Filed under: Handsets, RIM, EV-DO, CDMA

Clearly, Mike Lazaridis has the chops when it comes to running a business. What he clearly lacks, however, is a firm definition of the term “netbook.” To his credit, we still feel the exact boundaries for netbooks have yet to be determined (fret not, Psion Teklogix is hammering out those details), but calling a BlackBerry Storm one is — how do you say? — a bit of a stretch. During a recent sit down with RIM’s president, CNET Asia heard the bigwig answer like so when questioned about viewing netbooks as competitors: “No, I think I can put netbooks in here [referring to the BlackBerry Storm]. These are netbooks. They are just smaller.” Wait, Mike — don’t you think smartphones are more like MIDs or UMPCs? Or do we just have you all wrong here?

[Via phoneArena]

RIM’s president calls BlackBerry Storm a small netbook originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 06:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Darren Murph

We’d pegged early January for the release of a pink Samsung Instinct on Sprint’s airwaves, and Best Buy’s doing everything it can to help us hold the line on that with a new “Coming Soon” page advertising just such a product. Unfortunately, they’re asking a whopping $599.99 for the pleasure of being the first kid on your block with this thing, but the off-contract pricing in Best Buy’s system is usually way out of whack — we wouldn’t worry about paying anything close to $200 on contract by the time you actually step into the store.

[Thanks, Emilio]

Filed under: Cellphones

Sprint’s pink Instinct shows up on Best Buy’s site for outrageous price originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 03:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

Nokia’s 6208c (or 6208 classic, if you prefer) isn’t arriving as a surprise, though it is quite nice to see it being made completely official. The rather unique handset was designed with the Chinese market in mind, as it boasts an integrated, removable stylus modeled after bamboo slips for inputting Chinese characters via pen. You’ll also notice a stainless steel back cover, 3.2-megapixel camera (with twin LED flash), a 4x digital zoom and a microSD slot for expanding storage. Mum’s the word on pricing, but it should be loosed in “select markets” during the first half of 2009.

Filed under: Cellphones

Nokia’s 6208c now official, officially in love with stylus input originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 02:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Handsets, RIM, T-Mobile, GSM, EDGE, HSDPA, UMTS

We’re still waiting for even a single American launch of RIM’s luscious (or luscious-looking, anyway) Curve 8900, but if the latest blurry screenshot is to be believed, that little indiscretion is finally about to be rectified — and the curvacious BlackBerry’s bringing friends, too. Notables on T-Mobile’s alleged list of first quarter launches include the Nokia 7510 Supernova on January 21, the long-rumored Shadow II on January 28, a mysterious Motorola Renew on February 4, and the aforementioned 8900 and 8-megapixel Memoir on February 18. In other words, T-Mob fans, mark your calendars for the third week of February, because that’s where the action’s going to be. Or so we desperately hope.

Shadow II, Curve 8900, Samsung Memoir due in coming weeks on T-Mobile? originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 22:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

Filed under: Software, HTC, Android

We’ve received word from HTC today that Android’s coveted “Cupcake” branch of updates and fixes — or at least a majority of it — will definitely be making it to the G1 in the future as an over-the-air push. However, it’s not clear exactly when this is going to happen; apparently, HTC’s more or less out of the loop on the schedule, and it’s up to Google and T-Mobile to figure out how it’s going to play out. We’ll keep you updated as we find out more!

Cupcake confirmed for T-Mobile G1 originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

We’ve already seen it go down unofficially, but we’ve received word from HTC today that Android’s coveted “Cupcake” branch of updates and fixes — or at least a majority of it — will likely be making it to the G1 in the future as a legitimate over-the-air push. HTC isn’t involved in deciding what updates get pushed to the G1 or when, but given the update cadence so far and the G1′s support for Cupcake’s capabilities, the company believes that it’s just a matter of time before T-Mobile makes it happen. The timing is still a big question — HTC’s more or less out of the loop on the schedule, and it’s up to Google and T-Mobile to figure out how it’s going to play out. We’ll keep you updated as we find out more!

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

HTC believes Cupcake will come to the T-Mobile G1 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

Filed under: Peripherals

While we feel that some objects shouldn’t be solar powered for the sake of being solar powered, we can’t help but dig Nextar’s approach here. The NXBT-001 / NXBT-002 seem to primarily differ only in the amount of charge they can hold, with the former offering 250 hours of standby time / 10 hours of talk time and the latter boasting 150 hours of standby time and 6 hours of yappin’. As for functionality, both devices are designed to enable handsfree calling in the car with any Bluetooth-enabled mobile, and of course, they each soak up the sun while you’re out cruising about. The best part? The fact that you no longer have to run yet another power cable to that 8-port cigarette adapter hub sitting in your center console. The pair will ship this Spring for $59.99 / $69.99 (thanks to a bundled caller ID display), respectively. Full release is after the break.

Continue reading Nextar cuts the cord with solar-powered in-car handsfree kits

Nextar cuts the cord with solar-powered in-car handsfree kits originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Handsets, Misc

It certainly isn’t for everybody, but if you’ve found yourself regretting your choice of handset and are still stuck on a lengthy contract, you may want to look into upstart Rentobile, which will let you try out a phone for a month or more and switch to another one whenever you get tired of it. Things could get a tad pricey if you decide to stick with the rentals for the long haul, however, with most of the phones running $24 a month for members or $36 a month for non-members, while some unlocked phones like Nokia E90 or even a 16GB iPhone will run $34/month for members and a hefty $51/month for non-members. According to RCRWireless, while the company has been around for three months already, they say they’ve only managed to sign up 50 members to date, although they’re apparently planning to step up their marketing and advertising efforts in the not too distant future, and even hope to work out some special deals with manufacturers to sweeten the deal a little.

[Via RCRWireless]

Rentobile offers up rental phones for folks stuck on contract originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 17:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Original post by Donald Melanson