Jelly Bean-running Samsung Galaxy S II Plus announced

The Galaxy S II was a big seller for Samsung and it lives on in 2013 with a brand new variant - the Samsung Galaxy S II Plus. Just like the Galaxy S Plus last year, the S II Plus launches with a revamped design, updated OS and new chipset.

The Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus runs Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean with Nature UX and is powered by a chipset with a dual-core Cortex-A9 processor clocked at 1.2GHz, a Broadcomm GPU and 1GB of RAM. It packs the same 4.3" WVGA Super AMOLED Plus screen as the original Galaxy S II.

 
Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus official images

Other things are the same as well - 8MP main camera with 1080p video recording (but with promised zero shutter lag), 2MP secondary camera, 3G with 21Mbps HSPA+, dual-band Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0+HS. Built-in storage has been cut down to 8GB, but the microSD card slot remains.

There's optional NFC too - the I9105 S II Plus without it is 8.5mm thick while the NFC-enabled I9105P is a hair thicker at 8.9mm. The other dimensions are 125.3 x 66.1 regardless of model, that's the same as the original. At 121g it's a bit heavier though (the classic Galaxy S II is 116g). The battery is the same at 1650mAh capacity.

What has changed is the exterior - it now uses the same hyperglazed plastic as the Samsung Galaxy S III and is available in Chic White and Dark Blue.

We have hands-on photos of the Blue version. Check out our gallery if you want to see more.

   
Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus live photos

While the Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II will pack the latest Nature UX features like Smart Stay and Page Buddy, the original I9100 Galaxy S II will be getting Jelly Bean soon with most of the same features. Then there's the I9100G Galaxy S II model, which uses a TI OMAP chipset instead.

There's no launch date or pricing info on the Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus yet.

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LG Nexus smartphone expected to be announced on October 29

The LG Nexus smartphone rumors are coming in thick and fast, with each one adding a new piece to the puzzle that is very close to being complete.

First off, there are couple of new pictures as seen below that show the phone in a better light. The back says 'with Google' that has raised a few questions, as Nexus phones usually have just the Google logo on the back. Then again, this is not a final product so the back could change by the time it releases. In fact, from what we have heard, the actual phone has a Nexus logo, with a big multi-colored 'X' in the middle.

Next bit of rumor pegs the worldwide launch date on October 29. This bit of information comes from a French publication Le Figaro. They also say that France itself will get the phone around December.

The next bit of info comes from Carphone Warehouse's inventory listing, that suggests that the phone will be called the LG Nexus 4 (which, just for the record, is an infinitely better name than LG Optimus Nexus) and that it will be sold in black and white.

Lastly, there is some disappointing bit of information regarding the internal storage of the phone. It is being said that the phone only has 8GB internal memory and just like previous Nexus devices there is no microSD card slot. If true, it will be an absolutely appalling decision on Google/LG's part. 8GB is way too less for a handset that otherwise sports top notch specifications. We honestly doubt Google/LG will ship the phone with so little memory and think this specification could be changed by the time the phone is announced.

We'll continue to put our ears to the ground and report anything new learned about this device.

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'Game Of Thrones' Season Three Cast And Premiere Date Announced

"Game of Thrones" might not have had any new footage to show at San Diego Comic-Con this year, but they did come with two massive announcements. Season three introduces many, many new characters, and showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff came with an (almost) entire listing of the new cast members, as well as the third season release date.
The quick news first: "Game of Thrones" returns to HBO on March 31, 2013. That's pretty much in keeping with the previous two seasons, so there's not much of a surprise there. Still, it's nice to mark a date on the calendar and start our countdowns early.
Now what we've all been waiting for: the casting. We've been dying to know who will be playing new characters like Jojen and Meera, Beric Dondarrion and Brydon Tully, and now we have found out. Read on after the jump to find out who almost all the new actors and actresses will be.
We've said "almost" twice now, and it's about time we explain that. There's no sign of Mance Rayder or Strong Belwas on this list, and it's actually pretty surprising. Belwas we can understand (maybe he's just cut for time reasons), but Mance Rayder is a major, major player in future "Game of Thrones" storylines. Our only explanation is that the folks behind the show are waiting for some big name to portray one of the most interesting and intriguing characters in the story.
Without further ado, here are the actors who will be joining the cast this season in order of how excited we are about them.
Clive Russell will be playing Bryndon "The Blackfish" Tully, Richard Dormer will be playing Beric Dondarrion, Paul Jaye will be Thoros of Myr, Thomas Brodie-Sangster will be Jojen Reed, Ellie Kendirck will be Meera Reed, Diana Rigg will play Lady Olenna Tyrell aka the Queen of Thorns and Tobias Menzies will be Edmure Tully.
Mackenzie Crook will play Orell, Nathalie Emmanuel is Missandei, Kerry Ingram is Shireen Baratheon, Kristofer Hivju is Tormund Giantsbane, Philip McGinley is Anguy, Tara Fitzgerald is Selyse Baratheon and Anton Lesser as Qyburn.
Can it be March 31 already?
Are you as excited about the third season as we are? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter!
Tags Comic-Con, Game of Thrones

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The Dark Knight Rises Lumia 710 announced for T-Mobile

After announcing the Limited The Dark Knight Rises Lumia 800 and Lumia 900, Nokia is now bringing the limited edition magic to the cheaper Lumia 710.

Now before we begin, we would like to say that this offer is only valid for Lumia 710 devices on the T-Mobile network in the US. With that out of the way, let's see what Nokia and T-Mobile have in store for us.

For starters, this limited edition phone will be offered free (on contract, of course) from T-Mobile between June 20, 2012 to August 31, 2012. The phone will be available in black, cyan, magenta, yellow and white. The Lumia 710 does has not received the same laser engraving treatment as its older siblings and has to make do with simple printed-on graphics.

Apart from this the phone will also come with a special The Dark Knight Rises app along with special content such as wallpapers.

But what if you already own a Lumia 710 from T-Mobile? Then you can go and get a free The Dark Knight Rises Xpress-On Color Cover by going to your nearest T-Mobile store and choose from any of the colors mentioned above.

To get more information about this promotion, click on the link below.

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