Hasta La Gadget!

Though neither Nokia nor CEO Stephen Elop ever said there was an exchange of billions of dollars as a part of the company’s tie-up with Microsoft for the Windows Phone platform, Bloomberg is sourcing “two people with knowledge of the terms” in saying that something in excess of $1 billion is flowing from Redmond to Espoo. Though the deal isn’t yet finalized — Elop said as much back at MWC — it’d apparently call for Microsoft to pay out at least some of the cash upfront with Nokia sending cash in the other direction for device licenses. Interestingly, the deal is said to give Microsoft access to parts of Nokia’s expansive patent portfolio — and they’ll have it for quite some time, too: the contract’s apparently going to be good for “more than five years.” That’s more than most marriages, it seems (and roughly as expensive).

Bloomberg: Microsoft to pay Nokia ‘more than $1 billion’ to make Windows Phones originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 Mar 2011 16:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The media — yours truly included — has been trying to figure out why Sprint has booked an insane two-and-a-half hour slot at CTIA later this month. That’s not the kind of event you throw together just to rehash the devices you’ve introduced over the last half year — something’s up, and if our source is correct, they’re up to something big.

First, we’re hearing that the carrier will launch the Nexus S 4G from Samsung, and judging from the name, the phone should be something akin to a Nexus S with WiMAX. It seems this one could be either the SPH-D600 or SPH-D720, both of which have recently received certification from the Wi-Fi Alliance, though the SPH-D720 is more likely; the D600 shows WPS support, which is available in TouchWiz-skinned devices but not in stock Gingerbread. You might recall that Sprint came very, very close to launching its own version of the Nexus One before dropping it in favor of the EVO 4G last year, so maybe they’re ready to do the deed this time.

Next, a couple that we don’t have much detail on: the EVO 3D, which is… well, a 3D-capable EVO of some sort. 2011 is certainly shaping up to be the year of 3D phones and tablets, so that wouldn’t be much of a surprise. The other unit in the mix is the EVO View, a tablet that we’re guessing will shape up to be something of a CDMA-powered Flyer. If this all pans out, it’s looking like Sprint could own this show. CES was a bit of a dud for them, you might recall — the EVO Shift 4G was the only handset announcement there — so they’re overdue.

[Thanks, anonymous tipster]

Sprint announcing Nexus S 4G, EVO 3D, and EVO View tablet at CTIA? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 06 Mar 2011 15:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Isn’t it irritating how you have to sync a song you’ve already downloaded on one device to the various other Apple devices you own? Wouldn’t it be easier to be able to download the same song, for free, using iTunes? According to Bloomberg, Apple’s working on cloud-based download back-ups, with a decision to be reached mid-year between all the various music labels. More »

You might have seen Motorola’s WiFi-only Xoom popping up at European e-tailers, but it’s reportedly flying the red, white and blue today, having materialized at Sam’s Club in the good ol’ USA. Droid-Life stumbled upon several snapshots of these Xoom Wi-Fi vouchers, with a $539 price tag hanging above their heads — plenty cheaper than a cellular Xoom, and also slightly more affordable than a similarly specced iPad 2. Of course, Sam’s Club deals in wholesale merchandise, and even should this price be accurate the tablet may not be widely available at the same rate, so don’t count out $599 as the Xoom Wi-Fi’s MSRP. Meanwhile, let us know if you manage to find and ring one up at the register, eh?

[Thanks, Michael]

WiFi-only Motorola Xoom appears at Sam’s Club, bearing $539 price? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 23:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Woah, now here’s a juicy rumor to start your Thursday morning off with. BGR reports word from multiple trusted sources that RIM intends to take its BlackBerry Messenger outside the cozy confines of the BB ecosystem and straight into its competitors’ app stores. BBM is reputedly all set to make its debut as a messaging app on both iOS and Android, though the specifics of what it might cost you have yet to be ironed out. It’ll come in a stripped down version, you’ll still need to own a BlackBerry for the full-flavored BBM experience, but that should nonetheless be extremely welcome news for folks finding themselves torn between platforms. The Android version is expected this year, say the sources, while the iOS app may take a little while longer thanks to Apple’s more capricious approval requirements.

RIM preparing to bring BBM to iOS and Android, change everything again? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 09:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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