It's a good time to buy Android phones. With the likes of the Nexus 5, Moto X and HTC One, it's really hard to go wrong. The question is, which phone should you buy?

We're going to compare two of our favorite Android devices - the Nexus 5 and Moto X - because if we had to spend our own cash on an Android smartphone today, it would boil down to those two devices.

Although the phones have their differences, they're also alike in some ways. This might make the decision-making process harder, especially when they're both great devices.

The Nexus 5 is a solid machine with some of the best specs you can find on an Android phone today. It has a sharp, 5-inch 1080p display, Snapdragon 800 with a 2.26GHz CPU, Adreno 330, 2GB RAM and all for a starting price of just $350 unlocked. That is incredible.

On the other hand, the Moto X has a rich 4.7-inch -720p AMOLED display, excellent curvature and customizable design, active notifications and Touchless Control. The latter allows you to speak commands to your phone even if it's asleep, which means the microphone is always on.

Let's take a look at the big features and see how they compare between the two devices.

Nexus 5 vs. Moto X: Display

The Nexus 5 has a 5-inch, 1920 x 1080 IPS LCD display, which gives us a density of 445 PPI. Compared to other smartphones, its colors and contrast tend to look more washed out, and the display doesn't get nearly as bright as the HTC One or iPhone 5S, for example.

However, whites look white without having too much of a bluish or cool tint. And the display is very sharp, which makes watching movies and looking at photos a real pleasure.

The Moto X has a 4.7-inch 1280 x 720 AMOLED display, which offers deep blacks, rich colors and contrast and generally warmer hues. It has a density of 316 PPI, so it looks sharp enough when you're holding it at normal viewing distances.

Which display is better? Well, it all becomes a matter of preference. The Moto X's AMOLED display is very rich when it comes to color and contrast, and it also draws less power, which helps the Moto X with its great battery life.

However, we also like the Nexus 5's larger, razor-sharp display. Without another smartphone to compare it to, the colors and brightness are just fine. It's only when you compare it directly with the Moto X or HTC One that you begin to notice its slightly washed out colors and contrast.

It's a toss-up between the two, but many seem to prefer the Moto X's display even though it's not as large or sharp as the Nexus 5's screen.

Nexus 5 vs. Moto X: Camera

At the moment, and until Google fixes the camera on the Nexus 5, we can easily give this one to the Moto X.

The Moto X has a 10MP rear camera, while the Nexus 5 has an 8MP shooter. Of course, megapixel count isn't everything, but it's the way each camera performs along with the native camera interface.

We found that the Moto X had a much easier time focusing in situations where the Nexus 5 struggled to find focus. In fact, the Nexus 5 would sometimes take seconds to focus even in bright, high-contrast scenes.

Moreover, there is a considerable amount of shutter lag on the Nexus 5's camera, whereas the Moto X was quick to start up and take shots and go from shot to shot.

Motorola also updated its camera software recently to allow you to drag its focus indicator to select your focus and metering point.

The Nexus 5's native camera software can be frustrating and confusing, especially for first-time Nexus users. There aren't many settings available, and they're hidden or buried in certain actions that first-time Nexus or Android owners might not find.

One thing we do like about the Nexus 5 camera is PhotoSphere, or the ability to take 360-degree panorama images. The stitching could use some improvement, and generally it's more of a user issue than a software one, but it's a neat trick to have.

When it comes to image quality, we will give the edge to the Nexus 5 despite its huge shortcomings in the actual shooting department. Images just seem less noisy and not oversharpened on the Nexus 5.

Another thing the Nexus 5 does better than the Moto X is HDR, or what's called HDR+ on the Nexus 5. It does a good job of retaining details in highlights and in shadows without making them look too cartoony, or giving a halo effect around edges. The Moto X tends to overdo the HDR effect, especially in scenes where the dark and light areas are extreme.

In the end, getting the shot, and preferably in a timely manner, is what matters to us. The Moto X does that a little better than the Nexus 5, and the X's camera software is a little more manageable, too.

Nexus 5 vs. Moto X: Battery life

Initial reviews of the Nexus 5 weren't so forgiving when it came to assessing its battery performance. However, we've found that over time, the Nexus 5's batter isn't bad at all, and it's very much comparable to other high-end Android devices like the HTC One.

However, it still doesn't quite keep up with the Moto X, whose battery can easily last an entire day and then some depending on your usage.

If we had to estimate just how much more life, on average, the Moto X gets over the Nexus 5 in terms of juice, we'd say that the Moto X can get up to 4-8 hours more on a single charge than the Nexus 5.

