Inside KitKat: Changes to the lock screen widgets

A little extra security is added to your Android as lock screen widgets can be disabled in the system settings

Kit Kat brings a change to one of the features from Jelly Bean that everyone has an opinion about —  thelock screen widgets. On one hand, they offer a bit of information from any application that supports them (quite a lengthy list) and can be great for things like music controls or messages. On the other hand, they were kind of clunky, required at least as much interaction as unlocking the phone, and for many, seemed like a unnecessary security risk, where anyone could pick up your phone and add widgets for access to private information.

Lock screen widgets are still present in Kit Kat, but you'll need to enable them in your settings should you wish to use them. Nestled appropriately under the "Security" section of the device settings, you'll see a line item for Enable widgets. While you're not really told as much — Google often has "issues" communicating well — the group of settings there for Owner information, Enable widgets, and Screen lock all have to do with the lock screen. An Android pro would figure it out, but not everyone's an Android pro.

Anyhoo, check the box next to Enable widgets and you'll be able to add lock screen widgets in the same way you did for Jelly Bean devices. Leave it unchecked, and you'll not be able to. If it's unchecked, and you're using a secure lock method, nobody else will be able to, either. This is how a feature like this should be offered. Nicely done, Google.

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Hands on: Nokia Lumia 1520 review

The Nokia Lumia 1520 is a phone that takes all the best bits of the Finnish brand and stuffs them into a dramatically oversized package.

The handset, which brings the first round of supercharged Windows Phone handsets to the market, is really rather large. Think HTC One Max rather than Galaxy Note 3 and you'll get the picture.

The Lumia 1520 is the first Windows Phone with 1080p resolution, and it's rocking the biggest screen yet – a 6-inch offering in a large, polycarbonate body.

It's also the first Nokia to come with a nanoSIM tray, meaning a number of sad upgraders who realise that once again they'll have to order a new SIM card.

It doesn't make a lot of sense, given this is the biggest phone Nokia has ever created, but does mean that future models will be given a little more design room to play with.

It's also using a Snapdragon 800 quad-core CPU, supplemented with 2GB of RAM, to really make things speed along under the finger.

In our testing, the speed really was there, and it's hard to explain how important the upgrade to the 800 processor really is. We wouldn't advocate an upgrade to a quad-core CPU for the sake of it, but in this case it's a significant improvement over the Lumia 1020.

Everything opened that little bit quicker, the overall speed of browsing (which has always been reliable, rather than nippy, on Windows Phone) was improved and generally you could tell that things were working a bit more smoothly when using the phone.

For instance, using the Pureview 20MP camera was a lot faster in general use, and web pages opened with much more urgency than they had before.

Even TechRadar managed to flick up on the six inch display with more aplomb, and while the zooming ability of the phone was still hampered by the need to use Internet Explorer we still found it to be a real step forward when it came to using the phone for the fun tasks we'd want a larger display to allow.

What else impressed us? Well, the addition of the microSD slot means you can supplement the 32GB of onboard storage with 64GB of expandable goodness… Google and friends might be trying to rip these from our handsets, but we're really happy to see hot swapping on offer.

The Nokia Lumia 1520 will be on sale very soon for those in the US, although other territories will have to wait a little longer… Europe is covered but we've got a scary feeling that we'll be into 2014 before it goes on our shelves.

The Pureview camera is obviously a big step up for Nokia again - it's not the 41MP option found in the Lumia 1020, but it does pop in at 20MP, and loses the extra heft the cameraphone flagship brought.

It also dispenses with the Xenon flash, but that, combined with the Snapdragon 800 processor moves the Lumia 1520 into a more useable option... we got so fed up with the processing speed of the 1020, despite the results often being brilliant.

Another great ability of the Lumia 1520 is the ability to output RAW files, although it can't manipulate them on the device itself. However, it's another boon for the Finnish firm, as it means professional photographers, or those that like to really edit properly, will be able to get the maximum from the photos.

Optical image stabilisation, something we thought we'd be seeing on a lot more phones by now, is thankfully here again, proving the photo-ability of the device nicely - plus the 5MP shareable shot is something we're always glad to see for social networking.

Here, Nokia's mapping team, has combined with the photo guys to create Storyteller, an app that places your pics and other such juicy photonuggets on a map, enabling you to create a location-based tale that you can easily get to by pinching inwards on the snap to jump straight into the map view.

