BlackBerry To Sell Out Its Business By November, According To Report

With the same of Nokia to Microsoft, the world lost one of the original smartphone makers to what some would call natural wastage. Failing to keep up with the times and a lack of recognition of new competitors left Nokia on its knees, and as if one mega phone maker all but dying wasn’t enough, it seems the writing is on the wall for another.

It’s no secret that BlackBerry, or RIM as we still (wrongly) tend to call it, is struggling. A less than stellar response to the BlackBerry 10 line of phones has left the Canadian firm in dire straits. Previously the king of the enterprise, BlackBerry has seen its lunch devoured by the likes of Samsung and Apple, and it never really seemed to react, other than to change management structure. Now though, that management team appears to be accelerating the search for a buyer for BlackBerry, which follows on nicely with a previous report of a potentialBlackBerry buyout.

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, BlackBerry’s leaders are "aiming to run a fast auction process," which believe it or not could see BlackBerry absorbed into another company as early as November. As far as corporate buyouts go, that’s pretty snappy.

BlackBerry has already narrowed down its list of potential buyers, and the sale process is expected to begin in earnest sooner rather than later.

Quite who would be willing to rescue BlackBerry is an interesting question. Depending on the price, we suspect a few candidates would  pop up, if only to get hold of BlackBerry’s assets rather than its long term projects. Still, we can only hope that there is a bright future in store for whatever BlackBerry ends up turning into, if indeed it does stay around rather than simply becoming one with another large technology company. After all, that didn’t work out too well for ether Palm or HP now, did it?

With Nokia moving into Microsoft and BlackBerry on the verge of being assimilated by another company, the options for smartphone buyers really are dwindling. Chin up though, there’s a new iPhone being announced in a few days!

(Source: WSJ)

This iOS Game Lets You Play The Role Of A Hacker

Hacking, as we’ve seen on many occasions, can be used for good as well as evil, or at least unscrupulous ends, but a new game for iOS by the name of 868-HACK plays down the wider issues by letting you have fun and essentially become a computer geek yourself. Of course, since it’s made purely for entertainment, there’s nothing amiss (although one suspects some App Store browsers may be initially off-put), and once you get into it, there’s much fun to be had.

The first thing you notice about 868-HACK is that it’s a bit of a throwback. From the graphics appearing based upon the Space Invaders era to the Pacman-esque movements of the small grinning face you need to move around in order to begin "hacking," 868-HACK feels very much like a lost eighties treasure.

Speaking of Pacman, the plot of the game seems also to borrow quite a bit from the classic title, with the main objective to push the smiley face around as quickly and stealthily as possible and consume data before eventually getting caught.

Unlike Pacman, though, the iOS title is a bit more of a thinker’s game, and success is largely dependent on how well you can refine your strategies. With a total of eight levels, it’s plenty challenging enough, and as you consume your data, it’s up to you where you extract it in order to fend off the onslaught.

With different data packages offering all manner of different abilities, it’s a title that becomes crazily addictive, very quickly, and if you do like a bit of strategy, 868-HACK is definitely the kind of title you’ll want to try out.

It costs $6 over at the iOS App Store, and can be downloaded via the link below. There’s also a version in the pipeline for the PC, so if this does challenge you enough to want more, we’ll be keeping a lookout for that release.

In the meantime, grab 868-HACK via the link, take it for a spin for a while, and be sure to leave your thoughts below.

(Download: 868-HACK for iOS on App Store)

Galaxy Note 3 Features Outlined In A 6 Minute Official Video

\Samsung announced the latest version of its largest smartphone at IFA yesterday, and the Galaxy Note 3 is sure to be popular amongst both those that want to carry a mini-tablet around 24/7 and anyone who tends to turn into a big green superhero when they’re mad. If you happen to fit snugly into either of those categories, then the chances are you’re already we clued up on what the third generation of Galaxy Note can offer you, but if you’re on the fence then you’ll be on the lookout for all the information you can get.