At the low end, it might not sound like a huge difference, but those few hours between getting home from work and going to sleep is big - especially if you're going to spend those hours being out on the town.

If you're considering either phone and battery life is a dealbreaker for you, we'd highly recommend getting the Moto X.

Nexus 5 vs. Moto X: Performance

In day to day use, performance differences between the two devices are surprisingly negligible. One would imagine that the Nexus 5, with a 2.26 GHz Snapdragon 800, would easily blaze by the Moto X's 1.7 GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro.

Numbers and specs don't tell the whole story, as we've learned over time. There were some cases when the Moto X was just slightly faster than the Nexus 5, and vice versa. In the end, it's a toss up between the two for most uses.

Similarities in performance can also be attributed to the device's displays, where the Moto X has fewer pixels to push than the Nexus 5.

When we opened and ran apps side by side, they were both roughly the same. In situations where the Moto X was faster, we were slightly surprised. A few examples are within Chrome and YouTube: in Chrome, some web pages loaded up faster than on the Moto X, and in YouTube some videos were ready to play on the Moto X, too.

The Nexus 5 was definitely faster in some cases, like when we we loaded up Asphalt 8 and played through one round of the game.

One would think that the Nexus 5 would have the clear edge in performance because of its spec sheet, but real-life daily use tells another story. Between the two, it's honestly a toss-up.

Nexus 5 vs. Moto X: Perks and features

One of the nice things about both phones is having voice control options. For the Moto X, you simply have to train it to recognize your voice via Touchless Control. Its microphone is always on, so whenever you say "OK Google Now," the phone will be ready for your next command.

The downside is that it will require you to unlock your phone if you have a passcode PIN or pattern, which we always recommend, so its usefulness is hampered.

The Nexus 5 will recognize the phrase "OK Google" when you're already in Google Now, and from there you can give it similar commands to ones you'd make for the Moto X.

When it comes to being touchless, we would give the Moto X the edge for its ability to hear your voice even when the phone isn't active. It also has a feature that knows when you're driving, so you can have your messages read to you.

Another huge feature, at least for us, is the Moto X's Active Notifications. Without having to touch your phone, the Moto X will display your notifications if it detects sound or movement, so you can glance at the time and all of your missed notifications without having to unlock your phone.

You can also attend to certain notifications right away, and the difference is simply between swiping up or down from the lock screen.

It might sound like Active Notifications are for the lazy, but it certainly helps manage distractions. When the Nexus 5 buzzes, you have to reach for your phone and unlock it to see whether you have to attend to something or not.

With the Moto X, when you get a notification, they all remain on your Active Notifications display, so you can decide when to get to them.

For the Nexus 5, having Google Now always on and just a swipe to the left is convenient if you like Google Now. You'll always have real-time info when it comes to weather, your calendar events, travel and transit times and options, sports scores and more. Of course, the Moto X has Google Now, too, but the Nexus 5 gets a dedicated home screen for it.

Nexus 5 vs. Moto X: Which should you buy?

After comparing a few of the big differences and features between the two devices, it's time to decide which one to buy.

Of course, this is only a decision you can make for yourself. We're hoping that we've provided you with enough info to know which one is right for you.

The Nexus 5 will likely be one step ahead when it comes to getting Android updates from Google. Its specs make it future proof, the display is gorgeous, and it's the cheapest high-end smartphone you can buy unlocked and off contract.

The Moto X has a little more soul, something other powerful smartphones like the LG G2 lacks, and its physical design seems a little more human-friendly. Its UI still makes it feel like a Google-y phone, and its battery life is excellent.

You can also customize the Moto X to your liking, with many color, name and engraving options. The Nexus 5, on the other hand, comes in only black or white.

We're always left feeling unsatisfied when we read or write comparisons that end in, "It's so hard to decide, they're both great," but that's exactly how we're going to end this. You really can't go wrong with either device, and both have their perks and faults.

In the end, what matters to you is what's going to guide your decision. Need great battery life? Get the Moto X. Want a big display? Get the Nexus 5. That can go on and on, so good luck with your purchase decision and try not to sweat it so much!

Source : techradar[dot]com

All Microsoft probably wants for Christmas is rapid regulatory approval (alongside stellar Surface and Xbox One sales), and so far at least some of its Xmas wishes are coming true.

