White iPad 2, White Iphone 4 Update

While Apple users wait for white iPhones, an image has appeared online of a white iPad 2 component

A photo has emerged online of a white iPad component, ahead of the iPad 2 launch expected this week, fuelling rumours that Apple could be planning to release a white version of its second-generation flagship tablet PC.

The photo, published on tech blog 9to5Mac, is of a “digitizer”, also known as the the thick bezel, which goes round the outside of the iPad’s touchscreen. It clearly shows a hole for a camera at the top, suggesting that this is designed for the iPad 2, rather than an unused prototype for the original iPad.

The photo suggests that the Apple could unveil both black and white versions of the iPad 2 on 2 March. However, the news comes as quite a surprise to many members of the industry – not only because the black frame around Apple hardware displays enhances the image, but also because Apple has so far failed to produce a white iPhone 4.

Where is the white iPhone 4?

At the beginning of February, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak promised that the white iPhone 4 would be coming soon, following months of delays due to manufacturing problems. “All indications from Verizon and GSM suppliers” are that “white iPhones are coming”, he said.

Reports in July last year suggested that the company commissioned to create the white iPhone covers had been struggling to find the right balance between paint thickness and opacity, and had also been unable to produce a casing white enough to meet Apple’s standards.

Another source with connections at Apple reportedly told the blog Cult of Mac in October that ambient light leaked into the white iPhone 4′s case, affecting its ability to take “accurate pictures”.#

However, in December, 9to5Mac reported that the white iPhone 4 would appear in spring 2011, based on a photograph of alleged Apple Store signage with the words, in small type: “The white iPhone 4 will be available Spring 2011.”

iPad 2 to launch this week

Meanwhile, anticipation is building around the expected launch of the iPad 2 this week. Last week, The New York Times reported that Apple will indeed use March 2 to unveil the next iPad.

Current iPad speculation suggests the device will be lighter and smaller than the original, with a front-facing camera for video conferencing, more memory and a boosted graphics processor. Some reports have suggested the device will lack a Retina Display or similar high-resolution screen.

“Our sources say Apple has requested that manufacturers begin work on displays with that resolution for the iPad 3,” IDC research manager Tom Mainelli told PC World, following a DigiTimes report that the next iPad would boast a resolution of 2,048 by 1,536.

LG Optimus 3D Price Drop

It may not have even hit the shelves yet, but the pre-order price for the LG Optimus 3D has dropped from £515 to £492.

The price-drop comes from Clove.co.uk, who have also revealed that the three-dimensional handset will be landing later than we expected on June 1st, extending its original April release date by over a month.
Still, those after a 3D phone are sure to wait, with LG delivering the world’s first fully 3D capable handset. It packs a 4.3 inch naked-eye display, a dual-core processor, Android 2.3 OS, dual-stereoscopic 5 megapixel cameras, Android 2.3 OS, 1080p HD video capture,  HDMI and DLNA media sharing, 3G and WiFi connectivity, up to 32GB of storage and a beefy 1500mAh battery.

Once launched later this year, the handset will also be available on pay monthly deals with Orange, T-Mobile and Three.

More Roumers Suggest Android Support For Blackberry

Back in January, the rumour that RIM's flagship tablet, the BlackBerry Playbook, may come with Android app support surfaced.
Since then, we've seen a mysterious someone testing an Android app on some BlackBerry handsets, and now we hear that a BlackBerry employee has been caught on video talking about the PlayBook running Android apps.

During a video demo of the tablet shot at Mobile World Congress, the anonymous representative is heard to say, "We will also support Android apps when we release the Dalvik engine on top of QNX."
Well. That seems fairly conclusive; or does it?

We don't know who this narrator is; is he definitely a RIM employee? And if he is, is he definitely privy to the future plans for the PlayBook? It's possible that the man has, in fact, just read the rumours on tech sites much like this one.

The Dalvik engine was mentioned in the original rumours, so it is possible that this is a case of life imitating rumour imitating life. That's the cynical view.

The more upbeat view is that this guy just let slip the truth, that Android apps will be coming to the PlayBook! This would be exciting, giving the impressive hardware a leg-up in the software stakes.

Apple May Ship iPad 2 From Wednesday

The worst thing about Apple events isn’t the announcements themselves, obviously, it’s the waiting. A lot of people are ready to drop their credit card details immediately to get their hands on the latest and greatest out of Apple, but sometimes they don’t get the chance. iOS devices haven’t really been synonymous with immediate shipments over the years, lately Apple’s been making announcements then taking pre-orders. Rumors today suggest that Apple may be ready to ship the iPad 2 immediately after the announcement on Wednesday.


With the original iPad release there were lengthy shipping delays, a couple of weeks here and a couple more delays there. Apple obviously realizes that they have a huge demand for the iPad this time around, unlike last time, so procuring an adequate stockpile of the iPad 2 is something they’ve taken care of at this point, hopefully. According to AppleInsider, “Apple is preparing several of its operating segments to perform functions during the second half of next week that are representative of nothing short of a large scale, consumer-oriented product roll out (not just an announcement).”

Hopefully it’s true. I’m with the rest of you, ready to purchase the iPad 2, should it be a decent update. Announcing the iPad 2 without being able to ship it would be a huge blunder by Apple, considering consumer expectations this time around.

Confusion Arrises over Galaxy S II

Samsung’s Galaxy S II smartphone was unquestionably one of the highlights of this year’s Mobile World Congress, and there seems a chance we’ll be seeing it on the shelves sooner than we expected.

Several online retailers are now offering the Galaxy S II on pre-order, but while there seems to be a general consensus on price, predicted launch date is another matter.

Currently the most optimistic of all is Play.com, where the launch date is listed as March 31. It’s also the cheapest at the moment, with a SIM-free price of £599 quoted for the 16GB model.

