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Archive for the ‘Mobile Phone Decoration’ Category

Panasonic are back! The Japanese brand has officially announced their plan to release a Panasonic smartphone across the UK and Europe. Though limited details have been announced, we’re excited that the information unveiled so far suggests a high powered smartphone capable of challenging the Samsung Galaxy S2 and iPhone 4S.

Due for release in March 2012, the Panasonic smartphone will boast a stunning 4.3 inch OLED qHD display. Rumoured to have three navigation buttons along the bottom, it offers a similar interface to the Galaxy Nexus. Being a new release on Android, if Panasonic really want to establish themselves as smartphone innovators, expect the handset to be pre-loaded with the latest Android Ice Cream Sandwich. Panasonic’s allegiance to Android will surely boost the dominance of the Android Market further, which recently reported the preferred OS for 52% of smartphone users.

One factor which could potentially leave rival smartphone brands trailing is the camera specification. Panasonic are renowned for their premium Lumix camera range and have previously integrated this technology into a Japanese only Panasonic smartphone release (The Lumix Phone 101 P). The camera for this phone offered 13.2 megapixels, optical zoom and a real camera flash. Though it’s unlikely the new European Panasonic smartphone will be so camera orientated, let’s hope they use some of the technology to produce a great handset.

Stating the upcoming release as “dustproof and waterproof”, Panasonic have understood the need to offer durability and robustness in a high value handset. In addition to these features, images of a prototype model clearly have NFC engraved on the back which is a popular technology in Japan for sharing data and paying for goods with your smartphone.

A UK release of a Panasonic smartphone sounds exciting and should add a new dimension to an already competitive market. The official unveiling of the latest Panasonic smartphone is scheduled for the World Mobile Congress in February.

Google announced that they were working on a replacement to the Nexus S last May with subsequent leaks revealing the phone will be called the Nexus Prime. Like the Nexus S it’s expected that the newest phone from Google and Samsung will be running a previously unreleased version of Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Let’s have a look at what we can expect from the handset.

Firstly the name, this was leaked accidently by Samsung when references to the handset were found in a list of settings on their website. The name hasn’t actually been confirmed by either Google or Samsung so this could just be a code name whilst the phone is being developed. We were expecting to see the handset revealed at the Samsung Unpacked event however this was delayed in a gesture to Steve Jobs who passed away last week. 

That’s as concrete as the rumours get so from here on in were basing this article on unfounded rumours and guess work. We imagine that the Nexus prime will be based largely on the ever popular Samsung Galaxy S II, as a result you can expect Dual Core processor (Maybe as powerful as 1.5GHz according to the latest rumours). An 8 mega pixel which in turn unlock full 1080p video capture. An improved screen wouldn’t be beyond the realms of reason so it could be one of the first phones to offer 720p resolution display. The place to be at the moment in terms of screen size is around 4″ which we imagine is going to be needed to get a high resolution display.  We haven’t seen any leaked images on how the phone  will look but the Nexus S is one of the nicest handsets on the market and we imagine the Nexus Prime won’t let down Google’s portfolio.

Ice Cream Sandwich will be the latest version of Androids operating system, with most handsets now running Gingerbread 2.3 and tablets running Honeycomb 3.x it’s starting to get a bit tricky keeping up to date with the latest versions. Google are going to make this simple for us by creating an OS that runs on all devices and this is going to be Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0. As far as we know at the moment there aren’t going to be any new features but we’ll know for sure once the Nexus Prime hits the market place.

So it finally came the big day everybody was waiting for apple finally told the world what to expect from iPhone.