This was handled easily by the Snapdragon processor, and we were impressed with the overall design of the app. We're not fans of the way Here maps looks generally, but this little addition does go some way towards improving it.

The final thing we'd like to talk up is the battery: Nokia has slapped a 3400mAh power pack in there to keep things ticking along. Combined with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 CPU this should equate to some really long standby time.

More importantly, this means that when you're taking loads of photos at max resolution you'll be able to use the phone for more than a minute before it dies in your hands.

The price is a little more palatable though for this slice of technological power from Nokia, with the $749 price tag (around £460 / AUS$775) meaning it will rival the likes of Samsung's Note 3 and HTC's One Max in the pricing wars, while beating them both in some ways on specs.

That's not a phrase we thought we'd be saying about Nokia any time soon.

Early verdict

What's Nokia done here? Made something that we can't criticise from the spec sheet alone? The answer has to be yes: the CPU, screen, design and expansion offerings are all the things we've been gagging to see for months, if not years.

The extra apps are standard fare from the firm: bringing user upgrades in a way that delivers actual performance… we're actually quite intrigued by Storyteller as an app, although it can be a little cumbersome to use.

We'll be fleshing out this hands on in the next hour or two, so pop back later today to see more of an in-depth look at Nokia's flagship… but if you're the odd sort who makes an instant decision and won't budge from it, we can honestly say this might be the first Nokia phone in ages that we can recommend without worry.

That's if you can get past the craziness of more Windows Phone tiles on your home screen, that is…

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Google Nexus 5 review

The new Nexus 5 manages to offer a huge step up in power while maintaining a brilliantly low price tag.

The Google Nexus 5 is a phone that's the product of constant evolution, companies one-upping each other as they try to prove they can make the best Nexus.

The Nexus One was HTC's only shot at the title, with Samsung making two more then LG getting the nod for the most recent edition, the Nexus 4.

While that was a decent phone for a stellar price, the Nexus 5 is a huge step forward for a number of reasons - not least the sub-£300 price tag (for the 16GB version - it's £339 for the 32GB iteration).

There's the Snapdragon 800 chip at the heart of things, running the show incredibly smoothly. The Google Nexus 5 is based loosely on the LG G2, with the same processor and similar IPS LCD screen, albeit with the new Google phone coming in at a smaller 4.95-inch.

This means that video and internet browsing looks stellar, with colours bright and vivid without looking over saturated, as we've seen on the Super AMOLED screens of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and Note 3.

The overall design of the Google Nexus 5 is an interesting one, as it's lost the glass back to replace it with rubberised plastic - presumably to make it easier to hold.

It is, and the smaller bezel means that you don't feel like you're holding a giant handset despite the near-5 inch screen. It's easy to move the finger or thumb around most of the display, and if you're used to a larger display you'll not even notice a problem with the bigger visage.

The camera module on the rear of the Nexus 5, which is an 8MP option, protrudes slightly from the back of the device, making it sit a little awkwardly when placed on the table.

However, there's a good reason for this: LG has thrown in its optical image stabilisation technology (OIS) to help improve the quality of pictures as well as making video look better when you're jumping around at a gig or 'sports event'.

The overall design of the Google Nexus 5 is impressive, while not coming anywhere close to the construction of the metal-clad HTC One or similar. It sits in the hand well, has a high quality screen and everything works well when you want it to.

Android KitKat 4.4 is the big other change for the device, as the first phone to offer the new OS. Android fans won't notice much of a change, and to be honest, there's not a lot that's going to be that different, in the same way that Android 4.3 didn't really further the message much more.

However, there are some tweaks that make it worth talking about - for instance, the menu bar, the one that takes away the physical home buttons, is now transparent, which brings more of a holistic feel to any app that you're trying to view.

There's also a mode that's supposed to engage full screen with greater ease, but we were only able to turn this on when in the Google Reader app, although we're hopeful that this will come to more apps as Google optimises the new OS.

Apart from that it's mostly just the icons that have changed, making things like the phone app a little larger and making them feel more integrated with the home screen.

There's definitely a step up here, but it's not going to change your world in a way that some people might have hoped. For instance, the general speed of operation that came with Android Jelly Bean was a real game-changer, but there's nothing like that on offer here.

