boost it deserves? This could be a massive boost for the infant service.
We've contacted Tidal to ask further details on what the future might hold, and we'll update if we hear more.

• Time to get onboard with Tidal?

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How to live stream Super Bowl 49

Come Sunday, February 1, the NFL will have a new champion.
Super Bowl XLIX, starring the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, kicks off Sunday at 6:30 p.m. EST / 3:30 p.m. PST. on NBC.
"Wait a minute," you say incredulously. "I thought the Super Bowl was only broadcast on Fox or ABC." Well it is, sometimes. But not this year. Every year the network rotates in order to spread the wealth amongst the top three biggest broadcast stations.
But just because NBC's running the show, you don't need cable to watch the big game: Check down below for ways to watch with - or without - a cable subscription.

Your best bet – NBC Sports Live Extra app or website

If you've got a desktop or laptop, I've got good news. All you need to do come Sunday is head on over NBCSports.com where the network will broadcast everything from pre-game coverage to the post-game wrap up in an 11-hour block.
Tablet owners have it a bit harder as they've got to download the Live Sports Extra app from either the iOS or Google Play stores. Log in to the app on Sunday and you, my friend, are ready for some football. It's that simple.
"Wait," here we go again. "If it's so simple why don't we do it all year round?" Oh you!
NBC Sports typically locks this section of the website down during the NFL season, requiring you to enter in your cable provider information to get anywhere close to the gridiron. Everyday of the season, that is, except Super Bowl Sunday.
This year the stream is not only free but, for the first ever, will include the halftime show featuring Katy Perry and special guest Lenny Kravitz.
Having the rights to the music has always been a huge barrier to showing the spectacle, but it looks like NBC has made it happen for Super Bowl 49. Stick around after the game's done and you'll be able to catch an episode of The Blacklist before the service goes back under lock and key.

A good backup - Verizon NFL Mobile app

NBC, as powerful as it is, bends a knee to Verizon come Super Sunday.
Verizon has exclusive rights to show the big game, along with commentary, behind-the-scenes interviews and four different cameras for replays, all on its NFL Mobile app.
The problem however, is that you need to have Verizon's signature "More Everything Plan" to access the NFL Mobile app. The plan, for the most part, isn't costly ($45 a month for individuals and family plans for $140 a month), but unless you're the biggest fan of football in the world, upgrading your plan just to watch the game seems a little silly.
OK, but what if you don't have a laptop or a desktop or a smartphone with Verizon service? We've got two more ideas for you. Make a friend at your local alehouse or watch the game with a buddy at their place. I mean, what's Super Bowl Sunday if you don't have someone to share it with?
Image credit: Daniel X. O'Neil

• Need a new screen for the big game? Check out our list of the best 4K TVs in the world!

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Week in Tech: Origami batteries, Fire sales, and how YouTube dealt Flash a lethal blow

For a firm that says it doesn't care about money, Apple's awfully good at collecting it: this week it announced the largest corporate profit in history and plans to open an Apple Store on the moon. Only half of that is untrue. While iPhones fly off the shelves Amazon's having trouble shifting its ill-fated Fire phone, Samsung's gearing up for a whole bunch of new launches and boffins are bending phones like idiots in Apple Stores.

Apple's bigger than everything

Apple's latest financial results are in, and the numbers are bigger than ever: Apple has so much money that could build its fancy new campus out of gold and rubies. As Michael Rougeau reports, iPhone sales were up year on year from 51 million per quarter to 74.5 million (thanks to the upgrade-worthy iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus), total revenues were up 30%, and Apple now holds the record for the biggest corporate profit in history.
Could Apple's next hit be the Apple Watch? We don't have long to wait: Apple's wearable is going to start shipping in April, and of course we've collated all the latest news, rumours and wild speculation for your excitement and delightment.

Amazon's Fire sale

Apple has been struggling to meet iPhone demand, and Amazon hasn't the faintest idea of how that feels: its Fire phone is so unpopular that Amazon is almost giving it away with breakfast cereals to get rid of the damn things. The price is now just £99, but as Desire Athow points out, that doesn't mean it's a bargain: "We gave it a 2.5 star score when we reviewed it," Athow says, which means that "most smartphones out there are probably a better buy."

So much Samsung stuff

Apple's arch-rival Samsung posted its own financial results this week, and they weren't great: revenues from smartphones and other mobile devices were down 64% year on year after a fifth consecutive month of decline. The firm is still wildly profitable, of course, but it's clearly being hammered by cheap rivals at the low end and Apple at the high end.
Samsung isn't taking that lying down, and it's preparing a flood of new devices. The incoming Galaxy S6 is shaping up to be the best Galaxy yet, and leaks are beginning to become a flood. One of the most interesting leaks suggests that the S6 will get an e-ink case that turns the Galaxy S6 into a Kindle-style ebook reader, rather like the inspired (but flawed) Yotaphone 2.
That's not all. The Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 hit the UK in a matter of weeks as reasonably priced budget smartphones, and the new Galaxy J1 will target the cheapies that are causing so much irritation to Samsung in Asia.

Flex appeal

We've seen the future, and it's bendier than an iPhone 6 Plus after 15 minutes with Yuri Geller. South Korean firm Jenax has unveiled a new flexible battery it calls J.Flex that can be scrunched, twisted, flattened, rolled or folded, and it's designed for the next wave of wearable devices. The firm suggests that a J.Flex battery could make a pretty good watch strap, or even clothing.
Maybe J.Flex will get together with LG, whose LG Chem division has created a bendy OLED that's bendier than any bendy screen we've seen so far. LG Chem is a business-to-business supplier, so its screens may end up in non-LG devices. Then again, LG's the only firm really embracing bananaphones so far, and its latest LG G Flex 2 is a big improvement on its predecessor: it's more comfortable, and its clever self-healing material fixes itself more quickly.

Everything ends

It's been a big week for goodbyes. Sony's kicked Music Unlimited to the kerb, teaming up with Spotify instead; YouTube has binned Flash, making HTML 5 video the default and hammering yet another nail into Flash's coffin; and Microsoft appears to have turned Windows RT into glue as it kills off the non-Pro Microsoft Surface line altogether. Was Windows RT bad, mad or just misunderstood? Our money's on a combination of all three.

Bill Gates and his Microsoft mates

You'd think Bill Gates' days were packed enough with saving the world and drinking water made from human poo, but no! He's been working on new technology too. During a Reddit AMA the Microsoft founder teased readers about a secret project called Personal Agent. Think Cortana evolved: it will "remember everything and help you go back and find things and help you pick what things to pay attention to", working across apps and devices. As Michael Rougeau says, "this is very exciting indeed."









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Three's acquisition of O2: Why it might be bad news for customers' wallets

Introduction and potential price hikes

The news that Three is set to acquire O2 from Spain's Telefonica has got everyone talking, coming as it does hot on the heels of BT's proposed buyout of EE. As was the case with the BT/EE story, assuming the O2 purchase goes through this has major ramifications for consumers and businesses.
With Three's owner, Hong Kong-based Hutchinson Whampoa in "exclusive negotiations" with Telefonica and hoping to complete the all-cash deal for a reported £10.25 billion – £1 billion of which would be deferred – Three would become the largest mobile operator in the UK. It would boast a whopping 41% market share and around 32 million customers, quadrupling in size and reducing the number of UK mobile operators to, ironically, three (joining Germany, Austria and Ireland in the same, smaller, provider boat).
Of course, due diligence needs to be done and then there's the small matter of approval from Ofcom and the European Commission, but this is a deal that looks set to go ahead – in spite of Ofcom's desire to retain a more competitive four operator market model in the UK.

Quad-play quandry

Interestingly, last week's official announcement from Hutchinson Whampoa came only a few days after it had been widely reported that Sky and TalkTalk were both considering a potential bid for O2, to compete with BT/EE across the mobile market.
BT, of course, will be planning a quad-play service – a bundle of landline, mobile, broadband and TV contracts – the dream communications package offered by BT equivalents around the world. Had Sky managed to progress the O2 purchase, it too could have offered quad-play.
As it is, they're left out in the cold while the quad-play golden goose can't be ruled out as a possible future development at a merged Three and O2. This bundle of landline, mobile, broadband and TV contracts has been growing in popularity across Europe as telecoms players look to retain customers and generate new income streams.
Many are concerned that a bigger Three will lead to price rises, ironic when you consider that some are estimating upwards of £400 million of savings by the pooling of resources, although of course there are loans to service, with HSBC Holdings reported to be standing Hutchinson Whampoa almost £4 billion to fund the purchase.

Regulations will surely come from the EU, but they are unlikely to cap prices. The Daily Telegraph reports that Hutchinson Whampoa owner Li Ka-shing would perhaps see price rises as a fair reward for having suffered a decade of losses – currently standing at more than £10 billion – as a result of paying 'over the odds' (£3.6 billion) for a 3G licence in 2000, when what he really needed was a 2G network.
Three came too soon to market with its 3G service, at the time compromised by patchy coverage and bulky, pre-iPhone 3G handsets, and there was little demand for mobile internet at the time.

Rising tariffs

It's too soon to compare the similarly shrunken markets in Germany and Ireland, but Austria has seen a sharp increase in pricing, almost certainly as a result of less competition, with Telekom Austria, their market leader, raising its tariffs for smartphone users by almost 50% in 2014.
Of course, European operators would all say this is only fair after being hit hard, collectively, by customer-friendly price cuts brought on by stiff competition across the region – low margins which compare unfavourably to the US, where only two huge operators dominate the market. They would like, says the FT, to increase profits in order to provide new services for customers, which could of course come at a high cost for those monthly bills, whether you want the new services or not.