The US Department of Justice has approved the company's plan to purchase Nokia's device and services division, moving the $7-billion-plus deal closer to completion. Straight conversions put the deal at about £4.2 billion, AU$7.6 billion.

The DOJ actually bestowed its blessing on Black Friday, and Microsoft expressed its pleasure that the department "cleared the deal unconditionally."

The next major hurdle for the acquisition lays in wait at the EU, which is expected to make a decision by December 4. However, the European Commission can lengthen its deadline by up to 10 business days if it needs more time to mull potential Microsoft concessions.

No-No-Nokia, No-No-Nokia, Nokia all the way

Nokia shareholders overwhelmingly approved Microsoft's purchase plans last month, and with authorities from the US to India giving the A-OK, the deal is all but a lock.

Of course, the EU may find the deal violates antitrust policies, which would stick a Lumia 1520-sized wrench in the buyout. No conditions are expected, but the EU could be feeling particularly cheeky that day.

Even after the inevitable happens and Redmond and Espoo can finally ride off into the high-gloss yellow sunset together, questions still remain just how Microsoft will meld Nokia's products with its own.

Source : techradar[dot]com

Think the world can't possibly accommodate any more smartphones? You think wrong.

Despite the fact that our planet currently contains more unique designs of mobile phone than there are visually identifiable snowflake forms, we're about to be hit by a deluge of new mobiles. Make a date in your diary for February 24, 2014, when the plastic-formers and die-casters of the world will unleash their next-generation models at Mobile World Congress 2014.

MWC is the annual mobile tech event where pretty much every major phone hardware company shows off its new flagship models for the following spring/summer contract renewal market.

MWC 2014 no-shows

There have been a few exceptions, though. Samsung opted to demonstrate its Galaxy S4 at a separate event in 2013, while Sony tried to get a head start on the competition by unveiling its Xperia Z at January's CES tech show last year instead.

The MWC 2013 event was all about larger displays and quad-core hardware. This year will be about even bigger displays and, as we've already seen from the LG G Flex and Samsung Galaxy Round, there may be some interesting new tech on display in the form of bendable screens and yet more takes on the emerging smartwatch trend.

All of the major manufacturers featured below are down to attend (with the exception of BlackBerry) and, thanks to the recent Big Bag explosion of Android, previously modest handset makers like ZTE and Huawei look set to make the most noise with rafts of cheaper phones that still deliver a decent experience.

Nokia at MWC 2014

Windows Phone has had a pretty triumphant few months, with Microsoft's partnership with Nokia finally bearing fruit and WP's market share slowly increasing. IDC's recent numbers put it at 3.6% (Q3 2013), compared to 2% in Q3 2012 - a healthy 156% increase.

People seem to be remembering that they used to like Nokia, and although the company has released the likes of the Lumia 1520 and Lumia 2520 tablet in recent weeks, there may be more to come. Recently, the Lumia 1820 and Lumia 2020 have been rumored, with the latter likely to be a new flagship 8-inch tablet.

We should also see the first hardware set to launch with the Windows Phone 8.1 Blue software pre-loaded at MWC 2014, an OS update that's expected to massively overhaul WP's notification system, boost the multitasking options and incorporate a voice-based personal assistant feature. Because everyone's got to have a Siri function, even if no one ever uses it.

Samsung at MWC 2014

Rumor has it that Samsung is again saving its Galaxy S5 announcement for a separate event, just like it did last year with the bizarre Galaxy S4 launch in New York. But that doesn't mean its booth will be any less heaving with new stuff

The Samsung Galaxy Note 12.2 mega-tablet is expected to be on show, plus there are likely to be KitKat versions of older handsets and updates of the Galaxy Note 8.0 to thrill nerds with too. There's also the chance of something extremely random like the Galaxy Gear 2 or perhaps even a hint of a phone running the Tizen OS that Samsung's been working on.

HTC at MWC 2014

HTC is a Mobile World Congress banker, always using the event to launch its newest models. Last year it unveiled the HTC One, the year before it was the HTC One S and the HTC One X.

This year we expect it to be a model currently known under the development name of HTC M8, which rumors suggest will be a device with a 5-inch 1080p display, quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor and Android 4.4 as its launch OS beneath an updated HTC Sense 6.0 user interface.

This sounds rather like... most phones nowadays. Still, if HTC can whack in the same sort of top-drawer speakers and camera as the HTC One, we'll be buying it and eBaying last year's model, as ever.

