It’s ALL about the iPad tonight. Well, when I say ‘ALL’ I don’t mean wall to wall iPad talk. In fact there will be a few other interesting stories for those who aren’t interested in the iPad. Quite a few stories… and a few bargains too. Some listeners have also written in. In fact we might not have time for the iPad… we’ll see if we can fit it in. At the end…
MOTOLUXE, the ultra-stylish, ultra-vogue smartphone from Motorola launches today with T-Mobile.
UK fashionistas get ready for a smartphone with a price as attractive as the device itself: MOTOLUXE is available free on contract with T-Mobile, starting from just £21 a month on a 24 month plan.
When it comes to panache, this Android 2.3-powered smartphone sets the bar high. With a 4-inch touchscreen that’s perfect for writing emails, surfing the Web and watching movies, you’ll always be connected, clued-up and entertained – whether at work, hanging out with friends or out on the town.
For photo buffs, an 8-megapixel autofocus camera with flash lets you shoot like a pro. You can even instantly share the pics with friends and family using the phone’s pre-loaded social networking apps.
But there is a reason this is called a smartphone! Incorporating Motorola’s MotoSwitch user interface, MOTOLUXE learns who you talk to and which apps you use the most, and puts all that information front and centre.
Check out the Motorola website for full product specs and images, and the T-Mobile website for pricing and availability.
Posted by: James
ZTE Corporation (“ZTE”), ranks fourth in terms of smartphone patents globally, with 972 total applications, according to a report by the State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China, published the global rankings.
The state report also states that ZTE ranked first in China for smartphone patent applications, with 1,019. According to the report, applications for smartphone patents increased rapidly around the globe from 2003 through 2006. In China, applications for smartphone patents began to increase rapidly in 2005. During that year, applications filed by domestic applicants outnumbered those filed by overseas applicants for the first time.
“Patent applications are important to ZTE,” said ZTE Executive Vice President He Shiyou. “Our global and domestic rankings in smartphone patent filings show the company’s commitment to R&D and innovation.”
ZTE has over a decade of experience in handset R&D. To date, ZTE has acquired more than 8,000 total cell phone patents at home and abroad. Of those, over 6,000 are Chinese patents. It also holds more than 2,000 international PCT patents, with more than 70 per cent of those related to 3G and cellular.
In 2011, ZTE’s handset business grew more than 50 per cent year-on-year, and its global shipments of smart terminals topped 12 million, a year-on-year increase of 400 per cent. According to a report by research firm Gartner, ZTE is the second-fastest-growing smartphone maker in the world. In the fourth quarter of 2011, the company became the world’s No. 4 handset manufacturer in terms of shipment volume.
Posted by: James
We’re just about 5 minutes away from the event starting. It’s action stations and I’m live blogging the event as it unfolds. Refresh this page frequently for updates as we go along!
17:55 – Getting excited now and everyone is being asked to settle and take their seats. Most are doing as they are told!
18:00 – Tim Cook takes the stage, looking remarkably Jobs-like!
18:02 – We’re kicking off with a run down of the post-PC devices that Apple brought to market. Apparently 172 million post-PC devices were sold last year. Accounting for 76% of apple revenue.
18:05 – Apple now has 362 retail stores and 110 million visitors.
18:06 – Video tour of Apple’s latest retail store.
18:07 – Tim’s back and talking about Siri now. Siri is your best friend! Funny thing is, it hates me!
18:08 – Siri now has a Aussie, French and German accent. iOS 5.1 will be rolling out later today including Japan?
18:10 – 100 million iCloud users. 585,000 apps available in the app store, 25 billion downloads.
18:11 – Movies now to be avaialable in 1080p on your new AppleTV with simple streamlined interface.
18:13 – Third-party apps mentioned for AppleTV also! Photostream comes to the device too.
18:15 – The price of the new AppleTV will be the same as the old $99 – bargain! Available from next week and pre-order today.
18:16 – Over 15 million iPad’s sold last quarter.
18:19 – More than 200,000 iPad specific apps in the app store
18:21 – Everyone has been wounding who could possibly come up with a product to be more amazing than the iPad2
18:22 – Tha company is Apple and here is the iPad 3!
18:24 – Yippee, retina display! 2048 x 1536 resolution! Over 3 million pixels 264 pixels per inch!
18:26 – iPad3 to boast a 40% better colour saturation
18:27 – A5X Quad core CPU
18:28 – New feature – iSight camera. 5 mega pixel sensor and 5 element lens (lets hope it’s way better than that iPad2 then!) Image processing built in to the A5X chip!
18:31 – 1080p video recording
18:32 – Voice dictation added to the iPad at last!
18:33 – Built in 4G LTE. Great for those in the US! LTE up to 73Mbps download speed!!!!
18:36 – Demo of photos downloading on LTE 4G in half the time.
– Notice that the design seems not to have changed a lot looking at the photos. Nothing on the physical size and weight as yet.
18:36 – International roaming thanks to the multi-band support. Can even act as personal hotspot if the carrier supports it.
18:38 – But what about the battery life.? For iPad2 we said 10 hours battery life – iPad3 will have the same battery life despite the new CPU and retina display.
18:40 – Physically – 9.4mm thick and 1.4lbs – slightly heavier!
18:41 – $499 for the 16GB – $599 and $699 for the 32GB and 64GB – Adding the 4G adds $130 to the price
18:42 – On sale from the 16th March and pre-orders from today! UK, USA, Japan, France and Germany all on the same day.
18:43 – Same price as existing models then.
18:44 – Existinng apps can be scaled up and rendered on the new display (same as iPhone apps did/do on the iPad)
18:45 – Some awesome game demos now on the big screen in the theatre – console-quality games.
