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Google sells out of Nexus Ones for devs, 'working hard' to get more; SLCD not alleviating backorders yet

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 3:22PM

The Nexus One retail situation has been pretty dire since Google humanely put down its own online store, leaving only paid developers with an easy option to get an unlocked unit (and only an AWS 3G version at that). Now, even that's been taken away -- at least temporarily -- thanks to unexpectedly strong demand that left Google to "blow through the (substantial) initial inventory in almost no time" and run up a backorder with HTC. Interestingly, Google specifically points out that HTC is doing a good job with manufacturing despite the AMOLED shortage, which leads us to wonder whether the SLCD version is shipping in quantity yet -- and considering how the Nexus One and Desire are well into midlife, we wonder whether it makes sense to even bother at this point when we've got next-gen products just around the corner. Good news is that Google still seems committed to getting Nexus Ones back in stock for developers, we just don't know when that's going to happen.

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Exclusive: LG C900 for AT&T has Windows Phone 7, shows off a little carrier branding

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 1:31PM

Exclusive

If you're prepping for a Windows Phone 7 purchase later this year and the Cetus doesn't really do it for you, we understand -- not everyone can live without a physical keyboard, and devices like the Touch Pro2 have gotten us used to the idea that Windows Mobile and great QWERTY go hand-in-hand. To that end, we present to you the LG C900, a rounded landscape slider equipped with a four-row keyboard and a simplified two-button capacitive layout beneath the screen paired with a chrome Windows key. Notably, this is the first time we've seen carrier branding on Windows Phone 7's home screen in the wild -- you can see AT&T's logo prominently displayed as a tile in one of the pictures in the gallery after the break. We're not sure we're digging the matte plasticky look up front, but to each his own, we suppose.

Exclusive: LG C900 for AT&T; has Windows Phone 7, shows off a little carrier branding

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T-Mobile G2 again, this time with less Mr. Blurrycam

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 1:10PM

Exclusive

So we just got a second batch of T-Mobile G2 shots dropped in our mailbox -- and this time, you can get a much better look at the inner workings of the carrier's version of the upcoming HTC Vision. ~~Looks like this bad boy slides and tilts, which eliminates the need for a kickstand and is very likely causing you to breathe an audible sigh of relief right about now.~~ Meanwhile, the backside reveals that HTC looks ready to really get into this asymmetrical design concept -- something we've definitely seen on the Schubert / Mozart -- and realistically, it's probably going to polarize some buyers. Check out the gallery for a few more shots!

Update: We hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we've just been told that the G2 doesn't have a tilting screen, despite what you see up there -- it's just the inner workings of the slide being pulled up. Our hearts have been ripped from our chests on this one, rest assured.

T-Mobile G2 again, this time with less Mr. Blurrycam

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Exclusive: Samsung Cetus i917 bows for AT&T, shows off its Windows Phone 7 ways

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 11:46AM

Exclusive

Does the almost Pre-esque shape of this beast look vaguely familiar? It should, because it matches up nicely with the outline of the Samsung Cetus we saw in the FCC a little while back. Indeed, we're told this is the Cetus i917 destined for AT&T, featuring Windows Phone 7 in a glossy, black, curved shell that should fit nicely in those new skinny pants you just overpaid for. We don't know when this is hitting exactly, but we suspect everyone involved -- Microsoft, AT&T, and Samsung -- wants to have this on shelves in time for the holiday season. Hit up the gallery below for a couple more shots.

Exclusive: Samsung Cetus i917 bows for AT&T;, shows off its Windows Phone 7 ways

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Droid X upgrade to Android 2.2 leaks out

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 11:23AM

What we're looking at here is allegedly the leaked over-the-air update to Froyo that Verizon plans on deploying to Droid X customers in the next few weeks, which means two critical things for customers: it should generally be faster all the way around, and -- of course -- you've got support for Flash, which was a big topic of interest at Motorola's launch event for the phone a couple months back. The update is available both in rooted and non-rooted versions, so if you're feeling adventurous today and you enjoy the thrill of doing something that offers a remote possibility of bricking your phone, you may want to go ahead and grab it. Good luck, and let us know your experiences in comments, alright?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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Exclusive: T-Mobile G2 in the wild!

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 11:00AM

Exclusive

These shots of a real, live G2 confirm what we'd already suspected from renders: this is basically an Americanized version of the upcoming HTC Vision. What does that mean? Well, it means you can expect a 3.7-inch display paired with Android and a sliding QWERTY keyboard -- higher-end than the myTouch 3G Slide and a fitting successor to the trailblazing G1, if you ask us (though admittedly not quite as geeky as the model it replaces). Follow the break for another shot!