Head over to Clove, meanwhile, and you’ll be asked to pay £612 for the same handset, but the site is hedging its bets on a launch date, saying simply that the Galaxy S II it’s expected in “Q2 2011”.

Expansys seems to be the party-pooper right now, asking for £629 of your hard-earned and claiming you’ll have to wait all the way until June 20. Interestingly, though, that date has changed from April 18 over the past few days, so maybe Expansys knows something the rest of us don’t.

It seems we’ll have to keep an eye on this one, as the goalposts seem to be moving on almost a daily basis. Whenever it arrives, though, the Galaxy S II should be more than a match for just about anything else on the market.

Nintendo 3DS Sells Out At Launch

We’ve been calling the Nintendo 3DS one of our most anticipated gadgets of 2011, and it seems we’re not alone.

The 3D gaming handheld has just gone on sale over in Japan, and eager gamers have descended on their favourite electronics emporiums in their droves, nearly wiping out the entire 400,000-unit launch stock in a single day.

Reports spoke of queues up to 2,000 people long at some venues, although the smarter punters were sat at home waiting for the postman to call after pre-ordering their 3DS online.

The 3DS is the first gaming device to have support for 3D built in, and it’s autostereoscopic 3D too, meaning you don’t have to wear special glasses to enjoy the 3D love.

Nintendo’s new baby is set to launch in the UK on March 25, and retailers are currently engaged in a price war that has seen the console’s asking price dip below the £200 mark. And with still nearly four weeks of retail tug-of-war to go, we wouldn’t be surprised to see the gaming public give their Japanese counterparts a good run for their money when it comes to launch day fever.

Archos Reveals New Tablet Range

The Android-powered Arnova comes in three screen sizes – 7in, 8in and 10in – and all three models come with a choice of resistive or capacitive touchscreens depending on how much you’re willing to spend.

And it’s a cost-cutting ploy that works, too, as the entry-level resistive 7in Arnova has been tagged with a price tag of just €99 (£84).

The mid-range 8in model features a 4:3 aspect ratio screen, but also has 720p video playback on board, so you’ll need to put up with black bars at the top and bottom of the screen if you’re watching HD movies.

The 10in model, meanwhile, also has 720p playback, as well as a full-size USB connector for hooking up an external keyboard and mouse, or plugging in a USB storage device.

Unsurprisingly given the low price, it’s not Android Honeycomb doing duty on board, but rather the older Android 2.2 Froyo. And speaking of price, aside from the €99 base model, the 8in Arnova is priced from €149 (£127), while the cheaper resistive 10in option will set you back €199 (£169).

Xperia Play Much “cooler” and “inexpensive” Than iPhone

David Hilton, Director Marketing Sony Ericsson UK has said that Xperia Play, better known as PlayStation Phone, will be “much cooler than iPhone” and the gaming phone will not be as expensive as Apple’s gadget.
“The first thing this does is put Sony Ericsson firmly back in the game of smartphones,” said Hilton.


While explaining Hilton added that with the release of gaming smartphones with the latest Android technology, besides users will also have the benefits of best of Sony technology “that make using a Sony Ericsson much more satisfying, much more enjoyable and frankly much more cool than using an iPhone.”
 
Yet gamers are really only wanting to know more about Sony’s PSP successor, the NGP ('next generation portable') right now.

BlackBerry could support Android apps

BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion could be about to announce that its device will begin to support applications made for Google’s Android platform.

Earlier reports from Bloomberg had suggested that RIM was working internally on a project to make its Playbook tablet compatible with Google’s 130,000 apps, and at mobile world congress software maker Myriad was demonstrating its Alien Dalvik software, which can make Android apps run on other platforms.

Now app ShopSavvy has said on its blog that according to its “logs someone in Waterloo, Ontario (where RIM is based) has been running ShopSavvy for Android on various BlackBerry devices”.

According to the firm, the 8300, 8600 and 8520 have all been recorded running ShopSavvy this year. They added that “This makes sense since BlackBerry OS can support Java Virtual Machines and it would be pretty easy to compile Android in one of the them. This is a pretty interesting development – we would love to optimize ShopSavvy for the new BlackBerry+Android”.

Although BlackBerry has garnered positive reviews for its forthcoming 7” PlayBook tablet, a lack of available apps could hold it back. Apple is expected to announce an update to its iPad at on event on 2 March, and Motorola has already launched the Xoom Google Honeycomb Tablet in America.

Samsung Galaxy S, HTC Desire Android 2.3 Gingerbread update in March

Mobile phone maker Samsung Electronics is expected to roll out Android 2.3 Gingerbread update for its Samsung Galaxy S i9000 devices in upcoming month i.e. March. This piece of information comes from the folks over at smartdroid.de, who says that their friend was sitting at Samsung meeting in Frankfurt, where Samsung Germany declared that the Samsung Galaxy S i9000 would get Android 2.3 Gingerbread update in starting of March. But this would make much more sense if Samsung delivers software update for its existing Galaxy S devices because there are whole lot of device who have not even tasted FroYo yet.


Last week Google started rolling out Gingerbread update for Nexus One and Nexus S handsets via OTA. If you have not yet received the update, you can follow our guides on How to update Nexus One Android 2.3 Gingerbread and How to update Nexus S Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread .


In Addition HTC Corporation has officially revealed its plan to upgrade its series of devices to Android 2.3 Gingerbread in near future, including the whole HTC Desire family but the upgrade for its Smartphone will start from second quarter of on-going year.


However it is not confirmed yet that which country would be getting Samsung Galaxy S Android 2.3 Gingerbread update but chances are that it will be US and Germany who will first taste Android Gingerbread on their devices.


Stay tuned and we’ll let you know as soon as we hear anything credible over it.

