Sony Releases AOSP Source Code and Binaries for Xperia Z3, Z2 and Z1

Shortly after Google and Motorola announced that Android 5.0 Lollipop is available for some of their smartphones, Sony released the AOSP source code and binaries for three of its current and previous flagship handsets.

Android 5.0 Lollipop AOS source code and binaries are not available for download for those who own the Xperia Z3, Xperia Z2 or Xperia Z1. All three devices have been Sony’s flagship smartphones at some point, so it makes sense that the Japanese company would want to bring Lollipop to these ones first. Keep in mind that these are not Android 5.0 Lollipop factory images or OTA (over the air) updates, but it’s better than nothing until Sony actually makes the upgrade available to Xperia smartphone users. The AOSP source code and binaries are aimed at developers who would like to cook custom ROMs with Android 5.0 Lollipop components. This means that only those with some technical knowledge will be able to flash Android 5.0 Lollipop on their smartphones, at least until Sony launches the official ROM.

However, creating Android 5.0 Lollipop, AOSP-based custom ROMs for Xperia Z3, Xperia Z2 and Xperia Z1 should be very easy for developers. Since Android 5.0 Lollipop operating system has been handed to handset manufacturers in early November, only three smartphones have been confirmed as receiving the update.

The AOSP source code has some limitations as camera does not work and modem is not enabled

Google has recently published the Android 5.0 Lollipop factory image for the Nexus 5 and announced the rollout of the OTA update has started. US-based handset maker Motorola is the second company that offers Lollipop as an upgrade to two of its smartphones: Moto G (2014) and Moto X (2014). As we’re getting closer to the end of the year, more and more devices are expected to receive the Android 5.0 Lollipop update, including the LG G3 and Samsung Galaxy Note 4. Until then though, Sony Xperia Z3, Xperia Z2 and Xperia Z1 owners can download the needed software binaries for Lollipop, and then download, configure, build and flash the source code onto their devices.

It’s also worth mentioning that the source code released by Sony recently has some limitations, which doesn’t recommend it for daily use. According to Sony, the camera is not working yet and the modem hasn’t been enabled, so you won’t be able to take photos or make phone calls. Even though some may have gotten past the fact that they can’t take photos, the inability to make phone calls will surely drive away most Xperia users who want to enjoy Android 5.0 Lollipop on their smartphones as quickly as possible.

Sony Xperia Z3 running Android 5.0 Lollipop AOSP

Sony Xperia Z1, Xperia Z2 and Xperia Z3

Android 5.0 Lollipop on Sony Xperia Z3 (homescreen)

Android 5.0 Lollipop on Sony Xperia Z3 (task manager)

Android 5.0 Lollipop on Sony Xperia Z3 (About phone)

Android 5.0 Lollipop on Sony Xperia Z3 (Lollipop logo)

Sony Xperia Z1, Xperia Z2 and Xperia Z3 (Lollipop logo)
Images credits to Sony Mobile

Full story: http://developer.sonymobile.com/2014/11/06/android-5-0-xperia-z3-running-aosp
This week, Google released the source code for Android 5.0, Lollipop, and as you can see in the video above, the AOSP (Android Open Source Project) version of Android 5.0 is already running on Xperia Z3, as well as Xperia Z2 and Xperia Z1.
Video credits to SonyXperiaDev

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NVIDIA Shield Tablet Getting Android 5.0 Lollipop on November 18

Keeping true to its word, NVIDIA comes back to put an exact date on its earlier announcement in which it said that Android 5.0 Lollipop would arrive on the Shield Tablet.

So those of you that have a Shield Tablet at home, you should expect the Android 5.0 Lollipop OTA to arrive on November 18. The new software update will bring about Material Design to the Tegra K1-enhanced tablet, but also a new version of NVIDIA’s own Dabbler art app. There’s also a new bundle offer which includes a bunch of new games like Half-Life 2: Episode One. NVIDIA says one of the most commonly-requested features by Shield Tablet owners is for Dabbler to support layers. And the GPU maker has listened to your pleas, so you can expect to be able to take advantage of the sort of multi-layered editing you’d find in Photoshop and other related apps.