There's another feature that sadly wouldn't work for us: the integration of Google Now to the whole phone in the same way as the Moto X.

This means you're supposed to be able to say 'OK Google' and the phone will instantly turn on, ready for your voice command. Our unit seems to be a little bit too pre-production, as the option to turn this one wasn't available no matter how hard we tried to force it.

In summary, KitKat is a good upgrade, making the Android OS more integrated than ever before, but if you're waiting to get it on your HTC One or Samsung Galaxy S4, you don't need to worry too much given these handsets already have a decent skin to hide such elements.

The camera, an 8MP option on the Nexus 5, is a move forward again compared to the Nexus 4, with sharper images, faster processing and a wider gamut of options to help improve your snaps.

We only had a few minutes to test, but the lower light images seemed impressive enough, and the video was shake free compared to that on the Nexus 4.

We're not going to celebrate the feature too much, as there are many better handsets out there that will give you good images on the go that far surpass this handset. However, they'll cost nearly double what you'll be able to get the Nexus 5 for, so if a top-quality snapper isn't the most important thing to you, this will be more than good enough.

The rest of the Nexus 5 is pretty basic; Google wants the stock Android buyers to just get on with downloading their own apps and making the phone their own. With that in mind, the Nexus 5 is a really good option, as the larger screen is perfect as a blank canvas to paint upon as you see fit.

The internet browser is fast, the music output impressive (although the UI is still too basic) and the video player, and the screen technology in particular, is really, really impressive.

Early verdict

The Nexus range has taken a real step forward here. The Nexus 4 was a great option for those that don't want to spend a lot, but the handset really began to creak after too long.

The Nexus 5, while a little later in the year compared to the other top-end handsets, seems to be a lot more bullet-proof in terms of being able to carry on chugging for a couple of years.

And what's better is that this will cost very little to buy directly from Google, meaning many will be able to snap this up and go on a rolling SIM-only deal to give freedom to upgrade when they want.

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iPhone 5C review

The iPhone 5C marks a new era in Apple's mobile onslaught, as the Cupertino-based firm finally breaks rank from premium design and price by offering up a device which is slightly more affordable. Slightly being the key word there.

Before you start getting excited about the potential of a "cheap iPhone", be warned that the iPhone 5C is no mid-range Android rival, because with prices starting a £469 ($549, AU$739) for the a 16GB SIM-free handset you're still talking quite a lot of money.

If you fancy doubling your storage capacity to 32GB - remember the 5C is an Apple device so there's no microSD slot in sight - you can add another £80 ($100, AU$130) to that base price.

So let's bust one myth right from the off then - although one that Apple never promised in the first place. The iPhone 5C is not a cheap, budget device - it's a slightly cheaper offering compared to the premium, metal clad iPhone 5S which launched alongside this polycarbonate-clad phone.

Thanks to some price cuts in the past few months the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One, Nokia Lumia 925 and Sony Xperia Z are all cheaper than the less feature packed iPhone 5C.

One way Apple has managed to keep the cost of the 5C down slightly is ditching the glass and aluminium body we've seen on every handset since the iPhone 4, and welcoming back the brazen use of polycarbonate we last saw on the iPhone 3GS.

Now the plastic versus metal debate is one which has been raging for a few years, with Apple fans blasting the top Samsung products such as theGalaxy S4 for looking and feeling cheap - but is it time for those people to eat their hats?

Pick up the iPhone 5C and there's no mistaking that this handset isn't clad in the premium materials which have adorned the more recent models, but that's not necessarily bad thing.

The polycarbonate exterior comes in a range of colourful options - green, yellow, pink, blue and white - and anyone who has owned an iPod will be well versed in these hues.

This is the first time we've seen the varied palette make it to the iPhone range however, prompting some mocking from Nokia who drew comparisons between the 5C and its fluorescent Lumia range - and to be fair there is a small similarity between it and the Lumia 625 front on.

The bright colours also make the iPhone 5C look a bit childish. Our green review handset for example could be mistaken for a toy phone from a distance and it doesn't exactly ooze the Apple quality we're used to seeing when unboxing an iPhone.

However, look beyond that and the iPhone 5C does feel structurally sound in the hand, no doubt helped by the steel frame hidden under the polycarbonate exterior and we found we were far less concerned about it smashing.

The steel frame also doubles as the 5C's antenna, meaning there's no risk of signal dropping if you fancy holding this iPhone in your left hand.

