Cell Phones / Accessories

After almost a year of rumors, Dell finally made its first smart phone official. The Mini 3i will launch in China in November and in Brazil by the end of the year. Details, including specs and pricing, are scarce right now, but we do know that the Mini 3i– just the first of handsets to come, says Dell– will run Android, a safe choice given how the OS is taking off. (One lucky Chinese blogger already did an unboxing.)

In China, the carrier will be China Mobile, and the phone will not have 3G connectivity there. However, the phone will have both 3G and Wi-Fi in Brazil, where it will be offered by the carrier Claro. We wouldn’t be surprised if that were the same Mini 3iX with 3G and Wi-Fi that showed up in FCC documents this month.

Despite the leakage of these FCC documents, Dell hasn’t confirmed U.S. availability. Rumors have suggested that AT&T will pick up Dell’s first smart phone, but neither AT&T nor Dell has confirmed this. It’s worth noting that AT&T is the only major U.S. carrier to have not announced any Android phones yet.

Although Dell made the Mini 3i official, it still left plenty to the imagination. Among the many rumors we’ve heard this year, one was that Dell shopped around a smart phone to U.S. carriers and was soundly rejected. Our guess is that Dell is working on a way for their phone to stand out here, perhaps like Motorola did with Motoblur and HTC did with Sense? One thing’s for sure: Dell won’t be able to rely on its brand alone to win over an increasingly smart phone-savvy public.

Yesterday the New York Times’ David Pogue called Verizon Wireless to the carpet for what he sees as another example of the company’s price gouging, this time centered around millions of users’ accidental data usage. Both Verizon customers and an employee reported that 1MB data charges (which cost $1.99) appear on bills even if the phone user hadn’t intended to download data.

“They configure the phones to have multiple easily hit keystrokes to launch ‘Get it now’ or ‘Mobile Web’—usually a single key like an arrow key. [...] We cancel these unintended requests as fast as we can hit the End key, but it doesn’t matter; they’ve told me that ANY data–even one kilobyte–is billed as 1MB. The damage is done.”

The Verizon employee says that everyone at the company is aware of this problem but won’t do anything about it because it generates hundreds of millions in revenue. Even customers who have data blocked are still hit with the fee when they accidentally hit these phone keys. They’re charged for receiving the message that data has been blocked.

We asked a Verizon Wireless representative for their side of the story. Click here for their response:

In case you hadn’t noticed, Google’s Android OS has a lot of momentum right now. With eight Android smart phones available in the U.S. this holiday season—most of them new–there’s a lot of excitement around this open and highly customizable platform. But there’s a difference between the stock Android interface on devices like the new Motorola Droid ($299.99), and others like the HTC Hero ($610.86) and Droid Eris (Sprint and Verizon) and Motorola CLIQ (T-Mobile).

That difference is a custom user interface that delivers more screens for you to customize and smarter ways of managing contacts and tapping into your social networking feeds. HTC calls its experience Sense, while Motorola dubs its service Motoblur. But what kinds of features do these skins on steroids offer, and how do they compare to the stock Android 2.0 OS? Read on to find out:

The holiday shopping season is upon us once again and that means it’s time for our Gadget Gift Guide, the only resource you’ll need to find the perfect presents for your tech-loving friends and family. Or, just shop for yourself (everyone does).

We broke down our top cell phone picks by carrier and by budget to help you find the perfect match:

AT&T Phones — Though the iPhone is still AT&T’s star player, the Nokia Surge offers a full QWERTY keyboard, access to the Web and e-mail, plus quick access to Facebook and Twitter for under $30.

Click here for our Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon picks.

Everyone loves the idea of a watch phone, but the reality of smart phone watches has been far different from our Dick Tracy fantasies. We’ve seen a couple of wrist devices demoed, including the Kempler & Strauss WatchPhone, but they all have a fundamental problem. Their screens are too small to display a serious smart phone operating system like BlackBerry OS, Android, or Windows Mobile. On the other hand, having to whip your BlackBerry out of your pocket every time you receive an e-mail or an IM can be a pain. What if you could wear a watch that comunicates with your BlackBerry and displays a list of messages right on your wrist?

