WSJ: Apple Watch shipments slowed by faulty Taptic Engines

According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, Apple Watch shipments have been delayed by faulty Taptic Engine components. Currently, many orders for the Cupertino giant’s first smartwatch are expected to ship in June.

Sources told WSJ that a number of Taptic Engines supplied by the Chinese component manufacturer AAC Technologies Holdings Inc. broke down during testing. The issue caused Apple to switch suppliers, thus limiting the availability of its hot new smartwatch.

The Taptic Engine is one of the most innovative components found in the Apple Watch. It helps the wearable device provide vibrating feedback on a user’s wrist.

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HTC One M8 to receive 5.1 Lollipop with Sense 7 in August

HTC pressed the launch button on the Android 5.0 Lollipop update for the One (M8) at the end of January. The update to 5.1 Lollipop has been scheduled to August 2015.

According to HTC's UK Twitter account has revealed that the update will also bring the latest Sense UI. Sense v7 launched with the HTC One M9 and is a relatively minor step forward. One of the welcome improvements is that you can change the grip app switcher to stock Lollipop style. App reshuffling, some new widgets, BlinkFeed updates and other changes are also part of the update.

Other perks like themes were added to the M8 and M7 generation with an update to the BlinkFeed app.

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Model numbers for "Noble" Note 5 and "Zen" Galaxy S6 uncovered

Two Samsung IMEI numbers have surfaced that point to two new Galaxy models. Their model numbers are SM-G928S and SM-N920F and the rumor mill has decoded them as the "Zen" Galaxy S6 Plus and "Noble" Galaxy Note 5 respectively.

The SM-G928 appears to be a variation on the Galaxy S6 (G920), but it's unclear what will change from the current model. The final letters reveal regional versions, F for Europe, A and V for AT&T and Verizon, S and K for SK Telecom and KT.

The SM-N920F we couldn’t find and its name does coincide with what the next Note should be – the Galaxy Note 4 is the N910. Unfortunately that doesn’t give us much, neither does the "Noble" codename.

The letters indicate a European version, plus one for each carrier except KT.

Source | Via (in Korean)

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A gold-plated Apple Watch out of Vietnam costs just $1,000

The Apple Watch polarized opinions when it was officially unveiled and its pricing revealed to the public. The premium Watch Edition models, which come with a gold case, cost upwards of $10,000 with prices all the way up to $17,000.

Well, if that sounds pricier than you're willing to pay, but your status or other considerations call for a gold Apple Watch, Vietnamese luxury specialists at Karalux may have just the right solution for you. They are offering an 18K gold plating job on the Apple Watch for a mere $300 to $400, bringing the total price to $1,000.

18K gold-plated Apple Watch

That amount of cash will get you a 38mm Apple Watch with a stainless steel case covered in 18K gold, and black or white sports band. Opting for a classic buckle will cost you additional $300 for a total of $1,300. If you choose the 42mm model, the grand total reaches $1,400, still about a tenth of Apple's price tag.

Naturally, it won't be the real thing, but it's still genuine gold and at that price it's as close as it gets to what you'd call a bargain in the Apple Watch realm. How and if you can get one out of Vietnam is unclear though.

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Samsung details Galaxy S6 and S6 edge software gift packs

With the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge, Samsung has definitely set the flagship bar pretty high yet again. Both handsets employ cutting-edge technology and offer premium quality and leading performance. Naturally, the Korean giant hasn’t skimped on the software side as well. TouchWiz has received a major overhaul and the device works better than ever.

But the perks don’t stop there when you purchase a new shiny Samsung phone. As has become customary for Galaxy devices, both the S6 and S6 edge come with a gift bundle of apps and promotions, exclusively picked out by Samsung.

The list of deals in quite lengthy and while nobody actually expects a six-month free subscription to draw new buyers in, this type of after-market attention helps quite a lot with customer satisfaction, not to mention exposure for the said applications. This being said, none of the apps in the list is preinstalled or hidden away in the new Galaxy. Just like with previous models, the offers can be accessed through the Samsung App Store and each one is strictly opt-in.

Galaxy Gift	Details
Audible	Three months of Audible membership
Dragons of Atlantis: Heirs of the Dragon	“Samsung Resource Pack” valued at 5,000 gold
The Economist	Six months of  digital subscription
Endomondo	Six months of Endomondo Premium
Evernote	Three months of Evernote Premium
Fleksy Keyboard	Fleksy Keyboard and Modern premium themes
Hancom Office 2014	Office editor download for an unlimited period from Galaxy Apps
The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle Earth	“Samsung Resource Pack” valued at 100 Mithril
Keepy	Six month Keepy Unlimited to save your kids art, school work and mementos
Kindle for Samsung	One eBook every month
LastPass	Three months of Premium for U.S. customers and six monthsPremium for international
Life360	Six months premium service subscription
Magisto	Three months of Magisto Pro HD
NY Times Breaking News	Three months with a subscription
OneDrive	An extra 100 GB of OneDrive storage for two years* Offer valid only on devices where OneDrive is preloaded
PAC-MAN Friends	Samsung customers receive 30 cherries (plays)
Parallels Access	Six month subscription
Pocket	Six month subscription to Pocket Premium
Shazam Encore	Special ad-free version
VSCO Cam	Download The Minimalist Collection, which includes 10 VSCOCam® presets
Workout Trainer	Six months of Workout Trainer Pro+

The apps are worth $500 if purchased separately and Samsung is pretty confident that each customer can find something of use in the list.

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Huawei launches Honor 4C budget smartphone in China

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei has updated its Honor line of devices with a new budget smartphone. Dubbed Honor 4C, the device is priced at CNY 799 ($129), and will be available Black, Blue, Gold, Pink, and White color options.

Specs-wise, the Honor 4C is powered by a HiSilicon Kirin 620 chipset with 1.2 GHz octa-core processor, and sports a 5-inch 720p display. It comes with 2GB of RAM and 8GB of internal memory (which can be expanded up to 32GB using a microSD card), and packs in a 2550mAh battery.

In terms of camera, the device features a 13MP rear unit and a 5MP front shooter. It runs Android 4.4 KitKat with EM UI 3.0 skin on top. The smartphone is currently only available in China (via Tmall and Vmall online retailers), and it isn't yet known if and when it will be launched in other markets as well.

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Lenovo S60 launched in Russia for $290

Lenovo has quietly made the its new mid-range smartphone available in Russia. The Lenovo S60 was first announced in the January and now released starting with Russia for RUB 15,000 ($290).

The Lenovo S60 bears iPhone-esque design with similar rounded corners and curved sides. Lenovo has equipped it with a 5" 720p display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8916 410 SoC with 64-bit quad-core CPU, 2GB of RAM, and 8GB of expandable storage. By default, it runs Android 4.4 Kitkat with Vibe 2.0 UI on top of it.

On the back, the S60 has a 13MP camera with LED flash and at the front it packs a 5MP camera for selfies. The list of features continues withWi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 and bunch of sensors - gravity, accelerometer, proximity, and gyroscope. Bearing 7.7mm thick profile, Lenovo S60 accommodates a 2,150 mAh battery.

The Lenovo S60 will be sold in black, white, yellow, and pink color options but the availability of the colors will vary from region to region.

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