This iPhone clone is pretty damn good - so good that I almost bought one myself. (Just to try it out) I added to my shopping cart but didn’t buy it eventually, because I like genuine stuff
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Canalys shows that Apple’s iPhone is now second place just following RIM (Blackberry) in the US smartphone market. In the 4th quarter of 2007, the iPhone surged to a 28% share of the US converged device market behind RIM’s 41%. This is not surprising because the demand for smartphones is increasing. Phones are not just to make calls anymore, we want it to be able to take pictures, web surfing, read/send emails, play games, and more.

I have been looking for a smartphone and HTC Touch Dual or iPhone seems attractive. Just a wild guess, I think iPhone will advance to 1st or 2nd internationally in the near future when it becomes more available and easier to unlock except the Turbo SIM method. In Canada, you can get an iPhone for ~$790 - only some stores have them in stock with limited quantities.

Source: TechCrunch

Did you know that over 850,000 phones meet death by toilet yearly in the UK? (reported in WirelessInfo.com) I was kind of surprised about the stats but cellphones end up in the toilet is not unusual indeed.

“Plenty of waterproof phones and other small weatherproof devices have made it off the assembly lines and into our clumsy clutches, but P2i, a small spinoff company using tech originated within the Defence Science and Technology Lab in England, could be bringing waterproof gadgets to the masses.” - courtesy of Engadget

What makes it water resisitant?

The company uses a substance called Ion-Mask is a special invisible coating that is chemically bonded to the device and repels water. The tech was originally designed to repel toxic vapors and liquids from military uniforms, and could be making its way into athletic shoes. Major leading phone makers are apparently in discussions over using the tech in future phones. Expect to see more waterproof phones in 2008!

To me, this LG KU990 gave me an iPhone feel, it terms of the phone or the box. However, in terms of features, LG KU990 have a gap compared to iPhone. It lacks of Wi-Fi and the touchscreen wasn’t impressive either… In fact, you need to use a stylus in order to get the Graffiti-like writing recognition to work.

Another problem with the phone was the speed. Really slow and stuttering when you compare it to the smoothness iPhone user interface. No wonder iPhone became the greatest product in 2007 where the year hasn’t finished yet.

Source: Engadget (Image: courtesy of Engadget)

In Canada, we’ve seen $3,000 cell phone bills. We’ve seen $10,000 cell phone bills. But now we’ve got a bill that’s approaching six figures, as a Canadian man has been hit with an $85,000 invoice!!!

And no, it’s not a computer error. Piotr Staniaszek had been using his cell phone as a modem for his computer, thinking he was covered under his $10-a-month unlimited mobile browser plan from Canadian telco Bell Mobility. He actually received the bill for $65,000. That’s not the end, when he called to complain, he was told that it had hit $85,000 for the use since the bill was mailed.

The likely problem is that Staniaszek got understandably confused about what his recently signed $10 data plan covered. Such plans often cover data use on the phone itself (such as texting or using the built-in browser on the phone), but not when it’s used as a modem with a PC. Bell Mobility has dropped the bill to just $3,243, but Staniaszek is still fighting it. (Of course.)

Staniaszek also notes that the phone company should have notified him when charges started to spiral out of control; previously he’d gotten a call when he racked up a mere $100 in charges on his old data plan. Now his bill climbs into the thousands and no one bats an eye. I’d be peeved, too.

Remember that all cell phone plans are not created equally, and “data” has numerous definitions. Before you connect your phone to your computer, make sure you understand the charges you’re setting yourself up for, and check your usage on your phone company’s website periodically (especially if you’re using your phone for something new) so that you don’t get slapped with any financial surprises.

Analog cell phone got to face the reality and begin to fade off the digital world. What the Scarsdale, N.Y., resident didn’t know was that the OnStar system in the car was already doomed and goes to deadpool. The federal government decided in 2002 to let cellular carriers shut down analog cell phone networks, used by Rothman’s Saab and about 500,000 other OnStar-equipped cars, after Feb. 18, 2008.

It’s the end of the nationwide network that launched the U.S. wireless industry 24 years ago, and it leaves a surprising number of users in the lurch. Perhaps a million cell phones will lose service, but those are cheap and easy to replace. The effects will be felt the most by people who have things that aren’t phones but have built-in wireless capabilities, like OnStar cars and home alarm systems.

Well, those Nokia Fans out there might be disappointed as the ‘First Access’ N-Gage application will be delayed until 2008. Nokia has confirmed.

“Unfortunately, as can sometimes happen in software development, unexpected difficulties can occur. We have been doing an internal run with more than 1,000 global testers this week, and during this process we uncovered an issue we feel we need to address. Overall, the games and service are working smoothly, but because of this issue, we feel we could not release N-Gage First Access before the holidays as planned.”

Source: Pocket Gamer

AT&T has confirmed that a 3G version of the Apple iPhone will be hitting stores in 2008, but with no set month for release as of yet.

In the past, Jobs has announced that 3G was “highly sought-after” but that the iPhone would not have it included until the battery life was not as severely affected. “So as you know, the handset battery life used to be 5-6 hours for GSM,” Jobs explained. “but when we got to 3G they got cut in half. Most 3G phones have battery lives of 2-3 hours [of talk time].” Jobs has said he would like to have a minimum of five hours of 3G before releasing an iPhone with the technology.

This is what I called a James Bond Pen! It’s a pen and a cell phone which you can talk while you write. Still in concept stage, the pen is designed to connect with Bluetooth headsets, a USB connector, microSD slot, an mono LCD screen to show numbers, day and date, and cell signal strength information. The are micro (and we do mean micro) phone and earpiece slots at either end of the pen. The only thing really missing from the phone is a camera.
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We already told you about it and now it’s finally put on sale in most European countries, it is LG’s latest smartphone: the KS20. Prada’s successor?
As a reminder, the KS20 is a 3.6MBps HSPDA phone, 12.8mm thick, featuring a 2.8 inches touchscreen, 2MPx camera, microSD, WiFi, Bluetooth, integrated FM tuner and running Windows Mobile 6.
If you want to know more, check the link to the dedicated website at the bottom of the page!

Source: http://ks20.lgmobile.com