Archive for April, 2010

BlackBerry 6 coming in third quarter of this year

RIM's co-CEO Mike Lazaridis just announced in an analyst call today that the company's next platform -- coined BlackBerry 6 -- will be available "in the next calendar quarter," which we take to mean the third quarter of 2010. We weren't able to see a video preview of the platform that was shown to analysts attending the event, but the demo apparently showed a touchscreen interface; a follow-up question from the audience confirmed that it'll be available for both touch and non-touch devices, though. Interestingly, Lazaridis said that the company's all-new WebKit -based browser is part and parcel with 6, pointing out that the rendering engine will have implications throughout the platform and the apps that run on it, not just on the browser alone; in other words, we wouldn't expect a release of a WebKit browser from these guys for OS 5.0-based devices

Read more...

BlackBerry Bold 9650 video hands-on

We'll be very honest with you: unless you're a Tour user amped to upgrade to something that directly addresses your specific complaints, this video might be of little interest.

Read more...

FCC launches Spectrum Task Force, unused frequencies become wanted criminals

It's no secret that Julius Genachowski and his posse up in Washington are taking spectrum reallocation very, very seriously in an effort to nip any danger of a wireless broadband crunch in the bud, and the FCC's taken another small step in that process today with the creation of the "Spectrum Task Force." It sounds like the Task Force's main job is to get the entire agency on the same page with regards to its long-term spectrum planning, ultimately playing "a critical role in the execution of the spectrum recommendations in the National Broadband Plan ." In other words, the critical topic of spectrum reallocation isn't going away -- and while Genachowski continues to emphasize his intention to make license sales by TV broadcasters fully voluntary, we could see things starting to get hostile if the broadcast industry's mood doesn't change. Unfortunately, we're not aware of any plans for these guys to actually dress up in SWAT uniforms and ride around on Segways should the need arise. Follow the break for the FCC's full statement.

Read more...

Samsung Exec launched for US Cellular, suggests WinMo ain’t dead yet

You probably won't hear Microsoft lauding this thing too much -- it's got bigger fish to fry at the moment -- but Samsung and US Cellular have just teamed up to launch the i225 Exec, a simple Windows Mobile 6.5 Standard-based smartphone with a portrait QWERTY keyboard. It's got a 2 megapixel camera and microSD expansion up to 32GB (assuming you can actually track down a 32GB SanDisk card ), but otherwise, this is about as straightforward and basic as a modern smartphone can get -- no frills, just straight-up touchscreen-free legacy WinMo action. It's available right now for $99.95 on a new two-year contract after $70 rebate

Read more...

Nokia N8′s full spec sheet leaks, nothing shocking spied within

Just one day after finding a pretty thorough review of the Nokia N8 on a Russian website , the full spec sheet seems to be floating about as well -- also from a Russian source. Unwired View 's published what it believes to be the full N8 spec sheet. So what do we find contained within?

Read more...

BlackBerry Pearl 3G first hands-on!

We just wrapped up a quick play with RIM's just-announced BlackBerry Pearl 3G , and our initial impression is a positive one -- if you've currently got a Pearl 8100 series (or even an 8200 series flip, for that matter), this looks like a must-have upgrade. The phone's UI is lightning fast, the optical pad is plenty responsive (as RIM's optical pads tend to be), and 802.11n and HSDPA are obviously both welcome additions.

Read more...

BlackBerry Bold 9650 hands-on: yeah, it’s a Tour with an optical pad

If you had any illusions about what exactly the Bold 9650 is, make no mistake: owning a Tour takes you 95 percent of the way to understanding the experience. The only thing you'll really notice on an ongoing basis is the optical pad, which is definitely a big improvement over the trackball of old -- not only does it eliminate the issue of gunk buildup, but it's totally responsive and arguably even easier to use than the ball for most tasks. The version we used was Sprint-branded, but RIM has unbranded units on hand, too; we can only assume Verizon will end up picking it up, though Big Red has been uncharacteristically silent about the matter so far.

Read more...

Sprint gets BlackBerry Bold 9650: $200 on contract, ships May 23

We suspected that both Sprint and Verizon Wireless would eventually pick up RIM's hot-off-of-the-press BlackBerry Bold 9650 , and sure enough, the former has already come forward with a glowing press release stating as much.

Read more...

Motorola gives Google the boot, turns to Skyhook for location services

Well, this is... something.

Read more...

Nexus One launches on Vodafone UK this Friday, April 30

The first European carrier for the Nexus One is all set to start offering Google's superphone for free on two-year contracts costing

Read more...