Nokia Windows Phones

Nokia’s first Windows Phone devices are set to debut at the upcoming Nokia World conference, according to Windows Phone division president Andy Lees. Nokia plans to show off its first Windows Phone devices at Nokia World in London, which starts Oct. 26.

Posted: October 21st, 2011 under Mobile-Phones, News.
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Apple iPhone 4s

The iPhone 4S has landed in the UK, and eager Apple fans pulling sickies are queuing up around the country to snap up Apple’s latest smartphone. But if you’re planning to snag yourself a 4S today and aren’t yet in the queue, you’d better hurry up; we’re getting word that Apple Stores in London are already selling out of certain models, with more expected to go by the end of the day.

At the time of writing the Apple Store in Regent Street still has all the iPhone 4S models in stock, but are selling fast. There’s also a queue at the Store. Meanwhile, the Apple Store Covent Garden is completely out of 16GB iPhone 4Ss in both black and white, with customers now buying up 32GB models instead. There’s also a queue about an hour long, so if you’re after anything but the 64GB 4S model, best head to the Regent Street Store.

Meanwhile around the rest of the UK, the Manchester Arndale Apple Store has completely sold of iPhone 4Ss in all models and colours, as has the Store we called in Liverpool (still some handsets available on contract). If you’re in either city and desperate for a 4S, the Phones 4U branches we called in Manchester and Liverpool still have certain models available on certain networks – call ahead.

Phones 4U in London were a lot more forthcoming: no hold time, no stock shortages, all models in stock. The branch we called was on Oxford Street, so if you’re a Londoner who can live without all the pomp and ceremony of an Apple Store on iPhone launch day, a trawl down Oxford Street might be your best bet.

Posted: October 14th, 2011 under Mobile-Phones, News.
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Samsung Galaxy Nexus with Ice CreaM Sandwich

Samsung and Google will announce the next version of Android and the Samsung Galaxy Nexus smartphone (aka Nexus Prime) on Wednesday 19 October.

The announcement will be made at the start of the AsiaD conference in Hong Kong by Android chief Andy Rubin, which starts on Tuesday.

The invite, which features the Ice Cream Sandwich logo, states that the event will be at 10am local time, meaning it will be beamed live to the UK at 2am in the morning.

The second event comes 1 week after the first proposed launch at CTIA Wireless in San Diego. That event was postponed in respect of Steve Jobs, who passed away on 5 October.

There were rumours that the event would be held at the end of October in the UK, but as Pocket-lint confirmed earlier on Thursday (for the second time), that event is for the UK launch of the Samsung Galaxy Note.

Posted: October 13th, 2011 under Mobile-Phones, News.
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Windows Phone 7.5 handset could launch in weeks. The long-awaited Nokia Windows Phone 7.5 handset may arrive before the end of the year, after promotional materials for a device called the Nokia 800 were uncovered.

The handset could be the Nokia Windows Phone previously pre

Nokia N800 Windows Phone

viously known as the Sea Ray and appears in a pair of posters revealed on the Pocketnow website.

Nokia World, which takes place later this month in London, it represents the last real opportunity for the Finnish company to reveal its Windows Phone hand and get the devices out before 2011 is out.

Finally a sunrise for Nokia?

One ad which shows a screen shot of the device says: “Today the sun will rise and set, the rest is up for grabs,” while a second promo reveals the device by name and touts an 8-megapixel camera.

It reads: “Just click the button on the side of the new Nokia 800 and an 8-mp photo can be easily tagged, shared with your groups or social networks and stored in an album in seconds.”

There have been plenty of codenames and speculation about what the first Nokia phone to boast Microsoft’s operating system will actually be called.

Posted: October 12th, 2011 under Mobile-Phones, News.
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HTC Hero S

HTC and US Cellular confirmed rumors and revived one of Android’s earliest, best-known names with the Hero S. The iconic HTC Hero, which was the first properly amazing Android handset as far as most are concerned, is getting an upgrade, with the new HTC Hero S just announced by HTC and US network US Cellular. The design recalls the squared-off look of the original Hero but with a much more modern design centered on a four-inch, 540×960 LCD. As one of HTC’s fastest phones under 4.3 inches, it carries a single-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon and should be visibly faster than a device like the Droid Incredible 2.

Its camera is an unusually strong point. Although the back camera stops at five megapixels, it has a wide f2.2 aperture that allows for better low-light shots among other effects. A front 1.3-megapixel camera is also in place. HTC gives the Android 2.3 phone both the Sense 3.0 layer and access to its Watch movie service.

US Cellular plans to charge $200 on contract for the Hero S, albeit after a high $100 mail-in rebate. Shipments start sometime in October.

Inside the Hero S is a 1.2GHz processor, Android 2.3, dual cameras (5mp & 1.3mp) and it’s able to record video in 720p resolution. Given that it resembles HTC’s bulkier, angular US phones, we doubt this’ll hit Europe. But there you go. The Hero lives on in some small, inconsequential way.

Posted: September 30th, 2011 under Mobile-Phones, News.
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Amazon Kindle Fire

Amazon has revealed its much-anticipated tablet, the Kindle Fire, which will retail for $199 in the US, which converts to £125 over here in the UK.

Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, is aiming to knock Apple off the top spot, the Cupertino-based iPad creator currently own around 75 per cent of the tablet market according to a recent report by analyst company Gartner.

Apple aren’t due to launch another iPad until the middle of next year, so that gives Amazon some time to muscle in on the action with its new Kindle Fire device.

It’ll have plenty of consumer appeal too being half the size and more than half the price of the iPad. The Fire is a 7-inch device running Google’s Android operating system and its price tag of $199 is much more competitive than Apple’s $499 RRP.

It will be a 7-inch backlit display tablet that looks similar to the BlackBerry PlayBook. Apparently, the Kindle Fire looks like a PlayBook because it was designed and built by the same original design manufacturer (ODM), Quanta. Even though Amazon has their own team dedicated to Kindle design and development, Lab 126, they wanted to get the Fire out there in time for this holiday season so they outsourced most of it as a shortcut.

But unlike the BlackBerry tablet or the many struggling Android tablets on the market, Amazon gives you many many reasons, right up front, as to why this tablet matters. As Amazon puts it: “18 million songs, movies, TV shows, books, magazines, apps and games.” Not that you get all of those free with purchase, but the device is purpose-built as a conduit for media, whether you pay for an Amazon Prime streaming subscription, subscribe to periodicals or buy books, music or movies a la carte.

Amazon’s Chief Executive Officer, Jeff Bezos, hopes to use the company’s leading retail position and already established widespread Kindle coverage and recognition to push the budget-price Kindle Fire to a wide consumer base.

The new Kindle Fire is Wi-Fi only and features no camera or microphone for still images, video or calls, so it’s not going to take on some of the more hardware intensive, 3G-enabled tablets on the market at their own game.

Amazon are offering additional services bundled in with the tablet, however, including a 30 day trial of the Amazon Prime service which includes video and music streaming.

Although its an Android device, Amazon has put its own stamp on the Kindle Fire so that all the native apps and linked services are Amazon based, including the Amazon App Store, Kindle eBooks and Amazon music and film services.

Posted: September 29th, 2011 under Mobile-Phones, News.
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