Press Releases

Vodafone launch the Smart II – budget Android

Another reasonably priced Android device launches today, the Vodafone Smart II. Priced at just £70 on Pay as you go price plans the handset may well be perfect for first time smartphone users.

The Smart II outperforms its predecessor in every way, while still retaining its low price point to appeal to people thinking about picking up their first smartphone. It runs on Android 2.3, offers a bigger display, better camera, longer battery life, a more powerful processor and more memory than the original Smart, making for an even better user experience.

The Smart II gives users great connectivity and provides access to Google Android services such as Gmail, VoiceSearch, YouTube and Google Talk. Combined with a large collection of embedded apps such as Facebook and Twitter – plus access to SWYPE for quick and easy typing, and Vodafone AppSelect to discover even more great apps – the Smart II offers a high quality, affordable option in the smartphone arena.

Available in dark grey and white, customers can make the most of their new Smart II with our great value Freebees, which include a choice of free minutes, text and web access or international calls – www.vodafone.co.uk/freebees. Every pay as you go customer is also automatically opted-in to Freebee Rewardz.

Every time a pay as you go customer tops up as little as £5, they’ll receive a text giving them a voucher code. They can then go online to ‘grab’ an instant reward or bank them as ‘grow’ points, to save up for something bigger. www.vodafone.co.uk/rewardz

Customers can choose from a wide selection of rewards including big name discounts from brands such as Thorntons and BLOCKBUSTER, music downloads and free minutes or choose to take a mystery reward, which could be anything from a smoothie maker to an iPhone. Alternatively, customers can collect points towards vouchers and experience days.
For further details please visit the Vodafone online shop.

You can see a video of the Smart II in action below:

Orange announce the Intel powered San Diego

Today unveiled the San Diego, a new high-performance Android smartphone powered by Intel Inside®, which will be available exclusively on Orange from 6th June nationwide. 

The San Diego (previously codenamed ‘Orange Santa Clara’) is the first Intel powered smartphone to launch in Europe and will deliver users the latest in innovative smartphone capabilities at an affordable price point.

The handset  is powered by the Intel® Atomo processor Z2460 and supports HSPA+ with the Intel® XMM 6260 Platform.  Together, these Intel solutions deliver users a fast and responsive browsing experience. 

The San Diego features High-definition (HD) video, helping it to support a rich entertainment offering along with 1080p video capture, image stabilization and HDMI out. What’s more, the handset boasts an 8 mega-pixel camera which features ‘Burst’ mode allowing it to take 10 pictures in under a second to ensure you capture all the action and can choose the very best pictures to keep and share.  The San Diego also comes with mobile HD voice for outstanding audio quality, and features a 4.03″ capacitive display, A-GPS and Bluetooth 2.1.

RIM provide Business Update

Last night Thorsten Heins, CEO of Research in Motion released the below statement detailing what is what in the BlackBerry camp at present. As you can expect it is not plain sailing at RIM currently and although there have been some staff changes and rumored staff cut backs this really isn’t surprising.

While financially the company are still focusing a rough couple of quarters this year it isn’t all bad as you will see. The BlackBerry subscriber base worldwide has grown again, now up to 78 million and both developers and RIM themselves are still positively focused on BlackBerry 10 which is still planned to roll out in Q4 this year.

You can read in full what Thorsten had to say below:

Sony announce the Xperia go

Sony Mobile today announced the new Xperia smartphone for consumers looking for premium specifications and beautiful design with extra durability and water resistance. Xperia go has a scratch resistant mineral glass display and meets industry standard IP ratings* (International Protection) for protection against dust and water immersion.

Xperia go enables easy connectivity to share and enjoy content on TV, smartphone, laptop or tablet. They also come preloaded with Music Unlimited and Video Unlimited from Sony Entertainment Network giving access to Hollywood blockbusters, TV series and millions and millions of music tracks. Xperia go will be available in the UK from the third quarter of 2012.

