The Nokia Asha 501 – Best of the Budget Smartphones Will Only Set You Back £65

May 13th, 2013Device Reviews, Tech News No Comments

Picture courtesy of the delightful Nokia.

We don’t like to play favourites. Okay, yes we do. But usually we’re being contrary about whether the iPhone 5 is better than the Samsung s4 and whether you should sell your iPhone to fund an upgrade. We’re as fickle as the next person when it comes to shiny new tech.

It’s been a while since Nokia did much to surprise us. The Lumia is pretty hot right now, but a lot of the folks using our sell for cash service to sell Nokia Lumia handsets are youngers looking to upgrade hungrily to the next big thing (the Sony Xperia Z is a common upgrade choice!)

But today Nokia announced the release of a new smartphone aimed at people who just want a decent, cheap handset with a long battery life – the Nokia Asha 501. And with up to 17 hours talk time and 1152 hours standby, the Asha is already looking like a bright idea. Features include a 3.2MP camera, plenty of apps, lockscreen notifications to keep you updated with emails, social network stuff and chat, the Nokia 2G Express Browser, Micro SD option and Bluetooth.

I mean, we all get a bit sick of piddling smartphone battery lives (we’re looking at you, Apple!), so it’s great to finally see a practical, feature-laden device hitting the stores.

 

 

 

Google Specs Find Their First Diehard Fan

April 28th, 2013Curious Stuff, Device Reviews, Tech News No Comments

It’s not anyone in Money4Machines HQ. For one thing, we don’t have the time to count ourselves as tech bloggers since we spend most of our time processing quotes and helping you to sell mobile phones and get cash for your old electronics!

It’s not a bad life, but apparently tech blogger Robert Scoble has decided it’s not worth living without the latest bit of tech from Google – Google Glass augmented reality specs. Without going into the whole history of Scoble’s highly successful blog, Scobleizer, it’s safe to say he’s definitely a clever, tech-savvy guy with a massive following.

Scoble was selected as one of about 2,000 developers who received Google Glass specs to review and generally have a bit of a play. The specs still don’t have a commercial release date, so folks like Scoble are the only way we’re going to see the glasses in action in the near future.

After ten days in the specs Scoble says they’ve changed his life and he wouldn’t be without them, refering to them as game-changers in the way the iPhone was. Folks visit us to sell iPhone handsets all the time, and our rates are perpetually good because even older models are damn well made and in demand.

You can read Robert Scoble’s chattering on the subject of Google Glass for Business Insider’s online edition.

The Facebook Phone – Is That a Thing Now?

April 3rd, 2013Device Reviews, Electronics Industry Chatter, Tech News No Comments

Fairly continuous reruns of 30 Rock mean Money4Machines HQ is now packed with Lemon-isms like “Is that even a thing” and the classic “Blurg!” But anyways, back to today’s little titbit of tech gossip from the glorious web chatterverse – the Facebook phone.

HTC are rumoured to be the developers behind Facebook’s first phone. We’ve read a bunch of project code names – “Myst” and “Home” the most common, but whatever the handset is called, we want to know more about it.

Facebook is due to announce the new handset and some nifty software that can turn any Android phone into a Facebook-led handset. In fact, they’re due to announce all their new toys tomorrow, so we’ll update you when you visit us to sell Samsung handsets or sell Nokia bits and bobs then!

Mashable are really, really good with specs and have a heap more leaked images than we do, so follow this link and have a read for yourself.

So, would you sell iphone 5 devices and make to switch to Android if it meant you could have a Facebook born and bred smartphone? We asked some of today’s sell my mobile customers if they’d consider dropping Apple in favour of a Facebook-led Android device. There will always be those diehard Apple fans who won’t but the younger crowd seem pretty interested in a Facebook-themed handset.

 

 

Nokia’s £13 Handset to Hit Stores Within Weeks

February 25th, 2013Device Reviews, Tech News No Comments

Every now and then, don’t you want a mobile phone that boasts a charge of more than ten minutes? Smartphones may have made it easy for us to take our online world with us, but they’ve also inadvertently tethered us to no more than twenty-four hours away from the blessed wall socket and charger!