The update will also bring templates, which can be resized and rotated before being sketched in. Last but not least, artists are given the option to share their drawings via Twich. It should be mentioned that existing users will be getting access to Half Life via a download, but new users will get the game plus Portal as part of the Green Box bundle awarded with the purchase of a 32GB/LTE Shield Tablet.

NVIDIA Shield Tablet will get Material Design soon

NVIDIA Shield Tablet can be paired up with gaming controller

Half-Life 2 has been optimized for the Tegra K1

Android 5.0 Lollipop is ready to come to the Shield Tablet

NVIDIA announced the availability of Lollipop on the tablet earlier this month
Images credits to email

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Meizu MX4 Is the Most Powerful Smartphone for Q3, 2014, Benchmarks Shows

If you happen to be a tech-savvy exclusively interested in specs over all other important aspects of a smartphone, then you might want to check out the top performing smartphones for Q3, 2014.

With so many powerful smartphones launched this year, it’s interesting to see which one performs better and which one disappoints. First of all, the top 10 performing smartphones takes into consideration all devices launched this year, including those launched by Chinese OEMs like Xiaomi, Oppo and Meizu. Speaking of which, those disregarding the Chinese handset makers would make a terrible mistake and here is why. According to AnTuTu benchmark, the most powerful smartphone for Q3 is Meizu’s MX4. That may sound surprising for those who don’t know too much about Meizu, but suffice it to say that the MX4 is one of the most popular smartphones in China, world’s largest mobile market. The MX4 scored 48,792 points in AnTuTu and is closely followed by Samsung Galaxy Note 4 with 48,622 points. More surprisingly is that Samsung Galaxy Alpha is third with 48,385 far ahead of Motorola Moto X, HTC One M8 and Sony Xperia Z3, supposedly better equipped for benchmarks.

As AndroidCommunity points out, AnTuTu developers state that the top 10 performing smartphones is based on the performance of the handsets from users in 160 countries. Only benchmarks made between July and September have been taken into consideration for the top 10.

Four more Chinese OEMs are included in the top as well

Besides the devices mentioned earlier, the top 10 performing smartphones for Q3 also contains the OnePlus One (fourth place), Oppo Find7 (seventh place), Huawei Mate7 (ninth place) and Xiaomi Mi4 (tenth place). Meizu’s achievement is not only important for the Chinese OEM, as the smartphone is powered by a MediaTek chipset, which is considered weaker than Qualcomm’s chipsets, performance-wise. Well, it looks like the 2.2GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6595 processor managed to beat Galaxy Note 4’s 2.7GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 CPU by a small margin. It would have been interesting to see how the Exynos-based Galaxy Note 4 would fare against the Meizu MX4.

The results highlighted by the top 10 performing smartphones for Q3 also proves that Chinese OEMs have recently become very competitive on the market and they are capable of eating large amounts of market share from well-established handset makers like Samsung, HTC, LG and Motorola. The only thing that prevents these Chinese OEMs from conquering the entire world could be the fact that they only have been successfully in the last few years and their budget did not allow for growth in other countries, but that will most certainly change in the not so distant future.

AnTuTu Top 10 performing smartphones for Q3, 2014
Image credits to AnTuTu

Meizu MX4
Images credits to Meizu

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Samsung Galaxy Note Edge Premium Edition Officially Introduced, Only Available Until December 31

Samsung has just introduced the premium version of the Galaxy Note Edge, although this smartphone is premium anyway. This particular Galaxy Note Edge Premium Edition will only be available for purchase in Germany beginning November 14.

In recognition to the fact that more than 120,000 customers voted for Samsung Galaxy Note Edge last week, the South Korean company decided to offer fans in Germany a nice surprise, a premium version of the phablet which won’t cost more than the standard mode. This means that starting tomorrow, November 14, those who want to purchase the Galaxy Note Edge will have to come up with no less than €900 ($1,120) upfront. The catch is that all customers who order the handset will receive the premium version without having to pay extra. Potential customers should know that the offer will only be available until December 31, 2014, or as stocks last. Beginning January 1, 2015, customers who order the Galaxy Note Edge smartphone in Germany will receive the regular version of the device.

