MeeGo: Nokia and Intel merge Maemo and Moblin

Well this one is a… doozy? Today Nokia announced a rather bizarre partnership with Intel. Namely, the two companies are merging their odd, half-finished, Linux-based OSs into one crazy little package called… MeeGo. No, really. Intel is mixing its peanut butter Moblin with Nokia’s chocolatey Maemo to create a “software platform that will support multiple hardware architectures across the broadest range of device segments, including pocketable mobile computers, netbooks, tablets, mediaphones, connected TVs and in-vehicle infotainment systems.” That broad enough for you? According to the company’s press release, the new platform will begin baring fruit (AKA devices) later this year, though the specific types of devices weren’t touched upon. Nokia’s CEO, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo claims that the union will “create an ecosystem that is second to none” through openness, though at this point it’s largely bluster. Why the two monoliths have decided to pair up on these decidedly niche platforms rather than focusing energies on their front and center products is anyone’s guess, but luckily you can attempt to decipher more detail in the PR, included for your convenience after the break!

Continue reading MeeGo: Nokia and Intel merge Maemo and Moblin

MeeGo: Nokia and Intel merge Maemo and Moblin originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 05:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Mobile 7 interface and device leaked on MWC banners

The eagle-eyed folks of learnbemobile have come across this stupendous leak of Microsoft’s forthcoming Windows Mobile 7 OS. It would appear that some last minute alterations were taking place under the covers in Barcelona, though apparently no one bothered to check if there were cameras around before lifting said covers. You can see what appears to be some kind of Xbox Live integration — which was heavily rumored already — taking up a corner of what’s presumably a new home screen for the OS. There are also big, finger-loving notice icons for calls, text messages, and email, with sections for Facebook, Pictures and “Me” filling out the rest. We don’t have any more info than these few shots, and the aforementioned site just has the images camped out on its Facebook page, but it definitely looks to be the real deal. If this is the new face of Windows Mobile, color us excited for today’s event — it looks like a radical departure (or at least a crazy skin). You can check out a few more shots in the gallery below.

[Thanks, HJ Willems]

Update: The official announcement has now been made and fully corroborates the visuals leaked here. Check out our hands-on experience with the fresh new software to learn more.

Windows Mobile 7 interface and device leaked on MWC banners originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 05:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Symbian S^3 officially announced, previewed on video

The time has finally come for us to see Symbian’s milestone shift toward finger-friendly operation in motion. Firstly, to allay any fears that it’d lack all the modern amenities, we’ll note that kinetic scrolling, swiping, and pinch-to-zoom are all present and accounted for, while a “visual multi-tasking” option allows you to see the open applications in an interface not a million miles away from the Pre’s card implementation. Customization is also a big deal in the S^3 UI, with multiple Home Screen pages available, accompanied by a litany of widgets you can add and manage. The media player application looks like a homage (read: copy) of Apple’s Cover Flow UI, right down to the album covers flipping around to reveal the track listing. We’re not complaining, we consider that a very intelligent and pleasing way to browse through music. Go check out the moving picture show after the break.

Continue reading Symbian S^3 officially announced, previewed on video

Symbian S^3 officially announced, previewed on video originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 04:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adobe confirms no Flash in Windows Mobile 7 (updated)

Look, it’s pretty clear that Windows Mobile 7 will be revealed by Microsoft at Mobile World Congress. We’ve been feeding on a veritable feast of WinMo7 rumors for several months now all pointing to Steve Ballmer’s keynote scheduled for 3PM Barcelona time (9AM in New York). Now Adobe has issued a statement apparently confirming what we’ve already heard: Windows Mobile 7 will not support Flash. Unfortunately, the actual quote carried by Phone Scoop doesn’t mention Windows Phone 7:

“Microsoft and Adobe are working closely together. While the newest version of Windows Phone won’t support Flash at initial availability, both companies are working to include a browser plug-in for the full Flash player in future versions of Windows Phone. More details will be shared at Microsoft MIX next month.”

Of course, the “newest version of Windows Phone” is technically 6.5.3 — a WinMo update recently announced (but hasn’t shipped) and presumably still works with Flash 10.1 beta (but isn’t guaranteed). And since we can’t find the Adobe statement on any of its usual press channels, we can’t say for sure this quote is related to Windows Mobile 7. Still, we don’t doubt the accuracy of Phone Scoop so don’t get your hopes up for Flash in the initial builds of Windows Mobile 7 Windows Phone 7 Series devices.

