Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom today signed the final agreement to combine their UK operations, T-Mobile and Orange, into a 50:50 joint venture company.  Now that the confirmatory due diligence has been completed, this binding agreement confirms the terms of the transaction announced on 8 September 2009.  Completion is conditional upon approval by the relevant authorities and remains expected in the first half of 2010 as previously indicated.  The agreement is subject to the approval of the Supervisory Board of Deutsche Telekom and the Board of Directors of France Telecom.

[via Orange Newsroom]

I’ve received quite a few emails this morning asking me whether I would recommend the Motorola Droid or the Droid Eris by HTC.  To answer this question I’ve summarize and compared the major factors which I feel set these two devices apart.  For the record both devices offer excellent performance and I would not hesitate to recommend either device.

Operating System
The Motorola Droid comes with Android 2.0 and it is a Google Experience phone which in theory means you’ll be first in line for all future OS updates but it comes at the expense of Motorola and Verizon not being able to customize the UI like HTC has done with Sense on the Droid Eris.  A big question in the Android community is whether or not customizations like HTC Sense will prevent phones like the HTC Hero on Sprint or the Droid Eris on Verizon from staying current with the latest builds of Android.  Based on what we’ve seen so far, the Sprint Hero is skipping the 1.6 update and going straight to 2.0 instead and we expect the same from the Droid Eris.  You must decide whether you want the certainty of OS updates or if the improvements in the user interface from Sense are worth delays or skipping updates.

Keyboard
Can you live without a physical keyboard?  If you are migrating from another touchscreen device the transition to either the touchscreen keyboard on the Droid or Droid Eris will be an easy.  If you are leaving behind a BlackBerry, having the option for a physical keyboard on the Droid would make the transition a bit easier.  The real question is whether or not you can be as productive on the smaller keyboard of the Motorola Droid, but this can only be determined by testing the device in person.

Size and Weight
Being able to comfortably carry your device plays a major roll in the enjoyment of your smartphone.  For this reason alone I find many friends and colleagues passing on top smartphones despite the superior features and capabilities of those devices over their current cell phone.  The Droid Eris measures 4.45 x 2.19 x .51 inches and weighs 4.23 ounces while the Motorola Droid is 2.4 x 4.6 x .5 inches and 6 ounces.  The difference in dimensions and weight might seem minimal when reading the specs but the Motorola Droid is 42 percent heavier and when you hold the device you’ll be able to tell.  If you are willing to accept the bigger dimensions and heavier weight you will have a beautiful WVGA resolution 3.7 inch touchscreen instead of a HVGA 3.2-inch touchscreen on the Droid Eris.  Personally I am willing to take the extra weight for a bigger and higher resolution screen because the Motorola Droid is still incredibly thin, but this is for you to decide.

Performance
The Droid Eris features a Qualcomm MSM7600 528MHz processor with 512MB ROM and 288MB RAM.   This of course is the identical processor and memory found in the Sprint HTC Hero, but it is also the cause for some minor lag experience when using the device.  While the lag is not enough to keep me away from using the device or recommending it, the Motorola Droid does offer a significant in performance thanks to an ARM Cortex A8 processor running at 550MHz.  This ARM Cortex A8 processor is also found in the current iPhone 3GS, but their A8 manufactured by Samsung and it is clocked at 600MHz and scalable to 800MHz.  The big difference between the Qualcomm MSM7600 and Cortex A8 is having a chipset with dedicated graphics.  You will notice the Droid is able to render and scroll web pages more easily and the gaming experience is improved.

Note: many users are reporting that the Camera on the Motorola Droid is agonizing slow.  We are waiting for an official statement from Motorola on this matter, but hopefully it can be fixed via software.

Final Thoughts
In the end you will be the one pulling the trigger and while we could go through every minor difference between the device, the categories above are what caught my eye and stand out as deal breakers.  Nothing will tell you whether or not you want a device more than seeing it in person.  Unfortunately Verizon has not adopted Apple’s strategy of having countless working units to prospective buyers to use with the Motorola Droid and Droid Eris by HTC.  Personally not being able to use a device in person is a huge drawback and if I have to buy the device without trying it, my expectations always seem too high.  Luckily with the Droid and Droid Eris both devices are excellent and I’m sure most of you will happily eBay your Windows Mobile smartphone or BlackBerry before the end of the day after playing with either device.

