We've just sorta become accustomed to seeing the term "Jack" show up somewhere in the name of any North American Samsung running Windows Mobile that looks like this, so "Code" is a refreshing change of pace. The midrange portrait QWERTY smartphone just popped with no fanfare over on US Cellular's site, revealing a 2 megapixel camera, WinMo 6.1 Standard, EV-DO Rev. 0, and a QVGA display. Coincidentally, this sucker got FCC approval as the SCH-i220 just a few days ago, so these guys are probably lining up to get it to market shortly.

[Via MobileBurn]

So the HTC Snap missed its rumored June 7 date with destiny on Sprint, but don't count it out -- it might still be available before the weekend comes around. Word on the street is that Radio Shack is gearing up to offer the S511 Snap alongside Samsung's Exclaim QWERTY slider as soon as Friday for $149.99 and $79.99 on contract, respectively. If true, that would almost certainly make Sprint the first US carrier to offer a version of HTC's latest WinMo Standard device, beating out T-Mobile and Verizon -- the two others currently rumored to have eyes on it. Anyone planning on camping out at their local Shack Thursday night?

[Thanks, anonymous tipster]

We're still not sure we understand the business justification for leaving the Snap name off the US version of the phone, but that's all good -- the dryly-named S522 just got hooked up with FCC certification on its way to a likely summer release. This means that there'll ultimately be two versions of the phone specifically with North America in mind, since T-Mobile USA's getting an AWS-equipped model as the Dash 3G. Let's be real, it's not as exciting as a Touch Pro2 launch -- but at least the S522 branding will save us from countless "oh snap" jokes (Josh, we're looking straight at you).

Making a phone rugged is just begging reviewers to beat the hell out of it, so when i-mate decided to coat its 810-F with rubber and make it impervious to cold, heat, and water, they should've known damn well what was coming next. CNET Asia had the distinct privilege of doing the honors with this one, and happily, the WinMo 6.1-powered set survived being packed in ice for an hour and being dropped onto carpet from a normal height (we would've preferred concrete, but beggars can't be choosers). Unfortunately, the phone has a non-removable battery to help meet its rugged aims, the keyboard's said to be ridiculously stiff, and the stylus is unusably small -- but if you need Windows Mobile, GPS, WiFi, and a magnetic compass in a package that won't let you down in any environment, you might be able to overlook the shortcomings when the phone's released next month.

[Via wmpoweruser.com]

We're not sure what kind of wilded-out party people need a single phone that can use both AT&T and T-Mobile 3G in the States, but your dreams have finally come true: the Pharos Traveller 137 is finally available. Hope you like Windows Mobile 6.1, cause that's what you're getting for your $350 on two-year T-Mo contract or $600 unlocked. Expensive, yes, but you're basically getting every feature you can think of and Pharos says the 137 is WinMo 6.5-ready, so there's an upgrade path here -- too bad no firmware will ever make that resistive touchscreen feel good.

[Via PhoneScoop]

Want an HTC Snap? Have £289.99, $481, or some equivalent mix of currency? Then you might want to head over to Devicewire, where the first trickles of Snap stock are starting to flow. It seems they've only started with a few dozen units here, and we wouldn't be surprised if they went quickly -- so if portrait QWERTY, Windows Mobile 6.1, and HTC's Inner Circle technology all get you hot and bothered, you'd best place your British order soon rather than later.

[Via MoDaCo]

If you're longing desperately for that T-Mobile Dash replacement, you don't have that much longer to wait, because the Maple / S522 / Snap / Dash 3G (and yes, sadly, those are all pretty much synonyms) is right around the corner. All signs point to a release this summer -- and we're now seeing the phone for the very first time in T-Mobile branding, which is a good sign as far as we're concerned. We've had chances to play with the unbranded Snap in the past, and while it's definitely a great looking handset in the flesh, it doesn't typically photograph well; strangely, we're digging this fuzzy, dirty, out-of-perspective shot as-is. Something about the T-Mobile logo just does it for us, we guess?

By and large, China's networks are dominated by GPRS-only devices that make up in crazy user interfaces (and often even crazier designs) what they lack in data speed. Carriers over there are finally in full swing rolling out a variety of 3G networks, though -- EV-DO, HSPA, TD-SCDMA, you name it -- which should make mobile browsing a whole lot more satisfying of an experience when you're headed to that posh Shanghai office with a view. Anyhow, it seems that Alcatel is prepping a WinMo 6.1-powered side slider with 7.2Mbps HSDPA just for China Unicom's nascent Wo network, which is an encouraging sign that Wo's users are going to have decent hardware in their hands to match the blazing speeds. It's got a WQVGA display, AGPS, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and pretty much every other modern smartphone amenity, which marks the first time in a long time (ever?) that we've expressed a tinge of envy for a domestic Chinese handset. Wo, Alcatel -- our hats go off to you on this one.

[Via Unwired View]

The Jack's just fine and dandy if you want a WinMo Standard device on AT&T with a portrait QWERTY keyboard, but what if you're, say, coming from a Pearl? Odds are you're pretty comfortable with a SureType-style 20-key layout, and that's what the GW600 HQ from LG promises. This device sorta made the rounds -- albeit covertly -- at MWC a few months back, and we hadn't taken it as a likely candidate for American release, but this slide seems to prove us wrong. It's got triband 3G, a 2 megapixel cam, microSD expansion up to 16GB, Windows Mobile 6.1, 320 x 240 non-touch display, and a lofty target date of July 6, which might give you just a little more pause before you make that Jack buy. Follow the break for a closer look at those 20 glorious keys -- along with the rest of the HQ.

