Omio News Blog

Sony XPERIA U Deals Now Available, Free From Just £10.50 Per Month

Those on the lookout for the latest foray into the world of Android-powered smartphones can rejoice, as the gorgeous Sony XPERIA U is now available to buy from UK retailer Dial-A-Phone, as well as directly from mobile network Three.

With deals starting from an incredibly cheap £10.50 per month for a free handset – albeit sans data – the littlest sibling of Sony’s ‘XPERIA NXT’ series boasts a 3.5-inch touchscreen display, 5-megapixel ‘fast capture’ camera and a 1Ghz dual-core processor.

All of the big four networks are present and correct on Dial-A-Phone, one particularly appealing offer is on Vodafone and promising 300 minutes, unlimited texts and 250MB of data for £20.50 with six months free line rental on top.

Three also have a selection of great XPERIA U deals, serving up all-you-can eat data on tariffs from £18 per month, with a £39 upfront cost.

A quick chat has confirmed that ordering now from Dial-A-Phone means the slender XPERIA U will be at your door by Friday 25th May, whilst Three are pledging a slightly earlier delivery date of Tuesday 22nd of May, either from their stores or online.

Pricing aside, the most exciting features of the XPERIA U are the return of customisable covers as the bottom of the device can be swapped out with a selection of colourful caps, whilst the XPERIA Pureness-inspired transparent central section glows alluringly to the hue of your album art.

Style over substance? Maybe, but these touches do inject a much-needed shot of cool to set the XPERIA U apart from today’s selection of monolithic mobiles.

With delivery, the Sony XPERIA U highlights the continued influx of impressive smartphones available at bargain prices…more please!

Flipboard App Leaks: Flipping Great News Available To All Android Users

We were pleasantly surprised at the recent Samsung Mobile Unpacked 2012 event to see the innovative newsreader app Flipboard running on the Samsung Galaxy S3. 

Flipboard allows you to add RSS, Facebook and Twitter feeds into a bright tiled layout, and flick up and down to ‘flip’ rather than scroll through pages, making navigation a breeze.  It also looks great, folding the page in half as it flips, and especially making Twitter posts with images more visually presentable.

It was a great app to show off the S3′s huge 4.8″ HD Super AMOLED screen, and something of a talking point. Up until now this has been exclusive to, and an office favourite on our iOS devices. Whilst an Android release was rumoured as imminent, it was announced as a Galaxy S3 exclusive at the event, at least initially.

Now a version of the app has turned up online via the forum XDADevelopers.com after user Falcho reported that he had simply extracted the program file from a review handset using AirDroid.

The app is currently working perfectly on a number of Android handsets, not just the latest ones, even the original Samsung Galaxy S gets some love,  meaning that you don’t have to upgrade just yet, to get a piece of the flipping pie.

Installation is as easy as dropping the .apk file into the handset’s internal memory (it won’t work fully from the SD card) and in the phone’s security settings, enabling the ‘Allow installation of non-Market apps’.

In addition to this, the same user has managed to upload the S Voice app, so Samsung Android users will also have a chance to try the Galaxy S3′s voice control functionality.  We’re not nearly as excited about this as Flipboard though, an app that actually improves the user experience rather than frustrates it.

If you’re feeling a little adventurous and wonder what all the fuss is about, head over to XDAdevelopers for more details.

For more details on Android handsets, including the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S3, check out Omio’s deals page.

LG Optimus L7 Now Available To Buy In UK, Free From £20.50 Per Month

Whilst the Samsung Galaxy S3 basks in a sea of column inches, please do spare a thought for the LG Optimus L7, which is available to buy this week!

LG’s Optimus L7 – the belle of their L-Series slick smartphone ball – offers Ice Cream Sandwich in a cute 4.3-inch display laden package alongside all manner of stylish looks and snapping credentials.

“For consumers desiring high-end style and sophistication in a smartphone, LG Optimus L7 offers beauty and performance in one smart package,” said Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company.

“The L7 is a significant addition to our L-Series portfolio and we are confident that it’ll prove highly attractive to users. We expect it to be one of our most popular smartphones.”

