February 4th, 2010
The projected plans to merge mobile phone operators Orange and T-Mobile into the UK’s biggest carrier have been put on hold due to British regulators’ concerns about weakening competition in the market.
This week the Office of Trading (OFT) has encouraged the European Commission to investigate the potential merger as it had the probability of “significantly” reducing the competition in the UK mobile market.
Both and Orange and T-Mobile had initially hoped to complete the amalgamation by the end of this month but mobile phones analysts predict that the true extent of this review could see it put back to as late as December.
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Tags: delayed, investigation, merger, mobile phones, orange, T-Mobile
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February 3rd, 2010
Vodafone has revealed that it believes a significant number of UK mobile phones users are defecting to its network in search of greater network coverage for Apple iPhone contracts. The competition for iPhone coverage has been hotting up ever since O2 lost its exclusive rights to the handset, with Orange, Tesco Mobile as well as Vodafone taking on the candybar smartphone.
Vodafone’s retail director, Terry O’Brien, said to Mobile Magazine: “A significant number of iPhone users have migrated to Vodafone since we launched the iPhone.
“It is quite astounding how many of these new customers have moved to us because of poor network experience.”
Mr O’Brien did not go as far as to mention which networks were losing custom to the Vodafone network, but it appears that the financial commitment made by Vodafone to the iPhone is reaping its rewards.
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Tags: iphone contracts, mobile phones, vodafone
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February 2nd, 2010
The latest in a long line of HTC smartphones has been leaked to the mobile industry with the HTC Trophy presented as a revamped version of the Snap mobile handset. Powered by the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system, the HTC Trophy draws similarities to BlackBerry devices with its 3” touchscreen complemented by an expansive QWERTY keyboard.
It is an ultra-thin smartphone at just 11mm in depth which sees it labelled as one of the latest Candybar handsets of the ilk of the iPhone 3GS. As with all of the latest smartphones, the HTC Trophy will arrive complete with 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity, including a mid-range 5.0 megapixel digital camera.
Despite being powered by Windows Mobile 6.5, HTC has implemented its very own TouchFlo 3D interface to improve the look and feel of the handset, as very few Windows Mobile 6.5 mobile phones have fully succeeded in the market.
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Tags: htc trophy, mantelpiece, mobile phones
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February 1st, 2010
The all-consuming nature of mobile phones has reared its head once again with the latest revelation regarding mobile text messaging. A recent study conducted by the Mobile Data Association has revealed that roughly 11 million texts are sent in the United Kingdom every hour – all of this despite the impact of the social media networks such as Twitter and Facebook.
During 2009, an average of 265 million text messages were sent on a daily basis (a total of 96.8 billion annually), with 1.6 million picture messages also shared.
The annual record of sent text messages compares favourably with the previous two years – as 56.9 billion and 78.9 billion messages were sent in 2007 and 2008 respectively. This suggests that the supplies continue to meet the demands of the UK consumer market and that short, concise texting is just as efficient as social media websites.
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Tags: 11 million texts, hour, mobile phone accessories, texts sent, uk
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January 29th, 2010
Apple smartphones continue to do a roaring trade after record revenue sales in the final quarter of 2009. A combination of iPhone and Mac computers saw earnings boosted by up to 50% and despite increasing competition from smartphone and computer manufacturers it is their most profitable quarter so far.
Apple revealed that it had sold 8.7 million iPhones – a 100% increase on last year’s unit sales. Nevertheless experts had previously predicted sales over 9 million but this remains a figure not to be sniffed at.
Overall revenue improved by an impressive 32%, raking in more than $3 billion more than the previous quarter. With Apple’s new tablet device set for release in the coming months these latest figures seem to have been revealed at just the right time to show a period of great strength.
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Tags: 8.7 million, apple, iphone, mobile phones, q4 2009, sales
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January 28th, 2010
Mobile phone carrier Vodafone has revealed that it has secured the largest music customer base in Europe over the last 12 months. Around 450,000 European customers currently register to the Vodafone music subscription service that is partnered with four major record labels – Universal Music, Sony Music, Warner Music and EMI providing DRM-free music to all subscribers.
Over the Christmas period over 100,000 customers subscribed to the service, with recipients of new Vodafone mobile phones and smartphones naturally signing up to be part of the music directory. Subscribers can purchase differing levels of music, from 10 tracks a month to an unlimited supply from some of the world’s biggest music labels.
Vodafone internet services Director of Content, Lee Epting, said: “We are really excited by our customers’ reaction to these great music offers. We expect to see continued growth in our music service subscriptions driven by the increase in smartphone use, with their worry-free data tariffs and great value add-ons such as music bundles.
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Tags: customer, europe, mobile phone, music, vodafone
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January 27th, 2010
Apple iPhone users will soon be able to call upon a physical QWERTY keyboard to use for texting and web browsing. The latest in the line of mobile phone accessories from Ion has arrived, with the iTYPE providing a considerably quicker solution to touch-screen typing.
Users wishing to purchase the iTYPE will have to download a free application in order to use the accessory. The keyboard will be a welcome addition to the iPhone as a means of sending messages via e-mails and numerous other applications.
The iTYPE keyboard has been designed with the aim of attracting PC users towards using a smartphone of this calibre. The portability and design of the iPhone is an attractive feature to most mobile phones consumers but the added option of using a keyboard will allow businessmen and socialites to keep on top of their e-mails on the move with an efficient keyboard system.
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Tags: iphone, mobile phone accessories, qwerty keyboard
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January 26th, 2010
Analysts at IDC have predicted that Android-powered mobile phones will claim the runner-up position in the market, behind Symbian, by 2013. IDC’s Worldwide Mobile OS 2009-2013 Forecast and Analysis suggests that Android sales could reach up to 68 million on a global scale.
With just 689,000 Android units sold in 2008, it appears to be quite a steep increase in popularity for Android software – an annual growth rate of 150.4% to be exact!
This ever-increasing demand is music to the ears of the likes of Google and HTC who have taken on the Android operating system in recent months for some of the most successful smartphones – most notably the HTC Hero, HTC Magic and the upcoming Nexus One.
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Tags: 2013, android, mobile phones, runner-up
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January 25th, 2010
The opening sales figures from Vodafone’s iPhone last week would suggest that the Apple smartphone remains highly desirable to UK mobile phones consumers. Over 100,000 units were sold across the nation last week, as Vodafone’s pay-monthly customers well and truly caught the iPhone bug.
The iPhone has been on the market for almost three years now and it shows no signs of weakening in demand despite the influx of smartphones across a broad range of manufacturers including HTC, Palm and Nokia.
Despite the fact that many rival smartphones offer greater practicality and connectivity than an iPhone, its stylish looks and general persona has ensured that it remains at the forefront of the UK market.
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Tags: consumers, highly desirable, iphone, mobile phones
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January 22nd, 2010
The success of the Google Maps mobile phone accessories on Android-powered handsets has seen Nokia take a keener interest in the satellite navigation functionality of its mobile phones. Nokia’s Ovi Maps have subsequently been updated, with a new free version available to smartphone consumers.
Nokia chiefs believe that the growth of Ovi Maps has the potential to double the current mobile navigation market.
Nokia Vice-President, Anssi Vanjoki said: “Why have multiple devices that work in only one country or region? Put it all together, make it free, make it global and you almost double the potential size of the mobile navigation market.
“Nokia is the only company with a mobile navigation service for both drivers and pedestrians that works across the world. Unlike the legacy car navigation manufacturers, we don’t make you buy maps for different countries or regions even if you’re only visiting for a few days.
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Tags: google, mobile phones, Nokia, ovi maps
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