This one’s been floating around a little bit, but somehow, someway, Sony Ericsson is making a return to T-Mobile USA. Plus they’re the first HSDPA handset to launch, too! The specs are not incredible by any means, but for just an average phone, they’ll do just fine. Here’s a recap of the specifications:

• 2.0 megapixel camera
• Tri-band 850/1800/1900 GSM/GPRS/EDGE (boo!)
• Dual-band UMTS/HSDPA 1700/2100
• Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP
• microSD slot
• Video recording
• IM

If you’re feeling up to it, you should be able to snag one come September 3rd, for a price not yet determined. Who’s going to be the first taker? Full size image after the break…

Everyone’s talking about NetShare, a new application that just hit the App Store but was subsequently pulled very shortly after. It created a Wi-Fi hotspot on the iPhone, allowing your computer or other devices to use that oh-so-precious 3G connect without AT&T’s approval. But, I’d like to put you on to what possibly could be the best iPhone application ever. That’s right. It’s called Teleport. It’s fairly new, but you know BG can’t resist trying all the VNC applications! It’s priced currently at $24.95, and while that might be a little steep, it offers the absolute best VNC experience on the iPhone. Scratch that. It offers the best VNC experience on any mobile device, ever. Even better than GotoMyPC’s Windows Mobile client which was a little sexy. The fantastic part about Teleport is that it’s a monster even on an EDGE connection. It optimizes the displayed images accurately, not making you wait for the whole screen to load when you’re zoomed into a particular section, and so on. It will even show you any VNC-capable computers on your network when you’re over Wi-Fi. We’ve been playing around with this thing straight for hours, and so far, we haven’t experienced any crashes (unlike, ahem, Mocha), and we’re honestly thrilled. Anyone else give this thing a go? And yes, it does work with PCs as well, provided you use a VNC server like RealVNC or something. Setup a little DynDns.org action if you don’t have a static IP address (suckers), and you’re good to go. Just never try and access http://www.boygeniussecretcomputer.com:5900 with a password of “blogking” ok? Promise?

Read [App Store link]

First things first… how did you like our BlackBerry Bold review? If that just made you crave the device more, you might not be too pleased with the latest info we got. We’ve been told that the Bold might have been pushed back yet again. What’s the whispered launch month now? September for a lot of carriers. That’s not to say it couldn’t launch sooner on a couple carriers, but that’s what we were told. It looks like there are still some problems with the radio code that have to do with network roaming, searching, etc. The Bold software has not even gone GM3 yet, and with weekly builds still coming out, there’s nothing to be shipped at this point in time. The hardware side is done, but as usual, these units are waiting for the final flash to start FedExing. Now, what about the BlackBerry Thunder? We’ve held on to this information for a bit, but now that we’ve confirmed it with 2 independent sources, we’re ready to run with it. Here are the most confirmed Thunder dates: a huge marketing push in the U.S. starting in September, and device release in mid-October on Verizon. We said November because we were betting on a couple week delay which, knowing RIM, certainly wouldn’t be out of the question. But, we’re told RIM is fully active in doing everything they can to get the Thunder launch-ready, even putting it above the Bold in terms of prioritizing.

You didn’t really think we wouldn’t do it, did you? Well it’s happening! First things first… our previous iPhone 3G giveaway winner! We didn’t forget about you — no way. The winner of the previous iPhone 3G giveaway is Jackie Franco! You will be getting an congratulatory email with instructions momentarily. We said if more than one person picked the correct date, we’d pick one of them at random. Now, on to the rest of y’all! We’re giving away your choice of either a 16GB black iPhone 3G or a white one. When you win, just let us know which one you want. Ah, but how do you win? Come on, this is BGR. Enter a comment, no hoops to jump through. Official rules below.

• The iPhone 3G giveaway will run until Sunday July 20th at 11:59PM ET.
• All you have to do to enter is drop in a comment — that’s it!
• Please enter once and only once. You know what happens when we get angries.
• The iPhone you will receive if you win will be brand new and unopened. It also, obviously, will not be activated.
• Good luck!

