Three launches mobile private network service

New offering which Three says is a UK first allows customers greater control over their information when out of the office

Three has partnered with Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) to start offering its wholesale partners connectivity over Layer 2 Tunnel Protocol (L2TP).

The service, which Three says is the first of its kind in the UK allows partners or a customers network to assign their own IP address to a mobile broadband dongle or tablet device.

This, Three says means users can gain access to an organisation’s own computer netowrk without the need for a Virtual Private Network (VPN), which allows remote workers to have full use of all documents and resources hosted on a central server when out of the office.

Three director of wholesale Lynda Burton (pictured) says the new offering will allow its cutomers greater use of its 3G network.

“Not only does L2TP improve data routing efficiency for wholesale partners offering the end service, but it also significantly improves the end user experience – enabling them to seamlessly access corporate and education networks,” Burton said.

“To be the first mobile operator to do this underlines Three’s commitment to its wholesale channel and our continuing innovation when it comes to data services.”

T-Mobile in summer unlimited web promotion

Customers signing up to 24 month tariffs between July 1 and September 30 that cost 25.54 or more will receive unlimited mobile internet for the duration of their plan

T-Mobile is offering unlimited mobile internet access to customers who sign up to a 24 month plan of 25.54 a more a month between July 1 and September 30.

The offer is available through T-Mobile’s stores, website and telesales routes and is also open to existing customers who are eligible to upgrade on those plans, or can be added as a data bundle for 5.10 a month for those already on equivalent price plans.

T-Mobile UK vice president of propositions Tim Dowling said: “We know that more and more of our customers are using the internet on their phone to make the most out of their smartphone, so that’s why we’ve chosen to give them the opportunity to receive truly unlimited  internet for the duration of their plan. So this summer, T-Mobile customers can now have the freedom to surf and email on the go without the need to monitor their usage.”

 

Samsung Galaxy S II gets official for Canada on Bell, Virgin Mobile and SaskTel

We've already had some indication of where and when the Galaxy S II would land in Canada, and three carriers have now finally made things fully official (even if they haven't yet got completely specific). That includes Bell and Virgin Mobile -- neither of which are confirming a price at the moment -- plus regional carrier SaskTel, which plans to offer the phone for $79.99 on a three-year contract. SaskTel and Virgin Mobile both also say that the phone will be available in the coming weeks, while Bell isn't offering much more than a chance to win the phone in a contest that ends July 19th -- we've previously heard that the phone will be hitting Bell on July 14th. Perhaps not surprisingly, it's looking like the phone will also alternatively be known as the "Galaxy S II" or "Galaxy S II 4G" depending on the carrier.

Artist Editions Artwork Comes to Ultimate Ears

artist edition, Logitech Ultimate Ears, Artist Edition Logitech, Artwork Option, earbuds, earphones, ultimate ears

Ultimate Ears Custom Stage Earphones are made to order, each pair handcrafted and individually designed. Many of high profile Rock Star Clients take the personalization even one step further and provide Logitech with exclusive artwork from artists they love. Now Logitech is giving everyone the chance to show off exclusive artwork on their professionally tuned Ultimate Ears Custom Stage Earphones. Introducing their new “Artist Editions” Artwork Option. 

They are scanning the globe for great artists that they handpick to make exclusive designs for our custom earphones. Congratulations to first Artist partner – Andrew Pommier.

 

Andrew Pommier grew up in a small mining city located the wilds of Northern Ontario. It was there that he found skateboarding and punk rock music. He left the city’s bare and rocky moonscape at 18 to attend the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto and never looked back…

 

Andrew’s graphics have graced the bottoms of such top brands as Toy Machine and Girl Skateboards along with some of the industries more core labels like Coda and the UK based Heroin Skateboards. He continues to be the key producer of graphics for skater owned Momentum Wheel Co., and has lent his name to many signature products over the years from adidas shoes to the Zune MP3 player to Kokanee beer cans. He’s also had a long term association with Southern California based RVCA Clothing who’s music program supports many bands like Modest Mouse and Animal Collective as well as the Canadian super group Broken Social Scene with whom he worked with last summer to design a limited edition t-shirt for their show on Toronto Island in Ontario.

 

Although a Vancouver based artist, Andrew has been very much on the move as of late. He spent the final 3 and a half months of 2010 touring through the south of France with an art show of his oil paintings entitled “At the Time of Fear”. After sojourns into Prague, Amsterdam, and Berlin, he briefly returned to Vancouver for the holidays before heading south. Even though he is sleeping on couches and borrowed floors he continues to be productive with the barest of art making implements, which besides the necessary digital accoutrements of laptop and scanner are the more fundamental pen, paper and kit of water color paints. Regardless of his recent restlessness a studio space in Vancouver awaits him so his return is simply a matter of time.

 

T-Mobile Debuts the myTouch 4G Slide with Most Advanced Camera

T-Mobile USA, Inc. today announced the myTouch 4G Slide, the latest 4G smartphone to join T-Mobile’s exclusive line of myTouch products. The myTouch 4G Slide features the most advanced camera of any smartphone with zero shutter lag, backside illuminated sensor and additional premium digital camera features that offer consumers a viable replacement for their digital point-and-shoot cameras. The myTouch 4G Slide is expected to be available in July. (see video above)

Today’s Mobile News in Brief (June 28, 2011)

As reported here on Cell Phones Etc. and across the Web, here’s your daily brief on what happened in the world of mobile phones this Tuesday, June 28th 2011.

Competition Bureau Fines Bell $10 Million For Misleading Advertising
The Competition Bureau have reached an agreement with Bell today that will see them fork over $10 million for misleading advertising. The Bureau said that Bell has been advertising prices for various services since 2007 that “were not in fact available” and hiding details within the fine print. Bell stated that they fundamentally disagree with the outcome but “has decided to immediately resolve the issue and move forward by paying”.
MobileSyrup

500,000 Android Devices Are Activated Every Day
Half a million Android devices are activated every day, a number that’s growing 4.4% each week, Google’s Android chief Andy Rubin revealed in a tweet. Android’s growth has been amazing in the past couple of months. In May, Google said 100 million Android devices had been activated and 400,000 devices are activated every day. It took Google’s smartphone platform a month-and-a-half to reach half a million daily activations, and at such an astonishing growth rate, it might reach one million activations per day before the end of the year.
Mashable

Windows Phone 7 gets its Kik, too
It would seem Kik, everybody’s almost favorite free messaging service — except those on a BlackBerry, perhaps — has added Windows Phone 7 to its list of supported platforms. What’s Kik you ask? Well, in case you’ve been hiding under a rock, Kik’s an instant messaging app with BBM-like features such as message status which lets you know if your message has been read, received, or if whomever you messaged is typing back. Throw in photo sharing and the fact that it is free, and well, you get the idea.
Engadget

Rogers Employees Start LTE Training
Ottawa residents will be first to experience the new Rogers LTE network this Summer. There has been no official launch date announced but the Sierra Wireless Rocket Stick (AirCard 313U) has been deemed the inaugural device. Rogers has future roll-out plans to Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver by the end of 2011, then another 25 locations in 2012.
MobileSyrup

iOS Vs. Android: Which Mobile OS Is More Secure?
A new independent study by security experts at Symantec attempted to measure how secure Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android platform are, and also to determine how these mobile platforms stack up against desktop operating systems. Symantec claims that these mobile platforms are much more secure than today’s popular desktop operating systems, though the firm does note that the key variable, as always, is the human element.
BGR

Google Announces its New Social Network Called Google+ Project

Google has announced its new social network called Google+ project. (See video above).  Google+ project includes +Circles for sharing information with people who matter the most to you, +Sparks to strike up conversations about anything you desire, +Hangouts to stop by and say hello, face-to-face-to-face, +Mobile to share what’s around, right now, without any hassle, +Location to share your location, +Instant Upload to share your photos, +Huddle to coordinate with friends and family in real-time and +You to put you first all across Google.

Optimus Mini Six Keyboard Production by Art Lebedev

An announcement by Art Lebedev Studio has now revealed that their new Optimus Mini Six keyboard has now entered production and will be available later this year to buy, with their full-sized Optimus Popularis keyboard arriving sometime in 2012.

The newly revealed Optimus Mini Six comprises of six keys which are equipped with full colour LCD displays using a 64 x 64 pixel screen. The new screens are smaller than previous versions and allow Art Lebedev to reduce the overall footprint of the Optimus Mini Six.The new 64 x 64 pixel resolution screen within the new keys will provide a much smoother and crisp image for the key graphics

Windows Phone 7 New App:AmazonFresh Grocery Shopping

Amazon has launched a new app for Windows Phone 7, the app is called AmazonFresh and it is designed to let you order groceries from your Windows Phone 7 smartphone.

