LeEco Le 2 gets a round of leaked images, has specs outed too

You may have heard of LeEco (formerly LeTV) when it became the first company to sell a smartphone powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 chipset. In the meantime, many more handsets have chosen to employ that particular chip, but LeEco is apparently hard at work on its next device.

This is allegedly going to be called Le 2, which might mean it's been created as the successor to the Le 1s. The pictures you can see below (click the thumbnails to look at the full-size versions) are said to be of the Le 2, covering a decent amount of angles.

The LeEco Le 2 will reportedly sport either the Snapdragon 820 or the MediaTek Helio X20 chipset (there will be two variants), along with 4GB of RAM and a 21 MP main camera. The fingerprint sensor on the back is of the ultrasonic variety, and a USB Type-C port is on board for connectivity purposes and charging. Those are unfortunately all the spec details we have for now.

Speaker grill holes can be seen on both sides of that port, which may mean the phone will have two speakers. Then again, many smartphones use similar designs but only actually ship with one speaker, with the holes on the other side being purely cosmetic. Anyway, the frame of the handset seems to be metal. Its back cover could be metal too, or maybe not - it's not easy to tell just from these shots.

If this is the real deal and it's being worked on by the Chinese smartphone maker, we expect to hear much more about the Le 2 in the coming weeks.

Verizon and T-Mobile HTC One (M8) units are now receiving Android Marshmallow

As originally promised, HTC will bring Android Marshmallow to all of its flagship handsets, going back to and including the One (M8). Today the OTA has started seeding for both the Verizon and T-Mobile carrier versions of the phone.

The former is receiving a software version 6.21.605.3 package, while the latter has the build 6.20.531.5. Both, however are based on Android 6.0 and bring about all the Marshmallow goodies Google's OS has to offer, like run time permissions, app Dozing, Google Now on Tap and many others. The software should also come with new volume controls for notifications, audio and alarms and simplified screen capture.

In other news, T-Mobile is also spreading some Marshmallow love to its more price-conscious clients, owners of the LG G Stylo. It has also started receiving an Android 6.0 OTA, already spotted in the wild with a version number of "H63120b" and weighing in at 767MB.

Bear in mind that both carriers are conducting a staged rollout of all the updates, so it might be a few days before your handset receives the payload. T-Mobile has even cited a rather lengthy update window, ranging from March 7 to March 21, so a bit more patience might still be required.

ZTE Blade V580 now official in Japan

ZTE seems to be on an announcement streak. Only hours ago, the Chinese manufacture run veiled the ZTE Blade D2 in Thailand and Vietnam and today it has a new mid-ranger to add to its lineup. It is called the Blade V580 and was made official on the company's Japanese website today. Coincidentally, however, it looks identical to the recent;y announced ZTE Blade V Plus Australia edition, so "new" is a bit of a stretch.

It is equipped with a 5.5-inch FullHD display and a 64bit MediaTek MT6753 SoC with a total of eight cores, clocked at 1.3 GHz. Memory is set at 2GB and 16GB of onboard storage. There is also a microSD card slot for up to 32GB more.

Other features on the handset include 4G LTE support and Dual SIM connectivity. There is also a fairly large 3,000 mAh battery on board, although it is not nearly as impressive as the 4,000 mAh one inside the Blade D2.

The ZTE Blade V580 has a rather modest camera setup, consisting of a 13MP main shooter and a 5MP selfie one. However, there is a fingerprint reader thrown in the mix, which is always a pleasant sight in a budget-friendly device. Other features include Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 and GPS with A-GPS, the usual.

Pre-orders for the ZTE Blade V580 are going live in various online stores in Japan today and the handset will set you back JPY 27,800 ($246).

Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge pre-orders now shipping in the US, UK and Europe

The Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge were supposed to ship to their new owners in the US, the UK and Europe this Friday, but you should expect delivery as soon as today.

This is if you have already pre-ordered, most UK retailers and carriers still show March 11 as the delivery date. Only the O2 lists "free next day delivery" if you order by 10pm.

By the way, some of you will be getting a Samsung Gear VR headset (if you ordered from Samsung, Carphone Warehouse or Vodafone).

