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On Tuesday, when Google's Vice President of Android Product Management Hugo Barra told a crowd of nearly 6,000 attendees that the online giant would be releasing its own variant of the critically-acclaimed Samsung Galaxy S4, many broke out in applause.

Not only would the top-tier device sport all the same desirable specs the GS4 was already known for (like the quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor and Android 4.2 OS), it would also give Android purists/TouchWiz haters, an unsullied Nexus software experience.

Yes, there was clapping all around (and even a "woot!" or two) until Barra … Read more

Years before smartphones were a thing, Nokia was one of the first manufacturers to add IR blasters to its dumbphones. The use case was pretty limited, though, as the cool factor typically ended after the fun of turning TVs off at Circuit City died off.

But IR is getting its second wind in a new wave of smartphones packing the technology, namely, the S4. This time around, the use case is much more tangible, posing a real threat to the traditional TV remote. Powered by WatchOn (and Peel), the S4 is more than just a substitute clicker -- it's … Read more

Imagination Technologies, a graphics-chip designer that supplies the graphics tech in the iPad and iPhone, offers some tantalizing insights into what could power the next iPad.

CNET spoke Wednesday with Tony King-Smith, vice president of marketing at Imagination Technologies, about what's coming down the pike. While he would not confirm what's inside future iPads, it's a safe bet that Apple -- which has a 9.5 percent stake in the U.K. company -- will continue to tap its technology.

Q: Imagination chips are inside the newest iPad and iPhone, correct? King-Smith: The [graphics] core currently in … Read more

Starting Friday, Samsung will sell the second version of its NFC stickers, called TecTiles 2.

The main difference between these tags and the first iteration, which launched almost a year ago? Unlike the originals, the second TecTiles generation works with the Samsung Galaxy S4 as well as Samsung's other NFC-ready phones.

TecTile stickers use a small NFC receiver that trigger your smartphone into completing certain tasks when you tap them.

You can program TecTiles to turn on Wi-Fi and turn off Bluetooth, for instance, set an alarm, or send a text to someone that you've arrived home or … Read more

Sprint's network will soon receive a much-needed boost in some Midwestern cities like Chicago and St. Louis, Missouri.

The wireless carrier announced on Friday that it finished inking a deal with regional service provider U.S. Cellular, which is based in the Midwest.

As part of the $480 million agreement, Sprint will gain a total of 30MHz of PCS spectrum, which Sprint says will expand its network capacity in those areas, bringing better service to customers there.

In addition, around 420,000 U.S. Cellular customers will also transfer over to the Sprint family. Sprint and its prepaid arms, … Read more

Samsung's Galaxy S4 is on pace to easily surpass its predecessor's sales record, Samsung Electronics co-CEO Shin Jong-kyun said Thursday in an interview.

Speaking to the Korea Times, the co-CEO said that Samsung's Galaxy S4 will sell through 10 million units next week, making it the fastest-selling smartphone in the company's history. Shin told the Korea Times that the Galaxy S3 took 50 days to pass the 10 million sales mark. The Galaxy S4 will hit that level less than a month since its launch.

The Galaxy S4 is the most feature-packed smartphone Samsung has launched … Read more

Good assistants -- the kind you can't live without -- are hard to come by. For starters, they should always be on time; any lag simply won't do. They should also get things right the first time, because who has time for inaccuracies? And, last of all, the assistant should be so good, they're always a few steps ahead of their boss.

Those are pretty high expectations, but Google and Apple both think they've got the magic to meet all those requirements and more. The secret, it turns out, is to hand off the work to … Read more

Samsung is changing its tune regarding Galaxy S4's storage after the phone appeared on the BBC's Watchdog, saying it will try to squeeze its myriad features into a smaller space, freeing up more memory for apps.

The BBC's consumer affairs show investigated the Android powerhouse's claims of 16GB of storage, after users complained the phone has only half of that available.

"We appreciate this issue being raised and we will improve our communications," a Samsung spokesperson told CNET UK. "Also, we are reviewing the possibility to secure more memory space through further software … Read more

Consumers awaiting the Lenovo Yoga 11S convertible can now order one through Lenovo or Best Buy, though they'll have to wait at least a month before it ships.

Available through Lenovo's Web site as of Thursday, the Yoga 11S is an 11.6-inch ultrabook that can close to transform itself into a touch-screen tablet or bend over backward into "tent mode" or "stand mode" to act strictly as a display. The new Yoga is outfitted with Windows 8, upping the original Yoga 11, which offers Windows RT. Buyers also have a choice of two … Read more