Cdma - Engadget Mobile

Samsung's Ubicell CDMA base station going 3G in 2010

by Ross Miller posted Nov 17th 2009 at 12:27AM

We're all for upping our cell service in-home, so a few cheers to Samsung for upgrading its Ubicell personal CDMA base station to 3G. Joining the femtocell party in 2010, all we know beyond its primary directive is built-in GPS for more accurate E911 calls. Mum's the word on price, carriers, or any more definitive launch date. The last Ubicell (pictured) was launched with Verizon, so nah, we wouldn't be the least bit surprised if this one here followed in its ancestor's footsteps.

Palm Pre WebOS 1.3.1 update available now

by Richard Lawler posted Nov 14th 2009 at 12:49AM

webOS 1.3.1 was always destined to come alongside the launch of the Pixi, but it's surprised us by showing its face a day early. No app catalog bombshells here, but there are a slew of more minor fixes and updates that should make users experience a great deal smoother. Is this the update that finally unlocks access to the GPU and provides the speed boost Pre owners are waiting for / ~~advances the iTunes chess match another step~~? We'll let you know once our unit reboots, for now here are a few highlights from Palm's list of changes:

Update: Downloaded, applied and rebooted. iTunes still isn't spotting our Pre as a device to sync with, and at least for the moment there's no great speed increases to speak of, but we have noticed a few more key tweaks that owners are sure to like -- setting a specific ringtone for text messages is exactly what we've been looking for.

Yahoo! now appears as a Calendar/Contacts/instant messaging synchronization account.
You can forward a text or multimedia message by tapping the message > Forward.
A new option is available for restarting the phone: press and hold power > Power > Restart. The prior restart method (Device Info > Reset Options > Restart) is still available.
Widescreen videos (including YouTube) now display in widescreen mode on the phone by default, instead of being cropped.
If you tap to play a YouTube video embedded on a web page, the YouTube application launches and the video plays in the app.
You can select a unique ringtone for new message alerts: Open Messaging > application menu > Preferences & Accounts > Sound > Ringtone.
While listening to a song with album art displayed, you can tap the screen below the art to display a playback slider. Dragging the slider jumps forward or backward in the song.

ViewSonic heats up phone collection, V901 spotted on Microsoft China site

by Ross Miller posted Nov 13th 2009 at 11:33PM

In just one week, ViewSonic has gone from a glint of a 3G phone maker to having two models prominently on display. We've already seen VPC08 Windows XP phone, and now up to bat is the V901, found in the pages of Microsoft China's official site. The Windows Mobile 6.5, apparently TouchWiz-skinned device has a 3.6-inch, 480 x 800 touchscreen, a Marvell PXA310 processor, 128MB RAM and 256MB ROM storage with microSD expansion, 5 megapixel camera, GPS, Bluetooth, all hailing to the wavelengths we call CDMA EV-DO Rev. A. Launch is Q4 2009, so sometime very soon -- but we get the feeling this is China-only, at least for now.

[Via iTech News Net]

BlackBerry Storm2 hands-on and impressions

by Chris Ziegler posted Nov 12th 2009 at 3:00PM

For a company with the most starched, buttoned-up roots of any major wireless manufacturer, RIM's venture out of its enterprise comfort zone to the consumer space went amazingly smoothly thanks to the introduction of the original Pearl, a phone that's still sold in a variety of colors, configurations, and carriers to this day. At some point, though, it became clear that the industry was moving toward touch -- a space RIM had never dabbled in -- and the trend gave birth to the Storm, a product that had obviously been rushed to market with countless software bugs and a dodgy SurePress concept that caused more problems than it solved. With prototypes floating around in the wild mere months after its predecessor's release, RIM's message was loud and clear earlier this year: "we need to fix the Storm, and we need to do it quickly." Ultimately, it's ended up taking the company just about a year to get the Storm2 to market, a product that attempts to tweak Waterloo's touchscreen strategy just enough to undo a few mistakes and send it down the right path. Mission accomplished? Read on.