Engadget Selects iPad as Top Gadget 2010

Gadget mega site Engadget just released their Editor’s Choice awards for top electronic gadgets in 2010 and Apple’s iPad beat out all other gadgets to take top honors.  The iPad managed to edge out HTC’s popular Evo smartphone to win Engadget’s “Gadget of the Year.”

Engadget editors selected the iPad as the Top Gadget saying, “the iPad won this one going away — there’s just no denying the influence Apple’s tablet had on the industry this year.”  Engadget editors also voted the iPad one of the best “Home Entertainment Devices” of 2010 with it landing in the runner’s-up spot just behind Netflix’s popular video streaming service.

The iPad also was selected “Gadget of the Year” by Engadget readers to win their “Reader’s Choice Award .”  Over 100,000 readers voted and selected their top gadget in a range of categories.   Apple’s iPad took top honors in three different Reader’s Choice categories, winning by a wide margin in each.

The iPad won the People’s Choice Gadget of the Year, beating out the second place Microsoft Kinect by over 20%.  The iPad also took the top spot to win the “Tablet PC of the Year” beating out the Samsung Galaxy Tab by nearly 50% and it won the “Portable Media Device of the Year” award beating out Apple’s iPod Touch 4G by 14%

PSP Price Drop (Well in the USA not UK)

The PSP might not have long to live following the announcement earlier this year that Sony would launch the NGP (Next Generation Portable) later this year, but that doesn’t mean Sony can’t drop the price, and that’s what they’ve done in the US on Friday.

Luckily American’s still to snap up a PSP (you have had six years) can now get the PSP in the US for $129.99 – a new low.

“Today we’re very excited to announce that the PSP-3000 system will be available for a new low price of $129.99 (MSRP) starting February 27, 2011, offering its greatest value to date. In addition, going forward PSP Entertainment Packs will be available for $159.99 (MSRP); bringing you everything you need to experience the PSP system and an even better value,” says Sony on the back of the announcement.

In the UK however there hasn’t been an announcement of a price reduction meaning that if you want to buy one instead of paying £80 plus VAT (around £94) you’ll still have to pay £129.99 – ouch.

No word from Sony whether or not they will be following suit, but the usual line is that they leave the Americans to price things how they want and the Europeans to do the same.

Let’s hope that for those interested this is one price drop that translates across the water.

HTC Incredible S, is now available on Vodafone and O2

THE FIRST HTC Android phone of 2011, the HTC Incredible S, is now available on Vodafone and O2 contracts.

Mobiles.co.uk, a division of the Carphone Warehouse, tweeted that the HTC smartphone is now available on order from its website. It also claimed that the handset could be delivered tomorrow if you got in early.
As Carphone Warehouse has the exclusive for now, it won't be available direct from O2 or Vodafone. This means that if you want to upgrade, you'll have to go with the deals Carphone Warehouse offers, at least for now.

Premiered at Mobile World Congress with the HTC Desire S and Wildfire S, it's the first in the Incredible line to hit the UK. The Incredible S looks to be pitched as a device that offers the HTC Desire HD's 8MP camera and HD 720p video recording, but with a smaller 4-inch screen. The Desire HD has a slightly larger 4.3-inch screen.

Otherwise its specifications look quite similar to those of the upcoming 3.7-inch HTC Desire S, with a single-core 1GHz Snapdragon processor and 1.1GB of internal memory. It'll come out with Android 2.2, but will be updated to Android 2.3 Gingerbread in an over-the-air update. HTC has normally been pretty good with its Android updates, so we have faith that won't take too long to arrive.

The new HTC Android phones look perfectly fine, but they lack that X-factor that the dual-core Samsung Galaxy S2 and LG Optimus 3D have. Obviously you could make the point that we don't really need dual-core processors for current processing requirements, but it's nice to have that extra bit of power, right?

Apple To Announce IOS 5 on March 2

Apple is planning to announce the iOS 5 and the iPad 2 during a media event on March 2, according to engadget.  The iPad 2 is Apple’s latest tablet computer in the final stages of development, and the iOS is the latest operating system that runs iPhones, iPads and iPod Touches.

Long Islanders love Apple’s products and are now starting to look ahead to the newest iOS on their iPhones and iPads as we delve further into 2011.

According to engadget, both the iPad 2 and the iOS 5 will be featured at the media event Apple s holding on March 2.  The iPad 2 will feature a thinner body, a higher resolution screen and at least one front-facing camera with the possibility of a back-facing camera in addition.  

Engadet’s sources also report other major features of the iPad 2. These features include the debut of the Apple A5 chip, which will also likely be featured in the iPhone 5.  The A5 processor is currently best known as the multi-cored successor to the A4 processor, which powers the original iPad and iPhone 4.

Sources for Engadget also practically guaranteed the unveiling of Apple’s newest iOS in some shape or form at the same event.  Engadget has few details on the new operating system, which they are calling “iOS 5.”  However, it seems likely that it will be used in the next generation of Apple’s mobile devices, including both the iPad 2 and iPhone 5.

These rumors should be taken seriously because engadget deemed their sources “dead right.”  Engadget has been outstanding with breaking rumors in the past, most notably when they obtained the famous iPhone 4 prototype last year.

Iphone 5 News (For Our USA Counterparts)

There have been quite a few rumours concerning the next generation Apple iPhone, currently being referred to as the I Phone 5, and along with the rollout of 4G LTE networks there has been speculation that the iPhone may release with 4G LTE support.

However apparently the iPhone 5 won’t be 4G LTE enabled as that little piece of tech has been reserved for the iPhone 6.

According to an article over on Pocket Now, The Street is reporting that Sam Greenholtz, an analyst for Telecom Pragmatics says the iPhone 5 which is expected this summer will not be 4G LTE as the next in the line, the iPhone 6 will deliver LTE support sometime in June 2012.

