Could 2013 bear more than two phones from the ripening branches of BlackBerry?
It's looking like that's an affirmative as the company's CEO earlier today said there's an upcoming flagship phone he's "very excited about."
Speaking with CNET, Thorsten Heins teased, "There's one new product I'm really excited about, but I can't really share it.
"It takes BlackBerry 10 to another level in terms of the user experience."
A holly, jolly time of year?
Heins said the new flagship will should be ready for the holidays, though he couldn't give a full-proof guarantee. We are also likely to see a mid-tear BlackBerry 10 device sometime this year too, though Heins didn't elaborate further.
All told, the current fiscal year should welcome three to four BB10 devices. Perhaps BlackBerry is trying to make up for lost time?
So far, the renamed company has announced the touchscreen Z10 and the QWERTY Q10, though the latter hasn't been released yet. The Q10 got an unlocked price today of £529.98 (around $800/AU$770).
U.S. carriers begin selling the Z10 Friday, and Heins said he anticipates the Q10 launching to take place one or two months after its touchy sibling.
As for the future line of BB10 devices, Heins said that ultimately the company would like to offer three levels of phone, with each tier offering both a touch-only and QWERTY option. Screen size dimensions for the phones won't change no matter what tier they're on.
The 100,000 app club
In addition celebrating BB10 and the Z10's U.S. launch, BlackBerry took time to acknowledge another important milestone today, and no it wasn't not having shut down yet.
The company announced that BB10 customers now have over 100,000 apps to choose for their Z10 smartphones.
Major names like Amazon Kindle, Open Table and The Wall Street Journal are now available, and others like CNN, The Daily Show Headlines, Maxim, MLB at Bat, PGD, Rdio and Skype are coming soon.
Fan favorites Angry Birds Star Wars, BBC Top Gear news, Facebook, and WhatsApp are all in BB10's growing app circle, too.
In 7 weeks, the catalogue grew by more than 30,000 apps, the company reported.
BlackBerry must be using some kind of fertilizer...that or the Z10's U.S. launch provided some motivation to developers.
The new app streams words as they're spoken, meaning faster search results
Voice recognition is one of those mobile services that has been on the cusp of brilliance for quite a while, yet no-one seems to have it down to a fine art.
Apple's Siri and Google's Voice Search do an ample, if not always reliable, job, but Microsoft has demonstrated how it intends to leapfrog them both with its improved Bing Voice app for Windows Phone.
The company's research department has shown-off a prototype version of a faster, more accurate and more intelligent version of the app, scheduled for launch at a later date.
According to the video demonstration, the new Bing Voice app processes speech so fast, it will stream utterances word-by-word, as they are spoken, rather than wait until the sentence is complete.
Better, faster, smarter
Even in the presence of background noise, so often the bain of voice recognition apps, the new Bing Voice service showed considerable speed and accuracy improvements in Microsoft's tests.
The demonstation showed the phrase "Starbucks in Washington" was recognised by the improved tech in 0.52 seconds, whereas the current version called it "sky in washing machine," and took 1.19 seconds.
Error rates are also down by between 12 and 15 per cent on the new version and, according to the researchers, there's potential for that to improve by another 15 per cent by the time the tech rolls out.
This extra speed and accuracy, along with the word by word streaming, will allow the app to deliver Bing Search results faster than ever before, the company said.
When's it coming?
The MSFTKitchen demonstration video made no mention of when it might be arriving on the mobile operating system, but Windows Phone 9 sure sounds like a good time, huh?
Until then, or whenever Microsoft decides to grace Windows Phone fans with the tech, check it out for yourself in the video below.
Maybe Google Now used Apple Maps to get to the App Store, because Apple said today that Google never submitted the intelligent personal assistant app to its online store.
A Google representative also told TechRadar, "Yes, I can confirm for you: We have not submitted Google Now to Apple's App Store," backing up the statement Apple sent to TechCrunch.
This flies in the face of comments made by Google Eric Schmidt, who seemed to lay the blame for Google Now's Android-only status at Apple's doorstep.
"You'll need to discuss that with Apple," said Schmidt at the Google Big Tent Summit in India.
Schmidt was responding a candid question from the moderator, who asked when he could get Google Now on his iPhone.
"Apple has a policy of approving or disapproving apps that are submitted into its store, and some of the apps we make they approve and some of them they don't," he said.
