Apple takes Ericsson to court over LTE patents

Apple has dragged Ericsson to court over allegations that patents related to the latter's LTE wireless technology aren't essential to industry cellular standards. In a case filed in US District Court for Northern California, Apple has said that Ericsson is demanding excessive royalties for these patents, despite agreeing to license them on "fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory" terms. Specifically, the iPhone maker is complaining that Ericsson is seeking royalties for the LTE technology based on the "end prices of entire LTE devices", arguing that the royalties should be instead based on the value of the chip that includes the technology. "We've always been willing to pay a fair price to secure the rights to standards essential patents covering technology in our products. Unfortunately, we have not been able to agree with Ericsson on a fair rate for their patents so, as a last resort, we are asking the courts for help," said Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet. Apple has also said that if Ericsson's patents are deemed essential, and the Swedish networking giant wins the case, the company wants the court to assign a reasonable royalty rate. Both companies signed a licensing agreement back in 2008 covering many of Ericsson's allegedly standard-essential patents. That agreement is set to expire...

Source: http://www.gsmarena.com/apple_drags_ericsson_to_court_over_lte_patents-news-10753.php

Lumia 532 debuts with 5MP camera, quad-core CPU

Microsoft is very serious about taking a chunk of the entry-level smartphone market. Along with the Lumia 435, it just announced the Lumia 532, a bumped-up iteration of the familiar Lumia 530. The new device packs a version of the Snapdragon 200 chipset with a quad-core CPU ticking at 1.2GHz and 1GB of RAM over the predecessor's 512MB. You get 8GB of storage to boot, expandable by up to 128GB via a microSD card. A 30GB OneDrive cloud storage is included as usual. The 4-inch display of 800x480 pixel resolution provides a stage for the Windows Phone 8.1 with the Lumia Denim update on top. Imaging department is covered by a 5MP main camera, which beats the 435's 2MP sensor and likely a VGA front shooter. The Lumia 532 houses a 1,560mAh battery in a an all-plastic body, weighing 131.8g. The device will be available in single and dual SIM versions in stores across Europe, Asia Pasific, India, Middle East and Africa, starting in February. The unsubsidized price is quoted at...

Source: http://www.gsmarena.com/lumia_532_goes_official_with_5mp_camera_quadcore_cpu-news-10760.php

Microsoft Lumia 435 and 435 Dual SIM bring WP8.1 for €70

The Lumia 530 just got a promotion - the new Microsoft Lumia 435 and Lumia 435 Dual SIM are the new WP entry level. The base model starts at €70 and knowing how these low-end Lumias love to go on sale it will probably cost as much as a cup of coffee before long. The Lumia 435 keeps the a 4" LCD screen (480 x 800px) of the 5xx series. The phone runs Denim-enhanced Windows Phone 8.1 on a Snapdragon 200 chipset with a dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. That's double the RAM of the Lumia 635, though only half the cores. And you start with 8GB of storage (expandable with up to 128GB cards). One corner that Microsoft cut is the camera - the main camera is a 2MP fixed-focus snapper that records 480p video at 30fps. There's a VGA front-facing camera (the Lumia 635 has none). The Lumia Camera and Lumia Selfie apps come preloaded. The Microsoft Lumia 535 weighs 131.9g and comes with a 1,560mAh battery, good for almost 12 hours of talk time., 21 hours if you're on 2G. The phone boasts 42.2Mbps downlink speeds over 3G, which is about as good as it gets pre-LTE. A-GPS and GLONASS are available for HERE Drive+ to take you anywhere around the world, no data connection necessary. The Microsoft Lumia 435 and Lumia 435 Dual-SIM will be available in February in select countries in Europe, India, the Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle...

Source: http://www.gsmarena.com/microsoft_lumia_435_and_435_dual_sim_bring_wp81_for_70-news-10759.php

Microsoft Lumia 435 and 435 Dual SIM bring WP8.1 for €90

The Lumia 530 just got a promotion - the new Microsoft Lumia 435 and Lumia 435 Dual SIM are the new WP entry level. The base model starts at €70 and knowing how these low-end Lumias love to go on sale it will probably cost as much as a cup of coffee before long. The Lumia 435 is also the most compact of the new generation Lumia with a 4" LCD screen (480 x 800px resolution as can be expected). The phone runs Denim-enhanced Windows Phone 8.1 on a Snapdragon 200 chipset with a dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. That's double the RAM of the Lumia 635, though only half the cores. And you start with 8GB of storage (expandable with up to 128GB cards). One corner that Microsoft cut is the camera - the main camera is a 2MP fixed-focus snapper that records 480p video at 30fps. There's a VGA front-facing camera (the Lumia 635 has none). The Lumia Camera and Lumia Selfie apps come preloaded. The Microsoft Lumia 535 weighs 131.9g and comes with a 1,560mAh battery, good for almost 12 hours of talk time., 21 hours if you're on 2G. The phone boasts 42.2Mbps downlink speeds over 3G, which is about as good as it gets pre-LTE. A-GPS and GLONASS are available for HERE Drive+ to take you anywhere around the world, no data connection necessary. The Microsoft Lumia 435 and Lumia 435 Dual-SIM will be available in February in select countries in Europe, India, the Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle...

Source: http://www.gsmarena.com/microsoft_lumia_435_and_435_dual_sim_bring_wp81_for_90-news-10759.php

Samsung Z1 Tizen-based smartphone goes official

Just a day after there were reports that Samsung will launch its Z1 smartphone in India this week, the device has been launched with a price tag of INR 5,700 ($92). It is the company's first Tizen OS-based smartphone in the country, and is available in White, Black, and Wine Red colour options. The Samsung Z1 is powered by a Spreadtrum SC7727S chipset containing 1.2 GHz dual-core processor and Mali 400 GPU. The smartphone sports a 4-inch WVGA display, and runs Tizen OS 2.3. The budget-minded Z1 comes with 768MB of RAM and 4GB of internal memory (expandable up to 64GB via microSD). It has a 3.1-megapixel rear camera and a VGA front-facing snaper, and packs in a 1500mAh battery. Other features include dual SIM support, as well as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, and 3G connectivity. On the software side, the smartphone features built-in AntiVirus protection, an Ultra Power Saving Mode to extend the battery life, and free access to Hungama music for three months, as well as premium content though Club Samsung. It also lets you send SOS alerts, something which can be done by pressing the power button four times. Reliance and Aircel users will also get 500MB of free 3G data per month for a period of 6 months with the...

Source: http://www.gsmarena.com/samsungs_tizen_based_z1_smartphone_launched_in_india-news-10755.php

Xiaomi hints at two flagship announcements

Xiaomi is all set to launch its next flagship device at an event on January 15. However, it seems there may not be one but two devices being launched tomorrow. The image above tweeted by the official Xiaomi account suggest there might be two flagship devices being announced tomorrow. Another image seen above was also tweeted, which suggest that the phone might not have the Mi 5 name that people are expecting it to have but possibly a Note moniker. We will find out for sure tomorrow. Source 1 • Source...

Source: http://www.gsmarena.com/xiaomi_hints_at_two_flagship_announcements-news-10756.php