Sony Ericsson with Windows Phone Prototype "Julie" Emerges Again

Sony Ericsson never brought to the market a smartphone running under Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system, although it did have Windows Mobile-based phones available for purchase.

However, the company was indeed working on such a smartphone, which emerged into the wild once again, under the codename of Julie. It is the same device that was leaked online during the past few years, featuring a sliding QWERTY keyboard and a 4-inch touchscreen display, along with an 8-megapixel photo snapper on the back, with HD video recording capabilities.

The handset still runs under a beta release of Windows Phone 7, and seems more like a collection item than an actually usable phone. According to Windows Phone Italy, the prototype is actually up for sale, and those who are interested in grabbing it should head over to the website to learn more on the matter.

Breve video di un esemplare bianco del Sony Ericsson Jolie, prototipo inedito di smartphone basato su Windows Phone e mai lanciato sul mercato da Sony. Articolo completo: http://www.windowsphoneitaly.com/news/hardware/4901.html
Video credits to WindowsPhoneItaly

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Official Android 4.0.4 ICS ROM for Samsung Galaxy S II Leaks

Although Samsung already delivered the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade for most Galaxy S II variants available on the market, Google already released the 4.0.4 OS version, which has yet to make its way into Galaxy S II devices.

The South Korean company did not unveil a timeline for the release of this update, but the folks over at Sammobile managed to get their hand on an early build of the Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich ROM for Samsung Galaxy S II. According to the latest hearsay, the Android 4.0.4 ICS update for Galaxy S II is expected to be released in the next couple of months.

However, the upgrade won't bring any fancy new features, instead it will include several bug fixes and security updates. Those who wish to try flash this leaked Android 4.0.4 ICS ROM should head over to the original thread for more details.

Samsung Galaxy S II with Android 4.0.4 ICS
Image credits to Sammobile

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Access The Pirate Bay with Opera Turbo

Opera Mini is a very interesting product, it's the most popular mobile browser in the world even though it's not really a web browser. That's because much of the rendering happens off-site on Opera's servers. The same technology powers Opera Turbo in the desktop version.

With Turbo enabled, websites first pass through Opera servers, which compresses them and then sends them along. So, in effect, Opera acts as a proxy, placing itself between you and the site you want to reach. You know who else does that? Proxies, of course. And what are proxies good for? Well, for one, they can get you to the Pirate Bay site if you live in a country where websites are censored, say, the UK for example.

So, if you're an Opera user, you have a simple and safe way of using The Pirate Bay in the UK without paying for anything or any hassle at all. If you're not an Opera user, maybe it's time to become one.

Opera Turbo after enabled
Image credits to Opera

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Nokia N8-08 PureView with 41MP Camera and Lumia Design Emerges [Concept]

There’s been much talk on Nokia’s attempt to integrate its innovative PureView technology into future Windows Phone devices. The Finnish company already confirmed this information, though it was pretty vague when asked whether or not these devices will be launched by the end of the year.

Since the first rumors on Windows Phone devices with PureView technology surfaced online, Nokia fans put their imaginations to the test and started to create various concepts, thus giving the Finnish company some ideas. It’s unlikely that Nokia would take any of these into consideration especially that the handset maker has its own army of engineers and designers who plan ahead every device that would eventually be released on the market. However, there are few people who are interested in more Symbian smartphone that would carry the same PureView technology. Even though the first (and only) PureView device is still being rolled out globally, Nokia did not say a word about any future Symbian devices with this innovative technology.

Nokia confirmed to us several weeks ago that the only reason they launched the Nokia 808 PureView is to actually test the market and see how well it’s received by both media and users. Unfortunately, the smartphone is pretty expensive for a Symbian device, so not all Nokia fans will afford it. Nevertheless, there’s a chance that Nokia might launch other PureView models powered by its latest Nokia Belle operating system. DeviantArt user LokiBartleby has just published an interesting Nokia N8-08 concept, which is said to run the same Nokia Belle platform as the PureView 808.

However, the form factor and design of the concept strongly resembles the Lumia 800 or Nokia N9. In addition, the smartphone has been gifted with physical buttons instead of capacitive ones. Obviously, the “piece de resistance” is the 41-megapixel rear camera with dual-LED flash and Carl Zeiss optics. via MyNokiaBlog

Nokia N8-08 PureView
Images credits to LokiBartleby at deviantArt

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Foxconn Nano Fanless Mini-PCs with AMD Brazos and Intel Atom

Well-known computer parts manufacturer and integrator, Chinese company Foxconn has just presented the new Nano fanless computer series. The new devices provide noiseless operation and very modest power consumption.

The first model is the AT-5600, which is based on AMD’s Brazos low-power computing platform. The Foxconn AT-5600 nettop is based on AMD’s E450 APU, running at 1650 MHz and featuring a potent Radeon HD 6320 iGPU. The Intel-based AT-5250 fanless nettop enjoys the modest performance and low-power consumption of Intel’s D2550 Atom processor running at 1.86 Ghz.

Foxconn presents the AMD-based AT-5600 as a model suitable for home use, as well as a media center while the Intel-based AT-5250 is solely targeted for office use due to its modest x86 processor performance and extremely modest 3D capabilities. The two devices will be available in September this year priced at $280 for the AT-5600 and $260 for the AT-5250. That’s about €220 for the AMD nettop and €206 for the Intel model.

Foxconn new fanless nettop
Image credits to Foxconn

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