11/06, 12:45pm
IDC Q3 2009 phone share results live
Apple gained market share in the summer but slipped in the face of tougher competition, according to new IDC data. The iPhone's share of smartphones grew from 16.6 percent to 17.1 percent during the quarter but was overtaken by Research in Motion's record BlackBerry sales, which pushed it above Apple from 14.6 percent to 19 percent. The reversal is credited to the BlackBerry's wider distribution and the launch of a pair of key phones, the Tour and the Curve 8520.
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11/04, 6:35pm
LG targeting iPhone, BlackBerry, Pre
LG now considers the iPhone one of its largest competitors in the smartphone space, CEO Yong Nam said in a Washington presentation today. He dismisses both market leader Nokia and Sony Ericsson as rivals and instead says most of LG's energy is now focused on beating Apple, Palm and Research in Motion. The Korean company is now "investing heavily" in smartphones and is putting most of its focus on touchscreen devices like the Android-based Eve and multiple Windows Mobile phones.
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11/02, 12:15pm
Citi urges selling Palm, RIM stock
Citigroup analyst Jim Suva today signaled a major rethink of its approach to cellphone shares by downgrading both Palm and Research in Motion stock to a "sell" recommendation. The about-face comes as a direct result of the Motorola Droid and a belief that the Android phone is a dark horse which will upset phones like the BlackBerry range or the Pre by upstaging them both at work and through sheer publicity.
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10/28, 12:20pm
Google Maps Navigation official with 3D
Google today provided added details of the turn-by-turn mapping service found on the Motorola Droid. Google Maps Navigation adds many of the features that would normally exist in a dedicated GPS unit, such as a bird's-eye view and spoken directions, but takes advantage of Google's existing Maps features. Traffic is free in those areas where Google provides service, and Street View can show directions overlaid on top of in-location photos.
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10/27, 2:50pm
Study shows iPhone 3GS unseating BBerry
The success of the iPhone 3GS could lead to Apple's device overtaking the BlackBerry, a ChangeWave study has found today. Since unveiling the phone in June, Apple has jumped five percent in its market share among those in the study, to 30 percent, and is within a "striking distance" of just 10 percent of RIM's BlackBerry, which fell a point to 40 percent. Palm is flat at 7 percent but successfully used the Pre to stave off the constant declines it has faced for the past three years.
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10/26, 7:50am
BBerry Storm 2 and BB OS 5.0 for Verizon
After waiting nearly two weeks past the original launch, Verizon today unveiled its own version of the BlackBerry Storm2. Its version adds CDMA and EVDO Revision A for its own phone and 3G networks; quad-band GSM/EDGE and single-band 2,100MHz HSPA 3G give it roaming in most other areas. The US carrier also includes a 16GB microSDHC card in the box to put it more on par with the 16GB iPhone 3GS.
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10/21, 7:40am
BlackBerry Bold 9700 due for AT&T, T-Mobile
RIM today confirmed early slips with a launch for the BlackBerry Bold 9700. The smartphone is a refinement of the 2008-era Bold with a more compact design but a round of improvements, including a higher-resolution 480x360 screen (up from 480x320), a 3.2-megapixel camera (improved from two), and an optical trackpad in place of the more clog-prone trackball. Wi-Fi calling is new for carriers that support UMA, like Rogers and T-Mobile.
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10/19, 1:45pm
RIM inPulse shows BlackBerry messages
Talk of a watch peripheral for the BlackBerry gained credibility on Monday through a slip of new information. Probably to be called the inPulse, the RIM add-on would resemble some Bluetooth watches but have an OLED display that shows much more detailed information. Shots and a description from CrackBerry indicate the watch would show previews of calls, e-mail and RSS feeds from a paired BlackBerry and give owners an easy way of deciding whether or not to reply without having to take the phone out of a pocket.
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10/17, 12:30am
ITC finds Nokia not violating 3G patents
The US International Trade Commission (ITC) tonight exonerated Nokia by ending an investigation into claims by InterDigital that Nokia had violated its patents. The government agency has confirmed an initial decision by an Administrative Law Judge that said Nokia's use of UMTS-based 3G doesn't violate four InterDigital technology patents. Additionally, the ITC has rejected the portion of the judge's ruling that had originally found the patents valid and has denied InterDigital a chance to claim further patent violations.
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10/15, 8:00am
Storm2 brings Wi-Fi, new touchscreen
RIM today at last released the BlackBerry Storm2, its second touchscreen phone. The new model has a sleeker design that centers on a much-improved 480x360 touchscreen; rather than slow down users by actually moving the screen inwards, it uses a piezoelectric system that replicates physical feedback but still allows two-finger input. It's also the first Storm to have Wi-Fi and is much faster through carrying twice as much memory as the original.
