The old saying “why fix it if it ain’t broken” applies to the iPad almost perfectly.

Here we have an icon of design that is so well executed it has not only spawned masses of imitators, with only the ASUS Transformer Prime coming anywhere near close to outshining the original tablet PC, but it also refuses to alter after years at the top.

So with this in mind, what do you really want of the new iPad 3?

Many will say;

“I want Apple to reinvent the wheel,”

And expect them to always bring them the new, slimmer, sexier iPad that we expect every few years.

Sorry to disappoint the design junkies:

I am afraid it looks like the next iPad will stay the same in design.

Now let us look at another saying that may make you happier.

“It is what is on the inside that counts.”

Yes your parent(s) or guardians should have told you this when you were younger, otherwise you probably turned into a narcissistic, drug addled little shit that has needed “help” ever since.

I am not one for religion in particular, but there are some decent elements at the base of most, and we shall be focusing on one of these humanistic levels for the next iPad.

Sure, the new version is likely to feature some nice features, but they will mainly be inside the device and we hope will more than make up for a lack of a new coat.

So what will be inside the new iPad 3?

You know Apple do not tell a thing prior to releases so let us do some fortune telling here.

Now according to iLounge’s Jeremy Horwitz, he has touched and smelt the iPad 3 at CES 2012 over in Las Vegas. But we all know that Apple are not showing at the event.

So are people using the new iPad 3 unwittingly, if so, this sounds like it could be a bit of a lacklustre update visually, so what is going on underneath?

Well if rumours are to be believed the new iPad will be 1mm thicker with an improved camera to the top left corner, rumours of a smaller display were neither agreed nor shown as proof, but there has been talk.

iPad 3 due March 2012 – iPad 4 due Q4 2012?

With all this in mind, we would like to point you to our other article on the iPad 3 release date, that predicted pretty much the equivalent of an iPhone 4S update to the iPhone 4 for the next model of iPad, with a much bigger release of the iPad 4 to be expected later this year or early in 2013.

I also think that a price cut may be on the cards, and the new iPad 3 may sell for $100 less than it costs now, simply in order to stay competitive in this marketplace that Apple so desperately want to dominate.

The CES show over in Las Vegas has been the platform for Intel to finally announce that they are indeed going to be entering the smartphone and tablet processor market with new chips aimed at competing with ARM’s current strangle hold on the market.

I have always found it quite amazing how ARM entered this market and managed to so easily shi* on Intel from a small height and then keep dropping those tech turds all over them from ever growing precipices.

The K800 is Intel and Lenovo’s first smartphone on Android:

The announcement at CES that there will be a new Intel powered smartphone built by Lenovo has been met with a fair degree of interest and looking at the new device it is clear to see why.

The worlds first Intel based smartphone is quite a nice looking device.

Lenovo have gone to some lengths to totally re-skin the device and make it a device that suits them. Running on Android, and seemingly only version 2.3, this is not that difficult to do being Android based, we have already seen Amazon do the same with their Kindle Fire, things may however change come release. As it may be running on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich by the time it hits Europe and the US later this year.

Right now it looks pretty good, especially when you look at what is under the hood, from here you can see that this phone will be no lazy bones.

Lenovo K800 Specifications:

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• Android 2.3
• Intel Medfield
• 8MP camera
• 4.5″ HD 720p TFT screen
• WCDMA HDSPA+

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Watching the video below you can see that the device does look great but apparently suffers from that horrible and annoying lag that plagues this operating system, it almost looks like I am some kind of idiot when I use my Samsung S2, like some big fingered over eager freak.

But the fact is that this device currently lags, and I never know where I am when I want a lower area of a site or application on my Android device, this seems to hold true for this device too, despite the processor being so seemingly capable.

Lenovo build tanks?

Now we all remember the IBM Thinkpad’s which Lenovo took over and carried on with. Well design wise, they seem to have thought about keeping that crap looking casing that was apparently very tough.

So your phone may be happy to be dropped from a great height, but may not be getting many woo’s or ahh’s from your fellow comrades unless they do actually like the death star as a design aesthetic.

Indeed a little know fact is that the Thinkpad is the only laptop to be certified for use on the International Space Station, so maybe this smartphone might have found its niche already, now beam me up you spotty geek…;).

The Lenovo K800 will first appear in China and is expected to be released in the 2nd quarter of 2012, we currently have no other news on global releases beyond this.

Lenovo K800 summary:

Are you looking forward to this device or do you think that Intel have left it way too long to get into the fast paced mobile marketplace?

Or, is this all dependent on relationships with the right manufacturers, and in that case, is Lenovo a good choice?

We all know that first impressions count, and in all honesty, my knowledge of Intel getting in on the action has been met with lacklustre based on this device.

Surely technology releases are like comedy, it is all about delivery and timing!…dah dum!

Source: The Next Web

With Sony now dropping their old Ericsson name it seems that dropping letters is in fashion right now, as the more correctly named “Sony Mobile Communications” has out fooled us all and is now to call the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc HD quite simply the Sony Xperia S.

US carriers for the Sony Xperia S:

The release of the new smartphone will however be delivered in the first quarter of this year globally.

Networks:

With no news on carriers in the US, it appears that UK buyers will see the device on the Three network, though we simply have no other news than that currently.

Tech Specs:

The new smartphone device will arrive with some pretty impressive technical specs including a 4.3 inch 1280 x 720 resolution touchscreen display, however right now it seems that it will be running the older version of Android on 2.3, though this could well get an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich come full release, and is definitely promised by the 2nd half of 2012.

And in typical Sony style the new smartphone will sport a massive 12 megapixel camera, with a Sony Exmor R sensor, which will enable the device to record 1080p and 720p video.

