Nextel Cell Phones

T-Mobile USA today announced that it will offer Research In Motion's Curve 8900 in February. The 8900 is thinner and lighter than previous Curve models. Its key features include a 512 MHz processor, 3 megapixel camera, 3.5mm audio jack, ...
(follow link to read)

Today LG introduced the HFB-500, a new mobile phone car kit that uses solar power to provide the energy necessary to run a speakerphone when in the car, making use of the cigarette lighter unnecessary. The hands-free device has ...
(follow link to read)

Verizon Wireless indicated in regulatory filings that it plans to close its acquisition of Alltel on Friday, January 9. Verizon is paying $5.9 billion for Alltel, as well as taking on $22.9 billion of debt. The acquisition will make ...
(follow link to read)

Mobile Spy, that terrible piece of technology that silently monitors smartphones without the user knowing, has come to the iPhone. Goodbye safe haven of SMS and calling privacy, it was nice knowing you.

The app, created by Retina-X Studios, runs in total stealth mode so that users don't know its even on their phones. It silently records all SMS text messages, inbound and outbound call information (including call duration) and uploads them to a private account you specify.

It's been out for a while now on Symbian and WinMo phones, but the iPhone had been left gloriously untouched until now. Not surprising, I suppose, given the device's ever-increasing popularity. Retina-X says its for monitoring your children or employees. I say if you need to monitor them like this, you've got some terrible control and trust issues. [Aving]

Today new documents seen on the FCC site revealed an unannounced phone from Samsung. The R470 is a dual-band CDMA clamshell with Bluetooth. Photos reveal that the R470 has a dedicated camera key, USB port, microSD slot, dual displays, ...
(follow link to read)

There are loads of games in the App Store for the iPhone/iPod Touch, but if you want to save money and space, which are the true essentials? Here are our 10 must-haves.

While there are enough good games in the App Store to fill up multiple pages on your iPhone or iPod Touch, you don't need that many, nor do you need to spend that much money. If you focus on filling certain genres with single games and not doubling up on multiples, you can make yourself the ultimate "games page" of apps. Here's the list.

Touchgrind: This skateboarding game was designed from the ground up for the multi-touch iPhone platform, and it shows. The completely unique control method of using your fingers as legs on a skateboard immediately makes sense and is totally addicting. As you get better, the new skateboards that are unlocked with high scores continually feel just within your grasp. $4.99

Galcon: Galcon is a space-based strategy game that delivers super-short games, which is perfect for the iPhone. Rather than getting dragged into games you won't finish, Galcon lets you play a bunch of one or two minute games. You can refine your strategy with each game, and every time you lose it's just too easy to try again. Lite: Free; Pro: $4.99

Fieldrunners: Many call this the best game in the App Store, and it's tough to argue with them. A tower defense game with a super-high degree of polish, this is the definition of addicting. Basically, you want to set up weapons to stop soldiers for storming your towers. You earn more cash for more weapons for every guy you stop, and you lose health for every guy who gets through. And then you can't. Stop. Playing it. $4.99

Line Rider iRide: You've probably played Line Rider on the internet in some form or another: you draw a bunch of lines, then a little man on a sled gets tossed down your makeshift track. The controls are simple and work great on a touchscreen, and you can play in short bursts, saving your maps for later. It's intuitive enough that there's virtually no learning curve, but you can spend countless hours working on your masterpiece of sledding physics. $2.99

Uno: You know Uno, you love Uno. But here's a version that involves no pesky shuffling. If you're more of a poker fan you probably went for Texas Hold 'Em, which is cool, but if you ask me, Uno is a much more fun card game. After all, what fun is poker when you're gambling with pretend money? $5.99

Rolando: This is a wonderful, cartoonish platformer that uses simple controls that are easy to learn but are used in increasingly complicated and challenging ways as the game progresses. You control a series of little balls—Rolandos—by tilting your iPhone and swiping up to jump. But you can control many of them at once, and there are also obstacles and switches you can manipulate. It's got a high degree of polish and will suck you in from the first level. $9.99

Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D: This is our favorite racing game, despite not being fully sold on the accelerometer controls of iPhone racing games. But because of that, you really only need one, and this should be it. Great graphics, good stability and plenty of variety add up to make this the essential iPhone racing game. $5.99

SimCity: This port of SimCity 3000 is stunning. This is no gimped version of SimCity, dumbed down for a touchscreen. It's the full game, complete with advisers and all the building types you can handle, with intuitive touchscreen controls. Finally, you can build the epic metropolis of your dreams whenever you sit down and have a few minutes to kill. $9.99

Touch Hockey: FS5: Air Hockey on the iPhone is just like regular air hockey, minus the high probability of getting one of your fingers smashed with the puck. Simply put your finger on the mallet and try to score some goals. It's also fun to play with two people, with each person holding an end of the iPhone. And hey, no quarters required. Lite: Free; Pro: $1.99

Trism: This is essentially a modified version of Bejeweled, and if you know that game then you know why you'd want it on your iPhone. It's a classic puzzle game, one that makes the transition to the touchscreen beautifully. You're trying to get three pieces of the same color together to make them disappear, and depending on how you're holding your iPhone, the resulting tumble of pieces will happen in a different direction. It adds a new level of strategy to the game while retaining what made the original so awesome. $2.99

[A Bonus 11th game, From Brian: I'd like to add Motion X Poker Quest to the list for its amazing use of the accelerometer and in game physics used to roll the dice, as well as beautiful graphics and sounds and addicting game play. ]

Verizon Wireless said it has reached an agreement to use Microsoft's mobile search services and will announce the deal later today. Verizon has been in talks with Microsoft for months to finalize the deal. Verizon had also been exploring ...
(follow link to read)

The biggest flaw of touchscreen phones is that they're even more dangerous (and annoying) to type on while driving than button-y phones. Textecution is a G1 app that won't let you text, period, while driving.

The way it works is pretty simple: It taps the G1's GPS, and if you're moving more than 10MPH, it kills text messaging. Targeted at texting teens, in order to get permission to text when you're driving—or running really fast—it'll call an admin number, like their parent's—to temporarily lower the block. Ingenious, except totally not.

For one, dastardly kids can just delete the app completely, no admin approval required. Which they'd probably do immediately, if they wanted their G1 live longer than 27 minutes, which is the kind of battery life you could look forward to with GPS constantly running. Also, what about when your precious is just a passenger on a bus or in their friend's car?

Face it parents, your kid is going to text while they're driving—and call their friends, mess with their hair, change the CD, flip through their iPod and everything horribly unsafe thing you do while you're driving. [Textecution via TechCrunch]

Hidden among a slew of bugfixes and refinements announced in a posting on the Android project site are a few serious feature upgrades, which could make their way to your G1 fairly soon.

The most practical update may be to the camera functions, which have finally expanded to include video recording. The browser gets a hefty refresh as well, with an inline find function and creatively implemented selective copy and paste, as well as quite a few under-the-hood speed enhancements.

Some of the other updates are a bit more forward-looking, and clearly not focused on the G1. There'll be a framework put in place to allow for simple system-wide on-screen input (read: touch keyboards) and as our tipster pointed out, the mysterious and tantalizing inclusion of "Basic x86 support."

Being that this development isn't coming from a hardware manufacturer, x86 support doesn't indicate that a particular new gadget will be adopting the OS, but it does imply that seeing Android on a rich variety of gadgets, including some in unexpected form factors, isn't out of the question. Check the full feature list at the source link. [Android—Thanks, Ben]

The long-awaited (previously confirmed) iPhone 3G tethering plan for AT&T is coming this week for Macworld, says TUAW. Standard AT&T tether plan pricing: $30/month with a 5GB cap. Who's excited??? [TUAW]