Tag Archives: IFA 2013

Philips 9000 series 4K TVs eyes-on

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We heard about that 65-inch, award-winning Philips 4K set a while back, and earlier today, we finally got to see the thing trotted out on stage in all of its ultra high-def glory. Turns out it's also got a bigger sibling, an 84-incher. We managed to get up close and personal with both of the sets on the floor, sitting side by side in Philips' booth. The bezels on the 9000s are reasonably thin, though not nearly as svelte as we've seen on the sort of sets that Samsung and Sony like to trot out. Same goes for the profile -- if you're really interested in the thinnest 4K sets on the market, you're going to want to look elsewhere -- not shocking, of course, as the company is positioning these as budget sets. Ultra high-definition for the people.

The sets are available today in the UK and Russia, priced at €4,999 ($6,588)and and €14,999 ($19,768), respectively. You can get a bit of a closer look at them in the gallery below.%Gallery-slideshow79655%

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Toshiba Launches First Windows 8.1 Tablet ‘Encore’ for $329.99

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At the IFA event Toshiba tries to prove once and for all that “Small is Beautiful”. This philosophy was reflected in its Encore Tablet. Built with a little help from Microsoft, the 8 inch tablet...

Philips intros 65- and 84-inch 4K TVs priced at €4,999 and €14,999

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New 4K TVs from Philips? We can't say we didn't see 'em coming. Heck, Philips even won an award for one of them. The company was waiting for the main event here at IFA to make the thing officially official, however. Philips took to the stage today to show off two entries in its 9000 series -- 65- and 84-inch models. The company's promising an "attractive price point here" -- that means €4,999 ($6,588) for the smaller 65PFL9708 and €14,999 ($19,768) for the 84PFL9708. Both sets feature Ultra Pixel HD Engine technology for upscaling, given the still somewhat limited selection of 4K content. The 65 and 84 are both available now in the UK and Russia.

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Samsung details new S Pen with Air Command feature for Galaxy Note 3

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Samsung's just officially announced the Galaxy Note 3 at its big IFA event, and its not so surprisingly spent a lot of time talking about the phone's brand new S Pen. In addition to bringing with it slightly new design, the pen also enables a number of new features on the phone. The biggest of those is the new Air Command functionality, which is a small pop-up window that's brought up automatically by the S Pen and offers quick access to features like Action Memo (which can link memos to actions), a scrapbook, the S Finder search option, and the updated S Note, which can sync content with your PC and tablet through Evernote. Fans of the Note's flip covers will also be glad to know that they can now also use the S Pen with the cover closed. Check out our full Galaxy Note 3 preview for a closer look at the S Pen's new features and, of course, the phone itself. %Gallery-slideshow79501%

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Sony’s Smart Imaging Stand hands-on

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Sony's Smart Imaging Stand handson

The Xperia Z1 was clearly the darling of today's Sony press event at IFA, but what is a smartphone without a smart imaging stand, right? The peripheral only got a quick mention as Kaz ran through phone specs, but we managed to get a bit more time with it on the floor afterward. The device is a cradle for your handset that you can control via phone, tablet or, in this case, the company's new SmartWatch 2. That's what Sony was using at the event -- though, we have to say, while we appreciated it killing two birds with one stone, maybe it wasn't the ideal choice.

Tap the icon on the watch's display and you'll see a barebones interface. At the center is a camera icon for still photos, with a video record icon in the upper right. There are also four arrows around the perimeter that let you adjust the stand's position. We had some serious trouble with the latter. Connected with the stand via Blueooth, we found ourselves having to hit the arrows multiple times to get it to move. When we did eventually get it to shift, the whole stand moved a bit -- though we're willing to chalk some of that up to the somewhat precarious position the stand was in while on display.%Gallery-slideshow79438%

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Sony’s SmartWatch 2 hits IFA, we go wrists-on

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Sony's SmartWatch 2 hits IFA, we go wristson

Sure smart watches are the hot newness, but Sony's already been there and done that. In fact, the company got a jump on IFA by first announcing its second-gen wearable way back in late June. The device did grab a brief mention at today's press conference (due in part, we suspect, to something Samsung may have up its sleeve), and the device got some face time on the IFA show floor. The watch doesn't look entirely unlike its predecessor, though there have been some modifications.

