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• Google apologises for Gmail problem
• 17,000 USB sticks left at dry cleaners in 2010
• Apple's Tim Cook hints at second lower-priced iPhone
• Sony PS3 European shipments seized in LG legal battle
• 26-year-old becomes millionaire self-publishing on Kindle Store
• Review: HTC 7 Pro
• MySpace officially put up for sale
• Cloud-based iTunes could be for storage, not subscription streaming
• Vodafone explains network outage
• Vodafone explains network outage
• Review: Olympus XZ-1
• Dell Venue Pro finally gets UK release
• Facebook redesigns Like button, adds thumbnails
• Asus Eee Pad tablet range: UK release dates announced
• Review: Nintendo 3DS
• Spotify nabs REM album exclusive
• RIM rep confirms BlackBerry PlayBook will run Android apps
• Odeon signs up for Facebook Places deals
• Edge-to-edge display could be coming to iPhone 5
• Updated: iPad 2 news and latest rumours
• iPad 2 to come in white?
• In Depth: Why 2011 is the year of mobile payments
• HTC Desire update: Gingerbread coming Q2
• Review: Fujitsu Lifebook T580
• 'Exciting PSP plans' set for Europe

Google apologises for Gmail problem Posted: 01 Mar 2011 12:54 AM PST Google has apologised for the problem that left thousands of Gmail users logging in to find that their email accounts were empty, and confirmed that it has turned to its tape backups to restore the data. The internet giant has said sorry to the users affected and reassured people that their email has not been lost and is already being restored to their accounts. "Imagine the sinking feeling of logging in to your Gmail account and finding it empty," blogged Google's Ben Treynor. "That's what happened to 0.02% of Gmail users yesterday, and we're very sorry.The good news is that email was never lost and we've restored access for many of those affected. "Though it may take longer than we originally expected, we're making good progress and things should be back to normal for everyone soon." Taped up Although there are multiple copies of the data on servers, Google has confirmed that bugs meant that it had to go to its tape backups to get back what was lost. "To protect your information from these unusual bugs, we also back it up to tape. Since the tapes are offline, they're protected from such software bugs," added Treynor. "But restoring data from them also takes longer than transferring your requests to another data center, which is why it's taken us hours to get the email back instead of milliseconds." It's an embarrassing situation for Google which is battling to prove that webmail is reliable – although the fact that the data is backed up on tape may reassure some. But the fact that multiple copies were affected in the cloud certainly gives pause for thought. Related Stories Odeon signs up for Facebook Places deals Spotify nabs REM album exclusive Facebook redesigns Like button, adds thumbnails MySpace officially put up for sale 26-year-old becomes millionaire self-publishing on Kindle Store

17,000 USB sticks left at dry cleaners in 2010 Posted: 01 Mar 2011 12:41 AM PST TechRadar's favourite odd press release of the year so far has suggested that there has been a 400 per cent increase in the number of USB sticks being left behind in clothes to be dry cleaned. Credant Technologies has cut through the chaff of everday news and got to the wheat of what people really care about – USB stick loss – and the statistics are, frankly, jaw-dropping. More than 500 dry cleaners and laundrettes took part in the survey and, apparently, some 17,000 USB sticks were left in 2010, that's four times the number found in 2009. Staggering "The numbers of USB sticks forgotten in trousers and shirt pockets is staggering and is a direct result of growth in 'IT consumerisation,' as consumers today carry more and more mobile devices than ever before, such as smart phones, laptops, iPads, USB sticks and other portable devices," said Sean Glynn, vice president of marketing, Credant Technologies. "Inevitably, unsuspecting consumers leave the USB sticks behind, creating a potential risk for their employers if these devices have proprietary information on them and end up in the hands of criminals." So, have you been IT consumerised? Have you suffered the dreadful stomach clenching loss of a USB stick? If so, at least you know that you are not alone. Related Stories Catch up: this week's most popular posts In Depth: Why 2011 is the year of mobile payments

Apple's Tim Cook hints at second lower-priced iPhone Posted: 28 Feb 2011 03:08 PM PST Apple chief operating officer Tim Cook has dropped the biggest hint yet that the company is considering releasing a second tier iPhone that would appeal to the pre-pay market. The COO met with industry analyst Toni Sacconaghi last week, who claims that to have been told by Cook that he doesn't want Apple goods to be "just for the rich." According to Sacconaghi, who met with a host of Apple big wigs last week, Cook says the company is planning something "very clever" in order to get its claws in the pay-as-you-go market. He says that the meeting "appeared to reaffirm the notion that Apple is likely to develop lower priced offerings" after Cook asserted that Apple is "not ceding any market." Summer launch? There have been online rumours of an iPhone nano style device for years, but the concensus has always been that Apple doesn't dwell often in the realm of sub-premium products. Sacconaghi's reports is the latest in a series of rublings that suggest the Cupertino-based company recognises that pretty much everyone wants a smartphone now, but not everyone can afford Apple's pricey contracts. Just last week both Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal claimed that Apple was plotting the launch of a sub-$200 (£120) smartphone that would be available contract free. Once Wednesday's iPad 2 launch is out of the way, say hello to three months of speculation on whether we'll get an iPhone nano launched alongside the iPhone 5. Oh joy. Source: Forbes Related Stories Exclusive: Vodafone confirms temporary voice and data outage HTC Desire update: Gingerbread coming Q2 Vodafone explains network outage Review: HTC 7 Pro Vodafone explains network outage

Sony PS3 European shipments seized in LG legal battle Posted: 28 Feb 2011 12:27 PM PST Shipments of Sony PlayStation 3 consoles bound for Europe have been seized following a legal injunction won by LG, in the latest round of an acrimonious patent war. Tens of thousands of consoles were held in Holland last week, with customs officials under instruction to confiscate further arrivals sent to the continent. LG and Sony have been battling over the former's insistence that the the PS3 infringes on Blu-ray technology patented by LG. The Guardian reports that the situation is further complicated by a number of other patent disputes that the two companies are currently contesting with each other. Frantic Sony is frantically trying to get the ban lifted so that the 100,000 consoles a week sent to Europe can be distributed to retail outlets. A spokesman for Sony PlayStation told the newspaper: "We are currently looking into this matter, and cannot make any comments at this point in time." It is thought that suppliers have two-to-three weeks worth of consoles backed-up at any one time, so there is presently no threat of a shortage unless the ban continues into the next couple of weeks. Related Stories Nintendo 3DS sells out in 24 hours on Japan release 'Exciting PSP plans' set for Europe

26-year-old becomes millionaire self-publishing on Kindle Store Posted: 28 Feb 2011 11:20 AM PST The best-selling independent author on the Amazon Kindle store is reportedly pulling-in $2m (£1.2m) a year by self-publishing her books. 26-year-old Amanda Hockling, who does not have a major publishing deal, is able to take home 70 per cent of the sale-price from her books, with Amazon taking a 30 per cent cut from each sale. Hockling is selling 100,000 copies of her books per month and sells full-length novels and novellas for between 99 cents and $2.99 and produces new content on a regular basis to ensure high turnover. Bye, Publishers Self-publishing in ebook format is fast-becoming the best option for authors who haven't had their work picked up by traditional publishing houses. For the author, it maximises the potential revenue by cutting out a few of the many middle men who take a piece of the action, but also means the author has to be self-reliant in terms of promoting the work. Miss Hockling, from Austin, Minnesota, also publishes her books on the iBooks Store and for the Barnes & Noble Nook. Her most successful work is the Trylle trilogy with each of the full-length titles available to download from the Kindle Store for just $2.99 a pop. Beware traditional publishers, your days could be numbered... Related Stories Odeon signs up for Facebook Places deals Spotify nabs REM album exclusive Facebook redesigns Like button, adds thumbnails MySpace officially put up for sale Google apologises for Gmail problem

