If you love your outdoor sports and fancy a new Samsung phone then it might be worth hanging on for a little while longer. It seems that the much rumoured Active version of the Samsung Galaxy S4 could be hitting the stores very soon.

There's a leak that suggests that the handset- which is basically a Samsung Galaxy S4 wrapped in a ruggedised and dust and water resistant bodyshell.- may even be announced in the next couple of weeks.

The leak does however throw up a few anomalies in that there are a few differences between the existing S4 and the Active version, the oddest one is that the S4 only apparently has an eight megapixel camera as opposed to the 13MP one of the conventional models. Given that one of the many reasons that people might choose an active phone is to take pictures this seems like a bit of an oversight.

It will also be interesting to see just how tough the handset is? Will it be able to match the Sony Xperia Z for shrugging off water for example?

According to the leak pretty much everything else is similar.

Do do you fancy a super tough version of the S4? I wonder how much it retail for too?.

Sony Mobile is undoubtedly on a bit of a roll at the moment, what with its excellent Xperia Z and rumours of this amazing smartphone.

And now it is the turn of its rather impressive tablet, the Xperia Tablet Z, to hog the headlines as the device, which was announced in January goes on sale across the globe.

Sony is claiming too that the tablet - which it bills as the world's slimmest, lightest premium Android tablet - has received the largest number of pre-orders of any Sony tablet to date.

So why should you be interested?

Well firstly it is ultra slim at 6.9mm, weighs a measly 495g and is very stylish too. There is also a case for this being the best looking Android tablet so far.

It is also 4G compatible - unlike quite a lot of its rivals. Like other Sony products it isn't scared of a splash or two of water and it is also very impressive as the control for a media hub in being able to activate TVs, speakers and smartphones and more.

It also boasts an eight mega pixel rear camera, which again is far more impressive than almost all of its rivals.

As for the core specs, it sports a 10.1inch Reality Display is powered by Mobile BRAVIA® Engine 2 with 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution, is run by a Snapdragon™ S4 Pro asynchronous quad core processor and features the Android 4.1 Jellybean operating system.

It is available in black or white, Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi and 4g.

The downside is that given its premium status prices at around £399 - more expensive than many its rivals.

Anyway, here's a video thta highlights its attributes. Try not to snigger too much at the cheesy voice over though.

Earlier today Gerald at Tech Digest run a story about how a highly offensive 'Racist Jokes' app has landed on the Google Play store.

Quite rightly IMO he says that is shocking that Google could be making money from the app and that it might even fall foul of Racist and Religious crime laws in the UK.

And then I saw this

What in any possible way is this funny? It is just utterly offensive.

Say what you like about Apple, but at least its app store is clean.

Google needs to take a very long hard look at its app policies and fast.

There are a shed load more of Samsung Galaxy Note 3 rumours this morning, some of which are more believable than others.

A trusted source has been chatting to Sammobile and seems to have confirmed a lot of what we have heard before, namely that the new Samsung mobile will have a 5.99inch screen, an Exynos 5 Octa chip and an eight-core GPU.

The source says that the new device will borrow a lot of tech from the Galaxy S4 including the Super AMOLED technology, a Full HD resolution (1080p) and many of the software tweaks on that handset.

Other rumours include a 13-megapixel camera and that the phone will run the latest version of Android with TouchWiz on top.

The bit that doesn't sound quite so convincing is that the source says that the phone will launch in June.

There are two reasons why this might not be the case. Firstly Samsung has another big screen handset - the Mega - launching in June in the Far east and Europe - would it makes sense to announce the pair simultaneously? Probably not.

Also the first two Notes were debuted at the IFA exhibition in Berlin and that isn't unlit August.

There are also rumours that there are three different versions of the Note in circulation including one with a flexible screen.

I guess we will have to wait and see...

There are some fascinating rumours flowing around the web today about an upcoming phone from Sony. And if half of them are true it appears that the Japanese giant might just be about to unveil a mobile that might not only put the iPhone 5 in the shade, but also eclipse the Samsung Galaxy S4 as the coolest, most advanced mobile on sale.

Yesterday there were rumours about the so-called Honami flagship phone and how it would pack Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800 quad-core chip clocked at a staggering 2.3GHz - way faster that any of its rivals. Also that it would be powered by a huge 3,000mAh battery pack that would deliver running times that are well clear of rival smartphones

The phone is also suggested to have a 5-inch Full HD 1080p display running 'Triluminos' technology for more vivid, natural colours, as well as Sony's IPS White Magic tech and the Sony Mobile Bravia Engine 2.