Apparently Geenholtz bases his comment on speaking with the usual unnamed and unconfirmed “people close to the matter.”

Furthermore according to the Street report, checks with several analysts and industry insiders support Greenholtz’ comments, while neither Apple nor Verizon would comment on the matter as usual.
So it would appear that the iPhone 5 won’t be playing nice on a 4G network and will be coming quite late to the 4G game with the 4G iPhone 6.

Samsung Galaxy S II to Launch on March 11

Play.com is offering a SIM-free unlocked Galaxy II S smartphone to pre-ordering customers for £599.99.

The handset will be sent out from 31 March according to the retailer and is on sale for some £50 less than the recommended price, which of course is usually spread over and added to your average 18-24 month  phone contract.

The handset was first mentioned last November and made an appearance at Mobile World Congress earlier this month. Play.com said that it runs the android Gingerbread operating system and has a number of user-friendly features such as a large 4.27-inch WVGA 480 x 800 Super AMOLED screen and an 8MP camera with LED flash. The latter feature was a notable omission from the current model.

Also on board are a Samsung dual core 1.2Ghz processor, a quad cor GPU, near-field communications networking software and 16GB of storage.

The INQUIRER reported in November that Samsung would launch the phone this month, however its UK website's product pages do not include mention of the handset, nor details of its specifications. Samsung does have a Facebook page that showcases the phone, however.

Those mobile phone providers that intend to sell the handset, including Vodafone, have it as 'coming soon'

Samsung Target Mac Book in new Net Book

Thinner than a MacBook Air



Samsung has just released its Notebook Series 9 over in Korea, and the mention of Apple is appropriate, as this stylish new addition to the laptop scene has the wafer-thin MacBook Air firmly in its sights.

It even trumps its Apple rival by being just 16mm thick – that’s a single millimetre skinnier than the Air – and its attractive body weighs just 1.5kg.

Inside you have an Intel Core i5 processor doing the heavy lifting, while the 13.3in LED-backlit screen is HD capable. A 4GB allowance of DDR3 memory should keep you trucking at speed through most tasks, and Samsung claims a seven-hour battery life.

Out now in Korea, the Notebook Series 9 is expected to be with us here in the UK next month, while its price hopefully won’t be a world away from the £1,370 equivalent Samsung is asking in its home market

No updates For HTC Wildfire

It’s bad news for users of the HTC Wildfire, as Three has revealed that the budget-blower won’t be getting updated to Android 2.4 (Gingerbread).

The bad news was broken via Twitter, with the UK network confirming that the “Wildfire will not be getting Gingerbread, but the Wildfire S that is expected to launch on Three in May will.” This is a low blow for users of the HTC smartphone, who will be stuck on Android 2.2 perpetually.

Unlike users of the HTC Desire series, adopters of the Wildfire will miss out on Gingerbread’s host of new features, including its refined UI, faster keyboard, improved power management and support for dual-core optimized applications.

It’s not all bad news though, as early patron’s of the HTC Wildfire may soon be nearing the end of their contract. In which case, users can update to the Android-toting HTC Wildfire S, which with a SIM free price tag of £270, looks set to be just as affordable as its younger Gingerbread-less sibling

5 Days Remaining

£520 Sim Free - Play.com

We saw a lot of exciting new phones at Mobile World Congress last week, but for the most part it’ll still be a good few months until we start seeing them on the shelves.

However, that hasn’t stopped a few online retailers from starting to put the latest smartphone contenders up for pre-order, giving us a clearer picture of just what we’ll be required to pay down the line.

One of the highlights of MWC was undoubtedly the Samsung Galaxy S II, and it’s made an appearance on Play.com priced at a formidable £650 SIM-free, with the proposed launch date listed as March 31.

Motorola’s powerful Atrix won’t come in nearly as pricey, with Expansys having listed it at £475 – though it later removed the price from the Atrix’ pre-order page.

The Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, meanwhile, will set you back £520 from Play, and has a launch date of March 28, while the LG Optimus 3D will be out a month later and is slightly cheaper too at £515 on both Play and Expansys.

The latter is also the place to go if you want to put down a marker on the white iPhone 4. Apple’s long-promised handset didn’t appear at MWC, of course, and hasn’t been spotted anywhere else for that matter, and it’s been given a whopping £920 SIM-free pre-order price. As you’d expect, the proposed launch date remains listed as unknown

Microsoft: Windows Phone 7 update failed for one in ten

Microsoft says 90 percent of Windows Phone 7 users who've received an update notice have had no problems...and that means 10 percent did.

Software giant Microsoft has published “more answers” about the status of its first update to its Windows Phone 7 software update, claiming that 90 percent of users who received an update notification were able to install the new software without any problems. In Microsoft’s estimation, then, 10 percent of users who received an update notice did have problems with the software—and that leaves aside an unknown number of users who have not received an update notice because Microsoft yanked the update for their devices.

A ten percent failure rate would seem to be considerably higher than the “small number of phones” Microsoft originally acknowledged were having issues installing the update. Microsoft introduced its first Windows Phone 7 update yesterday, and was immediately deluged with reports that the new software was rendering Samsung’s Omnia 7 devices inoperable. Microsoft then withdrew the update for Samsung devices.

Among the 10 percent of people who had problems, Microsoft says almost half of them had problems for reasons unrelated to their phone devices: poor Internet connectivity, or lack of storage space on their computer. Again, doing the math, that means more than half the failures were not caused by poor connectivity or insufficient storage.

Unlike many mobile operating system updates, Windows Phone 7 devices must be updated by tethering the phones to a PC, downloading the update to the PC, and updating the phone using either Microsoft’s Zune software (for Windows) or Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac. No over-the-air updates are available.

