Palm Pre Has A Release Date

June 6th is the release date for the newly anointed “iPhone killer” called the Palm Pre. And now people will finally have a decent reason for staying with Sprint……. At least for now. The Pre will set you back $199 after a $100 mail-in rebate, (I hate mail-in rebates!!!) and after you sell your cellular soul for 2 years to Sprint.

Think it’s a cawinky dink that the release date is 2 days before Apple’s WWDC keynote?

I get the feeling that Apple isn’t too worried.

[Engadget]

Government is gonna get theirs

If anyone has ever actually looked at their cell phone bill, you know that somehow, some way, they are trying to screw and confuse you.  Looks like the government is adding to it as well.  The New York Post had a recent article that found that “Eleven federal, state and city levies add as much as 33 percent to the cost of New Yorkers' cell phones, a Post analysis found.”

Now mind you that most plans probably have only around 22% taxes added, so it is a little sensationalized.  Wait…what!!!! Twenty-two percent taxes on a service???  Last I checked most services were not taxed.  And almost one quarter, that is just ridiculous.  But at least it’s going towards fixing roads, building schools, funding 911 emergency.  Wait…what!!! Only a small percentage of the per month 911 charge actually goes to it???  I think I smell something rotten.

Apple’s App Refund Policy Is Harsh For Developers

One thing that I love about Apple is that they treat their customers well. I speak from experience from the very few issues that I’ve had with my iPods and iPhone, as they were nothing short of fantastic in resolving those problems. But it looks like Apple isn’t extending that treatment to its application developers for the iPhone and iPod Touch. According to Apple’s return policy, a user can get a full refund on any application within 90 days. Sounds great right? Well Apple states that they will refund the full amount to the user, but have the right to keep their commission from the sale. This means that Apple will give the user his/her money back, but will require the developer to reimburse them. Apple charges 30% of all apps sold and the developer gets 70%, but with this return policy the developer will have to return 100% of the sale to the user even though they only made 70% profit.

Now I understand that Apple would have to pay bank fees on charges, but surely they don’t add up to 30%. Apple should only require the developers to refund the amount that they received from payment, and not the kickback that Apple gets.

Here is the contract:

In the event that Apple receives any notice or claim from any end-user that: (i) the end-user wishes to cancel its license to any of the Licensed Applications within ninety (90) days of the date of download of that Licensed Application by that end-user; or (ii) a Licensed Application fails to conform to Your specifications or Your product warranty or the requirements of any applicable law, Apple may refund to the end-user the full amount of the price paid by the end-user for that Licensed Application. In the event that Apple refunds any such price to an end-user, You shall reimburse, or grant Apple a credit for, an amount equal to the price for that Licensed Application. Apple will have the right to retain its commission on the sale of that Licensed Application, notwithstanding the refund of the price to the end.

Apple, you treat your customers like gold…… But your developers.... not so much!!!

[TechCrunch]

Plug-in charging shelf makes sense, costs $13

Ah, the eternal struggle of figuring out where to put your gadgets while they charge. So far we’ve got: the floor, a table and/or desk, a chair, a window sill, a dresser, and your bed. Now add "Plug-in Shelf Portable Cell Phone Charging Station" to the list.
It’s a simple idea that makes sense. The apparatus plugs into an outlet, you plug the charger into said apparatus, and through the magic of cord-wrangling, you wrap your adapter’s existing cord slack around the charging station and set your phone atop its built-in shelf.
So how much would you pay for such a miracle of modern technology? $5,000? No! $500? No!! $50? Maybe! How about $12.95 with free shipping? Yay!

Plug-in Shelf Portable Cell Phone Charging Station

[CPDocks.com via GearLive]

This looks like a great idea. Might have to get one.

Blackberry Thunder Out And About

While the world is getting ready for the anouncement of the new iphone 2, RIM is doing its best to upstage the party. Boy Genius Report has photos of the said iphone killer called the "Blackberry Thunder", which was conveniently made available a day before the iphone announcement. It's said to be scheduled to drop in Setember, and will be exclusive to Verizon wireless.

This might be good news to some who's reception with AT&T sucks, and won't have the option of the iphone.

