Blackberry expands BBM chat app to Android and iOS

Until now the BBM app had been limited to Blackberry's own devices

The Blackberry Messenger (BBM) app is to be offered as a download to run on rival platforms.

Blackberry said it would initially offer texts, photo messages and group sharing functions on devices running Google's Android and Apple's iOS operating systems from "the summer".
It added it planned to roll out screen sharing, voice and video calls - all without charge - later in the year.
The move could prove disruptive to Skype, Whatsapp and other rivals.
Blackberry chief executive Thorsten Heins revealed the surprise news at the end of his presentation at the firm's annual developers conference in Orlando, Florida.
The company said that more than 60 million Blackberry owners already used BBM at least once a month.
But Mr Heins played down the idea that offering the feature to rival devices would harm sales of the Canadian company's own handsets.
"You might ask the question why is Blackberry doing this now," said Mr Heins.

Continue reading the main story

What does BBM offer?

Blackberry Messenger began life as a simple instant messaging tool offering owners of the firm's handsets a free alternative to SMS texts.
Over the years the company has added functions including sending pictures, audio messages and other files as well as making voice and video calls, all over the internet.
In addition it offers a Groups facility which allows users to share photos, lists and calendar appointments with trusted contacts.
The latest addition is Channels - a feature allowing brands and celebrities to send news and status updates to users who want to follow them through the app.
Blackberry has a chance to leapfrog existing cross-platform rivals by bringing all these facilities to Android and iOS users.
However, with reports that Whatsapp could shortly add voice calls and that Google has been working on its own unified messaging service, Blackberry may find competition in the market is about to intensify.

"It's a statement of confidence. The Blackberry 10 platform is so strong and the response has been so good that we are confident the time is right for Blackberry Messenger to become an independent multiplatform messaging solution."

He added that for the app to work iPhone users would need at least iOS 6 and Android users the Ice Cream Sandwich version of Google's software. There was no mention of Windows Phone.
Wider impact One analyst said it was too soon to know if the move would force competitors to change their own strategies.
"BBM has been a significant traffic driver for Blackberry - particularly the consumer audience," said Chris Green, principal technology analyst at Davies Murphy Group Europe.
"Expanding it to be multiplatform not only widens the consumer appeal but also may help woo back corporate customers it lost due to earlier technical problems.
"However, other players like Whatsapp will only drop their fees if they see BBM making major inroads into other platforms."

 

Blackberry's boss said he was excited to be able to invite more people to join the BBM service

 

Ben Wood from telecoms consultancy CCS Insight added that Blackberry might have felt forced into the move because of the growing popularity of cross-platform alternatives which also includes Facebook Messenger.
"It will increase feature competition among mobile messaging platforms," he said.
"It dramatically increases BBM's long-term relevance - but it is unclear how Blackberry will ensure the move benefits its own hardware sales."
Cheaper phone Blackberry also announced a new smartphone powered by its BB10 system - the first to be targeted at emerging markets.
The Q5 features a physical Qwerty keyboard and a 3.1in (7.9cm) touchscreen.
The Blackberry 10 device will be released in parts of Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America in July.
It should be cheaper than the Z10 and Q10 which were unveiled in January.
However, the firm has yet to confirm pricing.
"We understand the importance of having devices to suit all markets and needs," said Mr Heins. "It's a sleek, slim high-performance device."
One company watcher said it was important for Blackberry to have a device running BB10 on sale in parts of the world where its handsets were still bestsellers.
"The Q5 could be a very significant device for the company because there is a significant opportunity for high-quality low-cost smartphones," said Adam Leach, devices analyst at telecoms consultancy Ovum.

 

The Q5 is being offered in red and pink colours as well as black and white options

 

"If Blackberry can replicate the success of the Blackberry Curve in emerging markets then it will certainly help establish the Blackberry 10 platform.
"However, Blackberry has significant competition in this area with low-cost Android devices and with Nokia's Asha 501 which sells for just under $100 [£65]. It will be crucial to see if Blackberry can match or undercut that."
Ovum predicts that emerging markets will account for 40% of smartphone shipments by 2017.
According to data from IDC - another tech consultancy - Blackberry devices accounted for just over 19% of global smartphone shipments at the start of 2010. But the firm suggests that figure had dropped to less than 4% by the end of last year.
Blackberry has yet to release sales figures for its first BB10 devices.

