HTC Bolt to launch in Europe as HTC 10 Evo – LlabTooFer

HTC, the struggling manufacturer from Taiwan, has recently announced its latest smartphone called the Bolt. The device offers quite a bit of power and looks very similar to the HTC 10. Nevertheless, a lot of smartphone enthusiasts across the world weren't happy when it launched. The reason for this is that the HTC Bolt is a Sprint-exclusive device, and will only be available in the US.

At least that was what we initially thought. According to the latest rumors, the device will eventually launch in other markets as well, under a different name. Well-known ROM developer@LlabTooFeR tweeted that the Bolt will be sold in the EMEA region —  Europe, Middle East, and Africa — as the HTC 10 Evo. There's currently no word on when the device will make its debut outside of the US.

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In case you've missed it, the new smartphone from HTC looks like a great device. It offers a 5.5-inch Quad HD screen, a Snapdragon 810 processor, 3 GB of RAM, and 32 GB of built-in storage. You'll find a 16 MP camera at the back with an f/2.0 aperture, Optical Image Stabilization, and a dual-LED flash, while a 8 MP selfie snapper sits at the front, above the display.

The HTC Bolt/10 Evo also boasts a fingerprint reader that wakes it up in just 0.2 seconds, a 3,200 mAh battery with Quick Charge 2.0 support, a dust and waterproof body (IP57), and the latest and greatest Android 7.0 Nougat, with Sense UI on top.

The Bolt doesn't have a 3.5 mm headphone jack, but HTC has been gracious enough to include a pair of BoomSound Adaptive Audio headphones in the box, which plug into the USB Type-C port.

So, any thoughts? Will you be picking the HTC 10 Evo up when it hits your market? Let us know in the comments below.

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Deal: Samsung SmartThings hub now $50 on Amazon, down from $100

Samsung's SmartThings hub is on sale at Amazon for half its original price. The connected home hub, which acts as the interface between your smartphone and your smart home products, is down to $50 from its $100 original price tag.

The second-generation SmartThings hub is compatible with Samsung's own home products, which include light bulbs, smart locks, power outlets, thermostats and more, as well as third-party offerings. The SmartThings hub also contains batteries so that it functions even during a power cut.

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The SmartThings hub works in conjunction with Samsung's free SmartThings mobile app allowing for remote control of all connected products. What's more, if you have an Amazon Echo or Google Home, you can use voice commands to control it.

• Buy now: Samsung SmartThings hub $50 at Amazon

Samsung's SmartThings hub forms part of Amazon's lead up to Black Friday sales. Amazon is aiming to make this year's sale even better with recently introduced holiday gift guides and the launch of its Black Friday deals store.

Is Samsung's SmartThings hub worth picking up? Let us know in the comments.

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Samsung is buying audio and automotive specialist Harman for $8 billion

Samsung is putting its sizeable cash reserves to work. The Korean giant will acquire automotive and consumer electronics company Harman for $8 billion in cash.

You might be familiar with one of Harman's brands, Harman/Kardon, which made an appearance in smartphones, tablets, and laptops from various manufacturers. Notably, HTC released the Sprint-exclusive One M8 Harman Kardon edition, Huawei collaborated with Harman/Kardon for the MediaPad M3, and Meizu released a version of the Pro 5 featuring hi-fi Harman/Kardon sound. Harman also owns the popular JBL brand of consumer audio products.

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While Harman is mostly known for its consumer audio business, the bulk of its revenue actually comes from the automotive sector. About 30 million vehicles are currently equipped with Harman infotainment, telematics and security solutions. In addition to its own brands, Harman also licenses the prestigious Bowers & Wilkins and Bang & Olufsen brands for automotive (but not for consumer audio).

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Samsung made it clear in its press release that the main drive behind the takeover is Harman's automotive business, which generated 65% of the company's $7 billion in annual revenue as of September 2016.

"As a Tier 1 automotive supplier with deep customer relationships, strong brands, leading technology and a recognized portfolio of best-in-class products, Harman immediately establishes a strong foundation for Samsung to grow our automotive platform," Samsung said.

Samsung views the automotive segment as a growth driver for the future. "We see substantial long-term growth opportunities in the auto technology market as demand for Samsung's specialized electronic components and solutions continues to grow," said Young Sohn, Samsung's Chief Strategy Officer.

As for Harman's consumer electronics activities, Samsung expects them to "enhance" its mobile, display, virtual reality, and wearable products. That could potentially mean Harman/Kardon-branded Galaxy devices, though Samsung's brand is definitely strong enough to stand on its own.

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Textra SMS to include RCS support next year for advanced messaging

The Textra SMS app developer has confirmed that RCS support will arrive in 2017. Responding to a question on Twitter, the developer said carriers likely wouldn't have the technology online until midway through next year, and noted that specs for it haven't yet been released.

Rich Communication Services, or RCS for short, is an upcoming messaging standard which would succeed SMS and MMS. As well as regular text messaging, RCS would support high quality picture messages (up to 10 MB), location sharing, group chat, video calls and more.

