Samsung to unveil Galaxy S5 in mid-March in London

Looks like Samsung won’t be unveiling its upcoming flagship device at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, instead it would be unveiling it in an event, which would entirely be dedicated to the Galaxy S5, in London in mid-March. An Italian journalist, Flavio, claim’s that a reliable source confirmed about this Global launch event to him.

To be honest, Samsung would have never launched the Galaxy S5 at Mobile World Congress, nor the Korean giant has launched any flagship device at MWC after the Galaxy S II. The reason behind this is simple, the Galaxy S series is just too popular to be launched at MWC and Samsung would not want to share the news space with other products. And, Samsung has the budget to host their own event, so why not ?

Anyways, take this news with a grain of salt as nothing has been confirmed yet and these are just rumours for now.

Via: Softpedia | Source: @Flapic

http://www.sammobile.com

Samsung Galaxy S5 tipped for March release in London

Samsung Galaxy S5 tipped for March release in London

http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s5_tipped_for_march_release_in_london-news-7541.php

https://twitter.com/flapic/status/422315349154213888

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo new photos, benchmark score arrive

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo new photos, benchmark score arrive

http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_note_3_neo_new_photos_benchmark_score_arrive-news-7538.php

Samsung responds to Knox vulnerability accusations

Samsung responds to Knox vulnerability accusations

http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_responds_to_knox_vulnerability_gives_solutions-news-7537.php

SGS4 4.4.2 firmware vs SuperSU v1.89

So a few hours ago I was informed there was a Android 4.4 KitKat leak for the Samsung Galaxy S4. Unfortunately they changed some stuff around and SuperSU stopped working.

So I hacked together a minor update to SuperSU to make it work again: v1.89.

The custom recovery flashable ZIP can be found at the following link (as always):

http://download.chainfire.eu/supersu

The CF-Auto-Root has also been updated with this new version of SuperSU, and can be found here:

http://download.chainfire.eu/316/CF-Root/CF-Auto-Root/CF-Auto-Root-jflte-jfltexx-gti9505.zip

As always, discussion in the XDA thread here:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1538053

I'm not sure yet whether this version will hit the Play Store or not. The only change is Samsung 4.4 compatibility, and there's only one leaked ROM out for that at this time. This update triggers a binary update, and there's always some people losing root in that process, so I'm not sure I'll go there until some more ROMs with this turn up, or I have another reason to update. (Subject to change on my whim, of course)

SuperSU Download

download.chainfire.eu

SuperSU fixed to work on Galaxy S4′s Android 4.4 test firmware

Software updates are exciting, especially when they get leaked and give users an early chance to try out something they might otherwise be waiting a long time for. The excitement was palpable when we leaked a test Android 4.4 KitKat firmware for the Galaxy S4 earlier today, but if you’ve been using Chainfire’s SuperSU app for root access, you might have noticed it’s not working on KitKat. But thanks to Chainfire, that was a short-lived problem, as the popular developer has released an updated version of SuperSU that works with the KitKat build on the Galaxy S4.

The new SuperSU is available as a zip file that you can flash from recovery, and is also included in Chainfire’s CF-Auto-Root package for rooting through Odin without the need of a custom recovery. You can download either from the links below, and head to the source link for more details on the fix.

Download: SuperSU, CF-Auto-Root

http://www.sammobile.com

Leaked Android 4.4 For Galaxy S4 Breaks SuperSU, Chainfire Already Has A Fix

OTA updates are usually a good thing, but first impressions can be misleading. The just leakedAndroid 4.4 KitKat build for the Galaxy S4 seems good, but some behind-the-scenes changes broke SuperSU, making root access difficult. Ever the go-getter, Chainfire already has it sorted out.

The new flashable ZIP file is available from Chainfire's site – version number 1.89. CF-Auto-Root has also been updated to include the new SuperSU. This has been successfully tested with the leaked ROM on the GT-i9505, but should also be fine on other devices you need to get root on.

Chainfire is still undecided about adding this version to the Play Store as it is only for a single leaked ROM. Updating through Google Play will cause a binary update, which is a hassle for everyone. The Play Store rollout might have to wait for the official OTA to start hitting devices.

