Update: I'm not dead, MediaFLO coming soon

First off, I'm not dead, there just really hasn't been anything all that interesting happening it seems... AT&T is confirming that MediaFLO is coming “as early as possible next year," according to Mark Siegel, Media Relations at AT&T. Sounds pretty promising right? MediaFLO will offer 8 channels which include CBS Mobile, Fox Mobile, NBC2Go, NBC News2Go, ESPN Mobile TV, MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. Hopefully we'll be seeing some hoopla about this soon.

Unrelated: RIP CompUSA

I know this has almost nothing to do with this blog, but it holds a place in my heart... CompUSA is closing it's doors after 24 years. Who would have guessed right, with their warm and friendly atmosphere, excellent customer service, and wide selection of...computers? Engadget broke the news. You will be missed, by at least one person...

Confirmed: Google to bit on 700MHz

Sorry for the slow 2 weeks, DSL was getting switched, but Google has finally announced it's intent to bid on the 700MHz open-access C Block. Engadget says it best "The bidding begins on January 24th with a minimum of $4.6 billion required for the open-access C Block. Wake the kids, phone the neighbors, it's going to get ugly fast."
This past year we have seen some unprecedented moves from cell phone companies, like I've stated before, and this will only drive the push for a more consumer benefiting market.

Rumored: Sony Ericsson k850i , "Ansel" and iPhone Business

Thanks to Chris for tipping me off on this one. Both Engadget and Boy Genius Report have uncovered an internal slide featuring Sony Ericsson k850i and "Ansel", LG VU and hints about iPhone having more a more business focus. AT&T is also looking to streamline Wi-Fi and MediaFlo too. Hopefully they follow through on the business support for the iPhone. Right now there are more business customers who want the iPhone than you could shake a stick at. If AT&T and Apple allow it to be sold to business accounts and pick up some much needed exchange server support, both will be seeing strong surges in sales. Oh and Chris, the z750 is already in the works, and who would abandon a push-email flip phone?

Hunch: Blackjack II and Shine within the week

Information kits have started showing up for the Blackjack II and accessories for both the Shine and the Blackjack II have also. So call it a hunch that these two will be hitting stores within the week.

Update: Engadget has already spotted some shines.

Confirmed: LG CU720 Shine

The oh so mysterious LG CU720 is about ready to hit AT&T very soon. Hopefully should be showing up in the next couple days, hopefully I can get some shots for you folks out there. Just keeping you posted, but if you need some more vague info for your fix check out Engadget.

Confirmed: Sierra 881 USBConnect

We've seen a decrease in USB Dataconnect cards, most likely due to the fact that the sierra 881 is launching right about now. It will support all of AT&T's HSUPA uploading goodness (assuming that is you are in a HSUPA area). Engadget was 1st to break the news, and released a nice feature. The AT&T communication manager loaded on the device itself. Very convinent for the many of us who have a habit of losing those pesky disks. You can pick it up for $49.99 after a $100 MIR with 2 year unlimited data connect.

Software: Google Notebook Mobile

Google can mark up another mobile app for their lineup. While it's not earth shattering, it is pretty nice to have all your thoughts in one place. check it out at google.

Confirmed: AT&T 5700

AT&T just sent out preview kits for the 5700. Key notes are as follows...

• It will only be Windows Mobile 5. (Why is beyond me)
• Will have "Documents To Go", so you can edit word, powerpoint and excel
  
• 2 MP with flash (Not bad)
• Supports a plethora of music and video formats
• Will support Bluetooth GPS for Telenav
• You will be able to use AT&T's smartphone plans. (Unlimited Data for $20 and Unlimited Data and Text for $40)

Overall not a bad gig for $80, and the fact that you can get setup with monthy access for $20 instead of the normal price of $40 for data access. Should be hitting stores in the next 2 weeks, if not less.

