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Steve Jobs emails 'are real' claims Boy Genius Report, says Apple PR lied to press
Earlier this week we reported on a story that had been doing the rounds -- another Steve Jobs email thread with an irate customer. Like many other stories about Jobs' emails to customers, this yarn centered around a user disappointed with his iPhone 4's service, and Steve's flippant responses. The first time we saw the story crop up, we were suspicious of its validity (and frankly, newsworthiness), and we became even more suspicious after AppleInsider ran an article claiming that the source of the supposed emails had been shopping the tale for cash (Engadget was not contacted by the source). We did eventually cover the story, but only after Apple itself responded to the tale, claiming -- first to Fortune and then to us -- that the emails were false, and the exchange had not happened. That struck us as particularly newsworthy, because in all our years of reporting on Steve Jobs' wild personal emails (of which there are many, many examples), we'd never heard Apple refute that the emails were coming from him. Now, Boy Genius Report (where the original story appeared) has fired back, emphatically claiming that the emails are real, and that the proof is in the original message headers which the site has been given access to by the source. BGR goes one step further as well, and essentially accuses Apple PR of spinning this story to news outlets to suit its needs. And let's not mince words -- the claim is that Apple PR is lying to the press. The proof which BGR offers is no more or less convincing to us than the site's previous post on the subject; email headers and timestamps can be faked. Still, it is notable that Boy Genius is pushing back on this story, and we certainly don't believe the blog would knowingly publish a false email thread. As TechCrunch points out in its take on the matter, PR reps often give vague, sugarcoated, or misleading information to news sites, but there has never been a time when Apple's PR has outright lied to major publications (that we know of). That would be a mess of epic proportions, and we can't really fathom why they would go to the trouble. The company has obviously let stuff like this slide for years -- this seems like an odd time (and a relatively minor story) to get up in arms about it. We've reached out to Apple for further statement on this, and will report back as soon as we hear something. In the meantime, take a look at the source link and see what BGR has to say on the matter.
Motorola Droid (alias Sholes) finally gets a decent headshot
At last eluding the omnipresent Mr. Blurrycam, Motorola's Android-powered Sholes handset has finally gotten the sort of photography it deserves, apparently with an official go-to-market name of Droid -- or at least one decent photo of it. This pic, which doesn't really confirm or deny any of our suspicions about the device (Verizon was already in the bag), made a berth on the locked Twitter profile of Boy Genius, and hopefully there's more where this came from: we're getting tired of the tease. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
BlackBerry 9700 reviewed extra early
What is it with BlackBerries and seemingly premature reviews? After the Onyx got manhandled ahead of schedule, it's the turn of its close relative, the trackpad-equipped 9700, which has been annointed as successor to the Bold. Boy Genius Report spared few superlatives in their examination of the hardware, which praises the 9700 as "the most gorgeous BlackBerry on the planet" and involves a size and feel comparison against the Tour. Their conclusion was that the new handset draws all the positives from RIM's recent portfolio of phones and ties them together into a very compelling little package. We couldn't spot any downsides, so either this is the best phone ever or somebody got a little carried away -- read up and decide for yourself.
AT&T decides some employees shouldn't see the future, changes mind
Remember, carriers: you can't stop leaks, nor can you hope to contain them, and therefore any effort you put into dealing with them should be used to spin 'em to your advantage. That's a simple reality that sites like the very one you're presently reading have proven time and time again over the years. Alas, AT&T suddenly (and briefly) decided that most -- but not all -- of its employees shouldn't be clued into what's coming down the pike, blocking Boy Genius Report from its intranet for all but senior-level folks who presumably want to see what sort of scoops du jour have made their way into the public domain. That's really awesome, guys; good plan, because your sales force obviously has no other way to reach the internet, Boy Genius Report's scoops are never reposted elsewhere on unblocked sites, and clearly, it's in the best interest of the company for them to be as uninformed about your roadmap (and those of your competitors) as possible. Fortunately, it seems the decision was reversed almost as quickly as it was made to start with, so no harm, no foul. We guess.
