Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve learned from a source close to the situation that the rumored global version of the Droid 2 with GSM and CDMA radios is actually the same phone as the also-rumored Droid Pro — although Verizon apparently has a tendency to fiddle with branding right up until the last minute, so the retail name could still change. It’s identical to the current Droid 2 in every way except for the fact that it houses a GSM / HSPA radio for global roaming, though we’re not able to confirm previous rumors that it’ll be available in a white version; presumably, you’ll pay a bit more than the Droid 2’s $200 on contract for the privilege of being able to take your buddy overseas. Barring any last-minute delays, we should see it launch within weeks.

If you’re sick and tired of Motorolas, let’s switch gears a bit and talk about the follow-up to LG’s enV Touch. Interestingly, LG will be switching from a proprietary featurephone platform to Android for this one — called the enV Touch 2 — and will give it dual touchscreens: one on the outside, and another on the inside for when you flip open the clamshell. As you might expect for an enV-branded device, there’s also a full QWERTY keyboard. It’s currently running Android 2.1, though it’s not clear whether that’ll be upgraded to 2.2 by the time we see a release toward the holidays. It’s said to be pretty big and heavy, which could be a disadvantage for some — but on the flipside, it’s apparently a global device, so that’s a plus. enVs historically haven’t been the most exciting things in Verizon’s stable, but we’ll admit, we’re curious to see this one get fleshed out.

Update: A tipster has written in to point out that the Droid 2 and Droid Pro are showing as two different devices in Verizon’s inventory system, model numbers A956 and A957, respectively; our original source is adamant, though, that they’re the same device, so we’ll need to wait to see how this pans out. As we mentioned, Droid Pro isn’t necessarily the go-to-market name for the phone, but it is the name being tossed around internally right now for the device that we know as the Droid 2 with global roaming.

Exclusive: Droid Pro is the global version of the Droid 2, LG enV Touch 2 will be Android-powered originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Aug 2010 15:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Back in February, Verizon Wireless made it quite clear what phones could be used with Skype Mobile, and the whole lot were smartphones. Sometime between then and now, however, it seems as if the carrier (or Skype… or both) has had a change of heart, as today a select few non-smartphones are showing up in its database as being compatible with Skype Mobile. Samsung’s $20-on-contract Reality, LG’s $80-on-contract Chocolate Touch and the enV Touch are all displayed as being in support of Skype Mobile, leading us to believe that an even larger stable of VZW handsets may soon hop onboard. Meanwhile, perfectly capable Android phones like the Nexus One can’t find a decent Skype client to save their life. For shame.

Update: Ah, ha! Now it’s official, with Skype confirming that Skype Mobile is now available on VZW multimedia phones on the BREW platform.

Verizon quietly pushes Skype Mobile onto select non-smartphones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Aug 2010 10:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We can all agree that some fresh product is desperately overdue out of Sunnyvale, so the eternal optimists in us want to believe that the departure of the Pre Plus from Verizon’s and AT&T’s warehouses right now means that we can expect new goodies soon. Of course, it’s entirely possible that the two carriers just happened to run out of phones at the same time and that fresh batches are on their way, so it’s too early to say these phones are out for the count; then again, when you consider that Sprint somehow still sells the Centro, anything’s possible. For what it’s worth, both carriers’ stores are still stocking the phones, so if you absolutely must have a Pre Plus right now, you’re in luck — you’re just going to have to put on something besides your underwear and leave the house to get it. Sorry!

Pre Plus out of stock online at Verizon and AT&T — so what does it mean? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So BGR‘s got a tipster lined up with alleged details from within iOS 4 beta firmware that shows a section dedicated to bypassing the usual iTunes activation scheme for three new product codes: iPhone3,2, iPhone 3,3, and iProd 2,1. Actually, these product codes aren’t “new,” per se; we saw all three of them in the iPad’s firmware back in April, but they’ve yet to make the giant leap to officialdom. What’s different here, then? Well, apparently, this activation-bypass scheme has historically had a tendency to show up in Apple’s beta firmware right around the time a new iPhone goes into testing — ostensibly so that field engineers don’t need to worry about that rigmarole to do their jobs — which suggests that these new models are getting ready for action. BGR‘s source says these will be the CDMA iPhone and the next-gen iPad, though you can’t tell that from the product codes alone, and that doesn’t explain why we’ve actually got two new iPhones listed. For what it’s worth, the current iPad — iPad1,1 — used to go by the moniker iProd1,1 in firmware, so it stands to reason that we really are looking at a new tablet here. Now if you’ll excuse us, we’ve got some Verizon Wireless field tech van recon to do.

New iPhone, iPad model codes set up for iTunes activation bypass — CDMA versions, maybe? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Aug 2010 13:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This actually happened a few days ago, but since we admittedly weren’t on the lookout for hot filings from Chinese manufacturer ZTE, we totally missed it until we circled back for our FCC Fridays roundup this week. That’s right: what you’re looking at above is a non-carrier-branded version of the Fivespot global mobile hotspot for Verizon that we’d broke the news on last month — and if you sift through the user’s manual in the FCC filing, you’ll see that this is indeed the same thing as the Verizon device. As a refresher, this puppy is supposed to replace the aging MiFi and offer support for triband HSPA alongside EV-DO in the event you’re dying for some 3G coverage outside the States. We’ve heard rumors that it’s been canceled recently to make room for Big Red’s LTE plans, but we’re not sure we buy it since widespread LTE coverage is still a long way out — especially in a tiny, sexy, global mobile hotspot form factor like this. And hey, with FCC approval behind ’em, why not go ahead and release it?

Verizon’s Fivespot gets FCC approval by way of ZTE originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 14 Aug 2010 09:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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