We know what you’re thinking, the DROID and CLIQ are just too cool, I need something more lame. Well, Motorola has got you covered. Say hello the the MOTO Klassic. This new hotness oddness lameness clamshell will only be available in Korea for the time being but the specs are pretty mind blowing: blazing 2G connectivity, a 5 megapixel camera, external touch screen, and (brace yourself) an “espresso color keypad.” Truth be told, we weren’t completely sold on this one until we read about the espresso colored keypad. So put down those wallets DROID fans, you might want to just wait and see if this hot little number is coming to the good old U.S.A.

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Rumors are flying around the intertubes that Best Buy Mobile and Walmart are willing and ready to sell you your new Motorola DROID a day early. Grab your keys, hop in your mom’s 1986 Honda Civic, and go get em’ tiger. If you manage to commandeer a DROID today be sure to stop back here and let us know where you’ve had success, and you can always link to some pictures of your new toy in the comments. Otherwise, if you’re in the market for a DROID, are you going to be hitting a Verizon Wireless store tomorrow instead of DROID-chasing today?

Thanks, Brezy!

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You already know we smashed this one, but in case you don’t…  Release date? Check. Spy shots? Yes please. Unboxing? Sure. Press release? Well, we figure we would let Verizon handle that one. Today, HTC and Verizon officially announced the November 6th launch of the DROID Eris on the “there’s a map for that” network. This handset has all the goodies: Wi-Fi, GPS, a 5 megapixel camera, 3.2″ touch screen display, and HTC’s Sense UI. The price tag is set at $99 on contract after a $100 mail-in rebate. We’ve given this puppy enough attention, but you can hit the press release for all the minutia.Read

Here’s what Big Red is working with: they’ve offered up a BOGO sale on all new BlackBerrys for the holiday buying season, and where some see a great deal, others see a great opportunity. Why not play a game of Flip My BlackBerry? Why not open a second line, get a brand new Tour or Storm 2, pay the cancellation fee on the new line of $175, and sell the device on eBay for $300 or more? Well it looks like Verizon has finally caught onto our the little game. A new connect has emerged with a few documents and it looks like starting on November 15th Verizon will be charging up to $350 as an early termination fee on “advanced devices.” This new “improved” fee does have a minute silver lining (if you can even say that): for every month of service completed, the $350 sum will decrease by $10. No word yet on what an “advanced device” constitutes but we can use our imaginations to figure it out. What do you think? Anyone considering abandoning plans to buy the DROID after hearing this news, or are you just going to get yours before November 15th? Or will you actually be an honest person and actually honor the contract you sign?

Thanks, GetOverIt7!

Are you one of those annoying people who constantly have a Bluetooth earpiece in your ear? Does it make you sad inside that the battery on your mobile device runs out so quickly? Well it looks like Texas Instrument may be looking to change things. TI recentley demoed its “Bluetooth low energy open standard” in Munich, and when they say “low powered” they mean low powered. The technology, based on the CC2540 single-mode system-on-chip, can operate a Bluetooth radio for “over a year” on a single button cell battery; similar to the ones used in watches and hearing aids. While TI insists this will open the doors for Bluetooth enabled kitchen tables, can-openers, and sofas, we’re more excited about the mobile implications. Would this low power option make you use Bluetooth more often?

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Had enough Android goodness yet? Good, neither have we. While we don’t have many new details on this one we do have an image — and isn’t an image worth 1,000 words after all? This HTC, Verizon branded, touch-screen Android handset has been brought to light (in a very low light setting) by a new connect. All they could provide (other than the pic) was that it was extremely fast, similar in size to Sprint’s Hero, and was sporting the luscious Sense UI.

Thanks, nmc1way!

T-Mobile UK has taken the Android love to the contract-deficient masses. The Huawei manufactured Pulse sports a 3.5″ touchscreen, 3G, WiFi, GPS, 3.2 megapixel camera, and 2G of memory — not bad for a prepaid ditty. The Pulse will set you back 176 quid across the pond, that’s about $292 for those of us still using the imperial system of measurement, and is on sale today. We love the idea of a fully featured handset on a pre-paid platform — we’re hoping the trend catches on.

