Apple Ready to Sell Unlocked iPhones in US

NEW YORK   :  Apple Inclosed on Tuesday that they are going to sell "unlocked" iPhones in the U.S. for the first time, allowing owners to switch carriers to a limited extent and save money when traveling. Apple is selling them on its websites and its store for $649 and $749 depending on how much memory they have. They're identical to the versions sold for use on AT&T Inc.'s network, but don't require a two-year contract.

The buyer will separately have to buy a Subscriber Identity Module, or SIM card, from a carrier to activate the phone. Apart from AT&T, the only national U.S. carrier that's compatible with the phone is T-Mobile USA, and it can provide only phone calls and low data speeds. Its U.S. "3G" wireless high-speed data network isn't compatible with the iPhone.

Many overseas carriers, however, are fully compatible with the phone, so international travelers can switch out their U.S. SIM card with one from the local country to avoid AT&T's international roaming fees. Apple already sells unlocked iPhones in all other countries where the phone is available, according to Apple spokeswoman Natalie Harris.

Hackers have also made a sport of unlocking iPhones, freeing them up for resale and use in other countries. AT&T sells iPhone 4s that are locked but don't come with contracts, also for $649 and $749. Spokesman Mark Siegel said AT&T will not sell the new unlocked phones.

AT&T does not let customers unlock older iPhones either. The company provides unlock codes to customers with other phones if their contracts have expired or they're willing to pay an early termination fee.

Unlocked and no-contract phones are more expensive than phones sold under contract because carriers like AT&T subsidize phones that come with contracts, figuring that they will make their money back through service fees.

US Cellular Company Offers HTC 7 Pro WP7 Smartphone

 US Cellular has just officially released a new Windows Phone 7 powered smartphone, the HTC 7 Pro. This HTC smartphone is offering for priced at $199.99 on a new two-year agreement and after a $100 mail-in rebate.

 New HTC 7 Pro WP7 phone is already available via US Cellular’s official website. It is become the first regional US carrier to pick up this handset. As noted, this handset is also known as the HTC Arrive that offered by Sprint.

HTC 7 Pro smartphone sports a 3.6-inch capacitive touchscreen display with WVGA (800 x 480) resolution, a full physical QWERTY keyboard, GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, stereo Bluetooth, 3.5mm headset jack, a 5MP autofocus camera, and a 1500 mAh Li-Ion battery. The heart on HTC 7 Pro is a 1GHz Snapdragon single-core processor, 512MB RAM, 576MB ROM, and 16GB of on-board storage.

In additional, it packs Xbox LIVE integration, access to Zune and NetFlix. Dimensions of HTC 7 Pro are 4.63 x 2.32 x 0.61 inches and weighs 6.5 oz.

Samsung SGH-t528g Touchscreen Mobile Phone

 

 Samsung has just unveiled its new touchscreen phone in the US via TracFone carrier, called the Samsung SGH-t528g. This handset is comes with Samsung’s proprietary OS and combined TouchWiz 2.0 user interface.

 Feature on Samsung t528g cellphone is a 3-inch touchscreen display with three scrollable workspaces, 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity, a 2 megapixel camera with video recorder and 2x zoom, and stereo Bluetooth. The Samsung SGH-t528g phone is also providing a quick access to social networking sites. For battery, the battery of t528g is capable up to 6 hours in talk time, 10 days of standby mode.

 Samsung t528g handset is available in dark gray only. Dimensions of SGH-t528g are 4.33 x 2.01 x 0.47 inches and weighs 3.24 ounces.

HP Launching NFC WebOS Devices Later This Year

  NFC is getting stronger and stronger. After Google announced its upcoming Wallet service, which has arguably been the greatest catalyst for NFC-related talk recently, we now hear that another big-time player is considering adding NFC capabilities to its gadgets.

 According to Boomberg's unnamed sources, HP is actively working on getting some near-field communications love into its upcoming phones and tablets, running (Palm's) webOS platform. However, it looks like HP might not stop at just incorporating an NFC chip, but creating a whole ecosystem of its own.

 It is said that customers will be able to use the technology in order to pay for goods, as well as receive coupons and royalty points by placing their handsets near the designated objects (terminals, special posters, etc.), similarly to Google Wallet.

The rumor states that we may see HP's first NFC-enabled devices by the end of the year. As most are probably aware though, the company's first webOS tablet – the HP TouchPad, which is expected to launch on July 1 in the U.S. - will not sport an NFC chip inside. Oh well, having to wave your 10-inch tablet in front of a payment terminal probably wouldn't have been the most comfortable thing to do anyway.

Google Android Beating Symbian

 Symbian has been dismissive of Google Android, as well as smaller upstarts like the LiMo Foundation, arguing that the latter is overly focused on middleware for wireless operators and the former is fake open source with more hype than substance.

 All of which might be true, but the reality is that it seems to be working for Android. Google has been signing new handset manufacturers at a frenetic pace, while Symbian has been holding steady with Nokia...and that's about it.  Despite Symbian announcing new handsets, Google is actually shipping Android. There's a big difference between marketing and reality. Google Android offers the latter

For all the buzz that Android gets from developers, its success owes more to handset manufacturers than to open-source developers. Handset manufacturers and wireless carriers are hungry for alternatives to surging Apple and declining Microsoft. And while others may not be seeing source code in copious amounts, handset manufacturers are apparently getting their fill.

 More than this, though, Google gives them a safe, consumer-friendly brand. Symbian does not. This is the reason Google Android is winning. It's not about developers--at least, not yet. Neither Symbian nor Android really offers developers open communities and open code. No, the difference today is brand. Google has it. Symbian does not, and that's despite decade-long dominance of the mobile market.

Symbian still has a ways to go. It has a weak user interface (UI) that is supposed to get better, but that describes much that is wrong with Symbian today. Everything (source code, revamped UI, and resumption of market dominance) is always spoken of in the future tense.

Meanwhile, Google Android rolls on--not because it out open-sources Symbian, but rather because it out-executes it.