The official line

In the meantime, the O2 brand is set to fade away ("wherever the O2 logo once appeared, you will soon see the Three logo" runs the spiel), in much the same way that Orange, Cellnet and One2One did, with T-Mobile still sort of existing as a sub-brand of EE (still visible if you use a dongle, as a previous T-mobile customer, for instance) and EE itself is perhaps set to go the same way as part of BT. And, of course, regardless of Mr Li's intentions, fewer providers inevitably means less competition, and almost inevitably higher prices.
But what are Three and O2 telling their customers about the buyout? Unsurprisingly, they are both on message, with the same key statements on both providers' websites. There is to be no change to contract or customer service.
The two companies also hint at improved coverage – "Over the next few months, we'll continue to invest in building a state-of-the-art 4G network which will ensure even better coverage right across the country". Also, there's mention of increased broadband speeds: "Our combined capabilities mean we're equipped for the fastest possible rollout. This will create a super-fast network for all our customers providing even faster broadband speeds". It remains to be seen if this is all hot air, of course, and what, if anything, it will cost the customer.
Those O2 customers registered for Priority Tickets will still receive notifications and be able to acquire presale tickets for 3Arena, so it'll be interesting to see if this is rolled out across the Three customer base, or quietly retired. And O2 Money customers will see no changes to their accounts.

A changing market

What's clear from all this takeover talk is that the UK mobile market is unlikely to ever be the same again. This won't be the last buyout or merger, and we can expect more BT/EE-style couplings too, perhaps involving Sky or Virgin Media – who would both love to be able to join the quad-play party – if credit ratings outfit Standard & Poor's is to be believed. They expect to see additional 'fixed-mobile' combinations in the mould of BT-EE, as companies look to add revenue and synchronise costs.
International Business Times' Edmund Shing reckons any merger action could involve Vodafone next, with AT&T, China Mobile, Softbank Mobile (formally Vodafone Japan) and US mobile operator Sprint all likely suitors. But Vodafone could also look to turn poacher, with Vodafone CEO Vittario Colao stating that he'd push Vodafone towards consumer broadband if BT moved into mobile.
Considering this statement was made days before it was confirmed that BT was in talks to buy O2, last autumn, and considering which company BT ultimately moved for, it shows what a fast moving industry the mobile market currently is.
Anything, it seems, is possible, and there are likely to be more 'twists and turns', as Sky pundits and Premier League managers like to say, before we have a crystal clear picture of where the market is heading – although it's a pretty good bet that we'll see higher prices before long, and I wouldn't rule out Sky getting involved somehow.









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IN DEPTH: 10 best iPhone keyboard apps for iOS 8

Best iPhone keyboard apps #1-5

For years, iPhone, iPod touch and iPad owners have cast the green eye of envy in the direction of Android users, whose relatively more open operating system allowed for all manner of customization, including the ability to swap out software keyboards at the tap of a button.
With the release of iOS 8, Apple has finally enabled third-party developers to do the same. Aside from a few notable limitations (no access to built-in dictation among them), iPhone users now have the freedom of choice, but how do you find the right fit?
We tapped away at ten of the best third-party keyboard apps to find out what each has to offer, and our fingers still had enough energy left to type up our thoughts on which ones are worthy of the download.

SwiftKey

One of the most beloved Android keyboards finally comes to iOS, delivering the same great autocorrection and predictive typing capabilities in a long list of languages, not to mention the ability to type in up to two dialects at once for bilingual types.
Our biggest complaint is the absence of audible feedback: there's no satisfying click when tapping the keys, an option that can be turned on or off on the Android Lollipop version. Also, theme junkies are likely to be disappointed by the lack of choices, since there's currently no way to buy others.
Download this if... You're making the switch from Android
Avoid this if... You like a lot of custom themes or noisy keys
Verdict: 4/5

TextExpander 3

TextExpander has saved us thousands of keystrokes on OS X Yosemite by abbreviating commonly typed words into easy-to-remember shortcuts that expand like magic when entered. The iOS version does the same for frequently entered greetings, email signatures and more, tapping into Dropbox to keep snippets synced with the desktop.
One of our favorite TextExpander 3 features: the keyboard properly displays upper and lowercase letters, something Apple's built-in keyboard still hasn't managed to do after all these years. The keys are a little on the small side for our thick fingers, but otherwise this a flexible keyboard app worthy of a look.
Download this if... You want to save keystrokes with shortcuts
Avoid this if... You're on Windows or don't like smaller keys
Verdict: 3/5

Swype

And rightfully so: there's exhaustive support for tons of languages (including emoji for six of them), a variety of keyboard layouts (QWERTY, QWERTZ and AZERTY) and the ability to add or remove words from a personal dictionary.
Swype is also among the more customizable keyboard apps with five included themes, and a wide range of other colorful options available via in-app purchase. Of course, predictive typing is a given, and should you choose to tap on the keys instead, you'll get that satisfying click - along with the option to disable it in settings, should you prefer.
Download this if... You believe "hunt and peck" are three dirty words
Avoid this if... You'd rather type than swipe
Verdict: 3.5/5

Themeboard

It's hard to imagine any other keyboard app offering such an exhaustive selection of digits to fit nearly every taste or style, and we weren't able to find a lemon in the group. A built-in Emoji Bar makes Themeboard even more useful without having to switch to a dedicated emoji keyboard when the need arises.
Themeboard hasn't overlooked the details, like three-speed quick delete which accelerates the longer the key is held down, and the ability to import shortcuts from Apple's own keyboard. With so many choices, there's bound to be something for everyone here.
Download this if... You love variety and choice.
Avoid this if... You already spend too much on in-app purchases.
Verdict: 3/5

Clips

Clipped content can include text or images, and the Clips keyboard can even be used to filter which type of data gets pasted. For example, copied web links can be pasted as just a URL or as plain text with the title of the linked page, making Clips a pretty functional little utility for all your clipboard needs.
With a $1.99 in-app upgrade to the Pro version, Clips can even sync an unlimited amount of clipboard content across multiple iOS devices. And yes, before you ask, Clips also includes an actual keyboard, although the app is probably best used by switching between your favorite set of keys as needed.
Download this if... Your friends call you "Cut & Paste."
Avoid this if... You liked iOS better without copy & paste.
Verdict: 4.5/5

Best iPhone keyboard apps #6 - 10

Fleksy

There are currently five Fleksy Extensions, with three available free. GIF Keyboard allows users to swipe up on the top row to send animated image files to friends, while Cursor Control adds the ability to long press on the spacebar to move the cursor left or right.
Users can also type with one hand (a good option for iPhone 6 owners), add a row of numbers above the keyboard or make keys pop like the rainbow. The app also offers more than 30 themes (some based on hit movies like Frozen), more than 800 emoji, and rich support for languages and autocorrect.
Download this if... You want to type one-handed on an iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Avoid this if... Your life is already complicated enough.
Verdict: 4/5

Hanx Writer

With names like Hanx Prime Select, Hanx 707 and Hanx Golden Touch, Hanx Writer may seem like a clever gimmick to pay for a thespian's summer cottage, but for those who first learned to type on an old manual typewriter, it's a whole lot of fun and definitely stands out in a crowded market.
Besides, how many keyboard apps include an honest-to-goodness word processor that rekindles memories of a bygone era at the same time? Sure, the keys may be a little cramped even on a spacious iPhone 6 Plus display, but this adorable app is priceless.
Download this if... You love nostalgia, and/or Tom Hanks.
Avoid this if... Retro really isn't your thing.
Verdict: 3.5/5

TouchPal

First up we've got TouchPal Curve technology, which is the developers' fancy way of saying users can slide their finger across letters to form complete words. Slide up for numbers, down for symbols and left to backspace over a whole word at once.
But TouchPal is about more than just gestures: Award-winning predictive typing, plenty of color themes, rich emoji and language support round out the package, and where else can you customize a keyboard with gaudy fonts like Marker Felt?
Download this if... You want the complete package in one free app.
Avoid this if... You need more than six core languages.
Verdict: 4.5/5

GIF Keyboard

One of the more bizarre third-party keyboard apps we've run across, GIF Keyboard allows iOS device owners to search millions of GIFs across the internet, then send them using any app you'd like, right from the keyboard.
GIF Keyboard supports all of the most popular messaging and social networking apps including iMessage, Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp, and GIF files you discover while using the Safari mobile browser can even be saved to the keyboard using the Share extension. Users can even create entire collections of your favorites, and sync them across devices.
Download this if... You just can't get enough GIF in your life.
Avoid this if... The mere mention of the word "GIF" sends chills down your spine.
Verdict: 2/5

Minuum

What really makes Minuum unique is a slick one-handed mode that can be used by righties or lefties alike, along with the ability to temporarily collapse the keyboard into a surprisingly usable "mini" mode with the flick of a finger. It's a pretty slick feature that makes Minuum stand out in the crowd. On the downside, this is the only keyboard app on this list that doesn't feature native iPad support.
Of course, the usual complement of swipe gestures, keyboard sounds, punctuation shortcuts and automatic capitalization are also on hand, and if you're the kind of user who would prefer not to be bothered by autocorrect, Minuum also offers the ability to turn it off completely.
Download this if... You want the maximum available typing space.
Avoid this if... You have an aversion to paying for quality keyboard apps.
Verdict: 3.5/5









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Industry voice: All you need to know about the 'GHOST' vulnerability