[+Chainfire, SuperSU, CF-Auto-Root]

http://www.androidpolice.com

Samsung: Don't hold your breath for a Tizen phone in the U.S.

Samsung Electronics is unlikely to bring its first phones running the Tizen operating system to the U.S. market, according to a U.S.-based Samsung executive.

Ryan Bidan, Samsung's director of product marketing for its U.S. mobile operations, said that Samsung has not announced anything specific related to Tizen for the U.S. market, but is continuing to work on devices. However, an in interview with FierceWireless here at the 2014 Consumer Electronics Show, he indicated that U.S. consumers shouldn't hold their breath for a Samsung Tizen phone.

"We don't feel the U.S. is a great test market for those kinds of products," he said, noting that Samsung will likely roll out Linux-based Tizen phones in other regions of the world. "The U.S. market is pretty mature. Bringing a new entrant here that doesn't meet a certain performance bar would be a challenge. Recognizing that, we don't want to set ourselves up for failure."

Tizen phones will likely start to be sold by the end of March, NTT DoCoMo spokesman Jun Otori told AFP on Wednesday. Samsung's first Tizen smartphone will likely be unveiled next month around the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Spain, Japan's Mainichi Shimbun reported Wednesday.

Samsung is the largest backer of the Tizen Association, an open-source group that was created through the merger of the former MeeGo and LiMo platforms. Other Tizen supporters include Sprint (NYSE:S), Intel, Huawei, Orange and Vodafone. Samsung has positioned Tizen as one of its many platform options, but analysts have consistently said Samsung could be using Tizen as a hedge against Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android, which is Samsung's bread and butter for smartphones and tablets. (Samsung also supports Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows Phone 8 platform.)  

In the wide-ranging interview, Bidan touted the company line that it must innovate on software as well as hardware to set itself apart. "It's absolutely the right direction for us. Our opportunity to differentiate and create really neat products for consumers lies in a holistic product solution--hardware and software," he said.

At the same time, Bidan acknowledged that Samsung has invested heavily in a multitude of software features for devices like its Galaxy S4 smartphone, but that with so many of them, consumers could easily lose track and not use them. Bidan estimated that when Samsung unveiled the S4 in March the company went through well over 80 different software features, ranging from "Air View," which allows a user to hover with their fingers over the screen to preview the content of an email, image gallery or video without having to open it, to an "S Translate" translating service that supports English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese and Latin American Spanish, and supports speech to text and text to speech.

"It's something we struggle with all the time," he said, referring to how Samsung can continue to push software innovations without creating so much clutter that consumers lose interest. "It takes a certain amount of discipline to bring focus into that." This year, Bidan said, Samsung will focus more on "refining the things we are talking about and being more focused in the messages we are bringing to consumers" since there are likely only a handful of features consumers will find meaningful.

Samsung, the world's largest maker of smartphones and handsets by volume, made a splash last fall with the introduction of its Galaxy Gear smart watch. Smart watches, and wearables in general, have been a major theme of CES this year, and Samsung executives have said the Gear was just Samsung's first stab at wearables. Some consumers blanched at the $399 price tag for the device, which is essentially tethered to a Samsung smartphone. Samsung said in November it had shipped 800,000 Gear smart watches in two months since its debut despite middling reviews of the gadget.

Bidan said Samsung went with the watch form factor and the idea of getting notifications on the wrist because they were familiar and easy to understand concepts. However, he said that "for wearables to take off, we need to find those consumer use cases, we need to make them relevant, we need to make them interesting." Until Samsung and other companies get wearables into the mass market, they are not going to know what those experiences are, he said. Without giving anything away, Bidan said that Gear is  "a platform that can be extended."

http://www.fiercewireless.com

Samsung: Tizen isn’t coming to the US any time soon

Tizen has been in development for ages now, but an actual smartphone running on the OS is still missing from the market. Samsung has announced its plans to address that glaring fault in the near future, but if you’re in the U.S. and are looking forward to trying out Samsung’s new OS, then you might be in for a bit of disappointment. Ryan Bidan, Samsung’s director of product marketing in the US, has revealed in an interview that the company doesn’t intend to bring Tizen stateside any time soon, certainly not in 2014, as it considers the U.S. to be a mature market that won’t be too welcoming of a new player in the mobile operating system war.

