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Sad shop-shelf-clinging BlackBerry Z10 AXED ... in price, contracts
Having failed to set the world on fire, BlackBerry's flagship Z10 smartphone is now being touted at knockdown prices.
The touchscreen-driven Z10 was BlackBerry's comeback device when it was launched at the end of January. But it was priced alongside top-end devices from Apple and Samsung with premium tariffs - more than £30 per …
Mobe networks hacked phones to fix SIM hijack flaw, says bug-finder
A terrifying weakness at the heart of global mobile phone security has turned into a damp squib: networks scrambled so fast to patch the flaw that the researcher behind the discovery isn't making the details public.
It's claimed five carriers pushed out fixes to their customers by exploiting the bug.
The flaw was supposed to …
You CAN'T be a Silicon Roundabout hipster... you don't have Bluetooth socks
Hipsters concerned that their footwear is lagging in the cool stakes will soon be ordering Bluetooth-enabled socks, even if they do make them look like a young offender with an electronic tag.
The Sensoria sock monitors impact across the toes and heel of the foot as the wearer runs, providing helpful advice about stride and …
T-Mobile joins effort to bring Ubuntu phones to US mobile market
Fourth-ranked US wireless operator T-Mobile has become the latest mobile carrier to join Canonical's Ubuntu Carrier Advisory Group (CAG), bringing the group's total membership to 13.
"T-Mobile USA reaches almost 300 million American consumers and business people today," Canonical said in a statement on Thursday. "As a member of …
Ultimate Radio Deathmatch: US Navy missile-defence radar vs 4G mobile mast
On Monday the US Navy will fire up its mighty, six-megawatt AN/SPY-1 raygun radar while academics run an LTE mobile-data base station in the same band, so both sides can establish if coexistence is a workable proposition.
AN/SPY-1 is used as part of the Aegis anti-missile system mounted on, amongst other platforms, the US Navy's …
Mobes, fondleslabs, web sending Brit families back to THE FIFTIES - Ofcom
Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom's latest research shows living-room TV watching is on the rise: picture families gathering round in front of the goggle box even if half their eyes are elsewhere.
The living room is regaining its dominant position as the nerve-centre of TV viewing for families - as fondleable tablets and phones …
Base stations get high on helium, ride MUTANT kite-balloons at the football
A team of European boffins has hoisted a mobile network base station into the air from a balloon/kite combination. Yet unlike similar schemes, this one is intended for everyday use, not just for emergencies.
In a paper published by Cornell University, the team demonstrates that modern small cell technology can be combined with …
People really liked our Xperia. Throw in a weak yen and KERCHING - Sony
The weak yen and strong sales of its smartphones in Japan combined to help Sony report a better-than-expected operating profit in its fiscal first quarter.
Things were looking good for the one-time electronics giant at home, where foreign exchange rates were helping its bank balances and its flagship Xperia smartphone was well- …
Steady as she goes at Three, no unseemly dash to be Four
Hutchison's Three network in the UK has seen a ten per cent increase in active users over the past year, it says, with a 14.4 per cent increase in contract punters. The six months to the end of June saw 3 with 9.2m users (7.5m active) of which 5.5m were on contract (5.37m active) - the rest being on prepay.
The network lost 109, …
Nokia sidles up to Qualcomm, hands over bulging map package
Nokia Here will be sharing its global floorplan database with Qualcomm, putting indoor maps together with indoor positioning in an assault on the last place one can get lost.
Here is Nokia's mapping division. It has accumulated a huge database of airports, museums and venues which it will share with Qualcomm in the new deal. …
You're doing WHAT with friends? Zynga sues Bang With Friends maker
Social games designer Zynga is suing the makers of casual sex app Bang With Friends for trademark infringement.
Zynga - which says it owns the '...With Friends' brand - is no stranger to the courts, having been sued a number of times by competitors who alleged it copied the design of their games.
But seeing as one of the rival …
First Austin, now live across the US: Watch Americans pay by bonk
US pay-by-bonk platform ISIS will go live across the US later this year following the pilots in Salt Lake City and Austin, as network operators make their big play for big data.
ISIS is jointly owned by AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon, and has been trialling its electronic wallet for the last nine months. Now it's going national with …
Apple kingpin springs to Beijing, pings telco kings: Flog our iPhone things
Apple chief Tim Cook has been doing the rounds in China with national telcos, drumming up interest in carrying iPhones and iPads to the country's massive mobile market.
Cook met China Mobile chairman Xi Guohua in Beijing to "discuss matters of cooperation", Reuters and Bloomberg reported.
The world's largest mobile carrier by …
HALF of air passengers leave phones on ... yet STILL no DEATH PLUNGE
Almost half of UK flyers admit not bothering to switch their phones to flight mode (or off) while in the air, despite the dire warnings. While most just forget, the rest think they know better.
