And just like that, today we have the third photo leak of the mysterious BlackBerry slider. Unlike the first time we saw it but much like the second, the device has been placed next to a Curve 8900 for the sake of a size comparison. On its side the slider is noticeably thicker than the 8900 , but today it has been turned on its side in order to let us know exactly how thick this sucker is. What this device is actually called is anyone’s guess, but the general consensus is that this is not the Storm3. So what then is it? Lately a rumor has been floating around that it is actually a Bold owing to its identical styling queues to the current Bold 9700. Adding to this rumor is a UAProf found on RIM’s website for a 9700a that lists a portrait HVGA+ display (as opposed to the Bold 9700’s landscape HVGA+ display) and this all seems rather possible. Of course dealing with prototypes things can and will change as needed, so it looks like we’re going to have to twiddle our thumbs a little while longer until some more information comes to light. Hit the jump for a pic of device’s rear sans battery cover showing off its brand new F-S1 battery.

[via CrackBerry]

Read [9700a pics]

Read [UAProf]

In our review of the TELUS MILESTONE we lamented Motorola’s decision to digitally sign the bootloader which makes rooting quite difficult. Thankfully, over the past couple of days there has been a lot progress within the Android community and root access for the TELUS MILESTONE has obtained by way of a Brazilian sbf. Sadly kernel access is still absent, but at this point we guess we should just be happy we’ve made it this far. Hit up the read link for a full set of instructions.

Thanks, Arjun!

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For those that are not up to speed, here is the Reader’s Digest® version of the Apple and Nokia legal saga. Nokia sued Apple, Apple sued Nokia, the ITC got involved, and here we are. A U.S. court date to settle the alleged patent violations has tentatively been scheduled for some time in the middle of 2012. Legal analysts have said the proceedings could last for two or more years which, barring a settlement, would delay the verdict to sometime in 2014. For those cheer-leading the demise of one of the involved parties, you’ll just have to wait until then.

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This February, Microsoft Xbox 360 sales bested those of the Sony Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii for the first time since September of 2007. The February sales figures were: Xbox 360 422,000 units — up 8% year-over-year, Wii 397,900 units — down 47% year-over-year, and Playstation 3 360,100 units — up 30% year-over-year. Take-Two Interative’s BioShock 2, which hit store shelves on February 10th, can be partially credited for the surge in Xbox sales. BS 2 sold over 750,000 copies, 75% of which (562,000) were for the Xbox 360. Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. Wii, sold 555,600 units raking second on the game sales chart and Activision’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 came in a respectable third.

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The first is that one of our connects has informed us that the mythical OS 5.0 upgrade for the BlackBerry Tour 9630 will be released within the next “2-3 weeks.” It will also contain a Push-To-Talk feature that will run over Verizon’s data network for a $5/month fee. This ties in nicely to our second bit of info… We’ve heard that the BlackBerry Bold 9650, or BlackBerry Tour2 9650, or BlackBerry Whatever 9650x will launch unfortunately around May. It will also include PTT.

A lot happened in the US smartphone market from October 2009 to January 2010, but thankfully there are companies like comScore kicking about to help us make sense of just which platforms were the biggest winners and losers during this period. The biggest platform was not surprisingly Google’s Android which saw an uptick of 4.3% to a total of 7.1% thanks in part to the successful launches of handsets like the DROID, DROID ERIS and Hero. RIM’s BlackBerry OS, which faired second best with a gain of 1.7% continued to dominate the total smartphone market at 43%, but one has to wonder if RIM could have done just a little bit more. After all, it did launch the BlackBerry Bold 9700, Curve 8530 and Storm2 during these months. Apple’s iPhone didn’t do as well as many would have guessed, but its 0.3% increase makes quite a bit of sense when you consider the tradition of people holding out on iPhone purchases in the six months leading up the summer release of the devices later iteration. Nonetheless, it does hold a 25.1% stake in the US smartphone market. When it comes to market share, one’s success is another’s misfortune. Not exactly a stranger to losing ground, Microsoft’s Windows Mobile managed to shed 4.0% thanks in part to what can be politely summed up as a general indifference to its current platform (how things will change). After this, we saw Palm with a loss of 2.1%. In Palm’s defence a lot of this can be attributed to people finally getting around to ditching Palm OS, but the fact remains that thing’s aren’t going to well for a company that many felt was on the path to recovery just 15 months ago.

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Finally, the day is here. Well, one of the days is here, as you won’t be taking home an iPad today, but you can get in line and preorder one starting at 8:30AM ET this morning. Need something to keep you occupied until it arrives by courier? We highly suggest leaving grandma’s basement and finding a job (editing battlestarwiki.org doesn’t count).You only have 22 days to come up with at least $499 before applicable taxes and it’s highly unlikely she’ll be willing to give you her tax credit just so you can mess around with the Star Trek Communicator app on a 9.7″ display. Tick-tock on the clock, fellas. Let us know if you preorder one and which one you grabbed — Wi-Fi or 3G!

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Bad news today for Google and the Nexus One as investment firm Goldman Sachs has slashed its estimate for Nexus One sales by a third. Predicting a bright and rosy future for the Nexus One, Goldman Sachs originally estimated that Google will sell 3.5 million Nexus Ones in FY2010. After a disappointing first month in which Google only sold a rumored 80,000 handsets, Goldman Sachs has lowered its 2010 estimate to a mere one million handsets which will be sold across multiple carriers including T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, and Vodafone. Google’s FY2011 outlook will improve to two million handsets if, according to Goldman Sachs, Google rolls out second generation handset, markets it aggressively, and drops it online-only sales model. That last criteria is condemning and suggests that Google’s online-only model needs to be supplemented, if not supplanted, by brick and mortar retail sales. So peer into those magic eight balls that predict the future and let us know — is Google’s online-only sales model fatally flawed or does it just need some time to mature?

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Images and details on the HTC Incredible have emerged from the depths of Android Forums today. Most notable is the loss of the bright orange backing which has been replaced with a matte black covering emblazoned with a Verizon Wireless logo. Internally, the Incredible is rumored to have 500 MB of RAM (320 available), an 8 megapixel camera, measurements of 117.5 x 58.5 x 11.9mm, and a blinding red interior with a matching red battery. Though it packs a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, the Incredible, just like the Acer Liquid A1, has been underclocked to 768 MHz, a battery savings measure which hopefully can be reversed once the handset has been rooted. Thankfully, the slowed down processor seems to have little effect on perceived performance as the Android 2.1 handset is reportedly “blazing fast”. If all these circulating rumors pan out, look for this handset to touchdown as soon as April or as late as May with Verizon Wireless. Hit the jump for a few more spy shots.

[Via Engadget]

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The battle between HTML 5 and Flash wages on with the discovery of an interesting report comparing the CPU usage of HTML 5 and Flash on both Mac and Windows platform. In the midst of all the smack talk about Flash, Flash was presumed to be a CPU hog that chokes your system to the point of death. A series of measurements performed by video compression guru Jan Ozer reveals that Flash may not be as much of a CPU killer as previously thought and that, in some cases, HTML 5 is the culprit that causes CPU overload. Ozer tested HTML 5 and Flash on a Mac using Safari, Chrome and Firefox and on a Windows machine using Safari, Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer.

The results show that Flash CPU utilization is much higher on a Mac with Flash 10.1 gobbling up 32.07 CPU % points when using Safari, 42.07 when using Firefox and a whopping 49.79 when using Chrome. Flash 10.1 was much gentler on the Windows machine with CPU utilization topping out a reasonable 14.63 CPU % points when using IE and dropping as low as 6% when using Firefox. HTML 5 results were all over the chart with HTML 5 consuming a mere 12.39 CPU % points in Safari, presumably due to the built-in H.264 decoding found in the Apple browser, while at the same time, chomping down a staggering 49.89 in the Mac version of Chrome. The Windows platform fared a bit better with Chrome using 25.66% CPU points when rendering HTML 5 content. In the end, Flash is markedly better on Windows (which we already knew) and HTML 5 shines in the Safari for the Mac but why is there such a disparity between the two platforms? Hit the jump to find out.

Ozer believes that one of the deciding factors influencing CPU utilization by Flash is the presence (or absence) of GPU hardware acceleration. On the Windows platform where GPU hardware acceleration for Flash is often written into the drivers for video cards, Flash performance is exceptional while HTML 5 is only mediocre. On the Macintosh, HTML 5 performance is boosted by the presence of H.264 decoding built into Safari for the Mac while Flash performance is significantly worse as Mac OS X does not provide access to the APIs necessary for GPU acceleration. If Apple opened up the appropriate hooks for Adode to tap into, CPU utilization by Flash could be reduced significantly and its performance would rival that of HTML 5. So yes, Steve, Adobe Flash is a CPU hog but only on the Mac and one of the reasons is because you let it be.

[Via ReadWriteWeb]

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Available today from Verizon Wireless is the long awaited Casio G’zOne Brigade. The Brigade keeps the rugged good looks of its G’zOne predecessors but shakes things up by debuting as a horizontal clamshell instead of the traditional flip phone. The Brigade also ups the specs of the G’zOne line by offering the following:

• 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus, flash, video capture and LED light function
• Full QWERTY keyboard
• Push to Talk
• Field Force Manager
• MIL-STD-810F standards for Water, shock, dust, immersion, vibration, humidity, salt fog, altitude, high and low temperature storage, and solar radiation
• GPS with support for VZ Navigator
• Front facing speakerphone
• Text to speech capability
• microSD expansion

The Casio G’zOne Brigade hits the shelves of Verizon Wireless at a rather pricey $249 after a $50 mail in rebate and two year contract, $319.99 after a $50 mail in rebate and one year contract and $419 full retail. It also comes with an optional $5 monthly PTT plan and is outrageously classified as a 3G Multimedia phone which will require a minimum 25MB data plan for $9.99 monthly. Anyone interested in a $250 feature phone with mandatory data?

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Our friends from Norway have dropped a little present in the Android Market — especially for all you Opera fans — as Opera Mini 5 beta 2 is available for download starting… now. Opera’s next generation mobile web browser packs tabbed browsing, speed dial, Opera Link, a download manager, and a password manager, amongst other things. Those of you who are sick of the default Android browser and can’t quite cozy up to Dolphin can go ahead and take Opera Mini 5 for a spin… and do let us know what you think about it.

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Apple fans waiting to scoop up the latest and greatest Mac Pro have been drooling at every rumor and waiting patiently for these half-truths to come true. Circulating today is yet another rumor to get those technology taste buds tingling by suggesting once again that the Mac Pro will receive a processor overhaul of colossal proportions extremely soon. According to anonymous sources, the upcoming Mac Pro will rock the recently announced Intel Core i7-980x processor which will clock in at a fast 3.33GHz with TurboBoost to 3.6GHz and feature 6 cores and 12 threads of processing power, a 32nm architecture, Socket LGA1366 and 130W TDP. Before your knees buckle and your head hits the floor, make sure you circle March 16th on your calendar as that is the date these bundles of joy are expected to debut if this rumor pans out.

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We know, we know, you’re sick of future iPhone OS rumors… but one more couldn’t hurt right? The folks over at 9to5Mac have been exploring the new iPhone 3.2 beta 4 SDK, and have found a few files that could indicate more gestures are coming to the next iPhone OS. Something we reported on a pretty decent amount of time ago. The two files, “3Tap.plist” and “LongPress.plist, are located in the “gestures” library folder and, according to 9to5Mac, are not in previous versions of the SDK. Now, we know that “three taps” does not have a defined OS-wide function in the current iPhone OS, but we’re pretty sure that a “long press” will bring up a contextual menu to copy, cut, and paste among other things. For those iPhone haters out there, we’re pretty sure we know what one fingered gesture you want to give the iPhone… but unfortunately the “FlipBird.plist” file was not included in this build of the SDK. Check out the full report at 9to5Mac.

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Today, ComScore released its search engine market share numbers for February 2010, and to be honest, there wasn’t much movement. Google and Bing both gained a little ground: Google’s market share rose 0.1 percentage point from 65.4% to 65.5% while Bing’s share gained 0.2% rising from 11.3% to 11.5%. Yahoo and Ask both gave up a little bit of the search pie: Yahoo declined from 17% to 16.8% and Ask fell slightly from 3.8% to 3.7% market share.  AOL’s slice of search remained unchanged at around 2.5%. We’ve got the full report, and all the insipid details that go with it, linked up for you. 

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A leaked internal memo reveals that the nation’s largest carrier is trying to jump on the Apple bandwagon by encouraging its employees to push its MiFi device as an accessory to the upcoming iPad. The idea itself is worthy of consideration — save $130 by purchasing the Wi-Fi version of the Apple iPad and pair it with a MiFi to get 3G wireless connectivity on the go. What Verizon fails to mention is that the MiFi requires a two year contract and will cost $60 per month for the unlimited data plan, meanwhile the 3G iPad can rock on an AT&T unlimited data plan for a mere $30 per month. After five months of service, the $130 you saved up front is gone and that MiFi-connected iPad will cost you an extra $590 over the course of a two year contract. In this ongoing battle of network superiority, Verizon also can’t resist jabbing AT&T by asking “Why pay more for the 3G version and get 3G service on an overloaded network with limited coverage?” This bullet point, though, must have been written before the PC World article from last month was released. Much to the embarrassment of Verizon, the results from the latest carrier showdown reveal that AT&T’s network is passing with flying colors, while Big Red is showing a bit of strain under the load of Android. When April rolls around and you can pick out your iPad version what will you choose? The WiFi version with a MiFi or the 3G version that runs on AT&T?

[Via Business Insider]

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There are two sides to the proverbial “cloud coin” for small business owners. You can view cloud services, like Google Apps, as a time and money saver, allowing you to focus on your core business as opposed to IT needs. Or, you can view them as your worst nightmare, and shun the thought of having all your business data stored on third-party servers. For those whose views align more closely with the former perspective, Google wants to offer you greater flexibility and options for your cloud data. Yesterday, Google announced that Google Apps customers will have the ability to purchase and use third-party tools in their Google Apps cloud deployments. The Apps Marketplace has over 50 applications ranging from payroll and tax software to project management and development tools. “The Google Apps Marketplace eliminates the worry about software updates, keeping track of different passwords and manual syncing and sharing of data, thereby increasing business productivity and lessening frustrations for users and IT administrators alike,” writes Google. Quickly running through the new Apps Marketplace we think this could be a pretty big hit for Google’s Apps service. We’ve got the launch video queued up for you after the break.

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Last month, Verizon Wireless and Skype announced their exclusive partnership in the U.S., along with their plans to bring Skype’s popular VoIP calling and messaging service to your Verizon cell phone. Now, through the miracle of animation — and the help of a woman with a really high pitched voice — Verizon and Skype are shedding a little light on how Skype integration will work on your phone. The video doesn’t get too in-depth, but we do learn that Skype calls will arrive to your Verizon Wireless handset just as normal calls do and the Skype application will run, always on, in the background. The two companies also confirm that Skype calls will not be charged against the minutes in your mobile plan and users of Skype Out will be able to leverage competitive international calling rates from their handset. This got us thinking: we don’t have enough Skype contacts to justify leaving Skype running all day chewing up battery life, but how about you? Do you have a Skype contact list full of friends you are itching to talk to?

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Clearwire may be optimistic about the growth of WiMAX in 2010 and beyond but network hardware manufacturers are a bit more bearish on the 4G wireless technology. Last month, Alcatel Lucent announced it will be scaling back on its WiMAX equipment and focusing on LTE; while popular WiMAX chipset maker Beceem introduced a new WiMAX/LTE multi-mode chipset to be used in devices that will support both wireless technologies. The latest company to join this burgeoning WiMAX exodus is Cisco, which announced plans to discontinue the production of new WiMAX base stations and modems. Rather than provide the radios for the wireless 4G technology, Cisco is adopting a radio agnostic strategy and will focus on the IP network and IP equipment that runs behind the base stations and modems. This discontinuation is more symbolic than it is detrimental to Clearwire as most of the Cisco equipment purchased by Clearwire is IP and not radio equipment. Nonetheless, it is yet another indication that, though WiMAX currently has the lead, network hardware manufacturers see a bright future for LTE and are not willing to place all their eggs in the WiMAX basket. That’s certainly understandable.

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One of our T-Mobile connects just blessed us with some HTC HD2 unboxing shots. With a looming release date, it should help cut down on some of your healthcare costs. You know, for those of you that have been hyperventilating since the official announcement. Hit the jump for the shots!

As was widely expected, Rogers today announced the immediate availability of the Samsung Galaxy Spica. The carrier’s fourth Android smartphone, the Galaxy Spica offers a 3.2″ AMOLED HVGA capacitive display, 3.2 megapixel camera, GPS, Wi-Fi, 3.6Mbps HSDPA/UMTS, 800MHz processor and up to 7 hours of talk time and 10 days of standby for $79.99 on a standard 3-year deal. Anyone that was hoping it would come pre-loaded with anything past Android 1.5 aka “Cupcake” will be sorely disappointed, although we’ve received official word from Rogers that an update to Android 2.1 is in the works, there are “no details on timing to share at the moment.” C’est la vie.

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Apple’s patent lawsuit against HTC may be much more far reaching than initially thought. According to a report at CNN’s Fortune website, Apple’s lawsuit has Android handset manufacturers shaking in their boots with many hiring legal teams, revising their OS strategies, sending hardware back to engineering, and changing development roadmaps behind closed doors. It all started in early 2009 when Apple COO Tim Cook launched the first attack during an earning conference call by stating “we will not stand for having our IP ripped off and we’ll use whatever weapons we have at our disposal. I don’t know that I can be more clear than that.”  Apple publicly remained passive during much of 2009, sitting idle while Palm launched the Pre and other manufacturers pushed out non-multi-touch smartphones that posed no threat to its iPhone market share. Enter the HTC DROID ERIS, the Nexus One, and the Motorola DROID which recently took the smartphone world by storm with their sleek good looks and potential multi-touch capability. Apple is now on the proverbial warpath with HTC as its first target and other manufacturers fearful that they will be next as Apple reportedly held conversations with “Tier 1″ device manufacturers to inform them of Apple’s intentions. The winner in this fearful frenzy, ironically, may be Microsoft which is reportedly swooping in with its extensive patent library in hand, and promising Windows Phone 7 Series as a safe harbor to companies that are fearful of Apple’s wrath. It all sounds like a daytime soap opera conjured up for the geek world but it is unfortunately and incredibly true.

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A job posting for a position within Lab126, a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon that focuses on the Kindle, suggests that Amazon may be developing a new web browser for its popular e-reader. In an “it’s about time” maneuver, the job is seeking a Software Development Engineer to work with the web browser team on a project whose goal is to provide an innovative Embedded Web Browser. The current Kindle browser is severely lacking and needs an overhaul if the Kindle is going to compete with the iPad and other tablets slated to hit the market in 2010.
A recent report form ChangeWave Research is foreboding when it suggests that current e-reader owners would have bought an iPad if the iPad was on the market when they made their purchasing decision. Considering the market forces at play, the last line in the job description requiring “someone to deliver high quality work on tight schedules” is quite telling. Despite its calm and cool appearance, Amazon may be feeling a bit under the gun. What do you think?

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A few days ago when we learned that Motorola is going to bring its complete line-up of MOTOBLUR handsets to Canada, we didn’t know which carrier was to be getting which handset. In the span of a couple days however, things have changed. We now know that the BACKFLIP, that crazy concoction of a device is going to be a TELUS exclusive while the DEXT is bound for Bell. As for the QUENCH, no one carrier has laid claim to it just yet, but we think most would forgive us for assuming it’s going to Rogers considering the others are spoken for.

Read [BACKFLIP] Read [DEXT]

In a mere few months, the HTC Supersonic has gone from being a name on a list to the star of its own home video. Spotted on YouTube is a short, sweet, and dark video that shows the HTC Supersonic in action. The video is small on new details but its presence serves to remind us that Sprint’s first Android WiMAX handset may be worth a close look when it finally launches sometime in the first half of 2010. Anyone passing on the current crop of handsets to wait for the Supersonic and its rumored 4G speed?

[Via androidmobileos]

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…and we use the word refine very loosely. In the last 30 days, Apple has dropped the App Store ban-hammer on applications that display images of scantily clad women and Wi-Fi scanning/stumbling applications. The bare-naked ladies were removed because, as Apple VP Phil Schiller put it, “the needs of the kids and parents” had to come first. Wi-Fi scanning applications got the boot for making calls to a private API, which raises the obvious question… why were these applications approved in the first place? So, what is latest app genre to feel the sting of Apple’s proverbial backhand? So called “cookie-cutter” applications. Apple is beginning to reject apps that were created using application building services and do not add any specific functionality to the iPhone or iPod Touch. Or, as TechCrunch’s Jason Kincaid succinctly put it, “Apple doesn’t want people using native applications for things that a basic web app could accomplish.” Whatever the reasoning, Apple is sending a scary message to potential application developers… we can change our mind.

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The Duo seems to have been a failed experiment for battery maker Energizer in more ways than one. Sales of the USB nickle-metal battery charging station never really took off, and now, via a press release, the company has announced the monitoring software distributed with the Duo packs a fairly nasty Windows trojan. The rogue code, according to Computerworld: “listens for commands on TCP port 7777… can download and execute files, transmit files stolen from the PC, or tweak the Windows registry. The Trojan automatically executes each time the PC is turned on, and remains active, even if the Energizer charger is not connected to the machine.” Energizer released a statement saying: “Energizer is currently working with both CERT and U.S. government officials to understand how the code was inserted in the software.” 

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