Amazon has decided to launch the app on Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 platform first with Android and iOS versions to follow in the future, and the app will only work in the Seattle area at the moment.

Obviously Amazon will be testing out the AmazonFresh app on Microsoft employees, of which there are around 40,000 in the Seattle region, and the app lets you order and manage your shopping.

Review – Straight Talk Prepaid Service: An Alternative to Tiers and Buckets

On May 10th, after weeks of looking for a prepaid service to serve as my new primary service to save some cash, I decided to skip the usual suspects in MetroPCS, Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, GoPhone and Verizon Prepaid and ended up choosing Walmart’s exclusive Straight Talk prepaid service. You may be wondering why I would choose a nearly unknown service provided by the world’s largest retailer along with one of the largest virtual operators in Tracfone. Read on and you’ll find out why along with some pretty neat stuff about the service as well as the phone that I bought in the Nokia E71-2.

The Phone
After looking at Straight Talk’s lineup of phones and looking at tons of forum posts on the subject over on HowardForums, I decided that I would buy the Nokia E71-2 without a second thought. You might ask yourself why I didn’t choose the newer 6790 Merge on account of its support for S60 Feature Pack 2 in comparison to 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1 on the E71-2.

Simply put, the Merge/6790 has no Wi-Fi radio and was less capable overall than the E71, despite retailing for $229.99 compared to the $199.99 ($224.48 after taxes) of the E71-2 at the time. The E71-2 as sold by Straight Talk is the exact NAM model (RM-357) previously sold by Nokia upon its release in 2008 for $450, with no firmware changes whatsoever and the only differences being locked to Tracfone/Straight Talk.

The phone features a stainless steel bodyshell and backing plate, 3.2 inch QVGA resolution display, QWERTY keyboard, 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus and (painfully bright) LED flash, microSD slot, GPS transceiver with A-GPS support, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi b/g radio. The packaging for the phone included some rather questionable legalese printed on it which I’ll get to in the next major section.

Living with the phone for nearly two months, it’s clear that Nokia peaked in terms of hardware and software with the E71 and S60 FP1. The phone doesn’t slow down or lag and is packed with features, such as a full version of QuickOffice, barcode/QR Code reader, full media player with Flash support and small touches such as support for unsigned apps and a front facing camera for video calls, with full support for SIP internet telephony over either 3G or Wi-Fi.

The Service
Straight Talk is composed of two prepaid service tiers: 1,000 minutes, 30MB of internet access and 1,000 messages for $30 a month or unlimited voice/text/MMS/data service for $45 a month. Since the E71-2 is a smartphone, it requires the $45 service plan, with the option to buy 3 and 6 months or even a year of unlimited service online. I actually ended up having to go online to activate and purchase service for the phone due to the lack of $45 prepaid cards at the particular Walmart where I purchased the phone. The online activation process went rather smoothly and was quite fast, though it is very easy to sign yourself up for the auto refill option once you purchase a month of service online using a debit or credit card if you’re not careful.

The Straight Talk service for the Nokia E71-2 and the Nokia 6790 operate on AT&T’s GSM and HSPA network, which means I’m getting 2.2Mbps down and full 1.5Mbps upload speeds on the E71 in my neighborhood, which is great for emergencies and those days when Charter decides to act up (which is thankfully rare). While around town, I’m almost always within 3G coverage, though I prefer to switch to GSM only to conserve battery power during the day. Voice service is above average on 3G and GSM, though attempts to use Google Voice with it have been less than successful, with incoming calls not working correctly and resulting in delays when speaking to callers or callers not being able to hear me.
Now then, onto the legalese printed on the packaging. In an interesting attempt to force service bundling, Tracfone has come up with some serious caveats for those looking to purchase Straight Talk service only and is actively attempting to prevent usage in unlocked phones:

Some Straight Talk wireless phones have SIM cards. If your Straight Talk phone has a SIM card, then you agree to safeguard your SIM card and not to allow any unauthorized person to use your SIM card. You agree not to, and not to allow any other person to, directly or indirectly alter, bypass, copy, deactivate, remove, reverse-engineer or otherwise circumvent or reproduce the encoded information stored on, or the encryption mechanisms of, your SIM card. You may not remove your SIM card or use the SIM card on any other wireless phone. Any violation of the restrictions on the use of your SIM card that are contained in this section may result in the immediate termination of your service without notice. The Carriers, TracFone Wireless, or its service providers, may, from time to time, remotely update or change the encoded information on your SIM card.

The above is not quite enforceable since it conflicts with both the First Sale Doctrine and attempts to enforce an EULA style agreement for service, which is legally tenuous to begin with. Since Tracfone sees the $45 service level as a subsidy along with the cost of the phone, the above could also be interpreted to mean that Tracfone is attempting to force a postpaid style agreement where there is none, since the phone was purchased at MSRP. This also means that Tracfone is preventing you, the potential customer from reselling the phone and just keeping the SIM card for service, which is also bad.

Even with those (rather massive) caveats, the service itself is worth paying for and is experiencing surging popularity within the Jailbroken and unlocked iPhone communities because it works with little effort, save for some manual MMS/data configuration as well as on other major smartphones. Now if only Nokia could send me a US version of the (E7, N8, E6) so I can test a theory that I have regarding AT&T and T-Mobile network access that I’ll explore in a future article (hint, hint Nokia).

My Personal App List for the E71
Ovi Store
Opera Mini (for EDGE)
Opera Mobile (for 3G)
cCalc Pro
JoikuSpot (for Wi-Fi tethering)
IM+
SMSAlert (Individual SMS tones for contacts)
Skype (VOIP over 3G supported)
Gravity (Social networking)

Wrap Up
I wanted to wrap this up by explaining why I went with Straight Talk when there were other options out there with more up to date smartphones. Boost Mobile has Shrinkage but requires you to be on the service for at least six months before you reach the same rate, MetroPCS doesn’t have a similar rate with unlimited data on LTE, Virgin Mobile has a $40 rate plan with unlimited data and messaging but voice is limited to 1200 minutes a month. GoPhone now features a $50 unlimited voice and messaging plan for smartphones, but data access is not unlimited, while Verizon’s new flat-rate prepaid offering is limited to select phones.

Straight Talk is available now and is the best of both worlds: Cheap enough to help control costs and easy to fit into a tighter budget, but with a service level that will let you breathe easy and not worry about watching minute usage or data, with the bonus of easy tethering for those moments when Wi-Fi just doesn’t cut it. You can buy the phone at the link below from Walmart.

Straight Talk Nokia E71 – $169.99

New T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide Delivers Most Advanced Camera of Any Smartphone

My Touch 4G Slide, T-Mobile USA, 4G smartphone, myTouch product

T-Mobile USA, Inc. today announced the myTouch 4G Slide, the latest 4G smartphone to join T-Mobile’s exclusive line of myTouch products. The myTouch 4G Slide features the most advanced camera of any smartphone with zero shutter lag, backside illuminated sensor and additional premium digital camera features that offer consumers a viable replacement for their digital point-and-shoot cameras. The myTouch 4G Slide is expected to be available in July. 

T-Mobile’s high-speed 4G network continues to expand and is now available in more than 190 markets, reaching more than 200 million people nationwide. With the T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide, T-Mobile customers in these areas can now take advantage of 4G speeds as they instantly capture and then share special moments at the speed of life.

 

“Knowing that the best camera is the one you’ve got with you, we set out to create a new best-in-class smartphone that allows our customers to leave their cameras at home,” said Andrew Sherrard, senior vice president, marketing, T-Mobile USA. “Our newest myTouch device takes capturing and sharing memories to a new level by combining high-quality smartphone hardware with features that customers would expect from a top-of-the-line digital camera.”

 

Ideal for capturing that perfect moment with photos that rival high-end dedicated digital cameras, the myTouch 4G Slide comes with an 8-megapixel camera with a dual LED flash and a host of advanced digital camera features, including the following:

 

Improved low-light Performance: with a backside illuminated sensor and a wide aperture lens (f/2.2)

Zero shutter lag: innovative software features allow for an instantaneous shot at that precise moment

SweepShot: for capturing panoramic shots by sweeping across an entire scene in a single motion

ClearShot HDR: for capturing objects in bright settings so your photos are not affected by high-contrast lighting

BurstShot: for capturing multiple photos in a quick burst so you don’t miss the perfect photo

 

Running on America’s Largest 4G Network, the myTouch 4G Slide allows customers to instantly capture, and then share, quality photos and videos with a dedicated camera button and one-touch access to post to Facebook, Picasa or Flickr ? all at 4G speeds. A true camera and camcorder replacement, the myTouch 4G Slide features a full HD 1080p camcorder with audio recording and ability to edit videos directly from the device.

