If you asked somebody a decade ago about sticking a camera in a phone you would have been met with a look that said you belonged in an institute. Nowadays you’d get the same look if you asked for a phone without a camera.

When the first phones came out with a camera you had a VGA image which could be measured at around 0.3 megapixels. You may scoff at this by today’s standard, but the V3 captivated its audience with this size camera and became one of the best selling phones of all time.

In these early days of camera and phone combined, the question of ‘why buy a camera?’ never looked on the horizon. Even when the higher megapixel camera’s like the Sony Ericsson W810i were introduced boasting an incredible 2 megapixel,  but the cameras lens and shutter speed were no match for any  digital camera.

It was only when the Sony Ericsson K800i (3.2 megapixels) photo and compared  it to a Nokia N73 (3.2 megapixels) photo and saw that it showed 2 completely different images did people start to demand not just the megapixels but also quality in the camera lens, and from then forward did the market really start to change.

Next was the emergence of the 5 megapixels phone. First came the Samsung G600, again great phone but the camera quality despite the megapixels were poor. Ericsson then released the K850i again 5 megapixels but the camera seemed to take poorer picture than its cousin the K800i released over a year earlier.

The market was about to be shaken up though when Nokia N95 was released. An iconic phone for many reasons but the camera stood out, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus and LED flash meant the camera quality was stunning, crystal clear clarity. Not only that the video recording was in a league of its own, gone was the grainy blurred image that was all other camera phones and here was a standard that the industry would be compared to from now on.

So where is the market now?

With the emergence of the latest Sony Ericsson which is the Satio you now have on the market for the first time a 12 megapixel camera phone. The phone itself is not just boasting 12 megapixels; you have face detection, smile detection, and even blink detection, Auto focus, Xenon flash, 16 x digital Zoom, Geo-tagging, red eye reduction and image stabiliser to name a few.

When choosing a phone, you now really do have a choice to get a camera combined as well and not just a gimmick.

With these choices people really are asking the question ‘why by a camera?’, so camera market, beware.

Having worked in the mobile industry now for over 8 years I have witnessed many changes within the mobile market. The rate of change back in 2000-2002 was phenomenal. The advances in technology were mind blowing. We went from very dull, bulky mobile phones with dull green screens and basic text, holding nothing more than phone numbers, with the ability to text, possibly a calculator, alarm clock and stopwatch to sexy, slinky handsets with colour screens, cameras and games.

The rate of technological advancement made the consumer constantly feel out of date as new features were being added to handsets very frequently. WAP, GPRS, Bluetooth, video capture, Multimedia messaging and camera flash are all examples of groundbreaking features, which people wanted. This made consumers feel like they had to update their handsets as early as possible and therefore the demand at the time was for short term contracts of 12 months.

Since then, networks have pushed and extended their contracts threefold, with 36 month contracts now sneaking on to the network’s contract range. This is quite a scary prospect to those used to 12 month contracts. However these long contract lengths are definitely the best value for money and from my experience are becoming ever more popular, especially with the glum outlook on the economy at the moment. For the same monthly payment consumers are entitled to a lot more for their money. For example Dolphin 30 (Orange tariff) on a 12 month contract entitles you to 200 cross network minutes at any time and 500 texts. Compare this to the Dolphin 30 24 month contract, which entitles you to 600 cross network minutes at any time, unlimited texts and also unlimited Mobile internet access (based on a fair usage of 500mb each month).

The only question to ask is will my handset last 24/36 months? I believe the answer is yes. There is not that much more you can fit on these handsets in terms of features. I currently have the Nokia N82 which I have owned for over 2 years and I am now struggling to decide which handset to go for next as I deem this phone to still be sufficient and competitive with the latest handsets, as it matches my needs perfectly. What is important is making sure you pick your handset wisely based on your preferences and circumstances.

This is where our sales team come in.  Our product knowledge is second to none and our sales agents are continually trained on the very latest handsets to ensure they make the right recommendations for you, based on your needs, usage and circumstance. You can be sure you are in safe hands when you are talking to us and receive sound advice on what products will benefit you the most for the least amount of money.

“When I was a nipper we had things a bit simpler when it came to consoles; you had the Sega Megadrive or you had the Super Nintendo. Nowadays things are a bit more varied and I’ll be doing my best to give you a brief run-down of the current next-gen consoles so you can see what best suits you.

If you want the beast of the console world then you’ve no real option but the Playstation 3. The Playstation 3 has recently gone down a couple of jean sizes with the PS3 Slim but its bark and bite are just as big as its predecessor. Combine one of the best graphic performances in the market with the built in Blu-Ray player this is definitely a console for the dedicated gamer.

Next up we have the Xbox 360. Now, if you’re a casual gamer then this is the one for you. With over 6 million users Xbox Live is one of the largest gaming networks ever. The selection of games for the Xbox 360 is incredible and they’re generally cheaper than the games for its competitors. Another cool feature of this machine is that you can link it up to a network of other computers in your home. Any movies, films or tv shows saved onto your computer can be linked onto the Xbox and broadcast onto your TV!

