How To: Mobile Blogging

I can't count the times that I've been out and about and thought to
myself, "This would make a great blog post!" Whether it's being at
Best Buy and seeing a great sale on a smartphone accessory or just
getting some hands-on time with a new smartphone, I always tell
myself,"I need to remember to blog this." Of course, I then promptly
forget about it.

Luckily, smartphone users have another option for blogging that allows
for far more customization and capabilities than SMS - email blogging.
Using the steps below, you can get set-up in about five minutes to
quickly email blog posts to Blogger for instant posting. It's a great
tool, especially if you're away for the holidays but want to keep your
visitors caught up on the latest breaking news - either in an industry
or just what's going on during your vacation. The instructions below
will work for Blackberry and Windows Mobile users. iPhone users can
follow the same process, but to send photos you will have to do so via
the camera roll instead of just adding an attachment.

Quick note: You'll need to do these steps on your PC, but don't worry -
after that it's all mobile.

1. Go to your Blogger.com dashboard and select "Settings" for the blog
you want to email posts to.
2. In the Settings menu, click the "Emal" tab.
3. You should see a "Mail-to-blogger Address" section under the tab
4. Fill in the blank section of the address part. Blogger provides the
first part based on your username. This is like a password, so make it
hard to guess. The end result will look like this "Bloggerusername.Password@blogger.com
." Make sure to remember this address.
5. You'll want to also select "Publish email immediately" so you have
truly mobile posting.
6. Click "Save Settings."

Now it's time to setup your smartphone.

1. Access your contacts and go to the menu to add a new contact to
your phone.
2. Name the contact "Blog Post" or something that you will remember.
3. After adding the name, go to the section where you can add an email
address for this contact.
4. You'll want to enter the email address you created in Blogger a few
moments ago. This should look like this: Bloggerusername.Password@blogger.com
.
5. After you've entered the email, go ahead and save the contact to
your phone.

And that's all you have to do for the setup. Now when you email " Blog
Post" or whatever you chose to call it, the email will become your
blog post. Remember, the subject line becomes the headline for your
blog, and the body of the email becomes the body text for the post. You
can also send pictures as attachments, and they will post to the blog,
as well. Unfortunately, you don't have too much control over how the
picture posts, so you might have to do some touch-up work to its
placement if it's not quite where you want it.

I've posted this from my smartphone so you can have an idea for the
look and feel. Of course, if you have any questions, you can email me,
and I'll see what I can do to help. Feel free to post your examples in
our comments section.

You can now schedule your TiVo recordings through your mobile phone

Alright, here is some news that I am pretty excited about. I have a couple of shows that are “Must See TV” for me, and of course I have to watch my beloved Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. I’m a pretty busy gal, though, so 90 percent of the time I am catching said programming after it was recorded on my TiVo. Plus, the games are so much better (and shorter) when you can breeze through the time outs and commercials.

There are times, however, when I am enjoying dinner with friends and a wave of mild panic comes over me when I realize I forgot to set the TiVo for the latest Charlie Brown seasonal special. Somehow, TiVo always solves my problems for me, and this time they have done it by way of a free mobile-phone optimized web site that allows subscribers to schedule recordings directly through the site! Woo hoo! The site can be accessed with any Internet-enabled phone through any network, regardless of carrier. Subscribers and non-subscribers can browse, search and discover new television shows directly through their cell phones. So for all of my fellow TiVo junkies, get on your mobile phones and schedule away!

Privus Mobile Customer Review Posted

Privus Mobile just posted a new customer review video on YouTube. As a marketing professional, Nathan uses his cell phone number on news releases. As a result, he receives a lot of calls from solicitors and spammers. I don’t know about you, but I just love picking up the phone and hearing a loud cruise liner horn blowing with someone telling me I have won free cruise tickets, or better yet answering the fourth call of the day from a recorded voice telling me this is my “last chance” to renew my factory warranty on my car. I am the Queen of call-screening, and if I started to get those calls on my cell phone, I would definitely turn to Privus Mobile.

Verizon’s On A Roll – HTC Touch Pro Debuts

Man, it doesn’t look like there’s an end in sight for Verizon’s launch lineup this holiday season. With the Storm flying off the shelves and Web sites, Verizon’s looking to offer another option if you’re not in the mood to wait until Dec.15 for your Storm. Say hello to the HTC Touch Pro.

