14
Jun
2011
Samsung Galaxy S II O2 UK Prices: Contract & PayG
Being one of the top selling phones currently on the market, the Galaxy S II is being offered on many different carriers. O2 UK is currently offering the Galaxy S II to customers who are interested in purchasing it on contract or on Pay & Go plans.
The Galaxy S II is among the slimmest phones ever produced and is only 8.49mm thick. Even with that thinness, Samsung has managed to up the megapixel count on the camera from 5MP on the previous version to 8MB. There is a LED flash as well as a 1.3MP front facing camera. The phone runs on Android Gingerbread 2.3 and has a gorgeous 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen.
O2 is offering the phone on several types of contracts. For those who would like to get the GSII for free, they can get it for as little as £27.00 a month. For that price you will get 300 minutes, unlimited text and unlimited text messaging. For £32.00 the minutes are doubled and unlimited texting is still on board. £37.00 brings the minutes up to 900 with unlimited texting still included. At £42.00 there are 1200 minutes and unlimited texting and for those who are interested in going even higher, there is unlimited talk and text.
If one is interested in paying a lower monthly bill, the phone can be purchased for £149.00 on contract with a £16.50 plan that includes 50 minutes and 250 texts. For a price of £104..99 for the phone, the monthly plan will cost £21.50 and a total of 100 minutes and 500 texts are included.
Those looking to go completely off contract can purchase the phone for £479.99 and hop on a Pay & Go plan.
Source: O2
28
Mar
2011
Amazing Features Incorporated In The Motorola Xoom
Motorola is planning to launch the first Android Honeycomb tablet in the market. The Motorola Xoom comes with some of the most amazing features and specifications, which are helping it to stand out from the crowd. You will be able to see numerous upgraded specifications in the device. Due to this, it is available with a hefty price tag. There are two digital cameras on board of the Xoom. The front facing camera is 2.0 mega pixel, which will usually act as a webcam that you can use for video chat. On the other hand, the rear 5.0-megapixel camera is mainly provided for photos. It also helps in capturing 720p high-definition videos.
The touch screen of the device comes with a 1280-by-800 pixel resolution. This is one of the best touch screen options available in the market today when compared to the 1024 by 768 resolution of iPad and 1024 by 600 of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab. The users of Xoom can watch 1080p HD video. Moreover, the device also provides an option for the users to output the HD videos to other devices through an HDMI slot. In order to enhance the web video viewing, the device also incorporates the Adobe’s Flash Player.
The Motorola Xoom measures 249.1 mm by 167.8 millimeters. The thickness of the device is 12.9mm. The device is developed to work with Google services, which include the latest 5.0 version of the Google Maps with 3D interaction and with the three million Google eBooks. You can also find many advanced applications as well as features included in the device. For instance, some of the unique and latest applications that you will be able to find in Xoom are a built-in gyroscope, e-compass, barometer as well as accelerometer. The adapting lighting for various apps is also one of the great features of this tablet. Check out some more of the Xoom’s features at Motorola’s official site!
23
Dec
2010
Google Nexus Set To Go On Sale in UK from Dec 22
The Google Nexus S is slated to be released in UK with the Android 2.3 Ginger Bread OS on December 22. Customers can pre order at selected stores of Carphone Warhouse and Best Buy UK.
Following a decision on price cut, Google Nexus S is now priced at a reasonable £429.95. This is a welcome move on the part of the manufacturer.
First review:
With shifting allegiance from HTC, the Google Nexus S boasts Samsung’s trademark glossy finish. Awarded 4 stars by TechRadar, the Google Nexus S is touted as the best android device in the market today. And quite true to this description the Google Nexus S is equipped with some of the best features like:
- a 4 inch (94 mm) super AMOLED display with 800X480 WVGA resolution
- NFC
- 1GHz processor, 16GB of storage
- a 5 megapixel camera
- a VGA resolution camera in the front for video calls
- color saturated panel with black and crisp edges
- empowered with contour display technology
- limited hardware control with just a power button and volume rocker
- supports quad band GSM/EDGE and triband UMTS/HSPA (900/1700/2100)
However, according to preliminary review, the absence of a micro SD card slot is one negative element of the phone’s design.
Carphone Warhouse and Best Buy UK has reported being positive about sales ever since news of the price slash hit the market. Indeed, both the retailers have cut the market price from £550 to £430 for the SIM free version of course. The contract price is rated at £30 per month with the contract period ranging over two years.
This second Nexus mobile, following on from the Nexus One, is Google’s prime device for Android 2.3’s release. And silence has been maintained on the price slash issue. It is true that the earlier marked price was a bit too high to affect the sales of the device positively. Perhaps, this is what drove Google to release the Nexus S at the revised reduced price.
4
Oct
2010
The HTC Desire Z – Sprouting QWERTY for the Desire
Following the common trend to come out with QWERTY slider variants of its popular monolithic touchscreens, Taiwan’s leading smartphone maker HTC has unveiled its HTC Desire Z. Looking more like the earlier Desire than the upcoming Desire HD, the new smartphone is only the second Android from HTC to have a sliding QWERTY keyboard after its Dream released in June 2009.
