Feb 20

Motorola Xoom up for in-store pre-order at Best Buy, $800 for Thursday availability

Posted in: Android, BestBuy, honeycomb, launch, moto, motorola, motorola xoom, MotorolaXoom, pre-order, price, release, slate, tablet, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw, xoom

No more stunt prices, no more premature web appearances, this (we hope) is finally Best Buy’s fully official listing for the Motorola Xoom. It brings no great surprises to those who’ve been tracking the tablet’s progress to retail shelves, offering first dibs to buyers willing to make the effort and pre-order one in store today, with full availability coming on Thursday, February 24th. The $800 3G-equipped model is accompanied on Best Buy’s site by a $40 portfolio case, a $50 basic charging dock, a $130 stereo speaker dock, and a $70 Bluetooth keyboard, but there’s no sighting of the cheaper WiFi-only Xoom. There was some suspicion that the $600 SKU would launch a little later on and that is indeed what appears to be happening. One final note of caution: even if you’re intending to use the Xoom as a pure WiFi-only device, remember that you’ll be required to activate data with Verizon for at least a month first — don’t ask us why.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Motorola Xoom up for in-store pre-order at Best Buy, $800 for Thursday availability originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Feb 2011 03:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 18

Motorola: 28 percent of 2010 revenue came from Verizon

Posted in: droid, financial, moto, motorola, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw

Think the Atrix 4G might be a critical launch for Motorola right now? A fresh regulatory filing by Motorola today revealed that the company got a whopping 28 percent of its cash from Verizon last year — up from 17 percent in 2009 — a pretty powerful testament to the “Droid effect.” The company goes on to say that “the loss of, or a significant reduction in revenue from, one or more of these customers could have a negative impact on [its] business,” and it’s pretty clear that the launch of the iPhone on Verizon will have at least some impact this year. Question is, can they make up for the loss with a harder push on other carriers like AT&T?

Motorola: 28 percent of 2010 revenue came from Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 17:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

LG Revolution using 1GHz Snapdragon MSM8655, not NVIDIA’s Tegra 2

Posted in: Android, exclusive, Google, GoogleAndroid, LG, mwc, mwc 2011, Mwc2011, netflix, NVIDIA, processor, qualcomm, smartphone, snapdragon, tegra, tegra 2, Tegra2, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, video, vzw

Consider it a mystery solved. Throughout the week here in Barcelona, we’ve spent an inordinate amount of time chasing down suits from LG, Qualcomm, NVIDIA and Verizon Wireless to answer one simple question: “What’s up with the processor in the Revolution?” If you’ll recall, NVIDIA actually sent one of its own to Verizon’s LTE press event at CES 2011, specifically to bust out a Revolution and gloat about the Tegra 2 chip within (video’s after the break if you don’t believe us). As it stood, it seemed as if the Thunderbolt and Revolution would be butting heads from a CPU standpoint, with the former definitively sporting a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8655. And then, came the confusion. We showed up at Qualcomm’s booth here at Mobile World Congress to see which phone it was using to demonstrate the recently unveiled Netflix-on-Android support — lo and behold, LG’s Revolution was the handset of choice. Obviously, there had to be a new Snapdragon processor within, as only the newest of the new will have the necessary DRM libraries at a hardware level that are necessary to pass muster with the MPAA.

After venturing over to LG’s booth, we were also able to confirm that the only Revolution it knew of was boasting a Qualcomm CPU, and the shot above (which was sourced from there) proves it. We also confirmed with Verizon Wireless’ paperwork that the version it’s expecting in the next month or so will ship with Qualcomm inside. Finally, NVIDIA refused to comment on the matter, simply suggesting that we contact LG for more details. Put all of that together, and we’re able to come to two main conclusions. First off, it seems as if LG yanked support for the Tegra 2 at some point between CES and MWC — right around four weeks. Hard to say if there were reliability issues, an unsatisfactory amount of power drain, or just irreconcilable differences between the two CEOs (joking, of course). Secondly, it’s reasonably safe to assume that Verizon’s Revolution will be the first Android handset on Big Red to stream Netflix directly, which may please those who were planning on buying one but weren’t looking forward to going without Netflix thanks to the Tegra 2 that was (presumably) slated for inclusion. Qualcomm 1, NVIDIA 0.

Update: NVIDIA finally saw fit to drop us a line and clarify a bit. Turns out, the confirmation in the video below was a gaff to begin with, as the Revolution was never going to be outfitted with NVIDIA innards. Go figure, right?

Vlad Savov contributed to this report.

Continue reading LG Revolution using 1GHz Snapdragon MSM8655, not NVIDIA’s Tegra 2

LG Revolution using 1GHz Snapdragon MSM8655, not NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 10:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

Motorola Droid X 2 leaks, more details emerge

Posted in: droid, motoblur, motorola, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw
We’ve been hearing rumors of a Motorola Droid X 2 for a few days now from The Mobi Zone, complete with specs and pictures (above). Supposedly, it’s the successor to the Droid X, with a similar appearance, Android 2.2 with MOTOBLUR, and the same 8 megapixel camera. Some of the leaked specs — 4.3-inch qHD (960 x 540) display, 1GHz Tegra 2 dual-core CPU, 1GB RAM — didn’t sit well with us, since these closely match the upcoming LTE-equipped Droid Bionic. We did some digging around and one of our trusted sources confirmed that the Droid X 2 aka Droid X “squared” is indeed coming to Verizon in Q2 2011 without LTE. However, it appears to be a refreshed Droid X, with the same 4.3-inch WVGA (854 x 480) display, a 1.2GHz single-core CPU, and 768MB of RAM. It’s not quite the powerhouse it was originally made out to be, but it now seems to be a better fit in the Droid family.

