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RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8220

(Credit: RIM)

While the fall CTIA show isn't really known for handset announcements, Research in Motion paid no mind and started the show off with a bang by introducing the RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 on Tuesday night. While much of the attention has turned to the rumored BlackBerry Thunder as of late, the Pearl Flip 8220 shouldn't be forgotten, as it's the first BlackBerry to sport a clamshell design.

The flip phone, which comes in black or red, measures 3.9-inches high by 1.9-inches wide by 0.6-inch deep and weighs 3.5 ounces. It features a 65,536-color, 128x160 pixel external display and front-facing 2-megapixel camera, while you get a 65,536-color, 240x320-pixel TFT display on the inside. As part of the Pearl series, you get the SureType keyboard (groan) and trackball navigator. The BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 also comes equipped with a 3.5mm headphone jack and an external microSD expansion slot.

Moving onto features, the quad-band (GSM 850/900/1800/1900; GPRS/EDGE) Pearl Flip 8220 offers true world roaming, a speakerphone, smart dialing, and background-noise cancellation. Wireless options include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support. There's no GPS, but the BlackBerry Maps application is onboard to at least provide you with maps and text-based directions.

Supported e-mail solutions include BlackBerry Enterprise, Microsoft Exchange, IMB Lotus, Novell GroupWise as well as POP3 and IMAP4 accounts. There's also an attachment viewer for Word, Excel, PowerPoint files, PDFs, and JPG images.

(Credit: RIM)

When you're done working, you can enjoy MP3, WMA, AAC, MPEG4, WMV, and other music and video formats with the built-in media player. In addition, the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 has a 2-megapixel camera with flash and video-recording capabilities.

In all, there aren't a whole lot of surprises, as the smartphone keeps very much in line with the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120. Research in Motion was a little vague as to release date, but it will be offered by carriers worldwide sometime this fall and the company did confirm that T-Mobile will be one of the U.S. carriers. No word on pricing.

Now, here's the question: Will the flip-phone form factor work for BlackBerry? There's only been a handful of smartphones to come in the clamshell design, such as the Pantech PN-820, but they never seem to really take off. Will the RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 be any different?

While the official announcement wasn't supposed to cross the wires till next week, The Wall Street Journal went early with its story (please don't get me started on this) and published a review of the HTC Touch Diamond for Sprint.

Yes, that's right. The Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone is officially part of the Sprint family; not that it was a complete surprise. The HTC Touch Diamond, as well as the HTC Touch Pro (no announcement on this model yet), were long rumored for a CDMA carrier months before Wednesday's early coming-out party. So now that the floodgates are open, here is what we know.

Word's out on the HTC Touch Diamond for Sprint.

(Credit: Sprint)

There are a number of differences between the Sprint HTC Touch Diamond and the unlocked version we reviewed in late June. First, it sports a purple/burgundy backplate to add more flash to an already sexy phone. The smartphone is also a smidge thicker and heavier at 4 inches tall by 2 inches wide by 0.6 inch deep and 4.1 ounces, but keeps the same 2.8-inch, 262,000-color TFT touch screen.

Of course, one of the highlights of the HTC Touch Diamond is the TouchFLO 3D interface, which provides a toolbar along the bottom of the screen where you can move left to right with the swipe of your finger to launch applications. Sprint's version is optimized so that you can access things like live TV, weather, e-mail, photos, contacts, and more.

In addition to the toolbar, there are several programs, such as e-mail, the camera, and music, where you can go flip through your files and messages by swiping your thumb/finger up or down the screen with a cool animated 3D effect.

Moving on to the features, the HTC Touch Diamond for Sprint runs Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Edition, but rather than being content with the standard Microsoft Office Mobile Suite, the smartphone also ships with Dataviz's Documents to Go Suite and the Opera Web browser. We're sure many will be pleased with inclusion of these applications, which are arguably more robust than the former. Wireless options include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth (with A2DP support), EV-DO Rev. A, and GPS with support for Sprint Navigation.

It's so hard to keep a good secret these days. Just ask T-Mobile. Word of its new Sidekick model, code-named Gekko, got out months ago and was all but confirmed about a week ago when the ruthless blogosphere got hold of some internal T-Mobile documents about the upcoming model.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

Well, today, the wraps were officially taken off the new model. Simply called the T-Mobile Sidekick (more on this new, puzzling naming scheme below), it's the first Sidekick to debut since device manufacturer Danger was acquired by Microsoft.

The Sidekick isn't a revolutionary, new product, but we think there's enough there to attract the young, hip messaging fanatics. The big highlight is the new level of personalization, as you can add your own graphics, images, and designs to the outer shell for a one-of-a-kind model. You can read all about this as well as the handheld's other features and performance in our full review. The T-Mobile Sidekick is available in select stores and online today for $149.99 with a two-year contract and after discounts and rebates.

