Today is July 11th 2008, and that means iPhone 3G is finally launching in Canada on Fido and Rogers. Reviews are slowly trickling in and most of it is positive, as the iPhone 3G improves upon the regular iPhone in both hardware and software deparments.
All Things Digital: “If you’ve been waiting to buy an iPhone until it dropped in price, or ran on faster cell networks, you might want to take the plunge”
Engadget: “For our money, you’re going to have a hard time finding a better device for two hundred bucks – or maybe even for any price.”
USA Today: “Still not perfect, but really close”
If the Industry Minister Jim Prentice is to be believed, Bell and Telus are planning to charge for each incoming text message unless you subscribe to a package product. The Industry Minister has sent to both companies a letter asking them to meet in Ottawa before August 8th in order to explain their decision.
According to Bell, the new fee for incoming messages will start on August 8th and Telus will start charging starting August 24th.
According to insider rumors, Apple has decided not to carry the iPhone 3G when it launches in just a few days. Instead, people will have to try Rogers and Fido stores if they want it. This is in an apparent spat over Rogers’ exorbitant monthly service fees that require 3 year contract. Apple has also apparently diverted a lot of the stock originally intended for the Canadian market.
Guitar Hero franchise keeps expanding and has now reached the smallest screen available: your cell phone. Guitar Hero III Mobile is based on the latest console Guitar Hero III. By eschewing the plastic guitar, you have to rely on your phone’s keypad to rock. Instead of 5 frets, you have to contend with 3 only - activated by keys 1, 2 and 3. Of course there are blue glowing notes and when you hit a series of notes correct, you can collect star power.
The effort to shrink the experience to the small screen is overall succesful. The game ships with 15 songs initially, and there are 3 new downloadable songs each month. If you’re into the Guitar Hero franchise and you’d like quick fixes outside of your home (or when you don’t have a DS around), Guitar Hero III Mobile is perfect for quick diversion.
Rating: 80%
Just because iPhone is launching in just a few days doesn’t mean it will be the perfect phone for everybody. Fido has recently released Sony Ericsson’s W380a at $60 (with 3-year contract) or $300 without any contract. How does this multimedia-oriented phone fare?
CNET (6.7/10): “respectable, midrange Walkman phone that offers some nifty design touches. But there are better Walkman options out there”
There isn’t too many reviews available so far (as the W380a isn’t even offered by an American carrier)
Rogers has finally unveiled what it will charge you for monthly use of the iPhone 3G. Unlike previously rumored, unlimited data is not part of the deal.
| Monthly price |
Included voice |
Data |
Sent text msg |
| $60 |
150 mins |
400 MBs |
75 |
| $75 |
300 mins |
750 MBs |
100 |
| $100 |
600 mins |
1 GB |
200 |
| $115 |
800 mins |
2 GBs |
300 |
All plans include unlimited evenings and weekends for voice, unlimited received text messages and unlimited visual voicemail. Also Rogers is throwing in unlimited access to Fido and Rogers branded Wi-Fi hotspots. Additional options are $15 value pack including Caller ID, Who Called, Caller Ring Trax, 2500 sent text messages and 2500 call forwarding minutes, and $20 value pack that adds 7500 additional sent text messages as well as early evenings (starting at 6PM).
Well the rumors were correct after all… Apple just unveiled the updated iPhone to be release on July 11 in 22 markets (including United States, of course). Big news is the price which is $199 for 8GB model, and $299 for the 16GB model. For the first time, there will be a second color available as the 8GB model has black back and 16GB model will have a white back.
Apart from inclusion of 3G network access, it will also feature built in GPS.
Verizon will once again be the biggest carrier in the United States by absorbing Alltel. Priced at $6 billion, this acquisition will bring 13 million subscribers to Verizon in 34 states. Merger should be completed by the end of the year.
Continue on for the press release:
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If you ogled HTC Touch Diamond, but was turned off by the lack of hardware keyboard, your solution is finally here. Dubbed HTC Touch Pro (previously known as HTC Rafael), it will feature same specs as Touch Diamond - with 7.2mpbs HSDPA, 512MB internal storage, 2.8 VGA screen, 3.2 megapixel camera, GPS and the new TouchFLO 3D UI.
Spot the difference is a pretty popular game that gets tiring quickly, and Crazy Spot for Windows Mobile (and Symbian) devices suffer from the same fate. Your goal is to compare 2 photos and find the 5 differences in each photo. Sometimes it is easy to see - thanks to some bad Photoshop jobs - and othertimes, they made it maddeningly difficult.
If you think spotting the difference is a game for you, you can try the demo for free, or download the PC version for no charge whatsoever. It is perfect for short burst games while you’re waiting for something (such as the bus…) but don’t expect a marathon gameplay out of this one.
[Download Crazy Spot for PC, Windows Mobile and Symbian devices]
