Canada's Bell and Telus are going hog wild with handset selection since the launch of their new Rogers-matching (if not beating) 21Mbps HSPA network -- one need look no further than the launch of the LG BL40 for evidence of that -- but there's at least one glaring issue: Bell's yet to launch an Android set. That puts 'em at a distinct disadvantage against Telus, which already has an HSDPA 860 / 1900 cut of the HTC Hero on shelves -- but it looks like that won't be an issue for long. A scanned poster that's apparently already up in Bell stores has turned up on the ever-reliable interwebs this week clearly showing Samsung's Galaxy posing alongside the already-launched Omnia II and Impact; the carrier doesn't do us the favor of mentioning a date here, but it can't be long -- wouldn't want to lose the Google lovers to Telus and Rogers, right?

Just weeks after Palm's Pre sunk to CAD $149.95 on Bell, the outfit's first-ever webOS phone has now stooped to just CAD $99.95. That still requires a 3-year contract, of course, but man -- a single bill for a smartphone like the Pre? Anyone tossing out guesses on how long it takes Sprint to follow suit (and embarrass the Pixi)?

[Thanks, David]

As expected, Bell lit up its shiny new HSPA network today, officially marking a magical transition from CDMA to 3G GSM over a year in the making as it prepares for an LTE upgrade in the coming years, and with it, a few cool phones launched -- most notably the iPhone 3GS and the Samsung Omnia II (you listening, Verizon?). That's not what really caught our eye, though: like Rogers, Bell's now offering video calling, a feature standardized with UMTS and arbitrarily disabled both by T-Mobile and AT&T in the States (though the latter offers the far less useful one-way Video Share service at $4.99 a month for just 25 minutes of usage). Granted, video calling hasn't exactly caught on like wildfire in Europe where it's widely deployed -- but when you consider that they're charging CAD $5 (about $4.70) a month for unlimited use, it seems like a worthwhile add-on even if you only use it for a few minutes now and then. It also makes AT&T Video Share -- and its pricing structure -- look even more ridiculous than it already did, doesn't it?

One-half of the worst-kept secret in all of Canada over much of the last year -- the HSPA networks being prepped by Bell and Telus -- is finally launching in just two short days' time. Bell has announced that its shiny new 21Mbps airwaves will be available to the public at large starting November 4, along with a host of devices ready to take full advantage of it; perhaps most impressive, though, is that they'll be covering fully 93 percent of the country's population out of the gate, which should make the new network a viable option immediately for would-be switchers. Your move, Rogers.

[Thanks, Shawny]

Bell and Telus are both making quick work of forgetting their legacy CDMA networks and bringing gobs of sexy, high-profile devices to their new HSPA digs -- presumably in an effort to get folks switched over as quickly as possible and steal Rogers customers posthaste -- and the latest is Samsung's Omnia II, which will be coming to Bell in GSM form (despite the fact that Verizon is bringing a CDMA version to market). Featuring a 3.7-inch WVGA AMOLED display, 5 megapixel cam, WinMo 6.5, and 16GB of storage on board, the phone definitely rests at or near the top of the current WinMo crop -- but the real news here is the fact that the phone has just been selected as the Official Mobile Device of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games, which we suppose means you can use it with pride while bobsledding, lugeing, curling, slaloming, or whatever other arctic sports you enjoy. Pricing hasn't been announced, but the phone will be available this month; let's just hope that Olympic endorsement doesn't drive up the MSRP, eh?

What good is a brand new 21Mbps beast of a network without some hardcore data devices ready to take advantage of it? Not much good at all, which is why Canada's Bell Mobility is Johnny-on-the-spot this week with a couple hardware announcements. First up, there'll be an aptly named HSPA+ Turbo Stick, which -- you guessed it -- is a USB stick capable of blazing along at HSPA+ speeds. Next up, lucky customers will be getting the MiFi 2372 from Novatel, the North American 3G version that we'd all love for AT&T to launch at some point. Both devices will be swinging by in November, just in time to christen the brand new towers on a high note.

Anyone in Canada who took a wait-and-see approach with the Pre can do a little dance of joy now that Bell's finally dropped the phone by CAD $50, which means you're now looking at CAD $149.95 (about $143) on a three-year deal. That's still a far cry from the $99.99 you can pay these days on Sprint, especially considering that you're talking about a two-year contract there, but who knows -- maybe Bell's not bothering to compete too hard on the CDMA arena as it starts putting some serious marketing force behind its HSPA spectrum in the next few months. At least this gives the Pixi some breathing room on pricing if Bell decides to launch it, we suppose.

[Via Palm Infocenter]

It's official, Bell and Apple have agreed to sell the iPhone 3G and 3GS in Canada starting November. The move ends the Rogers exclusive in while christening Bell's new 3G network with Apple's darling. Hmm, first O2 lost it exclusivity then Rogers, we're sensing a trend.