Another vulnerability shocked the world of technology and the Linux community earlier this week. The Qualys security research team found a critical vulnerability in the Linux GNU C Library (glibc) that allows attackers to remotely take control of an entire system without having any prior knowledge of system credentials according to the security outfit.
What does it mean for you as an Internet user and what does it mean for Linux system administrators? Was it really a shocking event? Here's everything you need to know in seven short questions.
1. What is "GHOST"?
"GHOST" is the name of a vulnerability recently found in one of the key components of Linux systems. The component is the Linux GNU C Library that is used by all Linux programs. The vulnerability has been found in a function of this library that is used to convert Internet host names to Internet addresses.
If an attacker found vulnerable software and a way to transfer a properly crafted host name up to this function then theoretically the attacker could take over the control of the system.
2. How widespread is it?
This vulnerability affects almost all major Linux distributions, except a few such as Ubuntu 14.04. Millions of servers on the Internet contain this vulnerability.
What does it mean? It means that the vulnerability exists on servers but there should be certain conditions met to render the server remotely attackable. According to Qualys' report, they have found an email server software called Exim that is remotely exploitable. There is no recent and full deployment share report showing how many public Exim servers are on the Internet, however it has a measurable "market" share but according to some old reports it's just a few percent.
Note that to have an exploitable Exim-based email server one has to configure extra security checks for the HELO and EHLO commands of the SMTP protocol. Fortunately Qualys found that many well-known Linux-based web, email and other server software are not affected by this vulnerability like Apache, nginx, OpenSSH, syslog-ng.
So we can say that apart from that the vulnerability could be found on many servers actually the remotely attackable share of these servers is low.
3. How can I secure my Exim email server?
First of all deploy security fixes to all affected Linux servers as soon as possible. All major distributions have released security patches on the same day the security advisory published the vulnerability.
Keep in mind that to make security patch effective all affected software has be restarted. Many distributions do this automatically during glibc update but many of them leave this job for you.
Please make sure that your Exim server is restarted. This restart causes an SMTP service outage but normally this is only a few seconds and your email server users should not have any major issue because of this. If there was any ongoing SMTP connection – sending or receiving email – that would be aborted due to the restart and then the other side or the Exim will resend the email shortly.
In similar cases the possible impact of an unplanned outage is much lower than the possible impact of a successful attack.
4. Could an attacker do anything else than just take control of an email server?
There is no exact answer to this question. It depends on your deployment and configuration. If you use Exim just for front-end server as a smart host then the attacker can have access to your emails. If your email system is separated, and you do not store any credentials – passwords, SSH private keys, etc. – on the affected servers, then the impact could be relatively low. But if your Exim server hosts the mailboxes and/or has another server software on it then the attacker can have access to your data and in worst case to your other systems also.
If you suspect that your server is attacked successfully, remove the server from operation immediately, plug out all network connections and execute your emergency plan. Do you have plans for such scenarios? You should... If you do not have such an emergency plan then maybe the easiest and most secure way is to reinstall the whole system.
5. Are my Linux servers safe now?
If you deployed security patches quickly and you have checked that your server software were not affected and/or there is no sign of any attack then you can sit back.
However we don't have information on all software mainly we don't know how much 3rd party software is affected. For example many email security, anti-spam software process email headers and take every Received: header line and they try to resolve host names found in these headers to check them against bad IP databases. So theoretically a specially crafted email message can contain exploit code.
Of course this is only a speculation but it points out that we can never be cautious enough because sometimes the possible consequences of vulnerability cannot be predicted.
It is better to take more attention to your servers, log files and web sites of your Linux distribution and also the web sites of vendors of any 3rd party software you use on your servers in the next few days to make sure that you do not miss anything important regarding this vulnerability.
6. Is there anything I can do to be prepared for future vulnerabilities?
Just ask yourself: were you nervous after reading the security advisory about "GHOST"? If you just need to execute previously defined steps, such as updating your infrastructure, to make sure that your system is secure then you did a great job as you prepared. However existing processes and infrastructure can always be improved.
Take this time and think about your systems and processes:

• - Is there a faster way to deploy security fixes?
• - Is there any unnecessary/unused service that you can shut down to minimize attack surface?
• - Is there any setting, functionality of any currently used software that you can switch off?
• - Are you subscribed to security advisory alerts? Did you receive "GHOST" alerts in time?
• - Is anybody watching security alerts 24/7 to take all necessary steps immediately when needed?

7. What should I do as an Internet user?
You cannot do much. You are unlikely to be affected by this vulnerability. There is a very small chance that an attacker could send you a fake email or catch your email via a hacked email server or access your personal information stored on a hacked server but the probability is low enough that you should not be worried.

• Szilard Stange is director of product management at OPSWAT

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Industry voice: Seven cyber-security risks your business should be aware of in 2015

With Sony being the latest major victim of hacking, large organisations are witnessing yet again how data breaches cause serious damage to the tune of millions. The prevalence of hacking in the media begs the question: what's in store for 2015?
Against a background of more frequent and dangerous XSS attacks, third-party code and plugins remaining the Achilles heel of web applications, and growing chained attacks, organisations will be looking to new ways to protect their online properties.
Unfortunately, it's pretty difficult to make information security predictions, and even more difficult to verify them afterwards – we can only judge the effectiveness of information security by the number of public security incidents, as the majority of data breaches remain undetected.
However, in this article we're going to make some web security predictions based on common sense profitability (profit/cost ratio) for hackers…
1. Vulnerable web applications will remain the easiest way to compromise companies
When almost any company has one or even several vulnerable web applications, hackers will not bother to launch complex and expensive APT attacks with zero-day exploits. Companies continue to seriously underestimate the risks related to their web applications and website. A tiny vulnerability, such as XSS, can lead to the compromise of the entire local network, emails and databases of a company.
2. XSS will become a more frequent and dangerous vector of attacks
It's very difficult to detect high or critical risk vulnerabilities in well-known web products (e.g. Joomla, WordPress, SharePoint, etc). However, low and medium risk vulnerabilities, such as XSS, will still regularly appear. Sophisticated exploitation of an XSS can give the same outcomes as an SQL injection vulnerability, therefore hackers will rely on XSS attacks more and more to achieve their goals.
3. Third-party code and plugins will remain the Achilles heel of web applications
While the core code of well-known CMS systems and other web products are pretty safe today, third-party code such as various plugins or extensions remain vulnerable even to high risk vulnerabilities. People tend to forget that one outdated plugin or third-party website voting script endangers the entire web application. Obviously hackers will not miss such opportunities.
4. Chained attacks and attacks via third-party websites will grow
Today it's pretty difficult to find a critical vulnerability on a well-known website. It's much quicker and thus cheaper for hackers to find several medium risk vulnerabilities and use a combination of these to get complete access to the website.
Another trend is to attack a reputable website that the victim regularly visits. For example, when chasing for a C-level executive, hackers may compromise several high-profile financial websites or newspapers, and insert an exploit pack that will be activated only for a specific IP, user-agent and authentication cookie combination belonging to the victim. Such attacks are very difficult to detect, as only the victim can notice the attack.
5. Weak passwords and password re-use will remain a very serious problem
Many people still use the same or similar passwords for all their accounts. Hackers cannot miss such opportunities and actively exploit this human weakness. The first step of attack is to identify all websites or blogs where the victim is registered or has an account. The second step is to select the weakest website from the list and to compromise it. Password encryption techniques commonly used in web applications today are far from being resistant, and a password in plaintext can be obtained pretty quickly.
Even if the victim uses a very strong password and it's being properly encrypted in the database. hackers will just Trojan the web application to intercept the password in plaintext during login. The last step is to try the password for all the victim's accounts and resources.
6. Application logic errors will become more frequent and critical
Examples with AliExpress and Delta Airlines highlight the impact of application logic vulnerabilities that are almost undetectable by automated solutions. Web developers have become aware about XSS and SQL injections flaws and code much better than before, however they forget about application logic vulnerabilities that may be even more dangerous than SQL injections or RCEs.
7. Automated security tools and solutions will not be efficient anymore
Web Application Firewalls, Web Vulnerability Scanners or Malware Detection services will not be efficient anymore if used separately or without human control. Both web vulnerabilities and web attacks are becoming more and more sophisticated and complex to detect, and human intervention is almost always necessary to properly detect all the vulnerabilities.
It's not enough anymore to patch 90% or even 99% of the vulnerabilities – hackers will detect the last vulnerability and use it to compromise the entire website. As a solution to the rise of new threats, High-Tech Bridge launched ImmuniWeb last year – a unique hybrid that efficiently combines automated security assessment with manual penetration testing.

• Ilia Kolochenko is CEO of High-Tech Bridge and Chief Architect of ImmuniWeb

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Downloads: The 6 best free finance apps

The tired old finance software of the past has been replaced with the finance software of the present. Gone are the tricky interfaces hindered by the need to perform difficult calculations by yourself. In their place we have slick programs that are genuinely helpful when working out what you are spending your hard earned cash on.
If, like me, keeping track of finances is most important at the end of the month when money is tight, these apps will be for you. Helping keep you flush with cash from payday to payday, the following apps are just what you need.

OpenOffice Calc

OpenOffice has become known for its excellent work when it comes to free, open source rivals to Microsoft's Office suite and Apple's iWork products. OpenOffice Calc is no different, offering Excel level spreadsheets for free.

The main benefit of OpenOffice Calc is its versatility: the software is just as comfortable pulling in a tonne of enterprise data as it is charting your weekly food shop spend, so if your needs change, OpenOffice Calc can deliver.
While OpenOffice Calc does have plenty of high-end features, it is also accessible to anyone who has ever used Excel, as the user experience is very similar. Documents can also be exported in Excel or Numbers formats, so there will never be an incompatibility situation.

AceMoney Lite

Developed by MechCAD, AceMoney Lite is a professional grade money management app that allows you to track your spending and see where your money goes, track investment performance, work with up to 150 currencies while automatically syncing their exchange rate from the Internet, and track the deadline for bills, among a myriad of useful functions.

According to MechCAD, "AceMoney Lite makes organising personal finances and home budgets a breeze", and from my experience this is certainly true. AceMoney accurately tracked my investments and where my money was going, helpfully breaking the latter down into different categories (which helpfully come bundled with the software).
AceMoney Lite is free for up to two accounts. If you need more, there is a paid-for version available on MechCAD's website.

Bargain Price Refueling

Anyone who drives a car knows that fuel is expensive, however economical you are.That's where Bargain Price Refueling comes in, offering a comparison of all your local petrol stations at the click of a button.

Collecting data from thousands of petrol stations, Bargain Price Refueling offers both numerical and graphical representations of how much each petrol station charges for the two main fuels—petrol and diesel—with legacy costs included.
If you like to get the best deal when driving, and make your money go further, Bargain Price Refueling is for you.

GnuCash

Designed to be used by small businesses, accountants and more advanced users, GnuCash is a powerfule account managing program designed for Windows, Linux and OS X. It has a range of different features that make it a strong contender for the go-to finance app on any platform.

With the ability to track stocks and investments, support double entry accounting and manage scheduled transactions, GnuCash works well for household finances as the interface is simple and easy to grasp. Searching for a specific payment is also made simple in GnuCash, enabling the user to search through thousands of transactions instantly.

RQ Money

RQ Money is billed by its developers as being one of the best financial aids out there. Built as a very light program with speed in mind, RQ Money offers the features of the high end programs with less of the clutter. Even better, it's completely portable – there's no need for installation, and it's small enough to fit on a USB stick, meaning you can use it wherever you go.