“We don’t feel the U.S. is a great test market for those kinds of products. The U.S. market is pretty mature. Bringing a new entrant here that doesn’t meet a certain performance bar would be a challenge. Recognizing that, we don’t want to set ourselves up for failure.”

Bidan has a point: the smartphone market in the U.S. is divided almost evenly between the iPhone and Android phones, with even Windows Phone finding it hard to make the slightest dent in a space held by Apple and Google’s operating systems, and consumers aren’t exactly looking at switching to a new OS. Furthermore, emerging smartphone markets are where upcoming OS will find an easier time trying to make their presence felt, as these are the markets where those moving from feature phones to smartphones won’t have favoritism or inclination towards a particular OS.

Of course, with Android having overtaken almost 80 percent of the global smartphone market, even immature smartphone markets won’t exactly prove easy targets for Tizen. But then again, considering almost half of that 80 percent is full of Samsung devices, coupled with the company’s plans to make Tizen run nicely on extremely low-level hardware, the Korean manufacturer might just be able to position its OS as the third ecosystem pretty soon, if only because of a lot of marketing.

http://www.sammobile.com/

US won’t be part of Tizen launch; “we don’t want to set ourselves up for failure”

They’ve taken their sweet time in getting here, but Tizen devices are on their way. While there are no assurances, it sure sounds like we’re getting ready to see some of the first commercial models at the Mobile World Congress next month. But even if they do actually launch, who’s going to get them? Well, we we saw one device pass through the FCC late last month, but that guy was pretty clearly destined for operation in Japan. While we still lack a comprehensive understanding of which markets are due to see Tizen phones, there’s one we can now count out, as a Samsung exec explains that the United States is not part of the company’s Tizen launch plans.

The logic is sound enough – Samsung describes the US smartphone market as already being “pretty mature” and not necessarily a great arena to show off a new, unfamiliar product: “Bringing a new entrant here that doesn’t meet a certain performance bar would be a challenge. Recognizing that, we don’t want to set ourselves up for failure.”

While there’s the potential there to read that as Samsung lacking confidence in its Tizen investment, we can also write it off as simply being pragmatic. Ultimately, we may see distribution more in line with the kind of thing going on with Firefox OS, or other platforms more interested in international markets. None of this is to say that the US will never see a Tizen phone, but that day could still be a long way off.

http://pocketnow.com

Samsung Galaxy S5 possible with new head and gesture control

Slowly but surely approaching the unveiling of the Samsung Galaxy S5 . And we did not always see as useful features of the Galaxy S4 already smart, though as  Eye Pause  and  Scroll Eye , Samsung Galaxy S5 possible for the next generation of head-and gesture control in store. This appears, at least from a recently published European patent application.

Central to this patent, the camera on the front of the unit, which is an area for the unit - possibly the Galaxy S5 so - divided into a number of areas. By comparing these areas with each unit may lay movements and gestures, and an action for that link:

a UI method of controlling an operation of a portable electronic device accordion thing to motions (eg, a nod, a face direction, user's eyes, and the like)

The images shown above from the patent shows how a page can be turned through a zijwaartste head movement - an extension to the existing repertoire of oogbesturingsfeatures in Samsung's TouchWiz interface, especially as the patent describes how certain actions be done after The user confirms the action with a nod. In other words, an action is triggered by a head movement, but requires confirmation by a kink.

This patent application was indeed published yesterday, but all presented in early July 2013, ie, after the release of the Galaxy S4. Because of this - and because the captured opportunities this past Eye Scroll   and other existing features TouchWiz go - we think this patent shows features that will make for the next generation high-end devices from Samsung, including the Galaxy S5 their appearance.

The European patent application in question can be found HERE .

