Smartphones

Motorola reveals Android update schedule

Finally, Motorola has told us when exactly it'll be releasing software upgrades to its Android phones. Well, sort of. We would appreciate a more specific date than just "Q1" and "Q2," and three of the phone upgrades are still "under evaluation." But at least it's something. Here's the breakdown:

Phone Model Timeline DROID by Motorola (USA) The DROID by Motorola over-the-air software upgrade is expected to roll out soon MILESTONE (Europe) Upgrade to Android 2.1 planned for Q1 2010 MILESTONE (Latin America) Upgrade under evaluation MILESTONE (Asia-Pacific) Upgrade under evaluation … Read more

The 404 Podcast 519: Where we're too fat to fit through 7 Windows

Now that Chalentine's Day is over, we're back and ready to tackle the big news of the weekend: Windows Phone 7, the new mobile operating system just announced last Monday at a press conference at the Mobile World Congress 2010. Jeff is naturally apathetic toward the new OS after moving on to the Palm Pre, but the rest of the industry is excited about the proprietary PC client used to sync your phone to your PC--no more ActiveSync! Check out CNET's Crave blog for more info.

Today's episode asks the tough questions on all our minds: would you rather sign your dog up for Twitter or get a Nickleback tattoo on your forearm? Mattel will soon release a device that enables puppies to tweet out over 500 programmed messages that correspond to a motion sensor on a plastic collar tag. Using special software and a USB receiver, Puppy Tweets sells for $30 and will be available this fall.

Keep those sticker pictures coming! We're nowhere close to running out of stickers and tattoos, so send us a SASE if you want your own handful of 404 shwag, and don't forget to send pictures to us of where you stuck them (hopefully in a location with high visibility) to the404(at)cnet(dot)com!\

Finally, head over to Sugar Rock Catwalk for more fashion tips, courtesy of Ms. Erin Lee and Ms. Lani Nguyen!

EPISODE 519 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Deal brings Skype to Verizon 3G phones

Skype and Verizon announced a partnership Tuesday to bring the Internet-calling technology to a number of 3G BlackBerry and Android phones starting in March.

Under the deal, the Skype mobile software will be available on a variety of smartphones: RIM's BlackBerry Storm 9530, Storm2 9550, Curve 8330, Curve 8530, 8830 World Edition, and Tour 9630 and Motorola's Droid, Eris, and Devour. Customers will need to have a data plan to use the application, the companies said in an announcement at the Mobile World Congress show in Barcelona.

Skype, independent once again after an eBay spinoff last year, is … Read more

ARM, Globalfoundries outline 28-nanometer plans

ARM and Globalfoundries have released details on their upcoming system-on-a-chip platform, which they say will combine "PC-class performance" and a huge jump in battery life for mobile devices.

The companies revealed the details Monday at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Their system-on-a-chip platform is based on ARM's Cortex-A9 processor and Globalfoundries' 28-nanometer manufacturing process. The platform will be used in smartphones, tablets, and smartbooks.

The 28-nanometer process will allow devices built on the platform to have 40 percent more computing performance, 30 percent less power consumption, and 100 percent greater battery life than devices built using existing … Read more

Hands-on look at the HTC Legend

BARCELONA, Spain--The HTC Legend is legen- ... wait for it, wait for it ... dary. Any "How I Met Your Mother" fans out there? No? OK, fine. What we're trying to say here is that the HTC Legend is pretty awesome.

Announced Tuesday morning at Mobile World Congress, the Legend is the next evolution of the HTC Hero and really brings some nice design improvements and enhancements to the HTC Sense user interface.

Though we had to run to another meeting after HTC's news conference, we stopped by its booth afterward for some brief hands-on time with the … Read more

Cell phone subscriptions to hit 5 billion globally

On a planet with around 6.8 billion people, we're likely to see 5 billion cell phone subscriptions this year.

Reaching 4.6 billion at the end of 2009, the number of cell phone subscriptions across the globe will hit 5 billion sometime in 2010, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The explosion in cell phone use has been driven not only by developed countries, but by developing nations hungry for services like mobile banking and health care.

"Even during an economic crisis, we have seen no drop in the demand for communications services," said ITU … Read more

A closer look at the Cliq XT

BARCELONA, Spain--Motorola made just one handset announcement at Mobile World Congress, but the new Cliq XT is holding its own. Also called the Quench in Europe--we don't know where Moto came up with that one--the Cliq XT offers a functional feature set and an intuitive design. The handset runs Google Android 1.5 (couldn't Moto at least given us 1.6?) and MotoBlur.

Though it's related to the existing Cliq, the Cliq XT is hardly an identical twin. As it lacks a physical keyboard, the XT is much thinner and it sports a relatively drab gray skin. … Read more

HTC: Hero, Droid Eris getting Android 2.1 update

BARCELONA, Spain--In addition to introducing two new Android phones, HTC revealed on Tuesday that it will release an Android 2.1 update for the HTC Droid Eris as well as the Sprint and GSM versions of the HTC Hero.

The company said the devices should be getting most of the features of Android 2.1 as well as the enhanced HTC Sense user experience that was announced today. However, it will ultimately be up to the carriers to determine which features make it onto the device. Unfortunately, HTC did not give any time frame for when the update might be … Read more

Samsung Wave, T-Mobile Pulse Mini headed for Europe

BARCELONA, Spain--The ink is barely dry on the Samsung Wave announcement, but T-Mobile already is stepping in to distribute the device in several European markets. In addition to the Wave at Mobile World Congress the carrier also introduced the T-Mobile Pulse Mini.

Remember that the Wave is the first handset to feature Sammy's new Bada OS. CNET's Bonnie Cha handled the phone shortly after the announcement two days ago. Though she liked the brilliant display and features of the Windows Mobile handset, she's not so sure about Bada. Yet, customers across Europe will have the opportunity to … Read more