PMP Today

If the purported leaked Picture of 3G iPhone nabbed by Apple Insider is authentic, the Philip Xenum 800 may have a competitor on the e2e front. The photo also suggests that the iPhone is moving toward the PDA form factor with a more squarish shape and sharper edges. I’m thinking, they keep increasing the size of the screen everyone has to bring a purse with them just to carry one. I’ll wait for iPhone Nano.

[via appleinsider]

I know some people who were disappointed when they found out the Apple iPhone was black (take the poll below). They will rejoice if this rumor turned out to be fact. Coming from a Chinese forum, they don’t seem all that reliable but that doesn’t mean we cannot feast our eyes on the elegant new casing, the additional connectors and sensors - from WeiPhone.

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[via appleinsider]

Never mind that the iPhone does not have a Chinese distributor and perhaps never will in the foreseeable future, but that does not stop some Chinese iPhone enthusiasts from conjuring up functions like Chinese handwriting recognition, which to my mind at least is a brilliant firmware upgrade. A screen shot of the interface was posted on wretch.cc. Apparently, Japanese is supported as well though that does not include handwriting recognition. What is left hanging by the screen shot is the input method. Does the Chinese iPhone user grow his fingernails long, or does Apple finally decide the iPhone could use a stylus after all.

[via engadget]

Rumor - AT&T will increase its subsidy on the iPhone. Not only will it give up a significant portion of its earning for each iPhone subscription, it’s going to shave off $200 on the iPhone 3G price with no loss for Apple. That’s how desperate AT&T is in making the iPhone a true RAZR replacement. AT&T posted a $2 billion increase in profits after it launched the Apple iPhone and it makes sense that they work on their market share this year. But, then again, having the distribution rights of the iPhone and, we assume, all iterations and spin-offs of the brand, will cement their lead in the market without taking a big $200 hit.

[via tuaw]

News from Digitimes is not always right on the money but Digi is a respected Chinese publication and it’s based on where the actual devices in question are being built. This time around, the “big deal” might have something to do with translating Chinese into English (digitally through Google Translator and Altavista’s Babelfish). It’s either Asus will launch a spin-off company, somewhat independent from the mother, Asustek, or Didi is merely stating a previous announcement from Asus: the Eee PC is a strong enough brand name to have its own line of computer products.

Though Jerry Shen, ASUS CEO, says the Eee PC subnotebook will not exceed a 10-inch screen size, an 11-inch Eee PC, offering portability, flash memory and low pricing, does not sound like a bad idea for consumers.

“In other news, in addition to the Eee PC 900, the company will launch the Eee PC 1001 with a 10-inch panel as well as an 11-inch model by the end of this year, market sources have revealed.”

[digitimes via engadget]

Apple sent a short letter announcing that the 8GB capacity iPhone and iPod Touch has reached end-of-life status in the U.K. There are no more stocks online and only a few units left in stores. This heralds the new iPhone with 3G connectivity rumored to be announced in June. Apple may also be deliberately phasing out lower-capacity iPhones. As you may know, Apple is quite the game-changer and their idea of high-capacity phones reminds us of their strategy on the MP3 market. BBC reports that iPhone, along with Sony Ericsson, has lost market share this quarter. Apple will be expediting new releases on their handset line to gain back their leadership in the smartphone market.

[via engadget, bbc]

Gizmodo doesn’t say the photo of the shiny black rear of the iPhone 3G was a hoax, not exactly. What they said what it was mistaken for the iPhone 3G, which Engadget claims has a shiny and black rear. At any rate, even if the iPhone 3G had a black and shiny back, it wouldn’t look like the photo above, which, as it turns out, is just a protective plastic. The shiny, black back isn’t totally off the table and neither is the GPS and the other stuff rumored about the iPhone.

[via gizmodo]

So what is LG doing partnering with Italian designer label Prada again? LG Prada I could’ve been a major hit but its high MSRP (twice the price of an AT&T iPhone) and lack of 3G connectivity. Prada II, if the unofficial press release, is to be believed, is going to add 3G, 7.2Mbps HSDPA, Wi-Fi and slide-out QWERTY. The LG Viewty is quite nice, but lacking Wi-Fi and a QWERTY, the Prada II (if rumor be correct) will be the hands-down LG’s flagship phone. Read the rest »

More from analysts. Citi analysts Richard Gardner and Yeechang Lee, the 3G iPhone will only be one of a series of very impressive Apple products (honestly, we’re more interested in this news). The old 2.5G iPhone will change slightly, specifically on the exterior and will be priced lower, somewhere between the $299 and $349, probably for all models. More promising news: Apple sold more iPhones in the quarter than they expected and demand is actually brisk, too brisk for the supply in stores. It’s about time the lineup is freshened up.

[pcworld via crunchgear]

Apple may have finally given up on their lucrative business model for the iPhone in exchange for better market share. A rumor yes, but no ordinary rumor, coming from a major Italian publication, La Repubblica. In addition, 3G iPhone will no longer be exclusive - well, they may start as exclusive but it may end for a certain period of time, at which point users can switch networks. I hope I’m reading the Italian article correctly.

[repubblica via cellphones]