There has been a fair bit of speculation in the last few days as to how many Samsung have sold of its flagship Galaxy S4 phone in the month since it launched.

Well today it offered up the figures and claimed to have cleared 10 million handsets since the end of April. Pretty impressive stuff eh, and all the more impressive when you consider that the Galaxy S III took 50 days after its launch to ship 10 million units, while the S II took five months and the original Galaxy S took almost seven months.

And then the phone isn't on sale globally yet with Samsung promising to deliver the handset to another fifty or so countries imminently. To celebrate the company is going to ship the S4 in other colours too including; "Blue Arctic", "Red Aurora", "Purple Mirage" and "Brown Autumn".

The big question then is how do sales of the S4 compare with the iPhones?

Interestingly Apple sold over five million iPhone 5 handsets in the opening weekend of sales. And as Apple Insider points out here that was in just nine countries and that figure was deemed by some analysts as disappointing.

The iPhone 5 went on to sell 33 million units in 2012 which was roughly the same number that Samsung sold of the S3 in the same period.

The iPhone 4S also got off to a flying start in with four million units sold in the first three days of release.

We don't have the exact figures for the first month of iPhone sales but hazarding a guess they are likely to be in excess of ten million.

Ultimately the S4 sales figures tell us two key things. Firstly that Samsung has produced a hit phone that even if hasn't usurped its Apple rivals in popularity is breathing down their necks. Secondly that Apple will need to post some pretty impressive stats for the iPhone 5S and 6 to keep its critics and the financial institutions happy.

So Apple today has made the original iPhone obsolete, which could be bad news for Greg? So who is Greg? Well he was the first person to buy an iPhone in New York as he was first in the queue in the Apple Store back in the summer of 2007.

It is fascinating to compare the two original iPhone launches - the one in New York and the one that followed in November in London.

Greg in New York was Mr Media Savvy, a professional queuer who seemingly would stand in line for the opening of an envelope. Susi Weaser, editor of Shiny Shiny at the time, collared him and asked him the question that everyone really wanted to know the answer to, what did he do when he needed to go to the toilet?

Fast forward a few months to London and there was just a handful of people in the queue in what was a fairly low key affair. The most interesting is that the first guy looks absolutely knackered.

Future UK iPhone launches would go on to be more like the US one. Maybe it is another example of how we have acquired some of our behaviour traits from our transatlantic cousins via the web.

Got an original first generation Apple iPhone - this one rather than this one? Well your phone if you are still using it, is about to be labelled obsolete by the company which means that it will no longer be serviced by Apple's retail network.

if you want to get it fixed then you have until June 11th to get it sorted after that you will have to find your own non-Apple dealer.

The original Apple iPhone will always be remembered as the handset that introduced Apple's innovative iOS and its ground breaking app universe (which was opened up to developers a year later) and at the same time delivered a touch screen experience that was way ahead of its rivals.

Apart from those two game-changing innovations the phone was in fact fairly primitive. Unlike almost every other high end phone at the time it didn't run on 3G network but instead used the slower EDGE network which meant it was borderline useless for the web when not on Wi-Fi. It had a two mega pixel camera (most of its contemporaries were five MP by then) which was still image capture only and wouldn't record video. Its battery performance took a lot of stick too.

Nevertheless the original iPhone laid the groundwork for the Apple 3Gs which followed in 2010 and arguably established the iPhone as the most successful and coveted handset in the world.

Interestingly the version one only sold six million units. Which is a lot, but nothing compared to the 3Gs's which sold over a million units in its first weekend.

So it was an interesting night for Apple watchers, with the company's financial results not really anywhere near as bad as some analysts had predicted.

There does however seem to be some underlying issues that the company needs to tackle the most urgent of which is getting some new product out to rival the endless stream of goodies that are emanating from Korea.

So good news for Apple fan people as last night CEO Tim Cook confirmed that a new phone and new tablet will be coming before the end of the year probably in the Fall.

