News

The biggest news last week was the approval of the Unlocking Consumer Choice Act legislation by the the House of Representatives. Up until now, wireless carriers having been "locking" their devices, forcing customers to sign a new contract with them after their current one expires, rather than going to another carrier. The penalties for unlocking your phone are stiff, including fines and, believe or not, jail time. No longer though, once Obama signs the bill into law, which he is happy to do, cell phone owners will be able to change carriers and keep their phones when their contracts are up.

Apple's Q3 earnings report was issued on Tuesday. Even though they dipped from Q2, it was a record third quarter for iPhone sales. Much of the success was attributed to the 55% year-over-year increase in sales in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China).

There is a large mobile gaming presence at San Diego Comic Con this year and plenty of developers are showing off their upcoming mobile gaming lineups. Rovio Entertainment previewed Angry Birds Transformers, and AMC launched the first teaser trailer for The Walking Dead: No Man’s Land. Bandai Namco announced three titles at the event: Outcast Odyssey, Pac-Man Friends and Pac-Man Championship Edition DX. All three games will be available for mobile devices later this year. It was also announced that the original cast of Firefly would reunite to voice the upcoming online game based on the television show. You can check out the Firefly Online and the other SDCC trailers at the end of this post.

Marvel is offering 1-month of Marvel Unlimited for only $0.99 for a limited time, and the mobile game Uncanny X-Men: Days of Future Past is now only $1. Storm and Polaris were also added as playable characters along with the price decrease.

There were also a lot of iPad-only games released this week and the first Hearthstone expansion "Curse of Naxxramas" is now available. You can see a list of all the newly released iPad games here. The only one we missed was the strategy game Commander the Great War which launched later in the week. It is available now for $14.99 on the App Store.

Despite rumors that Apple's fabled iWatch could be delayed due to manufacturing difficulties, the company is widely expected to launch a wearable device later this year. In contrast to the next generation iPhone, there have been no parts leaks or photos to prove that an iWatch is actually nearing production.

Now AppleInsider reports that Apple has been granted a patent for a "Wrist-worn electronic device and methods therefor". The patent application details a device called iTime, providing the clearest indication yet that a watch is indeed in the works.

The Fire Phone was released on the AT&T network this week, roughly a month after the official announcement took place. Amazon is looking to compete with the likes of Apple, Samsung and others in the smartphone segment with a unique feature set. Initial reviews are already in, and the Amazon Fire Phone sounds less than groundbreaking.

At launch, the Fire Phone will come in 32GB and 64GB flavors for $199.99 and $299.99 respectively, with unlocked versions starting at $649. The device is exclusive to AT&T for the time being. According to some reviewers, those who are Amazon Prime subscribers or who often use other Amazon services will see more benefits from the Fire Phone.

It has long been a practice of wireless carriers to "lock" cell phones and other devices they sell to customers, so the customer can't leave them for another carrier. The U.S. House of Representatives today approved a bill that will outlaw that practice.

Legislation for the "Unlocking Consumer Choice Act" passed the Senate last week. President Obama will need to sign it into law, which he looks forward to: "The bill congress passed today is another step toward giving ordinary Americans more