techradar.com - The Samsung Galaxy is a phone that's unlike anything you'll have seen on the market. It's just stunning.
It's incredibly expensive in a world where mid-range phones are more than good enough to handle most tasks people like... but the second you pick it up it's easy to see why.
The screen is just brilliant - the clearest, sharpest and offers lovely color reproduction to make movie watching a dream, and that's before you've even got to the fact it's wrapped into the chassis so hugely that it has a screen larger than the iPhone 7 Plus in a chassis that feels more like the iPhone 7.
The Galaxy S8 isn't perfect - in the search to squeeze the screen in so completely, other factors were overlooked: namely, the placement of the fingerprint reader. If you want this phone, you'll need to answer this question: are you OK using an iris scanner?
And if you're looking for something even bigger, and with a much-improved battery life to boot, then the Galaxy S8 Plus is easily the way to go - check out our review of that to see if that's the phone for you.

onmsft.com - Windows 10 Mobile is dead. Regardless of how many articles you read that state it differently, Microsoft has killed Windows 10 Mobile. Microsoft is treating Windows 10 Mobile a lot like another mobile operating system I know that suffered from the same swirl of rumors that it is wasn't dead as a doornail; WebOS.
Besides telling you what my very first Windows phone is or how I came to love Windows 10 Mobile, I am going to try to explain why I am leaving Windows 10 Mobile for good. Before I moved to Windows phone from Android, I moved from WebOS to Android. At the time, I had a Palm Pre on Sprint and later moved to the Palm Pre Plus on Verizon. I raved to friends about how the "Pre" was able to play music and run apps at the same time and how the Pre had wireless charging (two things that the iPhone couldn't do at the time).
After following developments religiously on every WebOS forum available at the time, I was convinced that once people used WebOS, they would see its potential and share my love for what a great operating system WebOS was. When it was announced that HP would buy Palm (much like when Microsoft bought Nokia Lumia), I was sure that HP would bring WebOS to the consumers in a better way than Palm ever could. The bizarre Palm Pre commercials weren't exactly helping Palm sell phones.

techradar.com - Apple's iPhone 8 release date is expected to be less than six months from now, and we're already 3D Touch deep into new rumors about its 2017 smartphone.
It's the tenth anniversary of the iPhone and the design is due for big changes. We haven't seen a brand new look in three years, so prepare to be wowed.
The most immediate change may be to the name: iPhone 8, iPhone X or iPhone Edition, instead of just iPhone 7S and iPhone 7S Plus. This is a major refresh for Apple and its name deserves a giant leap.
Every iPhone 8 rumor really gives us a sense that Apple is overhauling its phone with at least one premium design - what we're calling the iPhone 8 - while also providing a basic specs bump for an iPhone 7S and iPhone 7S Plus.
We're sorting through all of the news to deliver the facts and to cut through the fetched speculation, from the release date all the way down to the all-important price.

techradar.com - The two companies had to refine signals and customize beacons to roll out a technology called Preload Smart Scan, which aims to cut down "misload" packaging errors by as much as 70 percent.
UPS said it is implementing custom beacons with Zebra Technologies to prevent errors in delivery and "misloaded" packages.
The initiative, called Preload Smart Scan, uses Bluetooth beacons that connect to package scanning devices worn by UPS employees loading packages. Here's how the beacons work:
The scanner -- programmed to know where packages belong on a vehicle -- read labels.
Beacons send signals unique to certain vehicles and position within it.
Scanners detect those signals.
If a package enters the wrong vehicle, the scanner flags the error.
UPS' game plan is to cut time spent on misloaded packages, which cost time and money. Drivers with misloaded packages go miles out of the way to correct mistakes. Beacons can cut back re-routes.

