The £499 Moto Z and Moto Mod accessories come to the UK
This week may well be dominated by the launch of the new iPhone, but that doesn’t mean Apple’s smartphone rivals are holding things back. After a few months of US exclusivity, Lenovo has finally brought its super-customisable all-metal Moto Z to the UK.
The 5.5-inch quad HD smartphone is now available on the Motorola store for £499, offering a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 4GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, a 2600mAh battery with TurboPower charging and a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera. Oh, and it’s ditched the headphone jack in favour of a USB-C connector.
Like its predecessors, the Moto Z can be run through Lenovo’s Moto Maker service. However, if you’re looking to create a truly bespoke masterpiece, you’re going to be disappointed. Colour options are limited to White & Fine Gold or Black & Lunar Grey and there’s no scope to increase the onboard storage. The company does have an ace up its sleeve, though, and that’s Moto Mods.
Moto Mods are Lenovo’s answer to the LG G5’s swap-out modules. There are four magnetised modules — the Incipio offGRID Power Pack, JBL SoundBoost Speaker, Hasselblad True Zoom and Moto Insta-Share Projector — that attach to the back of the Moto Z and give it more battery, better sound or clearer optics. The accessories start at £60 and range up to £250.
It was only announced last week, but the mid-range Moto Z Play is also live on the Motorola store, although it is currently out of stock. The 5.2-inch £370 Android device houses an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625, 3GB of RAM, 16-megapixel camera and a 3,510mAh battery. More importantly, it does have a headphone jack.
If you put your order in today, your Moto Z should be with you by September 14th, just before the iPhone 7 hits stores. The Moto Z Play, on the other hand, should be widely available later this week.
Source: Moto Z
Of course EE’s hyping wireless headphones on iPhone 7 day
EE’s Add to Plan scheme lets anyone taking out a two-year smartphone contract walk away with accessories in exchange for a couple of extra quid tacked onto their bill each month. Launched last year, EE today announced a slight change to the T&Cs. Instead of the cost being spread over 18 months and customers paying a premium for the convenience, they’ll now square it away in 11 and pay out no more than the retail price. A wider product range will soon be offered, too, including wearables from Fitbit (from £8 per month), smartwatches and Samsung’s Gear VR headset (also £8 per month).
What EE is pushing above all else, though, is wireless headphones from the likes of Beats, Bang & Olufsen and Skullcandy, which’ll be available through Add to Plan from £3 per month starting September 16th. Interesting timing on EE’s part, given it’s new iPhone day and many a rumour has suggested Apple is dropping the 3.5mm headphone jack this handset generation. Coincidence? Almost certainly not.
Source: EE
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 recall: how to replace your UK phone
It’s only been five days since it confirmed the Galaxy Note 7 battery problem and issued a global recall for its highly-rated smartphone, but Samsung is moving quickly to limit the damage. A couple of days after it issued replacement instructions for US consumers, the company has kicked off the exchange process in the UK, confirming that the small number of customers who received their units before the official UK launch will have their devices replaced from September 19th.
The smartphone maker says that UK providers and operators will now begin contacting buyers to arrange their exchange. Alternatively, customers can call Samsung’s customer support team on 0330 7261000 and initiate the process with the company directly. Although Samsung managed to limit the impact on UK customers by issuing the recall on the day of the UK launch, some pre-orders were sent out early and will need replacing.
At a briefing last week, Samsung admitted that a small number of Galaxy Note 7 batteries had exploded while on charge. While there have been 35 cases reported to date, the company decided to issue a global recall just to be sure. Customers in different markets will receive different advice as to when they’ll get a new Galaxy Note 7, but in the UK, expect things to ramp up in a couple of weeks time.
Source: Samsung UK
LG’s new V20 wants to be the all-in-one flagship the G5 wasn’t
When LG unveiled its hardy V10 last year, it was… well, it was a little weird. With a beefy body, a double-selfie camera and a tiny second screen, the V10 was the result of LG being a little weird. Lo and behold, the phone did surprisingly well around here. Then the G5 happened. Being the first modular smartphone to sell at massive scale, the G5 represented LG fully embracing that weirdness. It was also gutsy, ambitious and ultimately disappointing — the company even admitted the device “failed to generate sales” after replacing some high-level mobile execs. Ouch. Now, though, LG has revealed the V20, and it might succeed where the G5 failed because it isn’t nearly as imaginative.
Put another way, the V20 is not modular. The leaked renders that made the rounds before today were spot on, but people (including us) misinterpreted what that button on the phone’s right side was. It’s for popping V20’s metal back plate off so you can swap out its 3,200mAh. It’s a lot like opening a powder compact, an analogy LG couldn’t get enough of.
