If you’re an Android and Samsung fan, this is a great day for you. Why? Well, Samsung has just announced its brand new flagship Android-powered smartphone: the Galaxy S5. And yes, it looks pretty cool.

The new hotness features a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, a 2.5GHz quad-core processor, a 16-megapixel rear-facing camera, a 2-megapixel front-facing camera, 3GB of RAM, a 2,800 mAh battery and Android 4.4 KitKat. But wait, there’s more.

The Galaxy S5 also features a water-resistant case and a fingerprint scanner similar to the one Apple uses in its iPhone 5s. It comes in four colors including charcoal black, shimmery white, electric blue and copper gold.

Here are the full specs:

As with most new smartphones, and other highly anticipated devices these days, it’s hard to keep them a total secret before they come out. Inevitably, photos, specs or in the case of the Motorola Moto X smartphone today, a video will leak out.

The video in question is from Rogers Wireless which highlights the upcoming Motorola Moto X and confirms many of the new features the device will have at launch. Among said features are hands-free searches, notifications showing up as information on screen rather than through a notification light, gestures to launch the camera, and more.

The video also confirms that the device will be able to work hands-free, with features being activated simply by talking to it. In the video a woman speaks the command “OK, Google Now” with the phone fully asleep and it wakes and then performs a search. The clip also highlights other Google Now features, like setting an alarm or getting directions.

All in all, this looks like a pretty great device. Can’t wait to get our hands on one to check it out in more detail.

In the meantime, check out the video after the break. Look for the Motorola Moto X to arrive in the coming months.

Even though they denied its existence, it looks like HTC will release a ‘Nexus Experience’ version of their flagship HTC One device. The announcement and confirmation came today during the AllThingsD conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA.

Google’s head of Android development, Sundar Pichai, personally confirmed the device on stage during the conference and said it will available through Google Play on June 26. It is also now up over at HTC’s website with the following specs:

32GB of storage, running stock Android 4.2.2, runs on T-Mobile and AT&T LTE, $599 through Google Play, unlockable bootloader. Now that’s a nice phone with great specs.

So tempting. If you’re an Android fan, will this be your new phone or will it be the ‘Nexus Experience’ Samsung Galaxy S4?

Even though a majority of us here at The Flickcast use smartphones made by Apple, that doesn’t mean we only care about iOS or things from Cupertino. We also like Android quite a bit too. And when a new smartphone is reportedly ready to be announced by Google itself, we pay particular attention.

That phone is the much-discussed “X Phone.” And now we’ve got a picture (or two) of it, curtesy of gadget blog Tinthe.tn, so you can see exactly what it’s all about.

From the pics we can say that the device does look a lot like other Android smartphones, particularly those from Samsung. Not that that’s a bad thing. In addition to the pics, there’s also info about the internals of the device.

Google is a major player in the tech world. So much so that they have their very own convention, called Google I/O. At this convention, which takes place in San Francisco from May 15-17, developers and other Google-enthusiasts gather to discuss, learn and get a glimpse of what Google has in store for Android and its other ventures.

As of late yesterday, the company has posted the full list and schedule of sessions avilable at Google I/O. With ove 120 choices ranging from Android and Chrome to developing for Google Glass and Google Wallet.

In short, if you’re a developer (or a Google-enthusiast) you won’t have any trouble finding something interesting and informative to see and do.

Sadly, if you don’t already have a ticket to Google I/O, you’re out of luck. They’re sold out. However, you can be sure most of the major sessions and keynotes will be available live via streaming or later online at Google’s Developers Live.

Even though we’re big Apple fans, we’re very interested to see what Google unveils at this event. They do create some pretty cool stuff.

Could be pretty exciting indeed.

Not one to be left behind when there’s a fight to be had, Microsoft has decided to take on what it thinks are two of its biggest rivals: Apple and Samsung. Or, at least, it wants you to remember that it also makes phones too and the fued between Apple and Samsiung is a silly distraction from the awesomeness of its products.

One way Microsoft is trying to accomplish this is with a new ad. In this one iPhone users make fun of Galaxy owners and their “enormous” phones, Galaxy owners make fun of iPhone owners and call them children and the list of insults goes on and on.

If it wasn’t so heavy-handed and obvious, it would be kinda funny. Still, we do like stylized martial arts action in a church and overblown sound effects as much as the next guys/gals. The guy with the Apple tattoo is also a nice touch.

So kudos to Microsoft for at least trying to have a sense of humor and trying to do something. We may never buy a Windows Smartphone (check that, we never will), but at least it won’t be due to a lack of effort on Microsoft’s part.