[Via TalkAndroid]

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Remember when The Wall Street Journal said that Dell was working on an Android MID? Well it turns out that it was bang on as today images and a video of a prototype device known as the Streak emerged by way of everyone’s favorite Vietnamese mobile site. Running Android 2.0, the Streak boasts 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity, a 5″ WVGA multitouch capacitive display, 5 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash, Bluetooth, microSD and a 1300 mAh battery. Looking through all of the pictures, we couldn’t help notice what looks to be the spitting image of a front-facing camera for checking ones hair video calling, but then again it could just be the worst ambient light sensor ever. Enough talk. Hit the jump for a ton of pics and a video, because the Streak cries out to be seen.

Its been a while since Apple updated their consumer line of Macbooks and iMacs — don’t even get us started on the Mac Mini — so it comes as no surprise that when the store when down this morning there was some new hardware hiding behind the curtain. The updated Macbook now has a thinner form factor, familiar plastic body construction with cleaner beveled edges, multitouch trackpad, and will feature a 2.26 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The biggest performance increase would have to be in the graphics department, a NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor with 256MB of DDR2 SDRAM (shared) is now powering the 13.3″ screen. The revamped iMac will still have its svelte, familiar form but will now pack a 21.5-inch LED back lit display and sport a 3.01 or 3.33 GHz Intel C2D processor. Not fast enough for you? Upgrade to the 27-inch LED display and you can rock out with the quad-core Intel i5 running at 2.66 GHz or the i7 running at 2.8 GHz. The iMac will have 4 DIMM slots and support up to 16GB of memory. The Mini got a pathetic quick refresh in March but hasn’t seen any major form-factor or feature upgrades in recent year (yes, years). The new Mac Mini, gets the same neglect.  Although it does get the same 256MB 9400M NVIDIA chip as the new Macbook the thrills pretty much end there.  Upgraded hard drive storage and L2 cache just aren’t that exciting. Last, the best always comes last, the Mighty Magic Mouse. How about some gesture-based GUI navigation for your carpal tunnel? The Magic Mouse supports two fingered scrolling, swiping, and other advanced gestures all without the use of buttons.  Check  out the hotness!

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We know it’s coming — Verizon’s CEO is flashing it to random college students around NYC, RIM is updating BIS infrastructure, and there’s been a ton of release dates flying around. However, it now looks like Verizon Wireless’ web team is jumping on the Storm 2 bandwagon as well. Last night the Storm Part Deux made it’s debut on the VZW website — all 360 degrees of it. Take er’ for a spin, won’t you? Also, if you’re up for it, we’d love to know if you are an original Storm owner and are planning to get the new Storm2 over the BlackBerry Tour or Motorola Droid. Hit us up!

Thanks, Jason!

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To be perfectly honest we’re surprised it took this long. Reports are surfacing that Apple is now shipping a new bootrom with the iPhone 3GS that is resistant to the 24kpwn exploit used by the Dev-Team and others to jailbreak the iPhone. DevTeam member MuscleNerd confirms that the bootrom update, dubbed iBoot-359.3.2, would make jailbreaking new iPhone’s “impossible” for the time being. Man, does Apple hate when people muck with the iPhone or what! Your move Dev Team — and godspeed. Or maybe our ninja GeoHot can find a way around it? We’ll see!

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In case you thought you were imagining things before, Bell Canada will definitely be adding the iPhone to its lineup following on the heels of the Palm Pre and BlackBerry Bold. Canada’s largest network has a splash page in place but no release dates have been leaked just yet. Where are our Canadian connects at? We’ll keep you updated as usual when there’s more to report.

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As of this week, it’s no longer business as usual for NVIDIA as the company has halted the production and development of its nForce line of chipsets until its legal issues with Intel are sorted out. Although the two companies have played well so far in Mac hardware, Intel brought a lawsuit against NVIDIA earlier this year to prevent it from making Intel-compatible chips. Not a very nice move from Intel, but NVIDIA has been making a pretty penny at Intel’s expense. We’re hoping this gets sorted soon because Apple’s use of Intel processors isn’t going to end any time soon, and it’s clear that the Mac line has done well with NVIDIA GPUs. Robert Sherbin of NVIDIA has this to say:

We firmly believe that this market has a long healthy life ahead. But because of Intel’s improper claims to customers and the market that we aren’t licensed to the new DMI bus and its unfair business tactics, it is effectively impossible for us to market chipsets for future CPUs. So, until we resolve this matter in court next year, we’ll postpone further chipset investments.

In the meantime, what’s a chipmaker who won’t be making chips supposed to do?

