IPhone 5 Goes Global

The iPhone 5 will be a "global" version, Verizon CFO Fran Shammo accidentally announced, meaning Apple will sell just one universally-compatible model around the world.

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The new iPhone 5 will be able to roam on the "GSM" wireless networks that are common in other countries, putting Verizon on "equal footing" with AT&T, Shammo implied. That also means the phone would be compatible not just with Verizon's CDMA network, but also global GSM technology, which AT&T uses.
There would be no practical benefits for Verizon customers while in the U.S., but it would mean they could use their phones abroad in many GSM-only countries -- including most of Europe -- though doing so might require buying a SIM card.
For Apple, it would mean economies of scale that will keep production costs down because the company would be making one phone model rather than two.
Also, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company is reportedly also in talks with South Korean and Saudi Arabian CDMA carriers to introduce the iPhone 5 in those markets. A globally compatible phone could help Apple sell even more iPhones.
According to earlier reports, the new iPhone will feature a Qualcomm processor chip with NFC, or near-field communication, technology, allowing users to pay for goods and services by tapping their phone on a payment terminal. In addition, it will also be roughly the same size and shape as the iPhone 4, but have a slightly larger touch screen display and be housed in a metal outer frame. The camera and buttons are unmoved.
Sony indicated last month that it would be making an 8-megapixel camera for the iPhone 5 -- if it can overcome production delays caused by the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. But consumers may have to wait until the fall.
Earlier today, Apple nearly doubled profits after shipping over 18 million iPhones last quarter.

Asus Eee Pad Transformer available in the US on April 26th for $399

Good news for those of you looking to grab the forthcoming Asus Eee Pad Transformer. The Taiwanese company’s transforming baby will hit the US shores on April 26th, when you will be able to purchase one for $399. That’s the price of a 16GB WiFi-only model, while the Transformer with 32GB of built-in storage (again the WiFi-only version) will get an additional $100 out your pocket. Furthermore, keyboard — which unfortunately doesn’t come in box — could be yours for $150.

To sum things up, in order to get yourself the Asus Eee Pad Transformer with the keyboard (cause why else would you want it over Motorola Xoom), you’ll have to spend $550. Not too cheap, but then again not too expensive, either.

At the moment, Best Buy is the only retailer listing the Transformer, though I’ve no doubts other companies (Amazon?) will jump on board in no time as well. Moreover, we’re looking forward to see major carriers adding 3G and/or 4G versions of Asus’ tablet to their respective portfolios, offering the device for less on a contract…

A couple of ways to stop your iPhone and iPad from tracking you

Only moments after we discovered how iPhones and iPads were secretly tracking your every step, ways to prevent the disturbing iOS “feature” from operating started popping up on the internet. Sure, logging positional data on your smartphone is not necessarily cause for an alarm, as long as your dossier is immaculate, but we are absolutely convinced there are people simply too paranoid to live with the fear that Big Brother is constantly looking over their shoulder.

Even though a way of completely disabling the logging feature has not been found yet, wiping out the logs themselves is already possible thanks to a little app named untrackerd. The only catch is that it requires a jailbroken iPhone in order to run. Once loaded, untrackerd remains hidden in the background and deletes any positional information that may get stored on the device without your approval.

However, there is a way of being 100% sure your privacy is protected – a last resort, brute force solution that totally cuts off your iDevice from any wireless network. It is called the Standard Black Hole Faraday Bag, and any wireless device placed inside it – a cellphone, tablet, even a pocket FM radio, will be unable to send or receive any radio signals. Unfortunately, that makes any cellphone inside it pretty much unable to make or receive calls until you finally decide to take it out, but hey, it is the price that absolute privacy comes at. Oh, and did we mention that it costs 80 bucks?

If you can think of better ways of stopping iOS from logging your footsteps, feel free to share them with us in the comments below. Or maybe people that truly value their privacy should resort to a different brand instead?

Official: DROID BIONIC release date is scheduled for the summer, coming with enhancements

A few days ago we exclusively informed you there is a great likelihood that the handset which we met as the Motorola DROID BIONIC at CES 2011 won't be the phone that's going to see commercial release with the DROID BIONIC brand.

