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Forget green beer, Apple chose St. Patrick's Day to roll out big changes to the iPhone. The new iPhone OS 3.0 promises a host of sorely-needed features, including multimedia messaging and cut and paste. In this episode of Dialed In, we tell you all about the new additions, and give our take on what they mean for Apple's phone. Nicole is grooving to the music in Austin, Texas, so News.com's Tom Krazit joins us to discuss the iPhone brouhaha. Also, Bonnie also fills you in on a very unexciting Palm Pre Webcast and I tell you why the LG Rumo2 is new, but no so improved.

News
Hands-on screenshots of iPhone 3.0
List of the new iPhone 3.0 features
Live blog of the iPhone 3.0 announcement
Palm Pre Webcast
New Verizon Wireless application assists visually-impaired
MetroPCS gets smarter
Virgin Mobile promises touch-screen phones
AT&T offers budget-friendly Moto EM330 music phone
HTC to ship at least three Android devices in 2009
Kyocera Jax appears on Virgin Mobile site

Reviews
LG Rumor2

Upcoming reviews
HTC S743
Kyocera Mako S4000
Nokia 6500 Classic
Motorola i9

LG Banter

(Credit: Alltel)

Not long after Sprint announced the LG Rumor 2, Alltel announced the LG Banter, which is really just a rebranded version of the LG Rumor 2. It has a slightly different design, but the specs are about the same.

It has stereo Bluetooth, a 1.3-megapixel camera, a microSD card slot, and, of course, the slide-out QWERTY keyboard. There's no pricing information about the Banter, but since the Rumor 2 is only $50, it probably won't be too far off from that.

LG Rumor 2

(Credit: Sprint)

Sprint and LG have just confirmed the earlier rumors about the LG Rumor 2. The sequel to the original Rumor, the Rumor 2 still has that slider QWERTY design and almost the same features, which include a 1.3-megapixel camera, stereo Bluetooth, GPS, a music player, and more. The one new feature is the easy access to Microsoft Exchange Server and IBM Lotus Notes accounts via Sprint Mobile Email Work. The LG Rumor 2 will cost you $49.99 with a two-year contract and will be available online on March 15 and in retail stores on April 19.

To go along with this, Sprint has also introduced an Everything Messaging plan. It includes 450 anytime minutes, unlimited nights and weekends, unlimited mobile-to-mobile, as well as unlimited messaging--this includes text, pictures, and videos--for only $49.99 a month. This sounds like a deal for those of us who text more than we talk on the phone.

Update: We just learned that the Sprint Everything Messaging plan is not new and has been around for awhile.

LG Rumor 2?

(Credit: Sprint Users forum)

There is apparently a rumor that an LG Rumor 2 will replace the LG Rumor (say that three times fast). The original LG Rumor came out a year before the Samsung Rant, which has a similar design except the keyboard slides out the opposite side. We gave it high praise for its easy-to-use keyboard, though it had a pretty mediocre feature set.

Now it appears the Rumor might have a sequel, at least according to this post on the Sprint Users forum. We definitely hope for a better camera and EV-DO with the new version, but it might maintain its lower-tier status as a cheaper texting phone. Whichever it is, we look forward to seeing if this turns out to be a reality. Maybe just in time for the CTIA show this spring?

(Via Engadget Mobile)

The Samsung Rant in red.

(Credit: Sprint)

Is it just us, or is this deja vu? If we didn't know any better, we've seen one of Sprint's newest cell phones before. The Samsung Rant, which Sprint introduced Wednesday as CTIA Fall 2008 began, looks a lot like the year-old LG Rumor. It has same basic candy-bar shape with similar dimensions (4.5 inches by 2.1 inches by 0.7 inch) and it sports a full QWERTY keyboard hidden that's hidden behind the sliding face. And like the Rumor, the Rant is aimed directly at messaging addicts.

So what gives? Has Sprint run out of ideas? Well...not really. Take a closer look at the Rant and you'll notice that it shows some differences from its LG lookalike. The navigation toggle is square instead of circular, the remaining navigation controls and keypad buttons have a different design and the phone has a certain something that gives it a bit more style. Sure, the Rant still looks like a workhouse, but we like the colored ring that surrounds the sharp display and navigation array. The Rant is offered in three colors: red, black, and an eye-catching purple model that's available exclusively at Best Buy.

