Leaked images show new red and brown Galaxy Note 2 versions

Leaked images show new red and brown Galaxy Note 2 versions

It looks as though the Galaxy Note 2 is going to have some new color options for 2013 -- at least brown and red as seen in a leaked image today. The official color names are "Ruby Wine" and "Amber Brown," but we think just "red" and "brown" will do. Our first reaction is to think that these may be carrier- or region-specific variants that get the new colors, but considering that the original two colors made it around the world at launch, we could see these hit the U.S. carriers as well.

This may remind you of a leaked image from a couple days ago which showed a Note 2 in svelte black casing, but AndroidSlash has updated its original story to say that the image appears to be a fan-made fake. For now, the best bet is that we'll see brown and red along with the current crop of colors. Anything more is a bonus.

Source: UnwiredView; AndroidSlash

Lily Allen
Nadine Velazquez

Monday Brief: Our EiCs and Their 2013 Predictions

Monday Brief: Our EiCs and Their 2013 Predictions

Mobile Nations Podcast Feed Mobile Nations on iTunes Mobile Nations YouTube	OUYA ships 1,200 developer consoles, opens dev portal Press: Google Reader done right? Or just different? Multi-window update for AT&T Galaxy Note 2 now live
BlackBerry Travel will make its way to BlackBerry 10 New pictures of the BlackBerry 10 N-Series QWERTY device surface BlackBerry Z10 and QWERTY N-Series pose together with a special guest	US Department of Justice now investigating HP's Autonomy acquisition WebOS Ports's OWO Memos: an Enyo 2 replacement Messenger Mega Mix mixes in smartphone messaging improvements
Facebook Poke vs. Snapchat: What's the best sexting app for iPhone? Apple iWatch rumors surface again, this time with Intel attached 2012 iMore editors choice awards	Notifications for Windows Phone 7 hits the Store HDR Photo Camera for Windows Phone 8 updated, adds settings and more Cloud-focused GPS chip by Microsoft Research slashes smartphone battery consumption

Charlize Theron
Anna Faris

From the Editor's Desk: What we're using, 2012 edition

From the Editor's Desk: What we're using, 2012 edition

As we close out the year, it's time to take a look back at things. I've never been all that keen on "year's best" lists for applications, though that doesn't mean they don't necessarily serve a purpose. There are so many good apps, so many updates. Instead, I think it's a little more fun to take a look at how each one of us uses our phones and tablets. 

Are they travel companions? I, for one, remember all too well navigating the backwoods (or what seemed like the backwoods) or Louisiana and Mississippi and Georgia and Florida during my school-age years, playing soccer. We did it with maps. On paper. That didn't move. Or update. That any of us made it back alive is a miracle.

What about bedside readers? Does your tablet even make it out of the boudoir? Does it spend as much time (or more) in the bathroom as you do?

I'm always fascinated to read about how folks use their technology, and inevitably I learn a trick or two that I'll want to try as well. So let's walk through what I used in 2012, and how I used it. In the coming days, you'll hear from the other names and faces behind Android Central and see just what it is we use on a daily basis. Want to get in on the fun yourself? Hit up this forum thread and share your stash with the world.

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Bar Refaeli
Malin Akerman
Mila Kunis

The biggest iPhone, iPad, and Apple editorials of 2012

The biggest iPhone, iPad, and Apple editorials of 2012

Neither the world, nor the web, lives by news alone. 2012 had more than its fair share of new apps and devices, of major triumphs and tragedies, but to go along with all the facts and specs, to counterpoint the news, iMore published a slew of views and opinions, reviews and comparisons. So, once again, we fired up the analytics, ordered everything by popularity, and put this togther.

And here they are, your favorite editorials of 2012!

5. The future of Siri and Apple's services

Now, Apple has started hiring people away from Amazon to help with the service and, in the wake of a management re-ogranization, Siri has been given to Apple's "fixer", senior vice-president Eddy Cue to help set, or reset, its course going forward.

Because Siri is only as useful as its weakest server and slowest response, and both those things are going to need some serious attention.

• The future of Siri and Apple's services
• No skin in the Game Center

4. Best free iPhone apps

We love paying for great apps, because it ensures we'll get more great apps, but when you don't know what you want, when you're new and just want to try stuff out, when you're looking for a fling instead of a relationship, nothing beats great free apps. Leanna put together an amazing collection of apps, and Simon of games, and you guys couldn't get enough of them.

• Best free iPhone apps
• Best free iPhone games
• Best free iPad apps
• Best free iPad games

3. The 16:9 iPhone

A few days ago rumors began to focus on the idea that Apple was moving to a 4-inch screen on the iPhone 5 (or whatever Apple ends up calling iPhone 5,1). I went through the mental exercise of mocking up, and breaking down, the various 4-inch iPhone options to try and figure out how Apple would get there.

Now, however, the rumors are coalesced around one specific option -- one I initially thought had fewer advantages, and was hence less likely -- a 16:9 aspect ratio, 1136 x 640 display.

• The 16:9 iPhone
• Going big: The 5-inch iPhone

2. Higher hanging fruit

Once all the low-hanging fruit has been picked, what do you go after next? We took a look at iOS 5 and what it lacked compared to competing operating system, and it proved remarkably popular. Given the direction Apple went with iOS 6, much of it still applies for iOS 7.

