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Android video ads: Google’s mascot has moves
World Cup gadget gamble: odds explained
Vodafone 845 Android 360 phone spied in the flesh
Android Mini Collectables on sale in the UK
Acer Aspire One D260 spotted in the wild: video
Android gets Ocado app with voice recognition
iPad UK price: the true cost of ownership
PS3 PlayTV getting Facebook interactivity in next update
Twitter archive committed to Library of Congress
Toshiba Regza 3D TVs due this summer

Android video ads: Google’s mascot has moves

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 09:30 AM PDT

Android adverts on the telly have been a bit of a dry affair until now, but Google’s little green man slash machine has been put to good use on a new campaign. It doesn’t focus so much on all the apps and slick smartphone features of Android, so much as it does his dancing skills: read on to see the videos.

It’s no secret we think the Google Android mascot is adorable, and we’re glad we’re not the only ones who think so. South Korean network SK Telecom has launched a massive ad campaign bigging up Android, and to help, it’s roped in the tiny green tyke. And man, he can throw some serious shapes.

He’s not the only Android cyborg around though: check out our own Romeo the robot testing out the latest Android phones below.

Out TBC | £TBC | SK Telecom (Via Phandroid)

World Cup gadget gamble: odds explained

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 09:06 AM PDT

The World Cup is coming, and quite a few big name gadget peddlers are cashing in on punters’ patriotic tendencies with money back offers. The premise is simple: buy a gizmo, and if England wins, you get the full cost refunded.

For multinational manufacturers, it’s a calculated bet of course, spread across nations, but we’ve broken down the odds to see if they’re worth a flutter. Should you just head down the bookies instead, and buy all the gadgets you could need with your winnings instead?

Money back offers only pay back the money you put down (in the cases below, for a gadget) so put simply, you’ll get a better deal simply placing a bet – just no toy at the end regardless. But how much do you need to place to win everything up for grabs right now? We explain below, and tot up how much you could win if you just bet the price of each on England winning the Jules Rimet.

All of the calculations below are with today’s best odds on Oddschecker for England to win the World Cup, 13/2 at bwin.

Elagto EyeTV DTT
Price: £79.95
Buy Elgato’s superb Elagto EyeTV DTT tuner for Mac or PC before 11 June, and the German company will pay back the price if England scoop the World Cup. At 13/2, you’d need to spend just £12.30 to win that much, so if you’re an England fan dead certain of a 1966 repeat, placing a bet online would be a cheap way of securing yourself one very useful piece of kit. Of course, if you bet £79.95 on those odds, you’d take home £519.68 instead.

World Cup: Sony unveils 3D plans

TomTom Go Live series
Price: from £192.92
TomTom’s feeling a bit more ambitious, and offering a full refund on all its connected Go Live satnavs bought before 8 June (It readily admits it’s covering its risk by offering equivalent deals in Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Holland, Portugal, South Africa and Spain) if England wins the World Cup. The cheapest model, the TomTom Go Live 550, costs £192.92 on Amazon right now, meaning you’d have to place a bet of £29.68 to win its worth at the bookies. Not a bad price for a top notch PND, no, but you could win £1,253.98 if you bet on England to triumph with the cost of a Go Live 550 instead.

Toshiba laptops and TVs
Price : from £418.25
Toshiba’s going all out with its “England Expects” deal. Buy any Toshiba laptop with an Intel Core i3, i5 or i7 processor, or a full HD Regza TV that’s 32-inches or larger, before 10 June, and the Japanese gadget giant will refund the full cost for you (Though you’ll have to register here, and claim it within 21 days) if England wins the World Cup. On the low end, the cheapest gizmo up for grabs this way is a Toshiba Satellite L500 Core i3 machine for £418.25. You’d have to bet £64.35 to win that much on England, while if you can forgo the laptop entirely, you can win a whopping £2,718.63, which will get you a brand new top end MacBook Pro with money left over (£919.63 if you’re asking).

If you’re really confident of England’s World Cup victory though, you could forgo buying the most expensive Toshiba telly in the offer, the Toshiba Regza 55SV685DB (Amazon price £2,431.78) and stick £374.12 on the three lions instead. Oh, and if you bet the full price on England and the team delivers, you’ll win a massive £15,806.57. That’s more than enough to keep you in gadgets for a decade, and pay for a VIP trip to Brazil for the World Cup in 2014. The question is: do you feel lucky?

