HTC dominates UK Android handsets
More than half of the Android phones in the UK are from HTC, according to the latest ComScore data, with the Taiwanese giant pushing Samsung into a distant second place.
ComcScore's MobiLens research into the five biggest European markets provides an insight into the UK market share enjoyed by major handset manufacturers.
Almost 20 million Android handsets are being used in those countries (UK, Spain, France, Italy Germany), with the UK the biggest market with 6.3 million users.
HTC tops the chart with a whopping 50.9 per cent of the market, with Samsung on 21.6 per cent.
Best of the rest
Sony Ericsson has a significant portion of the remainder (14.2%) with LG taking 3.5 per cent and Motorola 2.1 per cent.Those figures suggest that HTC has provided in excess of 3.2 million handsets in the UK, with Samsung on around 1.3 million and Sony Ericsson on 894,000.
That leaves LG with around 220,000 and Moto on slightly over 132,000.
Interestingly, other major European nations tell a very different story. France has Samsung holding top spot with 42.3 per cent of its market, and the Korean company is also top in Italy, Germany and Spain.
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Exclusive: James Cameron: tablets will push 3D into the home
Tablets, laptops and desktop PCs are the key to 3D becoming mainstream in the home, according to director James Cameron, who sees these as the devices to deliver glasses-free 3D content which will become part of our daily lives.
Speaking to TechRadar at IBC, Cameron explained that while movies had done their job to get 3D recognised as a viable format for content, glasses-free 3D on tablets and other portable devices will show consumers that 3D shouldn't always be associated with glasses, and these will fill this role until autostereoscopic TVs finally make their way into homes.
Daily 3D diet
Talking about the eventual mass adoption of 3D, Cameron said to TechRadar: "We can't wait for glasses free 3D TVs. We can't wait for autostereoscopic displays, because right now the quality on them is too poor."There is a lot of technology that has to be worked out before we have high quality, full resolution autostereoscopic screens that are big screens, in the 40, 50, 60-inch range.
"Now smaller screens that are in the desktop, laptop, tablet size, where it is basically a single user model, you can do those right now. And you are going to see a lot more of those products coming to market over the next year and so.
"Then people will realise that 3D doesn't equal glasses, 3D only equals glasses in certain circumstances. And I think ultimately the tablets and laptops, people can toggle between 2D and 3D, and it will just become part of their diet."
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Android Market weather apps the most profitable
If you want to make money on the Android Market, then the best apps to create are weather ones.
This is according to a new study by Research2Guidance, which has taken a look at all the app categories on the Android Market to see which one offers the best profit.
According to the research, weather apps are significantly more profitable than games, with the average revenue of a paid weather app coming in at $22,000, while games make around the $5,000 mark.
And don't even think about creating an app for the multimedia market as the monetisation of these is pretty paltry, with each app garnering just $300 revenue.
Weathering the storm
"On average, weather apps have generated the highest total revenue from paid downloads. Part of the reason for this is that the selection is limited, and it's really a must-have app for every smartphone user," said the research.The reason gaming apps don't make as much money is because of "intense competition in the gaming space" which has significantly diminished revenue.
According to Research2Guidance, an average paid-for Android app on the market will make around $2,500 – a far cry from the billions Angry Birds brings in but a realistic number for any budding app developer.
As for the amount of apps on the Android Market, it is reckoned that Google is close to 6 billion total downloads. Just last week it was noted that Android apps will take over iOS apps for the first time in 2011.
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Android Market weather apps the most profitable around
If you want to make money on the Android Market, then the best apps to create are weather ones.
This is according to a new study by Research2Guidance, which has taken a look at all the app categories on the Android Market to see which one offers the best profit.
According to the research, weather apps are significantly more profitable than games, with the average revenue of a paid weather app coming in at $22,000, while games make around the $5,000 mark.
And don't even think about creating an app for the multimedia market as the monetisation of these is pretty paltry, with each app garnering just $300 revenue.
Weathering the storm
"On average, weather apps have generated the highest total revenue from paid downloads. Part of the reason for this is that the selection is limited, and it's really a must-have app for every smartphone user," said the research.The reason gaming apps don't make as much money is because of "intense competition in the gaming space" which has significantly diminished revenue.
According to Research2Guidance, an average paid-for Android app on the market will make around $2,500 – a far cry from the billions Angry Birds brings in but a realistic number for any budding app developer.
As for the amount of apps on the Android Market, it is reckoned that Google is close to 6 billion total downloads. Just last week it was noted that Android apps will take over iOS apps for the first time in 2011.
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Hands on: Fusion Garage Grid 10 review
Fusion Garage Grid 10
The Fusion Garage Grid 10 is an Android tablet unlike any other.Of that there is absolutely no question.
It uses a new operating system called Grid OS, which is only related to other Android tablets in that it's built on top of the Android kernel. The kernel is the basic central component of the OS, which acts as the communications bridge between the apps and the hardware.
The upshot of this to the user is that the graphical user interface is completely different to any version of Android, but it still has the capacity to run Android apps. We'll come back to that a little further down the page.
Fusion Garage's Chandra Rathakrishnan with the Grid 10The Grid 10 is fairly standard-sized for a 10.1-inch tablet. It weighs 689g, and is powered by the familiar Nvidia Tegra 2 chip. There's only 512MB of memory in there though, no rear-facing camera (there is a 1.3MP front-facing snapper) and only 16GB storage.
It's only 14mm thick, which is pretty good for a budget tablet with a screen this size.
The screen is sharp, with a resolution of 1366x768 which makes it higher than the iPad. However, in general the screen is one of the areas where this tablet appears to fall down. Vivid and bright this tablet is not, even with settings on maximum. It's not awful - it's just not in the same league as the more expensive Galaxy Tab 10.1 or the iPad 2 in this regard.
So far, so ho-hum then on the specs, then. But there are two trump cards up this tablet's microSD slot.