cbronline.com - EB: What is the mobile workforce?
AS: As every phone is now mobile, so is every worker. Just the act of taking and making work calls on the move has effectively expanded the boundaries of our working environment. Whether we are responding to work emails out in the field, or picking them up in the office canteen, we are now mobile, and considerably more productive as a result. But the mobile workforce is as varied and as sophisticated as the mobile technology it uses. The objective is to make employees as productive outside of the office as they are in it - so they can remotely access the same software applications and computing powers they can on office-based networks. More than this, their newfound mobility can bring even better results, through field-based communications, work-life balance, and wider access to expertise.
EB: What are the main benefits of having a mobile workforce?
AS: A progressive mobile workforce strategy has several benefits. Enterprises can improve workforce productivity and satisfaction, both of which can improve employee retention. A mobile workforce can reduce office space expenses, which are skyrocketing. For many organisations, especially start-ups, it is debatable whether it even makes sense for employees to have fixed desks; they are adopting a 'deskless' policy, where employees are not tied to a single desk, but have the tools to work remotely. Increasingly, employees want and need flexibility of movement, whether routinely or ad hoc - to work in the field, because the job demands it, to work from home, because of family or commute distance, or to tour around offices, as their services are required. It means employers can cast their nets much wider in pursuit of the right talent because their whereabouts becomes almost incidental to their qualifications. And increasingly, a new generation of young talent expects and demands this kind of workplace flexibility. In the end, such an enlightened approach empowers staff and, ultimately, stimulates productivity. Levels of communication and collaboration improve, because employees are more accessible and responsive - and often better positioned, and sometimes even better rested, for work purposes. This last point sounds like a fluffy one, but workforce mobility is a good deal for both sides, and staff churn invariably reduces with it.
EB: What are the main challenges facing businesses in regards to the mobile workforce?
AS: There are considerable challenges - just because you are putting people, programmes, and information way beyond the confines and controls of your regular office environment, and office network. This task to make the workplace virtual, given a vanishing corporate perimeter, is extraordinarily complex. Organisations are rarely similar. Their technological requirements are unique, because of the combination of applications they make available and the security protocols they protect them with. They must ensure the right employee has access to the right resources, in the right places, at the right time. This comes down to access management, which must be a top priority for a mobile office, and can become a tangled mess if it is not handled deliberately, and with real expertise. Alongside, enterprises must de-risk the new communications lines they open up with remote devices, so they match the integrity of office-based units. This is complicated by the rise of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy, where employees are entering often-unsecured personal devices into frequently sensitive corporate communications. The same security blanket, with the same seals and stitching, must capture all office communications, wherever they take place - even when they're nowhere near the common workplace. Ultimately, organisations require mobility solutions that allow both extreme flexibility and total security. These are the twin challenges for which security teams must strike the right balance.
EB: Are security risks inherent in a mobile workforce?
AS: Well, yes and no. It comes down to semantics. As a rule of thumb, the least secure corporate communications happen off grid, as it were - away from the most secure in-house communications networks. A company's mobile workforce tends to be its weakest link, when it comes to protecting confidential data. That link is being stretched, as flexible and remote working becomes more widespread. At the same time, software and expertise are available to strengthen that link. Security risks are not inherent; they are just less well understood. Many employees have robust security software on their devices, and yet most are bypassing even the simplest of security procedures - password protection and sharing. There is a fundamental lack of knowledge, training, and compliance, which must be addressed. Our research says over a third of UK employees (35 per cent) would readily share their passwords for work-related technology (devices, apps, and emails) with their close friends and family, and nine per cent would do so with colleagues, giving automatic access to sensitive corporate data. These are shocking stats. Network and device security is an escalating threat for UK businesses. It is paramount they get the basics of mobile access management right, and get employees trained up, if they are to make the most of mobile working without leaving themselves open to fraud.
EB: What is the future of the mobile workforce?
AS: More and more businesses need to embrace mobile working practices to remain productive and competitive. That much is clear; the march of technology is gathering pace, and employees' expectations of flexible working are higher than ever. Although this brings with it concerns around security, there are solutions out there that can smooth the way for businesses, such as Identity Access Management (IAM) and single-sign-on technology, which will allow employees to work effectively, anywhere, on their own devices. Ultimately, mobility will be the backbone of the modern workplace, baked into business strategy, so progressive organisations can accommodate the needs and desires of their workforces, and develop a competitive edge that raises them up, and propels them forward.