It’s pretty much the same thing we’ve seen from Sprint, but with a slightly modified price tag (aka more expensive). Verizon’s Touch Pro will run you roughly $350 with a two-year contract and around $420 for one year. That’s with mail-in rebates of course. You contract-free rebels who enjoy life with no strings attached are going to have to shell out about $540 for the full retail version.

Looking through the comments on BoyGeniusReport, it looks like Verizon may have cut a few corners, although that could just be Internet forum chatter. I guess we won’t know until people start getting this in their hands. If you’re interested in being one of the guinea pigs early adopters, you can get the Touch Pro from its new home on the Verizon site. Those of you wanting to get some hands-on action are going to have to wait until Dec. 1 before they start popping up in stores.

RAZR Saves Lives

Here at Mobile Caller, we only relay the latest news about fancy, shmancy smartphones and applications. Today we are going to address you, our dearest reader, on a more serious note – a lifesaving note at that. We all know the Motorola RAZR holds the number one spot when it comes to sales in the U.S., but since the Apple iPhone moves closer and closer to snatching the top spot we have seen the RAZR lose some self confidence. What’s a downtrodden RAZR supposed to do? Gain its confidence back by saving a life, of course!

Ronald “R.J.” Richard was doing yard work on his 5-acre property in St. Tammay, Louis. when something struck him in the chest right above his heart. Richard described the impact as “a punch in the chest,” and initially thought some debris has been kicked up by his lawn mower. When the 68-year-old reached under his sweater and removed the cell phone clipped to his overalls to see if it had been damaged by the impact, a.45-caliber bullet dropped into his lap. According to the report, someone fired the round from woods roughly ¼-mile from Richard’s home, without malicious intent, and inadvertently struck the man in his chest. The cell phone and case, which Richard’s doesn’t ordinarily clip to the front of his overalls, took 100 percent of the damage from the bullet, and the man walked away without a scratch.

I smell a sequel to Whitney Houston’s The Bodyguard coming on, which will undoubtedly keep Motorola on top of the competition for years to come. Thanks little blue RAZR!

Check out the video story here, which is ironically led by a BlackBerry Storm commercial.

Final BlackBerry Storm Review Roundup

As dark clouds roll in overhead and winds begin to pick up the sound of thunder crackles all around… not really, but Friday’s BlackBerry Storm release seems to be all anyone wants to talk about today. Now, I know we did a review roundup for the Storm already, but they were all preliminary reviews from the beginning of October. Below are links to some more detailed and recent reviews. Here is a summary excerpt taken from the Boy Genius Report that really got me thinking.

“The whole point of a BlackBerry and what BlackBerry users bragged about to their co-workers, friends and family to was that a BlackBerry was straight-forward and completely uncomplicated. The Storm complicates things. There’s not one thing you can do faster on a Storm than you can on a Bold. Typing is mediocre at best, and to tell you the truth, it really does get tiring at times. It’s not something we can bang out 250-word emails on like we can on every other QWERTY BlackBerry in the past. It hinders your mobile device experience, in our opinion, if you are a raging lunatic on your BlackBerry. It just doesn’t compare to the BlackBerry Bold. At least not in the current incarnation…we’re sure these things are going to fly off the shelves at Verizon stores on Friday, we just have a feeling there will also be a lot of returns.”

This offers an interesting opinion, but I can’t help but think if it’s referring to an audience that RIM wasn’t really targeting with the Storm. RIM seems to be trying to push the Storm as a more consumer-friendly device. Business users who need long emails or want function over fashion can still have phones like the Bold and I’m sure RIM will continue to push smartphones with standard QWERTY’s. The Storm was meant to bring RIM into a new consumer base of 15-30-year-old, mainstream users, which I think it does well. While there are a few hiccups with the click-screen implementation, the Storm does a good job at bringing BlackBerry’s incredibly solid back-end email capabilities and adds consumer appeal. Sure the mainstream consumer may not care as much about the SPAM filtering as much as a business user, but they’ll appreciate it nonetheless and it becomes another key reason why they like the Storm better than an iPhone.

Of course, you should make sure this is something you want before putting down your hard earned cash and two years of your mobile life so check out below for some more reviews and be sure to stop by a store and test one out for yourself if you think this might be the smartphone for you.

• The Boy Genius Report
• Engadget
• Gizmodo
• PhoneArena
• Phonescoop
• CNN

Cell Phone Giants Join the Green Game

Did you know up to two-thirds of all the electricity consumed by cell phones is wasted by chargers that remain plugged into the wall? Cell phone chargers draw electricity when plugged in, even if the phone is not connected. To help consumers get a better idea of how energy efficient their chargers are, Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and LG are implementing an efficiency rating system – from zero to five stars.