"They recently did approve Google Maps, thank goodness," said Schmidt to laughter and applause.
Not Google Now, but maybe Google later
Although both Apple and Google are denying that Google Now is in the App Store queue, the two companies have been in this position before.
Schmidt, in another discussion last October, said the decision for Google Maps coming to iOS would be in Apple's court.
"I don't want to pre-announce products," Schmidt said last October, "but I can tell you that were we to do that, [Apple] would also have to approve it."
"They haven't approved all of Google's offerings over the years."
Either way, with Google Now threatening to move in on Siri's territory, it could force Apple to evolve Siri in iOS 7 before Google gives it a run for its robotic money.
Dancing to the tune of Apple's latest security measures
Apple has rolled-out a two-step identity verification measure to allow users to choose "trusted" devices to confirm the legitimacy of changes to their Apple ID, iTunes, or iCloud accounts.
Users in the UK, Ireland, United States, New Zealand and Australia can sign-up for the new security protocol on the Apple ID website from today.
After sign-up is complete, whenever a change to the account has been made, a verification key will be sent to the user's "trusted" iOS devices via the Find My iPhone app or to any other smartphone via SMS.
Entering the passcode enables full access to the account, while two-step verification will also be required when users make a purchase on a new device for the first time.
No more security questions
Those who enable two-step verification will no longer have to remember the answers to multiple security questions in order to access their account.
This, of course, also prevents other people from guessing the answers to them.
Users are also issued a recovery key, which they must keep safe. This, combined with the trusted device, comes in handy if users forget their Apple ID password or lose the trusted device.
If Apple fans decide that the two-step shuffle between devices isn't for them, they can also opt out and choose answers to new security questions.
Pandora's Windows Phone 8 features make it special
Streaming music services are all the rage these days, and fighting for users in the crowding marketplaces on various operating systems is no doubt a daunting task.
Pandora has had the benefit of being one of the more recognizable and reliable streaming services, though upstarts like Spotify have no doubt made keeping hold of that valuable audience a challenge.
With new threats from Apple, YouTube, and possibly even Twitter potentially looming on the horizon, there's no better time for Pandora to try out some new tactics.
In an effort to set itself apart from the competition, Pandora has teamed with Microsoft and its Windows Phone 8 brand to provide some unique exclusive features for users of phones like the Nokia Lumia 822 and Lumia 920.
Truly free music
Right now, Pandora offers free music streaming through ad-supported stations, but with the new Windows Phone 8 app, those ads are a thing of the past.
For the remainder of 2013, all streamed music from Pandora on WP8 devices will be ad-free, and will have no limits on how much music you can stream.
Users will also be able to pin their favorite stations to the home screen, where the Live Tile will display what song is currently playing.
To make this new Pandora experience even more appealing to parents, when the app is launched through the Kid's Corner, all music will automatically be filtered for explicit content.
All of the other features present on Pandora apps on other operating systems return here as well, including the ability to create 100 stations, or buy music you hear straight from the related marketplace.
The app has only just released, and its biggest draw may be temporary, but for now there's a clear front-runner when it comes to the best free streaming music app available on Windows Phone 8.
Sources from the Apple supply chain are at it again. This time the rumors circulate around the end of May arrival of components, which would point to an arrival of the next iPhone in the the third quarter of this year.
According to said sources the next iPhone will allegedly be a marginal upgrade of the iPhone 5 (perhaps called the iPhone 5S). The next-gen iPhone should come with an improved processor, perhaps a higher-megapixel camera with new module or even a redesigned flash ("Smart Flash") with white and yellow LEDs in order to improve color reproduction.
Foxconn Electronics chairman Terry Guo has noted that he expects company performance to start picking up after April or May, which could coincide with the beginning of the production of the latest iPhone.
According to the sources if the components supply goes smoothly the next-gen iDevice could be delivered to retail channels in 1 to 2 weeks time, which would mean a realistic Q3 launch (Apple needs to gather up stock as the production rate is far lower than initial demand).
Finally reports are mentioning a cheaper, plastic-made iPhone too, but as we are getting the "cheaper iPhone" each year we take those rumors with an extra pinch of salt. Besides, every time the new iPhone comes out last-year's model gets discounted, technically making it the "cheaper iPhone".
The HTC One features an aluminium body, 4.7-inch HD screen and intriguing camera tech
The HTC One is one of the world's best phones - but amid talks of delays to shipping and unconfirmed pricing, when will you actually be able to buy one?