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Following a report pinning October as the likely month ASUS’ highly anticipated Eee Keyboard would finally reach market, it looks as though Asustek CEO Jerry Shen has finally confirmed what we’ve been waiting to hear. The almost-all-in-one Eee Keyboard we’ve had an unhealthy obsession with since January is finally set launch next month in Europe and North America. While pricing is still forthcoming, we’re still under the impression that a base price under $500 should become a reality. Spec highlights include:

• Self-contained PC / keyboard combo with integrated 5-inch touchscreen display
• OS: Windows XP Home Edition (though the one benefit of the delays may end up being Windows 7 at launch)
• 1.6GHz Intel Atom microprocessor
• 1GB of DDR2 DRAM
• 16GB or 32GB SSD
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n
• Bluetooth 2.0
• Ultra Wideband HDMI
• USB 2.0 x2, VGA, HDMI, headphone and mic ports
• Weight: 2 lbs

We’ll say it one last time: we need it.

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Having theoretically learned something from the N810 WiMAX Edition debacle, Nokia now seems to be letting the market dictate where wireless technology is headed as opposed to trying to cut competition off at the pass. The result: a focus on future-ready products as opposed to tablets no one wants with a broadband connectivity option no one has. This morning Nokia announced the successful trials and partner availability of its RD-3 internet modem. The RD-3 is a modem component that supports an array of GSM/EDGE, WCDMA/HSPA and of course LTE bands, making it an ideal development tool for network vendors, OEMs and operators. Nokia, paving the way for LTE development and adoption… We like it.

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A quick break from our regularly scheduled programming to bring our photogs in the audience some steamy gratuitous camera leak action. It looks as though Nikon’s dSLR and lens roadmap for the remainder of 2009 through the end of 2010 may have come to light and to say there are some juicy morsels lined up is a gross understatement. New bodies, 14 new lenses from Q3 2009 through Q3 2010, Full-HD video recording galore, a 30.2 megapixel beast likely in time for the 2010 holiday season… Suffice it to say this rumored roadmap is not lacking in the action category. In short, if this is the real deal — we likey. Hit the jump for the skinny and if anything manages to catch your eye, we highly recommend you start saving today.

August 4 introduction: (Apparently the end of July presentation is for compact cameras)

• Nikon D3000
• Nikon D300s with Full-HD movie 24 fps, improved AF, self timer + mirror-up, cf + sd-slot
• AF-S DX 17-65/3.2-4 G VR with 72(!) mm filter

October 15 presentation:

• Nikon D700x with 24.5 MP, Full-HD movie 24 fps, improved AF and self timer + mirror-up
• AF-S Nikkor 24-135mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR (The FX-dream-walk-around-lens?)
• AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II (What everybody waited for! 82 mm filter, 1530 g)
• AF-S Nikkor 35mm f/1.4G
• AF-S Nikkor 85mm f/1.4G (No VR?)

Q1/2010:

• AF-S Nikkor 14-28mm f/3.5-4.5G ED
• AF-S Nikkor 120-450mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR II (Replacement for 80-400? 82 mm, 1480 g)

Q2/2010:

• Nikon D4 with 15.7 MP, improved 1 EV, Full HD-movie 30fps
• Nikon D400 with 13.8 MP, improved 1 EV, Full HD-movie 24fps

Q3/2010:

• AF-S Nikkor 300mm f/4G VR (On the waiting list for many!)
• AF-S Nikkor 400mm f/5.6G VR (Have been missing a long time!)
• AF-S Nikkor 70-240mm f/3.5-4.5G VR (The missing medium size telezoom!)
• AF-S Nikkor 105mm f/2G DC (A small surprise. No VR?)
• AF-S Nikkor 24-85mm f/4G VR
• AF-S DX Nikkor 60-95mm f/2G VR (The DX dream-telezoom!)
• AF-S DX Nikkor 17-60mm f/2.8G VR (Replacing 17-55 with addition of VR)
• Nikon Coolpix P1DX with DX 12.3 MP stabilised sensor, 28-85/3.5-5.6 zoom (comparable to FX, actually 18-56), 2.9 inch 920k-display, movable upwards for macro.

