Apple adds Samsung’s Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note and Galaxy Note 10.1 to ongoing patent lawsuit

The Apple v. Samsung patent war that will seemingly never end has taken another turn today, as Apple is asking the court to add newer Samsung Galaxy hardware, including the Galaxy S III, Verizon Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note and Galaxy Note 10.1 to its complaint against the Galaxy Nexus and other related devices. If you thought updated software and designs would keep these newer smartphones and tablets out of the fight -- you were wrong. Just to help you keep things straight, remember this is a separate case from the one that ended exactly a week ago with a decision in Apple's favor to the tune of more than $1 billion in damages.

At issue here are eight of Apple's utility patents that it says Samsung has infringed upon. The headliner patents at issue are '721 which covers slide to unlock, and '604, which could apply to the universal search feature Samsung has been pulling from its phones recently. Another familiar entry is the '647 patent Apple slapped HTC with in 2010, which has a vague description but applies to clicking on a phone number in an email, for example, to call it. You can read the details on each and every one in the PDF linked below, we'll be doing... anything else.

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Apple adds Samsung's Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note and Galaxy Note 10.1 to ongoing patent lawsuit originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Aug 2012 21:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile’s latest Galaxy S II update silently removed ‘universal search’ feature

TMobile's latest Galaxy S II update quietly nixed 'universal search' feature

As you may or may not know, there's been an issue related to the universal search feature inside a region-specific batch of Samsung Galaxy S IIIs; with the Korean company going as far as "inadvertently" removing it from some Euro handsets a while back, before eventually bringing it back to life. Now, thanks to great, thorough inspecting by the folks from Android Police, it appears T-Mobile's S II flavor is the latest galactic slab to have such searching trait completely wiped out from the device. Apparently, this took place during the T989UVLH1 update from T-Mo a couple of days ago, but much to everyone's surprise, mentions of any "universal search" tweaks were nowhere to be found on the changelog. More importantly, how's it looking on your end? Do let us know in the comments below.

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T-Mobile's latest Galaxy S II update silently removed 'universal search' feature originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Aug 2012 18:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung Galaxy S III recovers universal search box in OTA update to European handsets

Samsung promised -- and it's already delivered. Galaxy S III-toting Brits should wake up to yet another OTA update for their smartphone, which throws in some stability improvements alongside the returning universal search feature that polls your phone's entire contents for results. Users can check their settings menu for the lightweight 5MB download now.

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Samsung Galaxy S III recovers universal search box in OTA update to European handsets originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 07:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung: Galaxy S III’s universal search function ‘inadvertently removed’, will return to UK models in the next few days

After being unceremoniously stripped in a recent OTA update, Samsung has told TechRadar that the Galaxy S III's universal search function will return -- at least in the UK. A spokesperson for Samsung said that the "inadvertent removal" will be remedied in the "correct software upgrade" over the next few days. It sends a mixed message on why the feature was removed in the first place -- and makes us wonder whether the search box will ever return to the Sprint iteration any time soon. Still, it's good news for anyone that's having trouble keeping tabs on all those Angry Birds iterations. Gotta finish 'em all.

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Samsung: Galaxy S III's universal search function 'inadvertently removed', will return to UK models in the next few days originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Jul 2012 10:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung Galaxy S III update sheds universal search feature on international model

The Sprint flavor of Samsung's latest flagship isn't the only one to feel the gentle tug of patent warfare. According to Android Central (and several XDA Developers forum members), the latest OTA update for the international (i9300) version also does away with the universal search function, which browses your phone's contacts and apps for results -- and drew Apple's ire. The new search box now offers web-only results, with the 27MB update also tinkering with the default browser layout. You may also find yourself back using Samsung's homemade keyboard UI after resetting -- though this can be quickly remedied in settings. Reduced functionality aside, if you like your smartphones legally sound, the update can be grabbed through the phone or Samsung's Kies software.

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Samsung Galaxy S III update sheds universal search feature on international model originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jul 2012 05:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung drops universal search from Sprint’s Galaxy S III

Sprint's latest OTA update to its new flagship jewel, the Galaxy S III, addressed some security niggles, but the download remained otherwise fuzzy on the details. It now appears the update also nixes the universal search function, meaning the handy box now directs to the web upon entry. It's likely a response to recent legal hairpulling between Apple and the Samsung-made Galaxy Nexus -- a phone which has the very same search capabilities. As Android Central notes, those looking to return the search option can hit up a download of the previous version in their forums. Visit the source to grab it while you can.

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Samsung drops universal search from Sprint's Galaxy S III originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Jul 2012 12:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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