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sWaP watch phone likely won't change your opinion of watch phones


While watch phones have gotten a tad more "wearable" in recent years, they still haven't exactly caught on like some folks may have thought they would in their younger, jetpack-filled visions of the future, and we're going to go out on a limb and speculate that this new so-called sWaP watch won't change that situation. As far as watch phones go, however, this one looks to be fairly capable, with it packing a SIM card slot to let you easily hop onto your cell network of choice, a 1.3 megapixel camera, 128MB of built-in memory, a T-Flash card slot to add up to 2GB more, and even an included Bluetooth headset to avoid the embarrassment of actually talking into your watch. You'll have to pay a bit of a premium for this particular slice of a future that might have been though, with the device sporting a price tag of £249, or roughly $370.

[Via Coolest Gadgets]

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic now listed at €429 for Spain, up from €279


Well, it looks like folks in Europe (or Spain, at least) already sold on the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic could be in for a bit more than they bargained for, as the phone is now listed on Nokia.es for €429 (or just under $550) which, even given the now weaker Euro, is quite a leap from the €279 price for Europe that Nokia first announced just over a month ago. That still gets you an unlocked phone, however, and your choice of red, blue, or black colors, though it'll no doubt give some folks cause to reconsider the increasingly plentiful touchscreen phone options out there these days.

[Thanks, Radek]

HTC Touch HD review roundup


The HTC Touch HD may be somewhat hard to come by 'round these parts, but it certainly hasn't been making itself shy overseas, where it has been unboxed, examined, and given the early review treatment. Now that it's readily available in the UK, there's even more reviews of the phone cropping up, which seem to mostly agree that while it's not a phone for everyone, it definitely impresses. Among those completely blowing things out is Phone Arena, which, as you might expect, was especially impressed by the phone's screen, and describe it as "the phone for document viewing." Pocket Now was equally impressed by that "HD" display, as well as its overall performance and battery life, which they were pleased to find was about on par with the HD-less Touch Pro. CNET was even more effusive in its praise, saying that, despite its drawbacks, it is "HTC's best Windows Mobile phone yet." Windows Mobile, and HTC's GUI, proved to be a point of contention for the folks at Slash Gear, however, who say the phone would be even better running a next-gen version of the OS, or possibly even Android (a sentiment also echoed by Phone Arena). Other drawbacks include the phone's sheer size, some poor performance from TouchFLO 3D (despite an update) and, of course, it's lack of US 3G bands, which presents a bit of a problem for folks considering importing one. Still undecided? Then dive into the links below and watch the time slip away.

Read - Phone Arena
Read - Pocket Now
Read - CNET
Read - Slash Gear

RC29, RC30 G1 Android updates get explained

We'd already gotten a general idea about what Google's RC29 and RC30 Android updates for the G1 did, but if you're curious about all the little details, you'll no doubt be pleased to know that the Google Android Security Team has now finally come out and explained the updates themselves. As we had heard, the RC29 update fixed a vulnerability that could potentially let malicious sites take over your browser, but it apparently also fixed two other software bugs, including a universal cross-site scripting problem that could also give someone control of the browser, and an exploit that let folks bypass Android's locking mechanism by booting the phone into safe mode. As for RC30, it apparently not only fixed that little root access issue, but two other bugs related to WebKit, which could, again, let someone take over your browser, and access to the G1's memory to, for instance, read stored cookies and gain online privileges. Google has also clarified that it intends to wait until all users have access to updates before it discloses the full details about them, so it looks like this cycle of confusion is going to be a regular occurrence for G1 owners.

[Via Talk Android]

Nokia E63 gets unboxed, examined


We've seen spy shots and official shots of Nokia's new E63 handset, but nothing quite makes our day like unboxing shots of a fresh new device (even if it's a pre-production unit), and the folks at the TamsS60 blog have thankfully come through on that front, and offered a few impressions of the phone for good measure. Of particular note, they say that the E63's keyboard layout is "a lot less annoying" than the one on the E71, and the "weird type of rubber" used apparently feels better to the touch as well. Anyone looking to ditch their E71 should also be aware that those changes affect the size of the device, so you're out of luck if you were hoping to hang onto your E71's case. Hit up the link below for some more pics, and keep an eye on the site for a full review that's promised soon.

Debian gets ported to the G1, makes nice with Android


Recent firmware updates may have aimed to shut down such shenanigans, but it looks they were a little too slow to stop Jay Freeman (a.k.a. Saurik) from going to town with his newly jailbroken G1 and installing Debian on the handset. What's more, he apparently even managed to get Debian and Android to play nice with each other, letting you have a completely normal and unassuming phone by day and a nerd machine by night. As you might expect, however, it's not exactly as simple as installing an app from the Android Market, but anyone with a little experience in installing Linux distributions on unconventional devices should be able to follow the instructions fairly easily, although actually turning it into something useful is another matter. Hit up the read link below to get started.

[Via ModMyGphone]

Google patches up Android jailbreak with RC30 update


As you may have noticed, Google doesn't exactly seem to be hesitant about pushing out Android updates, and it looks like it's now at it again, letting the new RC30 update slip out just days after folks finally figured out what the mysterious RC29 update actually did. This particular update is decidedly less mysterious, however, with Google saying up front that it had been notified of the jailbreaking issue with Android and has developed a "fix," adding that it is "currently working with our partners to push the fix out and updating the open source code base to reflect these changes." No word on any other changes included in the update, but it's supposedly on an "accelerated release" and should be in everyone's hands within the next the three or four days.