The first is the aforementioned Grid OS. The second is the price – this tablet is set to cost just £259 when it gets released at the end of October. That will jump to £359 for the 3G model when it's ready – still an attractive price.
The market is crying out for a useable tablet for less than £300 and we might just have one here.
Grid OS
In place of a homescreen, Grid OS uses a giant never-ending grid where you can place your app icons. You can group these together in clusters, or leave them individually. Clusters can be expanded or minimised using one tap.
The Grid is many times bigger than the Grid 10's 10.1-inch display, which means lots of scrolling around. It's like playing some kind of 2D strategy game in space. There's a grid map at the top right of the screen, so if you tap that in the right place you'll skip straight to the cluster of apps that you want to access.
And here our problems begin.
Performance-wise, this all works pretty well – it's smooth, which is the main thing. But is it better than the standard Android/iOS method of grouping apps together on homescreens and menus? Of course it isn't. It's prettier, it's different and it's more fun – but it's not better and it definitely isn't quicker.
Grid OS requires that you know your device inside-out. You need an intimate knowledge of where your 'games' cluster is for instance, or which way you'll need to scroll if you want to get to your browser.
For this reason we foresee the novelty of the Grid wearing off after a while.
The OS is lubricated by a never-ending selection of what Fusion Garage likes to call 'motion picture-class animations' which make the process of expanding clusters, or opening menus look fluid and fun. It makes the whole experience appear more seamless, and more like an OS from the future – but again there is a novelty element in play here and we can see it getting old, especially if it ends up impacting battery life.
Another big part of the Grid OS is its ability to deliver information to your brain with the minimum amount of effort. Select a movie title on a web page, and you'll be presented with a list of options including links to search the web, to view film's page on IMDB or Wikipedia, or to buy the DVD on Amazon. To do this it uses a feature called 'Intelligence' – named entirely without irony by someone who has almost certainly never seen Team America.
It's a compelling idea, and in the short time we had to play with the device, it seemed to work well. However, it does use Bing for its search which is curious and disappointing, especially as there is no way to change this.
Gestures
The Grid 10 has something in common with the stillborn HP TouchPad in that it uses gestures to navigate between screens. Unlike the BlackBerry PlayBook, the bezel is not part of the touch surface, and the gestures don't seem as robust as on the PlayBook either.
The gestures will maximise a screen, minimise back to the Grid, go back or go forward. All standard fair, but in our demo these gestures seemed to cause a few problems.
Even when our hosts from Fusion Garage were using the device, gestures would misfire with alarming regularity. It's a common problem with touch-based gestures (ever used the Microsoft Touch Mouse?) and we get the feeling it might get a bit annoying after extended use.
Apps
It should be mentioned that while the Grid 10 comes with many built-in apps for the likes of reading email and watching videos, it's missing the official Google apps you'd find on other Android tablets.
This means there's no access to the Android Market, and there never will be. However, you can still use the Amazon Appstore and Fusion Garage will shortly be launching its own App shop, so you probably wouldn't be inconvenienced hugely – it's still likely to be a bit of a pain though.
General performance
In terms of the overall feel of the Grid OS, our experiences were positive. The browser was good, scrolling and pinch-to-zoom was all fluid without any re-draws or stuttering. So actually, it's really not hard to imagine people getting on with this tablet.
It won't be for everyone, and it has its flaws, but you know what? At just £259 the Fusion Garage Grid 10 has the potential to be the device that really kick-starts the budget tablet market. And considering this is the company that brought us the JooJoo, that's pretty astonishing.
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Ofcom bans rollover contracts for broadband customers
Ofcom has announced a significant change to rollover contracts for landline and broadband users, making it illegal for companies to renew a minimum contract period without consent.
At the moment, a broadband provider can roll over a customer's contract and renew their minimum contract period without notification.
This means that unless the customer realises they are in a 30-day opt out period the contract will be renewed and they will face a fine if they try and leave their provider early.
Ofcom's new ruling means that, as of December, landline and broadband providers will have to notify customers that their contract is coming to an end, giving users sufficient time to choose to renew their contract or look for a cheaper deal elsewhere.
Contract termination
If you are currently on one of these contracts, however, providers will have until 2012 to push you on to another contract – it is only the sale of this type of contract to new users that has to be stopped by December 2011.Ofcom believes that around 15 per cent of people in the UK are on an Automatically Renewable Contract (ARCs), so this change is one that will affect many.
Speaking about the new ruling, Ofcom Chief Executive, Ed Richards, said: "Ofcom's evidence shows that ARCs raise barriers to effective competition by locking customers into long term deals with little additional benefit.
"Our concern about the effect of ARCs and other 'lock in' mechanisms led to our decision to ban them in the communications sector."
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Review: Orange Monte Carlo
Overview, design and feel
When Orange released its San Francisco, we were bowled over. It was a great handset for a budget price, and it continues to be the standard by which we evaluate any Android phone that hovers around the £100 mark.The Monte Carlo is a slightly different proposition in that it costs £150 on Orange Pay As You Go, making it a much more expensive handset than the San Francisco was at launch. You can also get it on an Orange contract for free.
And if you like the sound of what you read here, look out for the ZTE Skate – it's the same phone, but it's currently priced at around £250 SIM-free. If you go for that option, then bear in mind that there are some Orange-specific features on the Monte Carlo that won't be on the ZTE Skate.
Orange's price puts the Monte Carlo in the realms of the Acer Liquid Mini, the oddly designed Motorola Flipout and the non-Android BlackBerry Curve 8520.
So, what do you get for your money?
Well, on the face of it, you get roughly what you ought to for the money. There's a vast 4.3-inch screen, with 800 x 480 pixels resolution on offer. But the screen isn't as bright or sharp as some, its TFT-LCD making it almost unreadable outside in bright sunshine.
You've got the usual Wi-Fi, HSDPA and GPS connectivity, a 5MP camera and Android 2.3 operating system, so the Monte Carlo is pretty up to date.