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PowerPhone patent approved for sending MMS messages to 911

By Joseph L. Flatley

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 10:51AM

We've seen 911 call centers that accept text messages, and now if PowerPhone gets its way you'll some day be able to use MMS messages to further pinpoint the source of your distress. Patent number 7,764,769, "Integrated Call Handler and E-Mail Systems and Methods," has just been approved by the Patent and Trademark Office, detailing the use of the company's Incident Linked Multimedia (ILM) software to receive and prioritize multimedia messages at a call center near you. There is also something there about the software integrated with "existing Computer Aided Dispatch and Records Management Systems," which we imagine must be good news for someone looking to implement these features. But let's be honest: we're just looking forward to watching the inevitable "World's Most Embarrassing Drunken Videos to 911" special on Fox. PR after the break.

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Visa gets Bank of America on board for mobile payments trial, starting in New York next month

By Vlad Savov

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 7:31AM

It didn't take long for Visa to react to the three-headed beast of AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon entering the mobile payments arena. The world's foremost payment processing company has just announced that it's about to start a trial of its contactless payment system in partnership with Bank of America. Kicking off in the New York area this September and lasting through the end of the year, the scheme will most likely involve the MicroSD NFC communicator and In2Pay iPhone case that DeviceFidelity has been developing for Visa. No disclosures are being made on the size of this pilot scheme, though we're told that only a "select" group of employees and customers will be getting the mobile payment chips. Don't worry if you miss out on this one, though, as a similar trial is scheduled to begin in October with US Bancorp. That should give you enough time to turn yourself into a high-rolling select customer, right?

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Sony replacing handset wiring with a single copper cable

By Thomas Ricker

posted Aug 20th 2010 at 2:52AM

Sure, it's just boring ol' component news but you can guarantee that this advance will affect the appearance of Sony (and Sony Ericsson) products some time soon. Sony just announced the development of a "single wire interface technology" that replaces the 22 or so cables (used for power, control signals, audio, video, etc) typically found inside mobile devices (tucked away in the hinge or rotating parts) with a single copper wire cable capable of transmitting data at 940Mbps. That should translate into greater reliability while giving Sony's product teams more flexibility with their designs. Sony plans to "swiftly" implement the technology by licensing the IP to ROHM to help jointly develop the required silicon. More with less, as they say.

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Ask Engadget: best messaging phone that doesn't need a data plan?

By Darren Murph

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 10:35PM

Feature

We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget question is coming to us from Josh, who simply ain't interested in spending the loot necessary to get a full-on smartphone. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

"I'm a student right now on a tight budget. That said, I can't afford a data plan. What is the best messaging phone that doesn't require data? Also, I am a medical student, and for our third- and fourth-year rotations, we have to purchase something with Windows Mobile in order to communicate to our school's software for submitting patient data. They recommend the iPAQ handhelds, but what will happen since Microsoft has come out with Windows Phone 7 and HP has acquired Palm?"

Hate to hear about your Windows Mobile dilemma, but hopefully that OS will be pushed aside as far more capable ones hit the market. It's tough to say at this point whether webOS or Windows Phone 7 will be your answer (probably not for some time, though), but we're pretty sure our commenters would be more than happy to assist with your need for a messaging phone. Right, guys / gals?

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Sprint's 3G-capable Airave from Airvana starts shipping

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 9:02PM

Corporate-owned Sprint stores that we've called don't seem to know what we're talking about, but at least one reader has managed to get Sprint telesales to ship him one of its long-rumored upgraded Airaves from Airvana that supports EV-DO (the original model sported 1xRTT only for data). Our tipster tells us this bad boy will run up to six simultaneous calls -- up from the old Samsung's three -- and although the femtocell supports a VoIP landline connection, Sprint is telling folks that it's not available for use just yet. The jury's still out on whether this looks better than the outgoing model -- but hey, you can always shove it in a corner where no one will notice it; in the short term, the bigger concern will probably be finding a store willing and able to sell it to you.

[Thanks, Connor]

Sprint's 3G-capable Airave from Airvana starts shipping

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Samsung switches up the alphabet soup, launches Galaxy U in Korea

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 6:59PM

We'd previously heard about South Korean carrier LG U+ picking up a moderately downscaled version of the Galaxy S series as the Galaxy U before... and, well, sure enough, here it is. The U trades down from a 4-inch Super AMOLED display to a more modest 3.7 inches at the same WVGA resolution (the same size as the Beam, for the record) and includes a bunch of notable features like Bluetooth 3.0 support, 802.11n WiFi, 720p video capture, and -- since this is a Korean phone -- T-DMB mobile TV tuning. Looks like it'll be hitting stores in your choice of black or white (all white, without a black bezel) for 800,000 won ($683).

