Spring electronics fair and ICT Expo open in Hong Kong

More than 3,300 exhibitors from 25 countries and regions will take part in two major trade fairs opening Sunday, 13 April, and continuing through 16 April, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC).
The 11th HKTDC Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Spring Edition) and the 11th HKTDC International ICT Expo will showcase a wide array of products and services in the electronics and ICT industries.
The Electronics Fair, Asia's largest spring electronics show, will present two new thematic zones: 3D Printing and i-World, offering the latest 3D printers, smart devices and accessories, including wearable electronics items.

Samsung says future of smartphone technology is evolution, not revolution

TORONTO — If tech reviewers say Samsung's new Galaxy S5 isn't as awe-inspiring as some of the company's older phones that's fine with Paul Brennan.

The senior vice-president of mobile and enterprise for Samsung Canada admits it's getting harder to wow tech-savvy consumers with each new release.

And so Samsung is content to focus on constantly improving its core features and sprinkling some new ones into each new model, rather than swinging for the fences every time.

Amazon to unveil its smartphone in June: Report

Amazon.com Inc is preparing to launch its long-rumored smartphone in the second half of the year, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people briefed on the company's plans.
The Internet retailer would jump into a crowded market dominated by Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.
The company has recently been demonstrating versions of the handset to developers in San Francisco and Seattle.
It intends to announce the device in June and ship to stores around the end of September, the newspaper cited the unidentified sources as saying.

Samsung magic stays with the latest Galaxy S5

Samsung’s latest Galaxy device made good on its pre-launch hype and promise to deliver, racking up healthy numbers on its first official sales day in the UAE. 

The Galaxy S5 smartphone, the newest in the South Korean tech giant’s highly-successful flagship range, hit UAE shelves on Friday, and as in the past, consumers made their way to retailers.

“The reception has been very positive and encouraging,” Manish Arora, head of the Samsung Business Unit at Jacky’s, told Khaleej Times by telephone on Friday. Major UAE electronics retailer Jacky’s now manages three Samsung-branded stores in Dubai.

Latest electronics, components topbill South Korea exhibits

The fair will showcase updated selections of terminal devices, accessories and components.

Korea Sourcing Fair: Electronics & Components is returning to Hong Kong this April. The spring edition of the world’s fastest-growing consumer electronics trade event will run from Apr. 12 to 15, 2014 at the AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong.

During the show’s four-day run, exhibitors from South Korea will lay out the latest electronics releases. The selections include consumer electronics, computer, networking, telecom and security products, and corresponding accessories. Various electronic components will also be on display.

The Korea Sourcing Fair: Electronics & Components is colocated with the China Sourcing Fair: Electronics & Components, which is combined with the new Mobile & Wireless show. Visitors can also check out the trade event on security products.

The Hong Kong shows boast 90 percent exclusive exhibitors and a total 4,100 product booths.

Sony Electronics Announces The Latest In Fuel Technology

Sony Electronics, the leader in innovation, announced the latest in fuel gadgets, Sony Power Food, a new way to keep your Sony gadgets charged anytime, anywhere without being constrained by traditional power sources. Now, the same types of fuel you use to power yourself – cake, cereal and energy bars – can be used to power your favorite electronics without hassle.
In today's world, our lives typically revolve around two things: connectivity and portability.

The Xbox One is the best next-gen console right now and here’s why

Microsoft’s Xbox One continues to face an uphill battle after the “Xbox 180″ PR fiasco leading up to the console’s release. While the PlayStation 4 outsells the Xbox One on a weekly basis, the PS4 has sold 6.9 million units and the Xbox One has only sold 4.2 million in total, in reality, Microsoft’s video game playing machine is the best next-gen console choice right now, especially in Canada.
Uncharted title or anything related to The Last of Us, will warrant purchasing a PS4 in the future.

Magic 2015 Not Coming To PlayStation

ORIGINAL STORY: Magic 2015: Duels of the Planeswalkers was revealed via a teaser trailer on Thursday. On Friday, fans got their first look at screenshots as well as information regarding what systems it will be launching on.
The game is expected to launch this summer alongside the release of the Magic 2015 core set for the game’s physical card players.

Facebook's latest multi-billion buy: 3D gaming company Oculus

Facebook continues to blow through billions of cash like wildfire, likely causing many analysts and investors to question what the end goal is.

The finish line (if there is one) is not just solidifying Facebook as a preeminent social media company, but rather as a social media empire.

The world's largest social network confirmed the acquisition, worth approximately $2 billion, in an announcement after the closing bell on Tuesday.

EA Announces E3 2014 Press Conference Date

Electronic Arts has confirmed that it’s annual press conference at E3 2014 will take place on Monday, June 9 inside of the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium.
EA didn’t mention what games it might show off at this year’s conference, but it’s expected that fans will get a glimpse into Mirror’s Edge 2, the new Star Wars title and, as per usual, a bevvy of EA Sports titles.
E3 2014 runs from June 10-12 with pre-show conferences taking place on Monday, June 9.

