In Other News: 16/04/2013.

• Rumours of a Lumia smartphone with that 41MP PureView camera just won't go away! This time the guys from MyNokiaBlog are reporting that the devic could arrive relatively soon and it could be an AT&T exclusive initially. Rumour has it that Nokia is currently testing two configurations of the phone; one with a dual-core and the other being a quad-core  Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor. According to the rumour the latter of those two options struggles with batter life, something which will be vital if you want the rumoured 1280 x 768p AMOLED display, LTE connectivity and the FM Transmitter to last all day on the 2,000 mAh battery!
  Via UnwiredView.

• There's an unreferenced report floating around the internet that Sony has sold 4.6million Xperia Z's in the last 40 days. Take this with a pinch of salt, because there's nothing official here at all, but we will find out precisely how well the device has sold on May the 9th when Sony gives us a new update!
  Via XperiaBlog.

• OFCOM are reportedly calling for industry input on 5G mobile plans already because of fears of a data crunch in a few years time!
  Via PCPro.

• Microsoft's Outlook app for Android has been updated with a new look and feel. The update makes it resemble Windows Phone much more closely, but the app still works totally fine and you can get it here!
  Via Eurodroid.

• PhoneArena have got their some benchmarks which supposedly confirm the specs for Acer's supposed iPad Mini competitor! There's meant to be a 1.2GHz quad core MediaTek MT8125 processor, 1GB of RAM and 16GB of expandable internal storage, a 7.9-inch IPS 1024 x 768 pixel screen, a 0.3 mega-pixel front and a 5 mega-pixel rear camera, HDMI out and Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean!

• Symantec have published their latest findings which reveal that iOS is more vulnerable to malware than Android, but because more people use Android it is being targeted much more regularly! Check out the hugely detailed report over at TechCrunch here!

• OFCOM are looking into standardising the cost of calls from mobiles to 0800 and 0845 numbers, any changes will be enacted by 2015!
  Via Coolsmartphone. 

• If you have a Galaxy S2 or S3, £150 and you love playing games on your phone then this might be just the thing for you! The PhonePadPlus is a 10.1" dock with a 1024 x 600p display which they hope will be great for gaming! You can find full details here!
  Via Phandroid.

• Microsoft are being rumoured to be bringing back the Home button and using boot to desktop in Windows 8.1!
  Via Engadget.

• Engadget scored an interview with Xiaomi CEO, Bin Lin, who said that he wants to ship 15 million smartphones this year and he wants his company to have a push into markets outside of Asia! Check out the full interview here!

And finally, the companies of Silicon Valley have been told to immediately start saving some power because California's power grid has had one of their transmission substations damaged!

Via Reuters.

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Sky respond to BT's complaints of unfair advertising denial on Sky Sports: Here's what they said!

   Some of you regular readers out there might remember when we covered BT's accusations that suggested Sky wrongfully denied them the right to advertise on their Sports channels. Well Sky don't necessarily agree with BT's accusations as you would expect and this is what they offered in reply. The reply comes direct from Gary McWilliam who is Sky's Group Director of Corporate Affairs and here's what he said:

Dear Sir
BT complains that Sky has chosen not to carry advertising for its sports channels on Sky Sports.  For us, this is perfectly reasonable given the billions that we have invested to build our brand. As one media buyer has observed, it would be a “bit like Tesco being able to advertise inside Sainsbury’s”.
We must correct BT’s assertion that it is “happy to take Sky’s advertising but they seem afraid of taking ours”. For the record, BT advertises on Sky every month of the year and can promote its sports channels on all of our channels except Sky Sports. More pertinently, Sky is blacklisted by BT from advertising on the web portal aimed at its broadband customers. This has been the case since we entered the home communications marketplace in competition with BT several years ago.
Instead of complaining, we got on with building a successful broadband business. BT, in contrast, has taken the well-worn path to Ofcom’s door and compared itself to “a new born puppy”. Before honing its soundbites or filing yet another complaint, this £22 billion gorilla in puppy’s clothing would do well to look at its own double standards.
Graham McWilliam
Sky

   After reading that you do feel slightly sympathetic for Sky, it does seem as though BT are trying to get something which they know they can't have by heading to the regulators. We have a sneaky feeling that OFCOM will come down on Sky's side in this debate, but it's hard to be sure!
   You can check out the statement at the source link at Sky's corporate 'views' page here!
Via BSkyB Twitter.

