HTC EVO 4G sets new sales record for Sprint

Much of the tech world’s media types may currently be focused on Apple’s newly unveiled iPhone 4 handset, but that doesn’t mean the cogs of industry have ground to a halt where rival mobile phones are concerned.

Moreover, the folks over at Sprint will be eager to draw consumer attention towards the recently released HTC EVO 4G smartphone, which has reportedly broken the wireless carrier’s one-day sales record.

That’s according to research specialist FBR Capital Markets, which has offered up an EVO 4G traction estimate it claims has brought 100,000 new customers to Sprint alongside a healthy 220,000 existing customers who are thought to have opted for a handset upgrade.

HTC’s EVO 4G may not boast the seemingly irresistible brand power attributed to Apple’s mobile devices, but it has certainly found favour with the critics thanks to its super-speedy 4G connectivity, Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 1GB of ROM, 512MBs of RAM, a bundled 8GB microSD card, and a spacious 4.3-inch WVGA capacitive touch-screen display.

Other contributing elements luring prospective buyers away from competing devices such as the iPhone and BlackBerry, include Google’s Android OS (v2.1), the Sense user interface, Wi-Fi (802.11b/g), an 8.0 mega-pixel rear-facing camera, a 1.3 mega-pixel front-facing camera, 720p HD video capture, and support for up to eight wireless devices through the 3G and 4G Mobile Hotspot.

Factor in Google services such as Search, Maps, Gmail and YouTube alongside onboard GPS, Bluetooth 2.1, an FM radio, a HDMI port, a digital compass, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a kickstand for hands-free viewing/multimedia playback, and the HTC EVO 4G’s price tag of $200 USD means the phone is all-but selling itself.

Apple Announces iPhone4

Drooling Apple (NSDQ:AAPL) fans the world over got their first true glimpse at the Apple iPhone 4 yesterday, when Apple chief Steve Jobs showcased the latest iPhone iteration at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San Francisco.The device is already being heralded as a powerhouse and seen as superior to its predecessor, the Apple iPhone 3G, plus the previous two iPhone generations -- but does anyone care about those anymore anyway?
The new Apple iPhone 4, which hits stores June 24, certainly packs a punch. It's 24 percent thinner than its predecessor and runs Apple's self-made ARM-based A4 central processor, the same chip that powers the Apple iPad touch-screen tablet. It's the first device to tie in iPhone OS 4 and adds a 5-megapixel camera that takes stills and 720p HD video. The camera is front-facing, making video chat available. The hardware also features a three-axis gyroscope for gaming accuracy; a 3.5-inch scratch-resistant glass display, dubbed Retina, that offers 326 pixels per inch for a clearer picture; and new iPhone software that adds reader functionalities similar to the iPad.
And with the 16-GB model and 32-GB model running $199 and $299, respectively, iPhone 4 isn't too much of a drain on the wallet.
Still, as with anything Steve Jobs and Co. unleash on the gadget-hungry Apple faithful, it hasn't been met without criticism. Here we take a look at five letdowns, or bummers, of the Apple iPhone 4.
1. FaceTime video calling works only over Wi-Fi: One of the biggest coups for the Apple iPhone 4 is the ability to make video calls using the new FaceTime offering. But FaceTime, for now, only works over Wi-Fi. Yes, video calling overWi-Fi is better than no video calling at all, but isn't the point to be able to have an impromptu video chat anywhere at any time, or attend a last-minute meeting on the fly? Granted, the ability to use FaceTime on 3G networks would be a bandwidth drain, but in a pinch it would be a nice option to have.
2. FaceTime also only works iPhone 4 to iPhone 4: In true Apple fashion, one of the coolest new features in iPhone 4 works only with other iPhone 4s. It's unclear how long the video service will be limited to just the newest-generation iPhone, but your dreams of calling your pal who still uses an iPhone 3G S and taunting him over a video chat won't come true any time soon.
3. The iPhone is still AT&T (NYSE:T) only: There was a collective sigh of disappointment when, after Jobs showcased the Apple iPhone 4, there was no mention of the device hitting other carrier networks. The world had hoped and prayed that Verizon would get its crack at the iPhone and rip iPhone exclusivity away from AT&T. That wasn't the case. There's always next year, though.


4. AT&T's scrapping of unlimited data plans: Sure, this isn't really an Apple problem, but it will affect nearly every Apple iPhone 4 user. AT&T last week deep-sixed its $30 unlimited wireless data plans for smartphones, netbooks and the Apple iPad and replaced them with a 200-MB-per-month plan for $15 and a 2-GB-per-month plan for $25, with $10 for each additional GB. AT&T claims the new plans will save most consumers money, but iPhone loyalists, especially those who use their devices for bandwidth-intensive apps (many more of which are sure to surface with the new iPhone 4 capabilities), the first AT&T bill under the new plans could be a rude awakening. The disappearance of AT&T's unlimited data plans are another reason Apple should start looking elsewhere -- ahem, Verizon Wireless -- for its darling iPhone.


