It seems the Tablet arena is no longer strictly the preserve of Apple and the iPad, as Samsung have confirmed the Samsung Galaxy Tab, a Tablet style touch screen device running on Android.

There is no doubt that other Android based Tablet products will be hitting the shelves soon, as such the competition is going to get very tough very quickly for the iPad and the Galaxy Tab. However, looking at the spec list it appears the Galaxy Tab has enough about it to handle any competitors.

The Galaxy Tab has mobile connectivity built in, but this is not going to replace your mobile phone anytime soon. The device weighs a mighty 380g, and measures 190 x 120 x 12mm, and boasts an impressive 7.0 inch display. The display itself is a TFT capacitive screen, supporting up to 16 million colours, and with a pixel resolution of 600 x 1024. The display supports multi touch input, and has a built in accelerometer. There is also a three axis gyro sensor, and built in is one of our favourite products for text entry, Swype.

Powered by an ARM Cortex A8 processor, the Galaxy Tab runs on Android OS 2.2, and is able to be upgraded to future Android OS releases. There are two versions of the Galaxy Tab to be released, one with an internal memory capacity of 16 GB, the other with 32 GB. This can be further expanded with the use of Micro SD memory cards, officially supporting cards up to 32 GB in size.

The Galaxy Tab is a quad band GSM product, and also supports 3G, along with HSDPA and HSUPA for high speed data transfers. WiFi 802.11 b/g/n is also included, as is Bluetooth v3.0, with A2DP support. The Galaxy Tab also incorporates a GPS receiver, with aGPS support, for use with Google Maps and a variety of location based services.

On the media side, the Galaxy Tab is a powerhouse device, with a list of features that reads like a Who’s who, or a What’s what of technical prowess. Starting from an inclusive 3.2 Megapixel camera, with autofocus and LED flash, the Galaxy Tab also offers full HD video playback, with a built in TV OUT function, an on board video and imaging editor plus support for a vast array of digital media formats, including DivX, as well as MP4, WMV, MP3, AAC and FLAC. There is also a built in 3.5mm audio jack for private listening of music or videos on the device.

Overall, the Samsung Galaxy Tab is a pretty impressive device, and as a first Tablet device running on Android, it has certainly set the bar at a high level for others to compete against. Then again, one of the great things about the Android OS is the huge variety of devices available that use that system, and judging by the variety of mobile phones already available, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a whole range of Tablet devices being released in the coming months, that will suit pretty much every budget.

Swype is an application that we have mentioned quite frequently, and with good reason. The method Swype uses to allow text entry on a touchscreen mobile phone is quite simply the best we have ever used. The intuitive user interface is easily learnt, and within minutes the speed at which it is possible to compose a text message is greatly improved.

So far, Swype has been limited to some Samsung devices, and a limited beta trial, and has only been available on devices running the Android OS. Now that has changed, as the guys over at Nokia Beta Labs have announced the limited availability of Swype for S60 5th Edition handsets, which includes the Nokia N97, Nokia N97 Mini, Nokia 5800 and Nokia 5230.

Click on this link to download Swype for Symbian, and also check out this video below of Swype in action:

We mentioned a while back that Orange were trialling HD quality voice calls, and it would seem that the trial has been successful, as Orange are now launching the system network wide.

For a call to be completed in HD quality, both ends of the call need compatible equipment, so it isn’t going to make a difference if you happen to be calling a landline. Also, there are currently only two compatible HD voice handsets available on the Orange network, the Nokia E5 and Samsung Omnia Pro 5230, although it is expected that more handsets will be launched in the coming months. Although Apple have already stated they will not be supporting HD Voice, other manufacturers are expected to, so there should be a fair selection of handsets to choose from.

Vice President of Business at Everything Everywhere, the company now running Orange, Martin Stiven said: “HD Voice is going to change the way businesses are able to communicate through our mobiles from conducting calls in places that were not previously possible to the ability to hear emotion in people’s voices. People are going to love the clarity of calls and the lack of background noise. Once you’ve used it, you will want to keep it.”