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OFCOM opens consultation over price rises during the life of your phone contract.

   During the last few months those of us who live in the UK will most likely have been subjected to price rises for our phone contracts. The reason for this is that in the small print of our terms and conditions, which no one ever reads, there is a sentence which allows the carrier to raise the cost of your contract by a small percentage of it's cost if the network deems it necessary, this would probably be enacted, as it has recently, to keep the cost of your contract in line with inflation.

   It seems OFCOM doesn't think this is entirely fair, after all you sign up for a contract at a certain price and you don't normally expect it to change during the life of the contract. That's why OFCOM has opened a consultation on how to manage changes to phone tariffs during the lifetime of the initial contract. Ofcom wants to implement an approach where you will be allowed to duck out of your contract without paying any penalties if your service provider introduces any price increase during the life of the contract.

   Carriers themselves would be obliged to be clear and upfront about any potential changes in the cost of contracts from the off and they would have to state your right to cancel the contract in the event of any price increase. The idea behind this is that it would remove the unfair price hikes which can ad have been used lately and it would remove the issues of people complaining to OFCOM because they had to pay the extra money without knowing it was in the contract. Indeed, Claudio Pollack, Ofcom’s Consumer Group Director, said: “Many consumers have complained to us that they are not made aware of the potential for price rises in what they believe to be fixed contracts."

   Other than this there are a few other options for OFCOM which include; tackling the current lack of transparency around the potential for price increases, cosidering whether consumers should have the choice to “opt-in” to contract with a variable price, which like credit cards offer. Or finally, OFCOM could issue a carpet ban on price rises contracts, which would seem to be the most logical step if they wish to avoid confusion and keep consumers happy and protected.

   We'll find the findings of OFCOM's consultation on March the 14th and OFCOM thinks they'll be ready to publish their findings some time in June.

[UPDATE]

Vodafone are the first company to comment on the OFCOM proposal and the main points of their statement are outlined below:

"We support Ofcom's desire to give consumers reassurance about the prices that they will pay during their contract, but the regulator's proposals risk generating significant confusion and potentially increasing the cost of getting a mobile phone contract for millions of people. As such they could damage what Ofcom's own research shows is the best value mobile phone market for consumers anywhere in Europe.
“We believe there is work to be done to ensure that customers understand the need for long-term contracts and to ensure they are protected during that time, but Ofcom first needs to understand the difference between the prices that are set by mobile phone companies and those which are not.... We simply do not control many of the charges faced by consumers. They are set by third parties and mobile phone companies have to pass those costs on or they will be subsidising other companies. Prices set by third parties such as BT, include those for directory enquiry services, premium rate and 08 numbers. Yet Ofcom appears resolved to introduce measures that would effectively prevent any rises in these prices being recouped while customers are still in contract." Statement via KYM.

   Vodafone argues this will mean carriers try to second guess what price increases third parties will attempt to introduce and as such the initial cost of contracts will increase and given their argument we can almost sympathise with them.



The full press release from OFCOM can be found here.

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19/12/2012: HTC cut backs start, Zuckerberg gives half a billion to charity, Samsung issues Exynos statement and much more!

HTC to cut back on device development and cutting Q1 shipments?

   Ohhh HTC, the company we all know and love for their use of premium materials and tiny batteries in their latest smartphones. It seems things really are starting to look bad for the Taiwanese manufacturer if Digitimes’ industry sources have got this one right. 

   Digitimes' sources believe that:

“HTC has suspended development of a number of new models for 2013, reducing the visibility of its orders for handset components.”

   They believe that HTC expects to see smartphone shipments rise somewhere in the region of 10-15% in Q1 next year, which is down compared to the 20-30% growth they saw in the same quarter this year!

   The reason HTC will welcome in the new year in miserable style is in part due to HTC’s Windows 8 smartphones, the 8X and 8S which have not set the world ablaze the way HTC and Microsoft had hoped, despite Nokia 'selling out' of their Lumia 920's.

