Author: Leigh Geary

There’s something very familiar about the Smart II

Whilst reviewing the Alcatel-built Vodafone Smart II we noticed something very familiar with the recovery mode. If you’ve ever used CWM, aka ClockwordMod, you’ll probably be more than familiar with this screen. It was developed by Koushik Dutta (@Koush). CWM is pretty much open and is licensed under …

Motorola XOOM 2 10.1″ 16GB Wi-Fi going cheap

Fancy a Xoom 2 for £269.99? Well, you’ve got to act quick because eXpansys only have it at this price until 11PM (UK time) tonight. The Motorola Xoom 2 is powered by a dual-core 1.2GHz CPU running Android Honeycomb and has a light aluminium body. There’s also 1GB …

Dive into our all-new podcast!

Hey, you lovely reader. Have you had a listen to our Podcast ? If not, it’s definitely worth listening too. Each week our team get together to discuss the weekly happenings. Right now we’re on episode 3 but you can get all of the podcasts here and there’s …

32GB Class 10 microSD going cheap

Sure, we’ve never heard of “TechPro” either, but £12.99 for a Class 10 microSD card? That’s gotta be worth a gamble, right? Link – Amazon

Face Unlock security gets tightened in Jelly Bean

Google has given the security of its Face Unlock feature a bit of careful consideration in the upcoming Android 4.1 Jelly Bean release of Android. The feature was introduced with the dawn of ICS as a way to unlock your phone through face recognition, but shortly after it’s …

Three Xperia S users receive Ice Cream Sandwich

Now, don’t mis-read that headline. There’s more than three people with the ICS / Android 4.0 update, we’re talking about the mobile network “Three”. They’ve announced that their Xperia S customers can.. err.. “proactively download the Android Ice Cream Sandwich update”. What this basically means is that you …

Endomondo hits 10 million users and celebrates with a sale

If you, like me, are a pure example of a pure athlete, you’ll have probably tried Endomondo. It’s an app which uses GPS to track your exercise and reports how many calories you’ve burned. OK, I’ll be honest, I sit on my backside for most of the day …

Be the Amazing Spider-Man

Spider Man, Spider Man, does whatever a Spider can. Now the movie spin-off-app “The Amazing Spider-Man” is now available for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and Android for just £4.99. You get 25 missions to fight your way through. Spider-Man has to keep the city free of rampaging gangs …

RIM post large losses, cut jobs and delay Blackberry 10

5000 jobs are set to be axed by Blackberry maker RIM as the company announced a $518m (£334m) net loss in the three months to June 2nd. This, when compared to the $695m profit made in the same period last year, shows how the tide has turned. Sales …

Google Maps (and many other apps) updated. Offline Maps are go!

Check into the Google Play store this morning and you’ll find a whole heap of updates from Google. Apps inluding Chrome, Google Play Books, Google+, Google Earth have been updated and Google Maps now has an “Offline Mode”. What is this? Well, remember years ago when we used …

Jelly Bean wallpapers available to download

Want your device to look a bit like the all-new Android Jelly Bean? There’s now a zip file full of them here. Grab it and choose the one you like best 🙂 Link – Dropbox Credit – Craig Clark

Google I/O – Live

Just a week ago Microsoft made their move with the new Surface tablet and the new Windows Phone 8 OS. Today it’s the turn of Google, and you can follow the events live from San Francisco below. The Google I/O’s event is the chance for developers to see …

Google Tablet “confirmed”. To launch at I/O

The Google Nexus Tablet hasn’t exactly been a well-kept secret so far, and now there’s confirmation from Asus themselves. Bloomberg also quotes “two people familiar with the matter” that a 7″ sub-$200 Google-branded tablet running the new Android OS – Jelly Bean is about to launch. An Asustek …

Update – Nokia 808 PureView coming to Orange, but not O2

The Nokia 808 Pureview is, it has to be said, a strange phone. Without “that camera” it’d probably be overlooked. It runs on a 1.3GHz CPU, it’s got a 360 x 640 pixel 4″ screen and has the usual WiFi, GPS, FM radio, microSD etc However, it’s got …

Are you on the right plan?

Let’s be honest. Look at your phone. Did you get a good deal? Many people choose their phone based on a monthly budget, and want the phone for nothing up-front. For many it’s typical to pay around £36 a month for two years, but you can find yourself …

Jelly Bean goes up on the Google lawn

Tomorrow is the start of the big Google developers conference – Google I/O. We’ll be bringing live coverage as the event unfolds, but right now Google have just finished putting up the Jelly Bean sculpture on their lawn. Although the beans started off on the floor they’ve now …

Virgin go unlimited – for just £21 a month

Today Virgin Media are going head-to-head with the Three “One Plan” and T-Mobile “Full Monty” tariff. However, the Virgin “Premiere” plan dishes up unlimited data at a lower price point – just £21 per month for unlimited data and unlimited texts. The network, which piggy-backs Everything Everywhere, is …

Sony Xperia P Review

The Xperia P sits squarely in the middle of the new Sony Mobile NXT range. The Xperia S has a 4.3″ screen (720×1280), this Xperia P has a 4″ and the Xperia U gets a 3.5″. Inside this is powered by a 1GHz dual-core CPU and there’s an …

An alternative Galaxy Note advert

So, did you read out Samsung Galaxy Note Review? You may have also seen the advert too. It features David Beckham shooting footballs at drums after he’s shown some instructions on the Galaxy Note. If you’ve not seen it, here it is.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtXJSb7_uIU As it’s the weekend, we …

So, that Microsoft Surface presentation. Anyone spot the problem?

