Mario’s getting some major coin on the back of Nintendo’s news. Photo: Nintendo

The video game world rejoiced yesterday at the news that Nintendo is finally backing down on its anti-smartphone and tablet stance, and is working to bring its most beloved franchises to Android and iOS.

But gamers aren’t the only ones celebrating!

Nintendo shares shot up 21 percent in the 24 hours after the company said it was teaming with Tokyo-based mobile company DeNA to develop smartphone games. The result was Nintendo’s value on the Tokyo Stock Exchange rising to its best closing price since June 2011.

The Apple Watch’s digital crown is one of its most unique elements. Should I change that to the past tense? Photo: Apple

Having spent more than a year throwing smartwatch concepts a wall, only to discover that very few of them stick, Samsung’s taking a bit of a break from the wearables game.

But a newly-unearthed patent suggests that the South Korean tech giant could come back with a vengeance, thanks to a ripoff Apple concept bold new interface design based around an iPod-style rotating bezel. The idea would be that this rotating bezel could allow users to scroll through different apps, lists and menus without having to obscure the miniature display with their finger.

So, yeah, it’s basically the Apple Watch’s digital crown idea — only “different” enough to not be a direct analog.

Don’t push Samsung cause it’s close to the Edge. Photo: CNET Korea

Can poor old Samsung catch a break? After a tough period during which its mobile business was squeezed to an inch of its life, Samsung finally has two promising smartphones – the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge — which are praised in the tech press, and racking up millions of pre-orders.

But things aren’t quite that straightforward. First of all, Samsung’s new devices suffered a reported display problem, stopping them properly reading touch inputs around the bezel. Now the unusually-shaped S6 Edge is apparently suffering from production issues — and the problems may stop Samsung shipping the quantity of phones they’re hoping to.

Microsoft’s Cortana is coming for Siri and Google Now. Photo: HALO

Microsoft’s virtual assistant Cortana has been pretty vocal about bashing rival services like Apple’s Siri. But she may soon get the chance to put her money where her mouth is.

That’s because, according to a new Reuters report, Cortana is about to bust out of the Windows Phone ghetto and make her way to both Android and iOS.

The version of Cortana set to arrive on non-Windows devices is reportedly a new, improved version, using research from an artificial intelligence project called “Einstein.” This same version will also be available on Windows 10 desktops this fall.

Samsung could be on its way back to the top. Photo: Samsung

Samsung’s smartphone sales may have taken a plunge as of late, but its new Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge handsets could turn out to be just the devices the South Korean tech giant needs to rebuild its mobile division.

Following strong advance orders of more than 20 million handsets, Samsung is reportedly expected to ship 46 million S6 units this year — representing an increase of 8 million on the previous 38 million estimate.

Those may not be close to iPhone 6 numbers (which sold 74.5 million devices in the last quarter of 2014 alone), but it’s certainly enough to earn Samsung back some of the respect its lost.