Electricpig.co.uk - tech news fast!

iPhone 4 gets juice pack battery booster
Best iPod accessories
Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and DJ Hero 2 demos hit Xbox Live
BlackBerry Torch 9800 Vodafone price plans leaked
Samsung Android TV incoming?
Halo movie hopes revived: Microsoft has story planned
Doctor Who sonic screwdriver Wiimote incoming
Pamela Anderson gets in bed with Nokia N8, and invites you to get in too
Lunchtime Lowdown: Samsung Galaxy Tab UK price, PS3 Jailbreak killed and Call of Duty cast
UPDATE: Samsung Galaxy Tab gets priced, looks a bit steep

iPhone 4 gets juice pack battery booster

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 09:51 AM PDT

The juice pack battery booster has been upgraded for the iPhone 4, making this the 7th gen juice pack, and a tidy add on case that can almost double the battery life of your iPhone. It's not just a frivolous purchase though, and will set you back a rather hefty £52.

The juice pack for iPhone 4 will seriously boost your iPhone life though, so it just might be worth it if you find yourself without a plug too often.

Mophie, the company that makes the juice packs, says the iPhone 4 version can add up to six hours of talktime to 3G and 12 on 2G to your iPhone, 36 hours of audio playback, or nine hours of video playback. Mophie also reckons the battery booster improves the iPhone sound, by acting as "a virtual speaker box", and redirecting the sound, but we'll hold back on that until we get it slotted around our iPhone 4.

In terms of size, it's pretty compact compared to other smartphone battery beasts, and adds an extra half an inch to the height of your iPhone, and extra 0.3 inches to the depth, and 0.2 inches to the width of the iPhone. Which isn't too bad for an iPhone case that gives you all those extra hours of talktime and playback.

It adds a lot of battery life, in a compact case, but is £52 still too much for the iPhone 4 juice pack?

Out Now | £52 | Mophie

Best iPod accessories

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 08:38 AM PDT

The best iPod accessories can be hard to come by, when there are so many companies pushing out covers, cases and endless peripherals for Apple’s eponymous media players. We’re here to lend a hand: you can see the top five essentials here, to the right of the full post.

Cast your eyes over to the right of the screen, and you’ll see our full Top 5 Best iPod accessories shortlist. These are the add-ons rated highest by Electricpig’s gadget experts, and the ones we’re most keen to bundle in the car or our gym bag on a dialy basis.

Finding out more about each of our best iPod accessories is simple, and you can even jump straight through to Amazon to buy them with a click.

Are we missing one of the best iPod accessories out there? What is it? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and DJ Hero 2 demos hit Xbox Live

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 08:01 AM PDT

The latest in the horde of Hero games have hit Xbox Live with demos of Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and DJ Hero 2 up for grabs. Head through to discover what tracks are on offer to tempt you to pull out the plastic instruments and clutter up the living room once again…

Tasters for both Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock (aka Guitar Hero 6) and DJ Hero are up on Xbox Live Marketplace now and ready to try if you're rocking an Xbox Live Gold membership.

The DJ Hero 2 demo features four mashups for you delectation – the vaguely pet-themed collision of Pussycat Dolls with Pitbull, Lady Gaga mixed with DeadMau5, MSTRKRFT Featuring N.O.R.E and Estelle and Kanye West's American Boy blended with Chic's Good Times.

Meanwhile the Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock demo offers a glimpse at Quest Mode, narrated by Gene Simmons and following your journey from common-or-garden rocker to demon-slaying rock god. It comes with three appropriately metal tracks – Black Sabbath's Children of the Grave, Slash's Ghosts (feat. Ian Ashbury) and Dethklok's Bloodlines – plus No Way Back by Foo Fighters.

If you're gagging for more DJ Hero 2 details, try our tasty DJ Hero 2 first play and check out the Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock trailer for a closer look at the last installment of the rock franchise.

Hit the comments and let us know whether you'll be splashing out on DJ Hero 2 or Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock. Is your virtual music career over or are you keen to get back on the pixelated road?