18:46 – Chris Cheung from Autodesk now on stage – starting off by talking about desktop customers. Blah, blah, blah!
18:48 – Talking about sketchbook pro on the iPad – There’s a new engine for ink that "takes advantage of the incredible graphics power of iPad." Can support drawings of up to 100 mega-pixels.
18:50 – Mike Capps, president of Epic Games: demo time methinks. Oooh, Infinity Blade:Dungeons – HDR graphics and tone-mapping. Looks of beautiful lighting and action. "The Unreal engine is unleashing the power of the new iPad."
18:53 – iPad 3 "more memory or screen resolution than either the Xbox 360 or the PS3."
18:56 – Back with Phil: iWork apps updated to take full advantage of the retina display
18:58 – iMovie updated too!
19.00 – Garage Band updated to include collaboration over wi-fi
19.02 – iPhoto for iPad launched
19.05 – iPhoto includes multi-touch editing and easily share through email, Flickr and Twitter
19.12 – Still talking about all the effects in iPhoto
19.15 – iPhoto will be priced $4.99 and released today
19.20 – Video playing
19.21 - iPad2 to continue with a $100 price drop – 16GB $399
19.23 – New iPad commercial is being played
19.25 – and thats it – The new iPad it is!
Posted by: Matt
Post Tags: [Apple, iPad 3, iPad HD, iPad mini, iOS 6, tracyandmatt.co.uk]
After a formal procurement process using a government framework agreement, the South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) NHS Trust has appointed Vodafone UK as its communications partner.
Vodafone will provide fixed-line services, mobile connectivity and its 999 call centre infrastructure support and maintenance. Bringing together SCAS’s communications under one supplier will create savings estimated at half a million pounds over the next five years and help the service’s 2,500 staff communicate more efficiently as they deliver vital healthcare services across the region.
SCAS was created five years ago through the merger of the ambulance trusts in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and Oxfordshire and covers an area of approximately 3,500 sq miles with a residential population of over four million.
As a result of the merger, the service had several communications suppliers covering different areas so it was looking to replace them with a single supplier who could provide resilient fixed, mobile and unified communications across its footprint. Having one supplier will maximise efficiencies, helping the service to continue to provide high quality healthcare services to patients.
On 8th March, Three will launch a new range of price plans that bring an end to out-of-bundle data charges for all new smartphone contract customers.
New customers will be able to choose a plan with Three’s ground-breaking all-you-can-eat data offering, or a 250MB allowance with a guarantee of no out of bundle data charges; giving them a fear-free mobile internet experience. They can then choose from a simple range of minute options to create the best value plan for their needs.
The new plans have been driven by the massive increase in mobile data usage over the last 18 months, and insight from customers that they want to keep better control of their costs. They ensure that smartphone customers can enjoy all the benefits of internet on the move, without fear of data bill shock.
For customers wanting plenty of everything, The One Plan – the original all-you-can-eat data plan – continues to offer all-you-can-eat data and more than enough minutes and texts. Alongside it, Three now introduces two new tariff families, with data firmly at their heart. Continue Reading »
Today’s press event being held by Apple is just hours away and there’s a hell of a lot of speculation around it. However, one thing seems to be pretty universally accepted; it’s going to be a very important event!
Important, perhaps, in many ways. It will be the first major announcement by Apple since Steve Jobs passed away last year. The host later today is expected to be Tim Cook but I’d imagine we’ll see a variety of Apple execs take the stage for various portions of the presentation.
So we think we are going to see the latest coming of the iPad today. Will it be called the iPad 3? That would be my guess but many others think it could be called the iPad HD because of the expected hi-res or retina display. The new quad-core A6 CPU is also high on the list of guesses along with larger amounts of memory, up to 128GB perhaps.
iOS 6 could well be on the cards. That seems to be coming up in logfiles from various popular websites so it could be that Apple have been testing the OS internally.
How about a mini-iPad? That too has been mentioned on more than one occasion. Personally I think it less likely but not impossible.
The event starts at 6pm UK time and I’ll be covering the highlights live on the site and twitter so be sure to stick check back in on us later.
Posted by: Matt
Samsung Electronics today announces the latest addition to its Android powered Galaxy portfolio, the Galaxy Pocket. Featuring Android 2.3, this new smartphone offers those on the lookout for a new handset, a stylish portable option.
The Galaxy Pocket’s slim design makes it ideal for use whilst on the move and features a 2.8″ display so that content and images can be viewed easily. The device features an upgraded TouchWiz user interface making menu navigation a smooth and efficient experience.
Connecting with others and sharing content is quick and easy thanks to the Galaxy Pocket’s social networking and communication features. Samsung’s ChatON cross-platform communication service connects all phone users into a single community, enabling spontaneous messaging, group chatting and content sharing so customers can stay in touch more easily.
In addition, the Galaxy Pocket’s Social Hub enables owners to see their Instant Messaging, social network and email communications in a single inbox for added convenience when they are travelling to and from work or out shopping. Continue Reading »
Research in Motion are holding a #BBEMEAChat that takes place tomorrow, Tuesday 6th March. Follow the conversation with MP Rob Halfon (@halfon4harlowmp) from 9.30am when he’ll be giving an insight into what goes on inside the House of Commons and how his BlackBerry helps him balance his work and personal life.
Rob Halfon is the current Member of Parliament for Harlow and was elected at the 2010 general election. He is a big advocate of using social media to keep in touch with his constituents and is a self-proclaimed lover of mobile technology.
You can get involved by asking a question using the hashtag: #BBEMEAChat and follow @BBEMEABusiness.
Posted by: James
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