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BGR has learned that RadioShack will be offering a limited-time sale on all AT&T iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 models beginning Sunday, December 11th. The nationwide retailer will discount each iPhone 4 and 4S model by $29, and the iPhone 3GS will remain free on contract. AT&T’s iPhone 4 8GB and its older iPhone 4 16GB models will each be offered for $69.99 on contract, down from $99, and the carrier’s 32GB model will cost $169.99. BGR has confirmed with multiple RadioShack locations that both older iPhone 4 models are still in stock. Apple’s new iPhone 4S will be available starting at $169.99 for the 16GB AT&T model. The iPhone 4S 32GB will cost $269.99 during the sale and the 64GB model will be discounted to $369.99. All sale pricing requires a new 2-year service contract. It is unclear how long RadioShack’s sale on all AT&T iPhone models will run, and a company spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

BGR has learned from a trusted source that Samsung is set to launch an 11.6-inch tablet running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich next year, and it will most likely be unveiled at Mobile World Congress in February. Even though the tablet features a larger display than Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1, we’re told that the tablet is “barely larger” due to the fact the slate will have a thinner bezel with a whopping 2560 x 1600 resolution, 11.6-inch screen with a 16:10 aspect ratio. The tablet will use a dual-core Exynos 5250 CPU clocked at 2GHz. We have also heard that Apple’s new A6 CPU will be very similar to the Samsung CPU, which is a dual-core Cortex A15 chip. Samsung’s tablet will also feature Android Beam for easy syncing of media with a Galaxy Nexus, and a special wireless docking mode for gaming on HDTVs that will help Samsung compete with Apple TV, AirPlay and more. Samsung had no comment.

BGR noted during our hands-on look at the LG Nitro HD that AT&T’s next-generation 4G LTE network has gone live in New York ahead of launch, and it looks like another market has gone live as well: Phoenix, Arizona. Our speed tests Thursday night on AT&T’s fledgling 4G LTE network were nothing to scoff at — we saw nearly 7Mbps down and about 9Mbps up — but AT&T subscribers in Phoenix will be excited to learn that early speed test results reveal blistering download speeds up to 40Mbps and upload speeds in excess of 10Mbps. Read on for more.

We just got the lowdown on one of Nokia’s upcoming flagship devices currently set to launch in early 2012 in the United States. According to our source, the new Nokia smartphone will be the Lumia 900, a Windows Phone with the same basic identity as the Lumia 800 but with a bigger display and other enhancements. The handset will reportedly feature a 1.4GHz processor, a 4.3-inch ClearBlack AMOLED display and an 8-megapixel camera, and it will ship with Windows Phone “Tango.” We have also been told by a trusted source that Nokia is prepping a huge marketing blitz in the U.S. for January and February, which leads us to believe that we can expect the Finnish vendor’s new flagship Windows Phone to launch some time after CES in January.

We’ve just heard from a trusted source that the dummy device The Verge posted an image of earlier today is indeed a real BlackBerry, and it should in fact launch as the company’s first BBX-based smartphone. Our source told us that the BlackBerry Colt, the first QNX-based handset RIM had been working on that looked just like a smaller PlayBook, was scrapped in favor of the BlackBerry London. In terms of release timing, it’s looking like the London is slated to launch some time in the third quarter next year, possibly late in the quarter. Remember, RIM still has not been able to get BES or BBM working on BBX devices — probably the only two features BlackBerry phones are still known for these days — so launch details are anything but firm right now.

We just got the scoop on another brand new HTC handset, which will be part of the company’s Mobile World Congress announcements alongside the HTC Edge we detailed yesterday. The HTC Ville (codename) is set to launch in April with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and, for the first time, HTC Sense 4.0. The smartphone will feature a 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED display, and is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon Series 4 processor. In addition to those specifications, the HTC Ville will house an 8-megapixel backside-illuminated camera, just like the one on the HTC Edge, with 1080p HD video capture support. We’re told the handset won’t feature NFC due to the metal construction of the case, and it will be less than 8mm thick, we understand. Lastly, it will be a HSPA+ device powered by a 1,650 mAh battery, and of course Beats audio processing will be included as well.

Renders of the HTC Edge appeared online yesterday with some hugely impressive specifications that included a quad-core 1.5GHz NVIDIA processor. We have received some more details on the HTC Edge, and they are flat out jaw-dropping. In fact, this phone looks like it will be the most powerful smartphone the world has ever seen, packed to the brim with cutting-edge tech. Actually, cutting-edge specs and a super slim profile are likely two of the reasons HTC is calling this phone the Edge. Hit the break for the details.

