Sony knows that high-speed internet access is vital to the PS4's success, but that level of service isn't always guaranteed in Europe. To solve this problem, the company is striking deals for PS4-friendly internet access with a slew of European providers. Ono, Orange, T-Mobile and Virgin Media are some of the first confirmed partners. Details of the partnerships are scarce at present, although the companies involved suggest that Sony's ISP agreements will at least cover bigger European countries like France, Germany, Spain and the UK.
Update: Virgin Media adds that it's the only UK partner.
Filed under: Gaming, Internet, Sony, T-Mobile
Source: Virgin Media
Following the formal reveal of the LG G2 yesterday, UK network Three was quick to report its plan to offer the handset "soon," so we thought we'd follow up with all the other major providers to see where else you'll eventually be able to find one. O2 is also on board, although it would only commit to a vague release window of "later this year." Vodafone said it currently has no plans to offer the G2, and while EE has "nothing to announce," we couldn't get any assurance that it wouldn't show up on its 4G network, or on the Orange or T-Mobile brands. Retailer Carphone Warehouse has put a tentative October arrival date on its website, and although we're still waiting on a response from Phones 4U, you'll more than likely be able to find it there, too. So, if you've developed a particular taste for the slim bezel design and quirky button placement, you'll have at least a few options come launch time.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, LG
Via: CNET
Source: Three, Carphone Warehouse
Woop, woop, that's the sound of the... European Commission? EU officials (figuratively) kicked in the doors of Telefonica, Deutsche Telekom and Orange's European headquarters this week. The trio are being investigated after ISP Cogent Communications alleged that they are deliberately blocking data-hungry services -- much like Cogent's earlier complaint about Comcast. The trio are pleading their innocence while the case continues, and hoping that investigators don't mess with the office furniture too much.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile
Source: Bloomberg
After a series of rumors about the HTC First not selling too well in the States, we've now heard that the customized Facebook / Android handset won't be coming to the UK. Mobile News initially reported that UK pre-orders will be cancelled and we've just confirmed this with our own sources, who said that it was Facebook itself who made the decision, rather than HTC or either of the European carrier partners (EE and Orange). We've reached out to HTC and EE for confirmation and will update if we get a response.
Update: We've just heard back from EE, who confirmed the rumor and attributed Facebook's decision to "customer feedback" that resulted in a need to improve the Facebook Home interface before spreading it to further markets:
"Following customer feedback, Facebook has decided to focus on adding new customization features to Facebook Home over the coming months. While they are working to make a better Facebook Home experience, they have recommended holding off launching the HTC First in the UK, and so we will shortly be contacting those who registered their interest with us to let them know of this decision. Rest assured, we remain committed to bringing our customers the latest mobile experiences, and we will continue to build on our strong relationship with Facebook so as to offer customers new opportunities in the future."
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
As it promised back in November, Libon is crossing the smartphone rubicon and launching on Android, starting today. The Orange-backed WhatsApp and Viber rival brings free calls, messaging and visual voicemail to any handset running Froyo and above. And though iOS users have already had this app, they aren't being left off this round of news: the company has added free picture and audio messaging to the iPhone version, as well as push-to-talk functionality. Head on down to your respective app stores to get at the goodies.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple, Google
Source: Google Play
The HTC First might be launching on AT&T, but that doesn't mean this built-for-Facebook device is going to be limited to the US: we just learned it will eventually arrive in Europe too, on Orange and the UK's EE network. Unfortunately, whereas AT&T came armed with pricing and availability details ($100 on April 12th), we still have no idea when, exactly, the phone will hit these other carriers. If you want to try before you buy, of course, you should be able to download the Facebook Home skin through Google Play pretty soon.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, HTC, Facebook
Readers can be a fickle bunch – around here we know this from experience. It seems like we’re always getting comments or e-mails accusing us of taking money from this company or that because we cover so many of their products. At the same time, we’re always getting e-mails wanting to know why exactly you haven’t talked about the latest whatnot from this company or that. I can certainly imagine that the geeks over at iFixit have caught more than little grief over the fact that they tend to rip apart every Apple device ever made.
To celebrate April Fool’s Day, iFixit has opted for tearing down something other than an Apple gadget.
This time, they have torn down an orange. As in the citrus fruit, which has prevented scurvy for thousands of years. As is typical for teardowns from iFixit, there are plenty of shots of the tools needed and images of the (quite literally) juicy insides.
If you have a penchant for the Orange, be warned that it has a repair ability score of zero. Yep, once you open this thing up there is no fixing it. This is a one use device, unless you are into organic gardening anyway.
View the full Orange teardown over at iFixit.