Out Sep 24 and 22 Oct | £varies | Activision

BlackBerry Torch 9800 Vodafone price plans leaked

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 07:50 AM PDT

A screengrab that appears to be the price plans for the BlackBerry Torch 9800 on Vodafone has leaked, despite the fact that we're still waiting on a release date for the BlackBerry Torch in the UK, after it was released in the US back in August.

The leak shows that the BlackBerry Torch will fall in line with most other high-end Vodafone price plans. This means that on contract, the BlackBerry Torch handset will be anywhere from free to £400, depending on your tariff.

There’s not much more detail to be extracted for certain, because the chart that’s leaked is not clear, although it appears to show BlackBerry Torch tariffs from £20 to upwards of £45 (there's a column further to the right that's been cut off).

As is standard, Vodafone are not commenting on this latest BlackBerry Torch leak. A spokesperson for Vodafone said that the company could not comment on rumour, or confirm or deny whether the BlackBerry Torch price plans leaked were genuine.

Is this too much for the new BlackBerry Torch, without access to the app marketplaces available on Android or iOS devices? What do you think?

[via BlackberryLeaks]

Samsung Android TV incoming?

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 07:05 AM PDT

Samsung has said it is considering using Android to power a range of internet connected TVs. Yoon Boo Keun, head of the TV arm of Samsung, said: "We will have to see," but that Samsung was "reviewing" whether to use Google's Android operating system.

Half of the Samsung 3D TV line up already offers internet connectivity, through a desktop UI that can download apps such as BBC iPlayer and LoveFilm. Part of the question over whether to use Android was over South Korea's content providers cooperating with Google.

Bringing Google into the fold could be of great benefit to Samsung, as the Android market share keeps on growing. Getting together with Samsung could also be beneficial to Google too. In Europe alone, Samsung has around 30 per cent of the TV market share.

Could this be a marriage made in heaven? Would a Samsung Android TV be a winner? What do you think?

[via Bloomberg]

Halo movie hopes revived: Microsoft has story planned

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 06:32 AM PDT

The Halo movie has been roasting in development hell for years but Frank O'Connor of Microsoft's 343 Industries has poked the coals and got the rumours hotting up again. After consuming the time and energy of what seems like half of Hollywood, will the Halo movie actually make it onto the screen?

Talking to film industry bible Variety, O'Connor revealed that Microsoft has done piles of preparation for a Halo Movie. He says: "We've created an awful lot of documentation and materials to support a feature film. We have a good idea of what kind of story we want to tell but won't move on it until there's a great reason to do it."

It seems we shouldn't expect a Halo movie to directly transfer the story we've seen played out in the games (and given the prequel treatment in Halo: Reach). O'Connor claims it would not be "a verbatim retelling of the game" and even hints that there's potential for a Halo TV series. We'd love to see Master Chief given the Battlestar Galactica treatment.

However, with O'Connor stating clearly that Microsoft is "in no hurry" to push the Halo movie development on, we could still have quite a wait on our hands. A script by Alex Garland (who wrote The Beach and penned the 28 Days Later screenplay) has done the rounds and both Peter Jackson and District 9 director Neill Blomkamp have been attached and detached from the project in recent years.

If you want to get an idea of what the Halo movie could look like, take a gander at the live action Halo: Reach trailer. Hit the comments with your Halo movie casting suggestions. Who should star as everyone's favourite galactic super soldier?

Out TBC | £TBC | Halo (via Variety)

Doctor Who sonic screwdriver Wiimote incoming

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 06:02 AM PDT

Doctor Who is headed for the Wii and the Nintendo DS and you'll be able to brandish your own sonic screwdriver when he arrives. The device which according to the show can seemingly do anything will arrive as a custom Wiimote and Nintendo DS stylus for two new games.

If the free Doctor Who Adventure Games didn't satiate your Whovian fantasies, we've got good news. A Wii game, Doctor Who: Return To Earth, and Nintendo DS title, Doctor Who: Evacuation Earth, are both due to arrive in time for Christmas with sonic screwdriver add-ons.

