Microsoft loosens up, enables Windows Phone 7 apps to run beneath screen lock
We felt that Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 was a product that would be perpetually evaluated, tweaked and overhauled as time went on, and sure enough, we're already seeing those winds of change blow yonder. Reportedly, Microsoft has now removed the restriction that prevented developers from writing applications that would continue to operate behind a locked screen (without a user's explicit permission, anyway), enabling a whole host of apps to breathe in a manner in which they simply should.
Categories: Mobile Phone, Other Tags: audio, charlie-kindel, conference, developer, engadget, mobileos, operating-system, permission, permissions, result, the-background, unlock, user-permission, windows, wp7
RIM announces WebWorks development kit, in-app payments, ad platform, and BBM API
RIM's BlackBerry Developer Conference is going down this week in San Francisco, and as you might expect from a developer-focused event, there are a handful of newsy items that'll affect the development community first and consumers down the road. Here's a roundup of what's what: WebWorks development platform. From what we've heard of this so far, it's basically a quick way for web devs to get into the BlackBerry app game by offering a tightly-integrated platform for HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript code with hooks to native BlackBerry OS functions and a packager for turning them into "real" BlackBerry apps.
Categories: BlackBerry, Mobile Phone, Other Tags: api, approach, bbm social platform, BlackBerry, conference, css, devcon, development, entry, messages, paypal, receiving
BlackBerry 9670 series clamshell earns FCC love
At first, we thought we were looking at the back of yet another standard design Bold or Curve -- but check out that nice, fat hinge up top. Indeed, we have every reason to believe we're looking at the long-rumored BlackBerry 9670 clamshell here, and the test reports confirm the presence of 802.11b / g / n and dual-band CDMA in this particular version -- in other words, it'll almost certainly be coming to either Sprint or Verizon
Categories: BlackBerry, Mobile Phone, Other Tags: 11b, BlackBerry, clamshell, clamshell-earns, conference, developer, entry, Hinge, Monster, reports, result, verizon, verizon-given
Verizon CEO talks (more) about iPhone: ‘we have to earn it’
So, Apple's talked about putting the iPhone on Verizon, Verizon wants the phone ... why can't we get these two crazy kids together? Well, Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg touched on that topic in a talk to investors at the Goldman Sachs conference today
Categories: Mobile Phone Tags: carmelo, conference, game, goldman, iphone, iphone 5, ivan seidenberg, phone, seidenberg, verizon, verizon-iphone, verizoniphone, wants-the-phone
Verizon gearing up for Android V Cast App store?
We're guessing Verizon has been pretty happy with the results of its V Cast App store for BlackBerry , as it looks like the carrier's now accepting submissions in the Android category for software that'll propagate its eventual marketplace on that mobile platform.
Categories: Android, BlackBerry, Mobile Phone Tags: appstore, conference, developers, droid, mobile, now-accepting, v cast apps, Vcast
FLO TV losing money, Qualcomm looking for an out?
So it seems that founding and operating a broadcast mobile TV business is no mean feat: as mocoNews points out, there is spectrum to be purchased and transmission towers to be networked -- all before you can sell electronics manufacturers on carrying your chipset in their devices. Unfortunately for Qualcomm , it looks like FLO TV has been something less than profitable, a reality that CEO Paul Jacobs owned up to in the company's Q3 conference call.
Categories: Mobile Phone Tags: business, conference, entry, jacobs, mediaflo, personal, points, radio, satellite, something-less, television, towers, transmission
Windows Phone 7′s October release casually mentioned in Microsoft ad presentation
"I'm gonna ask rock star Kostas...
Categories: Mobile Phone Tags: after-the-break, Capabilities, conference, entry, lions, mathews, phone, star, video, windows phone 7, wp7
Murata’s paper-thin waterproof speaker perfect for phones, pool parties
Waterproof phones are few and far between stateside, but in Japan, they're pretty common -- and hey, who wouldn't like to be able to safely take that two-hour conference call from the comfort of your bubble bath? To that end, Murata is touting its new ultra-thin piezoelectric speaker that clocks in at just 0.9mm thick while maintaining IPX7 compliance for water resistance. It's said that waterproof phones are traditionally made by covering speaker holes with a film, compromising sound quality -- but with Murata's design, no film is necessary, offering you that symphony hall-style audio you so desperately need from sixteen inches under the surface of your swirling hot tub.
Categories: Mobile Phone Tags: bath, Comfort, compliance, conference, entry, holes, japan, parties, piezoelectric, quality, Speaker, waterproof
Android 2.1 becomes most used version, just in time to be obviated by Froyo
Rejoice, oh Android lovers.
Categories: Android, htc, Mobile Phone Tags: ascension, conference, data, entry, make-upgrades, mobile-os, phone, platform, rapid-ascension, statistic, tomorrow, usage
HP and Palm: what happens next
HP announcing that it's going to buy Palm in a $1.2b all-cash transaction certainly took everyone by surprise, but in many ways the deal makes perfect sense. HP is a gigantic player in the tech industry but has no appreciable presence in rapidly-growing mobile space, and Palm -- well, you should know how we feel about Palm by now. Even still, we can't say we were expecting this one, and it looks like most of you weren't either -- HP only got two percent of the vote in our "who should buy Palm" poll , while Engadget (that's us!) got..
Categories: Mobile Phone Tags: around-the-news, call-announcing, conference, mobile, news, pixi plus, pixiplus, pre plus, result, sense, shake-out-over, transaction, vote