The Nexus 4 is going to be launched on the three mobile network next month

November 25, 2012 by

Three UK  have announced that the Nexus 4 smartphone will be launched on their network from December the 13th.

Previously the LG-built device was being only offered by O2 and by Google, where it could be bought SIM-free via Google’s Play Store.
Three are offering it on a contract and on pay as you go. If you decide to go with a contract the tariff of £35 per month, that includes unlimited data, 2,000 any-network minutes, 5,000 network minutes and 5,000 texts free, but the catch is that customers must commit to a two-year contract to receive this deal. An upfront charge of £29 will be also required before the contract is purchased.

The pay-as-you-go option will set you back £399.99.

Google’s Nexus 4 specifications are impressive, the phone features a vibrant 1280-by-768 4.7-inch screen, a high-performance 8MP camera that will enable you to Shoot video in full 1080p , a supper responsive 1.5 GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor that comes with a large helping of Ram which consists of 2GB that will be able to handle the most demanding tasks with ease. It is not surprising it has been selling well in the UK since it was launched  earlier this month.

The other products that were launched along side  the Nexus 4 back on November the 13th such as the the Nexus 10 tablet and new 32GB models of the Nexus 7 are also seem to be selling well.

This product is a must, due to it’s unrivalled specifications it offers. But if you don’t like large phones or if your not a fan of the os it runs on which is Android 4.2. Then go for the Nokia Lumia 820, 920 or the iPhone 5, you will not be disappointed with those alternatives.

 

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The iPhone 4s has lost the title for being the worlds top selling phone

November 10, 2012 by
New figures have been released that indicate that the iPhone 4s has lost the title for being the worlds top selling phone, which it has held for two years to Galaxy Samsung Galaxy S3. Sales figures appear to confirm that the Android  handset currently holds 10.7% of the global market, while the iPhone 4s  came a close second at representing 9.7% of the market share. The  Galaxy S3 did really well in the third quarter of 2012 by shipping more than 18 million units, which was up from 5.4 million in the previous quarter which represented a gain of 230%. Samsung also earlier this month issued a statement by saying that they have actually sold over 30 million units since it launch in May.
 
Apple did not fare as well by only shipping 16.2 million iPhone 4S devices, during the same quarter. This represented a 16% downturn compared to the quarter preceding it.
 
However Strategy analytics, who are an  independent research and consulting firm states that this market dominant will be short lived, due to unprecedented uptake of the newly launched iPhone 5 this quarter. It is estimated that 6.0 million units were shipped globally during Q3 2012
 
 Neil Mawston, Executive Director at Strategy Analytics, says :
 
“We expect the new iPhone 5 to out-ship Samsung’s Galaxy S3 in the coming fourth quarter of 2012 and Apple should soon reclaim the title of the world’s most popular smartphone model.”
 
 
In reality the new iPhone will capture it’s title back, which is largely due to factors such as, simplicity of the os, the unique and highly reliable and well stocked eco system it is linked to and the elevated cult status it has in the mind of the buyer.
 
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Samsung Galaxy S3 mini gets unveiled

October 12, 2012 by

Samsung has unveiled at an event in Germany a mini version of the Samsung Galaxy S3. This comes packed with a WVGA Super AMOLED screen (800×480 resolution) measuring 4-inches on the diagonal. This would have appealed to those who was looking for an iPhone 5 alternative that had a 4 inch screen and those who thought that the Samsung Galaxy S3 was too big, but there’s a problem. This phone on appearance looks ideal for those looking for a smaller version of the phone. But things are not as they seem, unfortunately most of the specifications of  the phone have been downgraded which is a shame. The super Samsung’s galaxy’s 3’s 8 mp camera has been downgraded to mediocre 5 mp. Its front camera has also been downgraded from 1.9MPs to vga. Also the lightning fast quad-core EXYNOS chip that was used in the Galaxy S3 has now been replaced with a slower Dual Core 1GHz processor.  

On the plus side, this phone does come with some of the features that cames with the original Samsung Galaxy S3, such as S Voice, which is a voice controlled assistant, and the Smart Stay system that tracks the user’s eye and keeps the screen active as long as the person is looking at it. This phone also comes with Near Field Communication technology, that is used for payments.  This phone  also runs Android jelly bean, which is androids latest os combined with Samsung’s very own touchwiz, but unfortunately the is no guarantees that it will be always be a smooth experience, due to the  device coming packed with a Dual Core 1GHz processor, which is not exactly cutting edge technology in this day and age.