Cute Circuit is a London based fashion company, that focusses on creating clothes that can be described as ‘wearable technology’, clothing that integrates modern technology with the use of smart materials.

One of the obvious uses for smart technology would be the creation of a wearable mobile phone, and whilst Cute Circuit are not the first to bring a wearable phone to the market, the Cute Circuit M Dress is certainly one of the better looking efforts to date.

The dress is so designed to work with a standard SIM card, and aims to be an answer to the problem many women have of where to put their phone on a night out. The SIM card is placed in a small slot, underneath the label of the dress, and when a call comes in, the dress ‘rings’, and the call is answered by the simple action of raising of bringing your hand to your ear, whilst lowering the hand ends the call.

The circuitry of the handset is woven into the fabric of the dress itself, which helps to keep the dress simple and stylish, although it isn’t instantly clear how one would initiate a call with the dress, and also, where does the battery go?

The dress is due to be launched in 2011.

The Sony corporation has been a long time sponsor of the UEFA Champions League, and that association has been further extended to include Sony Ericsson, with the Sony Ericsson brand now the official mobile handset for the Champions League.

Part of the deal will include Sony Ericsson providing the ‘best possible’ experience, by utilising the GPS functionality of their smartphone handsets as well as developing an application with UEFA to be used by fans who are watching the games either at the stadium or elsewhere with friends.

Lennard Hoornik, Corporate Vice President and Head of Global Marketing at Sony Ericsson said: “Using the existing GPS capabilities of our Xperia Smartphones to enhance the fan experience is an exciting part of this programme. This new initiative will build on our other ongoing worldwide sponsorship campaigns.”

The BBC iPlayer service continues to grow in popularity, and with the proliferation of quality media devices available, so it is now ever more popular to access services like the iPlayer on the move.

Even so, the most recent stats from the BBC are pretty impressive, with 5.3 million shows accessed via the iPhone in the month of June. The numbers released also showed that people were accessing the iPlayer service via Android devices, but at a much lower level, with just 6,400 shows streamed to Android handsets. Currently the BBC iPlayer service works with Android 2.2 handsets only, so the number is sure to increase as more handsets receive the Android 2.2 update.

Source

Sony Ericsson have come up with an interesting application which will choose the phone most suited to your needs, based on your social network browsing habits, the Sony Ericsson Phone Analyser.

To find out which Sony Ericsson device is your ideal, all you need to do is log into the application via Facebook connect, and a handset will be chosen from the Xperia X10, Xperia X10 Mini, Xperia X10 Mini Pro, Vivaz and Vivaz Pro.

The application takes note of such criteria as social network scope, sharing activity, visual components and networking activity to determine which handset is the most suitable, along with a description of what the user needs most in a phone.

Head of Digital and CRM for Sony Ericsson, Ben Padley, Said: “The Sony Ericsson phone analyser helps prospective Sony Ericsson users find the most suitable phone for them, dependant on their lifestyle. As social media is such a large part of many users’ lives, it is important to base phone choice on which handset can best handle each users’ requirements.

For more details, visit the Sony Ericsson website.

Sometimes, the best bit about going to the cinema can be the entertaining ads you see before the film starts, especially when the movie you went to watch turns out to be a real turkey.

Among some of the more entertaining ads are the Orange ads, and the latest ad is launched in cinemas across the UK today, starring Jack Black, with a spoof for the new version of Gulliver’s Travels which is due to be released just before Christmas.

Orange have a long association with cinema, as well as their ads they have an excellent offer, Orange Wednesdays, which allows you to get 2 for 1 cinema tickets by texting the word ‘Film’ to the short code number 241. Part of the 2 for 1 deal also allows you to go to a Pizza Express restaurant and get two pizzas for the price of one, as well as either free garlic bread or dough balls, making Wednesdays a really good, cheap night out all round.

