Author: Marc Flores

Just the other day, hearts were broken all over the world when Microsoft said that current Windows Mobile 6.5 devices won’t be able to upgrade to Windows Phone 7. The good news is that might not entirely be true as Microsoft said on Twitter that it’s entirely up to hardware manufacturers. Way to confuse us! Another area where WinMo 6.5 gets no love? Adobe Flash 10.1.

So far, it seems that Adobe is content to have Flash 10.1 sit around for a while for Windows devices until WinPho 7 hits. However, the HTC HD2, which will eventually be upgradeable to WinPho 7, will be getting Flash 10.1. It makes sense since the HD2 is high up on the spec range and part of the reason why most current WinMo 6.5 handsets won’t be getting WinPho 7 is because of hardware incompatibilities.

Late 2010 is looking good for Microsoft’s mobile efforts. Windows Phone 7 will come out in one of three different chassis, LG may beat it to the punch, and now, Flash (love it or hate it) will definitely be coming to WinPho 7.

Early termination fees. No one likes them but they can sometimes be a necessary evil. If you become unhappy with your service provider or you are overwhelmed with lust for a new gadget on a different carrier, you pay the price. Carriers say that these termination fees, or ETFs, allow them to subsidize handsets and recover those costs over the course of a contract. Should a contract be broken, a carrier recovers those subsidies with an ETF.

The FCC recently decided something was amiss with ETFs and probed carriers into explaining the rhyme and reason behind the fees. The carriers have finally spoken, albeit a little unconvincingly. Most of you are already familiar with why ETFs exist, but it is interesting to see the canned and obvious responses from the carriers.

AT&T boils it down to choice and it really couldn’t have done a better job of playing Captain Obvious. Customers can either choose a subsidized handset with penalties if a contract is broken, or go pre-paid and pay for a device outright. Of course, the latter option can either limit handset selection or make a huge dent in one’s wallet. Again, it’s a choice consumers have to make.

Sprint says that its customers are thoroughly informed about contract terms and conditions, and that ETFs are a part of the game. The carrier does everything it possibly can to make sure a customer knows what he or she is getting into before, during and after a handset is sold and a contract is signed to make sure the customer is satisfied and happy. Fair enough, and I agree having been a Sprint customer lately. Vonya McCann, senior vice president of government affairs for Sprint, says, “An unsatisfied customer is much more likely to leave Sprint for another carrier.”

After recently doubling its ETF for premier or high-end handsets, Verizon actually had the gall to say that it was doing a favor for its customers. Verizon’s excuse is the same as everyone else’s: subsidies allow customers to purchase otherwise pricey handsets for more manageable costs, and ETFs are put in place in case a deal is broken. But still, does $350 seem fair on top of what a top-tier device usually costs?

Lastly, there is Google, who recently got into the handset sales game with the Nexus One. Google either sells the Nexus One directly to customers, or sells it subsidized through T-Mobile, earning a commission in the process. If the customer bails, Google passes the cost of that lost commission down to the customer.

What this all boils down to is handset subsidies, which are usually recovered via the pricey monthly plans we pay for. If a carrier fronts $300 on a device so we only have to pay $100, and we cancel a contract three months into the deal, the carrier does have a right to recover those costs because it just waved bye-bye to a shiny new handset.

[via Associated Press]

Another fire erupted amongst developers and consumers when Apple decided to pull the plug on apps that contained content of questionable nature. This isn’t the first time Apple has done this, but with the pulling of Wobble iBoobs from the app store came a surge of app killings and everyone said they’d had enough.

Despite all this, it seems all hope is not entirely lost. A developer noticed that the App Store application process now has an “Explicit” category for submissions. While it’s not up on the App Store itself, this could mean that Apple may be looking for a way to stick all that content back in there, and then some.

If carrying your laptop around is just too cumbersome for your salaciousness and the banning of sexy apps has ticked you off, exercising a little patience just might pay off in the end. We’ll see.

[Cult of Mac via Know Your Cell]

As if gadget choices weren’t complicated enough, Best Buy might be making your Verizon Android handset decisions a lot more difficult. According to Best Buy’s Facebook page, the DROID is dropping down to just $99.99 with the DEVOUR going for the same exact rate when it’s released on February 25. So many choices, so little time! Need some help?

