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LG is about to launch a cool promotion in the US. It concerns early adopters of the Korean giant's latest flagship – the G4, which just recently went up for sale through major carriers.

As most of you surely know, one of the indisputable charms of the LG G4 is that it can be picked up with an exquisite stitched genuine leather back. It really makes the device stand out, but, naturally LG also offers a more-traditional plastic option as well. The good thing is, however, that you really don't have to choose, as unlike most other current flagships, the G4 has a removable back cover and you can easily pick one up, or why not a few for different occasions or simply for the long run, after they inevitably get some wear and tear?

LG intends to use this customization freedom to its full advantage and has announced that it will offer said leather backs in various colors, as a separate purchase. The promotion in question sounds pretty straightforward, if you preorder a leather back starting June 8 or purchase one before June 30, LG will throw in a second one for free.

Preorders start on June 8 and the offer stands until June 30. The price is $69.99 and you simply have to add two units to your shopping cart to get the promotion automatically on checkout. Shipping will take some time though and should begin after June 26.

Source |…

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Doogee, a Chinese smartphone manufacturer which is best known for its low cost devices, has come up with an interestingly sounding new smartphone dubbed S6000. It packs in a whopping 6000mah battery and it is promised to last for around 3-4 days of average use.

Specs-wise, the handset is powered by Mediatek's MT6735 64-bit SoC with an octa-core CPU clocked at 1.5GHz, and sports a 5.5-inch 720p display. It comes with 1GB RAM and 16GB expandable internal memory.

In terms of camera, the S6000 features an 8MP rear unit and a 5MP front shooter. It runs Android 5.1 Lollipop out of the box. The device is expected to launch in August this year, and carry a price tag of $139.99.

Via | Image…

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Asus' handset business started generating profits in May, according to a DigiTimes report, which also revealed that the company sold a total of more than 1.5 million smartphones last month.

It's worth mentioning that the Taiwanese company's Zenfone 2 smartphone, which was originally unveiled at CES back in January this year, went on sale in the US and Canada last month.

As per the report, Asus is expecting its smartphone shipments to hit the 2 million mark this month, as well as the sales of its newly announced ZenFone Selfie smartphone (shown in image above) to pick up next…

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The Microsoft Lumia 640, which was announced back in March at this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC) along with its larger brother – the Lumia 640 XL, will be launched by T-Mobile on June 17.

The information comes from a leaked internal memo which says the device will have a limited release in select locations only, although customers will be able to place orders at all other T-Mobile stores and have the handset shipped directly to them. There was, however, no word on pricing.

It's worth mentioning that the carrier had earlier confirmed that the Lumia 640, which will be one of the first devices to receive the Windows 10 for Phones update, will be available via all its channels starting July…

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Sprint quietly began seeding Android 5.1.1 Lollipop to LG G Flex 2. The the curved smartphone recently got the same same treatment in Korea.

The new firmware for the smartphone sports the version number LS996ZV6 and is the latest Android Lollipop iteration Google has to offer. The search giant recently finished updating its own lineup of Nexus devices to Android 5.1.1.

As its release number suggests, Android 5.1.1 offers bug fixes and minor improvements over Android 5.1. Factory reset protection is also included in the update.

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We know, the Apple Watch is not even available yet for purchase in brick and mortar stores, and Apple has already announced version 2.0 of its Watch OS. And it would make the Watch a lot more usable.

At the opening keynote speech of Apple WorldWide Developers Conference – better known as WWDC, we saw a bunch of new features that Watch OS 2.0 will be bringing and some of them are game changers.

Watch core changes

The biggest change is the fact that apps will now be able to run natively on the Apple Watch – with the main app logic being executed on the Watch itself instead on the iPhone. The Apple Watch will also be able to connect directly to known Wi-Fi networks on its own when your iPhone is not around to share its internet connection.

With apps now running natively on the Watch, developers will be able to access the hardware components on the phone allowing for some great app functionality.

For instance, access to the Watch mic will allow voice dictation or sending voice messages on instant messengers such as WeChat.

Access to the loudspeaker will allow for apps to playback sound through it or to your Bluetooth headset.

Video playback support will allow you watch videos on apps like Vine.

HomeKit integration means you will be able to control all home automation hardware at home.

Native HealthKit support will allow apps like Strava to show your pedaling heart rate as you go.

Accelerometer access will allow apps to analyze your gestures and swings in sport games where that's important.

Devs will also get access to the Taptic Engine, which vibrates when giving feedback of an action, and also to the digital crown, allowing it to be used for scrolling across all interfaces.
Watch UI changes

One of the more eye-catching changes on Watch OS 2.0 concerns the customizable watch faces. Now you can set up custom images as a wallpaper for your watch faces or choose one of the short looped timelapse videos provided by Apple.

