Three has announced a deal with On Demand Group - a video-on-demand aggregator - which will allow Three customers to watch the latest ITV shows on their smartphones.
The upshot of this deal is that Three subscribers will be able to watch a selection of the latest catch-up and archive content from ITV. Subscribers will have the option to watch the content on their mobile devices whenever they choose with full control to pause, rewind, fast forward and repeat each show.
These shows include such gems as: X-Factor, Coronation Street, I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! and Secret Diary of a Call Girl - all the ingredients for a thoroughly entertaining night in.
Neil Andrews, head of media sales and content services at Three UK, said, "This is great news for our customers. We feel the inclusion of ITV’s popular programming to our on-demand service, coupled with the strength of our 3G network, creates an unrivalled mobile TV proposition in the UK."
And yes, it is great news, as a bit of free content always goes down well, and you'll even be able to watch ITV content through Three’s tv:ondemand service.
Michael Jackson was so heavily drugged in the hours before his death that he would have been incapable of self-administering the massive dose of propofol that killed him, a medical expert testified Thursday at the trial of Jackson's doctor.
Water, water, everywhere and all of it fit to drink
Us Brits do like a cuppa. It's said that our empire was built on tea - arguably not the drinking of it, before the historians among you start to get in touch - and thankfully, that's about the only thing that's left over from our colonial days; the love of a good brew.
So when somebody comes along with a gadget that claims to help us make the perfect cup, we tend to take note. The Strauss T6 is just such a gadget.
Hot and cold water on tap is hardly revolutionary, but that doesn't mean you have to settle for the bog standard set up either. Office workers all over the world will be familiar with the handy little machines that dispense cold filtered water that's fit to drink, but will also spit out a jet of H2o that's hot enough to brew your favourite mid-morning pick-me-up.Now, thanks to the T6 you can have the same convenience at home. But in a much more stylish package.
Style and simplicity?
It's a handsome gadget by anyone's standards and it sits on your work surface replacing the need for a kettle, a water filter and a zip tap, and because it comes in 12 (yes, 12!) different colours, you won't have to stare at something that sticks out like a sore thumb in your colour coordinated designer kitchen.
The unit is plumbed in to your cold supply by one of the Strauss engineers, and usually it takes just minutes. Then, after a quick demo, you can chuck the kettle in the recycling bin and start using your filter jug as an avant-garde vase.
With minimal controls, you can dispense cool, filtered, purified water that beats just about anything you'll find in a bottle. The dual filter and UV lamp setup takes care of the purity and the custom functions take care of the amount you can dispense. Or you can fill any sized container by holding a button down.
The T6 also heats water to near boiling in seconds, and that's where the perfect cuppa comes in. Apparently the perfect temperature for tea and coffee is around 91 degrees Celsius and that's exactly what this unit will give you. Does it work? Well, yes it does. The first cafetiere of coffee I brewed was noticeably smoother and Mrs Pocket-lint was happy with the tea too.
Near-boiling water also saves time when cooking as you can fill a pan in seconds and leave pasta and vegetables to the last minute. There's an 'extra hot' button that does what you'd expect too. Heating to full capacity took a lot less than even our fast-boil kettle and we never found we were running low on temperature once. Once we enabled the child lock, we stopped worrying about jets of scalding water being unleashed by curious toddlers too.
Handy for families?
Talking of little 'uns, the 'mix' setting is something we wished we'd had years ago. You can set it to pour out a particular amount of water at exactly the right temperature for a baby's bottle, at the touch of a single button. And, crucially, as the water is purified, it's better than waiting for a kettle to cool down while a baby screams in your ear waiting for the next feed.
So, we've got water at any temperature, dispensed in customisable, one-touch amounts, from a gadget that looks brilliant and is easy to use.
