News

BlackBerry Curve (Apollo) shown off – Video

This is the second leaked BlackBerry video in the last few days. First we had the BlackBerry Torch 2 and now the forthcoming Curve. This latest video comes courtesy of a Vietnamese tech site so don’t expect to have a clue what the chap is saying!

The device sure looks like a Curve but with some nice improvements. It is now a lot thinner and has 480 x 360 resolution display plus a 800MHz processor. That sounds pretty amazing for a Curve. Like the Torch 2 video this device is still unannounced officially by RIM so we cant say when you are likely to see it in the shops but if I was a gambling man I would say Quarter Three maybe.

Anyway, you can see the video below and please feel free to leave your comments/thoughts on the forum.

MSI WindPad 110W and 100A offer 10.1-inch Win 7 or Android

MSI introduced a range of slates at Computex 2011 this weekend. The WindPad 100A runs Android, hense the ‘A’. A 10.1-inch 1280 x 800 IPS slate weighing 740g, the WindPad 100A has an unspecified dual-core Cortex A9 processor along with 1GB of RAM, up to 32GB of storage and WiFi b/g/n. Bragging over 8hrs of runtime from a single charge. It weighs 720g and has a G-Sensor, ALS, an SD card reader and a USB port.

There’s also an HDMI port, g-sensor, ambient light sensor, an SD card slot, USB port and audio output; cameras front and back complete the deal. OS is “the latest Google Android operating system” which certainly suggests Honeycomb. No word on pricing yet or when it will hit the shelves.

The WindPad 110W, running Windows and cunningly titles with a ‘W’, has 2GB of memory, WiFi b/g/n, a G-Sensor, ALS light sensor, and an SSD hard drive offering up to 64GB. It weighs 850g and, MSI reckons, will last for over 6hrs of runtime. Both have twin cameras, front and back, and SRS PC Sound.

MSI has also added some touch-sensitive smart keys on the side of the Windows slate, along with face recognition for auto-login. No word on pricing or availability at this stage for either model.

Check out the Press Release below:

Asus Padfone Officially Introduced at Computex 2011

Introducing the Asus Padfone, a high concept tablet/phone combination that was announced at Computex 2011 this weekend. A package consisting of an 4-inch Android smartphone which can dock into a companion 10.1-inch 1280 x 800 tablet. The tablet’s separate battery can be used to recharge the phone, while the phone’s 3G connection can get the slate online when away from a WiFi hotspot.

ASUS is promising a “seamless” transition from the phone to the tablet UI, with whatever you’ve been looking at on the handset automatically expanding to suit the slate, along with the improved web browsing experience you’d expect from a bigger display. If a call comes in while the phone is docked, then it can either be removed or answered with a Bluetooth headset.

Phone and slate can access the same storage in the handset, and since there’s only one 3G radio then you don’t have to swap your SIM between two modems or sign up for a second data connection. The UI has been modified to suit both displays, either showing mobile sites on the phone or full sites on the tablet. The phone itself has two cameras, a front-facing webcam – just like the tablet – and a 5-megapixel camera on the back which can also be used through a hole in the PadFone dock.

ASUS is saying that finalized hardware specifications haven’t been decided on yet, and nor have pricing or availability, so don’t get your hopes up too much. Still, as concepts go, this is an intriguing one.

BlackBerry Torch 2 caught on video

Those cheeky monkeys at technobuffalo.com have managed to get themselves a BlackBerry Torch 2 to play with. The device is still unofficially announced by RIM so I don’t suppose they are particularly happy with the device being out in the wild but these things happens from time to time.

As we have seen before in photos the Torch 2 shares the same body with its predecessor, although now being silver instead of black, but inside it is a whole new phone. With a 1.2GHz processor, better screen resolution and running BlackBerry 7 you will see in the video that the OS runs extremely smoothly.

We know the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is coming in the near future. I wonder how much after that the Torch 2 will be. I want to play!

You can see the hands on video here compliments of technobuffalo.com.

Posted by: James

ZiiLab’s Jaguar tablet look good on paper

The Computex tradeshow is about to start in Taipei and Ziilabs has put together a couple of Android based tablets they’re calling Jaguars. This family of Honeycomb tablets is built specifically to showcase their new ZMS-20 and ZMS-40 StemCell processors and they’re hoping manufacturers will take notice.