bgr.com - Apple's iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus quickly became the fastest-selling smartphones of all time following their launch this past September. The new Apple flagships were the company's most powerful smartphones ever, and they included a number of firsts. Apple introduced multiple new colors to its iPhone lineup for the first time, and it doubled the available storage in each of its iPhone tiers for the first time. But there was also a first that Apple fans weren't so happy about: the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus marked the first time Apple reused the same iPhone design for the third consecutive year.
The iPhone has always felt like it was ahead of the curve, but that changed in 2017 as the LG G6 and Samsung Galaxy S8 were introduced. These sleek new smartphones feature next-generation designs that leave Apple's iPhone design from 2014 in the dust. Of course, the differences extend beyond design, and in this post we'll cover five features in particular from the LG G6 and Galaxy S8 that will make iPhone users jealous.
This iPhone 8 would be so much hotter than the Galaxy S8
Bye bye bezels
Companies like Samsung completely reinvented their smartphone business by doing everything they could to copy Apple's iPhone designs, and it worked for Samsung in particular even better than the company could have imagined. In 2017, however, the iPhone is starting to feel quite dated.

The new LG G6 and Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ feature displays that do away with any lingering home buttons and logos. The new phones also rework internal components in order to make the bezels surrounding the screens as narrow as possible with today's technical limitations. The result is a user experience that's more immersive than ever before.
Fat guy in a little coat
Speaking of those narrow bezels, the LG G6 and Galaxy S8 also manage to stuff very large screens into remarkably compact designs. Chris Farley would've loved these phones.
With screen-to-body ratios that exceed 80% for the LG G6 and Galaxy S8 duo alike, there have never been widely available phones that pack larger displays into phones this size. In fact, the G6 and the smaller Galaxy S8 both include displays that are bigger than the one in the iPhone 7 Plus phablet, yet the phones themselves are closer in size to the smaller iPhone 7.
An assistant that really assists
Siri has gotten so much better in recent years, but users still complain constantly about all of Siri's shortcomings. Meanwhile, on smartphones running Android 7.0 Nougat and later, users absolutely adore Google Assistant for the most part. Google Assistant might be terrible on the Google Home, but on a phone like the LG G6 or Galaxy S8 it's pretty terrific.
One less wire to worry about
Plugging a Lightning cable into the bottom of an iPhone isn't exactly a taxing chore, so I've been surprised to see how excited iPhone users have been to see rumors that the upcoming iPhone 8, iPhone 7s Plus and iPhone 7s will include wireless charging. It is a pretty handy technology, especially now that there are fast wireless charging standards. You know which three phones already include support for fast wireless charging? That's right, the LG G6, Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+.
So many selfies
Last but certainly not least, we have a complaint that iPhone users have had since practically the dawn of time. And the bad news that there is a 0% chance Apple will ever address it, because doing so would mean destroying Apple's iPhone ASPs.
When it comes to Apple's latest iPhones, you can buy a 32GB model, a 128GB model or a 256GB model. Want more storage? You'll need an external device like Lightning to microSD card adapter or a Lightning flash drive. Want more storage in your LG G6, Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8+? Pop in a microSD card.

talkandroid.com - DisplayMate put out its report on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+, saying they have sport the best display ever put on a smartphone.
Samsung smartphones have traditionally had phenomenal displays. Journalists and users alike are always raving at the sheer quality of it. Samsung is able to do wonders with its Super AMOLED technology, and obviously, they've outdone themselves once again.
Previously, DisplayMate rated the iPhone 7's LCD panel as the best display ever, but now, that crown has been moved over to Samsung's Galaxy S8.
DisplayMate noted there has been improvements in every lab test they conducted when comparing it to the Galaxy S7 last year.
This rating is no surprise, given that the Galaxy S8 is now equipped with the "Infinity Display," which essentially means there are little to no bezels on the phone. As such, the display panel now essentially fills the entire front of the phone. And with a 3K resolution - 2940 x 1440 - and an aspect ratio 18.5:9, the smartphone truly does look phenomenal.