Read More : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22529074

App taps phone and personal clues to your happiness

 

 Researchers at Cambridge University have developed an app that tries to track happiness by combining smartphone data with users' perception of mood.

EmotionSense collects information about where users are, how noisy the environment is and whom they are communicating with. It then combines this data with the user's own report about mood.
The app is part of a project to see how mobile phones can be used to improve health and wellbeing.
Emotional state Mood-tracking apps already exist but the team from the Cambridge Computer Laboratory think this is the first time that user-input data and phone information sources have been combined.
"Most other attempts at software like this are coarse-grained in terms of their view of what a feeling is," said Dr Jason Rentfrow, a senior lecturer in the department of psychology at Cambridge University.
"Many just look at emotions in terms of feeling happy, sad, angry or neutral. The aim here is to use a more flexible approach, to collect data that shows how moods vary between people. That is something which we think is quite unique to the system we have designed," he said.
When the app is opened for the first time, a sensor that tells the researchers what time of day it is is unlocked. The app spends roughly a week collecting data from this sensor and testing it against the user's emotional state.
'Journey of discovery' At the end of this, the user is asked to complete a short life satisfaction survey, which unlocks a new sensor.
It takes about eight weeks to unlock all the sensors, which include gauging how sociable someone is dependent on how many texts they send or calls they make, their movements, location and how much they are interacting with their mobile phones.
It has been designed as "a journey of discovery" for the user to give them a step-by-step guide to what might be influencing their mood swings, said lead researcher Dr Neal Lathia.
"This helps us understand both how a person perceives things and how they are actually behaving," he said.
Therapeutic tool "They may say that they are feeling happy but they may have stopped communicating with friends, for example. This is all about building a bridge between the two sources of data."

 

 

The system that allows users to input their own data about how they are feeling has been designed by psychologists.
At different times of the day, the app sends the users a notification asking them about their mood. Users are asked to input their mood on an "emotion grid" that has two axes. The first charts negative to positive feelings while another charts activity.
It is hoped the app can be used by doctors as a therapeutic tool as well as by individuals to work out the times that they are most stressed, for example.
Explicitly consent "Most people who see a therapist only have an appointment once every fortnight," said Dr Lathia.
"Many, however, keep their phones with them most of the time. In terms of sheer presence, mobiles can provide an ongoing link with a person," he said.
The code used to collect sensor data is being made publicly available to allow other researchers to conduct their own experiments.
Initially the app will be available only for Android phones but the team is working on a version for other smartphones.
Users must explicitly consent to their data being used by members of the team, although it will not be made available more widely.


 Sourrce : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22438588

BBC Sport launches international smartphone app for Android

BBC Sport has launched a free mobile application for Android users outside the UK. 

Arriving in time for the climax of the football season and exciting summer sporting events such as the Ashes and Wimbledon, the app  provides latest news and live text coverage of major sports.
A version for Apple's iOS devices was launched  earlier in 2013.

Key Features

The core feature set of the Android app remains consistent with iOS and briefly comprises of the following for all versions of Android from 2.2 Froyo and above:

• Top stories and breaking news from a wide range of sports
• Live text commentaries on all the big football fixtures, from all the major events and the daily Sportsday live
• A whole new football section which includes fixtures, results and live scores for each competition/league
• Pages for every UK football match and the latest football transfer gossip
• The ability to share pages with your friends, through email, Facebook and Twitter

The app's football live scores section allows you to follow the action, whether you're at the match or out and about.
For football, it provides a league-by-league overview of the latest scores and goal scorers at a glance, with dedicated match pages for more in-depth information, bringing together starting line-ups, match stats, live text commentary and the post-match report.
The fixtures and results section has been developed to help you keep on top of all the major UK and international football competitions simply by selecting any day in the season from the app's calendar.
Live text coverage of England's Test matches, Wimbledon and the rest of the Formula 1 season will also be available ahead of the big events in 2014 - the Winter Olympics in Sochi and the football World Cup in Brazil.
Speaking ahead of the launch of the iOS app, head of interactive for BBC Sport Ben Gallop said: "Our aim is to provide the best of BBC Sport wherever you are. A third of traffic to the BBC Sport site already comes from mobile - a proportion that rises to more than 40% at the weekend when live sport is going on."
You can download the Android app here  , while the Apple version is available from iTunes here  .