Huawei at MWC 2014

The Chinese phone maker is rumored to be preparing an update to the decent Huawei Ascend P6 and is, rather unsurprisingly, sticking the fashionable letter "S" on the end of the model name to signify that it's newer and better. The Ascend P6S is said to arrive running a full octa-core processor supplied by MediaTek, which ought to get the core enthusiasts happy.

ZTE at MWC 2014

ZTE polarized phone fans at MWC 2013, revealing the flashy 5.7-inch Grand Memo and the weird little ZTE Open, running the Firefox OS.

It's recently announced the small and affordable Nubia Z5S and Z5S mini models, but rumors suggest it has a secret higher tier on the way - a 6.44-inch ZTE Nubia Z7 could be its forthcoming "phablet" flagship and the one it wants to shout about at MWC 2014

ZTE is also said to be planning a smartwatch for release in 2014, but then so is everyone, so that's hardly news.

LG at MWC 2014

LG is back on the smartphone A-list thanks to its successes with the excellent Nexus 4 and the more than adequate Nexus 5, both of which have encouraged people to consider its own-brand efforts like the LG G2 more than they perhaps might have done before Google salvaged its reputation.

Last year LG revealed the Optimus G Pro and the updated affordable L series range at MWC 2013, so we expect a similar mixture of a high-end banger and a few cheaper hangers-on to appear in 2014.

There are two key LG rumours that may be resolved at MWC (or sooner). LG is said to be Google's hardware partner for an updated Nexus 10 tablet, plus it's also recently registered the trademark "Glasstic" -- which may be some sort of Google Glass competitor.

Sony at MWC 2014

With the Xperia Z1 only just launched, we wouldn't forgive Sony for taking it easy and just bringing along a couple of those for people to play on and some t-shirts to give away. Surely it can't be preparing to release another flagship smartphone already

One thing we are expecting to see is something along the lines of a Sony Xperia Z1S, a smaller version of 2013's Z1 model. Taking your current hero device and making it a bit smaller and cheaper is the cool thing to do.

Google at MWC 2014

Google is on the list of MWC 2014 exhibitors, although it's likely to spend most of its time and square footage pushing the general Android ethos and giving away stickers than actually revealing any new Nexus hardware.

That said, we're expecting a new Nexus 10 to appear any day now, so if that one doesn't pop before Christmas, perhaps it could be saved as an MWC headline-stealer to detract from the stacks of enhanced tablets that Samsung is bound to show up with.

Source : techradar[dot]com

The successor to the Alcatel Idol X might be joined by a couple of wearable pals if the latest rumours are anything to go by.

The new handset, currently going by the name Alcatel Idol X+, will reportedly run on MediaRek's flashy new eight-core MT6592 processor.

But in an image on Chinese site MTKSJ, the silhouette of the handset appears sandwiched between a smartwatch and what appears to be a smart bracelet or fitness tracker of sorts.

We do have to throw a fair bit of doubt on the image though – that bracelet looks an awful lot like a Fitbit Force, and the watch is a little Galaxy Gear in our opinion.

Smart move?

That's not to say it's all Photoshop lies, but we don't reckon that these are actual representations of the final products, should anything emerge.

If it weren't for the huge number of companies getting in on this market right now then we'd probably be a little more skeptical. But anyone who's anyone has big plans for wearable tech these days, so it makes sense for TCL, the company that owns Alcatel, to join in as well.

We're expecting the Alcatel Idol X+to come with a 5-inch full HD display, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal memory and a 13-megapixel rear camera.

As for a possible smartwatch, we'd bet money on that running Android too.

• We're not hugely impressed with the smartwatch just yet - can Apple and Google give it the kick it needs?

Source : techradar[dot]com

With the exception of EE, existing mobile networks use 3G/UMTS technology, which is now 10 years old and struggling to cope with the needs of today's data hungry users.

4G/LTE (Fourth Generation / Long Term Evolution) is the next stage in mobile network development and will provide users with much faster data speeds than 3G is able to.

EE has been testing the waters with 4G since October of last year, but to date they've had the market to themselves in the UK. As while EE were able to leverage some of their existing spectrum in the 1800 MHz band, the other networks had to wait till a spectrum auction held by Ofcom in February before they could even start preparing for a 4G launch.

However both O2 and Vodafone have launched 4G networks of their own, so EE is about to have some serious competition, while Three is set to launch its own 4G network in December too, and is set to aggressively undercut the competition in terms of price.

• What's the best 4G handset?

So here's what you need to know if you're thinking of getting your hands on one of those fancy-Dan superfast 4G handsets everyone keeps going on about these days.