Q4/2010:

• Nikon D4X with 30.2 MP with 1 EV improved sensitivity

[Via Nikon Rumors]

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Considering how much Apple loves to tout the iPhone 3GS’ video capabilities in TV ads, this rumor makes plenty of sense. One of TC’s sources in Asia claims Apple has ordered a tremendous number of cameras — the kind that go into the iPhone — and that an order of this quantity can only mean one thing: iPods. If the cameras are really intended for iPods and the iPod touch gets video recording capabilities, low-end digital camera manufacturers and specialty companies like Flip might have a bumpy road ahead. Sure the photo/video quality in an “iPod touchS” wouldn’t be anywhere near comparable to a dedicated device but what does that matter? Novelty beats out quality all the time in this day and age.

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Aww, crap. Just when we thought we were finally going to be able to get our hands on the ASUS Eee Keyboard, an ASUS marketing executive had to go and ruin the fun. Apparently the Eee Keyboard will not be launching by the end of this month as expected, but sometime in August instead. The reason for the delay? ASUS has yet to fully work out how it is going to market the mind-numbingly cool computer, which is more or less a positive way to say that its scared that one wrong decision will jeopardize its potential for success. Regardless, we want 10 and we want them now.

[Via Pocket-Lint]

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Nokia and Intel announced a collaborative effort today that will empower the next generation of mobile devices — according to Nokia and Intel at least. Each company will brings its respective expertise to the table in an effort to develop devices that will combine Intel’s low-power mobile chipset architecture with Nokia’s wireless broadband connectivity technologies. The collaboration will focus on and accelerate development in several open source mobile Linux software projects, including Moblin and Maemo. Everything else aside, we were looking for a bit more substance from this release beyond typical vague PR speak but alas… Nokia and Intel have worked together for quite some time. They’re going to continue to work together. That is all.

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Taiwan-based chip manufacturer JMicron is reportedly preparing to make a splash next month at Computex 2009 when it debuts its latest breakthrough NAND flash controller. The JMF612, successor to the company’s JMF602 pictured above, represents one of several technological advancements that could combine to substantially reduce Solid State Drive (SSD) pricing in the near future. The JMF612 is designed for a new breed of SSD drives that will be smaller, faster and cheaper to manufacture. Combined with an inexpensive single-chip controller such as JMicron’s, SSDs should become much more accessible and affordable — with drive pricing possibly impacted as soon as this holiday season. What’s more, the blazing speed of the JMF612 may very well lead to the introduction of a 1TB SSD as the chip’s improved efficiency will allow for larger drive sizes. JMicron is expected to begin mass production of its new controller in July.

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While these photos most certainly have not been authenticated at this point, we may be looking at the first images of Sony’s upcoming PS3 Slim. The company still denies the Slim’s existence, but it looks like an assembly worker may have risked life and limb to put the truth in the hands of the people. That truth, unfortunately, is apparently the fact that Sony can’t figure out how to resurrect its market presence so it’s resorting to a snazzy hardware redesign in an attempt to catch more eyes… And wallets. As Kotaku points out however, the logo shown on the console in these images is most definitely not the current PS3 logo. Sure, Sony could have changed it, but beyond the logo the console as a whole looks, well, cheap. If we step back for a moment though, could it be that Sony has listened to the cries demanding a price drop on the PS3? It has been said time and time again that the expense of building a PS3 console simply doesn’t allow for a lower price. Perhaps, just perhaps, Sony has found another way to hit lower price brackets. As barely any information is available at this point, we won’t be expecting any sort of confirmation from E3. Hit the jump for more shots.

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Ok ColorWare fans, it’s time to get your e-book on. Forget about the massive Kindle DX for the time being, as ColorWare has just added the increasingly popular Kindle 2 to its roster of kit begging for some high-quality color-customization. There are a total of 11 separate areas on the Kindle 2 ready for various combinations of ColorWare’s 35 different color choices. We opted to stick with our favorite colors as you can see above, but feel free to get as crazy as you like. Considering how popular the Kindle line has become, this is definitely the best way to separate yourself from the pack while you fight through Oprah’s next recommendation at the beach this Summer. As always, you have the option of sending in your current Kindle 2 (starting at $199) or purchasing one new (starting at $599).

