Will hails from The City of Angels - Los Angeles, California. He spends his time playing with his numerous gadgets and looking forward to seeing what future holds for mobile technology. An avid promoter of a fully "digital" life, he promotes the widespread adoption of truly mobile, paper-less living. He dreams of the day when he can go completely digital. No more snail mail, paper receipts, bound books, notepads/spiral notebooks, credit cards, hard currency. He's a digital warrior - fighting for the converged life. He is an idealist and a realist - he has a perfect view of what the world should be but knows that the world is not perfect. Can we ever hope to see Will's dream become reality? We'll see...
This one goes out to all of you out there in Woodland Hills. In a puzzlingly region-specific announcement, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless has announced that it has added a new cell site in Woodland Hills, California. Those of you living in the western San Fernando Valley will see improved 3G wireless coverage and performance on your Verizon handset.
Verizon’s press release also mentions that the carrier spent $600 million in infrastructure improvements in California during 2008. With all the back-and-forth between AT&T and Verizon these days, we can’t help but think that the $600 million figure is a jab at AT&T (NYSE: T). Although, we have to point out that Verizon is quoting numbers from a lifetime ago (which roughly equates to a year in the mobile world).
The metaphorical ink on the just-leaked Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Motus spy pic hasn’t yet dried and were already hearing rumors that the Android handset will sport some really unique features. If you thought the form factor was a bit odd, you’re going to want to sit down for this. Word has it that the Moto Motus will feature a “reverse flip keyboard,” and (as if that isn’t crazy enough) something called a “rear directional touchpad.” Of course, the Motus is also rumored to be packing the usual assortment of smartphone features.
All this is completely unconfirmed at the moment, but Android And Me are saying that the Motus will feature a 3.1-inch touchscreen, a 5-megapixel camera (with LED flash), 3G data, WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth 2.0. Android 1.5 OS should be running the show with Motorola’s social network-savvy Motoblur UI skinned atop. As for the geeky specs, were expecting a 528 MHz Qualcomm (NSDQ: QCOM) MSM7201A CPU, 512 MB ROM / 256 MB RAM, quad band (850/900/1800/1900Mhz) GSM radio, and a never-been-done-before quintuple (yes, thats five bands) WCDMA radio pulling down 3G service on the 850Mhz, 900Mhz, 1700Mhz, 1900Mhz, and 2100Mhz bands! For those of you keeping score, that would mean the Motus can hop on any 3G network in the world (even T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) USAs wonky 1700Mhz 3G network) and work as the mobile gods intended.
The “reverse flip keyboard” kinda, sorta, makes sense, given the quirky looking keyboard in the spy pic. That “rear directional touchpad,” however, is just plain confusing. A touchpad on the backside of the touchscreen? Your guess is as good as ours. Whatever it turns out to be, we’re hoping it changes the way we think about interacting with touchscreens.
You see the handset in this here blurry spyshot? It’s apparently the Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Motus that was rumored in a leaked roadmap not too long ago. We know, it looks like it was taken by Mr. Blurry-cam’s drunken step-brother after a booze-fueled night of fun, but Engadget Mobile has confirmed that what we’re looking at is another Android-powered smartphone from Motorola.
The Motus looks like a respectable smartphone from what we can see in the spy pic, but we’ll have to wait until we put hands on it to really get a feel for it. That keyboard might prove to be a sticking point, but, again, that’s us just talkin’ to the wind. The Motus has a lot to live up to…
If you’re looking for a new BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) smartphone with no strings attached, you might want to look in T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) USA’s direction. The carrier has announced their T-Mobile Complete program, which gives customers a choice of four no-contract BlackBerry smartphones to be used with T-Mobile’s pre-paid plans. The kicker? T-Mobile is including the first month of service for free with purchase of a T-Mobile Complete BlackBerry handset!
Of the four options, the BlackBerry Curve 8520 will run $299.99, while the BlackBerry Pearl goes for $149.99. T-Mobile is offering several unlimited pre-paid plans that start at $50 per month. At those prices, T-Mobile Complete BlackBerry handsets would work really well as holiday gifts. Think about it, just buy the pre-paid BlackBerry kit (which, again, includes first month of service for free), wrap it up, and you’re good to go.
