pre-orders
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Verizon iPhone now shipping to select customers: 'it begins'
While pre-orders have been halted for the interim, several readers that got their credit card information in on time have been sent an email from Verizon alerting to an CDMA iPhone shipment en route to their residence of choice. FedEx doesn't seem to be tracking any of the orders just yet, but we'll check back tomorrow to be sure. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Update: We've seen our first FedEx tracking screen and the estimated delivery date is February 7th, a whole 72 hours before everyone else gets it. Thanks, Richard!
Verizon halts iPhone pre-orders, brings back everyone's favorite technician for new ad (video)
As they say, "Ye who snoozes, something something something, set your alarm for launch morning." Take solace in a new dramatic commercial for Verizon iPhone featuring you-know-who -- it's after the break. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
LG Optimus 2X and Optimus Black priced at €499 by Amazon Germany, not yet available to buy
Amazon's German outlet has started listing LG's two latest and undoubtedly greatest phones: the Optimus 2X (seemingly renamed the Optimus Speed here) and the Optimus Black. Both run Android 2.2 on 4-inch screens, with the former offering a dual-core Tegra 2 processor capable of 1080p video recording and HDMI output, and the latter cranking up the display brightness to a quite unreasonable 700 nits. The Optimus Black also has one of the thinnest profiles on a smartphone of its class at 9.2mm, and will be one of the first phones to offer WiFi Direct connectivity. Intriguingly, Amazon's Optimus Speed / 2X listing also shows a brown color option for the handset, though only its black SKU is subject to a neat €50 discount bringing its price to €499, the same as the cost of the Optimus Black. We don't know when either one will drop, but you can go and reserve yourself one (or a dozen) at the links below. [Thanks, Julian]
Verizon turns on iPhone 4 pre-order countdown, existing customers can order on February 3rd at 3AM
The grapevine did already hint at the timing of the Verizon iPhone 4 pre-orders, but now, to be absolutely sure nobody misses them, we have a countdown! Eager iPhone bandwagon jumpers will have to stay up till 3AM EST on February 3rd to get their orders in from a "reserved quantity" of handsets, which will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis -- presumably to be delivered on that February 10th launch date everyone's been anticipating for so long. Sadly for Verizon newcomers, a contract with the network will be a prerequisite for signing up when the countdown expires. [Thanks, Jarrett and Anthony]
EverQuest II's Destiny of Velious offers a trio of pre-orders
Which way would you like your EverQuest II: Destiny of Velious expansion pack? Sunny-side up? With fries? Medium-rare? If you like options, then SOE's assortment of pre-orders will have you pouring over the menu quite carefully. Destiny of Velious became available for pre-orders yesterday, and EverQuest II's website lists three versions of the game available for purchase. The standard digital version is $39.99 and offers a loyal snow hound pet and four in-game paintings for your house as special rewards. If you want to kick it up a notch and shell out for the digital collector's edition, you'll get the snow hound, paintings, Tserrina's Wedding Present housing item, cosmetic ice armor, a prestige house and the ability to transform your griffon into a Stormfeather Brood Guardian. The collector's edition is temporarily priced at $59.99 for the next few weeks, and will go up to $89.99 on February 22nd. There's also a retail version through Amazon and GameStop for those who prefer a physical copy of the game. The retail version contains the four paintings and an animated cloak as fun rewards. All versions of Destiny of Velious come with the core game and all of the expansions to date, and will include a full month of free gametime for new accounts. You can read all of the nitty-gritty details over at EverQuest II. Update: Fixed the date of the CE price increase.
Fujifilm FinePix X100 pre-orders begin, retro beauty is yours for $1,200
We've yet to snap a single photograph with Fujifilm's FinePix X100, but we don't let little things like substantive testing get in the way of love -- it's destiny that we and this gorgeous camera be together, no matter the cost. Of course, considering that cost is presently $1,200 at Adorama, where the 12.3 megapixel APS-C shooter just appeared for pre-sales, you may not feel the same way. That's just fine. You'll probably have until March to longingly gaze upon that F2 Fujinon lens, hybrid viewfinder and gorgeous magnesium curves before you make up your troubled mind.
Notion Ink Adam delayed pending FCC certification
Just when it seemed the Notion Ink Adam had escaped the pit of dubious pre-orders and moved onto the glowing preview stage, here comes another hurdle to trip up its 10-inch PixelQi screen. Android Police reports that US buyers have received email notifications that their orders are ready to ship out, except for that little matter of FCC approval. We've yet to see the Adam pass the FCC -- perhaps because it hasn't done so quite yet -- and the tablet will need to have its paperwork in order and be properly labeled before it can be imported into the US. Notion Ink insists that all the red tape will be taken care of "within this week," and that some international orders have already shipped out. We're hoping that's the case -- we'd hate to think of all those poor slates sitting in boxes, instead of getting some sun.