   HTC seems to be stuck between pillar and post at the moment; they're aiming for a flagship set of phones per year, but they've been forced to develop more to generate extra sales. This is at the same time that Samsung and Apple have run away with the smartphone sales and even Sony has over taken HTC in sales in the UK!

   The HTC M7 or whatever the European equivalent of the Droid DNA turns out to be will be able to turn HTC's fortunes around assuming they can get it to market sooner rather than later. But, we fear a lot of people will be waiting to see what Samsung's Galaxy S4 will be as they will go out of their way to trump HTC's offering! HTC haven't commented on the issue, but we will update the post if we hear back from HTC!
Digitimes Via DroidDog.

Mark Zuckerberg gives $500million of shares to charity. That's what we call Christmas spirit!

   No matter what you think of Mark Zuckerberg it's hard to offer criticism for his latest good deed; a donation of $500 million of shares (that's 18million shares) in Facebook to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. This charity helps various organisations with health and education provisions, so it is certainly worthwhile! The full quote posted on Zuckerberg's Facebook Timeline is embedded below!

Two years ago, Priscilla and I signed The Giving Pledge, committing to donate the majority of the money we earn to charity.
Our first major project has been around education reform with Startup: Education in Newark, NJ. I'm really proud of the work we've done there, helping leaders like Governor Chris Christie and Mayor Cory Booker sign the most progressive teachers contract in our country, opening four new district high schools, 11 new charter schools and more.
Today, in order to lay the foundation for new projects, we've made a contribution of 18 million Facebook shares to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. Together, we will look for areas in education and health to focus on next. I'm hopeful we'll be able to have as positive an impact in our next set of projects.

Facebook Via HotHardware.

A statement from Samsung on their Exynos vulnerability.

   Over the weekend we learnt of and reported the vulnerability which affects Samsung's Exynos processors inside the Galaxy S2 and S3, the Galaxy Note 1 and 2 and every other device which is powered by Samsung's Exynos processors.

   Samsung France issued a statement French publication Le Monde and a separate one to Android Central. The statements reassured users that they are working on a "very quick" roll out of an update and they reiterated that the vulnerability is only an issue if "a malicious application is installed". If these applications are still very rare, but there are a lot of Android devices so someone somewhere will be affected. The full statement to Android Central read:

"Samsung is aware of the potential security issue related to the Exynos processor and plans to provide a software update to address it as quickly as possible.
The issue may arise only when a malicious application is operated on the affected devices; however, this does not affect most devices operating credible and authenticated applications.
Samsung will continue to closely monitor the situation until the software fix has been made available to all affected mobile devices."

   This is not perhaps a big of an issue as some people are making out, but it does have to potential to be problematic. Remember just to be vigilant when you're installing apps and only use trusted vendors in the Play Store!

   We'll let you know if we hear any more!
LeMonde Via Engadget and AndroidCentral.

In other news:

• Ofcom has released their 7th quarterly report on the amount of complaints each service provider in their respective industries received compared to their competitors! You can see our full write up here!

• Sprint has agreed a $120million break up fee if their deal with ClearWire doesn't go through for what ever reason, and there's a good few reasons why it won't! The way Sprint are looking at it is that the potential gains from this deal out weight the risk of losing that much money from the deal.
  Via DroidDog.

• Google Play Books received a nice little update today which added in support for 'reading aloud', different zooming options and some note making features. The 'read aloud' feature is not quite as polished as Audible for Amazon's books, but it'll only get better with time and it is a good start! Do you use Google's book solution over Amazon's Kindle app? Let us know in the comments below!
  Via Slashgear.

• A consortium of 12 companies including Apple, Research In Motion, Google, Samsung, Adobe, HTC, Facebook, Fujifilm, Huawei, Amazon, Shutterfly and Microsoft has teamed up and bought the digital-imaging patent portfolio as well as some other Kodak patents today. The acquisition set them back a total of $525 million which they'll split 12 ways!
  Via TechCrunch.

• Vodafone UK has announced that the Nokia Lumia 920 will be available on their network at some point early next year! You can check out their full blog post here for more information!
  