You’ll find T-Mobile Complete at Walmart and Best Buy locations.
There are now more mobile apps available in the AppStore than any one person could ever hope to try out in a single lifetime. Add in the myriad Java apps out there, and the sheer volume of mobile apps becomes overwhelming. How is anyone supposed to wade through the much and find truly unique and innovative apps? Apple (NSDQ: AAPL)’s iPhone app “Top lists” clearly aren’t cutting it. Another possible solution is mplayit’s mobile app discovery engine.
At the Under The Radar conference today in Mountain View, CA., mplayit was showing off their Facebook-based mobile app discovery platform. The idea behind mplayit is to harness the power of crowd sourcing and Facebook’s massive social network to give users a quick way to find new mobile apps. A live “Apptivity Feed” integrates with Facebook to show you, in real-time, what apps other Facebook users have been checking out. The “Featured Apps” section monitors apps that are trending hot with Facebook users, while the “Shared” and “Popular” sections display apps that have been shared the most or downloaded the most, respectively.
Once you’ve stumbled upon an interesting app, mplayit serves up app descriptions, reviews, screenshots, and even videos of the app in action – if it’s a Java app, you can even demo it through mplayit’s emulator. You can even download the app, add it to your “collection,” and share the app through email and Facebook right from mplayit’s platform.
At this point, only iPhone and Java apps are supported, but Android and BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) will be supported by year’s end. Windows Mobile and webOS will be coming in 2010. Check out the demo video below, and then hit up mplayit.com to see for yourself!
Instant message aficionados have been eagerly waiting on Cerulean Studios to bring their profile-synchronizing Trillian client to the iPhone. It’s been years, in fact, since we first heard of the Trillian iPhone app. Today, that wait ends. Trillian for iPhone has officially hit the AppStore with a $4.99 price tag!
The thing about instant messaging apps is that there are a veritable truckload of options available on the AppStore. Some really good apps are offered for free. If you’re not a hardcore IM user, you’re probably going to be just fine sticking with one of those apps. But, if you use instant messaging services like your life depends on them, Trillian for iPhone will probably be a worthy investment.
Trillian supports multiple IM services and allows you to switch between conversations with a tabbed interface. But, it doesn’t stop there. Trillian for iPhone synchronizes your IM accounts with their the Trillian Astra servers, so when you change your status or update your buddy list on the iPhone app, those changes will automatically be pushed to your Windows Trillian client and the web-based Trillian client. There’s also an option to have any instant messages pushed to your iPhone. And, since all chats are stored on Cerulean Studios’ servers, you’ll never have to worry about losing a chat transcript again.
Trillian for iPhone isn’t going to be for everyone, especially with its premium price-point. But, for power-users, Trillian is going to be hard to beat.
Sony Ericsson has a new plan to whip itself back into shape to compete with leaner and meaner mobile phone makers. The Japanese-Swedish joint venture is planning to close four facilities and cut some 2.000 jobs in an effort to streamline the company. Following a recent round of job cuts that left 450 employees at its Research Triangle Park R&D facility without work, Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) has announced that it will be closing the RTP facility and cutting additional jobs around the world.
Sony Ericsson will close the doors to its RTP headquarters by the third quarter of 2010. The SE North American headquarters will move from RTP to Atlanta, with the R&D operations relocating to Redwood Shores, California. A facility in Miami, Florida will also be permanently close, alongside facilities in Kista, Sweden and Chennai, India. Sony Ericsson says that severance packages will be included, with some lucky employees getting a chance to apply for jobs in California or Atlanta.
The cellphone maker boasts 4.9% of the global mobile phone market, making it the No. 4 handset maker in the world. When it comes to smartphone market share, which we care about more than overall market share, Sony Ericsson isn’t really a big player. But, with leaned-out operations and attractive new handsets, like the Android-powered XPERIA X10, coming down the pipe, Sony Ericsson looks poised to make a big splash in the smartphone space in 2010.
Cash-strapped webOS hopefuls and deal seekers alike, take note: Amazon is offering Sprint (NYSE: S)’s Palm (NSDQ: PALM) Pixi for just $25. The entry-level webOS smartphone hasn’t been on market for more than a week and we’re already seeing the handset hovering dangerously close to “free with contract” territory. As it stands, Amazon will sell you the Palm Pixi for $24.99 when you purchase it with a new 2-year wireless contract through Sprint.