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Exclusive: Dell Thunder prototype preview (video)

By Sean Hollister

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 6:58PM

Preview

Exclusive

Christmas came early at Engadget HQ this year, as evidenced by the picture above -- you're looking at two Dell Thunder prototype smartphones, each with some surprising quirks, and hints that they might include global HSPA, AWS for the likes of T-Mobile, and maybe even a dash of CDMA support. We'll warn you ahead of time that these are labeled EVT1 for "engineering verification test" and date back to the April leak, so they're about as early as you can get -- don't expect the final handset to arrive without some significant differences. Good? Then peek the gallery below, hit the break, and let's get on with the show.

Dell Thunder prototype preview

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BlackBerry devs can now offer $1 and $2 apps

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 5:39PM

In conjunction with BlackBerry App World 2.0's emergence from beta today, RIM has announced that developers will now be able to charge 99 cents or $1.99 for their wares. Doesn't sound like news, right? Well, it is, because the company had previously set a minimum of $2.99, an attempt to keep... well, for lack of a better term, crap out of its official marketplace. What we assume RIM has since discovered is that lots of devs with great apps want to go for a volume play, not a margin one -- it's a strategy that has worked for plenty of folks in the iPhone App Store -- and they're looking at this as an easy, quick way to get more people interested in porting the good stuff to BlackBerry 6. Canabalt on the Torch, perhaps? Other notable improvements in 2.0 include non-PayPal credit card payments, new app browsing options, and a new BlackBerry ID that'll let folks move both free and paid apps between devices when they upgrade -- in other words, it's a worthwhile download.

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Exclusive: Droid Pro is the global version of the Droid 2, LG enV Touch 2 will be Android-powered

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 3:51PM

Exclusive

We've learned from a source close to the situation that the rumored global version of the Droid 2 with GSM and CDMA radios is actually the same phone as the also-rumored Droid Pro -- although Verizon apparently has a tendency to fiddle with branding right up until the last minute, so the retail name could still change. It's identical to the current Droid 2 in every way except for the fact that it houses a GSM / HSPA radio for global roaming, though we're not able to confirm previous rumors that it'll be available in a white version; presumably, you'll pay a bit more than the Droid 2's $200 on contract for the privilege of being able to take your buddy overseas. Barring any last-minute delays, we should see it launch within weeks.

If you're sick and tired of Motorolas, let's switch gears a bit and talk about the follow-up to LG's enV Touch. Interestingly, LG will be switching from a proprietary featurephone platform to Android for this one -- called the enV Touch 2 -- and will give it dual touchscreens: one on the outside, and another on the inside for when you flip open the clamshell. As you might expect for an enV-branded device, there's also a full QWERTY keyboard. It's currently running Android 2.1, though it's not clear whether that'll be upgraded to 2.2 by the time we see a release toward the holidays. It's said to be pretty big and heavy, which could be a disadvantage for some -- but on the flipside, it's apparently a global device, so that's a plus. enVs historically haven't been the most exciting things in Verizon's stable, but we'll admit, we're curious to see this one get fleshed out.

Update: A tipster has written in to point out that the Droid 2 and Droid Pro are showing as two different devices in Verizon's inventory system, model numbers A956 and A957, respectively; our original source is adamant, though, that they're the same device, so we'll need to wait to see how this pans out. As we mentioned, Droid Pro isn't necessarily the go-to-market name for the phone, but it is the name being tossed around internally right now for the device that we know as the Droid 2 with global roaming.

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EA a notable holdout on Xbox Live for Windows Phone 7, doesn't have much to say on the subject

By Paul Miller

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 2:42PM

If you examined the fairly impressive roster of Windows Phone 7 Xbox Live launch titles that Microsoft waved proudly in our face the other day, you might've noticed that EA is particularly absent from that glorious list. Well, the folks at Mobile Entertainment bothered to ask EA Mobile about that absence, and EA had this terse reply: "We are constantly evaluating new platforms and opportunities, but have nothing to announce right now." Pretty eye opening, right? In absence of facts, there are all sorts of avenues for conjecture. EA could be holding out for a better carrot from Microsoft, checking to see how successful the platform will actually be, or just playing its titles close to its chest. Or maybe they're just resting after a long round of Madden testing and binge potato chip eating. We're not going to get all worked up about it right now: it's not like we're short on platforms right now suited to shepherding the hapless lives of our Sims.

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Nokia's QWERTY-slidin' N9 shows up in the wilds of China (update: running MeeGo!)

