Author: PhoneDog.com – Latest videos, reviews, articles, news and posts

There’s no better way to enter the weekend than with a juicy rumor to keep the rumor mill churning.  Since CTIA, Android fans have been anxiously awaiting the announcement of new devices thought to be launched across the various carriers, with less than desirable progress to speak of.  So far we’ve seen the official announcement of the HTC EVO 4G (with no date or price yet) on Sprint, and the Droid Incredible by HTC, which was just made official yesterday on VZW.  Other than that, we’re expecting the recently announced HTC triple-play (Desire, Legend, and HD Mini), as well as the Samsung Galaxy S which has recently been rumored as headed to AT&T.

Looks like we might have some good news for T-Mobile Android fans.  It’s far from official, but the Bluetooth Special Interest Group has recently certified a device that could very well be the T-Mobile version of the Samsung Galaxy S.  The device, SGH-T959 (later described as T939), is described as “a Full Touch phone with reinforced features…4.0 inch AMOLED screen…TouchWIZ 3.0…embedded Android OS… [and] supports EDGE/GSM Tri-Band (850/900/1800).”

UnwiredView is suggesting that the “T” in front of the three numbers in the model number reveals that whatever the phone is, it’s headed to T-Mobile.  In addition to the Bluetooth certification, there is also a Wi-Fi certification, and a UAProf that exist, solidifying some of the specs and letting us know that the phone will be running Android.  But don’t get too excited yet, there are still a few reasons to be hesitant.  According to Phandroid, you’ll notice that the T959 is also referred to as the T939 which is the model number of the Samsung Behold II.  In addition, in the UAProf, the resolution does not match up with what it should be.

So, we’re still not out of the woods and this is still classified as a major rumor, but who’s excited about the possibility of the Samsung Galaxy S on T-Mobile?  Sound off in the comments!

Via Phandroid, UnwiredView

Yesterday Google had its quarterly earnings call, announcing the company’s financial results for the quarter ending March 31, 2010.  According to the press release, Google’s revenues for Q1 2010 were $6.77 billion, which was a 23% increase over the same quarter in 2009.   Patrick Pichette, Google CFO said, “Google performed very well in the first quarter, with 23% year over year revenue growth driven by strength across all major verticals and geographies.  Going forward, we remain committed to heavy investment in innovation – both to spur future growth in our core and emerging businesses as well as to help build the future of the open web.”

Aside from specific financial achievements, a few notable successes on the Android front were also mentioned.  First, apps in the Android Market are continuously on the rise.  In March, Google made 30,000 the official number of apps in the market.  At yesterday’s call, Google tacked on an additionally 8,000 apps for a total of 38,000 apps in the market; not bad for a month’s time.

In addition to the success with Android apps, Google also reported that the Nexus One has reached profitability.  This came as a surprise due to earlier reports (from sources other than Google) suggesting that the N1 was off to a slow start and had not reached the level of success analysts had originally forecast.  But Google is maintaining that they are pleased with the level of success that the N1 has had, stating that they are “happy with device uptake and [the] impact it has had raising the bar showing what a smartphone can do.”

For the full press release, go here.  Man, if only I had purchased Google stock a few years ago.  Any thoughts or insights?  Feel free to leave them below!

Via TechCrunch

The ever-so-popular web browser alternative Opera submitted their mobile browser to Apple on March 23rd, it miraculously received the thumbs up, and became available in the iTunes App Store earlier in the week.  Obviously, it was something that users wanted, as Opera Mini for iPhone has since been downloaded over a million times.  As of 8 a.m. yesterday morning (April 15th), the actual download count was a whopping 1,023,380, and it has topped the charts for the number one iPhone app in Apple’s 22 worldwide App Stores.

Opera Mini provides quick mobile browsing to many mobile platforms and has been destined for success on the iPhone OS since it was first mentioned.  iPhone users, like most other smartphone users, are on an endless search to browse the internet faster from their handset.  Opera Mini provides just that, claiming to load pages up to six times faster than the native browser.  What are you waiting for?  Go grab your free download of Opera Mini and tell us what you think!

This Wednesday at Twitter’s Chirp Conference, CEO Evan Williams announced that Twitter would be coming out with an official Twitter application for Android devices.  The company appears to be launching a platform-wide campaign to have uniform “Official Twitter Apps” for all devices.   “We realized we had to have a core experience on these major platforms just like we do on the web, otherwise we are failing users,” Williams said.

Recently, Twitter bought AteBits, the company that developed Tweetie, one of the most popular Twitter apps for the iPhone.  Twitter has also partnered with RIM to develop the official Twitter app for Blackberry, which is now in public beta release.  The big question on the minds of those who care is: will the company develop the app themselves, partner with Google (like they did with RIM), or purchase an already existing App (like they did with Tweetie) in order to create the uniformity among platforms they are striving for?

