Latest Mobile Phone News

Since the launch of the Apple iPad, other PC manufacturers have been busy releasing their own alternatives.We have reviewed tablets that use the Android OS such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab and Windows 7 (Novatech’s nTablet), but the Viewsonic Viewpad 10 goes one better and comes with both Android and Windows 7 Home Premium installed. It has a 10in touch-sensitive screen and weighs arelatively hefty 835g,which made it tiring to use without support. At one edge of the screen are three buttons: power, Home (used as the Esc key in Windows) and Enter. The Viewpad looks identical to the Novatech nTablet, but the Viewpad has no mobile broadband capability – there is a slot to insert a phone Sim card but it doesn’t work.

At one end of the tablet thereare two USB sockets, aconnector fo r an external display (Viewsonic told us it does not yet have the cables for this) and a micro-SD memory card slot. There is also aheadphone socket and a built-in microphone and webcam. Build quality was adequate but the brushed aluminium bottom panel creaked a lot when held at one end and occasionally the Home button became stuck. There is no cover fo r the ports and no case is supplied, so these could easily become full of dust. Once turned on the device displays a menu to choose between the two operating systems using the Home and Enter buttons. For storage there is 16GB solid-state disk instead of a hard disk.with 3GB free for your storage. No programs are included. so for example installing Office would use a large chunk of that. More space can be added using the memory card slot.

Android was simple to use, but the brief manual only explains Windows 7′s touch features, with no mention of Android. It was line for email, but web browsing often took us to the limited mobile versions of websites rather than the full ones the screen is capable of displaying. Many Android applications do not display properly on screens this size. At least Android is designed properly for touchscreens.This is more than we can say fo r Windows 7, which was frustrating to control with fingers, especially when trying to select menu items. The onscreen keyboard was good, but in general it was not worth it, and it was made worse by the poor display when viewed from below. It was better from above, which meant we had to use it upsidedown most of the time. We were disappointed by the Viewpad experience, and at this price it’s no bargain alternative to the iPad, which remains our tablet computer recommendation.

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Anticipation has been building like a typhoon off shore since it was announced back in February and now Windows Phone 7 is fi nally here, ready to blowus away. HTC, Samsung and LG all have smartphones ready to go, and the OS actually looks good enough to put Microsoft shoulder to shoulder with Apple iOS and Google Android – or at least at their elbow. Let’s take a look at what the first WP7 phones have to offer… All the phones sport impressive specs, because they have to. Microsoft has specified that all WP7 handsets must have a 1GHz processor,256MB of RAM,4GB flash storage, a capacitive touchscreen, five sensors– accelerometer,A-GPS, compass, proximity and light sensors–and a five-meg camera. Arguably the pick of the bunch is the HTC HD7, with a massive 4.3-inch, 800×480 resolution screen that’s crying out for movies to watch and games to play on it. It even has a kickstand on the back for propping on the table for prolonged viewing. Also round the back you’ll find the requisite five-meg camera with added autofocus, dual LED flash, 720p video recording and various auto modes.

The HTC Mozart 7, as its name suggests, is more musical. It has SRSWOW virtual surround sound on top of a 3.7-inch screen and an eight-megapixel camera–obviously Mozart was also a keen photographer. Its testament to how far ahead WP7 is of the late, unlamented Windows Mobile that this is the first HTC phone to run a Windows OS without the disguise of a Sense interface. LG’s Optimus 7 has a neat/gimmicky augmented reality mode built into its video camera. Point it at your surroundings and it’ll overlay points of interest or provide a weather forecast. It also has a Play To feature, basically DLNAsharing, which lets you send video, music and photos to your compatible TV or stereo.

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You really love your iPod. Now there’s a reason to love it even more. Take every song on your playlist and bring it to life out loud with the award-winning sound of the Wave Music System. The optional Connect Kit for iPod makes it easy, even charging your iPod or iPhone so you can pick it up and go. The Wave music system can bring new life to all your music, including CDs and radio. This is a complete, high·performance system that includes a clock, an alarm and a handy remote that also controls key iPod features like playlist navigation. Forbes FYI says that “you’ll think you’re listening to a …system that costs five times more.” Tate advantage of our 3D-day, risk·free trial, Ask about making 12 easy payments with no Interest charges from Bose.”‘ Order the Wave music system with the Connect KIt and hear your pfaylist like never before wIth the performance of Bose, the most respected name in sound.

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Sure a smartphone’s specs matter-you definitely want one with a fast processor, bright screen and decent camera. But all that horsepower is wasted if the phone is difficult to use. That’s why, when it comes to user experience, nothing is more important than a phone’s operatmg system. A good as OS intuitive enough to be figured out in seconos, easy to navigate and can run a mountain of apps. Here’s what you need to know about five top smartphone platforms.

