4 smartphones with standout features

These days, smartphones are almost all drawing from the same bag of tricks, and it can be hard to tell one from the next. If the average smartphone will do all the basic things you want it to, what does it take to be special? Here are four smartphones with unusual features that really make them stand out.

Nokia Lumia 920

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: This phone forges new Windows Phone ground with wireless-charging support and a highly sensitive screen you can use with gloves. Moreover, Nokia helps fill in Windows Phone OS gaps with a few missing features.

The bad: A thick, heavy build and slippery finish for some colors make the Lumia 920 harder to hold and carry, and the phone’s overhyped camera doesn’t have enough settings.

The cost: $99.99

The bottom line: Nokia’s Lumia 920 is heavy and thick, but if you want the most powerful, feature-rich Windows Phone smartphone available, this is it.

Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: Oodles of screen real estate make this terrific for videos, games, and reading, and its improved stylus aids productivity. A blazing quad-core processor, a great camera and strong battery life round out the advantages of this Android 4.1 phone.

The bad: The huge display makes it unwieldy to carry, and hiccups in the S Pen stylus and apps can slow you down. The pricey Note 2 isn’t a suitable tablet replacement across all categories.

The cost: $149.99 to $309.99

The bottom line: Samsung delivers a powerful, boundary-pushing device that gets a lot right. Yet its complicated features and high price raise questions about its purpose.

Motorola Droid Razr Maxx HD

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: This Droid (Verizon) offers fast performance, a big, eye-popping screen and luxurious design. It also has great call quality, lots of storage, 4G data speeds, and unbeatable battery life.

The bad: The major weakness is a camera that produces subpar images. The phone is filled with Verizon bloatware as well.

The cost: $149.99 to $299.99

The bottom line: Motorola’s fast, stylish Droid Razr Maxx HD offers outstanding battery life, but its camera captures unimpressive images.

Samsung Galaxy Beam

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)

The good: An integrated pico projector, as well as a dual-core processor, 720p video capture and a 4-inch Super AMOLED screen.

The bad: The projection software needs some work, the 5-megapixel camera sometimes blurs indoor shots, and the Beam is thicker and heavier than many phones.

The cost: $474.49 to $839.99

The bottom line: Despite weak software, the Galaxy Beam’s bright projector pushes boundaries, and strong smartphone features make it a worthy standalone device.

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Police shoot, kill woman accused of holding knife to her boyfriend

A woman who was holding her boyfriend at knife point as their 3-year-old boy was in their home was shot to death by deputies in Lake Worth Tuesday morning.

Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies were called to the home in a duplex about 2:45 a.m. by the boyfriend who was frantic, saying she was going to kill him, sheriff’s spokeswoman Teri Barbera said.

“When we arrived she had him by the shirt with a knife in hand. We told her to put the knife down repeatedly. When she turned to stab him, we shot her. In an effort to save his life, we shot,” Barbera said.

Though deputies then ran to her assistance and called paramedics, the woman, who is 24, died from her injuries.

Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said Tuesday morning, “If the deputies had not taken the action they did she would have knifed him on the spot.”

Bradshaw said the 911 calls reveal the couple were in a “violent confrontation” and that the boyfriend was trying to get the child away from the boy’s mother. When deputies arrived, the woman let go of the child and came through the front door with her boyfriend, holding him by the shirt with one hand and a knife in the other.

“The deputies actions actually saved his life and probably, further down the road, the child’s life,” Bradshaw said.

Bradshaw said deputies had been called before to the duplex and that the couple has had previous problems. He did not release their names, but said the woman was 24-years-old and her boyfriend is about the same age. Bradshaw also said there are possible child abuse charges pending against the woman.

The boy will likely be placed with relatives, Bradshaw said.

This is the second shooting death of 2013 in Palm Beach County. A bartender at a Boca Raton restaurant was shot and killed in a robbery Friday, Jan. 4.

Rafael Rodriguez was bartending when the restaurant was robbed by several men. The robbers took personal items, including wallets, jewelry and cellphones from the victims. As the robbers were leaving, Rodriguez exchanged words with one of them. The robber fired at Rodriguez, striking him once. Rodriguez, 46, died at a local hospital after being shot once.

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Conn. lawmaker apologizes over Facebook post

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut lawmaker has apologized after saying in a Facebook post that shooting victim and former Arizona U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords should “stay out of my towns.”