Those looking for something even more exclusive, Phones4U and DialAPhone have the handset in an exclusive white finish, making it look incredibly dashing.

After breaking cover in Europe this month, the L7 aims to make its way to Asia and other global markets soon after.

With prices touted to be as low as £20.50 per month online, it’s sure to find a spot in the hearts of fashion conscious phone fans ahead of the Galaxy SIII’s arrival.

Samsung Galaxy S3 Launch: UK Release Date Set For May 30th

Samsung finally revealed the hotly anticipated Galaxy S3 yesterday evening, in a multi million pound launch event at London’s Earls Court Exhibition Centre.

The handset runs the latest version of Android 4.0.4 on its 1.4 GHz quad-core Exynos processor with 1GB of RAM. 

The screen is an impressive 4.8-inch 720p Super HD AMOLED screen, which, whilst big has a thin bezel around it, so is perfectly holdable.

Figures like that would usually have us reaching for the charger, but the new processor is said to be much more power efficient, and the battery is a whopping 2100mAh, which is roughly 30% more powerful than the rival quad-core HTC One X.

The rear camera is 8MP and super-fast, taking 3.3 still shots per second, and 1080p video. 

The front camera is a surprise at 1.9MP, which is larger than expected, but maybe necessary for facial tracking. The S3 will be able to tell if you are looking at it and stay on if you are reading something, rather than dim the screen on a timer as is the norm.

The Galaxy S3 was given a more rounded appearence than the S2, opting for natural curves and soft edges.

Samsung have said they were inspired by nature when desiging the handset, which explains why we were serenaded by whale noises and birdsong during the build up.  The handset was demoed in two colours, pebble blue and ceramic white, for business and pleasure respectively.

Samsung also described the phone as being ‘designed for humans’ focussing on the social sharing features of the handset.  ‘S Beam’ is a close proximity file sharing feature that uses NFC and wifi to send files between handsets.

Facial recognition software will also allow users to instantly share photo’s with people in their contact list immediately. 

‘S Voice’ brings an air of Siri to the precedings, allowing users to look insane whilst talking to no-one.

You may be able to wake the phone from sleep with a voice command, but we always found the wake button much quicker. Hopefully local search facilities will be enabled upon release, (something Apple have still failed to do here in Europe) and bring this functionality out of novelty status.

The S3 will be available in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB capacities, with this expandable upto a further 64GB with the addition of a micro SDXC card.

Users will also be given 50GB of Dropbox cloud storage free for two years, which should see through a 24month contract.

The Galaxy S3 will be released as a 3G HDSPA+ version on May 29th in Europe, with a 4G LTE version following in countries lucky enough to have super-fast mobile broadband, in June of this year.

The Korean tech giants were keen to play down the numbers and the launch focussed on what the phone could do rather than boast about specifications or previous succeses. Of course, they could have boasted had they wished…

Figures released recently by London firm Strategy Analytics revealed that Samsung held 30% of the smartphone market, beating Apple’s 24%.

Samsung also accounted for 24.5% of the global mobile handset market, passing Nokia, who have been on a downward slide of late.

UK Retailers are currently rubbing their hands in anticipation of the May 29th launch, as the Galaxy S2 sold like hotcakes.

Some information lacking from the launch event was any solid details on pricing. However, retailers will be keen to start pre-sales so expect full details soon.

We expect the handset to be offered on contract from the £35 per month mark, with the upfront cost varying depending on which model you plump for. Those who wish to buy the phone outright rather than tie into a lengthy contract should expect prices starting around £500.

We will of course be sure to bring you any deatils of availability and pricing as soon as we find out.  Sign up for alerts about the Samsung Galaxy S3 on our deals page, or keep tuned to Omio for more news.

BlackBerry 10: RIM Preview New Keyboard And Camera Features

Research In Motion yesterday previewed features that we can expect from their upcoming BlackBerry 10 mobile software, proving that despite a year of continuing setbacks, the beleaguered mobile company still has some innovations up its sleeve.