What differences are there between the 4G frequency bands?

4G can be a confusing beast, particularly when there are three different frequency bands in use in the UK alone.

The 2.6 GHz band is one of the two frequencies that were auctioned off by Ofcom in February. It has a greater data capacity than the other two bands so it can deal with loads of people connecting at once, but it doesn't fare so well over long distances, making it ideal for cities and other compact, densely populated areas but not so good for rural locations.

The 800 MHz band is the other spectrum that was sold off in February. It was used to provide analogue terrestrial TV, but has been freed up since the big Digital switchover.

While it doesn't provide the same data capacity as the 2.6 GHz band, the 800 MHz frequency can easily travel over long distances and will be used to provide broadband speeds to rural areas where telephone exchanges can't reach.

Being low frequency it's also better at penetrating walls than the 2.6 GHz or 1800 MHz bands, so it will provide an improved signal when indoors.

The 1800 MHz band is used by EE and once Three launches a 4G network of its own in December it will be too, thanks to purchasing a chunk of it from EE.

However, as part of the deal to get the spectrum off the brand formed from the merger of T-Mobile and Orange, Three had to agree not to launch 4G on the spectrum before October 2013, which is the main reason for it delaying its deployment until later in the year.

The 1800 MHz band strikes a balance between coverage and capacity (falling between the extremes of the 2.6 GHz and 800 MHz bands) which makes it a good 'middle-ground' for getting 4G around the country.

Ofcom's 4G spectrum auction

The 4G spectrum auction held by Ofcom at the beginning of the year saw winning bids from O2 (Telefónica UK), Vodafone, Three (Hutchison Whampoa) and of course EE. Interestingly BT also came away with a piece of the pie through its subsidiary Niche Spectrum Ventures.

Remember, more MHz means a better connection, so the more 'x GHz' of spectrum, the more widespread and robust a network can be.

Vodafone spent the most at the auction- a whopping £790,761,000 and came away with 2 x 10 MHz of 800 MHz spectrum, 1 x 20 MHz of 2.6 GHz spectrum and a further 1 x 25 MHz of 2.6 GHz spectrum.

EE spent £588,876,000 and secured 2 x 5 MHz of 800 MHz spectrum and 2 x 35 MHz of 2.6 GHz spectrum, which is less spectrum overall than Vodafone has.

Don't forget that EE can also call upon the 1800 MHz spectrum that it's been using over the last year though.

O2 spent £550,000,000 on 2 x 10 MHz of 800 MHz spectrum. The company completely neglected the 2.6 GHz band which may hurt its inner city performance, but with its extensive network of Wi-Fi hotspots in cities the bubbly brand thinks it will be OK without it – although it will be interesting to see how receptive consumers are to the idea.

Three spent £225,000,000 on 2 x 5 MHz of 800 MHz spectrum. Like O2, the company passed on the 2.6 GHz band, however Three will also have access to some 1800 MHz spectrum, as noted above.

BT was something of a surprise bidder and secured 2 x 15 MHz of 2.6 GHz and 1 x 20 MHz of 2.6 GHz spectrum- though it doesn't look like the telecoms giant is going to launch a new mobile network. Instead the spectrum is likely to be used to boost and complement its existing broadband services as well as providing behind-the-scenes wireless support for the mobile industry.

EE's position

4G arrived in the UK on 30th October 2012 courtesy of a joint venture between Orange and T-Mobile named Everything Everywhere, or 'EE' for short.

EE was granted permission by Ofcom to use part of its existing 3G bandwidth for 4G, which is why it got a head start on everybody else in October 2012. As you can imagine, rival networks were somewhat unhappy about this decision, but part of the deal for EE to get this head start was that it had to sell off a chunk of their 1800MHz spectrum.

EE vs O2 vs Vodafone vs Three: which will be the best 4G network?

This chunk was promptly snapped up by Three, though despite getting a hold of 4G spectrum before O2 or Vodafone, Three is going to be the last network to launch a 4G service, which is part of the sale deal with EE.

For almost a year EE was the only provider of 4G services in the UK and it's made the most of that head start as its 4G network is currently available in over 100 UK towns and cities.

If you don't live in one of those 4G-imbued areas you can still buy one of EE's 4G handsets and use the 4G services in any of the above towns and cities, but you'll have to wait a bit longer to get 4G where you live.

Tariffs are still fairly expensive – for example you'll pay £26 per month for just 500MB of data on a 24 month contract with a handset.