Today's leak concern two other key elements of the handset - the case and its camera.

As for the case you can forget plastic. The reports says that the phone will be made from glass, metal and carbon fibre, and be absolutely stunning to look at.

Most intriguing of all are the details about the camera. The company, which obviously has a significant heritage in photographic industry, seem to finally deliver in endowing the phone with a 20-megapixel camera accompanied by a huge 1/1.6-inch Exmor RS sensor. This will put it alongside the Nokia 808 PureView - which has a Nokia's 1/1.2-inch sensor. It will also apparently Xenon and dual-LED flashes and feature some innovative software and a new interface.Basically it is going to be able to take some superb images.

I guess it will also have all the features that have made the Xperia Z such a hit like its waterproof screen.

Pic from Slashgear

I have always thought that one day publishers would start offering tablets for free as long as you subscribed to their packages. Well, we aren't there yet, but things are moving in that direction.

The Times has announced that it is offering a special deal to potential readers and that if they sign up for their Digital Pack - basically The Times and Sunday Times downloaded each day to a tablet, plus full website access and the smartphone app - they would throw in a device for £50. In this instance it is is the Google Nexus 32 gig version.

Usually the tablet costs around £200, so that would mean £150 off the tablet's price.

I think this is just the start. It would make so much sense for say Amazon to offer a free Kindle provided you agreed to spend a certain amount of money on books each year - think a Spotify type subscription.

Then there are other magazine publishers who could in theory offer cheaper tablets as an incentive to pay for yearly subs too. It makes so much sense - if they want to ensure that their tablet readerships goes up why not offer readers a tablet?

I don't think you will be getting a free iPad with your Daily Star just yet, but if you are thinking about buying a tablet it might be worth seeing if you can get it free or cheap with some great content too.

So who are the top ten smartphone manufacturers in the world? Samsung check, Apple check. Coolpad? Who? Well the Chinese maker has just delivered its Q1 sales figures and according to this analyst has moved into the world's top ten smartphone brands replacing - get this - BlackBerry.

Apparently Coolpad's sales are 6.8 million, way above both Nokia (now in 10th) and Blackberry (which drops to 11th) whose sales this quarter are 6.1 and 6.0 million, respectively.

Coolpad is a Chinese brand - made by China Wireless - whose sales trajectory is starting to mirror other Chinese brands like Huawei, ZTE and Lenovo.

The downer though for BlackBerry is that as recently as recently as 2010 it was the world's second largest smartphone maker. Then again Nokia was top dog in 2011 Q1 - just two years ago.

Tomi Ahonen thinks it is temporary blip for BlackBerry and that the positive response to its 10 series range should propel it back into the list in Q2. As for Nokia, it seems like it is pinning its hopes on developing markets with phones like these to engineer a revival.

The (accidental?!) reinvention of the Barbour brand from one that's forever associated with hunting, shooting, fishing brigade to one that even the coolest Shoreditch hipsters can wear is one of the most bizarre transformations of the past few years.

And if you can't quite get enough of quilted stuff then now you can give your gadgets the Barbour treatment courtesy of a deal with Proporta.

The pair have just launched a shed load of new accessories for all manner of gadgets ranging from the upcoming (it is tomorrow folks,) Samsung Galaxy S4 through to the Apple iPad 3.

Although quite a few of them are in classic quilted Barbour style, though there's tartan and tweedy stuff too. Prices start at £20 for an iPhone case through to £80 for the full on quilted experience for your tablet.

More here.

You really couldn't make this one up. Samsung have done an Apple. Several times in the past Apple have had supply issues with their new launches (especially in the UK) blaming the popularity of the device for the lack of on sale units..

Now in classic Apple style Samsung has said that they expect the roll out of the Galaxy S4 in the US to be delayed because of ' unexpectedly strong demand.'

The company said

"Due to overwhelming global demand of Galaxy S4, the initial supply may be limited. We expect to fulfill inventory to meet demands in the coming weeks."

Reuters adds

At T-Mobile, online orders will now begin April 29 instead of Wednesday as initially planned because of "an unexpected delay with inventory deliveries." Sprint will take online orders starting Saturday as planned, but the phone will be sold at retail outlets only as it becomes available.

Only AT&T said everything was on track and the S4 would go on sale this Saturday as planned.

Samsung does need to get the launch right. The phone could sell as many as 10 million units in its first month so while a day or two delay is fine, longer would be troublesome. Unless of course this is a clever marketing ploy and the company has already factored the delay into their business plans.

