Engadget Mobile

Joshua Fruhlinger

DoCoMo's separated phone hands-on and video from CEATEC

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Oct 1st 2008 at 2:20AM

We got all down and dirty with DoCoMo and Fujitsu's prototype "Separated phone" today at CEATEC, and we can confirm that the device does, in fact do what they say it does. As reported earlier, the device uses Bluetooth to communicate between the phone's two magnetized halves, enabling configurations in everything from standard clamshell to gaming landscape formats. Perhaps the most compelling configuration is one that allows the phone to be held to the ear while one accesses data on the another half, complete with neck cramps. The touchscreen, Symbian S60-based UI was easy enough to use (albeit in Japanese) and features a hearty media playback element, but we were unable to squeeze any commitment to a launch date, price, or probability of seeing the unit on the market. That all said, the demo units were very much operational as you can see for yourself in the video after the break.

Continue reading DoCoMo's separated phone hands-on and video from CEATEC

T-Mobile 3G is live in Vegas, baby

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Aug 6th 2008 at 10:17AM

That's right, kids, T-Mobile launched 3G data in Vegas this morning. The 1700MHz AWS 3G network went live for phones that can hit the UMTS 3G data stream, and if your phone is one of those, you may want to look for the pretty little icon and start doing some Intertron browsing. T-Mobile still expects to hit another 20 markets this year (along with some new handsets), so if you're not in Sin City, be patient -- 3G is coming.

Killing your phone's GSM buzz with ferrite beads

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Aug 2nd 2008 at 7:20PM

Tired of all that GSM buzz coming from your cellphone when all you wan to do is listen to music? The guys at MacLife have re-uncovered a simple fix that involves parts that you probably have laying around in your spaghetti drawer. Just grab some ferrite beads -- the same ones that often ship with TVs and USB cables -- and attach them to your speaker cables near the speakers. This is probably not a shock to those of you who already know a thing or two about magnetic interference, but for the rest of you, get scouting and grab some tape.

[Via Make]

T-Mobile 3G service coming October 1 to 27 markets

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jul 30th 2008 at 5:23PM

We were already pretty sure this would be happening, but it's looking real now, if 8.5 x 11-inch pieces of paper taped to windows is any indication: T-Mobile is rolling out its 3G service on October 1 to 27 select cities. The above poster was spotted by TmoNews "outside a meeting" and, as you can see, it says, "10.1.08 3G is Coming." As far as those launch cities, we have a handy little list for you after the break. By the way, it's entirely possible T-Mobile 3G is already live in your market, though, so don't let this confuse you too much. It could just mean you're next, or, at least by October 1.

Continue reading T-Mobile 3G service coming October 1 to 27 markets

BlackBerry Thunder not ready, disappointing, and kills puppies

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jul 9th 2008 at 10:41AM

Just when we were finished telling you that the BlackBerry Thunder's haptic touch screen keyboard was the greatest thing evar, it turns out that things may be a bit of a mess over in RIM development land. According to one of Boy Genius' sources, the BlackBerry Thunder is lagging far behind on development time and is "in no way shape of form market-ready." And that awesome keyboard? Not so awesome. Reports are that it's annoying to type on and the screen ripples when the touchscreen is pressed. Meanwhile, UI response times are pretty bad, buttons don't click right, and RIM's new touch-and-drag method of selecting items isn't up to snuff. In short, says BGR's source, "Most of the people who have handled it thinks it's a joke." We haven't seen the thing ourselves lately, but if this report is true, it looks like you'll be waiting a while before you get your hands on a Thunder.

Nokia's Haptikos tactile feedback tech revealed in patent application

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jul 8th 2008 at 7:05PM

It's been a while since we've heard anything about Nokia's Haptikos tactile touch screen technology, but with the unearthing of some juicy patent details, we finally know what's going on here. Basically, the tech uses layers under the touchscreen to allow control of surface roughness and friction. The patent describes a "plurality of closely space voltage controllable protruberances" that can raise or lower based on where the user is touching the screen, resulting in what feels like resistance and tactile feedback. Filled with fluid, the protruberances increase fiction and help users feel like they're actually touching something rather than poking at a plane of glass. No word on any devices with the new haptic tech, but we wouldn't be surprised to see this show up in some of their new touchy-feely handsets in the near future.

[Via Unwired View]

Read - Patent Application (warning: PDF)

OpenMoko Neo FreeRunner available for order July 4, shipping July 7

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jul 2nd 2008 at 9:15AM

Last we heard form Openmoko, it was packing and shipping the open-source FreeRunner for an early July release. So, here we are in early July and wouldn't you know it, the FreeRunner will be available for order starting Friday, July 4 with shipping to begin on Monday, July 7. As for details, we got 'em. The shipped version of the phone will come in both 850Mhz and 900Mhz Tri-band GSM flavors with a 2.8-inch VGA touchscreen, WiFi, AGPS, GPRS 2.6G, Bluetooth 2.0, 128MB WSDRAM, and 256MB NAND flash. If you're down with all that, look to pay $399 on Friday at www.openmoko.com.

Warner Music joins Nokia's Comes With Music download program

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jul 1st 2008 at 2:07AM

The latest label following BMG to join Nokia's Comes With Music service bandwagon is none other than Warner Music Group. The third-largest label joins the powerful cadre of labels on the service, which as of this posting lacks only EMI for a full major label lineup. As a reminder, the service allows you to download music for 12 months and then keep it as long as you own the device or transfer to a PC. Now, of course, we just need to wait for the devices to roll out.