At the heart of this smartphone is an 800MHz processor. It's not up there with speedy dual-core types, but for a phone this cheap we can't really grumble.
Construction-wise, things are OK but not wonderful. This is a big handset, measuring 125.9 x 67.8 x 10.4mm, but it's relatively light, weighing 120g. That's accounted for by the cheap plastic build, which feels ever so slightly creaky in the hand.
It's not flimsy enough to worry us too much – with the exception of the back plate, which is rather thin. You'll need to take care when you remove it, which you'll need to do in order to access the microSD card slot – which you have to annoyingly take the battery out to access.
The back plate itself is a shiny fingerprint magnet, and the front screen is barely better. Beneath it are three teeny lozenge-shaped buttons for Home, Menu and Back. The Back button doubles up as a charge indicator with red and green backlighting, and an alert light with a flashing green light.
The 3.5mm headset connector is neatly placed on top of the phone, a volume rocker is on the left and the main power switch and micro USB slot are both on the right-hand edge.
Interface
Orange can't keep its little fingers away from Android, and the basic Android 2.3 look has been hidden away under the Orange overlay on the Monte Carlo.
We always find Orange's skin rather uninspiring. The black and orange wallpaper is gloomy. Yes, you can change it, but out of the box it's a bit of a downer.
There are five home screens, and a quick stab of the Home button gets you a thumbnail view of them all so you can quickly move to whichever one you want if scrolling around feels like it takes too long.
Beneath each of the home screens there's a permanent bank of four shortcuts that take you to the main apps menu, messages, the dial pad and contacts. It's not a new idea, but it is one we like. We do wish that Orange could design icons we found nicer to look at, though.
This being an Android handset, you've got plenty of apps to play with through the Android Market. Orange adds its own apps and widgets to the range, and separates them out in the menu so you can easily see which are from Orange and which are native to Android.
It does get a bit confusing, though, especially for Android novices. Orange has its own apps for Contacts, Mail, Messages, Weather, Clocks and Alarms, and you'll find duplicates for many of these when you look in the Android apps folder.
You'll have to experiment to find which ones you like best and which apps you can do without. We really like the Orange messaging app. It shows incoming texts, and little side icons enable you to see a summary view, start composing immediately or jump into the main messaging app.
Among the many extras Orange includes is its Gestures app. This enables you to open apps using – you've guessed it – onscreen gestures.
There are oodles of gestures to choose from, so you can go to town assigning screen sweeps to apps, bookmarks, contacts, music playlists and more, then trying to remember which action you assigned to which gesture.
It's irritating that you have to be on one of the home screens for a gesture to be recognised, though.
Operation is pretty slick on the whole. With the 800MHz processor powering things along under the hood, it's probably going to be OK for day to day use – but be prepared for a spot of slowdown if you continually open up reams of applications.
Contacts and calling
We'll make one notable point right at the start of this section. The Orange Monte Carlo incorporates Orange HD Voice. This is an Orange proprietary technology that's designed to help make calls clearer.
HD Voice claims to reduce external noises, which is great if you're outside in loud streets. But both you and the person you're calling need to have HD Voice handsets for it to work. And you both need to be connected to 3G at the time.
During our testing we only made one call to another known HD Voice user, and that was from a fairly quiet location. But we did notice that the call had slightly better quality. To be honest, though, in everyday use, we aren't sure HD Voice is enough to make you want to buy this handset on its own.
For non-HD Voice calls, general sound quality was fine.
Signal strength was a bit iffy though. Our regular handset is on Orange and sitting at home its three bars of strength were matched by two bars on the Monte Carlo. We saw similarly relatively low-strength signal elsewhere too.
We were very surprised to see that the Orange Monte Carlo takes a laid-back attitude towards incorporating Twitter and Facebook data into contacts. So laid-back that it isn't there.
Go to Contacts and scroll through to the place where you 'Add Account' and you can fill in a contact's Exchange, Yahoo!, Hotmail or Google email address details.
But not Facebook or Twitter.
Moreover, there are no apps on board for handling either of these popular social networking tools. You can download them from the Android Market, of course, but out of the box the Orange Monte Carlo is a social networking abyss.
Contacts can be scooped up from Gmail, copied across from your SIM card or entered manually, and if you take the latter route you can add in a fair bit of information about each individual. Just not their Facebook or Twitter details. Did we mention that?
Smart dialling is supported, so as you tap away on the dial pad, matches are shown with their matching letters in red, the rest in white. To place a call, just hit the name of the contact.
Thankfully the larger screen makes all of this a very finger-friendly process.
There's nothing surprising about the dial pad, which looks very familiar. The loudspeaker is loud enough for use indoors, although in noisy outside environments it might be tricky to hear the caller.
Messaging
With no Facebook or Twitter integration built into the Orange Monte Carlo out of the box, you've got none of the fancy social media integration you get with some smartphones.Out of the box, then, messaging boils down to email, SMS and instant messaging via Orange Messenger (powered by Windows Live).
Orange Messenger charges its Pay As You Go customers the princely sum of 5p per message sent.
If you fancy trying it, then you can sign in to Hotmail, MSN, Live, Orange or Wannado accounts and trial Orange Messenger for a rather ungenerous three free days.
When it comes to texting, there's a predictive text system going on to help speed up typing.
We found we didn't resort to it very often, though, because the keyboard is extremely comfortable, speedy and responsive in both portrait and landscape modes.
Threaded messaging is supported, and if you switch into landscape mode you see less of your messaging history, but the keyboard is bigger and easier to use, and the predictive text line is still present.
If you want to set up a non-Gmail personal email account to access, you may want to use the pre-configured settings for a number of popular email providers, including Sky, TalkTalk, Tiscali, and even the Orange-bought Freeserve. Does anyone still have a Freeserve email account?
Initially, it seems as though email is divided into the two usual Android pockets of Gmail in one app and email from the rest in another app. There are separate icons for each of these in the apps list.