At&t has just announced two new devices from Samsung coming on November 8, the Samsung Mythic and the Samsung Flight.  The Mythic is a full touchscreen device running the TouchWiz interface and supports At&t’s Mobile TV service, a full QWERTY virtual keyboard, 3.2-megapixel camera and support for all your social networking website.  The second device, the Samsung Flight, is a messaging device with a slider-form factor and full physical QWERTY keyboard, 2.0-megapixel camera and full HTML web browser.

Samsung Mythic
The Mythic’s 3.3″ full touch screen features Samsung’s innovative TouchWiz™ user interface, which allows users to simply drag and drop widgets for their favorite and most commonly used features and functions on the phone’s home screen. With one-touch access to features including AT&T Mobile TV and social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace, the Mythic is a portable entertainment powerhouse.

The Samsung Mythic is the newest AT&T Mobile TV-capable device to hit stores. AT&T Mobile TV subscribers enjoy around-the-clock access to full-length simulcast and time-shifted programming from FLO TV, including content from leading entertainment brands such as CBS Mobile, CNBC, CNN Mobile, COMEDY CENTRAL, ESPN Mobile TV, FOX Mobile, FOX News, MSNBC, MTV, NBC 2Go, Nickelodeon and the movie channel Crackle, plus more coming soon. AT&T Mobile TV is now available for $9.99 per month – a new, lower price point effective Nov. 8 for new and existing subscribers. Existing subscribers will see an automatic adjustment to the subscription price on their next statement. New AT&T Mobile TV subscribers receive the first seven days of their subscription for free.5 For more information, visit www.att.com/mobiletv.

Additional key features and specifications of the Mythic include:

• One-finger Touch and Finger Zoom
• Full HTML Web browser
• Virtual full QWERTY keyboard
• 3.2 megapixel camera
• Advanced Messaging capabilities
  • AT&T Mobile E-mail
  • SMS and MMS
  • Instant Messenger
• AT&T Navigator (requires a separate subscription)
• AT&T Mobile Music with Napster Mobile^® and eMusic™ Mobile
• Stereo Bluetooth™ technology
• Dimensions: 4.49″ x 2.06″ x .5″
• Weight: 3.8 oz

Samsung Flight
The next generation messaging device from Samsung, the Flight, available in red and silver color options, has a vertical sliding form factor that opens to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard underneath. The Flight’s unique touch screen user interface provides one-touch access to functions like shortcuts, favorites and messaging, including SMS and MMS, Instant Messaging and Mobile E-mail.

Additional key features of the Flight include:

• Social Networking with AT&T Social Net
• 2.0 megapixel camera
• Full HTML Web browser
• AT&T Navigator compatible
• AT&T Mobile Music with Napster Mobile^® and eMusic™ Mobile
• AT&T Video Share
• Stereo Bluetooth™ technology
• Dimensions: 4.17″ x 2.2″ x 0.5″
• Weight: 4.8 oz

Pricing and Availability
The Samsung Mythic is available for $199.99 after mail-in rebate. (Pay $249.99 and receive $50 AT&T Promotion Card with a two year service agreement.) The Samsung Flight is available for $99.99 after mail-in rebate. (Pay $149.99 and receive a $50 AT&T Promotion Card with a two-year service agreement.) Both devices will be available Nov. 8 through select AT&T retail locations or at www.wireless.att.com.

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:

* 3.2 inch capacitive touch screen and trackball interface
* 5.0 megapixel auto focus camera
* Expandable memory with pre-installed 8 GB microSD™ card (up to 16 GB supported)
* Supports USB mass storage
* Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi and 3.5 mm headset connectivity
* Integrated GPS and a digital compass with a sensor that enables the phone to know what direction it is facing
* Smart dialer for simplified dialing by name, number or initials
* Full HTML browser with Flash Lite capabilities
* 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.

Verizon Wireless today announced three new Mobile Broadband plans will be added to the company’s Prepaid portfolio. Customers will be able to get speed when they need it on the Verizon Wireless 3G network with pay-as-you-go plans for daily, weekly or monthly access. The new Prepaid options are ideal for those who need access for occasional or seasonal use whether on vacation, enjoying a weekend getaway or for students away at school. Verizon Wireless gives customers the following service options:  Daily: $15 for 75MB, Weekly: $30 for 250MB or Monthly: $50 for 500MB.