Trust us, a huge upgrade reason is battery life. Folks visit us to sell mobile phones from all the big hitters, and poor battery life of the traded-in model is a common comment. Anyway, enough about how the whole sell my iPhone crowd is sick of their iPhone being more demanding than an actual child, and on with Nokia’s new super-cheap mobile phone!

The big selling points are that the new Nokia 105 handset is cheap and holds an exceptionally long charge, like 35 days long! The phone is aimed at emerging markets like parts of India, Africa and other areas where power is scarce, but the phone should be available in the UK for folks looking to sell Nokia smartphones to downgrade to something sweet and simple, or for people looking for a back-up device to carry around as an emergency handset (we think Ray Mears would approve!)

And if you’re thinking of going retro and using Money4Machines to sell your mobile so you can invest in Nokia’s throw-back 105 handset, we’ve got the best rates on the web and promise to keep you up to date on all Nokia news!

 

 

Google Bring New Meaning to Urban Adventure with Glass Competition

February 22nd, 2013Curious Stuff, Device Reviews, Electronics Industry Chatter, Tech News No Comments

We’ve been following Google’s Project Glass since it was announced last year. To be honest, we’ve been more than a little sceptical of the whole thing, but that’s mostly because we can’t imagine walking around with their ugly prototypes on our mugs!

Roll on a few sell for cash rate updates, lots of lovely folks looking to sell iPhone 4 handsets, a bit of snow and Office Cat’s litter of kittens, and here we have a lovely update video on the Glass project from Google’s YouTube account.

So, for £987 you could test drive one of the most hotly anticipate gadgets of the decade. Google recently announced the Google Glass Explorers competition, offering excited fans the chance to become something akin to a Victoria’s Secret Angel – part of an elite group of brand-sanctioned reps showing Joe Public what the right bra, giant theatrical wings or augmented reality specs could be doing for them. You can apply here.

We haven’t clarified what Money4Machines rates would be for Google’s glasses, but if you want to sell your iPhone, tablet, Macbook or MP3 player, we’ll see you soon!

HTC Revamp “One” Smartphone for 2013

February 19th, 2013Device Reviews, Tech News No Comments

It’s been the flagship touchscreen smartphone range for HTC for a good few years now. The Android-based One range has included some of our top sell for cash rate-grabbers, including the HTC One X. And we’re happy to hear HTC announce a new smartphone for the 2013 range – the revamped HTC One.

Poor old HTC has had a tough year. Their profits fell by 90% on the same quarter the previous year during the last quarter of 2012. Our old favourite, the HTC One X, didn’t sell brilliantly in some places, probably thanks to the iPhone 5 and Samsung handsets.

We’re happy to see folks visiting Money4Machines to sell mobile devices from HTC at a steady rate. Their popularity may have waned a little over the past year, but we’re looking forward to potentially seeing the new HTC One turning things around for the Taiwanese tech giant.

 

Google Glasses Spotted on the Subway

January 21st, 2013Curious Stuff, Device Reviews, Electronics Industry Chatter, Tech News No Comments

Whatever we think of the style value of Google’s smartglasses, it’s great to see future technologies making an appearance in everyday life. Google’s Sergey Brin was spotted out and about on the New York Subway system wearing the billion pound shades Google has spent the last few years developing.

Billed as the future of mobile technology, the “augmented reality” shades received mixed reviews when they were finally revealed to the world last year. You can read more about them here in one of our old Money4Machines blog posts.

Image courtesy of Noah Zerkin @Noazark

The image was snapped by passenger, Noah Zerkin, who then uploaded his internet gold striaght onto his Twitter account. Zerkin says his interest in mobile technology and knowledge of Brin was just coincidence, and that a brief chat with the billionaire revealed him to be a “nice guy” having a bit of run by riding the New York subway wearing unreleased mobile technology worth billions in research.

Got any comments about Google’s specs? Once you’ve used our quote system to sell mobile phones or sell iPads or whatever, let us know what you think of Google’s next mobile technology venture.

Microsoft Unveils New Translator

November 21st, 2012Device Reviews No Comments

It’s been the white whale of the tech world for years. Call it the Babel fish, the Star Trek Universal Translator or whatever you like; many a developer has tried and failed to produce a workable, practical translator for commercial use.

