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Samsung BlackJack II launches Friday on AT&T
Hoping to catch a little Black Friday love, Samsung and AT&T will be launching the BlackJack II at the tail end of this week, November 23. The Windows Mobile 6 Standard device -- successor to AT&T's pretty darned popular BlackJack -- features integrated GPS, a 2 megapixel camera, HSDPA, support for Video Share, and stereo Bluetooth and will be available both in the original's black (albeit a bit glossier) and in "red wine." Black launches first, with red wine following on December 6 for $149.99 on contract after rebates.Update: Sounds like some AT&T stores are already hawking this thing ahead of schedule. Go pick 'er up now, or hold your peace until Friday![Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Shiny releases coming up for AT&T
In case our really poorly constructed pun in the title didn't help reveal what we're talking about, let's come right out with it: we're hearing that the LG CU720 Shine slider should be launching as soon as today, and certainly within the next handful of days. Along with it will be the CU515 in "plum" (also from LG), the Samsung A747 flip, and the BlackJack2 on the smartphone end of the spectrum. It's a 3G cornucopia -- just in time for Thanksgiving, eh?[Thanks, kal]
WM6 upgrade official for Samsung i600; BlackJack version imminent?
The whole Windows Mobile 6 upgrade issue for Samsung's BlackJack is a little murky at the moment seeing how the BlackJack2 just got announced (come on, you just know AT&T would love to use Windows Mobile 6 as a selling point on the new model), but we're cautiously encouraged here. The i600, the BlackJack's European cousin, has just been blessed with an official WM6 ROM -- which, coincidentally, we're hoping looks nothing like the WM5 screen shots in Samsung's promo pic. So yeah, go grab it if you're lucky enough to be on an i600; meanwhile, adventurous i607 types can keep skulking around for an unofficial upgrade until AT&T gets its act together.[Via MoDaCo]
Hands-on with the Samsung BlackJack2
So Samsung and AT&T introduced the BlackJack2 today, but it ended up being none other than Microsoft that showed the device doing its thing on the CTIA show floor. While the original BlackJack could be seen as a revolutionary device for the carrier (it was AT&T's answer to the Q, after all), its successor is clearly destined to be an evolutionary upgrade; yeah, the GPS is great, but Windows Mobile 6 and 3G are both totally mandatory in new smartphones hitting the market at this point. From our brief impression, the new keyboard seems like a key improvement over the BlackJack's testy pad, there's a larger battery in store (no more high capacity kit needed for a full day of use), and the jog wheel, glossy shell, and choice of colors all give it a softer, more consumer-friendly look. Samsung tells us we can expect it for about $150 in time for the holidays. Click on for more shots!%Gallery-8993%
Engadget Mobile checks out the Samsung BlackJack2 for AT&T
Quick: which one's the new BlackJack? If you said "the one on the left," you've been following Samsung's BlackJack2 closely enough so that you'll probably want to check out our shots of it over on Engadget Mobile. If you said "the one on the right," you clearly need us to hit you up with some knowledge -- so yeah, check out Engadget Mobile anyway. Cheers!
Samsung BlackJack2 gets ready to launch on AT&T
Don't get too excited -- you can't order it just yet -- but AT&T's at least ready to admit that the Samsung BlackJack2 exists. It seems the carrier's pulling the same stunt it did with the Q9 Global, taking email addresses for notification of availability without giving any indication as to when it might be available. Compared to the original, the keyboard and d-pad both look considerably hotter, Windows Mobile 6 comes installed (just imagine the horror if it wasn't!), "faster 3G speeds" are being touted, and perhaps most importantly, GPS capability is integrated. Oh yeah, there's some Video Share action in there too, but we're not too sure we'd call that a "feature." When it's launched, look for it in "wine red" and black.[Thanks, Chris P.]
A veritable gaggle of AT&T rumors (hint: red iPhone?)
