Verizon Getting Apple Tablet in 2010 and iPhone in 2011?

A lot technophiles are hoping that the rumors of Verizon getting the iPhone in 2010 come true, but one longtime technology writer says it’s not happening. With Verizon starting the transition from 3G CDMA technology to 4G LTE, some experts feel it would be silly for Apple to trot out a CDMA iPhone this year. The consolation prize? The Apple tablet…or iTable…or iSlate…or whatever the hell they’re calling the device this week. PC Magazine’s Sascha Segan recently wrote:

There isn’t going to be a Verizon iPhone in 2010. Get over it. Verizon and Apple are on the same wavelength about the iPhone being a slam-bang device to help promote Verizon’s LTE network, which means 2011. But the Apple Tablet is exactly what Verizon is looking for right now.

On paper, I agree with him. In practice, I don’t. I sincerely doubt LTE deployment will go as smoothly as planned. You know those lovely coverage maps Verizon likes to show off? At launch time, its LTE map is going to look more like AT&T’s current 3G map. With that in mind, why wouldn’t Verizon want a CDMA iPhone? It could sell millions of them for years, as opposed to an LTE iPhone that has a far more limited reach.

It just seems silly and overly ambitious to wait on LTE for the iPhone. AT&T has become a strong #2, largely due to the iPhone. Verizon could leave its nearest competitor in the dust by offering the most popular consumer phone on the strongest network in the country. This is pure conjecture, but I’d bet that a CDMA Apple tablet would do a fraction of the numbers a CDMA iPhone would do. I don’t see how it would be “exactly what Verizon is looking for”.

What do you make of all this? If Verizon has the opportunity to get a CDMA iPhone, shouldn’t it jump at the chance? How well do you think an Apple tablet would do for the carrier? Are any of you even interested in one?

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Sunday Housekeeping

– If you haven’t noticed the site’s new logo, take a peak and get mesmerized by its coolness. It’s another N8R original. Thanks man!

– Last week I posted the site’s first original video, with a huge assist from N8R. If you haven’t checked it out, please do. I’m going to try to do more of these audio interviews with still images. Hopefully that will tide me over until I can get video gear. Plus, I really hate transcribing. :P

– I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but almost everything in the “videos” category is hosted on my Blip.tv account. That means the ad revenue from those vids is mine. So please check out those vids and embed them if you can. You can also subscribe to my videos on iTunes if you’re so inclined.

– The traffic from Monday through Wednesday was pretty ordinary, but the site received nice spikes on Thursday and Friday thanks to NeoGaf.

– Please don’t forget about my Amazon links that can be found on every post and in the right sidebar. Remember, it doesn’t matter what you buy as long you enter Amazon through one of my links. They did okay in November and December, but they’re not doing much of anything in January. Yeah, I know holiday shopping season is over, but there are so many great Q1 games to pre-order!

– As always, thanks so much for reading the site and leaving comments! If my right knee cooperates, I should have some really cool stuff coming in February and March.

Will the Motorola Shadow Become the Google Nexus Two?

Rumors and photos of the phone that will supposedly become Google’s Nexus Two are floating around. Android fans will remember that Google vice president of engineering Andy Rubin said that the next Nexus phone will be aimed at enterprise users and have a keyboard. This is where the Motorola Shadow comes in.

Remember, Motorola co-CEO Sanjay Jha was present at Google’s Nexus One unveiling. While people were fixated on the HTC-made phone, having another hardware vendor at the event showed that Google.com/phone is part or a larger endeavor. I always saw Jha’s presence as Motorola standing in the on-deck circle.

As for the phone itself, the Motorola Shadow borrows a lot of the Motorola Droid’s design, but with a drastically different color scheme. Instead of the Droid’s black, Darth Vader appearance, the Shadow features a screen with black boarders and a slide-out keyboard in white. While the phone looks great in photos, the neat freak in me is worried about a white keyboard. On the plus side, the Shadow has a slot for a wrist strap, which would allow me to use my vast assortment of anime and videogame straps I purchased in Japan.

On the software side, thing don’t add up (yet). If the Nexus Two is being aimed at enterprise users then Android would need security tweaks for Microsoft Exchange support. For secure corporate email, RIM’s BlackBerry is the undisputed champion of the market. The stock Android OS doesn’t handle Exchange in a way that would make IT administrators happy. Perhaps Motorola has been working on custom tweaks for this purpose.

