Apple Watch 2 rumored to get mobile data connectivity

Apple has sold an estimated 12 million units of its smartwatch in the first year of availability. That's a pretty decent result, especially considering that the Apple Watch jumped to first place in the market share battle in the smartwatch space from its first year - and it represents 61% of that pie.

Now though Apple is already busy developing the successor to its first generation wearable. And according to "people familiar with the matter", the Apple Watch 2 will come with built-in mobile connectivity support. This means you'll be able to use it for certain tasks even without having your iPhone nearby tethered to the watch. The next Apple Watch should also receive a faster processor, the same report goes on to state. That's par for the course with Apple hardware updates, though.

As for cellular connectivity, Android Wear devices (primarily from LG) as well as Samsung's Gear line of smartwatches have had this feature over the past few years, so it makes sense for Apple to go the same route. Unfortunately there's no new information on when Apple might launch its next wearable. That said, the obvious choice would be the fall event during which the iPhone 7 pair is introduced.

Deal: $220 discount for Microsoft Surface Pro 3 with Core i5 and 128GB on eBay

You can get a great deal on a brand-new Intel Core i5-powered Surface Pro 3 with 128GB of onboard storage for just $780. The Surface Pro 3 is a 2-in-1 tablet PC with optional snap-on keyboard (which is not included in this deal) with a high end processor, a thin profile, and long lasting battery life. The listing does include a Surface Pen and 36W Power Supply.

Seller gravitybuys is offering this 2 in 1 for $220 off the retail suggested price of $1000 which comes out to $780. The eBay listing also offers an option 2 year protection plan for $100 that protects your device from accidental damage by offering a repair, replacement, or credit for the amount you paid for it.

This Surface Pro 3 in question comes with Windows 8.1 Pro out of the box, but should include a free upgrade to Windows 10 which is available until July 29. So if you are in the market for this very particular 2-in-1 PC, this is a great deal, seeing as Best Buy has it at $850

Apple's new 12-inch MacBook gets torn down, tamper-evident screws found

Last week Apple silently refreshed the 12-inch MacBook introduced in 2015. The new model gets a rose gold color option to keep up with the times, but also a sixth-generation Intel Core M processor, 1866MHz RAM, and the more efficient Intel HD 515 GPU.

And now the teardown experts over at iFixit have decided to open up the new model and see what's different on the inside. Truth be told, that's not much, but some of the minor changes are interesting.

The new MacBook looks identical to its predecessor from last year, and even their model number is the same: A1534. However, the EMC number is 2991 for the new laptop, compared to 2746 for the old one.

The lower case has Pentalobe screws like the original 12-inch MacBook, but a tri-wing screw featured in last year's model has been replaced by a standard Phillips screw, making it much more easy to work with. All the other internal screws are either Phillips or Torx.

That said, while the hinge screws do have Torx heads, these are filled with a mysterious substance that disintegrates when you insert a screwdriver. So Apple has brought tamper-evident screws to the new MacBook, unfortunately for those who like to tinker with their hardware yet would still prefer to keep that warranty intact.

The USB Type-C hardware has changed too, coming with new silicon and a new cable arrangement. The battery is 4% bigger (in capacity) than the one in last year's laptop, but in size it seems to be exactly the same.

The new 2016 12-inch MacBook received a repairability score of 1 out of 10, which is among the worst ever. The tamper-evident hinge screws are part of the reason why. What's more, the processor, RAM, and flash storage are soldered to the logic board, the battery assembly is very solidly glued to the lower case, and the display is fused, having no separate protective glass.

Microsoft outs Word Flow keyboard for iOS

Microsoft has just released Word Flow, its once exclusive Windows Phone keyboard, for Apple's iOS. The keyboard is known for its fast typing capabilities and excellent recognition skills. The world's record for fast typing has been done exactly on Word Flow.

Anyway, Word Flow is currently available as a free app on the US App Store. Once it completes its beta period Microsoft should make it available to everyone.

The Word Flow supports various themes or custom user backgrounds, features probably taken from Microsoft's purchase of SwiftKey. The iOS keyboard supports one-hand typing relying on an arc-shaped keyboard with swipe input supported.

If you live in the USA, you should definitely give Word Flow a try, it's quite nice. As usual, Apple still doesn't allow any other keyboards when typing passwords, so the reverting to the original keyboard is still there.

de Grisogono already working on a limited edition Samsung Gear S3

It's probably no surprise that Samsung is working on the third generation Gear S watch, but we get the first official confirmation by way of a de Grisogono official.

The Swiss jeweler created a diamond-studded version of the S2 watch and now reveals that it's working on doing the same with the Samsung Gear S3 at a Conde Nast Luxury conference that took place in Seoul last week.

No details on the S3 watch itself were given and to be fair, digital specs are not exactly de Grisogono's specialty.

Samsung Gear S2 de Grisogono limited edition 

The jeweler did reveal that it handcrafts 100 limited edition Gear S2 watches and each one costs a precious $15,000. This model was unveiled at Baselworld early this year and the S3 version will likely be unveiled at the same event next year.

The plain Gear S3 will likely be unveiled several months earlier at IFA (September 2-7).

Pink Sony Xperia Z5 Premium now available in Taiwan

A couple of weeks ago Sony unveiled a Pink version of its Xperia Z5 Premium smartphone, but there was no word on price or launch date. Now you can actually buy one, at least you can if you are in Taiwan.

The pink 4K flagship is available today at NTD 24,900 ($770, €685) from the Sony Stores in the country.

Online prices are even cheaper - Yahoo Shopping Mall, PCHome24h and momo Shop offer it at NTD 20,900 ($645, €575). The first to order will get a free Hello Kitty case (while supplies last).

