Hasta La Gadget!

Some might say that the phone you’re peering at above is the most un-Nokia-like Nokia device produced in quite some time (if not ever), but remember, this one was custom made for US consumers and AT&T’s audience — something that’s not true for too many Espoo-sourced handsets. Once known as the Mako, Nokia’s Surge (or 6790 in international speak) is certainly unorthodox in design, though the actual specs list is fairly familiar. We get the feeling that Nokia was aiming to hit a very specific niche with this device, somewhere in-between the text-happy handsets adored by tweens and the smartphone desired by Mr. Suit. Care to see if we think Nokia accomplished said goal? Then head on over to Engadget Mobile for the rest!

Filed under: Cellphones

Engadget Mobile reviews Nokia’s Surge originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know, we love fighting the good fight — especially if it means calling out corporations on their untoward business practices. Today we’re joining David Pogue of the New York Times in calling foul on cellphone carriers’ insistence that users be forced to listen to those maddening, pointless 15-second canned carrier messages. In case you’ve held off on owning a cellphone or calling anyone who has one, they go a little something like this:

At the tone, please record your message. When you have finished recording, you may hang up, or press 1 for more options. To leave a callback number, press 5. (Beep)

Not only is Pogue mad-as-hell-and-not-going-to-take-it about the ridiculous idea that we still need to be told how to use voicemail, it turns out those additional messages are actually costing you cold, hard cash. He estimates that Verizon, for instance, is netting around $620 million a year thanks to these little annoyances. So what’s to be done? Well Pogue wants the citizens of the internet to take up virtual arms… and complain like nobody’s business. He’s wrangled together all the best contact points for the four largest carriers in the US (included for your convenience after the break). Let them know you know don’t want to pay for voicemail instructions. And hey, while you’re at it, tell them the price-gouging on text messages needs to go, too.

Continue reading David Pogue launches all-out war on canned voicemail messages

Filed under: Cellphones

David Pogue launches all-out war on canned voicemail messages originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The age of the touchscreen dumbphone is definitely upon us, is it not? Today AT&T and Samsung announced the availability of the Solstice, a phone featuring a 3-inch (presumably resistive) touchscreen, TouchWiz, and lots of funky social networking tie-ins. Still, one gets the overwhelming impression that phones of this ilk are simply trying to cash in on the buzz of like-minded devices, while not bringing anything particularly notable to the table. This 3G-equipped number comes loaded with a 2 megapixel camera, microSD support up to 16GB, and… not much else. The phone will be available August 2nd for $99.99 with a two-year contract. Call us crazy, but for that kind of money, aren’t there superior touchscreen devices on this network?

Filed under: Cellphones

Samsung’s Solstice touchscreen phone bounds onto AT&T originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Barnes & Noble customers have had access to paid Wi-Fi hotspots at individual outlets of the popular nationwide bookseller since 2005. The company announced yesterday that it has signed a strategic agreement with AT&T to implement free and unlimited access to all of its 777 stores’ wireless networks.

This move seems to be intended, at least in part, to help support the company’s ever-expanding eBook initiative. We reviewed Barnes & Noble’s new eReader application last week, and this move seems like an excellent way to keep the company’s enormous list of titles at the forefront of everyone’s minds. Giving everyone with a wireless device instant access to preview and download over 700,000 eBook titles (including hundreds of thousands of additional public-domain selections from Google) is a terrific marketing tool.

And this strategy doesn’t end there. Customers who opt in will also be able to receive special offers and useful information directly over the network. The company is currently suggesting such things as coupons to in-store cafés, information on book signings, and specific instructions on how to find new releases as being among the potential benefits for customers.

Barnes & Noble and AT&T already went ahead and offered free WiFi to iPhone users (and everyone else, albeit inadvertently) last year, and it’s now finally gone and given up on those pesky subscription fees altogether. As the pair of companies jointly announced today, that new and welcome change is now already in place at all Barnes & Noble stores in the US that offer WiFi, and the bookstore is not-at-all-coincidentally taking advantage of the opportunity to promote its recently launched eBookstore, to say nothing of its forthcoming e-book reader. Last we heard, they still have actual books and stuff there, too.

Filed under: Wireless

Barnes & Noble switches to free WiFi, just the thing for your e-book reader originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Jul 2009 18:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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