Although Microsoft claims “the engineering team here was prepared,” the company claims few large-scale software updates ever go smoothly, and they intend to learn from the experience and improving the process for future updates. However, the update gaffe comes at a difficult time for the Windows Phone 7 platform, which is facing strong industry skepticism that—even with Nokia on board as a powerful OEM—it can build momentum to compete with the likes of Apple’s iOS, Android, and RIM’s BlackBerry platform.

Angry Birds coming to WP7

Title says it all really … Angry Birds, the best-selling iOS game, is coming to WP7 on April 6.

According to WinRumors, five other titles have been added to the spring lineup:

Doodle Jump

Plants vs Zombies

Hydro Thunder Go

Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I

geoDefense

The games will all have Xbox Live integration and feature achievements and leaderboards.

No reason any more to put off that WP7 handset purchase … what are you waiting for?

First Full HD 3D camcorder

JVC has announced that the GS-TD1 camcorder is now on sale in the UK.

So what’s so significant about that, we hear you ask? Well, it might help if we told you the GS-TD1 was the world’s first full HD 3D camcorder.

First announced at CES at the beginning of January, JVC’s high-spec 3D shooter is the first to featuring all the 3D-shooting essentials built right into the chassis – as opposed to coming via an additional lens like on the rival Panasonic SDT750 introduced last year.

It’s distinctive looks are thanks to the dual lenses, which are backed by twin back-illuminated CMOS sensors. You can even watch your 3D video creations right there on the 3.5in touchscreen LCD without having to wear 3D glasses.

On-board storage is a healthy 64GB, and you can add more via SDXC card.

JVC has slapped a £1,599 price tag on the GS-TD1

Gears of War 3 (Box) release date announced

The most anticipated game of 2011, Gears of War 3 has been given a release date of September 30th. Check back for more details when available.

Kinect for PC comin soon

Kinect is coming to your computer. Microsoft is preparing a Kinect for Windows software development kit that will allow hackers, modders and developers to come up with new and wacky uses of the arm-waving Kinect controller on Windows PCs as well as the Xbox 360.

Kinect uses a sensor placed in front of a TV to capture your movements and make your Xbox game character perform the same actions. The official SDK will allow developers to work with Kinect's audio and system APIs and take direct control of the sensor, and it's likely to expand Kinect beyond gaming.
Developers won't be allowed to be make money from apps built with the kit, although a commercial kit may follow.

Since the Kinect connected with gamers late last year, hackers have come up with countless cool Kinect hacks, from 3D painting to ghostly music videos.

Is this the Confirmation that the Ipad 2 is coming

Iphone 4 No Longer Top of the Phone Sales in UK

Price comparison website Uswitch has reported that Apple's Iphone 4 didn't even make it into the top 5 of UK's favourite mobile phones, with HTC devices taking the top 3 spots. HTC's slightly aging Desire is the UK's most, er, desirable handset with its bigger brother the Desire HD in second spot and the cut down Wildfire rounding off the top 3.
The remainder of the top five are made up by the Blackberry Curve 8520 and the Samsung Galaxy S in fourth and fifth places respectively. Apple's special Iphone 4 comes in at number six, just ahead of the Motorola Defy, hardly an impressive showing for such an iconic, magical device.
There are a number of reasons why Brits are not all that keen on the Iphone 4. While it could be technological reasons such as Apple's closed source IOS, its walled garden App Store, the fact the it doesn't run Adobe's Flash Player or that for a while, the Iphone 4 couldn't even be used as a phone, it is far more likely that cost is playing a huge part in people's decisions to go with more affordable and, in some cases, superior alternatives.
Uswitch's very own technology expert Ernest Doku claims it is the cost of the Iphone 4 that is letting it down, saying that at a time when consumers are penny pinching the fact that an HTC Desire can be had for free makes a significant difference in buying decisions. Doku added that when Apple launches the Iphone 5, it should shoot up the charts once again.
Apple's faithful will point to the calendar and say that June, the traditional Iphone launch time, is only four months away. While The INQUIRER doesn't have a team of crack economists, common sense allows us to confidently predict that in four months time the vast majority of the public will still be facing the same tough economic conditions as they have been and are now. What will be interesting is to see how long Apple can maintain that all but guaranteed number one spot with the Iphone 5 and whether its reign will be shorter than that of the Iphone 4.
So the question is, will Apple start to let operators lower the cost of Iphones in order to bolster sales? At present it doesn't seem like Apple needs to, but there's no doubt that Android devices are matching the Iphone on functionality and beating it hands down on price. While fanbois may swoon for anything that has an Apple logo slapped on it, more and more punters are making sensible buying decisions and opting for Android devices rather than expensive Iphones.
There's no guarantee that Apple will have its own way with the Iphone 5 in 2011, at least for a while. Samsung showed off the mighty impressive Galaxy S II at Mobile World Congress, while Motorola's Atrix featured highly at CES. As the established brands battle over the high end smartphone market, outfits such as China's ZTE have been extremely successful with their cut-price Android devices such as the Blade.
Devices like ZTE's Blade, which can be bought for less than £100, will fuel the 2011 surge in Android and steal more than a few customers away from high end phone manufacturers.
Apple might well have fared better than most through the recent economic crisis, but it seems consumers are starting to look at value for money in their smartphone, which is hardly a strong point for the Iphone, whatever model it is.


Read more: http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2028417/brits-shun-apples-iphone-favour-htc-desire#ixzz1EoCusvPo

Windows Phone 7 Update issues

Windows Phone 7 mobile operating system certainly has a lot going for it, and it needs to have too considering just how strong Android and Apple's iOS have become.

So we imagine Steve Ballmer and co aren't too pleased with how the rollout of the first update to the OS is going so far. A number of Samsung Omnia 7 owners have reported that attempting to install the update saw their phones return an error, or even freeze completely and become unusable.

