You've gotta love the FCC these days, right? First they ask Google, AT&T and Apple just what they hell they're doing rejecting Google Voice from the App Store. Then they just don't fuck around when it comes to backing net neutrality. And now they're calling Verizon on its insane $350 ETF it's forcing people into with their "advanced" phones. It doesn't get much more pro-consumer than this.

[FCC via Engadget]

Verizon's response:

A broad array of Americans who might not otherwise be able to afford broadband connections to the Internet with a home PC, or by paying full price for a smartphone, have an affordable way of participating in the online world when they choose a subsidized option.

Also noted is the fact that smartphones are available at full, unsubsidized price, although it's not mentioned that the monthly fee doesn't change with an unsubsidized phone and that said unsubsidized phones are incredibly expensive. Hey Verizon, haven't you heard that this is a recession? Have some consideration. [The Hill]

I have a Droid, and like it a lot, but I'm a little concerned that these ads are alienating buyers by making the phone seem a lot more complex and threatening than it really is. To a first-time buyer, smartphones are a pretty intimidating purchase, and while I understand the impulse to differentiate the Droid from the cute-as-a-button, simple-as-can-be iPhone commercials, the Droid commercials may be going too far in the opposite direction with the whole DROID SMASH aesthetic. But that's just me, and, well, I bought one anyway—what do you guys think? [YouTube]

The Android 2.0.1 update should be out by the end of the year, but Droid owners (the only ones lucky enough to play with Android 2.0 at the moment) will also get an OTA update with a few Droid-specific fixes. We're told these include improved camera autofocus (thank God) and better voice reception (although in my experience the Droid's reception is stellar). We'll let you know when it's released, which should be before New Years. [Android via Engadget]

Boy Genius Report hears that the deal will last only three days, from December 4th (tomorrow!) to the 7th. There's one caveat: The deal doesn't allow for a free Droid. If you buy either a Droid or a Droid Eris, you can get a Droid Eris for free (after rebate). A little lame, but if you split the cost with somebody else, it's still a pretty solid deal for two of the top Android phones on the market. You'll just have to figure out who gets the Terminator Phone and who gets the prettier Last Year's Model.

The deal also includes the enV Touch and enV 3, if you're into that kind of thing. Still unconfirmed, but we've got no reason to doubt it. [Boy Genius Report]

Dell's Vostro 1015, the rare business laptop that brings a halfway elegant design to the boardroom table, is now available. The base model of the 15.6" laptop costs $429 but only comes with a 2.2GHz Celeron 900 processor, so you will likely want to make the jump to the $629 model which sports a 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo T6670. You know, to ensure that Excel performs snappily. Or at least for making sure you can snappily Alt-Tab back to Excel when the boss strolls by. The $629 price tag also gets you 3GB of RAM, a 320 GB HD and Windows 7 Professional. To check out more details on the Dell Vostro 1015, head over to Dell.

The Samsung Omnia II is now available at Verizon for $200. Though the Omnia II sports a pretty 3.7" touch screen, that beauty is only skin-deep; John thought just about everything else was a hot mess. The phone runs WinMo 6.5 mucked up with Samsung's 3D-Cube TouchWiz 2.0 UI and is the first phone to feature Swype input technology, which may or may not save you some time when you're texting all your friends to tell them that your new phone sucks. The Omnia II packs a 5-megapixel camera, an 8 GB HD, and supports both social networking widgets and Microsoft Office Mobile. To be the first person to submit an expense report via Swype, head to Verizon.

The Nokia N900 Maemo which, Nokia will have you know, is mobile computer and not a smartphone, is now available. For $570 you can fetch an unlocked N900 with a 600 MHz processor, a 32 GB hard drive, a 5-megapixel camera capable of capturing 800 x 400 video, and all the other expected bells and whistles. The N900 has a slide-out hardware keyboard for all your texting—err, mobile computing—needs, supports playback of a wide range of both audio and video file formats and offers VoIP integration. All of this is packed into Nokia's Debian-based Maemo OS which the company's announcement boasted as offering "computer-grade performance in a compact size". Ooh and ahh at the impressive N900 and its correspondingly grandiose website here.

The Cinemin Swivel Pico Projector by WowWee, a $300 pocket-size projector designed for use with other pocket-size devices, is now yours for the having. The Cinemin swivels on a 90-degree hinge for versatile projection without a tripod, which is sweet like cinnamon but only offers 480 x 320 resolution, which is like the minimum of cinema, thus Cinemin. That might not be what they had in mind with the name but I'm sticking to it. You can get your hands on the little guy over at Amazon.

IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED by and between Plaintiff/Counterclaim Defendant Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless ("Verizon Wireless") and Defendant/Counterclaim Plaintiff AT&T Mobility LLC ("AT&T") that pursuant to Rule 41(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: (a) Verizon Wireless's claims against AT&T in the above- captioned action are hereby dismissed without prejudice, and (b) AT&T's counterclaims against Verizon Wireless in the above-captioned action are hereby dismissed without prejudice.

AT&T's suit in Georgia courts (which Verizon had not countered with a suit of their own) was dropped as well.

The legal back and forth stemmed from AT&T's sue-jerk reaction to Verizon's biting "there's a map for that" commercials, escalating in the media as AT&T responded with the help of Luke Wilson. And with a few simple documents, a great corporate slapfight comes to an end—at least in the courts. The not-so-distant future will reveal whether or not the ceasefire was sourced from some sort of advertising gentleman's agreement.

UPDATE: Apparently, one of the NY suits was not directly related to the maps argument. Verizon sued AT&T in NY courts, not for money, but to have the courts rule its claims of "Most Dependable 3G Network" were true. (Check the doc at Engadget, if you're interested.)