Keen on a World Cup flutter? Let us know what you’ll be wagering your hard earned on below.

Vodafone 845 Android 360 phone spied in the flesh

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 08:30 AM PDT

The Vodafone 845 budget Android phone leaked out last month, but the specs and render shot were all we had to go on. Now things have got a lot more concrete, with several clear spy shots going live on the web. And yep, it’s running the Vodafone 360 social networking skin alright.

The unwired has live pictures of a phone identical to the Vodafone 845 render sent in from an anonymous tipster, complete with a Vodafone logo slapped across it. It looks very likely that the Vodafone 845 Android phone is the network’s attempt at its own T-Mobile Pulse Mini, an own-brand budget Android smartphone.

Read our Vodafone 360 Samsung H1 review now

To that end, the report states that the Vodafone 845 packs a small, 2.8-inch QVGA screen, a 3.2 megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, UK 3G support, and the latest version of Android, Android 2.1

As you an see from this snap, the Vodafone 845 does appear to have some form of Vodafone 360 skin, with the recognisable icons from Vodafone’s own platform sitting there on the homescreen below the Google search bar.

Whether or not they make the Vodafone 845 a more usable phone remains to be seen, especially when the very easy to use HTC Tattoo is exactly the same size, and available on Vodafone. We’ve contacted Vodafone for comment, and we’ll update if it has any details to give on the Vodafone 845.

Out TBC | £TBC | Vodafone (Via The Unwired)

Android Mini Collectables on sale in the UK

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 08:00 AM PDT

UPDATE: Smartphoneup.com reports that wholesale supply of the adorable Android Mini Collectables has now ceased, so you’d better hop down to Playlounge to grab the last ones. Interestingly, the site also says Google will now be the exclusive retailer from now on, so we’ll keep an eye out for them for you – they’ll be back.

No, Android Mini Collectables may not come with an AMOLED screen, 4G WiMAX built in or an aluminium clad shell. But just look at them! These are by far our favourite gadget toys ever, and now they’re on sale in the UK, now.

We spotted the Android Mini Collectables range, featuring Google’s adorable smartphone mascot in 12 different styles, including a Dilbert Android, back in February. But now they’re on sale in the UK from a bunch of stockists, and ready to claim a place on your mantelpiece.

You can now buy the first series of the Android Mini Collectables at the Soho toy shop Playlounge, in London, or online through the Designer Toy Store website. Wholesaler Dyzplastic also lists Octane3 as a UK stockist for the Android Mini Collectables, though they’re currently not showing on the site.

Still, just knowing the Android Mini Collectables are on British soil right now is enough for us. Fonehome’s got hands on with the lot of them, so jump through the link below for the full gallery, then head back here for more juicy gadget gossip.

Out Now | £9.95 each | Dyzplastic (Via Fonehome)

Acer Aspire One D260 spotted in the wild: video

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 07:30 AM PDT

The Acer Aspire One D260 Android and Windows dual boot netbook we exclusively revealed was in the works has just popped up on video, in the flesh for the first time. See it up close here!

We broke the news last month that Acer was planning an Acer Aspire One D260 follow up to the D250 machine, which runs both Windows and Google’s Android operating systems, and is one of the few widely available Android laptops on the market in the UK. Now, the Acer Aspire One D260 has appeared on video for the first time.

Read our Acer Aspire One D250 review now

While there’s no mention in the clip of the Acer Aspire One D260 running Android as an option, the Taiwanese tech giant has already confirmed that it will to us. It does reveal however that the Acer Aspire One D260 will pack the latest Intel Atom N450 processor and 1GB of RAM, so you should see faster speeds and better battery life.

There’s still no word on a launch date for the Acer Aspire One D260, but with units happily floating around in the wild like this, it can’t be too far off.

Out TBC | £TBC | Acer (Via NetbookNews)

Android gets Ocado app with voice recognition

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 06:45 AM PDT

Android users can now order their online shopping on their mobile phone, thanks to a newly-launched app from Ocado. And Ocado On The Go for Android (versions 1.6 and up) features one unique feature: voice recognition that allows you to root out your favourite groceries just by speaking their names.

