Personal communications

iPhone 3G: Hurry up and wait

This post was updated at 2:15 p.m. Pacific. See below.

They've arrived.

Apparently afraid they may not be one of the first people to get their mitts on the updated iPhone tomorrow, a few of the Apple faithful have taken position in front of the downtown San Francisco Apple store. At 8:30 a.m. Thursday, there were just two people and a tent.

Drinking a hot chocolate, and clad in a sport coat and tie, Dale Larson of San Francisco proclaimed the iPhone 3G launch would be "a way bigger deal this year than last … Read more

iPhone wannabes or smart alternatives? You decide

CORRECTION July 9 at 10:48 a.m. PDT: This article misstated the BlackBerry Bold's display type. It does not have a touch screen. The story has been updated to reflect this change.

Apple's iPhone 3G hits store shelves on Friday, but if you haven't been struck with iPhone fever, don't fret. There are plenty of alternatives that offer similar style and features. And they may even be easier on your wallet in the long run.

To some Apple fans, phones such as the Samsung Instinct or the HTC Diamond are simply iPhone wannabes. But to … Read more

T-Mobile rumored to be readying Android phone for 3G launch

Word in the blogosphere is that T-Mobile USA will include a Google Android phone as part of its nationwide 3G wireless network launch later this year.

Several blogs reported Monday that T-Mobile is set to offer service in some 20-plus cities starting October 1. And the carrier plans to include the HTC Dream smartphone as one of its first 3G phones to launch with the network, according to reports.

T-Mobile started offering 3G service in New York City in May. And the company said at the launch it would roll out the service in other top markets by the end … Read more

Google Talk comes to the iPhone, iPod Touch

Google is making its Google Talk instant-messaging application available for Apple's iPhone and iPod Touch.

One of Google's software engineers posted the news in a blog on Wednesday.

"In addition to sending your friends Gmail messages from your iPhone, you can now chat with them while you're on the move, too!" Adam Connors, of Google's mobile team said in the blog.

The application doesn't require any software to be installed or downloaded. Instead it works within the phone's browser, so users can simply go to the site www.google.com/talk, sign … Read more

The rising cost of texting

If you thought gas prices were rising too quickly, check out what's been happening to text messaging.

Since 2005, rates to send and receive text messages on all four major carrier networks have doubled from 10 cents to 20 cents per message. This percentage of increase is on par with similar price hikes at the gas pump as crude oil prices skyrocket. In 2005, Americans paid on average about $2.27 per gallon for gas compared with more than $4 a gallon today.

Last October, Sprint Nextel was the first to introduce the new price of 20 cents per … Read more