Don't worry - we've spent some time browsing the relevant catalogues and come up with the prices, plans and pontifications you need to worry about before thinking about shelling out your hard-earned.
Here's the bad news first: HTC has sent the following missive to us regarding the launch of the new HTC One: "We will start fulfilling pre-orders by end of March in certain markets and will roll out to more markets as we approach April." This is a stance re-iterated when asking the firm on 20 March about why the delay has happened - sorry we can't give you any more information at this point, but we are digging.
It's not confirmed why this has happened, but rumours range from the complexity of the camera module to suppliers just not considering HTC as big a deal as in years gone by... either way, it's not good if you've pre-ordered, especially as our HTC One review showed that this is one of the best phones on the market.
EE
The first network to decide it's worth bringing you the new HTC handset, this network is also one of the most pricey. It's offering the One ASAP and will cost you the princely sum of £69.99 up front and £41 a month from then on - and that's on a 24 month deal.
On the plus side you get mega speeds, movies and other assorted treats - but they may not be enough to make up for the lack of food in your life given the amounts you'll be spending.
Greatest data allowance plan cost: 3GB allowance on 4G: £69.99 for phone, £41 a month
Vodafone
The red network has decided you can get this handset on a pretty good deal - if you think a free phone from £42 a month is such a thing.
The good news is that you can get this handset in BLACK rather than just boring ol' aluminium / silver - and apparently our eyes are deceiving us when we argue it looks heaps like the BlackBerry Z10.
The phone is being badged as '4G-ready' too, something that many manufacturers are doing given they're getting ready to make, you know, 4G ready.
Greatest data allowance plan cost: 2GB of data: free phone, £42 a month
Three
Three was another early one to chat about its HTC One aspirations - dubbing it 'Ultrafast ready' rather than 4G, although that incorporates the next-gen network.
You can pre-order the phone right now, and it even comes on PAYG for £479.99 - that's if you've got that much spare change just sitting around. It comes in black on the numerical network, which is a plus if you want one to match your Batman outfit.
Greatest data allowance plan cost: £69.99 for phone, £36 a month for the One Plan
Orange and T-Mobile
The two EE sub-brands are still fighting for customers below their EE overlord, and are offering the HTC One on some lower contracts as they look to nab those that aren't overly fussed about 4G.
It's interesting to note that neither offer a delivery date, and vary pretty dramatically in terms of cost, simply because Orange doesn't offer an unlimited plan.
Greatest data allowance plan cost: £29.99 for phone, £41 a month for 3GB data on Orange / £69.99 for phone, £36 a month for unlimited data on T-Mobile
O2
The bubbly network isn't going to be left out when it comes to the HTC One, but it's not going to be the cheapest if you're desperate to get your hands on the new phone with this supplier.
You do get the normal amount of treats though, such as O2 Priority, but many will see other networks as massively cheaper. And it doesn't even come with a charger - although this is a pretty eco-friendly move, and you've probably already got one.
Greatest data allowance plan cost: £29.99 for phone, £47 a month for 4GB of data
Phones 4U
If you toddle down to one of 11 Phones4U stores now, you can be among the first in the world to have a go on the HTC One (which we already have, no big deal). You'll also be able to pre-order the handset with a few freebies for early orderers helping to sweeten the deal.
You'll be able to get the HTC One handset from Phones4U for free on a £36 per month contract on several networks from March 15. Want it in silver? Want it in black? Want it in gold? You can't get it in gold. Sorry. But there are headphones on offer as well - Dr Dre will be happy.
Greatest data allowance plan cost: Free phone, £41 a month for 3GB of data on Orange
The Carphone Warehouse
As for Carphone Warehouse, the first 1000 people to pre-order the HTC One will get a free pair of Beats headphones, as well as being offered in black and silver.
You'll have to make like it's 1996 and call up to do that (the number is 0800 925 925), or you can hang on until March 15 when the handset will be available in-store and online.
Greatest data allowance plan cost: Free phone, £40 a month for unlimted data on Three. (But no Beats headphones).
HTC One features
Of course, there's more to life than how much something costs - the HTC One comes with a whole host of new features that we've rounded up in a lovely and efficient manner below:
HTC One makes its debut with snap-happy Zoe on its arm
HTC's newest flagship Android phone: the HTC One has finally landed in all its aluminium uni-body, feature-packed glory. It's a good looking phone, slim with rounded corners and a premium look.
