Now playing: Watch this: Samsung Stratosphere (Verizon) 1:12 If you’re one for tracking “firsts,” add this to your list. The Samsung Stratosphere is Verizon’s first 4G LTE handset equipped with a QWERTY keyboard. As popular as all-touch-screen phones are, there’s still a strong argument for composing on a keyboard, and for the Stratosphere, that reason …

Now playing: Watch this: LG Optimus Slider (Virgin Mobile) 0:54 SAN DIEGO–LG Optimus handsets here in the U.S. broke ground by proving that entry-level Android handsets need not be deprived of features. LG continues that mantra with the LG Optimus Slider, which as its name implies, adds a sliding QWERTY keyboard to the Optimus form factor. The LG Optimus Slider …

SAN DIEGO–No single company can catapult mobile payments into mainstream use, said American Express executive Dan Schulman, who called for more partnerships between the financial and wireless worlds. “All of us need to play together,” Schulman said today during his keynote address at the CTIA Enterprise & Applications show. “All of us have strengths and capabilities we bring to the …

Research In Motion’s rolling global outages could be a major body blow for a company looking to get off the mat. In fact, the timing of these outages is simply brutal. RIM tweets about BlackBerry outages. Twitter; screenshot by Larry Dignan/ZDNet Here are the moving parts: RIM is trying to convince folks to buy its BlackBerry 7 devices and has …

Analysts expect more than 100 million iPhones to be sold this year. Apple Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster, based on sales and upgrade data, thinks that nearly 19 million customers with the iPhone 3GS will upgrade to the iPhone 4S this year, AppleInsider reports. Though Munster’s predictions are admittedly assumptions, he says they are conservative. For Apple watchers, the numbers …

Vodafone today confirmed it will be offering an Apple bundle from Friday, pairing an iPad 2 with any iPhone in the telco’s range. (Credit: CBSi) The top package will cost AU$128 per month and will include a 64GB iPhone 4S handset plus a 64GB iPad 2, an Infinite calling and messaging plan plus 4.5GB data. Choosing a 16GB iPhone 4S …

A pair of press-ready images of an upcoming LG handset have surfaced, giving us a clear look at the unconventional keyboard with a secondary display. The pictures tell us that the phone, operating under the code name of LG Flip II, will carry the more official name of T-Mobile Doubleplay. According to a recently leaked road map, this LG smartphone …

Following today’s release of iOS 5, Apple has also updated several of its own apps to include support for iOS 5. Apps include Pages, Keynote, and Numbers for iOS, iMovie, Find My iPhone, and Remote. Pages, Keynote, and Numbers for iOS now include enhancements for use with Apple’s iCloud syncing service. Now, users can automatically keep their documents and presentations …

With buyers snatching up a record 1 million iPhone 4S preorders in a single day, something was bound to go wrong. Not only were servers clogged and orders difficult (or impossible) to place for some users, but apparently many customers didn’t get the option to purchase the new AppleCare+ extended warranty. That may not seem like a big deal, except that AppleCare+–unlike …

BlackBerry maker RIM has said it hopes to resolve the BBM outage that sees BlackBerry owners without email, Internet or messaging services before the weekend, as the company admits the outage is “unacceptable”. The company hopes to fix the service “before the weekend, but can’t offer any commitments or guarantees, because it is important not to underestimate the complexity and …