Friday, October 10, 2008

The Friday News Round Up

A lot of interesting stories and rumors have been circulating today, and just so you don’t have to visit 10 different sites to get the information, we thought we’d catalog it right here for you. In no particular order (because how can you order stories like these?), check out today’s big stories!

Orange, the first European carrier to carry the new BlackBerry Bold, has now decided to pull the Bold from their lineup until they can get some software issues worked out. Some of the problems included: restarting issues, java errors, battery life issues, screen issues and problems with memory leakage. Meanwhile, AT&T is probably pretty proud of themselves after all the flack they received when pushing back the Bold’s release date because it couldn’t pass their quality and testing standards. It seems caution wins the day, at least today.

While the Bold seems to be having a few problems, RIM still has the enormous draw of the Storm to fall back on. Apparently, RIM is hoping to capitalize on the yet-to-be-released Storm. Rumors and reports have spread announcing that the smartphone manufacturer has ramped-up research and development of a new “super-phone” (meant to rival HTCs Touch-HD perhaps?). Does that mean a Storm II or Storm III? I think they should name one Thunder and the other Lightning.

Speaking of RIM, with stocks down from $148 to $60 in about four months, the hot rumor today is of Microsoft’s interest in buying the Canadian company. This isn’t the first time this rumor has been bandied about, but it’s probably the first time anyone has taken it seriously. Analysts are predicting Microsoft will offer roughly $50 per share for RIM.

A day in cell phone news wouldn’t be complete without a new phone rumor. A potential new LG phone could be launched on AT&T in the coming months. What’s unique about this LG is its Windows Mobile 6.1 platform, sleek metal casing with mirrored touchscreen and a 3 megapixel camera with autofocus. Picture the LG’s Prada, but with Windows Mobile in the background. The phone, so far named Incite, is still looking for a release date, but we’re hoping it’s not too far off as we’re hungry for another touchscreen smartphone from AT&T.

Mozilla should be releasing its first alpha version of Firefox Mobile next week, which has a lot of people on the edge of their seats. While this release will most likely be very limited, not to mention will probably be followed by several more alpha releases before being released in beta, the majority of us will have to keep our eyes and ears tuned to any news and reviews while we wait for its release. Let the Firefox and Skyfire comparison begin!

Along with the re-naming of several other unreleased devices and the usual slew of reviews, this wraps up the news today. It’s definitely an exciting time to be a part of the emerging technology in the mobile market. And if you’re just a bystander, you’ve got a pretty good show to watch!

Don’t forget, here on the Mobile Caller blog, it’s Fun Friday. So we’re going to send you out with one of our favorite call-centric videos. I think you all know this number.




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