Textra SMS is a messaging app which seeks to provide advanced features for SMS conversations, delivering GIFs, stop-during-send, multi-select picture galleries, and a number of theme options.

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As both the RCS standard and Textra SMS are seeking to increase the possibilities of network messaging, it seems inevitable that Textra SMS would integrate it at some interval.

RCS has already rolled out with a few carriers and services – Google Messenger recently integrated it – but it's yet to become unified across all networks (T-Mobile's RCS service can't be used with AT&T's, for example). Until this happens, it probably won't be seen in Textra.

Find out what you need to know about RCS in our dedicated article.

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Google Play Newsstand updated to version 4.0 – new UI on board

How many of you use Google Play Newsstand? This app tends to be ignored, mostly because it is not one of those usually pre-installed applications, but it is a very convenient way to consume news and magazine content. The app hasn't changed much in a while, but it seems that's because they were buttering up a significant upgrade, which is now rolling out.

What's new in update version 4.0? The changes are mostly in the design. The app looks different and sections are organized somewhat differently, so it will definitely require some getting used to. Let's take a look at some of the changes.

For starters, the new center of attention is turned to the "briefing" section, which pretty much shows the most popular news stories around. Think of it as a news hub.

4 new main sections have been placed at the bottom of the screen. These are labeled "For you", "Library", "Explore" and "Read Later". Then you can access each of these sections to consume content in different manners.

The search bar has also been updated to look and work like the now-standard Google search bar you see everywhere. It covers the whole top of the screen, while offering suggestions, a menu section, voice commands and more.

Extra features and menus have also been included to the settings. Overall, it feels like a good direction to take. The interface looks modern, sleek and is very interactive. Would you like to see this design language coming to other apps?

Download Google Play Newsstand now

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Crowdfunding project of the week: GearEye keeps track of all your equipment

There's plenty of innovation sprouting from sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo, but we all know these crowdfunding websites are also full of nonsense. This is why we have created the 'Crowdfunding project of the week' series, where we highlight only the hottest tech in this category. Shall we get started with this week's feature?

Other featured projects:

• The SPUD is a portable 24-inch monitor
• Remix IO is an Android 4K set-top box, PC and gaming console
• SunnyBAG LEAF+ is a solar panel you can take anywhere

Today we are taking a look at GearEye, which is a small device (also comes in the form of a phone case) that will help you manage and keep track of all your expensive equipment, gadgets and accessories.

GearEye keeps track of your belongings by using RFID. These films are called "GearTags" and simply adhere to all your belongings. These are super thin, last years and need no batteries, making them a great solution for this task.

The concept is simple – GearEye simply keeps track of GearTags around it. You can use the app to label what each tag is attached to. Users will get an alert when a tag is no longer within bounds, and it will also help you locate it. One can create lists and decide which products should be carried around or not. The app will also alert you when you have unnecessary baggage you should probably leave home.

Though this was made with photography in mind, we can see it being used in all aspects of life. Us tech enthusiasts would probably benefit from it. I often forget my smart watch, for example. Or I go on trips without my headphones. And of course, let's not forget chargers and other tech necessities. GearEye would help us organize this messy tech world.

But is it cheap? As it turns out, the price is fair and definitely accessible. You can get a GearEye and 20 GearTags for as low as $129. It's a good deal considering this bundle is expected to retail for $199, but you do have to wait until July 2017 to see these products shipping.

Would any of you benefit from something like this? I certainly would. You have no idea how packed our bags get when covering tech events. And I always happen to lose something!

Check out GearEye on Kickstarter

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Enable fingerprint gestures on any Android 6.0 Marshmallow device with this new app

About two weeks ago we wrote about a new app that would allow pretty much any Android device to use those neat fingerprint gestures found on Google's new Pixel and Pixel XL devices. That application was created by developer ztc1997 of XDA Developers. It was never officially released to the Google Play Store, however, meaning you'd need to install the .apk file manually to get it up and running on your device.

If for some reason you're looking for a different app that offers up the same functionality (and then some), you'll want to try Fingerprint Gestures, a new app from SuperThomasLab.

Available for free in the Google Play Store, this new app lets you use fingerprint sensor actions such as single taps, double taps or swipes to control your Android smartphone. For instance, you can swipe down on your fingerprint sensor to pull down the notification shade, tap on the sensor to launch an app of your choice, or double tap the sensor to make your phone sleep. There are plenty of other customizations to choose from, all of which can be found at the Play Store link below. It should be noted that some of the actions on the list require root, but it's still plenty useful if you're not rooted.

After using Fingerprint Gestures on the Nexus 6P for just a few hours, I've been quite impressed with the fluidity so far. It offers many more customization options than the app we covered a few weeks ago, so it's definitely worth checking out if you're looking for something more robust.

Fingerprint Gestures works on any Android device running Marshmallow or later with a fingerprint sensor. The developer says the app will only support fingerprint sensors that have implemented Google's fingerprint API.

Interested in giving it a shot? Grab it from the Play Store link below.

Get it from Google Play

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