The numbers come from holiday booking outfit sunshine.co.uk, who asked almost 2,000 UK flyers about their mobile phone use and found …
How did Microsoft get to be a $1.2bn phone player? Hint: NOT Windows Phone
Comment Patents, not the next Angry Birds or having the best camera, are helping Microsoft tidy up in smartphones.
The amount of money Microsoft made on smartphones grew in 2012, but this was largely thanks to Android rather than Windows Phone.
In its latest SEC filing, Microsoft said Windows Phone revenue increased by $1.2bn in the …
You're 30 years old and your PIN is '1983'. DAMMIT, biz mobe user
Business people using mobile devices are securing them with easy-to-crack PINs rather than more difficult passwords, a survey has found.
The survey of mobile device password usage by mobile device management firm Fiberlink found that 93 per cent of corporate users applied a simple PIN password to their smartphone or tablet in …
Move over, Freeview, just like you promised: You're hogging the 4G bed
Today, the last Freeview transmitters will be relocated out of the bands that were sold off for 4G telephony earlier this year. The whole shift has happened ahead of schedule, which means that by the beginning of autumn, EE's monopoly on next-generation telecoms will come to an end.
The bands, which were auctioned off early this …
Alcatel-Lucent takes Qualcomm coin for personal 4G network tech
Chip designer Qualcomm has taken a share in telecoms gear maker Alcatel-Lucent as the pair collaborate on Small Cells - despite the architectural differences of opinion.
Qualcomm will end up with less than five per cent of Alcatel-Lucent, a share the Financial Times described as "symbolic of a wider partnership". That …
Galaxy S4 FIREBALL ATE MY HOUSE, claims Hong Kong man
According to Mr Du, he was playing a quick game of Love Machine on his Galaxy S4 when it exploded into flame, causing him to cast it onto the alarmingly flammable sofa and thus gutting his whole house.
Thankfully no one was seriously hurt, both Du and his wife got out if their Hong Kong apartment with minor injuries as Xianguo. …
Hey, Silicon Valley milky drink fans: Starbucks intros wireless charging
Another round of coffee* shops are being fitted for wireless charging; this time in Silicon Valley, as the third wireless charging standard grabs a little more retail estate.
Starbucks, who will be wiring up tables in a selection of its Californian drinking holes, has already endorsed charging tech from The Power Matters …
T-Mobile US: Go ahead, PAY NOTHING up front for any device
Updated Fourth-ranked US wireless carrier T-Mobile has hit back at its competitors' phone-upgrade plans with a new summer promotion that does away with down payments on all new devices.
In March, T-Mobile announced that it was eliminating traditional device subsidies in favor of a model in which customers either pay the full price of a …
Guinness: Have a quick bonk over the bar and receive FREE BEER
For the next month anyone with an NFC-equipped Android or Blackberry handset is invited to enjoy a free pint of the black stuff, in exchange for a quick bonk on the bar.
It's a competition, and only available in 20 pubs around the UK, as NFC World explains, so not everyone who bonks their handset against the specially-equipped …
O2 pulls plug on OAP-monitoring service
O2 has shut down its foray into health monitoring, quietly dropping Help at Hand and Health at Home and offering refunds to the few who had signed up to the services.
Health at Home was only launched a few months ago, in March. It was supposed to be a direct-to-consumer counterpart to Help at Hand, the professional service which …
Fanbois smash iPhone 5s much sooner than iPhone 3s ... but WHY?
Early iPhones last significantly longer before being accidentally destroyed than later models, according to a new survey - but nobody knows why.
Twelve per cent of smashed iPhones were left on the roof of a car, an experience which would challenge any model of handset, while 35 per cent were dropped into a bath or similar, which …
The FLOATING mobile phone shop on the edge of the Internet
Google Maps can't find the Cambodian village of Prek Toal. Bing Maps is similarly clueless about the community of 6,000 nestled near the north-western end of Lake Tonle Sap.
But Cambodian mobile carrier Metfone knows all about Prek Toal: it has a dealer there in a floating building and may well operate one of three cells the …
Grey market mobes on the slide as makers go legit
The grey market for mobile phones is forecast to slump by 12 per cent this year, ironically because handset makers can’t compete against an increasingly vibrant trade in counterfeit products, according to market watcher IHS iSuppli.
The analysis firm’s China Research Service has released new data predicting the second …
You've got 600k+ customers on 4G... but look behind you, EE
EE has signed up 687,000 4G customers, and is in track to hit a million by year's end, but average revenue per user (ARPU) and total customer numbers are both a shade down as its 4G monopoly comes to an end.
EE, the fruit of a merger of T-Mobile and Orange in the UK, was given the monopoly on 4G last year, and loudly announced …
Pentagon: Mobe operators want our radio bands? Fine, but it'll cost $3.5bn
The US Department of Defense has estimated at $3.5bn the costs of clearing military ops out of 25MHz of radio spectrum to make way for mobe operators – except it doesn't want to march off entirely, demanding instead that the band's new owners share nicely.