But what sets the premium edition apart from the standard Galaxy Note Edge? Well, it looks like Samsung will add a few accessories into the mix, which are meant to make the phablet even more appealing despite its very high price.

The Premium Edition comes with free wallet flip cover, microSD card, more

The first thing that customers may want to know is that by ordering the Galaxy Note Edge in Germany, you will also receive a Wallet Flip cover and a 64GB Samsung EVO class 10 microSD card. More free goodies include a display cleaner and 3-year warranty for the phablet. But there’s more, as Samsung promised that the first 500 customers who order the Galaxy Note Edge in Germany will have the chance to win an exclusive tour of the company’s headquarters in the country, along with a dinner. Samsung will choose 20 winners for the Samsung Experience Day from the first 500 customers who purchase the Galaxy Note Edge, so if you want to see what the company’s HQ in Germany looks like, be sure to order the phablet as soon as it goes on sale tomorrow.

Speaking of which, Samsung announced that the Galaxy Note Edge will only be available for purchase through Samsung Online Store, so make sure you check the company’s webstore if you want to grab it later this week. It’s nice that Samsung shows its appreciation for all the fans who voted that the Galaxy Note Edge should be launched in Germany, and a few free accessories in the sales package seems like a very good deal.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge
Images credits to Samsung

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Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 WaterForce Tri-SLI Graphics Kit

If you’re a hardcore PC gamer, you'd better hold off on anything you’re doing and listen to this. Gigabyte has just rolled out an impressive graphics kit that will give you something to dream about.

The company has introduced the GeForce GTX 980 WaterForce Tri-SLI graphics kit, which is as badass as it sounds. Tri-SLI means that the bundle packs three high-end GTX 980 graphics cards, which should boost performance levels through the roof.

Gigabyte outs a massive graphics kit

The kit also comes with a disruptive box with a water-cooling system plumbed and ready to rock. So, given the levels of cooling bestowed on the bundle, you should be able to go crazy with overclocking. The enclosure comes equipped with a fan and each video card has a 120mm radiator of its own. The radiator enclosure benefits from a design that is meant to sustain high performance levels, better than most PC cases currently available on the market. The cooling system is quite massive and takes advantage of a lot of pumps to keep everything running smoothly. The digital display located in the front opens up a temp gauge, and there are probably other gauges as well. As a side note, the tubing system doesn’t go through the back of your PC, but instead through the top 5.25-inch drive bay, as you will be able to see in the gallery.

The kit allows multi-player on 4 separate displays

The system uses Gigabyte’s Flex display technology that can automatically detect and connect monitors, so users can enjoy multi-display gaming on up to 4 monitors at the same time via various output groups. Interestingly enough, Gigabyte is not offering a lot of hard facts about the new system, but is letting the images of the graphics kit speak for themselves. The GTX 980 video cards found inside are overclocked to be able to run at up to 1288MHz on the core, while memory speed is stock (7Gbps). When it comes to pricing, you should expect to pay quite a lot of cash for the GPU bundle. Consider that a single GTX 980 costs $550 / €440.

So even if Gigabyte hasn't said anything about the official pricing specifications, we can only assume that the cards will be sold for around $2,000 / €1,601. The official page for the GeForce GTX 980 WaterForce Tri-SLI graphics kit has already been set up, so we can only assume Gigabyte will announced the availability and pricing of this extreme gaming bundle soon enough.

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 WaterForce Tri-SLI is a massive graphics kit

GeForce GTX 980 WaterForce Tri-SLI case

GeForce GTX 980 WaterForce Tri-SLI tubing system

GeForce GTX 980 WaterForce Tri-SLI parts
Images credits to Gigabyte

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Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet Specs Leak to include 10.1-Inch QHD Screen, Snapdragon 810 SoC

Sony has just revealed its Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact back at IFA 2014 in Berlin. The new slate breaks the pattern of Sony’s recent tablet products, by being a tablet with a smaller form factor, that of 8-inch.