Yes, in 19 of the 26 cities surveyed, AT&T was ranked dead last in every category. Verizon was ranked the best, followed by T-Mobile, then Sprint and then, of course, bringing up the rear is our friend AT&T. You can compare their results to the results of our own nationwide 3G test here.

You've got to wonder if Apple can afford to stick this exclusivity contract out another year, what with decent competitors such as the Droid and the Pre now available. AT&T is as big a black mark on Apple's customer service reputation as they've ever had. And hell, for AT&T's sake it'd be nice to see some other carriers share the burden of iPhone data hogs. [9 to 5 Mac]

Sprint isn't giving in to the request and is proceeding to argue independent test results. I quite frankly don't care whether they give in, keep the claim, or change it to say that they're the best thing since sliced bread. I just want reliable service and calls that actually go through. [Electronista]

If you hate the gallery format, click here.

All pricing shown is with a new 2-year contract, and some deals may be temporary.

AT&T

iPhone 3GS
The iPhone 3GS is the best overall smartphone you can buy. It's really that simple. Best user interface, best internet, best apps, best media support—the list goes on. Okay, not the best network, but nothing's perfect. $199

BlackBerry Bold 9700
I miss the original BlackBerry Bold's king-sized keyboard, but the Bold 9700 squeezes the best of the BlackBerry for CEOs into an impressively tight form factor—faux leather back included—making it very possibly the best BlackBerry you can buy. $10

Bonus: Nokia e71x
It's free, and an actually good smartphone—my favorite Nokia phone on the planet. Free

Verizon

Droid
It's a terminator. A huge, disgustingly high-res screen, Batman-worthy industrial design, and the full power of Android 2.0 make it the best phone on Verizon—and the fact that it's running on arguably the best network in the US make it the second best smartphone you can buy, period. $150

BlackBerry Tour
Sure, it's notorious for trackball problems and it's missing Wi-Fi, but this is the BlackBerry of choice for email warriors if they're not on AT&T or T-Mobile—and it sure as hell beats anything running Windows Mobile. $50

Bonus: Droid Eris
If you're desperate to save $100 over the Droid, the Droid Eris will run Android 2.0 soon enough, and is smoother, smaller, and friendlier, if a little blander. $100

Sprint

Palm Pre
The Pre offers one of the best user experiences of any smartphone with Palm's webOS, and it's probably the best phone on Sprint, hardware build issues and comparatively dinky App Catalog aside. $80

HTC Hero
The best Android phone not running Android 2.0, HTC's Sense UI makes the sometimes confusing Android interface more digestible and has a few nifty tricks of its own, like integrated social networking. $100

Bonus: There is none. The Pixi's close ($25), but the fact that you can get the Pre for nearly as cheap undercuts a lot of the value, as much as we like the design and form factor.

T-Mobile

Motorola Cliq
Motorola's other Android phone is gussied up with Blur, a custom interface that's bright and friendly, with widgets for keeping track of everything happening on your social network. It's our favorite Android phone on T-Mobile. $100

Unlocked iPhone
No, I'm not kidding. A jailbroken and unlocked iPhone, even without 3G powers, is the second best smartphone you can use on T-Mobile.

Bonus: BlackBerry Bold 9700
The BlackBerry Bold 9700 is the first BlackBerry with 3G on T-Mobile, which is reason enough, really, but it's good the reasons listed above, too. $130

Yes, the first thing you may notice is that Swype technically uses a QWERTY layout. But instead of pushing each key individually, you drag your finger from letter to letter.

It's tough to tell if the speed gains are legitimate, given this video has been created by the Swype camp. I will say, however, given that this demo is one hand vs. two, the technology certainly holds its own. What do you think? Would you be willing to part with traditional QWERTY to spell words through nonsensical doodles?

Swype will debut in Verizon's Samsung Omnia II arriving early next month before making its way to an unnamed Android phone next year. [Swype via TechCrunch via OhGizmo!]

[Engadget]

Now, good on AT&T for fighting back with more ads and not more silly lawsuits and all, but the Verizon holiday ad lineup is pretty strong, and I don't see many Verizon customers losing sleep over Luke Wilson covering a giant coverage map with post cards.

As tipster Eric notes, AT&T selectively does not mention Edge, 3G or voice/data distinctions in this commercial, opting instead for vague blanket statements like "AT&T covers 97% of all Americans, that's over 300 million people."

To the AT&T customers I ask: Are you comforted by Luke Wilson?

Does Luke Wilson armed with some magnets beat the punch of Verizon's catchy slogan?

U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Batten Sr remarked that people might "misunderstand" the commercials, "but that doesn't mean they're misleading." He continued to add that "most people who are watching TV are semi-catatonic" to begin with. Let's hope his train of thought remains during the follow-up hearing on December 16, because the case is starting to lose any entertainment value. [AJC via Engadget]

There's a rounding-error bug in the camera driver's autofocus routine (which uses a timestamp) that causes autofocus to behave poorly on a 24.5-day cycle. That is, it'll work for 24.5 days, then have poor performance for 24.5 days, then work again.

The 17th is the start of a new "works correctly" cycle, so the devices will be fine for a while. A permanent fix is in the works.

But of course! I understand perfectly why a camera would be dependent on the date. Chances are good that this will have a legit fix before 24.5 days are up, but man, what a weird bug. [Engadget via GadgetLab]

When your lawsuits sound like press releases, it's because they probably are (not that we care, the whole case is pretty entertaining). Check out this opening statement from Verizon:

AT&T did not file this lawsuit because Verizon's "There's A Map For That" advertisements are untrue; AT&T sued because Verizon's ads are true and the truth hurts.

