Gadgetorama Founder and Editor

Jerome

HTC teaser for MWC 2012

Feb 222012

HTC has posted a teaser image ahead of next week’s Mobile World Congress. The tagline “This Sunday you’ll discover something fast” accompanies a smartphone silhouette with the number 5 on it.

HTC MWC 2012 teaser

As for what the 5 represents, it could be any number of things. Is it a reference to the five cores in the Tegra 3 processor that is expected to power the HTC One X/Endeavor? 5 phones to be unveiled? Or perhaps simply that there are now five days until HTC’s event (scheduled for Sunday, February 26^th). Any other theories out there?

Sony replaces SonyEricsson.com with new Sony Mobile website

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 222012

When Sony completed its acquisition of Ericsson’s share in their joint venture, it announced that its new subsidiary would be known as Sony Mobile Communications. It has now launched a new website called SonyMobile.com and is phasing out the SonyEricsson.com website.

Sony Mobile website

Information is already available for a number of countries. The U.S. features the upcoming Xperia ion while the UK focuses on the upcoming Xperia S. A section for Canada has yet to launch unfortunately.

It also appears that Sony Mobile will use the @SonyXperia Twitter handle but it is not active yet.

Read more: Sony Mobile (Source: Xperia Blog)

Nokia to unveil high-end camera phone at MWC?

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 222012

A teaser video by Nokia suggests that it could unveil a high-end camera phone at the upcoming Mobile World Congress. Taglines such as “Pure detail,” “Pure depth” and “Pure definition,” suggest that such a device could boast some impressive camera specifications.

It remains to be seen if this device could be the rumoured Nokia Lumia 900 variant with 12MP camera or some other smartphone. Could a successor to the venerable Symbian-powered Nokia N8 which packed a 12MP camera with with Carl Zeiss optics be in the cards?

All will be revealed at Mobile World Congress on February 27^th when Nokia holds a press event.

Samsung announces Galaxy Ace 2 and the Galaxy mini 2

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 212012

Samsung today announced two new additions to its Galaxy lineup: the GALAXY Ace 2 and the GALAXY mini 2.

“Launched in 2011, GALAXY Ace and GALAXY mini have been a huge success in the global market. Today, we introduce GALAXY Ace 2 and GALAXY mini 2 with upgraded features and services,” said JK Shin, President of IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung Electronics. “Our goal remains the same—to continue to create new and improved mobile experiences that deliver something suitable for everyone. This is the hallmark of Samsung’s GALAXY range and what has made the GALAXY brand such a runaway hit with consumers around the world.”

Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 specifications:

Processor: 800MHz dual-core
Operating system: Google Android 2.3 with Samsung TouchWiz
Cellular connectivity: Quad-band GPRS/EDGE and dual-band HSDPA 14.4Mbps
Other connectivity: GPS, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, Bluetooth 3.0, Optional NFC
Display: 3.8-inch WVGA (480×800) PLS LCD
Input: Capacitive touchscreen
Memory: 768MB RAM
Storage: 4GB onboard and microSD cards
Rear-facing camera: 5MP AF with flash
Front-facing camera: VGA
Battery: 1,500mAh
Dimensions / weight: 62.2 x 118.3 x 10.5 millimeters, 122 grams

Samsung Galaxy mini 2 specifications:

Processor: 800MHz single-core
Operating system: Google Android 2.3 with Samsung TouchWiz
Cellular connectivity: Quad-band GPRS/EDGE and dual-band HSDPA 7.2Mbps
Other connectivity: A-GPS, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, DLNA
Display: 3.27-inch HVGA (320×480) LCD
Input: Capacitive touchscreen
Memory: 512MB RAM
Storage: 4GB onboard and microSD cards
Rear-facing camera: 3MP FF
Front-facing camera: None
Battery: 1,300mAh
Dimensions / weight: 58.6 x 109.4 x 11.9 millimeters / 106.8 grams (NFC) or 58.6 x 109.4 x 11.6 millimeters / 105.3 grams (Non-NFC)

The Samsung GALAXY mini 2 will launch initially in France in March while the Samsung GALAXY Ace 2 will initially be available starting in the UK in April. Both will be rolled out globally but further details were not announced.

WIND Mobile adds Barrie as latest Home Zone

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 212012

WIND Mobile’s 2012 expansion is underway. The carrier has added Barrie, Ontario, as its latest Home Zone but has yet to make an official announcement. Here is the coverage map:

WIND Mobile Barrie, Ontario, coverage

It is possible that WIND Mobile has not yet formally announced the launch of its latest Home Zone as there are no stores open there yet. One could be made with the opening of the first store(s).

