Research firm IDC released its latest Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker report on Thursday and revealed that shipments of Apple’s iPhone jumped 142% over the same period last year. Samsung’s shipments rose 10% year-over year, ZTE saw a 36% increase in shipments and LG’s shipments dropped 18.9%. The entire mobile phone market grew 11.3% year-over-year, but that was lower than IDC’s 13.3% growth projection. The feature phone market declined 4% as the U.S., Japan and Western Europe jumped on...

AT&T has dropped its requirement that all customers purchasing “quick messaging devices” — or QMDs for short –  subscribe to an unlimited texting plan. According to Fierce Wireless, AT&T implemented the rule in January 2010 before quietly discontinuing it sometime in February of this year. The unlimited texting plan was priced at $20 per month, and while it’s no longer mandatory, AT&T does recommend that customers purchasing a messaging feature phone continue to sign up for ...

Today, via two separate press releases, Verizon announced the addition of the LG Vortex – a full-touchscreen, Android 2.2 smartphone — and the LG Cosmos — a full-QWERTY messaging phone — to its handset lineup.The Vortex will boast a 3.2-inch touchscreen display with haptic feedback, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, 3.2 megapixel camera, micro-SD card slot (with support for up to a 32GB card), SWYPE keyboard, 3G hotspot capabilities, and Android 2.2; the Vortex will also be Binged-out. The han...

Samsung announced Monday the addition of the Samsung Contour to MetroPCS’ lineup of affordable feature phones. While the Contour is short on bells and whistles, it will certainly be a great option for customers who make value a priority. MetroPCS offers contract-free unlimited plans for as low at $40 per month including taxes. Samsung’s Contour compliments the carrier’s affordable monthly plans nicely, featuring a clamshell form factor, a VGA camera, a basic Web browser and 3G connectivity. ...

Verizon Wireless today announced the upcoming availability of two new feature phones, the Pantech Crux and the LG Octane. The former, a full touchscreen offering from Pantech, features a 3-inch display with a virtual QWERTY keypad, a variety of widgets, mobile IM and email support, a 1GB microSD card with support for up to 32GB, integrated social networking features and a full HTML Web browser. The LG Octane sports a landscape-oriented clam shell design and features dual displays, a physical QWERTY keypad, a ...

Today, AT&T introduced the Pantech Laser handset, a device the company is billing as the “thinnest full sliding keyboard phone” on the market. The handset, which measures 9.95 mm in thickness, will have a 3.1-inch AMOLED touchscreen display, full QWERTY keyboard, and 3 megapixel camera. The feature-phone quick-messaging device (sorry, no Android) will be available starting October 17 and will retail for $99.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and 2-year agreement. Hit the jump for the full press re...

We’ve just been given word that AT&T will be launching the LG Encore in four days on September 5th. The Encore is a full touchscreen feature-phone that packs a 3-inch display, dual band HSDPA/UMTS, quad band GSM, 3 megapixel camera with video recording, micro-SD card slot, and aGPS. The device will run AT&T’s Social Net, Adress Book, and Navigator programs and will have up to three hours of talk time. Hit the jump to check out the full AT&T memo. (more…)

It looks like Skype and Verizon Wireless have inked another deal to bring the Skype mobile application to more Verizon devices. In a blog post today, Skype announced they are “expanding the Skype mobile application onto a variety of Multimedia 3G phones with an app based on the BREW platform, including the LG enV TOUCH, LG Chocolate Touch and Samsung Reality.” The post boasts: “The Skype mobile app for Verizon Wireless 3G Multimedia phones works the same way it does on the carrier’s smar...

Not every phone can be a bleeding-edge 1 GHz smartphone, right? Earlier today, Verizon Wireless announced that it would add the Samsung Gusto to its feature phone lineup. The light-weight flip phone sports a 2-inch internal display, VGA camera, mobile web browser, and Bluetooth connectivity. The handset includes “lifestyle features” such as a driving mode (which increases call volume to compensate for road noise), voice commands, and VZ Navigator. The phone also has a neat feature that allows you ...

One of our friends over at Best Buy was kind enough to send us in a few shots of the new Samsung Intensity II, due out on Verizon Wireless… um, soon we would presume? The phone pictured is a display unit, but from what we’re told the full-QWERTY slider-phone will have a 2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, and a $1.00 price tag from Best Buy on a 2-year contract. Of course, if you don’t want to be married to this phone for two years — and if you’re reading this there is a high likeliho...

LG officially opened the doors to its online applications store on Thursday. The app store offers social networking, navigation, VoIP, and instant messaging applications for both feature phones and Windows OS phones. LG will expand its offerings to include an estimated 4,000 applications — including those for Android-powered smartphones – by the end of the year. Currently in beta, the app store launched with high profile titles like Spore, Worms 2010, Assassin’s Creed, and The Sims 3. It al...

Yesterday, we mused about AT&T’s adjustment to their ETF pricing as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Late yesterday, AT&T’s PR department decided to put their own spin on the termination fee tweaks with an “Open Letter” to their customers. The open letter confirms that the new ETFs, now $325 for smartphones and $150 for feature phones, will depreciate monthly at a rate of $10 and $4 respectively. We’ve got the full letter queued up for you after the break. Let us know...

Motorola announced its Q1 2010 earnings and the communications hardware company exceeded analysts expectations. Twenty-Ten started off well for Motorola as the company posted a profit of $69 million or 3 cents per share which contrasts starkly with the $203 million loss or 10 cents per share posted in the same quarter last year. Net sales topped out at $5.04 billion, down 6% from the $5.37 billion posted in Q1 2009. Despite this slight slip, Motorola beat the Street as analysts were expecting 1-2 cents loss o...

Oh no… one of our close AT&T connects informed us that AT&T might be following in Verizon’s footsteps and requiring a mandatory feature plan with some feature phones. (more…)