The interface is helpfully designed to be easily accessible for those who don't know the ins and outs of accounting too intricately, while also providing a full suite of features that will keep even the pros happy.
Another strength of the program is that there is no need to installhuge amounts of software just to get it to work. In fact, just unzip the downloadable folder and you're away: quick, simple and easy.

Checkbook

Balancing a chequebook is a long and laborious process that can take up many unnecessary hours. Luckily, Checkbook from Dataware solves this problem. Just like a physical chequebook, the user inputs their outgoing cheques into the simple interface and at the end of the month Checkbook will balance the books for you, saving hours of time and stress.

The simple interface is incredibly user friendly and the programme is designed to be far simpler than the more complex clients on the list, choosing to focus in on one issue rather than providing a solution for them all. So if you're looking for a simple solution to a specific problem, give Checkbook a try.









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Google is hitting the 'reset' button on Glass after disappointing response

Google's latest earnings call was a mixed bag, containing some impressive financial figures and some bleak reflections on Google Glass.
Speaking during the call, Google's chief financial officer Patrick Pichette admitted that Glass hadn't had the impact Google had hoped it would, adding that the company would "reset" its strategy with the wearable.
"In other cases, when teams aren't able to hit hurdles, but we think there's still a lot of promise, we might ask them to take a pause and take the time to reset their strategy, as we recently did in the case of Glass," he said. "And in those cases where a project doesn't have the impact we hoped for, we do take the tough calls. We make the decision to cancel them, and you've seen us do this time and time again."
Google recently announced that it was to end the Glass Explorer program, with Nest CEO Tony Fadell to overtake the project.
The company is expected to release a second-generation Glass in the future, but how radically different it will be is anyone's guess right now. Something that doesn't look quite so ridiculous would be a start.

• I wore Google Glass for one year and here's what I experience

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Motorola's new range of metallic Moto 360s look rather fetching

For all its battery life and processing struggles, we do really like the Moto 360. But we'd be lying if we said that wasn't largely down to its clean curves and tiny bezel. We particularly like the leather strap that comes as default with the Moto 360, mainly because it's proper leather, coming from Illinois-based tanners Horween.
Still, there's nothing wrong with a few options. If you like to rock something with a bit more class, three new Moto 360s are on the way, with a choice of metal bands in 23mm Light Grey and Dark Grey, or a slightly thinner 18mm Light Gold.
The straps themselves are made from aircraft-grade aluminium, so they'll take a bit of a battering too, without having too much impact on the weight of the already-bulky Moto 360.
The new versions will retail for £229 and hit shelves from mid-February, with the exception of the Light Gold edition, which appears a month later. Just head over to John Lewis for the Light Grey, or try O2, Techdata, Amazon and Argos for the rest.

• Moto 360 review

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Interview: CommScope's acquisition of TE Connectivity network assets: Here's the lowdown

The $3 billion (about £1.9 billion, AU$3.5 billion) acquisition of TE Network network assets by CommScope was finalised earlier this week shortly after reports of a potential deal emerged.
The transaction broadens CommScope portfolio, allowing it to accelerate its strategy to drive profitable growth by entering into "attractive adjacent markets".
TechRadar Pro probed Eddie Edwards, president and CEO of CommScope to find out more about the deal and how it was done.
TechRadar Pro: Why did CommScope buy TE Connectivity?
Eddie Edwards: We believe TE Connectivity's Telecom, Enterprise and Wireless businesses are the best fit for CommScope as we continue to expand our offerings and develop innovative ways to help network operators deal with the constantly growing demand for bandwidth.
TRP: What made it an acquisition target in the first place?
EE: The businesses we are acquiring are well positioned in their markets through the work of a highly-skilled, diverse workforce and a strong pipeline of product innovations, exemplified by a portfolio of about 7,000 patents and patent applications. In addition, the TE Connectivity businesses are highly complementary to CommScope's existing businesses, and should enable us to enter attractive adjacent markets in broadening our position as a leading communications infrastructure provider.
TRP: How long has it been a target?
EE: CommScope regularly talks with industry players as it explores potential relationships that can lead to faster profitable growth and additional ways to meet the needs of customers in the long-term. Discussions with TE Connectivity were among those over the past couple of years.
TRP: Will CommScope consume the TE Connectivity brand?
EE: Decisions on scores of key matters, including branding, won't be made until well into the future. The companies will begin integration planning immediately, while the transaction is expected to close late in 2015.
TRP: What's CommScope view on the opportunities/areas of growth in 2015?
EE: We believe that growth opportunities are being driven by four global trends that are creating demand for communications infrastructure—mobile broadband data consumption, social media usage, cloud services and Big Data.
TRP: How will access to wireless connectivity affect consumers and businesses in 2015?
EE: Access to mobile data through wireless services and devices such as smartphones, tablets and over-the-top video has created continued high demand for network capacity, and that bandwidth growth shows no signs of letting up in 2015. Consumers and businesses are adopting bandwidth-hungry devices and services at a rapid pace, and that growth in video usage and large data applications is being felt in networks around the world.
TRP: With this acquisition expected to expand the global competitive position of CommScope, will there be further moves planned for it to strengthen its market positions even further or move into any other markets in 2015?
EE: As data usage increases, there will be greater demand for a strong, underlying physical network that we believe CommScope will be uniquely capable of providing. The proposed acquisition of the TE Connectivity businesses will strengthen our capabilities and our ability to serve customers in a variety of innovative ways. CommScope has a strong track record of disciplined strategic acquisitions and we will continue to look at opportunities to improve the company's standing for the long-term.









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In Depth: Intel WiDi: what it means for business

Intel's fifth-generation Core vPro platform allows PC makers to create slimmer business-focused laptops and 2-in-1s. Another, arguably more interesting advantage that it brings is the ability for users to wirelessly display content on TVs or monitors using vPro's Pro Wireless Display (or Pro WiDi) feature, which looks to eliminate cabling between devices and displays.
The idea is that employees can shuffle into conference rooms and instantly begin collaborating and working on ideas without wasting time trying to locate physical cables and dongles. Combined with Wi-Dock, a wireless docking feature in vPro that sees users' laptops or tablets instantly connect to displays when sat within range, Intel reckons the small time savings accumulated could lead to increased productivity over time and larger profits as a result.
Intel has said that businesses and education authorities need to buy a WiDi Pro dongle adapter to slot into the HDMI port of the TV, PC monitor or projector and receive the image from vPro-enabled devices. Actiontec, the chipmaker's main lead WiDi Pro partner, is the first to launch an adapter and will be followed by OEMs later this year.
To find out more about WiDi Pro, TechRadar Pro spoke to Jim Russell from Intel's vPro Expert Centre, and Jay Taylor, Director of Strategic Alliances at Actiontec.

TechRadar Pro: What's the difference between Intel WiDi Pro and Intel Wireless Docking?
Jim Russell: Intel The Wi-Dock is geared toward office environments and fairly short distances, so it's about huge speed but more for one person in their office. The Pro WiDi is meant for conference rooms with people at greater differences.
You can go around 30 metres and still be connected to it. WiDi also allows multi-connect with up to 16 people connected, and you can transition between different presenters. It's really more meant for collaborative environments -- a no-wire solution for the conference room, where as the WiDock is a no-more wires solution for the office. People will already be familiar with WiDi as it allows you to extend or mirror your desktop content exactly as you would in Windows 8.1.

TRP: What wireless frequency band and channel does the Actiontec adapter run on?
JR: The adapter runs on the 5GHz and 2.4GHz bands. Channel assignment is done by IT — it's not up to the individual to configure infrastructure — it's designed to be invisible to the user. When you buy it, it comes with the default channel. IT needs to configure the channel and its name — so you would put a conference room like room 101 or room 102. It helps not to put something cryptic.

TRP: How will workforces be able to manage multiple devices?
JT: Remote management is a key feature that Actiontec has built into these devices. We've enabled a CMS — Central Management System —- that allows IT administrators to see every deployed device. They can set security and management policies and turn on and off different Pro WiDi features — such as being able to push firmware updates and set custom splash screens and images from a central location. For large deployments devices can be managed through a central systems.

TRP: Can organisations deploy that application on-premise?
JT: In some cases you can and in some cases you can't. It can run on a virtual server in a window console, which shows the devices as soon as you plug them in. You can rename them and do what you want in batches.

TRP: How will Actiontec's WiDi adapter be sold into organisations?
JT: In a number of a different ways. For example, if you look to Toshiba, Dell or Lenovo, they're selling our branded adapter through their online stores. Some manufacturers may do a bundle, so for every 10 devices you buy you may get a free adapter. It's all about the solution, and understanding the needs of the consumer -- the customer in this particular case. Businesses don't have to go through an OEM to get it -- they can get it through a reseller, system integrator or whoever they want to do the integration.
TRP: Companies other than Actiontec will be selling devices soon. Are there any requirements for what they must do to support WiDi?
JT: Other adapters have to meet certain requirements and have an opportunity to differentiate. Actiontec is Intel's lead partner having helped develop the technology. We've overseen aspects such as performance and reliability, and have done a ton of testing on HP, Dell and any other systems we can get our hands on to ensure the greatest range of flexibility to make sure these things just work.
There's an enormous amount of engineering work takes place, and then we work with Intel on the business side, working with sales organisations and distribution channels.









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Review: Updated: Google Nexus 6

Introduction and design

Google Nexus 6 is a supersized version of the new Moto X that has been given a two-handed booster shot and appropriately received a post-surgery Lollipop. The results? It's among the best phones in 2015.
This phablet-sized smartphone is the first to run Android 5.0 Lollipop and, really, there's no better way to experience all of the changes Google has made to its operating system.
It parades the colorful new Material Design interface on a massive 6-inch display, moves seamlessly between apps thanks one of the latest Snapdragon processors and 3GB of RAM, and lasts all day in most cases with a Qi-chargeable 3220 mAh battery.
These Nexus 6 specs are enough to edge-to-edge out Apple's mighty iPhone 6 Plus. It feels better to hold in my hand, and typing is easier thanks to Androids always-superior keyboards options.

