Hasta La Gadget!

Far from being creepy this time around, the latest Palm Pre ad — this one specifically for Bell’s Canadian customer base — is familiar. Very familiar. Plain white backdrop? Check. Peppy male narrator? Check. Hip, upbeat music? Check. Mysterious hands showing off mobile apps and other smartphone capabilities? Check. Side-by-side comparison videos after the break. Hey, at least this one isn’t gonna creep you out.

Update: Looks like someone read our minds and spliced the commercial with Orba Squara’s infamous “Perfect Timing” found in the iPhone ads. Video’s after the break.

[Via Pre Thinking]

Continue reading Bell’s Palm Pre commercial couldn’t be more Apple if it had an Orba Squara soundtrack

Filed under: Cellphones

Bell’s Palm Pre commercial couldn’t be more Apple if it had an Orba Squara soundtrack originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As brilliant as the $99 subsidized iPhone 3G strategy might seem on paper, the fact remains that the 3G now is a 13 month-old device — the better part of a lifetime by smartphone standards — and it stands to reason that Apple wouldn’t be interested in consuming manufacturing capacity indefinitely with outdated equipment, especially since that game plan cuts into economies of scale on the 3GS’ chipset and superior camera hardware. The solution? Let iPhone 3G inventory cool down for a few months — $99 is a nice, round number after all that’s plenty low enough to move units — and when the carnage is over, phase it out in favor of a new lower-cost 3GS. That’s sure to leave new 3G owners fuming, but newly leaked screens out of Rogers seem to indicate that’s exactly how this is likely going to go down: add a black 8GB 3GS into the mix that can serve as the company’s new entry-level device below the 3GS in two colors, likely for $100 less than the 16GB model. There’s no word on when this might happen, but Apple’s likely to host its usual Fall event to roll out new iPods (and more?), so this could serve as an interesting — if not ultimately predictable — footnote.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Apple phasing out iPhone 3G in favor of 8GB 3GS? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Aug 2009 13:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s been gathered, extrapolated, or otherwise assumed pretty much from day one that Sprint’s period of exclusivity on the Pre was roughly six months (we say “roughly” because Dan Hesse himself has explicitly said it’s not six), and it looks like things are working just about the same up north. In the case of Bell, MobileSyrup is reporting that they’re being guaranteed rights to the Pre for precisely six months, actually, which means archrival Telus is probably rearing to start its kitchen timer (you know, that one your mom has that’s shaped like an egg) for the countdown the moment it launches. The more interesting question, though, might be whether Rogers (and, by technological proxy, AT&T) end up with a webOS-based device of their own before that second round of Pre launches goes down.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Bell has six-month exclusivity on the Pre? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 24 Jul 2009 07:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Scene from last year’s iPhone 3G launch in NYC

Didja hear the news? There’s a new iPhone coming out tomorrow! Okay, snark aside, we know there’s still a good number of you who want to brave the weather and grab yourself a brand spanking new 3G S, but for whatever reason didn’t pre-order ahead of time. Not to worry, we’re here to help!

United States

If you pre-ordered the phone in-store from AT&T, you can pick it up tomorrow at 7:00AM from that same retail outlet. Everyone else will have to wait until the normal business hours, and from there it’s first come, first serve. If you’re wanting to head to an Apple store, be sure to set your alarms for the right time: each one is opening at 7:00AM local time. Apple’s online site has a field to let you complete pre-authorization ahead of time, but that won’t guarantee you availability so still plan on waiting outside before sunrise. You can also try your luck at Best Buy and Walmart, which should be receiving some stock for each store. As for online pre-orders from either AT&T or Apple, well, just go with whatever the shipping date currently says.

United Kingdom

O2 customers can get their 3G S starting at 8:02AM — yes, that’s the official time, and not a minute sooner, we suspect — from O2, Apple, and Carphone Warehouse stores. Prices vary based on a variety of 18 and 24 month plans, as well as Pay & Go plans.

Canada

Unsurprisingly, Rogers and subsidiary Fido will be handling your iPhone fix. Also, for the first time, you can also drop by an Apple retail store, which should open around 8:00AM local time. From what we can tell, the Rogers / Fido stores aren’t opening early, but just to be safe, you might wanna call tonight or plan on showing up an hour before the usual time.

Obviously, there’s more than a few countries we’re not covering here, so hit up the read link to check out Apple’s official site for details by region, and feel free to share your own tips in the comments below!

Filed under: Cellphones

How to get an iPhone 3G S tomorrow in US, UK, and Canada originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Jun 2009 22:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer’s been largely mum about its new Aspire Timeline laptop since its initial unveiling back in early April, but now it looks like the company’s getting ready to roll out the portable to the customer base at large, if these spy shots from a from a Canadian-based Future Shop store are any indication. The list of specs is a bit hard to read, but from what we gather, the 14-inch Aspire 4810TZ-4129 is packing a 1.3GHz Intel Pentium SU2700, 4GB RAM, 320GB HDD, a DVD drive, WiFi, WAN, a touted 8 hour battery life, and Windows Vista Home Premium. No indication on the price or official street date, however, but if they’re being sent to retail, we can’t imagine we’ll be waiting too much longer. Feast your own eyes on the specs sheet in the image after the break.

Update: Reader Oleg has written in to let us know it’s also up for pre-order at UK retail site PC World — 14-inch for £550 and 15.6-inch for £600.

[Thanks, waterboy99troop]

Continue reading Acer Aspire Timeline found in the wild, chilling in Canada and up for pre-order in UK

Filed under: Laptops

Acer Aspire Timeline found in the wild, chilling in Canada and up for pre-order in UK originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 May 2009 18:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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