One of the most surprising things about the launch of an ultra-portable laptop dubbed "Air" by Apple wasn't its thinness but the lack of an embedded WWAN radio. No more, at least if you're not intimidated by smoldering solder and warranty violations. Jordan Bunnell has posted a step-by-step of his success at integrating a Verizon USB727 Aircard into the MacBook Air chassis thanks to the MBA's previously unused USB controllers discovered on the system board. While the EVDO signal (and speed) has appreciably degraded from its externally attached origins, Jordan is still pulling 1,400 to 1,700kbps downloads and 380kbps uploads -- something which might be improved with antenna tweaks. Regardless, those speeds are significantly faster than the 0kbps stock MBA owners experience.

[Thanks, Tom]

It's not all just cellphones at Mobile World Congress -- HP and Qualcomm have just announced plans to ship laptops with Qualcomm's Gobi dual-3G chipset that supports both EV-DO and HSPA. That means you won't be locked into a carrier when you buy a laptop with an integrated WWAN modem -- and hardcore road warriors with multiple subscriptions will even be able to switch on the fly to the network with better coverage. HP says Gobi (officially the MDM1000 chip, but that's no fun) will be available on a range of laptops from ultraportables to high-performance models later this year, but there's no word on pricing just yet -- let's hope it falls into the "might as well" range, eh?

Although the article doesn't contain much more information about the Amazon Kindle that we hadn't seen before, Newsweek's cover story on the device is the first official confirmation that the device exists. Featuring an interview with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, the article lays down the feature set -- $399, 6-inch E-ink screen, no backlight, EV-DO "Whispernet" on Sprint for over the air book purchases -- and the company's vision for digital books replacing "the last bastion of analog." Books will go for $9.99, and users can even subscribe to newspapers and "select blogs" for monthly fees. Also news is that the Kindle gets 30 hours of battery life, and can fully recharge in only two. One thing's for sure, this is looking way more compelling a package than previous attempts at the eBook idea.

[Thanks, Alex]

While Kyocera's old KR1 EV-DO router should still get the basic job done just fine, those looking for a few new features may want to consider the company's just-announced KR2 model, which brings the router up to date with some of the latest and greatest specs. Chief among those is support for 802.11n WiFi, as well as support for an expanded range of EV-DO devices, including various PCMCIA cards, ExpressCards, and USB devices. Otherwise you'll get the usual four Ethernet ports to connect the odd non-WiFi device, an "industry leading" firewall, over the air updates, and a fail-over capability that'll automatically kick the EV-DO into gear if your DSL or cable connection drops out. No word on what it'll cost, but it's apparently "coming soon."

Well, here's the shiny little Centro, in all its slightly-less-than-breathtaking beauty. Truth be told, the phone doesn't look or feel too bad -- we still don't get the gray stripe through the middle, but what can you do? The keyboard is unbelievably tiny, but we'll take it where we can get it. The surface of the cherry red or metallic black phone is quite slick, and we suspect will go tumbling out of sweaty hands like gang busters. Of course, the EV-DO connection was snappy, but the thing we're most stoked about is the fact that Palm has finally eliminated that 2-pixel border around the screen. Hey, no new OS... but that border is gone. The Centro is due mid-October for the shockingly low price of $99.99, which should help push more than a couple of these out the door. Hit the gallery and check out all the hot photos.

If you've been patiently awaiting details about, well, a whole slew of handsets, chances are that a recent Sprint event held the answers to a-many of those very questions. First up was the Palm Centro (also coined Gandolf and Treo 800), which you've already seen plenty of earlier today. Moving on, the Sprint Touch (read: CDMA) was said to be rockin' a potent 400MHz CPU, and it also touted EV-DO, 128MB of RAM, a two-megapixel camera, built-in GPS "to be activated in a Rev A upgrade," and a likely launch date in November. Furthermore, an EV-DO BlackBerry Pearl was on display along with a "petite candybar" from Sanyo, the sliding LG Rumor, and the Sprint Airave home cell site (once known as the Samsung Ubicell). We know you're craving the dirt on all of the aforementioned gizmos, so be sure and hit the read link for the full skinny.

It's not like you couldn't get connected to an EV-DO network on a Toughbook before, but Panasonic and Verizon Wireless are making things uber-easy on us all by certifying "the full line" of rugged lappies for connectivity with Verizon's EV-DO Rev. A. Yep, the Toughbook 30, 19, T, W, and Y series of machines have now been admitted into The Network, which means that you can potentially download a presentation while surviving a hail storm at up to 1.4Mbps and send in your corrections whilst dodging tree limbs at up to 800kbps. The Verizon WWAN treatment will require users to purchase the Sierra Wireless embedded MC-5725 PCI Express card and VZAccess software, but the oh-so-important pricing information was casually omitted.