Andrew Kameka of Androinica seems to think that Twitter will acquire either Twidroid or TweetsRide and rename one of them as the official Twitter app for Android.  What do you think?  Leave your thoughts in the comments!

Via MobileBurn, TechCrunch, Androinica

popplet lite (Free) by Notion

iTunes Preview Link

Pros: Easy to use mindmapping tool; Allows combination of text, drawings and photos; Free

Cons: Limited to one board (map) at a time

Buying Advice: Don’t want to drop fifty bucks on Omnigraffle? Play with popplet lite for free, instead, and hope that support for multiple projects comes in the next version. And soon. As is, it’s a great – if limited – app.

Like I said in my review of Pocket Note iP3:

I’m really excited about the prospects of using iPad as a brainstorming/mind-mapping/whiteboarding tool … I’ve been spending a few bucks and lots of time trying out some of the free and inexpensive apps that look like they might give me what I need to get my thoughts in order, iPad style. Two of the most intriguing options I’ve found so far are Pocket Note iP3 and popplet lite.

 

Pocket Note is a sort of digital journal/scrapbook meets whiteboarding meets idea organizer app. popplet lite, on the other hand, is a more traditional mindmapping app. Mindmapping is like flowcharting: You make a “Popplet” (resizable rectangle), write or draw or drop a photo in it, and then connect it to other shapes. As mentioned above, Omnigraffle is one of the premiere mindmapping tools out there, but it costs $49.99 in iPad form. Popplet Lite is free, attractive, easy to use, and lets you create a single, never-ending mindmap on your iPad. I particularly liked its clean look and light, functional, easy to learn UI.

 

The problem with popplet lite is that you’re limited to that one, single, never-ending mindmap. There’s no way to save your work and start anew – you have to wipe the slate clean, permanently, if you want to start over. Yes you can “save” your mindmap to your photo library, but you won’t be able to pull it back into popplet for editing later. Aside from that one (enormous) issue, popplet works pretty well. 

 

Since this is only version 1.1.1, and the “lite” moniker would lead one to believe that there will be a paid “premium” version in the works, I have faith that revisions of popplet are soon forthcoming. Hopefully they’ll address some of my concerns while also adding other nifty functionality. As it is, popplet lite is a handy app for working out notes and ideas on your iPad, so long as you don’t mind keeping tabs on everything on one giant board full of popplets.

 

Pocket Note iP3 for iPad ($1.99) – by Y Lau

iTunes Preview Link

Pros: Easy combining of resizable photos & text notes with hand-drawing/writing on virtual corkboard; Quick access to multiple projects

Cons: Can’t duplicate or “Save As” for easy multiple iterations of same project

Buying Advice: My favorite virtual whiteboard for iPad to date – Not perfect, but it’s only two bucks

 

 

I’m really excited about the prospects of using iPad as a brainstorming/mind-mapping/whiteboarding tool. Often when I need to work out an organized strategy for something – be it a PhoneDog editorial project or some flight of creative fancy or another – I reach for a blank pad of paper and a pen to sketch out my ideas. What I really want, though, is a digital pad that will let me write, draw, arrange and rearrange, and attach photos and Web clippings … and then save my work and start in on a new iteration of the idea, often building off of some portion of what I’ve just done.

 

I’m hesitant to shell out fifty bucks for Omnigraffle, especially given all of the “this feels like Beta software” user reviews in the App Store. So instead I’ve been spending a few bucks and lots of time trying out some of the free and inexpensive apps that look like they might give me what I need to get my thoughts in order, iPad style. Two of the most intriguing options I’ve found so far are Pocket Note iP3 and Popplet Lite.

 

 

Pocket Note is a virtual corkboard, if there was such a thing as “dry erase corkboard.” The app lets you take a blank board and attach photos and text notes to it, and draw on top of the board, photos, and notes. You can move and resize your photos and notes, and rotate the photos via multi-touch gestures. Saved boards are easily called up from within the app for later review and editing, and you can also save them to your iPad’s photo library as images.

 

This is a great app for basic visualizing of information flow, and also is handy for mocking up edits to Web pages, photos, and other images, or general multimedia journaling. It’s great to be able to take an image and write/draw on it and tape notes up next to it. Pocket Note is somewhat hampered by iPad’s limited file system, as it’d be even better if I could Email a board to another Pocket Note user who could then make some edits/additions and send it back to me. As it is now, there is no native file export, only saving still images of your boards. Still, for two bucks, this is a nice-looking, easy to use app for pulling photos, text, and drawing/handwriting together onto virtual corkboards.

 

 

See Also: Popplet Lite (Free)

Like push notifications when you receive a Facebook update, e-mail, or tweet?  Look elsewhere, as the KIN series won’t offer them.  According to Microsoft, updates will be sent to the phone every 15 minutes in order to keep power consumption low.  Hey, if the battery is going to make it through the weekend (as it is reported to), I suppose constant push notifications are out of the question.