[Via Yahoo News]

Treo 800w spec sheets and training materials reveal details, lack of MMS

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jun 28th 2008 at 4:56PM

We're not sure where our tipster got these pictures (nor are we going to ask), but they appear to be screens from the Treo 800w's specification and knowledge training documentation. New tidbits include a 333 Mhz processor, 4.4.1 x 2.28 x 0.73-inch dimensions, and a weight of 4.94 ounces. Windows Mobile 6.1 looks to be in full-force, the camera shoots at 2 MP, and the USB port is 2.0. As for other revealed features, you're looking at threaded SMS chat, but MMS is mysteriously missing in lieu of Sprint Picture Mail, a trend that continues to confuse us. If all this pans out, look for the 800w to be available on July 13th for $249.99. Hit the continue link to see the rest of the juicy shots and details.

[Thanks, brian]

Continue reading Treo 800w spec sheets and training materials reveal details, lack of MMS

Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 hands-on, sorta

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jun 26th 2008 at 9:12AM

So here's the scene. We're at the Digital Experience show, trying to get our hands on a powered-up Sony Xperia X1. Sure, we found a unit that wasn't powered up, but that does you -- and us -- no good. Sony told us to come back in 15 minutes, so we grabbed some press kits, made a round of booths, and came back.

Sure enough, when we came back the X1 was powered up, but the nice booth lady tried to tell us that things weren't working just right and the unit was stuck on the config screen. After some jiggering, we determined the little X1 was just stuck on the touch screen calibration, and we were cruising through menus within minutes. It's pretty clear this unit wasn't ready for primetime -- you'll even see some HTC test apps in the below gallery -- but we were impressed by the screen's resolution and brightness. Windows Mobile 6.1 showed it face often in the UI, but the phone app and general utilities were looking good.

Overall, the X1 is a pleasure to behold -- it's one sexy device. That said, we'll have to wait how Sony Ericsson's user interface shapes up and just look at the pretty pictures in the gallery until mid-September.

You can find the gallery over here at Engadget Classic.

Blackberry Bold hands-on

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jun 25th 2008 at 9:43PM

We had a chance to play with Research In Motion's upcoming BlackBerry Bold handset tonight, and we came away happily impressed. To start things off, the keyboard felt easy enough to use, at least easier than the 8830 we're often forced to use for work email. Gone are the sharp protrusions, replaced with a nice flat surface upon which to click.

Of note was the Bold's user interface. Menus are clean and easy to read (despite some strange icon choices, see below), and response time is about as quick as one could hope, especially compared to other phones out there that seem to struggle with their operating systems.

Continue reading Blackberry Bold hands-on

Treo 800 spy shot madness starts again with new blurry goodness

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jun 25th 2008 at 1:41PM

So we've had blurry "Treo 800" pictures that turned out to be the Centro, others that turned out to be just about nothing, and now this one that is making the rounds in super-blur fast-mo. It's as if someone took a Centro, made the keys bigger, put a Sprint logo on there, and blurred out what appears to be a tester serial number. That's about all for now, but as usual we'll take this with a big grain of salt and make some rumor soup.

HTC Touch Diamond store spotted in Malaysia

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jun 7th 2008 at 6:25PM

The HTC Touch Diamond is hitting shores world-round, and this store in Malaysia is making a big deal of things with a full selection of accessories, alluring attendants, and what appears to be a permanent address. If the touchscreen and Opera browser don't get you, the shiny displays certainly will. Follow the read link for more pictures of the new store.

[Thanks, freedomzaft11]

Philips X800 low-end touchscreen phone details revealed

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jun 6th 2008 at 5:55PM

We already knew that Philips had plans to release the low-end touchscreen X800, but now we know just how low it was willing to go with this thing. Confirmed are the lack of 3G, EDGE (which still shocks us), and WiFi. Meanwhile, the 2.9-inch, 240x400 screen, only supports 256K colors, and the phone's browser is your basic WAP 2.0/xHTML. It does support Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, though, so that's a plus. Other bits: it will allow for expansion via microSD, support MP3 ringtones, and packs a USB port. In short, not a whole lot to see here. Follow the read link for a full spec list.

[Via BoyGeniusReport]

Study secretly tracked 100,000 cellphone users' locations

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Jun 4th 2008 at 11:32PM

Ask yourself this: Are you a statistic or a specific example? That's the question being raised in the aftermath of a study in which researchers secretly tracked the locations of 100,000 people to determine their movement patterns. Such studies are considered invasions of privacy -- and illegal -- in the United States, but this one was done in an undisclosed industrialized nation. The subjects were chosen at random out of a pool of 6 million from a mystery wireless provider and tracked based on cell tower triangulation and other "tracking devices." Study co-author Cesar Hidalgo at Northeastern University promises that researchers didn't know the individuals' phone numbers or identities, and offers that the results are a major advance for science. The study found that people are homebodies -- most stay within 20 miles of their home and are rather habitual. Scientists say the findings -- to be published in Nature on Thursday -- can help improve public transit systems and even fight contagious diseases.

[Thanks, Doug]

[Via MSNBC]