galaxy

Best Samsung Galaxy S4 cases

Editors' note: This post was updated May 10, 2013, with eight new products, including cases from Ballistic, Bear Motion, Boxwave, Cygnett, Tech21, and X-Doria. Two cases were removed from the list.

iPhone owners have always had a variety of cases and covers to choose from, but the Samsung Galaxy S3 and S4 are among the few ultrapopular Android smartphones that have spurred cottage industries of cases and covers.

In boiling down the best of what's currently out there, I tried to provide a good mix of well-designed, affordable cases with more-expensive models that offer some unique attributes.

One thing … Read more

Samsung reveals 7-inch Galaxy Tab 3

Today, Samsung revealed the Galaxy Tab 3, a 7-inch tablet, a slim mobile device that may be able to directly compete with the smaller tablet ranges offered by rivals Apple, Amazon, and Google.

The South Korean electronics maker's latest tablet offering sports a 1024x600 pixel screen -- although perhaps underwhelming at today's standards -- but is able to support full 1080p HD playback. The Galaxy Tab 3 is powered by a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, and is available with either 8GB or 16GB of storage and 1GB of RAM.

In addition, Samsung's new mobile device comes with … Read more

Samsung Galaxy S4 shootout versus HTC One, iPhone 5

Samsung has absolutely stuffed its Galaxy S4's 13-megapixel camera with settings and modes, but none of that matters if the phone's image quality can't stand up to the hype.

And so, here is a smartphone shootout between the Galaxy S4's top Android rival, the HTC One, and another beacon of smartphone photographic excellence, the iPhone 5.

One important thing to note is that all three phones have very different sensors. The Galaxy S4 hosts a 13-megapixel camera, and the iPhone 5 has an 8-megapixel shooter. For its part, the HTC One has what it calls an … Read more

The fastest Android gaming tablets

The development of new chips that deliver zippier performance, smoother gaming, faster Web surfing, and longer-lasting battery life will soon make their way into new Android tablets. While the chips themselves -- and the high-end tablets that will house them -- have yet to be released, we have it on good authority that they'll deliver on their promise.

Gaming is an increasingly popular way tablet owners are spending time with their devices, and chip makers are paying attention. The gaming experience on Android tablets has improved in just the last year, and it's bound to only get faster, … Read more

Galaxy S4 wins high marks for repairability from iFixit

Don't worry, the Samsung Galaxy S4 is easy to repair and disassemble.

The folks at iFixit gave Samsung's phone an eight out of 10 for repairability, citing its removable battery and straightforward assembly.

The company noted that Samsung "didn't reinvent the wheel" with the Galaxy S4, but noted that from a repairability perspective, that was a good thing.

"Samsung is doing the right thing for their customers and the environment," iFixit said about the battery.

The teardown uncovered how the Galaxy S4 reads hand movements. The phone has two infrared sensors on either … Read more

Samsung plans a hard-core Galaxy S4, says report

Samsung wants you to be able to take a Galaxy device with you wherever you may roam... or swim, or sandboard.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, the Korean monolith plans to release a variant of the much anticipated Galaxy S4 Android smartphone dubbed the Galaxy S4 Active that will be waterproof and dust proof but still have the same look and feel as the flagship S4.

The report, which cites an anonymous source, also says Samsung plans a new 8-inch Galaxy tablet and a smaller, 4.3-inch version of the Galaxy S4.

All this, while unconfirmed, seems in … Read more

Even Wall Street is left impressed with the HTC One

Will the HTC One be HTC's savior? Some Wall Street analysts are starting to come around to the idea.

HSBC upgraded the company's investment rating on Friday, citing the impressive flagship phone, according to MarketWatch. The ratings change comes after another firm, Daiwa, also raised its ratings and recommended buying the stock.

HTC has had a tough go at it recently, with sales and profits sinking with each successive quarter. On a marketing and distribution basis, Samsung and Apple have it completely outgunned, and its market share position remains anemic, not even breaching the top five smartphone vendors. … Read more

Friday Poll: Is the Galaxy S4 your top smartphone?

There's a newcomer hanging around town. It has 5 spacious inches of screen space. It flaunts a 13-megapixel camera. You can't deny the allure of its 2,600mAh battery. All those specs may put it one up on its competitors, at least on paper. But just because the Samsung Galaxy S4 wants to be top dog, doesn't mean the other guys aren't going to put up a fight.

The lead contenders to challenge the Galaxy S4 for the smartphone throne are the iPhone 5, the HTC One, and the BlackBerry Z10. They all have their claims … Read more

See the Samsung S Translator app in action

We put the S Translator app found on the new Samsung Galaxy S4 in action in the below video, and tested out two phrases in different languages. The first is, "Excuse me, where is the hospital?" and the second is, "Let's go to the mall."

Our verdict: It's not too bad, but you will need a data connection for this to work. Which means that if you're traveling, you will need to pay for a data roaming plan to make full use of this (or hope to get on free Wi-Fi networks).

In this scenario, it's probably better to use an offline-capable app such as Google Translate, which works just as well for the basic phrases we used and features an offline mode for when you need to travel overseas. … Read more

Set up Reading Mode on the Galaxy Note 8

Using a tablet as an e-reader can save you money and lighten your load while on the go. Unfortunately, a lot of tablets aren't optimized for reading text for long periods of time (like e-books, RSS feeds, or just long Web posts) and may cause mild eyestrain. Luckily, the Galaxy Note 8 comes with a feature to help solve this issue: Reading Mode.

However, Reading Mode isn't turned on for all of your apps by tapping on the icon in the notification panel. Why doesn't this mode work in all apps by default? No idea, but fixing … Read more