Key features for Xperia go:
With Xperia go consumers can watch the latest movies and TV shows in razor sharp quality and with super fast performance. Its sleek and stylish design means durable and water resistant smartphones no longer have to look bulky and ruggedized:
.    3.5″ Reality Display powered by Mobile BRAVIA Engine gives razor sharp clarity
.    5MP fast capture camera goes from sleep to snap in just over a second
.    Scratch resistant mineral glass display with wet finger tracking
.    Highest level of dust and water resistance in a smartphone – IP67 Rating
.    1Ghz dual core processor gives consumers super fast performance
.    Launching on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), upgradeable to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
.    Available in black, white and yellow colours
.    Xperia go will launch in the US market under the name “Xperia advance”

Posted by: James

Everything Everywhere invests £50 million to revolutionise service for its 27 million customers

Everything Everywhere, the UK’s biggest communications company, has today announced a £50 million investment programme which includes a revolutionary new way to deliver service to its 27 million customers. The company – which runs Orange and T-Mobile in the UK – has overhauled its service approach, designing it around handset operating systems and the devices that use them. For the first time in the UK, customers will now be able to access highly trained specialist agents who are experts on specific devices and related operating systems, giving customers unrivalled service for their Apple iOS, BlackBerry, Android and Windows phones.

The unprecedented smartphone growth the UK has experienced means that customers are using devices in a completely different way and this new service approach is designed to meet customers’ changing needs.  Orange and T-Mobile staff will become experts in all aspects of customers’ digital lives, advising them on device, technology and account specific needs without having to transfer them between departments, which has been the traditional approach to telecommunications customer service. This is a fundamental shift in how the Orange and T-Mobile service experience is delivered and is central to Everything Everywhere’s plan to be the UK’s number one for customer loyalty.

The new service approach is actively rolling out across the organisation following successful trials which showed dramatic improvements in the resolution of issues at first point of contact, as well as a double digit increases in Net Promoter Scores – a key measure of customer service.

The BlackBerry 10 Jam World Tour kicks off in Milan

The BlackBerry 10 Jam World Tour holds its first stop in Milan today, providing Italian developers with the opportunity to learn more about the unique capabilities of BlackBerry® 10 and become one of the first to develop for the new platform. More than 200 developers pre-registered for the now sold out hands-on event at NHOW Hotel, via Tortona 35, Milan.

“The level of enthusiasm among developers for BlackBerry 10, including those here in Italy, has been amazing. We are hearing every day from partners who want to start building and showcasing their work on BlackBerry 10,” said Alberto Acito, Managing Director for Italy at Research In Motion.

Alec Saunders, VP Developer Relations, Research In Motion, added, “At BlackBerry World in May this year, we launched the BlackBerry 10 developer toolkit for native and HTML5 software development and seeded 1500 developers with a BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha device. We look forward to kicking off the BlackBerry 10 Jam World Tour in Italy and working with local developers to help them ready their apps for the launch of BlackBerry 10.”

Nokia Lumia 900 ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ limited edition hits Phones 4U

Listen up Batman fans. If you have been waiting to pick up ‘The ‘Dark Knight Rises’ special edition Nokia Lumia 900 then the wait is over. Phones 4U will have 900 of the handsets available today for pre-order and tomorrow (June 1st) in selected flagship stores.

Nokia has released the limited edition smartphone to celebrate the launch of The Dark Knight Rises– the latest installment in the hugely successful Batman blockbuster movie franchise, releasing nationwide on July 20^th.  Perfect for Batman fans and film buffs, the smartphone builds on the signature sleek and attention-grabbing design of the 900 range. Available in matte black, it is embossed with the famous Batman logo and also comes presented in limited edition packaging, with a Nokia exclusive app for the movie.

Throughout June all Phones 4u customers who order any Nokia Lumia 900 device – either the classic design or The Dark Knight Rises Limited Edition – will receive a pair of complimentary tickets to The Dark Knight Rises in cinemas! And as if that isn’t enough, every customer who purchases a Nokia Lumia smartphone will be entered into a competition for the chance to win once-in-a-lifetime, VIP experience tickets to the London premiere of The Dark Knight Rises movie.

Exclusive to Nokia, the official app for the The Dark Knight Rises is also included. Bringing exclusive The Dark Knight Rises content, including trailers, wallpapers and ringtones. Play the location-based challenge “Claim Gotham City”: choose a side – Batman or Bane – and check in using Foursquare at nearby locations to get points and unlock rewards. Find theaters near you and get directions to the show. Get info about the film, the cast and the social buzz on The Dark Knight Rises.”