Microsoft says it is looking into the matter and has been recommending that anyone with a Samsung Windows Phone 7 device hold off on installing the update until they next receive a prompt to do so, which should be in a few days.

Best of all, this isn't even the promised first update everyone was expecting, which will add copy and paste support and improved performance and search to WinPho handsets. Instead, it's simply an update to the update process itself, designed to pave the way for the real deal early next month.

Windows 7 SP1 available from today

If you're a Windows 7 user then today's the day you've been waiting for for a very long time (well, OK, maybe not) - Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1) is available to all. Previously it was only available to those with a TechNet or MSDN subscription.

Note: Oh, also available is Windows Server 2008 R2 service pack 1.

There are two ways to get your hands on it.

Download the massive 2GB 'one size fits all' update from Microsoft (handy of you are updating multiple PCs)

Allow it to come in via Windows Update (this way you get a much smaller package tailored to the specific needs of your PC)

A few things to bear in mind:

This update is hardly game-changing. It's nothing like the Vista SP1 update. Here you have a roll-up of bug fixes and previously released updates. Nothing really exciting.

If your system has one of the following hotfixes installed - 2406705, 979350 or 983534 - then you are going to have problems installing SP1. Workaround for this issue is listed here.

If you have a beta or RC of SP1 already installed, you'll need to uninstall this to install the final release.

Apple to hold media event March 2


WSJ and NYT report that Apple will hold a media event on March 2 to announce the iPad 2.

The successor to the wildly-popular first-gen iPad is rumored to be thinner, have a better screen, dual cameras with FaceTime support and a Qualcomm dual-mode GSM/CDMA chip — possibly the same MDM6600 (a.k.a. "Gobi") chip spotted in the Verizon iPhone 4.

Kara Swisher notes that since Apple has sold 15 million iPads in less than a year, the event is a "very big deal."

If things pan out, we could see a new MacBook Pro this week, and iPad 2 next week. Good times!

BlackBerry Bold Touch Leaked

N4BB.com (News for BlackBerrys) has published leaked photos of what has been dubbed the BlackBerry Bold Touch. The leaked device seems to borrow its shape from the original BlackBerry Bold 9000 smartphone rather than the current BlackBerry Bold 9700. Unlike the BlackBerry Torch 9800, which uses a slide-out keyboard, the BlackBerry Bold Touch is a candybar smartphone.

In addition to the QWERTY keyboard, the BlackBerry Bold Touch (codenamed Dakota) will also have a 2.8in capacitive touchscreen, with a 640x480 resolution, a 5-megapixel camera that doubles as a 720p HD video recorder, 8GB of internal memory and 768MB RAM. The BlackBerry Bold Touch will also feature an integrated Near Field Communications (NFC) chip. NFC is a short-range wireless communication technology; the same used in many new credit cards, whereby the card can be simply swiped across a smartchip to make a purchase. NFC is rumoured to be an inclusion on the upcoming Apple iPhone 5, and is also present on recently launched What is Android? like the Google Nexus S and the Samsung Galaxy S II

The BlackBerry Bold Touch is expected to be just 10.5mm thick, making it the thinnest BlackBerry ever released.

The leaked specifications are listed as follows:
Dimensions: 115x66x10.5mm
Radio: Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE; Tri Band UMTS
Display: 2.8" diagonal - VGA 640x480, resolution 287dpi
Camera: 5mp - Flash - Image Stabilization - HD Recording (720p)
Navigation: Capacitive Touch, Optical Trackpad
Keypad: Wide QWERTY - Physical Send, End, Escape, Menu, Right Side Convenience Key, Volume Control
Memory: 8GB - 768MB RAM - up to 32GB MicroSd Card
WiFi: 2.4 GHZ b/g/n - 5GHz a/n - Mobile Hotspot
Connectivity: Micro USB - Bluetooth - NFCSensors: Magnetometer - Accelerometer - Proximity

HTC Desire on 3 UK Getting Android 2.3 Gingerbread Confirmed

For anyone who may have purchased the HTC Desire smartphone on the Three network you can now start to rejoice as the latest Google guy’s operating system Android 2.3 Gingerbread will be heading to your device.


According to an article over on Top 10, Three UK have used their official Twitter account to announce the confirmation that the 3 UK HTC Desire will gain the Android 2.3 Gingerbread update; however Three does not have a timescale for the update as yet.


There’s what Three UK replied on Twitter when asked ” @ThreeUK Will you be releasing Android 2.3 for the original HTC Desire?” to which Three UK responded…” @ianmcmillan Yes we will but we don’t have timescales yet ”


So there you have it Three UK Android HTC Desire owners, at some point in the future you will get updated to Android 2.3 Gingerbread, let’s just hope it’s not too far into the future and that Three push out the update rather quickly.

Iphone Nano Specs and Features

The iPhone Nano seems to be back with a knock in the web rumor and is not just absent. Couple of days back the rumors reported that there will be no iPhone Nano or Mini in the market. Though they are not the ultimate authority on anything Apple, which might be closer to certainty than all the gossip. But, here come the images and features of the new iPhone Nano.

For beginners, this in some way seems to be clothed in gold. If not gold, then at slightest way it looks like it is dressed in golden glitz. There is a QWERTY keypad thrown in by the designer, which will be called the iPhone 4K- K for the Keypad. As a result, in any case they are smart enough not to put “will this be iPhone 5?” on it!

The iPhone nano is said to be armed with a 3.2-inch retina display with 800 x 400 resolutions, a 5-MP camera and 800MHz processor. With a price tag of $200 you will be getting the device. However, we cannot confirm on the iPhone Nano yet, but no doubt we can confirm that Apple will never make a mobile that looks like this.

