News

HTC Tattoo coming soon to Orange

A couple of weeks ago I posted the fact that the HTC Tattoo was showing as coming soon to Vodafone. Well, today it has also appeared on the Orange website which is good news.

HTC Tattoo

This device will obviously be available on contract but I am also looking forward to finding out if it will also be on PAYG. If it is then the big question will be cost. Just this week T-Mobile announced there own Android device, the Pulse and this is priced at £176.00 on PAYG. Will Orange use the Tattoo to compete? I do hope so as I think I need an Android device for research purposes and although not as good as the HTC Hero or Samsung Galaxy it will be a good option for me as long as the price is right.

Link – HTC Tattoo

Any further updates will be announced here.

Posted by: James

HTC HD2 (Leo) coming to T-Mobile

Just yesterday I posted about the HTC HD2 is apparently being released on O2 soon. Well, the word on the street (the Internet actually) is that it will also be available on T-Mobile as well.

T-Mobile Touch HD2

As usual with the HTC devices, T-Mobile have changed the name of the device slightly and are calling it the Touch HD2. They just have to make it a bit more confusing!

With only four days until the launch of Windows Mobile 6.5 I am hoping Orange also pick up the HD2 as I am due an upgrade soon and the HD2 specs are pretty hot. I may have to get some bigger hands though to cope with the massive 4.3 inch device!

Posted by: James

New laptops from Toshiba

Toshiba have today announced two new laptops with some rather impressive specs. The Satellite T110 & T130 are not only lightweight and thin, but also offer battery life up to 11 hours! Available from late October the laptops have a starting price of £429.00.

T110 and T130

London, UK, 29th September 2009

“Toshiba UK today announced the Satellite T110 and T130 – the first Toshiba laptops to feature Intel® CULV (Consumer Ultra Low Voltage) processors, designed to offer the performance and functionality of full-sized laptops with portability and a battery life of up to eleven hours.

The Satellite T-series is the perfect balance of thin and light eye-catching design, portability, extensive connectivity and stunning battery performance, at an affordable price point. Consumers have a choice of sizes and colour options – the T130 is available with a 13.3” screen, whilst the smaller T110 offers an 11.6” alternative. The T130 will be available in the Satellite Pro range for business users.

Elegant design
Only 22.2mm at its thinnest point and a mere 1.58kg in weight*, the slender, tapered chassis of the Satellite T-series offers a stunning mobile computing experience. The range features an elegant, subtle pattern design – available in a choice of Precious Black, Iron Red Metallic and Luxe White Pearl (model dependent) – that continues inside the laptop, around the keyboard, screen and display.

Portability without compromise
While both the Satellite T110 and T130 boast a thin, compact design, they also deliver a powerful performance thanks to the Intel® CULV processors. The Satellite T130 is available with the choice of Intel® Pentium®, Intel® Single Core or Intel® Celeron Single Core ultra low voltage processors, and the Satellite T110 has the option of either an Intel® Pentium® or Intel® Celeron Single CoreTM ultra low voltage processor.

The ultra low voltage CPU allows for a much longer average running time between charges whilst still providing the processing power necessary for resource intensive tasks such as word processing or image editing, with consumers able to enjoy up to eleven hours use on a single charge. Up to 4GB DDR3 (800MHz) of RAM and up to 500GB of hard disk drive space allow consumers the flexibility to keep their important files with them and run several programs simultaneously.

Mobile working on the Satellite T130 and T110 is made even easier by the inclusion of an LED backlit 16:9 widescreen featuring a resolution of 1366 x 768, at screen sizes of 13.3” and 11.6” respectively. Meanwhile, both models feature Toshiba’s 3D sensor for HDD protection, which detects free falls, shock or vibration and locks down the hard drive to prevent the loss of valuable data.

Comprehensive features
The Satellite T-series also features Toshiba’s innovative gesture support. A multi-touch control pad enables users to pinch, zoom, swipe and rotate objects simply by moving their fingers. An integrated webcam makes video conferencing and web chats simple, and with Toshiba’s Face Recognition technology, it is possible to access files by simply looking into the camera – no need for passwords.

Users can also further maximise the efficiency of their laptop by adjusting the power settings with Toshiba’s Eco-Utility tool – a software application, developed by Toshiba, which allows users to monitor how much energy their laptop is using and reduce the energy consumption by up to 25% in idle mode. The power saving Eco Utility Tool demonstrates the efficiency offered by Eco Utility in direct comparison to the standard power mode.  

The Satellite T110 and T130 laptops offer a wide range of connectivity options including integrated Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity. Furthermore, all Satellite T-series laptops provide three USB 2.0 ports with Toshiba’s Sleep-and-Charge technology allowing multiple devices to charge even when the laptop is switched off. An HDMI port on all versions also allows users to connect to high definition television sets.”