As far as we know the UK launch of the Samsung Galaxy S4 is on schedule- as it reportedly is in many other parts of the globe. Almost all the major networks have planned to be shipping the phone to their customers tomorrow - April 26th - and so far there is no sign that they won't hit their targets.

A group of researchers at the University of St Andrews, the Max Planck Institute for Informatics and Montana Tech, are calling time on the QWERTY keyboard for touch screen devices. They say that the QWERTY layout is ill-suited for tablets and other touchscreen devices.

They claim that you will be able to type 34 per cent faster on tablets if you use new system, dubbed KALQ, and use both thumbs while tapping away.

The team apparently researched millions of potential layouts before alighting on KALQ which will be available soon as a free app for Android devices.

Dr Per Ola Kristensson, Lecturer in Human Computer Interaction in the School of Computer Science at the University of St Andrews, said: "The legacy of QWERTY has trapped users with suboptimal text entry interfaces on mobile devices. We believe KALQ provides a large enough performance improvement to incentivise users to switch and benefit from faster and more comfortable typing."

While normal users operating a QWERTY on a touchscreen device are limited to typing at a rate around 20 words per minute by rearranging the keys on the keyboard layout it is possible enable faster thumb typing.

Dr Antti Oulasvirta, Senior Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Informatics in Germany, said: "The key to optimising a keyboard for two thumbs is to minimise long typing sequences that only involve a single thumb. It is also important to place frequently used letter keys centrally close to each other.

"Experienced typists move their thumbs simultaneously: while one thumb is selecting a particular key, the other thumb is approaching its next target. From these insights we derived a predictive behavioural model we could use to optimise the keyboard."

So the optimisation process focused on enabling the user to use both thumbs while at the same time enabling typing on both sides of the tablet.

The catch though is that to full get up to speed users have to be trained to move their thumbs simultaneously, so while one thumb is approaching an intended letter key, the other thumb moves to its next target.

It sounds intriguing. Will you give it a go? More here.

In case you haven't seen it Apple's share prices have taken a hit the day before their latest financial results are announced. One of the reasons for the drop - which admittedly might be instantly arrested tomorrow if the results are good - is that the market is worried about cheap Android tablets tempting potential iPad buyers.

And while there are lots of online places to buy cheap tablets - we found this for £42.99 - they are now popping up in the High Street too with PC World stocking the Versus Touchtab range.

Want a seven inch tablet for next to nothing? Well the seven inch version is now coming in at £70.99. It has a decent-ish spec for the price too including Ice Cream Sandwich OS, eight gig of storage and a very basic VGA camera. You even get a three months free subscription to The Times. The biggest drawback is a battery life of just four hours.

If that's no highly specced enough for you then there's the 7V at £100 which runs JellyBean has a faster processor and slightly better (though still pretty primitive) camera.

I guess whether these devices work for you is determined by what you expect from a tablet. They will never rival the sophistication of the iPad and its rivals, but if you just want a tablet for accessing the web and downloading a few apps then these could be just the ticket.

Archos' much talked about move into mobile phones was finally confirmed today with the French maker unveiling a trio of handsets including a pair of Phablets.

The trio are all due in the stores at the end of May, though we have no details yet on whether any UK networks will offer deals on them.

The most interesting is the 5.3 inch screen Archos 53 Platinum, which also has a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, 4GB storage, an 8-megapixel camera and runs Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean.

There's a five inch screen version - the Archos 50 Platinum - which has similar specification but a smaller battery and the Archos 35 Carbon, which has a 3.5-inch screen, Android Ice Cream Sandwich, VGA cameras and 512MB RAM.

The Archos 53 Platinum will sell for £199.99, with the Archos 50 Platinum £179.99 and the 35 Carbon a competitive £79.99.

"The smartphone market is shifting, as SIM-free sales versus subsidised sales are increasing. ARCHOS is prepared to respond to this change, as we can offer retail channels affordable, unlocked and feature-rich smartphones without the heavy price tag," says Loïc Poirier, CEO of ARCHOS. "Furthermore, smartphones and tablets are interrelated markets that have quickly crossed over with the arrival of "phablets" - half-phone, half-tablet devices. It makes sense that this should be our next phase of products as it's a natural fit for our brand and long term growth plans."

If you want a budget Android smartphone then Motorola's DEFY+ is probably somewhere on your shortlist.

The phone has just landed on Three on both budget data tariffs and pay as you go.

The phone, which has a five mega pixel camera, and is water and dust resistant, is available for £10 a month with no upfront cost on the Essential Internet 100 plan and for £25 a month with no upfront cost on The One Plan. It is also available on Pay As You Go for £69.99 plus a top up.

