The RIM BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) 9000 was supposed to take the Canadian company’s push-emailing handset lineup to a whole new level. In the face of increased enterprise pressure from other handsets, like the iPhone, RIM has been a company to watch with their BlackBerry 9000.

So, it was a bit of a surprise when I first laid eyes on the BlackBerry 9000 in the wild. At the time, I didn’t know that it was the BlackBerry 9000. The device was only referred to as a new 3.5G BlackBerry that was going through its paces in RIM’s R&D labs. I speculated that the device could be the 9000, but alas, it was too early to put a metaphorical “period” on the matter. Now that said handset has been confirmed as the BlackBerry 9000, the device’s reveal is all just a bit anti-climactic.

The device is curvy and sleek, something that can’t really be said for the rest of RIM’s smartphone lineup. The bezel is trimmed in iPhone-esque chrome and the screen looks nice and crisp. But, as much as the BlackBerry 9000 is an improvement over current BlackBerry design, it still lacks the stylish “oomph” that was widely expected from the BlackBerry 9000. The keyboard is more of the same from the BlackBerry lineup (if it ain’t broke…) and the 9000 makes use of the popular and, dare I say, “fun” little trackball that first made an appearance on the BlackBerry Pearl.

The revised slide-deck interface is a refreshing take on RIM’s tired menu/icon setup. More pizazz would have been nice, as would a larger display, but with HSDPA, WiFi, and GPS in tow, the BlackBerry 9000 should do just fine in the enterprise market.

I’ll take a 3G iPhone over the BlackBerry 9000 any day. RIM had better hope I’m one of the very few that see things the same way.

More pics on the link.

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Right. We’re still waiting on Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) to release the next iPhone OS on us and Zibri has already released an updated ZiPhone utility. The new ZiPhone 3.0 brings with it a handful of bug fixes and new plug-in support.

ZiPhone is the simple, one-click (well, it takes a few clicks, but who’s counting?) jailbreak and unlock solution for any and all iPhones and iPod Touches out there. ZiPhone 3.0 rocks the same features as all previous versions (including fixes for NVRAM problems), so the interface is the same ZiPhone UI that we’re all fond of and familiar with.

You’ll find a new button that will fix any WiFi issues you might be have after a ZiPhone-based jailbreak and unlock. And, with ZiPhone 3.0’s plug-in support, you can take iPhone customization to new levels. We’ll keep an eye out for the latest and greatest ZiPhone plug-ins…

Grab ZiPhone 3.0 here.

How does Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, 2.5-inch 320×320 display, tri-band UMTS/HSDPA (850/1900/2100Mhz), tri-band GSM (900/1800/1900Mhz) GSM/EDGE, 3 megapixel autofocus camera (with VGA front-facing cam), WiFi 802.11 b/g, and GPS sound? Yea, we like it too.

Tam Hana managed to get some hands-on time with the Asus m536 and posted the lovely pics and video that you see here. The Asus m536 “Treo Killer” looks like a tweaked Asus m530w, only packed with a heftier punch.

The Asus m536 “Treo Killer” does exactly what it’s nickname purports. Not only does the Asus m536 rock the specs listed above, it packs all that goodness into a 13.9mm thick casing – considerably slimmer than the Palm (NSDQ: PALM) Treo 750v. And, the Asus m536 does it with style. The flat, metallic navigation buttons paired with the flush-mounted touchscreen give the Asus m536 an air of elegance that you just don’t get with Treo. The fingerprint-reader that doubles as a touch-sensitive directional pad only adds to the device’s slick looks.

It’s a shame that Asus chose to go with a tri-band GSM radio on the m536, keeping it from going mainstream in the States. We’re keeping our fingers crossed for Asus to make a push for US shores with a quad-band GSM version of the Asus m536.

Check out the video for a quick look at the fingerprint-scanner/navigation pad in action. Nifty.
[Via: WMExperts]

Who doesn’t use the iPhone on the crapper? I used to occupy my time on the toilet with a magazine or newspaper, but now all I bring with me is my iPhone. News sites, RSS, emails – there’s nothing I like more than a satisfying BM and a great web browser paired with a huge display. I spend a good deal of time just reading on my “Throne” (apparently, it’s a guy thing).

But, having the iPhone in one hand basically leaves you with one less hand to deal with the other activities necessitated by a trip to the bathroom. Wouldn’t it be great if there was some sort of iPhone holder that freed up both hands to “take care of business” while still taking care of business (email, reading, etc.)?

Enter the Naja King. It’s an iPhone cradle attached to a flexible 3-foot arm. Simply wrap the coiled arm around the nearest convenient perch (toilet paper dispenser) and presto! You have yourself a free-floating iPhone next to the loo.

The Naja King is $39.99 and could be worth freeing up your other hand for “cleaning” duties.

