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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11/06, 9:40am
Rogers may be first NA carrier with Touch2
Canadian carrier Rogers could be the first in North America to pick up a version of the HTC Touch2, according to sources familiar with its plans. The Windows Mobile 6.5 phone is reportedly coming onboard in one or more colors that aren't normally picked for the phone; blue and red are both being considered as choices. While not confirmed at this stage, it's also implied that the phone will have North America-native 3G where the stock version goes without.
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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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11/04, 3:05pm
Microsoft cuts go beyond planned 5K
Microsoft today confirmed late rumors and said it has cut 800 additional jobs. The positions are spread across many of the company's divisions and are above and beyond the 5,000 cuts planned at the start of the year. No direct explanation is given other than that the company says it still has to "manage [its] businesses closely" and watch for where it can trim costs.
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11/04, 9:55am
HTC HD2 likely for T-Mobile USA
HTC today began shipping the HD2 to Europe and Taiwan but also confirmed plans to bring the phone to the US. The Windows Mobile 6.5 handset is due to ship to America through a "major carrier" in early 2010. While unnamed by HTC, it's expected the phone will be available through T-Mobile USA and will support the provider's 1,700MHz 3G network.
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11/04, 7:55am
Bell iPhone plans cost just $45 a month
Bell today launched its HSPA+ network and its first devices, including the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G. The network supports up to 21Mbps downstream on the Novatel Wireless U998 ($75) and future modems that support HSPA+ and should also supply as much as 7.2Mbps for the iPhone 3GS and other current smartphones.
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11/03, 11:30am
Meizu M8 beta leak shows new UI
Meizu's M8 phone is about to undergo a major overhaul that draws on interface elements from at least three major operating systems, a copy of leaked firmware shows. Version 1.0.0.1 will shift its attention more towards Android with an app launcher much like Google's. However, that launcher will also be available directly from the drag-to-unlock screen and like Windows Mobile 6.5 will let users unlock directly to the phone or e-mail apps instead of visiting a home screen. Android's influence is equally evident in a contextual menu showing in the M8's web browser.
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11/02, 4:10pm
WM 6.5 HD2 with multi-touch screen coming to T-Mo
T-Mobile UK has put up a product page for the HTC Touch HD2 handset, revealing it will be out sometime this month. The device is the first Windows Mobile (6.5) smartphone to use a capacitive multi-input touchscreen. T-Mobile UK site visitors get the option to register and receive updates regarding the device.
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10/30, 12:10pm
HSPA Samsung Omnia II due at Bell
Bell on Friday said it will soon add the Samsung Omnia II to its lineup in time for the 2010 Winter Olympics. The announcement is significant as the first HSPA version of the handset for North America and for its use of Bell's upcoming HSPA network, scheduled for a November 5th launch. Reflecting Samsung's sponsorship of the event, Bell Omnia II owners will have access to a free Olympics app to keep track of events and a decal for the phone back.
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10/30, 9:55am
Sprint talks about future smartphones, changes
A Sprint executive revealed the carrier's plans to release software updates for its smartphones and other news via a web chat on Thursday. David Owens revealed the Android-powered HTC Hero and Samsung Moment will get an update to the OS, though hasn't specified whether it will be version 1.6 or 2.0. Android phones are expected to also go down in price thanks to higher volumes, and Sprint is considering adding an Android handset with an integrated MiFi-style router.
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10/29, 2:40pm
HTC chief says HD2 Win Mobile only for now
HTC chief Peter Chou in an interview late yesterday dashed hopes of an HD2 with Android by positioning it as a Windows Mobile phone. Following rumors that have included photos, Chou tells Forbes that the very aim of the HD2 is to "take care" of Windows Mobile and restore the tarnished Microsoft brand. He admits to Forbes that the platform, which still makes up the bulk of HTC's phones, has proven a problem in recent months.
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10/29, 9:10am
Motorola set to recover following Q3
Motorola landed a crucial victory today with word of a profit for its summer quarter. The company bounced back from its year-ago $397 million loss to a $12 million profit for the same season this year. Its actual cellphones shipped fell sharply from 25.4 million phones to just 13.6 million but were offset by help from cost cuts as well as boosts in sales for its networking equipment and enterprise-class hardware.
