Oct 27

Samsung makes Galaxy Nexus release date official, available in the UK on November 17th

Posted in: Google, mobilepostcross, NeXus, o2, Release Date, samsung, Today's Chili, uk, vodafone
October’s dizzying spate of high-end smartphone announcements gave us plenty of pizzazz, but not much in the way of release date meat. Well, that’s about to change for those of you craving an Ice Cream Sandwich delight across the pond. Leaked out via an Amazon product page and officially confirmed by Samsung today, the Galaxy Nexus is slated to arrive on UK retailers’ shelves this coming November 17th. If you’ve had your eye on this Android 4.0 flagship, you can always sign-up for a subsidized handset on Vodafone, O2 and 3UK — its intended HSPA+ carrier homes. Or, if you like your Google experiences pure and contract free, hit up the source below to pre-order it with no strings attached.

[Thanks, Pedro and Nathan]

Samsung makes Galaxy Nexus release date official, available in the UK on November 17th originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Motorola Atrix 2 review

Posted in: Android, gingerbread, mobilepostcross, motoblur, motorola, review, texas instruments, ti, Today's Chili, video

We’ve seen a lot of game-changing devices this year, haven’t we? 2011 has already witnessed the first Honeycomb tablets, the influx of LTE and the introduction of a boatload of smartphones with dual-core processors. One of those groundbreaking devices was the Motorola Atrix 4G, which we called the best smartphone at CES 2011 because of its powerful Tegra 2 SoC and simply innovative Webtop operating system with an accompanying Lapdock. It was new, and it was powerful.

Not even ten months after the Atrix’s February 22nd launch, we’re already seeing its successor, aptly named the Atrix 2. At the risk of sounding blunt, it’s not a groundbreaking device — aside from a few bumps in specs, larger display and a fresh redesign, it doesn’t offer the same level of showmanship or innovation so eagerly demonstrated in the first iteration. But does the sequel compensate for the lack of sizzle? How much does this improve over the original? Does the newest version of the Lapdock satisfy? We’ll answer these questions and so much more after the break.

Gallery: Motorola Atrix 2 gallery

Continue reading Motorola Atrix 2 review

Motorola Atrix 2 review originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Windows Phone Apollo coming ‘middle of next year,’ says Nokia VP

Posted in: exclusive, mango, mobilepostcross, nfc, nokia, Today's Chili, update, windows phone, windows phone 7, WindowsPhone, WindowsPhone7, Wp7

A top Nokia exec just confirmed the much-rumored schedule for the next Windows Phone update, codenamed Apollo. Michael Halbherr, Executive VP for Location and Commerce, told us that it’ll launch in mid-2012 and be a “very different game” to Mango — hinting that Apollo actually refers to Windows Phone 8 rather than any mere decimal increment. What do we know about Apollo at this point? Well, not a great deal, but Halbherr also revealed that he’s been pushing Microsoft to integrate NFC and a “positioning framework” to make its mobile OS work better with Nokia’s Navteq mapping platform and thereby provide new location-based services. Sorry HTC, Samsung, but everything points to a more ‘Nokia-fied’ OS.

Update: We’ve spoken with some sources close to Microsoft who indicate that the timing given to us by Nokia is inaccurate. Unfortunately, the truth serum we used wore off before we were provided with a surrogate timeframe, but we’ll of course keep our ears to the ground.

Windows Phone Apollo coming ‘middle of next year,’ says Nokia VP originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Motorola Droid 4 exposed to our wandering eyes, comes with LTE in tow?