This here supposed AT&T inventory sheet that fell into our laps today reads like an indecisive power user's wish list -- the Prada's great, the Z9's okay if you're into that sort of thing, and the K850a finally moves AT&T into high-end camera territory. But what's this, a red iPhone? Seriously? Catch up on all the haps over at Engadget Mobile!Read - "Deep red" iPhoneRead - Sony Ericsson Z750a, K850aRead - LG Prada, Samsung BlackJack II, Motorola Z9
LG Prada, Samsung Blackjack II, Moto Z9 show up in AT&T's system
Yep, we kinda knew about all these, but it's good to get a little more confirmation that they're still all on track. The LG Prada (alias "Vu2," alias CU920) has shown up for inventory tracking alongside the Motorola Z9 slider and the Samsung BlackJack II. The Vu2 could end up being one of AT&T's first MediaFLO-compliant handset for mobile TV on the network, and we don't really expect it until early '08 at this point; the BlackJack II looks ready to launch from the press shots we've seen, though, and we wouldn't be surprised if it hit before the year's out. The Z9 could be the hot slider we mentioned earlier today, suggesting a launch some time in the first quarter.[Thanks, anonymous tipster]
Samsung's BlackJack II outed as the i617
Don't worry BlackJack fans, Samsung does indeed seem to have a true BlackJack II successor in the works for you, unlike that stylus-based i780 pretender to the throne. Turns out the i617 -- which we saw pass the FCC yesterday -- will be doing the honors, but unfortunately it's not terribly clear what those honors will be. AT&T is a lock, thanks to the HSDPA 850 / 1900, and of course Windows Mobile 6 will be the main attraction, but there's no confirmation of WiFi or any other notable hardware upgrades just yet other than a bump to 2 megapixels from the original's 1.3. As for looks, we'll let you make up your own mind, but the design isn't much of a departure -- there's still a back hump -- but everything is considerably more shiny this time around. No word on price or availability. There's a shot of the back after the break.[Via Mobile Phones Reviews and Tips]
Samsung SGH-i617 passes FCC; hello, BlackJack II?
The FCC's being a little shy about full documentation here as usual, but we know this much: it's the Samsung SGH-i617, the device's outline looks BlackJack-ish, and it rocks HSDPA 850 / 1900 (thanks, SAR report!). Combine that with the persistent rumors of a BlackJack II in the works, the fact that the popular BlackJack (whose model number is i607, coincidentally) is getting a little long in the tooth, and AT&T devices from Samsung typically end in "7," and, well, you can pretty much figure out the rest. Give us Windows Mobile 6, WiFi, and a slightly better keyboard and you've got a worthy successor, guys.
Sprint's roadmap for remainder of '07 outed, too?
Following a thorough run-through of Verizon's plans for the rest of the year, this broader peep into Sprint's near future than we've seen before -- if real, anyway -- means that we now pretty much know everything there is to know about the wide world of CDMA here in the States for the next few months. It's a warm, fuzzy feeling, ain't it? Anyway, let's have a look: Palm is said to come swinging in with two, the 500 on the low end with a $99 price point on October 14 and an 800w ("w" stands for Windows Mobile 6 here, friends) up top -- though the latter doesn't grace shelves until Q1 of '08. Novatel gets down with an updated version of the U720 dubbed U727 (what else?) come September 30. Sanyo meanwhile should add the S1 candybar to replace the SCP-4930 on October 14, but November 4 is allegedly when things really start to heat up. That day should bring the LG LX260, RIM BlackBerry Pearl 2, HTC Vogue, and the UTStarcom PX-00, a low-cost Rev A data card to replace the PX-500. The Motorola Q9c -- possibly with GSM international roaming -- should drop by a little later in November, while a dual-mode CDMA / GSM rendition of the Samsung BlackJack replaces the IP-830w early next year. Again, this is all unconfirmed, but it seems plausible enough. We'll throw up any corroborating info as we get it.[Via Slashphone]
Reader Request: Blackjack SIM in iPhone
A number of readers asked if I could try out an AT&T GSM SIM card in my iPhone. Fortunately, my sister is visiting town. After reassuring her ("You're going to do WHAT?"), she allowed me to pull out her SIM and test it in my iPhone. As expected, it was a no-go. I could not make any phone calls and I certainly was not going to let iTunes mess with her SIM card.
