Nokia kills off N-Gage Gaming platform; Palm Pixi preview
Weekly roundup of smartphone news, including word about the iPhone expanding beyond AT&T deal, BlackBerry Storm2 pricinig, Motorola Droid’s debut and a Palm Pixi preview.
Here’s our weekly roundup of smartphone news, from the Motorola/Verizon Droid’s formal announcement to pricing info on the new BlackBerry Storm2 to a Palm Pixi preview to word about what might be beyond the exclusive Apple iPhone-AT&T deal:
Verizon takes a run at iPhone with its Motorola Droid smartphone
Wednesday’s formal unveiling of the Motorola Droid smartphone on Verizon’s network was an anticlimax, given most of the details had been leaked days earlier. Nevertheless, it’s the boldest, most open iPhone challenge yet. The announcement in New York revealed a handset almost exactly the size of Apple’s wildly successful iPhone, but with a sliding QWERTY keyboard. And it’s the first smartphone to run the new Android 2.0 operating system.
Google gives GPS a whirl
Computerworld reported that Google released a beta version of Google Maps Navigation for Android 2.0 devices. “This new feature comes with everything you’d expect to find in a GPS navigation system, like 3D views, turn-by-turn voice guidance and automatic rerouting,” wrote Keith Ito, a Google software engineer, on a blog post . “But unlike most navigation systems, Google Maps Navigation was built from the ground up to take advantage of your phone’s Internet connection.”
Sprint plans to release Palm Pixi in mid-November
Sprint said it will release the second Palm webOS device, the Palm Pixi smartphone, on Nov. 15, priced at $100, after $150 in rebates. he Pixi offers a full, exposed QWERTY keyboard, and a multi-touch screen that is smaller than the one featured on its sibling, the Palm Pre, whose keyboard slides out vertically. The 3G phone lacks Wi-Fi, which is featured in the higher-end Pre.
Nokia to pull plug on N-Gage gaming system
Nokia has finally decided to kill off its N-Gage gaming platform after years of shifting the strategy behind it with little success. Nokia introduced N-Gage in 2003 as a standalone handheld gaming device, which developed a small but enthusiastic following. Nokia later discontinued the device and instead came up with a plan to develop phones that would support the N-Gage platform. After a delay, it began introducing phones that could play N-Gage games in early 2008.
Verizon BlackBerry Storm2 Coming on Oct. 28 for $179.99
Verizon Wireless formally announced its newest BlackBerry smartphone, RIM’s Storm2 9550. The touchscreen mobile device, which RIM actually announced the week before, will run on CDMA and GSM networks.
Mobile phone shipments looking up
The mobile phone market grew 5.6% in the third quarter vs. the second quarter, the first increase since the economy headed south, according to an IDC report. Not that the market is out of the woods entirely, since shipments actually fell by 6% from Q3 last year.
Verizon-Apple iPhone deal in the future?
The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple will likely ditch its exclusive deal with AT&T next year and allow Verizon to offer subscribers iPhones as well. The Journal reports that a Broadpoint AmTech analyst wrote to clients that such a deal would make up in volume what Apple might lose via its “sweetheart” deal with AT&T, which pays Apple about $450 for each iPhone it sells.
Sprint plans open app store
Sprint Nextel next year will introduce a new, more open application store on its feature phones, turning to a third party to manage it with the goal of getting new offerings out to consumers in an average of one week.
The third-largest U.S. operator also will remove its own built-in set of application offerings, or “deck,” from its future BlackBerry handsets and from Windows phones from Windows Mobile 6.5 onward, said JP Brocket, general manager of wireless consumer applications, at the Sprint Open Developer Conference in Santa Clara, California. Sprint’s Android and Palm WebOS phones already ship without a Sprint application deck, relying on the Android Marketplace and Palm’s own stores.
Marvel Comics come to iPhone Macworld reported that “Excelsior! Comixology, makers of the free comic-book app Comics, have brought one of the “big two” comics publishers to the iPhone for the first time. The company announced that, effective immediately, several comics from Marvel Comics will be available for purchase via in-app purchase from the free Comics app.”
