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Microsoft Surface launching April 17th... with AT&T
No, Microsoft hasn't suddenly transformed its 30-inch, multi-touch Surface into a big-ass cellphone. It has, however, chosen AT&T to launch the world's first Surface into retail. Shoppers in New York, Atlanta, San Antonio, and San Francisco will be treated to what amounts to the novelty (at least initially) of learning about a device (Samsung BlackJack II, pictured) by simply placing it atop the Surface. They'll also have the ability to explore interactive coverage maps. Later, users will be able to drag ringtones, graphics and video and drop it into "the phones." Note their use of "the" and not "your" phone in the press release. Nevertheless, we're happy to see Microsoft get the technology out the door on its long march towards consumerdom.%Gallery-19638%Update: Interestingly enough, AT&T's flagship iPhone will not be one of the first phones demonstrated on Surface. Perhaps AT&T / Microsoft worry about a multi-touch collision creating consumer strangelets.
Hands-on with the Motorola Z9 for AT&T
So who exactly green-lighted the "mahogany" shade used on the AT&T V9 and Z9, anyway? We don't like it any more now than we did when we saw it on the RAZR 2, but the phone itself looks like a solid choice for anyone seeking a decent midrange slider -- especially if Samsung and LG aren't to your liking. We were pleasantly surprised by how thin the phone looks and feels (the press shots seem to betray it there for some reason), and the screen is one of the better we've seen in a device in this class, both for size and clarity. Throw in a little AT&T Navigator action, Video Share support, and HSDPA, and you have yourself a complete little package -- if you're into those sorts of things, anyway!%Gallery-19597%
Hands-on with the LG Vu
We just played with the Vu here, and we have to say -- while it's hard to deny the attraction of a huge touchscreen, it's just a little light and unsubstantial in the hands. Then again, if we have to levy a complaint against a device, "too light" is a pretty weak one. The UI is typical LG for this category of device -- think Viewty -- but we're happy to report that the screen itself doesn't exhibit the same flimsiness that we detected when we reviewed the KU990 some time back. Since you won't be able to get any closer than this to a Vu before May, check out some shots, won't you?%Gallery-19589%
AT&T nabbing GPS-enabled BlackBerry Pearl 8110
Merely months after we heard that the BlackBerry Pearl 8110 was headed to Rogers, Americans green with envy can finally chill. According to shots posted over at Boy Genius Report, the GPS-enabled 8110 looks to be making a B-line for AT&T outlets -- in two colors, no less (red is option two, for those curious). Word on the street has these ready to rock "in the next month or two," but your guess is as good as ours on price. Check the high-resolution snaps in the read link below.
Motorola's Z9 with GPS goes for a ride on AT&T
Just like we heard, AT&T is now offering Motorola's MOTO Z9. $150 (after $50 on-line discount and 2-yr contract) nabs the new slider with GPS for AT&T's rebranded TeleNav service -- now called AT&T Navigator. It's also stuffed with microSD expansion, stereo Bluetooth, and quad-band GSM with WCDMA 850/1900 supporting 3.6Mbps HSDPA data. Surprisingly, the 2 megapixel camera we saw in the early prototype last year has been whittled back to 1.3 megapixels. Come on Moto, what's 0.7 megapixels between friends? [Thanks, Mark and Orhan C.]Update: AT&T's bad! The camera's still a full 2 megapixels after all -- we just confirmed it.
AT&T seeing executive shakedown?
Details are still shaky, but GigaOM is reporting that the futures of certain AT&T executives may also be dubious. In addition to a recently replaced CTO and recently departed USi CEO, apparently VPs are being offered exit packages or demotions (their choice!), possibly to trim some of the fat at the top of the pyramid before the US economy gets any crappier. We can't say for sure, but hey, those billions of dollars in 700MHz auction funds have to come from somewhere -- immediately, too, you don't want the FCC sending over hundreds of goons to kneecap thousands of employees. AT&T had no comment on matters both of downsizing and the FCC's mafia-like collection practices.
AT&T to follow Verizon's footsteps, self-brand navigation service?
