Tag: united kingdom

hudl2 Android tablet launched by Tesco

The massive UK supermarket chain has released its second generation hudl tablet.

The hudl2 is larger than its predecessor and is also a faster device with a better design that is equipped with enhanced parental controls, and Tesco hopes that its latest Android tablet will have more success than the first Hudl, which was released in September of last year at a selling price of £119 (about US$190) and sold 750,000 units in one year.

The initial hudl device was well liked for being a low cost tablet that got the basics right.

The group digital officer at Tesco, Michael Comish, commented that “Cutting-edge technology doesn’t have to come with a big price tag.” Comish added that “hudl2 may be affordable, but we’ve cut no corners when it comes to performance – this is our best tablet offering yet.”

The hudl2 is slim, 8.3 inches, and is powered by a 1.83 quad core Intel GHz processor. This makes it three times faster than the previous version. It also comes with Android KitKat 4.4.2, a 1.2 megapixel (MP) front facing camera and a 5MP rear facing camera, dual band wi-fi, 16 gigabytes (GB) storage with opportunity to expand to 48 GB, and 8 hour battery life.

The tablet has been optimized for entertainment and is equipped with a parental filter that includes “The Parent Zone”, which can be customized for as many as seven users. Parents are given the power to customize each profile to match their child’s age to help filter out content that may be inappropriate. Parents can also set a time limit for children playing with the mobile device.

The new Android tablet has been improved in every way possible.

According to Comish, Tesco has “improved on the tablet in every conceivable way.” He added that “We delivered a product people wanted, at a price they could afford.”

The retail price for the new hudl2 Android tablet from Tesco will be £129 (roughly US$205). However, it will also be available on Clubcard Boost, part of Tesco’s loyalty program, which means that the device could cost as low as £65 (just over US$103). The tablet will be available in eight different colors and will go on sale starting October 9.

Visa is evaluating its stake in British mobile payments firm Monitise

Monitise could soon be free from Visa as company evaluates its stake in mobile commerce

Monitise, a British mobile payments firm, received bad news from Visa, one of its primary shareholders, this week. Visa is evaluating its stake in Monitise and may sell off its shares in the coming months. This has sent Monitise’s stock plummeting, but the firm has partnerships with other prominent companies that could mitigate the loss of Visa as a stakeholder. Monitise has managed to garner support from consumers in the United Kingdom that are interested in mobile commerce.

Visa hires JPMorgan Chase to evaluate its options concerning Monitise

Visa is currently “considering its options” regarding its stake in Monitise. In 2009, Visa took a 14.4% stake in the firm. Together, the two companies have managed to promote mobile commerce in the United Kingdom, introducing a variety of services developed by Monitise to Visa customers. As Monitise matured, Visa reduced its stake in the firm to 5.5%. Now, Visa has hired JPMorgan Chase to evaluate its options for the future.

Visa is beginning to focus more heavily on its own mobile commerce initiatives

British Mobile Payments - VisaVisa has been putting more focus on its in-house capabilities, especially where mobile commerce is concerned. The substantial growth of Monitise has lead Visa to believe that the firm is much more capable than it had been in the past, now that it has established a commanding foothold in the UK’s mobile commerce space. As mobile commerce continues to grow more prominent throughout the country, Monitise is expected to garner more support from consumers and retailers.

Apple finds support fro Visa for its ambitious Apple Pay service

Though Visa has been focusing more heavily on its own initiatives recently, the company has shown strong support for Apple Pay. The service is the first mobile payments platform from Apple, and Visa has teamed with the company to make sure its customers can use Apple Pay to purchase products from their mobile devices. Apple is new to the mobile commerce space, so the success of its new service is still uncertain.