Android OS (Motorola Droid, Google Nexus One, HTC Hero) – The Google-developed Android OS has a plethora of apps (free auto navigation!) that are absent on the iPhone. Android is available on many different phones, and on all major carriers. Its app store is still a distant second to the iPhone’s particularly when it comes to games. The multitude of Android phones means some of  them could have issues supporting someapps.

Blachberry OS (All Blachberry phones) – Its unrivaled business acumen extends from solid e-mail and messaging services to its appearance on phones with famously thumb·friendly keyboards. The OS feels a bit dated next to the flashier competition. lts app store can’t compete with the iPhone’s.

iPhone OS (Apple iPhone 3G, Apple iPhone 3GS) – Unparalleled usability and as intuitive as they come. The Apple App Store defined the field and still has the most (and the best) apps-particularly when it comes to games. The platform is notoriously closed-Apple restricts what sort of apps developers can create for it. Minor differences aside, there is really only one phone to choose from. No multitasking.

Palm web OS (Palm Pre, Palm Pixi) – Extremely fast and easy to use, with topnotch multitasking. Phone-wide ·universal search” makes it very easy to find files and contacts across programs. Its app selection is
very thin, as is the roster of webOS phones. Palm’s uncertain financial future means there’s a real risk that webOS will be a short-lived platform.

Windows Phone OS (Samsung Omnia II, HTC Imagio) – The platform is powerful and filled with features-as long as you can navigate its archaic interface. A ray of light: The upcoming Windows Phone 7 (due in late 2010) should improve the experience. Notoriously sluggish and the most difficult OS  to use. Finding simple functions on the frustrating interface can involve digging through multiple menus.

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The joy of the iPhone and iPod touch comes from the hundreds of thousands of apps that can be downloaded from the Apple App Store, either from your PC or Mac, or while you’re out and about on the iPhone or iPod touch itself. Apple recently said that over 200 apps are downloaded every second from the App Store, totalling more than 6,500,000,000 downloads to date! While having thousands of apps to choose from makes the App Store a rich resource of multimedia content for your iPhone or iPod touch, it inevitably means that there’s plenty of poor apps out there as well as the really good ones. That’s why we’ve sampled the very best from the App Store to bring you over 240 outstanding apps, with star ratings and both UK and US pricing for your convenience.

We also tell you which iOS version is required and what’s new in the latest versions. We’ve reviewed dozens of apps from each category on the App Store and rated them accordingly. Whether you’re looking for a shopping app or photo editor, or a fun game or music-making tool, we’ve got all you need to know about the very best apps available right now. If you’re keen to give app-making a go, then we’ve covered the process of developing iPhone apps as well. We’ll show you how to get started with our expert advice; we’ve also got the lowdown from developers who are making cash from the world’s biggest provider of downloadable content.

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One of the main selling points of Apple’s touchscreen devices are the mobile applications, or apps, which can be downloaded and used on the iPhone or iPod touch. An app can be a game, a set of recipes, or the services provided by a website such as Google, repackaged in a standalone program. Some are incredibly useful, such as RadioBOX, which enables you to access thousands of internet radio stations, while others are entertaining time-wasters, such as the gloriously addictive Draw Race.

Apps vary in price, and while there’s an extensive free catalogue, many cost from 59p upwards, few go over £2.99, but some can be a fair bit more. You can use nearly all iPhone apps on an iPod touch, with the exception of a few that require the iPhone’s network access. Some apps written for the iPad also work on an iPhone; look for a + sign in the price label in the App Store.

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The smartphone market in the world is on a rise and so are phones equipped with Google’s Android mobile OS. In a bid to capture the growing smartphone market of the world, Altek Corp has unveiled a new smartphone, A14 Leo which boasts of Google’s Android OS along with high-quality camera components. The phone is equipped with a 3.2 inches touch screen and a whopping 14 mega-pixel camera which allows you to click sharp pictures. The camera of the phone is capable up to three times optical zoom.

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Smartphones continue to strengthen their position and dominate the Western European mobile phone market. The fourth quarter of 2010 shows growth in total mobile phone market by 3.2% with shipments of smartphones growing to 25.6 million units, which is nearly 99.4% higher than the shipments during the same quarter in 2009. The tracker also revealed growth in major mobile phone OS. While Android devices grew from 4, 70,000 units from 2009 to 7.9 million units in 2010, Apple’s iOS also recorded a growth of nearly 66% with the launch of iPhone 4.  Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 also grew by 18% on year-on-year basis.