Now…the Wii, this is an odd one. The graphics aren’t as good as the previous two consoles. The speed of the machine doesn’t match and a lot of big name releases don’t get a showing on this thing…Despite all this though the Wii is, without a doubt, the most fun console on the market. With the PS3 and 360 you’re getting the same consoles you’ve seen before just with better hardware and performance, which is fine, but the Wii is something unique. Its entire control method is revolutionary; the movement of your Wii controller directly controls the action on your screen. You point your Wiimote at the screen, your gun targets with it. You swing the controller, your tennis racket swings. It is without a doubt, the biggest change we’ve seen in console gaming since control pads had more than two buttons. Sorry. Rambled on a bit there. Where was I…Oh yes. Recommendation. This is the perfect console for the non-gamer or the family. It’s great for kids of all ages from 7 – 70. And it great for those of you who just want something to have some fun with your mates with.

So there you have it. Whoever you are, whatever games you like there’s a console on this site for you. I hope my blog’s been useful but if you want some specific info about the consoles on offer please, have a click on these links. PS3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii.

Wires!! There’s nothing more annoying than going to charge your phone and finding it has wrapped around everything including chair legs, plugs and other devices. Doesn’t it just baffle how something that has been lying idle for days has somehow magnetically grouped with other wires? When we go to open a draw and have to recoil in terror that there are wires clumped and mangled together!

A little over dramatic maybe, but haven’t wires been playing less and less a part in our lives recently, some things that have made a massive difference are:

Yes were talking way into the future before everything will possibly become wireless, but technology has come on leaps and bounds in recent years

On the theme of wireless technology there is something out now and will get all techno buffs excited, it’s called a Mobile Charge Pad:

How it works is simple, you attach a power clip to your mobile phone (only certain major makes at the moment, including Nokia, Samsung, LG) and then place on the above charge pad and abracadabra you have wireless charging!

Now for something I am personally excited about is a product soon to be released my Microsoft for the Xbox 360 which is called Project Natal:

How it works is to think of the Wii but wireless (or Wiireless, sorry) it picks up every movement of your body from your individual finger movements right down your feet and ever your facial expressions! Reading one of the previews on IGN’s web site they have play tested a racing game, you basically sit in your seat and hold your arms out like holding a wheel and press your right foot to accelerate and left foot to brake. How amazing is that, no buying expensive bits and add-ons. And all that’s needed is pictured above and it can sit on the floor or on top of your TV.

And finally something I came across that sounded very interesting, it’s called a K&S W Phone watch:

How it works well from what I make out from their website it’s a watch that has a touch screen and it gives you full control over your current Bluetooth headset, so it allows you to dial someone from your watch! (I assume any Bluetooth enabled device will work also).
It comes with a stereo MP3 player, camera, video recorder/player, and games and also has a micro SD slot! If you want to feel like James Bond I would recommend looking into this, just don’t go all out and buy an underwater car as unfortunately it’s not waterproof. Oh and just for the record it does tell the time!

Clearance… This word is normally mentioned in regards to items that are nearing the end of their shelf-life, items that will soon be obsolete. However, in the world of online mobile phone retailing, this word takes a whole new meaning.  Clearance phones are actually phones that have been returned back to us by customers, but are still in full working condition.

Many customers are unsure of what clearance phones are, and due to this they are hesitant to order one.  However, if they did understand the nature of clearance phones, they may be able to save a lot of money.

Essentially, we deal with contract phones. Now, when a customer purchases any phone from us, they automatically get a 14 day peace of mind guarantee.  This means that they can return the handset to us within 14 days of purchase. However, and this is the important part, the handset must be in an unused condition.  If the customer has used their handset, then they are unable to return it.

Once the handset comes to us, we test it to ensure that it is still in full working condition. Once this has been tested, we then discount the price down (sometimes up to 60%) and sell these as clearance.

Now, there are a few differences between brand new handsets and clearance handsets. The main difference is what you get with the phone. Although we do strive to include all the accessories with a clearance handset, there are times when we are not able to. For example, due to hygiene factors we can not guarantee that the hands-free kit will be supplied, as the previous customer may have used them.  However, we can guarantee that the customer will receive the handset, the sim card, the mains charger and the full instruction manual. Due to the savings that a customer makes from a clearance phone, they could even purchase the missing items separately and still save up to 30% of the asking price for a new handset.

The other difference is that the customer is not normally guaranteed the original packaging, such as the original box. This is due to the fact that we may not receive the original boxes back or, if we do, they may not be in a presentable condition. If the original box is available then we will send the phone in that, otherwise we will send the clearance phone out in a plain white box, so the phone will still be secure inside.

There will be customers who do not wish to have a clearance phone, and wish to still receive a brand new one.  However, there will be many for whom the above information is relevant, as they may feel that the extra accessories are not essential, and they just need the phone. With clearance handsets also coming with full warranty, and also the 14 day peace of mind guarantee, the customer is still fully covered, and thus can make a big saving with taking up this option.