My iPhone Blog

Filed under: Handsets, Sharp, T-Mobile, Danger, GSM, EDGE

After all the buffoonery over what exactly T-Mobile intended to call its newest entry-level Danger device, they’ve ultimately decided to just go back to basics, drop the acronyms, and christen it simply “Sidekick.” Make no mistake, though — this little puppy is a far cry from your daddy’s Hiptop launched way back in 2002, thanks to a 400 x 240 WQVGA display, 2 megapixel camera with video recording capability, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, and a microSD slot. Though it’s being billed as the iD’s spiritual successor, the Sidekick comes dangerously close to LX territory, so it should see some solid movement at the $149.99 asking price on a two-year contract. What’s more, the Sidekick becomes Danger’s first device with user-customizable shells, available directly from sidekickshells.com for $14.99 a pop (we’ve got both a really bad and a really frickin’ great feeling about the ridiculous sorts of designs people are going to be coming up with there). The whole shebang goes on sale starting today.

We’ve spent just a little bit of time fiddling with a Sidekick this week, and in a nutshell, this thing is a killer upgrade for the iD crowd — which just so happens to be exactly what T-Mobile’s going for. On the downside, the pivot mechanism and controls feel just a little chintzier than those on their big brother, the LX — but not distractingly so — and it’s surprisingly hard to downgrade from the LX’s stunning 3-inch display to the Sidekick’s smaller 2.6-inch deal. For those of you with shell design ideas already in mind, though, where else are you gonna turn?

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Popularity: 2% [?]

Filed under: Apple

Seeing as Apple’s FairPlay DRM has already been cracked for music and movies, it’s not at all surprising that people are starting to poke holes in the FairPlay-based iPhone App Store. The first loophole is pretty simple, since it doesn’t appear that FairPlay links the iPhone hardware to specific Apple IDs: just log into iTunes from any of the machines authorized to use your account, and every app you’ve purchased will be available for free re-downloading to any attached phone. Since music and movies wrapped in FairPlay can be transferred to unlimited iPods and iPhones, we’re guessing this little trick will work indefinitely, but we wouldn’t depend on it.

Continue reading over on Engadget!

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Popularity: 2% [?]

iPhone Battery - Technology and Limits

One of the most unique things about the Apple iPhone is that of the internal battery technology that is used here. While the iPhone has a great capacity level that features either four or eight gigabytes of space depending on the model, a two megapixel camera and Wi-Fi Internet connectivity capability, the iPhone battery is one of the most notable features here. It has all sorts of great features and highlights but there are some problems that come with it.

The battery used in the iPhone is that of internal battery technology. It is built right into the iPhone itself and can be recharged. The battery can handle up to eight hours of talking on the phone to another person. It can be used for Internet access for six hours and it can play back video for seven hours. An entire twenty four hour day of music playback can be achieved through a fully charged battery. The standby power of the iPhone can be two hundred and fifty hours on a full battery.

The battery life of the iPhone is great when compared to other major phones on the market. For instance, the Nokia N95 can only handle four hours of talk time on a fully charged battery, and that’s half of what the iPhone’s battery is capable of. Also, the Samsung Blackjack has a battery that can only handle five and a half hours of talk time and the Blackberry Curve 8300 and Palm Treo 750 can only handle four hours of time each.

As it can be seen here the internal battery technology of the iPhone is greater than that of the technology that other mobile phones have available to them. The fact that this is all internal battery technology, however, is one of the major pitfalls to it. That’s because the battery will have to be recharged for a good period of time so that the battery will be able to get the full power that it needs for maximum efficiency.

Recharging items will have to be used for getting the battery to be at its full power. This will result in additional materials that will have to be transported around when the user has to travel for a long period of time.

Since the battery is internal the user cannot just go and put in additional batteries in the event of an emergency. That means if the power goes out in an area the user will not be able to recharge the iPhone because no outside batteries can be used. In fact, the battery can run out of its ability to get recharged, and when this happens the inside battery will have to be replaced. The only way the battery can be changed is through an official iPhone store like an Apple Store.

Overall, the iPhone battery is a cell phone battery that is incredibly powerful. It is greater in strength and length of life than other batteries in the world of mobile phones. However, there will be additional equipment to use to keep it charged and it will end up losing its recharging capability over time.

Popularity: 27% [?]

We here at Engadget Mobile tend to spend a lot of way too much time poring over the latest FCC filings, be it on the net or directly on the ol’ Federal Communications Commission’s site. Since we couldn’t possibly (want to) cover all the stuff that goes down there, we’ve gathered up all the raw info you may want (but probably don’t need). Enjoy!

