According to Apple’s UK website , iOS 4.1 will hit devices on September 8th. Which will probably mean that the brand new iPods announced on Wednesday along side iOS 4.1 will be released on that day.

iOS 4.1 brings many bug fixes to do with ?proximity sensor issue, Bluetooth, and iPhone 3G performance but it also brings many new features such as HDR photos, TV show rentals, HD video uploads over WiFi and Game Center.

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For a moment, it looked like it was possible to upgrade a Motorola Dext (Cliq) handset to Android 2.1 using the settings provided for the Motorola Milestone. Especially since this was ‘official’ advice coming from the Motorola Mobile Devices Contact Centre (UK). Disappointingly it doesn’t work. Attempting the alternative suggestion – a full factory reset, prompted immediate interest in apps backup software. This opens up a new quagmire.

GoMo News‘ dilemma (as relayed to Motorola UK) was that … “Every time I attempt to check for any system updates I get this message – “The upgrade attempt has encountered an error due to a failed login. Please try later.”

Unfortunately, the handset had been saying that for weeks. We’d searched the FAQs to no avail, so we tried Motorola’s previously very helpful service.

The first suggestion was to download Motorola’s ‘Motorola Software Update’ application for the PC. This was already installed but GoMo got very excited when the support message said ” (Choose your phone to be Milestone)”.

That meant an update to 2.1 – just one short of Froyo (2.2). Not bad for an Android 1.5 handset. Don’t bother to try it with your Dext/Cliq because it doesn’t work.

So Plan B is to perform a factory reset. Motorola UK very wisely adds, “You might use some backup applications from the Android Market.” Too right.

A factory reset will, of course, wipe all the apps you have to lovingly downloaded. The obvious answer is to backup all the apps to the handset’s SD card or a PC/Mac.

This GoMo News hack had fully expected such a facility to be included in the £25 upgrade to Motorola’s Media Link package. The only media formats that this app backs up are photos and videos. Not apps.

A quick trawl of the Net (because Android market and Cyrket weren’t too useful) produced references to MyBackup from Rerware. Only the trial version is free so we haven’t tested it.

In theory, it should be possible to manually back up you apps using a file manager program like eFile from Domobile but we haven’t tried it yet.

This raises an important question. What happens when you reload paid-for apps? Do they automatically re-install by recognising the handset’s IMEI?

Answers on a postcard please. [We're joking. Use Comments.]

A very modest announcement on Nokia‘s Facebook page confirms that it has indeed secured an exclusive app for the X Factor 2010 TV show. This app will only be available from the Ovi store, so that means no Android or iPhone version which is something of a coup. Attempts to discover exactly what Nokia handsets can run it failed because it isn’t there yet despite a promised release date of today.

Despite the claim that it has “the very first X Factor app. It will be available to download from the Ovi Store tomorrow [Friday 3rd September], it wasn’t actually there when GoMo News looked at 9.00 GMT.

Sometimes with Ovi, it’s necessary to reset your default handset to see the latest apps. However, the official stock shots from Nokia itself [shown here] feature a Nokia N8 and even when setting the default to N8 the app wasn’t there.

Another clue is that the official Ovi members newsletter announcing this app’s release hasn’t arrived yet. Anyway, what does it do?

Nokia says the app will feature all the latest news, gossip, videos, and competitions – all inline with the show’s four stages.

More ‘great’ features will follow shortly such as integration with Facebook and Twitter (Nokia’s offical tweet doesn’t mention the app either).

Getting an exclusive on a hit TV show like the X factor is a bit strange given that Nokia dropped its sponsorship of the TalkBack Thames (which also doesn’t mention the app) show back in 2007.

Instead leading British retailer, the Carphone Warehouse, has sponsored the show and used it to promote Nokia’s Comes with Music offering.

And given the app isn’t there yet, we can’t confirm whether it’s free or not.

What’s the story?

The application being launched here is a price comparison application for when you are out shopping. The interface is incredibly simple – it’s just a search box:

From there you can narrow the search, access instant reviews and get price comparisons. There are literally thousands of merchants and retailers on board – so you’ll get a decent selection of prices for any goods you’re looking for.

It also tries to work in an element of what it calls “social shopping”. From within the app, you can send messages to people in your contacts list about products you particularly liked. You can also get recommendations from within the app; there’s a “people who searched for this item also searched for:” section.

What we think?

A big advantage that Shopping.com has over other services being launched at the moment is that it has a long history of comparison shopping. The on-line version has been running since 1997 – plenty of time to perfect its craft. But evidence of that craftiness is sadly lacking in this application. With such a great database of information and products to choose from, the application has some glaring omissions.