In reality the Mini version of the Galaxy SIII is a lacklustre device that is not worthy of the Galaxy SIII name. The SIII Mini is basically just a re vamped version  of the Galaxy S Advance with a software upgrade. If you’re currently on the market for a mid-range Android handset, then  you’re be better off looking elsewhere, they have just made too many compromises with this model.  If Samsung would have kept to the same hard ware as the Galaxys S3 then this phone could have been a great rival to the iPhone 5, due to the dimensions of the phone being similar.  All in all if your on the market for a 4 inch iPhone 5 rival with similar specifications then, hold on to your money and wait and see what comes out in the near future. Samsung have missed a big opportunity here, they could have been on to a winner if they who have kept the same specifications as the Samsung galaxy S3.

 

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The bbc iplayer adobe air version has been rolled out to Android devices

October 7, 2012 by

The bbc has now rolled out their new iPlayer adobe air version called the bbc media player to Android 2.2 devices and upwards.  This update is a response to Adobes decision not to offer flash support on newer devices and that have the newer Jelly bean software. This replaces the adobe flash based version that works with Android version 2.2 and upwards until Android Jelly bean that is not officially supported by the Adobe flash plugin.  Although Adobe did state that after the 15th of August they will not be offering the Adobe plugin for new android devices, but they then brought it back on a temporary basis due to pressure from organisations such as the BBC.  

However new BBC Media Player uses the same poor quality streaming format and bitrates as the old iPlayer app. They should have used the new Http Live Streaming (HLS) solution as they do in iOS, which produces a far superior picture quality. Even when you set the app at the highest settings, the video quality is still a lot to be desired. Its a long way from HD quality – it’s watchable on a phone but very pixelated on a 7” or larger tablet. 

This move follows other companies such as ITV that are now using Adobe air as a solution to power the multimedia playback within their Android apps.

For more information see the bbc iplayer blog

 

 

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The Google play store hits over 25 million downloads

September 27, 2012 by

The Google play has hit a milestone of over 25 million downloads.  This store now has  now it has  over 675,000 apps and games for download.

 

To celebrate this Google is now offering some of it’s apps at discounted price for a limited. In the US store they will be as low as 25 cents  per app. These discounts will be from developers such as,  Gameloft, Electronic Arts, Rovio, runtastic, Full Fat and more. These special prices will also be on movies, books, albums and magazines. Its not known at this stage how many other countries will have these price reductions. 

 

Google says on its own official blog  “We’ll also be offering some special collections like 25 movies you must own, 25 banned books, 25 albums that changed the world and our 25 top-selling magazines, all at special prices,”.

Google’s director of digital content Jamie Rosenberg says that “25 billion is more than twice the distance, in miles, than the Voyager 1 spacecraft has travelled since its launch 35 years ago,” .

“It’s the amount of time, in minutes, that have passed since some of our earliest ancestors began to set foot in Europe. And now, thanks to all of you, it’s a Google Play milestone. We look forward to the next 25 billion.”

He concludes by saying “We look forward to the next 25 billion,”.

Source:Androids official blog

Google is now not too far behind apples 700,000 apps although its worth pointing out that 250,000 of those apps where specifically designed for the iPad. However apples app store did reach the 25 billion mark in early March that was nearly 7 months before Google gave its own update on Wednesday. However if you just take into account phone apps the Google play store has probably more apps available than the app store which is a milestone in it’s self. This is largely due to the fact that the Google play store has fewer tablet apps available. But still the app store has the upper edge it still has more of a selection  of more quality built apps and games than the Google play store.

UPDATE: The UK Play store does have discounts, with UK users paying 25p for select apps

 

 

 

 

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Galaxy S4 set for release in March

September 18, 2012 by

Samsung is set to release the Samsung Galaxy S4 in March next year.  The Korea Times claims that an unnamed company official said it will be announced at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in February in Barcelona next year. 

This phone is rumoured to come packed with LTE technology and a  5 inch display, which will come in an even thinner case.  Also the processor is likely to get a bump up from  the current 1.4GHz quad-core offering.  Samsung is also considering using a Oled display, but it is not certain at the moment due to Samsung experiencing production issues with the technology. 

This follows the success of the Samsung Galaxy S3, which has sold more than 20 million since the phone was released back in May.

This news comes at the back of the recent release of the iPhone 5, which has experienced pre orders of just over 2 million in just 24 hours worldwide, which is double the rate of that of the iPhone 4S when it was released last year. Whether the Samsung Galaxy 4S will be able to top that remains to be seen. The iPhone 5 has one major thing going for it that the Samsung Galaxy s4 dose not have that is its smaller form factor, which many people prefer.  Apple also has a few things going for it that Samsung dos sent have which are likely to have a further impact on sales, that is a cult following and the ability to create a wow factor with its products even though their products are not always the most innovative products.  

