July 03 - 01:10pm EDT   Nokia has recently announced the release of its latest version of its Ovi Maps software used in more than 40 of its GPS-enabled handsets. Now available for download, Ovi Maps 3.0 has a number of enhancements, including high resolution satellite and terrain maps in both 2D and 3D views, as well as 3D landmarks for more than 200 large cities. The latter allows users to view the virtual landmarks with fly-overs, fly-throughs, in a night view and by rotating and tilting the perspective. There is also a new Walk mode for navigating on foot, while the Drive mode provides speed limit information, location of speed cameras, real-time traffic and lane assistance. [full story]

July 03 - 12:50pm EDT   Ahead of a scheduled UK launch event next week, Dutch wireless provider Hi has posted a product page on its website advertising the Palm Pre smartphone. Hi is a sub-brand of KPN, which has ties to Telefonica. As Telefonica runs UK carrier O2, which was reported to be the exclusive carrier of the Pre, the posting implies that Telefonica may have landed a multi-country deal. The product page reveals Hi will sell the Pre only subsidized with a contract. [full story]

July 03 - 11:40am EDT   Rather than allow a buyout of its assets, T-Mobile UK is hoping to strike a deal that would let it "swap" its British business for one in another country, sources have said on Friday. Company insiders have tipped off FT that T-Mobile may sell off its UK operations and that Vodafone Turkey would be the "ideal" candidate for the deal due to its second-place rank and relative subscriber base. No talks have been mentioned so far. [full story]

July 03 - 11:10am EDT   A leaked image and some scarce information indicates Canadian wireless provider Bell will soon get a new handset from Samsung, so for only known by its Link nickname. A low-quality cropped photo of the handset found in a Thursday MobileSyrup report suggests it will be a vertical QWERTY slider. Some are comparing it to a European Samsung model, the C6620. [full story]

July 03 - 09:45am EDT   A sequel to the year-old Samsung Glyde has been found in a leak posted by a HowardForums user. Known also as the U960, the new phone is considerably sleeker than the outgoing model but adds a significantly expanded screen and a fourth row to the keyboard. Similarly, it also upgrades the software with Samsung's in-house TouchWiz interface and carries an accelerometer to tilt the interface on its side. [full story]

July 02 - 04:15pm EDT   First spotted just over a month ago, the Nokia 6790 Surge got a one-month delay in its launch date at wireless provider AT&T. While an exact date is not announced, sources believe the phone, which used to go by the codename Mako, will appear sometime in mid-July. Some preliminary specs of the sliding QWERTY handset include a 2.4-inch, 240x320 display, and quad-band GSM and dual-band HSDPA support. The Surge is also one of a handful of mid-range Nokia phones equipped with the smartphone-grade Symbian S60 operating system. [full story]

July 02 - 03:50pm EDT   While it was reported just yesterday that Toshiba's first full touchscreen smartphone, the TG01, will be officially unveiled at a launch event in London on July 9th, it is now known the handset will make its debut in the UK at provider Orange on the same date. The wireless provider already has a product page up for the device; pricing is unknown but may be unveiled at the July 9th launch event. [full story]

July 02 - 02:55pm EDT   Sprint this week staked its ground and claimed it would be the first US carrier to have a 3G femtocell. The company was already the first American firm to have any kind of femtocell in the Samsung Airave but now says to Unstrung that it should beat AT&T to having a device that can share 3G data with the home, improving reception for some smartphones and other devices that don't have their own Wi-Fi. Most current femtocells only boost voice service by creating a miniature cellular signal that pipes all data through a home Internet link. [full story]

July 02 - 12:40pm EDT   T-Mobile's version of the HTC Touch Pro2 may ship later than originally expected if sources are truthful. Initially assumed to ship on the 22nd, the phone may now not show until August 12th based on TmoNews' information. Why the delay exists isn't known, but the date would follow a week after the expected August 5th ship date for the myTouch 3G and may be tailored to keep the Pro2 from undermining the Android phone's bigger launch. [full story]

July 02 - 12:20pm EDT   In some good news for local cell phone manufacturers, the European Union's plan to introduce new taxes for handsets sold throughout Europe has been scrapped, says a Wednesday report. The new taxes would have raised prices customers pay for new phones and most likely lowered the sales numbers of an already falling market. The decision came from Sweden, which hosts the rotating presidency of the EU, and will mean the Customs Code Committee will continue to treat cell phones as duty-free items. [full story]