However, things aren't quite what they seem. Hit the Gmail icon and you do indeed simply get to view your Gmail messages. Opt instead for the Mail icon and your inboxes are aggregated so you can switch between them.
So, that's Gmail in two separate places on one handset, then.
A word of warning about all this. Enter email addresses via the Settings area rather than in the Mail app itself. If you do the latter, it seems Orange sets you up for a trial of Mobile Mail, a service that starts charging you for use after a trial period. Very naughty, Orange.
Internet
Of course the Orange Monte Carlo has HSDPA built in, and Wi-Fi too, so you can use either to get onto the internet. The 4.3-inch screen with its 480 x 800 pixel resolution makes looking at web pages a treat.
It's a bit annoying that the home page is Orange World, but it's easy to reset this to any page.
The TechRadar home page is a complex one for small smartphones, but it renders well on the large screen of the Orange Monte Carlo. Initial loading quickly gives you a readable screen that you can pan around, and it looks good in both portrait and landscape formats.
A double-tap zooms you out to a full page view, which in many instances will be just about readable.
Text reflowing is very good. If you use the small zoom buttons that appear at the bottom-right of the screen when you tap it, you can get in really close, with full text reflow in operation. However, pinching and zooming sadly doesn't yield the same results, so best to use buttons for reading text at your preferred size.
Or, of course, you can get to a more sensible text size for reading.
Despite having an 800MHz processor, the Orange Monte Carlo doesn't have Flash support. This is a big disappointment, because the large screen really does lend itself to watching streamed video embedded into web pages.
The YouTube client presents no problems, with content streaming really well and the large screen doing a great job.
Yes it's an LCD-TFT, so the colours can lack the vibrancy of an AMOLED screen, but it's perfectly viewable, if a little washed out.
We do, however, have to say that if you're outside the screen can become unreadable. And the brighter the sunlight, the more trouble you're in. It's a problem we came up against on more than one occasion.
Camera
The camera is one area where the Orange Monte Carlo disappoints.
Photos are shot at 5MP. The lens, which does have a small LED flash built in to help out a little with indoor low-light shooting, sits right against one edge of the chassis, and we accidentally covered it sometimes, making shooting tricky.
We found when shooting videos and taking photos outside that the screen was almost impossible to see in bright lighting conditions. Point and click often turned into "point, guess and click", because framing videos and still images was really difficult.
On the plus side, the controls are easily accessible via onscreen icons, although you have to scroll down through quite a long list to adjust some settings.
There are very few effects, with just mono, sepia and negative on board. You've got some white balance settings too – the usual range of auto, incandescent, daylight, fluorescent and cloudy.
SUNNY: This photo was taken on a reasonably sunny day, and you can see that the camera has trouble rendering the bright sky and darkish background
See the full-res image
CONFUSED: The sun was behind us when we took this close up photo and the camera really struggles to differentiate light and shade
See the full-res image
REASONABLE: A fairly nice shot, though the yellow of the flowers was brighter than the photo suggests
See the full-res image
BLACK-AND-WHITE: Trying out the filters, the black and white option works well
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SEPIA: The sepia filter turns our yellow flowers into a more faded version of their former selves
See the full-res image
NEGATIVE: Negative mode does what you'd expect, and produces this spooky floral display
See the full-res image
Video
The video camera on the Orange Monte Carlo is rather hamstrung with VGA as its top resolution. It's unlikely you'll want to take any videos for widespread sharing at that resolution, although they look alright when shown on the handset itself.
Media
We've already looked at the YouTube capabilities of the Orange Monte Carlo, and there's plenty more on offer, in the shape of an FM radio and music playback.
You've also got MediaShare for Wi-Fi sharing of video, audio and images. This worked well when we used it over our home Wi-Fi connection, and we happily streamed music from our main computer to the Orange Monte Carlo.
The music player on board is the standard Android offering, with no connected options such as lyrics download. It failed to pick up album art from our SD card, but the controls are obvious enough with large and easy to press buttons.
There's one control that does look a bit different, though, and this turns Dolby Mobile sound enhancement on and off. It does actually make quite a difference when listening to music through the Orange Monte Carlo speaker, improving the quality considerably compared to the standard settings.
There weren't any headphones with our review handset, but when we used a mid-range set of our own we still found the output to be quite fuzzy, even with the Dolby Mobile sound system turned on.
Dolby Mobile includes an equaliser that has a small effect on sound quality, but this isn't a handset you'll want to choose if you like really good-quality music playback.
The FM radio on the Orange Monte Carlo is rather poorly featured. It doesn't seem to have auto seek and store, so that you have to run through frequencies to find stations manually. Then you drag these frequencies from a box at the top of the screen onto an area beneath, where they're saved.
There's no RDS, and you can't rename frequencies to represent station names. It's a poor show.
Video playback is a better story. Videos are picked up from the Android Gallery and from a separate Video app. If you choose the latter it'll list all the videos on the handset ready for playing. However, be warned it only supports MP4 and H.264 video formats. AVI, DivX, WMV and Xvid need not apply.
Our MP4s played fine, but we've mentioned throughout this review, the LCD TFT doesn't offer the most vibrant of screens and in sunlight it's extremely difficult to see the screen.
Battery life and connectivity
The Orange Monte Carlo is supplied with a 1400mAh battery. This might seem a bit underpowered for driving such a large screen, but the 800MHz processor is less of a drain than faster variants are, and we found the battery surprisingly robust.
For the record, Orange says the battery makes the Orange Monte Carlo good for up to 288 hours on standby and five hours of talk time.
We managed to get a day of use out of it, which we don't always do – it's pretty much bang in the 'morning to night' smartphone range 95% of the market is offering us, so be warned if you're heading off-piste... you'll need a charger.
And we think if you're light with the GPS, Wi-Fi, 3G web browsing and regular processes such as email collection you should get a day and a half between charges. That's quite good going.
