The Hop-on HOP1900 Graffiti phone that brought the convenience of disposable mobile phones to the US is apparently set to make a trip across the pond. Thanks to an initial test-order of 10,000 units, and unnamed distributor has made the commitment to bring the super-cheap, display-less Hop-on disposable cellphone to Europe. Of course, the Euro-version of [...]

Nokia and multimedia handsets. Mention one and most people will reflexively think of the other. The Finns are known for their N-series mobile phones that can take amazingly sharp and crisp pictures, shoot high-quality video, and store gobs of media. Unfortunately, Espoo's expertise in surround sound processing is a bit lacking. Enter Dolby Digital. Dusan and [...]

Add Samsung to the list of mobile phone manufacturers that are unwilling to buy Motorola's ailing handset division. Sony Ericsson doesn't want anything to do with it, LG is staying away, and now Samsung's announced that they don't want to take a bite of Motorola's profit-free concoction. Choi Gee-sung, head of Samsung's mobile phone unit, told [...]

With Intel already aligned with Google’s OHA and reportedly making nice with Apple to have their mobile chipset, Silverthorne , power the next-gen iPhone, it’s more than clear that the computer-chip manufacturing giant is making waves in the mobile market. But, just why is Intel getting into such a competitive market? Intel’s CEO Paul Otellini had a little Q&A session with USA Today reporter Michelle Kessler and this is what Intel’s head-honcho has in mind for the mobile space: First off, Otellini sees mobile devices becoming more and more computer-like. Most of our readers are already well aware of just how far the mobile phone has come in recent years – high-end smartphones are more computer than they are cellphone. And that’s exactly the foothold Intel needs to claw its way up the mobile market-ladder. If mobile phones become mini-computers, then Intel’s strength in the PC-chip industry will give them an edge - in a market where manufacturers have to adapt their business model to a “smartphone world,” Intel is starting of as a true smartphone player. Otellini will also be aiming straight at Apple’s heart with an iPhone competitor that is like an iPhone “on steroids - thin and in your pocket. Some will work on voice. They’ll have the full Internet at reasonable speed with no compromises.” Odd that Intel would publicly announce that they’ll be aiming to trounce the iPhone, what with Apple poised to give Intel’s Silverthorne chip some big-dog backing. And, it looks like Verizon, Nokia, AT&T, and Vodafone’s (etc., etc.) backing of LTE as their next-gen network hasn’t fazed Intel’s support of WiMAX. It’s all a bit complicated (there’s a lot of regulatory red-tape and standardization required), but Otellini expects to have 250 million people covered by a WiMAX-blanket by 2010. Oh, and here’s the best part of the whole interview. In regards to how Intel managed to work through their financial slump and get back to a position where they can call the shots, Otellini responded, “We focused a large portion of (research and development) on where we wanted to go. We have the financial resources. Even in bad times, we make a few billion a year.” You gotta love that. [Via: USA Today ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:Intel preps a chip for iPhone rivalsInfineon and Intel join forces to develop high-density SIM cardsApple teams up with Intel to use Silverthorne chipset in next-gen devicesApple looking towards Intel chips for next-gen iPhone - Intel Inside iPhone 2.0Intel's next UMPC platform to be Maemo based?

Not that we don’t love the random doo-hickeys that The Sharper Image stores and catalogues try to sell us - ionic air purifiers, chair massagers, and alarm clocks are cool and all, but they don’t exactly hit the top of our “must-have” gadget-list. Still, TSI does very well for themselves by convincing a lot of people that the ionic air purifier is a $400 necessity for any truly “modern” home. And, as such, the crap-boutique has started to offer, of all things, mobile phones. These Chinese-sourced, generic handsets range from barely acceptable to downright nasty - with three out of four handsets proudly showing off their “The Sharper Image” branding. First up, we have the AMOI N810 Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional smartphone. The AMOI N810 is the most powerful handset in TSI’s lineup, and boasts a 2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, touchscreen (it’s a “Professional” WinMo device, after all), and an integrated GPS receiver. Unfortunately, the powerhouse of TSI’s mobile phone stable (branded as the Sharper Image 101TSI ) is a lowly tri-band jobby with a GPRS data connection - a bit disappointing, given its $499.95 price-point. Then there’s the LG Chocolate rip-off (as only the Chinese knock-off market can do). Like the original Chocolate, the TSI-branded Sharper Image 005TSI is a music-oriented handset with a sleek, shiny black finish and touch-sensitive music control on its face. Unlike the Chocolate, however, the 005TSi rocks a touchscreen display in lieu of the slide-out keypad. And, with a 1.3 megapixel camera, stereo Bluetooth, and microSD card slot, this $299.95 is TSI’s most worthy cellphone offering. Rounding out the bottom of this barrel, we see the Sharper Image 008TSI black slider that should never have been, and the 007TSI super-generic silver flip-phone. Neither handset will be giving any mainstream offering a run for their money - with little more than a VGA camera, pitling little display, and some expandable memory storage (via microSD), the 008TSI and 007TSI redefine “low-end.” The Sharper Image 008TSI will run you $249.95, while the Sharper image 007TSI costs just $169.95. The Sharper Image is emphasizing the “unlocked” status of all their branded handsets, hoping to lure those not “in the know” into getting a device that’s capable of working on almost any GSM network. It’s just too bad these mostly disappointing handsets are, well, so disappointing. Who wants a handset with  “The Sharper Image” plastered in bold, white font on the front-face? Anyone? [Via: Engadget Mobile ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:World Poker Tour cellphones by Sony EricssonLG Chocolate shipments hit 10 Million!Gizmodo's number one tag of 2006 was CellphonesCarphone Warehouse sold 11,000 iPhone over the weekendIt's official - Apple has sold 1 million iPhones