Starting on May 3, Chunghwa Telecom will offer the Pink Z5 Premium exclusively at NTD 1,500 a month with an NTD 7,000 upfront payment.

ZTE Blade L5 Plus launched with 5-inch display, 8MP camera

A new ZTE smartphone dubbed Blade L5 Plus was launched today. The entry level device is powered by a MediaTek MT6580 chipset, and sports a 5-inch HD display. The handset comes with 1GB RAM and 8GB expandable internal memory, and packs in a 2,150 mAh battery.

The Blade L5 Plus features an 8MP rear camera and a 2MP front shooter. Running Android 5.1 Lollipop out of the box, the phone comes in gray and white color options. It measures 143x72x8.3mm and weighs in at 160g.

The Blade L5 Plus has been launched in China. In addition, the device is also available for purchase in Thailand, where it carries a prices tag of 2990 Thai Baht, or around $85 at current exchange rates.

Meizu m3 goes official: new chipset but same $92 price

Meizu has just announced the successor to its entry-level m2 smartphone. The new Meizu m3carries a lot of the traits of the existing model, including the $92 base price, while offering a few minor upgrades.

One of those is the chipset, a Mediatek MT6750 with an octa-core Cortex-A53 CPU (4x1.5GHz, 4x1.0) replaces the MT6735 with a half the cores. There are two versions, the base one with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of built-in storage, and a higher-specced one with 3GB/32GB. There's a microSD slot for expansion either way.

The polycarbonate body still holds a 5-inch 720p display, but the footprint is marginally increased, likely to accommodate one of the changes - the m3 has 2.5D glass on its front. At 141.5 x 69.5 x 8.3mm, it's a little thinner though, and still packs in a larger 2,870mAh battery (2,500mAh in the m2).

The primary camera is the same 13MP unit with an f/2.2 aperture and phase detection autofocus. On the front you get a 5MP f/2.0 shooter, nothing new here either.

Thanks to the new chipset, you also get LTE over a number of bands - what in China seems to be called Full netcom support. There's the mandatory Bluetooth, GPS and Wi-Fi a/b/g/n connectivity, but no Wi-Fi ac.

Available in a number of fresh colors, the m3 can be had in China for CNY 599 (2GB/16GB version), while the top 3GB/32GB version goes for CNY 799 ($123). Global availability is unlikely to happen over official channels though, so importing one where you are will inevitably put a premium on those numbers.

Lenovo Vibe K5 now available for pre-order in Europe

The Lenovo Vibe K5, which was unveiled alongside the Vibe K5 Plus back in February at this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC), is now available to pre-order in Europe. Specifically, pre-orders are currently live in Greece, with the device carrying a price tag of €199.

This comes over a month after the Chinese company launched the Plus variant of the smartphone in India. Given that the Vibe Plus carries a price tag of INR 8,499 ($126) in the Asian country, the €199 tag for the standard K5 seems a bit on the higher side.

Specs-wise, the Vibe K5 is powered by a Snapdragon 415 chipset, and sports a 5-inch HD display. Memory configuration is 2GB/16GB, while camera configuration is 13MP/5MP. A 2,750 mAh battery is there to keep the lights on.

Xiaomi Max to be officially unveiled on May 10

The Xiaomi Mi Max, which the company recently started teasing officially, is set to be unveiled on May 10, which is around a couple of weeks from now. This was revealed by the Chinese company in a post on Weibo.

There has been very little information available related to the device's specs all this while, but that's not the case anymore as the handset has now been spotted on bench-marking website GFXBench, revealing several of its key specs.

Although the listing confirms a whopping 6.4-inch display, other information like full HD display, and hexa-core 1.8Ghz CPU (Snapdragon 650) is contrary to what we've been hearing in rumors so far. As for the camera department, it's handled by a 16MP rear unit and a 5MP front shooter.

Huawei Honor V8 spotted on TENAA with 5.7-inch display and 4GB RAM

Huawei's upcoming Honor V8 smartphone, which has been the subject of a few teasers and rumors until now, has now been spotted on the website of Chinese regulatory TENAA, revealing most of its key specifications.

Three variants of the device have been certified by the government agency: the KNT-AL10, KNT-TL10, and KNT-AL20. While the first two only differ in color options, the third variant features an upgraded processor, display, and internal memory.

Specs-wise, the KNT-AL10 and KNT-TL10 are powered by a 2.3GHz octa-core CPU and sport a 5.7-inch full HD display. RAM is 4GB, while internal memory is 32GB. A 3,400 mAh battery is there to keep the lights on.

In terms of camera, both feature a 12MP dual rear camera setup and an 8MP front shooter. Measuring 157.00 × 77.60 × 7.75 mm and weighing in at 170 gms, the devices run Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box.

The KNT-AL20, on the other hand, has similar specifications, except for a 2.5GHz octa-core CPU, QHD display, and 64GB internal storage. Available color options for the Honor V8 smartphone include Gold, Silver, and Rose Gold. The phone will become official at an event on May 10.

All Apple Watch apps required to use native SDK from June 1

Apple has informed the developers that all Apple Watch apps will be required to use the native SDK starting June 1.

The native SDK is what allows the Apple Watch apps to run natively on the Watch itself, unlike the original watchOS SDK that would run the apps on the phone and then stream it to the watch over Bluetooth, which was the main reason for the slow performance of third party apps on the Apple Watch.

With watchOS 2.0, Apple announced native apps but the older SDK and apps were still supported. Starting June 1, that will no longer be the case. This should finally force developers to move their apps to the newer SDK, which is good news for the users as these apps tend to work much better.

Apple is also expected to watchOS 3.0 at WWDC this year, and possibly even a second generation version of the Apple Watch.