The V20’s foundation is mostly the same high-powered stuff we got with the G5 — there’s the usual Snapdragon 820 and 4GB of RAM, not to mention the same two-camera setup that pairs an 8-megapixel wide-angle sensor and a 16-megapixel standard sensor around back. LG also decided to release the V20 with a 5.7-inch Quad HD screen, 64GB of storage (up from the G5’s 32GB) and a shiny new build of Android 7.0 Nougat, all squeezed into a sturdy, aluminum alloy frame. Two potential issues right off the bat: the phone’s removable back means it can’t be waterproof, and its face is highly reminiscent of the BlackBerry Z10. Surely LG could have drawn inspiration from a more successful phone. Still, the V20 feels much, much more premium than the G5 did.
So, what else is new here? Well, the second, smaller display picked up a few new features along the way, the like the ability to display longer signatures. The screen itself is also brighter than the V10’s, and you can enlarge notifications that roll in, but there’s a good chance you won’t love it now if you didn’t before. On the software side, the V20 is the first Nougat phone with the ability to search deep in apps you’ve installed instead of just pre-loaded Google apps. It’s one of those things that should’ve been part of core Android for a while now — too bad LG announced the feature after we played with the phone.
Beyond that, there are a lot of audio and video improvements. LG updated its Steady Record feature to make on-the-go footage come out much crisper, thanks in large part to Qualcomm’s gyro-based electronic stabilization. The phone’s dual camera array is also helped by three forms of autofocus — laser, phase detection and contrast — to identify targets even faster in both photos and video. Video effects that ape traditional film and some impressive Hi-Fi audio recording chops make it clear the V20 is trying to be a real production powerhouse.
And while you had to buy extra hardware to coax the G5 into playing high-quality audio — hardware that wasn’t even available everywhere — the V20 does it just fine out of the box. LG representatives didn’t go into a ton of detail about how the V20’s “Quad” DAC works, short of mentioning how it cranks up volume, minimizes distortion and supports lossless music files. Still, the effect was clear: I tried running some tracks downloaded from the Google Play Store through the V20 and a pair of someone else’s expensive Audeze headphones and the difference in volume and punchiness was a pleasant surprise.
As first impressions go, the V20 leaves a pretty good one. It’s a solidly-built device that took parts of what made the G5 special and mashed it up with features that improve things people do every day. At the same time, it feels as though every decision LG made here was the safe choice. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s true that Innovative products — even ones that, like the G5, weren’t properly polished — influence our expectations for the future. In the meantime, though, safe bets can still pay off big, and LG has done some good work here. Stay tuned for our full review soon.
Apple’s high-end wireless earbuds may not ship with iPhone 7
The long-rumoured death of the iPhone’s headphone jack has left everybody wondering: What’s going to become of Apple’s EarPods? Well, they’ll probably go wireless, but according to one analyst, they won’t come with your iPhone. They’ll be sold separately — and they might be expensive. KGI Securities’ Ming-Chi Kuo believes that Apple will announce a pair of high-end “AirPod” earbuds tomorrow as a premium accessory for iPhone 7 buyers. They won’t come in the box like Apple’s current earbuds, he says, and may not even use Bluetooth.
According to Kuo, Apple may have designed a “Bluetooth-like communications chip” with more strict limits on power consumption. This same low-power chip may also be used to communicate with smart car systems and other home accessories. The Analyst even goes as far as to name Taiwan Semiconductor as the company he believes developed the chip.
So, if Apple’s wireless answer to removing the headphone jack is going to be a premium accessory, what about the average user? Not to worry: Kuo believes the iPhone 7 will bundle in a pair of lighting-connector compatible earbuds or, at bare minimum, a 3.5mm to lighting adapter. Even so, take this report with a grain of salt — Kuo has a strong history of getting these kinds of predictions right, but we won’t know for sure until tomorrow.
Source: Apple Insider, Digital Trends
Moto G4 Play joins Amazon’s ad-injected Prime phone deals
Motorola’s budget-minded Moto G lineup just got an even more affordable addition thanks to Amazon’s Prime exclusives. For a mere $99.99 unlocked, the newly announced Moto G4 Play comes loaded with Android 6.0 Marshmallow and solid specs like 4G LTE, a 5-inch 720p display driven by a quad-core Snapdragon processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB internal storage and an 8-megapixel camera with a 5-megapixel selfie shooter.
Of course, that low price is subsidized by display ads, so users will be receiving personalized offers and product recommendations on the phone’s lockscreen. Assuming you already have a Prime membership and don’t mind dismissing the ads occasionally, you’ll save a cool $50 off the retail price. And because it comes unlocked out of the box, the Moto G4 Play will work with any major network in the US. The G4 Play is available for pre-order from Amazon today and ships on September 15th.
