The first Ubuntu phone arrives next week, but there's a catch

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/06/ubuntu-phone-launch/

It's been a long time coming, but finally Canonical is ready to release its first Ubuntu phone. After teaming up with Meizu and BQ almost a year ago, we're getting a (sort of) new handset from the latter; it's actually a repurposed version of its Aquaris E4.5, a mid-range smartphone that normally ships with Android. The new "Ubuntu Edition" keeps all of the same hardware, which is nothing to write home about. It has a 4.5-inch, 540x960 resolution display, a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek Cortex A7 processor, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. For shutterbugs, there's also a 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel snapper on the front. At €169.90 ($195), the specs are pretty unremarkable.

Where Canonical and BQ are hoping to break the mould is with their software and sales strategy. Taking a page from the playbook of Chinese firms such as Xiaomi, the first Ubuntu handset will be sold, at least to begin with, through a series of online flash sales. The first of these is next week and a handful of European carriers will be offering special SIM bundles to early adopters. But here's the bad news: BQ currently has no plans to sell the phone outside of Europe. Canonical has stressed that it's still "actively working on a US device strategy" and that its flash sales are a deliberate move to target early adopters.

You might be thinking that this all sounds a tad underwhelming. After all, the Ubuntu Phone platform was first shown off more than two years ago, and since then we've seen Canonical attempt to crowdfund its premium Ubuntu Edge smartphone. That campaign ultimately came up short though, and last year Meizu and BQ's Ubuntu phones missed their target 2014 launch window. Nevertheless, Canonical is adamant that its mobile OS can have an impact. The software experience is certainly unique, and the company's work around Scopes -- categorised home screens that aggregate content from multiple sources -- sets it apart from iOS and Android. "We are going for the mass market," Cristian Parrino, VP of Mobile at Canonical says. "But that's a gradual process and a thoughtful process. That's something we're going to be doing intelligently over time -- but we'll get there."

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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A photo of Samsung's next Galaxy phone may have leaked, and it has a crazy curved screen

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-s6-leaked-photo-2015-2

It looks like Samsung plans to release multiple different versions of its Galaxy S6, including one with a curved screen just like the Note Edge. Photos obtained by CNET Korea reportedly show five different variations of the phone, which is scheduled to be unveiled on March 1.

Two of the phones in the image are covered with cases, so it's difficult to tell what they look like. Samsung usually releases a more durable version of its flagship phones called the Active, so it's possible that one of those devices is the Galaxy S6 Active.

The photo lines up with previous leaks we've seen so far. It looks like Samsung plans to use a smooth, polished back for the S6, unlike the dimpled rear panel and glossy plastic it's used in the past.

The curved edition looks almost identical to the Galaxy Note Edge, which has a secondary display that curves around one edge. It looks like the curved Galaxy S6 is only rounded on one side, which would contradict earlier reports that suggested it would curve on both sides.

Other than a new design, the Galaxy S6 is expected to come with a sharper 5.1-inch screen that packs 577 pixels per inch, a new mobile payments system created by Samsung, and a fresh version of Samsung's TouchWiz software that's more basic and similar to stock Android. We expect to learn more next month.

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Canon's latest super-zoom camera packs a 40x lens and a low price

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/05/canon-powershot-sx410-is-elph-350-hs/

Canon is determined to leave no camera niche uncovered, it seems. Just a month after it kicked out an avalanche of PowerShot point-and-shoots, it's back with two more that fill what few holes are left. The SX410 IS super-zoom is the darling of the two, and improves on the still-young SX400 IS with an even longer-ranged 40x stabilized lens and a sharper 20.2-megapixel sensor for a modest $280 -- slightly more than the $250 SX400, but arguably a better deal if you just have to get up-close photos. There's sadly no WiFi or NFC, though, and you'll have to be content with recording 720p movies. The SX410 IS should hit shops in March.

The PowerShot ELPH 350 HS, meanwhile, is more of a straightforward replacement for last year's 340 HS compact cam. You'll still get a 12x stabilized lens, 1080p video, WiFi and NFC, but you now have a higher-resolution 20.2-megapixel sensor to bring out more detail. The 350 HS will arrive in April, and its $210 price makes it ever so slightly more expensive than its predecessor.

Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report.

Filed under: Cameras, Canon

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Canon teases the PowerShot G3 X, its next premium point-and-shoot

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/05/canon-powershot-g3-x/

If you're into high-end compact cameras, you'll have another one to choose from soon -- we just don't know how soon. Interestingly, Canon has revealed that it is working on the PowerShot G3 X, but the company wasn't willing to share many details about it. What we do know, however, is that the G3 X point-and-shoot camera is slated to feature a large (for its size) 1-inch CMOS sensor with a 24-600mm (35mm-equivalent), 25x optical zoom lens. The company says this model will fit right between the G1 X Mark II and G7 X, as it looks to expand its offerings for people who want a well-specced, premium compact shooter. Canon's calling this a "product development announcement" for now, but we'll know more about the G3 X at the CP+ imaging event in Yokohama, Japan, next week.

Filed under: Cameras, Misc, Canon

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drag2share: Scientists build silicon transistor just one atom thick

source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/05/scientists-build-silicon-transistor-just-one-atom-thick/?utm_source=Feed_Classic_Full&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget&?ncid=rss_full

Step aside, graphene, "silicene" is the trendy new nano-material in town that could one day supercharge future tech. Scientists have created the world's first transistor out of the silicon-based material, and it's a mere one atom thick. Unlike its much-maligned graphene cousin -- which has yet lived up to its vast potential -- silicene is a much more interesting material for computer scientists. Thanks to the silicon base, it can form "band gaps" necessary for transistors, which could one day lead to faster chips that consume less power.

The feat came as a surprise to many observers, despite the fact that the "chip" only lasted a few minutes to due its instability. Up until recently, silicene was only a theoretical material and nobody expected a transistor to be built from it anytime soon. But the team succeeded by condensing an atom-thick layer onto a block of silver in a vacuum, then sealing it with alumina. Afterwards, they peeled away the silicene material from the silver block, leaving thin layers of silver and aluminum as protection. Scratching away portions of the silver resulted in a rudimentary, but functional transistor.

Up until recently, silicene was only a theoretical material and nobody expected a transistor to be built from it anytime soon.

The scientists plan to hone the process to create longer-lasting, functional chips in the near term. However, there's still some serious barriers, given the instability of silicene in the real world and difficulty in working with it. But as one scientists said, "The major breakthrough here is the efficient low-temperature manufacturing and fabrication of silicene devices for the first time." That's still quite a feat, but whether it leads to useful gadgets or not is a wide open question.

[Image credit: Argonne National Laboratory/Flickr]

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