Windows Phone 8 in detail: new Start Screen, multi-core support, VoIP integration, and NFC  —  Microsoft is lifting the curtain to provide a preview of some of the software and hardware changes for its Windows Phone 8 operating system today.  NFC, dual- and quad-core support are all set …

Bringing Like to Mobile  —  People share content on the web every day using the Like button.  While this has been a key part of how people share, mobile apps have not been able to integrate the functionality.  Now they can.  —  The new Open Graph built-in like action makes it easier for people to share content from your app.

Samsung owed compensation from Apple after winning 3G patent ruling in The Hague  —  The Hague District Court has ruled in Samsung's favor regarding a 3G patent asserted against Apple.  As reported by AllAboutPhones, Samsung has already issued a press release ahead of the decision's publication:

MacBook Pro 15″ with Retina Display Can Run 3 External Displays  —  Including the built-in Retina display, the new 2012 MacBook Pro 15″ can run four displays at their native resolution.  — Retina on laptop @ “best for Retina”  — iMac used as a display @ 2560 x 1440 via Thunderbolt

Ex-Googlers Launch Avocado, An App For Couples Backed By Baseline, General Catalyst, And Lightspeed  —  There's a growing market for mobile apps designed to help couples stay closer.  The phenomenon first came to my attention with the launch of Pair at Y Combinator's most recent demo day.

Hon Hai: Apple's iPhone 5 to put Samsung's Galaxy III to Shame  —  Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, trading as Foxconn, is the manufacturer behind Apple's iPhone and iPad in addition to manufacturing the Xbox for Microsoft and the Playstation for Sony.  On Monday, Hon Hai's chairman Terry Gou …

Prepaid MiFi coming to Walmart, starting at $10 for 100MB with no expiry  —  Hot on the heels of T-Mobile's new 4G prepaid options, Walmart has paired with TruConnect to offer a MiFi for “casual users.”  The service — called Internet on the Go — appears to be based on Sprint's 3G network …

Why ‘Nigerian scammers’ say they're from Nigeria  —  Short answer: They're looking for chumps  —  Almost every inbox has been plagued by them: Emails offering a chance at a share of millions of dollars (or pounds or euros).  Someone works at a Department of Finance or Department of Oil …

Yahoo Says It's In Patent Settlement Talks With Facebook  —  Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO), owner of the largest U.S. Web portal, is in talks to resolve a patent-infringement dispute with Facebook Inc. (FB), according to a court filing.  —  Lawyers for Yahoo asked U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White …

Want iOS 6?  No Problem: Buy It Now From a Scofflaw Developer  —  Why wait for the official release of iOS 6?  You can buy it from a scofflaw clearing house today.  Photo: Jon Phillips/Wired  —  Every year, Apple keynotes hype the latest and greatest iOS software, receive unprecedented media coverage …

Apple Wins Surprising Anti-Big Brother Surveillance Patent  —  One of the most surprising patents ever to be granted to Apple has been made public today by the US Patent and Trademark Office.  It is one of the most interesting patents that I have ever read.

PayPal.com Gets a Makeover  —  No, it's not your imagination.  We are a little prettier now.  After months of hard work by our marketing, design and web development teams we're thrilled to announce that our website, PayPal.com, has been completely redesigned.

Zapier: An IFTTT For Business Users  —  IFTTT, the service that lets you automate common tasks on the web, mostly focuses on consumer services like Dropbox, Twitter, Instagram, and Instapaper.  What's missing among IFTTT's 46 supported services, though, are business tools like Campaign Monitor, Basecamp, Asana, Stripe and others.

Bitcasa's ‘infinite’ cloud storage wins $7M from Pelion, Horizons, others  —  Cloud storage startup Bitcasa has nabbed $7 million in its first round of funding to realize its vision of giving consumers “infinite storage” for all of their devices for $10 a month.

Google paying $0 in statutory damages as Oracle plans appeal  —  Summary: Oracle gives up on statutory damages as it tries to build an appeal against Google.  —  SAN FRANCISCO - In what might have been the shortest hearing yet during Oracle v. Google, legal teams from both sides met on Monday …

Task automation tool IFTTT gets new look, moves into physical world with Belkin WeMo compatibility  —  IFTTT, the automation tool that hooks various web services together to help you accomplish tasks has a new logo, a new look and some nice improvements to the service.

TripAdvisor Aims To Beat Yelp With Social, Revives Restaurant “Local Picks” Facebook App  —  Tourists rave about a city's well-known restaurants and distort their review averages.  So today travel site TripAdvisor starts highlighting beloved eateries from people who live nearby in Local Picks, a Facebook app it's relaunching.

Apple, Google to face off in key smartphone hearing  —  (Reuters) - Apple Inc will try to salvage a high-profile lawsuit against Google Inc's Motorola Mobility unit on Wednesday at a crucial hearing in the smartphone patent wars between the two tech companies.