Posted in: 4G, Android, gingerbread, Google, lte, mobilepostcross, motorola, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw
We were just a tad disappointed when the Motorola Droid 3 came out without Verizon’s signature LTE logo on the back, but a mere three months later the QWERTY slider is back with a new model that should be packing 4G. The images above and below, procured by Droid-Life, show what looks to be a super-slim device with the same slight curves on the corner as the RAZR, and tapered back akin to the Droid Bionic. And, interestingly enough, it appears to be nearly complete, judging by the non-Mr. Blurrycam quality of the images and the tutorial stickers on the screen. Not only does the device appear to offer LTE, it also adds Webtop and should be compatible with the LapDock 100 and 500. Rounding out the tentative specs are a 4-inch display, spacious five-row keyboard (with number row included), 1080p HD video capture, front-facing camera and a non-removable battery. It also comes with Android 2.3.5 installed instead of Ice Cream Sandwich, something which we hope to see remedied soon after launch. Looks like we’re finally close to having a high-end QWERTY option on Verizon’s 4G lineup.

Motorola Droid 4 exposed to our wandering eyes, comes with LTE in tow? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Richard Kerris moves from HP to Nokia, becomes Global Head of Developer Relations

Posted in: HP, mobilepostcross, nokia, palm, Today's Chili, webos
Well, that certainly didn’t take long. Just a couple of days after leaving HP to “pursue an opportunity outside of the company,” ex-VP of Worldwide Developer Relations for webOS Richard Kerris has now turned up at Nokia, where he’ll be serving as the company’s Global Head of Developer Relations. As you may recall, Kerris only took on the HP job at the beginning of this year, having previously served as Chief Technology Officer at Lucasfilm. He’s also not the first individual to chart this particular course — designer Peter Skillman also left Palm / HP last year to take on a similar gig at Nokia, where he’s since had a hand in the N9 and the company’s new Lumia 800.

Richard Kerris moves from HP to Nokia, becomes Global Head of Developer Relations originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 11:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Future Nokia phones repellent, says water (video)

Posted in: hands-on, mobilepostcross, nanotechnology, nokia, science, Today's Chili, video, waterproof

Nokia’s latest “super” hydrophobic coating doesn’t take half-measures. This new technology binds a layer of nanotech magic to the surface of its devices that literally bounces liquids away. Although we’ve been told the nanotubes at work here are most effective with water, other liquids (and smudgy fingerprints) should also find the treated surface difficult to latch onto. Due to the thinness of this waterproofing solution, a spokesperson told us here at Nokia World that even the inner workings of a phone could be treated in the same way. No more incidents in the bathroom? Count us in. Check the video after the break for some slo-mo water slippage.

Gallery: Nokia’s super hydrophobic nanotechnology at Nokia World 2011

Zach Honig contributed to this report.

Continue reading Future Nokia phones repellent, says water (video)

Future Nokia phones repellent, says water (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 11:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Nokia Drive with MirrorLink on Toyota Touch Life hands-on (video)

Posted in: app, Apple, AppleIphone, apps, car, Cars, hands-on, iPhone, mobilepostcross, nokia, smartphone, symbian, Today's Chili, touchscreen, Toyota, video

Just a few meters from the entrance to Nokia World at London’s sprawling ExCel Exhibition Centre, we found a Toyota iQ compact with Nokia branding on the door. And in the dash was Toyota’s new Touch Life smartphone integration system, complete with Nokia Drive compatibility and display mirroring via MirrorLink. In addition to mirroring your Symbian Belle (or MeeGo) display on the 7-inch touchscreen, Touch Life also provides a driver-friendly interface, including enormous icons to control music playback, or to place calls to contacts by tapping their name and photo, or by using the jumbo telephone keypad. It also integrates with the Nokia Drive app, with a very simple (and also oversized) navigation interface. The concept is simple: access basic smartphone functions as you drive while limiting distractions. While you’re parked, you’ll have unrestricted access to your phone’s interface, but non-critical features are disabled as you drive.

The demo unit we saw is still a few months away from hitting production, so there were a few hiccups. After connecting the Nokia 701 to the system, the smartphone’s display appeared on the in-dash screen within a few seconds. We had full access to all of the phone’s features until shifting into drive, when a much simpler screen popped up, with Call, Drive and Music modules. Everything worked rather seamlessly until we neared the end of the demo, when an “Enjoy the sound while driving” message appeared on screen, where the navigation window had been just a moment before. There isn’t a firm release date in place, and the demo unit only appears to work with Symbian Belle at the moment — though MeeGo support (and likely Windows Phone as well) will be available after launch. Jump past the break to see how it works from behind the wheel.

