Nokia 5235 Firmware Updated To Version 40.6.003

Nokia recently released a new firmware update for its entry-level touchscreen phone, the Nokia 5235. The latest version is numbered 40.6.003 and it comes with a the new Instant Messaging application, improved web browser and general performance improvements. The latest firmware version can be downloaded from the Nokia Software Update or via. Over-The-Air (OTA).Check out the complete changelog below.

Changelog:

• New Instant Messaging application
• Improved chat feature in Ovi Contacts
• Improved browser
• Here and Now
• Nokia Ovi Suite supported
• Improved Ovi Store and Ovi Maps
• General performance improvements

To get this software through your device, select Applications > Software Update, and choose the software you want to update. This firmware update is also available through the Nokia Ovi Suite. It is advised to backup all your data before updating the device, just to make sure that no important files are lost during the installation. It may take few days or weeks for the update to reach in your region

Virgin Mobile’s Samsung Intercept To Get The Android 2.2 Update Soon

Back in September, Virgin Mobile launched its first Android powered device, the Samsung Intercept. This handset comes with a 3.2 inch WQVGA touchscreen display with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Samsung Intercept originally runs on the old Android 2.1 (Eclair) operating system. If you are eagerly waiting for the Android 2.2 (FroYo) update on for Intercept smartphone, then we have a good news for you.

Samsung Intercept features a 3.2 inch WQVGA touchscreen display with 240 x 400 pixels resolution, Android 2.1 OS, Optical trackpad, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, 3 megapixel camera with autofocus, Bar code scanner, Wi-Fi connectivity, 3.5 mm audio jack, accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate, GPS with A-GPS support, microSD card slot, 32GB expandable memory, up to 5.5 hours talk time, up to 550 hours stand-by time and much more.

Virgin Mobile is expected to roll out the Android 2.2 (FroYo) update for its Samsung Intercept smartphone before this spring. According to the rumors, Intercept users will get the FroYo update on March 25th. The Froyo update will bring the ability to load apps on the MicroSD card, improved browsing experience, Flash Player 10.1, Application auto-updates, Bluetooth voice dialing, GPS enhancements, fully integrated support for Microsoft Exchange and much more. Stay tuned for more updates regarding the Froyo update for your Samsung Intercept smartphone.

Capture, watch 3D visuals on LG phone – minus the glasses

The LG Optimus is the world’s first mobile phone capable of capturing and showing 3D images and footage – that too without bulky glasses.

 There are two camera lenses on the back of the handset which capture two views of a favourite scene, friends and family.

These are then played back simultaneously on the Optimus 3D screen with one eye seeing the images captured by one lens and the other the images from the second lens.

The technology is commercially confidential. However, it is understood that the screen is covered with a polarising see-through material similar to that used in 3D cinema glasses, the Daily Mail reports.

This material separates the two sets of images on the screen and diverts them to the correct eye. A sweet spot is created about 20 inches from the screen to get the full 3D effect.

The system uses similar technology to the latest Nintendo 3DS games console, which is about to go on sale and also offers 3D images without the need for glasses.

While the technology has a wow factor, there are currently very few 3D films and TV programmes available on a commercial basis to be watched on the Optimus.

To off-set this problem, LG has announced a partnership with YouTube to allow the Optimus 3D footage to be swiftly uploaded to the web and shared.

Similarly, owners of the phone will be able to download 3D footage created by other amateurs to be viewed and enjoyed on the landmark handsets.

Said LG chief executive, Jong-seok Park: “The Optimus 3D is LG’s newest flagship smartphone. It is our answer to two major pain points of the current 3D experience – limited mobility and specialised glasses.”

The phone is to be available on the Orange network in Britain, however no prices have yet been announced.