For starters, the display has been kicked up a bit to a 1.6-incher with 220 x 176 resolution. Of course, that's still a tiny color touchscreen, so you're only going to fit around six icons on there at any one time. The device is also slimmer than its predecessor, which goes a long way for something you're going to wear on your wrist, though we wouldn't exactly call it thin at the moment.%Gallery-slideshow79435%

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ASUS refreshes its Fonepad 7 phone / tablet with dual speakers, we go ears-on (video)

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ASUS refreshes its FonePad 7 phone / tablet with dual speakers, we go ears-on (video)

Nothing like a leaked video to get you pumped about a product. Of course, we're not suggesting that ASUS went out of its way to post information about the forthcoming Fonepad 7, but either way, that teaser piqued our curiosity. Now that ASUS has officially unveiled the product here at IFA, though, we can confirm these are fairly minor upgrades to the company's original 7-inch, talk-enabled phone / tablet crossbreed. Namely, ASUS moved to glossy back cover and (as we saw in that video) added an extra speaker on the front side.

Not that this isn't a good speaker setup. A number of companies have tried and failed to perfect the art of speaker placement, but we quite like what ASUS did here. For starters, they actually, you know, face you while they're playing. Quite the innovation, we know. And while they're placed near where you hold the device when it's in landscape mode, it's quite easy to grip it without muffling the sound. That said, we weren't able to get the sound all that loud when we played around with it in the echoey halls of Berlin's Hotel de Rome. The sound was easily drowned out by the admittedly larger MemoPad 10.%Gallery-slideshow79397%

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Sony IFA 2013 press conference liveblog

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Sony IFA 2013 press conference liveblog

It's cold, gray and rainy here in Berlin, but we've never let a little lousy weather get in the way of a perfectly sunny liveblog. Sony's always got a ton of stuff to show of at IFA, and we don't expect this year to be any different. Cameras, phones, and maybe even a wearable or two will likely be on hand at today's event. So join us here at 10AM ET, and bring some snacks. It might be a long one.

September 4, 2013 10:00:00 AM EDT

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Alcatel shows off One Touch Idol Alpha’s 4.7-inch display and light-up edges

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Alcatel shows off Idol Alpha's 47 display and light up edges

Okay, so we wouldn't go so far as suggesting that Alcatel One Touch's Idol Alpha handset "takes creativity to a new level," but hey, the company's allowed to employ a little hyperbole in its press releases. That particular statement refers to the 4.7-inch handset's translucent edges, which give off light to signify things like charging and notifications. The company's also pretty psyched about the curves on the thing. "You will be attracted from the first glance of the device with its unique and sleek design which stands out from the market," according to Alcatel.

The above image likely doesn't do the curvy 7.5 millimeter thick aluminum-framed body justice (nor does it speak to the quad-core 1.2GHz processor inside), so we're holding off such attraction until we actually see one in person. Thankfully, we're already here in Berlin for IFA, so we should be doing just that in the not too distant future.

Follow all of our IFA 2013 coverage by heading to our event hub!

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We’re liveblogging Samsung’s ‘Unpacked Episode 2’ tomorrow at 1PM ET!

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We're liveblogging Samsung's 'Unpacked Episode 2' tomorrow at 1PM ET!

For the last few years, IFA has become synonymous with Samsung's Galaxy Note. The Korean company isn't being especially mysterious about its announcements at this year's show, either; "note," if you will that the action goes down tomorrow at 7PM local time (1PM EST). Will the confirmed Galaxy Note III and Galaxy Gear bring any big surprises? Does Samsung have any other devices up its sleeve? Can we expect another magician-infused press conference? We'll be bringing you all the news tomorrow, so point your browser here.

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