Phones
Read - Samsung SGH-T109
Read - Samsung SCH-M569
Read - LG VX5500
Read - LG AX500
Read - UTStarcom CDM8950 / Pantech Echo
Read - ZTE F120
Read - ZTE A711G
Read - ZTE i766
Read - Alcatel OT-S521A / OT-S626A

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Popularity: 5% [?]

Filed under: Palm, Sprint, Windows Mobile, EV-DO

We’d been hearing rumors about the Treo 800w for what seemed like ages. Between the clatter of “Zeppelin” talk, glimpses of a new model during Gates’ last CES keynote, and the ever-persistent idea that a fresh new Palm phone is just around the corner, it wasn’t exactly a mind-blowing surprise when the new model finally came to light (of course, Sprint selling it a day early didn’t help either). Now we’ve had a chance to spend some quality time with the company’s latest foray into the world of Windows Mobile, and we’d like to share our deepest thoughts and inner-most feelings on the device.

Continue reading Palm Treo 800w review

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Popularity: 4% [?]

We here at Engadget Mobile tend to spend a lot of way too much time poring over the latest FCC filings, be it on the net or directly on the ol’ Federal Communications Commission’s site. Since we couldn’t possibly (want to) cover all the stuff that goes down there, we’ve gathered up all the raw info you may want (but probably don’t need). Enjoy!

Phones
Read - Huawei V830
Read - Huawei T202
Read - Samsung SGH-P250
Read - Samsung SGH-E848i
Read - ZTE A711+
Read - ZTE A933+
Read - LG CT810

Peripherals
Read - Huawei EM770
Read - ZTE TES25
Read - ZTE K2525

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Popularity: 4% [?]

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

Sure, you might be the biggest Christian Bale fan in the world right now, but what about this time next year when The Dark Knight DVDs are already collecting dust on bookshelves around the globe? That was the million-dollar question on our minds when we heard that Verizon was commemorating the launch of its Nokia 6205 and the latest Batman flick with a tied-in version of the low end flip. Turns out it’s all good, though — a look through the custom packaging revealed a grand total of two battery covers, one with the Batman logo and one without, so it should be pretty easy to avoid those embarrassing “what’s with the batphone?” queries in a few months’ time. Otherwise, there’s very little to say about the phone — it truly is a minimalist flip — though we’re definitely excited to see Nokia’s apparently renewed commitment to working not just with CDMA, but with CDMA carriers in North America.

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Popularity: 4% [?]

Filed under: Handsets, LG, Samsung, Apple

Alright, you three are sworn enemies, so what are we waiting for? Let’s get it on! Go ahead, seriously, exchange some blows. No better way to get the party started than with a little speed test; the Instinct’s data services still seem to be jacked, but the Dare and iPhone 3G squared off with the LG model consistently besting Apple’s by between 50-100kbps over Verizon’s EV-DO network (see the gallery for the side-by-side). That’s not to say the Dare is consistently the faster phone — it has everything to do with the network in your area, the time of day, the circumstances, and which side of the bed you woke up on this morning — but it’s an interesting observation here nonetheless. We’ll follow up with an Instinct speed test (and another round of testing on the Dare and iPhone) when we can.

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Popularity: 5% [?]

Filed under: Handsets, LG, Verizon Wireless, EV-DO, CDMA

“Chocolate” is a storied word in the phone industry. In terms of brand recognition, it’s right up there with RAZR and iPhone thanks to well-executed marketing campaigns by both LG globally and Verizon in the US, but more recently, LG has moved on to other marques — Shine and Secret, to name a couple — leaving Chocolate to trickle downmarket. We wouldn’t exactly call the Chocolate 3 “downmarket,” but its launch is definitely not being played up to the same extent as, say, the original VX8500’s was; these days, those honors seem go to iPhone fighters like the Dare.

Continue reading LG Chocolate 3 hands-on

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Popularity: 5% [?]

Filed under: Handsets, Palm, Sprint, Windows Mobile, EV-DO

If you’ve been really eager, it’s possible you already bought one of these. If you haven’t, then here’s your chance to see Palm’s latest Windows Mobile phone from just about every angle you could possibly imagine. We’ve got the company’s new enterprise-themed phone in-hand (and on-table), and we’re currently putting it through its paces. Take a look at the gallery below for a slew of pictures, and stay tuned for a review from us coming soon.

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Popularity: 5% [?]