YA BURNT, AT&T! Verizon goes on to accuse AT&T of failing to adequately expand its 3G coverage to match demand for its smartphones, which is sort of a hard point for AT&T to argue. Verizon claims that its advertisements are "literally true" (instead of philosophically true? Metaphorically true? True in the sense in which it is used in animal husbandry, as in purebred? What?) and not misleading, and that AT&T has failed to provide customers with an accurate map of its coverage. It's pretty great, really—if you've ever wished the American legal system was more like it is on Law and Order, this whole statement is a gift. [Engadget]

There are two main problems: We like bills to be consistent, and we're risk-averse consumers.

To the first point, Sprint tried to offer a plan in 2004 where 300 minutes cost $35, and $2.50 for each additional 50 minutes. Seems great to me, no outrageous overage charges. But customers didn't like it because their bills would vary so much from month-to-month, so Sprint switched back to age-old tiered minutes plans.

Because we like consistent billing, the carriers institute ridiculous overage charges to convince us to spend up. That way we don't have to worry about any unforeseen costs, even if the fixed price plan ends up costing more than a variable pricing structure would.

The article also goes into how stupid expensive text message rates are subsidizing falling voice revenues, how wireless carriers would love to stop subsidizing phones, and more.

I know the average Gizmodo reader would like nothing more than to pay as little per minute as possible, but the average consumer thinks differently.

What's interesting is that this wholesale mentality does work, at least in terms of raw pricing. One minute of talk time costs 5 cents, and the average text message costs 1 cent. According to the article, that's the lowest average pricing in the developed world. The minutes do come at a bulk discount, it's just a matter of whether or not you use all of them.

I'll leave it to you commenters to discuss, but it's a good read into how wireless pricing in America got so complicated. [New York Times]

A tipster writing to David Pogue claims to work at Verizon, and he explained his own moral frustration with the problem:

"The phone is designed in such a way that you can almost never avoid getting $1.99 charge on the bill. Around the OK button on a typical flip phone are the up, down, left, right arrows. If you open the flip and accidentally press the up arrow key, you see that the phone starts to connect to the web. So you hit END right away. Well, too late. You will be charged $1.99 for that 0.02 kilobytes of data. NOT COOL. I've had phones for years, and I sometimes do that mistake to this day, as I'm sure you have. Legal, yes; ethical, NO.

"Every month, the 87 million customers will accidentally hit that key a few times a month! That's over $300 million per month in data revenue off a simple mistake!

"Our marketing, billing, and technical departments are all aware of this. But they have failed to do anything about it-and why? Because if you get 87 million customers to pay $1.99, why stop this revenue? Customer Service might credit you if you call and complain, but this practice is just not right.

"Now, you can ask to have this feature blocked. But even then, if you one of those buttons by accident, your phone transmits data; you get a message that you cannot use the service because it's blocked–BUT you just used 0.06 kilobytes of data to get that message, so you are now charged $1.99 again!

"They have started training us reps that too many data blocks are being put on accounts now; they're actually making us take classes called Alternatives to Data Blocks. They do not want all the blocks, because 40% of Verizon's revenue now comes from data use. I just know there are millions of people out there that don't even notice this $1.99 on the bill."

Pogue notes that others have written in who are on different networks that have experienced similar problems. So this shady data charge scam might not be exclusive to Verizon—although they do have have a reputation for pricing policies that many would deem "excessive." So, my question is, how many of your monthly bills from Verizon include erroneous data charges? Have you experienced similar problems on another carrier? [Pogue's Posts via Consumerist Image via PhoneArena]

Compared against the Droid Eris, the decidedly secondary, little-advertised rebranded Hero that happens to be launching alongside the Droid Droid (and also happens to be the cheapest new Android phone on the market), the Pixi's hasn't been driving much Google traffic at all, according to Google Trends. More odd is that even with reviews starting to hit, exciting deals showing up online and a release date rapidly approaching, the Pixi's buzz is flat. Yes, that Pixi—thelegitimately interesting handset aimed at a broader audience than its much buzzier predecessor. Hm.

A couple of points: Although I searched for "Droid Eris" in quotes, there's a good chance the Eris is getting a leg up on Google searches by piggybacking on the hyper-hyped Droid Proper. Also, I've seen three people, two of whom work with gadgets for a living, write "Pixi" as "Pixie" in the last 24 hours, which is funny! Also: probably a bad sign, for the buzz. But still, that explains a disparity, not totally flat interest, or the weirdly tiny bump in attention the phone got when pricing was announced back in October. General public: what gives? [Google Trends]

The good news, if there is any, is that the early termination fee only applies to early termination. Surprised you, there, didn't it? The bad news is, what Mark said about the ditch fee being $110 in the 23rd month is true. And pretty much anything you'd want to buy from Verizon these days—not just Droids and BlackBerrys but netbooks too—are locked into this new fee.

Verizon is pretty clear that this is about recouping the cost of the subsidy; a gadget lands on the "advanced" list when it has a combination of features that "drive up the cost." Only wireless modems and dumbphones (below referred to as feature phones) appear to be exempt. Here are the details from a spokesman:

The higher tier of early termination fee applies to a device category that generally includes smartphones, netbooks and other advanced devices purchased at a subsidized price under contract. Please remember, feature phones still carry a $175 early termination fee when purchased at a subsidized price with a new customer agreement.

Advanced devices include a combination of advanced capabilities that combined drive up the cost of the device, including premium HTML browser; high-resolution MP camera with optical zoom; dual processor chipsets; WiFi; very high-resolution displays, and/or operating systems such as BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Palm, or Android. The category also includes netbooks. (Modems will still carry a $175 ETF.)