Downsides
There are a few minor issues. We found the cup holder didn't really fit anything we had, so it tended to be stowed away, which the engineer had warned meant that drips would end up on the counter rather than the integral drip tray. Even with the stark warning, we didn't actually see any drips at all, but over time maybe that might be something that could be an issue. So we ended up folding the little shelf away. This meant there was a certain amount of splash back, as what the T6 lacks in volume through the nozzles it makes up for in sheer force.
Filling some bottles was a bit awkward too, as the nozzles are set very close to the unit - we have a couple of CamelBak bottles that are quite wide and had to be held in position. Not the end of the world, but we found that just about everything you do with the T6 is a two-handed operation, and disabling the child lock while holding something in place can be a bit tricky.
The unit was also noisy at times, particularly when we weren't really using it. Undoubtedly a small price to pay for the convenience of instant temperature controlled water on tap, but we were still a little surprised at times. You can set the unit to power down and back up again at convenient times, so it didn't keep anybody awake at night, but in smaller, open plan living spaces, it's something to consider.
But, in all they're minor grumbles about what is an elegant, convenient addition to the average home.
The other big thing to consider is the cost. The T6 is not particularly cheap, either to buy or at first glance, to run. By joining the Strauss Water Club you're sent filters and UV lamps at timely intervals, but even on the longest, most economical plan this still works out at around ?12 a month. Add to that the cost of the energy used to chill and heat the water simultaneously, admittedly offset by no more kettles and the unit's energy saving settings, and you have to do the maths before you consider shelling out.
Verdict:
If you drink your recommended allowance of bottled water and enjoy the ritual of a morning brew safe in the knowledge that you're doing everything you can to make the best cuppa possible, the Strauss T6 is well worth considering. We certainly didn't want to part with it once we got into the flow of using it daily.
A sensational trial covered by a hungry media. A bloody murder scene that involved a sharp, brutal blade, and then a surprising acquittal of an alleged "killer girl" who captured the nation's attention.
Sounds like the trial in Italy and recent acquittal of American-abroad student Amanda Knox for the sexual assault and murder of her roommate Meredith Kercher. But this case happened over 100 years ago, to one Lizzie Borden.
News that Amanda Knox's murder conviction had been overturned caused Web searches to surge around the similar story. As a CNN blog put it, there's nothing like the mashup of "sex, violence, and media hysteria" to keep a story alive, even when the main player has long since died.
The gruesome case of this "femme fatale" alleged that the Fall River, Massachusetts, woman had whacked her stepmother and father to death with an ax.
The story goes like this: In August 1892, Lizzie Borden, who was said to have problems with her parents, claimed to have found them beaten dead in the house. She was charged with the murders but then exonerated the following year after a highly publicized trial found nothing more than circumstantial evidence.
The penny press, the Internet of the 1890s, closely followed the case, questioning the defendant's sexuality and sanity (sound familiar?). Books on Borden were also popular, and she quickly became a cultural phenomenon. Her life inspired a ballet by Agnes de Mille, an opera, and a jump-rope rhyme ("Lizzie Borden took an ax/Gave her mother 40 whacks...").
"Simpson's" fans may remember her cameo (bearing an ax, natch) in the episode, "Jury of the Damned." Even Chloë Sevigny, an actor with a penchant for unconventional roles like "Big Love," is said to be developing a project for HBO around Borden, whom she called a "countercultural icon."
But even icon status didn't let Lizzie off the hook. After the trial ended, the freed woman was still ostracized by the town of Fall River, where she continued to live until her death in 1927. So far, Amanda Knox, has been warmly welcomed back to Seattle, Washington, seems to have escaped that same fate, despite lingering questions around the case.
You already know that Joe Jonas is MTV.com's POSTED artist for October, right? Which means we have tons of info, interviews and videos surrounding the release of the singer's debut album Fastlife. So check out new videos below that show Jonas detailing what's on his "bucket list" and explaining the meaning behind the phrase "Fastlife."
While "going on [...]