Connectivity is plentiful, with HSDPA, Wi-Fi and GPS all here, as well as Bluetooth. We've also mentioned the MediaShare media server, which enables you to listen to music and look at videos and images stored elsewhere over your Wi-Fi network.
Maps and apps
We mentioned in the Interface section of this review that Orange pre-installs some apps of its own on the Monte Carlo, which provide similar functions to the Android ones. The same can be said of both maps and apps.This can make for quite some confusion, and we really wish Orange would leave well alone with its own extras and let Android do the talking.
On the maps front you've got Google Maps and Orange Maps. They provide similar functions, but Google maps is much more feature rich, entirely free, and we'd stick with that.
Orange seems to have gone mad with apps. As well as its own such as Orange Wednesdays and Orange Photo for uploading to online storage, there are some games including good old Tetris and The Sims 3.
There are also some other productivity-style apps including Documents to Go for viewing – but not editing – Word, Excel, Powerpoint and PDF documents, a useful file manager, stopwatch, and a nice Note Pad app.
Orange also has its own app market, and there are widgets on the menu screen linking to what it calls the App shop, Games store, and Ringtones store. Thanks Orange, but this makes the menu section rather cluttered.
Moreover, there's a memory issue. The Orange Monte Carlo comes with 512MB of storage memory. When we checked our review handset there was just 118MB free for your own apps – not enough if you want to download the average amount of Market frippery – we suspect you'll be moving a fair few applications to memory card.
Hands on gallery
Official gallery
Verdict
The Orange Monte Carlo left us with a fair bit to whinge about, but in reality you are paying £150 for it, and at that price you have to expect some compromises.
It doesn't wow us the way the San Francisco did, but to be frank it is a good value Android smartphone nonetheless, and measures up well against competition at the same price. Our main major gripe is the lack of Flash.
We liked
The screen is large and responsive, and it's great for viewing video and reading web pages – much more than we'd expect for the money.
The MediaShare app is nicely implemented and easy to use, making streaming content from your main computer or server really easy – connection might be a bit confusing for the uninitiated, but it's simple enough to navigate through.
The 800MHz processor pumps along quite speedily. We didn't feel held up by it at all – you might be paying a lot less than you might for a dual core phone, but the performance belies the price tag.
We disliked
The screen is almost unreadable in bright sunny conditions outside, although it is readable on duller days – perhaps this is where Orange has saved the most money, but be ready for it and keep it up at full brightness before you venture through the door.
The microSD card can only be swapped out if you remove the battery first, which makes hot swapping media difficult. However, it's unlikely many PAYG users will frequently use this function, so it might not be a really big deal. There's no support for Flash though... it's a gripe as we're fans of it on phones that seem equally as powerful.
The camera is disappointing, particularly in video mode, which is stuck at VGA resolution – another area of cost saving we guess, and the frame rate is smooth enough to be more than acceptable.
Orange goes overboard with its apps and widgets, and for the most part we'd rather they weren't included. Sadly the included storage is simply abysmal... we wager most people will run out of app space in the first month or two, so a decent microSD purchase is a must.
Verdict
It's a shame that the Orange Monte Carlo isn't the great 'wow' handset that the Orange San Francisco was, but it isn't a bad phone for all that. At the price we think it is a good buy.
But the San Francisco is now £75, and remains a very tempting purchase if funds are tight.
There are some technical specs that we find strange – low memory for apps being a big one – and some that make sense (the screen is poor, but savings have to be made).
For an early entry into the world of the larger-screened smartphones, this is definitely worth a look.
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Updated: Best Android phone - which should you buy?
Best Android phone: 10-6
Our verdict on the best Android phones - constantly updatedThere's one key way in which Android is massively different from its Apple-branded smartphone competition - the number of phones out there running Google's hot mobile OS.
Samsung makes loads of them. Sony Ericsson makes a few. Then you've got Android-powered phones from Acer, LG, Huawei and many others, while HTC releases more in a month than all the rest added together manage in a year.
The many variations in screen size, processor power, software features and design makes finding the best Android phone for you extremely tough.
Do you physically and emotionally need a QWERTY keyboard? Are you the sort of oddball who prefers the rough pressing needed to make resistive touchscreens work? Are you struggling to work out which are the best Android Widgets? Or even stuck wondering: 'Actually, what IS Android?'
To help find the best Android phone for you, we've rounded up the ten best Android handsets out there today, rating the phones on hardware performance, OS upgrade potential and, of course, how shiny and nice they are to have and boast about to work colleagues.
So here they are - the ten best Android phones money can buy today. For many, many different reasons.
10. Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini
It is indeed very mini, but Sony Ericsson has performed a tech miracle in squeezing a capable 1GHz processor into its tiny chassis. The Xperia Mini runs Android 2.3, enhanced significantly by the company's user interface, which adds lots of style and extra functionality to Google's on-fire mobile OS.
The email app with its resizing preview pane is as sexy as an email app is ever likely to get, the jiggling app drawer edit screen (with the ability to delete apps right from the listing) is very nice, plus you get themes, a cool power off animation and much, much more.
The screen's responsive, text appears sharp, the camera capable of producing good stills and passable 720p video footage. It does it all in an impressively condensed package.
Quick verdict:
Small, and very nearly, perfectly formed. If you can live with seeing the world through a small-ish 3" screen, it's a great, highly usable smartphone.
9. Motorola Atrix
Another of 2011's dual-core phones. A huge 1930mAh battery makes this a bulkier handset than the likes of the Galaxy S II or Xperia Arc, but then again it's nice to have the reassurance of extra longevity. Motorola's Motoblur user interface won't be to everyone taste, visually speaking, but if you can live with the odd colour choices the numerous widgets offer good functionality - and many are resizable.
Elsewhere you get a snappy 5 MP camera that produces acceptable results and records 720p video, a front-facing camera for video chat, fingerprint recognition and DLNA support for streaming media.
