Virgin Media Business targets SMBs with new mobile deals

 Britain’s small businesses will now be able to benefit from a better deal on their mobile and broadband deals following a new launch from Virgin Media Business (VMB).

The company has revealed it will be offering mobile device deals to the services it provides small businesses across the UK.

VMB is already well-known for its business broadband offerings, but from now will look to combine this with handset deals on some of the latest releases from the likes of Apple and Samsung.

Virgin Media Business SMB deals

As part of the new offering SMBs will also be able to benefit from significant savings when it comes to their combined mobile and broadband deals.

For example, customers teaming up VMB's Voom Fibre 350Mbs business broadband service with an Apple iPhone 8 or a Samsung S9+ can save up to £25 a month.

Handsets will also be offered stand-alone on either 24 or 36 month contracts, with a choice of data allowances and no upfront costs.

“This is fantastic news for our customers; leveraging the Virgin Mobile network puts us in control of defining the new mobile offerings and bundles we want to offer our customers, rather than having to accept ‘me-too’ offers for our customers," said Rob Orr, executive director - commercial & marketing, Virgin Media Business. 

“By challenging the status quo and providing mobile connectivity and services in a more Virgin way, we will be able to give our customers new mobile offers which respond to the rapidly changing needs of their businesses.”

The launch comes soon after VMB signed a five-year MVNO agreement with BT, allowing it to have more control over data and service offerings.

• The best mobile plans for business in June 2018

from TechRadar: Phone and communications news http://www.techradar.com/news/virgin-media-business-targets-smbs-with-new-mobile-deals

Low-cost LG X2 goes official in Korea with outdated design, software and hardware specs

The newly unveiled LG X2 is an even humbler Android 7.1 smartphone than the X4 and X4+, fetching a $175 price in Korea that doesn't feel low enough.

The post Low-cost LG X2 goes official in Korea with outdated design, software and hardware specs appeared first on Pocketnow.

from Pocketnow http://pocketnow.com/2018/06/28/lg-x2-official-korea-pricing-specs-features

Tiny Instagram Lite app surfaces on Google Play with absolutely no fanfare

According to a company spokesperson, the storage space-saving Instagram Lite Android app is still undergoing (public) testing in just one global market.

The post Tiny Instagram Lite app surfaces on Google Play with absolutely no fanfare appeared first on Pocketnow.

from Pocketnow http://pocketnow.com/2018/06/28/instagram-lite-android-app-google-play-debut

Honor 10 will be a better gaming phone from July 30

The Honor 10 is already a powerful phone, but a new feature is set to make the gaming experience even better.

Dubbed ‘GPU Turbo’, it’s a new graphics processing acceleration technology which was announced a few weeks ago. 

At the time there was little information on it or on when it would land, but we now know it will arrive for the Honor 10 as a software update on July 30 (following a closed beta on July 15), with other Honor handsets getting it later.

We also now know that GPU Turbo apparently increases the efficiency of graphic processing by 60% and reduces the energy consumption of the SoC (system on a chip) by 30%.

Better graphics for longer

This combines to apparently dramatically improve the overall user experience when gaming, with Honor devices able to achieve ‘outstanding graphics quality’ when using GPU Turbo. The feature could also apparently benefit VR and AR applications.

Given its energy-saving credentials it presumably also extends your phone’s battery life while gaming, but that hasn’t been confirmed.

Following the Honor 10, GPU Turbo will apparently land on other handsets such as the Honor View 10 and Honor 9 Lite, however no time frame has yet been given for them. Moving forwards, it sounds like this will become a standard feature on many Honor phones.

• We don't expect the super-cheap Honor 7S will get this feature

from TechRadar: Phone and communications news http://www.techradar.com/news/honor-10-will-be-a-better-gaming-phone-from-july-30

Get 3-year access to the most highly rated VPN on the market for less than $100

Keep your family safe while browsing the internet with NordVPN. Get a 3-year subscription for just $99. That's 76% off the original price.

The post Get 3-year access to the most highly rated VPN on the market for less than $100 appeared first on Pocketnow.

from Pocketnow http://pocketnow.com/2018/06/28/nordvpn-3-year-subscription

Instagram Lite quietly arrives on the Google Play Store

Instagram has quietly launched a streamlined Lite version of its Android app, designed for low-powered phones and locations with poor data connectivity. The app only supports photo sharing at the moment, with videos and messaging planned for a future update.

Instagram Lite is just 574KB compared to the full Instagram app's 32MB, making it far more accessible if you can't rely on a stable connection.

The new app is currently only available in Mexico, but it is described as "a simple way to capture and share the world’s moments", so we expect it to be rolled out to more territories in the coming months.

“We are testing a new version of Instagram for Android that takes up less space on your device, uses less data, and starts faster," an Instagram spokesperson told TechCrunch.

Insta for all

The launch comes just days after the arrival of Instagram's new long-form video app, IGTV. The new platform lets regular users post videos up to 10 minutes in length, while celeb users can keep their cameras rolling for up to an hour.

IGTV will chew through mobile data like an Instagram influencer through avocado toast, so it's good to see that the company hasn't lost sight of users who don't have that luxury.

Instagram's parent company, Facebook, launched a pared-back Android app back in 2015. Facebook Lite was initially restricted to countries known for patchy mobile mobile data coverage, but is now available worldwide. 

• How to upload photos to Instagram from your PC

from TechRadar: Phone and communications news http://www.techradar.com/news/instagram-lite-quietly-arrives-on-the-google-play-store

Nokia 9 release date, price, news and leaks