Michael Bublé and his wife, Luisana Lopilato, were hand in hand for a stroll in London last night. Michael's been in the UK doing press for his new book, Onstage, Offstage, and he met with fans at an event last week at Waterstones. His new memoir isn't the only project Michael is promoting, since he also has his Christmas album coming out on Oct. 24. He told us about working on holiday songs with Shania Twain for the CD when he was in Napa this Summer and also shared his excitement over one day starting a family with Luisana. The couple, who were married in March, aren't expecting yet since Michael said he wants to wait until Luisana is ready to have kids.
The producers behind the Lifetime reality show "Dance Moms" have been banned from one of the biggest children's dance competitions in the country ... after event organizers complained about the way the event was portrayed on the show last year.
"Dance Moms" is a show about intense mothers who enter their young daughters into dance competitions ... and during Season 1, the second episode focused on a HUGE competition in Pennsylvania called StarQuest.
TMZ spoke with SQ associate producer Michael Ian Cedar who claims producers did not air the true results of the competition ... and edited the footage in a way that misled viewers into believing certain dancers were competing against each other .... when in fact they were not.
Cedar also claims "Moms" producers misled him into thinking the show was about young girls in the competitive dancing world -- not about their catty foulmouthed mothers.
Despite SQ's grievances, Cedar tells us "Moms" producers once again reached out to SQ ... hoping to feature a StarQuest event on Season 2. Cedar claims he shot down the request.
TMZ spoke with "Moms" producer Jeff Collins ... who brushed off Cedar's editing allegations as "nonsense" ... adding, "We're sorry he feels misled ... we'd love to work with StarQuest again."
Collins also insists the show has not had any problems with any of the other competitions featured on "Dance Moms" ... claiming the show has been welcomed back for Season 2 by every organization except StarQuest.
Windows Phone 7 Mango is here and that means a selection of new smartphones to choose from. The new version of the OS is aimed at users who are either upgrading from the first batch of 2010 handsets, or moving over to the platform for the first time.
The HTC Radar is a pretty risk-free handset. It has not got the massive 4.7-inch screen of the HTC Titan, nor is it as small as the iPhone 4S. The question is, does the Radar have anything to offer an increasing sophisticated mobile phone audience? We've been using one, so let's take a more detailed look.?
Design
The Radar is designed to replace the HTC 7 Mozart and HTC 7 Trophy. It introduces a number of new features, while at the same time offering a mid-range entry point into the wonderful world of Windows Phone 7. While the Titan will impress high-end users, those early adopters that like to show off their gleaming phone at the first chance, the Radar is going to be a subtler offering, and the design reflects that.
Measuring 120 x 61.5 x 10.8mm and weighing 137 grams it is not the thinnest phone, the fattest phone, or even the sexiest phone. It comes in white and silver, or gun metal grey, and at first glance is similar in design to the company’s HTC Desire and Desire S handsets.
The 3.8-inch Super LCD screen has a resolution of 480 x 800, and it is this that occupies the majority of the phone's front surface. You'll find the three standard Windows Phone 7 buttons beneath it, as you will on any Windows Phone 7 device.
The screen is crisp and the HTC Radar doesn’t suffer from the same resolution problems as the larger-screened Titan. That’s because the Windows Phone 7 resolution is set the same across all devices, so larger screens have to stretch the same resolution over a larger surface. Somewhat silly, but this helps Windows Phone maintain a unified look on all phones.?
There is also an extra, double chin underneath the buttons, at the bottom. It's a lot more pronounced on the white model and is created by the SIM card casing. Were this an Android phone, then you would also expect to find a microSD slot and removable battery here. Sadly neither are present meaning it is an awfully big case with little flexibility, aside from the ability to change the SIM card.?
Around the back you'll find a 5-megapixel snapper with a single LED Flash. The front offers a VGA-quality front-facing camera. There is also a dedicated shutter button to make taking photos easier.
Inside
Inside and the HTC Radar does get a boost over the Mozart and Trophy, but it is pretty mediocre in terms of specs. You'll get the same Qualcomm MSM 8255 1GHz processor from last year and 512MB of RAM to power it. It is not as fast or as nippy as the HTC Titan with its 1.5Ghz processor.