Luckily, finding information on the Galaxy Note 3 and all that it entails isn’t exactly difficult. Even if you didn’t catch the live stream or our coverage of Samsung’s big unveiling at IFA yesterday, then you can watch a 6-minute video that Samsung released today with the aim of getting its message across. That message, it seems, is that the Note can handle just about anything you throw at it.

Initially kicking off in an Apple-esque fashion, the video shows the Galaxy Note 3 in all its glory, running through the vital statistics and doing its best to show off the more striking aspects of the design. Chief amongst those is that 5.7-inch display, and with good reason. If displays are your bag, then they don’t get much larger than this without losing the ability to make phone calls.

Once the specifications are out of the way though, Samsung sets about showing some situations in which the Galaxy Note 3 can prove to be invaluable, at least in the eyes of its maker. Taking notes on the go using the new and improved S Pen is predictably something that Samsung is trying to hype, just as it did with the previous two generations of the Note. We’re not huge fans of writing on a smartphone, but to each their own.

The video is well worth a watch even if you have just  a passing interest in Samsung’s latest effort, and if you’re even remotely interested in buying one then we’d argue it’s a must-see.

And oh, while you’re at it, the Galaxy Gear smartwatch which was unveiled by Samsung alongside the Galaxy Note 3 is also worth checking out.

2K DRIVE Is An Exclusive Racing Game For iOS With Stunning Visuals And Amazing Game Modes [VIDEO]

Although the simple puzzlers continue to rule the roost when it comes to gaming in mobile space, the marked improvements made to processor and graphics performance have enabled developers and publishers of the more substantial titles to bring an experience to smartphones and tablets something like console quality. In terms of driving games, there are a few noteworthy offerings including the Real Racing trilogy, and joining the race for supremacy is 2K DRIVE, a new iOS exclusive that has just debuted at the App Store.

With authentic cars and real tracks to race them on, 2K DRIVE is all about offering the purest experience for big fans of automobiles. As well as a total of over one hundred cars and in excess of 25 tracks in total, the title also brings more than one hundred different challenges to test your skill and speed.

No matter what your favorite car manufacturer may be, you’re sure to find something in 2K DRIVE that you fancy taking for a spin. Big names include the likes of Dodge, Fiat, Ford, Mazda, McLaren and Nissan and So-Cal, and having briefly tried the game out for ourselves, the attention to detail on some of the cars is quite incredible.

One particularly neat little quirk of the title is "RaceFace," a feature allowing a player to place their own face on their in-game character. It’s a nice touch, and lets you add a personal twist to what is, to all intents and purposes, just another (albeit very good) racing game.

The price tag reads $6.99, but while this may seem hefty to some, it doesn’t operate the freemium, pay-to-unlock model. Recent research has shown that, by and large, consumers prefer to pay the money up front when buying apps and games, so once you pony up for 2K DRIVE, you won’t be having to spend any more of your money to progress through the game.

Check out the trailer below, and be sure to hit the direct App Store link thereafter for the download.

(Download: 2K DRIVE for iOS on App Store)

iOS 7 Download And Release Date For iPhone, iPad, iPod touch Tipped For September 18th

Now that Apple has sent invites to media for its September 10th iPhone event, speculation has pegged a release date for the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C smartphones around the 20th of September, a date that makes sense based on past timescales from announcement of devices to their release.

To back up the thought that the 20th is to be new iPhone day, a document has appeared online on AppleInsider in which Apple is blocking its support staff from taking vacation time from September 15 through the 29th. In addition, T-Mobile has also told its own employees that the weekend of the 20th is off limits when it comes to booking time off work, something that would also suggest that we may now know just when we will all be lining up outside our local Apple Store.

The move of stopping its teams from taking time away from work during large retail events is nothing new for Apple, and its carrier partners have been known to do similar things during what they hope will be busy periods for the companies involved. As anyone who has tried to get hold of a new iPhone on or near its release date will attest, retail stores are always extremely busy and can often struggle to cope even when fully staffed. Allowing people to take time off could potentially be commercial suicide.