[Via Slashphone]

While OQO has certainly had its share of ups and downs over the past few years -- from us calling the Model 01 the "heavyweight champion of vaporware," to literally having a market segment spring up around the devices -- things looked to be headed decidedly up with the release of the 3G-capable Model 02 at the start of the year. But as always with the San Francisco company, the transition between announcing a product and actually shipping it is proving to be a little difficult. With shipping delays stretching to 16 weeks, an OQO rep recently confirmed the problem and pointed the finger of blame: "All orders with Sprint and Verizon customers are on hold while some issues are ironed out with the WWAN product line." Engadget pal Boy Genius says his experience bears that out -- his commercially-purchased Model 02 has no software support for the supposedly-present Sprint modem, and to make it worse, the unit he received is covered in nicks and scratches, more evidence of hiccups along the OQO production line. Although we enjoy talking to the guys over at OQO, it sounds like they really need to get their ducks in a row with the Model 02. Peep the full Boy Genius rant with photos of his nicked-up Model 02 at the read link.

It sure took 'em long enough but Apple finally got right with the Lord WWAN. The latest software update brings official Novatel ExpressCard and USB modem driver support (like the XU870 HSDPA card pictured) for HSDPA and EV-DO cards. The drivers work with the latest intel-based MacBook and MacBook Pros on Cingular, Sprint, and Verizon Wireless networks. Just give your Software Update a nudge and say goodbye to those suspect driver hacks you've downloaded from the forums.

P.S. -And yes, for those paying close attention there's an unannounced Verizon Rev. A ExpressCard, the V740.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Anyone out there still care about getting their hands on the GSM / EDGE Q pictured after the break? Anyone at all? Come on now, don't be shy. Alright, well, anyhoo, Moto's recent webcast detailing its 2007 financial outlook makes mention of just such a device, brining all that love Verizon customers have been enjoying for many moons now to GSM users -- minus the 3G radio, of course. Perhaps the more provocative announcement, though, involves the mysterious Q2 (is that pronounced Q squared?), a device whose formal introduction is promised for 3GSM next month. All we know for now is that it'll come in EV-DO and HSDPA (finally!) flavors, but if we were the betting type, we'd say that this hullabaloo probably has something to do with the "Norman" we saw a while back. Anyone holding off on BlackJack purchases until this all gets sorted out?

[Thanks, Kelvin]

It looks like the surfacing of Vista / SideShow-centric remotes isn't the only news popping up in regard to Microsoft's forthcoming OS, as Toshiba is apparently readying a new convertible tablet for release. According to a blurb in the Windows Vista Partner Stories brochure, the Portege R400 is set to become the company's "signature" laptop, and breaks off the keyboard / design layout from the M400, not to mention its flagship feature: 3G. Designed specifically to function with Windows Vista niceties, the sexy machine sports a 12.1-inch "LED backlit" widescreen display, and is reportedly the "world's first PC that automatically synchronizes your information with Active Notifications." In a bid to make getting connected as easy as possible, Toshiba's ConfigFree setup supposedly makes managing your (Verizon) EV-DO, WiFi, Bluetooth, and gigabit Ethernet connections a breeze, but the real standout of the system is its claim to be the "world's first system with a wireless dock to connect to desktop peripherals," which should prove mighty handy if bandwidth doesn't prove too great a bottleneck. Nevertheless, the still-mysterious R400 should find itself a spec sheet and release date sometime soon, probably close to, say, January 30th?

Sticking to its word, Sprint has lit up its first EV-DO Revision A mobile broadband network today, covering San Diego to start with 20 additional markets set to launch before year's end. The upgraded Sprint Power Vision network boosts real-life upload speeds to the 300-400 kbps level, kicking the current 50-70 kbps transfer rates back to 1995 where they belong. Observed download speeds also get a shot in the arm, albeit a more modest jump to 450–800 kbps, up from 400-700 kbps. While San Diegans get all the bragging rights for the time being, folks in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and seventeen other markets can rest easy knowing that they'll be able to bask in some Rev. A goodness by the end of the year -- check the link below for the complete list. And if you're not on that list, Sprint says it should have its network completely upgraded by the third quarter of 2007.

Okay, so maybe these USB EV-DO modems would be a bit more lovable if they were in dongle form, but they're still a reasonable alternative if your ExpressCard slot is busy handling other (likely frivolous) activities. AnyDATA's ADU-E100D is a tad larger than a standard business card, but will only add about 4 extra ounces to your trusty knapsack, and sports an integrated battery as well as USB 2.0 connectivity. The modem is based on Qualcomm's MSM 6500 chipset, is backwards compatible with 1xRTT, supports EV-DO 3G speeds up to 2.4Mbps (down) and 153.5kbps (up), and allows sending / receiving of those oh-so-urgent SMS messages during data operations. Although details regarding pricing and availability aren't yet known, the snazzy blue ADU-E100D should be bringing that EV-DO goodness to your notebook (or desktop) real soon.

[Via TG Daily]

Not a day's passed after we caught word of Sprint's launch of Novatel's S720 PC Card do we hear that Sierra Wireless has a proverbial one-two punch of WWAN modems up its sleeve, this time of the USB variety. First up in Q4 of this year will be the 595U, an EV-DO Revision A device topping out at a purely-theoretical 3.1Mbps downstream, followed by the quad-band GSM, tri-band HSDPA 875U humming along at 3.6Mbps in Q1 2007. Both USB modems look to be coming in sleek little packages with internal antennas and matching cradles, support location-based services, and have upgradeable firmware. If these things really look as slick as the press shots make them out to be, we may not be whining for a Rev A ExpressCard after all -- if the ship dates hold up, that is.

[Via Macworld]