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10/14, 11:50am
Verizon chief already shows BBerry Storm 2
Verizon Wireless chief Lowell McAdam today partly spoiled his own company's launch plans for the BlackBerry Storm 2 by confirming it in an interview about it ahead of its formal release. The executive says he has already shown the smartphone to shoppers at one of the carrier's stores and claims they were impressed by the sequel, whose central boost is a piezoelectric touchscreen that provides simulated physical feedback for button presses.
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10/12, 3:10pm
Storm 2 at Vodafone first, then Verizon
The BlackBerry Storm 2 should finally appear this week and represent RIM's best hope for challenging the iPhone, leaks claim today. British newspaper The Guardian states as a matter of fact that the touchscreen BlackBerry is due to launch this week first through Vodafone as the 9520 and that it will be priced with a plan inexpensive enough to lure iPhone users, as it will only need a £30 ($47) monthly plan to use versus £34 ($54) for Apple's handsets.
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10/09, 8:30am
Leak has BBerry 9700 shipping in a month
The BlackBerry Bold 2 (known as the 9700) could ship for T-Mobile three weeks after it's unveiled, based on a new rumor. So far pegged for an October 21st unveiling alongside the AT&T model, the smartphone is described by a BGR tipster as actually shipping the device on November 11th, or exactly three weeks after it becomes public. It's still unknown whether or not the AT&T version will ship at the same time.
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10/08, 11:00am
JD Power says iPhone tops, hurts normal phones
The iPhone today claimed an even larger edge in satisfaction versus its rivals in JD Power's second phone satisfaction study of 2009. Apple's smartphone climbed ten points from an earlier score to 811 out of 1,000 while its closest rival, LG, managed just a four-point increase to 776. The two were the only smartphone designers to score above the industry average.
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10/05, 3:10pm
BlackBerry Dakota and Essex get early info
Two of RIM's more important future QWERTY BlackBerries have been spoiled today through a pair of slips of details as well as photos. Formerly known as the Magnum, the Dakota should be RIM's first smartphone to have a touchscreen in a conventional shape, like Palm's devices. Salomondrin adds that its camera may be unique in the industry as a whole: it would use a "liquid lens" system that changes the shape of the lens itself to refocus without needing a thick and at times unnatural mechanical focusing system.
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10/05, 7:55am
Adobe unveils Flash 10.1 without iPhone
Adobe at its MAX show launched Flash 10.1, a major update to its plugin that promises video on devices that normally haven't been capable. The release adds hardware graphics acceleration on computers and should make HD Flash video possible on netbooks and ultraportables and standard definition possible on smartphones. NVIDIA already promises that its GeForce, Ion and Tegra chipsets will speed up the Flash update when available.
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10/02, 6:00pm
BlackBerry 9700 and 8530 due soon for Bell
Two new BlackBerries have surfaced in Bell's system that not only hint at smartphone revisions but that the Canadian carrier will use one of them for its early HSPA network launch. Multiple shots from Bell's model number list tell BGR that the Bold 9700 will come specifically as an HSPA device where most others show only as 1X, or CDMA/EVDO devices. The 9700 is known to be a sequel to the original Bold 9000 with an optical trackpad, a smaller design and a larger 480x360 display.
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09/27, 10:15pm
BlackBerry 9900 resurfaces in rumor
Rumors of Research in Motion's BlackBerry 9900 were revived on Sunday with an apparent slip of information. Now allegedly nicknamed "Mr. T," the smartphone would still have a "full-size" slide-out keyboard that sits underneath a full touchscreen, much like HTC's Touch Pro2. Some buttons would be moved onscreen to save space.
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09/25, 1:45pm
RIM stock drops 19 percent
Research in Motion's stock fell a sharp 19 percent on Friday in a reaction to the company's mixed performance in its latest quarter. Investors were upset with both the steep quarter-to-quarter drop in net profit as well as a relatively conservative outlook that saw its own estimates only slightly above what it managed during the summer. Analysts had been expecting much higher numbers with the usual fall sales spike and new BlackBerries known to be in the pipeline.
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09/24, 5:00pm
RIM posts high summer 2009 results
Research in Motion this afternoon claimed breakthrough results for its summer fiscal quarter. The company said it shipped about 8.3 million BlackBerries between June and August, beating its previous record of 7.8 million. Just under half, or 3.8 million, involved new BlackBerry accounts and therefore likely to be new BlackBerry users. About 32 million BlackBerry accounts are active.