  BLOG: It's official - the Nokia Lumia 920 is going to be available to Vodafone customers in the New Year! vdfn.co/rbehe #wp8
  — Vodafone UK (@VodafoneUK) December 19, 2012

  Via Twitter (Tweet embedded above).

• Nintendo's head honcho, Satoru Iwata, has said that the Wii U will receive another software update at some point this month which will help to improve the frustratingly slow software loading times on the new console! We'll let you know when the update hits!
  Via Engadget.

And finally, today a leaked picture of the Acer V360 has been leaked by one of Mr Blurrycam's best photo shoots to date! The device seems to be a mixture of the Nexus 4 and the HTC Sensation XE; with buttons which are part of the screen and the red speaker grills which remind us very much of the Sensation XE.  The red in this phone is symbolic of Acer's partnership with DTS on this phone, as you can see the DTS logo is stamped on the back of the phone above some interesting design circles which may well protect the camera when the phone it put on a desk!

   Other than that the rumours specs are said to include a dual-core processor, a qHD (960x540p) 4.5" screen, a 5MP rear-facing camera and a micro-SD card slot. This will all be running on Android 4.1.1 to begin with, although we're not sure there will be too many updates forthcoming for this one! The main selling point of the phone is obviously the sound partnership with DTS so we expect some beefy speakers and perhaps to EQ tweaks included in the phone too! The device itself is tipped to be released in Q1 next year! We'll have to wait and see how much this thing will be when it comes to market!
Via Slashgear.

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Ofcom report names and shames the most complained about UK service providers!

   

Broadband complaints.

Ofcom released their 7th quarterly report today showing the number of complaints the regulator received about each service provider for a number of industries from Phone and broadband to television services! In some cases you may be surprised, but if you live in the UK the results were mainly what we expected to see!

   There was a surprising change in the broadband category as TalkTalk was finally knocked off the top spot by Orange who saw their complaints double to 0.5 in every 1000 customers. TalkTalk don't have too much to be proud of though as Ofcom told them their complaints remained "well above the industry average" and they secured the title of "Most complained about landline provider" category. Sky, on the other hand, did best with a mere 0.09 per 1,000 customers.

   In the mobile stakes T-Mobile were voted worst for pay monthly with 0.17 per 1.000 customers and ironically Ofcom says the problem was in part down to the complaints handling procedure. 3UK, Orange and Vodafone also received higher than average volumes of complaints, while O2 was considered the best in numbers of complaints, by quite a large margin! On the whole though mobile networks did relatively well!

   In the paid TV services category, BT Vision came off worst yet again, based on numbers of complaints. Despite a slight drop they still gained a title for complaints that were "six times greater than the industry average". Virgin Media attracted above industry average complaints at 0.06 complaints per 1,000 customers and Sky excelled again with the lowest number of complaints – 0.02 per 1,000 customers. So Sky came off best, it seems there is a positive little trend with Sky!

Ofcom Via Wired.

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21/08/2012

Samsung to release a Galaxy Nexus 'II'?

   Now the spreadsheet above is very interesting for a couple of reasons. Firstly, there's a few inaccuracies such as the Galaxy Nexus having a mere 'Super AMOLED' display but, there's also the news that there is a slightly refreshed version on there.

   As you can see there's the bum to a 1.5Ghz processor and a camera upgrade on both the front and rear shooters! This is very intriguing...

   ... We've all heard the rumours about multiple Nexus devices. Does this mean that this is a 'mid-range' Nexus and another manufacturer will provide the top of the line device? Whatever this means Sammobile have caused quite a stir with this leak!

UPDATE! Numerous Nexus devices hinted at!

   According to a post by Android Noodle there is a lot more than a single Samsung made Nexus device on the way. A leaked device list from the carrier, DoCoMo, outlines that there are three devices coming; a Sony Xperia Nexus, a LG Optimus Nexus and the Samsung Nexus II. 

   At the moment we don't know much about the devices at the moment, but all three are listed as having NFC, which is expected of a Nexus device, and are part of the Xi series, which is DoCoMo's LTE service so they'll all have that on board too! The only other interesting information is that the LG Optimus Nexus is expected to be waterproof, which is a welcome addition!