Hope, the rumors get into light and we might have the $200 new Apple iPhone nano in hands

Huawei offers to provide mobile Tube network

A few months back we wrote about London mayor Boris Johnson’s hope to have mobile coverage on the Underground in place by the time the 2012 Olympics kick off in the nation’s capital.

Now that hope looks closer than ever to being fulfilled: Chinese electronics colossus Huawei has offered to provide a mobile network for the Tube worth £50m for absolutely nothing.

The system will see voice calls carried via transmitters placed on the ceilings of underground tunnels, with Huawei set to make its money from maintenance costs down the line. Vodafone and O2 have stepped in and said they’ll stump up the installation costs, leaving the cost to taxpayer so far running at zero.

But of course, naysayers will point out the other intangible cost of mobile access on the Tube: the removal of one of the few remaining places where we can legitimately get a break from our always-on digital lifestyles.

Play.com offering Pre-Orders on Experia Play and Optimus 3D

Good news for those of you itching to get your hands on Sony Ericsson’s gaming smartphone, or LG’s three dimensional offering.

Both the Xperia Play and Optimus 3D are now up for pre-order on Play.com, as spotted by Android Central.

So the big question is, what prices have been slapped on these handsets? If you want the so-called PlayStation phone, with its slide-out gamepad, then you’re looking at a pretty hefty £520 outlay.
Which makes the price of a handheld such as the Nintendo 3DS look positively bargain basement. Obviously, that’s not a fair comparison, as you are getting an Android Gingerbread phone with the Xperia Play, as well. But it’s still something of an eye-waterer.

The LG Optimus 3D is pitched at an almost identical level, just a fiver cheaper at £515. The attraction here is the 1GHz dual-core processor, and 5 megapixel dual-lens camera, with full 3D recording and playback, and an HDMI out to display it on your 3DTV.

According to Play.com, the release date of the Xperia Play is March 28th, and the Optimus 3D is due a month later on April 25th. That tallies with the release schedule we’ve heard previously.

VM to offer SuperHub Firmware update SOON!!!

Virgin Media cable customers who recently upgraded to the company's Superhub router/modem combo boxes to access its 30Mbit/s and above service are complaining about stability issues and slow connections with the new kit.

Reg reader Adam told us that Virgin Media is offering only Netgear hardware, which provides what he described as an "inferior service".

Similarly, customers have been grumbling about the kit upgrades on VM forums.

"The rock-steady 20Mbit/s I had before I upgraded to 30Mbit/s is gone," wrote a customer with the handle fatalsnowfox, who played around with the Superhub box's configuration to improve its connection rate.
"It swings wildly from 9-15Mbit/s-ish, more so at peak times. At about 0200-0300 it'll /burst/ to 30Mbit/s. Up speeds vary from 1.05Mbit/s to 'Can't actually upload anything because the test **bleep**s out'."

Fatalnowfox went on to complain about Netgear's equipment – which VM described as an "exclusive" and custom-made piece of hardware intended "to provide you with killer performance and wonderful ease of use" – and said Virgin Media's tech support was yet to get in touch with a definitive fix.
"I think that cupidity has bitten me here. The 30Mbit/s offer was too good to be true," said fatalnowfox.
At the start of February, Virgin Media began urging existing customers on its 20Mbit/s broadband service to splurge a one-off payment of £30 to upgrade to its 30Mbit/s offering.

The company has stopped offering would-be punters the 20Mbit/s package, but existing customers do not have to upgrade to the new service as Virgin Media is keeping both bases running. Despite this, some customers unsurprisingly opted to upgrade their kit.

Worse still, Virgin Media claimed that its 'XL' 50Mbit/s broadband offering had been "boosted by 50 per cent" in additional bandwidth without requiring extra fees.
But complaints suggest that some cable customers aren't seeing the performance improvement, and instead are hit by a dip in speed – especially at peak times.

A Virgin Media spokesman told The Register that the company had no beef with the hardware, but admitted there was a "data throughput" issue hampering some customers who are using its Superhub modem/router.
"Whilst the vast majority of customers are unaffected, we are actively investigating reports of reduced performance under some configurations," he said. "Testing is under way, and we expect to resolve the issue by a firmware update which will be automatically pushed out to SuperHub users as soon as a fix has been confirmed."

Virgin Media didn't say when the glitch would be fixed, but it's understood that the firmware update would be pushed out soon.

New BlackBerry Storm 3 / Monaco Smartphone: First Video

Following on from the leaked BlackBerry 2011 roadmap, we now have a first-look video of the upcoming BlackBerry Storm 3, codenamed BlackBerry Monaco.

Thanks to the guys over at Crackberry, this is the first time the new BlackBerry smartphone has been caught on camera.

Although the video doesn’t shed more light on this mobile phone’s specifications, the Storm 3 is expected to land with a Qualcomm 1.2GHz processor, BB 6.1 OS, 3.7 inch capacitive display and BlackBerry navigation keys. There will also likely be a 5-megapixel snapper with HD video support and a thin frame measuring just 11.5mm.

The Storm 3 will support Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NFC technology. In terms of data storage, the handset will come with 4GB of storage which will be expandable up to 32GB.
And as the video does show, there will be the usual functions for entertainment onboard too including a media and music player.

BlackBerry Storm 3 deals are hoped for this summer, probably July or August – and RIM is expected to officially launch this device during BlackBerry World in May.

Do you like the look and sound of this new BlackBerry?

RIM should be unveiling a number of new devices over the coming months. The roadmap leaked last month included a range of new CDMA devices lined up for this year such as the Monaco, Malibu, Montana and Sedona.

The BlackBerry PlayBook tablet was also listed on the roadmap, and was shown off during CES 2011. Described as “professional grade”, the PlayBook faces a competitive market when it lands – with rivals including the iPad, Galaxy Tab, Optimus Pad and XOOM.