Interestingly, many of the newly rebooted operating systems lacked -- and some still lack -- all the features of their predecessors. And because they rebooted, Apple's iOS, once the new smartphone operating system on the block, is now one of the oldest.

That doesn't mean Apple can and should replicate each and every feature of their competitors. I'd argue many of the ones listed below shouldn't be copied, perhaps shouldn't even be re-imagined with an iOS twist. But they should be considered. Apple is famous for saying "no" more than they say "yes", but they're just as famous for the arduous design and prototyping process they go through to get there.

• Higher hanging fruit
• Apple's multi-billion dollar balancing act

1. iOS 6 review

Our biggest non-news story of the year was Apple's big mobile software release of the year. At almost 16,000 words, we dove deep, and you loved every bit of it. (And several of our other reviews as well.)

iOS 6 is a software update divided against itself. Apple claims over 200 new user-facing features, which is the same if not more than previous versions of iOS. Many of these are good and solid, reducing the friction and increasing the functionality of iOS, and delightfully so. But a lot of it them are also about Apple and the future of their platform.

• iOS 6 review
• iPhone 5 review
• iPad 4 review
• iPad mini review

Neither the world, nor the web, lives by news alone. 2012 had more than its fair share of new apps and devices, of major triumphs and tragedies, but to go along with all the facts and specs, to counterpoint the news, iMore published a slew of views and opinions, reviews and comparisons. So, once again, we fired up the analytics, ordered everything by popularity, and put this togther.

And here they are, your favorite editorials of 2012!

5. The future of Siri and Apple's services

Now, Apple has started hiring people away from Amazon to help with the service and, in the wake of a management re-ogranization, Siri has been given to Apple's "fixer", senior vice-president Eddy Cue to help set, or reset, its course going forward.

Because Siri is only as useful as its weakest server and slowest response, and both those things are going to need some serious attention.

• The future of Siri and Apple's services
• No skin in the Game Center

4. Best free iPhone apps

We love paying for great apps, because it ensures we'll get more great apps, but when you don't know what you want, when you're new and just want to try stuff out, when you're looking for a fling instead of a relationship, nothing beats great free apps. Leanna put together an amazing collection of apps, and Simon of games, and you guys couldn't get enough of them.

• Best free iPhone apps
• Best free iPhone games
• Best free iPad apps
• Best free iPad games

3. The 16:9 iPhone

A few days ago rumors began to focus on the idea that Apple was moving to a 4-inch screen on the iPhone 5 (or whatever Apple ends up calling iPhone 5,1). I went through the mental exercise of mocking up, and breaking down, the various 4-inch iPhone options to try and figure out how Apple would get there.

Now, however, the rumors are coalesced around one specific option -- one I initially thought had fewer advantages, and was hence less likely -- a 16:9 aspect ratio, 1136 x 640 display.

• The 16:9 iPhone
• Going big: The 5-inch iPhone

2. Higher hanging fruit

Once all the low-hanging fruit has been picked, what do you go after next? We took a look at iOS 5 and what it lacked compared to competing operating system, and it proved remarkably popular. Given the direction Apple went with iOS 6, much of it still applies for iOS 7.

Interestingly, many of the newly rebooted operating systems lacked -- and some still lack -- all the features of their predecessors. And because they rebooted, Apple's iOS, once the new smartphone operating system on the block, is now one of the oldest.

That doesn't mean Apple can and should replicate each and every feature of their competitors. I'd argue many of the ones listed below shouldn't be copied, perhaps shouldn't even be re-imagined with an iOS twist. But they should be considered. Apple is famous for saying "no" more than they say "yes", but they're just as famous for the arduous design and prototyping process they go through to get there.

• Higher hanging fruit
• Apple's multi-billion dollar balancing act

1. iOS 6 review

Our biggest non-news story of the year was Apple's big mobile software release of the year. At almost 16,000 words, we dove deep, and you loved every bit of it. (And several of our other reviews as well.)

iOS 6 is a software update divided against itself. Apple claims over 200 new user-facing features, which is the same if not more than previous versions of iOS. Many of these are good and solid, reducing the friction and increasing the functionality of iOS, and delightfully so. But a lot of it them are also about Apple and the future of their platform.

• iOS 6 review
• iPhone 5 review
• iPad 4 review
• iPad mini review

Olivia Wilde
Megan Fox

Android Central's most popular stories of 2012

Android Central's most popular stories of 2012

It's time for a quick look back at the year that was. Frankly, we don't remember most of it. Apparently a year ago or so we were in Las Vegas for CES. Then Barcelona for Mobile World Congress. Then London for the Samsung Galaxy S3. Then New Orleans for CTIA. And San Francisco for Google IO. And Seoul for the LG Optimus G. And San Diego for MobileCON. And any number of other singletons in between. So, yeah. It was a busy year.

After the break we've got a look at some of our most popular stories of 2012. Not necessarily the most important. Not necessarily our favorites. But in terms of page views (we now have to get a second set of hands to count those on, by the way), this is what you guys and gals -- our dear readers -- were peeping over the past 12 months. Of course, it's a little biased toward older stories, but there are some rather recent ones tucked away in there, too. Enjoy!

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Ciara
Blake Lively
Scarlett Johansson