HTC 8XT Announced For Sprint – Windows Phone 8 with BoomSound Speakers and Qualcomm Snapdragon 400

Today HTC and Sprint announced the HTC 8XT Windows Phone 8 handset. The device is the first Windows Phone 8 handset that will ship with HTC’s BoomSound speakers, which first debuted on the Android-powered HTC One.

The HTC 8XT features a 4.3 inch display, 1.4GHz dual-core Snapdragon 400 CPU, 1GB RAM, 8GB internal memory, micro SD card slot (expandable to 64GB), 8 megapixel camera with f/2.0 aperture and LED flash, 1.6 megapixel front facing camera, and 1,800 mAh battery.

The new Windows Phone 8 handset will launch some time later this summer for $99.99 (with $50 mail-in rebate) on a new two-year contract.

Stay tuned for more info on this sexy new Windows Phone!

Press release below

Sprint Plans Summer Launches for First Two Windows Phone 8 Smartphones to Feature Truly Unlimited 4G LTE: HTC 8XT and Samsung ATIV S Neo

SAN FRANCISCO (BUSINESS WIRE), June 26, 2013 – Sprint (NYSE: S) and Microsoft Corp. today outlined plans to launch the first two Windows Phone 8 smartphones to offer Truly UnlimitedSM Sprint 4G LTE this summer – HTC® 8XT and Samsung ATIV S™ Neo. Customers will appreciate access to the advanced features and capabilities of these devices with the benefit of unlimited 4G LTE (available in select markets) data, text and calling to any mobile with no metering, no throttling, and no overages, all while on the Sprint network.

HTC 8XT will be available for $99.99 with a new line or eligible upgrade, two-year service agreement and $50 mail-in rebate via reward card1. ATIV S Neo will be priced at $149.99 with a new line or eligible upgrade, two-year service agreement and $50 mail-in rebate via reward card1. Exact availability dates and full feature lists for both smartphones will be shared at a later date. Customers can preregister for more information and email updates about Windows Phone 8 from Sprint and HTC 8XT and ATIV S Neo atwww.sprint.com/windows8.

“We know our customers are anxious to get their hands on these Windows Phone 8 smartphones, HTC 8XT and ATIV S Neo,” said Fared Adib, senior vice president-Product Development, Sprint. “Without a doubt, they will rival any smartphone on the market today. Our customers will appreciate being able to use them all day, every day without worrying about overages or data caps.”

Windows Phone 8 won the PC Magazine Readers’ Choice Award for best mobile operating system in March 2013. The only phone with Live Tiles, Windows Phone 8 offers a truly personal smartphone experience designed to keep customers connected to the people and things that matter most. Windows Phone brings together the best of Microsoft with the same modern look and feel, including Bing, Office, Xbox and Skype, for a rich customer experience. In addition, the Windows Phone Store includes more than 160,000 apps to choose from, with hundreds added daily.

”We are excited to be bringing the most personal smartphone experience to Sprint customers this summer,” said Terry Myerson, corporate vice president, Microsoft Windows Phone Division. “With compelling hardware from HTC and Samsung, coupled with unlimited 4G LTE from Sprint, these Windows Phones will offer the complete package.”

Must-Have Features from HTC

Music-lovers will appreciate the amazing sound capability of HTC 8XT with HTC BoomSound™, introducing for the first time on Windows Phone 8 dual front-facing stereo speakers with a dedicated amplifier that brings people closer to their music, videos and games they love. In addition, Beats Audio™ enables studio-quality sound, so listeners hear music the way the artist intended with unique audio tuning that delivers thundering bass, soaring midrange and crisp highs. And HDR recording uses advanced dual microphones and audio processing to capture clean, rich sound that is worthy of high-definition video.

“Inspired by the design that won the prestigious ‘red dot award: product design 2013,’ the new HTC 8XT brings a truly crafted smartphone with brilliant color, soft-to-the-touch texture and tapered design to be comfortable in the hand,” said Mike Woodward, president North America, HTC Corporation. “A pleasure to hold and a pleasure to hear, the front-facing stereo speakers are a first for a Windows Phone and deliver sounds that demand to be heard.”

HTC 8XT is also ideal for photo buffs with an 8-megapixel main camera with autofocus and LED flash, and a front-facing 1.6-megapixel camera. The main camera takes great photos in bright-light and low-light situations, and the ability to shoot video and take still pictures simultaneously. It also offers multishot burst mode to help capture the best picture of a moving photo subject, and a dedicated Windows Phone camera button to open the camera quickly, even when the phone is locked or sleeping, so users never miss an opportunity to capture life’s most important moments.

Inside the beautiful HTC 8XT is a Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 400 processor with 1.4GHz dual-core CPUs supporting 4G LTE and 1080p video capture, 1GB RAM, 8GB ROM memory, microSD™ memory card slot with support for up to 64GB memory cards, a crisp 4.3-inch display, Wi-Fi®, Bluetooth®, GPS support and 1,800mAh lithium-ion battery.