iPhone First Impressions
It was difficult, but I finally tore myself away from playing with my 8GB iPhone to put together a First Impressions post. I tried touching on a few things that we might not have discussed before, or at least things that I particularly appreciate that might not have made it into the keynote or video spotlights. Given the complexity and depth of such a ground-breaking device, you can be sure this won't be the only first post of its kind from me or the rest of our team, but for now, read on for some initial thoughts on one of Apple's most anticipated devices of all time. I just need to get it out of the way: Words cannot describe how incredibly wonderful this thing feels to touch and hold. It is an absolute marvel of engineering. Gorgeous in every way. It's light; surprisingly so. Not quite as light as I remember my Samsung BlackJack being (one of - if not the - slimmest and lightest smartphones on the market), but considering how bad the BlackJack and Windows Mobile in general sucked, it's honestly a non-issue. Amazingly, just about all facets of the phone's software work as advertised. Switching from the browser back to the Home screen is a snap; hitting the Home button the middle of a YouTube video is also a snap. However, YouTube videos take a bit longer than advertised on TV to buffer and begin playing, even over Wi-Fi. Not too worried about it. Google Maps is surprisingly responsive, even over EDGE (which wide reports are saying has received a significant speed boost in the last couple days. Hmm, wonder why). The magnifying glass effect is quick and very, very cool. However, it unfortunately seems to negate the possibility of selecting a block of text for deleting. This would have been handy in instances like blowing away a URL already in Safari to start typing a new one; the only workaround for this is tapping at the end of the URL and holding the delete key down and waiting for each character to be deleted in succession. Kind of annoying. Update: Thankfully, a commenter pointed out the big grey X sitting in Safari's address bar, allowing for a one click deletion of an entire URL. Much handier. The reader.mac.com app seems a little misleading - all it does is display a message on the iPhone instructing you to add a direct URL for a site's feed in Safari, in which case it will display that feed much like Safari RSS on a computer. It isn't a web-based app at all from what I can tell. Unless Apple has something more planned for reader.mac.com, I'm calling this another fumbled addition to the .Mac family (though, for the record: I'm a happy .Mac customer, I just increased my storage to 2GB and I fully plan to renew my account in October). Have I mentioned yet that this seems to be a device designed and engineered by angels? Because it is. Changing the ringer/phone volume or toggling the vibrate switch elicits a translucent Mac OS X-like volume feedback. Seeing translucency on a phone with this gorgeous of a display is nearly worth half the price in and of itself. The SMS app looks like iChat and almost sounds like iChat; it features a different sound for incoming SMSes, but the default iChat sound for sending SMS messages. My only question is: where is iChat! YouTube H.264 videos look as gorgeous on the iPhone as they do on the Apple TV (remember: Apple got YouTube to convert a portion of their catalog for the iPhone and Apple TV into H.264 from the original uploaded files; this isn't a conversion from original > Flash > H.264). Note to YouTube: drop Flash, switch to H.264 video for your entire catalog. Now. Snapping a picture on the camera features a virtual shutter that snaps shut and open again once the picture is done being snapped and saved. Kinda silly, but more entertaining than a 'saving' or 'please wait' message. The 160 dpi display is even more gorgeous than in the videos and up on stage in a keynote. According to John Gruber, the iPhone's UI is all done in Helvetica, which I am definitely a fan of. I also agree that Notes being done in some icky Comic Sans-y type is... weird. That's about it for now. We'll hit up more of the (predominantly) wonderful impressions as soon as we can roll them out.
WM6 ROM leaked for Samsung BlackJack
They said it was coming, and by golly, it's finally here. Sorta. Neither Samsung nor AT&T have let an official Windows Mobile 6 update out of the gate for the BlackJack, but it's gotta be mighty close now that an official-looking update has trickled down through the 'nets and into a good number of users' eager hands. Initial reports from guinea pigs the first round of installers seem to be positive, with AT&T branding magically appearing throughout. So, ya know, if you're really attached to that Cingular branding on an early build for whatever reason, the update ain't for you -- otherwise, proceed at your own risk and post all the gory details in comments.[Via Smartphone Thoughts]
Engadget Mobile, Samsung BlackJack, free. Need we say more?