The phone also has bigger longer lasting battery than its predecessor the DEFY and comes with a 2GB memory card.

Sylvia Chind, Head of Devices at Three said, "The Motorola DEFY+ is a unique smartphone, perfect for those on a budget who don't want to compromise on reliability. In addition to being water, dust and scratch resistant, people can make the most of Three's all-you-can-eat data and share pictures, videos and jokes on social media on the move, without worrying about hidden data charges".

There will be more info here - link not working yet...

So you own a Samsung Galaxy S3 and you have big plans to take it out and about with you this summer. Might be time then to invest in a serious case for your precious mobile - one that will keep it safe, dry and free from dust and other nasties.

Here then are nine of the best cases available

The biggest phone announced so far - the ASUS Fonepad - is about to hit the UK. The handset will be on pre-order today and go on sale as of 26th April from Carphone Warehouse, Amazon and Sainsbury's. The handset will cost £179.99.

Its premier feature is its seven inch tablet style screen - the biggest on a phone available in the UK. But this is as much as mobile as it is a tablet as it comes with 3G voice and mobile data (HSPA+) and plenty of smartphone style features.

It is powered by an Intel Atom Z2420 processor with a PowerVR SGX540 GPU. It runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and boasts a 3MP rear-mounted camera and 720p high def video. It will fune for nine hours between charges. It is available with 16GB, and has an SD card slot for up to 32GB of additional storage. All models feature a front 1.2MP camera for video chat and ASUS SonicMaster audio technology with MaxxAudio 3 processing by Waves.

"It is ideal to have a larger screen with entertainment, social media and other online activities now playing an increasingly important part in our mobile lifestyles," said Jonney Shih, ASUS Chairman. "The incorporation of 3G mobile data with full telephony support, makes the Fonepad the perfect combination of a tablet and phone in one single device."

It has been rumoured for a while now but Samsung has today confirmed that it will drop a pair of large screen phones called The Galaxy Mega. The handset will come in two editions - one with a 5.8inch screen - the other with a 6.3inch screen - the biggest screen on a Samsung handset so far.

As you'd expect both are stacked out with high-end facilities. They will run Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update features a host of software enhancements some of which are also on the Galaxy S4 - like Multi-window, Group Play, WatchON, Air View, Samsung Link, S Translator, S Travel, Story Album.

Of the two the Galaxy Mega 6.3 not only comes with a bigger - 6.3-inch HD (720p) TFT screen- it also has a faster 1.7GHz dual-core processor and is LTE )4G compatible). Other specs include 1.5GB RAM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, 8MP rear and 1.9MP front-facing cameras, 8 or 16GB internal memory, microSD card slot and 3200mAh battery.

The Galaxy Mega 5.8 has 5.8-inch display with HD resolution with a 1.4GHz dual-core CPU, HSPA+ as opposed to LTE. The other specs are fairly similar though it does have a less powerful 2600mAh battery.

It sounds like they are the net gen versions of the Galaxy Note, but without the stylus.

If you fancy the HTC First - the handset announced yesterday that runs Facebook Home, the social network's home screen on steroids - you will have to wait a while.

The device goes on sale in the United States on 12 April, but won't land in the UK until the early summer where it will be an EE exclusive.

In addition to Facebook Home the First runs Android Jelly Bean OS, sports a dual-core Qualcomm 1.4GHz processor, includes 16GB of storage and packs a 5 mega pixel camera.

Pippa Dunn, chief marketing officer, EE, said: 'We're proud to have been chosen by Facebook and HTC to be their UK launch partner for the HTC First. In combining our unique superfast network with the latest integrated Facebook experience, customers will constantly be at the centre of conversations with their friends.'

Peter Chou, CEO of HTC said: 'Along with our partners and fellow innovators--EE in the UK--we anticipate excitement from customers when the HTC First becomes available, putting a user's friends and family at the centre of their mobile experience.'

I assume you have all caught the Facebook news from yesterday. If not go here. Suggesting that apps were a legacy from the PC age Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a new wrapper for Android homes called Home that is embedded in a six handsets - three each from HTC and Samsung - and will be available to download via the Google Play Store.

The 'wrapper's customise the home screen of an Android phone enabling notifications, images and messages to appear on the main screen of the phone.

Its nearest cousin is the way in which Amazon has wrapped its content around the Kindle Fire Android powered tablets.

It is an interesting move but is it enough to make you want to run your phone via Facebook?

Well it is a shift in emphasis that Facebook needed to make. It has to get more people using Facebook on their mobiles so it can present mobile advertising to them.