The question is of course which products? The phone could the iPhone 5S or the much rumoured cut down iPhone to tempt budget buyers, And as for the tablet is - it the iPad 5 or will we see the ipad mini 2.

There is still a fair bit of conjecture as to what the iPhone 5S will feature. Some pundits predict that it will be a largely cosmetic upgrade with new software features. Others think that it will be a different format and boast a larger screen.

The news that it is coming in the Fall tallies with recent rumours that Apple are running a little behind on the release schedule.

Last week we ran a story in which Ming-chi Kuo of KGI Securities suggested that Apple was having serious issues with its range of products for 2013 and that there might be delays in getting them to market.

This has now been confirmed by another source who came to the view that the iPhone 5S, budget iPhone and iPhone 6 have serious pre-production issues after a visit to Apple's Asian suppliers.

Jefferies analyst Peter Misek says that the big issue for Apple is the delayed launch of the iPhone 5S which he thinks will have a knock on effect on other launches. He also adds that he has seen no evidence of an iWatch

So the iPhone 5S, which was due in July, might not arrive until later in the year causing a delay to the low cost handset too.

Misek said, 'After our Asia trip we now think the low-cost iPhone launch could be pushed to CQ4 and have increased confidence that the iPhone 6 will not launch until CY14.'

He added

'iPad mini refresh unlikely in CQ2 and if it does occur it would involve very low volumes due to yield issues of the new on-cell retina screen technology. iPad 5 refresh may occur in CQ2 but volumes also look very low. We have not yet seen any evidence of iWatch production.'

The worry for Apple is that growth in spring, summer and autumn might be sluggish as more people choose better specified devices from Apple's rivals or decide to wait until the end of the year before upgrading.

Before Apple fan persons get too upset though, Misek does have a habit of taking a negative view on Apple, not all of which came true. You can see them here.

Weather forecasting apps tend to be a little dull don't they? Well hoping to change all that is YoWindow an app for the iPhone which goes live today in the US and hopefully the UK too.

It is a sweet little app in that the scene in the app mirrors the wether you are currently experiencing., So if it is raining outside it will be raining on your picture - which is a cute animated representation of the place you are.

Where it becomes useful is you can fast forward and see what the weather will be link later on in the day. You can also watch the sun going down and up again.

It is really rather cute and well worth $0.99 you spend on it. An Android version is on its way too.

There is a lot of speculation about the upcoming Apple iPhone 5S, but one thing is a certainty and this it will have a better camera than the one on the iPhone 5. But how much better?

To keep up with the Samsung Galaxy S4 (to say nothing of the Sony Xperia Z) it will need to have a 12 mega pixel camera and that's exactly what a Vietnamese site is predicting that it will include.

Tinhte.vn is suggesting that Apple's next generation iPhone may feature a 12-megapixel camera with an improved night shooting feature and HDR. The rumour comes from a source at Wonderful Saigon Electricsin Binh Duong, a company that provides camera modules for the iPhone and has been picked up by, among others, Mac Rumours.

According to Mac Rumours Tinhte.vn has a pretty good record of scooping Apple products and in the past and delivered a preview of Apple's redesigned EarPods and a version of the fourth generation iPod touch

AppleInsider has got the scoop on what looks like a really hot story. It believes that Apple's new range for 2013 - which will include the "iPhone 5S," a rumored low-cost iPhone, and a second-generation iPad mini - are running behind schedule. Devices that were expected to be announced in July and available in August might not now go on sale until September or October.

It bases the story on a research note that was shared with the site by Ming-chi Kuo of KGI Securities. According to the site Ming-chi Kuo has been very accurate in predicting Apple product launches in the past.

He forecast Apple's entire fall 2012 product lineup, including unexpected products like a redesigned iPod nano and tweaked fourth-generation iPad with faster processor and Lightning connector.

And it isn't just one issue that is responsible for the hold up. Apple have problems on several fronts.