Review: HTC 7 Pro Posted: 28 Feb 2011 09:54 AM PST Windows Phone 7 has been with us since last October, where the first flurry of handsets came quickly with a trio from HTC, the HD7, HTC 7 Mozart and HTC 7 Trophy being joined by the Samsung Omnia 7 and LG Optimus 7. Since then, things have been a little quiet on the hardware front, with the Dell Venue Pro only just surfacing. However, we anticipate the arrival of an update to the Windows Phone software very soon, and of course Nokia's recent announcement that it is joining forces with Microsoft on the smartphone front has turned heads. Now we've a new piece of hardware to gawk at too, the HTC 7 Pro. This is the first Windows Phone 7 smartphone to have a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and, as such, it is an obvious candidate for the businessperson. But if it's well designed and sleek enough, it might be a surprise consumer success too, just like the old HTC TyTN II was. In fact the HTC 7 Pro draws on the TyTN II's very clever hinged design. Slide the QWERTY keyboard out from underneath the screen and a mechanism automatically kicks in that raises the screen a few degrees so it sits at a nice angle for viewing in the hand and on the desk. On the old TyTN II you had to tilt the screen manually, so the automatic tilt here is nice to see. The mechanism on the review unit was initially a little sticky, but quickly became smooth and snappy, albeit slightly wobbly at times. Size-wise, the HTC 7 Pro isn't too much of a beast considering it packs a full keyboard. The overall weight of 185g is a bit hefty, but the dimensions of 117.5 x 59 x 15.1mm aren't too bad. And the general build quality, aside from that sticky hinge, is good. There's a metal backplate and solid plastic elsewhere with a nice chrome edging to the screen. Side buttons run to the camera button that all Windows Phone 7 handsets sport, a volume rocker, micro-USB port and, on the top edge, a 3.5mm headset connector. And under the screen there are three buttons you'll find on all Windows Phone 7 handsets. There's a Start button, Back button and Search button. These are all touch sensitive rather than being physical buttons. It's nothing fancy, all very utilitarian. Specifications are standard – within the OS' confines. Like all Windows Phone 7 handsets we've seen to date, there's no microSD card slot to boost internal storage. In this case that runs to 8GB, a storage capacity that is bettered by the 16GB LG Optimus 7 and HTC HD7. The five-megapixel camera has been bettered by an eight-megapixel shooter in the HTC 7 Mozart. But there is a 1GHz processor, Wi-Fi with b, g and n support, GPS and Bing maps, and HSDPA supporting 7.2Mbps download speeds and 2Mbps upload. The screen is not huge, but adequate, being a 3.6 inch, 480 x 800-pixel capacitive offering. The HTC 7 Pro is very similar in spec to the rest of its Windows Phone 7 brethren, but lifted by the presence of that keyboard. Interface Windows Phone 7 is very heavily controlled by Microsoft, so that no third parties are allowed to skin it. That means every Windows Phone 7 handset looks and feels substantially similar to every other. Network operators and manufacturers can add their own influence, but the scope is minimal and comes in the shape of apps and services rather than massive user interface changes. So it will come as no surprise if you've seen any of our other Windows Phone 7 reviews to know that the Home screen here is based on 'tiles'. These are vast square and sometimes rectangular icons that link you to apps, show you data and can take you to web links or other discrete bits of information. You can move these tiles around with a long press and drag so that your most used shortcuts are at the top of the list when you flip into this Home screen. Any tiles you don't need are removed by hitting the small pin icon that appears when you long press. Sweep a finger from right to left when on the Home screen and you'll see a complete list of all the apps on the device. Long press any of these and you can pin them to the Home screen. The Home screen can get very long if you like lots of shortcuts, and this single vertical list arrangement is nowhere near as hospitable to those who like a lot of shortcuts as Android's multiple Home screened arrangement. Windows Phone 7 arranges its data around 'hubs'. There's a Music and Videos hub, an Office hub, a People hub and so on. The idea is that stuff is grouped together logically so that you don't have to do much hunting around for it. The system is unlike anything on any other smartphone, and it is something of an acquired taste. We aren't entirely sure we like the long horizontally scrolling screens that bleed into each other, but if you aren't too bothered about a preconfigured order being placed on your stuff, then it is easy to get around. There are some neat touches. For example, if you set up an alarm and pin it to the Home screen, the tile tells you what time the alarm is set for and that it is on. That's a bit timesaver if you don't use an alarm every day and are constantly needing to check whether it is set or not. Overall though, the touchscreen experience is very slick, and rarely falls apart under the finger. For instance, the slide under the finger is nearly always exact and predicatable. We don't like to say it too much, but it feels a lot like experience on the iPhone, for example. One annoying factor with a phone that has a slide out landscape keyboard - the home screen OS doesn't rotate, so you have to use it long-ways even though you've just flicked back to the main display in the middle of typing. Contacts and calling Like other Windows Phone 7 handsets, you aren't going to get the best out of the HTC 7 Pro unless you are a Microsoft fan through and through. Contacts, for example, can be entered onto the handset directly, or acquired from your SIM card, but there is no way to synchronise with Outlook via the desktop. You first need to get Outlook data off your computer and into Windows Live. For reasons we can't fathom, Microsoft just doesn't want you to do desktop synchronising of contacts any more. Odd, since the other major smartphone platforms are happy with that. Still, Facebook is supported as well as Exchange, and Google too. When all your online accounts are set up, it is easy to see new posts to Facebook by friends, and to find people by scrolling through to their name in the A to Z listing. But you do have to go through a rather laborious manual linking process to bring entries for the same contact from different places are brought together, and Microsoft really needs to work on this area to make it easier and faster. That all important task of making a call is made easy thanks to an icon on the Home screen that takes you to a dialler where you can tap out a number, or flick straight into your contacts list. The dialler is nowhere near as pretty as those we've seen on other handsets, though. And that also goes for when you are in a call. Microsoft is into minimalism here, not graphically rich charm. We have to say, also, that in-call quality seemed fine when we were holding the HTC 7 Pro to our ear, but the speakerphone is really quiet and even at top volume we aren't sure it is really usable. Connection was pretty standard through general use - in the standard problem areas around town the HTC 7 Pro wasn't the best at holding signal, but once it found a bar or two of connectivity it took a while to shake it off, so we experienced very few dropped calls. Messaging The HTC 7 Pro offers the usual Windows Phone 7 approach to email with Windows Live, Outlook, Yahoo, Google and other POP accounts easily managed. Adding a POP account is just a matter of running through a few information screens and popping in the relevant details. In a lot of cases, the handset will find the server details automatically – it even managed this for our own rather obscure account. Once accounts are set up, you can see email on a very uncluttered screen that easily allows you to flick between all, unread and urgent messages. If you choose to view all, any you've read have a greyed out subject line, which is quite a nice prompt. But as ever with Windows Phone 7, we'd have liked to be able to change the font size so we could see more emails on screen at any one time. SMS conversations are shown as a thread and it is really easy to keep an eye on the chat you've been having with someone in this way. Composing messages is a straightforward process. As with other Windows Phone 7 handsets Microsoft has tweaked the on screen keyboard so that in both tall and wide modes there is some second-guessing of what keys you want to hit next. Their target areas are increased – invisibly – making for greater accuracy with speed than you might anticipate. This is great, and we also like the word suggestion and error notification systems in the email creation area. The latter borrows its wavy line underscore from Word. It means you can correct a message after writing it rather than constantly scouring it for errors. The HTC 7 Pro adds one feature that other Windows Phone 7 handsets don't have in the shape of its physical keyboard. HTC has managed to squeeze a number row above the top QWERTY row, and a handy range of symbols is accessible if you long press some keys – for example, the £ symbol sits on the R key. You can lock the symbols by pressing a FN key, though we aren't sure why that is useful. Nobody wants to write !@#$%&, very often. You can call up an array of smilies by pressing a dedicated key, and another function key enables you to use non-standard letters, such as é, very easily. There's room for a miniature set of cursor control keys, which are good for moving around in longer texts. In the end, though, with such a good on-screen keyboard, we aren't really sure the slide out keyboard offers a great advantage. It's well made, but not outstanding, and we found we were able to type out text as quickly using the on-screen option in wide mode. We wonder if the days of the physical keyboard are numbered? The keys share a lot of similarities to the HTC Touch Pro 2 in the way they look, but not in travel - they're very stiff to press in some cases (the space bar is atrocious, and we mean awful, for feedback, meaning you can rarely test if you've pressed it for example) and while well spaced, typing speeds were still quicker on the touchscreen. Internet The improved Internet Explorer you get with Windows Phone 7 is a vast improvement on what Microsoft bundled with the previous version of Windows Phone (Windows Mobile 6.5). For a start, it benefits from the high-resolution, 480 x 800-pixel screen and so is able to show plenty of detail. Pages load quickly – and we particularly enjoyed using the browser over Wi-Fi. However, over both 3G and Wi-Fi the speeds are still dwarfed by the best Android and iOS has to offer - we really hope Microsoft picks this up in future updates. Full-screen views are easily zoomed into with a double tap, and text reflows. However, zoom in further and you lose the reflow, which is a nuisance, though not unprecedented. What we really like is that you can easily pin a web page you like to the Home screen, making it really easy and fast to come back to it later without having to fiddle around with bookmarks. You can have multiple pages opened at once, and easily switch between them by tapping an icon on the bottom of the screen. So far, so good, but the lack of Flash is disappointing when it's becoming commonplace on Android and HP webOS. Something Microsoft seems to have 'forgotten' to fix as well: when in landscape mode, the bookmark and tab icons are lost until you flip back round to portrait mode, meaning constantly opening and shutting the HTC 7 Pro to just switch windows - we really hope this is fixed in the future. Camera With a five-megapixel camera offering autofocus and a flash, and capable of 720p video recording the HTC 7 Pro is positioned at the upper end of the range. Sadly, though, experience tells us that the camera is a bit below par. There are a few shooting modes to tinker with such as beach and sports shot, a macro mode and a fair few effects, too. There are a couple of neat features in all Windows Phone 7 handsets that the HTC 7 Pro offers. First off, you can squeeze the shutter button even when the handset is in standby mode and so are able to shoot quick, off-the-cuff shots easily. Second, you can get the handset to send shots straight to SkyDrive, an online 25GB storage area you get when you register at Windows Live. Do that, and it is easy to share your photos as well as keep them backed up. Click here for full-res version OUTDOORS: A straightforward photo with no effects selected, the camera struggled with the variation of light and shade in our chosen scene, and made mincemeat of some of the more detailed areas. Take a look at some of the areas of water for example, where detailing is poor Click here for full-res version BLACK AND WHITE: Greyscale mode produces a disappointing image again because of the inability of the camera to cope with light and shade. The area of water going into the distance is too much of a dark splodge to be acceptable Click here for full-res version NEGATIVE: Negative mode is often fun to try, but here it doesn't produce much variety of colour or light and shade at all Click here for full-res version SEPIA: Sepia mode we quite like. That ageing effect is hard to dislike, really, and it is forgiving of the light and shade issues we've already mentioned, since you'd expect some fading from a truly older photo Click here for full-res version SOLARISE: Solarise mode is always fun to play with, though we can't see many practical uses for it, unless you're into photography as art, of course Click here for full-res version CLOSE-UP: Macro mode proved surprisingly effective Video The 720p video recording is a bit grim. Jerky and lacking in clarity, we can't say we'd want to use it unless we were able to move the camera very, very slowly. < class="pageBreak">HTC 7 Pro: Media</> Media Like other Windows Phone 7 smartphones, the HTC 7 Pro relies on Zune to get media on and off your handset. Microsoft has done itself a bit of a disservice in this respect, because we much prefer being able to drag and drop media onto a smartphone, or, indeed, to hotswap microSD cards. But there's no card slot on any Windows Phone 7 handset at present, so that avenue is well and truly closed. Still, once you've set Zune up transferring tunes is not problematic. It's a bit irritating that you can't see content on the phone when it's connected to Zune, though. On the HTC 7 Pro, Music and Video has its own dedicated area, and you can flick left to right to access material. One screen shows stuff you've newly ported across, another shows your playback history and you just tap what you want to play. Media playback really benefits from SRS Surround Sound, and with that turned on it's very good. But, horror of horrors, you can't turn it on while in the music player. You have to go out of the player and into an app called Sound Enhancer to set it up. The same goes for equaliser settings, but you can't fiddle with those unless you have headphones connected. This simply requires too much mucking about for a handset which purports to minimise screen taps as much as Windows Phone 7 does. There's an FM radio, which has a very minimalist look, though thankfully it does automatically find station information and it's easy to add stations to your favourites list by tapping the star icon above the frequency indicator, and then go to your favourites by tapping the star icon at the bottom of the screen. We'd have liked auto seek and save, though, Microsoft! Video playback is accessed from the same area of the handset as music, but getting videos onto the HTC 7 Pro is a pain because they have to synchronise via Zune, and if your files are large this will be a slow process. Too slow, in our opinion. Playback quality is good, though, with the 1GHz processor ensuring smoothness and the good sound quality enhancing the experience. Battery life The 1500mAh battery performed surprisingly well. We got ourselves beyond the crucial 24 hour point without too much trouble, but that was with a fairly frugal usage including manually fetching email and a preference for Wi-Fi over 3G data. We temper that with the fact that if you are a heavy music listener, HSDPA, Wi-Fi or GPS basher you should realistically still be thinking in terms of daily charges. There were times when the phone would get a little hot and begin to drain quickly - with no task manager, the only way to manage this is to turn the phone off. Maps The HTC 7 Pro comes with Bing Maps. This doesn't feel quite as nice as Google Maps, but it does do a job of getting you from A to B and we absolutely love the way it automatically switches from map to satellite view as you zoom in closer and closer. That's really useful when you are somewhere new and looking for a particular spot. It is in the add-on apps department that makers of Windows Phone 7 smartphones have to find their point of difference, and for HTC that means the HTC Hub. This launches rather slowly, and delivers through its own custom interface. When you get to the HTC Hub you see the Sound Enhancer app that we've already mentioned and a few more extras such as YouTube and Need for Speed. None is installed, so you have to go through the installation process, and while YouTube is free, Need for Speed costs £3.99. You can browse for more apps, and some are free, some charged, but it is a slow and painful process, much more so than using Apple's App Store or the Android Market. Microsoft has its own app store too, the Marketplace, which you can get to from the main apps list. This also lists the HTC apps, and it's a quicker place to get them. While the Microsoft Marketplace has started to fill out since it launched, we still say that the App Store and the Android Market are the place to go for sheer volume and variety. One note - if you're downloading free trials of applications, when asked to update them, the phone will just 'install' nothing and constantly say there's an update waiting. It's irritating, but certainly does make you upgrade or delete. Comparison The obvious parallel to draw for the HTC 7 Pro is the HTC Desire Z. It's also a touchscreen HTC phone featuring a keyboard, but this time it's Android 2.2 powering things and HTC's Sense UI is integrated more than it is the HTC 7 Pro's HTC Hub. Of course, the HTC 7 Pro also has competition from other Windows Phone 7 devices, including the impressive HTC HD7 for those who want a larger screen. The Samsung Omnia 7 features a stunning AMOLED screen, so is ideal for media watchers, while those on a budget would do well to look at the HTC 7 Trophy. If it's the keyboard you're most keen on, BlackBerry phones have always been a great option, and the BlackBerry Torch offers a similar touchscreen/keyboard combo to the HTC 7 Pro. The Palm Pre 2 is also a fine option, though the HP Pre 3 (keep up with the name changes!) is set for release this summer, and should be a marked improvement. Hands-on gallery Official gallery Verdict In the months since the October launch nothing much has changed as far as Windows Phone 7 is concerned. It remains the kind of operating system you need to buy into lock, stock and barrel to get the most out of it, going for Zune and the Microsoft-operated SkyDrive as part of the deal. If you prefer a more open approach, and like the idea of microSD card swapping instead of constant synchronising, then the HTC 7 Pro may not be for you. However, the HTC 7 Pro does add the novelty of a slide out QWERTY keyboard, a relative rarity in the modern smartphone age, and that could draw your attention. We liked The general design is good, with a solid build and a clever self-tilting mechanism to the screen as you slide the keyboard out. Sound quality is great – really good for a smartphone. But again there is a niggle in that you have to leave the music player to fiddle with equaliser and SRS settings. Automatic uploading of photos to SkyDrive for backup is smooth and seamless, and we love being able to hit the side button and launch the camera even when the HTC 7 Pro is locked down. The keyboard is comfortable to use, and well thought-out. But again we have to temper this with the thought that we worked just as fast on the touchscreen in wide mode as we did with the keyboard. We disliked The constant need to rely on Zune for data transfer is a pain, and video can be slow to synchronise. We really want drag and drop for file exchange. The absence of removable microSD card storage is irritating. We do a lot of file exchange by disk swapping and really missed the ability here. The absence of Flash in the web browser is also a black mark compared to the Android competition. The absence of desktop contacts synchronisation is a very odd move considering how many people still use desktop Outlook for at least some of their vital info. If you don't store this kind of data entirely in the cloud, you'll need to steer clear or be prepared to change. And that space bar - it's really awful and takes all the flow away from trying to type at speed, which is the real reason for tacking a physical keyboard on in the first place. Verdict The HTC 7 Pro is a fairly standard Windows Phone 7 smartphone albeit one with a slide out keyboard. The keyboard adds a little bulk, but with a very good tappable keyboard in widescreen mode, we wonder whether it really enhances usability enough to warrant the increased size and weight of the hardware. In the end, though, our key gripes aren't really about the keyboard, they are about Windows Phone 7. The interface is slick, and there are aspects of it we really like. But we don't like being pushed into the cloud for all our data storage, forced to forego microSD cards or pushed into using Zune for all desktop file transfer. Related Links Phones@TechRadar - our new mobile phones channel TechRadar's Reviews Guarantee How much is your old mobile phone worth? Related Stories Exclusive: Vodafone confirms temporary voice and data outage HTC Desire update: Gingerbread coming Q2 Vodafone explains network outage Vodafone explains network outage Apple's Tim Cook hints at second lower-priced iPhone