PAX East: In The Crew, America is Your Playground

The Crew, Ubisoft’s upcoming open-world MMO racer, is built around some of the wildest scope I’ve ever seen in a video game. At its reveal at E3 2013, Ubisoft declared that you’d be able to race across the entire breadth of America. From the Atlantic to the Pacific, you’d be able to jam through major cities, go off road wherever you desired, and experience a map the size of which hasn’t been seen before in the racing genre. Obviously, a lot of us took that bold claim with a grain of salt; there was no way the game could be that big...right?

Facebook to require separate mobile app for messages

Facebook began notifying users in France, England and several other European countries on Wednesday that beginning in a couple of weeks they will need to install the company's standalone Messenger app in order to send and receive messages.

Facebook plans to eventually require that users in all countries install the Messenger app, spokesman Derick Mains said, though he could not provide a specific timeframe for the change.
The move is intended to ensure that users have a consistent and high-quality experience, a Facebook spokesman told Reuters. The free, standalone Messenger app is faster than the messaging service that's currently built into Facebook's primary mobile app.

App use dominates mobile browser use, but what does that mean for news content?

The latest report from Flurry shows mobile users are spending the vast majority of their time with mobile apps, not with mobile Web browsers. So far in 2014, iOS and Android users have spent 86 percent of time with their devices using apps, up from 80 percent in 2013.
That certainly reflects how airlines, food delivery services, ride-sharing startups, and of course Facebook have embraced native apps over the mobile Web, to the delight of users. But the takeaway might be different for news organizations, whose apps still account for a rather small slice of time spent on mobile:

Apple’s latest patent application: Smart headphones that recognize your voice

A patent application from Apple, published Thursday and first pointed out by Apple Insider, describes headphones that know when the user is speaking and provide new kinds of noise suppression.

The application, # 20140093093, specifically describes a “system and method for detecting a user’s voice activity using an accelerometer.” Initially filed in March of last year, it was published today by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as part of the standard review process.

More than 60 per cent of Amazon Appstore downloads in February were games

Ames continue to be the most downloaded category on Apple, Google and Amazon’s mobile stores, a new report by Distimo suggests.
The mobile research firm reports that approximately 41 per cent of worldwide downloads/installs last month on both Apple’s App Store and the Google Play store were apps categorised as games.

The Last of Us PS4 turns the graphics up to 11, Naughty Dog says

The Last of Us Remastered for the PlayStation 4 will be a visually stunning experience, Naughty Dog co-president Evan Wells said about the game's visual fidelity in a new interview."The graphic fidelity has been turned up to eleven. We've got 1080p, we're pushing the draw distances further, we're creating higher resolution character models, better lighting, better shadows," Wells told PlayStation Access in a new interview.

Call of Duty: Ghosts Devastation DLC will reach PS4, PS3, and PC next month

Activision has announced that the Devastation DLC for Call of Duty: Ghosts will be released for PS4, PS3, and PC on May 8.Inside the DLC are the contents you have almost certainly come to expect by now: four new adversarial multiplayer maps, a new chapter in the Extinction campaign, and the two-in-one Ripper assault rifle/SMG.

Bastion developer's next game, Transistor, is coming to PC and PS4 in May

The next game from Bastion developers Supergiant Games, Transistor, will be released on May 20.You'll be able to get the game on PC, through Steam and the Supergiant Games website, and PlayStation 4. The price will be $19.99/£14.99 /€18.99.

Game developer says it’s ‘physically impossible’ for Xbox One to match PS4 performance

The Xbox One’s graphics performance is expected to significantly improve once Microsoft releases new DirectX 12 drivers. But according to one popular game developer, that won’t put the console on par with Sony’s PlayStation 4. In fact, it’s apparently “physically impossible” for the Xbox One to match the PS4 when it comes to computing power.

Watch Dogs PS4 Targeting 1080p, Xbox One Still Uncertain

Watch Dogs will reportedly run at 1080p on PlayStation 4, but the resolution for the Xbox One version is still unclear. According to CVG, cinematics animation lead Lars Bonde said in a video interview — which has since been taken down — that Watch Dogs, to his knowledge, will run in 1080p on PlayStation 4.

Xbox One: 'Microsoft building best gaming console for fans'

The Xbox One will be the best gaming console for fans, according to Microsoft.
In an interview with Larry 'Major Nelson' Hryb, new head of Xbox division Phil Spencer said that Microsoft has the ambition and resources to build the best gaming console.

BBC uses WhatsApp, WeChat to send Indian election news to mobile users

In a bid to reach more readers effectively by using mobile chat apps, BBC will start disseminating news related to the upcoming Indian elections on WhatsApp and WeChat. The news service has created the “BBC News India” account on both services where it will share news related to the elections in English and Hindi.

PlayStation 4 and Xbox One Have a Huge Software Problem

The latest console hardware releases from Sony and Microsoft  debuted with a bang. The PlayStation 4 set a record sales pace, and the Xbox One has been the fastest-selling hardware in Xbox history. While demand for the Xbox One lagged heading into 2014, the PlayStation 4 has continued to sell at a rapid rate, suggesting that consumers are eager to make the transition to new gaming hardware.