News

Orange also to sell the HTC One X and One S on Thursday

We told you yesterday that T-Mobile would have the HTC One S and One X in stock on Thursday this week.

Orange will also have the devices the same day. The HTC One X will be available free on a £41 per month, 24 month plan, and the HTC One S will be free on a £36 per month, 24 month plan. Customers can register their interest for the HTC One X here and for the HTC One S here.

Our HTC One S unboxing video will be live a little later today.

Posted by: James

T-Mobile announce HTC One X and One S prices

T-Mobile have today announced that the new HTC One X and One S will be available in store, online and via telesales from next Thursday, 5 April. The HTC One X will be available free on a £41 per month, 24 month plan, and the HTC One S will be free on a £36 per month, 24 month plan.

If you are interested in taking a One Series phone with T-Mobile you can register here to keep you up to date.

Posted by: James

BlackBerry Curve 9220 specs and simulator available

After all the confusion this morning (not here though) regarding RIM and the consumer market the BlackBerry Curve 9220 that we mentioned has appeared on the BlackBerry developer blog. As well as specs there is also a simulator for devs to download in order to help them crate apps for the new low end device.

The BlackBerry 9220 will support Bluetooth® 2.1 and include the following profiles:

• Headset Profile (HSP)
• Hand Free Profile (HFP)
• Address Book Integration using AT commands or OBEX (Object Push)
• Phone Book Access Profile (PBAP)
• Dial-Up Networking (DUN)
• Bluetooth Stereo (A2DP / AVRCP)
• Serial Port Profile (SPP)
• Secure Simple Pairing (SSP)
• A/V Remote Control Version 1.3
• Bluetooth Message Access Profile (MAP)

RIM will continue to focus on the consumer, despite what the media is saying.

You may have seen on more than one of the main news channels today details of RIM’s earning call last night. You may also have noticed that several of these channels, including the BBC, have stated that RIM say they are going to focus on the enterprise segment of the market and not the consumer.

Whoever wrote these articles clearly didn’t listen properly to the earnings call. These claims are totally misleading. Sure, Thorsten Heins did say that the company would re-focus on core strengths, including the enterprise customer base but he certainly didn’t say that they would not continue to support the consumer market. In many parts of the world the consumer market is where Research in Motion is strongest, including here in the UK. The BlackBerry Curve 8520 has been hugely successful and continues to be.

One thing that Thorsten also said, which the bigger media channels didn’t pick up on, was that RIM would be bringing new low end devices to market within weeks. If this is the case how on earth can RIM not be focusing on the consumer!

Jim Balsillie resigns from Research in Motion

With just minutes to go until RIM’s Q4 earnings call starts some big and shocking news has hit the web.

Jim Balsillie, former Co-CEO of the Company, has resigned as a Director on the Company’s Board.
"As I complete my retirement from RIM, I’m grateful for this remarkable experience and for the opportunity to have worked with outstanding professionals who helped turn a Canadian idea into a global success," said Jim Balsillie.
"On behalf of the Board and everyone at RIM, I would like to thank Jim for his 20 years of service to RIM," said Barb Stymiest, Chair of RIM’s Board of Directors. "His energy, drive and enthusiasm helped build one of the most successful technology companies of our time."
In addition, David Yach will be retiring from his role as CTO, Software after 13 years with the Company and after 4 years with the company and following an open dialogue on the future of global operations, Jim Rowan, COO, Global Operations, has decided to pursue other interests. The Company is currently undertaking a search to hire a single COO with responsibilities to run the Company’s operations.
"RIM would like to thank David Yach and Jim Rowan for their years of service and many contributions to RIM," said Thorsten Heins, President and CEO. "We wish them well in their future pursuits."

More as we get it.

Posted by: James

Gloucestershire Police Adopt The BlackBerry Solution

We have reported a couple of times in the past about UK Police forces using the BlackBerry solution. It seems that Gloucestershire Constabulary have taken the plunge and adopted the BlackBerry in a bid to save costs and make officers more efficient out on the street.

Officers will use the phones to carry out paperwork and update logs, jobs previously carried out from the office. It comes after the force closed and put up for sale 13 of its stations in a bid to hack £18 million from its budget.

Katy Roberts, spokeswoman for Gloucestershire Police, said: “641 BlackBerry devices are being issued across the county to PCs and PCSOs working in our Local Policing Areas. The devices will give officers access to the majority of the systems used in their work, allowing them more time on patrol and less time travelling to or working within police stations. This is part of our drive to increase the number of officers working in high- visibility roles. It will also reduce bureaucracy and improve efficiency, thereby cutting overall policing costs.”

Temple Run for Android now available

If you Android users have been jealous of your iPhone friends playing Temple Run then today is going to be a great day for you.

The popular iOS game is now available to download for Android and what fun it is.

Run for your life!

The addictive mega-hit Temple Run is now out for Android! All your friends are playing it – can you beat their high scores?!

You’ve stolen the cursed idol from the temple, and now you have to run for your life to escape the Evil Demon Monkeys nipping at your heels. Test your reflexes as you race down ancient temple walls and along sheer cliffs. Swipe to turn, jump and slide to avoid obstacles, collect coins and buy power ups, unlock new characters, and see how far you can run!

If you cant find the game in the Play Store you can click here.

Enjoy.

Posted by: James

Sony Tablets and Ice Cream Sandwich

Sony Japan recently confirmed that their Tablet S and Tablet P Android tablets will soon be receiving the Android 4.0/Ice Cream Sandwich update. They didn’t make it clear if this was an international release or if it was only for the Japanese market. Besides the tasty goodness of ICS, this update brings some additional features as well. Here’s a list:

• Expanded photo capabilities – the photo app can be launched from the lock screen and enables panoramic pictures
• A new “Recopla” app will also be included in the update for viewing TV programs that have been recorded on Sony Blu-ray players
• A new “Small Apps” feature that lets users multitask more efficiently

As a side note, Sony also announced a Wi-Fi-only version of its Tablet P. It is scheduled to launch on April 21st. How many of you folks out there have either of these tablets? Sound off in the forums.

Posted by: Gareth

Acer bring a new 10” tablet to the table

Acer just officially announced the availability via pre-order for their new Iconia A510 tablet. The tablet will be available in the U.S. and Canada for the decent price of $449.99. No mention of the UK yet however I would imagine that it wouldn’t be far behind or perhaps ahead of the US release. What makes this a good value is that it comes with a quad-core chip and Android 4.0/Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box. Here’s a spec breakdown:

• 10.1-inch screen with a 1280×800 resolution
• Quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor
• 1GB of RAM
• 32GB of storage
• Five megapixel camera capable of “HD” video recording (probably 720p)
• One megapixel camera on the front for video calls
• 9,800mAh battery – good for up to 12 hours of video playback
• A microSD card slot for up to 32GB of storage to add
• Also includes a micro HDMI and microUSB
• Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich

Posted by: Gareth

Mobile Tech Addicts Podcast 161: Three Millions iPads

Gareth and James this week make the most of a pretty quiet week. James admits to being dragged kicking and screaming over to Florida in May for Blackberry World. Archos excites Gareth a little more. Apple post some big sales. And Matt is off doing valuable research!