Here we go again with the ridiculous mobile phone charges. This one comes from the UK. The Mirror reports that Vodafone customer Ian Simpson apparently started using his mobile phone as a wireless modem, after realizing that his Vodafone handset could be tethered to his computer for faster download speeds. Well, Mr. Simpsons started downloading TV shows and music albums over his mobile phone’s data connection. After something like 20-30 TV shows and four albums, Vodafone pulled the plug on Ian’s mobile data connection. Now, here’s the kicker. Ian called up Vodafone to question why his £7.50 data plan had been cut off. Vodafone informed Mr. Simpson that he had charged up £27,322 (!) in mostly data-related charges. It seems his data plan wasn’t unlimited, as he had assumed (where have we heard that before ?). Vodafone said that they limit this particular data package to 120MB per month, and Mr. Simpson’s data usage legitimately exceeded that limit. Here’s Vodafone’s take: “Our advice would be to never use a mobile as a modem. We will try to come to some sympathetic arrangement. And we hope he won’t make the same mistake again.” Right. We’re sure Vodafone hope he won’t make that mistake again. Not that Mr. Simpson should have known better, or that he’s not playing with a full deck of cards. But, carriers should really reconsider their data-billing practices. Afterall, this isn’t an isolated incident , by any means. [Via: textually ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:Canadian man gets a $85,000 mobile phone billVodafone's fights iPhone defection by taking customer service offlineUsing a cellphone abroadVodafone working on an unlimited music download serviceVerizon ONE-BILL, integrated billing

The iPhone (or iPod Touch) as an internet tablet - it’s almost perfectly suited for surfing through your favorite online forums, shopping sites, and, ahem, TMZ.com. There’s just one thing missing. If only there was a way to download all that cool web-content straight to your iPhone. Well, now there is! iPhone hacker hachu has gone ahead and developed a plug-in for your iPhone’s Safari browser. The plug-in allows you to download (rather than stream/playback), say, an MP3 file to the var/root/Downloads directory on your iPhone’s local disk. You can find instructions for installing the plug-in here . After installation, whenever you click on a link to any media (like a ZIP file), a green “Download” button will appear. There’s a bit of .plist editing required, so if that kind of “hacking” makes you break out in cold-sweats, you might want to stay away from this one. Anyway, Erica Sadun from TUAW has modified her SendFile application to allow you to playback said MP3 files from your iPhone’s local-disk (even while offline). SendFile will now search your ~/Downloads and ~/Media/Documents directories for any media that you might want to send, share, email, and now playback. Grab the modified SendFile application here . Make sure you check the hackint0sh forum for installation instructions. Or, keep reading for a quick rundown on the installation procedure. Here’s a rough idea of what you’ll need to do:

• Download the Safari plug-in here .
• Copy the plug-in bundle to “/System/Library/Internet Plug-Ins” and reboot the iPhone
• Add this string to your Info.plist (use a standard text editor as opposed to Mac OSX’s editor) in order to download AVI files <key>video/x-msvideo</key> <dict> <key>WebPluginExtensions</key> <array> <string>avi</string> </array> <key>WebPluginTypeDescription</key> <string>avi File</string> <key>WebPluginTypeEnabled</key> <true/> </dict>
• Add this string to your Info.plist in order to download MP3 files <key>audio/mpeg</key> <dict> <key>WebPluginExtensions</key> <array> <string>mpeg</string> <string>mpg</string> <string>mp3</string> <string>swa</string> </array> <key>WebPluginTypeDescription</key> <string>MPEG audio</string> <key>WebPluginTypeEnabled</key> <true/> </dict> <key>audio/mpeg3</key> <dict> <key>WebPluginExtensions</key> <array> <string>mp3</string> <string>swa</string> </array> <key>WebPluginTypeDescription</key> <string>MP3 audio</string> <key>WebPluginTypeEnabled</key> <true/> </dict>