Offering up speedy data, Windows Mobile, and a thin, totally pocketable package, we really can't think of a single reason you wouldn't want to take a Samsung BlackJack off our hands -- for free, no less. Try your luck over at Engadget Mobile!Have a look at our other contests, too, before it's too late: Sprint UpStage by Samsung (the first one), Nokia N75, Motorola T305, Samsung u620, (PRODUCT) RED MOTORAZR V3m for Sprint, Sprint UpStage by Samsung (number two)
BlackJack gets AT&T branding on Samsung's site
Cingular's (painfully) slow conversion to new-skool AT&T branding continues, and it seems that at least some current models won't get left in the dust. The wildly popular i607 BlackJack would seemingly fit the mold of a device that AT&T would want to update with new branding -- especially in light of the fact that a Windows Mobile 6 upgrade is around the corner -- and sho' nuff, the BlackJack depicted on Samsung's promotional site now bears a big ol' globe logo on its bottom. No word on when the updated version might start appearing in stores, but we might recommend not upgrading just to get the new logo.[Thanks, Jensen]
Missing Sync for Windows Mobile beta allows syncing without Flight Mode
It is ironic that I just recently found this new beta of Missing Sync for Windows Mobile, as a BlackBerry Pearl is arriving today to replace my Samsung BlackJack, which I can no longer stand. Nevertheless, I know there are plenty of Mac users out there who are rollin' with Mark/Space's Missing Sync to get their Windows Mobile device to sync with Mac OS X, and I thought y'all might be interested in a new beta that takes Flight Mode out of the picture. Though it isn't specifically listed in the release notes for this current version (3.0.2b6 as of this writing), Windows Mobile users no longer have to shut off the phone radio (what is known as Flight Mode) to perform a sync over Bluetooth. This is great news since turning off the phone radio, as handy of a UI as it may be, is still a clunky and annoying process. Support for a few more devices has also been added, as have the typical batch of bug fixes, so check out Mark/Space's testing page for a download link and release notes with more details.Now, where's FedEx with that Pearl...
Treo 750, BlackJack with Windows Mobile 6 in the wild
We'd reported this would happen, and, well... it happened. In Microsoft's booth at CTIA, anyway. It's anybody's guess exactly when it is end users will be able to drop Windows Mobile 6 on Treo 750s and Samsung BlackJacks of their very own, but we take it as a pretty solid sign that Microsoft is comfortable showing it off already.
Hands-on with Samsung's CeBIT "treasure case"
Hall 26 is definitely one of the places to be for mobiles at CeBIT and Samsung is there in full force. The booth is taking up a good bit of the available real estate, so there was much to see and a big space to cover. We took some time to look through a PR type's "treasure case" to check out what Samsung had to offer at CeBIT for 2007. The message is definitely the Ultra II devices, easily seen by the signage draped and standing almost everywhere we looked (check the pics for a couple samples). While Samsung didn't have too much new at this year's event, we still got a few sweet pics for your ogling entertainment. %Gallery-2139%
Cingular handing out free extended batteries for BlackJacks
Enjoying the Cingular BlackJack but finding that the batt life is really weak? Happy days are here my friends -- at least for a select bunch of you. If you haven't already rushed out and dropped $50 on the extended battery for your trusty Windows Mobile device, contrary to what everybody tells us, procrastination can indeed pay off. Apparently some things in life are free! Cingular is offering no cost extended-life love for any BlackJack purchased with only the two standard batteries in the package. Simply zip over here, enter your IMEI number, (this can be found by typing *#06# on phone keypad, or looking under the battery, and is even printed on your box) and mobile number in the handy dandy form. Apparently IMEI numbers between 352794010030189 to 352794012269959 are good to go, so hurry up and grab yours before the deal is done.[Via i607blackjack.blogspot.com]