Hey, we still love the XBox 360. Check out the add after the break.

For Android users who’ve had a chance to experience just how good the Google Now service can be, this article won’t interest you as much. However, for the iOS users out there, this should be of great interest.

Not that we have anything against Apple’s Siri, but the Google Now service just gets the job done a bit better. Fortunately, Google Now has arrived for iOS.

It’s not a stand alone app but is, instead, part of the updated Google Search app for iOS. If you haven’t already downloaed it, you can grab it right here.

In case you’re somehow not familiar with Google Now, it’s an intelligent assistant that automatically presents users with information based on location, search history and more, without any action required by the user. It’s also really good at finding things like the nearest food when users asks specific questions like “I want tacos” or similar. Yes, that’s what Apple’s Siri is supposed to do, and it does. . . prety well.

Google Now just does it better. Sorry Apple. As with Maps, you’ve got some work to do in this area. Fortunately, competition is a good thing.

For more on Google Now, check out the official video after the break.

Oh Facebook, as if we didn’t already waste enough time on you, now you want to be an even larger part of our mobile lives? Oh boy. That’s right folks, Facebook today unveiled it’s new “Facebook Home” for Android smartphones designed to integrate with Android and become a larger part of your user experience.

The new software takes over several core functions of Android and replaces them with features that tie into various Facebook services. This, in effect, turns you smartphone into the much-touted “Facebook Phone.”

According to Facebook frontman Mark Zukerberg:

“You’re going to be able to transform your phone into a great social device.” Facebook Home makes it so that “phones are designed around people first,” rather than apps, as is the case with most modern smartphones. Instead of burying content that users want to see inside apps, Facebook Home makes it available at all times.

Even with all the hype surrounding every iPhone release and the recent hubub over the Samsung Galaxy S4, we can’t forget another company that makes some pretty great smartphones. That company? HTC.

With the recent announcement of the new HTC One, the company is poised to make a comback in a big way. The device looks great and will be available soon. How soon?

Well, for AT&T at least, the mystery is gone as this morning the company announced both pre-order and in-store dates for the One. The 32GB version of the One will arrive on April 19th for $199 with the 64GB version at $299, both with a new, two-year agreement, of course.

Pre-orders officially start on April 4 at 1:00 PM CT, which is this Thursday. For those who pre-order, AT&T is including a free HTC Media Link HD wireless HDMI adaptor. The phone will come in both black or white.

For more on this new, awesome device, check out the video after the break.

Now that the new hotness from Samsung, in the form of the Galaxy S4, is out of the proverbial bag, the waiting has begun in earnest. And as everyone knows, the waiting is, indeed, the hardest part.

Fortunately, those of you who want to order a Galaxy S4 and don’t mind using AT&T’s network, don’t have to wait quite as long as the rest of the population. That’s right, starting on April 16th, AT&T will be taking pre-orders for the Galaxy S4.

No, you can’t actually buy one and have it in your hands on the 16th, you can only pre-order it. The best part? AT&T has not given an actual release date for the device yet. Huh.

After so many years, people had pretty much written off T-Mobile as a carrier who offered Apple’s iPhone. It seemed, except for those of you inclined to jailbreak, using an iPhone on T-Mobile’s network was just never going to happen.

That is, until now. Well, not until April 12th to be exact. That’s right T-Mobile fans, the iPhone is coming to a network near you.

Today the company announced that it would start selling the iPhone 5 for $99 on April 12th. You won’t have to sign any long-term contract either. You will, however, have to agree to pay T-Mobile an extra $20 a month over a 20-month period to fully pay off the cost of the device.

You also have the option of paying full price for the device up front and then the extra fee is waived. For more, check out the full press release after the break.

Now that the cat, er smartphone, is out of the bag, Samsung has wasted no time in releasing all sorts of cool stuff about their new flagship device: the Galaxy S IV. One such tidbit is a video highlighting some of the many featutes the device has to offer.

The video include everything from an explanation of the new display tech, how to use the phone with gloves on, group gameplay, S Translator, S Health, and more. Plus, it gives you a good idea of how the device responds to commands and the speed in which it executes various tasks.

Samsung has really taken things to a new level with the Galaxy S IV. As Apple’s only real competitor in this market, they have definitely thrown down the gauntlet.

It will be very interesting to see if Apple picks it. Our guess? They will likely just keep on doing what they’ve ben doing and, for the most part, ignore the competition. It seems to have worked pretty wel for the so far.

Check out the video after the break.