LG Aims to Sell 150 Million Phones in 2011

LG today announced it plans for 2011 today at MWC (Mobile World Congress) in Fira, Barcelona. LG will be targeting to sell over 150 Million mobile phones in the year 2011.
It will be a 30 percent increase year on year with smartphones accounting for 20 percent of the total sales which amounts to 30 million smartphones.
The target will be a four fold increase in the smartphone sales and will constitute half of the total revenues. LG plans to achieve these figures with the help of 20 smartphones which will be launched globally.
LG is introducing new features to its customers such as 4G LTE, 3D Technology (Cameras and Displays) and Dual-Core processors. LG also plan to improve the user experience by bringing in 3D Games and Movies with the help of their partners through LG Apps.
“We are already focusing all of our resources on delivering the widest variety of smart devices for all types of customers,” said Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. “This will be a critical year for LG and a lot of eyes are upon us to see if we’ll succeed. We don’t intend to let them down.

MWC 2011 : HTC Flyer Hands On

HTC today announced their first tablet computer and we have an exclusive hands on video here on FoneArena

Check out the nice long 6 minute video which gives you an overview of the device

The device comes with a special pen like device which can be used in special cases like within the notes app.
The device uses a special version of the Sense UI for tablets. It has Evernote integration and a lot more. Looks like the software is not yet fully ready on this device as we were not allowed to touch it.

Apple launches iPhone and iPad app subscriptions, sparks controversy

Mobile Phones

Apple’s new subscription billing for iPhone and iPad apps allow developers and publishers to charge recurring subscriptions for magazine, newspaper, video and music apps. The system, launched yesterday, is already controversial, however, with music service Rhapsody saying Apple’s 30 per cent cut of subscription payments will make music services “economically untenable”.
The subscription billing was used first by US news app The Daily, which launched a few weeks ago. Now it’s available to all developers. Here’s how it works: apps can now charge you a weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, bi-yearly or yearly subscription. Subscriptions automatically renew, but you’ll be able to cancel this at any time from your iTunes personal account page.
Apple will take a 30 per cent share of all subscription payments — the same cut it takes from sales of paid apps and in-app purchases. Alongside the new subscriptions, however, come new rules for apps that charge you directly outside the App Store, such as Amazon’s Kindle ebooks app or Spotify’s music service.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs outlined the changes in a statement. “Our philosophy is simple — when Apple brings a new subscriber to the app, Apple earns a 30 per cent share; when the publisher brings an existing or new subscriber to the app, the publisher keeps 100 per cent and Apple earns nothing.”
Wait, there’s one more thing. “All we require is that, if a publisher is making a subscription offer outside of the app, the same (or better) offer be made inside the app, so that customers can easily subscribe with one click, right in the app.” The new rules also explicitly state that apps cannot send users to an external website to buy content or subscriptions outside Apple’s system.
Here’s what this means in practice. Subscription music service Spotify, for example, currently charges people £9.99 a month on their credit cards to use its mobile app. It can still do that, but once Apple’s new rules kick in, it will also have to offer a £9.99-or-cheaper subscription as an in-app purchase, which is when Apple will take 30 per cent of the dosh. Meanwhile, an app such as Amazon’s Kindle can no longer sell you ebooks without using Apple’s payment system.
US music service Rhapsody is the first company to come out swinging against the new system. “An Apple-imposed arrangement that requires us to pay 30 per cent of our revenue to Apple, in addition to content fees that we pay to the music labels, publishers and artists, is economically untenable,” it said in a statement.
“The bottom line is we would not be able to offer our service through the iTunes store if subjected to Apple’s 30 per cent monthly fee versus a typical 2.5 per cent credit card fee.”
What does this mean for you, though? On the plus side, Apple’s new subscriptions will be simple and quick, and equally easy to cancel if you tire of an app’s content. They could also spur new and innovative apps, following in the footsteps of The Daily.
Judging by Rhapsody’s reaction, however — with other services expected to protest publicly later today — there’s a danger that Apple’s new rules could drive some of these services from the App Store. A scenario in which Amazon, Spotify, Rhapsody and others abandon iOS, leaving Apple’s own ebooks and music services to dominate would not be good news for iOS users.
It’s early days though. Can these companies make the numbers add up for their subscriptions even with Apple taking a 30 per cent share? Will regulatory authorities get involved — particularly in the US — as is already being suggested by the Wall Street Journal? Will the services switch to Web-based apps accessed via the Safari browser to get around Apple’s new rules — but sacrifice features in doing so?
Apple’s new rules are provoking more questions than answers at the moment, but keep it Crave for more on this as it happens.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt tells Nokia that its Android offer ‘remains open’