As you may remember, our tipsters claimed that the model that was showed-off during CES 2011 (codenamed "Etna") will never see the light of day. However, that's not to say that Verizon won't launch a phone named "DROID BIONIC", as it is alleged that Big Red is firmly determined to use this brand, only that it will be a different device altogether - please, shift your attention to the Motorola "Targa".

Confirmation now comes from Motorola (quoted by WSJ) stating the launch of the Motorola DROID BIONIC will happen in the summer. A spokeswoman gives the following reason for this postponement:

"Based on compelling feedback since [Consumer Electronics Show in January], we are incorporating several enhancements to make this an even better consumer experience."

Just what we told you, isn't it? 

Sidekick 4G now available from T-Mobile

Starting today, T-Mobile customers can stroll down to their local wireless store and walk out with a brand new Sidekick 4G. As announced earlier this month, the Sidekick 4G is now lining the retail and virtual shelves of the wireless carrier. For those expecting another Danger handset, think again as the Sidekick has been completely overhauled. No more Danger, no more Sidekick cloud service, the new Sidekick 4G is all about Android and Google’s cloud services.

It’s an Android bonanza as the Sidekick 4G joins the G-Slate and the G2x as a trio of newcomers to T-Mobile as all three devices land in stores today. Spec-wise, the Sidekick includes the following:

• 1GHz processor
• 3.5″ TFT display (480 x 800 pixels)
• slide-out 5-row QWERTY keyboard
• 3MP rear-facing camera
• front-facing VGA camera
• HSPA+ connectivity
• 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n
• GPS
• Bluetooth 3.0
• DLNA
• Android 2.2

This latest addition to T-Mobile’s Android lineup will cost you $99.99 after a mail-in rebate and a two-year customer agreement.

Michigan Police Search Smartphones

The Michigan State Police is reportedly searching drivers' cell phones, accessing contacts, pictures, texts, and even geo-location data, raising questions about privacy abuses in the digital age.

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Civil liberties activist group ACLU accuses the MSP of extracting private information from peoples' phones, saying the police are violating the Fourth Amendment. The police are reportedly using specialized devices from Cellebrite to access people's phones during routine traffic stops with no probable cause or suspicion of wrongdoing.
The devices can even access some information that's password protected, according to reports.
The MSP says it will hand over information about its cell phone searches to the ACLU for an patently obstructionist $500,000 processing fee.
"Cell phones contain information that many people consider to be private, to be beyond the reach of law enforcement and other government actors," said Mark Fancher, ACLU attorney. "There is great potential for abuse here by a police officer or state trooper who may not be monitored or supervised on the street."
Detailed information about the user's friends, movements, activities, and political and religious views could be easily gleaned from trove of messages, photos and contacts in many peoples' smartphones.
But regulations on how and when law enforcement officials can collect such mobile data are arguably still fuzzy. Technology has far outpaced mobile and Internet privacy legislation. The Electronics Communication Privacy Act is 25 years old and doesn't cover Twitter, Facebook or iPhones.
Taking advantage of the confusion, some authorities simply assume privacy protections are minimal, as in Michigan. A recent California court case seems to give police the right to use data from an arrestee's cell phone against him in court without a warrant. The Department of Homeland Security also reportedly searches phones and laptops at airports with murky legal justification.

The new reality of mobile technology demands specific new privacy legislation to offer the same protections that are enshrined in the Constitution. Until those protections are enforced across the States, those who value their Fourth Amendment rights may wish to avoid Michigan.

IOS, Android gains on Nintendo, SONY

Smartphone platforms are making big strides against Nintendo and Sony platforms in the portable gaming market, according to a new study, which is tough news for DS and PSP gaming devices.

