Hsdpa -- Engadget Mobile

iPhone 3GS prototype scooped up at airport, now on eBay

by Darren Murph, posted Jul 3rd 2009 at 12:44PM

Seriously folks, what's up with these prototype iPhones falling out of nondescript white vans and ending up on eBay in the shadiest of manners? Just months after we saw an original iPhone prototype (ancient OS included) pop up on The 'Bay, now we've got one of the world's first iPhone 3GSs on there as well. According to the highly ranked eBay seller, the "guy" he "got it from" actually stumbled upon it at an airport, and rather than doing the nonsensical thing of hitting up lost and found, he decided to make the most of the sudden opportunity. According to the new owner, an Apple Genius has confirmed that it is an iPhone 3GS, but due to its prototype nature, they can't help him get past the "Connect to iTunes" screen. In other words, it's an incredibly rare brick. If that sounds like just the thing to complete your collection, you can visit the road to overpaying through the read link below.

[Via ElectricPig]

Rogers Magic and Dream now yours for $99.99

by Chris Ziegler, posted Jul 3rd 2009 at 11:23AM

If you're ready, willing, and able to sign up for a new three-year agreement on Rogers, HTC's two inaugural Android sets just got a good deal cheaper for you. Originally priced at $199.99 on contract, both phones are now down to $99.99, which by our very rough calculations is about half off -- a stellar deal, we think, considering you're getting 7.2Mbps HSDPA, capacitive touch, 3.2 megapixel autofocus cameras with video capture, and HTC-customized Android ROMs. Maybe Rogers is discounting so quickly because they figure the phones aren't quite as appealing in light of the recent Hero announcement -- or, more intriguingly, maybe they're prepping for an actual Hero launch of their own now that we know there's an 850 / 1900 3G version in the mix.

[Via Boy Genius Report]

Read - Dream (Black)
Read - Dream (White)
Read - Magic

Palm Pre in cahoots with Dutch provider Hi?

by Thomas Ricker, posted Jul 3rd 2009 at 4:56AM

The GSM version of Palm's Pre looks all set for a UK announcement next week on O2. Now we get this, a Pre spotted on the support site for Dutch carrier Hi in The Netherlands. Fine, but what you may not know is that O2 and Hi (part of KPN) are also deeply intertwined with Telefonica -- O2 being owned by Telefonica and KPN being an "integrated carrier" with a long history of Telefonica courtship rumors. So, putting two and two together might equal a September launch if that previous Telefonica rumor was true.

[Via Tweakers, thanks Harm H.]

Apple patching nasty iPhone SMS vulnerability

by Darren Murph, posted Jul 2nd 2009 at 1:01PM

Given the hype surrounding Apple's iPhone, we're actually surprised that we haven't seen more holes to plug over the years. In fact, the last major iPhone exploit to take the world by storm happened right around this time two years ago, and now -- thanks to OS X security expert Charlie Miller -- we're seeing yet another come to light. Over at the SyScan conference in Singapore, Mr. Miller disclosed a hole that would let attackers "run software code on the phone that is sent by SMS over a mobile operator's network in order to monitor the location of the phone using GPS, turn on the phone's microphone to eavesdrop on conversations, or make the phone join a distributed denial of service attack or a botnet." Charlie's planning to detail the vulnerability in full at the upcoming Black Hat conference, but Apple's hoping to have it all patched up by the end of this month.

[Via HotHardware]

HTC Hero hits FCC with US 3G

by Chris Ziegler, posted Jul 2nd 2009 at 10:54AM

No mention was made of a Hero with 3G that'd work on Rogers or AT&T back at its announcement a few days ago, but HTC has been getting awfully good at making phones that work properly around these parts -- so we can't say we're entirely surprised to see a Hero approved for WCDMA on Bands II and V gracing the FCC today. For the record, Bands II and V are 1900 and 850MHz, respectively, which is exactly the combo AT&T subscribers would need to flip the switch on high-speed data. We're not sure if this negates rumors that the Hero would be coming to Sprint, but if we can just get this version released and in our hands, you know... maybe our minds would be operating with a little more clarity.