Xiaomi's European rollout of the Mi 5 and Mi 4s will begin with Poland

The Xiaomi Mi 5 has been getting a lot of attention ever since its launch at MWC 2016 and quite justifiably so. The device is a true flagship offer with a slew of advanced features and little to no notable compromises all with a starting prices as low as $300.

Sadly, availability has outside eastern markets has always been a major problem for the Chinese OEM. However, this might change soon enough, as VP Hugo Barra seems to be making good on his long-standing promise to expand market reach of the brand to Europe.

The first step in this expansion was hinted during the unveiling of the Mi 5 and Mi 4s and now news has surfaced on the Polish version of the Xiaomi website, providing proof that the company is working on international availability.

The web page informs that the Xiaomi Mi 5 and Mi 4s will be coming to the Polish market soon. The memo also comes with a promise for additional info on timing and pricing shortly, as well as a list of the exact models that will be on offer. It appears all three variants of the flagship Mi 5 will be outed in Poland.

All three have a 5.15-inch FullHD display and a Snapdragon 820 SoC, but the entry-level one with a clock speed of 1.8 GHz, 32GB of storage and 3GB of RAM. The 64GB has the same amount of memory and a processor speed of 2.15GHz. The Pro simply adds another gig of RAM and a 3D ceramic back cover.

All the other impressive features of the Mi 5 are shared across the range, including the innovative 16MP camera with 4-axis OIS, 600 Mbps 4G+ connectivity, Full-featured NFC and many other goodies.

We will keep a close eye on the Polish website for any further details on pricing and availability. It is, however, clear that entering into new markets will bring the retail price of any handset up. Hopefully, it won't be too much of a premium.

Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro to have removable battery, FCC filing confirms

In one of the more unexpected turns of events, the yet-to-be-announced Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro will have a removable battery. This intriguing bit has been revealed by the US Federal Communications Commission, in one specific document, which details the certification label placement.

Often imprinted on the back itself, or an entry in the settings menu of the device (digital label), in the case of the Galaxy A9 Pro it's very much a physical paper label glued on the inside of the battery compartment.

This gives a hint as to the reason the Pro version is 10g heavier than the plain A9 (2016), needing some additional reinforcement otherwise provided by the rear panel itself. TheTENAA certification, which gave us a glimpse at the phone's looks, also said that it would be 0.5mm thicker so it all makes sense now.

What doesn't quite add up is the fact that the Chinese authority's photos do show a glass-looking back panel, and it will be interesting to see how Samsung has pulled that off. Or it could be glossy plastic, but then that wouldn't quite be up to the A-series standards.

Of course, there's the usual technical data in the papers, which you can sift through by following the Source link below.

Samsung announces the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge in India

Samsung just announced the flagship Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 edge in India, at an event in New Delhi.

The phones are being launched in 32GB dual SIM variant with the Exynos 8890 chipset. The Galaxy S7 is priced at INR 48,900 ($725) and the Galaxy S7 edge at INR 56,900 ($844).

Pre-bookings for both start today until March 17. Those who pre-book will get a free Gear VR with their purchase.

T-Mobile document leaks buy-one-get-one deal for Galaxy S7 and S7 edge

The Galaxy S7 and S7 edge are just days away from launch at this point. Those who pre-ordered their devices will be receiving them soon, well, if they haven’t already.

Lately, T-Mobile has been known for pulling crazy stunts or being really ‘out there’ but this one might take the cake for deals on new phones.

TmoNews was tipped, most likely by a T-Mobile employee, with a screen capture of a document regarding a deal for the Galaxy S 7 and S7 edge, two phones that aren’t even officially released yet.

The deal says that customers who purchase two Galaxy S7/S7edge devices can get their second device for free. Before you flip out, there are a couple of things you need to do in order to actually qualify for this deal:

Both devices must be purchased on Equipment Installment Plans (aka. NOT a leased device) and the deal requires you to add at least one new line of service. It is not certain if the entire cost of the device will be refunded to you on a pre-paid visa card, but we can assume that you get the value of the phone upfront on the card, but you are required to pay for the free device on a monthly basis.

Unfortunately, this promotion wouldn’t be available to T-Mobile employees, but to be quite honest, I’m sure they have better deals than BOGO on the latest smartphone.

