Phandroid

Friday, December 1, 2017

Court rules BlackBerry owes $137 million to Nokia in payment dispute

A new report from Reuters says that the International Court of Arbitration has ruled in favor of Nokia in a payment dispute between the two companies. The court found that BlackBerry failed to make payment under a patent license contract and ruled the company pay $137 million to Nokia to settle the payment dispute.

BlackBerry plans to pursue a separate patent infringement case against Nokia. The company filed a patent infringement suit against the Finnish company in February of this year, alleging that Nokia uses BlackBerry's patents in its Flexi Multiradio base stations, radio network controllers, and Liquid Radio software without properly licensing them from the company. Nokia said in a statement today that it believes BlackBerry's case against them is "without merit."

Nokia currently licenses its technology to numerous smartphone manufacturers, including Samsung, Apple, Xiaomi, and LG.

[source Reuters]

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The Samsung W2018 is only priced at measly $2,400

While flip phones are practically a thing of the past for just about everyone, Samsung continues to churn out flip phones with a twist. The latest offering is the Samsung W2018 which has been introduced in conjunction with China Telecom.

The Samsung W2018 comes equipped with two touchscreen displays, as well as some impressive specs onboard. The device is powered by the Snapdragon 835 SoC, along with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable storage.

The W2018 also marks the first non-Galaxy device to ship with Bixby, which was introduced with the Galaxy S8 lineup and included with the Galaxy Note 8. Along with the inclusion of Bixby, Samsung confirmed that the AI assistant also now features support for the Chinese language.

As for cameras, there is a 12MP main sensor mounted on the rear of the device, which is likely to be the same sensor found in the Galaxy S8/S8 Plus. This camera is also capable of shooting 4K video in up to 30fps. On the front, we have a simple 5MP selfie camera, with an aperture of f1/9.

Perhaps the most head-scratching thing about the W2018 is the software. The device is running Android 7.1.1 Nougat, but there was no mention as to whether an upgrade to Android Oreo was in the works.

As expected, the W2018 is only available in China and comes in Black, Gold, and Silver. Pricing for the device comes in at an absurd number of $2,400 (when converted). Let us know what you think about the W2018 in the comments below and if you would be interested to see something similar launched elsewhere in the world.

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There’s no such thing as the ‘Microsoft Edition’ Galaxy S8

While Microsoft has given up on its attempts to create a smartphone of its own, the company has instead shifted its focus to providing reliable Android applications. Since the company stopped offering any Windows Mobile devices, Microsoft started selling a "Microsoft Edition" of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus.

What makes these devices so "special" was the fact that once you were connected to Wi-Fi, Microsoft's suite of applications would automatically be installed. However, it seems that Microsoft and Samsung may not have been on the same page in their agreement.

According to a statement received by Al Sacco from Windows Central, these "special" Galaxy S8 devices are not actually "Microsoft Edition" devices.

Samsung Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+, and Galaxy Note8 devices are available in the Microsoft online and retail stores with a unique Microsoft experience which ensures their customers, particularly small-to-midsize business owners and entrepreneurs, a best-in-class productivity experience. There is not a 'Microsoft Edition' brand of any Samsung Galaxy products.

So the moral of the story here is that Samsung and Microsoft never had any intentions of offering a Microsoft-branded Galaxy S8. Instead, the device being offered by Microsoft is just a regular ole' Galaxy S8 which now replaces the lineup of Windows Phones that were previously offered.

Let us know if you've decided to pick up one of these devices from Microsoft, or if you just went through the normal channels to get one.

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Google shares the best Play Store content from 2017

Now that 2017 is beginning to wind down as we enter December, Google has shared a few lists for everyone to check out. As was the case at the end of 2016, these lists share the most popular apps, games, songs, movies, and more. Let's take a look at some of the best content found on the Play Store:

Most Popular New Apps

Most Popular New Games

Top five streamed songs

Top five movies

Top five TV shows

Top five books

When looking at the top choices for many of these categories, there isn't much to be surprised by. Although, I must admit that I haven't heard of or used the "Photo Editor" application, but the app has between 10 million and 50 million downloads with over 150,000 reviews. Considering this app has so many downloads and a 4.2-star rating, this app is definitely worth checking.

It also comes as no surprise that Super Mario Run took the top spot for the most popular new game in 2017. The game arrived on iOS first, but then stormed its way onto the Play Store and has seen a rather substantial update since launching.

The final thing here that surprised me was to see two songs from Kendrick Lamar in the top five most streamed songs. Personally, I'm a huge Kendrick fan, and both of the included songs are absolutely amazing.

Be sure to let us know some of your favorite apps and games, and let us know if you agree with the lists shared by Google.

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You can now control Hulu with your voice on Amazon Fire TV

The Hulu app for Fire TV now supports Alexa voice commands, making it easier than ever to access your favorite shows. It comes just a few months after Amazon announced that it was opening up its Video Skills Kit to add Alexa support.

Alexa voice commands can be used to play Hulu shows, simply by saying some like, "Alexa, watch The Handmaid's Tale." If you're subscribed to live TV, you can also ask Alexa to switch channels for you by saying a command like, "Alexa, watch ESPN."

The commands are similar to those you would use to find and control content through Amazon's own Prime Video service. It's great that the company is opening Alexa commands up to third-parties — and Hulu isn't the only one taking advantage of it.

Bravo, CBS, NBC, PlayStation Vue, and Showtime are also supporting Alexa commands now, so you can use your voice to control playback, change channels, and search in those apps, too.

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Nest may rejoin Google’s hardware team to make more smart home products

Nest was acquired by Google in 2014 for $3.2 billion and everyone got excited about the two teaming up to build great things. However, in 2015, Alphabet was formed, and Google and Nest became separate brands. Nest has pretty much done their own thing while Google has done theirs. That could be changing soon.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Nest could be rejoining Google's hardware team to build more smart home products. Nest devices are already closely integrated with Google's home system, but this new relationship would bring all of Nest's employees to the Google team. This would allow them to compete with Amazon's Echo ecosystem much more easily.

Do you use Nest products? Do you have them integrated with Google services?

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Thursday, November 30, 2017

Some Google Home Mini users report crashing when playing music

It seems as though nothing Google launched on October 4th has arrived without its fair share of issues. Shortly after the Google Home Mini arrived on consumers doorsteps, it was discovered the cloth laid over the top of the unit was making the device listen 24/7. After that, Google made it so the Google Home Mini is voice-activated only.

Now a new report on reddit has highlighted an issue some Home Mini users are having when playing certain songs at a high volume. The crash appears five to ten seconds after the song starts playing and only when the Google Home Mini itself is at its maximum volume setting. The issue was also reported on Google's Product Forums, where the company responded asking for more details.

Our team would like to investigate this further. Below are a couple things we'll need from you. Please recreate the issue then immediately submit feedback report from the Google Home app and include the following information in the description:

The keyword: "GHT3 – Google Home Mini reboot at high volume".

Brief detailed description of the exact events you're experiencing.

Be sure to check the box for Include screenshot and logs

Google also notes that you should only be using the included power cable that came with the Google Home Mini instead of any other cord you may have had lying around the house. Have you experienced this issue with your Home Mini unit? Someone on the Product Forums says they returned theirs to Best Buy only to get a replacement that did the same thing.

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