In other news:

• Samsung has announced that they're committed to spending $3-4billion on their chip producing facility in Austin, Texas. This money will allow them to 'upgrade' about half of their factory and the plant will reopen at some point in 2013!
• Microsoft has updated Skype for iOS with new photo sharing features and performance boosts!
• If you're a US reader you might want to head to your local Walmart as they're selling $100 iTunes cards for $80!
• Overnight Apple temporarily became the most valuable company in history, just beating Microsoft's 1999 peak. But, when inflation was taken into account Microsoft still holds the record by about $200 billion, but it probably won't be long before Apple beats it properly!
• Google Play gift cards are now available at Target, GameStop, and RadioShack!!!

Everything Everywhere gets 4G go ahead in the UK!

And finally, UK readers we will finally be getting LTE! Everything Everywhere (Orange and T-Mobile) have got permission from OFCOM to roll out LTE on their existing spectrum! Fast mobile internet here we come!!! 

Although O2, Vodafone and Three aren't happy; their statements are below!

O2: "We are hugely disappointed with today’s announcement, which will mean the majority of customers will be excluded from the first wave of digital services. This decision undermines the competitive environment for 4G in the UK."

Vodafone: "We are frankly shocked that Ofcom has reached this decision. The regulator has shown a careless disregard for the best interests of consumers, businesses and the wider economy through its refusal to properly regard the competitive distortion created by allowing one operator to run services before the ground has been laid for a fully competitive 4G market."

Three:  "Liberalisation of 2G spectrum to date has distorted the competitive landscape in the UK, which ultimately harms consumers. Further liberalisation without addressing competition issues could make that distortion worse."

Obviously these three are upset because they feel disadvantaged, but OFCOM have given themselves the kick up the bottom to get the 4G spectrum auction going sooner so hopefully we can see that happen inside 2012!

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24/07/2012

Has MobileFun outed the design for the next iPhone.

   It really is that time of year again folks; iPhone rumours are front and centre of every tech website at the moment. And today MobileFun have helped add a bit of fuel to the fire, with their 'leak', from secret sources, of the new cases for the forthcoming iPhone.

   The changes that the new cases show are; a taller version of the current iPhone but keeping exactly the same width, a new connector port and the headphone jack moved to the bottom of the phone.

   And the main thing, it's a case for a 4 inch phone! So finally Apple will be joining in with the big boys with a bit of luck!

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 banned throughout Europe.

   Samsung got a little bit of respite last week in the British courts after the judge ruled that Apple would have to apologise and publicly state that Samsung didn't copy the iPad with the 10.1" Galaxy Tab.

   But, it seems that as far as the wins for Samsung have gone, with German courts today ruling that the 7.7 did copy the iPad. But, as you can see there's a slight conflict here; British courts have ruled that there was no infringement, whereas European courts went a different way. Today's sales injunction is in direct conflict with a UK court ruling earlier in July. 

   This seems to be so confusing for all parties; not even Samsung knows where they stand at the moment! We don't think this will impact Samsung too badly even if the ban does stand because the Tab 7.7 has such a high price and low demand. The company has said to Slashgear today that they would like to point customers in the direction of the Galaxy Tab 2 (the 7incher) because of the lower price point and more support! Win Win!

In other news:

• Samsung's court dates with Apple may cost the North Koreans $2.5 billion if the South Korean's are found guilty of wilful IP infringement!
• Apple has claimed that the design of the iPhone and iPad is worth an extra $24 per device! An interesting claim but that's what's been filed with the Californian courts.
• And to conclude the Apple news; the company is reported to be working on some revamped designs for the companies iPod touches and nanos!
• Android is supposedly lacking in developer interest by 16% when compared to iOS according to IDC.
• RIM has promised a sneak peak at BB10 for their most loyal and dedicated customers.
• The LTE packing BlackBerry PlayBook is due on July 31st for $550!
• Talking of LTE, the UK rollout has been pushed back again! OFCOM has announced the auction of spectrum won't begin until 'early 2013'! Talk about holding us back for no apparent reason!

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