Remember, though, the Palm Pixi’s entry-level price comes with compromises. The 2.6-inch capacitive touchscreen is smaller than the Palm Pre’s display. The 2-megapixel camera falls short of the Palm Pre’s 3-megapixel shooter. And, WiFi isn’t an option. Still, you get GPS, 3G data, 3.5mm headphone jack, and 8GB of onboard storage.
If that’s enough to get you to make the jump, here’s a link to Amazon’s $25 Palm Pixi.
The iPhone just recently made its debut in China. Thanks to a three-year deal with China Unicom, Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) has finally managed to bring the iPhone to the world’s largest pool of mobile phone users. With hundreds of millions of wireless subscribers in China, Apple’s got to be raking in iPhone sales, right? Well, yes and no. Yes, the introduction of the iPhone is bringing in some serious revenue, but that money isn’t necessarily coming from iPhone sales. Turns out, the iPhone AppStore is a huge hit in China.
China Unicom reportedly sold just 5,000 iPhones during its first week of sales. China Unicom Chairman Chang Xiobing says he’s satisfied with that number, but in a country that boasts more wireless users than there are people in the US, 5,000 units is a really small number. The silver lining, though, is that the introduction of the Chinese iPhone opened the doors to the AppStore. iPhone users in China have so far generated $1 million in legit iPhone app revenue from the AppStore.
It all makes sense. China Unicom’s iPhone is currently crippled. Apple disabled the WiFi radio on Chinese iPhones to comply with China’s Golden Shield Project. Considering that gray-market iPhones with fully functional WiFi radios are readily available in China, it’s not surprising to hear that China Unicom’s iPhones aren’t blockbuster hits. The flip-side is that there are an estimated 2 million iPhones roaming across China, most of them coming through unofficial channels. All those iPhones are likely driving users to embrace the AppStore. China Unicom also hopes to have a WiFi-capable iPhone available by the end of the year, which could boost AppStore revenue even further.
Still, things may not be all rainbows and happy faces for Apple’s Chinese AppStore revenue. iPhone app piracy is a significant threat to Apple’s bottom line, and could come back to bite Apple. It’s unclear just how much of the $1 million in iPhone app sales came from users looking to download an app with the intention of pirating the software, but it would be interesting to see how China’s pirated app ecosystem compares to the legit AppStore market.
AT&T apparently isn’t going to let the likes of Verizon Wireless and bitter AT&T (NYSE: T) subscribers get them down about their 3G network performance. Big Blue has announced that it’s beefing up 3G services in the San Francisco Bay Area – they’ve upgraded more than 800 cellular base stations and is in the process of migrating 3G services from the 1900Mhz spectrum to the more powerful 850Mhz band in an effort to improve 3G performance.
So far, AT&T has racked up $65 million in infrastructure upgrades this year in the Bay Area, which has allowed it to double network capacity in the last 45 days. In the end, tasking AT&T’s 850Mhz spectrum for 3G services should give subscribers better coverage, better 3G performance and improved wireless reception inside buildings.
If you’ve been hoping for better 3G service from AT&T, you’ll soon be in luck. On top of the infrastructure upgrades, AT&T will be flipping the switch on 7.2Mbps HSPA data speeds in some markets by the end of the year.
This one goes out to all of you out there in Woodland Hills. In a puzzlingly region-specific announcement, Verizon (
The metaphorical ink on the 
There are now more mobile apps available in the AppStore than any one person could ever hope to try out in a single lifetime. Add in the myriad Java apps out there, and the sheer volume of mobile apps becomes overwhelming. How is anyone supposed to wade through the much and find truly unique and innovative apps? Apple (
Instant message aficionados have been 
Sony Ericsson has a new plan to whip itself back into shape to compete with leaner and meaner mobile phone makers. The Japanese-Swedish joint venture is planning to close four facilities and cut some 2.000 jobs in an effort to streamline the company. Following a recent 
Cash-strapped webOS hopefuls and deal seekers alike, take note: Amazon is offering Sprint (
The iPhone 
AT&T apparently isn’t going to let the likes of 
