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iPhone 5 / 4S placeholders pop up at Cincinnati Bell, questionable specs in tow
It looks like the iPhone speculation train is gaining steam on the way to its final destination, and this time it's flying by Cincinnati Bell's pre-paid service, i-Wireless. A helpful tipster sent in the above screenshot of an iPhone 5 placeholder, accompanied by a $639.99 price tag and a handful of specs: 32GB, 4-inch screen and 4G data speeds. Our friends over at TUAW have also procured a screenshot (after the break) from the same site, displaying a $99.99 16GB iPhone 4S, sporting a 5MP camera, 3.5-inch screen and an A5 processor. Of course, there's also a chance these are just placeholders, but we're hoping Tuesday's announcement will bear dual fruits, nonetheless.[Thanks, Cory]
Nexus One starting to show up in third party retail channels, commands big money
If you want to know what Google meant by "more retail availability" for the Nexus One when it talked about spiking its first-party phone store, take a good, hard look at our brave new world here. Independent retailer i Wireless has started offering a number of Android devices in the past few days, including the Nexus One -- a product that's still extraordinarily difficult to find outside of Google's own site, especially since none of the American Big Four carriers intend to offer it directly. It turns out that i Wireless is an authorized T-Mobile affiliate, so they're selling the phone for $299.95 on contract after rebate -- a good bit more than the $179 Google charges, but in return, it looks like you can select just about any plan T-Mobile offers (Google restricts you to the Even More 500 plan to get the subsidy). We think we already miss the old way of getting these things.
Iowa 911 call center now accepting texts; Twitter and Facebook status updates can't be far behind
As of this week, callers can now text their requests for fire, police, or ambulance, to the emergency call center in Black Hawk County, Iowa -- both a nationwide first and a definite improvement for deaf and hard-of-hearing residents who have thus far had to rely on TDD devices. Unlike voice calls, however, the 911 operator can't get your location from a text message, meaning that the caller must first respond to a request for their city or zip code before the call gets routed. Currently, only i wireless subscribers (a local carrier affiliated with T-Mobile) can use the service, but plans are afoot to bring other carriers on board as well. Other future upgrades include the ability to accept video and picture messages. All the operators ask is that you refrain from sending them those silly chain text messages -- that sort of thing can be really distracting when you're busy saving lives.