5. The Apple iPhone 4 is cool, but it's no HTC EVO 4G: Possibly the biggest iPhone challenger to surface since the industry started seeking a true iPhone killer is the HTC EVO 4G, the first commercially available 4G smartphone, which runs on Sprint (NYSE:S)'s WiMax network. The comparisons are bound to happen, but the iPhone 4, for all of its luster, still lacks a little of the flare of the Google Android HTC EVO 4G, which ties in a better camera and larger screen. The EVO also has support for Google (NSDQ:GOOG) Voice, free navigation and unlimited multitasking. The comparisons are sure to continue, but as the JC News Network pointed out: "The new iPhone 4 doesn't mean it is a 4G phone. The only 4G phone as of the moment is the HTC EVO 4G. It is being powered by Sprint Mobile that uses WiMax, the only network provider that offers 4G." Only time will tell which one is the true victor, but so far, the HTC EVO 4G is off to a strong start.

Buffalo launches DriveStation USB 2.0 hard drive

Japan-based networking, storage, multimedia and memory solutions provider, Buffalo Technology, today announced their DriveStation USB 2.0 hard drive HD-CXTU2 series. The hard drive features an integrated hardware AES 256-bit encryption chip, which provides optional full disk encryption for protection against unauthorized access.

"The device is idle for secure, high speed storage and backup. With a simple plug and play option and benefits like Eco Manager and Secure Lock this Drive Station proves to be an innovative storage solution for consumers, said Susumu Kobayashi, Country Head, Buffalo Technology.

One can store and back up thousands of music, video, photo and data files. The Drive Station also offers up to 165 percent faster transfer speed with the Turbo PC software. The DriveStation HD-CXTU2 also includes Buffalo Tools, a feature rich suite of tools designed to enhance PC performance.

Backed with 3 years warranty the DriveStation HD-CXTU2 series is available in three capacities: Drive Station 1.0TB for MRP 13,500, Drive Station 1.5TB for MRP 20,000 and Drive Station 2.0TB for MRP 27,000.

Spice mobile S-7000 at price Rs. 7499 !!!

Spice mobile S-7000 newly launched handset by Spice Mobile Ltd. has special features for video viewing. The latest mobile from Spice is targeted for people who are interested video making and viewing them on cell. With 3G services coming into market, S-7000 which supports all video format will be very suitable for customers in Indian market. Equipped with multi format video player, S-7000 has 3.2" WQVGA full touch screen. Spice mobile S-7000 is available at price Rs. 7,499.

Spice mobile S-7000 has 3.2 MP camera with video playback option and also users can shoot their own video with this handset. The mobile can also be used as webcam while chatting with the friends through this mobile. It has big screen and high quality speakers making listening attractive for music.


Spice mobile S-7000 has features and specification well suited to its usage. In order to give space for video files, it has inbuilt memory of 19MB and expandable memory of up to 16GB. The phone is available in white color only. The Spice mobile S-7000 battery has talk time of 3.5 hours and stand by time capacity of 220 hours. It has dimensions of 108*52*11.8 mm. It can support more than 1,000 phone book entries.

Google Phone In January, Unlocked, Thinner Than iPhone

At last, the Googlephone has appeared. Forget the Droid, the G1 and all those other Android wannabees. Google will begin to sell its own reference Android 2.1 handset, designed by Google,made by hardware partner HTC, and called the Nexus One. The phone will be sold online by Google itself.
The Nexus One will, crucially, be sold unlocked, giving Google complete control over the hardware and software with no pesky carrier interference. Even the iPhone, which has had almost unprecedented autonomy in its functionality is still constrained by carriers: AT&T’s anti-tethering paranoia is a good example.
Although not yet officially announced, Google has coyly admitted that the phone is real and will be on sale early in the new year. In fact, it has provided the handset to its employees in order to test it out in the wild. The Google Mobile Blog explains, somewhat cryptically:

We recently came up with the concept of a mobile lab, which is a device that combines innovative hardware from a partner with software that runs on Android to experiment with new mobile features and capabilities, and we shared this device with Google employees across the globe. This means they get to test out a new technology and help improve it.
Unfortunately, because dogfooding is a process exclusively for Google employees, we cannot share specific product details. We hope to share more after our dogfood diet.

