Well, it didn’t take long for telus (NYSE: TU)‘ acquisition of Black’s Photography to prove useful for blogworthy information. The BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Storm2, which has yet to make an official appearance anywhere in Canada, can be seen plain as day in the Black’s online catalog. This is one example of how telus will continue supporting the ol’ faithful EV-DO network, and isn’t just throwing everything behind their recently-launched HSPA service.  If you haven’t tried out the BlackBerry 9550, take a look at our review; the long and short of it is that the Storm2 cleans up the SurePress clicking touchscreen so it sucks considerably less than the first Storm, throws in Wi-Fi, and OS 5.0 (which entails a lot of user interface improvements). We’re looking forward to seeing this one in Canada soon, even though telus still has a few other exciting handsets to announce in the next couple of weeks.

[via Cell Phones Etc.]

Bell busted out their fresh HSPA devices yesterday, and today we  have a similar official announcement from telus (NYSE: TU). Earlier this week, we had a chance to sit down and take a look at the new toys; most of the players you’ll already be familiar with, but here’s a rundown of telus‘ take on each one.

First up we have the Hero, HTC’s Android avenger, jam-packed with their custom Sense user interface. I was a little disappointed that it wasn’t packaged in Sprint (NYSE: S)’s slick, smooth, curve casing, but telus apparently wanted to capture the European flavour by offering something unique to North America, although it’s arguably reminiscent of Rogers (NYSE: RCI)’ HTC Dream in terms of aesthetic. Prodding a little bit about other Android hardware in the future, telussaid that they’re really not interested in vanilla builds – they really want to see some unique experiences with each manufacturer, and I couldn’t agree more. If you’re hoping to see the Hero on another carrier up north, good luck; telus said they’ve nabbed the Canadian exclusive on the Hero, and it sounded indefinite. The price point is also killer: $99.99 on contract, $499.99 off contract.

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So what is this LG ‘IQ’ all about? You got me, this is the first I’ve heard of it. The device has made an appearance in an ad found in a recent Best Buy Mobile catalog. Pictured alongside the Rogers LG Eve and TELUS New Chocolate (the BL40). It looks to be a QWERTY slider with a fair-sized display. I’m assuming all of the standard features are built in, including Bluetooth, 3-4MP camera, WiFi, GPS (perhaps?), and the usual bevy of built-in apps. Should be interesting to hear what comes down the tubes on this one… But at the moment I’m hearing the IQ will arrive on TELUS (NYSE: TU) at the end of this month, or early December… and it will run WinMo 6.5 with a custom LG user interface. Stay tuned for more.

[Via: MobileSyrup]

Well what do we have here? Some HTC Hero love on TELUS (NYSE: TU)? Yep, that’s exactly it! To be honest, we kinda sorta already knew the HTC Hero was coming to TELUS… But now word has slipped out via HTC’s website that a GSM/HSDPA variant of the Hero will be offered. No real surprises (so far) on specs, as the new Hero for TELUS will apparently ship with the same stuff we’ve come to love so far. The only question I have left on the table at this point is wether the TELUS HTC Hero will ship with Android 1.5 or 2.0 installed. My money is on 2.0.

Check it out for yourself over at HTC.

[Via: BGR]

The good folks at TELUS (NYSE: TU) have just released the LG Versa. The Versa comes with a 3″ touchscreen, and features LG’s 3D S-Class UI. Users will be able to tweak out 3 customizable home screens among other unique features. Also look for a 2MP camera with autofocus, flash and video… expansion up to 16GB via microSD, stereo Bluetooth, full html browsing capabilities, and MP3 player, and more.

The price? Try $79.99 on a 3-year contract, $179.99 on the 2-year, $229.99 on the 1-year. And, $279.99 for contract-free living.

For all the details head on over to TELUS.

[Via: MobileSyrup]

Color me unimpressed. With TELUS (NYSE: TU) going live with their new HSPA network, and a whackload of new devices (including the iPhone 3GS), I am quite eager for launch day on November 5th.

So, imagine my surprise this morning when I read an email from TELUS (pictured above), notifying me that the iPhone 3GS and 3G will NOT be available in the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan at launch! Booo-urns!

