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Tagged: UK

White Galaxy Nexus and 32GB model coming to the UK soon

By Michael Crider
on 5 Jan, 2012

Brits got the first crack at the Samsung Galaxy Nexus almost a month before Google's home territory, but they've been lacking a couple of options thus far. Samsung's trend of releasing staggered white versions of its major phones will continue with the Galaxy Nexus, according to listings at Expansys and Handtec. The frost white model should become available "in the next two weeks" according to the former, and on February 6th for the latter. In addition, both are taking pre-orders for a 32GB version of the grey model, due sometime in the next month.

Archos unveils the 70b Internet Tablet packing Honeycomb for a dirt cheap £180 [UPDATE]

By Michael Crider
on 20 Dec, 2011

Tablets are expensive. Americans know this all too well, as many of them are still saddled with mostly unnecessary carrier contracts - see the recent DROID XYBOARD 10.1 and 8.2. That's what makes devices like the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet so popular. But it could be worse, yankees: over the pond in the UK, most tablets cost at least as much in pounds. Throw in a nasty conversion rate and Value Added Tax, and the £400 Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus becomes a whopping $750 equivalent. Archos, ever ready to strike at the budget-conscious segment, is preparing its latest 7-inch tablet at a price well below the UK median. The Archos 70b Internet Tablet will sell for just £179.99, about which works out to about $340 after taxes. Considering that tablets are primarily media consumption devices (which is a polite way of saying "toys"), a lower price is always preferable. For that price, you get a WiFi Honeycomb 3.2 tablet with a 7-inch 1024 x 600 screen, a 1.2Ghz processor and access to the Android Market and Google's other proprietary apps. 512Mb of RAM means that it should perform much better than the older Archos 70, though that's still a little pokey for Honeycomb. Storage space isn't mentioned, so it will probably be available in multiple capacities. Archos' press release did not mention an Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade, but industrious modders will probably have a version ready soon enough. The 70b Internet Tablet is not to be confused with the previous Archos 70b eReader. [timeline] There's no news on the tablet making its way stateside just yet. Archos has a history of delays in getting its low-priced hardware out of Europe, but it usually does get here eventually. At this price for the UK version, you can probably expect a $200-250 price. That's hard to beat as far as Honeycomb tablets go, and might be worth considering if you're a fan of Archos' rich media format support and generally minimal changes to Android. As an upgrade to the popular Archos 70 Froyo tablet, the 70b Internet Tablet looks promising. UPDATE: It looks like the Archos 70b is scheduled for a US release next month at $199.99. The company's US branch just sent out its own press release. Who called it?

Galaxy Nexus arrives in Germany and on Vodafone UK, Verizon twiddles its thumbs

By Michael Crider
on 1 Dec, 2011

Good news, folks: there's one more place you can get the Galaxy Nexus that isn't America. Engadget reports that retailers across Germany have jumped the gun and started selling the Galaxy Nexus early. Availability is still a little shaky - it looks like some outlets are offering the unlocked GSM version and some aren't, though Media Mart is reportedly a reliable place to find it.

NFC in the UK: Acer launches Liquid Express on T-Mobile & Orange

By Michael Crider
on 28 Nov, 2011

While Acer's Liquid line of Android smartphones hasn't exactly set the world on fire, the company is proceeding with its rollout with the latest model in the United Kingdom. The Acer Liquid Express (sounds like drain cleaner, doesn't it?) is launching now at T-Mobile and Orange locations across the country, distinguishing itself as one of the only low-end smartphones to offer near-field communication (NFC) technology for quick wireless retail payments.

Samsung lets artists illustrate tweets with the Galaxy Note

By Michael Crider
on 25 Nov, 2011

We've seen just how impressive the Samsung Galaxy Note's Wacom digitizer is when paired with its built-in stylus, but Samsung is out to prove it. To that end, they've set renowned artists to the task of illustrating individual tweets using nothing but the super-sized superphone. Twitter users submitted tweets to @samsungmobile with the hash tag #createmytweet to enter their tweets for consideration in the Create My Tweet advertising campaign.

As Galaxy Nexus launches in UK, Verizon version appears in Google video

By Michael Crider
on 17 Nov, 2011

Well, the day has finally arrived, for UK citizens, at least. The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is available for purchase unlocked and sin contract in the British Isles, all you need is a spare £549.99. There's still no word out of Verizon, supposedly the exclusive US launch partner for the Galaxy Nexus, but if you're desperate for a little more confirmation, mozy on over to the official Google Nexus YouTube channel. Demonstration videos for the new Ice Cream Sandwich features are all done with a Verizon-branded LTE version of the Nexus. At least Google can get their hands on one, right?

Huawei wins design award for Vision, sends Mediapad to UK

By Michael Crider
on 10 Nov, 2011

When you get shaken down by Microsoft's legal team, you know you've made it in the Android smartphone world. Chinese manufacturer Huawei has been honored with the IF Design Award for its forthcoming Vision handset, beating out considerable competition, Just a few days before helping to launch T-Mobile's de-branded Springboard tablet, Huawei has detailed plans for expanding its presence in the UK with both the Vision smartphone and the Mediapad Honeycomb tablet.

Amazon’s UK Galaxy Nexus launch slips to December 2nd

By Michael Crider
on 8 Nov, 2011

For those waiting on the Galaxy Nexus since its announcement three weeks ago, waiting has become a downright chore. The latest bit of bad news comes out of Amazon's UK division, where Phandroid spotted that the Galaxy Nexus' ship date has been pushed back to December 2nd, fifteen days after the official UK launch date of November 17th. Samsung hasn't changed their official date yet, but the Amazon shift doesn't look good. In the event that Amazon's date change doesn't extend to the entire country, the shift is a pretty big loss for the online retailer. With the UK and the rest of Europe currently scheduled to get some pure Nexus goodness of the 17th, early adopters aren't likely to wait around for Amazon to sort out some apparent supply chain issues. Of course, if the official date is soon to change, that would be a major let-down for Android fans across the UK and EU - a six-week gap between announcement and launch isn't exactly stellar. If UK customers are frustrated, US Android fans are starting to get downright irate. There still is no official word on a price or date for the Galaxy Nexus from Verizon, which has an exclusive on the Google phone for at least some time after its release. Current leaks point to November 17th, or November 21st, or November 28th, or later - your guess is as good as ours. At least the $299 on-contract price seems pretty stable. Google has historically kept a pretty tight grip on the Nexus line of phones, and it would be a good move for them to start telling their retail and carrier partners to stop messing around, before hungry developers start invading the Google campus in search of Nexii. Check out our hands-on looks at the Galaxy Nexus and Ice Cream Sandwich below: Galaxy Nexus Hands-on [vms 55018e2a459517fdb40e] Ice Cream Sandwich Hands-on [vms 4b1be110b7bf70c8362d] [device id=1740]

Android beating iPhone by more than two to one in the UK

By Michael Crider
on 1 Nov, 2011

Brits like their Android. In the United Kingdom, Android phones are outselling the iPhone by a factor of two to one, according to analytical firm Kantar Worldpanel Comtech. Android phones outsold all iPhone models for July, August and September. Smartphones themselves are booming in The UK, with 70% of all mobile sales being smartphones of one kind or another.

HTC Sensation XL now available in the UK

By Michael Crider
on 1 Nov, 2011

As the old saying goes, everything's bigger in... Great Britain. UK residents can now get their hands on the Beats-enabled Sensation XL, assuming they can wrap them around that massive case. The 4.7-inch Gingerbread handset launches today, just a little late, at multiple carriers and retailers.