On the storage side of things, you'll get 8GB for all your pictures, apps, movies and the like. The phone comes with the usual connectivity options: Wi-Fi, HSPA, Bluetooth and GPS. New for 2011 is DLNA, allowing you to share your music or video with compliant devices and computers. There is also a 3.5mm audio jack, for headphones. What you won't get is Near Field Communications (NFC) for touchless micro-payments or microSD expansion.
The phone’s aerial reception seems good. We’ve tested it in Berkshire, Surrey, London, and San Francisco and not had any problems. We are happy to report we’ve had no issues with the call quality, either making or receiving calls.?
On the entertainment side of things there is SRS and 5.1 surround sound enhancement available, for which you'll want to connect your headphones. The built-in speaker is situated on the rear of the phone next to the camera, and for a phone, it produces a good rounded sound. It has not, however, been enhanced with Dr Dre's "Beats Audio" like the new Sensation models from HTC.
Camera
The HTC Radar comes with a HTC's 5 megapixel camera with 28mm lens F/2.2 aperture and LED flash. The front has a VGA forward-facing camera so you will be able to make video calls when Skype makes its inevitable arrival on the Windows Phone platform.
Burst mode does what is says, lets you take five pictures in quick succession so you can capture a moment as it happens. Panorama automatically stitches three shots together, producing a super-wide image. What's helpful is that the screen shows you when to pause and when to move, but also uses the phone's sensors to add in a horizontal "spirit level" so you can try and take as level a picture as possible.
The camera is really easy to use, and offers little or no lag when it comes to snapping a picture. Photos are instantly stored to the side so you can see what you've taken with a swipe from left to right, and as long as you don't smudge the lens (something that is easily done on all phones) you have the chance to take some really great photos. Given the right light colours are vivid, and in low light situations we found the sensor coped well enough, but it's not perfect and there can be a lot of noise in the images. The camera on the Titan is noticeably better.
After you’ve snapped your picture you can apply an auto-fix to it. This does its best to improve the picture's colour (more akin to HDR) or load up HTC’s photo enhancer application and start adding effects like cinnamon colour washes.
In terms of video capture you get 720p video recording and autofocus, although it is locked off once you start recording. There is a zoom, but this and all other controls are also locked off once you press the record button. Once you are finished there are a number of sharing options, however you can't share it to YouTube or Vimeo for example.
Image quality is good for a phone, better than the Trophy, but not up there with the best camera phones on the market, especially devices like the iPhone 4S. You won’t be disappointed, nor will you be excited.
The Mango user interface and apps
The new HTC Radar comes with Windows Phone 7.5, which was codenamed Mango. It offers over 500 new features over the previous version of Windows Phone 7 and that’s very much welcomed.
Those new features mean that the operating system as a whole has had a vast improvement. Now you get a faster, better browsing experience, Twitter and LinkedIn integration, better management of groups in the people hub and plenty more. It's by no means perfect, but compared to the original WP7 from October 2010 it is light years ahead. Rather than detail all the new features here in our HTC Radar review, we’ve reviewed Windows Phone 7 Mango as a separate entity.
Unlike Android there is no chance for the phone manufacturer to change the design, add, or customise the user interface. A manufacturer like HTC is able to add apps or enhance settings options, but that’s all. The HTC Radar comes with a number of dedicated apps. Some are pre-installed, others are available via a dedicated area of the Microsoft Marketplace.
Internet Sharing, for example, lets you turn your phone into a Wi-Fi hotspot so other devices, be it your laptop or tablet, can share the internet connection. Setup is incredibly easy and it works too. The HTC Hub emphasises the time and the weather and gives you quicker access to stock reports and news.
Other new apps include HTC Locations, HTC Connected Media, and HTC Watch. HTC Locations is an app that allows you to pinpoint your location and then send that data to friends. It is an "I’m in the pub" kind of thing and lets you bookmark places for quick retrieval. A press of a button and you’ll instantly get directions from where you are to where you are going.
