September 6 - 10:20am EDT   Microsoft is finally hoping to unify its Zune Marketplace and services with other devices, the company reveals in a recent job posting for a Software Development Engineer. The firm hopes to develop a new, "unified entertainment service" that would work on not just the company's music player and PCs but also on Windows Mobile devices and the Xbox console lineup as well. At present, Microsoft's storefronts are balkanized and don't allow Xbox Video Marketplace content to be transferred outside of the game system, while protected Zune Marketplace content refuses to play on the Xbox even when the player is directly connected. [full story]

September 5 - 4:45pm EDT   Earlier this week, Motorola's UK arm announced it would soon release the jewel-like styled MOTOJEWEL handset. The music phone will feture touch-sensitive keys on its outside control panel, which also displays basic phone information and animated screen savers. The specs are nothing to write home about, as the phone is largely meant to be a fashion accessory. Motorola even includes a small clutch purse with it meant to house the phone and a couple of accessories, ID and or credit cards. Stereo Bluetooth support allows wireless headsets to be used with the phone, and a 2.0-megapixel camera is built-in. [full story]

September 5 - 4:05pm EDT   Yet another FCC filing has brought news of a new cellular phone, this time from Samsung. According to the specs, the A837 will support HSDPA 3G data network access and will be outfitted for reliable use in the field thanks to its ruggedized body, large speaker and push-to-talk functionality. [full story]

September 5 - 2:10pm EDT   T-Mobile on Friday marked the official launch of the Sony Ericsson TM506. The clamshell is again significant both as T-Mobile USA's first phone to use its full HSDPA 3G network's boosted speed as well as the first Sony Ericsson phone to appear on the company's roster in years. It also serves as a mid-range media phone with a two-megapixel camera, assisted GPS and a Memory Stick Micro slot for storage. [full story]

September 5 - 10:25am EDT   LG's rumored Prada II touchscreen phone is likely headed to the US, according to a detailed leak from BGR. Where the original Prada was limited to European and some Asian territories, the sequel is now set to allegedly include both 850MHz GSM calling as well as 3G data over the same frequency using HSDPA, greenlighting the device for full use in the US with AT&T as well as Canada for Rogers. [full story]

September 5 - 9:00am EDT   Nokia today preemptively lowered its market share estimates for the summer quarter, warning that it expects to lose share compared to the spring. The company had previously predicted that its market share would remain largely flat but now claims that multiple concerns have forced it to change its view; the firm remains deliberately unspecific regarding which firms are taking that share but claims that its loss will come from its own "tactical decision" not to keep up with "aggressive pricing of some competitors," alluding to the heavily subsidized iPhone 3G launched during the same quarter. [full story]

September 4 - 4:20pm EDT   Technical problems could keep the BlackBerry Storm from a crucial ship date with Verizon, a tip delivered to BGR says. Although multiple past leaks had penned RIM's first touchscreen BlackBerry for an October launch, software problems have meant the device is only now entering the technical acceptance stage that approves phones for use on Verizon's network and should spend between three to four weeks in testing before it can be sold, pushing it into mid-November. [full story]

September 4 - 2:50pm EDT   Google's Chrome browser is likely to be ported over to the company's Android mobile phone platform, longtime company veteran Sergey Brin has said in an interview. Explaining the reason Android doesn't already come with the browser, Brin says Google was unwilling to "bind" the fate of the two software projects but that the near-final code now makes it safer to consider loading Android with at least some aspects of Chrome, which has a much faster JavaScript engine friendly to web apps. [full story]

September 4 - 2:15pm EDT   US cellular subscribers are finally catching up and even outpacing Europeans in their use of 3G devices, according to a new ComScore study. The research group explains the number of American cellphone owners with a 3G-capable device surged from just 16.7 percent in June 2007 to 28.4 percent a year later; the shift is both a 70 percent increase and enough to edge out Europe's average adoption, which also grew substantially but fell just short of the US at 28.3 percent. The US now has approximately 64.2 million customers with the faster service. [full story]

September 4 - 12:45pm EDT   New versions of Samsung's i900 Omnia smartphone are incoming, FCC filings appear to document. Two new Samsung phones, the i907 and i910, have been tested and approved by the FCC, revealing some of their features. The i910 may be the most significant of the two due to CDMA support, allowing use with carriers such as Sprint and Verizon. The i907 meanwhile supports dual-band WCDMA, which may mark it as the rumored AT&T edition. [full story]

September 4 - 12:00am EDT   Official details have slipped tonight for Sprint's version of the HTC Touch Diamond. The carrier's edition of the Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone varies slightly from the Telus edition already available outside of the US and comes with a red-tinted back as well as a customized Sprint version of the TouchFLO interface with access to some more carrier-specific features. Other features remain the same and include a 3.2-megapixel camera, 4GB of internal storage and custom clients for media playback as well as YouTube videos. Opera Mobile also remains preloaded to offer a more complete browsing experience than Internet Explorer's mobile edition. [full story]

September 3 - 3:55pm EDT   Dell isn't planning to again produce its own smartphones or similar handheld devices "in the near term," company chief Michael Dell said today at the Citi Technology Conference. The founder of the Texas PC maker shot down rumors of an upcoming return to the field and describes any possible move in the future as the eventual reality of the computing industry rather than a deliberate effort on the part of Dell to compete in the smartphone business. [full story]

September 3 - 12:20pm EDT   The current rate of growth for estimated iPhone sales may lead to its operating system being more popular than Symbian in as little as two years, according to projections based on both official and estimated data. Although Symbian reports 19.6 million cellphones from Nokia, Sony Ericsson and others having sold with its operating system installed during its last quarter, the figure represents a growth of just five percent versus the same time span a year ago and is much slower than estimated growth for Apple, which is thought to be manufacturing as many as 800,000 devices per week and may ship up to 10 million iPhone 3Gs between July and September, or more than half ... [full story]

September 3 - 10:25am EDT   Forum roundup: A recent topic of conversation in the MacNN forums has revolved around the differences between the iPhone and the Blackberry Bold when one forum member announced that they would rather purchase the latter over the former. One member finds help and advice from others when they report a Time Machine error. Google has announced the beta release of their new web browser, Chrome, and forum goers express their opinions here. A list of good websites to purchase Mac Pro memory from can be found in this thread in response to one members question. One Junior Member of the forums is looking for the best wireless printing solution to use with their Mac. [full story]

September 3 - 9:45am EDT   Verizon today quickly followed up on leaked data with a release on Monday of the Samsung Knack. The flip phone is there for users who want just a basic phone and makes its primary features those suited to inexperienced users or the elderly: the device has a built-in 911 button as well as an ICE (In Case of Emergency) button that provides a trio of essential contacts for just the user, such as a family member or a physician. [full story]