Other cities where WIND Mobile plans to expand in 2012 include Peterborough, Windsor, Kingston and Belleville in Ontario, Mission in British Columbia, Halifax in Nova Scotia, Winnipeg in Manitoba and Regina and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan.

Read more: WIND Mobile (Source: MobileSyrup)

Angry Birds headed to space

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 212012

Rovio is about to send its Angry Birds where no bird has boldly gone before. The next chapter in the Angry Birds saga is coming to mobile devices on March 22nd and will send the birds into space where they will contend with new planets, zero gravity, new game play elements like slow-motion puzzles and “lightspeed” destruction and more. The game will also introduce new birds and new superpowers for familiar ones.

Angry Birds was first released in 2009 and has since then been downloaded over 700 million times across various iOS and Android devices.

“One small fling for a bird. One quantum leap for birdkind.”

Nokia Lumia 719 confirmed by Bluetooth SIG

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 212012

Rumours about the Nokia Lumia 719 have floated about for some time. They now appear to have been confirmed courtesy of the Bluetooth SIG.

Nokia Lumia 719 at Bluetooth SIG

The product entry reveals little about the Lumia 719 but indicates that it will be available in North America as well as Asia and South America. The few details suggest that the Lumia 719 will not be very different from the 710. Could it be a CDMA variant?

Will Nokia announce both the entry-level Lumia 610 and Lumia 719 at next week’s Mobile World Congress

BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 now available

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 212012

RIM BlackBerry PlayBook Good news today for BlackBerry PlayBook owners. Research In Motion today announced the release of the much anticipated BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0.

“Building on the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet’s proven web browsing, multimedia and multitasking strengths, the new BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 introduces a range of new communications and productivity enhancements as well as expanded app and content support,” said David J. Smith, SVP Mobile Computing, Research In Motion.

BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 (version 2.0.0.7971) brings the following new features and enhancements to the PlayBook:

Integrated email client with a powerful unified inbox (including messages from Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter)
Social integration with Calendar and Contacts apps
Updated BlackBerry Bridge app wit a new feature that lets a BlackBerry smartphone act as a wireless keyboard and mouse for a BlackBerry PlayBook
Improved mobile productivity with new Print To Go app, an updated virtual keyboard with auto correction and predictive next word completion
New apps and content including a new BlackBerry Video Store (initially available in the U.S. with other countries to follow) and enhanced web browsing capabilities

The BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 software update is now available as a free download for all BlackBerry PlayBook tablets. It weighs in at about 402MB. If you need to, go to “Software Updates” and select “Check for Updates.”

Amazon working on colour e-ink reader and 10-inch Kindle Fire?

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 212012

Amazon According to the Chinese-language Economic Daily News, Amazon could launch a 6-inch colour e-ink reader later this year. Such a device would be the company’s first to use a colour e-ink display.

The report indicates that E Ink Holdings (EIH) has received an order from Amazon to supply it with three million ePaper modules per month starting in March. This suggests that component production may be ramping up with production of the reader itself to take place sometime later.

A separate report indicates that Amazon is also looking at launching a 10-inch Kindle Fire tablet in Q2. Foxconn has apparently received the manufacturing contract according to Digitimes‘ supply chain sources. A previous rumour had suggested that Amazon would first launch an 8.9-inch version of the Kindle Fire in the Q2 timeframe and only later follow up with a larger 10.1-inch version.

Public Mobile and WIND Mobile to pass on upcoming wireless auction?

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 202012

The Canadian government has yet to announce the rules that will govern the next spectrum auction but two carriers are already threatening to sit out the auction. Public Mobile and WIND Mobile today warned that they could skip the auction if Industry Canada does not set aside spectrum for smaller players. “We’re not suicidal,” Wind Mobile’s CEO Anthony Lacavera said today. We’re not going to go out and try to bid on something we have zero chance of winning.” Bruce Kirby, vice-president of strategy and business for Public Mobile, expressed a similar sentiment.

At stake is spectrum in the 700MHz band. Bidding is expected to be strong as it offers better reception inside buildings and wider coverage in rural areas. Without it, smaller players may not be able to expand into rural Canada or offer LTE connectivity to their customers.

An alternative solution being suggested would cap the amount of spectrum a company could purchase.

Canada is expected to hold its spectrum auction later this year or next year. Once the rules are announced, wireless companies interested in bidding will need time to secure the necessary financing.

MWC 2012: ZTE to unveil two LTE Android 4.0 smartphones

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 202012

ZTE today announced that it will unveil two LTE Android 4.0 smartphones at next week’s Mobile World Congress.