While I was tempted by the Nexus One, typing tweets and Facebook updates on my (sim-less) iPhone reminded me of how much I loathe virtual keyboards. I’ve posted full blog posts and lengthy emails on my BlackBerry. I can’t picture doing the same on the Nexus One. Whether or not the Motorola Shadow becomes the Nexus Two, I’m highly interested in the phone…if it matches it predecessor’s OLED screen and Snapdragon processor.

How about you ladies and gents? Any thoughts on the Motorola Shadow? Do you think the design is too flashy for an enterprise phone?

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Flashback: Jay Leno’s Raves About Conan O’Brien in 2004

This 2004 clip of Jay Leno discussing Conan O’Brien taking over The Tonight Show in 2009 is funny when viewed through the retroscope. My favorite line was when Leno said, “There was a lot of animosity between me and Dave over who was going to get it [The Tonight Show]. And quite frankly…good friendships were permanently damaged. And I don’t want to have to see anyone have to go through that ever again.”

*snicker*

PSA: Free WiFi at McDonald’s Starting Today

McDonald’s has announced that it has started offering free WiFi at 11,500 of its 14,000 locations. So after you grease up your hands with a Big Mac value meal, you can get crap all over your laptop or smartphone.

Do any of you use WiFi at McDonald’s? If not, will you start doing so now that it’s free?

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AT&T and Verizon Slash Service Prices

AT&T and Verizon have slashed the prices of their wireless services. Since most of you are tech nerds, I’ll focus on the unlimited (talk, data, and text) plans for smartphones. Current AT&T users will be able to lower their costs to $119.99 a month starting on Monday, while Verizon customers can enjoy unlimited everything for $119.98.

While any price reduction is nice, these prices are still higher than what Sprint and T-Mobile offer. Sprint’s comparable plan costs $99.99, while T-Mobile’s costs $79.99. Naturally, the value of any of these services depends on the coverage you get at home, work, and the places you frequently travel to.

NPD Group Top 10 Games of 2009

Last month I told you about the best selling games for the first 11 months of 2009. NPD Group has wrapped up its data for the year and revealed the full Monty. Here are the best selling games of 2009:

  1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360)
  2. Wii Sports Resort (Wii)
  3. New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii)
  4. Wii Fit (Wii)
  5. Wii Fit Plus (Wii)
  6. Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
  7. Wii Play (Wii)
  8. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PlayStation 3)
  9. Halo 3: ODST (Xbox 360)
  10. Pokemon Platinum Version (Nintendo DS)

Kindly discuss (preferably inebriated)!

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Verizon and Sprint Stepping Up in Haitian Relief Efforts

A lot of people have been reporting that donations made through text messages can take up to 90 days to register. For people trying to donate money to aid the people of Haiti, that’s just way too late. In today’s episode of The Rachel Maddow Show I learned that Verizon and Sprint have stepped things up to get the money to the people that need it now. Maddow reported that Verizon will make 100 percent of the funds available immediately, while Sprint will make 80 percent of the funds available. She mentioned that AT&T is examining ways to expedite things, but offered no word on T-Mobile.

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

I’m pretty sure I’m done with Return to Ostagar for Dragon Age: Origins. Three runs is enough. It’s not going to get any better. That leaves me with some unusual choices this weekend. I’m going to give Matt Hazard: Blood, Bath, and Beyond a shot. Its combination of old-school 2D-shooting action and irreverent humor totally works for me (on paper).

I’ll also been messing around with a cute and simple iPhone game called Bird Strike. You basically fling a bird in the air, collect stuff on the way up, and break stuff on the way down. It’s a fun diversion for when you need to kill a few minutes.

How about you ladies and gents? What’s on your weekend playlist?

Coffee Talk #66: It’s Nintendo’s World and We’re Just Playing in It

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, this fine video that N8R edited, Gilbert Arenas being charged with a felony, or credit card companies profiting from Haiti donations, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Nintendo’s sales figures — for both hardware and software — in December 2009 were ridiculous. The company stomped the competition. On the hardware side, it wasn’t even close. On the software side, it dominated the charts. While I know that there will always be a market for enthusiast gamers, I’m starting to wonder if it will become niche.

A year ago I would have scoffed at the notion, but Nintendo keeps putting these kinds of numbers and its competitors yearn for similar success. On the hardware front, Microsoft and Sony are busting out motion controllers to help expand their audience to the mainstream. Who knows how successful they’ll be with these efforts, but it’s clear that they both want a slice of the casual pie Nintendo has been feasting on.

Maybe it’s a combination of insomnia and paranoia, but I’m a little bit scared of what the gaming market will become. Do you think it will get to the point that gamers like you and me are the minority? Will all three console companies be fighting it out for the Wii Sports Resort crowd? Or do I just need to take a nap?