MySpace officially put up for sale Posted: 28 Feb 2011 09:30 AM PST News Corp has decided to start sales proceedings on MySpace, with reports claiming that there are around 20 parties interested in purchasing the website. It seems that a radical redesign, a cull of 50 per cent of its workforce and a re-branding of the site as an 'entertainment' hub, haven't stopped a sale from being actively sought. There have been rumours since the tail-end of last year that Murdoch wanted to cut his losses and now it seems that a sale is inevitable. MySpace race Reuters is claiming that sources close to the matter (we'd like to think it was Tom himself) have revealed that there are up to 20 parties waiting to speak to News Corp about a possible MySpace takeover. It also believes that Angry Birds' creator Zynga could be in the running, as could mobile social network MocoSpace. Whoever ends up putting their hand in their pocket is unlikely to pay $850 million for the site, which was how much Murdoch and co bought MySpace for back in 2005. Related Stories Odeon signs up for Facebook Places deals Spotify nabs REM album exclusive Facebook redesigns Like button, adds thumbnails 26-year-old becomes millionaire self-publishing on Kindle Store Google apologises for Gmail problem

Cloud-based iTunes could be for storage, not subscription streaming Posted: 28 Feb 2011 09:13 AM PST Music industry sources have told the FT that Apple is set to allow iTunes users to store music content in the cloud and stream it to multiple devices. There have been rumblings of a cloud-based iTunes since early last year, but a launch could be on the cards to coincide with the iPad 2 reveal on Wednesday 2 March. The latest insider tips suggest that Apple doesn't intend to go up against traditional streaming services like Spotify, as customers would only be able to stream tracks that they already own. One reason for this, according to the insiders, is that Apple is loathe to 'undermine the market that it dominates for paid downloads'. Cloud nine When news broke last week that Apple had a new data centre to house iTunes and MobileMe, it added fuel to the iTunes cloud fire. Apple confirmed that the new data centre will be up and running by the spring, which also seems to support a March announcement. One of the Financial Times' sources described the iTunes cloud plan as 'insurance'; whether this is because it means that a user's digital purchases remain even if all its physical devices go missing or as insurance for the company against services like Spotify is unclear. There's been little talk of whether this will be a free or premium deal, but we'd hope to see at least a small amount of storage made available at no cost. Then again, this is Apple we're talking about. Hopefully we'll find out more about the company's plans, including whether or not the cloud storage will include movies and e-book content as well, at Wednesday's event.

Vodafone explains network outage Posted: 28 Feb 2011 08:45 AM PST Vodafone has detailed some of the reasons behind its network outage today, which led to the loss of signal to many of its customers. The provider says this break in (which happened in Basingstoke) was the first of its kind on a site, and that it has already managed to restore a significant portion of customers' signal: "We had a break in last night at one of our technical facilities which resulted in damage to some of our equipment," said Vodafone. "[The break in] happened between 1.00am and 2.00am this morning. Our network control centre was immediately alerted as were the police, and some specialist network equipment and IT hardware was stolen. "Loss of service is mainly confined to parts of the M4 corridor and some areas either side." 'Only' hundreds of thousands The network refuted claims that millions of customers were left bewildered and without service, saying the number affected was reasonably small: "That figure is grossly exaggerated – several hundred thousand may have been affected. We have over 19 million customers. "Voice services are now largely back up and running and we expect to be back to normal this afternoon. "All our sites are protected by high level security systems - we're reviewing these with the police in the light of last night's break in." Related Stories Exclusive: Vodafone confirms temporary voice and data outage HTC Desire update: Gingerbread coming Q2 Vodafone explains network outage Review: HTC 7 Pro Apple's Tim Cook hints at second lower-priced iPhone

Vodafone explains network outage Posted: 28 Feb 2011 08:45 AM PST Vodafone has detailed some of the reasons behind its network outage today, which led to the loss of signal to many of its customers. The provider says this break in (which happened in Basingstoke) was the first of its kind on a site, and that it has already managed to restore a significant portion of customers' signal: "We had a break in last night at one of our technical facilities which resulted in damage to some of our equipment," said Vodafone. "[The break in] happened between 1.00am and 2.00am this morning. Our network control centre was immediately alerted as were the police, and some specialist network equipment and IT hardware was stolen. "Loss of service is mainly confined to parts of the M4 corridor and some areas either side." 'Only' hundreds of thousands The network refuted claims that millions of customers were left bewildered and without service, saying the number affected was reasonably small: "That figure is grossly exaggerated – several hundred thousand may have been affected. We have over 19 million customers. "Voice services are now largely back up and running and we expect to be back to normal this afternoon. "All our sites are protected by high level security systems - we're reviewing these with the police in the light of last night's break in." Related Stories Exclusive: Vodafone confirms temporary voice and data outage HTC Desire update: Gingerbread coming Q2 Review: HTC 7 Pro Vodafone explains network outage Apple's Tim Cook hints at second lower-priced iPhone