However O2's initial prices aren't much better (apart from early deals with a touch more data) and EE has the advantage of far wider coverage.

What's more, EE has access to a huge amount of 4G spectrum and is the only network with access to all three of the 4G spectrum bands that are in use in the UK, making it the best prepared for data demands of the future.

EE has also begun improving its 4G network in certain locations, leading to 'double speed' 4G being available in a number of towns and cities. This means that it's got another technological advantage over O2, Vodafone and Three, but it won't be long until the rest have caught up.

O2's position

O2 finally launched its 4G network on August 29, although there may not be too much to get excited about as O2's launch is limited to London, Leeds and Bradford. However Birmingham, Newcastle, Liverpool, Glasgow, Nottingham, Leicester, Coventry, Sheffield, Manchester and Edinburgh will be added before the end of the year.

Though it can be hard to directly compare each networks 4G pricing, O2 by and large seems comparable to EE's. For example: a 12-month SIM only contract with 1GB of data will set you back £26 a month- which is exactly the same as EE charges.

That said, in a bid to get early customers O2 has got a few temporary deals that are rather more compelling. Before October 31, customers who take out a 3GB data tariff (which starts at £31 if you don't need a handset) will have it upgraded to 5GB for the life of the contract.

Similarly a 5GB tariff (starting at £36 a month on a 12 month contract with no handset) will be upgraded to 8GB of data for the duration of the contract.

Early deals aside O2 doesn't have the coverage to back up its prices so in the short term it seems like a tough sell. On top of that, the fact that O2 doesn't have access to the 2.6 GHz frequency may result in it not having the data capacity to adequately serve 4G to cities once customers become more data hungry.

Another problem O2 faces is that the iPhone 5 isn't compatible with its network, but anyone who purchased an iPhone 5 from O2 between the September 21 2012 and March 31 2013 is eligible for an early upgrade deal, wherein O2 will knock off 25% of the remaining line rental and give you up to £295 for your old handset (depending on model and condition), making it much more affordable to upgrade to a phone that can get 4G.

Vodafone's position

Vodafone is also launching its 4G network on the August 29, seemingly just to steal some of O2's thunder as the network was previously talking about launching later. It also has a site-sharing deal with the effervescent provider, so that's likely to play a big part in making the Aug 29 switch-on more efficient.

Initially Vodafone's 4G signal will only be available in London, but by the end of the year the network will have brought it to Birmingham, Bradford, Coventry, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield. That's thirteen cities in all, which is the same number as O2 plan to provide 4G to by the end of the year, though still a long way short of EE's coverage.

However Vodafone does have one advantage and that's pricing, as many of Vodafone's 4G tariffs are cheaper than O2 or EE. For example for £26 a month Vodafone will give you 2GB of data on a 12-month SIM only contract.

That's double what either O2 or EE is offering. It could still hardly be called cheap, but it's substantially more affordable than 4G has been to date.

You won't be left high and dry if you're already a Vodafone customer either, as assuming you have a 4G-ready handset then for £5 extra a month you can switch to a 4G tariff- which will also double your data allowance.

Better yet, Vodafone 4G customers who take up a 24 month contract with a handset will also get access to either Spotify Premium (which usually costs £9.99 a month) or Sky Sports Mobile TV (usual price £4.99 a month) for no extra charge.

Whichever service you choose will be free for anything from six months to the full two years of the contract, depending on your tariff.

Much like O2, Vodafone is unable to provide 4G to the iPhone 5, but customers who purchased an iPhone 5 from Vodafone between the September 12 2012 and June 30 2013 will be able to return their handset to a Vodafone store and have 75% of their remaining line charges taken off to minimize the cost of an upgrade.

Similar deals are also available for those with a Samsung Galaxy S3 or Samsung Galaxy Note 2.

With sizable chunks of both the 800 MHz and the 2.6 GHz band, Vodafone should have the capacity to deliver a fast, reliable 4G connection to customers in both urban and rural locations.

Three's position

Three has finally announced it will be rolling out its 4G networks in December of this year, which is a bit later than the Big Three. However, it will have an ace up its sleeve: no additional cost for 4G.

If you already have a 4G handset and a Three SIM then 4G speeds won't cost you any extra - all you'll have to do is install a software update from the network to activate it.

Those on monthly plans with all you can eat data won't see any caps imposed on their data limits either, meaning those running on the One Plan for £15 per month will get unlimited 4G data, and nigh-on unlimited calls and texts (providing they already have a 4G-enabled phone) which will massively undercut Three's rivals.