First, there should be a location option. Let’s say you’re in a shop, and you run a search on the Shopping.com app that tells you the product is available for much cheaper somewhere else. It should also tell you where that shop is – and possibly provide a map detailing how to get there. That’s one of the incredibly convenient things that a mobile is capable of, and a basic service that Shopping.com should provide. We’re talking about Android and iPhone apps here: the devices will have GPS.

Second, there should be a barcode scanner. This isn’t absolutely essential, but these apps are meant to make life more convenient for the shopper. Allowing a consumer to scan a barcode rather than type in the name of an entire product is part of that convenience, and Shopping.com has failed to provide it.

It seems like since the iPad was released, every single tech company in the world is manufacturing an Android tablet to rival Apple’s. And the first one to try and take down the iPad from it’s throne is the Samsung Galaxy Tab. Announced this morning in Berlin, the Galaxy Tab is a 7″ Android tablet running Froyo. Other specs include a 1GHz Cortex A8 processor, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS, Flash 10.1, a 4,000 mAh battery, quad-band GSM, a 3MP rear facing camera, 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera, full HD video playback at 1080p, microSD slot for upto 32 GB cards and all of that weighs only 380g!

Now what makes this different from the iPad is that it makes phone calls. The Galaxy Tab uses a HSUPA 5.76 Mbps / HSDPA 7.2 Mbps radio on the 900, 1900, 2100 MHz bands. The Galaxy Tab is set to launch later this month in Europe and here in the UK. Then later on this year Korea, the US and the rest of Asia will get it. There is no word on pricing or carriers, but could this be the iPad killer?

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Update:

It turns out Vodafone is the carrier that the Galaxy Tab is going to be on. DJ Lee, Senior Vice President and Head of Sales and Marketing Team of Mobile Communications Business at Samsung (Yes Long Title) said this:

I am very excited to introduce Samsung GALAXY Tab with Vodafone. Thanks to Vodafone’s strong promotion and co-marketing with us, Samsung GALAXY Tab can be an outstanding smart media device to lead a new media revolution. With GALAXY Tab, users enjoy full web browsing with flash 10.1 support, reading eBooks, newspapers, or magazines, and watching HD videos on the large enough 7-inch display while on the move. Furthermore, it is still compact enough to carry everywhere.

Still no word on pricing though.

What’s the story?

Skyfire is the developer of the Skyfire mobile browser – the newest versions are currently available on Android, Nokia and Windows Mobile. It claims to speed up the process of downloading and viewing mobile webpages by crunching and optimising them on its own servers before sending them to your phone. This allows Skyfire to make the page as streamlined and data-light as possible for your phone to view. It cuts down on the amount of data you download, as well as speeding up the whole process.

But the basic philosophy of Skyfire is that mobile browsers should be as close to on-line browsers as is possible. And that includes being able to view Flash creatives. So Skyfire transcodes Flash into HTML5 live on its servers before streaming them to your phone. It already works that way for Android – and it claims that by doing this, it will allow Flash files to be accessed on Apple mobile devices.

You can see a video of the iPhone app in action here, playing a Flash video of the Daily Show:

Skyfire seems pretty confident that this is going to be approved, for the reasons that they sent along here:
- The app has been developed with significant oversight and feedback from Apple
- It adheres to every guideline put forth by Apple regarding HTML5 video playback for iOS
- Skyfire will allow consumers to be play millions of Flash videos on Apple devices without the technical problems for which Jobs banned Flash.

What we think?

The problem of Flash vs. HTML5 is slowly becoming less and less of a problem. People are beginning to use HTML5 for mobile video and creatives – YouTube being the best example. But at the moment it still a pretty contentious issue – and if this app gets approved then Skyfire will have created a solution for that problem, even if it’s only temporary. That’s a pretty decent headline grabbing move, and I genuinely hope it works out for them.

What’s the story?

Aurora Feint runs a social gaming network called OpenFeint. There are about 2,800 games on the network – and it allows all of these games to share a single social platform. Gamers create OpenFeint IDs, which allows them to chat with and play against other gamers, store achievements, invite friends into competitive matches and more. It’s a proper gaming platform, and is open to any developer who wants to integrate it onto their device.

The big problem that Aurora Feint faces is that Apple’s Game Center will also do all of these things – but will be immediately available to all 50,000 games on the iTunes Store. In the run up to Game Centre, Aurora Feint has been releasing plenty of news. It launched for Android a month ago, and created an SMS-based viral advertising option two weeks ago.

What’s today’s news?

This announcement is actually pretty big. It’s a Software Development Kit that will allow game developers to make their mobile games real-time multiplayer across both Android and iPhone. So long as the developer has an iPhone and Android version of the game, they can now allow up to 16 gamers at a time on both platforms to play against one another in real-time – not just turn based. Open Feint claims this is the very first time this has been accomplished. It even allows voice chat between the platforms.

