Vodafone launches carrier billing for Android Market shoppers

Vodafone Europe has announced it will be offering direct operator billing as an option on Android devices, allowing users to charge apps from the Android Market directly to their phone bill. Available initially in the UK and Germany, Vodafone expects it to have a positive effect on app sales, where users may have previously avoided paid-software over the hassles of adding a credit card to their account.

Initially, Vodafone says, carrier billing will only be available to those who purchased their Android device through the company’s retail or online stores. The implication, however, seems to be that at some point that will be updated so that anyone slotting in a Vodafone SIM to their device will be able to charge apps to that account.
Further roll-outs across Vodafone are expected in future, and we’re guessing other European carriers will follow suit. Several US carriers already offer operator billing for Android.

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HTC Sensation 4G 2.3.4 Gingerbread Update Rolling Out Now

The HTC Sensation 4G on T-Mobile is all set to start receiving an OTA update today. It starts today and should hit most handsets within the next week. As always you can do and manually check for updates if you don’t want to wait. The update brings the Sensation to Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread. The EVO 3D was updated today and shortly after the update started rolling out it also appeared over at HTCDev as available for unlocking of the bootloader. Most likely the T-Mobile Sensation will get the same treatment in the next few days.

The Android 2.3.4 update for the Sensation should bring a wide variety of updates and improvements as well as what was needed for the HTC bootloader unlock process at the same time so users shouldn’t be waiting long for that to be activated. Some of the updates from T-Mobile and HTC include:
New Features
-Software stability
-Improved battery life
Improvements
-Improvements to Trace dictionary
-Improvements to screen responsiveness
-Improvements to video playback
-Improvements regarding device reboot / power off
-Improvements to icon pixilation
-Improvements to Wi-Fi connection
-Improvements to screen/photo resolution
As always the update will hit your phone over the next few days or you can activate it manually by going to Menu > Settings > System Updates > HTC Software Update > Check Now > and hitting OK when it appears. The update is most likely pretty large and Wi-fi is recommended to speed up the entire process. While the update isn’t a special one the Sensation doesn’t have many issues that need fixing anyways so this is mostly maintenance as well as preparation for the unlock process. Again feel free to watch HTCDev.com/bootloader once you’ve accepted the update as it should appear on the site soon.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Sensation 4G

Manufactuer : HTC

Carrier : T-Mobile

Announced Date : April 12, 2011

Release Date : May 19, 2011

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4.30 Inch


• Resolution : 540x960


• Screen Type : qHD

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 4.96 Inch


• Width : 2.57 Inch


• Depth : 0.44 Inch


• Weight : 148 Grams

Battery & Power

• Battery Type:


• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1520 mAh


• Talk Time : NA


• Stand By Time : 350 hours

Software

• Android OS:


• 2.3.x

• Audio Playback:


• AAC


• AMR


• MID


• MP3


• WAV


• WMA

• Video Playback:


• 3GP


• MPEG-4 (MP4)


• WMV

• Messaging:


• SMS


• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Snapdragon

CPU Clock Speed : 1200 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 768 MB

Internal Storage : 4 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution :8 MP

• External Storage:


• MicroSD


• MicroSDHC

• Camera Features:


• Auto focus


• Flash


• 1080p Video Recording

• Sensors:


• Accelerometer


• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

• Network Technology:


• GSM

• GSM Band:


• 850


• 900


• 1800


• 1900

Device Connectivity

• Wi-Fi:


• 802.11b


• 802.11g


• 802.11n

• Bluetooth:


• Bluetooth 3.0

• Location Features:


• Compass


• GPS


• Cellular location


• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

[via T-Mobile]

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HTC EVO 3D Up Next, Bootloader unlocking is now live at HTCDev

Now before you all get excited and run to HTCdev.com you need to be running the latest OTA for the HTC EVO 3D that has just started hitting phones this morning. Yes this is still exciting news because just as HTC promised users can now unlock their EVO 3D bootloaders using the easy and simple web based tool.

The latest over the air update for the HTC EVO 3D is available now by checking for HTC software updates and that will update your phone to the required version to start the unlock process. If you haven’t already rooted and unlocked using Revolutionary this is the next possible option and is quick and easy. Remember that this will in fact void your warranty but the HTC site warns you plenty of this same fact.

This comes just three days after HTC started allowing the Sensation unlock to start so it appears everything is running along smoothly and there seems to be no issues I’ve seen reported thus far. Next on the list is the T-Mobile version of the HTC Sensation 4G and then starting in September they will be adding more and more devices to that list.
To get started yourself head over to HTCDev.com

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : EVO 3D

Manufactuer : HTC

Carrier : Unknown

Announced Date : March 22, 2011

Release Date : June 24, 2011

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4.30 Inch


• Resolution : 540x960


• Screen Type : S-LCD

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 5.00 Inch


• Width : 2.60 Inch


• Depth : 0.47 Inch


• Weight : 170 Grams

Battery & Power

• Battery Type:


• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1730 mAh


• Talk Time : NA


• Stand By Time : 355 hours

Software

• Android OS:


