Tag Archives: orange

France Telecom-Orange will release Tizen 2.0 devices from Samsung and Huawei this year

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France TelecomOrange will release Tizen 20 devices from Samsung and Huawei this year

Tizen's holding a posh little shindig here at Mobile World Congress to officially launch the Tizen 2.0 OS, which was recently released to developers (but not on phones you can actually buy). In addition to showcasing the operating system, which we just got hands-on with, the company announced a bit of news: France Telecom-Orange will sell Tizen 2.0 handsets this year, with devices from both Samsung and Huawei. Unfortunately, we don't have any more specifics to share, but we have to say, that was fast! The folks at Tizen don't play, do they?

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Orange’s Europe-bound trio of branded phones includes its first 4G handset

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Orange launches a trio of ownbranded phones, including its first 4G handset

At this rate, there won't be anything left to announce when MWC actually opens its doors. Today's premature launcher is Orange Europe, which is launching a trio of Jelly Bean-running smartphones that are destined for the continent. First up, the Lumo is the company's first 4G smartphone, packing a 4.5-inch display and an 8-megapixel camera. If you prefer your devices to be on the skinny side, then the 4.7-inch San Remo comes with an 8.2mm thick body and similarly equipped imaging sensor. Finally, the budget-focused Nivo offers a 4-inch display and a 5-megapixel camera. Orange has already told us that it won't be coming to the UK, but should arrive in Romania, Slovakia and Spain across the first half of the year -- unless someone's lawyers decide that the Lumo name's a bit too close for comfort.

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Spotify signs deal with Orange Switzerland to bundle music with youth plans

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Spotify for Android

Spotify has been getting comfortable with providers to various degrees, whether it's just carrier billing or direct deals. Today, however, it's getting extra-cozy. Orange Switzerland has started bundling Spotify Premium with its Orange Young plans: those 27 and younger can pay between 29 to 79 francs ($31 to $85) per month and, on top of the usual service, get a year's worth of streaming music access that won't count against their bandwidth caps. Older customers aren't left out, either, as they can pay 13 francs ($14) a month with the same data exemption. There's no word of whether or not the Orange pact will spread to other countries, but we hope it does -- having unlimited streaming access could easily make up for Spotify's retreat from downloads.

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Orange (1), (2)

EE closing 78 overly cozy stores, keeps related staff

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EE closing 78 overly close stores, keeps related staff

Merging two carriers' efforts invariably creates at least some kind of redundancy, no matter how much the two sides try to avoid it. In EE's case, it led to stores that were suddenly too close to each other -- so close that some were very literally next door. Rather than perpetuate the inadvertent comedy, EE says it's shuttering 78 stores that it believes are just wasting space. The provider doesn't want to put added strain on the remaining shops, however. It plans to move all affected staff to existing locations, and it's hoping to repurpose managers rather than oust them. The scaled-back retail operations theoretically "maintain momentum" while keeping customers and workers happy, EE tells us. When we see genuinely absurd situations like the photo above, we're inclined to agree.

[Image credit: Lazygamer, Flickr]

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Source: ZDNet

Baidu and Orange launch mobile browser for Africa, Middle East

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Baidu and Orange launch mobile browser for Africa, Middle East

Not content to dominate internet search in China alone, Baidu and France Telecom's Orange are partnering to capitalize on African and Middle Eastern markets as well. Today they launched a co-branded version of Baidu's browser on France Telecom's Egyptian operator MobiNil -- it's essentially the same as the one released last year for the Chinese market but in English / Arabic instead (a French version is also coming). The browser is a pre-installed app on carrier-sold smartphones and features bookmarks for Orange and Baidu services. According to Orange, smartphone adoption in the region has become widespread due to the increased availability of 3G networks -- demand apparently doubled in Egypt in the second half of 2012 alone. With nearly 80 million potential customers at hand, Baidu could certainly give Google a run for its money yet again. You can peek at the full PR after the break.

Continue reading Baidu and Orange launch mobile browser for Africa, Middle East

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Via: The Next Web

Source: Reuters, Orange

DLNA already in use by TV providers, but not exactly what we had in mind

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DLNA premium video

Comcast, Cox, DirecTV, Orange and Time Warner Cable are already using DLNA to deliver premium content around your house, but perhaps not exactly the way you had in mind. The dream that DLNA promises has never really lived up to expectations, but we still can't help but hold on to the dream of accessing our favorite shows on every device in the home. The DLNA premium content guidelines announced last year at CES seemed to be the most promising yet, but a year has passed and evidently we didn't notice.

