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Did you miss out on the Cyber-Wednesday promo Motorola was running for the Moto X? Stressed about missing out on your chance again this coming Monday, December 9? Well we have a great giveaway for you courtesy of our very own MotoXGirl. MotoXGirl was able to secure not one (1) or two (2) $150.00 off Coupons for the Moto X, but six (6)!! Yes that's right, SIX!

We are going to make winning one of these coupons easy as 1, 2, 3. Rules for entry:

• In the comments section post "I want the Moto X! Thanks MotoXGirl"

That's all you need to do to enter folks, so jump right in and enter now! Remember, only one (1) entry per member.

This contest will close on Friday, December 6 2013 at 12:00pm Central at which time six (6) random winners will be chosen and announced later that day

*IMPORTANT: Coupons expire December 11, 2013. Dev Edition and business accounts are exempt from offer*

MKHB interviewed Dennis Woodside (CEO of Motorola) and I must say I am feeling better about the direction Motorola is going based on the interview. Motorola under new management seems to get it that it is about the consumers and you can tell by the moves they made over the past year. I am looking forward to what Motorola can do going forward.

The Oppo Find series of phones typically have excellent bag for your buck with higher-end specs for a decent price. The Chinese manufacturer has had trouble getting their phones out to a wide international audience and they especially have problems bringing their phones to the U.S. Regardless, their devices are worth perking up and paying attention to. We have some new rumored specs for the next-generation Oppo Find 7 and they are impressive indeed. Here's the intel:

• 5.7-inch 2,560×1,440 touchscreen
• 13 MP rear camera
• 5 MP front camera
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 processor
• 3 GB of RAM
• LTE support

As you can see, that's quite a list of powerful specs. Perhaps next year Oppo will be able to find more success in getting deals pushed through to bring their products to a wider audience.

The above pic says "4G LTE, Oppo is ready!" and is likely just Oppo's way of congratulating China Mobile for launching 4G LTE in the country.

Source: UnWiredView

A new QWERTY slider Android smartphone has been tipped for T-Mobile. The ever-amazing @evleaks shared the above pic but few details regarding the new device. We do know it is called the LG Optimus F3Q. We suspect it will be a mid-range or budget device with middling specs. The current speculation suggests a WVGA display, 1GB of RAM, a dual-core processor and Android Jelly Bean. If we had to guess, the device will likely retail for $180-250 off contract, but nothing official has been confirmed yet.

What do you guys think? Even though this isn't a very appealing device, does it have you pining for the days of the OG Droid?

Source: @evleaks

Despite the fact that Verizon is already far ahead of their competitors in offering 4G LTE across the country, that hasn't diminished their aggressive rollout and improvement strategy. Even as their competition strives to catch them, Verizon continues to upgrade what they already have in place. A new report indicates they just expanded again and tripled their LTE network capacity in several major cities.

According to Chief Network Officer Nicola Palmer of Verizon Wireless, the company just boosted their network capacity in major cities like New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Boston, Seattle, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and San Francisco. These upgrades primarily are focused on allowing for more users on the network, but should also offer existing users with a decent speed bump in some areas. Here's a quote with a few more details,

Verizon is tapping the Advanced Wireless Services airwaves it acquired from the cable operators back in 2012, and these are no paltry frequencies. In every major city east of the Mississippi and in several western markets, Palmer said, Verizon has fielded LTE systems utilizing a full 40 MHz of spectrum, twice as big as the 20 MHz network it’s spent the last three years rolling out nationwide. In some cities it couldn’t piece together a 40 MHz block, but it has been able to get close: In San Francisco and Los Angeles, for instance, the new networks are hosted on 30 MHz of AWS spectrum.

Those setups could support theoretical speeds for 100 Mbps to 150 Mbps, though real-world speeds will be much slower, especially as more subscribers move onto the network. More importantly though, the upgrade gives Verizon much needed capacity.

Source: GigaOM

Yesterday we reported that the newest version of KitKat, version 4.4.1 would soon start rolling out. Little did we know it would be sooner than we surmised. Last night the update started rolling out. It first started hitting the Nexus 5, but then started filtering out to the Nexus 4 and the 2013 LTE Edition of the Nexus 7.

Just as reported, the update primarily comes with a slew of camera improvements and perhaps a bit more. Any additional changes have yet to be detailed, but we have reports of improved speaker output as well as some minor bug fixes. For the most part we are pleased to see the camera boosts which include a new HDR+ mode, faster focusing (especially in low light), truer colors, faster white balancing, and the ability to pinch-zoom the viewfinder in HDR+ mode.

If you don't want to wait for the OTA rollout, you can grab it manually and sideload it. Here are a few links below to Google's servers hosting the update. Be sure to ask in the forums for instructions on how to do that if you are unfamiliar with the process. It's not too tough, but it is involved and isn't something you want to make a mistake doing.