[Thanks, Sean]

Rogers is losing its iPhone exclusivity in Canada next month, if a new report by The Globe and Mail is to be believed. Telus and Bell -- traditionally CDMA-bound -- have been prepping GSM networks of their own in a joint effort, and it sounds like they'll be getting this off on the right foot with the iPhone 3GS as a launch device. Nothing's official just yet, but those in the know expect an announcement tomorrow or Wednesday. Rogers isn't the best-loved carrier in Canada, and a bit of choice never hurt anybody, so this seems like pretty good news all-round for our friendly northern neighbors

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Unfortunately for those on the hunt for nitty-gritty details, the headline here just about says it all. In a shockingly vague release from Microsoft, the Redmond-based giant has announced that the first batch of Windows Mobile 6.5 handsets will launch on October 6th, or around three weeks after its Zune HD. If we're reading this correctly, it looks as if this round of cellies will be the first to be called "Windows phones," and aside from promising "new customer experiences" and superior browsing capabilities, they'll also feature Windows Marketplace for Mobile (an app store), Microsoft My Phone (a backup service) and Office Mobile. As for what phones we'll see, all we're told is that HTC, HP, LG, Samsung, Toshiba, Sony Ericsson and a few other big time players are onboard, with just about every carrier in the world (save for T-Mobile USA) also voicing their support.

[Via MobileTechWorld]

Update: AT&T has informed us that starting on September 14th, customers with Wi-Fi-enabled Windows Mobile smartphones and unlimited / other qualifying data plans will receive unlimited access to AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots nationwide.

With the latest installment of Bell's "Meet my Palm Pre" series, paid spokesman Bradley here has basically guaranteed himself that he'll be visited by elderly American roller girls with bad attitudes and a taste for justice. Some of the gruesome highlights:

"Unlike our neighbors to the south, Canadians are an active people."
"Coupe de Kill is kinda scary. I should probably get out of here before she goes on Twitter."
"According to Wikipedia, this game was first played in 1299. And, uh, I think some of these people were maybe there."

Follow the break for the video.

[Via MobileSyrup]

Right on schedule, the Palm Pre has started shipping to Bell Mobility customers. The Bell exclusive marks the first international launch of Palm's little savior and to celebrate, we've got commercials -- a pair of knee-slappers featuring real live Canadians. And you thought that the mirror on the back of the Pre was only for the ladies.

Networks in the GSMA's technology path have an easier time roaming around the world (whether pricing is easy on the wallet is another story altogether) -- but naturally, you've got to have the roaming agreements in place to make the globetrotting a reality. Up in Canada, Bell's wasting now time getting those deals lined up so that customers are good to go the moment it flips the switch and lights up its brand-spanking-new HSPA network as it makes the transition from CDMA; specifically, it's announced during its second quarter earnings call that it has hooked up with AT&T for a symbiotic relationship that'll let Bell customers roam on AT&T's network and vice versa. Interestingly, the agreement allows Bell's phones to roam both on HSPA and legacy GSM in the States while AT&T customers will be strictly HSPA when they're on Bell, reinforcing two things: one, Bell's likely lined up to be North America's first commercial UMTS network without legacy compatibility, and two, Bell's phones -- at least some of them -- will rock GSM / EDGE for use abroad (we should certainly hope so).

[Via MobileSyrup]

Up until now, Bell's been coy about an exact availability date for the Palm Pre -- a tactic borrowed from Sprint prior to its release -- so we're happy to hear that they've finally decided on August 27 to get it out of the door. It'll run CAD $199.95 (about $187) on a three-year deal, ramping all the way up to $599.95 contract-free with a minimum 500MB / month data plan (trust us, you'll want every megabyte of it). Preorders are now being accepted online and in Bell stores, so if you want it on day one, you might want to get moving on that.

Bell and Telus probably weren't so hot on the idea of LG blowing the cover on their August releases, but for what it's worth, we're certainly happy that the manufacturer's Canadian site saw fit to unveil a pair of new sets in all their glory. Actually, the Keybo2 is really nothing more than an enV3 (dressed a little warmer for its Canadian excursion, of course) that should be hitting Telus in a few days' time; like its American cousin, it makes off with a 3 megapixel cam, EV-DO, and a pair of displays with QWERTY on the inside. The Bliss for Bell might be the more interesting of the two, a full-touch dumbphone that clocks in at 11.95mm deep with a 2 megapixel camera and that's about it -- not Earth-shattering specs by any means, but a solid sign that manufacturers are aggressively looking to take the full-touch concept downmarket. MobileSyrup says we can expect both of these on the 7th of the month, so if they've got you fired up, you shouldn't have long to wait.

[Via MobileSyrup]

Read - LG Bliss
Read - LG Keybo2