My hope is that Microsoft adds the functionality in the future, but in the meantime, it’s manual updates for now.  For those interested in the KIN series, is this a “make or break” feature for you?

Via PhoneArena (Picture via CNET)

iPhone HD, 4G, 3GSS…whatever you want to call it, talk about the fourth generation iPhone is heating up.  After reporting on it a few days ago, leaked pictures have surfaced on the internet.  I’m not sure about you, but I’m digging the way the case looks.

The question remains: Apple dropped the aluminum casing on the iPhone 3G and 3GS, with rumors that poor reception (cellular and Wi-Fi) was to blame.  Then again, we’re in 2010, and it’s possible that Apple has worked out the kinks.  At any rate, this summer is going to be a great one for those looking for a replacement smartphone.  Who’s excited?

Via BGR, iClarified

You.  Yes, you.  You know who you are.  You’re an engager of toomfoolery.  You like long walks on the beach, spoofing caller IDs, and living life on the edge. 

(I kid, I kid.  Even if the profile doesn’t fit you, today’s news is still rather important, as it affects caller ID services going forward.)

A few months after it moved through the Senate, the House of Representatives has passed the Truth in Caller ID Act of 2010 (H.R. 1258), an amendment to the Communications Bill of 1934.  According to the bill, it is illegal “To cause any caller ID service to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller ID information, with the intent to defraud and deceive.”  An exemption is upheld for those blocking their own caller ID, and as with everything in this world, law enforcement isn’t affected.

The bill now goes to the President for signing.  If you hear anything as you’re going to sleep tonight, it’s probably the tears of thieves.  Then again, I’m sure professional thieves aren’t thinking twice about breaking the law.

Via BGR, PhoneScoop

 

It is officially Spring and the newness of the season is contagious.  It’s time to shed the extra layers, pull out the sunglasses, take a deep breath of fresh air and get moving.  Whether you are leaving behind your winter hibernation, traveling for a spring break or like me and moving across the country, you are going to want to get out and find something fun to do and somewhere delicious to eat.  

Enter Wikiplaces and GoodFood – both of which are available for multiple smartphone platforms, so can we all maybe try to get along this week?  I am sure the apps look and run similarly on different phones and platforms, but I can only speak (and write) from my experiences on the Palm Pre Plus.  So here goes.  

Wikiplaces is an app that utilizes your phone’s GPS and location services to find Wikipedia-archived places of interest close to where you are – wherever you are.  There is no need to enter your location or initiate a search.  Just launch Wikiplaces, and the app populates a list of places from Wikipedia that are near your location.  With each listed item, the app provides its distance from you along with links to the Wikipedia article and a map.  This app helped me to find some kid-friendly activities and museums as well as interesting information about our current city.  I also plan to continue trying out this app as I seek new ways to entertain and pacify my toddler as we travel on cross-country.

GoodFood similarly uses the GPS and location services on your phone to find area restaurants.  When you open the app, GoodFood searches and maps all restaurants in the vicinity that have been rated by others in their social-networking community.  Not only can you see the ratings and reviews left, but you can even see pictures if they have been posted by the other users.  Depending on your mood, you can sort restaurants by distance, rating, price and genre.  

After eating at Chili’s yet again, we decided it was time to try something new and different in our travels.  GoodFood helped us to find a phenomenal little Middle Eastern restaurant in the heart of the South, which is not an easy feat.  The food was a pleasant surprise and the tiramisu actually made us consider applauding.  Regardless of what your needs are, if you are hungry, GoodFood can be particularly useful.  Looking for the ease and painless experience of your favorite tried and true chain restaurant?  GoodFood will let you know of any in your area.  Wanting to be more adventurous and try the local fare?  GoodFood can let you know what’s recommended and what you are better off skipping.

Both Wikiplaces and GoodFood are extremely intuitive and easy to use without the need for instructions.  While they are simple single task applications, they are efficient at what they do and do it well.  These may not be the kind of apps you will find yourself using everyday, but they are great in a pinch when hunger or boredom strikes.  And best of all, they are free, so why not give them a try?   

Anyone else find a great app available for the Pre Plus worth noting?

 

Overview

What’s Good: Great QWERTY keyboard, nice screen, good battery life, great price.

What’s Bad: 1.3-megapixel camera offers mediocre pictures and video.

Introduction

If you read tech-centric websites on a regular basis, the talk of the town is smartphones and tablets.  Rarely is attention given to featurephones, which despite the non-coverage, still command an important role in the marketplace.  The Pantech Link is a no-frills featurephone that does exactly what Pantech made it to do – calling, messaging, and occasional web browsing.  The neutral colors and design are sure to appeal to all demographics, and the QWERTY keyboard will likely catch the eye of those who want to message without purchasing a smartphone.