By Vlad Savov

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 1:47PM

Breaking News

Remember this scandalous little leak from back in June? It looks to have been validated today, as imagery of Nokia's MeeGo (or is it Symbian^4?)-powered N9 QWERTY slider has emerged over in China. As usual with these things, we can't be certain that this device is in fact part of Nokia's roadmap and not just another creative hardware emulation, but it sure seems to have our old buddy Eldar Murtazin convinced. Seeing it with clear N9 branding, we can now say that the previously unknown Nokia slider was more likely the N8-01, a keyboard-equipped version of the (still) upcoming N8. The source of this N9 leak reports that it's not in its final retail shape, as it doesn't match up to "the latest drawings," but is apparently planned for a release in the 48th week (i.e. beginning of December) of this year. The prototype, built in Finland, is said to have an entirely metallic construction (more aluminum would be our guess), with only the keyboard buttons, USB cover, and a few decorative parts being plastic. See more of it, including a thorough teardown, in the gallery below.

Update: A friendly mole of ours ran this handset's serial number through an internal Nokia system and has confirmed it as a Nokia prototype. He was also able to uncover an RM-680 product type classification (further distancing this from the RM-626 slider) and a 0595571 product code. Add those to the "Prototype Build B2" and "Property of Nokia" labeling inside the phone's battery compartment, and you've got yourself a very strong candidate for the real deal here.

Update 2: A closer look at the display reveals that this is running something that bears a heavy resemblance to the MeeGo screens we've seen so far -- and if you run the product code through Google, you see some Maemo 6-related bug tracking results, which of course has since become MeeGo. Good stuff, eh? Thanks, Sockatume!

Nokia's QWERTY-slidin' N9 shows up in the wilds of China?

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British retailer outs HTC Desire Z, confirms Desire HD again

By Chris Ziegler

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 1:14PM

mobiles.co.uk -- which is a subsidiary of European phone giant Carphone Warehouse -- seems to be talking in some very matter-of-fact terms about a couple new Android models from HTC, presumably devices that we'll see at this upcoming September 15 event. First up is the well-leaked Desire HD, which these guys list as a Froyo device equipped with a 4.3-inch display, 1GHz core, 8 megapixel camera with 720p video capture, and 4GB of internal storage (in other words, precisely what we were expecting). More interesting to some, though, will be the Desire Z, which is described as an Android 2.1 device (yes, 2.1, not 2.2) with a full sliding keyboard -- quite likely the Vision, if we had to guess. Gonna be hard to wait for the next month to find out, isn't it?

[Thanks, Richard and Pete S.]

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iPhone 4 cuddles up against telescope, snaps impressive moon closeups

By Darren Murph

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 12:29PM

What's a boy to do when he desperately needs a portfolio full of galactic imagery of his own doing? In most cases, we'd suggest he grab up a telescope (or one of these), the biggest DSLR he can find and a planetary expert who knows a thing or two about exposure. But thanks to a mod that's becoming more and more common these days, it seems that you can replace the latter recommendations with an iPhone 4. Yep -- Apple's latest smartphone, when paired up with a miniature tripod mount and a telescope, can apparently take lovely shots of our dear moon, and if you're struggling to actually spot it, we hear that Planisphere app is pretty handy. Hit the source links if you're scouting some inspiration.

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Verizon launches its first ZTE handset: the Salute F350

By Sean Cooper

posted Aug 19th 2010 at 11:57AM

Nice to see Verizon and ZTE making nice with the newly launched -- but not very surprising -- ZTE Salute. The Salute's launch marks ZTE's second foray into the arms of Big Red this month and the set maker's first top-tier carrier launch in the US. So what does ZTE's little slider bring to the table? A 2.4-inch display, 1.3 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, Bing search, a pile of messaging features, and social apps, of course. Unfortunately the phone only chugs along at 1xRTT speeds, but hey, for only $19.99 after rebate, we expect it'll find some fans. Follow the break for the full press release.

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T-Mobile tells reps the Vibrant GPS update is 'coming soon'

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99%

"Satisfied" iPhone 3GS owners

Of 200 iPhone 3GS users polled in August, 2009, 99 percent termed themselves "satisfied," with 82 percent saying they were "very satisfied."

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Let the hive mind of Engadget get that for you.

"I'm in the market for a new phone and money isn't a limitation. I'm also not partial to any particular US carrier, but here are some of the features I'd like to have: WiFi, GPS, good coverage in lots of places, push Gmail (a must!), physical keyboard (a must!), a touchscreen, decent battery life and a relatively slim body. And please, nothing that has a fruit logo on it. No offense to the fruit fans, though. Thanks!"

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