PlayTime will also be fully compatible with the Apple Game Centre.
What we think?

PlayTime hasn’t actually been released yet – that’ll come later this year when OpenFeint 3.0 hits the shelves. I think this is potentially a huge step forward for mobile games developers. It makes the audience they’re aiming for much larger, and makes it much more sensible to develop for both iPhone and Android. The question is whether or not OpenFeint can stand up against Game Centre. Making PlayTime fully compatible with the Apple system was maybe the smartest move they could have made. For many games developers, their most important asset is TIME – they have to make sure they’re using their time to work on the most effective applications possible. By making sure that a developers’ OpenFeint and PlayTime assets will work on Game Centre, Aurora Feint has made sure that time spent developing for their SKD won’t be time wasted.

After the success of the original Milestone and the XT720, the Milestone 2 has just been given the go ahead by Motorola. The Milestone 2 is the GSM version of the Droid 2 which was released in the states a few weeks ago but with a few major differences. for example, the Milestone has 720p video recording unlike its American cousin. However, Motorola had to screw us over some how and they’ve done it by putting MotoBlur on it rather than stock Android. Yes, I know what you are thinking, why Motorola why?

But otherwise the Milestone 2 and the Droid 2 are pretty much exactly the same. They both support a 3.7″ capacitive touchscreen at a resolution of 854 x 400, a 1GHz processor, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, a 5-Megapixel camera and 8Gb of internal storage. See more pics and a video after the break.

See video here.

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What’s the story?

The actual applications being launched here aren’t exactly electrifying. They’re called the Teletext Holiday Phrasebooks, and they offer thousands of phrases and words for holidaymakers. There are two currently available for Android – the Spanish and French versions – and each retails for 99p (around €1.50). Further languages will be launched in the coming weeks.

What we think?

To be honest, I’m not tremendously interested in the apps themselves. What’s more intriguing is the attitude they show from A&N Media towards mobile in general. This company is responsible for both the national and regional newspapers that the Daily Mail Group owns (totalling over 150 titels). The part of the company that Teletext Mobile belongs to is called A&N Media – Mobile and TV. This is a company that straddles a currently very hot topic: how can traditional newspaper companies survive the digital era?

A&N Media has proven that it has a lot of interest in mobile. Just recently it signed on mobile marketer Velti to create a single mobile advertising service that every single title in the A&N portfolio could make use of to reach their audience (see our report). And the MD of A&N Media – Mobile and TV, Neil Johnson has said “we will be launching an increasing number of apps on Android, putting some of our most popular on there along with brand new apps. As a leading publisher, development on Android has been part of our plans for a long time and as we now approach a ‘tipping point’ in adoption now is very much the time for action.”

I’m organising an interview with Neil Johnson at the moment, so we can look a little further into the plans this huge media group for mobile. Stay tuned next week!

