Welcome to another gadget packed edition of “Last Week In Tech.”Last week’s big tech news kicks off with Amazon as they strike back into the tablet game with the all new Kindle Fire HDX. When it comes to Apple we have new iMac’s to talk about, and we could even see gold coming to the iPad lineup this month. Lastly, we look forward to the upcoming HTC One Max phablet, which is set to arrive later this month.
Apple News:
Apple release iOS 7.0.2 update
(image courtesy of NDTV)
Have you been freaking out over the lock screen hack in iOS 7? Well, have no fear, Apple is once again here to the rescue. Apple sent out a new update for iOS 7 that fixes that code-less security flaw found in the lock screen. The security bug reportedly allowed anyone to bypass the lock screen pass-code and access sensitive information stored in photos, Twitter, email and more. This update also brings back the Greek keyboard option, which was apparently missing in iOS 7 at launch. Version 7.0.2 is available for download and as an over-the-air (OTA) update for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.
iMac gets a big power update from Apple
Apple has released a much needed update to their poular iMac desktop series last week. The latest iMac features an Intel Core i5 processor, as well as new Iris Pro graphics, which are 40% faster than the previous generation iMac’s graphics. The new iMac will also be available with an optional 3.4GHz Core i5 Haswell processor, and NVIDIA GeForce 700 series graphics with 4GB of dedicated memory. Prices for both the base and the upscale model are holding steady at their current levels ($1,299 and $1,799, respectively), but of course for a custom iMac, prices may vary depending on what upgrades are selected; for example, online customers can upgrade to an i7 processor and get up to a massive 32 GB of RAM, if they don’t mind paying a little more. The new iMac is currently available for purchase online and should be rolling out to physical retailers in the coming days.
iPad Mini 2 set to arrive in gold?
(image courtesy of Nowherelese.fr)
The next version of the iPad mini could come in a new gold color option like the current iPhone 5S. The rumors come from the somewhat accurate French site Nowherelese.fr, who has reported authentic image leaks from Chinese language website ZOL. With all the rage and hype with the current iPhone 5S in gold, I wouldn’t be too shocked to see this color head to the iPad. If Apple were to follow an iPhone-type model, the iPad mini 2 could come in bright colors like the iPhone 5C. This would mean that the full-sized iPad 5 would get the gold color option, much like the iPhone 5S.
For all the latest news in the world of Apple, check out our Apple rumors roundup right here on The Horn.
Android News:
HTC One Max coming soon
(image courtesy of PhoneArena)
Phablet fans rejoice as we could see the HTC One Max arrive as soon as October 15th. The Chinese social media site Weibo claims to have images coming from TENNA (Chinese FCC equivalent), depicting the new phablet from HTC, which is set to arrive on the 15th of this month. The device is said to sport a 5.9-inch 1080p HD display, a quad-core 2.3GHz processor, 16GB of internal storage, 2GB of RAM, and an UltraPixel camera. Rumors of an iPhone 5S type fingerprint scanner could also be on board when the device launches in a few weeks.
Amazon launch new Kindle Fire HDX
(image courtesy of Amazon)
Amazon’s new Kindle Fire HDX will come in two screen sizes, 7-inches and 8.9-inches. Both versions of the high powered tablet will sport an ultra fast quad-core Snapdragon 800 2.2GHz processor with 2GB of RAM. This makes the new tablet more than three times faster than Amazon’s previous generation of tablets. The 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HDX will start shipping on November 7th and will cost $379, and $479 for the 4G version. The 8.9-inch 4G model will be available later in December. The 7-inch model starts at $229 for a 16GB model and $329 for the 4G LTE-enabled version. The Wi-Fi only model will ship October 15, and the LTE version will ship on November 14. Pre-orders are available now, directly from Amazon.
Beats and HTC call it quits
HTC announced last week that Beats Electronics will buy back the remaining 25 percent stake it had in the headphone maker for $265 million. The deal, which started back in 2011 when HTC announced a strategic investment and partnership with Beats, was valued at a rumored $300 million. The termination of the partnership will mean that future HTC devices will no longer feature Beats Audio integration on the their handsets.
Carrier News:
T-Mobile to sell refurbished phones in store
It looks as if the big magenta could start offering up crazy deals on refurbished handsets in order to grow its customer base. The latest rumor from TmoNews has the nation’s 4th largest carrier offering refurbished handsets in store as a new low-cost alternative for buyers. The phones would most likely be the devices that have been purchased back from their JUMP upgrade program. T-Mobile is also said to be parting ways with device down-payments, according to the news site. A well qualified customer (no late payment, not blacklisted) will have the chance to walk out with a top-tier phone for zero dollars down. Both bits of tech news are still just rumors, as nothing official has been confirmed from T-Mobile directly.
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