It's rocking a 4.7-inch Full HD display with a quad-core 1.7GHz Snapdragon processor on the inside. There's also 2GB of DDR2 RAM to play with and the handset will be available in 32GB and 64GB models.
It's well-documented that HTC hasn't had the best of it recently, with the profits slumping and market share down. So the HTC One is the firm's new attempt at a market-leading handset, and with an all-aluminium body, super-high-res 4.7-inch HD screen and futuristic camera technology hint that this could be something of a winner. So how does it stack up?
HTC One vs Samsung Galaxy S3 vs Sony Xperia Z vs iPhone 5
A few years ago, if you weren't on an iPhone or a BlackBerry, chances were you were rocking an HTC Android device with a big clock on the homescreen. But times change - and Samsung got busy with its Galaxy line, ultimately stealing the top Android spot from HTC and making HTC wince. We've compared the HTC One against the S3, the Xperia Z and the iPhone 5 to see how it fares.
Various UK retailers have started taking pre-orders for the upcoming BlackBerry Q10 smartphone. The QWERTY-featuring and BB10 OS powered Q10 pre-orders start at £530 and go a bit higher depending on where you do your shopping.
According to one of the retailers the phone will ship around April 22, while the listings of the others' say just late April.
We also found some US online stores are already taking pre-order as well, but the price there is a bit higher than we anticipated - $880. We are pretty sure the BlackBerry Q10 won't cost that much (previous rumors pointed at a $600-$620 price point for the SIM-free), but the pricing will only become clear after the official US launch date is announced.
We want to remind you BlackBerry is releasing the Z10 flagship tomorrow in the USA. Today the company also announced its BB10 OS application store has passed the 100,000 titles mark.
Not content with its overly pally web-based status questions (What's on your mind, TechRadar? What's happening? How's it hanging?), Facebook is trying out push notifications for iOS requesting that you update your status.
"Bijan, tell friends what's on your mind," it suggests in the screengrab taken by one lucky Facebook user who's in on the testing.
Then, the rather more demanding suffix, "Post an update."
Jeez Facebook, we'll post an update when we post an update. Stop trying to encourage us to spew more nonsense onto the internet.
Hopefully this is one of the features bound for the great Facebook news feed in the sky.
Blips are TechRadar's new news nuggets that you'll find percolating through the homepage - or you can see them all by hitting the blip keyword below.
Samsung is looking to take an even larger lead over the competition this year, thanks largely to its new Galaxy S4 flagship.
In 2011, just two short years ago, Nokia was the top dog in terms of phones sold, holding some 30% of the market. Then Samsung, which rides the Android wave better than anyone else, took center, rising to 29% in just one year, with most of that market share being taken straight from Nokia.
Market research firm IHS iSuppli has predicted that Samsung will double its lead in 2013 - in other words it will lead the next largest OEM by 11 percent points rather than 5. Although it did not care to predict exactly how much of the market Samsung will control in 2013, it did say that thanks to its "massive worldwide rollout through almost every operator, the lifestyle focus of the S4 will help drive Samsung’s market share sharply in 2013."
Given how well the Samsung Galaxy S4 looked in our preview, it's not hard to envision another great year for Samsung.
Keep isn't Google's first note-taker: Gmail has tasks, and before that there was Google Notebook
Google never saw a good idea it didn't want to emulate, and this time it's got the photocopiers set to Evernote: the new Google Keep is an Android app with cloud-based syncing to keep tabs on your thoughts and photos.
But it's entering into a competitive market, with stacks of productivity apps in the Google Play store. Is Keep good enough to rival the apps it's clearly inspired by? Could the web app tempt iOS users away from the stock iOS apps? Let's find out.
Google Keep vs Evernote vs Apple Notes: compatibility
Keep is available in three parts: an Android app, which you use to manage your notes; an Android widget for Jelly Bean, which provides ultra-fast access to those notes on your home screen; and as part of the web-based Google Drive at drive.google.com/keep.
Google Drive hasn't got a Keep button yet, but that's due next week. We'd expect lots of third-party apps to add support for Google Keep too, although that hasn't happened yet.
The web-based version is very basic, but then so is Apple's iCloud for notes and reminders: while it's possible to access them via the web, it's not something you'll want to do very often, if at all. You'll have a much more pleasant time if you use iOS and OS X's Reminders and Notes apps with iCloud syncing them in the background.