The tablets will come in 2 flavours, a 7-inch (1024×600) and 10.1-inch (1280×800) displays with both featuring front and rear facing 5MP cameras. But the real bread and butter is in Ziilabs’ StemCell processors. Both are based off of  the ARM Cortex A-9 platform and come in a dual-core (ZMS-20) and quad-core (ZMS-40) flavors. Would be interesting to see these tablets running some high-end benchmarks.

Posted by Gareth

White Sony Ericsson Xperia Play available on O2

If you are on O2 and have been waiting for the Xperia Play to be released then today is your lucky day. The device is the White variant which looks pretty tasty.

On contract you can pick up the device from free, depending on the contract. PAYG is £429.99 which isn’t cheap but is inline with many other flagship devices.

You can view the full details here.

Posted by: James

Nokia E6 available fro pre-order

Nokias new front facing QWERTY handset, the E6, is now available to pre-order from the Nokia website. SIM-free for £349 is a pretty attractive price for this new Symbian power house which will ship with Nokias new ‘Anna’ update pre installed. If sales of the previous ‘E’ series phones are anything to go by this one should do very well.

• Quick facts

• Real QWERTY key pad
• Ultra-crisp touch screen
• Create, edit and share Microsoft office docs on the go
• PDF reader
• Real time work and personal emails
• Auto sync email with your Microsoft Outlook account
• Chat to your business colleagues with Microsoft Office Communicator
• Free lifetime walk and drive GPS navigation with turn-by-turn voice guidance
• Pre-loaded with apps for Facebook, Twitter, business, maps and more
• Live social networking feeds direct to your home screen
• Customise your home screen with one touch shortcuts to your favourite apps
• Unbeatable battery life
• 1000s more apps for work and play available for download from the Ovi Store

Posted by: James

Brits spend 11 hours 48 minutes per day staring at a screen!

New research out today reveals that Brits now spend more time per day staring at screens (11.8 hours) than sleeping (7.3 hours), due to the explosive growth of tablet computers, smartphones and e-readers.
In the esure home insurance ‘Square Eyes’ poll, 61 per cent of the participants reported withdrawal symptoms if they cut down on their screen use or did not have access to one of their screens.  Frustration was the most common symptom reported (36 per cent), followed by restlessness (26 per cent) and feelings of isolation (17 per cent).
The average Brit spends three hours per day watching TV, 4.7 hours in front of computers and 1.2 hours looking at their phones.  More than two thirds (69 per cent) of Brits say that they regularly ‘multi-screen’ by using more than one piece of technology at the same time, such as using their phone while watching television.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Play and Arc Android update rolling out

Android 2.3.3 has started to roll out on the Xperia arc and PLAY. The update brings a number of improvements and fixes, as well as Sony Ericsson’s ‘Facebook Inside Xperia’.

Optimizations and fixes include:

• Battery performance
• General software stability
• Wi-Fi stability
• HD Video recording performance (Xperia arc)
• Touch responsiveness

Full details on this update and how it is being rolled out are available on the Sony Ericsson product blog: http://blogs.sonyericsson.com/products/2011/05/26/update-on-facebook-inside-xperia/

Posted by: James

The giant Vodafone truck that can charge 2000 handsets at one time

If you’ve been to a festival or large open-air event, you will know that keeping your mobile phone charged can be a potential nightmare.

Solutions have come in the form of independent companies setting up camps and charging festival-goers to power their smartphones so that they could remain contactable and use them to snap photos of their favourite bands.

However, one truck looks set to change all that.

The Vodafone VIP recharging truck is heading to 11 festivals this year, offering Vodafone customers with the opportunity to charge their mobile devices, completely free of charge. The 44 tonne vehicle can charge 2,000 devices at any one time (as quickly as it would at home) and is expected to charge over 72,000 mobile devices this summer alone.

If you’re a Vodafone customer at a festival and you own an Android, iPhone, BlackBerry or Nokia device, this is what you need to look out for. For more information about the events it will be available at visit http://vodafone.co.uk/vip.

Pretty cool. You can see a few more photos below: