Those looking to get a BlackBerry Bold or Storm might just want to exercise a little patience as we’ve found out that RIM is already hard at work at some juicy new products. Based on what BGR was able to gather from two independent sources, RIM’s got a new baby that features a 5-megapixel auto-focus camera, 1GB RAM and a “near HD quality” display. It’s rumored to look like a combination of the Storm and Bold molded into one device which could mean a touchscreen, QWERTY-equipped phone in the not so distant future. Likewise, it was also revealed that a Storm 2 is already in production so it might be a good decision to skip out on the 1st gen Storm since 2nd gen devices are likely to be better than the 1st one. So, got enough EQ to wait things out or are you waiting for something more significant and definite to hold off your insatiable desire to buy a new BlackBerry phone?

[bgr via cellphones etc]

[electronista via engadget]

However, that also doesn’t mean that whatever is release in China won’t leak out to other neighboring countries as well. Oh well, 2009 isn’t that far away and we’ll probably hear more news as to what HTC’s plans are for the G1 as far as world domination is concerned.

[talk android via engadgetmobile]

YouTube is going into the music and gaming biz? Well, that’s not entirely true. They’ve partnered with iTunes and Amazon so that links will be provided in YouTube videos so that users can purchase related material such as music, games and what-have-you from the two online retailers. They’re already started implemtenting this in the US and will slowly make it available worlwide as well as creating new partners along the way. According to YouTube, this will be an added source of revenue as well as a new service for their users and viewers. I guess this sounds like a better deal as opposed to those pre-roll ads that get played before a requested video, but I wonder how this thing will work out in the YouTube feature in the iPhone/iPod Touch? How about you guys? What are you’re thoughts on this move?

[youtube blog via bgr]

Our initial excitement and jubilation over the release of Nokia’s first full-touchscreen device the 5800 XpressMusic phone came to a screeching halt as news broke out that it will only be released in 7 countries in 2008. Other countries such as the US, Australia, and other more developed markets will get their fair share of the Nokia 5800 in 2009. When exactly is anybody’s guess which makes it even harder to accept such a disappointing revelation. Based on the report, they’re targeting emerging markets first since it is there where Nokia has a greater advantage.

My question is, why not hit both emerging and mature markets at the same time so you can get more mileage across a specific given amount of time? That, for me, makes more sense than just limiting its release to certain regions. Let’s hope they rethink their current disposition on this matter, and maybe we can get our hands on one before 2008 comes to a close.

[reuters via engadgetmobile]

Both Samsung and LG have expressed plans of releasing one, but unfortunately, from what we also hear, we’ll have to wait until the 3rd quarter of 2009 for it to appear, and that’s the earliest estimate. That’s a mighty long wait, and personally, with all the competition in the market these days, if there’s no other new Android-based phone released between now and then, all the interest with the Android OS will probably end with a natural death.

Anyway, I have high hopes that HTC will most likely release another Android phone since they have the inside track on the hardware. Let’s just hope and pray that the others don’t falter that far behind.

[unwiredview via engadgetmobile]

The future of netbooks is definitely looking much brighter after Toshiba has announced that they will be making 256GB SSDs pretty soon. It will provide netbooks with a very compact storage solution that’s also faster and more reliable than the traditional spinning HDD. The largest capacity I’ve seen in a netbook so far is pegged at 200GB. So this new SSD that Toshiba will be making will also outclass its HDD counterpart in terms of storage as well. Now, doesn’t the sound of a 3G capable 256GB-packing Dell Inspiron Mini 9 sound truly enticing?

[informationweek via bgr]

Sony Ericsson is not closing their doors when it comes to the yet-to-be-released XPERIA X1 and its OS. While it will go on sale pretty soon with Windows Mobile under the hood, future plans concerning the line-up do not exclusively include the Microsoft OS in the picture. Likewise, when the question of using the Android OS on the XPERIA X1 was raised, Sony Ericsson president Dick Komiyama said that they’re interested though they probably won’t adopt it in the near future.

While his answer might not be a very definitive one and a pretty safe one to say the least, it does, however, open up the possibilities and raises the level of hope for future Android users out there. Come to think of it, it might even become the best Android-based device in the market, but hey, let’s not get ahead of ourselves, shall we. Let’s wait for them to official embrace the Android OS first before we have any premature celebrations.

[reuters via bgr]

The iPhone has iTunes, the T-Mobile G1 has Amazon, Nokia has Comes with Music, but what about other mobile phones? Well, good news for Sony Ericsson fans as the company has one set to launch in just a few weeks time. Dubbed as Play Now Plus, they’re now ready to rumble with the big boys. That’s the good part. The bad news is that it’s going to be released in Sweden only this year with Western Europe getting a piece of the action in early 2009 and the rest of the world thereafter. With established and upcoming music stores already spreading their love across the globe, Sony Ericsson might just be a little too late to cash in on all the fun, but nevertheless, this will surely make for a pretty interesting music store match-up in 2009 when all the players have their stores up and running already.

[reuters via bgr]

Piper Jaffray claims to know the sales numbers of the iPhone 3G and they are putting it at around 5 million ending this fourth fiscal year. It’s not a bad number though quite modest after Apple raised expectations by selling a million 3G versions of the iPhone on its first week. The 10 million units target for the entire 2008 year is still a mathematical possibility, though a hotshot coming out of T-Mobile could come in the way of Apple reaching that milestone.

[via cnet]