Google and HTC Might Be Teaming Up to Tackle iPhone - http://clapway.com/2016/01/22/google-and-htc-might-be-teaming-up-to-tackle-iphone-123/

New rumors suggest that HTC might be behind the hardware for the new and smaller Google Nexus phones this year. Is this a move against the iPhone?

The New Google Nexus 5X and Google Nexus 6P Get a UK Release Date

These two phones have gotten a new price and release date, at least in the United Kingdom. Google, who is known to reveal a new Nexus smartphone every year since their inception, is launching the new Android N with the new phones. This new OS will be detailed at the Google I/O event, happening between May and June of this year. After the event, there’s a very high change the new models of the Nexus 5 and 6 will also launch, sometime between September and October.

Pricing for these phones is expected to remain under $700 for the Nexus 6P and $500 for the Nexus 5X. Google hasn’t made any official announcements regarding what’s next in the Nexus series of phones, but this is the likeliest scenario.

Does the Nexus Stand a Chance Against the iPhone?

The new phone is rumored to be produced by either Huawei or HTC. Leaksters have shed light on the Huawei rumor on Weibo, suggesting that at least one of the models will be manufactured by the Chinese corporation. A second group of leaksters suggests that HTC might be behind manufacture of one or both phones.

In terms of specs, the new Nexus 6 is expected to be more high performance, with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor. This is a natural upgrade since last year’s iteration of the phone featured the Snapdragon 810. The new chip has an Adreno 520 GPU, which boasts 40% better efficiency and performance than other chips. It also has an X12 LTE modem, which will give the phone added battery efficiency. The chip also sports a Hexagon 680 digital signal processor and a quad core Kyro CPU. It’s safe to say the Nexus 6 2016 will be pretty good about power efficiency and performance.

Smaller Screens the Size of The Regular iPhone

Some leaksters suggest that HTC will be making smaller phones for the Nexus phones. Previously, the number next to the Nexus brand indicates screen size, the Nexus standing as a standard smartphone and the Nexus 6 being a phablet. However, it’s possible that we’ll see smaller Nexus phones. The new screens might be 5″ or 5.5″ at most, with full HD capability. As such, new model names for the phones are rumored to be Nexus T50 and T55. The new phones will be sporting the new Android N OS, which means the phones will likely support USB-C ports and Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0.

Google and HTC Might Be Teaming Up to Tackle iPhone

Researchers Find a Major MMS Security Flaw in Android That May Affect a Billion Devices - http://clapway.com/2015/07/28/researchers-find-a-major-mms-security-flaw-in-android-that-may-affect-a-billion-devices-343/

A new report published by researchers indicates that a severe security flaw has been discovered within the Android mobile operating system that has already infected nearly a billion devices.

How it Works

The concept of the flaw is surprisingly simple: a hacker could simply send a photo or video message — containing malicious code — to a user’s Android device. Like receiving any other MMS, the user doesn’t need to take any action in order for the code to accessing information on the device.

“This happens even before the sound that you’ve received a messages has even occurred,” said Joshua Drake, a security researcher at Zimperium.

The entire process utilizes a service within Android called Stagefright. The malicious code access this service, and once the service has been breached, a hacker has gained access to not only data but access to functions on the Android device like the camera.

Seeking a Solution

The good news is that Zimperium, the mobile security firm that first reported the flaw, doesn’t believe hackers are exploiting the security flaw. But that doesn’t mean fixing the issue isn’t imperative.

With the help of some patches from Drake, Google was able to patch the security exploit in less than 48 hours after the company was notified. Unfortunately, getting this patch out to millions of Android users is an entirely different problem that must be faced.

Getting Manufacturers and Carriers On Board

When it comes to Android, Google is just one piece of the puzzle. They work with both hardware partners and the wireless carriers in order to push out Android updates, which is part of the infamous fragmentation issue that plagues the mobile OS.

Google has to send the patches over to the hardware manufacturers in order to implement them into all of their devices in a separate software update. Whether the manufacturers decide to implement the fix in a standalone update or incorporate it in an upcoming update is entirely up to them.

Once the manufacturers have a build, they must then take it to wireless carriers in order to go through a separate certification process for each carrier before finally being sent out in an over-the-air (OTA) update.

Some companies, like HTC, have already come forth and stated that they began implemented patches to fix this exploit in their Android headsets already.

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Researchers Find a Major MMS Security Flaw in Android That May Affect a Billion Devices