This week, Sony announced that ITV Player and 4oD were headed to the PS3 and leaked images of an iPad 2 case showed that the new iPad is set to feature a rear-facing camera.
And as the year draws to a close, we took a look at what 2011 holds in store for mobile phones and for gadgets, and posted our pick of the 10 best games you should be playing this Christmas.
Read on for this week's most popular stories on TechRadar…
Top five news stories
PS3 to start streaming ITV and Channel 4
Sony has announced that the PlayStation 3 is set to get ITV and Channel 4's video catch-up services - the ITV Player and 4oD - in the UK this week.
It is a timely announcement, what with the busy Christmas TV schedules ahead over the coming weeks, with many no doubt glad to hear they will be able to catch up with Coronation Street and other favourites via their PS3.
And while hardcore gamers will no doubt mock Sony's video-on-demand strategy for PlayStation, it cannot be denied that the addition of ITV Player and 4oD VOD services makes the PS3 hardware more appealing to the casual gamer looking to purchase a new console.
Apple iPad 2 case shows off rear camera and SD card slot
Images of a new iPad case have appeared online, prompting much speculation that the Apple iPad 2 is set to get expandable memory and a rear camera.
Apple fansite iLounge is reporting that Chinese manufacturer Shenzhen MacTop Electronics has shown off a new case that has space for a rear camera to poke out its head
Samsung Galaxy S Android 2.3 Gingerbread update confirmed
Samsung has used the medium of Twitter to confirm that its flagship phone, the Samsung Galaxy S, will indeed be getting an Android 2.3 Gingerbread update.
Two tweets came from the official Samsung Mobile India Twitter account, which were sent in response to queries by two Galaxy S owners.
Apple finally gives jailbroken iPhones green light?
Apple might have given in and decided to allow jailbreaking of iPhones after a key API was removed in iOS 4.2.
This means that Apple can no longer check to see if you've got a 'good' or 'naughty' phone – this comes after the US government earlier said that jailbreaking an iPhone was entirely legal.
Whether this was disabled or removed completely has yet to be confirmed by Apple – it could simply be a temporarymeasure before a minor update rebuilds the garden walls.
Android Market gets radical UI overhaul
The new and improved Android Market has arrived, in the form of a ripped APK (Android package) released onto the web.
Website Android Police has managed to load the new Market on to a number of its handsets and has uploaded some images of the UI.
The biggest change is in the look of the interface. Google definitely likes the colour green at the moment, with a green curve taking up most of the screen.
This curve now houses a carousel, which means the tabs of old have completely disappeared.
Unfortunately it seems that most of the changes are just cosmetic. There's no discovery engine to find new apps, merely a related apps list at the bottom of each app.
Top five in-depth articles
iPad 2 rumours: what you need to know
The internet loves Apple and it loves ill-founded speculation, so it's hardly surprising that iPad 2 rumours were flying before the first iPad even reached the UK.
With only weeks to go before its expected unveiling the iPad 2 release date, specs and price are still closely guarded secrets, but that doesn't mean there aren't some juicy rumours, inspired guesses and possibly even Apple leaks to consider.
Here's our pick of the latest iPad 2G rumours.
10 gadgets to look forward to in 2011
While many people are waiting until Christmas to receive some of 2010's best gadgets and technology, we're already looking forward to 2011.
Around this time we always get more and more excited about the potential for each year to top the last.
Of course, 2010 has been pretty damn good for gadget lovers, what with the tablet revolution and 3D, but we have faith next year can top it thanks to these great products.
And this is still before all the CES 2011 announcements! Oh, it's going to be good…
Top 10 best tablet PC iPad alternatives
Apple hasn't just rekindled interest in tablet devices, it has created the kind of hysteria that only Apple can.
There's no denying that the iPad is a beautifully crafted device that's a joy to use, but not everyone wants to buy into Apple's design and marketing hype.
With that in mind, we've rounded up ten alternatives to the iPad and put them in descending order to prove that Apples are not the only fruit.
Mobile phones in 2011: what to expect
Without a doubt, the mobile phone is the ultimate consumer electronic device. Why? Because it's an electronic device that is consumed like no other.
Honestly, can you think of any other gadget that you will willingly change almost every year? Would you buy a new TV, games console or Blu-ray player every twelve months?
Yet with mobile phones, we simply must have the latest model, with the latest features, despite the fact that there's probably nothing whatsoever wrong with our current handset.
Top 10 best games you must play this Christmas
2010 has undoubtedly been a golden year for videogames, with a veritable slew of triple-A titles having been released by almost every major gaming publisher throughout the year.
And as the Christmas holiday season rapidly approaches, adult gamers across the land with the promise of a week or two of dead time with the
family and in-laws ahead look forward to catching up with some of the gaming classics they might have missed (or just not had the time for) over the past twelve months.
Whatever your preferred format - and whatever your in-grained fanboy biases – from PC through to home console through to handheld – there are a handful of games that you really should play across all the main gaming formats that were released throughout 2010.
Reviews
The Google Nexus S is designed to be the device that showcases the power of Android 2.3 and comes without the constraints of network upgrade delays.
Finally they've arrived; the HD 6900 series cards from AMD. Right here we've got the very top-end of AMD's latest single-GPU cards, the AMD Radeon HD 6970.
In performance terms the Radeon HD 6950 is a rather impressive beast. It's £80 cheaper than the 6970, and you're only losing a couple of frames per second on most of the benchmarks.
Sony's 3D capable, edge LED-backlit KDL-40LX903 is, at £2,000, a high-end set by any reckoning.
The appeal of the Sony Bravia KDL-37EX403 is obvious. It's a 37-inch TV from one of the world's most reputable AV brands that doesn't cost very much money.
Also reviewed this week...
Amplifiers
Cases and cooling
CD players
Desktops
Graphics cards
HIS Radeon HD 6870 Turbo review
Sapphire Radeon HD 6850 Toxic review
Headphones
Headsets
Hi-Fi accessories
Chord Electronics Chordette Peach review
iPhone apps
Random HouseThe Good Pub Guide 2011 review
EidosChampionship Manager 2011 review
GameloftModern Combat 2: Black Pegasus HD review
Laptops
Mobile phones
Motherboard
Foxconn FlamingBlade GTI review
Printers
Software
Nuance CommunicationsDragon Dictate for Mac review
Corner-A PhotoStyler 4.6 review
Literature and LatteScrivener 2.0 review
Sound cards
CreativeSound Blaster X-Fi HD review
Speakers
Storage
Kingston SSDNow V+100 256GB Upgrade Bundle review
TVs
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sign up for TechRadar's free Weird Week in Tech newsletter
Get the oddest tech stories of the week, plus the most popular news and reviews delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up at http://www.techradar.com/register
