Mobile Phone Insurance News

BelAir networks have launched the picocell which is a small outdoor unit which delivers mobile broadband and is a fraction of the cost to install compared to that of erecting new masts.

The units could be a cost effective way to solve the problem of lack of capacity which is causing the network operators headaches with the incredible rise in the use of Smartphones.

The units are very flexible in where they can be put, posts, street furniture, the side of buildings or even underground.

Thus far using smaller boosting stations has presented three issues for network operators, firstly lack of power, locations and backhaul requirments. The new unit get around these issues.The units can help mobile or cable companies route traffic. It can route traffic straight to the 3G network or the Wi-Fi function can direct traffic to the networks 3G core or finally the Wi-Fi can be used to send traffic to the internet bypassing the 3G network altogether

Vodafone, the UK telecoms giant,  have launched a Wi Fi product that allows a PC to become a Wi-Fi conduit for up to five users. The unit fits into a PC or Laptop and allows five users to log onto the surf the internet.

It is ‘free’ on an 18 month contract of £25 per month which includes 5gb of data. The device is called, somewhat blandly: Vodafone Mobile Wi-Fi (R201).

A spokesperson for Vodafone said: ‘More and more devices are coming with Wi-Fi capability and there is a demand for consumers to connect on the move’.

The Carphone Warehouse launched a similar device from Novatel called ‘Mobile Hotspot’ operating on Vodafone and t-Mobile. 3 have had a product out since September 2009 called ‘Mi-Fi’ (Best name).

Orange iPhone uers lose unlimited data

Orange have become the second UK operator to drop the offer of unlimted data for iPhone users. O2 dropped the offer in June of this year. It means that users might face a higher bill in future if they go over the standard limits of 500mb or 1gb. Would it be cynical of us to ask why this move was made on a Monday in the middle of the holiday season in August?

All the network operators are under pressure to upgrade their networks to make sure that customers can use their mobile devices as often as possible.

The increase in Smartphone use has put pressure on capacity of the networks as more and more people use their handsets to download information from the internet.

Samsung Galaxy arriving soon

Samsung are to enter the Tablet market with their new Galaxy device. The Galaxy will be the first Tablet computer to be launched by Samsung and they hope it will compete favourably with the iPad from Apple. Nto that much is known about the device at present however, this is what is rumoured:

- That it is a 3G device.

- It will be launched at the IFA Technology show in Berlin next month.

- It will have a 7 inch 800 x 480 pixel capactive touchscreen.

- It’s operating system will be Android 2.2.

- Wifi.

- Bluetooth & GPS.

-Font and reverse cameras.

Time will tell, if you wish to insure your Samsung Galaxy Tablet then insurance2go will be insuring the devices from launch, our Tablet insurance is hugely competitive and sits well alongside our mobile phone insurance.

Apple iPhone repairs too high?

The Daily Telegraph is reporting that customers are not happy with the price of repairs to iPhones being offered by Apple. The company offers a repairs service but appears to charge a flat fee of £139 per repair that some are saying it far too expensive. Other non Apple repairers are offering the same repair for as little at £39.

The research company Gartner have released figures that show handset sales in quarter 2 have reached 325 million up13% on the same period in 2009.

However, Smartphone sales rose far fast with a surge of 50% in the same period registering sales of 60 million.

Nokia sold 111.5 million units giving them a market share of 34.2%.

RIM sold 11.2 units and Apple 8.2 million.

Interestingly the Android Operating System overtook Apple’s iPhone OS system. Very interesting for all those Application developers.

Insurance2go will of course always be looking to offer mobile phone insurance on all new handsets, keeping customers protected against theft, loss, accidental damage.

Apple upsets ITV with name for their TV platform

Apple and ITV, the UK based broadcaster, are set for a bit of bust up over Apple’s desire to call their new TV set top boxes iTV in line with the names of their other products all having the prefix ‘i’.

Apple’s newest generation of set top boxes will come with enhanced services such as: internet connectivity, iTunes and the ability to download apps.

E Reader sales soar

Figures from GFK suggest that EReaders are becoming more and more popular. A leap of 150% in sales in the last 10 months shows that consumers are finally taking the plunge and buying into the new technology.