 

Manufactured by HTC exclusively for T-Mobile, the new myTouch 4G Slide features a beautiful 3.7-inch WVGA super LCD touch-screen display, with Swype, and a slide-out full-QWERTY keyboard, offering customers the freedom to choose how they want to input text. Powered by Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and HTC Sense 3.0, the myTouch 4G Slide provides an intuitive and powerful smartphone experience. With support for T-Mobile’s lightning-fast 4G network paired with a 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, myTouch 4G Slide customers will experience quick access to their favorite websites, videos, applications and much more.

 

The myTouch 4G Slide makes staying connected with loved ones more convenient than ever with T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik for face-to-face video chat on the go and Group Text by Bobsled, which offers an innovative way to send and receive text messages with groups of friends. The new advanced Genius Button offers one shot voice commands, powered by Dragon Dictation from Nuance, that simplify the smartphone experience by enabling users to call, text, find a business or search the Web, all with the press of a button. With the myTouch 4G Slide’s Hands Free mode, customers can stay connected while on the road with the option for all notifications to be read out loud — simply tell the phone to text or dial to continue the conversation.

 

The myTouch 4G Slide offers preloaded entertainment applications, including T-Mobile TV, Netflix and YouTube for real-time mobile video streaming. The myTouch 4G Slide’s entertainment experience also can be shared with the whole family with T-Mobile KidZone, a built-in feature that allows parents to restrict what applications their kids can access on the device without worrying about them making a call or accessing inappropriate material.

 

Availability

 

Offered in two colors — black and khaki — the T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide is expected to be available exclusively from T-Mobile in July at T-Mobile retail stores, online at http://www.t-mobile.com, and from select national retailers and dealers. Customers can visit http://mytouch.t-mobile.com/4g-slide for more information.

 

T-Mobile’s 4G network has expanded to seven additional markets: Barnstable, Mass.; Chico, Calif.; Lancaster, Penn.; Ogden, Utah; Redding, Calif.; Vineland, N.J., and Winchester, Va.

 

Ericsson takes LTE-Advanced next-level, notches 1Gbps downloads in testing

Smirking as you pull down borderline-criminal speeds on your Droid Charge? Ericsson's doing you (at least) one better. The Swedish company is pushing out-of-this-stratosphere speeds to its testing van using upcoming LTE-Advanced technology; it managed to hit download speeds that exceed our paltry LTE limit by a factor of ten -- that's 1Gbps, folks. Not only is Ericsson cranking up the speed, it's also endeavoring to make the new network more efficient by offering 8x8 MIMO (Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output) functionality, which enables data to be retrieved and sent faster regardless of network congestion.

Of course, these test results are taking advantage of 60MHz available bandwidth, as opposed to the global max of 20MHz and the US standard of 10 . If we'd like to see speeds of such magnitude, we'll have to come across more spectrum somewhere, and soon; Ericsson hopes to have the first phases of LTE-Advanced ready to bump up our network speeds by 2013. At that point, "faux G" will take on a whole new meaning, won't it? Full PR and video after the break.

Show full PR text

LTE Advanced: mobile broadband up to 10 times faster
June 28, 2011

-Ericsson demonstrates LTE Advanced over the air in a mobile environment
-More than 10 times faster than today's commercial LTE networks
-Based on commercial hardware compliant with 3GPP Release 10
-Commercial operation expected to start in 2013

Consumers in Sweden were the first in the world to experience commercial LTE services. Today, Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) demonstrated the next step of LTE, known as LTE Advanced, to the Swedish Post and Telecom Agency (PTS). The demonstration, held in Kista, Sweden, featured speeds more than 10 times faster than those currently experienced by LTE consumers in Sweden.

The system, based on commercial hardware, was operating on a test frequency provided by the PTS. This enabled Ericsson to demonstrate LTE Advanced functionality such as carrier aggregation of 3 x 20MHz (60MHz aggregated) over the air in a mobile environment for the first time.

Mr. Urban Landmark, Head of Spectrum Department of Swedish regulator PTS, says: "Sweden is in the forefront when it comes to usage of mobile broadband. Sweden was both early with licensing of harmonized spectrum in the 2.6GHz and 800MHz bands, and the first country in the world where LTE was commercially deployed. The demonstration today indicates that mobile broadband technologies continue to evolve rapidly."

LTE Advanced will further enhance the speed and capacity that will be needed in the Networked Society in the years to come. The technology is compliant with the 3GPP Release 10 global standard. Recently, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) also selected LTE Advanced as one of the technologies that fulfills International Mobile Telecommunication's criteria. The first stages of LTE Advanced are expected to be in commercial operation in 2013.

"Ericsson encourages all regulators to allocate harmonized spectrum as early as possible," says Ulf Ewaldsson, Vice President and Head of Product Area Radio, Ericsson. "The next step of LTE enhances the current service offering, performance and data speed even further. It provides operators with the opportunity to capitalize further on their existing infrastructure. Once again, Ericsson is committed to supporting operators' needs as expectations and requirements for mobile broadband services increase."

The enhancements introduced with LTE Advanced include carrier aggregation and extended multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) functionality. From a user perspective, this means that information can be retrieved and sent much faster, even when the network is congested. This, in combination with the faster speeds, improves the user experience significantly.

The demo system was based on Ericsson's multi-mode, multi-standard radio base station, RBS 6000. Live traffic was streamed between the RBS and a moving van from which network performance could be monitored. In the demonstration, 60MHz of aggregated bandwidth was used, compared to the 20MHz maximum that is currently possible using LTE. In the downlink, 8x8 MIMO was used.

In 2010, the technology's first year of operation, the number of users with access to LTE networks rose from 0 to 150 million people. Ericsson supplied the majority of these commercial LTE networks and has signed contracts with six of the world's top seven operators ranked by 2010 global revenues.

Ericsson is the prime driver of open standards and has had a greater impact than any other player on the LTE specifications released to date. Ericsson expects to hold 25 percent of all essential patents for LTE in the industry.

Microsoft Adds Custom Ring Tones To Windows Phone 7 Mango

Along with the 500 features originally announced for Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 Mango OS, Microsoft today announced the ability to create custom ring tones. Obviously, pre-loaded ring tones will still be available for those of us who enjoy a more classic ringer… but if you want Fergie to assure you that tonight’s going to be a good night every time your special lady friend calls, now you can.

The file must be less than 39 seconds long, smaller than 1MB, and be DRM-free MP3s/WMAs. Outside of those specifications, you basically have free reign over what you’ll hear when you get a call. You can set up ring tones with the desktop Zune client, by finding the file in Zune, right-clicking, and changing the Genre to ring tone.

Along with the ability to add custom rings, Microsoft is also hooking Mango up with 9 new on-board ring tones. Microsoft mentioned in the announcement that the new Mango SDK gave developers a number of cool tools to create ring-tone creation apps, so be sure to check for those once Mango arrives in Fall.

[via Windows Team Blog]

Whiteboard In Microsoft Video Hints At WP7s Future?

There’s not a lot of real data to pull out of this unless you’re privy to a lot of internal Microsoft stuff, but it’s fun anyway. A video from Microsoft’s Cambridge campus has a whiteboard in the background that seems to have some Windows Phone 7 improvements scribbled on it. Nice eye on the viewer who spotted this!

That’s Dr Victor Bahl, director of the mobile bit of Microsoft Research. The text on the board reads:

TIPC/S – Mango
Localization – Apollo
Inspiration Engine – Apollo
One handed input and next gen soft keyboard – Apollo
Voice Typing
Context Engine – Beyond Apollo

Interesting! Voice typing and a new keyboard? Context and inspiration engines? Sounds like Microsoft has a few surprises in store for Apollo, which is apparently the next major release of WP7. That or Microsoft Research has a team or project called Apollo, and these are the goals or sub-projects.

[via WMPowerUser; image from commenter rsgx]

Smartphones of Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray And Xperia Active Announced

Sony Ericsson has announced to new Android smartphones at CommunicAsia 2011, the Xperia Active and the Xperia Ray, and both models will come with Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

First up is the Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray, which features a 3.3 inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 854 x 4780 pixels, it also comes with an 8 megapixel camera.

