HTC One SV with LTE on the way to UK

The HTC One line is beginning to look like that other somewhat popular Galaxy line. It seems like a new version is announced each month. The latest version is coming to the UK in the ‘coming weeks’ and will be dubbed the HTC One SV. This nice little device will rock LTE, a 4.3-inch super LCD display, a snapdragon S4 dual-core 1.2GHz processor, a micro SD slot expandable to 32GB, and an 1800mAh removable battery. It’ll ship with Ice Cream Sandwich, but Jelly Bean has already been announced for the device. Overall, this looks like a solid device for those that aren’t into the massive displays that are beginning to dominate the market. Hit the break for the full presser. 

Sony overtakes HTC for second place in UK Android market

Good news for Sony, bad news for HTC. The latest figured show the Xperia manufacturers outselling HTC over the past summer in the UK. Sony moved 500,000 Android phones compared to HTC’s 440,000. They both lost market share to Samsung, however, who maintains first place with a whopping 3.2 million Android phones for comparison.

This news shows Sony’s new intense smartphone drive appears to be having some success, and if Sony does announce their new flagship in early 2013, they stand a good chance to eat up even more market share. Sony did say they though its recent restructuring to become Sony Mobile, as well as the James Bond marketing tactics, has caused a “positive reaction” with consumers, and the numbers seem to agree.

source: Mobile Today

Apple posts new statement about Samsung case after court rebuke

After a rather stinging development this week when the UK court of appeals chastised Applefor their recent attempt to post a court-ordered statement on their web site concerning one of their many lawsuits with Samsung, Apple has posted a new statement on their UK web site. Apple was required to post a statement indicating Samsung did not copy the iPad when producing the Galaxy line of tablet devices. Apple does not exactly say that, but they do state that Samsung does not infringe on a specific Apple registered design. The new statement probably meets the legal requirements of the UK court.

Apple managed to get a new statement on their homepage that meets the court’s font size mandate within the time frame mandated by the court. Despite protesting that it would take two weeks to do so, Apple managed to achieve this coding feat within the 48 hours set forth by the court. It is not clear whether Apple’s attorneys realized they were representing a client that is a huge technology firm and might possibly have the resources to update a web page. Another alternative is that someone in Apple woke up to the fact that the required posting time frame will now result in the statement being on the web site well into the holiday shopping season and perhaps it would be best to just get things over with as quickly as possible. Apple appears to have taken care to not include any sneaky commentary regarding the court’s ruling in relation to results from other courts. If there is anything positive for Apple in this particular incident it is that the court allowed them to put the statement in the footer of the homepage instead of front and center.

UK 4G ready for widespread rollout after agreement between regulators, providers

Several UK mobile network providers, the UK’s communications regulator Ofcom, and other government officials have announced a deal that will accelerate the rollout of 4G LTE services throughout the UK. The settlement means carriers like O2 and Vodafone will likely be able to start deploying their 4G LTE networks in early 2013, about six months earlier than originally thought.

UK carrier EE was previously granted permission to use some of their existing 1800 MHz spectrum for 4G LTE network purposes and they were expected to start that rollout this fall. However, other UK carriers like O2 and Vodafone had been threatening to launch legal action claiming the permission to use the spectrum for 4G services was improper and that EE was being given an unfair advantage. Ofcom has now agreed to accelerate the approval process for 4G LTE services for other carriers after a planned January action of old analog television spectrum occurs in January 2013.

With the agreement, EE is anticipated to announce the imminent launch of their 4G LTE network. They have indicated they have plans to deploy the service to 16 UK cities before the end of the year and to 98% of the UK by 2014. Other carriers will be behind with their deployments which should now occur sometime in early 2013, but with the agreement the head start that EE gets will not be as great.

The settlement means the UK will be able to start to catch back up to other countries that already have 4G LTE services well established. As Ed Richards, Ofcom’s chief executive notes, consumers are the big winners as they will not have to wait for “a considerable period for the next generation of mobile broadband services.”

Some International Samsung Galaxy Note II Models Don’t Have Multi-Window Feature, Older Firmware To Blame

I have some sad news for those of you in the UK who happened to splurge on a brand new Galaxy Note II smartphone. While we expected devices outside Korea to feature that awesome and coveted multi-window multitasking feature, it appears that some of the international models released in the UK do not feature the customized multi-window multitasking feature. According to various reports, some of the models that feature the older N7100XXALIE firmware does not allow for the multitasking. Conversely, other models that have the newer N7100XXALIH firmware will indeed have the multi-window multitasking feature. If you live in the UK and want to see what firmware you have, be sure to go to your Settings –> About Device in order to see if you are or aren’t affected by this.

We’re sure that the few of you who are affected are no doubt disappointed, but the hope is that Samsung will be consistent with its stellar track record– and promptly update the smartphone with consistent firmware so that all owners will be able to enjoy the feature, not some. After all, these people want to get their full money’s worth, right?