Motorola's crazy "Lapdock" accessory turns the Atrix into something resembling a netbook, but Android isn't ideal for working with and editing documents, so it's not a killer feature. Weird laptop aspirations aside, Atrix is a comprehensive and versatile device.
Quick verdict:
Big and powerful, the Atrix is fast to use with a very sharp 4" screen. Arriving with Android 2.2 onboard is a bit of a faux pas as far as enthusiasts are concerned, though.
8. LG Optimus Black
Somehow the single-core Optimus Black manages to offer a smoother, less glitchy experience than the company's more powerful, dual-core Optimus 2X, also squeezing Android 2.2 into a super-skinny body a shade over 9mm thick.
The 480x800 resolution, 4" screen is the highlight, beaming out extra bright thanks to LG's NOVA technology and making text, web and images appear vibrant and sharp – even outdoors.
LG's custom user interface is a simple, swift option, that borrows and redesign's widget ideas from Samsung and HTC to good effect, plus there's an extra gesture input system that lets you use shakes and waves to control a few functions.
The latter is a weird novelty you're unlikely to use, but it helps the Optimus Black sell itself as something more unusual and innovative than most other black slab smartphones.
Quick verdict:
Just as glamorous as the top-spec phones by Samsung and HTC, with an excellent screen and enough power to keep it relevant for a year or two - plus a lower price too. Unlikely to be a huge seller, but one to keep an eye on if you want a super-slim alternative.
7. HTC ChaCha
We've been waiting a long time for a QWERTY Android phone to really hit the sweet spot - the ChaCha just about gets there. The white "Facebook phone" comes with a very workable physical keyboard, with chunky, well spaced, rubberised keys making it one of the most usable QWERTYs around outside of the BlackBerry world.
With Android 2.3.3 onboard, the ChaCha is about as up-to-date as you can get, plus HTC's smooth Sense interface has been nicely tweaked to fill a landscape display.
The 2.6" screen means the ChaCha won't be ideal for gamers and web use is a little limited – and further restricted by the phone not supporting Adobe's Flash Player - but for messaging addicts and Facebook fans that need a solid, physical keyboard, it's ideal.
Quick verdict:
The Facebook button is little more than a novelty shortcut to the standard Android Facebook app. What you're paying for here is a solid HTC phone with a great keyboard, while the small screen means big battery life.
6. Google Nexus S
The first Android 2.3 phone is also one of the first with NFC capabilities and a curved Super AMOLED screen from Samsung. The build quality might feel a little suspect at first, but is robust enough and sits in the hand well, and that screen is just superb for the internet and media.
Quick verdict
A 'no frills' handset that delivers on the specs - an affordable and practical phone for the developer and 'Pure Google' lover alike.
Best Android phone: 5-1
5. HTC Incredible S
Yet another solid 2011 Android phone from HTC. The Incredible S comes with a 4" Super LCD screen, making it resemble the Desire S' larger brother.
As well as the screen size boost there's a more impressive camera, with the 8 MP sensor and LED flash doing a good job of improving HTC's rather poor reputation in the camera area.
You also get a front-facing 1.3 MP second camera for the novelty that is video chat, plus a larger-than-usual 1450mAh battery keeps it lasting longer than 2010's HTC Desire HD, too.
Quick verdict:
Feels like all the other HTC phones – rock solid, smooth in operation and with a better camera than HTC usually manages.
4. HTC Desire S
This time last year the HTC Desire was the cutting-edge "superphone" of choice, now its enhanced sequel is an affordable mid-range option.
That's how fast things move in the Android world. But don't dismiss the Desire S because of its workmanlike approach. What you get here is a solid phone with a great 3.7" screen, powered by Android 2.3 and HTC's updated Sense 2.1 user interface. The result is a very slick and smooth experience.
The camera is sadly a weak point, though, offering the same blotchy 5 MP output as the original Desire. But apart from that, everything here's a little better than in last year's Desire. Which makes this a fantastic smartphone and a great entry to Android.
Quick verdict:
A superb update of the HTC Desire. Slightly smaller and a little faster, it's a perfect gradual evolution of 2010's smash. Available on some very cheap contracts, too.
3. Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc
Sony Ericsson's glamorous take on Android is an absolute pleasure to use, with its curved body feeling great in the hand and the 2.3 version of OS running smoothly on the phone's 1GHz processor.
It's not dual-core, but it all moves very well indeed, with Sony Ericsson's user interface additions giving the Arc a stylish feel in use, too. The 4.2" BRAVIA Engine "Reality Display" is bright and colourful, with text sharp and well defined thanks to the high 854x480 resolution.
The 8 MP camera produces great stills, with 720p video looking good despite the occasional glitch when recording. The Arc is simply a lovely, well designed thing to have and enjoy, that shows both Android and Sony Ericsson's phone-making skills in a great light.
Quick verdict:
Unbelievably thin and stylish, with internal bits that keep everything running fast and reliably. Good camera with HD video - it's a fantastic package.
2. HTC Sensation
The HTC Sensation is the Taiwanese brand's first attempt at a dual-core device and it's been a pretty big success so far.
With a 4.3-inch qHD screen and the latest version of Sense coming on board makes it a really zippy and clear experience, and the addition of HTC Watch brings movie streaming and purchase to your handset.
It's a well-built and solid device, and the 8MP camera can record in sparkling 1080p too - it might not be the top Android handset, but it's very, very close.
Quick verdict
We think the Samsung Galaxy S2 is a slightly better proposition overall, thanks to better screen technology and a slimmer chassis. But for the HTC fans out there, the Sensation is definitely the new alpha handset on the block.
1. Samsung Galaxy S2
You won't believe how thin and light it is. Then you won't believe how fast it is. The Galaxy S II offers a genuinely exciting experience, managing to eclipse all other Android phones in every field.
Apps install ridiculously quickly, while browsing web pages is so fast it's hard to believe you're looking at a telephone screen. The large display is robust and, despite the slim and lightweight case, build quality manages to impress.
