Bell today confirmed that its promised HSPA+ 3G network will become available on November 4th. Supporting recent leaks, the 21Mbps network will launch just a day ahead of its Telus equivalent and should come with multiple phones and modems ready on the same day. Roaming deals will also be in effect immediately and should let Bell users roam on AT&T in the US as well as in most other countries.
Anonymous sources have leaked the iPhone plans of Canadian carriers Bell and Telus, a report claims. Bell is said to be launching on November 4th with three individual plans, beginning with one costing $55 per month. It includes 300 regular voice minutes, and free calling to local Fab 5 numbers as well as on evenings and weekends after 9PM. The plan also includes 1GB of data with tethering support, and unlimited Wi-Fi at Starbucks Coffee.
OmniVision may have given signs of a large jump in iPhone 3GS production today through a leak of its production demands. Best known for making the 3.2-megapixel camera inside the Apple handset, the mini-camera designer is warning its other customers that supply will be tight until at least late November as Apple is consuming much of its stock. Other sources for DigiTimes add that iPhone 3GS orders for the holidays may have increased by as much as 17 to 20 percent.
Telus on Monday revealed that both its HSPA+ network and its iPhone launch will kick off on November 5th and has provided device pricing for its version of the Apple handset. Its pricing will match the Rogers version and see 16GB and 32GB iPhone 3GS units cost $200 and $300 respectively on three-year contracts. Contract-free versions will sell for $700 and $800. The 8GB iPhone 3G will sell for $100 on contract or $600 contract-free.
An FCC filing discovered late Friday has confirmed that the Motorola Droid won't be limited only to a CDMA version. The US agency's tests show it running WCDMA, the foundation for HSPA-based 3G access, on the 850MHz and 1,900MHz bands that are used both by AT&T in the US as well as Bell, Rogers and Telus in Canada. Many Latin American carriers also use the standards.
The iPhone for Bell should arrive near the very start of November and will have very familiar device and plan pricing, according to Electronista sources. People familiar with the plans say the iPhone 3GS and 3G are both due to arrive on November 4th, which should also mark the formal start of the Canadian provider's HSPA-based 3G network. The news is corroborated by earlier word of Telus training ending at the same time and suggests Bell and Telus will have their networks and iPhone sales ready at the same time.
Telus' imminent HSPA 3G network has received what should be a more definitive launch date as well as its initial phone lineup. Multiple reports from insiders in HowardForums have staffers training to be ready on or before November 3rd for the new network. The preparation window would have the HSPA deploy at its earliest opportunity and may give a specific timeframe for the announced November iPhone launch on the Canadian network.
Novatel chose CTIA to launch its fastest Ovation USB modem so far. The MC998D (not yet shown) supports the current HSPA+ spec for 3G and will connect at up to 21Mbps downstream (5.76Mbps upstream) on supporting networks. It's also explicitly designed for North America's 850MHz and 1,900MHz HSPA frequiencies and will support the HSPA+ networks of Bell, Rogers and Telus in Canada as well as 7.2Mbps HSPA on AT&T in the US. The 2,100MHz band also gives it some support in Europe.
Canadian carriers Bell and Telus have announced separate deals with Apple, ones which will let them both carry the iPhone 3G and 3GS beginning in November. The companies have published no details of their agreements, such as phone prices, subscription plans or specific release dates. The two will however have to compete with Rogers, which until now has held exclusive rights to the Canadian iPhone.
Bell today confirmed its early HSPA launch and said it will launch the new network in November, about three months ahead of its self-imposed deadline of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. The network will also launch faster than expected and start off with HSPA+, which like the recent Rogers upgrade will give it a peak speed of 21Mbps downstream and about 5.76Mbps for uploads.
More than 15 phone manufacturers will release over 30 new smartphones running on Microsoft's upcoming Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system before the end of 2009, the copmany's GCR Mobile Team Unit senior director Benjamin Tan said recently. Tan was speaking to a group of reports at the time, according to a Wednesday Digitimes report. Among the phone manufacturers slated to introduce models are HTC, Acer, Samsung, LG, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba and HP.
New images of what is said to be the LG Chocolate Touch for Verizon Wireless have surfaced recently. Although the new photos don't match up with older sightings of the device, the phone is nonetheless described as the successor to Verizon's existing Chocolate line. No new specs for the handset were revealed. There is also the possibility that the device in these images is not a Chocolate, but some other, as yet unnamed LG handset.