Ming-chi Kuo says that the issue with the "iPhone 5S," is that Apple plans to integrate a fingerprint sensor which he believes poses a number of new challenges.

"Apple has to work out how to prevent interference from the black and white coating material under the cover glass. Apple is the first to attempt this function and technology, and time is needed to find the right coating material, which will likely affect iPhone 5S shipments."

Kuo, along with others, have said that that fingerprint sensor is essential if Apple is to integrate secure e-wallet functionality thereby enabling the new phone to work as a very secure credit card.

Kuo also says that the development of iOS 7 is behind schedule with more time is likely to be needed for software development and testing, particularly with respect to the fingerprint scanning functions that will be included with the software.

Kuo also believes that there are challenges with the casing of the low cost iPhone.

"The slimmer casing may make it more difficult to ramp up production yields of coating and surface treatment, and could slow down the shipment timetable," he said.

It could mean that the new range of products does not reach the stores until towards the end of the year.

The worry for Apple is that growth in spring, summer and autumn might be sluggish as more people choose better specified devices from Apple's rivals or decide to wait until the end of the year before upgrading.

You can read the whole story here.

Waiting for the next Apple iPhone? Well according to Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster you won't have too long to wait.

He has told Cnet that he thinks that the next gen iPhone - the 5S - will land in June but also adds that he thinks it won't be as big a hit as its predecessor.

According to Cnet Munster suggests that Apple will sell 4 million units of the new phone before the month and the quarter are over. That estimate compares with the 5 million iPhone 5 handsets sold during that model's opening weekend.

The analyst has also been scoping out what he thinks will feature on the new handset. He says that there is an outside chance that the phone will come with a NFC chip and finger print treading to enable it to act as a bank card - see here for more - but that is more likely to debut on the iPhone 6.

So Munster is sticking with a faster processor, better camera, and some software enhancements.

So if he is right will that help claw some of the ground back that the company has arguably lost to Samsung?

What do you think?

It is always interesting to see who Apple acquires as it sometimes has an important impact on the development of their business and products. After all no one was really taking voice control very seriously until Apple stumped up the cash to buy Siri...

So it will be fascinating to see what Apple does with its new purchase indoor-mapping company Wifislam which it has apparently splashed £13m on.

Although the company has plenty to do to catch up with Google and its outdoor maps proposition, it might feel that it has a chance of parity as the popularity of indoor mapping develops.

So what is indoor mapping? Well it is pretty much as it sounds in that maps will now help people navigate their way round larger buildings with an accuracy that has at times been as good as two metres. The technology works by using the ambient Wi-fi signals present in buildings to pinpoint locations.

Apple are of course not saying a great deal about the purchase...

'Apple invests in smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not comment on our purpose or plans.'

There is a detailed explanation of why Apple might have bought Wifislam here.

For a long time now we have been told that the future is about NFC readers and that one day they will enable your phone to pay for things which are then billed to your account.

But The Boy Genius blog has an interesting take on how Apple might be positioning itself as the company which makes this happen.

On the day that and analyst reported that the iPhone 5S would boast a killer feature that the financial world would love BGR speculates that that killer feature is a finger print reader.

And the reason why Apple is adding it to the spec of the iPhone 5S is to enable the phone to act as a very secure credit card payment system.

So here's the scenario, you use the NFC system to pay for something, but the purchase is valdiated by you touching the screen with your fingers to activate the fingerprint reader.

You will then be charged for your purchase via your iTunes account.

The BGR speculates as to how Apple will make the money

It could either be charged to the merchant, or even out of what traditional payment processors currently charge. How and why would this happen? There are a couple of scenarios, but just think of what Apple could do in regards to preventing fraud and chargebacks to merchants. These factors can be anywhere from 5-20% of the cost of doing business (even much higher for riskier categories), and Apple could virtually eliminate all fraudulent purchases and chargebacks by requiring the iTunes account holder's fingerprint for every single transition.
That alone would be worth an additional 0.5% or 1% on top of what a merchant pays to their providers now. And what if Apple was able to guarantee funds to a merchant within hours after a purchase is made instead of days or weeks? These are just a couple of ideas regarding what Apple could do in this space if the company decides to enter it.