Finally, for those of you who are curious about why T-Mobile has reverted to simply calling the handheld Sidekick, here's the official statement from the carrier: "The T-Mobile Sidekick family is going to have two lines of devices, the T-Mobile Sidekick and the T-Mobile Sidekick LX. Both Sidekick lines will have their own unique set of features so that consumers can choose the one that best fits their lifestyle. The T-Mobile Sidekick will focus on personalization at an affordable price while the T-Mobile Sidekick LX will be a little higher-end and have more of a 'luxury' emphasis; it will also likely include future limited edition models."

Approximately 36 hours after the release of the iPhone 2.0 firmware, existing iPhone customers still can't download it. iTunes says it's unavailable. Apple should have done better.

We already know that on Friday, there were severe activation problems with the iPhone 3G. This isn't exactly a surprise, perhaps, after the new in-store activation procedures and AT&T's dismal performance last year.

What is surprising is that approximately 36 hours after Apple said the new system software would be available for existing customers to access, it still isn't. At least not for everyone.

I have the first-generation iPhone I bought a year ago--and as of midday Saturday, the new v2.0 firmware was unavailable for download. iTunes tells me, incorrectly, that "this version of the iPhone software (1.1.4) is the current version." See the above screenshot.

This is in addition to what my CNET News colleague Erica Ogg reported on Friday: some existing iPhones have been bricked by software update glitches. At least that didn't happen to me.

I'm not exactly desperate to upgrade to the new system software (I'm at a political conference in Las Vegas and am mostly focused on what's happening here).

But this points to a bad miscalculation on Apple's part. Why didn't it come up with a better estimate of how many people would be connecting to its servers and add sufficient capacity? Apple probably is curbing existing customers' access to software updates to prevent its servers from overheating (this is at least a better failure mode than yesterday morning's odd errors).

This is understandable, perhaps, but it's disappointing--especially because this should have been preventable with even a modicum of advance planning.

Update 1:50 p.m. PDT: iTunes is now showing the update as available. I should have noted that I already upgraded to the latest version of iTunes. That wasn't the problem--Apple's servers were.

The Remote App puts control of iTunes--or Apple TV--in the palm of your hand.

(Credit: CNET)

We've had a few minutes to play with the Remote App (download) for the iPhone. The (not surprising) verdict? It's an easy must-have for any iPhone or iPod Touch owner who enjoys listening to music at home.

Once you've upgraded your iPhone (or Touch) to version 2.0, just go to the App Store and search on "remote." (Amazingly, that--not "iRemote"--is the program's official name.) You can download it straight to the phone over a Wi-Fi connection (tap the word "free" on the upper right corner), and it auto-installs, adding a new icon to your home screen.

If you're planning on waiting in line for an iPhone, be sure to do your homework and bring all the necessary items with you. Or, watch Wednesday's edition of the Daily Debrief where I talk to CNET News' Tom Krazit about the lines and the purchase process. Apple has finally disclosed that stores will start selling the phones at 8 a.m. The company has also said it will let customers into the stores in groups of 30. This part of the system sounds similar to last year, but this year's big unknown is what the activation process will be like. Simple and easy in 10 minutes? Or mired in paperwork and chaos to the tune of 30 minutes?

Some critics have already gotten their hands on the phone and have written largely positive reviews. But, for those of you abstaining from the Apple Kool-Aid, one of our CNET News colleagues, Marguerite Reardon, takes a look at seven other smartphones that rival the iPhone.

(Credit: Apple)

Update at 10:08 a.m. PDT, with clarification on how users' e-mail will be handled.

Apple's MobileMe service is primed to be relaunched this week, ahead of the Friday launch of the iPhone 3G. That means subscribers to .Mac will find the service taken offline for a six-hour stretch as Apple makes the transition, according to a post in MacRumors.com.

The www.mac.com site will go down on Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 12 a.m. PDT, leaving .Mac subscribers unable to access the site or use .Mac services, except for .MacMail via their desktop applications, iPhone or iPod Touch. In fact, existing .Mac users may have already noticed the ability to receive and send e-mail at an @me.com address if they so request. Other mac.com subscribers will be grandfathered in, allowing them to continue receiving e-mail at their mac.com address, while also receiving a new me.com address.

When the site relaunches as MobileMe, users will find a few changes, according to MacRumors.com:

The revamped .Mac service will offer Web-based e-mail, calendar, address book, photo gallery, and storage capabilities as well as "Push" sync services.

A one-year subscription to MobileMe will cost $99, which is similar to the .Mac price, but purchasers of an iPhone 3G will be able to score a subscription for $69 on Friday, the report notes.

Thanks to California's new hands-free phone law, I have been dragged into Bluetooth land. It's not somewhere I really ever saw myself landing. I never really saw a need; I don't use my cell phone as frequently as anyone else I know, and my car tends to sit in the garage undriven for days, sometimes weeks.