Google Now, still one swipe to the left, is more personal than ever, which shows this phone is willing to go the extra .5 inches to please without BendGating over backwards.
Nexus 6 isn't for everyone, especially one-handed texters who think this year's 5.2-inch Moto X pushes the limit, or anyone who can't live without the presence-sensing Moto Active Display.
At $649, £499 unlocked (around AU$700), it's pricier than past Nexus phones. But Motorola has built one of the best Android phablets with very few feature misgivings.

Design

It takes two hands to properly operate the Nexus 6, but this Android phone feels better in my increasingly ambidextrous grasp for its size.
Motorola's design, borrowed from the Moto X, gives it a sturdy BendGate-free aluminum metal frame and palm-pleasing gently curved back.

It's sloped, so while the contoured sides run as thin as 0.15 in. (3.8mm), the thicker hump is 0.39 in. (10.1mm). The height and width are a normal 6.27 in. (159.3mm) x 3.15 in. (83.0mm).
Nexus 6 pushes an edge-to-edge display with no physical buttons, so the - by comparison - "small" 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus isn't too far off: 6.22 in. (158.1mm) x 3.06 in. (77.8mm).
At 6.49 oz. (184g), it weighs more than the new iPhone or Samsung Galaxy Note 4. But there's a good chance that if you can fit Apple's biggest smartphone in your skinny jeans, you're also going to be able to squeeze this oversized Android into a pocket too. You... might not always be able to get it out as easily, especially when driving or sitting down.
The curve feels natural against my hands, and the back, while made of hard plastic, is at least smooth. It doesn't try to mask the material with fake leather stitching or bumpy plastic.

Nexus 6's shell is different from the rubberized Nexus 5, but I found it a lot easier to grip than its "premium," but far-too-slippery competitors that feature an all-metal design from top to bottom. With the iPhone 6, I felt like I needed a sleek-design-defeating case not to drop it.
This is a familiar Motorola device almost all of the way through, down to the dimpled logo on the back where my finger automatically rested when on a call. But it skips out on the Moto Maker customizations like wood finishes and far-too-supple leather backs.
Nexus 6 colors are limited to two: either Cloud White or Midnight Blue with the advantage of both being compatible with Qi wireless chargers, a feature all of those tricked-out Moto X phones don't support.

It's also missing the Moto Active Display functionality. Waving my hand above the three IR sensors of the Moto X triggered a mostly unlit screen with just the current time and notification icons. Pressing down on these icons revealed more information like email teasers.
Active Display is nowhere to be found here, even though it was a great a battery-saving idea that made notifications very glanceable. Instead, there's the less reliable Ambient Display mode that provides a greyed-out lockscreen whenever you lift the phone up suddenly. This doesn't always work.
Nexus 6 misses the boat when it comes to a fingerprint scanner to rival Apple's Touch ID. Apparently, the iPhone-maker is inadvertently responsible for killing Motorola's biometric design plans because it bought supplier AutenTec.
You won't find a working LED light indicator here either. Recently, a developer discovered that the phone does emit one of these notifications pulses, but it's disabled. Turning it on requires a rooted phone.
Also missing, or at least inconsistent, is the Nexus 9 tablet's tablet knock-to-wake feature. It actually works sometimes and turns on that greyed-out screen, but other times I get no response at all. "Hello, is anyone home?," I keep asking. Maybe a firmware update can resolve this in the future but that hasn't arrived in the last three months since the original launch.

Nexus 6 does, thankfully, inherit the new Moto X's ridge-filled power button. This helped me differentiate between the right-side located power and volume buttons in the dark. More phone manufacturers need to steal this design idea. I won't tell.
Phablet manufacturers also need to take note of these front-facing speakers. The stereo sound is almost as good as HTC's BoomSound technology because it points the sound in the right direction. I'm tired of backward-facing speaker grills.

The top of the Nexus 6, at its frame's thickest point, is a 3.5mm headphone jack along with the nanoSIM card slot. Sadly, there's no MicroSD slot to speak of. You're locked into 32GB or 64GB.
It's also not waterproof like other IP67-certified Androids. It's merely "water resistant" and has Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protecting the 6-inch AMOLED display that I'll peer at next.

Key features

Nexus 6 pushes my fingertips to the limit with a 5.96" AMOLED display that is as big as it is gorgeous. You won't find a globally-available Android that matches its size.
Sure, it's only an inch bigger than last year's Nexus 5 and half an inch larger than this year's biggest iPhone 6 Plus, but its meant for two hands and therefore makes it seem extra large.

Google fills all of that space with a bright picture and a 1440x2560 resolution, which equates to 493 pixels per inch on the nearly 6-inch screen.
Its quad HD and doubles down on Apple's "full HD" screen, though the LG G3 and Samsung Galaxy Note 4 have higher pixel densities care of their smaller display sizes. But not by much.
Watching videos on the Nexus 6 made me skip pulling out the Nexus 9 more than once. The phone is just three inches shy of Google's new tablet and has a more video-friendly 16:9 aspect ratio.
This is Google and Motorola's first quad HD smartphone and it's a head-turning sight to see.

Beefier specs

At the heart of the Nexus 6 is a 2.7Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 quad-core processor that has an Adreno 420 GPU. It's a top-of-the-line chip for Google's largest Android phone yet.
Backing that up is 3GB of RAM and a reasonable 32GB or 64GB of internal storage. Notice, there's no silly 16GB model to cheapen the value.

All of these Nexus 6 specs aren't overkill. It's important for the lightweight, but feature-filled Android Lollipop update that's pre-installed on the phone.
Android does more things than ever in the background: it runs multiple apps, receives notifications that hit the new lockscreen non-stop and makes the instantly accessible Google Now available with one swipe to the left. Voice searches are also on demand whenever I say the "Okay Google" prompt.

13-megapixel camera

Around back, there's a 13-megapixel camera that seems to be on par with that 13-megapixel Moto X 2014 snapper that just came out. It's not.

Nexus 6's camera has a better Sony IMX214 CMOS sensor with a wider f/2.0 aperture and optical image stabilization.
This trumps the Moto X camera specs that comprise of an older sensor and lacked OIS. It's not perfect, but it's far superior to what we got with 8-megapixel Nexus 5 camera last year.

Android 5.0 Lollipop

The LG G3 has beaten the Nexus 6 to the punchy colors with a sooner-than-expected update to Android 5.0 Lollipop, but Google's new phone is still the first with it pre-installed.
First, last, whatever - the "Material Design" theme is far more inviting than what I experienced on the Nexus 5. Flat layers of bright colors bring out the best on this 6-inch display.

Android Lollipop is also more functional with lockscreen notifications and a new pulldown quick settings menu. It does go overboard though, adding a adds an unnecessary new Messaging app.
In addition to the new look and features, additional minor adjustments are expected in the forthcoming Android 5.0.1 and Android 5.0.2 OTA updates that are close behind.
You can find more of what TechRadar thinks of it in our Android 5.0 Lollipop review.

Qi and Turbo Charging

Google and Motorola spared me the embarrassment of toting around the ugly USB 3.0 Micro-B cable employed by past Samsung's smartphones, but the pair still allow for a faster charging method.
Nexus 6's secret sauce is that it uses a Turbo Charger, a larger-than-normal plug that juices the phone with six additional hours of battery life in just 15 minutes. It uses a normal micro USB cable transfer the juice.

This is made possible by the same Qualcomm QuickCharge 2.0 technology that the Moto X 2nd generation and a handful of other Snapdragon CPU-powered Android phones.
The difference here is that the Nexus 6 comes with the square-shaped plug, while most other QuickCharge smartphones sell it as an accessory.
Nexus 6 can also be juiced up with the Nexus Wireless Charger or any Qi inductive charger, though the wire-free base station is sold separately in this case. More on how this holds up in the battery life tests page.

Interface and performance

Nexus 6 sets new standards for both interface and performance among Androids with few exceptions. It's once again Google's standard bearer for other manufacturers to follow.
It's colorful and bright on the outside thanks to the debut of Android Lollipop, and it's a beast on the inside due to top-of-the-line internal specs.
Of course, even Google's new champion for the better part of 2015 has its challengers. The once fragmented competition is coming together to raise the stakes.

Interface

Stock Android remains one of the best reasons to own a Nexus device. Its software is void of the often unnecessary third-party overlays and pre-installed apps that simply get in my way.

Sure, skins like Samsung TouchWiz, LG Optimus and HTC Sense look and run better today than they did two years ago, but pure Android is the way to go.
There's no getting around the fact that Nexus devices, like all Google Play Edition devices, receive future Android updates almost immediately without carrier intervention. That matters as much this year as it does next year.
Right now, it's all about Android 5.0 Lollipop, this year's pre-installed version of the operating system. It sports a flat, yet layered theme among its menus and apps.
Google calls this "Material Design," and it sort of lifts 2D layers to the third dimension with a combination of shadows cast by key and ambient lights.
The new look also dials back the visual nonessentials, but punches up the color. Menus aren't as dark as they were on Android 4.4 KitKat, and apps share in this same geometry-focused design and splash of color.
So far this applies to Google's slate apps like Gmail, Google Play Movies & TV and Google Maps. The company is driving a simplified, unified layout throughout its ecosystem.
There's also a big difference to how Android 5.0 Lollipop functions. I didn't even have to unlock my Nexus 6 to see the very first change - it was right there on the lockscreen.

Lockscreen notifications bring the hidden notification panel to the forefront with email alerts, text messages exchanges, app updates and so forth. It's all easily glanceable like on iOS 8.
Such a move would normally introduce a privacy problem. Google, however, nipped that issue in the bud within the "Sound & Notifications" settings menu.
With nothing to hide, I can "Show all notification content," keep certain items confidential via "Hide sensitive notification content," or turn everything off with "Don't show notifications at all." Better yet, I can block notifications on an app-by-app basis through this same handy menu.
Priority Mode is Google's more advanced take on Apple's Do Not Disturb feature. It silences the Nexus 6 indefinitely or in intervals ranging from 15 minutes to 8 hours.
Like the lockscreen notifications, certain apps and callers can be allowed or disallowed via whitelisting. I've since ditched my third-party Silence app for this new, system-wide feature.
Priority Mode isn't part of Quick Settings like I had expected. It's activated by pressing the volume key in either direction and following the on-screen toggles.
Quick Settings does have some new additions, however. The pulldown menu doesn't require two fingers simultaneously. That still works, but now you can do one swipe for notifications, then another swipe to reveal this hidden quick settings menu. It's a lot less awkward.
It's still impossible to add to or rearrange the quick settings. What you see is what you get. Thankfully, new buttons alongside Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Airplane Mode include Flashlight and the Chromecast "Cast Screen" button.
A brightness slider, while not necessarily new, is no longer hidden behind its own submenu. One less step is what quick settings is all about.

