Hasta La Gadget!

Lending further gravity to the proposed crackdown being bandied about in British parliament, an Essex teen has been arrested for sending a BBM that ran afoul of the Serious Crime Act of 2007. The 18-year old, now free on bail, allegedly used the service to encourage copycat attacks of the violent rioting that’s swept London, and is set to appear in court on September 1st. It’s the second known case to put RIM’s private messaging service — “popular among urban teenagers” as a cheap texting alternative — in the UK’s legal hotseat. For its part, the Canadian electronics maker has since reached out to police, promising to aid the investigation “in any way [it] can.” Although no decision has yet been made to extend law enforcement’s powers over social media services, such as Twitter and Facebook, arrests like these seem to indicate a murky free speech future.

UK teen arrested for illegal BBM, social media crackdown gains steam originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 13 Aug 2011 01:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Just about every day we’re treated to claims of a device being the “world’s first” or “world’s biggest” or, indeed, “world’s fastest.” Typically we file these stories into the “world’s least exciting” folder in our inbox, but in the UK, Motorola’s advertising wing has really been pushing the “world’s most powerful smartphone” angle for the Atrix. Sharp-eyed UK viewers (one of whom was kind enough to write in to us) aren’t buying it, however, complaining to the nation’s Advertising Standards Authority, the ASA. Citing the Galaxy S II, which has a 1.2GHz processor compared to the Atrix’s 1GHz, the ASA has indicated that the complaint will be upheld, as you can see for yourself after the break. Now, it’s looking like Motorola will have to come up with a new way to market the thing over there. We’d suggest “smartphone most likely to run Firefox in an overpriced laptop dock,” but that doesn’t quite have the same ring to it.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Continue reading UK Advertising Authority takes issue with Atrix’s ‘world’s most powerful smartphone’ status

UK Advertising Authority takes issue with Atrix’s ‘world’s most powerful smartphone’ status originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jul 2011 05:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here’s an interesting titbit: HP’s TouchPad has already begun to ship to speciality shops in the US, but for the pernickety among us, you may know that the company’s first webOS slate hasn’t actually hit the streets of Londontown. Until now, ole chap. The 16GB WiFi model is going for £399, while a doubling of capacity will tack on a few extra quid. It’s available now directly from HP’s webstore, but if mum always criticised your rampant online shopping sprees, we hear aeroplanes and coupés are colourful alternatives for acquisition.

Continue reading HP TouchPad goes on sale in the UK, starts at £399 for 16GB WiFi model

HP TouchPad goes on sale in the UK, starts at £399 for 16GB WiFi model originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia will be entering Q3 free of any direct-to-consumer sales channels in the US and UK. The Finnish smartphone maker shuttered its remaining UK retail stores earlier this month (with the exception of Heathrow Airport, which remains open), and also discontinued sales on its US and UK online stores — joining France, Spain, and The Netherlands, which all went offline last month. We spoke to a former Nokia UK retail employee, who cited poor marketing, high prices, slowing traffic and a high product return rate as a few of the reasons that the stores closed — returns of the N8 and E7 dominated other handsets, with customers complaining of device crashes and corruption, hardware failures, and usability issues. He reports that the stores were also only able to sell devices on Vodafone and T-Mobile, and only Vodafone allowed customers to upgrade in a Nokia store. The majority of customers came into the store for support, rather than to make a purchase.

“The last two months were particularly quiet. Even if the shopping centre was busy, the Nokia store would have perhaps no more than 30 people through the door a day, usually for technical assistance. And that was that, all stores were closed abruptly on June 20th.”

We imagine pricing played a large role in the decision to close the UK and US online stores, just as it did with UK retail and online stores in other countries. Both country’s online stores have been replaced with a closure notice, with the US store directing customers to Amazon, and the UK store referring visitors to eight retail partners, instead.

[Thanks, Karl]

Nokia shutters online and retail stores in UK, US web store originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Jun 2011 11:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Up till now, the ranks of 3D-capable smartphones were neatly organized by territory: Japan had the Sharp Aquos SH-12C, the US had the HTC EVO 3D, and Europe had the LG Optimus 3D. Now it’s all getting a tiny bit messier (and more competitive!) with HTC’s announcement that the EVO 3D has boarded a transatlantic liner and is en route to the green shores of Europa. Available “broadly” across the old continent, this Android 2.3 handset touts a 4.3-inch display with qHD (540 x 960) resolution and an added parallax barrier layer that allows it to deliver a glasses-free 3D effect. We call it an effect because real 3D it ain’t, but at least it’ll allow you to review the three-dimensional pics you snap with the included pair of 5 megapixel autofocus cameras. There’s also a 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon purring within for the performance obsessives and a generous 1730mAh battery — perhaps the biggest advantage that we can see for this phone over the similarly specced (but 3D-less) Sensation. Jump past the break for the full spec sheet and PR or hit up our review to learn just how awesome the EVO 3D’s shutter button really is.

Continue reading HTC EVO 3D landing in Europe next month, two-stage shutter button and all

HTC EVO 3D landing in Europe next month, two-stage shutter button and all originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Jun 2011 06:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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