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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Opinion Articles

Thursday, November 10, 2011

One day, every phone will be smart - and every tablet will be super

Mark Bridge writes:

We’ve previously talked on The Fonecast about ‘superphones’ - a relatively arbitrary description for high-end smartphones. Google described its Nexus One as a superphone when it was launched at the beginning of 2010 - although it’s also what Dr Who’s companion called her upgraded Nokia 3200 in 2005.

Now Strategy Analytics has a definition and a growth forecast. It says superphones will be the world’s fastest growing sub-category of wireless handsets this year, with global superphone sales expected to grow 200%.

Alex Spektor, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, said “Superphones are a relatively new sub-category of wireless handsets that first appeared on the global market in 2009. Superphones integrate high-level operating systems with supersized displays of at least 4 inches and superfast processors of at least 1GHz. We forecast global superphone sales to grow an impressive 200% in 2011, increasing fifteen times faster than the overall handset market’s growth rate of 13%.”

In its way, that’s good news - but it’s also unsurprising. Faster processors are becoming more affordable and are being used more often. As podcast host Iain Graham has pointed out more than once, one day every phone will be a smartphone... even if the owner doesn’t know it.

Given the practicalities of pocket sizes, it’s unlikely that every smartphone will become a superphone. But what about tablets?  When does a superphone become a tablet?  Hmmm. Perhaps that description is still pretty arbitrary after all.

[Strategy Analytics report]

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Recent Podcasts

Podcast - 1st December 2010

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Podcast - 24th November 2010

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Podcast - 17th November 2010

This week's podcast includes more big news from Facebook, the introduction of IPv6, network sharing, call recording, fraud, legal action and an unusual upgrade offer. In addition, James Rosewell talks to Sophia Salenius, CEO of mHealth provider RegPoint, to learn more about this wide-ranging subject.

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Podcast - 10th November 2010

Dr Peter Gradwell talks about his company's new virtual mobile network, which puts fixed-line numbers on mobile phones. And, as usual, there's a look at the week's other industry headlines - including big stories from Nokia, Symbian and Facebook.

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Podcast - 3rd November 2010

In this week's podcast we discuss protests at Vodafone stores, Apple's appearance in the 'top five' manufacturer list, new legal action and an underground WiFi trial. We also talk to MoBank co-founder Steve Townend about the changes his business has seen since launching last year.

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