Giffords last week visited Newtown, Conn., where a gunman killed 20 young children and six adults at an elementary school last month. The Democrat, who met with families of the victims, was critically wounded two years ago in a deadly mass shooting in Tucson, Ariz.

The Hartford Courant posted images Sunday showing Republican state Rep. DebraLee Hovey‘s Facebook comments. In one dated Friday she says, “Gabby Giffords stay out of my towns!!”

Hovey released a statement Monday saying her comments were insensitive and that she apologizes if she offended anyone.

Hovey had said in another post that the visit was political.

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Golden Globes Flashback: Woody Harrelson 1997

Woody Harrelson has never been considered a style icon, but when he had his tuxedo for the 1997 Golden Globes manufactured out of hemp by Armani, he was something of a fashion pioneer.

After years on Cheers, Harrelson established himself as a film actor with White Men Can't Jump in 1992. Four years later, he received his first Golden Globe nomination for The People vs. Larry Flynt, for which he also received an Oscar nomination.

Harrelson makes a stamp on his first Globes red carpet by showing up in all-white tuxedo made entirely from hemp, which he speculates may be the first of that variety. With his collar lifted and a scarf around his neck in lieu of a tie, he is complimented by ET's former correspondent Lisa Canning for his unique look.

VIDEO: Globes Flashback '08: 'Mad Men' Wins Together

"I've never been accused of being fashionable before, so this is a big night for me," the then-35-year-old actor says.

Draped in his all-hemp attire, one might think that he has forgotten why he is on the red carpet considering his loose demeanor; however Harrelson explains his nonchalant attitude as a premature surrender of defeat to the other men in his category (Geoffrey Rush, Mel Gibson, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes).

"Since I'm anticipating [on] losing, there's nothing to be nervous about," he says with a grin. "It'll be alright."

His premonition proved correct that year, as he wasn't given the opportunity to show off his hemp tux while making his acceptance speech at the podium.

VIDEO: Globes Flashback '96: Kidman's Career Changes

He was nominated over a decade later for another Golden Globe for The Messenger, but he didn't receive the award that year either. However, he did wear a hemp suit to the Oscars for his nomination for The Messenger.

Harrelson is nominated for another Golden Globe this year for the TV film Game Change. While it's unclear if he'll win the award, we're a little more certain as to what "fabric" his tux will be comprised of.

You could say we got wind of it.

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WWE’s John Cena to replace Fred Flintstone on Pebbles boxes

Any athlete can grace a Wheaties box, but who is big enough to bump the iconic Fred Flintstone from the cover of Fruity Pebbles?

John Cena, that’s who.

The WWE Superstar is replacing Fred Flintstone for a limited time on the popular Fruity and Cocoa Pebbles cereals. Cena is not totally suplexing the Flintstones off the cover of the box as Bamm-Bamm will also grace both covers with the 10-time WWE Champion.

"It's been a life-long dream to be on a cereal box and I'm proud to represent WWE as part of our partnership with Post," Cena said in a statement. "It's an incredible honor to be recognized by Post, and I'm looking forward to joining millions of families at their breakfast table across the country."

Cena landing on the cover of the popular Post cereal is a result of the WWE’s partnership with the cereal company, which came about by chance.

In January 2012, during a promotional spot on WWE Monday Night Raw, fellow Superstar Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson called out Cena.

“Enjoy your Fruity Pebbles, you Yabba Dabba b---h!” The Rock famously quipped.

The two companies joined forces in a promotional partnership shortly after, prompting The Rock to tease Cena once again.

“I assume my royalty check for this is in the mail #YoureWelcomeJohn,” The Rock tweeted.

In addition to the cereal box covers, the companies are partnering with an online game that will give fans the chance to enter a contest to win a VIP experience for Wrestlemania 30 in 2014 and will produce five million boxes featuring a photo app that allows fans to put themselves in a picture with Cena.

“John Cena is definitely a favorite celebrity among many of our Pebbles Cereal fans,” Sharon Pupel, Director of Marketing for Pebbles said in a statement. “We’re looking forward to engaging with our fans in 2013 at premiere WWE events.”

Cena appeals to a mostly younger demographic and is the leading face behind the WWE’s push to become a more family-friendly product.

“At WWE, we pride ourselves on delivering family-friendly entertainment and look forward to activating our partnership with Post even further at key WWE events later this year,” Andrew Judelson, Executive Vice President, Sales and Partnership Marketing, WWE, said.