Design & Features

The Pantech Link ships with the device, battery, a travel charger, and instruction manuals. Coming in at 4.37 inches long by 2.03 inches wide by 0.61 inch thick, the device weighs 3.2 ounces, making it thin and light – great for anyone’s pocket.  The Link offers a 2.4-inch resistive touchscreen with 320 x 240 pixels and 242,000 colors.  When using the Link for a long phone call, I found the unit to be quite comfortable against my ear and easy to hold, thanks to the lightweight nature of the phone.

The phone sports a clean and professional exterior.  The left side of the device houses the volume rocker and microSD card slot, while the charging port that doubles as the headphone jack and a camera shortcut key can be found on the right side.  The camera and external speaker can be found on the back of the device, while the QWERTY keyboard, navigation pad, send key, end key, speakerphone button, calendar/clear button, and two shortcut keys can be found on the front.  The SIM card slot is located next to the battery (behind the battery door).

Usability & Performance

The Link’s full QWERTY keyboard is excellent, and reminds me of something one would find on a BlackBerry.  Arranged like a traditional QWERTY, it offers a good amount of tactile feedback thanks to the domed keys.  After a few days of use, I was able to text message and e-mail with ease.  As a featurephone, it’s nice to see that Pantech put an emphasis on making the keyboard usable.  Those that message on a regular basis will be very appreciative.

The device offers a 1.3-megapixel camera with a self-portrait mirror, and in my testing, picture quality was less than desirable. Due to the lack of a flash, the camera performed decently only in well-lit areas.  Editing options include white balance (auto, daylight, tungsten, flourescent), effect (normal, sepia, negative, black and white), self-timer (off, five seconds, or ten seconds), picture size (from 320 x 240 to 1280 x 1024), and a few others.  Video quality was equally poor.  The camera will be decent for those looking to take a quick picture or record a video on the go, but it’s not going to come anywhere close to replacing your existing camera.

The Pantech Link was tested in the Charlotte area using AT&T, and call quality was fantastic. Callers were able to hear me well, and there were no problems on my end.  When visiting a known AT&T trouble spot in the Charlotte metropolitan area, there were no dropouts – the device consistently held one bar of service.  When testing the speakerphone in a noisy department store, I was able to hear my callers without issue. Though they said that they could hear the shopping carts and loud people, it didn’t prevent us from having a conversation. I successfully paired my Plantronics Voyager Pro Bluetooth headset to the device, and callers were unable to tell that I was using a headset.

The Link offers 3G UMTS/HSDPA connectivity (850/1900/2100 MHz) on AT&T, so browsing speeds were snappy. The mobile CNN webpage loaded in about 11 seconds, and the PhoneDog homepage loaded in 31 seconds. Other data-intensive tasks such as the AT&T GPS and Mobile E-Mail performed well.

The device offers a 930mAh battery with a rated talk time of 7 hours with HSDPA (3G) connectivity, and about 18 days of standby time.  In my testing, the battery life was quite good.  With moderate use including calling, text messaging, browsing the internet, and use of AT&T GPS, I was able to use it for three days before the Link powered down.  It’s a trooper when it comes to battery life, and is perfect for those who are often away from the office or the car.

Conclusion

A device like the Pantech Link is perfect for the crowd seeking a professional featurephone without the frills and/or high costs of a smartphone.  My father, who is an investment banker, has no interest in carrying a smartphone (“I check e-mail all day; why do it in my free time?” is the typical response I get when I ask why he doesn’t use one).  Thanks in part to the fact that featurephones are regularly targeted toward the youth demographic, he’s been pigeonholed into carrying teenybopper-esque phones.  The fact of the matter is he doesn’t see the need to pay the additional monthly fees for a smartphone, particularly when he has no desire for the constant connectivity.  As a result, the clean look and strong performance of the Link would appeal to someone like him.  From A to Z, the Pantech Link excels at everything it’s marketed to do, and it’s a device that I would recommend to anyone seeking a well-equipped featurephone at a great price.

 

One day after the Verizon teaser page appeared on the company website, the nation’s largest wireless carrier and HTC have announced the DROID Incredible.  As the first Verizon device to take advantage of the Snapdragon processor, I’m sure it (along with HTC’s Sense UI) will offer a great user experience.  Available on April 29th in Verizon Wireless retail stores, the unit will cost $199.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate debit card.

Features of the HTC DROID Incredible include:

• Android 2.1 with HTC Sense experience
• 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon™ processor for maximum responsiveness
• Friend Stream for unified Flickr, Facebook and Twitter updates
• “Leap” view for quick access to all seven home screen panels
• 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash for crisp, detailed images
• Razor-sharp 3.7 inch WVGA (480×800) AMOLED capacitive touch display
• Optical joystick for smooth navigation
• Dedicated, touch-sensitive Home, Menu, Back and Search keys
• Proximity sensor, light sensor and digital compass
• Integrated GPS
• Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)
• 3.5 mm headset jack

The full press release is below.  It’s official, gang – who’s excited?  Anyone planning on picking one up at the end of the month?  Let me know!