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We’ve heard some rumors about an upcoming PSP refresh in the past — ok, a whole lot of rumors — but new information is casting doubt upon the details of previous information. 1UP is reporting that the new PSP will be christened the PSP Go! and will finally do away with that awful UMD system while taking on a slider form. In place of UMDs, it is said the PSP Go! will come in 8GB and 16GB models meaning a green light for game downloads. As for games, Sony is reportedly planning to have around 100 old and new games ready for launch time. Sadly those of you who were looking for a bit of dual-joystick action will be disappointed to note that according to this new rumor, a second analog stick will not be added to the right-hand side. Such is life, we suppose. Word is Sony will make the PSP Go! official at E3 next month and have it hit the streets in Japan in September with a US launch in either late October or early November — ensuring its inclusion in plenty of letters to Santa. And yes, the image above is a mock up.

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Some more news today on the Apple/Verizon front as BusinessWeek is reporting both Apple and Verizon have been in talks for over half a year in hopes of the two partnering up to bring two new devices to market, the first as soon as this summer. Described as an “iPhone lite”, the first of the two is a smaller and less expensive iPhone model; a device much like the one that was seriously hyped up just before Christmas. The other device — possibly debuting as early as this summer — is believed to be a touchscreen media tablet that focuses on music, photos and high-definition videos, and has the ability to make phone calls over a Wi-Fi network. Could this rumored device be the touchscreen “netbook” DigiTimes was reporting on back in May? We certainly can’t rule that out, but this whole iPhone lite thing smells a bit fishy considering that pesky AT&T iPhone exclusivity deal. BusinessWeek is pretty sure however, that the iPhone lite will be different enough from the iPhone as we know it to bypass this restriction. Still, there is a lot of doubt that any of this will make it to market. As BusinessWeek puts it:

While talks between Verizon Wireless and Apple have heated up recently, no deal is imminent. It’s possible both sides may disagree over financial terms, such as how big a subsidy Verizon Wireless might pay for each device or whether to share monthly service revenue with Apple. Another deal breaker could be disagreements over distribution of wireless software applications. Apple is the exclusive provider and distributor of apps for the AT&T iPhone. If Apple requests a similar deal on newer devices, Verizon Wireless may balk.

Consider our interest piqued and many doubts raised.

Thanks, Al!

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A report this morning from Australian tech magazine Smarthouse suggests Apple may have selected a series of OLED displays for its next round of handset and netbook screens. According to an unnamed source within the company, initial fruits of the company’s newly awarded display contract with LG will be an entirely new set of OLED screens that will make their way into Apple’s upcoming iPhone and iPod Touch models, as well as a new and often-rumored Apple netbook. The move would certainly go a great length to help somewhat lackluster battery performance, especially considering the variety of added battery-sucking features that were announced at Apple’s 3.0 event this past Tuesday. So what do you guys think about the possibility of a sexy new capacitive OLED display on the inevitable iPhone / iPod Touch models due in June or July?

Thanks, Donald!

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It looks like Canada’s Rogers Wireless wasn’t content with merely jacking up its BlackBerry prices as it has just gone and made and a decision that is sure to aggravate plenty of smartphone customers. Normally, a Rogers customer is eligible for a Hardware Upgrade Program (HUP) discount every 12 months, allowing them to get a brand new phone with three-year contract pricing (with as much as an extra $100 plus a $35 administration fee added on top or as little as $25 taken off depending on how much a customer spent since his/her last HUP). Now however, the minimum term has been bumped up to 24 months. Some would argue this is what you get when you’re playing with branded and subsidized phones, but to others this is a pretty massive slap in the face. From the looks of these Rogers scoops we’ve been getting over the past few days, it seems like we have a whole bunch of ‘adjustments’ to look forward to thanks to that little $30 million blunder. Hit the jump for the full internal bulletin posted to Sales Central along with a screen shot. Not cool, Rogers.

**IMPORTANT UPDATE** Change to Hardware Upgrade Eligibility

The Hardware Upgrade Program (HUP) allows eligible customers to upgrade to leading edge data devices. Beginning March 17, the minimum eligibility tenure rule is changing from 12 months to 24 months for customers who wish to upgrade their smartphone and are currently on a data plan or Voice & Data Package.

This follows the March 13 price increase for BlackBerry® devices and reinforces the importance of explaining to customers that HUP eligibility and quoted hardware/plan pricing are subject to change and cannot be guaranteed beyond the time of quotation.

Update to HUP eligibility:

The updated HUP eligibility rule of 24 months minimum tenure since customer’s last upgrade or activation date will be system enforced and no exceptions will be allowed.

12 months eligibility tenure rule remains unchanged for voice-only customers upgrading to a data device.

12 months eligibility tenure rule remains unchanged for customers upgrading from a non-smartphone to a smartphone or data device.

