from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1MxTaIX
via IFTTT

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1T3JaeY
via IFTTT

Most people nowadays tend to go for carrier-subsidized deal on smartphones. It just seems logical since you are already paying for a subscription to a certain company and most people would prefer spacing out such a huge expense. This is definitely applicable for iPhones, especially in the US, which is why Apple has carrier plans listed as a first choice on its website.

Recently, however, the AT&T subscription plan has undergone some changes. The iPhone 6 now comes with an AT&T Next subscription, instead of a two year contract. If you haven't heard of the payment plan, it is essentially getting a phone on credit. AT&T subsidizes the purchase and offers you to pay it back over 12, 18 or 14 months. At the same time, you are not bound to any carrier and can switch providers at will.

This means that the AT&T unit is essentially SIM Free, but, as expected, interest does ramp up the overall price. The phone starts at $21.64 per month for a 16GB model and goes up to $24.97 and $28.30 for the 64GB and 128GB version, respectively. The iPhone 6 Plus comes with a similar deal at $24.97, $28.30 and $31.64. The figures do go up if you opt for a longer payment period.

The new AT&T offer is already live at apple.com and should also apply at brick and mortar stores.

Source |…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1MdTVpW
via IFTTT

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1F1kJUO
via IFTTT

Mobile payments are well on their way to becoming the next big tech trend, whether we like it or not. Apple Pay has been at the forefront of the technology, investing heftily in the system, despite retailer distrust and numerous technical and legal issues.

In fact, Cupertino has managed to be so persuasive that a lot of banks and card issuers have already agreed to enroll for the platform and also give Apple as much as 0.15% fee of the value of each card transaction. Tallied up, this amounts to a tremendous revenue, which Google expected to get in on with Android Pay, announced in late May. This, however, seems a lot less-likely after Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. recently took steps to standardize their tokenization security system, essentially preventing payment services from charging fees to issuers. This could put Google's new mobile payment service at quite a disadvantage.

For anyone unfamiliar with tokenization – it is essentially a clever method of substituting sensitive personal and authentication data with a unique string of data, which holds no evident information in itself, but can be used to authenticate a customer in front of a trusted party. The whole tokenization scheme is absolutely vital for making secure mobile payments. Now Visa and MasterCard have insured it is free to use. And, considering their tremendous influence in the payment realm, the idea is sure to catch on quick.

But not all is lost for Google and Android Pay. According to analysts the lack of intermittent fees might give the payment platform quite an edge among banks and card issuers. Furthermore, if there is one thing Google knows best, that is how to monetize from a user base of essentially free services. One estimate states that a single Android Pay user could be worth as much as $300 a year, mostly for advertising and marketing purposes. Google also plans to introduce coupons, promotions and other perks to users, which can bring even more indirect income.

Meanwhile, nobody is quite certain what will happen to Apple's current contracts and payment fees. They might be waved sooner or later, but, considering the infancy of Apple Pay, most contracts with banks and card issuer still have about two years until they expire. Samsung Electronics is also affected by the issues, as the Korean giant made it clear that it is also developing a mobile payment system of its…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1FAwFi1
via IFTTT

Mobile payments are well on their way to becoming the next big tech trend, whether we like it or not. Apple Pay has been at the forefront of the technology, investing heftily in the system, despite retailer distrust and numerous technical and legal issues.

In fact, Cupertino has managed to be so persuasive that a lot of banks and card issuers have already agreed to enroll for the platform and also give Apple as much as 0.15% fee of the value of each card transaction. Tallied up, this amounts to a tremendous revenue, which Google expected to get in on with Android Pay, announced in late May. This, however, seems a lot less-likely after Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. recently took steps to standardize their tokenization security system, essentially preventing payment services from charging fees to issuers. This could put Google's new mobile payment service at quite a disadvantage.

For anyone unfamiliar with tokenization – it is essentially a clever method of substituting sensitive personal and authentication data with a unique string of data, which holds no evident information in itself, but can be used to authenticate a customer in front of a trusted party. The whole tokenization scheme is absolutely vital for making secure mobile payments. Now Visa and MasterCard have insured it is free to use. And, considering their tremendous influence in the payment realm, the idea is sure to catch on quick.

But not all is lost for Google and Android Pay. According to analysts the lack of intermittent fees might give the payment platform quite an edge among banks and card issuers. Furthermore, if there is one thing Google knows best, that is how to monetize from a user base of essentially free services. One estimate states that a single Android Pay user could be worth as much as $300 a year, mostly for advertising and marketing purposes. Google also plans to introduce coupons, promotions and other perks to users, which can bring even more indirect income.

Meanwhile, nobody is quite certain what will happen to Apple's current contracts and payment fees. They might be waved sooner or later, but, considering the infancy of Apple Pay, most contracts with banks and card issuer still have about two years until they expire. Samsung Electronics is also affected by the issues, as the Korean giant made it clear that it is also developing a mobile payment system of its…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1Is4KXE
via IFTTT

The Android 5.1.1 Lollipop update has started rolling out to Android One smartphones in India. The devices that are receiving the update include the Micromax Canvas A1, Spice Dream UNO Mi-498, and Karbonn Sparkle V – all of them currently run Android 4.4 (KitKat).