[Thanks, Ahmad]

Motorola Droid X 2 leaks, more details emerge originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 05:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Android Central, Android Police, SlashPhone  |  sourceThe Mobi Zone, (Cached)  | Email this | Comments

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Feb 15

AT&T’s old $49 iPhone 3GS gets a new ad to sell it (video)

Posted in: ad, ads, Apple, att, commercial, iPhone, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, video, vzw
It looks like someone’s realized that simultaneous voice and web will not be enough to keep kids away from the Verizon iPhone. But where technical details fail to entice, perhaps a good deal will. Because, really, what’s better (or at least as good) as retaining your current customers? Well, if you ask AT&T it’s bringing in a slew of new ones by advertising that bargain-basement $49 iPhone 3GS (8GB). Feel free to check out the latest commercial after the break — as is usually the case, this one is a non-stop thrill ride.

Continue reading AT&T’s old $49 iPhone 3GS gets a new ad to sell it (video)

AT&T’s old $49 iPhone 3GS gets a new ad to sell it (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 16:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 15

Verizon CTO: we don’t ‘need’ the Nokia-Microsoft partnership; Android, iOS, and BlackBerry are the big three platforms

Posted in: Microsoft, mwc, mwc 2011, Mwc2011, nokia, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw, windows phone, windows phone 7, WindowsPhone, WindowsPhone7

Courting the largest carrier in the United States is probably at the top of any phone manufacturer’s to-do list, and it’s starting to sound like Nokia — on the strength of its just-announced Windows Phone gamble — has an uphill battle ahead of it. Verizon CTO Tony Melone has gone on record out at Mobile World Congress this week saying that he’s skeptical Micosoft has the capability to meet its lofty volume goals for Windows Phone — a little odd, considering that Verizon is on the verge of launching its first Windows Phone 7 model — and that he doesn’t think “Verizon needs the Nokia and Microsoft relationship.” Referring seemingly directly to Nokia CEO Stephen Elop’s desire to make the smartphone war a “three-horse race” between Android, iOS, and Windows Phone, Melone says he thinks that “right now the three OS players we see for our network are Android, Apple, and RIM.” Of course, just like the iPhone, we’re sure Melone’s attitude could change in a snap if Windows Phone picks up enough steam — but even in the best case, that’s going to take a while.

Verizon CTO: we don’t ‘need’ the Nokia-Microsoft partnership; Android, iOS, and BlackBerry are the big three platforms originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 13:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 15

Pre 2 available for $150 through Verizon on February 17th

Posted in: HP, pre, slider, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw, webos
Call it The Curious Case of the Pre 2: If you check the handset out on HP’s site, it will cost you $100 after rebate (under contract of course). But if you wander over to Verizon’s little piece of the Interwebs, the same phone has just been announced for $150 (new contract price) after rebate. So, let’s suppose for a moment that you had a choice between the two — which would you pick? That’s what we thought. Available on February 17, check out the mind-bending PR after the break for more details.

Continue reading Pre 2 available for $150 through Verizon on February 17th

Pre 2 available for $150 through Verizon on February 17th originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 12:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 15

Verizon VoLTE voice and video call demo at MWC 2011 (video)

Posted in: 4G, Android, demo, Google, GoogleAndroid, hands-on, LG, lte, mwc, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, video, VoIP

There may not be a native LTE network live in Barcelona yet, but that didn’t stop Big Red from hauling a 700MHz demonstration to Spain for the purposes of gloating at Mobile World Congress. We heard just days ago that the LG Revolution would be one of the first phones to support voice over LTE (VoLTE) on Verizon, and today we were given quite a bit of extra information about the rollout. For starters, Verizon’s hoping that other carriers adopt their VoLTE platform, even going so far as to encourage it. It’s sort of comical to hear the company that once crippled Bluetooth on dumbphones and still makes you buy a month of data just to activate a tablet talk about “openness” when it comes to communications, but we suppose the tables are turned somewhat when it’s VZW that stands to gain. At any rate, VoLTE essentially acts as a VoIP lane, giving a specific amount of bandwidth to the call (which ensures call quality, unlike Skype, which is at the mercy of shared applications that are using the same bandwidth) and also enabling the phone to use data whilst the call it ongoing.

The Revolution, which is slated to launch in March, will eventually gain VoLTE support, though VZW’s not expecting the feature to go live in America until next year. Bilal Wahid, Verizon Wireless’ Associate Director of Product Development, told us that at least initially, you may see VoLTE voice and videocalling available on Android smartphones, but there’s no reason that the same apps couldn’t be developed for other platforms. The call quality was on par with some of the high-bandwidth VoIP calls we’ve encountered, and the videocalling was particularly impressive. The resolution was tremendous, and there was essentially no lag whatsoever. Of course, this all happened over a locked, modular LTE network, so results will almost certainly vary out in the real world; regardless, it’s a beautiful start, and it certainly makes the wait to 2012 that much more difficult. Hop on past the break for a demonstration as well as a lengthy explanation of the technology, where it’s going, and when it’ll be implemented.

Gallery: Verizon VoLTE voice and video call demo at MWC 2011 (video)

Continue reading Verizon VoLTE voice and video call demo at MWC 2011 (video)

Verizon VoLTE voice and video call demo at MWC 2011 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 14

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

Posted in: charger, charging, hands-on, HTC, LG, mwc, mwc 2011, Mwc2011, peripheral, samsung, texas instruments, thunderbolt, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw, Wireless

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.

Gallery: LG Revolution and Verizon inductive charger at MWC 2011

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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Feb 14

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

Posted in: 4G, att, BlackBerry, blackberry playbook, BlackberryPlaybook, lte, playbook, RIM, Sprint, tablet, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw

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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