All other standard HUP eligibility rules still apply.

Reasons for the update to the HUP program:

Rogers Wireless heavily invests in providing the latest data devices at affordable prices to our data customers. This update to the Hardware Upgrade Program is designed to achieve cost efficiency in order to continue offering our customers an outstanding selection of the most advanced data devices for the best value.

Along with the growth in popularity of data devices there has also been an improved level of quality and technology that has gone into the line-up over the past years allowing a longer hardware lifespan.

Customer impacts:

Please always check the customer’s account in Vision21 for HUP eligibility to ensure the customer is provided with correct eligibility information.

Customers may have been eligible and now eligibility has been pushed out as a result of the update.

Customers may have been aware of their eligibility prior to the update, but did not take advantage of the program at the time and are currently not eligible as a result of the update.

Positioning:

Rogers Wireless sells devices at a significantly lower price than that which we pay the manufacturer. This update to our Hardware Upgrade Program is necessary in order to allow us to continue offering the best devices at the best value in a fair timeframe for our customers.
The Hardware Upgrade Program eligibility and hardware prices are subject to change without notice.

Please note that the information in this bulletin applies to the standard HUP program, and does not take into consideration any existing promotions that may require different eligibility. Always remember to consult the Sales Central bulletins to read the latest in HUP offers.

Thank you for your continued support.

We’re pretty big fans of music here at BGR, so we can become a little scrutinizing when it comes to the headsets we use on a daily basis. What we’re looking for is a headset that can deliver clear, clean and crisp sound at all volumes (there is nothing worse than getting garbled noise when you crank it up). Sure we have a few pairs laying around HQ that we’ve grown fond of but we can still check out some new ones from time to time, right? We’ve been testing out the Platinum i-Series and the Pro i-Series buds from iHarmonix over the past week or so and to be honest, we weren’t expecting much from these mid-range buds. You know what they say about judging a book by its cover though, so hit the jump for the skinny.

Let’s start out with the Platinum i-Series. The headset’s wires are designed nicely with a thickness and coating that keeps them from getting tangled — always a good feature when you’re stuffing them into a bag or pocket. They also have an in-line microphone with a button to send/end calls and to pause music. The build quality seems good enough for the unit to last as long as your phone or MP3 player will. Unlike the Pro i-Series, these come with three different rubber earbud sets so that ears of all sizes get the perfect fit. The sound quality is definitely impressive and beats most headsets we’ve tested in the same class and price range for sure. Bass is clear and heavy without getting distorted at higher levels and you almost feel like your chest should be getting rumbled by a subwoofer. Almost. Unlike similar headsets, the bass doesn’t take away from the mids or the treble however, so the balance is damn near perfect at low or high volumes. We came away very impressed.

Call quality on the Platinum i-Series is also very good for both the iPhone 3G and on the BlackBerry we tested them with. Although the caller can sound a little on the sharp side, it wasn’t that bad and it didn’t hurt our ears. For the most part, they sounded very natural and there was little to no background noise – even outdoors. Our friends on the other side of the line said we sounded crisp and clear, but a little distant at times. While they could understand and hear us perfectly they reported that we sometimes sounded like we were on speakerphone, albeit a really good one.

Next up is the Pro i-Series and we’re a little less excited about this particular model. The overall quality of the headset itself is just as good as the Platinum, but unfortunately it doesn’t perform as well as the Platinum when compared side-by-side. When compared to other headsets in the same price range, it is definitely above average but part of the problem is the earbud attachments. They come in large and slightly larger. The memory foam earbuds, which are like earplugs you roll and put into your ears, were difficult to place in the ear canal and were very uncomfortable. The rubber earbuds were much easier and more comfortable to wear, but weren’t a perfect fit. Because we had some difficulty getting these in our ears, sound quality suffered a bit without question.

When listening to the same songs with these headsets, we noticed that we had to turn up the volume a bit more to get the same effect as the Platinum series. However, once the volume started going up the sound started to become muddled. Of course, it probably isn’t best for your ears to listen to music that loud, but if you wanted to drown out outside noise so you can enjoy your music in a loud environment, it might sound a little distorted. Call quality is just as good as the Platinum series and has the same mic button, too. Actually, when listening to callers on the iPhone, they sounded a little better through the headsets than they did on the phone’s earpiece. Voices sounded natural and clear with little noise in the background and our friends said the same on their end.