Nokia may have chosen Windows Phone 7 as its smart phone OS for the forseeable future, but Google CEO Eric Schmidt hopes the company will change its mind — and says he’ll give Nokia a warm Android welcome if it does.

During his keynote speech at Mobile World Congress last night, Schmidt confirmed that Google and Nokia had “extensive” discussions before Nokia opted for Microsoft’s OS.
“We would have loved that they had chosen Android. They chose the other guys, that other competitor, Microsoft,” said Schmidt, according to the Telegraph. “We would like them to adopt Android at some point in the future and that offer remains open. We think Android was a good choice for Nokia. We are sorry they made a different choice.”
Google and Nokia could be working together sooner than you think in other areas. Nokia has deliberately kept its tablet options open, and while Schmidt had nothing to say on this score, his unaggressive tone last night hints that Google may hold out hopes that Nokia could adopt its Android 3.0 Honeycomb software if and when it jumps into the tablet wars.
Talking of which… Schmidt also gave a bit more information about Google’s Android update plans. “We’ve got an OS for phones called ‘Gingerbread’ and one for tablets called ‘Honeycomb’. G and H. You can imagine that the next will begin with I and will be named after a dessert, and it will unite them. Android releases follow on in a roughly six-month cycle.”
Schmidt’s speech took a more utopian tone, with the outgoing Google CEO claiming that phones and tablets will give humanity elephant-shaming memory retention.
“Pretty soon, in a year or two, with the phones many of you have already and the tablets, you will never forget anything. Starting soon it will be possible to remember the hotels you went to, the pictures you took, the friends you met, because computer memories last forever.”
Android is a big presence at Mobile World Congress this year, with a stand stuffed with giant robots (plus a slide), and a limited-edition set of 68 Android logo pin badges for attendees to collect on their way round the show.

WP7 apps to be available via Ovi Store

Everybody has been waiting Stephen Elop would unveil some new smartphones, besides the details of their cooperation with Microsoft. Unfortunately, we got all answers to the question what will Nokia do in future, but when we can see new Symbian, MeeGo or WP7-powered smartphones, nobody knows. Anyway, there were some other news which can interest users and geeks, so let’s quickly look at the event’s announcements.

At first, the company announced all their smartphones will use WP7 in future, but as there are only a concept of the phone we tend to think Nokia wouldn’t drop the N9 so quickly, and as the Nokia E7 is launched lately, the specialist will have been working on Symbian and MeeGo until complete switching to WP7. Stephen Elop said the final decision had been made only on Thursday, i.e. several hours ago before the event. This means Nokia didn’t seek to refuse MeeGo, and it is clear as Nokia has yielded so much efforts in its own platforms, and all down the drain.

Elop announced they still are developing MeeGo but if the market feels no need of it they would cancel supporting MeeGo.

As it became clear Nokia didn’t want to stop developing Symbian, as WP7 will be used only in high-end smartphones of the company while its low-end and mid-range smartphones will run Symbian OS.

After all these news Elop said WP7 apps will be available through the Ovi Store. This means the Ovi Store and Nokia’s app ecosystem will continue in some form.

He also said there are many decisions to be made, but all we Nokia fans want to hurry up the company if it wants to get back all they have lost. So Elop said Nokia is very fast and we will see a new Nokia handsets very soon, maybe he noted their next phone will be launched with the iPhone 5.

