T-Mobile USA has launched its 3G wireless network in New York City today. Other major markets will get 3G coverage later in the year. The service is currently restricted to four models, Nokia’s 3555 and 6263, and Samsung’s t819 and t639. These phones allow Web browsing and downloading at speeds twice that of non-3G T-Mobile phones. Later this year T-Mobile will launch handsets that are four times as fast as non-3G models. The future releases will utilize High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), which allows speeds of around 600 kilobits per second.

BlackBerry smart phones with HSDPA won’t be available until next year, said Neville Ray, senior vice president of engineering and operations at T-Mobile USA.

T-Mobile’s network isn’t compatible with other HSDPA phones because T-Mobile’s spectrum in the United States differs from phones sold by AT&T and overseas manufactures. T-Mobile bought its licenses in a 2006 government auction but has had to wait before getting the 3G network up and running. Much of the spectrum it bought was being used by defense and law enforcement and it has taken time for these entities to give-up the airwaves.

“It’s been a tough road, but they’ve been very cooperative in recent months,” said Ray. The speed of the rollout of 3G to other cities is now more dependent on how fast the company can get new equipment up and running, he added.

Microsoft’s Tellme subsidiary launched a voice activated directory for the BlackBerry yesterday. Users can talk into the device and say the name of a business, type of business, or keywords like “weather”, “movies”, “traffic”, “map” or “driving directions.” The application then uses GPS to locate the BlackBerry and give out information from Microsoft’s Live Search engine to the phone’s screen. Users can get directions, buy movie tickets and do other fun stuff.

The application only works on newer BlackBerry models. It is currently advertisement-free, but in the future ads will be delivered to support the system.

Tellme was bought by Microsoft in 2007. Versions for Helio, Windows Mobile and the iPhone are being developed. Tellme’s BlackBerry launch comes on the heels of Yahoo’s voice search system, oneSearch 2.0, which just included some BlackBerry models a few weeks ago.

Voice activation seems to be the future trend for mobile directories and other applications. With cell phones getting smaller, it becomes more and more difficult to use the keypad. Navigating while on the go isn’t so easy if you are physically moving. Look for voice activation to branch out into other mobile areas as the technology develops.

In recent months, Google has seen an acceleration of activity among mobile phone users. The company said this is evidence that the era of mobile Internet is at hand. Google has seen sharp increases in mobile Internet usage spurred by services Google has offered on BlackBerry, Nokia and iPhone devices.

“We have very much hit a watershed moment in terms of mobile Internet usage,” Matt Waddell, a product manager for Google Mobile, said in an interview. “We are seeing that mobile Internet use is in fact accelerating.

Waddell believes the availability of flat-rate data plans from carriers encourages consumers to connect with the Internet over their phones. The per-minute charges of the past discouraged mobile Web browsing. Waddell also remarked that improved Web browsers and better designed services from companies like Google are fueling growth.

Recent Google software has allowed mobile users to increase Web search speeds by up to 40%. The software shortcuts the time it takes for people to perform Web searches of Google by eliminating initial search steps of finding a Web browser on the phone, opening the browser, waiting for network access and getting to Google.com. The company said the increased convenience has increased the number of searches.

“We are actually seeing a 20 percent increase in the number of searches by people,” Waddell said.

“Faster is better than slow, especially on a mobile device, where fast is much better than slow,” Waddell said. “Not only are we are seeing increased user satisfaction but also greater usage.”

Users of phones based on software from Research in Motion, Nokia’s Symbian-based phones and now Microsoft Windows Mobile can download the software at http://mobile.google.com/.

Rumors that India will ban Research in Motion’s (RIM) BlackBerry service were quashed by the top official in the telecoms ministry today. Security agencies are concerned the service poses a risk because emails sent using the device cannot be traced or intercepted.

“There is no question of banning at this point,” Telecoms Secretary Siddhartha Behura told reporters on the sidelines of an industry conference.

“We are not interested that we say BlackBerry will not used in this country,” he said, adding the telecoms department was “very keen” the services should continue.

“The interactions are going on with various stakeholders including the home ministry … I do believe it will be resolved,” Telecoms Minister Andimuthu Raja said

RIM officials have been told of the department of telecoms concerns. Government officials will meet with representatives of the four mobile phone service providers who offer BlackBerry in India, Behura said.

Sector leader Bharti Airtel Ltd (BRTI.BO), No. 2 Reliance Communications Ltd (RLCM.BO), Vodafone Plc- (VOD.L) controlled Vodafone Essar Ltd and privately held BPL Mobile provide the service in India.

“We want operators to talk to BlackBerry people and put pressure on them to provide the necessary and satisfactory answers to security agencies. That is what we are talking to them,” Behura said.

Research in Motion (RIM), the maker of BlackBerry, is partnering with singer Will.i.am to help merge social networking and multimedia. This is seen as a move by RIM to gain more market share in the consumer retail market.

Will.i.am’s Dipdive online community and content will become wirelessly available on the BlackBerry, said RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie.

“Probably the two hottest trends in wireless are social networking … and the other one is the multimedia, which is principally portable music,” Balsillie said.