IT’S A DROID, IT’S INCREDIBLE, IT’S ON THE NATION’S LARGEST AND MOST RELIABLE 3G NETWORK
 
DROID Incredible™ by HTC Combines Power of Android™, Usability of HTC Sense™, Exclusively from Verizon Wireless
 
BASKING RIDGE, N.J., and NEW YORK – Verizon Wireless today announced DROID Incredible by HTC, the newest Android device on the nation’s most reliable wireless 3G network, will be available beginning April 29.     
 
Featuring a “topographic” design that demonstrates the powerful engineering just beneath the surface, DROID Incredible by HTC is designed with craftsmanship and precision while making it easier than ever to stay connected.
 
DROID Incredible by HTC features the newest version of the HTC Sense experience, a seven-panel home screen with a wide selection of interactive widgets so the most important content is immediately available at a touch.  Customers will enjoy seamless integration with Exchange ActiveSync®, quick and easy access to Flickr for sharing and viewing pictures, video, and Android Market™ with more than 30,000 Google applications.  DROID Incredible by HTC is the first Verizon Wireless phone that takes advantage of Qualcomm’s 1GHz superfast Snapdragon processor, and it’s the first available phone from Verizon Wireless to include an 8 megapixel camera.
 
Shortly after the phone becomes available, customers will be able to enjoy two of the latest exclusive apps from Verizon Wireless – NFL Mobile and Skype mobile™.
 
Additional Key features:          
·         Android 2.1 with HTC Sense experience
·         1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon™ processor for maximum responsiveness
·         Friend Stream for unified Flickr, Facebook and Twitter updates
·         “Leap” view for quick access to all seven home screen panels
·         8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash for crisp, detailed images
·         Razor-sharp 3.7 inch WVGA (480×800) AMOLED capacitive touch display
·         Optical joystick for smooth navigation
·         Dedicated, touch-sensitive Home, Menu, Back and Search keys
·         Proximity sensor, light sensor and digital compass
·         Integrated GPS
·         Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)
·         3.5 mm headset jack
 
Price and availability:
·         DROID Incredible will be available for pre-order online at www.verizonwireless.com beginning on April 19 and it will be in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores on April 29.  Pricing will be $199.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement.  Customers will receive the rebate in the form of a debit card; upon receipt, customers may use the card as cash anywhere debit cards are accepted.
·         DROID Incredible customers will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk and an Email and Web for Smartphone plan.  Nationwide Talk plans begin at $39.99 monthly access.  Email and Web for Smartphone plans start at $29.99 for unlimited monthly access.
·         For additional information on Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.
 
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Media can access high-resolution images of DROID Incredible by HTC in the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.)
 
About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s most reliable and largest wireless voice and 3G data network, serving more than 91 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 83,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.
 
About HTC
HTC Corporation (HTC) is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile phone industry. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC creates innovative smartphones that better serve the lives and needs of individuals. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit www.htc.com.

 

If US Cellular’s mail-in rebate form turns out to be correct, then the nation’s sixth largest wireless carrier could be picking up the BlackBerry Bold 9650.  Complete with Wi-Fi, a trackpad, and OS 5.0, it’s a nice upgrade from the BlackBerry Tour 9630.  What’s more, the device includes a $70 rebate.

The rebate runs from April 16th through July 15th, so the window of opportunity (as I like to call it) is rather large.  That being said, it would be rather humorous if US Cellular (a regional wireless carrier, mind you) picked up the device before Verizon Wireless or Sprint.  For those on US Cellular (or those contemplating a switch) – does the BlackBerry Bold 9650 interest you, or are you sticking with your Tour until something newer comes out?  Hit the comments and let me know!

Via PhoneArena

According to the latest rumors and reports, all signs are pointing to an April 29 launch date for the HTC Droid Incredible.  Actually, pending any sort of confirmation from Verizon, all we really know is that “The next chapter in the Droid saga begins April 29th,” which could mean a variety of things.

Lately, news on the Incredible has been leaking out at warp speed.  So, instead of writing several posts with minimal information, I thought it best to compile several updates in a single article.  Here’s what’s happening on the Incredible front:

Training for HTC Droid Incredible scheduled

Thanks to the AndroidForums we now have images related to training for Verizon store SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) on the HTC Droid Incredible.  The first image simply shows that a Webinar is scheduled but that the date and time are to be determined.  The second image, which was posted later on Phandroid, shows that SMEs will begin training next Wednesday and Thursday, April 21 and 22 at various times during the day.  Also noteworthy is the fact that if you look toward the bottom of the second image you’ll see an important message that reads “*Please have your ACTIVATED DROID Incredible by HTC device with you when attending the webinar.”  So, we know for sure that VZW SMEs will have the coveted device in hand no later than this coming Wednesday.

