You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Remember the allegation that Samsung cheats at benchmarks? Despite the manufacturer's semi-denials, there's growing evidence to suggest that not only Samsung, but also a number of other Android phone makers engage in some level of chicanery. Usually, it involves programming a device to temporarily ramp up its performance if it detects the launch of a benchmark test, regardless of the consequences for battery life or processor temperature. This results in a higher score on the artificial test, but one that is unrepresentative of what the device could actually achieve if it had to pace itself for a real-world task that lasted for a longer period of time -- such as a 20-minute bout of gaming.
So far, so bad. However, a startup called GameBench reckons there's another way. Its founders, who previously worked at chip companies like ARM and MediaTek, claim to have developed an "uncheatable" performance test that can be used to corroborate (or refute) the scores from traditional benchmarking apps, and which can help to rank Android phones and devices according to their true gaming capabilities. Although GameBench's app is still in beta and likely won't be released until the first quarter of next year, it has already collected scores for two devices, the HTC One and the Samsung Galaxy S 4. Ironically, as you're about to see, Samsung may actually have less to fear from this cheat-free test than some of its rivals.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung, HTC
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
And just like that, Samsung Gulf has announced the gold-trimmed Galaxy S 4, complemented by either brown or pink plastic for the guys and girls, respectively (dare we say it). We don't know whether these fresh editions will ever come to markets outside the Middle East, but Samsung's timing couldn't have been better. Meanwhile, we're still waiting on that gold HTC One.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung
Via: TheNextWeb, The Verge
Source: Samsung (Facebook), (Twitter)
Today's Unpacked event was all about Samsung's new Notes and its Galaxy Gear, but there's good news for folks with older hardware. Turns out, Android 4.3 is coming to the Galaxy S III and Galaxy S 4 in October along with the update that'll add Galaxy Gear functionality to the GS 4. Let's hope none of the Nexus gremlins made their way into Samsung's Galaxy.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung
For about a month now, HTC One owners have been able to enjoy MoDaCo's efforts to mix up the Android experience on the Taiwanese company's handset. But, hey, don't go thinking anyone forgot about Samsung's own flagship device, the Galaxy S 4. Available now to those who backed the campaign on Indiegogo, MoDaCo.Switch is giving the GS4 crowd a ROM to sense what it's like to seamlessly switch between the TouchWiz and AOSP versions of Android OS. It's worth noting that this particular ROM is only compatible with GSM models of the Galaxy S 4, and, as ever, creator Paul O'Brien notes it is a beta after all, so some issues may arise. In other words, backers must install at their own risk -- capiche?
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Samsung
Via: Android Police
Source: MoDaCo
Sprint's eggplant-colored Galaxy S III must have proven a hit, as the carrier is already following up with a version of the Galaxy S 4 in Purple Mirage. Like its ancestor, the purple GS4 is strictly a palette swap; the $200 you pay on contract still gets you a 16GB version of Samsung's familiar 2013 flagship, just in a more vibrant shade. If you're tired of conservative smartphone colors, though, you could do far worse than to buy Sprint's latest royal-hued smartphone... especially if you're a platinum-selling rocker from Minnesota.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung, Sprint
Source: Sprint
Benchmarks often catch the ire of critics because their scores don't necessarily reflect real-world experience, and it appears that some Samsung devices aren't helping that reputation out at all. Our friends at Anandtech started sifting through data for two Exynos octacore variants of the Galaxy S 4, and discovered multiple benchmarks that appear to run those devices at higher CPU and GPU clock speeds than they normally run. Some of the apps included in the report are GLBench 2.5.1, AnTuTu, Quadrant and Linpack. Coincidentally, the site also found code within the GS4 that indicates the existence of a program called "BenchmarkBooster," which is responsible for overclocking the processors when certain apps are running. Is this an evil plot by Samsung to take over the world using rogue benchmarking results? Is this something other manufacturers are doing? It's hard to say, but there is certainly something curious afoot. Check out the source to get all of the skinny on what exactly is going on.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Samsung
Via: 9to5google
Source: Anandtech
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.