Well, even if just a few months passed since the tablet saw the light of day, information already surfaced about Sony’s upcoming slate, the Xperia Z4 Tablet.

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet surfaces with specs

The folks over at Android Origin managed to get a hold of the unannounced tablet’s specifications. It appears that the Xperia Z4 Tablet is going to mark a comeback to Sony’s usual tablet form factor, the 10.1-inch one. The tablet is going to bump up the resolution offered on the Xperia Z2 Tablet, which offered 1920 x 1200 resolution and deliver a QHD resolution instead (2560 x 1440 pixels). This way the tablet is going to be comparable with similar products like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5. The Japanese device maker is also rumored to be testing a 3840 x 2160 panel for the tablet, but the final version is most likely to be made available with a QHD resolution, rather than 4K. Sony is said to maintain their design language, although the Xperia Z4 will enjoy much thinner bezels than previous tablets from the company’s portfolio.

Borrowing from the Z3 Tablet Compact, the next-gen Sony tablet could end up sporting stereo speakers. Judging by what Sony has launched in the past tablet-wise, we can expect the Xperia Z4 Tablet to be one of the slimmest and lightest 10-inch Android tablets around. In all possibility, the unannounced Sony tablet will arrive with Android 5.0 Lollipop out of the box. Remember that back when it launched the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet was the skinniest tablet on the market, coming in at 6.4 mm / 0.25 inches, but got dethroned after Apple launched its iPad Air 2 and Dell its Venue 8 7000 Series.

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet to rely on Snapdragon 810

When it comes to internal specifications, the Xperia Z4 Tablet should arrive with a Snapdragon 810 Octa-Core chipset fitted with 4GB of RAM and backed up by 32GB of internal storage. In the photography department, the tablet should boast a 13MP camera with a higher resolution sensor, while in the front there will be an 8MP shooter. Recently, the rumor mill also said that Sony was working on a 12-inch tablet to be unveiled in the early months of 2015. But the Xperia Z4 Tablet is not it. So we should expect Sony’s professional business tablet to bear the Z5 moniker. Most likely.

New Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet coming soon

Sony Xperia Tablet Z launched at MWC 2013

Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet launched at MWC 2014

Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact was introduced at IFA 2014

PS4 Remote Play is available on the Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet
Images credits to Sony Mobile

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Vivo Xplay 5S Is in an Impossibly Thin, Just 3.94 mm Marvelous Smartphone

There’s a small percent of people that have ever heard about Vivo, but that’s about to change as the Chinese company will certainly make headlines in the next couple of weeks with its new product.

The so-called Xplay 5S is an impossibly thin smartphone that has yet to be officially confirmed by Chinese handset maker Vivo. The same company that announced the first handset to pack a Quad HD display is not back with what appears to be the world’s slimmest smartphone. Unlike the Oppo R5, which has been confirmed to be only 4.85mm thin, the unannounced Vivo Xplay 5s will be only 3.94mm thick. That’s thinner than the Vivo X5 Max, which was recently spotted at TENAA and measures 4.75mm. Well, not many customers would be willing to go with such a thin smartphone, which is why Vivo upped the game by adding a few top-notch specs that would make the Vivo Xplay 5S an interesting device, not just the slimmest on the market.

For example, GizChina reports Vivo’s upcoming smartphone is expected to boast an incredible 6-inch Quad HD display that supports 1440 x 2560 pixels resolution. In addition, Vivo’s PR team let it slip that the smartphone would be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 810 chipset, but it could very well be equipped with a Snapdragon 805 CPU as well.

