Cell Phones & Plans

Motorola Rapture VU30

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:50 +0000

Carrier: Verizon
Retail Price:$269 or via Ebay
Contract Price:$99 or via Let’s Talk
Hot Feature:V CAST Music with Rhapsody

The Motorola Rapture VU30 is a repacked VE20 in a raounded clamshell form factor. Key features include a 2.0 megapixel camera, external touch controls, Bluetooth, A-GPS, music player, voice memo, microSD slot, games and a WAP browser.

UPDATED - Outage: My T-Mobile data is down this morning. Is yours?

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:48 +0000

T-Mobile data seems to be down this morning here in the
Oakland/Emeryville/Berkeley part of the San Francisco Bay Area. Voice
service is fine, but I can’t get data via EDGE or 3G on either my
unlocked iPhone or my G1. I’ve been trying all morning in areas where
I usually get service without a problem. Wi-Fi data works fine on both
devices, so that rules out device errors.

Am I just experiencing some bad luck (or welcomed “forced down
time”), or is anyone else having issues? Maybe everyone’s G1
pre-orders showed up this morning and the network got hammered? Maybe
it’s a glitch in the system? Maybe Steve Jobs’ minions have been
cutting T-Mobile’s backbone cables in the wake of last night’s flood of
G1 reviews?

Speaking of which, I posted a full-length written review and the first five parts of my multi-video review of the G1 last night. Check ‘em out!

UPDATE: My data came back up around lunchtime
here in Berkeley, CA. Both EDGE and 3G are working. John reports that
data is still down as of 1:30 PM in his part of Portland, OR … though
reader PDXMatt said earlier that his data was fine. Possibly a rolling outage of some sort? Hmm …

BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:47 +0000

Carrier: T-Mobile
Retail Price: $379.99 or via ebay
Contract Price: $149.99 or via Let’s Talk
Hot Feature: RIM’s 1st Flip Backberry

The Pearl 8220 Flip is Blackberry’s first smartphone to to sport a thin clamshell form factor. Key features include a 2.0 megapixel camera, SureType keypad, stereo Bluetooth, Wifi with support for UMA calling, puch email support, music player, microSD(up to 16GB) and a large 240 x 320 internal display.

Flash 10 shows love for Linux

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:43 +0000

As I indicated in my post on Silverlight for Android, a phone that could run both Silverlight and Flash could steal the title of “most web-friendly phone.” Well, get a load of this. Adobe just released Flash 10, and it supports Linux from the get-go.

The previous version of Flash put Linux on the low-priority list; delivering support 6 months after Windows and Mac users were satisfied. Exciting stuff, considering the release of Android. When Firefox finally releases the mobile version of its browser, you can bet a river of other wonderful plugins will follow.

This release represents a possible overall warming-up to Linux in the commercial arena. That’s good for Android, and good for you, G1 lovers.

Krave: Motorola launches Verizon Krave ZN4 Touchscreen Flip Phone

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:42 +0000

I’m “at” the Motorola Virtual Press Conference where they’re launching the Krave ZN4 for Verizon. No surprise here, as this device was leaked far and wide. But it still sounds pretty interesting - it’s a flip phone with a touchscreen and an “interactive flip.” Apparently the clear plastic flip cover has touch controls so you can access frequently used functions without opening the device up.

Krave looks like it’s going to pack some punch in addition to that unique clear flip: VCAST TV, Visual Voicemail, 3.5mm headphone jack, virtual landscape QWERTY with haptic feedback, HTML browser, mobile Email and IM, and support for streaming Web videos (that’s what they said) … I’m actually kind of excited for this one. HELLOMOTO!

Some specs for you to chew on:

500 hours of standby time, 250 minutes talk time
2.8″ display @ 240 x 400 resolution
Removable battery
Internal TV antenna
2MP camera with digital zoom (fixed focus)
130 MB onboard
microSD memory slot
EV-DO data
Video: Capture/Playback/Streaming, H.263, H.264, MPEG4, WMV v9
Stereo Bluetooth

T-Mobile G1 Review: Music and MP3 Store

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:40 +0000

More with the G1. Noah tries out the music player and Amazon mp3 store. Where’s the headphone jack?

After Midnight: Something BIG is coming at 12:01 Thursday morning

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:40 +0000

Hey kids, just a heads-up: If you like cell phones you’re going to want to check in on the PhoneDog.com home page at 12:01 Eastern Time tonight/tomorrow … that is, just after midnight as Wednesday turns into Thursday, October 16. For us West Coasters that’s only 9PM!

I can’t say anything specific, but there will be plenty of video, photos, and text for you to enjoy. And the subject matter is sure to be of interest if you’re into the whole mobile thing. You can guess all you want to in the comments, but I won’t tell. I mean, it’s only (less than) 9 hours from now … So tell your friends, and stock up on cheetos and light beer (or Coke Zero if you’re underage).

I’m not saying you’ll like (or dislike) what we’ve got to show you. And I’m not saying it’s a new product announcement, rumor, review, or some sort of internal PhoneDog news. Though it could be any of those. I’m just saying you might want to check it out.

T-Mobile G1 Review: Web and YouTube

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:40 +0000

Hands-on with the G1 Anrdoid phone. In this segment, Noah reviews the G1’s Web browser and YouTube app.

QWERTY!: AT&T unleashes four new messaging phones and new messaging plans

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:39 +0000

Finally you can all stop asking me when AT&T’s gonna get them a QWERTY phone. Boom! Here’s four for your SMS-fiending thumbs to drool over. I’m going to be lazy and just cut-and-paste from the press release:

Pantech Matrix
The Pantech Matrix is available today in navy blue and black with green and will be available Oct. 16 in red. It is $79.99 with a two-year agreement and mail-in rebate1, and it features the unique dual-sliding, double-keypad design that is found on the popular Pantech Duo™ smartphone in AT&T stores. The Matrix features a 1.3 megapixel camera, instant messaging, Mobile Email, AT&T Navigator, AT&T Mobile Music, CV, AT&T Video ShareSM calling and more.

Samsung Propel
A square slider with the best of AT&T’s entertainment offerings such as instant messaging, Mobile Email, AT&T Navigator, CV, AT&T Video Share calling, AT&T Mobile Music, a 1.3 megapixel camera and more, the Samsung Propel slides upward for easy access to its full QWERTY keypad. Also available for $79.99 after a two-year agreement and mail-in rebate1, the Propel will be available in late October in blue, green, red, and white with red

.

Pantech Slate
The world’s thinnest device with a full QWERTY keypad, the Pantech Slate will retail for $49.99 after a two-year agreement and mail-in rebate1. A bar-style phone with a 1.3 megapixel camera, instant messaging, Mobile Email and Bluetooth® connectivity, the Slate is available in black with royal blue and will also be available in late October.

AT&T Quickfire
A slider boasting a touch screen in addition to the full keypad, the AT&T Quickfire can read messages in portrait or landscape mode and also download music over the nation’s fastest 3G network with Napster Mobile and eMusic Mobile. The AT&T Quickfire will be available in November in orange, lime and silver for $99.99 after a two-year agreement and mail-in rebate1.

Also … new Messaging Plans:

All quick messaging phones are compatible with AT&T’s messaging plans that offer 200, 1,500 and unlimited messaging for $5, $15 and $20, respectively. AT&T FamilyTalk® plan customers can get unlimited messaging for all lines for $30.

T-Mobile G1 Review: Messaging and Email

Ed — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:45:35 +0000

Noah takes a deep look at Email, Instant Messaging, and MMS/SMS on the HTC G1 for T-Mobile, the first Google Android phone.