Among mobile phone makers, Nokia grabbed the number one place in the Western European Market with a market share of 19.6, followed by Samsung and Apple with 15.6% and 5.2% respectively. Sony Ericsson and RIM grabbed the fourth and fifth spot with a share of 4.2% and 3.8% respectively. Meanwhile in terms of smartphone market growth, Sony Ericsson grabbed the number one spot followed by HTC, RIM and Apple. Analysts believe that the last quarter of 2010 shows the forthcoming trend in the Western European market which will be dominated by smartphones with Android grabbing the top spot as mobile phone OS. Experts also believe that Nokia’s announcement to join hands with Microsoft will create opportunities for other OS manufacturers to better utilize the transition time in drawing users towards themselves.

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The Targus Rotating iPad 2 Case will be accessible soon from UK online sellers Mobile Fun, and is dissimilar from other cases for the tablet in that it features an exclusive rotating mechanism which permits the iPad 2 to be spun between landscape and portrait view without being removed from the case. The frontage of the iPad 2 case can be used as a desk stand, allowing easy viewing for watching films and browsing the internet.  It also has the eventual in protection, featuring a hard outer shell which the iPad slides into, a hard-wearing leather-effect exterior to cushion against knocks and bumps and a soft anti-scratch inner lining to avert scrapes.

The option between landscape and portrait modes means that the tablet is still propped-up and protected, either way up your prefer to have your iPad.  The back of the iPad 2 cover has a especially designed cut-out, throughout which the Apple logo can be displayed, and there are also cut-outs for all ports and features. Mobile Fun, the UK’s leading online vendors of mobile handsets and accessories, have made no secret of the fact that they’re hard at work compiling a huge range of iPad 2 accessories in the run-up to its UK launch on 25 March, and this is just one of many iPad 2 covers which are listed on the site.

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In today’s business environment one needs to be constantly in touch with the internet and access to mails to carry out business transactions. Carrying desktops everywhere is not possible and even if you carry laptop, there might be instances when you cannot open it everywhere. In such a scenario, smartphones are the best possible ways to reply and send important mails and get connected to important people. Smartphone sales have increased over the years and according to a research report by Pyramid Research, sales of smartphones will witness further surge thanks to the success of Google’s Android OS. The Pyramid research concludes that by 2015 around 8.3 billion phones will be sold, thanks to the growing market of Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific. Pyramid Research predicts a compound annual growth rate hovering between 7.3% and 10.3% between now and 2015.
The report also said that while smartphone sales will witness rapid sales due to popularity of Android OS, feature phones will lose market share in coming days. Pyramid also forecasted a substantial growth in the Android platform with vendors like ZTE, Huawei, Samsung and Sony Ericsson anticipating double-digit percentage growth. It is to be noted that Android phones rolled out by the aforementioned companies have found tremendous favors among consumers. The mobile phone market of the world is becoming intensely competitive with various cell phone manufacturers rolling out various handsets catering to various segments.

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With RIM’s BlackBerry gadgets becoming more and more well-liked here in the UK, it is no revelation that other makers are looking to take pro of that triumph. Whereas they may not be able to imitate BBM or other BlackBerry-specific features, they are trying to reproduce one of the most stick out features of the phones – a full portrait QWERTY keyboard. Recently Nokia came out with the C3 and even HTC’s two Facebook phones sported the physical keyboards. Now Samsung has thrown the Galaxy Pro into the mix.
The Galaxy Pro has a 2.8in capacitive touchscreen display, runs Android Froyo (overlayed with Samsung’s TouchWiz UI) and is powered by a 800MHz processor of unfamiliar attribution. It comes with a 3 megapixel autofocus camera on the back and Wi-Fi but other than that provision are a little thin on the ground. Nevertheless we do know that carrier Three will be offering the Galaxy Pro when it arrives – though pricing or a specific release date are not known yet. Will this QWERTY keyboard phone be able to entice some BlackBerry customers to convert to Samsung or will the presence of Froyo and an 800MHz processor put them off?

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Formerly ten days or so, Windows Phone 7 customers (especially those who own a Samsung smartphone) have been experiencing a rollercoaster ride. First the updates roll out, then they brick some smartphones, get pulled and now they resume again. Windows Phone Blog has stated that updates for your Samsung models which previously bricked mobiles have now been resumed after fixing a technical hitch. So if you did bump into some issues during the earlier update, probability are that they will be rectified now. The blog also says that you need to have adequate hard disk space and a “proper” internet connection before you update, because your handset will encounter a data backup through the Zune Software for insurance. While all that is good, the blog might end up parting a bittersweet taste in your mouth. The issues are being determined, true. But if you haven’t received a declaration for the update, you might have to wait for “days—or even weeks—before you’re able to update your phone.” So in short, the update which was meant to make future updates smooth has itself landed on a rough patch! Nonetheless, if you have faced former problems and are now jubilation, please update your smartphone and tell us about your experiences.