Samsung Galaxy Player up for pre-order at Amazon UK, £150 buys 8GB worth of Android Market apps
We Americans may not see it until summer, but Samsung's 3.2-inch Galaxy Player is about to call Europe home, as following French presales the PMP has now appeared at Amazon UK. There, it's sporting a tentative January 7th release date and a pair of capacities and prices, with a modest £150 (about $234) nabbing you 8GB of storage and £180 (roughly $280) fully doubling that capacity to 16GB. Apple's iPod touch is the obvious comparison here, and it's shaping up to be a valid one -- while there's no Retina Display to be had here, it's hard to sneeze at the real Android Market and some decent codec (OGG / FLAC / XviD / DivX) support. Unless you've got a cold or something. [Thanks, Paul]
HTC EVO Shift 4G nonchalantly shows up for Amazon pre-order
So what if nobody has bothered to announce it yet? Sprint's upcoming EVO Shift 4G Android handset has turned up on Amazon's wireless outlet, albeit with the EVO's spec sheet. We were getting excited about an 8 megapixel camera with HD video capture and a 1.3 megapixel front-facing imager until we realized those specs probably didn't belong to the EVO Shift 4G -- thanks to a note describing this phone as having been "released in June, 2010." The product title is unequivocal, however, and offers you the EVO Shift 4G slider, to have and to hold, for $200 on a two-year contract. Clearly someone's got his or her EVOs mixed up and has HTC's second 4G cat for the Sprint network out of the bag a little early. [Thanks, Ryan] Update: The product image is user-submitted so we can probably disregard it. Still, Amazon's got HTC's unannounced phone up on its site, giving us the closest to official confirmation we've had yet.
Nintendo 3DS pre-orders begin at GameStop, still no official US price
The forumites at NeoGAF were chatting it up all evening, and sure enough, it's true -- starting this morning, you can reserve a Nintendo 3DS by dropping a stack of change at any GameStop store. How high you'll have to pile the coin seems to depend on the location, as a New York employee wanted us to deposit $50, even as an Arizona store said we'd only need to bankroll a modest $25. Not that it much matters, as either way your money will go directly towards the as-yet-undetermined (likely $300) purchase price. Should your local GameStop fail to recognize the autostereoscopic handheld's impending availability, just kindly ask them to consult their computer, find the SKU field, and type in the magic numbers "020132." Then, painstakingly wait until March to claim your prize.
Notion Ink Adam gets caught Photoshopping its bezel away
How big is the Notion Ink Adam's screen? Well, it depends on what time you looked at the company's site today. If you were one of the unlucky folks who saw the image titled "preordernow.jpg," the screen's a tiny bit smaller and the bezel a tad larger than it is for all the fortunate peeps pre-ordering from the "preordernow1.jpg" pic that's currently gracing the site. Now's your chance, guys -- go grab yourself the truly magical and revolutionary tablet whose specs change with the wave of a Photoshop airbrush. [Thanks, Andrew] Update: To be clear, we don't know which of the two 'shops is the real deal -- technically, neither is, they're both renders -- but earlier prototypes have shown some pretty slinky bezels. It'll be on Notion Ink to demonstrate just how slim the Adam's screen surround is when it finally unveils the real deal.
Dell Venue Pro finally available to order: $99 on contract, shipping December 9th
The much-delayed and much-desired Venue Pro is now finally ready for its proper launch. Dell has begun taking online orders for its first Windows Phone 7 device and prices are set at $99 for the 8GB handset or $149 for the 16GB version -- both on two-year contracts with T-Mobile as your carrier -- or, alternatively, you can snap them up for $449 or $499, respectively, if you just want the phone by itself. Shipping is promised for December 9th and there's even free delivery if you have a couple of business days' worth of patience. So, what are you waiting for? [Thanks, BeeMichael]
Dell Inspiron Duo and speaker dock up for pre-order at Microsoft Store now, no clue when they'll ship out
The Dell-Microsoft symbiotic relationship continues where it left off with the Venue Pro, as another highly desirable piece of hardware has been made available at a Microsoft Store ahead of Dell: the transforming Inspiron Duo and its JBL-powered speaker dock. That's actually in your favor this time, however, as you won't have to trek across the countryside to one of Microsoft's seven brick-and-mortar stores, but rather grab the $549 convertible at Microsoft's website, and you can even get $50 off the audio station's typical $99 price. That said, these are most definitely pre-orders we're dealing with here and there's no expected shipping date on the site, so it's hard to tell if you're actually securing yourself the first spot in that "first week of December" line. They won't charge you until it ships, though, so if you're not willing to wait for our full review to see if that slick spinning screen is up to snuff, now is probably the time. [Thanks, Joe]
ViewSonic ViewPad 7 tablet up for pre-order, now costs a wallet-crunching $599