New RIM CEO Thorsten Heins used his first BlackBerry World conference to reveal a swish new keyboard for their upcoming touchscreen handsets, as well as a time-travelling camera app that should prevent missed smiles and blinking in pictures! 

All this was shown on an early developer’s handset, that was essentially a scaled down version of their PlayBook tablet.

A new virtual keyboard may not sound like the most compelling of announcements, but for a company that holds messaging so central to it’s core identity, it is definitely important to get right.

On first impressions the keyboard looks nice and spacious, with plenty of room for even the larger thumbed among us to glide around. Each row of letters is separated, with a clear dead zone in order to minimise miss-pressed keys, that also allows space for predictive word suggestions to appear.

The new software will be able to scan a user’s previous messages in order to make word lists for predictive typing and auto-correct, something that would usually take some time to adapt to, but in this case will be available straight away after setting up the handset.

In addition to this, the hit points of individual keys will adapt dynamically to the natural typing of the user, great news for those of us who always miss the same buttons!

Lastly the keyboard software will incorporate a number of touch gestures, for instance horizontal swipes to delete entries and vertical swipes to switch from letters to numbers, or to select text suggestions.

For those of you who are quite happy with your touchscreen typing, the prospect of a time-travelling camera may hold more appeal.

Everyone’s taken a picture, only to find that someone has blinked or pulled an involuntary stupid face just as the shutter clicks.

The camera app in BlackBerry 10 will take a number of images before and after the shot, and will allow you to glide either forwards or backwards in time to get the perfect snap.

The demo previewed on stage suggested that faces can be independently manipulated, receiving a rapturous reception from the audience.

It’s a nice idea that had the ‘wow’ factor, and could save you from some spoiled photo’s, but we’re still holding out for a Blade Runner style camera software that can look round corners.

Whilst there is no indication that RIM are to ditch the physical keyboard completely – something that has been a unique selling point for the BlackBerry - it is good to see them try to innovate in a field that they have struggled to compete in, that of the Android and iPhone dominated touchscreen market.

To say that RIM have had a bad year would be an understatement. A massive loss of service in October 2011 affecting tens of millions of users saw their reputation as the last word in reliability in tatters.

Add to this a drop in market share from 10% to 5%, and shares dropping 77%, it was little surprise when co-founders Mike Lazardis and Jim Balsillie stood down as joint CEOs back in January.

New CEO Thorsten Heins recently announced a renewed focus on the business markets in an attempt to consolidate the company’s strengths and core values.

Whilst the announcement of a flashy camera app will attract some headlines, we’re happier to see the messaging interface being given some due care and attention.

For a wide range of deals on BlackBerry handsets, see Omio’s deals page.

N.O.V.A. 3 Gameplay Trailer Released, Best Looking Mobile Game Ever?

Gameloft are indeed the undisputed kings of the ‘mockbuster’ mobile game, biting wholesale from the likes of Uncharted, Grand Theft Auto and even World of Warcraft to keep players entertained on the go…admittedly with varying degrees of success.

Judging by this first gameplay taster of their latest title N.O.V.A 3, Gameloft have eschewed the heavy-handed homage to the Xbox’s Halo that marked the first two instalments and gone for sumptuous first person shooter Crysis 2 as their inspiration.

Armoured suits? Check? Big guns? Present and correct. The huge surprise is that the game looks amazing, deciding to also crib some of Crysis’ visual style to make for one of the best looking mobile games we’ve yet seen.

Depth of field effects, heat haze, detailed textures…this one seems to be putting a few fully fledged console titles to shame in the technical stakes!

Check out the video below…N.O.V.A. 3 is scheduled to drop this month on iOS and Android devices.

LG ‘Still On Board’ With Windows Phone 7, Will Focus On Android Devices

Flying in the face of recent speculation that the Korean manufacturer would be turning its back on the Windows Phone 7 operating system, LG has spoken out to the contrary with Pocket-Lint.

“None of it is true. Korea Herald is showing its speculative side again,” said an LG spokesperson to the site.

“We are still on board with Windows Phone, but right now, we’re focusing on Android because that’s where the demand is.” Can’t argue with that rationale, especially with the closeness (and subsequent success) between Finnish phone maker Nokia and Microsoft’s mobile platform with its Lumia range of devices.

