About.com Smartphones

Motorola Droid: (Some) Shoppers Line Up

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:38:29 +0000

The Motorola Droid, which has been endlessly hyped as the newest iPhone killer, hit stores yesterday. So, how does the launch of Verizon's first Android phone compare to recent launches of high-profile smartphones, like the iPhone 3GS and the Palm Pre? Reaction, so far, seems to be mixed.

CNET.com reported that more than 100 people waited in line at a Verizon Wireless store in Manhattan on Thursday night. The store began selling the Droid at midnight.

By Friday morning, however, fewer -- if any -- people were waiting in line for the Droid. Both EngadgetMobile.com and CNET.com had reports of smaller crowds at Verizon stores on Friday morning. A Computerworld reporter encountered a line of about 20 people at a Boston-area Verizon store on Friday morning.

On Friday afternoon, I encountered no lines at a Verizon Wireless kiosk in a retailer near my Boston-area home. I saw three Verizon reps wearing Droid t-shirts, one of whom was showing the Droid to a customer. But no one was waiting nearby.

Verizon Wireless, however, reportedly is pleased with what the company has seen so far. A Verizon spokesman told CNET, that while long lines may be "flashy," they're not the ultimate goal. "What we really want to see is this: a steady stream of people coming today and for the next few weeks buying new phones."

Image � Motorola

Motorola Droid: (Some) Shoppers Line Up originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Saturday, November 7th, 2009 at 15:38:29.

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T-Mobile Restores Voice, Data Service

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:41:12 +0000

An eight-hour service outage that affected more than one million T-Mobile customers has come to an end. T-Mobile says that all voice and data services are up and running as of 1:25 am Eastern time on Wednesday.

The service outage, which began Tuesday evening, affected 1.7 million T-Mobile subscribers, about 5 percent of the company's 33.5 million subscribers. They were left without access to voice and some data services, including text and picture messaging. T-Mobile says it is investigating the cause of the disruption.

This latest service disruption comes just weeks after users of T-Mobile's Sidekick smartphones suffered a similar service outage. Many Sidekick users lost data in that incident, which was caused by a server crash at Microsoft's Danger subsidiary.

Image � T-Mobile

T-Mobile Restores Voice, Data Service originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Wednesday, November 4th, 2009 at 11:41:12.

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Sony Ericsson's Xperia X10 Joins the Android Party

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:28:08 +0000

Sony Ericsson is the latest smartphone manufacturer to jump on the Android bandwagon. The company today announced the upcoming Xperia X10, its first phone based on Google's Android operating system.

The Xperia X10, which is showcased in a promotional video on YouTube, is packed with features. Its highlights include a big 4-inch touchscreen; that's a step up from the 3.5-inch screen found on the iPhone 3GS. The X10 also packs in an 8.1-megapixel camera that includes a flash, zoom, and touch focus.

In addition to its impressive hardware specs, the Xperia X10 also will offer some unique apps. Sony Ericsson says it will include two apps designed to improve the user experience. One of those apps, called Timescape, will organize messages, including phone calls, text messages, Twitter posts, and Facebook updates, for easier access. The other, called Mediascape, will help users organize and access multimedia content, including music and videos from Web-based sources.

Sony Ericsson says the Xperia X10 will be available next year, but has not named a specific launch date or pricing.

Image � Sony Ericsson

Sony Ericsson's Xperia X10 Joins the Android Party originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 at 16:28:08.

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Can an iPhone Help Your Three Year Old?

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:06:31 +0000

The Boston Globe's Sunday magazine has an interesting article today about kids and smartphones, specifically the iPhone. The article talks about how kids take to smartphones with ease and how using a smartphone can actually help kids learn.

I can attest to the fact that kids take to the iPhone with astounding ease. My two- and four-year old recently discovered my iPhone and they constantly amaze me with the way they're able to use it. I handed it to my son to keep him occupied during a long road trip, and he was easily switching between shows on the iPod ("Mommy, I'm watching Arthur!") and playing games ("Mommy, now I'm playing Tetris!").

Now that I know it might actually be good for them, well, that doesn't mean I'm going to allow them unlimited time with an iPhone. And I'm certainly not going to spring for a new one so the kids can have their own. But it does make me feel better about using the iPhone as a way to keep them busy when we're on the go.

Photo copyright Apple

Can an iPhone Help Your Three Year Old? originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Sunday, November 1st, 2009 at 15:06:31.

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Palm Pixi Coming Soon

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:50:33 +0000

Sprint this week announced an official launch date for the Palm Pixi: November 15. The webOS-based phone will cost $99.99 after a $50 instant rebate and a $100 mail-in rebate.

The Pixi's price is competitive, to be sure. It's half what the Palm Pre cost at launch, though the Pre's price tag has since been lowered to $150. But the Pixi is also not as full-featured a phone as the Pre. It lacks Wi-Fi support, for one, and features a smaller display. The Pixi's screen measures 2.6 inches diagonally, compared to the 3.1-inch screen on the Pre.

But the Pixi also seems designed for a younger crowd. It will feature a new Facebook application that Sprint is touting, which is designed to offer easier access to the popular social networking site.

Stay tuned for a full review of the Pixi.

Image � Palm

Palm Pixi Coming Soon originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Tuesday, October 27th, 2009 at 16:50:33.

