Calculators were the original handheld computers, but unlike the whole PDA fad, they've had amazing staying power through their 40-year history -- to this day, buttoned-up dudes crunching numbers at wooden desks have HP 12Cs next to them not for the kitschy retro street cred, but because they're functional, familiar, and do exactly what they're expected to do. Thing is, even purpose-suited perfection can only carry a product for so many years; eventually, raw technology and a new generation of users with different expectations are going to conspire to tear down the status quo. HP was the first giant to recognize that it might be a good idea to have virtual versions of its products available for a more modern medium, porting the 12C and 15C to the iPhone; now, TI -- HP's archrival in the calculator business for decades -- is doing the same by offering its BAII Plus as a $14.99 download from the App Store. That's exactly the same price as the 12C, so come on, you HP and TI diehards -- duke it out and tell us which brand makes the better adding machine once and for all, won't you?

Ready for some more delicious Zune / Windows Mobile rumors after today's June Zune letdown? Well buckle up -- the always-sharp Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet says she's got specs for Windows Mobile 7 Chassis 1, the heart of that rumored "Pink" smartphone, and they're pretty wild. According to the list, Chassis 1 phones will all have 3.5-inch or larger multitouch displays with ARM v6+ processors and OpenGL ES 2.0-compatible graphics hardware, 256MB or more of RAM and 1GB or more of storage, as well as at least a 3 megapixel camera, GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, a compass, and accelerometer. Oh, and glory be -- a 3.5mm headphone jack is required. Here's the kicker, though: NVIDIA's Tegra platform is specifically listed as meeting the core CPU requirements, as well as TI's OMAP 3 platform and "Qualcomm 8k," which sounds to us like Snapdragon's QSD8xxx-series chips. If you've been following along, you know that all three of these (Tegra in particular) have been bandied about as potential Microsoft phone platforms, so it makes perfect sense to us that Microsoft's giving its hardware partners a choice of currently-available high-powered platforms for Chassis 1 -- especially since we've been hearing lots of whispers of hardware based on these chips in the works.

Here's the thing, though: we've also always been told that "Pink" is the codename for Zune software and services on Windows Mobile, so something tells us that Chassis 1 phones running Windows Mobile 7 will feature a strong dose of Zune flavoring -- a plan Steve Ballmer's repeatedly confirmed in the past year. So how do we think this all fits together? Well, we'll slightly revise our previous totally crazy, off-the-wall prediction: we think "Pink" is the codename for a new consumer-focused version of Windows Mobile that integrates Zune services, running not only on a touchscreen Zune HD, but on several third-party phones. Are we crazy? Yes, absolutely -- but you've got to admit the pieces are coming together.

We already know from our dealings at MWC that the Zoom 2 is a beast to be reckoned with, and that probably explains (at least in part) the Symbian Foundation's decision to deploy it as its first official reference design. Clearly, you're not going to see any retail devices looking much like this bad boy -- but for developers, the important thing here is that the Zoom 2 has pretty much all the gadgetry that you'd expect to see in a high-end model: WVGA display, capacitive touchscreen, HDMI out, WiFi, Bluetooth, FM transmitter, 3G radio, 8 megapixel cam, full QWERTY keyboard, and a top-of-the-line OMAP3430 core. Sure, it runs well over a grand for the kit -- but really, is that much more than an unlocked superphone costs these days? Anyhow, the hardware's said to be perfect both for those working on the operating system itself and on apps that'll use it, so save up that dough, would-be Idou devs.

Here's a murky report flushed from the bowels of rumor-dom that's sure to get investors into a tizzy as information and misinformation spreads. The Commercial Times, with its hit-or-miss record of rumor mongering is reporting that Compal Communications, "will be forced to postpone its shipments of smartphones to Palm from mid-year to the end of the year." It goes on to say that,

"Palm's two smartphones will be delayed as Compal is waiting for Qualcomm's new chipset solutions that will enable better performance."

Now, before you panic, keep a few things in mind. First, the article never specifically mentions the Pre which Palm has emphatically stated (just 3 days ago) is on track for launch in the first half of 2009. Also, DigiTimes which is re-reporting the rumor from the original Chinese-language source claimed last week that Chi Mei, not Compal, was doing the Pre assembly. Also note that Palm has stated that the Pre uses a TI OMAP processor making the Qualcomm quote a bit dubious. Our take? This rumor's bunk, at least as it applies to the Pre. We'll be getting a statement from Palm just as soon as they awake.

[Thanks, Herman M.]

Update: Palm just followed up with us on this, stating that there is "No change in our previously announced plan to have the Pre available in the first half of 2009." Phew!

The Engadget Spanish team just got their hands on the Samsung Show (the European, i7410 model) projector phone that we first caught a sneak peek of a CES. The Show's projector is powered by Texas Instruments' DLP pico technology, and though the fact that it packs a projector does increase the bulkiness of the phone as far as looks are concerned, the phone is still rather small and light. The Show can project an image of anywhere from five to fifty inches, with a 480 x 320 resolution. It's got a 3.2-inch WQVGA touchscreen, the TouchWiz UI and also boasts a 5 megapixel camera. There are plans for this bad dude to hit Asia and Europe (but no word on if it'll ever make its way to North America), but we still haven't heard when, nor how much it'll cost when it arrives. Check the video after the break.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

We were really impressed with Texas Instruments' OMAP 3-based mobile development platform when we saw it running Android earlier today, and the hardware seems to hold up well to all sorts of video-accelerated magic for a multitude of Linux-based interfaces. Not so much with Windows Mobile 6.5. Granted, this is a very early build of the OS according to Microsoft, and is lacking all sorts optimization mojo that will go into the final product due end-of-year-ish, but at the same time this is basically an interface skin to Windows Mobile 6 that Microsoft has had nearly a year to work on since 6.1, and it's not exaggerating to say that performance is a complete joke at the moment. TI's OMAP 3 was clearly struggling to handle basic scrolling of the home screen and app menu, though "smoothness" was slightly improved in scrolling through a gallery of photos. TI has been working with 6.5 for "a few months," and claims to have added optimizations to interface performance -- and interestingly is running this on a capacitive touchscreen device, something that isn't officially supported as far as we're aware. They're also saying that they plan on achieving full smoothness by the time this launches, but there's really a long way to go, and it's difficult to understand why this seems to be a last priority for Microsoft at the moment. On the other hand, TI is doing great things with its own 3D-accelerated interface, something which Windows Mobile 6.5 brings support for, so perhaps these will all one day (soon) meet in the middle and give us the sort of interface smoothness and usability we'd expect on a phone built a decade into this century. Check out the painful videos after the break.

We just got a great look at the potential of Android on Texas Instruments' new Zoom OMAP34x-II Mobile Development Platform, a sort of sexy cousin to Compulab's exeda. The OMAP3430-powered unit is being built by Logic and is meant for software developers to work on the OMAP3 chipset, but it's actually a pretty neat "device" in its own right, with a 4.1-inch WVGA capacitive touchscreen LCD, HDMI out, all sorts of connectivity, 16GB of storage, an SD card slot, large QWERTY keypad and an 8 megapixel camera. There's also a debug board with Ethernet, USB plugs and some other technical stuff. For $1150 developers can pick up a WiFi-only unit, and $1399 buys you a 3G unit -- consumers can buy 'em too, and we can imagine certain enthusiasts wouldn't mind the cost for what basically amounts to the ultimate Android device. The unit runs other flavors of Linux, but we're really in it for the Android, especially thanks to that screen. Wind River has been doing development on Android for a while, contributing to the original source code as part of the OHA, and one of its developers even ported Android to OpenMoko. They've got a refined Android interface running on the Zoom, which includes a tabbed application browser, fancier widgets and a spruced up unlock screen. They wouldn't consider what they're doing a skin or a port, but it's exactly the type of stuff that device manufacturers will be looking for to differentiate their Android-powered handset. Video of all the magic is after the break.