PS: Moreover, it is noteworthy that Samsung bezels in this patent application - unlike else - extremely thin displays. But we get enough of patent applications here to attach little value to

http://www.galaxyclub.nl

https://data.epo.org/publication-server/pdf-document?pn=2682842&ki=A1&cc=EP#gcnl

Word from Samsung: 4K ready to bust out, but OLED lags

Price for next-gen pixel technology is main sticking point

When Samsung's HS Kim speaks, the industry listens. As executive vice president of Visual Display Business, Kim has helped Samsung maintain its lead as the world's best-selling brand of flat-panel TVs. Reviewed.com sat down with Kim in Seoul last December for an exclusive interview, in anticipation of new product announcements at CES 2014.

Among the surprising revelations, Kim voiced skepticism about the immediate viability of OLED televisions, but was optimistic on UHD for 2014. He also spoke about the how Smart TV interfaces will develop, and why Samsung will not be entering the content business anytime soon.

OLED's cost barrier

Last year saw the first consumer-ready models featuring two major innovations in television tech: UHD and OLED. Each promises a huge leap in picture quality from today's Full HD televisions. UHD refers to screens that have at least four times the number of pixels as Full HD, greatly increasing sharpness. A number of UHD TVs shipped in 2013, from Samsung, LG, Sony, Sharp and others. They met with generally positive reviews, but currently suffer from a lack of matching UHD content that can take full advantage of the increased sharpness.

OLED refers not to the number of pixels, but their composition. New materials allow for a richer, more dynamic viewing experience than current TVs. Only Samsung and LG sold OLED TVs in 2013. Reviews of these units were exceptionally positive, but prices started at $9,000 and went up from there.

"Not many consumers tried to purchase OLED TVs at that price," Kim said. "Price was our greatest barrier. So our attempt to expand the market didn't really go well."

The unfriendly prices, he acknowledged, are due primarily to difficulties plaguing the OLED manufacturing process. "I'm really, really terribly sorry to say this, but it will take more time. … I believe it will take around three to four years."

He admitted that at this time last year, he had predicted that it would take two or three years, indicating that the manufacturing issues are more significant than previously thought.

However, Kim remained positive on the immediate prospects of UHD. While there's little content at present, many content providers have announced intentions to begin UHD video transmissions in 2014.

Kim compared the UHD transition to the adoption of high-definition television less than a decade ago, and predicted that "the only difference between Full HD and UHD is that the UHD trend will take place faster."

In order to expedite the transition and foster growth in the UHD ecosystem, Samsung is in talks with other electronics manufacturers, as well as Hollywood studios. However, no formal partnerships have been announced at this time.

How smart can TV get?

Beyond the physical components, the other rapidly evolving aspect of television is "smart TVs." These sophisticated interfaces grow more feature-rich each year, with dozens of options for streaming content already built in.

However, reviews have frequently pointed out that certain functions meant to emulate smartphones fall flat when applied to a TV. Web browsing, Twitter, and other apps that require a lot of text input have generally been met with frustration when a remote control, rather than keyboard or touch-screen, is the sole input device.

Samsung has been on the forefront of smart TV interfaces, but now with several years of market research under its belt, it may be ready to make some changes.

Television, Kim states, is a "lean-back" experience. Unlike other devices, TV is watched from a distance, so getting the user interface right is critical. Previous Samsung TVs have debuted gesture and voice commands, and the new TVs for 2014 will continue to refine those features.

COMPLETE COVERAGE: Read more news from CES 2014

Samsung's mobile division is, of course, also in deep partnership with the Android platform, producing products like the Galaxy S4, the top-selling phone of 2013.

Rumors and wishes for a Samsung Android television have kicked around the Internet for some time. Kim did not entirely dismiss the possibility, but didn't seem particularly keen on it.

"From the consumer's perspective," he stated, "when they watch TV it doesn't matter whether it's a Google or an Android or a Samsung TV."

However, he left the door open by concluding that "if Android TV can provide the best optimal viewing experience, then Samsung will provide that."

Samsung is no Netflix

With millions of homes watching to Samsung smart TVs every night, it might seem natural to wonder whether the company is exploring the idea of cutting out the middleman of cable providers and getting into the content business itself.

Kim was absolutely firm on this point. "We don't care to enter into an area that we don't do well. Which means that we don't have any experience in the content area. ... I am not convinced that we can earn profit in the contents business," he said.