While the likes of the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5 are clad front and back in glass causing users to be wary at all times about the state of their smartphone, the iPhone 5C feels like it can be chucked into a bag without us having to worry about its condition when it comes to pulling it back out.

It's reassuring that the iPhone 5C feels like it is capable of taking a few knocks, because the slick, unibody plastic finish offers very little in the way of grip.

Apple does offer a range of equally colourful rubberised skins which you can slap onto your iPhone 5C to provide some much needed additional grip, but at £25 ($29, AU$39) a pop it's yet more money leaving your wallet - plus the odd hole design of these cases won't be to everyone's taste.

Of course third party accessory manufacturers will be falling over themselves to offer a multitude of cases, skins and other forms of protection for your iPhone 5C, so you'll be able to find cheaper alternatives out there.

At 124.4 x 59.2 x 8.97mm the iPhone 5C is slightly chunkier than the handset it's replacing, but considering the iPhone 5 was wafer thin the 5C certainly isn't overbearing in the hand and the added weight from a slightly larger battery means that it actually feels more substantial compared to the iPhone 5S.

iPhone 5C unboxing, in association with O2 Guru

The same minimalist attitude to buttons has been implemented on the iPhone 5C, with the famous home key the only navigational aid on the front of the device, while the power/lock resides at the top and the separated volume keys on the left.

Just above the volume keys is the small switch which is now synonymous with Apple's iDevice range, allowing you to quickly toggle silent/volume mode.

All the keys are easy enough to reach when holding the iPhone 5C in one hand, but thanks to the elongated nature of the device since Apple bumped the screen size up from 3.5 inches to 4 you need to stretch your fingers that extra bit to reach the power/lock button.

We'd much prefer this key to be located on the right hand side of the iPhone 5C, as it would make it that bit easier to access and avoids any awkward shuffling of the phone in the hand - but of course that would see Apple copying Samsung in terms of placement, and nobody wants to see any more accusations of copying coming along.

There's nothing else joining the power/lock key on top of the 5C after Apple relocated the headphone jack to the bottom with the iPhone 5 - a move which isn't to everyone's taste.

Joining the left aligned headphone jack on the base of the iPhone 5C is a centralised lightning port and a mono speaker to one side to help you blast your tunes at grannies on the bus or conduct a more civilised speakerphone conversation.

Now the right hand side hasn't been left completely alone on the 5C, with Apple choosing this surface as the location for the SIM card tray - but unlike most smartphones that take microSIMs these days, iPhones now rock the tiny nanoSIM technology.

This means you'll have to talk to your network about getting a nanoSIM for your shiny new iPhone 5C before you'll be able to use it - that is unless you're upgrading from an iPhone 5, but we'd suggest that's pretty much a waste of money.

If you're coming from a similarly priced Android handset you'll probably think the iPhone 5C feels a little on the small size, with its 4-inch display more at home at the budget end of the rival OS's line up.

While the screen size might not be anything special, the 1136 x 640 Retina display is present and correct on the iPhone 5C, meaning it has the same offering as both the iPhone 5 and 5S.

There are even more similarities with the iPhone 5, as you'll find the same A6 processor, 8MP rear camera, 1.9 MP front camera, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 in the 5C.

The iPhone 5C is 4G enabled of course, but more supports even more bands meaning it'll work even more networks around the world - Apple claims the 5C and the 5S support the widest range of 4G bands out of any smartphone currently on the market.

So what have we got so far then? Well, the iPhone 5C is a slightly overweight iPhone 5 with a plastic body, larger battery and a slightly lower price tag. If anything it looks to be a bit of a hard sell on paper - but with iOS 7 on board, there's a litany of places where it might it might excel.

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Hands on: Kogan Agora quad-core smartphone review

No matter which way you look at it, AU$199 (£149, US$189) for a quad-core smartphone is a tough proposition to argue with.

While the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One and Sony Xperia Z1get all the headlines, Aussie company Kogan has tried to trump them all with the new AU$199 (£149, US$189)quad-core Agora smartphone.

An update to the previous Agora 5-inch dual-core smartphone, the newer, HD version doubles the number of processing cores to four, adds 720p resolution to the now IPS 5-inch display and bundles in 1GB RAM and 4GB of on board storage, with a MicroSD card slot to expand that when it runs out.