Advanced Features from Samsung

ATIV S Neo will offer a 1.4GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, microSD memory card slot, international roaming, 4.8-inch high-definition display, Wi-Fi and 2,000mAh lithium-ion removable battery. Sharing is easier than ever with ATIV S Neo featuring ATIV Beam using near field communication (NFC) to share photos, music and video with other Windows Phone 8 and select Android™ devices. ATIV S Neo includes the Samsung exclusive Now feature, which highlights top news, weather and relevant information at a single glance.

“Samsung is committed to offering smartphones across a variety of platforms and the rich Windows Phone 8 experience on the ATIV S Neo is a testament to this effort,” said Kevin Packingham, Samsung Mobile chief product officer. “The ATIV S Neo makes it easy to stay in-the-know while connecting with friends, family and colleagues, through new sharing features and powerful productivity applications.”

Having ATIV S Neo in your pocket means users can do more with their smartphone camera. It will offer an 8-megapixel main camera with LED flash and a front-facing 1.9-megapixel camera for video chat. It will include a variety of camera apps preloaded, including the Beauty Shot mode for smoother looking skin in headshots, Manga Camera to give pictures a fun twist by turning friends and family into cartoons, and built-in Photo Editor that allows the user to edit, color, effect, decorate or share their pictures quickly and easily.

These smartphones also make it easy for customers to stay productive with Office Mobile for Windows Phone. With Office Mobile, people can access, view and edit Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents from anywhere. Plus, customers can count on Office Mobile to keep content and formatting intact so documents still looks great when back on a PC, Windowstablet or Mac.

Microsoft Office 365 offered by Sprint is available for small and mid-sized businesses. It includes Sprint’s unique Carefree Cloud migration and onboarding assistance, end-user level support, predictable monthly costs with no up-front infrastructure expenses, pay-as-you-go plans, savings by bundling all of the necessary tools and advanced options to simplify management further, all with a single bill and single point of contact. Sprint recently announced expanded plans available with Office 365, including enhanced audio conferencing and availability at select Sprint retail stores.

Sprint offers 4G LTE in top summer destinations like Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Sprint offers 4G LTE service in 110 markets nationwide and expects to provide 200 million people with LTE by the end of 2013.

For the most up-to-date details on Sprint’s 4G LTE portfolio and rollout, visit www.sprint.com/network.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 55 million customers at the end of the first quarter of 2013 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The American Customer Satisfaction Index rated Sprint as the most improved company in customer satisfaction, across all 47 industries, during the last five years. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 3 in both its 2011 and 2012 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.

Specifications and features subject to change.
HTC, the HTC logo and HTC BoomSound are trademarks of HTC Corporation. Beats Audio is a trademark of Beats Electronics, LLC. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
Samsung and ATIV S are both registered trademarks of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. 4G LTE when used in connection with Samsung devices refers to the fact that the devices are capable of operating on Sprint’s 4G LTE network.

1The American Express Prepaid Reward Card (“Card”) provided in connection with this Rebate offer is a prepaid Card that is usable at U.S. merchants that accept American Express Card. Some limitations apply. The Card is not redeemable for cash (except where required by law) and does not provide ATM access. Use of Card constitutes acknowledgement that it is given as a reward and no consideration, value, or money has been paid by the holder to American Express in exchange for this Card. USE OF CARD IS SUBJECT TO THE CARDHOLDER AGREEMENT. SUBJECT TO APPLICABLE LAW, A $3.00 MONTHLY FEE WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST CARD BALANCE, STARTING SIX MONTHS AFTER CARD ISSUANCE, UNLESS FUNDS ARE EARLIER DEPLETED. For BALANCE, customer service and Cardholder Agreement, visit americanexpress.com/sprint or call 866-608-3756. Card issued by American Express Prepaid Card Management Corporation.

Future Windows 8.1 tablets to tap Qualcomm chip

The next round of Windows 8.1 RT tablets will be supported by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800, the chipmaker announced Monday.

Could it be destined for a future Surface tablet? That's not clear yet but Qualcomm hints at future RT products with its silicon.

"Qualcomm continues to build on its relationship with Microsoft by helping to launch and optimize the newest build of Windows for Snapdragon, Windows 8.1 RT," the chip supplier said.

The statement continued. "The next processor to be featured in upcoming Windows 8.1 RT computers will be the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800."

Meet the Snapdragon 800: Bound for Windows 8.1 RT tablets 

• Quad-core: Supports up to four cores, 2.2GHz per core. 
• USB 3.0: USB 3.0 is coming to more RT devices. 
• 4G/LTE: 3G/4G/LTE is integrated, Qualcomm's strength is integration of 3G/4G into its silicon. 
• Very-high-resolution displays: Supports up to 2,560x2,048 resolution. 

And Microsoft seems keen on the silicon.

"We are excited [about]...the next iteration of Windows RT 8.1 [and] their new Snapdragon 800 processors," Mike Anguilo, Corporate Vice President at Microsoft, said in a statement.