On Tuesday apple announced at 6pm UK time the newest addition to the iPhone family the iPhone 4S. We’ve been providing regular updates here based on the rumours over the last 12 months since the original iPhone 4 was released in June last year. After the apple event we can admit that many of the guesses were way off the mark.

iPhone 4S Design

Over the last few months we’ve reported many stories that apple’s newest iPhone was going to change significantly in design. We were expecting rounded glass and a return to the curved back. In fact we actually received the exact same phone dimensions of the iPhone 4. as a result the screen size hasn’t increased and it turns out the majority of the rumours was just that. Why did apple keep the same style? We’ll the name says it all, the iPhone 4S is simply an improved version of its current model. This is exactly the same approach Apple took with the 3G and 3GS. It makes commercial sense, this way apple gets two years of maximising on the accessories built to fit the exact shape of the iPhone 4 and production costs are kept lower as only minor changes are required to fit in all the new upgrades. We could now be looking at apples phone strategy for the next ten years with a major upgrade only coming every 2 years. (Great news for those who like to get 2 year contracts).

iPhone 4S Spec

The two big changes that we did get were the A5 chip which comes directly out of the iPad 2 and offers dual core technology, this effectively doubles the speed of the iPhone 4S VS the iPhone 4. Apple has also improved the graphics processor with a significant improvement to gaming graphics. The other big upgrade is the camera. An 8mp sensor is now in place which offers full 1080p video. The lens has also been rebuilt giving you an aperture of f/2.4 allowing for better pictures in low light and greater depth perception in the 2D images. The improvement on the camera lens was unexpected, however most rumours were expecting the camera and processor upgrade which places the iPhone in a position to contend with the Android power houses such as the Samsung Galaxy S II and HTC Sensation on a hardware level. We didn’t see a larger screen or any changes to the button layout which some of the more hopeful rumours were insinuating.

iPhone 4S Software

The surprise really came in the form of Siri, the voice activated software that we be exclusively reserved for iPhone 4S owners. Imagine having a PA who carried your phone, ask Siri to do something and she obediently performs the task in question. Want to be reminded to get a pint of milk when you drive past your local supermarket, ask Siri to set a reminder and your phone will alert you thanks to a nifty bit of GPS wizardry when you approach the local store. This is kind of difficult to illustrate the potential in words so take a look at the below video to see for yourself.

Although there aren’t any world changing enhancements to the iPhone line, what apple have done (Which they do best) is consider how you use your iPhone and improved the features that will mostly affect your experience and that’s what apple really care about. Making sure the products they supply offer you a seamless experience that actually benefits your day to day life.

The iPhone 4S should be available for pre at mobiles on the 11th of  October and on general sale from the 14th October. Any update on the iPhone 5 Rumours will be available right here

It’s Mobiles.co.uk’s sweet 16th Birthday this week and to celebrate we are giving customers a present on us, an extra £16.00 automatic cashback when they place an order with us at 16.00 for 16 minutes on the 7th October, giving them even better value!

 Mobiles.co.uk was launched in 1995 and was the first UK website to sell mobile phones 16 years ago, the first to offer free gifts with your phone and the first to realise customers don’t want to wait for their free gift – they want it now, making them the first mobile phone company to send your free gift at the same time as your mobile phone!

During our birthday week why not sign up to our newsletter to stay up to date with the latest mobile news, offers and giveaways and be entered into our birthday prize draw for the opportunity to win a free gift of your choice from a long list of fantastic gadgets including a 32 inch Toshiba HDTV, HP Netbook, PlayStation 3 slim, HTC Flyer, BlackBerry Torch 9800 and a Nintendo 3DS to name just a few!

Head over to Facebook where we will be giving away a birthday cake to one lucky follower every day until the 7th October.Simply follow us, answer a question and wait to see if you’re a winner! Following mobiles.co.uk on Facebook and Twitter gives you the chance to get exclusive offers, prizes and be the first to hear of all our competitions and best deals.

And don’t forget to check out our birthday page here and join in on the fun!

Google Android. That little green robot has been propping up everywhere recently but what’s it all about and why is it the fastest growing smartphone operating system in the market right now?

Simply put Android is an operating system for smartphones (and now tablet PC’s) developed by Google in 2008 as the answer to the continued dominance of Apple’s award winning iPhone. It didnt quite work out that way initially but nowadays Android is the word on everyones lips with many smartphone manufacturers from HTC and Samsung turning to Google’s product to run their latest phones.