If you want the widest compatibility, Evernote's the one to go for. It's not one app but an ecosystem: the main Evernote app takes care of multiple kinds of notes, but there are task-specific apps too: Hello (iPhone, iPod touch and Android) for keeping details of people, Skitch for sketches, Evernote Food for - yes! - food.
The core Evernote app is available for pretty much anything: PC, Mac, iOS, Android, BlackBerry and even WebOS, and third party apps expand Evernote's features to other devices such as Sony's Reader hardware.
Google Keep vs Evernote vs Apple Notes: features
Of the three different offerings, Apple's is the most basic: Notes is a very simple document editor that supports images and basic file attachments, and while Reminders does support location-aware tasks that's about it. The Keep app doesn't support location-based notes or content tagging yet, but it does offer automatic transcription of voice notes and a colour coded birds-eye view of all your notes (which looks rather like Windows Phone, or the Pinterest app).
Evernote doesn't do reminders but compatible third-party apps do, and in addition to notes it has Stacks, which you can use to organise your stuff into different categories. It can store and search notes by location or by tags, supports audio as well as images and rich text, offers dictation in iOS and Android and supports file attachments too.
You can also create new Evernote items by email, and Evernote integrates with IFTTT, so for example you can create a new Evernote note whenever you star an item in Google Reader or check in somewhere in Foursquare.
Evernote also has The Trunk, an online app store of Evernote-compatible apps such as Receipts HD for tracking expenditure, Penultimate for storing handwritten notes, Scalar for calculations and so on.
Google Keep vs Evernote vs Apple Notes: price
Keep, Notes and Evernote are all free, but Evernote also offers a premium version that delivers more power. Premium users get the ability to search inside PDF attachments, making Evernote a handy tool for travellers and business users, and they can share notebooks for others to edit.
Premium also offers Note History, which keeps track of changes, but the most important difference between free and paid-for is that Premium users get 1GB of uploads per month instead of 60MB. If you're a camera-happy note taker, you'll burst through the free version's upload limit in ten minutes. Google Keep has no such limit, and iCloud is based on storage space (5GB for free users) rather than data use.
Google Keep vs Evernote vs Apple Notes: security
There are two kinds of security to think about here: security in the sense of how well your data and personal information is protected, and security in terms of whether your chosen service will still be around in the not too distant future.
Evernote scores badly in the former and Google in the latter: Evernote recently suffered a major data breach, forcing users to change their passwords, and Google famously canned Google Reader this month, the latest in a very long list of once-promising services it's since shut down. In many respects Keep is rather like Google Notebook, and that one got the bullet back in 2006.
The tablet UI for Keep is a bit odd, and by
The end of Google Reader is certainly enough to convince some people that Keep isn't worth investing time or data in, but we suspect that its future is rosier than Reader: it's part of Google Drive and integration with Google+ is clearly coming, so you're looking at a Pinterest-style app that can help Google in its mission to know all about you and to sell ads based on that knowledge.
Google Keep vs Evernote vs iOS Notes: first impressions
It's probably unfair to judge Keep just yet: it's a bare bones release that will clearly get more powerful very quickly, especially if third party apps can tie into it. But is it ready for you to embrace it yet? If you're on iOS or on a desktop, we reckon the answer is no: the web version doesn't do very much, and there are plenty of apps and web apps that do much more or do it more elegantly (Clear on iOS, OneNote Mobile, the myriad To-Do and Getting Things Done apps on all platforms and so on).
Keep will integrate with Google Drive, but the web interface is very basic
On Android, however, we'd say a qualified yes if you don't already have any productivity apps: it's a simple and effective program that's particularly handy on Jelly Bean. For hardcore note-takers, idea-jotters and receipt-filers, however, Evernote leaves Google Keep in its dust.
Nokia has just launched two new camera apps for the first generation Lumia devices.The new apps are Camera Extras and Cinemagraph and are available for Lumia WP7-running 510, 610, 710, 800 and 900.
Both camera apps were previously only available on Windows Phone 8-powered Lumias. The Camera Extras offers Smart Shoot, Action Shot, Panorama and self-shot feature, while the Cinemagraph shoots a few seconds short video and transforms in into an animated picture (gif).
You can find both apps in the Windows Phone 7 marketplace right now. You can also hit the source link below and scan the bar codes.
