When Verizon Wireless decided last year to follow AT&T to eliminate its unlimited data plan for new customers, they allowed their exist customers to be “grandfathered” into their exist plans and retain their unlimited plans.  Many customers were reluctant to change their plans in order to retain the unlimited data plans regardless if they actually needed the capacity.  Today, Verizon announced their decision to eliminate the plan even for existing customers.  As a result, Verizon no longer offers any unlimited data plans for smartphones or tablet PCs.

Verizon Wireless had been aggressively rolling out their 4G LTE network in most metro cities.  As a result, it no longer made business sense to offer unlimited plans to their customers.   The 4G LTE connection is advertised as being 10x faster than the 3G connection.  Customers could effectively use the service as their primary internet connection at home with an unlimited data plan.

Understandably, this announcement has many customers up in arms and threatening to switch service.  But before jumping ship, let’s considers some facts.  I personally went into my Verizon Wireless account to check my data usage, and I found that I’ve only went over the 5Gb limit once in the last 6 months, and that was during March Madness where I was streaming NCAA basketball games over the course of about 4 weeks.  I think it’s fair to say the average user would not go over the 5GB limit if they’re not regularly streaming music or videos on their device.  If we compare the data plan prices against prices in other countries, the data plans that Verizon offers is actually fairly reasonable.  Data plans found for the large service providers in the UK,  such as Three, O2, and Orange, come out slightly higher than Verizon’s new plans.  For example, O2 offers an equivalent of around $14 per 1GB.

Although the move could ultimately cost the company some loyal customers, shareholders of the stock should applaud the decision.  Majority of the customers likely would not be affected by this change since the 5GB data plan should suite them just right.

In the latest round of the mobile phone titans clashing over patent infringements, Apple was successfully in blocking a large shipment of the highly anticipated HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G LTE phones.  The shipments has been held at  U.S. customs until further notice.

HTC had planned to launch the release of these two models this month, now that it might get delayed, investors think this could become a broader legal dispute and are now selling off the stock.  The HTC stock ,which is traded on the Taiwan stock exchange, has been selling off since this news went public, sending the stock down over 6.5%.

Prior to all the patent wars with Apple, HTC stock was flying high, trading at a peak of over $1,200.  But the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced a public patent war against HTC (and all Android based phones).  He vowed to take down its competition at all costs, even if it meant deploying all its $110B  (as of 2Q 2012) that AAPL currently has sitting in cash for the legal battle.

The blocked shipments obviously throws a wrench into the HTC’s plan of launching the new phones.  AT&T had already begun selling the HTC One X on May 6th.  They are selling the phone for $199 with a 2 year contract and $549 without contract.  The AT&T wireless website is now currently listing the phone as “temporarily out of stock” for both the white and gray models.

HTC had also planned the release of the highly anticipated HTC EVO 4G LTE this Friday (May 18th), the snafu will undoubtedly push back the release date.  Sprint lists the phone as a similar price point as the One X at $199 for 2 year contract and $549 without contract.  It is also curently listed as  “sold out” on the Sprint website.

What do you think of Apple’s dispute with HTC and the broader Android community?  Feel free to comment below!

We are still waiting for the official update to Google preset latest version of Android, the Android 4.0 or the Ice Cream Sandwich, and we are already talking about the next Android 5.0 today. Yes, Android 5.0 is already in the news and it is a good news. It has been Google’s tradition to make a phone its flagship phone for all the major updates it releases. Over the years, there has been the HTC Nexus One, Samsung Nexus S, and the latest Samsung Galaxy Nexus. Each of these phone represent one new version of the operating system and each of these phones run the pure, unadulterated version of the operating system without any manufacturer or carrier overlay on the operating system.

But now, Google is all set to change the tradition of only one Nexus device per new version of the operating system with five new Nexus phones featuring the new Android 5.0. This is a good news, indeed. This would mean that each Android smartphone manufacturer would be able to release one of the Google flagship devices and by that, each manufacturer would be given equal importance. There is a word that Google would start favoring Motorola Mobility once (or if) it buys the company. This opinion would change if the company decides to support all the manufacturers.

Also, by doing this, each manufacturer would be able to get familiarized with the new operating system and would be able to make custom overlays for the newest version of Android easily. This would in turn lead to the manufacturing of new and better smartphones by each manufacturer and therefore, the Android ecosystem would improve vastly. This is a good vision.

And as the rumors say, there would also be a Nexus tablet from Asus which would be running the pure version of Android 5.0 for tablets. This would be just great. The new Android 5.0 will be coming out this fall. So the wait is ON.

If you are a BlackBerry owner and have an older version of the BlackBerry OS, like the BlackBerry OS 6.0 or older, it is for sure that you are outdated and that you are missing a lot of fun on the newer versions of the operating system. It is always important to upgrade to a better and newer operating system as the new ones always provide performance improvements and sometimes new graphics and stuff. Yes, that is important.