Review: Olympus XZ-1 Posted: 28 Feb 2011 08:00 AM PST The 10-million-pixel Olympus XZ-1 enters a market in which compact and compact system cameras are becoming increasingly popular. In addition to the burgeoning collection of interchangeable lens hybrid models, the enthusiast photographer who wants to travel a bit lighter now has options available from Canon (PowerShot G12), Leica (X1), Nikon (Coolpix P7000), Panasonic (Lumix DMC LX5), Ricoh (GR Digital III) and Sigma (DP1x and DP2s) as well as Olympus, and soon Fuji will enter the fray with its X100. So if the XZ-1 is to prove a commercial success for Olympus it's going to have to offer snappy performance and deliver top-knotch images. With the exception of the APS-C format models from Sigma and Leica (and Fuji in the next few weeks), the Olympus XZ-1 has the largest sensor of the popular enthusiast-level compact camera collection, with a 1/1.63-inch CCD unit. This is only matched by the Panasonic LX5, while the Canon G12, Nikon P7000 and Ricoh GRD III have 1/1.7-inch devices. A larger sensor should give the Olympus camera an advantage as it often allows for bigger photosites, which usually means less image noise. Another reason to get excited about the Olympus XZ-1 is that it is the first compact camera to have a lens with the Olympus Zuiko moniker. The iZuiko Digital 6-24mm f/1.8-2.5 optic is equivalent to a 28-112mm lens on a 35mm camera. Impressively, even at its longest point this lens has a wider maximum aperture than the Canon G12 and Nikon P7000 lenses at their widest setting. This affords a much higher level of control over depth of field than is normally available with a compact camera. It also means that faster shutter speeds are available in low light to help cut down camera-shake. The chance of blur from involuntary camera movements spoiling images is further reduced by the Olympus XZ-1's sensor shifting image stabilisation system, which is claimed to extend the safe handholding shutter speed by up to 2 stops. Unlike the Canon G12 and Nikon P7000, the Olympus XZ-1 doesn't have an optical viewfinder built-in, though given the pokey nature of the Canon and Nikon units, this isn't that much of a hardship. There is, however, a port that allows an optional electronic viewfinder (EVF) to be attached and mounted in the Olympus XZ-1's hotshoe. In the absence of a viewfinder, images are composed on the XZ-1's 3-inch 610,000 dot LCD screen. Although there are 6 Art Filters and 18 automatic scene modes (including a double exposure mode) that tailor the exposure and white balance etc to the subject, enthusiast photographers are more likely to choose the XZ-1 because it has program, aperture priority, shutter priority and manual exposure modes. In these advanced modes shutter speed can be adjusted in the range 60-1/2000 sec, with the bulb option allowing exposures as long as 16 minutes, while sensitivity can also be adjusted in 1/3EV steps from ISO 100 to ISO 6400. In case ISO 100 isn't quite low enough, the XZ-1 has a built-in ND filter that can be used to cut out three stops of light. Light measurements may be made using 324 Digital ESP, centre-weighted average or spot metering. The Olympus XZ-1's Trupic V processing engine allows 1.2-million-pixel images to be captured at up to 15fps (without the mechanical shutter moving) in High Speed Sequential shooting mode. However, around 20 full resolution JPEG images can be captured at a rate of 7fps. As we might hope for a top-end compact camera, the Olympus XZ-1 allows images to be saved as raw or JPEG files (or both simultaneously) and there's plenty of control over the appearance of images via the Picture Mode and Gradation (dynamic range) options (auto, high key, normal, low key). Impressively, in addition to providing the Olympus XZ-1 with a small pop-up flash unit, Olympus has given it the ability to trigger compatible flashguns such as the FL-50R and FL-36R wirelessly. Video technology is also present and 1280x720 pixel movies may be recorded at 30fps as AVI Motion JPEG files, with mono sound via the built-in mic or stereo via an external mic. It all adds up to a comprehensive package and on paper at least the Olympus XZ-1 seems a worthy competitor to the Canon PowerShot G12, Panasonic LX5, Nikon Coolpix P7000 and Ricoh GRD III. Olympus has opted for understated elegance with the XZ-1 body. It feels well made and comfortable to hold. The XZ-1's body isn't littered with control buttons and dials, so even though it's small (think Olympux XZ-1 vs Panasonic LX5 or Olympux XZ-1 vs Canon S95 rather than vs Canon G12 or Nikon P7000) there is still room for your fingers and thumb. While the front of the camera is smooth and grip-free (the raised letter of the Olympus badge provides the only purchase) the rear has a textured rubber pad in the natural thumb resting position and this helps to make the camera feel safe in your grasp. It prevents the XZ-1 from slipping between your fingers when composing a shot one-handed. Of course keeping the number of buttons down means that there are a few direct controls missing. There's no sensitivity or white balance button or dial for example. Fortunately these options and 11 others can be reached reasonably quickly via the XZ-1's control screen, which is accessed by pressing the OK button the camera back. Although it's not unusual for a compact camera (or an SLR for that matter), the Olympus XZ-1 has an exposure compensation button. I much prefer the immediacy of the exposure compensation dials found on the Canon G12 and Nikon P7000, but these are substantially larger cameras. When you look at the Olympus XZ-1 vs the Canon S95, the XZ-1 also has a dial around the lens barrel that is used to select the aperture setting in aperture priority and manual exposure mode, and shutter speed in shutter priority mode. It's quick, easy to use and given the unusually large number of aperture settings that the Olympus XZ-1 has for a compact camera, it's much better than continual button pressing. It's not a major issue, but I found that the mode dial changed position fairly easily, and on a few occasions the camera switched modes while I was carrying it between shots. A mode dial lock would prevent this, but it would also slow down deliberate changes. The message for the XZ-1 is to check the mode dial before taking a shot. In summary, the Olympus XZ-1 is very pleasant camera to use. Olympus has kept the menus short and to the point, but there are few occasions when it is actually necessary to use them. There are automatic shooting options available for the less experienced photographer (iAuto and scene modes etc) as well as more advanced options for enthusiast photographers. Unless the ambient light is very bright, the 3-inch, 610,000-dot LCD screen also provides a decent view of the image being composed, but it's a little over-saturated. With 10 million photosites on a 1/6.3-inch sensor the Olympus XZ-1 isn't going to be able to match the image quality of a DSLR, but in good light when low sensitivity settings are used it can match the output from its main competitors. In fact, in some conditions its raw files have more detail than those from either the Canon G12 or the Nikon P7000. To achieve this the files need to be processed using the supplied Olympus Viewer 2 software, as this is the only way that the Noise Filter can be turned off. Even then, the lack of chroma noise in the final image makes it clear that there's a fair bit of noise removal activity still going on. When viewed at 100% on the computer screen, high sensitivity images have quite strong edges around softer even-toned areas. If the noise filter is left in its default Standard setting, images taken at higher sensitivity values look almost like water colours at Actual Pixels (100%) on screen, with well defined edges surrounding soft, smudgy patches. The effect is even noticeable at ISO 400, though it is much less so. While pixel peeping is interesting, it's the results at more sensible viewing and printing sizes that are important. At the lower sensitivity settings the Olympus XZ-1 is capable of producing images that make very pleasant A3 prints. This is even true in some cases with the very highest sensitivity setting, ISO 6400, but I wouldn't take this for granted and would only use it where strictly necessary. It is safer to keep prints to A4 size or smaller if the images are shot at ISO 6400 or 3200. Images of strongly linear subjects reveal that the XZ-1's iZuiko lens isn't able to correct distortion completely. It's most noticeable at the wide-angle end where barrel distortion is visible, especially in close-up images. Pin cushion distortion is also apparent at the telephoto end of the lens, but it's less noticeable than the distortion at the wide-angle end. Although Olympus Viewer 2 has a distortion correction control it isn't able to correct the most extreme bending visible in macro images. On a more positive note, chromatic aberration is not an issue and I only found a few very limited examples of it in my images from the Olympus XZ-1. The majority of the brightly backlit edges in my images show no sign of chromatic aberration. Olympus has a good reputation for colour reproduction and the XZ-1 doesn't call this into question. The auto white balance system also performs well in a variety of lighting conditions, often capturing the atmosphere of mixed lighting without overly correcting or totally eradicating any colourcast. Even when shooting under a heavily overcast sky, however, the Cloudy white balance produces images that are too warm to be natural. In the default Natural Picture Mode the Olympus XZ-1 produces punchy, vibrant images, which push the 'natural' description a little, but are nevertheless likely to find favour with most users. As usual, on many occasions the results from the Monochrome Picture mode look better when the contrast is pushed to its highest value. The overwhelming majority of the images shot during this test were taken with the XZ-1's metering set to its general-purpose 324-zone multi-pattern mode. Although I had to adjust the exposure using the compensation facility occasionally, it was no more often than I would expect, and in some instances is was unnecessary when I expected it to be required. In fact, even when shooting with a bright overcast sky in part of the frame, the XZ-1 managed to correctly expose the main subject in the foreground with no intervention from me. Thanks in part to the development of compact system cameras, contrast detection AF systems have improved a fair bit over the last couple of years. The XZ-1's AF system is on a par with its competition and is probably assisted by the brighter than average lens, which allows more light to reach the sensor. It struggles when light levels drop or subject contrast goes down, but it is respectably quick in more average lighting conditions. I found the AF Tracking system has a mixed performance. On some occasions it managed to latch onto and follow a fairly low contrast subject as it moved around the images frame, while on others it failed to follow a more distinctive subject. When it works it's very good. I had less success with the XZ-1's manual focus system. Although the camera displays an enlarged section of the scene, there's no focus scale to give any indication of where the focus point is. Also, the level of detail visible isn't high enough to allow you to set the focus with a great degree of confidence. As part of our review process we've implemented a new testing procedure. To test the Olympus XZ-1 image quality, we shot our resolution chart. If you look at our 100% crops below or download the images and view the central section at 100% (or Actual Pixels) you will see that, at ISO 100 the Olympus XZ-1 is capable of resolving up to 22 (line widths per picture height x100) in its highest quality JPEG files. Examining images of the chart taken at each sensitivity setting reveals the following resolution scores in line widths per picture height x100: JPEGs Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 100 Score: 22 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 200 Score: 20 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 400 Score: 20 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 800 Score: 18 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 1600 Score: 14 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 3200 Score: 12 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 6400 Score: 12 (Click here to view full-res version) Raw files Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 100 Score: 22 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 200 Score: 20 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 400 Score: 20 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 800 Score: 18 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 1600 Score: 18 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 3200 Score: 16 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 6400 Score: 14 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: JPEG at f/2.8 and ISO100 using macro focus mode (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: Raw at f/2.8 and ISO100 using macro focus mode (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 400 raw file with noise filter turned off post capture (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: ISO 400 raw file with noise filter at Standard setting (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: 28mm (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: 112mm (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: Monochrome mode with contrast set to its maximum of +2 (Click here to view full-res version) Olympus XZ-1 Review: Taken in very overcast conditions, this image taken using AWB is neutral (Click here to view full-res version) These graphs were produced using data generated by DXO Analyzer. The raw files are analysed with no conversion or processing to enable us to evaluate the intrinsic image quality of the sensor. This avoid the problems that arise from the fact that different raw converters produce very differnt results. We also analyse JPEG images with the camera in its default settings, so we can see what you get straight from the camera. Olympus XZ-1 Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) graph A high signal to noise ratio (SNR) indicates a cleaner image. As we would expect, the JPEG images have less noise than the raw files and the level of noise goes up with sensitivity and thus image quality decreases. The difference between the raw and JPEG files gives an indication of the amount of in-camera noise reduction applied. As we analyse more cameras we will add to this graph to allow comparisons to be made. Olympus XZ-1 Dynamic range graph Our analysis indicates that the dynamic range of the XZ-1's raw output decreases in an almost linear fashion from just over 10EV at ISO 100 to around 4.5EV at ISO 6400. The in-camera optimisation, which happens automatically to make images closer to print-ready, means that JPEG files have a higher dynamic range than simultaneously captured raw files. JPEG dynamic range bottoms out just above 7EV at ISO 6400. Olympus has managed to produce a compact camera that is a real joy to use. It's perfectly pocket sized, jumps quickly into action and has responsive controls that are sensibly laid out. The wide aperture lens also means the camera can be used handheld where some others can't and a greater degree of background blur is possible. Although they are not completely without fault, the images are also very good provided the lower sensitivity settings are used. It's also worthwhile shooting raw images so that they can be processed through the supplied software, Olympus Viewer 2, which is really rather good. It may not have as versatile a focal length lens as the Nikon P7000 and Canon G12, or some of the direct controls, but the XZ-1 has a much wider maximum aperture and is considerably smaller. Its controls are also more responsive than the Nikon P7000's. Well done Olympus: you've made choosing a high-end compact camera much harder for enthusiasts. Related Links TechRadar Reviews Guarantee Read more compact camera reviews Related Stories Nikon D800 rumours: what you need to know Nikon D400 release: 10 features we want to see