The Boy Genius Report: AT&T gets Vu in January, K850i in March
Field tidbits from Engadget's mobile insider, The Boy Genius.Remember way back when we caught wind that AT&T was eying Sony Ericsson's initial American 3G efforts -- the Z750 and K850 -- for release? Well, it's looking good! This slide, imploring employees to focus on "exclusives," shows us that AT&T has locked onto launching a version of the K850 as the "Ansel" (seriously?) come next March. Seems like an awfully long time to wait, but in the meantime, we can check out the MediaFLO-equipped LG Vu in January. Why must you make it so hard on us, LG -- Voyager or Vu? Decisions, decisions!
Eight-year-old tests chips for Actel, owns an oscilloscope
Sure, you had a paper route when you were a kid; heck, we bet you were even good at it. Well listen up buddy, your fond memories of childhood success are about to be completely disintegrated by Carson Page, an eight-year-old from Austin, Texas who really works for a living... evaluating chips for Actel. The boy, who's been working with the company since he was seven, apparently has a knack for the technical side of things, so much so that the chipmaker has been using him on a regular basis to suss out bugs, test software, and generally act like a super-genius at the drop of a hat. Apparently, the interest in technology comes from his father, a tinkerer who owns an electronic design company. Mark Nagel, a field applications engineer for Actel says about the kid's work, "We would ask what he liked and didn't like about it and he could explain it on a very high-end level," adding, "It's amazing; when you talk to him it's like you're talking to a regular guy doing design." A regular guy, indeed. [Warning: read link requires subscription][Via CNET]
The Boy Genius Report: Motorola W490 on T-Mobile October 1
Field tidbits from Engadget's mobile insider, The Boy Genius.If you close your eyes and trace your fingers along the midrange W490, you could almost fool yourself into thinking it's a KRZR -- open your eyes, though, and you'll discover that it's a whole lot more colorful for a fraction of the price. The handset launches on October 1 in "licorice" (you may know it better as black) for $49.99 on a two-year contract, but bright green and purple are on the docket in the not-too-distant future, fitting for a phone that T-Mobile is positioning to take over for the discontinued RAZR V3t. Features include a 1.3 megapixel camera, microSD slot, the obligatory myFaves support, and Bluetooth, and the carrier is saying that it's using the handset to take aim at Verizon's u540, Sprint's M500, and Samsung's SYNC. The first two we can see, but isn't the SYNC just a tick higher on the totem pole? At any rate, look for it as an "exclusive" to T-Mobile's retail stores, Target, and Costco on launch day with full availability following on the 8th.
The Boy Genius Report: AT&T's N75 training docs!
Field tidbits from Engadget's mobile insider, the Boy Genius.Did you know that AT&T plans on marketing the N75 to males and females ages 25 to 45? Or that said individuals should be "spontaneous and fun"? Personally, we think that North America's first 3G-compatible S60 device suits 18 year old curmudgeons and 80 year old hermits just as well as it does anyone else -- just don't expect your friendly local AT&T sales associate to agree after he or she takes a gander at AT&T's training guide for the device. Nothing too surprising in here from a device features perspective, though we're glad to see that AT&T lists "hundreds of compatible applications" as one of Symbian's selling points, suggesting that the carrier is going to be making at least a half-hearted attempt to keep the phone open. Hit the gallery for the full doc! AT&T's traning guide for the Nokia N75
The Boy Genius Report: More detail on Sprint's summer plans
Field report tidbits from Engadget's mobile insider, the Boy Genius.We have some additional details to fill in some blanks created by Sprint's last roadmap document -- nothing groundbreaking, but we now know exactly what it is that'll be discontinued over the next few months, and admittedly, there are a few surprises. But before we talk about phones riding off into the sunset, let's touch on some new arrivals, shall we? The PPC-6800 and Treo 755p are set to show on on exactly the same day -- May 14 -- which should lead to an interesting sales face-off. Sprint's brief description of the 755p is kinda interesting: "1st Palm EVDO Treo w/intern antenna. In box support for IM, NFL Mobile, Mobile Voice Control, voice dialing, replaces Treo 700P." Actually, it's not that interesting, we just really like to see the phrase "1st Palm EVDO Treo w/intern antenna" all official-like. Also of note, the Sanyo Katana II hits June 18 to replace the Katana (obviously), though Sanyo fans' excitement is going to be quelled a bit by the knowledge that the M1 is now chalked up for decommissioning in the May - June timeframe. Seems like a short life for a relatively powerful handset, no? Anyhoo, follow the break for a full list of Sprint pieces getting the proverbial axe in the coming months.