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10/26, 10:20am
HTC You campaign inverts iPhone tactic
HTC today began its first ever large-scale marketing campaign aimed at boosting its market share. The "You" promos will include TV ads (viewable below), billboards and other spots and is ultimately expected to reach 95 percent of US cellphone users as many as 36 times before the end of the year. The 10 largest markets, including Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York City and Seattle, will receive particularly heavy advertising.
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10/23, 5:50pm
Moto Droid previewed well
Although not due to be unveiled until next week, Motorola's Droid stands to be Verizon's best phone to date, a preview finds. The first look at BGR characterizes it as one of the best Android devices to date, with high build quality, a fast processor with PowerVR graphics, good call quality and a long-lasting battery that can run for an entire day. Android 2.0 is also significantly more polished and brings a much improved browser and e-mail.
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10/23, 9:20am
Microsoft faces third quarterly decline
Microsoft today reported its third consecutive decline in quarterly revenue. The company's total revenue during the summer dropped a sharp 14 percent year-over-year to $12.92 billion and is attributed almost exclusively to the Windows division, whose own revenue fell 38.76 percent to $2.62 billion. It also saw a decline in the overall health of its Business and Online Services groups.
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10/22, 6:15pm
MS chief talks Win Mo 7, Sidekick, Courier
Microsoft chief Steve Ballmer today provided a handful of minor revelations for his company's strategy in an interview today. In his discussion with Engadget, the executive has now all but confirmed that Windows Mobile 7 will "come hard" with elements of the Zune interface; previously, the company had only made indirect allusions to the software appearing in a future update. Most anticipate the release moving the phone OS towards a more touch-friendly platform as well as to give it stronger media playback.
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10/21, 10:20am
HTC's main Android phone in tight supply
HTC's Android-based Hero is selling well enough that it's causing supply issues, the company's Asia Pacific VP Jack Tong revealed on Wednesday. Sales in the phone's initial Asia and European launch areas are described as "brisk" enough that demand has put a strain on HTC's production lines and won't see manufacturing catch up until November. The pace is expected to continue at least until early 2010.
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10/20, 7:20pm
Design appears closer to iPhone OS
An image has surfaced that allegedly shows comparative screenshots between Windows Mobile 6.5 and Windows Mobile 7 interfaces, including several attributes that appear to be more touch-oriented. The screenshots, posted by WMExperts, reportedly originated from an internal mockup used by Microsoft for design planning.
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10/20, 5:30pm
Win Mobile team jokes about App Store
The Windows Mobile development team today indirectly criticized Apple with a video (available below) promoting Windows Marketplace for Mobile. The spoof makes fun of Apple's tendency to reject certain iPhone apps and allow novelties, and instead portrays imaginary apps that Microsoft would have rejected, such as ones that would provide a fake mustache or that regularly shock the owner. Apple isn't mentioned directly in the roughly two-minute spot.
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10/20, 9:15am
Win Mobile update revamps controls
Although Microsoft has only just released Windows Mobile 6.5 on shipping phones, the company is already readying a noticeable fix to add many major touch elements to the platform, unofficial previews of interim builds show. A 6.5.1 update appearing in test versions has completely dropped the top-mounted Start menu and instead has one at the bottom with a button much easier to hit with a finger than before. Many of the other context-sensitive buttons, checkboxes and radio buttons have also been made larger.
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10/19, 4:35pm
Samsung Code comes to MetroPCS
Pre-paid wireless provider MetroPCS on Monday announced it has added the Samsung Code to its lineup. The handset is the carrier's first with the Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system. With the OS, users can access contacts, a calendar, tasks, notes, a voice recorder and Windows Live. The WizPro interface is optional and lets users customize home screens by making shortcuts to the most frequently accessed features.
