Bluetooth headsets

On a sultry New Orleans afternoon today, AT&T took over a century-old Garden District mansion to open the 2012 CTIA. Yes, the annual wireless confab doesn't formally open until tomorrow morning, but the news already is coming fast and furious. And though I don't arrive in the Big Easy until tomorrow either, a big CNET team is on the ground by the Mississippi. Here are the highlights of what they saw today. … Read more

Wireless charging isn't new, but the technology soon will get a new push from large industry players like Samsung and Qualcomm.

At CTIA in New Orleans today, the two companies announced the formation of the Alliance for Wireless Power (AWP). The organization will "promote global standardization of a wireless power transfer technology" by fostering an industry dialogue and developing a product testing, certification, and regulatory compliance processes.

Qualcomm first delved into wireless power three years ago when it announced the WiPower wireless charging system and Samsung said last week that it may deliver a wireless charging accessory … Read more

ORLANDO, Fla.--Day one at CTIA 2011 is done and despite a certain merger hanging over everyone's head, carriers and manufacturers didn't disappoint the crowd with new devices. A few announcements trickled out yesterday, but today was the day when companies rolled out the big guns. Here's a review of what we've seen so far.

For more day one coverage, check out Maggie Reardon's post on spectrum and this morning's keynote with the CEOs of AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon Wireless.

Sprint Like it has done the past few years, Sprint did its best to throw one of CTIA's biggest bashes. It started Monday making news even as much of the wireless nation was flying to Florida. The news that it would offer the first 4G (and first CDMA) Samsung Nexus S will please Android purists while Google Voice fans should welcome Sprint's plans to integrate the service into all of its phones.

Today, Sprint unveiled two additional Android devices, the Evo View and the Evo 3D. The former is a slightly revamped version of the HTC Flyer tablet that debuted last month as Mobile World Congress. Sprint kept almost everything, including HTC's Scribe technology, while adding WiMax support and a black finish. The Evo 3D meanwhile is a Gingerbread-equipped smartphone with the ability to record 3D video and shoots 3D still photos. … Read more

It's hard to believe another year has flown by since the last spring CTIA 2010 show in Las Vegas. Before we head to Orlando for CTIA 2011, it's time to reminisce about the mobile devices that dominated last year's lineup.

HTC Evo 4G

Sprint's HTC Evo 4G took our prize for best phone, and it's little wonder why. Besides kicking off the 4G phone craze by becoming America's first 4G phone, the Evo debuted with a large, brilliant 4.3-inch display, the latest Android OS at the time (2.1 Eclair), a speedy, 1 … Read more

Samsung has announced three new Bluetooth headsets--the HM1610, the HM3600, and the Modus 6450--each of which offers slightly different functions.

The Modus 6450, for example, is the second device in the Modus family of Samsung's stereo headsets. It can be worn either in a mono-style headset or attached to a second earbud for a more stereo audio experience. Obviously the Modus 6450 supports A2DP stereo audio. This improves upon the previous model with the support of an Android app called Samsung FreeSync, voice alerts, and additional EQ settings. It even has a dedicated Voice Command button. The FreeSync app offers text-to-speech capabilities, caller ID services, and other features.

A slightly lower-end option is the Samsung HM3600, which Samsung claims is designed with comfort in mind, with an on-ear design intended to minimize ear fatigue. It features voice prompts, dual-mic echo and noise cancellation, and more. The cheapest of the bunch, however, is the HM1610. It also offers noise reduction but only with a single mic. It also features A2DP streaming, wind noise reduction, and automatic volume adjustment. … Read more

We admit that we expected CTIA Fall 2010 to be rather slow, as the fall version of the wireless trade show is usually not as eventful as the one in the spring. Boy, were we wrong. More than 10 new devices made their debut this past week, pushing the holiday gadget season into full swing.

Motorola kicked off the festivities with the announcement of five new Android smartphones--three for AT&T and two for Verizon Wireless. They are the Motorola Bravo, the Motorola Flipside, the Motorola Flipout, the Motorola Citrus, and the Motorola Droid Pro. The Motorola Droid … Read more

Jabra recently released the Jabra Wave, an over-the-ear headset that promises to be comfortable and easy to wear. Though it might look a little Borg-like, Jabra claims it's lightweight. As for features, it boasts three-layer wind noise reduction, multipoint technology, and a Voice Guidance system.

Jabra also says it supports Jabra's World of Apps portal, which lets you find voice-enabled apps to use with the headset. The Wave will be available in red, black, and there'll also be a corded version. Verizon Wireless stores will get them first in November, though we don't know pricing yet. … Read more

Along with a cavalcade of handsets, Motorola also announced three new Bluetooth accessories at CTIA Fall 2010. They are the Motorola Finiti and Motorola CommandOne Bluetooth headsets, plus the Motorola Roadster, a Bluetooth car kit/speakerphone.

The Motorola Finiti has three microphones, which combine to cancel out wind and surrounding noise. There's also a stealth mode that will help convert your vocal vibrations into speech, which promises to be useful in especially noisy environments. This utilizes the bone conduction technology we saw in the Motorola HX1. With a special MotoSpeak 2.0 app for Android, you can also listen … Read more

As we pack our bags to leave Las Vegas, It's time to reflect on the CTIA that was. After a sleeper of a show last year, 2010 was quite eventful. The show floor was busier, the announcements were bigger, and there was more of a buzz permeating the Las Vegas Convention Center. It can be hard to keep track of it all, so here's a summary of what we saw.

4G Sprint and HTC grabbed most of the spotlight when they announced their new HTC Evo 4G. The Evo is more than just hype; it's slick and powerful and Sprint has a growing WiMax network (it might switch to LTE, however). Indeed, we liked it so much that we named it the top phone at CTIA. Yet, Sprint was not alone in pushing 4G; MetroPCS and Samsung announced the LTE-equipped SCH-r900 for Las Vegas and other markets later this year. Read Maggie Reardon's recent take on 4G for a great perspective on how the technology could develop. T-Mobile tried to counter the 4G news by promoting its 3G network and AT&T execs advocated for more spectrum.

Android Just like at CES and Mobile World Congress, Android went big at CTIA this year. We saw the first Android phone from Nextel, Kyocera's first Android handset, a Dell Android device, and the promising Samsung Galaxy S. Oh, and did we mention that the Evo 4G runs Android 2.1? Nice.

… Read more