Microsoft Research teases Windows Phones controlling Surfaces and crazy desktop UIs

Hey, look, at this point, we just want ourselves some good, old-fashioned copy and paste -- but we'll give Microsoft some credit for looking a year (or two, or ten) beyond that watermark at what could be coming down the pike for human-machine interaction -- and specifically, how phones could play a role. In a presentation and promotional video pulled together this week, Microsoft Research boss Craig Mundie shows how you could tilt your smartphone to control a bubbly, colorful look into your personal life on your desktop machine and how you could snap a photo and then drop the handset onto a Surface for instant transfer (perhaps a bit like HP's Touch to Share), among other gems. Of course, this is all pure research at this point -- it's any guess whether these comments could make the jump to production, and if so, when -- but it's fun to watch. Follow the break for video.

[Thanks, Jake]

Sprint allegedly talking to LightSquared over 4G infrastructure deal, Clearwire should be sweating

Bloomberg is citing "three people familiar with the talks" (it's not often that we get a specific number!) as saying that LightSquared is in active negotiations with Sprint to use its network infrastructure as it builds out its L-band LTE network. As you might recall, LightSquared is the would-be 4G wholesaler that is in the process of repurposing some satellite spectrum for terrestrial LTE use -- a concept the FCC has approved, but concerns over GPS interference could end up delaying or derailing the strategy altogether if they aren't solved to everyone's satisfaction. Of course, building out any sort of national terrestrial wireless network is a multi-billion dollar, multi-year type of venture, and presumably a tie-up with Sprint to use some of its hardware would help move matters along. What this means for Sprint's existing dealings with Clearwire is unclear; the two operate a WiMAX network together, after all, but the carrier has made it clear in the past that LTE could definitely be an option in the future.

Android Gingerbread Google Nexus S: Vodafone UK Now Shipping

For those Android fans in the United Kingdom who are waiting to get their hands on the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread packing smartphone from the Google guys, the Google Nexus S, you just might be pleased to know that Vodafone UK has now begun shipping the device.

According to an article over on Phandroid and by way of the guys over at Eurodroid, potential owners of the Samsung built handset can now purchase the smartphone direct from Vodafone UK with monthly tariffs beginning at 25 quid.

For your 25 per month based on a 2-year contract, you will receive the Google Nexus S as a free handset, 100 minutes, 500 texts and 500MB of mobile internet.

If you prefer to shell out a little extra, for 30 per month you’ll get the Samsung Nexus S for free along with 600 minutes, unlimited texts, and 500MB mobile internet, while for 35 a month you get 1200 minutes, unlimited texts and 750MB mobile internet, all on a 2-year term of course.

However if you want to cut that contract length down to 18 months and still get the Google Nexus S for free it will set you back 40 a month for which you’ll get 900 minutes, unlimited texts and 750MB mobile internet.

Xperia Play Dock Price: Preorder via Expansys

At last weeks launch of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play Phone in Barcelona’s Opium Mar a docking station for the phone was unveiled, the Sony Ericsson Multimedia Dock aka DK300.

Expansys.com are currently advertising the DK300 for 34.99 and its availability is due: Tuesday 22nd March, which can be pre-ordered at their online store.

The DK300 comes with a microUSB socket, which will enable the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play Phone (aka Playstation phone or PSP Phone) to connect to a PC for a constant sync and charge. The USB socket can also be used to connect the phone to a mains charger, for an even speedier charge.

ITProPortal.com advise that the docking station also comes with a 3.5mm socket for connection to a wide range of headphones or speakers. Therefore, your Sony Ericsson Xperia Play Phone could be turned into a music station.

According to the makers of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, this phone is going to be the best gaming smartphone to date. Therefore, the addition of a DK300 Multimedia docking station can only make that gaming experience even better for the user.

iOS 4.3 To Go Gold Next Week?

Oh, rumor mill — how you tug at our heart strings. Early this month, the ol’ mill was promising that iOS 4.3 would be hitting our iPhones and iPads on Valentine’s Day. Alas, while Valentine’s Day brought plenty of things (cheap chocolates for some, lonely hangovers for others), iOS 4.3 wasn’t one of’em.

Weeks have passed since, and 4.3 is still nowhere in sight. According to BGR, the iOS team is wrapping things up right this second, with plans to release things in finalized form (be it to everyone or just developers isn’t clear right now) next week or so. How conveniently timed!

Want to know what’s new in iOS 4.3? Here’s our list.

New iPhone App Release: Product Reviews

A brand new iPhone app has made its way onto the App Store simply called “Product Reviews” aka PR and this is the perfect application to have on your Apple iPhone or iPod if you want all the latest news on products across the world.

Product Reviews By Dansway Communications LTD was founded in 2004 and it makes sense that they finally released its first app, which is the best source for news on gadgets, phones, autos, technology and much more.

PR receives more than 8-million page views per month and gives readers all the breaking news being it gaming, product guides, tech, hands-on reviews, the list is massive. PR likes to keep up-to-date with the social network and is highly popular with Facebook, bloggers and Twitter users.

Main features: Daily news on apps, gaming, autos, computers, electronics, phones, and more, the app gives product reviews and analysis, Post directly to your Twitter account, In-depth coverage of major events, Email blog posts to your friends, plus customize the app with your favorite icons and content.

Unlike most apps this one allows you to view a certain news article where at the bottom you can choose to comment, once the comment has been posted within the app it not only becomes live in the app it also shows up on their main online product-reviews.net website.

You can also drag and drop the tabs – their news app can be customized with drag and drop ease, now you can have one click access to your favorite news topic.

For more information about Product Reviews aka PR please visit iTunes, this app is totally fee and we do suggest you getting it right now. We have

Android & Maemo Mozilla Firefox Beta 4: Better for Tablets

The new Mozilla Firefox 4 Beta has just been released for Android and Maemo, it as now available from the Android Market and on your Nokia Maemo device.

The new Firefox 4 Beta now adds improved stability and better performance, it is much faster and even easier than before to use with a few added improvements. Faster start up and page load times, plus Increased JavaScript performance and Major stability improvements.

For more information on this please visit The Mozilla Blog, we decided to look a little further into this and came across ZDnet and they have a few interesting details worth sharing with you.

ZDnet say the overall Firefox 4 for Android is more than likely to become a go-to mobile browser but would be more suited for tablets and that the best part is the Firefox 4 was the Sync feature. The downside according to the source is that linking the desktop browser to the phone is a little difficult and requires a long sync key, but once done is worth it.

Going back to being better on the tablet is down to many new tablet PC’s releasing of late and with Firefox’s features such as Sync, tabbed browsing and mobile add-ons it only makes sense to have it as it will work better on a larger screen.

Please do post your comments below as we would love to know what you think of the above. For more information on how to test Android & Maemo Mozilla Firefox Beta 4 please visit the here.

Dell Rolling Out Streak 5 Froyo Update for AT&T

Dell has begun to roll out its long awaited Android Froyo update for the Dell Streak 5 tablet on AT&T. The update adds the Dell Stage user interface as well as adding Flash 10.1 support, live wallpapers and other enhancements. There is currently no word on whether the Streak 5 will be further updated to the more appropriate Android Honeycomb.