Microsoft today committed to a ship date for Windows Mobile 6.5, its last significant update to the current generation of its smartphone OS. The first devices to use the new platform should reach shops on October 6th. It's not said which evices will be the first, but HP, HTC, LG, Samsung and unusually Toshiba will be the first to have 6.5-equipped smartphones in North America. AT&T, Sprint and Verizon will be the first in the US, while Bell and Telus should do the same in Canada.
An anticipated BlackBerry Tour with Wi-Fi gained more support Monday with a leak of its name. Although no model number exists in the CrackBerry description, the Essex is likely to be a straightforward upgrade of the current smartphone with at most mild hardware updates. The current model melds elements of the Bold and Curve 8900 and is a world phone meant for CDMA networks but with GSM support for other areas.
According to a leaked planning agenda from Verizon Wireless, the carrier will get the BlackBerry 9550 smartphone -- otherwise expected to be called Storm 2 -- on September 29th, though only for corporate buyers. The document reveals the public will have access to the device on October 14th.
Bell Canada today officially became the second provider anywhere to ship Palm's first webOS smartphone, the Pre. The Canadian wireless provider began carrying the phone in its retail locations and online. Like the Pre offered by provider Sprint in the US, which launched in June, there is a Synergy feature that combines information from a user's multiple calendars, contact, e-mail accounts and messaging applications into one location. This includes Outlook contact, Google and Facebook accounts, which will also bring profile pictures from Facebook tie to a particular contact.
The BlackBerry Storm's unofficial but likely successor, the 9550, has been seen in a new set of photos that detail a major change in how RIM approaches the smartphone's touchscreen. The photos of the naked 9550 from Engadget reveal the piezoelectronic technology that gives the touchscreen tactile feedback, and users who press it will get a click they can feel in a particular area rather than just a sound or a generic click.
The sequel to the BlackBerry Storm smartphone, the 9550, is expected to be released at provider Telus on September 15th, according to an unofficial report on the Internet. Telus is also teasing in TV commercials and in movie theater previews with a September 15th date, but does not reveal what is due on that date. Verizon is rumored to get the new BlackBerry handset sometime in October.
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.
A leaked document from wireless provider Sprint reveals the release dates for a number of new handsets, including the HTC Touch Pro2 and the previously unknown Samsung Instinct S50. Other devices scheduled for a September 3rd launch include an orange LG Rumor2, as well as the entry-level Samsung M240 and M330. The Touch Pro2 will run on Sprint's CDMA network and sport Windows Mobile 6.1. Users interface via a 3.6-inch, 800x480 touchscreen and HTC's TouchFLO UI. There is otherwise a 3.2-megapixel camera, a GPS sensor and a Wi-Fi connection.
Bell on Thursday said it had signed its first-ever roaming deal with AT&T and may have dropped further clues of an early launch for its HSPA-based 3G network. The agreement will let the Canadian provider's customers use AT&T's network when traveling to the US and, reciprocally, will let Americans use Bell's upcoming network. AT&T has until now been limited to roaming deals with Rogers due to the absence of any other compatible networks in the country.
Telus this morning became only the second North American carrier to adopt the Motorola Rival on its network. The QWERTY slider is built for messaging with quick access to e-mail, Facebook and IM across Windows Live and Yahoo. It occupies the entry- to mid-range category among non-smartphones with a 2-megapixel camera, 3G data, a 3.5mm headphone jack and microSDHC support up to 8GB.
Bell this morning finally committed to a ship date and price for its version of the Palm Pre that make it only the second carrier in the world after Sprint to offer the smartphone. It should ship on August 27th and will sell for $200 when paired with a typical-for-Canada three-year contract that includes at least a 500MB per month data plan. The new carrier's version doesn't vary sharply from the reference version reviewed here but, as a result, should have full HTML web browsing, multi-network instant messaging and deep integration with Facebook and Google services, including Google Maps.
LG's Chocolate BL40 has shown up on the FCC website, revealing it will support the 850/1,900 HSDPA networks used by AT&T in the US. To date, the device is only deemed likely for Verizon's CDMA network and Telus' future HSDPA network in Canada. The Chocolate BL40 sports a 4-inch touchscreen with 800x345 resolution that can be split for multi-tasking.
LG tonight at last confirmed some details of the first-ever touchscreen phone in its Chocolate line. Now known to be the BL40, the device revolves around a one-off 4-inch, 16:9 aspect ratio display with an 800x345 resolution that makes it ideal for watching movies without cropping or losing interface elements. While narrower than some 800x480 phones, the ratio permits an unusual twin view option that can show two types of content simultaneously.
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.
