Announced all the way back at MWC in February, the glofiish X610 and V900 are finally nearing release -- or so E-TEN claims, anyway. Though the X610's spec sheet isn't going to get any motors running, it's a pretty sharp-looking entry level WinMo 6.1 Professional device that should find its way into a few pockets where 3G isn't needed. More interesting of the pair is the V900 (pictured), a multitalented mobile boob tube that can handle DVB-H, DVB-T, T-DMB, and DAB broadcasts in one convenient package -- and a VGA display certainly doesn't hurt its case, either. So far, the launches on these two are pegged simply as "soon," so keep an eye on the shop of your choice.

The hardened news hawks over at China Economic News Service would like to hit us up with some knowledge: Palm allegedly plans on outing a CDMA version of its Treo Pro "in the future" for carriers like "Verizon, Wireless [sic] and Sprint." While we wouldn't typically pay an unsubstantiated report like this much mind, Palm does see a lot of love from its CDMA partners -- and we have to believe that both Verizon and Sprint are putting the full-court press on 'em to pony up the goods after seeing how much more attractive the Treo Pro is than Palm kit they're currently able to offer. And don't give us any weak sauce 800w arguments, alright?

[Via Brighthand]

Folks, be honest with us here -- did you really expect Orange and / or Apple to say anything other than this? Amidst reports that iPhone 3G line sitters at Polish Orange stores were actually paid to be there, the carrier has shot back in order to defend its dignity. In an e-mail reply to an Ad Age inquiry on the matter, a spokeswoman proclaimed that as "part of the excitement around the launch of the iPhone, some of [Orange's] team has been joining customers outside [of the] shops." She also noted that "sales were strong" and that Orange "was happy," though actual numbers were not revealed. So there you have it, now make of it what you will.

[Image courtesy of AppleBlog]

It seems that Nokia's luxury brand Vertu has finally decided to take a bold leap into the 21st century with its top-of-the-line Signature series, blessing it with a refreshed design, 3G for the very first time (though not the first time for a Vertu), and -- get this -- WiFi. That should all make for a candybar that even the peasant technophiles among us can appreciate, especially when you factor in the extra little tidbit that it's apparently sporting an OLED QVGA display (not unlike the just-introduced Nokia N85). We haven't seen anything super official on this yet, but everything jibes: the Signature is long, long overdue for a thorough overhaul, and both WiFi and IECEE certifications exist for a recently-approved RM-266V (historically, Vertus have rocked Nokia model codes with "V" tacked on the end). Of course, unless you wear a monocle, odds are you can't afford this -- but if you do happen to wear a monocle, we'd really like to see.

[Via friedblogs]

Read - WiFi interoperability certificate
Read - IECEE certification

So we might not have a physical device here, but these packaging renderings are pretty solid evidence of exactly what BlackBerry fans on Verizon -- particularly those jealous of the Bold -- can expect in a few weeks' time. It looks like RIM's first foray into the scary world of touchscreens will be officially branded the 9530 Storm, will be global (it includes a SIM card, after all), and will feature an 8GB SanDisk microSD card preinstalled. Wondering what happened to the Thunder name? Turns out that'll apparently be reserved for the version of the phone launching on Rogers up in Canada and on Vodafone across the pond. Those Storm users on the screen there sure look happy, don't they?

Remember that wild, sporty W6 that Moto unveiled a few weeks back? TmoNews is claiming that T-Mobile will be picking up a suspiciously similar handset known as the MOTOACTV W450 in early September. There's really not terribly much going on here other than water resistance, apparently, with a 1.3-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, media support with microSD slot (the phone's designed to be jogged with, after all), and that's pretty much it. Fortunately, the pleasure of shrieking at your own yellow keypad should only run you $30-50, so they say, when it launches.

The lowly Moto V365 really can't soldier on forever as AT&T's only "rugged" (and we use that term loosely) clamshell; we'd thought the W760r was coming in to save the day, but sadly, it's yet to materialize. So what's a butterfingered AT&T subscriber to do? With any luck, the answer is to wait just a few more weeks, because Boy Genius Report claims that the Samsung a837 will launch in the mid-September timeframe with HSDPA, Video Share, Bluetooth, GPS, push-to-talk (naturally), and a 1.3-megapixel cam, making it AT&T's first and only beefed-up 3G set. Yes, it could be prettier, but something tells us that's not really the market AT&T's going for here -- then again, with de facto competitor Casio trotting out the Boulder in orange, maybe we're off base on that one.

It's still anybody's guess when the Touch Diamond will actually launch on Sprint, though the latest rumors suggest that it has once again been moved up to September 2 after initially being pushed back to October. The fact that promo materials are starting to show up would certainly support that theory, too, now wouldn't it?