The Rant in purple.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

The Rant, aka the SPH-M540, also offers some feature improvements over its predecessor. Inside you'll find a 2-megapixel camera, e-mail and messaging, support for Sprint's 3G EV-DO network, Sprint TV, a music player with access to the Sprint Music Store, Sprint's new One Click interface, GPS with Sprint Navigation, speaker-independent voice dialing, Microsoft Live Search, stereo Bluetooth, and personal organizer applications.

Two of a kind? The Samsung Rant (right) and the LG Rumor.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

We got the opportunity to handle the Rant yesterday. On the whole, it appears to have a solid construction, and it has a comfortable feel in the hand. The controls seem user-friendly, and the keyboard in particular has a spacious design. We imagine that this phone will have a lot of appeal for frequent texters. The only thing we can't get over is the name. We're guessing that the messaging-centric phone will allow users to go on a texting "rant," but we're still scratching our heads. We're also imagining the pun-heavy headlines like the one we used above.

The Samsung Rant will be available next month for just $49 with service. We'll have a full review just as soon as we can secure a test model.

(Credit: SlashPhone)

Other than to call for a cab, something tells us that new phones won't be on too many people's minds this St. Patrick's Day. But if you adhere to some strange custom by which gifts are exchanged every March 17, LG has a handset that's made to order.

The "Rumor" has been around for awhile, but SlashPhone says a special green version has been made available to Sprint customers just in time for the occasion. Other than the color, the handset seems to have the same features as earlier models, including a built-in GPS unit, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, Bluetooth, an MP3 player, and a 1.3-megapixel camera. And don't expect the warranty to cover one that gets dropped in green beer.

LG Rumor

(Credit: CNET Networks/Corinne Schulze)

The LG Rumor is one of LG's more popular fall offerings, and there's a reason why. The Rumor is one of those rare phones that has a built-in QWERTY keyboard but is most definitely not a smartphone. This messaging-centric device has a hidden slide-out QWERTY keyboard that is vaguely reminiscent of the LG F9200, plus it comes with a few multimedia extras like a 1.3-megapixel camera and a music player. Another nice touch is the instant access to Facebook right from the Messaging menu. Don't get your hopes up about the Rumor being a good Web surfing phone, however. The Web browser is still fairly rudimentary, plus the Rumor is sadly saddled with only 1xRTT speeds, and not EV-DO. Also, even though you can subscribe to certain social networking communities like Xanga and Vox (via a mobile app called Social Zone), you'll have to pay a monthly fee for the privilege. Still, the QWERTY keyboard alone makes the Rumor a great messaging and e-mail device if you don't need a lot of speed. It's currently available from Sprint for $79 after a 2-year contract and a mail-in rebate. Check out our review and our slide show for more on the LG Rumor.

LG Rumor

(Credit: Sprint)

It hasn't been a rumor for a couple weeks now, but today the announcement came from Sprint on the release of the LG Rumor. (There's one name we really don't get).

Based vaguely on the earlier LG F9200, the Rumor has a slider design that hides a full QWERTY keyboard. You can get it in an eye-catching blue-and-black color scheme, pictured here, or a more pedestrian silver. The feature set isn't too shabby. It includes Bluetooth, a media player, a 1.3-megapixel camera, Sprint Navigation, integrated access to Facebook and Xanga, a 4GB capacity MicroSD card slot, and POP3 e-mail. Missing, however, is support for Sprint's 3G network; instead the Rumor's data speeds top out at 2.5G 1xRTT.

Sprint is positioning the Rumor as an "affordable" device--the EV-DO support does cost a few extra pennies--so we'll be curious to see how all those multimedia services will fare in a 2.5G world. The Rumor will be available for purchase for $79 with service.

(Credit: Engadget Mobile)

Ooooweee--those are some pretty enticing photos. It seems Engadget Mobile got its hands on some marketing material from Sprint about the carrier's upcoming portfolio of smart phones and cell phones for Q4, and if true, we think a lot of Sprint customers will be pleased by it.

On tap, we've got the HTC Touch with its innovative touch screen; the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8130 (aka BlackBerry Pearl 2), rocking EV-DO and GPS; the Palm Centro, the company's slimmest smart phone with EV-DO support; and finally, the LG Rumor, a slide-out QWERTY device with a focus on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace. All handsets are slated for a Q4 release but there has been no official confirmation or pricing details from Sprint.

Update: OK, we just got confirmation from Sprint that these mobiles will indeed be coming to a store near you by the end of the year. Woohoo! Pricing, however, was not revealed at this time.