Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: BestBuy, BestBuyMobile, Google, PalmPre, Rebate, Smartphone, Sprint Nextel, Windows Mobile
Shoppers who pick up their $200 Palm Pre smartphones starting June 6 will have no need to send away to Sprint Nextel for their $100 rebate because all of the U.S.-based 1,067 Best Buy Mobile outlets will provide them on the spot, the retailer said. The question is, will Best Buy have enough phones to sell: Sprint CEO Dan Hesse said he expected Palm Pre handsets to be in short supply “for a while.” CNET/Crave (5/20) , PC Magazine (5/20) , MocoNews.net (5/20)
PC maker Acer will expand its smartphone presence this year with the introduction of 10 models, including one based on Google‘s open-source Android and the remainder running on Windows Mobile software, a top executive said Wednesday. Aymar de Lencquesaing, who heads Acer’s phone unit, said the company had talked to 40 operators, adding: “We’re in discussions with all of them. To date none of them has said ‘thanks, but no thanks, and never come back.’” Reuters (5/20)
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Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: BestBuy, iPhone, Nokia, Palm Pre, RadioShack, Smartphone, Sprint Nextel, Wal-Mart
Sprint has officially announced that the Palm Pre will be launching on June 6th for $200 after a $100 MIR and a two-year contract. You’ll be able to purchase a Pre from Sprint, Best Buy, Wal Mart, and Radio Shack. (http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/05/19/official-palm-pre-to-launch-on-june-6-for-200 5/19)
After Techcrunch broke the news this morning that Nokia was cracking away at a phone-friendly and potentially ad-supported version of their Internet tablet OS, Maemo, they figured they might be able to swing a screenshot. (http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2009/05/18/exclusive-leaked-screenshot-of-nokias-maemo-harmattan/ 5/18)
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Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: AT&T, Handheld, iPhone, Palm Pre, Smartphone, Sprint Nextel, Wall Street Journal, Yahoo
The Palm Pre’s official launch date is set to be unveiled tomorrow in the Wall Street Journal. But it looks like the New York Times may have one-upped its rival
class=”snap_preview_icon”> with a story today giving a launch window for the device. While it doesn’t give an exact date, NYT reports that Sprint will be released in the first week of June, citing people briefed with the company’s plans. (http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2009/05/18/the-pre-will-indeed-launch-days-before-a-likely-iphone-refresh 5/18)
Facing criticism that even the minimum iPhone monthly bill is too high for many consumers, AT&T is reportedly thinking about cutting its prices. The big rumored change is that AT&T would apparently offer a limited data package for $20-a-month, a $10-a-month reduction over the current all-you-can-eat plan. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/18/whats-funny-as-hell-about-the-supposed-att-iphone-plan-price-cut 5/18)
Yahoo is abandoning its mobile apps for the Blackberry and other smartphones in order to focus more on its recently relaunched iPhone app. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/18/yahoo-mobile-abandons-its-blackberry-app-to-focus-on-the-iphone 5/18)
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Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: Amanda Congdon, Bluetooth, HTC Corporation, HTC Touch Pro, iPhone, Rocketboom, Sprint Nextel, Windows Mobile
During its earnings reports today, AT&T posted numbers that easily beat Wall Street’s expectations. Yes, profits were down, but we’re in a down economy, and there’s simply no denying that things would have been much, much worse without the iPhone. (http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/04/22/proof-that-att-needs-to-extend-that-iphone-deal/ 4/22)
In its latest hardware upgrade, U.S. Cellular will market the Windows Mobile-based HTC Touch Pro smartphone for $250 under a two-year contract. The handset includes a 3.2-megapixel camera, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi and EV-DO Rev. A technology. CNET/PhoneScoop (4/21) , MobileBurn (4/21)
HTC Touch Pro for U.S. Cellular(Credit: HTC)
Amanda Congdon, who emerged as the face of indie Internet darling Rocketboom before going on to digital initiatives at ABC and HBO, is resurfacing at Flo TV, the live mobile TV service from Qualcomm. Her series, “Sometimes Daily,” serves up quirky commentaries. (Iwantmedia 4/22, http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3icbbfbd34476c8990e504d0475d03c894 4/21)
As a mobile-DTV group makes progress toward approving a final standard and broadcasters launch free-to-air mobile programming, wireless providers said they hoped to turn the threat into an opportunity by forming partnerships for a premium-content platform. MobiTV, Sprint Nextel, Sinclair Broadcast Group and PBS demonstrated such a service this week, dubbed MixTV, that would add on-demand video subscriptions to the free broadcast content. Telephony Online (4/21) , TVNewsday (4/21)
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Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: Blackberry, iPhone, Mobile phone, QuickPlay, Smartphone, Sprint Nextel, Wi-Fi, WiMAX
