iMend.com your Smartphone

If you are unfortunate to either break your smartphone or for it to develop a fault, it can be a tricky business find a reliable repair service. 

I was recently approached to take a look at iMend.com and was impressed to find an easy to navigate website and very transparent repair service. The icing on the cake is that you can either send your smartphone in for repair or they can come to you. 

Check out the video below for more details.

Please note: This is a sponsored video.

Be a doer with Lumia 640 and Lumia 640 XL

I strongly believe that you should act upon your dreams and wishes today, rather than putting it of until tomorrow. Throughout my many years on YouTube, I have personally received many questions asking for advice. After giving such advice, many have responded that will take action on my advice next week, or next month. Why wait? We only have a limited time on this planet and should take advantage of every opportunity that comes our way and live for the day. 

Microsoft are encouraging just this with their "Be a Doer" campaign … "Doers are the ones who get things done. The ones who act upon their dreams. Doers need a smartphone to help them achieve more. A smartphone with the ability to get things done on the go." 

In the video below we get to see the Microsoft Lumia 640 and 640 XL in action with signature Microsoft services like Office, OneNote, Outlook and Cortana - the tools to help you be a doer. Check it out for yourself and get involved.

Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge Launched

Barcelona, Spain, March 1 2015 – Samsung Electronics today announced its entirely redefined smartphones, the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge. Creating a new standard for design, craftsmanship and performance, the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge seamlessly blend premium materials with the most advanced Samsung technology to offer consumers an unmatched mobile experience.


“With the all new Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge, Samsung is offering what’s next in mobility, along with a new standard to drive the global mobile agenda,” said JK Shin, CEO and Head of IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung Electronics. “By listening to our customers, and learning from both our success and missteps, we continuously push forward new technologies and ideas. With a reimagined design, robust partner network and novel services, the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge offer users the ultimate experience in smartphone options.”


Beauty Meets Purpose
Carefully crafted from metal and glass, the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge blend purposeful design with powerful features. The Galaxy S6 edge, particularly, shows unique and outstanding beauty while also providing a solid grip and an immersive viewing experience with the world’s first curved display on both sides. Its glass body, made from the toughest glass to date, Corning® Gorilla Glass® 4, is available in an array of colorful jewel tones, including White Pearl, Black Sapphire, Gold Platinum, Blue Topaz and Green Emerald, which elicit a unique visual texture as it reflects natural light. This timeless design required first-of-its-kind glass crafting technology and unmatched quality control, setting the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge apart from every other mobile device on the market. The premium device aesthetics deliver true value and are complemented by a totally new and lighter interface that greatly enhances usability and functionality. A refined and fully optimized user experience simplifies applications and offers features and settings in a more intuitive way.


Vivid Images with a Fast, Bright Camera
The Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge are equipped with an incredibly vivid, bright and fast front and rear camera. The F1.9 lenses and high resolution sensors on both front (5MP) and rear (16MP) cameras provide the most superior image quality in a smartphone, even in the dark. In addition, Auto Real-time High Dynamic Range (HDR), Smart Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and IR Detect White Balance provide advanced light sensitivities and crisp camera solutions. Furthermore, a new “Quick Launch” feature give users fast, direct access to the camera from any screen in just 0.7 seconds* by simply double clicking the home key button. These advanced camera functions enable users to capture their most precious and personal moments in uncompromising quality, however and wherever they want.


Super Charging and Cord Free
With fully embedded WPC and PMA certified wireless charging technology, the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge are setting a new industry standard for universal wireless charging. The devices work with any wireless pad available in the market that supports WPC and PMA standards. They also sport incredibly fast wired charging, 1.5 times faster than the Galaxy S5, providing about 4 hours of usage after only 10 minutes of charging.*


Cutting-edge Core Technology
The thin (6.8 mm/7.0mm edge) and lightweight (138g /132g edge) Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge integrate the most advanced, cutting-edge, Samsung core technology available today. The world’s first 14nm mobile processor with 64-bit platform, new LPDDR4 memory system and UFS 2.0 flash memory provides higher performance and enhanced memory speed with lower power consumption. Moreover, the world’s first 1440P/VP9 hardware based codec enables users to enjoy high resolution streaming video while also using less power. In addition, the 5.1-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED screen offers users the highest pixel density of 577ppi. Enhanced outdoor visibility with a brighter display (600cd/mm) lets consumers experience content without compromise – anywhere, at any time.