GfK said: ‘As ereaders become readily available with greater brand choice and the market moves to more affordable price points, the product category is set to flourish in the coming months with trends showing that sales could reach around 250,000 per annum within the next two years.’

Tesco launch a SIM only £6 a month deal

Tesco, the omnipresent retail giant, has launched a £6 a month SIM only deal. A prety compelling offer given that this includes £100 minutes and unlimited texts messages.

Tesco Telecoms CEO Lance Batchelor said ‘This deal is ideal for a younger market or any text addict out there who doesn’t want to have to fork out a large amount each month but still wants to use their mobile to their hearts content’.

The people who take up this kind of offer really need to consider protecting their mobile phone with mobile phone insurance - the reason being they are using an existing handset and were they to have their’s stolen, damaged or lost then they’d have nothing to use.

Orange to stock the Nokia N8

Orange are the first to announce that they will stock the Nokia N8 handset, their new flagship phone, which launches in Q3 of this year. Nokia are desperate that this new handset is seen as a competitior to Apple’s all conquering iPhone.

France Telecom looks to buy into Meditel

France Telecom is looking to buy a stake in Meditel, the Moroccan Telecoms group. The move would see it moving into a new market and competing with Vivendi who own Maroc Telecom.

Rivals to the iPad line up to be the next to launch

Rivals to Apple are lining up to launch their own versions of a Tablet computer to rival the iPad. Last week Rupert Murdoch said he believed that the iPad and therefore Table PCs are ‘a game changer’ and he is pushing his iPad friendly site of the Times newspaper very hard. To get customers to subscribe to an online version of a paper that automatically downloads to a Tablet pc would save the newspaper industry millions in printing and distribution.

Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer said that developing a talebt computer is their ‘job one urgency’. Alongside Microsoft, it is widely rumoured that Google is working on a tablet pc.

The two manufacturers most likely to launch soon are RIM with their Blackpad device rumoured to be launching in November of this year and Samsung are also said to be nearing the launch of a device that would have a Tablet pc functionality on one side and an eBook reader on the reverse.

Other manufacturers said to the working on devices include: LG, Nokia, Motorola and HTC.

Insurance2go offers iPad insurance along side their mobile phone insurance priducts and naturally the pricing will be extended to the new products when they launch.

Fone Solutions goes into complusory liquidation

Fone Solutions, the dealer based in the North East, has gone into compulsory liquidation. The company has been struggling for a while.

In 2008, O2 issued a ‘do not deal’ with notice on the dealer and recently they have been dropped by Vodafone and T-Mobile.

New Apple store captures the imagination

The new Apple store in Covent Garden attracted a staggering 4,000 people in the first four hours of trading when it opened last Saturday. The store is Apple’s 300th worldwide and its 28th in the UK.

The ground floor boasts the following specialised areas: the Mac Zone, the iPad Zone, the iPhone Zone, iPod Zone. The first floor has a start up area where customers can get help with their new products and the second floor has a business centre.

Skype hopes to raise $100 million from an IPO

Skype, the voice over internet service, is planning to raise a cool $100 million from an IPO. The company has miilions of users but has never been that profitable given the majority of users simply use the free services.Of the 600 million  registered users worldwide only 8 million use a ‘paid for’ service.

Apple and Google could go head to head in advertising war

The two most powerful companies in mobile phones are heading for a bit of a bust up over advertising. Apple are selling the kit and Google is the preferred search engine for the majority of users. Google is hoping to use the Smartphone market as a new significant area for paid advertising, this might not fit in with Apple’s plans. Watch this space as new develops.

What is clear is that mobile phone insurance on all Smartphones can be purchased from insuranc2go.co.uk - great value pricing and a quality product.

The distributer Brightstar is to break into the Dutch and Belgium markets via the purchase of MCC (Mobile Communication Company). MCC is currently part of Triade Group and concentrates in IT and consumer electronic distribution. The company already has contracts with HTC, LG, Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Samsung.

The purchase, that needs approval from the EU, will be the second aquisition by Brighstar in the last 3 months. Earlier in the year they aquired the Austrian distributor AKL.

Brightstar now operates in 13 European countries.