With a new year ahead and many new and competing TVs, Samsung appears poised to retain its lead.

http://www.usatoday.com

Galaxy S5 might feature head tracking gesture controls

Samsung’s phones offer many gesture-based features such as Smart Stay and Smart Pause, and the Galaxy S5 might come with even more advanced gesture control functionality, according to a patent application filed by Samsung. The patent listing describes things such as a nod of the head and a wink being used to carry out a particular function – for example, the phone would go back to the last webpage in a browser if a head movement to the left is detected, and to the next page on a nod to the right side.

Detection of which way the user’s head moves would be done by dividing the image received by the camera into various section, then observing the change in a particular section to carry out a specific function. The patent’s publication date is only two days old but it was filed way back in July last year, so it does look like the Galaxy S5 could come with advanced gesture controls that go way beyond what is available on devices right now. Of course, the new features will likely be as hit-and-miss as current ones, but then again, that has never stopped Samsung from piling on more and more “smart” functionality, has it?

http://www.sammobile.com

Samsungs Kim says cheap OLED-Tv in three or four years!

Major problems to produce cheap large OLED-panels

In an interview with USATODAY the vice president of Samsung Visual Display Business HS Kim says that Samsung Display has problems at the manufacturing process. To solve this major problems Kim thinks that Samsung Display need more time and he think it will take around three or four years to produce cost competitive large OLED-Television devices.

The price of an OLED-TV is the greatest barrier, not many consumers tried to purchase OLED-Tvs at that kind of price Kim said. So remember the KN55S9CAF a curved 55 inch OLED-Display from Samsung cost about 8.000-9.000 Euros.
The price is so high because Samsung Display as difficulties at the OLED manufacturing process. Many companies are working on cheap Organic light panels, we think the solution is InkJet Printing. Merck plans to co-operate her with LG-Display, Kateeva also plans to work with some korean gigant. He admitted that at this time last year, he had predicted that it would take two or three years, indicating that the manufacturing issues are more significant than previously thought.
That are bad news but LG-Display use WOLED technology and this kind of technology is easier in the manufacturing process. So we think that LG-Display go on to push OLED-Television as fast as possible, so the chance to be the leadership is great for LG. At the CES-2014 Samsung showcase no new device, only a 55 inch bendable prototype device, but LG introduced five models which are production ready.
Also Sony and Panasonic has problems with the manufacturing process, but they plans to use inkjet printing technology.
Both companies fail because they did not reach the goal because because of the production costs. Now Panasonic showcased printed panels at CES-2014 and they use AUO produced Oxide-TFT backplanes and Sumitomo’s P-OLED materials and a direct-emission architecture.

http://news.oled-display.net

Samsung: Cost-competitive OLED TVs to arrive in three to four years

In an interview with USA Today, HS Kim, executive vice president of Visual Display Business, said that the prices of OLED televisions will likely take three to four years to come down to levels that the average consumer can afford. The unfriendly prices are due primarily to difficulties in the OLED manufacturing process. “I’m really, really terribly sorry to say this, but it will take more time. … I believe it will take around three to four years,” said Kim, acknowledging that Samsung couldn’t expand the market as most consumers did not buy its OLED TVs launched in 2013, which started at prices of $9,000.

Kim also spoke on Smart TV interfaces, saying it’s tough to get the interface right as television is a ”lean-back” experience that people watch from afar. He also observed that Samsung is unlikely to go into the content business like companies such as Netflix, and also that they will only make an Android TV if it allows for providing the best possible user experience. ”From the consumer’s perspective,” he stated, “when they watch TV it doesn’t matter whether it’s a Google or an Android or a Samsung TV.”

Read the full interview at the source link.

http://www.sammobile.com

Exclusive: Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Lite/Neo Pictures, Specifications and Benchmark results (Update)

You guys may have heard about Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Note 3 Lite and if you really have, then you probably know about its specifications too, courtesy of GSMArena. Then you may think that what’s the point of this article if the specifications have already been confirmed. Well, you are right! The specifications have been confirmed but this article is much more than just specifications of the device. We have obtained exclusive images of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Lite, along with its Antutu benchmark results and specifications.