“These LTE devices are the fore-runners of a wide range of LTE devices ZTE will bring to the market in the coming months, and as more and more LTE networks come on stream,” said Mr. He Shiyou, Executive Vice President and Head of the Terminal Division of ZTE. “They will be feature products – among a very wide range of devices on display at the ZTE stand at Mobile World Congress 2012.”

The ZTE PF200 will sport a 4.3-inch qHD touchscreen display, a rear-facing 8MP camera, a front-facing 1080p camera for video calling. It will support the “main” GSM, UMTS, and LTE spectrum bands as well as A-GPS/GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, DLNA, mobile high-definition link (MHL), and NFC.

ZTE PF200

The ZTE N910, which appears to be a lower-end model, will come with a WVGA touchscreen (size undisclosed), a rear-facing 5MP AF camera with flash and a front-facing 1080p camera for video calling. It will support CDMA, EVDO and LTE FDD bands ans well as GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and DLNA.

ZTE N910

The press release indicates that these will be powered by “1.2GHz and 1.5GHz chipsets” but does not reveal which device will have which.

More on these during our MWC 2012 coverage.

HTC Radar 4G coming soon to WIND Mobile

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 202012

WIND Mobile is getting ready to launch its first Windows Phone 7.5 device. It now lists the HTC Radar 4G as “Coming soon” on its website.

The HTC Radar 4G is the intuitive phone that keeps it all on your radar and lets you get real-time close…with everything. Crafted from a single piece of polished metal, the HTC Radar feels solid in your hands. The design just speaks premium, and comfortably stands out from the crowd.

The AWS version of the HTC Radar will support quad-band (850/900/1800/1900MHz) GSM/GPRS/EDGE and tri-band (1700/1900/2100MHz) UMTS.

WIND Mobile is set to launch the HTC Radar 4G on February 21^st for CA$99 on the WINDTab+ or CA$399 without any tab.

Apple begins 25 billion iTunes app download countdown

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 172012

Apple Apple today launched a countdown to 25 billion iTunes App Store downloads. As I write this, the countdown is nearing 24.3 billion downloads.

As of today, nearly 25 billion apps have been downloaded worldwide. Which is almost as amazing as the apps themselves. So we want to say thanks. Download the 25 billionth app, and you could win a US$10,000 App Store Gift Card.* Just visit the App Store and download your best app yet.

The contest is open in both Canada and the U.S. as well as other participating App Store countries. The US$10,000 gift card is redeemable in the iTunes Store, App Store, and iBook Store.

The Apple iTunes App Store launched back in July 2008 in time for the launch of the iPhone 3G.

ASUS Transformer TF300T specifications revealed?

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 172012

A leak earlier this month revealed another ASUS Transformer Prime tablet, the TF300T. Unfortunately, there were few details to go with the images. Polish site has now obtained a screenshot that sheds light on the specifications of this tablet:

Processor: 1.2GHz quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3
Operating system: Google Android 4.0
Cellular connectivity: None
Other connectivity: 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1
Display: 10.1-inch 1200×800-pixel IPS
Input: Docking keyboard
Memory: 1GB RAM
Storage: 16GB onboard and microSD cards
Rear-facing camera: 8MP
Front-facing camera: 1.2MP
Connectors: micro-HDMI
Dimensions / weight: 180.8 x 263 x 9.9 millimeters / 640 grams

The document also reveals that the upcoming TF700T could come with a 1.5GHz dual-core processor rather than an Nvidia Tegra 3 one.

It remains to be seen if ASUS will announce its latest Transformer tablet at the upcoming Mobile World Congress.

Swype updated for Android 4.0

Posted by Jerome No Responses »

Feb 172012

There is good news for Swype users who were missing their favourite software keyboard on their Android 4.0 devices. The latest beta version (v3.26.92.38303) brings with it Ice Cream Sandwich support.

Ice Cream Sandwich users rejoice! Swype now officially supports ICS! This initial release for ICS may still contain a few, hard-to-find bugs, but we know how much you’ve been asking for it, so we figured it was time to let the beast out of its cage. Enjoy the best touchscreen keyboard on the best version of Android, with all of the latest features, such as language downloads and advanced language modeling!

Nuance recommends that Android 4.0 users disable the ICS built-in spell-checker as Swype uses a different dictionary and having the former enabled could lead to “misspellings” still showing up as the ICS dictionary takes precedence over Swype’s.

Other new features include improved prediction accuracy in a number of languages, a re-enabled EMOTICON key in SMS apps, bug fixes and more. U.S. users will also see Dragon GO! integration.

The Swype beta is not available through the Android Market. If you are participating in the beta program, it will be pushed out automatically to you. If not registered yet, you can sign up and download it.

Jerome

Follow Us