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Amazon Fire TV coming to UK 'for Christmas' Exclusive Just six months to go... You didn't think Amazon would totally snub the UK, did you? Amazon has remained coy on its plans to launch its Fire TV box in the UK, but TechRadar has been told that we can expect to see it arrive on this side of the pond just in time for some December festivities. An Argos rep told us that Amazon Fire TV is on its way, and will be available to buy "for Christmas" this year. Unfortunately our Argos bod wasn't able to give any specific dates, but we're glad that we'll be seeing Fire TV this year - even if it's by a whisker. That extra time may give Amazon the space to improve its set-top box. For example, in our review we noted that we'd like to see some more customisation offerings. A better search function would also go down a treat.

Apple reportedly poaches TAG sales guy in order to claim iWatch is 'Swiss made' Now hold on just a minute... Like the Jamaican bobsled team, Apple wants to be like the Swiss Apple has reportedly hired the sales director of luxury watch maker TAG Heuer in the hopes of marketing its iWatch under the prestigious 'Swiss made' label. Jean-Claude Biver, the CEO of the LVMH company that owns TAG, Zenith and Hublot told CNBC his number one sales executive departed last week "to take a contract with Apple" to launch the iWatch. CNBC reports the appointment represents a breakthrough for Apple in its until now fruitless attempts to poach employees from Swiss watch makers to work on the iWatch, expected to launch in October. Having 'Swiss made' featured on the iWatch would allow Apple to accentuate the perceived value of the device, according to the report. Diluting "For sure they are trying to approach the Swiss manufacturers, but t...

4K TV channels on the way as DVB-UHDTV standard is approved More pixels, more colours, more awesome Let the 4K floodgates open... 4K TV channels in the UK took a step closer to reality over the weekend after a new Ultra HD TV broadcast specification was approved for Europe by the DVB Steering Board. The new DVB-UHDTV Phase 1 specification allows for the over-the-air transmission of 3840x2160 resolution pictures at 60Hz and promises much improved colour depth with 10 bits per pixel rather than 8. Once officially standardised, this specification will surely open the floodgates for 4K TV services to launch both on satellite and over-the-air platforms across Europe. It will be a huge step forward in TV picture quality, offering a whole new range of colours, higher frame rates, double the horizontal and vertical resolution and four times the number of pixels. That's nine times as many pixels as an 'HD Ready' 720p picture. How it works The standa...

WIN! One of two 500GB YouView+ boxes Competition Two brilliant boxes up for grabs You too can use a YouView TechRadar is giving two readers the chance to win a 500GB YouView+ box, so you can enjoy seamless live, on demand and catch up television this Summer. Whatever keeps you from your TV, with YouView you can scroll back through the last seven days and and watch the available programmes you've missed, straight from the guide. YouView is an on demand TV service with more than 70 free-to-air TV and radio channels. It seamlessly combines available seven day catch up on BBC iPlayer, ITV Player (STV in Scotland), 4oD and Demand 5 with a library of on demand television programmes. A range of quality content is available via on demand players from Dave, Really and Yesterday imagined by UKTV, Now TV*, milkshake!, Sky Store* and S4C. A Humax DTR T1010 box is up for grabs Please note that this competition is only open to UK residents over 18 years of age. The ...

iPhone 6 release date may be later than originally thought The iPhablet gets a name Apple's secretive handset is becoming less shrouded in mystery by the day. We're fairly confident that the iPhone 6 will launch in September, but the exact date in September remains under wraps. Previously September 19 was rumoured, but a new rumour points to September 25 for the launch, following an announcement on September 15. This latest claim comes from 'inside sources' picked up by various Chinese media outlets and spotted by G4Games. The sources claim that China will be one of the first places to get the phone, but not necessarily the very first, so even if it's right it's still possible that the iPhone 6 will launch on September 19 in some regions. Convincing price As well as a possible release date the sources also reveal the supposed Chinese pricing of the handset. The 4.7-inch model will apparently start at 5,288 yuan (around £496), which lin...

Plasma TVs ascend to silicon heaven as Samsung bows out of production Samsung follows Panasonic's plasma exit The end is near Samsung has announced plans to exit production of plasma televisions, a sure sign that the end is near for the display technology. The Korean firm will build its last set on November 30 this year in order to switch focus to 4K and cuved television sets, it said in a statement. The decision, it says, comes due to changes in the market. A statement provided to CNET read: "We plan to continue our PDP TV business until the end of this year, due to changes in market demands. We remain committed to providing consumers with products that meet their needs, and will increase our focus on growth opportunities in UHD TV's and Curved TV's." Expense Samsung's plans to shut down plasma production follows Panasonic's October 2013 decision to do likewise. Panasonic bowed out after deciding production of 4K plasma panels...

Poll results: Is Android L the most important Android update ever? One of the biggest software-related news in recent months was the announcement of Android L, Google’s brand new Android iteration that will be released sometime this fall. Google showcased a lot of the features that Android L comes with, and it even made a developer preview available for its Nexus devices (only owners of the Nexus 5 and Nexus 7 2013 can get it at the moment). While some things about Android L may change before it reaches regular users, it’s already more than obvious that this is a massive update. But is it the most important Android update ever? Well, we ran a poll last week, asking you exactly this question. From the total of 4,843 votes, 2,307 voters (47.64%) are already convinced that Android L represents the most important update since Google’s platform was first announced back in 2008. 1,878 voters (38.78%) aren’t so sure about this, still waiting to test Android L before dec...