Microsoft announced last week that their latest incarnation of language software could mark the beginning of the first successful foray into the tricky realm of voice translation software.

The software currently only translates English into Mandarin Chinese, and is still in early development. Microsoft chief research officer, Rick Rashid, stared in a video released on his blog that demonstrates the current capabilities of the software. Speaking in English, Rashid showed how the software learns a person’s vocal style and is therefore able to understand the intention of their language before selecting the most appropriate Chinese words and reordering them into grammatically correct speech.

UK gadget company, Money4Machines, said it’s clearly early days but the video of Rashid certainly appears to impress his Chinese-speaking audience.

“The video is really impressive, and although Rashid makes a point of saying the software still needs a lot of work, we’re still really excited about the prospects of the software.

We buy UK gadgets and help people access our UK sell for cash London to Lands End service, but the appeal of something like a reliable commercial translator could have a big impact on how small businesses like our trade overseas too. Imagine if you could have a video conversation with a client looking to sell mobile phones in China or India in both native tongues – the possibilities are just boundless for global trade.”

Good on the Surface, But Can it Topple the iPad?

June 19th, 2012Device Reviews, Electronics Industry Chatter, Tech News No Comments

Perhaps one of the most annoying things about the iPad is that it doesn’t have an external keyboard. But we’re committed and fully fledged iPad fans here, so there’s not a lot we have to gripe about, really.

Running Windows 8, Microsoft’s newly announced “Surface” tablet is billed as bridging the gap between tablet and laptop (and potentially toppling the iPad’s leading market position).

Available from October, two versions of the Surface were unveiled, one running Windows RT (kind of like Windows Lite for smart devices) and one running the new full Windows 8.

The idea is to get folks like you trading in old iPads and using our sell for cash service to fund an upgrade from a traditional tablet or laptop to a funky little combo – the Surface tablet.

Specs:

And that’s pretty much it on the information stakes. So before you go rushing off to sell your laptop to fund a Surface tablet, it’s worth pointing out that, historically speaking, Windows have a great track record with PC hardware and consoles like the Xbox, but have yet to prove themselves in the tablet arena. Still, props for trying and we can’t wait to try it out in October!

First Worldwide Developer Conference for Jobs-less Apple

June 14th, 2012Device Reviews, Electronics Industry Chatter, Tech News No Comments

We buy U.K gadgets and gizmos, and there’s nothing we love more than when you sell iPads, iPods, iPhones and Macs! Apple is one of those brands that really retains it’s value in terms of product investment, so we can make our sell for cash rates nice and chunky on even old iPads and first generation iPhones!

But a brand is only as good as it’s reputation, and this was Apple’s first WWDC without the venerable Steve Jobs at the helm. So, what did they announce, what didn’t they announce, and what can we read between the lines?

Better Siri

New partnerships with companies like Rotten Tomatoes and Yelp, and an expansion of compatible languages are the frontrunners for most significant development. There’s also a plan to integrate Siri with the iPad and into the steering wheel of your car. No word yet on which manufacturers are on board.

PassBook

iOS users get a bit narky about the lack of security apps for things like plane tickets. PassBook is a new Apple-designed app to keep all your digital tickets and vouchers in one simple place.

FaceTime

It’s going mobile, baby! FaceTime currently only runs on Wi-Fi, but it looks like 3G (and 4G?) FaceTime isn’t far off.

The Maps App

Much anticipated and, in terms of specs, not a letdown by any means, the Apple Maps app features turn-by-turn directions, flyover mode, 3D rendering and real-time traffic monitoring.

Keynote

Their lips were sealed! Keynote was always Steve Jobs’ baby, and with him gone it looks like Keynote version 5 might stagnate.

Okay, so Apple didn’t announce a flashy new iPad or anything, which is pretty bad sportsmanship by their standards. But they did give us a heap of little announcements – apps, OSX etc – which add up to a great bigger picture.

We buy Apple products because of their attention to detail and perfection, so their decision to fine-tune lots of smaller products and services is actually just an extension of their brilliant track record!

(So sorry we called you unsportsmanlike, Apple!)

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