Boxes featuring Cena are in stores now.

asulla-heffinger@nypost.com

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Norwegian Cruise Line to go public

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 8, 2013-- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (“Norwegian”) and NCL Corporation Ltd. announced today the launch of Norwegian's initial public offering of 23,529,412 ordinary shares pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-1 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Norwegian will grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase an aggregate of up to 3,529,412 additional ordinary shares. Norwegian intends to list the ordinary shares on the NASDAQ Global Select Market and, subject to official notice of issuance, the ordinary shares will trade under the symbol “NCLH.”

UBS Investment Bank and Barclays are acting as bookrunners and the representatives of the underwriters for the offering. Citigroup, Deutsche Bank Securities, Goldman, Sachs & Co. and J.P. Morgan are also acting as bookrunners for the offering. DNB Markets, HSBC, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Wells Fargo Securities and Apollo Global Securities are acting as co-managers for the offering.

The offering of these ordinary shares will be made only by means of a prospectus. A written prospectus, which meets the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, may be obtained here or by contacting:

UBS Securities LLCAttn: Prospectus Department299 Park AvenueNew York, NY 10171(888) 827-7275

Barclays Capital Inc.c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions1155 Long Island AvenueEdgewood, NY 11717Barclaysprospectus@broadridge.com(888) 603-5847

A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the SEC, but has not yet been declared effective. These securities may not be sold nor may offers to buy be accepted prior to the time the registration statement becomes effective. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor will there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

About Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian Cruise Line is a global cruise line operator, offering cruise experiences for guests with itineraries in North America (including Alaska and Hawaii), the Caribbean, Bermuda, the Mediterranean and the Baltic.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that Norwegian expects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. These statements include but are not limited to forward-looking statements about the proposed offering of ordinary shares of Norwegian, the business of Norwegian and the anticipated use of proceeds from the offering. There can be no assurance that actual results will not differ from those expected by management of Norwegian. For more information concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those conveyed in the forward-looking statements, please refer to the “Risk Factors” section of the amended registration statement on Form S-1 filed by Norwegian with the SEC on January 8, 2013 and the information included in subsequent amendments and other filings. These forward-looking statements are based on and include Norwegian's expectations as of the date hereof. Norwegian does not undertake any obligation to update or revise such forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur, or of which Norwegian becomes aware, after the date hereof.

CONTACT: Norwegian Cruise Line Andrea DeMarco, 305-468-2463 or AnneMarie Mathews, 305-436-4799 KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA FLORIDA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TRAVEL CRUISE SOURCE: Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. Copyright Business Wire 2013 PUB: 01/08/2013 06:53 AM/DISC: 01/08/2013 06:53 AM http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20130108006046/en

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Miami-Dade advisory group to consider local elections fixes

The advisory group tasked with figuring out how to improve Miami-Dade elections will spend Monday morning analyzing a county report outlining problems at the November polls.

Miami-Dade Elections Supervisor Penelope Townsley and her department issued an “after-action” report last month listing numerous shortcomings, including a lack of electronic voter check-in equipment, a shortage of temporary workers and a last-minute surge in absentee ballots.

Mayor Carlos Gimenez’s advisory group had been scheduled to delve into the report before the holidays, but that meeting was delayed because Townsley was ill and out of the office.

The 13-member group has already made several recommendations to state lawmakers to tweak Florida elections laws, including reinstating early voting the Sunday before Election Day and allowing counties to open early-voting sites in locations other than elections offices, city halls and public libraries. County commissioners agreed last month to make those requests part of the legislative package Miami-Dade lobbyists will push for when the annual legislative session begins in March in Tallahassee.

Monday’s meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. on the 18th floor of the Stephen P. Clark Government Center, 111 NW First St.

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Alcatel One Touch readies U.S. invasion with world’s thinnest smartphone and a colorful 5-inch phablet

TCL Communication’s (2618) Alcatel One Touch brand is ostensibly unknown in the United States, but the company is looking to make a name for itself at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. Alcatel One Touch has a number of new devices debuting at CES 2013 and to start things off, the China-based firm has unveiled a trio of intriguing new Android phones.

[More from BGR: ‘iPhone 5S’ to reportedly launch by June with multiple color options and two different display sizes]

While the show doesn’t officially begin until Tuesday, Alcatel One Touch got an early start on Monday — likely in order to ensure that it can lay claim to “the world’s thinnest smartphone” for at least a few hours.

