The iPhone 3G will be on select Wal-Mart store shelves in 2,500 locations. Sam’s Club will only be getting the iPhone 3G in 69 stores in the US. There is still no word on suspected pricing due to the fact that many would wait till after Christmas to pick up the phone at a cheaper price. AT&T is going to be supporting Wal-Mart as far as activations go. Sam’s Club kiosks that are managed by Radio Shack however will not be getting the iPhone 3G. Here is the execution timeline for the launch of the iPhone 3G.

* 12/2 – 12/5:  AT&T / Wal-Mart MEM Classroom Training for Store Leads
* 12/3 – 12/19:  AT&T In-Store Training
* 12/26 – 12/27:  AT&T In-Store Refresher Training
* 12/28: Nationwide Launch
* 12/28 – 12/30:  Wal-Mart and AT&T War Room Support

[Via iPhoneBuzz]

Most people are unaware that about two thirds of the energy used by mobile devices is wasted by leaving your phone charger plugged into the wall. Many manufactures are taking the time to address this issue and create more energy efficient chargers for their handsets. The new rating system shows just how much energy is used when a charger is left plugged into the socket after charging is completed.

If the more than three billion people who own mobile phones today decide to switch to a four or five star charger, the energy saved could power two medium sized power plants. Customers who are interested in finding out the rating of their current charger can log on to any of the above companies websites and view the ratings. Many major producers have begun introducing visual alerts to their devices to remind consumers to unplug the charger when charging is complete.

[Via Nokia]

The newest touchscreen smartphone to hit AT&T’s lineup has a 3” display, a bit smaller than the Eternity’s screen at 3.2”.  The LG Incite will feature A-GPS with AT&T navigator, 3-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Microsoft Office Mobile, microSD card slot up to 16GB, Microsoft mail and Microsoft ActiveSync 4.5. This handset boasts and astonishing 8.7 hours of talk time with 21 days of standby time.  AT&T is now selling the LG Incite for $199.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate.

Press release:

AT&T Debuts LG Incite Global 3G Smartphone

AT&T and LG Mobile Phones Launch New Windows Mobile 6.1 Smartphone With Sleek Design, Vibrant Touch Screen, aGPS, Wi-Fi and More

Dallas, Texas, San Diego, California, November 18, 2008

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AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and LG Electronics MobileComm U.S.A. Inc. (LG Mobile Phones) today announced the availability of the LG Incite™, the newest Windows Mobile device powered by the nation’s fastest 3G network for users who crave premium capabilities with ultramodern design. The Incite — available in the U.S. exclusively to AT&T customers — stirs up the smartphone market, with its stylish, sleek look and sophisticated technology.

The LG Incite boasts the latest in wireless communications technology, with domestic and international 3G capabilities, built-in aGPS and Wi-Fi^® (802.11 b/g) and Bluetooth 2.0^®. The LG Incite is equipped with Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, Microsoft Office Mobile and Microsoft ActiveSync 4.5. The Incite, the first of its kind for LG Mobile, offers Windows Media Player 10.

LG Incite looks as good as it sounds: a sophisticated, sleek design, a crystal-clear 3-inch touch screen and a 3.0 megapixel camera and camcorder that enables consumers to send and enjoy memories at the touch of a button. Users have a choice of on-screen virtual keyboards — a full, QWERTY keyboard in landscape mode and a 20-key keyboard in portrait view — with haptic keys that provide vibration feedback. The Incite also offers users choice in terms of screen navigation by simply using their fingers to move through the Incite’s friendly user interface, the scroll button to the upper right of the screen or the included stylus. A configurable, drag-and-drop favorites menu provides quick access to the applications that matter most to the user.

The Incite is pre-loaded with everything you’d expect, including AT&T Navigator, powered by TeleNav, featuring turn-by-turn voice and on-screen directions with colorful 3-D moving maps that can be used in vehicles or while walking. AT&T Navigator also features traffic alerts, re-routing and other location-based services. There also is business and personal e-mail access through Microsoft Direct Push and AT&T’s Xpress Mail service, instant messaging and AT&T Mobile Music service, which provides fast access to downloadable music from eMusic^®.

Store all your favorite songs with the microSD Memory Port with up to 16GB of support. Bluetooth 2.0 capabilities allow consumers to wirelessly access music through stereo headsets, transmit data to other Bluetooth-enabled devices and make calls hands-free anytime. The Incite also features AT&T Video ShareSM, the first-ever service in the U.S. that allows users to share live video over wireless devices while participating in a voice call.

“LG Mobile Phones has done an outstanding job in its first offering in the U.S. smartphone arena with the LG Incite, and AT&T is pleased to the be first U.S. carrier to offer an LG smartphone,” said Michael Woodward, vice president, Smart Devices for AT&T’s wireless operations. “It is a great looking smartphone with powerful capabilities that will provide our customers with a new and outstanding choice in our Windows Mobile smartphone portfolio, which is the broadest in the industry.”