Samsung’s vice president of consumer and enterprise services Gavin Kim has left the company to join Microsoft as general manager of the Windows Phone team, BGR has exclusively learned. Kim will have a direct impact on the future success of the Windows Phone platform. “I will be responsible to help set the future direction for the Windows Phone platform and to accelerate Microsoft’s trajectory to win the hearts and minds of consumers, carriers, device manufacturers, developers and partners,” Kim told BGR. “In my experience, there is an already fervent base of Windows Phone supporters out there and they all get it. They are passionate, and already very vocal about it … so, it is really my new job to make sure we reflect that message clearly in our product and marketing collaborations with all of our partners to create more Windows Phone believers.” Updated with statement from Samsung Mobile.

AT&T’s first two 4G LTE-enabled smartphones are now available for purchase, and subscribers looking to be among the first to own these powerful new Android devices are in for a pleasant surprise. Announced just last week, the Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket and HTC Vivid feature Google’s Android Gingerbread OS and specs that place them on par with most modern high-end handsets. They were also announced with high-end price points; the Vivid was unveiled at $199.99 and the Skyrocket was given a $249.99 price tag. Both phones are now on sale as promised — they became available a day early on Saturday, in fact — but each smartphone is priced $100 lower than expected on AT&T’s website. Read on for more.

While information about Apple’s new iOS app and retail plans have leaked out in various forms over the past few weeks, we now have the whole story thanks to a trusted source. On Thursday, Apple’s new retail store app for iOS will launch, and it will bring two major features with it. First, it will enable online ordering with retail store pick up. This has already started happening in a few stores in California and New York City Apple stores as well, and more stores will go live on Thursday. Hit the jump for details on what happens when you place an order through the app to pick up in a retail store nearby.

We’ve been big fans of WhatsApp’s cross-platform messaging service ever since it first launched, and directly outside of Apple’s own iMessage or RIM’s BlackBerry Messenger service, WhatsApp is our favorite mobile solution. We’re apparently not the only ones who think so, as WhatsApp just told us that the company is now delivering more than 1 billion messages each day, a huge milestone. Here’s a quote from WhatsApp team:

The mobile messaging market is moving, choices around platforms and their pricing and how they provide an amazing customer experience are the hot topics at hand. As a leader in the messaging space and with our network now handling over one billion messages a day, we see that the power is with the consumer.

WhatsApp is positoned as more of an SMS replacement rather than a traditional instant messaging service, and with users currently sending nearly 700,000 messages each minute, the company sure seems well on its way to being just that. WhatsApp is currently available for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, BlackBerry and Symbian devices.

We’ve just heard from a tipster that the BlackBerry Bold 9790 — think of the BlackBerry 9900 and mash that up with the BlackBerry 9700 — will be launching around the end of November. The device will feature a 2.45-inch 640 x 480-pixel VGA touch display, 8GB of built-in storage and of course, a full QWERTY keyboard. New here is the redesigned (hideous) menu buttons a la BlackBerry Torch 9850. The device was incredibly clean before, but the new buttons ruin it for us. RIM also made the same move with the BlackBerry 9850 before it was released, changing the design from flush buttons to individual physical keys. Additionally, we have been told that RIM’s first major update to OS 7, OS 7.1, will launch later this year. This is expected to be the last OS release from RIM before the company unites its smartphone and tablet operating systems with the BBX platform.

Updated with clearer image.

BGR reported exclusive details of RIM’s upcoming BBX-based smartphone code-named the BlackBerry Colt earlier this year, and we have since heard that there is going to be a big emphasis on video calling with the company’s first super smartphone. This obviously means the device will feature a front-facing camera. As far as the BlackBerry PlayBook goes, RIM recently demoed OS 2.0 for the PlayBook, an update to the original OS that brings Android app compatibility along with native email and PIM access. As we reported before, however, there were tremendous obstacles that have prevented Research In Motion from shipping native email, calendar, contacts, BlackBerry Messenger, and other core system apps on the new QNX-based operating system. RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie said during the company’s last earnings call that the PlayBook would see an update in October but unfortunately, RIM is still struggling with these challenges. Hit the break for more.

AT&T just reported a solid third quarter that saw its total subscriber count pass 100 million for the first time. Of course that milestone will be crushed if the carrier’s $39 billion T-Mobile USA acquisition is approved, but for the time being it represents a solid strategy that is clearly working. A huge part of that strategy moving from 2011 into 2012 is rolling out 4G LTE service across 15 cities, the first five of which went live last month: Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. AT&T has yet to reveal the remainder of the 15 markets it intends to blanket with its next-generation 4G service this year, but BGR has uncovered two previously unannounced cities named within the carrier’s presentation for its upcoming earnings call. According to AT&T’s slide deck, both Boston and Washington DC will see the carrier’s 4G LTE service go live this year and judging by some of the speeds we’ve seen so far, residents should certainly be looking forward to it.