You get the latest Android 2.3.3 onboard, while many of Samsung's Touchwiz widgets are resizable, making it a phone that's fun to customise and spend time playing with. This is Android made fast and thrilling.
Quick verdict:
The first of 2011's dual-core Android phones to offer an experience that feels significantly ahead of the competition. Incredibly fast in all areas, with a super screen and very useful camera - it's Android taken to the next level.
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Pentax Optio RZ18 - superzoom compact unveiled
Pentax has introduced a new camera to its Optio series of compacts, the RZ18, which features an 18x optical zoom in a compact body.
The new camera includes dual shake reduction to help reduce blur caused by camera shake and advanced Auto Picture mode which automatically detects the most appropriate shooting mode.
Featuring a wide angle Pentax 18x optical zoom lens, the camera also features a 16 megapixel sensor and a 3.0 inch 460k dot LCD screen.
The lens, which covers 25-450mm in 35mm terms, is also capable of macro shooting from as close as four centimetres and has a digital wide function for shooting ultra-wide-angle images, while the Digital Panorama mode can be used to combine three images to create a panorama.
The RZ18 uses a combination of CCD-shift-type SR (Shake Reduction) and Pixel Track SR to reduce blur, especially when shooting in low light situations.
Auto shooting
16 automatic shooting modes are included on the camera, which can be automatically detected when using Auto Picture mode. Modes include Blue Sky, Sunset and Pet, with the camera using the surrounding light and other conditions to assess the best shooting mode.HD video recording is available at 720p, with the movie mode also equipped with shake reduction mode to compensate for camera shake.
Face Detection can be found on the RZ18, which is able to instantly detect as many as 32 faces within the image, optimising exposure for each. Smile Detection and Blink Detection are also available.
Digital filters such as Miniature and Toy Camera can be used to create visual effects, while photographers have a choice of three images sizes - 4:3, 16:9 and 1:1. Burst shooting is capable of up to 40 images at a maximum of 9 images per second.
The Pentax Optio RZ18 UK price is £199.99 RRP with a release date of mid October 2011.
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RIM and Dolby settle over patent infringements
RIM and Dolby Laboratories have settled a lawsuit regarding the use of audio compression technology in its BlackBerry handsets and the PlayBook.
Dolby had originally filed a number of lawsuits against the handset manufacturer, seeking financial damages for use of its technology without a licence.
An agreement has now been put into place which means that the lawsuits have been dropped.
Compress to impress
The agreement means that RIM will now licence the technology from Dolby, something the audio company is more than pleased about."We are pleased to welcome RIM into Dolby's family of mobile technology licensees. We believe in and will continue to protect the value of our intellectual property," explained Andy Sherman, executive vice president and general counsel of Dolby.
The audio compression in question is HE ACC, which allows audio files to be compressed to 10 per cent of their original size without too much degradation in quality.
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Review: Acer Aspire 5742Z
Acer is one of the most prolific manufacturers we know, producing everything from huge multimedia powerhouses such as the Aspire Ethos 8951G to stripped-down budget models. The Aspire 5742Z is one of the latter, and another strong entry-level contender.
At this price range, you won't be getting the latest technology and performance will be limited. However, the 5742Z features an Intel Pentium P6200 processor backed up by a staggering 6GB of memory, much more than we usually see at this price. Only the MSI CR620 and Asus K52F performed better in our tests.
We managed to write this review, stream music over the internet and back up our files all at once, with no slowdown at all. Applications started up quickly and ran smoothly.
However, you only get basic integrated graphics to keep the price low. This means that you're limited in what you can do with your media. Browsing your photo collection and touching up images with basic editing tools are perfectly possible, and we were impressed that high-definition movies played smoothly. However, don't expect to be able to edit videos or play anything but basic or elderly games.
Optical drive
You can watch DVDs thanks to the built-in optical drive, although the 5742z's speakers are far too quiet for enjoying music or movies. We recommend you attach an external pair.
Thankfully, the 15.6-inch screen is fine for enjoying films, with sharp contrast and rich colours. If you want to work on a larger display, VGA and HDMI ports can be used to hook up an external television or monitor.
Of course, you probably want a laptop for work as well as play, right? The Acer is a great option in this respect too, thanks to the firmly constructed keyboard which stretches the full width of the interior. Some may find the perfectly flat keys a little awkward at first if they're used to bevelled keys, which feature slanted edges.
However, the keys are well sized, with the exception of the arrow keys which are flattened into a single row. You also have a separate numeric keypad to the right. The rest of the laptop is well constructed, although the palmrests do flex when you push on them.
The lid is solid enough to protect the screen against any knocks. We weren't huge fans of the plain black design, but it doesn't look particularly bad. The 5742Z simply won't be winning any beauty awards.
At 2.3kg, it's a lightweight laptop and would suit the regular commuter. The slim 35mm body slips easily into a bag or rucksack big enough to hold a 15.6-inch laptop, but make sure you pack the charger too.
The battery died before we finished a two-hour film and only lasts half an hour longer if you limit your use to basic office software.
TechRadar Labs
Battery Eater '05: 113 minutes
Cinebench: 5661
3DMark 2006: 1703
Still, at least you can carry your entire media collection if you take to the road, thanks to the generous 640GB hard drive. This is the largest amount of storage offered by any laptop here, and something we would expect from more expensive mid-range models.
The Aspire 5742Z offers strong value for money, although the poor battery life is a shame. If you want a highly portable laptop, the Lenovo IdeaPad S205 may be more suitable.
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Review: Alienware M14X
The Alienware M18x may be a humongous beast with a huge price tag, but those who prefer a more portable gaming machine or are on a tighter budget should consider the M14x instead.
At first glance, the M14x looks like a shrunken version of the M18x. The design is very similar, from the curved lip of the chassis to the glowing headlights. You'll either love it or hate it, and we definitely love it.
