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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

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Don’t be a not-so-early adopter

Mark Bridge writes:

So – you’re thinking about buying a new mobile phone. A smartphone. And yes, I mean a real smartphone, not just something with a touchscreen that looks nice.

I know, I know. You’re tempted by the iPhone. It’s all those apps, isn’t it?  100,000 and counting.

Yet Android is catching up. Admittedly it’s still got a long way to go to match that six-figure total… but the signs are certainly there.

You’re not sure about Symbian at the moment – you really wanted to like the N97 but Nokia hadn’t sprinkled enough magic dust on it – and Windows Mobile (or is it Windows Phone?) hasn’t done anything exciting for a bit. Even Nokia says its Maemo-powered N900 is a step away from perfection. So for you it’s Apple or Android. Android or Apple. Which one do you choose.

Neither, I say. Not yet. Wait for a bit.

Let’s start with Apple. The iPhone 3GS is undeniably clever. It’s also undeniably nigh-on six months old. That means we’re probably around six months away from the next model. I reckon you've missed your moment. Okay, there’s been no UK iPhone price war since Orange started selling it – but what’ll happen when Vodafone joins the party?  Even without a post-Christmas price battle, upgrading today doesn’t seem such a bright idea, does it?

Then there’s Android. Here we’re seeing different versions of the OS on different phones. The Motorola Droid (and its European sibling, the Motorola Milestone) run Android 2.0. Other devices run version 1.6. Can you upgrade from 1.6 to 2.0?  Not necessarily. It depends on your phone spec. That makes the v1.6 devices less appealing. And what about all those apps?  Well, as I said earlier, Android is catching up. Next year it looks as though it could be giving Apple a bit of a kicking. But not yet.

So whichever OS you fancy, there’s a good reason to wait. And the other big names are going to keep innovating as well. Which means 2010 could well be the year of the smartphone. As was 2009. And 2008.

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Recent Podcasts

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Podcast - 17th June 2009

This week the team takes a look at mobile web browser security... and explains why your bank's recommended browser isn't as safe as you might expect. Plus, as usual, there's an in-depth look at the week's industry headlines.

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Podcast - 5th June 2009

In this special extended interview, Suneet Singh Tuli talks to Iain Graham about the PocketSurfer device. They discuss form factors, flat-rate charging for data, roaming charges, convergence, consumer acceptance - and the forthcoming PocketSurfer3.

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