The phone is already in use. Nerdy John Gruber of Daring Fireball found this user agent string in his site’s logs:

Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Android 2.1; en-us; Nexus One Build/ERD56C) AppleWebKit/530.17 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/530.17

It makes sense to identify yourself as Mobile Safari, if only to get proper mobile Webkit pages served to you.
Characteristically, and in contrast to Apple’s secrecy, photos of the Googlephone are already being posted openly by Googlers, or being handed to their friends. The picture above, posted on Twitpic by blogger Cory O’Brien, shows the handset (taken on an iPhone and with a BlackBerry in the background). According to O’Brien, “Google Phone = iPhone + a little extra screen and a scroll wheel. Great touch screen, and Android”.
The hardware specs are also leaking. Erick Schonfeld at TechCrunch says that the Nexus will run on Qualcomm’s speedy Snapdragon chip, sport an OLED display, be thinner than the iPhone (with no physical keyboard) and feature two microphones along with a “weirdly large” camera.
Those hoping to get an iPhone-caliber phone on Verizon are out of luck. The Nexus will be a GSM phone, which means T-Mobile and AT&T in the US. Worse, if you do opt for AT&T, your data connection could be EDGE-only. Gruber again, from Twitter.

The bummer I’m hearing about Nexus One: it’s GSM and unlocked, but on T-Mobile’s 3G band, so it works on AT&T but EDGE-only.

According to the Media Memo blog at the Wall Street Journal, the choice to use GSM was prompted by Verizon’s refusal to carry the Nexus. Verizon already sells the Android-based Droid, but this odd decision looks like a repeat of the one made when the carrier turned down the iPhone.
This may turn out to be a Zune-like move, where Microsoft alienated hardware makers by ignoring PlaysForSure in favor of its own new DRM scheme. Or the Nexus could be a light that burns twice as bright as all the existing confusion of Android handsets combined, thus building a brand that can rival the iPhone. Either way, we won’t have to wait for long to see. The Nexus should be on sale in early January, and if these last two days are any indication, then Googlers will have “leaked” all the hardware and software well before the launch.

Dell earns $6.5 million, thanks to Twitter

Those who say that Twitter is nothing more than a place where people share inconsequential experiences in their lives might want to listen up. Dell told Bloombergon Tuesday that it has earned an estimated $6.5 million in sales of PCs, accessories, and software, thanks to promotions on Twitter.

Dell's vice president for the company's online unit, Manish Mehta, told Bloomberg that over the past three months alone, the number of people who have started following Dell's tweets has risen 23 percent. The company's DellOutlet account, which is home to most of the vendor's sales announcements, currently has almost 1.5 million followers. But unlike some companies, Dell has made Twitter an integral part of its operation. Bloomberg reported that "more than 100 employees send out the tweets" to customers.

"It's a very vibrant channel for us and it's growing aggressively," Mehta told Bloomberg, referring to Twitter. "It's not just our reach and growth that has progressed, it's that it's happening globally."

Mehta told Bloomberg that its Twitter accounts are followed by people in 12 countries. Brazil users alone spent $800,000 in the past eight months, he said.

Samsung's Bada Aims to Bring Apps to All

Samsung has revealed a bit more about Bada, a new mobile phone platform that's supposed to bring apps to cheaper smartphones.

Bada will include a lot of the features you'd expect in a smartphone, such as motion and proximity sensors, accelerometers, face detection, and location-based services. Bada-based phones will focus on apps, and Samsung, like so many others, is trying to attract app developers with openness and flexibility. It's worth noting that Samsung will allow apps to control the dialer, send messages, anbd access contact lists. These are the kinds of features you see in, say, the iPhone.

But Bada phones will not be like the iPhone. Samsung calls it a "smartphone for everyone," in essence bringing the app-centric mentality of high-end smartphones down a notch to cheaper feature phones. The manufacturer believes there's a market for that, citing its own survey that found 42 percent of feature phone users willing to pay for apps, and 54 percent of those people saying they'd pay up to 5 Euros (roughly $7) for apps.

So far, Bada has attracted some heavy hitters, particularly in gaming. Electronic Arts, Capcom, andGameloft (developer of Ubisoft-licensed games, among others) will release games on the platform. Twitter and Blockbuster are also getting involved in Bada.

What's the catch? Samsung hasn't announced any phones yet, but I doubt Bada phones will be as desirable as high-end smartphones. Still, it's too early to judge. But in the United States, I see one potential snag: Any phone that consumes a lot of data, including Samsung's existing Omnia phones, is subject to thesame $30 or more for monthly data as high-end phones such as the iPhone and the Droid.

At that point, is downgrading worthwhile? If you want apps, you can get an iPhone or Droid Eris for $100, and Palm's Pre or Pixi for even less. At least then, you're getting proven app platforms instead of a fledgling one.