"If the more than 3 billion people owning mobile devices today switched to a four- or five-star charger, this could save the same amount of energy each year as produced by two medium-sized power plants," Nokia said in a statement.

This is a nice start, but why not just slap a sticker on the packaging reminding people to unplug chargers when not in use?

Click here for full story

Another popular smartphone set to hit Wal-Mart Dec. 28

Wal-Mart announced that it has reached an agreement with Apple to offer the iPhone 3G, in-store only, in Wal-Mart and Wal-Mart-managed Sam’s Club Connection Centers nationwide beginning Dec. 28. Of course, AT&T will support the stores with the activation process. It looks like about 2,500 locations will offer the phone. Both organizations are tight-lipped as to whether or not the iPhone will be offered at a discounted price, likely to avoid slowing MSRP iPhone sales during the holidays. I don’t know about you, but I would be pretty peeved if I bought little Timmy an iPhone for Festivus only to find out three days later that the phone is available at Wal-Mart for less. I’m thinking you might want to hold out and buy the phone with your holiday money. Wal-Mart –the only store where can you buy seafood, baby clothes, a set of tires, a beta fish and an iPhone!

A Look at the new LG Incite

Looks like LG is the latest manufacturer to join the touchscreen smartphone game with its latest release, the Incite. Available through AT&T, the Incite boasts Windows Mobile Professional 6.1, a 3-inch WQVGA touchscreen, onscreen QWERTY keyboard, 256 MB ROM/128 MB RAM and a 3-megapixel camera. There are numerous connectivity options. The Incite is a quad-band GSM phone with tri-band 3G Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0 EDR and OTA firmware updates. You can edit Microsoft Office documents (Mobile Word, Excel, OneNote), View PowerPoints and Adobe® PDF attachments.

The Incite also comes equipped with a multitude of multimedia features including AT&T Mobile Music, XM Radio and Pandora Music Streaming. In addition, the LG Incite has a full-color LCD screen that auto-rotates as you turn it to display pictures.

Pricing? The Incite will cost you $199 after a $100 mail-in rebate with a two-year contract. Without a contract, you’re looking at about $500. This is a nice deviation from some of the more lackluster dumbphones we’ve been seeing from LG and we’re looking forward to seeing more smartphone support down the line. In the mean time, we’ve got some serious contemplating to do as it looks like the HTC’s Fuze might have some significant competition this holiday season.

BlackBerry Storm Review Roundup

All-in-all, the BlackBerry Storm has been getting rave reviews. While the Storm has long been touted as RIM’s answer to the Apple iPhone, many critics believe the Storm far surpasses the iPhone with its business and consumer capabilities. The Storm feature that has received the most attention is ClickThrough, which consists of a suspension system that lies beneath the display, so that when you go to select an application or enter text, you actually push the screen down like you would any other tactile button.

BlackBerry is keeping its key users by improving upon the seamless Microsoft integration that has kept businesspeople addicted since its conception, but with the Storm, it seems RIM is reaching out to the consumer demographic with a number of multimedia capabilities. The media player can handle various music and video formats, including MP3, AAC, WMA, WMV, MPEG4, and H.264. The included Media Sync software also helps synchronize your iTunes files with your BlackBerry. The Storm is equipped with a 3.2-megapixel camera with video recording, auto focus and flash. In addition, it comes preloaded with instant-messaging clients (Yahoo, Windows Live, AOL and ICQ) and a number of social-networking apps, including Facebook, MySpace and Flickr. You'll also be able to download more programs over the air through the new BlackBerry Apps Center or the Berry Store.

Critics also are reporting BlackBerry has improved upon the browser found in its latest release, the BlackBerry Bold. There are a couple different ways to navigate around a page, though the most unique makes use of the whole screen as a trackpad. Now once you have the cursor pop up, you can put your finger anywhere on the screen to move it around, just like on a notebook.

Drawbacks? According to Engadget, RIM has made great strides in the past year or so, but its homebrewed Java-based app still doesn't quite match the Nokia/Apple/Google-favored WebKit in terms of rendering speed and accuracy. We also didn't see the sort of smooth, effortless scrolling the iPhone provides, that no other touch phone has managed to replicate so far. Another thing to take into consideration is per Verizon standards, browsing over EV-DO, not Wi-Fi, since it doesn't have the latter. Lack of Wi-Fi is one of the biggest knocks on the new phone, no matter how good Verizon's network might be. The fact that it packs both EV-DO and HSPA into a single phone is a truly impressive feat worth marveling over, but why couldn't they cram in Wi-Fi, too?