 

 

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Adobe flash is offered again on Googles play store

August 31, 2012 by

The company previously started withdrawing its support for flash for mobile devices on the Android Play store last August, stating that the development of the code had been halted for the flash player. But after pressure was put on the company by its strategic partners including the BBC, the company decided to reinstall it on a temporary bases. 

A spokesperson for Adobe told the BBC : “Flash Player continues to be available on Google Play for users in the UK for a short while due to requests from strategic partners.”

No official date has been set for it’s removal, but it is likely to come soon. But before it’s removal, the adobe flash plugin was one of the most popular plugins within the Google play store. 

However it worth pointing out that this plugin will not work with the latest OS version called Android 4.1 which is also known as Jelly Bean.

Its worth pointing that when the flash plug in does finally get phased out on mobile devices it will not mean the end of many useful apps. Certain companies such as the BBC are already working on creating alternative applications, that will work without the need for the Adobe flash plug in. 

  

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Android 4.0 update is now available for the Motorola RAZR

August 14, 2012 by

Android 4.0 aka Ice Cream Sandwich update has been made available for the Motorola  RAZR XT910. Razr users have had a long time to wait since the launch of Android 4.0 which was way back in October. This delay was due to a disagreement between T-Mobile and Google over issues concerning the customisation of the ROM. T-Mobile wanted to further customise the ROM to their liking, however in the end they relented to Google’s terms and conditions.

 

Now the Motorola RAZR update has arrived, some users of the RAZR should not get too exited. This is because Motorola which is owned by Google has said not all versions of the RAZR will getting the next operating system Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, which is currently being rolled out to the latest high and some of the mid end Android devices. The Droid RAZR and Droid RAZR MAXX versions will receive the update.

 

Last month it was reported by the Android Developers website that Android 4.0 was now running on one in ten Android devices. The exact number of devices out there is not known yet that are capable of being upgraded. This is further complicated by the recent launch of the newer OS called Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, that is likely to have a smaller take up from older devices.  All this is likely to add further to the ongoing issues of fragmentation that is becoming a headache for the Android developer community.

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The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 will be unveiled on August the 29th

August 3, 2012 by

Rumours were writhe yesterday that Samsung was going to release a product in Berlin ahead of the IFA 2012 trade show in a Unpacked event. It was suspected it was the the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. Samsung yesterday sent out invites to the members of the press to attend their press event on August the 29th but they failed to state what product they would release so sparking off rumours about the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 being released.  Today Samsung confirmed those rumours by issuing a statement to Reuters stating that: 

 

“We plan to unveil the next Galaxy Note at the Samsung Mobile Unpacked event in Berlin on August 29,” a Samsung spokesman said on Friday, without elaborating. The event will take place two days before the opening of Europe’s biggest consumer electronics trade fair IFA.

 

Usually Samsung do not announce such details in advance of their press events. It seems like Samsung are hoping to catch the bit of press attention, before they launch the phone. Samsung will certainly need this attention, because Apple will most likely be releasing their much rumoured iPhone 5 in the very near future, which will likely over shadow any product release or announcement made by Samsung or any other company.  

However there has been no official confirmation about the rumoured specifications of the device.  It is expected to come with a 1.6GHz quad-core Exynos 4412 processor and with a whopping   1.5GB of RAM that will guarantee speed and fluidity when you carrying out the most demanding tasks.  If these specification are true it will make it faster than Samsung flagship phone the Samsung Galaxy S3 and that phone is no slouch . 

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Sky Go now is compatible with the Samsung Galaxy S3

July 23, 2012 by

The Sky Go on demand application which permits Sky customers  to access channels and a variety of on-demand programmes  and movies in line with their subscription, has now been rolled out to the top end Samsung Galaxy S3. This app now works with a total of 11 Android smartphones,which includes models such as the HTC Desire, HTC Desire S, HTC Desire HD, Incredible S, HTC Sensation,HTC Sensation XE,Samsung Galaxy S, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Samsung Galaxy Note and the Samsung Galaxy S2.

It’s worth pointing out that this app will only ever be able to run on a minority of Android devices. This due to many of the Mid end and Low not being able to meet the minimum requirements that is required to be able to run the app in terms of processing power and ram. 

If you interested in giving this application a try, just  head over to the Google play store. If you are a PC or Xbox360 owner just download it. iOS users can head over to the app store to download it. If your on other platforms such as Windows Mobile and the Blackberry OS, sorry at the moment you are out of luck, but who knows if what will happen in the future. 

 

 

 

 

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