Popular radio show host and ’shock-jock’ Howard Stern has chosen a BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Bold over the much ballyhooed Palm (NSDQ: PALM) Pre.

In a move that was designed to generate some notable buzz, Palm decided to give Howard a Pre to test out, to see what he thought. The device would be delivered to his home, he would receive a few tutorials, and then they’d whisk the Pre out of his hands to safety. A quick demo for sure, but enough to give Howard a taste of what he was looking for (hopefully). Surely it would go over well, right? Especially when you consider that Stern is a long time Palm user (he currently packs a Treo) and was no doubt looking forward to getting his hands on the Pre. However, after he tested the device, he ended up choosing a BlackBerry Bold over the Pre. Why? According to Stern the Pre was all good, but the fact that it couldn’t connect to Lotus Notes was the last straw.

So, next time you listen to his show, I guarantee you’ll hear him praising the BlackBerry Bold. I bet Palm wishes they could re-do this little experiment!

For more information on Howard and his show, visit HowardStern.com.

[Via: ZDNet]

Good news for our North American readers who at the same time like Nokia (NYSE: NOK) smartphones. The single most desirable Finnish smartphone, N97, has been spotted at the FCC. And we’re talking about the real U.S. version, all with the right bands to sing along AT&T (NYSE: T)’s 3G network (1900 MHz). Everything the European/Asian version has is also included — like WiFi, Bluetooth, WM transmitter, HSDPA, large touchscreen and of course, the full QWERTY keyboard. Now it’s all about AT&T to pick it up, subsidize it, and make some money along the way. Yap, this baby should steal some thunder from the iPhone, or at least Nokia hopes so. We’ll see how that will go…

[Via: Engadget]

Nokia (NYSE: NOK) announced that its long time awaited E75 handset has started shipping, as of today. Unfortunately, we don’t have the release dates at this stage, but we do know one thing — the both numeric keypad and QWERTY keyboard equipped S60 smartphone is set to be an instant hit for the Finnish giant. Existing S60 users and smartphone newbies, alike, should dig the device thanks to such features as instant sharing functionality (Nokia’s Ovi service) and powerful email handling capability (Nokia Messaging). In addition, apps and services such as Nokia Maps and Webkit-based S60 browser should further entice users to jump on board. Then there’s WiFi, HSDPA, 3.2 megapixel camera… you name it. Look for the Nokia E75 at your phone dealer within a week or two. I wouldn’t expect it to take longer than that. Actually, that’s in case you’re Europe based…

Don’t know about you but I like the mid-range Sony Ericsson C510 Cyber-shot phone. It’s a decently priced handset and provides great value for money — including 3.2 megapixel camera with auto-focus and an array of photo technologies like Smile Shutter, Face detection and Photo fix. In that sense, I’m not surprised to see the Swedish-Japanese handset releasing the device in additional color - “Energetic Red.” The new color option rocks (at least I think so) and it joins two existing versions - “Future Black” and “Radiation Silver.”

And here few images to prove my point that the C510 in “Energetic Red” looks even better than the other two version. Any thoughts?

[Via: SEMC blog]

At the CTIA, PCD showed an interesting handset called TXT8030. What’s interesting about it is the bottom part of the device which rotates (similarly to the Nokia 3250 XpressMusic) — on one side there’s a full QWERTY keyboard, while the other one has music control keys coupled with big speakers. Moreover, we’re talking about a low-end CDMA phone here, which prides itself with 2.2-inch screen, 1.3 megapixel camera and a microSD memory card slot.

In a nutshell, it’s a perfect device for young people who mostly use their phone for texting and some music playback. Size wise, the PCD TXT8030 measures 4.5×2.4×0.5 inches. Release date is unknown and so is the pricing…

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

It seems Samsung has another Windows Mobile smartphone in the pipeline. The so called B7610 Louvre borrows some design lines from one other Samsung’s device - F700, but adds Windows Mobile 6.1 into the mix. As a result, the Korean giant may soon release the ultra-cool lookin’ WinMo-powered handset with full slide-out QWERTY keyboard. And if we’re lucky enough, they’ll also ship it with TouchWIZ UI, making the device real pleasure to use.

Details are sketchy at the moment. We’re guessing the Louvre will come with some camera (3.2 megapixel, at least), and of course, the now standard HSDPA connectivity. WiFi is a must-have in my book, and so is the GPS receiver.

Nothing is yet confirmed, so we can only hope Samsung will push this forward and actually introduce the smartphone in July (rumored launch date). Then we may actually know what’s the relationship between the B7610 and the famous museum in Paris…

[Via: UnwiredView, GSMhelpdesk]

Verizon Wireless is known for a lot of things. Launching popular smartphones in a timely manner isn’t one of them. As we wait to put the HTC Touch Diamond2 in our pockets, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) is apparently gearing up to release the HTC Touch Diamond. Following on the leaked Verizon Touch Diamond images last month, Boy Genius reports that Verizon will be launching the CDMA HTC Touch Diamond on April 10, just in time to see its successor hitting GSM networks worldwide.

