Well shiver me timbers. Who would have thought RIM, the maker of the business-suit BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) handset lineup, would ever make a more consumer-friendly clamshell mobile phone? We sure didn’t.

Enough with the rhetoric. What you see here is purportedly the first-ever flip-phone from RIM – dubbed the “Kickstart.” It’s tiny little thing and sports the compact SureType keyboard that seems like it was intended for a clamshell. BlackBerry scoop-er Boy Genius has posted photos of this new RIM Kickstart handset, which shows off both an internal and external display as well as the trackball that we first saw in the BlackBerry Pearl.

The RIM Kickstart is slated for launch before year’s end, so if you’ve been waiting for a BlackBerry flip phone, your wait is almost over!

Head on over to BGR for the full picture gallery.

[Via: BGR]

Huge display, multi-touch interaction, powerful processor, advanced graphics core – these are all things that make the current iPhone a potential mobile gaming powerhouse. Thanks to Imagination Technologies’ PowerVR MBX 3D graphics video core that lies within the iPhone’s Samsung-manufactured ARM SoC (System on Chip) chip architecture, OpenGL ES 1.1 is supported by the Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) iPhone, along with other powerhouse handsets like the Nokia (NYSE: NOK) N95 – allowing the handsets to handle 3D graphics and video content with ease.

Imagination has announced their new PowerVR SGX graphics core, which offers OpenGL ES 2.0 support and a Universal Scalable Shader Engine that brings highly efficient, shader-based 3D graphics to the mobile space.

And, to handle HD video content, Imagination has developed a new PowerVR VXD Core that is specialized to decode and process HD video content. The HD video media could be viewed directly on the device or through an external output source with the same power draw as current audio playback technologies.

So, what’s all the hoopla about? Well, Samsung, the current iPhone ARM processor manufacturer, has signed a manufacturing-only licensing deal to integrate the PowerVR SGX and PowerVR VXD technologies into future SoC architectures. The deal makes it likely that the next-generation iPhone will be able to handle not only OpenGL ES 2.0 but also HD video content – if Apple decides to source their processors from Samsung.

Another possibility is rooted in Apple’s recent acquisition of chip-design firm PA Semi and a “mysterious” licensing agreement that Imagination announced last year.

According to Imagination, the company signed a licensing deal to give “next generation graphics and video IP cores to an international electronics systems company under a multi-use licensing agreement.” The electronics systems company was no named, but it could turn out to be Apple. And, with the acquisition of PA Semi, all signs point to Apple leveraging its newly acquired chip-design expertise to make chip-design an in-house venture. Apple could be poised to design its own SoC chip architectures that make use of Imagination’s PowerVR VXD and PowerVR SGX graphics technologies, while Samsung would handle the manufacturing of the chips.

The current-generation iPhone is already a graphics and gaming powerhouse – already outperforming dedicated gaming handhelds like the Nintendo DS and PSP. With the integration of the new technologies from Imagination, the next-generation iPhone is shaping up to offer some serious 3D graphics and HD video capacity. It’s all speculation at this point (as with everything 3G iPhone-related these days), so we’ll have to sit tight and hope that Apple comes through with this new tech in hand.

[Via: AppleInsider]

One of T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s greatest strengths is their pre-paid service. With great rates and the best wireless coverage value in the US, T-Mobile stands as a pre-paid wireless service leader. Now, the No. 4 US carrier has announced a new pre-paid plan. The “Pay By The Day” plan gives T-Mobile USA customer unlimited night and in-network calls for just $1 per day. You heard right, unlimited in-network calling for just a buck a day! That amounts to only $30 per month – that’s as cheap as an unlimited plan can get these days.

And, for those times when you find yourself needing to make an out-of-network call during peak hours, T-Mobile will charge $0.10 per minute – on par with standard pre-paid voice call rates.

T-Mobile

[Via: RCRNews]

We’ve seen spy-shots and blurry in-the-wild photos of the 5 megapixel cameraphone from Motorola (NYSE: MOT). The MotoZINE ZN5, as it’s called, is due to kick up the flagging company’s cameraphone offerings with a high-quality shooter to compete with the cameraphone elite from Nokia (NYSE: NOK), Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE), Samsung, and LG. So, to help quench your thirst for clear pictures of the Motorola ZN5, we present you with some crystal clear photos of Moto’s new Kodak-branded shooter.

The Kodak logo is clearly visible along-side the Motorola ZN5’s 5 megapixel, Xenon Flash, and auto-focus branding.

Head on over to KeySJ for more pics of the Motorola ZN5 and its UI.

[Via: JAMPBlog]

[Update]
It looks like T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s 3G network is good to go on the data side. I wish I was in New York and owned a handset with 1700Mhz UMTS to test out the 3G network, but reports indicate that speeds are as expected. Full 3G is better than voice-only 3G on T-Mobile’s 1700Mhz AWS spectrum.

Post updated.

Talk about a let-down. The T-Mobile USA 3G network launch that we thought was going to usher in a new age of high-speed 3G data for T-Mobile users in the US turns out to be nothing more than a voice-only service for now. According to T-Mobile, “the first phase of [T-Mobile's] 3G roll out supports voice only.”

To their credit, 3G voice allows for better voice quality and higher network capacity. But, without high-speed data, the excitement of T-Mobile’s 3G network has already started to fade.

And the rumors keep flowing in. The latest rumor regarding the next-generation iPhone comes from iLounge and points to a new iPhone that should be quite similar to the current generation iPhone. Among the key changes that are rumored for the 3G iPhone is a metallic back-casing get replaced by a high-gloss, black plastic casing. There are also rumblings of a thinner chrome bezel, highly tapered edges, and additional connections/holes surrounding the dock-connector on the bottom of the iPhone. Most interestingly, the new iPhone is said to sport an additional sensor next to the ear-piece.

The rumors come from an iPhone case manufacturer that is allegedly privy to information of upcoming Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) hardware. Case manufacturers are sometimes given physical hardware dimensions from Apple in order to get a head-start on developing accessories for the upcoming hardware. The dimensions and other physical attributes are required for case manufacturers to develop cases that not only fit perfectly, but also allow unobstructed access to all hardware features.

The current iPhone sports two sensors near the ear-piece – an ambient light sensor that allows the iPhone to adjust backlight intensity based on current lighting conditions and a proximity sensor that turns off the display when the iPhone is put to the ear. The presence of a third sensor could indicate a front-facing video-call camera that has been speculated  for the 3G iPhone by Digg-founder Kevin Rose. Or not… it’s too early to tell.

Physically, the next-gen iPhone is said to sport a more tapered design – a la MacBook Air. The chrome bezel is still present, but should take on a more understated, thinner look. And, the additional holes/connections along the bottom edge of the iPhone could allow for external iPhone accessories like GPS or radio hardware.

As far as the aesthetics of the upcoming iPhone, the use of a plastic-based case is notable in that it will approximate the look of metal with a highly-glossed finish. Much like the plastics used in automobile bumpers, the new plastic casing is said to have a high-quality look that plastic materials usually aren’t associated with.

But, it’s good to keep in mind that Apple is notorious for intentionally leaking mis-information to throw off iPhone rumor-mongers. So, we’ll just have to wait and see if the new iPhone design changes pan out. For what it’s worth, a high-quality, glossy backing would be a welcome update. Here’s to hoping that the plastic casing doesn’t look like the cheap plastics that we see in so many automobile interiors. As would a video-call camera and highly-tapered edges.

Diagram from iLounge.

[Via: iLounge]