Via Phandroid

HTC Droid Incredible specs now live on VZW site

You may remember the VZW staging site which briefly showed the teaser for the Incredible and just as briefly became unavailable unless you had an appropriate login.  Well, today (as of this post anyway) there’s another live site on the store.verizonwireless.com site that displays more specs for the device.  There’s nothing on this site that we haven’t already seen in previous leaks, but since it’s on the Verizon site, it’s that much more official.  Just in case the site goes down, I’ve included a screenshot for you to see.

Via Engadget

Incredible to be available at Best Buy on April 25?

Remember when the Motorola Devour came out?  It launched at Best Buy before it launched at VZW retail stores.  This may be the case with the Incredible as well.  Once again the AndroidForums have uncovered screenshots of the HTC Incredible, this time residing on Best Buy’s internal systems.  At the top of the image you can clearly see that the supplier and model in question are VZW and Incredible, respectively.  The image is difficult to make out, but if you look toward the bottom under the “General Item Information” section, you’ll see an “In Stock Date” of “04-25-10” which lines up with other rumors from the past.  Oh, and one more thing, it’s even more difficult to make out, but the price is listed as $599.99; just food for thought.

Via Phandroid

Well, that’s it for now.  We have two weeks until the “saga begins” and I have a feeling there will be plenty more leakage to come.  Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments.

After months of rumors and leaked roadmaps, HTC CEO Peter Chou announced the launch of three exciting new devices (HTC Desire, Legend and HD Mini) at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.  In the same press meeting HTC also claimed that “A record number of mobile operators have confirmed to launch our new devices. HTC Desire has been accepted by almost every key carrier in every key country we work with.”

Many of us presumed that the US qualified as a “key country,” and were expecting to hear news of US release dates and carriers at CTIA 2010.  But CTIA has come and gone, and the only HTC device to officially launch since then has been the EVO 4G on Sprint.  So, where is the Desire and when will I be able to buy one?

According to Phandroid, it may be sooner than you think.  It looks like someone over at Howard Forums has come across a mail-In Rebate form from US Cellular (the sixth largest carrier in the US) which indicates that they will be carrying the HTC Desire and giving a $70 rebate to those who purchase it between April 16th and July 15th.  Logically speaking, that gives us a three month window to work with.  However, it would be hard to believe that a company would give you less than 30 days to return a device, so my guess is that we’ll see the Desire no later than mid-June.

I leave you with this thought: US Cellular is the number six carrier in the US.  If this rebate form is real, you can rest assured that the Desire will be coming to at least one of the Big Four carriers within a similar time frame.  The only other alternative, in my opinion, would be HTC alienating the big four in a major way.

Here’s hoping the Desire comes to a carrier near me very soon!  Express your desires (pun intended) in the comments!

Via Phandroid

Part Two of a five-part series, “Top 5 ways for Android to close the gap.” See also:

1. Get Another Killer Phone to Market

2. Serve Up Some FroYo

 

3. Get Nexus One into the Stores

 

Dear Google,

 

You are engineers. You do alright with selling ad space online, primarily because you control online search and search sells ads and you can advertise for your ad space on the majority of search result pages that everyone around the world sees.

 

In other words, your engineering prowess has made your search business the best in the world, and your ad-selling business basically piggybacks on top of your search stuff. So it works.

 

But you don’t know how to market, sell, or support anything else. At all. Nothing besides search and ads that work off of search.

 

So do everyone a favor – yourselves, the carriers, and the consumers most of all – and get the Nexus One into retail outlets where it belongs.

 

The Nexus One launch was awkward and embarassing. Tech launches have become highly polished dog and pony shows (for better or worse) and yours was a start-and-stop, low-energy affair akin to a middle school science fair. Nexus One sales have been disappointing in large part because the darn thing isn’t anywhere where potential buyers can see and try it out. Sure, geeks know they can get the thing online, but geeks only account for so many sales. Do you have any idea how many T-Mobile and Verizon stores are out there, and how many people walk through them every day? Not to mention other retail outlets like Best Buy Mobile (disclosure: they sponsor many of our One-Pawed Bandit giveaways). And if you’re going to sell online, make the phones available at Amazon and Let’s Talk and Wirefly, where people already know to look for cell phone deals.

 

Then there’s support. While I didn’t have any major issues with the Nexus One you guys loaned me for review, I did experience some annoying band-hopping between EDGE and 3G on T-Mobile’s network. Apparently that’s been a huge issue for some users, along with other issues plaguing the firmware, and even the (peeling) paint on the hardware itself. Worse yet, complaints stemming from your total fail of a customer support system have perhaps generated even more bad press for you guys than the problems with the phones themselves.

 

I’m not making this up, BTW. Look here and here and here and here and here if you want to know more. Heck, you can even read an article entitled “Google’s Nexus One Phone: A Case Study in Bad Product Management.”

 

I’m not sandbagging you out of some blind hatred for Android or even the N1 itself. Quite the contrary, I loved my (generally issue-free) Nexus One while I had it. I even said so on Fox Business LIVE. But you guys are in the engineering business, and not the consumer tech marketing/sales/support business for a reason.

