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Samsung and LG smartphones reportedly going 1080p in 2013
A recent report says Samsung and LG have big plans for smartphones in 2013, at least when it comes to screen resolution.
According to Korean news site MK News, both manufacturers are hoping to launch smartphones with 1080p displays within the first half of next year.
Earlier this year, LG showed off a 5-inch mobile display at full 1080p resolution. The screen featured a 16:9 aspect ratio and pixel density of 440ppi, making it an improvement over the already crisp iPhone 5's 326ppi retina display.
Samsung, according to the report, is developing a new smartphone screen with a pixel density of 400ppi. While a 400ppi display would still look fantastic, technically it would still be slightly under full HD resolution.
First out of the gate
If Samsung and LG do launch 1080p smartphones next year, the companies will hardly be the first.
That distinction belongs to the Oppo Find 5, which will sport a 1080p display when it launches in China.
However, there seems to be little chance of the Find 5 ever finding its way overseas, so your first glance of a 1080p smartphone may be to the rumored HTC DLX.
While the HTC DLX is still unconfirmed, rumors suggest that the 5-inch Jelly Bean handset is coming soon, with recently leaked images showing the purported smartphone with branding for U.S. carrier Verizon.
Taking a step back from rumors, HTC actually has already confirmed a 1080p smartphone with the HTC J Butterfly in Japan.
Conveniently, the J Butterfly shares similar specs with the rumored HTC DLX, indicating that it could even be the same phone, just under a different name for the different geographies.
Whatever HTC calls its 1080p handset, it sounds like it will only be the first of many as more manufacturers embrace full HD resolution for the next generation of smartphones.
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iPad mini price confirmed starting at £269
The iPad mini will cost a bargain-basement price (for Apple) when it launches next week.
The shrunken iPad 2 will start at £269 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model, and the jump quickly up the price scale for more storage. 32GB will set you back £349, and the 64GB model will cost a whopping £429.
And if you're after a cellular model (and we know you are, you cheeky Apple fans) then the price jumps again: £369 for the 16GB model, £449 for the 32GB option and a staggering £529 for the 64GB iPad mini with LTE connectivity – and it's coming to EE as well.
When can I get it?
The iPad mini release date has been set for 2 November, with the LTE version shipping two weeks later – so you'll likely be able to get your hands on that option on 16 November if you promise to be good.
Of course, let's not forget that we've got a refreshed Google Nexus 7 coming soon, with 32GB of onboard storage and more powerful internals… and that's going to be £150 cheaper than the equivalent iPad mini.
Apple was quick to extol the fact its iPad is a 'proper' tablet experience, compared to Google's big phone screen option, but that argument may not carry as much water when consumers are weighing up spending their budget for Santa's sack.
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In Depth: iPad 3 vs iPad 4: the key differences?
We thought we knew everything that was coming in today's iPad Mini launch, there were very little surprises. However one thing we didn't count on was the emergence of another "full sized" iPad.
Breaking their traditional annual product cycles, Apple announced its 4th iteration of the iPad series, with the new iPad 3 only hitting shelves in March of this year.
Interestingly, the 4th generation iPad has been released to completely replace the 3rd generation, and has now been named "iPad with Retina display."
So what does the latest generation of iPad bring to the table?
iPad 3 vs iPad 4: Screen
Both the iPad 3 and the iPad 4 come with Apple's Retina display. Although "only" packing 264ppi, unlike the iPhone 5's 326ppi, the iPad's still have market-leading screens.
iPad 3 vs iPad 4: Camera
Apple might not have upgraded the screen, but it did upgrade the front-facing camera. The iPad 3 came with a 0.3MP standard definition offering, whereas the iPad 4 makes full use of the Retina display for video chatting with a 1.2MP HD camera.
iPad 3 vs iPad 4: Processor
Building upon the iPad 2, the iPad 3 comes rocking a dual core A5X processor, with a quad core GPU. However, the iPad 4 packs Apple's latest A6X processor, which Apple says "doubles the performance of CPU tasks."
iPad 3 vs iPad 4: Battery
The iPad 4 comes with a battery that lasts up to 10 hours, but so does the iPad 3. Don't think that this is a bad thing though, we noted in our iPad 3 review that despite the high-resolution retina display, the battery life was "more than acceptable."
iPad 3 vs iPad 4: OS
Apple's latest operating system, iOS 6, was recently launched alongside the iPhone 5, so unsurprisingly it's also featured on the iPad 4. The iPad 3 launched with iOS 5.1 but is upgradeable to iOS 6.
iPad 3 vs iPad 4: Price
With the announcement of the iPad 4, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the iPad 3 would be made cheaper. Apple has different ideas, with the plan seeming to be to phase out the 3rd gen iPad.
The iPad 4 comes in at the same price of the iPad 3, with the Wi-Fi only tablets coming in at £399($US499, AU$539) £479(US$599, AU$649) and £559(US$699, AU$759) for 16GB, 32GB and 64GB respectively. The aptly named Wi-Fi + Cellular versions cost a bit more, at £499(US$629, AU$679), £579(US$729, AU$789) and £659(US$829, AU$899) for the three storage options.
iPad 3 vs iPad 4: Connectivity
The big difference between the two iPad generations lies within their connectivity options. The most obvious of these is the new 8-pin Lightning dock, first announced on the iPhone 5.
This is 80 percent smaller and more durable than Apple's original 30-pin offering. The other major difference is that the iPad 4 (Wi-Fi + Cellular version) comes LTE enabled. The iPad 3 did come enabled with 4G, however, it couldn't be used in the U.K. But, with the introduction of the iPad 4 Brits can also enjoy super fast mobile internet when they're out and about.
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Dell reveals Windows 8 lineup pricing, availability
Dell pulled back the curtain on its Windows 8 lineup Tuesday, providing pricing and availability for a range of notebooks, tablets and desktops.
A total of 10 machines are on the way, with the first four available to purchase now and shipping this week alongside W8 on Oct. 26.
The first batch features the XPS One 27 Touch all-in-one desktop starting at $1,599.99 (GB£1,779, AU$1,558) with a 3.2GHz Intel Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive.
The non-touch XPS 13, an ultraportable laptop, joins the XPS One 27. It starts at $999.99 (GB£899, AU$973) with a 2.6GHz Intel Core i5 CPU, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD.
Dell is also bringing out the S2340T multi-touch monitor for $699.99 (GB£539, AU$680) to turn any Windows 8 desktop into a touch-capable machine.
Along with the monitor, Dell will release the TP713 wireless touchpad for $69.99 (GB£49.99, AU$68), offering a multi-touch mouse alternative.
More to come in November
Starting in November, Dell will start shipping out its first Windows 8 tablet, the Latitude 10 featuring full Windows 8 Pro and starting at $649 (GB£619, AU$632).
Also arriving in November are the XPS Duo 12 convertible notebook/tablet hybrid starting at $1,199.99 (GB£999, AU$1,169), the 14-inch Latitude 6430u business ultrabook for $899 (about GB£563, AU$875) and the 23-inch OptiPlex 9010 all-in-one touchscreen desktop starting at $1,199 (GB£799, AU$1168).
Finally, Dell is bringing out the XPS 10 Windows RT tablet starting at $499 (GB£399, AU$486), and the newly announced Inspiron 15z touchscreen ultrabook starting at $899.99 (GB£879, AU$875).
In North America, Dell is already taking orders on its entire Windows 8 lineup, with the second batch of hardware shipping "in the coming days and weeks."
U.K. users may have a bit more of a wait for some of those, with Dell saying the XPS 10 and Inspiron 15z will start shipping there in December.
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