Samsung will launch "at least" two smartphones running on the Tizen mobile OS by Q2 2014 as part of an effort to break out of the Android universe, senior VP Yoon Han-kil tells Reuters.

According to the interview Samsung wants build an own Tizen-centric ecosystem-- thus challenging the iOS/Android duopoly and opening a 3rd party app and services revenue stream.

However Tizen-based ambitions have seen setbacks from both internal and external sources. A Samsung-Google patent cross-licensing agreement has been seen as a tightening of Samsung's ties with Android, while "poor market conditions" have hampered prospects in at least some regions.

Imagine a modular smartphone, with upgrades as easy as switching out a module with another. This is the Google plan for the phone of the future, as shown off at the first Project Ara developer conference.

Project Ara was first revealed by Motorola back in November 2013. It hails from the Google ATAP (Advanced Technology And Projects) group, and is one of the few things Google kept when it sold off Motorola to Lenovo. Thus the conference is part of an effort to stir developer interest in the device.

As described above the concept is fairly straightforward-- it consists of a Google-designed metal frame, into which users can slot 3rd party modules. The platform promises to free users from the obsolesce cycle, as one should be able to freely upgrade devices according to their requirements with a potentially infinite array of components.

HTC launches the next version of the One flagship smartphone, the One (M8), a larger 5-inch model featuring identical aluminium unibody construction to the 2013 model if with even more metal.

According to the company the body is 90% aluminium, compared to the 70% of the previous model. The edges are also more-rounded and the finish is brushed, not matte.

The 5-inch display is 1920x1080 resolution, while powering all are a quad-core 2.5GHz Snapdragon 801 processor, 2G RAM, 16/32G storage (expandable to 128GB via microSD slot) and a 2600mAh battery.

The Yotaphone is not the only smartphone making use of an eReader-style display-- the MIDIA InkPhone is another smartphone using the display technology, if without the additional LCD touchscreen.

Seen at CeBIT 2014, the InkPhone carries a 4.3-inch eInk Flex display, 1GHz processor, 512MB RAM, 4GB storage and a 1800 mAh battery promising up to 2 weeks of use on a single charge. How so? Through the eInk display, of course.

“Low capacity of batteries is a weakness of modern smartphones,” Chinese eReader maker Onyx says "That is a consequence of using large LCD displays and many aplications that works in the background when device is running.”