Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

No kidding, right?  I think maybe everyone but Nokia saw it coming.  Or maybe they did too…just not at this drastic of a level. 

According to the popular market research firm Canalys, Nokia’s market share dropped down to 38.9 percent in the third quarter; which is down from 51.4 just a year earlier.  On the other hand, Apple jumped to 17.3 percent, and RIM increased to 15.2 the same quarter.

Canalys credits some of the Apple and RIM increases to new phones and new marketing strategies.  In a statement, the firm said “"The introduction of the iPhone 3G in July and Apple’s expansion into many more countries helped propel the vendor to second place globally.“  Continued.

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Rogers and RIM have announced the availability of the affordable BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220, and beginning November 4 customers will be able to grab one for just $49.99.  That’s right, Rogers has come in quite a bit lower than the $149 that T-Mobile customers in the US will have to pay. 

Of course, the Rogers branded Pearl Flip does have a few catches in order to get that low price.  Thankfully, the few catches will be easy to handle.  First off, customers must have a monthly service fee of at least $35, and second they must be willing to sign a three-year agreement.  All in all this sounds like pretty good news for Pearl Flip loving Rogers customers, it seems the only decision would be which color to get.  Initially the Pearl Flip will be available in black, and then a second option, pink, will be available in a few weeks.

Read [RIM]

• RIM announces re-launch of Mobile BlackBerry website
• Rogers now offering the Nokia E71 for $49
• AT&T wants a Symbian iPhone?  Are you kidding me?

HP phones are all business, and the latest announcement from them shows us they will stay with that focus.  While both are based on Windows Mobile 6.1 and feature a new optical gliding navigation (one upping the BB Pearl) the two phones take different form factors.  Both are geared for Europe and are available without a SIM card or as part of a Vodafone package.

The two phones, the Voice Messenger, a candybar style and the Data Messenger, a horizontal slider with full QWERTY keypad look fantastic as compared to other iPaqs.  Style has finally infiltrated HP and hopes are high they’ll bring this sense to the US market.  Both phones feature Wi-Fi, HSDPA, AGPS and 3.1 megapixel camera with flash.

Check out more of these uncharacteristically stylish gems.

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T-Mobile has some new BlackBerry Pearls coming out today.  The BlackBerry Pearl 8120 will be available in frost, black emerald, and indigo.  RIM is not resting on its laurels with the introduction of the Storm, the Pearl Flip 8220 and the now slightly refreshed Pearl 8120.

What was once a very very drab and utilitarian device, the BlackBerry has evolved into quite the consumer-friendly device while sticking to its roots by being the phone to have if you want to do business on your phone.  This newest color upgrade looks like a play to get some folks buying BlackBerries this holiday season. 

• RIM announces re-launch of Mobile BlackBerry website
• Glimpse at the iPhone of 2012
• AT&T wants a Symbian iPhone?  Are you kidding me?

Finally, BlackBerry’s first flip phone, dubbed BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220, was released exclusively by T-Mobile USA.  BlackBerry Pearl users who would opt to upgrade to this new BlackBerry phone might find it similar to the original BlackBerry Pearl.  With a new distinguishing feature, of course, that this one is a flip phone.  Aside from being a flip phone, the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 also features some great smartphone functionality.

Those who have used a BlackBerry handsets before know that one of the strengths of BlackBerry smartphones is their integration with enterprise email solution.  More after the break.

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After finding out I was on crack this week, I was reminded of some information I had on BlackBerries.  As you know, Research in Motion (“RIM”) is releasing their Pearl 8220, the first BlackBerry with a clamshell design.  Gadgetell got a chance to speak to RIM and found out that the keyboard on a clamshell BlackBerry will probably never be a full keyboard.

According to RIM, the clamshell format precludes the usage of a full keyboard.  The form factor would become very strange and users just wouldn’t go for it.  That does not necessarily mean that there are not other form factors that RIM could choose like a slider or even a Sidekick-style format. 

If you want a full keyboard and clamshell form factor, just get that out of your head.  It’s just not happening. 

• RIM announces re-launch of Mobile BlackBerry website
• The new failure of a keyboard
• AT&T wants a Symbian iPhone?  Are you kidding me?

It looks like the detail floodgate has opened up for the soon-to-be released T-Mobile BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220.  Although, it is not coming in as low priced as we had hoped for.  All things considered, it does seem to be pretty fairly priced, and in fact, it seems to be a little better than the deal that Rogers currently has for the same model.

The pricing with T-Mobile here in the US will, as usual, vary depending on contract length.  Those willing to accept a two-year agreement can expect to pay $149.99, however a one-year agreement adds just an additional $50 to make it $199.99.  That pricing is for new customers and both come after a $50 mail-in-rebate, but those rebates seem to be pretty standard nowadays.

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As much as this pains me to say, it appears as if Best Buy is becoming the place to go for popular handsets.  It was not that long ago that they added the iPhone 3G and HTC Touch Diamond. 

Now, it looks like customers will soon be able to grab a few more smartphones and it seems that October 26 is the day to look forward to.  On that day Best Buy will make the unlocked Palm Treo Pro available.  Of course, that is perhaps the least exciting of the bunch as the Pearl Flip 8220 and HTC G1 will also be made available that same day. 

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A recently surfaced image has shown off a new third color for the soon to be released BlackBerry Pearl Flip. Currently, we had seen and been expecting the Pearl Flip to be available in either black or red, but these recent images show it off in silver with a black face.

As of now we are unsure if the silver will be available with T-Mobile or even Rogers upon the initial release. The images come courtesy of a RIM press release that was written in Spanish, and sadly upon translation the release does not seem to offer any more than just the image. The release does not mention any specific colors and just lists the availability as a general sounding “through mobile operators around the world starting this fall.“ Quite possibly the silver will be reserved and used for another (non-North American) launch, but it would be nice to see it made available as an unlocked handset.

Read [MiBlackBerry] Via [CrackBerry]

• RIM announces re-launch of Mobile BlackBerry website
• AT&T wants a Symbian iPhone?  Are you kidding me?
• Can a Hail Mary save Palm?  Warning issued

Please check out the comment at the end of the first paragraph.

T-Mobile seems to be moving forward with the release of the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220and have added a new page on the website for interested buyers to pre-register. As of now, it seems to be just a matter of time before you will be able to give up your hard earned money for the very first flip-styled BlackBerry. However, the addition to the T-Mobile website seems to be more of a formality as you can only pre-register for the phone, which means that you are just signing up to be notified when the Pearl Flip is actually available for sale.

It would have been nice to see T-Mobile include some pricing or availability information. At this point, it seems we will have to wait just a little longer. The latest official word on availability came from the RIM press release which simply stated it would be available this fall. Keep in mind, that in the past, T-Mobile has been fairly quick to release new models once they appear on the website. We can only hope to see it come available within the next few weeks, but more important is that price. Let’s hope that T-Mobile and RIM have decided to keep it low.

Product [T-Mobile]

• RIM announces re-launch of Mobile BlackBerry website
• AT&T wants a Symbian iPhone?  Are you kidding me?
• Can a Hail Mary save Palm?  Warning issued