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The Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP had their total revenue share cut all the way down from 24 percent in 2009 to just 16 percent last year, reports Flurry Analytics, while the combination of Android and iOS nearly doubled, jumping from 5 percent all video game revenue in 2009 to 8 percent in 2010.
Of the two, Nintendo lost the most in portable gaming as whole, with its DS dropping from 70 percent of portable game revenue in 2009, down to 57 percent last year. The drop for Sony's PSP to 9 percent, from 11 percent a year ago, was less significant.
Flurry's results underscore the increasing disruption that mobile and social games pose to the traditional gaming industry.
The study states that the "significant majority" of the market share for the rising smartphone combination was attributable to iOS gaming, though the survey didn't break down the revenue between Apple's iOS and Google's Android.
The growing smartphone market is fueling some of the strength in iOS and Android games, along with the fact that these games are a lot less expensive. IOS and Android games are often priced at $10 or less, versus the $30 starting price for a DS or PSP title.
The mobile buying model, which increasingly includes in-app purchase billing, makes getting them even easier. Another factor that will help pull portable gaming numbers away from Sony and Nintendo is the emerging tablet market, which many use as portable gaming devices.
News that game developers are beginning to design games for the iPad 2, as well as the introduction of a slew of Android tablets coming to market this year, can't bode well for the DS and PSP makers.
But game device makers are stepping up their game and developing cutting-edge devices to capture consumer interest. Nintendo released the 3DS to strong initial sales, and Sony is looking to launch its high-end NGP with performance enhancing quad-core processor and 5-inch OLED later this year, hoping it might stave off the iOS and Android competition.
Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata recently railed against smartphone games, saying their platforms "have no motivation to maintain the value of gaming," during his keynote address at the most recent GDC conference.
Nevertheless, experts are interpreting the Flurry data to indicate the Nintendo platform is struggling. And to the surprise of some, the culprit isn't Microsoft's Xbox, but rather Apple's iOS.
Despite gains from smartphone platforms, console gaming, as opposed to portable gaming, continues to own the lion's sharing of the gaming market. It comprised 76 percent of the estimated $10.7 billion gaming market in the U.S. last year, up from 71 percent the previous year.

Home›News›Sprint's Dan Hesse speaks out against AT&T's purchase of T-Mobile

The potential acquisition of T-Mobile by AT&T would mean that 80% of the nation's mobile subscribers would be with either AT&T or Verizon. So it's understandable that Sprint is concerned. Sprint will also have to contend with public perception that the wireless market has become a duopoly, rather than the current Big 4.

Sprint CEO Dan Hesse voiced his concerns today in San Francisco, saying that "If AT&T is allowed to swallow T-Mobile, competition will be stifled, growth will be stifled and wireless innovation will be jeopardized."

This statement echoes what Sprint expressed in an earlier press release. Sprint's senior VP of governmental affairs said that "Sprint urges the United States government to block this anti-competitive acquisition. This transaction will harm consumers and harm competition at a time when this country can least afford it."

We don't know if AT&T will use their increased size to lower prices, or raise them. But our chief concern is that a duopoly will result in slower network and device innovation.

Obama Wants Cooler Gadgets

President Barack Obama said he would like a phone upgrade, indicating his disappointment with White House technology.

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"I always thought I was going to have really cool phones and stuff," Obama said at a fundraiser in Chicago. "I'm like, c'mon guys, I'm the President of the United States. Where's the fancy buttons and stuff and the big screen comes up? It doesn't?"
Obama was speaking on the need to innovate in technology when he made the remarks lamenting the lack of technological gadgetry in the White House. The light-hearted comments were reportedly made in response to a question about technological roadblocks, and the President used his personal experience as an example.
Despite the lack of big screens and fancy buttons, the President isn't doing so badly in terms of gadgets.
Last month, Obama disclosed at a town meeting that he just got a new iPad 2, which he tethers to this BlackBerry. When asked about it, he replied, "I do have an iPad. I'm the President of the United States. You think I've got to go borrow somebody's computer?"
In fact, Obama consults regularly with members of the U.S. tech elite, the most recent meeting taking place this past February just outside San Francisco.
Maybe the next time the President meets with these industry executives, he'll ask them to evaluate the state of his electronics. They may have gadgets to recommend.