His statement also mentions the "numerous advantages of these new processors" including integrated 4G/LTE.

LG Optimus G Successor To Rock Qualcomm Snapdragon 800

LG was the first manufacturer to ship a smartphone with the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro last year, the Optimus G. The handset, which eventually turned into the Nexus 4, was easily the best smartphone the company has ever shipped at the time, and it’s just announced a new morsel of information about its Optimus G successor. The upcoming device will ship with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800.

Devices like the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S 4 ship with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600, which certainly is no slouch, but the 800 is definitely something to get excited for. We still have no word as to when LG’s upcoming flagship handset, which we’d imagine will be called the LG Optimus G 2, will be announced but it can’t be much longer now.

The original Optimus G shipped with a 4.7 inch IPS+ HD display, Snapdragon S4 Pro, 2GB RAM, 13 megapixel and more, so its successor is set to be quite a monster.

Press release below.

LG, QUALCOMM EXPAND SUCCESSFUL COLLABORATION WITH NEXT G SERIES SMARTPHONE

Successor to Original G Series to Feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Processor for the Ultimate Mobile Experience

SAN DIEGO, June 19, 2013 — Expanding on a collaboration with a proven track record of success, LG Electronics, Inc. (LG), Qualcomm Incorporated, and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., today announced that the successor to the award-winning LG Optimus will utilize Qualcomm Snapdragon™ 800 processor, the industry’s most advanced mobile chipset. Qualcomm Snapdragon is a product of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

LG’s G series device powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processors will redefine the smartphone experience through stunning performance, rich graphics and outstanding battery efficiency. Capable of carrier aggregation, the Snapdragon 800 processor is designed to allow LTE to be even faster by maximizing spectrum bandwidth to increase data speeds and reduce latency.

“With a powerful combination of LG’s core smartphone technologies and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, we are taking a significant step forward in the mobile experience,” said Dr. Jong-seok Park, president and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. “The result of this collaboration will in many ways be the industry’s best smartphone by which all other devices will be measured.”

“We are pleased with continued collaboration with LG,” said Murthy Renduchintala, executive vice president, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and co-president, Qualcomm mobile and computing. “Fully tailored and tightly integrated with the entire next G series platform, the new, best-in-class Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor will help deliver blazing fast web browsing, eye-popping graphics, seamless connectivity as well as an unmatched multimedia experience.”

Delivering up to 75 percent better performance than the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, the Snapdragon 800 processor will feature many of the industry’s leading technologies for the ultimate mobile experience, including:

• Higher speeds with Krait 400 CPUs in quad configuration to deliver greater processing and communication performance;
• Enhanced aSMP (asynchronous Symmetric Multiprocessing) architecture for dynamic power sensing and control for peak performance per core and improved battery life without the use of specialized cores;
• Fully integrated connectivity with a wide variety of communication options including 4G LTE Advanced Carrier Aggregation;
• New Adreno™ 330 GPU delivering more than two times better performance for compute applications over the current Adreno 320 GPU;
• Video capture, playback and display in Ultra HD format, four times higher density than 1080p HD;
• HD multichannel audio with DTS-HD and Dolby Digital Plus, supporting higher display resolutions up to 2560 x 2048 pixels and Miracast 1080p HD; and
• Qualcomm IZat Location technology, featuring GNSS for more accurate navigation and location services.

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About LG Electronics, Inc.
LG Electronics Inc. (KSE: 066570.KS) is a global leader and technology innovator in consumer electronics, mobile communications and home appliances, employing 87,000 people working in 113 offices around the world. With 2012 global sales of USD 45.22 billion (KRW 50.96 trillion), LG comprises four business units – Home Entertainment, Mobile Communications, Home Appliance, and Air Conditioning & Energy Solution – and is one of the world’s leading producers of flat panel TVs, mobile devices, air conditioners, washing machines and refrigerators. LG Electronics is a 2013 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year. For more news and information on LG Electronics, please visit www.LGnewsroom.com.

About LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company
The LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company is a global leader and innovator in mobile communications. With its breakthrough technologies and innovative designs, LG continues to establish a number of benchmarks in the smartphone market, while also helping create a better lifestyle for consumers by delivering a wholly enhanced smartphone experience. As a leader in 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology, LG continues its commitment to developing groundbreaking LTE technologies and fulfilling consumer demands with differentiated LTE devices of the highest quality, all of which are based on the company’s wealth of LTE patents and technical knowledge. For more information, please visit www.lg.com.

About Qualcomm Incorporated
Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is the world leader in 3G, 4G and next-generation wireless technologies. Qualcomm Incorporated includes Qualcomm’s licensing business, QTL, and the vast majority of its patent portfolio. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, operates, along with its subsidiaries, substantially all of Qualcomm’s engineering, research and development functions, and substantially all of its products and services businesses, including its semiconductor business, QCT. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomm’s website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages.