Latest Podcast



Featured Articles

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

UK service providers must notify customers when they connect to a different network

New rules from UK telecoms regulator Ofcom will protect customers when they use their mobile phone on a foreign network. In addition, customers will be alerted if they are inadvertently roaming, perhaps because they're near an international border.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Global smartphone market is set for recovery, says new forecast

A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

New Hutchison/Vodafone network would be biggest UK operator

Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

UK mobile payment service Paym to close in March 2023

UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Which? seeks payout for Samsung and Apple smartphone owners

Consumer protection organisation Which? has been given permission by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal to represent Apple and Samsung smartphone buyers in a legal case against chip manufacturer Qualcomm.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS

Opinion Articles

Friday, April 22, 2011

Exactly how boring is the Samsung Galaxy II S?

Mark Bridge writes:

In July last year I wrote about the ‘geek porn’ of unboxing being taken to a new level with celebrity unboxing (which sounds rather like a challenge from a reality TV show).

Sony Ericsson had persuaded Maria Sharapova to give her first impressions of the X10 Mini Pro. The end result was entertaining, if not insightful.

And now Samsung have added a new facet to the trend with ‘extreme unboxing’. They’re promoting the UK launch of the Samsung Galaxy II S by throwing Dan Sung from Pocket-lint out of an aircraft clutching their smartphone, by putting TechDigest’s Gerald Lynch on a rollercoaster and by sitting Chris Davies from Slashgear.com in a rally car. There’s also a speedboat trip, a stunt plane and some abseiling.

Oh yes, it’s entertaining. However, all this doesn’t really have much to do with the phone. Sure, the Galaxy II S is ‘fast’ - but not in the sense of plummeting to earth or the 0-60 speed of a Subaru. And that doesn’t do the phone any favours if you think about it.

After all, if the best way to promote a product is through a variety of sensational videos that don’t really reflect the phone’s specifications and features, your audience could easily assume the product itself isn’t very interesting.

By all means show me a rugged phone on a mountain or a waterproof phone in an aquarium.

But when you have a versatile smartphone, please show me the versatility of the phone. Otherwise I might get the impression you don’t have much to talk about.

Okay, so I’m a little jealous of Chris in the Subaru. And I really shouldn’t grumble because there was much more ‘tech talk’ at the official launch of the phone in Barcelona. If you’d like to hear my interview with Jim Powell of Samsung at Mobile World Congress, click here or find us on iTunes.
Print
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Rate this article:
No rating

Categories: Handsets and manufacturers, OpinionNumber of views: 9939

Tags: opinion samsung

Leave a comment

This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data.
Add comment

Recent Podcasts

Mobile World Congress, manufacturers, mergers and much more

Podcast - 5th March 2014

This week's programme begins with some of the biggest news stories that came out of Mobile World Congress.

Iain, James and Mark then move on to the other headlines from the past few days, including Boeing's secret agent smartphone, Apple's plans for mobile in-car entertainment, a new structure for Telefonica and new technology for mobile payments.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Voice-enabled mCommerce with Tony Ballardie of Capito Systems

Podcast - 28th February 2014

London-based Capito Systems won a place on this year's Smart UK Project shortlist, guaranteeing them entry to Mobile World Congress 2014. And when they arrived, they won the international Barca Starta competition as well.

In this podcast we talk to CEO Tony Ballardie about the company’s 'natural language' voice control, which can be integrated into almost any mCommerce application... from gambling to ticket purchases.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Dr Kevin Curran talks about the future of mobile technology

Podcast - 27th February 2014

Dr Kevin Curran, Reader in Computer Science at the University of Ulster, joined us during Mobile World Congress to offer his well-informed opinion about trends in mobile technology.

We talked about a wide range of topics, including battery life, disposable tablets, wearables, m-health, 4G fragmentation, connected furniture, M2M security, the rise of video and the IEEE.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Mobile World Congress 2014: an introduction

Podcast - 25th February 2014

James Rosewell and Mark Bridge report from Mobile World Congress 2014 in Barcelona.

In this podcast they talk about all the major mobile manufacturer announcements, including Nokia's new Android-based phones and Sony's newest high-spec devices.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

James Corden at the Global Mobile Awards

Podcast - 25th February 2014

One of the highlights of Mobile World Congress is the Global Mobile Awards - and this year the event was hosted by James Corden: actor, comedian, TV presenter and one-time promoter of Windows Phone.

Here's how he introduced the ceremony, with jokes about Facebook, BlackBerry, Steve Jobs and the gestures required to control an iPhone.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
First678911131415Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Twitter @TheFonecast RSS podcast feed
Find us on Facebook Subscribe free via iTunes

Archive Calendar

«November 2024»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
28293031123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
2526272829301
2345678

Archive

Terms Of Use | Privacy Statement