According to the press release issued by the DLNA, the aforementioned TV providers have already deployed products implementing the guidelines. Unfortunately, those implementations haven't made the content universally accessible in our home -- yet. There is hope however, in the FCC IP interface requirement intended to facilitate such access. For example, Steve Necessary, VP of Cox Communications expects "more than 500,000 subscribers (will) have DLNA premium content functionality" through its Trio guide within the next year. How useful that access will really be, though, remains to be seen.

Continue reading DLNA already in use by TV providers, but not exactly what we had in mind

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How would you change the Orange San Diego?

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How would you change the Orange San Diego

Orange's £200 ($308) San Diego was one of the first Intel-powered Android devices to hit the market. Despite its budget price, it packed a Medfield-based 1.6GHz Intel Atom CPU that the company promised would deliver more performance and battery life than its pricier rivals. It almost achieved it too, with benchmarks that stood equal to the Galaxy S III and more than 24-hours of standby life. The problem, was that our reviewer couldn't find a compelling reason to buy one of these over a last-gen Android flagship -- but was that the case for you? If you bought one, how has the ownership experience been, so tell us what did you love, what did you hate and what would you change?

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Movea gesture control coming to Orange’s Livebox Play TV system, launches next month

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Movea gesture control coming to Orange's Livebox TV system, launches next month

In a bid to spruce up its hardware, European mobile operator Orange has drafted in Movea to bring gesture controls to its new set-top box. Running the SmartMotion server, movements will be picked up by Movea's MEMS motion-sensing remote, with gestures for volume control, web browsing and even gamepad and joystick commands. The new Livebox Play will pick up ten "contextually aware" movements, with a 'check' gesture aimed to avoid the frustration at selecting items on a distant screen, while there's also a close function embedded into the TV remote. Alongside gestures, the LiveBox Play service will offer the obligatory internet, social network and VOD bells and whistles, as well as access to games and apps on your big screen. Sick of buttons? The device is available on pre-order (for now, in France) and launches next month -- we've embedded a quick demo of the remote's precision after the break as a quick refresher.

Continue reading Movea gesture control coming to Orange's Livebox Play TV system, launches next month

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Source: Livebox Play (Orange France)

Major UK networks confirm they’ll carry BlackBerry 10 wares in early 2013

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Major UK networks confirm they'll carry Blackberry 10 wares in early 2013

While our immediate attention is focused on the fast approaching tech-fest that is CES, let us not forget another important event taking place in January -- the eagerly awaited launch of BlackBerry 10. We don't know if its success will equal RIM's expectations, but just this morning all major UK carriers emailed us confirmation they'll be stocking BB10 handsets. Three and EE (Orange and T-Mobile included) announced availability next year, but nothing more specific; O2 told us BB10 gear will land on its network "in early 2013"; and retailer Phones4u, which covers all the carriers, specified a Q1 2013 window. Vodafone implied that it'll be offering handsets immediately after launch, but we've been in contact the network's PR folks just to confirm that's true and not confused wording. We'll update you with their response as soon as we hear back.

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EE’s 4G network to be available in 35 locations by the end of March 2013

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EE's 4G network to be available in 35 locations by the end of March 2013

Potential 4G adopters in the UK not only need to consider the price of EE's plans, but also the thin coverage currently available. This is slowly being fattened up, however, and today the company has announced that by March 2013, it plans to extend its high-speed network to an additional 17 areas (to make a grand total of 35). Those 17 towns and cities don't include last week's stealthy activations in Derby, Newcastle and Nottingham, or the planned switch-flipping in Belfast, Hull, Maidenhead and Slough before the end of the year. As well as gracing new locations with 4G and bolstering network density, EE is also upgrading its 3G network to support dual-channel HSPA+ (DC-HSPA+ for short). This is expected to be available across 40 percent of EE's network by year's end, and will also be enjoyed by customers signed up with Orange or T-Mobile. So, enough of the suspense -- head past the break for the full list of locales getting 4G early next year.

Continue reading EE's 4G network to be available in 35 locations by the end of March 2013

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