From a financial perspective this sounds very interesting. If Apple can grab even a small slice of the financial transactions that go one daily its stock will once again rocket. The system would also be tricky for other makers to copy too, though I guess Samsung could respond by offering the same feature via Google Play.

The question is though will it work from a consumer point of view. Would you want to use your phone to make payments?

Personally I wouldn't be that bothered. It would be good to have the option, but to be honest I'd prefer to keep track of what is coming out of my account via my card than have loads of purchases lumped through iTunes just because paying by phone would be a nano second quicker than paying by card.

But that's me - what do you think? Does that make me a Luddite?

If you are an Apple fanperson who is starting to worry that your smartphone might not be the coolest mobile on the planet any more. Fret not. According to Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty, the next iPhone - the 5S - will include a killer feature that will shut your Android-touting mates up. Well for while anyhow.

Huberty spoke of the feature on a programme on CNBC, reported here, where she defended her positive remarks about Apple - which is odd given the way the share price has been taking recently.

She said

"I do believe that Apple is approaching a bottom. As you have heard, they are talking about returning more cash, and we think they will do that in coming weeks. But people don't own Apple for that, they own Apple for innovation. You saw the Samsung Galaxy S4 come out last week, that shows you the innovation cards are up for grabs. What is lacking in that product [the S4] is a killer feature. We think that's where Apple will surprise this year. This [iPhone] 5S cycle this year will be about a killer feature that drives consumers increasingly to the platform, and that increases the value of those 500 million accounts.'

So what might that killer feature be - a free iWatch that comes with the phone? A new way way of controlling the handset? Fitness and health features built in? Well Huberty, is not saying anything for now.

What do you think it might be?

We haven't had a good Apple mock up for a while - well not since this lot anyhow.

Dutch site iPhoneclub.nl has rectified that though. It has partnered with concept artist Martin Hajek to deliver a series of mock-ups that imagine what the next generation low-cost Apple iPhone mobile might look like.

Taking the many rumours as his cue Hajek has pictured a thin phone made from polycarbonate that sports a four inch display.

He has also made a version with a 4.5inch screen in blue.

What do you think about a budget version of the iPhone - especially if it looked like this?

I think it would sell well, but I am not entirely sure it would be good for the status of the Apple brand in the long run.

Yesterday we brought you a flurry of rumours about the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S IV phone including the hardware specs and a hugely exciting new eye control feature.

Today there are rumours about the next iPhone to land - which will probably be the iPhone 5S.

At least one source is suggesting that it might be one of the first phones to feature a Fingerprint Sensor.

These have been used on phones before - namely the Motorola Atrix - and basically act as security device ensuring that only the phone's owner can use the phone.

The jury is still out on the technology in the mobile industry. The fact that Motorola couldn't get it to work especially well and that it hasn't been championed by other makers works against it. Apple do however have a reputation for taking existing tech (touch screens etc) and making them work in a pleasing and intuitive way.

I am not entirely sure how much of a crowd pleaser it would be as a feature but a fingerprint sensor would be an interesting addition to the iPhone 5S.

Now this is bizarre. Tier One Electronics have just released a product in the UK that delivers both sound and light from the same device. The system includes a pair of bulbs that acts as speakers, as well as delivering light, so you can have sound coming from your favourite lamp.

The Lightbulb Speaker kit includes a docking station for an iPhone which has a pair of bulbs that screw into lightbulb sockets. Each then works as a 5W LED lightbulb and a 10W speaker with the dock wirelessly streaming music (which can comes from any musical device and not just the iPhone) to the bulbs.