Love it or hate it, AT&T's been offering TeleNav navigation services on a number of devices for a while now -- but it looks like the carrier's trying to up its clout just a smidge by rechristening the service with its own name. We've been hearing that TeleNav will become AT&T Navigator tomorrow -- on AT&T, anyway -- and to commemorate the occasion, the Motorola Z9 slider will be launched as the inaugural device to use the rebranded service. We should be able to validate or debunk this in just a few hours now, so stay tuned.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in, with special thanks to Rick for the image]
Palm Centro hits the magical one million mark
Palm's miniscule and wallet-friendly Centro has managed to reach one million units sold since its launch last September. It got its legs working as Sprint and AT&T's gateway smartphone at that fantastic $99 pricepoint, and now it's making a bid for world domination in major markets in Europe and Asia. The one million sales have it nipping at the heels of recent superstar smartphones, the two million plus HTC Touch and the four million plus iPhone, not bad company in the least.
Sony Ericsson Z750a coming to AT&T in early April
It's not a surprise, but it's still overwhelmingly refreshing to see Sony Ericsson finally (and we do mean finally) bringing some 3G action onto AT&T. The "a" variant of the glossy, colorful Z750 clamshell will be hitting AT&T in an official capacity come early April, featuring an OLED external display cleverly concealed by the phone's translucent shell, a 2 megapixel camera and media player both backed up with Memory Stick Micro M2 expansion, stereo Bluetooth, and of course, that lovely HSDPA 850 / 1900 that's eluded Sony Ericsson's AT&T offerings for far, far too long. Look for it to go out the door for $49.99 after a $100 rebate.
Sony's PIX brings full-length films to AT&T Mobile TV
Sony just revealed a bit more about AT&T's Mobile TV service launching in May. We now know that one of the two exclusive AT&T channels will be called PIX, Sony's new feature film channel for cellphones. The service is a first of its kind in the US... for good reason. Oh, it's not that we have anything against the roster of films including "Ghostbusters," "Philadelphia" and "Karate Kid." It's more the prospect of sitting in front of that tiny mobile screen to watch a full-length film without the ability to pause, fast forward or rewind. This is live broadcast folks. Nevertheless, Sony Pictures claims to understand the risk. According to Eric Berger, VP Mobile Entertainment at Sony Pictures Television, "We recognize that people are on the go with their mobile phone and coming and going. This isn't for people looking to view a movie for the first time. It's OK to miss the beginning." Films will run on PIX for a month with new additions added weakly weekly.
LG Vu further slides into view
Those eagerly anticipating the LG Vu now have a little more to go by -- at least visually, anyway. The specs floating around jibe with everything we've heard, and apparently include a nice 3-inch 400 x 240 display. Head on over to Phone Arena for more.
Black Centros in AT&T stores
Great news: the more business-friendly alternative to the white / green wild child is filtering into an AT&T store near you. Turns out that pre-production units were seen sporting both metallic and solid black paint jobs, but the final units are solid -- probably the best option, considering that this one will likely see time on a corporate boardroom table or two. Can't have those sparklies reflecting in the fluorescent lights, now can we?[Thanks, BrainsOnTheMonitor]
AT&T announces AT&T Mobile TV for May launch
They haven't revealed anything we didn't already know, but AT&T's finally come out with a semi-firm date for the launch of its MediaFLO-powered mobile TV service which will be branded simply as "AT&T Mobile TV." It'll be available to subscribers in May -- no specific date just yet -- on two exclusive handsets, the Prada-esque LG Vu and the more pedestrian Samsung Access; the Vu features an expansive touchscreen and 2 megapixel camera, while the Access makes do with a smaller landscape display and a 1.3 megapixel sensor. Both feature Bluetooth and 3G data, but the real story here is Mobile TV itself, which will come with two new channels that are exclusive to AT&T (in other words, unavailable on the other live MediaFLO service, VCAST TV from Verizon). The latest, hottest way to burn productivity on the go gets real in just a few short weeks, folks, so finish up whatever remaining work you have now.