Performance

Nexus 6 running Android 5.0 Lollipop clears all but one rival smartphone when it comes to benchmarks: the recently released Samsung Galaxy Note 4.
It's awful close, and that's no surprise. Google's specs mirror it chip-for-chip with a 2.7GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 quad-core processor, Adreno 420 GPU and 3GB of RAM.
Nexus 6 aces Geekbench 3 benchmarking tests with an average multi-core score of 3294. It's significantly faster than the smaller iPhone 6 Plus (2911) and Samsung Galaxy S5 (2905).
Alas, the Galaxy Note 4 eeks out a win with a benchmarking score of 3,352. A real overachieving nerd with an pocket-protected S-Pen in its frame, if that's what you want.
All of these numbers translate into stellar performance from the Nexus 6. Google's phablet is venturing into tablet territory. The new Nexus 9 slate averaged 3,492 in the same tests.
It's pushing the boundaries of more than just physical size. The one and only slowdown I saw was during the boot-up process. It took 1 minute 33 seconds to start this thing up.
Slow start times seem more like a glitch that can be addressed in a post-launch firmware update. Right now, streaming movies and playing CPU-intensive games hasn't slowed this phone down one bit.
That's a good sign if you're going to hold onto the Nexus 5 for two whole years under contract and because it cost you so much unlocked.

Camera

Nexus 6's camera certainly bests the flawed photos of last year's Nexus 5 snapper and it's way more accurate than the rest of Motorola's oversaturated lineup.
The improvements are care of the Sony IMX214 CMOS sensor, a wider f/2.0 aperture and optical image stabilization, all attributes that aren't a part of the new Moto X.

It's 13-megapixels - the same as the OnePlus One camera - and holds its own next to the 21-megapixel Droid Turbo for two reasons: it has better shot-for-shot color accuracy and OIS.
Both the Moto X and Droid Turbo have tried to impress with vibrant, Instagram-like colors for each shot. It works in some cases like photos of the sky or buildings, but when it occasionally turns your skin different hues, it's unfortunate.
That's why I appreciate the fact that the Nexus 6 is closer to reality. It's still a bit warm in natural light and grainier than it should be in low-light situations, but a marked improvement.

The problems are only abundantly clear when comparisons are drawn between its camera and the Galaxy Note 4 camera. Samsung's color accuracy and post-processing skills can't be beat.
All of this is true of the front-facing camera too. It's a bit redder and grainier in low light when using the 2 megapixel camera. I found the Note 4 and the front-flash-equipped HTC Desire Eye do a better job if you're looking for selfies in your local pub.
I also found the Nexus 6 autofocus to be comparable and even snappier than the Note 4 in some cases, but Samsung's camera are just chock-full of options not in Google's very straightforward default.

Sure, Photosphere is a neat camera trick that works on Google+, but this is an overall bare bones camera app that's easily overpowered by third-party alternatives in the Play Store. And sadly, Motorola didn't bother to bring over the camera twist gesture shortcut that launches the Moto X camera app.
Video is a little more straightforward. It shoots 4K video at 30 frames per second, but if you're not playing it back on a 4K TV, it's hard to justify the space on a quad HD smartphone. That's where the 1080p video recording option is much more relevant.
You can find camera samples on the next page and I'll be adding more of my photo-snapping results throughout the week with additional analysis.

Camera samples

More Nexus 6 camera samples to come throughout this week along with comparisons to other cameras in its category.

Media

Nexus 6 is obviously a multimedia powerhouse given its phablet-sized display, but there are speakers that backs up those good looks.
That has a significant impact on the 6-inch movie-watching, game-playing and music-listening experience, one area in which the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 doesn't quite compare.

Video

I actually prefer watching movies on my Nexus 6 review unit over the Nexus 9 tablet due to the fact that Google's new flagship smartphone boasts a more video-friendly screen.
It's in the proper 16:9 aspect ratio, so all of the widescreen movies I watch are formatted sans letterboxing or at least natural letterboxing is kept to a minimum. The black void is strong with the Nexus 9, sadly.
Streaming Dumb and Dumber via Netflix in anticipation of the sequel, I found that the Nexus 9 has slightly darker tones, whereas the Note 4 was slightly brighter for the full 107 minutes.
The same was true with Gravity, which is currently free to download in the redesigned Google Play Movies & TV section, at least in the US. It demod Nexus 6's excellent contrast ratio.
There's hardly a winner in this side-by-side quad HD movie comparison. Samsung's amped up screen made is easy to see darker objects, while Google's didn't blow out sunlit scenes.
It's the front-facing dual speakers that hand the Nexus 6 a victory among phablets.

Music

Songs, of course, play well through these stereo speakers that rest at the top and bottom of the Nexus 6. It's a big step up from Motorola's mono-speaker Moto X from two months ago.
Running through my Google Music playlist, I could not only hear all of the music, I could see what was playing on the screen without having to face my phone in an awkward direction.
That's just not the case with some phablets like the Galaxy Note 4 and iPhone 6 Plus in which the speaker grill is facing the back or the bottom.
It didn't quite match the larger sound produced by the HTC One M8 and its patented BoomSound speaker tech, but the Nexus 6 makes the most sense, and noise, among phablets.

Games

Nexus 6 didn't flinch when it came to game apps, typically the most intensive media form for a jack-of-all-trade phone like this. It handled everything with flying, fluidly animated colors.
The free-to-play Asphalt 8: Airborne proved that Google's latest Nexus is no slouch in 3D gaming performance. Simpler apps like the isometric Game of War did the same for 2D.
In fact, the Game of War overworld was easier to navigate thanks to the 6-inch display and 2560 x 1440 resolution. It didn't feel stretched from my days playing it on the Galaxy Note 3.
This is important for mobile gamers to take into consideration when thinking about purchasing a phablet. Touchscreen size matters just as much as internal specs sometimes.

Storage

Nexus 6 takes the phablet crown when it comes to multimedia, but with one caveat. It doesn't have expandable storage. No microSD card support, something the Note 4 doesn't have.
This Android 5.0 Lollipop trailblazer comes in 32GB or 64GB flavors. That's the internal storage size you're stuck with for about two years if you don't upgrade sooner.
Also keep in mind that my review unit had a smaller-than-advertised 25.98GB of user-storage onboard when it's really the 32GB model. Nearly 7GB is taken up by the OS.

Battery

Nexus 6 battery life is excellent, judging from our tests. Behind its 6-inch AMOLED is a mighty 3220mAh capacity, the same as the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and iPhone 6 Plus.
The difference maker is that Google's new flagship is running Android 5.0 Lollipop with the battery-saving optimizations of "Project Volta" to eek out two extra percentage points.

That translates into a 17% drop in battery life when running TechRadar's 90-minute HD video test. The Note 4 dropped 19%, LG G3 lost 25% and iPhone 6 Plus went down 27%.
Looking at the always-useful battery settings menu, it appears as if the Android System and Android OS resources are hogging a smaller percentage of battery life on my Nexus 6 vs my Note 4.
Outside of this looped battery test, the Nexus 6 lasted about a day and a half on travel, again pretty much tied with the Note 4 and more than enough time to seek a power outlet.
I wasn't able to swap out the battery, however. It's sealed inside the Nexus 6, unlike Samsung's devices that offer easy access to batteries so that they are user-replaceable.
The good news with this year's Nexus is that it takes advantage of Qualcomm's QuickCharge 2.0 technology that boosts battery life in a jiffy and it comes with the special power adapter.
Motorola calls it a Turbo Charger, Samsung dubs it a fast charger and HTC refers to it as a rapid charger. Whatever, it's a wonderful addition to devices with the latest Snapdragon CPUs.
Officially Nexus 6 is supposed to be able to add six hours of battery in just 15 minutes. That came out to 20% in 15 minutes when my phone started charging at a critical state.
Those numbers continued to stay true as I left the phone attached to the oversized plug in the outlet. My total charge time for the Nexus 6 from zero to full was about 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Added to this fresh convenience is the return of an old one. Google once again supports the Qi charging standard for inductive charging.
That makes owning the Nexus Wireless Charger or any Qi charger all the more useful. Motorola has Qi experience with the Moto 360 smartwatch and its phone works the same wire-free way.
You don't need an accessory (like a specialize case) for Qi wireless charging here. That makes the Nexus 6 battery much better than the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 sans the non-user-replaceable aspect.

The essentials

Just because Google's Nexus 6 looks all-grown-up doesn't mean it can skip out on its basic chores as a cell phone. Call quality, keyboard functionality and messaging are still important.
Two out of three isn't bad, especially when the last category has been a system-wide Android problem since the very beginning. I'll explain further below.
People I spoke with said that I was coming in clearly using the handset normally and switching over to the speakerphone. It's loud through that top speaker and easy to hear everything.

I didn't have to repeat anything, but I did discover a weird two- or three-second delay following my pressing of the speakerphone button. It seems like an unresolved glitch more than anything.
The Nexus 6 didn't become too hot after a very long 40-minute conversation with my mom, and trust me that's not always the case. Even on Verizon, I found I could easily surf the web and text at the same time. For testing purposes, of course. Not because I was bored talking to my mom.
The new Android 5.0 Lollipop keyboard takes away the borders between the keys and adds two new themes that are lighter and darker in color.
Google's keyboard personalization makes Android's default keyboard leagues ahead of the just-learning Apple iOS 8 QuickType keyboard and it comes with gesture typing out of the gate.

Messaging

Messages is the one area where Android 5.0 Lollipop isn't making incremental improvements. In fact, I think it's taking steps backward with additional confusion.
Hangouts is still here, with the ability to route SMS and internet messages through the app. But Google went ahead and introduced a new default "Messages" app too.