Next up is the Sony Ericsson Xperia Active which comes with a 3 inch touchscreen display with a resolution of320 x 480 pixels and it is designed for the outdoors types as it is water resistant up to 1m and dust proof.Both models will go on sale in selected markets at the end of quarter three, we presume Sony Ericsson means Japan, and there are no details if these models will be available in the US and Europe.

Monster Offers One-Click Mobile Payment with My Max Speed App

Monster Offers, a leading mobile banking solutions company and Daily Deal aggregator, announced today its family of mobile payment solutions will be bundled with the popular new mobile phone application, My Max Speed. A speed monitoring application to encourage safe driving and protect consumer rights, My Max Speed is experiencing a record number of downloads as users can keep tabs on their teenagers’ driving speed in addition to confirming in an instant their own rate of speed if pulled over for a citation, among its many other features.

Through a partnership with Iconosys, Monster Offers is providing free downloads of Monster Offers’ “One-Click” Payment Processing, Pre-Paid Debit Card, P2P Mobile Money and Daily Deal eWallet to My Max Speed application users. The planned integration is expected to be complete by July 2011.

Nokia N9 camera: sample images and video

Our first encounter with Nokia's N9 may have been eleven different kinds of awesome, but we knew it was a mere scratch of the high-grade polycarbonate surface. One of the core pieces of functionality we didn't get the chance to address back then was the camera, and after Nokia decided to toot that horn recently -- saying, among other things, that it's the "fastest image-capturing phone" yet -- we decided we had to go back for a second go-around.

In terms of performance, Nokia's camera application definitely lives up to the company's own hype, with nearly instant captures and an equally brisk return to a state of readiness for more image-taking. When shooting video, we noted that audio recording starts slightly later than the video, leaving the first half second or so without sound. This isn't an uncommon issue (we've seen it on other phones and tablets) and can be seen in our video sample after the break. Now might be a good time to also mention that the N9s we tested with today were all prototype units, so don't prejudge Nokia's final hardware on the basis of what you see here. Unless your premature judgment is positive, we doubt Nokia would mind that.

Nokia N9 camera sample images

So anyhow, we took a walk around the company's offices, escorted by a group of unarmed but surely lethal Finnish ninjas, taking shots of the surrounding cityscape as we went. The results show the N9 picking up a ton of detail and controlling noise admirably, while a few impromptu ThinkPad hands-on photos convinced us it can do a pretty stellar job with closeups as well. With a name like N9, however, it was obvious which phone we needed to compare Nokia's lone wolf MeeGo handset to, so out came our trusty N8 with its world-beating 12 megapixel sensor. Alas, in spite of having an F2.2 aperture on the N9, Nokia hasn't managed to replicate the heroics of its earlier device: the N8 shows its advantage in consistently picking out better color balance and in also being sharper throughout the frame. It makes the N9's images appear as if they were shot through a haze, though we hasten to add that this should be considered a strength of the older phone rather than a major failure of the new one. Additionally, the N9 suffers from the typically narrow dynamic range of smartphone camera sensors, which is the cause of the consistently blown-out sky in our gallery images. Still, considering the quick software operation and consistently detailed imagery on offer from the N9, we'd say Nokia is on to a winner here.

Nokia N9 versus Nokia N8 camera samples

P.S. -- Looking for the full-size 8 megapixel stills from the N9? We've zipped them up for you right here.

Daisy revenues almost double to 266.3m

Reseller sees revenues surge as it announces a slowdown in its acquisition strategy and the resignation of CFO Anthony Riley

Daisy Group’s revenues almost almost doubled to 266.3 million in the 12 months ending March 31, 2011 compared to a year earlier.

The acquisitive reseller also reported EBITDA of 40.7 million for the period, almost quadrupled the 11 million total reported a year earlier. Operating losses were also down at the company from 21.8 million to 15.8 million.

Daisy Group said the board expects it to trade towards the upper end of the current market expectations for profit in the financial year ahead and anticipates further improvement in cash generation.

It added while strategically important acquisitions will continue to be considered by the board, it is expected the rate of acquisitions will reduce against historic levels of activity.

Daisy Group chief financial officer Anthony Riley is today stepping down from his position after almost three years with the Group to pursue other interests. He is being replaced by Steve Smith, who joined Daisy Group in 2009.

Daisy Group chief executive Matthew Riley (pictured) said: “The acquisitions we have completed are already yielding significant strategic benefits, material financial synergies and have enhanced the breadth of our product offering for customers.

“Against an uncertain macro economic backdrop, we have delivered a strong set of results, with particularly robust levels of free cash flow. At the same time, our acquisitions have strengthened our product portfolio and positioned us well for future growth.

“Visibility across the Group is improving and we face the financial year to March 2012 with confidence.”

Case-Mate Introduces Limited Edition iPhone 4 Titanium Case

Titan Protection, iPhone 4 Titanium Case

Case-Mate today announced plans to offer a limited edition Titanium case for the iPhone 4. Available in limited quantities starting Monday, June 27th, the new Titanium case combines detailed precision millwork with premium materials by physically reframing the iPhone 4 with a genuine titanium edge.

Known for its extreme and superior strength; Titanium was named for the powerful Titans of Greek mythology.  This unique element has several interesting characteristics that make it technically superior to many other metals:

Titanium is as strong as steel, but 45% lighter,

Titanium is 30% more elastic than steel,

Titanium is resistant to salt water, perspiration and acids,

Titanium has a “low magnetic signature” reducing visibility to metal detectors,

Titanium does not become magnetized,

Titanium can only be worked with extremely hard tools,

Titanium has an extremely high melting point of 1800 degrees Celsius,

Titanium is believed to be the earth’s crust’s 9th most common element (about 0.6%)

Titanium never occurs in nature as a metal.

 

 

 

Machined from a single piece of titanium, this premium case provides immense strength and a sleek, handcrafted look. Titanium, most often used in aircraft engines and luxury automobiles, is corrosion- and scratch-resistant, adding durability with a polished effect. Using an included tool set that contains a mini screwdriver, screws and accompanying accessory buttons, the case fully encloses the iPhone 4 with a protective, yet stylish, edge. The result is a cutting-edge, superior design that seamlessly blends and minimally frames the iPhone 4.

 

The limited edition Titanium case will be available for purchase at www.case-mate.com for $300. You can also find cases for a wide variety of BlackBerry and other smartphones and tablet devices on the Case-Mate Web site.

 

CSI Virtual MasterCard app bringing mobile payments to iOS, Android and BlackBerry

Shortly after MasterCard announced plans to become entangled with Google Wallet (and a few months after those ambitious Isis plans were shelved), it looks as if the aforesaid company is diving into yet another mobile payment arena. And this time, it's personal. MasterCard and CSI Enterprises already offer a smattering of customized business cards for those with highly specific needs, and soon that partnership will extend to iOS, Android and BlackBerry OS. We've confirmed that the CSI Virtual MasterCard app is currently scheduled to launch in July, presumably enabling folks with a GlobalVCard to use their mobile device of choice to make payments. What's interesting here is the inclusion of RIM and iOS; there's no BlackBerry device (nor iOS device) on the market today with NFC, which leads us to believe one of two things: that's either changing by July, or this here service won't rely on NFC at all. Needless to say, we'll keep you posted -- nothing like another way to more easily indebt yourself.

E! ID Pack Keeps Pop Culture Fans Up-to-Date Around the Clock with Entertainment News, Photos, Videos and More on Sprint ID-Capable Android Devices

ID Pack, Entertainment News

Let’s face it – you have better things to do with your time than comb through more than 200,000 apps searching for the best ones to fulfill your celebrity fix. Leave the hard work to E! – the global leader in entertainment and pop culture news and information. Now you can keep up with your favorite celebrities, read breaking entertainment news, preview fashion from the hottest red carpet events and watch clips from your favorite E! shows with the E! ID pack available on select Sprint Android-powered mobile devices. 

Featuring popular apps such as E! Online, Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Fandango, TweetCaster and Live From the Red Carpet, as well as a variety of widgets and shortcuts, the E! ID pack personalizes your smartphone quickly, in one single download. The E! ID pack is part of Sprint ID, a simple way for wireless customers to get a customized mobile experience on their device with apps, widgets, and more in a few simple clicks, based on their interests or favorite brands.

 

The E! ID pack includes the following apps, widgets and shortcuts to keep you ‘in-the-know’ at all times:

 

Apps:

E! Online app: The very best of E! Online is available for your Android device! It’s never been easier to access the breaking entertainment news, photos and videos you can’t live without.