We are informing customers at the point of purchase/contract renewal—whether on line, in person or over the phone. On Sunday, when the new EFT takes effect, we will post the list of advanced devices.

By the way, it is important to note that this change has no impact on customers with previously signed contracts, and as a practical matter has no impact on the majority of customers who choose to complete the terms of their contracts.

Remember, if you sign a long-term contract and complete it, there's no early termination fee. In addition, customers always have the option of buying any device at full retail without an early termination fee.

Eris is Verizon's other Droid phone. It really is a remodeled Hero, running Android 1.5 and HTC's vaunted Sense candy coating—documented CSI style here—a $200 phone stuffed inside a thinner $100 body, like a Corvette engine shoved inside a Saturn. It's admittedly less exciting than the titular Droid, an industrial beast running Android 2.0. But I have the feeling Verizon is gonna sell a lot more of these things, because, again, it's $100.

Designing for the Middle of the Road

The Eris is rubbery blob, a narrow oval that's as subdued as a phone could possibly be, but there is admittedly something comforting about the Eris's utter lack of personality—it's completely non-threatening, like a middle manager. It's so generic it's almost artful, actually, a design that is nearly perfect for a cheap phone.

The four main Android buttons are touch sensitive, bleeding into the black bezel, hovering over the dead-center trackball and hard chrome buttons for phone and end. I'd like a dedicated camera button, but a volume rocker is all we get. The camera lens stares out the back, disturbingly more reminiscent of an eye than most cameras sticking out the backs of phones, probably because of how stark the rest of the phone is.

Hardware and Camera

The actual guts and screen are the same as past Hero phones—which is to say, nearly the same as all of HTC's other Android phones so far. The 480x320 screen's still nice, even if it feels dated now that the Droid's massive screen, beckoning the next generation, looms large over it. Oh yeah, HTC? Can you get rid of your stupid, pointlessly different version of the mini USB port? Let's go to micro USB now, yeah?

The still camera's better than the Droid though, and about the same as the Sprint version of the Hero, performing pretty decently in low-light situations. Video, not so much:

Software and the Endgame

I've already covered HTC's Sense UI in depth, and it is the exact same on the Eris. It runs just as fast as the Sprint Hero, if not a teeny bit quicker. I will say that after using Android 2.0, it does feel like a step backward in some ways, mostly because of the single Google account limitation. But HTC's confirmed Android 2.0 is coming, so it won't be an issue for every long.

And really, the fact that Android 2.0—half the reason the Droid is excellent—is coming to the Droid Eris is why, in the end, it's such a steal. It's running on Verizon, it's going to have Android 2.0, and it's $100. It's a great phone now, and will be better still soon, making it kind of a perfect storm for people on Verizon looking to ditch their dumbphones—but not Verizon—for something more capable, but who are put off by the Droid, whether it's the steroids or the higher sticker price.

It's last month's darling. But it'll run this month's software. For cheap. And that's pretty spiffy, actually.

You're getting last month's killer Android phone for half price

We'll say it again: This is the best Android deal around

Android 1.5 feels a little dated

Video recording's not exactly amazing

The apparent internal bulletins were leaked to Android fan site, Phandroid, and total 5 pages for the Motorola, and 7 for the HTC. They look legit, and if they are, the info is useful for a number of reasons. If you're thinking about buying a Droid, it's good to see some of the problems you may face.

But even better, the meticulous list seems to show that Verizon/Motorola/HTC actually care about supporting their devices post launch. [Phandroid: Motorola Droid | HTC Droid Eris]

Keep in mind this is all coming from an industry analyst report supplied to Apple Insider, and as with all analyst reports, take it with a huge chunk of rock salt.

Rumor has it that the new iPhone will have a hybrid UMTS/CDMA radio inside, so it'll work on nearly all major carriers. The report also cites that the device will have a 2.8" screen, downsized from the current 3.5" display.

That's nothing we haven't heard before, but the one thing that might make this report more believable than others is the tidbit about who'll make the thing. According to the document, Pegatron will build the phone and not Hon Hai, the current manufacturer.

Baseless speculation, or looming product launch? Whatever the case, I'm much less excited about these rumors now that Android handsets are available on Verizon. As great as an iPhone would be on Big Red, there are very solid alternatives that you can pick up today, so why wait? [Apple Insider]

It's a simple text link that leads to Google's mobile partners page which then has a link to the actual Verizon Wireless site. But despite that extra click, it's still incredibly rare to see any sort of ad on the otherwise clean homepage. Especially when it kinda conflicts with Google's attempts to make the things even more minimalist lately. [TechCrunch]

Windows 7 Sales 234% Higher Than Vista

NPD declared sales for Windows 7 were 234% higher than the sales for Windows Vista in the same amount of time on the market, says Nick Wingfield at the WSJ's Seattle desk. Oddly, Windows PC sales were down, 6% lower than they were during the Vista launch weeks. The NPD analyst take: "I think it's mixed. We would have liked to see a stronger jump on the hardware side." The non-analyst take: People who had XP knew that switching to Vista would suck without a new machine; now, the opposite is true, with so many people keeping their old machines but trying any means necessary to rid them of Vista. Still, these are early days, and we already knew pre-orders were insane. I'm just curious to see if PC sales will pick up for the holidays. [WSJ - Image Source]

Battery Juice No Longer Just an Expression, Still Not as Tasty as Orange Juice

You know how the Air Force has been working on a secret water-based battery technology for 25 years, but couldn't get it to work because of water's damned evaporative property? OK, me neither, but this research, which bears the ironically simple name "metal-air," might become our next great battery technology. They won't be using water, though. Instead, they'll use a clear, viscous, electrically conductive and mercifully non-volatile substance called ionic liquid. This stuff isn't going to be powering your Zune until the Zune itself is pretty much an implant (or a smart tattoo), but if you're curious, you should check out the super over-my-head chemical explanation. [MIT Tech Review - Image Source]

