Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Phones Review

Phones Review

Sony Xperia Play UK Release Date with Preloaded Games

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 11:06 AM PDT

News regarding the UK release date for the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play phone, is that it will be released on 31 March 2011.

Reports indicate that Sony Ericsson expect the launch of the Xperia Play to be the biggest ever marketing campaign that has been done in the UK, see article by one of the guys at 3g.co.uk

The Xperia Play phone (aka Playstation phone or PSP phone) is the first smartphone to be actually linked with the Playstation name and comes with a slide out gaming control pad that has two shoulder buttons, 4 face buttons, two analogue touch pads and a d-pad, all of which will enhance that gaming experience.

Now apparently the Xperia will come with six pre-installed games: FIFA 10, Crash Bandicoot, Bruce Lee Dragon Warriors, The Sims 3, Star Battalion & Tetris

It is also claimed by the guys at mynextfone.co.uk that there will be around 50 games available from the date of launch through the Playstation suite service.

If you think this may be a phone for you, why not see my colleague Jame’s previous post which includes a hands on video of this smartphone or my post dated 24 February 2011 which relates to a docking station for the phone.

Windows Phone 7 Buries Microsoft Zune: RIP & Condolences

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 10:00 AM PDT

It is looking like out with the old and in with the new especially when you think about Windows Phone 7 buries Microsoft Zune, is this where we say RIP and send in your condolences.

Apple has always dominated the market when it comes to iPods etc but to see and end of an era such as the Microsoft Zune will be upsetting to many current customers, 9to5Mac reports via Bloomberg that Microsoft is pulling the plug on any new versions of the Zune music player.

Any existing Microsoft Zune's on the market will still stay on sale, you cannot say that Microsoft has not tried with the music player because they introduced the new Zune HD but this never went that great, so welcome to the new kid on the block called Windows Phone 7.

It is WP7 that is burying the Zune if we were to hazard a guess, if you are a Zune owner please let us know what your thoughts are in the commenting area provided below. Microsoft Zune RIP and Condolences to Zune lovers.

Android 3.0 Honeycomb Tablet OS Gets Reviewed: Video

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 09:40 AM PDT

As you are no doubt aware the Google guys have come up with a tablet optimised operating system with Android 3.0 Honeycomb and offers Android tablet users more features and stuff than on an Android smartphone, but how does Honeycomb fare?

Well the guy’s over at Unwired View have come up with a video review of Android 3.0 Honeycomb that delivers a sixteen minute look at the new Android operating system for tablets and running on the Motorola Xoom of course.

According to the guys your first experience with Android 3.0 Honeycomb may be somewhat overwhelming as nothing is in the same place as other Android tablets but offers a more “futuristic/holographic” look and feel, and they basically start off by showing the differences between Android OS for smartphones and Android OS for tablets

Of course the guys have posted quite a lengthy article accompanying the video review and you can check that out by hitting up their website and it goes quite into depth with Android 3.0 Honeycomb. However if you don't have time to delve right into that in-depth written review you can simply check out the video footage below…enjoy.

Apple iPad 2 Sits Nice In Car Dashboard: Video

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:48 AM PDT

Now that the new Apple iPad 2 is out and about why not slap your iOS tablet into the dashboard of your car to replace your car audio system whilst adding a little vehicle navigation system as seen in the video we have for your viewing pleasure below.

The video footage comes our way courtesy of TiPb and by way of TUAW and the SoundManCarAudio YouTube page and delivers just over eight minutes of showing how to install the Apple iPad 2 into the dash of a Ford F150.

In the footage the guys strip out the central console and reconstruct it to house the Apple iPad 2 quite nicely. Of course if you don't have the knowledge these guys have then it isn’t advisable you go chopping at your own car dashboard to fit your iOS tablet yourself.

Having said that it just goes to show with a little knowledge and determination you can do just about anything you want with the Apple iPad 2, so with that said hit up the video, punch that play button and check out the modification in action…enjoy.