[Via: TUAW]

Webkit’s developers have been working to make their little darling of a rendering engine the fastest and most standards compliant solution available. And, it looks like the investment has paid off. Webkit has announced that their Webkit core scored a perfect 100/100 score on the Acid3 web browser standards compliance tests.

For the purposes of web browsers, think of Webkit as the rendering engine that determines how the web-code is displayed as a webpage. Webkit was originally devised by Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) for use in Mac OS X’s Safari browser, and has now found its way into other browsers, including the iPhone Safari browser, S60 web browser, Android’s web browser, and others. Now, the announcement that Webkit is basically at the top of the game when it comes to standards compliance and speedy page rendering only points to continued improvement in the mobile browser segment. Faster web browsing on our mobile phones? Yes, please.

Interestingly, Apple almost simultaneously updated the iPhone SDK with a “beta 2″ release. Among the changes in the revised iPhone SDK is the updated Webkit build that powers the iPhone Emulator’s iPhone OS 2.0 – Webkit 525.15 runs the show on iPhone SDK beta 2. With every iPhone OS update, Apple has updated the Webkit build that the iPhone Safari browser uses, and this latest iPhone OS is no exception.
The latest Webkit build available to desktop users is 526.1 – which indicates that the next iPhone Safari browser (assuming that the iPhone OS 2.0 that is used in the iPhone SDK Emulator will be released in a few months) could be really close (if not the same) to the same Webkit version that scored a 100% on Acid3.

Of course, the other mobile web browsers powered by Webkit will benefit from the Webkit team’s achievement. It’s just a matter of when the updated Webkit build will be implemented into the web browser and released to the public.

It should be mentioned that the Opera team managed to reach the perfect 100/100 score on Acid3 before Webkit, but Webkit is the only completely standards compliant engine currently available for public consumption – find the latest nightly build of Webkit here.

Webkit

We finally got the official specs of the upcoming LG Vu phone. The stylish, all-touchscreen device will come in two flavors, with one of them CU920 sporting a mobile TV antenna and other one (CU915) coming without mobile TV support. Rest of the specs include:

• 3G (we guess HSDPA support is also on board)
• 2 megapixel camera with autofocus
• 3 inch WQVGA 262K color touchsreen
• 120MB of internal memory
• HTML web browser
• microSD slot that supports up to 4GB memory cards
• 1000mAh battery
• Dimensions: 4.25″H x 2.16″W x 0.51″D
• Weight: 3.16oz

LG and AT&T (NYSE: T) will most certainly go all official with the Vu next week, during the the CTIA Wireless. Stay tuned…

[Via: PhoneArena]

Following Sprint’s announcement to allow its customers to easily access MySpace, the other big U.S. CDMA carrier is also rolling out the same offering. MySpace Mobile is now available to all Verizon (NYSE: VZ) users with Mobile Web 2.0 enabled phones. Simply select “MySpace” from the Connect category on the Mobile Web 2.0 home screen and you’re ready to edit your profile, view and add friends, post comments and blogs, send and receive MySpace messages — all while on the go.

However, Verizon won’t stop there at least when it comes to collaborating with FOX Interactive Media. Together, the two companies are preparing to roll out FOX’s leading web brands to Verizon customers in the coming months to make FOX content more easily accessible to mobile phone users… Full “MySpace Mobile on Verizon” release follows after the jump.

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You never know what’s Steve’s up to. Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) already have the handwriting recognition software in OS X and now they are searching for a new person to help them out to extend the technology “beyond Max OS X to other applications and the iPhone.” Hmmm, sounds interesting, even though we’re not actually dying for a stylus on the iPhone. Here’s the full text ad.

The Handwriting Recognition team is seeking an engineer who will be responsible for advancing Apple’s handwriting recognition technology for Mac OS X. The ideal candidate will be an expert in the area of pattern recognition, with an excellent understanding of handwriting recognition issues. The person will also assume primary responsibility for maintaining and enhancing existing code and tools. The recognition technology you create may extend beyond Mac OS X to other applications and the iPhone.

You can find the ad — and apply if you have the skills required — from here.

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

Skype sent me a nice email today to tell me that “Skype is now mobile“. Apparently, “More and more people are using Skype on the move – on mobile phones and in WiFi hotspots on the latest portable devices“…. conveniently they listed out a number of ways for me to make use of their mobility options:

Personally I don’t use Skype heavily, but I’d be really interested to hear if any of the IntoMobile readership use one of the above “mobile” options from Skype, or if you have another solution – answers in the comment box please……!

BlueAnt have mailshotted me to let me know that they will be at CTIA showing their wares – you may remember from previous posts on IntoMobile (here and here) that BlueAnt are specialists in Bluetooth-connected headsets, handsfree units, and speakers.

Without recapping in detail, the products on show at CTIA will be:

For more information on what is available in your country, go here.