SK Telecom's Galaxy S III merges quad-core CPU and 2GB RAM

While the difference in performance between Samsung’s quad-core Exynos version of the Galaxy S III and the dual-core LTE variant looks to be negligible, customers in the US will no doubt feel slightly cheated despite the presence of twice the RAM as found in the international version of the phone. Now a new leak seems to reveal that at least one version of the flagship device will merge the specs of both variants. Before those in other regions start to wonder why the same arrangement couldn’t be made for the handset destined for carriers like AT&T and Verizon, 4G support appears to be limited to HSPA+. The SHV-E210S version of the Galaxy S III also adds a bit of girth to accommodate the additional hardware elements.  For those hoping to get their hands on this version of the phone, find a good importer. It’s unlikely we will see this model outside of Korea.

Voice control comes to MOG's music streaming service with Ford SYNC AppLink

Good news for those who like music on-the-go, Ford had just added a new heavy hitter to its AppLink platform, and this time it comes from none other than MOG. The streaming service boasts a catalog of 15 million tracks, which is available to mobile devices for a monthly subscription fee of $9.99. With the Ford SYNC integration, users may access this vast library either through voice commands or in-dash controls, and as another nice touch, one's music queue will automatically resume from wherever they left off. Voice commands include "artist only" and "similar artists," along with "downloads" for situations when you aren't able to stream and "shuffle favorites." Finally, users may also create presets based on what's currently playing, simply by pressing and holding one of the in-dash preset buttons. This availability is solely for iOS users,

Spotted at Computex: LG's X Note Z350 Ultrabook (hands-on)

Part of the fun of covering tradeshows is that Yanks like yours truly get to handle products that might never make their way stateside. We're going to put LG's 13.3-inch X Note Z350 Ultrabook in that category, since the company doesn't exactly have a strong market presence in the US - at least not where PCs are concerned. The Z350 is one of many Ultrabooks on display at Intel's booth here at Computex, though it's one of the few we hadn't seen before. Though the press shots we showed you earlier this week make it seem as if this thing is made of aluminum, it's plastic with faux-brushed-metal detailing. The touchpad has the same texture as the palm rest and is so flush that it's nearly invisible from a few feet away. The keyboard is typical Ultrabook fare: shallow, but usable. Ultimately, what impressed us most was the port selection: Ethernet, HDMI and not one, not two, but three USB 3.0 ports. Not bad for an Ultra, eh? If you're curious, we've got close-up shots below, and stay tuned for a walk-through video. Myriam Joire contributed to this report.

Nuance Dragon ID secures phones, tablets and PCs with your voice

 Do you wish your phone would wake up when you commanded it to, like Galaxy S III? Well, it's not gonna happen (at least not without some hacking). But, your next phone might just sport the feature, all without having to be saddled with the rest of TouchWiz. Nuance is bringing its powerful voice recognition tech to OEMs and offering them the ability to not only unlock phones with voice controls, but lock them down using biometrics. In that way, it's actually got a leg up on S Voice. Dragon ID isn't a gimmick - it's a security feature. In fact, if properly integrated, it can recognize multiple voices and open up to custom homescreens for each user. Sadly we have no idea when or where this tech will first show up, but we wouldn't be shocked to see it on both Android and Windows 8 tablets, as well as smartphones and PCs in the near future.

Verizon Galaxy Nexus Android 4.0.4 factory images now available on Google's servers

 The Nexus line's open secret is its most alluring, unadvertised feature: the ability to root. Easy access to those superuser privileges, however, comes with a high price of admission - namely, the loss of a warranty and the questionable stability of your device. Knowing that many an idle tinkerer has bricked his / her phone into a seemingly irrevocable death sleep, Google's tossed the IMM76K factory images for VZW's LTE variant up on its servers, rescuing ROM flashers with a stock Android 4.0.4 lifesaver. If you've been hanging your head in shame for unwittingly obliterating your handset, now would be a good time to hit up that source below and brush up on your command line skills.

Microsoft to launch Windows Phone 8 on June 20?

 
DigiTimes is reporting that Microsoft is planning  release Windows Phone 8, allegedly codnamed Apollo, this coming June 20. The Taiwanese publication is basing its report on reliable sources from the industry who also reportedly mentioned that most branded smartphone vendors, with the exception of Nokia, will be adopting a wait-and-see attitude toward the launching of the new OS. Why? DigiTimes explains that because the market share enjoyed by Windows Phone 7.5-based smartphones hasn't reached the desired expectations, it will be impractical to expect the launching of Windows Phone 8 to bring a turnaround for Windows phones immediately.

Sources are also saying that Microsoft is focusing more on the promotion of Windows 8, at least for now. That's because a successful launching of Windows 8-based tablet PCs will presumably encourage more smartphone vendors to jump into the Windows Phone 8 segment. “Nokia and branded vendors including Samsung Electronics, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Acer, Asus, and Lenovo which are capable of rolling out cross-platform mobile devices, are likely to the first batch of vendors to launch Windows Phone 8 smartphones,” DigiTimes said. Of course, it's important to take these matters with a grain of salt in hand. Unless we can verify the authenticity of the report, let's keep our fingers crossed.

Nintendo to Halt 3D Television Service on 3DS

Nintendo has announced that it will halt its 3D television service “Itsu no Ma ni Terebi” for 3DS beginning June 20, just under a month before it would have celebrated its first year since its launch in Japan. This service featured two-minute 3D video clips that were available for free.

The company did not state the reason for the closure, but it is safe to say that it has to do with Nintendo 3DS’ poor sales performance.

This announcement would be hard to swallow for Nintendo 3DS users in United States who continue to hold out for those 3D videos of sumo wrestlers and cute dogs.

Nintendo assures the public that the 3DS will continue intermitted distribution of 2D and 3D videos via Nintendo Video service.

Source: Nintendo Japan, via Kotaku