One of the best Mac OS X tools in my arsenal of iPhone utilities is Ecamm Network’s PhoneView, which lets you retrieve your call history, export contacts, play and save voice memos, search and save SMS messages, play and export music, download photos, and create, edit, and save notes. It even lets you use your …

In the classic Simpsons episode “Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?”, Homer’s long-lost brother Herb invents a baby translator. The baby cries, the machine announces its meaning (in Danny DeVito’s inimitable voice) in plain English. Seventeen years later, there’s an app for that. Cry Translator promises to identify the “five distinct cries” made by infants. In other words, you no …

We’ve been waiting for months for Verizon to finally unveil the latest in the line of LG Chocolate phones, and it’s here at last. The LG Chocolate Touch VX8575 is officially available today, making it the first touch-screen version of the Chocolate phone lineup. As we suspected, it’s very different from the LG BL40 and looks a lot more like …

A new BlackBerry has joined the Verizon Wireless family: the BlackBerry Curve 8530. The 8530 looks a fair bit sleeker than its predecessor, the Curve 8330, thanks to the touch-sensitive track pad and the slanted full QWERTY keyboard. We’re also happy to finally see Wi-Fi capability, which was sadly lacking in the previous Curve. It also has 256MB flash memory, …

In the battle between LTE and WiMax for wireless broadband, LTE may have just gotten another boost. A group of leading telecom service and equipment providers, including AT&T, Verizon, Nokia, and Samsung, announced a new standard Thursday for delivering compatible voice and messaging services using Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks. The standard, dubbed the One Voice initiative, offers a set …

Sprint Verizon Wireless isn’t the only one showing some BlackBerry love today. Following Verizon’s announcement that it will bring the RIM BlackBerry Curve 8530 to its lineup on November 20, Sprint released a statement saying that it, too, will offer the Curve 8530. Like the other models, the Curve 8530 includes features such a Wi-Fi, an optical trackpad, GPS, a …

Now playing: Watch this: Nokia 3711 (T-Mobile) 1:09 T-Mobile is now selling the slim Nokia 3711. Introduced at last month’s CTIA show in San Diego, the 3711 sports a flip-phone design with a dark finish and a hidden external display. Inside, you’ll find Nokia’s Series 40 operating system, support for T-Mobile’s 3G network, GPS with access to Ovi Maps, a …

On Call runs every two weeks, alternating between answering reader questions and discussing hot topics in the cell phone world. In the age of iPhone, Google Android, and Palm WebOS, a funny thing has happened on the way to the cell phone store. Though handset design has long been the focus of cell phone development, hardware manufacturers appear to be …

The same day T-Mobile formally released the Nokia 3711, AT&T countered with two announcements of its own. The Samsung Mythic and Flight will land in the carrier’s stores on Sunday, November 8. Like the 3711, we first saw the Mythic and the Flight at last month’s CTIA show in San Diego. Both offer touch screens and AT&T’s new mobile browser, …

Verizon isn’t just about smartphones today. The country’s largest carrier also unveiled the Samsung Convoy. Clad in a tough shell with rubber sidings, the Convoy is certified to meet the usual military specifications for vibration, humidity, temperature extreme, dust, shock, solar radiation, and altitude. On the front flap of the charcoal gray flip phone you’ll find a speaker, camera lens, …

Back in June, Panasonic smacked us upside the head with its Viera TH-42PZ81 — the first TV to come with a built-in freesat receiver. Fast forward to this very day, and Sony’s done exactly the same thing, this time with the brand-new Bravia W5810 and Z5800 ranges, fresh from the ovens of IFA. How Sony’s managed to cram the electronics …

Boy Genius Report Aside from the cost of the device and the expensive monthly plan, you might have to face an additional charge just for the privilege of getting a smartphone. According to a document found by the Boy Genius Report, Verizon Wireless has raised its $175 early termination fee to a whopping $350 specifically for “advanced devices,” which probably …

Editor’s note: As of this writing, Sony Ericsson has not announced North American availability for the X10. Sony Ericsson’s announcement yesterday gave Google Android fans a preview of what we can expect from new handsets in 2010. And as we gear up for the inevitable battle, the lines are being drawn with devices like the new Xperia X10. On the …

iSkin iSkin’s colorful, form-fitting Solo line of iPhone cases has some of the slicker designs out there. Now the company has come out with the “special-edition” Solo FX SE, which sports a “luxurious outer surface treatment” that combines an “understated” matte finish with a “subtle,” embossed, designer pattern. Available in Onyx (black), Cosmo (pink), and Ice (white) for $34.99 (list), …

iPhone OS hacker GeoHot released Blackra1n RC3 Tuesday, an updated jailbreak and unlock utility for the Apple iPhone 3GS and iPod Touch. This version provides true carrier unlocking for iPhone OS 3.1.2 and baseband 05.11.07 by taking advantage of at+xemm crash exploit discovered by ih8sn0w. The Blackra1n jailbreak process installs a new app–called Sn0w–onto an iPhone. It unlocks your iPhone, …