Samsung today announced the SENHRN1, a new system-in-package (SIP) near field communications (NFC) chip. The SENHRN1 was developed for use in mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. The chip has the exact same footprint of a stand-alone NFC chip with pin-to-pin compatibility, but adds security and encryption tools. It includes 760Kb of storage for credit card and other account data, and a battery-off feature so it can be used to make purchases even if the smartphone or tablet has no battery power. It is compatible with the mobile payment systems being developed in Asia, Europe, and ...
Huawei to Buy Symantec Out
Huawei has agreed to buy the 49% stake in its Huawei-Symantec joint venture from Symantec for approximately $530 million. The two companies formed the joint venture in February 2008 and it has lost money ever since. Huawei believes that by owning the entire venture, it will shore up its ability to support business customers. Huawei has been blocked from acquiring certain companies in the U.S. due to security concerns. Having full control over the Huawei-Symantec joint venture adds to its own security products. The business was set up and operated in Hong Kong, but is still subject to ...
Verizon Announces the Casio Gz’One Ravine 2
Verizon Wireless and Casio today announced the Gz’One Ravine 2, a mil-spec rugged flip phone. The Ravine 2 meets mil-spec 810G for protection against immersion, water, shock and dust, vibration, salt fog, humidity, solar radiation, altitude, and low and high temperatures. It is global phone and can roam on overseas GSM networks, has push-to-talk capabilities, and comes preloaded with the Opera Mini browser. Other specs include a 3.2-megapixel camera with autofocus, flash and camcorder; GPS and VZNavigator; dual displays; Bluetooth 2.1+EDR; and support for microSD cards up to 32GB. The ...
Sony Selling Unlocked Xperia neo V and arc S in U.S.
Sony Ericsson today announced that it has made the Xperia neo V and arc S available to U.S. buyers through the online Sony Store. Both handsets are being sold unlocked. The neo V costs $349.99 and the arc S costs $449.99, no contracts required. Tweet Vote on HN ...
HTC Vivid for AT&T
The Vivid is HTC’s first Long Term Evolution 4G Android smartphone for AT&T. How does this device stack up against other devices on AT&T’s network? Phone Scoop finds out in this full review. Tweet Vote on HN ...
Blackberry Curve 9380 announced by RIM
RIM has announced the BlackBerry Curve 9380 for the UK market, describing the handset as the first all-touch smartphone in the BlackBerry Curve family,The phone boasts a 3.2 inch high-res display and is pre-packed with all the expected social networking apps like BBM, Twitter and Facebook, with the announcement timed to coincide with the unveiling of BBM Music in the UK.The Curve 9380 has a 5MP camera with flash and video functionality, as it looks to tap into a market of BlackBerry fans who want touchscreen. The phone runs the Blackberry 7 OS and its improved browser. ...
BlackBerry Bold 9790 – slimline handset revealed
BlackBerry has unveiled the latest smartphone to join the Bold line-up, the BlackBerry Bold 9790.Originally shown off back in June under the codename Bellagio and revealed to developers back in October, the Bold 9790 packs both a touchscreen and QWERTY keyboard, comes with an optical trackpad, BlackBerry 7 OS and a 1GHz processor.The Bold 9790 is an update to the Bold 9780. It houses a thinner chassis which is meant to make it that little bit better in the hand.On-board is 8GB of internal memory and this can be expanded through the microSD card slot, which will allow another ...
Google Makes Android 4.0 Source Code Available
Google today made the source code of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich available to developers. This build of Android is the specific version that will ship on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the first Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone, and is numbered 4.0.1. Google said that the code contains the entire Android family tree, including 3.2 Honeycomb, but Google prefers that developers ignore Honeycomb and focus all efforts on Ice Cream Sandwich instead. The source code is free to download. Tweet Vote on ...
AT&T Expanding LTE to 6 More Markets on Nov. 20
AT&T today announced that it is boosting the footprint of its Long Term Evolution 4G network on November 20. The handful of new markets include Charlotte, N.C.; Indianapolis, Ind.; Kansas City, Mo.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Oklahoma City, Okla.; and San Juan, Puerto Rico. These six markets bring the total number of markets covered by LTE to 15, increasing AT&T’s LTE coverage to 70 million Americans — which was its goal for 2011. For a limited time, customers who purchase the new LTE-enabled Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 will also receive a Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket or Samsung ...
RIM Adds Voice Guidance to Traffic 3.0
Research In Motion today announced the beta availability of Traffic 3.0. This new version of RIM’s navigation software adds voice guidance for hands-free navigation over either Bluetooth or via the car’s speaker system. Traffic 3.0 also adds more up-to-date information about roads, such as on-going construction projects and details about toll roads. Traffic 3.0 is available to registered members of RIM’s Beta Zone. Tweet Vote on HN ...