Zuckerberg said."The home screen is the soul of your phone. It sets the tone. We feel it should be deeply personal." And: "It's putting people first in your phone."

So in order for consumers to let Facebook lodge on their home phone the company needs to deliver a pretty compelling set of features.

Well slowly but surely over the past year or so that is exactly what Facebook has been doing.

Want to make a call? Well Facebook recently introduced its free Messenger calling service in the UK. So if you and your Facebook buddy both have the service live and a Wi-Fi connection you can chat without paying.

Want to listen to music? Well don't bother firing up your Spotify app you can listen to your tracks on Spotify via Facebook. Image - well they have Instagram. Want to read the news - well several sites have Facebook apps.

You get the picture. It has always been the stated aim of the company for Facebook to be the internet for people and with Facebook Home on the mobile it could mean that people spend more of their time using the company's services.

What I think Facebook are hoping for is that Home goes viral. In that users download it and show it off to their friends outlining all the benefits, who then go and download it. It is fair to say that with Android they have good chance too for even though the OS is highly customisable a lot of phone owners barely tweak their home screen at all.

The next question for Facebook then is getting the Home feature to work on iPhone or Windows handsets. It is not a move that you can't see Apple freely and readily making, but if Home becomes massively popular on Android it may have no choice.

It looks like Facebook has an interesting year ahead.

I had to check the date on this one to make sure that it wasn't an April Fool's Joke, but apparently not. Sam Mobile is reporting that Samsung is lining up a pair of new big screen mobiles which will feature the Samsung Mega branding.

The Galaxy Mega 5.8, code named GT-I9152, will apparently sport a display size of 5.8inches, while the Galaxy Mega 6.3, code named GT-I9200 is expected to have a display of 6.3inches.

So if true does this mean that Samsung is introducing a new range of handsets? Or is it about to kill off the Samsung Galaxy Note range? The second of the two mobiles certainly sounds like what we have been expecting from the rumoured Samsung Galaxy Note III.

Perhaps the two phones will not feature the Note's signature stylus, and that the Note range, with its pen in tact, will continue.

According to the rumours then the two devices will come in black and white and wil be launched in mid summer.

If you want to order a Samsung Galaxy S4 you don't have too long to wait. There is less than a month until its official release on April 26th and you can now pre-order the handset from Three, EE and Phones 4U from today.

Three are offering the phone for £35 a month and a free phone on the Ultimate Internet 500 plan. The handset will also be available for £37 a month on The One Plan, again with the phone for free.

Both plans mean you sign a 24-month contract and come with All-You-Can-Eat data.

Tom Malleschitz, Marketing Director at Three said, "Following the phenomenal success of the Samsung Galaxy S III we're very excited to bring the Samsung Galaxy S4 to Three for pre-order from the 28th March.

"With so many great features, the Galaxy S4 is a sure fire crowd pleaser and as its Ultrafast* ready there's nothing slowing people down from sharing the silly stuff, everything from videos of dancing dogs to the latest funny online memes.

If you want a 4G connection then EE is offering customers who pre-order the Galaxy S4 an exclusive free accessory pack worth £54.99. Included is a black or white Samsung smart cover to match the colour of their phone, a 16GB MicroSD memory card, plus an in-car charger

The phone is available on a range of 4GEE price plans starting from £31 per month, and as a special launch offer is just £79.99 on £41 a month, 24 month plan which comes with unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and 1GB of mobile data a month. The Galaxy S4 is also available 4G-ready on Orange and T-Mobile plans.

Meanwhile Phones 4u is offering everyone who pre-orders the handset the chance to win loads of goodies. Prizes include the latest Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet and the Samsung Galaxy Camera which will be given away on every day of the pre-order period,

If you order on 4G EE tariffs the retailer will also throw in a Google Play voucher up to the value of £100.

Customers opting for a Samsung Galaxy S4 on 4G EE contracts at £46 and above will receive a £100 Google Play voucher; those picking £41 contracts will receive a £50 voucher; and contracts at £36 will receive a £25 voucher.

Scott Hooton, Chief Commercial Officer at Phones 4u comments, "Anticipation for the upcoming release of the new Samsung Galaxy S4 is really escalating and we're excited about it hitting the store floors next month. In the pre-registration period alone, interest for the Samsung Galaxy S4 has surpassed the interest for its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy SIII, as well as the iPhone 4S, which until now DID hold the record for the highest volume of pre-registrations at Phones 4u.

The phone is free from £41 a month on contract and from £49 on £36 a month tariffs on a range of networks.