Some of the Vivo Xplay 5S specs may have been exaggerated

Given the previous history of Vivo’s PR team, it’s hard to confirm that the pictures that leaked recently, along with details about the phone’s specs, could be legit. Which is why we strongly recommend our readers to take this piece of information with a grain of salt until the smartphone actually goes official. Moving on to the rest of the Xplay 5S’ specs, the smartphone is said to pack 3G of RAM and a 13-megapixel camera on the back, which features autofocus and LED flash. These are the most likely specs Vivo’s flagship handset could pack inside, but it remains to be seen what chipset it will run and if will be only 3.94mm thin.

Last but not least, the Xplay 5S is said to be powered by a high-capacity 3500 mAh battery, which should counter the high amount of energy the large Quad HD display usually requires. This isn’t the only Vivo smartphone leaked in the last couple of weeks. An unannounced Vivo Xplay X5 Maxx popped up online as well with similar hardware, which is why we think there may be some mixed specs between the two.

Vivo Xplay 5S vs. Mac Book Air

Vivo Xplay 5S

Vivo Xplay 5S back side

Vivo Xplay 5S bottom side

Vivo Xplay 5S alleged specs sheet
Images credits to mydrivers.com

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Motorola Launching New Moto G Smartphone with 64-Bit Snapdragon 410 CPU

Motorola newest flagship smartphone, the DROID Turbo, has already been confirmed for a worldwide rollout under a different name, but what about the company’s budget-friendly lineup?

The Moto G are among the most popular Android smartphones Motorola launched in the last few years and Motorola is not going to miss any opportunities to boost awareness around its mid-range handsets. So, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if Motorola launched yet another Moto G smartphone in the next couple of months. On the contrary, this is pretty obvious, so the only thing that we need to learn before the new smartphone is made official is what specs it will be packed with. Motorola fans will be pleased to know that the first possible specs of the next Moto G smartphone haves just been spotted by the folks over at Tom's Hardware in Geekbench benchmark. Unfortunately, the name of the device isn’t mentioned, but judging by the specs listed, it could only be a Moto G model.

Unlike previous models, the upcoming Moto G smartphone is expected to come packed with a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 chipset and 1GB of RAM.

The smartphone has been spotted running Android 4.4.4 KitKat OS

This is one of Qualcomm’s first 64-bit chipsets, and despite the fact that Google is trying to enforce the use of these 64-bit CPUs for its Lollipop OS, the next Moto G smartphone will run Android 4.4.4 KitKat operating system out of the box. However, there’s a chance that Motorola hasn’t been able to put the newest version of Android on the prototype, but by the time the new Moto G is announced, the US-based company may be able to include Lollipop from the beginning. If not, the yet-to-be-unveiled Moto G will surely receive an Android 5.0 Lollipop upgrade soon after release. Speaking of releasing the leaked mid-range smartphone, we don’t have any details on when exactly the smartphone may be launched, but it would be a great deal if Motorola were able to make it available just in time for the holidays.

Aside from the 64-bit chipset, the amount of RAM included and the OS it runs on, no other details on the Moto G appear in the benchmark. Still, since this is the first leak of the alleged new Moto G smartphone, we expect more info to emerge in the next few weeks, so stay tuned for more updates on the matter if you’re interested in Motorola’s upcoming mid-range handset.

Motorola Moto G 2nd Generation
Image credits to Motorola Mobility

Upcoming Moto G specs

Upcoming Moto G benchmark results

Upcoming Moto G benchmark results

Upcoming Moto G benchmark results
Images credits to Geekbench

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LG G3 Might Be the First Smartphone to Receive Android 5.0 Lollipop Update

Remember LG, the company that launched decent high-end smartphones and forgot to deliver major OS updates on time? Well, it looks like that company is here no more, but it emerges as a new one, close to achieving something that we thought only Motorola, Google or HTC would be capable of.

In a surprising move, LG Mobile officially announced that it would start rolling out the highly anticipated Android 5.0 Lollipop update for its flagship smartphone, the G3, this week. The South Korean handset maker confirmed the upgrade for LG G3 smartphones woukd start in Poland sometime this week, to be followed by other important markets in the near future. Unfortunately, it’s unclear how long it will take for the update to hit other countries, but from what we understand this is a staged rollout so it may last till the end of the year. In addition to the announcement regarding the Android 5.0 Lollipop update for the G3, LG also confirmed it would announce which devices would receive the upgrade and when it becomes available in local markets.

