LG Thrill 4G (a.k.a. Optimus 3D) to launch September 4th on AT&T

AT&T took the modern approach to bragging by posting on Twitter that the LG Thrill 4G will be available on September 4th. That's their version of the LG Optimus 3D and it packs the same 4.3" glasses-free 3D display and dual 5MP camera.

Ur whole world in 3D, on 9/4 w/LG #Thrill4G with glasses-free 3D. Tell us how your world is going to come alive. http://t.co/YVWvWNGMon Aug 29 20:58:56 via Social PublisherAT&T
ATT

The LG Thrill 4G (just to make things clear, "4G" means HSPA+ here) has been teased by AT&T for ages (well, since March) and it was even up for pre-order on RadioShack at one point.

The prices we heard then from Radio Shack were $79.99 on a two-year contract (after buying a $50 gift card to be able to pre-order) or $550 off contract. Now we're hearing $100 on contract. AT&T is still keeping us guessing, we'll know the actual price this Sunday when the Thrill 4G finally launches.

This gives you a few days to decide if you want one or not - check out our review of the unbranded Optimus 3D and keep in mind that the phone will soon be able to convert almost any 3D game into a stereoscopic 3D game. And National Geographic photographers have been using it to shoot photos and videos (we should see those at IFA around the time the LG Thrill 4G launches).

HTC Sense 3.5 gets poked on video

We recently saw the upcoming Sense 3.5 in leaked screenshots but now there is an entire hands-on video of a phone running the said UI. The phone running this UI itself is a yet-to-be-announced HTC Bliss, said to be targeted towards women.

From the video we can see that the lockscreen has seen minimal changes from 3.0 and in fact looks nearly identical. The first changes are seen on the homescreen, with new widgets on the side and a lack of the menu bar at the bottom of the screen. You still get the same seven homescreens with the helicopter view. The notification screen looks identical as well to that on 3.0.

The similarities continue with the rest of the UI, but you can still spot some changes, such as a new look for the tabs that appear at the bottom of the screen of certain apps. The transition effects in the UI have also been changed and they now are bit flashier. Overall the UI does seem snappy though, something we could not tell with the screenshots before, so all that glitz isn’t coming at the cost of usability.

You can check out the UI in action in the video below.

Samsung announces Wave 3, Wave M, and Wave Y Bada 2.0 trio

The long wait of all the fans of Samsung's Bada OS for a new device is finally over as today, Samsung announced a trio of Bada 2.0 phones, with Wave 3 being the new flagship for the company's proprietary OS. The devices also employ Samsung's new naming strategy, which we told you about recently.

Like we mentioned above, the Wave 3 is the most feature packed phone of the bunch. It runs on a 1.4GHz CPU, and packs a 4" Super AMOLED screen with WVGA resolution, showing you Samsung's latest TouchWiz UI. There is a zippy HSDPA network connectivity on board, along with quad-band GPRS/EDGE. A 5MP auto focus camera with LED flash is in charge of taking photos and shooting HD videos (720p@30fps), while a VGA unit at the front will help you with video calls.

  
Samsung Wave 3

There is 3GB of built in memory in the Wave 3, and a microSD memory card slot (up to 32GB). Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, and USB 2.0 complete the connectivity package. There is accelerometer, proximity, and light sensors on board too, along with a compass. All this functionality will be powered by a 1500 mAh battery, and packed in a brushed aluminum body, weighing 122 grams.

And since we got the chance to get our hands on a Samsung S8600 Wave 3 unit (in fact we got all three of the new announcements), here come a few live photos for you to enjoy. Expect our exclusive preview of the latest Bada flagship to appear on our homepage later today.

   
Samsung Wave 3 live shots

The Samsung Wave M is the mid-range device from the trio, with a knack for social networking. It is powered by an 832 MHz CPU, and has a 3.65" TFT LCD screen with HVGA resolution. Like the Wave 3, the Wave M offers a 5MP AF camera on its back. Its video recording however has been limited to HVGA@30fps. A VGA front camera is present as well.

  
Samsung Wave M

There is 150MB of built-in memory in the Wave M, and support for microSD cards (up to 32GB). A full connectivity package can be found on the device as well, along with an accelerometer and proximity sensor. The Wave M has a 1350 mAh battery under its metallic body. The device weighs 121 grams.

And here go the live shots of the Samsung Wave M S7250.

   
Samsung Wave M S7250 live shots

The Samsung Wave Y, as its name suggests, is the entry level phone in this Bada OS trio. It features the same CPU as its bigger brother, the Wave M, but has a smaller 3.2" TFT LCD screen with HVGA resolution.

  
Samsung Wave Y

The camera of the Wave Y is a 2MP fixed focus unit, capable of recording HVGA videos @30fps. Again, you will find 150 MB of built-in memory, along with microSD card support (up to 32GB). Quite logically, there is a full connectivity suite on board as well. The Wave Y is powered by a 1200 mAh battery. Its metallic body weighs a meager 102.4 grams.

The live shots of the last Bada smartphone to be announced today follow.

