Hasta La Gadget!

Vodafone, the world’s biggest revenue-generating mobile service provider, is looking to get a bit larger. The company is reportedly looking at acquiring the UK wing of T-Mobile, which is currently valued at $4.2bn-$5.6bn.

Such a move would give Vodafone 40-percent of the UK’s mobile revenue, making it the largest mobile provider in that country, a position currently held by the Telefonica-owned O2, which has a 27-percent market share.The move would likely be subject to a good deal of scrutiny by regulators.

What a difference 18 months makes, eh? The relative short line for today’s iPhone 3G S launch at Apple’s flagship Regent Street store in London could be attributed to any number of factors: the economy, the steep cost of upgrade for iPhone 3G owners, or the fact that Apple allowed for advanced iPhone 3G S orders with home delivery. Or maybe people just aren’t willing to wait in line for a bump in speed, improved graphics, and video recording. We wouldn’t call it apathy but the iPhone halo doesn’t seem as shiny beneath a spotlight now shared with Android and the new Pre. Regardless, the iPhone 3G S is now on sale in the UK and a few more European countries with North America up next after a few degrees of the Earth’s rotation.

Update: According to O2, sales for the 3G S have already surpassed numbers for the iPhone 3G during last year’s launch. So it’s possible that the pre-orders were in full effect here. However, you have to remember that Europe and O2 in the UK in particular had very serious problems meeting demand at the time of the iPhone 3G launch last year. So this statement likely says more about inventory management than it does the demand of the 3G S vs the 3G.

[images courtesy of Richard Lai and mrgeoffb]

Filed under: Cellphones

iPhone 3G S global launch sees smaller lines, quieter reception (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 03:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quite a bit has gone down in the cellular realm since Barcelona opened its beautiful doors to host Mobile World Congress 2009, but how could we ever forget this gem? Samsung’s M7600 Beat DJ is about as close as we’ll ever come to a real live Pilotfish Ondo, and after months of waiting, it’s finally on sale across the pond. Available for purchase right now at O2 UK, the Bang & Olufsen-infused handset packs a 2.6-inch OLED panel, perfect for mixing, scratching and texting your mum when you stay out too late. It’s all yours for between £0.00 and £146.80 ($233) depending on your choice of contract, and if any of you kind, gentle Britons feel like importing a few for the deprived Yanks over here, drop us a note in comments.

[Thanks, Todd]

Samsung’s M7600 Beat DJ music phone on sale at O2 UK originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 23 May 2009 14:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Anticipated for months, Samsung’s first Android phone is finally a (paper) reality after being flushed through the rumor mill just hours ago. Launching “in major European countries from June,” the 11.9-mm slim quad-band GSM, tri-band 7.2Mbps HSDPA (900/1700/2100MHz) candybar packs a 3.2-inch, 320 x 480 pixel AMOLED touchscreen, WiFi, GPS, 5 megapixel camera with Power LED, 1,500mAh battery, 8GB of storage (plus MicroSD expansion for up to 32GB more), and a standard 3.5mm heasdset jack. Step aside HTC, you had your chance, let’s all welcome Samsung to the Android party. Another picture and full press release after the break.

P.S. Although no US announcements have been made, that 1700MHz HSPA frequency could make T-Mobile USA customers very happy.

Continue reading Samsung I7500 with OLED touchscreen powered by Android, dreams

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Samsung I7500 with OLED touchscreen powered by Android, dreams originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Apr 2009 05:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Carriers and Palm have been absolutely silent on the matter, but let’s be honest: there’s very likely been one of the most heated, no-holds-barred wars over the past few months to score European exclusivity on the Pre since the Storm and the iPhone — and with launches broadly expected by mid-year, time is running out to secure a deal. Spanish media is reporting that Telefonica has now locked up that deal, not just for Spain and the UK (where it operates as O2) but for Latin America as well under the Movistar brand. If true, that’d be a nice, big “screw you” to archrival Vodafone, which has the mighty Storm / Magic two-pack under its belt. Even more interesting, though, is the fact that most of Latin America operates 3G on the 850 and 1900MHz bands — the very same used in the US and Canada — which means that our assumptions that the Pre would be 2100-only may have been wrong all along. Awesomely wrong. We wouldn’t get our hopes up that the Pre will be a walk in the park to unlock and use on AT&T or Rogers just yet, but it’s a glimmer of hope that we’ll gladly take.

[Via Palm Infocenter]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Telefonica scores global Pre coup? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Mar 2009 17:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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