Recycle your old Nokia in The UK

Mobile phone recycling has become more main stream with many millions of people in the UK being informed that one can turn in and recycle old mobile phones and electrical gadgets for cash. More companies and websites begin trading online offering people cash bonuses when you chose to sell mobile phones.

What was needed was a comparison site where consumers, or sellers of such items can find out what places are best for them to sell and recycle mobile phone and electrical devices. They can compare the prices offered by each company, saving time and getting the most money possible at the same time as helping the environment.

The mobile phone recycling comparison site has announced the launch of the latest news which includes ipod, ipad, music cds and gold recycling on their site where they will be informing people about the great benefits of recycling mobile phones and all the other types of things you can actually recycle for cash.

Along with showing the companies one can use and more information on them before you do. Helping people make the right decision and best choice for them based on what they might actually want to recycle.

The Mobile Phone Recycling Comparison site has utilized social media as an alternative way to spread the good news that you can.

Symbian Os Going To Die In 2011

The Steve show just ended with both Elop and
Ballmer hosting a very informative media Q&A
following the reveal of Nokia’s plan to use
Windows Phone 7 as its “primary smartphone
platform.” Here are the highlights: No specific announcement for when we’ll see
the first Nokia Windows Phone. Ballmer
mentioned that the engineering teams have
spent a lot of time together already. Elop also confirmed that Nokia is a Finnish
company and always will be — they will not be
moving to Silicon Valley or anywhere else. Ballmer said that the partnership is “not
exclusive” but some things that Microsoft is
doing with Nokia are “unique” allowing Nokia
to differentiate itself in the market. Elop added
that it’s important for the Windows Phone 7
ecosystem to thrive, which means that multiple vendors must succeed. Elop didn’t believe that Nokia could create a
new ecosystem around MeeGo fast enough. Nokia will “substantially reduce” R&D expenditures while increasing R&D productivity moving forward. Nokia did talk with Google about adopting
Android but decided that it “would have
difficulty differentiating within that
ecosystem” and the “commoditization risk was
very high — prices, profits, everything being
pushed down, value being moved out to Google which was concerning to us.” Microsoft
presented the best option for Nokia to resume
the fight in the high end smarpthone segment. Elop clarified that MeeGo will ship this year but
“not as part of another broad smarpthone
platform strategy, but as an opportunity to
learn.” Something that sounds very similar to
position Nokia took with its so-called
“experimental” Maemo-based N900 last year. After the first (and apparently, only) MeeGo
device ships this year, the MeeGo team will
then “change their focus into an exploration of
future platforms, future devices, future user
experiences.” Trying to determine the “next
disruption” in smartphones. Responding to “hope for a broad MeeGo-based
ecosystem,” Elop said that Nokia simply wasn’t
moving fast enough to effectively win and
compete against Apple and Google. Windows
Phone makes it a “three-horse race,”
something that Elop says is pleasing to the carriers he’s been speaking with. Nokia has different options for its tablet
strategy including using something from
Microsoft or something that Nokia has
developed internally.

, it’s clear that Symbian is on its last legs and will be replaced by Windows Phone just as soon as Nokia and Microsoft can make it
happen.

Nokia posts video of Microsoft partnership Wow, we have to hand it those Nokia social
media types, they’re on top of their game. A mere
couple of hours after Stephen Elop and Steve
Ballmer took the stage in London, the video of
their joint announcement of a Nokia-Microsoft
partnership is up and ready for repeated consumption. For those of you just catching up
now, Windows Phone 7 has become Nokia’s
“principal smartphone strategy ,” MeeGo is getting transformed into an experimental “learning”
platform, and Symbian… well, maybe you should
sit down for this one, Symbian’s being killed off . There’s more to the strategic alliance unveiled
today, including the WP7 Marketplace subsuming
the Ovi Store and some Bing and Ovi Maps
interaction, so why not press play above and let
the men in charge tell you about it