US military approves Android phones for soldiers

US service personnel will soon be using many 

different mobile gadgets

Samsung phones running a secure version of Android have been approved for use by the US Department of Defense.

The approval is the start of a process that will see many different types of mobile devices used by US soldiers.
Approval for other Android devices as well as Apple phones and tablets is expected in late May.
Before now, ailing phone maker Blackberry was the only firm whose products were approved for use by US service personnel.

Fast growth
 
The approval of Samsung phones was the first step of a strategy that would let soldiers use many different types of devices, both smartphones and tablets, during their tours of duty, said DoD spokesman Lt Col Damien Pickart.
The approval would not necessarily result in orders for gadgets, he said, but meant different groups within the DoD could now buy the devices most appropriate to their needs.
The US DoD has about 600,000 smartphone users, said Col Pickart, about 470,000 of whom were using Blackberry handsets. The remainder was split between people using both Google Android and Apple phones in a series of trials to assess whether the devices could be used securely.

According to one report on Federal News Radio, the approval of other handset makers is part of a US DoD plan to more than double the number of secure mobile devices used by its armed forces by 2014. Alongside this will be built a secure system to manage all these devices and their associated app stores. Commercial bids to provide this are currently being assessed.
Blackberry handsets dominate within the US military because, before now, it was the only make to meet the Department's stringent security demands.
Samsung phones were among the first to win approval because of work done on a hardened version of the Android operating system called Knox that also met those security requirements. Gadgets that run Apple's iOS 6 operating system as well as other Android phones are currently undergoing testing by the Defense Information Systems Agency and are expected to be approved by the end of the month.
At the same time Samsung won approval, Blackberry 10 smartphones and Playbook tablets were also ruled safe to use on military networks.

Microsoft clinches Android patent deal with China's ZTE

   Microsoft has revealed Chinese smartphone maker ZTE has become the latest firm to sign a patent licence deal linked to its use of the Android and Chrome operating systems.

 

ZTE's agreement covers its use of Android to power phones such as its Grand S

 

Although both systems are developed by Google, Microsoft claims to own intellectual property rights to some of the software's underlying technologies.
It comes a week after a similar deal was struck with manufacturer Foxconn.
Huawei and Google's own hardware units remain hold-outs.
Microsoft said that 80% of Android smartphones sold in the US and a majority worldwide were now covered under licensing agreements.
The Redmond-based firm added that it had itself paid out more than £2.6bn ($4bn) over the past decade to cover its use of others' inventions.
Licensee list lengthens According to the Foss patents blog, ZTE marks the 20th device maker known to have signed an Android licence deal with the Windows developer.
Microsoft has previously said the technologies involved included methods to make Android devices surf the web quickly and control the way users interact with documents and ebooks.
Microsoft has already signed royalty agreements with HTC, Samsung, LG, Sharp and Acer.
It added Hon Hai - parent company of device assembler Foxconn - to that list on 16 April in an agreement that covers any client who uses one of the Taiwanese firm's factories.

 

 Despite talks Huawei has not signed a patent deal with Microsoft

 

A deal with Huawei - which makes Ascend-branded Android devices - may also be on the cards: the Shenzhen-based firm revealed it had begun talks with Microsoft in an interview given to the BBC in November 2011.
However, it may be left to the courts to decide whether Google also needs to agree to a deal - or if Microsoft's patent claims are overstated.
Google has accused Microsoft of staging unjustified "anti-competitive patent attacks" against its mobile operating system and said its acquisition of Motorola Mobility in 2012 would help it "protect" the Android ecosystem thanks to it gaining extra patents of its own.
However, the takeover and subsequent decision to build its own laptop - the Chromebook Pixel - expose it to litigation since it now makes devices of its own.
According to Foss Patents, Microsoft is pursuing more than two dozen related patent infringement claims against Google in the US and others in Germany.
Google has also made separate infringement claims of its own against Microsoft.

