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Verizon stores struck by HTC Thunderbolt Wireless Charging Battery Cover

admin — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 07:38:57 +0000

Solid as HTC’s Thunderbolt may be from a software perspective, its battery life has proven to be less than striking — unless you’ve been rocking it with that ultra-chunky extended battery. In comparison, its streamlined and Qi-certified battery cover was slated as another option, but there’s been nary a mention of it since that accidental tease on Verizon’s website in April. According to Droid Life, it’s actually now available from Verizon retail locations for about $30 to complement the $70 charging base — great for users who: a. hold disdain for cables, b. don’t mind a few extra charges, or c. wear skinny jeans. There’s no mention of when we’ll see the hopefully convenient accessory pop up on Verizon’s website, but at least it’s out there somewhere for those willing to look.

Verizon stores struck by HTC Thunderbolt Wireless Charging Battery Cover originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Jun 2011 01:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Isis mobile payments coming to Austin in 2012

jedwan — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 00:10:36 +0000

Certain to “Keep Austin Weird,” Isis has selected the home of SXSW as its second market for a mobile payment tryout. The joint-venture backed by AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless (with help from MasterCard and Visa), will work with local merchants and the Chamber of Commerce to deliver what it calls a “comprehensive mobile experience” by mid-2012. Isis’ latest metropolitan recruit joins Salt Lake City in this experiment that will compete with Google Wallet (which is endorsed by Sprint). Quick advice to Austinites: when out-of-towners begin gawking at you for getting “free” lattes and concert tickets by waving your phone about, be sure to explain the wonders of NFC — it’d be a shame for them to attempt the same — only to be taken into custody by the Austin PD. Jump the break for the PR.

Continue reading Isis mobile payments coming to Austin in 2012

Isis mobile payments coming to Austin in 2012 originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Fri, 24 Jun 2011 18:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget Primed: how wireless and inductive charging works

jedwan — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 21:00:22 +0000

Primed goes in-depth on the technobabble you hear on Engadget every day — we dig deep into each topic’s history and how it benefits our lives. Looking to suggest a piece of technology for us to break down? Drop us a line at primed *at* engadget *dawt* com.

The world of wireless is dragging us into the 21st century kicking and screaming. Our treatise on NFC was a great sneak peek into how our future will play out over the next five years, but we’re also seeing other types of suave new tricks coming out as short-range wireless technology creeps closer to the mainstream. Wireless is the crux of convenience that will keep us calm enough to make our way through this speed-demon culture. It didn’t take long for our quest to obtain simpler and faster everything to become an obsession, and it shows no signs of stopping; on the contrary, it’s only speeding up exponentially at a rate even manufacturers have a hard time keeping up with.

Wireless charging is making some serious headway in public mindshare. Once confined to toothbrushes and other simple household items, it’s now a handy means of powering phones (HP’s Touchstone, for example) and media players, and it’ll soon be ready to charge up our notebooks and cameras at our command. Are we sure this is the future, or will this just be a passing fad? Why should it matter? Read on after the break to get the air-conditioned answers to those burning questions.

Continue reading Engadget Primed: how wireless and inductive charging works

Engadget Primed: how wireless and inductive charging works originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 24 Jun 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon’s next big LTE push coming July 21st

jedwan — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 07:32:11 +0000

You can’t stop Verizon’s nationwide LTE push — and even hoping to contain it seems like a bit much to ask these days. The company made its last major 4G service rollout just under a week ago, and now it’s looking to do the same next month, adding a slew of new markets to its coverage umbrella and expanding in a few existing locales on July 21st. New markets include Portland, OR, Toledo, OH, Winston-Salem and Raleigh-Durham, NC, Maui, HI, Wichita, KS, and Knoxville, TN, to name a few. Coverage will be expanded in Seattle, Louisville, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Las Vegas. The full list of high-speed recipients can be found in the link below.

Verizon’s next big LTE push coming July 21st originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Jun 2011 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VZW leak teases HTC Thunderbolt update: Skype Video, Android 2.3.4 coming June 30th?

jedwan — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 15:36:58 +0000

It’s taken Verizon Wireless a painfully long time to get here, but it looks like the HTC Thunderbolt — the carrier’s once flagship 4G LTE device — might finally be getting the much talked about, but not-quite-officially delivered Skype with Video. We first brought you news of a leaked build back in April, but if this rumored June 30th release pans out, you’ll get to experience mobile video chat with your honeybun first-hand, as well as some Android 2.3.4 loving. As is the case with most carrier updates, Big Red appears to be loading this one up with some goodies — not just bloatware. Sure, the requisite VZW apps are on-board, but how’s about some Gtalk Video, a pre-loaded Amazon Appstore, and a handy fix for those irritating reboots? Keep in mind, we’re still firmly planted in rumor territory, but it does seem like Thunderbolt owners are getting closer to the initial dream.