There’s been a ton of confusion over the handset pricing on Apple’s iPhone 3G on AT&T. Stevie announced they’d go for $199 and $299 for the 8GB and 16GB models, but obviously that’s a subsidized price. We just got a hold of the final pricing for the iPhone 3G, and we even have a no-contract price for you! Boy, you’re not going to be happy, though. Here’s the breakdown:

• iPhone 3G will be available for $199 for the 8GB model and $299 for the 16GB model. These prices require two-year contracts and are available to the following customers:
• iPhone customers who purchased before July 11
• Customers activating a new line with AT&T
• Current AT&T customers who are eligible, at the time of purchase, for an upgrade discount
• Existing AT&T customers who are not currently eligible for an upgrade discount can purchase iPhone 3G for $399 for the 8GB model or $499 for the 16GB model. Both options require a new two-year service agreement.
• Here’s the interesting part… “ In the future, AT&T will offer a no-contract-required option for $599 (8GB) or $699 (16GB).”

Looks like after the initial launch period, you will indeed be able to mosey on in and pay for an iPhone without dealing with a wireless contract at the time of purchase. Let the unlocking games begin!

Ooooh! It’s purdy and shiny. Yes, yes, y’all — another Motorola scoop. This time, we’re switching gears from non-autofocusness to touch screens. There’s also very little doubt the Motorola Blaze isn’t coming to Big Red. Seeing as how, you know, it’s plastered all over the thing! Big Red being Verizon for all you slow pokes.

The handset takes design cues from a number of Motorola products. It’s odly a MING crossed with a PEBL crossed with a RAZR 2. Yeah. There’s a custom OS just for Verizon (did you really think they were done junking up their devices with that red theme?) and it works decently. It’s by no means a smartphone here. The mobile web browser is ok, and that’s being super nice. Texting or writing emails with the touch screen keyboard a la LG Voyager is bland, hard to use, and frustrating. Additionally, the phone has Haptic feedback but you have to press the darn touch screen so hard you feel like you’re going to break it. Specs we found? 2 megapixel camera, EV-DO Rev. A support, GPS, Bluetooth, MobileTV, and the regular standard feature set. Best part of the phone so far? While limited, you can use the device with the flip closed. Actually kind of cool. In a really not cool sort of way. Lastly, there’s no clue as to whether the much rumored visual voicemail is in here, but we’d guess that’s not going to make it in until the last second. Want some bad ass shots of said device? Jump!

Click on over to our Motorola Blaze gallery!

Ok, chaps. We just got the much-awaited Sidekick LX OTA courtesy of the good folks over at Danger. And yes, it does record video! Aren’t you excited? We detailed a long list of what the OTA contains, but we’ll post it again to give you a recap:

• Capture videos using the new video mode
• Playback from the SD card or email attachments using the media player
• Share videos via email, Picture messaging, and Bluetooth
• Listen to songs or videos using a stereo Bluetooth device
• Send and receive photos, videos, or music via Bluetooth
• 3 IM clients & enhancements to AIM® and Yahoo!® Messenger
• Create and join group chats
• See who is logged into IM from the address book or email and instantly start a conversation
• Set a custom status message then keep chatting
• Search for friends in a buddy list
• Got more buddies than you can keep track of? See who’s online right from the address book or email, and search for friends in your buddy lists
• Select how Web pages are displayed based on preference
• PC-like, full-size layout to pan & scan while reading o Standard Sidekick screen-size layout to simply scroll down the page to read · Mini Page to zoom out on an overview of an entire Web page
• Save images from Web pages to the SD card Personalize the way you want to surf
• Device does not restart after a download. Just install an item, and it’s ready to use
• Capture videos and share them directly from the Camera app
• Video integration for playback, send, and save to gallery
• QuickFind: search for keywords across applications to find messages or information
• Spell Checker

Hit the gallery for the whole screenshot walkthrough!

Alrighty. We’ve picked 10 lucky winners from the N.E.R.D. album giveaway post, and here they are:

• Don H.
• Bean
• DJ Justin
• Brandon Wilson
• coldcc
• RoseGold
• Maverick
• Olga
• Connie
• b.N.

Thanks to everyone who dropped a comment in! We’ll be contacting all of you that won shortly with more information.