Easy and Protected Mobile Payment 
Samsung Pay, a new, easy-to-use mobile payment service that will be compatible with more locations than any competing offering in a single application, will launch on Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge in the United States during the second half of this year. Protected by Samsung KNOX, fingerprint scanning, and advanced tokenization, Samsung Pay works with both Near Field Communication (NFC) and Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) technology to make it device, merchant and card issuer agnostic.


Enhanced Security 
The Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge are built on the upgraded Samsung KNOX, end-to-end secure mobile platform, offering defense-grade features for real-time protection from potential malicious attacks. Both of these new devices are also ready for immediate enterprise adoption, with market leading MDMs and KNOX enhancements enabled at launch to simplify and improve mobile device management. Additionally, the Find My Mobile feature secures lost devices and protects personal information through a number of services, including the all new remotely controlled “Reactivation lock.” With an enhanced touch-type fingerprint scanner, it also provides quick authentication and saves encrypted data in secure device storage.


The Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge will be available globally starting from April 10, 2015 with 32/64/128GB storage options available in White Pearl, Black Sapphire, Gold Platinum, Blue Topaz (Galaxy S6 only) and Green Emerald (Galaxy S6 edge only).

Bring your World to Life with the NEW HTC ONE

London, 1st March, 2015 – HTC today unveiled its most personal, beautiful and powerful smartphone yet, the HTC One M9. The newest flagship in the globally acclaimed HTC One family, the HTC One M9 is a classic yet timeless celebration of beauty and elegance that combines high style and performance, enabling you   to get the most from your mobile phone.

 "HTC has built its reputation on challenging expectations in the mobile industry,” said Cher Wang, Chairwoman, HTC. “The HTC One M9 accomplishes this once again with stunning elegance and design, combined with smart features that help bring your world to life, connecting you in a deeper way to the things you consider most important. So much more than just a phone, the HTC One M9 is an extension of who you are”.

A complete celebration of design

Building on a three-year pursuit of excellence, the HTC One M9 melds the best of the award-winning HTC One M7 and HTC One M8 into a stunning, iconic design. Distinct metal edges combine perfectly with graceful curves for a jewellery-grade look. Small and easy to hold, the crafted, all-metal unibody design is highlighted by an exquisite dual-tone silver and rose gold¹ finish that is as distinctive, as it is durable. Mirror-polished gold sides cascade effortlessly into a hairline brushed silver back panel, encasing a bright and vivid display. 

HTC Sense 7: An extension of you

Your phone should make a statement about who you are and the new HTC Sense™ 7 experience puts you in control of everything. Highly customisable and intuitively you, Themes puts you at the centre of the smartphone experience, intelligently analysing your favourite photos to modify the look and feel of your apps, colour scheme and backgrounds.

As your always-on travel companion, your smartphone is perfectly placed to enrich your mobile life. Sense 7 reinvents the home screen to deliver the most useful apps to the homepage based on your location. Whether at home, work, or play, you’re never more than a click away from the features you need with this contextual, customisable widget. A more intelligent HTC BlinkFeed™ also makes it easier to uncover the hidden gems that surround you by using location data to recommend points of interest, news and information. 

Incredible imaging: Helping you create your best memories

With the best camera being the one you carry in your pocket, your smartphone should make it a breeze to take brilliant, creative and fun images. The HTC One M9’s cameras are designed to capture every moment in amazing quality, allowing you to relive those moments again and again. The main camera features an incredible 20 megapixels that accentuate every crisp, intricate detail and a sapphire cover lens that protects from scratches. For vivid video that looks like the latest blockbuster, the camera also shoots movies in 4K resolution. 

The best moments take you by surprise and spontaneity often doesn’t come fully lit. The ultimate companion of the impulsive snapper, the HTC One M9 addresses low-light shots with a powerful UltraPixel™ front-facing camera. Dynamic auto exposure and UltraPixels that capture 300% more light than standard cameras deliver sharper, more natural and balanced self-portraits in any lighting conditions.                                                                                                                    

HTC Sense 7 with HTC’s EYE™ Experience software makes taking creative pictures easy. A host of new editing effects including Shapes, Prismatic, Elements and Bokeh allow you to add a little bit of individual artistry into every shot, with the Zoe™ app automatically editing them, putting them to your choice of music² and letting friends remix the collection with their own shots to create a shared celebration from every moment.