Speak your selection of food, drink, flowers, books or toys and the Ocado app brings up a list of all the items available in that range: you just pick whichever one you want and add it to your shopping basket. There are over 21,000 products available in total, and all can preload into your phone's memory for offline browsing and shopping – the order goes through next time you connect to the web.

It might be new for Android, but we've already seen a voice recognition-less version of Ocado On The Go for iPhone, launched last July. In February this year, the app was responsible for 4.4 percent of all Ocado sales, which apparently equates to over £15m of sales per annum.

Out now | £Free from Android Market | Ocado

iPad UK price: the true cost of ownership

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 06:30 AM PDT

The iPad UK price will be announced on 10 May, Apple has finally revealed. But picking up Cupertino’s long awaited tablet may set you back more than just the company’s conversion of $499 and a few pounds on iPad apps. If you want to get the full experience Apple intended with the iPad, you’ll have to shell out for a lot more besides. Read on, and we’ll break down just what – it could cost you nearly a grand.

For our calculations we’ve worked with US prices over the course of a year, as though UK prices for some of the products and services listed here are known, several crucial ones aren’t. We’ve totted everything up in dollars and converted it for a final estimate, which should give us a ball park figure for the surplus you’ll need to pay for everything come the iPad UK launch.

Storage space
At $499 (£323), the bottom end 16GB Wi-Fi iPad is a veritable bargain for the size, software and processing power stuffed inside. But let’s put things in perspective here: it’s got as much storage space as an 18 month old iPod nano. It might play 720p HD video, but it won’t store much. If that’s your game, you’ll want the 32GB or 64GB iPad models, but you’re looking at an extra $100 or $200 (£65 or £130) respectively, and we’d expect replicated price bumps on the iPad UK price.

iPad 3G extras
If you want to use your iPad on the web on the road, you’ll be adding a hefty sum to the iPad UK price. Upfront, there’s a surcharge for the 3G model (Which also includes GPS) of $130 (£85). And then there’s the monthly price for all that data on-demand. So far O2, Orange and Vodafone have announced plans to sell dedicated iPad deals, though what those might be remains to be seen. In the US though, AT&T will sell you 250MB of data for a month for $14.99, and unlimited for $29.99 (£9.70 and £19.40 respectively). Over 12 months, that works out as $179.88 or $359.88 (£116.64 and £233.35 respectively).

MobileMe
Apple’s MobileMe cloud syncing service stuffs in plenty of useful extras, including iDisk to access files on your Mac or PC, push email and Find My iPad to hunt down your slate, heaven forbid it goes missing. Unfortunately, it costs a full $99 (£64) per year to subscribe to in the US. The UK MobileMe doesn’t currently list iPad support, but assuming it will, you’ll add a full £59 to your iPad UK price to get it.

iPad UK price leaked by Play.com?

iPad keyboard dock
Apple’s touting the iPad as a whole new type of computer, but if you intend to type anything longer than an email on it, you’ll want a keyboard to type with. Apple’s iPad keyboard dock will help you there, letting you blaze through documents on Pages at WPM speeds equal to anything you can manage on an official Mac keyboard. The only thing is, you’ll have to pay $69 (£45) to get it, which puts the real iPad UK price above that of most netbooks.

iPad camera connector
Considering Apple’s bigging up the iPad as a new way to view media, it could really have done with an SD card slot for your camera’s memory card. Even the MacBook Pro has one now. But no, you’ll have to pay a quite substantial $29 (£19) for the opportunity to slot one in through a dangly dongle.

iPad UK price: prepare for the Apple tax

iPad case
You might be able to live without an iPad keyboard dock, but you will need an iPad case, that much we’ve learned from our time so far with an iPad in the UK. You’ll want to take it with you, but you won’t want to scuff that beautiful back, or the capacitive touchscreen. On the budget end, you can get a silicone sleeve on Amazon for $7.26 (£4.70), which won’t add much to the iPad UK price. But if you want the official iPad case, with a fold out lid that gives the tablet elevation for typing, that’ll be $39, please (£25).

iPad UK price: real cost total
For a 16GB, 3G iPad with MobileMe, the cheapest data contract for a year, a budget case and a dock and camera kit, using the examples here you can expect to pay around $515.54 ($130 for 3G model, $179.88 for data, $99 for MobileMe, $69 and $39 for dock and camera kit, and $7.26 for a case totals $514.54) in the first year over the $499 base iPad price. That translates to around £333 on top of whatever the base iPad UK price is for the 16GB model.