Dell Venue Pro finally gets UK release Posted: 28 Feb 2011 07:56 AM PST It's been a long time coming, but the Dell Venue Pro, Dell's Windows Phone 7 handset complete with a physical QWERTY keyboard, has finally got its UK release. The long-awaited handset is out now, with a UK price of £459 (£382.50 plus VAT), which will net you a SIM-free unlocked handset. The handset has been hit by shipping delays, having been promised to the UK before Christmas and then being pushed back to mid-February. As time goes by Here we are at the end of the February and only now is the Dell Venue Pro available to buy. You'll get Windows Phone 7 for your money, on a 4.1-inch OLED touchscreen with a slide-out physical QWERTY below. If the Venue Pro had hit the shelves back in October when Windows Phone launched, it could have been the only QWERTY-toting phone on the market; now it has the also-delayed HTC 7 Pro to contend with which, with a UK price of £432, comes in at around £30 less. Related Stories Edge-to-edge display could be coming to iPhone 5

Facebook redesigns Like button, adds thumbnails Posted: 28 Feb 2011 07:50 AM PST Facebook has made some significant changes to its Like button, with the addition of a thumbnail and a snippet of information to your Facebook feed every time you click on the icon on a third-party website. These new features were originally consigned to the Share button, which now looks as if it is being phased out by the social network. Facebook's Like button has spread through the internet like digital knotweed in recent months, proving a popular tool for sharing articles and telling your Facebook friends what web articles you have liked reading. Push the button The Like button was originally offered to web developers alongside Recommended and Share functionality, but it now seems that the Share button is no more. If you want to add it to a website, you are redirected the more visually enticing thumbs-up logo of the Like button. Facebook has had many digital stalwarts praising it for the introduction of the Like button, with Google's Eric Schmidtsaying back in 2010: "It's a new phenomenon and it's a good one." Which is a bit like Picasso saying he thinks the sketch you did was "pretty good". Facebook hasn't confirmed that its Like button is replacing the rest of its share functionality, but if it is then this could cause problems for sharing articles of interest that contain information that you don't necessarily like - for example, a well-written piece about the on-going problems in Libya. If this is the case, then the Like button would get the thumbs down from many users. Related Stories Odeon signs up for Facebook Places deals Spotify nabs REM album exclusive MySpace officially put up for sale 26-year-old becomes millionaire self-publishing on Kindle Store Google apologises for Gmail problem

Asus Eee Pad tablet range: UK release dates announced Posted: 28 Feb 2011 07:20 AM PST Asus has been showing off its Eee Pad range at CeBIT this week, elaborating on details revealed about the Eee Memo, Eee Transformer, Eee Slider and Eee Slate EP121, including UK release dates for all four tablets. The four tablets were unveiled at CES earlier this year, but there's been little further information since we dragged ourselves home from Vegas. The tablets come in a range of sizes and OSes, intended to combat the narrow range of choices offered in the tablet arena by other companies, like Apple. Squeee Pads The Eee Slate EP121 comes running Windows 7 Home Premium on its 12.1-inch LED screen, with an i5 dual-core processor and either 32GB or 64GB of SSD storage and has a UK release date of early April. The remaining three tablets are Android affairs, all aiming to ship with Android 3.0 (Honeycomb). The Slider offers a slide-out QWERTY under its 10.1-inch touchscreen, and a dual-core CPU, heading to the UK in mid April. Autobots, transform and roll out! Also set to hit in mid-April is the Eee Pad Transformer, which has an NVIDIA Tegra 2 chipset behind its 10.1-inch touchscreen. There's also an optional docking station with a full-on keyboard for the touchscreen-phobic, essentially 'transforming' (see what they did there) into a notebook. Also running Android 3.0 will be the Eee Memo – although you'll have to wait a little longer for this dual-core Snapdragon-toting bad boy. It has micro-HDMI port for 1080p playback on the big screen, front and rear-facing digital cameras and all on a comparatively dinky 7-inch screen. Handy accessory According to SlashGear, there's also Bluetooth handset accessory which works with the Memo, allowing you to take and make calls using the tablet without looking like a moron holding a 7-inch slate up to your ear. The Eee Memo has a UK release date of early Q3. Sadly UK pricing for all four tablets has not yet been announced, but the US has had its pricing confirmed and, if ours follow suit, we should see the slates hitting price points from £300 to £825.