Live From the Red Carpet App: The fashion! The stars! The glitz! The winners! It’s all here in this unparalleled, high-class app from E!, the leader in red carpet entertainment. The Live From the Red Carpet app lets you experience total VIP access to Hollywood’s hottest events, right at your fingertips.

Keeping Up with the Kardashians app: Keeping Up with the Kardashians has never been easier–or more fun–with the all-new KUWTK app! The app features videos from Keeping Up with the Kardashians, news articles and real-time Twitter feeds.

Fandango: The nation’s leading moviegoer destination offers you everything you need to know about what’s playing ‘in theaters’ or “coming soon” at your fingertips. Fandango’s app makes the movie going experience better than ever!

TweetCaster: Keep in the know with all your favorite E! personalities and celebrities using the best app for Twitter on your Android device. TweetCaster supports multiple accounts, URL shortening, picture sharing, @replies and so much more!

 

Widgets:

E! News Now Video Widget: Features 24/7 news updates on the latest celebrity and entertainment news.

E! News widget: The E! News widget delivers the hottest stories on E! Online anywhere, anytime on your Android device.

The Big Picture widget: The Big Picture widget delivers the latest hi-res pictures from our popular Big Picture gallery on E! Online.

Celeb Tracker widget: The celeb tracker widget allows you to follow your favorite stars, showing the latest news on your favorite celebrity.

TV schedule widget: The TV schedule widget allows you to see what’s on E! now, and what’s coming up for the rest of the day.

 

Shortcuts:

E! Online Android site: Get E! Online virtually anywhere, anytime on your mobile phone. Stay in-the-know with up-to-the-minute news on your favorite celebs. Plus the pack includes direct links to The Big Picture and more hi-res, full screen photo galleries, Movie Reviews, videos, and the juiciest dish from Watch With Kristin and The Awful Truth.

 

Owners of Sprint ID-capable mobile devices can download up to five ID packs and easily switch back and forth between them or swap them out for new ones. Sprint ID-capable devices include Samsung Epic 4G, LG Optimus S, Sanyo Zio, Samsung Transform and Samsung Replenish. Sprint ID packs are free to download with an Everything Data plan from Sprint. To see all Sprint ID packs, visit www.sprint.com/sprintid. For more information about the E! ID pack visit www.sprint.com/eonline.

 

 

 

Isabella Products Chooses Vodafone to Provide Wireless Access to its Mobile Products in Europe

Isabella Product

Isabella Products, a leading mobile Internet device and services company, today announced that it has selected Vodafone, one of the world’s largest mobile operators, to provide wireless connectivity to its range of mobile products and services in Europe.  Under the exclusive two year deal, Vodafone will supply connectivity and its Machine to Machine (M2M) platform so users can instantly and wirelessly share content, such as pictures with friends and family on Isabella’s products.

A Vodafone SIM card will be built into every Isabella mobile device – including the award winning Vizit – giving universal and reliable access to a range of Machine to Machine (M2M) services. Vodafone’s high performance networks and M2M management system will give Isabella central control over how they wirelessly enable and roll out their products across the continent.

 

The award-winning Vizit, the world’s first 2-way digital photo frame; and Mini, the world’s first 3G USB stick for the photo-sharing market, will be available in early 2012 through online and retail partners in the UK, Germany, Italy, and Spain.

 

Vizit- Consumers will be able to send digital photos, picture messages, and other image-based content over the Vodafone mobile network to Vizit’s large 10.4” full-touch interactive display. With Vizit’s unique wireless email address, proprietary user interface, and cellular connectivity, Vizit users will experience a rich, yet effortless, 2-way photo sharing experience. Vizit is the first digital photo frame to provide users with the ability to Reply to a photo in real time from the device and to Forward a photo onto even more family and friends over the mobile broadband network.

 

Mini- Consumers can now share photos, picture messages, and other image-base content directly with their existing digital photo frame or digital television by using Mini, the world’s first 3G USB stick dedicated to photo-sharing. Users simply plug Mini into their existing digital photo frame or digital television’s USB 2.0 slot and instantly connect it to Isabella’s VizitMe content management service. Each Mini has its own unique wireless email address for friends and family to send photos to just about any digital photo frame or digital television using their mobile phone or email. Photos are stored securely on Mini making it the perfect portable photo album.

 

VizitMe- Isabella’s product portfolio is supported by its proprietary mobility and content management service, VizitMe. This cloud-based service provides carrier-class subscriber management and secure content management. Users are able to create a Friends contact list for each of their devices, upload new content, remotely manage their device experience, and subscribe to 3rd party content and services all from a Web portal.

 

“We are extremely excited to partner with Vodafone for the European marketplace,” said Matthew I. Growney, Founder and CEO of Isabella Products. “The enormous global footprint of the Vodafone network and their ability to provide us with a robust M2M management platform will allow Isabella to successfully launch innovative mobile devices and services throughout the region.”

 

“Vizit and Mini are exciting examples of innovative mobile Internet devices that will quickly and conveniently connect family and friends,” said Erik Brenneis, Head of M2M, Vodafone. “By connecting over Vodafone’s mobile network, Isabella customers will be able to share photos and memories in real time.”

 

Cortel in new acquisition drive

Vodafone partner aiming to purchase fixed line and mobile rivals in order to increase base to over 25,000

Vodafone platinum partner Cortel has outlined a 12-month multi-million-pound strategy to acquire other fixed and mobile dealers, as it looks to increase its base to more than 25,000.

The London-based unified communications provider, part of the Corporate Telecom Group, has a connection base of 10,000 mobile – with the majority of those connected to Vodafone – and 10,000 fixed-line.

Cortel was upgraded from Vodafone’s gold tier to platinum last month, having achieved specific targets since VPS was launched in September.

Its managing director and founder Neville Sheen (pictured) said he is now actively seeking opportunities to acquire smaller firms to boost customer numbers in both fixed and mobile, and is willing to spend up to 1 million per company.

Sheen said the company is targeting dealers with a good turnover, positive growth curves in terms of customer spend, and a base of between 1,000 and 5,000. Sheen said economies of scale and a full unified communications offering are increasingly important for firms to survive in B2B communications delivery.

As part of its plans, the company also set targets to increase turnover from its current 3.5 million, to about 5 million within a 12-month period.

Sheen said: “Our main focus for the future is to buy in companies that have the level of expertise we want.

“We have banks who want to help us purchase companies. There are a surprising number of companies who do not realise their value at the moment.”

“In the mobile telecoms business, and in systems and in minutes, unless you are really well combined, or at least
bigger, you are going to fail.
You cannot compete in one or the other.”

 

Rumour:Nokia Windows Phone 7 Devices Launching 26th Of October

Nokia has already announced that they would be launching their first Windows Phone 7 devices in certain European countries in quarter four of 2011, and now it seems that we may have a possible launch date of October the 26th.
Nokia has announced the dates for its Nokia World Conference, which will take place this year on the 26th and 27th of October in London, and there will be conference includes two daily keynote addresses as well as an event for the 26th of October which is currently listed as ‘To be announced’.

No doubt Nokia will be featuring Windows Phone 7 at Nokia World 2011 and this seems like the prefect place for the company to unveil their first Windows Phone 7 devices

Droid 3 headed to Best Buy on July 14th?

Red-eye alert, all ye Droid faithful! A leaked screenshot over at Droid Attic shows Motorola's worst kept secret -- the Droid 3 -- supposedly hitting Best Buy's shelves on July 14th. With all the unofficial leaks we've seen in the past few months, we have a pretty good idea of what this successor's got running under its QWERTY slider. Favoring a dual-core OMAP 4430 processor, a rear-facing 8 megapixel cam capturing video at 1080p, and baked with latest Gingerbread update, this black block of does shouldn't disappoint. Make note, VZW's new plans go into effect one week prior to this, so if you're clinging to that grandfathered plan, pick this one up off-contract, and cross your toes it gets an LTE surprise.

[Thanks, fuzzball]

Re-Tales: Deal makers (20/06/11)

A round-up of deals available from mobile retailers online and on the high street

CARPHONE
There’s an Android smartphone sale on at Carphone. Customers can save 100 over the course of the contract when they opt for the Samsung Galaxy S II, Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc, HTC Desire S or Samsung Galaxy Ace, which are priced at 30, 25, 18.50 and 15 a month respectively. There is 130 off the Sony Ericsson X10 mini, which now costs 129.95 on prepay and 105 off the Samsung Galaxy Apollo, which now costs 74.95. Prices have also been lowered for BlackBerry smartphones. The Torch 9800 is now available for free on an O2 deal costing 27 a month that comes with 300 minutes, unlimited texts and 500MB of BlackBerry data.