So, are the iHarmonix earbuds worth it? At $59.95 for the Platinum and $39.95 for the Pro we definitely say yes for both — with the caveats that 1. your ears have to be the right size for the Pro i-Series to work out well and 2. you don’t need to get up near max volume, ever. For the money, it’s pretty tough to beat the Platinum i-Series and it’s definitely worth forking over the extra $20 over the Pro i-Series. The Platinum was just way more impressive — to the point where we think we’re going to keep them around for daily use.

iHarmonix Platinum product page
iHarmonix Pro product page

There you have it folks — done and done. The Apple Store is back up, new gear is live and credit card portals are wide open. Keeping things nice and simple, Apple has taken one of its two standard routes and simply tossed out a bunch of refreshes sans-hullabaloo. Here it is, now buy it. So what have we got?

iMac:

• $1199 (only 20″ model) – 2.66 GHz, 2GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, 320GB HD
• $1499 (24″) – 2.66 GHz, 4GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, 640GB HD
• $1799 (24″) – 2.93 GHz, 4GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 120, 640GB HD
• $2199 (24″) – 3.06 GHz, 4GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 130, 1TB HD

Mac Mini:

• $599 – 2.0GHz, 1GB 1066 MHz DDRS SDRAM, GeForce 9400M, 120GB HD, 8x SuperDrive, Mini DisplayPort, mini-DVI, 5 USB Ports, FireWire 800 Port
• $799 – 2.0GHz, 2GB 1066 MHz DDRS SDRAM, GeForce 9400M, 320GB HD, 8x SuperDrive, Mini DisplayPort, mini-DVI, 5 USB Ports, FireWire 800 Port

Mac Pro:

• $2499 – 2.66GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 3500 processor, 3GB of RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 120, 640GB HD
• $3299 – Dual 2.26GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5500 processors, 6GB of RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 120, 640GB HD

Apple definitely gave its desktop lineup a bit of an adrenaline shot, though it really didn’t come through with anything too Earth-shattering. What do you guys think? On a completely overshadowed note, Apple is now offering a 1TB Time Capsule for $500 (500GB for $299) and the AirPort Extreme Base Station, now capable of running two networks simultaneously, will run you $179 (old model is going for $159).

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It looks like four bands of HSPA is too much for a BlackBerry to handle as Japanese carrier DoCoMo has suspended all sales of the Bold due to overheating issues. Since its February 20th launch, DoCoMo has sold approximately 4,000 Bolds but after receiving more than 30 complaints about overheating keypads while charging, DoCoMo decided it was best to halt sales while RIM investigates the matter. RIM is being quite tight-lipped on the matter and would only comment with, “This issue appears to be specifically limited to the BlackBerry Bold devices sold in Japan since last week and sales of BlackBerry Bold devices in other countries are unaffected by this matter.” RIM went on to clarify that faulty batteries are not to blame. For those of you scoring at home, this brings the number of carriers that have suspended sales of the Bold up to two thus far. Anyone taking bets on who might be the third?

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Listen up Quickfire owners, AT&T just made a pretty major announcement: Your phone is going to self-destruct in exactly five days! Just kidding, sort of — if you don’t follow the proper procedures for charging your device, it just might. On Monday we broke news of the Quickfire being pulled off shelves and being cut from sales indefinitely without any public statement from AT&T. Now Big Blue is saying there have been reports of significant overheating when the charger is forced or incorrectly inserted into the phone. While there is usually only one way to get a charger in, sometimes phone designs allow for some wiggle room and these bad connectors appear to be the culprit of the Quickfire’s dismissal. If you own a Quickfire and haven’t received a notice already, you’ll soon receive an email and SMS that reads:

Please take special care when charging your Quickfire GTX75 mobile phone. There have been a few reports of significant overheating of the phone when the AC Charger adapter is inserted incorrectly and forced into the phone. The clearly marked, embossed arrow on the AC Charger adapter should always be face-up on the same side as the display screen of the Quickfire when it is inserted into the phone. See the diagram below for proper positioning and insertion of the AC Charger adapter into the phone. You should never force the AC Charger adapter into the phone.

This goes without saying but be sure to take note of this to avoid any injuries or serious damage to your phone and property. At least now we know why such a cool little device was suddenly yanked from store shelves and we hope the problem is remedied soon.

Thanks, Craig!

[Via Phonescoop]

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