Review: Nintendo 3DS Posted: 28 Feb 2011 05:26 AM PST The UK release of the Nintendo 3DS on 25 March will see Europe welcome the latest offering from arguably the most innovative company in the gaming world. Nintendo is responsible for iconic household names like Super Mario, SNES and Gameboy all of which have made a massive contribution to how we play today. But the Japanese company has also been busy redefining the modern medium with its most recognised bit of kit - the Wii, dragging everyone from nine year old girls to 79-year-old grandaddys around the TV to wave a white remote in the air. Nintendo's current handheld line – the Nintendo DS – has had a similar amount of pull on the public, creating a world where everyone's a gamer. You might be Brain Training on the bus or leaping over spike pits at lunch, either way you're a part of a video game boom (at least in terms of awareness) that's never been seen before, and that's largely thanks to Nintendo. After such success you might forgive Nintendo for resting on its laurels and, indeed, since the UK release of the first DS back in 2004, the progression of the portable has been something of a slow evolution. Sticking a couple of extra letters on the end of each edition, with devices like the DS Lite, the DSi and the DSi XL Nintendo made the common alterations; making things bigger/smaller/lighter, adding a camera here and a bit more power there. The core of the DS remained the same though; a book-like, dual-screen handheld with the touch functionality that augments the gaming experience with an extra dimension of interactivity that spawned the DS success in the beginning. But now, with the release of the Nintendo 3DS, Ninty is having a punt at revolutionising video games for a third time and 'extra dimension' is the key phrase again. With a Nintendo 3DS UK release date of March 25, for a price that's been left up to European retailers but is currently sitting around the £200 mark generally, the public will get its hands on the latest DS iteration. At first glance it looks like a shinier, sleeker version of its brothers and it still has the same dual-screen, touch sensitive set up. This time, however, the top screen boasts the ability to beam your gaming experience in full auto-stereoscopic 3D - that's 3D without the need for a pair of 3D specs. Ok, so the likes of Avatar have already reignited the 3D interest for cinema and Sony's pushing 3D gaming on the PS3 – pricey TVs and cumbersome glasses included - but unassisted, palm of your hand 3D is a completely different and massively exciting prospect. That's why the Nintendo 3DS has the potential to be a massive stride forward from its predecessors and another landmark product that Nintendo can lay claim to. If it works, that is. We've been working on our Nintendo 3DS review for the last week - here's the verdict... To look at the, the Nintendo 3DS is more or less classic DS design. It's slightly smaller than the DSi in terms of sheer size, at approximately 135mm x 74mm but is a bit thicker at 20mm deep compared to the DSi (137mm x 75mm x 19mm) and weighs around 8 ounces with battery, stylus and SD card on board. It looks that bit sleeker though, with curved corners, angled edges and shiny gloss finish. This time the lid houses two cameras rather than one (necessary for the 3D camera we'll come on to), both placed centrally at the top of the panel, and each about half the size of the DSi's camera. Placed at the back on either hinge, as with the DSi, are the two shoulder buttons which look slightly smaller this time in that they don't protrude quite so much as on the last model. The hinges themselves carry on the gradual lines of the device to complete the look. Lift the lid on the 3DS and the more sophisticated design ethos is continued with a black, gloss finish border that makes up the front face of the 3DS and surrounds the top screen. It's a neat departure from the single colour-scheme we're used to. In terms of how the new device is to hold, the 3DS doesn't feel quite so expensive or solid as something like the Sony PSP. The d-pad, face and shoulder buttons are small with that distinctly 'clicky' feel. We'd also say that when fully open, the top panel encroaches on the space your fingers need around the shoulder buttons. A minor quibble that's only noticed every now and then, and who's to say we don't have chubby fingers? Where the 3DS does trump the PSP in terms of control, however, is with its new analogue nub – officially called the Circle Pad. The point of analogue control has obviously been a tough nut to crack for designers of portable games consoles recently. Sony's current handheld has a flat nub with imprinted grip, something that has been criticised for being difficult to manoeuvre because of its flat design that sees players slide their thumb around awkwardly rather than pushing and pulling as they would with a stick. Having gone down the nub route as well, Nintendo's Circle Pad is still a bit of a chore to push around compared to a proper stick as well and Sony's NGP will likely take the analogue control crown when it releases with two full-on sticks. What does help the Nintendo 3DS, however is the fact that the Circle Pad has a concave surface. The shallow banks of the nub act as a nest for your thumb and mean that you have at least something to push and pull against to an extent without slipping off. The Circle Pad was responsive with a quick snap back to the centre once it was released. We had a couple of handhelds to play with, however, and one demonstrated a particularly sticky Pad which didn't come all the way back to the middle if it was pushed to its boundaries Since this was just one case, though, we have to give the 3DS the benefit of the doubt, although it does make us wonder whether the nub design could be prone to stickiness over time. Also of note the placement of the front facing camera, now above the screen rather than on the join between the panels and the addition of three new buttons (Home, Start and Select) under the bottom screen. Getting onto the technology that drives the 3DS, that lower screen is LCD with the resistive touch capabilities that can be controlled with the included, 4mm, extendible stylus your finger. It measures 3.02 inches and has a 320 x 240 resolution. The top screen is the important one though. It makes use of lenticular lens technology to create the final 3D image. Simply put, the screen uses a series of long thin lenses called lenticules that have cured fronts. Because of their shape the lenticules direct the pixels' light in different directions and each eye sees an alternate column of pixels. You can probably fill in the rest: Two images are rendered by the 3DS' GPU, they are sent to separate eyes by the lenticules and, as you probably know, by seeing two slightly separated versions of the same image we get glorious 3D. Of course, to look as good as the current Nintendo DSi, the 3DS needs to have twice the resolution, and it has exactly that and then some. Where the DSi screen ran at a resolution of 256 x 192 This time we're treated to a 3.53 inch wide-screen LCD display zapping 16.77 million colours in what Nintendo's calling 800 x 240 pixel resolution (what it actually means is you get 400 x 240 in each eye and then the same in both eyes when in 2D mode). Not only does the 3DS present you with unassisted 3D then, it's bested its predecessors significantly in terms of resolution in the 2D arena as well. PAPER: The 3DS comes with a wad-like and not-exactly-environmentally-friendly multi-lingual user guide What's driving the 3D machine hasn't actually been officially disclosed and without being able to take the console to pieces just yet we have to rely on reports that the handheld contains a twin ARM11 266 MHz processor and the PICA200 GPU from Digital Media Professionals. Also reported is 1.5GB of flash storage, 63MB of RAM (although some contesting reports suggest 96MB) and 4MB of dedicated video memory. Also tucked away inside the body is a motion-sensor and Gyroscope, which will come into play later. All this is powered by a battery that Nintendo has estimated will offer 3 – 5 hours of life and longer when playing games from the DS back-catalogue using the 3DS' backwards compatibility. Not too different to the DSi then, although after putting the 3DS through its paces it seems that the avid amongst us will only hit the minimum estimation - we were out of juice at three hours of constant play in full 3D. Nintendo does, however, provide a nice little charging cradle as part of the package and the handheld had no problem lasting the day when in sleep mode. The 3D effect that's conjured as a result has a focus on depth rather than throwing objects out of the screen at you all the time. How much depth exactly depends on the design of the game itself and player discretion. A slider on the side of the top panels allows gamers to adjust the level of depth, acting almost as a visual volume button. The slider will probably be used in varying amounts as people take to 3D differently. We had the effect on maximum for the most part though and found the effect to be sharp, deep and with very little ghosting when we had the 3DS positioned in a way that hit the 'sweet spot'. And the sweet spot is crucial. You need to hold the 3DS so that it's central, still and head on if you want the best effect. It's by no means hard to find the right angle, it's the one you'd most naturally adopt, but movement does interfere with the picture significantly. The amount of forgiveness you get for straying depends on how 3D your image is in the first place. If the images are split to a greater extent to give the impression of more depth, the difference will be more apparent once you start to angle the screen in such a way that makes one image more prominent than the other. The games we played We were able to get our hands on two games; Nintendogs + Cats and Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition. Nintendogs + Cats boasted the greater amount of depth and so even a degree of sideways rotation of the 3DS caused flickering of the image and the occasional split-second blackout. Titling the handheld forwards and backwards doesn't have the same amount of visual degradation, though. Street Fighter could take more movement in all directions before the image started to ghost significantly. There was generally less depth in Street Fighter, though, since the focus is on two players – there's no gameplay element that requires roaming in and out of the foreground so the background plays an aesthetic role. But there are two camera angles in the 3D Edition of Street Fighter - the traditional side-on view is 3D only in the sense of having different layers of 2D cell-shaded art stacked on top of each other. A second camera angle, however, rotates the side-view around so that it's more a diagonal over-the-shoulder shot and this is the angle at which to get the best 3D effect. The characters become full 3D models and the sense of depth is much more obvious and complete as objects in the background have depth to them as well as looking further away. There're also some examples of protruding pixels here as well; because of the angle, the outside of your character's body – particularly the elbow, for example, as certain punches are thrown – noticeably occupy the foreground in comparison to your opponent who appears in the background. The best example of a 3D image coming out of the screen we witnessed, however, was during Nintendogs + Cats, when our kitten came right up to the screen and then poked its head clearly beyond the glass. In both cases though, like we've said, the 3D effect is more one of depth. When we're considering how much more immersive the gaming experience becomes, it doesn't work in the sense of surrounding your head and making you feel like you're actually sitting in the game, but it does make you feel like you could stick your hand into the world and touch everything. It also enhances the graphics, not necessarily in a technical sense of quality, just in the way objects look more realistic and solid because of their added depth. It was when our cat pushed its head right out of the screen that we started to really appreciate the extra graphical quality the 3DS has over previous iterations, regardless of the 3D wow factor. The graphics in Nintendogs & Cats are far more detailed than previous versions, showing off the extra power and resolution of the 3DS. Using the 3D slider to turn off the effect, there wasn't too much difference in visual quality when playing both games in 2D. The lines in the backgrounds of both games became sharper in 2D but only negligibly, there a more noticeable dulling in colour with 3D mode activated though. Outside of its gaming capabilities, the 3DS tech is also used for a 3D camera with a 640 x 480 resolution and an active pixel count of around 300,000. The photos that come out of the other end are good for a bit of pointing and cooing but we found them to be a bit grainy and the 3D effect is actually a case of have 2D images layered on a 3D plain. For the core Nintendo audience, this will be more than impressive and a nice gimmick, but after playing 3D games that use the tech so well we couldn't help but be a bit disappointed by the camera. Another trick in the 3DS repertoire is its augmented reality, which makes use of both the camera and the on-board gyroscope. Face Raiders, for example, is a small first person, sci-fi blaster that sees you move the 3DS around to target enemies in a similar way to GunRange for the iPhone 4. When you miss an enemy and shoot the backdrop it breaks away, sending debris floating towards you and revealing the view from the camera. It's a simple game but it does seem like a bit of an error of judgement since moving the 3DS around so vigorously means that you'll inevitably lose that sweet spot at some point. The 3D usage in Face Raiders, however, is comparatively less than what we've seen in the full games, with not too much moving in and out of the foreground, which is probably a good thing for the above reason. There's also a group of more specific augmented reality games that make much more use of the tech. They're activated by putting a yellow card on a clear surface like a desk and pointing the 3DS camera at it. The best of the bunch sees the card turn into a tree covered island before your eyes giving you the task of finding and shooting a number of targets. By moving the 3DS around the scene as if it were actually there you can look around trees, behind objects and even down holes that are two deep for your desk to accommodate in order to find the targets. A lot of the other AR features are probably better described as tech demos more than anything, they're there to look impressive but don't actually do much. 'Star pics' is especially guilty of this; it uses separate cards with famous Nintendo faces on them which spawn statues of Link, Kirby, Mario and Samus depending on which dedicated card you put in front of the camera. Once they're standing on your desk you can change their size, pose or glide them slowly along the table. There's nothing more to them than that, but hopefully they'll be the start of something much bigger. There's a social element to the 3DS' as well in the Street Pass system. This automatically exchanges things like high-scores and custom characters which other 3DS portables in close proximity. It also tries to encourage gamers to use the system and keep their 3DS active in sleep mode at least by rewarding them with a piece to a jigsaw puzzle for every new person (and their virtual Mii avatar), more interestingly, a piece to a jigsaw puzzle or XP for a basic RPG action game centred around your Mii. The 3DS could pick up our fellow users the second we walked into the office, so it seems sharp in terms of connectivity there. The related mini-games are overly simple but will be enjoyed by gamers with a gotta catch 'em all mentality. Besides, it's more a way for Nintendo to keep 3DS consoles active so that they can automatically grab updates and software from the net using the Spot Pass system over WiFi. While 3D gaming still splits opinion, this is a relatively cheap, accessible way to enjoy it and the quality is more than good enough to offer an impressive and immersive experience. We liked: The revelation that is glasses-free 3D visuals in a handheld device. More to point, the fact that it works so well. Okay, there's a definite sweet spot that you need to maintain if you want that 3D image to remain sharp but it's not really that hard to work it out. Couple this with the extra power and resolution that the 3DS has over its closest ancestor and there's a much better graphical showcase on offer for 2D lovers as well, which is why we can expect bigger and better looking games than what's been possible on the DS to date, We disliked: The camera. For us it fails to be much more than a gimmick. Perhaps we're coming from a hyper-critical perspective and may fall just outside of the audience Ninty is hoping the camera will please but, with its slightly grainy quality and 2D layering, it's little more than a toy to us. A good chunk of people will be pleased with it for that reason though. We're not completely taken with the application of the augmented reality tech either, especially the Star pics feature which has little more than slightly movable statues of Nintendo greats to offer. However, if there's any company we feel we can trust to take the foundations of what feels more like a tech demo and turn it into something great, it's Nintendo. Verdict: The 3DS outdoes its predecessors significantly when it comes to power and visual output, which means Ninty players can look forward to demanding names like Resident Evil and Metal Gear Solid in the future. This is a device that's going to grab everyone all over again but, at the same time, it's got plenty to offer the gaming hardcore as well and that's just as big a step forward as the specless 3D visuals. Related Links TechRadar's reviews guarantee