   
Samsung Wave Y S5380

All three devices will have NFC capability as an option, along with Samsung's proprietary ChatON, Media Hub, and Kies services. The Bada 2.0 trio will be featured at the IFC, which begins this week in Berlin. Hopefully, we will find out about their pricing and availability there.

The long wait of all the fans of Samsung's Bada OS for a new device is finally over as today, Samsung announced a trio of Bada 2.0 phones, with Wave 3 being the new flagship for the company's proprietary OS. The devices also employ Samsung's new naming strategy, which we told you about recently.

Like we mentioned above, the Wave 3 is the most feature packed phone of the bunch. It runs on a 1.4GHz CPU, and packs a 4" Super AMOLED screen with WVGA resolution, showing you Samsung's latest TouchWiz UI. There is a zippy HSDPA network connectivity on board, along with quad-band GPRS/EDGE. A 5MP auto focus camera with LED flash is in charge of taking photos and shooting HD videos (720p@30fps), while a VGA unit at the front will help you with video calls.

  
Samsung Wave 3

There is 3GB of built in memory in the Wave 3, and a microSD memory card slot (up to 32GB). Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, and USB 2.0 complete the connectivity package. There is accelerometer, proximity, and light sensors on board too, along with a compass. All this functionality will be powered by a 1500 mAh battery, and packed in a brushed aluminum body, weighing 122 grams.

And since we got the chance to get our hands on a Samsung S8600 Wave 3 unit (in fact we got all three of the new announcements), here come a few live photos for you to enjoy. Expect our exclusive preview of the latest Bada flagship to appear on our homepage later today.

   
Samsung Wave 3 live shots

The Samsung Wave M is the mid-range device from the trio, with a knack for social networking. It is powered by an 832 MHz CPU, and has a 3.65" TFT LCD screen with HVGA resolution. Like the Wave 3, the Wave M offers a 5MP AF camera on its back. Its video recording however has been limited to HVGA@30fps. A VGA front camera is present as well.

  
Samsung Wave M

There is 150MB of built-in memory in the Wave M, and support for microSD cards (up to 32GB). A full connectivity package can be found on the device as well, along with an accelerometer and proximity sensor. The Wave M has a 1350 mAh battery under its metallic body. The device weighs 121 grams.

And here go the live shots of the Samsung Wave M S7250.

   
Samsung Wave M S7250 live shots

The Samsung Wave Y, as its name suggests, is the entry level phone in this Bada OS trio. It features the same CPU as its bigger brother, the Wave M, but has a smaller 3.2" TFT LCD screen with HVGA resolution.

  
Samsung Wave Y

The camera of the Wave Y is a 2MP fixed focus unit, capable of recording HVGA videos @30fps. Again, you will find 150 MB of built-in memory, along with microSD card support (up to 32GB). Quite logically, there is a full connectivity suite on board as well. The Wave Y is powered by a 1200 mAh battery. Its metallic body weighs a meager 102.4 grams.

The live shots of the last Bada smartphone to be announced today follow.

   
Samsung Wave Y S5380

All three devices will have NFC capability as an option, along with Samsung's proprietary ChatON, Media Hub, and Kies services. The Bada 2.0 trio will be featured at the IFC, which begins this week in Berlin. Hopefully, we will find out about their pricing and availability there.

Nokia plans for all future handsets to feature NFC functionality

Nokia is no stranger to Near-Field Communication, however it is only now that the environmental conditions match up with the devices Nokia plans on releasing.

At a recent presentation in Hong Kong, Nokia announced that from now on, NFC functionality will feature on all Nokia devices, a move that would subsequently boost uptake and implementation of the technology, especially when you consider that Nokia sell around 100 million smartphones a year.

Nokia VP, Ilari Nurmi also spoke of peripheral NFC devices coming from Nokia in the near future, including speakers, headsets, and of course other NFC-enabled phones. Despite their clear support for the technology, an estimated guess would say that perhaps Nokia's low-end handsets won't feature NFC, but than again, stranger decisions have been made.

This all coincides nicely with the inclusion of Nokia's latest Symbian Belle, NFC handsets, the 600, 700 and 701. Albeit demonstrating the most romantic/sickeningly cheesy use of NFC in an advert ever, this video features such NFC-enabled handsets being used to promote Chinese Foursquare competitor, Jiepang, who've partnered with Nokia on the project.

Well now that that's over, are you excited about the future of NFC, leave your thoughts down below. We're no stranger to the news of Nokia backing NFC, but now it's clear to see they really want to get the ball rolling.

HTC Omega emerges again, this time in live shots

It was only three days ago when the press shot of the HTC Omega leaked. Today, we have several live shots of the Windows Phone 7.5 Mango device, along with a price tag (sort of).

The pictures of the device which you are seeing below are taken from an Algerian website, where the HTC Omega is being sold of the equivalent of approximately €400.

   

It is important to note the Orange logo on one of the shots. It is most likely one of the operators which will offer the smartphone when launched.

As far as specs go, we already know that the phone will feature a 3.8-inch SLCD WVGA display, an 8 megapixel snapper with LED flash plus a 720p camcorder, and a Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon core with a 1.5GHz processor and 512MB RAM.

We will know more about the HTC Omega in a couple of days, when HTC hosts an event across Europe, so stay tuned!