As you can see in the pictures below, the Galaxy Note 3 Lite features exactly the same design characteristic as its older and bigger brother, the Galaxy Note 3. It has the same faux leather removable backplate and serration pattern on the side of the device that evokes a connection to the timeless and enduring strengths of classic notebooks and planners. Both, the Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Note 3 Lite, share the same S-Pen technology, so you will get the same amount on pressure points and sensitivity. The only thing which makes the Lite a little different, from the Galaxy Note 3, is its camera module and its smaller size.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Lite will come in two variants, HSPA+ (SM-N750) and LTE (SM-N7505). The devices sports a 5.55-inch 720p HD (1280×720) Super AMOLED display with a pixel density of 265PPI, 2GB of RAM, 8 Megapixel main camera sensor which is capable of shooting Full HD 1080p videos, 2.1 Megapixel Full HD front facing camera for video calls and selfies, 16GB of Internal storage which is expandable via MicroSD Card and a huge 3,100mAH battery. Our insider had access to the LTE variant of the Galaxy Note 3 Note, and with that you are probably thinking it will have a Snapdragon SoC inside, well that’s not the case. The LTE variant features a Hexa-Core CPU along with ARM’s Mali-T624 GPU. Unfortunately, SoC manufacturer and exact CPU configuration couldn’t be verified because of early software, but it’s confirmed that this isn’t Qualcomm’s silicon.  (Check latest update regarding SoC in the last!) Our insider sent us a screenshot, which you can see below, from CPU-Z which shows that all 6-cores are active at the same time.

On the software side, our insider reports that currently the device is being tested with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean on-board with Samsung’s TouchWiz UI, Magazine UX has not been implemented. He doesn’t think Samsung will include it with the Lite but says even if Samsung decides to do that, it will be with the Android 4.4 KitKat update. All Samsung Galaxy Note 3′s S-Pen features are available on the Lite as well: Air Command Action Memo, Scrapbook, Screen Write, S Finder, Pen Window, S Note, Multi Window, new Easy Clip, Direct Pen Input.

In terms of connectivity, the Galaxy Note 3 Lite offers WiFi 802.11ac support on top of the usual a/b/g/n, and an IR blaster is included for remote control access using Samsung’s WatchON service. NFC, Bluetooth 4.0 + LE are included, and it’s got MHL 2.0 and is able to use a standard MHL connector. However, the Note 3 Lite uses a MicroUSB connector for charging and data transfer instead of the USB 3.0 connector, like on the Note 3.

Our trusty old insider sent us a few screenshots of Antutu Benchmark, as well. As you can see in the screenshots, the Galaxy Note 3 Lite scored a whooping 29K+ points in Antutu, which brings it into Samsung’s Exynos 5410 and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 600 territory. The Mali-T624 GPU scored pretty awesome points too, so don’t worry about throwing some GPU extensive games at it, they will run like a charm.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Lite will make its debut at Mobile World Congress 2014 in Barcelona, Spain. We of SamMobile team will be live at the event reporting every bit of Samsung news as it happens.

UPDATE: Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Lite/Neo packs Samsung’s own Exynos 5260 Hexa-Core SoC with Heterogeneous Multi-Processing (HMP) capabilities, which means all 6-Cores would be able get activated at the same time. Also, LTE connectivity is on-board, as well!

http://www.sammobile.com

Verizon’s Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition (SM-P605V) visits the FCC

Verizon is expected to launch the LTE-enabled variant of the Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition on its network, and the tablet has now passed an important requirement: certification from the FCC. The Verizon model (SM-P605V) is listed on the FCC as having LTE bands 4 and 13, and while it still doesn’t tell us exactly when Verizon subscribers will be able to buy the device, it’s an indication that it won’t be too long before North America’s largest carrier starts selling Samsung’s latest 10.1-inch Galaxy Note.