A look at Sprint's summer fashions
Sprint's "3 Month View" spreadsheet makes for some absolutely fascinating reading -- as long as it proves to be nonfiction, anyway. The document gives us an in-depth look at Sprint's (and Nextel's) launches for the months of April, May, and June, and needless to say, we're liking what we're seeing. Starting with standard phones, the Samsung M300 should make its grand entrance next month in silver alongside the Sanyo 3200 -- which replaces the 3100 -- in black, blue, and pink (the latter will run $200; no pricing on the former yet). Moving upmarket, the Samsung M510 replaces the M500 in May for an as-yet-undetermined price. In PDA land, no surprises here; the HTC Titan launches in PPC-6800 guise next month (sorry, no price here either), as does the Palm Treo 755p in blue and burgundy. Nextel users get the ic502 in black with an extended battery bundled (whooptie doo) for $270 next month, and if you wait until June, you'll get a crack at the ic902. Finally, road warriors will be pleased to hear that the Rev. A ExpressCard AC595E from Sierra Wireless gets launched in May, though a price remains to be set.[Thanks, Terry]
BlackBerry 8300 coming to AT&T next month?
Rumors are just that -- rumors -- until they start to take shape and more people can confirm them. That being said, this one's pretty juicy: sources tell us AT&T the BlackBerry 8300 has appeared on their internal website with a tentative ("tentative" as in "close our eyes and hope for the best") launch date of May 25th. That date would fall right in line with Boy Genius and his predictions, making for a fabulous month of May (for BlackBerry fans, anyhow!).[Thanks, anonymous tipster]
Could the LAZR be the RAZR 2?
And just when we thought "LAZR" was about the least creative name Motorola could've possibly dreamed up for its shiny morsel with the giant external screen, Boy Genius reports that the handset will roll out the door with the "RAZR 2" moniker instead. The choice of verbage there is actually very interesting, because it indicates that Moto views this clamshell as the true successor to the RAZR -- not only one of the first true fashion phones, but the singular device that pulled Motorola out of its rut and back into the manufacturer big leagues. Whether the RAZR 2 will be able to perform the same magic trick, of course, remains to be seen. Boy Genius also reports that the phone will be available in both GSM and CDMA versions (cross your fingers, Sprint and Verizon customers) and will in fact rock a memory expansion slot by the time it makes it into stores. We're wearing our lucky baseball caps today in the hope we see it in official form this week at CTIA in Orlando, and we suggest y'all do the same.
The Boy Genius Report: BlackBerry 8300 walkthough
Field report tidbits from mobile insider Boy Genius.Sit back and relax while we take you on a tour of the new BlackBerry 8300's OS, aptly named 4.2.2. New features -- which were reported here -- include built-in Spell Check, Full Screen Mode while playing videos, creating and managing custom folders, and much more. The camera application has an amazing light sensor that will gage the surrounding light and turn on the flash or not (much improved from the Pearl). The speakers for playing audio and video are extremely loud, yet still manage to sound pretty full. Let's not forget the keyboard of the 8300 which is probably the biggest improvement overall. Click on for the full OS walkthough! The Boy Genius Report: BlackBerry 8300 walkthrough
Boy Genius exclusive with the BlackBerry 8800!
We knew our pal Boy Genius would be able to get his hands on the much anticipated BlackBerry 8800, and sure enough, he did. BG was able to obtain the svelte new RIM device by any means necessary through completely legitimate channels for preview. From the initial pictures, the 8800 is thicker than we anticipated, only beating the current 8700 by a marginal amount. This device is setup for Wi-Fi, so it only makes sense that T-mobile might be getting this version. We should know more when the device launches later on this month on the orange splat. Check out some more pics after the break!
