Two cases with distinct styling and different levels of protection

We're here at CTIA 2013 in Las Vegas, and although the show hasn't officially kicked off yet we had the opportunity to play with two of Otterbox's latest cases for the HTC One. At the middle and high tier of protection from Otterbox, the "Commuter" and "Defender" cases for the One are stylish but extremely functional options. The Commuter is the thinner of the two, with a two piece design that's primarily a rubber wrap-around case with a hard plastic shell that clips onto it. It doesn't add a considerable amount of bulk to the device but does add a serious amount of protection. If the Commuter isn't enough, the Defender will likely cover your device from anything you throw at it. A larger affair, the Defender has an integrated screen protector in the case, as well as extra shock protection. The end result is a case that is a touch thicker than the Commuter but considerably more rugged.

Both cases keep every function and button of the phone unobstructed -- as you would hope -- including the power button IR blaster and all microphone ports. Stick around after the break for a gallery of the two cases wrapped around an HTC One, with the thinner Commuter first then followed by the thicker and more durable Defender.

More: Android Central @ CTIA 2013

Otterbox is here in Vegas at CTIA 2013 with its Defender and Commuter series cases for the Samsung Galaxy S4

CTIA is always a hotbed for the latest and greatest accessories and this year's show is no different -- Otterbox was onsite tonight at the Showstoppers kickoff event in Las Vegas' Venetian Hotel with both its Defender and Commuter cases for the Samsung Galaxy S 4. Otterboxes probably aren't the most attractive cases you can buy for your shiny new S4, and they certainly aren't the sleekest, but they provide the ultra-protection you've come to expect from the company. Both the Commuter and Defender series come in a slew of color options and they're both available now for $34.95 and $49.95 respectively. A quick video, and some more shots can be found in the gallery after the break.

The one word you think of when you see those three letters. CAT. As in Caterpillar. As in construction equipment.

Rugged.

And that's translated nicely to the Cat 15 ruggedized Android smartphone. Available now for $349 after its unveiling a couple months ago at Mobile World Congress, it's billed as a durable smartphone for the active set, whether that's on the side of the mountain or atop a rather impressive piece of construction equipment.  

In fact, we watched this sucker hit the floor hard in Las Vegas. Hard. As in up all night gambling and you can't take it anymore hard. We've got hands-on video and more after the break.

CTIA in Vegas starts tonight, and we're there to relay all the news back to you

Phil, Anndrew and Andrew are on the ground in Sin City, getting prepped to bring you all the news you'll want to know from the CTIA show. This is the last spring CTIA show, and starting next year things will be consolidated into one bigger and better event every fall. 

Besides rubbing shoulders with Ashton Kutcher and Jennifer Lopez, expect to hear news from Verizon and Sprint, as well as something Kyocera is cooking up. Of course, the show floor will also be filled with those oh-so-interesting products and accessories that make owning a connected device fun. 

The news should start rolling in tonight, so keep your eyes peeled to see it all. You never know what to expect at these events, and there's bound to be something to interest everyone.

Free storage has been bumped to 1TB,  and a new version of the Android app is on the way

EDIT: The update is now live in Google Play. Go get it.

Yahoo is doing more than buying blog platforms today, and during an event in New York they have announced a complete revamp of Flickr. The interface of the website has changed, and now features content blocks and full bleed images instead of the thumbnail or list view of the past. In addition, registered users now have 1TB (as in a terabyte) of free storage space to keep their photos, more than any other online service. That's all well and good, but we're mostly concerned with the update to the Android app.

Last December, the Flickr app for iOS received a nice update, and today Yahoo says the Android app will be updated to the same version. That includes a UI change away from the grid we have now to a more content-focused layout resembling the website, as well as better social sharing through Facebook and Tumblr, photo editing and filters via Aviary, and photo-viewing enhancements like zooming and photo details. The update is expected to go live at any time, so if you're a user be sure to check Google Play for the notification, or try the link above.

Small update with system enhancements, still based on Android 4.1.2

HTC One phones that were sold unlocked via HTC, including the developer editions, in the U.S.A. are getting a small over-the-air update today. As you can see it's a 17MB file containing "important enhancements and bug fixes". Without seeing the actual change log, we're going to guess this is an update you'll probably want to take.

When all said and done, you're at Software Number 1.29.1540.16,  Android version 4.1.2 and HTC Sense 5.0. The usual warnings about root and custom recovery apply, so be sure to have that RUU handy, or wait for a flashable version.

'Making/receiving phone calls is just the beginning', says product manager

Since Google's introduction of the new Hangouts chat service, members of the team responsible for deploying it have been working to reassure people that it will eventually include Google Voice as a component. And for good reason, as there was no mention of Google Voice at Google I/O even as the ability to make outbound Google Voice calls via the desktop Chrome extension was unceremoniously removed in the update to Hangouts from Google Talk. Product manager for real time communications at Google, Nikhyl Singhal, reassured everyone today that outbound calling for Google Voice is still available via Gmail, and took a moment to reveal more information about the future of the service. In a Google+ post, Singhal went on to explain that not only will Google Voice be seamlessly integrated into Hangouts, but that "Hangouts is designed to be the future of Google Voice". The team also intends to bring back full inbound and outbound calling functionality from the Chrome extension going forward.

While it's not completely understood why it had to remove the ability to make outbound calls on the desktop all together in this process, it's great to hear directly from Google about possible new features. Building on initial thoughts of what Google had up its sleeve for a unified chat service that would fully integrate calling and SMS, these bold statements have us cautiously optimistic about upcoming releases of Hangouts.

Source: +Nikhyl Singhal

On sale today, prices start at £399 for 16GB + Wifi

A couple of months after Sony first started taking pre-orders, its Xperia Tablet Z slate is now available to buy in the UK. Prices start at £399 for 16GB of storage and Wifi connectivity (black only), or you can opt for 32GB with Wifi (black and white) or 16GB with Wifi and 4G LTE connectivity (black only). The Tablet Z isn't the cheapest Android tablet option around, but it does boast a Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core CPU inside, a 1080p display and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, backed up by Sony's suite of apps. For the hacking crowd, there's also AOSP support through Sony's GitHub.

Across the Atlantic, Sony's still taking pre-orders for the Xperia Tablet Z through its official online store, with devices expected to ship out this Friday, May 24.

Source: Sony Store UK

We're geeks. We get it. Our phones, be they Android, BlackBerry, iPhone, or Windows Phone, are among the most important things in our lives. We use them for everything, all the time. But in some situations our phones can get in the way, like on a first date. So, from one geek to another, I'm going to share ten basic tips on how to keep your smartphone from ruining a potentially great new relationship... by keeping it in your pants!

Here are the bullet points, watch the video for the details!