Processor:

You will be provided with a powerful 1.5 GHz dual core processor from Qualcomm and an additional 32 GB of storage.

Watch the video below:

What do you make of the new phone?

I am quite glad to see Sony stop writing books for model names and get back to some simplified terms that we can all remember. And from cursory observations it would seem that this device could be a contender, though I see nothing of real note that other smartphone releases such as the Samsung Galaxy S2, Nexus, iPhone 4S or Samsung Galaxy Note can not compete against.

So would the new Sony Xperia S be of interest to you?

Samsung have announced a few hours before the CES event in Las Vegas that it will be bringing the giant smartphone the Samsung Galaxy Note to the US.

The stylus enhanced 5.3 inch super sized smartphone will be brought to the US and the device will be available on AT&T running on their 4G network.

Pricing of the US version of the Galaxy Note?

No details have yet emerged on the actual pricing of the Samsung Galaxy Note in the US, so we will have to keep our eyes peeled on this as and when news emerges.

Galaxy Note has nice features:

If size is your thing, you will be pleasantly happy with this phone as its size means it offers features that other phones would find hard to deliver.

One being the use of a small stylus termed an “S Pen”, which is housed in the device, and can be used to write on the huge screen almost the same as writing on paper, this is obviously useful for note taking.

In a nice little extra feature, the notes you take can be shared across multiple devices.

Galaxy Note huge screen:

With a huge screen, it has huge appeal to those who are less worried about bulges in their pants, and more concerned over screen real estate so they can play games or watch video on their smartphones while out and about, which this phones screen offers in abundance with a huge 5.3 inch in width.

Based on the Android operating system, the phone has been missing from US consumers clutches ever since it was launched back in October, so this news will make for lots of smiles for those wondering whether to wait in hope or simply go and pick up an alternative smartphone.

So are you looking forward to the Galaxy Note finally coming to the US or has other smartphones got your attention now you have had to wait so long?

Smartphones and other mobile devices would not be as tough as they are without a nice display being furnished with Gorilla Glass, and while there are alternatives to this material, it seems that Gorilla Glass is going to carry on being the daddy in the Smartphone jungle for some time.

Not happy to rest on their Laurels at Corning Specialty materials. It now seems that we will see Gorilla Glass 2 in time for the CES event next week, when lots of new gadgets and materials are released.

Talking about the new Glass, James R. Steiner, senior vice president and general manager, Corning Specialty Materials said:

“Corning Gorilla Glass has been a tremendous success for Corning, enjoying excellent market acceptance across mobile device industries,….handset and tablet device manufacturers are clearly driving toward higher functionality from thinner designs. Corning’s latest innovation in Gorilla Glass technology is very well positioned to meet these challenges and enable broader touch technology penetration.”

Formed in 2007, Corning’s Gorilla Glass is now the most widely used and deployed glass for mobile devices, featuring on some 575 products, and is now on a total of 500 million worldwide devices, with the company behind the glass expecting to see some $700 million in 2011 sales.

The new glass is rumored to be 20% thinner and lighter as a result.

We look forward to hearing more about the product, which is a truly remarkable piece of science as it is almost unbreakable, at least I am yet to see anyone who can scratch it or break it using your common or garden tools that would normally shatter the hell out of such a seemingly normal bit of glass…amazing stuff.

It is thought that ASUS will be revealing a new mini version of the Asus transformer prime tablet that currently sees them under scrutiny from Hasbro over the use of the words “transformer” and “prime”.

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this month in Las Vegas will see the arrival of many new models and it is expected that it will be the showcase of the new ASUS transformer mini.

The new version is thought to be a 7 inch model of the 10 inch version, which will come with a smaller keyboard dock, the signature of the Asus Transformer Prime.

Asus want to be big in 2012 and distinctive:

There is expected to be a few other arrivals at the CES show and these include:

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• Asus Padfone, a 4.3-inch Ice Cream Sandwich based smartphone which has the ability to turn into a tablet via a 10.1-inch touchscreen dock.
• 7-inch version of the Eee Memo Pad, with a rumoured 1.2 Ghz Snapdragon processor, 1280×800 resolution display, with Wi-Fi and 3G options.

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Will they keep the transformer name?

With Hasbro genuinely unhappy about the choice of names of the Asus transformer tablet, it may be unwise to carry on this potential legal disaster to another model even though in my eyes it seems pretty far fetched that they would have a leg to stand on, I am no lawyer and would not be the best person to pontificate on any outcome here, so if I was Asus, airing on the side of caution would be my instinct, especially as the transformers brand is growing from strength to strength currently.

Hasbro filed the action to sue in a LA court stating that the use of the term could lead to consumer confusion, and has requested that compensation be paid for damages related to the use of the term in current and future products.

Can the word “transformer” really be trademarked/patented/copyrighted?

Are you a lawyer in this field in the US?

If so, please do shed some light on the issue if you are, as it seems far fetched to me.

Barbara Finigan, Hasbro’s chief legal officer, said in a statement.

“Hasbro continues to aggressively protect its brands and products and the specific actions we are taking today against Asus underscores yet again Hasbro’s willingness to pursue companies who misappropriate our intellectual property for their own financial gain….the Transformers property is an incredibly popular global brand which enjoys tremendous fan support and interest around the world. The action we have announced today is in the best interests of our company and our shareholders.”

So like Apple, they are not taking things lightly and I am actually really excited to see what the outcome will be on this one.

Though if I was Asus I would counter sue Hasbro for making my new line of tablets sound like they are a kids toy….we had all pretty much forgotten the name until recently!…How rude Hasbro how rude.