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10/19, 8:20am
Microsoft ad shows store launch details
Microsoft has confirmed plans to open its first Microsoft store on Windows 7's launch for Thursday. The Arizona Republic ad promises the Scottsdale store will open at 10AM and is providing multiple incentives to spur early traffic: the first 1,000 visitors get gift bags and tickets to an Ashley Tisdale concert at 5PM. Every PC buyer on launch day gets a free HP printer and a copy of Office 2007 Home & Student.
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10/17, 2:50pm
Verizon ad campaign to attack Apple
Verizon today sent signals that it's about to launch an aggressive campaign against Apple through a combination of marketing and devices. A leaked note regarding an upcoming ad series, nicknamed "iDoesn't," specifically targets the "iDevice" and will allegedly focus on all the features the iPhone doesn't have. The details Engadget sees are vague regarding the ads themselves but do mention that Verizon will keep branding to a minimum.
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10/16, 4:35pm
Omnia II smartphone gets rumored release date
The Samsung Omnia II demonstrated at CTIA will apparently be released by Verizon on November 1st, according to PhoneArena. While this is a rumor thus far, the source is said to be a reliable one. The handset will sport a 3.7-inch AMOLED screen, along with a 5-megapixel camera that can record video at 720x480 pixels.
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10/16, 2:05pm
Dell sees mini 3i, other mobile platforms
Michael Dell today on Thursday said in a public talk on Thursday that the company plans to bring smartphones to the US. While unspecific on details, he claims that any devices that show will be "family members" of the mini 3i from China. At least one will be based on Android, but he stresses that other open platforms are candidates.
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10/16, 8:55am
Sony Ericsson Q3 still negative
Sony Ericsson today reported largely poor results for its summer quarter. The cellphone maker shipped 14.1 million phones during the three-month span; the number is an increase from 13.8 million in the spring but a sharp 45.1 percent drop from summer a year earlier. It successfully reduced the rate at which it has bled money down to a $244.7 million loss versus $317.8 million in spring but also saw some of its lowest revenue in recent memory, dropping slightly season-to-season to $2.4 billion but still far from nearly $4.2 billion a year earlier.
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10/15, 5:55pm
Satsports outs smartphone apps, GPS device
Satsports has announced it has released its Multi-sports GPS system in North America, which allows skiers and other high-impact athletes to get navigation data. Users interface via a 2.7-inch full color touchscreen, and it can playback photos, videos and MP3s stored on microSD cards. Along with the device, the company also released Windows Mobile and Android OS applications that bring the functionality of the device to existing smartphone owners.
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10/14, 10:20pm
Developer has yet to receive response from Apple
HTC's upcoming HD2 smartphone has been spotted on T-Mobile internal documents, according to TmoNews. The recently announced handset, marking HTC's latest flagship, will ship with Windows Mobile 6.5 and a capacitive 800x480 touchscreen. Internally, the device sports a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 448MB of RAM, and 7.2Mb/s HSPA connectivity.
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10/14, 8:50am
Acer Liquid carries Android 1.6
Acer on Wednesday made a new claim to the fastest smartphone available with the Liquid. The company's first Android phone, it's one of the first to ship with Android 1.6 but is also the first Android phone to ship with a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. Using the 1GHz chip makes it faster than the 800MHz Samsung Moment and helps drive the 800x480 touchscreen as well as speed up 3D and Android's already accurate web browser.
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10/12, 11:25am
Four touchscreen phones hit Vodafone UK
Vodafone UK today added three touchscreen smartphones to its roster that in most cases represent world premieres. The Sony Ericsson Satio is now finally shipping after having been detailed in May and is the handset designer's first Symbian S60 smartphone; besides full third-party app support, it's considered a high-end media phone with a 12-megapixel camera, a 3.5-inch touchscreen, GPS and Wi-Fi. For Sony Ericsson, the phone is a symbolic first as one of its first major devices to use microSDHC cards instead of Memory Stick Micro for storage.
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10/09, 4:25pm
Sony Ericcson to bring smartphones back to the US
Sony Ericsson announced it will return to the North American market with cellphone sales at the CTIA show which wraps up today. Sony Ericsson's head of developer and partner content and services, William Maggs, said in a Friday Gearlog report that the company is planning on coming back to the US market with its smartphone sales, and the XPERIA X2 is likely to lead that return. The new-gen Windows Mobile handset is being shown off at CTIA.