HTC Thunderbolt Release Date & Price Official: You Still Want One

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:30 AM PDT

Now that we all officially know the release date is March 17th and the price starts from $249.99 do you still want one? We just want to know what our readers think about the smartphone still.

Yes the release date of March 17 is now official and you can read more about that here, the Verizon Wireless and HTC websites will obviously update soon as Thursday get's closer but the new press release can be read via our previous article above.

Many of you have wished for news on release dates and price of the HTC Thunderbolt and with some getting very annoyed with the wait, but now you know the details has the excitement gone, is the phone not what you want anymore? There are so many questions to ask so we will keep this one simple.

Below we have put a poll together and we would love for you to give us your answers via voting, just simply read the question and click the relevant field of choice and submit it.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Japan Tsunami Chillingly Captured on Video

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:19 AM PDT

I know that this isn't really mobile phone related but with quite a few carriers announcing free calls to Japan I thought it would be an idea to post some video footage of the tsunami coming ashore which I haven't seen before, and I have to say it’s quite chilling.

My colleague Mark earlier posted an article on AT&T and Verizon both offering free calls and text to Japan from the US and other carriers are also stepping up to the mark in this natural disaster.

The video below comes our way courtesy of the guys over at Gizmodo and by way of CNN and shows just how unrelenting the Earth’s natural resources can be, no matter how technologically advanced we might be.

The video shows the almost total destruction of Minamisanriku and is quite upsetting to watch, but the world needs to see these things to remind us all that no matter how advanced we become, how sure of ourselves in our technological ability, nature is always more powerful.

AOL Radio: Layoffs Not Stopping New Android Music App Play

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 08:14 AM PDT

Around 900 employees may lose their jobs at AOL but these layoffs is not stopping the new Android app called "Play" the music sharing application that is free.

The new app called AOL Play will allow users to follow others activities that will tell you what sort of music friends are listening to, you can even like and comment just like Facebook, you can even share this content with Twitter and Facebook.

AOL and T-Mobile has partnered for to launch this free app and PCMag T-Mobile and AOL Music users can listen to over 100 tracks from SXSW and live stream SXSW’s concerts in real-time.

Play by AOL Music Main features Include: Listen to all your music and exclusive tracks only on Play, share music experience and see what others are listening to, get access to tracks from SXSW, MP3 of the Day and much more.

This app is available right now for install on the Android Market, please do read the official Play by Aol website here. For iPhone users you may want to know that there may be an app coming soon to you as well and of course we will let you know when this happens.

Source – Mashable

Android 2.2 Froyo Update for European Motorola Milestone Released

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 07:46 AM PDT

For all owners of the Motorola Milestone in Europe who have been somewhat lagging behind in getting their smartphone updated with Android 2.2 Froyo, it appears that your long wait has finally come to and end and you can now grab some Froyo goodness.

According to an article over on Phandroid, Motorola Milestone owners can now hit up the Motorola Support page and download Android 2.2 Froyo to your device via connecting to a computer via a cable.

Furthermore Motorola has also published some release notes for your reading pleasure once you have downloaded the Android OS update, which details the enhancements and improvements found in Android 2.2 Froyo.

There’s no word on why Motorola took so long to deliver Froyo to the European Motorola Milestone, but at least now customers waiting time has come to an end, so go grab the update and enjoy and let’s hope that the update to Android 2.3 Gingerbread doesn't take as long. Feel free to let us know if all goes well or if you experience and problems with the update.

Apple iPad 2 In Short Supply

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 07:12 AM PDT

It appears that if you have dallied somewhat in snapping up the new Apple iPad 2 you will now have a bit of a wait on your hands to get the iOS tablet as apparently the demand for the second generation Apple iPad has caused the device to become short on supply.

According to an article over on 9to5 Mac if you want to purchase the Apple tablet from the Apple Online Store there is now a shipping date set at four to five weeks for the iOS device.