We've come to expect a certain outlandish quality from the pronouncements of Digitimes' upstream supply chain sources, but today's iPhone 5S rumour is positively pedestrian.
The industry rag has had a quiet word with its people and come up with the following: the iPhone 5S will launch in Q3 (September, we expect) with a slightly better camera and a slightly better chipset on board.
In other news, night to follow day, Tuesday to follow Monday and bears to continue using largely wooded areas to take care of business.
Sign of the digitimes
We have to offer you the usual Digitimes caveats - the paper has come up with so many misses it's really hard to remember the hits - but, to be honest, a Q3 release and an iterative hardware update seems like a pretty solid prediction to us.
As for software, we're expecting Apple to announce iOS 7 at WWDC in June 2013 ready for a launch in September alongside the iPhone 5S.
If all this comes to pass, it means we're in for a longer wait for the iPhone 6 which probably won't make an appearance until 2014.
That, or Digitimes has got this one horrendously wrong and a completely redesigned iPhone 6 will launch in July and come with a free lollipop. Who can tell.
Just a month on from that event, those answers seem even more relevant given Pichai's new role.
"So far we have been in a world that has been pretty straightforward... Chromebook has been for laptops and Android for tablets and phones. What we are showing here is that when you start building a touch device, those lines blur," he said at the event, with TechRadar in attendance.
"We've always been comfortable [with that] at Google - we believe that these are two competing choices.
"It's an incredible time and place for computing with a lot of innovation. We have two viewpoints here and we are doing both."
Consistency
"What's important to understand is that a user you can pick up either of these two devices and now how to use email, YouTube, search, maps and these applications," he continued.
"Today I use a Nexus 4, I love it, I use my [Chromebook] Pixel, I go back and forth and I think both are great.
"Users don't care about the underlying technology [as much as how it is to use]. Netflix is a great example - you use Netflix in a browser or on a Android tablet and technologically they are very different.
"But my mom doesn't care about that because both look like Netflix. What's important is making applications look and feel consistent across all devices."
So what can be gleaned from this answer? Well Pichai has always been a passionate advocate for Chrome OS, but his point about apps being consistent and lined blurring because of touch are perhaps more important.
Although we don't expect Android and Chrome OS to align immediately, the differences between the two are already eroding rapidly - and it seems inevitable that the two will become one sooner rather than later.
We've got our first sniff at a BlackBerry Q10 release date and price, as an online retailer pops the keyboard-toting handset up for pre-order.
According to Unlocked-Mobiles a SIM-free BlackBerry Q10 will set you back a princely £529.98 (around $800/AU$770) - that's more than the flagship BlackBerry Z10 which is currently floating around the £500 (AU$700) mark.
In terms of a release date Unlocked-Mobiles has the Q10 listed to arrive on April 26, which backs up comment from BlackBerry itself last month.
A price for button presses
Many were expecting the BlackBerry Q10 to come in cheaper than its fully touchscreen brother, so this news is a little surprising.
The BlackBerry Q10 sports a 3.1-inch Super AMOLED HD touchscreen, 4G, NFC, 8MP rear camera, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage and a 2100mAh battery.
It runs the new BlackBerry 10 operating system and the Canadian firm has also updated its famous physical keyboard on the device which measures 119.6 x 66.8 x 10.4mm.
We've contacted BlackBerry to find out if the price and release date is accurate, and we've also asked why the Q10 is set to come in at a higher price than the Z10. We'll update you if we get anything back.
Amazon.co.uk has the Lumia 720 listed for pre-order at £382.97 SIM-free, but pop over to Expansys or Unlocked-Mobiles and the same handset will apparently set you back just £299.99 / £294.98 respectively.
Now we do expect prices to varying slightly between websites as they look for a competitive advantage, but a difference of almost £100 does raise our suspicions that someone may have got their maths wrong.
Which price is right?
Pricing is a little more linear for the low-end Lumia 520, with the cheeky little handset setting you back less than £200.
According to Amazon we should see the Lumia 720 arrive on April 8, while the Lumia 520 lags behind with its debut seemingly scheduled for April 29, while Unlocked-Mobiles reckons the 720 and 520 will arrive together on April 1.
My Nokia Blog has also spotted the handsets popping up on the continent on the German and Italian Amazon sites with the prices closer to those of Expansys in the UK.
We have contacted the sites regarding the prices they are displaying and will update this article when we hear back.