So, you’re on the edge of seat waiting for this fabled Tony Hawk Sidekick LX to launch, huh? Good news for you then, because we just got the full scoop on it! The device will be “previewed” starting tomorrow but won’t go on sale until mid July. Beginning tomorrow, however, you’ll start to see it on Sidekick.com and “all over the news media.” The phone supposedly has a “skateboard look and feel with a grip-tape-texture and his well known hawk graphic.” Here’s where it gets interesting for all you Sidekick lovers, though — the device will ship with video recording capability, something called play and share (obviously sharing the recorded videos), stereo Bluetooth support, easier downloads and more themes and background personalization options. This summer, all Sidekick LX customers will get that OTA and be in video heaven.

Impressive response time Nokia, although this really shouldn’t have been an issue to begin with. This past Wednesday, in case you missed it, the discovery was made that N-Gage games are locked to a device IMEI rather than an account. Translation: Buy a new phone, kiss your games goodbye. Here we are two days later and as history would dictate, word has come out that Nokia is addressing the situation immediately. In the short term, Nokia Care will be able to take care of IMEI changes for N-Gagers with new devices. Apparently a long term solution that will automate the system is already in the works. Granted, this shouldn’t have been a problem in the first place but it’s good to see Nokia responding so quickly. Gamers, commence forking over your cash.

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There’s good news, and there’s bad news. First the positive side. A new Sidekick model has just cleared the FCC certification process. There are two rumored new devices on the way, and we’re honestly not sure if this is the new Sidekick Gekko or Aspen, as the FCC label identified it only as the Sharp PV210. FCC is a big step on the road towards official release, so this is a good sign for anyone eagerly awaiting the device’s arrival. The bad news, however, is that the FCC documents made no mention of any 3G radios, so unless Danger has a trick or two up their sleeves, high speed data might no-go.

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We love OQO, and we love their readiness for the next big thing. They think it’s WiMax this time around, and while we do somewhat agree, we’d have loved for real U.S. HSDPA support instead of a technology that may or not take off, and isn’t even available for a good calendar year or two. Nevertheless, we’re bringin’ you the news, and OQO is demonstrating a WiMax-certified OQO 02 model at CES. That’s not all they’re doing, though. They have an updated screen dubbed the "Sunlght Optimazed display" that should provide 50% better viewing in direct sunlight, and they’ve also made the switch to 64GB SSDs. We’re so diggin’ that! It’s all available now directly from OQO and resellers like Dynamism. Well, all but the whole WiMax-enabled one, ’cause that would be, well, stupid.

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There is nothing quite as priceless as the look of anguish on someone’s face as they juggle their mobile before dropping it into a toilet. How about when that cup of coffee tips over, seemingly in slow motion, onto their laptop? It’s all good fun until karma reaches around and knocks your MP3 player out of your hand into a giant puddle. UK-based P2i is a company that might just be able to put an end to the mayhem with their Ion-Mask technology. Originally developed to provide waterproofing for soldiers’ uniforms, Ion-Mask technology consists of an invisible plasma coating that can be applied to a variety of surfaces to repell water. P2i has been getting a fair amount of attention in the tech world lately as they are reportedly in talks with a few mobile phone manufacturers. We’ve seen some people jump to conclusions though; don’t start thinking that you’ll be able to take your current mobile to some shop to get "waterproofed" any time soon. All the plasma in the world isn’t going to save your phone once water starts rushing into the headphone jack, charger port, etc. Through a partnership and consultation with a company like P2i, manufacturers will be able to develop future devices that will make use of things like Ion-Mask, water-tight port covers and other waterproofing techniques. Until then, stick to that lame wrist strap if all of those little league drills from when you were a kid didn’t pay off.

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We admit it. We go through cell phones like water. But according to Matthew Hoffman, an analyst from Cowen Research Company, this is a growing trend among cell phone owners. Based on current demand for cell phones around the world, and the fact that Americans are replacing them far too often, we could experience a shortage in in the millions of units. The shortage could be on account of a dropping LCD supply. Who knows, in a couple of years instead of a new cell phone every three months, we might go six months between cell phones. Actually, no, it will probably only get worse…

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It may not be the sexiest camera on the block, but if you’re looking to make your cat look ridiculous find out what your cat has been up to, this will be right up your alley.  Juergen Perthold, the creator of the CatCam, says his cat would often leave for long periods of time and return looking disheveled, inspiring the curious cat-lover to create his invention.  With a 1.3 megapixel camera connected to a timer and an SD card, the CatCam is capable of taking a picture every minute for 48 hours. We’re not sure why someone would put in so much effort to make a camera for their cat, but hit the link if you’re interested in the technical instructions or the photos from Mr. Lee’s adventures.