Exquisite Screen
Sharing the same 3.7-inch capacitive touchscreen with 16 million colors and WVGA (800 x 480) resolution, the HTC Desire Z takes off from HTC’s move to use Super LCD from Sony rather than suffer anew the inability of Samsung to supply the AMOLED displays used in the early Desire.
It’s interesting to note that the Desire Androids now use S-LCD while its first few production batches had AMOLED screens. But no matter, if Engadget is right in its comparison, the two screen technologies offer about the same picture quality with AMOLED being more power efficient.
General Features
With a smorgasbord of connectivity features on both radio (quad band GSM on 2G and dual band UMTS on 3G) and data (class 32 GPRS/EDGE on 2G and HSDA 14.4 Mbps and HSUPA 7.6 Mbps on 3G), the HTC Desire Z is up to the telephony task like any flagship smartphone.
It also has WiFi 802.11 b/g/n with DLNA and while its 5 megapixel autofocus geo tagging and face detecting camera with LED flash is nothing to brag about, it does offer 720p video recording. Other features include:
• Qualcomm MSM 7230 at 800 MHz running Android v2.2 Froyo;
• Facebook, Twitter, Picasa, YouTube and Google talk integration;
• Multitouch Input, proximity and accelerometer sensors
• FM stereo with RDS and 3.5mm headphone jack;
• Bluetooth v2.1 with A2DP and microUSB v2.0;
• 1.5 GB onboard memory with 512 MB RAM, up to 32GB microSD support;
• 1300 mAh Li-ion battery for up to 9.8 hours on 2G, 6.6 hours on 3G with 430 hours standby.
28
Jul
2010
Google’s Android Sells More Mobile Phones
The smart phone industry has never been focused on operating systems like the way it is now. Currently, the platform war is being fought by three major sides, Google’s Android, RIM’s BlackBerry OS and the Apple iOS. As the end of the year approaches, much is expected from the upcoming Windows Phone 7 OS. The Nokia and Intel made MeeGo OS is not being considered by most critics, but it may add itself to the list if it proves to be surprisingly good.
Anyway, despite the impending challenges ahead for the OS, the Android is a pretty successful mobile platform. This year, the number of handsets running the operating system has sold more than three times the volume that it did last year. And this is more than just a sudden growth in overall smart phone sales; buyers actively seek out specific Android devices, this means that the OS’ sales growth is caused by its actual performance.
Recently, the OS has been updated to version 2.2 Froyo which brings better performance, new features and support for Adobe’s Flash Player 10.1. The update has been released for the Google branded Nexus One and will be released for other mobile phones later on. Google has also announced that the Android 3.0 Gingerbread will also be released later this year.
The current lineup of Android phones provides buyers with quite the array of choices. Of course, Google’s self branded Nexus One deserves to be put in the top of the list. But the HTC Desire and the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 come in at a very close second. Samsung’s i9000 Galaxy S certainly looks promising with its super AMOLED touch screen technology. Aside from the XPERIA, SE also has the X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro which provide Android fans with mid range choices as well.
26
Jul
2010
Android Market is Fragmented, Needs Work
While it is quite true that the Google Android operating system is indeed the most widely used smart phone mobile platform in the world, it is also the most fragmented (not counting the Symbian operating system of course).
The reason for this is due to the fact that so many handsets of different configurations are using the Android OS. Phones that come with varying touch screen sizes, display resolutions, internal memory, RAM, processor speeds and various other hardware configurations run Google’s open source mobile OS. This makes it hard to come up with a new version of the Android that would run on all mobile phones.
Add in the fact that the firmware updates that Google releases are different from operator specific updates that are compatible with users who are under a contract or tariff, and you have a mobile platform that needs some serious reworking.
Looking at this, it shows a bit of a reason as to why the previous Russian rumors about the 3.0 Gingerbread requiring strict hardware standards have popped up: because Google actually needs it. While it would be too much of a requirement for all Android devices to have 4 inch touch screens and 1GHz CPUs (as stated by the rumor), Google does need to set a new bar.
The hard part here is actually declaring some Android devices as incompatible with further updates. Which means that there will be phones stuck with running the older versions of the OS; it’s a big price to pay if Google wants to standardize the platform and help the OS’ market grow.
As it is, users of Android smart phones are taking a big gamble with each app purchase as some apps simply do not work on specific phone models –not Android OS versions. The lack of uniformity in the user experience for Android owners will have to be fixed is Google’s platform is to fully succeed.
15
Jul
2010
Ballmer: Windows Phone 7 and the New Direction for Microsoft
There is no doubt that Steve Ballmer know that the Google Android and the Apple iOS are the two biggest reasons why even the upcoming Windows Phone 7 mobile platform is going to have a tough time dominating the mobile phone industry.
Despite that, the man is adamant that the Windows Phone 7 has everything that Microsoft needs to succeed. During the Worldwide Partner Conference, Steve expressed that Microsoft has missed out on an entire generation of smart phone owners. But with WP7, they will not only address the needs of the general market but also that of IT specialists.