Apple blocks Google Motorola's sensor patent challenge

 

Apple uses a proximity sensor to detect when its iPhone is close to 

a face to avoid accidental actions

Google has failed in its latest attempt to convince a US trade agency that Apple has infringed its intellectual property.
The case centred on a claim the iPhone maker should have licensed a feature that lets its handsets ignore touches when held close to users' heads.
Google had acquired the contested patent as part of its $12.5bn (£8.2bn) takeover of Motorola Mobility.
Apple could have faced an import ban on its mobiles had it lost.
Although Apple is based in the US, it outsources production of its mobiles to factories in China and Brazil making them vulnerable to such a challenge.
Dropped claims Motorola accused Apple of infringing six of its inventions when it launched the case in October 2010, 10 months before Google announced it was buying the Motorola division.
Since then, the US's International Trade Commission has ruled three of the complaints were illegitimate and Motorola willingly dropped another two.
The Google-owned division briefly pursued a further seven claims against Apple in a separate complaint filed with the ITC in August 2012, but it dropped the case without explanation two months later.
The ITC dismissed the final outstanding claim on Tuesday after accepting Apple's argument that the sensor technology used to touch-protect its phones was "obvious" bearing in mind other earlier efforts by tech firms to tackle the problem of accidental dialling.
Although the latest ruling brings to an end the firms' legal clashes at the ITC, Google has the right to challenge the agency's judgement at the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
"We're disappointed with this outcome and are evaluating our options," said a spokesman for the Android software developer.
Apple declined to comment.
Overvalued patents? Google has always said the Motorola acquisition was more about the value of the firm's patents rather than its desire to get into the mobile hardware business.
"Motorola Mobility's patent portfolio will help protect the Android ecosystem," it said in a press release.
"Android, which is open-source software, is vital to competition in the mobile device space, ensuring hardware manufacturers, mobile phone carriers, applications developers and consumers all have choice."

 

Apple has pursued claims against Samsung, HTC and other 

Android-device makers

Since completing the deal, Google has pursued cases against Apple and Microsoft in the European and US courts.
Success would strengthen its negotiating position to challenge its rivals' own infringement claims against individual manufacturers that make Android devices.
Google's most notable success was forcing Apple to suspend its push email service in Germany, but when it subsequently attempted to challenge Microsoft's use of the same message-synchronisation technology, a UK judge ruled the patent at the heart of the case was invalid.
One legal expert suggested Google's legal tussles demonstrated how difficult it was to value its acquired assets.
"Patents are hugely difficult things - they have to be novel and inventive over what other people have done before," Vicki Salmon, chair of the UK's Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys' litigation committee, told the BBC.
"We are finding in Europe that a lot of the patents granted in the information, technology and communications space prove not to be valid when tested in court.
"When we look at some of the values that the patent portfolios went for in recent years, they were just extraordinary. Were they really worth that much? I'm not too sure.
"Although we are seeing the public fights and tend to notice the big wins and losses, we may not publically see the real value... there may be other licensing deals happening in private which we don't know about and which may be returning some value on those portfolios."

Microsoft signs Android patent deal with Foxconn

Microsoft had begun legal action against Hon Hai *

over the Android and Chrome patent dispute

Microsoft has secured a patent deal with the world's biggest consumer electronics manufacturer to receive fees for devices powered by Google's Android and Chrome operating systems.

Hon Hai - the parent company of Foxconn - said the deal would help prevent its clients being caught up in an ongoing intellectual property dispute.

Microsoft says that Google's code makes use of innovations it owns.

Google alleges its rival's claims are based on "bogus patents".

However, the search giant's Motorola handset division has itself lost a number of legal challenges involving some of the disputed technologies which may have encouraged others involved in the smart device sector to settle.

According to the Foss Patents blog, which tracks such matters, this is thenineteenth announced patent licence deal Microsoft has secured since 2010 from companies whose products use Google's mobile and laptop operating systems.

Other firms to have agreed to pay royalties include HTC, Samsung, LG, Sharp and Acer.

Although the terms of the deal with Taiwan's Hon Hai have not been disclosed, patent law dictates that Microsoft cannot "double-dip" by charging both a product's designer and its manufacturer a full royalty charge.

So, in cases where Hon Hai makes an Android-powered smartphone, tablet, camera or television for a customer who has already signed a patent deal it will be up to the two parties involved to agree how the charge should be divided up.

Lawsuit threat

Hon Hai describes itself as the biggest manufacturing services provider to the computer, communication and consumer electronics industries.

HTC - which makes its own phones - was first*

 to sign an Android patent deal with Microsoft in 2010

Forbes estimates the firm assembles about 40% of the sector's products.