In stark contrast, the LG Optimus 7 failed to stand out amidst a crowded Windows Phone launch in Q4 2010, releasing few devices since that have run on the fledgling OS.

Rather than scrapping their Windows Phone…phones, LG state that they will still be bringing out handsets on a range of platforms:

“Regardless of which OS, LG is committed to offering consumers as wide a choice as possible.”

With recent handsets – including an attractive reboot of the LG Prada handset – not quite garnering the traction expected, their mobile division posted a 14% drop in year-on-year revenues whilst the company as a whole turned a profit for the first quarter of 2012.

Samsung Galaxy S2 Flash Sale From Three UK, £25 Per Month

UK network Three have stuck up a quick sale on the evergreen Samsung Galaxy S2, offering the handset with 500 minutes, 5000 texts and all-you-can-surf data for just £25 per month and a £29 up front cost.

With the offer ending at midnight on the 30th of April, there’s a little while left to jump aboard the Android train…just before the heavily-rumoured Galaxy S3 pulls into the station.

Grab the deal here.

Smartphone Popularity Finally Overtakes Feature Phones In Japan

Japan has always been…unique when it comes to mobiles, and some interesting stats are showing the island nation is warming to the idea of the smartphone.

New data out of number-cruching outfit ComScore shows that Japan bought more smartphones than feature-packed ‘dumb’ phones for the first time ever in the three months leading up to February 2012, with 1 in 5 now owning a souped-up mobile device.

The most popular handset maker out there is Sharp, with 23.5% of the 4,000 folks surveyed owning a handset from the Japanese electronics manufacturer.

More interesting still is the split between operating systems, with Android accounting for a whopping 61.4% of the market and Apple’s iOS making up 34.2%.

Having leveraged Google’s Android and their own LCD display-making nous, Sharp’s AQUOS series of handsets have proved enduringly popular, followed by Panasonic (13.8%), Fujitsu (11.8%), NEC (9.7%) and Sony (7.5%), the top five entirely ruled by Japanese firms.

Apple may be in eighth place in Japan and enjoying a relatively meagre 6.5% market share, but they were also the biggest climbers, with a 1.6% gain on November 2011.

Windows Phone is on a slight slide in contrast, dropping from 5.7% to 3.9% within the same period.

With Panasonic and Fujitsu both pledging to make the leap into international mobile markets this year (the former’s Eluga device already available to buy in the UK), how long before we see Sharp making a concerted effort to topple the likes of Apple on US soil?

via Textually

Apple Store Now Selling Unlocked iPhones On Pay As You Go

Apple are offering a new way to get your hands on the iPhone, selling Pay As You Go deals on unlocked handsets directly from the UK online store – but only until May 9th.

Deals on the Apple Store seem to be available across the 3GS, iPhone 4 and 4S on three of the UK’s leading mobile networks – Vodafone, Three and O2 – with them offering an unlocked handset and bundling your choice of 30-day SIM card pre-loaded with minutes, texts and data, making it ready for calling and Facepoking right out of the box.

Each network is offering a slightly different prepay deal:

Three – 300 minutes, 3000 texts, unlimited data – £15

O2 – £10 ‘call credit’, 300 texts, 500MB data – £10

Vodafone – 300 minutes, 3000 texts, 500MB data – £20

It’s also interesting to note that O2′s offer is not available on the ageing iPhone 3GS.

With prepay iPhones usually locked when purchased from providers, getting it straight from the Apple Store would be the best way to grab a handset, not stress about a credit check and still be free to use any network.

Obviously, the option to go it alone with a SIM-free deal is also available.

The prices are pretty much on a parity – with an iPhone 4S 16GB at £499, for example – then sticking a prepay top-up onto the cost.

Whilst the Apple Store prepay offer is a time-limited trial for a couple of weeks, it will be interesting to see if many consumers opt for an all-in-one solution over the popular pay monthly method…buying your iPhone up front is indeed the cheapest way to do it if you do the maths…