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09/23, 6:25pm
Software to be released in the near future
Research In Motion has disclosed additional details of its upcoming BlackBerry desktop software for Mac. The application will allow users to sync their smartphone to a single computer or multiple systems. Syncing to one system is said to be much quicker, although distributing the content to multiple computers is a safer method.
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09/23, 8:00am
Korea rules now permit iPhone sales
South Korea's Communications Commission on Wednesday cleared a path for Apple to legally sell the iPhone in the country. The organization said (subscription required) that it would waive a normal rule that requires domestic location software and instead let individual carriers obtain permission for Apple on its behalf. The iPhone's operating system code base and policies on third-party software would previously have prevented the device from arriving in Korea as-is.
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09/18, 1:50pm
Carriers say Tour trackball fine
Sprint and Verizon together have denied claims that problems with the BlackBerry Tour's trackball are resulting in extraordinarily high return rates. Both now admit that the trackball has been an issue but said that only a "small" number of early Tours were affected by the problem. Verizon indicated also that its return rate for the Tour has actually been lower than average and that it remains as committed to selling the newer BlackBerry Tour as before.
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09/17, 5:00pm
Palm summer quarter 2009 results
Palm today reported a turnaround in its results for its just-ended summer quarter. Compared to the spring, the company's smartphone shipments surged 134 percent and topped 823,000 devices, nearly all of which were successfully sold. The number is a 30 percent drop from summer a year earlier but is believed to have stemmed much of the rapid decline in the company's influence.
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09/13, 10:15pm
Deutsche Telekom mulling Sprint takeover
T-Mobile's root company Deutsche Telekom is more seriously considering buying Sprint in what could be a major shakeup of the US cellphone industry, according to sources. The two have been rumored in talks for such a deal for over a year, but tips to the Telegraph now have the German firm bringing in financial advisers from Deutsche Bank to evaluate the possibility of making a bid for the ailing but still larger American provider. An offer could be made as soon as within a few weeks, the insiders said, though the likely terms of the deal haven't been mentioned.
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09/10, 12:35pm
iPhone users download more apps
iPhone owners are much more likely to download apps and get involved with social networking than their BlackBerry-owning counterparts, Compete revealed today in a new study. About 72 percent of Apple smartphone users are likely to have downloaded at least 10 third-party apps, but 73 percent of BlackBerry users have picked up five apps or less. The researchers add that iPhone owners are more willing to buy their apps than BlackBerry owners.
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09/02, 10:10am
HTC Touch2
HTC used the start of IFA in Berlin to introduce a new range-topping smartphone. Previously codenamed the Mega, the Touch2 is the first phone set to ship with Windows Mobile 6.5 and gets the Microsoft platform's more touch-friendly interface as well as the more accurate Internet Explorer Mobile instead of Opera from earlier models. The latest version of HTC's own TouchFLO nonetheless sits on top and provides surface access to calendars, contacts, media and the web without having to navigate through the deeper interface.
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08/31, 11:50am
Samsung App Store
Samsung on Monday chased after the market by providing details of the Samsung Application Store, its own mobile software service. The portal will have its own native client and will have unspecified "content guidelines" to filter which apps reach the store. Just 300 apps will be available on launch and will focus primarily on games from Capcom, EA, Gameloft and others, although Samsung will have apps from Handmark.
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08/24, 10:40am
RIM Buys Torch for Browser
Software developer Torch Mobile on Monday hinted at Research in Motion's (RIM) future plans for the BlackBerry by confirming that it has been bought out by the Canadian smartphone maker. While the terms of the deal aren't known, Torch explicitly says it expects to bring its experience with developing WebKit-based browsers like Iris to BlackBerry devices. It will similarly continue to develop WebKit as part of its open-source nature.
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08/20, 5:30pm
MS Avoiding 99 Cent Apps
Microsoft at its first WinMoDevCamp in Seattle made clear it wants a different philosophy towards mobile app pricing than Apple. The Windows Mobile developer's Loke Uei urged those third parties writing apps for the soon-to-launch Windows Marketplace for Mobile to charge significantly more than 99 cents per download when possible and noted that Microsoft would look at revenue, not popularity, to gauge the winner of a developer contest. Letting prices slip to the 99-cent mark devalues apps that are "worth more than that," Uei said, adding a belief that a developer could sell half as many apps but, at $10 per copy, make much more money.
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08/20, 2:40pm
NPD Smartphone Split
Smartphones now represent more than a quarter of all cellphones sold in the US, the NPD Group has revealed in findings on Wednesday. Shipments of the devices jumped by almost half, or 47 percent, year over year in to where they represented 28 percent of all phones in the country this spring. The shift helped push the average price of a phone up $4 to $87.