For a step up in specs, the slightly more powerful and highly rated Moto G4 is also available under the Prime exclusives deal. The fourth-generation G boasts a 5.5-inch full HD display with a 1.5 GHz octa-core processor and 13-megapixel camera, all for $149.99 unlocked. Finally, rounding out the Prime exclusives lineup is the BLU R1 HD for a low-low price of $49.99. While it isn’t BLU’s most powerful phone, the company has a solid reputation for dependable and feature-packed budget handsets.
Microsoft is reportedly taking on Slack with ‘Skype Teams’
Microsoft is building Skype Teams, a group messaging service that’s similar to Slack, according to a report from Microsoft news blog MSPoweruser. Skype Teams takes a lot of the features that makes Slack so popular, including the ability to add channels, share files and privately message people, and it adds a few more functions.
For example, users will be able to reply to individual messages in a group chat, like responding to a comment on Facebook. Skype Teams also features Office 365 integration, bringing in tools like PowerPoint, Excel and Word, MSPoweruser reports. Microsoft’s “Fun Picker” offers emojis, memes, cartoons, Giphy GIFs and other conversation enhancers for the modern group chatting mogul.
Skype Teams users will also be able to make video calls directly from the app, MSPoweruser says. Slack added the ability to make voice calls back in June, but not before Skype rolled out its own in-Slack video call functionality.
Microsoft is aiming to bring Skype Teams to the web and mobile devices, but there’s no word on when Skype Teams will go public, MSPoweruser says. However, Microsoft is testing the service internally and plans to roll it out for Office 365 subscribers first, according to today’s report.
Source: MSPoweruser
T-Mobile to increase its max LTE speeds to 400 Mbps
In the last few weeks, T-Mobile introduced its One plan for unlimited data and then tweaked it after customer complaints. For power users, T-Mobile’s claiming several tech advances that combine for a max download speed of 400 Mbps. But you’ll only get those blindingly fast rates using a Samsung Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge within one of 319 cities, and only after a pair of software updates by the end of October.
The first announced speed boost, 4×4 MIMO (multiple in, multiple out), alleges to double upload and download rates by increasing data paths between device and cell tower by twofold. According to T-Mobile’s post, that’s already active in 319 cities and will go live on the aforementioned Samsung phones after a software update later in September. This alone will double data speeds up and down.
But you’ll only get to that magic 400 Mbps max when using both new speed-augmenting technologies. The other one, 256 quadruple amplitude modulation (QAM) for downloads and 64 QAM for uploads, will be available nationwide with an end-of-October software update to supported phones. Like MIMO, it’s only available for Galaxy S7 and Edge, though more supported devices will be named later on.
Source: T-Mobile blog
Instagram is dropping photo maps
Instagram isn’t just piling on new features — it’s taking them away, too. The social image service says that it’s removing the Photo Map feature, which lets you see where a person’s snapshots come from. The removals started last week, Instagram adds. It’s currently focused on removing maps on profiles of other people, but you’ll eventually lose access to your own photo map as well. Location info will stick around (such as pages showing all the photos taken at a given place), however, so you won’t lose track of where you took that stunning flower shot.
The company doesn’t beat around the bush when explaining the move: it tells us that Photo Map “was not widely used.” It’s shifting its attention to other areas, according to the statement (which you can read below). Frankly, the decision isn’t shocking. When’s the last time you browsed your friends’ photo locations? And when Instagram is currently obsessed with video and beating Snapchat, cartography isn’t exactly high on the priority list.
“Photo Map was not widely used, so we’ve decided to remove the feature and focus on other priorities. You will still be able to see location tags on individual posts.”
Source: Mashable
EE begins rolling out a faster 4G network
Like any four-year-old, EE’s 4G network hasn’t yet fulfilled its potential. For its last major upgrade, the carrier flipped the switch on Cat 6 LTE-Advanced two years ago; and today, EE has announced it’s begun rolling out even faster Cat 9 technology (the first UK provider to do so, it seems). This increases the maximum theoretical download speed on EE’s “4G+” network from 300 Mbps to 450 Mbps, though real-world testing puts the max at more like 360 Mbps. The catch? Only a handful of phones can take full advantage.
The jump to Cat 9 is down to a blend of 20MHz of spectrum from the 1800MHz band and 35MHz from the 2600MHz band. Right now, though, only the Galaxy S6 Edge+, S7, S7 Edge and HTC 10 can make use of all that bandwidth. Oh, and the Note 7 too, if it hadn’t been recalled. If you don’t have any of those handsets and aren’t planning to pick up the next iPhone, which’ll undoubtedly support Cat 9, you will still benefit somewhat, thanks to a general increase in network capacity.
The Cat 9 network is already live at EE’s Wembley Stadium testbed, and will be spreading to other parts of London, as well as Manchester and Birmingham later this year. And by the end of 2017, EE expects to have Cat 9 up and running on over 500 masts.
Source: EE
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