O2 have released details of an eco rating system for mobile phones, part of their Think Big strategy that they hope will put them at the forefront of sustainable business ideas.

The scheme is based on information that O2 have used internally for a while now, and is worked in conjunction with a host of major names from mobile phone manufacturing, including Nokia, Sony Ericsson, HTC, LG, Samsung and Palm, who account for 93% of the range offered by O2. Noticeable by their absence are Apple and BlackBerry.

O2 found in a recent survey of their customers that as well as information on phone specifications, web access, battery performance, etc, 44% of customers were also interested in things like carbon performance, how ethical suppliers are, use of complex chemicals in phone manufacture and so on. By using the Eco Rating system, O2 hope that it will help customers make a more informed choice with their next phone purchase.

Of the current range of handsets offered by O2, the Sony Ericsson Elm came top, with an eco rating of 4.3 out of 5. The Elm is part of the Sony Ericsson Greenheart range of devices, so no surprise to see it at the top of the list. The focus of the Greenheart devices is to show that eco friendly phones do not have to be low spec, budget devices. Hopefully other manufacturers will also be encouraged in their use of recyclable, sustainable materials.

Nokia have announced the forthcoming release of the Nokia 5250, a budget range handset with a focus on music and social media.

The Nokia 5250 runs on the Symbian Operating System, so although technically it could be classed as a smartphone, the lack of many top end features means it hardly fits the bill for such a description. The handset offers a large 2.8 inch resistive TFT touchscreen, supporting up to 16 million colours and with a pixel resolution of 360 x 640. As the device has a resistive touchscreen, it will operate with a stylus, and support handwriting recognition, which can be chosen as an alternative to the onscreen QWERTY keyboard. There is also an onscreen alphanumeric keypad for those who prefer the more traditional style of text message composition, using either multi-tap or T9.

The 5250 is rather a basic looking device, in common with many budget and mid range touchscreen handsets; the display dominates the front of the phone, underneath which are located the three keys, a menu key flanked either side by call send/end keys. Down the right hand side of the phone are quick access keys for options such as volume control, activating the camera and so on. All round the handset measures in at 104 x 49 x 14mm, and weighs a lightweight 107g.

So far so good, but once you start to dive deeper into the specifications of the 5250, you start to notice where it is lacking. One of these areas is in data connectivity, the Nokia 5250 offers no 3G access, no HSPA technology, nor even WiFi. All data is transferred either by EDGE or GPRS. The 5250 is a quad band GSM device, and does include Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, and there is a Micro USB port for the data cable.

Media features are pretty average, the camera on the phone is a standard point ‘n’ shoot 2.0 Megapixel offering, with video recording available at 30 fps per second in QVGA resolution. Good enough for loading up to social networks and sharing with friends. The 5250 includes easy shortcuts to all the popular social networking platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and MySpace, and other applications can easily be installed thanks to the Symbian OS, as well as there being a wide range of gaming titles available too, in the Ovi Store. To start you off, Nokia will be supplying a free copy of Guitar Hero 5 with every Nokia 5250.

The handset does include a full media player, for video and music playback; onboard memory capacity is rather low, set at just 51 MB, but this can be expanded with Micro SD memory cards, with the 5250 officially supporting cards up to 16 GB in size. In some countries, where the service is supported, the Nokia 5250 will also be sold as an Ovi Music Unlimited device, which is the new brand name for the old Nokia Comes with Music service. Ovi Music Unlimited allows device owners to download as many music tracks as they like from the online Ovi Music Store for playback on the phone. As well as the music player, the Nokia 5250 also includes a stereo FM radio, and there is a 3.5mm audio jack so you can use the headset of your choice for listening to music.

Given that the Nokia 5250 is expected to retail SIM free for little more than £100, it is a tidy little phone, which should have big appeal among younger users, either on prepay or as a first time contract device. The handset will initially be available in a range of colours, including Dark Grey, Blue, Red, Purple and White, and is expected to release during Q4 2010.