Samsung has introduced its new WiMAX-enabled device, Mondi SWD-M100, which features a 4.3-inch touch-screen display, optical mouse and a QWERTY keyboard over Windows Mobile 6.1 software. Samsung, which also announced a new version of its Instinct smartphone for Sprint Nextel, said the Mondi would include an upgrade of its TouchWiz overlay that uses widgets to give users one-touch access to an array of applications on their home screen. PCWorld (3/31) , MobileBurn (3/31
QuickPlay Media plans to deliver full-length television shows to BlackBerry smartphones via Research In Motion’s applications store after forging agreements with networks including NBC, CBS and MTV. QuickPlay will charge a monthly fee of $7.99 for the service. (Iwantmedia 4/1, http://www.reuters.com/article/industryNews/idUSTRE5300S420090401 4/1)
As wireless capabilities drive the sales of high-end products such as the iPhone, more and more phone makers plan to include Wi-Fi in their product lines. According to ABI Research, 90% of smartphones will have Wi-Fi by 2014, compared with just 44% today. Computerworld (4/1)
Research shows mobile-phone makers are betting features such as music players, GPS systems and full keyboards will lure consumers back into the flagging mobile-phone market. ABI Research says 35% of new phones have full keyboards, while 85% have music-playing capabilities. InformationWeek (3/31)
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Filed under: TECHNOLOGY | Tags: AT&T, Consumer electronics, DreamWorks Animation, Mobile phone, Sprint Nextel, Television, Verizon Wireless, WIRELESS
Theater owners are completing 3-D technology upgrades for Friday’s opening of “Monsters vs. Aliens,” the new DreamWorks Animation movie. Hollywood will release more than a dozen 3-D films this year, hoping to offer “something that cannot be achieved at home.” (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aw5HkD.dtnDY 3/26)
Viacom’s Nickelodeon cable network is asking its young audience to unplug their hand-held gadgets, games and cell phones for a minute on Earth Day to symbolize a commitment to helping the environment. The “unplugged minute,” however, doesn’t extend to television sets. (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gX39rdF0RVQBZXsbi3HuFIKNKqoAD9754V301 3/25)
Best Buy Co. reported that profit fell 23% in its fiscal fourth quarter because of depressed consumer demand coupled with overly steep cuts in inventory levels. On the bright side, the consumer-electronics giant beat Wall Street forecasts and picked up market share in the wake of Circuit City’s liquidation. The Wall Street Journal (3/27) , Reuters (3/26) , Financial Times (3/26)
Samsung has started producing a new breed of liquid-crystal-display TV panels that are about a quarter of the thickness of conventional models. The new panels also use an edge-lighting system that is designed to be more aesthetically pleasing and more energy-efficient. Electronista (3/26)
RaySat Broadcasting, which has taken over development work on AT&T’s new CruiseCast in-car satellite-TV service, has retained a handful of vendors to work on key technological aspects of the platform, RaySat said. AT&T, which has not disclosed when the 42-channel service — 20 audio and 22 video — will launch, is said to be finalizing programming contracts that its U-verse IPTV group has been negotiating with content providers. Telephony Online (3/26) , CED Magazine (3/2009)
Ford has begun shipping trucks and vans to dealers with touch-screen PCs installed in their dashboards that house Sprint Nextel CDMA-EVDO network links, the carrier said Tuesday. The system, which runs Windows CE 6.0 software, will cost $50 a month for the wireless service on top of the $1,195 Ford is charging for the PC option. Computerworld (3/24)
Verizon Wireless will enter the laptop business, possibly by next quarter, according to a Bloomberg report, which says the carrier will join AT&T in selling netbook computers, inexpensive PCs designed largely for users to access the Internet. The carrier is expected to work with more than one PC maker, according to the report. Bloomberg (3/26)
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Filed under: WIRELESS | Tags: ABC News, Business, Disney Channel, George Stephanopoulos, Hannah Montana, Phineas and Ferb, Sprint Nextel, Verizon Wireless
The Disney/ABC Television Group, ESPN and Verizon announced a deal to offer a broader selection of programming to Verizon Wireless VCast and mobile web customers. The agreement covers mobile distribution of on-demand, full-length episodes to VCast Video, complementing existing short-form content already available from ABC and ESPN. Full-length programs now available include Desperate Housewives, Grey’s Anatomy, Lost and Ugly Betty from ABC; Nightline, This Week with George Stephanopoulos and 20/20 from ABC News; and Hannah Montana, The Suite Life on Deck and Phineas and Ferb from Disney Channel. (Cynopsis 1/27)
After losing some 1.3 million subscribers during Q3 Sprint Nextel announced it is preparing to eliminate some 8,000 workers or 14.3% of its workforce by the end of March (the same month that Palm is rumored to introduce its new Pre smartphone on the Sprint network.) (Cynopsis 1/27)
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