[More from BGR: Next-generation LTE chips to reduce power consumption by 50%]

The first of three smartphones debuting at CES 2013 is the One Touch Idol Ultra, a sleek Android-powered handset that is just 6.45 millimeters thick. To put that dimension in perspective, the phone is 15% thinner than Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone 5.

Other notable specs include a 4.7-inch HD AMOLED display, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, an 8-megapixel camera, 1GB of RAM and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

Next up is the One Touch Idol, an entry-level version of the Idol Ultra. Measuring a slightly thicker 8.15 millimeters, the One Touch Idol includes a 4.7-inch qHD IPS display, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, an 8-megapixel camera, 512MB of RAM and the same Jelly Bean OS as the Ultra model.

Finally, Alcatel One Touch has unveiled its first entry into the “phablet” market with the One Touch Scribe HD. This stylus-ready device features a 5-inch HD IPS display, the 1.2GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6589 chipset, an 8-megapixel camera, 1GB of RAM, a microSD slot and Android 4.1. The One Touch Scribe HD also comes in a variety of colors including black, white, red and yellow.

Each of the three smartphones Alcatel One Touch debuted on Monday will launch in China later this month. The One Touch Scribe HD will then be released in the U.S. some time in the second quarter for a surprisingly affordable $ 397 before taxes and subsidies, and both the One Touch Idol and One Touch Idol Ultra will launch at a later point in time. The latter will cost $ 444 before taxes and subsidies, while pricing for the One Touch Idol has not yet been announced.

No carrier partners have been revealed at this point in the U.S. or in China.

This article was originally published by BGR

Wireless News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Julianne Hough, Josh Duhamel Talk 'Safe Haven'

Julianne Hough pairs up with Josh Duhamel for the romantic thriller Safe Haven. While her co-star Cobie Smulders assessed the onscreen pair's chemistry as "fiery," ET wanted to know what her romance is like with her real-life boyfriend Ryan Seacrest. "Fiery" wasn't Hough's word of choice, but she did gush about her man.

"Ryan is the most romantic person I've ever met," she praised on the film's set in North Carolina. "[He's] very thoughtful and very generous...Things that you wouldn't think a guy would even pick up on he's already done five steps ago."

RELATED: Hough: I'm 20 Pounds Heavier Since Dating Seacrest

Hough went on to describe some of the thoughtful things that Seacrest does for her, including sending her mementos when the two are apart. The 24-year-old multitalented star also had high praises for her onscreen love interest.

"Josh is amazing to work with," Hough lauded of Duhamel. "He's definitely very focused when we're doing a scene, especially if it's something big...He's just a good guy and really fun."

Although the two are merely onscreen lovers, Duhamel, who is married to Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie, shares the same mindset of Hough's boyfriend about what keeps a relationship strong.

RELATED: Julianne Hough Reveals Horrific Childhood Abuse

"I think the secret [to a lasting relationship] is just doing little things and just being thoughtful and just making sure they're being thought about," the Transformers actor said. "It's not so much about the big, grand gestures as it is about the little things."

Safe Haven is yet another film adaptation of a novel by Nicholas Sparks, who also wrote A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, and Dear John, which were all made into films in addition to four more of his love-story books.

Although the theme of love is not lost in the upcoming film, there is an added element of suspense in this one, which Duhamel extracted as a key element as to why he joined the film.

VIDEO: Julianne Hough on Stripping For Tom Cruise

"I love the story...I've always wanted to do one of these movies. The Nicholas Sparks movies are something that I'm actually a big fan of," he said. "If I was going to do one and if I had an opportunity to do one, I wanted it to be a little bit different...and this is a movie that, I think, is going to surprise people in that it's...romantic but it's more of a thriller, suspenseful, a little bit scarier movie than the other ones."

Safe Haven is in theaters February 14.

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Not so fast! Bandit busted after returning to McD's to eat

PONTIAC, Mich. — Officials say a suspected robber of a suburban Detroit restaurant who apparently returned months later to get some food is under arrest after being recognized by employees.

The Oakland County sheriff's department says workers at a McDonald's in Pontiac spotted the 40-year-old man Saturday in the drive-thru.

Sheriff's deputies responded and took the Pontiac man into custody. He was being held at the Oakland County Jail pending charges.

The robbery happened Oct. 5.

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