Satellite T110

• Intel® Pentium® or Intel® Celeron Single CoreTM ultra low voltage processor
• Up to 3GB (DDR3)
• 250GB HDD
• 11.6″ LED Backlit 1366 x 768 Screen
• Integrated Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n
• Integrated Web Camera with Face Recognition
• 3 x USB 2.0 Sleep and Charge, 1 x HDMI
• 1.58kg
• Available in Precious Black or Iron Red Metallic

T110

Satellite T130

• Intel® Pentium®, Intel® Single Core or Intel® Celeron Single Core ultra-low-voltage processor
• Up to 4GB (DDR3)
• Up to 500GB HDD
• 13.3″ LED Backlit 1366 x 768 Screen
• Integrated Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n
• Integrated Web Camera with Face Recognition
• 3 x USB 2.0 Sleep & Charge, 1 x HDMI
• 1.76kg
• Available in Precious Black, Iron Red Metallic or Luxe White Pearl

T130

Satellite Pro T130

• Intel® Celeron Single CoreTM or Intel Core 2 Duo ultra-low-voltage processor
• Up to 4GB (DDR3)
• Up to 320GB HDD
• 13.3″ LED Backlit 1366 x 768 Screen
• Integrated Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n
• Integrated Web Camera with Face Recognition
• 3 x USB 2.0 Sleep & Charge, 1 x HDMI
• 1.76kg
• Available in Precious Black

Fingers crossed will will get one of these beauties to review so look out for further news and we maybe an unboxing video if we are lucky.

Posted by: James

Palm Pre UK Release Date!

Well it looks as if the much anticipated Palm Pre will be with us in just a few weeks.

Palm Pre

According to the O2 UK Website the Pre will be released on October 16th, three days after the German launch.

This handset is very much make or break for Palm as there profits have plummeted over recent years. Luckily with the new “Web OS” hopefully the Pre will be a big success here in Europe and therefore keep Palm going.

The Pre has been available in the States for a couple of months or so and has had very mixed reviews. Sales have not been as good as Palm would have liked and now with them announcing another handset, the Pixie, I wonder if this will have a further affect on Pre sales.

Anyway, im certainly looking forward to getting my hands on a Pre to give it a test drive. Yes Matt, that’s a hint!

New Feature on Windows Mobile 6.5

It would appear that Windows Mobile 6.5 has a superb new feature – Group Messaging!

This will allow users to send sms and email messages to multiple contacts easily. I’m sure that business users of Windows Mobile will love this new feature as they will be able to message numerous employees just by highlighting them in the normal scrolling contact list.

With only a couple more weeks left until WinMo 6.5 is officially released it will be interesting to see what other new features may crop up.

Posted by: James

Coming Soon to Vodafone

It would appear that Vodafone here in the UK have a fine selection of devices “coming soon”.

Vodafone

As well as the Nokia N97 Mini & E72 they have a couple of great offerings from Sony Ericsson, The Xperia2 and Satio. These handsets are all going to be in great demand but the one im looking forward to testing out is the HTC Tattoo. We have covered the Tattoo previously and I think it will be a great option in particular for PAYG customers wanting a low cost Android device.

HTC Tattoo

All the above devices are shown on Vodaphones website as coming in October apart from the Xperia2 which should be November. Watch this space for future updates.

Posted by: James

Bug Fixes for Touch Pro2 & Diamond2

HTC have this week released bug fixes for there two top of the range Windows Mobile devices.

TP2 & Diamond2

The first which is available for both devices is a caller I.D update and the second is for the Diamond2 only and fixes a LED flashing light issue.

Both updates can be found at HTC’s website under the support section. (Please read carefully before updating).

Posted by: James

Samsung Star WiFi Spotted

Many of our US readers will already know this news and the handset itself but for me it was a first on both counts.

Samsung have quietly released the second version of their 5 million unit selling Star handset.

A Terribly Designed Flyer

The latest version of this phone features the inclusion of WiFi (hence the name change) and that’s about it. No other changes have been noted even down to dimensions and features.

In what seems to be a teen based handset the Samsung Star WiFi will be available in black, silver, pink and white colours with retail price being around $250.00.

Posted by: John

Samsung i8305 Riedel Spotted?

I’m not sure what to make of this news yet simply because I think it’s still got me in a state of shock.

According to leaked pictures of what could be the recently WiFi certified I8305 Riedel, it looks like Samsung are about to release a Linux powered mobile phone in the UK.

Linux Based Samsung Mobile Phone

LiMo (Linux Mobile) seemed to be a forgotten dream until these pictures were revealed over at Boy Genius Report.

A Look At The O/S Menu

It could well be the success of the other open source project (namely Android) that has spurred on the LiMo foundation to work with Samsung in releasing this handset or it just could be the fact that it took that long to get it ready. Either way as a Linux user I’m well happy.

Here is what we know about the handset so far:

• Touchscreen with Haptic Feedback
• OLED Technology
• 8mp camera
• Access to the Vodafone People service

What is Vodafone People? I asked the same question (not being a Vodafone customer myself). Well Vodafone people will feature things like active contacts, location-based services and access to social networks which sounds very much like the MotoBlur service offered on the Android driven Motorola Cliq to me.

It looks like the device is to be announced on the 24th September at a press conference in London.

Posted by: John

[source]

LG Etna is the LG GW620

It turns out that I got it slightly wrong (there’s a surprise). Despite the Sign on the table saying Etna it turns out that LG’s first ever Android driven handset is actually named the LG GW620.

Although I got the name wrong I was 100% correct in saying that the phone will have a 3 inch touch screen, a slide out QWERTY keyboard and a 5mp camera.

“The LG-GW620 will appeal to first-time smartphone customers by offering a new and different kind of user experience,” said Dr. Skott Ahn, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. “Our objective is to provide a wide selection of smartphones to satisfy the diverse preferences of today’s consumers. This Android phone is just one of many smartphone models we plan to introduce worldwide in the years ahead.”

Not much else is known as yet but as you can see we now have some better images and we know that the phone is expected to be released in Europe in the fourth quarter of the year.

Posted by: John