Will.i.am is famous for his career with the band Black Eyed Peas and his “Yes We Can” Barack Obama video, which became a huge hit on YouTube.

Balsillie said users currently view social networking and downloading music and other multimedia as two separate experiences. He thinks the two will merge into one.

Dipdive is an example of this. Political blogging meets music video content.

“It brings the artist into a direct relationship with the fan,” Balsillie said.

RIM is increasing its offerings of “lifestyle applications” like games and multimedia in an attempt to attract more retail users to the traditionally business focused BlackBerry.

Last fall RIM launched Facebook software designed for its smartphones to make it easier for customers to browse the popular social networking Web site.

As RIM tries to expand its consumer base, about two-thirds of all 12 million BlackBerry subscriptions are still classified as government or large corporation.

Research in Motion, the BlackBerry manufacturer, announced today that it underestimated last year’s fourth-quarter subscription additions by 15 to 20 percent. Last December the company said net subscriber account additions would total 1.82 million, but a more accurate count shows 2.09 million to 2.18 million new subscriptions.

Research in Motion credits the increase to the popularity of smartphones throughout the holiday selling season. BlackBerry is believed to have around 14 million subscribers.

“BlackBerry smartphones proved to be a big hit throughout the holiday selling season and we’re pleased to see RIM’s business momentum continuing in the new year,” said Jim Balsillie, co-chief executive. “The seasonal slowdown in net subscriber account additions that we expected in the new year did not occur and our focused execution with partners has continued to produce strong results within both enterprise and consumer segments.”

Research in Motion will report fourth-quarter figures on April 2. The company expects quarterly earnings per share of 66 cents to 70 cents on revenue of $1.80 billion to $1.87 billion. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expect a profit of 69 cents per share on revenue on $1.85 billion.

Handmark, a global distributor of mobile media has teamed up with I-play, a leader in mobile entertainment. Handmark now has the rights to distribute many of I-play’s most successful game titles worldwide for BlackBerry devices, through Handmark’s global distribution channels.

Handmark will handle distribution of such popular titles as The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo, which has topped 8 million downloads, and Jewel Quest. Jewel Quest is so popular that it has been downloaded over 40 million times since its debut in 2004. Other titles include, 3d Pool: High Roller, Mahjong Quest, My Dog, and Pillowfight. Other titles are sure to follow.

Handmark offers unique distribution through U.S. mobile operators, including on-device client and web portals, as well as both Handmark and operator branded desktop and on-device stores. Handmark distribution also includes on-device and web-based e-stores in Europe through relationships with major device manufacturers.

“I-play is pleased to work with Handmark and to be reaching the audience of BlackBerry users with our market leading casual oriented games,” said I-play’s CEO, David Gosen. “Our simple to play, difficult to master game development philosophy is a perfect fit for gaming on the BlackBerry device.”

“We are focused on building a robust portfolio focused on the very best mobile content for our customers and partners around the world,” said Douglas Edwards, Handmark co-founder and chief marketing officer. “I-play is a respected and well-known mobile entertainment creator that continues to develop top-quality titles and its products are a great addition to our catalogues.”

As readers of MobileCrunch know, the sales of mobile games are predicted to reach the $4 billion mark this year. This amount is predicted to double in the next four years. Big names in mobile software development and distribution are going to create partnerships like the one between Handmark and I-play to feed the need for mobile gaming entertainment.

Handmark
I-play

PressDisplay.com, an online newspaper kiosk, is now available on BlackBerry devices.

The service, which sports more than 500 newspapers and magazines from around the world, allows viewers to read the publications in their entirety. Daily alerts use keywords to notify users of relevant news updates.

The service costs $29.99 per month.

A demo of the service is on YouTube.

PressDisplay.com

Do you read newsletters on your Blackberry? It’s not fun. SmartBrief, publisher of 62 industry-specific newsletters across 18 industries serving more than one million subscriptions is offering an early solution.

Subscribers can open the e-mail on a Blackberry, Treo or Windows Mobile device, then click on “Wireless Version” to format the newsletter to fit the small screen. The solution is in response to requests from many subscribers. It’s one you’ll probably see more often with e-mail newsletters due to increasing usage of mobile devices to read e-mail.

Smart Brief

Verizon’s just launched the BlackBerry 8703e, an EV-DO capable BlackBerry device. The 8703e has your standard BlackBerry software that you either love or hate, and adds capability to tether your laptop to it to act as a modem.

The keyboard on the BB is a full QWERTY and not a half-QWERTY, as seen on smaller, candybar-shaped BlackBerries. This will be available for $349.99 with a two-year contract starting Sunday, September 17 online. If you’re looking to order this through business channels for your office, you’ll have to wait until September 18. In order to use the phone as a modem, you’ll have to sign up for BroadbandAccess Connect, which is $15 if you have a voice and unlimited data plan, or $30 if you only have a data plan.

If think access these fees are a lot, just think of all the money you’ll get when you sue your employer for BlackBerry thumb!

Press Release [Yahoo via Slashgear]