The Doctor Who sonic screwdriver Wiimote is out next month. A rather less exciting looking sonic screwdriver DS stylus is also on the way to control the Doctor and secret dads’ crush Amy Pond. Both Matt Smith and Karen Gillan will lend their voice talents to the new games.

Remember though, if you do find yourself face-to-face with a Dalek, the Doctor Who sonic screwdriver Wiimote won't help. Just so you know.

Will you be picking up the new Doctor Who games? And with a Top Gear title on the cards, should we be on the look out for a Jeremy Clarkson themed peripheral?

Out October | £TBC | Doctor Who (via Official Nintendo Magazine)

Pamela Anderson gets in bed with Nokia N8, and invites you to get in too

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 05:28 AM PDT

If you’ve ever fancied making a film with Pamela Anderson, now’s your chance. Nokia, as part of the Nokia N8 promotions, is offering one winner the chance to “join the stars on set and play a part in the film”, and one of those stars includes Pammy.

The Commuter is the name of the Nokia N8 film, and will be shot in HD on the Nokia N8.

Ladies, fear not, so we aren’t left out, there’s also the chance to star alongside the Nokia N8 and Ed Westwick. Who’s that, you say? Well, apparently he was one of the hunks in Gossip Girl (and was in an episode of Doctors once too).

To enter, head here for Pammy and the Nokia N8, and here for Ed and the Nokia N8.

Lunchtime Lowdown: Samsung Galaxy Tab UK price, PS3 Jailbreak killed and Call of Duty cast

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 04:38 AM PDT

It’s fast approaching mealtime, so stop what you’re doing and tuck into our feast of tech news for you, rounded up and served on one plate here in the lunchtime lowdown. Get stuck in!

First up, the Samsung Galaxy Tab has been turning heads this morning, but not for the right reasons alas. We’ve just seen another UK retailer price up the Android tablet, and it ain’t pretty.

On the gaming front meanwhile, we’ve got good and bad news: Call Of Duty Black Ops has a cast of newly announced Hollywood actors, but the PS3 jailbreak has been stamped out by a Sony firmware update already. Well, it’s bad news if you were hoping to pirate games, that is.

Still want more news? Jump on through to the homepage and help yourself to even more stories as they break!

UPDATE: Samsung Galaxy Tab gets priced, looks a bit steep

Posted: 07 Sep 2010 04:01 AM PDT

The Samsung Galaxy Tab price has been set by one UK retailer Clove, who has listed the Samsung Galaxy Tab on its site as being £616.88 including VAT (£525 before VAT). Don't start counting your pennies yet though, as we’ve had no confirmation on the pricing, and it could be bogus.

What's fishy about this is the fact that at IFA, those in the know from Samsung emphasised that the Samsung Galaxy Tab would be cheaper than the iPad, which starts at a cost of £429 for the Wi-fi only 16GB version, and goes up to £699 for the Wi-fi and 3G 32GB version. The pricing of the Samsung Galaxy Tab over at Clove places the Tab at way above the cheapest iPad, and doesn't fit with the assertions of the Samsung staff.

However, on the other hand, Amazon Germany also posted an unlocked SIM free Samsung Galaxy Tab, priced at €799. Clover were not available to confirm its pricing.

The Galaxy Tab has been confirmed as being carried by Vodafone (the launch partner) and possibly T-Mobile (it was on the T-Mobile stand at IFA). Obviously prices will vary depending on the operator and contracts, but perhaps the affordability of the Samsung Galaxy Tab over the iPad will be in the contract price plans, as opposed to the SIM free unlocked version.

UPDATE: Clove has responded and said: “This is pricing based on what we are being provided through Samsung distribution…The price is still subject to change but at this time, the price is as accurate as it can be. We are aware that there has been a lot of discussion that the price will or should be cheaper but we have not been informed 'officially' as yet of this being the case.”

Which appears to mean that the price is not official, or set in stone. Note that the price is “based on” what Samsung distribution is passing on, which is non-committal on the part of Clove.

Is this too much to pay for a Samsung Galaxy Tab? Let us know in the comments!

[via SlashGear]