 

So stick to what you do best and leave the rest to those who know better. You tried, you failed, now do the right thing: Close up your little online shop and get the Nexus One – and all forthcoming Nexus devices – into the hands of the carriers and retailers who know how to market, sell, and support the thing. And get back to dealing with those Android fragmentation issues and Nate’s Google productivity Apps suggestions instead. Trust me, everyone – most of all you – will be better for it.

 

With Best Wishes,

Noah

Unless you live in one of a handful of markets in the continental US, there’s a chance you may not have heard of WiMAX.  Even more likely is the chance that you don’t have access to it.  WiMAX, or 4G as it has been labeled, is one of a few technologies being marketed as the fourth generation of wireless standards (read: high speed data transfer to and from your cell phone) in the US and elsewhere.

Right now Sprint and Clear (of which Sprint owns 51%) are the major players in the 4G game, though Verizon is catching up with 35 markets projected to receive LTE (4G) by the end of this year.  According to Phandroid, WiMAX in its current state “barely outperforms earlier 3G standards,” which means that when LTE catches up (which it inevitably will) WiMAX is at risk of being overrun.

It’s no coincidence, given that WiMAX is not equipped to compete with LTE, that proponents of WiMAX2 such as Intel, Motorola and Samsung among others, have come together to form a coalition called the WiMAX2 Collaboration Initiative.  According to Business Wire, “The group will work closely with the WiMAX Forum to accelerate the implementation of interoperable system profiles for WiMAX2 equipment and devices with the goal of improving the economics of mobile broadband,” which basically means they are working toward making sure the WiMAX technology stays competitive with LTE.

Interestingly, as Engadget points out, among the list of 10 or so supporters, Sprint and Clearwire’s names are nowhere to be found.  It could have something to do with the fact that CEO Dan Hesse implied–last month at CTIA – that Sprint would be keeping their options open in terms of LTE, and that WiMAX took care of their need to be the first with 4G speeds.

Which do you prefer, WiMAX or LTE?  Or does it make a difference to you?  Let us know below.

Via Engadget, Phandroid, BuisnessWire

Overview

What’s good: Full QWERTY keyboard with rubbery keys make typing and sending messages easy and quick; free trial to XM Satellite Radio; app switching functionality; low price.

What’s bad: No touchscreen; had problems with finding my GPS signal; no headphone jack (3.5 mm or proprietary); 2MP camera has no flash and hardly any photo-editing features.

Introduction

It’s rare to find a phone with a screen this size (2.6 inches) and it not be a touchscreen device; however, the Strive is packed with other standard features, including a camera, music player, a full QWERTY keyboard, and AT&T navigator. Samsung and AT&T have also added some new features to this messaging phone, including Group Messaging and cloud syncing of your address book. There are a lot of feature phones out there, so what does the Strive do to catch your attention? Does it succeed?

Design & Features

The Samsung Strive is a basic feature/messaging phone and thus ships with minimal accessories. In the box, you’ll find a CD with an interactive tutorial, User Manual (in Spanish and English), USB drivers, and other special promotions. Below that is a Quick Start Guide and other information, the device, battery, and AC adapter. The Strive measures 4.2 inches in length, 2.1 inches in width, and .06 inches in thickness and weighs a mere 4.8 ounces. It’s not as a long as other messaging phones that have side-sliding keyboards, but it’s not so squarish that it looks or feels awkward.

The left side of the device contains only the volume rocker, and the right side is where you’ll find the microUSB charging port and the dedicated camera button. The front of the device is taken up mostly by the display, and it contains two soft keys, a d-pad with a center function button, send and end/power buttons, the back button, and a key that is used to bring up a shortcut menu which also lists your currently running applications. The front panel slides up to reveal the full QWERTY keyboard.

The Samsung Strive features a 2.6-inch screen that supports 262,000 colors and 240×320 pixels. The screen, as mentioned in the outset, is not a touchscreen and tends to get washed out in the sunlight, making it pretty much impossible to see or read anything. The phone is constructed out of plastic, but still feels sturdy as does the sliding mechanism used to access the keyboard. The microSD card slot is located underneath the battery cover.

Usability & Performance

Navigating through the Strive is simple and easy; press the menu button to access a grid of options including messaging, mobile web, mobile email, music player – the usual. Text messages are organized by conversation and are viewable in a threaded timeline format.

The Strive is definitely a messaging phone. The full QWERTY keyboard worked perfectly for quick and accurate typing. The keys are raised and domed at an angle. They’re not too stiff, but they’re not too squishy either, and the slightly rubbery texture adds traction so you’re fingers don’t slide over the keys when you’re trying to type. The keyboard also contains the numeric pad for dialing. When on the home screen, the keys can simply be pressed to select a number; however, when in messaging mode, you must push the Function button in order to use them.