The bulbs don't have to be screwed into a lamp though, they can also work as speaker on their own if required.

The company claims that the 5W LEDs that make up the bulbs are extremely long life and energy saving.

I am note sure what happens when they finally die though. You may have to upgrade replace the bulbs which are £119.99 each.

So what do you think? Nice idea, or just a gimmick?

If you fancy them a pair of Lightbulb Speakers and the docking station cost £299.99. A matching floorstanding subwoofer to beef up the bass costs a further £139.99. You can buy them here. More info here.

Some interesting use of Bluetooth technology here from a Danish company called hippih. It has just hit the Apple Store with hipkey, a Bluetooth device designed to make sure that you are never parted from your iPhone, iPad or even your kids.

Basically it is a small accessory that you keep on a key ring. You then pair with a device like an iPhone or an iPad and if that device goes beyond a specified distance from the hipkey it sounds an alarm.

I guess the idea is that if you are constantly leaving your iPhone in coffee shops then this could be your saviour.

It also works with kids too. If you attach the hipkey to your child (or place it in their pocket) your iPhone/iPad will let you know if they have gone outside of the area.

You can set the distance triggered alarm system up to a range of 50 metres. There is also a 'Safe Zone' setting that switches the alarm off in areas where your valuables or loved ones are not vulnerable, such as home, a relative's house or the office.

Danny van der Poel, CEO of hippih says, "hipKey™ offers peace of mind to users, keeping track of their expensive items and loved ones when life gets in the way. Everyone has, at one time, left an iPhone or iPad in a bar or coffee shop and returned too late to find it gone. And who has not left the house in a hurry and forgotten their phone. Carrying a hipKey™ with you means this will never happen again."

It costs £69.95 and is available now from Apple Stores.

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Many tech lovers get all hot and bothered about the big announcements that'll be coming from the CES 2013 this week, whether it's a cool new smart phone or twisty, bendy laptop thing. However, we've noticed that sometimes it's actually the much smaller and less hyped products that impress us the most and iPhone cases and accessories are no exception this year.

So far we've come across cases that are bullet proof, special coatings that are waterproof, accessories with double screens and dongles that allow you to control your laptop with gestures over your phone. We expect there'll be more weird and wonderful iPhone-related tech from the show floor throughout the week, but for now here's our pick of the top 10 iPhone cases and accessories that have got us talking at Shiny Shiny HQ.

There are a range of different services that promise to turn your Instagram snaps into stickers, calendars and t-shirts, so we're not surprised to see a new company has popped up that lets you turn them into big, beautiful works of art too.

Every week there seems to be a new company piggy-backing on the success of Instagram, offering users the chance to see their photos on all kinds of useless products that they really don't need. However, there's something about Instacanvas that we think could be a bit more successful and appealing, despite the fact its name is sickeningly predictable of course.

If you're particularly proud of your photos, Instacanvas allows you to have them printed on high quality canvas and sent to your home all ready to hang. However, it's also a platform for professional artists and photographers who already have a big Instagram following to connect with others who'd like to buy their artwork. In this way Instacanvas becomes an interesting and potentially very lucrative business model for those looking to make a few extra pennies from their awesome photography skills.

You simply sign up and the site builds you your own gallery, along with a vanity URL and you can then pick which of your snaps you want to feature.

Matt Munson, the cofounder and CEO at Instacanvas, told Fast Company:

"It started with the idea that there are these billions and billions of photos being created every day on Instagram and other social media platforms, and some of us on the team had an interest in selling artwork, and some of us had talked about buying it. And as we looked around all we were seeing on the walls of our apartment was mass-produced artwork that we'd bought at Ikea or Target--things we really had no personal connection to."

As you'd expect there are a few issues that arise as soon as you start delving deeper into the workings of Instacanvas, for instance, artists make only 20% of the cost of each print. As the starting price is $40 that means only $8 for those behind the image, which is a little bit low, no?

