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After what seems like quite some time Celcom are offering the the HTC One Max phablet from RM1638. Considering that this 5.9-inch HTC One look-alike phablet currently retails at a whopping RM2499, this is actually a pretty good price, especially if you've always wanted a larger but better looking phablet than the other phablets out there. In any case, you can get the deal from Celcom by signing up for a Celcom First postpaid plan with a mobile Internet plan or the mPro Plus plan for 12, 18 or 24 month contracts. Check out the table and links in this article for more details.

While the Asus MemoPad 8, MemoPad FHD 10 and FonePad Note 6 were all recently announced they still haven't got their offical Malaysia launching yet, the good folks at Lowyat.net got an interesting leaked image showing off pricing and confirming tech specs. Reconfirming most of what has already been reported on, the Asus MemoPad 8 will have an 8-inch screen, a 1.6GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of storage, 5MP rear camera, 1.2MP front camera, come in black or white and be priced at RM649. The Asus MemoPad FHD 10 on the other hand will have a 10.1-inch screen, a 1.6GHz dual-core Intel processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, a 5MP rear camera, a 1.2MP front camera, come in blue and white and be priced at RM1199.

The Normandy has landed, or at least the Nokia codenamed Normandy smartphone has. Appearing courtesy of evleaks along with a still unnamed Asha phone, the Normandy looks like another Lumia smartphone that could be bridging the gap between the Asha range and the Lumia range. The unnamed Nokia Asha phone on the other hand looks a lot like an LG Vu 3, complete with square-like 4:3 display. Unfortunately, no tech specs, pricing or Malaysia release dates were available at the time but stay tuned and we'll keep you posted.

Seemingly catching up with the rest of the refocusing cameraphone crowd, Apple have recently filed a patent for a camera technology which allows Lytro-like effects. Similar to the refocusing effect in Nokia's PureView cameras and some Sony Xperia cameraphones, the technology basically allows users to take a shot and then refocus it on any point or object in the picture. The technology in Apple's patent is different from Lytro in that it offers a high-resolution non-refocusable mode along with a low-resolution refocusable mode. While the patent is for a new camera sensor, it also covers an add-on version for any existing camera. This could mean we would see it come out for the Apple iPhone 6 or as an accessory for all camera equipped Apple devices.

With the rumoured Samsung Galaxy S5 said to be coming in 2014, quite a lot of other feature news has cropped up as well. This includes the various patent filings Samsung has done which includes this one for a multi-party video conferencing call which could replace the current ChatOne messaging app. Most video conferencing features like Apple's FaceTime only has 2 people so a multi party video conference call feature would certainly help up the innovative features available on the Samsung Galaxy S5. While there are other multi-party video conference messaging apps like Google Hangouts (which allows up to 10 callers) it requires a good amount of bandwidth from all those involved. Hopefully, Samsung will manage to work on some way of compressing the video stream for this new patent for a truly exceptional feature for the Samsung Galaxy S5.

The curved LG G Flex is coming along with international release and sales outside of Korea, but already rumours are spreading that LG are working on their 2nd generation flexible phone. While this could be called the LG G Flex 2 sources say that it will have certain features that the LG G Flex isn't capable of. This includes the ability to bend at a 90 degree angle and come with a hard rubber body encasing a flexible battery. Hopefully, LG would have found a more durable glass alternative as even though the plastic substrate screen has proven tough enough to withstand falls, the glass covering usually ends up shattering. These sources say that we may see the LG G Flex 2 in Q3 of 2014 but since the LG G Flex was launched in November 2013 we're betting the LG G Flex 2 to perhaps come in the same month of November 2014. No news yet on other features or tech specs or even pricing and Malaysia release dates, but we're expecting the initial price to be high as LG continue to tinker with the whole flexible display smartphone form factor.

While the Nokia Lumia 2520 may have started Nokia's tablet range, other Nokia tablets are rumoured to be coming soon, namely an 8-inch tablet going by the name of the Nokia Lumia 2020 or codenamed Illusionist. This 8-inch tablet is expected to arrive in Q1 of 2014 with tech specs that include Windows 8.1 RT and the aforementioned 8-inch screen. No Malaysia pricing or release dates but the Lumia 2020 tablet is expected to target the mid to high-end market. This would mean that it would compete with other 8-inch Windows 8.1 RT based tablets from Acer and Asus placing it around $300 (RM963) or so. Some other sources say that it may go for as low as $200 (RM642) to compete with the 7-inch tablet crowd like the Nexus 7 but we're thinking it would probably match similar Windows based 8-inch tablets. Tech specs for the Nokia Lumia 2020 could include a Snapdragon 800 processor, but we'll confirm everything once we get more information, so stay tuned.

The rumoured 12.9-inch Apple iPad Pro has been making the rounds for quite some time now, with initial rumours saying that we might see it in early 2014. However, some new rumours indicate that we may only see the actual device in Q2 or Q3 of 2014. This is because some sources are saying that Apple has appointed Quanta Computer as the main manufacturer for the iPad Pro with mass production to begin in Q3 of 2014. This would mean we'd only see an announcement and launch in or after late Q3 of 2014. These sources go on to say that since the larger iPad Pro is only expected to target educational and enterprise markets, it will be produced in limited amounts. In related news, Foxconn, Inventec and Quanta are all looking to produce the Apple iWatch with no clear winner in the production bidding just yet. Initial production yields of the Apple iWatch has not been good, further delaying the iWatch until Q2 of 2014 with an expected launch in late 2014. Most industry watchers are expecting the Apple iWatch to come after August 2014, but it could just as well make it's first appearance at IFA 2014, which is where the previous bunch of smartwatches made their debut as well.

When the Samsung Galaxy Grand first came out, it offered users a mid-range smartphone with average processor and a big but rather low resolution screen. Nearing the end of 2013, Samsung have officially announced the Galaxy Grand 2 which not only packs in a better processor but also a marginally bigger screen. This time around the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 packs in a 5.25-inch screen with a bit more respectable resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels. In terms of looks it now has a plastic artificial leather-like backing just like the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Other tech specs and features have also received an upgrade with a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1.5GB RAM, 8GB storage with up to 64GB microSD support, an 8MP AF rear camera with LED flash, a 1.9MP front camera and a much larger 2600 mAh battery. No 4G LTE support but it does have a GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, dual-SIM and a couple of S applications like S Health and S Translator. The Grand 2 measures in at 146.9 x 75.3 x 8.9mm and 163g. It should come running Android 4.3 in black, pink or white. No news about Malaysia release dates or pricing but we expect the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 to come soon.

Many in the tech industry feel that Windows RT and subsequent Windows RT-based devices lack many of the capabilities and features of more capable Microsoft operating systems and devices. Rumours about the death of Windows RT have circulated for quite some time at practically every chance. But so far, most of the rumours have been from third-parties, this time around, we have a comment from within Microsoft itself that could indicate Microsoft officially killing off Windows RT. The comment comes from Julie Larson-Green, who is Executive Vice President of the Devices and Studios and one of the big movers in Microsoft. Her comment was:

"We have the Windows Phone OS. We have Windows RT and we have full Windows. We're not going to have three. We do think there's a world where there is a more mobile operating system that doesn't have the risks to battery life, or the risks to security. But, it also comes at the cost of flexibility. So we believe in that vision and that direction and we're continuing down that path."