Verizon Calls AT&T's Ad Lawsuit "Junk"

As if AT&T's stupid "Map For That" lawsuit wasn't embarrassing enough on its own, Verizon Wireless's Jeffrey Nelson got a chance to ridicule it when AdWeek called him for comment. "This is a junk lawsuit," he said. "It's surprising that rather than defend the ‘blue' hot spots on their 3G map, our competitor instead focuses on their white spaces." This isn't working out according to plan, is it, AT&T? Reminds me of the Trojan Rabbit scene in Python's Holy Grail. [AdWeek via AllThingsD]

Air Filter Uses Plants to Get Rid of Yer Weed Smoke

There's a new air filter that draws air through the leaves, roots and soil of a house plant in order to filter impurities from the room. Well, it was designed in 2007, but it's now a reality. Hey, are you thinking what I'm thinking? If you grow pot in the filter, when you smoke it, the plant itself that bestowed it upon you can filter the smoke, and maybe recapture some THC for bonus stickiness? Wait, what? Oh man, I'm freaking out. You're crazy. This is crazy. Seriously. Let's do it. [Inhabitots]

The LG Chocolate Touch is the latest iteration of the Chocolate line, and brings with it some new music features: FM radio, dedicated key for favorites, Dolby Mobile sound enhancements, and an unexpected and downright weird "Join the Band" feature. Join the Band features a virtual drum kit and scrolling 88-key keyboard so you can tap along with your music. Of course, it also offers Twitter, Facebook and MySpace integration, a 3.2MP camera and one-touch uploading. It's not a super exciting phone like the BL40, but at least it's odd enough to be sort of interesting. It's available today and costs $80 after a $50 mail-in rebate.

On the BlackBerry side of things, we have yet another 'Berry with the Curve moniker (if you're confused about the multitude of identically-named but different-numbered Curves, check out this handy chart). The Curve 8530 is the followup to Verizon's Curve 8330, and has features more in line with the GSM Curve 8520 than the Curve 8900. If you're still following me, great, because this is one of the best Curves out there: It's got Wi-Fi, 3G and GPS. It's the only Curve with 3G, and improves on its GSM brother by offering GPS. Other than that, it's the same 85xx Curve that Matt already reviewed. It'll cost $100 after a $100 mail-in rebate when it's released on November 20th.

And bringing up the rear, we've got the Samsung Convoy, a burly push-to-talk flip-phone that meets military specification, unlike me. It's got a 1300 mAh battery, which is bigger than some smartphones, and is built to withstand shock, dust, vibration, salt fog, humidity, and solar radiation. It'll probably survive until the end of the Iraq War. The Samsung Convoy will be available November 15th for $50 after a $50 mail-in rebate.

[Verizon]

The Droid Eris is very closely related to the Hero, which currently costs $180 at Sprint, sharing mostly the same internals and a slightly redesigned shell. So it's got the same decent 5MP camera, the same 528MHz Qualcomm processor, and the same 3.2-inch capacitive multitouch screen. However, the Hero's 1500 mAh battery has been replaced with a 1300 mAh battery, presumably for thinness's sake—we don't know if it'll reduce battery life noticeably, since HTC says they've made helpful optimizations, but it might.

It'll be Verizon's first phone with HTC's Sense UI, but underneath that pretty interface it's still running Android 1.5, which means you won't be getting any of Android 2.0's sweet new features like turn-by-turn Google Maps. Yet. HTC told me they'll upgrade to 2.0 once they've worked out all the bugs between 2.0 and Sense.

On the plus side, it's thinner and lighter than the Hero, and the four key buttons have been rearranged into a straight line of touch buttons rather than the Hero's square layout. The Hero's blobby design has been changed to a, well, different-looking blobby design. It's even more understated than the Hero, with textured plastic replacing the Hero's brushed aluminum front, and while it isn't an ugly phone, it's also not very eye-catching. However: It feels good in the hand, it's still quite snappy and Sense UI is as slick as ever. At $99 (with 2-year contract, after $100 rebate that comes back as a debit card, like the Droid), with an 8GB microSDHC card included, it's an enticing deal. Press release below. [Verizon]

DROID ERIS by HTC Debuts with Verizon Wireless with HTC Sense Experience and an Ultra-Attractive $99.99 Price

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., and BELLEVUE, Wash. – Beginning Nov. 6, DROID ERIS™ by HTC will invade Verizon Wireless Communications Stores across the United States, bringing the power of the Android™ platform and the Verizon Wireless network together. DROID ERIS by HTC combines the popular Android platform with HTC Sense™, a user experience from HTC that makes it easy for customers to stay close to one another and create an individualized mobile experience tailored specifically to their needs.

DROID ERIS by HTC offers customers the opportunity to customize a seven-panel wide home screen with a wide variety of widgets designed to bring the most important information to the surface. DROID ERIS by HTC also includes the innovative "Scenes" feature, which allows customers to create multiple home screens, each with different widgets and shortcuts, to transform DROID ERIS by HTC from a "work" phone to a "play" phone with just a touch of a finger.

DROID ERIS by HTC also organizes interactions by person, which makes it possible to access text messages, e-mails, phone calls and even Flickr streams and Facebook updates from a single contact card.

