Consumer electronics nerds that love the Android 2.1-powered Google Nexus One but aren’t high on T-Mobile have some good news — a CDMA version of the Nexus One has cleared the FCC! When the phone launched, Google said that Verizon would be getting the Nexus One in Spring 2010. It looks like that release date will be met.
Now that the Nexus One will be available on America’s largest mobile network, are any of you interested in picking it up?
Before I get too D.I.C.E. happy, I should pack. Since I’m only gone Wednesday through Friday, I’m not bringing my Nintendo DS or Sony PSP. That said, I’m still packing a bunch of consumer electronics devices. In addition to my laptop and a three-pound microphone, I have my trusty BlackBerry, iPhone 3GS, and Kindle. It’s probably overkill, but you never know when a flight is going to be cancelled or delays.
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, what you’re giving up for Lent, MLB spring training kicking into full gear, or the ridiculously fruity costumes in men’s figure skating, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
As some of you know, I’m headed off to Las Vegas today for the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences’ annual D.I.C.E. conference. D.I.C.E. is always one of my favorite events of the year. The ridiculous amount of development talent walking through its halls is just…stunning. It’s just crazy that you can walk from the press room to the conference room and bump into dozens of gaming’s top creators.
Before I get too D.I.C.E. happy, I should pack. Since I’m only gone Wednesday through Friday, I’m not bringing my Nintendo DS or Sony PSP. That said, I’m still packing a bunch of consumer electronics devices. In addition to my laptop and a three-pound microphone, I have my trusty BlackBerry, iPhone 3GS, and Kindle. It’s probably overkill, but you never know when a flight is going to be cancelled or delays.
I wanted to see what you guys and dolls bring with you on the road. Do you go heavy on portable gaming? Do you prefer music and video devices? Or is it all of the above?
It’s looking more and more like AT&T will lose its vaunted iPhone exclusivity sooner rather than later. At CES 2010, the company threw its support behind Google Android and Palm WebOS. At Mobile World Congress, AT&T was anointed Microsoft’s “premier partner” for Windows Phone 7 Series devices. By the end of 2010, AT&T should have a wide variety of devices that will appeal to tech enthusiasts.
Like I said earlier in the year, AT&T is preparing for life without iPhone (exclusivity). I’m hoping all these signs are pointing to the obvious and that the wonderful iPhone will be free of the filthy shackles of AT&T’s network soon. Ah…the dream.
RIM’s BlackBerry phones are wonderful for email and messaging, but the stock browser on all BlackBerries sucks. Third-party offerings like Bolt and Opera Mini are better, but still not as good as WebKit-based browsers found on Android, iPhone, and WebOS models. Today at Mobile World Congress RIM showed that it is working hard to replace its crappy browser with one that’s actually good. According to Engadget Mobile:
The early build shown off on-screen looks pretty solid, rendering Amazon.com quickly and scoring a full 100/100 on the Acid3 test.
The browser is WebKit based and a result of RIM’s acquisition of Torch Mobile. I’ve pretty much written off BlackBerry OS, but this browser is giving me second thoughts. Hopefully it arrives faster than RIM’s software updates.
Any BB users out there psyched for this browser?
While Microsoft has been getting the lion’s share of attention at Mobile World Congress for Windows Phone 7 Series, The Symbian Foundation has been trying to garner buzz by previewing its upcoming Symbian^3 OS. The video above is a “design preview” of Symbian^3 from Nokia and the Foundation. Here’s a snippet from Nokia’s blog:
The Symbian Foundation today unveiled the first release of Symbian^3 which they expect to be code complete by the end of next month. This release features a wide range of enhancements including more advanced usability, faster networking and graphics acceleration in 2D and 3D for games and apps. The first devices running the new platform are expected to ship as early as Q3 this year.