Google's Nexus 5 Android 4.4.1 KitKat Update

Google's Nexus 4 Android 4.4.1 KitKat Update

Google's Nexus 7 LTE 2013 Edition Android 4.4.1 KitKat Update

For those planning on waiting for the OTA, sound off in this thread and let us know when you get yours and what you think of it.

It seems that Microsoft isn't fooling around anymore and is fed up with the NSA. Microsoft just joined Google and Yahoo in beefing up security against the U.S. National Security Agency. The Redmond based company just went into overdrive to increase end-to-end encryption for its data center Internet traffic after finding out that the NSA can now hack into major tech companies’ data centers.

Microsoft has taken things a step further by publicly calling out the U.S. Government and categorizing them as an “advanced persistent threat” to its customers’ security. This is the same designation Microsoft normally uses only “for foreign state-sponsored cyber terrorists.”

It's truly frightening and sad when our own government is lumped in with organizations/countries like Iran, Al Qaida and The Taliban.

Source: BGR

It's obvious this game is more like the old school PC game Pirates, than it is the current Assassin's Creed series. Regardless of this, if you are looking for an action game that will let you engage in 16th century naval warfare with some serious fun and action, then you should check this game out. Assassin's Creed: Pirates is now available for both iOS and Android. As you can see in the video above, as you progress in wealth by stealing booty from the wrecked hulls of your conquests, you can upgrade your ship and your crew to become an even more efficient Pirate. You can even learn new combat techniques, effectively leveling up your very own personal "Dread Pirate Roberts" as you play. Here's a quick description taken from the Google Play Store:

Become one of the most feared pirates of the Caribbean in this exclusive Assassin's Creed adventure on smartphones and tablets!

Play as Alonzo Batilla, a young and ambitious captain, a pirate eager to take on the fiercest of enemies...
Break all the rules, challenge empires and make your own fortune!

ENGAGE IN BRUTAL NAVAL COMBATS
Fight in real-time naval battles all over the Caribbean Sea.
Choose from a wide range of weapons to destroy your enemies and become a true pirate legend!

BUILD UP YOUR CREW AND YOUR SHIP
Acquire the most iconic boats of the Golden Age of Piracy; ranging from the smallest gunboat to the Man O’War floating fortress
Upgrade your vessel using the massive bounty plundered from your encounters
Recruit the finest crew members and learn more than 50 new pirating techniques to become a better captain and the true master of naval combat.

DISCOVER GROUNDBREAKING 3D VISUALS ON MOBILE AND TABLETS
Changing weather conditions directly impact the gameplay and redefine every landscape.
Beware of storms and of the treacherous fog that will conceal your enemies until the last moment!
Bask in the West-Indies sunshine, admire beautiful sunsets and sail through the night along breathtaking coastlines.

EXPLORE THE IMMENSITY OF THE CARRIBEAN
Sail throughout a vast array of islands as you explore a Caribbean huge map
Enjoy more than 50 story and side missions, search for nearly one hundred treasures and lost parchments and compete with your friends for the highest bounty.

EMBARK ON AN EPIC QUEST FOR A LEGENDARY TREASURE
Live an adventure that will reveal the truth about La Buse’s mysterious lost treasure.
Cross paths with Assassins and Templars and take part in their age-old struggle.
Meet the most notorious and colorful pirates of the era, including Sam Bellamy, Ben Hornigold and Blackbeard!
Assassin’s Creed Pirates is fully compatible with tablets.
Game available in: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Russian.

We aren't too sure how or why they are using the Assassin's Creed name for this game, other than it coincides with the flavor/story of the most current game in that series. We won't fault them for cashing in on the name a bit though because this game has some great visuals and packs in quite a bit of fun. The game costs $4.99 currently. Below is a link to the Google Play Store to grab a copy for yourself.

Source: Google Play Store - Assassin's Creed Pirates

Just a few months ago we shared a rumor that Samsung was working on a Samsung Galaxy F device which would be an even more premium device than their Galaxy S series. It hinted at higher-end materials such as a metal casing and more. Not long after that speculation in the industry suggested that the metal casing would simply come for the Galaxy S5 when Samsung announces it next year. In fact, just a couple days ago we shared a new report suggesting exactly that. Additionally, just yesterday new intel arrived regarding a high-end Samsung device with the model name SM-G900S. This new info indicated it may be the Galaxy S5.

It's another day and even more info has come to light. A new device with a similar model name has surfaced: the SM-G900F. The similarity between the two model names and our previous intel suggests that the next Galaxy S5 might actually come in two variants. One will likely be the usual plastic based device, and the other might be the Model F and will include the "premium" metal casing. Beyond these new details, the rest of the rumors regarding Samsung's "next big thing" are as follows:

• 2K display
• Samsung’s new 64-bit eight-core Exynos processor or a quad-core Snapdragon processor
• 16-megapixel camera with some intriguing new technology
• 3-4GB of RAM
• 4,000 mAh battery
• Android 4.4 KitKat

What do you guys think? Is this typical "pie in the sky" fantasy, or a plausible future direction for Samsung.

Source: BGR