Motorola's Aura Celestial Edition soon taking "giant leaps" for "mankind"

by Darren Murph, posted Jul 2nd 2009 at 8:21AM

Here's a fact: the world really doesn't need another mildly tweaked Aura. Sorry, it just doesn't. That being true and all, we're still pretty jazzed to see Motorola giving the ultra-luxurious handset another go with the moon-themed Celestial Edition. Word on the street has it that this here handset won't deviate much from the predecessor, but it will come pre-loaded with multimedia from the original moon landing mission, a laser etched quote honoring the 40th anniversary of the journey and a price tag that's far, far beyond stratospheric. We're told that it's all set to go on sale next month, but good luck finding one.

[Via phoneArena]

Toshiba's TG01 outed on Orange UK

by Thomas Ricker, posted Jul 2nd 2009 at 6:41AM

Well, well, there it is. The world's first and only Snapdragon phone available for retail, Toshiba's TG01, is up and dancing on Orange's UK site with a "coming soon" badge. Soon meaning the July 9th London press event, presumably, where this 9.9-mm slate running WinMo on a 4.1-inch 800x480 pixel display should get a shove out the retail door. Yes, Windows Mobile 6.1, why do you ask?

[Via CoolSmartPhone]

Samsung's SCH-W760 with infrared video conferencing is ready for your parole hearing

by Thomas Ricker, posted Jul 2nd 2009 at 3:18AM

We get it. Sometimes, not often, but sometimes when you're staring into the sad abyss of an empty Tennessee fifth, the idea of initiating an impromptu video conference in total darkness seems mighty compelling. That's where Samsung's SCH-W760 with 7.2Mbps HSDPA and front-facing infrared camera can help. It's available now in Korea and could be the difference between making a solo bed-spin performance or 3- to 6-months served at county for violating your restraining order. The choice is yours for KRW580,000 or about 445 of the green stuff.

Samsung Omnia II coming to Austria in September, WinMo 6.5 included

by Chris Ziegler, posted Jul 2nd 2009 at 2:57AM

Samsung's already committed to offering Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrades to Omnia IIs released with 6.1, but just how necessary is that commitment going to end up being in practice? Microsoft's Austrian outpost has announced that the Korean company's latest WinMo superphone will be launching in the domestic market in September with 6.5 already installed -- suggesting that at least some of these handsets in other markets around the world could be coming out of the gate in the same configuration. It also raises new questions about the market launch for 6.5 on a broader scale; we've always known it'd be hitting toward the end of 2009, but we've never gotten an exact date out of anyone for retail availability -- presumably because it has as much to do with manufacturer partners' plans as it does Microsoft's. We're not saying the Austrian Omnia II will be the first WinMo 6.5 retail device anywhere, but at this point, it's looking likely that this'll be in the first wave.

[Via WMExperts, TamsPPC, and wmpoweruser, thanks Daniel M.]

3 UK launches Nokia N97, Skype calling's a go

by Sean Cooper, posted Jul 1st 2009 at 10:24PM

3 UK has thrown the N97 up on its site, so let the Nokia N97 orders begin. Of course, 3's "free calling" is plastered all over the N97's order page, so if you're a Skype fan, or an existing customer enjoying all that free calling, you'll still feel at home. Pricing on this do-it-all bad-boy is £free as long as you're willing to fork out £35 plus per month for the privilege. If you're more of a pay as you go type, fear not, you can still grab the N97, but it'll cost you somewhere in the £319 range. The website lists July 3rd as the earliest shipping date if you grab at it today, so quit reading and start ordering.