London, Manchester and Birmingham will be the first cities to get the 4G network, with the switch on set to "accelerate" in January bringing 4G access to over 1.5 million customers in the new year.

By the end of 2014, Three intends to have 4G coverage in 50 cities across the UK, and nearly the whole country covered by the superfast connection by the end of the following year.

This is thanks to the numerical networking managing to nab some of the 800MHz spectrum to deploy 4G speeds to the rural parts of the British Isles, as mentioned above.

That combination of low prices and large data allowances could be enough to topple the scales in Three's favour and may, we hope, force the other networks to lower their prices.

Getting 4G at Three's prices will mean waiting just a little bit longer, but in the meantime there's always the network's Ultrafast service, which is substantially faster than standard 3G.

However, long term things don't quite so rosy for the network, as with only a small amount of 800 MHz and 1800 MHz spectrum it may struggle to keep up with its customers data needs.

4G coverage: When will the whole of the UK have it?

Although all of the networks should have 4G services by the end of 2013, they will of course focus their efforts on major cities first in an effort to service the most users.

Ofcom's targets say that 4G must reach 98% of the population and 95% of the country by the end of 2017, but EE claim that it will cover 98% of the country by the end of 2014 and already cover 60% of the UK population, while O2 and Vodafone are both aiming to cover 98% of the country by the end of 2015, so UK-wide 4G coverage may be closer than you think.

EE are also upgrading their 3G network to DC-HSPA in an effort to improve speeds when 4G services aren't available, while customers of Three can fall back on the networks Ultrafast service.

Are the new 4G phones any good?

The 4G phones currently available in the UK are basically just LTE-equipped versions of current top-end 3G phones, such as the iPhone 5, Samsung Galaxy S4, and HTC One, along with a few mid range handsets such as the HTC One Mini and Nokia Lumia 820.

However, the iPhone 5 won't run on O2 or Vodafone's networks, as you'll see below.

One of the advantages to being late to the 4G party is that we're spared the rubbish "first try" handsets that we suffered back when 3G came out, so don't be shy to try the new 4G phones.

4G handsets are available on every network, though if, as in Three's case, the network hasn't launched its 4G service yet, you'll be limited to 3G speeds for the time being.

Do the 4G versions of the iPad 4, iPad Mini and iPhone 5 work in the UK?

They do! The iPad 4, iPad Mini and iPhone 5 all work on the 1800 MHz frequency band used by EE. However they aren't compatible with the 800 MHz or 2.6 GHz bands that O2 and Vodafone will be using, so you'll only be able to enjoy 4G speeds on the current generation of iDevices if you get one on EE or wait for Three to roll out 4G.

That said it's highly likely that the next generation will work on other frequencies, so fingers crossed for 4G iDevices on all networks before the end of the year.

None of the older iPhones or iPads work with 4G on any UK network, so even when buying through EE or Three you'll have to shell out for the latest and greatest of Apple's offerings.

What are the 4G download speeds?

Well, so far we can only comment on Everything Everywhere's network speeds, as this is the only 4G network with confirmed speeds at the time of writing, but it's certainly impressive.

EE boasts speeds typically five times faster than current 3G networks, though on several occasions we found it to be ten or more times faster than a comparable 3G handset in the same area.

In use it just makes everything feel much snappier and ensures tasks like checking image-laden emails and browsing complex web pages is a breeze.

EE claims average download speeds of 12-15Mbps and typical maximum speeds of 40Mbps, with upload speeds averaging around 5-6Mbps with a typical maximum of 15Mbps.

EE has also started rolling out 'double speed' 4G in select locations. So far it's available in 20 cities and, according to EE, average download speeds in those locations are 24-30Mbps, while the maximum speed is 60Mbps. Average upload speeds are said to be 11Mbps.

EE has achieved this by making network improvements which allow customers to use 2 x 20 MHz of spectrum, where before they would have been using 2 x 10 MHz of spectrum – essentially a bigger (virtual) pipe allowing a faster rush of data to enter your phone.

Whether the other networks will achieve any higher remains to be seen, but 4G download speeds could theoretically exceed 100Mbps with upload rates of more than 50Mbps, though it's unlikely we'll see anything like that in the near future.

Why is 4G so fast?

4G's impressive speed increase is achieved with the use of OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Divison Multiplexing), a transmission technology used by the likes of ADSL, Wi-Fi, DVB-T, DVB-H and DAB.