The unique HTC Sense experience found on DROID ERIS by HTC is supported by an array of the latest mobile features, including:

o 3.2 inch capacitive touch screen and trackball interface

o 5.0 megapixel auto focus camera

o Expandable memory with pre-installed 8 GB microSD™ card (up to 16 GB supported)

o Supports USB mass storage

o Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi and 3.5 mm headset connectivity

o Integrated GPS and a digital compass with a sensor that enables the phone to know what direction it is facing

o Smart dialer for simplified dialing by name, number or initials

o Full HTML browser with Flash Lite capabilities

o Seamless compatibility with Google services like Google Maps, Gmail, Google Search and more

DROID ERIS by HTC will be available in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com on Friday, Nov. 6, for $99.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement on a voice plan with an e-mail feature or e-mail plan. Customers will receive the mail-in rebate in the form of a debit card; upon receipt, customers may use the card as cash anywhere debit cards are accepted.

For more information about Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.

On its site, Saygus mentions the "mystery third Verizon Android device" article, which reiterates how the Open Development program is designed to make it quick and easy to get devices onto Verizon's CDMA network.

The phone has decent specs, and definitely looks better than the cheapy Motorola "Calgary" Android phone. If the Saygus is actually headed for Verizon, it'll be interesting to see which arrives first. [AndroidPhones via SlashGear]

800x480 3.5 inch capacitive touchscreen;
- 624 MHz Marvell processor (PXA 310);
- 512 ROM / 256 RAM;
- 5 MP AF camera with flash;
- Front facing camera for video calling;
- GPS;
- accelerometer;
- compass;
- FM radio;
- USB;
- MicroSD up to 32GB;
- WiFi;
- Bluetooth;
- 1500 mAh battery.

Channels: COR, DMDR, LD, and NR Internal
Roles: Reps & Above
Markets: All
Contact: Your Manager

AT&T filed a lawsuit on November 4, 2009 against Verizon's "There's a Map for That" advertising campaign. Independent research shows that the maps in the advertisements mislead consumers into believing that we do not offer any wireless service in the vast majority of the country. In fact, AT&T's 2.5G EDGE network covers 1.75 million square miles of the United States, reaching some 296 million people, roughly the same number reached by Verizon's network. This network supports popular services like e-mail, surfing the Web, texting, and voice calling, including the activities shown in the Verizon TV advertisements. In addition, our 3G service, the nation's fastest, is available in more than 9,400 cities and towns.

We filed the lawsuit in Federal District Court in Atlanta and asked that Verizon be prohibited from misleading consumers regarding the scope of our wireless network.

How should I respond to customers who ask about the lawsuit?

While we cannot speculate on the complaint filed, it is a great opportunity to remind customers of AT&T's many advantages that over 81 million customers enjoy, including:

* Best Network
* The best coverage worldwide (More Bars in More PlacesTM).
* The nation's fastest 3G network and the only national 3G carrier providing simultaneous voice and data usage.
* The most devices that work in the most places including Japan and South Korea (3G 2100 MHz device required).
* The nation's largest wireless and wireline broadband provider.
* The nation's largest company-owned and operated WiFi network with more than 20,000 hotspots, including Starbucks, McDonald's and Barnes and Noble, as well as access to over 120,000 hotspots around the world.
* The leading provider of local and long distance voice services.

Greatest Value – The fairest value with Rollover® allowing customers to keep their unused minutes month to month.
Best Products - The most innovative exclusive devices such as the iPhoneTM 3GS.
Most Convenient Services
* The most customer friendly free self-service tools with *Services for checking usage, paying bills, and adding features.
* The most convenient and cost-effective way for customers to manage their accounts with Combined Billing for wireless and wireline products.
* Industry leading 30-day satisfaction guarantee.

As always, if you have an inquiry from the media, please refer them to your local media relations team member.

I guess that if you've made a mockery of the court system with a ridiculous lawsuit, then you might as well use the attention for a bit of spin. [Mobile Crunch]

Beginning 11/15, early terminations on contracts with unspecified "advanced device"(s) will be subject to a fee of $350. And while that policy might slow ebay entrepreneurs just looking to make a few easy bucks on a resold Blackberry, it's devastating to the average guy who just wants to ditch his contract early.

The good news, however, is that fee will drop by $10 every month. But still, that's a $110 termination fee in month 23 of a 2-year contract...which is clearly absurd. [BGR]

Now, the "There's a Map for That" ad focuses on 3G alone, and the discussion is about 3G services, including video. But the charge AT&T makes is that people who watch the ad are being deliberately led to thinking that in the white spaces, there's no AT&T phone service at all. Here's the accusation:

Consumers are interpreting the white or blank space on the maps to mean that AT&T customers who are not in an AT&T "3G" coverage area have no wireless coverage whatsoever, and therefore have no ability to use their wireless devices for any purposes in vast areas of the country. This interpretation is not surprising as Verizon, in its own coverage maps, uses white space to inform customers that no coverage of any kind exists.

The thing is, this is somewhat tricky to prove, but it sounds wrong. There are areas of Verizon voice coverage that are not marked as red in the map in the commercial, if my squint-eye human-instrument comparison test is accurate. Try it for yourself. Does the map up top better resemble the one in blue and yellow (but not green), which shows broadband, aka 3G? Or the one in red, which shows voice and messaging?

For reference, here's AT&T's map—note, only the very darkest shade of blue represents 3G coverage:

The ad may contain jargon that might confuse middle America—I will admit that—but to any trained ear, it's pretty clearly about 3G. As far as this maps claim, though, that seems dubious. The maps that Verizon chose do seem to represent the same thing—3G coverage only. Yes, AT&T lawyers, if I'm right about this, it means that had Verizon cheated, their map would have been even redder than the one in the ad. So what's say we spend more of that iPhone subscription money on fixing the network (near my house, please!) and less money on frivolous lawsuits.