[Thanks, anonymous tipster]

Oh, Nuvifone, how you disappoint us. Over here at IFA we just managed to get a Garmin rep to whip out his Nuvifone prototype for a quick look, but sadly, almost a year after the device was first announced, there really wasn't anything new to see. We still aren't allowed to take video of the interface, or really see much of the phone other than the home screen, and when the rep tried to show us how the Nuvifone kicks the iPhone's ass in navigation, the Nuvi promptly crashed -- so at least those two have that in common. Not that we should be surprised, Garmin mentioned last month that the phone had been delayed into 2009, but we're quickly running out of patience, as well as any scrap of remaining hope for this thing to actually matter when it does arrive. Peep the gallery for a little bit of iPhone 3G versus action.

Apple's iPhone 3G ads paint a pretty cheery picture of the device in action, but just as many of you have noted, the omission of Flash and Java means there's a big difference between what the "the real internet" and what's on the iPhone -- enough so that the UK's Advertising Standards Authority has pulled one of Apple's latest ads from the airwaves because it claims "all the parts of the internet are on the iPhone." At least two people complained to the ASA that the ad was misleading because sites that use Flash and Java don't work on the iPhone, and the board agreed, saying that "We concluded that the ad gave a misleading impression of the internet capabilities of the iPhone" because "viewers were likely to expect to be able to see all the content on a web site normally accessible through a PC rather than just having the ability to reach the website." If we had to guess, we'd say this decision is more likely to prompt Apple to be more careful with its ads in the future rather than ever bring Flash or Java to the iPhone, but you know Adobe is feeling pretty smug right about now. Check the ad after the break.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Don't worry, you throng of dual-band Samsung smartphone fanboys and girls out there -- Verizon hasn't forgotten about you. It's been a little while since we've heard anything about the i770, but a new slide shows that Big Red's positioning it (or trying to, anyway) for Q3 availability, which just happens to be the very quarter that we're currently in. It features GPS, quadband GSM (which is strange -- typically Verizon's dual-band devices only do GSM on non-North American bands), WiFi, a 2-megapixel camera, EV-DO, and possibly biometric security, though that particular feature is currently marked down as "tbd." Next up in the global stable is the u810, a stylish clamshell with a microSD slot, 2-megapixel cam, and not bloody much else -- not really a great choice for the globetrotting businessperson, so Verizon might have the frequent pleasure traveler in mind here.

[Thanks, HTC Kid]

Well, here's one we didn't see coming: it seems that AT&T has wised up to the fact that Americans like their Symbian (well, at least a few of 'em do, anyway) and wants to keep S60-equipped options on the table. Yes, granted, AT&T is a founding member of the Symbian Foundation, but the proof is in the pudding, and the last Nokia smartphone to land there was the N75 in May of last year -- an eternity by mobile standards. More recently, the N75 grew up, got sexy, picked up some brushed metal, and emerged in Europe as the 6550; now, it's surprisingly and unexpectedly been retooled as the 6650 for North American 3G spectrum. It's got a 2.2-inch QVGA primary display, 160 x 128 secondary, 2-megapixel cam, AT&T Navigator (which means GPS), push-to-talk support, and HSDPA 850 / 1900 to compliment quadband EDGE. We don't know exactly when it's coming, but for S60 fans who cringe at the thought of having to blow several hundred on an unlocked set every time they want some fresh hardware, this should be welcome news.

[Thanks, Al and Oscar M.]

Given that just about every high-end handset on the market has a diamond-encrusted cousin out there somewhere, it was only a matter of time before Apple's latest got its own stupidly expensive sibling. Knalihs Anthem is offering up 50 iPhone 3Gs with over 475 diamonds weighing 3.75 carats in total. Each mobile will be bundled with all the appropriate paperwork certifying the gems, and while the first ten units will go for a cool $10,000 apiece, the other 40 will be priced in due time. So, any guesses as to whether pricing shoots up or down?

[Via Luxury Launches, thanks Yogesh]

Hey, Verizon customers, you're feeling a little warm to the touch over there. Could it be that you have -- be still our hearts! -- Motorola fever? As Motos go, Verizon's currently signed up to get two of the hotter upcoming models in the next few weeks, the ZN4 Blaze and the VU30 Rapture, both of which have been spied in the wild once more (looking basically ready for retail launch this time around, may we add). The VU30 is a fashion flip that takes some cues from its GSM-based U9 cousin featuring a glossy translucent shell, fat external display, and according to the latest rumors, a September 9 release date. The Blaze meanwhile looks more or less the same as the last time we saw it, leaving us to wonder what possessed Motorola to keep rolling with that eyesore of a giant, red-ringed medallion on the hinged lid. It's also rumored for a September date with destiny, though the exact day is unclear at this point -- and honestly, Motorola, if you want to push that back a month or two to make the badge less obnoxious, be our guest.

[Via phoneArena]