At this point the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C are almost nailed on to be announced, along with GM version of iOS 7 at the September 10th event.

Apple’s iOS 7 in its current beta 6 iteration, released well over two weeks now, is quite stable. Introduced first at the WWDC in June, iOS 7 is expected to go gold at the September 10th event, and if previous release schedules are anything to go by, will be available for download to public around September 18th.

If that is indeed true, then expect stores to be even busier as people try to get their hands on the latest, shiniest technology from Apple.

It’s going to be a busy few weeks folks.

Update x1: The content in the post above has been updated after Apple sent invites to itsSeptember 10th iPhone event.

High Resolution Photos Of iPhone 5S Fingerprint Sensor Appear Online

It’s almost iPhone announcement day, and if we’re honest we can’t wait to be able to tell you about what Apple has announced, rather than play the guessing game that invariably accompanies any new iOS device’s launch. Will it have that, or will it do this? What colors will it come in and will I get a free vial of unicorn tears with every iPhone I buy?

While we’re obviously exaggerating here, you get the point.

There are some exceptions to the rule though, and those are the rumors, the claims and the assumptions that come alongside a little piece of proof. You know, something physical rather than someone having overheard someone talking in a bar who may or may not be Tim Cook’s cleaning lady’s 2nd cousin twice removed. Physical is good.

So when Sonny Dickson posted photos of what looks suspiciously like an iPhone home button assembly, we took notice. Dickson claims that it is a part from an iPhone 5S, and while parts of that ilk have leaked online before, this is the first time that we know of where the claims are backed up by high resolution photos, rather than something taken underwater while trying to wrestle an octopus.

What is noticeable is that the part, which comes attached to a flex cable, doesn’t quite resemble the same part that is found in other iPhones. Nor, in fact, does it really jive with other supposed iPhone 5S home screen leaks up to this point, which may or may not make it less likely to be what we think it is.

The changes could, potentially, be down to that much rumored iPhone 5S fingerprint sensorthat everyone seems convinced will be part of the Apple’s next smartphone’s bells and whistles. Adding an extra layer of security whilst possibly opening Apple to a world of mobile payments, the fingerprint sensor has been part of this year’s iPhone rumors from the beginning.

We’ll find out on the September 10th iPhone event whether there is anything to it or not, won’t we?

(Source: SonnyDickson)

Xbox One Will Support Eight Controllers Simultaneously, PlayStation 4 Only Four

Although the Xbox One has been revealed and, more recently, finally been given a release date, we’re still learning new and exciting things about Microsoft’s console every day. The official Microsoft support channels on the various social networks have been inundated with questions from eager gaming fans, and, slowly but surely, the Redmond company is getting around to divulging some of this important information. In the latest, it looks as though the Xbox One will be able to connect up to eight controllers at any one time, meaning those looking to enjoy extended family / friend multiplayer match-ups probably won’t need to keep rotating. By the same token, the PlayStation 4 will only support a maximum of four, but given the limited support for more than four competitors, as well as the practical issues, this shouldn’t be a deal-breaker.

Like the PS4, the Xbox 360 can only process four controllers at any one time, but with the next-gen being superior to its predecessor in almost every way possible, Microsoft has felt it necessary to double the quota.

With online multiplayer being such a staple part of the console experience nowadays, there’s certainly less emphasis on local multiplayer as gamers take to the Web for an almost endless supply of fresh challengers of varying ability levels. With that said, those looking to entertain or with large families can technically have up to eight people playing supported titles at once if they go with the Xbox One.

Of course, the real challenge will be finding enough space to seat the eight people, as well as requiring a television large enough to comfortably support an eight-way split-screen battle. Suffice to say, it’s likely few will utilize the controller support to its maximum capacity, however it’s nice that it is there.

The Xbox One is launching on November 22nd, and while this is later than the PlayStation 4′s November 15th drop in North America, it will still arrive before its big rival in several key markets, including the UK.