EE drop the HTC First before it even arrives!

   Over the past few days we've been hearing a lot about HTC's woes and how much they've been struggling, but according to the internet today we've finally got confirmation that their 'Facebook phone,' the HTC First will not arrive on UK shores.

   The original plan was that EE were going to offer the phone on their lovely 4G network, but in the face of extremely disappointing sales on AT&T in the US, it seems that the decision has been taken to cancel the venture.

   The rumour originally appeared on MobileNewsCWP this morning, but Slashgear have reported receiving this statement from EE:

"Following customer feedback, Facebook has decided to focus on adding new customisation features to Facebook Home over the coming months. While they are working to make a better Facebook Home experience, they have recommended holding off launching the HTC First in the UK, and so we will shortly be contacting those who registered their interest with us to let them know of this decision.
Rest assured, we remain committed to bringing our customers the latest mobile experiences, and we will continue to build on our strong relationship with Facebook so as to offer customers new opportunities in the future."

   What do you think? Are you upset the 'Facebook phone' won't land in the UK, or was it never in your plans? Let us know in the comments below!
MobileNewsCWP Via Pocketlint and Slashgear.

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The HTC First: Discontinued already?

   That image to the right is a little out of date. The HTC First which went on sale almost a month ago to the day has already had its price slashed to 99 cents on a contract with AT&T, but it seems as though that hasn't really done the trick an set the sales numbers alight. Instead, it's being reported by BGR that the 'Facebook phone' will stop being produced and BGR has 'confirmed' that the phone will not be on sale for much longer.

   According to the report the phone has been selling unbelievably badly and as a result AT&T have chosen to discontinue the phone! At the moment there's no word on exact numbers of unsold devices, but BGR's sources report that less than 15,000 of the phones have shipped since the phone went on sale over a month ago!

   The sales are supposedly not helped by the lack of help from AT&T sales reps who supposedly aren't too taken with either the phone or the software! Instead, they're busy recommending Apple's iPhone and the Galaxy S4 from Samsung.

   Apparently HTC have paid AT&T for display space in their stores and the phone will be offered until the display contract runs out which we don't have any details on at the moment. Naturally spokespeople at AT&T and HTC declined to comment on the 'speculation'.

   Are you surprised to hear rumours like this or is this what you expected? Let us know in the comments below!

BGR Via Austin Evans Twitter.

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Facebook Home details revealed by APK teardown!

   Remember this 'Facebook Home' thing that we've been hearing so much about lately? Well it turns out that Android Police have managed to get their hands on a developer preview of the APK and they've been able to have a look at how things are shaping up.

   The APK has some juicy details inside it too! There is confirmation that there will be a Facebook phone revealed and it will have a Facebook-ified version of Google's mobile OS. If we start with the phone then there is confirmation that there will be an AT&T-compatible device made by HTC Myst which will feature a 4.3 inch display, 1GB of RAM and a dual-core MSM8960 Qualcomm SoC. Add on to that a 5-megapixel rear camera, 1.6-megapixel front option, Bluetooth 4.0 and WiFi and we have a solid mid-range phone which will appeal to teenagers everywhere! That phone will rock Android 4.1.2 and Sense 4.5 in parallel, with the Facebook app taking centre stage and acting as the devices home screen!

   So this Facebook home is essentially a new launcher from Facebook and subsequently the app will have more access to the system controls than the current Facebook app and it's been confirmed that the app can turn off the lock screen, start up when the phone boots and control your WiFi connection, among a few other things too.

   There's some pretty little icons embedded into the launcher too, so you can expect to have a slightly different look compared to other launchers and as you would expect Facebook Messenger integration is a key part of this too. Don't worry if you don't have the Facebook phone itself though because there's TouchWiz compatibility built into the home screen replacement and that means that you can install this onto other phones too! That means it'll probably be popping up in the Play Store!

   We'll have full details on Thursday when everything's made official!
 AndroidPolice Via Engadget.

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Facebook welcomes people to see their 'new home on Android'!

   For a long time now Facebook have been rumoured to be working on something a bit more expansive for mobile phones. Initially there were rumours of a Facebook phone, then we saw the HTC Salsa and ChaCha (Or Status on the US side of the pond) and now there will be a 'new home on Android'.   

   According to some rumours the event is set to feature an HTC smartphone with a custom-made Facebook-centric version of Android. This means Facebook don't have the responsibility of creating hardware themselves, but they can manage the software pretty well. According to the rumours Facebook integration will be the key; there will be the Facebook homescreen as the main screen and Facebook's camera and messaging apps will supposedly replace the standard Android options!

   The best thing to compare the supposed plan here is by looking at what Amazon and their Kindle Fires have done with Android, it's conceivable Facebook have something similar up their sleeve!

   What do you think would this interest you? We'll have much more on the 4th of April!
Via Engadget.

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Facebook phone rumours never die: HTC to bring the 'Myst' to market this year?

