Wireless charging company Splashpower goes bust

UK-based wireless charging technology company Splashpower has gone out of business. In a press release, it cited the reason as being unable to secure funding, and is offering up the company for sale to interested parties.

About two months back, MWg announced it would be partnering with Splashpower to provide wireless charging for its products in the middle of this year. We contacted MWg to find out how this would affect its plans. As expected, MWg said it could not comment at this point as it is still discussing plans with Splashpower. We'll bring you more information as updates become available.

Via Engadget

HTC lowers flagship model's price

Current HTC TyTN II users got the good news that their devices will receive an official upgrade to Windows Mobile 6.1. Now, here's the icing on the cake for potential owners--HTC has lowered the retail price to S$1,188, down from its original of S$1,348. This will come into effect tomorrow, so those who were planning to get one today, breathe a sigh of relief and wait one more day. Price cuts for the TyTN II have also been announced in Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia, so if you are in one of those countries, check with your local HTC office for the new price.

Though we know HTC does this as a habit (reduce retail prices after a period on the market) for many of its products, it's uncanny that it came at a time when Samsung just released its SGH-i780, which trumps all other Windows Mobile PDA-phones for value at S$828. That's fine by us--let the companies duke it out, while consumers reap lower prices across the category.

Iron Man gets his own phone

It seems as if the hype over Iron Man has been going on forever, so we're surprised that it's taken this long for someone to release a phone dedicated to the movie. (Side note: Are we the only ones who think Robert Downey Jr. is totally miscast?)

Like other promotional movie phones, including Homer Simpson's cellie, this customized LG Shine will bear the colors of its hero and include exclusive footage from the film. The main difference is that this handset is finished in 18k gold (not iron) and will be given away in an online drawing, according to Pocket-lint, which spotted it on display at the CTIA trade show in Vegas.

As for us, we're holding out for the next Superman movie to see if they issue phones made of kryptonite.

Via Crave CNET

"Super lens" for phone photographers?

Any kind of photographic quality claims attributed to phone cameras and other combo devices should be taken with a pound of salt, but the trend probably won't be going away anytime soon. But little did we know that people would go to great lengths, literally, to give their phone cams more lens power.

The latest example is a kit from Japan-based Green-House, which includes a super lens that it claims has an 8x zoom along with a handset clamp and tripod, according to Gadgetell. Yet if this kind of unwieldy appendage really becomes popular, we wonder if it just makes more sense to design a camera that adds a phone and other functions, rather than the other way around.

Via Crave CNET

Nokia's Prism gets new angle: A clamshell

It's been several months since we first saw Nokia's geometrically influenced Prism mobile phones, and we're still not sure how we feel about those odd triangular and diamond-shaped buttons. And just to make matters more confounding, the handset maker has come out with a clamshell model that looks even weirder.

The 7070 Prism is a more affordable version of its high-end siblings, which even acquired some French artistry earlier this year. MobileWhack says the US$80 clamshell isn't all that different either--other than the folding form, of course--including such features as a built-in speaker, voice recorder, and support for MP3 ringtones.

Pricing aside, the next iteration seems obvious: An entire handset shaped like a triangle.

Via Crave CNET

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