"We recognise and respect the importance of international efforts that seek to protect intellectual property," Samuel Fu, Hon Hai's intellectual property director, said in a statement.

"The licensing agreement with Microsoft represents those efforts and our continued support of international trade agreements that facilitate implementation of effective patent protection."

The firm added that it owned more than 54,000 patents of its own.

The agreement comes just over two years after Microsoft announced it had filed legal action against the Asian firm in the US courts.

It said at the time: "The patents at issue cover a range of functionality embodied in Android devices that are essential to the user experience, including: natural ways of interacting with devices by tabbing through various screens to find the information they need; surfing the web more quickly, and interacting with documents and ebooks."

Had Foxconn lost the case it might have faced an import ban.

Last month Microsoft launched a Patent Tracker tool to make it easier for rivals to check which technologies it claims ownership to and suggested others introduce similar facilities.

According to the tech consultancy Asymco, Microsoft is likely to earn several times more money through its Android patents than it does from licences for its own Windows Phone system.

Alibaba steps up battle versus Android with Amos OS

Alibaba unveiled six handsets from five manufacturers, 

which will be powered by its operating system

Alibaba - China's biggest e-commerce company - has ramped up efforts to promote its mobile operating system.

The firm has set up a one billion yuan ($162m; £105m) programme to support app developers and is offering monthly payments to handset makers for every phone using its platform they sell.

A Chinese government report recently warned China had become "too dependent" on Google's Android operating system.

Alibaba previously accused Google of blocking Acer from adopting its system.

The Taiwanese hardware maker invited members of the press to an event last September to show off a new handset running Alibaba's Aliyun operating system (OS). However, on arrival the writers were told the event had been cancelled.

Alibaba later said that Google had threatened to "terminate Android product co-operation and related technical authorisation with Acer" if the launch had proceeded.

The search giant replied accusing Alibaba of using Android's development tools and other resources to create its software, adding that Aliyun's software store contained pirated Google apps.

As a result Google said that Acer and other members of the Open Handset Alliance (OHA) - which co-ordinates Android's development - would not support Aliyun unless it was rewritten to be fully compatible with Android in order to prevent the ecoystem from fragmenting.

Alibaba's OS subsequently struggled to find favour. Haier - a firm best known for its fridges and washing machines - became the best known brand to offer mobiles powered by the system.

However, Alibaba has now announced that five other companies are to begin selling handsets using its OS, which has now been rebranded Amos (Alibaba Mobile Operating System).

They are Konka, Zopo, Amoi, G'Five and Little Pepper. All five have previously made Android phones, but none are members of the OHA.

'Too dependent'

China overtook the US to become the world's biggest smartphone market last year.

Android accounted for 90.1% of the market in the July-to-September quarter, according to a report by research firm Analysys International. It said Apple's iOS had fallen to a 4.2% share and Symbian had a 2.4% share.

Google makes little money from Android's Chinese success - it does not charge manufacturers to use the system and most app sales in the country are made through local stores rather than its own Google Play marketplace and users prefer to use rivals' search engines.

Until now Haier's W718 was one of the few handsets

 to be powered by Alibaba's software

Despite Android's popularity, the US firm only accounted for 4.25% of all China-based web searches in February compared with Baidu's 70.49% share,according to research firm CNZZ.

Despite this, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued a research paper in March raising concerns about Android's dominance.

"Our country's mobile operating system research and development is too dependent on Android," it said.

"While the Android system is open source, the core technology and technology roadmap is strictly controlled by Google."

It added that China had the talent to develop a successful OS of its own, but stopped short of suggesting specific measures to bring this about.

Local tech firms Baidu and Huawei do market their own systems, but they are only reskinned versions of Android.

Credit checks

If Alibaba's Amos system does find success it could prove lucrative for the firm.

Phones installed with the OS access the company's own email, mapping and search services.

More significantly they might also help the firm bolster its mobile e-retail sales.

In total about 53bn yuan ($8.6bn; £5.6bn) of goods were sold via handsets in China last year - but Alibaba's chief technology officer recently told the Economist magazine: "Mobile is a new game where we don't have the edge yet."

Alibaba will promote the new phones through a new channel on its Taobao shopping website

For now the company is taking advantage of its popular Taobao site to promote devices made by its partners. A new section dedicated to the handsets is being created.

