News

Ice Cream Sandwich on Archos G9

Charbax gives us a quick demo of the Archos G9 running Android 4.0.1 Ice Cream Sandwich on the OMAP4 based tablets. This is to be finalized during Q1 of 2012. They still have to finish the hardware acceleration for video support, Samba/Upnp, 3G stick support and all of the other specific features that Archos provides on top of Android.

A £250 tablet with 100% GPU acceleration will be a very tempting option for those out there shopping for some Ice Cream Sandwich action.

Twitter for BlackBerry updated to support multiple accounts

Great news, Twitter for BlackBerry smartphones v2.1 now has multi-account support-the top user requested feature. As of today, the app is leaving beta and will be made available for download in the BlackBerry App World storefront (please note it may take up to 24 hours for the app to appear in BlackBerry App World for some users).

There are also a couple of cool multi-account support features available for BlackBerry 6 and BlackBerry 7 OS users in Social Feeds for effectively managing multiple Twitter accounts. Let’s take a closer look at Share with BBM and multi-account support in this updated version.

MIPS $100 Ice Cream Sandwich tablet – Video

We brought you news yesterday of the MIPS tablet that is launching with a price tag of under $100 while still running Android Ice Cream Sandwich.

A video is now available to view on the MIPS YouTube channel. As you will see this new tablet really is a game changer in the tablet wars. The price will make it available to so many more people and businesses.

You can see the video of the device below:

Possible Ban on HTC products in the U.S.

Well here is some interesting and somewhat troubling news that was just pointed out to us. According to Fortune CNN, HTC could be facing a possible import ban here in the U.S. depending on the outcome of an appeal over two patents that Apple is going after HTC for.

Depending on the upcoming ruling, which will be handing down the final verdict of HTC’s appeal on Dec. 14th, HTC could end up facing an import ban of all their Android devices to the U.S. which would shrink their current market share of 25% down to 0%. This would happen right before the holidays no less when sales for mobile devices, as Christmas presents and what not, are generally at their highest.

The first Ice Cream Sandwich Tablet

Here’s a bit of a surprise… even though we have seen ports on several devices, the first Android 4.0/Ice Cream Sandwich tablet will not be what we expect. The first ICS tablet will be a $99 MIPS SoC enabled tablet called the NOVO7. 

Instead of the usual ARM-based chipset, the NOVO7 uses the MIPS-based XBurst processor called JZ4770, from the Chinese Ingenic Semiconductor. This chip runs at 1GHz and can handle 1080p video playback and 3D games with its Vivante GC860 GPU. Supposedly, this tech is very efficient with battery power and allows for 7 hours of browsing or 6 hours of 3D gameplay.

The tablet also has a 7" capacitive touchscreen, a USB 2.0 port, microHDMI ports, a 2MP rear camera, a front-facing camera and a microSD slot.

The NOVO7 tablet passed the Google Compatibility Test Suite certification. It will run pretty much all of Google’s services and can handle thousands of apps from the Android Market.

Remember about your BlackBerry freebies

RIM have a nice bundle of freebies for you on the App World. To make up for the outage a couple of months ago your Blackberry is about to get a little more crammed. You only have until the end of this month to get yours and there are a few that are certainly worth your attention!

Google Maps updated to 6.0

Google Maps 6.0 for Android was released last Tuesday with several enhancements, the most notable, airports and other public places. Users are able to search throughout floor plans too, which means a traveller can search for a coffee shop or the nearest toilet in an airport. Google Maps floor plans will grow when a user is zoomed-in fully on a building where mapping data is available. The differences between indoor and outdoor maps can be seen in the image to the right.
Indoor maps are currently available in selected locations in the U.S. and Japan. Click here to see the current list.

Maps will contain labels with store names, bathroom locations, ATM icons and airport gates, among other items. Google collaborated with the owners of the mapped venues in this first iteration of indoor maps. However, Google is making available a tool that any venue owner can use to upload floorplans for inclusion in the application’s database at http://maps.google.com/floorplans.

Google Maps 6.0 for Android will work on devices with version 2.1 and higher of the mobile operating system. At launch, the application includes floorplans for Tokyo’s Narita and 17 U.S. airports, including Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, San Francisco International Airport and George Bush Houston International Airport; stores of the retail chains Macy’s, Bloomingdales, Home Depot and Ikea; and malls including Mall of America, Times Square Mall in Mt. Vernon, Illinois, and Liberty Fair Mall in Martinsville, Virginia.

Posted by: Gareth

HTC Explorer coming soon to Orange

For those of you looking for a small entry-level Android phone there will soon be a new kid on the block from HTC that will slide in at the lower end of the market; The HTC Explorer comes in a bit under the HTC Wildfire in terms of specification, with just a 600MHz CPU and limited internal storage. However, the Explorer does have HTC’s latest Sense 3.5 user interface and Android OS 2.3 Gingerbread.

The HTC Explorer will be available soon on the Orange network and I suspect that this will be a free on contract handset and my guess would be around £150 mark on PAYG.

We’ll get one to review soon too!

LG & Sky Christmas Cashback Offer

This Christmas, LG will be helping even more people watch festive favourites in 3D. As part of its on-going partnership with Sky, LG is offering Sky TV customers up to £200 cashback when purchasing selected LG Cinema 3D TVs, with TVs starting at just £550.

From December 1^st to December 24^th Sky TV customers will be able to get the following cashback offer: 

LG CINEMA 3D TV Series:              Cashback

LW450U                                               £50/ ?55

LW540U                                               £50/ ?55

LW550T                                                £100/ ?115

LW650T                                                £100/ ?115

LW980T                                                £200/ ?225

For incredible savings, customers should visit www.sky.com/lgoffer for more information about the deal. 

Posted by: James

Infinity Blade II launches for iOS

Attention iOS gamers. You are going to love this one. The original Infinity Blade caused quite a stir when released and now the sequel looks to do the same. Priced at £4.99 Infinity Blade II is now available for download from the App Store. The application is universal and works on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad so you can use on more than one iOS device.

From Epic Games’ award-winning studio, ChAIR Entertainment, comes Infinity Blade II, the sequel to the best-selling sword fighting action game developed exclusively for iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad.
Powered by Epic’s cutting-edge Unreal Engine 3 technology, Infinity Blade II takes handheld gaming to even greater heights with stunning visuals, new combat styles, and advanced character customization in a beautiful, fully 3D world.
The Award-Winning Infinity Blade Story Continues!
The God King has been defeated, an unlikely hero has emerged and now you must discover the truth behind the secrets of the Infinity Blade. The continuing journey of young Siris unfolds as you delve deeper into the world of the Deathless tyrants and their legion of Titans. Can you unlock all the mysteries and successfully wield the power of the Infinity Blade in this timeless sword fighting adventure of champions and villains?
A Robust & Dynamic 3D World:
Explore beautiful and immersive environments that dynamically change over time during your travels and venture to exotic locations such as the Asian themed Saydhi’s Estate or the medieval inspired Vault of Tears featuring multiple paths to explore.