KB-Technologies

Shield updated to Android 4.3. If you're an owner of Nvidia's portable Shield gaming console, there's some fairly hefty announcements coming your way today. As IGN previously reported from an event in Montreal , GameStream--beaming compatible PC games from your GTX-ready rig to the Shield--has officially left beta. And on the Android side, the Shield's library of mobile games has expanded considerably. After its launch, the Shield was only compatible with a particular list of Android games. But starting today, Nvidia has launched the Shield Gamepad Mapper, allowing nearly any Android title to be converted to Shield's controller inputs. Nvidia will release button mapping profiles on a weekly basis via over-the-air updates, but it's also possible to set your own configurations and share them with friends. IGN's review of the Nvidia Shield did take some contention with the--then beta--streaming of PC games to the portable unit. After spendin...

Verizon Wireless announced pricing and availability of the BlackBerry Z30 . The Canadian flagship smartphone will be available in November for $199.99 with a two-year contract, or 22.91 per month for 24 months for users who opt for the Verizon Edge installment plan. Verizon claims that it will exclusively offer the smartphone in the United States. However, it wouldn’t be a surprise if other carriers pick up the device too (we’ve seen the Z30 with AT&T branding before its announcement). When available, the BlackBerry Z30 will face a slew of capable competitors in its price range. Here’s hoping that it will do better than its sibling , the BlackBerry Z10 .

Strategy Analytics is reporting on the smartphone market and had to use the word "record" a lot. Smartphone shipments worldwide for the third quarter of this year grew 45% to reach a record 251 million units, the first time ever smartphone shipments broke past the quarter billion mark. Smartphones outsell feature phones 6 to 4 and the growing demand is fueled by fast wireless Internet – 4G LTE in developed countries like the US and 3G in developing countries like China. Global Smartphone Vendor Shipments (Millions of Units) Q3 '12 Q3 '13 Samsung 56.9 88.4 Apple 26.9 33.8 Huawei 7.6 12.7 LG 7.0 12.0 Lenovo 6.4 10.8 Others 68.0 93.7 Total 172.8 251.4 Samsung is riding the wave and shipped 88.4 million smartphones, capturing a record 35% of the market, up from 56.9 million shipments and 32.9% in Q3 last year. The Galaxy S4 sold over 4...

General 2G Network GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900 3G Network HSDPA 2100 SIM Micro-SIM Announced 2013, August Status Available. Released 2013, September Body Dimensions 118 x 59.5 x 15.8 mm (4.65 x 2.34 x 0.62 in) Weight 179 g (6.31 oz) Display Type Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors Size 480 x 800 pixels, 3.7 inches (~252 ppi pixel density) Multitouch Yes   - Secondary external 3.5 inches Super AMOLED, 16M colors display (480 x 800 pixels) Sound Alert types Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones Loudspeaker Yes 3.5mm jack Yes Memory Card slot microSD, up to 64 GB Internal 16 GB, 1.5 GB RAM Data GPRS Yes EDGE Yes Speed HSDPA, 21.1 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot Bluetooth Yes, v4.0 with A2DP, EDR NFC Yes USB Yes, microUSB v2.0 (MHL) Camera Primary 8 MP, 3264 x 2448 pixels, autofocus, LED flash Features Geo-tagging, touch focus, ...

The Snapdragon 800-version of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is getting an over-the-air firmware update. It weighs 116MB and should be available to all SIM-free and unlocked N9005 models any moment now. According to the official changelog the update brings stability improvements plus it turns off the re-activation lock, which requires you to input your Samsung account details after a factory reset of the phone. Until today, this option was turned on by default and, while it added some extra security, it came as nasty surprise to those that didn't know it existed. If you want to reenable it, you should go to Settings -> General -> Security. The new update also squashes many known bugs, including those related to the Pebble smartwatch accessory. The Samsung home-baked keyboard has been reskinned, too. If you happen to have already received the update, drop us a line in the comments section, mentioning how you find your Galaxy Note 3 after it.

Nokia published its financial results for the quarter ending in September – let's have a look at how the company did in its final quarter before selling its legendary phone business. Sales for Nokia Group decreased 22% year on year €5.662 billion, but operating profit went up to €118 million from a sizable loss of €564 million during the same quarter last year. Devices & Services – the division that Microsoft is set to acquire in the final quarter this year – accounted for €2.898 billion in net sales, down 19% year on year. The division posted an operating loss of €86 million, peanuts compared to the €672 million loss from last year. The good news is that most of the declining sales come from the feature phone department, which saw its sales decline 37% compared to last year. This coincides with a 27% drop in shipment volumes. The Smart devices shipments increased to 8.8 million units (up 40% year on year), beating the early estimates . Smartphone rev...