Software: Pandora Mobile on AT&T

AT&T announced today that they have officially launched Pandora mobile for select AT&T Cell phones. For those not familiar with Pandora, it is a internet radio generated by the music genome project and Pandora will play music similar to what users input. Users then can give a thumbs up or down and Pandora will adapt to that preference. If you haven't tried out Pandora for your computer, it's a free sign up, and definitely worth checking out.
Pandora was previously exclusive on Sprint's network, but now seems to be branching out. I personally was ecstatic when I came across the program yesterday on AT&T's website.
Currently Pandora is only available on the following models "the Samsung SYNC, a717 and a737, the Motorola V3xx and RAZR 2, LG trax and existing LG CU400 and CU405 models." Unfortunately I have none of these, but hopefully soon we'll see more. Pandora will only run in 3G coverage too(No surprise), and AT&T recommends unlimited data(no duh). AT&T will be giving out a 1 month free trial of Pandora, and after that they will be charging an astonishing $8.99 a month for the service. Many Pandora fans will still end up bitting the bullet. All in all worth checking out for the free month at least.

Software: Opera Mini 4 is official!

Opera Mini 4 is now official and should be fully compatible with most phones. The new Opera boast reduced data amounts (read faster page loads), increased usability on blackberrys (except mine!), better CSS support, mouse pointer mode and other usability enhancements. I'll have to install it on one of my backup phones, since it's not working on my 8800, but it looks fantastic. Check it out yourself at Opera's site.

Confirmed: LG Shine-CU720 Pricing

An anonymous tipster (which we're all about) dropped a hint at Boy Genius Report that the LG shine will be appearing at AT&T for $149.99 (No word on rebate). BGR pointed out that this is one of many handsets at the $150 price point, and there are plenty more for a bit more. AT&T is making the price of entry into data devices very appealing, now if they could get some iPhone-esc service plans there would be no stopping them.

Confirmed: New price list

AT&T's newest price list was released, giving way to the following:

• LG CU515 in plum color.
• Sony Ericsson z750 $99.99 after $50 MIR (confirmed earlier)
• Motorola V3xx in Lavender/Chrome, still $149.99 after $50
  
• Samsung A747 $149.99 after $50 MIR
• Samsung Blackjack II (Black and Red) $149.99 after $100 MIR (With unl. data plan)

This list is supposed to be good until 1/5, but there will have to be an update, not a whole lot here, but it's got a roadmap for what to expect before thanksgiving at least.

In Store: Samsung a737

In stores now, Samsung a737, this hip little slider slid in today. Covered earlier, this phone is a deal at $50. Blue only right now, but the rest should be coming soon. Didn't get too much time to play with it, but seems like a pretty solid phone. One gripe though, playing with some of Samsung's other a7x7's that have had brilliant screens, this one seems almost lacking. 18 bit color and 176x220 (same as the D807) sounds a lot better than it looks. No big surprises here, although it does come with a headphone adapter, ( Thanks AT&T!). On a side note, RadioShack apparently will have an exclusive on the red a737.

Update: Orange and green are in!
\

In Store: Motorola Q9 Global

Fresh in store now the Motorola Q9 Global. 1st impressions are quite nice, unboxing reveals the regular data device assortment of USB cables, house charger and CD. Also included is a headphone adapter (Yea!), an adapter to use your old Motorola charger with your new micro USB device, and both a normal capacity and high capacity battery. The flat front and buttons make for a much sexier look than the previous Q and is a dream to carry. The extended battery makes it feel very reminisent of the old starcom flips with the wart of a battery sticking out. More soon after a bit more playing. Pricing $299.99 (After $50 rebate with unl. data or personal PDA Plan) or $499 no contract.

Opinion: The begining of the end

Friday Sprint announced, due to a class action lawsuit, it would begin to unlock phones on customer request, also that they would accept other providers phones to be used on their network. Phone News had the best article if you want to read on about the details.

This marks the beginning of the end of the cell phone giants restrictive practices (hopefully). Because once one company starts this, the rest are soon to follow. This along with prorated Early Termination fees on AT&T and Verizon means that consumers are going to have more choices. Now they can cancel their contract, pay a smaller ETF, and take their handset to another carrier. Take a look at Europe who has a much more open cell system than we do (I.E. providers in some countries have to sell both locked and unlocked phones), but also in Europe they pay through the nose to use their phones. Could increasing rates be the good ol' US of A's fate? Hopefully not, but if the giants are provoked, they'll fight back. Cell phone companies will find a way to recoup their costs.

Confirmed: Sony z750

Engadget snatched these photos of Sony's next phone, the z750. AT&T has this on their internal price lists as $99.99 (after some sort of rebate naturally) and should be hitting shelves before the end of this year. It'll have a 2 MP camera, bluetooth, a OLED external display, HSDPA and will support AT&T's much prized Video Share. Click over to engadget for some more pictures.