Not only does it reduce latency (the amount of time taken to buffer and connect to webpages), but it also minimises interference and is able to cram greater amounts of data into the same slice of radio bandwidth.

Simply put, this enables 4G/LTE phones and tablets to stream video and play online games like never before, largely because 4G has been designed primarily as a data network, rather than a voice one and it uses the same TCP/IP protocols that underpin the internet.

The upshot for you is that the data is 'flatter', as in it's easier for the networks to stream, so should theoretically be cheaper. Whether those cost savings are ever passed on remains to be seen – it's not cheap to roll out 4G, especially at this rate of deployment across the UK.

It's possible that further increases in speed could be achieved with MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) technology, which uses multiple antennas on transmitters and receivers like 802.11n Wi-Fi equipment, but that's some way into the future.

Nokia has reportedly achieved 173Mbps from 4G with a 2x2 MIMO configuration (two antennas on both the transmitter and receiver), so a 4x4 arrangement could potentially offer as much as 326.4Mbps, although this isn't something we need to think about right now… although perhaps we'll see this these speeds on the iPhone 10?

LTE-A and the future of 4G

The UK may only just be fully embracing 4G but some parts of the world are already looking to the next generation of high speed mobile data. That next step is LTE-A (the 'A' is for 'advanced', fact fans).

Essentially its works by increasing the number of antennas in use as detailed above, alongside 'carrier aggregation' which allows a device to combine multiple 4G signals or even multiple different frequencies, rather than just using one at a time as standard 4G does.

In theory LTE-A can deliver far greater data speeds than the 4G of today. In fact it could potentially reach speeds of up to 160 Mbps, which is comparable to a 20MB home broadband connection.

LTE-A won't work on 4G-ready phones as they'll specifically need an LTE-A chip in them, however there is already one LTE-A compatible handset available.

It's an LTE-A version of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and currently it's only available in South Korea- and if you're considering importing it, don't, because of course none of our networks currently support LTE-A.

It's a fairly safe bet that the UK will get in on the act one day and at that moment we'll be able to enjoy fixed line broadband speeds on the move. But the technology is still in its infancy and we've only just got normal LTE, so we've probably got a while to wait.

Source : techradar[dot]com

Samsung may be hunting the compact camera market to extinction if news that it is developing a 20MP camera sensor is to be believed.

ET News reports that it isn't due to be released until the latter half of 2014, so we're not going to see it sat behind the Samsung Galaxy S5. Current rumours suggest that the S5 will come with only 16MP.

A Q3 launch of the camera module would put it more in line with the annual refresh of the Samsung Galaxy Note series, so we'd expect the mooted sensor to potentially land in the Galaxy Note 4.

A way to go

Both the Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 sport a 13MP camera, and when compared to the likes of the 20.7MP Sony Xperia Z1 and 41MP Nokia Lumia 1020, Samsung is still some way off key competition.

There's a chance that this camera may worm its way into the Galaxy S6 in early 2015 and potentially even a Samsung Galaxy S5 Zoom midway though 2014 - the Galaxy S4 Zoom does, after all, already have a 16MP camera.

Other manufacturers are pushing camera tech in new ways, with the HTC One's UltraPixels and LG G2's OIS system, and we're still waiting for Samsung to offering up something new.

• Will smartphones ever replace the likes of the Panasonic Lumix GM1, the camera on Global Editor-in-Chief Paul Douglas' Christmas wishlist?

Source : techradar[dot]com

Samsung has just announced the Galaxy Grand 2, but it's got plans to cover yet another price point with the Galaxy Grand Lite.

According to SamMobile the Galaxy Grand Lite, as it's being referred to right now, is on its way and could be unveiled at MWC in February 2014.

The phone packs a 5-inch WVGA screen, 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of storage and a microSD slot to bulk that up.

The rear camera will be a 5MP deal, while there'll also be a front-facing VGA snapper and a 2100mAh battery.

Dual identity

Considering the Galaxy Grand and Galaxy Grand 2 are both dual-SIM (and therefore quite popular in markets such as India), it seems obvious that it'll be the same affair on the Lite. But we expect we'll see it come further West too, with a single SIM option also being mooted.

SamMobile states that the phone will be available from "somewhere around the fifth week of 2014" which puts it a couple of weeks before MWC. But we could also see the announcement held off until the Barcelona show.

SamMobile also states that the phone will be available in white, "Midnight Black", orange and "Lime Green". So white, black, orange and green, then.

• What's all this about a Galaxy Grand 2?

Source : techradar[dot]com