With so many incredible images, quickly showing your friends those brilliant shots could become an issue. Wherever they’re stored, the new One Gallery makes it easy to search through your entire photo library, viewing images saved on the phone, on social media, and on select cloud platforms. The gallery puts your whole image library at your fingertips, searching by date, location, event, album or even the images themselves with Image Match.

Exhilarating audio: Hear the difference

A truly great viewing experience deserves sound that puts you on the front row. The HTC One M9 guarantees a larger-than-life soundtrack courtesy of HTC BoomSound™. The HTC One family’s iconic dual front-facing speakers, now combined with 5.1 channel Dolby® Surround sound3 simulation, get you even closer to the action, delivering extraordinary, cinema-style surround sound. Uniting HTC BoomSound and Dolby Audio™ creates immersion vibrant audio experience, so you can enjoy movies with rich, clear and powerful sound even without connecting headphones or external speakers. Whether listening via the stereo speakers or headphones, even the most discerning music fans will be blown away by the phone’s support for perfect, 24-bit high-definition sound that surpasses even CD quality. HTC’s unique combination of HTC BoomSound, Dolby Audio™, a finely tuned sound profile, and Qualcomm® Immersive Audio gives all of your music and movies an unmistakable HTC One M9 flavour. 

Connecting your world

Smartphones are fast becoming the central hub for home entertainment and HTC Connect™ makes it easy to enjoy your multimedia experience beyond your phone. A three-finger swipe on the screen connects the phone to compatible TVs or external speakers from leading manufacturers including Harman Kardon. HTC Connect’s integration with Qualcomm® AllPlay™ smart media platform and Blackfire Research™ wireless media technology, allows you and your friends to stream high quality content from your smartphones to multiple home entertainment devices around the house. The playlist feature also allows multiple smartphones to share a speaker with Qualcomm AllPlay. For the ultimate connected smartphone-powered TV experience, the HTC One M9 comes exclusively preloaded with the Peel®Smart Remote app. Instantly connecting you to the shows you love, the app even learns from your viewing habits, transforming your phone into a personal TV guide and remote control.

Accessories and availability

For a standout look, the HTC One M9 will be available with a range of unique and customisable accessories including the second generation HTC Dot View case, which adds more retro personalisation thanks to a host of new features and colour options. A transparent back keeps your smartphone pristine without hiding it from the world with the case injecting fun into even the most tedious commute by transforming into a mini games arcade. The new HTC Dot View case won’t even get in the way of apps such as Instagram, Snapchat and Badoo with through-the-case notifications alerting you to the latest photos, messages and check-ins. 

Life has no limits, and when your adventurous side takes you into the unknown, an IP68 water resistant Active Case and Active Headset means that your phone can boldly follow wherever the action takes you, keeping up with the pace of the most epic adventures.

The HTC One M9 will be available in dual-tone silver and rose gold, single-tone gunmetal grey and single-tone gold in the UK.  Handsets will be available to pre-order on select partner websites from 9th March and available to buy in-store across all listed partners from 31st March*, as well as at htc.com. Unlocked and Developer Editions of the HTC One M9 will also be available from via htc.com.

Sony Xperia E4g – the easy-to-use, speedy smartphone with Sony quality

London, 24th February 2015 – Earlier this month, Sony Mobile Communications (“Sony Mobile”) introduced XperiaTM E4; the affordable, easy-to-use smartphone with great battery life – in a quality Sony design. Now, Sony unveils the exciting XperiaTM E4g smartphone, offering the same ease-of-use and powerful battery performance - with fast 4G LTE connectivity. 

“Xperia E4 set out to bring many of the premium features people expect of Sony to lower-tier devices; Xperia E4g brings that same quality and ease of use - but with super-fast 4G LTE connectivity” said Tony McNulty, Vice President, Value Category Business Management at Sony Mobile Communications. “With simple set-up and unrivalled 2 day battery life, we believe both models represent value for those who want premium Sony technology and experiences often only associated with high-end devices.” 

Get started without the wait - speedy set up... just point and shoot! 

