Nokia’s former head honcho Stephen Elop is one of the frontrunners to replace Steve Ballmer as CEO of Microsoft. And if he does, he’ll bring Microsoft’s Office suite of programs to rival smart phones and tablets, insiders say. Usually, Microsoft keeps its programs exclusive to its own mobile and desktop operating systems in order to drive …

The BBC has announced the exact time the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special will be broadcast. We already knew the special (titled Doctor Who: Day of the Doctor) would air on 23 November — two weeks yesterday — but now the BBC has set the exact time. And to get your time travelling juices flowing, the beeb has released two …

The Champions League is coming to BT Sport. The relative newcomer announced it snaffled the rights in a deal thought to be worth £900 million. The deal marks the end of two decades of the Champions League being shown live on terrestrial TV. The three-year deal will start from 2015. Sky and ITV currently share the rights to the league. …

Apparently one of the more annoying inconveniences of the PS3 will be sticking around for another generation. A Sony representative confirmed to CNET that the PS4 cannot receive infrared (IR) remote control commands, which means it won’t work with a traditional universal remote such as the Logitech Harmony 650. We were also unable to find an IR receptor on our …

Mimoco, known for its adorable licensed-character USB sticks, has taken to Kickstarter with a new character-based gadget: a 5200mAh backup smartphone battery. (Credit: Mimoco) Smartphone batteries, as most of you will be aware, aren’t the most capacious things. The iPhone 5s only has a 1570mAh battery, the Samsung Galaxy S4 sports 2600mAh, the new Nexus 5 is packing 2300mAh and …

Mobile broadband speeds can vary widely, but now the Federal Communications Commission is turning to the smartphone community to get a more accurate picture of how wireless carriers compare. The FCC is expected to hear a presentation this week on the FCC Speed Test App for Android, which will record smartphone users’ data speeds nationwide for analysis by the commission, …

The Samsung Galaxy Note 8: This tablet comes with a stylus. Josh Miller/CNET The tablet market had its breakthrough moment when Apple’s iPad arrived sporting a nearly 10-inch screen. Later, much of the significant action among tablets centered on those in the 7-inch realm. In general, the 7-inch size marks the border between so-called phablets and proper tablets. The group …

One of the Nexus 5 smartphone’s best new features is the always-listening, touchless control over Google Now, the name by which the platform’s personal assistant is known. By saying the words “OK, Google” when the phone is unlocked, you can launch any of Google Now’s actions — like searching the Web or dialing a number — without having to touch …

Three, Tesco Mobile and HTC are among the big winners in this year’s uSwitch Awards, awarded by phone fans and industry experts to the best manufacturers and mobile networks for value, coverage, customer support and extras. Three scooped the most awards, taking home four gongs. Customer satisfaction ratings were tallied up to name Three as the network giving the best …

AMSTERDAM — How does a national-scale carrier go from nonexistent to profitable in five years? There’s probably no single, simple path. But in the case of YTL Communications in Malaysia, the answer combines aggressive construction of a 4G network, a government boost for new network operators, and a business that embraces the services that many carriers don’t like. That’s according …