David Eun, executive vice president at Samsung, revealed today at Samsung's Developer Conference that Samsung sells some 1 million mobile devices every day. This includes smartphones, tablets, and anything that can be considered mobile. Eun's message to developers was that Samsung's next goal is getting them all to communicate with one another. "We know many of these devices and screens are connected. This is largely due to the fact that some 40 percent of the population connects to the internet. We hope to build along with you one of the largest platforms in the world for content, services, apps and ads. We call this the connoted home, and the connected life." Samsung has helped shape Android into the premiere platform for mobiles, and it's obvious it wants to extend this into other consumer applications as well. By putting out a million mobile devices daily, the Koreans certainly have a large client base at their fingertips to do just...

Forza Motorsport 5 Car Pass will secure all six packs for one discounted price. Forza Motorsport 5 will be bolstered by at least an additional 60 cars following its release, Turn 10 has confirmed today. Six packs of 10 are currently planned. Players planning to collect all the packs as they’re completed and made available are advised the Forza Motorsport 5 Car Pass will provide access to all six packs for one discounted price. Just like each car that comes on disc in Forza 5, every add-on car will feature a full Forzavista experience. “Walk around the car, check out the interior, start up and rev the engine, learn about the car’s history and performance statistics; you can even add a new livery design, change the paint color, or tune your car all from the same Forzavista view,” writes Turn 10’s Brian Ekberg on the game’s website . Pricing details have not been announced. According to Turn 10 content director John Wendl the Forza team has not stopped building ...

“We are not copying anyone; we are working with the original wasteland franchise.” Avalanche Studios’ Mad Max doesn’t have to take cues from the likes of Fallout or Borderlands, says senior producer Emil Krafting. Mad Max’s dusty, post-apocalyptic wasteland has been a well-trodden one, with plenty of big- and small-screen imitators since, but these games owe Mad Max a debt rather than the other way around. “We are not copying anyone; we are working with the original wasteland franchise,” says Krafting. That said, Krafting is aware a younger audience may not necessarily be aware of Mad Max’s role in shaping the dominant style of post-apocalyptic dystopias: barren, desolate places ruled by people in outrageous vehicles and even more outrageous costumes. “It is a franchise with a long heritage,” says Krafting. “I mean, I grew up with it, but most of the audience today didn’t.” “But that doesn’t detract from the fact that this is pretty much what started it all, and w...

Not long to wait. Battlefield 4's China Rising expansion pack will arrive for Premium Members on December 3. DICE has updated the game's Premium Calendar  in light of the game's release, confirming when the first DLC bundle will be available. The first of five planned expansion packs, China Rising will add four additional maps set across the Chinese mainland, new vehicles and equipment. When the Premium Membership service was first announced, it was explained that anyone who took advantage of the subscription would not only receive all the Battlefield 4 DLC and Expansion Packs at no additional cost, they'd also get them two weeks early compared to normal players. So, while it isn't confirmed, this suggests non-Premium players should be able to buy the Expansion on December 17. We've reached out to EA to confirm and will ...

"We strongly advise you download it," says DICE. Battlefield 4's multiplayer mode has received a number of unspecified improvements in a release day patch. The Multiplayer Update 1 is available now in the Xbox Marketplace , and we've asked EA when it'll appear elsewhere. While it hasn't been made clear exactly what the 119.21 MB patch will do, the accompanying blurb reveals that DICE strongly recommends picking it up. "This Battlefield 4 update contains improvements to the multiplayer portions of the game," it reads. "We strongly advise you download it." In case you miss it, our  Battlefield 4  review went live this morning, so be sure to  check it out on consoles   or PC  and find out when you'll be able to get your hands on the game's first expansion pack . ...

Millions more gamers will finally get a crack at the latest Halo. In a move that should surprise absolutely no one, Microsoft has announced that Halo: Spartan Assault -- the top-down, twin-stick shooter previously exclusive to Windows Phone, Surface, and Windows 8 -- will be released as an Xbox One and Xbox 360 digital download this December. A price has not yet been confirmed. Co-developed by 343 Industries and Vanguard Games (makers of Gatling Gears), Spartan Assault is set during the time between Halo 3 and Halo 4 and stars Spartan Commander Sarah Palmer and Spartan Davis. It chronicles the very first Spartan Ops missions. The Xbox One and 360 versions will add the Flood as a new enemy along with online co-op and new co-op missions, weapons and armor abilities, Achievements, as well the five missions from the Operation Hydra DLC. For a tast...

The Golden Age of Piracy.  Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is a smart, sprawling sequel that wisely places an emphasis on freedom and fun while trimming most of the fat that bogged down Assassin’s Creed III’s ambitious but uneven adventure. Ubisoft’s take on the Golden Age of Piracy begins in 1715, and is presented with a much-appreciated lighter tone that isn’t afraid to make fun of itself in the name of an entertaining journey. Sailing across the massive expanse of The Caribbean, exploring gorgeous and unique islands, and getting yourself into all sorts of swashbuckling trouble provide some of the most rewarding and memorable stretches of gameplay I’ve experienced all year. Even after putting in well over 40 hours with the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4 versions, I’m still discovering new islands to ...

