Seasoned tech blogger. Host of the Tech Addicts podcast.
This Tuesday we will be having a chat with the CEO of GiffGaff, Mr. Mike Fairman. A chat that will feature in the next podcast. Once again we shall be on our best behaviour and Andy will even be wearing a tie.
If you have any questions you would like our rousing panel to batter Mike with then please fire them at me and we shall do our very best to direct them to Mike.
Email: [email protected]
Vodafone’s modifying the firmware upgrade before they gear up to launch it for their Nexus-toting customers. Afraid that Vodafone might be omitting key Android 2.2 features such as internet tethering and hotspot capabilities, those customers have taken it to the official FroYo Nexus One thread on the carrier’s forums.
After a large thread of confusion and miscommunication, it’s said that the modifications are to ensure MMS and Voicemail features are working properly before Vodafone would have to eventually deal with a large influx of customer complaints. Who wouldn’t want their carrier looking out for the best interest of their device, right? Wrong!
A lot of the uproar stems from the supposed fact that Vodafone promised Nexus One purchasers (in voice and in writing) that they would not be touching any firmware updates for the device (and apparently they don’t care if that right would come at the expense of a buggy launch). As they understand it, all updates should be coming directly from Google.
[Source]
Some will say its the ugliest phone about but I honestly quite like it. Filling a niche gap that is currently empty, this front facing Qwerty keyboard Android phone is going to be a social networking must have. The Charm is one of the smallest Android phones measuring only 67.2 x 98.4 x 11.4 mm and weighing in at 110 grams. It features a 2.8 inch screen which is one of the first QVGA displays (320 x 240 resolution) on an Android phone in the U.S.
Units that were sent out for testing suggest it features a 600 MHz TI OMAP3410 processor (unconfirmed) with 512MB ROM and 512MB RAM.
As if it wasn’t expensive, the trend continues for the Bedazzled iPhone with an stylish array of diamond crystals. This version of the 32GB white iPhone 4 comes with a “hand finished wallet made from real Ostrich foot” just to turn most women off. For a meagre £12,995 you can have one, but be quick as there are only 50 units will be available for retail. iPhone 4 from Gresso is obviously going to turn some heads and help you stand out. Muggers and burglars, take note.
[Source]
Gareth, James, Matt and Andy are back at it for a new show in a particularly quiet week. This week they cover the HTC Ace, HTC Vision, Microsoft canning the Kin One and Kin Two and some rumbling over at O2.
Matt, James and Andy.
If anyone is interested in helping out with regular posts here at Mobile Tech Addicts then please drop me a line. I have recently become snowed under with other projects and the last thing I want to do is let MTA slide. If you are interested you can drop me a line here. Or you can DM me on twitter.
Froyo madness never ends. Woke up this morning to an Android 2.2 OTA update. It’s another very small update (900k) and if you can’t wait for it to come OTA you can grab the update direct from Google HERE. Not sure exactly what this has done to improve the OS but rumour has it they have jiggled around with the Wireless N feature.
I have noticed that the marketplace has been fixed and I can finally download all the apps I purchased.
As soon as we know more, or have a link to a version for non-stock users, we’ll sing out. [Handy-FAQ.de (in German), XDA Developers]
[Source Android Central]
Dear iPhone 4 Users,
The iPhone 4 has been the most successful product launch in Apple’s history. It has been judged by reviewers around the world to be the best smartphone ever, and users have told us that they love it. So we were surprised when we read reports of reception problems, and we immediately began investigating them. Here is what we have learned.
To start with, gripping almost any mobile phone in certain ways will reduce its reception by 1 or more bars. This is true of iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, as well as many Droid, Nokia and RIM phones. But some users have reported that iPhone 4 can drop 4 or 5 bars when tightly held in a way which covers the black strip in the lower left corner of the metal band. This is a far bigger drop than normal, and as a result some have accused the iPhone 4 of having a faulty antenna design.
At the same time, we continue to read articles and receive hundreds of emails from users saying that iPhone 4 reception is better than the iPhone 3GS. They are delighted. This matches our own experience and testing. What can explain all of this?
We have discovered the cause of this dramatic drop in bars, and it is both simple and surprising.
Upon investigation, we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong. Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength. For example, we sometimes display 4 bars when we should be displaying as few as 2 bars. Users observing a drop of several bars when they grip their iPhone in a certain way are most likely in an area with very weak signal strength, but they don’t know it because we are erroneously displaying 4 or 5 bars. Their big drop in bars is because their high bars were never real in the first place.
To fix this, we are adopting AT&T’s recently recommended formula for calculating how many bars to display for a given signal strength. The real signal strength remains the same, but the iPhone’s bars will report it far more accurately, providing users a much better indication of the reception they will get in a given area. We are also making bars 1, 2 and 3 a bit taller so they will be easier to see.
We will issue a free software update within a few weeks that incorporates the corrected formula. Since this mistake has been present since the original iPhone, this software update will also be available for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G.
We have gone back to our labs and retested everything, and the results are the same— the iPhone 4’s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped. For the vast majority of users who have not been troubled by this issue, this software update will only make your bars more accurate. For those who have had concerns, we apologize for any anxiety we may have caused.
As a reminder, if you are not fully satisfied, you can return your undamaged iPhone to any Apple Retail Store or the online Apple Store within 30 days of purchase for a full refund.
We hope you love the iPhone 4 as much as we do.
Thank you for your patience and support.
Apple
This weeks podcast is a special, epic length chat session. Matt and Gareth quiz industry specialist Tom Monetto on exciting new screen technology from Sharp, Matt’s better half, Tracy, has her say on the HTC Wildfire, Andy doesn’t get his iPhone quite as planned, Vodafone takes a bashing and
Regulars: Howling Mad Richardson, Hannibal Davis, Faceman Myles and BA Lee
Guests: Tom Monetto and Tracy Davis
Around four million mobile phone users will be forced to disconnect their mobile phones if Ofcom goes ahead with proposals to cut mobile termination rates, Vodafone warned today.
The warning comes as Ofcom moves to implement proposals to cut mobile termination rates (MTR) from 4.3 pence per minute (ppm) to 0.5 ppm between 2011 and 2015.
Vodafone chief Guy Lawrence warned: ‘Ofcom’s proposals to slash our incoming call revenues are likely to mean that low income families will start paying more to use their phones because the money we receive from incoming calls will disappear.
‘This revenue has allowed us to support low spenders. We see these proposals as unnecessary intervention which tax low income families and should be reconsidered.’
Vodafone argues that the cut would force operators to increase mobile prices.
Connect
Connect with us on the following social media platforms.