I hail from the city of Winnipeg in the province of Manitoba, and from discussions with friends and colleagues over the past week or so, I know MANY of them were looking forward to the iPhone 3GS launch on TELUS. Almost everyone I asked was either peeved or pissed at Rogers (NYSE: RCI) for one reason or another (a common thing, it seems), and couldn’t wait to get their hands on the latest iPhone from Apple (NSDQ: AAPL)… if for no other reason than to move away from Rogers. Sad, but true.

I suppose all we can do is hope and pray that TELUS gets their collective butts in-gear, and launch the iPhone 3G and 3GS on their new network ASAP. If November 5th isn’t going to happen, I’m going to have a timer running to see how long it takes them to make it a go. C’mon TELUS…. You pumped us up with all of this new HSPA network love, new device love, and all kinds of good stuff. Now you’re pulling it away. Not cool.

Note: I guess those iPhone 3GS promos were all a big, fat lie for folks in MB and SK, right? C’mon TELUS, there’s still time. Make it happen.

So, the iPhone and a bunch of other HSPA handsets are coming to telus (NYSE: TU) on November 5, but if that wasn’t enough, they’re revamping some of their plans with a little something called Clear and Simple, that will eliminate the much-loathed monthly System Access Fee and 911 fee, but raising overall rate plans by five dollars. This handy little chart shows how you’ll actually be saving two bucks on the old $25 plan, since it went well over $30 with SAF and 911 added. I wonder if lower plans will even out as nicely, but to sweeten the deal, telus has thrown in voicemail. On the downside, provincially-mandated 911 costs will still exist for P.E.I., Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan and Quebec, but they’re relatively minute ($0.38 – $0.50). Rogers (NYSE: RCI) recently pulled a similar stunt, where they replaced the SAF with what they called a Government Regulatory Recovery Fee, which varied according to region. Just like Rogers, with telus you’ll be able to grandfather your old plan indefinitely, but you’ll hang on to those old costs and all new activations will be with their Clear plans. Clear and Simple goes live on November 5, but you can hit up telus for more information.

[via telus]

As Simon mentioned a little earlier this morning, TELUS (NYSE: TU) is planning to flick the switch on their new HSPA+ network on November 5th. Along with the new network will, of course, come a whole whack of new devices. Perhaps the most notable is the iPhone 3GS, which will no doubt be the headliner. However, below is the complete list of TELUS 3G+ devices we’ll see gracing the Canadian mobile scene:

• iPhone 3GS
• HTC Hero
• LG New Chocolate (the BL40)
• BlackBerry Bold 9700
• Nokia E71

TELUS will also launch the Sierra 306 Internet key, which will provide internet on-the-go at 3G+ speeds. Looks like Rogers’ Rocket Stick has some new competition on the block.

For all the details on the new HSPA+ network, new devices, and more, hit up TELUS.

We had heard that the iPhone was coming to Canadian carrier telus next month, but they’ve just gone official with a release date (November 5) and pricing ($99.99 for 8GB 3G, $199 for 16GB 3GS, $299 for 32GB 3GS). telus (NYSE: TU) will be also be cutting the ribbon on their brand new HSPA network on the same day; handsets rumoured to make use of telus‘ new GSM support include the LG BL40, BlackBerry Bold 9700, and Nokia E71, among others. The new toys are a nice incentive for consumers, but I’m eager to see both Bell and telus offer coverage that’s properly competitive to Rogers (NYSE: RCI)’ well-entrenched GSM network, especially as everyone ramps up to LTE. If you think you’ll need an extra reminder come iPhone launch time, you can sign up for e-mail notifications here.

[via Telus]

At an LG Fashion Week event yesterday, TELUS (NYSE: TU) took the opportunity to announce a new LG Chocolate phone to the masses. The LG BL40 packs a 4″ WVGA touchscreen (tempered glass, at 345×600), a front-facing 5MP camera, on-device photo and video trimming, flash, one-touch copy and paste, WiFi, 3.5mm headset jack, and a heck of a lot more.

This is looking to be the most feature-packed Chocolate device from LG yet.

Of course, no pricing or launch date details have been released… All we know is the device is ‘coming soon’, so stay tuned for more as the information trickles in.

[Via: MobileSyrup]