• 2.3.x

• Audio Playback:


• AAC


• MP3

• Video Playback:


• h.263


• MPEG-4 (MP4)

• Messaging:


• SMS


• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Snapdragon

CPU Clock Speed : 1200 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1024 MB

Internal Storage : 4.096 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution :5 MP

• External Storage:


• MicroSD


• MicroSDHC

• Camera Features:


• Auto focus


• Flash


• 720p Video Recording

• Sensors:


• Accelerometer


• Ambient light


• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

• Network Technology:


• CDMA

• CDMA Band:


• 800


• 1900

Device Connectivity

• Wi-Fi:


• 802.11b


• 802.11g


• 802.11n

• Bluetooth:


• Bluetooth 3.0

• Location Features:


• Compass


• GPS


• Cellular location


• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

)

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Amazon Free App of the Day: App 2 SD Pro

Today Amazon has another awesome app running for the excellent price of free. Today the Amazon “free app of the day” is App 2 SD Pro. If you have a slightly older Android device say around the Nexus One era this is the perfect application for you. When you install too many awesome games, or all three Angry Birds are taking up all that internal storage you can use this to move apps to the SD card rather than internal 512mb or whatever your specific device has.

I wont preach about this much as most phones these days have enough storage that users don’t need apps2sd features anymore but many still do. Many users delete games, or wont install Adobe Flash and things of that sort to save space on their phones. You’ll no longer have to delete that awesome game you rarely play to make room for something else. Just move all the large apps and games to the SD card and you’re good to go. Today the paid version is free thanks to Amazon.
Paid Features:
-View all SD card capable apps and move them seamlessly
-Efficiently manage apps with a shortcut to Manage Applications screen
-Keep track of total and available storage space
-Sort through apps stored on phone and SD card
-Enable notification when installing an SD card capable app
Newer versions of Android like 2.2 FroYo and above do offer this as a stock feature and you can simple enter the manage applications tab and choose move to SD card. For many users this is still not an option, especially if you’re still rocking Android 1.6 or something ancient. If so get this free app of the day and free up some storage on your device. Remember moving widgets to the SD card is a bad idea because they wont work, just a tip.
[via Amazon]

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Apple opens another lawsuit against Samsung, This time in the Netherlands

Lets keep this short and sweet shall we. After Apple filed a lawsuit aiming to ban all Galaxy Tab 10.1 sales in the European union and winning an initial injunction halting the sales in Europe everyone was up in arms. Samsung later responded and now we are seeing reports that Apple might have altered some of the evidence. This covered all of the European Union except for the Netherlands, so now Apple is headed for that region too.

We all knew it was coming but now its been confirmed that Apple will be seeking the same injunction against Samsung products in the Netherlands. They are going after all tablets and smartphones here, rather than just the Galaxy Tab 10.1 like we’ve seen thus far. Apple’s new, parallel filing in the Netherlands details patent infringement also, rather than just copying design elements like in the European case. Reports are suggesting Apple’s request is for an injunction against ALL of Samsung’s Android offerings this time around rather than just phones or tablets.
Similar lawsuits were also filed in Australia but were denied and even the same German court that applied the injunction for the EU has now revised his ruling making the ban only in Germany for now. While this is all still heating up and just getting started I wish it would all just go away already. I have a feeling this will get drawn out for a while but hopefully Google’s acquisition of Motorola will start helping out if that deal indeed goes through.
[via Appleinsider]

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Motorola DROID Bionic appears in a few more Best Buy Ads

Anyone heard of this phone? It’s called the DROID Bionic and I don’t think I’ve seen much about this phone lately. Almost daily now we have seen a leak or a photo of some sort and it’s to the point of almost irritation. Can Verizon just release this bad boy already? Today new pictures are popping up from multiple sources showing the Droid Bionic as “coming soon” in Best Buy ad magazines and more.


The Motorola Droid Bionic is only what like 4 months late to the market, unless we are counting when we saw it at CES but that wouldn’t really be fair. Just to help you readers out here are a few of the recent leaks. We saw some impressive speedtest results a few days ago, leaked photos of it and the Droid HD, and more recently a tips and guide manual. Latest reports are still suggesting a September launch date although we did hear some rumors of it coming late August but that is doubtful.
So what does everything think about all these leaks so far? Are there so many that you don’t really care to see a flyer or Best Buy ad, or are all these leaks that are happening almost daily a good sign that it may be coming sooner than we think? I’m not trying to rain on the Bionic and its parade but I’m already switching my focus to the Droid HD and the Samsung Nexus Prime, but that’s just me.
Either way this phone should and better launch soon, if for some odd reason they delay it again I don’t think it would end well for Motorola or Verizon.
[via TechnoBuffalo]

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HTC EVO 3D Software Update Now Available, Brings screenshots and bug fixes

HTC has just updated the HTC EVO 3D and they are basically fixing the issues that the first OTA caused the device from back when it launched. While the update didn’t take too long I’m sure some wish this would have came a bit sooner. The update (version number 2.08.651.2) began its rollout already this morning and should be hitting all EVO 3D owners by 8/23. You can check for HTC Software Updates now and it will pull the update just as I have done. It’s around 45mb in size so Wifi might speed up the process.