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08/19, 2:30pm
BBerry Gets Flash in 2010
A rumor from a purportedly certain source suggests RIM will have full, near desktop-grade Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight on the BlackBerry's web browser next year. Full details aren't given, but BGR understands that the update is primarily waiting on hardware. As either web plug-in demands both a strong processor and a fast Internet connection, RIM is said to only be launching the more advanced browser in summer 2010, when its phones will be faster and should have faster 3G and potentially 4G connections.
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08/18, 5:20pm
RIM Fastest Growing Firm
Research in Motion triggered a surprise in business today when it topped the list of the 100 fastest-growing companies on Earth. The originator of the BlackBerry outpaced others based both on its sheer revenue, which topped $11 billion in the past 12 months, as well as the balance of its growth: revenue grew 77 percent in the past three years, and its earnings per share grew 84 percent. Fortune credits the lead to RIM's push into home smartphone users, who helped the BlackBerry Curve outsell the iPhone this spring.
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08/18, 12:15pm
RBC on AAPL PALM RIM
Three American firms are ultimately going to take control of the smartphone business, RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky said today in a research note. He believes that Apple, BlackBerry maker Research in Motion and eventually Palm are all "positioned for leadership" and should command the smartphone market when it reaches 35 percent of all phones, or over 500 million smartphones, by 2012. They represent the few companies that properly integrate the hardware and software from top to bottom, according to the analyst.
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08/14, 11:50am
iPhone 3GS vs Pre Happines
Those who bought an iPhone 3GS are much more likely to be very happy than those who bought the Palm Pre, a study by ChangeWave and RBC Capital Markets shows. At 99 percent, nearly all Apple smartphone buyers are satisfied on at least a basic level with what they bought. Of those, an extremely high 82 percent are "very" satisfied. By comparison, 87 percent of all Pre buyers are satisfied, but only 45 percent of those are very satisfied.
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08/14, 10:20am
Verizon BBerry BOGO Again
Verizon has launched a second and more ambitious Buy One Get One promo to help move BlackBerries in what's likely a sign of a new wave of devices, a tip today reveals. Now called BOGA (possibly Buy One Get Anything), the BGR-discovered deal will let anyone buying a BlackBerry get a free device that would normally cost as much or less; unlike the older promo, this can include not only BlackBerries but non-rival devices like 3G modems or subsidized netbooks. It's unclear if this is already active, but the discounts would end October 10th.
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08/11, 5:30pm
MS Nokia Office Tomorrow
Microsoft this evening said it and Nokia together would hold a conference call late tomorrow morning to unveil an "alliance" between the two firms. The two aren't specific about details. As the call will be led by Microsoft Business president Stephen Elop as well as Nokia's executive devices VP Kai Öistämö, however, it's the news may involve the addition of Office apps to Nokia's smartphones, especially its Eseries business models.
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08/05, 8:55am
IDC Spring US Sphone Sales
Despite a major phone launch, Apple's iPhone lineup was just edged out by Research in Motion's BlackBerry devices in US sales during the spring, according to IDC. Despite a high profile launch, the iPhone 3GS came in second while the BlackBerry Curve series took the lead. Of the top five, three were BlackBerries and included the original Pearl in third place as well as the AT&T-only Bold in fifth place. Apple's iPhone 3G came in fourth.
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07/31, 12:00pm
IDC Phones in Q2 2009
Three of the top five cellphone manufacturers have faced severe drops in their market share in spring while Apple and other newer participants are on the rise, according to a final estimate by IDC. Confirming some predictions by the companies themselves, the study finds that Nokia, Motorola and Sony Ericsson all lost double-digit percentages of their share from a year ago. Motorola and Sony Ericsson lost the most, falling 47 percent and 43.4 percent in the number of phones shipped to account for just 5.5 percent and 5.1 percent of the market each.
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07/27, 7:50am
BlackBerry Curve 8520
RIM today formally launched the long-in-development BlackBerry Curve 8520, its first more consciously low-end QWERTY smartphone. The device trims costs compared to the 8900 by using a lower-resolution 320x240 screen and a 2-megapixel camera but also marks a number of firsts in control for BlackBerries: it abandons the trackball for an optical trackpad which is ostensibly both smoother to use but also more durable. It also has dedicated media keys at the top to pause or skip tracks without having to look at the screen.