Spotify nabs REM album exclusive Posted: 28 Feb 2011 05:12 AM PST Spotify has grabbed a dreamy music exclusive this week, with REM's latest album, Collapse Into Now, available to those with a premium account a week before it goes on general release. The album will be exclusive to Spotify for the next week, alongside the opportunity to win signed merchandise from the band. This isn't the first time that Spotify has managed to get an exclusive on an album launch. The streaming music site managed to bag U2's No Line On The Horizon back in 2009, with help from the Guardian, and there's also been a whole line of other smaller bands going to Spotify first. Premium content Spotify is trying to persuade as many people as possible to start paying for the site, instead of using the free ad-supported version. Alongside exclusive content to premium customers, if you pay a monthly subscription then you can also access the service through a mobile device. The likes of REM choosing to debut content on Spotify is no doubt helping the company's profile in the US – a country it desperately wants to launch in. Related Stories Odeon signs up for Facebook Places deals Facebook redesigns Like button, adds thumbnails MySpace officially put up for sale 26-year-old becomes millionaire self-publishing on Kindle Store Google apologises for Gmail problem

RIM rep confirms BlackBerry PlayBook will run Android apps Posted: 28 Feb 2011 05:03 AM PST It's not all Apple rumours round these parts, you know. We also have a nice line in BlackBerry business, and we've been following the one about Android apps for a while now. Back in January, the rumour that RIM's flagship tablet, the BlackBerry Playbook, may come with Android app support surfaced. Since then, we've seen a mysterious someone testing an Android app on some BlackBerry handsets, and now we hear that a BlackBerry employee has been caught on video talking about the PlayBook running Android apps. Heads may roll During a video demo of the tablet shot at Mobile World Congress, the anonymous representative is heard to say, "We will also support Android apps when we release the Dalvik engine on top of QNX." Well. That seems fairly conclusive; or does it? We don't know who this narrator is; is he definitely a RIM employee? And if he is, is he definitely privy to the future plans for the PlayBook? It's possible that the man has, in fact, just read the rumours on tech sites much like this one. The Dalvik engine was mentioned in the original rumours, so it is possible that this is a case of life imitating rumour imitating life. That's the cynical view. The more upbeat view is that this guy just let slip the truth, that Android apps will be coming to the PlayBook! This would be exciting, giving the impressive hardware a leg-up in the software stakes. Either way, we're watching this rumour develop with interest. Now all we need is to hear that the PlayBook will be coming in white and we'll be almost as excited about it as we are about the iPad 2. Related Stories iPad 2 to come in white?

Odeon signs up for Facebook Places deals Posted: 28 Feb 2011 04:19 AM PST Odeon has announced that it has become the first cinema chain in the UK to offer up deals through Facebook Places. There are a number of companies who have signed up to Facebook's Places Deals, which gives consumers discounts if they 'check-in' to various establishments. On board at the moment are the likes of Starbucks, Argos, Debenhams, O2, Alton Towers, and Mazda. While the numerous discounts could eventually lead to customer loyalty, Odeon's first Places Deals offer isn't exactly enticing. Film focus If you check-in through Facebook Places, then a small bag of popcorn could be yours for free. And we stress the word 'could', as the offer is finite, running for a month at selected Odeon's or until the allocated 1,000 popcorn boxes run out. It's great that Odeon is on board for Places Deals, but until the offers start to resemble something like the hugely successful 'buy one get one free' Orange Wednesdays ticket promotion, they're more Razzie than Oscar worthy. Then again, you do get a choice between salted or sweet. Related Stories Spotify nabs REM album exclusive Facebook redesigns Like button, adds thumbnails MySpace officially put up for sale 26-year-old becomes millionaire self-publishing on Kindle Store Google apologises for Gmail problem

Edge-to-edge display could be coming to iPhone 5 Posted: 28 Feb 2011 04:15 AM PST We love a good iPhone 5 rumour as much as the next tech site, but this latest is one we're not at all convinced about. A spurious photo of an iPhone 5 'digitizer' (front casing) has been unearthed by a Chinese reseller, suggesting that the next Apple handset will feature an edge-to-edge display. This would increase the screen size by eating into the bezel, without increasing the physical size of the handset. Rumour mongers Apple could very well be working on such a thing, but there's something a bit off about this image. Not only do some of the lines look wonky – how un-Apple – this image would be so easy to whip up in Photoshop and print out on acetate. One digital photo later and you've got yourself a ready-made Apple iPhone 5 rumour – and all the lovely traffic that such a thing can bring. So, while we fully accept that the iPhone 5 could feature a larger screen and smaller bezel, there is nothing to indicate that this is a real Apple design. We're sorry to disappoint the home-button lovers, but we heartily recommend you don't take this photo as confirmation of the key's continuing existence. Related Stories Dell Venue Pro finally gets UK release

Updated: iPad 2 news and latest rumours Posted: 28 Feb 2011 03:33 AM PST The internet loves Apple and it loves ill-founded speculation, so it's hardly surprising that iPad 2 rumours were flying before the first iPad even reached the UK. UPDATE: The iPad 2 launch date has been confirmed by Apple as 2 March 2011. And you can check out what we're expecting from the iPad 2 launch, too. And with just days to go now before its unveiling the iPad 2 release date, specs and price are still closely guarded secrets, but that doesn't mean there aren't some juicy rumours, inspired guesses and possibly even Apple leaks to consider. Reports suggest Apple is also expecting massive demand for the new device and has ordered six million units per month. Here's our pick of the latest iPad 2011 rumours. UPDATE: A white iPad 2? This rumour, which surfaced on 28 February, came with a photo of a supposed white iPad 2 case. UPDATE: On 24 February 2011, a Japanese blog posted pictures of what it says are accurate mock-ups of the new Apple iPad. It's slimmer than the first generation iPad and features a front-mounted camera. UPDATE: iPad 2 has apparently been spotted. Reuters reports on a "source with knowledge of the device" who spotted the new iPad at the launch of News Corp's The Daily. UPDATE: On 8 February 2011 the Wall Street Journal claimed that the new iPad has gone into full production. iPad 2 specs: cameras and a gyroscope Gizmodo reckons that FaceTime support's a given, and that means a front-facing camera like the iPhone 4. BuzzBizzNews echoes the camera story, suggesting twin cameras. It also suggests that there'll be a three-axis gyroscope like there is in the iPhone 4. EETimes says Apple has been testing gyroscopes but decided not to put one in the original iPad. On 10 December 2010, images of a new iPad case appeared online, suggesting that the iPad 2nd generation will feature a rear-facing camera. On 17 January 2011, we heard word of not only a rear camera, but a front one too... it seems more likely that FaceTime will be coming to the iPad 2 as well. iPad 2 specs: a USB port and SD card slot Rumours suggest that the iPad 2 will have a USB port, which BuzzBizzNews says will enable users to "upload movies, documents and photos". We're not convinced it's for that, because Apple is moving increasingly to wireless. The iPad prints wirelessly. The iPad streams media wirelessly. Why add USB? More likely, we think, is a MicroUSB port or adapter so the iPad meets new EU regulations on mobile device chargers. Images of a new iPad case have appeared online that seem to show space for an SD card slot. On 17 January 2011, we also reported on said SD clard slot - it would be a dramatic move for Apple to go with such expandable memory, but a clever one if true. UPDATE: On 25 February 2011, Engadget wrote that the SD card slot has been canned. So too has the higher resolution screen, according to the Engadget. iPad 2 specs: GSM and CDMA AllThingsDigital quotes analyst Brian Blair, who says that Apple may be readying a "world iPad" that uses both GSM and CDMA networks, enabling it to get online anywhere in the world. CDMA, incidentally, is the technology used by Verizon in the US. iPad 2 case: thinner and more like a MacBook Brian Blair also says: "the new iPad is thinner than the existing model and is essentially made from one piece of metal with no pins needed. We understand it requires a new type of manufacturing process as a result, similar to the company's unibody approach seen in MacBooks." iPad 2 specs: retina display Will the gorgeous screen from the iPhone 4 make its way to the iPad? The Apple Blog thinks so: "You can be sure that Apple's Retina Display, or something very close, will make its way to iPad". Then again, such a screen would massively increase the number of pixels, increasing the demands on both the iPad's processor and its battery, so a nine-inch Retina Display is a challenge. If Apple's solved it we'll see you down the Apple Store the second it goes on sale. iPad 2 specs: a seven-inch screen? All of Apple's rivals have plumped for 7-inch displays, which means their tablets are lighter than the iPad. Will Apple follow them into seven-inch territory? iLounge says prototypes exist, while earlier this year DigiTimes predicted not just a seven-inch iPad 2, but a 5.6-inch iPad 2. Apparently the smaller iPads would target ebooks while the current iPad would target multimedia entertainment, "sources stated". We're doubtful. Apple already does a mini-iPad with a retina display. It's the iPod touch. The idea of a smaller iPad 2 took another knock in November, when 9to5Mac reported that the iPad 2 adverts have already been shot - with current-generation iPads playing the role of iPad 2s. The iPad 2s will be digitally added nearer the time, and of course that's much harder to do if the iPad 2 is smaller than the iPads the actors are actually holding. iPad 2 specs: a faster processor KitGuru "has been hearing rumours from the Far East" that the iPad 2 will be a seven-inch job with a 2GHz processor and an HD video camera. It reckons the processor will be based on ARM's Cortex A9, the 1GHz dual-core processor that you'll find in the BlackBerry PlayBook. On 18 January, we also reported the iPad 2 will have a boosted dual core GPU, based on an upgraded graphical core from Apple. This will allow better pixel management, lending weight the theory that the iPad 2 will have a much higher-res screen. iPad 2 specs: more memory This is a no-brainer: the iPhone 4 has twice the memory of the iPad (512MB compared to 256MB), largely because the iPhone does multitasking. Since the iOS 4.2 release, iPads do multitasking too. 256MB already seems a little bit stingy. iPad 2 specs: no home button Boy Genius Report says a source has told it that Apple has employees testing iPads with no home buttons, but we're inclined to agree with ZDNet, which says "don't bet on it". iPad 2 features: Find My Friends On 13 January 2011 we reported that Apple seems to have a location-based tool called Find My Friends in the works for its iOS 4.3 iPhone and iPad update. The iPad 2 release date is probably in the Spring Rumours suggested that the iPad 2 would be rushed out in time for Christmas, but if that's Apple's plan they're being awfully last-minute about it. Early 2011 seems like a much better bet, and it fits with Apple's annual product cycle: the first iPad was announced in January and shipped in the spring. On 7 December we reported on rumours that Apple would be shipping iPad 2 units out to warehouses in February 2011. If that date is correct, it suggests an iPad 2 release date of some time around April. This has been corroborated by our report on 17 January, with the April UK release date backed up by 'insiders'. On 20 January 2011 we reported that the iPad 2 release date could be 9 February, after images leaked showing that date on the home screen (the original iPad launch promotional material had a 27 January 2010 date on the home screen - the date the first iPad launched). On 7 February 2011, Elton John, speaking on BBC Breakfast, said he is looking forward to buying an iPad 2 in April so he can make video calls using Skype. Did he just out the iPad 2 release date or has he been hearing the same rumours that we have? On 21 February 2011, we reported that T-Mobile and Orange have dropped their iPad prices. This could indicate that a new iPad is imminent as the carriers try to clear out old stock. On 22 February 2011, Reuters reported that Yuanta Securitues sent out a note about iPad manufacturer Hon Hai suggesting that there are production bottlenecks which could cause the iPad 2 release date to slip to June. The iPad 2 price won't change much Unless there's a new seven-inch model we'll be amazed if the iPad 2 price is dramatically lower than the model it replaces: Apple isn't struggling to shift units and rivals are charging similar prices. Cheapo tablets do exist, but they're rubbish.