The reduced body size means the keyboard has been cropped, but the bevelled keys are still perfectly sized for playing your favourite games. The numeric keypad has been ditched, as have the media controls that sat over the M18x's keyboard.
However, this board is firmer than the M18x's and is just as great for typing out essays as it is for blasting your way through an action game. We also like the subtle blue glow that lights the keys at night.
Despite being a lot slimmer than the M18x, this laptop still packs in plenty of power. One of Intel's latest and most powerful Core i7 processors scored one of our best benchmark results, while the dedicated Nvidia graphics card will keep you gaming for the foreseeable future. Even the latest shooters played smoothly and looked incredible.
If money is tight, you can downgrade to a Core i5 processor, which should still handle the latest games with ease. However, if you have money to burn, then you can upgrade the specs to get even longer life from your laptop.
Unfortunately, the slot-loading DVD drive can't be upgraded to a Blu-ray.
Staying power
If you need a gaming laptop to keep you entertained on the move, the M14x is a great option. At 3kg it isn't exactly light, but it won't break your back either.We were especially impressed by the battery, which survived for almost three hours on a single charge when we decided to watch a movie. Playing games does drain the battery more quickly, and the M14x's internal fans spin loudly during intensive gaming sessions.
Thankfully, it's hard to notice if you turn the sound up, as the built-in speakers are surprisingly powerful. The back of the laptop gets warm around the air vents, but not to a worrying degree.
The smaller 14-inch screen is still fine for gaming, thanks to its sharp 1600 x 900 resolution. It's bright enough to work on comfortably for extended periods without straining your eyes, which is great news for anyone who likes all-night gaming sessions.
TechRadar Labs
Battery Eater '05: 165 minutes
Cinebench: 17090
3DMark 2006: 12259
While 500GB of hard drive space is a lot for the average laptop, gaming machines tend to fill up fast when you install all of your favourite titles. You'll have to choose carefully to avoid running out of space.
We fell in love with the M14x's compact and portable chassis, which still finds room for some impressive technology. Based on price and portability alone, we'd pick this slim gamer over its big brother.
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Nintendo 3DS 3D video recording on the way
Nintendo's conference at the Tokyo Game Show suggested that 3D video capture would soon arrive for the 3DS handheld, but it was not enough to buoy the company in the eyes of investors.
As well as the potential of a video software update, Nintendo explained that its upcoming release of games will be the biggest ever seen in the industry.
A conference in the early hours of the morning saw Mario Tennis 3DS, Monster Hunter 4 and Fire Emblem announced, the former utilising the gyroscopic sensor.
"From the end of this year to the beginning of next, we are planning the kind of extensive line-up that has probably never been seen before in the history of video games," said Nintendo president Satoru Iwata.
"We will make an all-out effort to see that the 3DS sells enough to become the successor to the DS."
Other major games on the horizon include Super Mario 3D Land, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and Mario Kart 7.
Fallen short?
But despite a boost in sales following a major price cut, the announcements appear to have fallen short of what was expected from the Japanese gaming giant.Reuters quotes analysts as suggesting that the games did not have the wow factor to bring in consumers.
And with the price cut meaning that Nintendo is reportedly taking a loss on each 3DS sold, there is even more onus on owners snapping up games to boost the company's coffers.
Apparently Nintendo's shares have fallen 46 per cent since January, although the company will be hoping that its successor to the Wii – the Wii U – can turn things around in the longer term.
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iPhone 5 release: More evidence points to mid-October
Another day, another iPhone 5 release date rumour. This time, reports are claiming that the iOS 5 gold build will be sent to manufacturers in time for a mid-October launch.
A source for MacRumors reckons that hardware builders will receive the master copy of the new operating system in the last week of September, although the reports are far from confirmed.
If true, it would give manufacturers time to install the software on pre-built devices to ensure they ship with iOS 5 on-board.
Most of the recent stories of this ilk are all pointing to an early-to-mid October launch, and with the days continuing to fly by, it seems unlikely that we'll see the iPhone 5 before September is out.
No iPhone 5 redesign?
The MacRumors story also says there is "no evidence" of a redesign for any new iPhone device.Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reckons that the only new device in the supply chain is the rumoured second-tier iPhone device, often referred to as the iPhone N94 or iPhone 4S.
We're not putting too much stock into this report at the moment, but all hints continue to point to sometime in early to mid-October being new iPhone 5 D-Day.
Wake us up when September ends.
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Star Wars: The Complete Saga Blu-ray gets Home Cinema Choice review
Today marks the release of Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray and Home Cinema Choice - part of the TechRadar network - has already managed to check out the discs and offer its in-depth thoughts on the boxset.
Star Wars fans can breathe a sigh of relief, as according to the review, the sound and picture quality of the movies is something special.
Although there are some picture flaws with the Original Trilogy and The Phantom Menace's image quality is called "the least satisfying of the bunch", HCC does note: "None of [these flaws] can really take the shine off the beautiful restorations of this seminal series of sci-fi flicks.
"Quite simply, you'll never have seen the Star Wars Saga looking this good in your home ever before."
Atmospheric
When it comes to audio, HCC calls the remastering "a truly remarkable feat". When TechRadar visited Lucasfilm to speak to Matthew Wood about the audio, he told us he was mastering the 6.1 soundtrack, while trying to keep things as close as possible to George Lucas' vision of the movie.HCC agrees that this has been done, explaining that the Blu-rays boast "extremely atmospheric and energising re-mixes, that completely update the original soundtracks while still managing to feel sympathetic to the original sound design."
It's not all good news, though, as the extras seem to be what let the package down. None of the DVD documentaries make it onto the discs (some of the commentaries do) and while the archives are impressive, the new documentaries comprising Star Wars spoofs and one on people dressing up as Star Wars characters aren't quite as gripping as you would hope.
There is an abundance of archive material that's more than welcomed, according to HCC however.
To see what the overall score is for the Star Wars: The Complete Saga Blu-ray review, head over to Home Cinema Choice now.
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