Check out these sites for full reviews:

• Engadget
  
• Gizmodo
  
• Information Week
  
• CNET

Obama likely to surrender his BlackBerry

It seems President Elect Obama may be forced to go cold turkey on his BlackBerry addiction once sworn into office. The New York Times ran an article today all about the situation at hand...

For years, like legions of other professionals, Mr. Obama has been all but addicted to his BlackBerry. The device has rarely been far from his side — on most days, it was fastened to his belt — to provide a singular conduit to the outside world as the bubble around him grew tighter and tighter throughout his campaign.

It is likely that Obama will be forced to sign off before he arrives at the White House. In addition to concerns about e-mail security, he faces the Presidential Records Act, which puts his correspondance in the official record and ultimately up for public review, and the threat of subpeonas. A decision has not been made whether he could become the first e-mailing president, but aides said that seems doubtful.

Before George W. Bush took office almost eight years ago he sent out this last e-mail,"Since I do not want my private conversations looked at by those out to embarrass, the only course of action is not to correspond in cyberspace,” Mr. Bush wrote from his old address. “This saddens me. I have enjoyed conversing with each of you.”

photo courtesy of joyoftech.com

BlackBerry Storm Launches with Instant Support from Privus Mobile

Well the day we all longed for has finally come. RIM has entered the touchscreen fight with its BlackBerry Storm. While it seems like the company is already moving on to bigger and better, we’re still excited to see how well the newest entry into the touchscreen world pairs up against its biggest hurdle. Luckily, it seems like BlackBerry has an ace up its sleeve right out of the gate. One of the benefits that the Storm, as well as most BlackBerrys, can boast for now is full-featured Caller ID thanks to Privus Mobile’s instant support for the new smartphone.

A free trial for the full-featured Caller ID solution can be found at Privus Mobile’s Web site or on the BerryStore if you’ve already got it up and running. It features before-call Caller ID including the name and number for more than 90 percent of the calls you get from people not in your contact list. In addition, the software allows you to save the person to your contacts list with the press of a button, which is nice when you’re home from the bar and you can’t remember the girl’s exact name as she’s calling you to go out. Was it Lana, Laura, Lara…Sarah? If you’ve got a Storm, it’s one of the cooler apps out there available on launch day. Plus, it’ll give you another thing to show off when everyone starts coming up to you, asking to check out your phone.

Microsoft offering preview of the new Internet Explorer Mobile 6

While most Microsoft loyalists have been thankful for Vista improvements , they will have to wait a little longer to see improvements when it comes to their mobile browsers. There are so many other options for smartphone users such as Opera, Safari, Fennec and Chrome. In an attempt to stay in the game, Microsoft is offering a free preview of the next-generation Internet Explorer Mobile browser for all to fiddle with by way of an emulator download.

New features of Internet Explorer Mobile 6:

* Improved fidelity
* Layout fixes
* Enhanced Script and AJAZ support
* Improved multimedia experience
* Deeper integration with search
* Enhance cursor navigation model
* Touch and gesture support- pan support
* Multiple zoom levels
* Easy switch between mobile/ desktop versions of sites

Microsoft seems to be catching up with the competition and even trying to break new ground. The initial feedback has been positive and we want you to try it out and tell us what you think.

Storm launch date confirmed

It was recently announced that the long-awaited BlackBerry Storm will be available in stores to the general public on Nov. 24. There will be a pre-launch event Nov. 20, in which 123 corporate Verizon stores will open an hour early with demo-ready Storms. The high-end Verizon customers, as well as customers who received the mailing that was sent out, will be able to pre-order their very own Storm at this event. The Boy Genius Report says the Storm will be $199 after mail-in rebate and two-year contract, but we’re willing to bet that if you hold out a couple of days, you might be able to score one for free... without having the tattoo.

New processor could cut future smartphone costs

Sandbridge Technologies plans to announce that its new baseband processor for cell phones, the SB3500, is being shipped to cell phone manufacturers around the world. The original article gets a little wordy and technical, but basically instead of using four separate chips for a phone’s 3G wireless connectivity, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS, manufacturers will be able to put these functions onto a single chip. And guess what? Less hardware usually equals lower prices.

