T-Mobile is to be the first carrier to offer a mobile phone powered by Google’s Android software.
The phone will be made by HTC, one of the largest makers of mobile phones in the world, and is expected to go on sale in the United States before Christmas, according to reports.
The GPS maker Garmin has delayed plans to launch its Nuvifone smartphone in the fourth quarter of 2008 until the first half of 2009.
Obstacles in dealing with the various individual needs of each cell phone carrier were cited as the reason for the delay.
Touchscreen handset could have a potentially revolutionary impact on mobile gaming, according to a report by Screen Digest.
In particular, Apple’s iPhone 3G is expected to drive the growth of the North American market raising it to the leading global market by revenue next year.
The media analyst’s study says that the world’s top four games publishers are taking an ever bigger share of the market for mobile games.
EA Mobile, Gameloft, Glu and THQ Wireless have seen their global market shares increase from 11 per cent to 22 per cent in 2007 and the figure is rising, particularly in Western Europe.
Global demand for mobile devices is expected to reach 1.3 billion units in 2008 despite financial uncertainties, according to ABI Research
As the recent launch of the 3G iPhone demonstrated, the public appetite for the latest, most sophisticated smartphones is strong.
Verizon Wireless has exceeded analysts’s predictions and posted impressive second quarter earnings of US$1.88 billion.
A key factor in the results was increased smartphone sales, which now account for 30 per cent of the US carrier’s device sales.
Denny Strigl, Verizon’s president and COO, even went as far as to give the build up of interest for the 3G iPhone’s launch earlier this month some of the credit for his company’s results.
A fortnight after the iPhone 3G was launched many Apple retail stores have no handsets in stock and lengthy queues form outside those that do.
Now AT&T has provided frustrated buyers with further evidence that Apple’s latest handset is popular – the carrier has sold twice as many Apple iPhone 3G units upon launch as they did a year ago with the first generation iPhone.
Motorola has sued a former executive for allegedly violating a non-compete agreement and threatening to reveal its trade secrets by taking a job with Apple’s iPhone division, the mobile phone maker said in a lawsuit.
Michael Fenger accepted “millions of dollars in cash, restricted stock units, and stock options” in exchange for agreeing not to join a competitor for two years after leaving Motorola, where he oversaw mobile devices in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the lawsuit said.
Some impressive mobile phone product launches between now and the year-end will help the world’s mobile handset markets finish 2008 with strong sales, according to ABI Research.
Spurred on by the launch of Apple’s second-generation iPhone, rival handset vendors such as RIM, Nokia and Samsung are also expected to debut new models in the second half of 2008.
As the iPhone notches up one million sales Palm and HP launch their latest smartphones with a little less fanfare.
With hardly a whimper Palm’s Treo 800w and Hewlett-Packard’s iPaQ 910 have been released on to a smartphone market still largely focussed on Friday’s iPhone launch.
They will be held up against Apple’s latest handset, which is now available in 21 countries and will go on sale in France on July 17.
Rhythm NewMedia, a leader in mobile video, has announced the availability of the free vSNAX Videos native iPhone application on the Apple App Store.
vSNAX Videos promises to deliver mobile video clips to iPhone and iPod touch users from more than 20 premium media partners including AccuWeather.com, Ford Models, Ripe TV, and MTV Networks’ VH1, Spike and GameTrailers.