[AT&T's Motion for the Restraining Order of Verizon WARNING: PDF]

Over the last year, Android's evolved more rapidly and appeared in more shapes than any other smartphone OS. Every major update has made Android more capable and advanced, while custom interfaces from companies like HTC and Motorola, mean it's constantly and continually shifting shapes. When you look at the bucket of bolts everybody started with, some of the oh-so-shiny end results were kind of amazing. Android 2.0 blows all of that away, and lays down a platform for the next year that's wildly more compelling, even as it retains a lot of the same fundamental weaknesses.

We reviewed on Android 2.0 on the Motorola Droid—our review of the actual phone is here.

New Skin, Same Awkward Body

Android 2.0 is glossy—not in an Apple "the whole world is shiny and reflective" kind of way, but more like molded plastic for a collectible action figure. The cartoon whimsy—the classic Google rainbow of bright colors—are gone. The iconography, redrawn for high-res displays packed with tons of pixels, is smoother and sleeker, more subtle, and forces you to ask yourself, "Google designed this?"

While icons and menubars have been polished to fine gloss, and some things are cleaner and better organized—settings, for instance—overall, the user experience is basically the same: three desktops, which you can pack with icons and widgets; the still brilliant drop-down notification shade, which pools everything Android wants to tell you; and a pop-up tab where all of your apps are at. This is all still fine, mostly, if a bit muddled.

The reason that cluttered interface confusion is mostly fine is that multitasking with Android is addictive, and it's a better, easier-to-use implementation than any phone but the Pre. The window shade, a simple but powerful concept, is what makes it work. If I'm browsing the internet and get a message, I can pull the shade down, check the message, and go right back to browsing. Or flip over to messaging, reply, and get right back to browsing. At this, Android 2.0 excels, especially now that everything runs faster.

The long press and menu button conventions are still used nearly everywhere throughout the OS, but almost always inconsistently. If you're trying to do something in-app and have no idea how, there's a good chance the action you're looking for is buried behind the menu button or a long press. But these controls do different things in almost every single app, and even sometimes in the same app, depending on the context.

Universal search, and in particular, voice commands which let you quickly access search, map or navigate with surprising accuracy (seriously, it deciphers my mumbling better than my mom), are probably the most significant improvements to usability. Universal search isn't quite as universal as we'd like, though. It only pores over apps, contacts, YouTube, music and the web—you have to go into the messaging and email apps separately to search through them, which doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

And while Android 2.0 is capable of multitouch, other than making typing smoother, it's nowhere to be found, at least not where I want it: the browser and maps. Also, the portrait keyboard's still too tiny.

A Killer Machine, Sorta

Software is inextricably tied to hardware in many respects, and nowhere is that more true than performance. Droid, the first Android 2.0 phone—and the only one we've used—is ridiculously capable, with an ARM Cortex A8 TI OMAP3430 processor that's basically the same as the chips inside of the Palm Pre and iPhone 3GS. Point being, it's got heavy duty processor firepower.

So it's absolutely inexplicable that while it's overall the fastest version of Android yet—most apps fly open instantly, run zippily and practically zoom from one to another, even with a couple running in the background—very basic user interface elements, like the main pop-up menu on the home screen and sliding over from one desktop to another, often stutter or lag (with no apps running up front, and just a couple of widgets on the desktop). At this point, it's clear that these performance hiccups are an Android problem, not a hardware deficiency. It's maddening to hold a badass phone like the Droid and watch it handle menus like a pussy.

Accounts, Contacts, Exchange and Other Serious-Sounding Words

Besides Google Maps Navigation Beta, Android 2.0's most significant upgrade for regular people is all about contacts and networking. Like the Palm Pre and HTC's Sense UI, it integrates contacts from multiple sources—namely, Facebook and Exchange (no Twitter yet). The scheme works exceptionally well, with finesse that's almost out of character for Google. The way it pulls in your Facebook contacts actually makes sense: When you add the account, you can choose to add all 900 of your Facebook contacts, or just the ones who you have actual Google contacts for. Oh, sweet reason! It even managed to match our address book contacts with correlating Facebook accounts pretty accurately and seamlessly, with a few exceptions.

1. Everybody whose name is capitalized in the screenshot is matched up with Facebook—I loathe capital letters, but got over the inconsistency.
2. And the rarely mismatched contacts prove difficult, if not impossible, to completely straighten out.

Quick Contact is what keeps this orgy of personal information from getting too messy when it's time to get down to business—clicking on a contact's icon blooms a row of icons, letting you instantly ping them via SMS, phone, email, Facebook or whatever you want.

Android finally approaches a real smartphone when it comes to accounts. Multiple Google accounts and Exchange support come stock. What's that mean? Well, if you have a hosted Google apps account for work, and a personal one (like all of us at Giz do), you can use the awesome native Gmail application for both, instead of being forced to relegate one of the accounts to the separate, okay-but-not-as-good email app, which is what handles all of your Exchange, IMAP and POP mail. The only bummer is that you still have to toggle between each Google account mailbox in the Gmail app. (Yes, there are two different email applications. A Gmail app, and one for everything else. And they're completely different.)

There's one serious limitation to the multiple Google account support: The only Google calendars that sync to the phone are the ones from your main Google account, not your secondary one. Exchange calendars, on the other hand, use the separate-but-equal-as-far-as-I-can-tell "Corporate Calendars" app. We tested Exchange support using mail2web's free service, and everything seemed to show up correctly, FWIW.

Maps

The biggest change to Google Maps is Navigation, which Wilson Rothman, a Magellan for our time, reviewed extensively here. My assessment is mostly the same after a weekend in a car—it's pretty good, but occasionally befuddling and hard to get around. A potential point of confusion is that Navigation is both integrated into Maps and also its own distinct app, unlike Latitude.