Although Symbian is still the global smartphone OS leader, it is rapidly losing ground to modern operating systems like Apple’s iPhone OS and Google’s Android. Those two products along with Palm’s WebOS make Symbian S60 look extremely primative. While Symbian^3 (in preview mode) appears to be modern and promising, it also looks like an oh-crap-we-have-to-catch-up effort.
What do you think of Symbian^3? Will it help Nokia compete this decade and regain some of its dominance? Or is it too little, too late?
Microsoft made a big splash today with Windows Phone 7 Series. It adds another combatant to the extremely interesting mobile-phone market. I wanted to see which OS interests you the most. I realized a few seconds ago that I forgot all about RIM’s BlackBerry OS, but after a few minutes of thought, I realized that it was probably the right move. BlackBerry OS 5 is not a modern OS and isn’t really comparable to the others in the poll.
Anyway, take the poll and share your thoughts (please)!
[poll id=”26″]
Earlier today, Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone 7 Series at Barcelona’s Mobile World Congress. It’s an important step for the company’s mobile future and by most accounts, it’s a huge leap forward for the Windows Mobile Operating System. After losing ground to RIM’s BlackBerry OS in the business world, as well as Apple’s iPhone OS and Google’s Android OS in the consumer market, Microsoft is stepping up its game. One of the ways it’s attempting to reach out to consumers is through connectivity with Xbox Live. Here’s the official description of Windows Mobile 7’s “games hub”:
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, your lovely Valentine’s Day surprises, the NBA All-Star Game, or what you think of the Winter Olympics so far, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
Earlier today, Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone 7 Series at Barcelona’s Mobile World Congress. It’s an important step for the company’s mobile future and by most accounts, it’s a huge leap forward for the Windows Mobile Operating System. After losing ground to RIM’s BlackBerry OS in the business world, as well as Apple’s iPhone OS and Google’s Android OS in the consumer market, Microsoft is stepping up its game. One of the ways it’s attempting to reach out to consumers is through connectivity with Xbox Live. Here’s the official description of Windows Phone 7’s “games hub”:
This hub delivers the first and only official Xbox Live experience on a phone, including Xbox Live games, Spotlight feed and the ability to see a gamer’s avatar, Achievements and gamer profile. With more than 23 million active members around the world, Xbox Live unlocks a world of friends, games and entertainment on Xbox 360, and now also on Windows Phone 7 Series.
There are a several interesting implications here. First of all, Microsoft has a huge opportunity to compete with and possibly eclipse the games market in Apple’s iPhone App Store. The company already has deep relationships with several of the best game developers and publishers in the world. Secondly, Windows Phone 7 Series has the chance to extend the social aspects of Xbox Live in a major way. So many people use Facebook and Twitter on mobile devices. By unchaining Xbox Live from a console or PC, the company could make the service a major force in social networking.
I want to know what you think of Windows Phone 7 Series. Check out the official press release and look at its impressive features. Can you see yourself using a Windows Phone 7 Series device in the future? If so, is Xbox Live connectivity a major reason why?
My friend Justin (RPadholic @jpkmets) sent me an awesome care package consisting of an Amazon Kindle, a Big Trouble in Little China t-shirt from The Wing Kong Exchange, and a Porkchop Express sticker. Everything in the box is pure awesome.
As many of you know, Big Trouble in Little China
Thanks Justin!!!
Market research firm iSuppli published a chart that revealed that the Apple iPad costs between $229.35 to $346.15 to make. The initial price of the device ranges from $499 to $829. Take a peak at this nifty chart.
If iSuppli’s numbers are accurate then Apple will be making a pretty penny off each iPad sold right out of the gate. Considering that none of its parts are bleeding edge, the estimates are totally believable.
Astute observers know that after the alpha and beta builds of Google Android, the company has been going down the alphabet and naming builds after desserts — Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo (frozen yogurt), Gingerbread, etc. Let’s play a game and name upcoming builds of Google Anroid ourselves! Does anyone know a dessert that starts with the letter “H”?