This unfortunately means that if you order your shiny new Apple iPad 2 right now you can expect a wait of a month before you actually get your new tablet.

On checking the Apple Online Store a few minutes ago the Apple iPad 2 with WiFi 16GB is 4 to 5 weeks, the 32GB is 3 to 4 weeks while the 64GB black is 3 to 4 weeks but the white is 4 to 5 weeks.

The Apple iPad 2 with WiFi and 3G on AT&T is 16GB and 32GB in black 3 to 4 weeks, the 64GB in black is 4 to 5 weeks and all white versions are 4 to 5 weeks.

While on Verizon the iPad 2 WiFi and 3G is 16GB black and white is 4 to 5 weeks, the 32GB black and white is 3 to 4 weeks and the 64GB is 3 to 4 weeks on the black while the white is 4 to 5 weeks, as you can no doubt see by the image below.

iStockPicks App for iOS Devices Released

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 06:27 AM PDT

For those iOS users that like to keep an eye on their stocks, MF Software has now released the iStockPicks app for the iPhone and iPod Touch and is one of their first “Freemium Finance titles” for iOS devices.

iStockPicks for ioS devices enables the user to set up lists of their favoured stocks and delivers the ability to run technical analysis of historical stock price movements to generate Buy/Sell/Neutral ratings and when the user receives a recommendation they can tap said recommendation to receive extra analysis and detailed data along with a three month tech chart for that ticker.

The iStockPicks iOS app a single Recommendation Credit for each rating and additions credits can be purchased in-app and when you download the iStockPicks app you will receive 200 credits for free thus eliminating the upfront download costs.

The iStockPicks app works by the usage of a powerful “Recommendation Engine” to deliver historic stock data for a given stock ticker and calculates values such as MACD, Bollinger Bands and RSI indicator and uses those to deliver Buy/Sell/Neutral ratings.

The iStockPicks app for the iPhone and iPod Touch is a free download for ioS devices running iOS 3.1.3 and above and is iOS 4 tested, which can be obtained by hitting up iTunes

Verizon HTC Thunderbolt Official Price & Release Date

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 06:25 AM PDT

It is official via Verizon Wireless; yes the HTC Thunderbolt is now finally official and we have the release date of March 17 (Thursday) and price details.

The first 4G LTE smartphone for Verizon Wireless is arriving March 17 and this is definitely official via a press release, the price will be $249.99 with a new two-year customer agreement, the press release states that this smartphone will have many features such as Android 2.2, HTC Sense and Google Mobile Services.

Main HTC Thunderbolt Features Include: 4G LTE optimized apps such as EA's Rock Band, Gameloft's Let's Golf, Tunewiki and Bitbop, will come with download speeds of 5 to 12 Mbps and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps in 4G Mobile Broadband coverage area, 4.3-inch WVGA display and 8-megapixel rear facing camera and HD (720p) video recording.

It is very exciting with more features such as a 1.3-megapixel front facing camera with video chatting capabilities, 1GHz Snapdragon processor, Mobile Hotspot capability, 8 GB of onboard memory and a pre-installed 32 GB microSD card (Actual formatted capacity will be less and Built-in kickstand for easy media viewing.

The Price Details: Nationwide Talk plans begin at $39.99 monthly access and an unlimited 4G LTE data plan start is $29.99 monthly access, Mobile Hotspot before May 15 will be included but after May 15 customers may choose to activate Mobile Hotspot for $20 for 2 GB of data per month.

Our crazy release statistics were not wrong after all were they? Read Here

Official Website – Verizon Wireless – Official Press release

HTC Thunderbolt Finally Confirmed for March 17 via Facebook: Update

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 06:02 AM PDT

Just a quick bit of news via HTC Facebook profile, they have just reported that the HTC Thunderbolt is confirmed for release on March 17.