Walmart's $30 deal vaults Pixi from 'meh' to 'sure, I'll take three'

by Chris Ziegler posted Nov 12th 2009 at 1:07PM

At $100, the underpowered Pixi doesn't look like a great value against its bigger, older brother -- but at the $30 Walmart is charging through its partner LetsTalk, the game changes a bit, doesn't it? Sure, $70 isn't that huge of a difference quantitatively, but emotionally, $30 is basically an overpriced meal or two -- and considering the old adage of "a moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips," wouldn't you just rather have webOS? We've heard of some bad experiences with LetsTalk rebates in the past, but in this case, it's just an instant discount, so it seems like it could be a no-brainer for on-the-fencers.

[Thanks, Snake]

Palm Pixi reviewed on Engadget

by Darren Murph posted Nov 12th 2009 at 9:26AM

Palm's second-ever webOS device has just landed at Engadget HQ, and naturally we put it through the paces to bring you the low-down. Is the Pixi the perfect device for those who held out on the Pre (and didn't get sucked in by the Droid)? Is the omission of WiFi really a deal-breaker (ladies)? There's really only one way to find out, and that's by clicking over to our review right here.

Palm Pixi arrives early for the people of Walmart

by Thomas Ricker posted Nov 12th 2009 at 4:21AM

Brush back that mullet and adjust your ill-fitting halter tops folks 'cause Palm's newest webOS device has been spotted at Walmart. This pair of Pixi lovelies was ogled overnight inside one of Sam Walton's finest Tennessee locations reportedly sporting a $400 price tag and little else -- it wasn't in Walmart's system so it wasn't yet available for purchase. Something that should be rectified in time for Sunday's official launch with Sprint ($100 on contract) if not sooner.

Motorola Droid torn down despite desperate cries of 'no disassemble'

by Chris Ziegler posted Nov 11th 2009 at 5:32PM

If you were thinking of tearing apart your own Droid, let us direct you first to this quote straight from the folks at phoneWreck: "no easy task." It seems that even finding some of the screws involved in holding the mess together was a problem, but at the end of the day, good old-fashioned human ingenuity prevailed over... well, other human ingenuity, and the phone fell asunder into the 16 pieces you see here. As you might imagine, there's a bit of industrial magic involved in fitting a full QWERTY slide into a package this tight -- but just as Moto was up to the challenge of putting it together, some dude with a little time on his hands was up to the challenge of asploding it. Needless to say, we won't be doing this to ours.

Motorola Quantico gets rugged for AWS CDMA

by Chris Ziegler posted Nov 11th 2009 at 3:30PM

Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint (well, Direct Connect anyway) have all gotten their fair shares of ruggedized Motorola love, but what about the regionals like MetroPCS? The answer to that might very well lie in the Quantico flip that was announced today, bearing support for 1700MHz CDMA in addition to 800 / 1900 with EV-DO. Besides mil-spec 810F compliance for resistance to environmental evils like water dunks, heat, and dust, the Quantico offers up a 1.3 megapixel camera (a little meager, if you ask us), stereo Bluetooth, and microSD expansion. Moto's putting nearly all of its weight behind Android right now, but alas, no Android here -- speaking of, whatever happened to the non-touch version of the platform? Anyhow, look for the phone to hit markets in this quarter; carrier partners have yet to be announced.

Update: Turns out US Cellular is already selling the Quantico despite Motorola's vague statement on availability. Thanks, everyone!

Nokia intros CDMA trifecta for China

by Chris Ziegler posted Nov 11th 2009 at 2:26PM

Nokia's newfound commitment to CDMA isn't just a US effort -- it's a big deal in China, too, where a beefy percentage of the world's CDMA users reside. On that note, the company has introduced the Asian market to three new models today spanning the low end to the midrange, but if you're outside China, we wouldn't get our hopes up for a launch in your neck of the woods. Starting at the bottom we've got the 1506, an ultra-basic candybar with an integrated voice recorder and speakerphone; it's being billed as Nokia's cheapest CDMA device yet. Next is the 3806, which steps up to a QVGA display, Bluetooth 2.1 support, and support for external storage up to 4GB -- but maybe the most notable feature here is the inclusion of a "Health Assistant" app that allows "you to stay healthy, which ultimately, allows you to stay happy." We're all for phones that keep us happy around here. Finally, the 6316s slider is the beast of the bunch with GPS and EV-DO for China Telecom's 3G network plus a 2 megapixel camera, but you'll be waiting a while -- it and the 3806 won't be hitting until the first quarter of next year, while the 1506 comes into play by the end of '09.

