Best of SPE, 17 May 2009

Each week we bring you the Best of SPE and this week is no exception. From Android to Windows Mobile and everything in between, we’ve got your smartphone news fix right here.

Android Central

The waiting game for Android 1.5 on the T-Mobile G1 at least has a rulebook now — or at least the makings of a release schedule. We’re also happy to see new functionality in Google search — barcode scanning, but even with that we still prefer ShopSavvy ourselves. Not shopping? Spend some time watching NBC Shows on your G1 - it’s free, which will help because some T-Mobile customers may be having some rate increases coming soon.

In last week’s Best of SPE, we made note that Jim Balsillie confirmed a “Storm 2″ was in the works. Fast forward just a few days and the first real photos of RIM’s next generation of touchscreen, codenamed “BlackBerry Odin”, leaked on CrackBerry. WES 2009 is now over, but the content still continues to roll in. Worth checking out is Gi & Di’s Mobile Security Card solution and if you have 35 minutes to kill, this panel discussion of bloggers predicting the future of BlackBerry! And if you’re the podcast type, the WES 2009 wrap-up podcast is a must-listen.

It was another busy week of AT&T Nokia E71x coverage over on Nokia Experts as we try to assist all the new S60 owners with their sleek, slim devices. The week started with a Q&A roundup since so many questions are pouring in about the E71x. Did you also know you can watch Hulu via Skyfire and listen to your Zune Pass subscription tunes on your Nokia E71x. We aren’t the only ones impressed with the device as other sites are awarding it high marks. We also posted a review of the new Spb Puzzzle game for the Nokia 5800.

We had plenty of action in our PreCentral.net Pre Forums, from spotting the Pre at a NASCAR event to spotting it inside Sprint stores, our forums are the #1 place to learn about and talk about the Pre. Meanwhile we’re feeling better about the June 7th release date, liking Google more and more, and checking out all sort of goodies from the Palm Pre box. Add in a contest to win a copy of the Classic PalmOS emulator and you have a pretty full week, though not one without a little venting of frustrations

Apple announced no Steve Jobs at WWDC, but Phil Schiller and crew will rock the iPhone 3.0 stage in his stead. Analysts promptly chicken-little’d that the new iPhone would be delayed, and the web responded with multiple rumors of Apple’s considering limited background multitasking for 3rd party apps. We’ve crossed the crazy rubicon here people!

Meanwhile Apple released Mac OS X 10.5.7 Leopard, re-enabling note sync and fixing the dreaded DFU bug that complicated Jailbreaking. Thank you Apple! And AT&T prevented SlingPlayer Mobile from being released with 3G support. Which sucks. A lot.

Although all the news has been happening over at our friends at PreCentral.net, we still were happy to see Agendus get an update for Windows Mobile and PalmOS. We also took a peek at the iharmonix Platinus Stereo Earphones. Toss in a new PalmCast Podcast and hopping forums and you’ve got plenty to read through at TreoCentral.

It was a quality week in Windows Mobile land. We started off with Microsoft’s own Loke Uei showing off the snappiness of the HTC Snap. We survived another Zune phone rumor, then saw possible required specs for Windows Mobile 7. We broke the news of what should be the HTC Snap on Sprint. Software keyboards were reviewed. The AT&T Samsung Jack was announced. The Marketplace blacklist was explained. Firefox mobile hit official Alpha, Windows Mobile 7 may feature “non-touch” and Tech-Ed videos take us inside WinMo 6.5.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Best of SPE, 17 May 2009