Although the announcement may surprise some, this is not the first time we hear about LG G3 and Android 5.0 Lollipop. Late last week, a few screenshots of the Android 5.0 Lollipop running on the LG G3 leaked online. “LG is absolutely committed to giving our customers the best mobile experiences available and bringing Android Lollipop to G3 owners as soon as possible is a top priority. The new features and improvements in Android 5.0 will bring a whole new user experience to the G3 and make it even better than it already is,” said Dr. Jong-seok Park, president and CEO of the LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company.

LG also confirmed more devices would receive the update in the near future

The real surprise is the fact that LG will be able to provide G3 users with an update so soon after Google offered the final version of Lollipop to OEMs. It will be interesting to see whether or not LG will start the rollout of the Android 5.0 Lollipop upgrade for the G3 ahead of Nexus 6’s release on the market, which is scheduled for November 12. Google’s flagship smartphone has been delayed for more than a week due to a critical bug related to the Wi-Fi connectivity. However, Google’s engineers managed to patch the issue last week, only a few days after it was discovered. All in all, this is not the first time that LG promised to bring a major update to one of its high-end smartphones, so let’s hope the company will deliver on that promise.

LG G3 and Android 5.0 Lollipop mascot

Android 5.0 Lollipop running on LG G3

Android 5.0 Lollipop running on LG G3

Android 5.0 Lollipop running on LG G3
Image credits to lifesgoodblog.pl

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ASUS X99-Pro Motherboard Is a Gorgeous White Wonder

The look of a motherboard may not be all that important, since they're usually hidden well inside cases and beneath all the other hardware used in a computer, but that's never stopped motherboard makers from beautifying their creations before, and ASUS isn't about to start cutting corners now.

The company has just released the X99-Pro motherboard, which can be considered the second best X99 chipset-based mainboard in the brand's lineup. That puts it behind the X99-Deluxe, whose appearance is quite similar, though not identical. The ASUS X99-Pro is intended as the mid-range option. Never mind that the chipset and associated Haswell-E CPUs are so overpowered that none of them can be considered anything less than top-tier equipment. Still, ASUS wanted a bit of variety and price differences even on this level, so that's what it has set out to deliver.

The ASUS X99-Pro motherboard specifications

The platform uses the ATX form factor and measures 12 x 9.6 inches / 305 x 244 mm. It has the Intel LGA 2011-3 socket (22nm CPU support, Core i7) wired to eight DIMM slots, for up to 64GB, DDR4 3300/3200/3000/2800/2666/2400/2133 MHz Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory. That's a lot, and it will increase to 128 GB in 2015 when there will finally be DIMMs with 16 GB of capacity per module. Graphics-wise, you can install up to three NVIDIA or AMD video cards and set them up in SLI / CrossFire configuration (x16, x16/x16, or x16/x16/x8). Then there's the wireless networking. The WLAN + Bluetooth controller on the X99-Pro is covered by a decorative white shroud that runs over the rear I/O area and covers the audio parts too.

Moving on, ASUS installed an ALC1150 8-Channel High Definition Audio CODEC with Crystal Surround 2, plus various other features that will enhance quality one way or another. Speaking of which, there are a whole bunch of ASUS “special features” as well, like 5X protection, an energy processing unit and HomeCloud, but they're too many to list them all. Seriously, they make up a category larger than all the others on the product page.

Availability and pricing

Sales of the X99-Pro motherboard should begin soon enough, if they haven't already, for $330 / €330. Buyers will be glad to know the blueprints made sure not to forget about USB 3.0, USB BIOS Flashback Button, or the PS/2 keyboard/mouse combo ports. Another motherboard, called X99-A should come as well, with fewer features, for the price of $275 / €275.

ASUS X99-Pro motherboard

ASUS X99-Pro motherboard, top view

ASUS X99-Pro motherboard, vertical view
Image credits to ASUS

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