Best of CTIA Wireless 2008

Today, Motorola announced the MOTOROKR S305, a pair of stereo Bluetooth headphones. Like previous models, such as the S9, it targets active users with its lightweight, yet sturdy design, which includes soft earpads and a flexible neckband.

Like the new iPod Shuffle, the S305 takes a minimalist approach to design, combining all the controls for both voice calls and music playback in one navigational pad.

The headphones also promise strong bass and volume, thanks to their dynamic speakers. Motorola also claims six hours of battery life, which is likely longer than your music player (or even phone) lasts.

They will be availabe in April. Pricing has not yet been announced.

Today, Logitech took the wraps off some of their early  2009 entertainment offerings: the G19 keyboard, G35 headset, and Harmony 1100 remote.

The G19 ($199) is a Mac- and Windows-compatible gaming keyboard designed to give you the one-up over enemies during all-night frag fests. The 19.5 x 10.5 x 2.0 inch keyboard features a GamePanel LCD (for at-a-glance game and system info), 12 programmable G-keys, multi-key input, two USB 2.0 ports, and a user-selectable backlight color.  You can expect it to hit stores in March.

The G35 ($129) is a Dolby-powered headset that delivers 7.1 surround sound, a noise-reducing mic, volume and voice morphing keys, and three swappable headband pads (thin, thick, contoured).  This Windows XP- and Vista-compatible headset (which connects via USB instead of a headphone jack) will be available for purchase in March.

The Harmony 1100 universal remote ($499) rocks a 3.5-inch color touchscreen display, support for over 225,00 devices and 5,000 brands, personalized soft buttons, and RF wireless technology that lets you control your entertainment set up even when they aren’t within line of sight. This Mac- and Windows-compatible remote will be available next month.

Proving that you don’t need a smart phone to have a smart interface, Sprint’s new One Click menu system makes it dead simple to access everything from your text messages and e-mail to Sprint’s navigation and music services. We love the carousel-style UI, and that you don’t have to dig through sub-menus to get to what you want, including YouTube.

Being able to conduct a Google search right from the main screen (a feature once available only on Palm Treos) is convenient. Plus, you can customize One Click to show your favorite Web sites. One Click will be available on the Samsung Highnote, Rant, and LG Lotus when those phones become available in October, and the Sanyo Katana will follow. This UI not only saves time, it will encourage Sprint customers to take full advantage of all the carrier’s services–making the Simply Everything plan that much sweeter.

RIM didn’t just slap a lid on its most compact smart phone. The BlackBerry Pearl Flip was intelligently designed, featuring a clever dropped hinge that makes the device comfortable for typing and stable while taking pictures with the 2 megapixel camera. The 320 x 240 display is sharp, and the new OS 4.6 runs (wich included Dataviz to Go) runs smoothly on this clamshell.

The Flip’s SureType keyboard is bigger than on the original Pearl, and it’s smart enough to recommend words after you’ve tapped just a couple of letters. Built-in Wi-Fi for fast surfing and making calls at hot spots; a welcome 3.5mm headphone jack; and a beefed up browser and media player solidify the Pearl Flip as one of the hottest smart phones of the year.

DataViz’s Documents To Go for BlackBerry OS 4.6 wins our best Software/Service award hands down because it’s the very foundation that allows new BlackBerry 4.6 and 4.5 owners to access Office documents on their BlackBerrys. More importantly, the software comes packaged free.

For a richer Documents To Go experience, you can pay for the premium version on your BlackBerry, which will enable a host of other abilities, like creating new documents, or viewing graphs inside Excel files, and you can try all of these features for 30 days before upgrading, but we were perfectly pleased with all of the features that come in the free version. We look forward to seeing it on the next generation BlackBerrys including the BlackBerry Bold and BlackBerry Pearl Flip.

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Who needs an iPod? Seriously, once you load the Slacker application for BlackBerry on your smart phone, you won’t need to carry a separate music player. When this app launches in October, you’ll be able to take thousands of songs with you from stations you either choose or customize–for free. And you can further personalize your stations on the go using the integrated Favorite and Ban buttons via Slacker’s slick user interface.

Unlike Pandora, you can also learn more about new artists as they pop up and–if you’re a Premium Radio subscriber ($7.50 per month)–you can save the songs you like right to your device to hear anytime. The best part about the Slacker application for BlackBerry is that you don’t need a good 3G signal to rock out; smart caching technology allows you to sync your stations over USB (Wi-Fi is coming later) and listen to your stations on a cross-country flight.

We couldn’t stop talking about Samsung Rant’s super affordable price and full feature set. $49.99 and a Sprint contract will get you a phone that provides everything from Sprint Navigation to Sprint TV, a large QWERTY keypad for easy texting, and a 2MP camera for shots on the go. It uses Sprint’s brand new One Click interface for quick access to YouTube, Google, and the Web.

The Rant looks most attractive for teens or adults craving a full featured device, but without the complexity and pricing of a smartphone.

With AT&T’s recent announcement that it would provide customers with assisted GPS capabilities on its handsets, we had to check out AAA Mobile Navigator, the solution AT&T had decided on. Powered by Networks In Motion, AAA Navigator providers AT&T subscribers with voice guided turn-by-turn directions, local traffic alerts, gas prices, and even entertainment information like local movie theater times and starred restaurant reviews.

But the most important aspect is its support for AAA service. Drivers can send their location using AAA Mobile Navigator directly to AAA for roadside assistance. For $9.99 per month or $2.99 per day, dark and desolate roads will never be frightening again.

Samsung and Sprint are moving touch in an exciting new direction with the Samsung Instinct, a device that offers vibrating tactile feedback, fast EV-DO Rev. A data, and GPS capability in a slick design. What makes the Instinct truly innovative is its customizable Favorites menu, which enables users to access everything, from specific contacts and Web sites to Sprint TV stations, with a single tap.

The Instinct, arriving in June, also impresses with the way it uses voice recognition. Not only can you launch applications and send text messages by pressing the Voice to Action button, you can also look up nearby businesses via Live Search from Sprint. From there you can get turn-by-turn driving directions from the TeleNav-powered Sprint Navigation service.

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GPS on your cell just got much better. Networks In Motion’s AtlasBook Navigator, which will be the platform for the next version of Verizon Wireless’ VZ Navigator service, provides audible, turn-by-turn directions and now access to real-time traffic data.

Compatible with a wide variety of handsets, the service delivers traffic updates and finds local detours around congestion and accidents, all with the touch of a button. Even on a small screen AtlasBook Navigator offers a clean interface and easy-to-read maps. Add in a new 3D perspective view, movie and events finder, weather reports, and gas prices at nearby stations, and you have one of the best mobile tools you can fit in your pocket.

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