In addition Alibaba plans to let some customers pay for their phones by subscription without needing to make an initial down-payment. It said it would use shopping and payment records from shoppers' activities on its own sites to check their creditworthiness.

It now hopes to attract more manufacturers through an offer to pay them one yuan (16 cents; 11p) per month for each Amos-powered phone they sell.

"Alibaba is a very established brand in China and has good relationships with the vendors and promotional channels they need to make this work," said Chris Green, a tech analyst at Davies Murphy Group.

"The challenge still lies in trying to crowbar its OS onto devices, though the subsidy now offered may encourage more handset makers to build dedicated devices. But even if Amos succeeds in China, it has little chance of catching on anywhere else."

Alibaba is privately owned but has signalled it intends to float its stock soon. Analysts say the company could be valued as high as $120bn.

Facebook’s future - ads and Android

Want to enjoy Facebook in its most absorbing form? Then you need to get an Android phone, though you can expect adverts to be served up along with the experience. That, at least, is the advice of Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's chief operating officer, who's in London this week.

In a briefing with technology journalists, the woman who is one half of the dynamic duo running Facebook - the other of course being Mark Zuckerberg - made it clear that mobile was now the company's be all and end all.

"To say that mobile is important to Facebook is the under-exaggeration of all time," she told us. For the first time last quarter, users had spent more time with Facebook on their mobile phones than on the desktop.

She admitted that the company had been late to get its mobile operation right and had made plenty of mistakes. The firm got underway in 2004 just before the mobile internet revolution took off - Mr Zuckerberg has said if it had been a couple of years later, he would have started it as an app - and the transition over the past year had not been painless.

"We made a pretty big bet on HTML5, hoping we could build our applications once and it would work on all the different operating systems," Ms Sandberg said.

But that had failed - and they had to start again building separate apps for Apple's iOS and Google's Android.

Now though, the new Facebook Home - in effect a skin you can install to turn an Android phone into a social networking device - seems to be right at the centre of the mobile strategy. Ms Sandberg said the openness of Android allowed developers and users to tinker with it in a way which was impossible with Apple's operating system, so Facebook Home wouldn't be coming to the iPhone.

When I asked whether this meant she would recommend users to go for Androids rather than iPhones, she was quick to stress that Facebook still worked very closely with Apple, and we'd soon see some elements of Home in the iOS app. "But we are certainly saying, Facebook Home is the most immersive and best state-of-the-art Facebook experience you can have."

And, as Facebook is an advertising business, the Facebook Home experience will have ads integrated into it - even when the phone is locked. "Putting ads there is exactly the same as putting ads into your newsfeed," she explained.

And while Facebook prides itself on being able to offer marketers targeted ads - such as 24- to 35-year-olds in Essex interested in motorbikes - she said there was a much simpler proposition behind its mobile advertising proposition.

"The size of the audience makes this - the phone - a mass medium. It's as important to a marketer as TV." She hammered the point home: "This is as important - if not more important - than television."

Having noticed adverts becoming more prominent in both the new newsfeed and in Facebook's various mobile apps, I wanted to know whether Ms Sandberg thought there was a danger of users reaching saturation point.

Facebook Home brings updates to a phone's home screen, rather than require users to check an app

She said Facebook monitored this by having a group which was shown no ads. They were then compared for their engagement with those who got the standard advertising experience. "So far, we're very pleased with the results."

A year ago, Facebook on a phone was an ad-free experience, which was causing some concern to investors. Now the company has become a big player in this new advertising market, but the chief operating officer was keen to reassure users that there were limits.

"Our goal is not to increase the number of ads you receive but to increase the usefulness of those ads to you."

The future of Facebook, then, is as a company fully integrated into your mobile experience, serving adverts that you enjoy as much as an update from your friends. If the Sandberg/Zuckerberg dynamic duo can pull that off, then the huge valuation put on their company last year may not look so outlandish after all.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Wireless Charging Kit Detailed

The Samsung Galaxy S4 wireless charging kit, which figures to be one of the most sought after Galaxy S4 accessories, has been revealed today in a few photos that show off the back plate that Galaxy S4 owners will have to use in order to take advantage of the Samsung Galaxy S4′s wireless charger.

