UK Today News » Technology

Google Maps launches train travel option in the UK

Anita J — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 19:24:26 +0000

UK Today News: Search engine giant Google’s popular route planning tool, Google Maps, has now added the UK’s train timetables. The new feature has routes that help travellers to move around the country with ease.

Google Maps is supplying information in collaboration with thetrainline.com on 2,500 stations and 170,000 routes. The new feature also shows more than 250 London underground stations and also 8,000 bus stops situated across UK.

People who visit the site can also view walking routes and also a number of bus timetables. An option at thetrainline.com allows the users to view the availability of tickets, which can also be booked online.

Richard Rowson, the product development director of thetrainline.com said that the intention was to give travellers the option of choosing to travel around the country by train and to also organise those journeys in a better way. The launch of the new feature comes just before the Olympic Games to be held in London. During the games, more than 30 million tourists are expected to visit and Google Maps is available in over 50 languages.

The chairman of VisitBritain, Christopher Rodrigues said that that initiative was exciting and that it will help those who will be visiting London for the 2012 Olympics. The chairman also said that the new service will encourage the people to explore places out of the capital.

BMW recalls MINI Cooper S models in the UK

Rob — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:47:36 +0000

UK Today News: German luxury car maker BMW has recently called back more than 29,800 of its Mini Cooper S and Mini John Cooper Works cars in Britain. The cars have been recalled after the detection of a potential fault in an engine water pump.

The recall of the cars worldwide applies to the 2006-11 Mini Cooper S and John Cooper Works models. The cars have been recalled after the quality control checks spotted a fault with an additional water pump fitted in each vehicle.

The company released an official statement in which it mentioned that the water pump is drawing residual heat out of the turbo charger after the engine has been switched off and this prevents carbon build-up of the oil in the bearing.

In cases of high operating temperatures, an electro migration can occur at the circuit board, which is installed in the additional water pump. The statement further added that the electro migration is caused by plastic additives in conjunction with the high temperatures and can also lead to a failure of the additional water pump. Moreover, this can also lead to smouldering and the possibility of fire cannot be ruled out. The company clarified that there have been no accidents and injuries related to the issue.

BBC News App launched on Sony TVs

Anita J — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 15:57:19 +0000

UK Today News: British public service broadcaster BBC has recently launched its BBC News connected TV app on the Sony TVs in the United Kingdom. Earlier, the app was first released on the Samsung Smart TV platform in June 2011 for UK as well as international customers.

The app was also launched for the Panasonic Viera devices in UK only. The new application offers text as well as video content drawn from the BBC News Operations in UK as well as around the world.

Aaron Scullion, the executive product manager for BBC news app for connected TV, said that they are delighted that they have been able to get the product into three sizable platforms so quickly after the launch. Aaron added that the audience response has been fantastic.

The product experience of the BBC News products on the web has been strong after a recent redesign. Moreover, the product has also been optimized for Apple as well as Android handheld devices. The app has also become popular with the users as many of them have begun using it according to their usage of web and mobile. The analysts have said that by the end of 2016, 36 million TVs with built-in internet capability will be installed in UK homes.

London’s new Routemaster-inspired double-decker bus prototype unveiled at Trafalgar Square

Rob — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 20:44:35 +0000

UK Today News: One of the first next generation double-decker buses has been unveiled in London at Trafalgar Square on December 16, 2011. Mayor Boris Johnson unveiled the bus that has been specifically designed for the city in more than 50 years. The bus has been inspired by Routemaster and within just two years, the prototype of the bus has been build.

The contract for engineering design for the transport of the city was given to the Wrightbus company based in Northern Ireland in the month of January 2010. The first prototype was successfully made by Wrightbus, along with Heatherwick Studio in London. The bus can be accessed by passengers through three entrances and has two staircases so as to speed up the boarding process. The huge windows of will help the bus to be will lit, and comes with an open platform at the rear.

The bus is beautified with a new seat design and fresh upholstery, it also runs on hybrid fuel system and the makers have claimed that it will be the most environmental friendly bus when it will enter the passenger service. When compared to a standard diesel bus, the new first generation bus was twice better. Johnson said that it is the latest and the greatest masterpiece of the British engineering and design and was sure that it will become the much loved and the iconic vehicle.

The Mayor also announced that the first bus will be operated by Arriva and will begin to carry the passengers from February 20, 2012 on the bus route 38. During the first half of the year 2012, eight prototype buses will be entering the passenger service. In the upcoming years if the buses are successful then there is a possibility that hundreds of such buses will be operating across London. Earlier this month, TfL took back the bendy bus to make some room for the new shiny buses. The bendy buses made their last trip on December 9, 2011.

Vodafone launches two child safety apps across Europe

Rob — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 19:24:24 +0000

UK Today News: Two new Android-based apps have been launched by telecom company Vodafone that will help and advice parents to control their children’s mobile usage. The Guardian app provides parents with the ability to block messages and calls to prevent cyber bullying.

The parents also have the option to get the messages transferred to a secure folder, so that it could be used as evidence while reporting incidents to the police or at schools. The app could also allow parents to restrict the number of outgoing calls to present numbers.

The parents can also preset the time when the calls cannot be made or received. Time limit can also be set on the usage of a specific app, or block access to a mobile web or even block the camera during specific times.