Following a June 2010 edict from President Obama calling on US government …
Virgin Media hangs from traffic lights, hands out free Wi-Fi to Brummies
Virgin Media plans to get mobile operators to pay for free Birmingham-wide Wi-Fi in a deal which could see every traffic light in the city turned unto a 4G cell base station.
The free Wi-Fi is set to go live in September, and comes as part of the government's Super Connected Cities Digital Birmingham's Smart City initiative*. …
Yes, UK fanbois, you can now use iPhones as bonking aids!
Following EE's Android-based wallet, the iPhone has finally got into the Near Field Communications bonking game with a sled from Device Fidelity and a service from Moneto, bringing the joy of bonking to all.
EE's service, which launched last week, is limited to the Samsung Galaxy S4 and S3 LTE. Prepaid mobe wallet service Moneto …
Android MasterKey found buried in kiddie cake game on Google Play - report
Two Google Play apps that use the so-called "MasterKey" vulnerability, albeit harmlessly, have been detected, security researchers have announced.
The Android signature vulnerability, which first came to light two weeks ago, affects the vast majority of Android smartphones and tablets, creating a means to load fake files into …
PORNAGEDDON: Sexy bloggrs stung by Tumblr smut smackdown
Porn aficionados, sex bloggers and perverts are up in arms after Tumblr wiped all naughty content from its search facilty - neatly erasing at least half of the cats'n'porn site's raison d'être.
Fears of an imminent Pornageddon on the social network were first aroused when Yahoo! bought Tumblr earlier this year, sparking an …
Verizon joins T-Mobile, AT&T with early phone upgrade plan
Well, that was quick. The number-one US wireless carrier, Verizon Wireless, has announced its plan, dubbed Edge, to allow its subscribers to upgrade their phones more quickly, not unlike the recently announced T-Mobile Jump and AT&T Next plans.
"If you want to stay on top of the latest technology, the new Verizon Edge device …
AT&T's adds 'Next' plan to allow phone, tablet trade-ins after one year
In a bid to get out from under the billions of dollars in subsidies it pays to smartphone and tablet manufacturers such as Apple and Samsung, AT&T is instituting a plan it calls AT&T Next, in which you pay the full price of the device yourself in 20 monthly payments and have the option to trade it in after 12 months for a new …
AT&T spends $1.2bn buying Leap as spectrum land grab continues
The continuing consolidation of the US mobile market took another step on Friday with AT&T agreeing to buy smaller US mobile network operator Leap for $1.2bn, which will take the combined company to within a few million customers of market leader Verizon.
Leap isn’t exactly a thriving network. The company has around five million …
Investors: Oh Samsung. You need to smash those records HARDER
Samsung's estimates for its second quarter earnings missed forecasts, worrying investors despite the fact that it will be another record-breaking quarter at the firm.
The Korean chaebol said that it expected operating profit of between 9.3tn South Korean won (£5.4bn) and 9.7tn won (£5.6bn), up eight per cent on the previous …
If BlackBerry were a bunch of startups, would you invest?
Analysis Despite recording top-line growth and an increase in cash, BlackBerry took a pummelling on Friday. Short sellers cashed in, and even the most loyal enthusiasts took to fan sites this weekend, questioning their own commitment. The renewed concern is because uptake of the new OS, BB10, came in below estimates.
The figure the …
Fines 4 U: Mobe insurer cops £3m penalty for grumble dumping
A firm that sells mobile insurance to Phones 4u customers has been smacked with a fine of almost £3million for ignoring customer complaints.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fined Policy Administration Services Limited (PAS) £2,834,700 for "poor complaints handling" between June 2009 and September 2011. The accusations …
EE turns up speed knob EVEN FASTER on 4G spectrum
Britain's temporary 4G monopolist EE promises to "double" its network speed in twelve cities from tomorrow as the company attempts to achieve superior offerings and differentiate itself from rival operators who are set to swamp the market in the autumn.
The company's boss Olaf Swantee admitted that EE wanted to "stay one step …
Regulator sniffs mobile services bods: 'Something's off. Hand me the probe'
UK premium rate regulator PhonepayPlus has launched an investigation into five mobile phone subscription services after it said that evidence had emerged that each had been marketed though ransomware-style browser lock-in tactics.
Bafona Ltd’s Zovut subscription service, which costs £4.50 per week, is billed as a chance to …
ACMA lines up 'bill-shock' standard
Australia's mobile carriers are on notice to do more to avoid international roaming bill shock, with the Australian Communications and Media Authority setting the timetable for implementation of its International Mobile Roaming (IMR) standard.
Carriers will need to implement the items in the standard by September 2013, with …
Watch out Tesco Mobile: Vodafone, Sainsbury's want to eat your lunch
Sainsbury's, the “Premium Economy of supermarkets”, has launched a branded mobile virtual network operator service with Vodafone, offering the usual cross-branding and shelf space – and, of course, Nectar points.
The service will launch in a month or two, so we don't have critical factors like pricing or a detailed breakdown of …