Windows Phone NoDo update to arrive April 19th for AT&T phones (Updated)

A leaked internal communication confirms the Windows Phone NoDo update will land on AT&T handsets starting April 19th. The carrier has completed testing of the first Windows Phone update and will roll it out to the LG Quantum and Samsung Focus on April 19. For some unknown reason, HTC Surround owners will have to wait until mid-May for the release to become available for their handset.
According to the document, the update will require two steps. Users must first install the pre-update for NoDo and then the NoDo update using the Zune software. The carrier confirms the update includes copy and paste as well as some unidentified features unique to these AT&T branded handsets. Finally, some good news for Windows Phone owners on AT&T who have waited patiently to finally get the NoDo update and capture the full copy and paste experience.
For those who are interested, the full text of the internal AT&T memo is on the second page for your reading pleasure. You can also check out the Windows Phone update page for more information.
Update: Microsoft confirmed in a blog post that the NoDo update for the Samsung Focus and the LG Quantum passed carrier testing. The Redmond company also clarified the reason behind the delay for the HTC Surround with the following statement:

The updates we deliver contain a complex stew of software code. The content often includes not only our fixes and improvements but also software supplied by companies that make the phone itself and the chips inside it. One of these third-party software “packages” earmarked for the HTC Surround needs additional testing by both Microsoft and AT&T. I apologize for the delay. As soon as I have more news, I’ll let you know.

Motorola kills the Etna DROID BIONIC, with the Targa to replace it?

UPDATE 4-14-2011: Some have pointed out that the DROID BIONIC may only be delayed due to battery and performance issues. We'll update you as soon as we have more information on this.

UPDATE 4-15-2011: We recieved new information from our sources that Verizon has asked all their "testers" to return their Motorola Etna DROID BIONIC testing units, as the device will not be released.


We've recieved word from the depths of Motorola that the highly anticipated Etna, commonly know as the DROID BIONIC, which was slated to be Motorola's first 4G LTE smartphone for Verizon, has been canceled due to a variety of reasons.

First off, we got a nice hands-on look at the DROID BIONIC earlier this year at CES, as the phone would be the first for Verizon to come with a NVidia Tegra2 dual-core 1GHz processor, 4.3" qHD display, and 4G LTE data capabilities.

Then a few weeks later we got word that both the Atrix and DROID BIONIC were having power management bugs, which would cause them to overheat and effect the RF performance. When the Atrix was released, our sources said the power management bugs were resolved on the Atrix, but was still having difficulty on the DROID BIONIC.

Since then, we've continued to hear that things were not going well for the DROID BIONIC (Etna), as it continually failed internal testing at Motorola. Not only with the power management, but that there are some major issues with trying to get the NVidia Tegra 2 processor to work right with the baseband chips that control the hand-off between the CDMA, EVDO, and LTE radios.

Because of the variety of issues with the DROID BIONIC (Etna), as well as weak sales of the XOOM, we got word from our trusted tipsters that the "administration" at Motorola has decided to pull the plug on the DROID BIONIC (Etna) all together, and they are not happy about it either, since it was shown at the CES and was expected to come out in Q2.

Because of the cancellation of the Etna, Motorola is placing more effort in releasing the DROID X 2 (Daytona) next, followed by the DROID 3 (Solana), even though they will not support 4G LTE.

It did not make sense for Motorola to keep delaying the release of the Etna due to the issues, and have it come out after the Targa. Because of this, Motorola is ramping-up its plans for the Targa, which will be the 4G device that takes the place of the Etna. Since it is up to Verizon to "name" the device, there is a chance the Targa might still be called "DROID BIONIC" when it is released, or could end up with a different "DROID" label.

The Motorola Targa will most likely be a Q3 summer device, which is placing it a few months behind what the expected release was for the Etna, but from the people that we've talked to, the Targa a much better device and will be worth the wait. It will feature a dual-core processor, 4.3" qHD display, a 13MP camera on the rear, and a 1.3MP camera on the front.

We will keep you updated when we learn more information, and we'll be waiting to see if Motorola officially announces that the Etna will not be the DROID BIONIC, and what their plans are for the Targa.