[Via Unwired View]

Nokia N97 firmware update 1.1 is live

by Sean Cooper, posted Jul 1st 2009 at 2:47PM

Well, today is July 1st -- and Canada day, we'll have you know -- and true to our mention and Nokia's word, the N97's update of glory to version 1.1 (11.x.021) has indeed landed. So, what treats lie in store for you lucky Nokia N97 users? According to the changelog posted by Serie-N.it, we can expect a USB detection fix, widget fixes, some MfE (Mail for Exchange) tweaks, UI transition improvements, photo thumbnail performance improvements, and the backlight issue that made out very own Chris Z. howl with rage is apparently patched, too. Yeah, that's all we're seeing, though, perhaps more will come to light once we've seen it updated and hear people telling their tales. Let us know how you get on, won't you?

[Thanks, serie-N.it for the changelog]

Sprint matches Verizon's pace, launching BlackBerry Tour on July 12

by Chris Ziegler, posted Jul 1st 2009 at 1:14PM

So much for exclusivity, eh? Sprint is staying toe-to-toe with Verizon in the race to get the BlackBerry Tour to market, launching the consensus hottest RIM device to date on July 12 for $199.99 on contract after rebates. It's awfully refreshing to see an ominous statement like "later this summer" morph into "early summer" instead of slipping into the "dead of winter" as is all too often the case with hotly-anticipated phones, and we have a sneaking suspicion the Tour's gonna sell like a remastered Bonnie Tyler live album (that's a good thing, by the way). Who's in?

Verizon BlackBerry Tour unboxing

by Chris Ziegler, posted Jul 1st 2009 at 12:12PM

You might say that Verizon's brand new BlackBerry Tour 9630... ahem, took a "tour" through our offices this morning, gracing us with its QWERTY-having, global-roaming, 8830-killing presence. There's absolutely no question it's the best-looking CDMA BlackBerry to date and we also think you'll be able to stop Bold owners in their tracks as you flash this thing around town; we'd argue that the Curve 8900 is still a cuter handset when you take the company's lineup as a whole, but then again, the 8900 lacks 3G, and the Tour's keyboard might just be the best RIM's ever crafted for a phone. Bottom line, owners of any BlackBerry on Verizon or Sprint should be salivating at the sight of this thing -- and if they're not, honestly, they need their salivary glands checked. Stay tuned for our full review, but in the meantime, enjoy an unboxing and a few quick shots of the Tour taking its first breaths!

Gallery: Verizon BlackBerry Tour unboxing

Vodafone launches Europe's first 3G femtocell today

by Chris Ziegler, posted Jul 1st 2009 at 10:42AM

Sprint and Verizon have been enjoying their CDMA femtocells stateside for a while now, but Vodafone becomes the first to do the honors in Europe today by launching the continent's first commercial 3G femtocell, christened the Vodafone Access Gateway. The device -- seemingly sourced from Alcatel-Lucent -- requires an in-home broadband internet connection with a minimum speed of 1Mbps. It's rumored to be capable of full HSPA, enough horsepower to feed even high-end Voda handsets with WiFi-free broadband in places around the home where reception's normally a little dicey (or absent altogether), and it'll drive up to four authorized phones with it at the same time. Anyone on a £30 monthly contract or higher can get it at no charge, but otherwise, you can expect to pay £160 (about $263) for the pleasure of building out Voda's network on its behalf. So, AT&T, what's going on over there, guys?

[Via Slashdot and eWeekEurope]

Palm to disclose UK Pre launch details next week?

by Darren Murph, posted Jul 1st 2009 at 9:06AM

We heard way back at CES that a GSM Pre was in the works, but not until now have we heard who exactly in the world would be using it. According to confirmation received by T3, Palm is gearing up to disclose the whos, whats and wheres behind the UK launch next week, meaning that we've got seven days (give or take) to twiddle our thumbs until we know which carrier (O2 or Vodafone, most likely), how much and when it'll be available for purchase. We know it's agonizing, but at least you've a time frame to circle in your Trapper Keeper now, right?