Samsung have announced that it has hit 10 million channel sales of its latest Galaxy S4 handsets. Since the phone has not been out for a month yet, this makes it the fastest selling Android phone.

Compared to its last big handset, the Galaxy S3 which took 50 days to sell the same amount, this has effectively doubled that record. With heavy promotion during last year’s London Olympics, the Galaxy S3 went on to become Samsung’s most successful handset. These high sales will help Samsung to build on the 31.7% global smartphone market share that Bloomberg reported they control.

However, with the possibility of a new iPhone handset being released later this year, it will be interesting to see if Samsung can continue to be a serious competitor to Apple’s dominance.

JK Shin, CEO and President of the IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung Electronics said in a statement;

“On behalf of Samsung, I would like to thank the millions of customers around the world who have chosen the Samsung GALAXY S4. At Samsung we’ll continue to pursue innovation inspired by and for people,”

If you are concerned about your children making in-app purchases, then here is how to stop them.

1. Locate the Play store icon on your home screen and open it.
2. Tap on the Menu icon, then select Settings
3. Scroll down to User Controls and select Set PIN or Password (to restrict purchases), then type in a four digit code. This code will now be needed to make changes to these User Controls.
4. Within the User Controls make sure that there is a tick on the right hand side of the Set PIN or Password
5. Push the Home button and the PIN is now set. You will now need the four digit PIN to purchase Apps within the Play Store.

BlackBerry today announced at their annual Live conference the next update to the Z10, OS version 10.1.

New BlackBerry 10.1 Features include:

• BlackBerry Hub: The BlackBerry Hub lets you access all your messages and notifications in one place. With BlackBerry 10.1 support for PIN to PIN messages for direct communication between BlackBerry smartphones has been added to the BlackBerry Hub. Plus, improved attachment support in the BlackBerry Hub makes it easier to view emails which have been sent as attachments to other messages.
• Notifications: With BlackBerry 10.1 you can personalize the notifications for your accounts and contacts so you always know what is happening around you. Customize ringtones, vibration and the LED light by contact or by account for more personalized notifications.
• Fine Cursor Control: BlackBerry 10.1 makes it easier and more accurate to pinpoint exactly where you want to type. Tap once to bring up the cursor. Grab the blue circle and drag it around to place it exactly where you need it. Tap either side of the circle to move left or right by just one character. It’s easy to move around with speed and precision.
• Camera: BlackBerry 10 lets you create the perfect shot by moving parts of your picture backwards and forwards in time with Time Shift mode. BlackBerry 10.1 adds an HDR shooting mode for beautiful images in tricky lighting conditions. A standard image takes a picture at one exposure level. Where you have high contrast between light and dark areas of the photo, fine details can be lost. High Dynamic Range (HDR) mode takes multiple pictures at different exposure levels and layers them automatically to produce a single photo that combines the best of the dark and light areas.
• Instant Actions – a set of predefined and expandable “action” shortcuts within the Universal Search interface
• Keyboard Shortcuts – the Q10 shortcuts will work on the Z10′s virtual keyboard
• Landscape orientation support in the calendar
• Click to call any phone number mentioned in an email or message

Best of all, starting today, Skype will be available to all BlackBerry Z10 users who update their phones to the latest BlackBerry 10.1 OS.

The update should start seeding to most devices this week.

If you don’t have an update notification already, you can check manually for software updates via the software updates section in your phone’s Settings or get it via BlackBerry Link.

Blackberry has just taken the covers off their latest model, the Q5. It will come packed with a 1.2Ghz dual core processor, 2GB of RAM, 8GB of on-board memory, a 3.1” 720x720 LCD screen, a non-removable 2100MAh battery, a Micro-SD slot (up to 32GB), it will be running on the latest version of Blackberry OS 10.1 and it will be available in Black, White, Red and Pink.

The new BlackBerry Q5 smartphone will be available in selected markets in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia (including the Asia Pacific region), and Latin America, with availability beginning in July.

How to transfer your information from your iPhone to a Blackberry 10 device.

Transferring Music from iTunes to Blackberry 10 devices

1. Open iTunes and sync your iPhone with iTunes
2. Using a USB cable, connect your Blackberry 10 device to a PC
3. Select iTunes as your Blackberry Link source
4. Open Blackberry Link, navigate to the Music content and then drag and drop music from the Desktop to the Blackberry tab while your Blackberry Z10 is connected

Transferring Pictures and Videos – Windows

1. Using a USB cable, connect your Blackberry 10 device to a PC
2. Open Blackberry Link and select the Desktop Tab
3. Navigate to your Pictures and Video contents view and add the folders that store all your content.
4. From the Desktop tab, navigate to your Pictures and Video content and drag and drop your Photos and Video onto your Blackberry tab with your Blackberry 10 device connected.

Transferring Pictures and Video – Mac

1. Using a USB cable, connect your Blackberry 10 device to a PC
2. Open Blackberry Link and click on the Desktop Tab
3. The Blackberry Link software will source content from your iTunes and iPhoto apps automatically
4. From the Desktop tab, navigate to your Pictures and Video content and drag and drop your Photos and Video onto your Blackberry tab with your Blackberry 10 device connected.

Setting up Email, Calendar and Contacts

1. On your Blackberry 10 device go to settings and click Accounts
2. Click Add Account and enter your email address and password
3. Your Blackberry 10 device will now start syncing with your email account and will start pulling down your emails

BT Wholesale has signed a 10 year deal with O2 (Telefonica UK) to support the operator’s forthcoming launch of 4G mobile network services. The deal is said to be worth around £500m over the next decade.