Like the previous version, Kogan has squeezed in a second SIM card slot, which allows users to make calls over 2G networks. We say squeezed because both slots are actually for full-sized SIMs, which are almost as rare as white rhinos these days.

Inside, the 2,000mAh battery keeps the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean phone running while you're making and taking calls.

The camera on the back has been upgraded to 8MP, while the front facing snapper now boasts 2MP, although as we know, not all phone cameras are created equal.

Overall, it's a pretty impressive spec upgrade to the dual-core model from the start of the year.

The appearance

Unboxing the Agora 5.0-inch HD, it's amazing to think how for Kogan has come in terms of design since its original Agora Android prototype back in 2009.

The front of the phone looks fairly standard in today's sea of large Android devices. The 5-inch screen is surrounded by a narrow black bezel on the sides. Above, the speaker and front-facing camera rest while Android's standard three soft buttons can be found below.

The left side has the volume rocker, the right side has the power button. Up top, a 3.5mm headphone jack and MicroUSB slot rest, awaiting cable insertion.

The back of the device is a matte black cover, that seems to blend perfectly into the phone's body. It's not initially apparent how to open the back cover, although once you do manage to work it out (by pulling around the MicroUSB jack), it becomes evident that the back cover isn't as robust as it appears.

Still, the cover is comfortable to hold and offers a decent grip, which is something lacking in many modern phones.

Pop open the bonnet, and you're confronted with those two full-size SIM card slots, with a MicroSD slot wedged between them. Below these, the 2,000mAh battery resides.

While it's possible to slip your SIM cards into the phone without removing the battery, taking them out again will require the power to be removed. It's a small thing, but can be slightly frustrating, especially if you're using an adapter to bring your Nano or Micro SIM card up to full-size to fit the slots and there's an issue.

The phone itself is a little bit chunkier than many phones, although it's nowhere near a deal breaker. The tapered edges of the back actually help mitigate any real issues with holding the device in the hand

Initial testing

Our ongoing tests will offer a more definite answer, but initial results show that the quad-core processor inside the Agora does a pretty good job at keeping things snappy. There wasn't any real lag or delay, with the phone switching between apps nice and quickly.

The 8MP, meanwhile, still seems to struggle a bit in terms of clarity and definition. We haven't been able to put it through its paces fully yet, but the few pics we did take in our initial play with the device all seemed a bit washed out and grainy.

The screen itself shows the biggest improvement over the previous generation. Bright, vibrant and clear, the 1280 x 720 pixel resolution is a far cry from the 800 x 600 of the Agora dual core model. Viewing angles are respectable, although not fantastic, and even squinting it's tough to make out the individual pixels on display.

Early verdict

No question about it, this phone punches above its weight. For under 200 bucks, it's impossible to argue the value for money case.

There are some conditions though. There's no 4G, and the 3G will work nicely on Telstra's 3G bands, but not Optus' 900MHz spectrum. The camera also has a pretty large question mark over the top of it.

Given that the Nexus 4 will set you back AU$249, with double the storage but half the SIM card slots, there's an argument that it's not the best value for money in the market, although it does come close.

We'll be interested to see how it really performs as we fully test it, but first impressions tell us this is a great device for those looking for a budget handset.

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Doro to release Liberto 810 smartphone in the UK next month

Manufacturer claims its second smartphone takes “easy-to-use mobiles even further into the smartphone arena” Doro will release its second smartphone in the UK next month – the Liberto 810. It will its second smartphone following the PhoneEasy 740,which was launched at Mobile World Congress last year. The Liberto 810 runs the Android 4.1 operating system, with the company’s own Doro Experience user interface lying on top of the OS. It is 12.5mm thick and weighs 132g. It has a 3.4-inch screen with three physical buttons (‘menu’, ‘back’ and ‘home’) situated on a panel below, as well as a five megapixel camera, FM radio, torch and 1,500mAh battery that provides up to 11 hours of talk time. Details of retailer availability in the UK will be released next month. The manufacturer described the Liberto 810 as “taking the concept of easy-to-use mobiles even further into the smartphone arena”. Doro president and CEO Jérôme Arnaud said: “Our latest smartphone combines all the functionality of a mainstream handset with everything at the core of Doro. It is this very DNA that has solidified us as the clear world-leader in easy-to-use mobile phones.”

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