iPad 2 to come in white? Posted: 28 Feb 2011 03:26 AM PST Following the spectacular non-appearance (yet) of the white iPhone 4, Apple appears to be working on a white iPad 2. The rumour comes accompanied by a photo of a white iPad 2 casing, complete with a large hole for the home button and a tiny hole for the front-facing camera that is all but confirmed for the new Apple tablet. It don't matter if you're black or white The white iPad rumour is the last (for now) in a long line of speculation about Apple's upcoming iPad 2. Rumours have come and gone – like that of the super-high resolution screen – but the ones that persist suggest that we'll see at least one camera on the iPad 2, as well as a thinner body and greater graphics and processing power. There's not long to wait to find out for sure, however; the iPad 2 is set to launch this Wednesday when all will become clear. Related Stories RIM rep confirms BlackBerry PlayBook will run Android apps

In Depth: Why 2011 is the year of mobile payments Posted: 28 Feb 2011 03:10 AM PST Imagine waving your phone in front of a cash desk to buy fuel or food. Or zooming into the drive-thru lane and paying with a smartphone instead of a credit card. That's the promise of mobile payments, an emerging technology that will depend greatly on software, hardware chipsets in the phone, and an infrastructure that aids both merchants and consumers. In this case, the word "emerging" is important. Some providers, such as Fonwallet.com, are using software to initiate transactions. Some, such as Mpayy use text messaging as a way to buy goods on a website or send funds from one user to another. MPAYYMENTS: Using text messages to pay for goods Phones such as the Nokia 6212 have the capability to conduct transactions using a Near-Field Communication chip, but have not made much progress beyond some early pilots. The chip communicates over a wireless short-range signal for transmitting a small set of data. Nokia pioneered the technology several years ago, and it is popular in some Asian markets. NFC in the iPhone? The next iteration of the iPhone and iPad may include an NFC chip, and Apple would likely be poised better than anyone to make it work by tying in mobile payments directly to the iTunes store. Think of it this way: Apple could parlay their current ecommerce domination to include physical goods and proximity-based services you buy with a tap of your phone onto a terminal. For now, the only big-name phones prepared for mobile payments is the Google Nexus S and Samsung Galaxy S2, which have an embedded NFC chip. According to MordyKaplinsky, a co-founder of FonWallet.com, software upgrades for Android have moved towards enabling the mobile payment option on the phone. Recently, O2 announced plans to develop an infrastructure for mobile payments where users would be able to store a set amount of money on a phone and transfer funds between other O2 users. Orange and T-Mobile have announced similar plans where an NFC chip is embedded don the SIM card. What needs to happen So where will that lead? For mobile payments to become a reality, three planets need to align: the NFC chip or some other transaction method has to be on the phone; the infrastructure has to be ready to handle the new transaction method; and software needs to use so-called "secret" keys that refresh every few seconds. The keys help reduce fraud if someone tries to hack into a phone. "The top security requirement is to ensure that the user's secret keys are managed in strong tamper-resistant circuitry that is separate from the processors that handle user applications," says Paul Kocher, the president and chief scientist at Cryptography Research. "This isolation is critical to prevent identity thieves from extracting and copying payment credentials." Another challenge is that the infrastructure will need to support a wide variety of phones. Many Android devices look similar and provide similar features, but the firmware is often quite different: for example, the camera firmware on an HTC phone is different from the firmware used on a Samsung. "[Mobile payment developers] will have to develop applications that run on a wide variety of devices and support a variety of NFC systems including situations where NFC comes built-in to the phone, NFC on the SIM card supplied by the carrier, NFC on a removable card like a MicroSD card," says David Eads, a spokesperson for Kony, a company that makes a mobile app platform. One possible answer: Discover Cards has announced a program called ISIS where all of the 7 million terminals on the market would be capable of reading credit card information from a phone when the customer taps it on the terminal. The platform is unique in that Verizon Wireless, AT&T and T-Mobile have all agreed to participate, so the there is a greater chance that the mobile payment system would become ubiquitous and support a variety of phones. One of the best examples of how mobile payments are working is in Japan. The Sony Felica chip is embedded into a phone, and is now commonplace at train stations where smartphone users wave the phone over a terminal to buy a ticket. Mobile payment vendors can learn a lesson about how the infrastructure developed: the chip started out as a smartcard RFID technology, then made its way onto smartphones. The technology is a joint venture between Sony and DoCoMo. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Related Stories Catch up: this week's most popular posts 17,000 USB sticks left at dry cleaners in 2010

HTC Desire update: Gingerbread coming Q2 Posted: 28 Feb 2011 03:07 AM PST HTC has confirmed that a number of its legacy devices will be getting the latest version of Android. The HTC Desire, Desire HD, Desire Z and Incredible S will all have the update shoved over before June, bringing a raft of improvements. "We are excited to announce that the Desire HD, Desire Z, Desire and Incredible S will receive the Gingerbread update in Q2," HTC said in a statement. Battery boost? T-Mobile has also confirmed to TechRadar that it is working on bringing the update to its customers but, like Three, cannot give a timeframe for the update to deploy: "HTC have confirmed that all handsets in the Desire range will be updated this year but no dates as yet for the branded release." Android 2.3 (or Gingerbread) will bring a number of HTC Desire updates for the whole family - including improved processor speed and efficiency. Crucially, this could mean an improvement to the HTC Desire battery situation - all members of the Desire family are quite poor when it comes to even lasting a day on a full charge. The HTC Incredible S has only just had its UK launch, with the Taiwanese firm telling TechRadar it wanted the phone on the shelves as soon as possible as the reason for it coming with Android 2.2. Related Stories Exclusive: Vodafone confirms temporary voice and data outage Vodafone explains network outage Review: HTC 7 Pro Vodafone explains network outage Apple's Tim Cook hints at second lower-priced iPhone

Review: Fujitsu Lifebook T580 Posted: 28 Feb 2011 03:00 AM PST Last year, Fujitsu released the Lifebook T4410 laptop which converts into a tablet PC courtesy of a rotating screen hinge. The Lifebook T580 is another convertible ultraportable laptop which shares many of the strengths and weaknesses of the T4410. The T580 acts as a standard laptop with the screen up, but rotate the 10.1-inch display 180 degrees and fold it back over the keyboard and you have a touchscreen tablet. The hinge feels relatively sturdy, but we wouldn't want to put much pressure on it, just in case. Many tablet-like features are included, such as a built-in accelerometer that automatically rotates the desktop. A weighty stylus can be pulled from the chassis to manipulate the sharp and sensitive touchscreen, or you can use your fingers which tends to be more responsive. Unfortunately, Windows 7 isn't an ideal interface, with lots of fiddly menus that are hard to navigate through prodding alone. We would have preferred some custom touch-oriented software. The chunky chassis, which weighs 1.5kg, is also difficult to hold with one hand. In tablet mode, we found it easiest to use when rested on our lap or a solid surface. Build quality is reasonably strong, despite the plastic appearance, with minimal flex. The weight might make one-handed use tricky, but you'll barely notice it when slipped into a bag. Portability is enhanced by almost six hours of battery life. The low-voltage Intel Core i3 380UM processor allows for longer battery life, but performance is limited with just 2048MB of memory to back it up. Light multi-tasking with office applications is the limit. The integrated graphics are strong enough for watching high-definition video and browsing your photos, but that is all. Well-sized keyboard While you can type using an on-screen keyboard with predictive text, we preferred the physical keyboard. It's well sized, despite the compact chassis, with tapered keys that are comfortable to type on, although our test model did have an unresponsive '1' key. The touchpad is tiny, but perfectly sensitive during use. An integrated fingerprint scanner adds an extra level of security, while VGA and HDMI ports can be used to connect an external display. The 160GB of storage is rather limiting, however, and anyone with a reasonably large media collection will quickly run out of space. There are only two USB ports, which limits how many peripherals you can attach. The Lifebook T580 is a highly portable laptop and its ability to convert into a tablet is neat. However, the lack of dedicated touch software and some minor limitations hold it back. Related Links TechRadar Reviews Guarantee Read more laptop reviews Related Stories Review: Toshiba Satellite Pro C660-171 Review: MSI CX623-258UK Review: HP EliteBook 8540w Review: Acer Aspire Ethos 5943G Review: Vye Jolibook

'Exciting PSP plans' set for Europe Posted: 28 Feb 2011 02:40 AM PST Sony has hinted tantalisingly at special plans for the PSP in Europe this year, following a US price drop of the current PSP handheld in the States. Those lucky Yanks were also treated to some new software deals for the PSP, but Sony says it has nothing to say about UK pricing at present. It tempered this unfortunate yet predictable comment with a hint that there will be treats to come for European PSP fans. Setting up for a fall The statement, sent to CVG, says, "We have nothing to say at this time regarding the price of PSP within the SCEE region. "PSP has been performing particularly well in Europe so far this year and we look forward to sharing some exciting plans that we have for PSP throughout the year." Well, there's Sony well and truly raising our hopes for the year; what will we get? A cheaper PSP? Snazzy new games? A new colour variant? A free novelty hat with every purchase? We'll have to wait and see. Will it be anywhere near as exciting as making Europe the first territory to get the NGP aka PSP 2? Unlikely - but hey, a tech site can dream. Related Stories Nintendo 3DS sells out in 24 hours on Japan release Sony PS3 European shipments seized in LG legal battle

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