The highly-anticipated Galaxy S7 and S7 edge are to be officially released this Friday, we’ll have to wait to see what how T-Mobile announces this deal to customers.

Apple to pay $450 million after failed ebook price-fixing appeal

Today, the US Supreme Court wrote the final page in the long legal fight against Apple on charges of participating in a major conspiracy to inflate e-book prices. The original suite dates back from 2012 when the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York ruled that the Cupertino giant had conspired with publishers to inflate ebook prices as a means of undermining Amazon.

This original accusation states that back in early 2010, around the time the iPad was launching, Apple colluded with five book publishers and managed to raise some book prices by as much as 50% (from $9.99 all the way to $14.99) in an attempt to disturb Amazon's leading position as a cheap e-book retailer.

After the initial ruling found the US giant guilty, it decided to start a long process of court appeals that inevitably led all the way up to the US Supreme Court. The latter, however, has decided not to hear the case, which leaves in place a June 2015 ruling by the New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, that found Apple guilty of violating federal antitrust laws. Seeing how Cupertino has reached the end of the legal ladder on this case, it will be forced to pay $450 million as part of a settlement.

Bill Baer, head of the U.S. Justice Department's antitrust division commented on the development saying:

Apple’s liability for knowingly conspiring with book publishers to raise the prices of e-books is settled once and for all

Google Fi no longer requires an invitation to sign up

Project Fi is Google’s first venture into the mobile service space. It teamed up with Sprint and T-Mobile in the US to form an MVNO network exclusive to the Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, and Nexus 5X. The only way you could sign up for a Project Fi account was by either buying a Nexus device through Project Fi’s website, or signing up for an invitation with your Gmail account and waiting a couple of months for your invitation to roll in.

Today, Android’s blog announced its official goodbye to invites for the Fi Network. The post briefly outlines what the venture has taught Google about customers who use Project Fi such as traveling abroad, using SIM cards in other devices, and the success of relying on Public Wi-Fi.

Project Fi is a US cellular network that piggy-backs its service from both Sprint and T-Mobile networks depending on which provides a more reliable connection. The network also takes advantage of public Wi-Fi networks to fill any dead coverage with a Wi-Fi only connection.

Plans start at $20 per month as a base, then add $10 for every 1GB used in your cycle, if you use 2 GB in the month, you will be charged $20 for the base fee and $20 more for the data you used. If you only use 1GB and a quarter, you’ll only be charged $12.50 for your data for that month.

Xiaomi announces more powerful Mi Box 3 Enhanced Edition for China

Xiaomi has announced an updated version of its Mi Box 3 media player, called the Mi Box 3 Enhanced Edition.

The biggest change in this is the faster processor. The Enhanced Edition ships with a 64-bit MediaTek MT8693 with a hexa-core CPU (2 x 2GHz Cortex-A72 + 4 x 1.6GHz Cortex-A53) and PowerVR GX6250 GPU. The CPU performance is said to be 80% faster and the GPU performance 240% faster than the standard Mi Box 3. There is an improved cooling system with a fan to keep the temperatures low.

The memory and storage have also been doubled, and it now has 2GB RAM and 8GB storage space. The Wi-Fi is now 802.11ac 2x2 with transfer speeds up to 300Mbps and Bluetooth 4.1.

The Mi Box 3 Enhanced Edition is priced at 399 yuan, which is about $61.

Facebook Messenger for Android finally receives Material Design makeover

Later today, a new version of Facebook Messenger for Android will start rolling out through the Play Store. This will finally adhere to Google's Material Design guidelines, now almost two years old. Still, the Messenger app is ahead of the actual Facebook app in this regard, believe it or not.

Various Material Design elements have been in testing by the Messenger team over the past few months, and have been spotted in a number of beta versions of the app. The company has also enabled them for some users, but not for others, in what's known as A/B testing. But now the new design is going out to everyone.

The roll out itself might take a few days to complete, as is always the case with such things. You can get an idea of what Facebook Messenger will look like after the update by glancing at the screenshots above.

Facebook says the redesign has been a painstakingly hard process, especially since the app is such an essential part of the lives of hundreds of millions of people across the world.