Mobile

In a move that could spark industry-wide change, Verizon is doubling its early termination fee - to $350 - making it more expensive for customers to bailout on their two-year contracts with the carrier.

Apple passed another impressive milestone Wednesday, announcing that 100,000 apps are now available for download for iPhone and iPod Touch owners. Not too shabby, Apple, considering your App Store launched in 2008 with only 500 applications available.

Gee willikers, have you heard? They've just invented a new device that can let you use Twitter, even if you aren't at a computer! This could be the biggest thing in made-to-be-obsolete technology since the standalone Wi-Fi text messenger!

Droid was looking like quite the contender with its QWERTY keyboard, 5MP camera, replaceable battery, turn-by-turn GPS and MicroSD slot. Droid and its 854x480 3.7-inch screen promised customers a viable alternative to AT&T's swamped network and the Apple's draconian app policies. Why did it have to spoil a good thing by punishing its Microsoft Exchange users with an additional $15 fee?

The clock is ticking to the release of the Droid, and its smaller brother the Droid Eris, this Friday from Verizon. The media is filled with rhetoric drawing comparisons between the Droid and the iPhone. Those stories miss the point that the real battle isn't between the Droid and the iPhone, but between Verizon and AT&T.

It's going to happen, the only question is when. The cable TV industry's monopolistic, anti-consumer practice of offering bloated, overpriced programming packages is coming mercifully to an end, brought down by a slew of more affordable options made possible by broadband Internet.

Motorola's Droid has a tough game of catch-up to play, but not as tough as what faces Palm's Pre as both challenge Apple's iPhone. Longer term, this may be a two horse race, with Android winning in the end and BlackBerry still chugging along.

The Droid is coming, the Droid is coming! No, not the Motorola Droid from Verizon. No, not the latest version of the Google Android operating system. I am talking about the Droid Eris, a modified HTC Hero, which will also be available from Verizon this week.

Sony Ericsson's rumored Android-based Xperia handset is expected to launch on Tuesday, with a brand new user interface codenamed Rachel. As we wait for the device to launch, two YouTube videos about the device have surfaced in recent weeks.

Too much, as least so early, is being made of the Motorola Droid's supposedly magical powers. Can a single handset "save" Motorola, launch a new operating system, and smite the evil Steve Jobs?