[Via Talk Android]

AT&T's Ralph de la Vega says iPhone tethering coming "soon"

There's not exactly a lot of details to go on here (or any, really), but AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega has just confirmed during an interview at the Web 2.0 Summit that an AT&T-approved iPhone tethering option will indeed be available "soon." That lack of detail includes any word on pricing or, of course, an actual release date, though MacRumors is reporting separately that it's hearing the tethering capability will be built into the 2.2 firmware, which seems like at least a reasonable guess.

[Via MacRumors]

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic gets examined in-depth


We already caught sight of one early review of Nokia's 5800 XpressMusic handset a little while back, but if you're looking for something more to whet your appetite you may want to head on over to All About Symbian, which has an expectedly exhaustive look at the touchscreen phone. That naturally includes plenty of pics of the device and its interface, although the site is reserving its final conclusion for part two of the review, which is promised "soon." That's not to say there aren't plenty of impressions to be found though, including word that the device's build quality seems solid despite its plastic construction, and that the device's resistive touchscreen is "extremely good" compared to other resistive touchscreens (it also seems to have been improved compared to earlier Tube pre-production models). Still on the fence? Then hit up the read link below for more.

Manufacturing delays said to be slowing XPERIA X1 sales

As you might have noticed, there's already plenty of Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1s out in the wild by this point, but there's apparently not quite as many as SE would like, and it's laying the blame on some slightly mysterious manufacturing delays. According to IDG News, Sweden, Germany and the U.K. have been hardest hit by the delays, but Sony Ericsson isn't about to get much more specific than that about the matter, saying simply that a lack of "certain materials" is causing the shortages. The company has said, however, that more phones should be shipping into Sweden in the next few days, with the U.K. and Germany set to get additional shipments in the next few weeks. It also says that planned launches in other countries like Switzerland, France, and Singapore, to name a few, won't be affected by the delays, and that the phone is still on track to be released in the US sometime in November.

[Via the::unwired]

GSM-only BlackBerry Storm clears the FCC


Folks in North America don't have too much cause to get excited over this one, but anyone planning on buying a BlackBerry Storm from, say, Vodafone, can now rest a little easier knowing that the less-than-secret GSM-only version of the phone has cleared the all-important hurdle that is the FCC. There's not exactly any other surprises to be found here, naturally, but if it's test reports you're after, you can find plenty of those by hitting up the read link below.

North American N96 hits Nokia flagship stores

Nokia's North American N96 has already made an appearance at Best Buy Mobile locations but, if you're the die hard type that prefers to keep things as Nokia-centric as possible, you'll no doubt be pleased to know that Nokia's flagship phone is now also available at Nokia's two flagship stores in New York and Chicago. You will have to pay a slight premium for all that Nokia-ness, however, with the phone running a hefty $842 (unlocked, of course) at the stores compared to the $800 Best Buy is asking. Those with a bit more will power and slightly less affection for Nokia may want to think twice though, as Amazon now also has the phone listed for just $705.99, albeit with a promised ship date of November 9th.

[Via Symbian-Guru.com]

ASUS said to be launching Android handset in first half of '09

We'd already heard that ASUS had been invited to join the Open Handset Alliance, and DigiTimes is now reporting that the company is, in fact, planning to launch an Android-based handset -- go figure. That phone, some unnamed company sources say, will roll out sometime in the first half of 2009 (we're guessing late first half), and could possibly be released in Taiwan first under ASUS' own brand before making its way overseas in the form of different "customized models" for various clients. Of course, any other details are non-existent at this point, but those same sources did also note that ASUS will be phasing out its use of the Ericsson Mobile Platform (or EMP) in its phones in favor of handset platforms from Qualcomm and Marvell, which is interesting insofar as that both Qualcomm and Marvell are members of the OHA, while Ericsson is not.

G1s said to be "pouring into China," selling for big bucks


Google may still only be the number two search engine in China, but it looks like it's starting to make some serious inroads into the sketchy cellphone market in the country, with the Android-based G1 reportedly now "pouring into China" though some dubious channels, and demanding some pretty hefty prices. According to China's DoNews, the handsets are selling for upwards of 3,999 Chinese yuan (or just over $580), with shops charging an extra $70 or so to unlock it for you. That, some unnamed sellers say, is likely to keep the cost of the phone high in the short term, despite a reasonably high supply level.

[Via mocoNews.net]

T-Mobile G1 software update to be pushed out tomorrow

Well, it looks like G1 owners (or some, at least) will be getting a bit of an unexpected surprise when they turn on their brand new device tomorrow, as T-Mobile is apparently already set to start pushing out the very first OTA software update for the phone. Nothing too major, it seems, but the update will include a fix for a bug that has prevented folks from listening to songs on Amazon, as well as a number of other unspecified "enhancements." As with all OTA updates, however, it's likely everyone won't get their fix at once, and T-Mobile helpfully recommends that you simply just "wait," or "wait a little longer" to make sure you get yours, or check your software version to see if you may have gotten the update without noticing (the new release is version RC28).

[Via TmoNews]
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