VZW leak teases HTC Thunderbolt update: Skype Video, Android 2.3.4 coming June 30th? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Jun 2011 16:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon lights LTE in 19 new locales today

admin — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 07:42:47 +0000

We had a good feeling that June 16th would be remembered for new thrills. In addition to America’s first roller coaster opening at Coney Island in 1884, Verizon and T-Mobile are blanketing large swaths of users in 4G waves today. For Big Red’s part, it’s lighting up the 700 MHz spectrum in 19 metropolitan areas, including: Fresno, Sacramento, Spokane, Boise, Salt Lake City, Dayton, Grand Rapids, Milwaukee and Hartford, and expanding coverage in San Francisco and Detroit. If you’re disappointed that your city wasn’t mentioned, hit the break for the full list — there’s ten more cities in the PR. As for progress, Verizon claims its LTE coverage extends to 74 locales as of today, which puts the company halfway toward its goal of 147 cities by year’s end. Not a bad use for Block C purchases, eh?

Continue reading Verizon lights LTE in 19 new locales today

Verizon lights LTE in 19 new locales today originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 23:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Droid 2 Global gets Gingerbread, customizable dock and more in latest update from Verizon

admin — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 08:10:19 +0000

Droid 2 Global users, your moment in the Gingerbread sun has arrived. Verizon’s put up a page with download instructions for a 103MB update, taking your QWERTY slider from version 2.4.330 to 4.5.600. Updating isn’t the most taxing of activities, you just look for a system update in the About Phone menu and then give your blessing for the download to commence. VZW will also be prompting tardy users to take their OTA medicine in due course. So what’s new apart from Android 2.3? Well, the big change is that the previously static phone, contacts and apps icons at the bottom of the UI have now been turned into a user-customizable dock, with three links of your choosing sidling up next to the App Launcher. There’s also a freshened up UI look, a Download Manager App, user-definable App Groups, encryption for data both on the device and its SD card, improvements in battery life while using WiFi and Bluetooth, and the obligatory stability fixes. If all that sounds irresistible and you have the requisite phone in hand, go get it!

[Thanks, Jon]

Droid 2 Global gets Gingerbread, customizable dock and more in latest update from Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Jun 2011 02:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Droid 3 leaks out in tutorial vids, confirms 8MP camera and 1080p recordings (video)

admin — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 07:04:08 +0000

Verizon and Motorola have kept a tighter lid on the Droid 3 than many recent smartphones we’ve seen, but a nice big leak just sprang from the bottom of the pot — startup gadget blog PhonePads obtained three tutorial videos of the five-row QWERTY slider strutting its stuff. While there’s no discussion of any dual-core silicon, there is indeed an 8 megapixel camera on board, which is apparently capable of 1080p HD video recordings. Other changes include what seem to be a pair of volume keys on the right edge (instead of the usual rocker), the apparent lack of a dedicated camera button, and both micro-USB and mini-HDMI on the left edge in the Droid X2 configuration. You’ll apparently still get your Swype virtual keyboard, but it’s hard to say what version of Android the handset will include — Verizon clearly states “Software Shown Not Final” on every single video. Find more footage after the break.

Continue reading Motorola Droid 3 leaks out in tutorial vids, confirms 8MP camera and 1080p recordings (video)

Motorola Droid 3 leaks out in tutorial vids, confirms 8MP camera and 1080p recordings (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Qualcomm ships one billion BREWs, Verizon thirsty for more

jedwan — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 03:56:35 +0000

Qualcomm isn’t finished with the dumbphone just yet. Even after announcing that 250 handsets with Snapdragon cores are in the pipeline, CEO Paul Jacobs slapped his Uplinq 2011 audience with a stunner: over one billion BREW-enabled devices have been shipped. For its part, Qualcomm is continuing to stoke BREW’s flames, and Verizon seems perfectly willing to stay aboard. The carrier will introduce several BREW MP devices over the coming months, and the majority of these phones will feature a new storefront for mobile purchases — oh joy. In addition to getting recommendations, shoppers will be able to test drive many applications before making purchases. This is all well and good, but we’d prefer Jacobs had previewed some of those new Snapdragons. Follow the break for a joint PR from Qualcomm and Verizon.

Continue reading Qualcomm ships one billion BREWs, Verizon thirsty for more

Qualcomm ships one billion BREWs, Verizon thirsty for more originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Fri, 03 Jun 2011 21:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC HD7S coming to AT&T on June 5 for $200

jedwan — Thu, 19 May 2011 23:23:00 +0000

Do we sense just a wee bit of jealousy here? Not to be outdone by Verizon’s Windows Phone darling, AT&T swiftly reacted to the Trophy’s official launch by whipping the long-expected HTC HD7S out on Facebook and stamping a seal of approval on it. With the go-ahead in place, we can expect to see the new device going on sale June 5 at a penny under $200. This may be a tad steep when comparing its WP7 brethren, but it’s not an unusual starting price for many of AT&T’s top-end smartphones. If you like to fill up your inbox with the latest “email alerts and special offers,” drag your cursor to the source link below.

HTC HD7S coming to AT&T on June 5 for $200 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 May 2011 16:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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