Xperia E4g is built to ensure that you can set up and enjoy your new smartphone, from the moment you pull it out of the box. For those new to Xperia, migration from other Android, Windows or BlackBerry devices is super quick and easy. The Xperia Transfer app, allows you to move contacts, photos, bookmarks, apps, music, messages and much more securely, without the hassle – or worry of losing anything important.

  • Get started without the wait - speedy set up with XperiaTM Transfer, and automatic camera settings

  • Sleek Sony design inside and out, with minimalistic design and customisable interfaces

  • Do more for longer, with two-day battery life1, NFC connectivity and easy customisation options

  • Super-fast 4G LTE connectivity delivers the speed you need for information and entertainment on the go

  • Available in Black and White colour options

Smartphone photography is made easy, with Auto scene Recognition automatically recognising and optimising capture settings for up to 52 scenarios for the perfect shots wherever you are. And, with NFC you can share your images easily with just one-touch.

Xperia E4g features Sony’s minimalist Android skin, but also brings the Simple Home interface providing larger icons and all your favorite apps on one screen, with those you don’t need stored neatly away in folders - perfect if you prefer to use your smartphone for specific functions.

Right on cue, with signature Sony design

Xperia E4g is Sony inside and out; rounded and robust, perfect for one hand usage. Available in classic Black and White, Xperia E4g retains that timeless Xperia form - a precision-cut power button, elevated mirror-finish logo and stainless steel camera ring and a scratch-resistant screen to add an extra layer of premium.

Built for speed - 4G LTE and two-day battery life, powered by a 1.5 GHz Quad-core processor

Xperia E4g is 4G LTE ready – which means you can enjoy the fastest news and information download, find your way using maps, check and send email, send pictures to friends and family in seconds, and enjoy lag-free music streaming on the go.

Sony’s latest smartphones are recognised for unrivalled battery life. Xperia E4g is no different, packing a powerful 2300mAh battery that gives you up to two-day’s battery life1; eliminating the need for regular charging. If that isn’t enough, one click activates Battery STAMINA Mode to regulate power management, and Ultra STAMINA Mode keeps your phone running on its core functions for a week.

Supporting slick and fast performance, Xperia E4g has a highly-tuned 1.5 GHz Quad-core processor, meaning that you can run multiple apps, surf the web and stream videos all at once.

Xperia E4g launches from April for around €1292. It will also be available in a Dual SIM variant - for full specifications please visit here.

An unexpected holiday surprise #MakeItHappen

When Microsoft Lumia heard Lani’s family hadn’t celebrated Christmas together in over 13 years, they devised a top-secret plan to help #MakeItHappen. Flying both Lani and her little girl Evolet home to the US, Microsoft Lumia orchestrated a surprise reunion with a twist, sothat the entire family could enjoy the Holidays together for the first time. 

This month, Microsoft Lumia are helping people around the world to #MakeItHappen, by fulfilling 31 resolutions in 31 days. 

Share your resolution now and Microsoft Lumia could hellp #MakeItHappen http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/make-things-happen/

About Lani
36 year-old Lani O'Brien, an American living in Lancashire, has never managed to make it home to see her family at Christmas since moving to the UK 13 years ago. 
Lani’s husband Dean is also an expat, living away from his family based in New Zealand, so the tight-knit family rely on regular Skype conversations to stay connected. 


Lani and Dean had their first child Evolet three years ago, but financial circumstances have meant Lani’s family in Chicago, Illinois, have only met Evolet twice and have never spent the Holiday season with her.  
A nutritious by trade, Lani is now a full-time mum but also works supporting her husband Dean who his building a child entertainment business after unexpectedly losing his job when Evolet was just six months old. 
With Dean travelling throughout December for work, Lani hoped she might make it home to see her family in the US so she and Evolet were not alone during the Holiday season. Unfortunately, the family were simply unable to afford the costly travel expenses. 

​
Lani submitted her resolution to the #MakeItHappen campaign and Microsoft Lumia was so touched by her story they decided to #MakeItHappen. 
The film itself follows Lani and Evolet’s journey home to Chicago to surprise their unsuspecting family for the Holidays. 

About the soundtrack
“Footprints in the Snow” is a new track from singer/songwriter Scott McFarnon.