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The Samsung Galaxy S II, HTC Desire HD, Sony Ericsson Xperia Play have all been big handsets in the last several months and all of them have shipped with varying updates of the Android operating system (we’ve had versions ranging from Cupcake all the way through to Ice Cream Sandwich so far – we’re thinking someone at Google has a sweet tooth!)
But there’s more than just the cute names and funny robot – Android OS can run multiple applications at the same time, whether in built apps or those from Android Market. Listen to music whilst browsing the internet, play a game whilst also on facebook, mutli-tasting is effortless on Android and with the introduction of new dual-core handsets like the Galaxy S II, this is only set to get easier.

Talking on the Android Marketplace – Googles apps store now boasts over 250,000 3rd party applications ready to download to your phone and improve your mobile phone experience. From the hugely popular Angry Birds puzzle game (they’re angry over evil green pigs stealing their eggs apparently) to apps like  Shazam which identifies a song on the radio for you – Android have catered for all smarpthone needs – entertainment, productivity, Utility and communication. And that’s not even mentioning all the built in apps like Facebook, Twitter and Google Maps.

But it’s not just Google Maps – one of Android’s biggest selling points is it’s full Google integration including Gmail, Google Talk,, YouTube, Google Calendar, and Google Search. Oh and not to forget Google Goggles!

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So that’s it – Android in a nutshell. There’s plenty more features of the little green robot but we won’t ruin the fun of finding them out for yourself. But if you are after more information be sure to check out our new Android OS page as part of our ‘Smarten up’ campaign or check out all our latest Android phones here.

Sony Ericsson launched a smartphone in October and called it the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc and now they have improved this brilliant Xperia mobile and released the new Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S,  Judging from most performance cars we can safely assume the letter “S” means faster a bit like the porsche turbo S being faster then the porsche turbo, it turns out we were correct and the new Arc S is pumped with a 1.4 Ghz processor compared to its predecessor which clocked at 1Ghz.

The Xperia Arc S has a 2d to 3d converter which lets you take photos and use ” 3d sweep panorama” application to display 2d photos in 3d if you plug it into a 3d tv or any other 3d display using a hdmi port. Sony Ericsson have maintained the reliable operating software for the Arc S which runs on Android OS gingerbread 2.3 and sustains all the hardware features the original Arc did including ultra thinness at 8.7mm.  The Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S is available in an array of colours :  pure white, gloss black, misty silver, sakura pink and midnight blue.

So what does this mean for current sony ericsson xperia arc ?

Cheaper deals? yes ! you can now get the sony ericsson xperia arc free on a 12 month contract, (yes they still exist and are growing fast) for £30 a month plus 6 months free line rental by redemption. If you are weary of free line rental deals then take a good read of our new cashback page which actually has a cashback calculator where you can find out everything you need to know about claiming back without having the make any phone calls or send any emails to verify details.

If you want the Xperia Arc now then take a look at the cheap deals available on o2, orange, vodafone, talkmobile, 3 and Tmobile here alternatively check back and find the Arc S very soon

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In the last week there have been lots of stories floating around regarding the latest version of Apple’s iPhone software (iOS 5). Apparently the networks have been sent official versions of the software the latest software and some vloggers are even showing ways to add the latest version of the OS to your phone  We know that the latest Apple operating system IOS 5 is coming soon but what does it actually do? IOS 5 boasts over 200 new features for you to get to grips with, helping you to stay ahead of the crowd with an even more advanced phone than ever before!

Notification Centre
With texts, emails and social media messages coming in to your iPhone keep track of them all in one location with Apples new Notification Centre. Now you will never miss out on that all important message with the ability to swipe down on the screen to enter the notification centre, customisable by you to see which notifications you want to see without interrupting what you are doing.

iMessage

If messaging is your thing then iMessage will be perfect for you. IMessage is a new messaging service for all IOS 5 users. Keep up to date on the go and send unlimited text messages, photos and videos via Wi-Fi or 3G. If organising your friends is your thing then keep everyone in the loop with group messaging and see when your messages have been delivered and read.