Another change to custom time faces is the option to choose the info add-ons that will be featured – Apple calls those complications. With Watch OS 2.0 you can choose which complications are featured on the custom watchface.

Next up is TimeTravel, the option to scroll through your agenda for the day using the digital crown on the Watch.

The Apple Watch will now have a new night clock mode while it's charging. You can even set an alarm on it and Snooze it by pressing the digital crown.

The list of Friends is no longer limited to only 12 people. There is still going to be only 12 friends visible at a time but you can create extra sets, each consisting of a dozen. And also you can add new friends to the sets straight from the watch.

On Watch OS 2.0 the doodles you send to people can be in several colors.

You can also reply to emails and messages straight from the watch – a glaring omission in the current revision of the OS.

You will also be able to pick up FaceTime Audio calls straight from the watch.

Siri will now be able to start workouts for you in the Fitness app upon an easy voice command.

The Apple Pay integration will be expanded to include Store loyalty cards so your Apple Watch will substitute those whenever you shop.

Of course, the newly introduced iOS9 transit directions will also be available on your watch.

Conclusion

While some of these changes are minute and only visual, other concern the core of how the Apple Watch operates. It's like watching the Apple iPhone development through the years but at much quicker pace. While the jury is still out on the need for smartwatches in general, it's good to see Apple for once taking care of the numerous critiques their watch is…

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Apple opened today's WWDC event with the new Mac OS X and took a while to get to the most important part (for us) – iOS 9. Actually Mac OS X and iOS share some improvements, like a focus on security, but first things first.

iOS 9 will go into public beta next month and be available as a free update this fall. The new features are not as numerous as we're used to see but here are the most important points.

Siri

Apple calls the new Siri proactive, it is now contextually aware and will offer help without you even having to ask. Overall it sounds a whole lot like Google Now (on Tap).

Siri keeps track of the time of day, your location and connected devices. So plugging in your headphones at home can do one thing (say, open the music player), connecting to your car's Bluetooth will do something else (e.g. go to an audio book).

The digital assistant will also keep an eye on your emails and note invitations. If it sees heavy traffic on the road to your next meeting, it will pop up an early reminder so you get going on time.

Siri now lives on the homescreen in the left pane. Everything it has learned allows it to offer you relevant contextual suggestions – contacts and apps, nearby locations and breaking news.

It takes over searching duties too and can even search inside apps showing relevant info in cards. The results are deep-linked, meaning you can tap and be taken into the app right to the content you need. Tap back and you're on the homescreen again.

Siri can even act as a sort of caller ID by scanning your emails. When you receive a call from an unknown number, you'll see a suggestion on the screen who the caller might be assuming you've had email correspondence with the person.

It's important to note that the scanning takes place on the phone – this way things are kept private, instead of being sent to a centralized server that would rummage through your mail. This was a less than subtle swipe at how Google Now works.

Multitasking

Apple changed up the app switcher, now you see recent apps as 3D cards similar to Android Lollipop's switcher but with bigger cards.

The bigger news, however, is split-screen multitasking, which is available only on iPads for now (sorry, iPhone 6 Plus users). It comes in two levels and the basic one is Slide Over.

Slide Over lets you dock an app on the side of the screen for a quick interaction. You can swipe from the top to view a list of other apps that can go into the side panel.

The more advanced feature is called Split View. In Slide Over the main app is greyed out, but in Split View both apps get to work simultaneously. You can switch between apps, change the split ratio and tap into links (e.g. a web address or a map address) and the relevant app will pop up, also in Split View.

Video apps like ESPN get an additional option – play the video in a small, floating window that you can move and resize, while using other apps as normal.

Apple promises support for these functions is pretty easy, since a lot of the work is already done with Auto Layout and Size Classes for iPhone 6/6 Plus versions of the app.

Now some bad news – the iPhones are left out, but so are older iPads. Slide Over will be available on tablets from iPad Air and iPad mini 2 and up. The more powerful Split View will be available only on the iPad Air 2.

Maps

Apple updated Maps to support public transit. It supports everything from buses to ferries, even including walking directions between stops. Apple even mapped out big subway stations so Maps can lead you to the next place even underground.

Wherever you go, interesting nearby locations can be viewed with a single tap. And Apple has placed a clear indication if that location supports Apple Pay.

The Transit support will launch in a number of US countries, along with London, Toronto, Mexico city, plus a whole lot of Chinese cities.

Typing

Apple is bringing additional enhancements to the iPad with the updated keyboard, which Apple calls QuickType. It now shows shortcuts for common actions like cut/copy/paste. The keyboard also doubles as a trackpad, you can use two fingers to move the cursor and select text like you would on a laptop without even reaching to the text box.

iPads also support actual, physical keyboards and iOS 9 will make it easy to discover helpful shortcuts,…

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