Devices

Just in time to miss the annual retail orgy, the aptly named Phenom Communications Inc. has launched the latest cellphone-and-everything-else-on-your-wristwatch gadget. “The Most Innovative Gadget in the World” (Phenom’s words) …

Three people with a healthy obsession for cellphones; that’s all it took to start Rentobile, a young company that rents popular handsets to U.S. consumers who want a shiny new …

French mobile device developer ModeLabs Group has become the latest in the wireless sector to take a license for some of InterDigital’s patents related to 2G and 3G cellular technologies.

From the world’s poorest countries to the very richest, the demand for mobile phones will not be derailed by tougher economic times.

The handset market is one big sale this season, if you conveniently ignore the service contract gambit that recoups a carrier’s investment in the subsidy that makes mobile phones artificially …

It’s no secret that numerous companies have joined the Open Handset Alliance, which promotes Google’s Android handset platform.Specifics are harder to come by. But it appeared this week, from various …

USA Today launched a free downloadable offering for the iPhone that delivers headlines and news stories, sports information, weather and images.The offering, which is available through Apple’s App Store for …

Nokia Corp. launched its Ovi-branded mobile e-mail service, allowing users with Series 40 devices to set up e-mail accounts directly from their phones.Mail on Ovi is available in 12 languages …

Research In Motion Ltd. said today it will fight for its takeover bid for Certicom Corp., an encryption firm, after the latter sought a court injunction to thwart RIM’s purchase. …

IF A VOICE-CENTRIC HANDSET anchors the left end of an imaginary arc and a wired PC anchors the right end, the middle is increasingly populated by mobile Internet devices, ultra-mobile …

Some deep-winter intrigue is due at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, if only because Palm Inc. is expected to unveil a new operating system, dubbed Nova, on Jan. …

Research In Motion Ltd. gave an upbeat report on holiday sales yesterday and said that the current quarter would set a company record for device shipments.RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie said …

Motorola Inc. said today it would freeze pension plans and some salaries and suspend company contributions to employees’ 401(k) plans. The company’s co-CEOs said they would take a 25% cut …

Mobile phones sales will shrink next year at their fastest pace ever as consumers cut spending, a Reuters poll showed, with analysts increasingly concerned about unsold phones piling up in …

Do you remember our E-Waves anti-radiation chip story from last week? Well, the retailer behind the device has since withdrawn it from sale because of doubts over its capabilities.

Memory cards are proving to be the largest revenue generator of all mobile handset accessories, despite shipping fewer units than other accessories like chargers and batteries, according to a new …

Congressional pressure has prompted the Federal Communications Commission to scrap its Dec. 18 meeting, but the action does not necessarily mean the agency will forgo ruling on the free wireless …

The smartphone maker debuts its new operating system, code-named Nova, at January’s CES. Palm says its phones for it will bridge the BlackBerry-iPhone gap

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin suddenly faces congressional pressure to pare down the Dec. 18 meeting agenda, a development that could blow up a scheduled a vote on a …

Law enforcement is getting tough about cellphone hacking in Tinseltown.The Los Angeles county district attorney said AT&T Mobility and T-Mobile USA Inc. agreed to permanent injunctions banning misrepresentations about the …

RadioShack Corp. announced a new $100 netbook sporting 3G connectivity. The catch? Customers have to sign up for two years’ worth of AT&T Mobility’s DataConnect mobile broadband service at $60 …

Best Buy Co. Inc. has recently taken a deeper step into the wireless industry. The retailer sells 90 different handsets from nine different carriers in its stores and recently began …

The Swedish subsidiary of Neonode Inc. – Neonode AB – filed for bankruptcy this week and the parent company said it too would restructure and continue life as a touchscreen-licensing …

The twin engines of global handset growth – China and India – are experiencing economic slowdowns that threaten “serious harm” to 2009 sales, according to a prominent financial analyst. The …

Standard & Poor’s lowered its long-term corporate credit rating on Motorola Inc. on Friday to “junk (bond) territory,” according to the Wall Street Journal.S&P’s rating change was to “BB+” from …