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10/09, 2:20pm
O2 UK to carry HD2 in under two weeks
O2 UK has reportedly begun telling customers to expect the HTC HD2 in just over a week. The carrier expects the phone to be available on October 19th, or significantly ahead of HTC's official end-of-month target for the phone. Other carriers have yet to describe their own plans, though T-Mobile is also believed to be picking up the Windows Mobile 6.5 phone in the near future.
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10/09, 11:40am
Nokia ports Qt to Maemo 5, outs some Maemo 6 info
Nokia on Friday revealed early details of Maemo 6, its next-generation smartphone platform. The OS will be the first to natively support multi-touch and capacitive touchscreens and should finally put the Linux-based OS on par with modern platforms like iPhone or webOS. Until now, the software has depended on single-touch resistive (pressure-dependent) screens incapable of gestures or other more precise movements.
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10/09, 11:25am
Samsung's Armani touch runs Windows Mobile
Samsung on Friday revealed that its flagship Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone will be part of its Armani-themed fashion line. The device has a bronze-trimmed theme meant to appeal both to executives and other more style conscious users, but it's also one of the company's more functionally advanced devices. It centers on a 3.5-inch AMOLED display more vibrant than LCDs and has a sliding QWERTY design that, like the HTC Touch Pro2 or Nokia N97, tilts the screen at an angle for a more natural viewpoint when typing.
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10/09, 10:45am
MS Pink and Danger team at risk
Microsoft's Pink phone project may be on the verge of falling apart even before its first product ships, according to a controversial set of leaks supposedly confirmed today. Backing a scoop from earlier in the week, a source for AppleInsider says Microsoft has poorly managed the project and squandered the acquisition of Sidekick creator Danger from 2008. Rather than implement Danger's advice, the larger company has watched the majority of the team either fired or leave in frustration as the majority of their advice is ignored.
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10/08, 8:40pm
Handset offers a slightly different case finish
Samsung previewed several upcoming handsets at CTIA in San Diego, including the Omnia II headed for Verizon later this month. Although the company representatives cautioned that the software is not yet finalized, the demo devices ran Windows Mobile 6.1 paired with the custom TouchWiz interface.
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10/08, 5:30am
HTC's latest multimedia-focused smartphone
Electronista at CTIA had a chance to handle HTC's Imagio, the company's upcoming Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone. The device is focused on multimedia features, while retaining the business capabilities of Microsoft's mobile software. The system also integrates HTC's own TouchFLO 3D interface, which utilizes the touch-based features available in the latest Windows Mobile OS.
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10/07, 4:10pm
Toshiba smartphones show up in the flesh
Toshiba is showing off what appear to be nearly production-ready versions of its future touchscreen smartphones at the CEATEC show in Japan, according to a recent WMPowerUSer report. The company first talked about the devices earlier this year, but this is the first time production ready devices were spotted, suggesting they are nearing release, as promised.
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10/07, 3:25pm
HTC barely meets financial guidance
Smartphone maker HTC late Tuesday reported unexpectedly poor fiscal performance for its summer quarter. The company's profit dropped nearly 18 percent compared to a year ago and reached the equivalent of $179 million Its total revenue also fell more than 10 percent to about $1.06 billion and hit the exact minimum of HTC's already lowered guidance for the period.
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10/06, 10:45pm
Dell's smartphone may be upgraded for US
An apparent scoop suggests Dell has decided to bring its Mini 3i to the US after all, but not in its original form. A contact claims it's due in the "next few months" but that it will be an upgraded version of what was shown recently in China. Build quality should improve, but it would also upgrade from a 3-megapixel camera to a 5-megapixel model.
