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How to sell your phone for cash (Smartphones Unlocked)

In last month's Smartphones Unlocked, I shared what happens to your smartphone when it ceases to be yours.

Although I listed resources for getting rid of your phone (and took a poll of what CNET readers usually do with their old handsets,) it's high time I offered up some tips for how to go about selling your phone...or any other consumer electronic, for that matter.

Don't count on a Hawaiian vacation for your efforts, but depending on how much you hoard or how savvy you sell, the dollars could really add up.

1. Raid the closet … Read more

Verizon updates Samsung's Galaxy S3 to Android 4.1

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean will begin rolling onto Verizon's Samsung Galaxy S3 as soon as tomorrow, Verizon announced today on its blog.

The update will occur in phases, so you may have to exercise some patience before you see your OS version start its over-the-air transformation to Android 4.1.

Specific to Verizon, the Jelly Bean update will make the handset global-ready, so customers can add an international roaming plan to use the phone overseas in GSM areas. Verizon is a CDMA network.

Android 4.1 also brings support for Verizon's Isis wallet, a mobile payment collaboration … Read more

T-Mobile rolls out Android 4.1 to the Galaxy S3

If you're a Samsung Galaxy S3 owner, your long, patient wait for an Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update will soon end.

Starting today, T-Mobile will begin pushing Android 4.1.1 over the air and through the Samsung Kies app.

If you run into trouble, T-Mobile provides documentation to help you through the process.

Among other changes, Android Jelly Bean offer richer notifications, an improved Search app that also includes Google Now, and much more powerful Android Beam functionality.

When you get it, tell us how you like the update! Chime in below.

Security risk at the root of a rooted Samsung Galaxy S3

For all the flexibility that comes with rooting an Android smartphone, there are always intrinsic risks. Such is the case with at least one Samsung Galaxy S3. A moderator over at XDA forums recently discovered that his handset was storing his Google account password in clear text in the S-Memo application.

While this isn't so much of an issue for nonrooted Galaxy S3 users, it's worth a reminder that rooting could give novices more than they bargained for. Not all developers are trustworthy, not all custom ROMs are stable and secure, and you do put yourself at risk … Read more

iPhone 5 and Galaxy S III head to head... in a blender

Just when I thought the iPhone 5 versus Samsung Galaxy S3 torture head-to-head trend couldn't go any further, Blendtec has upped the ante again.… Read more

Mini Galaxy S3 evidence piling up before Samsung event

Looks like "mini" is going to be in this holiday season. There's more reason to believe today that Samsung is going to be introducing a smaller version of its blockbuster Galaxy S3 Android phone later this week.

Samsung sent out an invite for an October 11 event that says something about small being big or some other clever, oxymoronic and mysterious marketing speech, depending on which translation app you use. … Read more

Apple's Siri trounces Samsung's S Voice (hands-on)

I've updated this hands-on to reflect Siri's new tricks in iOS6; it originally posted June 21, 2012 comparing S Voice on the Galaxy S3 -- which is still current -- to Siri on iOS 5. If you're wondering, tomorrow I'll be comparing the updated Siri to Google Voice Actions.

Voice assistants like Siri, S Voice, Google Actions, and Microsoft's TellMe aren't new, but they are evolving into more mainstream features that can expedite results. S Voice, which launched this summer on the Samsung Galaxy S3, is Samsung's answer to Siri. That also makes … Read more

Samsung sells 20 million Galaxy S3s, adds new colors

Samsung clinched the global impact today of its flagship phone today, announcing that its Samsung Galaxy S3 (S III) has sold 20 million units globally in the 100 days since its May release.

Samsung is calling the sales of its most successful smartphone so far "record-setting."

To put things into perspective, Samsung's Galaxy S II sold 5 million units globally in the first 85 days, and 10 million units after five months, Samsung confirmed with CNET. In 100 days, the Samsung Galaxy S3 has already doubled the sales of its predecessor after five months.

Samsung also announced … Read more

What happens to the value of Samsung's 'outlaw' phones?

Earlier this week I heard from Gazelle that the buyback site saw a 50 percent jump in trade-ins of Samsung phones, particularly the Galaxy S II, in the three days immediately following a jury's finding that the GSII and a number of other Samsung phones had infringed on Apple patents.

Now, on its own, that's not really enough evidence to conclude that Samsung device owners are discarding their phones in utter disgust at the lack of respect for our ridiculously murky and inefficient patent system. After all, a lot of those trade-ins could be people simply unloading an old phone in favor of another blockbuster Samsung phone like the Galaxy S III, which is not part of the patent suit. Or there's always the specter of a new iPhone around the corner that could encourage a trade-in for some extra cash.

After hearing from Gazelle earlier this week, I immediately contacted another buyback site -- eBay Instant Sale -- to see if it had seen the same pattern. They hadn't yet but promised to pull more data for me to check closer.

That data came back to me earlier today, and it offers even stronger evidence of a run on old Android smartphones following the jury's smack-down on Samsung last week.… Read more