ORANGE
There’s a BlackBerry sale this month at Orange. The Curve 8520 in black or silver is available for free with 50 minutes and 50 texts for 10 a month. Paying an extra 5 a month will give the plan 100 minutes and 500 texts instead. A number of prepay phones are also half-price. The Orange Rio in black or pink costs 17.49, the Alcatel OT-606 14.99 and the Orange Lisbon 9.99.

O2
Customers can get six months’ free broadband if they’ve had an O2 mobile for two years or more. The deal is available on two packages. ‘The All Rounder’ is priced at 12.50 a month and aimed at those looking to download music and catch up on missed television programmes, while ‘The Works’ costs 21 a month and is aimed at those looking to watch films and play games online. Customers can also pick up a free H&M voucher to the value of 15 when they buy the LG Optimus Chat in pink for 149.99 on prepay.

FONEHOUSE
The retailer is pushing two phones in particular. The HTC Wildfire S in silver or black is priced at 20.43 on a T-Mobile deal that comes with 300 minutes, 300 texts, a flexible booster and 20 automatic cash-back. The Samsung Galaxy S II is available for free on a 35-a-month Vodafone contract that offers 600 minutes, unlimited texts and 500MB of data. Fonehouse is also giving customers the chance to win an Apple iPad 2, by fi lling in a few personal details on its website.

GO MOBILE
Free gifts are being offered with a number of contract deals. The best include the BlackBerry Curve 8520 with a Samsung N150 netbook on a T-Mobile deal costing 30.64 a month that comes with 600 minutes, 500 texts and flexible booster for 30.64 a month, and the Nokia 2730 with a 32-inch Samsung HD Ready LCD TV on a Three deal costing 35 a month, that comes with 900 minutes and unlimited texts.

PHONES 4U
The HTC Sensation has had 5 knocked off its monthly line rental. It is now available for free on a Vodafone deal costing 25 a month, that comes with 100 minutes, 500 texts and 500MB of data. The newly launched HTC ChaCha is available on the same plan. Phones 4U has also teamed up with Samsung to offer two people an all-expenses-paid trip to Thailand for six nights to celebrate the release of The Hangover Part II in cinemas. Customers simply fill in their details online.

FTC Approves Google, Apple and Intel Bids for Nortel Wireless Patents

The United States Federal Trade Commission has approved both Google’s and Intel’s preliminary bids for former Canadian networking giant Nortel Networks after weeks of deliberation. Google has already bid $900 million for the assets, which range from 6,000 patents to satisfy bankruptcy obligations. The patents in question cover 3G/4G wireless, internet, voice, data, optical networking, semiconductors, and other assorted technologies. The new approvals also follow Apple’s approval to bid on the patent pool earlier this month with RIM expressing interest.

Nortel Networks went bankrupt in 2009 after years of poor results and became better known for an accounting scandal in 2001 that led to the arrest and subsequent conviction of three former executives, while the company made multiple efforts to diversify its communications business by having a hand in developing products for each major wireless standard with joint ventures that ultimately went nowhere once it declared bankruptcy. Should the sale of the patent pool be completed as expected, it is expected to fetch an eight figure purchase price, which the company hopes to use to settle its outstanding debts. The auction is expected to begin on June 27th.

Biohazard Outbreak Survive: This Is How Resident Evil Looks Like As A Mobile Social Game

Survival horror video game series Resident Evil has sold well over 45 million units since the first title came out back in 1996, on various platforms, for example the PlayStation 1, the Nintendo DS, or the iPhone. But there has never been a mobile social game in the series (“Biohazard” in Japan) – until this week.

Maker Capcom started rolling out “Biohazard Outbreak Survive” on GREE, a mobile social gaming platform in Japan with over 25 million users, on Monday (the title is available for GREE on Japanese feature phones only).

The difference to the console versions is that players of the mobile social game version are supposed to mainly clear missions instead of following a story. Users need to solve puzzles, cooperate with each other, help cure infected users, kill zombies, etc. in order to eventually escape from Raccoon City.

“Biohazard Outbreak Survive” is free to play on GREE (virtual items cost extra), and it might one day even be released outside Japan in one form or the other.

Via Inside Games [JP]

Card.io SDK takes swipe at competition with camera-enabled mobile payments (video)

In an attempt to edge its way into the crowded mobile payments market, a new credit card scanning system is saying "ah, hell no!" to typing and swiping. Card.io is billed as an SDK that takes advantage of smartphone cameras to let devs accept credit, because, as its creators point out, "typing on mobile phones is slow, and most consumers don't have a separate hardware attachment." When it's time to pull out the plastic, Card.io gets your phone's camera going, and up pops a little green rectangle, in which you frame your card and snap a pic. Your credit card info is then processed by a third-party merchant, and the details are subsequently deleted from your phone. Can you hear that? That's the sound of our chubby thumbs breathing a sigh of relief. The Card.io SDK for iOS is now available at the source link below, and an Android version should be close behind. For now, hop on past the break for a video demo.

Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread, Updated Motoblur UI Headed To Motorola Atrix 4G Next Month

For those of you who own the Motorola Atrix 4G, you know that it does all kinds of cool things. For one, it turns into a little laptop when you clip it into its corresponding laptop dock. It’s also the first dual-core smartphone to launch in the U.S., so it was the trend-setter of snappiness, if you will. One thing the Atrix 4G doesn’t do, however, is run Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread, at least not until next month. That’s right Atrix owners, you’re in for a real Gingerbread treat.

Motorola will release the latest version of the Motoblur UI alongside the OTA update, which should fix some of the kinks in the interface. Sometimes heavy skins like the Motoblur UI ruin the fun of an OS update because you can’t really see the underlying changes.

The good news is that Motorola has used some cool features from Gingerbread throughout the new version of Motoblur, such as the over-scroll glowing effect that comes on stock Android 2.3.3. The new Motoblur will also include enhanced camera software, a revamped keyboard, and a few adjustments to apps and icons.

[via IntoMobile]

Mozilla FTP servers provide Firefox 5

A new version of Firefox 5 has been discovered which is now available on the Mozilla FTP servers. The final release of Firefox 5 hasn’t been officially released as yet, but if you are brave enough you can now download Firefox 5 from the Mozilla FTP servers.

Mozilla released its beta version of Firefox 5 back in May and the new browser brings with it support for CSS animation, and much easy-to-find Do Not Track setting, together with a number of other performance and security enhancements.

If you dont want to give the FTP version a go and would rather wait fo the official release, you shouldn’t have long to wait and as always we will keep you updated

Sprint Phone Recycling Goal Gets a Boost With Vespa USA Relationship

Sprint, Phone Recycling, Vespa USA Relationship, Vespa LX 50 motor scooter

Today, Sprint Nextel and Vespa USA announced a new customer contest to drive greater participation in Sprint’s Buyback program by offering customers a chance to win a new fuel-efficient Vespa LX 50 motor scooter. Between June 26 and August 20, wireless users who return their old or unused cell phones to Sprint can receive up to $250 instant credit toward the purchase of a new wireless device and will be able to enter to win one of six Vespa scooters at http://sprint.com/govespa. 

Winners of the Vespa scooters also will receive the new Samsung Replenish, the fourth eco-friendly device from Sprint, one of its latest Android devices. All devices returned through the Buyback program either will be recycled or re-purposed to continue Sprint’s momentum toward its zero waste policy and 2017 goal to recycle nine mobile devices for every 10 sold.

 

With its recently announced Electronics Stewardship Policy, a key component of the company’s efforts to reduce improperly disposed e-waste, Sprint is providing customers responsible end-of-life solutions for their mobile devices. Since 2001, Sprint has collected more than 24 million phones for reuse and recycling. Currently, only 10 percent of phones in this country are recycled, leaving more than 140 million mobile phones in landfills each year.

 

“We are excited to join with Vespa to make this special offer available to new and existing Sprint customers,” said Matt Gunter, Sprint vice president of consumer marketing. “Our aim is to address the entire lifecycle of the mobile devices we buy and sell – it’s a win-win for our customers, for Sprint and for the environment. While we continue to educate customers on responsible ways to manage e-waste, this relationship with Vespa will draw greater attention and enthusiasm to our efforts. We hope to drive greater participation in our Buyback program and to encourage new customers to join us in this initiative.”

 

As part of Sprint’s loyalty program, Premier customers were able to participate in the sweepstakes in advance of the national promotion that started in April. The Premier customer sweepstakes offered 10 lucky winners a Vespa LX 50 and received a significant response, with more than 300,000 entries submitted. The Premier customer contest ended June 10.