Excuse us, ViewSonic, but we think there's been some sort of mistake -- your ViewPad 7 tablet is on sale at Amazon for $599, over a hundred dollars more than you said it would cost just two weeks back. Yes, we certainly understand you have to import the OlivePad rebadge from a substantial distance and negotiate with Google for its Android Market innards, but we're not exactly ecstatic about the 600MHz ARM CPU -- even with front- and rear-facing cameras on board. Given that Samsung's Galaxy Tab doesn't have phone functionality stateside, we admit there's a market for a seven-inch Froyo tablet that can do voice calls, but did you really have to take Sammy's controversial price point as well? [Thanks, onelove]
Seiko's 'active matrix' E Ink watch now up for pre-order
Does the time you spend at work away from your e-reader leave you crippled with the E Ink shakes? Well the good news is that Seiko's gorgeous atomic clock-syncing 'active matrix' E Ink watch we covered a while back is now available for pre-order via Amazon Japan. The bad news is that it's priced at ￥84,000 (on sale) -- which equates to roughly $1,022 based on current exchange rates. That's about five times more than Phosphor's latest 24 hour time zone mastering E Ink watch, or nearly enough cheddar to a buy one of Amazon's latest Kindles for everyday of the work week. Really, though, the price isn't too surprising coming from a respected watch company like Seiko, especially when you take into account its schmancy 180 degree viewing angle, geek-chic looks, and radio-controlled movement. Don't be misled by the 'active matrix' terminology however, because a matching leather trench coat isn't part of this deal. [Thanks, P-A]
Motorola Droid Pro tipped for November 9 pre-sales through Verizon, November 18 launch
What would we ever do without informative tipsters, eh? Android Central has received an internal Verizon document identifying Motorola's Droid Pro as an iconic device and setting out details for its upcoming launch. November 9 is the date pinpointed for the commencement of pre-sales, which seem to be different from pre-orders insofar as they'll actually ship out to buyers starting November 10, meaning quite a few will have their portrait QWERTY handset in their pocket before the proper November 18 release date. Bear in mind that this is still unofficial information for now, though given that Moto itself promised the Droid Pro for the first week of November, it'd be weird if this wasn't the schedule for the handset's release. Speaking of weird... "iconic device," seriously Verizon?
Palm Pre 2 pre-orders will start November 8th, says HP
Whether called the Pre 2 or Pre Plus 2, there's no denying that the first webOS 2.0 device is coming at us in a fast and furious fashion. Verizon docs already revealed it was on that carrier's November roadmap, and now HP's Facebook page for students has narrowed pre-order availability down to a specific date: November 8th. That's next Monday, folks! No more info is available at this time, such as whether that will include the promised unlocked GSM Pre 2s or whether they would be forthcoming at a later date. Either way, we're excited to see this 1GHz vessel sail in and bring us all that improved webOS goodness. [Thanks, Michael]
T-Mobile's Galaxy Tab available for preorder at Amazon, costs $699 unsubsidized
We played devil's advocate with Verizon's $599 Galaxy Tab, but it looks like the T-Mobile version of Samsung's Android 2.2 tablet is going to cost a Benjamin more -- it's ringing up at $699.99 right now at Amazon unsubsidized. If we were you, we'd wait and see what kind of deals can be had in-store come November 10th, but if you simply must have one immediately you'll be able to use it with one of Magenta's standard mobile broadband plans. $25 a month gets you 200MB with 10-cent-per-megabyte overage fees, whereas $40 buys you unlimited use with a 5GB speed cap, and you can purchase blocks of prepaid data an 100MB, 300MB and 1GB increments at the usual rates. It's a bit of a shame we're paying the price of a decent laptop for a seven-inch smartphone sans cellular calls... but you didn't really need that rent money, right?
HTC 7 Surround slides into Best Buy for $550 unsubsidized, Omnia 7 appears at T-Mobile UK
Micro surround speaker bar in a Windows Phone sound like your cup of tea? Best Buy's taking your HTC Surround pre-orders right now for handsets that'll ship on November 8th, and cost a penny under $550 on the off-chance you're looking to buy off-contract. Hey, you can even call it the T8788 if you want -- we won't tell a soul. Get a good look at the phone right here, in our launch hands-on. Should you live in the United Kingdom, you can order a Samsung Omnia 7 instead -- T-Mobile UK's got the Super AMOLED phone ready to rumble for the price of free on £35-and-up tariffs. See that handset in action here. [Thanks, Sanders L.]
T-Mobile no longer accepting G2 pre-orders due to 'overwhelming demand'
Already got your pre-order in for the T-Mobile G2? Then you should count yourself lucky, as the carrier has updated its website for the phone with the short and sweet notice that "due to overwhelming demand, we're no longer accepting pre-orders for the T-Mobile G2." It does note, however, that you'll still be able to buy the phone online starting tomorrow (though there's no guarantee when it'll ship) or, of course, at your local T-Mobile store. Then again, you could also try your luck at a few stores today, considering that official October 6th launch date isn't exactly set in stone.