CrackBerry has posted some pictures and details about a rumored BlackBerry watch accessory that will work together with your BlackBerry to show message previews and alerts. CrackBerry says the phone will feature an OLED screen and be called the inPulse smartwatch.No details are available about pricing or availability as this is just a rumor. Still, we hope RIM is really working on this device as it would be a welcome accessory for BlackBerry addicts everywhere.

via Crackberry and Engadget

The Cliq isn’t just the third Android phone in T-Mobile’s lineup. This device represents Motorola’s first major step in its effort to make a comeback with consumers. And if this phone is a sign of things to come, we think Motorola is definitely on the right path. Thanks to a highly customizable user interface and an ambitious Motoblur service, which puts all your social networks—such as Twitter and Facebook—front and center, the Cliq is an excellent smart phone. Add in a 5-megapixel camera, 3.5mm headphone jack, and a comfortable keyboard (not to mention tight integration with Google’s services), and you have a device that runs circles around the myTouch 3G.

Read our full review >>

It’s really more like a do-over than a sequel. While the original BlackBerry Storm suffered from sluggish performance, glitchy software, and a maddening touchscreen keyboard, the Storm2 fixes nearly everything we criticized about the earlier device. It’s faster (especially when surfing the Web), more stable, and typing is more accurate and feels less like a chore. Plus, RIM has added Wi-Fi connectivity, and doubled the amount of onboard memory. But just because the Storm2 is better than its predecessor doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better than the competition.

Read our full review here »

Where there are cell phones for show, accessories aren’t usually far away. But at this fall’s CTIA, I’ve seen shockingly few headsets (I think, in general, apps might be the new accessory). In fact, the only earpiece I’ve seen is by LG, whose HBM-570, announced earlier this week, is on display.

And it’s interesting looking. Not like the Aliph Jawbone, which is made of medical-grade plastic, but instead, with a brushed metal, thumb-sized body and glowing blue LED that takes up a third of the headset. I can’t decide if I would wear it, but I appreciate the design nonetheless. I prefer it in silver, as pictured, but you can get it in three other colors, including purple, pink, and black.

The other interesting thing: the price. At $69.99 it’s one of the few mid-range headsets left (for the most part, the category has splintered into budget headsets, selling for well under $50 at retail, and high-end headsets with suggested prices of $100 or more). So, while it has a higher suggested price than any budget headset, it’s inexpensive for a headset that offers both noise and echo cancellation. It’s the budget of premium headsets

The headset supports Bluetooth 2.1, which is designed to pair with devices more easily than previous generations of Bluetooth. It also claims a fairly average talk time of 5 hours.

If Samsung’s Moment, announced today, offers too little touch for you, take the plunge with the Omnia II, an all-touch phone with a 3.7-inch AMOLED display. We reported on this phone over the summer, but this is the first time we’ve seen it in person.

Unlike the Moment, which features Android’s stock UI, the Omnia II has Samsung’s TouchWiz UI layered over Windows Mobile 6.1. Up close, the colorful interface seems the perfect complement to the bright, vibrant AMOLED display. In person, the touchscreen felt responsive; we could change screens even with a light tap.

One thing I can’t understand: if Verizon and Samsung waited all these months to release it, why load Windows Mobile 6.1 on it when 6.5 is already out? An outdated OS on such a sleek, fast phone seems like a shame, especially when the new version offers a prettier interface (if not much else, depending on who you ask).

Want to see it in action? Check out our video walk-through below.

Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday HTC launched the HD2, its top tier Windows Mobile 6.5 device. But what makes this device stand out against all other Windows Phones is what HTC added to it. Microsoft provided the Windows Mobile 6.5 canvas, and HTC painted fine art on top of it.

Under the hood, HTC added OS support for multi-touch, which allows the HD2 to use a capacitive screen. That means you can zoom around Web pages, photos, and more by pinching or pulling your fingers. This is a feature Microsoft should have added native support for.

Read the rest of this entry »