It sports the lovely Material Design theme, but is solely for text messages, which, as always can't be beamed to a computer or tablet without a bunch of third-party app trickery.
As much as I like MightyText and similar apps that mirror my messages on the device that's occupying my attention, Google needs to be the one to match iMessages' seamless idea.
There's no reason I should be sitting at a 13-inch MacBook Air with a real keyboard, only to have to fetch a smartphone with a 6-inch display and virtual keyboard to respond to a message.
Hangouts on the computer almost made texting on a computer a reality last month. Google introduced an SMS tab on the computer-based internet messaging service, but it sends and receives from your Google Voice numbers - that's going to further confuse everyone on my contact list.
Being able to route calls, texts and Hangouts (including video-based Hangouts) and ensuring into weaved into the Android ecosystem as well as iMessages and FaceTime is for iOS is the one essential Google doesn't have a handle on just yet.

Competition

Nexus 6 is bigger and newer than its competition, but it's not a clear cut victory. If new and big always won the tech race, Samsung would have the best smartwatch every 3 months.
Here's how Google's new trend-setting Android stacks up to existing iOS 8 and Android KitKat devices in the phablet category.

iPhone 6 Plus

Apple went bigger with the iPhone 6 Plus and while its 5.5-inch display is king among iOS 8 devices, its specs don't match the benchmarks set by Google and Samsung.
It still looks incredible with a 1920x1080 resolution display 401 pixels per inch, which meets the standard for "full HD." It also defines ultra-thin and redefines what an 8-megapixel camera can do.
The big iPhone's best feature is iOS itself. If you're locked into Apple's ecosystem with iMessages and iCloud, and don't want to ditch Touch ID, this is a satisfying phablet. Plus, most of Google's software is available in Apple's App Store.

Samsung Galaxy Note 4

A lot of people are deciding between the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and Nexus 6. Was it worth holding out until Google released its new phone?
There answer comes down to which features you want. The Note 4 comes with a advantages like the S Pen stylus that certain people want on a phone that's as large as 5.7 inches. Fair enough.
It also boasts multitasking, a fantastic camera and runs circles around most Androids when it comes to benchmarks. A microSD card slot and replaceable battery are must-haves for a lot of people too.
If you can deal with TouchWiz, the backward-facing speaker and the phablet-sized big price, then it's something to consider over the cheaper, pure Android Google Nexus 6.

LG G3

LG G3 is a little more manageable as a two-handed Android thanks to its 5.5-inch display. I can wrap my hand arounds its chassis without even stretching my fingers.
It's in the same quad HD resolution category as the Nexus 6 and sports a similar curved backside. But the smaller screen and brush-metal plastic back aren't as striking as Google's 6-inch behemoth.
That's okay. The LG G3's laser autofocus with better photos and cheaper price that more than make up for this. The camera and price out-do the even smaller Galaxy S5.

Nexus 5

Since Google has discontinued sales of the Nexus 5 in the lead up to the Nexus 6 launch, this is more of a "Do I upgrade early or hold tight for the Nexus 7" question.
Oh wait, that already exists as a tablet. You get the point, though. It depends on what you care about. The Nexus 5 is getting Android 5.0 Lollipop, so the interface is going to match what you see here.
The differences come down to the size, obviously, the stylish design and the camera. Nexus 5 was rightfully criticized for its less than stellar picture-taking performance last year.
Nexus 6 passes the camera quality test in most conditions and every other benchmark we threw at it. If those things are important to you, think about an early upgrade.

Hands on gallery

Verdict

Google and Motorola launch Android 5.0 Lollipop with the Nexus 6 and it's a treat that doesn't leave a bitter aftertaste thanks to its favorable design and specs.
It's not as cheap as Google's past flagship phones, but you get more display for your money and the ability to upgrade to the next version Android without hesitation.

We liked

There's a lot to like about Nexus 6. I'm a sucker for Android Lollipop and it looks great on this bright, 6-inch AMOLED display. It's not filled with all of the pre-installed apps I never use.

Going along with the video-friendly 16:9 screen are front-facing speakers that project movie, game and music sound to me instead of away from me. What a concept!
The specs top almost all previous smartphone benchmarks thanks to the Qualcomm's newest Snapdragon chip and 3GB of RAM. An extra-large battery has kept me running for more than a day per charge.
The 13-megapixel camera is more true-to-life than last year's Nexus 5 and Motorola's other smartphones combined, even if it doesn't quite measure up what Samsung's doing.

We disliked

It's hard to call the Nexus 6 Android's best phablet. It's big but the 5.7-inch Samsung Galaxy Note 4 just barely inches out ahead of Google's phone in the benchmarks.
The perk of having the first smartphone to run Android 5.0 Lollipop is still there, right? No, actually the update it already available for the LG G3. Others are promising to follow soon.
It's also a bummer to see that the Nexus 9 knock-to-wake function and Moto Active Display didn't make the cut. Active Display is one of Motorola's best ideas, and it's not here despite the fact that the Nexus 6 costs more than the Moto X and Moto G.

Final Verdict

The death of the Google Nexus program has been greatly exaggerated, and this year's stock Android phone ironically resulted in an exaggerated Moto X. Its tremendous display, premium specs and debut of Android 5.0 Lollipop make one of the best phablets to date.
That's not to say it's the perfect phablet. Without Moto Active Display, customizable voice command features and Moto Maker options, $649, £499 (around AU$700) would normally be a big ask.
Luckily, this just happens to be the best Nexus Google has ever crafted. And, when you think about it, you're not going to need to hold onto your money, as you'll require both hands to grab onto this two-handed monster.
First reviewed: November 2014









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Will the LG G4 sport a 3K display?

According to a new rumour the upcoming LG G4 could be coming with an impressive 3K display. "Could be" is the key phrase here, as although we'd be interested in seeing such a stunning screen on the LG G4, this rumour is far from verified, so read on with caution.
According to the MyLG website, a "trust worthy tipster" got in contact with a screenshot that claims to be a list of various specifications for a device with the model number 'LG-VS999'.
MyLG has come to the conclusion that this device could be the LG G4, as its predecessor, the LG G3, had the model number LG VS985 for the Verizon model.

Screen dreams

In the screenshot the LG-VS999 is claimed to have a screen resolution of 1620×2880, which could suggest that the LG G4 will be getting a special edition for the Verizon network with a 3K screen.
A similar rumour was posted on the French forum forum.hardware.fr, again suggesting the screen's resolution would be 1620×2880.

Until we get further verification on these rumours we wouldn't get too excited, but if they do prove to be correct then we hope LG has also included a battery in the LG G4 that will be able to cope with such demand.

• Here's everything we know so far about the LG G4

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Review: Creative Sound Blaster E5 review

The words 'Sound' and 'Blaster' are as indelibly etched into our old-school PC gaming psyche as 'autoexec.bat' and 'config.sys'. We spent unknowable hours configuring DOS-based games to make sure we got compatible audio out of them.
Sound Blaster basically became synonymous with PC gaming audio right from the outset.
And then onboard motherboard sound got good enough that we stopped buying discrete soundcards, plus USB headsets now bypass them both.
Chances are then that you don't have a Sound Blaster in your PC any more.
And that's a shame because Creative still make outstanding PC audio devices and this USB-based portable headphone amp is testament to that fact.
The Sound Blaster E5 is an HDD caddy-sized lump of audio loveliness, packing the excellent SB-Axx1 audio processor and a hi-res digital to analogue converter (DAC) into its unassuming package.
That sound silicon is the same as in Creative's Sound Blaster EVO headsets and with the controller software you can tweak away to your heart's content. From the equaliser to the Crystaliser, you can tailor the audio to suit whatever you're doing with your machine at that moment.
Want super-clear dialogue? Tweak this. Want eardrum-shattering bass? Go ahead, tweak that.
At £145 / $200 it's a lot of money to spend on your PC's audio, especially considering you can pick up a decent Asus Xonar or Creative Sound Blaster PCIe soundcard for less than half the price. But bear in mind that this thing is seriously powerful and a hell of a lot more versatile than a single slab of audiophile PCB.

Audio all-star

Sat on your desktop though you can have it USB'd into your machine, cleaning up the audio and boosting it with Creative's years of audio processing know-how.
The comprehensive software controller suite is excellent and easy to use and with a good set of analogue headphones attached you can really hear the improved aural quality the E5 provides.
And that's where this Sound Blaster is at its best, when it's attached to some quality cans.
The Bluetooth NFC-able connectivity means you can wirelessly connect to your phone while it's running your PC's audio. So if you don't want to miss an important call, or you're happy chatting to your mum via your headset while you gad about the galaxy in your souped-up Sidewinder, it'll work seamlessly.
It doesn't necessarily need to be plugged into your PC either.
There are Android and iOS apps available for it, too, and the 3,200mAh battery will keep it going for hours. And, if you're into sharing, there's a pair of headphone outputs to share an audio stream between a couple of connected cans.
See, versatile, innit?
But you do have to really care about your audio to spend the big bucks on it. And if you don't have a decent non-USB headset you're not going to get the full audiophile benefits of the SB-Axx1 processor.
But the Sound Blaster E5 is a neat, compact and versatile mini amp that defies its scale with some seriously big sound.

We liked

The sound quality that comes out of this diminutive device is outstanding. Creative's SB-Axx1 audio silicon has shown its worth in things like the EVO headsets and the mega-amp, the Creative Sound Blaster X7, and even in this little chassis it packs a punch.
The E5 is also incredibly versatile too. As happy sat on your desktop plugged into your gaming headset as it is in your pocket, throwing around audio from your phone.

That built-in microphone is darned impressive too, combined with the excellent Creative software it isolates the vocals for clear recording.

We disliked

Genuinely it's only the price that really stands in the way of the E5 being a must-have item. At nigh-on £150 / $200 it's an awful lot of money.
But then it's an awful lot of mini-amp for that price too.