The good news is that Verizon won’t be dumbing-down the CDMA Touch Diamond’s processor, the bad news is that No. 1 US wireless carrier has gone and cut RAM/ROM down to 128MB/256MB. But, at least there’s a microSD card slot tucked in there somewhere.

The Verizon Touch Diamond is expected to go live on April 10 through all but brick-and-mortar channels, and should hit Verizon with a $199.99 price-tag when purchased with 2-year contract. Commitment-phobes can pick up the Verizon Touch Diamond for $469.99 free and clear of any contracts.

Right, so we’ll just keep looking forward to the Touch Diamond2, which may just launch around the same time.

[Via: WMExperts]

HTC’s latest messaging handset, the HTC Snap, made waves at CTIA Wireless 2009 as one of the slickest mid-range smartphones to rock Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard in quite some time. Before that, HTC launched the HTC Touch Pro2, at Mobile World Congress 2009, as the company’s flagship Windows Mobile Professional handset. Now, word has it that T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) is looking to offer it’s customers the HTC Snap and the HTC Touch Pro2 in the good ‘ole U-S-of-A.

Thanks to a “trusted tipster,” TmoNews claims to have the inside line on T-Mobile USA’s upcoming handsets over the next quarter or so. T-Mobile’s product pipeline should see the just-announced HTC Snap and the highly-respected HTC Touch Pro2 going live July 1 and July 22, respectively. The HTC Snap is expected to launch as the T-Mobile Snap, with the HTC Touch Pro2 taking on the “T-Mobile Wing II” model name. If true, we’ll be seeing the T-Mobile Snap and Wing II going live just months after their initial respective announcements. Both handsets are spec’d with 3G data, so it’s a good bet that we’ll see 1700Mhz frequency support thrown in.

There’s also mention of a Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) CS8 handset launching on June 24th. Details are slim, but we’re seeing “8MP camera” and “Android” being thrown around. The rumor indicates that we’ll soon see an Android OS-powered 8-megapixel cameraphone from Sony Ericsson. Unfortunately, we’re still not given an expected launch window for the HTC Sapphire (G2). The latest Sidekick - the Sidekick 2009 - is also planned to hit T-Mobile’s US network on May 13, with a slew of other entry-level handsets from Samsung and Nokia (NYSE: NOK) staggered throughout the summer.

T-Mobile’s summer lineup is shaping up quite nicely. The No. 4 US wireless carrier will be a network to watch over the next few months.

[Via: TmoNews]

The Boy Genius has come through with some specs on three upcoming BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) devices. Tip of the cap yet again to BGR and his ‘ninjas’ for this one. Let the rumors and speculation begin

According to the tipster these specs and codenames are confirmed… and all three devices will fall into the 9000 series. The device that really perks my interest is the BlackBerry Magnum. You’ll note below that it is slated to have a full QWERTY, along with a large 480×360 display. Touchscreen goodness AND full QWERTY? Me thinks so! Enough chatter for now, below are the codenames and specs known so far:

BlackBerry Onyx:

• GSM/GPRS/EDGE/UMTS device
• GPS
• Camera
• Wi-Fi (no UMA support)
• QWERTY keyboard
• 480×360 resolution screen
• Confirmed carriers: AT&T (NYSE: T)

BlackBerry Driftwood:

• GSM/GPRS/EDGE/UMTS device
• GPS
• Camera
• Wi-Fi with UMA
• QWERTY keyboard

BlackBerry Magnum:

• GSM/GPRS/EDGE/UMTS device
• GPS
• Camera
• Wi-Fi (no UMA support)
• QWERTY keyboard
• 480×360 resolution screen
• Confirmed carriers: AT&T

That’s a lot of BlackBerry goodness.

[Via: BGR]

EngadgetMobile has managed snap some pics and even take a quick video of a brand new Android-powered device. Who’s it from? A manufacturer called ‘Amico’. It’s OK, I haven’t heard of them either.

The device was on display this past week at CTIA, and was running a newer cupcake-filled Android OS. What is kind of strange to me is the name of the device. Looks like they chose ‘Brava’ as the name of the handset, but the poor part of it all is the fact that they simply took Sony’s ‘Bravia’ logo and dropped the ‘i’. Odd.

The Amico Brava sports a 3MP camera, microSD expansion, 3″ resistive WQVGA display among other features. The device is apparently getting re-jigged with 3G as well. I’m sure we’ll be hearing more about this one very soon. In the meantime, head on over to EngadgetMobile for more snaps and a quick walkthrough video.