Read: T-Mobile announces Samsung Galaxy S4 for May 1st release 

Earlier this month, Samsung announced the Galaxy S4, a device that will be arriving in late April in the United Kingdom, and presumably in May for carriers in the United States. At the event, Samsung not only detailed the phone itself – including its 5-inch display, quad-core processor, 13MP camera and more – but it also detailed a number of different official accessories that will be coming for the Galaxy S4.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Wireless Charging Kit in all of its glory

Among them, a wireless charging kit that will allow Galaxy S4 owners to charge their device without the need for wires. This is something that Samsung promised for the Galaxy S3 last year, but could not deliver. With the Galaxy S4 though, it looks to be more than just a bold claim.

At the launch event, Samsung allowed us to go hands-on with one of the elements of the Galaxy S4′s wireless charging, the Wireless Charging Pad/Cover which is currently listed on Samsung’s official Galaxy S4 website. However, what it did not reveal was the wireless charging back that Galaxy S4 owners will have to use in order to wirelessly charge their device.

The Galaxy S4 will feature wireless charging, thanks to accessories.

Unlike devices like the Nexus 4 and HTC Droid DNA, the Galaxy S4 sports a removable back that will have to be replaced with one that offers support for wireless charging. And while Samsung hasn’t shown it off yet, a leak from CNMO shows off not only the back plate but the wireless charging pad as well.

The images show how the process will work. Users will need to replace the back plate and then use the wireless charging pad, which needs to be plugged in, to charge the device without wires. It will likely have embedded magnets to help attach the phone to the wireless charging pad.

The Wireless Charging Kit is supposedly going to arrive sometime between April 22nd and April 28th for $49.99, or shortly after the Galaxy S4 arrives in the United Kingdom.

Samsung has not confirmed that pricing or that date.

What are phone apps?

Nowadays there seems to be an app for everything. Whether it’s checking up on breaking news, chatting with friends via social networking or even booking last minute holidays there’s an app out there to help you.

'App' is short for 'application' - which is another name for a computer program. Normally, when people talk about apps they are almost always referring to programs that run on mobile devices, such as smartphones or tablet computers. There are thousands of apps available falling into many different categories.

To celebrate Get Online Week (15th - 21st October) we've created six films to help you make the most of being online using your mobile phone or tablet device.

Where can I get apps from?

You can download apps from various sites depending on your phone. There are different stores depending on whether you have an iPhone (App Store), Android (Google Play), BlackBerry (App World) or Windows Phone (Windows Phone Store) device. You should find an icon (or shortcut) to the store on your homescreen. Normally you will be asked to set up an account before you can download anything.

5 things to look out for when choosing and downloading an app
When selecting an app from the store take the time to check it out first. Look at the ratings and comments left by other people, they can give you a good indication of whether the app suits your needs.
If you see a lot of comments posted in a short period of time make sure there isn't a fault or other issue with the app before you download.
Some apps will be charged for. Typically this is anything from 50p to £5, with most being around the £1 mark. If you are going for a paid for app you should be asked for confirmation before you can download the app.
In most cases, the app will download more slowly if you are using a 3G connection. Use free Wi-Fi if it's available to keep your costs down.
Apps sometimes come with an 'upsell'. This means once you've downloaded them you'll be offered an upgrade, extended access or more features, but with a cost attached to them. If the app requires you to supply your payment details check the settings to make sure you don't part with any cash unwittingly.

Samsung unveils 6.3in Galaxy Mega smartphone

Samsung has unveiled the biggest smartphone to date - the Galaxy Mega, which features a 6.3in (16cm) screen.

The firm suggested its size made it ideal for watching videos or running two apps alongside each other.

Samsung helped popularise the so-called "phablet" category - in which phones approach tablet dimensions - with its original 5.3in Galaxy Note in 2011.

That proved more popular than many expected, but one analyst suggested the latest device might be a step too far.

Samsung is marketing the Android-powered handset as having a high-definition screen - however, a spokesman was unable to confirm whether it supported 720p or the "full HD" 1080p resolution.

Another South Korean firm, Pantech, currently lays claim to offering the biggest "full HD" smartphone with its 5.9in Vega No 6 which was announced in January.

China's Huawei had previously boasted having the biggest largest-screened 720p smartphone with its 6.1in Ascend Mate.

'Too cumbersome'

Samsung suggested that, despite its dimensions, the Galaxy Mega was still small and light enough - at 199g (0.44lb) - to fit into users' pockets and be used with one hand.

However, the firm is hedging its bets by offering a smaller 5.8in-screened version as an alternative.