If you’re eligible for an upgrade or you’re looking to pick up one of these devices whilst hopping onto the Verizon bandwagon, check out this video of CrunchGear’s initial impressions of the device. Still not convinced? Stay tuned for a full hands-on review of the DEVOUR and maybe your mind will be made up then. Oh, and if $99.99 seems pricey for these hot handsets, you’ll be glad to know that the Droid Eris can be had for free with a new two-year activation.

Microsoft is doing a complete 180 and reinventing the way it handles its mobile presence. When the iPhone was first announced, Steve Ballmer quipped that Windows Mobile was on hundreds of devices all over the world while the iPhone was one operating system on one handset on one carrier. It looks like he and the gang are thinking differently these days.

Windows Phone 7 has been such a stark departure from Windows Mobile, which is a good thing, and we’re happy to see that the devices are following suit. Instead of slapping a clunky and cumbersome operating system onto a smörgåsbord of devices, Microsoft has decided on three models or chassis for its new OS.

Chassis 1 is basically what we’ve seen so far. It will be a large touchscreen-only device with a 1GHz processor and is slated for release around the 2010 holiday season. Chassis 2 will include slide-out QWERTY keyboards reminiscent of Windows Mobile devices, which is particularly good for folks who still want the clickety-clack of physical keys. Chassis 3 is still a mystery, so let your imagination free. Will it be a slider? Candybar?

For Apple and Palm, it seems this strict ecosystem has been a recipe for success. And while I’ve always had an aversion to Windows Mobile in the past, I’m looking forward to what Microsoft has in store for its future handsets.

[via ZDNet]

HTC seemed pretty confident that the HTC Desire and HTC Legend weren’t US-bound when we talked to them at Mobile World Congress. But hey, things change — right? Boy Genius Report has just received word that the two handsets are bound for this side of the ocean, along with details on which carriers might be nabbing them.

According to the ever trusty Boy Genius, the HTC Desire will find its way to AT&T’s shores some time this May or June. AT&T customers must be thrilled; the competitor’s shelves are quickly filling with Android handsets, and all AT&T has to offer is the Motorola Backflip. The Desire might see a few slight physical alterations from the model we saw at MWC, but it doesn’t sound like anything major. Word has it that AT&T’s Desire will tout HTC’s Sense UI — and unless AT&T/HTC have a trick up their sleeves, it’ll be the first AT&T phone to do so.

Sprint, who already carries the Hero and Samsung Moment, will be picking up the other hot Android device. The Legend, or Hero2 as it may be called on Sprint, may also differ from what we’ve all seen on the Interwebz. No surprises there, as the original Sprint Hero is easily distinguishable from its GSM counterpart. Alas, there is no time frame for the Hero2 — but with the way things have been leaking lately, that’ll probably spill out before too long.

Being eco-friendly should definitely be high on the priorities list for electronics manufacturers and service providers, so I’m pretty happy to see that Sprint is doing its part to make our planet a nicer place for future generations. Just in case you’re the apathetic type when it comes to the three Rs (recycle, reuse, reduce!), Sprint has put some incentives into place for you.

Sprint just laid out a list of over 900 phones that it will buy back from almost all manufacturers and carriers. If you’re looking at your old Sanyo, beaten to death as it surely is, and wondering whether it’s worth it, go findout! Depending on brand and condition, Sprint will be paying anywhere between $5 and $300 in store credit to recycle your junk. You can find out online how much your phone is worth, and/or take it to a retail store where you’ll receive instant credit for immediate use.

Aside from taking in your phones from the days of yore, Sprint is also making sure that it deals with manufacturers who are adhering to strict green guidelines. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse says:

Today I am proud to announce that Sprint is the first U.S. wireless carrier to establish a set of green design criteria for consumer devices. Moving forward, every handset vendor who manufactures handsets to operate on Sprint’s networks must produce handsets that meet or exceed Sprint’s new green design criteria and specifications.

It looks like my favorite childhood cartoon hero has been manifested into a mobile phone carrier. Weird.

Acer recently announced its growing presence in the Android realm and Rogers was quick to snap up the manufacturer’s latest device – the Liquid e. If you can get past the drug-related name, the handset doesn’t seem to sound so bad on paper.