[Boy Genius Report]

Sony Tries To Distract You From Profit Loss, Intros Z780 & G502

Far be it for me to kick a company when they’re down (oh who am I kidding), but Sony just released the Z780 clamshell and the G502 candy bar style. Not sure if Sony did this to distract everyone from the 48% profit loss (compared to last years Q1 earnings) that they announced. The Z780 comes with UMTS/HSDPA 850/1900/2100 and quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE. It also has Google Maps and GPS built in, but it might be a bit difficult to read on a screen that only has 128 x 160 pixel display. The G502 has UMTS/HSDPA 2100 and GSM/GPRS/EDGE 900/1800/1900. It also has Google Maps but doesn’t have GPS, which isn’t important if you’re in the U.S. because this phone is only for Europe. Both phones will have M2 memory expansion, Bluetooth, and 2 megapixel cameras come launch in Q2.

Not sure if this will be enough to get Sony off the floor, but they’re at least trying to get your mind off of it.

[Engadget]

Windows Mobile 6.1 Walk Through

If you're wondering what the hype is all about for Windows Mobile 6.1, the guys at BGR have a walk through for you.

Check it out.

[BGR via Crunchgear]

Driving And Texting In Phoenix = Ticket

Well if you're planing to drive through Phoenix anytime soon, you better not text message while doing it. The Phoenix City Council made it illegal to text message while driving within their city limits. Drivers cannot send or read text messages while operating a vehicle, or face a citation for doing so. The first ticket was issued on November 5th, and the city hopes that this will be a deterrent to texters and hopefully prevent more accidents.

Yeah right!

Phoenix hands out its first citation for texting while driving [AZ Central via Crunchgear]

Nokia N82 Photos Leaked.

Lookie...Lookie!!!

The Nokia N82 photos have leaked a day before launch. This phone looks damn good! No details on the functions, but stay tuned.

Nokia N82 Press Pics leaked on Nokia site [Unwired View via Crunchgear]

Nokia 8800 Gets 3G For $800 More

I remember when the Nokia 8800 first hit the streets, I instantly fell in love with this phone, until I saw the price. The Nokia 8800 had no touch screen, no 3G, no Wi-Fi, just a phone, Edge technology and a staggering sticker price of $800. That was two years ago, so with all the new features out today, you would think the price would've dropped by now? Nope!

In fact, the price is going up. Now Nokia is introduced two 3G edition 8800s, and jacking up the price to $1,470 for the Arte version of the 8800, and $1690 for the Sapphire Arte. But Nokia was kind enough to though in a 3.2 megapixel camera, 1G of on board memory, and anti-fingerprint coating.

Yay!!!

I know that this phone is Nokia's "flagship", but that's just plain dumb. I guess this phone was made for rich people ust to say "I've got a phone that you can't afford". If that's the case, well done Nokia, well done!

The New "Twins" Is Worlds First Dual Mode Phone

TechFaith Wireless Communication Company has developed what they call the "World's first WCDMA/GSM dual mode phone.". The China based company is calling the new cell phone the "Twins", and it gives you the option of loading one WCDMA and one GSM card, or 2 GSM SIM cards in the same phone. So there will no longer be a reason of swapping out SIM cards or carrying two phones for business and personal lines.

It has a 2.0 megapixel camera, MPEG4 player, MP3 player, Bluetooth, WCDMA modem, video call capability, and a 2.8" touch sensitive TFT-LCD display.

No word on pricing or when this will be state side.

[TechFaith via Gizmodo]

T-Mobile HTC Shadow: Nice UI

T-Mobile might have a winner on their hands with the new HTC Shadow. The new Shadow doesn't have a touch screen like its brother, but it runs Windows Mobile 6 like no other. Its UI hides the usually drab look of WM6, and gives it a different feel. It's due in the stores on Wednesday, the unit will price for $200 with a voice-plan or $150 with $20-per-month unlimited data plan.

Both come with the 2-year cellular servitude obligation.

[Gizmodo]

BlackJack II Officially Announced

The BlackJack II was officially announced today by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at the CTIA 2007 in San Francisco. The new 3G Smartphone will have alot of new stuff and will be available at the end of the year for $149.99, of coarse with the stick up of a 2-year contract agreement with AT&T. The official spec looks like this:

• AT&T Video Share, the first service in the US that enables users to share live video over the wireless phones while on a voice call. BlackJack II is the first AT&T business-oriented smart device to feature Video Share.
• Built-in GPS, Support for location-based applications such as TeleNav GPS Navigator™.
• Global phone capabilities. Tri-band 3G UMTS/HSDPA and Quad-band EDGE/GPRS technology takes advantage of AT&T's industry-leading international wireless footprint for access to e-mail, the Web and other data applications in more than 135 countries—including Japan, South Korea and China—and customers can make or receive phone calls in more than 190 countries.
• An RSS Reader Client to compile syndicated Web content in a single location for easy viewing.
• Significant improvement in the standard battery capacity to get you through the day.
• A 2.0-megapixel camera with video-capture capabilities.
Increased standard memory.
• A louder and clearer speakerphone.

