This week Gareth is joined by both James and Matt. The guys address many of the issues raised over the last week in the mobile phone world and stack the show full of bargains!
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:
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.
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.
We announced the Acer Liquid Express just last week and Acer are certainly excited about its NFC capabilities. I have just stumbled across a video posted on their YouTube page and Acer are taking a different angle on this one.
The LIQUID EXPRESS is whatever it has to be for you. Designed to adapt perfectly to your mobile lifestyle, it features Android 2.3 Gingerbread, an ultra-modern user interface, and a brilliant 3.5-inch large screen in a compact, attractive design. Web surfing, social networking and multimedia are a pleasure to experience on the move, and NFC technology enables express sharing, mobile payments, and much more. The LIQUID EXPRESS comes in three stylish colors: Dark Burgundy, Titanium Grey and Pearl White.
You can see the video below:
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 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
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!
Those of you using Symbian devices may be pleased to know that the Kik cross-platform IM app is now available for your devices. You can download and install from the Ovi store or by heading over to the Kik website.
Press release follows:
We’re proud to announce that Kik Messenger for Symbian is available for download in the Ovi Store. Go get it now!
We think the millions of Symbian users around the world deserve pretty, responsive, reliable apps, just like any other mobile platform. In that spirit, we built Kik to be the fastest and most beautiful messenger available for Symbian today.
A special ‘thank-you’ goes out to our beta users, who not only gave us valuable feedback but also freely shared their enthusiasm for Symbian. Your spirit is infectious.
So, Symbian users: Go give it a try and let us know what you think.
Symbian OS versions supported: Symbian^3, Anna and Belle
Posted by: Matt
The GALAXY Nexus, the world’s first smartphone to feature Android 4.0 – Ice Cream Sandwich – the latest Android platform, is now available to buy from Vodafone.
Android 4.0 brings an entirely new look and feel to the operating system, including improved multi-tasking, notifications, Wi-Fi hotspot, NFC support and a full web browsing experience. The GALAXY Nexus also features software navigation buttons and integrated Google+, which allows you to ‘hang out’ with friends, and talk over Google+ Messenger. It also gives you access to 300,000 apps and games available on the Android Market.
The GALAXY Nexus is available free on £41, 24 month plans – including 900 minutes, unlimited texts, and 750MB of mobile data.
New and upgrading pay monthly customers will benefit from Vodafone Data Test Drive which lets them use as much data as they like, for whatever they like, for three months so they can fully explore what their brand new GALAXY Nexus has to offer. They can also get up to £270 for their old phone with Vodafone Buyback.
We know our customers lead busy lives and may not wish to wait for their phone to arrive at their home. They can choose to collect their new GALAXY Nexus in a store convenient to them – we’ll let them know when it’s there. When they come to collect it, customers can have all the contents of their old mobile transferred to their new GALAXY Nexus using Vodafone’s innovative RED Box.
For more information on pricing, visit the Vodafone online shop
Posted by: James
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