 

While most participation in the Buyback program will occur in Sprint stores across the nation, customers will also have a chance to trade in their phones as part of the Sprint/Vespa “Green on the Go” Tour. The tour will start on July 2 in San Francisco and travel through Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago and Boston before ending in New York on Aug. 13. The events, with more information on location and times at www.VespaUSA.com are as follows:

 

– San Francisco:                                                          July 2, 3

– Los Angeles:                                                             July 9, 10

– Seattle:                                                                     July 16, 17

– Chicago:                                                                   July 23, 24

– Boston:                                                                     July 30, 31

– New York:                                                               Aug. 6 and 13

 

 

At the events, customers can:

Trade in their phones to be recycled to see whether they can earn an instant credit toward the purchase of a new device or donate their phone through Project Connect.

Demo Sprint’s first eco-friendly Android powered device – the Samsung Replenish made partially from recycled materials and recyclable packaging.

Participate in a Vespa photo experience.

Learn more about the benefits of using a Vespa as an alternative mode of transportation – as part of Vespa’s Vespanomics program.

Enter for a chance to win a Vespa LX 50 scooter, Samsung Replenish and three months of Sprint wireless service at each of the six city stops.

 

“The decision to partner with Sprint was an easy one as we have the same goal: find ways to conserve resources for the betterment of our planet,” said Melissa R. MacCaull, vice president, Piaggio Group Americas. “Sprint’s popular phone recycling program and the use of Vespas as a viable form of alternative transportation to reduce oil and gas consumption, pollution and traffic congestion are two solutions Sprint and Vespa are putting forth and that Americans are embracing.”

 

Vespa USA, through its Vespanomics program, promotes the use of fuel-efficient motor scooters as an alternative form of transportation that can greatly reduce gasoline consumption and put more money back into the pockets of Americans. Vespa estimates that in the year 2020, if a fraction of licensed U.S. drivers converted a small percentage of their miles to a Vespa, gasoline consumption would be reduced by 3.9 billion gallons per year, resulting in a savings to Americans of more than $21 billion.

 

Winners of the contest will be announced following Aug. 20 no later than October 1. For more information on the tour dates and the contest, please visit www.VespaUSA.com. To learn more about Sprint programs that protect the environment, go to www.sprint.com/responsibility or follow @SprintGreenNews on Twitter. To learn more about Vespa motor scooters, Vespanomics or to find a Vespa dealer in your area, please visit www.VespaUSA.com or like them on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/VespaUSA) or follow them on Twitter @VespaUSA.

 

VIDEO: World’s First WP7-Powered Nokia Handset Gets Caught On Camera

Sometimes rules are meant to be broken. Hungarian site Technet.hu knows this, and decided to shoot a spy-style video of Nokia CEO Stephen Elop showing off the first Nokia Windows Phone 7 smartphone at a secret event, despite the fact that the Nokia boss specifically asked attendants to put away cameras.

“This is something super confidential and we do not want to see it out in the bloggersphere,” announced Elop to the crowd. This may be bad news for Nokia, but we’re more than happy to catch a glimpse of the long-awaited WP7-powered Nokia handset, codenamed Sea Ray.

The video didn’t zoom out wide enough for us to get a glimpse of the buttons. Usually, WP7 phones require three buttons for back, home, and search, but since Mango has Bing search baked in to every nook and cranny of the OS, this first-of-its-kind smartphone may scrap the buttons entirely. The handset has an almost identical form-factor to the freshly announced Nokia N9, with the same Gorilla glass up front and Carl Zeiss camera on the back. The phone also sports a dedicated camera button, a WP7 hardware requirement.

Luckily, Sea Ray wasn’t all that the Nokia boss was caught revealing. If he’d known he was being taped, Elop probably wouldn’t have gone on to announce that Nokia has “other devices completely different to [Sea Ray] already working.” Nokia has been struggling lately, losing its 15-year market reign to Samsung during the company’s shift from Symbian to WP7. The N9 announced last week has been pretty well-received, and it’s looking like the Finnish phone maker is staging a comeback.

“I want drool,” said Elop, clearly excited over the company’s new-found direction. “What you should be feeling is that the capabilities of the mighty Nokia are shifting around and people are saying, ‘look at that.’ And ultimately there are a few competitors of ours in California that we would very much like to notice as well.”

[via Pocket-Lint; via Engadget]

A Round Of Applause For Sprint, Please? EVO 3D Allows Pre-Installed Bloatware To Be Uninstalled

If Sprint were a physical being that I could high-five, I’d totally be giving them the Bro-iest high-five the world has ever seen right now.

Pretty much all of the carriers pre-install a bunch of crap onto their Android devices before they stick’em on the shelves. That’s not big deal, really; most of them make money from the apps (be it through subscriptions or partnerships), which makes Android more advantageous for them, which works out to more Android handsets — and that’s always a good thing.

The problem? On pretty much every single handset we’ve seen, these pre-installed applications.. can’t be removed. Not without spending a few hours learning to root (read: hack) your device, at least.

Based on a few reports coming from AndroidCentral’s forums, it appears that Sprint’s new EVO 3D makes no attempt to keep the user from deleting these apps. One just has to pop into settings, drop into their application list, and delete the apps as they would any other. The only thing that can’t be deleted is Sprint’s “ID” service — but that one is pretty deeply integrated into the OS, so we’ll cut them some slack. Lets hope this isn’t a mistake… and more importantly, that it starts a trend.

[Via AndroidCentral]

T-Mobile MyTouch 4G Slide with Android

T-Mobile MyTouch 4G Slide, and now the guys over at TMO news have got their hands on some decent photos of the new MyTouch 4G Slide.

It looks like the T-Mobile MyTouch 4G Slidewill come with Android Gingerbread, and will feature a HTC Sense UI, similar to that of the HTC Sensation, although it will have some specific MyTouch features.

Other rumored specifications include an 8 megapixel camera on the back

HTC’s ChaCha Facebook Phone Gets Rebranded As HTC Status On Its Way To AT&T

Praise be to the phone gods! We no longer have to keep calling HTC’s Facebook phone the ChaCha. BGR confirmed that the HTC ChaCha is headed to AT&T as the HTC Status, and we’re all glad to see one of the world’s most poorly named phones get a new title. Apparently, HTC was having some trouble with search service ChaCha over the branding.

We originally reported that the phone could launch on July 17 based on a date displayed in leaked photos. BGR claims the phone could launch as soon as next week, bringing a dedicated Facebook button to the AT&T masses. Unfortunately, still no word on pricing.

If you don’t remember, the HTC Status (ChaCha) is the company’s first Facebook-centric phone, offering a direct connection to the social network from apps such as the address book, the camera, and the media player. Additional specs include a 2.6-inch display offering 480×320 pixels of resolution, a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, and a VGA front-facing camera for video chat. Running Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread, the Status is powered by an 800MHz processor and has support for a microSD card, Wi-Fi connectivity, and Bluetooth 3.0.

In other news, the HTC Salsa, which is the manufacturer’s other smartphone with a dedicated Facebook button, will not be headed to AT&T anytime soon, according to HTC. In fact, the Status counterpart may not make it over to big blue at all. So if you’re a fiend for the Facebook, it looks like the Status is your best bet unless you switch over to Verizon. The Facebook integration on Sony Ericsson’s Xperia Play is just as deep, albeit without a dedicated button, but the specs on the PlayStation phone are much more impressive.

[via BGR]

Verizon Data Plans Broken Down In Detail

More details have surfaced regarding Verizon’s new slate of data plans going into effect on July 7th with the following points to take into account from an internal memo:
BUSINESS DISCOUNTS- Currently our business discounts apply to the $29.99 data plan on the primary line only. Most discounts are 20% despite whatever monthly access discount they have
BUSINESS DISCOUNTS- After 7/7/2011 data discounts will only apply to the $50 and higher data packages on the primary line.
Discount break down ex. of customers with a 20% feature discount on their primary line. ($50-20%=$40/month for 5GB and includes the business e-mail feature) — ($20/GB vs. $40/GB+ Business e-mail )

New data pricing for smart phones is as follows:
$30 for 2GB with $10/GB overage
$50 for 5GB (this also includes business e-mail at no additional charge) with $10/GB overage
$80 for 10GB (this also includes business e-mail at no additional charge) with $10/GB overage

Existing customers KEEP their $29.99 unlimited data plan
If an existing customer upgrades from a feature phone to a smart phone after 7/7/11, they will NOT be able to add on the unlimited data package. They must choose from the new data plans. Anyone who sets up new service with unlimited data, upgrades from a feature phone to a smart phone with unlimited data, or customer currently on the $29.99 before July, 7, 2011 will be grandfathered in.