Squared circle scholar.  Somewhere deep in the heart of every hardcore wrestling mark, there's a rowdy little kid recreating their favorite matches with six-inch plastic figures. They're pitting the irresistible forces against the immovable objects. They're dropping elbows and raising eyebrows. They love reliving old memories, but they're hungry to create new ones, too. WWE 2K14 gives that wrestling fan in all of us the tools required to do both. Though it continues to suffer from many of the same AI and commentary issues that have plagued the series for years, it also builds on its many successes, delivering a sports-entertainment extravaganza that can easily steal dozens of hours of your time. ...

12 years of cyberpunk roleplaying.  It takes some game franchises a while to truly find their footing, but Deus Ex managed to make its mark right from the start. Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut is a terrific sci-fi RPG shooter, thanks in part to the rock-solid original blueprint of the original Deus Ex to improve on. To see how the series got to where it is, we're taking a quick look back at where it's been, and the lessons that have been learned along the way. Deus Ex - Ion Storm, 2000 Deus Ex managed to pull off something 13 years ago that many games still fail to do today: offer up true player freedom. Crafting a game that lets someone play exactly how they want is no small task. Offering a ton of different skills means little, for example, when the enemies and level design don’t accommodate your personal choices. Deus Ex made all forms of combat and espionage viable, and it’s still heralded as one of the best examples of pl...

After showing up in press images earlier this month, the Verizon-bound Nokia Lumia 929 made another unscheduled appearance. This time around the upcoming aluminum-clad smartphone popped up in a short hands-on video. The Nokia Lumia 929 is bound to be a replacement for the Lumia 928 in the Verizon Wireless lineup. The Windows Phone 8 smartphone will feature the same top-shelf specs as the freshly announced Nokia Lumia 1520 , but a smaller 5” 1080p display.

Hot on the heels of yesterday’s AT&T version leak , an Android 4.3 test firmware for the international Samsung Galaxy Note II GT-N7100 made the rounds. Samsung is expected to begin rolling out the update to the end users at some point in November. The latest Android Jelly Bean version unsurprisingly brings a host of changes to the Note II. They include new UI in line with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy S4, Samsung KNOX security suite, as well as Samsung Wallet. The new firmware for the N7100 is available to download and install at the source link below. Keep in mind however that the experience might not be as smooth as desired due to its test nature.

LG officially took the wraps off the G Flex smartphone with curved display in Korea. The Android handset will hit all three major carriers in its homeland next month, where it will square off against the Samsung Galaxy Round . Naturally, the main feature of the LG G Flex is its curved display. It is a massive 6” 720p OLED unit whose IMAX cinema-like horizontal curve in landscape mode will allow for an immersive experience when watching videos or playing video games. LG G Flex official photos Another peculiar talent featured by the device is self-healing film on its back which can deal with minor scratches in a matter of minutes. LG compares the trick to the self-healing ability of the Wolverine character from the X-Men. The LG G Flex is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC with 2.26GHz quad-core CPU. The rest of the specs include 2GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in memory, microSD card slot, and 13MP camera. The smartphone packs full connectivity sui...

The ever dripping evleaks has provided two more leaks for us, this time two carrier specific devices for AT&T and Verizon in the US. First is the Nokia Lumia 1520 , which was announced last week at the Nokia World event in Abu Dhabi. AT&T is currently the only carrier in the US that sell this device and the phone will be available in black, white and red, all with a matte finish. Next is the BlackBerry Z30 smartphone, a large 5.0-inch version of the Z10 launched earlier this year. The Z30 will be making an appearance on Verizon in this black colored variant, with the Verizon logo plastered everywhere they could find space for it. Expect to find these at your local carrier store soon.

Nokia went from 4.5" screens straight to 6", seemingly bypassing the 5" 1080p trend for Android phones. A leaked hands-on video of the Lumia 929 for Verizon (now taken down) showed that's not the case – the 929 is a 5" phone version of the 6" Lumia 1520 phablet. Other than a 5" 1080p screen, the Lumia 929 will pack the 20MP PureView camera from the 1520 and the Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800 chipset (quad-core Krait 400 @ 2.26GHz, Adreno 330). The smartphone will come in 32GB and 64GB versions (with no microSD card slot). We now got a 100% crop and a downsized version of a 5MP photo taken with Nokia Pro Camera. Unfortunately, there's no full resolution shot and the EXIF info has been removed. Still, if legit, the image quality is quite nice - not that it's a shock, given those Lumia 1520 samples we saw. Nokia Lumia 929 sample photo There are rumors that we'll see an international version of the Nokia Lumia 929, bu...