• Here’s the string for downloading RAR files <key>application/x-rar-compressed</key> <dict> <key>WebPluginExtensions</key> <array> <string>rar</string> </array> <key>WebPluginTypeDescription</key> <string>rar File</string> <key>WebPluginTypeEnabled</key> <true/> </dict>
• Torrent files <key>application/x-bittorrent</key> <dict> <key>WebPluginExtensions</key> <array> <string>torrent</string> </array> <key>WebPluginTypeDescription</key> <string>torrent File</string> <key>WebPluginTypeEnabled</key> <true/> </dict>

Keep in mind, these are rough instructions to give you an idea of what’s in store for you if you decide to implement this plug-in. Head on over to hackint0sh and read the thread to get a complete picture of the installation procedure. [Via: TUAW ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:WeatherBug goes iPhone/iPod TouchMactracker updated with iPhone and iPod Touch infoCan the iPod Touch affect the high-end handset sales?Six Apart launches launches iPhone/iPod Touch plugin for Movable Type 4/TypepadiTunes WiFi music stores goes live today?

Well, we sure wouldn’t, but that’s only because we don’t have to. Would you walk 12 miles to juice up your mobile phone? We thought not. Apparently, there are a few dozen villagers living in the, well, village of Kajrai in India that are making the 12-mile trek to the nearest power-port to charge-up their cellphones. You see, their village doesn’t have any electrical infrastructure, so there’s no hope of keeping their devices charged without a not-so-quick trip to the nearest source of electrons. Those precious handsets are the villagers’ only connection with the outside world, and could prove invaluable in times of emergency. And, with no forseeable plans to bring any electrical hookups to the village anytime soon, these villagers will probably be staying in great shape with all that walking. Mobile phones are really becoming a necessity of everyday life. Even in remote villages that don’t even have any electricity. Ahh, technology sure is wonderful. [Via: OnlyGizmos ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:Orange goes green; Works on the wind-powered cellphone charger3.3 billion mobile phones worldwide - 50% global market penetrationUK drivers face jailtime for using mobile phone on the roadSnoopy cellphone strapsTiger paw cellphone strap can clean your screen

Following on Sprint’s launch of their employee-only WiMAX/XOHM trial network , the struggling national wireless carrier has announced their plans to roll-out NFC (Near Field Communication) trials in the San Francisco Bay Area. NFC technology basically allows users to pay for goods and services with a simple swipe of the handset near an NFC-enabled payment terminal. NFC has been in use in other countries (think Japan and South Korea) for quite some time now, and has found a fairy strong following in mobile phone-users that want the convenience of combining their handset with their wallet. Sprint has teamed up with the San Francisco’s Bay Area Transit Authority and “Jack in the Box” to offer NFC payments for train-fare and burgers. The NFC-trial will run from January through May of 2008, and will presumably use already-released Sprint handsets, modified with NFC technology, of course. Any BART-riders willing to participate in Sprint’s NFC trial? Sign-up and let us know how you like it! Source ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:GSM Association picks Motorola to lead its Pay-Buy-Mobile initiativeSprint expands unlimited data bundle trialLimeJuice launches mobile social network for flirting; Singles rejoice!London begins trials of payments via NFC equipped mobile phonesTexas to be among the first to try out Sprint Nextel's WiMAX network

So, the AT&T deal with Qualcomm to bring the mobile TV technology MediaFLO to its stable of mobile phones (including a few Nokia handsets) didn’t exactly help calm the Nokia-Qualcomm battle this year. In fact, the incessant quarreling was probably the reason that AT&T had to delay launching its MediaFLO service until next year. We’re hearing from AT&T that they are working to bring MediaFLO “as soon as possible” in 2008. The network-tests are reportedly going very, very well” and AT&T wants to “make sure the user experience is absolutely optimal” before they go live with the mobile TV service. So, network test’s are going honky-dory but AT&T wants to delay the launch of MediaFLO? Sounds like the hold-up might have more to do with Qualcomm and Nokia’s bitter-feelings than AT&T’s desire to ensure “absolutely optimal” performance. You see, Nokia is pushing DVB-H as the mobile TV standard of choice, but AT&T’s MediaFLO deal with Qualcomm will require Nokia to do more business with Qualcomm - something we’re sure Nokia is loath to doing. In any case, AT&T’s MediaFLO-based mobile TV offering will be pretty much on par with Verizon Wireless’s VCAST TV service (which has been up and running for, like, ever). Unfortunately, we’re also hearing that AT&T’s prmoise of “advanced MediaFLO capabilities” may not make the cut. Datecasting and music features aren’t in the cards for AT&T’s MediaFLO, sorry. [Via: MocoNews ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:AT&T launches Samsung A517Motorola Z6tv VCAST phone to hit Verizon Wireless on October 5HP iPAQ 910 on AT&T's 3G network?Vertu coming to Japan in 2008THQ's WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2008 helps fight stress