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iPhone 5 coming to Sprint in October according to WSJ
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Rumors,
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Sprint will be selling the iPhone 5 (alongside AT&T and Verizon) when it launches in "mid-October." In addition, they'll also sell the updated iPhone 4 model that Apple will be selling at a lower price (likely an 8 GB model.) This is great for Sprint and great for Apple, because if the report holds true, it'll give Sprint a much-needed shot in the arm to sell both the new iPhone model as well as the lower-cost iPhone 4. As for Apple, it gives them play on yet another American carrier, which means more marketshare. We'll be keeping our ears on this one, and will let you know what more we hear on this.
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| WSJ
Gallery: iPhone 5 coming to Sprint in October according to WSJ
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Video: iPhone 5 clone shows cool form factor, horrible UI
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Handhelds, Rumors, Videos,
Remember those images of the black iPhone 5 clone that we featured a couple of weeks ago? Well, now we've got some video footage taking a look at a white iPhone 5 clone. It's the same form factor as the black phone, and we're pretty sure that this is what the iPhone 5 is going to end up looking like when Apple finally takes the stage to introduce their next smartphone. However, we are still holding out hope for a larger display, and the software on these clones is pretty bad. What do you think?
Gallery: Video: iPhone 5 clone shows cool form factor, horrible UI
FCC filing shows Droid Bionic won’t be a global phone
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Handhelds, Rumors,
A draft of the Motorola Droid Bionic's user manual surfaced on the Federal Communications Commission's website, confirming most of the specs that were pulled from Motorola's website last week.
On paper at least, the dual-core smartphone built for Verizon's super-fast LTE network looks like a beast. The filing confirms that it will sport a 4.3-inch qHD display, a GHz TI OMAP 4430 dual-core processor with 1GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, a microSD card slot, an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, and a VGA front-facing camera. It'll have an HDMI 1.4 output for mirroring the phone's display on a larger screen and support wireless charging. Furthermore, the Bionic will run Android 2.3.4 "Gingerbread."
Click to continue reading FCC filing shows Droid Bionic won’t be a global phone
Gallery: FCC filing shows Droid Bionic won’t be a global phone
How Amazon can disrupt the iPad and Android tablet market
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Handhelds, Rumors,
A few weeks back, I wrote a column discussing the tablet that Amazon is rumored to introduce this fall. Since then, I have heard a few more things about this tablet that are quite interesting. In my last column on this topic, I stated that the center of its design would be on reading books. That appears to be true, as multiple sources tell me that it will have the best reading experience of any tablet on the market. But, I am also hearing that Amazon is using pretty low-cost parts and not using any of the major manufacturers that are producing most of the tablets for mainstream competitors. Apparently, the company's key goal is to make the tablet very inexpensive and then use a new business model to own the Android tablet market.
I believe that Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos knows that all of the other Android vendors are at a big disadvantage when it comes to competing with Apple. Apple has a two-year lead on them, a great app store and services program, and a soon-to-be-key technology, the iCloud, which will keep all iOS apps and devices in-sync. And it has 250 million users' credit cards and hundreds of retail stores to help people learn about the iPad and buy one on the spot. None of the other tablet vendors can even come close to matching what Apple has to offer, except maybe Amazon. Although Amazon does not have retail stores like Apple does, it does have an Appstore for Android, music and movies for downloading, the Amazon Cloud Drive for storage, and the credit cards of 200+ million users. It also has limited channel partners, like Best Buy, that it could expand as well. But, I hear that while its tablet could marginally compete against Apple, this is not the company Amazon is going after with its tablet offering. It is smarter than that. Rather, I believe Amazon's goal is to be the market leader in Android and be the top seller of tablets with this mobile OS.
Click to continue reading How Amazon can disrupt the iPad and Android tablet market
Gallery: How Amazon can disrupt the iPad and Android tablet market
Apple readying iTunes Replay streaming service via iCloud
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Home Entertainment, Movies, Rumors,
Are iCloud rumors replacing the iPhone 5 rumors? Today's report is courtesy of AppAdvice, which says that Apple is prepping a re-downloading and streaming service known as iTunes Replay.
Apple recently started allowing users to re-download TV shows purchased through iTunes, a feature already available for books, apps, and music. Movies are the one hold-out, but AppAdvice says iTunes Reply will add movies to the re-download list for a "full-fledged" service and potentially allow users to stream everything via Apple TV and iOS. No word on the desktop.