“Because we allow manufacturers to pack more functionality into a single chip, we can reduce the cost of those phones by about 15 percent,” said Tanuj Raja, vice president of business development for Sandbridge.

The fact that this chip is software-programmable also means that when new technologies like 4G wireless are introduced, cell phone makers can react quickly and get devices out the door much faster. Hopefully, these lower manufacturing costs will be passed onto us, or at the very least, manufacturers will add more functionality without jacking up the prices.

Although Sandbridge competitors like Texas Instruments and NXP Semiconductors have tried to develop similar processors, they have either been unable to produce a chip that can process fast enough or the chips consume too much power and aren’t suitable for mobile devices. Score one for Sandbridge!

BlackBerry Storm Tattoo?

"I will get a life-size tattoo of a BlackBerry Storm with the CB logo. And below the Storm, I will get iPhones Suck tattooed (which could put me in harms way because me tattoo artist is a DIE HARD iPhone/Apple user. He has 3 Macs at the shop!!) Remember, a tattoo IS FOREVER, fighting a bear is only momentary... lol." -T.J.

Looks like it is BlackBerry for life for T.J. from Toledo, Ohio. The BlackBerry supporter recently won CrackBerry.com’s What Would You Do for a BlackBerry Storm? contest. T.J. beat out more than 3,000 entries with his extreme display of brand loyalty. CrackBerry touts that this feat earns T.J. some serious bragging rights, but even though the stunt is witty and somewhat ironic, couldn’t he have spent the tattoo money on the new Storm? What do you all think? Would you get a BlackBerry tattooed on your cankle for a new phone? Personally, my cankles are reserved for Palm Treos and unicorns.

Click here for Original Story

Canada’s Bell to Offer $99 Smartphone Plan

Although this may not sound like big news to those living outside of Canada, I assure you this is big! It has been speculated that Bell’s decision to match Telus’ $99 smartphone plan was made in anticipation of high BlackBerry Storm sales through the holidays. The plan includes 1,000 daytime minutes (with rollover), unlimited nights/weekends, call display, voicemail, unlimited SMS, unlimited e-mail and data, and unlimited BlackBerry Messenger and IM. This deal ushers in the ultimate season of giving!

New Verizon BlackBerry Storm Commercial

Here’s a look at Verizon’s second commercial for the BlackBerry Storm. Although it doesn’t show a whole lot in terms of content, it does have a nice sequence where we can see the phone in action. For you Storm fans that can't get enough of the new phone, I included another video for your viewing pleasure. The below footage isn’t from Verizon, but it does give a better look at the Storm’s capabilities. Enjoy!

Live Pics of AT&T Quickfire

Boy Genius Report today posted these live pics of AT&T’s new touchscreen/keyboard combo set to hit stores next week. We’re wondering if the Quickfire is merely AT&T’s answer to T-Mobile’s Sidekick, or if it’s just another AT&T smartphone with all the bells and whistles? Either way, it’s packin’ a pretty good price. A contract-free version will run you $300, but after the standard two-year agreement and mail-in rebate, it’s only $99. Not too shabby for 3G messaging, sliding touchscreen, QWERTY keyboard, music player and GPS.

UPDATE: Words going 'round that the Quickfire is coming out of the gate a little early and some lucky shoppers are already bringing this little bundle of joy home today.

Windows Waiting Game: Windows Mobile 6.5 set for 2009, while Windows Mobile 7 to drop in late 2010

Following the announced delay of Windows Mobile 7 and Motorola’s recent mention of Windows Mobile 6.5, we’ve all been standing around scratching our heads. While many believe it’s a little late, Steve Ballmer confirmed that Windows Mobile 6.5 is in the works and scheduled to drop next year. Everyone seems pretty tight-lipped as to what kind of improvements we can be expecting, but Ballmer did hint at an improved interface and software flow. While Windows Mobile 7 is speculated to be pushed back for a late 2010 release, sources close to Microsoft report that device partners should receive copies of WM6.5 within the next month. Meanwhile, Windows Mobile 6 users promptly respond with a standard “gimme-gimme” motion.