Update: Sorry kids, we have independent confirmation: Windows Phone 7 will not support Flash at initial launch.

Adobe confirms no Flash in Windows Mobile 7 (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 14 Feb 2010 20:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung i8520 ‘Halo’ Android 2.1 phone with 3.7-inch Super AMOLED and pico projector (updated)

While Samsung is desperate for us and the world to focus on its very first Bada device — the Wave S8500 — we found something a bit more interesting for Google fans. Tucked away in the depths of a spec sheet is Samsung’s unannounced i8520 phone running Android 2.1. After quizzing a team of perplexed executives of increasing rank, a VP from Samsung’s mobile division finally told us that it’ll be revealed as the “Halo” tomorrow when the show floor opens. Looking at the spec sheet then, the i8520 Halo packs a 3.7-inch WVGA Super AMOLED display (bigger than the Wave’s 3.3-incher), 8 megapixel autofocus camera with flash (VGA on the front), 720p / 30fps video encoding / decoding, DivX and Xvid playback support, Bluetooth 2.1, standard 3.5mm headphone jack, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, A-GPS, 16GB of internal storage and microSD expansion, stereo speakers, DLNA support, and — get this — a DLP pico projector integrated. The spec-sheet also lists a “Specialized Projector UI” as one of the features, suggesting it’ll look a little different when you toss it up onto the big screen. This quad-band GSM / EDGE phone with tri-band UMTS 900 / 1900 / 2100 will ship in Q3 to Europe and Asia with a chance for a US version at some point later. We’ll bring you more tomorrow just as soon as we get through all this paella.

Note: Even though the i8520 clearly seems to run the same UI as the Bada-powered Wave, we’ve been assured by multiple people in Samsung — including a VP in the Mobile division — that it is, in fact, running Android 2.1. That ties in nicely with the fact that Bada’s graphical representation comes through as a new cut of TouchWiz, so it makes sense these guys would want to port the same look and feel to other platforms. Also of note is the fact that we couldn’t confirm from the company that it’s got a projector on board, but there’s plenty of evidence to suggest it does: the so-called Specialized Projector UI, the fact that the 14.9mm girth is likely thick enough to swallow the necessary optics, and — of course — the big DLP logo on back. We’ll bring out the final details just as soon as we know ’em.

Update: Images confirm it, Halo is a projector phone!

Samsung i8520 ‘Halo’ Android 2.1 phone with 3.7-inch Super AMOLED and pico projector (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 14 Feb 2010 15:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung shows off LTE-packing netbooks at MWC

Samsung‘s just busted out some more news from MWC, and one of the hottest items on offer are its LTE netbooks — the first ever. Sammy’s showing off the previously launched 10.1-inch N150, NB30, and N220 — all with the same specs otherwise, but now packing the company’s own, in-house designed Kalmia LTE modem chipset. There’s no word yet as to when we can expect to see one of these bad boys on the market (though we certainly expect them to show up this year) — so far, Samsung’s only saying it’ll deploy them “according to service schedule and market demand.” You don’t say? Check the full press release which is after the break (which includes each model’s specs).

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Samsung shows off LTE-packing netbooks at MWC originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 14 Feb 2010 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony Ericsson outs Xperia X10 mini and Xperia X10 mini pro

We’d heard a few whispers of Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X10 mini, but frankly, the X10 mini pro here comes as a bit of a surprise. The sets are nearly identical with the exception of launch colors — the mini will ship in black, pearl white, lime, pink, red and silver, while the mini pro features just black and red — a minuscule size difference, and the pro packing a QWERTY keyboard. The X10 twins run Android 1.6 (though with the time to market gap we’ve come to expect from SE this could change) on a 600MHz Qualcomm MSM7227 and will ship in both North American and global 3G variants with quad-band EDGE, WiFi, Bluetooth, and a pack-in 2GB microSD card. As far as OS tweaks are concerned, Sony Ericsson’s Timescape is being touted as a major feature that enables all your communications with contacts to be accessed in one place making it simple to access to call history, Facebook, Twitter, messaging, and the like. Four-corner control also gets a mention and is basically user-customizable shortcut icons placed — not surprisingly — in each corner of the device’s 2.5-inch QVGA touchscreen display. Both phones’ launch dates are set for sometime in Q2 this year.