Rumored: Nokia N95

This is a phone I'm excited to talk about, the N95 has been a hot button topic for high end phones that we don't have yet (minus unlocked). Apparently at the opening of the Nokia Theatre in L.A. there were quite a few AT&T branded N95s floating around. Now either AT&T is doing some extensive testing on this phone, or they're toying with us. Apparently if (which is not a word used often) AT&T was to launch the N95 we would be seeing a Q1 launch with a limited quantity in store, with the option to special order. Pricing is also rumored to be around $350 after a 2 year.

Confirmed: (Again) UTStarcom 5700

The folks over at Phone News were on their feet on this one. The UTStarcom booth "accidentally" put up a banner for the 5700, destined for AT&T at CTIA. They were fortunate enough to snag some pictures of the banner, but didn't manage to pry anything out of UTStarcom about it. Thanks for the info guys!

Software: Facebook Blackberry App.

RIM and Blackberry announced today that Facebook mobile for Blackberry is now available. It will take advantage of Blackberry's push setup to deliver it's information (for near instantaneous poking action!). Check it out at www.blackberry.com/facebook/mobiledownload

Confirmed: U-Verse Launch St. Louis

AT&T's revolutionary U-Verse has been confirmed for St. Louis for quite some time now. After years of fighting local government on AT&T's ability to put in new VRAD's to support the bandwidth, and other legal loopholes, AT&T is ready for launch. The launch date is still a lot of speculation, but according to two sources there is at least one tester for U-Verse in St. Louis. Most people that are in the loop for U-verse may have the ability to pre-order starting late November. The phase one launch for U-verse may be December 12th. I heard a rumor that theses dates might just be friends and family for AT&T, but that's probably not the case. Hopefully it comes soon, I don't think I can watch another Matlock episode...

Confirmed: Samsung A737

AT&T will be launching a new Samsung Slider into it's lineup this holiday season. The Samsung A737 will be sold for $49.99 (after $50 mail in) and will come in 3 colors; blue, orange and lime. Specs seem to look as follows, HSDPA, 1.3 MP camera, A2DP, Video Share (AT&T really thinks that's going to catch on don't they?). Hopefully this holds up a bit better than the D807, because these will sell like crazy, especially with some nice color choices for consumers.

Confirmed: LG CU515

LG released it's LG CU515 last night, destined to be for AT&T. Internal AT&T docucments place it at $69.99 (After a $50 MIR of course). It should be a pretty close replacement of the cu400, with 1.3 MP camera, monochrome external display, MicroSD and PTT. It adds video share, and hopefully better reception. 2 color choices should be available as well. No word on when it hits, but should be before black Friday.

Update: In stores now, with low quality phone shots to prove!

Confirmed: Treo 680 Update; SemiConfirmed: Treo 750 update

The folks at treo central have released an internal power point that both the 680 and 750 are getting long awaited updates. AT&T has yet to announce either, but probably will be launched in the next couple days. It's about time AT&T!

• 680 update available now. Adds push to talk (just kidding, thanks greg), better battery life and fixes misc. bugs.
• 750 update available 10/15 soon. Will add windows mobile 6, HSDPA 1.8, a redesigned call screen, and AT&T's programs you'll probably never use. (I bet reception and call quality are still as atrocious)

Rumored: Palm Treo 800w

The folks over at Treo Central have gotten wind of a Treo "800w" in the works. Supposedly Palm is working on a high end, WM6 based device. Even more speculation in to having a 320x320 screen resolution. Now, the image attached IS a mockup put together by Treo Central, but get's the point accross.

Treo Central belives that Sprint will be receiving this handset early to mid next year. My information is that AT&T is sloted for a new Windows mobile based device soon, since the treo 750 is at end of life(Thank goodness). I'm sure this isn't the last we'll here about the "800w".

1st Look: Pantech Duo

AT&T will be soon releasing the Pantech Duo (Slotted Oct. 9th apparently) but is yet to hit stores or online site. I got a chance to play with this revolutionary device (for AT&T at least) for a bit, and snagged some low quality cell phone pics.