An unofficial company document claims Canadian wireless provider Bell will be the exclusive provider of the Palm Pre handset in Canada for six months. Bell is also said to be the second provider anywhere to offer the handset, after Sprint added the Pre in June. While it's not clear when the six-month countdown begins, it is likely that Bell subsidiary Telus will be the second Canadian provider to get the device.
With the near launch of the HTC Touch Pro2 by Canadian wireless provider Telus, an earlier report of the handset manufacturer switching to 3.5mm audio jacks on its phones has been confirmed to be taking place early. The Canadian provider's version of the Touch Pro2 will be the first of a series of HTC phones making the switch, though Telus doesn't highlight this fact on its page for the handset. HTC ships the device with a 3.5mm headset with earbuds as well.
Telus on Monday announced plans to launch the HTC Touch Pro2 and Snap smartphones later this month in the Canadian market, while customers can purchase the BlackBerry Tour beginning this week. The Touch Pro2 should arrive in the United States around the same time, with T-Mobile expected to release the device on July 22nd.
Vodafone's research director Professor Michael Walker today told the Wireless 2.0 conference that 4G cellular data based on the Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard is not only better at keeping speeds in the real world but has the potential to replace wired Internet access. The official explained that the average download bandwidth in a recent field trial was about 15Mbps, or several times faster than good 3G access. While well short of the 100Mbps theoretical peak, he added that it was much improved over 3G behavior, where actual speeds have often been further away from the 3.6Mbps and higher often promised for those networks.
Telus could leap on the iPhone almost as soon as it has a network ready to support the device, a rumor floated today suggests. A historically reliable source of leaks on Howard Forums claims a Telus executive has said the carrier will pick up rights for the iPhone almost immediately after its HSPA-based network goes live in October and could support the handset. As Telus doesn't have a GSM network, the iPhone would have to use the new 3G service for both calling and data.
Ending a degree of speculation, Research in Motion on Tuesday launched the BlackBerry Tour 9630. The smartphone is the first modern QWERTY keyboard device for CDMA networks and inherits the overall design of the Curve 8900, including its larger 2.44-inch 480x360 screen, but the keys of the Bold. It's also the second 3G world roaming phone for these networks in recent months and has both CDMA and EVDO Revision A for North American carriers but GSM and EDGE for the Americas as well as HSPA for European 3G services.
Telus' planned HSPA 3G network could go live on a national scale earlier than hinted earlier, an additional tip indicated today. Besides supporting the claim that the Canadian provider's new network should have an informal launch in Vancouver on September 2nd, the BGR source now has HSPA ready for the "majority" of the population in October. Previous unofficial timetables would have had the technology active only by early 2010.
(Updated with screen cap) Telus' purported early HSPA launch has gained potential support through information supplied to Electronista as well as separate leaks. A Calgary reader has noticed that the carrier selection option on his iPhone now shows Telus as a choice in addition to the expected Fido or Rogers options. It's not possible to connect, though this is unlikely due to the handset's SIM card being tied to Rogers. A Telus SIM would be necessary and wouldn't be publicly available.
The conversion of Bell and Telus to HSPA networks is likely to have started earlier than expected based on sources. An engineer within Telus tells BGR that both Bell and Telus will informally launch their networks in the fall, with Telus' at a minimum being ready for September 2nd. The initial rollout will focus on southern British Columbia and is meant to have the network ready by the time the Vancouver Olympics begin in February 2010.
Telus at midday took a more aggressive step into mobile data by picking up the Sierra Wireless USB 598 as its 3G modem of choice. The stick gives Mac OS X and Windows computers access to the Canadian carrier's EVDO network and, like most newer modems, has its own internal memory that contains the drivers needed to install the adapter without turning to a CD. A microSDHC slot also gives it room for general data storage up to 32GB.
Bell on Wednesday became the first Canadian carrier to say it would offer the Palm Pre. The phone is identical to the American version and has the same 3.1-inch multi-touch display, 3-megapixel camera, 3G over EVDO Revision A, GPS and Wi-Fi as the model destined for Sprint. No mention has been made as to whether the phone will include any special apps or other unique features for the carrier.
Canadian carrier Rogers is likely to follow Bell and Telus in beginning to charge for incoming text messages outside of its normal plans. A tip sent to BGR says Rogers will start notifying customers today that, as of July 7th, it will charge 15 cents per incoming message for customers that aren't already signed up to a bundle that includes SMS. The changes don't affect Fido customers or incoming messages from Twitter, which were restored to the service today and are free until the end of the year.
