The International Data Corporation’s (IDC) today released its Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker report for Q2 of 2012. The report shows the breakdown of smartphone operating systems (OS) in all handset worldwide shipments over the months April, May and June, covering Android, iOS, BlackBerry OS, Symbian, Windows 7/Windows mobile and Linux. Continue reading
According to research by the business loyalty programme Nectar Business, millions of workaholic Britons find it impossible to switch off their work devices even when they’re not in the office.
British worker’s refusal to turn off their Blackberrys or mobile phones means they are effectively working an extra 10 days a year
Nectar Business did the study to reveal the impact of technology on British working lives.
The study found that 20 per cent of UK workers keep their phones on over the weekend.
24 per cent of Brits complain they feel stressed because they are always on call, with 33 percent of male and 54 percent of the women respondents saying that they cannot switch their BlackBerry smartphones off when they leave the office. Continue reading
O2 have launched a new recycling service for old phones, which enables customers to get money for their “old” phones.
Estimates suggest there are over 90 million old mobiles unused in people’s houses across the UK and this service aims to rid the country of this wastage.
As well as mobiles, the service can process MP3 players, digital camera, Sat-Navs and more. Continue reading
“The Pre will indeed be available in H2 [2nd half] within the UK and selected European markets”, said Paul Ghent, vice president of sales for Palm Europe. Continue reading
Following some of the images which surfaced online at the beginning of the week it appears that Palm have now officially announced their new Treo Pro Windows Mobile device.
While images provided via manufacturer media kits can often make a device look significantly sharper than the real thing turns out to be, one has to admit that the Palm Treo Pro is undoubtedly one of the nicest looking Palm Treo devices yet. The gloss black finish alone certainly oozes BlackBerry Bold. Continue reading
Palm’s next generation Treo device appears to be circulating online. Technical details are still thin on the ground but the new full QWERTY device, believed to be called the Palm Treo Pro, runs Windows Mobile Professional edition, supports HSDPA, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and even has an IrDA port for connecting to legacy devices (which we found surprising and slightly unecessary). It’s not known how much onboard memory the Palm Treo Pro has, but there is a microSD card slot for memory expansion. The package is rounded off with a standard 3.5mm headphone jack for compatibility with the users choice of headphones and also a rear facing camera (although there are no details on how powerful the camera is yet).
Click through for more images of the Palm Treo Pro. Continue reading
Ailing smartphone manufacturer Palm has rolled out its proprietary OS-based Centro device in the UK.
Physically, the Centro strongly resembles its Windows Mobile-based sibling, the Treo 500, but closer inspection shows the Centro to be slightly narrower and fatter than the Treo 500.
The Centro is a quad band device with basic connectivity on GPRS and EDGE (no Wi-Fi or 3G built in). It has a mere 64MB of built in memory but does have a MircoSD expansion slot with card compatibility up to the 4GB threshold. This, topped off with a 1.3 mega pixel camera, does make the Centro a very entry level smartphone, but may well attract those wanting basic organiser features at a low price point.
Smartphone manufacturer Palm has announced it is to bring its proprietary OS-based Centro device to Europe.
The form factor of the Centro is very similar to that of the Treo 500, which runs Windows Mobile 6. Both have oval designs and full QWERTY keyboards, but the Centro is a thinner device than its Windows Mobile sibling.
Underneath the hood of the Centro you’ll see Palm OS version 5.4.9, GSM/GPRS/EDGE and Bluetooth connectivity but you won’t get 3G or Wi-Fi. It has 64MB of user-accessible memory (rather minimal) but does have a MicroSD expansion slot with 4GB capacity support. In the media arena you’ll get a 1.3 megapixel camera (with video record) which again works out slightly shy of the Treo feature set.
So instantly there is a feeling that the Centro isn’t the strongest fighter (or the best looking) in the smartphone arena, but this isn’t exactly a problem. For someone looking for a small entry level smart device with a full QWERTY keyboard, basic connectivity and good organisational features built in, the Centro is unlikely to disappoint for the money. If this is what you’re looking for and you don’t feel the temptation of more flashy devices with Wi-Fi and GPS then it certainly has something to offer.
Palm, the Californian based global provider of handheld computing devices have just announced the launch of a version of their newest Treo model in Europe in partnership with Vodafone. 
The latest Treo model will run on Vodafone’s 3G or Third Generation network, which now covers 99% of the population in the UK and offers superior download speeds and greater levels of data transfer. The handset will be powered by Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system and will also feature wireless email access in response to the growing demand for wireless voice and data solutions.
The Treo handset will be rolled out across most European countries by the end of 2006 in competition with other key manufacturers who are also producing smart phones for what is seen as a key growth sector in the mobile handset market.
