Cab-hailing apps get green light in NYC

Clearing the way for services like Uber, an appellate court Thursday lifted a temporary injunction on New York City's pilot plan to allow travelers to hail yellow cabs via smartphone. The plan, which challenges the traditional curbside street hail, has faced strong opposition from New York's livery and black-car operators.

Uber had just launched its New York taxi-hailing pilot program at the end of April when the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division issued the emergency injunction.

Today's news came just hours after another related legal victory for Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration. His plan to expand … Read more

BlackBerry: Messenger won't reach iOS, Android on June 27

Updated at 10 a.m. PT with a headline change noting that BlackBerry is disputing T-Mobile's initial claim.

It looks like iOS and Android won't be able to download BlackBerry Messenger come June 27 after all.

Earlier on Thursday, T-Mobile U.K. tweeted that BBM would indeed be available for iOS and Android come June 27, even serving up an image of a BBM conversation running on a Samsung Android phone. However, that tweet has since been taken down, calling into question the accuracy of the information.

And a BlackBerry representative told CNET: "That date is completely … Read more

White House defends snooping of Verizon phone records

The White House is defending the decision to collect the telephone records of U.S. citizens by labeling it an anti-terrorist measure.

The move by the National Security Agency to gather the phone records of Verizon customers was revealed on Wednesday by U.K. newspaper The Guardian. A court's top-secret order forced Verizon to hand over information about domestic and overseas calls "on an ongoing daily basis."

The court order, which can be seen on The Guardian's Web site, forces Verizon to release all call details or "telephony metadata" created by the carrier for … Read more

Apple, others to meet with law enforcement over violent phone thefts

With violent street thefts of smartphones and other mobile gear continuing to be a problem, top law enforcement officials from New York and San Francisco will meet with Apple, Google, and other manufacturers next week to discuss possible tech solutions, such as a "kill switch" that would render stolen devices worthless.

"With 1.6 million Americans falling victim to smartphone theft in 2012, this has become a national epidemic," San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon said in a press release Wednesday. "Unlike other types of crimes, smartphone theft can be eradicated with a simple technological … Read more

AT&T launches 4G LTE in 22 new markets

AT&T confirmed on Wednesday that another 22 markets have officially started seeing the network's 4G LTE data speeds.

The news arriving just one week after announcing network coverage for 200 million people, AT&T's LTE footprint now tallies 261 markets across the country.

The new markets are:

Batesville, Ark. Blytheville, Ark. Forrest City, Ark. Colorado Springs, Colo. Clewiston, Fla. Blackfoot, Idaho Idaho Falls, Idaho Pocatello, Idaho Rexburg, Idaho Columbus, Ind. Fort Wayne, Ind. Seymour, Ind. Muskegon, Mich. Vineland, N.J. Farmington, N.M. Wooster, Ohio Miami, Okla. Williamsport, Pa. Texarkana, Texas Heber, Utah Olympia, Wash. … Read more

Newly minted Odin Mobile sells phones for the blind

People with visual impairments just got a new champion in the cell phone world. Odin Mobile launched on Wednesday with a vision of bringing specialized cell phones to customers with limited eyesight.

Accessibility features -- inputs meant especially for those with special needs -- are baked into nearly every cell phone and smartphone, but the three handsets that Odin Mobile stocks in its online shelves are specifically created for blind and low-vision customers.

The Huawei Vision ($300), a Project Ray device backed by Qualcomm and built on an Android phone, was designed specifically for the blind.

Phone owners will navigate … Read more

FreedomPop goes freebie with new mobile service

FreedomPop, provider of "freemium" services including free broadband and 4G, has announced a mobile service that gives users free voice, text and data usage without a contract.

FreedomPop's new service will give users a guaranteed 500MB of 4G data for free, unlimited texts, and 200 voice minutes per month. Users registered on the network will also be given free unlimited calls to each other. The service will launch later this summer on several phones running Google's Android operating system.

The service will enable the first-ever all-data devices running 100 percent VoIP over cellular networks, according to … Read more

Sony Xperia M landing in Q3

Electronics manufacturer Sony ended a relatively quiet period today by announcing a new Xperia M smartphone. Judging from its dual-core processor and 5MP camera, clearly the Xperia M is a midrange Android handset and not in the same class as the company's Xperia Z flagship device. … Read more

Lenovo in talks with smartphone party for joint venture

Lenovo told its shareholders in a statement Tuesday that it's in talks with a smartphone maker to engage in a possible joint venture.

"The Board would like to inform the shareholders of the Company and potential investors that the Company is in preliminary negotiations with a party in connection with a potential joint venture transaction," Lenovo wrote (PDF). "As at the date of this announcement, no material terms concerning the Potential Transaction have been agreed and the Company has not entered into any definitive agreement in relation to the Potential Transaction."

The business-speak aside, Lenovo … Read more