If you want the works though, you’re looking at an even higher iPad UK price. A 64GB ($200 extra) iPad 3G ($130) model with MobileMe ($99) and unlimited data for a year ($359.88), plus a keyboard dock and camera kit ($69 and $29) and Apple’s official case ($39) will rack up an extra $925.88 – that’s £600 on top of the base 16GB iPad model solo.

Given we expect that to be around £390 based on previous Apple price conversions on its store, that points to a total minimum price of £723 to kit yourself out, and enjoy all the features of it for a year but with limited data, capacity, and a cheap case. And if you want everything on tap, with unlimited data, 64GB of storage and Apple’s official case along with everything else, you’re looking at about £990 in total in the first year. Yup, the true cost of ownership of the iPad in the first year could be nearly a grand.

Did we mention this is before you’ve even bought any apps? Still, if you’ve seen our iPad UK review, you’ll know that given just how well iPhone OS runs on it, it might just be worth it. Let us know if you’ll be pre-ordering an iPad come 10 May.

PS3 PlayTV getting Facebook interactivity in next update

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 06:15 AM PDT

The PS3's PlayTV is getting a "major" new update later in 2010, and among the new features added to the Freeview tuner/PVR setup will be Facebook integration.

The news comes courtesy of a post on Sony's official PS3 blog, in which PlayStation Network Project Manager James Thorpe outlines that "testing of some of the new features has already begun".

Thorpe goes on to say that he won't give away too much for fear of spoiling the surprise (aw, go on), but one thing he will say is that PlayTV will have links to Facebook. Quite what those links are, and what sort of functionality they'll provide, he doesn't say.

So what do you think? How can PlayTV and Facebook interact in a meaningful way? Will you be able to set recordings via your Facebook account (probably not), or let your Facebook friends know what you're watching via automatic status updates (much more likely)? We'll probably find out more before the PlayTV update is debuted.

Out TBC | £TBC | PlayTV (via PlayStation.Blog.Europe)

Twitter archive committed to Library of Congress

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 05:45 AM PDT

Every single public tweet ever made will be archived by the US Library of Congress, it was announced yesterday. Yep, a digital archive of Twitter's entire history will be available to the public, although it may be primarily aimed at scholars and researchers seeking a chronicle of “normal people”'s reactions towards certain events.

With over 50 million tweets made every day, there's bound to be a lot of chaff for any potential researcher to sift through – we're not sure there's much grist for the academic mill by combing through such trends as the #YouKnowUrSexGood hashtag (seriously, don't, there’s a reason we didn’t make that a functioning link) – but if anyone wants to find out people’s thoughts on woodchuck-faced tweenage sensation Justin Bieber, Twitter is the place to go.

The Library of Congress blog highlights a number of historic tweets, such as the world's first tweet made by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, President Barack Obama's tweet upon winning the 2008 election, and two tweets from a photojournalist who was arrested in Egypt, then subsequently freed due to Twitter. Slightly more weighty than finding out if several million barely literate 15-year-olds are on Team Jacob or Team Edward.

Digital archiving is apparently quite a high priority for the Library of Congress: it has been archiving material from the web since 2000, and has over 167 terabytes of web-based information stored.

Library of Congress and Twitter

Toshiba Regza 3D TVs due this summer

Posted: 15 Apr 2010 05:15 AM PDT

A shiny new range of Toshiba Regza 3D TVs are launching worldwide this summer, according to reports from Japan. Yep, it seems Toshiba is joining the likes of Sony, Panasonic, Samsung and LG by cannonballing its bulk into the 3D TV swimming pool – and will also proffer a 3D Blu-ray player (or players).

Nikkei reports that Toshiba plans to fit its 3D TVs with 2D-3D conversion, alongside something it describes as "super-resolution" technology. We'd imagine that's a reference to the pretty impressive Resolution+ tech found in the current range of Toshiba Regza LCD TVs – although the report says that specs have yet to be revealed.

The report also mentions the launch of Toshiba Regza 3D TVs equipped with the insanely powerful Cell processor, and that Toshiba Cell TVs (already on sale in Japan) will launch in Europe – but well, we already knew that, and it's light on any specifications or dates. We'll keep you posted on further developments.

Out TBC | £TBC | Toshiba (via TechOn Nikkei)

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Friday, 16 April 2010

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