An unlikely-sounding material might replace glass in the mobile device displays of the future, MIT Technology Review reports-- manufactured sapphire, the strong and scratch-proof transparent material of military choice.

Sapphire is a crystalline form of aluminium oxide harder than any other natural material bar diamond. According to some tests it is up to three times stronger and scratch resistant than Gorilla Glass, the material making the displays (and in some cases the body) of most current high-end smartphones and tablets.

However it is also much more expensive-- a Gorilla Glass smartphone display costs all of $3, while a sapphire display costs around $30, even if increased competition and technology improvement should drive prices to below $20 in the near future. A number of companies already make sapphire sheets, such as Rubicon Technologies, Monocrystal and Sapphire Technology.

Just days before Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013 HTC unveils its Android smartphone flagship-- the HTC One, a 4.7-inch successor for the One X mobile family.

Unibody construction is in aluminium with an optically bonded 4.7-inch LCD display featuring 1920 x 1080 resolution and 468ppi pixel density. Inside are a 1.7Ghz quad-core Snapdragon 600 chip, 2GB RAm, 32 or 64GB of internal storage and a 2300mAh battery. Jelly Bean is the Android version of choice, as reskinned with the latest version of HTC Sense UI.

Connectivity options include HSPA, LTE, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11ac wifi and IR (allowing use as a TV remote control via HTC Sense TV app).

HTC claims the One offers "the best audio experience" through "BoomSound," the combination of x2 front-facing stereo speakers (apparently with the biggest sound chambers in a phone), integrated Beats Audio technology and a dual-microphone HDR recording option.

According to DigiTimes Asus may have an interesting announcement at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013-- the Fonepad, a 7-inch Android 4.1 smartphone/tablet hybrid (aka "phablet").

The device will reportedly carry an Intel processor (specifically the Atom Z242), together with a 1280x800 IPS touchscreen, 1GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, 3MP rear-facing camera and 3G, wifi, Bluetooth and GPS support.

The Fonepad name is a reversal of "PadFone", the other Asus hybrid device (a smartphone with a tablet-sized Continue reading...

"BlackBerry" is now more than just a smartphone name-- on the BlackBerry 10 launch Research in Motion renames itself to BlackBerry in a move to consolidate the company brand.

"As we launch BlackBerry 10 around the world, now is the right time to adopt the iconic BlackBerry name" CEO Thorsten Heins says.

Now the hopes of a renamed RIM (sorry, BlackBerry) lie in not one, but two smartphones running on the latest BlackBerry OS version-- the Z10 and the Q10.

The Z10 is the BlackBerry take on the iPhone concept, with a 4.2-inch 1280 x 768 resolution touchscreen, 1.5GHz dual-core CPU, 2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage (expandable via microSD slot).

Huawei goes to Germany and announces the Ascend G 615, a quad-core mid-range smartphone with a 4.5-inch 720p IPS display.

It carries a 1.4GHz processor, 2150mAh battery, 1GB RAM and 8GB built-in storage (expandable via microSD slot), as well as 1.3MP front- and 8MP rear-facing cameras.

The OS of choice is Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich), but Huawei says a Jelly Bean update will be available from March 2013.

The Huawei Ascend G 615 is available now in a number of European markets.

Go Huawei Continue reading...

The YotaPhone might look like any other CES 2013 smartphone, but it might turn into something special-- turn it around and you will find 4.3-inch electronic paper display (EPD) on the back.

Designed to be always-on, the low power EPD shows anything from social media information and reminders to eBook files and images. An interesting application seen at CES is having EPD display a static map while the device is actually off.

Russian maker Yota promises it will soon release an SDK allowing developers Continue reading...

The Samsung CES 2013 keynote gives a glimpse of a more flexible future as it reveals the "Youm" flexible OLED series through a variety of prototypes.

One prototype visitors can test out at the show has a 5-inch display curving over right-hand edge of the device, providing a little bit of extra real estate to display text messages, stock tickers and other notifications. Lacking a radio or even an OS, the prototype is little more than a cool demo of the technology, and we doubt it will be available Continue reading...

Amazon already makes tablets, so why not smartphones? Taiwan Economic News claims the online retailer is set to launch such a device sometime "between Q2 and Q3 2013."

According to the source Amazon already has a manufacturer, Foxconn, and plans to ship around 5 million units of the unconfirmed device by 2013's end. Ambitious! Apparently Foxconn needed big pay day after major customers (chiefly Nokia) were bested by the competition.

Other Taiwanese parts suppliers, including J Touch and Young Continue reading...