First Number News Archive

Mobile phone app could lessen reliance on cash

New smartphone app, Pingit, unveiled by Barclays bank this week could make cash payments a far less regular part of our lives. The app, available to download for free, lets users transfer money to anyone with a UK current account and mobile number, without sharing bank details.

Quick-thinking citizen captures phone thief on mobile phone camera

A thief who took a chance at robbing a passenger on a train ran out of luck when a fellow traveller captured his actions on his mobile phone camera.

Roaming costs contribute to lost business in many Fortune 1000 companies

Roaming bills acquired by employees on international business trips cost some companies over $1,000 per traveller per month, research has revealed. Many Fortune 1000 companies are seeking ways to control employee expenditure abroad. 24% of those surveyed went as far as to say the costs incurred have contributed to lost business.

Apple's iOS takes over from Google's Android as US favourite operating system

Booming latest Apple iPhone sales have pushed Google's Android platform into second place in the US smartphone market, reports revealed this week. The research published by Kantar Worldpanel ComTech showed Apple's market share had doubled from a year ago.

Smartphones empower citizen journalists onboard Costa Concordia

Thanks to smart phone technology, content sharing opportunities and passengers in the right place at the right time, anyone with internet access can now “live through” what it would have been like to be on board the Costa Concordia during its ordeal on the rocky Italian coastline.

Make it a Christmas to Remember With Firstnumber

Christmas, as the song goes, really is 'The Most Wonderful Time of the Year', but if you live far away from your nearest and dearest, then you'll know that managing to see everyone on the big day is not just difficult, but sometimes impossible, due to timing, holidays, and of ...

The Text Message Turns 19

This December marks the 19th anniversary of the text message, which was invented by Neil Papworth in 1992, when he sent Richard Jarvis, the Vodafone director, a text message at the staff Christmas party that simply read, “Happy Christmas”.

Thanksgiving with FirstNumber

Though you may be far from the New World, you can still wish your fellow Americans a Happy Thanksgiving this year with Firstnumber.

Pakistan Telecom Watchdog Ban On 1500 Rude Words In Text Messages

Pakistan officials are demanding that mobile phone operators block all text messages that are found to be using offensive words. To help inform mobile phone users of which words are included in this strict ban, the country's telecoms regulator issued a comprehensive listing of over 1000 words and phrases that ...

Halloween at FirstNumber

It's scary how cheap it is to make international calls with firstnumber!

Just What Is On Your Phone?

With so much going on in the mobile phone industry, and all the attention focused on the information contained inside a phone, a new report has emerged that questions the very basics of phone use and hygiene.

Autumn with FirstNumber

As Autumn approaches and the leaves begin to fall, why not get in touch with distant friends and family. The harvest season is the perfect time to rekindle old flames, and re-connect with forgotten friends and relatives. With both Tropics experiencing 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness ...

Smartphones Now More Popular Than Ever in Europe

Recent research from the market research company IDC has revealed that more people in Western Europe are choosing to buy these particular devices than ever before. The research, which was published on the 9th of September, found that smartphone shipments have outstripped normal mobile phone shipments for the first time in the second quarter of 2011.

TalkTalk Set To Raise Their Prices

Following the announcement made by BT who are set to increase their landline and call prices by 5% this December, Telecom and ISP provider TalkTalk have announced a rise in it's home phone charge. The changes will come into place from October 1st 2011. The price increase will raise from ...

BT Increase Landline and Call Prices By 5%

BT has announced it will be freezing many of its prices for residential customers until 2013, following a series of price updates that will take affect from December 2011. The most popular Anytime calls plan, standard line rental and calls to UK landlines will be given a prize freeze until ...

A New Survey Reveals the Changing Role of Phones in Society

A new industry survey has revealed that more and more people are using their mobile phones to get out of social situations, to ignore individuals that they don't want to speak to. The study, which was conducted by the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project, interviewed 2,277 Americans ...

Smartphone Addiction Diagnosed by Ofcom

A report published yesterday by the Office of Communications, Ofcom, revealed that 60% of all teen smartphone users claimed to be “highly “addicted to their handsets.

School's Out!

School may be out for the summer, but here at Firstnumber we're not so lucky! Instead we continue to provide access numbers for you happy holidaymakers to keep in touch with friends and family.

Phone Hacking and You: How to Protect Your Phone

ollowing the recent discovery that a number of high profile tabloids and newspapers had resorted to hacking the mobile phones of celebrities, public figures, and even the voicemails belonging to victims of crime, the issue of phone hacking has never been more important.

Proposals Made to Reduce Mobile Roaming Prices in EU

In a move which may lead to the reduction of mobile phone roaming costs, the European Commission has put forward a set of proposals to lower price caps on calls, text messaging and data downloads when abroad.

One in Three Adults in UK Use Smartphone Technology

The number of mobile internet users in the UK currently stands at approximately 16 million, and is expected to double to over 18 million by 2015. Globally, smartphone ownership is predicted to reach 2 billion over the next 4 years. Such data provides the general context for the revelation that in the UK, 1 in 3 adults now use a smartphone.

Armed Forces Day with Firstnumber

The 25th June is Armed Forces Day. Know someone in Iraq or Afghanistan?

Pope Makes First Papal Long-Distance Call to International Space Station

Religion and Science came together on Saturday when Pope Benedict XVI made the first ever Papal call to space.

Consumers Underestimate Directory Enquiry Call Costs

In a study by free directory enquiries provider 192.com, it was revealed that a high percentage of customers using a payable directory enquiries service such as 118 118 or 118 500 seriously underestimate the cost of making such calls.

Microsoft Buy Skype for £5 billion

In the company's largest acquisition to date, Microsoft's £5 billion valuation of Skype may seem somewhat excessive to many industry commentators. The VoIP tool has become synonymous with online communications, with “Skype-ing” entering into our social lexicon in a way strikingly similar to Google.

Number of Apple iPhones sold is close to doubling as sale rocket

Apple enjoy record quarterly profits

Say "suk-san wan songkran" Happy Songkran Day this Thai new year!

Say "suk-san wan songkran" Happy Songkran Day this Thai new year!

Cheap Calls to Japan Available Following the Tsunami

Japan begins recovery follow earthquake and tsunami

The Telephone Is Dead. Long Live The Smartphone

As one reign ends, so another begins. Though this may be seen as more of a usurpation than a natural succession, the transition from tradition to modernity has well and truly begun.

Make Cheap Calls to Ireland This St Patrick's Day