Both BT and O2 succesfully bid on frequencies in January’s 4G auction, although surprise was noted when O2 did not get any of the higher 2.6GHz frequency, despite getting two sets of 10MHz within the 800MHz range. By contrast, Vodafone UK got the same amount in 800Mhz and also two sets of the 20MHz and one of the 25MHz frequencies. BT on the other hand did get some of the frequency. The new deal will see BT Wholesale build a high capacity transmission network to help O2 cope with the stress of data-intensive 4G services.

Chet Patel, managing director for BT Wholesale Markets, said:

“Our network solution will help O2 deliver a next generation mobile experience to customers to fully exploit the exciting possibilities of 4G technologies.”

Adrian Di Meo, O2 UK’s chief technology officer was quoted as saying:

“With the UK’s 4G spectrum auction complete, UK mobile data traffic is set to grow by more than 400 per cent by 2016. This is a huge opportunity for us, as well as a technical challenge. But through our partnership with BT Wholesale, customers of O2 will be backed by a high-performance mobile internet network which we believe will release the potential of 4G services and result in unrivalled mobile phone and internet browsing experiences.”

The Pentagon has cleared BlackBerry 10 connected via BES 10 and Samsung Android devices connected via Samsung’s Android Knox, for use within the Department of Defense (DoD).

With a very large percentage of BlackBerry devices already being used within the Pentagon (470,000 out of 600,000), the role of BlackBerry including devices and BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 continues to be important and relevant for security conscious organisations.

The approval allows all DoD customers to use the BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 smartphones, and BlackBerry PlayBook tablets on DoD networks.

It’s always recommended to Backup as often as possible to safeguard your data. On this note, both iTunes and iCloud can back up the data on your iPhone and iPad.

Follow these steps to back up your previous device and then restore the backup to your newly purchased device. Your saved messages, email accounts, photos, notes, and other personal settings will be transferred to your new device.

Use the iCloud steps below if both your devices use iOS 5 or later and you have an iCloud account. If one or both devices use an earlier version of iOS or if you don’t have an iCloud account, follow the iTunes steps, below

iTunes – How to backup

iTunes can create backups of both your iPhone and iPad when you Sync with iTunes:

- Connect your iPhone or iPad to a computer with the latest version of iTunes installed
- Select your iPhone or iPad in iTunes under ‘devices’
- Right click the device and select ‘Backup’.

iTunes – How to restore from a backup

- Connect your device to the computer which you normally sync with.
- Right click the device and choose ‘Restore from Backup’.
- If it’s a new phone, connect to iTunes and you’ll be prompted to restore from backup.

iCloud – How to Backup

iCloud automatically backs up the data on your iOS 5/6 device. Enable the backup on the device under ‘Settings > iCloud > Backup & Storage”. It will continue to run on a daily basis under the following conditions:
- Connected to the internet over Wi-Fi
- Connected to a power source
- Screen is locked

You can also backup manually whenever connected to the internet over Wi-Fi by going to:
- Settings
- iCloud
- Storage & Backup
- Backup now

iCloud – How to restore from Backup

If you go through the setup assistance on any new iOS device (iPhone or iPad), choose ‘Restore from iCloud Backup’ and enter your Apple username and password. You can choose from your 3 most recent iCloud backups.

Select the one you want to restore.

There have been a number of stories in the press recently that highlight an issue where children in particular have inadvertently generated high bills through Apple’s iTunes store whilst playing games on iPads or iPhones.

If you are concerned about your children making in-app purchases, then here is how to stop them.

1. Select the Settings icon from the home screen and then select the General option
2. Scroll down and select Restrictions
3. Type in a four digit code. This code will now be needed to make changes to the Restrictions settings
4. Scroll down to the Allowed Content section within the Restriction screen.
5. You then have two options 1. you can turn off all In-App Purchases by moving the slider next to In-App Purchases to the off position (this will not allow anyone to buy anything from the App Store) or 2. leave In-App purchases turned on and change the Required Password to Immediately. This means that every time someone tries to purchase an App within the App store they will need to enter your iTunes password.
6. Once you have set up your ‘Allowed Content’ settings push the home button to finish

For obvious reasons, you should keep both the four digit code and the iTunes password confidential.

If you’re considering making the jump from Android to BlackBerry 10, here’s how to transfer all your information.

Transferring files – Windows

1. Connect your phone to your PC
2. Open Windows Explorer by clicking Start > Accessories > Windows Explorer
3. Create a folder on your desktop and drag and drop the files on your PC into this folder
4. Plug your Blackberry 10 device to your PC with a USB cable and start up Blackberry Link
5. Drag and drop files from the Desktop tab on to the Blackberry tab while the Blackberry 10 device is connected.

Transferring files – Mac

1. Connect your Blackberry 10 device to your Mac
2. If prompted down and install Blackberry Link
3. When Blackberry Link is installed you will see two new folders on your Mac’s desktop (Removable_SDCARD and Media)
4. Click on your phone and drag and drop files into the Removable_SDCARD and Media folders on your desktop.

Transferring Media Card Files (Music, Pictures and Video)

You may be able to transfer your files stored on your microSD card by removing it from your Android device and plugging it into your Blackberry 10 device, however if you are prompted to reformat your microSD card please follow the below steps:

1. Make sure that your media card is installed in your Android device.
2. Save any items that you want to transfer onto your PC by using iTunes, Windows Media Player, Windows Explorer or Finder on Mac.
3. Remove your microSD card from your Android device and insert it into your Blackberry 10 device.
4. Reformat your microSD card if prompted.
5. Using a USB cable, connect your Blackberry 10 device to a PC.
6. Open Blackberry Link and drag and drop your saved files onto the Desktop tab.

Setting up Email, Calendar and Contacts

1. On your Blackberry 10 device go to settings and click “Accounts”
2. Click “Add Account” and enter your email address and password
3. Your Blackberry 10 device will now start syncing with your email account and will start pulling down your emails