The over-the-air (OTA) update weighs in at around 11.8MB and carries a build number of LMY47V. If you haven't received it yet, you can manually check for it by heading to Settings -> About Phone -> System Updates on your device.

As you might already know, the Android 5.1.1 update isn't a major one, as it is primarily aimed at fixing bugs and improving performance and stability. It does, however, bring the Lollipop experience to the aforementioned devices.
Via 1 | Via…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1KgtiSF
via IFTTT

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1GqB9gK
via IFTTT

Just a few weeks after there were reports that the Android 5.1 update for the Motorola Droid Turbo will arrive in mid-June, it is now being said that the update – bearing build number 23.11.23 – will be released on June 10.

The update will be released in waves, which means that it may take some time to reach your device. However, if you feel impatient, you can also check for it manually by heading to Settings > System Updates on your handset.

If you aren't in the know, Sony also recently announced that it will bring the latest available Android 5.1 Lollipop to several of its…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1G1neKV
via IFTTT

Another week just flew by and things were quit busy in the mobile world. Our news section was buzzing with interesting headlines, so let's have a quick look at the stories that you, out loyal readers, found to be the most interesting this week.

Samsung, Samsung everywhere! The Korean tech giant has been dominating the news yet again. During the week, we saw a glimpse of what is allegedly a bigger version of the Galaxy S6 edge, dubbed S6 Plus. The leaked photos and the device itself is shrouded with a lot of mystery, but rumors are that it is, in fact, coming in the following weeks, boasting a 5.5-inch display and aiming straight for the middle ground between the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note series.

The S6 Active has also had a major presence in the rumor mill. The rugged version of the current flagship has even appeared in a few photos, so, it should be on the way soon, as well.

On a more financial note, there has been quite a lot of speculation about the success of Samsung's current pair of flagship device and, by extension, the condition of the business itself. The S6 and S6 edge seems to be selling well enough, but, perhaps, there might be more to the story than what meets the eye. One way or the other, we should get a clear idea of just how good the smartphones are doing once official sales reports come in.

But enough about Samsung. The past few days witnessed a few device announcements. The HTC One ME was made official, at least in China, that is. The high-end device runs on MediaTek's brand new Helio X10 SoC and boasts an impressive specs sheet. The Meizu m2 note is another newcomer. The successor to the quite-successful m1 note has truly managed to preserve all the great features on its predecessor and even improve on some. All, while retaining a tantalizing sub-$200 price tag. Last, but not least, Asus announced a new selfie-centric phone with a 13MP front-facing camera, quite naturally dubbed ZenFone Selfie.

Various leaks, rumors and speculations have also been pouring in about an array of other devices. We saw an exclusive look at XOLO's new brand – Black and the first device in its lineup. Also, Gionee has been working hard on not one, but three new offers. The Elife E8 should impress with a 23MP camera, while the M4 and the M5 have batteries of astounding capacity.

The Meizu's MX5 also got portrayed in a few new pictures and Xiaomi is promising another device announcement on June 10. There has been more talk of a new 4-inch iPhone, so, that possibility seems to be on the table yet again.

In other news, the Lollipop update frenzy is still on. Things seem to have shifted towards ironing out bugs in already updated devices, rather than newcomers to Google's latest OS, but, still, updates are flying all over the place. It is a good thing too, as Android M is already on the way and manufacturers and developers really need to keep up.

If you think you might have missed something from the busy week, here is a list of what you, our readers, found most interesting in the tech world.

.news-item .n-left {
float: left;
width: 16%;
text-align: center;
margin-left: -13px;
}
.news-item .n-right {
float: left;
width: 84%;
}
.news-item a { padding-bottom: 0; padding-left: 0; }
.news-item .n-right h2,
.reviews-item .n-right h2 {
clear: both;
padding: 0 0 3px 0px;
font: 400 19px Oswald, Arial;
margin-top: -4px;
}
.n-right p {
line-height: 155%;
}
.news-item {
padding-top: 20px;
padding-bottom: 10px;
border-top: 1px solid #ccc;
}
.news-item p { margin-left: 0; }
.n-right h2 a {
text-decoration: none;
color: #000;
}

Could this be the upcoming 5.5-inch Galaxy S6 Plus
A couple of leaked shots claim to showcase the upcoming super-sized Galaxy S6 Plus.

Exclusive: First look at the upcoming XOLO Black phone
XOLO is launching a online-only sub-brand in India next month, with this being the first device.

HTC One ME goes official with MediaTek Helio X10 SoC
The high-end smartphone will hit the shelves in China in three color schemes.

Galaxy S6 Plus rumoured to be unveiled in coming weeks
The device, which is internally code-named as Project Zero 2, was earlier said to be announced at…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1GewYTf
via IFTTT