Newsstand
Have magazine and newspaper subscriptions on your iPhone? Then Newsstand lets you access all your publications quickly and easily all in one place. As new issues come out, Newsstand will automatically update them ready and waiting for your next visit with all the latest covers.

Enhanced Camera + Photos
Why settle for less than perfect photos? Photo enhancements allow users on iOS 5 to use their creative flair and turn off the cuff snaps into wall-worthy masterpieces. iOS 5 offers the ability to Crop, rotate, enhance and remove red-eye all within the photo app. The Auto Enhance feature transforms your poorly lit photos into studio quality images. All of your photos are then backed up directly to your iCloud for safekeeping or why not push your new and improved images to all of your IOS devices.

PC Free
Don’t have a PC? No worries with PC free it cuts the cord between your iOS device and your home computer. In the past you would need to plug your iOS device into a Mac or PC to set it up, now this can all be performed wirelessly without the need of a Mac or PC. Sync with your computer and move your music and movies about all via wifi. (And of course everything is backed up to your iCloud). Free iOS software updates can also be downloaded directly to your device.

iCloud
iCloud is like having a hard drive in the sky which your Apple phone can sync with. Not only is your iOS device backed up to Apple’s server but your home computer and other iOS devices are also updated. What this means is if you lose or damage your device none of your media or data will be lost and can instantly be restored on any replacement iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Mac. On top of this iTunes Match offers a fast and easy way to back up your music library. Click here for more info.

It seems IOS 5 is to be the most extensive software update ever, offering you even more freedom to do the things you love on the go effortlessly.
Take a look at our Apple iOS page here to learn more and compare against over operating systems to find the perfect Smartphone for you.

If your off to uni soon it’s fairly easy to pick the handset you want, you’ve probably got preferences from past experience of which phone brand you like and which you don’t, you’ve seen the features on your friends phones or maybe, like me, you trawl through the Internet picking up all the rumours and  just want the latest gadgets regardless of weather or not you’ll use the new features. Either way you’ve most likely found the phone you want. Now it’s time to consider what Network you should get it on.

Many don’t even consider this, they’ve had their mobile with the same provider for years and are more than happy with the service they’ve received. However for many students heading off to university this is the first time that you’ll be spending significant time away from home. If your uni is more then an hour’s journey from home you might find that the signal in your new accommodation isn’t up to the standard your used to. The last thing you want is to be tied into a two year contract with a provider who’s got a patchy service where you’ll be spending two thirds of the year. (You don’t want to miss out on spur of the moment house party’s and cinema trips just because you didn’t have any signal.)

Here’s a few tips you can follow that might save you from being “cut off”.

Local Knowledge is always best, later we’ll talk about how you can check the network coverage remotley from your computer at home but these really aren’t full proof. What they don’t account for is if there any obsticles between you and the mast that might be blocking signal. The best way to find out the best signal for uni is to ask people who live in the local area and ask somebody subjective. Luckily Carphone Warehouse stores are spread throughout the country and you’re likely to find one near your university. As they offer all the majour phone networks they shouldn’t be biased so give them a call and ask if they know which network offers the strongest signal in the area. Secondly you could speak to the student union. Most universitys have unions made up of current or ex-students and they’ll be more then happy to let you know what their experiences are.

Once you’ve done this research you then have another two sources of information. The first offers a biased view, the networks coverage map. All the networks offer coverage maps of the uk, simply type your networks name and coverage map into google and the first link will probably give you the information you’re looking for. The problem with this method is that the data on these pages hasn’t been tested. For example it might show you have amazing signal at your new uni, this is because they know a mast is close by and should cover your new accomidation. What they haven’t done unfortunately is driven to every postcode in the country to check the signal. As this is the case this information is really hyperthetical. The next option you have is to go to http://www.sitefinder.ofcom.org.uk/.