When the Liquid e hits Rogers, it will be the first Android 2.1 device in Canada assuming the Motorola Milestone doesn’t get the update first. And while Acer doesn’t have the reputation in the mobile handset business like Motorla does, the Liquid e does have a faster Snapdragon processor and holds its own everywhere else, albeit a smaller screen.

Rogers doesn’t have an official release date and no pricing, either. So if you’re holding out for one of these, try to find something to pass the time until things get official.

[via Electronista]

When the Google Nexus One was announced, there were several cool new features unveiled for the device and Android 2.1: interactive wallpapers, 3D graphics and support for Google Earth. The latter wasn’t available at the time, and there was no date set, but it looks like it’s available on Android Market now.

If you have Android 1.5 or 1.6, don’t bother. Not to burst your bubble, but your device doesn’t have the resources needed to power such an intensive application. Users reporting the app’s availability have all been Nexus One owners, which means this is a 2.1-only app so far. DROID owners will have to wait for the 2.1 update, which seems to be taking longer than most would have wanted or expected.

There’s nothing official yet from the Google blog, but we’ll be sure to keep you updated when the announcement is official.

[via Android Guys]

Maybe you own a Kindle and find that its relatively small size might be on the big side when traveling or on the go, but you own a BlackBerry and not an iPhone. And maybe you never cared to own an iPhone until the Kindle app became available on it. Well, Amazon finally has some good news for you.

Available in beta, the Kindle for BlackBerry app now brings over 400,000 books right to your handset. With the new app, you can access your Kindle library, notes and other tidbits. You can either get the app from Amazon’s website, or point your BlackBerry browser to Amazon’s mobile site for download.

While you can always adjust the text size to your liking, I can’t imagine reading an entire book on a screen as small as the Bold 9700 or Curve 8520. Storm and Storm 2 owners might have a better time with a much bigger screen. If you don’t mind squinting and constant page turning, give the app a shot and fire back here with feedback.

Things just got a lot more wholesome in Apple’s app store as a boat load of apps were just banned, and new rules for future apps have been put into place. Bring on the lynch mob!

Just the other day an Apple developer was ticked when his app, Wobble iBoobs, was pulled from the app store without warning. The app didn’t contain any questionable content; all it did was modify potentially salacious images and that was enough for Apple to cut it loose.

The makers of the app spoke with Apple, and although the latter is notorious for doing things on a whim without an explanation, it actually laid down some new rules for third-party applications (and some that applied specifically to Wobble).

1. No images of women in bikinis (Ice skating tights are not OK either)
2. No images of men in bikinis! (I didn’t ask about Ice Skating tights for men)
3. No skin (he seriously said this) (I asked if a Burqa was OK, and the Apple guy got angry)
4. No silhouettes that indicate that Wobble can be used for wobbling boobs (yes – I am serious, we have to remove the silhouette in this pic)
5. No sexual connotations or innuendo: boobs, babes, booty, sex – all banned
6. Nothing that can be sexually arousing!! (I doubt many people could get aroused with the pic above but those puritanical guys at Apple must get off on pretty mundane things to find Wobble “overtly sexual!)
7. No apps will be approved that in any way imply sexual content (not sure how Playboy is still in the store, but …)

There you have it. Apple is coming out and saying, “We’ll have none of this, that, this and that and some more of that.” It’s too bad we all can’t be adults about this, or enjoy somewhat adult content on our iPhones, but there’s always the jailbreaking route.

[via Chillfresh]

Earlier this week we told you guys that Windows Mobile 6.5 was going to stick around after Windows Phone 7 hits the masses. It would even take on a new name — Windows Phone Classic. With everyone sticking around and playing nice at this party, you’d think that maybe current WinMo 6.5 handsets might get a little Windows Phone 7 love. Sorry to burst your bubble.

Microsoft Mobile Communications Business Director Aaron Woodman told CNET Asia, “I don’t know if any Windows Mobile 6.5 device today meets those specifications.” It sounds like your average Microsoft move: if you want the new software, you’ll also have to get new hardware because your old junk just isn’t gonna cut it, baby.