Ehtisham Rabbani, vice president of Marketing and Product Strategy for LG Mobile Phones, said: “LG is excited to offer a phone with a different capability than anything we’ve offered in the U.S. thus far. As a leading provider of handsets, LG constantly looks toward the future and strives to incorporate the newest technologies as they become available to our consumers.”

The Incite also supports Microsoft’s System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008, an enterprise-grade mobile solution for managing and protecting Windows Mobile 6.1 phones. Mobile Device Manager helps companies provide its mobile workers with software updates and applications over the air, as well as security-enhanced access to company data. The Incite operates on AT&T’s 3G BroadbandConnect network, which currently is available in more than 320 major metropolitan areas in the U.S. and, by year-end, AT&T expects to offer the service in nearly 350 leading U.S. markets. In addition to 3G connectivity, the Incite is also designed to connect seamlessly with AT&T’s nationwide¹ EDGE network, which is available in more than 13,000 cities and towns and along some 40,000 miles of major highways. When abroad, customers can use the Incite to make a phone call in more than 200 countries and access data in more than 150, including more than 60 with 3G networks. AT&T has the broadest international wireless coverage of any U.S. carrier.

The Incite is available now in AT&T retail stores nationwide and online at www.wireless.att.com for $199.99 with a new two-year agreement and mail-in rebate. AT&T voice plans begin at $39.99 with monthly enterprise data plans priced at $45 and personal data plans at $30 per month. Small business customers also can subscribe to AT&T’s new, industry-first BusinessTalk voice plans, which start at $60 a month for five users and 700 Anytime Minutes and can be expanded for $9.99 a line to accommodate up to 40 users and 20,000 Anytime Minutes.

The IcePhone is a GSM Quadband handset, with .2 Mbps HSDPA UMTS 2100 connectivity, Built-in GPS, Wi-Fi b/g, 1250 mAh battery, Windows Mobile 6.0 Pro, 3″ 240×400 pixels 65K color transflective TFT touchscreen, Freescale iMX31 532 Mhz CPU and 3,1-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED flash.  All of this comes in a convenient 127 × 60.8 × 23.3 mm 210g package. The IcePhone will be hitting store shelves in Thailand soon with a release in the UK in March-April 2009. While we do not now the exact price, the expected retail price is going to be just under $1000.

[Via UnwiredView]

Sony will eventually use the 12.25-megapixel lens with autofocus functions, to enhance the enjoyment of taking high quality photos with a mobile phone. The lens will ship in Mar, 2009 with a suggested price of 2,500 yen. Such technology in phones will eventually create less use for lower end digital cameras. Users will eventually start purchasing these phones as a means to save money rather than purchasing both a mobile phone and a camera.

[Via Sony]

ASUS has just officially announced the new P565 smartphone, this handsets boasts an astonishing 800MHz processor, claiming to be the fastest mobile phone on the market worldwide.  ASUS states that the CPU is good for Vsbenchmark scores that are about twice as high as other rival handsets.

Running Windows Mobile 6.1 Pro the P565 does just fine running 156MB RAM and 128MB Rom. This handset has a 2.8-inch VGA touchscreen, HSDPA 3.6Mbps, GPS, microSD card slot, Wi-Fi b/g and ASUS’ own Glide GUI, an interface similar in concept to HTC’s TouchFLO 3D.

The point where this particular phone has a hang up is the battery life. The 1,300mAh Li-Ion battery has only 3hrs 3G talk time or 4hrs 2G (or 250-300hrs 3G standby, 200-250hrs 2G standby). The 3-megapixel camera with autofocus is paired with a front-facing camera for making video calls. You can record video at QVGA 24fps, or play back MPEG4 video at VQGA 30fps. Business users will be happy to know that the P565 has support for exchange email.

[Via SlashGear]

It looks like Canada is going to have a battle between Telis and Bell for the heats of many customers eagerly awaiting the arrival of the BlackBerry Storm. Both companies are not only going to have to try and offer the lowest price, but also offer the best incentives for the customer.

Friday a memo was sent to all Bell retail managers revealing that both of the Canadian carriers will ironically be releasing the Storm on the exact same day. All employees must complete mandatory training by December 8th leading many to believe that this is the actual launch date. The leak went on to say he, “received emails stating that our current Bell BlackBerry live demos (currently stores either have the 8130 or 8330) all will be replaced with Storms on or around the 5th of December.  No actual release date, but with demo units shipping the 5th we should see it in Canada by the 10th of December.”

Bell is very excited to add the Storm to their powerful 3G BlackBerry lineup. Testing on the Bell network has already started taking place. The BlackBerry storm will be launching in Canada shortly after the US release on November 21st. Training as outlined in the memo consists of the following:

Training

In preparation for this much-anticipated launch, several training tools will be released for Sales Consultants.  These tools will provide Sales Consultants with the ability to:
* Understand what the Blackberry Storm can offer valued clients.
* learn why the Blackberry Storm is better with bell, and
* win the sale!

