Cell Phone Hub

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No matter how accustomed we should be by now, it’s always jarring to see one of the Nokia N-series phones drop at some outlandish unsubsidized price — if you think the $556 tag on this N85 is hefty, keep in mind that Amazon is claiming that’s already been steeply discounted from an atmospheric $1,200 “list price.” While the phone is available to “buy” right this second at Amazon.com, there’s a 3 to 5 week ship time quoted, so there’s no telling if this’ll be the first spot to nab the hotly-anticipated, N96-besting AMOLED handset in the States — though it might be the first to take your hard earned cash for such a purpose.

[Via OLED-Info]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Nokia N85 pops up at Amazon for $556 unlocked originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 Nov 2008 20:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Okay, remember that bit about waiting for a wide release? Yeah, screw that noise. Firmware 4.7.0.75 for the BlackBerry Storm has drizzled out onto the interwebs, and initial reports from intrepid updaters seem to be generally positive. We can’t verify the authenticity of this sucker, but if you were counting down the minutes until RIM got around to patching up issues and killing some lag, 75 might be a good start. Good luck, friends.

[Thanks, Erik]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

BlackBerry Storm update leaks to the masses originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 Nov 2008 00:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Earlier this month, the almighty RAZR fell from the top spot as America’s best selling handset. Now, we’re finding that the RAZR3 / Ruby has been canned. Granted, the move isn’t all that surprising — after all, Moto’s known for awhile now that it simply can’t keep tweaking the RAZR instead of, you know, innovating. But honestly, if this signals that the company is serious about moving forward and possibly adopting Android on the double, we won’t shed a tear. Okay, maybe one, but only after all the lights are out.

[Via UnwiredView]

Filed under: Cellphones

Motorola cancels RAZR3 / Ruby, era comes closer to an end originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 29 Nov 2008 08:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We’ve decided to end the Engadget Black Friday Giveaways with a blast from the past. Remember this guy? It seems like only a week ago that Apple was being accused of ripping off this LG and Prada collaboration with the iPhone. Ah… memories. Well, you can at least still impress some folks down at the local discotheque with this one — just make sure no one accidentally pours a vodka and Red Bull on it. Here’s how we do it.

We’ll put up a gadget on the site, and you can only enter it until the next gadget lands (usually within a couple of hours). If you miss your shot, sorry, we’re moving on to the next gadget. Good luck! Oh, and don’t forget the rules. (Yeah, there are always rules.)

• Leave a comment below. That’s it! Who loves you, baby.
• You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You can enter different giveaways in today’s Black Friday giveaways, but you can only enter this one once.
• If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you’ll be fine.
  
• Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers or US contest laws if you have to be mad.
• Winners will be chosen randomly.
• Entries can be submitted until the next contest goes up. After that we’re all done. Good luck!
• Full rules can be found here.

Last round’s winner: Apitt! (Remember, winners are selected at random.)

Filed under: Cellphones

Black Friday Giveaways (part 10): the LG Prada phone originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 23:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Tired of always having to hold that heavy phone up to your ear? Sick of being the target of your friends ridicule? Want to escape the indescribable pain of not being able to use both hands when you’re on a call? The Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth headset is here to help. Ready to win this baby? Here’s how it’s done.

We’ll put up a gadget on the site, and you can only enter it until the next gadget lands (usually within a couple of hours). If you miss your shot, sorry, we’re moving on to the next gadget. Good luck! Oh, and don’t forget the rules. (Yeah, there are always rules.)

• Leave a comment below. That’s it! Who loves you, baby.
• You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You can enter different giveaways in today’s Black Friday giveaways, but you can only enter this one once.
• If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you’ll be fine.
  
• Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers or US contest laws if you have to be mad.
• Winners will be chosen randomly.
• Entries can be submitted until the next contest goes up. After that we’re all done. Good luck!
• Full rules can be found here.

Last round’s winner: Richard! (Remember, winners are selected at random.)

Filed under: Cellphones

Black Friday Giveaways (part 9): Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth headset originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This one’s been a long time in the making, but the deal is finally done. Clearwire and Sprint Nextel have gleefully announced that the transaction to combine their next-generation wireless internet businesses is complete, and beers are on the two of ‘em this evening. On the real, the agreement dictates that Sprint hand over all of its 2.5GHz spectrum and WiMAX-related assets (including XOHM) to Clearwire; additionally, Clearwire has received a $3.2 billion cash infusion from Comcast, Intel, Time Warner Cable, Google and Bright House Networks. Details beyond that are scant, though we are told that the terms “originally announced on May 7, 2008″ are the ones being abided by, and the new company will retain the Clearwire name and its Kirkland, Washington headquarters.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless

Clearwire and Sprint close deal to combine WiMAX businesses originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 19:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We knew this day would eventually come, but somehow we’re still misting up a little — Linux has been ported to the iPhone and iPod touch. Dev Team member planetbeing is the mastermind in charge of bringing everyone’s favorite open-source OS to Apple’s handhelds, and while it’s a little rough around the edges (read: no touchscreen drivers, sound, or WiFi / cell radio support), it’s definitely the first step on the road to hacking nirvana. The team is hard at work, and it even sounds like they’re thinking about porting Android in the near future (!), so hit the read link to try it out and lend a hand if you can — or just head on past the break for a quick vid of the port in all its text-scrolling glory.

[Via iphone-dev.org; thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading Linux hits the iPhone!

Filed under: Cellphones

Linux hits the iPhone! originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 19:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For now, Android’s got about as much enterprise support as a Sidekick (well okay, a little more, but not much) — so that’s got to be keeping G1s out of the hands of throngs who are too tied-down to Exchange, Notes, or some equally stuffy piece of server-side software to be able to make the switch. China’s QiJi feels your pain, which is where the company’s surprisingly okay-looking i6 comes into play: the handset supports both Android and Windows Mobile, although you can’t dual-boot — you’ve got to choose one and run with it until you decide to install the other. It packs a 624MHz processor, 256MB of ROM, 128MB of RAM, a trackball, and — in lieu of a QWERTY slide — an on-screen Chinese keyboard with stylus support that we haven’t seen before. Android, we love ya and all, but until you go through puberty, this multi-platform support is just about the best thing we’ve ever heard.

[Thanks, zsx]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

China’s QiJi i6 supports Android, Windows Mobile, lust in one package originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This is really just confirmation of existence more than anything, given that we’ve already seen purported shots of both the Attila and Alexander before, but at least we’re assured that these forthcoming Motorola smartphones are more than just subjects of one’s Photoshopping escapades. The image you see above is accompanied by no additional information whatsoever, but we must say, these look strangely seductive in greyscale. Could these really be the first truly black-and-white handsets? Do it Moto, we dare you.

Filed under: Cellphones

Motorola Alexander and Attila spotted, but not clearly originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Can you believe it? After two years and any number of missed targets, Meizu’s M8 cellphone is bound and determined to meet its November 30th 8 December launch date. As proof, they’ve shipped a first unit to China’s PConline for review. Hmm, white earbuds, charger, and USB cable… imagine that.

[Via iTech News Net]

Filed under: Cellphones

Meizu M8 unboxed before December 8th launch originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 06:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.