With the enforcement of laws beginning in California and Washington last week, Bluetooth earpieces have become the rage--even when people aren't behind the wheel. Sorry in advance if I offend, but this strikes me as a bit odd--maybe not as odd as the Bat Utility Belt look of a decade ago when the "tech savvy" would stock their overstressed belts with pagers, cell phones, and PDAs, but certainly in the same league. So that option wasn't very attractive.

The Dual BTM60 Bluetooth module attaches to several of Dual's in-dash car stereo decks.

(Credit: Dual)

However, about six months ago, I upgraded the stereo in my car to a model that also happened to support Bluetooth cell connections. The stereo I replaced was the factory double-din that came with it when I bought the car 13 years ago. The CD player was skipping like crazy, and my wife was about to give birth to our first child, so this seemed like the right time to spend money on a new stereo for a car I seldom drove and expected to drive even less after the child was born (it's a two-seat convertible).

So I dove into research models, options, and prices. I ended up buying a Dual XHD6425 off Amazon.com for about $100. An installer at Best Buy said he didn't think the deck would fit in my car, but a handy tool at Crutchfield.com told me different (guess who was right).

This little unit does things I wish my $300 Onkyo TX-SR605 home receiver did: in addition to playing MP3 and WMA CDs, it also receives HD Radio signals, has an auxiliary input for your MP3 player, and a USB input for flash memory drives. It also has a connector wire at the back of the unit that will plug into Dual's BTM60, a Bluetooth module that transmits voice signals to your cell phone. The audio from the person you are speaking with is broadcast over the car speakers.

Since Dual already sold a module specifically designed for my deck, the choice was an easy one. New modules that used to retail for $99 can be found on eBay for less than $25 if you are patient. Mine was delivered Saturday, and like a kid on Christmas morning, I had it up and running in less than an hour.

The Dual BTM60 includes a 3-meter cord that attaches to the back of several Dual car stereos--the XHD-6425, in this case. The two wires plug in to each other, with the guidance of two arrows.

(Credit: Steven Musil/CNET News.com)

Installation could not have been easier--it's practically plug and play. The module itself is about the size of two wine corks and attaches to the visor like your garage door opener (that location is actually much closer to your mouth than anywhere you could place it on your dashboard), and the connection to back of the deck just snaps into place with the guidance of arrows on the ends of each wire.

The most time-consuming part was hiding the wire between those two points. It wouldn't easily pinch against the windshield, so off came the weather stripping and convertible top anchor to allow access to the driver-side A-pillar cover. After threading and squeezing the wire behind the pillar cover, tying up the wire slack under the dashboard, and replacing the weather stripping and convertible top anchor, it was time for the easiest part of installation: pairing the cell phone to the stereo deck.

Hiding the module's connection to the in-dash deck inside the A-pillar was the most time-consuming part of the installation. After the wire is safely tucked away, the weather stripping slides back into place.

(Credit: Steven Musil/CNET News.com)

The phone and module did most of the work for me--I just had to hit a few buttons when prompted.

And it worked from the get go, syncing up my cell phone as soon as I turned the key and delivering audio quality that sounded as good as the cell phone, at least in the comfort of my garage. But how about on the road, with the top down? Just as good, although you may have to adjust the speaker volume on the dash deck to hear your calls better.

When a call comes into your cell, it rings across your car stereo. You simply push the button on the module to pick up the call. You can also use the in-dash deck to place the call, although I think it will be some time before I master that skill.

I saw plenty of people driving around town this holiday weekend with cell phones plastered to the side of their face, so I am not sure how well obeyed the new hands-free law is going to be. After all, the fine if you get caught is only $20, but it can be 10 times that with other court costs factored in. That's more than my entire stereo upgrade.

So there you have it: Bluetooth functionality without the odd factor--unless you consider that you are talking to your visor and allowing the other drivers stopped at traffic signals to listen in on your phone conversations.

Hmmmm...

The line for the Apple iPhone 3G began to form Friday--an entire week before the device goes on sale.

Frankly, one shouldn't encourage such behavior by actually covering it. But if I were in Manhattan--instead of Austin, Texas--I, too, would have interviewed them in person by now.

The queue outside of Apple's Fifth Avenue store, covered first by GearDiary and then Engadget, apparently hasn't been formed by iPhone co-dependents, though.

It is instead made up of a group of people who may want to 1) set a world's record for standing in line to buy a product and 2) have a social-agricultural-political message they want the world to hear. However, it was difficult from the video interview on Engadget to determine what the group actually stands for.

On Saturday, the Apple 2.0 blog seemed to get further with the group's agenda. The group, which started off with about 10 on Friday and was slimmed down to 5 by Saturday morning after a night of rainfall, apparently supports organic farming and sustainability for the planet. According to Apple 2.0, they may be interested in turning the White House Lawn into an organic garden and they may be planning to buy iPhones for the presidential nominees.

The seemingly ad hoc group is certainly savvy in deciding to use the iPhone 3G to garner some publicity. However, to be perfectly honest, most mainstream journalists feel more comfortable interviewing gadget nuts rather than alternative souls hoping to use the media to change the world.