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07/26, 4:55pm
BlackBerry Tour Review
While those on GSM carriers have had not one but two significantly new keyboard-equipped BlackBerries -- the Bold and Curve 8900 -- those on CDMA carriers like Bell, Sprint, Telus or Verizon have been forced to either try the touchscreen BlackBerry Storm or go with warmed over versions of older phones. As such, there's a mountain of pent-up demand, and the BlackBerry Tour appears poised to address this in style: it appears to have the best features of the GSM phones rolled into a single device. But is it actually the best of all worlds, or a signal that RIM needs to move on? We hope to answer this question with our complete BlackBerry Tour review.
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07/24, 2:55pm
ABI on Phone Share
The world cellphone market is shifting in a way that could permanently change the market in the next year, according to ABI Research. In spite of Research in Motion's strong fiscal quarter, estimates now suggest that its market share for spring has suffered from "contractions" along with companies that have been losing share for months, such as Motorola and Sony Ericsson. By comparison, Apple's 5.2 million iPhones have contributed to the company "making headway" with 1.93 percent share along with relatively small smartphone producers like HTC.
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07/23, 10:30am
AdMob June 2009
Apple has successfully sold over 25 million devices running some form of iPhone OS since it started selling them two years ago, new AdMob data shows. The advertisers and researchers estimate that, of the 45 million iPhone OS devices shipped worldwide since June 2007, about 13 million were American iPhones while 12 million were iPod touch units have been sold in the country. Although the mix skews towards the iPhone, the difference was helped by the three-month lead for that device first entering stores.
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07/22, 12:25pm
BBerry Storm 2 Video
RIM's BlackBerry Storm sequel, the 9550, won't be a conspicuous overhaul of the original but should improve on the many flaws of the original, a test of a prototype shows. In spite of some rumors, CrackBerry finds the new touchscreen BlackBerry should still have the click-down screen but has a much improved response compared to today's Storm, whose screen has often been criticized for slowing down input rather than providing the physical feedback. Build quality is deemed "much nicer" than the present phone and shows fewer gaps or other breakable parts.
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07/20, 11:55pm
Nortel blocking RIM bids?
Research In Motion on Monday publicly accused Nortel of effectively blocking acquisition bids through technicalities placed on the terms. Nortel is in the process of offloading a number of its product divisions following financial troubles, while RIM is allegedly willing to pay approximately $1.1 billion for the CDMA and Long Term Evolution Access businesses, along with "certain other Nortel assets."
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07/20, 2:35pm
Japan Looks to iPhone
The Japanese are turning to Apple's iPhone as a source of ideas for how to rescue their ailing cellphone business, the head of a local think tank said today. Professor Takeshi Natsuno of Keio University told the New York Times that companies like Hitachi, NEC and Sharp have generally been unable to sell phones outside of Japan due to difficult, often highly customized interfaces and that the iPhone is a key example of how to solve the problem. Its emphasis on ease of use over hardware is believed to have made it more palatable worldwide and encouraged third-party app development that isn't usually present in Japan.
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07/20, 11:40am
Nokia C X and Booklet
Nokia is registering a number of trademarks that suggest a major effort to expand and relabel its phone lineup, as well as to introduce new types of devices. The company has filed for trademarks on the names Cseries and Xseries that imply two new phone lines. At present, its phones are divided into the Nseries media and Eseries work smartphones as well as its four-digit numerical devices like the 5800 XpressMusic.
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07/16, 8:25am
Nokia Q2 2009 Results
Nokia today reported a severe blow from the world economic collapse both in market share and in its financial health. The company shipped 15.2 percent less phones in its spring quarter than it did a year ago, down to 103.2 million. The amount is a 10.7 percent jump compared to the winter, at the height of the crisis, but was still enough for Nokia's market share to remain almost flat compared to the winter and to have dropped from 40 to 38 percent from year to year, according to its estimates.
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07/10, 3:10pm
Palm Pre Still Sells Well
Pacific Crest analyst James Faucette today said that Palm Pre sales are still healthy over a month after the phone launched. Referring to his own checks, he estimates that about 40,000 of the multi-touch phones are now shipping each week and that the numbers could hold through at least August. He also expects that sales could improve if Palm can improve its shipments to Best Buy and Radio Shack, which have had short supply ever since launch.
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07/10, 11:20am
BBerry Onyx Trackpad Photo
An image has surfaced today that appears to confirm plans to give the BlackBerry Onyx its recently rumored optical trackpad. The photo (pictured), which also shows the Curve 8520 on the right, supports notions that RIM is phasing out trackballs not just on entry-level phones like the 8520 but also high-end upgrades and likely all non-touch phones. Leaks have supported beliefs that the Onyx will replace the Bold for AT&T and other GSM carriers.
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