News Blog

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."

Correction at 10 a.m. PDT: The story incorrectly listed which push e-mail solutions the E71 works with. It does not work with BlackBerry Connect or GoodLink.

Nokia E66

(Credit: Nokia)

It may be that the Nokia E series sometimes suffers from Jan Brady syndrome as it gets overshadowed by a flashier member of its family--the Nokia N series (aka Marcia Brady). But the E series is just as bright and deserves some recognition too.

Traditionally, the E series devices have been very corporate centric and serious in design, but now Nokia is updating the line with the introduction of the Nokia E66 and Nokia E71, bringing with them a modernized look and a fresh set of features. Here's the breakdown:

Nokia E66: The successor to the Nokia E65, the E66 continues to offer a cool slider design, but it's been trimmed down and comes in gray or white with steel accents. The smartphone also has "turn-to-full view," which is similar to the iPhone's accelerometer feature in that when you turn the device on its side, the screen orientation will automatically switch from portrait to landscape mode. You can also alternate between Business and Personal mode. In Business mode, you'll have all your productivity tools readily accessible on your home screen, such as e-mail, calendar, and documents. Meanwhile, when you switch to Personal view, you'll get access to your multimedia files, the Web, and so forth.

The Nokia E66 will continue to run the third edition of the S60 platform on the Symbian operating system and has integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 (with A2DP support). Plus, it now offers assisted GPS and U.S. 3G support (850/1900; HSDPA). Other goodies include a 3.2-megapixel camera, support for Nokia's Ovi Internet service, 110MB internal memory plus microSD slot (supports up to 8GB cards), and a 2.4-inch QVGA nontouch display.

Nokia E71

(Credit: Nokia)

Nokia E71: The E71 represents the more dramatic design makeover of the two. Taking over for the Nokia E61i, the E71 is still very much a messaging-centric device with its full QWERTY keyboard but it's not as bulky or dull-looking anymore. The smartphone measures 4.4 inches tall by 2.2 inches wide by 0.4 inch deep and weighs 4.4 ounces, compared with the E61i's dimensions of 4.6 inches tall by 2.7 inches wide by 0.5 inch deep and 5.3 ounces. The E71 will also come in gray or white, and have a 2.36-inch, 16 million-color QVGA display.

Feature wise, the Symbian smartphone supports Mail for Exchange, POP/IMAP accounts, and works with a number of push e-mail solutions, including Intellisync Wireless E-mail, Visto, and Seven Always-On Mail. The E71 will also have integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, HSDPA, assisted GPS, and the Business and Personal home screens.

Outlook: Both the Nokia E65 and E61i have a loyal following and have garnered good user reviews, so I'm sure current owners will be interested in the upgrade. However, as with Nokia's other high-end phones, the Nokia E66 and Nokia E71 have not been picked up by a U.S. carrier and will only be sold as unlocked handsets, meaning they'll carry a steep price tag (pricing has not been finalized but we suspect somewhere in the $300 to $500 range) and thus, limit the reach of the smartphones. Still, the E66 and E71 are shaping up to be some strong workhorses for the business community, and we'll, of course, give them a workout when we get them in for review. Both mobiles are slated to be available in the third quarter (around July/August) with the Nokia E71 expected to ship slightly ahead of the Nokia E66.

Verizon Wireless Palm Centro

(Credit: Palm)

It's not quite the Palm Treo 850 or Treo 800w news we were hoping for, but we're sure Verizon Wireless customers will still be happy to hear that they'll be able to get their hands on a Palm Centro starting Friday, June 13. Like the AT&T and Sprint models, Verizon's version of the entry-level smartphone will carry the same affordable price tag of $99 (with a two-year contract) and comes in a cobalt blue color.

Details are still trickling in as far as what the Verizon Palm Centro will include (Palm was finalizing the releases when we talked to a rep yesterday afternoon), but we imagine the feature list won't be too different from the other models. This includes integrated Bluetooth; EV-DO support; Documents to Go 10; a 1.3-megapixel camera; and PocketTunes Deluxe. For e-mail, you have your choice of using VersaMail 4.0 with built-in support for Microsoft Direct Push Technology and Exchange ActiveSync, or you can choose Verizon's proprietary Wireless Sync e-mail solution. It does not appear that the Centro will work with the carrier's V Cast streaming media services, nor will it support the A2DP Bluetooth profile. We'll be getting the full story from Palm later today, so check back soon.

(Credit: YouMail)

YouMail, a free visual voice mail solution to organize cell phone messages like e-mail for online playback and response, announced on Thursday that customers can start viewing those same voice mail messages from their mobile phones.

By pointing the mobile browser to YouMail's home page, fans of the service can access their account with the usual login and pin to view contact's images, play back messages in any order, and forward or reply to voice messages in a form factor tailored from YouMail's servers to many high-end smartphones.

YouMail certainly isn't the first visual voice mail service to succeed in delivering transcribed messages to smartphones, which it does through a separate e-mail or SMS feature. Unlike some competitors for mobile voice message management, however, like PhoneTag (previously SimulScribe) and CallWave, YouMail's new service will retain the audio and organizational features of its rich online product.

The service will be ready for a wide variety of smartphones, YouMail said in a statement, including models from Research In Motion, Nokia, HTC, Morotola, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, and Palm. YouMail claims that YouMail's smartphone formula "even" works on iPhones, which already run on the full mobile Web with manufacturer Apple's Safari browser.

Demand in emerging markets fueled worldwide growth in the cell phone market for the first quarter of 2008, according to a new report from Gartner.