 

   There's a few rumours which are seemingly eternal, no matter what happens they just won't go away. One such rumour is the 'Facebook phone'; a phone which is focused around interactions on the social network, but with all of the other features you would expect on a phone. So it could conceivably be as simple as a customised version of Android.

HTC Salsa and ChaCha left and right respectively.

   Up to this point though the closest thing we've seen to a Facebook phone is the pair of devices pictured to the right, the HTC Salsa and HTC ChaCha, both of which have a dedicated Facebook button. In spite of the limited success of these devices, Facebook remain adamant that there will not be a Facebook phone, Mark Zuckerburg has reiterated this a fair few times and as recently as the end of January! Irrespective of this information the rumours just won't go away and today we've heard about a HTC-based Facebook phone destined for AT&T!

   According to the Unwired View a "previously reliable source" has mentioned that a phone with the codename "HTC Myst #UL" is set to appear in the USA this May. The device is rumoured to house a 4.3-inch 1280x720p resolution display which is driven by a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm MSM8960 processor, 16GB of internal storage and 1GB of RAM. The device is set to run Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and be outfitted with a 5-megapixel rear and a 1.6-megapixel front camera pairing. The device is set to have HSPA+ and LTE connectivity. Obviously because this is meant to be a Facebook orientated device you can expect there to be the normal Facebook app, Facebook Messenger and Instagram all pre-installed!


   None of those specs would make this rumoured Myst a high-end device, but for the average consumer it would be more than suitable for the average consumer and the smaller, but still high quality screen is definitely something which would appeal to a lot of people.

   So what do you think of this potential Facebook phone? Is it something which would interest you or do you just like the sound of a smaller, but still powerful phone irrespective of the Facebook link? Let us know in the comments below!
Via UnwiredView.

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28/05/2012

This is geek heaven.

   Ok, so there's a couple of reasons why you'd buy the Nokia Lumia 900. Firstly, it might be because of it's gorgeous Amoled screen, maybe it's because of it's lovely industrial design or it might be because you like Windows Phone (unlikely, I joke). 

   But, this phone might just have got a tiny bit more attractive, especially if you L-O-V-E Batman. If you do then you can head over to Phones4U and pick up your limited edition of the phone, complete with Batman logo on the back and custom wallpapers and tiles tailored towards your bat fetishes. This is basically a repeat of what the company did with the Lumia 800 a while back, and there will also be a Dark Knight rising version too!

   There's been no confirmation as to how many of the phone will be made but we expect there to be more than enough to go around! But, go out and grab it just incase!!!

The Galaxy S3 and the UK.

   I'm not sure the best way to break this to you because the UK is a tad obsessed with Samsung and their Galaxy devices, but the device has been delayed across the whole set of countries. Clove was first out the block to let us know, telling customers g that “Samsung has confirmed a delay in the arrival of the first stock” with an exact date for availability “still to be confirmed.” There's also a minor delay with the “Marble White” version if you chose that version instead.

   Clove have specifically said the Marble White Galaxy S III is now expected in stock on June 1, instead of May 30 . The “first stock” of the blue is “expected to arrive week commencing 5th June, but this is still to be confirmed.”

   On a slightly more positive note, if you happen to be in London and more specifically on Oxford Street between Monday and Thursday, remember to get yourself to The Carphone Warehouse store there because they’ve got phones in “popup internet cafe” where the computers have instead been replaced by Galaxy SIII handsets.

   The cafe itself will run for three days – Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, with the handset going on up for you to buy on Thursday. If you pop down then there's also a chance for you to win a handset with a Galaxy SIII being given away daily.

Mobile displays: LG's wonder screen.

   There's been huge advancements in display technology on mobile technology this past two years, but it looks like LG may have just unleashed their best technology to date. 

   Their new screen is 5" and manages to pack in full-HD resolution (that's 1920x1080!), this makes a pixel-density of 440 pixels per inch. Something which simply blows Apple's 'Retina display', with 329ppi, out of the water! LG claim that the naked eye will be unable to discern individual pixels, and the use of Advance High Performance IPS technology means you’ll be getting realistic colour reproduction, wide viewing angles, as well as brighter images and low power consumption.

   In other news:

• Asus has teased a new set of Transformer tablets which are slated to be arriving at Computex 2012, which is in early June, it'll be interesting to see what they've got planned this time. Hit the advert below for the official teaser.

• Nokia's Lumia 610, which has 256MB of RAM and a single-core 800Mhz processor has today found itself banned from more apps. The list now includes; Angry birds, Skype, PES 2012 and Tango, we're sure the list could go on. It's also worth noting other apps such as Nokia Maps and IMDB have been known to crash on the phone so it's hard to recommend it at the moment.
• RIM is restructuring and is said to be shedding 2000 jobs.
• Facebook is again rumoured to be having a stab at a Facebook phone and is reportedly hiring ex-Apple engineers to work on the device/s.

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