During the big Surface launch there was a bit of an issue. About 12 seconds into this video everything goes a bit wrong as the all-new Microsoft tablet… locks up… It’s still in beta right now, so it’s not unexpected to see a few foibles here and there, …

Xperia S gets some tasty Ice Cream Sandwich

Did you dive into a new Sony Mobile, even though it was “only” running Android 2.3.7? Well, good news, because today Sony Mobile are starting the roll-out of Ice Cream Sandwich for the Xperia S. With the new OS you’ll also receive some Sony extras, such as a …

Huawei signal their support for Windows Phone 8

Huawei has joined HTC and others in signalling their support for Windows Phone 8. They are to make their first Windows Phone 8 device available in Europe, China and the US, with other markets to follow. According to the press release, which you can dive into below, the …

HTC Confirm their support for Windows Phone 8

As we’ve just heard, HTC are to launch a Windows Phone 8 device with a Qualcomm CPU. HTC have just sent us the official confirmation below. htc announces support for windows phone 8 New platform announcement builds on ten plus year partnership Taipei, Taiwan — 20 June 2012 …

Windows Phone 8 – The details

So, Joe Belfiore stepped onto the stage today to announce Windows Phone 8. It’s a second “reboot” of the Microsoft mobile strategy following the news that Windows Mobile 6.5 users wouldn’t be able to upgrade to Windows Phone 7. Now, the same is happening yet again, with existing …

Meet the ZTE Grand X

Known previously as the Mimosa X and shown off at Mobile World Congress, the Grand X is a new Tegra 2 dual-core smartphone from ZTE running Android 4.0 (ICS). It has a 4.3″ qHD 960×540 pixel screen, 5 megapixel rear camera and a VGA front-facing camera too. HD …

Looking to get those “free” Beats headphones?

Some of the HTC devices we reviewed last year included these Dr. Dre Beats headphones. They work with the Beats technology in the phone to deliver superior quality sound into your eardrums. You can see them in our Sensation XE review and I remember seeing them in the …

MightyText – Like iMessage, but better

What is it ? This app will sync your text messages to other devices and it’ll even connect your texts to web browsers so that you can send and receive texts from the comfort of your own browser. It’s completely connected to your phone number, so there’s no …

Huawei Honour available now in the UK

If you’ve got yourself £250, the new Huawei Honor could be your next phone. But wait – now that the phone has arrived here in the UK, something rather magical has happened… It’s no longer called the “Honor”, but instead will be known as the correctly-spelt “Honour”. You …

HTC Desire C Review

With Nokia switching most of their efforts to Windows Phone there’s very few “featurephones” coming onto the market. It’s left the door open for cheaper Android smartphones which, despite dropping a few specs here and there, still give owners access into the large range of apps and games …

Come and feel my Surface – Microsoft tablets are go

Just a few hours ago, as expected, Microsoft unveiled their own brand of tablets called “Surface”. They will be powered by Windows 8 and have 10.6″ (26.9cm) displays with built-in kickstands. They’re also built with magnesium cases, which Microsoft tell us are a first. You’ll be able to …

The security surrounding those Galaxy SIII rumours

So, after a full week of Samsung Galaxy SIII features, let’s take a look back. Back before the S3 was announced to the world, when we were fed rumours daily. There was this supposed photo, then specs suggesting a 12 megapixel camera followed by a video showing the …

A week with … the Samsung Galaxy SIII – Day 7

We’ve spent a week with the hot new Samsung Galaxy SIII thanks to the guys at UR-Mobile.com. Today we’re taking you through the interface itself. There’s a lot of personalisation and different ways to view apps.. plus… HEY! It’s filmed in the car !

A week with … the Samsung Galaxy SIII – Day 6

One other feature we’ve not covered in the SIII just yet is “Pop-up video”. It’s perhaps a “nice to have” rather than an essential feature, but it’s still worth taking a look at. Here’s me loading a video and then watching it anywhere within the OS. It can …

Some of my music apps

Hands up if you use your smartphone to listen to music. Now, hands up if you use it for other music-related purposes. Of course you do, and why not when Google Play now offers such a wide variety of apps for music lovers? For me personally I’ve been …

Samsung Galaxy SIII Review

There’s really no doubt about it, the S3 is a gorgeous looking thing. You can hardly stop yourself from flipping it around in your hand. It’s beautifully sculpted and really does feel like a smooth pebble in your hand. As far as specs go you’re all set. A …

A week with … the Samsung Galaxy SIII – Day 5

It’s Friday! Yay! Well, if you’ve been watching our “Week with..” you’ll have noticed that there’s one feature we’ve not covered yet. S-Voice, the voice-recognition system built into the Samsung Galaxy SIII. Many have compared it to the Siri function on the iPhone 4S. Here, I do my …

Nokia – Iceberg, right ahead.

This morning, like you, I read about the Nokia cuts. Nokia appear, in my opinion, to be hitting the same issue that Microsoft and Windows Mobile tackled four or five years ago. Complacency. There was far too much washing about. Nokia were the undisputed king of the mobile …

A week with … the Samsung Galaxy SIII – Day 4

Every day this week we’re bringing you a little bit of Samsung Galaxy SIII fun. Today it’s the turn of the camera and video. You may have seen “DLNA” mentioned quite a bit in your local branch of Currys and it can perhaps be a little confusing. Various …

It might be raining, but I can charge my phone and keep dry

With the British summer becoming a bit of a wash-out, Vodafone have stepped up with a solution. It’s an umbrella. Sure, we’ve seen umbrellas before. I’ve got a collection of broken ones in the boot of my car, but none of those will act as a high-gain antenna …