Prepaid Mobile Broadband will be sold in a convenient grab and go package with the Verizon Wireless USB760 modem for $129.99. The USB 760 comes with a high-performance internal antenna, removable memory of up to 8 GB and support for Windows® 2000, XP, Vista and Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) or 10.5 (Leopard) or Linux. Prepaid Mobile Broadband will be available in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores beginning Nov. 15 and at select national retailers beginning Nov. 20.

[via]

After most of the globe started launched the BlackBerry Curve 8520 we knew it would be a while before our CDMA carries in the US picked up the device.  Today, Verizon and Sprint have both confirmed they will be launching their 8500 series CDMA-variant, the Curve 8530 which will feature 3G, WiFi and GPS capabilities.  Powering the device will be a 528MHz processor with 256MB of flash memory and a 2.0-megapixel camera for snapping images.  The most notable addition in the 8500 series smartphones is the trackpad which replaces the aged and often buggy trackball of the current BlackBerry lineup.  While the Curve 8530 will not match up against the upcoming Bold 9700, it does offer an excellent alternative for those users who are currently experiencing issues with the trackball on their BlackBerry Tours.

The BlackBerry Curve 8530 smartphone is expected to be available from Verizon Wireless beginning Nov. 20 for $99.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement on a voice plan with an Email and Web feature or an Email and Web for BlackBerry plan.  Sprint on the other hand decided to simply allow users to pre-register by launching the following website here.

[Via Sprint, Verizon]

Samsung is setting the bar for ultra-thin high capacity NAND flash memory chips.  The company made an announcement this morning that they have successfully manufactured a 32GB capacity NAND flash memory chip that is only 0.6mm thick using 30nm level process technology.  No wonder on when these chips will be available for retail products, but it is safe to assume Apple will have first dibs.  With Apple’s current iPod and iPhone product lines making use of Samsung flash memory chips it only makes sense that they will incorporate these new 30nm chips in their future product lines.4

[via]

Nokia handsets have been notorious for delivering superb image and video quality.  Nokia’s current flagship camera phone, the N86, packs a 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash and has effectively demonstrated that it offers superior imaging when compared to all other Nokia products.  Competing with the N86 is the 12.1-megapixel Sony Ericsson Satio, a newly released camera phone that aims to take the crown by delivering even better camera phone images.  Besides the difference in megapixels, the Sony Ericsson Satio is equipped with a Xenon Flash and LED metering lights while the N86 uses relies on it’s dual LED flash.  However, the N86 offers a 28mm wide-angle lens and F2.4 maximum aperture.  The truth of the matter is that regardless of how a device looks on paper, real world performance is the tell all tale.

For the full photo gallery showdown between the N86 and Satio click here.

The LG BL40 is a fourth generation Black Label Series and in our opinion the biggest step forward in the Chocolate design thanks to the implementation of a 4-inch 21:9 cinema-style wide-screen display running at 800 x 345 pixels coupled with the flagship S-Class 3D touch interface.  At first glance the BL40 might remind you of current-generation iPod nano albeit a thicker device but similar in shape.  However, the BL40 is a feature-rich ‘dumb phone’ delivering 7.2Mbps HSDPA, WiFi, and a 5-megapixel camera with flash, autofocus, 640 x 480 video recording @ 30fps and a host of photographic functions.  The focus on media does not end with this cinema-style display, a 3.5 mm headphone jack is standard along with 1GB of internal memory and native support for DivX and Xvid formats.  Thanks to our friends at eprice we are pleased to bring you a hands-on photo gallery of the new LG Chocolate BL40, enjoy.

[View with PicLens]

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[via]

The Sony Ericsson Kurara, or Curare as some websites are referring to the device, is a rumored S60-based handset soon to be release by SE.  What makes the device such a hot topic at the moment is that it features a 3.5-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 8.1-megapixel camera with LED flash and the ability to record HD video.  It is not clear at the moment whether this means 720p or 1080p, clearly 720p is more likely, but either resolution would be a welcomed addition to any smartphone we own.  The Sony Ericsson Kurare should be released between January and February of 2010.

[via]