Source

http://www.sammobile.com

Galaxy TabPRO 12.2 and NotePRO 12.2 also have PenTile displays, TabPRO 8.4 is standard RGB

We were a little disappointed to hear that the new 10.1-inch Galaxy TabPRO has a display with a PenTile pixel arrangement, meaning it’s not as sharp as it could be despite its 2,560×1,600 resolution. Well, more disappointment is in store: the folks over at PhoneArena have found out that the 12.2-inch Galaxy TabPRO and the Galaxy NotePRO 12.2 also have PenTile displays. Samsung has used the standard RGB pixel arrangement only on the Galaxy TabPRO 8.4, a tablet that needed it less than the others as its smaller screen size and high resolution would have hidden the effects of a PenTile matrix.

http://www.sammobile.com

Samsung responds to claims of KNOX vulnerability, says there’s nothing to worry about

A few security researchers recently came out with a claim that Samsung’s KNOX is susceptible to a hack that allows a malicious being to monitor data communications and access emails, and given the fact that KNOX is supposed to be a secure environment, the claim was naturally given some attention in the media. Well, Samsung has now come out with an official response to the claim, and it turns out that the issue is not in KNOX and will not present itself if KNOX is configured correctly.

According to Samsung, the “exploit uses legitimate Android network functions in an unintended way to intercept unencrypted network connections from/to applications on the mobile device,” and that it isn’t a flaw or bug in KNOX or Android; instead, it’s merely a “Man in the Middle” attack that allows access to unencrypted application data, and that KNOX offers various protections against such attacks.

It all comes down to a lot of technical jargon, which you can go through at the source link, but it seems that KNOX users have nothing to worry about as far as the security of their data is concerned.

http://www.sammobile.com

Exclusive: I9505XXUFNA1 – Leaked Android 4.4.2 KitKat Test Firmware for Galaxy S4 (GT-I9505)

Folks, after watching Motorola push some latest Android 4.4.2 KitKat goodness to its devices, we got a bit jealous – to be honest. So to get rid of our jealousy phase, we contacted our elite friends and got a treat for all of us Galaxy S4 users! We obtained a brand new Android 4.4.2 test firmware – I9505XXUFNA1 – for the Samsung Galaxy S4 (GT-I9505).

We are expecting Samsung to start officially rolling out the Android 4.4 KitKat update for the Galaxy S4 in February/March. We have been testing this particular build for about 5 days now and so far it’s been pretty stable, except a few minor hiccups here and there but these are expected as this is still a test build.

There are minor UI changes in Android 4.4.2 KitKat, the most noticeable being the status bar icons being changed from Gingerbread style green to all new awesome KitKat style white. BTW, white icons look stunning on top of the transparent status bar. We have seen a little bump is performance, and benchmark scores have slightly increased as well. Samsung’s keyboard layout has been improved in landscape orientation, which makes typing much easier and gesture typing works really well too. Samsung has implemented a camera shortcut direct on its lockscreen.

Model: GT-I9505
Country: Open Europe
Version: Android 4.4.2
Changelist: 276328
Build date: Thu, 2 Jan 2014 23:30:51 +0000
Product Code: OXA
PDA: I9505XXUFNA1
CSC: I9505OXAFNA1
MODEM: I9505XXUFNA1
Download: I9505XXUFNA1_I9505OXAFNA1_I9505XXUFNA1_OXA.zip

NOTE
- You are doing this at your OWN risk. We are not responsible if you brick your device or your cat eats your phone.
- This test firmware will NOT increase your binary counter NOR void your warranty.
- This test firmware is a pre-release build and not official from Samsung.

INSTRUCTIONS
- Extract (unzip) the firmware file
- Download Odin3 v3.09 (From here or here)
- Extract Odin .ZIP file
- Open Odin3 v3.09
- Restart phone in download mode (Press and hold Home + Power + Volume down buttons)
- Connect phone and wait until you get a blue sign in Odin
- Add I9505XXUFNA1_I9505OXAFNA1_I9505XXUFNA1_HOME.tar.md5 to AP
- Make sure re-partition is NOT ticked
- Click start button, sit back and wait a few minutes.
- If you encounter any issues with the firmware (Any FC, Bootloop etc)
- Boot into recovery mode (Home+power+vol up)
- Choose to wipe/factory reset. (THIS WILL ERASE ALL OF YOUR DATA INCLUDING YOUR INTERNAL SD CARD!)
- Then choose reboot and you should be good to go!

Screenshots

http://www.sammobile.com