The Nokia N96 is the most anticipated phone since, well, the N95, but despite months of speculation and countless photoshopped mockups on the web, no official release date has been announced. The eagle eyes guys at Reg Hardware however have spotted the advert in the Carphone Warehouse ezine, The Insider, which reveals that the N96 is going to be released next month.

 Ignore everyone who says the Nokia N96 is simply a ‘sister’ phone to the Nokia N95.  Although the N96 doesn’t improve on certain key areas enough to make it a genuine replacement, there are plenty of new, exciting features added for it to be labeled an ‘evolution’ of the N95’s ‘multimedia computer’.  Well, if the N95 is a multimedia computer, then it’s looking its age and about to get sand kicked in its face by the new Nokia N96! 

The N96’s improvements are noticeable immediately thanks to the total redesign, which can be viewed as a resounding success.  The piano black casing looks sleek and modern, the keypad is larger and more attractively designed and the D-pad and soft keys have been tweaked.  Nokia have sensibly retained the dual slide function and have added a little stand on the rear which allows the N96 to sit on a desk with the screen angled towards you.  Why would you want to do this?  The N96 has a built-in DVB-H mobile TV tuner, that’s why!

 Yes, the world of mobile TV broadcasts can be yours to view on that massive 2.8” screen with the N96, something which is set to grow over the next years now DVB-H has been set as the UK standard.  Perhaps even more impressively, the N96 can record mobile TV too!  It has a massive 16GB of internal memory (good enough for 40 hours of TV) and the option of adding an 8GB MicroSD card too.  You will also find Nokia’s excellent media player for all your music and video, including Internet based video such as YouTube.  Now that’s what we call a multimedia computer! 

The Nokia N96 is a smartphone and uses the Symbian S60 3.2 release with Feature Pack 2, which flattens some of the learning curve previously experienced by new Symbian users by adding more specific shortcuts, clearer menu systems while generally improving speed and responsiveness.  The navigation system has been re-worked too, with the edge of the D-pad becoming a ‘navi-wheel’ which works by running your finger around the touch sensitive chrome edge to move the onscreen cursor.  This type of format works so well on Apple iPod’s, it makes sense to include it on more complicated phones.

If you’re tempted by the thought of bagging yourself an Apple iPhone but have been put off by the rather hefty price then there’s some good news. O2 has announced that it will take £100 off the price of the iPhone, taking the 8GB model down to £169 until 1st June.

Despite the fact it’s a sure-fire winner in the looks stakes, the iPhone has struggled somewhat in the UK market due to its restricted features. The fact of the matter is that the UK has a far more sophisticated mobile phone industry, used to more advanced connectivity features than its US counterpart. Although a new 3G model is on its way, many feel that the UK release was a rush job, meaning it performed quite badly in the competitive Continue reading “O2 Cuts Price Of iPhone Until June”

It’s not often you hear about two major mobile phone manufacturer’s playing nicely and working together, but mention the words ‘4G’ to Nokia and Sony Ericsson and they happily link up together arm and arm under the view that there’s safety in numbers when it comes to thrashing the likes of Intel.

Nokia, Sony Ericsson, NED and Alcatel-Lucent have recently joined forces to build a licensing framework for new 4G patents, and the new solid team could mean that they are in Continue reading “Nokia and Sony Ericsson Working Together For The Benefit Of 4G”

It’s something we’ve all done – left the house and got too far to turn back after realising your mobile’s been left on the kitchen top, or left in another coat pocket. If you had the opportunity to wear your phone, the chances are this would less likely, especially if you religiously put your watch on when you get dressed in the mornings.

There seems to be a big craze at the moment in creating mobile phone watches, and even though none seem to be making any major impact in consumer buying, it looks like it’s something we’ll Continue reading “Never Leave Your Handset At Home With The World’s First Windows Mobile Watch Phone”

Apple aficionados may already be aware that the hyped IT company have already teamed up with Nike once before with the Nike+ SportKit fitness monitor exclusively released for Apple’s iPod Nano. But the latest news is that the fitness device will shortly be teamed up with the Apple iPhone. This comes after rumours that the two companies had suffered a ‘falling out’, suggesting that the story was just a fabrication.

It’s probably no coincidence that Samsung recently released the Samsung F110 Adidas Fitness Phone with the miCoach training software, spurring Apple onto pushing their Continue reading “Apple Teams Up With Nike To Bring SportKit To The Apple iPhone”

Despite our consumer love for sleek and shiny mobiles with big, generous, in-your-face touchscreens there are phone manufacturers out there’s a future is in going back to basics. The recent CTIA meetings in Las Vegas were a chance for disposable mobile pioneers Hop-on to show off their low-end GSM mobile phone, distinctly lacking in any LCD screen. It was met with such a warm response that an initial European test purchase order of 10,000 phones has been placed (the phones have previously only been available in America, Australia and Asia).

Available for around £10, the Hop-on 1900 would be more likely to be found on a newsagents counter than a mobile phone shop. Being advertised as a ‘stylish disposable phone’, its a good option to give to kids and teenagers for piece of mind or elderly citizens who Continue reading “Hop-on Disposable Phone Secures A 10,000 European Order”

If you are easily annoyed by kids messing around with their mobile phones on the bus, sharing their downloaded tunes to everyone within earshot and laughing hysterically at their video recordings, you might want to start your petition now to ban the latest Japanese invention from any public place.

NTT Communications has recently announced that it will conduct a pilot test of its new Mobile Fragrance Communication service – a development that will allow users to download audiovisual content together with Continue reading “What A Pong! – Japanese Pilot Mobile That Can Download Fragrance”

If you’re trying to remember why the name Tag Heuer rings a bell then it maybe that you’ve seen an advert for one of their watches in a fancy magazine, thought - “oh, that’s a smart watch”, and then seen the price and swiftly turned the page. The Swiss watch manufacturers have been making ultra luxurious watches since 1860, not to mention dabbling into the production of intricate Formula 1 car parts. Famous for their precision designs and immaculate detail, those with a taste for the finer things in life may be interested to hear that they’ve made a move into the mobile market in collaboration with the equally luxurious Vertu – a subsidiary of Nokia.

The most expensive Vertu mobile ever made is the Signature Cobra, priced at a phenomenal price of around £157,500, so in comparison the new Tag Heur Vertu Meridiist mobile seems Continue reading “Tag Heuer and Vertu Join Forces For Luxury £3,000 Mobile”

Whilst it’s fair to say that the Apple iPhone has its pros and cons it’s certainly inspired the competition to raise the game when it comes to new handsets. So it’s no surprise that this week’s 2008 CTIA convention in Las Vegas has seen its fair share of new head turners.

The latest comes from Samsung with their new touchscreen dubbed “Instinct”. For the moment it’s only available from the Continue reading “Samsung’s Instinct Kicks In To Thrash The iPhone”

Give it a couple of weeks and you won’t be able to turn on the TV or flick through your newspapers without seeing ads for the latest blockbuster to hit the cinematic screen. The Iron Man movie, starring Robert Downey Jr and Gwyneth Paltrow will be in cinemas from the beginning of May.

So why has this caught the attention of mobile enthusiasts? Well, pay very close attention to the film and you should be able to see a couple of exclusive LG phones in it. Sported by two of the main characters, Iron Man – Tony Stark is shown using a Continue reading “LG Gets Movie Mania With The 18K. Gold Iron Man Mobile”