On a planet with around 6.8 billion people, we’re likely to see 5 billion cell phone subscriptions this year. Reaching 4.6 billion at the end of 2009, the number of cell phone subscriptions across the globe will hit 5 billion sometime in 2010, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The explosion in cell phone …

BARCELONA, Spain–Microsoft isn’t the only one showing off a revamped operating system this week. The Symbian Foundation also made the trip to Mobile World Congress 2010, where it took the wraps off its open-source Symbian 3 platform. Symbian 3, marketed as “Symbian^3,” brings a host of much-needed improvements and enhancements in three key areas: user interface, multimedia, and performance. It …

ARM and Globalfoundries have released details on their upcoming system-on-a-chip platform, which they say will combine “PC-class performance” and a huge jump in battery life for mobile devices. The companies revealed the details Monday at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Their system-on-a-chip platform is based on ARM’s Cortex-A9 processor and Globalfoundries’ 28-nanometer manufacturing process. The platform will be used in …

The update gets you streaming shows live. NPR If you follow National Public Radio News on your Android phone, head into the Market to update the latest version. Why? Two words: live streaming. Starting Tuesday, NPR News 1.2 became available in the Android Market, and it opens the app up to a feature that had been sorely missing–the capability to …

Barcelona: Only an hour after the global launch of the HTC Desire, Aussie telco Telstra has taken first dibs on the high-end smartphone with a three-month Australian exclusive. The exclusivity period begins in April with the phone’s launch down under and it will be the first Android device to be officially available on the Next G network. It will also …

T-Mobile kicks off the second day of Mobile World Congress 2010 with the announcement that they’ll be bringing the highly coveted HTC HD2 to the U.S. market. This Windows Mobile smartphone is equipped with a 4.3-inch WVGA multitouch screen, a 1 GHz Snapdragon processor, Wi-Fi, and plenty of other goodies like compatibility with Blockbuster’s OnDemand video app, a Barnes & …

BARCELONA, Spain–ZTE, a Chinese telecommunications company, showcased some interesting handset concepts with distinctive designs. The G+2 (pictured above) slider phone was made to resemble a gaming console and targets students. To reduce cost, the superwide display is made from two 2.4-inch touch-screen panels. ZTE EQ2 CNET Asia The ZTE EQ2 is a fashion device inspired by crystal. Hence, the touch-sensitive …

BARCELONA, Spain–The ink is barely dry on the Samsung Wave announcement, but T-Mobile already is stepping in to distribute the device in several European markets. In addition to the Wave at Mobile World Congress the carrier also introduced the T-Mobile Pulse Mini. Remember that the Wave is the first handset to feature Sammy’s new Bada OS. CNET’s Bonnie Cha handled …

BARCELONA, Spain–During a press conference at Mobile World Congress, T-Mobile CTO said that the Google-only sales model for the Nexus One was a challenge. In response to a CNET question on whether the carrier would expand the model, T-Mobile USA Cole Brodman said that the experience was a “test case” and that “we could have done things better.” Unlike most …

At Mobile World Congress, Samsung quietly revealed the Beam i8520, an Android-based smart phone with a twist: a built-in pico projector that lets you play back videos on the surface of your choice. Being louche devils, we’ve always liked the idea of projecting a film on to the ceiling as we while away a Sunday morning in bed, so the Beam, …

Sony has confirmed it will continue to sell OLED panels in Australia despite announcing that it is halting sales and production for Japan due to “weak demand“. Sony shows off its OLED TVs at CES 2007 (Credit: Michael Kanellos/CNET) The company plans to continue selling the 11-inch XEL-1 screen in the US, Europe, and, importantly, Australia and will continue its …

Casual gaming has taken over the industry, and particularly the App Store, by force. Popcap Games is at the epicenter of it all, with several notable games–Bejeweled 2, Peggle, and now Plants vs. Zombies–being stand-outs on the iPhone. We won’t lie: we were eagerly awaiting the release date of this long-promised iPhone and iPod Touch port, having fallen into an …

BARCELONA, Spain–Verizon Wireless is on track to offer its 4G wireless service later this year, the company’s chief technology officer said here Monday. Dick Lynch, an executive vice president and CTO for Verizon Communications, said during a press conference here that Verizon Wireless is on track to launch its commercial LTE (long-term evolution) service this year. The gathering was hosted …

The Symbian Foundation has unveiled S^3, the next version of the Symbian open-source mobile operating system. S^3 is the first entirely open-source version of the platform. Details announced Monday at Mobile World Congress include HDMI support, new memory management techniques, a new graphics architecture, and readiness for 4G support. The foundation said it expects the platform to be “feature complete” …

BARCELONA, Spain–Some of the world’s largest wireless operators are uniting to create “an open international applications platform” in an effort to tap demand for mobile applications. At the Mobile World Congress 2010 trade show and conference here on Monday, two dozen mobile phone carriers, including Verizon Wireless, AT&T, NTT DoCoMo, Deutsche Telekom, China Mobile, and Vodafone announced plans to launch …