The app sends a text message to the parent’s phone in case the handset is used to make a emergency call. The app by Vodafone has been launched in Italy, Germany, Netherlands, UK, New Zealand, Spain and Egypt. Along with the Guardian, a digital Parenting app has also been launched which provides help for parents who want their children to be benefited with the smartphones and also protect them from the dangers.

Philips launches Android compatible Fidelio speakers

Rob — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 14:38:19 +0000

UK Today News: Electronics giant Philips has recently launched a range of its new speakers that would be having the support for Android phones. The company has launched Fidelio that are compatible with the Android devices.

The earlier offerings of the Fidelio have been exclusively compatible with the devices of Apple like the iPod, iPad and iPhone and now the company has created a standard connector which would be compatible with the whole range.

The only difficulty Philips was facing so far was that Android phones have been offered by many companies, out of which only a few had agreed on where the USB connector would be situated. This was the reason it was impossible to create a dock that was compatible with most of the Android devices.

However, the company has now found a solution by creating a micro USB connector on the speaker docks that can be rotated to a full 360 degrees and also moved horizontally along with a belt, which would allow almost any Android device. The devices which do not have a standard micro USB port would not be compatible with the speakers.

The price of the speakers would start from £70 to £170 and three models of the speakers are currently available in the UK market.

Motorola Razr smartphone on sale in the UK this November 2011

Rob — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:05:40 +0000

UK Today News: Mobile phone giant Motorola has put on sale its much awaited smartphone Motorola Razr on November 8, 2011. The UK online retailer Clove has put the smartphone on sale much ahead of the competition.

Prospective customers can now own the new Motorola Razr for £454 without a SIM, after a delay of a little more than a week. The new Razr is the latest incarnation of the Motorola Razr.

Earlier, the smartphone was supposed to be launched on 1st November, but the launch was delayed due to some unknown reasons. On the other hand, Expansys and Amazon have mentioned the date of 11th November for the sale of the Razr.

But Amazon and Expansys will be selling the device for a higher price of £74. Play too will be selling the device with almost the same price but will be starting to sell the device bit earlier on 9th November.

A basic review of the smartphone shows that it features a 1.2 GHz dual core processor and 1GB RAM. The Razr also has a 8 megapixel rear camera and 4.3-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen display. The company has also claimed that it is the world’s thinnest smartphone of just 7.1 mm.

Samsung Galaxy S Stratosphere to be launched on 13th October in the UK

Rob — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:10:33 +0000

UK Today News: Samsung’s Galaxy S Stratosphere smartphone will hit the stores on Thursday, the 13th October in UK and the first device will run on the Wireless 4G LTE network of Verizon. The Stratosphere will run on the 2.3 Android.

Both Samsung and Verizon had announced that the device will sell for $149.99 after rebate and would be available at a two year agreement with the telecom company. The new Samsung Galaxy S device has a physical keyboard, Super AMOLED touch screen.

It has a processor of 1GHz Cortex A8 Hummingbird as the dual core processors have been used in many of the smartphones. Even the upcoming Apple iPhone 4S comes with a dual core processors.

The other features of the phone include 1.3 megapixel front -facing camera to support video-calling and a 5 megapixel rear-facing camera. Meanwhile, Samsung and Google were supposed to announce the Nexus Prime or another smartphone with a similar name, which would run on Android Ice Cream Sandwich, which is the next generation Operating system. But later the companies had announced that the event was postponed as they were mourning the death of Steve Jobs. Google had said that this certainly not the good time to launch new products as the world expresses a tribute to Steve Job’s passing.

First Google store opens in the UK

Rob — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 16:18:37 +0000

UK Today News: Search engine giant Google has now hit the retail market and has opened its first store in London, UK on September 30, 2011. It comes as a surprise as the first store which was supposed to be opened in California was actually opened in London.

The store offers Chromebook laptops of Google and also a few more accessories of Google which include headphones. The store will run just for three months up to Christmas.

This is just like an experiment for the search engine to open a temporary store. In the future, the company may also plan on opening several permanent stores in order to give competition to its rival Apple – which will soon be launching its new devices.

Google’s store is known as the ‘Chromezone’ and was hardly known by anyone when the store was opened. On the other hand, the Apple store was popular and everyone was waiting for its store to open. The head of consumer marketing at Google UK, Arvind Desikan, said that it is their first attempt to open a physical retail . Desikan added that it is a new channel for the company and it is still their very early days. Arvind also said that this is like an experiment for the company to see where it actually leads.

Samsung Wave 578 with NFC technology introduced in the UK

Rob — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 22:58:05 +0000

UK Today News: Mobile phone manufacturer Samsung has introduced their brand new phone Samsung Wave 578 in the UK. The consumers in the UK are already eager to experience the new NFC (Near Field Communication) technology.

The company has introduced the smartphone in the United Kingdom to allow customers to see what the phone is all about and to experience the new technology. The new Samsung Wave 578 has been powered by Bada, and is expected to be a huge contributor in making a mark in the market with the new technology.

With the new NFC technology, users can now make payments at shops by just waving the phone over a cash counter that is NFC enabled. The other features of the new Samsung Wave 578 include a 3.2 megapixel rear camera, 3G connectivity, WQVGA touch screen display, Bluetooth, GPS and some of the other features that are found in a smartphone.

The NFC technology can be used by users who have an Orange credit card, Barclaycard as well as Barclay’s debit card. The users can shop in more than 50,000 compatible stores across the country with the help of the new technology. David Chan, the CEO of Barclaycard Consumer Europe said that paying with a mobile phone means never being with the right change and also having access to funds.

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