[via CNET]

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Kids these days. Bringing their iPods to class, texting on their cell phones, and now circling up to play electronic spin-the-bottle. I don’t know about this one; without a real bottle, you lose out on that sinking feeling you get when you try so hard to make the bottle stop at Stacey and it ends up pointing at Jason. I used to practice up in my room so I’d be able to get the bottle to stop wherever I wanted it to, and I ended up being a real master. Never got to demonstrate my skills at an actual party, but that’s ok; I wouldn’t have wanted to show everyone else up. I was so popular, though. Seriously.

[via Nerd Approved]

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It’s a common dilemma: you love fast food, but hate exerting more energy than you have to by standing up and waiting in line. In a move seemingly tailor-made for the lazy North American, McDonald’s-goers in South Korea no longer have to choose between unhealthy eating and sloth. Simply sit down at your table, plug an RFID reader into your cell phone, then point it at the items you want on the menu. A text message lets you know when your food is ready, and the cost of the meal is charged to your phone bill. Now if only the cell phone would feed you the fries…now THAT’s progress!

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Tired of the same old boring MP3 players cluttering your pockets? Searching for a unique alternative? Look no further, as MOTZ has you covered. The company has just released a do-it-yourself MP3 module, which is easily embedded in your favorite object. The press material demo’s the unit contained within a walnut, but the sky’s the limit on this one. Coffee cup + MP3’s? No problem. Want to drop it in an old shoe? Your search is over! Specs include a lithium-polymer battery, USB 2.0, and support for WMA, MP3, and OGG Vorbis. Currently going for about $40 in Korea.

[Via Redferret]

A startup company, aptly named Powercast, seems to think it’s possible. This technology, sure to give you brain cancer will allow users to charge cell phones and other devices by broadcasting electricity through the ultimate high-tech pipeline: Air. It’s based around the conversion of radio waves to DC electricity, which is broadcasted at a distance of up to 3 feet from the transmission base, which plugs directly into a wall socket, and costs around $5 to manufacture. It sounds like a number of companies are far less skeptical than I am, as Powercast has over 100 corporations signed up as early adopters, and electronics giant Philips is planning on releasing a Powercast compatible device in the very near future. If successful, this could prove to be an exciting way of un-tethering from that nasty mess of power cords hidden under your desk.

[Via CNN.com]

Hot off their partnership with Dynamism, retailer Best Buy has acquired ISP Speakeasy. Purchased for $97 million, Speakeasy is one of the country’s largest providers of DSL service. Best Buy intends to continue to offer most of Speakeasy’s current services, with an increased emphasis on the companies Small Business internet connectivity program, which will be a welcome addition to Best Buy’s own small business services. The deal still has to go through the usual Federal oversight process, so don’t expect to see any real changes until Q1 of 2008 at the very earliest. With these recent mergers, partnerships, and acquisitions in their pocket, the natural question is: What’s next, Best Buy? Online HTC Vox Giveaways? Nah. We didn’t think so.

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Amazon’s Canadian site has leaked prices for Adobe’s upcoming CS3 creative suite. There is, as always, a wide range of prices depending on the exact version of the program you’re looking to acquire. They range from $95 for a basic upgrade to $2,969 for the Master Collection, which includes a plethora of plugins and video editing tools. The most widely used version, a pure and simple copy of the Photoshop application, will run users approximately $771.11. Of particular note is that Power PC Mac users will be left out to dry in regards to the Master Collection version, which is Intel-only. Either way, the ship date is currently marked as April 20th.

[Via AppleInsider]

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Luxury is relative. In a country full of tiny 2 seaters, this "massive" four-door compact S.U.V. apparently qualifies as a Limo. The unique part, however, is under the hood. This Nissan X-Trail sports a Hydrogen Fuel cell, creating a clean, low-emmision vehicle that expels water in place of harmful Carbon. These babies are used to chauffeur well-heeled customers around town, so be sure to request one on your next trip!

[via, mobilemag]

In a move that is sure to spark the legal wrath of Apple Inc., Chinese manufacturer AOpen has launched this little Window’s box that more than slightly resembles Apple’s pint-sized workhorse. Specs are pretty unimpressive, featuring an Intel Celeron 1.4 GHz processor, 40 GB drive, and 512 MB of RAM. We’ll see if this one makes it to our shores, but my gut says…..not a chance in hell.