The Motorola Z9's amazing, exciting accessories in the wild
Probably not worth rushing out to a store for, but some AT&T retail locations are starting to receive stock of the upcoming Motorola Z9's incredible batch of accessories. So, you know, if for whatever reason you were still holding out an irrational belief that the Z9 doesn't exist, this is probably the straw that breaks the camel's back right here. Now, let's just hope that we get something to actually put in the holster any minute now. Follow the break for another shot of the goods.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
AT&T's U-verse headed to San Antonio's Vidorra Condominiums
There's no denying that fiber providers (we're looking at you, AT&T and Verizon) are on the offensive in an attempt to get new condos, college dorms and other dwellings wired with service from day one. A fortnight after AT&T announced plans to install U-verse into a forthcoming residence hall at the University of Houston, the outfit has now made public its plans to give the same luxury to residents of Vidorra Condominiums. The 20-story high-rise development in downtown San Antonio is currently being constructed, and when it's complete, it'll offer U-verse TV / internet to every single resident. 'Course, guests to the facility may be more intrigued by the private outdoor swimming pool and the top floor "sky room," but we're sure they'll only be able to stand so much outdoor amusement before those high-def images have them running back in.
AT&T release dates through May (hint: no Vu)
We've just received a fresh round of release dates on AT&T, and if we had to pick a single word to describe the theme here, it'd be "colors." Shades upon shades of phones -- both new and old -- will see a release on AT&T in the next couple of months, starting with the Sony Ericsson Z750a, the first 3G Sony Ericsson to be released by a carrier in the States (but not in North America -- that honor belongs to Rogers); it'll hit in your choice of gray, pink, or purple in early April. The now-ancient UTStarcom 5700 finally sees release toward the end of April more than a year after we first saw it in the FCC's business, giving a lower-end choice to the Windows Mobile faithful. Finally, May should bring about the LG CU720 Shine in black, following its initial offerings of silver and red.Oh, and it looks like the Motorola Z9 and the black Centro should be widely available pretty much any minute now -- stay tuned. Strangely missing from the list is the Vu, though that doesn't necessarily mean it won't be released by the end of May, it merely means that AT&T's not sure yet. Surprise, surprise.[Thanks, Kal]
AT&T stringing U-verse to more of Austin, Texas
Just four months after AT&T ran its U-verse television service to Austin, Texas, the firm is now announcing that folks located in the outskirts can hop in, too. Right now, greater than 150,000 living units in and around Austin can access U-verse TV and internet; more specifically, we're talking about regions of Cedar Park, Leander, Pflugerville, Round Rock, Sunset Valley, and West Lake Hills. Better still, AT&T's looking to take the service even further from the city center, and given that the Lonestar State was U-verse's first (and remains its favorite, some would say), we don't doubt that one bit.
Comcast, Time Warner, Sprint, and Clearwire could join forces on WiMAX, help from Google and Intel possible
As unlikely as this sounds, rivals Time Warner Cable and Comcast are apparently in talks with Sprint and Clearwire over establishing a nationwide WiMAX network. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the companies are scrambling to get a deal wrapped up by CTIA -- which takes place at the beginning of April -- and could see an influx of cash from both Google and Intel in excess of $1 billion. It seems the odd-couple partners are keen to cut into heavyweights Verizon and AT&T's ever-expanding range of at-home and mobile services by offering their own take on a high-speed data and voice system to consumers. Clearly this combination would deflate AT&T and Verizon's big FCC bandwidth-nabs a little (and it explains why the cable players weren't interested in the 700MHz auction), but it's questionable whether this rag-tag team of wild card players would seriously court the public's eye. They say America loves an underdog -- even if it's a gigantic, super-rich, corporate underdog.[Via mocoNews]
AT&T forking over a $1.3 billion down payment for auction wins
No surprises here, but boy is that going to be a difficult expense to justify on the ol' corporate card. AT&T says it'll pay a $1.3 billion down payment to the FCC within the next 10 days to get a lock on that spectrum it just won, $500 million of which was paid up front before the auction began. The company will be pushing the remaining $5.3 billion over the counter before April 17, and is financing the purchase with funds from operations and a good bit of debt. We haven't seen a similar filing from Verizon yet, but we're guessing the company is facing similar deadlines for its $9.36 billion of spectrum.
AT&T to ask $250 for Motorola Z9, it seems
So, it looks like the Motorola Z9 slider is going to run $249.99 on a two-year contract after rebates. Our knee-jerk reaction was that it's a bit on the high side, but on closer examination, you notice that the V9 goes for exactly the same asking price -- and seeing how the Z9 is supposed to be a slider version of the same (right down to the odd color), we guess $249.99 will have to do.[Thanks, BrainsnTheMonitor]