A Grammy Award and Golden Globe nominee, Scott has collaborated with some of the biggest names in the music industry including Beyoncé and Mark Ronson and in 2007 Daniel Merriweather had a global hit with his version of Scott’s song ‘Red’. Now launching a solo career, Scott’s incredible voice and unique sound will be available to the world in early 2015 with release of his debut album, Crazy Heart. 

Listen: www.soundcloud.com/scottmcfarnon

Website: www.scottmcfarnon.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/scottmcfarnonmusic

Credits

Campaign: Microsoft Lumia #MakeItHappen http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/make-things-happen/

Agency: Mission Media http://www.thisismission.com/

Film Production: We Are Films http://wearefilmsny.com/

Directors: Alex and Aaron Craig http://wearefilmsny.com/

Music: Scott McFarnon ‘Footprints in the Snow’ www.scottmcfarnon.com


Love, Language and Lumia #MakeItHappen

When Microsoft discovered that Ed, a 28 year-old accountant from London, wanted to learn Spanish to deliver the groom’s speech at his wedding in Mexico, they came straight to his rescue. Track Ed’s journey as he embarks on a crash course in Spanish; all to surprise his family and friends in a heart-warming video.

Every day this December we’re helping people #MakeItHappen, so share your resolution with us to get involved http://lumia.ms/makeithappen

Phones 4u Limited (‘P4U or ‘the Company’) - in administration

Robert Jonathan Hunt, Ian David Green and Robert John Moran of PwC have today been appointed as administrators to Phones 4u Limited (P4U), a leading independent mobile phone retailer with an annual turnover of £1 billion, operating from more than 700 outlets with 5,596 employees.


In addition to its retail operations, P4U also runs its own network operator, Life Mobile Limited, which is also in administration.

Rob Hunt, joint administrator and PwC partner, said:

"This is a very sad day for the business and the many people working there. In light of our impending appointment the directors understandably took the decision to close all the shops today and sent many staff home.

"Our initial focus will be to quickly engage with parties who may be interested in acquiring all or part of the business, and to better understand the financial position and options for the company. The stores will remain closed while we have these conversations.

"We will also be talking to network operators and suppliers, and trying to access funds to pay for the costs of the business, including wages.

"These conversations will determine whether we can re-open stores and trade, and also if and when we can pay the arrears of wages to employees. Our hope is that we will be able to pay all the outstanding wages arrears.”

Phones4U Administration & iPhone 6 Preorders

Phones4U has gone into administration, as of Sunday 14th September 2014. All of its retail stores will be closed from Monday 15th September 2014. This has left a lot of customers wondering what will happen to their existing orders and in particular, with the recent iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus preorders going live on the company website, including that of Dialaphone (which is owned by Phones4U).

The official response from Phones4U press office is as follows… 

Robert White confirms that … "Any orders that have not already been dispatched will be cancelled and any payments refunded to customers. Phones4U apologises to its customers for the inconvenience."

Although this is a frustrating situation, at least customers who have preordered their iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, or indeed any other outstanding orders awaiting dispatch, will get their money back.

Of note, the Phones4U and Dialaphone websites are still actively taking preorders. It would be a wise move to not place an order until the appointed administrator makes a decision about the future trading of the company.

Update: As of 7:35am on Monday 15th September 2014, both the Phones4U and Dialaphone websites are now offline and no longer visible to take orders. If you have any questions and still need to get in touch with the companies, the numbers are as follows, though do take into account they will be very busy and their sales lines may well be closed too.

Phones4U 0800 072 5855
Phones4U Customer Care 0844 871 2231
Dialaphone 0800 183 7902
Dialaphone Customer Care 08448 712 251

Update: 8:45am 15th September. There is now a message on both the Phones4U and Dialaphone websites, as follows … 

Dear Customer,

Following the unexpected decision of EE and Vodafone to withdraw supply from Phones4U , we regret that we are offline. Please accept our apologies and we will update you as soon as possible.

Our customer service lines are: 
• Phones 4u Care (Insurance) 0844-8710535 
• Technical Support 0844-8712233 
• Handset Repairs 0844-8712269 
• Phones 4u Customer Service 0844-8712253 
• LIFE Mobile Customer Service 08443 221133

Thank you for your custom 
The heartbroken Phones4u Team

…developing