It's Wi-Fi Hotspots Galore for AT&T Customers

Today AT&T agreed to fork over $275 million in cash to acquire privately held Wayport, Inc. Wayport operates a network of Wi-Fi hotspots within the hospitality, health care, education and retail sectors. A hefty 20,000 hotspots come along with this acquisition bringing AT&T's Wi-Fi presence to more than 80,000 locations - because everyone should be able to check their stocks and cry while chowing on a Big Mac from McDonalds, or watch Lil’ Wayne’s newest music video on YouTube while staying at the Four Seasons.

Free BlackBerry Bold at Walmart?!

AT&T Pricing:

2-yr Contract Price... $399.99
Mail in rebate..........-$100.00
Price after rebate...... $299.99

Even if you forget to mail in your Walmart rebate you are still paying $200 less than you would have had you bought the Bold at AT&T. Of course, no one gets anything for free. There are a few details you might want to check out on the Let’s Talk site here before you click the “Buy” button.

Verizon Buys Alltel to Become Largest U.S. Carrier

The announcement of Verizon's $28.1 billion acquisition of Alltel has generated quite the buzz in cellular news, which is to be expected seeing as how this merger will cause Verizon to surpass AT&T as the U.S.'s largest cell phone carrier. When a cell phone carrier is acquired, there are generally numerous concerns raised by existing contract holders.

Well Alltel customers, let me interject a few facts to put your minds at ease.

. Verizon is known for great coverage and customer service, but not low rates. You may be asking, "Will my rates go up when it comes time to renew my contract?" Analysts are saying that this acquisition won't cause rates to go up, however, it does mean Verizon and AT&T will control almost half of the market. This invariably means fewer choices for cell phone carriers and fewer price cuts.

. Wireless company acquisitions are a long and tedious process requiring numerous government approvals. With the upcoming shuffle of politicians, I don't see any progress being made in that department until at least February or March 2009. Not to mention, the FCC will most likely toss in its two cents. Looks like Alltel users won't experience any implementations of the merger until late 2009 or possibly 2010.

Mergers aren't all bad. For example, Cingular customers got the iPhone out of the AT&T merger. Maybe Alltel customers who have experienced tons of dropped calls will see vast improvements in their network. Or perhaps they will be privy to some sweet new phone selections! Could it be the rumored LGVX9600? Guess you'll just have to wait and see.

Privus Mobile Jumps into the BerryStore and the BlackBerry Bold

Privus Mobile jumped out of the gate today with an announcement just minutes after the BlackBerry Bold’s release from AT&T. The cellular Caller ID provider announced that it is fully compatible with AT&T and RIM’s latest handheld smartphone, the BlackBerry Bold. Additionally, it looks like the service has found its way to the BerryStore, so Bold users have an additional way to get their hands, or fingers, around actual Caller ID for their brand-spankin-new smartphone.

Check out the actual release for a few of the additional details. You can snag a trial download off the Privus Mobile Web site at www.privusmobile.com or off of your handheld at www.privusmobile.mobi. Of course, BlackBerry users can always grab it from the BerryStore.

Nokia Still Tops Global Market Share Chart After Q3 2008

With the barrage of smartphones hogging the cellular spotlight, it might come as a surprise that Nokia is still number one globally with its far-from-sexy operating system, Symbian. According to numbers compiled by research firm IDC, Nokia’s global market share after the third quarter was 39.4 percent, while Samsung came in second with 17.3 percent and Sony Ericsson in third with 8.6 percent. Motorola and LG came in behind the top three with 8.5 percent and 7.7 percent, respectively. According to the Boy Genius Report, all of the top five, except for Motorola, saw net gains in the past 12 months. Motorola, unfortunately, slipped a staggering 31.7%. Ouch!

Microsoft + LG = Finally

Some good news out of the Redmond camp! Looks like Microsoft and LG might finally start seeing eye-to-eye on certain smartphones. LG’s had a killer lineup of touchscreen phones lately and the only thing that’s really held them back is their lackluster feature set. I’m sorry but who told LG it was a good idea to allow e-mail, but not Exchange or custom POP/IMAP? That question could become obsolete with a customized Windows Mobile operating system on their handsets.

It might take a little while for us to see the fruits of this new collaboration, but I think it will be more than worth the wait. While I love Samsung and HTC as much as the next guy, it’ll be nice to see someone else get in the mix and offer some solid competition. With Samsung on its third/fourth generation of BlackJack phones, maybe this will give the company a reason to introduce something new. We’ll probably see something by the time the rumored Windows Mobile 6.5 drops, but I’m betting we’ll see a stronger lineup with the Windows Mobile 7 crowd.

Check out the full release and details here.