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Nokia Sues Apple Over the iPhone

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 14:55:35 +0000

Is Apple winning the smartphone wars by competing unfairly? That's what Nokia claims, in a lawsuit filed late last week. Nokia is suing Apple, claiming that the iPhone infringes on patents that Nokia owns. Nokia says Apple was able to charge less for the iPhone because the company did not pay licensing fees to Nokia for those patents.

In a statement announcing the lawsuit, Nokia says: "The ten patents in suit relate to technologies fundamental to making devices which are compatible with one or more of the GSM, UMTS (3G WCDMA) and wireless LAN standards. The patents cover wireless data, speech coding, security and encryption and are infringed by all Apple iPhone models shipped since the iPhone was introduced in 2007."

Nokia says that 40 other phone manufacturers have licensed the technology in question. Nokia is not asking for a specific amount in damages, but asks the court to award an appropriate amount.

Image � Apple

Nokia Sues Apple Over the iPhone originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Sunday, October 25th, 2009 at 14:55:35.

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BlackBerry Updates the Bold

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:16:48 +0000

Research In Motion today announced a new version of the BlackBerry Bold smartphone, the BlackBerry Bold 9700. The new BlackBerry Bold will be available from both T-Mobile and AT&T in the "coming weeks" for $199.99.

The Bold 9700 features a few notable updates from its predecessor, which is only available on the AT&T network. Those updates include a better camera; the Bold 9700 will sport a 3.2-megapixel shooter, up from just 2 megapixels on the original Bold. The new phone also forgoes the traditional BlackBerry trackball in favor of the optical trackpad first seen on the BlackBerry Curve 8520.

The new Bold is also slightly slimmer and lighter than the first one, measuring 4.3 by 2.4 by .6 inches, and weighing 4.3 ounces. It still has the faux-leatherette backing found on the first version, which didn't wow me, but the use of it has been minimized in the new version.

The BlackBerry Bold 9700 will be T-Mobile's first 3G BlackBerry. It will also support T-Mobile's Wi-Fi calling service, so you'll be able to make voice calls over Wi-Fi networks if you don't have a strong cellular signal. AT&T's version of the Bold 9700 will not offer Wi-Fi calling.

Stay tuned for a full review.

Image � T-Mobile

BlackBerry Updates the Bold originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Wednesday, October 21st, 2009 at 10:16:48.

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Verizon's Android Ad Takes a Shot at the iPhone

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 11:06:07 +0000

Rumors have swirled for months that Verizon Wireless would be the next carrier to offer Apple's iPhone. But a new campaign that Verizon is launching in support of its upcoming Android phone casts doubts on that idea. Verizon's campaign, in the form of a television ad and a companion Web site, highlights the shortcomings of the iPhone, making it hard to imagine how the company would then be able to turn around and promote Apple's phone.

The "Droid Does" TV ad, which began airing over the weekend, and its companion site both reel off a list of things the iPhone can't do:

iDon't have a real keyboard.

iDon't run simultaneous apps.

iDon't take night shots.

iDon't allow open development.

iDon't customize.

iDon't run widgets.

iDon't have interchangeable batteries.

Everything iDon't...Droid does.

The ad focuses on the iPhone's shortcomings without offering many details about the actual Android handset that Verizon will offer. It is widely reported that Verizon's first Android phone will be the Motorola Droid, though, and it is expected to launch on October 30.

Image � Verizon

Verizon's Android Ad Takes a Shot at the iPhone originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Sunday, October 18th, 2009 at 11:06:07.

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iPhone to Get FM Radio?

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:12:58 +0000

The iPhone may be about to gain a new feature: FM Radio. 9to5Mac is reporting that Apple is working on an app that could allow users of the iPhone and iPod Touch devices to listen to FM radio.

The iPhone and the iPod Touch already have a built-in FM receiver, but that feature has so far been limited to receiving signals for Apple's Nike + iPod system. Now, however, Apple may be about to activate the FM receiver for use as an actual FM radio.

9to5Mac says the FM radio app, which is currently in development, would work much like the FM radios on the new iPod Nanos. It would run in the background while you use your iPhone for other tasks. The report says that Apple is looking for a way to incorporate mobile iTunes purchases into the FM radio app, so that if you heard a song you liked on the radio, you could easily purchase it from iTunes.

No word on when the FM radio app for the iPhone might be released.

Image � Apple

iPhone to Get FM Radio? originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Wednesday, October 14th, 2009 at 10:12:58.

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T-Mobile: Missing Sidekick Data Likely Gone for Good

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 20:05:51 +0000

The week-long Sidekick data outage may not have a happy ending for all users: Some data may be permanently lost, T-Mobile and Danger said this weekend.

In a statement posted on T-Mobile's Sidekick forum, the companies say that some users may never be able to recover their contacts and personal photos if that information is stored on Danger's servers. To prevent this from happening, T-Mobile and Danger say that users should not remove their Sidekick's battery, reset their devices, or allow them to run out of power.

"Regrettably, based on Microsoft/Danger's latest recovery assessment of their systems, we must now inform you that personal information stored on your device - such as contacts, calendar entries, to-do lists or photos - that is no longer on your Sidekick almost certainly has been lost as a result of a server failure at Microsoft/Danger," the statement posted on T-Mobile's Sidekick forum reads.

The companies say they will attempt to restore the lost data, but admit the possibility of that happening is "extremely low."

The companies say they will post another update on Monday, October 12, with the status of the "remaining issues caused by the service disruption."

Image � T-Mobile

T-Mobile: Missing Sidekick Data Likely Gone for Good originally appeared on About.com Smartphones on Sunday, October 11th, 2009 at 20:05:51.

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