Gallery: Nokia Drive with MirrorLink hands-on at Nokia World 2011

Continue reading Nokia Drive with MirrorLink on Toyota Touch Life hands-on (video)

Nokia Drive with MirrorLink on Toyota Touch Life hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 11:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Nokia Lumia 800 unboxed: we shed some light on what’s inside

Posted in: hands-on, Microsoft, mobilepostcross, nokia, retail, Today's Chili, unboxing, Windows, windows phone, windows phone 7, WindowsPhone, WindowsPhone7, Wp7

We managed to grab enough time with the Lumia 800‘s retail innards here at Nokia World, revealing some welcome extras including a flexible rubberized case for that affectionate lump of polycarbonate. The requisite data cable, power adapter and headset are all accounted for inside the packaging, which is covered in shots of this dark, not-so-mysterious phone. It’s all a bit more vibrant than the packaging of its other 2011 phone, but is still coated in that unmistakable Nokia blue. We expect to get our excitable digits on a review model very — very — soon, but until then check out more shots of what we can expect to get alongside Nokia’s premier Windows Phone handset.

Gallery: Nokia Lumia 800 unboxing

Nokia Lumia 800 unboxed: we shed some light on what’s inside originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 09:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry provides a long-awaited design jolt, compensates for a lot

Posted in: BlackBerry, breaking news, mobilepostcross, RIM, smartphone, Today's Chili, video

Remember that downright futuristic BlackBerry we spied back in September? Say hello, all over again. RIM and Porsche (of all companies) have just taken the official wraps off of the Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry, a frighteningly beautiful new slab that offers up a forged stainless steel frame, hand-wrapped leather back cover, sculpted QWERTY keyboard, and “crystal clear touch display.” It’ll ship with an exclusive Porsche Design UI and a bespoke Wikitude World Browser augmented reality app experience, not to mention the “premium, exclusive PINs that help easily identify another P’9981 smartphone user.” Fancy. As for specs, it’s boasting a 1.2GHz processor, HD video recording capabilities, 8GB of onboard memory, Liquid Graphics technology, a microSD expansion slot, an inbuilt NFC module and BlackBerry OS 7. We’re told that it’ll be available from Porsche Design stores later this year, but mum’s the word on the (presumably stratospheric) price. Head past the jump for T-break‘s hands-on vid.

Update: MobileSyrup reports that the device shown here will sell for “around $2,000,” and they’ll be (unsurprisingly) limited in quantity.

Gallery: Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry press photos

Continue reading Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry provides a long-awaited design jolt, compensates for a lot

Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry provides a long-awaited design jolt, compensates for a lot originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 09:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Google Music mobile landing page hints tunes are coming to the Android Market

Posted in: Android, android market, AndroidMarket, Google, GoogleAndroid, leak, mobilepostcross, Today's Chili
Google Music Store?

Sadly, we weren’t able to replicate the screenshot above but, if it’s legit, it could mean that a Google Music store is right around the corner. Reports are coming in that visiting music.google.com on your Android phone brings up a page suggesting you, A, upload your personal music collection, and B, “shop millions of songs in the Android Market.” Clearly Google is tinkering away behind the scenes: the links on the earliest versions of the splash page were reported to be broken, then they led to the about page for Google Music Manager and the nonexistent market.android.com/music respectively. Now, all traces of it are gone. Add to this the familiar shopping bag-shaped music icon that popped up in the developer build of Chrome OS last week and it’s looking like we’re inching ever closer to a Google Music shop launch. Check out the full sized image after the break.

[Thanks, Tomer]

Continue reading Google Music mobile landing page hints tunes are coming to the Android Market

Google Music mobile landing page hints tunes are coming to the Android Market originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 08:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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