The new OS will not just be a standalone product, it will be able to connect, communicate and even sync with the Xbox 360 console and any computer running Windows 7. Cross platform compatibility is a big dream, and MS is certainly on its way to pursuing it.
We have all seen the demonstration where a game that was being played on the Windows Phone 7 handset was transferred in real time to a desktop computer. This is more than just a person loading the same game file on a different platform –this was literally continuing the game as is from the phone straight to a computer. Then the game was once again transferred to an Xbox 360 console and back to the smart phone again. The transition was fast, smooth and took only moments.
And that is just the games. Microsoft can certainly do much more with the current technology. While the Xbox 360 will certainly be taken out of the loop when it comes to non-gaming functions, the ability to continue working on a document that is being edited in real time on a phone straight to a desktop computer will certainly work wonders –especially when everything gets ported over, including the “undo” history.
2
Jul
2010
Three Reasons Why You Should Get an HTC Desire
The HTC Desire is currently one of the most highly-rated Smartphone in the market. In fact, if you browse through a number of mobile phone reviews about the Desire online, you’re unlikely to find one that has anything bad to say about this wonderful device. Well, if you’re still searching for a negative review then you ought to look elsewhere as this particular article is all about why you should stop scouring the web and head straight for one of the HTC Desire deals, instead.
The Features
To put it simply, the HTC Desire is one of the most impressive Smartphones we’ve seen in a while. It packs in features such as a 5-Megapixel camera, full voice and data connectivity options, and an excellent software + hardware combo. With its 1 GHz monster of a processor, the Desire is also one of the fastest and most responsive Smartphones around.
The Operating System
The HTC Desire has been gifted with Google’s Andoroid operating system. This OS is very impressive and some critics are saying that it has topped the likes of the iPhone’s or the Blackberry’s proprietary operating systems. We can’t disagree. With all that awesome Google apps on board, combined with a very user-friendly and high performance OS, the Android is definitely currently the one to beat.
The Price
Right now, the iPhone 3GS is the most popular Smarpthone in the market (though the newly released iPhone 4 is likely to change that). However, if you’ve been paying attention to what we’ve been saying then you’ve probably realize that the HTC Desire is a much better mobile than the 3GS. Even better is that it’s much cheaper. For only around £400 you can get your hands on your own desire. That’s around £140 cheaper than the famed iPhone 3GS.
2
Jul
2010
Android Gingerbread in New Rumors
While we are all waiting for the release of the new Android Froyo update for the many smart phones running Google’s powerful, open source, operating system –Google has been busy in their labs working on what would be the newest version of the Android OS: version 3.0 Gingerbread.
The name (and version number) has already been announced during the Google I/O conference. But with the expected launch date of “end of 2010” being several months away, the current focus for many is on the 2.2 Froyo –which is still not released for a great majority of handsets. Right now, only the Google Nexus One is able to make use of the update that is available. While it is expected that compatible patches will also be released in the next few weeks, none have yet to be made available.
Anyway, the rumors regarding the new version 3.0 Gingerbread are both impressive and at the same time, a little hard to believe. The source of the rumors has been traced to a Russian tech podcast that states that the new 3.0 version will be made specifically for high end Android devices –while mid to low range handsets will be sticking with version 2.2 Froyo. While such a move would not be surprising (Microsoft is doing the same with Windows Mobile and the upcoming Windows Phone 7), Google is not quite likely to take that route.
Right now, Google’s mobile platform is the most used OS –considering that there are so many handsets that make use of the OS. Pushing version 3.0 to abandon the older OS would mean alienating a large percent of Google’s current users. Also, Google also announced at the I/O conference that they plan to make the Gingerbread something close to a standard version –stable and with minimal compatibility issues so that all devices have a specific benchmark to meet.
1
Jul
2010
What is New with Android Froyo?
So it is the latest Android OS version, but with so much hype about the new Froyo, it is getting hard to figure exactly what is so special about the new version. We already know that the Os update has been released for the Google Nexus One. In the meanwhile, the Desire, Wildfire and Legend (which is HTC’s killer Android trio for this season) and several other handsets such as the Motorola Milestone and the Samsung Galaxy S might have to wait a little while longer for a compatible patch to be released.
With the launch of Adobe’s Flash Player for the Android 2.2 Froyo pre-empting the actual OS itself, many are wondering when the new era of Flash on smart phones will actually start. The players are all in place and all the industry needs now is a massive multi phone update to the new Android version.
Of course, the new OS is going to be bringing users more than just Flash support. In fact, the new Froyo updates have so much to offer that Flash support ends up becoming an extra feature.
The most obvious difference in the new OS is that the interface now has a cute mascot telling you what to do. And unlike Microsoft Office’s annoying paperclip, the Android Robot (a term that would make science fiction fans cringe) actually offers useful advice.
One of our favorite improvements is in the camera user interface. When taking photos, users can now easily adjust the settings, add effects and basically control every element of the shot in order to provide the best image possible (of course, users might want to brush up on the basic theories of shutter speed and aperture to figure out what exposure settings are best under certain light conditions). At the very least, the new UI lets users add in cool effects to photos too.
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