Both will go on sale in May, with Europe and Russia the first regions to be offered the devices.

Tech consultancy Davies Murphy Group said that within the Android market there had been a notable shift towards people wanting to buy a single device rather than both a smartphone and tablet.

However, its principal technology analyst, Chris Green, suggested that at 6.3in it would be a "folly" for most users to swap their current handsets for the larger of the two Galaxy Megas.

"There is genuine demand for larger smartphones - the problem is at what point does a smartphone turn into a tablet," he told the BBC.

"When you've got this up against your head you'd have to argue you're using a tablet and not a smartphone - it's definitely going to compromise its functionality because it's simply too big and too cumbersome to use as a traditional telephone device.

"But ignoring the phone functionality, as far as the rest of the smart device goes it looks quite phenomenal."

Samsung was the most popular smartphone maker in 2012 accounting for 30.3% of all shipments, according to analysts at IDC.

Its rival Apple - whose largest handset has a 4in screen - came in second with a 19.1% market share.

Microsoft accuses Google of pushing services to Android

Android handsets dominate the mobile market

Microsoft has accused rival Google of pushing Android handset makers to use its applications such as YouTube and Maps.

Along with Oracle, Nokia and 14 other tech firms, Microsoft has filed a complaint with the European Commission.

The group, known as FairSearch, argues that Google is abusing its dominance of the mobile market.

In response to the filing, Google said: "We continue to work co-operatively with the European Commission."     

   Trojan horse

"We are asking the commission to move quickly and decisively to protect competition and innovation in this critical market," said Thomas Vinje, Brussels-based counsel for FairSearch.

"Failure to act will only embolden Google to repeat its desktop abuses of dominance as consumers increasingly turn to a mobile platform dominated by Google's Android operating system," he added.

Android is now the dominant mobile operating system, accounting for 70% of the market, according to research firm Gartner.

The complaint describes Google's Android operating system as a "trojan horse", offered to device makers for free. In return they are "required to pre-load an entire suite of Google mobile services and to give them prominent default placement on the phone," the complaint reads.

Privacy policy

Google is also under fire for its common user privacy policy which groups 60 sets of rules into one and allows the company to track users more closely.

Last week six European data protection agencies, including the UK and France, threatened legal action if Google did not make changes to its policy.

In October a European Commission working party said its privacy policy did not meet Commission standards on data protection.

It gave Google four months to comply with its recommendation.

Google maintains that the new policy "respects European law".

Microsoft itself is no stranger to EC scrutiny. In March it was fined 561 million euros (£484m) for failing to promote a range of web browsers in its Windows 7 operating system.

European data watchdogs target Google over privacy

Google has faced repeated investigations over

 the data it gathers on users

Six European data protection agencies are contemplating legal action over Google's privacy policy.

The threat comes as a four-month deadline to change the policy expires with Google making "no change" to the policy.

Google's perceived failure to act is being looked in to by data watchdogs in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK.

In a statement, Google said its privacy policy "respects European law".

'Full engagement'

In late October 2012, a European Commission working party reported that Google's privacy policy did not meet Commission standards on data protection.

The report said Google should do more to let users see what information was held about them, provide tools to manage this data and take more care to ensure it did not store too much data about users.

The investigation was kicked off by Google's decision to update its privacy policy so it had one set of guidelines for every service it ran.

Google was given four months to comply with the working party's recommendations to bring the policy into line with European law.

"After this period has expired, Google has not implemented any significant compliance measures," said French data watchdog CNIL in a statement. CNIL headed the probe into the privacy policy.

In addition, said CNIL, Google was warned about the potential for action on 19 March in a meeting with officials from six data watchdogs. "No change," was seen following this meeting, said CNIL.

As a consequence, all six data protection bodies were now opening new investigations into Google and how it handled privacy. The UK's Information Commissioner confirmed it was looking at whether the policy complied but said it could not add further comment because the investigation was ongoing.

A Google spokesman said: "Our privacy policy respects European law and allows us to create simpler, more effective services."

"We have engaged fully with the DPAs involved throughout this process, and we'll continue to do so going forward," added the spokesman.

News of the action comes as Google's privacy director, Alma Whitten, steps down from her job. Ms Whitten was appointed as the search giant's first privacy director in 2010, following a series of mistakes by Google that had led to user data being exposed.