Site finder shows you exactly which masts are near your uni and who looks after them. From this you should be able to find two or three masts and decide which network has the best signal for you. It might be worth bearing in mind however that in your second year you’ll be moving out of student halls into a rented house so take a look at the wider area and see who has the most masts in the area. You can also see what type of masts they are GSM or UMTS. GSM is the older technology that gives you good signal but not so good for data, UMTS sites offer the 3G speeds so great for internet type functions on your phone. If you think your going to use the internet on your phone you probably want to look for a network with a local UMTS mast. The issue with this system is the same as before, although you could be living right next to a mast if your building is made of reinforced concrete signal might not penetrate the fortified walls. The other draw back to site finder is that the site doesn’t show if the mast is actually functioning. You might not be aware of this but masts break down all the time. We don’t notice as usually if this happens there is another mast nearby that you’ll use instead. If you choose a network based soley on the fact that they have one 3G mast next to your uni, it’s possible that it might not be switched on and you won’t get the signal you were expecting. The masts are constantly being repaired but we don’t recommend putting all of your eggs into one basket

As you can see there isn’t a sure fire way of checking you’ll get good signal at uni but if you follow at least two of these tips you should find yourself with plenty of signal to keep in touch with your family back home and more importantly, with enough signal to meet up with your new friends at uni. If you want to see what offers we have for students check out the following page and why not enter our competition to win a student survival kit over on our Facebook page. LEt us know what you think in the comments below.

Pay-as-you-go was originally an expensive and unexciting proposition. Now it  comes with top-up incentives that can offer anything up to unlimited texts with a small monthly top-up. With everyone off to school and university, pay-as-you-go can be really beneficial financially. So which network is best for you? Well it depends on what you like to do with your phone as each network offers slightly different perks, so apart from obviously getting the best signal what else should you be considering? Take a look below to see how much bang you can get for your buck as we highlight what you get when you top up with either a £10 or £15 top up. (Apart from £10 or £15 pounds worth of calls of course)

O2

With every monthly top-up of £10, O2 provide 300 free texts and 500MB of data with unlimited Wi-Fi access. O2 rewards is an incentive rewarding customers for the amount they top up every 6 month period. Customers receive 5% back on all their top-ups in the first 6 months and then 10% back thereafter. O2 priority offers customers a 48 hour window before general release to purchase tickets for gigs at the O2 arena. Perfect for students! Parents can also ensure that their kids don’t run out of credit by logging on to O2 and setting up automatic top-ups up.

Orange

Orange offers 300 free texts and 100MB of internet with a monthly top-up of £10. Unlimited texts rewards can also be added for £5 and can be activated by texting ‘TEXTS 5’ to 6620 from your Orange pay-as-you-go sim. The ever popular ‘Orange Wednesday’ offers 2 for 1 cinema tickets and 2 for 1 pizza express meals for you to share with friends and family. Lastly, Orange now offer ‘Film-to-go’ which is a free movie rental service via iTunes. Great for saving if your on a tight budget.

T-Mobile

With a monthly £10 top-up, T-Mobile offer 100 minutes or unlimited texts. To access these great offers you will need to either text ‘TEXT’ or ‘TALK’ to 146 to switch to your plan of choice. One other plan which is available is their international plan, as before text ‘INT MONTH’ for this to be applied. The international plan provides you with 60 free international minutes to be used with 65 different countries, so great if your studying in the uk for overseas and want to keep in touch with your family back home. A chargeable internet booster is available for £5 a month and includes 500MB of data, the same amount of data which is available on most pay monthly services!

Virgin

Virgin offer 300 free texts with every monthly top-up of £10. There’s also a bonus for all uni students possessing a NUS extra card – 15% discount on all top-ups! That’s a saving of £1.50 which equates to one cheap beverage or a loaf of bread and a tin of beans depending on your preference. If you’re a customer of virgin media then you can also benefit from free virgin to virgin calls. To activate this service you need to call 789.

Vodafone

As a Vodafone customer, you can receive 300 free texts and 500MB of data when you top up £10 a month. 1000 minutes are also up for grabs for those chatterbox’s who run up your phone bills, to activate the free minutes you are required to call 4352.