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If you’re gazing for a latest smartphone right now then you’re doubtless looking at one of these two handsets.  I’ve used up the day playing with both of them and I’ll strive and give you a rundown of the pros and cons of each. This isn’t going to be simple, and I’m going to try not to turn this in to an iOS vs Android editorial but since the recital and features of both cell phones are essentially linked to their OS it’s going to be hard not to mention them. Starting with the screen, the HTC Incredible S is superior, it appears larger too because more of the front of the phone is taken up with viewable area. The iPhone 4′s retina display is grand, but the Incredible S stands it’s ground and you really don’t notice the extra pixels on the iPhone 4. The colours are very superior on both handsets, the iPhone 4 is brighter but the Incredible S looks more sensible. It’s not easy to portray, but side by side playing the same video the iPhone sometimes looks too vibrant, like the contrast has been turned up a little. You don’t really notice until you put them side by side but the Incredible S just wins on the screen.

Both handsets are tremendously nippy and receptive, both can play fuming birds just fine and it’s very hard to find a noticeable difference in performance. The screen transitions feels a little more polished on the iPhone 4, but the desktop gadgets on the Incredible S mean you wont need to switch between apps as much. Sound quality is also indistinguishable; the iPhone 4 just edges ahead though because the bundled earphones are superior quality and deliver a smother bass sound. Both handsets have brilliant social media features, the Incredible S does include HTC’s friendstream widget which puts all your feeds on the desktop. In terms of build quality, both handsets feel solid and well made, the iPhone 4′s glass construction is a slight classier than the Incredible S though. The accessibility of apps is great for both handsets, so not much distinction there, but the iPhone 4′s reliance on iTunes makes it a little more burdensome to sync on multiple PCs than the Incredible S that just plugs straight in via a standard USB cable.

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Verizon’s “darling” status with iPhone customers may speedily be coming to an end as a latest report from Bloomberg cites Verizon’s Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo saying unlimited data plans will no longer be accessible from the original iPhone carrier. Current switchers can grab the $30 per month unlimited data plan for their iPhone 4, but that could all change shortly. The offering, which Shammo said was “not a long-term solution,” was likely just a marketing tool to entice the first wave of iPhone users to jump from AT&T, which currently does not offer an unlimited data plan. Some clients may see this as a “bait and switch” by Verizon, although allowing for the smartphone landscape, offering an unlimited data plan does not appear to maximize profits. Verizon will be switching to a tiered structure; much like the one that AT&T offers (currently $15 for 250Mb or $30 for 2 GB).

“We see the potential of our customer base spending in that $30 to $50 range,” Shammo said. “As smartphone prices come down, more people will be able to afford them. We have to get those customers a sufficient entry point. We’re still wrestling with what that entry point is.”Translation: the money is in the data. Reuters and the Wall Street Journal have follow-up reports stating that Verizon’s new pricing will take place in the middle of the summer, likely corresponding with Apple’s release of the iPhone 5. “We will probably do that in the mid-summer time frame,” said Shammo, adding that initially Verizon, “didn’t want to put up a barrier” for new customers hoping to find a better network. Would the lack of an unlimited data plan keep you from switching to Verizon this summer? Let me know in the comments below!

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Nokia Windows Phone devices should be amid the most advanced gadgets yet, with loads to offer punters. It’s not just hardware that Nokia can donate to the partnership with Microsoft, nevertheless, as the Finnish company can also help out when it comes to app payments. We can’t linger for the first generation of Nokia Windows Phone smartphones. From class leading cameras, to brilliant build superiority, to inspiring packaging and radio reception, there’s a lot to look forward to. Nokia can also lead the way when it comes to services, however.

Evaluated to other operating systems, Windows Phone is still in its babyhood, and as such doesn’t have a micro payment system in place that can opponent the very best. Nokia has already proved itself in this department with the Ovi Store, and offers different ways to pay for your apps on the move. From paying by credit card, with a simple to use interface that’s competent of remembering certain details so you can easily buy apps the next time you visit, to setting up billing via your network and mobile phone bill, the Ovi Store is a model of simplicity when it comes to payments. By itself, it’s a service we think would contribute entirely to the downy running of the Windows Phone Apps Marketplace.

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