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10/06, 5:45pm
MS considers Mac Zune app an option
Microsoft today acknowledged that it has debated porting the Zune software and its according services to the Mac or even to portable Apple devices like the iPhone and iPod. Director of Communications for TV, Video and Music Jose Pinero explained to Mary Jo Foley that it's one of "a lot of options" for platform expansion but also stressed that the Zune platform isn't tied to players like the Zune HD or even necessarily to Microsoft. Its own platforms take highest priority but aren't exclusive.
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10/06, 12:35pm
Samsung Intrepid arrives at Sprint
Not to be left out of Windows Mobile 6.5 introductions, Sprint today launched the Samsung Intrepid as its own entry. The smartphone is a mixed-input model with both a 2.5-inch touchscreen and a fixed QWERTY keyboard that in theory give the phone the advantages of 6.5's more touch-friendly interface without giving up hardware controls. It's also a true world phone with quad-band GSM calling and basic GPRS data as an option beyond Sprint's usual CDMA and EVDO Revision A networks.
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10/06, 12:10pm
HTC HD2 launches with Win Mobile 6.5
HTC on Tuesday used the kick-off for Windows Mobile 6.5 to launch its widely publicized new flagship smartphone. The HD2 is the first Windows Mobile phone ever to have a capacitive, multi-touch screen and can respond much more quickly and accurately to finger input than the resistive screens most Microsoft-based phones are forced to use. It additionally supports pinching, flicks and other gestures in many apps, making it the first Windows Mobile phone to support iPhone-like commands.
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10/06, 10:30am
Verizon and Google in Android pact
Google and Verizon this morning struck a deal to bring Android phones to the cell carirer's network. The two say they will "co-develop" multiple phones designed by third-party hardware makers and expect to start launching Android-based phones within the next several weeks. They also plan to include both Google- and Verizon-made apps on the phones in question.
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10/06, 9:05am
Kempler outs Billionair 6 smartphone
Fleshing out its early phone lineup, Kempler & Strauss added a second but more advanced device to its mix. The Billionair 6 is a conventional touchscreen phone that runs on Windows Mobile (likely 6.1) but adds a custom interface nicknamed slidetouch that includes multiple home screens, top-level widgets, and carousels for large lists like the installed apps or contacts. An accelerometer auto-resizes the interface for most tasks when the phone is tilted on its side.
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10/05, 3:55pm
Best Buy intros miQ mobile web backup
Best Buy stepped out of its usual role as retailer today by launching mIQ. Its service is designed to save smartphone data and will backup contacts, photos, videos and other data to 1GB of online space that can be accessed through the web or through a native phone app. Social network also plays a part as the app merges Facebook, Flickr, FriendFeed and Twitter updating.
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10/05, 2:10pm
Windows Marketplace for Mobile launches
Microsoft today surprised Windows Mobile users with an early but low-profile launch for Windows Marketplace for Mobile. The app store is meant as the official gateway for apps on Windows Mobile 6.x devices, including 6.5 models like the HTC Pure. However, the portal so far only has 34 apps, 10 of which are games, and so far carries paid apps with average prices above those found in the iPhone's App Store.
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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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10/05, 12:00am
HTC Pure and Tilt 2 arrive at AT&T
AT&T's phone introductions on Monday have been headed up by its first smartphones to ship with Windows Mobile 6.5. The Pure is AT&T's more unique entry and has a 3.2-inch but very sharp 800x480 screen that takes advantage of the Microsoft platform's more touch-friendly interface, Windows Marketplace and a more accurate web browser with Flash. HTC's own TouchFLO 3D interface is similarly new for AT&T and puts contacts, media and other data at the top level. A 5-megapixel camera, 3G, GPS and Wi-Fi put it on par with HTC's Touch Diamond2 despite the smaller frame.
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10/02, 4:55pm
Acer changes names of WM smartphones
A leak indicates that Acer will rename its F1, C1, E1 and L1 smartphones when they reach production status, as these names were simply internal codenames. The F1 will now be called neoTouch, the C1 will be known as the beTouch E100, the E1 beTouch E101 and the L1 will be called beTouch E200. The neoTouch will have a 3.8-inch touchscreen with 800x480 resolution, carry a 1GHz Qualcomm CPU and run on Windows Mobile 6.5.
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