Hasta La Gadget!

Promising us something faster, thinner and stronger later today, Motorola has paired up with Verizon to make some big announcements. We’re going to be smack dab in the middle of it all, chronicling every little detail on our liveblog. “Sandwiched” between Blackberry’s DevCon and another dynamic duo, we’re still intrigued as to what (or even how many) phones and tablets Moto has crammed up their capacious Google-monogrammed sleeves. Could it spoil Samsung’s party with some Ice Cream Sandwich news of its own? Who knows, but it’s going to be a hectic day for tech news. Best grab another cup of coffee, and bookmark this page to keep up.

Feel free to throw your time zone and day in the comments below, we may even +1 you if you do.

06:00AM – Hawaii (October 18th)
09:00AM – Pacific (October 18th)
10:00AM – Mountain (October 18th)
11:00AM – Central (October 18th)
12:00PM – Eastern (October 18th)
05:00PM – London (October 18th)
06:00PM – Paris (October 18th)
08:00PM – Moscow (October 18th)
01:00AM – Tokyo (October 19th)

Motorola’s Android future to be revealed later today, get your liveblog here! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 09:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Official Android updates

• Motorola Xoom owners who swapped in their devices for one with LTE capability may have found an OTA enhancement waiting for them when the tablet arrived. It included a few minor changes, such as updates to Android Market and some additional browser security measures. The full changelog can be found at the link. [AndroidCentral]
• The update to the Motorola Droid 2 Global was pulled last month due to an Exchange encryption issue, but we’re hearing reports that it’s once again resuming the rollout with that concern resolved. [Droid-Life]
• Motorola’s Photon 4G on Sprint is on the receiving end of a minor bug fix update, which includes video chat capability for Google Talk. [PhoneArena]
• The good news for unlocked Dell Streak 7 users: the official update to Android 3.2 (Honeycomb) is now rolling out and you should see it over the course of the next couple weeks. the coming weeks. [Dell]
• The bad news for T-Mobile Dell Streak 7 users: Honeycomb isn’t coming to your tablet, for unknown reasons. [Android Community]
• According to a tweet from LG, there’s a small refresh in the works for the Optimus 7 which will finally enable WiFi tethering. [WPCentral]

Unofficial Android updates, custom ROMs and misc. hackery

• A new piece of firmware for the AT&T Galaxy S II was leaked via RootzWiki, and includes a few bug fixes. Sadly, it adds some bugs as well. [Android Community]
• Samsung’s officially released the kernel source for the Stratosphere, Transfix and Galaxy Y Pro. [Android Community]
• And now for the best news for TouchPad owners: after several weeks of progress, it appears that CM7 is now ready to roll on the HP TouchPad. As always, download and install at your own risk — we have a feeling this may be a bit more involved than your typical Android custom ROM. [Redmond Pie]

Other platforms

• Redsn0w 0.9.9b5 is here, giving you the go-ahead to jailbreak iOS5. Up for the task? Head to the link for all of the details on how to make it so. [Redmond Pie]
• Some Windows Phone users have noticed a few bugs popping into their updated devices ever since they received Mango. The main concerns seem to be found in the keyboard and live tiles, though the reported issues are much more numerous. Have you experienced any of these on the list at the link? [WMPowerUser]

Refreshes we covered this week

• Motorola a bit slow boomerangin’ back with LTE update
• iOS5 now available for download

Refresh Resource: week of October 10, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 16 Oct 2011 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon’s got a couple of loose ends to tie up. It’s nothing important, you understand, just a tweak to its privacy policy that will allow the carrier to monitor your physical movements and browsing activities. It actually did much the same thing back in 2007 to monitor phone calls. The aim, of course, is to tailor ads to your interests, while also gathering information about your habits that it can sell on to others in the form of “business and marketing reports.” Oh, one more thing: VZW promises not to share any information about you “personally” and it also gives you the option to opt out. (Opt out.)

Verizon wants to know where you go, what you look at, that’s all originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 Oct 2011 08:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yeah, that makes just as much sense to us as it does to you. Following yesterday’s PR debacle, the final word from Sprint appears to be as follows:

“Sprint’s policy is to have the iPhone 4S SIM locked to our network domestically and internationally. At launch, the International SIM will be unlocked. We do expect a SIM lock to be pushed to the devices shortly after launch. We will then allow existing customers in good standing to unlock the SIM for international use if needed in the future.”

So, if we’re reading that correctly, the iPhone you purchase and activate will be unlocked. Then, a SIM lock will be “pushed” to your device. But, if you’ve been a good, policy-abiding customer, your iPhone can then be unlocked manually by Sprint. Who knows what’ll happen if you buy your phone and flee to a non-extradition country before Sprint comes knocking at the door, shackles in hand. Will you be left to live in peace with your newly-acquired international Micro SIM? Will you need to plead your case before a tribunal of mobile carrier overlords? Only time will tell, we suppose, or perhaps further clarification from Sprint. Jump past the break for the complete announcement.

Continue reading Sprint explains iPhone 4S unlocking policy: phones will be unlocked, then locked, then unlocked again

Sprint explains iPhone 4S unlocking policy: phones will be unlocked, then locked, then unlocked again originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 Oct 2011 18:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you own an iPhone 4 on AT&T, using the device while traveling internationally means paying sky-high roaming fees, jailbreaking or limiting data use to when you’re on a WiFi network, either with a public hotspot or through a service like Xcom Global. Verizon iPhone 4 owners, however, don’t have the option of GSM roaming at all, and can only make calls and use cellular data in countries that support CDMA. All that changes with the iPhone 4S, however — Macworld has confirmed that Sprint will sell its version of the device with the Micro SIM slot unlocked, with Verizon offering free unlocking to customers after the first 60 days of service. iPhone 4S owners will then be able to purchase a Micro SIM overseas, allowing them to access data and make calls at local rates, for a fraction of what it would cost to roam. AT&T iPhone 4S owners won’t have this option, however, so if you make frequent trips overseas, this benefit alone may be enough to justify purchasing the phone through Sprint or Verizon, saving some users hundreds or thousands of dollars in international roaming fees.

Update: Our source article was incorrect, and Sprint has told us that its SIM will not be unlocked, adding that the card will not even be removable.

Our SIM does not come out of the device – I believe the same is true of Verizon’s iPhone but you would need to confirm that with them. Customers can sign up for one of our international rate plans and use this phone all over the world. When traveling internationally, there is a setting that must be turned on within the device to connect to GSM. The phone will work with a SIM that is provided within the device out of the box. International voice and data charges are on a pay-as-you-go basis and vary based on the country where the customer is using their phone; a list of rates is available at www.sprint.com/international.

Update 2: We heard from Sprint a second time, which redacted part of its previous statement. The carrier further explained “the SIM is removable and is not affixed to the device,” which as you may notice directly contradicts the statement made earlier today. We’ve reached out to Apple twice and are awaiting further clarification.

[Thanks, Julio]

Sprint and Verizon confirm iPhone 4S Micro SIM unlock for international travel (update: Sprint remains locked?) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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