Smartphones

Using our mobile phones as wallets is closer to reality. At Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this morning, Deutsche Telekom, parent company of T-Mobile USA, says it will unleash the capability to its customers this year.

The first customers to get the full payment system are those subscribers in Germany and Poland. The U.S., Netherlands, and Czech Republic will follow in 2012. Deutsche Telekom said it expected customers to use their phones in place of cash, and eventually in place of tickets for public transportation systems.

The payment system will be run and billed by the carrier, but it requires phones with NFC, or near-field communication, chips embedded inside. The chips allow data to be sent wirelessly over very short distances, around 4 inches. So when a customer waves his phone over a payment terminal, a transaction can be recorded.

But which handset manufacturers will get on board first? Beyond the Nexus S Android phone, few phones have the chips currently embedded. That's where reports from the press conference get really interesting. According to bloggers who were in the room, Deutsche Telekom executives handed out a slide deck that listed manufacturers it expects to launch NFC-equipped phones this year: Apple sometime this year, Samsung in the second quarter of the year, followed by RIM and LG during the third quarter. … Read more

Hewlett-Packard's Pre 2 is finally making its way to Verizon Wireless.

The carrier announced today that the WebOS-based smartphone will be available in its stores and online starting Thursday.

The Pre 2 is the first device available to consumers that runs WebOS 2.0, Verizon noted. The device comes with a 3.1-inch display, a slide-out keyboard, and a 5-megapixel camera. It supports Wi-Fi and can share its 3G connection with up to five other devices, thanks to its Mobile Hotspot capability. The smartphone's WebOS 2.0 integration means people will also be able to place Skype-to-Skype calls … Read more

ViewSonic Europe is in Barcelona this week where it's showing off the latest addition to its ViewPad family.

Joining its 7-inch and 10-inch siblings, the 4.1-inch ViewPad 4 is expected to be on the short list of Android devices running Android 2.3 Gingerbread when it debuts. Currently listed on ViewSonic's Web site as having Android 2.2, the hardware-maker promises an update to Gingerbread in the near future, and says it will demonstrate the device to key partners with Gingerbread in April.

In terms of user experience, ViewSonic has integrated its own custom user interface, ViewScene, … Read more

BARCELONA, Spain--The rumors of a Facebook phone have been floating around for a while, but it was only recently that HTC's name came into the mix and, even then, Facebook once again denied the existence of any such product. Well, turns out the company wasn't being completely honest.

Today at Mobile World Congress, HTC unveiled two new smartphones that will feature dedicated Facebook buttons for easy access to the popular social-networking site. The HTC ChaCha and the HTC Salsa (yes, those are the names) each have a Facebook button on the bottom, which when pressed will let you … Read more

In addition to going out on a limb with two Facebook-friendly phones, HTC also hedged its wilder bets this Mobile World Congress with updates to three of its more popular phones.

The HTC Incredible S, Wildfire S, and Desire S are all familiar designs that include the HTC Sense interface on top of an Android base.

The high-end HTC Incredible S sports a 4-inch WVGA Super LCD display and stereo surround sound to highlight its multimedia-friendliness. The 8-megapixel camera comes with dual flash, and there's a front-facing camera on board as well for video chats. DLNA support brings the … Read more

BARCELONA, Spain--Mobile World Congress 2011 is off and roaring, as we finally get a chance to have some hands-on time with a few of the products announced this past weekend. But it's not all just handset coverage; Barcelona has also become a hotbed for the latest news in the mobile industry.

Indeed, it seems Nokia and Microsoft are not quite done discussing their partnership, as Nokia's Stephen Elop and Microsoft's Steve Ballmer took to the stage at Mobile World Congress to tout their vision for the future. Elop tried to allay some fears, while Ballmer gave … Read more

To celebrate the most miserable day of the year, aka Christmas 2.0, we're being Debbie Downers and checking out stories to ruin your cheesy holiday. If you're not hitched up with a honey bunny today, you may be able to increase your chances of bagging someone special based on the next gadget you buy.

According to this Gadgetology study, your computer, cell phone, and other tech accessories are big factors in determining your attractiveness to the people around you. Of the men surveyed under the age of 35, 50 percent find women with fancy smartphones more attractive, whereas 38% of women think a modern laptop oozes the most sex appeal.

And this is no surprise, but the two worst tech deal breakers for women are the awful Bluetooth wireless headset and cell phone holster, so steer clear of those two if you're looking to hook up. Finally, outside of the tech world, more women younger than 35 say they're attracted to a man walking a cute dog than a geek with a cool smartphone, so we're kind of screwed either way.

On the other hand, if you want to avoid sex altogether this year, the best way to accomplish that goal is to trick your partner by cooking them a dinner made of anaphrodisiac ingredients.

You can kill the mood with a number of ingredients including hops, marjoram, common rue, soy, and coriander, or you can really play it safe with a combination of it all in a deliciously platonic chicken and tofu in a marjoram cream sauce.

A anti-touch relationship is a good way to practice safe sex altogether, but what if a painful health affliction is preventing you from getting yours? A dating Web site based out of Winnipeg is playing Cupid for clients that suffer from herpes.

Actually, you don't have to have herpes to join. According to the creators, hopeful clients are asked during registration if they have it and if they'd be open to someone with it for full transparency. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, about one in six people between the ages of 14 and 49 suffer from the STD and are embarrassed to admit it to lovers, so Camelot Introductions offers this service to dispel the prejudice.

But all that aside, if you're a super procrastinator and still haven't purchased your boo a gift, consider a New York solution and just name a cockroach after your Valentine.

Cell phone-maker ZTE showed three Android smartphones at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this year.

In addition to the Gingerbread-toting ZTE Skate, which we looked at earlier, there's the ZTE Amigo and the ZTE Blade. The Amigo has a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a 3.2-megapixel camera--we'll known much more later when we get our hands on the device.

The third phone is one we saw at CES. The ZTE Blade it has a 3.5-inch touch screen and a 3.2-megapixel camera. Although it runs Android 2.1, ZTE says the Blade should be upgradable to Android … Read more

BARCELONA, Spain--Yes, I've been pretty skeptical about the concept of a 3D cell phone. But to my surprise, the LG Optimus 3D actually delivers what it promises. It won't be like watching 3D on the big screen--and frankly, there's no reason that it should--but it offers an experience that you won't see on another smartphone.

I just returned from LG's insanely crowded booth at Mobile World Congress where I was able to play with the phone. Since you don't need glasses to view videos or games on the handset, the 3D effect doesn't … Read more