HTC Connected Media is HTC’s answer to LG’s DLNA offering found in the LG Optimus 7 and uses the technology to let you connect and stream music, photos, and video to a DNLA enabled device. For us that was the new LG Cinema 3D display. The app worked perfectly, letting us stream music, photos and videos to the television without any hassle. Setup was easy, however we found in our tests that the time from pressing play on the device to it playing on the TV was on the slow side, however once it started playing we experienced no problems.?Cleverly the HTC Connected Media App does allow you to control the volume on the television.
As for "other apps", Microsoft is doing well to appeal to developers and there are new apps appearing all the time, but it's by no means perfect. There are a lot of apps that just aren't there yet. No Spotify, no Dropbox, no Tiny Wings, no Amazon shopping app and probably no "whatever your favourite app is on iPhone" either. It is getting better, but it is something to take into account.
Like the iPhone there is no Flash support, and sadly no BBC iPlayer app to catch up on TV shows you've missed. That means if you want to watch movies or TV shows on the Radar you've got to load them in yourself via the Zune software on the PC or Windows Phone 7 Connector on the Mac. Supported video formats include .3gp, .3g2, .mp4, .m4v mbr, .wmv. Not a brilliant selection.?
Battery
The battery life compared to the Trophy is vastly improved. We were able to get a good weekend worth of battery life from the phone while it happily survived a heavy day of use out and about.?With a non-replaceable battery, however, we wouldn’t recommend going over night without charging.
Docking station
As an optional extra you'll be able to get a docking station for the HTC Radar. It is a first for a Windows Phone 7 handset and HTC has created a dedicated docking app to benefit from the landscape cradle.
When docked not only will it charge your phone, but also automatically fire up the dock mode which gives you access to the media controls, time and other bits and bobs within the HTC Experience. The problem comes when you exit the app, because the Windows Phone 7 menu system hasn't been designed for a landscape viewing, so you'll need to tilt your head 90 degrees to make sense of anything.
Verdict:
The HTC Radar is designed for those that want to take advantage of the latest Mango features on a new phone from HTC without having to go for the massive HTC Titan.?The Radar is a solid handset that delivers a good Windows Phone experience, but not an amazing one. For us there isn’t enough of advancement on the HTC Trophy, considering it has had the Mango update too.
A faster processor, bigger storage capacity and the addition of Beats Audio would have made this phone really stand out from the rest of the other Windows Phone 7 smartphones already released and many of the Android ones available too.
And with Nokia launching its phones in the coming weeks we would recommend holding off for a little while longer to see if the Finnish company can produce a better phone. If it can, then the Radar will be dead before it even gets going.
Top home cinema brands Denon and Marantz have both announced that they will be offering free AirPlay upgrades to customers who own suitable network AV receivers and systems. While each company has a selection of out-of-the-box AirPlay kit, they will also add compatibility to a selection of existing models. And for free until the end of the year.
AirPlay is Apple's wireless streaming solution that ensures compatibility with iTunes and also allows users to stream music directly from their iPod touch, iPhone or iPad. It is already a feature of many of the AV receivers and systems in Denon and Marantz's current ranges, but would usually be a charged update for older models.
However, it's not available to all devices. For Denon, the models that can be upgraded are the AVR-A100, AVR-4311, AVR-311,?CEOL by Denon Network Music System and the?CEOL Noir by Denon Network Music System.
For Marantz, AirPlay support can be added to the?Melody Media (MCR603) Network CD Receiver,?NA7004 Network Audio Player,?AV7005 and?SR7005.
The upgrade process is carried out through connection to the Internet, and without you having to return your kit to the manufacturer. If you have any of the above products, you should visit?www.denon.eu/airplay?for, obviously, Denon,?www.marantz.eu/airplay for Marantz. Full instructions are given at each, and you'll need several details to hand including serial number and MAC address.
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