The service would apply to media purchased back to January 1, 2009. As Apple signs the appropriate licensing agreements, the company will put arrows next to purchased shows and movies to indicate that they are eligible for replay, AppAdvice said.
The blog said users should "expect this to go public in the coming weeks" and framed it as "an extension of what Apple is already doing with iCloud."
Click to continue reading Apple readying iTunes Replay streaming service via iCloud
Gallery: Apple readying iTunes Replay streaming service via iCloud
BlackBerry Bold 9930 hitting Verizon August 11?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Handhelds, Rumors,
We just got a tip that is telling us to expect Verizon Wireless to release the upcoming touchscreen BlackBerry Bold 9930 on August 11, just ten days from now. A few days ago, Verizon accidentally posted a video of the 9930 on its Web site when it meant to post a video of the BlackBerry Bold 9650 instead. We've been expecting an imminent release of the 9930, so we could definitely see this rumor panning out. Of course, we don't know until things are officially official.
Gallery: BlackBerry Bold 9930 hitting Verizon August 11?
Is this what the iPhone 5 will look like?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Rumors,
To be clear, this is not an iPhone 5. However, the word is that this is clone made in the same factory where the iPhone 5 is being produced. If you've been following Apple for any length of time, you'll know that before their new products launch, many Chinese manufacturers will already have cases for the products in production. This is typically because someone in the factory gets access to the blueprints, or a physical device, and goes and sells it for a nice profit. This is why a bunch of Foxconn workers were fired recently.
Anyhow, we've been hearing that the new iPhone 5 will be thinner than the iPhone 4, will sport curved glass on the back, and will have a slight teardrop shape. The phone in these images matches those specifications. However, it's hard to tell the size of the display here, but the iPhone 5 has long been rumored to have a larger display than the previous four devices that came before it. We're expecting the iPhone 5 to launch in late September or early October, which means that construction is definitely underway to prepare for the millions that need to be available for launch in the next 6-10 weeks. It wouldn't surprise us at all if what we see in these images turns out to be what we end up seeing in stores.
Gallery: Is this what the iPhone 5 will look like?
Apple putting final touches on super thin 15-inch MacBook
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Rumors,
MacRumors is reporting that Apple is in late stage testing of a new ultra-thin 15-inch Macbook. It's unsure if this'll be a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro, but if the release of the new Mac mini is any indication, we wouldn't be surprised to see the MacBook Pro line do away with the optical drive. It makes sense that Apple would take design cues from the MacBook Air and bring them over to the Pro line, and adding SSD into the more powerful MacBook Pro would make that thing fly. Apple did just refresh the MacBook Pro back in February, so we wouldn't expect to see these new notebooks until 4th quarter of this year.
Gallery: Apple putting final touches on super thin 15-inch MacBook
iPhone 5 set for Sprint and T-Mobile, AT&T in testing say reports
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Rumors,
This week's "iPhone 5" rumors focus on the carriers. According to Piper Jaffray analyst Chris Larsen, via CNET, the "most noteworthy" change to Apple's next-generation iPhone is that it'll be offered by Sprint and T-Mobile, on top of existing carriers AT&T and Verizon.
In May, another analyst said an iPhone "4S" was launching on Sprint and T-Mobile in time for the Christmas holidays.
Meanwhile, ChipHazard reports that the next-generation iPhone is being field tested on AT&T's networks, according to a "well-placed sources in AT&T Mobility." The tests include signal reception and connectivity, and once they pass the tests the prototype will be given to manufacturers.
As for phone specs, there's an endless amount of speculation. Some of the more recent rumors include a completely revamped iPhone 5 with wireless juicing, a "baby iPhone" for developing markets.
Click to continue reading iPhone 5 set for Sprint and T-Mobile, AT&T in testing say reports
Gallery: iPhone 5 set for Sprint and T-Mobile, AT&T in testing say reports
The existence of a tablet computer in the offing from Amazon isn't official yet, but The Wall Street Journal has officially thrown its weight behind the pervasive rumors that the Kindle-maker is planning to release a device to compete head-to-head with Apple's iPad before the year is out.
Amazon is planning a third-quarter release of its first tablet, a 9-inch device running Google's Android mobile operating system, the newspaper reported Wednesday, citing unnamed "people familiar with the matter" who said the Amazon tablet will arrive "before October."
That corroborates several reports from Taiwan-based tech journal DigiTimes, which has cited components supplier sources as saying that Amazon plans to release a tablet currently codenamed Hollywood in September.
Click to continue reading Amazon tablet should launch before October