The BlackBerry 9630 is likely to show up with a new name and slightly later than expected if a leak proves true. Originally codenamed the Niagra, the phone is now reported by BGR as poised to become the BlackBerry Tour and may be drawing its name from RIM's current sponsorship of the ongoing U2 tour. The same tip also points to an early summer release instead of the spring launch anticipated in the past.
Canada's Telus is now offering the Palm Treo Pro smartphone, the handset maker announced on Monday, and has also recently added the Samsung Omnia handset to its lineup. The Treo Pro is being touted as an ideal handset for business professionals, as the 320x320 pixel touchscreen-and-QWERTY handset runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, has integrated Wi-Fi and 3G data network support through EVDO. Its keyboard has dedicated shortcut keys to the e-mail client and calendar.
A roadmap presented late yesterday by Nokia senior technology marketing manager James Harper confirms that the phone maker plans to be one of the first phone manufacturers with shipping 4G devices using the Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. In pledging Nokia to using the technology, Harper confirmed to GigaOM and others in attendance that the company will launch 4G hardware starting in 2010 and also predicts that notebooks and other such devices will also get support for the faster cellular data, which is topping 60Mbps in real-world tests.
(Updated with Rogers comment) Canadian provider Rogers is not only set to add 4G cellular service to its network but may make it the primary option for Internet access on its network, the company has reportedly said during a call. The company is said to have revealed that its Long Term Evolution (LTE) 4G network is ultimately ahead of schedule and that its first commercial service will be live with a Vancouver network ready by February 2010, or roughly the same timeframe as similar plans from rivals Bell and Telus as well as Verizon in the US. Much of the second-wave rollout would take place next spring, when the first cellphones using LTE should be ready. The initial Vancouver launch would include just a USB modem.
Samsung this morning said it would introduce its first Long Term Evolution (LTE) chipset for 4G phones at Mobile World Congress. The hardware is also suited to computer networking adapters and will let supporting devices connect at LTE's full speeds, which reach 100Mbps or higher in peak conditions. The bandwidth is enough that Samsung will show a video on demand service and VoIP calling running from a prototype at next week's event.
Verizon has quietly begun shipping its latest BlackBerry handset, the Pearl Flip 8230 that works on the CDMA and EVDO networks, according to a Crackberry member. The 8220 variant is currently available on the market, but configured to work exclusively on GSM networks. Other rumors suggested the 8230 would launch first from Canadian provider Telus sometime this month, at a "very reasonable" price and with the same color options as the 8220.
Motorola today said it has started up one of the first Long Term Evolution (LTE) phone networks in the UK with a trial setup in Swindon. The test network runs on the 2.6GHz frequency and is capable of providing voice while providing live high-speed data at 4G speeds. Motorola estimates between 29Mbps and 226Mbps for downloads depending on the amount of bandwidth available and the number of antennas the device can use.
Despite arriving months later, Research in Motion's BlackBerry Storm is ultimately more expensive to make than its competitor from Apple, iSuppli says in a breakdown of the component costs of the two phones given to Business Week. The research group estimates that the Storm's pure manufacturing costs come to slightly less than $203, or more than the $200 asking price for the phone online. By contrast, the iPhone 3G cost $174 as of July, less than its official $200 price.
RIM's BlackBerry Pearl Flip could be available in a version for CDMA networks as early as next month. Alleged sources of BlackBerrySync today claim the previously GSM-only clamshell will be launched on CDMA as the Pearl Flip 8230 and would debut first on Canadian provider Telus as early as February with a "very reasonable" price as well as the same black and pink colors as the phone only available through Rogers in Canada and T-Mobile in the US.
Infineon yesterday quietly introduced a new transceiver chip that may dictate the future of the iPhone and other handsets. The SMARTi LU is touted as the first single-chip radio to include the new Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard for 4G Internet access and does so through a smaller, 65 nanometer assembly process that keeps the design small. It also includes the advanced HSPA+ standard for 3G as well as legacy support for 2G-era EDGE data and GSM calling.
Telus is finally receiving large quantities of its own version of the BlackBerry Storm, a tip to BGR indicates. The Canadian provider has reportedly received a "rather large" volume of the touchscreen smartphone which is said enough to stock the company's stores on a national level. Exact numbers aren't given but may be higher than the initial batch, which may have involved just 2,500 units for all of Canada.
Telus has released the rugged Motorola V750 flip phone that rated to meet US Military specification 810F, allowing it to withstand temperature extremes, liquid spills, salt, sand, dust, vibration and drops, among other abuse users will throw at it. Apart from its toughness, the V750 sports a 2-megapixel camera capable of capturing video as well as still images and 8GB of built-in memory for users' photos, music and videos.