TalkMobile

For all you text addicts, TalkMobile offers unlimited free texts when you switch your talk plan to ‘textmania’. Alternatively, you can apply the international plan and receive 75 free international minutes to call those loved ones abroad. These incentives are available when you top up £10 per month. TalkMobile are the only network to offer free voicemail if you are unable to answer your phone at school! Lifesaver is as it says on the tin… offering an extra £1 worth of credit for the times when you need it. This is then paid back once you next top-up your phone.

Three

Lastly, Three offers the equivalent of a pay monthly tariff when you top-up up a slightly higher amount of £15 per month. For £15, you get 300 minutes, 3000 texts and all-you-can-eat data for you social butterflies! Now Facebooking doesn’t have to cost the earth on pay-as-you-go. Skype to Skype calls, Windows messenger and Twitter are all free with no need to top-up. This really is great value considering that you get pretty much a pay monthly service on pay as you go meaning if you need to save a bit of money for a month you can skip a top up and pick up where you left off the following month.

So as you can see each network offers different perks that will appeal to different people. Why net tell us in the comments below which networks you think offer the best pay as you go incentives in the comments below!

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Last night I had the pleasure of being invited to a swanky Sony Ericsson Event in the west end, apart from getting an intimate performance from Emeli Sande and a up close and personal mind trip from Magician Impossible, Dynamo. I also got to play with the Newley Released Xperia Ray. (I took one picture so please excuse the low level mood lighting).

The Xperia Ray is essentially the Xperia Arc on a diet. As soon as the handset was placed in my hand I started to second guess if this was actually an Android handset. The phone is very slim at only 9.4 mm so is .1mm thicker then the iPhone 4 and a total of 9mm smaller in width and height, honestly it did seem nice to hold a reasonably sized smartphone again that I could wrap my entire hand around. Unfortunately due to those damned laws of physics the screen measures 3.3 inches. Compared to the iPhone thats only .2 inches smaller but is almost a whole  inch smaller then the Xperia Arc. But the question is, is it still useable? In short yes. The smaller screen really doesn’t affect the experience when playing games and watching movies, the on screen keyboard might be slightly less useable especially if you’ve got big hands but if you do, then the Arc is probably more suited to your anatomy.

You also get an 8 Mega pixel Camera that produces images at a resolution of 3264 x 2488 pixels and includes auto focus and an LED flash.  Sony Ericsson also had some pretty special software running on most of their Android handsets. The software is said to be an update coming soon to most of their recent releases. The Xperia Ray comes with Gingerbread 2.3 installed which is currently the latest version, but 2.3.4 which was being show cased comes with “3D sweep panorama” What’s that then? Well, what it does is takes 3D images using it’s single camera. Simply boot the camera and hold your phone in the air, sweep it from right to left (Or left to right if you’d prefer) and voila you have a 3D image. The only drawback being you’ll need to plug the camera into a 3D Sony TV to see the 3D image as no Sony Ericsson phones currently have a 3D display. So on one hand it’s not very practical but on the other is a really amazing software trick that you mates Samsung doesn’t have!  One up for Sony Ericsson.

Another little Software tweak is Facebook integration. I was shown two nice little features that offer an improved way of sharing stuff with your friends. Firstly the music player (See badly lit photo) has a dedicated thumbs up button. Press this and the track your listening to gets uploaded to your Facebook wall, not revolutionary but a nice touch and allows you to let your friends know how incredible cool you are without ever leaving the music app. Secondly from the home screen when you hold your finger on an app you don’t just get the option to remove it as with most Android handsets, you also get an option to share the app on your Facebook wall. This is quite a unique way of using Facebook share with most sharing services reserved for music, videos and pictures. It’s really about time that apps got the same treatment.

Apart from that you get all the mod cons, wifi, bluetooth SD memory card slot, 1.4 GHz processor, HDMI port, YouTube support, FM stereo etc. The Xperia ray really packs a lot into a stylish little smartphone. And the best news of all, it’s currently available right now at mobiles.co.uk free from £25 pounds per month.

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