It was the device that Android geeks had been dreaming of. A phone stuffed with all the best hardware, run on a clean, fast interface that does away with any bloatware.

When Google unveiled plans to sell a version of Samsung’s popular Galaxy S4 with its stock Android interface on Wednesday, many Android fans must have got their credit cards out ready to spend. The bigger question, though, is whether this is the start of a trend – a good one.

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Phone users in Singapore can finally say no to annoying spam SMSes or phone calls by adding their phone numbers to a much-awaited do-not-call registry from January 2, 2014.

When it swings into action, telemarketing companies will have to check against the registry to ensure that they do not call, SMS or fax people who have opted out of marketing messages.
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You’ve got to give it to BlackBerry for sticking to its guns.

Close to 5 months after re-branding itself from Research in Motion to BlackBerry and unleashing the first BlackBerry 10 devices into the world, the Canadian company is still showing no signs of the demise that many have gleefully foretold, even turning a profit of US$94 million in Q4 of 2012.

At its annual BlackBerry Live conference in Orlando earlier today, BlackBerry unveiled the new BlackBerry Q5 smartphone (pictured above), a QWERTY device (similar to the Q10) aimed at the company’s strongholds in emerging markets such as Indonesia. …

It’s got a metallic case, it’s slimmed down drastically and it has the great camera as before. Say hello to Nokia’s new Lumia 925, which was unveiled hours ago as the follow-up to the flagship Lumia 920. …

For BlackBerry die-hards who are still firing away e-mails everyday on their phone’s keyboard, the new Q10 is the device they’ve been waiting for.

This is the one with the familiar, easy-to-use keyboard and it is built like a solid and dependable – if rather less sexy – corporate tool that many had first come to know BlackBerry for. …

Users will spend US$65 billion on e-books, games and other content on their smartphones and tablets by 2016, up from this year’s US$40 billion, according to a research report released today.

The upsurge, according to Juniper Research, will be fueled by tablet users buying games, videos and e-books on their mobile devices, along with easier direct payment methods offered on smartphones by telecom operators. …

Haven’t gotten dearest Mum a gift when Mother’s Day is in less than a week? No sweat. Get her a tech gift that makes life better every day.

Here’s a Geek-Girl’s Emergency Everything Know-It-All Mama’s Day Gift Guide. You can call it the Geek MA gift guide. …

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is one great phone when it comes to hardware like its 5-inch Super AMOLED screen. Yet, by packing in a whole of features – including some crapware – the Korean phone maker may make you pull your hair out in frustration at times.

How do you get get a “clean” Android interface, without all the clunky bells and whistles? Here are some suggestions. …

Ask anyone who just bought a newfangled smartphone in recent weeks, and chances are he might take out a Samsung, HTC or Apple gadget from his pocket.

What’s the future then for the forgotten BlackBerry, once a must-have for corporate workers, but now a laggard in the smartphone wars?

In the last quarter, the company sold just 6 million phones – the lowest in years – but it managed a profit of US$94 million. Even better yet, it managed to sell a million of the new Z10 touch-screen phone, which BlackBerry has pinned much hope on.

Techgoondu got in touch with Hastings Singh, BlackBerry’s vice president and managing director for South Asia (picture above), to look for signs of a turnaround in 2013. …

Folks looking for their next smartphone running stock Android may be surprised to find themselves looking no further than Singapore, where local firm Synrgic on Tuesday unveiled the Uno, their new mid-range smartphone.

Sporting a sleek, umber-coloured exterior, the Uno — which means “one” in Spanish or Italian — is completely designed and developed in the Singapore. And instead of mass-producing the smartphone in China, as most brands are wont to do, the Uno will be manufactured in South Korea “to get the best quality”, according to Synrgic CEO Cheo Suan Jin. …