Motorola RIZR being given way at the Oscars
Maybe our good friend Boy Genius has a crystal ball to see into the future or maybe he just has all the right connections, but either way he's on point again. Motorola announced that they will be giving a customized MOTORIZR Z3 to the top 25 nominees from this years Oscar awards. As it turns out, the winners of the soon-to-be released (stateside) slider will come in a custom made box with the nominees name on it along with H800 and S9 Bluetooth headsets. Now, if the nominees were getting that svelte Z6 slider we've been talking about, we might just have to make a move for one of them.
The Boy Genius Report: Cingular's BlackBerry 8800c accessories!
Cingular's latest accessory price sheet, which covers the period from January 21 to March 31, reassuringly makes copious mention of RIM's upcoming BlackBerry 8800 (in familiar "c" trim for Cingular, of course) -- and seeing how this is an accessory sheet, it's given us some insight into what sorts of goodies the store clerk will be able to pack in that goody bag of ours on launch day for a little extra coin. $30 ($29.99 to be exact, but you get the drift) will net you a leather pouch, sure to stave off the inevitable marring of your baby's casing for a few minutes, days, or -- who knows? -- weeks. The 8800's section also lists a wired stereo headset for $30 and Aliph's highly-praised Bluetooth Jawbone headset for a stiff $120. Throw in a $50 spare battery to boot and the phone's out-the-door list price is starting to look a little misleading, isn't it?
The Boy Genius Report: Cingular shows its cards
There's something about a carrier pricing sheet showing unreleased models that just gets the hair on the backs of our necks standing on end. Some of these are well, well scooped at this point -- the black and gold Motorola V3xx, Nokia N75, and the Samsung SYNC all gussied up in blue -- but what's new to us are the Samsung "Cardinal" and Nokia "Ram." We haven't the foggiest what these might be, but we can tell you that the Cardinal will go for $230 commitment free or $80 after signing away a couple years of your life, while the Ram will run $210 and $60, respectively. Could it be that Nokia's threat to start naming its phones has some teeth?
The Boy Genius Report: Nokia N92 Unboxing
Field report tidbits from mobile insider Boy Genius.Boy Genius -- Let's just the Nokia N92 isn't a small phone by any means. It's also not that US-friendly, but that didn't stop me from snagging one. It comes with with the usual Nokia goodies like a USB data cable, 64MB miniSD card, headphones, charger and software booklet. Powering this hefty puppy on wasn't as fun as I would have hoped due to the sheer size and weight of it; the keys are some of the worst implemented i've seen. Instead of normal buttons they have a sheet of plastic over them (think: buttons on a microwave). You can't watch DVB TV and there is no US 3G or 850mhz support so our friendly advice is stay away, although the $850+ pricetag should help as well. Nevertheless thanks to CTI-Miami for sending us the phone. Click on for more pics including a nice side by side with the HTC Cavalier!
The Boy Genius Report: More Cingular iPhone details
More internal marketing memo details about the iPhone fresh from Cingular? Thanks Boy Genius, we can always count on you. Interesting bits: iPhone won't fall under the Cingular Music umbrella (which is probably why there aren't any OTA downloads. Classic line: "What's in it for Cingular? We always start from the initial position of asking the question 'what does our customer really want.' In this case, we came to the conclusion that they want their music, their way." We kind of thought that was Apple's conclusion with the iPhone -- not Cingular's. So, gonna put your money where your mouth is? Oh, Cingy also claims "support" of FairPlay; don't be fooled, we're all pretty well aware Cingular currently exists entirely outside the iTunes ecosystem. "Carrier support" it is not, but we think you know what they mean. More after the break.
More details on RIM's BlackBerry 8800, 9x00 series
We hate to temper the joy of BlackBerry-philes everywhere anxiously awaiting the arrival of the 8800, but we're starting to hear whispers of a "9xxx" series -- specific model number unknown -- that one-ups the 8800 with a 3G radio, support for backup to microSD, and a new processor and UI for Q4 launch on Cingular. Granted, the fourth quarter is a ways off yet (assuming they're talking calendar quarters, not fiscal quarters), so Boy Genius has blessed us with a few new details on the 8800, too. The Pearlesque 8800 will apparently hit Cingular mid-February with a slightly shorter keyboard than the 8700, making it easier to type. What it won't do, though, is come with a cam (great news for businessfolk with paranoid bosses) or WiFi. Hey, it's still a pretty hot upgrade from the 8700 though, right?