The slide here clearly identifies the Pivot as a "successor of BlackJack series," yes -- but the same slide deck also refers to the Samsung Jackie (the Jack's codename) as a BlackJack successor, so we wouldn't put too much stock in that. The fact is that this Pivot is a touch-capable WinMo device with QWERTY, and we can't imagine AT&T bothering to stock both this and the similarly-spec'd Epix at the same time. By and large, this seems like an ever-so-slight upgrade to the Epix, featuring 4GB of onboard Flash, a 2.6-inch QVGA touchscreen, AGPS, WiFi, and a 3 megapixel camera (up from the older model's 2 megapixel unit). It also has triband HSDPA for international 3G roaming, but curiously, it seems that it's lined up to launch with WinMo 6.1 -- at least at the time of this slide's creation, which has the phone pegged for an October launch. That'd be precisely a year after the launch of the Epix -- perfect timing for a refresh, and we wouldn't be surprised if they slipped 6.5 into the mix by the time that happens. Follow the break for a closer shot of the phone.

We know that Sprint, Verizon, and T-Mobile are all getting versions of the Touch Pro2, but what about little ol' AT&T? Turns out that device is codenamed "Fortress," and it'll accompany a Touch Diamond2 version known as "Warhawk" to market this summer. The Fortress is actually listed as targeted for May 25, which seems a bit unrealistic -- but we think the document we're looking at is a little stale, so we're sure the inevitable delay has crept into the schedule by now. It's expected to launch with WinMo 6.1 AKU6 (presumably upgradeable to 6.5 down the road) with full HSPA on three bands, AGPS, a 3.2 megapixel AF cam, 3.6-inch WVGA display, and Video Share support. Curiously, the bottom of the slide mentions that a "WM 7.X refresh" is in the works with a September 2009 launch date, which underscores the fact that this slide is likely a little old -- there's no way anything running Windows Mobile 7 is hitting this year if 6.5 will just be coming to market in volume toward the holiday season.

Meanwhile, the Warhawk -- AT&T's Touch Diamond2 -- gets a 3.2-inch WVGA display, dual-band HSDPA, AGPS, and Video Share, but unlike the Fortress, it's scheduled to launch with Windows Mobile 6.5 installed out of the gate. It's targeted for August 24, so we'll see how closely they can stick to that.

The Touch Diamond2's been circulating for a little while now, but its more QWERTY-savvy sibling -- the Touch Pro2 -- has yet to hit the market in any official capacity. That looks to be changing pretty shortly, though, with eXpansys UK estimating that its stock will be ready to roll on the 12th of next month. Of course, this is the UK version of the device with a localized charger and all that jazz, but it's safe to assume that if it's available there, it should be available in a variety of other locales within a reasonably short period of time. Naïve of us to think such an outlandish thing, isn't it?

[Via wmpoweruser.com]

The BlackJack II's been looking a little long in the tooth for a while now, and it's been made pretty clear that the Epix isn't the direct replacement -- so what is? Behold the i637 Jack (not to be confused with the... uh, Jack), which has just been made official with a 3.2 megapixel camera and video recording, AGPS, WiFi, microSD expansion, 256MB of RAM, triband HSDPA / quadband EDGE, and the all-too-typical QVGA display. Like its forebears, the Jack naturally features a full QWERTY keyboard; it'll launch with Windows Mobile 6.1 but will be fully upgradeable to 6.5. Look for it in stores on May 19 for $99.99 on a new two-year contract after rebate. AT&T's already got a unit (not to say that should come as any surprise) and they're showing it off on video -- check it out after the break.

They're no F1, but Acer's rolling out a whole slew of Windows Mobile- and Android-powered smartphones this year -- and another gruesome twosome of the bunch is now hitting store shelves around the world. First up we've got the WinMo 6.1-based DX900, which really isn't much of a looker but packs the powerful punch of twin SIMs underneath its homely shell. Most dual-SIM devices top out at EDGE, but the DX900 takes it to the next level with triband HSDPA on top of quadband EDGE; you've also got a 2.8-inch VGA display, WiFi, 3 megapixel AF camera, and GPS, so if you're a two-line kind of individual, look for this one now around Europe and Asia. Next, the X960 ups the ante with HSUPA and 7.2Mbps maximum on the downlink, a revised 3D user interface, and a 3.2 megapixel cam -- it too should be populating Europe and Asia as we speak. Neither unit is going to be blowing minds, granted, but if it's any consolation, we're sure there are a few good hacked 6.5 and Android ROMs waiting for 'em.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

Read - DX900
Read - X960

New inventory items in Telus' system are setting these old, weary interwebs ablaze, especially those parts of the interwebs where HTC devices are discussed with great love and passion. Specifically, the Snap and Touch Pro2 have made appearances -- not surprising, considering we know other CDMA carriers have these on the roadmap already -- but what's extra delicious here are the "World Edition" tags listed in the description field. That would imply that these are dual-band devices capable of supporting GSM abroad, which is music to any globetrotting suit's ears and a surefire way to sell a few more of these biz-oriented things. We've received similar inventory screen shots corroborating Boy Genius Report's which makes us even more certain they're on their way -- it's just a question of when and for how much.

[Thanks, anonymous tipster]