Verdict

The Creative Sound Blaster E5 is an excellent little amplifier, that can make your gaming audio, your music listening and your movie watching life better. We love having a bit of Sound Blaster audio back with our PCs.
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BT rolling out UK's fastest broadband from next year

Speed demons will be on red alert following BT's announcement announcement that it plans to roll out "ultrafast" broadband capable of hitting a top download speed of 500Mbps from 2016.
Looking to go one better than today's "superfast" packages, BT says that its new "innovative" G.fast tech will be rolled out to most of the UK within a decade. It will be followed by a premium fibre broadband service offering download speeds of up to 1Gbps.
BT has been cooking up faster fibre in its Suffolk-based labs for five years and will launch two pilots this summer in Huntington, Cambridgshire and Gosforth, Newcastle that will be open to around 4,000 local homes and businesses.
Should they prove successful, BT will deploy the tech starting 2016. BT says that G.fast has potential to deliver speed boosts to its fibre-optic network using existing fibre street cabinets and other points closer to customers.
Speaking to TechRadar, a BT spokesperson said that it would be fair to describe G.fast as "a supercharged fibre-to-the-cabinet" (FTTC) method of deploying broadband to premises, which involves leading fibre-optic cables from a telephone exchange to a street cabinet.

Pole position

He said: "G.fast was originally designed as a technology able to be used from telegraph poles, but you'd be looking at rolling it out to more than four million of them, which would be challenging.
"In our breakthrough tests we discovered that we can deliver high speeds from cabinet locations and have spent the last five years or so building out a lot of fibre street cabinets as part of our fiber investment program. We now believe that we can essentially upgrade that network, with potentially some sort of additional infrastructure to help deliver the kinds of speeds we're talking about."
BT, which has also announced that its fibre-optic broadband network now reaches three quarters of the UK, currently offers download speeds of up to 80Mbps through its FTTC broadband packages. It also offers on-demand FTTC services in certain locations that can reach up to 330Mbps.

• Sky is also doing crazy fast broadband

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Review: Mini review: iON Air Pro 3 Wi-Fi

Key features

Streamlining and style isn't something that's usually associated with action cameras, which is a surprising since the average extreme sports enthusiast looks for cool and style as a matter of course.

• Best action cam
• Camera reviews and news
• GoPro Hero 4 Black review
• Sony AZ1VR review

The iON Air Pro 3 is a sleek styled and solidly made action camera that differs greatly from the boxy but feature packed style of the GoPro Hero. The streamlined form enables the camera to sit far more discreetly on a vehicle or helmet and is less prone to being knocked out of place.

One-piece design

iON has chosen a one piece design which, unlike the Toshiba Camileo X-Sport, GoPro Hero4 or Sony AZ1VR doesn't require a waterproof housing to protect it from water.
This one piece design limits the waterproofing to 15m compared to 40m with the GoPro Hero (when it's within its waterproof housing), so while the Air Pro 3 is a good choice for surfing, the depth is limited if you want to take it diving.

Footage and stills are captured by the 12 million pixel sensor which is fronted by a fixed focus, (1m), 160-degree field of view lens. This gives the footage the typical ultra wide action camera look.

Taking control

Controls on the iON AIR PRO 3 are limited with a power button and a sliding switch that starts the camera recording. On the back of the camera is a WiFi on button, and this is mounted on an interchangeable back that once removed reveals a USB port, HDMI, 3.5mm audio socket, micro SD card slot and video quality switch.
Unlike the GoPro there is no screen on the camera for adjusting settings. Instead almost all adjustments are made when the Air Pro 3 is connected to a computer or by using the mobile app for iOS or android. There is however a small video quality switch hidden behind the modular back, and this enables you to switch between a high (FHD) and low setting (HD).

Once settings are accessed through the app or on computer. There's a limited selection of options including photo and video resolutions and basic settings such as date and time. The main settings relate to the FHD and HD switch on the back of the camera which can be set to Full HD (1080p) at 30fps/60fps and HD position at 720p at 30fps/60fps/120fps. Exposure, metering, sensitivity and colour are all controlled automatically and there's no option for adjustment.

Shooting modes

Movies are the most likely use for an action camera but as with the GoPro it is possible to shoot 12Mp stills. There are a few options but if you want to use them then they need to be set through the software. These enable Single Shot, Burst Mode (three shots in a second) and Time Lapse (one shot every 10, 20 or 30 seconds).
Wi-Fi is built into the iON AIR WiFi PODZ, which is a separate module that can be detached from the main body. A single button on the back enables Wi-Fi so you can connect to a smartphone via the iON camera app. This enables remote live view for checking the composition, adjusting settings and downloading the footage and stills to a device if you have the space.

As with most other action cameras the iON AIR PRO 3 features a selection of mounts that can be attached to a variety of different extreme sports equipment. There is a helmet mount and some adhesive pads in the box and further mounts are available but have to be bought separately. These mount options include a board, bike, rollbar, suction cups and more – there's also a remote kit, but again this needs to be bought separately.

Handling and verdict

The iON AIR PRO 3 measures 39.5 x 39.5 x 105.1mm, but its design makes it feel far sleeker and less intrusive than the GoPro shape, sitting close to the equipment it's attached to rather than sticking out.
On the base is a standard tripod bush that is used to bolt on the Air Pro mount clip or if needed a standard tripod.
All the mounts use the same compression clip to hold the camera in place, and this forms a solid bond between equipment and camera. When it comes to releasing the camera, a bit of force is needed to separate it which, for an action camera, is a good thing.

Selecting the video resolution is simple with one small switch that is hidden behind the modular back enabling you to select between HD (High Definition 720p) FHD (Full High Definition 1080p). Once you've made your selection the modular back is fitted to protect the connection ports and MicroSD card and locked into place.

Vibration alert

Once done there are only three buttons on the exterior, the On/Off button that doubles as the still photo shutter button, the on/off record button, which is designed more like a slider, and the Wi-Fi button on the back. To switch the camera on you can either push down the on/off button for a second until the camera vibrates or if you want to start filming instantly just push the record button forward – again, the camera vibrates and a blue LED around the power button comes on.
Once recording commences, a small green LED illuminates. When you stop recording, the light turns off and the camera vibrates twice to let you know that it has stopped. This form of navigation and operation is simple and easy to use as there are no additional features that need to be checked. The vibration is also handy if the camera is mounted on a helmet where it's difficult or impossible to check if the camera is recording.
Connecting the camera to a mobile device via the Wi-Fi is easy. You activate the Wi-Fi network via the button on the back and a blue LED indicates that it's switched on. It will then appear on your mobile devices list of Wi-Fi connections. Once the connection is made you can load up the app for iOS or android and you're ready to control the camera.

Video quality

We used the Air Pro 3 when out mountain biking in the New Forest and surrounding area. On the whole the footage was of good quality but lacked some of the vibrancy and contrast that we've seen with the likes of GoPro Hero4 and Sony AZ1VR.
We found that the overall video quality was excellent resolving tone and detail well and reproducing natural colour.
YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBGRUEML-j4&feature=youtu.be
The lens gives footage the ultra wide angled look with straight lines towards the edge of the frame bowing, but this distortion isn't over the top and the video sharpness across the frame is good. Chromatic aberration is also well controlled and you really have to look for it on high contrast edges to see it, so in normal circumstances it isn't an issue.
When filming fast motion the image quality does start to suffer and even at the highest quality setting the camera was capturing an average of just under 25Mbps, which is pretty average for this type of camera.

Light and sound

The iON Air Pro 3's metering system does an excellent job, though moving the camera from light to dark and back again showed some interesting trends with the exposure taking about a second to settle when moved from shade to light – on the other hand, the exposure change from light to shade is almost instant.
YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XR67ZtzTC4M&feature=youtu.be
The iON Air Pro 3 has no options for changing the sensitivity but noise is well controlled in low light and never really became an issue.
The Air Pro 3's audio in a static location is good, but the level is very low so if people are speaking at a distance of more than a meter or so away it can be difficult to make out what they're saying. Wind noise however doesn't seem to be too much of an issue even with the camera attached to a mountain bike. The sound of the track can be heard clearly with a little wind noise but it's really not too much of an issue.
If you do need to record higher quality audio then behind the PODZ module is a standard 3.5mm audio jack ready to take an external mic.
Leaving the camera running for the duration of the ride saw the battery completely flattened in just over two hours. The battery itself is built into the camera so it's advisable to take a mobile charger or just watch what you're recording.
Footage from the camera is well saturated with bright contrasty colour. When the footage is compared against the GoPro Hero4 and Sony AZ1VR the iON footage shows slightly higher contrast and saturation that gives footage and instantly pleasing look especially when the footage is shot in bright sunlight conditions.
However when the light drops the camera can struggle with capturing the finer detail which is picked up by the GoPro and noise does start to affect the visual quality.
When recording fast motion the video quality does show pixelation and although this is masked somewhat by the motion of the footage it is apparent especially in lower light. This break up of the image is caused by the camera recording video at an average of 25mbs, and a similar effect can be seen with most other cameras, even with the GoPro Hero4 and Sony AZ1VR when recording at a similar quality – but to a slightly lesser extent.
There's also the ability to shoot stills and this is done by simply pushing the power button while the camera is on. If you want to switch to burst or time lapse then you'll need to do this with the app. It would have been preferable to have a series of button presses to switch the shooting mode, with vibrations indicating what mode you're in.

We liked

The robust feel and direct access to the record button without having a waterproof case. The simplicity of use just lets you get on with the activity rather than worrying about the camera's settings.

We disliked

The software and app used to update the settings work well but look dated. Real care needs to be taken to check that the PODZ module has been properly attached and locked.

Verdict

The bullet cam design of the iON Air Pro 3 makes it ideal for anyone looking for a camera that is a little more discreet that the likes of the GoPro or Toshiba cameras. The complete lack of options when it comes to using the camera is actually something that we really liked. You can select HD or Full HD on the camera, but in practice you won't because it's hidden behind the PODZ module which, with cold hands, cannot be removed. This just leaves you with the option of sliding forward the record button and starting recording.
Rather than being restrictive, this approach just enables you to get on with the activity you've chosen, and there's no stopping to swap and change settings, which you feel obliged to do with the likes of the GoPro Hero4 and the Sony AZ1VR, if only to see what happens when you adjust a setting slightly.
The iON Air Pro 3 includes basic mounts only so the cost of additional mounts will need to be added to the cost of the camera. There is a good selection for most activities but we found those that featured a ball head like the bike bar mount really need to be tightened down in order to eliminate shake, but otherwise the thought behind the design is excellent.

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