If you visit HTC Facebook they have just posted a status messages saying "We are very excited to share that this Thursday the 17th Thunderbolt will be in your local Verizon Wireless".

Hopefully this is true but we have visited HTC's main website and Verizon Wireless and still no official confirmation there, maybe they got the info on Facebook quicker than the main websites.

We will keep a very close eye on this and will report straight away if the main Verizon Wireless and HTC website posts its confirmed release date. Join phonesreview.co.uk on Facebook or Twitter for updates. In the meantime what have you got to say on the latest news covering the HTC Thunderbolt Look at the HTC Facebook screenshot we have for you below

UPDATE: It is now OFFICIAL read here.

iPhone 5 To Feature Dual SIM Slots: Surely Wrong

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 05:40 AM PDT

The new iPhone 5 that we are all hoping will release this year will house to SIM cards, yes dual SIM slots on the next generation Apple smartphone, which means you can have two phone lines. Surely not!

9to5Mac reports via its source iDealsChina that the iPhone 5 will have two SIM card slots, which we think cannot be right and could be a little misunderstanding. iDealsChina heard from a reliable source that this new feature would happen on the new smartphone from Apple

Could this be true or could it be the fact that the iPhone 5 will be the same as Verizon's iPhone 4 GSM and CDMA connections? Dual SIM-cards does not have to be two slots for SIM cards but merely one card slot that allows different SIM cards.

We will keep a close eye on this one, as it is very interesting, if it does turn out to be true then all good. Imagine if you are in America and you could have an iPhone that allows you to have both Verizon and AT&T networks, or in the UK O2 and Orange (Just an example).

iDealsChina also had information on the iPhone 5 design mold, read more about that here. Please do post all your comments below; do you think the new iPhone 5 will have two SIM Card slots?

Thomson Local Business Search App for Nokia Devices Released

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 05:27 AM PDT

If you are in need of a business search application the Thompson Local already have an iOS app and Android app available and as of right now the Thompson Local have released their 3rd business search app this time for Nokia devices.

The Thompson Local business search Ovi app enables the user to gain access to Thompson Local’s database of in excess of 1.8 million local UK business listings along with the ability to search business details, plot search results, and read reviews from other users.

The Thompson Local app for Nokia devices allows the user to access additional info on local businesses such as promotional offers and images where available and plot those serch results on a local map by utilising your handset’s GPS.

The marketing director of Thompsonlocal.com, Jill Pringle says, ” Through our mobile apps for iPhone, Android and now Nokia we are helping people find all the local products and services they need whilst on the move. Users expect mobile search to be quick, easy and accurate. Our GPS enabled, 'one-touch' search functionality from the homepage has proven extremely popular with mobile users."

The Thompson Local Business Search app for Nokia smartphones can be downloaded to your chosen Nokia device as a free download by hitting up the Nokia Ovi Store.

Motorola Droid 3, X 2 and Previously Unknown Targa Pictures Pop Up

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 05:07 AM PDT

With all things in the mobile space, devices sooner or later get updated to a newer version and it’s been some time since Motorola pushed out the Motorola Droid 2 and Motorola Droid X, thus it would appear newer versions of those devices are in the making.

According to an article over on the Engadget by way of Phone Arena, a member of Howard Forums, one wnrussell has posted what looks like pictures of the successors to these devices, the Motorola Droid 3 and Motorola Droid X 2 here, and here

Furthermore wnrussell also posted a picture of a previously unknown smartphone which is apparently called the Motorola Targa and the word has it the Targa is a 4G LTE enabled device for Verizon that looks to be sporting an outsized camera sensor on its rear along with a front facing camera.

Other than the images there is no further detail on any of the pictured devices given. Although one member does apparently believe the Targa is fake.

The Motorola Droid 3 is pictured above while the Motorola Droid X 2 and Motorola Targa can be found below, so check them out and let us know your views on these devices by posting your opinion to our comments area below.
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