If you don’t want to wait for the OTA to hit your handset go ahead and go to Menu > Settings > System Updates > HTC Software Update > Check Now > OK and you’ll be good to go. Once you’ve installed the update you will find many bug fixes that should help overall performance and user experience and they’ve even added native screenshots.
Fixes:
-Device Lockscreen stuck in “half-state”
-Ability to transfer all contacts over bluetooth
-Birthday one day off between contacts and Facebook when synced
-Random GPS coordinates issue
-Lockscreen displays 3 digit temperature correctly
-Spiderman demo lockups
-Making additional preloaded apps uninstallable by user
-Update to applications: Spiderman, Watch, Qik
They were also nice enough to allow more of the pre-loaded applications to be uninstalled by the user, something previously needing root access so we all appreciate that. The update brings along native screenshots to the EVO 3D and Sensation 4G. Hold the power button and quickly tap “home” and it will take a screenshot and save it to your gallery. I’ve just confirmed this indeed works and is easy as can be.
Go ahead and update your EVO 3D phones and please feel free to drop us a comment below if you experience any issues or problems. If you are rooted I’d wait on accepting this in case the loophole that was found for root and unlocks has been closed.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : EVO 3D

Manufactuer : HTC

Carrier : Unknown

Announced Date : March 22, 2011

Release Date : June 24, 2011

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4.30 Inch


• Resolution : 540x960


• Screen Type : S-LCD

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 5.00 Inch


• Width : 2.60 Inch


• Depth : 0.47 Inch


• Weight : 170 Grams

Battery & Power

• Battery Type:


• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1730 mAh


• Talk Time : NA


• Stand By Time : 355 hours

Software

• Android OS:


• 2.3.x

• Audio Playback:


• AAC


• MP3

• Video Playback:


• h.263


• MPEG-4 (MP4)

• Messaging:


• SMS


• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Snapdragon

CPU Clock Speed : 1200 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1024 MB

Internal Storage : 4.096 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution :5 MP

• External Storage:


• MicroSD


• MicroSDHC

• Camera Features:


• Auto focus


• Flash


• 720p Video Recording

• Sensors:


• Accelerometer


• Ambient light


• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

• Network Technology:


• CDMA

• CDMA Band:


• 800


• 1900

Device Connectivity

• Wi-Fi:


• 802.11b


• 802.11g


• 802.11n

• Bluetooth:


• Bluetooth 3.0

• Location Features:


• Compass


• GPS


• Cellular location


• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

)

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HTC Puccini Tablet will be called the HTC Jetstream on AT&T

Some new screenshots have leaked yet again of the upcoming HTC Puccini tablet. This time we now have what appears to be the official name and it will be known as the HTC Jetstream on AT&T. We saw plenty of screenshots at the first of the month but these latest images show the name as well as plenty of AT&T branding.

With the image above not only do we see the popular HTC Sense UI weather, but also the personalize icon up on the top right as well as the all familiar battery and status icons on the bottom. I must say I think I liked the Honeycomb stock icons a bit more personally. The HTC Jetstream will be the first 4G LTE tablet launching on AT&T according to recent FCC filings so some could even call the name “Jetstream” clever.

Here we can clearly see the name “Jetstream” listed in the screenshot to confirm the new name for the 4G LTE slate and from what we do know this should be a powerful tablet. Rocking a 1.5 Ghz dual-core processor, Android 3.2 Honeycomb (heavily skinned) as well as the usual tablet specs with a 10″ display, 1GB of RAM and the usual goodies. The leaked press images also revealed an 8 MP camera on the rear and pen stylus support but that is obvious with the pen icon showing on all the screenshots.
Latest sources suggest the HTC Jetstream should be launching late September or early October but we have no confirmation so will wait for further details.
[via PocketNow]

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Apple sued for allegedly swindling customers, selling refurbished iPhones as new in China

Two separate lawsuits have been filed against Apple in China, accusing the tech giant of selling refurbished iPhone smartphones as new devices in multiple Beijing Apple Stores. Lead by well-known consumer rights advocate Wang Hai, two customers have filed formal complaints against Apple in a Beijing court. The suits both allege that Apple Store locations sold refurbished iPhones to the complainants under the guise that they were new devices. Only when the customers discovered that their manufacturer warranties expired less than one year from their respective dates of purchase did they realize something was awry. To make matters worse, Wang says that when one such customer went back to the Apple Store to confront them, the staff there allegedly tried to trick her by modifying her warranty expiration date. ”It’s cheating to sell refurbished products as new ones,” Wang told Global Times in an interview. “It’ll be discrimination against Chinese consumers if the case turns out to be true as refurbished cellphones are also sold in other countries, but at a cheaper price.” Four other consumers in Beijing have come forward to claim they were duped into purchasing refurbished iPhones as new, however no additional lawsuits have been filed at this time. Images supplied by Wang of a customer receipt and a confirmation that the customer’s warranty expired in less than one year follow below.

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