The firm published a report on Wednesday that said worldwide sales had increased by 13.6 percent in the first quarter compared to the first quarter of 2007. Much of this growth came from developing markets.

Sales in Asia jumped 26.6 percent from the same quarter in 2007 driven by demand in India and South Korea, as consumers upgraded their handsets before extending carrier contracts. Sales also increased by 25.8 percent in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. And the biggest growth was seen in Latin America where sales increased 28.4 percent compared with the first quarter of 2007.

Meanwhile sales in Western Europe dropped about 16.4 percent, the first decline in sales in this region since 2001 when Gartner first began tracking the sector. Sales in Japan also dropped about 10 percent.

"While sales in emerging markets continued to be driven by strong net new subscribers' growth, mature markets felt the pressure of an uncertain economic environment," Carolina Milanesi, research director for mobile devices at Gartner, said in a statement.

In North America, Gartner found that sales increased only 2.4 percent compared to the same quarter a year ago. Gartner's numbers differ from those of another research firm NPD Group, which found that sales of handsets in the U.S. actually declined 22 percent compared to the first quarter of 2007.

Gartner's analysts said they believe that the mobile handset industry will continue to grow about 10 percent to 15 percent in 2008, driven mostly by emerging markets. But the firm also warns that the current economic slowdown could further slow growth in mature markets, while higher food prices could lead to longer replacement cycles in emerging markets.

The sales cycle in the U.S. has already started to lengthen. A recent customer survey by J.D. Power and Associates found that consumers in the U.S. are holding onto their phones, on average, a month longer than they had previously. So instead of replacing a phone every 16.6 months, as Americans had done in 2006, they are replacing phones, on average, every 17.7 months.

In addition to economic woes, the market will likely slow a bit due to market penetration. With nearly 3 billion cell phones in the market already and penetration over 80 percent in places like the U.S., it makes sense that sales in these regions would slow.

The good news is that consumers in developed markets are starting to buy more smartphones, which typically cost more and offer better profit margins for manufacturers. These handsets typically sell for between $200 and $600, compared to more basic phones which sell for about $60.

The challenge for handset manufacturers going forward will be striking a balance between offering more expensive, feature-rich devices for developed markets like Europe, Japan, and the U.S. and also offering lower-cost, basic phones for the emerging markets, such as India, China, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Latin America.

Cell phone subscribers in the U.S. are spending more on their wireless handsets, another sign that the smartphone revolution has arrived.

On average cell phone subscribers are spending about $101 on new devices. This is $9 more than they spent on handsets just six months ago, according to a J.D. Power and Associates survey released Thursday. This is the first substantial increase in the average sale price of mobile devices in two years, the consumer survey company said.

What's driving this price jump? Smartphones and other feature-packed phones. Devices, such as Research In Motion's BlackBerry and Apple's iPhone, as well as music-enabled phones are gaining popularity. In fact, J.D. Power reports that smartphones make up about 6.3 percent of all cell phones sold today, compared to the beginning of 2007 when they made up only 1.7 percent of the market. Other market researchers have also noted a surge in smartphone growth. And because these phones typically cost more, they are boosting the overall average sale price. On average smartphones, which allow Internet browsing and a slew of other features, sell for about $208 while regular phones sell on average for about $58.

"As more customers start to upgrade to mobile phones that offer real-time connectivity and access to Internet content--particularly those offered by smartphone devices--we should continue to see the wireless handset price point rise," Kirk Parsons, senior director of wireless services at J.D. Power and Associate.

Another indication that smartphones are impacting the market is the fact that fewer U.S. cell phone subscribers are getting their phones free from carriers. The percentage of customers who say they received a free handset has decreased from 36 percent to 33 percent during the past six months. Carriers typically have offered discounts on some smartphones, but they have not given them away for free.

Cell phone users also reported that they are keeping their phones longer. The average reported length of cell phone ownership is 17.7 months. This is up from 16.6 months in 2006. One main reason driving this trend is that as more consumers invest in more expensive devices like smartphones, they expect to keep them longer. A sagging economy could stretch this length of time even further over the next six months.

The study also revealed that more than 40 percent of respondents said style and design were the most important factors in selecting their phone. Only 25 percent said they chose their current phone because it was offered free. And 21 percent said they bought their phone because it was discounted. Only 17 percent bought a phone because of its variety of features and small size.

Sony Ericsson, which makes the Walkman music phones, ranked the highest in terms of customer satisfaction as part of the survey. LG Electronics came in second. Nokia, the worldwide leader in handset sales, still has much work to do in satisfying customers in the U.S. The company ranked near the bottom in terms of overall satisfaction.

Research In Motion, the maker of BlackBerry smartphones, will meet with Indian officials again Thursday to hash out an agreement over security concerns, Reuters reported Wednesday.

India's security agencies have been pushing RIM to allow it to intercept e-mail that travels across its secure network. Under Indian law, the government has a right under certain circumstances to intercept electronic communications for security purposes. The Indian government believes that it needs access to these mobile e-mails to help thwart terrorists, who are increasingly using the Internet and e-mail to communicate with each other.

According to Reuters, Andimuthu Raja, India's telecommunications director, said last week that RIM had assured the government that it is working on a solution. But late last week, the company said that it wouldn't be able to "accommodate" any such request, the story said.

BlackBerry service is being offered by four service providers in India: Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications, Vodafone-controlled Vodafone Essar, and BPL Mobile. Currently, there are 114,000 BlackBerry subscribers in India.

India is an important market for RIM and other handset makers. As the North American and European markets mature and reach saturation, developing markets such as India will provide substantial growth in the coming years.