Samsung announced the Galaxy S4 with an Exynos 5 Octa chipset, but what the presenters didn’t say during the announcement is that a lot of countries will be getting the Snapdragon 600 version instead. And it’s not just North America either.
SamMobile has compiled a list that shows which country gets which model. The I9500 is the non-LTE Exynos model while the I9505 is the 4G-enabled Snapdragon model. It's worth pointing out that some lucky countries are getting both.
Here’s the list plus known prices so far. Note that it's incomplete and may not be 100% accurate.
Another day, another new Apple patent discovered – but this could be the most useful one we've seen so far.
Apple filed a patent for a "Protective Mechanism for an Electronic Device" with the US Patent and Trademark Office in September 2011. The invention essentially shifts the insides of a device when it's falling in order to reduce chances of damage.
This means the device is less likely to land on its screen, meaning no more picking up your dropped iPhone and turning it over with painful anxiety as you anticipate the damage. At least, that's the idea.
No more cracks
So how does it work exactly? When the device is falling, the phone detects that it's in free fall using position sensors, accelerometers and even imaging sensors.
A signal is then sent and the protective mechanism kicks in, shifting the weight so that the device lands on its least delicate area and minimising the chance of any nasty breakage. Phew!
It sounds pretty damn useful, though perhaps a little to complex to be featuring in our Apple devices any time soon. Let's just hope it's before we get to the stage where we're too scared to even take our phones out of the house.
They'll still just watch YouTube videos of cats though
EE's 4G plans continue apace as it serves up to 10x faster speeds to rural areas, with average speeds of 8-12Mbps.
Currently the UK's only 4G provider, EE has been running a 4G trial in Threlkeld for months now, and has now extended that to larger parts of Cumbria.
It's claiming that speeds of up to 20Mbps were seen during those trials, but EE is claiming residents of the 100 square miles of Northern Fells area will receive around half that on average. Given that some residents experienced speeds of sub-2Mbps, and some are without internet at all, that will probably do for them in the short term.
What's interesting about this deployment is that it still uses EE's 1800MHz spectrum (no, wait, that is interesting, we promise). There are three frequencies used in the UK for 4G: 800Mhz, 1800MHz and 2.6GHz, and the former is meant to be the one that delivers 4G to wider areas thanks to its massively increased transmission range.
Longer, Better, Faster, Stronger?
If EE can deliver wireless broadband speeds to rural areas using the mid-range power band, then it bodes well for later in the year when all the other networks will be offering rural 4G broadband on the 800MHz spectrum.
EE gained a smaller slice of the 800MHz band in the recent 4G auction, so it will be interesting to see if it continues with its current plans and saves that longer-range frequency for the REALLY far away territories. Off the top of our heads, we'd speculate the Moon will be up for 4G soon.
But if you're one of the 2000 residents that will be covered by the Cumbria rollout, which promises 84% coverage by summer this year, you can expect 4G prices to start at £15.99 per month for broadband coverage – although that will probably shoot up quickly depending on your data usage.
A number of Sony Xperia Z users have reported their devices suffering from sudden death. Apparently, Sony's flagship has been shutting down for no apparent reason with subsequent efforts to bring it back to life proving unsuccessful, save for a hard reset in a few cases.
There is no particular reason for the occurrence. Some users have blamed low battery for the issue, but others have had their Xperia Z expire with plenty of charge left in its battery.
Sony has acknowledged the issue and promised that a fix is in the works. It will be delivered to the users via an upcoming software update.
Aw, look at the baby iPhones (credit: iPhoneclub.nl)
Rumours of a budget version iPhone have been around since the launch of the iPhone itself, and while it may or may not be on the Apple roadmap, a Dutch artist has knocked up a computer-generated render of what he imagines these cheaper iPhones could look like.
Rather than just sketching out a smaller iPhone, Martin Hajek imagines iPhones in colours, with rose and cyan variants included in his images. This makes a lot of sense when you consider Apple's approach to iPods these days, and they look pretty slick, too.
The big question though, is what would Apple change on the inside to qualify the baby iPhone for a cheaper price tag? Our speculation is it would rewind the screen size back to 3.5-inch and keep the hardware in-line with the previous generation phone, whatever that is from year to year. Though whether or not Apple has plans to create a second-tier phone, or just keep selling last year's model for cheaper, is anyone's guess.
For more pics, check out the gallery at iPhoneclub.