ARCHOS Introduces Five New Android Tablets Starting Below $100

Launching Five New Android Tablets With Two Revolutionary Products, the ARCHOS 28 Internet Tablet, First Android MP3/MP4 Player Promoted Below $100 and the ARCHOS 101 Offering the Largest Screen on the Android Market, ARCHOS Now Offers New Ways to Tablet Your Way
DENVER, CO–(Marketwire – August 31, 2010) – ARCHOS, an award-winning technology innovator and leader in the portable media player market, today announces five new Android-based tablets.
From the ultra affordable and ultra portable ARCHOS 28 and 32 Internet tablets, to the multi-media marvel ARCHOS 43 Internet tablet, and the wide screen ARCHOS 70 and 101 internet tablets, ARCHOS’ new range offers a combination of super-fast web-browsing, games, eBooks, social networking and other apps alongside HD video and music in a very slim-line design.
The ARCHOS 28 Internet tablet and the ARCHOS 101 Internet tablet, the flagship products of the range, are bringing innovation to the Android world.
The ARCHOS 101 Internet tablet offers a unique design including the latest technology. This tablet has the advantage of a connected Android device that adds very fast web browsing and HD multimedia experience. The 10.1” high-resolution screen is nestled in a very slim and light form factor tablet, enabled through a patented construction process.
The ARCHOS 28 Internet tablet is the first Android player below $100. By introducing a connected device at such a low price, ARCHOS revolutionizes the portable music player segment.
ARCHOS has developed four unique Android applications for video, photo and music with the support of 3D cover animations to allow users to keep a digital experience as simple as it should be.
Three Android tablets from 4.3” to 10.1” screen size
A unique design
A patented construction process, which uses an over-moulded PVD stainless steel structure, has enabled ARCHOS to redefine the tablet form, with devices that are smaller, thinner and lighter, making the tablet even more portable. The ARCHOS 101 Internet tablet is just 0.47" thick and weighs only 15.87 ounces, yet offers a crisp, high-definition 10.1" capacitive multi-touch screen.
With the adjustable kickstand, users will always have the best position to tap out emails, view a movie or enjoy the photo frame application. Using the device is designed to be both easy and intuitive.
A PC-like super-fast web browsing experience
Featuring a powerful 1 GHz processor, high-speed WiFi-n technology and sleek high-resolution screen, the new Android-based tablets offer a fast and enjoyable PC-like web browsing experience. Users can access the entire internet thanks to Android’s support for Adobe Flash™ 10.1 player.
A built-in webcam on the ARCHOS 70 and 101 Internet tablet means users can make video calls to family and friends.
In addition, a new feature in the Android settings menu means that the devices can also be tethered to a 3G phone via Bluetooth or USB for Internet connectivity when on the move.
Hi-definition multimedia at your fingertips
With ARCHOS’ heritage in high-quality portable multimedia players, the Internet tablets offer consumers a full multimedia experience, with 720p HD video playback as standard, whether from a user’s movie collection or streamed from YouTube. Unique Android multimedia applications designed by ARCHOS will allow the end user to enjoy all his multimedia content.
The HDMI TV output offers the best Android, multimedia and games experience on your TV. The tablet can be used as a game pad for your TV thanks to the built-in accelerometer and 3D open GL technology so users can enjoy a unique gaming experience.
The ARCHOS 43 internet tablet also sports a 2 megapixel HD camcorder to capture video and photos than end user can share on the web or on the HD TV screen.
The first connected MP3/MP4 players below $100
The smaller ARCHOS 28 and 32 internet tablets bring the Android revolution to MP3 and MP4 players, adding a new dimension to this market. Alongside music and video playback, the low-cost, pocket-sized devices starting from $99.99 now offer email, web browsing, music and video streaming, 3D gaming, eBooks, social networking and other entertainment, productivity and information-based apps.
The Best HD multimedia experience
The ARCHOS 28 and 32 internet tablets feature music, video and photo applications, developed by ARCHOS, enriching the user experience with smooth browsing through the album covers and with widgets added to the home screen to give instant access and control to media. These unique Android applications allow users to amplify their digital experience.
The devices are also compatible across the major music and video formats, so there’s no need for conversion or the inconvenience of dedicated software support. A simple drag and drop from your computer is all that’s required.
The A32 internet tablet also includes a camcorder for video and photos to capture the greatest memories. Users can upload videos and pictures to the web or share via social networks.
Pocket Computer
With WiFi connection, users can surf the Web at the speed of a computer thanks to the speedy processor. The Internet browsing is also faster than ever; users can adjust the page size of an article with a simple double-tapping or rotating the ARCHOS and the screen will flip into place to display the entire page’s width. There’s also an email application so you can stay in touch with all of your friends.
Applications to make a player what users want it to be
The AppsLib store, with free and paid apps, will make sure you access and directly download custom sized Apps to fit your lifestyle. Games, books, music, social media, recipes, news and sports are now a click away.
ARCHOS tablets can become an eBook reader, with literature classics, the latest magazines or favorite comics available to download and read wherever you go.
A wide range of games, using 3D graphic acceleration, are also available. From the classic Sudoku to the fast-paced racing games, user will immerse themselves in fun games enjoying the comfort of sharp and large screens or using the device as a steering wheel.
Price and availability
ARCHOS 28 internet tablet
Available in September at 4GB, with a recommended retail price of $99.99.
ARCHOS 32 internet tablet
Available in September at 8GB, with a recommended retail price of $149.99.
ARCHOS 43 internet tablet
Available this fall at 8GB with a recommended retail price of $199.99.
ARCHOS 70 internet tablet
Available this fall with a recommended retail price of $274.99 (8GB) and $349.99 (250GB).
ARCHOS 101 internet tablet
Available this fall with a recommended retail price of $299.99 (8GB) and $349.99 (16GB).
About ARCHOS
ARCHOS released the first pocket-sized HD-based MP3 player with the Jukebox 6000 in 2000 and since that time has revolutionised consumer electronics devices. The company invented the portable media player in 2003 and was the first to bring television recording, wireless and touch screens to Portable Media Players. ARCHOS have also introduced the Internet Media Tablet range — the 5, 5g and 7 — offering users instant, uncompromising access to the internet, media content and TV. Established in 1988, ARCHOS has offices in the United States, Europe and Asia. ARCHOS is listed on Euronext Paris, Compartment B, ISIN Code FR0000182479. www.archos.com.

Engadget managed to get a little hands on time with them as you can see below: