CrackBerry didn’t say when the phone will be released or state any technical specs. Apparently the site had these pics under an embargo and were allowed to release them today. That could very well mean that the phone is nearing announcement. It’s getting kind of late for a 2009 release so perhaps we’ll see it in the first quarter of 2010.

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The phone isn’t 3G so it’s up in the air whether it’s AT&T or T-Mobile bound. But as long as the European specs remained, the S40 slider should come with a 3.2MP camera, FM radio, stereo speakers, microSD expansion ports, and dedicated music keys. The X3 costs €115 ($169) unlocked in Euroland, so hopefully we’ll get a similar price.

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Don’t expect to scam Verizon on BOGO deals anymore, folks. The carrier is raising early termination fees on Novermber 15 to $350 for “advance devices” only. Clearly VZW is targeting users who were abusing the buy one get one free BlackBerry deals and those that figured out that it was cheaper cancel their current contract and pay the $175 ETF than to pay full retail for the hot new handsets like the Droid.

The leaked document doesn’t exactly spell out which devices qualify as advanced, but chances are it’s any BlackBerry, Android, or Winmo handsets. The new fee does decrease every month by $10, which is a plus. So you know what this change means, right? You have a week and a half left to scam Verizon.

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I’m sure somewhere in the fine print of my contract allows Verizon to push whatever the hell they want to my phone. The contract probably says that they can listen to my phone calls and read my text messages. I don’t care about that stuff; let ‘em. I lead a boring life and couldn’t care less if anyone listens in on my calls. But I don’t want any more stupid apps pushed to my phone just because Verizon is probably getting a nice financial kickback.

That’s why BlackBerrys have an app store now. If I wanted Bing Mobile, I could find it in App World and download it myself. That’s what I did with Slacker Radio. What I don’t need is more bloatware on my already slow and buggy BlackBerry Storm. The damn app doesn’t even run well on the Storm. It’s slow, unresponsive and thinks I’m in NYC. (I’m a thousand miles away, actually)

The Storm, and other Verizon BlackBerrys, didn’t come loaded with all the Verizon-branded apps that the carrier is noterious for loading on its handsets. Instead VZW is randomly pushing apps on to phones, which isn’t much better. Once again, Verizon, you’re doing it wrong. Leave our phones alone.

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I doubt you’ll find anything new or unannounced buried, but have at it. You know you wanna. It’s Friday and you’re probably just looking for something to do. Well, friend, I guarantee this will kill three and a half minutes and you might learn something about the BlackBerry Storm 2. Bonus!

[thanks for the tip, Bill!]

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And here we have another Motorola phone powered by Android. This little bugger was spotted over in China and claims to be the world’s first Android GSM/CDMA phone whenever it launches. The Zeppelin is said to pack the standard Motorola Android kit with a 5MP camera, 802.11 b/g, GPS, Bluetooth, a 3.1-inch 320×480 touchscreen, plus an FM radio and HDMI output. It’s just too bad that we can’t see the front side.

For whatever reason, the leaker didn’t turn the phone over and snap a picture of the front. All we can see at this time is the backside, which doesn’t reveal anything notable. Oh well. Chances are we’ll see more shots of the Zeppelin sometime down the road.

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It should be known by now that there probably won’t be much happening with the Motorola Droid until October 28 at the earliest, but according to these screenshots of Best Buy’s system, the retailer might have the phone available early on October 24. Now, the 24 is this coming Saturday, which is a usual inventory restocking day so just because the stores have them somewhere doesn’t mean they will be available for purchase.

But then again you might be able to get one over on an unsuspecting (and untrained) Best Buy wireless sales associate. That is, of course, if you’re willing to pay the $599 no-contract price until it’s officially available from Verizon on October 28. Actually, I’m sure some trust fund d-bags are willing to pay that price just to be the coolest kid in town.

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That reliable tip came in about the same time that CrackBerry posted an image of a Storm 2 dummy phone sitting on a Best Buy shelf. What other proof do you need? The BlackBerry Storm 2 will be here soon whether you want it or not.

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The BlackBerry Bold 9700 has finally been announced. Details have been leaking in about the “Onyx” for months and most of the seem to be true in hindsight. The BlackBerry Bold 9000 successor rocks a Tour-like keyboard but ditches the trackball in favor of a little trackpad like in the Curve 8520. The camera has been upped to 3.2MP and the screen is now a 480 x 320 display. Just like the Storm 2, the 9700 runs BlackBerry OS 5.0 and all the goodies are included like threaded messaging, updated BB Messenger, and BlackBerry Maps.

Best of all RIM is launching the phone to nearly every GSM carrier in North America and Europe in November although International carrier-specific pricing is hard to come by right now. That will probably change in a day or two though.

AT&T has announced that it will sell the phone for $199 after a $100 mail-in rebate, and T-Mobile is expected to follow suit although it’s press release doesn’t mention a price. What it does mention however is that the phone will be able to make unlimited calls off of WiFi for $10 per month, which is something AT&T is slowly accepting too although it seems that AT&T’s flavor will lack that ability.

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The Storm 2 is sort-of on VerizonWireless.com right now in fact. The phone doesn’t have a product page yet, but someone found the phone’s 3D demo page. So have it. Click over to VZW.com and give the phone a spin. You really don’t need to see a product page anyway, it’s not like you plan on buying the second incarnation of the worst phone ever made when the totally sick Motorola Droid will be available around the same time. At least I hope not.

[Verizon via BGR]

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The BlackBerry 9520 Storm 2 has probably the best pre-release coverage of any cell phone in history. We’ve seen previews and videos and pictures and more videos of the upcoming cell phone for months. RIM and Verizon haven’t released a thing about the phone yet though so some key details hadn’t been revealed. That is, of course, until Walt Mossberg posted his Storm 2 review last night alongside the Motorola CLIQ review and Vodafone went live with its Storm 2 launch details this morning that happened to include all the phone’s specs for good measure. God bless the Internet.

Uncle Walt,

Overall, I found the Storm2 worked well in my tests. Battery life was decent, with 5.5 hours of claimed talk time, and typing was much improved, though I doubt it will satisfy lovers of physical keyboards.

The browser is still inferior to Apple’s, Google’s and Palm’s. And the traditional BlackBerry interface cries out for a major overhaul in a touch device like this, especially when you add a lot of apps. RIM’s menu and folder metaphor seems tired on this device.

Verizon hasn’t set a launch date or price for the Storm2, but it’s likely to appear in November at around $200.

The Vodafone press release reveals the phone’s entire spec list. Thankfully RIM updated a few key areas like doubling the amount of Flash memory to 256 MB and equipping the phone with 2 GB of onboard memory. Also, the mechanically clicky screen has been replaced with one that gives electronic, tactile feedback. It also confirms that the phone is powered by BlackBerry OS 5 that hopefully *fingers crossed* along with the extra Flash memory will mean the phone will hang less and be oh-so-much-more responsive.

Vodaphone UK will be offering the phone free with pay-monthly contracts from £35 on up and will be available on October 26 in the UK, Ireland, The Netherlands, Spain, and Germany. The rest of the Vodaphone world should see the phone before Christmas. Now all we need is for Verizon to let us in on how much it plans on charging for the Storm 2. A release date would be cool too.

Update: RIM just launched a Storm vs Storm 2 interactive comparison chart. Have at it.

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NYT,

“I let them play with the second-generation Storm device,” he said. “They came back and said ‘Oh, my gosh.’ They were very excited. This is what they hoped the original Storm should be.”

As a BlackBerry Storm owner myself, I can tell you that the most frustrating part of using the Storm is that it’s evident the platform has so much more to give. I stare at my Storm everyday wishing and hoping that it would live up to that potential. But it doesn’t. It sucks even more every time I use it.

There still isn’t a firm release date for the Storm’s second coming. The NYT’s article states something about a launch this week and there have been retail signage leaked online the last few days, but our Verizon retail tipsters still haven’t heard anything about it being available for purchase this week. The honest truth is that no one knows for sure.

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RIM has finally updated BlackBerry Messenger program. Thank goodness, the previous version felt old a few years ago. The 2.4MB update brings a wealth of new features like the ability to create an avatar, adding friends by scanning a bar code, group messaging, and the ability to share multimedia with multiple contacts at once. Plus, it looks a hell of a lot better. This program of course is meant just for communicating with other BlackBerrys using each phone’s unique PIN.

You have two install options: either navigate to www.blackberry.com/messenger via your phone’s browser to initiate the OTA download or find the program in App World. Be warned though, the program requires a reboot to finish the installation.

Click through for the full list of updates and new features.

Overview
The follow is a subset of new or improved features found in BlackBerry Messenger 5.0. For more information on these and all features, please refer to the BlackBerry Messenger 5.0 user guide.
Compatibility
* BlackBerry Messenger is supported for BlackBerry handheld software 4.5 and higher.
* Certain features may require specific handheld code version.
* Users using BlackBerry Messenger 5.0 will still be able to communicate with users of all older version of BlackBerry Messenger.
Enhanced SMS Integration
* BlackBerry Messenger provides a unified interface for sending and receiving SMS/MMS messages.
* Single contact list for most personal mobile to mobile communications
Conversational Chat-like User Experience, similar to a BlackBerry Messenger
* There is also a reply area at the bottom of the Conversation Screen for responding to SMS messages.
* Personalization of SMS contacts, such as Avatars.
* SMS integration only available on BlackBerry device software 5.0 and higher
.
Contact List backup to file and restore
* Backups can be made to the memory card, the internal memory, or wirelessly by registering your email address.
* With a backup complete, restoring the contact can be completed as well.
* Reliable Contacts Restore on Device Switch
Barcode Invitation
* Users can display their own unique bar-code for others to scan.
* Add users to their BlackBerry Messenger Contact List by scanning other BlackBerry Messenger 5.0 user’s bar code with the devices camera.
* Barcode can be scanned to join a group or someones BlackBerry messenger contact list
Block Ability to invite more participants
* Owners (initiator) of conversations can block more participants from being added by others participants.
* If a BlackBerry Messenger 5.0 user creates a conference with BlackBerry Messenger pre-5.0 user participants, the BlackBerry Messenger pre-5.0 users will still be able to invite more participants to the conference.
Set Subject for Conversations
* Ability to set and change subject for a conversation
Large files transfer support
* The maximum size of transferred file is increased from 15K to 6M
* Not compatible with the previous versions of BlackBerry Messenger
Message Broadcast
* Users will be able to send the same message to multiple users.
* Users will be able to pick the users to broadcast this message to.
Conversation history
* BlackBerry Messenger 5.0 message history allows messages to be saved, displaying a timeline of conversations with users.
* Conversations become searchable and saved.
Blocking/Ignoring Users
* Users will have the option to block and ignore users.
* Any messages from the ignored users will be discarded. However, the message received will still be considered delivered.
BlackBerry Groups
* Stay connected with your friends by creating, joining or inviting friends to join a group.
The ability to update, share & communicate with a subset community of your social universe on a regular basis.
* Share pictures, calendar events, list and various other items for others to see, update, and discuss.
* Groups have a limit of 30 users.
Profile Personalization
* Users can choose a picture from the on-device gallery and save it as their personal Avatar.
* Users can view Avatars of contacts in the Contact list
* Share the name of the song you are listening to with other BlackBerry Messenger Contacts.

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We’ve seen a few different Android devices that seem to be VZW-bound over the last few weeks, but Verizon hasn’t said anything about the handsets or platform until now. The company has a webcast scheduled for later today but released a preemptive press release that outlines the basics.

Verizon and Google have formed a strategic partnership that will “leverage the Verizon Wireless network and the best of the Android open platform to deliver leading-edge mobile applications, services and devices.” Apparently the new dream team has plans that involve co-developing several Android-based devices that will come pre-loaded with innovative applications from not only Verizon, but also 3rd-party developers.

These devices are set to come from multiple manufacturers according to the press release, which is kind of in line with has been leaking out lately. First there is the slider Motorola Tao/Sholes, which is rumored to drop on December 1st. We’ve already seen a bunch of spy shots a even a leaked list of specs that seem to indicate that this might be a killer Android device. And then there is the HTC Desire that was recently approved by the FCC and Wi-Fi Alliance but Verizon hasn’t made either one of these phones official just yet.

We would love to see even one more Android handset launch within the coming months on Verizon. The Internet has long seem to agree that everyone loves the vast Verizon 3G network, but it doesn’t have any must-have devices like the iPhone, Palm Pre, or any Android phone and therefore is less desirable. Verizon seems set to change that real soon and we’ll likely find out more details later today at the webcast.

GROUNDBREAKING AGREEMENT BETWEEN VERIZON WIRELESS AND GOOGLE TO LEVERAGE HIGH-SPEED NETWORK AND OPEN ANDROID PLATFORM FOR WIRELESS INNOVATION

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., and MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – Verizon Wireless and Google™ today announced a strategic partnership that will leverage the Verizon Wireless network and the best of the Android™ open platform to deliver leading-edge mobile applications, services and devices. Both companies view this agreement as an opportunity to offer consumers an array of products that combine the speed of the nation’s largest and most reliable 3G network with the flexibility of the Android mobile platform.

Integral to this agreement is a commitment by the companies to devote substantial resources to accelerate delivery of leading-edge innovation that will put unique applications in the hands of consumers quickly. The two industry leaders will create, market and distribute products and services, with Verizon Wireless also contributing the breadth of its nationwide distribution channels. Consumers will be able to purchase products resulting from the collaboration in Verizon Wireless retail and online stores.

Verizon Wireless and Google plan to co-develop several Android-based devices that will be pre-loaded with innovative applications from both parties as well as third-party developers. The family of Android phones on the Verizon Wireless network will come from leading handset manufacturers.

“The nation’s best wireless broadband network is a perfect complement to the innovation of Android-powered services and devices,” said Lowell McAdam, chief executive officer of Verizon Wireless. “Together, we’ll work to deliver a compelling new experience to our customers.”

“The Android platform allows Verizon Wireless customers to experience faster and easier access to the web from any location,” said Eric Schmidt, chairman and chief executive officer for Google. “Through this partnership, we hope to deliver greater innovation in the mobile space to consumers across the U.S.”

The agreement will come to fruition within the next few weeks as Verizon Wireless introduces Android-based handsets.

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Another day, another Android handset. The One comes to us from Spanish start-up called GeeksPhone. No word on available, planned market, or price, but so far the specs are looking good for the quadband GSM and 2100MHz UMTS HSPA phone.

It’s got a 3.2-inch WQVGA hybrid resistive touchscreen up top, with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard underneath. It sports dual cameras – a 3.1MP autofocus guy on the backside and a VGA front-facing camera – 3.5mm headset jack, 802.11 b/g, GPS and acceleromter. A 528 MHZ ARM11 Jazelle powers the kit. Not to shabby, eh? [Xataka via Slashgear

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As soon as you log into your TiVo account, a screen will pop up displaying the available TiVos. After you select which TiVo you want the recording on, the home screen will appear where it allows you to to select a program from various options: Most Popular, Daily Picks, Search by Title, Actor, Keyword, or Category.

It’s just a couple of clicks to schedule the recording once you have selected a show. It gives the option of either a one-time recording or a Season Pass. However, the app doesn’t seem to know what’s already set up in a Season Pass or on tap to be recorded already. There also isn’t any conflict resolution built into the app so be careful you don’t schedule something at the same time as Desperate Housewives. The Missus wouldn’t like that.

The app works, but it’s a tad plain Jane for our taste. Work some streaming video or true remote control into it and we’ll be happy.

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This deal is of course for new subscribers that sign a 2-year agreement, but the end price is the cheapest we’ve seen yet. With prices this low, it kind of makes you wonder how much the Pre’s little brother, the upcoming Pixi, will be when it’s finally available. [Walmart via everythingpre]

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Amazon has been known to offer cell phones at cut rate prices. Just the other day, all AT&T phones expect for ones that start with the letter “i” werea penny on Amazon. But today, you can save $50 off the retail price and snag a Palm Pre for only one bill.

This deal is of course for new subscribers that sign a two-year agreement, but $50 bucks is $50 bucks in my book. Or if you were planning on buying one for the misses, both can be had for only $200, which in turns saves you $100. I say go for it, unless, of course, you’re waiting for the Palm Pixi…

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It’s not surprising that the companies that profit off of these handsets would publicly refute damaging statistics. But the fact remains that if you search the forums at CrackBerry, HowardForums, or others, a lot of users are having tackball problems. RIM has used the trackball with what I guess could be called moderate success over the last few generations, but perhaps this is why the new models will have trackpads instead.

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The Cliq might be the first Motorola device with Android, but with a 350-person team, it better be good. At least it looks solid on the surface with a custom Android GUI called MOTOBLUR, slide-down keyboard, 5MP camera, 24 FPS video cam, WiFi, 3.5mm headset jack and a screen that better be able to handle a massive amount of info.

The phone’s interface is built around what Motorola is calling “MOTOBLUR.” Think of this as a social media aggregator kind of like Palm’s Synergy. It syncs Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, Picasa and others onto a customizable homescreen that displays info users want from any of the services. Plus, this allows users to interact with their contacts through any of the networks seamlessly. Blur has other tricks too like remote wipe and phone tracking via the Internet along with all the other standard Android goodies like HTML web browser, Gmail, Google Maps, and all the rest.

T-Mobile should have the device sometime in the forth quarter and it will be available in white and titanium. We just don’t know the price yet.

New MOTOBLUR™ solution automatically syncs and streams communications, contacts and content throughout new Motorola devices powered by Android™ beginning in the fourth quarter

September 10, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO – Sept. 10, 2009 – Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) today unveiled the vision behind its Android portfolio with the introduction of MOTOBLUR™. Developed by Motorola, MOTOBLUR is the first and only solution to sync contacts, posts, messages, photos and much more—from sources such as Facebook®, MySpace, Twitter, Gmail™, work and personal e-mail, and LastFM—and automatically deliver it to the home screen. Content is fed into easy-to-manage streams allowing you to spend less time managing your life and more time living it. MOTOBLUR will be available first on Motorola’s new 3G Android-powered device, called Motorola CLIQ™ in the U.S. and Motorola DEXT™ elsewhere around the globe.

Sanjay Jha, co-CEO of Motorola and CEO of Motorola Mobile Devices, announced MOTOBLUR today during a keynote at GigaOM’s Mobilize ‘09 conference.

“With MOTOBLUR we are differentiating the Android experience for consumers by delivering a unique mobile device experience designed around the way people interact today,” said Jha. “MOTOBLUR, which will be available on our first Android-powered device and on multiple Android devices in our upcoming portfolio, helps us to create phones that are instinctive, social and smart.”

MOTOBLUR leverages Motorola’s experience in mobile Linux and open platforms, and taps in to the broad Android ecosystem. The proprietary solution differentiates Motorola’s product portfolio of Android-powered devices and supplies the power and flexibility to continuously deliver a variety of new and rich consumer experiences across a wide range of devices with multiple carrier partners.

Life: Organized, Streamed and Delivered
With MOTOBLUR, all conversation threads, friend updates, stories, links, photos and more are automatically delivered to live widgets on the home screen. There is no need to open and close different applications or menus. It’s all organized, streamed and delivered throughout the device in unexpected ways:

Happenings: View all your social site updates in one spot with the live Happenings application. Every friend feed, status update, wall post, bulletin and photo upload is automatically delivered and ready for immediate reply, any way you like.
Messages: Quickly scroll through the Messages application for a snapshot of current work or personal e-mails, social site messages, and texts, with the ability to respond to any message however you want no matter how it was sent: text, email, IM and more.
Social Status: Blast your status right from the home screen and even save time by updating your status to one or all your social networks at once.
News Feeds: Keep track of your favorite news feeds, sports scores or even celebrity gossip without leaving the home screen.
Calendar: Integrate your work calendar with Google Calendar™ into one Calendar widget that shows the next appointment right from the home screen.
Integrated Contacts with Context
MOTOBLUR keeps track of all contacts so it’s easy to keep up. Contacts are automatically synced to the phone from personal and work e-mail as well as social network accounts, and MOTOBLUR updates any changes friends or contacts make to their information so you don’t have to. When making or receiving a phone call, your friend’s latest profile picture and status is shown on the screen. In the contacts view, see your communication history with each person and their latest social network broadcasts organized in an easy-to-read manner so you’ll always know the latest info about friends and family. Plus, communicate with them anyway you like, directly from their contact information.

Backed Up for Peace of Mind
MOTOBLUR is easy to set up and secure, so there is no need to worry about misplacing the phone. All contacts, log-in information, home screen customizations, e-mail and social network messages are backed up on the MOTOBLUR secure server. Lost or stolen phones can be found with integrated A-GPS from the online owner’s portal, and data can even be wiped clean. Simply enter the account username and password on the next MOTOBLUR phone, and all the information will be ready and waiting.

Customize with Apps and Widgets
On Motorola CLIQ, mix and match thousands of applications and widgets from MOTOBLUR, Android Market™ or pre-loaded Google™ mobile services. Everything from messages to news feeds to sports scores to the Happenings widget to Google Maps™ can be added to create custom home screens that fit anyone’s multi-faceted life.

Delivered on the First Phone with Social Skills
MOTOBLUR will first be available on Motorola’s new Android-powered device, called Motorola CLIQ in the U.S. and Motorola DEXT around the globe. This QWERTY slider comes packed with all the bells and whistles:

Never be out of contact with a full HTML browser, 3G speed and Wi-Fi.
Snap photos with the 5 megapixel camera with autofocus; upload photos simply to your favorite photo sharing or social sites.
Play back your favorite YouTube™ videos or capture them and easily upload them for your friends to view.
Use the 3.5 mm headset jack to plug in your own headphones and easily connect to your music, create your own playlist or discover new music by seeing what your friends are listening to on LastFM.
Availability Around the Globe
MOTOBLUR will be available first on select Motorola devices in the fourth quarter with regional carriers worldwide. In the U.S., Motorola CLIQ™ with MOTOBLUR will be available exclusively with T-Mobile USA. Motorola DEXT with MOTOBLUR will be available with Orange in the United Kingdom and France, Telefonica in Spain and America Movil in Latin America.

For specific regional availability and pricing, contact your local Motorola representative. To experience MOTOBLUR, please visit www.motorola.com/motoblur. For the latest Motorola Mobile Devices product news and promotions, now you can also find us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Media: For more information, product specifications and images of CLIQ, please visit Motorola Media Center Fact Sheets. For multimedia assets from the keynote, visit MOTOBLUR Press Kit.

Motorola Media Link Bridges Digital World
Motorola also is making it easier to manage your digital worlds with Motorola Media Link. This desktop experience connects your phone, PC and the web, giving you the ability to manage, secure, share and extend your phone’s media. Transfer and organize media such as photos and videos into albums and sync your iTunes and Windows Media playlists and music. Plus, Motorola Media Link helps you expand your phone with new downloads, applications, ringtones, wallpapers and more—directly from your desktop. Motorola Media Link will be available for multiple Motorola devices including CLIQ and DEXT.

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