So, today, BlackBerry itself has come up with a list of reason as to why you have to upgrade to at least BlackBerry operating system version 7.0, although the new one, which is the BlackBerry OS 10, is already in the works. The first reason that Research in Motion (RIM), the manufacturer of BlackBerry, gives is the browser. The browser is a very important part of a smart phone, that too a phone like the BlackBerry. The Webkit based browser found on the newer BlackBerry OS 7.o is a lot better than the older versions found on the BlackBerry OS 6.0 and older. With new features, your browsing experience would change a lot.

The second reason that the Canadian smart phone manufacturer gives is the new and improved and smooth graphics found on the newer BlackBerry OS 7.0 compared to the older BlackBerry OS 6.0. The new graphics make complete use of the processing power that the hardware of the phone delivers to give the best user experience that the phone can provide. Also, the new graphics are more appealing to a user with more meaningful icons for the apps on the phone.

The third reason that the company gives is the touch screen. It is true that not all phones from BlackBerry come with a touch screen, even today. But the ones that have a touch screen will work a lot better with the newer BlackBerry OS 7.0, as the OS has been optimized a bit for this type of form factor and technology. So if you are looking for a way better user experience on your phone, it is your turn to upgrade your phone today.

Apple comes into the patent war again, and it is not Samsung for a change this time. The Cupertino tech giant has target another major Android phone manufacturer, HTC this time. The phones under question are the new HTC One X and the HTC Evo 4G LTE. So if you have been waiting to buy any one or both of these phones, you will have to wait a bit more longer. The problem is that Apple has filed another complaint against HTC regarding the way phone numbers are linked to the dialer app that come pre installed on HTC phones.

HTC says that this issue had been resolved long back earlier this year and also that it has already complied to the ITC about this. But it looks like there still is some problem, and ITC is not letting the imports of these phones into the United States for the time being. So until this issue is resolved, you can forget getting your hands on one of these phones in the United States.

SlashGear has received the following statement: “The US availability of the HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G LTE has been delayed due to a standard U.S. Customs review of shipments that is required after an ITC exclusion order. We believe we are in compliance with the ruling and HTC is working closely with Customs to secure approval. The HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G LTE have been received enthusiastically by customers and we appreciate their patience as we work to get these products into their hands as soon as possible.”

It is not clear as to when the issue might be resolved and when HTC might get the permit to import millions of these units inside the United States. Until then, you will have to suffice yourselves but reading, watching, and listening about the phones.

I know that almost all of you have been waiting for the new Android 4.0, or Ice Cream Sandwich update for a long time now. Most of you might already have been rooted your phones and installed one of different available repack ROMs and a custom ROM on top of it just to enjoy the awesomeness of the newest kid in the block. I have also done this and I know how it feels to have the latest operating system operating on your smart phone, making it even more smarter. But even if you do this, the official update that you get from your smartphone’s manufacturer or your wireless network carrier is even more better as it would be specifically made for your phone and also would be very stable.

So, getting the update is important. But when do we get it? Well, that is a very big question and a question which is difficult to answer. But looks like Samsung has been listening to your prayers. The South Korean smart phone giant has released a list of T Mobile Samsung Android phones that are shortlisted to get the update to the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich soon enough. The update though, could take a while to come.

“Samsung is in close communication with both Google and our carrier partners to upgrade devices to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich as quickly and as smoothly as possible,” the company wrote on its website. So, it is not yet clear of how soon the update will be released, but it is for sure that the short listed devices will get the update for sure. By the way, the devices are Galaxy S II, Galaxy S Blaze 4G, Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus and Galaxy Tab 10.1.

So, how many of you are still waiting for this official release and how many of you have already flashed a custom ICS ROM?

LG has never been a major player in the smartphone market, not in the Android market for sure. With players such as Samsung, HTC, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson, it is difficult for LG to compete in the competitive world of today. But we are seeing a lot of hot and powerful Android smartphones coming out of the company’s stables from a few weeks. We saw that new LG Optimus LTE 2, which takes the credit of being the world’s first phone to have 2 GB of RAM.

Also, LG LS970 Eclipse is one awesome phone that is still in the pipeline for future release, the specs of which can melt the heart of any Android smartphone lover like ice cream. But that apart, LG is back in the news for another awesome phone, and this time, it is in the competition with Samsung’s new Galaxy S III and HTC’s new One X. Yes, the new LG Optimus 4X HD has an Nvidia Tegra 3 quad core processor running at 1.5 GHz which will for sure give the said two phones some competition.

