News

HTC Hero Android 2.1 upgrade news

For those of you with the HTC Hero patiently waiting for the Android 2.1 Eclair upgrade we have some official news for you from HTC. HTC just released the following statement:

“Android Éclair update for HTC Hero will be released by the end of June. The upgrade will come in two parts, the first of which will roll out from this week and will be detected when the Hero next automatically checks for software updates. The second part of the update will follow towards the end of the month. As the second part of the upgrade will wipe all data on the handset, Hero users should ensure any important data has been backed up before proceeding with the installation. Due to the size of the update, wherever possible, we would advise using a WiFi connection for this download to avoid additional data charges.”

We’ll post more as we get it!

Posted by: Matt

USA to get the HTC Desire

Good news for all you Android fans over in the USA. Looks like you will be getting the HTC Desire in only a couple of months.

The device has been a huge hit over here in the UK and although many of you may have had Desire ROMs on your Nexus Ones now you can can get the real thing.

I wonder if there will be a CDMA version? I cant imagine Verizon not wanting a piece of the pie.

If you have not read the HTC Desire review you can do so here.

Posted by: James

Samsung Galaxy S in stock and shipping

Last night James and I attended the Samsung Galaxy S launch event in London where not only were we treated to some hands on time with the Galaxy S but also to a star-studded event with many celebs also looking for face time with the handsets. Sadly we had no hands-on time with any celebs, but that’s another story!

The Galaxy S (i9000) is an awesome handset. It has a stunning Super AMOLED display measuring 4″ and 480 x 800 res. 1GHz CPU and 8 or 16GB of storage.

We currently have one to play with and will have a video and review here on site for you shortly. If you are already looking to buy one though then check out Clove Technology as the already have them in stock and will start shipping them this afternoon, you could have it as early as tomorrow!

Clove also have a great offer on the handset. Buy the 8GB version of the Galaxy S and they’ll throw in an 8GB microSDHC memory card for free, taking the storage to a total of 16GB! Good deal!

iPhone 4 gets UK pricing

Today’s the day you can start pre-ordering Apple’s iPhone 4 with the promise that you’ll have the handset delivered to you on the 24th June.

You can order the iPhone 4 in either Black or White and either 16 or 32GB models. Apple have just announced SIM-free direct pricing as follows:

iPhone 4 16GB for £499 and 32GB for £599.

Somewhat more expensive than the quoted $299 in the USA.

We’re still waiting on carrier pricing but I expect that will soon follow.

Posted by: Matt

[ Post Tags: iPhone 4, Apple, tracyandmatt.co.uk ]

iPhone 4 pre-order day

Today’s the day that many have been waiting for – iPhone 4 pre-order day. Since it was officially announced last week iPhone 4 has scarcely been out of the news with all of the networks making some kind of announcement or another relating to pre-order tariffs and contracts.

As at the time of writing there’s still no news on the SIM-free prices and none of the networks have confirmed PAYG pricing either but I suspect that we’ll start to see some UK pricing over the next few hours.

You can find out more from each of the networks:

Nokia X5-01

At an event in Singapore today Nokia have unveiled a rather small and square sliding QWERTY device – the X5-01, which will be available in a range of colours.

The X5-01 runs Symbian S60 3rd edition and packs a 2.36-inch display of QVGA resolution. It’s got quad-band GSM connectivity and tri-band HSDPA support for world-wide roaming. Connectivity is further complemented by Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 and the microUSB and 3.5mm audio jack.

The X5-01 is rumored to have fantastic music quality and super loud speakers, great for the youngsters. All the usual social media sites are integrated into the device as well as instant messaging. The X5-01 also has some crazy gestures. For example a shake of the phone will show all unread messages. Not sure how useful that one will be!

Samsung Galaxy S pre-order on Vodafone, Orange to follow?

The Samsung i9000 Galaxy S is another of those handsets that many seem to be eagerly awaiting. I’m sure that the 4″ Super AMOLED has a lot to do with the handset’s desirability and coupled with Android 2.1 it’s sure to make an impression.

Last night I saw that Vodafone have opened the Samsung S to pre-orders on their site and according to the current information if you pre-order today you’ll actually have the handset on the 15th June. I’m sure that it’s no coincidence that this is the same day that the iPhone opens to pre-order!

So following the Samsung S appearing on Vodafone I got an email tip this morning from a reader claiming that the handset would also be available on the Orange network over the next few weeks, this has yet to be confirmed though.

If you want to order the Galaxy S sim-free you can do so from our friends over at Clove Technology.

O2 change data tariffs

Those cheeky folks at O2 are altering their data tariffs as from June the 24th which coincidently is iPhone 4 day.

Buy a phone on O2 today and you still get unlimited data although it will be a promotional data plan but that will only last until October when the plan expires.

So as from the 24th, the amount of data you are entitled to depends on how much you spend. Lower price tariffs will get 500mb then increasing to 750mb and then 1gb for top spenders.

Don’t worry if you think you will go over your allowance. O2 are happy to take some more cash from you in the form of a bolt on. £5 gets you 500mb and £10 gets you 1gb. How jolly generous of them!

You can see examples of the current plans below on a 24 month contract.

What will be interesting to see is if the other carriers start moving the goal posts.

Nice work O2!

Posted by: James

Three UK will launch iPhone 4

It looks like everyone is jumping on the iPhone 4 bandwagon. Three have announced they will be stocking the iPhone 4 from June 24th. You can visit the three iPhone page to keep up to speed on the latest news.

I bet our friends in the USA will be jealous of us. At present they can only get the iPhone on AT&T which some people say do not offer a great service. Lucky for us we don’t have this restriction now. So far, as well as Three we have Orange, T-Mobile, o2 and Vodafone set to launch iPhone 4 all on the 24th.

Let the price wars commence!

Posted by: James

Samsung announce budget Android device – i5500 Corby

The Samsung i5500 Corby (AKA Galaxy 5) is apparently hitting Italian shores soon but as yet we have no word on whether the device will be heading over here to the UK.

With a Wave of high end Samsung devices (no pun intended!) launching here this month it does make sense for Samsung to also target the lower end too.

With HTC launching the Wildfire in the next week this new Samsung device could maybe be a contender? Sporting Android 2.1 on a 2.8 inch QVGA capacitive screen, 2mp camera, 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS and 3.5mm headset jack the i5500 seems to contain all the essential ingredients.

Word on the street is that it will be retailing in Italy for only 199 Euros. The question being will it be worth spending a little extra and getting the HTC Wildfire?

Lets hope the Samsung i5500 Corby is on its way to the UK.

Posted by: James