The new handsets are getting primo parts such as Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon processor (no Tegra, sorry). WinPho 7, being a fresh OS and more intensive than its predecessors, will undoubtedly need hardware resources that most 6.5 devices just don’t have, but don’t fret. Unlike everyone staying on Windows XP when Vista came out, upgrading to WinPho 7 out of WinMo 6.5 is definitely a move in the right direction. WinMo 6.5 is going to stick around for enterprise and developing countries, so unless you’re tied to the OS for those reasons, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind ditching your current 6.5 handset for a shiny new WinPho 7 device when it comes out.

[via WMPoweruser]

If you’ve jailbroken your iPhone or iPod touch with little to no regard for the law, maybe it’s time you reconsider your evil ways. Apparently, jailbreaking your iDevice will get the cops on your back if you’re not careful.

Not knowing any better, a fellow who goes by the name of hotrod1964 (whom we shall call Mr. Hotrod henceforth) on Twitter says he made the mistake of walking into an Apple Store armed with a jailbroken iPod touch. According to Mr. Hotrod, after showing the iPod touch to an employee, insanity ensued. When he popped into the store to kill some time, he was apparently accosted by an Apple Store employee who was trying to get him to buy an iPhone. Good ol’ Mr. Hotrod said he would “have no intention of paying for an iphone [sic] if apple [sic] is going to handcuff me.” Bravo! Fight the Man!

The word “handcuff” there might have triggered a chain of events because the next thing you know, the manager was accusing Mr. Hotrod of shenanigans! “I was informed you have an ILLEGAL iTouch,” said the manager and ended up calling the police!

When the cops finally arrived, they were luckily of the more sensible variety. The police told the Apple Store that no laws were being broken and there really was no reason for them to be there.

Was this just an attempt by the evil corporation to confiscate a device which was being used in a matter not intended? Perhaps it was just a case of overreacting or incompetent employees? Maybe this story was all made up! What do you think?

[via Twitlonger]

Part of me feels like saying, “LG Arena! Last stop, AT&T!” After all, this handset has been announced well over a year ago and it’s been available in other countries for quite some time. Of course, if you’ve been keeping up you’ll know that Best Buy is getting the Arena very soon for a modest price with a contract. Need a reminder for the perks and features that come with this phone?

The Arena is going to come packed with AT&T’s Mobile TV, which includes ABC, Comedy Central, ESPN, NBC, MTV and a whole lot more. I suppose that’s good news for you TV junkies. It’s also capable of HSDPA 7.2Mbps, but that won’t concern anyone for a while since AT&T’s network can barey handle 1.5Mbps on speedy handsets like the iPhone 3GS.

LG has slapped on its S-Class 3D user interface to make navigation a little prettier. It has a 3-inch WVGA display and it can shoot DVD quality videos. If you want to pick one up at AT&T, it’s $199.99 with a two-year contract after a $50 mail-in-rebate. I say you just pick one up at Best Buy for $50 less without the hassle of rebates.

[via AT&T]

It’s no surprise that Apple’s approval and rejection process for iPhone apps can be completely arbitrary and often asinine. Take Wobble iBoobs, for instance: the application has been on the market for several months and has even earned about $300,000 in sales, but after Apple “recently received numerous complaints” from customers, the app was pulled. The best part? This app didn’t even contain any questionable content — certainly not a first for an app store rejection.

What Wobble iBoobs did was simple: you take an image of your choice (say, a bikini-clad girl from Safari on iPhone), mark the boobs within the app, shake your phone and watch them bounce and wobble. That’s it. It didn’t contain any porn, there were no preloaded images and it was on the market long enough to make more than pocket change.

Naturally, the developer was ticked and sent us the official response from Apple:

Dear Glentwood pty ltd,

The App Store continues to evolve, and as such, we are constantly refining our guidelines. Your application, Wobble iBoobs (Premium Uncensored), contains content that we had originally believed to be suitable for distribution. However, we have recently received numerous complaints from our customers about this type of content, and have changed our guidelines appropriately.

We have decided to remove any overtly sexual content from the App Store, which includes your application.

Thank you for your understanding in this matter. If you believe you can make the necessary changes so that Wobble iBoobs (Premium Uncensored) complies with our recent changes, we encourage you to do so and resubmit for review.