[via, macminicolo]

UPDATE: J.R. has kindly brought our attention to the fact that this baby is, indeed, currently available in the U.S. buy.com has the Core 2 Duo variety for $355, so if you fancy a miniature PC on the cheap, look no further. Thanks J.R.!

If the announcement of new automated parking systems wet your appetite, consider this tidbit to be another appetizer. Recently announced, startup venture Spot Scout Inc., is planning on revolutionizing the way we locate and pay for municipal parking spots. Currently in the venture capitol stages, the service aims to unite car owners and lot managers via a seemless online interface. Parking lots would post locations of available spots on the Spot Scout website, with prospective parkers able to log in, post their departure/arrival time, bid on parking spots, and pre-pay for slots that they plan on using within a specific time-frame. Thus eliminating the aggravation of having to actually search for a place to park your vehicle. No word on launch date, or participation fees (if any). Would any of you actually use such a service?

[via Yahoo News] 

You all know the feeling while watching the latest episode of Lost on ABC.com.  You feel a burning desire, deep inside (no, not that burning feeling) to rip the episode to your hardrive and watch it a bit later. Applian Technologies knows your pain, and has decided to do something about it. Their new Replay Media Catcher allows PC owners to rip content from ABC.com, NBC.com, YouTube, MySpace Video, and Google Video. It also handles streaming audio with great success. A free trial is available, with the full version tops out at $39.95.  Excuse me while I go scour the internet for educational videos.

(via K.N.I.S)

Tracking chip manufacturer RFID Ltd. is set to begin marketing upscale luggage tags with embedded RFID chips. Designed to match suitcases from designers including Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Prada, and more, these tags would give airlines a more efficient means of tracking lost baggage. The end result being fewer cases of lost luggage, and shorter wait times for baggage recovery. No airlines have signed on, but I have a sneaking suspicion that their hesitation might have something to do with a combintion of privacy concerns and prohibitive cost.

[via mobilemag]

There’s luxury, and then there’s Luxury. Raymarine’s new HDTV antenna system is firmly aiming for the latter. Trying to bring Hi-Def television to your yacht, this system employs DMB (Dynamic Beam Tilting) and WRS (Wide Range Search) to ensure that you’ll receive this week’s episode of Desperate Housewives, in even the most bleak and choppy seas. This amenity, including antenna, control unit, and DirectTV should run you between $7,000-$9,000.

[Via newlaunches]

It’s not every day that the Chinese New Year comes around. It happens, as it turns out, to show up only once every 365 days! In commemoration of this rare event, PQI has released a couple of limited edition storage cards. These gold plated marvels of modern technology come in 1GB and 2GB flavors and measure just 3mm tall. PQI is only manufacturing 1000 of the 1 GB card and a mere 500 copies of the 2GB card at $510 a pop, so head on over to their site and get your high-end-storage on before it’s too late!

Read [via Luxist]

Do you have a nagging feeling that someone is listening to your phone conversations? Do you have something to hide? Fear no more my paranoid friends. The Tele-Safe II, made by P3 International performs automatic frequency scanning of your landline telephone connection. Trolling frequencies between 5 MHz and 2 GHz, the Tele-Safe II is able to easily detect the presence of wire tapping equipment, automatically muting your conversation if prying ears are found. Available now (stop whispering guys), this piece will run you $195 full retail, which is a hell of a lot cheaper than some other things I can think about.

[Via redferret]

iRiver doesn’t exactly have an impeccable track record, consistently churning out mediocre devices with equally mediocre feature sets. While the new X20 is not revolutionary by any means, it does signal a bright spot in the company’s quest for greater market dominance. Clearly aimed at the Nano-carrying set, the X20 comes in 2, 4, and 8 GB flavors. Each model features a bright 2.2 inch QVGA color screen. With support for MP3, WMA, and OGG file types, the mini-River certainly trumps the iPod in file compatibility. Other specs include an SD expansion slot, FM tuner, and support for video playback from WMV and MP4 files. Currently set to be released in Japan next week, there’s no word on stateside availability or pricing, but if iRiver does decide to bring this one our way, it might prove an interesting and appealing alternative.

[Via mobilemag]