The Table below outlines the training tools that will be available on the Bell Training site (bell.ca/training) in the ‘What’s New’ section, along with training delivery dates, and completion due dates

1. Job Aid: Getting the Right 3G Blackberry for your Clients
Delivery Date: 11/14/2008
Completion Due Date: 11/21/2008

2. Job Aid: Blackberry Competitive Comparison
Delivery Date: 11/19/2008
Completion Due Date: 11/26/2008

3. Job Aid: Blackberry Storm
Delivery Date: 11/19/2008
Completion Due Date: 11/26/2008

4. Web Based Training: Blackberry Storm Online Training
Delivery Date: 11/21/2008
Completion Due Date: 12/05/2008

5. Video: Blackberry Storm Video
Delivery Date: 12/01/2008
Completion Due Date: 12/08/2008

All Management level

[Via BoyGeniusReport]

The Truphone Anywhere service works with domestic service providers to bring users international calling costs down to as little as $0.60 per minute. Instead of requiring a lot of work with every use, Truphone Anywhere will simply ask you if you would like to make a Truphone call whenever an international number is entered. Truphone then accepts the phone call and connects for you.

When a connection is made, it connects to a local Truphone server, then connects the long-distance portion of the call to an Internet connection. You can download Truphone Anywhere right now for free without a monthly subscription charges.

[Via IntoMobile]

Telus picked up the Samsung m540 in two very stylish colors: black and pink and Alltell is to carry the LG Swift, putting in the line up just in time for the festive season. Additionally, the iRiver Wave is all set to go on sale March 9th of next year in Korea.

Another interesting tidbit from the week that has now passed is that T-Mobile has brought back the Sidekick ID. Yeah, we were dumbfounded too, but it’s hard to say just how long that will last. The MAX 4G handset was announced this week from HTC as well and it will, as you might have guessed, have WiMAX support.

Best Buy is set to get the Sony Ericsson X1A next month, putting it in front of consumers for the shopping season. Plus, the Sony Xperia X1a will be available on the Best Buy website only in black.

A few other stories we thought were of particular note this week was the leaking of several screenshots from Windows Mobile 6.5. Plus, CNN started up their CNN MyClick application, which features image recognition technology. Lastly, American Airlines is putting their latest tech through its paces, which is mobile electronic boarding passes for simplifying travel.

Some may ask, “What is the big deal about this seemingly ordinary flip phone?” The next generation keypad offers Fastap Press-to-Experience keys. In the center of the traditional numeric keypad you will find 6 raised keys that provide one click access to many of the phones key features. These keys appear to just get in the way, whether or not that is true remains to be seen.

“The LG Swift is an innovative phone that helps our customers explore and enjoy Alltel’s most popular data features,” said Brian Ullem, vice president of device strategy for Alltel Wireless. “The introduction of Fastap Press-to-Experience keys enables us to delivers information and entertainment to our customers faster than ever before.”

People who love music will find the dedicated music keys on the face of the LG Swift a perfect match. The dual speaker system makes listening to music even more enjoyable. The Swift has many other features including a one-touch speakerphone, 1.3-megapixle camera with multi-shot and video capabilities and expandable memory slot for extra music storage. You can purchase the LG Swift from any Alltel retail location in red and blue, for only $49.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a 2-year agreement.

[Via SlashGear]

Chicago O’Hare, LAX, and Santa Ana John Wayne airport are going to be the first to test out a new way to electronically distribute boarding passes. Only American Airlines customers departing from these airports will be choose to receive their boarding passes electronically on their mobile phones or PDAs.

This process will not only save time, but also save resources, helping us to be a little greener. This service is available right now to passengers departing on domestic flights from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Passengers will be able to use these two-dimensional barcode boarding passes. The new boarding pass will be available for Los Angeles and John Wayne outbound flights starting on November 17.

From American Airlines Website…

When you are traveling on select itineraries from Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Los Angeles International (LAX) and Santa Ana John Wayne/Orange County (SNA) airports, you now have the option to have your boarding pass sent directly to your mobile phone or other mobile device – saving paper and time. Eligible itineraries include non-stop flights with only one passenger listed in the record locator*. Follow the easy steps below for your next applicable flight from ORD, LAX or SNA:

How to use the new Mobile Boarding Pass

• Check in on AA.com (or AA.com Mobile). Choose “Email for use on Cell Phone or other Mobile Device” option and include the e-mail address for your web-enabled mobile phone and/or mobile device.

• Check your email from your mobile device. Follow the link on the email to retrieve your Mobile Boarding Pass.

• Save the boarding pass to your device. Click the “Save Boarding Pass” button directly below the barcode to save it to your phone for easy access at the security checkpoint (check your phone/PDA manual to locate where the Boarding Pass will save).

• Proceed to Security. When you arrive at security, make sure the entire barcode is visible on the screen of your mobile phone or mobile device and have the backlight setting set to the brightest mode possible. If you have any problems, you will be given the opportunity to print a paper boarding pass at the self-service machines.

[Via MobilitySite]

You wont be able to find this phone on store shelves. Instead you can only get this phone from Best Buy online. If black is not your style you can still get the Silver Sony Xperia X1a in store for $800. There is no definite date for the availability of the black model just yet. The price is still a little rich for our blood, especially coming from Sony, but this phone by far outshines any other Sony handset we have seen.

[via BoyGeniusReport]