COMPANIES

On the 20th of March, Volkswagen AG informed that it would recall nearly 385,000 in China, its biggest market, to fix gearbox problems. Everything indicates that the recall will start in April. Certainly, the recall will be a harsh blow for the company as the whole operation may cost it over $600 million.

Google's next version of the Play Store has been revealed on Droid Life, and a hands-on video demonstrates the tweaked look and deeper integration of the Holo-theme. Most of the layout is still same, many new pages are blank in this new look and it's easier to switch between searching for apps, music, books and videos.

Reports have emerged that Apple is tapping Japanese firm Sharp to supply the screen display that the tech giant will install on the rumoured iPhone 6, this time able to recognise handwriting using an ordinary pen.

There are now more than 1 billion unique users monthly for the video sharing site YouTube. That means 50 per cent of people who are on the Internet visits YouTube.

Samsung has officially rolled out the new Galaxy Pop, a quad-core Android handset that is exclusive for now to the South Korean market.

Now that the Samsung Galaxy S4 is out, all eyes and ears are attuned to the next big Android event and it’s quite big – the Galaxy Note 3. Naturally, rumours about the much-awaited handset abound and here’s a quick round up.

Galaxy Grand Duos is getting an upgrade called Group Play that will allow for the smooth file sharing with compatible handsets using Wi-Fi channels.

Side by side, Samsung’s Galaxy S4 and Galaxy S3 look identical and users will only notice the difference once they get the chance to explore what’s inside the guts.

When Samsung unwrapped the Galaxy S4 last week many experts greeted its body-make with disappointment. The plastic material was totally unsuitable for a high-end device looking to finally dethrone Apple’s iPhone 5, they bemoaned.

Taiwanese tech company HTC Corporation is delaying again the release of its flagship smartphone, the HTC One, due to parts shortage.

Samsung intends to selectively deploy the upcoming Key Lime Pie from Google, a new report said, and only a few select high-end Galaxy models will eventually chew in the Android 5.0 once it hits the update channel.

With the Samsung Galaxy S4 commercial release already looming, another indicator emerged and declared that the iPhone 5S is almost upon us – sweet price cutbacks for currently the top-selling Apple smartphone, the iPhone 5.

Microsoft is offering a $100 fee to U.S. developers for every app they would write for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8. There is a limit of 10 apps per Store, and the Keep the Cash offer promo runs only from March 8 to June 30, 2013.

After the historical launch of the Galaxy S4 in New York, Samsung's future appears no longer tied up with Android but with Tizen OS. The combined forces of Samsung and Intel has led to the development of Tizen with one of its high-end device to be released in August 2013, made by Samsung as well.

BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins is optimistic about reaching the 100,000 app milestone come the US debut, as well as the Z10’s edge over iPhone 5.

Australians could by the cheaper-priced Chromebook for as low as $299 from retail outlets and the Google Play Store beginning March 19.

Canadian tech firm BlackBerry rolled out the Z10 model in Sydney on Monday a month after the global launch of the device and four days after Samsung unboxed the Galaxy S4 in New York.

While it is likely that Retina on iPad Mini 2 will come out this year, Google will beat out Apple in the tablet high resolution race with the Nexus 7 possibly flashing denser screen pixels a bit earlier, a new report said.

It is but expected, Apple will not sit idly while Samsung gallops its way to new heights of success via the new Android flagship Galaxy S IV and the tech giant claims four reasons why iPhone remains the best smartphone option.

Google and LG are reportedly collaborating anew for an October 2013 release of the more powerful Nexus 5.

Tech analysts said over the weekend that South Korean giant Samsung's latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S4, would likely continue to attract buyers, particularly Asians.

Philips has beaten South Korean tech giant Samsung in rolling out the world's first transparent TV for commercial sale. TP Vision, which is a joint venture between Philips and TP Technology, unboxed on Thursday the PDL8908 DesignLine television sets which feature a unibody glass chassis from the top to the floor.

Australia's largest gambling business, the Crown Casino in Melbourne, lost $32 million to a foreign high-stakes gambler who used an Ocean Eleven-style heist, reports said.

Online file-storage service Dropbox announced over the weekend its purchase of the new iPhone email application Mailbox.

A study by Flurry Analytics found that apps the average smartphone user spends two hours daily with app, twice the amount of time spent in 2011. While many apps are considered productive, one alarming discover of the report is that 43 per cent of the apps were for games such as the popular Angry Birds.

Everything that loyal Samsung fans had waited for were there but one oversight emerged – the Galaxy S4 will skip out the wireless charging previously seen on competitions like the Nexus 4.

The rumours, at least most of them, proved true and Samsung Galaxy S4 generally came out as consumers would want it to be – thin, light, smooth, eye-candy, power-packed and brimming with features that seem to convince every penny is worth the buy.

ASUS began releasing Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update for Transformer Pad 300 in early March, and it is the first non-Nexus tablet to receive one. ASUS released a full 4.2.1 ROM for the TF300 available via OTA or direct download.

How is Apple dealing with the increasingly rising market threat that is Samsung? The iPhone maker, it appears, is playing the Galaxy manufacturer’s game – selling as many handsets as conceivable to all market segments.