Sincerely,
iPhone App Review

So, the iPhone App Review team originally believed it was suitable for distribution, then changed its mind without first notifying the developer? Sounds about par for the course in iPhone dev land. Bye-bye application, tough luck developer.

What really irritates me is that these stories can fly all over the Internet, but ultimately Apple doesn’t budge or change its stance. Developers and customers alike are lambasting Apple’s proclivity for frivolous app rejections, but Apple just turns the other cheek. Do I think the process will change? Probably not. Can it change? Maybe if we get a large enough crowd with torches and pitchforks.

How excited can you get over a phone that was announced at last year’s Mobile World Congress and whose successor, the LG Arena Max, has already been spotted in the wild? Perhaps a $149.99 price point, a slick 3D UI, 5-megapixel camera and HSDPA 7.2Mbps? Yeah, I didn’t think so, either.

After seeing this slide, I got pretty excited thinking it might be the LG Arena Max with the 1GHz Snapdragon processor, but it doesn’t appear to be that way. The official announcement for the handset hasn’t even been made yet.

As of last summer, the LG Arena did so well worldwide that over 5 million units were sold and the device is still currently available everywhere but the U.S. it seems. If you don’t mind having last year’s product, you can pick one up at Best Buy soon for just $150 with a two-year contract with AT&T.

You know what I was thinking the other day? “It would be so rad if I could get MOTOBLUR to work on my TV.” And now, Motorola is doing exactly that by working on a platform to get its cell phones to play nice with TV set-top boxes.

To get things kicked off, MOTOBLUR, the Android UI found on the CLIQ and Backflip, will be shared between TVs and handsets. Sadly, it might not be implemented until 2011 as Motorola co-CEO Sanjay Jha says he wishes he had more resources for research and development. Since Motorola’s handset and TV division were split and combined, perhaps he just might get his wish with this project.

Another tidbit from Mr. Jha is that Motorola may consider Windows on its handsets in the future. Even though it shifted all its efforts toward Android, Motorola used to produce a number of Windows Mobile phones. With Windows Phone 7 looking pretty hot, it’s no wonder Jha said he is “open to it.”

It could take a while, but I think it would be neat to see a common platform between cell phones and TVs since I spend 90% of my time between the two. My lazy life would be so much easier.

[via WSJ]

Palm’s webOS is certainly one of the more polished operating systems out there; the others being the iPhone OS and Android. It’s clean, simple to use and attractive. However, it was available only on Sprint’s network for the longest time until recently when it arrived at Verizon on the Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus. Now it looks like another carrier will be picking up the new OS.

According to BGR’s sources, T-Mobile is going to get Palm webOS in the form of a Pixi-like device. According to the source, T-Mobile and Palm are in the final stages of getting a device set and ready for T-Mobile’s network. There isn’t much else in the way of this news, but T-Mobile customers who are getting a little bored with Android might have some nice options to look forward to.

One thing I really love about the iPhone is discovering a new app while I’m out on the town, ignoring friends and family for my phone. I’ll check out reviews, look at some screen shots and take the plunge. Then the unexpected happens: the app won’t download because the file size is too big.

For carriers who were looking to throttle data, like AT&T, this news comes as an unexpected surprise. Over-the-air (OTA) downloads via 3G networks were capped at 10MB; if you wanted to download a larger app, you had to wait until a Wi-Fi connection became available. Now Apple has raised the bar to allow 20MB apps to be downloaded over 3G networks. This should cover some of the bigger apps, like intricate games, without much fuss. It’s not just apps, though, as Apple has raised the 12MB iTunes Store limit to 20MB. Nice move, but you won’t be downloading any movies on your iPhone over the air any time soon.

[via 9-to-5 Mac]

It’s the handset that Megan Fox used to make men crumble everywhere, and now it looks like the Motorola DEVOUR can be had at Best Buy pretty soon. At $149.99, it’s $50 less than the DROID, but of course, there are the bells and whistles.

If the grainy picture above is accurate, you’ll need to sign up for a two-year contract with Verizon and pick up a data plan that is at least $29.99 per month. That’s not too shabby considering all the data you’ll be gobbling up anyway with this phone. The best part of buying phones at Best Buy? No mail-in-rebate required.

[via Engadget]