Android Authority writes:

LG Optimus 4X HD will sport a 4.7-inch IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen with 1280 x 720 pixels resolution and will feature a quad-core 1.5 GHz Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, as well as 8 MP/1.3 MP dual cameras, 1 GB of RAM, 16 GB of on-board memory, a 2140 mAh battery, a microSD card slot, and Android 4.0 ICS out of the box.

Yes, that is what the LG Optimus 4X HD will bring with it. Isn’t that impressive? It sure is for me, expect the screen size though. I have been sued to the big 5.3 inch screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note and the 4.3 inch screen of my HTC Desire HD also looks a bit smaller to me. You just get used to it.

Anyway, the LG Optimus 4X HD will go on sale in select European countries by the end of June, these countries are Germany, Sweden, Great Britain, Italy, and Poland. Countries in Asia and South and Central American will receive the phone in the coming months, no exact date or month here. So be prepared to welcome this awesome piece of technology.

The new HTC One X is for sure an awesome device. The phone comes with awesome Nividia Tegra 3 quad core processor, the Beats Audio system, an awesome 4.3 inch HD display, and an 8 mega pixel camera. But the cost of the phone is also very high. Not all people will be able to afford such a high end phone, but people will want to have a phone with features such as the new age Android 4.0, or Ice Cream Sandwich and the pleasure of listening to music on the Beats Audio system. For this, HTC has come up with the new HTC Desire C.

The new HTC Desire C brings the fun of using the new Android 4.0, also known as Ice Cream Sandwich, and the pleasure of listening to the heart thumping music on the Beats Audio system. But the phone has some limitations on other fronts. The phone comes with a 3.5-inch, HVGA (320 x 480 pixel) display and a 5 mega pixel camera. So you will have come short a few features to get some other awesome features. But at least, there is a phone with very good desirable features at the right price.

The phone will also have the awesome HTC Sense UI version 4.0. But we doubt that this would be the same HTC Sense 4.o that is found on the HTC One X, but this would be an altered version of the same app. Also, the company has not released any info on the processor used in the phone or the internal storage of the phone. So if the internal storage is low, you will have to use a micro SD card to put all your songs in.

In any case, this is a very nice phone and it is hitting the store in the UK in black and white colors next month. T-Mobile UK has revealed that it will be free with a monthly plan of 15.50 GBP or more, or available on pay-as-you-go for 169.99 GBP. A red version will be available in international markets.

If you are one of the early adopters of the newly announced Samsung Galaxy S III, then you would be eagerly waiting to get as close as you want to the handset and as soon as possible. If you are one of the geeky persons who likes to dwell on their future toys, then you would be really happy to know that the official and complete manual for the Samsung Galaxy S III is now available for download, and it is from the manufacturer Samsung itself.

The manual is for the generic version of the handset which will be released with out any wireless carrier crapware and carrier specific hardware built into it. So the manual will change once the Samsung Galaxy S III hits wireless carrier stores in different parts of the world. Right now, the manual is a good 186 pages long book, or you may even call it as 186 pages short novel. This is at least what we can expect from it.

The device will be launching in the Europe on the 29th of May, that just leaves a few days time for you people to study the whole manual and get familiarized with the phone by the time it comes to your hands, if you are in Europe that is and if you have pre ordered it. If you are in the North America, you have a bit more time as the Samsung Galaxy S III will not be hitting your shores till next month.

As Verizon has recently shown us all, it would be very wrong to expect any changes in the phones which come locked to a particular wireless carrier. Any thing may happen. The phone could be changed both in the hardware, and in the software, and this guide, which is for the pure and generic version, may just go waste. Still, if you want to download it, click here.

If you are Twitter user and an owner of an Android phone, you have plenty of options for a Twitter client on your phone. And I am pretty much sure that you would have tried at least three of them, the official Twitter app, the TweetDeck app, and the TweetCaster or the Seismic app. For a few years, TweetDeck was an independent company, and it was one of the best known Twitter clients on almost all major platforms. The app started as a desktop client for Windows, then extended to Mac and Linux.

Then, the mobile revolution had started and the TweetDeck app was migrated to iPhone as well. Later, and lastly, the app hit the Google Play Store, then the Android Market. Once this came in, the popularity or the importance of the official Twitter app in the Android ecosystem lost its place. Less and less people wanted to use the official Twitter client as the new TweetDeck offered a lot of awesome features, creating of new columns and maintaining notifications preferences for each of these columns. So, probably, the development of the official Twitter client was suppressed as Twitter bought TweetDeck later.

Now, the official Twitter app is back with some bug fixes which were, actually, were silly bugs. And the bugs mainly affected the older version of Android, the Eclair. But none the less, the update is worth having on all the versions of Android. The update has  fixed a bug causing profile images not to load on Eclair devices, a fix for top tweets appearing out of order in the Search and Discovery views,  and a fix for sync settings.

If you are wanting to download the new version and update the app on your Android phone or tablet, you can download the updated app from the Google Play Store directly.