The Motorola DROID will hit Verizon on November 6th for $199 on contract. That’s after a $100 mail-in rebate. The DROID itself is the first of many Android phones coming to the carrier. There’s Android 2.0 of course, Visual Voicemail, a 3.7-inch display (854 x 480 resolution), 5 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash, a bundled 16GB memory card and a beta version of Google Maps Navigation.

The DROID is the first phone to offer that last, which which will turn Google Maps into a turn-by-turn routing system. Some other features include a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, 3G, WiFi, voice-activated search and over-the-air Amazon MP3 downloads.

Verizon has launched a smack-talking offensive against the iPhone, with a new campaign called DroidDoes.com for their upcoming Motorola Droid Android smartphone. The handset, previously known by its codenames of Tao and Sholes, is being promoted as offering everything the iPhone can’t: an open development platform, the ability to run background processes, a flexible open App Store and replaceable batteries, etc. They really do some trash talking. Verizon has even set up a countdown timer showing that the Motorola Droid will arrive on October 30th 2009.

The teaser site starts off with some statements, all using the familiar i-prefix and in an Apple-style font. Stuff like “iDon’t run simultaneous apps”. Then a countdown page, with specs of the upcoming Motorola smartphone.

Verizon Wireless has announced several new handsets this week that are going to be exclusives for the carrier. Some of the handsets were higher end devices and others like the Nokia 2705 Shade are cheaper handsets for users who want nice features, but don’t want to spend a lot.

The key features of the phone are that it has Xpress-on covers for color customization, it is VZ Navigator capable and has a large display on one of the smallest devices Verizon offers. The phone can also store up to 1000 contacts.

In many parts of the world, subsidized notebooks and netbooks have been common for a long time. Here in the U.S. subsidized notebooks have really only started to be offered over the last year. Verizon Wireless has announced the latest addition to its notebook line, the Gateway LT2016u.

The device is set to go on sale with Verizon on October 4 for $149.99 after a $100 mail in rebate. The netbook has a 10.1-inch LED backlit screen and a 6-cell battery for power. The CPU is an Intel Atom N270 and it has 1GB of RAM and 160GB of storage.

Verizon and HTC have a new smartphone in their lineup with the launch of the HTC Imagio. The Imagio will be a Verizon exclusive available from October the 6th. Some features include a 3.6 inch WVGA touchscreen display, a 5 megapixel camera with built in auto focus, WiFi, EV-DO Rev A, quad-band EDGE and 2100MHz UMTS/HSDPA.

The HTC Imagio runs Windows Mobile 6.5, and comes with HTC’s TouchFLO 3D UI, a 3.5mm audio jack and a microSD card slot. Any takers?

Most of the large bookstores have very common offerings when you go inside. There is usually a snack bar with expensive coffee and free Wi-Fi to lure you into spending time inside the store. Barnes & Noble and AT&T do this with their free Wi-Fi offering.

Borders and Verizon announced today that they were teaming up to offer free in-store Wi-Fi to customers. The offering will have a custom splash page when people log on that will offer info on new books and specials.

Motorola’s Android-powered Sholes A855 handset recently passed the FCC, so it should be ready for sale in North America soon. Photos, a feature-set and user manuals aren’t yet available, but a data sheet confirms that the Sholes will include EVDO Rev A network support and have a Wi-Fi radio. The phone is expected to hit Verizon stores in October as the Tao.

Some other specs include a 3.7-inch, 480×854 resolution touchscreen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Built-in RAM is capped at 256MB, but 512MB of storage space is built in. The device should come with an 8GB microSDHC memory card as well. You also get an autofocusing 5-megapixel camera and GPS.

My grandma has no need for a feature laden cell phone. She has a hard enough time figuring out how to answer calls or check her voice mail without having to worry about how to send a text or surf the Internet. The perfect phone for her is cheap and easy to use.

Motorola and Verizon have unveiled a new handset that Grandma and other people looking for cheap and basic will love called the Entice W766. The handset has a 2-megapixel camera that can record video and has dual displays set up for reading.

Verizon has finally released both the Samsung Rogue U960 and Intensity U450. The Rogue is the highly anticipated replacement to the Glyde from last year. It sports a resistive touchscreen and has the first AMOLED display on a Verizon phone. The Rogue U960 also includes a 3MP autofocus camera with LED flash, updated UI, 4 row sliding QWERTY keyboard, HTML browser, EVDO Rev A, microSDHC memory card slot (16GB), Vcast Music/Video and VZ Navigator support. Expect to pay $99.99 after a $100 rebate with a 2-year contract, $169.99 after rebate with a 1-year contract, and $419.99 full retail.

The Rogue requires an add-on data package (25MB for $9.99, 75MB for $19.99) on Basic and Select plans, or it can use unlimited data on Connect and Premium plans.

With so many people traveling across the world on business, Verizon wants to make sure that you have an Internet connection no matter where you go. That’s why Verizon has rolled out its UMW190 global modem, which will handle EV-DO domestically and EDGE when you are outside of the country.

If you absolutely need an internet connection no matter where you are, this should be perfect. It coud come in handy in an emergency. The UMW190 will cost you $49.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate when it becomes available.

The United States District Court, Eastern District of Texas is becoming a hot bed for patent infringement suits. This is because the judge in the court has a history of siding with the patent holders in infringement suits and has awarded verdicts against Nintendo and other large companies already.

TiVo is trying its luck in the courtroom with a new patent infringement suit against AT&T and Verizon over patents relating to DVR technologies TiVo holds. The patents in question are Nos. 6,233,389 B1 (”Multimedia Time Warping System”), 7,529,465 B2 (”System for Time Shifting Multimedia Content Streams”), and 7,493,015 B1 (”Automatic Playback Overshoot Correction System”).

If you are considering picking up a BlackBerry, why not get two while you are at it? Verizon is kicking off their “Buy One, Get One” promotion. Apparently the deal covers not only a second BlackBerry but a netbook, PC card, USB modem or MiFi.

As is usually the case, you’re getting the cheapest item free and it’s rebate-based, so you will have to pay for both devices and then wait with baited breath for your check to arrive in the mail. Apparently the promotion starts today and runs through until October 10th.

The Motorola Sholes was recently spotted and is rumored to be equipped with the following specifications: 3.7″ touchscreen display at 480 x 854 resolution, 512MB internal memory, 256MB RAM, microSDHC memory card slot, 5-megapixel camera with autofocus, GPS navigation, USB, Bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi connectivity, Multimedia playback support, CDMA and EVDO Rev A supported .

Nothing on pricing yet. It’s a nice design change from Moto. Hopefully it will become real one day soon. That’s it’s dream. Just like Pinocchio.

If you’re a fan of the Blackberry Tour, than you probably didn’t need a reminder that they were going on sale today, but if you needed the reminder than consider this your official wake up call.

Both carriers are now offering RIM’s latest CDMA BlackBerry for $199.99 on contract. To refresh your memory, the Blackberry Tour has a 256 MB internal Flash memory, 35 key backlight QWERTY keyboard, 3.2 MP camera with flash and autofocus, and Bluetooth 2.0.

Looks like Verizon has just replaced its BlackBerry Tour teaser with a pre-order page and we now have an official date. It’s arriving July 12th for $200. Now we’re waiting to see if Sprint’s July 20th date comes to pass, but if you want a Tour before anyone else, looks like Verizon is the way to go.

To refresh your memory, the Blackberry Tour has a 256 MB internal Flash memory, 35 key backlight QWERTY keyboard, 3.2 MP camera with flash and autofocus, and Bluetooth 2.0.