A big thanks to Gizmodo for this information. [AT&T]

Apple Says 250,000 iphones Unlocked

Rather interesting news coming out of Cupertino today, specifically about the iphone. Apple reports that of the 1.4 million iphones that were sold, 250,000 were bought with the intent to unlock. Apple states that many of the 250,000 were purchased after the price drop, with many of them going to U.S. T-Mobile or exporters.

As you can imagine, this isn't an insignificant number to Apple, and I see why they're going to such lengths to lock the phones again. But Apple has always been known to listen to their customers and provide the things that they want. So why don't they just release an unlocked version of their phone and allow consumers to choose?

Isn't that the essence of "Think Different"?

[Engadget]

Samsung G800: 5 Megapixel Camera Love

Samsung has dropped their ass kicker of a phone in Europe. The Samsung G800 multimedia cell phone is being called the photographers phone, as it has a 5 megapixel camera built in and a whole arsenal of goodies. In addition to the 3 x optical zoom, it has a Xenon flash, face detection and WDR (Wide Dynamic Range) technology, and can take panoramic shots. This thing even has professional video editing functions, along with mobile blogging functions.

No word on pricing or when it will be available state side.








[Gizmodo]

Porsche P'9521: Cell phone: Cool Price: Huh!!!

I have to admit that I kind of like this clamshell handset Porsche Design cell phone. It's made out of aluminium and mineral glass, and weighs 137g. But what is cool about this thing is that it's packed with tons of stuff like fingerprint reader, a 3.2-megapixel camera with auto-focus and dual LED photo lights. The Porsche P'9521 screen can also spin 180 degrees, so you can use it as a view finder.

I think that the biggest problem with this phone is one of my biggest complaints about Porsche itself....... the price tag! This cell phone comes in at a whopping $1634!!!

Ah.. come on!!!

[Crave]

Samsung Bluetooth Headset: For Sweaty People

Samsung was definitely busy today with the Blackjack II, but they didn't want to send it out into the wild without some head gear. The Samsung WEP-430 Bluetooth headset is designed for the active lifestyle, and fits behind the ear to keep you from losing it while running from the cops. It has two microphones, echo reduction, Bluetooth 2.0, 5 hours of talk time, and a whopping 110 hours of standby time.

Like the Blackjack, no word on availability for the headsets. But stay tuned.

[Le Journal du Geek via Gizmodo]

Cellphone Jammer: Lets Others Co-exist With Morons

Nothing drives me crazy like some jag who's decided to include you in a one sided conversation during a movie. If you have to take a call, why can't you get your lazy ass up and go outside the movie? Why must I have to hear about your plans to get together with your booty call?!

Well I've got an answer for you. This palm size cellphone jammer by Brando is small enough to carry around in your pocket, and has a range of up to 30 feet. At a cost of $166, it might be the best investment any movie goer has made in a long time.

I'm sure that using this thing isn't exactly legal, so be careful.
Only turn it on when that punk won't get off the phone. (I'm kidding, kinda)

[Brando via Gizmodo]

Nokia's N95 Is In The Wild

Well if you're lucky enough to live in Chicago or New York, head on down to the Nokia store and check out the new release from Nokia. The much anticipated N95 with 3G from Nokia has finally hit the streets, and it looks pretty sweet. The phone is shipped unlocked so you can choose which ever carrier you would like (hello Apple), but the phone is going to set you back $700.

Wow!!!

Check it out after the cut. [Product Page via Crunchgear]

Faux GPS Application For The iphone

One of the features that I was counting on with version 2 of the iphone was GPS, well it looks like anyone who was waiting for that might not have to wait that long.

Well kinda.

Navigation, which is a faux GPS application that you install on your iphone for FREE, that simulates what a GPS system does. They call it a peer to peer location detection, which gathers your location by determining how far you are from cell tower to cell tower. It's accurate within a few hundred feet, which is good enough to get you most places, and it's better than nothing.

Oh... did I say that it's FREE!!!

[navizon via Gizmodo]