Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve just swooped our way through the Fulton Innovation stand here at MWC and found, sat next to the familiar light-up cereal box, a peculiar version of the Verizon LTE network-riding LG Revolution. Thicker than its CES-announced counterpart (by only 1.5mm, if the Fulton reps are to be believed), this Revolution features a Qi wireless charging-compatible back, which happens to go very nicely with a Verizon-branded inductive charging station. You can scope those out in the gallery below. We’re told the back cover that makes this possible will be available as an accessory in the next 30 to 60 days, but the excitement for us was in hearing that Samsung also has an unannounced handset that will feature a similar add-on, which will be landing in the same timespan. While at the stand, we were also shown the back cover of an HTC Thunderbolt — we weren’t told the Thunderbolt will be making like the Revolution and getting its own chunky wireless charging adapter, but don’t be surprised if it does.

Continue reading LG Revolution gets Fulton inductive charging back, HTC and Samsung handsets joining the party soon

LG Revolution gets Fulton inductive charging back, HTC and Samsung handsets joining the party soon originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Feb 2011 15:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Count ’em, because RIM has now announced four varieties of its BlackBerry PlayBook tablet. As of today, we’ve got the PlayBook with WiFi + LTE and WiFi + HSPA+ models joining the previously announced PlayBook with WiFi and PlayBook with WiFi + WiMax. As such, there’s a pretty good chance that your carrier will have a 7-inch dual-core PlayBook with the QNX-based BlackBerry Tablet OS on offer at some point in the future, no matter how it chooses to define “4G.” Unfortunately, RIM says that its LTE and HSPA+ models won’t be coming until the second half of 2011.

Update: RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie was particularly chatty after the announcement of the new 4G PlayBook models. The takeaway is that RIM expects to price that BlackBerry tablet at less than $500 (WiFi-only model, presumably) — much less with any carrier subsidies. He’s also expecting to followup the Sprint deal in the US with similar signings of AT&T and Verizon Wireless. “All of our carrier partners want [PlayBook],” said Balsillie, referencing the 580 carrier partners that RIM enjoys in 165 countries. While Balsillie refused to comment on the PlayBook’s rumored ability to run Android apps, he did confirm that RIM’s new tablet was on track for a March or April release.

Continue reading RIM BlackBerry 4G PlayBook tablet now in delicious LTE and HSPA+ flavors (updated)

RIM BlackBerry 4G PlayBook tablet now in delicious LTE and HSPA+ flavors (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Feb 2011 03:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Though hard facts on the HTC Thunderbolt’s availability were hard to come by, conflicting rumors were flying fast and strong — now, a Best Buy ad seems to clear most everything up. Like we’d originally heard, the 4.3-inch LTE smartphone will launch for $250 on a two-year contract — or a wallet-crushing $750 without — but the key ingredients here are three words at the very top. The Thunderbolt is apparently a “national retail exclusive” for Best Buy, which explains how the device could simultaneously face Verizon delays and yet come in for a Valentine’s Day landing at the big box store. You’ll also note that the ad mentions Skype video and 4G mobile hotspot functionality, so we’d be surprised if the phone came without, though it’s also possible that the whole kit and kaboodle has been delayed to match — Droid-Life says this ad comes from a February 20th circular, so we might not see anything until then.

In case you needed an additional reason to be excited about the Thunderbolt, the developers at AndIRC have some related news — they’ve already rooted a prototype version (which just so happens to have the familiar codename Mecha) and believe the same technique will work on retail devices. Wouldn’t it be nice to have root on day one… whenever that is?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

HTC Thunderbolt exclusively hits Best Buy for $250 at launch, rooted prototype provides hope for full unlock originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 16:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So much for Verizon being the carrier of choice when it comes to accelerated Android updates, eh? Those who selected Big Red for their Galaxy S have been waiting on a Froyo build for what feels like an eternity, with our brethren to the north already enjoying the spoils — things like Flash support and an integrated mobile hotspot. Of course, Samsung once promised that all Galaxy S phones (yeah, including the Fascinate) would receive Android 2.2 at some point in time, and while an official release is still eluding us, it looks as if the day is drawing ever closer. The fine folks over at Android Central simply couldn’t wait any longer, and they’re taken it upon themselves to wrap up the TouchWiz-infused EB01 build for all to enjoy. Naturally, you’ll need to do a fair amount of hacking to get this up and running without anyone’s consent, but all the details you’re craving await you there in the source. Still unsure if it’s worth the drive? Head on past the break for a quick video.

Continue reading Samsung Fascinate gets leaked EB01 Android 2.2 build, yours if you want it

Samsung Fascinate gets leaked EB01 Android 2.2 build, yours if you want it originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 08:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon may have had its best sales day ever with the launch of the CDMA iPhone 4, but you wouldn’t be able to tell if you parked outside a retail store this morning. Reuters reports that the usual hordes didn’t show up for the Verizon iPhone launch — San Francisco and New York flagship Apple Store locations boasted as few as forty individuals in line — and that by afternoon today, the initial shipment of devices were still in stock. Of course, the device had already been on sale for several days — and face it, it’s just a CDMA iPhone 4 — but it’s not often we get to see spectacles like the one on video above, shot at the Mall of America store.

Verizon iPhone hits the streets, fails to gather crowds (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 23:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink SlashGear  |  Reuters, ojezap (YouTube)  | Email this | Comments