We’ll keep you posted on any BlackBerry Storm 3 / Monaco developments. In the meantime, enjoy the video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y16KcL_MXUU&feature=player_embedded

Sony designing dual screen laptop

Sony could be working on two more unusual tablets for launch in 2011; a two-screened Android clamshell and a Windows 7 slider, named the S1 and S2.


Following the rumour that Sony is to launch a PlayStation tablet named the S1 last week, the S2 is set to be an Android tablet running Android 3.0, and featuring two 5.5-inch displays.


According to Engadget's two sources, the shape closely resembles an oval cylinder when closed - a bit like a flask. It certainly sounds, er, different, although not exactly economical with space.


Flask-like Android


When it comes to spec, Engadget has been told it will offer a Tegra 2 SoC, WiFi, 3G and at least one rear-facing camera, although which way is rear-facing may be hard to tell.
The source also said that Sony will be working on the Honeycomb OS to make the most of that dual display; a prototype device apparently showed Gmail running with the inbox shown on one screen and the open message shown on the other.
The two sources aren't exactly enthused by the project, unfortunately; one says that "the whole project is being met with skepticism within Sony." Meanwhile, the other source "calls the S2 an outright "dog."" Ouch.
Europe is set to get the ambitious dual-screen tablet by Christmas, with a UK price of around £590.


And now, to Windows


Meanwhile, Windows fans may be pleased to hear that a VAIO-branded Windows 7 slider tablet is also rumoured to be in Sony's works.


This fared a little better among Engadget's sources, being described as "nice" and similar to the Asus Eee Pad Slider.


The unnamed Windows tablet has a slightly higher target price of $799 (£670) although this is quite likely to rise, apparently.


Both tablets will have a focus on Qriocity, Sony's music and media service, although there's no word on whether or not either or both will be PlayStation Certified.




Read more: http://www.techradar.com/news/mobile-computing/sony-readying-s2-dual-screen-android-clamshell-tablet--930099#ixzz1EgnE5nKt

Is this the end for touch screen TV's and Monitors

Our Japanese friends really do get all the fun tech first. While we’re still messing around with ordinary touchscreens, Akihabara News tells us Panasonic Japan has just launched the first ever gesture-controlled TV, the Viera DMP-HV200.

It’s designed for use in the kitchen, so is splash-proof and limited to just a 10.1in screen size, with the resolution set at 1,024×600. But it’s the gesture-control tech that’s the real highlight, with a side-to-side gesture changing the channel, and up and down controlling volume.

A digital TV tuner is on board alongside an ethernet port for enjoying some YouTube action. Alternatively, you can play your own media via the SD card, or stream it from elsewhere in the house using DLNA.

Alongside the HV150, Panasonic has also announced the Blu-ray-toting BV300 and the motion control-less HV150, both of which also have 10.1in screens. All three will go on sale in mid-March, with the BV300 the priciest at just under £600, the HV200 coming in at around £400 and the HV150 costing £320. No sign of a launch anywhere outside Japan at this stage.

Nokia: cheap Windows Phone 7 phones coming

The Gadget Show has revealed that Nokia has promised affordable WinPho smartphones, they go on to say...

Nokia has promised its move to adopt Windows Phone 7 and ditch its own MeeGo platform on its high-end smartphones won’t drive prices upwards.

Microsoft’s new mobile OS, launched late last year, demands a strict baseline spec from handsets that has pushed all the WinPho devices we’ve seen so far firmly into the luxury bracket.

However, with Nokia traditionally strongest at the more affordable end of the market, there have been fears that the company will have to give up its entry-level market share because of Microsoft’s stringent hardware requirements.

But Nokia says that isn’t the case at all, and that finding ways to make Windows Phone handsets cheaper had played a major part in the negotiations between the two companies.

“We have become convinced that we can do that very quickly,” Nokia CEO Stephen Elop told Finnish journalists recently.

Of course, it depends what your definition of “quickly” is. The first WinPho-powered Nokia smartphone is only expected to land around the autumn, and we’d imagine Nokia is more keen to renew its presence at the top end of the smartphone market first before getting involved in the dog-fight in the entry-level market.

Apple TV - Fact or Fiction

There have been several sites the past few years claiming that Apple have created a line of Television sets with their apple TV incorporated into the set.

Although, now there seems to be compelling evidence that Apple may soon release a Television,

and while many rumours prove to have been nothing more than speculation, this one at least has a little substance behind it. A new job listing has appeared on Apple’s website for a power supply design engineer, and reveals an interesting tidbit at the end.

“The position primarily involves high-density offline power supply’s development for Apple’s next generation Macintosh platforms spanning from notebook computers, desktop computers, servers, standalone displays and TV,” the ad reads.

Panasonic unvails 3D LED TV

Panasonic has homed in on its home cinema onslaught for 2011 with a proposed 10 ranges of Viera TVs, including its first ever 3D LED sets.

The 3D-capable DT30 series heads up a trio of LED ranges, and features IPS Alpha panels, which offer a better viewing angle, scanning rates of just 2ms and allow for a reduction in the cross-talk that afflicts many 3D TVs.

There are two screen sizes to choose from, 37in and 32in, and both are compatible with the Viera Connect web portal for app-downloading. Wi-Fi and DLNA are included, as well as 4 HDMI ports and 3 USB connections.

Aside from a further couple of non-3D LED ranges, a full six of the 10 new lines introduced by the Japanese electronics giant are plasma ranges, a notable reinforcement of Panasonic’s place at the forefront of plasma development.

Head of the pile is the VT30 series, which offers 3D plasma goodness in four screen sizes going up to 65in.

The new sets should be in stores by mid-year, though it’s too soon to talk about prices.

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Hello and welcome to the new site dedicated to giving you the latest news, roumers and reviews of the current tech available (or soon to be available). If you have any Tech roumers or reviews feel free to comment or contact me.