Read More for the internal training slides and further changes.

      

The 75MB package will include access to Mobile Email service along with access to VZNavigator and Ringback Tones while the Tablet plans will go up by $10 to factor in the additional data access from the previous $20/1GB rate while the Netbook rate now starts at $30 for the same monthly access.

AT&T Confirms New $50 GoPhone Unlimited Plan for June 26th

AT&T has announced that it will begin to offer a new $50 GoPhone Unlimited plan for feature phones beginning on June 26th with unlimited voice text and instant messaging along with unlimited data access. As a bonus the unlimited text messaging also includes service to 100 countries. Smartphones will be able to take advantage of the $50 plan with unlimited voice, text and instant messaging, but data will be tiered as an additional Feature Pack from $5 to $25 a month on top of the $50 monthly rate.

Sony Ericsson Reveals Ultra-Thin Xperia Ray, Water-Resistant Xperia Active Smartphones

Looks like two new Xperia smartphones are headed out of Sony Ericsson labs and into the wild, with an expectation to launch in the third quarter. We still don’t know much about the handsets, called the Xperia Ray and the Xperia Active, although we can confirm that both will be powered by Google’s Android OS. From the ads, we’re thinking that the Ray will run Android 2.3 Gingerbread, but it’s hard to tell which version of the OS got slapped on to the Active.

The Xperia Ray is just 9.4mm thick, with a bronzy back panel. We know from the video that the Ray will come with Sony’s Bravia Engine technology, which is meant to enhance the resolution of the screen. The ad also indicated that the Ray will shoot HD video from its unspecified rear-camera, and we can also see a little front-facing shooter there, as well. Just like the Xperia Play, SE’s Ray smartphone will also get Facebook Inside Xperia. This lets users tap into the social network from all the most-used apps on the phone, such as the camera app, the media player, and the address book.

Unfortunately we know even less about the Xperia Active. It will also run Android, although which version is hard to say from that ad. However, it’s very clear that the Active will be a rugged handset. As you can see from the video, it comes with a little loop for a key chain or attachable wrist strap, and has a much thicker build than the Ray. We can see a rear-camera on the back, although again, we don’t have specifics on the shooter. It comes in four different color schemes: white with grey, black with white, white with red, and black with red. With curved, and what looks like rubberized edges, the Active is meant to stand up to tougher elements, and is supposed to be water resistant. Sweaty-palmed phone lovers, enjoy!

Obviously this is about as incomplete as a specs rundown can get, but this is just the very beginning for both phones. According to SE’s chief marketing officer Steve Walker, the Ray and the Active should launch at a lower price point than the Xperia Play, which is currently priced at $200 with a new two-year contract from Verizon. If neither of these suit your tastes, SE has plans to release a lower-end messaging-centric smartphone later on that is aimed towards teenagers.

[via Huffington Post]

zBoost Brings Your iPhone to Life

Wi-Ex, a leading provider of consumer and commercial cell phone signal boosters, announced today the launch of the zBoost Metro YX540iP iPhone Signal Booster initially available exclusively at Amazon. Showcased at the CEA Line Show and Pepcom Digital Experience, the zBoost Metro YX540iP is optimized for use with the iPhone allowing users to take full advantage of their iPhone's voice, data and Internet services including 3G high-speed data and all those “apps”. The zBoost Metro YX540iP includes a $15 apps gift card and a zBoost Your Business Application Guide featuring iPhone and iPad apps for the business user or teleworker on the go.

"The app guide and app card deliver an ideal zBoost bundle for Apple users. iPhone, iPad and now iCloud users are leading today's rapid increase in data consumption and connected devices.

268MP Photos of Space Capture capacity for Omegacam

If you think your new DSLR camera is packed with a large megapixel capture limited, when compared to the OmegaCam designed to take photographs of outer space it falls short of the OmegaCam’s 268 megapixels. The OmegaCam is equipped with a massive 1,700 pound sensor that makes up the wide-angle eye of the VLT Survey Telescope at Paranal Observatory.

The sensor is constructed from 32 individual CCD sensors which are then combined to create the huge 268 megapixels images of our night sky and the furthest reaches of space.

Te OmegaCam has been designed and built by a Consortium of Research Institutes from Germany, The Netherlands and Italy in collaboration with ESO. The photograph below of M17 otherwise known as the Omega Nebula was the first image taken by OmegaCam.

Judge Rejects Samsung’s Request To Peep Apple’s iPhone 5, iPad 3

Just as we expected, Judge Lucy Koh has rejected Samsung’s request to get its hands on Apple’s iPhone 5 and the iPad 3. She did not rule from the bench this time, as Apple tweaked its complaint the night before Friday’s hearing, adding a host of new Samsung products to its copy-cat list. Instead, the order was presented on paper in an 11-page document.

She explained that while Samsung is entitled to “parity”, the request for unreleased, unrevealed products was a bit overreaching. That’s the good news for Apple. The bad news is that the rejection of Samsung’s motion isn’t permanent. A brief passage in the document hints that Apple may not get the preliminary injunction it will likely request to bar Samsung from selling certain products in the U.S. Instead, the court may need to evaluate the motion after the iPhone 5 and iPad 3 are available for inspection, to decide whether or not “consumer confusion” will exist.

Here’s that tricky little passage:

Samsung is free to argue, for instance, that there is little likelihood of confusion because consumers will not encounter its products side-by-side with the iPhone 4 or iPad 2, but rather with Apple’s next generation iPhone and iPad. Similarly, as to proximity, Samsung is free to argue that because the iPhone 4 and iPad 2 will soon be outmoded and reduced in price, they are not being sold (or very soon will not be sold) to the same class of purchasers who are likely to buy new Samsung products. By choosing to allege infringement only of its current products, Apple opens itself up to these arguments.

The possibility of a preliminary injunction would certainly give Apple the upper-hand, possibly even getting enough leverage to force Samsung into an early settlement. Although Koh’s passage seems to lean toward a no-go when it comes to a potential injunction, that’s not to say that Apple won’t get its way. It’s all a matter of timing.

Samsung has every right to argue that Apple’s current products aren’t going to sell side-by-side with upcoming Galaxy products, as they will be out-of-date as soon as the iPhone 5 hits shelves. According to the rumor mill, this is only a few short months away. By that time, it will be Samsung’s unreleased and unannounced products that could pose an infringement threat, and the two will have to duke it out all over again.

[via PhoneScoop]

Sony Ericsson Announces the Xperia Active Smartphone

Sony Ericsson today announced Xperia active, a compact smartphone targeting consumers with an active lifestyle, in conjunction with CommunicAsia 2011 in Singapore. With a 3” screen and running the latest Android platform for smartphones (Gingerbread 2.3), the phone packs Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine, a 5mp camera with HD video functionality, and a powerful 1Ghz processor. Xperia active is dust proof and water resistant* and uniquely incorporates wet finger tracking, to ensure the phone works perfectly when either the screen or a user’s fingers are wet.

The phone comes pre-loaded with sports apps that enable consumers to easily track their fitness levels. Users can set their ideal training route using the built-in GPS, Barometer and Compass. On-screen heart rate and pulse can be monitored in realtime (enabled by ANT+ wireless networking technology), while the iMapMyFitness app can monitor day to day performance. 

Additionally, Facebook inside Xperia allows consumers to share their progress and experiences with friends.

Nokia claims N9 is 'the fastest image-capturing phone' yet

We've already established that the N9 is a delight of a phone, both inside and out, but our hands-on time with Nokia's new flagship gave us only a brief look at its camera performance. Now the company is graciously filling that gap in our knowledge with some further disclosure about its new 8 megapixel imager, including the lofty claim that the N9 is the fastest phone yet when it comes to capturing an image -- ousting the likes of the iPhone 4, the Galaxy S II, and even the Canon S95, perhaps the best pocket camera around at the moment. Measuring the time taken from activating the camera app to the completion of the first shot, the N9 clocks in at 2.6 seconds, whereas Apple's latest does it in 3 seconds and Samsung's takes a split second more. Aside from its speed, the N9 has Carl Zeiss optics, a wide F2.2 max aperture, dual-LED flash, continuous autofocus, and a 720/30p video mode to boast about, but the benefits of those items will need to be experienced first hand. So Nokia, when are you shipping this thing?