The Nokia Lumia 900 smartphone features a 4.3-inch AMOLED ClearBlack Display for rich, bright images and Nokia’s highest capacity battery making it the perfect smartphone for enjoying media and entertainment on the move all day long. The primary camera on the Nokia Lumia 900 has exclusive Carl Zeiss optics, a large aperture for improved performance in low light conditions and wide angle focal length for capturing full 16:9 images.  It also features a front-facing 1 MP HD camera, with large aperture and wide-angle lens for sharp, bright images and video calling.

Available free on contract from £31 a month or SIM free from £599.95, the Limited Edition The Dark Knight Rises Nokia Lumia 900 will be available online and in-store at flagship stores across the UK from 1^st June. For those who can’t wait the smartphone can be preordered from Phones 4u from 29^th May.

Posted by: James

LG sell three million LTE smartphones

Here in the UK we are still waiting for some LTE goodness, however in other parts of the world LG seem to be doing rather well in terms of LTE supported devices. The South Korean company has announced they have topped the three million mark in terms of sales which puts them up there with the other big players.

LG’s offering of LTE smartphones to date include:

• Revolution by LG — LG’s first LTE model released in May 2011.
• LG Optimus LTE — The world’s first HD LTE smartphone was launched in October 2011 and exceeded sales of one million units within the first 100 days, making it the most popular LTE-capable phone in a highly competitive market at the start of the year.
• LG Optimus Vu: — Launched in Korea in February 2012, the Optimus Vu: with its 5-inch IPS display and 4:3 aspect ratio offers a unique viewing experience. At 8.5mm, the Optimus Vu: is the slimmest LTE phone currently on the market.
• LG Optimus LTE Tag — This smartphone offers Tag+, a unique feature which uses Near Field Communication (NFC) to interact with special stickers that change the phone’s settings automatically.
• LG Optimus LTE II — The latest in the series and the world’s first LTE smartphone with 2 GB RAM.

“Reaching the three million milestone this early in LTE’s global roll-out is a strong sign that customers are on board with our LTE strategy,” said Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of LG Mobile Communications Company. “Improving the user experience is at the core of LG’s vision and we’ll continue to take leadership in the LTE market by offering features that offer clear customer benefits.”

According to a report by Jefferies & Company, LG is the global leader in LTE patents with ownership of 23 percent of approximately 1,400 LTE patents filed worldwide worth almost USD 8 billion. LG demonstrated the world’s first LTE technology in 2007, developed the world’s first LTE modem chipset in 2008, introduced the world’s fastest LTE technology in 2010 and conducted the world’s first video phone call on a LTE network in 2011.

Now we just need Ofcom to give the go-ahead here for a LTE roll out.

Source: LG

Posted by: James

T-Mobile announce pricing for the Sony Xperia U

If you are in the market for a reasonably priced Android smartphone the Sony Xperia U may be right up your street. T-Mobile have today confirmed pricing and you can get the device for free from just £15.50 per month with a 24 month contract.

Features:

The Sony Xperia U is the ideal smartphone if you like your sound crisp and powerful. It offers xLoud for beats with impact when listening on earphones or speaker, or even when streaming to wireless speakers via DLNA. The Xperia U also offers Sony 3D surround sound audio technology to give films the dramatic range they deserve.

Personalise your phone to match your mood, or your outfit. The Sony Xperia U lets you swap bottom caps to a choice of different colours, and select from a wide range of themes. The Xperia U also has an illuminated section that changes colour to match album art when you’re playing music, or the shades in your photos as you’re browsing.

Thanks to lightning-fast capture, a single key press takes you from sleep to snap in just over a second. You’ll never miss a perfect picture again. They’ll look great as well, thanks to 5 megapixel resolution. Or if you want to catch all the action, the Xperia U will let you film in detailed HD video.

ZTE launch new video conferencing systems

ZTE Corporation (“ZTE”) has launched today the first of its new high-definition video conferencing solutions into the UK market in association with UK distributor Touchline Video UK. The ZTE T700 4MX and T700 8MX video conferencing systems provide superior call quality and outstanding visual communication for small to medium business environments.

Creating a more natural meeting experience that can be deployed in any working environment, the ZTE T700 series delivers pin-sharp 1080p HD video resolution, crystal-clear high fidelity audio and an integrated, wide-angle PTZ camera which provides exceptional quality video and audio and high performance at a very competitive price.

The ZTE T700 is ideal for small and medium business users, remote office locations and home tele-workers requiring cost-effective videoconferencing solutions with true-to-life video quality and easy set up.