Right around this time last year, Texas Instruments was busy showing off its OMAP 3 platform, which enabled 720p playback from a mobile phone. At this year's MWC, we've got a real live handset recording 720p, and TI upping the ante once more with a chip that handles 1080p. For those still with us after being blasted with resolutions, the predictably titled OMAP 4 aims to bring 1080p support, 20 megapixel imaging and "approximately a week of audio play time" to mobiles and MIDs that house it. Granted, TI also calls this stuff "future-proof," so don't believe it's totally incapable of uttering some pretty outlandish stuff. At the heart of the platform is a dual-core ARM Cortex A9 chip, a programmable multimedia engine based on TI's C64x DSP and a POWERVR SGX540 graphics engine. We're told that it'll play nice with Linux variants such as Android and LiMo, Symbian and Windows Mobile, though it'll have to be mighty impressive to outgun NVIDIA's Tegra. Battle on, we say.

[Via Linux Devices]

It's not that hybrid GPS systems are all that new, it's just that most are working totally under the radar. Skyhook's hoping to get its rendition out in the open a tad more via a new partnership with Texas Instruments. The company's XPS hybrid positioning system is now cleared for integration within TI's NaviLink and WiLink mobile solutions, though there's no mention made of who all is drooling to get this into their phones. In short, Skyhook's XPS works by detecting WiFi hotspots, raw GPS readings and cellular IDs, and then comparing that information against a known database of geo-located points. In theory, this stuff could totally amp up the location abilities of most any handset, but in reality, we wouldn't be surprised to see it get swept away and forgotten just like the eerily similar announcement between Skyhook and Broadcom. Full release is after the break.

While DigiTimes tends to nail rumors focused on Taiwanese companies like Acer and ASUS, its component supplying sources can be hit or miss across other geographies. So take it with the usual lump of NaCl when talkative sources say that Nokia is increasing orders in March as it prepares to "launch several 3G and 3.5G products with multi-touch and multimedia functions in 2009" -- Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, and Synaptics being the chief beneficiaries. Of course, Nokia has been perfectly clear that its 5800 was the just the initial salvo in an onslaught of touchscreen devices to come and led by its flagship N97. Nevertheless, with profits down and the economy mired in the suck, it's nice to have confirmation (as tenuous as it is) that things are on track in Espoo.

Samsung's Show (formally known as the W7900) made a brief but resonating appearance at CES this year, and now, the lucky kids over at PopSci have managed to acquire a few more juicy specifications as well as a few moments of coveted hands-on time. The forthcoming projector phone, which is apt to land in South Korea first, includes a 3.2-inch OLED display (400 x 240 resolution), quad-band GSM connectivity, 7.2Mbps HSDPA, a five megapixel camera, support for video calling and the obligatory ten lumen projector that shoots 480 x 320 images out at up to 50 inches. The entire device measures in at 4.4- x 2.2- x 0.7-inches, and it actually doesn't emit a half bad image when the lights are all down. Have a look for yourself just after the break.

Is 2009 finally the year of the projector phone? Eh, not likely -- but there are finally a few models filtering into retail after years of talk, prototypes, and empty promises, including the Logic Bolt from independent manufacturer Logic Wireless and this puppy from Sammy. We're told that the aptly-named Show is inbound for release in South Korea before the end of the month, it runs Samsung's ubiquitous TouchWiz platform, and it packs DLP-based pico projector tech from TI, but that's about all we (and Samsung's US reps) seem to know about it. The projector can be used to view media stored in phone memory, pull up mobile TV via Korea's T-DMB airwaves, or simply project light, a function luddites may know better as a "flashlight." Most importantly, it actually isn't half-bad looking -- a symptom of a major manufacturer getting involved and throwing some won and industrial design staff at the thing, we bet.

We've already learned that the luxury handset sector ain't hurting even though the economy is (B&O notwithstanding), so it follows logic to see Vertu crafting a new line of covetable mobiles for the affluent. Reportedly, the Ferrari Ascent Ti collection will consist of three phones that all sport the iconic Ferrari logo along with a catchy paint job to further illustrate the automotive connection. The Nero will be all black, while the Rosso and Giallo will be red and yellow, respectively. Each handset features a scratch proof PVD and Ferrari-inspired themes / ringtones, none of which will really make 'em worth the asking price. Speaking of which, Vertu hasn't publicly disclosed a sticker just yet, but given that just north of 2,000 will be made, we'd say it'll be up there. Way up there.

[Via I4U News]