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Kobo’s new tablets are on the way. Amazon’s flagship eReader is out of stock (suggesting a new model could be on the way). Google’s flagship smartphone gets a price cut. And a solution for turning your smartphone into a tablet emerges.
Here’s a look back at some of the top stories from the week that was.
- Kobo Arc 10HD tablet offers 2560 x 1600 pixel screen, Tegra 4 chip for $400
Kobo unveiled three new tablets this week, including low-cost 7 inch models and a 10 inch tablet that has best-in-class specs, for a competitive price. The company makes most of its money by selling eBooks and other digital content, not hardware. So the company’s devices are usually pretty affordable — but this year’s lineup doesn’t skimp on specs at all, and if you choose never to buy any content from Kobo you can still use the tablet as a general-purpose Android tablet with full access to the Google Play Store.
- Chromecast may support local video streaming after all… eventually
Google recently rolled out a software update for the Chromecast which, among other things, seems to have killed support for third party services such as AllCast and Fling which let you stream local content from a phone, tablet, or PC to your TV using a Chromecast. While the move looked like it could be intentional at first, Google says it’s just a side effect of an evolving SDK, and that local video streaming might eventually be supported.  - Unlocked Samsung Galaxy S4 Octa-Core phone now available in the US (AT&T compatible)
If you want a Samsung Galaxy S4 in the US, you usually end up with a model featuring a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 quad-core processor. The model with a Samsung Exynos 5410 octa-core chip has only been available internationally… until now. - Amazon Kindle Paperwhite is out of stock – new models on the way?
It’s almost fall, which means it could soon be time for Amazon to roll out its next-generation Kindle tablets and eReaders. And wouldn’t you know it? Amazon says it’s out of Kindle Paperwhite eReaders in the US. That could be a sign that a new model is coming soon… or it could be a sign that the company doesn’t care as much about E Ink as it once did. Amazon continues to push its Kindle Fire tablets, and the company is reportedly working on a new type of device using low-power color screens thanks to its acquisition of Liquavista.
- Windows 8 tablet with Celeron 1037U available for $440 and up
Underwhelmed by the low-cost Windows 8 tablets on the market due to their underpowered Intel Atom processors? While the is single-handedly keeping the 10 inch mini-laptop space alive. A few months ago the company released a netbook-like notebook with an Intel Celeron processor. Now it’s following up with an AMD Temash-powered model. - Google Nexus 4 now available for $199 and up ($100 price cut)
When Google launched the Nexus 4 last year and charged $299 and up for an unlocked phone with a 720p screen, a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core chip, and 2GB of RAM, it was one of the best-priced, high-quality phones around. Now it’s $100 cheaper. - TransMaker turns a Samsung Galaxy phone into a tablet, notebook
The Asus Padfone may have caught your eye for its ability to turn your smartphone into a full-fledged tablet or notebook by connecting a series of docking stations. But the Padfone is only available in limited markets. Migoal’s TransMaker is a solution that adds similar functionality to some of the most popular smartphones already on the market: The Samsung Galaxy S3 and Galaxy S4.Â
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