I don't want to become a review site, there are much better ones out there, but I did want to cover this handset.

Pros:

• Small, Small is good, being a phone in the pocket sort of guy, this phone is much easier to carry than a blackjack or a 8800, much less a Tilt or a Treo.
• Dual Slide keyboard, You knew that already though.
• Windows Mobile 6, not a watered down version either, you will have ability to edit attachments from the device, and get push e-mail.
  

Cons:

• Pantech, Do I doubt Pantech's ability to build a quality handset? Yes. Hopefully the build quality shown in some of Helio's handsets are shown here.
• No Touch Screen, It's actually a big pain moving from a touch screen device, Windows Mobile 6 has a lot of quirks features that are a lot easier with a stylus (think pop up boxes)
• No GPS, has TeleNav, but no integrated GPS, c'mon Helio has it on the ocean.
  
• Keys are actually pretty awkward, You can see there is only 3 rows, unlike the traditional 4. The spacebar is smack in the middle of where you want to type. Softkey placement takes some serious getting used to.

Conclusion: AT&T would be dumb not to have a phone like this, and hopefully will market it so that it is a well known name, i.e. envy. It is powerful enough for business users, and is a form that will be appealing to the younger crowds (something AT&T is hurting for). It has some drawbacks, what handset doesn't, but integrated GPS would have been nice. It should be hitting stores any day now, at a ripe $250 after $50 MIR. More pics...

Confirmed: Price List for new releases

AT&T will be releasing a slew of Data Devices (And handsets) in the next month or so, and here is pricing for the new stuff.

This is just what was supposed to be slotted for release before 11/3, There is more coming, like the recently confirmed Blackjack 2, LG Shine, LG Prada, HIGHLY rumored Palm Centro (Or possibly another Windows Mobile based Palm), and even more rumored Nokia N95!

• Samsung A737- $49.99 (After $50 rebate)
• RIM 8820- $299.99 (After $50 rebate with unl. data)
• AT&T 5700- $69.99 (After $50 rebate with unl. data or personal PDA Plan)
• Pantech Duo- $249.99 (After $50 rebate with unl. data or personal PDA Plan)
• Motorola Q9 global- $299.99 (After $50 rebate with unl. data or personal PDA Plan)
• Samsung A747- $149.99 (After $50 rebate)
• SonyEricsson z750- $99.99 (After $50 rebate)
• LG CU720- $149.99 (After $50 rebate)

My 2 cents worth, AT&T knows the money is in data devices, whether or not consumers want to drop $40 a month to use them is another thing. If AT&T wants these devices to sell they need to start looking at adopting iPhone-esc data plans or better yet helio data plans to attract young consumers. More on this later.

Confirmed/1st look: AT&T 5700

AT&T will be soon releasing another entry level smart phone. The 5700 as AT&T will be calling it was first spotted by Phone News back in March when cleared by the FCC. Engadget slotted the release date to be Oct. 9, but obviously is not here. There is a slew of phones that will be hitting in time for the holidays, and i'd expect this to be one of them. Pricing will be 69.99 after a 2 year deal, making this the cheapest data device that AT&T will be carrying this season.

The specs seem pretty bland. The UTStarcom 5700 will have a 2.0 MP VGA Camera (Contrary to Phone News Report) , Micro SD expansion, and EDGE. Support for goodlink email is included, along with AT&T's mediocre mail program. I'm assuming non touch screen, but I haven't seen a confirmation yet. One thing that saddens me, Windows mobile 5 looks to be the OS, and no ability review/modify attachments.

So, my two cents worth... Yea, it's not 3G, but 3G is not everywhere, and may not be for a while. (Rumor is AT&T is holding off upgrading any more towers until HSUPA rolls out) And 3G has had it's share of creating reception issues in borderline areas. So I'm not too worried about EDGE, but Windows Mobile 5? Your kidding me right? Why not? I think that will be the one thing that will hold this handset back, because we all know AT&T won't provide an update for it. AT&T is making it very affordable to get into a data device now and props to that. Overall, for $70 a great buy... if it had WM6

Welcome

Welcome to AT&T Anonymous! This blog is dedicated to everything AT&T, be it rumor, reviews, inside scoops, news or complaints, you can find it here. Hopefully I will keep this up for a bit, and feel free to give me your suggestions, or your opinion too!