Analyst estimates 100,000 DROID smartphones sold in first weekend

by Darren Murph posted Nov 10th 2009 at 9:12AM

The lines may have been subdued, but one way or another, it sounds as if Motorola managed to sell quite a few DROIDs over the weekend. According to analyst Mark McKechnie at Broadpoint AmTech, the outfit managed to move around 100,000 of 'em during the opening weekend, with most stores moving at least half of their original shipments. He also estimated that Moto would sell one million Android-based phones in Q4 2009 alone (which includes the CLIQ, obviously), and that he viewed the first few days as "encouraging." It's been a long, long while since we've been able to say this, but hey -- nice job, Motorola.

Samsung pays Qualcomm $1.3 billion to secure wireless licenses

by Vladislav Savov posted Nov 9th 2009 at 6:11AM

Samsung and Qualcomm have wrapped up a cross-licensing deal with ten figures of US currency in it, which will permit the Korean giant to continue producing 3G- and 4G-enabled wireless devices for the next 15 years. In exchange, Samsung is letting Qualcomm make use of its own 57 patents on mobile technology and splashing out a further $1.3 billion as a down payment. Further royalty payments are involved, but not detailed, but just as a reference point, that's more than the new Dallas Cowboys stadium and its ultra-huge scoreboard cost to build. The move is a renewal of the two companies' current arrangement and Samsung has boldly claimed the terms of the new contract are more favorable to it, but we get the feeling the champagne will be flowing in San Diego this week.

[Via MobileTechWorld]

Palm Pre price keeps sinking on Bell, down to $100

by Darren Murph posted Nov 7th 2009 at 7:41PM

Just weeks after Palm's Pre sunk to CAD $149.95 on Bell, the outfit's first-ever webOS phone has now stooped to just CAD $99.95. That still requires a 3-year contract, of course, but man -- a single bill for a smartphone like the Pre? Anyone tossing out guesses on how long it takes Sprint to follow suit (and embarrass the Pixi)?

[Thanks, David]

PSA: Sears charging $50 less for new DROID activations than Verizon

by Chris Ziegler posted Nov 6th 2009 at 11:14AM

If you walk into a Verizon store today and pick up a DROID, you'll be out $300 (before tax) out of pocket, then you'll twiddle your thumbs for a few weeks while you wait for some mysterious PO box in Texas to send you your $100 rebate on a debit card. Wouldn't you rather just pay $200 upfront? Or better yet, $150? Sears -- which, we have to admit, we didn't know sold phones -- is charging just $150 without a rebate for the DROID today, a full $50 less than Big Red proper with rebate. We don't know how good these guys are with customer service (Simplexity is running the store on Sears' behalf, it seems), but truth be told, we can deal with a little incompetency for $50.

[Via I4U]

DROID mania sweeps the nation, so to speak

by Chris Ziegler posted Nov 6th 2009 at 9:19AM

It appears that last night's midnight opening in Manhattan went off like gangbusters, but the situation across the country is a little more subdued this morning with seemingly short lines and easy access to DROIDs at every location we've visited. We won't put out a number, but we can confirm that several Engadget editors have taken the plunge today -- and if riffraff like us can waltz into the store and get them, you should certainly be able to. Good luck being assimilated out there today, and be sure to post pictures of your experience in comments (up above we've got San Francisco's first buyer courtesy of Ross Miller, and after the break, you can live it up with the good folks of Albany as they were paid a visit by Tim Stevens).

Continue reading DROID mania sweeps the nation, so to speak