Even if Black Friday is already over, there is still a bit of time left to take care of some last-minute shopping. And if you are like yours truly - having little to no inspiration when it comes to choosing Christmas gifts - you might find it hard to decide what to surprise your friends and family with this Holiday season. Luckily, smartphones are the perfect gift, so choosing one for Christmas is an almost obvious option. Here are some models released this year that anyone would love to see under the Christmas tree.

Razer Phone

The Razer phone is the perfect choice for anyone in love with Android games. Its screen is amazing, capable of displaying the graphics of anything between mobile real money gambling casino games available at at Wild Jack and even the most demanding and action-packed titles available today. It also comes with a massive battery to ensure long-term gaming action and a high-quality sound system with front-facing stereo speakers for the best experience altogether.

Released: November 2017. Price: $699

Nokia 8

Nokia was once the best name on the mobile phone market and the manufacturer of the world's first true smartphones. Over the years, especially after the brand was sold to Microsoft, its value for smartphone users declined. This year, though, it has once again released some amazing handsets, one for every pocket. And Nokia 8 is its best, a phone worthy of the Finnish brand's former glory.

With Nokia 8 under the Christmas three, you cannot fail. The phone has hardware fit for a flagship, an amazing screen, 6GB of RAM, a dual 13 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, and 128GB of internal storage.

Released: October 2017. Price: ~$670

Xiaomi Mi A1

If your pockets are not that deep but you still want to offer a smartphone that's special as a present, you might want to consider Xiaomi's first Android One smartphone, the Mi A1. While its specs are not exactly on par with this year's flagship phones, they are more than decent: it has an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 SoC paired with 4GB of RAM, it has a dual 12MP camera, FM radio, and a 3080mAh battery. What makes it special is its operating system: it is an Android 7.1.2 (Nougat) Android One on it (the plain stock version of the operating system) planned to be upgraded to a similar version of Android 8.0

Released: September 2017. Price: ~$260

Today's Christmas Surprise, According to a support page found at Samsung Finland's official website that includes a list of the Galaxy Note devices that will get Lollipop 5.0 update... Samsung Galaxy Note II was included on that list. This confirms that the Galaxy Note II will receive the Android 5.0 Lollipop update sometimes during 2015.

Usually, manufacturers don't provide software updates for devices that are older than two years, but it looks like the Galaxy Note II (which is now 2 years and 3 months old) is an exception to the rule. Hopefully, Samsung will properly confirms this soon.

Stay Tuned for more updates on this News!

Source

"Taking a photo of Christmas tree" (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Takashi(aes256)

We can all be guilty of getting into the Christmas spirit a little early. Festive marketing - which usually begins in November - can be a little bit infectious. But Selfridges in London took the cake for overexcitement this year, opening the doors of their Christmas shop on the first day of August - the peak of British summertime.

For regular folk, Christmas usually begins in mid-November, ahead of the last (or second-to-last) wage of the year. You know, the point when questions about trees, markets, presents, John Lewis adverts and Coca-Cola trucks become unavoidable. We're almost at that point once again, so here are a few mobile apps to get you in the mood for Santa's arrival.

NORAD Tracks Santa (iOS, Android)

NORAD, otherwise known as the North American Aerospace Defense Command, is arguably the last organisation on Earth you'd expect to run a regular Santa-tracking service over the festive period. However, the event has been a fixture of Christmas in the States since 1955, when a child tried to call Santa and ended up speaking to Colonel Harry Shoup instead.

'NORAD Tracks Santa' has made the leap from helpline service to a Google Maps-style website over the last few decades. But most modern users will experience Santa's journey on Android or iOS in 2016. The event is incredibly popular, with volunteers fielding 117,000 phone calls from children and nearly 20million people following Santa via the app or website in 2013.

The Elf Adventure Christmas Story (iOS, Android)

Many of the most popular Android and iOS games out there have Christmas themes, such as Doodle Jump Christmas Special or A Christmas Carol by Bitcasino, a slots-style game available here. However, some festive titles are just palette swaps of an original, sticking a woolly hat on a protagonist or swapping a palm tree for a fir tree.

One for the kids, the Elf Adventure Christmas Story is a 24-episode saga and digital advent calendar that revolves around a quest to awaken a sleepy frost giant before Christmas. It's nothing too taxing - each day requires the completion of a task like cleaning a window or putting biscuits in an oven - but it's a fun distraction before school for the little ones.

Secret Santa Tombola (iOS)

Whether it's a pair of socks or a sew-your-own plush cactus, Secret Santa has always been a celebration of the cheapest and weirdest presents on the market. With office-based versions of the game, the likelihood is that you won't know anything about the person you're buying a present for. So why not leave it up to fate?

Secret Santa Tombola is an app with the uncreative and just plain lazy in mind. All you have to do is specify whether the recipient is male or female, set a budget, and choose the type of gift you'd like to see as a suggestion (cute, funny, or cheeky). It's the mobile equivalent of closing your eyes and choosing something at random from the Argos catalogue.

So, there you go; three apps to make Christmas a little easier and a lot more exciting. A good month before Santa pulls on his boots.