forbes.com - Paying for coffee, getting on the subway or splitting dinner with friends are everyday actions that can now be done with a mobile phone. And these mobile payments, or m-payments, are taking off. In 2015, close to half a trillion dollars were transacted globally using m-payments and analysts predict that figure could double by 2019. Clearly, businesses who can successfully harness the potential of m-payments are on to a winner.
Below I suggest a simple framework to think about how m-payments can boost your business along with the three keys to building a killer m-payment solution.
How mobile payments can boost your business
Many managers see the emergence of paying for goods and services via a mobile phone as a mere technological evolution, without further consequences (first customers used checks, then cards, now it´s m-payments.) Others acknowledge its transformational impact on society and economic activity in general, but believe it will not affect their industry because payment is not a key activity there. Still others think that, by the time it becomes a widespread reality, they will be retired. Unfortunately, such thinking lacks imagination. Accept it or not, m-payment solutions are rapidly growing, and some of them are establishing relevant positions locally. Some, if not most, of the success stories so far have been championed by companies outside of the payment industry.
Let´s consider three main strategic objectives of m-payments that should be of interest to any business.
1. Improve productivity
Improving the way payment is performed can be crucial to boost business productivity. Take Starbucks' pioneering mobile order-and-pay app, which has become a hit in the U.S., and which unlocks five productivity boosters:
" By processing payments faster, the customer throughput rate goes up, increasing sales per hour.
" As the cashier time per user goes down, so does the average wait, increasing customer satisfaction
" User payment and consumption data collected from the app can be used to customize promotions and discounts, increasing the average size of individual sales
" Thanks to the prepaid nature of the app count, the working capital requirements of the company are alleviated, decreasing financial expenses
" Due to all of the above, customers become more loyal, increasing customer lifetime value.
2. Generate new business
The ability to integrate m-payments into existing operations can create synergies that generate new revenue streams. A case study by my IESE colleagues Sandra Sieber and Alejandro Lago reveals how this can work. In 2007, Kenya´s leading mobile network operator, Safaricom, launched a mobile money transfer system called M-Pesa. Today more than two-thirds of Kenyans regularly use their phones to make or receive payments, according to Pew Global. With over 20 million registered customers, M-Pesa accounts for 86% of Safaricom´s users, 20% of Safaricom´s revenues and more than 40% of Kenya´s population.
3. Increase stickiness of core business
Including m-payment solutions in the service portfolio of a company can make sense - even when offered for free. When the payment system really adds value to the end user and is restricted to the user base of the company, strong network effects are created that can help reduce churn rates and increase customer retention. Because it is costlier for users to switch to the competition, the core service tends to stick longer, increasing customer lifetime value. For example, a company can use apps and payment tools to hook active users, expand its user base and pave the way for building a one-stop platform where ancillary services, such as food ordering or taxi hailing, can be linked.

talkandroid.com - As our smartphones get more and more powerful each year, we are able to do more things on them and with that comes the need for them to always be ready when needed. This is where battery life comes in and remains one of the biggest buying factors for consumers. Samsung's Galaxy S8+ is one of the most, if not the most, powerful smartphone currently on the market and its battery life was just put to the test. Let's see how it performed.
The Galaxy S8+ comes with a beautiful 6.2-inch Super AMOLED display that covers almost the entire front of the phone. That alone requires a hefty amount of juice as the screen is most often the biggest drain on the battery. While battery capacity in smartphones has been relatively slow to increase, there have been great strides with battery and chip (such as the processor) technologies to make them more efficient. Samsung has already announced that the batteries found in the Galaxy S8 will have a longer lifespan than previous models.
A large 3,500 mAh battery lives in the Galaxy S8+ and while that may not sound like a lot considering its screen size and powerful specs, the folks over at Phone Arena just put it to the test and results are pretty encouraging.
As you can see in the chart above, the Galaxy S8+ came in with a battery life of 8 hours. All the smartphones involved in the test had their screens set to 200 nits brightness, and while the Galaxy S8+ did not come come out on top, the results are still very good. One important fact to note, however, is that this test was run at the default screen resolution of 1080 x 2220 pixels.
It's clear that Samsung has learned from the disastrous Galaxy Note 7 and is putting in a lot of safeguards with the Galaxy S8 to ease the strain on the battery. Despite a maximum, and now industry standard, Quad HD resolution, when you turn on the Galaxy S8 for the first time you will see it defaulting to Full HD+ resolution. As odd of a choice this may be, coupled with the fact that many people may not even notice it, using a lower resolution will allow the battery to last longer and not work as hard.
There are many factors that determine battery life and results will certainly vary from person to person, but Samsung has done a great job optimizing the hardware and software on the Galaxy S8+. There should be no trouble getting through an average day on a single charge, and even longer depending on your usage. Does this make you more likely to consider buying the Galaxy S8+?
For now, I'm cautiously optimistic about the S8 as an all-rounder that helps Samsung recover from its charred reputation. But it'll be our real-world tests on the final review unit in April that will show how close Samsung has truly come.