As reported here on Cell Phones Etc. and across the Web, here’s your daily brief on what happened in the world of mobile phones this Tuesday, June 21st, 2011.
LG Optimus 2X Tipped For WIND, Soon To Be Announced
The phone was spotted with the WIND logo by the guys over at MobileSyrup, which means that the device’s launch is imminent. However, it will be interesting to see the phone’s price, as Videotron is currently retailing the Optimus 2X for as low as $199.95 with a monthly service fee of 40$ or more or for $529.95 upfront.
Softpedia
Nokia And Accenture Seal Symbian Handover Deal
The Is have been dotted, the Ts have been crossed with a flourish, and pretty soon Nokia will have very little indeed to do with its formerly beloved Symbian OS. Oh sure, the company promises to keep it going with such standout devices as the Oro, but responsibility for developing and supporting Symbian is being wholly handed over to Accenture, along with 2,800 employees. When announced back in April, the deal called for 3,000 Nokia worker bees to make the jump over, so we suspect a few more (hopefully voluntary) redundancies are making up the difference with the new number. Now that everything’s been finalized, you can expect the switchover to take place in “the early part of October.”
Engadget
Apple iPhone 5 To Be Major Update After All; Announcement And Availability In August?
While Apple has indeed been giving some developers access to a device known as the iPhone 4S — an iPhone 4 with upgraded internals — BGR has independently confirmed that the next-generation iPhone will not merely be an upgraded iPhone 4 as had been previously rumored. We have been told by a reliable source to expect a radical new case design for the upcoming iPhone, though we have not been given any additional details surrounding the design of the new iPhone case. The consensus is that Apple is going to announce the next-generation iPhone at the company’s annual September event.
BGR
RIM Cuts 200 Jobs In Waterloo, Report Says
Reports today reveal that Waterloo-based Research In Motion has started their “headcount reduction” by letting go of 200 employees. In total there are over 17,500 employees, but 9,000 are located in Waterloo. While 200 may not seem like a big number when compared to the total number of employees… this is not good for RIM, nor the affected families or the Canadian economy. RIM announced last week that they’ll “streamline operations” and cut an unannounced number of jobs. The plan is that this “Cost Optimization Program” will get back on track to focus on offering new products/services that have the “highest growth opportunities”.
MobileSyrup
5 Big Trends In Mobile Commerce
Investment and innovation in the mobile commerce space may be superseding awareness and demand, according to a study provided to Mashable by Group SJR and Liz Claiborne Inc. The survey was conducted among 801 18- to 64-year-olds who consider themselves mobile shoppers. (Mobile shoppers being loosely defined as anyone who uses a phone, including a maps application, to aid with shopping.) Of those surveyed, 660 were smartphone owners; the remaining 141 were feature phone owners; 230 participants also owned a tablet.
Mashable