Continue reading Sony Ericsson outs Xperia X10 mini and Xperia X10 mini pro

Sony Ericsson outs Xperia X10 mini and Xperia X10 mini pro originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 14 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony Ericsson launches Vivaz pro, now with more QWERTY

Loved Sony Ericsson’s Vivaz but not the awkward name form factor? No biggie, as SE’s seen fit to launch a “pro” version of the set replete with QWERTY slide out keypad today at Mobile World Congress. The handset’s other specs pretty much line up with what we saw launched in January: very usable 720p video capture, a 640 x 360 wide HVGA touchscreen display, S60 5th Edition (so says the press release, though an SE-tweaked Symbian^2 or Symbian^3 seems more likely), mountains of connectivity options, apps, gee-whiz camera functions, and will ship in both North American and global 3G variants with quad-band EDGE. Digging through the specs, we’re a little concerned that somehow the Vivaz pro’s megapixelry has slipped from a decidedly more pro-ish 8.1 in the original Vivaz to 5.1 in this venture — so we’re guessing the form factor has something to do with it. Of course there’s no firm shipping date, but look for it in white or black sometime in the second quarter of this year.

Continue reading Sony Ericsson launches Vivaz pro, now with more QWERTY

Sony Ericsson launches Vivaz pro, now with more QWERTY originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 14 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung Wave: 3.3-inch Super AMOLED, Bluetooth 3.0, and new Bada OS (updated)

How’s about a little smartphone love on Valentine’s Day? Samsung’s press conference just got underway in Barcelona, and one of Mobile World Congress‘ first smartphones to debut this year is a real doozy. The Wave (S8500) that we’ve heard so much about lately is finally official, and it’s the first handset to ship with Bluetooth 3.0. It’s also packing 802.11n WiFi, TouchWiz 3.0 and the company’s own Bada mobile platform. You’ll also get a 3.3-inch “Super AMOLED” (saywha?) display, and while the 800 x 480 resolution is just dandy, the lack of multitouch is a real buzz kill. Digging into the internals, you’ll find a 1GHz processor, 5 megapixel camera, aGPS, accelerometer, 2GB or 8GB of internal storage space, a microSD expansion slot, multi-codec support for DivX, XviD, MP3 and WMV, and support for virtual 5.1 surround sound and 720p recording / decoding. The company’s also touting its mDNIe (mobile Digital Natural Image engine) technology, which is already used in its LCD and LED TV lineups; in other words, this phone is probably one of the better ones for multimedia viewing (so long as you don’t venture under direct sunlight, of course). It’ll be available worldwide starting in April, but unfortunately pricing remains a mystery. Full specifications and press release are after the break.

Update: Check out our hands-on with the device! The at show prototypes do respond to multi-touch pinch and zoom… with an error. But at least the detect it.

Continue reading Samsung Wave: 3.3-inch Super AMOLED, Bluetooth 3.0, and new Bada OS (updated)

Samsung Wave: 3.3-inch Super AMOLED, Bluetooth 3.0, and new Bada OS (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 14 Feb 2010 13:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft’s PB10ZU (turtle) and PB20ZU Project Pink phones outed by FCC?

Oops. Those two pics looks similar, eh? And if we’re not mistaken, Microsoft’s Pink phone is rumored to be made by Sharp. This wirerame for model PB10ZU just hit the FCC looking every bit the “Turtle” device that was leaked last year. Of course, seeing Sharp behind Pink is only natural since it was one of Danger’s manufacturers of choice for the Sidekick — a team wholly ingested by Microsoft a few years ago. Looking through the FCC docs we see that it’s a slider with dual-band CDMA, EVDO Rev. A, Bluetooth, and 802.11b/g WiFi. We also see reference to a second model, the PB20ZU (aka, “pure“?), although that model is lacking any detail whatsoever. The tastiest of FCC docs are being withheld by request until March 29th — right in line with a rumored spring launch. Hopefully Microsoft will have more to say about Project Pink and Windows 7 devices here in Barcelona so stay tuned.

[Thanks, Jeremy F.]

Microsoft’s PB10ZU (turtle) and PB20ZU Project Pink phones outed by FCC? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 13 Feb 2010 07:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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