Many are also questioning who really owns all of our Instagram content now that it's been gobbled up by big bad Facebook, but Munson said:

"We haven't seen any inkling that that would ever change, and obviously there would be an enormous backlash in the community--so in that sense they'd be destroying the value of the entity they'd just acquired...It's a very different thing the way people use Instagram to take a beautiful picture they want to share with the world verus a picture of your friends having a beer at a party on Facebook."

Related: 10 Services that turn your Instagram photos into cool products

[Via Fast Company]

There's a really interesting article over about the new iPhone over at The Guardian, nope not that one, which takes the views of a series of analysts about the new handset. There are some very significant points, but the one that stood out for me was this one from Ming-chi Kuo, analyst at Concord Securities in Taipei

He says...

"The iPhone 4S targets users who are expiring on their two-year 3GS contract."

I am one of the many people who bought the 3GS the moment it landed on my network (Vodafone) and am now ready for an upgrade. All summer long I have been wittering about how I will see what the new iPhone looks like and if it doesn't cut it for me I'll buy an Android handset, probably one of the new Samsungs.

In some ways the iPhone 3GS was the phone that tipped me into the Apple camp. It had 3G, a very usable camera, and unlike its predecessor the 3G it also had a video camera. For me this was a big deal not just because I spent lots of time videoing my children, but also because it meant I could access all those new Augmented Reality apps.

There was no way I was going to upgarde to the iPhone 4. Sure it looked great, but I would never ever buy a phone that needed to have a nasty bumper around it.

So now then shouId upgarde to the 4S?

Yes

1It's best to stay with what you know - I know the iPhone interface very well, have loads of apps and I also like the fact that I own a similar phone to many of my colleagues so we can share apps and features etc.

2 The camera looks pretty special - From a specification point of view the overwhelming reason to upgrade is the new iPhone's camera. Eight mega pixels and HD video of 1080p. Its a world away from the low res VGA video of the 3GS. As for the enhanced camera - that's good to have, but as some wag commented on Twitter yesterday these days most of my photos look like they were shot on a toy camera in the 1970s (thanks Instagram)

3 There would be some apps that I would lose if I left the iOS camp - These include Instagram and some neat games. I think this might be less of an issue as time goes by though as Android continues its surge to be the world's number one smartphone platform.

No

1 The difference between what I have and the 4S simply isn't that great - As I said, the camera would be nice and the faster processor and enhanced screen are useful - but they are not compelling reasons to go for the 4S.

2 There are some very promising Android phones out there - I think that the Samsung Galaxy Note looks like a lot of fun, not sure how much I would use the stylus but the bigger screen size is a must (the 3.8inch screen of the iPhone looks tiny now in a world of tabets) and it has a faster processor too. It'll be interesting to see what HTC has up its sleeve and I am not going to write off Nokia yet.

3 By going Android I can still use all my iPhone apps - The old iPhone becomes a 'touch' so if I want to access my old apps or download new ones it is a very simple process.

Ultimately my decision will be determined by what Vodafone has to offer and how much it ends up charging. Also if I need a bumper to make the 4S work Apple will have have lost this customer for good.

But for now the iPhone 4 looks like a contender rather than a shoe-in.

What do you think?

So the jury is out on the Apple iPhone 4S. Those who were expecting a radical redesign are obviously disappointed, but it is clear that this is a sensible evolution from what has (in spite of its antenna problems) been a very well received mobile. That eight mega pixel camera, HD 1080p video recording and smoother processor at least mean that the new iPhone keeps pace with its Android rivals

One of the key enhancements is the speed at which the phone can access data. According to Apple 'data can now download up to 2x as fast. The theoretical max performance of the iPhone used to be 5.8Mbps up and 7.2Mbps down -- it has now been doubled to almost 14.4Mbps down.'

This was illustrated by a slide that highlighted the maximum data speeds of the iPhone and rivals like the Motorola Atrix and HTC Inspire 4G.