Also new, sorta, is layers. Basically, every bit of information you wanna see in Maps is now a "layer." Like if I've got Latitude up on the map, and want to see nearby coffee places with satellite view, that's three layers—Latitude, a search for coffee, and satellite view. It can get a little confusing, especially if you're going from search to search or Maps to Navigation and then back to Maps—none of it's conceptually clean or simple, and the interface isn't always aren't entirely self-apparent. Also. Pinch. To. Zoom. I want it.

Browse Awesomer, But No (Multi)Touchy

The browser's faster, smarter and more powerful, and is probably the second best browser now, next to mobile Safari. It mostly cuts through lardass sites like Gizmodo with pep previous versions didn't, with more responsive scrolling and panning (slowdown does happen though). The browser actually starts you out on each site with a view of the entire page now, which is nicer in theory, but then it makes you want to pinch to zoom in—which, like Maps, is not enabled. You're stuck with unwieldly buttons and double-taps that never quite line the page up the way they should. If Palm, who's an insect by comparison, can pinch and zoom with impunity, why can't Google? Don't say it's out of friendship, because Apple doesn't even like you guys anymore.

Well, It Would Be a Better Camera

More controls! Yay! White balance, focusing mode, color and more. It's just too bad that on the Droid, the camera's completely unresponsive garbage. I don't know if it's software or hardware, so I'm mentioning in it both here and in our Droid review. Fix please.

Multimedia, or the Lack Thereof

The only way to get your music and videos on the phone is to manually drag and drop the files. There is no syncing, no easy way to get your music library onto your phone. How are normal people supposed to figure this out? Verizon reps actually joked about how putting music on the Droid is sure to make for a lovely Saturday afternoon. What. The. Shit.

And, there's not even a built-in video player! I have a phone with drop-dead gorgeous screen that I can't use to play movies without digging up my own video app, even if I could figure out how to get videos onto it. Correction: The video player's tucked inside of the slow and rather buggy Gallery application, where you also browse photos. And it wouldn't play videos that worked perfectly on a Zune HD or iPhone. Also, it and the music player are hideous.

Until I can magically and perfectly sync 12 gigs of music and videos over the air, you can't get away with not having a media sync desktop application. And DoubleTwist, a third-party app that can sync to Android, doesn't really count, since it's not bundled with it. (Update: FWIW, if you know where to look, Motorola offers a PC-only Media Link application for its Android phones. But it still doesn't solve the larger Android problem—Google needs to specify an easy-to-use syncing solution for people who need that.) Make no mistake, for a phone platform that's supposed to be ready for consumers now, this is a disaster, like a spaceship that's about to shoot into the atmosphere with a gaping hole in the side.

Goin' to the Android Market, Buyin' Some Apps

The Android Market has over 10,000 apps, and its state of the union is still a mixed bag. On the one hand, it's finally got official apps from Facebook, Amazon, Pandora and other critical names people expect on their phone. On the other, and almost universally, these apps aren't nearly as polished or full-featured as their iPhone counterparts (look no further than the Facebook app, which lacks even messaging in Android). And games? It's a pretty desolate wasteland, if you're looking for something beyond NES emulators. The library is getting better, and will undoubtedly keep getting better, but it's hard not to lament Android's comparative app ghetto, even as the platform's poised to explode. (Update: Another point I forgot to mention, and part of the reason Android games are limited in scope, is the storage limit for apps since they can't be installed on the SD card—for instance, it's 256MB on the Droid.)

A problem that's currently plaguing the ecosystem, and is hopefully not a foreboding omen of the fragmentation to come, is that many apps weren't designed for the higher resolution screens that Android 2.0 supports, so their icons and graphics render crap-ugly on Droid, even in the main menu. (Granted, the phenomenon is partly Google's fault for restricting access to the 2.0 SDK to all but a select group of privileged developers until basically the day Droid was announced.)

The Market itself, while it got a desperately needed facelift with 1.6, still has a ways to go. There's no way to update all of your applications simultaneously—you have to click through the update process for each one. And finding apps remains a problem. Browsing for apps exclusively on your phone is a tedious experience, especially when there's so many apps to wade through. Besides more refined browsing and suggestions, there needs to a way to look through the Market on your desktop. Also, Google's got this whole cloud thing going, why aren't my apps tied to my Google account, so if I move to another phone, they'll all magically repopulate it, like my contacts?

Wherefore Art Thou, Android?

I probably sound like I'm more down on Android 2.0 than I actually am. I like it a lot, truthfully. It's an amazing conduit for Google's services. If your online life is lock, stock and barrel Google, there really isn't a better or more powerful smartphone for getting stuff done in that universe. The Gmail app is a perfect distillation of Gmail for a small screen. The Google Talk app, if you have a bunch of friends using Gtalk, is fantastic. Google, really, is Android's greatest strength. Excellent multitasking is a close second.

In time, Android very well could be the internet phone, hands down, in terms of raw capabilities. And while it's not as easy to use or polished or seamless as the iPhone—or to some extent, Palm's WebOS—it's way more usable than most other smartphones, and keeps evolving, way faster than anyone else, continually closing that gap. Android 2.0's potential finally feels as enormous as the iPhone's, and I get kinda tingly thinking about it. I can't say Android 2.0 is ready for your mom yet, but it's definitely ready for anybody reading this.

Google's apps are simply awesome

Facebook and Exchange integration works pretty well

Second best mobile browser

New look, same feel

Multiple Google account support somewhat limited

Still kinda sluggish at random intervals

No native way to sync music

Crappy music and video player