Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio
The latest label
following BMG to join Nokia’s Comes With Music service bandwagon is none other than Warner Music Group. The third-largest label joins the powerful cadre of labels on the service, which as of this posting lacks only EMI for a full major label lineup. As a reminder, the service allows you to download music for 12 months and then keep it as long as you own the device or transfer to a PC. Now, of course, we just need to wait for the devices to roll out.
[Via Yahoo News]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds
Among the many ducks that Sprint (and Verizon?) will need to get in a row in order to launch their own version of HTC’s Touch Pro, FCC certification ranks pretty freakin’ high on the list. No worries, though — it’s all good, because that just happened. An HTC device with model number “RAPH800″ has now popped up in the filing system, featuring CDMA with EV-DO on the 850 and 1900MHz bands. Of course, certification is certainly no indication of when a product’s actually going to launch, but if (heaven forbid) the glossy QWERTY WinMo slider gets delayed, at least we can call out anyone trying to slide the “we’re waiting on FCC clearance” excuse past us.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones, Transportation
We feel for all of you in California who are dealing with the new hands-free legislation that came down upon you today like an edict from your overlords. If you’re one of the unlucky few who get nailed by the 5-0 for talking on your cellphone while driving, though, there’s some silver in those dark clouds. Headsets.com is giving away the Plantronics Discovery 925 bluetooth earpiece — worth $150 clams — in exchange for proof that you were pulled over. Now, don’t go talking on your cellphone in the hope of getting one of these, though — that $20 fine could get you a decent headset today anyway.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones
Although Sony Ericsson just churned out a rather impressive array of new handsets this month, it seems the outfit is still having trouble securing record-setting profits. Truthfully, it’s struggling to break even, as evidenced by the second profit warning of 2008 that was issued last week. SE is pinpointing “disappointing European sales of its mid- and high-end mobile phones” as the reason it will likely not see a profit in Q2, and some analysts are suggesting that shipment delays and a dearth of low-end handsets also carry a share of the blame. ‘Course, the hotly-anticipated Xperia X1 could certainly make for a lovely Q3, but only time will tell if enough folks shell out for it to make a difference.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds
Ever since Motorola was tossing the Tetra name around in 2005, the brand has catered to those operating in less-than-beautiful conditions. The T-Pad smartphone is no exception to the rule, boasting a shock-proof (MIL-STD-810F) casing, IP65 waterproof rating and a keypad that resists dust, debris and any other manner of matter. Specs wise, you’ll find a 640 x 480 resolution display, Intel’s Xscale 400MHz CPU, Windows CE.Net 4.2, Bluetooth, 64MB of SDRAM, USB connectivity and optional WiFi / GPS. Unfortunately, this little bugger is reportedly stickered at £1,300 ($2,592), so unless your employer is picking up the tab for you to have a mobile while wrestling polar bears at the North Pole, we’d probably recommend a cheaper alternative.
[Via CNET, thanks Yogesh]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones
For the smattering of Canadians wealthy enough to pick up an iPhone 3G from Rogers Wireless without worrying over the lack of an unlimited data plan, we’ve stumbled across what appears to be internal verbiage detailing the in-store activation process. Quite frankly, there doesn’t seem to be any real surprises here, but it is somewhat interesting that retail locations will be required to download and use a special version of iTunes with an “Activation Only Mode,” which will enable employees to unbrick the mobiles before customers leave. In any case, feel free to hit the read link if you’re anxious to know exactly what the sure-to-be-hair-raising experience will be like come July 11th.
[Via GearDiary, thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds
Yo, heads up — the E71’s only half of the story with Nokia’s new line of business sidekicks. For those of us who bust out T9 text with aplomb, the E66 might be the better option, especially when you factor in its narrower form factor, arguably (okay, very arguably) nicer look, and an utterly brilliant slide mechanism. Having trouble deciding? Perhaps our little look at the E66 over on Engadget Mobile can be of assistance.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones
MetroPCS may not have the largest wireless footprint in the States, but they did take a jab at the larger two CDMA carriers by announcing their intention to take on any Verizon and Sprint customers ready to jump ship — as well as any “compatible” devices they may want to bring along with them. Sprint already supposedly does this (although we’ve still yet to hear of it actually really happening), but the specifics of MetroPCS’s MetroFlash seem equally unclear. It doesn’t sound like they’ll reprogram just any CDMA device that walks through their doors, though, just the ones they’ve had a chance to test on their network. Definitely kills the buzz (and the number of devices that can be ported), but a little open is still kind of better than totally closed, right?
[Via Seattle P-I and Mobility Site]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio
Analysts love to come up with all sorts of conjecture based on history, numbers, and general guesswork. In this case, FBR Research analyst Craig Berger has a few predictions to give us regarding the future of Apple’s iPod and iPhone lines. We’ll keep them short and sweet here and leave the static mulling to you. First, he expects an updated, lower-priced iPod nano in the near future along with product refreshes for both the iPod classic and touch. That sounds about right, as Apple is almost due for updates of those products anyway. As far as Apple’s production rate, he says Apple has increased iPod production around 15 percent and sees Apple shipping 15 million iPhone 3G by the end of the year (he’s a big fan of the number “15″). Nothing really surprising here, but if all this pans out, Apple will dig deeper into the smart phone market while tightening its stranglehold on the PMP landscape.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by Ryan Pamplin
Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds
Remember that touchscreen Motorola Blaze we’d mentioned a while back that was on the hook to get Verizon’s visual voicemail service? It may not be in Verizon stores yet, but it’s all up in Boy Genius Report’s labs with a dark red body, MING attitude, and almost limitless mediocrity on board. The touchscreen apparently requires ridiculous amounts of effort to actuate, and that problem is compounded by a lame on-screen keyboard that makes texting tricky at best. EV-DO Rev. A is cool and all — and the visual voicemail support should be a pretty popular add-on feature — but that giant Motorola logo up front with the red ring and three pounds of chrome leaves the Blaze with a face only a mother could love. Let’s hope Verizon’s positioning this one as its low-end touchscreen offering, because we’re not seeing it cha-chinging many registers otherwise.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Phones | No Comments »