So does that mean that the new iPhones run on 4G networks? Well much depends on your definition of 4G.

All sorts of networks and handsets are currently available which purport to offer 4G services. Though none of them really offer 4G as we will understand it in say five years time.

And Apple's new handset runs on an enhanced 3G format called HSPA+. This is called 4G by AT&T (one of the US networks that has the iPhone) but not by anyone else. Also HSPA+ 14.4 phones typically really only run on real world speeds 1.5 to 2 Mbps. Contrast this with the service offered by Verizon which uses an early form of LTE (Long Term Evolution) 4G technology. It can deliver data speeds five times faster than HSPA+ and sometimes even faster.

The iPhone 4S that will run on Verizon and Sprint won't even be able to access HSPA+ and will have mobile data speeds akin to standard 3G phones.

So what about the UK? Well Three is committed to rolling out a HSPA+ 14.4 network and hopes to have it across most of the UK by the end of the year. Vodafone has HSPA+ in most of its key urban areas as has 02. So the iPhone 4S should in theory run at improved data speeds on those networks. The other networks are running a little behind but planning to catch up shortly.

So to sum up then in the US the iPhone 4S will be able to compete with handsets like the the Motorola Atrix and HTC Inspire 4G on AT&T's HSPA+ network, and in theory will be quicker on Three, Vodafone and O2 in the UK. But if you want to see some real smoking 4G action you need to see the Motorola Droid Bionic on Verizon's 4G LTE network.

Underneath is a quick primer on 4G from earlier this summer.

What is 4G?

You may have been able to figure this bit out from the name alone; 4G represents the fourth generation of cellular communications standards, following on from 3G, and 2G before even that. In theory, 4G should allow for drastically faster cellular data speeds, perhaps as much as 10x as fast, which would allow for far faster download and upload speeds from mobile devices.

4G will deliver speeds of 100 Mbps for mobile applications and 1 Gigabit per second for fixed networks, making regular home broadband look snail-paced in comparison. In an age where downloading films, music and applications on mobiles is becoming increasingly prevalent, with higher-quality file types resulting in ever-growing file sizes, 4G will let streaming and downloading whilst on the go become a smooth, stress-free experience.

Are there different forms of 4G?

Yes there are. Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTEA) and WiMAX Release 2 are the 4G services which the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) have classified as true 4G. In a format war similar to Betamax and VHS, it's hard to say which of the two 4G forms will be dominant, though LTEA seems to edging ahead at this early stage.

For instance, Verizon and AT&T both agree that; "LTE provides a more natural upgrade for [their] GSM/UMTS/HSPA/CDMA-based networks and subscribers - and GSM is the dominant mobile standard worldwide, with more the 3 billion global customers as of February 2010."

Can I get a 4G connection yet?

In the UK no, and that's unlikely to change until 2014/15 at the earliest. OFCOM are still divvying up the 4G spectrum in Blighty.

In the United States, the answer is yes via Verizon's LTE network. This isn't fully flavoured 4G as we will come to know it, but it does deliver very quick data download speeds. Even on slow days phones like the Motorola Droid Bionic work at a minimum of 10Mbps that's at least 10 times faster than 3G handsets.

T-Mobile and Sprint both claim to offer 4G connections in the USA, the truth of the matter is that these are more like 3.5G connections, as they are built upon HSPA+ (not LTEA or WiMAX Release 2) technology. They'll be upgradeable to true 4G once the network technology becomes available though.

When will the "true 4G" networks be available?

4G is a significant investment for the networks, with a complex array of antennas, towers and other such infrastructure to put in place before we will see the true 4G download speeds of 100 Mbps that the ITU categorise as real 4G. To that end, you're probably looking at 3 to 4 years, with some less-well-funded networks possibly never offering 4G connectivity.

Is it worth me buying a 4G phone then?

Not if you are in the UK. By the time the true 4G networks arrive, this first wave of 4G-enabled handsets may look quite aged.