On the back of the phone is the 2.0-megapixel camera. The camera has no flash but also records video. The phone has a few photo-editing features, including options to change the resolution, change the lighting from daylight to cloudy, etc., set a timer, and a few other picture effects. You can also use the camera for video share. The camera quality was fairly decent – as much as one could expect from a 2.0-megapixel camera.

Call quality on the Strive was fair. Being a basic feature phone, callers were able to hear background noise, but it didn’t inhibit their hearing to the point where they couldn’t understand me. The signal was generally strong in most areas; however, there are going to be problem areas in every city or town.

The Strive ships with a 1000 mAh battery. Estimated talk time is three hours and estimated standby time is about four days. While using the battery heavily – web browsing, messaging, checking e-mail – I was able to get about two days of use before I had to charge it. While not using the phone, the battery lasted the estimated four days.

 The Samsung Strive uses AT&T’s 3G GSM network. Browsing speeds were pretty fast. It took only about 30 seconds to fully load the Phonedog homepage. The only network connection problems I had was when Yellowpages or other mapping services were trying to find my location based on my GPS signal. Despite multiple tries, it was never successful.

Conclusion

The Samsung Strive is a basic messaging phone with a great QWERTY keyboard. It lacks a touchscreen, which is probably one reason why the price is so low – $19.99 after rebates with a new contract. Though you may find yourself wishing it was a touchscreen device, the design of keyboard is something not to be taken for granted. You’re fortunate if you can find a device that has a keyboard that is as easy to type on as this one. For that reason, and because not having a touchscreen actually didn’t bother me that much (surprisingly) I would recommend the Strive to anyone who sends a lot of text messages and needs a low price. Pick it up at any AT&T store.

Remember that mysterious Motorola Android slider that surfaced a few days ago?  The picture above might be the specifications that go along with the device.  According to the piture, the Twist (if we’re talking about the same device) includes a 700 MHz OMAP processor, 2.8-inch QVGA multitouch display, 3.0-megapixel camera, Android 1.5, A-GPS, Wi-Fi, dual-band HSPA, and 512MB ROM/256MB RAM on the memory front.

It’s no Android 2.1-powered device (just yet), but it would make for a great low to mid-range Android device on any US wireless carrier.  Anyone interested in this device?

Via BGR

I took some paternity leave last week as we have a brand new little girl to add to our growing brood and spent much of the time enjoying unseasonably warm weather at the park with my two year old. The Apple iPhone, it is fair to say, has a 100% market share of the parents taking their kids to our local park. Indeed I stuck out like a sore thumb trying to master the Motorola Backflip I had been lent for the week (as a joke because I had asked for something “manly” and “manly” it isn’t).

The combination of such an impressive display of domination and my daughter beetling around got me thinking and ultimately got me pretty excited to return to work.

I have pretty much made all of my living since graduating from university in the early 1990’s selling mobile phones. I haven’t always sold mobile phones, mind, and have flirted with selling other things, but I never made much of a living at it. So my house, my car, my clothes and my bike and those of my family I owe in no small measure to my efforts selling phones.

Because I lived and worked in Europe until June 2007 most of those phones (including the first one sold on January 17th 1993) have been made by Nokia. The rest were made by Sony Ericsson and laterally Samsung, LG and RiM. Back in the early days we sold a lot of Motorola bricks and flips but not much since the late ‘90’s (Pink RAZRs aside). Back in Europe Motorola is considered to be American for “Cr*p”, and I wouldn’t have been seen dead with one. Frankly we felt sorry for all you Americans having to pay for incoming calls, on useless handsets that couldn’t text or surf the web properly. 

But then in the week I arrived in the US, Apple brought out the iPhone and changed just about everything, not only about the US market, but the world market as well. A mobile phone salesman moving to America in the first week of July 2007 must rank as the best timed career move since Ringo Starr replaced Pete Best as the drummer for the Beatles.

Everything interesting, everything exciting, everything ground breaking that is happening in the mobile field right now is happening in and for the US market. Every new launch and every new innovation is happening here first and then being exported overseas with a film industry style time lag. Not one of the players which is really shaking up the market was doing much three years ago when I got my opportunity.

The iPhone hadn’t launched, Google only searched and HTC had only just started to sell phones under its own label…and then only Windows Mobile…because there was only Windows Mobile. In the last year the launch of the Palm Pre and Web OS, the explosion of Android devices, and the pitched battle between the carriers for data market share has made the US market the best place to be in the mobile world, and the launches anticipated in the next twelve weeks alone will take the whole game to another level.

I literally cannot wait to get my hands on the Samsung Galaxy S. I haven’t felt this way about a phone since the Nokia N97.

So sitting in the sandpit at my local park watching my daughter master the steps up to the slide and the other parents master their schedules on their iPhones I felt overwhelmingly fortunate in life and in my career, and to my amazement when I looked down at my hands, and checked Noah’s latest tweet, I saw that I was using a Motorola phone and it wasn’t so bad after all. In fact it was actually quite good.

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